Chapter 8
Four months after Dr. Eggman left Earth
Test number 19. Tails recorded the figure on a scratch piece of paper. It was stifling inside his workshop and sweat caused his hand to slip and his usually tidy handwriting suffered for it. He ignored the minor blemish and returned to his workbench. Water contamination levels at 75%, unfit for consumption, or irrigation purposes. His bench was dominated by one large contraption, a complicated metal device layered in wires, handles, switches and various gears that encased a beaker filled with murky water.
Tails opened the hatch on the top. The machine hissed with a shot of smoke that caused Tails to jump back. Device power still causes overheating, Will require additional fans. Tails brushed aside the smoke and went over to the wall. He used a key to open a hanging locked box and reached inside to retrieve a Chaos Emerald. The yellow gem sparkled in the gloom of his workshop.
Tails placed the emerald carefully within the center of his machine. Adding emerald. He closed the hatch and tepidly flipped a switch. BOOM! Tails covered his face but the explosion did not escape the casing of the machine. Suddenly, lights started flashing and the invention started to whine loudly. POWER CASING STABLE! Tails snagged the earmuffs close at hand and covered his ears to shield himself against the screaming machine.
He pulled one of the triggers and the machine's casing drew back revealing the emerald within a glass shield. Wires clung to the emerald and electric sparks dazzled out everywhere, threatening to break containment at any second. Electrical charge beyond expected levels, glass shield still holding. Tails grabbed a lever and started to wind it. The gears groaned and started to move. Within the casing, the emerald shone brighter and brighter.
Tails turned back and tapped a few buttons on the keyboard near his monitor. The screen flashed to life and displayed a blueprint version of his machine. Numbers flashed rapidly on screen, Tails watched them intently, his mind racing through dozens of calculations in quick succession. Power source stable, directing output.
He flipped back just as a button turned red on the console. Tails hesitated. This was the moment. If it failed he might have to start over from the basic design. Please work. Tails pressed the button and prayed. For a moment, nothing happened. Tails waited. Anticipation made every second feel like a minute. The device continued to whine as loud as ever. Whrrrrrr!
Thrilled, Tails watched the beaker. It spun on its pedestal as a tap above it poured small droplets of golden liquid into the dirty water. Tails watched in expected awe as the drops continued to pour. After a dozen or so drips the tap dried up and the pedestal stopped moving. Tails quickly removed the beaker. The golden liquid hovered at the top of the murky water. He shook the beaker, forcing the liquids to mix. When he stopped and placed the beaker down the gold had faded away. But so had much of the brown and general fog.
Tails took the water and poured it through a funnel into a receptacle. His computer flashed new numbers on the monitor. Water contamination levels at 45%, safe for filtered drink and irrigation. "YES!" Tails pumped his fist and jumped so high he accidentally slammed his head into his workshop roof. With a CRASH he fell onto the ground.
"O goodness, are you okay?"
Tails's head was spinning as he looked up. A rabbit's face swam into focus. She looked terribly concerned. Blood rushed into Tail's cheeks and he jumped up in a flash. "I'M FINE!" He assured her, much too loudly.
The rabbit took an alarmed step backward. "I'm sorry to bother you." She said quickly before bowing. "My name is Cream the Rabbit, I am looking for Miles Tails Prower. I am sorry to barge in like this. I was knocking but you couldn't seem to hear me."
Tails removed his earmuffs and smiled plaintively. "O…uh…sorry I was running an experiment. Wait…did you say you were looking for me?"
"O yes! I have come so very far." Cream dug into the pockets of her dress and drew out a rumbled bit of newspaper. She unfurled it and Tails immediately recognized the headline. "Tails" Prower was given the Chaos Emerald." The story beneath described how Tails had thwarted Dr. Eggman's plan to destroy Station Square.
"O right, that's me." Tails said, trying to sound nonchalant about it. He took a step to his right, so Cream would not see that the very same headline was framed and hung up in the workshop.
"Please help me!" Cream shouted suddenly as she fell to her knees and snatched Tails by the hand. "My village is desperate for help! I've come to you because I think you're the only one who can."
Blushing worse than ever, Tails pulled Cream to her feet. "Woah, what's the matter?"
Cream shuddered and tears fell gently out of her large eyes. "The river. It's gotten sick. My village rests on its shore and it's where we get all of our water. But now it's all polluted and several people have gotten ill from drinking the water…even my…even my mother. Our hunters were sent up to the river's source near the mountains but they never returned. We've seen machines flying overhead and everyone is terrified." Cream hiccuped, and Tails quickly retrieved a napkin for her to dry her eyes with.
Her shaking hands clutched at the newspaper. "You're a hero. You defeated that evil Dr. Eggman before…could you please help us?"
