After leaving the outskirts of Spring Yard's city, Sonic, who had to carry both Rotor and T-Pup through the forest, sped past a few warning signs within Jungle Labyrinth. All while T-Pup stuck out his tongue and felt the wind brush in front of him. As the sky grew darker, they went further and finally reached an underground passageway built into South Island's mountain range. A gust of air revealed the cave to be dank and mineral-heavy, making Sonic shudder.
Sonic knew that scent all too well.
It was the stench of an underwater cave.
Sonic wasn't the best of swimmers. Even a rock could keep afloat better than the speedy hero, as he liked to put it himself. Sonic intended to keep it a secret for as long as he could to maintain his image.
"Erm, are you sure we're at the right place?" Sonic cringed nervously.
"Yep," Rotor nodded, pointing at another sign that read, 'DANGER! DO NOT ENTER!' with an arrow pointing inside the hole. "It should be right in here. Thanks to our little friend's built-in detector, we found ourselves another route and headed straight for here. Now, all we got to do is search for Sally and Bunnie, in case they hadn't gotten too far."
Sonic had a bad feeling about this place, but he also knew that the lives of his new friends were more important than his water phobia. The blue hedgehog gulped when disturbed as he and Rotor entered inside before slowly gazing all around. T-Pup hovered alongside Sonic, noticing his strange behavior.
"Hello! Sally! Bunnie! Can you hear me?" Rotor called out, his voice echoed all around, her only response coming in the form of the calming sound of flowing water and droplets falling from the ridiculously high ceiling.
Ivy and moss grew on tan stone walls while glowing crystals illuminated the dark tunnel. Most of these ancient maze-like ruins became one of the long decaying sites of the Ancients that previously ruled Mobius many centuries ago. Right after they had vanished, everything had soon become flooded and partially submerged.
It was beautiful to the eyes of many travelers, but the scent of dry water became stronger until Sonic began to feel faint. His sneakers walked across the stone blocks. It was an often even surface, but in some sections ahead, it became dangerous and inflexible. In others, there were small and large pits in the ground, some inhabiting spikes and shallow pools of water.
Much water is dropped down from the jaws of stone gargoyle heads and destroyed large chunks of the rocky terrain. Carved on the stones showed many ancient symbols, drawings of weird faces, and vines hanging from above with poles reaching up from the ground.
Regarding Sonic's aquaphobia, floods were not good for the speedy hero. As Sonic and Rotor went along, walking through a few paths, Sonic tried doing his best to keep himself calm.
"Well, here we are," Sonic muttered to himself. "I don't see anything interesting other than water... rocks... more water... creepy gargoyles... And did I mention water? Why must it be water?"
Rotor pointed toward the submerged area. "Come on! We'll dive to the next part of the place-!"
"Dive?!" Sonic's eyes widen, yanking onto Rotor's shoulders. "Into the water?"
"Unless you plan to dive into solid rock?" Rotor said, seemingly confused and jumbled with his friend's demeanor. "Are you okay, Sonic? You're acting a bit jumpy."
Sonic squirms slightly, not expecting to get asked this question. "I'm fine, Rote. Nothing's come over me or freaking me out, not me. It's just I can't lose focus like this because I can't swim. Like at all! How am I going to find our friends when I can't handle a bunch of water?"
"Don't worry, Sonic," Rotor smiled, pointing a thumb at himself. "I'm a walrus, and I am immune to water, so I'll be able to hold my breath for over an hour while underwater."
"Well, that's a relief," Sonic raised an eyebrow and sighed. "But what about me?"
"Oh, um..." Rotor blinked, confused.
Sonic began to unconsciously scratch his muzzle, taking another step before accidentally tripping right into one of the many waterslides, which dumped him into the water, sinking to the bottom.
"SONIC!" Rotor gasped, scrambling to dive in and swim after Sonic with T-Pup following him.
"Oh no!" Sonic thought, holding his breath in a frantic state. "No, no, no! Not water! I can't swim! Just calm down, Sonic. Stay calm, and we can get out here."
Sonic felt his cheeks balloon out like a chipmunk to keep as much air inside him as possible. The speedy hero flailed his arms frantically, gaining absolutely no height whatsoever, then finally hit the ground with a quiet whump. Sonic looked up and saw the surface was high up. There was no way he was going to get up there.
Sonic grunted, crossing his arms and surveying the underwater area. The water was surprisingly clear, so he could see far enough to keep going. He let out a breath in the form of a few bubbles, then jumped to his feet and skidded along the bottom of the pool.
"Doing good so far," he thought to himself, barely able to move.
All of this was SLOW going.
WAY too slow for Sonic the Hedgehog.
Even curling up didn't help him move any faster. He decided to move further, dashing through some shark-based Badniks called Jaws on the way.
"I wonder how big this maze is. Who built it and why here? Hmmm, now that I think about it, I should avoid overstraining my lungs too much. I do not know how long we might be trapped, and the last thing I want is to suffer overflown lungs." Sonic thought as he began to search for any air pockets while releasing tiny bubbles through her nostrils every twenty or so seconds.
