Chapter 10
The No Zone was never a pretty place. It had sat in the center of uncharted reality since the dawn of existence, and it was no less a formless void with no distinct shape or comprehensible laws of nature. This was made worse, however, thanks to the monster that was Doctor Eggman Nega. Though feigning the air of a gentleman, he no less narcissistic and destructive than his prime universe counterpart. Though his machinations had been ultimately stopped by the combined efforts of the brave zone cops and the heroic Sonic the hedgehog, the zone had still taken a significant hit, and it was taking time to heal. Fortunately, Zone Headquarters still stood proud as a symbol of control amidst the chaos, even though operations had been grinded to a near halt following Nega's attack and the sudden prison break from a few months ago. Nevertheless, the zone cops were doing their best to make do with what they had.
At the entrance of zone HQ, Zector, Zespio, and cadet Zarmy stood on guard. Security was at its highest, the reason why being that the Director herself was on her way for a personal inspection of the grounds. The director had been off investigating the spots of greatest distortion across the multiverse, and she had been micromanaging every tiny operation to ensure that things were running as smoothly as possible. With that in mind, it only meant that things were even grimmer than things looked.
Just then, Zespio straightened, and he pointed up.
"Incoming!"
His comrades looked up in time to see a patrol vehicle slowly descending downwards towards them. Zector immediately drew his blaster pistol while Zarmie took up a defensive position behind him, and they watched the vehicle carefully as it landed in front of them.
"Alright you!" he barked. "Out of the vehicle! Come out nice and slow. We have authorization to use lethal force if need be."
The driver's side door opened, and out came the driver.
"Geeze, Zec, no need to be so critical." Came the voice of Zonic. "You do this to all of your friends?"
Zector gasped, and he immediately brought up his hand in a salute, slamming his gun against the side of his head in the process.
"Oof! Captain, Zonic! Welcome back, sir! We were starting to wonder about you. You didn't call in for a day or two."
"Trouble with the radio." Zonic said simply as he walked around and moved to open one of the backseat doors. "I'll drop my gear with the tech boys here in a bit. But first, I need to put this scandalous criminal behind bars, where she belongs.
He opened the door.
"Alright you. Out where everyone can see you. Move it!"
Out stepped Fiona bound in cuffs and with her face pointing to the ground. The three guards jolted, and Vector flashed Zonic a grin.
"Hey, hey, now there's the boss we al know and love! Caught that scoundrel Fiona and in record time!"
Zonic chuckled, and he brushed a finger under his nose while taking Fiona by an arm.
"What can I say? When you got the best, who even needs the rest. I'm only sorry that I couldn't find that Scourge guy. I tried pumping her for his whereabouts, but she hasn't said a darn thing since I caught her."
Zespio stepped out from behind Zector, and he hummed thoughtfully.
"Perhaps he abandoned her. It would go along with the psyche profile Zouge made up for him. A selfish bully that would say or do anything to get what he wants."
He looked to Fiona.
"If that's the case, I can't help but feel pity for her. So much energy wasted, only for the object of her affections to just dismiss her so coldly."
Fiona twisted her head away from him, though a bitter scowl had slowly etched itself across her mouth.
"You ask me, she's getting what she deserves." Zarmy said while crossing his arms. "I mean, you put stock in jerks like that Scourge guy, then you're only gonna end up with egg on your face."
"Zarmie!" Zector snapped, making the bee flinch.
"What? We were all thinking the same thing. Kid's a loser."
Fiona's grin grew just the tiniest bit bigger.
"You should still show tact!" Zector barked. "As member's of the Zone Patrol elite, we must show dignity, pride, but also respect around our inmates and those we arrest. Loose lips sink ships, don't you know, and this old tub's wobbling enough as it is. Now give me thirty laps around the compound!"
The bee sighed in aggravation, but he dutifully buzzed off whilst Zector followed after them. Zonic watched them go, and he started for the door with Fiona in tow.
"Well, I'd better get this despicable, tasteless, scandalous cur locked away before she can cause more trouble. I'm sure the warden we'll be on his way in no time to pick her up. I can almost see the big goofy grin on the lardball's face."
