whattup losers i'm back with a hella long chapter in less than a month. seriously i think it's the longest chapter to date skjghkdf

warning: the first scene is pretty bloody. the rest of the chap is tame tho uwu enjoy


IX.

return (rəˈtərn)

[verb]

to come back.


Wind lashed through his fur, licking his face and beating hard against his goggles as they soared through the skies. His fingers trembled over the plane dashboard, as he carefully watched the clear skies that swallowed them whole in a veil of light blue. He should have been anxious, scared; instead he felt light and invigorated and capricious. A untamed smile pulled at his lips.

It'd been probably almost a year since he'd gotten to go on a mission like this. Their adventures had been growing scarce lately. There was the Time Eater ordeal, which was a few years ago, in which Eggman had spoiled (and kind of improved, in an adrenaline-junkie sort of way?) Sonic's eighteenth birthday. And then there was nothing, for a long time, and it was jarring. Typically the mad scientist had a new plan cooked up within the next month. Eventually came the Lost Hex thing, which they took care of no problem.

And then… And then, nothing, again, only this time it didn't seem like it'd ever go away.

The break from the action was admittedly nice, for a while. They started getting to coerce Knuckles into getting off Angel Island more often, what with the seeming lack of danger. More team-bonding activities. More getting to take a break from being heroes, and getting to learn to be more like regular people. Hell, Shadow even proposed to Sonic. Wedding plans were already underway and it'd be nice to get to enjoy something as splendorous as that without the looming threat of killer robots or eldritch beings intruding on them.

But, Chaos, it'd been nearly a year and a half and Eggman's hiatus was just eerie at this point.

That was why they were here, gliding through the skies in the early morning. His emerald tracker had picked up activity nearby, and before he even knew it they were out the door and departing from Mystic Ruins.

Sonic spared him a glance over his shoulder, from where he balanced on the left wing of the Tornado. He fashioned an abrasive smile and pools of exhilaration in his bright eyes. "Maybe Eggbreath will be there to greet us!"

Tails rubbed the back of his neck unsurely. "I dunno," he hollered back over the roaring winds and plane engine. "You'd think he'd announce his presence, after all this time."

The blue blur shrugged and tapped his foot against the crimson wing. He said something to himself with a slightly withdrawn expression, but Tails couldn't hear it. He suspected, however, that it had something to do with Sonic hoping Eggman would be there.

Despite having the ability to explore the entire planet a million times over in the span of two seconds, it had become painfully obvious over these long months that Sonic had cabin fever. Tails didn't blame him, really. He figured he'd probably feel the same—after seeing literally everything possible, things tend to get kind of bland.

The small contraption propped up on the dashboard started blinking wildly. "We're really close! I'm gonna look for a place to land!" the pilot yelled, starting to pivot downwards. "You see anything up ahead?"

Sonic scanned along the horizon for a moment. "There's some junkyard up ahead! Maybe it's in there. Everything else is just empty fields for miles."

With a nod, Tails eased into a descent, before the Tornado connected with the ground and rolled to a stop in the large enclosure. Mountains of scrap metal loomed all around them, hiding them from the luminous sun and bounds of cerulean skies up above. The kit hesitated; he was getting weird vibes from this place.

His brother seemed unbothered, hopping off the wing with a brazen smirk. He began stretching his fawn arms nonchalantly. "Good ol' solid ground," he said.

Tails chewed his lip, deciding to linger in the cockpit as he fiddled around with the emerald tracker. It was going ballistic now—they were really close.

"Can you sense anything?" the fox asked. He knew Shadow had been helping his friend hone in on his Chaos abilities over the years, and he was definitely a natural at it by now.

Sonic scrunched his face up in concentration and closed his eyes. He paused and tilted his head apprehensively. "I—Yeah, kinda, but there's… There's something else, I think. I dunno what—"

With a pained grunt, a large chunk of concrete collided directly into the hedgehog's gut and sent him flying backwards into a mound of garbage.

"Sonic!"

Tails fumbled for the bag by his feet and withdrew his latest creation—the Wispon. It was still a work in progress, barely out of beta testing yet, and he wasn't really sure if it'd work but he didn't exactly have any other options—

The hero heaved and rolled the boulder of concrete off of himself, starting to rise onto his feet. He cradled his chest with a grimace—there had to be some bruised or broken ribs.

"I'm fine," Sonic huffed, and he clearly wasn't but it wasn't like he'd ever be convinced otherwise.

Emerald eyes were trained straight ahead. Tails grabbed the red Wispon (it was shaped sort of like a bulky gun and it didn't sit quite right in his hands yet, he'd have to make some adjustments still) and hopped out of the Tornado, aiming it in the same direction Sonic glared at as his feet hit the ground.

