Sonic eXcluded
Written by Airo Smicktor
I don't own Sonic X or other characters like that. I do own Douglas '4GOT10' Smicktor- Thorndyke.
Episode Prelude:
"Oh this entire movie shoot has been a complete disaster! We haven't been able to shoot another scene for days because of all this torrential rainfall! I don't think that I'll be back until late next week at the earliest! But don't worry, I've been able to do LOTS of shopping and I've bought you lots of presents to make up for it! I've sent them on daddy's jet, so you should have them by tonight!"
"Aww, Mom! You don't have to do this for me! But before I forget, I have to tell you something, you see... I kinda did something that I promised you that I wouldn't..."
"Oh my goodness, Douglas are you alright?" the voice from the telephone asked.
"Of course I am Mom, you know I can look after myself! It's just that... well... You remember when you made me promise that I wouldn't go swimming late at night in the main pool in case something happened?" Douglas said, holding the phone to his ear as a smartly dressed butler came onto the balcony that Douglas was standing on with a tray of breakfast food, before placing it on the table and leaving without a word.
"You went swimming in the adult pool by yourself at midnight again?"
"No! NO! Not like that, no! You see..." Douglas looked up to the roof, where Sonic was stretched out. The blue hedgehog was watching Douglas through a half-closed eye.
'Think fast, think fast!' Douglas thought to himself.
"...A cat fell into the pool, so I dived in to save it!"
"Oh you have such a big heart, just like I do! But ring Mr. Tanaka next time to sort it out okay? I'm sorry, but I must hurry along now, kiss Mommy goodbye!"
The sound of a person kissing was heard through the 'phone speaker. Reluctantly, Douglas gave the mouthpiece of the 'phone he was holding a quick peck in return.
"Bye sweetheart!" was the reply as the caller hanged-up.
"Yuck!" Douglas said, wiping his mouth with the back of his free hand as Sonic jumped off the roof and onto the barrier that surrounded the edge of the balcony.
"Take a good look! I'm a hedgehog, not a cat!" Sonic said, pointing at himself.
"I know, I know! But what was I supposed to say? 'Oh, by the way Mom, a giant blue taking hedgehog called Sonic who resisted arrest fell into my pool last night and now he's hiding in the house until he finds his way home.'" Douglas said sarcastically, arching an eyebrow to Sonic's statement. "Amazing I don't think she'd be too pleased with that somehow..."
"...How come?" Sonic asked, puzzled.
"Okay, I think I need to give you a crash course in Earth hedgehogs Sonic." Douglas said, pulling out a chair from under the table and sitting on it. "On Earth, this planet by the way, hedgehogs are about so high," Douglas made a small space between his hands, one above the other, "about so wide," Douglas moved his hands so that his hands were parallel to each other but horizontally, "are brown, don't wear sneakers or gloves, oh and what was the other thing?" he asked rhetorically. "Oh yes, they can't talk!" He said in mock surprise. "That reminds me, when did you learn how to talk anyway?"
Sonic rubbed his head with one of his gloved fingers as he sat in thought. "That's a good question, unfortunately I don't have a good answer. I don't remember that far back..."
Suddenly the 'phone in Douglas' hand began to ring. "That's probably Dad, don't talk Sonic!" Douglas told the still thinking hedgehog as he answered the 'phone. "Hello?"
"Chris? Is everything alright?" came the concerned voice from the 'phone.
"Everything's cool Dad! How are you?"
"I'm fine, but your mother just called and told me that you had to make an emergency rescue last night! I guess our security system can't protect you against stray cats that decide they want to have a midnight swim!" Sonic still sat on the railing, with a weird look on his face, as he tried to make sense of what all the fuss was about. "Douglas, I know you like to be a 'free spirit' and like animals, but what you did was very dangerous! Were you hurt? Did the cat scratch you while you were trying to save it?"
Douglas shook his head with a smile on his face. "Of course not Dad, you know that I've been through worse things than any old scratch could do. Besides, it's not as if it was the hardest thing in the world to do," Douglas looked over to Sonic, who seemed to be cleaning out his ear with his finger. Douglas shot Sonic another eyebrow, as if to say: 'Do you mind, I'm trying to get my Step-Parents off my back here!' "All I did was help a little cat out of the water!"
"Uh-huh, yeah. I got you."
"If I needed help, I would've called Mr. Tanaka or Ella, even Grandpa if I really needed help! You and Mom worry too much, they're all taking good care of me!"
"Yeah... Well they better be! Listen Douglas, I've got a very important meeting to run to, so you call me anytime you need to, and NO more late night swims, okay? You promise?"
"Yeah, I promise Dad, no swims. I'll see you soon." With that, Douglas hung up the 'phone, and looked over again to Sonic, who was shaking his head and groaning.
Douglas smiled. "You don't know the half of it. It's no wonder that my Step-Parents are so protective of me, ever since..." Douglas stopped, before coughing into his free hand while putting the 'phone down with the other. "...Anyway, I guess since you're my guest here, I better be a good host. You want something to eat?"
"Yeah, I guess I could go for something." Sonic replied, not noticing the change of topic. "What's on the menu?"
"Anything you want really, I'm assuming that you don't want what hedgehogs on this planet are eating." Douglas said, pulling around a small laptop computer. "I had a look at this animal website just to check out some things, and when I looked at the list of foods, it didn't exactly look all that fun."
"Why? What do hedgehogs here like?"
"Does cat-food do anything for you?"
"Cat-food? Why would I want a cat's food?"
"Well, how about slugs or worms?"
"URGH!" Sonic shouted, repulsed by the thought
"Ha! Didn't think so, but that's the stuff hedgehogs love here. Kinda figures that you're not into that since you're not like any other hedgehog here..."
Suddenly, Sonic leapt from the balcony onto the branch of a nearby tree.
"Hey! What the hell do you think you're playing at?" Douglas shouted at the hedgehog.
"Sorry man, but I've got to have fast food for a fast hedgehog!"