He walked past Zespio, but he stopped short when the chameleon put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him short. Zonic looked back at the stalwart reptile, and he fought to conceal a feeling of unease.
"Is there a problem?"
Zespio studied Zonic carefully, his eyes narrowing as though he were searching for something specific. He released Zonic and then took a step back.
"It's nothing." He said. "I will admit though, captain, I'm a tad surprised you only came back with one of the many escapees. I realize we have only the minimal resources as a result of the zone cleanup effort, but you've always prided yourself on getting your man. Scourge is a menace, make no mistake, but you're more than smart enough to deal with him, especially if he landed in Mobius Prime like our scouts reported. The only real advantage he would have there is that girl, and, like a fool, he threw her to the wolves."
Fiona had to bite her tongue as Zonic began to grip her arm very, very, very tightly. He sneered at the chameleon with a most unwholesome scowl, and he turned his back to him.
"I couldn't find him. End of story. I'll just get him next time. In the meantime, keep your nose out of my business if you want to keep it."
With that, he carried on escorting Fiona into the building. Naturally, the building was under as many renovations as the zone itself, and many different zone cops and other such officials were moving about busily through the building. No one seemed to pay them too much mind, all far too busy going about their usual business, so they more or less had free reign of the place. As they went, Fiona was met with a multitude of familiar faces: a version of Tails that was a cadet, a version of Knuckles and Finnetivus were chatting and laughing around the water cooler before versions of Julie-Su and Lien-Da knocked them in their heads and told them to get to work, a version of Amy Rose acting as a call operator, and even Sally whom was dressed as a lawyer, the district attorney most likely. Now that was surprising. If the princess' no zone counter part wasn't the head zone cop in this zone, then who was?
Eventually, they came to a small wing where a row of small holding cells waited. Overseeing them, or rather napping, was a version of Big the cat. Wasting no time, Scourge, having shed the helmet, snagged the keys and locked Fiona inside one of the holding cells.
"Is this really necessary?" she asked.
"Relax, babe." Scourge said assurance. "It's all for the act. If they go looking for Zonic, they'll see you sitting in here and think that I'm just roaming aimlessly. By the time they're duking out with the boys, it'll already be too late to stop my brilliant plan. All you have to do is sit tight and chill while I set the you-know-whats. After all, I promised you'd be taken care of, didn't I, Babe?"
Fiona seemed a bit shaky, but she nonetheless nodded.
"Alright, Scourge. I trust you."
"Atta girl, Fi." Scourge said as he put his helmet back on. "Be back in a few."
With that, Scourge made his way out of the wing and ducked into one of the less occupied areas of the building. After making sure he was alone, he put a hand to his ear, and he switched on his communicator.
"Scourge to Destructix. We're in, and the coppers ain't none the wiser. You boys cause a ruckus. I'll let you have your fun for, say, thirty minutes, and then I'll get to work."
………………………….
"Sounds good to us." Predator Hawk said as he hung up.
The three of them had hidden on the other side of the transport Scrouge had flown with Simian riding in the back, hidden by the tinted glass. Predator immediately took to the air, and he scanned the area carefully, eventually spying a section of the headquarters that was under heavy reconstruction complete with a large gaping hole.
"Just the right size for the car. Looks like we're going for the old bulldozer routine, Sarge."
"Sounds like a fun time to me." Sgt Simian chortled as he forced his way forward into the front seat.
Lightning Lynx clambered up onto the roof of the vehicle, and Predator Hawk soon joined him before Sgt Simian took off, taking the car high in the air before swerving around and making a beeline for the target set by Hawk. As Simian carefully positioned the car for the proper ramming position, Hawk took the brief reprieve for a chance to talk.
"So, Lynx, after this you want to take another stab at Conquering Storm? After what happened at the prison, she's gotta be impressed enough with you to let you back in. Who knows, she might even submit to your advances."
Lightning Lynx shook his head.