A figure hovered in the air, a few meters away, enveloped in a cloak of red energy as he wielded a green Chaos Emerald in his claws. A sickly yellow iris pierced out of the jagged hole in his mask, searing into the heroes like molten lava. Tails fought back a shudder, and locked his jaw; he had to look confident, like Sonic.

The speedster staggered forwards to stand side-by-side with his brother. He rolled his shoulder and cracked a weathered, lop-sided grin. "Hey there! I gotta say, pal, that's an awfully rude way to say hello."

The stranger continued to watch them in silence. Tails fidgeted anxiously.

Sonic held out a hand, like he was offering to shake the stranger's. "I think we got off on the wrong foot. Lemme introduce myself: I'm S—"

Effortlessly, the floating figure flicked his wrist at them and both heroes flew backwards as a wave of red energy slammed into them. The fox whimpered when he landed wrong on his ankle, and he looked to the blue blur with wide, desperate eyes. Sonic met his gaze, before nodding determinedly and shakily rising to his feet again.

"I know who you are," the stranger sneered at them, fixating idly on the Chaos Emerald he held. Tails could feel spiders crawling down his spine at the mere sound of the stranger's voice—deep and thorny and warped and utterly demonic.

Sonic spat out a glob of blood, still cradling his already-bruising chest. "Great! Then we can cut right to you introducing yourself!" he shot back, looking slightly irritated. He narrowed his eyes. "Do you work for Eggman?"

The stranger cackled. "I 'work' for nobody, but… I suppose you could call us accomplices."

A wild grin split across the speedster's face. Tails started clambering onto his feet.

Seamlessly, the figure touched down to the ground, twisting the emerald around in his hand. His yellow eye bore heavily into them. "I believe you're looking for this, no?"

"You betcha," Sonic replied eagerly. He'd been waiting so long to see some action again. "You wanna do this the easy way or the hard way?"

"Take a wild guess. I implore you," the stranger drawled, venom dripping from his distorted voice.

Not wasting another second, the hedgehog broke into a sprint before launching himself into the air and attempting a homing-attack at their enemy. He nearly made contact before he seemed to collide with this odd force-field of crimson light, and he was swatted away like a useless bug, crashing unceremoniously to the ground. Their enemy strode up to the hero and planted his foot on his chest to keep him downed.

"You're pathetic," the stranger jeered. Sonic groaned out in pain as he pressed harder on his injured chest.

Sonic managed to lift a weak hand, looking pained as he met the fox's eyes. Emerald eyes hardened when he nearly lurched forward to help him.

"S-Stay back." It was an order.

Tails could feel his muscles locking up and—no, no, he had to do something. He couldn't just stand here and watch his brother get killed, no matter what he said.

"Hey!" he shouted, and their assailant's head snapped to him, as if he'd forgotten he was there. Tails squirmed, and his legs were shaking and his eyes burned but he had to remain strong. He aimed the Wispon carefully at the stranger's head (it was basically a flamethrower and therefore completely useless unless he wanted to hurt Sonic, too, but this would at least buy them some time). "Uh, you never told us who you were."

The stranger loosened his pressure on the hedgehog's chest, and Tails could see him sigh just a little bit in relief, out of the corner of his eye. The figure contemplated, before lifting his arm up to aim his palm directly at the trembling kit.

"You may call me Infinite… in the brief moments that remain to you."

Distantly, Tails could hear Sonic screaming ("no!"), but he was too preoccupied with the red energy that swallowed him whole and bit into his skin before throwing him backwards into a heap of garbage. Debris rained down on him upon collision like an avalanche in Holoska, before a massive metal beam fell from where it had been precariously held up by the thick compost and trapped the fox beneath it.

Pain flared up his body when as the metal slammed against his body and he sobbed, his vision blurring with tears. Vaguely, he could make out the stranger—Infinite—lifting a weak and struggling hedgehog from the ground in a chokehold.

Sonic kicked fruitlessly at Infinite, rasping out as he casted a horrified look over to the fox, "Tails! T-Tails, buddy, you okay?!"

Chaos. He was being strangled by this—this monster, and he was worried about Tails?!

The pilot tried to make his voice work, to reassure his brother that he was fine, don't worry, but the wind was completely knocked out of him and stupid, broken sobs kept spilling from his lips and all he could focus on was the searing pain that devoured his limp body.

A few seconds of silence passed and Sonic began struggling harder, angrier, clawing at the hand that squeezed his throat. "Let me—Fuck, lemme go, you—bastard—!"

