CHAPTER XVII – HARD REBOOT
All that was left was one screw. There was just one problem for Tails: the screwhead had been torn to shreds when he heisted it out in the first place. If there was one thing that annoyed a technological whiz like Tails, it was a cheaply made fastener (double for the metal shavings it left). Sure, it didn't take long for Tails to pluck a replacement from the workbench, but he never liked having to make the walk of shame in the first place much less waste precious metal. "Almost done anyway," he assured himself.
The drill was ready.
The hole was ready.
Tails was ready to penetrate CREAM's body.
ZZZZZZT!
"Okay, we should be ready in just a minute," he said.
CREAM couldn't tell if his tone was happy or exasperated. Oh, well. It wouldn't hopefully matter in a second. He made one last adjustment to CREAM's new, shiny bodice: a simple rewire. Once complete and noting that the appropriate memory space and devices were properly installed, he shut the chest cavity. Tails then took a moment to marvel at what he and she had slaved over for months as the intro to the AMG's nightly news served as background noise.
Robotnik was a genius for his initial design of the robotic rabbit, but this one just about trumped it in every conceivable way. Her new chassis was made from the Ti-6Al-4V (or Grade 5) variety of titanium alloy, meaning it was not only stronger than her Mark I body, but the idea of it rusting, though possible given the right conditions, was highly improbable. Gone were the black panels and brown-tinted lights that made up her eyes. Robotnik should've been smacked for that design choice in the first place. A black screen that sported brown irises not only looked questionable in today's age, but to a child, that robotic face would look downright terrifying when powered down. What replaced it (behind her eyelids) would be an LED screen that would light up white like any other person's eyes but still have that Nutella-esque iris color that CREAM was hellbent on keeping. Other than that, her new frame was identical in terms of bodily proportions—despite the fox's inner fantasies for a more "adult" style of body—to the old one, but the new build would show her off as if she were wearing bell-bottom jeans with tears running down the legs and a tucked-in, Nirvana T-shirt. But before any clothing could be slipped on, her new bodice had to be properly painted. She wanted to look like a young woman from the early 90s, and Tails was happy to oblige. However, the fox feared that any clothing she might wear would rip too easily because, y'know, she was a robot and not organic like Rouge or Amy. Maybe the inevitable Mark III design would have a smaller frame to accommodate her fashion choices, but they needed to make the Mark II work first.
"CREAM, I believe we're ready for take two," he said proudly. "Prepare to begin downloading."
"Programming and protocols are ready for the transfer," CREAM stated.
"FYI, the download will take longer than our first attempt. I don't want to overload the system by inputting too much information too quickly. It's a 'cover all the bases' thing, y'know?"
"Understood." With that, Tails and CREAM made their final diagnostic checks. Nothing was out of place, so it looked like they were finally ready to give it another go. "Do we have an ETA for downloading?"
"Five hundred seconds; eight minutes and twenty seconds (8:20). Hey, how's Sonic doing? I'll continue the prep-work while you check."
"Sure. Okay, Sonic's at the Union Times, and… and now… umm… hold on a second." She went through all the programs, even tried to boost the signal, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. "I've lost contact with him."
He paused. "What do you mean you 'lost contact?'"
"I can't see or hear what's going on." There was a noticeable level of panic in her voice.
"CREAM, take it easy," Tails assured. "This has happened to Amy on a few occasions. Sometimes during her Rascal days, she'd have to temporarily slip into a room that was wired with jammers. If Amy got out in safely after that, so can Sonic. I think we both know he can handle himself."
She sighed. "You're right. I let my motherly instincts get a hold of me."
"I care about him too. He'd understand." Ready to go. "CREAM, let's light this candle."
DING-DONG!
Talk about your terrible timing.
Tails loudly groaned and cursed under his breath. "Really? Now?! CREAM, please pull up the door camera, please." He asked, he received. Turns out there was a young man with a pair of pizza boxes waiting. Something looked a bit off with him, though. His body language screamed anxiousness, though maybe this was his first ever delivery due to his younger age.
"Did you order a Spagonian-style pie without saying anything to me?" CREAM queried.
"No," Tails replied, "but the neighbor kids have prank-delivered pizzas to my house before. I'll be just a second."
"Can we start the download before you leave?"
"Absolutely." Tails nodded to the camera giving CREAM the green light.