As Sonic continued his ventures within the deep aquatic atmosphere, he swam across the large stepping stones and saw Rotor and T-Pup following him. Rotor pretty much got the hang of it due to being a walrus, whereas T-Pup is waterproof, capable of swimming and diving underwater.
"It's not so bad," Sonic kept thinking to himself. "It's not so bad. It's not so bad-!"
The speedy hero looked back to see another Jaws, stopping mid-swim inadvertently. Bubbles then blurted out of Sonic reputedly before dodging the shark-based Badnik's enhanced bite.
"IT'S BAD! IT'S SO BAD!" He screamed in his thoughts.
As Sonic tries to preserve himself, he struggles due to the water restricting his movement. Rotor soars through the water, giving the Jaws an elbow drop, destroying it. Both Sonic and Rotor gave each other a look of respect, followed by a yip from T-Pup. But then reality came crashing down like a ton of bricks when it finally emerged on Sonic; limited air supply. He gripped his throat, which begged for just the tiniest bit of air.
"Oh no," Sonic thought, searching all around in a desperate manner but saw nothing prevailing now. "I'm running out of air! Uncle Chuck always told me that old ruins like these are full of air pockets. But where the heck are they?"
Sonic looked around to see an Orbinaut, a sea urchin-like Badnik surrounded by spike balls. "I see Eggman's getting smart with these Badnik designs."
The Orbinaut started launching the spike balls at the three, who swam away to a crack on the floor, where a bubble came out. Seeing that this was one of the air pockets, Sonic then swallowed it to receive as much-needed air with pace and gradually easing his head for a second. Bubbles were showering up from long-forgotten tombs below, and something Sonic could use as an indicator to where he could get a fresh breath.
"Good...! I have a bit more air!" Sonic said in his thoughts before smirking. "Now then…"
Sonic rolled into a ball after all the spike balls were gone and penetrated through the Orbinaut. And with the help of Rotor and T-Pup, they were able to haul Sonic much further. Their momentum carried them far over a circling spiked mace and floated just an inch from the floor. Going down deeper into the complexity, they destroyed a few more Jaws and pressed a button that opened a decorated wall in front of them.
All of this was in a smooth, fluid motion; if they tried to go too fast, Sonic would freak out and drown. Another bubble of air erupted from the ground, and Sonic immediately took it, refilling his lungs with a gasp. Rotor, having a much larger lung capacity, merely went on ahead and counted the number of seconds before he would need more air. The trio traverse through the watery labyrinth, even going through sections where they have to tilt the water to where they can squeeze through.
After they jumped up, protruding stone ledges, the water suddenly picked up, pulling them in somewhere. The three became helpless as they got thrown past the current and flushed back onto dry land, with the two mobians both gasping and coughing. As for T-Pup, however, he naturally began to shake off any water from himself as any regular dog would do.
"Ugh, I hate water...! That stuff was even worse than usual. Did Eggman pollute it or something? I bet he did. Ugh..." Sonic sat there, soaking wet before he shook himself off until his quills made him into a fluffy afro hedgehog. He later reworked his fur back to the spiky hairstyle he liked.
"Any ideas where to go next, Rote?" Sonic asked while examining himself in search of any bruise, cut, or wound. Thankfully, he found none.
"Not quite, Sonic. Though this would've looked like a nice place if not for the floods. Look at these crystals. Do you think they grew this way, or were they placed here?" Shaking his head and looking around the fan-shaped crystal structures again, Rotor tried to find any irregularity to it but found very little.
The chamber the three were in was quite impressive. A few torches mounted on the walls, covered with mysterious images and crystal formations shining enough light to allow them a decent amount of visibility.
"Yeah," Sonic nodded. "I'd drop by more often without the floods and stuff. That was a pretty sick move from how you trashed that Badnik earlier. Where did you learn that stuff?"
"Ah," Rotor blushed lightly. "Well, I don't know. It just comes naturally to me whenever my friends need my help."
"Well, it sure came in handy!" Sonic smirked sincerely.
Sonic peered around for a minute, taking in his surroundings until something quickly shot out of the wall behind him. The speedy hero ducked just as a rusty spear sprang out, impaling the surface where his head had been mere seconds before. He looked up at the spear as it withdrew into the wall.
"Correction: this creepy old place is flooded and has booby traps packed everywhere," Sonic said, glancing back at a startled Rotor and T-Pup.
"Well, things couldn't possibly get any worse." Rotor slowly said, and at that moment, the ground shook before several iron drills erupted from underneath.
"Oh, me and my big, fat mouth!" Rotor sighed.
From the ground exploded three mole-based Badniks called Burro-Bots. Using their drill-like noses, they can launch surprise attacks from underground.
"Priority One Hedgehog," They recited.
"I got this one, Rote," Sonic said before he backflipped out of the way as they charged, bouncing off one mole-based Badnik's head before splitting another's in half with a hammer kick and spinning through the third. Within moments, the Badniks got scrapped while the critters within finally escaped.
"Man, this sucks," Sonic remarked by the time all three continued onward, trying to avoid the water to the blue hedgehog's despair. "The least these dumb-bots could do is give me a real challenge."
