Chapter 9 - A Gathering of Forces
"Tails, what ARE you working on in there?"
The group, save for Anthony and Amy, had already gathered at Tails's workshop to regroup. Teila's question seemed to mirror the thoughts of all present, as Tails had gone into another part of his workshop and sounds of loud tooling and metalworking could be heard.
"Just something I wanted to work on after Anthony first came to Arcadia," Tails answered. "In fact...I'm almost finished...no strike that..." A few squeaks could be heard as Tails put in the last connections. "I AM finished!"
"Way past!" Sonic said. "Now we just have to wait for..."
As soon as Sonic started to say that, a bright flash could be seen outside, and then Anthony and Amy walked into the building.
"You were saying, Sonic?" Lazer said.
"Hey guys! Mission accomplished!" Amy said, placing the sky blue Emerald with the rest, and then looked around. "Where are Aura and Lisa?"
"Back checking on their Chao," Red Sonic said. It was then that he noticed Anthony looking warily at the Chaos Emeralds. "Um...what's wrong with HIM?"
All eyes present looked at Anthony as he stared at the Emeralds. Knuckles then spoke up. "Anthony? What is it?"
"Knux...something weird happened..." Anthony said. "When I grabbed the sky blue Emerald, it glowed brightly and I heard some voice say 'You are the one'. Why did it do that?"
"Did the voice sound like Tikal?" Knuckles asked.
"No...it was different...and more mysterious sounding..." Anthony said.
Knuckles and Rouge looked at each other and Knuckles furrowed his brow. "Weird...first time I've ever heard of this happening..."
"We can debate it later," Ryan said. "We'd better get these Emeralds to a safe place...like back to Angel Island."
"Probably not a good idea right now," Rouge said. "If GUN is after them, that will be the first place they'll look."
It was at that moment that Tails walked into the room. Oil could still be seen staining several parts of his fur as he put his gloves back on. "What are you guys talking about?"
"Something happened to Anth when he grabbed one of the Emeralds," Lazer said.
"Oh..." Tails said in response. "Well, Anthony, I'm glad you're here, I have something to show you."
"It will have to wait, Tails," Anthony said. "We need to find a safe place for the Servers for the time being...and our best bet might be the base under the hotel."
"Good idea," Red Sonic said.
"Aura and I will go get the others and meet you there," Lisa said.
Knuckles and Rouge gathered up the Emeralds and Knuckles said, "Let's get moving then..."
The others nodded in agreement and they all headed towards the train station.
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After they had all arrived at Station Square, they found the place in utter chaos. Several people were running for cover as several armored GUN units were going through the streets. Anthony noticed Tyreke, Rebecca, Sally, and Kyle running towards them. Kyle was holding Ryndar and Hogi-San.
"What's happening?!?" Aura asked.
"GUN has lost it!" Tyreke said. "They're threatening to destroy the entire city unless we hand over the Emeralds!"
"Like HELL we're going to let them do that!" Lazer said, and then noticed a regiment of Hunters coming towards them. "Looks like it's time for battle!"
"Better get ready then," Amy said. "Armor ACT..." But before she could finish, a large blast impacted near her and knocked her to the ground.
"AMY!!!" Anthony said, and then looked angrily towards the army. He then yelled "BASTARDS!!!" and sent a powerful Force Blast towards them which decimated a large group of the Hunters.
As Lisa, Aura, and Rebecca got the Chao and Kyle to safety, the rest of the group began fighting with the troops. All except for Anthony...
Anthony was still looking at the troops he scrapped, and then at the destruction that was being caused. He stared blankly at them and then collapsed to his knees. Amy, after recovering, noticed this and asked, "Anthony, what's wrong?"
Anthony grasped his head in his hands and said, somewhat to himself, "No more...God, make it stop..."
"Anthony, SNAP OUT OF IT!!!" Tyreke said as he managed to rip the head off one of the Hunters.
Anthony didn't listen as he continued to kneel on the ground, trembling in fear. Amy stayed by his side and tried to calm him down.
