Author's note: Well … I've never really thought about that, Deltoran Merchant. I may take that into account later. But for now …
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Chapter 24: Identity Crisis
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My double woke up before I did. He must have. When I recovered, he wasn't on the floor there. And … come to think of it, wasn't I lying over there, while he was lying here?
It took half the energy out of my body, but I managed to get off the ground and stand in a stable position. I must've been exhausted, since my body felt heavier than the dining room table back home. I felt like I weighed half a ton.
Metal Leo was nowhere to be seen, so I peered out the window. I happened to catch a glimpse of red in the distance that resembled myself. No question about it: this was him. What a coward, I thought to myself.
I then turned to face Tails. "Well, now that that's out of the way … hey, what's wrong, Tails? Don't look at me like that. I'm not going to give you the avian flu or anything. What are you afraid of, Tails? What are you- ACK!"
Tails rushed me before I even had a time to blink. I was caught in a diving tackle, and we were both on the floor in an instant. "I can't let you escape," he yelled out. "I'll finish you, for Leo's sake!"
Frustrated, I pulled Tails off. "What do you mean, for Leo's sake? I'M Leo!"
"Really?" Tails responded, backing off.
"Of course I am," I assured him. "Who did you think I was?"
"See for yourself," Tails commented, casually gesturing at the full-length mirror. I approached it and examined my reflection- and I can't believe I didn't faint right there.
Yes, you guessed it. I wasn't me. I was Metal Leo. My feathered exterior was now cold and metallic, and my wings now had jet engines mounted on them. That metallic jerk had swapped bodies with me when he applied the electric shock at the end of the battle.
"I still don't believe that you're really Leo," Tails challenged me. "Can you prove it?"
"Yes," I shot back. "As a matter of fact, I can. Ask me anything."
"Very well. What was the ingredient I asked you to bring me so I could complete the Ice Feathers?"
"Balderdash! You didn't need me to bring you any ingredients for that!"
"Right. Remember the sensors you had to sabotage with Ice Feathers in the mine? How many were there?"
"One, two, three … there were four."
"Uh-huh. What was the name of the base in Terrafirma Jungle?"
"Alyer Base. And I still think that's a terrible pun."
"Hm… all right, I'm convinced. Where do you think Metal Leo went with your body?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "Don't look at me. Wherever he is, though, he's got the Tails phone. He might call you and try to trick you into helping him."
"If that happens," Tails assured me, "I'll just pretend to comply, and then boomerang it on him."
"Ha ha … good thinking, Tails. Hey, I laid down quite a beating to me … I mean, Metal Leo laid down quite a beating to … well, you know what I mean. Would you mind checking me for damages?"
"Sure," Tails agreed. "This shouldn't take long."
Leading me to what looked like an operating table, Tails instructed me to lie down on it. I complied, and Tails started to examine my entire body from head to feet, writing things down on a clipboard.
The entire process took about half an hour. Tails repainted some locations where paint had been scraped off, replaced some wires that had been knocked loose, squeezed out some dents in my body, oiled some rusty joints, and even gave me a thorough polishing.
Once we were all done, I felt brand new. "Thanks, Tails," I cheered, high-fiving him. "You should be a doctor."
"It's getting really late," Tails interrupted. "I've got to go to bed. Just let me charge your battery for a moment, and we'll be all done."
Tails opened up a panel on my leg and connected a plug to it. The electricity pulsed from the connection point to the rest of my body, and it felt very warm. I just relaxed and let it work. After a few minutes, a BEEP sounded, signaling that the battery was full, and Tails disconnected the plug.
I watched Tails leave the room. Now that I was a robot, I really didn't need any sleep, so I remained where I was.
Since Metal Leo had been created in my image, my new body wasn't much different from my old one. Well, you know what I mean. Still, it had a few differences, so I took a moment to practice my moves.
As a start, I sent a signal to the jets on my wings, and they whooshed to life. My feet left the ground, and by controlling the power of the jets, I managed to keep myself hovering a few feet above the ground before shutting them off and dropping down.
Now for the feathers. I pointed my right index finger at the floor and sent a signal to it, and a red energy blast shot from it and hit the ground, disintegrating on impact. I then mentally adjusted myself and fired a light blue ice energy blast at a nearby sink, freezing the water dripping from it.
I knew what came next. Another metal adjustment, and I unfroze the frozen drips with an orange flame blast. A yellow lightning blast to the lamp that illuminated the room overloaded it and plunged the entire room into darkness, so I shot a white light blast to illuminate the area.
As a finale, I chose a green wind blast and hit a clipboard, blowing it off the table and sending it clattering to the ground with a brilliant noise.
Tails peeked in on me. "Don't make such a racket! I'm trying to sleep!"
"Sorry," I admitted. "I guess I got a little reckless."
I left the lab as Tails returned to his bed. "I wonder where that devious doppleganger could have gone," I thought aloud. "I have to find him, or I'll never get my body back. Not that this body's all that bad, but still …"
An unknown voice caught my attention. "Leo has exited the lab. Now is my chance!"
Tails' voice pierced the air, causing me to jump. "AIEEEEEE!"
I looked around in a panic. "Tails? What happened? Don't worry, I'll save you!" With all possible haste, I returned to the lab's interior.
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An identity switch, a mysterious voice, and a scream from a friend. Now how's that for a cliffhanger?
Quote of the Chapter:
"But I like to keep my audience on edge. Try not to fall off, please."
-End-of-chapter note, One Dark Night, Ch. 1