ROBERT
"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?"
Robert wearily closed the door behind him. The room still smelled like blood so he breathed through his mouth. "I thought I turned you off before I left."
"WELL, YOU ARE BETTER AT TURNING ME OFF THAN YOU ARE AT TURNING ME ON."
"Now now…" He went right to the work table, slumping far into the chair. He wiped his oily hands clean with a nearby cloth. "NICOLE… what happened to the scrap I collected yesterday?"
"YOU TOOK IT AWAY, ROBERT. THIS MORNING."
"I did?" He was quiet for a moment. "I guess I did."
"I SUPPOSE, THEN, YOU DON'T REMEMBER WHAT YOU DID WITH IT?"
"I'm trying my best," he hissed, under his breath. "I'm working day and night."
"OF COURSE YOU ARE, ROBERT. I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU SLEEP."
"With you constantly bitching at me, it's no wonder." He got up and walked over to the computer monitors.
"SONIC FEELS THE SAME WAY."
"… Does he?"
"I SAW HIM JUST THE OTHER DAY, BEFORE HE LEFT. HE SAID HE HAD TO TAKE CARE OF SOME THINGS. HE SAID THE TOP FLOORS OF CELLS WERE ON FIRE AND HE WANTED TO SEE."
"… You're cranky? You want to do something?"
"THAT WOULD BE NICE, FOR ONCE." She was calling from somewhere near the weapons. Robert didn't remember where exactly he had left her. She sounded disappointed.
"Good. I've got the urge. How's your signal with Robotropolis' mainframe?"
"STEADY." She let loose two pitiful beeps, cutting off the second one. "ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE UP FOR THIS? IT MIGHT TAKE AWHILEzzZ."
I was in the forest when it happened.
"The sun went down about an hour ago. I have all night."
Throbbing clouds of white smoke blowing through Knothole, through the streets and into people's houses. SWATbots squads, out of nowhere, closing in from all directions. Alarms claxoning into the night. Utter chaos. I was in the forest.
Almost ten of us were still awake by the end of it, including Sal. We met at Griff's after hightailing out of Knothole's outskirts, following NICOLE's map. The others were out of breath, so I did my best to recount what I saw, what we saw.
Knothole had been found.
Griff didn't believe us, not at first. I think we were all still reeling from it, clinging tight to "no way" mode. Sally asked him if he noticed anything unusual coming from Robotropolis over the last couple of months, anything he thought was too unimportant to report.
Griff couldn't answer. The surveillance computers had been acting real funny lately, he said, and nothing they did solved the problem. However, near as they could tell, Robotropolis had been quiet.
It was Sally, of course, who suggested we go back and rescue the others. She had been one of the lucky ones, awake when the canisters exploded and the white clouds descended. She said she saw someone collapse to the ground as she was running to the alarms, and that was how she figured that the smoke was a kind of sleeping gas. Also, no one else had woken up when the alarms were triggered.
It couldn't be good, whatever this attack was supposed to do to us. We all assumed Robotocization.
Griff lent us his unused stock of grenades, and gave us some modified SWATbot guns, just in case. His theory was that a rebel SWATbot outfit had gotten lucky and stumbled across Knothole, using their last resources and capturing who they could with one of Robotnik's old experimental gas projects. He didn't sound too concerned about the whole thing.
All the same, we told him to close off the tunnels and stay on high alert. We told him we'd be back in an hour.
On the way, Sally-girl told me what she thought it was, whispering as the scouts continued ahead of us.
Up until that point, we hadn't heard a peep from Snively since Doomsday. We all thought he had gone underground, and with nothing for us to fight, rebuilding Mobius was slow going. Sally wanted to start with the allied territories before coming to the big project, Mobotropolis, which she said would take more than who we had in Knothole. It would take the efforts of all the citizens of Mobius.
Bottom line, we only traveled into Robotropolis when we needed to. We relied on Griff for the real intel. I guess it was a mistake.
We traveled through the forest under the moonlight, hoping to cut off the prisoner transport before they made it to the city. It would be a big SWAT group, and we'd have to be careful, downright surgical with our rescue. The rifles went to the marksmen. I took the bulk of the grenades, as usual. Sally and Marissa were the rescuers. We'd be the diversion.
Our group met theirs surprisingly quick. The marksmen fanned out and carefully took their positions in the trees. Sally spotted the prisoner carriers in the center of the SWAT group, surrounded by what looked like three squads of 'bots.