"Nah. I appreciate the thought, Hawk, but let's face it. I was never getting back into the clan. You guys tried to warn me about her and look where not listening got me. Besides, waking up every morning to that hot mess would probably be a never-ending nightmare."
"Hallelujah there, brother!" Hawk laughed. "But, if that's the case, then why are you still so mad at Fiona. I mean, I don't like her any more than you do, but what's the point?"
"It's the principle behind it all."
"If you say so. Also, BRACE FOR IMPACT!!!"
The two of them pressed themselves against the roof of the transport, and they went smashing through the wall with a loud crash. Immediately, an alarm began to blare as warning lights flashed red. The vehicle was wrecked, but the three Destructix came out unscathed. Already, a team of zone cops erupted into the room. Taking point, Sgt Simian lunged and dogpiled several to the ground, grabbing another and using him for a weapon. Predator Hawk took off into the air to combat an airborne cop, and he struck him in the head with a flying kick, knocking off his helmet to reveal a green hawk.
"Hey, hey, Lightning!" Predator Hawk called to his comrade. "This Joker looks like that clown, Jet, and I just kicked him in the head! You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that!"
"Good for you, pal!" Lightning called up as he pinned three cops with kunai and readied a fourth. "Too bad none of them look like Conquering Storm. I'd really love to blow off some steam."
Suddenly, a shuriken flew through the air and relieved him of his last kunai. He spun around as another cop removed their helmet, revealing themselves to be a female lynx. Lightning's eyes jumped, and he grinned wickedly.
"Thank you, Multiverse!"
As the two charged each other, Simian continued to hold the line at the door, keeping the brunt of the forces out whiles bashing any that managed through slip through.
"Scourge's feet better move as fast as his mouth! We won't be able to do this for too long."
…………………………………………..
Scourge soon found himself in the motor pool where all of the vehicles and transports were waiting. He trotted over to one of the hover vehicles, and he took a moment to admire his reflection in one of the hoods.
"Hey, there, handsome." He chuckled to himself. "Smart, good looking, and standing on top. Yeah, baby, that's me! Hail to the king!"
He removed his backpack, and he flipped it open to reveal the explosives. With wicked glee, he grabbed handful after handful, and he began to speed them through the large room and set up the bombs on every column, vehicle, and wall. In no time at all, the entire motor pool was littered with explosives ripe for detonation. Scourge zipped back to his bag, and he did a quick count of how many bombs were left.
"Hmm, I have fewer of these than I thought. Oh, well, I guess that doesn't matter. Just blowing up the motor pool alone with cause a big enough boom, so really the extras will just add to the overall carnage. I'm almost sorry I'm gonna miss the whole show."
He flashed a large grin.
"Yeah, it's gonna be quite the little drama. Those fools. So trusting. So naïve. They really don't know what they're in for. But what did they need to know? They were just a bunch of extras, and I'm the star of the show. Maybe they'll go up with the set, but at least they won't have to worry about retirement."
He got a good laugh out of that.
"But the biggest drip of them all is that wench, Fiona. Good grief, how pathetic can you get. All it takes are a big pair of doe eyes and some honeyed words, and the girl turns into putty. Silly putty! HAHAHA! Really, after I promised to 'take care of her', she really should have suspected something. But what're you gonna do when you're a hopeless, worthless, pitiful waste of…"
Then, something caught his eye. Or rather, something didn't catch his eye. He looked down into his backpack, and then he began to rummage around in it. He rummaged and rummaged, but the item he was looking for did not come to the surface.
"What the…where is it? Where's the detonator?! I put that thing at the bottom of the bag explicitly so I wouldn't lose it! It has to be in here!"
He flipped the bag upside down, and he began to shake it furiously as the extra bombs fell out from the bag. But still he came up empty handed.
"I don't understand! Where is that ding dang detonator? I know I put it in there, and I was the only one that knew about it. So where did it…"
Click!
Beep!
Beep!
Beep!
Scourge froze, and he looked up to see that the bombs had switched on, each one having a tiny red light that began to blink. A sinking feeling of dread began to bubble up in his gut, and then he heard someone clearing their threat.