"That's the part you're not going to like," Rotor spoke up, sending Sonic some shivers as he realized what the walrus had in mind. "And it's only the beginning."
Sonic looks at the path ahead to find only pools everywhere and fewer dry routes. "Oh no...!"
With the location of another Chaos Emerald kept on Nicole's screen, Sally kept her pace as swiftly as she could. Bunnie extended another hook and freed a critter from a Burro-Bot. Not to mention trying to avoid any side-facing gargoyle statues that shot out small projectiles from their mouths. The girls trudged through the area until finding a series of small brown platforms connected to a circuit of chains, jumping along in one direction thanks to some turning wheels.
"Phew, we need to drain this place, or else I'm goin' to have to get my parts all dunked. Honestly! Whoever made this place sunk is goin' get it!" Bunnie pouted, her eyes turning over to Sally. "See anything, Sally-Girl?"
"Well, I'm finding out where-! Huh?" Sally picks up a piece of rock, studying it. "Hey... Some of this looks like a piece of the footpath, but what happened?"
"It looks like the footpath had broken off or washed away." Bunnie cocked her hips, realizing who was behind this problem. "Or blown up on purpose?"
That idea, anyhow, made Sally's eyes narrow intently. Her eyes rolled before she spotted something unusual. "Bunnie, look! A switch!"
Turning her attention onto a hidden button, the half-bot brawler steps over to investigate. "I wonder what it does."
"Only one way to find out," Sally chimed in, pressing the switch with her right foot.
A sudden rumble came from about as a secret passage opened up, causing the girls to examine it before jumping into the entrance just as it closed. They continued onward, and as the girls arrived out into a more open chamber, Sally soon felt as if somebody was expecting them to enter. But several lasers shot over the two's spot first. One last shot forced Sally and Bunnie to get tossed on the ground, with three of their Chaos Emeralds flying out. Sally hurried after them, only to find the Egg-O-Matic's appendages sweeping them up and into Dr. Robotnik's hands.
"Ah, princess," He greeted casually. "Your timing is inconvenient as always."
"YOU!"
Bunnie immediately began running at Dr. Robotnik. But the doctor, however, motions back and away from the duo. Bunnie skidded to a stop, glaring up to see the grinning human floating toward her and Sally.
"Temper, temper," With a slight curve of naughtiness tainting his smile, Dr. Robotnik handled all three of the duo's stolen Chaos Emeralds. "I can't tell if you ladies are persistent or just too foolish to give yourselves up now."
"Try determined, doctor," Sally drew in an indignant breath. "To bring you down! You're the one behind the water floods in this place!"
"Oh-ho-ho! You catch on quickly, don't you, princess?" Dr. Robotnik laughs, leaning in, and continues. "Much of these ancient ruins have stayed quiet for far too long, so I decided to spark things up with a few dynamites here and there. Too bad that blue rodent and your fat walrus aren't here to see it happen while they're on the other side of this blasted maze."
"Wait," Sally looked concerned by the sudden revelation. "They're both here?!"
"Well, that's good news, right?" Bunnie shrugs, having raised her eyebrow while proceeding. "Sugar-Hog must've gotten Rotor and another one of those Chaos Emeralds."
"Oh, please!" Dr. Robotnik noted, waving off such nonsense. "That other Chaos Emerald is already mine, thanks to a certain backstabbing brat I still have with me in Scrap Brain. That makes it four Emeralds for me all the rest of the time and zero for a loser like you, princess."
"You'll never get away with this, Robotnik!" Sally begins to aim with her bow and arrow, only causing the doctor to hold both hands up in mock defeat.
"Oh, sweet child," Dr. Robotnik told her. His sinister smile made Sally return a scowl in kind before watching him do something else. "Why don't you put away such silly playthings and try using your legs for this one!"
While Sally tried to ask what he meant by that, Dr. Robotnik eventually snapped his fingers as it echoed across the walls. The girls end up on a path with a giant spherical rock which they have to outrun.
"What is that?" Sally asks in a frightened tone.
"It's a-a-a, giant rock! Run, Sally-Girl! Run!" Bunnie shouts hurriedly.
Soon, Dr. Robotnik gunned the Egg-O-Matic's engines and began taking off down the tunnels, with Sally and Bunnie giving chase while running away from the rock. Dr. Robotnik led the duo on a high-speed chase through the ruins. Eventually, they came into a different area, consisting of a high-up terrace over a partially flooded chamber with a circle of eight pillars. The duo made it past the rock as it fell into the watery platform.
"It's over, Robotnik! There's nowhere left for you to run!" Sally says in anger.
Dr. Robotnik could only smirk. "Who said anything about running, princess?"
The doctor pulls out his trusty laser gun from the side of the hovercraft's cockpit, aiming to open fire, only for Bunnie to dodge the shot with ease.
With a dismissive smile on her lips, the half-bot brawler peered back at Dr. Robotnik. "Pfft, you missed, dunderhead!"
"Oh-ho-ho, yeah?" Dr. Robotnik kept his sneer intact.
