Hi everyone! It's good to keep writing for all you wonderful people. Now,
we'll start part two of the second break in which Scales and company go to
an exciting place to help the fighter defeat Heinrich. This also marks an
interesting point for plot and character development. I hope you like this
special chapter. Read, and please remember to review! Oh, and if any of
this seems OOC or offensive to a character you love, please don't make a
fuss out of it. I'm just trying to write a story here.
Disclaimer: I own the entire place in this chapter! And Scales, and the Egg
Beater, and some other stuff! See for yourself.
Scales stared around her in awe and wonderment at her surroundings. After learning she would go up against Heinrich in the next round, Shadow had conversed with the others and they had unanimously decided they would need to get Scales some help if she was to have a chance against the Xenomorph. So they had spirited her away to an alien environment, a place that she had never been to before, a land full of mystery and excitement. I am, of course, talking about the local Mega mall. "This is incredible." She said. She had never been in a place where so many people and other creatures were at the same time! Well, not counting the Coliseum. She was amazed by the neon lights, the numerous shops, the towering and labyrinthine levels of bridges, walkways, and places of business all around her. The place was laid out like a huge warehouse, sort of. There was the ground floor, and then there were huge pillars of shops rising from the ground, looking like skyscrapers. Escalators, elevators, and bridges linked all of the giant irregular pillars. "Isn't it though?" asked Amy cheerfully. "I love malls. There's always something so magical about the mall, something that keeps calling me back!" "Subliminal messages in the advertising?" Amy frowned up at the big lizard. "No, silly! It's the thrill of the hunt when finding a decent piece of clothing or worthwhile item, the action of combating a salesman to get the lowest price, the pure ecstasy of walking out of the shop with something that you see another woman buying for twice the cost. It is the joy that is shopping! You'll get used to it, now that you're around our size." "If you say so." Said Scales, apprehensively. She and Amy were walking together towards their individual destinations, having split up from the others soon after entering the mall. Close to the main entrance had been a towering black obelisk with elaborate carvings inscribed on it, which Scales had at first taken to be an object of religious worship due to the great number of people studying it reverently. She was half right, it was the mall directory. After finding the shops they were looking for, everyone had gone their separate ways. Knuckles had gone to the sports utility store to get some new gloves, Rouge had gone to see all the jewelry stores in the mall, Sonic had gone to the shoe store to find a new pair of trainers, Tails had gone to converse with fellow brainiacs and purchase games in n electronics store, Eggman had gone to Evil Maniacs R' Us to get the parts to complete his latest evil creation; the Egg Beater (Hahahahahahahaha!), and Shadow had gone to the indoor ice skating rink. Amy and Scales had gone together because their stores were in the same direction, sort of. Amy was heading for the biggest clothing store in the mall, Hiatus, and Scales was heading to a weapons shop to purchase upgrades. Amy suddenly noticed an elevator opening on their level. Several other people noticed it as well and started making a wild dash for it. "Scales, quick!" "Huh? What is it?" "We've got to make that elevator over there! Quick warp us there!" "Um, okay. Hold on tight. CHAOS CONTROL!" The two vanished in a flash of light, reappearing just in front of the open, empty elevator. They ran in. Amy quickly hit the close button. The doors started shutting, but several hands and a claw or two shot through the crack of the door, getting stuck as the doors tried to shut. Amy quickly pulled out her Piko Piko Hammer and whacked the hands viciously, causing them to pull back from the doors, allowing them to shut. Through the glass sides of the elevator, Scales could see people frantically pressing themselves against the glass, trying to break through. "Amy, what do we do?" asked Scales, starting to get worried. "Let's see, we're heading for floor.twenty!" Amy pressed the button. The elevator started moving up. The desperate people and monsters tried to cling to the sides of the elevator, but fell off as the thing went up. Amy sighed in relief. "Phew! That was a close one. Good thing your Chaos Control got us to the elevator in time." She frowned. "Speaking of which, why can't you just warp us straight to our prospective stores?" "I can only warp to a place I see or have seen before, looking at a place on a map doesn't count." She looked out the sides, staring at the clustered people who had fallen off. "What was that all about?" "In a mall this size, it's almost impossible to get where you're going by taking lots of escalators. Problem is, the number of elevators available is very small." "Well, why didn't the designers make it so there were more elevators?" "The mall needs to make profits, doesn't it? The longer a person has to stay here due to inadequate transportation, the less likely the chance that they'll get what they came for and will then have to either stay the night in one of the mall's expensive hotel rooms or come back another day. So when you see a form of getting where you're going, you grab it!" "Oh, I see." Said Scales. The elevator slowly went up the shaft. They watched in silence as the floors passed before them. "So Amy, what do you think of my brother?" "Shadow?" Amy paused, looking a bit conflicted. "I don't really know. The date we had last night was great, you know, even with that weird couple of pink balloon thinks that showed up everywhere we went to, eating all the food and some furniture." "So?" Scales pressed. "Do you like him, or do you not like him? And by that I mean whether or not you like him as more than a friend?" "Scales!" Amy said a bit angrily. "It was just one date, I can't make that sort of a decision now!" She stopped, thoughtful. "Can I?" "He really likes you a lot, you know. He's said so many times." "Really?" Amy asked, interested. "Yeah, I think it all started when you hugged him back on Prison Island." Scales said playfully. "Wha-I-hey! How did you know about that?" "He told me." "Well, that hug was an accident. I thought he was Sonic at the moment, I was just so happy to see him that I gave him a hug. Then I found out he wasn't Sonic, of course." Scales rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right." "What's that supposed to mean?!" "Come on Amy, I can believe the military mistook Shadow for Sonic, they are pretty stupid. But you're not. Besides, he has completely the wrong hair and color to look exactly like Sonic. So why did you hug him? Did you really think he was Sonic, or was there another reason?" Scales asked slyly. Amy sputtered for a moment. "What are you implying?! I had never seen Shadow before in my life! Why would I have any reason to hug him, other than mistaken identity?" "I don't know, but I think something was going on there. And what about on the ARK?" "What do you mean?" "You know, when you convinced him to go and beat me up? What was he talking about when he mentioned the promise he made to you?" asked Scales, a bit more serious. Amy scowled. "Look, I really don't know what that was about. I don't remember him making a promise to me, unless it was a silent promise. I don't know what he meant, and I don't know why he's even bothering with a girl like me." She said, sounding frustrated. "Yeah, I guess he doesn't have much of a chance with you, what with your infatuation with Sonic and all." Scales admitted. Amy sighed. "Sonic? Oh, don't talk to me about being infatuated with him." Scales blinked. "I don't understand." "I have recently taken most of my life into account, and you know what I found out? I've wasted most of it, chasing after that blue asshole. No matter what I've done to show him how much I care about him, he buzzes me off. Whenever he sees me, he usually runs away. He's always thinking of me as nothing more than a little girl. Even when I just want to have a normal conversation with him, he runs away. He can't see past how I was when he met me for the first time, when he rescued me from that ugly metal copy of himself. Whenever I get kidnapped (which has been way too much, I might add!) he always rescues me with a look of disgust on his face. He hates me. I know it." "But he didn't look so disgusted when he came to save you on the ARK." "How do you know how he looked then?" "Back when I was the big Biolizard, and waiting for somebody to reactivate the colony, I hooked myself to the station's security systems so I could see what was going on in every corridor and chamber. When he got Eggman's message about you, he had a look of actual concern on his face, right before running off to save you." Amy shook her head. "Do you want to know why he was concerned? The cannon countdown was getting lower. He thought that going to rescue me would be a huge waste of time that would prevent him from being the big hero and stopping the cannon from firing. If he had known what exactly he was supposed to do with the fake emerald, he would have let me die. I know it." "But what about the whole scene when he was going to be launched into space and told you to take care of yourself? If that wasn't concern for you, what is it?" Amy looked very unhappy at that. "You want to know what that meant? I'll tell you. After