"Transfer in progress," CREAM affirmed. With that, Tails walked to the stairwell with an annoyed huff.
As Tails said, the transfer process was much slower than their attempt from before. She still had total awareness from her computer station as the download commenced. She tried to reach Sonic again but to no avail. She groaned at the failure but figured it would happen again. However, Sonic had gotten himself out of worse jams.
As Tails reached the living room, CREAM's attention went back to the young man at the door. He was still looking nervous as hell from her point-of-view. But... she noticed something on the video feed of the front door. CREAM had to make an amendment. This kid didn't look nervous; he was sweating bullets with a panicked expression. He was scared stiff like he was absolutely terrified. It looked like… hold on, why did this kid look so familiar?
"Wait a second," she softly said out loud.
CREAM shuffled through her recent messages and found the one with a picture of the kidnapped Jonah Dupree. A quick glance of the video and picture side-by-side showed her that it was a dead-on match. But then there was a brown ape, a green frog, and a black-and-brown lynx running out from a smaller car armed with guns.
GUNS?!
Hold on, if that was Jonah and Fiona's Destructix, then Tails was—!
The fox had grabbed a hold of the door's handle, gave it a quick turn, and started to pull it open.
"TAILS, NO!"
But CREAM was too late.
Her loud shriek caught the fox's attention for a second, but when he looked forward, he was met by a deathly set of eyes. One from the gorilla, one from the feline, and one from the amphibian. Miles knew who they were, and the petrified look on Jonah's face matched that of Tails.
The disgraced Sgt. Simian drew his sidearm and had it aimed at Tails's head. "Mind if we come in?" he smugly asked before turning to Jonah. "Scram, kid."
The lynx them grabbed the young man by the collar and threw him down the stairs onto the sidewalk, pizza flying everywhere. Jonah couldn't get up and bolt to his car fast enough as he yelled, "I'M SO SORRY!" Scourge then passed him, giving him a two-fingered salute before blasting off to parts unknown, much to the shock of the group.
Tails saw the green hedgehog burn rubber, but he couldn't think on that now since their there was the problem of the pistol.
"Where is he—?" the simian spoke.
Tails thought quickly and reached for the pistol, but here's the thing: Tails was mentally strong, and the ape—while momentarily distracted—was physically strong. Guess who still maintained control of the gun?
BANG!
CREAM loudly yelped as she witnessed Tails nearly have his head blown off. Tails's hands were forcibly removed from the weapon as he was then thrown down by the ape's large hand. The fox quickly shuffled backward as the group closed in with evil intentions dancing in their cold eyes.
"How... How did you find me?!" Tails alarmingly asked. The simian put away his gun and was handed a crowbar by the lynx. What little color that was on Tails's muzzle flushed away in an instant.
"We can't say," the frog answered.
"But we're here to teach Sonic a lesson," the simian continued.
"But Sonic isn't here!" Tails said desperately. It was the lynx's turn as he leaped onto Tails, pinning him to the kitchen floor. Getting in real close, Tails heard the cat loud and clear despite the thumping in his chest.
"We know."
CREAM was helpless to do anything. All she could do was stand there in the computer as the data process slowly meandered as she bared witness to the nightmare. She was in as much a panic as Miles. She couldn't reach Sonic despite her tries. She could call Rouge, but the police couldn't get here fast enough. Amy was at the AMG preparing for the nightly news. She was out of options, but what could she do besides wait another five minutes for her download to be completed?
Wait, that was it!
But could Tails hold out that long? Whether they liked it or not, it was going to be the longest five minutes of their lives.
The constant sound of broken bones and cried of pain echoed throughout the lower level. It may have been 60-something thugs against one man, but this one man had been trained for decades to overcome those odds with resounding success and brutality.
What little hope there was to fight his way out and save his brother was the only thing keeping him sane. It was the only saving grace he could cling to, and it was paying dividends… and soon it'd pay dividends to the hospital owners who soon would have dozens of new patients with mangled bodies.
With ten already down for the count, a large vampire bat swooped in and screeched its voice so that all would tremble before him. All except one. As the bat dove for the hero, Sonic was engaged with a brawling armadillo whose natural armor was keeping Sonic from landing any critical blows. And now he had a flying demon to worry about.
WHAM!
Sonic's attention went back to his armored foe. He cursed himself for taking his eyes off the prize, even if for a short moment. This guy was taking an ungodly amount of abuse with Sonic in dire need to keeping things going.
