Disclaimer: All STH characters belong to Sega, Dic, and whoever else. i'm not making a single cent from this stuff so can't sue me,
Acknowledgements: (as usual) Jesus, Padawan Nik-ka, Orin, Ginger Ninja, Heartfire, Chewbacca, & all CAPers out there (if you ever get to read this)
oh yeah, and thanks to moonwing lobo & metabee for the encouraging reviews, and also to all the reviewers. thanks a bunch.
Chapter 4:
"Sonic, I'm sorry. But you have to kill Knuckles," Sally's voice, though warped by static, sounded sad. Sonic had just reported what had happened.
"Sal, he's my friend. I can't kill Knux," Sonic spoke desperately into the radio.
"He's with Robotnik now. If you don't kill Knuckles, then he'll kill you."
"No."
"It's hard, Sonic, but that's the way. We can't stop Robotnik with Knuckles around. You have to do it now. We're running out of the time. It's either Knuckles, or the whole of Mobius," Sally's voice was firm, but compassionate.
"Okay," Sonic cut off the transmission. He looked at Tails. There was nothing they could do. Sally was right.
"Sonic, there must be something else we can do," Tails' twin appendages twitched uneasily. He didn't quite like what they had been asked to do either.
"What is there we can do?"
"Whatever it is, we can't, and won't give up," Tails looked up at Sonic, who was slightly taller.
"Could there ever be a way to bring him back?" Sonic asked softly.
"I don't think so...I don't know..."
"We never could deroboticise anyone, not even Bunny. I never expected, of all people, Knuckles. He was never a slave to anyone, always independent."
"Yeah, but maybe we could somehow get over that robot programming. Like Uncle Chuck. He'd still be a robot in body, but not in mind," Tails was ever the optimist.
"Knuckles is strong, if only we could make him realise who he really is..." Sonic's voice sounded stronger now. Where there's hope...
"...Y'mean, like maybe use the Power Rings? There aren't any on the Floating Island, and we can't go back - Princess Sally would find out."
"I have one, but do you think it's enough?"
"Maybe, I don't know. But we can't just stand here, while Robotnik gets away with the Chaos Emeralds." Tails glanced back in the direction of the Hidden Palace Zone, "Maybe Sally's right. If Knux stands in our way, we'll have to kill him."
Sonic shook his head slowly, "Maybe, but you're right."
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Tails twirled his twin tails and shot off, Sonic hard at his heels.
Sonic was a coward. Knuckles had given up chase after a klick or so. He figured the hedgehog would be back, it was only a matter of time. Sonic had said Knuckles knew him. The creature searched his memory banks - he could recall nothing about Sonic. It was no concern of his. His orders had been simple - kill the hedgehog. Nothing else mattered.
Knuckles stood, arms crossed, leaning against one of the pillars. He had instructions to wait for the crew of robots to come and transport the Chaos Emeralds away, and besides, he was confident Sonic would be back to protect the Emeralds. Convenient that these gems were all in the same place so we can just ship them off all at once, he thought, whoever placed them there was stupid...
No...it's to balance their power, the thought struck him like a bolt of lightning.
He jumped, startled. How had he known that? He shook his head slowly, confused. But then again, many things had confused him since he had met Robotnik. He dismissed it as a stray thought, then focused all his senses on detecting Sonic's approach.
Sonic and Tails skirted around the perimeter of the Hidden Palace Zone, then stopped at the edge of the Lava Reef Zone.
"Um, Sonic? We passed the entrance..." Tails asked doubtfully.
"We'll go in by a secret tunnel Knux told me about." Sonic was looking in a clump of bushes some metres away.
"I sure hope Knuckles doesn't remember it exists..."
"Well, yeah, me too," Sonic found a rusty metal handle, half-buried in the rocky, luminous-blue ground. He yanked it, but nothing happened. "Oof, it's heavy!"
Tails walked over and lent a hand. Together, the two of them tugged and pulled, but to no avail.
"What is this handle for, anyway?" Tails asked Sonic.
"Well I dunno. Knuckles just told me where it was...he didn't say whether it was a trapdoor or what."
