CHAPTER 1O

RESONATION

The robots went down sooner than either Shadow or Knuckles expected them to. Once all the robots were gone Shadow said. "C'mon, I bet that reactor is close by somewhere."

The two ran down the hall. "Do you even know where we're going?" Knuckles asked.

Shadow shrugged. "I dunno, I've never been in here before."

The echidna rolled his eyes. "Great, just great!'

Amy hammered away at the metal. Sweat was running down her forehead and her teeth were gritted together. She knew she had to get the robot loose but she was having a harder time than she expected. The girl named Kakoe wasn't much of a held. All she did was talk to the robot and try to wake him up.

"Metal Sonic," Amy heard Kakoe whisper. "I don't know if you can hear me but if you can I just want you to know; whatever happens and whatever you do I will always be your friend."

The pink hedgehog shook her head. She couldn't believe Metal Sonic had made a friend and with a human for that matter. It didn't seem logical. But, I guess anyone can make a friend with anyone, she thought. After all; he has feelings too.

Amy let the hammer drop. She was getting tired of swinging it and needed a break.

"Why did you stop?" Kakoe asked, looking up.

"I need a break," Amy panted. "When I catch my breath I'll try again."

"Oh no, you won't!" a voice interupted.

"This is it!" Shadow said, pointing.

Knuckles saw it too. A big power reactor. "Good," he sasid. "Let's go."

They ran to it.

"Now how do we turn this thing off?" Shadow asked, looking up at the big machine.

"We don't have time to find the power button," Knuckles said, raising his fist. "We'll turn it off the easy way!"

"No! Don't do that!" Shadow shouted.

Too late!

The echidna threw his fist into the side of the machine. It exploded as his fist went in.

"Let's get out of here!" Shadow yelled, grabbing Knuckles' arm and running out of the room.

Kakoe and Amy turned their heads toward the voice. Eggman stood in the doorway. He held the dead Chaos Emeralds in his hands.

"Dr. Eggman!" Amy exclaimed in a gulpy voice. "How did you get those? What have you done with Sonic?"

Eggman laughed. "He's a bit out of it right now."

"What?"

The scientist pulled his hand out from behind his back. He held up a drugged up looking Sonic.

Amy gasped. "What did you do to him?" she demanded.

Eggman only laughed. He thrust the blue hedgehog at the girls. Sonic stumbled and fell into Amy, who had had her arms out to catch him.

"Sonic!" she exclaimed, looking down at him.

Kakoe stepped forward. She faced the scientist. "I don't know who you are but you can't be doing this!"

The scientist stared at her. "Who are you to tell me what I can and can't do?"

"I am a girl from Station Square," she replied. "my name is Kakoe, and I'm Metal Sonic's friend. I don't know why you took him but I demand you let him go!"

"Metal Sonic is my robot!" Eggman shouted. "I can do what I want with him!" He grabbed her arm and pulled her to the ground. "And no little girl is going to tell me otherwise!"

He squeezed her wrist and she let out a cry of pain.

The sound of her scream activated the robot. His eyes appeared in his view screen and he looked up.

He saw Dr. Eggman holding his only friend's arm. The man looked ready to kill her.

"Let her go, Eggman!" he shouted. "It's me you wanted, remember? That girl has nothing to do with this!"

"Oh contrare, my rebelious robot," the scientsit said. "She says she's your 'friend' and that has a lot to do with this!"

Eggman threw the girl aside and stomped up to the robot, angry as hell. "I do not understand how you made a friend, you traitor," he growled. "I don't remember putting a feelings emotion in your system. It must be part of that memory I couldn't get into before. At least I was able to erase everything else!"

"You-you erased my memory!" Metal Sonic exclaimed. "Why and how- HOW COULD YOU?"

Eggman grabbed the robot by the arms and looked right into his eyes. "I built you, stupid! I am your creator! I can do what I want with you, even destroy you!"

"No, I won't let you!" Metal Sonic shouted.

Eggman held up the dead Chaos Emeralds. "Either I destroy you or-" he brought the Emeralds closer-"you destroy yourself."

As Knuckles and Shadow ran, the echidna glanced down at his dead Master Emerald he'd been carrying. It was glowing.

"What's that?" Sahdow asked.

The Master Emerald started to return to its normal color. "The Master Emerald.. it's power is coming back!" the echidna excaimed.

"That means it's leaving Metal Sonic's body," Shadow said.

"If that's true then that must mean Eggman must be doing something to him!"

As Eggman pushed the Emeralds close to the robot's body Metal Sonic began to feel their power leaving him. It was resonating with the things it truely belonged to.

Metal Sonic was suddenly scared. Without that power he'd be out offline again. This time for good.

"No!" he shouted, struggling against the iron holding him to the wall.

A sudden light came out of nowhere. The robot screamed in agony. The irons holding him still broke and he fell to the floor.

When he looked up he saw the power had gone out and the emergancy lights had kicked on, illuminating Eggman in a red glow.

Metal Sonic didn't pay attention to that though. His body felt like it was going to explode, as if it couldn't hold the power any longer. But why?

Then it hit him. I'm losing the neutralizing power of the Master Emerald!

Eggman dropped the Emerlads and they landed all around the robot. He stared at them in fear. He could see they were all starting to react. They were absorbing the power back into them. If he didn't do something fast he would be destroyed.

But what could he do?

"Knuckles, look!" Shadow shouted, grabbing the echidna's arm and bringing him to a stop.

"What?" Knuckles asked.

"Look!" the black hedgehog said again, pointing.

Knuckkes gaze followed his friend's finger into a room. He saw Metal Sonic kneeling on the floor, Amy was holding Sonic, who looked sick for some reason, and the girl, Kakoe, was sitting on the floor with her hands clasped in front of her. Eggman was there as well and he was smiling.

"What's going on?" the echidna asked.

'The Emeralds!" Shadow replied.

Knuckles noticed the Emeralds. They lay all around the robot hedgehog. They all glowed wth a strange light.

"What in the world?" he said.

"Those Emeralds are reacting to the energy Metal Sonic stole from them," Shadow explained. He held up his own Emerald. "See this one's reacting too and it still as all its power. If we don't do something fast that robot is going to explode and take us all with him!"

"Oh no, he's not!" Knuckles shouted. "I'm going to stop this here and now!"

"Knuckles!" Shadow yelled. "DON'T!"

The male echinda wasn't paying attention. He pulled out the Master Emerald and ran at the robot. With a sudden heave he threw the giant gem. It flew through the air and stopped above the other Emerlads.

"The Servers are the seven chaos. Chaos is power. Power is enriched by the heart. Our hearts give us the power to unify the chaos! Only you can do this! STOP THE CHAOS EMERLADS!" Knuckles screamed.

Suddnely the whole building was filled with light.

Metal Sonic threw his head back as he felt the power leaving his body. If he could he probably would have been crying. He knew this was it and he had to end it. I wish it didn't have to end like this but it must.

He let the power go. Five different colored lights flew through the air and went into the Emerald that owned them.

When the lights vanished he glanced at everyone. Eggman was lying face flat on the floor, Amy and Sonic, who looked just fine now, were both staring at him.

Their faces held relief.

The girl, Kakoe, also stared at him. She looked sad.

Metal Sonic's body fell forward. He landed hard on the floor, his face peaceful. With an internal sigh of relief his body shut down and his view screen went blank.

Author note: This isn't the end! One chapter to go before I'm done! YEAH!