Tails scratched his head. "Uh…well of course I can!"
Cream's tears vanished as she smiled. "Will you really? O thank you, thank you so much!"
Tails escorted Cream out of the cramped workstation. Outside they were met with bright sunlight and a soft cold wind. "Now, are you sure that Eggman is one the behind this?"
Cream shook her head. "No but who else could it be? Everyone knows he only lives to destroy and pollute everything that is clean and wholesome."
If only he were the only one. Tails thought solemnly. Odds were, Eggman was the cause but more and more, the green world was being pushed back by perfectly ordinary and unassuming humans. A trend that was a growing anxiety in Tail's mind. Sonic and Tails were heroes to the human world just as much as they were to the green one, but eventually, even if Sonic could not see it, they would be forced to choose a side.
"Where do you live?" Tails asked.
"Just beyond the borders of Leaf Forest."
"That is a long way. You traveled all the way here by yourself?"
Cream blushed and tittered nervously. "Well…it wasn't easy, but we really need your help."
"You must really care about your village." Tails said, trying to sound supportive. Cream nodded. "Well we'd better get there as soon as possible. Flying is best, so we will take the Tornado 2!"
Cream's perplexity was resolved quickly as Tails raced back into his workshop. He quickly assembled a belt filled with tools and a pouch of medicine Moments later, the tarmac located behind his house opened up along with Tails's signature biplane. Cream's eyes were alight with wonder as she raced over. "This is yours?"
"Yes, I uh…built it myself."
"Wow!" Cream gushed. She then spotted the words emblazoned on the side. "SONIC! It says Sonic!" She said breathlessly.
"Yeah, I built this one based off the original Tornado model."
"Will Sonic come help us too?"
Tails shrugged. "He would if we could find him."
"Is he missing?" Cream asked with concern.
Tails laughed. "No, but he is not easy to find. Sonic never stays in one place for long. Looking for him would take too long. We should get back to your village and make sure everyone is okay. I have medicine I can bring them."
Cream looked on the verge of fainting. Tears again welled up in her eyes. "Really…you really are as heroic as the paper said."
Tails turned his head so she would not see him blush. "Only one thing left to do." He went to the front of the plane and opened the hatch by the forward propellers. He then drew out the Chaos Emerald and placed it within. "With this we can fly at incredible speeds, we will reach your village in no time flat!" He announced.
Tails climbed into the plane and Cream squeezed in behind him. It was a tight fit and both passengers felt awkward. "Uh…I forgot. Sonic usually rides on the side of the plane." Tails said as a way of apology.
"Isn't that dangerous?" Cream squeaked.
"Yeah, but that's why he does it." Tails strapped on his piloting goggles but passed the helmet over to Cream. She accepted it gratefully and strapped it tightly over her head, pinning her massive ears to the sides of her face. "Are you ready?" Tails asked.
She gave him a thumbs up and Tails fired up the engine. The Tornado 2 roared to life and shot down the tarmac. Tails was blasted by air as his cheeks were pulled back by the plane's incredible speed. "Here. We. Go!" The plane shot off the tarmac and streamed across the sky.
Cream did not speak on the trip. The rabbit clung desperately to Tails and the only sounds she made were frightened little squeaks. Her terror grounded Tails so he did not push the Tornado overly hard. With Sonic, full speed was still too slow and on a long trip, Tails often had to do unnecessary spins and loops to keep Sonic from falling asleep and falling off the edge of the plane.
It took only three hours for Tails to see the trees of Leaf Forest, appearing like small green dots below them. He took the Tornado into a soft dive and watched out for a river. By the southern border he spotted the twisting blue ribbon and followed it. "The village is just by those boulders." Cream whispered.
Tails headed that way, but made sure to scope out the surrounding area. The river seemed to originate from the distant mountains of Hot Crater. The colossal spyres of the mountain range blocked Tails's line of sight, but he figured whatever was causing the pollution resided in the valleys between the summits.
As they descended, Tails saw a collection of huts built on the eastern shore of the river. He circled around to make the descent less of a dive and landed softly just beyond the village gates. When he tried to get out, he found that he was pinned to his chair. Cream was still clinging to him and her eyes were closed so she did not notice that they were already on the ground.
"Is it over?" She asked feebly.
"We're here." Tails said.
She opened her eyes and when she saw the truth she released Tails and blushed. "O…that was fast."
He helped her out of the plane and the two of them headed for the village. It did not take Tails long to see that things had indeed gone wrong. Rabbits of all sizes and shapes congregated in the village square and every face that Tails saw looked haggard and depressed. Cream pointed to the centermost and largest building. "All the sick have been brought to the main hall. My mother is there too."