"A deadman switch, eh? That's a fitting use of detonator. It matches you perfectly."
……………………………..
Several minutes earlier…
Fiona sat in her cell and sighed with sheer boredom. It was perhaps a tad ironic, but she found herself envying the Destructix. At least they were beating up people and likely having a blast doing it while she was stuck sitting on her tail with nothing to do but listen to Zig snore. What she wouldn't give for some sort of mental stimulation to make the time go by.
"He's going to betray you."
She jolted upright, and then Zespio materialized in front of her cell. She immediately scrambled to her feet, ready to fight the instant that door came open.
"How did you know? Even I would have been fooled by Scourge's impression of Zonic."
"Current circumstances as they are, I don't find that hard to believe." Zespio replied dryly. "But, to answer your question, bear in mind that I have been working with Zonic for a great deal of time, and, unlike my colleagues, I tend to observe certain social cues better than others. The Zonic you came with, whom I'm certain was Scourge, more or less flunked every single test I gave him. So, I followed, and I witnessed your little exposition about blowing up Headquarters."
Fiona's heart sank. She knew this plan was doomed from the start, but she hadn't expected it to fail barely out of the starting gate. She sighed.
"So, lemme guess. You've already rounded up Scourge and the Destructix, and this is the part where you haul me off to prison?"
To her surprise, Zespio shook his head.
"That won't be necessary. Besides, Scourge can't do too much damage without this."
He reached into a pouch on his hip, and he produced a device Fiona was all too familiar with. A bomb detonator switch, and a deadman at that.
"I found it in Scourge's backpack." Zespio explained. "He was so busy patting himself on the back that he didn't even notice it was taken."
Fiona stared at the device disbelievingly, and her heart sunk all the way to her feet. So that was it, then. The bombs didn't detonate on a timer. Scourge was going to detonate them a safe distance, and he was going to do it alone. So that's what he had meant by "taking care of her". She suddenly felt faint, and she took a seat on the cot in her cell as she held her head in her hands, tears starting to form in her eyes.
"He doesn't care about you." Zespio said. "You, your comrades: you're all just collateral for him. Loose ends that need to be tied before he can go about his business."
Fiona didn't dare look up at him. She didn't dare show weakness. Not now, and especially not here. But little by little her defenses withered away and died as the tears began to flow freely.
"Just what do you want?" she demanded in a croak. "You didn't just come here to gloat."
The cell door creaked open, and she looked up to see Zespio offering the detonator.
"I don't gloat." he said.
Fiona stared at the device, and she carefully accepted it while keeping a watchful eye on Zespio. The chameleon turned around, and he started to march off, but he stopped just shy of the hallway.
"Scourge is motor pool. I've already evacuated that part of the building."
Fiona stepped out of her cell, and she stared at the back of the chameleon's head. Her mind was racing, as well as her heart. The detonator seemed to weigh heavily in her fist, as well as the many consequences that came with its use.
"Just what exactly do you expect me to do with this thing?" she demanded.
Zespio looked back at her, and he gave her a nod of his head.
"The only thing you can do."
With that, he vanished in a shimmer, leaving her alone with her thoughts and am enormous decision. A decision, she found, to have an easy solution.
……………………………..
In an odd way, it seemed to fill Fiona with delight to see the utter horror on Scourge's face. His eyes were on the deadman switch in her fist, specifically that her thumb was holding down the red button. With the slightest twitch of that tiny digit, the bombs would detonate, and that would be the end of it all. But, first, she would make him sweat a little bit, and sweat he did.
"Now, babe," he began as he slowly started to approach her. "Let's not go and do something we're gonna regret."
"It's a tad too late for that one, babe." She retorted, spitting the last word. "I really must be an idiot if I thought you would be true to your word. Or, at least, true in a way where you weren't the only one that benefitted from the turnout."
"Babe, Fiona, come on!" Scourge said, his tone desperate. "I-I wasn't gonna ditch ya, honest! I was gonna just leave the Destructix. You know, the dead weight."
