Chasing the truth
He knew him, nor Tails wouldn't have enough room to run fast enough to get up the iron pipe themselves and had therefore one hand clasped around Sonic's wrist as they went around in a circle. Following the circular motion with his eyes to avoid getting dizzy, they got up faster than he had anticipated, moving upwards, and stood on a platform in the same moment, staring at a group of egg pawns.
The second he had put up his guard, the robots were already disintegrating in a pile of oil and metal, a robot arm rolling toward his feet, as the spiked individual, who had destroyed them, was smirking with adrenaline.
"C'mon, let's get going before Egghead knows what's up!" Sonic directed, motioning an arm in the supposedly right direction, already running by the time his sentence had been said.
Knuckles only shared a brief glance with Tails, the fox having an equally excited and adrenaline filled gaze, before the latter ran, following in the hedgehog's heels. The echidna had a hard time brushing off his own smirk, as he ran as well, keeping up with the other two.
Being able to distract Sonic's hungry stomach with a promise of a feast of fast food the moment they get off the ship had entailed in an agreement to run to the end of the fortress, find Eggman's new weapon and destroy it, while subsequently figure out how their trap had worked in the first place.
Another atmosphere had settled between the group, an air of lightness and relief, one which brought with it the grins and the smirks. The pure notion of being free from a trap, free from an artificial world filled with danger upon danger, were something none of them could contain, as Knuckles felt his legs vibrate with similar adrenaline coursing through his being. The heavy weight of being trapped was gone, the somewhat philosophical wonderings of being alive or being a copy of himself didn't matter anymore, since he was him once again.
Running on a metal platform, punching a spiked fist into an egg pawn coming his way, jumping, and landing to a lower level, following. He felt livid, euphoric, a sense of being reborn into the world he had missed, as he once again knew exactly who he was. He was the guardian of the Master Emerald. And he knew this was the truth – since he could feel it in his body.
The master was greeting him home, a pool of warmth settling in his stomach, a prickling of Chaos energy running down his spine. It felt familiar, a sensation he had missed ever since their previous adventure had started, making him feel whole again, making him feel joy. Its presence was once again a part of him, as if his missing hand had been reattached, as its energy was coursing in his veins, letting him know it was safe.
It wasn't on the ship, since the energy was livid and warm, no chaotic warnings flashing through the back of his mind, nothing which would tell him it was in danger. On one hand, he knew it was nestled on Angel Island, out of harm's way from Eggman's sticky fingers. On the other hand, he knew more than one Chaos Emerald resided on the ship, both because he trusted Tails' words regarding how much power input the trap needed, and Sonic had said the doctor had at least one emerald on board. They just needed to get to them before he could do more harm.
With that thought in mind, the echidna was jumping and landing on another platform, speeding up and running around in another grated iron pipe, going upwards. Landing and getting his bearings, he observed as Tails flew and dive bombed another egg pawn, Sonic revving, and spin dashing into another group of the robots making the guardian pull back his arm and punch an unsuspected robot into the wall beside him. Smirking satisfied, the robot head had merged with the metal wall from the powerful impact, making Knuckles turn around.
Watching the fox for a second revealed him to be good, as he kicked at the last robot, vigilantly looking at the older team members to be sure they were fine.
The echidna bit his lip against the thoughts reoccurring to him, the image of him being lifeless on the rooftop, suddenly falling backwards and laying on the roof, unmovable. In the moment, he had highly suspected Sonic had done something and had in some way either brought Tails back or… or something worse.
He hadn't known at the time and had spent what had felt like hours in the same spot before an overwhelming exhaustion had come over him and had fallen into a black abyss. Seeing the kid standing beside him at the table had washed him with relief and seeing him now as he was following the hedgehog without difficulty – and the black eye gone – had convinced him he was alright.
The same goes for Sonic, who was laughing and front flipping unnecessarily, speaking about food the moment he had been able to. He hadn't allowed himself to imagine what had happened to the hedgehog the moment he had jumped, despite the immediate surprise at him taking the dive for them. Knuckles wanted to punch him for it, then had let it slide when he realized they were all doing fine and was back at it with destroying Doctor Eggman's toys like a regular Saturday afternoon.
He didn't know what day it was, but it didn't matter, as he jumped up another platform, panting to get air into his lungs. A yelp made him twist his head, observing as Sonic was jumping in the air, landing again before turning around, looking down at something.
"Looks like Egghead left some surprises for us," he regarded, pointing at a set of spikes which had emerged from the ground suddenly. "Really, he should invest in some new traps, these are getting old," he continued complaining, before turning around on his heel, running again.
Tails avoided the trap by flying, Knuckles jumping and landing without harm, hearing the former hum thoughtfully.
"You should be grateful. You always know what to expect when going through one of these Egg Carriers."
"Where's the fun in that?" Sonic argued, as he jumped past another set of spikes, running up a wall and backflipped, landing on a higher platform. Tails flew up whilst Knuckles opted to climb it, going up and turning around, jumping, and following the brotherly duo.
"All I'm asking is a little update ya know? Maybe some acid, electrified floors, spinning blades, or poisonous gas!"
Knuckles rolled his eyes into the ceiling as the sidekick was shaking his head.
"You're crazy," the echidna stated the obvious, as they continued running up another ledge, going higher up where lesser robots were patrolling.
"You mean adventurous Knux!" Sonic corrected, as he jumped a large feet deep gap, front flipping as if it was a game, landing and continued running.
The fox was still in the air as the echidna decided to jump, stretch his body, and let his long quills catch the wind, gliding across. Gliding and landing unceremoniously on his stomach, he got to his feet, following again.
"He means you're a daredevil," Tails recorrected, the three of them running along platforms, turning, and running down a corridor instead.
"Thanks for the compliment!" Sonic smirked, looking over his shoulder at them with a wink and a grin, before speeding up.
Knuckles decided to sigh this time around, knowing the hedgehog had a death wish somewhere deep inside of him – a real death wish.
"Hold on a second!" The echidna screeched to a halt upon Tails' exclamation, as the latter was descending and landing as well.