As the fight continued, another problem appeared. It was a large battle walker vehicle similar to the Bigfoot, but much larger.
"Oh, GREAT!!! Like we need this!" Rouge said.
"What IS that thing?!?" Lazer asked.
"Looks like they brought out the Juggernaut prototype," Rouge said, getting ready for an attack.
"Well, I see it as just another target," Ryan said, readying his weapons and noticing Knuckles stand next to him. "Shall we take this guy out?"
"Let's do it..." Knuckles said, as he and Ryan rushed towards the Juggernaut.
BOSS STAGE: F-25L Juggernaut
CHARACTERS: Knuckles/Bat
MUSIC: Digimon World 3 battle music
As imposing as the Juggernaut was, Knuckles and Ryan were not afraid as they stepped up to face it. The Juggernaut started by hovering and converting to a hoverjet mode and fired several shots in machine gun fashion towards the two furries. Both of them had to scramble to get out of the way, Ryan actually performing several backflips to dodge and then firing several shots towards the Juggernaut with his sidearm. When those shots failed to penetrate, he threw a LAM like a grenade towards the Juggernaut, impacting one of the gun turrets and forcing the Juggernaut to land.
When the Juggernaut landed, Knuckles took this as his cue and glided towards the cockpit of the vehicle. He then punched through the glass to get the pilot, but the pilot caused the body of the shake back and forth and Knuckles had to hang on tight to avoid being thrown off. Finally, he punched through the metal of the cockpit, knocking out the controls and causing the Juggernaut to stop moving and start to collapse. Ryan scrambled for cover as Knuckles pulled the pilot out of the vehicle and glided to safety before it exploded.
"What the HELL is your problem?" Knuckles yelled, speaking at the pilot. The pilot said nothing...mainly because, as Ryan pointed out upon reaching Knuckles's location, that the pilot was dead from another cyanide capsule.
The rest of the troops were soon routed, and the others regrouped around where Amy was still trying to comfort a very frazzled Anthony. No one present could understand what was going on.
"Amy, what's wrong with him?" Rebecca asked.
"I don't know..." Amy said, looking worriedly at Anthony. "During the entire battle he just kept saying, 'No more...'."
Upon saying that, Anthony finally calmed down and looked up towards the group asking, "Is it over?"
"Yeah, it's over, bud," Sonic said. "Anth...what happened?"
"I'm sorry..." Anthony said, still trying to calm down somewhat. "It's just...the sight of all the destruction...the fact I caused some of it...I came here to avoid that..."
"Hey, we understand," Lazer said, walking up. "Once we get back to the old base, we can calm down. I can even help you with meditation if needed."
"Thanks, Lazer, I'd appreciate that..." Anthony said.
It was at that moment that Tyreke ran up to the rest of the group. Teila was following close behind and trying to get Tyreke to calm down.
"What the HELL happened?!?" Tyreke asked. "We're fighting for our lives out there, and the guy who did the most good freaks out right before the fight really begins!"
"Leave him ALONE, Tyreke!" Amy said. "He was just overwhelmed when he got out of control for a while..."
"Out of control?!?" Tyreke said. "What are you TALKING about?!? He took out several troops there and just stopped!"
"Tyreke!" Teila said, trying to stop Tyreke's tirade.
"I mean...this guy's supposed to be the big hero of Arcadia, and he freaks out in the middle of a battle!" Tyreke continued, not listening.
"Tyreke, shut UP!" Teila said, even louder.
However, Tyreke's words had their effect and Anthony jumped up and looked straight at Tyreke. "Well, I didn't WANT to be the big hero, OKAY?!? I only got into this nonsense to help reunite Arcadia and to help free Mobius...and I've been fighting ever since!!! I am SICK of fighting...I am SICK of seeing people get hurt..." He then pulled off his armor and threw it to the ground. "...and now that I can't make a mistake without getting dumped on, I am SICK of being the Gamemaster as well!!!"