"Is that so?" Fiona asked. "Sure didn't seem like dead weight when you got the bright idea to attack this joint in the first place. Did Frog not wanna go through with it or something? I find it odd that the resident maniac of the group wasn't around when you decided to pull this stunt. Or was he dead weight, too? You couldn't have gotten the bombs yourself, Finnetivus no doubt had those thing heavily guarded."
"Hey, the stupid toad knew what he was getting into when he joined me!" Scourge snapped.
"And so did I." Fiona retorted with equal heat, lifting her thumb just enough that it wouldn't set off the bombs. Not just yet. "You know, Scourge, I kinda need to thank you. When you left me high and dry like that, I had some time to think about some things. I gave up a lot for you. I abandoned Knothole, I became an enemy of Mobotropolis, every freedom fighter on planet Mobius had a target set on my back, and even the zone cops have my number. What did I get in return for it all? Nothing. Zip. Diddly squat! I can't even go hide on Moebius because of you. So, let me put it all in perspective for you. I have no home, no friends, no family, no money: I have nothing, and you want to know what the worst part of it is? I can't even blame you for all of it."
She closed her eyes, and she took a deep breath through her nose.
"Being down in Lower Mobius, seeing all those people being happy and free, it struck something in me. It made me realize just how petty I was. Sonic didn't save any of those people or those that came before them. In fact, the person that did save them ended up using them for her own gain. But, rather than be bitter, those folks spend their days making the most of what they have, and you know what? I'd give anything to be among them. To be apart of their world. Because they have one thing you could never give me, Scourge: contentment. They don't need to take from anyone, because they already have everything they need. There's also a comradery amongst them I can't help but respect. All strangers, and at the same time all family."
"Ok, ok, you've made your point!" Scourge screamed, his voice betraying a squeak. "You wanna go back? Fine! Just let me have the detonator, without setting the bombs off, and I'll take you back. I swear it; no tricks! You'll never see me again, and you can have your stupid happily ever after!"
Fiona's eyes snapped open, and she took a step back.
"Sorry, Scourge, but you're not getting off that easily. As long as you live, then nobody around me is safe, and, the truth is, even without you nobody is safe around me anyway. There's only one way this can end, and I am the girl to do it. Scourge, consider yourself dumped!"
With that, she threw the detonator at Scourge. With the button released, the bombs went off, one by one. Scourge screamed with rage and he charged towards Fiona at top speed. If he was going down, then Fiona was going down first. Fiona just stood there, closed her eyes, and waited. In a strange way, it was the most at peace with herself she had been in a long time. Perhaps it was the first time ever. For once, she could finally just let everything go and let it be. As the explosions rocked the motor pool around her, and she could feel Scrouge starting to wrap his fingers around her throat, she thought of Lower Mobius. She could almost smell the fish from Boris' little stall or something catching on fire on the stove in Nikki's diner. She could see Judah and Mask on the front porch of the cottage where it all started, their smiles warm and their arms open and inviting. But, perhaps the most striking thing that made her want to weep was the sound of Blade's voice. The enigmatic hedgehog with control over sound seemed to be whispering her name as though calling to her. She wondered if he was thinking of her now. That would be nice.
"Fiona."
There it was again.
"Fiona."
And…again?
"Fiona! Snap out of it!"
Fiona's eyes popped open. She could see Scourge standing in front of her, eyes crazed and his arms stretched out to strangle her neck. However, he was just standing there. In fact, it looked like he was in the middle of running with one leg just raised halfway in the air. Then again, as Fiona looked around, she realized that he wasn't the only one frozen. All around her, she could see the bombs, the cars, and even the support pillars and walls that were being blown up just stuck in one position. Almost as though time had…
"Fiona! Outside! Now! I can't…keep this up…forever!"
