Silver Lining
By K. M. Hollar
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And the pain falls like a curtain
All the things I once called certain
And I have to say the words I fear the most:
"I just don't know."
--Steven Curtis Chapman, God is God
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Part 2: The Hunt
_________________
The biplane had been on the ground two seconds when Sally shouted, "Look!"
Sonic looked up to see two people run by, then Robo Knuckles fly past, his
afterburner roaring. "Oh great!" exclaimed Sonic, "he must have been repaired!
Stay here, Sal!" The hedgehog vaulted out of the cockpit and pelted after the
robot.
"Sonic!" Sally called after him, but he was gone. "The plane's still moving,"
she muttered, climbing over the seat into the cockpit. The plane was taxiing
toward the end of the runway. Sally guided it into the ploughed field ringing
the airstrip, cut the engine, and blocked the tires, glad that all those years
of driving transports had paid off.
By that time Sonic, the robot, and the two strangers were out of sight, so Sally
set up her tracker. When she scanned for chaos distortions, it picked up three
blotches. They were moving rapidly, and she had to pan the screen every few
seconds to keep them in view. Sonic's distinctive signal was there, and Robo
Knux had a strange one, like a spiral. The people he was chasing were so close
together that Sally couldn't distinguish them on screen, but they were causing a
bright emerald-like glow. Sally had not seen such a strong aura since Super
Sonic.
She watched the progress of the blips, chewing her lip. Robo Knux was gaining on
the civilians, and Sonic was gaining on Robo Knux. As she watched, Sonic put on
a burst of speed and caught up to Robo Knux, who slowed and circled. The two
clashed, parted, clashed again.
"Oh Sonic, be care!" whispered Sally. The spiral marking the robot worried her.
Whenever a blotch of chaos was forced into a shape of any kind, it meant the
person was controlling the field. Sonic let his field bleed all over the place,
but Sally had seen Knuckles warp and bend his own when he needed an extra burst
of energy. How could a robot possibly manipulate the field?
Sonic and Robo Knux's blips joined together, and for three seconds they grappled
in close quarters, and Sally bit her thumbnail. Then Sonic's blip retreated and
ran off at an angle, and Robo Knux followed him. Sally zoomed in on Sonic's
signature, but there was nothing in it to indicate he was hurt. Sally watched,
leaning against the biplane, hating her inability to help. If only she had some
kind of natural ability! She watched as Sonic raced his enemy as only Sonic
could, occasionally doubling back to throw a taunt in Robo Knux's face. Stupid
brave Sonic, he could get killed doing that!
Sally watched as Sonic led the robot further and further a field, teasing and
taunting, his chaos field growing bright with his excitement. Robo Knux's spiral
coiled tighter and tighter like an angry rattlesnake. "Sonic, be careful!" Sally
said to the tracker.
Sonic struck like lightning and ricocheted off Robo Knux, and Robo Knux's
signature winked out. Sonic ran straight back toward Prairietown. Sally looked
for the civilians Robo Knux had been chasing. Their signal was dimmer, and they
were moving at a walking pace, three miles away. They must be fantastic runners
to keep ahead of both Robo Knux and Sonic.
A few minutes later Sonic jogged up, his spines rumpled from battle. "Hi Sal!"
he said. "Watching me with the tracker, huh?"
"Yes," said Sally, smiling and relieved to see him unhurt. "You shouldn't tease
Robo Knux like that. His chaos signature was very controlled--he could have hurt
you."
"I thought there was something different about him," said Sonic, dusting himself
off. "For one thing he has diamond-tipped claws now, and those suckers are
scary. I ripped up his arms last time we met, and he's had them replaced with
all-new stuff. I knocked him out in the end, though."
"Did you see who he was chasing?"
"Yeah, some guy and a little girl. The guy had a jetpack or they would have been
toast."
"They had a strong signature, too."
"Really?" Sonic looked surprised. "As strong as mine?"
"Yes," said Sally, showing him. "It could be because they're so close together,
though."
Sonic looked at the screen and whistled. "They look like a chaos emerald! Any
word on the emerald, by the way?"
Sally scanned, then scanned again. "Um. No. I think it's gone."
"What?" Sonic grabbed the tracker, and Sally grabbed it back and twisted a dial.
"It was there when we stopped for fuel ... I took measurements and everything!"
She did a continental sweep, and was relieved to see the emerald appear with its
customary shape. But when she zoomed in, the signal dwindled to nothing and
vanished.
Sally looked at Sonic. "Something's wrong."
"I'll say," said Sonic, folding his arms. "It looks like we were baited here."
Sally frowned at the tracker. "But that's not possible. Either chaos energy is
there, or it isn't. Nobody knows enough about the field to fake a signal." She
thought of Robo Knux's signal and looked at Sonic, who was thinking the same
thing.
"You said Robo Knux was controlling the field. What if he was faking an emerald
signal?"
"But nobody knew we had a tracker," Sally protested. "This is the only one in
the world."
Sonic shook his head. "I don't like this. It smells like a trap."
Sally looked at the mounds of dirt that were entrances into Prairietown. "You
want to get rooms here?"
"Might as well," said Sonic, reaching into the Cyclone's cockpit and pulling out
their bags. "After that, I'm taking your tracker and going signal-hunting."
"I'm going with you," said Sally. "You've left me behind long enough."
Sonic gave her an odd grin.
The Prairietown tunnels and caverns were spacious and well ventilated, populated
by burrowing creatures of all kinds. A pair of gophers ran an underground hotel
that extended downward six floors, and Sonic and Sally took rooms on the first
floor. The lower floors were more expensive, because Prairietown residents loved
deep tunnels.
Sonic and Sally tossed their bags on their beds, and Sonic opened his and
called, "Hey Sally, did you bring that helmet I told you to?"
"Yes," Sally called back. "Although I don't see why."
"This is why!" said Sonic, pulling a mass of buckles and straps from his
duffle bag.
Sally stared at it. "And that is?"
"It's a hedgehog saddle," said Sonic, wrestling it on. "Tails designed it
so--could you help me with this?--so I could carry people piggyback without them
flying off."
"That's a good idea," said Sally, trying to figure out which buckles went
where.
Between the two of them they attached it to Sonic, then Sonic explained to Sally
how to climb into it. It took her three tries to figure out how to do it, but at
last Sonic stood triumphantly in the middle of the room with Sally strapped to
his back. She put on her helmet. "I feel ready for anything now."
"Good," said Sonic. "Now get off. I'm not carrying you back through the
tunnels."
"Why Sonic," said Sally, un-strapping herself, "are you embarrassed?"
"No," said Sonic, a little too loudly. "I just don't want to carry you more than
I have to. Besides, you have to carry the tracker."
"Right," said Sally, smiling.
They made their way up through the tunnels, and Sonic received many stares for
wearing a harness with a tangle of straps hanging from the back. He glared back,
daring someone to ask him about it. No one did.
Once outside they walked to the airstrip, and Sally climbed back into the
'saddle' and put on her helmet. "Ready for takeoff," she said, tightening the
strap around her waist. She handed Sonic the tracker. "Turn this dial to adjust
the focus, and these dials here to keep the blip targeted."
"Roger," said Sonic. "Hang on, Sal, I'm about to mix some juice with my jam."
Sonic took two steps and broke into a run, and Sally grabbed the straps on his
shoulders and hung on.
Knuckles was sitting on an overturned crate, head in one hand, the other hand
twiddling a pencil back and forth. His notebook was open in front of him with
his latest configurations for the derobotizer, but he could not concentrate.
"I'm burning out," he thought. He gazed at the far window and the treetops
waving beyond it. He was feeling the call of his island, a poignant homesickness
that drew him home no matter how important mainland matters were. Not that
anything was wrong with the Floating Island ... he just needed to go home for a
while.
An added complication was that Zephyer felt the island's call, too. Every time
she visited it, her life entwined with her ancestral home a little more. In the
same way, she meshed with Knuckles that much more. But despair had held her in
its clutches for so long that she was fighting any possible happiness tooth and
nail. Knuckles had never seen anyone fight to keep from being happy, but she was
doing it. The more she fought him, however, the more determined he was to
conquer her and her ultimatum.
Knuckles got up and changed gloves from his greasy work ones to his clean
everyday pair, and went hunting for his fiancé. It was noon, and he was going to
make sure she ate if he had to force-feed her.
He located her on the highest platform among the tree houses, sitting in the sun
and gazing across the treetops. "Hey Zeff," Knuckles called. "Come down, it's
lunchtime."
"Already?" said Zephyer, wrinkling her nose in disgust. She descended the ladder
and smiled at Knuckles, who laid a hand on her heated metal shoulder. "Don't you
get hot?"
