Chapter 39
Sophia gets to the infirmary and sees Saya laying down on the cot as she sits up when she sees her walk over. "How are you feeling?" Sophia asked,
"Pain's gone, but that medicine is making me sleepy." Saya yawned,
"Why don't you get some sleep." Sophia said as Alan bursts into the infirmary taking them both off guard,
"Are you alright Alan?" Dr. Starline asked as he catches his breath quickly looking around and seeing Sophia and Saya,
"Guys!" Alan heads over to them. "Sally just told me that they have a lead on our parents, and we need to get to the conference room ASAP!"
"Let's go!" Saya said standing up as she starts to sway, and Sophia grabs her before she fells over.
"Easy there!" Sophia said,
"Why's the floor tilting?" Saya asked looking dizzy,
"You should stay in bed." Sophia said as Saya fixes her balance,
"If this is about everyone's parents I'll rest after the meeting." She said looking at Sophia seriously. She wasn't going to miss hearing about everyone's parents even if her legs felt like jelly.
"What happened?" Alan asked,
"The obstacle course malfunctioned and almost killed Sasha and Saya," Sophia said,
"Turns out I can only create one Chaos Shield out of transformation and making a second one gave me a mondo headache." She said,
"If you're wanting to go so bad." Sophia lifts Saya off the ground, "Let's at least make sure you don't collapse on the way there."
"S…Soph wait!" She started to protest as her face turns red,
"I'll bring her back after the meeting." Sophia said to Dr. Starline.
"Please do." He said as they walk out,
"I can walk," Saya said,
"You nearly fell over just climbing out of bed." Alan argued as Saya covers her face. She knew other agents were probably giving them curious looks.
"But this is embarrassing." Saya said through her hands,
"I'll make it more embarrassing if you don't stop hiding your face," Sophia said teasingly as Saya slowly moves her hands away, "Besides, I thought you liked me holding you." She grins,
"Could you two stop with the flirting and hurry it up." Alan said as they both look at him.
"Did he just tell us to hurry up?" Saya said looking insulted,
"Yep." Sophia said as she starts to walk normally leaving Alan behind, he didn't realize that Sophia had slowed her walk so Alan could stay at pace with her.
"H… Hey!" Alan runs after them trying to catch up.
Sally runs into TK as she quickly runs over to her and takes TK off guard for a moment, "You Okay?" TK asked as Sally catches her breath,
"Later, I'm getting you all phones." She said, "Conference room now! There's news on the other's parents. I already informed the rest." TK turns off her tablet.
"Let's go!" She said. They run to the conference room as they see everyone except for Alan, Sophia and Saya.
"Elias, can we get them phones please." Sally said looking winded,
"Yes I'll get someone on it." He said as Sophia enters the room holding Saya.
"Where's Alan?" Sally asked,
"He said we were moving to slow, so we walked normally." Sophia said letting Saya down slowly,
"Why were you carrying her?" Kolt asked,
"Pain meds made me dizzy, but I wasn't missing this meeting." She said as Sophia walks her over to a seat just as Alan runs into the room catching his breath.
"You guys are jerks…" He said,
"You called us slow!" Saya said crossing her arms,
"If I was a jerk I would have warped us here without you. But I can't warp with other people while not transformed." Sophia said siting down next to Saya.
"I'm sorry, Okay?" He said sitting down.
"Let's all calm down, this is very important." Elias said as they all quiet down. "A few days ago we discovered that Eggman moved your parents. Thanks to the backdoor that TK created in Eggman's system, this morning we confirmed that all but Kolt's parents have been moved to a prison facility in Green Hill." He explained as the projector comes on and he points out the facility.
"What about my parents?" Kolt asked,
"It looks like Eggman's keeping them close, we've confirmed they are still in Station Square." Elias said,
"Why split them up? Why now?" TK asked,
"Probably a trap." Sophia said,
"it's always a trap." Saya said rolling her eyes,
"We can't just go after everyone's parents except for Kolt's. that would put them in even more danger." Brandy said,
"That's why you'll be rescuing them at the same time." Elias said, they all stare at him blankly for a few moments.
"Come again?" Alan asked breaking the silence,
"Uh… I'm not that great at geography but I'm fairly sure that Green Hills and Station Square are on opposite sides of the country." Saya said,
"They are." Sally said,
"I'm not sure I like what you're suggesting…" Caroline said,
"You'll be splitting up. It's something Eggman wouldn't suspect." Elias said, "Those going to Green hills will be Alan, Caroline, Brandy and Kolt." Kolt stand up from his seat shocked what he heard,
"What?" Kolt asked not believing it, completely failing at trying not to look excited.