"Anth, no!" Sonic said. "You can't...!"
"YES, I CAN!!!" Anthony said, yelling at Sonic and causing the rest of the group to recoil in shock. "In fact, I'm telling Jenna and Lars to chose which of them can be the next Gamemaster, because I've had enough!!!"
"Anthony, please..." Aura said.
"Anthony, don't do this," Knuckles said, walking up to Anthony. "Let's get back to..."
"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!!!" Anthony yelled, and then disappeared as a Teleport power kicked in.
"NO!" Amy said, watching in horror as Anthony disappeared.
All eyes then looked at Tyreke angrily, and Tyreke began to stammer in shock. "I...I didn't want him to do that...I was just..."
"...being a JERK as usual!" Telia said, walking up to Tyreke and looking him straight in the eyes. "Dammit, Tyreke! Anthony was here to try to get away from the fighting because he was close to a nervous breakdown...and you just HAD to open your big mouth and speed up the breakdown!"
"I didn't mean to..." Tyreke said. "Look...let me find him...it's the least I can do to help..."
"I think you've done ENOUGH, Tyreke..." Sally said.
"Besides, I can follow his psi trail," Amy said. "I'll go look for him." With that, Amy drew upon the Descendancy Powers, causing the Armor of the Gamemaster to appear on her, and she used a Teleport power of her own, following Anthony by focusing on a Past Sight power.
"We'd better get the Chaos Emeralds to the HQ," Red Sonic said, as Ryan and Lazer picked up the parts of Anthony's armor.
"Yeah," Teila said, and then looked towards Tyreke. "Wait for me at the workshop, Tyreke. We'll talk about this LATER!" She then joined the others as they headed towards the hotel.
Tyreke looked down towards the ground, feeling rotten about what he did. He then realized what he needed to do...
"Sorry guys...but if I don't find a way to make things right, I'll feel even worse," he said to himself. He then concentrated on the area and sensed what he figured was great sorrow.
"So...that's where he went..." Tyreke said, and then used a Teleport power of his own.
"Tails, what ARE you working on in there?"
The group, save for Anthony and Amy, had already gathered at Tails's workshop to regroup. Teila's question seemed to mirror the thoughts of all present, as Tails had gone into another part of his workshop and sounds of loud tooling and metalworking could be heard.
"Just something I wanted to work on after Anthony first came to Arcadia," Tails answered. "In fact...I'm almost finished...no strike that..." A few squeaks could be heard as Tails put in the last connections. "I AM finished!"
"Way past!" Sonic said. "Now we just have to wait for..."
As soon as Sonic started to say that, a bright flash could be seen outside, and then Anthony and Amy walked into the building.
"You were saying, Sonic?" Lazer said.
"Hey guys! Mission accomplished!" Amy said, placing the sky blue Emerald with the rest, and then looked around. "Where are Aura and Lisa?"
"Back checking on their Chao," Red Sonic said. It was then that he noticed Anthony looking warily at the Chaos Emeralds. "Um...what's wrong with HIM?"
All eyes present looked at Anthony as he stared at the Emeralds. Knuckles then spoke up. "Anthony? What is it?"
"Knux...something weird happened..." Anthony said. "When I grabbed the sky blue Emerald, it glowed brightly and I heard some voice say 'You are the one'. Why did it do that?"
"Did the voice sound like Tikal?" Knuckles asked.
"No...it was different...and more mysterious sounding..." Anthony said.
Knuckles and Rouge looked at each other and Knuckles furrowed his brow. "Weird...first time I've ever heard of this happening..."
"We can debate it later," Ryan said. "We'd better get these Emeralds to a safe place...like back to Angel Island."
"Probably not a good idea right now," Rouge said. "If GUN is after them, that will be the first place they'll look."
It was at that moment that Tails walked into the room. Oil could still be seen staining several parts of his fur as he put his gloves back on. "What are you guys talking about?"
"Something happened to Anth when he grabbed one of the Emeralds," Lazer said.
