UlTrRa SiK pRoDuCtIoNs pReSeNtZ:
LoVe'S bUrN
By: UlTrAa ShAdDow
Disclaimer: I don't own any of Sega's characters….but I'd be a very happy guy if I did!
-Hey Readers and Reviewers alike, a new C2 had been started by yours truly. It's called, 'The Legends of Fanfiction' and if you want to join as a staff member, or have a fic in mind that you think deserves legendary status…Let me know.
-Well, here comes another chapter and thanks for the awesome reviews as always! And enjoy the long chapter goodness.
"You can close your eyes to things you don't want to see, but you can't close your heart to things you don't want to feel."
Third POV….
Everyone in the red room was motionless, like wax figurines in a museum exhibit. Each individual was replaying the incident over and over again in their minds. Truly wondering, had they just really witnessed what they thought.
"He's--" Rouge grimaced.
"…He's dead," Sonic flat-lined, voice emotionless.
Amy covered her mouth wordlessly as her green-tinged eyes took in everything and nothing all at once, and Daisy stepped backwards, trembling greatly; just like the blue hedgehog, they too had been flung headfirst into an ocean of confusion.
Achilles looked down at the lifeless, twisted remains of the doctor. To his disappointment, there had been no bright, flashy explosions when his creator perished. Although there was a deep crimson puddle accumulating on the chrome-colored floor.
The newest experiment peered at his red-stained gloves. They had once been perfectly white, but now they had been permeated by the same, red fluid pooling around the doctor, "…Warm…"
Scythe got past the lump in his dry throat to speak hoarsely, "…You killed him…" Achilles moved his line of sight from the dead scientist to his older creation. If he remembered correctly, his creator had told him that he was his brother.
And whatever his creator said was true, but it did stir Achilles as a bit odd that his brother looked nothing remotely like him. If anything, the shrimpy girl hedgehog behind his brother looked more suited to pass as his sister.
He continued to watch his brother with fascinated, cobalt eyes. Scythe's angst drained away to be replaced with a feral anger, "You killed him! You bastard!" Instead of feeling sorrow, Achilles smiled, and halfway waved, "Hello, my name's Achilles."
Scythe paused, flabbergasted at the gold hedgehog's last words. He missed the manner Sonic and Amy exchanged astonished looks; Achilles' bright smile didn't falter in the prescience of the surprised faces. In fact, he even smiled larger, "What's your names? My creator said that you're my older brother. Is that so?"
In response, Scythe frowned and clamped his mouth shut; just what in the world was wrong with this guy? It doesn't seem like he has all of his marbles. Which in Scythe's book, made him about a thousand times much more dangerous.
"That's correct," a cool voice purred.
Rouge appeared beside Achilles with a friendly smile plastered to her face, "That's Scythe, your brother. The blue hedgehog's Sonic, the pink one's Amy and the smallest one is Daisy."
"She's yellow like me," Achilles replied, "We look as if we could be related."
Rouge nodded her head, then spoke in a smooth purr, "But do you know what else your father told you? Within his last words?" Achilles looked down momentarily, racking his memory. Sonic was more than sure that the gold hedgehog found what Rouge was looking for when he settled an intense, cerulean gaze upon them.
"Well then," Rouge replied, "If you remember your father's last words, then complete his final will and finish them!"
Sonic and Scythe readjusted themselves into a defensive stance as they fell back a couple of feet from both Rouge and Achilles. Amy stepped before Daisy, acting as a shield. Rouge crossed her arms and smiled contently; so even in light of the doctor's death, it was still very possible to carry out his world domination ploy…on an alternative route of course.
And so far, Achilles looked like a wonderful plan B. Achilles smiled; his irises washed in an odd, bright sapphire, "My name's Achilles, and I'm going to kill you all." He snapped into action and leapt at the gasping pink hedgehog.
"You think we lost them?"
"I certainly hope so."
Tails and Tikal panted greedily as the relished the air around them. They were recuperating in one of the Sahara Base's deserted hallways. Tails took a seat on the floor as Tikal rested her back against a wall, gazing upward. Tails looked across the hallway to Tikal, "…Do you think Knuckles is okay?"
Aqua eyes rested on the two-tailed fox, "Knuckles is a superior guardian. If he could complete his vigorous training, then he can handle anything."
"Wow, those are some pretty strong words, Tikal," Tails smiled, "I bet Knuckles would be flattered if he heard all that!" Tikal blinked as her face heated up, "It is true! He is a good guardian! ….And I base that testimony not from my feelings! So stop giving me that impish look!"
Tails and Tikal exchanged friendly smiles. Both smiles faded quickly when they detected the sound of approaching footsteps. Tails rose to his feet as Tikal began to hover. Tearing around a corner bend, Knuckles appeared with Cream in hand running like a madman, "Run! RUN!"
Tikal and Tails traded anxious looks before they turned tail and ran. The young fox peddled himself with his spinning twin tails as the monarch flew through the air. Tails happened to steal a glance over his shoulder and almost yelped at the sight.
Hot on the guardian's trail was an innumerable mass of robotic drones. A sea of lifeless metal pursued Knuckles, and that thought sent chills down Tails' spine. Tails and Tikal tore around a corner bend and entered a small door. If Tails hadn't stuck his head out and grabbed Knuckles, the guardian would have ran past them.