Both Sally and Bunnie blinked in confusion before a crumbling sound reached their ears. They looked down to see the ground underneath their feet fracturing and crumbling, thanks to the burn mark left by Dr. Robotnik's laser gun. Sally and Bunnie's faces turned from puzzlement to stifling out fear, gasping in unison. Everything soon gave away under their feet and got sent plunging into the lower chamber.
Luckily enough, Bunnie's robot arm grabbed onto one of the pillars and away from the water, catching Sally with her other arm in the process. As they both got their bearings and stood onto the pillar, the Egg-O-Matic floated inside, with Dr. Robotnik still beaming a toothy, evil grin.
"I told you so about going against my proposition, didn't I, princess?" He said, with Sally scowling at the remark. "I gave you mobians the opportunity to end your dispute with me and join the cause. But you just had to play pretend and keep being the annoying germ that you all are."
"Someone had to step up after everything you've done to our world," Sally kept her cold, calculating glare. "But you won't be winning anymore."
"HAHA! Why?" Dr. Robotnik laughed, his features hardening as he stared down at the two girls. "Because you suddenly have high hopes for some meddlesome hedgehog that you barely met? Or maybe it's because you're losing ten percent of the cards while I still have ninety in my hands? I'm sure Meta-Morphia tried to put that idea into that pint-sized skull of yours."
"Liar!" Bunnie angrily shouted. "Sugar-Hog may be a little stubborn as a mule, but he means well!"
"That's right! Sonic has nothing to do with traitorous scum like you! He told me about when you gave us all up when he visited my home!" Sally shouted nearly hesitantly, trying to deny anything from Dr. Robotnik's mouth except this next one.
"Not even his biggest mistake for becoming best friends with traitorous scum like me?"
Sally froze instantly at this, her face blank with emotion as the information sent more shivers of uneasiness throughout her body. Even Bunnie's eyes widen at the sudden announcement that it looked and felt wrong upon the visage of the round tyrant's features. As Sally kept looking over the doctor, her mouth cracked a bit before finally breaking out of her trance.
"N-No," Sally spoke suddenly, still visibly distraught-looking. "What are you talking about right now? Sonic wasn't even THERE! That never happened! You were a friend and ally to my kingdom! Your name was Dr. Kintobor-!"
"THAT MAN!" Dr. Robotnik shuts up the chipmunk girl, glaring daggers so much as he can with glasses anyway. "He doesn't breathe in this world anymore, princess. The only thing that's left of his empty shell is me: Dr. Ivo Robotnik! As of now, this here is where your wasteful years of defying my empire end. Because another of my creations down here wants to spend some time grabbing a bite with you ladies; only this time, you're the little snack."
Bunnie looked down into the pool with a tremble, spotting two short eyestalks with big eyes cut through the water before a giant Jaws Super Badnik lunged out with a mighty roar.
"Whoa!" Bunnie let out, watching the giant Jaws move around the pillars. "Antoine must be in there, Sally-Girl."
"I'd like to stay and gossip about your so-called hero, but I have myself another Chaos Emerald here to search for right now!" Dr. Robotnik began to depart, laughing maniacally. "Ta-ta, princess! Hahahaha!"
Miserable hours have already passed as the young fox's body was nearly beginning to shut down from the constant work that got forced upon him. Aside from the traps and obstacles in the water-filled caverns beneath Scrap Brain, Tails' completion showed engine pistons that Dr. Robotnik could use for crushing victims.
Only one time, Tails attempted to see if he could extricate himself from the shock collar's number combination lock. But regrettably, it zapped him every time he touched the material around his neck, so the young fox needed another plan. Rest breaks became a horrible thing for the time that Tails had. The fox cub had only received five-second pauses now and then until either a Swat-Bot or Snively activated the shock collar and zapped him to the point that he collapsed.
Though Tails manages to get back up, Snively would always threaten to zap him again if he were to resist the doctor's wishes. Unwanted electricity ravaged through Tails' veins and nerves, striking him every time he pauses. He would constantly make tiny squeaks of pure pain. To lesser delight, the aggravating shocking would cease only for a little while until it happens again.
Being able to sneak behind Snively's back about past commlink discussions with Dr. Robotnik, Tails became utterly scared by what he discovered next. Seeking to replace his dwindling oil supply, Dr. Robotnik planned to utilize the Chaos Emeralds to extract a colossal energy crystal deep within Scrap Brain's mines with a crane powered by four engine pistons as the control center. A sky base blimp became ordered to send the energy crystal back to Robotropolis for further extraction.
Right now, Snively was too busy humming while playing with Dr. Robotnik's chair, though he also brooded on the many times his uncle toyed around with the Freedom Fighters recently. Although the Super Badniks became a way to confine Sally and her teammates, Sonic was still out in the open and causing so much humiliation for the empire. On the other hand, Tails was far too worn-out and annoyed to tolerate the short man's bickering.
"That fool is only going to drive those brats even further," Snively grits his teeth as prior battle tapes got replayed on-screen. "At first, I thought he would employ better use with the Freedom Fighters trapped inside our Super Badnik Horde, but he hasn't been able to destroy any of them for escaping! Maybe we should've been done with them in the Robotizer."