Was she bluffing about her attack on Tails? Was Tails was actually okay? If this was all about getting under his skin and in his head, it worked. But why go to the trouble of locking him in here to boot? Why abduct the kid at all?
Sonic had to put that on the backburner because the bat was about five seconds away from blindsiding him, and this damn armadillo was not going down! What was it gonna take to knock this bastard out? A train?!
Sonic then smirked. "Or maybe a plane!" he exclaimed.
The fragmented remark temporarily distracted the assailant as Sonic got himself some separation and shot out a line to the ceiling. Halfway being zipped up, Sonic saw the bat's bloodthirsty eyes. He saw Sonic as a fresh meat dangling in front of him as he precariously hung in the air like piñata. The moment he changed direction and started going after him, Sonic retracted the line in midair and took aim with his other hand.
"Gotcha, bitch!"
PEW!
The bat flapped his wings to slow down and figure out Sonic's next move, but that split-second of hesitation was followed by a grappling hook directly catching him on his sensitive wings. Physics can be a beautiful thing. Add a weight to a suspended object—like a bat flying in the air—and gravity takes its course.
The bat began falling and shrieking out as it tried feverishly to break the line as he grapple's sharp hooks were doing an agonizing number on his leathery wing. Too bad for him the line that Tails invented was nigh impossible to cut. Not only that, but with the addition of Sonic's weight was bringing him down like a fallen angel with Sonic's line simultaneously reeling him in midair. The moment Sonic got up to him, he deactivated the grapple, prompting the bat to have a small reprieve from the hook and pain. But now the flying rodent had Sonic barreling right at him in the air. All Sonic had to do was curl himself into a ball and drill his nimble wings, breaking several of the bat's bones.
"GAH!" the bat screamed as Sonic then quickly jumped to get above the bat. The hero shot out another line at the rouge's back and grappled down to him. The winged terror was now falling uncontrollably with Sonic now along for the ride. "GET OFF, YOU FUCK!" it yelled through the pain.
"Okay, but you asked for it!" Sonic then used his powerful legs to shoot off the bat at high speeds in one particular direction: straight at the armadillo. The armored thug couldn't react fast enough to get out of the way of his fast-falling comrade. The results were as one would expect. Imagine getting nailed in the face by a baseball hit in the outfield at around 90 mph. Painful, right? Now imagine if that baseball were 200 pounds heavier and barreling down with added velocity.
WHAM!
Two beaten thugs for the price of one as the duo not only collided with the subtlety of a Panzer tank, but their heads collided viciously, knocking them out with menacing concussions waiting for them when they'd wake up.
Sonic landed on another henchman and used him as a springboard to jump back into the fray. By his count, there twenty thugs left down here with a few more dozen to go on the levels above. Tails's life was most likely in jeopardy, and Fiona was his key to getting out.
"Enough with the high-flying theatrics," Sonic thought. "I need to hurry up!"
The lynx grabbed the fox' cranium and punished it into the linoleum flooring, dazing him. More importantly, it gave the sergeant a free shot at Tails. He did not miss the vulnerable fox's collarbone.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Tails screeched in pain as his right hand covered his injured, left shoulder. He took that blow hard since he could hear a few bones fracture. Amid the shock, the ape took the crowbar's hooked end and put around his neck, hoisting Tails closer as the frog laid into him righteous right cross, bending Tails's nose the wrong way and doing a number on his neck from the trauma. Releasing him, the lynx caught him and stood him straight up. The quick savagery of their hits made staying upright a nightmare, but that didn't matter for long as the lynx then picked the fox up once more and smashed him onto the marble countertop. As the injured Tails laid in agony, it was time for that crowbar again as the ape wound it up like a Louisville Slugger and connected once more, this time square in the kidneys.
Tails was running out of body parts to defensively cover. A bad shoulder, a busted nose, tracheal trauma, and now probable kidney damage and internal bleeding by means of cold, hard steel. The next item on his attackers' agenda would seem like child's play. The frog rapidly went through the various drawers, finding a larger-than-usual kitchen towel and throwing it away since it did him little good. On the same page, the ape smirked and slid Tails across the counter toward the shiny chrome of the faucet and sink.
THUD!