"Oh..." Tails said in response. "Well, Anthony, I'm glad you're here, I have something to show you."
"It will have to wait, Tails," Anthony said. "We need to find a safe place for the Servers for the time being...and our best bet might be the base under the hotel."
"Good idea," Red Sonic said.
"Aura and I will go get the others and meet you there," Lisa said.
Knuckles and Rouge gathered up the Emeralds and Knuckles said, "Let's get moving then..."
The others nodded in agreement and they all headed towards the train station.
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After they had all arrived at Station Square, they found the place in utter chaos. Several people were running for cover as several armored GUN units were going through the streets. Anthony noticed Tyreke, Rebecca, Sally, and Kyle running towards them. Kyle was holding Ryndar and Hogi-San.
"What's happening?!?" Aura asked.
"GUN has lost it!" Tyreke said. "They're threatening to destroy the entire city unless we hand over the Emeralds!"
"Like HELL we're going to let them do that!" Lazer said, and then noticed a regiment of Hunters coming towards them. "Looks like it's time for battle!"
"Better get ready then," Amy said. "Armor ACT..." But before she could finish, a large blast impacted near her and knocked her to the ground.
"AMY!!!" Anthony said, and then looked angrily towards the army. He then yelled "BASTARDS!!!" and sent a powerful Force Blast towards them which decimated a large group of the Hunters.
As Lisa, Aura, and Rebecca got the Chao and Kyle to safety, the rest of the group began fighting with the troops. All except for Anthony...
Anthony was still looking at the troops he scrapped, and then at the destruction that was being caused. He stared blankly at them and then collapsed to his knees. Amy, after recovering, noticed this and asked, "Anthony, what's wrong?"
Anthony grasped his head in his hands and said, somewhat to himself, "No more...God, make it stop..."
"Anthony, SNAP OUT OF IT!!!" Tyreke said as he managed to rip the head off one of the Hunters.
Anthony didn't listen as he continued to kneel on the ground, trembling in fear. Amy stayed by his side and tried to calm him down.
As the fight continued, another problem appeared. It was a large battle walker vehicle similar to the Bigfoot, but much larger.
"Oh, GREAT!!! Like we need this!" Rouge said.
"What IS that thing?!?" Lazer asked.
"Looks like they brought out the Juggernaut prototype," Rouge said, getting ready for an attack.
"Well, I see it as just another target," Ryan said, readying his weapons and noticing Knuckles stand next to him. "Shall we take this guy out?"
"Let's do it..." Knuckles said, as he and Ryan rushed towards the Juggernaut.
BOSS STAGE: F-25L Juggernaut
CHARACTERS: Knuckles/Bat
MUSIC: Digimon World 3 battle music
As imposing as the Juggernaut was, Knuckles and Ryan were not afraid as they stepped up to face it. The Juggernaut started by hovering and converting to a hoverjet mode and fired several shots in machine gun fashion towards the two furries. Both of them had to scramble to get out of the way, Ryan actually performing several backflips to dodge and then firing several shots towards the Juggernaut with his sidearm. When those shots failed to penetrate, he threw a LAM like a grenade towards the Juggernaut, impacting one of the gun turrets and forcing the Juggernaut to land.
When the Juggernaut landed, Knuckles took this as his cue and glided towards the cockpit of the vehicle. He then punched through the glass to get the pilot, but the pilot caused the body of the shake back and forth and Knuckles had to hang on tight to avoid being thrown off. Finally, he punched through the metal of the cockpit, knocking out the controls and causing the Juggernaut to stop moving and start to collapse. Ryan scrambled for cover as Knuckles pulled the pilot out of the vehicle and glided to safety before it exploded.
"What the HELL is your problem?" Knuckles yelled, speaking at the pilot. The pilot said nothing...mainly because, as Ryan pointed out upon reaching Knuckles's location, that the pilot was dead from another cyanide capsule.
The rest of the troops were soon routed, and the others regrouped around where Amy was still trying to comfort a very frazzled Anthony. No one present could understand what was going on.
