Chapter Fifty-Seven

Me: That's three powerful demons down, one crazed half-robot scientist to go! Then it's off to the land of demons, where Nazo lies in wait!

Sonic: Here we come, Egg-head!

Tahra: Go for record time?

Me: No, we're going to make it good, not fast.

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"Man, Eggman really went overboard this time!" Sonic exclaimed as he, Tails and Knuckles encountered yet another group of robots, this time a group of giant hammer-wielding robots and E-2000s, machines that they had dealt with many times before. Sonic quickly dispatched the machines with a few swings of Excalibur. The group had been wasting time fighting them normally, and the blue hedgehog was eager to find the scientist.

"Well, here we are…I suspect Eggman is behind this door," Sonic continued. "Do you two mind if I go in alone?" Tails and Knuckles shook her heads, before the half-kitsune turned around to see another swarm of robots coming in behind them.

"Hurry up, Sonic…" Knuckles said before bounding away, "We'll hold them off."

Sonic forced the two giant metal doors open and walked into the giant arena-like area, and soon he heard a familiar voice on the loudspeaker…

"It's about time you showed up, Sonic…I've waited far too long for this chance!" A platform came down and hung about thirty feet off of the arena floor, and Sonic got a good look at what Doctor Eggman had become…

"Woah, Doc…looks like there's not much of you left." Sonic said with surprise.

"This is what I have become…and it's your fault! When you went berserk, you marched right into my base and tore me to pieces! I was saved by the Meteor Parasite, and he reminded me that we are enemies, and I shall make you pay for reducing me to this state!"

"You have only yourself to blame. If you hadn't given me all this power, maybe you wouldn't be in the state you are."

It's true…I was a fool to give you the power you have now…and it's time I corrected that mistake!" The doctor pressed a button on a controller, and the platform retracted again. About thirty seconds later, a twenty-foot-tall, lithe, angel-like robot marched out of the opposite door. A large blade of light extended out of the machine's right arm, and it pointed at Sonic.

"Now I'll crush you with the Egg Seraph, my latest and…"

Sonic rolled his eyes. "…Greatest invention, I know…if I had a Ring for every time you've said that, I'd have a pile the size of your big fat ass."

"YOU DARE TO INSULT ME AND MY GENIUS!" the scientist bellowed. "THAT'S IT, SONIC, YOU DIE SLOWLY AND PAINFULLY!" The robot swung fast and hard at Sonic, fast enough to actually hit him. This sent him reeling into the metal door he came in.

The robot came in to stab Sonic, but the blue hedgehog reacted in time, and rolled away, and broke into a full run. He began to spiral up the walls, weaving to avoid the angel robot's sword attacks. When he found an opening, Sonic bounded off the wall and hit the robot's head with a homing attack. As Sonic bounced off the head, he jumped into his Super form and attacked again, this time striking with Excalibur.

The attack sliced into the head, but it didn't deal much damage, and the sword got stuck in the robot's head. Eggman's machine grabbed Sonic and began squeezing him hard. Even Super Sonic couldn't break the grip of the machine, and slowly, air was being pushed from his lungs, and his body was slowly being crushed. Meanwhile, he got an earful from the scientist…

"So, this is how it ends for the mighty Sonic the Hedgehog, huh? A fitting end…crushed between my fingers, as you so justly deserve. I've waited years for this moment…the day I finally see you dead at my feet! The day that you…"

Sonic was getting extremely annoyed now. On top of having every bit of his life squeezed out of him, now the old coot was laughing in his face. This couldn't possibly make Sonic any angrier…or psychotic. The glint of Sonic's fur dulled, and it got raggedy and his eyes turned into those red spirals. Old Psycho was back for more…

"Lemme go, lardball!" the demonic hedgehog growled. He managed to force the fingers of the Egg Seraph apart, and he fell, but landed on both feet, then brushed himself of dust and looked up at the machine. Eggman recognized this terrible form…it was the same Sonic that had left him in the state he was in. But he was in his machine, and Eggman realized that this terror was unreasonable.

