I hope you'll enjoy the chapter!
Entry 1
Team Up
''What goes up, must come down, yet my feet don't touch the ground. See the world spinin' upside down, a mighty crash without a sound.''
– Sonic Heroes by Sonic Heroes
xXxXxXx
Lucas Kinomoto yawned, stretching his arms as he walked into the living room. He was a lanky 16-year-old teenager with messy blond hair and icy blue eyes, wearing a short-sleeved white hoodie with a tiny blue logo of his ARNav on the right side of his chest and black trousers. Goggles with dark blue frames and green lenses were hanging around his neck. He glanced at the couch, a little surprised to see Sonic sprawled across it, still fast asleep. While not an early bird, the blue hedgehog would usually be awake at this time. Not to mention, he wouldn't be sleeping on the couch, since he had his own bed.
Lucas sighed, eyes closed as he scratched the back of his head and figured that he would just talk to his partner once he woke up. He picked up the remote, turning the TV on and leaving it at the news channel, then walked into the adjecent kitchen to prepare breakfast for both of them. The moment there was a waft of sizzling sausages, he saw Sonic stirring in his sleep, sniffing the air and, with his eyes still closed, following the scent as if in a trance.
''Good morning, Sonic!'' Lucas greeted him, causing the latter to open his eyes. ''What were you doing on the couch?''
''Oh, I woke up earlier this morning and then fell asleep on the couch,'' Sonic replied casually, giving Lucas an innocent grin. He suddenly vanished, reappearing instantly with a plate in his hands. ''So, when is breakfast going to be?''
Lucas crossed his arms, tilting his head slightly, obviously not buying the excuse, ''Are you sure that you weren't running around the city last night?''
''Uh, I… may have?'' Sonic said, giving his partner a sheepish look, aware that he was caught. He then added in a more relaxed and confident tone, ''But, you don't have to worry. Nothing had happened and besides, I always have my AR Visor on. Trust me, no one is ever going to know that I'm not a regular ARNav. Everything's totally fine.''
''My name is Midorikawa…''
''…and I'm Kero!''
''We're here reporting live from last night's disturbing scene of crime.''
Sonic's ears twitched as he and Lucas looked at the TV, which was showing a young woman and her frog-like ARNav standing on a damaged bridge. Lucas picked up the remote, turning the volume up.
''According to official reports, an Irregular ARNav had launched an attack on Cosmo Bridge, absorbing the BioEnergy of the pedestrians and releasing an explosive blast that damaged part of the bridge. At least five people are heavily injured and two are in a comatose state. The police is working with the Irregular Hunters to try and find the culprit.''
Lucas and Sonic exchanged glances, with Sonic quickly adding in a defensive tone, ''I swear, I had nothing to do with this.''
''Don't worry, I know you wouldn't do anything like this,'' Lucas assured him, returning back to the kitchen while the report continued. ''However, that doesn't mean that I'm not concerned. Aside from the fact that there is an aggressive Irregular on the loose, I'm sure that Irregular Hunters will start checking on every ARNav they come across.''
''Okay, first of all, I have faith in the AR Visor Tails had programmed and I'm sure the Hunters won't recognize me as an Irregular. Second, maybe someone had seen what the Irregular actually looks like, so they'll know whom to actually search for,'' Sonic noted, adding eagerly, ''You know what, I think we should go investigate this.''
''I don't disagree with you, but that doesn't mean that I don't worry,'' Lucas replied, tipping the sausages into Sonic's plate.
''That's fine,'' Sonic replied as he sat down. He understood well that Lucas wasn't really the most adventurous type of person, preferring to stay at home and read a book or play video games. Despite that he was still willing to go along with whatever crazy plan Sonic had. Admittedly, those plans usually consisted of getting getting into trouble and then improvise on the fly, but Lucas usually took them in stride. If a stranger observed them, they would probably wonder how these two could even get along due to their differences.
''Nevertheless, I agree with you that we should go investigate this,'' Lucas said as he sat across Sonic. Sonic nodded, happily eating his breakfast. Lucas just let his mind wander as he ate.