Tails grabbed his aching head, opening his other ailing body parts as the oversized chimp put a size-14, steel-toed boot into his rib cage. Another positive fracture for the kitsune. He prayed to Chaos that he would hear his pleas that this be end of it, to let them leave him wallowing, suffering as blood started pouring out and as splinted bones tried to mend back together. His cries seemingly fell on deaf ears as the next sight running across his eyes was a dastardly smile from la grenouille peering into his blue eyes. The frog had acquired a serrated, steak knife, holding it in his hands like only an unhinged psychopath could in horror movies. Tails used what little strength he could muster to back away. That didn't help at all since the amphibian and his cohorts slowly followed, patiently stalking their pray and waiting for the coup de grâce.
TUNK!
"Oh, boy," Tails said as he'd hit the adjacent wall of lower cupboards; cornered with nowhere to go. Three men looking to end his life in one fell swoop, one with the knife to do the deed. Fate had somehow led him to this demise. Sonic wasn't going to save him. Nobody was. He bowed his head, closed his eyes, and let out a pained breath of air. At least he would be reunited his mother and father, maybe even see the baby sister he never got meet. With the steely, cold eyes of a man ready to die, he looked up to the three men.
"Do it, you bastards."
"Ohhhh…," the frog began as he flipped the knife up, "I'm gonna enjoy this."
The frog cocked his arm. Tails shut his eyes.
With a silent prayer, Tails whispered for the last time. "Mom? Dad? Tell Katie I'm on my way to meet her."
BOOOOOOOOUUUUUUURRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMM!
The frog stopped halfway unable to see well.
Though his eyes were closed, Tails knew what that loud sound was. If he had to guess, the power for the entire block just went out. Maybe even a few streets further. But the weird thing was that the power didn't just go out in an instant like if there was a thunderstorm or a tripped breaker. It gradually, slowly went out. Almost like something was funneling the energy elsewhere in the vicinity.
The trio of bandits paused their rampage an look outside to find that the entire neighborhood went dark. Everything from bedroom lights to streetlamps had all powered down. Add in the fact that it naturally got darker earlier in November, and the immediate vicinity—maybe even all of North Res—was completely powerless and pitch black.
BUMP!
"What in the hell?!" the lynx shouted.
Fiona's men all looked around at where that sound could've come from.
"Is there someone else here?" the ape inquired. "Like in the basement?"
"Basement…?" Tails whispered. Then it hit him. Thank Chaos his attackers couldn't see the fox's face and eyes widen. He pieced it together right away. They must've been scrapping for over eight minutes! Chaos himself had answered his pleas! And if he was right, a guardian angel might appear!
With the three others distracted, the fox reached down deep, gathering what will and strength he could still use and booked it for the laundry room. Despite the darkness, the ape heard this and tried to go after him, but the lights went back on at the same time, momentarily distracting him. But just as they came back on, they went out again, this time without the slow dimming. Just out like if a breaker had tripped.
The ape stopped his pursuit for the moment as a noise came from the living room. Tails could wait. The lynx, frog, and ape slowly meandered their way into the next room, knocking over a lamp in the process and tried make out what was going on, but it was just so damn dark.
Thunk.
Thunk.
Thunk.
What was that? Was there someone else in the building?
THUNK.
THUNK.
THUNK.
Something was getting closer. It sounded big. It sounded heavy. It sounded metallic too judging from the sound. Maybe footsteps? Their trained kitchen utensil weapons of choice (or for the simian, his crowbar and sidearm) seemed to be pointed everywhere as they scanned the pitch-black room getting ready for anything. However, they all retrained their weapons toward the far wall. Even with the darkness—amid the sound of air hissing—they could see something rise, slide out, and then slide to the right almost like it were on some kind of tracks. Despite the darkness, they could just make out that a hidden staircase had been revealed.
THUNK!
THUNK!
THUNK!
The trio starred at the void where the steps were coming from. That fact terrified them. Something big and loud was making its way toward them. What on Chaos's Mobius was down there?
Frankenstein's monster?
Some unholy creature not meant for the world of the living?
Robotnik… in a thong?!
The simian dared to take a step toward the opening. He could make out a set of stairs descending into the lair of the beast from what little light came from the streetlights through the window. What possessed him to take the first step down he wasn't sure, but he was the biggest and strongest of the group, so he surely would be the best prepared for slaying the monstrosity… right?
"Sarge?" the lynx asked in a whisper. "What are you doing?"