And the second Knuckles entered the room; he sealed the door shut behind him. As Tikal checked on Knuckles, Tails took the time to study their surroundings; it looked as if they were in another endless hallway with multiple doors.
"Oh," Tails moaned, throwing his hands in the air aggravated, "It looks like another, yellow brick road to the Wizard Oz!"
"Are you sure you're fine?" Tikal asked thoughtfully.
"Yeah," Knuckles replied, "…Just…a little tired."
He handed Cream to Tikal as he rested for the moment. Tails spun to face Knuckles suspiciously, "…Just how many steps were those drones behind you?"
"…Why do you ask?"
Loud, violent bangs boomed as the sealed door thumped, it appeared that someone was trying to break through from the outside in. Tails looked at Knuckles and crossed his arms, "That's why."
Knuckles grimaced; the thought of hundreds of metal, titanium androids trying to break down a door being held by a single red echidna didn't sit too well in his stomach. Knuckles looked at Tikal and Tails, "You guys better get going, I think I can hold them off for a few seconds.
Tikal gasped, appalled at the thought of leaving a comrade behind and Tails frowned.
"Bullshit!"
"Impossible!"
Knuckles sighed at the mixed reactions, "Look, Tikal you guys need to find the others and help them out, and take care of Cream too. I'll be right behind you guys in a matter of seconds, and Tails, if I ever hear you say another word like that again, I'll call Sonic here so fast, your head will still be spinning when he paddles you."
Tails huffed, "Still, I am NOT all for leaving you out here to hang!"
"No he's right," Tikal placed a hand on Tails' shoulder as she brought her gaze to meet Knuckles' eyes, "He is right. The others shall need our assistance. We cannot wait any longer and allow any more time to slip through our fingers."
"Well, you promise you'll follow us right after you buy us time?" Tails asked tentatively.
"I promise," Knuckles noogied the top of Tails' head, "Now get lost!"
Tikal beamed at the guardian one last time before she knew off, with Cream resting in her arms. Tails looked at Knuckles a moment longer before he followed the flying echidna. Knuckles watched until the three of them entered a door. Knuckles stood outside of the door, "You guys all good in there?"
The princess's soft voice answered, "Yes Knuckles, indeed we are."
Knuckles nodded his head then looked at the number pin-code pad beside the door. Tails and Tikal were only able to access the door because it had been left open but now that they had closed it, there was no way Knuckles was getting in. And the echidna wanted to make sure that no one else would either.
With a flick of his hand, he raked his knuckled-fist over the number key-pad. A couple of sparks sprayed as the device was destroyed efficiently. From the other side of the door, muffled footsteps approached, "Knuckles? What was that?"
"Don't worry," Knuckles smiled, "You guys are safe, I'll take care of everything."
"What is he speaking of?" Tikal seemed to be addressing Tails, "I am awaiting your reply, Knuckles!"
Knuckles placed a hand to the door, and smiled lightly, "…Take care of her Tails…"
He turned on his heel and spun to walk toward the damaged, breaking door. All the way he trekked towards the intruding foes; he ignored the cries of his allies, "Knuckles! What did you do? We can't open the door!"
"Knuckles! Knuckles? Are you there? Answer me!"
"Let us out!"
The door unhinged violently as a flock of android drones flooded in the room. They scanned the room vigorously until they detected one of their targets. In their path stood a single echidna.
"Knuckles open the door!"
"Knuckles! Please, you cannot do this! Listen to us!"
But their pleas went through one ear and out the other as Knuckles slowly approached the robotic crowd. He draped toward them ominously, with his eyes hidden within thick shadows.
"Power Flash!"
"Oh!" Amy blinked numbly, feeling air streak by. She had been vaguely aware that Achilles had dived for her, and if it had not been for the lightning-fast reflexes of her favorite blue hedgehog.
…But by removing Amy from Achilles' path, Sonic had accidentally left Daisy in Achilles' warpath. But Scythe was quick enough to erase the blunder and appear before her, "Who are you aiming for? Your fight's with me little brother."
Achilles smiled as he rose to his feet, "But does it really matter? All of you shall be terminated in a matter of seconds."
Scythe narrowed his eyes and threw a punch at the golden hedgehog and received nothing but air for his efforts. Sonic and the girls back away from the fight, trying to distance themselves. Achilles grin grew and Scythe followed his attack with another punch, having the same success as his previous attempt; none.
"Dear brother," Achilles crooned, "Is this what you meant to do?"
Achilles struck Scythe in the face with a blow as fluid as water. And while his older sibling was stumbling, Achilles took the opportunity to smash him in the ribs with a kick. Scythe hit the floor grimacing as Achilles stood a ways from him, looking at him with a perfect smile, "Funny, I thought since you're my older brother, you should be showing me the ropes!"
The ebony and silver hedgehog sat up with a snarl as his eyes ignited terribly, "How could you kill your own creator, your 'father' as you oh so loving call him?"
Briefly, Achilles' smile disappeared and he answered humorlessly, "Last time I checked, you came to kill him yourself. And since I killed him, you morn? So when someone else beats you to the punch, it's a tragedy but if you killed him, you'd be twiddling your thumbs happily; just proves how much of a hypocrite you are."