It had been around two weeks since he met Sonic and ever since then, his life had been everything but quiet. He had been used to living on his own due to his parents' absence, looking after himself and staying out of everyone's business, preferring to go through his life unnoticed. That changed when he had found a beaten up blue hedgehog hiding in the bushes behind his house, looking panicked and on the verge of passing out.
''They're after me. I need to leave.''
Lucas had no idea what was going on at the time, but he wasn't going to let the latter suffer. He let Sonic hide in his house until the latter recovered, only to learn later on that that may not have been the best idea. He had been shocked to learn that his new hyperactive roommate was actually an Irregular, which would explain why he had been hunted. However, unlike other Irregulars, Sonic had never shown any sign of aggressiveness or had any intent to harm Lucas. As a matter of fact, he even offered to leave when he realized that his new friend was wary of him.
''I had been running all my life, so I don't think it matters if I continue doing the same. Still, I'm glad that I met you.''
Lucas refused to let him go. Maybe it was him feeling pity for Sonic. Maybe it was his fascination with how different the blue hedgehog was from other Irregulars. Frankly, he didn't care. All he knew that he had to help him. Both agreed that they should pretend Sonic was a normal ARNav and Lucas' partner and so far, things went well.
Of course, one had to take into account Sonic's desire for adventure, even if they did mundane things like going to the grocery store. While Lucas would usually drag his feet, Sonic would just run through the entire grocery store in seconds and grab whatever he wanted. Admittedly, being fast didn't mean that he was accurate, as he would go for the candy and snacks instead of necessary products like bread or milk, much to Lucas' exasperation.
Speaking of food, Lucas knew that ARNavs normally weren't even able to consume human food. They could ran out of energy if they spent too much time outside the AR Field, but all they needed to recharge was to return to the AR Field and they would be fine. This is why he was so shocked when Sonic had told him that he was hungry and ate the food Lucas had offered him without any issue, even asking for more.
''I thought ARNavs couldn't eat human food,'' Lucas said, completely stunned.
''I don't know about other ARNavs, but I do eat food when I'm hungry,'' Sonic explained, shrugging. ''This is normal for me.''
That had left Lucas wondering, even more when he saw Sonic falling asleep on the couch due to exhaustion. He knew that this wasn't a normal behavior for an ARNav, leaving him speculating whether Sonic acted like this because he was an Irregular. He had actually asked him several questions about his nature and origins, but it appeared that Sonic himself was just as clueless as Lucas was, admitting that he didn't even know what an Irregular was until Lucas properly explained things to him.
''I think we should also ask the others about whether they're going to join us in this investigation,'' Lucas said once he and Sonic were done with their breakfast. Sonic perked up at the thought of going to see their friends. Lucas grinned as Sonic vanished in a streak of blue light, placing the dishes into the dishwasher and then returning to Lucas, looking excited.
''What are we waiting for? Let's go!''
xXx
''I think we're done here.''
The young anthropomorphic fox cub pushed a pair of goggles with sky blue lenses and grey frames up on his head as he admired his work. He had mostly amber and white fur, with large triangular ears with white canals on top of his head, a small black nose, white fur on the front of his torso and fluffy white fur top of his chest, a white-furred muzzle with cheek tuffs, and three locks of hair on his forehead. His eyes were sky blue and he was wearing white gloves with a gray band around each wrist; and shoes that were red from the heel to the middle and white from the middle to the toe with gray soles, each with a gray band around the ankle. However, his most distinct feature were the two bushy tails, flicking as he picked up the gun from the work bench.
''I hope it'll work this time.''
The fox ARNav turned to his partner, a 16-year-old teenager with messy black hair, wearing an orange unbuttoned sleeveless vest over a white T-shirt and washed-out light blue jeans. He reached for the orange-framed goggles and pulled them down, revealing his green eyes and leaning against the work bench. Both were standing inside a wooden workshop with all kinds of tools, gadgets and parts scattered across it.
''It has to work. We went over our calculations several times and I'm sure we made no mistake.''
''Helloooo?''
''Tails? Warren? Where are you guys?''
Miles ''Tails'' Prower and Warren Taylor looked up as they heard familiar voices calling out for them.