As her rational mind tried to make sense of what was going on, Fiona's instincts took off, and she made a break for the door that led out of the motor pool. The closer she got to the door, though, the more that time seemed to be resuming. Once again, she could hear the sounds of explosions, which only made her want to run faster and harder. She smashed her way through the door just in time for the explosion to force her out. She went sailing through the air only for something to catch her and shield her from the brunt of the flames and the flying debris. She could hear something like a cloak fluttering in the wind, and she felt herself being pressed against a larger body. By the time the ground was under her feet again, the explosions had stopped, and all was quiet. Whatever had caught her released her, and Fiona looked up to see Blade.
"You!" Fiona gasped. "But how did you…when did you…where did you…"
"Guess that just leaves why." Blade said with a light chuckle. "But this is hardly the place for questions. Come on, we need to get out of here!"
Fiona was utterly starstruck. She wasn't sure what to say or if there was even something she could say. It almost felt like she was dreaming, and it was only the tug on her arm as he dragged her off that she could acknowledge that it was reality. The jumped behind some boulders, and there they found another zone patrol car. That seemed to be the jolt needed to snap Fiona out of her funk.
"What the…wait a minute! Blade, are you…a zone cop?"
Blade ran around to the driver's seat, unlocking the door and opening the hatch.
"Yes, and no. I've just been doing some freelance work for them, as of late. Suffice to say, they're probably going to be mad at me when this all blows over, but the dance ain't over yet. Let's go!"
Fiona wasn't sure what to make of any of this, but at the same time she couldn't argue. She hopped in, and they took off like a shot. Within moments, they vanished out of the no zone, and the next thing Fiona knew they had come to rest inside of a cave. Blade popped open the hatch, and they hopped out. They had only barely gotten out when Fiona was suddenly tackled by a large figure.
"Fiona! There you are! You had us all worried!"
It was Judah, and the white lion was blubbering like a big baby. He was soon followed by Mask, Boris, Aqune, and Nicolette. After shoving Judah off, Fiona sat up, and she stared at the circle of faces.
"What the..I am so confused. What's going on here?"
"It was Blade that told us what you were planning." Nicolette said. "Kid, I realize that you didn't want us caught in the crossfire, but you shouldn't have tried to take things that far! You have your whole life ahead of yourself."
"Huh?" Fiona asked. She was starting to get a headache.
"We know about the bomb." Mask said as he stepped forward. "How you intended to blow yourself up and take Scourge with you. We were all ready to go after you, but Blade insisted he go alone. Now, you're back, safe and sound."
Fiona blinked a few times, and a nervous twitch seemed to take over one side of her face. Her mouth was moving, but no words seemed to be coming out. Eventually, her hands went up to the sides of her head, and she screamed. Everyone was startled, and Fiona began to tug at her own hair.
"None of this makes a lick of sense!"
"Woah, Fi, calm down!" Judah said as he rushed to her side. "I know you've got some issues, but…"
"No, you don't get it!" Fiona retorted sharply. "Yes, I was gonna blow myself and Scourge up, but I didn't plan anything! I didn't even know we were going to the No Zone until Scourge said it the night before at there camp. In fact, like an idiot, I let him con me into thinking he actually cared about me only to try and stab me in the back. Again! The only reason I was gonna do it is because I thought it was the only thing I could do!"
She turned to Blade, and she skewed him with a sour face.
"So just how in the world did you know what was gonna happen?"
Blade stood a bit stiffly. He rubbed at the back of his neck, and he fished a hand into his coat pocket. He came up again with a mask that had seven multicolored gems inside of it. Nicolette's eyes jumped.
"Wait a minute! Are those what I think they are?"
Blade nodded.
"The most treasured artifacts treasure hunters like you have been hunting for since the dawn of treasure hunting: the time stones."
He looked back to Fiona, whom now stared at him with moon eyes.
"I knew where you were gonna be, Fiona, because it was written. I am from several years into Mobius' future. Your future, Fiona, and, while it wasn't initially my intention, I have now changed it."
Fiona could feel something in her head break. Her eyes rolled up into her head, she teetered backwards, and she flopped onto her back unconscious. Blade leaned over her, and then he looked up to the others, whom were staring at Blade with new, disbelieving eyes. Blade could only grin sheepishly, and he shrugged.
"So. Who's hungry?"