Daisy blinked, startled by the sudden change in the other yellow hedgehog. Now that she saw him stone-faced she thought to actually like the insane, grinning facade better. Scythe spat to his side, "How dare you even think you did me a favor! Our situations are completely different!"
The flaxen hedgehog stared at him wordlessly, and although he stared at him forebodingly, he waited, prompting Scythe to continue. Scythe shook his head, "Eggman treated me no better than the ground you walk on, he even tried to kill me. Meanwhile you were born being showered with what appeared to be…"
Scythe threw his hand into the air impatiently, "Whatever, the point is he trusted you. I never betrayed his trust like you, even the little he did give me. Hell, if he even treated me half as well as he treated you; I probably wouldn't have half of the problems that I do."
Achilles narrowed his blue eyes as he watched Scythe rise to his feet. The black and silver hedgehog in his vision pointed at him, "So that's why I'm going to finish this whole, damn world domination thing. I'll wipe out Eggman's plans completely; I'll start with you, then destroy this lab, and finish with myself."
A stale silence hung in the air heavily, as everyone digested Scythe's words, even Rouge and Achilles remained quiet. Achilles stared at his brother levelly, as if reevaluating him. The thick silence broken when Daisy choked out a sobbed reply, "…Is this true? Is that how you really feel about yourself? I don't think anything's wrong with you…I don't want you to die! So don't say stupid stuff like that! 'Cause I like you a lot! Really! We all do!"
Scythe turned and looked at Daisy, for one of the few times in a friendly manner, "…What?"
"Don't worry pseudo sister," Achilles replied flatly, the small yellow hedgehog looked at him blankly, "He speaks as if he'll actually get the chance to carry out his plans."
He looked at Sonic, Amy, and Daisy with a sweeping gaze and ended with Scythe, "Maybe you're right brother, perhaps I am wrong for betraying the trust of our creator that you have toiled for vainly. And maybe you are the better 'son' between the two of us…But either way, I don't care."
A quick, fiendish smile curled on Achilles' face as he darted toward Sonic. The blue blur frowned as he managed to avoid Achilles' blow with a backwards somersault. But what took Sonic by surprise was the moment he caught Achilles hovering in mid-air. He smiled at the shocked expression on Sonic's face and head-butted him in the stomach.
Before Achilles could deliver another blow, Scythe grabbed one of his legs. Achilles gazed back with a frown and kicked Scythe akin to a bucking bronco. Scythe hit a wall with a satisfying thud and slid down slightly. Daisy scrambled to his side and began to shake him, hoping to rouse him back to clear consciousness.
He opened his eyes just in time to see a charging Amy Rose encroach Achilles. Achilles smiled and landed beside Rouge, who wisely removed herself from his path. He picked up furniture and began hurling assorted office furniture; chairs, bookshelves, even a loveseat.
But, the barrage of flying furniture didn't stop Amy as she twirled her hammer skillfully, as one would spin a baton. It didn't matter what Achilles threw at her because she smashed it without breaking a stride.
When Amy thought she was in a safe enough distance to strike, she hopped on top of a desk and brought the hammer above her head with a cry. This round, Achilles decided to throw a steel desk at the pink hedgehog.
Both the sheer force and weight of the metal desk stopped Amy midair and brought her to the ground with the desk on top of her. The heavy metal desk dug into her skin and blood welled.
Shadow skid to a halt in a silent hallway. However, his interest was perked when he saw a flicking light. He headed down the hallway at a cautious stride. The farther he traveled down the hall, the more suspicious things became.
He stopped at another hallway, with this one being littered with broken, smoky androids. The lights had been completely destroyed in this area, only the glowing number-key pads and door lights protected the room from complete darkness.
With each passing step in the hallway, Shadow heard loud crunches under his feet, and smelt a burnt metallic tang. It must have come from his shoes passing over metal. He disabled the fire setting in his shoes and chose to walk normally.
His eyes strolled over the fallen metal solider numbly, thinking nothing of the pooling oil in the hallway. He stopped in the middle of the hallway when he finally found something to care about in the metal clutter.
Lying in the middle of the floor, face-down was a red echidna under a beam of ceiling light. It was almost as if Heaven herself was illuminating the echidna with a single shaft of light.
"Amy!" Sonic cried stricken.
He, as well as Daisy, went to the desk. Amy kicked and struggled wildly, claiming that the desk was crushing her. Sonic looked at Daisy, and they both began to try to remove the desk. And when they both finally were able to elevate the desk high enough, Amy rolled from under the desk seconds before it dropped.
"Amy…" Sonic said, unsure of how to begin. His trembling hands hovered over the fallen girl unsurely. At times he'd even pull his hands away from her, in fear that he'd deteriorate her condition.
In the center of her abdomen was a shallow, yet long laceration across her stomach. A dark red fluid seeped from the wound. Sonic sadly glanced at Amy's face, where her opaque green eyes fluttered, battling for consciousness.
Daisy reached for Amy's hand mutely. Her chocolate eyes were filled with tears. She watched as Sonic ran a gentle hand through the ribbon-like strands of Amy's quills. His warm emerald gaze iced when he head approaching footsteps, Achilles loomed with his large smile in place.
"Shortcake," Sonic said, "Watch over Amy. Her wound won't kill her, she'll live."