Knuckles looked up, but Sonic hadn't heard the sidekick and was still running, disappearing around a corner. He figured he would be back and therefore turned his attention back to Tails, who had crouched down and was looking into a large air vent, blinking thoughtfully. A breeze was coming through, making the echidna bend down to observe what he was looking at. It was a small tunnel, which could easily fit the young, not being longer than 35 feet with sunlight shining through in the other end.
"I think this leads to the upper deck on the outside. If we take this shortcut we'll make it in time," Tails explained, as one tail was slithering around his hip, his hand briefly digging before pulling out a wrench, working on taking off the vent. "It'll be a bit windy as usual, but we'll manage," he commented without worry, one bolt landing on the ground.
Knuckles had listened but was looking surprised at the tool in his hand, pointing at it confused.
"Where'd you get that from?" He asked, making Tails look up.
He glanced back at his wrench in his hand, frowning in confusion.
"I always have it," He stated, in a tone of voice which indicated Knuckles might as well have asked what color the grass is. The echidna responded by arching his brow and crossing his arms over his chest.
"Then why did you have your computer and your screwdriver with you in that world but not that tool?" He asked, knowing full well the fox hadn't pulled the wrench out at any moment in any of the biomes they've been in.
Tails was taking off the vent and leaving it on the ground when he saw him blink confused, looking at his tool again.
"Hmm, good question," he merely commented.
He sat and regarded the wrench for another minute, thinking thoughtfully about something, before hiding it back in his tail, starting to crawl into the metal tunnel. Knuckles turned his head when another breeze passed him, Sonic reappearing beside him.
"Where'd you guys go?" He asked, looking down at the sidekick disappearing into the air vent. The echidna crouched down as well, starting to follow the fox.
"In here," he merely said, frowning at the tight space, considering his broad shoulders.
He only heard an 'oh' of realization behind him, before he could hear the hedgehog starting to crawl as well, going after them. Frowning and blowing spiderwebs out of his face, he briefly stopped when Tails did, the latter plucking out his wrench again and worked on taking off the second vent. He noticed that the calm breeze had turned into strong gusts of wind, trying to look over the fox's shoulder to prepare himself for their continued travel.
He could only see a blue sky for the moment, sunshine shining through, though he was aware they were heading straight into rough winds and defensive weapons awaiting their arrival. This Egg Carrier reminded him a lot of a similar ship back when they had been chasing Eggman and the Phantom Ruby and been fighting his Hard Boiled Heavies in the meantime. Back then it had been almost impossible to glide and navigate through the air, something he took note of in the back of his mind as a triumphant sound came from the younger.
Tails lightly pushed the grated vent outwards, making it disappear in the wind. He looked over his shoulder at them for a second, before crawling out and jumping. Knuckles followed soon after, jumping with his feet first, the wind already pushing and pulling at him.
It was rough and harsh winds which met them, making him shield his eyes with his hand, realizing the ship was going at high speeds. Their trek forward was the roof of the ship, a couple of large helicopter-like propellers in the distance, as well as platforms raised in the air. If the wind wasn't their grand enemy, it would've been a piece of cake getting to the other side.
"A bit windy today!" Knuckles spared his energy of doing another eyeroll when the comment came from the hedgehog who had joined them. "We better get going if we don't wanna fly off!" he continued, one of the more reasonable comments he could've made.
It made the guardian nod in agreement nevertheless and was about to start running when Tails pointed at something in front of them firstly.
"Watch out for the missiles! They're hidden in the walls of the raised floor – if I remember correctly, they're sensor triggered instead of heat seeking, so getting past them should be easy. But keep an eye out!" He shouted past the wind, looking over his shoulder at the others to make sure they heard his warning.
Knuckles made a single nod in agreement and was about to start running when Sonic came past him again, a howling adrenaline filled battle cry following the blur he made as he sped forward. Tails spent no time following on foot, the guardian shielding his eyes with his arm again as he started running too.
It was difficult to keep his footing on the polished metal, continuing across the roof as he avoided missiles coming from somewhere underneath them and ahead of them. Ducking once, rolling, and looking over his shoulder to observe the weapon making holes where he'd been standing, turning around to look at the other two.
Sonic was way ahead of them, seeing him jump and land on a floating platform, attacking something he couldn't see. The fox was avoiding another missile, grabbing the wall when harsh wind tried to push him off, before trying to keep up. Knowing the only way to get back inside was to get out of here as fast as possible, made Knuckles get back up and start running again.
He jumped over a row of spikes, ducking at the next missile, feeling the adrenaline pumping in his veins, his eyes observant and concentrated on the next potential weapon. Panting lightly, and his hands slightly shaking, he slid across the metal, jumping, and realizing they were getting closer to a row of propellers, keeping the ship afloat.
The roaring sound of their spins made his ears ring, getting harder to move with the wind pulling and pushing at his body. He observed as Tails jumped and grabbed one of them, spinning around horizontally, before letting go and grabbing the next. Knuckles begrudgingly wondered where Sonic had gone when he hopped, taking hold of the rotor mast of the propeller.
The rotating and spinning weren't any different from a loop or spinning transportation devices he'd experienced before, though noted this was considerably faster. He concentrated and let go at the appropriate time, grabbing the next one, counting and looking past the dizziness, letting go again.
He landed again, taking a second to breathe and close his eyes, the wind pulling at him, before getting up and continuing to run.
"C'mon slowpokes!" Knuckles looked upwards where the call came from, looking directly at Sonic. The hedgehog was above them, standing on a tiny platform previously belonging to a badnik the echidna remembered. "There's chickens shooting pellets at me, you're missing all the fun!" He announced, before turning around and jumped to a platform, running up the wall. Trying to convince him to slow down would be a lost cause.
Tails had drawn the same conclusion as the fox merely looked after him, before stopping at a ledge and looked down briefly. He bit his lip, seemingly due to him looking down at the ground far beneath them, the ship floating several miles above the planet. He turned his head and looked up, seemingly thinking about something, before he leaped.