"No," said Zephyer. "Heat is my element, remember? I hate being cold."
"Then you can have Sandopolis all to yourself," said Knuckles, leading the way
down the boardwalk to the hut where food was stored. "I have something I thought
you might like." He led her into the tree house and took a blue fruit like a pear
off a shelf. "This is a chaofruit, because chao love them. I found this one on
one of the trees I planted a few years ago, and thought you'd like to try it."
Zephyer took the fruit and smelled it. It had a smooth skin, and smelled like a
cross between an orange and a peach. "Can I have a knife?" she asked.
Knuckles got one for her. He made himself a sandwich out of odds and ends that
fit between two slices of bread, and they went to sit on the boardwalk to eat.
Zephyer cut the fruit into slices and ate them slowly, and Knuckles watched her
like a hawk to make sure she ate everything. She had been looking too pale
lately.
Now she looked at him, and from her stubborn expression he knew she was going to
fight him about something. He braced himself.
"Knux, I can't marry you. Let's call off the engagement."
"What's the problem this time?" he asked, the corner of his mouth twitching. She
had more reasons for breaking up than a lawyer.
"You're the Guardian," she said, gesturing to the white crescent on his chest.
"I'm not from a high-born tribe. I'm not even from a ranking tribe. I'm a
Winstrom, I'm a--a peasant. If the other tribes were still here, we'd never be
allowed to marry. You outrank me too much."
Knuckles shook his head. She had grown up in the social castes of the echidnas,
which he did not understand. "Zeff, that doesn't apply here. Here, the Guardian
marries whoever he darn well pleases."
Zephyer gazed at the chaofruit in her hands, and for a second Knuckles saw the
outline of her skull, and his heart jolted. She was sicker than he thought. She
looked up at him, and the vision passed. "What if our people ever come back?
What if they declared our marriage null and void because you married a
peasant?"
"Zeff, no echidna argues with the Master emerald. It's already played
matchmaker, and it didn't care about your social standing." When she looked
reproachful, he added, "If it'll make you feel any better, I'll change your rank
at our wedding and get it all on paper."
She sighed and nodded, then said, "Do you want the rest of this fruit?"
"No," said knuckles, wondering where his sandwich was, then noticing the crumbs
on his hands. "You eat the rest of that. We have a deal, you know."
She took a bite, chewed and swallowed. "It's because I'm a peasant that I'm
here."
"Oh?"
"Yes. They needed someone to test the dimension-jump technology, and I was ...
expendable." She pronounced the last word bitterly.
"Well, I'm glad I got you," said Knuckles. "A bubble-headed girl would have
chased after me and made a pest of herself."
Zephyer cracked a smile. "I know those kinds. Like Amy."
The pair laughed.
"That reminds me," said Zephyer. "Sonic borrowed one of the rings you made me.
He's off with Sally for a week."
Knuckles raised his eyebrows. "So he's finally getting serious, huh? It's about
time. Sally's career's taking off and he'll be left behind."
"I don't think he has the guts to propose to her in just one week," said
Zephyer. "But he was optimistic about his chances, so I loaned him the ring."
"Sonic's always that way," said Knuckles. "That's why he's made it this far.
Hint, hint."
"The nice thing about being a pessimist," said Zephyer, "is that you're always
being proven right, or being pleasantly surprised." In the same breath she
added, "Does Sonic know Chaos Heal?"
Sometimes she changed subjects like that, and Knuckles scrambled to catch up.
"Uh, Chaos Heal. No, we didn't get that far in his training."
"So you don't know it, either."
"No."
Zephyer studied him. "How do you know there's such a thing?"
"Because that's how Max subdued Chimera," said Knuckles. "Max healed Velocity,
too."
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," said Zephyer, wincing. "Maybe you should call
Sonic and tell him to pick up Max on the way home."
"I sent a message to Nicole," said Knuckles. "Sally will get it."
"I hope they can get him away from the Communist Chao Company," said Zephyer,
glaring. She had hated the Chao Co. ever since her chao Zinc had been stolen.
"Nobody but thieves and rich people can get chao out of there."
"Don't I know it," said Knuckles, who had all but bribed the adoption officials
to let them take Zinc and Chimera home. "They'll think of something. Between
Sonic and Sally, there's enough creativity to build the Minotaur labyrinth and
populate it, too."
The southern end of Central Mobius was divided into bays and peninsulas, where
the ocean beat against rocky cliffs, and undertow currents sucked unwary
swimmers out to sea.
On a rocky hill overlooking the sea was a crumbling castle, built there as a
defense against ancient seafaring raiders. It was to this castle that the
Lightgiver directed Destro, so the fox and the rabbit found themselves peering
through the gaping entrance as the sun sank behind the hills.
"This place is creepy," said Cream. "Monty, do you see anything?"
Destro looked at the chao. Monty stood on the cracked pavement and gazed at
everything, watching the chaos field. Finally he said, "There's nothing here.
The field is really weak--the stone walls must break it up."
"Good," said Destro, wondering if that was why the Lightgiver had directed them
here. "Let's look around before it's too dark."
Cream picked up Monty and pattered after Destro, reassured. "Hey Destro, did you
see the guy who attacked the robot? He fought it so we could get away. I wonder
who he is? Do you think we'll see him again? He could sure run fast, he was
faster than the robot!"
"He had a strong aura, too," said Monty. "It was almost as strong as yours,
Cream."
"Wow," said Cream, her voice echoing as she entered a high stairwell. "Destro,
what's up there?"
The fox was halfway up and treading carefully. "Stay there," he said, and Cream
obeyed. She watched as a shaft of red sunlight fell across Destro's face, then
he was out of sight.
"I wish we had sleeping bags," she told Monty. "It'd be a lot warmer. Destro's
not very nice to snuggle up to, his armor is cold. Hey Destro! Do you ever take
your armor off?"
"No," came the reply.
"Not even to take a bath?" said Cream, and giggled.
"Come up, it's safe," said Destro, and Cream bounded up the stairs. At the top
was a catwalk behind the outer wall, which had slots in it where archers could
fire arrows through.
Cream ran out and looked through the slots. "Destro, look, you can see the
ocean! Isn't it pretty? Can we go down to the beach? Please?"
"No," said Destro, walking past her to inspect a guardhouse set in the opposite
corner of the catwalk.
Cream watched him. "Why not? Are there sharks?"
"No," Destro repeated, one hand curling into a fist. He was at the end of his
strength and his patience, and his armor was so drained it was sucking the
energy out of him like a leech. He looked over the wall. "It will be dark
soon."
"Where are we going to sleep?" Cream asked, standing on tiptoe to see over the
wall. "There's no beds here."
Destro stalked past her without answering and descended the stairs, both hands
clenched.
Cream ran after him. "Do you know a place to sleep? Can we go to the beach in
the morning? Do you think that robot will find us?"
Silent in the face of her questions, Destro found an antechamber that was
sheltered from the elements, and went out to cut branches to make a bed. Cream
cheerfully helped carry sprays of pine branches back to the castle, and
afterward helped Destro collect leaves to spread on the branches. It was a
crackly, itchy bed, but the leaves provided insulation against the cold ocean
air.
By this time it was dark, and Destro was working by the light of the instruments
in his helmet. Cream was surrounded by a dim pinkish glow, which enabled her and
Monty to see. Monty was half-asleep when Destro and Cream retired to their
makeshift bed. Destro was nodding off, but Cream was bubbling over with energy.
"I like the way these leaves smell, I got some pine needles too, is that okay?
Pine needles smell good, don't they? It's so neat we get to stay in a castle. I
always wanted to live in a castle. Mom says we could afford to live in one
because of how much Daddy makes at work, but we don't."
"Please be quiet," said Destro.
"You don't want me to talk?" said Cream in astonishment. "Are you really
tired?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Destro lifted his head, mentally screaming at the Lightgiver for entrusting this
child to him. "My armor takes power from my body. When I use my jetpack, the
armor feeds on the electricity in my body. It makes me tired."
"Good grief," he thought. "I'm explaining biotechnology to an eight-year old."
Cream's eyes were round. "Wow! Are you invincible? Do you fight crime?"
"No," said Destro, and when he saw her open her mouth to ask more questions, he
went on, "I'm a warrior for the Lightgiver, and I go wherever he tells me. He
told me to protect you, and that's what I'm doing."
"Lightgiver?" said Cream. "Where is he? Does he have flashlights?"
"He's invisible, and more powerful than anything," said Destro. It had been
years since he had talked so much, and his mouth refused to coordinate with his
brain. But if he was talking, she was quiet, so he babbled on. He talked about
places he had been and things he had seen the Lightgiver do, and the time he had
been kidnapped and taken to a human zoo, only to break out, reclaim his armor
and sword, and flee.