Kneeling behind a tree trunk, old feelings began coming back to me, gung-ho type stuff. The need for speed, juice and jam time, in a Sonic second, all running through me like an electrical current. A wave of adrenaline crashed into me and before I knew it, my legs were carrying me in circles around the bots, the world spinning faster and faster, and I was laughing, taunting them like I used to. A part of me I forgot had existed, awakened. The showboating kid that I had outgrown came viciously back to life. It felt like this was the first time I had run in a year, which in reality wasn't true; I ran all the time, inside and outside of the Great Forest, to the south across the desert. Boring stuff, really, but I didn't realize it until I was back in the thick of things, face to face with danger once again.
I loved it. I loved the fight while it lasted. Those were the best days of my life, the ones where I thought I could die at any moment. And the weird thing is, I wasn't afraid. Not of these hacks made of metal. No matter how out of practice I was, I'm still better than they ever can be. I'm still faster and I'll always be faster.
Gunshots rang around me, all of them aimed at those guarding the prisoner transports. I stayed at the edge of the crowd and drew fire away from the prisoners, clearing the way for Sal and Marissa. Two grenades took out an entire squad I had lured into one tightly packed area. My smile was beginning to hurt.
I didn't see how it happened. I remember being nearly blindsided by a large black blur, traveling at breakneck speeds in the direction of the city. I only ducked out of instinct, but Spike told me later that I was lucky he didn't burn my head off with the round he fired.
We were all alone again, in the midst of the SWATbot graveyard we had created, the smell of sulfur thick in the air, fog creeping in from the west. Our enemies had fled back to their home.
Sally and Marissa hadn't made it to the transport. They didn't get the chance. Some 'bot had called the retreat before they could make a move, and the prisoner transport had rocketed away. That was what the black blur was.
"I think I might have hit one of the rockets," Spike said, sounding so hopeful.
Our group was down to eight. Two had been hit by plasma blasts. One had suffered a shoulder injury. This was enough for Sally to suggest returning to Griff's for rearming.
I don't disagree with her much anymore, at least not lately, but this entire situation was getting on my nerves. As much fun as it was, I wanted it over as soon as possible. "You guys go ahead and go back to Griff's. Meanwhile, I'll be rescuing the others. I'll have them back before sunrise."
"…You can't be serious."
Sometimes, I think she fights with me just because it's me. "Someone has to have all the fun."
"This isn't fun, Sonic! I have a real bad feeling about this. There's something else at work here…"
We agreed on that, but I wasn't about to admit it. "Come on, it's me. What's the worst that can happen?"
"Would you like a list?"
"If you can finish it before I get back."
I don't see what she looks like after I zoom off. I imagine a look of shock mixed with ragged coughing from the spray of dirt, maybe a shaking of a clenched fist in my direction. I'm probably wrong. She has to be used to me by now.
The survivors fell behind me, and I picked up the pace, following the twisted path of destruction. The trees were still sizzling from the rocket fire. Further along the trail, the path began twisting more and more, first left, then right, and further to the left. Spike must have really hit it. Stray SWATbots, running injured from the battle, lagged behind the transport. I put them out of their misery with a quick spin dash, keeping up the pace. It hurt less and less.
The Great Forest ends at the top of an incline that overlooks half of Robotropolis. I came to a stop where the destruction ended, squinting my eyes against the dust. In the distance, I could see a plume of black smoke rising above two buildings at the edge of the city.
A jog and I was at the crash site. The prisoner carriers had slammed into two old abandoned houses, their rockets still sputtering pathetic coughs of red flame. Stone rubble everywhere. The rear carriers were empty, no one inside. The two lead carriers were turned on their sides, the doors wide open.
Around me were about ten bodies, thrown clear of the first transport collision. I checked the one closest to me.
Dead.
My first thought was about Spike, and how I hoped he'd never see this. He'd blame himself. Clusters of footprints were stamped in the dust around the empty transports. They led in the direction of the city. I was about to leave when I heard something. Scuffling, metal shifting against metal, coming from the lead transport. A second later, a bright red forehead poked out of the door. The rest of his body followed, falling to the ground with a loud thump.
A survivor. The color of his fur was bright enough to stand out even in the dark. He didn't look injured, but he didn't look like he could walk, either. The gas must have still been affecting him.
He twitched uncontrollably when I scooped him up into my arms. I sped off in the direction of Chuck's house, careful not to kick up any dirt in case I needed to follow the footprints, but something told me that they were smart enough not to leave an obvious trail like that behind, not unless it was a trap.