Sonic stood, with an unusually nasty glare in place. Daisy gulped silently as she took in Sonic's new glare; someone was certainly in trouble now. Achilles approached with a smile, "You're right about one thing, the flesh wound won't kill her…but I shall…"
"Achilles," his ears twitched and he turned to look at Rouge, she pointed behind him, "Don't get careless."
The golden hedgehog studied Rouge momentarily before he turned to look behind him. Scythe stood with a clenched fist and a hazardous stare. Achilles didn't need to be a mind reader to know that his brother was lusting for a fight, it was as plain as day on his face, "Before you stray off, fight me."
Achilles shrugged, "Fine. Then let's fight."
Scythe leapt from his previous spot and appeared before his sibling in a black blur. Scythe flooded Achilles with quick torrents of punches, blows that were much too quick for any normal bystander to catch.
Even Rouge, who was cooped up in the corner of the room, had to concentrate to read each blow. But it certainly didn't take a pro to see who was getting the better of the fight. Halfway through his assault, he was grimacing, swinging much less accurately as Achilles dodged, leapt, and maneuvered as gracefully as any ballerina.
Sonic grimaced; he could see exactly what was going to happen: Scythe was going to burn himself out, as Achilles was counting on, and then the sick hedgehog would pounce. Achilles smiled as he dodged one last punch and swung behind his brother. Achilles hit him with three kicks to the back before Scythe even knew he was behind him.
Daisy gasped as Scythe spilled to the floor ungracefully. But Scythe had much more pride, and fight, to stay down. He rose to his feet and charged at his brother. Only this time, he changed up his aggressive tactic and attacked much less. This enabled Achilles to take the initiative in the fight.
He grabbed a handful of dark quills and rammed Scythe's face repeatedly against his knee. With each thump, Achilles' laughter grew louder and more vibrant. Daisy shuddered at the horrific sight as her eyes went wide.
Finally he broke the grapple off with a hard right to the face, and Scythe stumbled back and collapsed, panting on his knees. Achilles stood over him triumphantly with his hands on his hips, a bright smile fixed on his face, "What? Is that all the fight you have? I--"
Scythe rose to his feet and began attacking again, with much more vigor. Achilles' Cheshire cat grin stayed ever present on his face as he moved as lithe and as smoothly as a cat. The elder of the two brothers felt himself beginning to fall to the will of fatigue, but Achilles looked as if he hadn't even broken a sweat, and to rub salt in the wound, he placed his hands behind his back, "…Look, no hands!"
The cyborg gritted his teeth and continued to plow, and Achilles continued to spout off, "Perhaps you should aim lower, or higher…you know, take me by surprise!"
The black hedgehog trudged on painstakingly; not only were his attacks not working, but Achilles was taunting him. Throwing out cute, helpful quips left and right. But what was most discouraging about the gold hedgehog's taunting were not his words, but his voice.
It sounded gleeful and held no traces of exhaustion. So what was going for him in the fight? He hadn't landed a single blow, Achilles wasn't tired and was continuously draining his morale with each passing second, and not to mention that the gold hedgehog was making him look weak before a certain yellow hedgehog…
The worst part of the situation was… that he was actually trying to sock it to his brother! Even as hard as he fought, it was useless. What good was wearing your heart on your sleeve, if one was receiving no fruits for their labor? With each passing second he was slowly beginning to believe that…
This time, Achilles merely slapped Scythe in the face, just hard enough to leave a sting, "Brother, I believe it is obvious that you are no match for me."
"Shut up…" Scythe threw an ill-aimed punch at Achilles. The gold hedgehog barely moved to his left and swatted his brother in the face again, "…Maybe once upon a time you were useful..."
"Shut up!" Scythe threw a much wilder punch. This time, Achilles barely moved his head, and followed through with another swat to the face, "But now that I exist…You're obsolete."
"I said shut up!"
He threw a slower punch that Achilles merely craned his neck to avoid, another slap followed, "Archaic."
Another terrible punch followed.
"Dated."
A slower jab.
"Old-fashioned."
A worse punch followed.
"Useless."
An expression washed with both anger and strain stretched over Scythe's face. With the last blow he sent at Achilles, his brother didn't even have to move to avoid it. Achilles shook his head, then smacked Scythe one last time with a much harder blow to the face. And Scythe plummeted as gravity guaranteed. The gold hedgehog loomed over his brother dangerously, with a disgusted sneer on his face, "…Weak."
He jerked Scythe off of the floor by his ear and forced him on his knees, forcing him to stare into blazing blue eyes, "Now that I have been brought into this world, you no longer have a purpose. You have been replaced. You are like an old, antique television, it was some good in its day, but now that the new model has shown up, you place nowhere near my ranks. You are inferior!"
Achilles dropped a blank-eyed Scythe to the floor. What a nice, perfect example his brother had used to describe him. An outdated, old model of some sort. And even when he fought against his brother, although he wouldn't admit it to himself, he knew that Achilles was better, irrefutably better.
He hadn't even managed to make him break a sweat. Scythe stared at the floor numbly, allowing the recent words to swirl around in his head. At once, he began to feel extremely sick to his stomach.
"…Obsolete…" Scythe murmured impassively.
"I've had enough of this," Sonic hissed disgustedly.
"Scythe!" Daisy screamed, heartbroken, "Don't you DARE believe his words!"