"So? I can order out for some pizza! It's not safe for you to be running around in broad daylight! The cops are probably still looking for you!"
Sonic just flashed his trademark smile. "See ya!" Then in a flash Sonic was speeding out of sight. Douglas just watched Sonic fade into the distance.
"...Gezz, that hedgehog's got a bloody attitude problem..." He said, as he sat down at the table, and pulled up the cover of the silver dome that covered the breakfast. "Ah! Nothing like an early-morning Chili-Dog to start the day off..."
Episode 2 – A Happy Reunion?
Part 1:
"The Supersonic Speed Demon, seen here on police video, has the city baffled" came the female reporter's voice from the TV screen as it showed a clip of Sonic running down a section of highway. The screen then cut to a collection of eyewitness accounts.
"It was about this high, it was blue, and it looked like a freak!" said a police officer, who was holding his hand at his waist, indicating the height of the 'freak'.
"I was doin' about 60 when this thing went WOOOOOOO! Right by me!" said a man with curly hair.
"That thing moved too fast to be a regular animal!" said a slightly rounded man with a moustache standing by his yellow taxi...
"Hey! Kaufman! He finally got his face on TV!" Douglas exclaimed pointing at the TV set as a scientist holding a monkey came on screen.
The story had been the main news story all day. Truth was, anything vaguely interesting made the news in Station Square, since nothing really happened. But when a blue hedgehog runs rings around the local law enforcers, then outruns the S-Team, it makes local AND national news! Experts are baffled, the secret service thinks it's just another wind-up, and no one knows what's going on. Except for one person, who was sitting watching the news with his new blue hedgehog friend?
"...The inevitable conclusion that one must come to is that the so called 'hedgehog' is in fact a machine." The scientist concluded.
'A machine that runs on a supply of Chilidogs' Douglas thought, looking at Sonic who was devouring his sixth chilidog. Douglas smirked, it was just as well he didn't have to share his breakfast with him; it'd probably have been gone in a second. But having Sonic, as a friend, might not be a bad thing. Anyone who could outrun Sam Speed was defiantly something else, even if they had an attitude problem...
The door that led from the main hallway of the house into the living room where Douglas and Sonic opened sharply, and an elderly man in a lab coat stood in the doorway, before walking into the room seemingly with a purpose.
"Guess what? A big blue hedgehog came out of nowhere yesterday and outran the S-Team." The man said looking directly at Douglas. The man then looked down at the blue hedgehog looking up at him. He then looked at the TV news report, and then back at the hedgehog, before both the hedgehog and the man directly eyeballed each other.
'Shiiiiiiiiiiiit!' Douglas thought, as he grabbed the nearest pillow and shoved it directly over Sonic.
"HEY GRANDPA CHUCK! Yeah I saw the news as well it's very interesting isn't it?" Douglas said loudly, attempting to drown out the muffled cries of the hedgehog he was trying to hide.
Suddenly the hedgehog burst free, causing the pillow to fly over the couch as he sat with a pissed-off look on his face.
"Hey, HEY! Don't you give me any evils hedgehog! The next time someone comes looking for you I'll leave you to get captured shall I?" Douglas directed at Sonic, unaware that his 'Grandpa' was studying the hedgehog. Douglas looked up from his seat at Chuck, and saw a look of realisation dawn on his face.
'Not. Good.' Douglas thought, as he saw Chuck leap onto Sonic.
"Just like that hedgehog on the TV!" Chuck said as he held onto the struggling Sonic.
"What the?" Was all Douglas could get out before Chuck pulled out a screwdriver. "No! NO! PUT THAT DOWN!"
"I have to see how this thing is put together!" Chuck exclaimed as he began rapidly moving the screwdriver around Sonic, trying to find the back panel that would open up the 'robot' he held. This only caused a tickling sensation, as Sonic squirmed and laughed at the feel of the cold metal, before Sonic leapt out of Chuck's grasp across the room.
"And I thought Amy's hugs were bad!" Sonic said as he landed
"STAND STILL!" Chuck shouted at the hedgehog, but his anger vanished when he felt Douglas grabbing a hold of his wrist.
"CHUCK! Sonic here isn't a bleeding robot! He real man, he's real!" If Chuck's jaw could have reached the floor, it would have gone crashing down into the basement, but he only had a look of utter shock on his face as his screwdriver fell from his hand onto the floor.
"Now let's go live to this late, breaking story." The sound of a little girl crying came from the TV screen.
"Please..."
"Huh?" Sonic turned sharply to the screen, as it showed a much larger than normal rabbit in a red dress, clutching a strange looking blue creature.
"Please leave us alone!"
"It's Cream and Cheese!" Sonic exclaimed.
"Friends of yours?" Douglas enquired, although he guessed the answer already.
"I'm not the only one who got transported into the weird world after all! I'll save them!" Sonic then quickly dashed out the door Chuck had used to come in, out the hall through the main doors, and headed out of the mansion grounds. Douglas ran out the door a few seconds later.
"Hey Mr. Hero! Mind telling me where your buddies are?" Sonic ran straight through a hedge, leaving a trail of dust behind him, before putting on the brakes and running back over to Douglas. Sonic looked at Douglas, before shrugging his shoulders and smiling an uneasy smile. Sonic didn't have a clue. "Somehow I didn't think you knew." Douglas said, folding his arms. "This 'weird world' as you called it is probably very different from yours. So you've got to play by the rules of our world, and that means waiting until we know all the facts..."
Chuck, Douglas and Sonic were all in the spacious garage of the house, where they had been waiting to make up some sort of plan to rescue Cream the Rabbit and Cheese the Chao. Chuck had been going through a list of his 'contacts' for the past hour or so since the story broke out, and hadn't been off the telephone since. Douglas was listening to his personal CD player, while Sonic was trying to figure out what a strange-looking metallic device with leavers was used for. Douglas looked over to the confused hedgehog and smiled, puling out one of the earphones. Sonic noticed this.
"What the heck is this thing?" the hedgehog asked.
"No idea man, sometimes Chuck just builds inventions without knowing what they'll do."
