It's finally here. That's right; the final chapter of "Knuckles' ARK" is done. I was hoping to have it done by my 17th birthday (which was May 20th) but school got in the way. Oops. I wanted to thank everyone for the nice reviews and everyone who made guesses for the contest. Especially all of you who've stuck with this story though the plot was lacking and the character representation definitely could've been better. On a sad note, only one of the winners responded so we only have one cameo. I'll fill the spot with something interesting, don't worry. The winner'll be revealed at the end, so no looking ahead, okay? Once again, thanks for reading, and enjoy the conclusion!
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:16 a.m.—Shadow
It's been released. I was too late. Again. Always too late. Too late to save Maria. Too late to save the professor. Too late to save the planet. Too late to save Rouge. Too late to save myself.
We're going to burn.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:16 a.m.—Fly on the Wall
It was dark. Too dark to see. Poor Amy Rose found that out the hard way as she walked back into the generator room with a tray of drinks. Well, just ice water, really, but what did it matter? She was helping. She was being useful. She was with others.
Well, she had been with others… Where was everybody? What happened to the lights? Her thought process was interrupted as she tripped on a loose piece of the generator and fell over in the dark. The glasses shattered as they fell off of the tray and collided with the hard floor, much like the bones in Amy's left arm as they collided with the hard machine parts.
She rolled on her side in the scattered broken glass, staring into the darkness. Her right arm clutched at the left as she lay, unmoving, on the cold floor. It was too dark to see the tears on her face, and there wasn't anyone around to see them, anyway.
It felt like hours before anyone found her. She was at first aware of the sound of footsteps. She heard them approaching her before she noticed that the lights had been turned on. Amy turned her head, looking to her rescuer. She opened her mouth to thank him, but stopped abruptly.
Her scream rang through the corridors.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:16 a.m.—Fly on the Wall
Sonic turned around as Rouge screamed, only to receive a hard kick to the face. He flew back, crashing into the wall with a painful thud. Rouge leapt into the air as their attacker rushed at her, missing the bat by inches. He skidded to a halt.
"It's- it's you!" Sonic gasped, climbing his feet. Rouge flapped her way over to Sonic and landed quietly beside him. The hedgehog spat. "How did you get up here?"
Metal Sonic stared silently back at them.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:16 a.m.—Knuckles
Where the hell did Tails go? He promised to meet me ten minutes ago! Was it a mistake telling him I didn't have the Master Emerald?
The echidna shook his head irritably. Where was everyone? The colony may be huge, but with everyone staying on this one level, it shouldn't be so hard to find them. What if Tails got caught up fixing the generator and couldn't come meet me? But that would mean that Eggman's there, too. And possibly Shadow… The two people Knuckles really didn't want to see. He shook his head again. Staying in this abandoned corridor wouldn't do him or anyone else any good. If Tails was right, Sonic would put his plan into effect very soon. He had to be there to stop his longtime rival.
The echidna arrived at the generator room a few moments later, approaching the door cautiously. He listened at it first, surprised when he didn't hear anything. He slowly opened the door.
"Amy? Is that you?" he called to the figure huddled amongst the machines. He ran his hand along the walls until he found a light switch.
He walked toward the girl silently, noticing the odd position of her arm as he drew closer. Her head seemed to perk up as he came up behind her, and she craned her neck as best she could without moving her body. She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it when she saw him.
He ducked and covered his ears as she screamed, and the pipe aimed for his head whistled through empty air. Knuckles turned around.
"Tails?!"
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:16 a.m.—Fly on the Wall
Eggman paced around the makeshift workshop. Tails still hadn't returned, and he had no way of knowing where Metal Sonic was.
"I told myself I should've planted tracking devices on everyone…" he muttered into his red moustache as he stomped particularly hard on the cold, steel floor. "One cannot pull off a scheme of this nature without holding all the cards. All I have is the element of surprise…" The egg-shaped man sat heavily in a chair in the small room. He eyed the new space mech he and Tails had constructed to help carry out their plot. Well, his plot; Tails had just helped. The young were so easy to manipulate. The fox may be a genius, but there's a difference between 'intelligent' and 'smart'.
Eggman worriedly scratched the back of his head; things weren't going well. Knuckles' current location was unknown. With any luck, Metal would have already found and dealt with the bat, Sonic would be wandering the halls, completely oblivious to what was going on. Tails should be on his way to get Amy and bring her back here. That only left…
"Dammit. Shadow, where are you?"
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:17 a.m.—Rouge
Sonic bent his knees beside her; apparently getting ready to move if necessary. Rouge readied her wings once more. She spoke to the blue hedgehog.
"You have to go find Knuckles and Amy," she said softly. Sonic looked at her as if she were crazy.
"What?" he asked, his expression the definition of incredulous. "You can't take on Metal Sonic!"
"I know," she nodded, "but I can't outrun him, either. If he managed to get past y-" The robot struck without warning, diving at the bat who was forced to jump out of the way mid-sentence. Sonic maneuvered his way behind his robotic twin and slammed his elbow right above its jetpack. The momentum from his attack and the blow from Sonic sent the mechanical hedgehog into the wall, literally. Sonic and Rouge made their way to the other side of the room as Metal struggled to free his head from the wall.
"That dent on his head… did you do that?" the hedgehog asked. Rouge winked.
"Maybe." Sonic shook his head.
"Okay. I can see your point about me going, but… why Amy and Knuckles?"
"They're the only other ones we can trust," the bat answered solemnly.
"What about Tails?"
"…I'm sorry."
"You mean… NO! I've known Tails since he was just a kid. He'd never-"
"Get going, Sonic! I can take care of things here." Rouge shoved him. "Avoid everyone except Amy and Knuckles. Find them, and take them outside to the storage meteor. I'll meet you there later after I shake the tin can." Metal Sonic was almost free.
"But what about-" Sonic was cut off again as Rouge kissed him full on the mouth.
"Give that to Knuckles for me." Her grin faded as she turned back to the struggling robot. Sonic blushed as he turned toward the door.
"…I think he'd be happier to get that in person!" He ran to the door. Rouge smirked, but snapped abruptly to attention. Metal Sonic was free.
Sonic paused as his robotic self lunged again toward the bat. She leapt into the air at the last moment and kicked the robot in the head with her heavy boots, dropping it to the floor. The blue hedgehog turned and disappeared out the door.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:25 a.m.—Fly on the Wall
Shadow stared out the window in the control room, listening absent-mindedly to the sounds of the insane Omochao (if such a thing were really possible) as it rammed against its glass prison. Those sounds were so familiar…
"Maria…" he muttered softly as he looked at the stars. He should have acted faster. Destroying the generator earlier would've saved so much suffering. It was too late now. Everyone was going to die up here. He would see to that personally.
It was too bad, really. He'd actually started to like that Sonic. Rouge wasn't so bad, and Amy was a sweet enough girl. Tails… well, he hadn't gotten to know Tails at the best time, and there was something about Knuckles that he just didn't like. But none of that mattered.
Shadow closed his eyes, waiting for his memories to take him away, but none came.
He opened his eyes again and once more stared out at the stars. What was wrong with him? He always used to do this; sit and remember the times when he was happy. Why couldn't he now?
