Chaos: Well, we're going on holiday for the next week so...here's an extra-long chapter! Six pages! Now don't say I never do anything for you lot. (smiles)
Kirbs - Well, don't! I hate forwards, I keep thinking I have more reviews! (meaningful look) Oh, and I won't kill Sonic, don't you worry...not saying I won't hurt him a bit...a lot...(evil cackle)
SD - Thanks! And yes, Mecha really does hate Sonic a LOT, doesn't he?
Spawn - Wow, you don't threaten me anymore! And look, a longer chapter! Hehehe.
Tarem - Show Mecha who's boss? You bet Sonic will! Or...won't...well, somebody will, but I'm not saying who. Somebody...paticularly close to Sonic. You will see!
Mitsuka - (thumbs-up) Glad you like! And thanks again you the fan piccy!
Dark Thorn, huh? Oh, I mean...Espina - Nice name...dark thorn. Sounds mysterious. Like mine. Only, of course, mine doesn't really apply...(sweatdrop) You like Tails? Well, he's not really in this chapter...but he has a much bigger part in the next, and the one after that...and, I think, the one after that...
NM - You should be worried for Sonic! If you're really worried I would...maybe not read this chapter. Ah, who am I kidding? As for Espio...yeah! Go, Espio! (I wish I could put smilies here...)
el - Well, not quite...lets say Mecha will fight Sonic. In that order. Ah, just read...
Mythica - Hooray! Everybody loves Espio! Good thing I didn't Robotize him, huh? Hmm...(plots) Espio must get into MORE tricky situations...MWA HA HA!!!
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
It was only a short while before the group reached the control room, meeting a pleased Espio along the way. The chameleon was greeted with much enthusiasm, and commanded to tell his story later.
Eggman was nowhere to be seen, but the room itself was interesting, to say the least. It was circular, with a raised seat in the middle, and almost all the walls were covered with video screens, which flickered continuously, showing only static.
Tails knew what he had to do, and ran to the controls. After a couple of minutes quick typing, he cried agonisingly, "It wants a password! Help me out here, guys."
As they crowded round the monitor, Sonic backed away and went to watch the screens. They were all flickering differently, and it was hypnotizing. He couldn't look away. Even the voice had droned away, an odd crackling in its place.
Behind him red eyes glowed.
In one sleek movement Mecha leaped forward and sank his claws into Sonic's neck. Sonic's eyes flickered in shock, static patterns instantly forgotten. He tried desperately to make a sound, but all that came out was a small, choked gargle from beneath the metal, sound filters destroyed by Mecha's claws.
The robot silently heaved him backwards out of the room, almost purring with glee.
He was pulled swiftly around several corners before instinct kicked in and he started swiping backwards, claws rebounding off Mecha's metal. Then he was swung round and smashed into the wall with a blow that almost knocked him senseless.
A strong arm held him in place, and Mecha's red eyes burned into his own like a mirror image. "You dare to cross me!" the robot hissed, "I will tear you apart, Ssssonic!" Then he heaved his claws at Sonic's head.
His claws sliced easily through the metal, and he heaved away a large section on Sonic's face, ripping wires from his face. The hedgehog cried out in pain, not noticing that his voice was no longer an emotionless recording.
Mecha looked at the blue hedgehog under the metal, and snarled. Ssssonic...he had almost forgotten what he was really like. He should have killed him from the start! He went into a frenzy, swiping like a mad animal.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
It was at that point that Tails relinquished the computer monitor in despair, and looked around. "Where's Sonic?" he immediately asked. Knuckles considered it for a second, and stepped forward.
"Right," he said calmly, "We split into pairs. Each pair takes a different direction, keeps an eye out for Sonic, smashes whatever they find, and gets out of here. We'll meet up back home. And," he added with a slight smile, "I want this place to be a heap of rubble by the time we leave."
Within minutes the control room was empty.
So nobody saw the side door open, and a familiar moustache poke inside. Robotnik scanned the room a few times, and then ran to lock the door. Within seconds, he had the security cameras up and running, and the entire base was spread before him.
Grimly he picked up some guard-bot controls. He may lose the base, but he would take some of them with him.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Knuckles strode along the corridors, almost hoping to meet some robots. He was seriously regretting his pairing idea; he had been landed with Amy. Charmy had said it was 'an obvious choice'.
Knuckles had asked dangerously, "what does that mean?" and the bee had flown out of reach and laughed. It was easy for him; he got to go with Vector. Everybody else had paired up incredibly quickly. So Knuckles was dumped with Amy, who couldn't stop chattering, despite the situation.
Knuckles wondered briefly if she talked in her sleep. In all his life he had never known someone who talked so MUCH…he had grown used to the quiet solitude of his island. He tuned in for a second to see if she was actually saying something interesting, and listened long enough to hear:
"-onder why Eggman makes all his bases the same? I guess he must really like steel, or perhaps it's becau-"
Knuckles groaned under his breath and lengthened his stride, gazing around for SOMETHING to attack, before he ripped Amy apart.
Unfortunately their journey was doomed to be uneventful.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Shadow and Rouge's was to be exactly the opposite.
No sooner had they gone three corners, when they bumped into Mecha. The robot released his grip on Sonic, who crumpled to the floor with a moan, and backed away a step, unwilling to release his rival, but not sure if he could take on both fighters at once.
Then he decided and leaped towards Shadow, deeming him the more dangerous opponent. Shadow ducked and the robot missed and staggered. Rouge spun round in a fancy spinning kick, and Mecha slipped along the floor.
Shadow quickly spun into a spindash at the robot, who crossed his arms in front of him for defence, and activated his energy shield. It shimmered brightly and threw Shadow away to land on his feet down the corridor.