''Over here!'' Tails shouted, with Sonic and Lucas entering the workshop. ''It's great to see you guys!''
''It's nice to see you too,'' Sonic replied.
''What are you doing here?'' Warren asked.
''We wanted to ask you whether you had heard what happened on Cosmo Bridge,'' Lucas said.
''No, we didn't,'' Warren replied. ''What happened?''
''An Irregular had attacked several people and Lucas and I wanted to investigate,'' Sonic replied. ''We thought about asking you whether you want to join us.''
''Of course we want to join you!'' Tails said enthusiastically, with Sonic noticing what he was holding in his hands.
''What is that?'' Sonic asked, pointing at the gun.
''Oh, we've been working on a new variation of the laser gun,'' Warren replied.
''We wanted it to have a greater damage output while consuming less energy,'' Tails added, holding the laser gun. ''We were just about to test it.'' He then pointed the laser gun at the far side of the workshop, where a bag of sand with a painted-on target was hanging. He then fired, smiling when he saw the bag exploding, only for his eyes to widen when the laser also blasted away the wooden wall behind then it. ''Uh, oh…''
''I… I think we need to do a few more calibrations,'' Warren said, staring at the smoking hole in the wall, stunned by what had happened. Tails slowly turned to his partner, a look of guilt on his expression.
''I'm so, so sorry, I didn't mean for this to happen!'' he apologized. After all, this workshop was Warren's, who inherited it from his grandfather after the latter had passed away. Warren's grandfather, Max Taylor, was a renowned inventor, and Warren wanted to follow in his footsteps. However, most of Warren's inventions were failures and he had lost faith in his skills… at least, until Tails came along.
Less than two weeks ago, Warren had entered the workshop, finding Tails fixing one of his gadgets. The fox ARNav was startled by his appearance, apologizing for breaking in and returning the device he had been working on. When Warren questioned him why he was inside the workshop, Tails admitted to having watched Warren and that he wanted to help him, but he was afraid that Warren would think of him as a freak.
''Why would I think that?'' Warren was genuinely confused. Tails had his arms behind his back, his tails flicking as he scraped the floor with his shoe, staring at the ground.
''Because, that's what everyone had called me – a freak,'' he admitted, his eyes watering.
When Warren questioned him about it, Tails admitted that he used tag alongside a group of kitsune ARNavs, who all had teased him for having only two tails instead of nine and lacking the ability to create any illusions, relying instead on his gadgets. He had left them, but grew anxious whenever he would approach other people, fearing that they would just treat them the same as the kitsune group.
''Well, I don't think that you are a freak. As a matter of fact, I'm really glad that you had helped me fix that device,'' Warren said.
''Really?'' Tails looked up at him, wiping his tears away. He was startled when Warren placed a hand on his head, only to realize that he was just petting him.
''Yeah, and if you want, you can stay here and use the workshop whoever you want, buddy.''
Tails' eyes grew wide and he smiled, nodding in agreement. He had promised that he would keep the workshop functional and in good condition, as he understood that it meant a lot to Warren, which is why he was now upset with the hole in the wall.
''Don't worry, it's fine,'' Warren said, calming his ARNav partner down. ''We'll just put a tarp over it.''
''Maybe you could turn the hole into a window,'' Sonic suggested, with Tails chuckling heartily.
''Well, I wouldn't mind having more light here,'' Tails said as he placed the laser gun on the work bench and grabbing his backpack, following the three outside. ''So, are we going directly to Cosmo Bridge or…?''
''We still have two more people to pick up,'' Lucas noted. Warren and Tails exchanged glances, well aware of whom he was talking about.
xXx
Lucas, Sonic, Warren and Tails were standing in front of a gate leading to a fenced-off lavish mansion with a huge yard. Lucas stepped up to the black device mounted on the gate, with a holographic screen appearing in front of it and pressed one of the buttons below it. A few seconds later, an older man with greying hair, moustache and wearing a suit appeared on the screen. He rose an eyebrow as he saw the four.
''Good morning.''
''Good morning, we're here to see Lily Crystle and Knuckles,'' Lucas told the butler.
