Disclaimer, and a bit of world explanation. This re-write is of Sonic Forces, and naturally I don't claim ownership of the game, it's plot, nor it's characters. That out of the way, yes, this is a re-write; I wanted to do my own spin on the story. This is still going to take place in a world where Dr. Eggman is the only human, with some changes to explain it. Mainly by having this take place in the Sonic X universe, after the Metarex Saga and after Chris's return home, and I'm going to call Sonic's homeworld Mobius to avoid confusion. The unevolved animals in Sonic's world are going to be called mobini, after the little critters Sonic saves in the first Sonic video games.
There's going to be a few characters from the games and comics as well, and a few references to the games because I have to explain Zavok's presence. To make this work, I'm just going to say that Colours and Lost World took place on this version of Mobius, while Sonic Adventure 1 & 2 happened on Earth like in the Sonic X Anime. So, no humans live on Mobius, but is something of a mirrored version of earth. Mobius's GUN is filled with mobians, there's cities, towns and villages, and the same level of "modern" tech, if a little different and a bit more advanced than Earth's. Sonic lives in the mystic ruins with Tails, and Shadow, Rouge and Omega joined the Mobian version of GUN.
Also, this is going to be a good bit darker than Sonic Forces was. Uncomfortable topics will be explored, including torture, violence, war, etc, along with light cursing. Things are going to get hard for the crew, Sonic especially, so you've been warned to either buckle up or avoid the ride altogether.
Chapter 1; First Shift, Waking Up
Running, feet pattering across green grass and sand, then on the asphalt of hard, paved roads. The flash of fire exploding around him, broken debris sent flying as he fought. Then the sound of his flesh hitting too many surfaces to count, blossoming pain within him before hitting the ground, hard. Then…darkness.
Sonic groaned as he stirred on the cold, metallic floor beneath him, tying to gather his arms under his body so he could lift himself to a sitting position; and failing. What the heck had happened while he was out? Pausing, he took a moment to slow his breathing and relax. Okay. Think it out. The last thing he remembered was fighting in the city. The robot army had been too big for Tails to handle alone; he remembered that. His little bro' had called him back from his trip to help, but there'd been so many that they'd had to split up. Not the best of plans, but between Sonic fighting on foot and the fox flying and firing from their biplane, the Tornado, they'd started making a dent in the invasion. It helped that some civilians were trying to fight, too, though the supply of robots seemed to be endless.
Not just endless; their numbers were seemingly infinite. They'd just kept on coming, which probably explained why Dr. Eggman had disappeared for so long. So many robots, including several giant, egg-shaped monstrosities that had been stomping the city to pieces. Sonic had still put a decent dent in the smaller 'bots, and had been about to head for one of the giant ones, when he'd been attacked by…Chaos? That was right- and not just Chaos, but a circle of old enemies, and one that should've definitely been a respected ally. Metal Sonic was as good as expected, but the last time he'd seen Chaos he'd been certain they'd parted on good terms, with the water deity returning to the master emerald with Tikal. Zavok being there hadn't made much sense either, considering he lived up on Lost Hex (and there was no friendship lost there); but why the heck had Shadow turned on him?! As far as he knew, Shadow had joined Mobius's GUN, and was almost as much a hero as the blue blur these days. Sure, he didn't seek the spotlight, but as far as Sonic knew the guy had moved on far past serving the Doc' for any reason.
Then he'd arrived; some kind of canid in a metal mask, and the beat down began. Sonic could normally handle himself against any one or two of his four opponents with relative ease, but he'd been fighting the robot horde for hours and they'd worn down his stamina. Add the fact that Zavok, Metal, Chaos and Shadow were some of the toughest opponents he'd faced, and the bruises started piling up while he learned what a soccer ball felt like. Then, whenever he got a good opening to turn the brawl around, the black canid was there to make sure that the hedgehog only felt pain for his efforts, and damn was he fast. So fast that Sonic could hardly believe it. The last thing the hero had seen, as he collapsed to the ground, was the Tornado going down in smoke in the distance, disappearing behind the skyscrapers that were still standing.
