THE METALLA SERIES
All Sonic Anime related characters are © SEGA and TAKI
Carlu "Kick," Akkar and Seven, Metallas 2, 3, and 4, and Hydra are © Masquerade (me!)
Used without permission, yeah yeah.
Okay, the final confrontation is about to begin. The desperate struggle, the strongest takes it all, the battle rages on until the weakest finally fall! (Sorry, I just think the song fits. : P) Okay, on with the fic!
"Oh, so this is where you live." Mika nodded at the abandoned airport that was Sonic's home.
"Yes, mam." Sonic said. "Damage is all repaired, no thanks to Metalla." The robot in question clenched a fist, and glared at Sonic.
"Oh, sure. Blame me for when I worked for the eggman. Some help you're going to be in the big battle."
"Guys, stop it." Carlu cut in. She got in-between Sonic and Metalla. "Okay, first things first: Metalla, Sonic, call a truce. We need to work together if we're going to fight Robotnic, alright?"
"Fine with me." Metalla agreed, sticking his hand out to Sonic. "No hard feelings?" Sonic sighed, and reached out to Metalla's hand.
"I guess so." Sonic grumbled, as Metalla clasped his hand over Sonic's and shook it. "Now that we got that over with," Sonic began, snapping his hand back, "what happens now?"
"Now," Carlu thought out loud, "I guess we think of a plan."
"Let's try to make it quick." Akkar urged. "Remember that Seven is back there, and I don't know what Metalla2's gonna do to him."
"Leave Metalla2 to me." Metalla insisted. "Then I'm gonna make Robotnic pay for making another copy of me."
"How 'bout we settle this in the morning?" Tails suggested, pointing at the setting sun. "I'm sleepy, and we have all tomorrow to plan."
"Good idea." Knuckles nodded. "Let's get some sleep first." Everyone nodded, deciding to call it the night, except for Mika, who decided to explore the island first. She went up to the tops of the cliffs, and looked out at the moon lit lake. A cold breeze blew against her face, relaxing her. She closed her eyes and breathed in deep. It was good to get away from the city once and a while.
"Hey up there!" Sonic called from below the cliff. "Mika?" Mika looked down to see Sonic looking up at her. "Mind if I come up?"
"Not at all!" she called back. Sonic ran up the side of the cliff, jumped off the edge and landed right behind Mika. Mika grabbed her chest. "Hey, I came up here to catch a breather, not to get all excited again."
"Sorry about that." Sonic apologized, sitting beside her. "Hey, how come you aren't asleep?"
"I've got too much on my mind." Mika admitted. "I just had to wonder…about my past."
"What about it?" Sonic asked. Mika sighed.
"I don't know anything about my past." She said, quietly. Sonic looked a little confused. "You see," Mika explained, "not too long ago, I woke up on the streets of Jade Island, with no memory of anything. I didn't know who I was, or where I came from, or what happened to me, but by the way I was thrown into the gutter, somebody had left me for dead. I staggered to the nearest police station, and they couldn't identify me. According to government files, I didn't exist. So, I wandered around until I got hooked up with a smuggler for a while, then I went into the smuggling business to keep what little money I had. I had just finished making my payments when I ran into you." Mika smiled. "I'm constantly wondering who I am, and who would leave me for dead." Sonic thought about this.
"Was this around the time Metalla attacked all the major cities on Heavenly World?" he asked.
"Huh?" Mika asked. Sonic snapped his fingers.
"That's it! Metalla must have attacked Jade Island, and you probably had a tussle with him."
"No." Mika shook her head. "I remember that. I woke up from the gutter a couple years ago."
"Oh." Sonic nodded. Mika looked out at the lake again, smiling at its beauty. Sonic noticed. "It's very pretty, isn't it? I used to come up here and watch the stars come out when I was a little kid." Mika looked over at Sonic.
"Okay, I told you my story, you tell me yours, Sonic." She suggested. "How did you get by in life?"