"I'm not scared, Lightning," the ape said unconvincingly while calling the lynx by name. "I'll take it out. You find that fox."
The ape continued his descension into darkness. His cohorts didn't dare move. How could they when the steps were getting louder? The frog and lynx were frozen in both fear and a nasty case of curiosity. Who knows what was going to pop out? But they couldn't think about that right now. The ape would not be intimidated or scared by some… thing! For all he knew, it was all smoke and mirrors; a bluff so the fox could make his escape!
"Come out!" the ape yelled. "I got a gun!"
WHOOSH! CRUNCH!
Something grabbed him. Something quick and strong that had its hand at his throat, pinning him against the wall with the force of a thousand men. Not only that, but it picked him up like he was a paperclip. The squeeze tightened as the sudden shock could not make him comprehend what was happening to him. This thing wasn't real! It couldn't be!
From above, the other men gasped in terror. There was now a little light that came from the underground tunnel, and it turned to them to show the duo that the source of the light was a pair of monstrous, blood-red eyes! Its eyes were so terrifying that they were literally shining a bright as the sun!
The ape then vainly pistol-whipped the creature to break the grip, but he never could. Maybe the crowbar?
CLANG!
That had no effect either. All he was striking was stiff metal, and his vain attempts only seemed to anger the creature. It looked back to him and tightened its grip even further all while picking him off the wall and winding him up.
"What the hell?!" He then proceeded to be lobbed up and out like a baseball from the outfield. "YAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
"Sarge?!" the frog and lynx screamed as the ape was coming at them quick with—.
CRASH!
The assassins were all sprawled on the floor with the ape grabbing his throat trying to breathe again as the amphibian and feline struggled to process what had just happened. Red, mechanical eyes staring them down and their compatriot thrown out the tunnel and onto them in a matter of seconds. What the hell was that thing? And what the hell was going on?!
THUNK-THUNK-THUNK!
Fuck! Was it running up the stairs?!
"We gotta get out of here!" the frog shrieked only to be grabbed by the shirt collar and planted onto the hardwood flooring with a loud BOOM! He then was picked up again and turned around to look fearfully into the monster's red eyes again as his heart stopped beating for a second. Suddenly, its seemingly LED eyes transformed into normal brown ones but still with the rage of volcano on the verge of erupting. What was going on?! Did Tails have some sort of battle 'bot down there?!
CLANG!
A normal person would've been crying out painfully with the idea of a knife plunged deep into their shoulder. But this was no normal person. Instead, the lynx's attempt bent the blade at an angle with no audible or physical signs of a backstabbing.
"How the hell—?!" This moment of bewilderment was more than enough for the metal monster to pull its head down and throw it back, nailing the wild cat in the mouth with a reverse headbutt while breaking a few teeth out. The impact and rushing pain made the lynx drop his weapon and hold his jaw instinctively as it muffled screams of agony.
POW!
A sudden whip of the head drilled him again sending him into the couch and flipping it over. The ape and frog couldn't believe it. That thing didn't throw a punch, but some part of hers (from her head?) for sure sent him flying.
"The hell did he get hit by?!" the frog yelled in confusion.
"Fuck this!" the ape yelled as he aimed and unloaded a 9mm clip.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Foolish and pointless. Every bullet ricocheted off its head and into sporadic parts of the living room and kitchen, breaking pictures and windows along the way. They didn't even phase this creature. He attempted a reload, but the metal monster—.
WHAP!
"Wait, what?! How did you that?!" The simian's cries were getting louder and more frightened with each passing second. He just had with Smith & Wesson in his hand, but he knew for a fact that this metallic fiend knocked it out his hands… without moving. Its body was perfectly still. Not a foot was taken toward him, so how the hell did it knock the gun out of his hand? Sonic was on the other side of town! If he'd done that, they'd felt the burst of wind around him!
"To hell with this!" the frog barked as it charged the creature with reckless abandon. He balled his fist. He planted his leg. He reared back. He let out his battle cry. And he swung. But the monster jumped. The only thing the frog caught was thin air. Worse was when he stopped himself, there was a deafening whirring above them as heavy gusts entrapped the invaders. They covered themselves in a hollow effort to shield their faces, but the tempests were running so high that the books on the shelf were flying off and drilling them. The frog got the worst as he found a thick novel by Peter Jackson landing painfully into his eye at about 50 mph, blinding him and sending him to the ground covering his injury and yelling out in pain before the monster slowly walked to him and slammed his head into the floor, taking him out of the fight.