I tapped on the door quietly, staying on my guard.
"Why, Sonne, what's- oh my…"
"Hey, Unc, give me a hand with this kid." Together, we carried him to the corner bed, pushing aside the red curtains. He didn't open his eyes once.
"What happened?"
"He survived a crash in the south sector." I took a deep breath, the deepest I could take. "Knothole's been found, Chuck."
"No…" His bright red eyes lowered to the floor. He shook his head in disbelief.
"There are about seven of us left... They're at Griff's right now."
"Dear oh dear-"
"The SWATbutts have the rest. We need to find out where they're being taken. Your computers still up?"
It took a moment for him to answer. "Actually, they've been on the fritz for the last two months."
"Figures. Can we give it a shot anyway?"
"Of course." He managed to tear himself away from the sleeping fox, sliding over to the computer console. He clicked on the display monitors and typed in some commands. We were met with a static-infected image of different parts of Robotropolis.
"Sheesh! I see what you mean…"
"What are we looking for, exactly?"
"A large group, carrying loads of prisoners. We don't have a lot of time. Can you fix this?"
"Hmmm…" He stood up from his chair and went over to the worktable. A SpyEye was resting at its center. "I still have a couple of tricks up the old sleeve."
He opened the panel on the back of the SpyEye and activated it. It hovered above the table as he came back to the computer console.
"We can control it from here," he said, flying the SpyEye out the door.
The monitors switched from the static surveillance cameras to the mobile 'bot we had flying above the city. Chuck typed in commands and it flew high enough to stay out of sight. We found the SWAT squad in the central district, carrying the prisoners in their arms. From the looks of it, they were all still sleeping.
"Thanks. I'm outta here."
"Wait!" He pointed to the upper right portion of the screen. "They're stopping."
The lead SWATbot had dropped his prisoners and was punching a code into the steel siding of a building. "Can't you get any closer?"
"Too late. They're going in." The long line of 'bots head into the building, one by one, ants retreating into an anthill.
"Where is that?"
"Near the Acorn palace, but Sonic-"
Out of there before he could finish, running as fast as I could across the city. Chuck's place wasn't far from the old palace, not for me. Go straight, hang a right two blocks up, straight on 37 and you can't miss it. It was all coming back.
I made it right as the rear SWATbot was entering the building. I quickly spun into a ball and rolled for the door as it began to close. I bored through and took off the SWATbot's head, coming down behind him. His body fell on my back and the sleeping prisoners fell to the floor, but I barely noticed.
The building was a lot larger than it had looked on the outside, and there were worker bots. Everywhere. Crawling along the walls, pounding in insulation and carrying long sheets of metal, lining the entire interior with it, buffing the ceiling and floors to a reflective shine. Robotropolis was definitely alive.
I saw this through a transparent wall, in a corridor that ran along the length of the building. Every one of the SWATbots I had been tailing dropped the prisoners they had been carrying and turned to face me.
"That's my cue. Later, Boltbutts!"
I used my legs to push the weight I had off my back. I clicked the anti-grav buttons on my heels and ran up the nearby wall, a trail of fire in my wake, the need for a power ring growing stronger. At the top, there was a square entrance for the second floor. Even with no plasma shots screaming after me, I didn't take any chances and took my way out.
On the second floor, I came face to face with another SWATbot squad, and they were ready for me.
"Bad move, hedgehog, mondo bad move…"
They all jumped forward, and I would have made it, if I had remembered that there was no place to run to. I jumped back and both of my feet planted me against the wall above the hole. A split second later, all of the SWAT bodies collided with me and we fell back down to the ground floor. The catwalk hadn't been built yet. There was nothing to break our fall.
I woke up in a familiar place:
The Robotocization chamber.
I got up on my knees, feeling groggy. My hands pressed up against the glass and my eyes came back into focus. An old friend was staring back at me. "Snively."
"Oh good, the rodent's alive," That smirk of his, that damn smirk.
"We were real worried about you, Sniv. You don't call, you don't write. What gives?"
"I've been busy these days, hedgehog." He walked back into darkness and suddenly the lights kicked on. He was sitting in Robotnik's chair. "Quite busy."
"Doing a little role-playing, hmmm?"
He smiled wider, whipping his cape theatrically into the air, chuckling. "We've actually caught you, Sonic. It appears as though you've run out of tricks, and this time, no one is coming to save you."
I couldn't help but smile. "That's what you think."
"Oh! So confident, are we? Is this what you're referring to?"