Infinite cocked his head in mild amusement. "Aw, you're quite defiant, aren't you? You know, I've been given direct orders to keep you alive, but…" He grabbed into a nearby pile of garbage and withdrew this—this two-foot-long shard of solid steel, serrated and rusted and gleaming dangerously in the dim sunlight. Tails managed out a mangled shriek, trying as hard as he could to push off the metal that trapped him. He couldn't—he couldn't do it, he wasn't strong enough—

"The doctor won't care too much if I play with the merchandise a bit, will he?"

Tears streamed down Tails' face and his voice was failing from how loudly he screamed.

Infinite's eye gleamed something deadly, and he pushed the blade of metal straight through Sonic's chest.

Everything fell silent, except for the disjointed, agonizing cries that ripped from the hedgehog's throat. Tails squeezed his eyes shut, bile rising up his esophagus at the vile sounds of squelching flesh.

The metal slid painstakingly slow through Sonic's body, until Infinite didn't even need to hold him in a chokehold anymore. The gargantuan shard, alone, supported him. Blood poured unabashedly down his chest, pooling in a thick, viscous puddle on the ground. Sonic's crying ceased, his words stolen right from him, his eyes wide and glassy as he gaped like a fish out of water.

"Ah, much better," Infinite purred, tracing a claw along the hero's face—which was scarily pale now. He was—he was losing so much blood, fuck—"No more squirming or fighting."

Sonic swallowed thickly, and he was trying to speak but all he could do was stare emptily. Emerald eyes drifted sluggishly to meet watery sapphires, too far away, trapped beneath shrapnel and a metal beam.

"T-Tails…" the hedgehog murmured distantly. He looked white as a sheet, and his entire body trembled, and his eyes were so foggy and his entire chest was painted in this sickening red—

Infinite looked to the fox disdainfully. "You better run, little one. I'll be coming for you next."

Tails moaned helplessly. "No, please-!"

In a blinding flash of light, Infinite and Sonic were gone. The only trace of them left was the lake of his brother's blood, out of reach, taunting him as he remained trapped.

He—he—fuck, no, he'd just—Infinite just killed him, there was no way he'd survive that, not with all that blood loss, not—no no no no no, he can't, he can't, he—he'd just sat here like a useless fucking idiot and he'd ruined everything, he didn't even try to fight and now they were gone, he was such a coward, he should've tried harder but he didn't and now Infinite had gotten away and it was all his fault and Sonic was fucking gone

Miles opened his eyes and he couldn't breathe.


Shadow came to slowly, his body numb and tingly and somewhat unresponsive as he shifted in his bed. He peeled his eyes open languidly, his head spinning, and stared at the ceiling with a blank stare for a few moments, trying to gather his thoughts and remember where he was and what he was doing here. The last thing he could remember was—was sinister laughter, and blood and bruises and ice cold talons pricking his skin, but then—but then tender touches and kisses and gentle murmurs in his ear and, and warmth.

A crack of light snuck into the room as the door across from his bed eased open slightly, tentative emerald eyes peering in. Shadow could only watch, feeling like useless dead weight.

And then Sonic stepped into the room, slow and nervous, holding a cup of water, and Shadow—Shadow's heart stuttered. Was—was this real? Was Sonic alive, or was this just another one of Infinite's sick hallucinations—

"Hey," the hero said, his voice so soft it was nearly silent. He padded over, sliding the cup onto the nightstand as he stood over Shadow, staring. His eyes were heavy with dried tears and dark bags, but there was this—this alertness to them, like he was prepared to do anything Shadow needed despite his own fatigue. "How are you feeling? Do you—"

"Are you really here?" the agent said, and he wanted so badly to just hold him and never let go, but he had to be sure.

Something melancholy flickered across Sonic's face, and he settled gingerly onto his knees, crossing his arms over the edge of the bed and resting his chin in them. He looked like a kicked puppy. "'Course I am, hon. I promise."

Mutely, Shadow glided a hand over the thin blankets to rest it on a fawn forearm. His skin was warm and soft, and as he wormed his fingers around his wrist, he could feel a beating pulse.

He was real. He was here. This was real.

The striped hedgehog swallowed the knot in his throat. "I barely remember—what happened? How are you…?"

Sonic shifted, before unfolding his arms to lay his own hand over Shadow's. They took comfort in the feel of one another's engagement rings still fit snugly on each of their hands. "Tails thought I died, all those months ago. I didn't. Infinite nearly killed me, but they kept me alive to—to use me as a test subject, I guess." He shuddered minutely.