"Alright," Sonic thought for a minute. "Let's see…my parents died when I was about seven years old, and I've been here ever since." He pointed to the far end of the lake. "Right there. That's where I last saw them alive." He hung his head. "I got by, though. I found Tails right around where my parents died, and he's been hanging with me since. I taught him how to fly planes, and a little on how to repair them, and he couldn't get enough of technology since. He was always working on new inventions and stuff. We usually ran into Robotnic, and some of his badniks; the toughest one I ever fought was Metalla."
"The robot that's here with us?"
"Yep. Well, that's pretty much it."
"Any girlfriends?" Mika asked.
"Well, let's see…there was Sera, the President's daughter. I kinda liked her; she was full of spunk."
"What happened? Did you break up?"
"Nope." Sonic said. "We're still in touch."
"You talk like you're not." Mika smiled wickedly. Sonic rubbed his neck nervously.
"Wha-what do you mean by that?"
"Well, you're talking like she's just a thought in the past." She moved a little closer to him. "Are you sure she's your girlfriend still?"
"Heh heh, um…" Sonic broke out into a nervous sweat. "Well…um…uh…I guess she is…sorta…I think…hoo boy." Mika giggled.
"Well, I guess I'll call it the night now." She gave him a little kiss on the cheek, and left. Sonic was sweating from head to toe.
"I'm…I'm…YAHOO!" he shouted, jumping into the air. "I'M IN LOVE! I'M IN LOVE! I'M IN LOVE! I'M IN…OW!" Sonic yelped as a rock hit his head. He found Metalla hovering over him, looking a little mad.
"Do you mind?" the robot snapped. "People live here, you know."
Part 4 of 4: The Last One Standing
"You see, Robotnic..." Metalla2 began. "Metalla3 failed because he underestimated Sonic's friends. Well, Metalla4 won't make that mistake. Since he's the roboticized friend of Knuckelzu "Knuckles," he knows all about Sonic, and the friends he has. Now, we have the most dangerous robot known in Mobion history."
"An excellent strategy, Metalla2." Robotnic nodded when he saw Metalla4. Metalla4 was armored, and armed to the teeth with hidden weapons and sensors. He had rocket boosters on his back, and under his feet, and had razor sharp spikes on the back of his hands. His eyes glowed red, brighter than Metalla2's. Metalla2 laid a hand on Metalla4's shoulder. "Suppose that he starts regaining free will, like number one did…"
"Not a chance, doc." Metalla2 insured. "I will admit, Seven was stubborn to give up his free will to the roboticizer, but all memory of being on Sonic's side has been erased. Metalla4 won't develop a free will, or any of Sonic's personality, so that's not a problem." She patted Metalla4's shoulder, and the new model just crossed his arms. "This is the ultimate weapon, doc. There won't be anything else like it on the planet, ever again."
"Ah," a new figure spoke up. "Then this new model will belong to me." Robotnic and Metalla2 looked to see Hydra, in his steel armor was standing in the nearby doorway. Robotnic growled.
"Go away, Hydra. We aren't even talking about you." Hydra just laughed, and walked into the room.
"Maybe you should be." Hydra suggested, holding up a CD in his fingers. "Ha ha. Your latest bellboy is mine."
"Hey!" Robotnic yelled, jumping up and down in fury. "I worked long and hard on that model!"
"Now you know how I feel when you took my Buzz Bombers!" Hydra laughed. Suddenly, Metalla4 pointed his finger at it, and a laser shot zapped from it, and destroyed the disk. A shocked Hydra looked at Metalla4, who still had his finger pointed at him. Metalla2 took her turn to laugh.
"Sic 'em!" she ordered. Metalla4 charged, and his blades retracted from his wrists to the size of fingers. He shoved them into Hydra's chest. Hydra staggered, and fell over. Metalla4 hovered over him for a moment, then landed on his feet, and bowed swiftly to Robotnic. Robotnic clapped, and leaped for joy.
"Excellent! EXCELLENT, MY CREATION! Sonic and his friends are doomed!" Metalla2 looked at Robotnic angrily.
"Your creation? Excuse me, doc, but I came up with the idea!"
"It was my roboticizer you used!" Robotnic argued.
"I put the excesories on him!"