Sonic narrowed his eyes, "Fight with me, since you obviously need a challenge."
Achilles looked at Sonic, "…Well Sonic. I was planning on finishing my weaker brother first…I suppose I can fit you into my schedule." Rouge tensed and crossed her arms, "…Just take him out already! The sooner we get rid of the bigger threats, the less we have to deal with."
Sonic tossed his walkie-talkie to Daisy, who appeared surprised that she was able to catch his throw, "Here shortcake. Watch over Ames, I'm going to give this guy a major reality check. Listen incase the others decide to contact us."
Daisy nodded her head and peered at the large walkie-talkie. She gulped, hoping that if she received a signal, she'll know how to respond. Wait! Instead of waiting for them, why not contact them? Daisy's eyes glinted as a fresh, hot idea brewed in her head.
Tails and Tikal were in lower spirits, thinking the worst for Knuckles. His sacrifice had been noble to say the least. They didn't know exactly what had happened outside of their walls, but they certainly heard the deafening explosion.
The young genius sighed sadly as he plucked at his two tails despondently, and Tikal looked as if she was on the verge of releasing the Niagara Falls. Cream sat motionlessly in the room, staring at a blank wall; Tikal had managed to heal her, but on her return into consciousness, she was greeted with sadness, learning about Knuckles.
Tails wiped his nose with the back of his hand as Tikal burst into tears, slumping to the floor. Cream remained silent, playing with her hands. Tails looked at her sadly as he fought off a batch of his own tears, "…Don't cry Tikal, he wouldn't want that…"
"He's gone! Oh he's gone!" She wailed, face contorted by misery, "I wasted all that time! I'll never tell him how I loved him so! Sit mortuus! EGO sum repletus per a flumen of moestitia!"
Another sea of tears fell from the weeping monarch, and she wailed in an old, unrecognizable tongue. Tails looked skyward and shook his head remorsefully. Things just weren't good at all today…and they didn't even know how the others were fairing. The static of a radio filled the silent air, "…Please, someone, please come in!"
The golden fox picked up the radio without even removing his eyes from the floor, "…What?"
"Eggman's released another experiment, an insane experiment!" Daisy said shrilly.
"Well, that's a surprise," Tails bit sarcastically.
"It's…it's the worst thing I've ever seen…he killed him…"
Tails perked up, as Cream turned to look at him, "What did you say?"
"It…Achilles, killed Eggman, as soon as he told his creation to kill us…" Daisy griped.
"Oh…" Tails searched for words, but was too surprised to find any real intelligent ones, "So now what?"
" 'So now what?'" Daisy asked incredulously, "I was hoping you'd tell us something resourceful."
"We just lost Knuckles…How about that for resourceful…" Tails said with an edge to his voice.
Daisy was silent briefly, "Well, where are you guys? What about Shadow? Is he with you? He still isn't here yet."
Tails sighed, "We haven't seen him…Things just keep getting better and better…"
Both he and Cream exchanged sharp glances. The echidna princess shook her head sadly; now barely mumbling her ancient dialect; the thought of Knuckles being dead drove her wild with despair.
Even if she returned to Angel Island, things wouldn't be the same; without the guardian, the Island would be unbearably lonely; a hell in itself for her. Aquamarine eyes swept the surroundings; they appeared to have been stationed in a dark computer lab.
Tikal had little knowledge of technology; she barely knew what a computer was, and that was all due in part to Knuckles' information swapping. The echidna princess reached for the door, hoping to lean on it and incidentally; her hand went through it. Tikal blinked stupidly, as realization hit her. She turned to Tails, calling his name repeatedly.
But when he failed to turn around fast enough, the princess bopped him upside the head, "Hey! Whaat? What is it?" Tikal performed the hand-disappearing through the wall trick for him again and smiled at his gapping mouth, "Holy cow! I totally forgot about that! I mean, we were all caught up with Knuckles and--"
Tikal shook her head with a smile, "Think nothing of it. Perhaps I have an idea…"
"And perhaps I'd like to hear it."
"You shall stay here with little Cream. Meanwhile I shall search for either the dark hedgehog, or the other companions. And as you reside in here, you can study the computers."
Tails' eyes lit up, "As in try to hack the computers and find out valuable information?" Tikal looked unsurely at Tails, "…Um, yes, you shall 'hack', as I shall seek out the others. And perhaps I shall find Knuckles and restore him to his proper stature. Just as I did with little Cream."
Tails looked up hopefully at Tikal, "Sounds good Tikal. And remember, if you get lost, come back here immediately, we're room A-09, okay?"
The princess nodded her head, "I comprehend. Farewell Tails…may your 'hacking' go well."
Tails grin erupted, "Likewise Tikal. Find the others!"
A translucent Tikal smiled at the two-tailed fox as she passed through the wall. She reappeared in a hallway littered with broken metal drones. Tikal sensed another presence in the room and nimbly turned to face the person. Her war scowl faded from her face as she landed behind a familiar hedgehog. She tilted her head slightly, "…Dark hedgehog?"
Sonic puffed deep breaths as he stared down Achilles. They stood no more than twenty feet away from each other, and yet either combatant moved. The blue hero was stuck, trying to formulate a plot while Achilles was beaming at him brightly.