Scarlet eyes fell thoughtlessly to the other's chest, to the sickening scar that ran vertical from his collarbone to his navel, a stark contrast to his peach skin. It looked somewhat faded, but definitely not old; the scarring was too messy and gross and pink. Memories returned to him from six months ago, of a traumatized fox calling him on the phone, telling him Sonic was gone, someone had impaled him and he died, there was blood everywhere, he'd lost so much blood—

His stomach churned. Shadow blinked and focused back on Sonic. That was a discussion for later—now was the time for cherishing one another's company and just relishing in how they were both alive and together.

"… Long story short, I managed to escape a few days ago, ran into Silver, and we somehow found the resistance in hiding. Then we saved you, last night."

Shadow fell briefly silent as he focused on recalling yesterday—and really, the rest of his stay in captivity. Everything had been such a blur; Chaos, he must've been high as a kite. Vaguely, he recalled feeling so… Stupidly happy, for the first time in months, when his vision became filled with nothing but blue fur and sappy emerald eyes gazing into his. It had felt like some distant dream, but it—it really happened. And now he was here, holding Sonic's hand again in the safety of the Resistance HQ.

Ruby eyes drifted to his partner's right arm and he stiffened. He stared for a moment, soaking it in—it was metal. Painted a violent purple and scuffed up from whatever fights Sonic had gotten into since acquiring it. The area where it connected to his fleshy shoulder was red and irritated and a little swollen.

Shadow lifted his hand, eyeing the hero in askance. He remained silent, and when Sonic gave him a hesitant nod, he was careful to bring his fingers to the prosthetic, tenderly running them along the cool titanium. "What happened?"

Sonic averted his gaze and grimaced. "The backstory isn't… pleasant. Metal got a little too excited one day, back when I was still behind bars." He managed a brittle smile. "But, hey, let's just be thankful. Without this thing I might've never been able to escape."

Reluctantly, the ebony male gave a nod. He didn't exactly like the idea of a sadistic robot torturing his fiancé to the point where he had to get a prosthetic arm, but, well, he supposed Sonic was right. Neither of them would be here without it. Strange, how things worked out like that.

"So," Shadow began, narrowing his eyes as he continued tracing his fingers along the robotic arm, "Eggman gave this to you?"

"Yeah."

A pregnant pause. "Have you considered the fact that it could be bugged, or rigged with a tracker or explosive or something of the like?"

Sonic shrugged. "At first, yeah. Hell, I tried to rip it off as soon as I broke out. But I haven't really had the time since then to worry about it, and well, nothing's happened yet? I mean, they clearly don't know where we're hiding, and I feel like they would've killed me by now if they could."

The agent mulled that over. "That's true. I still think we should get it looked at by someone, though." By Tails was left unsaid (the kid would've been able to dissect the thing in three seconds, flat), but it still lingered in the air between them, thick and poignant.

Sonic ran his fingers through his quills with a heavy exhale. Now that Shadow was back, all of his thoughts kept returning to his little brother. He was the only missing piece left of their group, and he just—he needed to see him again, to know he was okay.

(He had to be. Of course he was okay. Sonic raised him to be tougher than nails, right?)

Shadow sat up a bit, and cringed at the unpleasant sensation of pinpricks trickling down his form. He still felt too heavy and numb. The sedatives clearly weren't completely out of his system yet. "Are the others outside?"

"I think so. Most of 'em are getting breakfast in the kitchen. I think Knux is still being stubborn and sticking by the M.E." Sonic made a face. "He didn't even come to help rescue you yesterday 'cause he was so worried about that stupid rock! I swear, he's joined at the hip to that thing…"

As the speedster rambled to himself, he started helping Shadow ease onto his feet—he had never specifically said he wanted to get up, but they could practically read each other's minds at this point. Neither of them liked to just sit around. Besides, even before being captured, Shadow had been out locating emeralds for months—he hadn't seen the gang in a while.

The pair made their way to the kitchen (read: Sonic practically carried him there) slowly, as to avoid injury on either end. Amy, Rouge, the Chaotix, and the Cottontails were already there, serving themselves breakfast and conversing idly. They all perked up when the hedgehogs entered.

A warm smile found its way to Rouge's face, and she met them in the doorway, hugging Shadow tightly. He only grunted a little in faux-discomfort.

"You've had me worried sick, young man!" she chastised, her voice muffled as she buried her face in his fluffy chest fur. The rest of the mobians greeted Shadow amicably.

They all quickly settled around a large, antique dining table. The wood was dark and bruised and tattered, but they made do. They helped themselves to rations of granola bars and oatmeal and the like, enjoying their small talk. Vanilla was rattling on about how Cream had just finished drawing a pretty picture of all of their friends, when an exhausted Knuckles and Silver came trudging in.

Sonic whistled teasingly. "Well, look who it is!"

