Chapter 4: Things Are Changing
WEST SIDE MOTEL APT. 7
ONE HOUR LATER
Cassia soaks all of Scourge's wounds with rubbing alcohol and he clinches his teeth as she then stitches them closed. He groans slightly as the sewing needle punctures his skin and the black thread slides through his flesh. The black haired hedgehog does her best to be as quick as possible, knowing Scourge is in immense pain.
She finishes up and puts the bloody sewing needle in the sink.
"You good?" She asks
"Yeah. You?"
Cassia nods and sits next to him on the bed. Scourge leans back and examines all his new scars, not feeling too great about his appearance.
The most noticeable ones are the three large scars that rip across his chest, 4 more puncture wounds on his abdomen and a smaller scar on his chin. He also has small scars on each forearm and a long scar on his upper left arm.
"...they tore me up, Chev. I ain't been cut like that before... look at me! I'm a fuckin' freak! I can't go out like this!"
"You're not a freak, Scourge. Look at me, I have a metal hand and electronic wrist gauntlet. I can't take those off, they're permanent... you can live with those scars, and those don't make you ugly"
The bright green hedgehog looks at Cassia, feeling a bit better about his situation.
"...Scourge, I'm so sorry I let those guys take you... I wasn't thinking straight, I didn't know who the real bad guys were!..." Cassia says, tears rolling down her face
Scourge lightly touches her cheeks with both hands "Hey, no, I'm - sorry. I uh, I wasn't a good boyfriend to you and I deserved that beating. I know now what's important, and who I can trust... I don't blame you, Chavele. I would've done the same"
She looks him in the eyes while he wipes her tears away
"I mean, I could've done without the knives, but hey..."
Cassia laughs and decides to tell him her real name
"Scourge, I need to tell you something... my name isn't Chavele Anders. It's Cassia Pronghorn. I had to use a made up name when I got here, I kinda have warrants under the real one"
Scourge scoffs and grins "Well, you used a pretty good one. Chavele... I can't use a fake name, everyone can tell who I am. When you're in the life so long, you can't get out. You're stuck here. This is my life... crime is all I know. How I make money, how I live... do you understand?"
Cassia nods "I do, probably more than anyone in this world"
"So, you know I hav'ta get back out there"
"...yeah, I know"
Scourge leans in and quickly kisses the female hedgehog
"...I still want you in my life, Cassia"
"I - I think I'm in love with you, Scourge"
He grins and pulls her down on the bed with him, then kisses the side of her neck. Cassia quietly moans and kicks her boots off.
Scourge suddenly wakes up slumped at a bar not far from his motel room.
"Lil Jack Horny" By Extreme plays throughout the entire bar, the bass boost making the ground shake
A tall and thin male hedgehog walks up to Scourge "You alright, buddy?"
He takes a drink of his beer "Just fine. You?"
"I'm fine, pal. Do you remember bumping into my friends and insulting us?"
"...I can't remember what I had for breakfast, bud. I was bangin' my girlfriend and then poof! I'm sitting here" Scourge says
"Well, you seem like a decent guy, so the boys gave you a break... bought you a beer, too"
"This one? Gee, thanks"
"Don't mention it... you said something about a job, sounded pretty suspect. You shouldnt come into bars and ask random guys to do robberies, dude"
"Is that what I was saying?"
"Yeah, something like you wanted to roll some rich guys' place. Said it would be THE easiest shit in the world"
Scourge suddenly remembers why he cane to this specific establishment tonight. Criminals frequent this Roadhouse every day and night.
Serious con men and their jailbait girlfriends.
"...I take it, you know me" Scourge says
"Sure do. We ain't want no beef with ya-"
This gives the green hedgehog a little more confidence
"...but we're not gonna bow out to you, either"
Scourge grabs his mug of beer and downs the alcohol in one gulp
"I need elite guns for this job" He says as he slams the mug on the bar stand
The stranger chuckles "Buddy, nobody in here is gonna work with you"
"I'm talkin' millions in a single hit"
"Look, it don't matter how much this job pays, you are bad for business, man. You need to look somewhere else for slingers"
"Sleet is one of the beneficiaries"
This makes the stranger look back at Scourge
"Sleet, Robotnik's old lackey?"