everything was over and both you AND Shadow were supposedly plummeting to your deaths in the atmosphere, I asked him if what he had said back on the colony meant he actually cared about me. And you know what he told me?" "No, what?" "He said that he hadn't meant anything. He said that he was just trying to go into the Afterlife with a clear record by being a little nice to me for once. Then he told me to get out of his apartment and his life." There was a long silence as they got closer and closer to their destination. "And you know what?" Amy said suddenly, startling Scales and sounding very bitter. "Even after that, I still kept stupidly chasing after him. I still thought I could make him like me. Of course, that all changed when we found out you two were still around. And then GUN started coming after all of us. And our current predicament began." She shook her head. "I was such a fool. And I'll have to keep playing the fool whenever the next Sonic Adventure comes out, because if I don't act like I did before, one of those director Pikachu will force me to. I just want my own choice of someone to love, okay? And I really, really don't want it to be Sonic." Scales wanted to say something, but wasn't sure how to put it delicately. So instead she asked, "When did you figure all of this out?" "Last night actually, right after my.date.with Shadow." she trailed off, suddenly realizing the implications. Scales smiled. "Well, maybe you've already chosen someone else to love." Said Scales wisely. Their conversation ended as the elevator stopped on the twentieth floor, their destination. They quickly ran out of the elevator, narrowly missing the throng of people rushing to get in. Amy looked around then turned to Scales. "My store is down that way," she said, pointing to a series of catwalks leading to another massive pillar. "This is where we must go our separate ways." "But I have no idea where I have to-" "Go down three shops, take a right, go across the catwalk, make a right and two lefts and you're there. You'll know the shop when you see it." Scales stared at Amy for a moment. "How did you remember all that?" "Hey, when you've spent as much time in malls as I have, it gets easy to remember where everything is, even in a giant place like this." She checked her watch. "Oh, I gotta get going! Remember, we all meet in front of the main directory in two hours, got it?" "Got it." Said Scales. She started to turn around to find the shop she was looking for, when Amy grabbed her arm. "What is it Amy?" Amy blushed a little, her fur turning pinker. "Well, I just wanted to thank you," "For what?" "For that talk in the elevator. You really helped me out there. I think I know what I have to do now. Tell me, what kind of present would your brother like?" Scales considered. "I'm not really sure. He's pretty non-materialistic. The only things he really cares about are us. His only possessions are his shoes, his gloves, and his emerald. Oh, and his upgrades, not that those count." Amy thought for a moment. "Maybe I could find something for him anyway. Oh! Would you like me to get you anything?" "No, I don't need any clothes." "Okay then. See you later, Scales!" Waving goodbye, Amy walked over to the catwalks, vanishing into the hustling throng of assorted video game creatures. Scales looked after her for a moment, then left. Scales followed Amy's directions exactly. At one point, she got sidetracked for a few minutes by the sight of an incredibly handsome male raptor, but she got back on course. She was soon in front of a store with the sign, "Big Gun Weapons Stockpile" above the entrance. Scales went in the door. The store inside was bigger than it had looked from the outside. There were racks and shelves filled with all kinds of weapons, upgrades, power-ups and ammunition from every video game ever played on a Nintendo console. The manager and only employee, a Toad wearing combat fatigues, looked up from his spot behind the counter at the sound of the bell ringing over the door. "Ah, another customer here to purchase one of my little babies! What can I do for you, miss?" Scales started to say something, but the shopkeeper stopped her. "Wait a minute, I know you! You're that lizard who's competing in the tournament, Scales wasn't it?" "Yes, that's me. Whoa re you?" "I am Sgt. Calami T., proud manager of this fine establishment. What are you doing in my humble silo for weapons of mass destruction?" "Well, I'm a little worried about my next match. I've heard that I am to be fighting Heinrich the Xenomorph." The cute little mushroom-man's face scrunched up in disgust. "Ah, Xenomorphs, how I hate those buggers! Never good enough to be a customer, what with their natural born weapons and such. They never need an upgrade, seeing as how they are always able to adapt to their environment! I'll give you whatever you need ma'am, as long as it's approved by your game master." "Actually, I did ask him about upgrades. He gave me your shop's name and he said I could get a few things to help me in the fight, as long as I got only three things. He told me the rules stated I could have one speed upgrade, one defense upgrade, and one power upgrade. And he said no guns. Do you have anything that can help me?" "I believe I do. Do you have any form of paying for it?" Scales paused; suddenly realizing she had no money. "Well." Calami T. laughed. "Hahahaha! Just joking, kid! Don't worry, in these cases the bill goes to the Corporation." Scales frowned. "I didn't really think it was funny. And I'm not a kid, I'm sixty six years old." Calami T. stopped grinning. "Sorry, sorry, let's be serious now, okay? I will need to make a few measurements first, so if you'll just come behind the counter we can get you started." Scales came behind the counter. After weighing her on a hidden pad and measuring her height, length, and width, he told her to wait for a few minutes while he headed into the back room. While he was gone, Scales examined the many objects surrounding her. Many of them looked quite dangerous. As she was about to pick up a big, powerful gun, Calami T. came out of the back room with three objects. He laid them out on the counter as Scales came over. "Well miss Scales, these three items are the answers to all your problems. I got your speed, defense, and power upgrades right here." "What are they?" Calami T. held up two anklets. They were the same size as the ones Scales was already wearing, but they had blinking lights around the sides. Ringing the bottom and top of either anklet were several small holes. "These are the Jet Anklets. They-" "Hey wait, Tails already has a pair of those!" pointed out Scales. "Your vulpine friend has an older model, I believe. These are top of the line!" "What do they do?" Calami T. pointed to the holes on the underside of the anklets. "The holes on the bottom of the anklets are little rocket jets. They gain power by air sucked in through the intakes on top of the anklets. The rockets boost outwards, leaving your foot intact from any burns. The rockets increase your speed and allow you to perform a triple jump, essentially two normal jumps followed by a powerful rocket boost. You can also use them to make your kicks more powerful, burning your opponent when you strike." "Cool!" Scales took off her current anklets, stored them away in the dimensional pocket that almost all video and cartoon characters have to store their stuff in, and put on the Jet Anklets. "What's next?" Calami T. held up a large dome made of some translucent green material. The edges had some kind of metal grips attached to them. "This is the Protection Shell. Seeing as how your life support system might be a weak spot for the wrath of the alien, you'll need a way of keeping it from harm. The shell fits over your life support system, forming a second barrier for the delicate mechanisms that keep you alive, essentially doubling your HP meter, if you had one that is." "Very nice." Scales took the shell and placed it over the current life support dome. The metal grips latched onto her skin, making it a permanent part of her. "And what does the last one do?" Calami T. picked up one of the two weapons lying on the counter. It was a gauntlet of sorts, with three long and very sharp talons instead of fingers. The other weapon was an identical gauntlet. The one Calami T. was holding had the word "Slasher" written on the side, while the other had "Ripper" written on it. "These are the Blood Talons. They make for a powerful weapon, fitting over your hand like a glove! With these things, you can make your fist claws more dangerous than your kicks! The talons can slash and rip through most any kind of flesh or armor. And when you don't want to use them, they fold up into bracelets." Scales frowned. "Why are they called the Blood Talons?" Calami T. looked a little edgy. "Well, to tell the truth, they're sort of enchanted." "How so?" "The Blood Talons absorb blood, hence their name. When you tear into the skin of an opponent, the gauntlet you use absorbs any blood it touches and become stronger. Nasty, but effective. I'm sorry, but these are the best things I could come up with for you, so you can take it or leave it." Scales shrugged. "I guess I'll take it, if there's no other option." She pulled off her bracelets, stowed them away, then donned the Talons. For a moment she felt a great power and a great thirst emanating from the gauntlets, but the feeling ended when they folded up, shrinking into bracelets. "I thank you for these items. I hope they help me in the coming battle." Calami T. shrugged. "No skin off my nonexistent nose, ma'am. I'll get paid for them whether you win or lose. I just want you to know that I'll be rooting for you."