When he next looked at Cream, she was sound asleep. He brushed some leaves over
her and lay back, closing his eyes. "Lightgiver," he whispered to the darkness,
"you are mighty and all-knowing, worthy of praise. But why did you inflict this
child upon me with her infernal nagging?"
The Lightgiver was there, but he did not answer. Destro sighed and let sleep
carry him away.
Sonic and Sally had wandered through miles and miles of farmland, tracking the
elusive chaos emerald signal. Every time they neared it, it faded out, and Sonic
had to require the signal. When he did, the signal had moved a few miles. He
would chase it to its position, only to have it fade and shift again.
Toward evening Sonic began to slow down, for the edge was gone from his energy
and he was discouraged. Sally opened the visor on her helmet. "Could you let me
down for a while? This harness is uncomfortable."
"Sure," said Sonic, stopping and letting her unto the clasps. Sally stood up,
rubbing her knees and wincing. "When we get home, tell Tails to put padding on
the leg-loops. I feel like I've been kicked by a horse."
"I guess I should have let you rest more often," said Sonic. "Sorry about
that."
They walked along a dirt road through a carrot field, still following the
tracker. "This is like chasing a rainbow," said Sonic, "except even more
irritating, because I KNOW the emerald's there somewhere."
"I know," said Sally. "Maybe there's something wrong with the tracker."
They walked in silence for a moment, and the wind hissed through the ferny
carrot tops. Sonic was relieved to have Sally off his back, for she was quite
heavy after a while. He stretched his shoulders as they walked along. Sally
pulled off her helmet and ran a hand through her sweaty auburn hair. "Phew, hot
in there."
Sonic watched the tracker, aware that they had slipped back into the old roles
of commander and soldier, with Sally figuring things out while Sonic did the
footwork. But he didn't know how to take their relationship deeper without
falling all over himself and hurting her feelings.
Sally looked at him. "Could I ask you something?"
"Sure," said Sonic.
"What was the thing with Mekion all about?"
Sonic felt his insides turn to cold stone. He opened his mouth to reply and
found he had no words, so he said nothing.
Sally looked at him. "Are you mad at me?"
"No," Sonic grunted.
"You never talk to me anymore," said Sally, frowning. "Remember how we used to
talk about everything? Things aren't so hard now, and you have more friends, I
know, but I'd like to hear about things now and then. You never told me a word
about Shadow."
"I watched him die," said Sonic coldly. "It's not something I enjoy talking
about."
"See, I didn't know that," said Sally. She stopped and faced him.
Sonic folded his arms. "So you, like, want me to check in and give you daily
reports on my life?"
"No," said Sally quietly. "Sometimes it helps to tell someone when you're having
problems."
They looked at each other a moment. Sonic's eyes were like chips of jade. The
mention of Mekion set a wound to throbbing in his heart--a mixture of anger,
sorrow and betrayal that he had allowed to fester inside of him. "I don't want
to talk about it," he said at last, and walked off. Sally fell into step beside
him.
The further they walked, the harder Sonic's conscience prodded him. He had asked
Sally to come so they could salvage their relationship, and here he was
distancing her. But she had asked him about Mekion, and he knew that if he
talked about Mekion he would cry, and he couldn't do that. His conscience
pricked him. He was being cruel, and Sally was his friend. He couldn't treat her
like that. Worst of all was the way she was walking along without speaking, as
if he had hurt her feelings too deeply for words.
"Shadow died," Sonic said, the words struggling out of him. "But his chao Nox
brought him back to life, and somehow Metal Sonic got a hold of him and made him
into Mekion."
So far so good. Sally was watching him, ears pricked. Sonic ploughed ahead,
wanting to get the story over with. "Mekion is half-robot half-hedgehog, split
right down the middle. He was sent out on a stealth mission to the Floating
Island, and we kept seeing him. Knux recognized him and didn't want to tell me
that he was Shadow."
Sonic was nearing the hardest part, and paused to steady his voice. Sally
nodded, listening.
"Then I met Mekion, and he didn't remember me. But I kept talking to him, and I
think I got through to him..." He paused, furious at the lump in his throat and
his inability to get rid of it. "He saved my life," he concluded, dangerously
close to tears. He glared at Sally. "There you have it, why I didn't talk about
it."
He was prepared to take offense at anything she said, but Sally didn't speak.
Instead she put an arm around his shoulders and hugged him. The simple gesture
smashed Sonic's self-control to pieces, and Sally held him while he cried, the
first tears he had shed since losing Shadow the second time.
Afterward he felt better, and dried his eyes with the back of his glove.
"I had no idea," Sally told him. "He betrayed you, didn't he?"
"It wasn't his fault," said Sonic, feeling calmer than he had in weeks. "Metal
Sonic had him programmed so he couldn't change sides. It almost killed him
saving me."
"Do you think we could alter his programming?" said Sally. "Maybe we could add a
loophole or something."
Sonic's barrier had been breached by his tears, and he and Sally talked as they
used to. As they walked, the tracker lost the emerald signal, and when they
reacquired it, the signal had shifted to the east. Sonic and Sally cut across a
carrot field, walking between the rows and smelling the carroty odor of crushed
stalks.
They were in the middle of the field, surrounded by a sea of green, when Sonic
grabbed Sally's arm. "Sal. Robo Knux is coming."
Sally looked around, but the horizon was empty. Then she looked at the tracker
and saw a spiral moving toward them, but Sonic wasn't watching the tracker.
"Sonic, we've got to get out of this field."
"Right," said Sonic, gazing at the sky. "Grab the harness and hang on."
Sally grabbed the straps and jumped into the saddle, but there was no time to
strap herself in, for Sonic bolted across the field, still looking at a point on
the empty horizon.
"Sonic," Sally said through her teeth, "what are you looking at?"
"He's making me feel funny," said Sonic. "He's like a ball of electricity and--"
Sonic stumbled, nearly throwing Sally off over his head. "Sorry," he said,
getting up. "Darn carrot rows! Robo Knux is making me dizzy."
"Dizzy?" said Sally, clinging to the straps and hoping Sonic had not fallen on
the tracker. "He's not even in sight!" But she thought of the spiral of chaos
energy with a jolt of fear.
"Yeah, it's weird," said Sonic. "Ugh, I have to stop." He did, and Sally slid
off.
"Sonic, this is a bad place for a robot encounter. We're unarmed!"
"We still have me," said Sonic, holding the sides of his head and squinting.
"Man, this feels so weird!"
A speck appeared on the horizon, silhouetted against the sunset. Sonic handed
the tracker to Sally and stepped across the rows toward the robot, shaking his
head as if a fly was bothering him. Sally consulted the tracker screen, and saw
the spiral's size had increased. It looked like a small tornado.
"Sal," Sonic said, too casually, "run for the road."
She obeyed at once, sprinting across the field with the tracker and Nicole
clutched to her chest. Sonic ran laterally, jumping from rot to row to intercept
Robo Knux. Sally could hear the roar of the robot's engines, but she dared not
look back when footing was so treacherous. Half of her wanted to turn back and
help Sonic, but she had no weapons and was no match for Robo Knux in a fight--a
liability in a fight. She kept running.
The chaos wave struck Sally as she reached the road between fields, and the
concussion made her head spin. She lost her balance and fell over, just keeping
the tracker from hitting the ground. She had not felt chaos power like that
since the flux, and she squinted across the field toward Sonic and Robo Knux.
Sonic was standing still and the robot was flying in circles around him,
spiraling closer and closer. Why didn't Sonic move? Had he been hurt by the wave
of chaos energy?
As Sally watched, Sonic woke up and bolted toward her. He gestured to his head,
so she put on her helmet, slung the tracker around her neck by its strap, and
waited. Robo Knux was pursuing Sonic, his claws outstretched, the yellow light
from his jets outlining him in a hellish glow. There was something else
different about him, but Sally had no time to look, for Sonic bounded onto the
road. She grabbed his harness and swung her legs around his waist as he entered
the flat-out run he used to shatter the sound barrier. Sally wrapped her hands
in the straps, knowing that strapping herself in was out of the question.
She glanced over her shoulder and saw the robot was gaining on them, his arms
pressed to his sides to minimize wind resistance. "Speed up, Sonic!" she shouted
through her visor. She felt Sonic's strides become longer, and the wind roared
over her helmet and tore at her body. She ducked behind Sonic's head and closed
her eyes, knowing that falling off meant instant death.