Knuckles saw him landing on a floating platform, being held afloat by propellers, before he jumped to the next. The guardian looked down as well, feeling an ounce of hesitation planting itself in his abdomen before he jumped.
Old habit made his spines flare, mentally getting ready for a glide to make sure he came across safely. Immediately the wind caught him, drifting, and pivoting dangerously away from the platform. Flaring down spines and flailing arms, he caught the edge of the metal platform with one hand.
He looked down, saw the ground moving underneath him, before gripping the edge with his other hand, pulling himself up. His heart was beating in his chest, his eyes wide as he took a couple of deep breaths to calm himself, having almost fallen off the entire ship. Swallowing something in his throat, and agreeing with himself to be more careful, he got up and continued running.
Jumping to the next platform and running upwards along walls of the outside of the ship, he turned around and saw what Sonic had been referencing. On a lonely floating metal platform sat a badnik looking like a chicken, its eyes narrowed as a row of pellets were shot directly at him.
Knuckles avoided them with ease, running to the edge and jumping with his fist pulled back. Ramming it into the badnik made it crumble and disappear in the wind instantly, leaving behind its transportation. The echidna looked up, noticing their trek going a bit more upwards before continuing forward to the end of the ship.
He saw Tails jump on a different badnik, decommissioning it, before traveling upwards without flying, to avoid being taken by the wind. The guardian followed his trek, jumping from floating metal platforms to badniks and further up, panting to get air back into his lungs, concentrating on every movement around him.
As he jumped again and landed on the next raised platform, he looked up at Sonic standing with his arms crossed, one foot quickly padding the ground.
"When did you guys get so slow?" The hedgehog asked, throwing out his arms while Tails emerged behind the echidna, joining the other two. Knuckles narrowed his eyes at the hedgehog, raising a fist in his direction.
"Ever since we came out of a machine which had been keeping us trapped for 9 days! We need to get going!"
"That's what I'm saying! But if you don't hurry up we'll-"
"If you don't slow down, we won't-"
"Stop! Both of you!" The last voice was the mediator of the trio, making the two arguing look the fox's way.
Tails was panting too, gripping tightly to the wall to avoid getting swept away, having a grin on his lips despite the urgent command.
"You're both right! Sonic, please keep up with us and try to calm down a little. Knuckles, I know the winds are strong, but we can make it, we just gotta keep going!" He rationalized, resolving the problem at hand in the blink of an eye, tightening his grip when the wind tried to sweep him away again.
Knuckles blinked, having no idea he'd been arguing because he'd been nervous about their predicament in the first place, and instead turned to look at Sonic. A frown was set in his brow as he was looking at the way Tails tried to fight the wind, before looking at Knuckles, a wide grin replacing his previous expression.
"You're right bud – we can fight when we're out of here!" Sonic agreed, lightly punching the echidna on his shoulder in a friendly gesture, still shouting over the wind.
Knuckles opened his mouth to answer, then didn't know what to say, and opted to nod in agreement instead. It made the hedgehog's grin widen, before he turned around on his heel, one hand shielding his eyes, his quills being brutally ruffled in the wind.
"Looks like this is the last stretch before we can get back inside!" He observed, making the echidna study their next challenge.
It was another row of platforms, going upwards and downwards, a couple of chickens floating in the air, being on guard for intruders. At the end was a wall going upwards, possibly leading to an opening back inside.
"Hang on tight!" Sonic shouted before he started running at a considerably lower speed than before.
Knuckles looked over his shoulder at Tails, though the fox was already running past him, determinately intending on keeping up with the hedgehog this time around. The echidna followed as he saw Sonic jump at the first badnik, spin dashing it to oblivion before going down, landing less elegantly than before.
The wind was harsher at this height, it being almost impossible to control his fall as he leaped again, holding on to the platform floor. Knuckles looked at the youngest who was jumping to the next platform, spinning around by hitting the chicken badnik with both tails, making it fall. Knuckles ducked when a row of pellets tried to shoot him down, smirking as he reeled back his arm and jumped, making the robot chicken crumble to oblivion.
He gripped the platform tightly with both hands, one eye being kept shut when the wind pulled at him, looking for an opening to jump. He observed Sonic jumping in the front, leaping and landing on a platform, before turning around.
"Missile!" Was what the echidna thought he had heard Sonic shouting, his voice getting pulled away in the air.
The warning rang true when he saw a rogue missile heading toward them, coming from seemingly nowhere.
"Watch out!" The hedgehog had avoided it by ducking, turning around when the missile was headed at Tails who was jumping.
In the air, he saw it heading for him, yelping in surprise as he twisted his body to avoid it.
The missile flew past, but the fox was caught in the wind, and falling.
"Tails!" Sonic shouted, fright more than anything plastered to the name, as Knuckles had seen the event transpire.
Without a second thought, he jumped.
His ears were ringing from the wind passing, his eyes watering as he was steering toward the falling teammate. He had no plan in mind, merely straightened his body, hands fisted at his front, and flared his spines, determined to control the wind to his will. He wobbled and was almost taking away as well, though grit his teeth, his heart beating, as he glided toward Tails.
Getting closer, Knuckles narrowed his eyes, the harsh wind running through his spines and body, the wind carrying forward as he reached him. He glided into him, his right arm catching him at the waist, making the fox let out a mouthful of air.
Knuckles wobbled dangerously, his eyes searching and looking for somewhere to land. He was only gliding toward a wall.
The echidna had half a mind to twist around in the wind to search for somewhere else, then realized he was gliding too fast to turn safely and instead prepared to slam into the wall. He flared down his spines, reeling back his left arm and thrusted it into the side of the ship.
His knuckles dug into the metal, his feet planting itself as well, the wind pushing them against the wall. He stood for a second breathing deeply, holding on tight to the panting fox resting against him, holding on with one arm.
"You, okay?" He asked, despite his own rapid breathing, his heart beating a million miles an hour. He wasn't used to being the one doing the daredevil stunts.