''Do you have a scheduled meeting with the young Mistress and Master?'' the butler asked, his question catching Lucas off guard.
''Uh, no? I mean, we're their friends and we wanted to hang out with them. We're not here on a business meeting,'' Lucas replied. The butler frowned.
''Unless you have an appointment, you are not allowed to be on the premises.''
''Why don't you just tell Knux and Lily that Sonic, Tails, Lucas and Warren want to see them?'' Sonic asked.
''Young Sir, please leave before I call the authorities,'' the butler replied, sounding annoyed.
''H-Hey!'' Lucas frowned when the holographic screen vanished.
''Why do I have the feeling that we're not welcome here?'' Sonic said in a sarcastic tone. Tails gave him a worried look.
''Lily and Knuckles wouldn't do that to us, would they?'' he asked.
''Don't worry, buddy, I'm sure it is just a misunderstanding,'' Sonic replied, glancing at Lucas. ''Any ideas?''
''Honestly, the only way inside would be to somehow get Lily and Knuckles' attention,'' Lucas replied.
''Too bad we had forgotten to ask Lily for her contact number,'' Warren said. While he and Lucas had been friends, they had only recently met Lily, meaning that it was a bit harder to get ahold of her.
''Maybe we could find a back entrance,'' Sonic suggested, pointing at the far end of the fence, lining up with the nearby woods.
''Are you sure that this is a good idea?'' Tails asked Sonic, who shrugged.
''Well, it is better than doing nothing.''
''Honestly, I don't think it is,'' Lucas replied in a deadpan tone.
''Our goal is to let Knuckles and Lily learn that we're here and if someone raises an alarm, then we can consider our goal to be achieved,'' Sonic replied.
''That… That actually sounds reasonable,'' Tails said. Lucas and Warren exchanged glances, with Warren shrugging, as he had no other ideas, while Lucas sighed.
''Fine, let's go.''
The four walked around the fence, entering the path between it and the woods. So far, things were fine, at least until Warren accidentally stepped on a very thin wire, followed by clicking noises. There was a hissing sound of a rope and a second later, the four found themselves dangling in a net hanging over a tree.
''Why is this trap here?'' Sonic asked in disbelief.
''It is for intruders; a trap to prevent anyone from sneaking into the fort. Just like you.''
Sonic, Lucas, Tails and Warren looked down, realizing that they were being observed by an anthropomorphic echidna with red fur that covered most of his body, a black nose on his peach-skinned muzzle, a white crescent-shaped patch of fur on his chest, and violet eyes. He also had seven dreadlock-like spines around the sides and back of his head and a medium-sized, tri-crooked tail. He was wearing red and yellow shoes, each with green cuffs, light gray soles, and a gray, hextuple-bolted plate on top, as well as goggles with purple lenses and light gray frames around his neck. However, his most distinct feature were the large, white, mitten-like gloves with sock-like cuffs and two spiked knuckles on each hand.
''Hello, Knucklehead,'' Sonic greeted him in a deadpan tone. Knuckles the Echidna just frowned, turning his head slightly when another person approached the group.
''If you ask me, you deserved this for sneaking around.''
The newcomer was a 16-year-old girl with dark brown hair that was dyed magenta and light green eyes. She was wearing a red T-shirt, a black jacket with sleeves that reached to her elbows, torn jeans and black boots. On the top of her head were sunglasses with red lenses and green frames. She had her arms folded on her chest, staring at them.
''For your information, we weren't sneaking around… Well, at least, that wasn't our intention,'' Lucas said.
''Your butler wouldn't let us inside. He said that we needed to have a scheduled meeting with you,'' Warren added. ''So, we tried to find another way to contact you.''
''At least our plan worked,'' Tails added in a chipper tone. Lily just rose an eyebrow, smirking.
''Your plan worked a little bit too well,'' she said, shaking her head.
''Could you just let us down?'' Sonic asked. Lily and Knuckles exchanged glances, with Lily nodding. Knuckles then went over to the contraption that held the rope tied up and smashed it, causing Lucas and Warren to fall hard on the ground and Sonic and Tails land on top of them, cushioning their fall.