"You don't scare me anymore, Sonic!" the scientist roared. "It doesn't matter how powerful you become…I'll still beat you!" He lashed out angrily at Sonic with the Egg Seraph's beam sword, but Psycho sidestepped it calmly. He shook his head in disappointment.

"Poor, delirious egghead…you obviously don't realize that I can never lose to you. I've taken down entire fleets…I've beaten your most horrible creations…and now I'm going to finish what I started and tear you LIMB FROM LIMB. That's all I'm going to say to you…I'll let my good side take things from here."

This was possible because Sonic (and the others) had learned to keep their darker selves under control, and now could shift out of them if need be without straining themselves. Sonic shifted to his angelic form and hovered in front of the Egg Seraph. Excalibur teleported into Sonic's hand and he readied it for an attack. But instead, he continued talking to Eggman.

"When Psycho said I was going to tear you limb from limb, I didn't mean it that strongly. But yes, I will finish what he started. Since we've been rivals for so long, let me show you my newest and greatest level of power."

In an impressive show of energy, Sonic ascended into the second level of his Heroic form, where his body was accented with silver-colored runes made from his own blood. He knew that the Master Emerald had shattered, but Eggman had seen his Hyper form before anyway. Besides, Sonic felt like scaring the scientist.

Eggman was indeed speechless. He could barely move at all, so terrified was he at Sonic's new form. He could only watch as the angelic Sonic sliced the head of his robot open, and lifted him out of the machine with one hand. He looked at the doctor closely.

"I almost feel sorry for you," Sonic sighed. "I thought for a while that you had changed. But I guess I was wrong. It ends now, Doctor Eggman."

"Sonic…no, wait…"

But that was all the scientist could manage to saybefore Sonic stabbed him through his ear and out the other side of his head, killing him instantly. He tossed the corpse aside, and returned to his normal form. His victory felt empty, though. Never before had he been able to beat the scientist so easily, and now he would never get another chance again. He wondered what allowed him to deliver the killing blow…something he was never able to do before.

Moments later, Knuckles and Tails burst in and closed the door behind them. They were a mess…bruised, dirty, and a little bloody too. They glanced over at Eggman's corpse, then at Sonic.

"So, you finally killed him, huh?" Knuckles said. "That was actually pretty fast. We were out there for what, three or four minutes? That's gotta be a new record…Sonic, are you okay?"

Sonic was looking at the blackened blood on his sword hand. He still couldn't believe that Eggman was actually dead. This was supposed to be the happiest day of his life…his greatest enemy was finally out of his life…Sonic couldn't figure out why this sudden surge of regret had just entered his mind. Was there something he had forgotten to ask the scientist? His mind searched for answers, but nothing came up…until he realized what he thought was the truth…

"I just wiped out the last human on Earth…" Sonic mumbled.

"Say that again?" Knuckles asked.

"I KILLED THE LAST HUMAN ON EARTH, DAMN IT!" Sonic screamed. In a fit of rage, Sonic shot a few energy blasts at Eggman's dead body, reducing it to dust.

"Sonic…there's another…didn't Amy tell you?"

But Sonic wouldn't listen. He was too busy clawing at his own mind, his heart filled with rage at himself, and at Eggman. In a burst of anger, Sonic's body began flashing colors, and his head-quills stood up on end, like Shadow's did, and thus transformed into his Hyper form.

Tails quickly saw that he and Knuckles were in danger. He called to Knuckles, and the two quickly left, Knuckles gliding off the battleship Sonic was on. Meanwhile, the enraged hedgehog began ripping apart the giant battleship. He pulled the door and threw it into a console inside the room beyond the arena, causing a large explosion that damaged the ship heavily. Then Sonic flew outside, grabbed the entire ship and tossed into another, setting off a chain reaction of collisions, explosions and destruction, while he began to repeat this process, all for the sake of destroying his enemy totally, so that not a scrap remained of the mad scientist who wouldn't get out of his head…

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Me: So much for the director's cut…I guess I kinda rushed through this part. Don't worry, this chapter isn't over. Anyway, how about we throw in some fluff? We haven't had that in a while.