"Is that why it doesn't do anything?"
"Naw, that's probably due to the lack of power."
"Lack of power?"
"Yeah, the thing's not plugged in."
"I thought they might do something along those lines! Thanks for giving me the scoop and I'll talk to you soon." Chuck spoke into the telephone before hanging it up. "Well it seems that Sonic's friends have been captured by the police and moved to Area 99!"
The image of a large fenced-off, heavily secure stronghold with large runways flashed up in Douglas' mind. "Damn, Area 99... Of all the military bases in the world, and it would have to be that one..."
"What?" Sonic said, obviously puzzled.
"Area 99 is the country's best defence centre. Fighter jets, tanks, warheads, you name them; they've got 'em there. Plus, it's where they do all this hi-tech development stuff for new weapons."
"That sound's like Eggman's kinda place!" Sonic said, thinking over what Douglas had said.
"Egg-what?" Douglas replied, but Chuck broke back into the conversation before Sonic could reply.
"You friends have been taken there by the army and placed under 24 hour guard; the authorities believe they could be aliens..." Chuck then looked over at Sonic. "...Or perhaps members of a mutant species designed by a foreign power to attack our population! I wonder if they might not be right Sonic, eh?" The tone of Chuck's voice indicated what he was directing at the blue hedgehog.
"Now hold on there Chuck!" Douglas said, getting up from his seat as he switched off his CD player.
"Think what you want! I'm gone! Now I know where my friends are, I'm outta here!" Sonic shrugged, as he started walking out of the garage.
"Hey, you aren't planning to go into Area 99 solo are you? They've got the latest in CCTV and security counter-methods! You'll get locked up faster than you can swallow a chilidog!"
"They can't lock me up!" Sonic declared, turning his head to the two humans in the room, before turning to leave. His exit has cut short by the garage doors suddenly coming down before him, blocking his exit. Sonic let out a mumble of annoyance pass through his lips, before fully turning 'round to face the Thorndykes.
"Open that door!" Sonic shouted. The only answer he got was a roar of laughter from Douglas, and a smug look on the face of Chuck.
"Oh, yeah Sonic! Nobody can lock YOU up!" Douglas said mockingly between laughs.
"It was me!" Chuck exclaimed proudly, pointing at himself.
"Ha! Nice one!" Douglas said, high fiveing his step-grandpa out of respect, amongst other things. Sonic looked onto the scene with extreme confusion.
"You're gonna need some help Sonic, I'm coming with you!"
"You sure you're up for this Chuck?" Douglas asked with a smile on his face, already knowing the answer full well.
"Of course I am, and you're coming along too! You've always said that you don't want to live a boring life like your step-father does, so here's your chance for some excitement!"
"Hmm... Let me think about this..." Douglas said, over-dramatically rubbing his chin with his hand. "...YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT I'M COMING TOO! I'm not gonna miss this chance to mess with the man!"
"Alright then! Let's get going!" Chuck exclaimed, as Sonic continued to look on with a shocked expression on his face.
Flip Card 1 – Cream
Full Real name: Cream Teresa Rabbit
Nickname(s): Cream
Age: 6
Gender: Female
Likes: Ice cream, helping others, inparticular TV 'previews'
Dislikes: Violence, sadness, isolation
Identifying features: Cream-coloured rabbit, wears a red dress, has huge ears that can sustain flight, is often seen with her pet/friend Chao known as Cheese.
Flip Card 2 – Tails
Full Real name: Miles Prower
Nickname(s): Tails
Age: 8
Gender: Male
Likes: Working on machines, helping others (especially Sonic), his secret crush
Dislikes: Thunder and Lightning, messing up
Identifying features: Orange coloured kitsune (fox) with two tails, which he can spin like rotor blades enabling him to fly, wears red and white sneakers
Part 2:
"This is the last time I ever ride in this rust-bucket, it'll take forever to get there! I'd be faster on my own!" Sonic pouted as he sat in the back of the car that Chuck was driving, as Douglas sat in the front passenger seat holding what looked like a headset with a red visor. Douglas didn't really pay much attention to the hedgehog, as he nodded his head to the music coming from the radio. They'd been on the road for a while now, and now all that could be seen was wide-open desert, as the headed down the road that led to Area 99.
"Chill out!" Chuck said, looking over his shoulder at the hedgehog, before looking over to Douglas.
"You want me to give this to him now?" Douglas asked.
"Yes, it's time."
Douglas then turned 'round in his seat and handed the device to Sonic, before motioning to his own head. "Put this on Sonic."
"What's this?" the hedgehog inquired.
"It's an infrared scope! Area 99 is probably full of hidden infrared laser traps and motion detectors, with that on you should be able to avoid them!" Chuck said, while looking at the road ahead.
"Plus, we'll be able to talk over radio to you when you get in there, so we both know what goin' down." Douglas added.
Sonic put on the headset and smiled, before giving the thumbs up, unbuckling himself, and jumping out of the car so that he ran along side the car. "I'll see ya up ahead!" He called, before speeding off ahead of the Throndykes, leaving only a trail of smoke behind him.
Chuck looked shocked as he watched the trail of smoke zoom into the distance. "He certainly is a speedy little critter, isn't he? YEAH!" Chuck raised a hand in the air, as he floored the accelerator of the car, causing the car to rev-up as it speeded up. Douglas shouted his approval as he swung both hands in the air as the car chased after Sonic, who was already far into the distance.
"Sir, we have detected a small motor vehicle approaching the base along the road, as well as a rapidly approaching single creature, which seems to be faster than any recorded road vehicle that I've ever seen!"
"That means the plan is working, the rabbit is associated somehow to Sonic. He's trying to rescue her."
"What'll we do now Sir?"
"Set all defence systems to stun, the government wants that hedgehog captured alive if possible. If it's a good as the hype around it is, then this will be a good test of its abilities..."
"But what if he escapes Sir?"
"Then we track him down on radar, and find out where it was hiding last night. Something tells me that whoever's in that car will have something to do with this all..."