Surveillance monitors came to life behind him, painting the room red. They displayed huge fires raging out of control, small huts made out of waste collapsing under their own weight, raining smoke and ash. In the background SWATbot troops hunted for survivors.
"No…"
"Pathetic that the underground resistance didn't give us more… resistance. Heheheheh… you freedom fighters really are out of practice."
"No." Griff… Sally…
"Afraid so. How sad. You didn't even get to say goodbye to them. They spent their final moments on Mobius thinking that you were going to save them."
He doesn't begin a long maniacal laugh. He just looks at me, waiting for me to say something.
"You better throw that switch, needle-nose, because if I ever get out of this thing, I'm going to rip you apart." And I meant it, too. I was so angry that I was going blind.
He must have seen that, because he activated the machine without another word. Electricity arced all around me, my spine going rigid, arms stretching at my sides. I couldn't move. It started at my feet, metal covering my toes, my ankles, my shins. Heavy. No feeling. I felt something trying to get inside my brain, a voice or… something, but I fought it back with all I had, all of it as best as I could, even though it hurt worse than anything, even though it wasn't working and I could still feel my skin slowly turning into metal, creeping higher and higher…
All at once, it stopped. My senses must have been all screwed up because I didn't hear the explosion until after I was free. Maybe even after I saw her.
Sally-girl. Still alive. Saving my neck once again.
Snively dived behind his chair, crying out in fright. Sally, rapid-firing from two handheld plamsa rifles, aimed in my direction. The glass tube shattered out of the way and I collapsed to the floor with a CLANG. Above me, the air burned with expelled rounds. Sally was turning the place into cheese.
Feeling disappeared completely. I couldn't get up. I remember reaching out towards her, wanting so bad to carry her away from there…
But someone had picked me up and started carrying me out of there. Chuck. Who else. The two must have gotten together after Griff's place had been ransacked.
I watched her rapid-fire some more plasma at surrounding 'bot-heads, covering our retreat, but not enough to open her an exit. Sniv must have called security. They were closing in. I started to struggle in Chuck's strong arms, still reaching out to her. I've never been that helpless before. Never that feeble. I was always the hero. It was my job to protect her.
I failed.
If Chuck had only been a little faster, I wouldn't have seen it. I wouldn't have seen the breaking apart of the computer consoles, or the security droids raise their arms at Sally and fire… I wouldn't have seen her-
If only I had been faster. If only I hadn't screwed up.
Darkness, again. Nothing unconscious about it. I had a lot of time to think.
The next time the light came back, I was in Chuck's place, lying down in the corner cot. There was a figure standing over me. He was holding a gun.
It was the kid, the fox with the red fur. He was going to be okay.
"What's your name, kid?" Tails… Tails, I'm so sorry…
"Robert," he says, barely moving. Everything from the waist up felt like it was on fire.
Rotor. Bunnie. Dulcy. Antoine. I'm sorry… "Do me a favor, kid."
Uncle Chuck…
"Shoot me."
Help…
"Shoot me."
"INFORMATION RETRIEVAL COMPLETE, ROBERT."
The flash is all I see
Robert shook himself out of his daydream. "Excellent, NICOLE, what do you have for me?"
The display screens flicked to a different image, what looked like an astronomic schematic.
"What's this?"
"zWHAT YOU SENT ME IN FOR, OF COURSE."
"No need to be a total cunt about it." Robert tried to make sense of the display, scratching the side of his head, ignoring the pain. It was what appeared to be a navigational course, one that began on Mobius and headed in a straight line to a larger, greener planet. The distance looked to be about four light years.
"zzHOW IS THIS USEFUL, ROBERT?z"
"You tell me, you know just about everything in the fucking world, don't you?-"
"zZzzz"
"-sly little bitch, wasting my fucking time-"
"ztZzzzt."
"-it's a wonder the Princess got anywhere with such a worthless piece of scrap."
Silence.
"… Nicole?"
Nothing.
"Nicole!" He scrambled over to where he heard her voice last, throwing aside weapon after weapon, not hearing them shatter and break against the wall. He eventually found her, and held her directly under the light. Her screen was blank. "Nicole, answer me…" He flipped her closed, then open again, hoping it would revive her. It didn't.
The silence of Chuck's place was no longer relaxing. It was terrifying. He could feel dark forces all around him, scuffling from beyond the red curtain. He thought saw Uncle Chuck's deactivated husk moving towards him. His mind was his own worst enemy.
Robert fell to his knees and sobbed, truly afraid for the first time in his life.