Metal Heart~

chapter 3-Losses of the Heart

            Sonic returned to Knothole. Needless to say, he was immediately noticed as 'alone'. Tails was not with him. His heart felt heavy. Sally and Bunnie immediately rushed over to see him.

"Sonic!" Sally cried. "Where's Tails...?" A sickened look crossed her face. "No...he didn't...did he...?"

Sonic looked down, unable to say what had to be said. He knew Sally could figure it out from the look on his face.

"Robotnik...that sick, depraved tyrant," Sally whispered. "What happened, Sonic? Tell me."

"Yeah, do tell us, sugah," Bunnie added. "We gotta know whut's happened."

Sonic felt a void in his heart. "I saw it. Again. Only this time it was Tails who got put in there...and there wasn't a thing I could do. He's...metal."

Sally stared at him in shock. "Tell me this is one of your sick jokes. Please start laughing at me so I know it's not real."

"It's more than real, Sal. It's mondo real."

Bunnie and Sally just stared at him. This couldn't be anything but a big sick nightmare. It seemed like one. But, sick as it was, it was all real and it had all happened and, at the given time, there was nothing anyone could do. Sally broke down in tears.

"Tails...no," she wept. "Why did it have to happen to you...? I'm so sorry..."

"Sally-girl, there ain't nothin' we c'n do," Bunnie told her gently. "Ah think there's always gonna be a day where all o' yer plans hafta get messed up, cuz, darlin', nobody's perfect, and y'all know that."

"But Tails didn't deserve this, Bunnie," Sally said, tears still on her face. "What did he do wrong?"

"Nothin', hon, but that ol' Robotnik sure has some mean tricks up his sleeve."

Sonic was still just standing there, looking at his sneekers. It was hard to believe he was there at all. No impatience was shown and he wasn't saying anything. It took another few moments for him to speak again. "I guess we're gonna have to break it to everybody that, because of me, we lost Tails."

"Sonic, it isn't your fault," Sally whispered. "None of us could have done any better."

"I don't care, Sal," Sonic replied. "If I hadn't have been on such a snooze cruise, I woulda made it there with loads of time left." Deep down, he knew that saying that made him look worse, but it made him feel better somehow. Any way he put it, he was still miserable.

"Now y'all just calm down," Bunnie said. "Ah know this is hard, but we can't let it bring us down. Am ah right? That's whut Robotnik's tryin' ta do. Bring us down so he c'n win!"

Neither Sonic nor Sally said a thing. It was all just too depressing. Sonic sighed. "I'm gonna go see what Rotor's up to. We can break the news to everyone at once later." And he walked off. Walked. That was the most abnormal thing in the world. Sonic actually walking. Sally took out Nicole.

"Bunnie, I'll see you later," Sally said quietly. "I have things to do."

"Sally-girl, Tails is gonna be just fine," Bunnie said firmly. "There ain't no need for y'all to get too upset."

"Bunnie, it will take so long to figure out how to de-rebotosize..." Sally replied. "We might not ever figure it out..." Her body started to tremble a little from the tears she was holding back. "First my father disappears and now Tails is dead."

"He ain't dead, Sally-girl. He's a robot, but that sure as heck don't mean the same thing as him bein' dead." Bunnie felt a bit of hopelessness in her words. She knew she was trying to encourage Sally to keep going on with the plans...but she felt pain, too. Tails was usually around. It was strange without him there following Sonic around or begging Princess Sally to let him go do something he wasn't supposed to. Everything felt weird suddenly. Everything felt...hopeless. Bunnie sighed. "Ah- ah really dunno whut ah'm talkin' about right now, y'know?" She knew it was not a good thing to be made of metal. Bunnie herself was half mecha.

Sally turned to go. "I need some time to think, Bunnie," she said softly. "I think Tails is going to leave a void in at least a couple of hearts."

"Sugah, I wanna think that this'll all get bettah soon, and ah know cryin' 'bout it ain't gonna help. Though ah am gonna miss the li'l' one."

Forlornly staring up at the sky, Sally heeded little of what Bunnie had said. "I don't know. I don't know if I want to keep trying."

Bunnie stared at her. "Y'all can't be sayin' that yer givin' up! Sally-girl, ya can't!"

"Why can't I, Bunnie?" Princess Sally asked sadly. "The more I try the more I lose. There's no point in winning the freedom fight if I haven't got anything to keep me going. I don't know anything anymore. Even Sonic is upset. We lost Tails today, and that isn't very good at all."

"Sally...."

"I just need awhile to think. I'll be alright." She choked back a sob and left. Bunnie didn't know what to do. Sonic and Sally were heartbroken over Tails and without them, well...Bunnie didn't like to think about that. She would have to raise their spirits somehow. She knew Tails becoming mecha was hard to get over, but she had to help out. She was going to have to be the one to cheer them all up.