Sonic Boom
–The Viral Revenge of Nominatus–
It was a dark night and Eggman's Lair was silent, save for the low whirring of machinery as robots operated without rest. Not a single living being was making a move; not even an intruder. But all of that changed when glass shattered and a horned being with red eyes and dark skin stepped out of the shadows, accompanied by a muscular brute and a squat flat-headed creature.
Nominatus the Virus laughed deviously. "At long last..." He declared, "After being imprisoned in that container for so long, the time has come to achieve our revenge and destroy the world." The maniac cackled silently and headed for Eggman's lab, instructing his goons to follow him. They had to find the machine that could make them grow to a regular size.
A Moto Bug rolled down the corridor, its search light blinking as the Badnik scanned for intruders. "I'll take care of it." Nominatus whispered and pointed his finger at the robot. ZAP! Blue lightning shot from his hand and struck the Moto-Bug, causing it to explode in a pile of scrap. Nominatus snickered, taking pride in what he'd just done.
In his bedroom, Eggman slept soundly, smacking his lips and often cackling evilly in his sleep. Since he was asleep, the villain didn't hear the commotion taking place. Elsewhere in the lair, Nominatus and his goons made their way into the lab. Once they were inside, the villainous trio began their search for a machine that would increase their size.
Retro and Beta saw what looked like a blue-colored hedgehog doll sitting motionlessly upon a shelf, still in mint condition aside from an open seam with white stuffing exposed. "That doll looks kinda creepy." Retro commented, "Does Eggman keep that for experiments? If so, then perhaps he uses it as inspiration for new robots."
"Focus on the mission, dolt!" Nominatus snapped, "We cannot waste any time and this is our big chance, I've sat around and festered in humiliation long enough! No more, we have a world to conquer and heroes to annihilate!" The demonic virus' minions saluted and got back to work, knowing that their master was right.
'Hmph, mindless idiots.' Nominatus stuck his tongue out at his henchmen with disgust while their backs were turned, he did not think highly of goons who lacked any form of high intellect whatsoever compared to the likes of Nominatus himself since he believed himself to be far more intelligent than any other insignificant life form on this planet of insanity.
"We found it, boss!" Beta's voice rang out. Nominatus' mouth curled into a devious smile, knowing that he was minutes away from initiating his ultimate master plan. The vile virus followed his useful minions to a nearby desk and Retro pointed to a massive device that had Eggman's vile symbol upon it. There was no doubt, this was the size maker machine.
Nominatus looked around cautiously, making sure there were no robots coming their way. Once it was clear there was nothing that could get in the way, the three digital villains climbed up the nearest chair and jumped onto one of the electrical wires leading up to the size-maker machine. In fact, the wire was connected TO the machine.
For the evil virus trio, the climb didn't take long. They made it onto the desk and set foot near the size-maker machine, Nominatus crossed his hands and proceeded to flip the activation switch. The device turned on and machinery hummed wildly, a field of blue-colored energy poured forth and encompassed Nominatus, Retro and Beta together.
Not further off, Eggman continued to sleep and paid no attention to whatever activity was afoot, even as the sounds of humming machinery reached his ears. Back in the lab, a bright haze of light flashed and the villainous trio grew in size. Nominatus looked at himself in a mirror, a cruel smile etched upon his face.
"Yes, minions." The virus sneered gleefully, "The time has come to wreak havoc and unleash our revenge, Sonic and his friends shall pay and so will Eggman. Let us start by conquering this lair and booting the doctor out. Once that task is complete, we shall unleash our fury upon the world. HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!"
Just before the virus and his minions could begin conquering the lair, Orbot and Cubot activated and emerged from the shadows, startled by the villainous laugh. "Oh no!" Cubot cried when he saw Nominatus and his pack, "NOMINATUS IS ON THE LOOSE AGAIN! HOW DID HE GET OUTTA HIS IMPRISONMENT?"
"We better do something!" Orbot declared, "Quick, let's warn the doctor!" The two robot lackeys headed for the door, but Nominatus acted fast. He snapped his fingers and a blue force-field surrounded Orbot and Cubot, freezing them in place. The viral destroyer nodded to Retro, who lumbered forward and grabbed the two robots before smashing them against the wall.
Nominatus held back the urge to issue another Laugh and crossed his hands as he gazed upon the wrecks that were Orbot and Cubot. "It's lair takeover time!" He sneered, "Retro! Beta! Hack into the lair's network and reprogram EVERYTHING to serve me and boot Eggman out! Nothing is going to interfere with my master plan of ULTIMATE EVIL REVENGE!"