The door slammed open behind him and he heard the voice of Tails.
"Shadow, come help me! I can't carry her by myself." In the arms of the young fox was the still body of Amy Rose.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6: 37 a.m.—Eggman
The door opened with a bang, causing the mad doctor inside to leap out of his chair with a shout. Metal Sonic stood at attention, holding the comatose body of Rouge the Bat in his polished arms. The robot was looking worse for the wear; dents and scratches covered his cobalt body, especially his head and chest. The bat must have put up quite a fight.
"Good job, Metal Sonic. Bring her over here, why don't you?" The Doctor grinned evilly as his mechanical servant set the woman in the chair Eggman had been occupying moments earlier.
The man inspected her closely. No cuts or scratches or other outward signs of injury. He turned to Metal, confused. "What did you do to her?" Metal Sonic tilted her head forward and pantomimed a blow to the base of her skull. The Doctor chuckled. "Couldn't you have tried to tear up her suit a little more? She's still decent." When the robot's hands moved toward the top of her suit, Eggman chuckled again. "I was joking, Metal. You did fine. I'm glad you didn't ruin it. I put far too much work into that outfit."
As Eggman checked the bat's pulse the door opened again, this time by the hands of Miles Prower. The boy glanced at Metal and Rouge.
"Is she dead?" he asked with an air of nonchalance that was somewhat disturbing to hear coming from a child. Eggman shook his head.
"No, just unconscious. It's a good thing, too. We can use her to our advantage. One damsel in distress is enough of a stressor, but two? Sonic'll crack under the pressure and we'll both be avenged." Tails smiled widely at the old man, and looked at the bat again.
Nobody heard the faint footsteps rushing down the hall.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 6:51 a.m.—Fly on the Wall
Sonic ran down the halls, eyes and ears open for any sounds or movement. You shouldn't have left her back there with that thing... he thought to himself. You know that she doesn't stand a chance against Metal Sonic. She's tough, but she won't be able to keep ahead of him for long…
"But she told me to go…" he murmured to himself, voice lost in rush of air against his face as he continued his dash down the hallways. As he turned a corner, a sudden obstacle caused him to stop dead in his tracks.
"Gun robots!" he gasped, recovering from his momentary shock and sidestepping the outdated machine's clumsy attack. "I thought we destroyed all of those!" As Sonic attacked, his ears picked up another sound. Footsteps!
A figure came around the corner just as the wrecked bot fell to the floor. Sonic fell into a ready stance as it came closer.
"Sonic!" The hedgehog blinked as the other came into the light.
"Knuckles, where have you been?" the blue hedgehog demanded, casting off the warriors stance like a well worn suit. "I've been looking for you everywhere!"
"Hiding from you guys, of course! I don't do well in enclosed spaces, remember?" the echidna shot back, not dropping his guard any. Sonic rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah, sorry about that. I shoulda listened to Rouge."
"Speaking of Rouge, we have to go!"
"What?" Sonic demanded, "Did you see her?"
"Unfortunately. Eggman has her." Knuckles said, face blank. The shorter creature smashed his gloved hand into his fist.
"Dammit! I knew I shouldn't have left her alone back there! Well, let's go, Knuckles. With the two of us, it shouldn't be to hard to rescue one bat from one old man and a reanimated tuna can." As Sonic began to walk away, Knuckles put a hand out and caught him by the shoulder.
"I wasn't finished," he said, sounding sick. "Eggman doesn't just have Rouge. He has Amy too."
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 7:00 a.m.—Amy
The pink hedgehog opened her eyes gradually to a feeling of unbelievable pain in her left arm. She tried to look at it, but that proved more difficult than it sounded; probably because her head was currently strapped to something cold and hard. She winced as lights came on.
"You awake, Rose?" a voice asked. Who was it? They sounded familiar. Amy tried to speak, but could only croak. "Hey, metal head," the voice spoke again, "care to get the girl a drink? Or is that too complicated for your outdated processors?" …Rouge? Was that Rouge she heard? And who was she talking to? Amy blinked her eyes and tried to focus on the blue shape in the middle of the room. Who is that? Is it Sonic? 'Metal head'…oh no!
"Stay away from me!" Amy screamed, twisting against whatever was holding her down. Metal Sonic stayed where he was, not making the slightest movement. Amy didn't notice this, however. She continued to shriek and twist, the pain in her broken arm increasing with every hysterical lurch of her small body.
"Shut up." A gloved hand slapped her face just hard enough to get her attention. Amy stared, shocked, at Shadow the Hedgehog as he held a glass of water up to her face. Across the room, Metal Sonic's red eyes narrowed.
"Shadow, so nice to see you. I knew you were in on this."
"Be quiet, thief. You may have known everything, but you never had a chance of stopping us." Amy came back to reality.
"Us?" she asked, "What's going on? Where's Sonic?" Shadow smiled.
"He'll be arriving any minute now." His smile fell as Rouge clucked her tongue.
"Really, Shadow. I expected better from you. I can believe Tails getting roped into this by the Doctor, but you? Weren't you smarter than that?" The bat laughed. "Some ultimate life form you are." Shadow crossed to the bat, who was just outside of Amy's line of vision.
"I wouldn't be laughing at me, thief. I'm not the one tied up," he sneered. Rouge's melodious laugh sounded again.
"God, Shadow, this doesn't seem like you at all. You seemed almost reformed after the defeat of the Biolizard." The mention of this event seemed to shock Shadow, as he didn't reply. "Why the change in heart? Don't you remember how we all worked together to defeat the prototype and save the earth? Don't you remember the peace you felt when you kept your promise to Ma-"
"Don't you dare say her name!"
"-ria? Did you hurt your head in that fall? Or does everything we all went through mean nothing to you?"
"…I-" The door opened.
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 7:03 am—Central Control Room; Rouge
"Rouge, quit making trouble or we may decide that one hostage is enough." Dr. Eggman's voice rang through the control room. Shadow paused in midspeech and went stock still. "Shadow, Tails, is everything ready? They'll be coming soon, I should think."
"Affirmative, Doctor," Tails' young voice sounded from the inside of a mechanized suit the size of a human child that Rouge hadn't noticed a moment before. "Everything's ready on my end." Eggman grinned at the boy and turned his attention to the black hedgehog.
"And you, Shadow? Are you set?" Shadow managed to close his gaping mouth and nodded at the old man. "Excellent. Now all we have to do is wait!" Eggman clapped his hands together and danced excitedly from foot to foot. He was so caught up that he didn't notice as Shadow approached him from behind. "Just think, after all these years! Sonic the Hedgehog will be out of my hair for good!"
"What hair?" a voice sounded from the back of the room. Everyone sans Rouge and Amy turned their heads in the direction it had come from. "Don't you think you're giving yourself a little too much credit, Egghead?"
"Sonic!" Amy Rose cried, knowing who it was without having to see, "Hurry! Cut us loose!" The girl began to thrash wildly in her bonds. As Eggman and Sonic continued to banter back and forth, Rouge's sensitive ears picked up on a dejected sounding whisper.
"No… he wasn't supposed to get here yet! Ruined… all ruined…" She gasped as she saw what Shadow held in his hands.