''Owww… Couldn't you have let us down gently?'' Warren asked, his limbs feeling sore.
''You were the ones who walked into our trap, therefore you need to face the consequences,'' Knuckles replied.
''Why did you two even set up that trap?'' Lucas asked as he stood up, rubbing the back of his head.
''Knux had already told you; it is to make sure to keep out intruders,'' Lily said haughtily, then pouted, ''Also, I was bored.''
Lucas and Warren almost face-faulted when they heard the response, while Sonic and Tails took it more in stride. For the short time they knew Lily, it wasn't out of character for her to do something like that to keep herself entertained. They weren't surprised either that Knuckles went along with it. After all, the echidna ARNav had told them that he had come here to search for a greater purpose – that purpose being to find something he would guard with his life,… even if he had no clue what it was.
''I am a warrior, honor-bound to my cause,'' Knuckles had told them during their first encounter.
''Cause? What cause?'' Sonic asked him. Knuckles fell silent for a moment, unsure how to answer that question. ''Hey, are you…?''
This attempt at talking with Knuckles didn't go well, as the echidna ARNav had attacked him suddenly, with Sonic barely dodging Knuckles' fist. ''Do not interrupt my moment of self-reflection, Hedgehog!''
Sonic sighed at the memory, having noted to himself to never underestimate the echidna, as he spent some time recovering from their fight. Fortunately for Knuckles, they encountered Lily shortly afterwards, who had been dealing with her own baggage. Having spent a good amount of time of her life isolated in her parents' mansion, she ran away to explore Neos City.
''Is it really that hard to convince your parents to let you out of that mansion that you felt that you needed to run away?'' Lucas asked her. Lily pouted, not wanting to answer his question at all, but then relented after seeing everyone's curious looks.
''They told me that I could leave as long as I have a bodyguard with me,'' she admitted. ''It doesn't matter whether I'm skilled in martial arts or know self-defense, there needs to be someone to protect me, else I cannot leave.'' She frowned. ''Rest assured, I'm not letting anyone treat me like I'm a toddler who doesn't know how to take care of herself.''
The exchange of glances Lucas and Warren had with the ARNavs made them wonder why some problems never had such easy and convenient solutions.
''So, why are you guys here?'' Lily asked.
''We wanted to ask you two whether you want to join our investigation,'' Tails said.
''An Irregular had attacked Cosmo Bridge and we wanted to find them,'' Sonic added. Knuckles gave them a look of surprise.
''A quest?'' Knuckles walked over to both Sonic and Tails, placing his arms around their shoulders. ''I would be honored to accompany you on your quest.''
''We're glad to hear that,'' Sonic said, both him and Tails smiling.
xXx
''Well, we're here,'' Lucas said as they finally arrived at Cosmo River, observing its namesake bridge.
''This bridge looks like a devastating battle took place on it,'' Knuckles commented.
''You might not be far from the truth,'' Sonic noted. There had been several holes in the bridge and the railing was damaged. There was also a holographic tape surrounding the bridge, preventing people from walking across it.
Tails reached for his backpack, taking out a device and approached the devastated bridge, his tails spinning as he flew up, scanning the bridge. He then flew back to his friends. ''I can still detect a faint amount of BioEnergy on this bridge.''
''Really? I thought it would've dissipated by now,'' Warren said. Tails looked back at his device.
''It seems that there is still enough left to track down the Irregular,'' he said.
''Great! Let's go find them!'' Sonic said, with the team following Tails as he flew ahead. The fox kept track of the BioEnergy on his device, going towards the southwestern part of the city. However, as he got away further, the BioEnergy signal was growing weaker and weaker. Eventually, Tails landed on the ground, staring at his device in slight disappointment.
''Hey, Tails, what happened?'' Warren asked him.
''The signal is gone,'' Tails replied, his ears lowering.
''I guess we got our hopes too high,'' Lily noted, just as lost as everyone else. They looked at their surroundings, but aside from the fact that they were close to the park and that there were other people and ARNavs walking past them, there wasn't anything that would direct them to where the Irregular may have gone to. Lucas turned to Tails.