"Everything in my city is mine, Metalla2, including you." Robotnic glared. "So shut up, and do your job." He motioned with his hand for Metalla4 to follow him. "Come along, number four. You have much to show me." Metalla4 walked forward, and followed Robotnic to the laboratory. Metalla2 snorted as she watched them leave.
"Grrrrr, jerk!"
Early the next morning, Carlu walked out to the lake, and splashed her face. She'd been rubbing her eyes since she woke up, and it was amazing that she could barely get herself to wake up. She needed her strength for the battle to come. She took out her axe, and swung it a few times to stretch out her arms. Then, she closed her eyes for a second, and suddenly started swinging it threatenly into the air. Then, she ran around the sides of the cliffs, and jumped into a Sonic Spin with her axe posed in front of her. She looked like a red and silver buzz saw. After a few more seconds, she plowed the blade of the axe into the rock, and it sent her flying over the water like a rocket. She performed her Sonic Spin again, and the blade stuck into the rock on the other side of the lake, and Carlu ran back across the cliffsides, then flipped off the edge, and onto the beach below with a four point landing. She jumped for joy.
"YES! IT WORKED!" she celebrated. Then she turned around to see that most of the gang woke up too. Knuckles was smiling slyly, while everyone had shocked looks on their faces, especially Sonic and Metalla. Carlu cocked her eyebrows. "What? Why's everybody staring at me?"
"You used my moves!" Sonic and Metalla protested at the same time. Carlu twirled the axe handle in her hands, rather bored.
"Well, I learn from people, Sonic. That's how I get by." Suddenly, she laughed. "You two should have seen the looks on your faces. My God." Metalla crossed his arms.
"Really, the last thing we need is somebody who knows my moves." He scolded.
"Your moves?" Sonic glared. "Excuse me, but the Sonic Spin is my move."
"Well, I'm you. Why should it matter?"
"That's enough boys." Carlu ordered. "Look, we have important things to talk about today. Remember that Seven is still back in Eggman Land. How do we get him back, and destroy the second Metalla?" Everybody thought about this for a long time.
"Aw, heck." Akkar spat. "Why can't we just barge in there and get him back?"
"We did that before," Sonic and Metalla said at the same time. "And look what happened." Suddenly, they glared at each other and growled. "Why are you saying everything that I'm…STOP THAT!"
"Anyway," Knuckles came in. "Barging in hasn't helped in many cases. They'll expect a sneak attack…"
"Can't we just strike a deal with them?" Mika wondered out loud.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, maybe we could call them up, and tell them to meet us someplace where we could have an advantage over them."
"No way." Metalla rejected. "Metalla2 will be smarter than that. If she's anything like me, then she can take any impossible situation to her advantage. She'll just think her way out."
"Grrrr." Mika growled, feeling a little dumb about her idea.
"Hey, wait." Tails waved his hands. "Maybe Mika's onto something."
"Huh?" Everyone asked.
"Well, we just say that we'll give Metalla2 what she requests, and we meet her on Royal Island. There's a huge army of echidnas there that can stop Metalla2."
"That could work." Knuckles thought. "Echidnas are pretty advanced in technology. We might have the right weapons."
"What could Metalla2 possibly want?" Sonic asked nobody in particular.
"Oh, I don't know..." Metalla said sarcastically, staring Sonic in the face. Sonic got the message in a Sonic second, but was a little more concerned of Metalla.
"Whoa! If looks could kill!" Sonic yelled. "Don't stare at me like that!"
"Why not?"
"Cut that out." Mika took command. "So, Metalla, you're trying to say that Sonic should pretend to give himself up to Metalla2?"
"Yep." Metalla nodded. "Sonic pretends to surrender, and that's the army's cue to pump number two full of lead."
"Sounds good to me." Carlu figured, putting the axe away. "Alright, so we call them up, Sonic surrenders on Royal Island, and Metalla2 ends up with a lot of holes. Great, now we have one problem: who knows Robotnic's phone number?"
"AWWWWWW!" Everybody slumped to the ground, beaten.
"That's it!" Akkar shouted as he got up. "Let's just use my idea, and barge in."
"No way." Knuckles shook his head. "I think we need some sort of messenger to send it to Robotnic."
