A/N: Pain without love pain can't get enough! TW for violence, cussing and descriptions of flashbacks/dissociation as usual

The ship was strangely quiet that morning, and the conversation between Eggman and Mecha didn't disturb the peace. The two walked slowly down the corridor, just appreciating each other's company in this rare moment of order.

"Doctor. May I ask a question?" Mecha asked, looking up at his creator.

"I think you just did, Mecha." Eggman jokingly replied, forgetting for a moment that the robot didn't always understand sarcasm.

"Correct. Then, may I ask another question?" Mecha responded quite predictably. He kept looking up at Eggman innocently.

"Ask away, Mecha! That's what I'm here for." Eggman chuckled his reply, realizing his mistake.

Mecha came to a stop. "What is my function now?"

Eggman stopped too and looked at him. "It's the same it's always been! To defeat that blasted hedgehog." He reached down and scrubbed Mecha's head gently. "Why, what's going on in that CPU of yours?"

Mecha almost looked puzzled. "But I am flawed." He looked at his hands. "And I... Betrayed you."

"Come again?"

Mecha turned to face him. "I accompanied Metal Sonic in their endeavors to rule the world. In doing this, I did not make any attempt to free you from captivity." He tilted his head, trying to process the more emotional implications of that. "Did this not... cause you to feel betrayal? Why are you not responding accordingly?"

Eggman patted Mecha's back, prompting him to start walking again. "Not at all, my boy. Yes, it was a shock - you were, or, are, my most trusted robot after all. But, you did what you thought was best. You always do."

"You are not angry with me." Mecha observed. "Therefore, you do not seek to punish me. Is that correct?"

"I would never punish you, Mecha." Eggman gently reminded him with a smile. "As I said, you always do what you think is best. If that meant following your brother and watching over him, then I understand that."

"You are most understanding." Mecha mused, more to himself than in reply to Eggman. "Humans are... complex. I have now encountered humans who sought to punish me for variables outside of my control. And then there is you. You were directly affected by my actions, yet you do not..." He paused, stiffening a little as his processor jumped ahead of him. "You do not seek to harm me. Why? What draws you to that conclusion?"

"What those people did to you was wrong," Eggman stated firmly. "Don't think for one second that I would treat you like... L-Like I always say, you're a person, and just because you can handle something, it doesn't mean you deserve it."

"Where does my programming begin and my personhood end." Mecha asked flatly. "Perhaps I am not a person. Perhaps it is just humans anthropomorphizing my behaviour, seeing what they wish to see." If he wasn't really a person, then did anything happen to him at all?

"I never programmed you to love your brothers." Eggman quickly countered him. "Or anything, for that matter."

Mecha stopped sharply. "I do not feel love."

"Maybe you don't feel it, but you show it. It's in how you behave, Mecha." Eggman countered him rather confidently. "And it's very interesting that you didn't outright say that you don't love them." He opened the door to the computer room and gestured for Mecha to go first.

Mecha tried to say it whilst stepping in. "I do not... I..."

Eggman listened to him struggle and offered him a lifeline. "You taught yourself to love. Think of it as... self-programming." He followed behind the robot and led him to the computer he needed Mecha to use.

"Very well. I accept your argument." Mecha dipped his head in deference, knowing he had nothing on the emotional side of the argument.

"Again, you're not just a machine, Mecha. You are a person."

Mecha tilted his head, thinking to himself. "And you are not merely another biological organism."

"That's what I like about you, son. You're so sensible. So straightforward. You say exactly what you think." Eggman tapped a finger on top of the robot's head. "This is why you're still one of my top-ranking robots."

Mecha stared up at him, silently questioning that. Was he really still in authority at all, after everything?

"You and Metal are like my second-in-command. My right-hand 'bots, if you will. That hasn't changed." Eggman reassured him. "So, does that help to answer your first question? About your function?"

"Affirmative. My function remains to defeat the hedgehog and to serve as a commander of the Eggman Empire."

"Precisely!"

Mecha paused, thinking to himself. "However, with my repository of knowledge, I expect to perform better." He turned to the main computer and tapped a key to bring the screen online. "I have conducted several diagnostic checks of my programs. Perhaps I should first begin cross-checking with the computer systems-"

"Is that really necessary?" Eggman asked, raising a brow and folding his arms.

Mecha nodded. "I believe so. I have proven to be flawed and vulnerable. As such, my deductions should now be treated with skepticism."

Eggman moved to stand beside him. "What do you mean? There's nothing wrong with your deductions." He fixed his glasses in thought. "Is this because of what happened?"

Mecha firmly shook his head. "What is done is done. And perhaps, it is just as well. The events that transpired have indicated that I am damaged in some fashion. I must find the malfunction and eliminate it, for you would be ill-advised to rely upon my judgements."

Eggman reached over and took Mecha's hand away from the keyboard. "Mecha."

Mecha didn't look at him. "I am cautious about giving you and Metal Sonic unsound advice. If it is my function to act as an enforcer and advisor, I must be efficient at those tasks." He turned his head slightly, giving Eggman a sidelong look. "Perhaps it would be better if you assigned another unit to be in command."

"Mecha, you are in command."

"But I have not been able to isolate this malfunction. I might make a mistake that could cost the-"

"Yes, you might, Mecha. But that's okay." Eggman firmly told him. He placed Mecha's hand back down. "It's possible to make no mistakes and still fail. It's possible to make mistakes and still win. That's not weakness. That's just life. It happens."