Sonic knew that if he broke the sound barrier, the conflicting air currents
would break Sally's grip, so he kept his speed just under six hundred miles an
hour. Robo Knux was still there--Sonic could feel massive amounts of chaos
energy coming off him, and it conflicted with Sonic's field, twisting it and
making his fur prickle. Sonic thought he knew how Robo Knux operated--a
psychopathic assassin robot that attacked and killed as the mood struck. The
robot also had the latest in vernacular chips, and never missed an opportunity
to insult an opponent. It was unusual for him to attack in silence, but Sonic
had encountered him twice now, and Robo Knux had not said a word.
Sonic felt Sally's hands slipping, and grabbed her wrists. She wouldn't fall off
if he held on to her, so he accelerated through the sound barrier.
Even with afterburners at 110%, Robo Knux was no match for Sonic's speed, and
Sonic shot away into the dusk, vanishing from all of Robo Knux's instruments in
five seconds flat.
Sonic kept running, glorying in his superior speed and holding Sally's arms
around his neck to keep her from flying off. He flashed along dirt roads and
through fields, a cloud of dust rising in his wake and a sonic boom echoing
behind him. When he was certain he had lost Robo Knux, he began to slow down. He
had run south, and he glimpsed the sea on the horizon as he decelerated. Wow, he
had come two hundred miles in about eight minutes.
Night was settling in as Sonic jogged to a halt, hot and panting, wishing that
he didn't have to stop. "Sal, you still with me?" he asked, looking over his
shoulder. To his horror he saw her helmet was cracked, and she was hanging on
him like a sack of wheat. He knelt and let her slide to the ground, remorse
tearing at him. He knew he should have stayed below the sound barrier! He pulled
off her broken helmet and felt her throat for a heartbeat, and discovered with
relief that she was alive. She must have fainted. Sonic thought of the time that
his sister had fainted because he ran too fast, and kicked himself. "Hedgehog,
you're an idiot." He looked down at Sally for a moment, wondering what to do.
They needed shelter, especially if Robo Knux was still tracking them.
He stood up and peered along the coast. In the last of the twilight he spotted a
dark mass against the sky--maybe a farmhouse. Sonic picked up Sally with a grunt
and began walking.
Sonic's whirlwind race had not escaped the attention of the locals. A farmer
walking home was knocked into the ditch by a speeding object and the wind behind
it. A weather station logged an impossibly fast-moving object, and labeled it a
UFO. The radar maps were distributed on the human computer network, and
crackpots used it as proof of an impending alien attack. The tracking station
became the Mecca of UFO fanatics, who called the incident "Roswell Two".
But there were two individuals that evening that witnessed Sonic's flight, and
recognized it. They were rabbits, a male and female, both packing enough
firepower to dispatch a tank.
Eva jerked her rail gun to her shoulder to fire after the hedgehog, her ears
waving in the windy aftermath, but her husband seized the gun and forced it
down. "Don't," he said, staring after the plume of dust. "I know what that
was."
"It was the robot," said Eva, flinging her ears over her shoulder. "You know how
fast it is, and now I've lost my shot."
Her husband did not answer, but he gazed in the direction Sonic had gone with a
slow smile.
"What?" she asked.
"That was no robot," he said. "That was Sonic the Hedgehog."
"Who?"
"The guy who helped me put Devan Shell behind bars. If he's here, then something
big is going on."
Eva gazed at him. "You think he knows where Cream is?"
"He was sure in a hurry. He probably--" He was cut off as Robo Knux screamed by,
leaving behind the odor of overheated fusion core.
"Does that answer your question?" said Jazz, emptying thirty rounds in the
direction the robot had gone. Eva fired her rail gun as well, but they both
missed.
"Come on!" said Jazz. He sprinted after the robot, and Eva shouldered her
rail gun and followed.
Zephyer stole through the woods outside of Knothole, pausing once in a while to
listen. She didn't want to be followed, and she didn't want Knuckles to find out
what she was doing. Eagle's Nest had become stifling and cramped, and she had to
get out--and there was only one place she wanted to go.
A chain link fence loomed out of the darkness like a pale wall. Zephyer
unlatched the gate and slipped inside, closing the gate carefully to avoid
making a sound. Inside the fence was the crystal teleporter aimed for the
Floating Island, and Zephyer paused one last time to make sure she was alone
before stepping onto the lens.
The teleporter lit like a beacon, and she knew that if anyone was around, they
would see the flash and come running. But it was too late now--she was gathered
up, sucked through time and space, and set down on the receiver plate on the
island. She drew a deep breath as she stepped off the plate, and stood looking
at the stars behind the mountains in the island's center.
As far as she could see, it was pitch black. There were suggestions of hills and
trees against the night sky, but that was all. No sign of civilization. No
lights. Nothing but an empty, lonely island that Zephyer could disappear into,
away from the stresses of her life. Her ancestral home.
She crossed the road that led up to Chaotix Central, and climbed a low bank. A
gentle hill sloped up before her, dotted with trees and brush just putting out
new leaves. Zephyer climbed the hill, often looking over her shoulder at the
receiver plate. "Who do you expect to come after you?" she asked herself.
"Knuckles was busy. How could he possibly know where you are?" But she still had
the odd feeling that he knew.
She pushed on up the hill, fighting her growing fatigue and pausing every now
and then to look around. Her night vision was poor, for she had been in a
well-lit hut ten minutes ago, but her eyes were adjusting. She could make out
the shapes of the trees around her, and skirted them. She smelled the
bittersweet odor of palm flowers, and heard the murmur of moth wings as they
fluttered above her head. Zephyer wondered if there were any wild animals on the
island, and made a note to ask Knuckles sometime.
A restless bird chirped somewhere, and Zephyer stopped to rest and look around.
She had reached the top of the hill, and through a gap in the trees she could
see the moon rising above the mainland, which was only a ruffle along the
horizon. The island must be about thirty miles out to sea.
Her ears began to ring, and Zephyer knew she had pushed too hard. She sat down
on the grass and watched the moon rise, letting herself rest, and enjoying the
knowledge that nobody knew where she was, and that for the moment, she was her
own master. As a child she had found a tunnel with an opening into the main
cave, where the other echidnas gathered, and she would creep into her tunnel and
spy on them with the same feeling of smugness.
There was a flash from the teleporter receiver, and Zephyer jumped. How had he
KNOWN? She didn't get up, though. Knuckles knew she was on the island ... but he
would never find her unless she wanted him to. And she didn't want him to.
She watched the moon rise, slowly silvering a cloud that hung in the sky above
it, and wondered how Sonic and Sally were doing. They should be in Central
Mobius by now, and Zephyer wondered how close they were to finding a chaos
emerald. She also wondered if Sonic had the guts to propose to Sally, and
smiled. She bet he didn't. Not yet, anyway.
"Zephyer?" Knuckles called. He was at the foot of her hill. She looked toward
him and thought about answering, and decided she would. "Up here," she called.
She heard his feet crunching through the grass, and saw him reach the edge of
the trees and pause uncertainty. "Where are you?"
"Right here," said Zephyer, "watching the moon rise."
Knuckles spotted her, walked over and sat down beside her. "Whatever possessed
you to come out here at eight o'clock at night?"
"I had to come," said Zephyer. "I couldn't stay in Eagle's Nest one more minute.
Although you lucked out, this time. I was going to hike out and get lost on
purpose."
"I would have found you," said Knuckles. "I know every inch of this place."
"Are there any wild animals here?"
Knuckles thought for a moment. "Mostly I have birds, but there are lots of
little critters ... rodents and the like. Big predators are too dangerous to
keep around, but I understand there's a leopard on the west side."
"A leopard?"
"Yeah. I guess he swam ashore when I was taking on water one time. I'd hunt him
down if he acted up, but he seems to mind his own business. You know the
non-sentients--if they have enough food, they're happy."
There was a moment of silence. The moon was behind the cloud now, and the cloud
was rimmed in silver light.
"Any more reasons why you can't marry me?" said Knuckles.
"Yes, actually," said Zephyer, looking at him. "Why do you ask?"
He shrugged. "You hit me blindside with those reasons, and I wanted to go on the
offensive for once."
"Blindside?" Zephyer grinned. "I'll try to think of more, then."
"What's your current one?"
Zephyer plucked a grass blade and broke it into smaller pieces with her metal
fingers. "The Guardian's mate has to be approved by the elders. It's pretty
important who the Guardian marries, politically."
Knuckles shook his head. "Not politics again..."
"Well, it is!" said Zephyer. "Somebody has to look after the island's best
interests, and do you know anybody to approve me as a proper co-Guardian?"
"All of Knothole seems to like you," said Knuckles.
Zephyer waved a hand. "What do they know? And what about the initiation ceremony
with the Master Emerald? You can't have a mainlander perform THAT."
"My father will do that," said Knuckles quietly.