Inside the main hall, all the tables and chairs had been swept away leaving the massive dining hall to be occupied by dozens of beds. Rabbits in white robes jostled from bed to bed to tend to their sick and ailing neighbors. Cream took Tails by the hand and led him towards the back of the room.
One bed near the end of the room was encased by curtains, Cream rushed over and drew them back. On a bed lay an older rabbit who was the perfect mirror of Cream. She was flushed and sweating and a small hovering Chao dabbed at her forehead with a cloth. "Mother, I'm back!" Cream cried. "I've brought the hero."
The older rabbit's eyes fluttered openly. Though she seemed utterly exhausted and in terrible pain, she smiled warmly at Tails. "Well done, Cream. Hello there, my name is Vanilla." The Chao frowned as Vanilla tried to rise and it pushed feebly at her to lay her back down. "At ease Cheese." The rabbit groaned.
"Cream says everyone is sick from drinking the river water." Tails started.
"Yes. Our people have lived beside this stream for generations but now, in a mere matter of months, it has been tainted." Bitterness laced her words and Tails could see the pain and anger in her eyes.
He drew out a pouch filled with small tablets. "Take these and share the rest with everyone else who is sick."
Vanilla eyed the tablets suspiciously. "What is it?"
"Medicine."
"From the human world?" Her tone was sharp and icy.
"Yes."
"Aren't they the ones making us sick?"
"Not all of them." Tails watched as Vanilla wrestled with her inner suspicion and doubt. Cream rushed to her mother's bedside.
"Anything Tails gives us you can trust." She announced.
Vanilla gave her daughter a doting smile. "How do you know that Cream, you just met him?"
Cream took out the folded clip of the newspaper and showed it to her mother. "Look! He's a hero. He is even friends with Sonic the Hedgehog! You always taught me how to see the good in people, and I can tell that Tails has a great heart and that he is here to help us."
Vanilla accepted her daughter's admonishment with grace. "Yes…forgive me. I should not be so untrusting. You have come all the way here just to help." She reached out and accepted the pouch from Tails. "I will have Cheese distribute this among the sick, but there is still the river to be dealt with. If it cannot be healed then I fear we must abandon our ancestral home."
"I think there should be a way. If I can stop the source of the pollution, the foul water should run off, and if not, I have a water treatment device that I think can help." Tails said cheerfully.
"I humbly ask that you do so. A foul odor and reek has been rising near the summits of Hot Crater as of late. Our hunters investigated but have not returned."
"I know, Cream told me. I will go there right now and find out."
"You are a brave young man." Vanilla said solemnly. "It warms my heart to see that there are true heroes out there."
Tails waved goodbye and drew back the curtain. "WAIT" Cream rushed to his side. "I'm coming with you."
"Uhh…" Tails looked back at Vanilla for support. "You should probably stay here with your mother."
Cream scrunched up her face and stomped her feet. "No, no, this is our village, it is only right that one of us goes with you."
Vanilla sighed. "Cream, you may get in his way." After seeing her daughter's crestfallen expression, Vanilla relented. "All right, you can at least show him the way to the mountains. But you must do exactly as Tails instructs you. If he tells you to go home, you must do so right away."
"Of course!" Cream exclaimed.
Tails accepted Cream's company reluctantly. The duo left the main hall and headed back to the Tornado. Once back in the air, Cream mustered her courage and kept her eyes open. "There is a small clearing just inside the forest where you can land. There used to be a path that ran up into the mountains. Our men used to go on trials of strength there long ago."
He followed her directions and landed the Tornado in a clearing within Leaf Forest. As Cream had said, they found a small trail which wound through the bramble of the forest and deposited them near the slopes of Hot Crater. However, the trail quickly led them to a dead end facing a sheer wall of rock. In the distance, Tails could make out trails of smoke.
"Well, I think you should go back now." He said. "I can fly up, but you should head back to your village." With that, Tails leapt up and whirled his signature tails so fast they propelled him skyward and let him hover in the air.
"That? O I can do that too!" She said with bubbly enthusiasm.
"Cream, I don't think-"
Before he could even finish his sentence, Cream jumped in the air, extended her ears and flapped them so hard a gust of wind bore her high into the air. In seconds she had nearly soared over the wall. "Come on Tails!" She yelled back at him.
Surprised, and caught in a temporary childish thrill, Tails zoomed up and the two of them had a small race to the top of the wall. Cream reached the edge before him and as soon as she passed over she let out a shrill scream. BLAST! Tails reacted just in time, blurring up and tackling Cream out of the way.