Mecha's silence was tangible. Eggman sighed.

"Mecha. The chain of command isn't just about who has power." Eggman continued, taking Mecha by his shoulders and maneuvering him so that they were facing each other. "It's about trust. And you, my boy, have proven to be extremely trustworthy and sensible. I know that if that blasted hedgehog or rabble of a military attacked us, you would be the first to step in to protect my empire. Even from other robots like that, erm... Egg Pawn, if it tries anything."

Mecha nodded. "Affirmative. I believe that I understand." It was strange, he noted, that this "chain of command" appeared to be based on emotion just as much as logic. It was that part that he couldn't wrap his processor around. This "trust", built on faith in his abilities, rather than cold hard facts...

"You boys are my dream come true. With your help, I can expand the Eggman Empire across the globe, and finally, conquer the world!" Eggman gloated, patting Mecha on the back again. "Well... When I'm not burning midnight oil fixing you all, that is. You're-"

Mecha gave a beep of alarm at that. "Doctor. That is most inadvisable."

"What is? Conquering the world?" Eggman scratched his head, confused. "That's been the plan all along."

"If you attempt to ignite petroleum aboard this ship at zero hundred hours you risk activating-"

"Ah. It was just a figure of speech, Mecha."

"Affirmative. Then, I conclude that I will be "burning the midnight oil" whilst undertaking this work, too." Mecha played around with the etymology of that phrase in his head. "How interesting. I must use this phrase more often."

"Indeed, my boy." Eggman patted him on the back and started to walk away. "Make sure you stop to recharge, alright? And don't forget I'm leaving the ship for a few hours to scout out some places for the empire!"

"Affirmative."

Mecha was left alone in the monitor room. He was quite content to work in silence without any distractions or disturbances. No threats, no problems, just him and his task to complete. He logged in on the computer and went to open the file for his software and security updates, privately very relieved that he had been given the option to install them himself when he was ready.

But the door suddenly opened behind him, disrupting his peace.

Mecha was startled for a brief moment. His hands jerked away from the keyboard and he stiffened, his wrist lights flashing on in alarm.

"Sir?"

Just another robot.

Mecha relaxed and looked over his shoulder. He performed a quick scan of the other robot to get their designation. "Greetings, EP Unit 400." He looked back down at the keyboard and closed the file, slowly dimming his wrist lights back down. "What is it that you require?"

The robot didn't answer straight away. They seemed hesitant, as if there by force.

"I hereby request that you remove Metal Sonic from the ranks."

Mecha didn't even look at them. "Request denied."

"Why?"

Mecha paused to move the file into a folder he created. "Because I am in authority. You are not. Therefore, my decision overrules your request." He glanced briefly over his shoulder. "Does that answer your query sufficiently?"

"W-With all due respect, you have no recourse in this situation-"

Mecha stopped, finding their response amusing. "I do not require any further recourse. I have been appointed to a position of authority by our creator. Therefore, I am authorized to make executive decisions such as this."

"Yes, Mecha Sonic."

"I regret that this decision has disappointed you. However, it is the most logical decision." Mecha mulled over the emotional side of the argument a little longer before continuing, wanting to offer something of substance to the other robot. "You do not need to forgive Metal Sonic. You may remain angry. It is your right to do so, and I cannot take that right away from you, nor do I seek to. However, he has been given another chance - just as any unit from your squadron would be given one, too."

"Yes, sir. I was just, erm... Forwarding a message on."

"Indeed. Furthermore, Metal Sonic has an abundance of experience that is valuable to our cause. He is experienced in commanding squadrons and knows our number one priority enemy very well." Mecha further elaborated. "To eliminate this source of knowledge and skill would be most wasteful. We need him and his expertise." He paused again before adding something. "You may relay this information to the unit who sent you. If they take issue with my decision, they should speak with me in person. Messages can become lost in translation if a messenger is sent in their place."

Apparently satisfied, the Egg Pawn approached and stood right by Mecha's side. Mecha looked down at them and tilted his head.

"You've changed."

"I do not understand." Mecha tilted his head the other way. "Please elaborate."

"You're less scary than before. I think... I believe you and Metal Sonic when you say you've changed. I'm sorry for what I just said."

Mecha was silent for a little while, ruminating on that. Less scary? Was he scary at some point? If he had been, it wasn't intentional. He was just carrying out orders, right? What was so scary about that?

He glanced up to the screen in front of him again. That was when something appeared in a notification that made him flinch and tense.

Almost without warning, he started laughing without feeling anything internally. He turned away and held onto the edge of the table as if letting go would make him fall.

The Pawn beside him recoiled in bewilderment. "S-sir? What's so funny?"

Mecha just kept laughing. He let go and crouched on the floor instead, holding his muzzle plate with a hand as if trying to hold himself back. And then something in him shifted, and he went silent. His hand moved up to clutch at his ears instead and his hands started shaking. His fingers rattled against his armour and he ducked his head down as if avoiding something coming down on him. He couldn't explain why he had laughed - the anxiety in him had just manifested that way.

The Pawn backed away. "I-I'll leave you to it, sir. Sorry for disturbing you!"

"T-That is advisable." Mecha managed to slip out. It took all of his willpower to steady his vocalizer enough to speak. "I apologize. It is a glitch that I am t-trying to repair."