Tails moved, his entire upper body having rested against his shoulder and partially his back, each hand clinging to each shoulder in an awkward half hug, turning to look at the echidna. His blue eyes were wide with remaining fright, panting heavily to get air into his lungs, Knuckles feeling his hands shaking.
"Yeah… I'm okay," he answered, swallowing something in his throat, looking away briefly. "Man – I thought I was done for," he chuckled, taking his near-death experience lightly.
He looked back rather quickly; a smile plastered to his lips.
"Thanks for the save," Tails said afterwards, briefly looking down from where they were.
Knuckles observed him for a second, making sure the missile hadn't hit him in any way, or the wind having pulled something too harshly on him, though he seemed to be telling the truth, only remaining a little shaken up.
The echidna nodded to himself, swallowing something in his throat before looking up at where they were. The wall went all the way up to the platform which looked to be their way out of here, since he high above them saw a dark blue silhouette looking down at them.
"You're welcome," he remembered, before looking back at Tails, gaining his attention. "Hold on to me, I need both hands to climb. We'll meet Sonic at the top," the echidna explained, already concluding there was no way Tails could fly out of here, making the fox look up as well, blinking against the wind still pulling at them. He narrowed his eyes to seemingly get a better look at their destination, before nodding in agreement.
"Alright," he agreed, as Knuckles felt him tighten his grip around him, both tails winding around the echidna's back as well.
He pushed away the uncomfortable feeling in his pelt, instead letting go of the fox with one arm, making sure he wasn't going to fall, before climbing up.
It was easier moving when the wind was pushing them against the wall instead of away from it, making the echidna able to climb at a faster speed than anticipated, mentally making sure Tails wasn't going to be swept away again or his grip slackening. He was still panting lightly, his eyes focusing on the platform, blinking small pellets of metal out of his eyes, as he made it upwards.
"Knuckles!" He was already staring at the hedgehog who was laying down, reaching his arm down to the two.
The echidna climbed the rest of the way, before stopping and reaching his hand to Sonic. He grabbed on quickly, already pulling at the echidna who took hold of the edge of the platform, pulling himself up and over. He could feel Tails let go the moment they were on solid ground, the echidna taking his time to sit down on his knees, breathing slowly, the adrenaline still coursing in his veins.
He swallowed something in his throat, before turning his eyes back to the fox, making sure he indeed was alright. Tails was merely sitting and breathing, staring at nothing but his shaking hands on the metal, his eyes wide but was calming down. A firm hand landed on his shoulder, making the fox jump, as if realizing he wasn't alone, looking at the hedgehog.
"You guys alright?" Sonic asked, his eyes running up and down the body of the youngest, before they turned to the island dweller.
Knuckles was still breathing, not concentrating on the fact that Sonic had asked him the same question, only trying to wrap his mind around his rescuing stunt. He usually always thought his stunts through before initiating any kind of daredevil action, though this time around he had thrown caution to the wind and went without thinking. The stunt reminded him of something Sonic would do – it being careless and dangerous. Though, a part of him felt proud rather than shameful.
"We're okay," Tails answered when the echidna didn't, making Sonic look at him again. "Sorry I didn't see the missile in time," he apologized then, swallowing something in his throat, ears partially pulled back.
Sonic seemed to disagree, a frown appearing on his brow, as if the apology was redundant and irrelevant. Though, as fast as the thought had appeared, it disappeared, and was replaced with a relieved sigh, padding the fox on the shoulder.
"It's cool, it came outta nowhere," he smiled, before turning his head at Knuckles. "Thanks man," he said, as the smile widened.
The echidna watched him for another second, having mostly caught his breath again. If the thanks came from the notion of the hedgehog feeling useless in the situation, or a general appreciation for taking part in Tails' safety would remain Sonic's secret forever, though didn't think further on the matter when the hedgehog got to his feet.
"I'll run ya out of here," he offered, as he reached each of his hands to each team member, an invitation to help them to their feet.
Knuckles was still looking at the offered hand for a second, seeing in his peripheral vision Tails getting helped to his feet, before deciding to take it. His legs were slightly shaking when he was standing, though didn't have time to consider it, as Sonic's hand clasped around his wrist and started running.
The wind was helping their momentum, as the hedgehog ran up the wall, his feet pounding against the metal, the other two floating in the air. Knuckles still felt his body shaking with adrenaline when the blue sky and rough wind disappeared, and they were once again inside the ship, surrounded by cold, metal walls.
The echidna could hardly see where they were going, as it was a blur in front of him, and could only feel as Sonic went around in a loop, the wall curving backwards and forcing them in a circle. Coming around and now running on the floor, the hedgehog suddenly jumped and landed on a lower level, screeching to a halt.
Both Tails and him were trained in the art of stopping, considering Sonic had run with them numerous times, and therefore halted without incident. Knuckles stood for another second, realizing his legs had stopped shaking, and instead turned his head at Tails, who was still taking in oxygen, briefly leaving his hands on his knees.
"There," the echidna looked at Sonic as he turned around on his heel, a victorious smirk plastered on his muzzle. "One shortcut done!" He triumphed, giving the two of them a thumbs up, as if the harsh winds, weaponized badniks, and near-death experiences, were normal occurrences for their kinds of shortcuts. Knuckles knew this was exactly the case.
"Let's get moving again. Before the ship reaches Metropolis," Tails encouraged, swallowing something in his throat, having controlled his breathing once again, and looked ready to get going.
Knuckles was looking at Sonic who had opened his mouth to make a comment, when he was interrupted by an alarm blaring in their ears. The corridor they were standing in turned red, a high-pitched sound reverberating throughout, lights flashing in a warning.
"Looks like Egghead finally realized we're gone," Sonic merely commented, seemingly not minding the alarm or the flashing lights. Knuckles narrowed his eyes and watched as the sidekick's ears plastered to his skull from the loud noise.
"Let's find him and say hi!" The hedgehog decided, as he turned around on his heel again, already speeding forward.
Knuckles exchanged a glance with Tails, before the two of them followed the adrenaline bomb through the corridor.