"Maybe if we said 'Open Sesame', it might work."
Sonic rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything. Sometimes, Tails was just too naive.
"Open Sesame!" The orange fox took a step forward. "Yargh!" the ground suddenly gave way below him and he was plunged into darkness.
"Tails?" Sonic shouted, stunned. He couldn't believe that Tails' crazy idea had worked. "Where are you?"
"I'm here!" Tails yelled at the top of his voice, but it was muffled.
"Where?"
"Step on that handle thing!"
The next thing he knew, Sonic was lying on a cold stone floor, Tails bending over him in concern.
"Well, I'll give you credit for that one," Sonic said wryly as he got to his feet and waited for his eyes to adjust to the lack of light. He saw a passage leading off towards the Hidden Palace Zone. "Let's go."
Doctor Ivo Robotnik grinned crazily at his reflection in the mirror. The reflection grinned back, and the mad Doctor exploded into a series of wild cackles, his robot minions glancing up briefly from their work before continuing. They were used to Doctor Robotnik's crazy sense of humour and sudden outbursts.
"Yes yes yes!" he rubbed his hands in glee, "Knuckles did well. Sonic will be back, and then he will meet his death. By then, I'll have the Emeralds safe and sound." He glanced at the mirror again and broke into yet another fit of mad laughter. "Knuckles should be okay, I'm supposing. He doesn't seem to remember anything. Wonderful! Sonic will try and help him and then..."
Doctor Robotnik laughed evilly.
"I think this is it..." Tails reached out his hand to touch a rough groove cut in the wall of stone which blocked their path. He and Sonic had been inside the tunnel for well over two hours. The passage ran pretty deep, and wound its way around tree roots and such, so it was difficult going. Not to mention that they could barely see at all.
"Yeah," Sonic observed the groove. A whole line of them had been cut into the stone wall to form a sort of hand- and foot-hold to climb up. "We'd best be quiet, though."
Tails nodded, a barely visible movement in the darkness. He started climbing up the wall, Sonic close behind him.
"Ow," the twin-tailed fox muttered as he rammed his head against something hard. "Now how do we open this?"
Sonic looked around him slowly, carefully. He found a button on the wall in front of him, and pushed it.
The panel above Tails' head slid open silently, and he climbed out, realising he was in a corner of the chamber where the Chaos Emeralds were hidden. He helped Sonic out, and the panel slid close behind them.
Sonic gasped at the sight. A large airship stood in the middle of the chamber. Robots were using machinery and equipment to move the Emeralds into the airship. Sonic knew that he and Tails had arrived just in time. There were only three Emeralds left in the chamber, the others were in the airship. And, standing in a corner and overseeing the robot workers, was Knuckles, his mechanised features hidden in shadow.
Knuckles turned suddenly, alert. He was sure he had heard something. His eyes swept the chamber, then rested on two figures shrouded in dark shadows, but still barely visible. He wasn't surprised. In fact, he had anticipated it. But how, he wondered, had they gotten in? It was a good question to ponder, but he didn't bother about it right now.
"Sonic and Tails, we meet again," Knuckles' tone was low, even, but Sonic recognised the thinly veiled threat in it.
"Knuckles," Sonic answered quietly.
"Robotnik will be pleased. This time, you will not escape, coward," Knuckles stepped forward, the dim light glinting dully off the metal claws. It was at this very moment, that Sonic wondered how he would ever be able to save his friend...
tbc...
a/n: this is most probably the second last chapter. any comments on how i should end this are most welcome (leave a review or email me) =).
preview of chapter 5:
Sonic stared straight at Knuckles. Their eyes locked, and Sonic met the creature's unflinching gaze. Knuckles was a robot. He couldn't be scared.
"I hope you are ready to die," Knuckles' mouth twisted into a grim ghost of a smile.
"I'm ready, but I won't die today," Sonic answered evenly. "Neither will you. None of us has to die."
"No, you're wrong," Knuckles sank into a fighting crouch, his eyes still meeting with Sonic's.
Sonic steeled himself for the fight. It was inevitable. There was no way he could avoid it. If you don't kill Knuckles, then he'll kill you. Sally's words.