"ARE YOU NUTS?!" Everyone shouted.
"Who'd send a message to Robotnic?" Metalla asked no one in particular.
"Oh, I dunno…" Sonic said as he looked Metalla in the face. Metalla snorted.
"You smart ass! I can't believe you just used my exact words!"
"I mean this for real." Sonic said, almost snapping. "C'mon, you can talk to Robotnic, and tell him…"
"No way!" Metalla rebelled, crossing his arms in a stubborn manner. "I am a living being, you know! I can get killed!"
"A living being?" Sonic laughed. "That's a good one."
"Well, maybe when I get my official freedom, I can be called one."
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Knuckles yelled, stepping in-between them. "Both of you, stop fighting! We have important matters to discuss." Sonic and Metalla weren't listening.
"Jerk." Sonic sneered.
"Looser." Metalla growled.
"Geek."
"Dweeb."
"Dork."
"Punk."
"Your mama's so dumb, she sold her Speeder for gasoline."
"Your mama's so fat, she caused an eclipse."
"Your mama's so fat, one time she went bungee jumping, she went strait to hell."
"Your mama's so fat, that right before God said 'Let there be light,' he told your mama to get her butt out of the way."
"Your mama's so fat, the President wants to make her a state."
"Your mama's so ugly, Robotnic wouldn't date her."
"The last time your mama got on a ferris wheel, the people on the top starved to death."
"Keep yakking about how fat my mama is. I don't care, cause my mama's Robotnic." Sonic gave Metalla a cold stare. Knuckles pushed Sonic over to the far side of the room where he wouldn't get to close to Metalla. "By the way, your mama's so fat, one time she jumped up in the air, she got stuck."
"For the last time," Tails said, holding a roll of duct tape in his hand for everyone to see, "be quiet before I take drastic measures." Sonic and Metalla shut up. "Now, how do we carry out our plan?"
DREET DREET DREET! DREET DREET DREET! The phone rang, and Sonic ran to go get it. He set the screen on, and it revealed Sera. She looked like she had been crying.
"SONIC!" she yelped. "HELP ME!" Then, a metallic claw covered her mouth.
"SERA!" Sonic yelled. The gang rushed into the room, and saw that Metalla2 had her hand over Sera's mouth. The robot was smiling wickedly.
"Hey Sonic, nice to see you again." The robot said, holding Sera a little tighter.
"Let her go, scrap metal!" Sonic demanded. Metalla2 laughed.
"Sonic, you know it's pointless to fight me. You're just going to die anyway. So, this is what I propose: you come to South Island, and surrender. I'll let Sera go, leave the Heavenly World alone, and I'll only kill you."
"Pass." Sonic said dryly.
"Or, you could make me come over there, destroy everything I see, and you will die last. Would you like to suffer as friends die left and right?" Sonic growled.
"There's no way I'm giving in to you!" he declared.
"Might as well say your last good-byes to Sera." Metalla smiled, letting go of Sera's mouth. "It'll be the last time you'll ever see her unless you do as I say."
"SONIC! PLEASE LISTEN TO HER!" Sera screamed. Sonic narrowed his eyes as he wondered what to do. Everyone crowded around him, hoping he would make the right decision. After a few minutes, Sonic made his decision.
"Alright." He nodded. "I surrender. I'll come so it's official, but I'll do so under two conditions."
"Okay, shoot."
"One: Sera will not be harmed."
"Fine with me. And what is the second condition?"
"Two: my friends have to come with me." Metalla2 nodded.
"Okay. Well, what are you waiting for? You better be here."
"You know I will. Over and out." Sonic hung up, and turned to his friends. "Well, so much for Robotnic's phone number."
"You sure I shouldn't come?" Metalla asked. "What if you really need me?"
"We will." Carlu explained. "It's just that we'll need back up sooner or later."
"Oh, okay." Metalla nodded. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing ya." Carlu gave Metalla a wink, and walked into Mika's Speeder while Sonic and Tails were getting ready to launch the Hurricane, their new biplane. Metalla watched as two Speeders and the biplane took off. Metalla went back into the house to wait and see who would come out victorious.