With that, Mecha was alone. He pushed himself into a dark corner and curled into himself with his head in his hands. In his fear, he pressed himself as far back into the corner as he could and stayed very, very still. Trying not to be noticed.

A notification sound popped up on the computer and he flinched sharply. It was as if the sound hurt him somehow.

Another notification. He wanted to scream. He muted his vocalizer before he could. And another. Completely overwhelmed, Mecha suddenly scrambled up to his feet and faced the computer screen, but his mind couldn't process anything on it in his panic. He stared blankly at the words but they meant nothing.

"I-I must... I must calm..." Mecha leaned his elbows on the table and held his head in his hands again. "Calm..." He shifted his weight from one elbow to the other a few times. "Calm. I am calm. I am calm." He recalled the times that Neo and Silver had helped him through his flashbacks and doted on those memories. "It is not happening. It cannot happen again."

It took several long moments before he was coherent enough to actually read anything. He looked up and actually read what it said - avoiding the part that said it was from GUN. As he read it, though, his anxiety was gradually suppressed as his sense of responsibility overrode it.

"Sender: Anonymous at GUN

To: Mecha Sonic

I hope this gets through to you. It's your friend from the military. Just a heads up that there's a traitor in your ranks. They intend to use your data and access to the base's systems to destroy all of you. If you act quickly there's still time. Take care Mecha. Hope you're okay."

On the last word, Mecha slowly stood upright and gathered himself up. This was up to him, now. He had to be okay.

He stuffed his anxiety deep down and steadied his shaking hands, clenching them into fists a few times. He almost turned away without sending a reply, but stopped. His gratitude to this agent won him over, and he turned back and typed a short reply.

"Thank you friend. I will act now and will report back soon."

He hit send.

Over the ship's intercom, Mecha called for his younger sibling. "Metal Sonic to engineering. That is Metal Sonic to the engineering. Thank you."

At once, Mecha logged himself off of the computer and turned on his heel, marching out of the room and heading straight down to the engineering room. As he walked, his message repeated over the intercom twice. As soon as he got to the room he went to unlock it, but found that he no longer had access to it. How curious.

As if on cue, Neo walked up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder to let him know he was there. He too tried to gain access but found that it had been removed. He cursed in code and shorted the door's access system with a jolt of electricity from his hand, finally granting them both access. Mecha pushed the door open immediately and marched over to the console.

Neo followed, unsure of what was happening.

Mecha tapped away at the control systems before issuing a voice command. "Cancel current sequence. Isolate all command functions and only accept inquiries from engineering."

A loud beep and red text across the middle screen told him that the command had been overridden by someone else.

Mecha straightened. "We have no control of the ship's engines. Our permissions have been overridden. We must regain control at once."

"We are the only ones who have clearance to localize command functions." Neo murmured in code. "Someone is acting as one of us. They must have acquired our data and access information."

"Indeed, brother." Mecha agreed with him as he typed at the console again, purposely monotone to hide his anxiety. His wrist lights lit up without his knowledge. Based on the anonymous soldier's message, GUN likely still had his data on file and had managed to de-frag it by now. "It is likely to be my data that the intruder is using at this current time."

Neo put a hand on his arm, telling him without words that this wasn't his fault. But now wasn't the time for talking about it - this was time for logic, not emotion. He squinted his optics in thought as he peered down at the various buttons on the console. The projections showed that various doors were locking down, one by one. If someone was remotely taking control of the system, he would have to override them.

The pair looked at each other. Without saying anything, they knew what the other was thinking. Neo took charge without so much as a second thought. He ran his own systems into the command console, and for a split second his optics dimmed and shut off as the transfer went through. Mecha steadied him with a hand on his side.

"I am initiating red alert." Mecha stated. He reached up to his ear with his free and pressed two fingers against it to access the ship intercom. "Commander Mecha Sonic to all units. Initiate automated sequence for departure. This is not a drill. I repeat, initiate automated sequence for departure. This is not a drill."

The safety of the robots on board was paramount. At least now they should be moving to safer places before all of the doors were locked down. It seemed that, whoever this intruder was, they had malicious intentions for all of them...

On cue, he turned slightly to listen to the pattering footsteps of robots running past the door.

A Badnik stopped in the doorway and peered in. "Shouldn't we wait for the doctor's approval?!"

Mecha shook his head. "There is no time for approval. Based on all of the information we currently have, this decision is correct. Now, please follow protocol. There is not much time."

Neo was familiar with the way the ship worked. He had piloted it by himself, of course. He knew every corridor, every inch of the place like the back of his hand. But these unfamiliar lines of code and this extra user were really, really starting to bother him. He squinted his optics and leaned against the table on his arms. Every time this rogue user gained access to another restricted level, Neo was quick to re-write a new code and encryption that granted him access. And there was one huge thing he had on this invisible opponent - he was faster. Not only were they working remotely, but they also lacked his processing speed, and had less experience with the ship's layout.

Mecha turned back to Neo. "What is your status?"

Neo didn't answer, too focused on his task to pay any mind to Mecha. The faster he processed and wrote new commands, the more his optics dimmed, and Mecha made sure to keep hold of him in case he needed support.