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"Shadow…you're getting a cold?" Amy exclaimed when she and Shadow were alone together again. She had never seen Shadow ever look sick before. She could even see a little snot beginning to drip out of the black hedgehog's nose.

Shadow wiped the drip off his nose. "It's just a little virus…nothing I can't (sniff) handle."

"It's not that…it's just…we Ultimate Life Forms can't get sick…right?"

"I guess that when I finally destroyed Black Doom his blood must have lost its effect. It boosted my immune system to the point where I could never get sick. Still, a cold can't stop (cough) me."

"I'm sure one of Vahtri's cookies will make you all better in no time!" Amy replied cheerfully. She pulled one such cookie from a plate of them she was eating and handed it to Shadow. With a skeptical look on his face, Shadow took a few bites of the cookie, and in a matter of moments, Shadow felt the sickness clear out of his body, and it felt good to recover, however minor the cold was.

"Wow…not only am I feeling stupendous, but that cookie was as good as…well, you." Amy blushed, and then decided to change the subject. She stood up and gazed out into the wasteland. For the first time, she was able to view their next destination…the Pyramid of Hasyn. Shadow stood up to look with her.

The Pyramid glinted beautifully in the light of the dawn, belying its sinister purpose. They had been told that it was the gateway to the realm where Nazo and Geddon had taken shelter, and a city of sin had been built around a grand palace. Only those who possessed certain pendants could enter the city normally, but the four elemental creatures that their friends had spent a year search for could break down the barrier and reveal the gateway.

"So that's our next destination…" Amy said, pointing to the structure. "It looks pretty from here…to think that a realm of evil lies inside that thing. Just thinking about going back there scares me."

Shadow chuckled. "That's silly…they're the ones that should be the ones that are scared, Amy. If they think they stand a chance, those monsters are in for a bad wake-up call."

Amy suddenly started laughing. "Oh, man, Shadow…that's something Sonic would say. I think that time with him had an effect on you. You'd be more like this…" Amy assumed a badass posse, frowned comically and started to talk like Shadow…

"'Those monstrous cretins are so dead…they should be begging their false gods for mercy, even though they aren't going to get any…'"

"I do NOT sound like that…do I?"

Amy grinned, and Shadow started to laugh too. He DID sound ridiculous at times. But Amy was having good fun with him…nothing more.

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The chamber where the Meteor Parasite lay in a half-sleep, half-waking state was quiet, as only he and Nazo were present. But a telepathic conversation of dire importance to their cause was going on.

I am getting very frustrated, Nazo…one by one your brothers have fallen, and that Doctor Eggman. Now those accursed hedgehogs and their friends will surely come this way.

"Be calm, Lord Geddon. Even if they do make it into the chamber, there's no way for them to stop your full revival…for your weak spot is only known to a select few, no?"

Yes. You, me and the one named Regal are the only ones whom I have trusted this information. Speaking of Regal, I have noticed that there is resistance. He may be trying to break free of us.

"Try as he might, his heart and soul shall soon be swallowed by the Heartless in his pendant, and his loyalty will be secured. Only time will tell."

Good. Meanwhile, Nazo, prepare the city's defenses. You will remain here to keep an eye on Regal while your daughter Vera will command the defense force.

"Understood…"

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Me: All right, folks, the final part of the story has begun! By the way, if you're on Deviant Art, check my homepage (check my account and click on "homepage") for info about a fan art contest! You may win yourself a nice gift art or gift story, or even a cameo in a later work of mine! The contest ends July 1st, 2006.

Tahra: Good luck to all who enter. May the best artist win…and gods dang it, I hope they do.