While he saw this unfold, the simian came to this terrifying conclusion: this wasn't some run-of-the-mill monstrosity. What starred them down with unparalleled anger and rage was nothing short of a force of nature. This freak would be damned if it did not get its piece of flesh from all of three of them… and it came time for it to get a piece of the ape's.
It was shocking to him seeing this monster whipping its head around and bear witness to the fury in its eyes. Still vengeful, still looking to wreak havoc upon them. He was the only one who remotely stood a chance at winning, so screw it. He was going down fighting.
"Man-to-robot," he challenged. "You and me right now."
The metallic freak chuckled, taking a cocky cue not unlike a certain blue hedgehog. "I'll let you have a free shot," it goaded back, surprising him with a feminine voice. "Go ahead. Hit me."
There's a certain scene often associated with big apes and letting out a snort of hot air out before engaging in fights. The monster saw the simian do that very thing and charge ahead. A cocked arm, a balled fist, a planted left leg, and a loud roar that would scare any toddler and have them cry for mommy or daddy.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Ever try punching a brick wall to see if it'll break? The sergeant attempted something similar and caught nothing. The simian? The sound that spawned from his mangled hand was as damning as his screaming.
CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!
CRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The android shook its head with disappointment evident in its eyes. "Not very bright, are you?" she asked as she wiped his blood off her face. Next, the feminine 'bot saw the ape in shock, trying to figure out what the literal hell had just happened, letting out short, pained breaths as he gripped his useless right hand. "Just like Sonic…." She shook her head, spun him around, reared her head back, and did a small jump to get eye-level with the ape and get a better shot. "Too quick to brawl."
WHAM!
Down he went as his head met hers. She half-thought that she wouldn't be able to penetrate that thick skull of his, but her headbutt worked to perfection. Her proof? His giant frame falling hard through the coffee table, completely with splintered wood and shards of glass in his fur.
Just one more. She sighed and shook her head. Did this idiotic lynx seriously think he could try and attack from her from behind when she wasn't looking? He didn't deserve getting punched in the face or headbutted again. He deserved a strong kick to the jaw that would not only empty his mouth of any remaining teeth, but also meaning he would never eat solid food again.
POW!
CRACK!
However, that grizzly image was just a little too much for her, so three broken ribs and a punctured lung would have to do. She wanted to see him hurt more for what they did to her Tails. She took some satisfaction that she'd been the one to give his tormentors a taste of their own medicine, like seeing this felonious, feline, would-be killer in particular struggle to move and breathe through the ungodly pain in his chest. Finally, she understood why Sonic would stop at nothing to save those closest to him, how he would hold nothing back. It was a lot like when Amy was taken by Lien-Da that fateful day earlier in the summer. Sonic pulled no punches when getting her back, and he made damn sure that the damned echidna got the message to never touch her again.
With the lynx in shock, the robotic victor slowly made her way over to the injured man with the same deathly glare she'd been sporting this whole time. She fiercely grabbed him by the collar and brought him level with her where she could see firsthand the utter panic in his eyes.
"Wh-Wh-What…," he forced out amid his agony and shock, "What a-are *ah!* you?!" Her little scene earlier meant she was in full control of the lights. They'd been off this entire time, and it seemed so damn appropriate to show him who—or to him, what—had made his life hell.
The living room lights slowly came on to show him the destroyed room. Books all over the place, furniture overturned and mangled beyond repair, the nearby vicinity utterly destroyed, two other assassins who had their teeth kicked in, and—to his utter bewilderment—a robotic rabbit.
Her titanium body matched well with her enraged eyes giving her that monstrous vibe which complimented her brutal, vengeful, and emotionally driven vengeance. She didn't have a true paint job yet despite her upgraded body, though she did sport a little red from the blood she forced out of her victims.
This was where Sonic would put the icing-on-the-cake, so to his shock, the lynx saw something move like appendages, but it wasn't her arms since they were holding him still. That was what the frog meant by getting drilled with something he couldn't see. Even in the dark, they would've seen her arms move, but this explained how she could creature a whirlwind without Sonic.
Her ears.