Scourge nods
"I thought he was one of your guys?"
"My old team burned me. He made the call"
The Stranger looks over at his friends' table, signals for them to join and pulls a stool up next to the green hedgehog
"You'd better not be fuckin' around, man"
"They rolled me for 3 million dollars I was gonna use to get me and my girl outta this Zone... trust me, I'm not fucking around"
The stranger orders two more beers, pays for the drinks and gives a mug to Scourge. The other 7 rough looking members of his crew stand around them both and listen.
"...so, who's the mark?"
"The richest motherfucker in Casino Night Zone"
A thug behind him speaks "You mean Allman Grey? Jesus Christ!"
"I know his stash inside and out... that's why I need experienced guys-"
"You need the army, bro!... that's a suicide mission!"
"Not if we do it right. I told you, I know where he keeps the cash so this'll be an easy job" Scourge says
"Ah, yeah? How do you know his shit?" A fat thug asks
"Because I used to make cash runs and deposits for him. Sleet? My old crew? We were the in-house band, y'know, used a cover so nobody knew who we were. Long story short, I skimmed 3 bills off him, everybody skims money, right, and then I got picked up. My team finds out I had his cash, they emptied my account and delivered it right back to him... so, I wanna get payback"
"So, YOU stole 3 million from Allman Grey, your team takes the money back and YOU want payback? Man, you outsiders sure are funny"
"This is our business. We're all bad guys, alright? We all just wanna get that one big score and get the fuck outta dodge. That's my plan, anyway"
The stranger drinks his beer and burps loudly "I'm in"
Scourge looks at the rest of the group
"Sure"
"Ah, okay"
"Yeah, I'll do it"
"This better be a good payday"
Scourge drinks his beer quickly "Gentlemen, we can retire after this job. Just be men about it and don't get the team killed"
The group raise their beers, share a toast and agree on the idea.
Less than 8 hours later, Scourge and his team return to his motel room, missing 4 members. Cassia greets them with bottles of beer and a few boxes of pizza.
Scourge takes off his mask and throws a heavy gym bag to the floor
"Holy FUCK that was amazing!" he shouts "Those rent-a-cops didn't know what the fuck to do!"
The stranger removes his mask "We took their punk asses to school, brother!"
Another thug opens a gym bag "Look at all this money, bro! We're rich!"
Cassia looks at them "What happened to the rest of the guys?"
Scourge clears his throat "They uh, got wasted... that's what they get for being slow, am I right? Haha!"
The stranger looks to his leader "We're really good at this, man! We ought to this for a living!"
"Yeah, you're right, we oughta... but somewhere else. We're finished in this Zone, boys. We can't let anyone I.D us, so we gotta move"
"I know a place in Metropolis, babe. Lets go there" Cassia says
"Lead the way"
NEW GENOCIDE CITY
8 HOURS EARLIER
Tails puts his hands up as Simian's armed guards wait for their boss to arrive and greet the teenage Fox. 3 minutes pass once the fat Warthog finally shows up
"So, they shot down the plane, you say?" Simian asks "...and both Manic and Handler were killed? Is that what you said on the phone?"
Tails clears his throat "Y-yeah, that's right"
"You could've made a run for it, how come you came back?"
"...I have friends here, Sarge. I couldn't abandon them"
"Uh - Bullshit. You came back for Cee"
Tails says nothing, just gives him the case of money he retrieved from the drug deal.
Simian opens it "Holy shit, you actually got some of it back! You did good, Prower"
"I wanna see her, Simian. And not in shackles or anything, I wanna sit and talk with her"
"...she's got company over, but what the hell. Sure"
Tails walks through the giant gates until Simian stops him
"Hey, take a shower, first, and take off your shoes before you go in, I don't want ya tracking dirt or dog shit inside"
"Okay"
The Fox enters the worker's bunkhouse and uses the facilities while the others talk amongst themselves in the other room.
The locals don't like the fact Tails gets to go on trips outside the city while they're stuck in the fields all day and night.
Tails gets out and dries off in the bathroom, when suddenly the same group of teenagers who roughed him up enter and circle around the short fox.