Wait a minute, Sonic trying to think of a plan!? As incredible as it may be, Sonic wasn't an idiot like everyone thought he was. Sure he may be a risk-taker, a gambler, a joker, maybe even a hothead, but the blue hero wasn't stupid.
Deep green eyes were creased in thought; charging half-cocked with adreniline blaring at a foe as powerful as Achilles wasn't moronic, it was suicidal. The blue champion flexed his fingers as he thought; there had to be some way to attack Achilles. He may be powerful but he certainly wasn't impervious.
Sonic bared his teeth; he was going to make sure that by the end of today, even if he died here, Achilles was going to know that he was mortal and bled red just like everyone else. Bet on it. Achilles was going to bleed through Sonic's manipulation. The gold hedgehog smiled at him shamelessly, as he did anyone else, "Well?"
The blue hero closed his eyes, feeling power stir in his body, then unleashed his attack, "Sonic Wind!"
Achilles dodged the attack effortlessly and sprang up beside him. Sonic dodged his first few blows masterfully before Achilles began to pummel with attacks. Sonic defended himself with his hands as Achilles seized the moment and tripped him.
However, before the blue hedgehog could fall to the floor, Achilles struck him with a heel to the stomach. Sonic slid on the floor before he popped up, glaring at the smiling hedgehog. He heard a light cackle from the far side of the room.
He turned to see Rouge smiling at him, "My, my, my, only if Eggman could have lived to see this moment! Sonic being blown away by his very experiment! So how does it feel to loose, O blue hero? Karma is a nasty thing."
Sonic ignored the large gashes on his face, on the pain he felt when he smiled, "…Who said I was losin'?"
"Oh please," Rouge rolled her eyes, "You have yet to touch him. The world greatest hero can't even beat a hedgehog who's been in this world for less than ten minutes!"
Then Rouge smiled smugly at him, "Oh by the way, if I was you, I'd watch who you were fighting…"
Sonic snapped around to be greeted with a fist to the face. Daisy grimaced slightly as she watched Sonic skid painfully against the floor. Daisy eagerly turned to face Scythe and tapped his shoulder lightly, "Scythe, please, you have to help Sonic. Neither of you can stop him on your own! He's…too powerful!"
The pigtailed hedgehog frowned slightly as she thought to herself outloud,"…I have no idea what Eggman did to that hedgehog…but if we want to live tomorrow, you're going to have to help Sonic!"
Scythe shook his head, "…He's right, he is more powerful than I…you saw our fight…"
Daisy gasped, "So you're going to give up? Just because he's a little stronger? And faster?"
"You wouldn't understand," Scythe shook his head, "I'm outclassed in every way. He is correct, I'm inadequate to stop him."
Achilles' laughter rang out in the lab. Daisy turned to see a staggering Sonic rising to stand to his feet. Then Daisy frowned at Scythe angrily, "Well! I never thought I'd say this to you of all people…but how could you quit?"
She pointed told Sonic, with her brown eyes glinting fiercely, "Do you see him quitting? He's taken blow for blow, just like you! But when he falls, he gets right back up…or at least he tries to. If he falls here today, with his last breath being in this laboratory, then he can die proudly, knowing that he lived his last seconds as a hero, with no regrets."
Scythe looked from Daisy, then to Sonic. True, the blue hedgehog had taken quite a beating, with blood leaking from multiple wounds, but just as Daisy said, when Sonic hit the floor violently, he slowly made his way to his feet, and glared at Achilles with valiant, green eyes.
"You know, you once had that spark in your eyes," Daisy began flatly, "But it fizzled out somewhere along the lines when you began to actually listened to the gold bastard."
Scythe glanced up at Daisy, uncustomary to hearing such coarse words flow from her lips. But Daisy seemed to think nothing of it. She finally returned her eyes on him, "That spark, was what made me fall head over heels for you…But, I guess since you won't help Sonic, then I will."
Daisy turned her back to him and glared, searching the lab for an adequate weapon. Scythe stared at her, appalled, "You can't fight him! You don't even know any self defense."
With the glare she presented Scythe, it looked like she took one out of his book, "War changes people. Or maybe I should say seeing valor changes people."
The petite hedgehog found a pipe and wretched it from the ground. When she turned to face Achilles, she took a deep breath, calming her nerves, and charged at him furiously. Scythe watched wordlessly, as Daisy rushed at the gold hedgehog.
The innocent girl that had played teatime with him and served him pastries a few months ago was now rushing headstrong into battle with a pipe in hand with the intentions of denting in a skull. Something about that idea made Scythe's stomach flip.
Sonic received an elbow to the face, leaving him to sputter around in a daze. Scythe felt himself freeze as she saw Achilles turn just in time to face an approaching Daisy. She swung the pipe in a horizontal arch, hoping to strike Achilles right across the chest. Her swing ended abruptly as Achilles held onto the other side of the steel pipe.
To even accent her bad precision, he lifted the pipe a couple of inches so she comically dangled above the floor. Smiling, Achilles shook the pipe slightly so Daisy swung her legs. Achilles laughed at the sight as Daisy gasped, feeling air beneath her feet.
She finally dared a look at the gold hedgehog. One bronze eye opened, then the other and Achilles greeted her with warm smile, "Have things gotten so dire that my pseudo sister has decided to attack me?"