"Or maybe because despite that you're only in part of all this, you still act like a lowly servant to a grander design-AGH!" Tails could hardly grumble to himself as a switch activated his shock collar, electrocuting his body entirely until collapsing.
"SHUT IT, YOU!" Snively seethed in frustration, hopping from the chair, and soon walked closer with a sneer. "The designs of my brilliant uncle, Dr. Robotnik, will bring order to these wildlands! All greenery will become paved! All filthy animals such as yourself will power shiny robots! The world will not only work like a well-oiled machine but will become like one!"
"W-Wow," Tails weakly coughed. "You guys are jerks."
"No, we aren't! We're brilliant! Brilliant, I say!" Much of this made Snively angry again, zapping Tails from the shock collar once more. "Bah! As if you could understand, you foul freak of nature!"
"W-Well, if you're so brilliant about doing better than your uncle, why don't you fight Sonic yourself!"
"Why, you little-!"
Before the fumed lackey could conceive anything else, one of Scrap Brain's computers issued a beeping sound to indicate that another Chaos Emerald got found in the starry, peaceful, roller coaster-like constructional port of Starlight Highway.
However, it had become nothing more than a den for thugs and illicit hoodlums such as "Downtown" Ebony the Hare: a hardcore, straight-up mobster. Furthermore, he's another of Dr. Robotnik's clients. If it were only him who could do so much in getting rid of those band of children once and for all, Snively could probably gain more fear and admiration than his uncle's reputation.
Snively saw that he had an idea with an evil look in his eye. "Oh, well, I'm in luck. It looks like I might be able to do something more worthwhile than what my uncle's been up to right now. Especially while that blue rodent is only around for the Chaos Emeralds!"
"Sonic is not one of you greedy types. That's a true hero for you!" Tails then tilted his head toward the screen, making Snively look at it as well.
"You're lucky my uncle needs you," As Snively snatched Tails up by the neck, with one of his namesakes sneakily curled around the dwarf's lab coat, he glances at a nearby Swat-Bot unit. "You there! Keep an extra close watch on this pup, and if there are any more distractions, stun him."
Tails shrunk down a bit after receiving another electric shock by Snively's device to jolt away from him. By the time Snively walked out in a fury, slamming the door in the process, the Swat-Bot glances down to only find out that Tails' original spot was empty. Alarmed, the Swat-Bot hastily searched around in all directions before making its way toward one of the four large engine pistons.
"Hey, Swat-Bot!" Tails' voice called out. "Up here!"
Glancing above to listen to the young fox's shouting, the Swat-Bot droned to capture Tails immediately. Unaware of standing in the correct spot, the Swat-Bot aims at Tails inside of a piston, who already activated and brought it straight down to flatten the Swat-Bot entirely. Soon, Tails uses his namesakes to hover his way back onto the floor, observing the crushed Swat-Bot in success. Not to mention pulling out a skeleton key with a round bow that the fox cub furtively snatched from Snively's lab coat with one of his tails minutes ago.
"Thank you, Dr. Snively, you butt-monkey," Tails chuckles, handling the key that he hid within his namesakes. "Now, I got to find that Chaos Emerald around here. I hope I'll grant info to Sonic about Dr. Robotnik's plans somehow before it's too late."
With that said, Tails checked his surroundings just as he hovers like a helicopter out of the control center. One way or another, the fox cub knows that Sonic will be able to stop Dr. Robotnik in time with the Chaos Emeralds. Though, unbeknownst to Tails, a robotized figure emitted from the shadows within the area. And it strangely bore many physical similarities to Sonic the Hedgehog himself. Red eyes flashed through the darkness as the robotized figure marches its way to follow where Tails persisted.
Meanwhile, Sonic's eyes swell in despair, holding his breath through the water while Rotor and T-Pup join him. He continued to collect air bubbles, jumping up and down, dodging spikes, and destroying Burro-Bots, Jaws, and Orbinauts. Sonic didn't have long to be in worry as he ducked another attack from the other submersible shark-based Badniks.
"How BIG is this Labyrinth?!" Sonic shouted in his mind with eyes shuttering.
While Rotor was busy floating underwater, he noticed a new sound. The trio saw a small mass of shark-based, sea urchin-based, and mole-based Badniks helping each other to eliminate each trespasser. Each of them became surrounded by Jaws, Burro-Bots, and Orbinauts, spiraling around the three like a horde of sharks. Quick solutions ran through Sonic and Rotor rapidly, hoping for another way out of this sticky situation.
"Damn it! If we dodge these attacks, we'll lose all our momentum. Unless…" Sonic pondered until a bright green glow came into his eyes, gaining his attention toward something.
And that something happened to be a Chaos Emerald resting within the water's ground level. Sonic's expression soon renders from a shocking look into a determined one, knowing just what to do in a situation like this. Without another thought, Sonic spun himself through a wall, engulfing all the Badniks inside the hole.