Some time later, Scales made it back to the obelisk at the front. She wanted patiently, knowing sooner or later they would start showing up. Soon enough, Sonic showed up, speeding past everyone else in the area and startling many. He was wearing new shoes, which looked pretty much like the last ones he had, but they were flashier and had his face all over them. "Hey Scales, did you get what you needed?" he asked when he saw her. Scales wasn't feeling too happy with Sonic after what she had heard from Amy, but figured she would be polite. "Yeah, I'm stronger in every department now. See?" Scales showed off her new items, even going as far as to activate the Talons. The hedgehog's eyes bulged at the last ones. "Whoa! Pretty sharp gloves you've got there. Put em' away before you poke somebody's eye out!" Scales shrugged and retracted the Talons. "Hey, your upgrades are pretty cool, but not as nice as mine." Scales bristled slightly. "Really? I don't quite see what's so cool about your own upgrades. You would think the designers would have thought of a better item than the Magic Glove, and put it somewhere that doesn't overlap another item, the Bounce Bracelet in particular. (This is true. In SA2, the Magic Glove item covers up the Bounce Bracelet item on his wrist.) Speaking of which, the Bounce Bracelet itself is kind of a weird item. Why would they give you a bracelet just so you can bounce? And as for the Glove itself, I don't see them as much good if you can only use them at a risk of getting hit." Sonic frowned. "Oh yeah? Well.you fight like a cow!' Scales stared at him. "What?" "Sorry, couldn't think of a good retort. Anyway, I guess your upgrades are pretty nice. I hope they let you beat Heinrich and whoever you fight in the last round." "Yeah, we need the money." "Totally. Think of all the chili dogs I could buy with ten million dollars!" As Scales frowned at him, Sonic suddenly noticed something that made his face turn pale. "Oh no! It's Amy! And she looks like she's got a present of some sort! Quick, hide me!" Scales chuckled. "Sonic, there's nothing to worry about. Amy told me she doesn't even like you anymore." Sonic gaped. "That's ridiculous!" "Why?" "What girl could possibly resist these looks?" said Sonic posing vainly. Scales eyed him. "Rouge, Tikal and myself, for starters." Sonic shrugged. "Yeah, well Rouge is probably nuts from hanging upside down all the time, which would explain why she's fallen for Knuckles. I'm sure Tikal secretly likes me, but I won't have anything to do with dead chicks. Chaos can have her. As for you, well, I can't really fault you for not being attracted to me. After all, you are a weird genetic/cybernetic experiment gone awry. I'm sure you'd only like freaks like yourself." As you would expect, Scales was extremely angry by these comments. Just as she was about to drop kick the arrogant little cobalt rodent, Amy intervened. "Hi Scales! Hi Sonic!" she said cheerfully. Sonic yelped and backed away, ready to run or Chaos Control if she got dangerous. Amy was carrying a couple of shopping bags and a wrapped, ovular object. "Where's Shadow? I've got a present for him." Sonic stopped, not ready to run away but he had an odd look on his face that Scales could not interpret. Relief? Anger? Jealousy? "What did you get for him, Amy?" asked Scales. "Well, when you said he's non-materialistic, I thought he might enjoy something alive. So I got him a Chao egg." Scales was surprised. "Hey, good choice Amy. That reminds me of the old days, before GUN came and ruined everyone's lives. Back on the ARK we had a Chao Garden of our own. Shadow, Maria and I loved playing with the little guys." Sonic ended up ruining the memory. "Hey, how could you play with the Chao? You were a giant hideous monster!" Scales frowned. "I wasn't always that big, you know. Back in my younger years, I was a bit different in size. After Dr. Gerald locked me away in the core of the ARK, I started to change into what I was until a few days ago." "How did you change? You got fatter?" guessed Sonic. Scales' eye twitched. "No, the residual Chaos energy in the core mixed with the Chaos Emerald in my life support, resulting in a mutation of my DNA and internal and external biomachinery. As a result I became big, ugly, and partially deformed." "So you got fatter." Said Sonic. Scales was about to hit Sonic with a Rocket Kick when thankfully, Dr. Robotnik/Eggman showed up. He looked quite grouchy. "Oh, hi Eggman." Said Amy flatly. "Hey Eggman, where's the pieces for this Egg Beater of yours? I can't wait to bust it up like I always do." Said Sonic. The rotund scientist scowled. "I do not have the pieces for the new Egg Beater. On the way to Evil Maniac's R' Us, I happened to pass through the food court. I was a bit peckish, so I stopped for a quick bite. Next thing I knew, my time was up and I had to come back and meet up with you filthy mammals." "Hey!" protested Scales. "Oh, sorry, and one slimy reptile." "That's better." "So Eggman, just how much did you eat?" asked Sonic. Eggman scratched his head. "I can't quite recall. All I know is I ended up having to check the time because the food court workers were pleading with me to go away. The workers of Yoshi's Cookies and Eggs went on strike for some reason, something about being forced to give dead birth too many times. I really don't know." Sonic laughed. "Well, looks like you've caused another public disturbance just by being your fat, egg headed self, Doctor!" Eggman growled. "Would you like me to sit on you, hedgehog?" he asked, advancing on Sonic. The Blue Blur, gasped, taking the threat seriously. "N-no, please! Anything but that!" Eggman grinned. "You know, I think I will!" He was about to jump at Sonic when fortunately enough, Knuckles arrived. "Hey guys, look what I got!" said the red echidna. The others looked over him up and down. He didn't seem to be carrying any bags at all. What had he gotten? "Uh, what did you get Knuckles?" asked Amy. Knuckles proudly waved his hands. "Look, I've got new gloves!" His gloves looked exactly like his old ones. "Knuckles, your new gloves look exactly like your old gloves." Said Scales. "Did my old gloves have extensions for my knucklaws?" he said. "Actually, they did." Said Sonic. Knuckles blinked, then frowned. "Hey, they did! Come to think of it, they do look a lot like my old gloves." "Check the brand tab, echidna, and you'll see something interesting." Said Eggman, pointing to a tab of paper protruding from inside the glove. Frowning, Knuckles turned his hand around to see the tab. His name was written on it in marker, to indicate it was his. Knuckles' blood boiled. "I don't believe this! Those bastards sold me back my own gloves!" he said angrily. Sonic grinned. "Like I always say Knux, you're too darn gullible!" Knuckles growled. "Ooh, I have half a mind to go back to that store and pulverize those salesmen!" "Yeah, you've got half a mind, period!" joked Sonic. Knuckles glared at him. "On second thought, maybe I'll pulverize you!" he shouted, grabbing Sonic by the neck and preparing to slam a clawed fist into the hedgehog's face. Fortunately for Sonic, Tails showed up, carrying a bag full of technical