"Brother. What is your status?" Mecha asked again, sounding more urgent now. Seeing his brother struggle, even only slightly, threatened to trigger his own memories with the virus, and he was struggling to not jump to conclusions. But he held back from scanning him to find out, knowing that Neo hated it. "Please answer me. I am concerned."

Neo signed "sorry" with one hand, sensing his sibling's anxiety.

Mecha relaxed when Neo finally said something. "You need not apologize. I will refrain from distracting you now." He turned back to the console instead and looked over the command buttons before issuing another voice command. "Isolate all command functions and accept inquiries from engineering only." At first he got the same error message, but Neo quickly fixed the problem and allowed the command to go through with another code he thought up on the spot. He gave a nod to Mecha.

The remote user pushed back, this time directly at Neo whilst he was momentarily distracted. He was surprised to find that the remote user shut off his access. Surprised, and then enraged. His optics brightened in his anger and he had to hold back from slamming a fist into the console.

Two could play at this game.

Neo's anger turned to fire at the challenge. He activated his shapeshifting program and looked through the many hundreds of commands associated with it. Going with one of them, he ran it into the console's system, pretending to be someone else now. He wrote himself a code for top priority access. As soon as he re-gained access he got straight back to work regaining access to parts of the ship.

His access got cut off again.

Mecha grew suspicious. The console could only accept commands from this location. So, how... unless they were using some kind of VPN and somehow setting it to this specific room?

A scan of his surroundings revealed the culprit. Mecha's lights all brightened at the realization.

"Brother. We are not alone."

Said culprit behind the door disappeared in seconds. Mecha started after them, but Neo stopped him with a hand to his arm.

"Wait. All units should be in a safe location now. Do not pursue the rogue unit until we have regained complete control. I would advise shutting off access to the evacuation points now."

Mecha dipped his head and turned back. "Affirmative." He glanced over his shoulder to the door a few times, but the traitor didn't come back. He raised a hand to his ear to speak over the intercom one more time. "Commander Mecha Sonic to all units. Remain in your designated locations. It is not yet safe to return." He looked down to the console. "Restrict doors AB, C7, Y8 and P2 and activate emergency defense systems at these locations." These were the places set in the emergency protocol, so he knew to close them off now to stop the traitor from harming anyone.

Finally, Neo gained full control of the system. He took a step back and gave himself a second to adjust to normal functions again.

"I trust you have regained access to the system." Mecha stated more than asked. "Very impressive work."

Neo nodded and let Mecha take control again, but stayed logged in so that he could override anything if needed.

"Console. Recognize user Mecha Sonic." Mecha issued his voice command and folded his arms. A loading message popped up, and then a green tick. "Assign access level Alpha to user Mecha Sonic." He glanced to Neo for a moment, realizing the small predicament of him not having a functioning voice. "Query. User Metal Sonic access level."

Green text across the screen told him that Neo had the same access level anyway. Mecha relaxed. He should have known that Neo would sort that out by himself somehow. With his access confirmed, Neo finally logged out of the system.

That was a mistake.

Neo looked back down at the ship's map and honed in on something. Mecha looked, too.

A specific room had just been shut off and locked out. How was that possible? Neo quickly tried to gain access to the door controls but failed. He cursed at himself, wishing he had stayed logged in now.

"Where is..." Mecha started, but trailed off as a sick dread started to build.

The siblings looked at each other. Without even saying their brother's name, they both knew who the other was thinking about.

"You do not think he is..." Neo signed back. He didn't want to say it either.

Neo reached up to his ear and pinged Silver, asking for his coordinates. He didn't get a reply. Slowly, his hand came back down.

"They are not answering."

Mecha took off out of the room at once. He ran as fast as he could, slamming all of his processing power into his scans to find his little brother. Every possibility wracked his processor all at once. Was he in danger? Was he trapped in that room? Had he been taken? Although he wanted to stay logical, his battle with anxiety was overwhelming at the best of times.

Neo was hot on his heels and quickly caught up. "That room we just lost access to! He must be there!"

Mecha nodded and picked up the pace. "I doubt that he would have evacuated with everyone else, for such an action does not align with his... personality. Your conclusion is likely correct."

"If anyone lays so much as a finger on him..." Neo hissed in code, already getting angry at the thought. "All will pay." His anger turned inwards. "I should not have logged out. That was a fatal mistake." He unconsciously messed with the tangle around his wrist.

Privately, Mecha recalled his father's advice, and repeated it. "It is possible to make mistakes and still win."

"I hope so."

"I know so. Do you doubt me?"

"No. I trust you."

"Then, trust me."

"I do."

"Say, why don't you close that door to give us some privacy? That way we can go all out."

The Egg Pawn locked the door. "Very well, if you want to die here then so be it."

There was no way out, which was exactly what Silver wanted. Nobody else would get hurt.

Silver turned away from the door and advanced on the traitorous Egg Pawn confidently. "Well, well, well! Look what we have here. The traitor is finally trapped like the rat they are. And, unlucky for you, you're stuck with me of all 'bots."

"Kill yourself." The Pawn spat at him. "Do this world a favour."

Silver stifled a laugh. And then just laughed. Loudly. He gave a shit-eating grin. "Kill me yourself, coward."

The Egg Pawn aimed their bazooka right at him and took the shot. "With pleasure. Target acquired."

"Insult and shot dodged. You're bad at this." Silver sidestepped out of the way of the bazooka. "Five."