Mecha couldn't hold the shield long; it used far too much power. He forgot Sonic, pulled a blaster from his inventory, and fired several shots down the hallway. Then he turned and ran for cover. Rouge sniffed disgustedly, and turned to look at Sonic. The hedgehog's metal coating was strong, but Mecha's diamond-tipped claws were stronger.
Large chunks of metal were literally ripped away, along with fur and wires attached, all over Sonic's body, leaving him only half-robotized, covered with blood, and barely conscious.
It was not a pretty sight.
Rouge grimaced and backed away a step, and then suddenly a piercing alarm blared out from the control room, red lights flashing. The bat flattened her sensitive ears and cringed, shouting over the alarm,
"Damn it! Let's get out of here!"
For the first time since Mecha had fired she looked at Shadow. The black hedgehog looked faintly ill and was holding his side, grimacing. "Shadow?" she yelled, "Are you hurt?"
"Just a scratch." Shadow called back, unwilling to tell her that he hadn't been watching, captivated by the sight of Sonic in such a state. He cast a look at Sonic again, then shouted,
"What about him?"
"No time! We have to get out before this place is filled with robots!"
Shadow nodded, but he didn't look entirely pleased. The two fled from the corridor, and down several more, becoming lost within the maze of corridors. When they had run for quite some time, Shadow slowed and looked around, trying to ignore the pain in his side.
"Where're the robots, Rouge?" he asked quietly, the alarm having stopped several minutes before. The bat shook her head in confusion, and said,
"Maybe they found somebody else? Let's just get out of here." Shadow's eyes narrowed as she dashed ahead. Found somebody else? Somebody like Sonic?
They should have saved Sonic while they could. Shadow had seen him; he couldn't stand, could barely remain conscious, let alone fight. Should've saved him...he wasn't such a bad guy after all...
Shadow could barely believe he was thinking that about Sonic, arch rival, but...just running off had been wrong. He couldn't shake the feeling.
But it was too late now. He was probably dead anyway, and there was no way they could find their way back to him.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Cream screamed as the alarm went off, but it was cut off sharply as Espio clamped a hand over her mouth and dragged her quickly into the shadows, his own body turning a dull steel grey to camouflage them.
Several robots ran past, metal feet pounding on the floor. When they had gone Espio released Cream and peered into the corridor again. The red lights flashed on and off dizzyingly, reflecting on the floor and walls, giving the illusion that the corridor was swaying. It would be impossible to camouflage through it without the lights changing at least five times.
He ducked back into the shadows, and shrugged at Cream, who looked around anxiously, and then pointed straight up and asked, "What's that?" Espio pulled her back as more robots clanked by their hiding place. Then he looked up, his eyes gleaming yellow.
"Perfect."
He pulled off his gloves and outstretched his hands, suckering onto the wall, then scrambled quickly up to the air vent cover. He grabbed it with one hand and pulled, surprised to find it came out smoothly.
He dropped it to Cream, and then checked the corridor. It was empty...for now. He beckoned to the rabbit, who flapped her ears and rose up to his level. He ducked into the cramped tunnel and pulled her in after him, just before a larger group of robots thundered past, into their hiding place and then past.
Later the alarms stopped and the hallways became silent once again.
Robotnik's plan was underway.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Vector tugged at the heavy steel door, and it opened slowly, rusted on the other side. Charmy buzzed overhead, almost hyperactive with excitement. The screams of the alarms were far away, for Vector's strength and Charmy's vigil allowed the pair to pass easily through the base.
Suddenly the door swung wide, and Charmy darted in. A second later he called, voice echoing weirdly, "Whooooo...hey, Vector! Check out this place! It echoooooooes!" Vector rolled his eyes, switched off his headphones, and wrenched the door shut behind them.
Then he turned to look at the room.
It was very, very, large, and made of bricks and rusting metal. Large stone pillars arched overhead, eventually connecting with their opposite counterparts at the top. Vector and Charmy had emerged onto a metal grille platform that stretched along the wall, where more steps led up and down, to many more identical platforms above and below. Vector stepped warily up to the handrail, and looked down into the darkness that the wall lights could not penetrate.
"What is this place?" he muttered, awed. His voice bounced around the high arched ceiling and came back oddly magnified. Charmy shrugged nonchalantly, hovering in mid-air, and said, "I'll go check!"
Then he plunged down into the dark.
"Charmy!" Vector growled angrily, looking after him. Just as the bee was fading from sight he stopped.
"Woah, it's a gigantic pool! Vec, check it out!"
Nervously Vector stepped along the walkway, which creaked warningly under his feet. He gripped the handrail tighter than necessary, edging slowly along. Eventually he reached the next walkway down, where Charmy was waiting.
"Took you long enough!" the bee complained, looking into the depths. Vector could smell it now; the metallic tang of water against rusting metal. Dimly he could see gigantic turbines at the opposite end of the room.
"It must be his hydro power supply. But why's it all turned off?" the crocodile muttered, half to himself, peering into the black water.
"Probably diverted all robots and energy into the battle up there..." Charmy pondered, surprisingly sensible. Vector nodded, and then said,
"How do we get out?" Charmy grinned as though Vector was stupid, and said,
"The water must drain into here somewhere...underwater? You're the crocodile, Vec. You do the maths." Vector scowled at him, and muttered,
"I hate you."
Charmy only laughed.
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Chaos: Ok, just for reference, the pairings are:
Shadow and Rouge
Tails and Mighty
Amy and Knuckles
Vector and Charmy
Espio and Cream
Sonic and...uh...himself
Flower: Yes, and if I were really annoying, I would give them all separate team names. Like, 'Ninja Star' for Espio and Cream. Heheh. But I'm not, they're only in teams for a few chapters because-
Chaos: Shh, idiot! Anyway, see you, everyone!