stuff. "Hi guys! Hi Sonic! Knuckles, why are you about to punch Sonic's face in?" asked the young fox. "He provoked me!" said Knuckles. "Oh, okay. I had a lot of fun conversing with aspiring young geniuses like myself, I made a few buddies, and I've got enough software to begin engineering the OS for my next creation, the Hurricane!" said the fox. "What will it do?" asked Amy. "When it's completed, it will be able to change between normal biplane, X- wing style plane, Cyclone Walker, and submarine. It'll be my greatest invention yet, aside from the fake Chaos Emerald of course." He said. "Why not add spaceship into the mix?" suggested Eggman. Tails blinked. "Huh, hadn't thought of that. Thanks Eggman!" "Your welcome Tails. Hey wait a minute, I just gave one of my greatest rivals an idea that will surely help him defeat me at a later date. D'oh!" said the madman. "Hey Tails, why do you keep naming your creations after climactic disturbances?" asked Sonic, feeling he had to say something despite being held tightly by Knuckles with a pair of knucklaws inches from his face. "I mean, you've had three Tornadoes, the Cyclone walker mode, and now the Hurricane? What's next, the Dust Devil?" Tails frowned. "Stop making fun of my invention names! I never make fun of the fact that you snuggle your teddy bear at night!" he said angrily. Everyone gasped. "Oops, I forgot I wasn't supposed to say that." "Tails, you idiot!" yelled Sonic. "Now I have no reason not to tell them how you still play with dolls!" There was another gasp from everyone. Tails gaped at Sonic, shocked, then turned to Knuckles. "Knux, beat him up!" "With pleasure!" said Knuckles, ready to give Sonic a pounding. Sonic cringed, fearing the worst, when once again he was lucky and Shadow showed up. "Hi everyone! Did you all have luck with your excursions?" he asked. "Everyone but Eggman and Knuckles got stuff they wanted, brother." Said Scales. "That's cool. Hey, why is Knuckles holding Sonic like that?" asked Shadow. "Knuckles was about to pound Sonic because he embarrassed Tails and provoked Knuckles." Said Amy. "Knuckles is about to pound Sonic? Cool! Can I help?" Shadow asked eagerly. "You can have him when I'm done with him." Muttered Knuckles. "That's cool, I wouldn't mind watching him get beaten up." Said Shadow. "You couldn't beat me if your life depended on it, faker!" said Sonic. "Faker? I'M the faker? Ha! You're not good enough to be MY faker!" taunted Shadow. "I'll make you eat those words!" Sonic shot back, trying to pounce at the black hedgehog and forgetting he was still being held by Knuckles. "Does anyone mind if I beat Sonic up now?" asked Knuckles, getting frustrated. "No, go right ahead." Said everyone. Knuckles was about to begin the pounding when Amy interrupted. "Wait! I have something I need to give to Shadow!" said Amy. Knuckles groaned and waited. Sonic sighed in relief, starting to figure that the fortune was smiling on him at the moment. Amy handed the wrapped egg to Shadow. "Here you go, Shadow! I got you a Chao of your own." Shadow looked surprised and a bit elated as he tore off the wrapping and revealed the egg, black with red stripes. "Thanks, Amy! Hey, and you got one that matches with my color scheme. How considerate!" He stored it away in his dimension pocket. "How did you know I loved Chao?" "I just thought it might be something you would want." She said with a hint of a flirt. Before Shadow could respond, Knuckles gave an exasperated grunt, getting everyone's attention. "Ahem. If there are no further interruptions, may I please proceed to beat up Sonic?" Everyone nodded. "Thank you." Knuckles pulled back his fist. Sonic cringed when once again, fate intervened. "Hey Knuckles!" called a familiar female. Knuckles immediately dropped Sonic roughly to the ground and turned around, greeting the final member of their group as everyone groaned at the missed opportunity to see Sonic getting beaten up. "Hi Rouge!" The lovely white bat was carrying a huge sack of jewels over her shoulder. "Hi guys! What's going on? Are we all ready to leave?" she asked. "Yeah, pretty much. Wow, did you buy that many jewels? That's going to cost a lot of Nintendo dollars. Not that the company can't afford it, but you've probably made the jewelry companies quite a pretty penny." Said Knuckles. Rouge paused. "Er, bought, yes of course." She said quickly. Knuckles frowned. "Rouge, you didn't." Just then, the mall's P.A. came on. "Attention shoppers. Every jewelry store in the mall has been completely robbed of all the larger gemstones in stock. Be on the lookout for a white bat wearing a pink top and iron-tipped boots. If seen, please report the thief to the mall police. That will be all." The P.A. message ended. The shoppers milling about looked at Rouge, screamed, and ran away. Rouge smiled weakly as everyone glared at her. "What? I love jewels, and these will help us get what we need even if Scales doesn't win the full ten million. As I see it, we win either way." Shadow's ears pricked up. "I hear sirens! The mall cops are coming!" "Everybody, run for our van!" yelled Tails. They all started running for the exit. (Yes, even Eggman!) As he ran alongside Rouge, Sonic angrily said, "Dammit Rouge! Can't you just pass a gem without trying to steal it for once? You know, I'm starting to think you love jewels more than Knuckles!" Rouge stiffened. She threw her stolen gems to Knuckles. "Knuxie, could you please hold onto these for a moment? I have to take care of something." Knuckles got her meaning and nodded, grinning. Rouge smiled, turned to Sonic, and jumped onto him, beating him to a pulp. Within moments, Rouge left the blue hedgehog on the ground, moaning. Rouge walked over to Knuckles and got back the gems. "Thank you Knuckles. Think you can carry out Sonic? We don't want to leave anyone behind." She started running after the others. Knuckles looked at Sonic and grinned. "Come on buddy, let's go!" he said wickedly. Grabbing Sonic by the feet, he ran for the exit, dragging the hedgehog behind him, making sure his face was pulled over any object lying on the ground. When they got outside, Knuckles was extra sure Sonic felt the pain of being dragged down each step from the mall entrance, across the hot pavement, before finally being thrown headfirst into their waiting rental van. Knuckles jumped in after him and rolled the door shut. With everyone in the vehicle, they drove away for the Coliseum, leaving the pursuing mall police golf carts in the dust.
Well, what did you think of THAT, huh? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Please let me know! I'm desperate for your reviews and feedback, please tell me whether this is a good or a bad story! On a different note, we'll get back to the cool action in the next round! It won't be up right away, but you'll have it soon dear readers, I promise. Next time: Pi2 is distraught as another theft occurs inside of the Coliseum. Despite this, round 3 begins without a hitch in the match between Bowser and Majora. Majora is confident of victory. After all, he has left the last two Smashers he's fought in comas. But does Bowser have a plan up his sleeve? Find out on the next.Super Smash Bosses!