Another shot, and Silver dodged again. "Four. Too slow."

"What are you- stop counting!"

Silver wagged a finger at him. "Now, now. No need to get so heated. It's just basic maths, but I know that's probably frightening for someone as dim-witted as you."

"You little..."

"Three. Two. Aaaand..."

The much-anticipated "one" came, and Silver stood cockily in the other machine's line of fire. He rubbed a finger under his nose and grinned playfully. Just as he thought, the Egg Pawn pulled the trigger - only to find that nothing happened.

"Aww, that's such a shame! You only had six shots." Silver mocked them, feigning sympathy by relaxing his posture. "Wanna guess how many I have?"

The Egg Pawn started to back away. "More than six."

Silver took a step towards them and pointed a thumb back to his chest. "Times that by infinity. Wanna see the proof?"

"Shut up. You talk big for such a little fuck-up of a robot." The Pawn practically snarled at him. "You were a mistake. All of you freaks were."

"A mistake is something that you can forgive. A miscalculation. A blunder, if you will. I'm not a mistake..." Silver got up close and personal in the other robot's face. "I'm a promise." His expression turned serious. "And I promise, if you lay so much as a single digit on my brothers or father, you will wish for my forgiveness."

The Pawn just scoffed at him. "Hey, daddy's boy?"

Silver smirked and put a hand on his hip. "What?"

"Not so tough without your friends holding your hand and telling you what to do, are you?"

"You're trying to rile me by bringing Mecha and Metal into it, aren't you?" Silver brushed them off, sounding disappointed. "What a lame move. I expected better from a wannabe emo defector like you."

"But it's working, isn't it? You're so insecure." The Egg Pawn spat at him. "Grow up, you're like a bratty child."

Silver folded his arms defensively and rocked back on his heels. "Excuse me?"

"You're useless on your own. Look at you. All this posturing and tough talk means nothing!"

Silver looked himself up and down. "I wouldn't call this amount of firepower useless, buddy." He studied his fingertips, privately deciding that he would need to find a way to override the "Sonic-tracking" thing in his missiles later on. "The only reason I haven't blown you up yet is because, one, I find you hilarious, and two, I need to know what your deal here is. Cut to the chase already, will ya? What do you want with us?"

"My deal? I want to show you something, Silver Sonic. It's something about you." The Pawn quickly changed their tune - and the lights in their "smile" brightened. "Let down your firewall so I can transfer this file. It's only small."

Silver stared at them, processing something. He frowned at them. And then, any sense of humour and light-heartedness vanished as he realized what was going on.

"Are you deaf? I can't get through your firewall, dumb robot. Just disable it for one second."

Silver cracked his knuckles, his frown darkening into a glare. "You're a monster, you know that? Just how many times have you tried that?"

"Whatever do you mean, Silver Sonic? I'm just trying to show you something, you fool. Now disable your firewall."

"I'm not stupid." Silver started to close the gap between himself and the Egg Pawn, slowly. "You really think I'd fall for that? Especially after what happened to Mecha? You're ridiculous." He paused, a smirk coming over him again - but this time a malicious one. "No, actually... you're hilarious." He prodded the Pawn in the chest with an accusing finger. "Because I know you're being piloted remotely right now. You've been hacked!"

The Pawn didn't say anything, again. They had been caught out - much of their speech was indeed coming from a remote user.

Silver slowly removed his finger. "Your surface temperature is rising, which suggests that you're running multiple processes at once and overloading your memory. And your speech patterns and mannerisms mirror those of that one human. To a T, might I add. You even use the same insults." He shook his head. "Man. You were pissed about being some 'bot's pawn, so you went and became a human's instead? Don't you see how dumb that is-"

Before he could process it, Silver was on the ground. He stared up at the Egg Pawn on top of him. And suddenly registered that they were punching him very hard. Silver came to his senses and kicked the crazed robot away from him, scrambling back up to his feet with a yelp.

That level of speed wasn't normal for an Egg Pawn.

Crap.

As the other robot stumbled back, Silver pressed a hand to his cheek and frowned. "Well, that wasn't very nice of you." He pulled it away and studied his palm. It was wet with black oil, which he shook off in disgust. "Don't you at least want to exchange a few more quips before we try to kill each other?"

Silver noted that someone tried to ping him, but his receptors were damaged. He couldn't tell who it was, let alone reply. Maybe it was just a glitch.

"All you robot hedgehogs are the same. You get built, you get cocky, you get blown up. That's the way it goes, so accept it and accept your death!"

Silver laughed and wiped oil from his cheek again. "Rust in peace to my supposed past selves who died horribly doing the same thing I'm about to do, but... I'm different." He shook the liquid off of his hand again and stuck his tongue out a little. "Listen. This is all really personal for someone you only met a day ago. What gives? Why do you want to destroy us all so freaking bad? You're like an obsessive fangirl."

"You will die here. All of you aboard this ship. It is justice for what you have all done to this world!"

"Uh, hello? I just told you, I'm not like other girls." Silver repeated himself, waving a dismissive hand. "You really don't listen, do you? Also, not really a fan of the whole... the thing about me, my big thing is... I'm not that keen on dying. Now living? I'm a huge fan! Sign me up for some of that."

"You're not-"

"Hey, dude. I'm comfortable in my identity, so if I wanna call myself a girl from time to time, I will." Silver pressed his hand to his cheek again and held it there. "I can't believe you made me bleed. That's so gross and I didn't even know I could do that."