They moved so swiftly and silently when she showed them off for him. He saw them move freely and extend like an extra set of limbs. They could spin around at breakneck speeds and create an impromptu tornado that could daze someone, giving her an edge in combat. And those ears were winding up for a knockout punch.
WHAM!
There went the lynx flying into the nearest wall, and with a mighty THUD, his body went limp as he fell to the floor with the gracefulness of a drunken sailor, much like his fallen comrades. Three bad guys sprawled out across the trashed room. They still breathed; she wanted them to still be alive for their painful rehabilitation and future trips to the slammer.
Though the thought of them cuffed and imprisoned was all well and good, she knew that they weren't the only hurting men in the house. She had to find him fast. "Tails!" she exclaimed as she turned on the rest of the house's lights and began to look for him. He didn't have the strength to get up the stairs, and she didn't see him in the kitchen, so where was he? "Miles, where are you?!"
"C-C-C-…." That was all she needed to hear. Now being a full-functioning mech, she was literally hardwired to have superhuman senses. Those big, robotic ears weren't just for show, and they told her he was holding up in the laundry room.
"Tails, stay there!" she shouted as she bolted for him. Past the main staircase and the kitchen on her right was the laundry room. To her horror, she saw the mangled body of one Miles Prower. What they had done to him in those long eight minutes only made her wish she had hurt them more.
A mangled hand that foolishly held his damaged rib cage was the first thing to catch her eye. Blood had soaked his gloves and started to slowly drip onto the floor. His fur hid most of his bodily, exterior injures, but the keyword was "most." His face was one of these exceptions as she witnessed the bruising and swelling of his cheeks. Blood was dripping out of his mouth as well which morbidly paired well with a black eye that was starting to close shut. Her turning on her built-in x-ray vision told more of the story as the robo-rabbit gasped at all the horrible fractures and breaks his bones went through, namely his ribs which miraculously had not punctured a lung.
"Oh, Chaos," she gasped as she rushed to his side and carefully cradled the broken genius in her arms. "Tails…."
Through the harsh gasps of air, he looked up to see the bright, brown eyes of his mechanized savior. The pained expression coming from their screen was a testament to their body-building genius. They were the same set of distressed eyes that he had only seen one other time: when Amy comforted him in the hospital the night that he lost his parents and unborn sister in that car accident.
"C-C-CR-CREAM?" His body immediately screamed as he let out that word as the waves of anguish rushed over him like a tsunami.
"Take it easy!" she said with her voice cracking. "You're safe now!"
The fox then took a second to fully look at her when the pain subsided enough to do so. This wasn't some fantasy or hallucination from the agony. This complex piece of metal was really moving around and functioning at the highest level. It held him softly to accommodate his injures despite it being able to pound the snot of anyone and everyone. The emotions she was giving off were exactly how anyone would react given the situation.
They had truly done it. She was no longer trapped in a computer in his basement. She was here, tending to him and making sure that he was okay when he needed her the most.
This was CREAM the Rabbit.
And she was free. Finally.
"CREAM… we did it," the fox said weakly.
"Tails, we can celebrate later," CREAM replied with palpable urgency. "Just hold on with me for another minute, okay? I need to make a call."
Tails nodded in understanding as he went onto wallow in his pain. "Good… plan…," he forced out before slipping into unconsciousness. CREAM quickly read his vitals again. He'd be okay for now.
As he laid there, CREAM called a friend. "R! Come in, R! Rouge, are you there?!"
"C?" the replied from her location. "What is it? We still can't get a hold of S, and—!"
"Rouge, Sonic can take care of himself! You need to send an ambulance and a team to the house ASAP! Tails was attacked and needs medical attention now!"
"The 'house?' Tails? What are you talking about?"
"Tails is heavily injured because Fiona sent men here to kill him! They sent that Jonah kid as bait! Scourge was here too, but he went somewhere el—!" CREAM could hear something rather obnoxious and attention-grabbing. This sound was coming from… an earpiece? "Now what?!"
"What is it, C?"
"It's from someone's earpiece. Sonic isn't answering, and you're using one. That means it's coming from Amy!" Then the robo-rabbit paused. "Wait, why is Amy tapping her earpiece?"
"'Tapping?' Like morse code?"
"Yes," CREAM affirmed. "Let me listen."