Zephyer gazed at him in silence. They both knew that Knuckles's father lived in
hiding somewhere, because he knew things about the power emeralds that must
remain secret forever. Knuckles communicated with him once a year.
Knuckles smiled. "He told me to give him a call when I decided to get married.
All he said was to make sure I'd picked the right girl."
Zephyer shook her head. "I'm not sure you have."
"I am," said Knuckles. He put an arm around her, but she pulled away. Rebuffed,
he asked, "Why do you do that?"
She glared at him, her eyes gleaming in the moonlight. "You see all this metal?
I hate it. Any time you touch me, I'm reminded that--that it'll never come
off."
"It WILL come off," said Knuckles. "Why don't you believe me?"
Zephyer stood up and walked a few paces into the trees. Knuckles rose and
followed her. She was crying. "I'm trying not to give up," she whispered, "but
it's so hard."
"Just hang on, Zeff," said Knuckles, taking her arm and guiding her back toward
the teleporter. "I won't let you down."
The dark object on the horizon was further away than it looked, and Sonic
carried the unconscious Sally for half a mile. As he neared the dark mass, he
realized it was an old fortress like a castle. There were no lights, so it must
be abandoned, but it was shelter. Sonic carried Sally through the archway and
into a courtyard, and peered around in the darkness. There were many vague
shapes and shadows. Sonic wished for a flashlight, and set Sally down in a
corner. "I'll be back," he whispered. He hated to leave her, but he needed his
hands free to explore.
Sonic crossed the courtyard and peered through an arch. The air smelled
closed-in, and it was pitch black. Maybe he would venture in later. He moved off
to investigate another passage, and heard echoes of the sea. He looked over his
shoulder toward Sally, and saw a strange figure silhouetted against the
courtyard.
Sonic gasped and jumped sideways inside the doorway, heart thundering. He had
heard nothing! "Who are you?" he called, watching the lighter patch of gray that
was the doorway. "I was only looking around." Maybe it was a hermit who had
adopted the fortress as his home. Sonic had heard people got eccentric living
that way. The person didn't answer. At least it wasn't Robo Knux--Sonic's chaos
field would be going haywire.
There was a click, and a green glow reflected off the walls. Sonic risked a peek
through the doorway and saw a fox's face inside a helmet lit by green instrument
controls. "Oh, you're a fox," said Sonic, stepping into view. "I'm Sonic."
The fox studied him for a long moment, then said, "Who is the girl? Is she
hurt?"
Good grief, he had found Sally! "Her name is Sally," said sonic. "She fainted
and I was trying to find shelter."
The fox said, "It is dangerous here. I am being tracked by an assassin robot,
and it could arrive at any time."
Sonic relaxed. An enemy of Robo Knux was a friend of his. "What a coincidence,
so am I. Red robot? Long claws?"
The fox nodded.
"That's Robo Knux, Mecha-bot four," said Sonic. "He was chasing me, too. I guess
we're on the same side." He extended a hand, and the fox shook it.
"Call me Destro." His glove was made of chain mail, Sonic noticed.
"Do you know a place where we can get indoors?"
"Yes," said Destro, walking away. Sonic followed him and saw a side room by the
glow of Destro's helmet. Inside it was a bed of leaves, and a small figure
curled up on them.
"Hey," said Sonic, lowering his voice. "You're the ones Robo Knux was chasing
this morning, aren't you?"
Destro gave him a hard look. "Are you the hedgehog who stopped him?"
"That's me," said Sonic, grinning.
"We're indebted to you," said Destro, bowing. "You may place your friend in
here. I will keep watch outside."
"Thanks," said Sonic, trotting out to get Sally.
She was lying where he had left her, her breathing slow and deep. Sonic
carefully lifted her, half-hoping she would wake up, but she merely sighed. His
spine creaking, Sonic carried her into the antechamber and laid her down next to
the sleeping rabbit. He stood there for ten minutes, unstrapping himself from
the harness, then stepped outside to join Destro.
The fox was sitting against the wall, a darker shadow in the darkness. "I will
keep watch," he said as Sonic sat down. "You may sleep if you wish."
"That's okay, I'm good," said Sonic, who wasn't ready to place his life in the
armored hands of this stranger. "Why's Robo Knux after you?"
Destro was silent a moment, then said, "He is hunting Cream, the rabbit."
"Why?" said Sonic. "Does she have a chaos emerald or something?"
"No," said Destro.
They sat in silence for ten minutes, and nothing happened. Sonic began to nod
off, and crawled into the room with the two sleepers. He curled up on the leaves
and went to sleep, making a mental note to wake up if Destro moved.
Sally awoke at dawn and found herself freezing cold, with a warm body snuggled
up against her. Upon closer inspection she saw it was a young rabbit with
enormous ears, with a chao sleeping in one of them. Sally sat up and saw Sonic
was snoring in the doorway of the room, and she could smell the sea.
She ached all over from Sonic's wild flight, and the last thing she remembered
was a sick euphoria as the roaring air created a vacuum inside her helmet. She
had thought her head was going to pop, then she blacked out.
When Sally moved, the rabbit stirred and stretched, and now lay looking at her.
"Hi," she said. "I'm Cream. Who are you?"
"I'm Sally Acorn," said the squirrel. "Where did you come from?"
"Where did YOU come from?" said Cream. "It was only Destro here when I went to
sleep. Did he let you come in?"
"I don't know," said Sally, standing up and wincing at her sore muscles. She
nudged Sonic with a toe. "Wake up, juggernaut. Where are we?"
Sonic rolled over and yawned. "Five more minutes, that's all."
"No, NOW," said Sally, prodding him harder. "Where are we?"
Sonic sat up and looked at Cream. "Oh, hi. I'm Sonic. Sally, we're in a castle
by the beach. It was the closest shelter I could find. Hey Destro, you still out
there?"
"Yes," came the fox's voice, and he stepped into sight, looking exhausted.
"Hey man, you look dead on your feet," said Sonic, getting up. "Did you sleep at
all?"
"I was keeping watch," said Destro stiffly.
Cream trotted to Destro and hugged him around the waist. "Good morning! Do you
think we can go home today?"
Destro stepped out of her grasp with a pained expression. "We'll see. The danger
is not past."
"I'll say," said Sonic. "Robo Knux is nuttier than ever, and he's got a weird
distortion around him."
Cream and Monty looked at Sonic. "What do you mean?" said Monty.
"Hey, a chao," said Sonic. "I like chao. Robo Knux makes me go all weird when he
comes close. I've never felt anything like it."
Monty and Cream exchanged glances. "Do you think he followed you?" asked Monty.
"Naw, I lost him when I broke the sound barrier," said sonic with a grin. "You
guys got anything to eat?"
"No," said Cream, Monty and Destro in unison. "But we can eat carrots," said
Cream. "There's lots of them in the fields."
"Carrots," said sonic with distaste. "I'll keep that in mind." He trotted out of
the courtyard.
Sally drew a deep breath. "I'm going to look around. Do you want to come?"
"I do!" said Cream. "I want to go to the beach! Come on, Destro!" She ran out of
the courtyard, and Sally followed with Destro trailing behind.
Sally walked to the cliff tops and gazed at the ocean. The tide was going out,
and a strip of sand was exposed at the foot of the cliffs. Cream walked beside
her with Monty toddling behind them. "Can we go down there?"
"If we can find a way down," said Sally. "Do you live around here?"
"I live in Carrotseed," said Cream, her strong ear standing up, then drooping
again. "We ran away because of the robot, and Destro rescued me and we ran all
the way down here. I saw Sonic attack the robot yesterday."
"Is that you we saw?" said Sally, marveling at the coincidence. "You must be
able to run fast."
"Destro uses his rocket pack when we need to go fast," said Cream, skipping a few
paces. "Hey, that looks like a trail over there." She pointed to a path snaking
down the cliff side.
Sally said, "You're right. Let's go."
The squirrel, rabbit and chao descended the steep path, dislodging pebbles that
rolled down ahead of them. The cliffs were twenty feet high, and the rock walls
were damp from the tide. Cream and Monty reached the sand first and ran toward
the water. Sally walked after them, holding the emerald tracker in one hand. The
cliffs formed a small cove, and unless the tide dropped lower, there was no way
out except by the trail. Sally glanced at the cliff tops and saw Destro watching
them. Such an odd bird. Sally had known some oddballs in her years as a Freedom
Fighter, and Destro did not worry her. He had rescued Cream from Robo Knux, so
he must have a good heart. Speaking of oddballs, where had Sonic gone? She
switched on the tracker.
She located Sonic several miles from their current position, cruising toward a
town on the coast. He was probably hunting for breakfast. Out of curiosity she
scanned for the green emerald, and picked it up back inland.
