S. Chensu: For once, an episode that's up on time!
Luff: Yeah, it's a miracle…
S. Chensu: And only five more left to go! So let's get on with it and do replies!
Yami and Mai- Royal subjects? How rude! Anyway, it's good to care for your mobile, especially if they have a vibration option… And 50? Only in his wildest dreams! Doesn't he like the extra two zeros at the end of the number signifying his age/5000/. And /ratty boy/ can get it up by Tuesday, look! Chen loves the riddle, it's so cool! We've just been watching your tape of YGO episodes and we're freaked out by mind controlled Joey and Marik. Well Chen didn't quote it, Luff did. It was her episode after all. She probably did though; she can't do anything of her own that's original! And we got a review about Yami being grumpy and asking if Bakura could solve it. By the way, he says he'd love to. And you and Yugi having fun? With the vibrating mobile just out of interest?
the funk master- You still haven't found it? I'm surprised the predators don't want to eat it actually but if /they/ can't find it…
Dragon Master Naya- It's Eggman's theme song! We forgot to mention they all have theme songs for this story and everyone's done theirs now apart from Sonic. But his will be the next episode. It's another one of Chen's personal favourites…
Snow-the-hedgehog- Thankies for another review and yes, the lampposts were a bit of light humour. And you're in luck because the update is today!
S. Chensu: We don't own any of this stuff as usual, apart from what you know about.
Luff: Today the group finally get back together which means…
S. Chensu: The crisis between Knuckles and Rouge is finally solved!
Luff: Wahoo!
Episode thirty-three: Metal vs. the Genuine ThingRouge was surprised, she truly was. In front of her was a room that was big but seemed cosy at the same time, maybe due to the fire burning brightly in the corner, blankets surrounding it. She wrapped one around herself and then started to walk around the room, thinking about what could happen now.
I hope the others come here soon, for some strange reason I know they're close and it would be nice to know they're all ok. Especially Knuckles… The memory of the fight they had had flashed through her mind and she cringed as she remembered how she hadn't understood that Knuckles needed her with him. No, instead she had totally ignored what they had gone through together, only thinking about how she felt.
Rouge sat down in front of the fire, lulled by its warmth, the thought suddenly occurring to her that she hadn't had anything to eat or drink recently. She felt weak and sleepy; especially after all of the running she had had to do. She stared at the flames, feeling them envelop her like a pair of arms and wishing, in her heart that Knuckles was here so that she could tell him that…
"ST!" Rouge jumped up at the yell and spun around, afraid of what she would see. What she didn't expect was to see Tails lying on the floor, twitching in pain every couple of seconds.
"Tails, language!" He twisted to stare at her in amazement and she laughed nervously, not thinking he really wanted to hear something like that when it looked like he had just crunched into the ground. "Are you ok?" She ran over and helped him to sit up, him wincing as he did so.
"Yeah, I just didn't expect to fall right from the ceiling. It could have dropped me off at the ground instead of leaving me up there." He said and she frowned at his words.
"What? How did you get here?"
"Well basically I had to go through a desert and then swim in a river and I ended up outside this building. I got in by answering the riddle and there was a ball of light. I touched it and I ended up here, feeling like I've broken several bones." He grinned as she laughed, rubbing his head.
"You saw a ball of light? Weird, I saw one too. It helped me fight the dragon out there." Rouge commented.
"What dragon? I didn't see one!"
"You didn't? But it was really big; it filled up the whole building. It wanted to burn me to death but there was a light and it helped me get through. I thought I recognised it but I don't know any balls of light…" Rouge mentally hit herself, realising how stupid that had sounded. But Tails seemed to nod in agreement.
"I know what you mean. All the way here I've been helped by people and I do know them from somewhere." Rouge smiled in thanks at his words when she saw him shivering slightly.
"Hey, you're cold…" She helped him up and they moved over to the fire where she placed a blanket over his shoulders. "It must have been from swimming in the river…"
"Yeah, I didn't get a chance to dry myself off properly." They sat together in silence until yet another body appeared in the room, although this time it was nearer to the ground.
"Is it over yet?" The voice said wearily and Tails turned around in happiness: it was Marie! Dropping the blanket on the floor, he ran up to her and hugged her tightly while Rouge watched sadly. Why wasn't Knuckles here yet?
"I never forgot you…" Tails murmured and Marie smiled, blushing slightly.
"Me neither." They let go of each other when they remembered that Rouge was still there and looked at her sheepishly.
"Don't worry, I'm glad that you two are happy." She said sincerely and they smiled in thanks before they sat once more by the fire. Rouge however remained standing, waiting anxiously for Knuckles' return.
Another bright flash was seen and Rouge turned around, hoping that he had finally arrived. When the light dimmed though, it was obvious it wasn't Knuckles, especially as the person was lying on the ground, butt up in the air.
"Hmm, not exactly a smooth landing eh Eggman?" She said, trying to stop herself from bursting into laughter but it /was/ funny, seeing Eggman with his fat butt waving around, looking like he had gone crazy with spit around his mouth.
