Okay this chapter is going to be one of a two part chap because my word proccessor was being akward, so on to...
Fakes, frauds and the real deal.
Part One
Six months had passed since Tails' funeral, Kai hadn't visited the grave yet, partly out of grief, partly out of anger. He had been tracking Brute for about a week now, following the trail of destruction he had left in his wake, most towns had, had no warning, no way of knowing what was on its way. Kai, now wearing an eye patch, was hot on the trail, not even stopping to rest, always he had his emerald ready.
Vanish had wanted to join him, but Kai argued she wasn't good enough to take on Brute and would only get in the way. In fact a most of Kai's friends had wanted to come and get revenge for what had happened six months before, but Kai left without a word and without a trace. Now, his path had led him full circle back to Station Square, Brute had taken control of an office building, demanding that Dodge be released from Police custody.
"How long has he been in there." Kai asked the Police Chief.
"Kai!" The chief yelled, "Why do you always sneak up like that?"
"Part of the image, how long?"
"About half a day, I hate to say it but we haven't even gotten government clearance to go anywhere near that thing yet."
"I'm on it."
"Wait right there, on whose authority."
"It's a family matter, I don't need authority."
"But…." Kai leaped over the barricade and smashed through the building's doors, an alarm sounded and a shutter came down behind Kai. Unfazed, Kai carried on toward the elevator, ripping through the shutter he stepped inside.
"Cheap pen pusher security." He muttered to himself. He tapped the button for the 30th floor on the elevator controls and the doors snapped shut, "I though I was in for a challenge." As if in answer, the lift suddenly stopped. A small ball like robot burst through the ceiling, it opened at the middle to reveal some kind of cutting torch, it trusted its torch at Kai, who weaved sideward, grabbed the robot and smashed it against the elevator door. "I guess it's the hard way then." Kai manifested a Chaos Sabre and burned through the elevator ceiling, leaped out and looked upward. The small druids dotted the shaft, "Oh well." Kai ran flat out at the wall and began to sprint up it, with only a few more floors to go it wouldn't be so difficult.
Max was having a bad day. Max was a purple hedgehog, his spines ran all the way down his back and almost touched the floor, his eyes were a darkish green, he was fast, no way near as fast as someone like Sonic, but he got from A to B. He had worked as a delivery boy at the office for about a year, at only fourteen it had seemed a good idea, until he could find something better. Not anymore. A few hours ago some nutcase had locked down the building. He was doomed, unless the Police could get him what he wanted, he was sure the green echidna would kill him. He shuddered at the thought, even here, curled up under the desk he didn't feel safe, the echidna was in the main office, not out here.
"He doesn't know you're down here." Max kept saying to himself, "he doesn't know you're here." Max heard a crash come from the elevator doors and saw a smoking ball of metal shoot across the room.
"He doesn't know."
"Kai." Came the echidna's voice from the executive office, "You finally decided to show yourself?"
"Don't make this difficult Brute, without Bionic you aren't worth my time." Max stuck his head round the side of the desk to see the new arrival.
"Make it easy and turn yourself in." Kai said.
"You don't have Sonic for backup this time, this time we'll finish it." Brute lunged at Kai as the last words left his lips, Kai easily flipped over Brute and landed behind him, Brute whirled around , aiming to punch Kai's face, now that he was blind in his left eye, Brute was sure he wouldn't see it coming. Kai brought his arm up and blocked the strike with his forearm, he grabbed hold of Brutes wrist and dislocated it.
"Damn!" Brute yelled, "Why you, I'll turn you into a punch bag for that!" "Come on then. Unless you're afraid." Brute lunged again, Kai used his back as a springboard and landed on the other side of the office. Max edged out to see where Brute had landed, near the elevator door. Kai launched himself toward Brute, and hurled him into the elevator shaft, but before he fell, Brute shot a beam of Chaos Energy toward Kai, who brought up a Chaos Shield at the last second, the beam was deflected toward Max, he ducked behind the desk before there was a brilliant flash of light, Max screamed.
"What in the…?" Kai trailed off.
Max rose into the air and screamed again, Chaos Energy crackled forth from him, "He….. Help me!" He yelled.
"Oh damn it."
"Help!"
"Relax, I'm on it!" Kai formed a Chaos Shield around the young hedgehog, curving the raging Chaos Energy back into the hedgehog's body, "Just calm yourself, order your thoughts, don't let the power destroy you."
"C….calm." Max stammered. The Chaos Energy began to fade, "thanks."
"Don't worry about it, once it's under control, you'll be able to control it much easier." The energy vanished as did the shield, Max collapsed to his knees.
"W…… what…."
"Just happened, you got hit with pure Chaos Energy, it's a part of you now, I can teach you how to use it if you like."