"You've sat on the sidelines long enough. And we're going to need your strength for this to work." He said,
"That leaves TK, Saya and Sophia to go to Station Square to save Kolts parents." Sally said,
"Absolutely not! You want to put Saya that close to Eggman's doorstep?" Sophia argued,
"All of your parents are not in danger; You can focus on the mission without getting distracted. Honestly, I wanted it to be just you and Saya for speed, but Sally brought up a good point that you'll need help with the alarms." He said,
"It would be another thing Eggman wouldn't expect." Saya said reaching out and taking Sophia's hand. Saya could see the slight panicked look in Sophia's eyes and wanted to try and keep her calm.
"What about our group?" Brandy said, "We can't hack his system either,"
"That's why Agent Rogue and Agent Omega will be accompanying you." Sally said,
"C'mon Sophia I'll be right by your side the whole time. Or would you prefer we were on different teams?" Saya asked as Sophia lets out a sigh,
"I hate when you use my logic against me." She tugs on Saya's hand pulling her chair closer to her as Saya smiles.
"When does our mission start?" TK asked,
"Rogue and Omega are still on a mission but should be back by this evening. The planned time will be tomorrow morning. It will give Saya some time to recover from that obstacle course debacle." Elias said,
"This isn't going to be easy…" Alan said,
"No it won't but I believe you all will succeed." Elias said confidently. "You all have grown so much. This will not be like infiltrating Eggman's underwater base."
"I'm pumped! Once we get everyone's parents back Eggman won't have anything against us." Saya quickly stands up forgetting that she was dizzy and staggers,
"Will you stop doing that!" Sophia yells as she sits Saya back in her chair,
"Sorry," She chuckles, "I forgot."
"I want you all to rest up and keep a steady head while we wait for mission start. I know you are excited to save your parents but remember you are the Servers of Chaos and you'll need a level head to get everyone out of there safely." Elias said very seriously. "We'll meet in the hangar bay in the morning."
"Let's get you back to the infirmary." Sophia said,
"Actually, do you mind if we go outside?" Saya asked, she had wanted to go outside earlier but couldn't because of the obstacle course,
"You just have to be trouble don't you." She shakes her head, as Saya smiles at her, "Fine! Sally will you let Dr. Starline know we're going outside?"
"Not a problem." She smiles,
"You okay to walk?" Sophia asks as Saya slowly stands up,
"All good, just gotta take it easy." Saya gives a thumbs up as Sophia takes her hand and they walk out of the conference room.
"I'm going to go meditate to keep my head clear." Kolt said standing up.
"Do you mind if I join you?" Brandy asked as Kolt shakes his head and they leave,
"I think I'll go help out in the kitchen, that's always the best place for me to relax." Caroline said,
"Alan do you mind helping me look for spikes of Chaos energy on the base. I wanna rule out that what happened to the obstacle course isn't involved with Chaos energy." She said as they start heading towards the door,
"Just one moment," Elias said as they stop, "You said Saya saw an orange electrical current correct?" Elias asked,
"Yeah, is that familiar to you?" TK asked,
"When we searched the base for Helen while we were evacuating. The last room I checked again was the infirmary and out of the corner of my eye I saw what looked like orange electricity near her desk." Elias said remembering back, "But when I turned my head there was nothing there. I thought that my mind was playing tricks on me."
"That's really weird." Alan said,
"I'll keep looking into it. Perhaps on a later day I can go back to the old base and look around." TK said,
"I highly doubt you'll find anything after a year has passed." Elias said they both could tell that Elias was trying not to look interested in this new development.
"You never know, it can't hurt to try." TK said as they leave the room.
"Do you really think it's the same?" Sally asked Elias,
"I'm not sure… part of me doesn't want to get my hopes up." He said,
Sophia and Saya get outside as Saya takes a deep breath feeling the wind blow through her hair. "This is the best." Saya smiles, "We should take a run!" She turns back towards Sophia excitedly,
"After you stop looking like you're going to topple over." Sophia chuckles pulling her over to a nearby tree and they sit down as Saya yawns before leaning on Sophia's shoulder.