"Yes Miss. Topaz, I'll give the orders out right away Sir!"
The man quickly turned back to his computer and began typing in commands on his computer terminal as Topaz looked at the large wall of monitors that constituted a part of the security complex in Area 99. One of the larger monitors showed a man in a white coat looking into the retina I.D. scanner machine that was the access to the room where the 'test-subject' was held. The door to the room opened and the man stepped inside. Topaz turned to the screen behind her that was currently running off images and data on the rabbit and the small creature with it.
The rabbit was a 2-foot tall cream-coloured female bunny-rabbit, who wore a red-dress, a small blue schoolgirl-like tie, white gloves on her hands that had small golden cuff links, and red and yellow shoes. The rabbit spoke perfect English, and seemed scared by what was happening. The blue winged creature with it wore a red bow tie around its neck, and had small pink wings on its back. It also has a yellow ball that hung above it's head, seemingly suspended by nothing at all, and seemed to only know one word: 'Chao', which it spoke perfectly.
'Is that... A Chao?' Topaz thought. 'But I thought they were only supposed to be myths, legends, long since extinct? Could they actually exist?'
"Hey Sonic! Can ya hear me?" Douglas asked, speaking into the microphone on the headset he was wearing.
"Yeah!" the voice of Sonic replied through the radio.
"Listen, when you get into the base, head for the air-vents. That should be a... blind-spot?" Douglas looked over to Chuck, who nodded. "Yeah, a blind- spot! The security systems won't see you there, so then you can go and so your hero act!"
"Hah! No problem!" Sonic replied.
"...Hey Chuck, how'll Sonic find where that Cream-cheese cake is anyway?"
"It's Cream and Cheese!" Sonic shouted down the line
"Sorry, sorry! It's not my fault they have weird names!"
"Give me that!" Chuck said, before taking the headset off Douglas and putting it on himself.
"Listen Sonic, once you get in there, you wont have much time, so think quickly and act quickly! If you see something suspicious, go for it! You're friends will probably be in there!"
"...THAT'S YOUR ADVICE? Look for something suspicious?" Douglas shouted at his step-grandfather.
"No sweat! I'll find it somehow, I'm going in!"
"I damn well hope so Sonic, otherwise you've got a one-way ticket to hell..."
Intruder alert – Sector D. Intruder alert – Sector D. Came the automated voice of the computer, which caused many of the people working at their consoles to look up at the monitors on the walls, as the CCTV cameras attempted to locate the intruder.
"Where is it? I can't see!"
"Someone's setting off the motion detectors, but the cameras are moving to slow to see who it is!"
"You morons! It's that hedgehog, he's here! Put all the security systems on high alert, especially around the test-room, and prepare to initiate full lock-down when I give the word!" Topaz shouted across the room.
"YES SIR!" was the reply from the men in the room, as they returned to their computers.
'Let's see what you've got hedgehog...' Topaz thought, as she again looked at the information being brought up about the rabbit. One line about the two subjects was underlined, so it caught her eye instantly: NO METAL IS PRESENT IN EITHER SUBJECT. 'Damn... They're real!'
"Okay, I'm inside the air-vent!" Sonic spoke into the microphone of his headset.
"Well be careful then, there's bound to be lot's to security, so watch out." Came the voice of Douglas in Sonic's earpiece.
Suddenly Sonic landed harshly on the bottom of the vent-slide he was on. Sonic rubbed his rear to remove the slight pain he felt. "Feels like I've got skid-marks on my butt!" He said, before looking ahead in the vent he was in. Through the infrared scope, he saw lots of lasers strewn across the vent, arranged in a way that Sonic's couldn't possibly get through them without setting them off. "So much for a blind-spot!" Sonic said out loud.
"What's happening?" Douglas enquired.
"Nothing yet!" Sonic replied, before noticing a grate in front of the lasers. Sonic removed it, before looking down into the hall. There were CCTV camera along the hallway in both directions, and the moved in short 90- degree arcs, covering short areas before the other camera took over.
"This'll be a piece of cake!" Sonic said, before dropping down and moving in tightly to the wall, directly under the nearest camera. As soon as the camera he was under faced down the hall, Sonic zoomed over the diagonally opposite camera, where he waited for it to look down the hall, before repeating the process again, and again, until he reached a small corner where he hid behind.
"Ha! I'm just too fast for them!" Sonic mocked, before again moving down the hall, using the same method as before.
Outside Area 99, on a high-up rock overlooking the base area, the motorcar with Chuck and Douglas in it slowly ground to a halt. Douglas unbuckled himself and stood up on his seat, staring down at the base. Chuck remained buckled, and kept the engine running, just in case something did go wrong.
"I hope Sonic makes it out of there. The guy's full of himself, but you can't be that cocky unless you can back it up..." Douglas said out loud, thoughtfully.
"Like you can?" Chuck replied.
Douglas looked over to him and smirked. "Since when have I been arrogant?"
"Maybe you haven't, but have an attitude of your own." Chuck said, scolding.
"...Maybe I do, maybe it's just my style. I don't excel at anything special like all the other Throndykes do, so I have too..."
"You wrestle, don't you?"
"Yeah, but I haven't had a booking in weeks, they can't find anyone brave enough, or stupid enough, to get in the ring with me. My own reputation does me more damage than good sometimes..."
"That's not the full reason, is it?"
Douglas sighed. "...No... I just... I just can't seem to get over what happened to him..."
"You know it wasn't your fault Douglas, there was really nothing any of us could've done."
"I know that, but when I think back to him... Him dying in my arms... I just... There's a bond now, a bond I wish that sometimes had never existed, just because it hurts so much when I think about him... We had all those good times, but it's just that moment..." Douglas looked up to the sky above him, as a small tear began to form underneath his eye.
"...Why did you have to go Chris?"