The door opened and a yawning Eggman entered the room, having just been woken up by the commotion taking place. He was about to ask what was going on, but when he saw Nominatus and his henchmen, Eggman let out a scream. "HOW DID YOU GET OUT OF YOUR PRISON?" The pajama-clad villain yelled.
"All thanks to my cohort's brute strength, Eggman." Nominatus sneered. Retro marched up and punched Eggman in the face so hard, the doctor fell to the ground and passed out. With a nod from his boss, the viral brute picked up Eggman and walked outside the lair before chucking the doctor over the horizon.
With Eggman disposed of, Nominatus headed to the control room as his minions hacked into the lair's systems. The maniacal virus sat down at Eggman's desktop and flexed his hands, anticipating the destruction he was about to unleash. Retro and Beta entered the room and a red light flashed, the super-computer turned on and a voice buzzed, "Salutations, Nominatus."
Nominatus activated a microphone and bellowed into it, "Glorious mechanical legions, this is your new master speaking! Go forth and destroy the world! Eradicate the villages and level the cities, exterminate all who live and breathe! DESTROY IT ALL AND PAVE THE WAY FOR A NEW WORLD RULED BY NOMINATUS!"
At their new master's command, every available Badnik activated and mobilized in seconds. Bee-Bots took flight and Moto-Bugs rolled out. Obliterator Bot powered up and Mega Bot got moving, Nominatus' robotic armies advanced out of the lair and headed off to carry out their command to attack the world beyond.
Over half a mile away, Sonic the Hedgehog was sound asleep in his beach shack when something crashed through the ceiling and landed next to his hammock with a large thud. "Wha...?" Sonic woke up and groaned, "C'mon, I'm trying to sleep. What the...?" When he looked down, he saw that a pajama-clad Eggman was laying on the floor.
'You have gotta be kidding me...' Sonic thought. Eggman rolled over onto his back and rubbed his head, the evil scientist shot to his feet and stamped his foot angrily. Then he pulled on his mustache and let out a roar of anger. Sonic observed his nemesis' tantrum closely and, despite not being a genius, he assumed something must've happened if Eggman was this angry.
Eggman noticed the observing blue hedgehog quickly and stopped throwing his tantrum, however, the maniacal scientist was still infuriated. "As if my night couldn't get any worse, I JUST LANDED IN SONIC'S HUT! NO, I WILL NOT BE STUCK LIVING WITH MY ARCH-ENEMY AGAIN JUST BECAUSE THAT VIRUS BOOTED ME OUT!"
Sonic rolled his eyes. "Aw great." He groaned, "Are you telling me Nominatus is back and just hijacked your lair for the second time?" The hedgehog shook his head, "You have any back-up plans for a situation like this, Eggy? I wanna see tomorrow without the world gettin' destroyed by a crazy virus who just won't stay defeated."
Eggman glared at Sonic and grabbed him by the scruff of his scarf. "I was trying to get a good night's sleep until that cyber-punk and his goons booted me from my evil lair. I'm still in my evil pajamas and they don't have any technological features. As of right now, I DON'T HAVE ANY BACK-UP PLANS PLANNED OUT!"
"Sounds like you're already admitting defeat and willing to let that viral rival of yours take over the world." Sonic remarked with dismay. He was completely shocked by the idea that his own nemesis didn't have any plans just in case if Nominatus returned again, Eggman was the most careless villain Sonic had ever known.
Just then, the sound of an explosion shook the shack and rattled the floor beneath the hedgehog and his nemesis. One glance at the look on Eggman's mustached face and it was clear that he knew what was going on; Nominatus' corrupted Badniks were in the vicinity and had begun attacking the island.
"Looks like someone's gotta be a hero this late at night." Sonic commented in a snarky manner, he rotated his shoulder and zipped outside his hut at top speed, leaving Eggman behind in the shack. The scene that awaited Sonic outside was insane, Bee-Bots and Cowbot were bombarding the beach and Moto-Bugs were firing missiles everywhere they could.
Green bushes exploded in flames and palm-trees fell, craters appeared across the beach and a tall tree crashed down on top of Blue Force One. Crab-Bots swarmed the seaside and clicked their claws as they headed right for Sonic, intent on turning him into mincemeat. The attacking Badniks' eyes flashed purple, showing their current allegiance to Nominatus.
Cowbot spotted the incoming speedster and attempted to shoot Sonic with a missile, its eyes gleamed bright red and the mech let out a loud moo. The speedster smashed through a row of Crab Bots and kicked a Bee Bot into the side of the robotic cow, damaging its engines and causing Cowbot to short circuit.
Letting out a distorted moo, the cow-looking robot crashed to the ground and its neck exploded before the head flew off into the sky. Sonic crossed his arms and said with a chuckle, "Take that, you..." But just before he could finish his sentence, an explosion knocked the hedgehog off his feet and sent him tumbling.