Sonic felt like time was running out for him, Rotor, and T-Pup, with only a few seconds before finally snatching the gemstone. They tried swimming their hineys out of there, but the water around them drove into the hole, typically by suction. Eventually, this sends them all hurtling through the opening and down a waterfall path. Before the route could end, Sonic spotted both Sally and Bunnie continuing to fight the Super Badnik.
Then, Sonic grabs Rotor by the back of his bomber jacket alongside T-Pup, hardening his expression when they darted off the waterfall ledge. While Bunnie leaped onto another pillar to extend another robotic fist toward the giant Jaws, colliding with one of its eyes before rapidly switching posts, Sally became the first to notice Sonic soaring down with Rotor and T-Pup in tow.
Eventually, the three of them each landed on a pillar or two just as the Jaws leaps out of the water after Sonic, mouth open and teeth snapping. Time seemed to slow as the speedy hero darts from post to post, whereas the Super Badnik bites a portion of the pillar Sonic formerly stood on.
"Man, talk about an overbite, am I right?" Sonic smirked toward Sally and Bunnie, who became delighted that he and Rotor got here.
"Sugar-Hog! Rotor! You made it!" Bunnie smiled, pumping a fist.
"That's for sure," Rotor smiled softly, followed by a bark from T-Pup as he gestures to him. "Long story short, we found this little guy that can help us stop Robotnik."
"I'm glad you're both here," Sally said with a smile before casting an uneasy look. "Robotnik ambushed us and took away our spare Chaos Emeralds. He might still be here to look for another one of them, and he's got us tangled with a Super Badnik. Antoine's in there somehow, but we need to be careful."
"Hey, don't sweat it, Sal," Sonic reassures with a signature smile glued across his face. "We'll catch up to him until I get your friend out of that Butt-Nik doodad."
Gaining back the hidden confidence, Sally nodded, as the next few moments of the battle had the team resorting to hit-and-run tactics, landing blows, arrows where they could, and dodging the Super Badnik's lunges. However, with several more pillars destroyed, this left the team with less room. After Sonic and everyone else each landed on their remaining support, T-Pup yipped for a moment before unleashing a built-in electrical force field and placing the giant Jaws in stasis, allowing the team to make their next move.
"Haha! Good job, little buddy," Sonic giving a thumbs-up to the robot dog nearby, wracking his brain for ideas until pulling out the green Chaos Emerald. "Let's see if this baby can work."
Focusing with all of his might, while the giant Jaws readied for another attack, Sonic felt the Emerald begin to glow all around him, bathed in its power. Everyone else was in awe as Sonic smirked, revving up into a blue ball of destruction, with the giant Jaws' mouth wide open toward him.
"I hope you're hungry!" Sonic declared, darting straight off and right into the Super Badnik's gaping maw.
Sonic spun around rapidly in the monster's mouth, causing some damage until grabbing the captive that was inside. Soon, Sonic tore straight through its innards before exploding out of its topside. The gutted Super Badnik sparked before it began powering down, sinking into Jungle Labyrinth's depths to decay.
Soon, emerging victorious, Sonic's feet impact a pillar nearby, carrying what appears to be a male coyote: Antoine Depardieu. He was the Freedom Fighters' swordsman serving the royal family of Princess Sally Acornia.
Antoine has mainly brown fur with pale yellow on his front torso, muzzle, and cheek turfs. He also possesses blue eyes around his face, a bushy tail, and neatly combed blond hair. Antoine wore a blue jacket with red trims, two white straps that connect on the chest, forming an X-shape, and a gray-buckled belt that unites a sheath to carry his sword.
Other details included white gloves with red cuffs and golden cufflinks, a red beret, and high, red military boots. Right now, the brown coyote was currently unconscious for who knows how long, prompting Sonic's impatience as he pats his cheek hard.
"Antoine! Can you hear me?" Sally asked.
"Wake up, sleeping beauty!" Sonic deadpanned, not serious about this.
"Ooh..." Antoine coughed in a French accent, looking where he was right now. "My princess? Is that you-?"
Peering face to face with Sonic, the brown coyote nearly shrieked. "WHO ARE YOU?!"
"He's alright," Sonic confirmed with a deadpan face, looking for the way out. "We better get ourselves out of here before things get real hefty."
"Non! Non! Non! Let me off, this instant-!"
Pushing himself off the blue hedgehog's arms, Antoine nearly fell over the pillar, causing him to yelp and cling right back onto Sonic once again. Dulled by this, Sonic kept a straight face until he caught a glimpse of an opening above and beyond.
"Sacre Bleu! W-W-Where am I?" Antoine chattered his teeth, shivering a bit. "W-W-What is this nasty, filthy place?"
"Jungle Labyrinth, Antoine," Sally answered, crossing her arms while handling her bow. "It's a good thing we freed you out of that Super Badnik before anything else happened."
"My princess!" Antoine seizes Sally's hand and kisses it. "I am pleased you are safe."
"Oh, brother..." Sonic rolled his eyes, holding a hand to his chin. "Now, how the heck are we going to get-?!"