Sonic peered around the corner, and saw a door with the words 'Staff Only' marked on it and the word 'Laboratory' above it. 'That looks suspicious enough to me,' Sonic thought, 'Cream and Cheese must be in there, but getting in there might not be the problem, it's getting them both out safely!' Sonic pulled his head back around the corner, and put rested his head in between the thumb and finger of his gloved hand. 'If it was just me I could get out easily, but if I have to get Cream out as well, then I can't be too reckless!'
Suddenly, the lights in the corridor went out, as did lighting around the base. Sonic looked up to see what was happening, but only saw the red lights on the CCTV cameras go out, as they rested forward, having no power to hold them up. Abnormality detected in the electrical system. Abnormality detected in the electrical system. Came an electronic voice above him from one of the loud speakers. Sonic didn't really understand what it meant, but knew that this was an opportunity too good to miss. Without another sound, Sonic headed for the door.
In the laboratory room, the lights also went off, as did the computer screens.
"Ah great, now we can't see anything!" one of the scientists shouted out, as another ran across the room to try and call up the central control room.
Suddenly the sound of shattered glass rang though the room, causing all the scientists to look at the container the rabbit and the blue creature had been in.
"What the?" They were both gone; only shards of glass remained in the tank. "They're gone!"
The sounds of an alarm claxon, now filled the air, as Sonic hid behind a large computer with Cream and Cheese. Cream and Cheese were both slightly dazed, having been quickly grabbed and moved over in about a second.
"Sonic!" Cream exclaimed, but she quickly silenced herself by putting both hands over her mouth when she saw Sonic go 'shhh!' and put a finger to his mouth. Cheese unfortunately ignored this, and grabbed Sonic in a hug, calling out happily.
"OVER THERE!" Sonic heard someone shout, as he gently pushed Cheese off.
"Let's go!" Sonic said as he passed the Chao over to Cream
"Right." Cream replied, taking he Chao friend and holding it closely to her. Sonic then proceeded to move off, and Cream followed closely behind.
"What's wrong with the power supply?" Topaz questioned into her radio- communicator.
"It looks like sabotage Sir, We've found the weird little paper aeroplanes stuck into the walls and wires, they must have been what caused the power failure."
"...I hope this isn't a joke."
"No! There aren't really paper as such, they seem to be made out of a circuit board, with little wires and engines and stuff, they seem to be remote controlled, but not very strong!" the engineer replied quickly.
"Interesting... Get the power back, we need the place running even sooner than ASAP, and make sure to collect all those 'planes you've found, I'll need those as evidence."
"No problem Topaz, we're right on it!"
Sonic ran down the lightless corridors, holding on firmly to Cream's arm as he led her through them, while Cream carefully held onto Cheese. Sonic ran straight down the middle of the corridor, unafraid now that the security cameras were devoid of power, and unfazed by the constant wail of the alarm klaxon ringing in his ears.
"Wow Mr. Sonic! Were you able to shut down the power all by yourself?" Cream asked, glad to have been saved from the scary container she was put in.
"Sorry Cream, but as much as I'd love to say that it was me, I have no idea how it happened. I guess something must've malfunctioned..."
"You always seem to have good luck wherever you go Mr. Sonic!"
"I guess so!"
As if fate was listening to the conversation, it chooses that moment to complicate their escape. Without warning, all the lights in the corridor switched back on. Sonic and Cream looked up in shock and horror as the many cameras turned and focused on them. Sonic then realised that the alarm he heard wasn't signalling a power failure; it was warning that the prisoners were escaping.
"...I think I jinxed it Mr. Sonic..." Cream sadly mumbled as she slightly trembled in fear. Sonic could feel the shaking from the young rabbit, which only encouraged him more to make sure that they all got out alive.
"Don't worry Cream, we're still breaking out of here!" Sonic noticed that the tops of the cameras had opened, and out of the holes popped out mini laser guns. The guns were aimed straight at him.
'Shit!' Sonic thought, not wanting to curse in front of Cream due to her young age.
"Let's go!" Sonic said, before quickly dragging Cream out of the way of an incoming laser, before Cream even had time to reply. Sonic zigzagged down the corridor, narrowly avoiding the beams, pulling Cream in tow behind him, as the cameras constantly unleashed their shots down upon the furries.
Outside the base, Chuck and Douglas looked down at the base concerned about the safety of Sonic and his friends as they heard a loud alarm klaxon ring out.
"Shit! I told him to be careful!" Douglas cursed as he put on the headset once more. "What the hell went wrong Sonic? Did you find your buddies?"
"Don't worry about me, everything's fine!" Sonic lied in reply through the headset, as the sounds of lasers crashing into the floor accompanied his response. 'Everything's fine my ass!' Douglas thought, removing the headset again.
"Try and relax Douglas, I'm sure Sonic knows what he's doing!" Chuck said, still looking at the base.
Douglas looked at Chuck as if he was trying to convince him that gargling with razor blades was a fun hobby.
'By the way, if you try that as a hobby and die, then it's not my fault!' Douglas thought to himself, looking back onto the base.
'Wait a minute, who the hell did I just advice not to do that?'
Both the Throndykes were unaware though that while from their position, the could clearly see the base below, they could also be seen clearly from the base, evident by a security camera focusing in on them...
"RUN!" Sonic shouted, as he let go of Cream's arm suddenly. Cheese cried out in distress, believing that Sonic was about to abandon them both.
In an instant, Sonic leapt up from his running movement on the ground and brought his left arm back around him while clenching his fist. When he was about the right height with the camera he was aiming for, he swung his fist back around his body, smashing the camera off it's stand, before propelling himself off the wall, travelling diagonally across the corridor towards the next camera and grabbing a hold of it, utilising a new technique of his that he liked to call the 'Triangle Jump'. Sonic then roughly turned the camera towards the other cameras of the corridor, and using the camera's laser, began picking off the cameras one by one. The cameras instantly exploded on contact with the lasers, rendering them useless. 'I guess I'm still a hot shot after all!' Sonic thought as he took out a few more. Cream looked around in fear at the violence she was witnessing, as she stood holding on tightly to Cheese. Cream was made a little more frightened when she saw Sonic take out another camera, the remains of which fell down in front of her.