Overlooking the comment, Silver's gaze landed on Shadow and he lit up, chirping a pleasant, "You're awake! How do you feel?"

The striped hedgehog shrugged as he chewed his granola. He was leaned against Sonic's shoulder, practically clinging onto him, and nobody could really blame him. Too much lost time to make up for. "Groggy."

Amy eyed Knuckles intently, not paying attention to the others. The echidna looked—looked awful, frankly. Ever since they'd retrieved the Master Emerald he'd looked awful. He was placing too much stress on himself, trying to solve this all on his own, and it was clearly taking a toll on him.

"Why don't you grab some breakfast?" she said to him, and it was less of a gentle prompt and more of an order.

Knuckles scowled, and rubbed wearily at his temples. "No time, we just—Silv needed to take a break from the chamber."

The psychic nodded affirmatively. "Yeah, it's uh, it's real useful that we have it, y'know," he explained, looking almost guilty, like was scared he was offending them. "Keeps Eggman from tracking the M.E. down and all. But it's just so—dark and stuffy in there."

Sonic thought back to yesterday, when the group had collectively made the decision to save Shadow while Knuckles and Silver stayed with the Master. He frowned when he realized he hadn't seen them come out of that dumb room until just now.

Waving his half-eaten granola bar tantalizingly in the air, he patted the empty chair next to him. "Yeah, maybe you guys should take more than just a short break. Come get some grub."

Vector chewed his lip. "I could make you guys some coffee."

Knuckles nearly objected, but Silver was already nodding vigorously. "That sounds terrific."

The croc hustled into the other room, flashing the time-traveler a sympathetic grin.

Silver was already settling down at the table, an easy sigh escaping him as he let the tension escape from his muscles. The echidna remained stubborn and stood by the doorway to the kitchen, tense and—and almost worried.

"There's another reason why we took a break," he murmured.

The group watched him expectantly, and Knuckles hesitated; flinched.

"… The Master cracked."

Espio startled. "Pardon?"

"What do you mean, cracked?" Shadow snapped critically.

Knuckles was quick to grow defensive at his accusatory tone. "I don't fucking know! I was just—I was meditating, trying to reach Tikal, and it just—this crack just formed when I opened my eyes!"

"It's pretty small," Silver said, as if that really made it much better. The Master Emerald was an impenetrable, holy, all-powerful gemstone. It didn't just crack.

Amy squirmed. "But nothing prompted it? It just formed out of nowhere?"

The guardian shook his head hopelessly. "I dunno. I mean, I was concentrating really hard, trying to access the Special Zone again, but it wasn't like we punched it! Hell, we didn't even physically touch it."

Espio picked at an insignificant smudge on the table. "So it must be something internal then. The foreign crystallization must be putting excessive pressure on it. The Master Emerald is struggling to combat that pressure."

Shadow paused. "Crystallization?"

"When Ames and Knux found the M.E. the other day, it was covered in these weird… clumps of red crystal-thingies. We don't really know what it is, just that it's not natural," Sonic explained.

Knuckles pinched the bridge of his nose. Tikal's words bounced discordantly through his mind. 'It is devouring her positive energy like a parasite. It won't be long before she collapses completely.'

"Chaos, I should—" he casted a longing look over his shoulder, where the Master was being stored in the dark chamber. "Every second we spend discussing this is another second wasted. She can't handle the stress of it."

Rouge crossed her arms. "Okay, hold on, before we go act like sleep-deprived idiots with zero self-preservation—" she received a tired scowl from Knuckles, "—Let's stop and think. Silver had said that, according to that freaky dystopia-whatever, when the emerald collapses it's just pure negative energy. Which means the red stuff must be inducing that, right?"

Shadow's eyes widened. "So we counteract it."

Seven pairs of eyes fell on him intently. Cream and Charmy were the only ones not paying them any mind, the former too preoccupied with her doodling and the latter too preoccupied with watching her.

"The Chaos Emeralds," the agent said, sitting upright. "Maybe their positive energy can balance it out. If we can find them all, we could save the Master Emerald."

Eyes fell back to Knuckles, searching his face for approval of this plan.

An uneasy grunt. "It's a bit of a stretch, but… It's the best thing we've got so far."

"Where would we even start?" Amy asked. "Eggman and Infinite have, what, three emeralds now? They're all bound to be super guarded."

"We don't have much choice," Silver muttered grimly. "Can any of you guys sense one nearby?"

With a deep breath, Shadow let his eyes flutter shut, and abandoned his conscious state to submerge himself within a deeper plane, where energy ran rampant. Tingles ran along his arms and small jolts pricked his nerves. Distantly, he picked up on a concentrated spike of energy, many miles away. He inhaled sharply and opened his eyes.