—Knuckles
"Ah, good to see you again, Sonic," Eggman grinned. "So glad you were able to find us. We were about to start the party without you." The doctor gestured to the girls secured to the metal support beams behind him. Sonic glanced at them before returning his attention to the old man. Good… just keep his attention off of me…
"I'm glad I made it, then. What kind of party is this, anyway? Is it someone's birthday?" the hedgehog asked snidely as Knuckles crept silently forward toward the beams that Amy and Rouge were currently tied to.
"Close, my old friend," Eggman said, stepping forward. "This is your going away party, marking today as the first day of the rest of my life. I guess you could consider this my birthday party." Sonic grinned fiercely.
"Sorry, Egghead. It seems I don't have a gift for you. Will this do?" With that, Sonic leapt toward the old man, a kicked aimed at his head.
Knuckles stopped in his tracks as he saw two metallic blurs rush at the hedgehog from both sides. Sonic was sent flying backwards with a yelp as Metal Sonic and Tails, in his mech, struck at once. The hedgehog bounced off the wall and lay still on the floor. The red echidna turned his attention once more to his target.
"NO!"
—Eggman
The doctor watched, feeling oddly satisfied, as his creations rushed the fallen hedgehog. The only things ruining the moment were the murderous shrieks Amy was emitting. He would put up with it, though. After all, he wouldn't want to ruin the mood.
"-sorry it had to be like this, Rouge," he heard Shadow say behind him, "…tried to get us out of this place… only ever brought death." Eggman turned to see the black hedgehog forcing the muzzle of a large gun against the suspended bat's heart. Wait a second, that wasn't just any gun! That was his Eggblaster!
"Shadow, stop it! What are you doing? That's not part of the plan!" he said, waving his arms vigorously. The hedgehog didn't even glance at him, so intent on his conversation with the wide-eyed bat.
"I'll get us all out of here, one way or another… it was nice knowing you." He smiled, kissed her hand, and leveled the weapon at her chest. His face… his face was the very picture of serenity. "Goodbye, Rouge."
"NO!" Before Shadow could react, a red blur shot from the shadows behind the pillars, striking the black hedgehog full in the face. Eggman stared, dumbfounded, at the form of Knuckles the Echidna, bloodied fist outstretched, standing over the prone body of Shadow.
"…well this wasn't part of the plan…" he muttered.
—Sonic
"…Hot damn! What hit me?" The blue hedgehog wondered aloud as he sat up and shook his head. Standing in front of the doctor, their battle-ready bodies glistening, were Metal Sonic and… "Tails?"
Sonic didn't have any time to wonder at the situation as the two were currently rushing at him. He managed to get to his feet and jump out of the way of the two steel-covered fists as the crashed into the wall behind him, denting it noticeably. He winced. "Hey, guys! Let's take it easy, okay? That was almost my head there!" Metal Sonic immediately rushed at him as Tails stalled for a moment. Moving faster than thought, his organic counterpart dropped onto his back and caught the robot with his feet. Using Metal's own momentum, he flipped the bot over his head and onto the floor some distance away. Sonic rolled just in time to avoid the heavy foot of Tails' mech as it crashed down on the spot he'd just been occupying.
"Hold still!" the boy shouted, frustrated at the slowness of his and Eggman's collaborative project. "How'm I supposed to kill you if you keep dodging?" Sonic blinked and dodged another blow from the heavy-fisted contraption.
"Whoa whoa whoa! Are you serious, little buddy?" he asked, looking incredulous. "You used to laugh when people said stuff like that! Why the sudden change in heart?" Tails' gritted his teeth.
"Don't call me 'little buddy'! I'm not your little buddy!" he snarled as he tried another attack, missing by several inches. Sonic "tsked" as he effortlessly dodged blow after blow.
"Tails, why are you doing this? What on earth could that old bastard possibly say to make a smart kid like you act so dumb?" Sonic ducked to avoid Tails' blow. The fox drew back for another hit.
"Like you don't know?" he hissed, steel-covered fist whistling harmlessly through the air for the umpteenth time. His old friend drew his brows together.
"Of course I-" the hedgehog was abruptly silenced as the forgotten Metal Sonic attacked from behind, knocking his organic counterpart into Tails' outstretched fist.
Earth: Day 14, 7:08 a.m.—Transmission from the President
"-sure you've got all that?" the voice buzzed through the headset. The recipient of the message nodded her head, though the speaker couldn't see it.
"Positive, Sir," the small woman answered, adjusting the helmet on her head. "Our team is currently on board the shuttle waiting for you to issue the liftoff."
"Excellent." The agent dimly heard the sound of the president ordering the take off of the shuttle MOBIUS before he spoke directly to her once again. "I don't have to tell your team to be careful. I'm sure you all know how dangerous Dr. Eggman is. First find out if Rouge is alive, and be sure you bring back everyone currently on the colony, especially Project Shadow." The woman again affirmed her understanding.
As the shuttle began to shake viciously, she and the other agents gripped the harnesses that kept them to their chairs. Before the transmission was cut, the woman heard the voice of the president in her ear.
"Remember, Helen, I want Eggman alive."
Space Colony ARK: Day 14, 7:10 a.m.—Omochao
He watched from his glass prison at the battle that was taking place on two fronts suddenly turned to three. His good friend Knuckles had cut the pretty bat loose not a moment to soon. The instant her feet hit the floor the black hedgehog had regained consciousness and grabbed her by the ankle. Knuckles had started forward to help her, but a movement from the fat man caught his attention, and he faced him instead. The pretty pink hedgehog remained suspended from the metal beam, shrieking wordlessly at something going on across the room. Omochao turned to see what was going on.
Oh! The blue hedgehog Sonic had just been hit twice by the metal creatures attacking him. Wait… wasn't one of them his friend, the little fox boy? The tiny robot found himself horribly confused.
Turning back to the other battle scene, Omochao hopped back as the pretty bat was knocked into his holding cell rather had. The black hedgehog, face bleeding rather badly from two holes in his cheek, advanced on her. The girl leapt to her feet and kicked him, sending him through the air and crashing into the pillar that held Amy Rose. The hedgehog girl screamed ever louder as the black hedgehog hit her left arm. Odd, it looked… broken.
The small bot was startled out of his thoughts again as the robotic Sonic-look-alike was hurled into his glass cell with a terrible force. The glass shattered.
Omochao was free.
—Eggman
Noticing that the echidna was momentarily distracted by Shadow's attack on Rouge, Eggman made a move for the Eggblaster lying on the floor between them. Unfortunately, Knuckles snapped immediately back to attention, raising his bloody, gloved fist menacingly. The doctor backed up immediately and raised his own hands.
"Now now, Knuckles, you don't want to do anything rash!" he said, eyeing the weapon on the floor from behind his dark glasses.
"Oh really now, Doctor? I'm thinking that rash is exactly what I want to do." Knuckles gave his namesakes a good crack and started toward the old man. Eggman glanced around desperately for something to attack with. His answer came from the sky. Literally.
Knuckles leapt aside as Shadow flew through the air and struck the already screaming Amy Rose. He quickly repositioned himself to better keep the both of them in his line of vision. A second later, a gasp from Rouge accompanied by a terrible sound distracted the echidna again.