"Cream! You have to run!" Sonic called down to her, as he pulled up the camera he had used from its supports.
Cream looked up at Sonic and smiled in realisation. He was only trying to help her, even if it meant all the destruction occurring. "Okay Mr. Sonic!" Cream said, quickly running down the corridor as Sonic tossed down the camera he'd pulled out.
"Topaz! The hedgehog is destroying all the security cameras!"
"Initiate the full lock-down, NOW!"
"YES SIR!" The controller replied, slamming his fist down onto a button beside him.
Closing off corridors. The computer's voice replied, as Topaz watched the monitors show heavy metal blast doors slam shut, blocking off exits routs out of the base.
She smirked. 'Sorry hedgehog, but not even you can survive this on your own...'
"Topaz, we've just discovered a radio channel! It seems the two people in that car are talking with the hedgehog via that headset the hedgehog is wearing!"
"Interesting... Tap into it, and then we can trace them. Also, take some pictures of them and the car, I want to know who they are..."
Cream's eyes filled with fear as she saw a heavy looking door begin to lower in front of her.
"It's closing!" Cream cried out in disbelief. They had come so far, was it all for nothing? Would she still be trapped here, away from her parents, from her mother? What would happen to Sonic, he had only tried to save her and Cheese from the place, would he have to go through what she had?
Sonic instantly realised urgent action was needed, and leapt down from the wall, and in one swift motion scoped in Cream and Cheese and landed running on the floor at the same time, before speeding forwards rapidly towards the closing door. He lowered his head and held Cream tightly into himself, as he raced towards the gad between the floor and the door.
WHOOSH!
Sonic barely made it under in time, as the door slammed down behind him. Sonic and Cream smiled as the looked back, but their joy was quickly ended by the sounds of more lasers ahead. Sonic quickly ground himself to a halt, placing himself in front of Cream and Cheese, using his own body as a shield to protect them, as he stared ahead. There were more cameras, here than in the last, and they were all pointed directly down at them.
Suddenly Cream yelped out in surprise, as both she and Sonic heard a strange buzzing noise up ahead. Peering ahead, a strange cloud-like shape appeared around a bend in the corridor, it was heading in their direction.
"What... What are those?" Cream asked in fear, as Sonic looked more carefully at the cloud as the buzzing became louder. His eyes widened in surprise; it wasn't a cloud, it was a swarm!
A swarm of... paper 'planes?
Sonic readied himself for an attack. But it never came. The 'planes changed course in a millisecond, as one sliced through a camera's support joint to the wall completely, causing the camera to fall lifeless to the floor, while another knocked a camera's support completely off the wall, causing it and the camera to plummet to the ground. Another camera received a 'plane travelling at such speed that it embedded itself deep inside the camera, causing the camera to short circuit. Sonic gazed up in wonder as he watched these small 'planes carry out suicide missions against the security enemy, as more and more cameras were rendered inoperable.
"What's happening?" Cream asked, looking around Sonic, but still too frightened to actually leave his protection.
"I dunno, but I know that this is our chance!" Sonic smiled, as he grabbed a hold of Cream's arm again and led her down the corridor, as cameras continued to buzz with electricity due to the short-circuits, and safely under another blast door before it shut them in the corridor.
"What the hell is going on now?" Topaz shouted across the command room, and workers frantically ran about with printouts and files.
Numerous unidentified objects. The computer's voice declared. At that moment, some of the monitors in the command room switched off. Numerous...Unidentified...The computer started to state, but its voice was draining away and becoming weak, as all the monitors in the room lost power and switched themselves off. As the last monitor closed down, all the lights and controls in the room went off.
"Could someone please tell me what's happened?" Topaz screamed into her communicator.
" 'Planes! There's even more 'planes! They've cut off the main power supply completely, and they've caused the security controls to short-circuit! The cameras are out of control and have taken up all the back-up power! We'll need to do a full shut-down of the base to fix it!"
"Then do it, and fast, before those lasers blow up the whole base!"
The cameras were not just out of control, they were confused. The short circuits in the system caused them to believe that everything, moving or not, was a target. The cameras were randomly aiming at walls, doors, and air-vents and were shooting them down. It caused circuitry behind the walls to explode, it caused sheets of metal to fall from the ceiling and smash into the ground, and it made Cream, Cheese and Sonic want to escape for Area 99 even sooner than ASAP. Sonic held onto Cream tightly as he ran up the emergency staircase they'd found, hoping to find an escape hatch or something, pulling her behind him, as lasers continued to fire upwards and around them.
"You didn't do this as well Mr. Sonic?"
"Like I said, I haven't done anything!" Sonic responded, concentrating on escaping alive. Sonic didn't notice, but a laser cut away a section of the staircase in front of him. Almost by a cruel twist of fate, Sonic stood exactly on this cut-line that had been made, causing the section behind him to fall away.
The section Cream was on.
Cream called out in pure terror, as Sonic looked back and saw the danger. Cream was gripping Sonic's hand tightly, the other hand holding Cheese close to her body, as she dangled in mid-air, suspended only by Sonic holding onto her. More laser beams fired upwards, causing further sections of the staircase to fall away to the floor far below.
Cream trembled and whimpered in fear again, along with Cheese, as they both looked up in hope towards Sonic, who'd faced showed the look of determination. He hadn't let down any of his friends before, and he wasn't going to let that change right now! Sonic heard the sound of another laser close by, probably behind him. The sound of crashing metal filled his ears again as he looked over his shoulder. A very large section of the stairs had fallen away, having fallen victim to the out of control security cameras. Sonic knew that time was rapidly running out now, so he took a firm hold of Cream's arm with his other hand and pulled her quickly up to him, taking her solidly in his arms, as he leapt from the section he was standing on, just as a laser came from below and ripped the section away from the wall. Sonic knew there wasn't any more time for risks, so he began leaping from section to section of the staircase that was still intact, dodging the continued random laser assault from below. Sonic eventually came to rest upon the highest platform of the staircase, where he put Cream down, and stared below. It seemed that far below, a fire was raging that had been started by the cameras. The cameras still fired beams around randomly, but Sonic was too far up now to be hit or affected. They were safe. They were still trapped in the base mind you, but they were still safe.