Scales stared around her in awe and wonderment at her surroundings. After learning she would go up against Heinrich in the next round, Shadow had conversed with the others and they had unanimously decided they would need to get Scales some help if she was to have a chance against the Xenomorph. So they had spirited her away to an alien environment, a place that she had never been to before, a land full of mystery and excitement. I am, of course, talking about the local Mega mall. "This is incredible." She said. She had never been in a place where so many people and other creatures were at the same time! Well, not counting the Coliseum. She was amazed by the neon lights, the numerous shops, the towering and labyrinthine levels of bridges, walkways, and places of business all around her. The place was laid out like a huge warehouse, sort of. There was the ground floor, and then there were huge pillars of shops rising from the ground, looking like skyscrapers. Escalators, elevators, and bridges linked all of the giant irregular pillars. "Isn't it though?" asked Amy cheerfully. "I love malls. There's always something so magical about the mall, something that keeps calling me back!" "Subliminal messages in the advertising?" Amy frowned up at the big lizard. "No, silly! It's the thrill of the hunt when finding a decent piece of clothing or worthwhile item, the action of combating a salesman to get the lowest price, the pure ecstasy of walking out of the shop with something that you see another woman buying for twice the cost. It is the joy that is shopping! You'll get used to it, now that you're around our size." "If you say so." Said Scales, apprehensively. She and Amy were walking together towards their individual destinations, having split up from the others soon after entering the mall. Close to the main entrance had been a towering black obelisk with elaborate carvings inscribed on it, which Scales had at first taken to be an object of religious worship due to the great number of people studying it reverently. She was half right, it was the mall directory. After finding the shops they were looking for, everyone had gone their separate ways. Knuckles had gone to the sports utility store to get some new gloves, Rouge had gone to see all the jewelry stores in the mall, Sonic had gone to the shoe store to find a new pair of trainers, Tails had gone to converse with fellow brainiacs and purchase games in n electronics store, Eggman had gone to Evil Maniacs R' Us to get the parts to complete his latest evil creation; the Egg Beater (Hahahahahahahaha!), and Shadow had gone to the indoor ice skating rink. Amy and Scales had gone together because their stores were in the same direction, sort of. Amy was heading for the biggest clothing store in the mall, Hiatus, and Scales was heading to a weapons shop to purchase upgrades. Amy suddenly noticed an elevator opening on their level. Several other people noticed it as well and started making a wild dash for it. "Scales, quick!" "Huh? What is it?" "We've got to make that elevator over there! Quick warp us there!" "Um, okay. Hold on tight. CHAOS CONTROL!" The two vanished in a flash of light, reappearing just in front of the open, empty elevator. They ran in. Amy quickly hit the close button. The doors started shutting, but several hands and a claw or two shot through the crack of the door, getting stuck as the doors tried to shut. Amy quickly pulled out her Piko Piko Hammer and whacked the hands viciously, causing them to pull back from the doors, allowing them to shut. Through the glass sides of the elevator, Scales could see people frantically pressing themselves against the glass, trying to break through. "Amy, what do we do?" asked Scales, starting to get worried. "Let's see, we're heading for floor.twenty!" Amy pressed the button. The elevator started moving up. The desperate people and monsters tried to cling to the sides of the elevator, but fell off as the thing went up. Amy sighed in relief. "Phew! That was a close one. Good thing your Chaos Control got us to the elevator in time." She frowned. "Speaking of which, why can't you just warp us straight to our prospective stores?" "I can only warp to a place I see or have seen before, looking at a place on a map doesn't count." She looked out the sides, staring at the clustered people who had fallen off. "What was that all about?" "In a mall this size, it's almost impossible to get where you're going by taking lots of escalators. Problem is, the number of elevators available is very small." "Well, why didn't the designers make it so there were more elevators?" "The mall needs to make profits, doesn't it? The longer a person has to stay here due to inadequate transportation, the less likely the chance that they'll get what they came for and will then have to either stay the night in one of the mall's expensive hotel rooms or come back another day. So when you see a form of getting where you're going, you grab it!" "Oh, I see." Said Scales. The elevator slowly went up the shaft. They watched in silence as the floors passed before them. "So Amy, what do you think of my brother?" "Shadow?" Amy paused, looking a bit conflicted. "I don't really know. The date we had last night was great, you know, even with that weird couple of pink balloon thinks that showed up everywhere we went to, eating all the food and some furniture." "So?" Scales pressed. "Do you like him, or do you not like him? And by that I mean whether or not you like him as more than a friend?" "Scales!" Amy said a bit angrily. "It was just one date, I can't make that sort of a decision now!" She stopped, thoughtful. "Can I?" "He really likes you a lot, you know. He's said so many times." "Really?" Amy asked, interested. "Yeah, I think it all started when you hugged him back on Prison Island." Scales said playfully. "Wha-I-hey! How did you know about that?" "He told me." "Well, that hug was an accident. I thought he was Sonic at the moment, I was just so happy to see him that I gave him a hug. Then I found out he wasn't Sonic, of course." Scales rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right." "What's that supposed to mean?!" "Come on Amy, I can believe the military mistook Shadow for Sonic, they are pretty stupid. But you're not. Besides, he has completely the wrong hair and color to look exactly like Sonic. So why did you hug him? Did you really think he was Sonic, or was there another reason?" Scales asked slyly. Amy sputtered for a moment. "What are you implying?! I had never seen Shadow before in my life! Why would I have any reason to hug him, other than mistaken identity?" "I don't know, but I think something was going on there. And what about on the ARK?" "What do you mean?" "You know, when you convinced him to go and beat me up? What was he talking about when he mentioned the promise he made to you?" asked Scales, a bit more serious. Amy scowled. "Look, I really don't know what that was about. I don't remember him making a promise to me, unless it was a silent promise. I don't know what he meant, and I don't know why he's even bothering with a girl like me." She said, sounding frustrated. "Yeah, I guess he doesn't have much of a chance with you, what with your infatuation with Sonic and all." Scales admitted. Amy sighed. "Sonic? Oh, don't talk to me about being infatuated with him." Scales blinked. "I don't understand." "I have recently taken most of my life into account, and you know what I found out? I've wasted most of it, chasing after that blue asshole. No matter what I've done to show him how much I care about him, he buzzes me off. Whenever he sees me, he usually runs away. He's always thinking of me as nothing more than a little girl. Even when I just want to have a normal conversation with him, he runs away. He can't see past how I was when he met me for the first time, when he rescued me from that ugly metal copy of himself. Whenever I get kidnapped (which has been way too much, I might add!) he always rescues me with a look of disgust on his face. He hates me. I know it." "But he didn't look so disgusted when he came to save you on the ARK." "How do you know how he looked then?" "Back when I was the big Biolizard, and waiting for somebody to reactivate the colony, I hooked myself to the station's security systems so I could see what was going on in every corridor and chamber. When he got Eggman's message about you, he had a look of actual concern on his face, right before running off to save you." Amy shook her head. "Do you want to know why he was concerned? The cannon countdown was getting lower. He thought that going to rescue me would be a huge waste of time that would prevent him from being the big hero and stopping the cannon from firing. If he had known what exactly he was supposed to do with the fake emerald, he would have let me die. I know it." "But what about the whole scene when he was going to be launched into space and told you to take care of yourself? If that wasn't concern for you, what is it?" Amy looked very unhappy at that. "You want to know what that meant? I'll tell you. After everything was over and both you AND Shadow were supposedly plummeting to your deaths in the atmosphere, I asked him if what he had said back on the colony meant he actually cared about me. And you know what he told me?" "No, what?" "He said that he hadn't meant anything. He said that he was just trying to go