The crash of breaking glass spurred him into action. Eggman leapt forward and grabbed his Eggblaster. With a grace that was belied by his awkward shape, he rolled to his feet and pointed the weapon at his archrival.
"This ends now!" He fired.
"SONIC!!"
—Tails
Doubt clouded the boy's mind; Sonic wasn't behaving at all like the child had thought he would. Anger, denial, admittance… nothing. His old best friend seemed genuinely confused by Tails' actions. What? Didn't he remember how he'd betrayed him? Abandoned him time after time on their adventures; left him practically alone on the ARK; nearly died and left him alone…
Oh, wait, Eggman was the one who nearly killed him, wasn't he? The blue hedgehog side-stepped another of the boy's blows, speaking words the fox couldn't hear. My very own fake emerald saved Sonic, allowing him to continue the fight against the doctor and the others. He scowled. That didn't absolve Sonic of the times he'd run off and left him to fend for himself.
"C'mon Tails! I know you can make it!" Sonic called back from slightly ahead of the boy. Tails panted as he continued.
"You…have…to… wait, Sonic!" he gasped, "I can't… keep… up with… you!" Sonic didn't slow down; instead, he grinned back at the boy.
"You're not a baby, Tails. I know you can do this without my help." Not missing a beat in his speech, Tails' hero and friend destroyed a robot in his path. The boy slowed and finally stopped in the garden of broken parts the hedgehog had created. Sonic glanced back and noticed his absence. "Hey! This is no time for a break! We have to hurry and stop Eggman!" The fox sullenly raised his head.
"Go on without me," he said flatly, "I can't keep up. I'm not going to be of any help." Exhausted and angry with himself, he flopped onto his back and stared up at the twinkling diodes that covered every surface in Eggman's Death Egg. Dimly, he heard Sonic approach and sit next to him.
"Don't do this to me, buddy. You've made it this far, you can't give up! I wouldn't have gotten here without you!" Tails opened one eye and looked at his friend.
"I can't go on, Sonic; you'll have to go ahead without me. Sorry I let you down." His eye closed again. As the hedgehog growled the boy opened his eyes and looked at him again. He immediately wished he hadn't. Sonic's face had transformed from its usual carefree, arrogant façade into a hard, angry look that Tails had never seen on anyone before.
"You're gonna have to learn to do things yourself, Tails. I'm not always gonna be around to save you or keep you going. If you wanna make it anywhere in your life, you're going to have to find your own inner strength; I can't keep lending you mine."
The conversation ended when Silver Sonic struck from out of nowhere.
Tails shook his head angrily to clear the last foggy tendrils of the flashback from his mind. Had Eggman blown Sonic's actions out of proportion? The hedgehog was a selfish being, yes, but had he ever done anything to intentionally hurt him? Panic-stricken, the fox racked his brain for something-anything- that Sonic had done to him out of spite or malice. He came up empty.
Sonic blinked as Tails froze mid-punch and dropped his heavy fist. "Eh, Tails? Yo', you okay in there?" The boy's eye twitched. I've been trying to kill him and he's asking me if everything's okay... what kind of monster have I become? Sickened, the child glanced around at everyone else in the room. Sonic, his mentor and friend, was looking at him guardedly but with open concern. Rouge sitting in a pile of broken glass. The escape pod…his mind dimly registered. Amy still secured to the post, her broken arm swelling larger by the second. Shadow lying at Amy's feet, shaking his head. Metal Sonic next to Rouge, his red eyes blinking on and off. Sonic must have given him a good knock when Tails hadn't been paying attention. Knuckles was looking alarmed at something, and Tails followed his gaze to Eggman and saw what he held and who he was aiming at. Everything slowed down.
"This ends now!" Eggman pulled the trigger. Sonic's back was turned and he didn't see the blast. No…
"He doesn't really care about you! He uses you as a means to an end. Tell me, if you two are such good friends, why does he always leave you behind once he doesn't need you?"
"…find your own inner strength…"
"No, I haven't seen him this morning. He's probably out with Shadow somewhere, as usual."
"…find your own inner strength."
"Let me tell it to you straight, my boy. People like you and me, the 'geniuses', are a group reserved for times of trouble. He probably never comes to see you unless there's some sort of problem, eh?"
Find your own inner strength!
"SONIC!" he cried, leaping forward and shoving the shocked hedgehog aside. The blast struck him full in the chest, the open cock-pitted mech providing no protection. He sent an apologetic smile to Sonic, who had frozen in his tracks.
"Sorry f'that hurt. I didn't mean to push… so… hard…" He fell onto his back and lay still.
—Amy
Amy watched, horrified, as the blast shot through the air at Sonic. He doesn't see it…! She also watched as it struck Tails, knocking him onto the floor where he ceased moving. Tears welled into her eyes and she screamed.
"I'll get you for that, bastard!" she heard Knuckles snarl from nearby. Or was he far away? Gentle hands untying her ropes snapped her back to reality.
"…not going right at all… should all be dead," Shadow muttered as he took great care in freeing her broken arm.
"Shadow, what are you talking about?" she asked, her voice sounding stronger. Helping others was always something she was good at. "Who should be dead?" He held her at her waist as he undid the last of the restraints and lowered her to the ground. He lowered his forehead to hers and looked into her eyes, seemingly searching for something.
"…I made a promise, Amy… a promise to myself. I told myself I would get us all off of this gigantic deathtrap. I wasn't going to let everyone end up like Maria and the others who were here fifty years ago. But… I failed. Now Eggman is about to pull off his revenge… and I can't let that happen." He turned his dilated pupils to the spot not far off where Eggman was pointing his weapon at Knuckles, who still had the black hedgehog's blood on his glove.
"So you're just going to kill us?" she asked skeptically. Shadow blinked; wasn't she supposed to be out of her mind?
"I won't directly disobey the doctor; I owe him my new life," he continued solemnly. "I won't, however, watch him kill you all slowly. From what I've been told, we were all friends at the end of the adventure." It was Amy's turn to blink.
"Don't you remember what happened?" she asked. Shadow's gentle face fell.
"I was never there." He raised his hand to her throat and squeezed. Her eyes widened as she saw he was in earnest about his grim task; he really planned to kill them all.
"Sha…dow…" she wheezed, but knew it would do no good after looking into his cold, merciless eyes. The ultimate weapon… Something white and quick shot by her vision, taking the black shape that was Shadow with it.
—Sonic
Sonic stared at Tails, his mind not quite registering what his eyes were seeing. "Tails? Tails, answer me!" He commanded, trying to ignore the way his voice cracked. The boy continued to lie still inside the metal shell. Sonic slowly walked forward, resting his fingers against the fox's throat. A pulse!
Forgetting everything else for a moment, he sank to his knees in relief. He wasn't quite sure what possessed Tails to turn against them, however briefly, but he'd be sure to find out once all this was over and Eggman was behind bars. That's right! He'd forgotten what was going on.
He turned just in time to see Rouge clock Shadow in the face with her heavy boots and Amy fall to the floor. Eggman had his Eggblaster practically covering Knuckles' snout. He started forward when a soft voice stopped him in his tracks. On the floor next to Metal was… Omochao?