"Capital City."

There was a beat of silence. Capital City was the heart of Eggman's empire—or, it would be, once construction was finished. It was overrun with badniks and most definitely not welcoming to any intruders. But maybe the chaos of all the construction would work to their advantage, help them sneak in easier. It was—it was incredibly risky and dangerous, but—

We don't have much choice.

Suddenly Vector came out of the kitchen, cradling two hot mugs of coffee with a proud look on his face.

And he was, apparently, completely oblivious to the palpable tension in the room.

"… Coffee, anyone?"


Gadget froze. His finger was poised over the trigger of his Wispon as he aimed it shakily at his foe, who was currently on the ground beneath him. It took him a good while to get over his initial adrenaline and process what exactly he was aiming his weapon at.

It was a kid. No older than ten and definitely petrified. He was small and scrawny, with a silky blond coat, a scruffy tuft of bangs sticking straight up on his head, kept from falling down by the pair of goggles he fashioned on his forehead. Massive pools of sapphire gazed pleadingly at Gadget, watery and scared and horrified. The wolf's arm trembled and he took a hesitant step back, lowering the flamethrower.

"Hey," the older male said, keeping his tone gentle and quiet. "Sorry, I just—I got freaked out 'cause I heard movement nearby. I'm not gonna hurt you, bud, I promise."

The boy—some sort of rodent, maybe a squirrel?—hesitantly nodded and swallowed thickly. He was shaking, and had yet to move from his position on the ground.

"Uh, do you have a name?" Gadget asked, because fuck he was bad with kids and he'd just held this one at gunpoint—he needed some sort of icebreaker, didn't he?

The boy remained still, locked in place from the trauma that swam in his eyes, and Gadget's heart just sank because he looked so—so dirty, and cold, and lonely. Was he all alone out here? What happened to his family? How had he managed to survive until now?

And then the squirrel started to open his mouth, finally about to speak, when—

"Citizens. You should not be out here. Surrender peacefully and your sentence will be lighter."

Both mobians turned to the source of the monotone recording to spot a motobug just a few feet away, almost completely shrouded by the shadows of the tree canopies. It was just watching them, and it was freaky as hell. Its teal optics glowered at them through the shade.

The boy shrieked and Gadget leapt into action without a second thought. The motobug was instantly engulfed by a pillar of flames the moment he lifted the Wispon again. When the embers were gone, all that was left was a mound of mushy steel and fizzling circuitry.

He faced the kid again, shaking a bit with adrenaline. "Um. You okay?"

A smile found its way to his face, only making his golden fur seem to glow even more. "T-T-T-Thank you, mister. I-I thought—"

There was a loud clang, in the distance, back on the beach. The beach. Miles. Gadget's heart leapt into his throat and he bolted.


Glassy blue eyes snapped wide open and Miles heaved, his entire body jerking back compulsively. The movement resulted in him hitting his head on something hard and metal behind him. He hissed in pain and sat upright, bringing a trembling hand to the aching spot.

He was drenched in sweat, burning hot and shaking uncontrollably. Vaguely he could feel dampness pooling in his eyes. He could barely—he could barely breathe, and it was so fucking hot. In a fit of frustration he threw the blanket he was curled under off of himself, rasping as he groped uselessly to feel the ground beneath him, to feel something. He had to feel something, because right now he felt simultaneously nothing and everything all at once, this parasitic emptiness clawing at him from the pit of his stomach and this white hot sensation eating him alive as all of his senses went into overdrive.

The ground. Soft. Grainy. It felt like sand. Where was he? Why was there sand? He thought—he thought—

Chaos, he was wasting so much time, Infinite had just gotten away and Sonic was gone and he hadn't saved him, he was too much of a fucking coward and now—

"Miles!"

He sucked in a breath, nearly sobbed when hands clamped onto each of his shoulders. His vision became filled with fluffy red fur and wide, amber eyes. Who—? Why was he—he needed to save Sonic, he'd just let him die and he couldn't—

"Miles, look at me."

The fox realized he'd been struggling against him, writhing helplessly and crying like an idiot. He released a shaky sigh and locked onto the two golden orbs staring right back at him.

Gadget. It was Gadget.

Everything came back in a tsunami, drowning him suddenly and painfully. He—He wasn't in the junkyard anymore, when he'd lost Sonic. No. He'd lost Sonic six months ago. (But they had gone back last night to get the Tornado, and he'd foolishly assumed that nothing could've gone wrong and then Infinite showed up again and he'd just—he'd just watched as he nearly stole one of his friends' lives again, as he strangled Gadget till his lips turned blue and he was sputtering for air, no no no, he couldn't lose anyone again, he couldn't—please—)

Tears spilled down his cheeks but Gadget was here, and he looked awful but he was alive and he was breathing. Good. Good. Infinite hadn't taken him away too.