The echidna could feel the adrenaline pumping in his veins, as he mentally prepared himself to confront the doctor who'd trapped them in a virtual world for far too long.
Payment was needed.
Metal shrapnel scraped along his body as he reeled back his arm, ducking at a swinging arm from the egg pawn and took a step back to avoid the energy blast headed for him. He kicked the robot heading for him, growling at the next one who tried to punch him in the face, retaliating by punching back. When it remained a heap of metal on the ground, he turned around to face the robot shooting at him, before realizing Tails had taken care of it.
Looking for Sonic, the hedgehog was spin dashing at a row of egg pawns, not seeing another one chasing him and reeling back its arm to punch him in the back of his neck. Knuckles launched forward, practically jumping into the attacking robot, rolling on the ground with it, before throwing a spiked punch into its face. Electricity snaked up his arms, oil splattering on his face as he got up when it was out of commission. He turned around, observing that the other two had taken care of the last robots, looking around themselves.
"This way! We're wasting time!" Tails hurried, as he was flying in the air with oil staining his fur, already flying through the room they'd met the wave of robots, heading for the next grated iron pipe to travel upwards in.
Sonic was already running, and Knuckles built up momentum and ran along with them, heading to the control center of the ship. Soon after the alarm had blared, more egg pawns and a few Areo-Cannons had tried to intercept them and hinder their travel to where Eggman was presumably hiding or preparing his weapon.
The echidna had no idea how much time was left, but considering the sidekicks' ushering and yelling, they had lost more time than anticipated fighting robots coming their way. It made the echidna narrow his eyes, concentrating on keeping up his momentum as he ran along the sides of the iron pipe, going upwards, following the blue blur in front of him.
Making it to the top, he turned his head, jumped, and continued running along the platform, panting to get air into his lungs. Sonic looked over his shoulder when he presumably heard it, a calculating expression forming on his face, turning to the flying sidekick as well, who was panting just as heavily.
"Grab on to me – we'll take the Sonic Express!" He suggested, as the hedgehog slowed down and reached both hands backwards.
Tails was quick to fly down and grab his left wrist, Knuckles reaching out his right hand, feeling as Sonic's fingers clasped on. They went marginally faster in an instant, the echidna's feet lifting from the floor as he was taken through more tunnels, running through another loop. Narrowing his eyes against the wind and letting his body turn and twist with Sonic's movements gave them the momentum they were seeking to push forward.
He hardly noticed as they barreled through a group of egg pawns, a couple of energy blasts following their trail before they disappeared too. Traveling across the ship in the blink of an eye was a mode of transportation he hadn't gotten used to yet, as he couldn't travel at the same speeds Sonic was going at, having no idea where they were initially going.
How the hedgehog could see where he was going, was a mystery the echidna couldn't solve. It didn't matter either way, as he closed his eyes for a brief moment, reaching for the energy of the Master Emerald.
It warmed him instantly, a sense of comfort overcoming him from knowing it was safe and sound back on the island, out of harm's way. Its energy resonated with him, feeling it course briefly through his veins, letting him know it was present and safe, letting him know he could do what he needed to do here without worry.
Therefore, Knuckles opened his eyes again as he could feel Sonic slowing down considerably.
The blurred colors turned into coherent pictures, as the metal walls and floor became solid once again, lowering his feet to the ground and running the last mile with the hedgehog. Knuckles realized they had been traveling through a tunnel, as a wider opening was ahead of them, leading them into a larger room.
He narrowed his eyes in preparation for what could be their final battle, as Sonic led them through.
When he skidded to a stop, making the other two plant their heels into the ground as well, Knuckles was already looking around, seeing metal walls bending into a dome, as they had entered a several feet tall and wide arena. It was these sorts of rooms the doctor built when he had a large robot ready to be activated.
Sonic let go of his wrist, taking another step into the room and left his hands on his hips, looking around as if he was touring an art museum. Knuckles turned his head to catch Tails' expression, the fox observing the room as well, looking determined, behind appendages whipping. When the echidna looked back at the hedgehog, he saw him stand on his toes, cupping his mouth with his hands.
"Helllloooo?! Eggman?! What kind of hospitality is this?! I'm hungry!" He shouted into the air, his voice bouncing back and forth between the cold metal walls.
No immediate answer was given, making the impatient hedgehog sigh, tapping his foot into the ground, looking at the invisible watch on his wrist. Knuckles narrowed his eyes, opening his mouth to shout a chosen set of words, when a rumbling echoed through the room.
He turned on his heel as it came from behind, standing on his guard when he saw a large metal door open into the ceiling, revealing something hidden behind it.
It revealed itself to be a robot, a larger humanoid robot, one the echidna had never seen before. The exterior was designed after the doctor's own attributes, as it had large blue optics, a pointed metal tip resembling a nose and evident broad shoulders, arms, and legs. About 15 ft tall, the robot was bulky and thick, the supposed hands being three claws, the feet flat and large, perfect for stomping. Primarily red and gray, with tones of yellow, its designer's logo was plastered to the shoulders, the main torso large and presumably hid missiles inside.
When the entirety of its being was visible, its optics glowed, slowly lifting one large foot into the room. As it landed, the metal floor vibrated under their feet, the echidna having to swing his arms to stabilize himself.
"What is that?!" Knuckles looked at Tails from his question, confusion more than anything being evident in his voice.
"A Death Egg robot," Sonic answered, sounding exasperated as he sighed, shaking his head. "Seriously, how many times does he have to recycle the same robot? A little challenge could be nice!" He shouted at the walking metal, as it took another step toward them, its menacing and threatening demeanor not reaching him.
"What do you mean? I've never seen this one before," Tails continued, putting up his guard as the robot lifted its leg again, taking a third step toward the trio.
"Nah you haven't. I fought the first one on the Death Egg, back when I first met you. The second one I defeated about a year ago – I told you about it when we went to Sylvania Castle for the first time, remember?" He asked, looking over his shoulder as the robot planted its foot into the ground, suddenly standing still.