"You see Cream! I told you we'd make it out okay!" Sonic said, turn to Cream and reassuring her. "I guess you were pretty scared huh?"
Cream shook her head, trying to shake off the bad thoughts now that she and Cheese were out of danger. "Thank you Mr. Sonic!" Cream brightly said, clasping her hands together in a sign of thanks and respect.
Sonic simply replied with his trademark (at least in his world) thumbs-up pose. "It was nothin'!" Sonic modestly replied.
That thought was broken though, as his ears picked up something, something... Outside...
"That sound..." Sonic said out loud, taking off his headset scope, and putting his ear against the wall, hoping to get a better listen to the sound. It sounded strangely familiar, it sounded mechanical, and it sounded just like... An aeroplane engine?
"An airplane?" Sonic questioned himself, before a thought entered his mind. That wasn't any 'plane, it was the Tornado!
"Tails!"
Outside, the Tornado soared above Area 99, as the young kitsune that piloted the craft began a slow circle of the base, coming around a domed structure of the base's buildings.
"Area 99! This has to be where Cream and Cheese are!" Miles Prower reasoned, as he looked down at the base below. Suddenly, what appeared to be a round ball burst through the domed roof of the building Tails was looking at. Of course, Tails recognised the familiar blue fur of his best friend, and the two people he was holding onto. Sonic was here, and saved Cream and Cheese!
"Perfect!" Tails called, as he brought the Tornado down closer towards Sonic. In a seemingly effortless movement, Sonic landed perfectly on the wing of the Tornado, grabbing a firm grip of it as he secured Cream and Cheese as well. Cream still had her eyes closed from Sonic's jump thought the roof, and only just opened her eyes. She looked up, and quickly realised where she was. She was free. Tails brought the 'plane back upwards, high above Area 99, bringing it back into a straight line.
"Hey!" Sonic said, looking over to his good friend.
"Hi!" Tails waved back.
"Mr. Tails! It was you who helped us all along!" Cream said, finally realising what had happened, looking up at the fox with wide, happy eyes.
Tails winked proudly, knowing that he'd once again helped Sonic save the day.
"I just helped, Sonic's the real hero! Now hold on tight so you don't fall off!" Tails called out, as he brought the 'plane around in a turn, before levelling of and flying over the heads of two people in a motorcar.
"Well I'll be... That's the greatest stunt I've ever seen in my life!" Douglas shouted out loud, as he watched the aircraft fly overhead.
"Well, I guess we'd better pull out!" Chuck said, putting the car into gear.
"Yes sir!" Douglas said, giving a mock salute as he buckled his seatbelt, as the aircraft continued to fly into the distance.
Back at the Thorndyke residence, Tails' 'plane, the Tornado, was parked outside the garage that was underneath Chuck's lab, as the two humans, three furries and Chao were introduced to each other.
"I'm Douglas, I met Sonic yesterday evening when he fell into the pool and I pulled him out!"
"I'm Tails! I'm Sonic's bestest buddy, isn't that right Sonic?"
"I suppose..." Sonic replied, putting on a mock 'I don't really care' tone in his voice.
"I'm Cream, and this is my good Chao friend Cheese." Cream said, motioning to the Chao standing beside her. "We're very pleased to meet you!" The rabbit said, before she and Cheese curtsied before Douglas.
Douglas smiled, although a little uneasy at this show of manners. "Yeah, It's a pleasure to meet you as well! You all seem nice people, so I hope we'll get along just fine" Douglas said, although his mind was thinking slightly differently. The newly introduced friends of Sonic didn't seem to notice though. That had been a great attribute of Douglas' from living on the street – The fine art of lying without people noticing it.
"Oh, I almost forgot, this is my Step-Grandfather, but I just call him Chuck since that's his name and it's quicker to say!"
"...Amazing!" Chuck said thoughtfully. He'd been examining one of Tails' small 'planes that he had with him, the ones that had helped in getting Cream and Cheese out of Area 99. "I've never seen such tiny radio controlled airplanes!"
"They're really nothing special!" Tails proudly said, stroking his nose with one of his gloved fingers, as his twin tails flapped behind him.
Douglas took a step away from Tails; put off slightly by the fact the fox had two tails. "Okay..." he turned his attention to Sonic. "Hey! Way to go setting off those alarms back there! You could've had the countries whole damn army and secret service down on you! That sort of stuff can start world wars!"
Sonic looked at Douglas as if he was worrying for nothing, so shrugged of his statement. "Well, what are you going to do?" Sonic said, unconcerned.
Douglas crossed his arms; he was starting to get very annoyed about the hedgehog's attitude. "And what exactly is THAT supposed to mean?" Sonic then mockingly shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know!"
"No, this is REALLY something!" Chuck said to Tails, still holding the 'plane.
"Hey, don't start disrespecting me hedgehog!" Douglas said to Sonic in the background. "If you're gonna stay here, you've gotta play by the rules of this world!"
"Where did you get this kind of science and technology?" Chuck enquired, not paying attention to the argument ensuing.
"Heh, I don't play by any rules!" Sonic replied, not paying attention to the threats in Douglas' voice.
"Where?" Tails asked puzzled, "I can only tell you that it's from my world."
"I got the out safely didn't I?" Sonic challenged again.
"Yes! But where IS your world?" Chuck asked again, leaning forward from his chair, eagerly awaiting a response.
"You got lucky, but next time they'll be ready for your tricks, then what'll happen huh?"
"Well... I guess..." Tails pondered, scratching his head in thought.
"Nothing will happen! I'll beat them all like I always do! There's nothing anyone can do to stop me, unless YOU'D like to try!" Sonic stated, sensing frustration in Douglas' voice.
"When Chaos Control happened, we were transported here through time and space... I think..."