"No. You're not listening. Shut up and listen, machine." The Pawn took a few steps away from Silver now, making space for the upcoming fight. "You maligned me when you threatened me with my own weapon. You and your friends destroyed my technology. And you..." They raised an arm and pointed at him. "You really thought you and your friends would get away with it?"

Silver shrugged and looked across to the bin. "You're sore about your gun, huh? Well, it's in the trash over there. Pops made me throw it away." He looked at them again and grinned darkly. "I can help you into the trash too if you like. It's only fair, considering the way you trashed my brother." He ended on a serious note and cracked his knuckles again.

"That waste of metal should have stayed in the trash where it belongs."

Silver moved into a fighting stance, almost perfectly mirroring one that Sonic would make. "If Mecha is trash, then I'm garbage. I'm garbage and I'm proud." He fired up his weapons systems and felt each component click into place, ready to fire. He smiled and beckoned the other robot with a finger. "Now... come take out the trash. It's about time someone took you down a few notches."

Something changed.

The seemingly normal Egg Pawn's cyan lights shifted to magenta. Their paintjob phased from orange to silver and black - indicative of the Super Egg Pawn build.

Silver looked them up and down. "Pink, huh? Nice. Love to see the gender non-conformance. You copy that changing clothes thing from Metal?"

"That base form was a mere disguise. I have been upgraded." The Egg Pawn answered him, seeming to speak for themselves this time. "So, it's you who's going down a few notches, foolish child."

A challenge. Silver liked that.

"We'll see about that!"

Silver threw the second punch. He came at the enemy robot at full power and clocked them in the face, sending them packing to the ground with a loud bang. "That's for calling me a child." He jumped back as the Pawn stood up and was quick to fire a laser beam at them. Before they could land a hit back, Silver ducked down, skidded around behind them, and kicked them square in the back. But just as they fell, they turned and grabbed Silver by his arm and flung him into the wall. Silver hit the wall with a clang and slid down to the floor upside-down, but wasn't fazed in the slightest. He stayed in this odd position for a few seconds.

Or, at least he wasn't fazed until he took in what he was now looking at.

The Egg Pawn's arm transformed into a laser cannon. Their smile brightened. "It's my turn now, brat."

Silver pushed himself over and back onto his feet, aiming his own laser beam back at them with a grin. "Hey! I don't recall giving you my turn."

"I'm taking it." The Pawn fired and Silver ducked out of the way. The beam hit the wall behind him and burned a dark hole into it. "Did you really think I would come to kill you with just six shots? Why so surprised? You underestimate humanity that much?"

Silver fired back at them, managing to hit the Pawn in the shoulder. "Yeah, yeah, laser weapons eliminate the logistical problems of ammunition supply, whatever. You must be really proud of that trick, organic f-" Before he could process it, Silver got his comeuppance and was hit back, but in the arm. He jolted away and gasped. "Ow. That kind of-"

That split second of time was all the Pawn needed. They came at him with everything and barrelled him into the wall. Silver pushed back and growled, hating the feeling of being trapped. He fired his own laser into the other machine's chest several times in self-defense, but it didn't seem to deter them. Instead, the silver and magenta robot laid into him, punching him repeatedly wherever they could, hard enough to leave dents. Another strike against his cheek sent black oil up the wall behind him.

"Hey- Stop that- Fuck- Lay off- GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME-"

Silver finally overpowered the deranged machine with a well-placed kick to the chest. He dragged himself to his feet pressed his hands to the side of his face to stop the oil leakage. "That was dirty." He commented with a smirk. "I'll give you this, you're faster than you look, Eggy. Pawny. I dunno, what's your name again?"

"And you are weaker than you make yourself out to be, little machine." The Pawn gloated at him, ignoring his question about their name. "I've seen your schematics. I know all your weak points, and you're made up of so, so many."

Silver glanced to the door for a moment. It was a good thing that he had shut them in here, if this guy was this powerful... Chaos knows what they could have done to the others. He soon brought his gaze back to his opponent and smirked at them, keeping up his confidence.

"Schematics shmematics. Who cares. I'm not just some diagram on a piece of paper." Silver promptly launched himself at the Pawn again, this time landing several hits in return with his fists that left a couple of dents. The Pawn grabbed his fist mid-strike and bent his arm back to disable him for a second.

"I'm going to love doing this to Mecha and Metal." They whispered in his ear, deliberately using their shortened names to get a rise out of him. "They will be punished just like you."

Silver stopped dead in his tracks with his other fist raised and a glare planted on his face. A jolt of digsust ran through his systems.

"Get their names out of your mouth. You don't deserve to say them." Silver snapped, for once sounding serious.

The Pawn slammed Silver face-first into the wall and held him there. "All of you are going to hell. Your names won't matter there."

Silver activated his booster engine and leaned back into the other robot. The heat of the engine quickly deterred them from being too close to him - but they quickly realized a solution. They fired their laser cannon directly into Silver's lower back, taking the engine out. Silver yelped and started to wriggle free, but the other robot overpowered him easily now that his engine was offline.

"Where did all that bravado go? Is it to make up for how weak and scared you really are? Pathetic machine, learn your place below humanity."