"Can I see that?" said Cream, appearing at Sally's elbow. Sally held it where
the rabbit could see it, and the screen shivered in Cream's interference. Monty
ran up beside his mistress, and the interference waned. "I'm not allowed to
touch computers," said Cream. "What's that stuff on the screen?"
"This tracks the chaos field," said Sally, wondering how much Cream would blab
later on. "This is Sonic, here. This is a chaos emerald, and this is you." She
tapped a blotch the size of the emerald, but more random.
"Wow, you can pick up my chaos field," said Cream. "What's that over there?" She
pointed at the screen and it flickered under her finger. "It looks like a
cinnamon roll."
A spiral of chaos energy was speeding toward their position, and it was twice
the size it had been yesterday. Sally's stomach lurched. "That's Robo Knux."
Suddenly the cove with its lapping waves seemed like a trap. "We need to get
back to the castle, quick."
Cream's eyes widened, and she ran for the trail, Sally right behind her. Monty
gave a cry and stared at the cliff tops, seeing something that other eyes could
not, and Sally felt the same blast of power that had knocked her down the
evening before. The tracker screen faded to static, and she staggered and fell
on the sand, feeling a sick disorientation. Cream was holding her ears, and
Monty was standing beside her, teeth bared.
Robo Knux blasted into sight and hovered above the cove, the jets in his
dreadlocks roaring. The air around him shimmered with a vague purple haze, and
Sally squinted through it, wondering if her eyes were deceiving her. Robo Knux
had changed from bright red to a dull maroon, his eyes were ice blue, and
painted on his forehead were a collection of geometric shapes.
"Is he the same robot?" Sally wondered in panic. Robo Knux was bad enough, but
an unknown was even worse. His head turned and his eyes focused on them, shading
back to green. It was him.
She saw Destro on the cliff behind the robot lower his visor, and Sally's
military-mind snapped into action. If Robo Knux charged them, he would collide
with the cliffs. Destro would do the same if he attempted a rescue. But maybe
she could distract Robo Knux long enough for Destro to rescue Cream. She could
use her tracker as a shield if she had to, and there was always the ocean, her
last defense against robots.
Sally ran under the hovering robot, waving and yelling, "Hey you! Bet you can't
get me!" What things did Sonic say in times like these? Not that it mattered;
Robo Knux was watching her, flexing his claws. She ran through the hot blast
from his jets, her feet churning the sand, and saw the light change as he dove
after her. Great, you've got his attention, now what do you do?
She looked back and saw him diving after her with his hands clasped in front of
him like a mace. The air around him shimmered with chaos power, and her nerve
failed. She dropped flat, and Robo Knux shot past her like a homing missile. She
jumped up in time to see him slow and spin around, feet touching the ground. She
had counted on him remaining airborne. On foot she had no hope at all. Why
didn't Sonic come back? She glanced at Cream in time to see Destro scoop her up
and rocket to safety.
Sally returned her gaze to her enemy as he ran at her, claws outstretched, eyes
a cold blue. He was so fast she had no time to shield herself with the
tracker--on instinct she threw out her hands.
Her hands closed on his razor-sharp claws, and time slowed to a crawl. The chaos
energy smote her a dizzying blow, and his diamond-tipped claws sliced her hands
like razors. She looked into the electronic eyes, and saw the madness there. Her
feet slipped backward through the sand. Still he drove forward, and still she
clung to the claws, holding them away from her. The chaos energy beat against
her body and mind, painful beyond enduring, whipping in a hurricane around and
around. Although Robo Knux had drawn it, it had nowhere to go, no natural
abilities to enhance, and could only swirl in a tighter and tighter vortex--
It seemed she had clung to his claws forever, being driven backward through the
sand with the fierce disjointed energy devouring her, her hands bleeding, unable
to let go or he would kill her-- She looked at him again and saw his head lift
and his eyes focus on her. He was surprised. "What are you doing?" he snarled,
each word coming slow and thick through the chaos field. "Why haven't I hurt
you?"
He tried to pull free, but Sally held his claws in either hand, not
understanding how she was doing it, but certain that if she let go he would run
her through. She found her footing and pushed him back, laboring through the
molasses that was time and space inside the field distortion. She was pushing
him back, and he was astonished. He struggled to break her hold, but her hands
remained clenched on his claws, her eyes burning. The spiraling, whirling chaos
energy began to center on Sally, sucking into her like filings into a magnet.
She was an outlet for the chaos charge Robo Knux had accumulated, and suddenly
she was a match for him.
Sally twisted and dealt the robot a karate kick between the eyes. Time snapped
back to normal, and the robot flew across the cove and smashed into the cliff
wall.
She looked at her hands and saw that his claws had laid them open in three neat
slices across her palms and fingers. Her hands hummed with the chaos charge, and
she felt the madness swirling inside her, threatening to overwhelm her mind. "Oh
my gosh, I'm turning into Robo Knux," she gasped as thoughts of blood and mayhem
poured into her head.
She sank to her knees, clutching her head with her torn hands, trying to think
clearly. The world was spinning as she tried to absorb the lethal amounts of
energy. The pain in her hands was the only thing in the world that was real.
They were bleeding. Behind her was the ocean. Maybe the shock of saltwater in
her wounds would wake her up. Fighting the mists, Sally rose and moved toward
the water, hands outstretched like a sleepwalker. She carried with her a
whirlwind of deadly chaos energy.
The clash had taken a split second in real time. Destro, Cream and Monty watched
in astonishment as Robo Knux charged at Sally, who caught him by the claws and
kicked him into the wall.
"How'd she do that?" gasped Cream.
"His tornado has split in two," said Monty, watching the chaos field in
disbelief. "It's an arc, one part on him, one part on her. This is really bad!"
"Cream," said Destro, "go back to the castle. You'll be safe there."
"I'm not afraid," said Cream, watching as Sally waded into the surf and bathed
her hands.
"That's not the point," said Destro through his teeth. "I must destroy the
robot, and you mustn't be hurt."
"Phooey," said Cream, pouting. "What do you think, Monty?"
The chao was gazing toward the castle. "I think you should do like he says."
"Double phooey!" said Cream.
"Run," said Destro, and the rabbit trotted sulkily back toward the castle.
Destro drew his sword. This was it, the reason the Lightgiver had drawn him to
this place. To make an end of the robot. And yet he hesitated. The Lightgiver
was asking him to wait a few minutes longer. Destro chafed, trembling in
eagerness for a fight, and waited on the cliff top.
"It's not fair," Cream complained as she walked to the castle entrance. Her
chaos field was moving in a circle around her in response to the robot's
cyclone, and Monty was frantically trying to stop it.
"It is too fair," he snapped. "The robot's chaos storm is affecting your field
and making it spin. Get inside the walls, quick."
"I wanted to see the robot and Destro fight!" said Cream, forgetting that the
last battle she had witnessed left her in tears for an hour afterward. Monty
didn't mention this. His field had little effect on hers, and hers was getting
stronger. It had nothing to do with her mood.
"Cream, you need to sit down and be very quiet," said Monty, his voice
trembling. But Cream was staring around the corner of the castle. "Daddy!
Mommy!" she shrieked and bolted toward them, dropping Monty.
A green rabbit and a butterscotch rabbit were peering into the castle courtyard
when their daughter flung herself upon them, screaming their names. Eva and Jazz
caught her up in a relieved hug, tears rolling down Eva's cheeks. Monty puffed
up to them a moment later, thankful to see that Eva was absorbing Cream's excess
energy.
"Where have you two been?" said Jazz, never one to show emotion for very long.
"And where's that berserker who was with you?"
"He's down at the beach fighting the robot," said Cream from her mother's arms.
"Something bad happened to Sally, and Destro's going to save her. He told me to
come back here so I couldn't watch. Isn't that awful?"
"Yes, just awful," said Jazz, shouldering his gun with a maniac glint in his
eyes. "I'll be back." He jogged around the castle corner.
He had been gone thirty seconds when there was a burst of air and Sonic appeared
in a cloud of dust. "Hi kiddo, this your mom?" he said. He shook Eva's hand.
"I'm Sonic, and I saved Cream from being made into butter."
"Sally's been attacked," said Monty. "By Robo Knux. Jazz went to help Destro
fight him."
Sonic's eyes widened, and he sprinted away in another rush of wind.
"Hey mom," said Cream, "if we go up on the battlements, we can watch!"
"I don't think so, young lady," said Eva. "You let your father handle this. Look
at you, you're filthy!"
"No baths," said Cream proudly. "Monty, what are you doing?"
The chao was tugging the hem of her dress. "Let's go in the castle, please," he
begged.
Just as they stepped through the gateway, a blast of chaos energy rocked it to
its foundations.