Knuckles looked at it for a second, making sure it wasn't going to do a rogue attack, before regarding the fox. He was blinking in mild confusion, before scratching his chin, the other hand resting on his hip.
"Yeah, now I do. I just thought it would be more… uhm, what's the word-" -
"Intimidating? Scary? Pretty? Useful?"
"Threatening," Tails finished, both hands resting on his hips, as the hedgehog snorted amused.
"Mocking someone's design in their own home is not polite fox," A voice spoke from the walls, making Knuckles look around, knowing well who it belonged to.
Turning his head, he caught sight of a metal door opening into the ceiling, being large and wide, showcasing the man hiding behind.
Floating in his classic Egg Mobile, Doctor Eggman himself drove into the room, looking down at them through his glasses, an annoyed frown plastered on his brow. He stopped beside the robot's head, whilst Sonic reached both hands toward him, letting out a triumphant sound.
"Yo Egghead! Glad to see you, where have you been? We've been walking around for a while, and we haven't even been offered a snack!" Knuckles resisted the urge to sigh, instead concentrating on keeping eye contact with the doctor and the robot, making sure they didn't move suddenly.
Instead, the human arched a brow at the hedgehog.
"Is food the only thing you're capable of talking about?" He asked, sounding rather exasperated, as if he'd heard the comment too many times before.
"That's what Knuckles said!" The echidna whipped his head at the hedgehog, seeing a smirk wide on his lips, merely staring at the mad doctor. No immediate response was given, instead the madman sighed seemingly to himself.
"As much as it pains me to say it, I am impressed. How exactly did you get out of the hibernation stations?" He asked, sounding generally curious, waving a hand at the trio.
Knuckles was ready to shout at him 'it was none of his business', when Sonic let out a giggling sound, planting his hands on his hips.
"Ah you know, it wasn't too hard to get out. Tails did a little tapping on his tablet, I went skydiving, and we woke up in your little salon. You could've left some instructions on how to turn off those helmet things though," the hedgehog enumerated.
Precise and simple. As if their entire journey with running away from falling rocks and trees, surviving tsunamis, poisonous mists, fallen caves, hungry swamps, living nightmares, fiery blazes, phantom pictures, and threatening robots had been a walk in the park. The hunger, the thirst, the frustration and anticipation, arguments, mistakes, accidents, were a mere experience which came with the entire package. The worry, the wondering, the existential crisis, and the practical idea of having to be killed in order to escape was described as nothing. It was impressive.
Knuckles wasn't too sure whether he agreed, though his musings were interrupted by Eggman's surprised expression.
"You had the tablet with you? The Miles Electric? How's that possible! It wasn't supposed to be a part of the program!" The doctor was pointing at Tails, his behind appendages whipping, his hands still resting on his hips. He arched a brow in curiosity though, narrowing his eyes.
"What do you mean I wasn't supposed to have it with me? What is your machine built on?" He asked, pointing back at the doctor. Eggman didn't answer him, merely crossed his arms over his chest, one finger tapping into his arm.
"I suppose you interpreted the algorithm correctly, and found the program's security codes?" The doctor ignored the question, sounding generally curious, as if he was searching for the discrepancy to fix it later. Knuckles wanted to voice that out loud, though instead saw as Tails exclaimed a 'pfft', crossing his arms over his chest.
"I did more than that. I ran diagnostic programs, decompiled your coding, analyzed your processors, bypassed your firewalls, and temporarily neutralized your network traffic, hid my own traffic, gained access to your files, and figured out the software's main and secondary components. In short – I outdid you," Sonic turned around and high-fived the genius.
Knuckles blinked, understanding none of what was mentioned, though turned back to Eggman. He seemed unbothered by the enumeration, instead scoffed, and leaned both hands on the sides of the Eggmobile.
"Still, you have no idea what the program is built on, do you?" He asked mockingly, a wide smirk with a row of teeth being showcased. Knuckles turned his head to see Tails narrow his eyes at him, putting up his guard again.
"I'm waiting for you to tell me that."
"Then I'm sorry to disappoint you, but some evil secrets are to be kept hidden from curious little foxes," Eggman said, looking to be more than satisfied about that fact.
"Quit playing games Egghead and get on with it. Hand over the Chaos Emeralds and turn this ship around – your Eggnesia machine will not be blasting anybody today!" Sonic interrupted, getting back on track as he put up his guard as well. The evil doctor did nothing but laugh, a bellowing thing echoing around the room, him being the only person amused.
"I should have figured you would know about it. Well, Sonic, since you have escaped my great trap, I think it's only fair if you leave and let me get back to business!"
"Not a chance Eggbelly," the hedgehog smirked, the echidna seeing his eyes glinting with familiar adrenaline, the pure prospect of fighting the robot filling him with joy. It momentarily disappeared when he padded his growling stomach.
"Geez, you should change your name Eggman, all this talk about food is making me hungry!"
"In case you forgot, you were the one who gave me the name in the first place!"
"And who chose to adopt it?" Tails pointed out, with an arched brow.
It made the mad doctor growl low in his throat before he pulled a lever and floated backwards in his Eggmobile.
"You've been talking for too long. Soon, the Egg Carrier will reach Metropolis, I will test out my new weapon, and have the perfect plans to conquer the world once and for all!" The doctor bellowed, laughing at them, laughing at their entire predicament.
When he had finished, he was smiling with malice, venom dripping from his lips, as he briefly looked at the Death Egg Robot.
"Finish them," he said calmly.
The robot's optics began glowing, reeling back its arm as Eggman floated away. Knuckles jumped and rolled when the robot hurled its fits into the spot he'd been standing a second ago, looking around frantically. Sonic and Tails had managed to move as well, the fox flying in the air, looking at the robot vigilantly while the hedgehog stood and observed as the machine lifted its fist.
"That fist can come off and chase us," he explained, the large robot moving forward again.
Knuckles rolled, feeling as the floor under him shook and groaned, as it had attempted to stomp him. Scrambling to his feet, he observed as Sonic ran around it, curled into his spin dash, and rammed himself into the enemy's back. The robot stumbled forward as they collided, its head turning around faster than anticipated, swinging at the blue hedgehog.