"You think one day it'll be this relaxing all the time?" Saya asked,
"Absolutely not, you're too much on an adrenaline junkie to stay still for a long period of time." Sophia joked as Saya chuckles,
"Good point. But this occasionally is nice." She said taking Sophia's hand,
"I don't like this plan…" Sophia paused as she looks up at the clouds, "You being so close to Eggman's main base scares me. He could have traps set up specifically to catch you." She turns her head to Saya and sees her fast asleep as she lets out a sigh, "What am I going to do with you." She kisses her forehead before gently moving Saya's head onto her lap as she brushes her bangs out of her face.
Kolt and Brandy enter the Alter room as Tikal appears as they enter, "Hello, you two, how are you doing today?" She asked with a smile,
"Good, we're getting a chance to save our parents tomorrow." Kolt said, Tikal could tell that his soul was bursting with more energy than normal,
"That's wonderful!" She cheers, it made her happy to see him back in higher spirits after the last month of silent moments sitting in the Alter room asking to be alone.
"We came to meditate so we can have a clear mind for tomorrow." Brandy said,
"Then I will give you some peace and quiet. Please let me know if you need anything." She said disappearing as they both sit next to the Mater Emerald in silence,
"Chao!" Hope flies over to them and lays in Brandy's lap,
"You can meditate with us Hope but you gotta stay quiet, okay?" Kolt said,
"Chao!" Hope smiles.
"Thanks," He smiles back as they all stay quiet and meditate.
Caroline enters the cafeteria to see Sasha helping with the cooking as she walks up to her with a smile, "Oh hello Caroline, care to help me prep some food?" She asked,
"I'd love to! Let me wash my hands really quick." She said going over to the sink and washing her hands,
"How's Saya doing?" She asked,
"She's alright, She went outside with Sophia for some fresh air." Caroline said,
"She goes outside a lot huh." Sasha said handing Caroline a potato peeler as she starts helping her peel potatoes.
"She's not fond of enclosed spaces." Caroline said,
"That's surprising, I didn't think anything bothered her." She said,
"I wanted to ask, how did you to meet exactly?" Caroline asked,
"Oh, it's kind of embarrassing thinking back at it now." Sasha said with a chuckle, "We were both on vacation with our parents visiting those glowing caves right out of Station Square. I noticed her blue hair and started talking to her. She told me her name and I recognized it as the girl who was saved by the Freedom Fighters at the courthouse." She said realizing something, "Wait if Saya was Sonic the whole time that explains why no one saw her during that incident!"
"Just figured it out?" Caroline chuckles,
"Man I'm slow… But yeah I started geeking out about the Freedom Fighters and then we said our goodbyes after the tour and exchanged numbers." Sasha said,
"She must have left an impression on you." Caroline said trying to hold in a smirk,
"I never had a lot of friends… it was always just me so talking to her even for a little bit was really refreshing." She smiles,
"Saya has that effect on people, She can be so inspiring." Caroline said as they continue peeling potatoes in silence.
"Can I ask you something now?" Sasha asked, breaking the silence.
"Of course!" Caroline said,
"How do you guys transform?"
"We tap into something called Chaos energy and use it to channel our past lives." She explained,
"Those are your past lives?" She asked confused,
"It's hard to believe huh?" She chuckles,
"But… you all have animal ears… were you animals?"
"Yep." Caroline said,
"That's so weird! N…Not in a bad way or anything!" She said finishing up peeling the potatoes,
"It's alright, I completely agree with you." Caroline said as they take the peeled potatoes over to the stove and continue helping around the kitchen.
TK and Alan rendezvous back in her workshop after not finding any spikes of Chaos energy throughout the base. "So what else could that orange energy be?" Alan asked as TK was typing on her computer,
"I'm not sure, nothing weird is showing up, it could have just been caused by whatever got fried on the circuit board. But it's good that there's no residual energy." TK said,
"Do you think something else is going on after what Elias said?" Alan said sitting down on the bench next to her computer,
"We've all said it at least once, nothing that happens around us is ever a coincidence. Sophia even said that Dr. Starline made a comment not just moments before the accident about all of us not getting injured since we got back." TK said
"He said that? And it happened right after? That's creepy!" Alan said,
"I agree," She said, "And if something else supernatural is targeting Saya again we need to check everything." TK continues to type on her computer,
"So what are you doing?" He asked,
"I'm writing an automatic program that will scan the electronics on the base for strange energy readings and they will go straight to my tablet." She explained,
"That's pretty neat."
"I'll probably sync it up with my phone as well so that I won't have to carry my tablet around everywhere." She said,
"What would we do without you TK." Alan chuckles,
"Eggman would probably win." She teased,
"You're probably right," They both laugh as TK continues to work.