"Wait… If you wait, Eggman will say something important," the robotic chao whispered knowingly. Sonic looked skeptical.
"What makes you think so?"
"I don't think so; I know so," the bot said smugly. Sonic blinked a few times before settling on a decision.
"Well, you've never steered me wrong in the past, little buddy, so I guess I can trust you." The hedgehog would later swear that he saw the robotic chao grin.
"That's a good idea. Did you know that there are ten animals on this level?"
—Rouge
As she sat surrounded by the glass from the shattered escape pod, Rouge was astounded to find herself pouting. Whenever she got an outfit she really liked it would get ruined in the most outlandish situations. First that nice dress her father had purchased her when she was six had been used as a spit-up rag for her younger siblings. Her mother had thrown it out. Then the sleeveless jumper she wore when she dropped into the president's limo ended up with a cigarette burn through the back and several bleach spots from when the president himself attacked her with window cleaner. Her mother had thrown that out, too. And then there was—
"Amy!" Rouge gasped, staring across the room to where Shadow had her by the throat. The bat jumped to her feet, calculated the speed she'd need to pull off the attack she had in mind, and ran for it.
Her feet connected with the side of Shadow's head which sent him flying through the air and Amy to the floor. Rouge executed a neat little flip and landed on her feet next to the fallen hedgehog.
"And what do you think you're doing?" she asked him. "Don't you know you're supposed to play nicely with your friends?" Shadow wiped blood from his mouth.
"I should ask you the same question," he countered, displaying the red stain on his glove. "I don't know what your idea of play is, but I don't think I like it." He got to his feet and stared at her. "So it comes to this."
"It wouldn't have to if you hadn't decided to turn on all your friends," Rouge sniffed haughtily. Shadow's eyes narrowed.
"None of you are my friends. You're all his friends. I owe you no loyalty." And he attacked her then, managing to get a blow to her face before she knocked him away and took to the air. From her place above him, Rouge looked at him quizzically.
"What's that supposed to mean? Who's 'he'?"
"If you haven't figured it out by now, Rouge, it's not important." The bat eyed him once more before shrugging. Without warning, she twisted her body violently in the air and shot toward him, feet first.
"Fine then, be that way!"
—Knuckles
He'd let his guard down! Him, the lifelong protector of the Master Emerald! Him, the duty driven, rock solid, battle trained one. He was half tempted to wrest the gun from Eggman and shoot himself!
He didn't, however. Knuckles stared down the mouth of the gun without a hint of fear on the outside. Inside he was shaking. He mindlessly exchanged the expected pre-battle banter with Eggman as he desperately tried to think of a way out of the situation. Nothing came to mind.
Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of Rouge fighting Shadow. Actually, it was more like Shadow getting the crap kicked out of himself.
"What's he doing? Why isn't he fighting back?" he heard himself say, his mind more intent in figuring out the answer to said question. Eggman's laugh drew an angry snarl to his face.
"I don't imagine I'd want to fight much either if I were in his shoes," the fat man laughed. Knuckles glared at him, asking questions without really thinking, still mindful of the gun pointed at his face. Eggman continued to ramble on for a few moments with some brief interruptions from the red echidna, until something he said caught Knuckles attention.
"What do you mean that's not really Shadow? Just look at him!" the echidna gestured wildly, now extremely confused. What was the fat old bastard trying to pull? Eggman's eyes glinted behind the dark glasses.
"Exactly what I said. That's not the real Shadow. For all I know, Shadow's body disintegrated upon impact with the atmosphere. The Shadow fighting Rouge is a clone of the original, created by myself." Amy made a small noise, and Knuckles thought he heard Sonic gasp from across the room. The echidna suddenly found himself more confused than before, which then made him unbelievably angry. And Eggman being close was on the receiving end of Knuckles sudden, fury-driven attack.
Unfortunately, the doctor decided to attack as well, only a moment sooner. As a result, Knuckles was stumbling back, disoriented by a blow to the head from the barrel of the Eggblaster. He got his wits back just in time to see Eggman point the weapon at him once more.
"Say goodbye, Knucklehead." The grin fell from his face as Omochao and Amy hit him at the same time.
—Sonic
"That—that… unbelievable—" The blue hero found himself at a loss for words. Just what the hell was going on here? Not Shadow…?
"See? I told you so," the Omochao said smugly, putting his stubby limbs behind his back and looking very pleased. Sonic glared.
"Is that it? Is that what we were waiting for?" he asked the tiny blue bot. Omochao swiveled his head around to glance at the hedgehog, propeller whirring slowly.
"Yep."
"So I can attack him now, right?"
"I guess so."
"You guess?"
"…No, go ahead. It's alright." Sonic's questioning of the robot was cut off abruptly as he glanced over in Knuckles direction again.
"Crap! He's gonna kill 'im!" he exclaimed, getting ready to run when Omochao spoke once more.
"You should knock the gun out of his hand, first. Look for something to throw," it advised, flying in front of him, blocking the way. The blue hedgehog grinned suddenly.
"I have just the thing!" He grabbed Omochao out of the air, took aim, and lobbed him at the doctor. It hit the gun just as Amy's hammer hit his face.
—Amy
She decided she'd had enough. The past two weeks had been full of more terror than she'd ever known, even while adventuring with Sonic and Tails. Tails… Her anger flared, and she turned her green eyes on the man with the gun pointed at Knuckles. This was his fault! All the fear and helplessness of her time spent aboard the ARK was unleashed, and the result was frightening.
If any intelligent being had been looking at Amy's face at that very moment, they most likely would've run away in terror; her eyes were so ablaze with anger that they shone in the dim room; her jaw was clenched so tightly that the area around her mouth had gone white. And clutched in her good hand was, inexplicably, her Piko Piko hammer.
His fault that they were stuck up here. His fault that she had been left alone. His fault that Miss Rouge had nearly died. His fault that Tails had turned against them. His fault that Tails was lying very still across the room. Well, she would make him pay!
Amy charged toward the Doctor, pain in her broken arm forgotten. She hit the ground, denting the steel and sending her into the air. When she was above him, the girl swung her hammer with all her strength, catching the man in the side of the face and sending him crashing to the floor on the other side of the room. Meanwhile, Omochao had collided with the Eggblaster, and the two exploded when they hit the floor.
Amy landed gracefully enough, stumbling a bit as her feet touched down. She panted for a few seconds, eyes searching the room. Locating the fallen doctor, she let out a shriek of rage and charged at him again, hammer dropped on the floor. Knuckles watched, a stupid expression on his face, as she jumped on the man and began to beat him with her fist.
"'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned…'" he muttered, glancing around the room. A woman's cry behind him caused him to turn around, and he remembered the other battle going on in the room.
—Shadow
The bat was winning! How? He was the ultimate life form, not her! She was just a low-class thief. Albeit, her fighting skills were exceptional, but his should far outweigh hers.
"Holding back, Shadow? C'mon, I know you can do better than this!" she taunted, still managing to look beautiful despite the mocking expression on her face. Exactly what I was thinking…the hedgehog thought.