"I've got a bad feeling about this." Akkar said as they approached South Island. The weather was starting to look bad, and the clouds were turning a dark gray. Akkar mostly noticed all the Royal Guard vehicles surrounding the islands. That couldn't have been a good sign.
"You aren't the only one." Knuckles said, tipping his hat back. "Royal Guard is all over this place. I wonder why they went out of their way to…oh shit." Knuckles said when he saw one Speeder in particular. It had a sleek shape, and was silver all over.
"What's the matter?" Mika asked, looking at the ship. Carlu understood immediately.
"It's Prince Mamoru's ship." She explained.
"He knows I'm coming." Knuckles muttered, rubbing his forehead. "Swell, just swell."
"Hang in there." Mika said as she worked the controls to the Speeder. "We're getting ready to land." Akkar took off his seatbelt, and grabbed the hand rest of his seat. He was beyond ready.
"Here he comes. This is it." Metalla2 looked around where she was: it was underneath a bridge that connected to uninhabited houses and buildings. Nearby was a large lake that stretched as far as Metalla2 could see. She held Sera a little more closely, knowing that several of the SIPD and Royal Guard were up on the bridge with guns ready and everything. She would just give them the impression that they're only giving her stress, and a hostage situation with a stressed gunman wasn't a good thing. So, anybody with a gun was out of her sight. So far, so good. Sonic was approaching, and his friends were joining him as well; it was merely practice for the forth Metalla. Metalla2 just smiled; things were defenintly going her way.
The Hurricane landed by the bridge, and Mika's Speeder landed a little further away. Prince Mamoru watched as Sonic the hedgehog stepped from the wing of the biplane, and his friends walked out of the Speeder. Mamoru spied Knuckles walking from the Speeder, and narrowed his eyes.
"Knuckelzu!" Mamoru shouted. Knuckles slapped his forehead. There was no escaping Dad now. "Knuckelzu, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be someplace else?"
"Dad, I volunteered to come." Knuckles explained.
"Don't you see the peril of the situation, you are going to get killed!"
"Dad, stop it. I can take care of myself."
"Prince Mamoru," a soldier from the Royal Guard called. "Is this boy troubling you? Who is he?"
"I'm just a friend." Knuckles explained to the soldier. "Now, where's Metalla2?"
"Just below the bridge, but I think that's Sonniku's business." As if on cue, Sonic walked up to the soldier.
"I'll take care of it." He suggested. "C'mon, guys! Let's go talk to this robot." Sonic's friends followed him.
Sonic jumped down the bridge, and saw that Metalla2 wasn't too far away. She held Sera in one hand, and had her other one on a pistol holstered at her side. She smiled upon seeing Sonic.
"Where's your friends?" she asked.
"Coming." Sonic explained. "Well, I'm here, now let Sera go." Metalla2 nodded, and let her hand take its grip off Sera. The poor girl ran away. Suddenly, Metalla2 laughed.
"You poor, stupid fool! It's so like you to fall into traps!"
"What do you mean?" Sonic was about to ask, when Metalla4 dropped from the sky, kicking Sonic in the face. Sonic toppled, and looked up at the ultimate Metalla model. Metalla4 stared at Sonic in absolute hatred, then it charged. Sonic jumped out of the way, but Metalla4 was on his heels. Metalla4 grabbed Sonic's feet, and swung him to the ground. Sonic hit with a thump. Metalla4 seemed to smile at the sight. He pointed a laser turret on the back of his hand right at Sonic's forehead. A guiding laser traveled its way up to the middle of Sonic's forehead. Metalla4 powered up his lasers…
BANG! Something hit him in the head! It was one of Knuckle's fists. Sonic's friends poured from the bridge, and right in front of Sonic.
"There's no way that any of you robots are getting near Sonic!" Carlu shouted, brandishing her axe. Metalla2 had to laugh.