Just then, a rumbling sound arose throughout Jungle Labyrinth, caused by eruptions that would allow more water to come rushing into the ruins and flood them even more. Both Sally and Bunnie gasped as they remembered that Dr. Robotnik planted a shedload of dynamites around Jungle Labyrinth's ancient ruins.
And now, the doctor had just initiated everything at once. With all of this happening so quickly, Sally tried her best to think up a plan to escape this trap, but not a single one prevailed. She'd even try some suggestions from Nicole, but that wouldn't budge anything. It could do so much as to make Antione scream out of fear and descend into a babbling, trembling mess.
"DAH! We are trapped!" Antoine stammered, sweating a lot and gulping every two seconds.
"I've had enough of this place!" Sonic shouted.
"So have we! Come on, let's get out of here!" Rotor nodded.
"B-But there are no ladders or ropes! We are going to drown! I'm too young to drown!" Antoine shouted as Sonic facepalmed himself of this coyote's cowardice and clumsiness.
"Put a sock in it, Ant," Sonic angrily snatched the coyote by the collar, suddenly getting an idea before turning to his half-bot friend. "Yo, Bunnie! Use your robotized legs to help raise ourselves to the very top! We can try to jump our way up there and climb out to safety before the floods get bigger!"
"WHAT?!" Sally exclaimed. "I-I don't think-!"
"GUYS!" Rotor chimed in. "We don't know how long this place will last until the walls start to collapse on us. Whatever we do, let's do it fast!"
"I-I...uh..." Sally fumbled her words before peering over to Bunnie. "Are you sure you want to do this, Bunnie? I don't want you hurt."
"I don't know, but I can sure try it out, Sally-Girl," Bunnie said, very uncertain about it but willing to do what she can for her friends. "Y'all better brace yourselves, 'cause I'm about to be as tall as a century-old tree."
Although Sally wanted to oppose any idea that would nearly involve harming her teammates, there was still no other option left for them to do else. And before she knew it, Sally gasped as Bunnie's legs began to stretch upwards, lifting herself as high as she could until her robotized arm seized onto a ledge.
"Grrr! That's as far as I can go!" Bunnie grappled with her words, shouting as painful sweat and tears came from her. "MOVE IT, NOW!"
With the water nearly coming higher and higher, each teammate quickly climbed their way up Bunnie's extended legs, while T-Pup only hovers along with the pace. Now, carefully stopping where her cybernetic thighs remained, Sally was the first for Bunnie to help toss her onto the ledge. The princess hastily held out some rope from her quiver and threw a share down below.
Second, as scared as Antoine became, he dove onto the rope, hoisting himself onto the ledge to help Sally. Third, using the help of Bunnie's robotic arm, Sonic bounced up and onto the edge to aid Sally and Antoine with hauling the rope.
Fourth, due to Rotor's chubbier side, each teammate struggled for the walrus to climb back onto the surface. And finally, both Sonic and Sally raced over to try and catch Bunnie's hand, with Sonic the first to grasp onto her. Bunnie's robotized legs had already returned to their original state.
Recklessly enough, Bunnie's robotic arm almost became bent and was about to shred apart. Both Sally and Sonic's eyes widen in fear. But with a final cry out of desperation, Sonic's arm flung Bunnie back onto the ledge with her sticking onto him. They fell to the ground together, causing the rest of the teammates to sigh in relief.
As both Sonic and Bunnie sat up from each other, the half-bot glances at her nearly damaged robotized arm. "Oh, my stars! That was a bit too close, for my sake. Is everyone okay?"
"Who cares about us! What about you?" Sally exclaimed, kneeling to Bunnie's level with her eyes nearly welled in tears. "If you had strained your cybernetics that much, you would've gotten torn apart! W-We could have thought of something else without you getting-!"
"Sally, it's okay," Sonic held his hands out to calm the redhead, who looked at him with a severe expression. "Everyone's still going to be alive on my watch. And that includes you too. Maybe there WERE other options left, but that flood was coming at a fast pace. After all, if anyone made that call for Bunnie to do that, then it's on me."
"Nuh-uh, Sugar-Hog," Bunnie shook her head in dismissal of Sonic's blame for her injury. "We all needed to do what everyone thought would save our butts, and you did just that."
Nervously, Sonic then nodded in understanding. "Thanks, Bunnie."
Bunnie then glances back at Sally, smiling wearily. "What happened to me down there was not your fault, Sally-Girl. Besides, Rotor will have a look at me while we go after Robotnik. Okay?"
After receiving a comforting hug from her best friend, who quietly nodded, Bunnie was able to get back up with the help of Antoine and Rotor. T-Pup then whined upon Sally's sour face about Bunnie's recent near-injury, just as he hops on up into her arms and licks her cheek. A mere giggle escaped Sally's lips while T-Pup tried keeping her hopes up, and he had prevailed.
"So, where did you guys find this cute thing?" Sally asked, putting the canine robot down and letting him run around her in circles as she smiled.
"Well, that's something I've been wondering myself about this friend Sonic had back in Spring Yard." Rotor reacted with a quizzing eyebrow raised at the speedster, who saw everyone was looking at him.