"I would never want to hurt you, Rouge," he sneered in the form of a comeback. "After all, this fight seems so unfair. If I used my full power, you'd be done in an instant. You couldn't even get out of the security hall by yourself, remember?" She glared and bared her fanged teeth in a nasty smile.
"Say whatever you want, Shadow. I'm still mopping the floor with you." Her glare slipped off her face as if it was greased, replaced by a sweet look.
"…what's that?" he asked warily, not liking her look. With the same sweet smile she kicked him in the stomach. He coughed up a bit of blood onto the bodice of her outfit. Her smile remained.
"Who were you talking about earlier, Shadow?" she asked, ducking beneath his punch, and attacking again. This one he dodged, but her fist caught him in the side as she spun.
"I gave you my answer," he said stubbornly, falling onto his back as she pinned him.
"What if I don't like it?" she asked softly, leaning her face close to his. Great, this was all he needed. Now she was getting friendly.
"You'll—have to l-l-learn to," he stuttered. Stuttering? HIM?! What was coming over him, anyway? Shadow shook his head. "You can't always have everything you want."
"Are you sure?" she whispered. The hedgehog tried desperately to move his arms, but she had both his arms and legs pinned securely. She leaned in closer, if that were possible, and Shadow shut his eyes. This was a waste of a movement as he opened them a second later.
Rouge had her arm pressed lightly against his throat, and she smirked at him, her face still frighteningly close. "Maybe you should… reconsider?"
"Get off me," he hissed, wriggling. The bat frowned slightly and applied a bit more force to her gentle push.
"Not quite the answer I wanted. Why won't you tell me, Shadow? I always thought we were such good friends."
"You'd know better than I, thief," he spat, disappointed when his words seemed to have no effect. "Although I highly doubt that someone with my brains would find himself being friendly with you." Her frown deepened and she pushed harder.
"Fine then, I'll beat it out of Eggman. As for you, Shadow, I can't have you conscious enough to sneak up on me again, so I'll just take care of that first." Shadow suddenly found himself unable to breathe. How did she get so strong? Women aren't supposed to have this kind of strength! he thought dimly, still trying to wriggle out of her hold.
Stars began to explode in his vision, and he thrashed more madly than before, but the bat continued to hold him down effortlessly, or so it seemed. It was merely by accident that he raised his head and it collided with hers. The blow was so powerful it had enough force to knock her off of him and onto the floor. He took his chance and leapt at her.
—Sonic
Sonic was shocked. No, actually, it was more like awe. He'd had no idea what Amy could do when she was genuinely angry. He made a mental note to never allow that to happen again, or at least not with him on the receiving end.
"Eh… Amy?" he called half-heartedly, "Amy… I- uh, I think you got him!" Sonic, being as smart as he was speedy, was wise enough not to try too hard to get her attention. Her rage was quite terrifying. And it was fun to watch her single-handedly smack the tar out of Dr. Robotnik.
However, when the old man began coughing out a red substance that looked suspiciously like blood, Sonic felt it was time to intervene. A good beating was one thing, but death? He was certain that Amy wouldn't want that on her conscience when she came to her senses.
"Amy…" he said gently, grabbing her good arm as it was about to swing again. She struggled briefly, then stopped. The blue hedgehog could see the anger drain out of her eyes as she sank to the floor, sobbing. Now thoroughly confused, Sonic sat beside her and reached out and tentatively patted her shoulder. "Amy? Don't cry… what's wrong?" She began to hiccup and buried her face in his shoulder.
"T-T-Tails…" she sobbed, sniffling loudly, "he k-killed Tails."
"No, he didn't, Amy. Tails is alright, he's just unconscious," the hero explained, patting her back awkwardly. Her head snapped up, eyes wide and red from the tears.
"Are you sure?" she whispered, tears ceasing for the moment. Sonic blinked twice and slowly nodded his head.
"A-Amy? What is it now?" he asked, terribly baffled, as the girl's lip quivered and her eyes filled again. Before he knew it, she was bawling. Again.
Once the pink hedgehog had pulled herself together, the two crossed the room and gently disengaged Tails, still out cold, from the machine and lay him on the floor. Amy wasted no time in crying on him, too.
"Oh for the love of—Amy! Stop that," Sonic ordered, the whole teary business making him feel thoroughly uncomfortable. Amy lifted her head to tell him off, but screamed instead. Before the blue hedgehog could turn, a strong fist collided with his head, sending him crashing, for the umpteenth time, into a wall.
—Rouge
Her head was aching as he leapt on her, pinning her to the floor as she had done to him. Blood trickled into her eye, and she realized he must have hit her hard enough to cause her forehead to bleed. The bat shook her head angrily, trying to get it to stop running down her face, when she felt his glove wipe it away. She opened her eyes and, before turning her head to face him, noticed, oddly enough, a hole in the floor that appeared to have been blasted in.
"Now look who has who," Shadow's voice mocked as he leaned closer to her as she had done only moments before. His chest fur was rubbing against her smooth skin in a rather uncomfortable way, and she glared at him.
"Wanna switch?" she asked, "I, frankly, like it much better on top." Her remark seemed to throw Shadow for a loop, as he loosened his hold. Rouge attempted to throw him off during his moment of confusion, but he recovered too quickly.
"I'd watch what I say if I were you, bat," he snarled, "I might begin to take you seriously, and neither one of us wants that, I'm sure." Rouge quirked an eyebrow, her frown turning into a strange smile.
"I'm not quite sure what kind of threat you just issued, Shadow, but I don't suppose it matters." She raised one shoulder as best she could and lowered her eyelids. "I'll be out of your hold before you know it."
"Arrogant as usual, I see," he said softly, "but it won't save you from me, Rouge." She laughed.
"My, feeling dramatic today, are we? I can't wait to see your face when I return to beating you bloody." Shadow's rage swelled, and he slapped her across the face. She recovered quickly and gave him a mocking grin. "What kind of hit was that, Shadow? Losing your touch?" He frowned deeper, his face so hard it looked like it would brake if struck.
"Not hardly," he snorted, "I'm not one for mercy, but you looked so pitiful…"
"Well, that's the most sensible thing I've heard from you for days," the bat exclaimed, "You never were one for mercy. Oh, I'm so sorry, he wasn't one for mercy." The black hedgehog's frown lessened.
"So, you've figured me out?"
"I think I have. I thought you were being a little too nice to be the real Shadow. He would never hold me like this." The clone was somewhat taken aback.
"Very good," he murmured, "Now do you understand?"
"Why you've gotta kill us all?" she asked. He nodded. "I haven't a clue." The hedgehog shook his head.
"And just when you were starting to show a sign of some intelligence." It was her turn to glare.
"Shadow, the fact that you were re-created by Doctor Eggman doesn't mean that you aren't a thinking being with a mind and a heart. You don't have to do this." Shadow, if the frown on his face was anything to go by, looked unconvinced. Rouge sighed. "At the risk of sounding horribly cliché, you have to make your own way. The wishes of your creator mean nothing. Mindless obedience is best left to unthinking beings like Metal Sonic over there. Eggman let you keep your mind, which means you have a choice."
"I-"
"Come back to earth with us!" Shadow could resist it no longer. He bent his head and kissed her.