"Don't start Rouge, I am not in a good mood after just being dumped on a stone ground." He sat up, face red and squashed before his head flopped forward, a groan escaping from his mouth. "Remind me to not touch anything which doesn't have any obvious means of support or glows without a source of electricity again." He mumbled before sitting up straight again.
"I think there are a lot of strange things in this place, things that don't seem physically possible." Tails pointed out and Eggman glanced over, seeming to notice him and Marie for the first time.
"Huh, finally got together I see…" He commented neutrally, causing Tails and Marie to blush, although they didn't deny his words. They didn't confirm them either though. "Talking of getting together, what about you and Knuckles? Are you going to try and sort that out at some point?"
"At some point." Was all Rouge replied, suddenly feeling down again after being temporarily lifted by Eggman's landing, or rather, a lack of it. Marie noticed this and moved closer to Rouge.
"Come on Rouge, don't be sad, I know you two are going to get back together…" She said optimistically but all Rouge could do was pull her knees to her chest and shiver slightly.
"I know but I want him now…" She said quietly, sobbing as her voice cracked. "I miss him so much and I bet he doesn't even care! It's all my fault!" She wailed, tears pouring down her face but for once she didn't care who saw how she felt, she just wanted-
"No Rouge, it's not your fault, don't ever say that." She heard a low voice behind her but didn't reply to it, her mind too hazy to make any connections. "I've always cared about you…" They murmured, placing two strong arms around her, protecting her from everything that was happening.
Knuckles stared down at the weeping form in front of him, his heart breaking at the sight, the damage he had caused her. He pulled Rouge closer to him, rocking her back and forth, waiting for her to realise it was him. He felt her move and looked down just as she looked up, their eyes meeting and for a moment, nothing happened. Then he saw a spark in them, like life had been returned to her and as she put her arms round him and their lips met, Knuckles never wanted to let go.
"I'm sorry…" He murmured, as they broke apart, hugging each other tightly. "I tried to be as quick as I could."
"What happened?" She asked as they shifted themselves so that she was sitting in his lap, leaning against his chest.
"I had to escape an avalanche but ended up in it until a winged person saved me." As he said this, Rouge felt him shiver and she took a blanket lying next to her and draped it over his shoulders. "Thank you."
"I'm not going to let you get ill, I've only just got you back." She replied in determination, smiling as he wrapped some of it around her too.
While all of this had been going on, the others had moved away slightly, wishing them privacy. They stared around the room, there seemed to be no obvious means of escape apart from a door. There was no clue as to what was supposed to happen now until Eggman spotted something in the furthest corner from them. He walked over and was surprised to see an array of various foods, seemingly edible and he taking a roll hesitantly, he ripped it open and smelt it before deciding it looked all right and stuffing it in his mouth.
Finally, some food! I haven't eaten for what seems like years! He exclaimed mentally, eating the rest of the roll. He heard footsteps near him and saw Tails and Marie standing nervously behind him.
"Is that food?" Tails asked faintly and Eggman nodded his head. Seeing Marie's strange look, he explained. "I was in this desert and surrounded by food but I couldn't eat any of it. That was harsh…" He said the last bit to himself and Marie shook her head, wondering how some people could be so melodramatic.
"We should take some of it over to the fire, maybe Knuckles and Rouge want something to eat." She suggested and nodding their heads in agreement, they gradually made their way back to the other corner, food in their arms, which Rouge and Knuckles met with cheerfully.
"I am quite hungry now I think about it." Rouge commented.
The group had finished eating and not thinking of much else to do, decided to get some well deserved rest. Knuckles and Rouge snuggled up together, thankful that they had this chance to be with each other until whatever was supposed to happen happened. They didn't talk about the conversation they had had before they left the others, both nervous that if they discussed it, more problems would arise. It would be left until afterwards, when they were back in a normal place, surrounded by normal things…
They all dozed off one by one; unaware of the glowing red eyes watching them, waiting until they were in the deepest slumber to attack and finish off those who would help those destined to destroy the master…
CRASH!
"Argh!" Marie screamed, the sound waking her up and causing her to become frightened. She thought it was going to end…
"What the hell is going on?" Rouge grumbled as she sat up, only to notice for the first time the glowing eyes. And their source… "It's you again!" The robot nodded its head and the light in the eyes was concentrated into the pupils, making it even more eerie than before.
"Yes, it is I! I was telling the truth when I said we would meet again. Except this time you will feel my full wrath and suffer the consequences of getting in my master's way along with all your other friends!"
Other things stepped out from the shadow and it was like they were looking in the mirror, faced by metal versions of themselves. The rest of the group had stood up by this point, making various exclamations apart from Marie, who just felt a growing sense of panic. How had she managed to get involved in this and why was there a copy of her standing there, staring at her like that?
"Do you think we will let you defeat us when you took our friends?" Knuckles yelled and the fake Rouge turned to him, seeming to be only one that could speak.