into the Afterlife with a clear record by being a little nice to me for once. Then he told me to get out of his apartment and his life." There was a long silence as they got closer and closer to their destination. "And you know what?" Amy said suddenly, startling Scales and sounding very bitter. "Even after that, I still kept stupidly chasing after him. I still thought I could make him like me. Of course, that all changed when we found out you two were still around. And then GUN started coming after all of us. And our current predicament began." She shook her head. "I was such a fool. And I'll have to keep playing the fool whenever the next Sonic Adventure comes out, because if I don't act like I did before, one of those director Pikachu will force me to. I just want my own choice of someone to love, okay? And I really, really don't want it to be Sonic." Scales wanted to say something, but wasn't sure how to put it delicately. So instead she asked, "When did you figure all of this out?" "Last night actually, right after my.date.with Shadow." she trailed off, suddenly realizing the implications. Scales smiled. "Well, maybe you've already chosen someone else to love." Said Scales wisely. Their conversation ended as the elevator stopped on the twentieth floor, their destination. They quickly ran out of the elevator, narrowly missing the throng of people rushing to get in. Amy looked around then turned to Scales. "My store is down that way," she said, pointing to a series of catwalks leading to another massive pillar. "This is where we must go our separate ways." "But I have no idea where I have to-" "Go down three shops, take a right, go across the catwalk, make a right and two lefts and you're there. You'll know the shop when you see it." Scales stared at Amy for a moment. "How did you remember all that?" "Hey, when you've spent as much time in malls as I have, it gets easy to remember where everything is, even in a giant place like this." She checked her watch. "Oh, I gotta get going! Remember, we all meet in front of the main directory in two hours, got it?" "Got it." Said Scales. She started to turn around to find the shop she was looking for, when Amy grabbed her arm. "What is it Amy?" Amy blushed a little, her fur turning pinker. "Well, I just wanted to thank you," "For what?" "For that talk in the elevator. You really helped me out there. I think I know what I have to do now. Tell me, what kind of present would your brother like?" Scales considered. "I'm not really sure. He's pretty non-materialistic. The only things he really cares about are us. His only possessions are his shoes, his gloves, and his emerald. Oh, and his upgrades, not that those count." Amy thought for a moment. "Maybe I could find something for him anyway. Oh! Would you like me to get you anything?" "No, I don't need any clothes." "Okay then. See you later, Scales!" Waving goodbye, Amy walked over to the catwalks, vanishing into the hustling throng of assorted video game creatures. Scales looked after her for a moment, then left. Scales followed Amy's directions exactly. At one point, she got sidetracked for a few minutes by the sight of an incredibly handsome male raptor, but she got back on course. She was soon in front of a store with the sign, "Big Gun Weapons Stockpile" above the entrance. Scales went in the door. The store inside was bigger than it had looked from the outside. There were racks and shelves filled with all kinds of weapons, upgrades, power-ups and ammunition from every video game ever played on a Nintendo console. The manager and only employee, a Toad wearing combat fatigues, looked up from his spot behind the counter at the sound of the bell ringing over the door. "Ah, another customer here to purchase one of my little babies! What can I do for you, miss?" Scales started to say something, but the shopkeeper stopped her. "Wait a minute, I know you! You're that lizard who's competing in the tournament, Scales wasn't it?" "Yes, that's me. Whoa re you?" "I am Sgt. Calami T., proud manager of this fine establishment. What are you doing in my humble silo for weapons of mass destruction?" "Well, I'm a little worried about my next match. I've heard that I am to be fighting Heinrich the Xenomorph." The cute little mushroom-man's face scrunched up in disgust. "Ah, Xenomorphs, how I hate those buggers! Never good enough to be a customer, what with their natural born weapons and such. They never need an upgrade, seeing as how they are always able to adapt to their environment! I'll give you whatever you need ma'am, as long as it's approved by your game master." "Actually, I did ask him about upgrades. He gave me your shop's name and he said I could get a few things to help me in the fight, as long as I got only three things. He told me the rules stated I could have one speed upgrade, one defense upgrade, and one power upgrade. And he said no guns. Do you have anything that can help me?" "I believe I do. Do you have any form of paying for it?" Scales paused; suddenly realizing she had no money. "Well." Calami T. laughed. "Hahahaha! Just joking, kid! Don't worry, in these cases the bill goes to the Corporation." Scales frowned. "I didn't really think it was funny. And I'm not a kid, I'm sixty six years old." Calami T. stopped grinning. "Sorry, sorry, let's be serious now, okay? I will need to make a few measurements first, so if you'll just come behind the counter we can get you started." Scales came behind the counter. After weighing her on a hidden pad and measuring her height, length, and width, he told her to wait for a few minutes while he headed into the back room. While he was gone, Scales examined the many objects surrounding her. Many of them looked quite dangerous. As she was about to pick up a big, powerful gun, Calami T. came out of the back room with three objects. He laid them out on the counter as Scales came over. "Well miss Scales, these three items are the answers to all your problems. I got your speed, defense, and power upgrades right here." "What are they?" Calami T. held up two anklets. They were the same size as the ones Scales was already wearing, but they had blinking lights around the sides. Ringing the bottom and top of either anklet were several small holes. "These are the Jet Anklets. They-" "Hey wait, Tails already has a pair of those!" pointed out Scales. "Your vulpine friend has an older model, I believe. These are top of the line!" "What do they do?" Calami T. pointed to the holes on the underside of the anklets. "The holes on the bottom of the anklets are little rocket jets. They gain power by air sucked in through the intakes on top of the anklets. The rockets boost outwards, leaving your foot intact from any burns. The rockets increase your speed and allow you to perform a triple jump, essentially two normal jumps followed by a powerful rocket boost. You can also use them to make your kicks more powerful, burning your opponent when you strike." "Cool!" Scales took off her current anklets, stored them away in the dimensional pocket that almost all video and cartoon characters have to store their stuff in, and put on the Jet Anklets. "What's next?" Calami T. held up a large dome made of some translucent green material. The edges had some kind of metal grips attached to them. "This is the Protection Shell. Seeing as how your life support system might be a weak spot for the wrath of the alien, you'll need a way of keeping it from harm. The shell fits over your life support system, forming a second barrier for the delicate mechanisms that keep you alive, essentially doubling your HP meter, if you had one that is." "Very nice." Scales took the shell and placed it over the current life support dome. The metal grips latched onto her skin, making it a permanent part of her. "And what does the last one do?" Calami T. picked up one of the two weapons lying on the counter. It was a gauntlet of sorts, with three long and very sharp talons instead of fingers. The other weapon was an identical gauntlet. The one Calami T. was holding had the word "Slasher" written on the side, while the other had "Ripper" written on it. "These are the Blood Talons. They make for a powerful weapon, fitting over your hand like a glove! With these things, you can make your fist claws more dangerous than your kicks! The talons can slash and rip through most any kind of flesh or armor. And when you don't want to use them, they fold up into bracelets." Scales frowned. "Why are they called the Blood Talons?" Calami T. looked a little edgy. "Well, to tell the truth, they're sort of enchanted." "How so?" "The Blood Talons absorb blood, hence their name. When you tear into the skin of an opponent, the gauntlet you use absorbs any blood it touches and become stronger. Nasty, but effective. I'm sorry, but these are the best things I could come up with for you, so you can take it or leave it." Scales shrugged. "I guess I'll take it, if there's no other option." She pulled off her bracelets, stowed them away, then donned the Talons. For a moment she felt a great power and a great thirst emanating from the gauntlets, but the feeling ended when they folded up, shrinking into bracelets. "I thank you for these items. I hope they help me in the coming battle." Calami T. shrugged. "No skin off my nonexistent nose, ma'am. I'll get paid for them whether you win or lose. I just want you to know that I'll be rooting for you."