"NO!"
—Amy
Amy stared, horrified, as her hero was thrown into the wall.
"STOP IT!" she shrieked. "STOP IT, METAL!" The robot looked back at her and tilted its head as if in thought. It walked over slowly, and she shrank back, though still standing protectively in front of Tails. The robot gestured to her with a long, pointed digit, and she tilted her head.
"Me? I'm A-Amy. Don't you remember? I m-m-met you years ago. You kidnapped me." A light came on in the machine's eyes. It reached out to her but was hit by Sonic before it could touch her. The robot turned purposefully and punched. Its organic counterpart soared across the room into yet another wall. Amy stared at it, horrified.
"How dare you do that to my Sonic!?" she screamed, hammer again in her hands. She managed one good hit before the robot wrenched the weapon from her grip and threw it across the room. It stared at her silently for a moment before turning and striding to where Sonic lay on the floor.
Amy set her face in a hard expression. "Thinks he can get away with that, does he? I'll show him." She dove into the empty mech beside her that Tails' unconscious body had occupied moments before and started it up. That robot was going to be sorry he'd ever messed with her Sonic!
—Knuckles
The echidna turned as he heard a small cry, thinking that it sounded somewhat familiar. As he saw the source, he felt his eyes widen. Shadow was holding down and kissing a wide-eyed Rouge, who seemed to be struggling beneath him. A terrible rage filled Knuckles as he took in the scene, wondering at the cause of his anger. Without a second thought, he hurled himself at the black hedgehog, knocking him off of the bat and into a wall, where he crumpled to the floor.
"Sha-Shadow…" Rouge was still on the ground, but had sat up some and was running a finger across her mouth. Knuckles reached down and jerked her roughly to her feet.
"Did he hurt you?" His question seemed to snap her out of her confused state and she turned her nose up.
"Him? Hurt… me? Pfft, not hardly," she snorted. Knuckles wasn't very convinced, but had no more time to dwell on it as Shadow had just climbed to his feet not three meters away. The dark hedgehog looked away from Rouge and out the window.
"It seems I interpreted your actions wrong, thief," he spat, "Don't think this miscalculation on my part changes anything. I will finish what I started." Rouge opened her mouth to speak but Knuckles beat her to it.
"I'd like to see you try!" he shouted, but it was short-lived. Rouge had placed a hand on his chest and stepped toward the hedgehog.
"You aren't coming back with us, then?" she asked him casually, but her fingers tightened on the red echidna's fur. Shadow glanced at her for a moment, then back out the window.
"No." The bat's face hardened.
"Fine; I stand by my earlier words. I'll have to knock you unconscious and then go take care of Eggman." She glanced at Knuckles, removing her hand from him and grinning crookedly. "Care to give a lady a hand?" The echidna could see Shadow's shoulders tense for a moment, though why was a complete mystery. He answered the bat's grin with one of his own.
"I don't see any ladies around here," he said, and she smiled.
"Good enough!" They charged.
—Metal Sonic
Target found. Accessing data. Name: Amy Rose Residence: Station Square Status: Minor Past Encounters: Unknown.
The robot was confused. It felt that it knew this girl from somewhere, but it had either been erased or too far back in its memory banks to be accessed. His master had, for the duration of his stay on the ARK, blocked uneccisary data so that it could not be accessed without a significant reminder. Nonplussed by this fact, Metal pointed to the girl and waited for her to explain. She looked frightened.
"Me? I'm A-Amy. Don't you remember? I m-m-met you years ago. You kidnapped me." Ah yes, that was it; on the Little Planet during his master's quest for the time stones. His master had made him kidnap this girl and guard her like a treasure, then race his organic counter part for her.
The robotic hedgehog, in what would almost be described as nostalgia, reached once more for the prize he'd once guarded, but was stopped when his sensors detected a blow to the back of his head that made him stumble. Angered as much as is possible for an unthinking being, Metal turned and punched his attacker, sending him flying. Oh… it was him!
Casting one last glance back at Amy, Metal started toward the fallen hedgehog; the impossible hatred he felt toward him burning his circuits. He had just reached the being when a sound stopped him in his tracks. That was the sound of the mechanical device his master and the child had created. But, the child was on the floor. Who could be-
"Stop! Leave him alone!" a girlish voice cried as the heavy fist of the mech hit one of his shoulders, knocking him off balance. Metal Sonic regained his footing and realized that the pilot was Amy Rose. His proccessors worked at lightening speed.
Current Mission: Destroy blue hedgehog Previous Mission: Guard two females; sub missions: prevent from escape and prevent others near Previous Mission: Destroy Bat
No, there was nothing in there about attacking Amy Rose, only guarding. Metal dug deeper.
Current Mission; Instructions; Limitations: Not to destroy any part of the room uneccessarily; Not to attack Prowers or Shadow the Hedgehog; Do not damage Space Mecha
Metal dodged a blow as he thought a way out of his situation.
Basic Programming; Fighting; Instructions: Follow orders unless Master or Self is in dire threat to existence.
Metal dodged another blow and alternated his programming.
Current Mission; Instructions; Limitations: Deleting "Do not damage Space Mecha" … Instruction Deleted.
Metal's eyes flashed red as he struck at Amy Rose in succession, knocking her onto her back. Content that he'd taken care of his distraction in a sensible fashion, the robot returned to his real goal. Unfortunately, a black shape bowled into him, knocking him off course once more.
—Shadow
It had been a mistake. A terrible mistake. He could never go back with them now. Nor would he want too. The black hedgehog cast a quick glance at the two treasure hunters and turned it immediately back out the window. He knew he wasn't in love with her, but for a brief moment he'd thought he'd like to be.
His thoughts were interrupted as Rouge and Knuckles flew toward him; Shadow frowned and stood his ground, determined not to move. Let it end, he thought, My current existence is unnatural anyway; a perversion of nature. Best to let it go now instead of ruining the memory of my true self. A movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention as the bat and echidna drew closer. Amy…and Sonic!
Faster than thought the black hedgehog abandoned his current battle and shot forward, his form a black blur as he neared the mechanical hedgehog. He leapt forward, catching the monstrosity in the side and knocking it to the ground.
"Stop," he said calmly, climbing once more to his feet. Behind him he could hear Rouge and Knuckles as they ground to a halt and turned to watch him. At his feet, Metal Sonic twitched, one of his arms having come loose from its socket and clawing uselessly at the steel floor. "We can't allow this to go on, Metal. You have to get the doctor and take him out of here." The robot's eyes flashed once more as it began processing the new order. Apparently the bot didn't think Shadow had the authority to order him around, because it got to its feet and raised its one arm, the beam cannon mounted there rising and taking aim. The black hedgehog raised his eyebrows.
"Oh really now, Metal. I don't think there's any cause for that. It's simple; your master's life is in danger. You must take him out of here." Metal glanced over at the fallen doctor, eyes flickering brighter then dimmer as it appeared to think. Its head snapped back and the cannon charged. Shadow frowned. "Fine." He attacked.
A kick to the chin sent the robotic hedgehog skidding across the floor to land by a hole. A hole? How did that…wait! Shadow had an idea. One that would solve all their problems. He turned to Rouge, who was standing with Knuckles some distance away. He dimly registered the sound of the robot's cannon still charging behind him.