Daisy stared wordlessly at Achilles, her face settled into an unfriendly scowl. She attempted to kick him, but she fell a couple of inches short, as her small stature worked against her. Achilles laughed even harder, "Too bad I have to kill you pseudo sister, you're entertaining."
He shrugged and dropped the pipe, so that Daisy hit the floor. Then he picked up the steel duct again and smiled at the false brave frown she presented. The pigtailed hedgehog frowned; she was going to give him a fight juts like Sonic! She was going to come at him until her last breath.
With this thought in mind Daisy rushed at the gold hedgehog again, but this time she was grabbed by her short pigtails. He leaned her backwards as she groped the air helplessly. The red haze in Sonic's vision was just beginning to settle when he set his sight on the sweet little Shortcake struggling in Achilles' grasp.
The same insane smile that he wore at the time of Eggman's death was present on his face. Accompanying the grin where light, sapphire blue eyes in place of his usually deep, ocean-blues. Sonic staggered, rushing over to Daisy, "No! Stop! Don't hurt her!"
Sonic heard her squeak and he heard the thick crack of a snapping bone. His breath froze as he stopped moving, watching the scene intently. In place of Daisy, Achilles had swung the pipe and hit one of Scythe's arms.
If memory served the blue hedgehog correctly, Achilles hit the humorous bone; that stupid anatomy class he barely scraped by did actually help. Scythe snarled defensively at Achilles and moved a good distance away to set Daisy down. The yellow hedgehog looked at him with big, hopeful eyes. "Scythe?"
"Don't," he replied, keeping his eyes glued on Achilles, " 'Cause if I look at you…I won't be able to take my eyes off of you…"
Daisy's face rosed, "What does that mean?"
The smile erased from Scythe's face as he held his arm and glared at Achilles. His brother watched him utterly amused. He leaned on the pipe, watching his brother approach him. Scythe stopped a couple of feet before him when he drew himself into a fighting stance.
Something clicked in Achilles' head; just where had this new, renewed vigor come from? This was something he had to find out for himself, "You want to face me brother? Just moments ago you were sniveling on the ground."
Scythe glared at him ominously, not saying a word. Achilles' smile turned slightly self-righteous, "…So what did it take to awaken you from your almost catatonic state?"
"Let's just fight," Scythe huffed, voice and anger controlled. He bounced on his toes, waiting.
Achilles shrugged and threw the pipe at his brother. Scythe ducked and slid away from Achilles. His back arched and he bared his teeth as he felt power surge threw his body, "Raging Lance!"
Amused, Achilles darted to and fro, avoiding the silver sparks of pulsating energy. He managed to make his way behind Scythe and struck him with a kick to the back.
The older of the two brothers fell flat on his stomach and with a furious roar, front flipped to his feet. Scythe slid on the floor, trying to slide-tackle his brother, but Achilles read the move and rose into the air momentarily, before he crashed on his brother and straddled him.
Scythe fought furiously, trying to remove Achilles at all costs, but the gold hedgehog merely smiled as he twisted Scythe's broken arm. The prototype screwed up his face in all efforts to hold back a scream. Achilles looked at him happily, "So tell me brother, do you have feelings for our pseudo sister? Hmm?"
His older brother snarled but did not answer him. Achilles' smile turned malignant, "You know…my data tells me that you were created to be a late adolescent. Like Eighteen or nineteen or so. And how old she is? Twelve? Ten?"
"Fourteen you bastard…" he hissed, normally, he wouldn't have answered, but he had to take his mind off the searing pain burning in his crushed arm, "And what damn business is it of yours who I like?"
"As your brother, I think you're far too old for her," Achilles said, "You sicko."
"Well," Scythe hissed, "Who gives a damn what you think?"
Achilles shrugged, "Well, I can't say I approve, but I can promise one thing…that you'll both be enjoying your afterlives together."
Scythe's mind wandered as he saw his brother prepare to deliver what looked to be the final blow. Already the pain was fogging his mind, but he was completely gone when he began to dwell on other thoughts, the ones that he always tended to push out of his mind.
'So, this is it huh," he thought blankly, 'I've had a near death experience before…but I'm sure pretty boy here is gonna finish the job this time…And who the hell does care if I like that ditzy yellow hedgehog? She's actually kind of cute when she gets mad…but she may even become a babe when she's a few years older…Aww hell, who am I kidding? I'm in love with that whiny, annoying brat.'
Scythe laughed viciously, completely out of his mind, "I can't believe it, I'm in love with that annoying, bratty girl…"
"Enjoy your afterlife," Achilles smiled wickedly.
Daisy screamed shrilly as Achilles brought his hand down toward Scythe. Before he could finish the blow, Achilles stopped suddenly, with the smile dissolving from his face. He glanced to his left shoulder to see a sharp glass shard lanced through his shoulder. Sonic stood a few feet from him, with his arm still stretched out from the throw.
Achilles looked to his shoulder, face exposed in complete shock as a red liquid leaked from the wound. Achilles' surprise instantly changed to pure, unfurled rage. He stood and impatiently yanked the glass shard from his shoulder, ignoring the sound of ripping flesh as he did so.
For a moment a trace of a smirk appeared on the blue hero's sweat-caked face, 'Ha, you bleed just like all of us. How do you like that, bastard?' But his smile quickly erased itself as Achilles spun to face his ominously.
