31 Days of Sonic Prompt 1: Look-a-Like
takes place post-shth.
You Stay in My Past, and I'll Live in My Future
It had taken quite some time for Amy to learn about his whereabouts. Omega and Shadow had been the ones to take in Metal Sonic after his fall from grace, defeated by the original. Through coaxing, she had finally gleaned from them the knowledge she sought, and there she stood before a capsule hundreds of miles beneath the surface in one of GUN's underground bunkers.
"It's strictly precautionary," Shadow had said. "He still contains our lifeform data, and we won't let the doctor have access to it again."
Amy agreed with his assessment. Metal Sonic, the one who terrorized her, was currently pinned in a rounded capsule. The bunker was a room surrounded by metallic walls and artillery. Security cameras monitored every inch of it, focusing on Amy whenever she moved. Electricity hummed in the walls, the sound like tinnitus, and she had to stop herself from flattening her ears to her skull.
Still, she arrived on a mission. It wasn't that she was going to free Metal Sonic; that accusation from Omega was utterly preposterous. She only wanted to look, taking in the wires digging into his faded blue plating. Steel restraints clutched his ankles, elbows, knees, wrists, and neck, forcing him in place. His glare, permanently narrowed, reflected her upward gaze in the dark sclera, but his once striking vermillion eyes never opened.
Amy wrung her hands by her chest and let her attention drift to his claws. His fingers, reminding her of serrated pincers, were outstretched. But they didn't twitch as Sonic would do when he slumbered. Instead, they remained paralyzed in place.
She shivered, recalling how he seized her waist and dug those claws into her blouse. When Metal Sonic captured her, she remembered her scream. Using all the air in her lungs, she wailed. She struggled, kicking her feet and jostling her head, but Metal Sonic had refused to release her. He followed the doctor's strict commands, using her as bait to lure Sonic deeper into Little Planet. Amy was nothing more than a hostage to him.
She gritted her teeth. Her skin warmed at the memory. She squeezed her fists and squared her shoulders, wishing she had been able to do more. At the time, she wasn't the strongest, and she certainly wasn't the fastest. Metal Sonic had her beat in every necessary area, leaving Amy to stew in her fears and strengthen her belief in the hero she loved.
Even when Metal Sonic returned in a form more powerful than ever, she felt she could have done more. She had boldly led Cream and Big against Metal Madness to provide Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles with much-needed time. She had struck his power cores, avoided his flamethrower, and guided her friends away from his targeting missiles. Amy prided herself on her leadership that day, but gazing up at Metal Sonic, remembering how much suffering he had caused her, she couldn't ignore the persistent grip Metal Sonic still had over her.
"Some nights, I think you're still so close to me," Amy said, her quiet voice reverberating. "I think I'll see you in the corner of my eyes. I think I'll see you when I'm about to fall asleep."
As expected, Metal Sonic didn't respond. It wasn't like he could in the first place. Shadow previously explained that GUN had removed his voicebox for examination.
Amy rubbed her hand along her waist. Phantom pain throbbed along her skin. "I already know you don't regret anything you've done to my friends and me. When we met, you were following Eggman's orders, but what you did so recently was all on you, right?" She stepped closer, taking in the scratches and flakes on his painted body. "You made your choices without guilt, just like Sonic."
They were alike, and she couldn't deny simple facts. They shared physical similarities and speed, unlike any other creature. Their overwhelming confidence exuded pressure on their enemies when they dove headfirst into battle.
But where Metal Sonic destroyed, Sonic protected. Sonic immersed himself in the beauty of their world, and Metal Sonic strove to decimate it all in a fiery blaze to prove himself superior. Where individuals cheered for Sonic, they feared Metal Sonic, fleeing in his presence, and he took no prisoners, except for Amy, who he had toyed with when he chased her across Little Planet.
Sonic never made her feel inferior. He might have been annoyed or ran off when she persisted with dates, but he always offered her a helping hand or a friendly smile when she needed it most. In those little moments that Amy treasured, she knew he'd always be there for her. All she needed to do was ask, and he gave her his all, inspiring her to do the same.
"You said you were the one true Sonic, but you're wrong," she said to the empty room. "Sonic would never hurt me. He'd never do anything on purpose to make anyone feel pain. Yeah, Sonic likes to make Eggman feel bad or tease his friends, but unlike you, Sonic has a real heart of gold."
Amy stepped away from Metal Sonic. Her boots squeaked on the tiled floor. Her reflection diminished in his glare, and she faced him on even terms. She no longer needed to fear him, and taking in a slow breath, she unclenched her fists.
"I won't be scared of you anymore," she declared. "I don't know what's going to happen to you here. I don't know if Eggman will just build another you or come searching for you." The corners of her lips lifted upward. "But I'm different from the girl you met on Little Planet, Metal Sonic. I won't let you make me feel like I'm just a victim anymore. After all, Sonic never did."
She held out her hand to the doors, and they slid open automatically. Shadow and Omega waited for her, the former with his arms crossed over his chest. She pivoted toward them, but she spared Metal Sonic a look over her shoulder, taking in the lifeless sight of Metal Sonic's body confined in place.
"And because of that, you'll never be the real Sonic," Amy remarked, and she left him in the past where he belonged.