Some time later, Scales made it back to the obelisk at the front. She wanted patiently, knowing sooner or later they would start showing up. Soon enough, Sonic showed up, speeding past everyone else in the area and startling many. He was wearing new shoes, which looked pretty much like the last ones he had, but they were flashier and had his face all over them. "Hey Scales, did you get what you needed?" he asked when he saw her. Scales wasn't feeling too happy with Sonic after what she had heard from Amy, but figured she would be polite. "Yeah, I'm stronger in every department now. See?" Scales showed off her new items, even going as far as to activate the Talons. The hedgehog's eyes bulged at the last ones. "Whoa! Pretty sharp gloves you've got there. Put em' away before you poke somebody's eye out!" Scales shrugged and retracted the Talons. "Hey, your upgrades are pretty cool, but not as nice as mine." Scales bristled slightly. "Really? I don't quite see what's so cool about your own upgrades. You would think the designers would have thought of a better item than the Magic Glove, and put it somewhere that doesn't overlap another item, the Bounce Bracelet in particular. (This is true. In SA2, the Magic Glove item covers up the Bounce Bracelet item on his wrist.) Speaking of which, the Bounce Bracelet itself is kind of a weird item. Why would they give you a bracelet just so you can bounce? And as for the Glove itself, I don't see them as much good if you can only use them at a risk of getting hit." Sonic frowned. "Oh yeah? Well.you fight like a cow!' Scales stared at him. "What?" "Sorry, couldn't think of a good retort. Anyway, I guess your upgrades are pretty nice. I hope they let you beat Heinrich and whoever you fight in the last round." "Yeah, we need the money." "Totally. Think of all the chili dogs I could buy with ten million dollars!" As Scales frowned at him, Sonic suddenly noticed something that made his face turn pale. "Oh no! It's Amy! And she looks like she's got a present of some sort! Quick, hide me!" Scales chuckled. "Sonic, there's nothing to worry about. Amy told me she doesn't even like you anymore." Sonic gaped. "That's ridiculous!" "Why?" "What girl could possibly resist these looks?" said Sonic posing vainly. Scales eyed him. "Rouge, Tikal and myself, for starters." Sonic shrugged. "Yeah, well Rouge is probably nuts from hanging upside down all the time, which would explain why she's fallen for Knuckles. I'm sure Tikal secretly likes me, but I won't have anything to do with dead chicks. Chaos can have her. As for you, well, I can't really fault you for not being attracted to me. After all, you are a weird genetic/cybernetic experiment gone awry. I'm sure you'd only like freaks like yourself." As you would expect, Scales was extremely angry by these comments. Just as she was about to drop kick the arrogant little cobalt rodent, Amy intervened. "Hi Scales! Hi Sonic!" she said cheerfully. Sonic yelped and backed away, ready to run or Chaos Control if she got dangerous. Amy was carrying a couple of shopping bags and a wrapped, ovular object. "Where's Shadow? I've got a present for him." Sonic stopped, not ready to run away but he had an odd look on his face that Scales could not interpret. Relief? Anger? Jealousy? "What did you get for him, Amy?" asked Scales. "Well, when you said he's non-materialistic, I thought he might enjoy something alive. So I got him a Chao egg." Scales was surprised. "Hey, good choice Amy. That reminds me of the old days, before GUN came and ruined everyone's lives. Back on the ARK we had a Chao Garden of our own. Shadow, Maria and I loved playing with the little guys." Sonic ended up ruining the memory. "Hey, how could you play with the Chao? You were a giant hideous monster!" Scales frowned. "I wasn't always that big, you know. Back in my younger years, I was a bit different in size. After Dr. Gerald locked me away in the core of the ARK, I started to change into what I was until a few days ago." "How did you change? You got fatter?" guessed Sonic. Scales' eye twitched. "No, the residual Chaos energy in the core mixed with the Chaos Emerald in my life support, resulting in a mutation of my DNA and internal and external biomachinery. As a result I became big, ugly, and partially deformed." "So you got fatter." Said Sonic. Scales was about to hit Sonic with a Rocket Kick when thankfully, Dr. Robotnik/Eggman showed up. He looked quite grouchy. "Oh, hi Eggman." Said Amy flatly. "Hey Eggman, where's the pieces for this Egg Beater of yours? I can't wait to bust it up like I always do." Said Sonic. The rotund scientist scowled. "I do not have the pieces for the new Egg Beater. On the way to Evil Maniac's R' Us, I happened to pass through the food court. I was a bit peckish, so I stopped for a quick bite. Next thing I knew, my time was up and I had to come back and meet up with you filthy mammals." "Hey!" protested Scales. "Oh, sorry, and one slimy reptile." "That's better." "So Eggman, just how much did you eat?" asked Sonic. Eggman scratched his head. "I can't quite recall. All I know is I ended up having to check the time because the food court workers were pleading with me to go away. The workers of Yoshi's Cookies and Eggs went on strike for some reason, something about being forced to give dead birth too many times. I really don't know." Sonic laughed. "Well, looks like you've caused another public disturbance just by being your fat, egg headed self, Doctor!" Eggman growled. "Would you like me to sit on you, hedgehog?" he asked, advancing on Sonic. The Blue Blur, gasped, taking the threat seriously. "N-no, please! Anything but that!" Eggman grinned. "You know, I think I will!" He was about to jump at Sonic when fortunately enough, Knuckles arrived. "Hey guys, look what I got!" said the red echidna. The others looked over him up and down. He didn't seem to be carrying any bags at all. What had he gotten? "Uh, what did you get Knuckles?" asked Amy. Knuckles proudly waved his hands. "Look, I've got new gloves!" His gloves looked exactly like his old ones. "Knuckles, your new gloves look exactly like your old gloves." Said Scales. "Did my old gloves have extensions for my knucklaws?" he said. "Actually, they did." Said Sonic. Knuckles blinked, then frowned. "Hey, they did! Come to think of it, they do look a lot like my old gloves." "Check the brand tab, echidna, and you'll see something interesting." Said Eggman, pointing to a tab of paper protruding from inside the glove. Frowning, Knuckles turned his hand around to see the tab. His name was written on it in marker, to indicate it was his. Knuckles' blood boiled. "I don't believe this! Those bastards sold me back my own gloves!" he said angrily. Sonic grinned. "Like I always say Knux, you're too darn gullible!" Knuckles growled. "Ooh, I have half a mind to go back to that store and pulverize those salesmen!" "Yeah, you've got half a mind, period!" joked Sonic. Knuckles glared at him. "On second thought, maybe I'll pulverize you!" he shouted, grabbing Sonic by the neck and preparing to slam a clawed fist into the hedgehog's face. Fortunately for Sonic, Tails showed up, carrying a bag full of technical