Sonic joined Jazz and Destro on the cliff top and looked down at Sally standing
knee deep in the water. Robo Knux was climbing to his feet. "What's Sally doing
down there?" said Sonic, aghast. "Sally, run!"
"She's drawn off part of the robot's chaos field," said Destro, running his
thumb along his sword's blade. "She appears hypnotized."
Jazz had his gun trained on Robo Knux, and he spoke without lifting his head.
"Chaos field? That's bad. Hello, Sonic."
"Hey, Jazz," said Sonic, still watching Sally. "What'd happen if I ran down and
carried her out?"
"You might attract the robot's attention," said Jazz, watching through his
sights as Robo Knux brushed sand off himself and strode toward Sally.
Sonic stiffened. "I've got my belt, they can't hurt me!" He swiped his hands
across the invisible belt around his waist, and his fur began to glow, colors
rippling through his spines. Jazz and Destro stared at him. Destro's armor
absorbed the power radiating off Sonic and recharged his batteries.
"You, sir, are a menace," said Jazz. "Your chaos field is nuts, and you're going
to interfere with them?"
"Watch me," said Sonic, and dove off the cliff.
Jazz and Destro exchanged glances, and Jazz cocked his gun. "When the robot
follows him, see how many limbs you can hack off."
Destro nodded.
Hyper Sonic flashed up to Sally and hovered above the water. "Sally!" he said.
Her pupils had contracted so far her eyes were solid blue. "Hi," she said. Her
hands were bleeding and her vest was stained where she had wiped them.
"Sally, I'll get you out of here, come on!" said Sonic, holding out his hands.
Sally looked at them, and with maddening slowness she shook her head. "Can't
touch," she said, smiling. "Kill you, kill me."
"What are you talking about?" said Hyper Sonic. "Robo Knux is coming!"
The robot was pacing toward them, his eyes ice blue. Sonic blinked--he had never
seen Robo Knux use a different color setting.
Sally watched him without interest. "Yes. Don't touch him. Kill you. The chaos
is strong ... it's so strong..."
Robo Knux stopped at the water's edge. Sonic felt his own chaos field warp and
twist, and a wave of dizziness struck him through his shield of invincibility.
Suddenly he was afraid. The last time had felt such raw uncontrolled power, he
had been the focal point of a chaos flux. He turned and grabbed Sally.
The world shattered into a million colored pieces. Sonic was outside the walls,
careening bodiless through space, gawking at the fragments--then he opened his
eyes and the world fell into place again. He was lying on the sand next to the
cliffs, and the wall above him was crumbling where he had struck it. A rumble
like thunder was still fading into the distance as the immense wave of power
traveled over the countryside. Groaning, Sonic sat up and realized he was no
longer glowing. Sally and Robo Knux were standing at the seaside, watching him
with bland curiosity.
Sonic climbed to his feet, knees shaking. He felt weak and drained as if he had
taken an electric shock. Had Sally done that to him? He checked his emerald belt
to make sure it was still there, and plodded back toward the ocean, where Sally
and Robo Knux waited for him. He glanced up at Destro and Jazz, who were just
picking themselves up and looking confused.
Robo Knux motioned at Sonic. Sally waded out of the water, eyes blank. She
walked toward Sonic like a puppet on strings, and Sonic froze. That wasn't the
Sally he knew. "Sally," he called, "what's the matter with you?"
She smiled and extended a hand. "Rescue me, Sonic."
He backed away from her, eyes wide. "He's controlling you through the field,
isn't he?"
Sally frowned and closed her eyes. For a second she swayed, then she looked up
again, and her eyes were normal. Then her pupils contracted into blank blue. Ice
blue. Like Robo Knux's.
Sonic clenched his teeth and said, "Sally, give me your hand." He wasn't Hyper
this time, and nothing was going to make a salve out of Sally. She held out her
hand, and he snatched her up, ignoring the chaos fields, and ran for the path
that led up the cliff. Robo Knux ignited his jets and pursued, throwing up an
arm to ward off the bullets from Jazz's gun.
Up on the cliffs, Jazz cursed. "D'Arvit! The caliber is too small!"
Destro ran to the top of the cliff path and waited, sword held ready. Sonic
reached the top of the cliff, wheezing. Destro pointed at the castle. "Get her
in there. The walls are shielded." Sonic nodded and dashed away just as Robo
Knux flew to the top of the cliffs, claws extended. Destro sprang forward and
swung his sword with all his strength.
Robo Knux was knocked to the ground, two of his dreadlock-jets sliced and
pouring smoke. The robot snarled and cursed at Destro, backing away. Destro
strode toward him, but Robo Knux turned and fled up the coast. Destro ignited
his jetpack and followed him.
When Sonic carried Sally into the castle courtyard, Monty screamed and hid
behind Cream. A chaos distortion was centered on Sally like a black wound,
leaking power in all directions, and a cord snaked out of it, over the wall and
out of sight.
Sonic laid Sally on the ground and knelt beside her. Eva and Cream hurried up to
them. "What's wrong?" asked Eva. "Did that fiend hurt her?"
"No, Jazz didn't hit us," said Sonic. "She's caught in Robo Knux's chaos
field."
Cream shoved her chao forward. "Any ideas on what to do?"
"She--she--" Monty stuttered, then hid his face against Cream's leg.
Sally sat up and shook her head. Through the wavering mess that was the chaos
distortion, she could see everyone else's chaos fields like glowing auras.
Sonic's was red and violet--angry and frightened. Cream's was a cheerful yellow,
and Monty's was soothing blue. Eva had no field, and Sally watched as her own
dark field was sucked into her. Somewhere out there, Robo Knux was laughing. It
frightened Sally--he was planning to return for her.
"I never knew the lovely power of chaos," he whispered in her ear. "And what
better way to drive Sonic mad than to pour my power into you until you die? You
have a strong mind, but you are neutral to chaos." It was the same mesmerizing
voice that had held her prisoner down on the beach when she so desperately
wanted to run.
"He's going to kill me," she said to Sonic.
"I know he tried to kill you, but you're safe now," said Sonic.
Eva said, "Sally, you need to sit quietly. The distortion will abate."
Sally nodded and took deep breaths, trying to stay calm. But Robo Knux was still
there. "You can't break out of it that easily," he sneered. "Wouldn't it be
funny if I started pushing power into you right now, while they were all
watching? Actually, that's a good idea. I think I'll do that."
She felt the field strengthen, squeezing her like a giant hand.
Monty said, "It's getting worse. She's scaring me!"
"He's trying to kill me," said Sally to Sonic. "He's pumping power into me."
Eva sat down beside her and took her hands. "I absorb chaos energy ... maybe I
can buffer it." At her touch, Sally felt the pressure weaken. Presently Monty
ventured up and placed his paws on her knee. The pressure weakened more, and
Sally felt Monty's comfort. "The field's shrinking," said Monty.
Jazz appeared in the entrance, his gun slung over his shoulder. "What's going
on?" he asked. Sally could see his chaos field, rippling and green, more
controlled than Sonic's.
"They're sucking up Sally's chaos distortion," said sonic, talking so fast Sally
had to sort out his syllables. "Robo Knux is linked to her and he's trying to
kill her."
Cream ran to Jazz and hugged him, and he hugged her back without seeing her. "I
don't get how a robot could attract chaos," he said, leaning his gun against the
wall. "It's a machine. Chaos destroys machines."
"He's sure using it somehow."
"It, not 'he'," said Jazz. "Machines don't have genders."
Sonic bristled, already on edge from seeing Sally endangered. "The Mecha-bots
have programmed genders. They're male."
"They're stinking robots!" snapped Jazz.
"Robo Knux is laughing at both of you," said Sally. "He says he doesn't care
what you call him, because he's going to kill me and win."
Jazz and Sonic looked at her. "How do we stop it?" said Sonic.
"We have to stop the robot," said Jazz. "And the only way the robot could be
harnessing such power is if it had a chaos emerald."
Sonic and Sally looked at each other. "Sonic," said Sally, "remember how the
signal kept changing and moving around? Whenever we got close to it, Robo Knux
would show up!"
"But his signal was in a different place," said Sonic.
Sally thought for a minute. "No," she said slowly. "I was picking up a ghost
signal. I was tracking it from where Robo Knux had been, but when we reached the
area, he had already left the area. That's why the signal kept moving around."
"But it's the green emerald," said sonic, forgetting about Jazz. "Why would it
cause a distortion?"
"It's the way he's using it," said Sally. "He's sucking the global field into
himself, and it can't enter his body because he's a machine, so it just spirals
and tangles."
Sonic smacked a fist into his palm. "Great. Now we have something to go on. Robo
Knux has the emerald, so if we get it away from him, the distortion will go
away. Right?"