"Oh but that's where you're wrong, dear Knuckles. It wasn't us who took your friends… And as for your question…yes, you will be defeated. Not only that, you will be annihilated…"
It dodged forward, heading for Rouge as the other metal versions did the same for their person. Soon Knuckles and Rouge were exchanging blows with the impostors, having enough skill to look after themselves and even Tails was getting by but Eggman and Marie were in trouble. Eggman had always relied on robots or his Hornet when it came to fighting and Marie had never so much as raised a fist to someone before, let alone fight for her life.
"Help me!" She screeched as the robot got close enough to swipe her face, causing her to reel away. "I don't know what to do…" She sobbed, now a quivering mess on the floor, trying to scrabble away from the threat in front of her.
"I'm coming Marie!" She recognised the voice but it wasn't coming from any of the people in this room. A roaring sound filled her ears and she squinted at the noise until she saw who was standing in front of her. Or rather, what was.
A shot of fire was making its way through the room, attacking everything and Marie cried out in pain, feeling the sting of her skin burning. Another voice was yelling out, trying to calm down the flames and they seemed to subside slightly from Marie and the others, concentrated on the robots until screaming was heard, the metal being ripped and torn apart. Little soon remained, piles of flowing liquid and powder the only evidence they had existed.
She turned her focus to the two people standing in the middle of the room; well one of them was standing anyway. The other was sitting on the ground, breathing deeply as though trying to get control of her mind. Did they cause the flames?
"Wait, are you the ones who have been helping us?" Tails asked, stepping towards them nervously, still not sure if they were friendly or not.
"That Tails, I think is obvious." The one who was standing up replied. She stared at them with her deep brown eyes while they looked over her, taking in the purple top and cream trousers, the boots and the tail and horns.
"Why do you have a tail?"
"And horns?" Knuckles and Rouge asked, blushing in embarrassment when they realised how rude their questions sounded.
"Perk of having to look slightly menacing…" She shrugged her shoulders before kneeling down beside the other figure. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, just a bit shaken. I didn't mean to lose control like that…" They now turned to this girl, her black wings taking up most of their sight although they glimpsed more purple and black. She twisted to look at them, allowing them to see her cherry hair and purple eyes. "I'm sorry, are any of you hurt? From the fire I mean?" When they all said no she smiled and stood up.
"Well that's good."
"Err, this may sound rude but…who are you?" Marie asked and they glanced at each other, laughing at the same time.
"Sorry, I can imagine you're confused at the moment. My name is Shaylea, and this is my good friend and fellow helper Kensa." The winged one replied, bowing dramatically and getting an elbow in the side in return from Kensa.
"Please ignore her, she's delusional most of the time." Kensa commented and she sat down while Shaylea pouted at her.
"I am /not/ delusional…" She muttered. The others followed their lead, waiting for them to say more about themselves. When it soon became obvious they weren't going to, Marie asked them another question.
"Why are you helping us?"
"Because Sonic and Shadow aren't the only prisoners here. The master is angry and we have to stop him, he wants to do bad things to you and everyone else who is like yourself…" Shaylea answered coyly, looking down into her lap.
"Yes, one of you said something like that to me. What is so special about us?" Eggman said.
"You're heroes, all of you. Yes, even you and Marie. All heroes have something inside of them that the boss can pick up on, he feeds off it, and it makes him stronger. You have to stop him before he carries out his plan to take over the world, using the power of all champions in order to do so." Kensa explained eagerly, knowing there could be problems with trying to get them to help. Some of them were less trusting than others…
"There are other people in the world? Who?"
"You met some of them while looking for Shadow. Everyone you met would be affected, and more. You have to help us, please." She said desperately, her powers telling her that someone was close and it wasn't Gregg, which meant it could only be someone bad…
"Of course we will but we want to see Sonic and Shadow. Can you take us to them?" Knuckles said and Kensa nodded, standing up.
"Yes but we have to hurry, someone is coming…" They all looked around in alarm at her words while Shaylea tried to pull them into a standing position. "I need you to hold hands so I can teleport us all away from here, it's the only way to get out."
They hesitantly did as she said, Knuckles and Rouge squeezing each other for reassurance and once they were all in place, Kensa closed her eyes and they felt a familiar sensation, as though they had touched a ball of light…
S. Chensu: Oh yeah, we're on a roll! To get this thing quickly finished before schoolwork becomes a real issue (I've got my A-Levels and Luff has her GCSEs, very important exams) as I'm retaking a few exams, I'm doing episode 34 for Saturday.
Luff: And I'm doing 37 on Sunday while Chen is at work. If you're wondering why 37 it's because it's very long and it's going to take at least a day to do.
S. Chensu: Plus if we write it early it means we can do a final grammar and spelling check on all the other episodes before it gets posted up. And while Luff is doing 37, I'll be doing 35.
Luff: Let's just say it will be done soon, honestly! But thank you for sticking with us, those who have been there since the beginning and hopefully the ending will be up to scratch.
S. Chensu: As for today, we realise the battle was short and the ending was…limp to say the least but episode 34 is sort of a continuation.
Luff: But until Saturday, please review! They've been a bit rare recently and we want to know there are still readers out there.
S. Chensu: Byesie bye!