"Get everyone out, Rouge! Now!" he called. "Get to the storage meteor as fast as you can. The echidna can carry Sonic and Tails. I'll clean up here." The bat looked at the floor.
"Will you be coming along?" she asked softly, so quiet he could hardly hear. He shook his head. "I see… Well," she saluted him, "don't fail your mission." He shot her a smile.
"You either. Now go." He kicked the robot again as it tried to stand and followed it to the edge of the hole. Beneath him the power source for the Eclipse Cannon swirled and flashed brilliantly. He paid no heed to the others as they ran from the room; Amy still in the mech. "Now… we end this."
Shadow dragged the unconscious Doctor Eggman over to the remaining escape pod and entered the proper code. He watched through the window as the small cylinder shot toward the earth. Satisfied, he strode back to the robot. Mercilessly, he kicked Metal Sonic into the hole and watched as the still charging cannon reacted with the energies in the room beneath and the robotic copy exploded.
Shadow stood on the edge, staring into the vortex. "It's time, I suppose. I've put this off long enough." He tilted his head back and closed his eyes, arms held out. With a final exhale, he leaned forward and fell into the light.
—Sonic
He came to almost instantly, the healing power of the Master Emerald still coursing through his body. His first thought as he became aware was a simple one.
"Tails!"
"Right here," a soft voice beside him said. The hedgehog turned to see his friend smile at him hesitantly. "Look, Sonic, about before…" The blue hero cut the boy off with a crushing hug.
"Good to have you back, little buddy," he said, letting go quickly so as not to embarrass either of them. "Promise me one thing, will you?" The fox nodded. "Don't hit me with that mech again. It hurt like hell." Tails nodded tearfully and turned away, sniffling quietly.
"Excuse me…?" a young woman's voice sounded from his left. He turned and realized he didn't recognize her. She was short for a human, but tall compared to his friends. She had a rather official-looking uniform on, and stood upright, hands at her sides.
"Helen!" Rouge exclaimed, looking surprised. "About time you guys got here! Took your sweet time, I see." She got to her feet.
"You knew these guys were coming Miss Rouge?" Amy asked from the floor a few feet away from him.
"Not a clue," the bat shrugged, still looking at the young woman. Helen eyed the group carefully.
"Where're Project Shadow and Doctor Robotnik?" she asked her fellow agent. Rouge glanced at the floor.
"Shadow- I mean, Project Shadow, didn't make it. He was in the central control room with Doctor Eggman. There was an explosion," she explained, scratching behind one of her ears. Helen raised an eyebrow.
"I see. The doctor is dead as well then?" Rouge shrugged once more.
"Presumably. What you see here is all that's left of our motely crew. So, gonna take us home?" Helen smiled, directing a few people who came in behind her to search the control room for any sign of the bodies.
"Of course. I'll take you all out of here personally." Sonic climbed wearily to his feet and began to follow the young woman out.
"So, how're things at work without me, Helio?" he heard Rouge ask from up ahead as she walked next to Helen.
"Quiet," she answered back. As Sonic walked along behind the two, he glanced at the agents filing by him down the halls. One in particular caught his eye.
"Nack?!" he exclaimed, grabbing the arm of the weasel as he passed.
"Fang now, Sonic," he grinned, "It's good to see you again."
"You too, I guess." The hedgehog scratched his head. "How did you get in this job?" he asked, genuinely curious. The weasel pushed his hat up with his thumb.
"Got a recommendation from Rouge up there. We met a few years back while scavenging the same ruins. Camped together for the night. When I woke up she'd run off with all my stuff." He laughed. "I've still gotta get her back for that, but I guess I can hold off since she got me this nice job." Sonic grinned, and the two exchanged their goodbyes. He followed the rest of his group toward the shuttle room while Nack- well, Fang- continued in the opposite direction.
A few hours later found them on the planet. The whole group whooped and jumped around, relieved to be back out into the sunshine and fresh air. Knuckles went so far as to flop into the dirt and roll in the grass a bit as Amy cried at the sight of flowers. Even Rouge looked a little misty-eyed.
"Well guys, I guess it's time I took off. I've gotta go report to my boss," the bat, still standing next to Helen, waved to each of them in turn, her gaze slightly lingering on Knuckles. "I, eh, I guess I'll be seeing you around." She turned and started for a black limousine that was parked at the edge of the shuttle compound. Helen turned to them all.
"Please stay in town. The President wants to hold a ceremony in honor of your bravery." She nodded to them and followed the bat. The rest of the group stood in place, not quite sure what to do next.
"Well, I guess I'll be heading back to the hotel. Tails and Knuckles… you guys can stay with me until after the ceremony, I guess," Sonic offered, scratching his head. Knuckles nodded and Tails looked away, sniffling out an acceptance. "Amy, will you be making it home alright?" Amy also nodded, looking in the direction Rouge had gone.
"I'm gonna miss her," the pink hedgehog murmured, waving as the bat got into the limo. "She was great company up there." Sonic nodded in agreement, is brain bothering him that he was forgetting something. Oh!
"Knuckles, I never gave you Rouge's message!" he said suddenly, whirling to face his ally. The echidna blinked a few times and waited as Sonic looked unsure.
"…Well? What is it?" he demanded after a few moments of waiting. The blue hedgehog tapped his foot, apparently deep in thought. Suddenly, an idea struck him.
"She wanted me to pass along one of these!" Quick as lightning, Sonic grabbed Amy Rose by her shoulders and kissed her on the lips. Amy's arms dropped limply with shock as Tails' mouth fell open so far it looked as if it were about to touch the ground. Even Knuckles eyes widened far beyond their natural ability. The blue hedgehog pulled back abruptly and turned to Knuckles.
"So? What're you waiting for? Follow that car!" He pointed off down the street in the direction that the limo had gone. Knuckles nodded slowly and shot off like a bullet after the disappearing exhaust trail. Sonic turned back to Amy, who was looking up at him with large, watery eyes.
"Oh Sonic…" she sighed, pushing her lips out slightly and leaning forward. The blue hedgehog suddenly began to sweat rather badly as he leaned backwards.
"A-Amy, I-" he stuttered as her face got closer and closer to his own. "Tails, lets get outta here!" The fox shrugged and took off after Sonic.
"At least now things are back to normal," he muttered as his hero dashed ahead of him. Amy, still leaning forward, lost her balance and fell to the ground. She sat up, an odd smile playing on her lips.
"SONIC!" she shouted, "Get back here!" She got up and ran after the disappearing figures. "I hate it when they leave me behind!" she said under her breath as she, too, disappeared into the city.
--Fin (finally!)
Big congrats to winner Heliotrope, and our runner up KawaiiKaren who, unfortunately, failed to respond to my e-mail. Still, here is your mention. Thanks to everyone who stuck through this, even though it took me an ungodly amount of time. I'm looking for a place to post my Title picture for this, so if any of you have a website and wouldn't mind hosting it until I get my own domain, I'd really appreciate it. Once again, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed my story. Any confusion, just e-me at eagibbs@attbi.com --Elsy~.^