When Sonic looked up, he saw that a Moto-Bug had launched a missile at him and was about to fire another one. "Oh really?" The hedgehog remarked with a smirk, "If you 'bots think you can beat me, ya got another one comin'." He launched into a spin-dash and trashed the Badnik right before Burn-Bot entered the fray and launched its claw arms at the hedgehog.
Eggman exited the shack to watch the battle, even as he was shaking in his pajamas and ducking to avoid a rogue Badnik missile shot. The mad doctor crossed his arms, fuming with dismay over how he wasn't using the robots to attack the hedgehog. 'The only one who can defeat Sonic and his band is me.' The doctor thought with a cold frown.
Meanwhile, back in Eggman's Lair, Nominatus was observing the chaos on the monitor via Fly-Bots and was snickering with glee as more Badniks attacked. Close by, Retro and Beta stood behind him and observed the scene too. The viral villain grabbed a bag of popcorn and began eating away while snickering deviously, enjoying his own devious handiwork.
Literally nothing could change the outcome of all this, Nominatus had struck without warning and taken everything from Eggman. With the doctor's own tech in his hands and with the man himself defenseless, the evil virus could achieve his long-awaited victory and eradicate all organic life along with the heroes and the rest of civilization.
And yet, unbeknownst to Nominatus and his henchmen, Orbot and Cubot were in the midst of reassembling themselves in the main lab. Despite being shattered to pieces, the two lackeys were still active and couldn't be destroyed that easily. After fixing themselves, Orbot and Cubot began working to put together a plan to stop Nominatus and take back the lair.
Back on the island, as Sonic battled Badniks while Eggman tried not to get hurt, the hedgehog's best buddy Tails had been trying to sleep when his house and lab came under attack from Nominatus' forces. Upon hearing the chaos unfolding, the two-tailed fox leapt into action. Tails smacked Moto-Bugs with his wrench, sent Bee-Bots flying and stomped on Crab Bots.
Half a mile off, while Tails was dealing with his own Badnik attack, Amy Rose was busy fending off an attack too. Bee-Bots and Mantis-Bots were swarming her house and the grounds like a wild horde of ants and bees. The pink hedgehog was in her nightgown, swinging her hammer and smashing Badniks while trying to keep her home safe.
When a robot ran over her lawn, Amy screamed angrily and smashed it. "Will you mechanical pests bug off so I can get some sleep?" The hammer-wielding pink heroine snarled viciously at a pack of Crab Bots, "HIYAH!" She brought her weapon down on a Moto-Bug and demolished it, then Amy's pet Bee-Bot Bea flew out and annihilated several Badniks.
Elsewhere, Sticks was sleeping in her burrow when explosions woke her up. At first, she thought someone was trying to build a mall next to her home again. But when the badger looked outside, she saw a horde of purple eyed Badniks swarming the forest and blowing up trees. Sticks shook her head; she knew this was not going to bode well.
"If aliens think they can use Eggman's army to destroy the world, they're gonna have to get through Sticks the Badger first." Sticks said warily, she drew her boomerang, "I'm not lettin' any of ya achieve your Armageddon goals on my watch. ITS PRIMAL TIME!" Without any hesitation, the feral badger let out a shrill battle cry and charged towards the attacking Badniks.
Mega Bot tore its way through the trees and fired off a missile right at Sticks, the warhead exploded upon hitting the ground next to her and the intrepid badger went tumbling. Sticks got back up and drew her bo-staff, she impaled a Moto Bug and disabled it before throwing the staff into Mega's eye and blinded the robot instantly.
Sticks leaped onto a tree, grabbed a vine and swung from it towards the blinded robot. She let go in mid-swing and flew through the air before kicking Mega in the side of its head so hard, Sticks knocked over Mega with all the strength that she had. The giant robot crushed a Moto Bug as it fell and smashed the red-black Badnik under its weight.
ZAP! A bright blue laser beam struck Sticks in the shoulder and she cried out in pain before wheeling around to face a Moto Bug with a laser cannon on its back, the Badnik's corrupted eyes blinked and the robot fired off another shot. This time, Sticks dodged and was about to throw her boomerang when she heard a loud Tarzan-style yell.
Knuckles leaped out of the bushes and punched the ground so hard; it sent a huge shock-wave across the area and knocked out several attacking Badniks before more came swarming in. The red echidna and the badger high-fived one another and then focused on battling the swarms of Badniks, determined to protect the island at any cost.
Not too far off, Sonic was still in the heat of battle with Nominatus' corrupted Badnik forces and trashing one robot after another even as the hordes were now surrounding him like a vicious pack of hungry ants. Eggman hid in the bushes, shaking in terror as Crab Bots hunted the mustached villain and clicked their claws in a terrifying fashion.