"Well, it would be nice to understand it, but I've got to get back to work."
Kai looked around the empty office and raised an eyebrow at Max, "So, you want to stay in this dump, rather than have an adventure or two with me?"
"Well….."
Kai raised his eyebrow again.
"Fine." The building rocked and Brute leaped back through the elevator doors and manifested a Chaos Sabre. He charged, his sabre met with Kai's and they both pushed as hard as they could, "Don't force me to kill you." Kai snarled, "It's over."
"You underestimate me, idiot."
"Don't try it."
"Chaos Control." Brute disappeared and reappeared behind Kai, the tiger spun around and slashed Brute across the chest. Brute screamed in pain and collapsed.
"Is he……" Max began.
"Dead, no."
"Then kill him."
Kai cast a threatening glance toward Max, his sabre vanished and he walked toward the stairwell.
Outside Max trailed behind Kai, he was fascinated by the power and control the tiger had shown, all of a sudden Kai whirled around, "I just realised something." He began, "I don't know your name."
"It's Max." The purple hedgehog said.
"Humph, Max, well, you're about to discover what goes on in Station Square when nobody's looking. Kai walked into an alleyway signalling for Max to stay put, after a second Max heard a gunshot and a yell, a human fell out of the alleyway. Kai soon followed, "Now." He snarled at the human, "You're going to sit there and wait for the police to arrive, got that?" Before the human spoke Kai turned away and walked toward the train station, "What was all that about?" Max asked.
"Sorry." Kai sighed, "Never could stand drug dealers."
"That was a….."
"Yeah, you're a good kid Max, but you must be damn blind to not know what goes on in your hometown."
"Yeah, I guess so, but wait, how did you know?"
"That's easy, when I looked down there he was pretty quick to wrap his jacket 'round him tight, like he was protecting something."
"Oh, um, there's a knife in your side."
Kai looked down at his right side and yanked a blade out of it, "Well, isn't that nice?" "Just one more thing, where are we going?"
"Ever hear of Rouge The Bat? No? Owns a mansion around here, it's where I'm staying."
A short walk later the two walked into the entrance hall of Rouge's mansion.
"Hey! I'm back!" Kai yelled, there was no answer, "Oh, home alone, nice to know I'm appreciated, just disappear while I'm out."
"Well you've been out for a week." Came Shadow's voice from the front room.
"Shadow, any mail for me?"
"It's on the mantelpiece." Kai walked into the front room and grabbed a single envelope off the said mantelpiece.
Dear Kai,
I hope you got off the island alright, how's your eye? Anyway, I'm currently in GUN custody and would like you to come get me, normally I would ask Sonic, but they asked specifically for you…
"What is it?" Shadow asked.
Kai dropped the letter and ran out of the room, Shadow heard the door slam and saw Kai dash past the window. The confused hedgehog scooped the letter off the floor to see who it was from,
…Yours hopefully, Miles Tails Prower.
"What in the name of…… It's in his handwriting, but…"
"What's wrong?" Max asked.
"Can you fight?"
"What?"
"Yes or no."
"Well, my dad was a prize-fighter, he taught me a few…"
"Good then you're coming." Shadow grabbed Max's wrist and sped out the door.
"It can't be, can it?" Kai said to himself as he ran, "I saw him buried, saw him die. But, was he really dead, could… NO. I saw Miles Tails Prower die on that beach, GUN's just screwing with my mind, but I can't help but hope."
"Hope is all we have after all."
"What the…?"
"Oh, come on, don't tell me you don't recognize me." Sonic sped up beside Kai.
"Sonic, you caught me at a real bad time, you know?"
"I guess you got the same letter then?"
"Uh, I guess so."
"Where exactly are you headed anyway?"
"We need a well armed vessel to board the GUN battleship, there's only one person I know who'll have something like that lying around."
"Eggman."
"Got it in one."
The selfsame evil genius that the two heroes were speeding toward was at that moment working on a new project, he had seen Tails die through a live video feed from Metal Sonic and knew he could take advantage. He was putting the finishing touches to a new creation of his, the Tails LMR, or Life Model Replica. A siren suddenly blarred, causing him to singe his fingers on sparking circuits.
"Ah, damn alarm, what could it be." He pressed a button on the workbench and it slid into the wall, which sealed shut after it, walking over to a security console at the wall opposite, What could be going on?" Upon looking up he smiled a sick, evil smile.
Kai smashed through the wall, with Sonic close behind, "Um Kai." Sonic began.
No answer.
"Kai!"
"What?"
"Where exactly are you heading for?"
"Hanger, he's got to have something in there."
"How can you know where that is?"
"What did I tell you on the GUN ship? What have I told you about five times since then?" "Trust your instincts."