"No, looks like we have to get past all of you. Not a problem for Metalla4." She stared at Carlu, and assigned Metalla4 to start with her, since she posed a big threat. Metalla4 charged at Carlu, and Carlu charged, spinning into a Sonic Spin, using her axe like Sonic used his spikes. She was about to slice into Metalla4's head, when he took hold of the axe handle, and flung it aside. Carlu was thrown to the ground. Knuckles attacked, but found that Metalla4 blocked all his moves, and the robot gave Knuckles a jump kick to the side, and the echidna was out of the fight. Tails tried sneaking up behind Metalla4 as Mika fired her laser gun at him. However, Metalla4 powered up his shield, and the lasers were no good. Tails charged at Metalla4 from behind, but only bounced off the shield to the ground. Metalla4 then fired a laser at Mika, and that sent her sprawling to the ground. Akkar made an attack for Metalla4 with a power kick, but Metalla4 blocked it, and gave Akkar an upper cut to the jaw. Sonic watched in horror as one by one, his friends were knocked out of battle. The surprising fact was that Metalla4 used their own moves against them! Metalla2 clapped with glee.
"Well done, number four, well done." She turned to Sonic. "I guess you aren't so tough without your friends, are you, Sonic?" Sonic just growled. "Y'know, that's all Metalla4 is here for: just to get your friends out of the picture. Now, I just need to get rid of you." She walked over to Sonic, and placed a laser turret at his forehead. "This time, I won't miss."
BANG! Carlu rammed into Metalla2, and sent her sprawling away from Sonic. Carlu grunted. "No way am I going to let anyone kill off my friends."
"Back off!" Metalla2 ordered, throwing a grenade at Carlu. Carlu just used her axe to slice the grenade in half, and it caused a mini explosion. Carlu jumped from the smoke, and tried to cut Metalla2 in half, but the robot was too quick for Carlu: she simply dodged out of the way, and the axe sunk into the ground. Akkar came into the fight, and started shooting at Metalla2. No bullet or lasers would effect her. She dived for Akkar, and snatched his gun away. Metalla4 snuck up behind Akkar, and got a hold on his throat. Knuckles attacked Metalla4 with a power kick to the side, causing the robot to let go of Akkar. Mika slowly got up, but was jumped on by Metalla2 before she could stand. Metalla2 made another attack for Sonic, but Tails jumped behind her back, and covered her eyes. Metalla2 crashed into a nearby wall. Sonic got up, and made his attack on Metalla4, who was occupied with three echidnas and another hedgehog. Sonic Spin Dashed and rammed into Metalla4's side, knocking the robot over. However, Metalla4 kicked Sonic off of him, and Sonic felt a knee cap meet his face with a hard force.
Meanwhile, up on the bridge, the South Island Police Department and the Royal Guard of Prince Mamoru watched in amazement at the battle that raged below. Sera was hugging her father, the President, with all her might, and the Prince Mamoru watched worriedly as his son engaged in battle with two different robots. Prince Mamoru felt the fear well in him, and he ordered a soldier to get him a gun.
Knuckles gave Metalla4 a punch where the mouth would be. Metalla4 staggered for a moment, then attacked again. Spikes zipped from his left hand, and he punched Knuckles face with it. The blades sunk into Knuckle's face and nose, and he slumped to the ground, holding his face in his hands. Metalla4 gave him another sharp punch to the chest, and Knuckles collapsed.
"NO!" Carlu shouted, charging with her axe in hand. Metalla4 swiftly snatched the axe from her hands, and flung it into the lake beyond. Carlu attacked with a quick jump, only to be shot in the stomach with a laser from Metalla4's right hand. She crashed on her stomach with a winded gasp. Akkar tried attacking behind Metalla4, but Metalla4 grabbed Akkar's swung fist, and flung him over his shoulder. Akkar landed on his back very hard. He turned over, and looked at Metalla4, who was fighting Sonic again. Akkar watched Metalla4 fight, and wondered. The way Metalla4 flung me over his shoulder…that's one of Seven's moves. How could he possibly…oh no! Could Metalla4 be Seven in a different form?
CHOOME! A laser shot from a different direction shot Metalla4 in the head. Metalla2 recovered to see that the Prince Mamoru had joined the battle. "You metallic monsters leave my son and his friends alone!"