DIT-DIT-DIT, dah-dah-dah, DIT-DIT-DIT / DIT-DIT-DIT, dah-dah-dah, DIT-DIT-DIT / DIT-DIT-DIT, dah-DIT-dah-DIT, dah-dah-dah, DIT-DIT-dah, dah-DIT-dah, dah-dah-DIT, DIT / DIT-DIT, DIT-DIT-DIT / DIT-dah, dah / dah, DIT-DIT-DIT-DIT, DIT / DIT-dah, dah-dah, dah-dah-DIT / dah-DIT-DIT-DIT, DIT-DIT-dah, DIT-DIT, DIT-dah-DIT-DIT, dah-DIT-DIT, DIT-DIT, dah-DIT, dah-dah-DIT
"Oh, dear Chaos!" CREAM screamed in a horrifically surprised tone.
"CREAM, what is it?!" Rouge asked.
"Hold on, she's saying something else."
DIT-dah-dah, DIT / dah-DIT, DIT, DIT, dah-DIT-DIT / DIT-DIT-DIT, dah-dah-dah, dah-DIT, DIT-DIT, dah-DIT-dah-DIT / DIT-DIT-DIT-DIT, DIT, DIT-dah-DIT, DIT / dah-DIT, dah-dah-dah, DIT-dah-dah
"What is it?!" The robo-rabbit didn't answer her right away. Sometimes silence was worse than the truth. "CREAM?! What's wrong with Amy?!"
"Scourge is at the AMG!"
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
If you're reading the fanfiction-dot-net version of this story, consider yourself lucky that I was able to find a way to get around this site's programming. For those of you not in the know, trying to copy-and-paste the "." and "-" of Morse code respectively is easy to do from your Doc Manager. HOWEVER, when you save the file on fanfiction-dot-net, the code itself would mess up. For example, a series of three dashes when saved in the Doc Manager turns into one dash if you check the code after successfully saving. Thankfully, Morse code has a workaround since the "." is also called a DIT while the "-" is called a dah. Also, the slashes between the code are there to separate words while the commas separate the letters. The reason the coded letters switch between bolded and un-bolded is to help you distinguish the letters, but that's assuming you read the entirety of the coding which I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. And if you did... shut up, you're a liar. When translated, the codes read "SOS SOS SCOURGE IS AT THE AMG BUILIDNG" and "WE NEED SONIC NOW" respectively. And before you ask, the translating from dots and dashes to the longhand "DITs and dahs" had to be done by hand because Microsoft Word will automatically group a set of 3 dots as an ellipsis (...), and if you know Morse Code, there are letters and symbols with up to four or more consecutive dots, and the same goes for the dashes. This process took about 90 minutes to finally get right, and what a pain in the ass it was!
Not as big of a pain as the pain Tails is in right now.
But wait!
What's this?!
*GLASS SHATTERS*
Bah Gawd, that's CREAM'S music!
Finally, she gets her new suit, and she's kicking ass in style while doing it! Though I'm not sure if CREAM knows the difference between "breaking in a suit" and "breaking bones," though I'll give her the benefit of the doubt this time around. And yes, I had a blast sequencing this fight. CREAM's ears take inspiration from her Sonic Heroes counterpart with flight, but the flight itself is also based on Tails. His tails spin around to generate flight, and so does CREAM's ears. Oh, and they can knock your lights out like boxer with otherworldly reach. Fun fact, the initial dialogue that CREAM spouted off against Fiona's goons was a lot more colorful. However, it occurred to me that the swearing didn't fit her personality. Sure, she'll swear if needed to get a point across, but cursing amid the fighting is more Sonic's thing. She is the mother-figure after all, so cutting out the cuss words was probably going to work out for the better. Still doesn't mean she can't kick ass like Sonic. I know all of you have been waiting patiently for her new body's debut, and I hope the wait was worth it.
But getting back to the end of this chapter... oof. Shit is really starting to hit the fan. We'll get back to Amy later... as in (7/17) when the next chapter is tentatively scheduled for. Sonic, you better find a way out and FAST. Before we wait for the next update, thanks go out to jurrassicdinodrew, 000Marie198, and FlameShadowDragon for once again leaving reviews!
Oh, and my Milwaukee Bucks are in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1974. Fifty years ago. If you need me, I'll be camping in Milwaukee just taking it all in.
As always, the characters used in this story are the property of SEGA, Sonic Team, and Archie Comics. Everything in the story is being used strictly for entertainment purposes. And as always, I will talk to y'all later.