"Tails! Ack…" That memory snapped him back into the present, struggling upright with some difficulty. "What…oh, great." So that's why it'd been so hard to move; each wrist and ankle was wrapped snugly in a glowing, blue band that adhered somehow to the one on it's matching limb, and the lack of slack was restricting the hedgehog's movement greatly. Still, he managed to sit himself upright to lean against the wall and examine the dark cell more thoroughly. The room looked much like a normal prison cell; toilet and sink off to one side, with a metal slab on the other that clearly served as a hard bed of sorts. The only other light came from the force field that made up the front wall of his prison, and a cautious touch had him hissing and shaking the electrical sting out of his fingertips. Wonderful. Fan-freaking-tastic. This cell might actually hold him.
Honestly, though, it wasn't the cell that bothered him as much as it was the waiting. Sonic knew the Doc' had him; who else could it be. So where was the fat megalomaniac? He'd expected Eggman to show his face not long after he woke up. Surely the lard bucket was dying to launch into one of his monologues about "I won" this and "you lost" that, but as time passed nothing happened, other than than the robot guards outside his cell occasionally shifting in response to his movements and attempts to spin dash the walls. They didn't even respond to his questions, of which the blur had plenty, all bound to be unanswered as they otherwise ignored him.
Left with nothing else to do, he hefted himself up and onto the metal slab that protruded from the wall. Patience wasn't his best strength, and bound like he was there wasn't much Sonic could do to entertain himself. Hours had passed in the near-dark, with no way to tell just how long he'd been waiting beyond his own growing hunger. There was water from the sink, at least, but it didn't do much to fill him up. The cell and his ring-like cuffs were examined down to every detail, and the limits of his mobility explored until he eventually fell into a light, restless slumber. He never thought he'd be happy to hear the scrape of boots approaching, even if the sudden brightness from the activated lights was blinding enough to make him shade his eyes. At least something was happening now to end his boredom. "Ah Sonic, good afternoon. You looked so tired yesterday that I thought I'd let you rest. Tell me, how are you enjoying your solitary confinement?" The human's wicked grin was hardly pleasant, and Sonic met it with a rebellious smirk of his own. "If this is the worst you got, Doc', then I'm not that worried."
The taunt was a natural response, the way things had become over the years between them having practically become a routine. However, this time around, the cocky attitude made the Doctor laugh instead of aggravating him, as it usually it. "The worst? Oh no, dear boy, this is nothing compared to what I've got planned for you. It's fair to say I've gotten tired of this little game of ours." He'd been hoping for more of a response that the eye-roll he got, but there was plenty of time to make the rodent realize how serious his situation was. After all, he wanted to break Sonic, thoroughly in and out, and that would take time and clever planning.
Waving his hand, a pawn brought him a chair, and he sat in front of the hedgehog's cell. "You're sitting now. I want you to stand." This time there was an audible scoff as Sonic rolled his eyes at the command- only to scream in surprise as the glowing cuffs briefly shocked him. "As you can see, those special shackles of mine do more than cast light. Now. Stand." Gritting his teeth, Sonic sent Eggman a glare before pulling himself to his feet. "Sit." Giving the Doctor an incredulous look, he started to protest. "What, seriously? You just told me to- Aaaagh!" Another shock. "I said, sit." Another grimace as the hedgehog started to figure out just what this sort of game was.
Though calling it a game was a stretch the longer it went on. After a few more shocks, Sonic couldn't imagine how the Doctor found this entertaining. Other than bossing him around for an hour, there wasn't much to it. Sit. Stand. Sit. Stand. If he hesitated or tried to talk he was shocked, if he didn't nothing happened other than his furry rump either sitting down on the metal slab, or rising off it. Sonic would've found it as boring as being left alone if it hadn't been humiliating to be commanded like a trained mobini seal, and the fact that he was fed afterwards only rubbed that feeling in further. He'd hoped the force field would come down and give himself a chance to try something, but was sorely disappointed when Eggman simply left and a panel in the wall lifted, dispersing a stale portion of bread; his meal for his efforts.
Then he was left again in the dark.