Miles cupped a hand over his mouth, smothering the sobs that crept up his throat and quelling the tears that pooled in his eyes. He was fine. It was just a dream. That was six months ago. He had survived last night; both of them. Gadget was still here.

"… Can you speak?"

The kit shuddered and nodded. "I'm fine," he croaked.

Gadget suddenly looked very tired, and Miles was aware that he was sick of the fronts and the lies but he just—he couldn't. He needed a break from the emotions. "Kid—"

"I said I'm fine," he bit out, feeling somewhat more stable despite the way he still trembled just slightly. "… Just a stupid nightmare."

(—it had felt so fucking real, like he was reliving it all over again, watching Sonic's blood pour into the dirt and screaming till his vocal chords couldn't work anymore because he couldn't do anything—)

Just a stupid nightmare.

Reluctantly, Gadget relinquished his firm grip on the fox's shoulders. He sighed in slight exasperation before standing up to give him some space. Miles rubbed his face and raked his fingers through his messy bangs. He was barely even shaking anymore. (His twin tails continued to swish around anxiously behind him, in betrayal.)

"Well," the wolf said. "I literally just, uh—I met a friend, I think."

Ice surged through his veins. "What?"

Silently, a much shorter mobian stepped out from behind Gadget, where he had been hiding. A yellow squirrel, with a wild quiff and these big, blue goggles on his head. He also happened to wear a matching blue bandana around his neck, Miles noted.

"H-H-Hello. A-Are you okay? You were crying a lot." From the intensity of the kid's stammer, he figured it had to be some speech impediment, as opposed to pure timidity. He was definitely shy-looking, though.

Gadget flashed the boy a brief, warm smile, before looking to Miles. Self-consciously, the fox wiped the lingering moisture from his face and slowly rose to his feet. "When you were—sleeping, I heard some rustling over in those woods." Gadget beckoned over to the foliage that stretched along the beach for probably hundreds of miles. "Turns out it was just him… Erm—"

"M-My name is Ray," the boy provided, with a sheepish grin. He looked at Miles. "Y-Your friend saved me! T-T-There was this big, s-scary robot—"

Miles dawned a look of apprehension, to which Gadget quickly cut in, "It was just a motobug." The teenager relaxed a bit.

Putting on a careful smile, Miles crouched down to be at eye-level with Ray. His eyes barely even burned anymore. "Well I'm glad he was there to help you. Can I ask what you were doing out here, all alone?"

The squirrel shrugged. "Just getting some f-firewood. A-And looking for some scrap parts to help my brother."

Gadget frowned. "You have a camp?"

"I have a house!" Ray corrected, looking giddy. The two canines exchanged a look, and the boy suddenly looked more withdrawn; nervous. "… Um, i-i-if you guys want, I could show you…?"

"Do you live alone?" Gadget asked.

Ray shook his head. "I-I have lots of friends!"

Miles wavered. "… Would they attack us if we just showed up on their doorstep?"

"Nu-uh!" the squirrel chirped with another shake of the head, now bouncing on his toes. "The wolf guy s-saved me. I-I-I'll just tell them you guys are nice!"

It wasn't that simple, though. Sure, Ray was a good kid, but if they followed him back to his "friends" they'd surely be sentencing themselves to death. For all they knew he lived with a bunch of murderous bandits who were just waiting to ambush them once the squirrel led them right into their trap—willingly or not. They needed to think about this. Get some more information.

Ray grabbed Gadget's wrist and broke into a run. "C'mon! Y-You gotta meet my big brother!"

Miles nearly keeled over. "Wait!"

He charged after them but the kid was just too damn fast—he seemed to know this forest by heart, as he weaved and ducked seamlessly around the thick fauna that clustered on the forest floor and dangled over their heads. He was giggling as he ran, and Gadget could only stumble after him, being forcibly pulled along. And Miles was fast—he'd learned from the best—but there were too many rocks and branches and shrubs in the way that he just couldn't reach his full speed, and fuck, what if they were walking right into an ambush—

A stray branch whipped against his arm and he gritted his teeth against the pain that flared across the limb, losing his concentration and eventually his footing before—before colliding right into a stationary Gadget.

"Wha-?" The fox looked up to see a massive brick wall before them, tall and formidable. It stretched around some huge enclosure that was completely blocked off. Gadget seemed to be looking at the wall in a similar amazement, himself.

With a wry grin Ray led them over to a gate—supposedly, the only entrance inside.