"SON?! WHAT?" Metalla2 shouted in surprise. Then, she looked at the groaning Knuckles who was still holding his bleeding face, and was wrapped in Carlu's arms. Metalla2 smiled. "Of course, how obvious. However, I have my duties. I'll deal with the so-called treasure hunter later." She picked up a sharp piece of metal from the ground. She spied Sonic, trying to sneak up on Metalla4. Metalla2 charged, and threw the piece of metal like a spear. Sonic didn't see it coming, until it was too late. He tried jumping out of the way, but it snagged some skin from his throat. Sonic fell to the ground, and Metalla2 threw a grenade at him. It exploded, drowning out Sonic's scream. When the smoke cleared, it revealed Sonic sprawled on the ground. Sonic had trouble breathing, and he was coughing like crazy. He tried calling for help, but his throat had trouble making talking noises.
"Ugh!" Metalla grunted as he suddenly fell to the ground, clutching his throat. He slowly got up, and looked out the door of the house. "Sonic is in danger!"
"Knuckelzu." Carlu sobbed, holding Knuckles close. "Don't die, please don't die!"
"You know I won't, baby." He comforted, taking a hold of her shoulder. "Just don't die on me, Kick." She kissed him on the head, and neither of them realized that Metalla4 was right behind them, watching for the right moment…
"Help." Sonic gasped as Metalla2 approached him. Sonic felt an incredible pain in his chest; his lungs were going to give up on him at any moment. Metalla made the pain worse by putting a foot on his chest.
"Hmm," she wondered. "What would happen if I powered up my rocket boosters right here on your chest?" She put some pressure on Sonic's chest. He winced in pain. "I sure hope you die, Sonic. Then, I'll get rid of Robotnic, and I'll take over Eggman Land, then the world." She put her other foot on Sonic's chest. "Fortunately, for me, there won't be any opposition once I do take over. First off, you won't be there." She laughed, and looked back at the battle that Metalla4 was having with Sonic's friends. "Let's see...Knuckles, Carlu, Tails, Mika, that one bounty hunter...hey, wasn't there somebody else?"
BANG! Something slammed into Metalla2, knocking her off Sonic. Metalla2 got to her feet, and saw the one person she never thought she would see…
"Metalla1?! What the hell are you doing here?"
"Taking care of business." Metalla answered with a growl and a punch to Metalla2's face. Prince Mamoru ran to Sonic's side.
"Mr. Sonic, are you alright?" he asked desperately. Sonic couldn't answer. "Mr. Sonic, please get up! You have to help my son!"
"I…I don't know if I can." Sonic barely whispered. He tried to stand up, with Prince Mamoru as his aide, but he collapsed over, back on the ground.
"Mr. Sonic, please get up." Prince Mamoru urged. "You have to save your friends."
Metalla4 had chased all of Sonic's friends to the building area. He launched a grenade at one of the buildings, and it toppled over them. Sonic's friends were buried under steel and wood pieces, and Akkar found that his leg had been stabbed. Carlu and Tails found that they were unharmed, but pinned. Mika had her hand caught under some rubble, and couldn't pull it out. Knuckles was nowhere in sight. Tails and Carlu tried calling for help, but Metalla4 was the only one paying attention.
"Excellent work, number four." Metalla2 called as she wrestled with Metalla. "Now, finish them off!"
Sonic weakly got up with Prince Mamoru's help, and looked at the situation his friends were in. Sonic pushed Mamoru away, and Spin Dashed towards Metalla2. He knocked her over, and looked over at his friends for an instant. He heard Mika calling his name, and calling for help. Sonic raced for them, and let Metalla pound on Metalla2. Suddenly, Sonic fell over. He was too weak to keep running, but he had to keep going: Mika was in trouble! His friends were in trouble! But…he had trouble standing up!