"Alright now come on."
"No, it's not alright, why the hell should I trust you? You could still be working for GUN."
"Listen you little fuzz ball…."
"No! You listen, what in the hell is wrong with you anyway? Why are you always so distant? You're always pushing me and the others around, or pushing us away, so I want answers, now!"
"I don't have time for this."
"Damn! You are so impossible!"
"You want answers? Here's your answer, I'm distant because I don't want to be burdened by your troubles and your screw ups, you're supposed to be some big shot hero, but you couldn't save one noble fox boy, I'd say that you and your friends have done a bang up job so far!"
"Oh please, like you think we could have saved him!"
"Well you could have tried! You know what? Bionic was right, you guys screw up too much to be let lose! You're out of control!"
"Like you could do any better."
"I've not screwed up so far."
"Well that's how you start out, you think you're untouchable, invincible, then something goes wrong, then again, until you look in the mirror and realise that you're mortal like everyone else, you lose your self assurance and just get on with it before death comes calling!"
"So you just stand by while an innocent dies, because you can't stop death in the long run?"
"You know that's not it!"
"Maybe I'm not so sure anymore."
"Look I've had it with you, I don't care about your personal issues I care about the people out there!"
"Alright you want the real truth, It's because when I'm around people die, I've got the guilt for the fox boy's death on my shoulders I don't want anyone else's death on my mind."
"Yeah well…..! I'm sorry, it's just everyone's so torn up about what happened, it's driving me nuts."
"Me too. We all knew him and befriended him, you have nothing to apologise for."
"Anything else I should know?" Max asked running beside Shadow.
"Well…" Shadow began hesitantly, "You're running headfirst into the lair of the most feared villain on the face of the planet."
"Ah, so there is a catch."
"Hey, you're in this for the buzz, there's always a catch."
"Story of my life."
"Hey, don't get like that on me, I need you."
"What exactly do you need me for?"
"What you think I'm dumb enough to walk in there without a distraction?"
"Why do I feel you'll be the death of me?"
"Well it may be if you survive." A metallic voice croaked. In front of the two hovered Metal Sonic, polished and prime condition, looking brand new.
"Metal, I thought Kai scrapped you." Shadow growled.
"That was the past, suffice to say the huge amount of Chaos Energy had, how shall I say a rather unique effect on me. Let me show you."
"We're almost there." Kai called back to Sonic, running knee deep in robot parts wasn't exactly easy, "Think you can keep up?"
"Are you kidding?" Sonic asked, allowing a hint of cockiness to creep into his voice, "I was doing this before The Collective was even a thought."
"And I've had all that battle data, all that was gathered by GUN downloaded right into my skull, so what's your point?"
"No point." Sonic landed effortlessly next to Kai, "So this is the hangar bay?"
"Yes, I can scent everything in that room, machine parts, oil, and hot hardware."
"Right, shall we?"
"After you."
In the hangar Eggman was already waiting, he had laid his trap and it was about to be sprung. A flash of Chaos Energy came from the door and he did his best not to smile. He had expected no less than this, but now it was over.
"Alright time to-- what no robots?" Sonic asked in bewilderment.
"Just me and you two." Eggman replied, "And an old friend. Someone to see you, Tails." The fox in question stepped out from behind a row of steel crates, there was a horrible looking scar down the right of his face, most likely from when he was hit by Bionic. He crossed his arms and leaned on one of the crates.
"What do you want?" He asked in a voice like poison.
"Tails, the letter, how did you?"
"We came here to get a ship to go and rescue you." Kai answered.
"I don't need rescuing anymore, I've found someone who can keep me out of danger, me." "But the letter said…"
"I don't know what you're talking about, I sent nothing to you. You're not letting GUN toy with you again? Then again you two were never that smart. Now leave, before I throw you out."
"Tails, you were buried what happened?"
"He found my grave, he picked up on faint life signs coming from down there, he dug me up and saved my life, now, go."
"But he's trying to manipulate you, can't you see that?"
"All I see is a pair of failed heroes trying to cause trouble for my saviour, I won't allow it."
"What has he done to you? You, what did you do?"
"He saved me, you on the other hand failed! How could you let me die?"
"It wasn't my fault, I did everything possible, I was, I was just so caught up in my anger that I had to get revenge for you."
"Revenge, you idiot! How could you just turn your backs and let me die!"
"Enough!" Sonic yelled, "Eggman, whatever you did to him, if it can't be reversed, so help me I'll…"
"You wont do a thing!" Tails yelled back as he jumped in Sonic's way, "Or so help me you'll never leave alive."
"Don't force me to do something I'll only regret later! Get out of my way!"
"Sonic! Stop!" Kai ordered, "If he wants to stay let him. We have more important things to do."