A few hours pass and Saya starts to wake up slowly, she sees the leaves in the tree above her moving with the wind. Waking up beneath a tree reminded her so much of her past life when she was out seeing the world. The best places to rest were lightly shaded trees on a sunny day. She looks over at Sophia who had fallen asleep. She starts to slowly sit up trying not to wake her. Just as she completely sits up beginning to stretch, Sophia's arms wrap around her waist and pull her closer, "Where do you think you're going?" Sophia said half asleep as she buries her head into Saya's shoulder grumbles.
"I was just stretching; I didn't want to wake you." Saya said with a chuckle as Sophia continues to pull her into her lap. "You're still half asleep aren't you?" Saya asked as Sophia starts to lift her head and kisses Saya's neck, "That tickles!" She giggles.
"You're so cute." She said kissing her, "We're going to have to be really careful tomorrow." She said
"I know, I'll keep the flirting to a minimum." She teases.
"You better. If Robotnik finds out about us he'll do whatever it takes to rip us apart." She said kissing her again, "And I already have the universe to worry about doing that already."
"The universe isn't trying to tear us apart." Saya said rolling her eyes,
"When I freed you from Dark Chaos, Robotnik literally stole you from my arms." She said,
"He had a homing teleport." Saya argued,
"He caught you using Metal Spira," Sophia added
"And you instantly saved me."
"Your evil mirror tried to drag you into a wall of water."
"I saved you, then you saved me."
"Eggman tried to kill me. Telling me you chose Kolt over me." She continued, Saya jolts at remembering back to that. It was one of the most frightful moments in her life… even more so than getting kidnapped by man eating aliens.
"W… Which I didn't and saved you both." Saya tried to collect herself.
"Then you were kidnapped by the Dark Arms right as you were going to tell me how you felt."
"Which I still did… but it was just… less romantic…" Saya was starting to realize she was losing this argument.
"Then I thought Fleetway took over."
"She… gave back control…"
"And then an evil sorcerer used a knight to kidnap you and tried to erase your memories."
"That last one was a little…" Sophia stops her,
"Saya, whether we like it or not there are evils of the universe that are always going to want your powers."
"What are you trying to say?" Saya started to worry about what she was getting at.
"That we both need to be cautious." Sophia said as Saya wraps her arms around her shoulders,
"I won't let the universe take you away from me either." Saya said hugging her tightly as they kiss, "But please try to not let this consume you. We'll beat the odds one problem at a time. Like always!"
"This one being saving Kolts parents." Sophia said,
"TK will be with us, so she'll have our backs." Saya said,
"And we'll have hers." She smiles as Saya leans her head on Sophia's chest,
"How did he do it?"
"Who?" Sophia asked,
"Sonic, how did he keep going? After all the things that's happened it's hard to think anyone can go through this constantly since the age of five… it's only been less than a year for us and it feels like there are scars on my soul that won't ever heal." Saya said clutching her chest.
"You've said it yourself plenty of times. You just gotta keep moving forward." Sophia said holding her hand as Saya smiles, "And I think that answer is exactly why he kept going even after all that happened. It's all he ever knew. But you were just a regular high schooler living an average life when all of this was thrown on us." She combs her fingers through Saya's hair, "It's okay that you're not as strong as Sonic. You have me to make up for that."
"Have I mentioned that I love you?" Saya said as she kisses Sophia,
"Many times," She said kissing her back holding onto the lasting kiss longer than usual making Saya let out a gasp for air when Sophia finally let go. Sophia takes in how adorable Saya looked when her face was completely flushed and the heat of the moment causing her to melt in Sophia's arms effortlessly as if that was meant to be. "Now, let's finally have that conversation." She said as they continue to kiss holding each other tightly.
The next morning everyone wakes up ready for their mission. They get up feeling the tension in the air as they walk to the hangar bay, all of them were focused. Elias and Sally were waiting for them in full gear. "Um… what are you two doing?" Saya asked,
"We'll be supervising the missions on site." Elias said,
"Is that a good idea?" Kolt asked,
"We're going to do all we can to get your parents back." Sally said,
"We're not engaging in the mission, we're there to give support in case something goes wrong." Elias said, "Did you all forget that we're both combat trained?"
"Just be careful, we don't need Robotnik getting his hands on either of you." Sophia said as they nod, With both of them being the only ones who know where the two scrolls are hidden it would be bad news if either of them got caught.