"Well, you see," Sonic cleared his throat with a fist against his mouth. "There was this event going on with a Chaos Emerald as a prize...!"
While Sonic continued explaining, things came for the worse as Antoine's eyes widened at the sight of Dr. Robotnik's Egg-O-Matic.
"R-R-ROBOTNIK!" Antoine pointed, causing everyone else to freeze, finding Dr. Robotnik waiting for them all in his hovercraft.
"Grr, this failure is completely unacceptable!" The doctor roared, pointing at the mobians and T-Pup. "But I feel complied that you give me the Chaos Emerald, Sonic. I know you still got it. The readings on my hovercraft show that the green Emerald ended up moving in different locations, thanks to your irritating readiness."
"You snooze, you lose, Eggman! And give me back Miles, you jerk! Where is he?!" Sonic demanded, followed by a bark from T-Pup.
"Safe, for now," Dr. Robotnik chuckled at the blue hedgehog's scowl, arms crossed. "But the question is, can all of you still survive the flood?"
"What?!" Everyone shouted in unison, looking at the hole from before to find the water rising out at an alarming rate, much to Antoine's dismay.
"Hahaha!" Dr. Robotnik cackled, flying away to the exit with the Egg-O-Matic. "You'd better be on your feet for this one, rodents!"
"Get back here, Ro-Butt-Nik!" Sonic shook a fist in anger until Sally touched his shoulder.
"Sonic, wait!" Sally said abruptly, making sure the water level wasn't getting to her best friend. "We need to help carry Bunnie to the top! You still have that Chaos Emerald from before, right? Try and transfer that energy back into you so you can help pull each of us upwards."
"Right!" Sonic nodded as he held out one of his arms while handling the green gemstone in the other. "Everybody, grab onto each other with me! We're getting out of this swimming pool!"
With that said, all four mobians and T-Pup latched themselves onto one hand to the other with their main speedster, and by using the power of the Chaos Emerald that shone in his hand, Sonic finally zooms off and beyond the stones and walls.
Everyone held their eyes shut, and teeth gritted as Sonic speeds his way higher and higher within the ancient ruins. Dr. Robotnik pressed a button on his cockpit, and a glass shield covered the open part of the Egg-O-Matic. The doctor continued piloting the machine up a large skylight in the ceiling behind him.
Sonic's group quickly followed suit so they wouldn't drown below, jumping up platforms on the way. It was not an easy climb, showing stone gargoyles shooting projectiles at the team, spears that sprung out to impale passers nearby, not to mention the flood rising rather quickly behind all of them.
The Freedom Fighters would drown if left too long in the water, seeing no damaged tiles to give out air bubbles. Even Dr. Robotnik was in no position as he had limited air supply left in his Egg-O-Matic. The dome was only to keep out water and make sure it didn't damage his implements if he had to stay underwater for a limited period.
Sonic rushes up each step after Dr. Robotnik to stop him and save his friends. Despite the floods following them, the doctor still moving ahead, the group finally escaped the water as Sonic boomed for the exit. Eventually, Dr. Robotnik blasted out of the ruins toward where Starlight Highway settled. The Freedom Fighters made it out of the same hole, shaking their bodies dry. Unfortunately, Eggman kept flying up in a straight line, using cloud cover to hide, making it impossible for the group to chase after him.
"Oh, great. NOW, where'd Eggman run off to?" Sonic asked before looking around, noticing a signpost that says, 'Welcome to Starlight Highway!' on the title. "Still under construction, huh? Well, I guess we'd better start looking for Butt-Nik there."
"Hoo-Wee, I feel like I've gotten dragged through a knothole, or so to speak." Bunnie shakes the excess water off and grabs her head but then notices her robotic arm coming off. "Oh, dang. I'm just fallin' apart."
"Allow me, mademoiselle," Antoine helps the half-bot off the ground.
"Thanks, Sugar," Bunnie takes the swordsman's hand and turns to Rotor. "You mind?"
"No worries, Bunnie," The walrus smiled, pulling out one of his trusty tools. "It'll only take a few minutes to get your arm back on."
As Bunnie nodded, there was a certain princess busy dusting herself off until her attention fell upon Sonic most of the time. Sally was lost in a state of thought, questioning herself about Sonic's intentions for lying to her. Sally watched as Sonic jumped to press the button on the containment unit in this area, with most of the little critters either retreating or thanking him graciously.
Years before, there would've been no way that Sally could have allowed herself to show any emotion on her face, not even a smile. The day Sally lost her father was the day she died inside. Nothing was able to get Sally up and at it once more in a happy manner, which is until she met Sonic.
Back to the matter at hand, Sally didn't know whether to take Dr. Robotnik's word or not about how much her recent teammate has kept things in the dark from her. But after hearing about Sonic being former best friends with the human responsible for her kingdom's downfall, it became just enough for her to establish a talk between her and Sonic. Sally then quietly walked up to Sonic and gave him a tap on the shoulder.
"Huh, Sal?" Sonic said, turning toward Sally's unreadable expression.
"Sonic, we need to talk. Now."
TO BE CONTINUED...