"We gotta get moving!" Tails yelled from where he was flying, moving out of the way as the robot went to grab him. "The control room is right there!"
Knuckles jumped with his fist reeled back, yelling out a battle cry as he thrusted his hand into the robot's knee. It took a step backwards, some metal plating flinging from the impact, as the echidna landed, turning around to the fox. He saw as he pointed to the opening Eggman had come from, realizing there were what looked to be terminals or some other machinery for controlling the ship inside the room.
"This is the plan!" The echidna looked at Sonic as he rolled to avoid the robot stomping at him, his green eyes fastening on the island dweller. "Tails and Knuckles, you guys go in and stop the ship and the weapon! I'll keep this hunk of junk distracted!" The hedgehog yelled, running again to avoid the fist aiming for him.
"You got it!" The fox quickly confirmed, looking at Knuckles, who was looking back at him.
The echidna was breathing deeply, looking back at Sonic as the robot released pressurized air around the wrist, the fist detaching itself and going for the hedgehog. He yelped in surprise, running around the room. The echidna knew he could take care of himself, repeating the reassurance in his mind, before he looked back and nodded at the fox, turning around and running.
"Hey! Keep away from there!" Knuckles turned his head when he saw Eggman headed for them in his Eggmobile, one arm raised at them.
The echidna narrowed his eyes, observing as the doctor was aiming for the flying fox, and therefore jumped, his arm reeled back. When he punched the side of the mobile, the doctor was yelling as it flew backwards into the wall, crashing hard with the metal.
Smirking satisfied with himself; the island dweller went into the room where Tails was already standing. The fox was punching codes and numbers into the keyboard in front of him, his eyes moving back and forth on the screen in front of him, texts and popups, Knuckles having no idea what was, appearing and reappearing.
Tails kept typing for another moment, then clicked on two buttons and pulled a lever to his right. Knuckles could hear as the ship powered down, his body dragging backwards by the force of the Egg Carrier, taking a step back to keep his balance.
"Alright. The ship should completely stop in about 2 minutes," Tails explained, then returned to the controls in front of him. "C'mon, where are you-" he trailed off, typing something, doing something.
Knuckles felt useless standing and watching, turning around to check if Sonic needed help. The hedgehog was running away from another stomp from the robot, making the former promptly stop, blowing a raspberry and running again when the fist chased him again. He would be fine.
"There," Knuckles turned around when the fox found what he was looking for, observing as a display of the weapon was showcasing on the screen in front of him. "Now I just gotta-" Tails trailed off again, typing some numbers or something, then promptly frowned when nothing happened.
He let out an impatient sound, some more pop ups appearing, something getting denied, typing faster.
"Tails?"
"I'm trying," the fox answered quickly, making the echidna turn around, observing as Sonic was still doing fine, looking back at the screen.
His blue eyes traveled from the screen to the keyboard in the matter of minutes, his fingers furiously going back and forth, the frown on his brow deepening with every second.
"I don't get it! It should be here!"
"What should be there?!"
"The weapon's software! I'm looking for the program which-" he cut himself off, his fingers briefly stopping their typing, another sound coming from him.
"Unless-" he trailed off again, completely erasing what he had just written, looking at the screen.
Knuckles tried to follow as well, feeling as the ship was slowing down considerably under his feet, hearing as Eggman was yelling something behind them.
"I was right!" Tails triumphed, pausing at the same blueprint of the weapon, something red blinking at the tip of the cannon. "It needs to be manually deactivated! Why did he make it manually? Does he live in the Middle Ages or something?"
"Tails, focus! How do we stop it?" Knuckles barked harsher than he realized, though the fox merely pointed at the blueprint again. The cannon was long, getting narrower at the tip where Tails' finger was showing.
"There's a control panel there which can deactivate it with the right combination, though punching it should work just fine. We have to get outside to do it," he explained, looking at the blueprint again, before blue adrenaline filled eyes turned to the echidna.
Knuckles looked back at him, looking at the screen again, back at the fox. He knew the winds outside would still be rough and harsh, considering the height they were floating in, making it difficult to move forward. Tails had already been swept away once, and looking over his shoulder, he noticed Sonic stumbling a step, his joking demeanor dimming as the battle continued.
"You go help Sonic. I'll destroy the weapon," He volunteered, making Tails blink, looking over his shoulder at the battle behind them.
"You sure?"
"Yes. Make sure Eggman doesn't turn the ship on again," the echidna argued, turning on his heel and walking to the wall, reeling back his arm. The adrenaline which followed made an impressive hole in the metal, wind already blowing into his face.
"Okay. Be careful," he looked over his shoulder at Tails who smiled at him.
He began flying, and quickly disappeared out of the room, the echidna hearing him yell Eggman's name.
Knuckles stood for a second, closing his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths, reaching for the Master Emerald's guidance, before he punched the wall again. Making the hole bigger and letting more wind inside, he swung his arm outside and fastened his knuckles into the exterior of the ship.
He took in another deep breath, before stepping out, clinging to the wall immediately. Despite the ship floating still in the air, harsh winds were once again pulling and pushing at his body, an otherwise unfamiliar sensation, considering the Master Emerald protected Angel Island from the phenomenon.
Pushing that fact aside, Knuckles started climbing sideways, narrowing his eyes, trying to look where he was going to the best of his ability. Below him, the ship expanded outwards, a dark gray roofing covered some of the base inside, stretching toward a point where he could see the cannon was attached.
The echidna kept climbing, his eyes watering up from the wind, jumping when he could land safely. He stumbled, landing on his knees as he was almost swept away, looking up and started running. Shielding his head with one arm, he battled through the rough wind pulling at his body, breathing calculated and sprinting across.
Making it to the end of the ship, he looked at the cannon attached to the point, it being dark gray in color, newly built with the metal shining in the sun. Knuckles grunted something to himself, taking a step forward.
A gust of harsh wind attacked him from the side in a moment of inattention, tumbling over without control.