He nearly let them walk right in, before a giant coyote stepped outside, not exactly looking pleased.

"What the bloody hell is this?" the burly man barked, immediately grabbing Ray and pulling the kid behind himself defensively. He had this gravelly, Aussie accent (from Downunda maybe?), his auburn fur was strikingly bold, and his steel blue eyes jaded. He snarled and aimed a rifle slung over his back directly at Miles and Gadget, who instantly recoiled.

"We don't want any trouble!" the wolf yelped, raising his hands in surrender. "W-We can just leave right now, we don't have to bother you—"

The coyote ignored Gadget's pleas and turned around to look at a certain bashful squirrel. "Ray, who are these people?"

"T-T-They're friendly, Gunt, I promise," the boy murmured, wringing his large tail with the best puppy-eyes he could pull. "The red one saved my life."

The coyote—Gunt?—sharply turned back to the other two boys, baring his fangs and hovering a finger over the trigger. "Explain yourselves, now. Before I get testy."

You seem a little more than testy already, Miles didn't say, because he'd of course picked up on Sonic's snarky comments over the years, but he also knew when to hold his tongue. Instead he settled on a cautious, "We were just passing by, and we met Ray. He insisted that we come here, but we really don't have to if you don't want us."

The coyote didn't reply, just frowned and narrowed his eyes and looked them over—as if that alone would be enough to come to a conclusion. Frankly, Miles was a little surprised. If he were him, he'd have shot already.

"What in the world is all the ruckus out there?" came a new voice, light yet tainted with a very southern accent. Out stepped a female rabbit wearing this pink leotard and a fucking cowboy hat of all things, and—and were those cybernetic limbs?

Following after her was another woman, maybe a gerbil or chipmunk? And she had this ridiculous head of thick, red hair, in a pixie cut. She eyed them keenly but remained silent, looking guarded

The coyote shifted the rifle in his arms. "Ray found some 'friends.'"

The rabbit stepped out further to get a good look at Gadget, and then Miles. Her eyes suddenly widened in an epiphany and she gasped.

"Oh! You're that kid! Sonic the Hedgehog's friend, right? You're Tails!"

Miles felt nauseous. He could feel Gadget's eyes searing a gaze into the side of his head and fuck, he probably had so many questions and now was just not the time and Chaos this was such a huge mistake, they never should've come here—

"What is she talking about?" the wolf hissed to him, remaining unmoving as he continued to hold his hands up. Miles couldn't find the courage to reply.

The coyote sneered. "You know them?"

"Well," the rabbit shrugged, toying with the hem of her hat. "I know the fox-boy from TV. He's the Sonic the Hedgehog's sidekick—I mean, I'm pretty sure he is. Are ya'?"

He forgot how to speak. No point in lying anymore. After a beat of silence, he somehow got his mouth to work, and managed a quiet, "Yes."

The rabbit beamed. "Great! Then maybe y'all can help us out, if you're like, superheroes or whatever!" She looked to the grumpy man, lowering her voice and speaking more urgently. "C'mon, Guntiver. This kid's supposed to be like, a tech wiz, or summin'. If anybody can help us out it's him."

He sighed wearily. "Bunnie—"

"Don't you 'Bunnie' me," she retorted, crossing her arms. "You and I know full well that that stubborn armadillo ain't never gonna be able to make that emerald tracker."

Miles (—Tails? Oh, Chaos, now was not the time for an identity crisis) blinked. "Sorry, did you say emerald tracker?"

The rabbit—Bunnie—looked at him to respond, but then Guntiver just nudged her shoulder and nodded to the chipmunk-girl, who had yet to say a word. She looked pensive, a small frown marring her face.

"Well then, it's up to the boss, isn't it?"

A long pause lapsed over them, and five pairs of anxious eyes landed on the silent woman. Eventually, she dawned a gentle smile and stepped forwards, tucking her hands into the pockets of her blue vest. She gestured for the coyote to lower his gun with the scolding look of a tired old grandmother, despite probably being in her early twenties.

"It's nice to meet you two. My name's Sally Acorn. Welcome to Knothole."


hehe i almost moved that last bit to the next chapter just cos this one was getting so long but i couldn't resist the cliffhanger :) that's right babey the archie cast has joined the party! plus we finally saw the backstory of what happened to sonic b4 everything happened! tails is traumatized! and the resistance now has a game plan!

i do wanna stay tho, just for the record: this fic, as i have previously established, follows the game canon. which means that sonic & co have never met any of the archie comics characters. just figured i should clarify that to avoid future confusion uwu

anyways thx for reading this monstrously long chapter! drop a review to boost my nonexistent self-esteem lol!