''Is it possible for the device to give us a general direction of where the Irregular may have gone?'' he asked. Tails nodded, looking down at it.
''The signal may be gone, but it looks like the Irregular went towards the park,'' he replied.
''Then we'll go and check the park. Maybe we'll find any clues there,'' Sonic said, stepping up and turning towards the group, looking determined. The rest of the group nodded in agreement.
xXx
''So, what should we do now?'' Warren asked. The group was at a more secluded part of the park, having decided to sit down and discuss the situation, each also holding an ice-cream cone in their hands (Knuckles insisted on also buying grapes to put on his ice-cream). They had spent most of the day combing through the park, but unfortunately, they had found nothing and decided to take a break.
''We haven't found any indications of the Irregular's presence and my tracker could only bring us so far,'' Tails said, looking at the device. His ears and tails drooped, only for him to feel a hand on his shoulder and seeing that it was Knuckles.
''You have done well, young Fox. Your technology brought us a step further than we were before,'' he said. Tails smiled in response.
''Considering how the Hunters couldn't find the Irregular either, we aren't doing that bad,'' Lily said, scrolling through the holographic screen that was generated by her AR Visor, showing her a news website. She turned to the group, noticing the looks everyone was giving her. ''Okay, maybe I should've phrased that differently.''
''It is always possible that the Irregular will appear again,'' Sonic said optimistically. Lucas gave him a curious look.
Even if no one said it outright, there had always been a secondary reason why they would go searching for an Irregular. Aside from the desire to protect other people from the Irregulars, there was also a sense of hope that they would encounter an Irregular who would be able to explain more about their nature. Who had created them? Why were they attracted to BioEnergy? Why were some Irregulars aggressive and some, like Sonic, Tails and Knuckles, never wanted to harm anyone? Why were the memories of their origins so messed up? Why did Irregulars have also traits of biologically being rather than just being purely digital? That, and probably more, was on everyone's mind.
''What if the Irregular had already left Neos City, or even the entire Starpoint Area?'' Warren asked.
''Then we can consider our mission accomplished,'' Knuckles replied confidently.
''What are the odds of that happening?'' Lily asked. ''No offense to you guys, but Irregulars are attracted to humans like living magnets.''
''Then, we need to crush those magnets,'' Knuckles told her firmly. Lily wanted to explain that this wasn't how it worked, but then realized that, technically, Knuckles had a point.
''Or, if we already go with the magnet metaphor, reverse their polarity,'' Tails suggested.
''Exactly! As long as we all agree that by 'polarity', we mean talking them out of destroying everything they come across,'' Sonic said.
''That won't be easy, though,'' Lucas noted, with the rest of the group agreeing with him.
xXx
'Target sighted… Initializing Operation: Superior Hedgehog.'
The Irregular resembling Sonic was hovering high in the sky, observing his counterpart and his friends as he processed the current situation. Despite resembling Sonic, especially if seen from afar, if one were to take a closer look, they would realize that he was actually a robot, built entirely out of blue and silver metal, with a yellow circular depression in his chest with a black center, metal fins resembling Sonic's quills, a pair of triangular ''ears'' and red feet with white stripes designed to resemble Sonic's shoes. His sclera was completely black, with glowing red irises.
This Irregular, known as Metal Sonic, had been completely obsessed with eliminating his counterpart. He had no idea why, but ever since he was awakened, he was driven by an internal drive to find his purpose and he believed that he found it when he came across Sonic – he had to eliminate his counterpart and prove himself to be the superior hedgehog. Admittedly, Sonic still had no idea of his existence and Metal Sonic decided to use this to his own advantage. He would find a way to separate him from his friends and then ambush him. Then, once his counterpart was defeated, he would finally be able to rest.
Metal Sonic's memory file replayed the events of the previous night again. Unlike Sonic and his friends, or even the Irregular Hunters, he knew well which path the Irregular ARNav took, having observed the destruction that had taken place. Tails had been right, the Irregular fled through the park, hiding there for a while before making their way to a less populated area. More precisely, towards the Eden Botanical Garden.
Metal Sonic made a soft buzzing noise, as if exhaling in satisfaction. A plan formed in his head.