"Sonic!" he heard Tails yell at the top of his lungs. "Help us!" Sonic looked in Tail's direction. Sonic stood up, and saw that Metalla4 was about to launch a grenade at the rubble. The explosion would kill all his friends. Sonic narrowed his eyes and Spin Dashed as quickly as he could. The grenade launched…
Sonic grabbed it, and in a split second, he threw it away, and it hit Metalla2 square in the chest. Metalla2 had a few seconds to scream in fear…
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM! The grenade exploded, taking Metalla2 with it. Sonic whipped his forehead with relief, until Metalla4 side-kicked him in the head. Sonic was plowed into the pile, and punched in the face. Sonic was pinned to the ground, and he noticed that the metal spikes were visible on Metalla4's left hand. Sonic gulped; the spikes were poised right at his head. He closed his eyes, this was it…
"SEVEN, STOP!" a voice shouted. Metalla4 turned to see that Akkar was standing from the rubble, clutching his bleeding leg. "Don't kill Sonic! He's a friend!"
"Akkar, what the hell are you doing?" Carlu called from where she was. Tails realized what Akkar was saying.
"I get it! Seven is Metalla4!" he exclaimed. "Seven, don't you recognize us?"
"Seven!" Knuckles called from wherever he was. "Why don't you remember us? I'm your best friend next to Akkar! Remember Knuckles?"
"C'mon, Seven." Akkar urged. "You have to remember! You have to remember us!"
"Hahahahahahahahahahaa!" a familiar voice laughed. Sonic looked up to see Robotnic in his Speeder not too far away. "He doesn't remember any of it, you fools! His mind belongs to me!"
"You may know everything about controlling minds, Eggboy!" Akkar shouted, almost in tears. "But you know nothing about hearts! Seven still has his heart! He will remember us!" Akkar noticed that Metalla4 was looking at him strangely.
"Nonsense!" Robotnic declared. "Metalla4, destroy all these fools, starting with the bounty hunter!" Metalla4 charged for Akkar.
"SEVEN!" Akkar shouted before getting plowed. The robot pinned the echidna, and readied his spikes.
"Now," Robotnic urged, "kill him!" Suddenly, Metalla4 looked in Robotnic's direction, eyes glowing red…
…Robotnic never saw it coming…
…Robotnic's Speeder was sent flying past the bridge, and into the lake! Metalla4 looked proudly as the Speeder splashed into the water. He turned to Akkar, the spikes went away, and a thumb was displayed, pointing upward.
"Sykes," the robot said, "I'm here, and it's over."
Knuckles and Sonic were taken to the hospital immediately. Seven looked down at his hands outside the hospital entrance. He stared down at them angrily.
"So, this is me from now on?" he asked Carlu. She nodded.
"Afraid so. But hey, there are some good things to this: you've got some cool new weapons built into you, and you're more indestructible than before." Seven nodded.
"Yeah, I guess so." He patted Carlu's shoulder. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you later, kid." He winked. "Gotta go. Akkar and Mika are waiting for me back in the Speeder."
"A bounty hunters job is never done, huh?" she asked. Seven chuckled slightly.
"Yeah. Later!" He took off, leaving Carlu behind by herself. Then, she noticed that Metalla wasn't too far away. He was just standing at the edge of the parking lot, looking at the sunset. Carlu walked up to him, and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, you did pretty good back there." She praised. "I could use somebody like you on my adventures." Metalla shook his head.
"No thanks. I only want my own individual freedom, to be my own master for once, like I always dreamed it would be." He looked back at the sunset. "Now that I have it finally, I don't know what to do with it."
"What else?" Carlu suggested. "Start over, live your own life. See the world, or something. Do whatever you want."
"But, I don't know what to do now that I'm free."
"Well, you have the freedom to decide for yourself." Carlu said. Metalla looked at the huge orange sun, and nodded. He took a few steps, then looked behind him at Carlu.
"I need you to tell Sonic something for me."
"Yeah, what is it?" Carlu asked.
"Tell him that his mama's so fat, whenever she goes to the beach the tide comes in." One of his eyes flickered, something of a wink, and he turned and left.
"HEY!" Sonic yelled from a window in the hospital. "I HEARD THAT, METAL PANTS!" Metalla laughed as he rocketed away. "HEY, GET BACK HERE!" Carlu giggled, watched Metalla become a speck in the distance, and walked back to the hospital.
"Sonic, don't make that face!" Carlu called back to Sonic. "It'll get stuck that way."
The End! (Cue "Look Alike")