"Amy, what's wrong with him?" Rebecca asked.
"I don't know..." Amy said, looking worriedly at Anthony. "During the entire battle he just kept saying, 'No more...'."
Upon saying that, Anthony finally calmed down and looked up towards the group asking, "Is it over?"
"Yeah, it's over, bud," Sonic said. "Anth...what happened?"
"I'm sorry..." Anthony said, still trying to calm down somewhat. "It's just...the sight of all the destruction...the fact I caused some of it...I came here to avoid that..."
"Hey, we understand," Lazer said, walking up. "Once we get back to the old base, we can calm down. I can even help you with meditation if needed."
"Thanks, Lazer, I'd appreciate that..." Anthony said.
It was at that moment that Tyreke ran up to the rest of the group. Teila was following close behind and trying to get Tyreke to calm down.
"What the HELL happened?!?" Tyreke asked. "We're fighting for our lives out there, and the guy who did the most good freaks out right before the fight really begins!"
"Leave him ALONE, Tyreke!" Amy said. "He was just overwhelmed when he got out of control for a while..."
"Out of control?!?" Tyreke said. "What are you TALKING about?!? He took out several troops there and just stopped!"
"Tyreke!" Teila said, trying to stop Tyreke's tirade.
"I mean...this guy's supposed to be the big hero of Arcadia, and he freaks out in the middle of a battle!" Tyreke continued, not listening.
"Tyreke, shut UP!" Teila said, even louder.
However, Tyreke's words had their effect and Anthony jumped up and looked straight at Tyreke. "Well, I didn't WANT to be the big hero, OKAY?!? I only got into this nonsense to help reunite Arcadia and to help free Mobius...and I've been fighting ever since!!! I am SICK of fighting...I am SICK of seeing people get hurt..." He then pulled off his armor and threw it to the ground. "...and now that I can't make a mistake without getting dumped on, I am SICK of being the Gamemaster as well!!!"
"Anth, no!" Sonic said. "You can't...!"
"YES, I CAN!!!" Anthony said, yelling at Sonic and causing the rest of the group to recoil in shock. "In fact, I'm telling Jenna and Lars to chose which of them can be the next Gamemaster, because I've had enough!!!"
"Anthony, please..." Aura said.
"Anthony, don't do this," Knuckles said, walking up to Anthony. "Let's get back to..."
"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!!!" Anthony yelled, and then disappeared as a Teleport power kicked in.
"NO!" Amy said, watching in horror as Anthony disappeared.
All eyes then looked at Tyreke angrily, and Tyreke began to stammer in shock. "I...I didn't want him to do that...I was just..."
"...being a JERK as usual!" Telia said, walking up to Tyreke and looking him straight in the eyes. "Dammit, Tyreke! Anthony was here to try to get away from the fighting because he was close to a nervous breakdown...and you just HAD to open your big mouth and speed up the breakdown!"
"I didn't mean to..." Tyreke said. "Look...let me find him...it's the least I can do to help..."
"I think you've done ENOUGH, Tyreke..." Sally said.
"Besides, I can follow his psi trail," Amy said. "I'll go look for him." With that, Amy drew upon the Descendancy Powers, causing the Armor of the Gamemaster to appear on her, and she used a Teleport power of her own, following Anthony by focusing on a Past Sight power.
"We'd better get the Chaos Emeralds to the HQ," Red Sonic said, as Ryan and Lazer picked up the parts of Anthony's armor.
"Yeah," Teila said, and then looked towards Tyreke. "Wait for me at the workshop, Tyreke. We'll talk about this LATER!" She then joined the others as they headed towards the hotel.
Tyreke looked down towards the ground, feeling rotten about what he did. He then realized what he needed to do...
"Sorry guys...but if I don't find a way to make things right, I'll feel even worse," he said to himself. He then concentrated on the area and sensed what he figured was great sorrow.
"So...that's where he went..." Tyreke said, and then used a Teleport power of his own.