stuff. "Hi guys! Hi Sonic! Knuckles, why are you about to punch Sonic's face in?" asked the young fox. "He provoked me!" said Knuckles. "Oh, okay. I had a lot of fun conversing with aspiring young geniuses like myself, I made a few buddies, and I've got enough software to begin engineering the OS for my next creation, the Hurricane!" said the fox. "What will it do?" asked Amy. "When it's completed, it will be able to change between normal biplane, X- wing style plane, Cyclone Walker, and submarine. It'll be my greatest invention yet, aside from the fake Chaos Emerald of course." He said. "Why not add spaceship into the mix?" suggested Eggman. Tails blinked. "Huh, hadn't thought of that. Thanks Eggman!" "Your welcome Tails. Hey wait a minute, I just gave one of my greatest rivals an idea that will surely help him defeat me at a later date. D'oh!" said the madman. "Hey Tails, why do you keep naming your creations after climactic disturbances?" asked Sonic, feeling he had to say something despite being held tightly by Knuckles with a pair of knucklaws inches from his face. "I mean, you've had three Tornadoes, the Cyclone walker mode, and now the Hurricane? What's next, the Dust Devil?" Tails frowned. "Stop making fun of my invention names! I never make fun of the fact that you snuggle your teddy bear at night!" he said angrily. Everyone gasped. "Oops, I forgot I wasn't supposed to say that." "Tails, you idiot!" yelled Sonic. "Now I have no reason not to tell them how you still play with dolls!" There was another gasp from everyone. Tails gaped at Sonic, shocked, then turned to Knuckles. "Knux, beat him up!" "With pleasure!" said Knuckles, ready to give Sonic a pounding. Sonic cringed, fearing the worst, when once again he was lucky and Shadow showed up. "Hi everyone! Did you all have luck with your excursions?" he asked. "Everyone but Eggman and Knuckles got stuff they wanted, brother." Said Scales. "That's cool. Hey, why is Knuckles holding Sonic like that?" asked Shadow. "Knuckles was about to pound Sonic because he embarrassed Tails and provoked Knuckles." Said Amy. "Knuckles is about to pound Sonic? Cool! Can I help?" Shadow asked eagerly. "You can have him when I'm done with him." Muttered Knuckles. "That's cool, I wouldn't mind watching him get beaten up." Said Shadow. "You couldn't beat me if your life depended on it, faker!" said Sonic. "Faker? I'M the faker? Ha! You're not good enough to be MY faker!" taunted Shadow. "I'll make you eat those words!" Sonic shot back, trying to pounce at the black hedgehog and forgetting he was still being held by Knuckles. "Does anyone mind if I beat Sonic up now?" asked Knuckles, getting frustrated. "No, go right ahead." Said everyone. Knuckles was about to begin the pounding when Amy interrupted. "Wait! I have something I need to give to Shadow!" said Amy. Knuckles groaned and waited. Sonic sighed in relief, starting to figure that the fortune was smiling on him at the moment. Amy handed the wrapped egg to Shadow. "Here you go, Shadow! I got you a Chao of your own." Shadow looked surprised and a bit elated as he tore off the wrapping and revealed the egg, black with red stripes. "Thanks, Amy! Hey, and you got one that matches with my color scheme. How considerate!" He stored it away in his dimension pocket. "How did you know I loved Chao?" "I just thought it might be something you would want." She said with a hint of a flirt. Before Shadow could respond, Knuckles gave an exasperated grunt, getting everyone's attention. "Ahem. If there are no further interruptions, may I please proceed to beat up Sonic?" Everyone nodded. "Thank you." Knuckles pulled back his fist. Sonic cringed when once again, fate intervened. "Hey Knuckles!" called a familiar female. Knuckles immediately dropped Sonic roughly to the ground and turned around, greeting the final member of their group as everyone groaned at the missed opportunity to see Sonic getting beaten up. "Hi Rouge!" The lovely white bat was carrying a huge sack of jewels over her shoulder. "Hi guys! What's going on? Are we all ready to leave?" she asked. "Yeah, pretty much. Wow, did you buy that many jewels? That's going to cost a lot of Nintendo dollars. Not that the company can't afford it, but you've probably made the jewelry companies quite a pretty penny." Said Knuckles. Rouge paused. "Er, bought, yes of course." She said quickly. Knuckles frowned. "Rouge, you didn't." Just then, the mall's P.A. came on. "Attention shoppers. Every jewelry store in the mall has been completely robbed of all the larger gemstones in stock. Be on the lookout for a white bat wearing a pink top and iron-tipped boots. If seen, please report the thief to the mall police. That will be all." The P.A. message ended. The shoppers milling about looked at Rouge, screamed, and ran away. Rouge smiled weakly as everyone glared at her. "What? I love jewels, and these will help us get what we need even if Scales doesn't win the full ten million. As I see it, we win either way." Shadow's ears pricked up. "I hear sirens! The mall cops are coming!" "Everybody, run for our van!" yelled Tails. They all started running for the exit. (Yes, even Eggman!) As he ran alongside Rouge, Sonic angrily said, "Dammit Rouge! Can't you just pass a gem without trying to steal it for once? You know, I'm starting to think you love jewels more than Knuckles!" Rouge stiffened. She threw her stolen gems to Knuckles. "Knuxie, could you please hold onto these for a moment? I have to take care of something." Knuckles got her meaning and nodded, grinning. Rouge smiled, turned to Sonic, and jumped onto him, beating him to a pulp. Within moments, Rouge left the blue hedgehog on the ground, moaning. Rouge walked over to Knuckles and got back the gems. "Thank you Knuckles. Think you can carry out Sonic? We don't want to leave anyone behind." She started running after the others. Knuckles looked at Sonic and grinned. "Come on buddy, let's go!" he said wickedly. Grabbing Sonic by the feet, he ran for the exit, dragging the hedgehog behind him, making sure his face was pulled over any object lying on the ground. When they got outside, Knuckles was extra sure Sonic felt the pain of being dragged down each step from the mall entrance, across the hot pavement, before finally being thrown headfirst into their waiting rental van. Knuckles jumped in after him and rolled the door shut. With everyone in the vehicle, they drove away for the Coliseum, leaving the pursuing mall police golf carts in the dust.
Well, what did you think of THAT, huh? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Please let me know! I'm desperate for your reviews and feedback, please tell me whether this is a good or a bad story! On a different note, we'll get back to the cool action in the next round! It won't be up right away, but you'll have it soon dear readers, I promise. Next time: Pi2 is distraught as another theft occurs inside of the Coliseum. Despite this, round 3 begins without a hitch in the match between Bowser and Majora. Majora is confident of victory. After all, he has left the last two Smashers he's fought in comas. But does Bowser have a plan up his sleeve? Find out on the next.Super Smash Bosses!