He pointed the red-coated shard at Sonic as his eyes blazed alit with a terrible fury. His voice had lost every last drop of mirth, "I shall bring you unbridled pain in your last moments of your pathetic life."
Achilles chucked the icy, glass splinter at Sonic, and had it not been for his super-sonic reflexes, he would have been a blue hero, minus a head. Ignoring the leaking wound in his shoulder, Achilles stomped over to Sonic grimly, with his cerulean eyes fading into a deep coal.
Tails and Cream stood side by side as they gazed at the computer. Numbers scrolled on the screen a mile a minute, disappearing almost as fast as they appeared. Tails nodded his head, then turned to look at Cream, "Let's begin then, shall we?"
The young fox fitted his fingers comfortably over the computer's keyboard and began to meticulously ticker on the buttons. Cream watched silently, hoping that whatever Tails was doing, he was having a successful go at it.
A couple of times, Tails stopped working on the keyboard and stared at the large screen thoughtfully. After another bout of endless clicking keys, Tails smiled happily as the numbers dissolved, "Bingo!"
Cream perked up, "You figured it out Tails?"
"Yeah," Tails nodded his head, eyes scanning the data, "Sure I had to override some programs in the process, but we have to find out about this new creation of his…"
New data and pictures popped up on the screen. Blueprints, notes, numbers, and garbled records appeared on the screen. The makings of project Achilles were all sitting before them conveniently, like a nifty how-to book. Tails read and reread the data carefully, processing the information, "Cream, get the radio, we've got a lot to tell our friends…"
A frantic cry cracked over the radio, it sounded tearful, "Oh please! Someone help us! He's gone crazy! Crazy! I'm--"
Shadow and Tikal traveled the halls with a newly revved Knuckles. The guardian smiled as he ran beside his friends; when Tikal said she had the ability to heal, she meant she had the ability to heal! When Tikal placed her hands upon him, whatever energy she sent into him seemed to have super-charged him. He felt brand spankin' new.
Also, Knuckles was shocked, and pleasantly surprised after being revived, Tikal tackled him with a hug and began crying happily. She spoke in rapid echidna, and the red warrior was glad for it, with the looks Shadow gave him. But Knuckles felt himself go rather warm in the face when he caught Tikal's request of a marriage.
In the ancient echidna culture, as Tikal had taught him, it was customary for the female to 'request' a marriage with a male she favored, and it the male's decision to accept. Another echidna wedding tradition was for the betrothed to exchange precious gifts.
…So did Knuckles accept the marriage proposal?
If the large grin on his face wasn't enough of a clue, he wore one of Tikal's treasured blue-jade bracelets on his right arm, as she wore one of his large gloves. He didn't have anything nicer to give her, and even offered her one of his socks, but Tikal took the glove happily. Knuckles promised that later, he'd find something much more valuable.
And through out the entire romantic duration between the two echidnas, Shadow didn't understand a single thing. But of course the ultimate life form was able to pick up on the strong feelings between the two.
Knuckles sighed happily as he looked at Shadow, who was gliding beside him, then he looked up to see Tikal soaring through the air; with this force, who could possibly stand against them? Moments when Shadow wasn't watching either of them, Tikal and Knuckles would exchange dreamily smiles, or winks.
"They are in the door ahead of us," Shadow said, breaking the silence.
Knuckles looked at Tikal warmly, "Ready?"
Tikal smiled, "Indeed I am."
Simultaneously, the three of them burst into the large red room. The room's lights had been smashed as glass littered the floor and furniture was overturned. There were long trails of a dark colored fluid on the floor. Shadow stepped further into the room, being flanked by the two silent echidnas. Had he not heard the soft voice, he would have stepped on the fallen person, "…Sha…dow?"
Shadow stopped his foot mid-step and looked at Amy, "…Rose hedgehog?" Shadow took a knee as Tikal and Knuckles rushed to her aid. He shook Amy when her foggy green eyes threatened to close, "Speak, what it is?"
"He..lp…them," Amy pleaded weakly.
Tikal placed her hands upon Amy and began to heal her. When the echidna princess elevated her eyes, she froze, "…Oh…my…goodness…"
Shadow and Knuckles looked up, regretting that they did so. The first sight was of a gasping Scythe, strung to a wall with two glass splints pinning him through his shoulders. Dark fluid seeped heavily from his wounds and crawled down the walls. Daisy was squashed under a heavy, long metal lab table screaming vehemently in pain.
But unlike Amy, there was no one to remove the table. Tears muddled her face as she cried, gasping. But she was desperately reaching her hand toward something. Shadow spied Rouge huddled in the corner of the room fearfully, gazing at the blue hero; although she looked scared out of her mind, she looked unscathed.
The last sight sent chills down Shadow's spine. Sonic hung limply, with numb green eyes in the hands of another hedgehog. It looked as if his attacker had decided to finish him off by squeezing the last ounces of juice out of him.
The blue-eyed creature was as golden as Shadow was dark. Achilles slowly turned his gaze to stop on Shadow. The lifeless, zombie façade on his face disappear as a wicked smile stole its place, "My name's Achilles, what's yours?"
To be continued!
Chapter Twenty eight Theme: "Wake up"- Alicia Keys