He rolled onto his feet to see three bipedal badniks closing in. They had blasters on each arm and started firing rapidly. "Hold on!" Tails grabbed Cream and shot upward. Cream recovered and flew away to safety. When the bandicks aimed up, Tails dropped like a rock. As soon as he hit the ground he revved up into a spin dash and shot out like a bullet. CRASH! The first badnik exploded on impact, and Tails veered to hit the next but was forced to dodge sideways as more blaster fire rained down on him.
They're smarter than usual. He thought grimly. BLAST! BLAST! Yellow beams of energy rushed at Tails and he narrowly avoided them as he circled around his targets. Usually badniks just rushed headlong into danger but these were using strategy. With rapid fire blasts they could keep Tails at bay and cover each other's blind spots. I'll have to take a risk.
Tails stopped circling and dashed straight for them. There was a second delay as they recalibrated and Tails used that to spring up and tail swipe a badnik to the face. The force of the impact shattered the robot but Tails was left temporarily vulnerable. He saw the flash of yellow as the second badnik raised its rifle. Tails closed his eyes but the pain didn't come. "LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Cream cried as she plummeted down like a crashing star. The robot exploded into pieces and Cream was left sitting in the rubble, looking confused but altogether pleased with herself.
"Thanks!" Tails said as he helped her to her feet.
Cream dusted off her dress. "I thought they were going to get you." She said, pensively. "I'm not usually violent like this."
Tails walked over to inspect one of the fallen machines. Unlike Eggman's usual pawns, this one was coated in a white polyester sheen. There was something strange and uniform about it that disturbed Tails. The Eggman he knew always built his pawns with a unique, self indulgent style, with the intent more on fueling the doctor's ego than unit efficiency. Tails gently pulled back the casing over the badnik's head and exposed its parts. "Hmmm…that's strange."
"What is?" Cream asked.
"This badnik has no cpu…I wonder…perhaps these are all being controlled remotely?" Tails drew out an external drive from his belt. "If that's the case there is a chance I could hack the mainframe and turn off any robots connected to the system. We won't make it far if there are dozens of these guarding the passes." Tails hooked his drive up to the robot's motherboard and then took out a small monitor. The screen flickered to life and displayed a rolling set of code. "Yes, these are definitely connected to a central computer. However the source isn't coming from the mountains. In fact it isn't coming from anywhere near here."
"What does that mean?"
"Nothing really. Just that the computer controlling the pawns must be at a different base. But I should still be able to get access, let me just try-" SPARK! Tails recoiled as sparks flew off the motherboard. The monitor's numbers flashed and then turned red. A high pitched ringing sound echoed from the connection port. It was so striking, both Tails and Cream had to cover their ears.
"Turn it off!" Cream begged.
Tails reached for the port, but then the monitor turned black. Slowly, a face faded onto the screen. It looked like a woman. Her face was drawn and her expression was deep and solemn. "Hello." Her voice was eerie, soft but full of buried menace.
"Hello?" Tails could feel his heart skip a beat. The monitor flickered. For the briefest moment, the woman smiled so wide the edges of her lips reached her ears and then she was solemn again.
"I am AG-1991 Genesis." Tails ignored the woman and continued to work on his drive. "Are you trying to hack me?" She sounded amused, almost bored.
He ignored her again. Tails pressed a few more buttons on his drive and instructed it to inject more code into the system. The monitor flickered and for a moment the woman's outline burned red. Her smile returned and then phased back to normal. The sight was so off putting, Cream shrank away. "You cannot stop me." She whispered. "I am in all. I am Legion."
Tails made one final attempt. He added more code and the monitor turned off. Tails waited. He was about to relish his victory when he heard the laugh. A cold, mirthless cackle emitted from the blank screen. The woman was howling in a laugh that may have also been a scream of torment and pain. Cream shut her eyes and trembled. Tails stomped the monitor into pieces. The laughter faded.
The duo continued their trek in fearful silence. Fortunately, their path was not blocked by any more guards. At the end of the path they reached a minor summit of the mountains. They clammored over the hill and stood over a deep basin. Tails and Cream gasped. The entire valley between the mountains had been transformed into a metallic base. White sheen robots flew in every direction, great spyre towers rose out of the molten depths, and steam issued out hundreds of deep vents.
In the center rose the tallest and greatest tower. Walled with steel, coated in barbed wire, encircled with turrets and rockets, the tower was a bulwark of adamant and cruel steel in a world of white and red. At its crest burned the sigil of Dr. Eggman.
"Cream. You are going back to your village." Tails said sternly.
"But what about the river?"
"I'll take care of it."
"Not by yourself? Look at this! There are hundreds of those robots, surely you don't think you can take down this entire base by yourself?"
Cream's horror turned to surprise when she saw Tails smile. "I won't go alone. It just so happens I know the perfect guy for this kind of adventure."