"Wow, Mr. Big Shot using the worker's bathroom, that's a surprise... Simian don't let you use his bathroom or something?" The leader asks
"Look, guys, lets not do this right now. I have a date and I gotta look good or else I'm gonna get rejected, come on" Tails mock pleads
"Smart ass, eh? I would've thought you'd learn what happens to ass kissers like you in The Brig" The leader's girlfriend says
"...last chance to walk away, honey"
The leader steps forward, until the bright lights go out in the bathroom and leave the group in total darkness. The fox uses his artificial intelligence device, The SAGE Program, to hack into the electrical grid and shut down the power.
Tails knocks everyone down quickly and escapes before anyone can catch him. He opens his phone and calls Manic, while running across the grass field.
The shouting is enough for the armed guards to leave the front gate before they can close it and inspect the commotion
"Alright, I got the guards' attention. Get in here!" Tails shouts into his cellphone
The green hedgehog uses the Jade and Sapphire Medallions' energy to race through the front gate unseen. His Neon trail dissolves just a millisecond before the guards look back.
"I'm in" Manic says, doing his best to stay hidden as he runs
"Come to the Blue Mansion in the east. That's her place"
"On my way"
Tails enters Cee's mansion through the front door, and Manic opens a window in the back to enter. They race through the massive property to find each other, shoes squeaking on the freshly waxed floors.
The duo bump into each other, fall down then desperately crawl towards one of the 12 bedrooms. Manic opens the door and throws himself towards a closet, while Tails jumps to his feet and closes the door.
Manic hides in the closet and shuts this door just before a guard walks by and knocks on the bedroom door
"Does Simian know you're here?"
"Of course he does, pal! He sent me here, and I thought Cee ran the show in this place? Huh?" Tails responds
The guard glares at the door "I can't wait til you give me a reason to shoot you, little bitch..."
Tails says goodbye to him and he stomps off through the marble hallway, so thefox turns to the closet door.
"...alright, just stay hidden til I give you the signal" Tails says
"Uh, what's the signal, again?" Manic asks, voice slightly muffled behind the closet door
"You kidding me? I just told you like 20 minutes ago!"
"Refresh my memory, good sir"
"I let SAGE's alarm blare out twice"
"Sounds convoluted, how 'bout you just do that pussy-scream you're really good at, that'll let me know you're in trouble"
Tails looks at the closet door "What are you talking about?!"
"Y'know, that real screechy scream you always do, the one that makes you sound like you haven't hit puberty yet"
"...fuck you, you're a dick"
Manic quietly laughs "I aim to please, my good friend. Now go get that blondie so we can get outta here"
Tails walks out of the room and heads into the hallway to find Cee
He jumps back when she and a massive individual in all black nearly bump into him
"Tails, hi! I heard about the accident, are you okay? I'm so glad to see you!"
Cee wraps her arms around the fox then whispers "Help"
Tails looks at the freakishly large individual "...whose your friend, Cee?"
"You can just call me Ox"
"Ox, huh. You, uh - live here?"
"You could say that I come back here to check in on our mutual acquaintance"
Tails thinks about this then looks at Cee, and she nods her head to confirm his assumption.
"...I'm guessing you don't play well with others" Tails says
Ox leans down to pick up a metal crate "I'll show you what I do for a living, kid"
He opens the crate, a skull falls out and rolls across the tile floor
"WHAT the hell, is that real?!" Tails asks as he jumps back
"Damn right it is. My newest trophy"
"You collect those things?! Jesus!"
"Yep. Bone collector. They serve as payment in my profession. Understand?"
Terrified, Tails nods his head at the scary individual
"...I sense something, Fox"
"If it's fear, you got me on that one, I'm scared shitless at the moment, sir"
"Not just your cowardice, you are hiding something. Someone. Aren't you?" Ox demands
"N-no, what makes you say that?"
"You're sweating like a lying son of a bitch, kid, that's what makes me say that. You aren't the only one who walked outta that accident... where is the Elemental?"
"I-I, I don't what you're-"
Ox lunges towards Tails, so he releases Cee's hand and lets out a very screechy scream of terror, giving Manic the signal to attack.