"Hopefully," said Sally. Eva and Monty had absorbed so much of the distortion
that she felt normal, but the connection to the robot was still there, and he
was listening. "He's heard everything," she added.
"Tell him I dare him to fight me," said Sonic, eyes flashing. "Single combat,
chaos field to chaos field."
Robo Knux said nothing. Sonic watched Sally, who shook her head.
"What's the matter?" said Sonic. "Chicken?"
"He's mocking me," Robo Knux growled in Sally's ear. "I'll kill you both."
A surge of power blasted into Sally, and she shrieked. Eva was knocked to the
ground, and Monty jumped away from her. "He's trying to kill me!" Sally gasped.
She felt as if a million tons of lead was pressing down on her. Monty the chao
climbed into her lap, trembling. He put his paws on her chest and closed his
eyes, exerting all his strength to slow the flow of power. He pushed it out into
a spiral, as much as he hated to--if Sally was in the eye of the chaos storm,
the power would cause less harm to her. She held him, conscious of Robo Knux's
furious flight up the coast, shoving his power at her.
Sonic hovered nearby, wanting to help Sally but not daring. Touching her meant
setting foot in that chaos distortion and seeing the world explode into
fragments again, a netherworld that he might not return from a second time. But
Sally was suffering, and as Eva scrambled back to grab Sally's hands, and Jazz
stepped outside to watch for robots, Sonic hated himself for his fear. Sally had
become this way trying to save Cream, when he himself had bee off touring the
countryside. She had fought Robo Knux hand to hand, and Sonic, who had faced
down certain death before, could not summon the courage to comfort the girl he
loved.
He pushed forward and clasped her free hand. Sally looked up and smiled, but her
eyes had taken on that hollow look he had seen before. "Stay with us, Sal," he
said. He looked down at her hand and turned it over. The angry red cuts shocked
him, and the cut on her palm was still bleeding.
"I grabbed him by his claws," said Sally, looking at her hand. "It was silly of
me."
"It was very brave," said Eva. "You were unarmed."
"I should have been there," said Sonic. "We can't even bandage your hands!" His
chaos field added to Sally's distortion, making the distortion more powerful.
"Honey," said Eva, "you're making it worse."
Sonic released Sally and stormed out of the courtyard, hating chaos and
everything that went with it.
Jazz was standing with his gun resting on the ground, peering up and down the
coastline. Sonic stamped up to him. "If not for you this wouldn't have
happened."
Jazz gave him a sharp look. "I'm lucky I got here when I did. You're the one who
left his girlfriend all alone."
Sonic's retort was interrupted by the roar of a rocket, and Destro flew up and
landed. There were two deep cuts across his upper arm, and his breastplate had
been pared open like an aluminum can. He staggered as he landed and leaned on
his sword. "He's coming. He's injured, but he was too fast for me. I need to
recharge."
"Thanks, we can handle him," said Sonic. "Where is he?"
Destro pointed.
Robo Knux rounded the far corner of the castle and stood looking at them. His
chest had opened to expose a cylinder with three rocket heads protruding from
it. Jazz leveled his gun on the robot, but held his fire. Robo Knux didn't move,
and there was a tense thirty seconds as they stared at each other.
"What do you want?" Sonic said at last.
"You challenged me," said the robot. "Chaos field to chaos field."
"Still want to do it?"
Robo Knux nodded. Two of his dreadlocks were missing.
Sonic glanced at Jazz and Destro. "Go into the castle, guys." They moved away,
keeping their eyes on the robot.
They were halfway to the castle when Robo Knux fired a rocket at them. Jazz
bolted for cover with Sonic-esque speed, and Destro ignited his jetpack and flew
straight up. Sonic dodged away, and the rocket blew a fiery hole in the ground.
Sonic charged through the smoke at Robo Knux, but the robot had vanished. Sonic
kept moving, glancing into the courtyard to make sure the others were all right,
when a wave of dizziness struck him. Robo Knux flashed out of nowhere and rammed
Sonic with the flat of his arm, and Sonic went flying.
He landed on one knee, bounded to his feet without bothering to see how much fur
he had scraped off, and whirled to face his enemy. He was just in time to dodge
a swipe from diamond-tipped claws that would have sliced him like an apple, then
took a kick to the stomach that knocked him into the castle wall.
Winded, Sonic forced himself to his feet and ran, gasping. When Robo Knux was
close enough for hand to hand combat, his chaos field twisted Sonic's so much
that Sonic lost his bearings.
As he ran, Robo Knux slid open panels on his arm to reveal a plasma cannon,
which he had been charging for two days. The robot took aim at Sonic's fleeing
figure and fired.
Sonic changed directions in mid-stride as a bolt of ultra-heated plasma flashed
past him and ignited the grass. Sonic dodged away, his only consolation being
that Robo Knux was firing away from his friends.
This same thought seemed to occur to Robo Knux. He turned and aimed his cannon
at Sally, Eva, Cream and Monty.
"Is there nothing you won't do?" Sonic yelled.
Robo Knux made a pretense of stroking his chin in thought. "Let me think. No."
Sonic started toward him, and Robo Knux said, "By all means, keep moving
forward. I can kill them in two shots."
Sonic froze.
Under the cover of the castle wall, Jazz held Eva's homemade rail gun, watching
the power meter as it charged. "Get them back here," he hissed to Destro, who
beckoned to the girls. Cream dashed to him, and Eva rose, helping Sally.
Robo Knux watched them. "Go ahead, leave. I have Sally too well ensnared." As he
spoke, Sally froze and her eyes unfocused.
Eva planted herself in front of the squirrel. "Leave her alone, you fiend!"
Robo Knux looked at her and his eyes flashed. "Maybe I'll kill you, too. Seeing
as you're the green rabbit's mate."
Sally had observed this skirmish from within her distortion, listening to Robo
Knux's muttered curses and exclamations as he fought with Sonic. Poor Sonic, out
there fighting for her! She had to do something, and she couldn't let Robo Knux
take Eva hostage.
Now, as Robo Knux held her and Eva in his crosshairs, Sally took matters into
her own hands. She stepped forward, keeping her face blank. It wasn't hard to
do, for the distortion was doing its best to wipe her mind.
"Sally!" Sonic shouted. "Sally, what are you doing?"
Sally ignored him, concentrating on her zombie stare. Robo Knux watched her.
"Yes, come to me," he purred in her ear. "Together our chaos fields have the
power to blow this castle into the sea."
She felt their chaos fields strike and merge, and hesitated as the silent blast
of power threatened to make her faint. She pushed forward anyway, and stepped up
to the robot's side. He turned his gun on Eva, who was standing there with her
mouth open.
Sally's skin crawled as she stood beside Robo Knux and looked at the scratches
in his paint, the patches on his body, and the fine seams where his outer hull
could fold open to reveal weapons. The chaos field was so strong she felt like
she was being pulled apart at the seams, and spots swam in front of her eyes. If
he had a chaos emerald, it must be embedded inside his body.
She felt a touch on her ankle and looked down. Monty the chao had followed her,
and was shivering beside her foot. She picked him up stiffly.
"A chao," said Robo Knux. "How about I sharpen my claws on it?"
Monty talked fast. "There's something powerful inside his chest and Jazz has a
rail gun so step aside."
Sally took two steps backward, and a projectile traveling above the speed of
sound punched through Robo Knux as if he was made of paper.
"Clever," said the robot, picking himself up and looking at the hole through his
torso. "However, the last time Sonic did that, I moved my internal core down six
inches, so all you've done is provide me with an extra cooling vent."
But through the four-inch hole Sally could see the green glow of a chaos
emerald.
"You know what?" Robo Knux continued, turning to look at Sonic, "I'm really
peeved at you, so I'm going to kill your girlfriend to teach you a lesson." He
held his gun to Sally's face.
Sally sprang forward, slid her hand through the hole into Robo Knux's hot
interior, seized the emerald and wrenched it free, adding new cuts to her
already gashed hand.
Robo Knux slammed her to the ground and grappled with her, trying to take the
emerald from her, and around them the chaos field went haywire, a whirlwind of
dust swirling into view, growing stronger and darker the longer they fought.
Sonic and Jazz struck the robot at the same time, one with a spindash, the other
with the butt of his gun. They knocked Robo Knux off Sally and beat him toward
the cliffs, moving so fast that they looked like a second whirlwind. Sally lay
where she had fallen, holding the emerald to her chest and nursing her hand.
Monty stood near her, gazing raptly at the emerald.
At the edge of the cliff Robo Knux broke free of Jazz and Sonic, leaped into
space and ignited the jets in his dreadlocks. "I'm not finished with either of
you," he snarled, and roared away.