Limbs thrashing and trying to catch the floor, scrambling, and tumbling, he went over the edge. He thrusted out both arms, gripping anything, something, his heart beating in his chest, hands shaking.
His fist collided with the wall, his spikes getting stuck, making his body slam into the edge of the ship. The air was knocked out of his lungs in the same moment, taking a second to regain his breath. His heart sitting in his throat, he closed his eyes as his other arm joined the first one.
The wind was still pushing at him, making him realize he couldn't stay here for long, taking in a deep breath and opening his eyes. He climbed up again, practically crawling on the roof of the ship as he advanced toward the cannon once more.
Being more mindful of the wind, he got up on his knees and feet slowly, before jumping and landed on the weapon. It groaned in displeasure as the echidna slowly advanced forward, as the clean metal was slippery and the wind rougher.
Moving forward and eventually going down on hands and knees, he dug his knuckles into the weapon, pushing himself against it. Another gust of wind attempted to pull him away, making him stop and make himself as small as possible, gritting his teeth against his predicament.
He needed to keep going! Sonic and Tails had been the ones making sure he had come home safely again, they had been the ones to reunite the Master Emerald and him, they had been the ones who had saved him. He couldn't give up now!
An adrenaline filled battle cry roared in the wind, as he pushed forward, ignoring the attacks, concentrating on the narrow tip. He came closer, the metal getting more slippery as he continued, his determination palpable.
Knuckles looked around, saw something which looked to be the controls Tails had mentioned, as he could see a couple of buttons and a lever. He narrowed his eyes further, reeling back his arm to throw a punch, and aimed for the controls.
As his fist collided with it, he could feel a surge of electricity traveling up his arm, making him let out a yelp of pain, pulling back instantly. It sparked and hissed at him for another moment, his violet eyes widening as he felt the cannon underneath him power down.
It remained silent for another second, the wind only howling at him, a part of him believing he had done it. Although, he remained unsure.
Biting his lip as an idea came to mind, Knuckles began crawling backwards, still holding on to the slippery metal, advancing to the main ship again. As he was on the roof once again, he reeled back his arm once more, thrusting his fist into the metal casing.
A hole was visible, only seeing wires and pipes, before he thrusted his arm once again, making it wider. The metal groaned, something breaking, making him punch it again.
In an instant, the cannon crumbled as it gave way to the weaker point he'd made, the wind, for once, being in his favor as well. It fell apart and detached itself to the ship, Knuckles following it as it was caught in the wind, falling to a forest floor beneath them, knowing nobody would get hurt.
He watched as the metal disappeared out of his range of vision, a grin coming to his lips, as he turned around.
Pushing against the wind, and avoiding getting swept away again, Knuckles ran along the roof, climbed the side of the ship, and swung himself back into the control room. He hadn't realized he was breathing heavily from adrenaline, his hands shaking from the entire event.
The echidna shook his head to clear his mind, instead ran out the door, looking at the battle still ongoing. The large Death Egg Robot had acquired numerous holes and scars, wires being exposed on different parts of the robot, sparks and electricity flaring from certain points. Its right shoulder was almost loosely hanging from its hinges, the left optic turned off, the glass cracked.
Tails flew away as the robot tried to swipe at him, the kid having been in the middle of pulling some more wires, Sonic running away from its stomping foot.
He didn't see as the other fist headed for him, the hedgehog colliding with a wall of metal, making him tumble to the floor.
He remained still as the right foot lifted to stomp.
"Sonic!" Knuckles yelled, as he started to sprint toward the hedgehog, the large robotic foot lowering to the ground.
He knew he wouldn't make it to pull him out of there, the echidna instead sprinting across the arena, the shadow of the foot darkening him as he made it underneath. He stood beside Sonic and lifted his arms.
When the metal limb collided with his hands, a pained sound yelled across the room, his arms getting brutally bent in the wrong direction, something popping somewhere, gritting his teeth.
He was holding it.
"Knuckles?!"
"Move!" The echidna knew it had been the hedgehog's surprised shout of his name, as he was currently holding the foot afloat, the robot applying more pressure.
"No, hang on, I got an idea," Whatever plan Sonic had in mind, Knuckles didn't have him to protest as the hedgehog was gone in the same moment.
He kept holding on, however, feeling as his arms were hurting, feeling as the Master Emerald's energy was swirling in his veins, throbbing, and soothing, gritting his teeth even more.
The pressure suddenly released when he saw a blue blur in his peripheral vision, a curled-up ball of blue quills hurling itself into the sole of the foot. The weight shift was too much for the robot to handle, as the Death Egg fell backwards.
Knuckles watched and felt as it landed, the entire floor under him shaking violently, keeping balance with his arms. An incredulous 'no!' came from Eggman, making the echidna move.
He jumped on top of it, running, saw as Tails swooped down and pulled out some wires, Sonic spin dashing into the shoulder, and Knuckles jumped, reeling back his arm, aimed at the chest. As he thrusted into the metal, it split and groaned, electricity released and oil splattering, making him pull back and jump away.
He ducked when the right robot arm swung at him, turning his head, observing as Sonic had run away, running up the wall of the dome. Tails distracted Eggman as he was about to fire some missiles at him, the echidna observing as the hedgehog made it to the top of the ceiling. He jumped, curled inwards to his spin dash, and hurled himself at the robot.
Knuckles jumped, hearing as the metal creaked, the Death Egg screeching an ear-piercing noise, electricity swirling about, as Sonic went through the body of the robot.
The hedgehog jumped out minutely, ran away as Tails screamed it was going to explode, flying toward the other two.
Knuckles turned around on instinct and started running, hearing as the robot powered up behind him, feeling his heart beating rapidly in his chest.
He looked over his shoulder, saw as Sonic reached for the flying fox, grabbed him, sped up and hurled Knuckles to the ground.
The echidna felt as Sonic crashed beside him, clenching his eyes shut and called for the Master Emerald's energy, feeling his pulse in his veins, no more thoughts, no more words.
The robot exploded.