A ball of Jade Energy smashes through the wall and knocks Ox 30 feet down the marble hallway.
"Bullseye, BITCH! WOOO!" Manic shouts "Oh, good scream, by the way, really captures your emotions"
"Mock me later, we gotta break these workers outta here!" Tails says
Cee looks at Manic "You - just shot green energy out of your hands!"
"That's right, sister. Manic's the name, I'm here to break you out"
"Escape Genocide City? I can't leave, Simian will never allow it!" she exclaims
"Girl, you won't ever have to worry about that fat pile of dog shit after tonight. Now come on, lets move!"
Tails picks Cee up and flies out of the Mansion, while Manic races through the dark compound and searches for the worker's bunkhouse.
Ox groans as he sits up and grabs his radio "Hit the alarms! There's a breakout in progress!"
Suddenly, the entire city is woken by loud tornado alarms and flood lights turning on.
"Great, now there's that.." Manic says to himself
A guard in a watch tower points his gun at him "There! An Elemental!"
Manic dodges bullets as he unlocks the bunkhouses and releases the prisoners inside. He fires energy blasts back at the guards and blows up a few watchtowers.
"Run, you idiots! Go!"
Up in his executive suite, Simian watches the action on his security monitors in absolute anger
"Those dirty little bastards! They double crossed me! Fuck!"
Guards report to the boss through their portable radios as they try to regain control of the compound
(Sir, the Fox took Cee and he's gone)
"That little shit!"
(Also, the hedgehog with the Medallions has escaped, as well)
"Manic, you sly prick!"
(We got 2 dozen guards down, sir)
"Oh, of course we do..."
(So far, 30 workers are confirmed dead)
Simian sits in his office chair "...take their belongings, that will cover the damage. And throw 'em in the incinerator, we can use their skin as fuel"
The fat Warthog gets a call from Ox so he sighs and answers
"Boss, they suckered me"
"I don't care how they were able to get past you, I just want them found. Bring Manic and Tails back dead or alive, but do not harm Cee. She's the most important one"
"...understood"
"Don't call me unless you have them"
Simian hangs up and looks out the window that oversees New Genocide City
"You little shits just killed yourselves. I'm going to skin you alive next time I see you"
After racing away from New Genocide City as quickly as possible, Tails and Cee land in a small town to take a break. He calls Manic and buys two cans of soda while they wait.
Cee takes a drink and her eyes widen "This is very sweet! I like it!"
"It's just soda, nothing special" Tails says
"...I've never had a soda before"
"What?"
"I was never allowed to drink anything sweet, only water"
"Simian, that fat piece of SHIT!... well, you can have all the sweet things you want, now Cee"
She smiles as she grasps Tails hand, making the Fox' face turn red
Suddenly, Manic sneaks up on the couple and scares them both as he shouts and laughs as he hugs them both
"What's going on, love birds, I hope I'm not interrupting"
Tails shrugs his arm off his shoulder "No, not at all..."
"Aw, is little man still upset? I'm sorry, My-My"
Manic playfully puts Tails in a headlock and lightly smacks him
"Ow, Manic, stop, seriously! You're such a dick!"
He releases him "I'm just playing around, bro, no need to get all pissy on me"
Tails looks at Cee "This is what I have to put up with"
Manic extends his hand "I'm Sonic's brother, in case Tails didn't mention. He was a bit of a buzzkill, ma'am, nothing special"
Cee shakes his hand "I've seem you on TV, both of you, I think you're great"
Manic looks at Tails "Finally, a little respect! Why, thank you, miss"
Tails waves this off "Look, we need to disappear. Lets figure out where we are and go from there"
"I thought you could just fly up really high and figure out where we are? Or, does that only work if you piss your pants in fright like you did earlier?"
Tails faces Manic "I don't know why you're being a dick right now, but I'm willing to bet it has to do with your Medallions. So, until you take them off and act normal, I'm not gonna talk to you"
The teenage fox grabs Cee's hand and they walk away from Manic, so he shrugs this off and pulls out his headphones
"Yeah, well, good thing I wanted to listen to music, anyway. I'm tired of your nagging, bro. Lighten up. We're home free!"