"URGH!" Sonic groaned when a Bee Bot blasted him. He kept fighting even when it seemed the Badniks had the hedgehog outnumbered, as far as Sonic was concerned, it didn't matter if he was surrounded. He was gonna go down fighting if he had no choice and Sonic knew his friends were fighting against the corrupted Badnik hordes as well.
When the Crab Bots found Eggman, he let out a cry of fear and went running into the jungle as fast as his legs could carry him. A swarm of Bee Bots spotted the doctor and flew in after him. The devious scientist ducked with a yelp when the robotic bees tried to conduct a kamikaze attack run in an attempt to take him out, a move Eggman never programmed into his Badniks.
While packs of rogue robots continued swarming the very group of heroes who could defeat Nominatus just like last time, Hedgehog Village stood alone without anyone to protect it. Villagers had been sound asleep until they heard the sounds of explosions and robots attacking, an event that sparked the usual panic with people running in terror with their arms flailing.
Fastidious Beaver boarded up his library and bolted with a scream when he saw a large swarm of Bee-Bots heading his way, Octopus Bot floated through the village square with its large mechanical tentacles wavering while firing off several blasts of ink at a couple of villagers while the Old Monkey himself cried out in alarm and ducked quickly.
Perci the Bandicoot and her sister Staci hid behind a large rock, shaking in fear as the two sisters watched the chaos and the sight of robots attacking. At one point, Obliterator Bot loomed over the twins' hiding spot and glared at the two bandicoots with menacing purple-colored eyes. "RUN!" Perci screamed at the top of her lungs before she and her sister made a run for it.
A trio of Fly Bots flew overhead, observing the chaos and allowing Nominatus to see his own devious handiwork. The viral villain laughed with vicious glee as he anticipated the inevitable; Hedgehog Village was under siege, the heroes were being outnumbered and Eggman was alone in the wilderness, nothing could stop Nominatus' viral vengeance.
Oh, if only he knew that his overconfidence was leading to his undoing, little did Nominatus know his downfall was coming. The reassembled Orbot and Cubot made their way to Eggman's weapons room and found his disintegration ray guns hidden away on a rack, Orbot climbed the rack and picked up the two guns carefully before giving one of them to Cubot.
With the needed weapons in hand, the two robots bumped fists and departed the room. They headed right for the chamber where Nominatus was holed up. Since there were no robots getting in the way, this meant Nominatus, Retro and Beta were unguarded. Orbot scanned the area, checking to make sure the coast was clear. Then he and Orbot glided through the door ahead.
"This is delicious." Nominatus bragged, "Victory is minutes away and nobody can thwart my plan now." Just before Retro and Beta could nod, Orbot and Cubot entered the room and the door shut behind them. Nominatus turned and shrieked when he saw the two armed lackey robots with the disintegrator rays in hand, he was surprised that they were still active.
However, just as Nominatus was about to order Retro and Beta to attack, Orbot and Cubot pulled the trigger. ZAP! A blue beam shot from both laser guns and struck the viral super-villain, Nominatus shrieked and writhed in agony just before he vanished in a bright light. When the light cleared, the only thing that remained was a pile of black ash.
Retro and Beta cried in alarm at the sight of their master's demise, they barely had time to mourn when they too got blasted. Orbot punched the air with delight and excitedly high-fived a very happy Cubot, who started dancing around happily until the red robot reminded his cube-shaped partner they had to terminate Nominatus' influence from the Badniks.
Wasting no time, the two robot lackeys hurried to the control console and began activating Eggman-related programs. It didn't take long, once Orbot and Cubot had found the right passcode and the right program, they were good to go. Inside Eggman's Lair and on Bygone Island, every Badnik ceased their activities and their eyes flashed red.
In mere seconds, all of the robots were turning tail and heading back to Eggman's Lair, leaving Bygone Island behind while Sonic and his friends were left to breathe and relax. Orbot and Cubot got out the Egg Mobile, took the controls and flew over to the island to find Eggman waiting on the beach by Sonic's shack.
"Doctor Eggman." Orbot said happily, "We've just destroyed Nominatus and ended his threat, you don't have to worry about our viral nemesis ever again." Sonic breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that the day had been saved. But this time, it hadn't been the hedgehog who saved the day, it had been Eggman's own lackeys.
Eggman hugged his lackeys and hopped into the Egg Mobile. He gave Sonic one last look before taking the controls and heading back to his lair for some sleep while the hedgehog yawned and headed back inside his shack to get some nicely-deserved shut eye again. As Sonic fell asleep, he could only dream of chili dogs and a special date night with one Amy Rose...
The End