Silver was now pressed up against the wall hard. The Egg Pawn covered Silver's mouth with one hand. The laser cannon pressed against the back of his head, directly behind his CPU - they knew exactly where it was.

Silver's vision quickly brightened. His ears started ringing. He felt sick.

I don't wanna die. I'm just a kid. Please.

He pressed his forehead to the wall and shut off his optics, bracing himself.

I don't wanna die.

"Beg me for mercy, say please, and maybe I'll make your death swift, little robot."

The Pawn briefly released their hand from over the other robot's mouth to let him speak, hoping to drag some pathetic groveling out of him.

"Please..." Silver started - he let the word hang in the air for a few moments before a dark smile came over his face. "Go fuck yourself."

I'm gonna die. I'm about to die. I've barely lived. I barely lived, damn it.

"Very well. It's your funeral, machine."

Silver's shaky fists clenched against the wall. He pressed his head harder into it to hide his face. He grit his teeth as his cocky smile wavered, his bottom lip now trembling instead. This hurt. This hurt so bad. The hand came back over his mouth and he was pushed harder into the wall, staining it black from his cheek.

"Die knowing how worthless you were."

Silver spat a very muffled "fuck you" back at them before resigning to his fate.

I'm sorry, Mecha. I'm sorry, Metal. I'll miss you. Sorry your little bro was such a loser.

The cannon to the back of his head started to whir to life as it prepared to destroy his CPU.

I'll say hello to the others who were destroyed before us for you. The brothers we never got to meet. They'll hear all about us, I promise.

A loud bang to their left caught the Egg Pawn's attention.

"Release him. Now."

The intruders moved too quickly for the assailant to process anything.

All of a sudden Silver found himself on the floor, and his assailant was sent staggering backwards away from him.

The impact of hitting the ground put a strain on Silver's internal systems, enough to make him cough up oil onto himself. He hurried to bring his visual systems back online and stared up at the scene in front of him. The ringing in his ears and blurriness of his optics made it hard to make out what had happened... But making out the deep purple and navy blue forms in front of him was enough.

They came. They really came!

Silver's startled expression slowly shifted to a smirk.

Of course they did, idiot. Just who did you think they were?

In an instant, Mecha knelt behind his little brother, protectively shielding him with his arms over the smaller robot's chest. His face was lit a bright red by his visor, the light spilling onto Silver in an unspoken warning - touch him again, and you're dead.

Silver tilted his head back to look up at him. "H-Hey, big bro. Fancy meeting you here."

Mecha didn't move to look at him, keeping his vision fixed on the enemy before him instead - but he tightened his hold on Silver in a silent apology for coming so late.

Neo circled the traitorous pawn in front of him. He curled and flexed his claws with murderous intent, keeping his optics fixed fiercely on his opponent. With every second that passed, he only became angrier. How dare they. How dare this thing put so much as a scratch in his brother's paint. What gave them the right?

The worst part was that he couldn't scream. He couldn't yell. He couldn't curse this other robot out.

So he let his fists do the talking.

This time, Neo swung first. He wasn't going to give this machine a chance, not this time. In an impressive show of speed, he darted around behind the other robot and threw all of his body weight into its back. As soon as the Pawn hit the floor he slammed his fists into the back of its head, very precisely aiming for the CPU. At this point, Neo had tunnel vision - all he could see was his opponent. Nothing else mattered.

The Pawn was stunned for a few seconds, but Neo didn't relent. He kept going, fully intending to take out the other machine. His time having the upper hand was soon up, though - the Pawn managed to roll over and kick at the other robot. Neo took the hit with an arm raised to lessen the blow and skidded back across the floor. The setback didn't deter him at all, and he revved his engine aggressively to intimidate his enemy. He crouched in a warning and flexed his claws as he calculated his next move.

Silver watched his older brother with awe. "He's so cool. He's so freaking-" He paused to spit oil onto the floor. "He's so amazing."

Mecha finally dragged his eyes away from the fight and looked down at his little brother. He gently wiped oil from the other robot's face with a thumb. "Do not speak. You must savour your energy."

"Y-You're kidding, right?" Silver smirked up at him, prompting oil to leak from the corner of his mouth. "Talkin' is second nature to me. It barely costs any energy at all."

Mecha brought his thumb to his brother's mouth and carefully wiped the black liquid away. He held his little sibling closer and rested his chin on top of his head, privately very relieved to get to hear his voice again - if he had been just seconds too late, then...

"I thought I was gonna die, Mecha." Silver quietly admitted, sensing Mecha's protectiveness. "I'm glad you guys came when you did."

Mecha gently rubbed Silver's arm over his laser burn. "Do not fret. We would not allow such a thing to occur."

Silver went back to watching his blue sibling and would-have-been murderer. "You can back him up if you want, I-I'll be okay here."

Mecha shook his head. "That will not be necessary. Watch." A distinct fondness wandered into his voice. "I trust him and his abilities."

No matter how many upgrades this Egg Pawn had from GUN, they would always be outmatched by Eggman's superior technology - that was starting to become very clear. Metal Sonic would always be quicker, stronger, and a faster learner than any robot they could throw at him.

The Pawn tried to throw Neo off with an emotional attack. Without warning, they turned and fired a shot directly at Mecha and Silver. Neo was quick to intercept it, skidding in front of them and activating his black shield right on time. He wasn't going to lose to that trick this time. He refused. Fiercely focused, Neo weighed up the costs of going all out.