"Interesting..." Chuck replied, thinking over what Tails has said. "Not very helpful, but interesting all the same..."
"MAYBE I'LL LAY A BEATING ON YOUR ASS AND THAT'LL KNOCK SOME DAMN SENSE INTO YOU!" Douglas roared, pulling out his 'fighting gloves from his pocket. Sonic instantly went into a fighting stance as his would-be opponent slipped on the gloves.
"AHEM!" Chuck coughed, which caused Sonic and Douglas to look at the other people in the room, who were smiling uneasily, and seemed to have those weird anime-style sweat-drops on their heads. Douglas stood up straight, responding to the feeling in the room.
"Right... This isn't the time... Or the place..." He noted, looking around the garage. "...But next time you need to rescue your friends, don't look to me for help. Do it yourself if you're so damn cocky!"
"Maybe I will!" Sonic responded.
Douglas turned away, but Sonic noticed the gloves that Douglas had pulled out being put away. They seemed to be well worn and used, were they just used for battles? Sonic could also hear that Douglas was mumbling something under his breath, but he couldn't pick up what... "...Example for the girl..." was all Sonic could pick up, as well as: "...Chris..."
"Hey Sonic..." Tails said, breaking the silence in the room. "Do you think that Chaos Control sent anyone else into this world? You, me, Cream and Cheese were all caught up in it, do you think it's possible? How many people were sent to this world?"
"Well, let's see... I remember that Amy was there, so was Knuckles, and so was..." It was then, that the same thought passed through the minds of Tails, Cream and Sonic, the image of a large bald man with a long moustache.
"DOCTOR EGGMAN!" All three called out at once, causing Douglas to turn around and question what he heard.
'Who the hell's this Eggman guy?'
Water crashed against the sandy beach, as the orange glow from the sunset shined down upon the water of the vast ocean around the small island. The island itself was untouched by human hands, since it was so far away from any civilisation. The only forest on it, although quite thick, was upon a large rock, only accessible by scaling the rock face. It was a sight of beauty to behold, a little tropical paradise...
... Except for the huge metal tower that was currently sticking out of the side of the rock.
Above the huge tower, many little floating security cameras filmed the surrounding area, scanning for any signs of land, of civilisation, and of blue hedgehogs. Inside the tower itself, in a central control room, two robots, one tall, thin and golden coloured, the other short, rounded and silver, stood behind a man who was sitting in front of a large viewing screen, which was currently showing a picture of the vast horizon around the island that the cameras were filming.
"Ohhhhhh..." The large, bald-headed, moustached man exclaimed, as he read some intelligence reports about the place he was in and the state of his operations.
"So I was sent into this world by Chaos Control... Well, that's fine! I'll build the foundations of the Eggman Empire on this world, and then expand my territory to other worlds!"
The man then proceeded to let out a loud, abominable laugh of pure evil, a laugh that only belonged to one person. Doctor Ivo Robotnik – Doctor Eggman.
Meanwhile, in the control room of Area 99, an army officer was hurrying with a file of documents to a woman who was ideally filing her nails.
"Topaz, here's the details of the car and the people who were outside the base. We also found this..." The man held up what looked to be the same infrared scope/headset that the hedgehog had used while in the base. "...By the hole made in the roof where the hedgehog escaped with the test- subjects."
"Good work soldier, now carry on."
"Yes Sir!" The soldier replied, before hurrying out the way he came in. Topaz open the file, and looked at the vehicle registration document that had been copied off for a moment, before turning the page to look at the details of one of the people of the car. The file read: 'Chuck Throndyke'.
"Hmm... Retired scientist... Not the first choice for an mission against a government base... but it says he still invents things, which could explain this scope..." Topaz turned the page again, and looked at the other person, 'Douglas Smicktor- Throndyke'.
Topaz looked at the picture of the younger man, interested by how different he looked to... well, anyone she'd really met, even the president! She looked down the information about him, and something caught her eye: 'Profession: Pro-Wrestler, turn over page for more details.'
Topaz turned the page, and was taken aback by an image placed on the page. It was a photo of Douglas, but he had been cut open in the for-head, so that a crimson mask of his own blood covered his own face. What was more worrying was the smile on his face. The smile seemed diabolical, it seemed evil, it seemed... That Douglas was enjoying himself...
Next Episode Preview: voice over by Douglas Thorndyke
"Well, I finally find out just who the 'Eggman' guy is! Problem is, he wants to take over the city to start some big empire, and he's got a huge missile-launching robot backing him up! It's wrecking the city, and Sonic's no-where in sight! Of all the times he chooses to disappear... And who the hell's Knuckles and Amy anyway?
Next time on Sonic eXcluded: 'An 'Eggs'-treme Problem!' Don't miss it!"
That's Episode 2! I've played around a bit with the presentation of it, which I think people will like. I'm currently tweaking around with the original Sonic X storyline, but it will mostly be focused on Sonic and Douglas, with some original storylines remaining, while others are removed and burned. But now I'd like to respond to my kind reviewers...
Sonic/Anime - Douglas is interesting, we'll see some of his character in episode 4, as well as what's happened to Chris... The age explains why he uses naughty swear words alot, but it's a minor issue (at least I think so). I hope you enjoy this episode
KK Fox - Thank you! I wanted to do something different from other Sonic X re-writes (the Sonic X/Sonic Heroes fic by Kojiokida2 was a big factor for me doing this story.) so it's good to hear I'm doing something right with it. Keep on reading!
hyper Phantom - Like I've said, this is a different story not just to other Sonic X fics, but to my other works, but I'm glad to hear that you find it interesting and you like it.
Zyzz - Anti-Chris are we? Don't worry, that probably the main area of appeal for this story (that Chris isn't the main human (which is Douglas BTW) ). I hope I do keep up the good work for all my readers.
Thanks again to all my reviewers, and to those about to review this chapter, and stay tuned for the next episode!
N.B. Edited on 19-11-04 for paragraphing reasons and minor editing
Edited 01/05/05 - All Song lyrics have been removed as par the rules of FanFiction-dot-net.
