Edge ran, jumped, and swung his way through the Egg Base, his mind racing as fast as his heart. SOMEONE had planted that info. SOMEONE knew he was looking into the ECS Units...
Someone other than Jack was looking for them.
His thoughts were quickly interrupted by the teleport feature on Jack's Wispon knocking him off balance, sending him tumbling to the ground as Jack landed in front of him. "Edge, please! Don't make this any harder than it needs to be!"
"Jack, you KNOW I wouldn't make up something like this! SOMEONE faked that info and made sure I got it! I just...I need a chance to find out who!" Edge begged. Jack looked down, his face mask and goggles doing little to hide what he was truly feeling. "I wish I could give you the benefit of the doubt, Edge. I really do...But I see now that you never earned it." The hurt Edge felt at the statement was clear, but he remained steadfast nonetheless. "...Then we both know what's gonna happen next."
"Guess so." Jack replied, placing his hand near the hilt of the energy blade on his back. Edge did the same with his own blade. The two seemed to be locked in a draw for ages, seconds feeling like hours, before Edge finally struck with the whip towards Jack, who quickly blocked it with his blade, using its power to ward off the whip blade while absorbing the energy of the electricity function into its own. It eventually charged enough for Jack to send 3 miniature waves of energy at Edge, who just barely managed to dodge the first two, before finally being grazed by the third one. "Heh...You've gotten better with that thing...But I'm the one who BUILT it, remember? I know its limits better than anyone!"
Indeed, before Jack's eyes, his blade ran out of power, reverting to its native, dagger-like size. Edge utilized this distraction to whip Jack in the same chest area as he had Spike, knocking him back, but not out. Jack felt the area that the whip sword had struck. While it did sting, the armoring of his battlesuit had absorbed most of the impact, leaving a large crack across the chest piece...Which meant he wouldn't be able to take too many more of those hits. Something he considered as he dodged the next few whip strikes on his way to Edge.
Once he was close enough, Jack kicked the blade out of Edge's hands, and the two engaged in hand-to-hand combat as the thing flew in the air. Truth be told, the two had never done more than a sparring match in the past, always holding back to some degree. But here, it was clear where each other's advantages lie. While Jack was good at precision strikes to the right areas, owing to his training by Espio and other such combat experts, Edge had formed his style on the streets years ago, and could thus counter them just as fast, and with more impact to his hits, paired with a clear willingness to play dirty if he needed to, as showcased by his final blow to Jack's already sore chest area, knocking him back just in time for Edge to catch his blade out of the air. "Face it, Jack! You couldn't stop me from doing what was needed during the war! What makes you think you can stop me now!?"
"...One thing..." Jack gasped out, trying hard to ignore his aching chest as he stood up and prepared his stance. He couldn't afford himself any distractions here. Edge whipped his blade towards Jack, who caught it in his left hand, and wrapped it around his arm to keep it secure. His battlesuit kept the electricity from shocking him too badly, but the barbs still pressed and burned into his skin. "I'm done making excuses for you."
Before Edge could let go, Jack yanked the sword hard, pulling its owner towards his waiting right fist, and knocking him out instantly.