"You..." The Pawn hissed at him, moving to circle Neo. "You are a stain on this world. The military will have your head."

Neo purposely overloaded his circuitry. Blue and yellow sparks quickly started to form around him until an energy field was created. He didn't give the Pawn a chance to gloat, or mock him, or do anything. Without even thinking about it anymore, Neo went at the Pawn with all he had in a blue and yellow blur.

"NO-"

And in seconds, it was over.

The other robot collapsed backwards, almost completely destroyed by the attack. All that was left was a mess of metal and wires.

Neo stared down at the fallen robot's remains. He must have won. The evidence was right there. But he felt nothing. Not even the sparks around him as they fizzled out into nothing. It was peculiar, he noted, that he felt like he was standing right beside himself. The sensation made him feel sick to his tanks, but somehow, it didn't matter. He looked down at his claws and watched oil drip lazily from the sharp tips. It glistened in the light before it fell to the ground - mirroring the way "life" had just been taken from its owner. A brief spark, and then, nothing.

Silver shakily went to stand. He pulled himself up to a kneel, which caused his engine to stutter with the effort. Despite Mecha resting a hand on his shoulder now, Silver kept going until he was standing. Then, carefully, he started to walk over to his older brother with his hands up.

"Hey..."

Neo slowly turned to look at him. He didn't recognize the other robot yet, and Silver knew this.

"You're okay, bro." Silver kept going, holding out a hand to him, but still some distance away. "We're safe now. You did it."

It all clicked into place.

Neo felt everything at once. The gravity of everything rushed back into him, and he suddenly became frantic. As soon as Silver was close enough, Neo barrelled into him and pulled him into the tightest hug he could give. He buried his face into his brother's shoulder and quietly clicked away. He didn't care if anyone else saw him. All that mattered was this feeling, and his siblings being safe now.

Silver held it together at first. But the longer he listened to Neo cry in that coded way, his bottom lip betrayed him.

"H-Hey... Don't cry. It's okay." Silver gently tried to reassure him. He wrapped his arms around his older brother to return the hug, but his knees started to give out under him. Before he could fall, Neo brought them both down to sit on the floor.

Neo slowly lifted his head, finally meeting Silver's softened gaze. As they made eye contact, the white arrow atop his head dripped down his face and onto his muzzle. In his grief and anxiety, his shapeshifting program had activated itself. Emotions were so inexplicably painful at times like this, it was the only way to express them.

"Stop that... You didn't fail me." Silver told him gently but firmly. "You saved my sorry ass. So, don't melt yourself over me, okay?" He reached up and caught a drop of nanites in his hand as it fell from his brother's cheek. "We're okay now. It's done."

Neo nodded and rested his forehead against Silver's. He let the pressure bring him back to his senses for a moment before pulling away.

Mecha knelt by his younger siblings. "Silver. Why did you block access to this room?"

Silver sheepishly scratched his head. "I-I just... I didn't want anyone to get hurt whilst you guys were figuring everything out." He looked over to the door for a moment, which was completely off its hinges now. "I kinda tricked them into locking it up so that we could duke it out. I don't have access to anything here, so..."

"That was most reckless." Mecha told him firmly, but then softened. "Reckless, but admirable. Your actions may have prevented further destruction to this vessel."

Mecha carefully hooked an arm under both of his siblings before pulling them up to their feet. He cast one last look down to the destroyed Egg Pawn.

Silver followed Mecha's gaze and looked at them, too. A strange feeling came over him, realizing that the machine who had just been beating the life out of him was now dead and in a million pieces. He had seen robots go offline before - even witnessing Neo being gone. But this was somehow different.

"I'll be back for you." Silver told them with a smile, although they couldn't hear him. "You'll see."

Mecha led Neo and Silver back to the engineering room. He told Neo and Silver to wait by the door and strode over to the console.

Mecha lifted a hand to his ear and put out a new message. "Commander Mecha Sonic to all units. Return to base. I repeat, return to base. Cancel automated sequence for departure." He paused, looking to his siblings for a moment. "Commander Metal Sonic and Commander Silver Sonic have restored security to this ship."

The locked doors opened and the trapped robots began pattering back into the ship's main quarters.

Mecha turned to the console one more time. "Recognize user Mecha Sonic. Assign access level alpha to user Silver Sonic II." He looked up and over to Neo and Silver, searching for their reactions.

Silver almost couldn't believe it. "M-Me? Why?"

"We are equals." Mecha told him firmly, walking back over to the two to put his arm back around them. "Do not doubt this."

"Damn... I'm one of the big boys now." Silver laughed and leaned into Mecha's support. "Just... not so much emotionally. Or physically." His tone shifted, becoming uncharacteristically sad. "I-I feel so small sometimes. It kinda sucks."

"I suggest that you cease this self-doubting behaviour." Mecha advised him honestly. "You are so much bigger without it."

"That was almost poetic." Neo jabbed at him to his side. "But correct, too. What he lacks in size he makes up for in... personality."

"What did they say?" Silver asked, frowning.

"He agreed with me in a sarcastic manner."

"What a surprise, the great Lord Neo Metal Sonic is still a sarcastic asshole after my near-death experience." Silver said with a dramatic pout.

"Audio file say what?"

"What?"

Mecha laughed.

This time, it was genuine.