"You two worry too much," They hear behind them as they turn around to see Rogue and Omega walk up, "You have extraordinarily talented supers going on these missions." She smiles as she runs up and hugs Sophia.
"It's good to see you two." Sophia said as Rogue lets go, she was relieved to finally see her friends.
"You better tell us what happened to you all later." Rogue said pointing a demanding finger,
"I will." Sophia chuckles,
"And how's your girl?" She winks at Saya as they both go red,
"I… I'm fine." Saya said looking away, she's never been called Sophia's before, she wouldn't say it out lout but she kinda liked it.
"Good, now let's go save some parents." Rogue smiles as they all transform and start getting ready to take off. Sonic grabs Knuckles' arm stopping him for a moment as he turns to her confused.
"Knux, I promise we'll get your parents back no matter what." Sonic said, "So don't worry about them, just focus on helping the others get their parents. They are going to need help staying on track." She gave him a serious look.
"Just don't do anything stupid Blue." He said as she lets go of his arm with a grin on her face.
"Me? Do something stupid?" She joked, "Always." She winks holding out her fist as they fist bump and head to their helicopters.
"We'll see you guys soon!" TK yelled as the helicopters moved away from one another and they head towards their locations.
Knuckles and the others set up far from the base as Sally preps them for the rescue plan. She pulls out a tablet that shows a 3D rendition of the facility. "I don't think we ever asked, what type of place it this?" Cream asked,
"It's a prison," Rogue said,
"We can't just rescue our parents and not others." Blaze said,
"Oh that's part of the plan." Sally said,
"It is?" Amy asked,
"What do you think Rogue and Omega were working on last night?" Sally said as they look at Rogue and Omega confused,
"I got inside and worked with other inmates to spread the word that we're starting a riot." Rogue said,
"And I set up explosions all around the base to free prisoners and create plenty of distractions to keep the guards off you all." Omega said,
"This is why you wanted more of us here on this mission." Kolt said,
"Exactly, and it will be a big enough commotion to hopefully distract Robotnik as well." Sally said,
"You're not pulling any punches, huh?" Amy said.
"We failed to protect your parents once, and we need to fix that." Sally said as they all nod. "The signal will be the two explosions at these locations." She pointed to the map. "Omega and Amy will enter on this side and be helping the rioters against the robots and enemy soldiers." She said,
"Still can't believe people sympathize with that Psycho…" Knuckles said.
"Never thought I'd hear you say something like that." Blaze said,
"He lost my respect after we learned he was killing people." Knuckles said,
"Is it really a good idea for us to split up further?" Amy asked. He was already worried about the other three being away from them. Though he didn't express it vocally like Sophia did, he was against having Saya so close to Eggman too.
"I know you want to help rescue your parents, but you'll be more helpful helping the rioters free other prisoners and overrunning the prison." Sally said,
"She's right Amy, They will have a hard time with the Swatbots without some strength." Cream said,
"Right, I'll smash as many bots as I can." Amy said confidently.
"While they are causing a commotion, the rest of you will be going in to retrieve your parents before the guards have a chance to catch onto our plan. We don't know what contingencies Robotnik has in place to keep your parents in his grasp."
"Our attack is the signal for Sonic and the others to save Knuckles' parents isn't it?" Blaze asked as Sally nods.
"Alright, all of you get in position. I'll keep radio contact the entire time so you all know what's happening." Sally said as they all start prepping,
"Alright Freedom Fighters! Let's start a riot." Knuckles said as he fist bumps with Amy, and they get into position.
In Station Square Elias was telling Sonic, Shadow and Tails their strategy as he shows a 3D layout of parts of the factory. "You'll be entering from this vent after I give you the signal. The others will be making a large distraction that should keep Robotnik occupied long enough for you to get inside undetected. You'll be taking this path to get to the hidden cells he has Kolt's parents in." Elias points out the path.
"I already have a copy of the map on my tablet, so we won't get lost." Tails said,
"This is strictly a rescue mission. You get them and get out by any means necessary." He said,
"Sounds a little too easy." Shadow said,
"But we're quick enough on our feet to handle anything Eggman has set up for us." Sonic said with a thumbs up.
"There's a computer in this room that Tails can use to kill any alarms and traps down the path you'll be heading." Elias said as Tails nods,
"Shadow, do you think you would be able to use Chaos Control and warp Kolt's parents out of there once we have them?" Sonic asked,
"I wouldn't be able to get here, but I could get just outside the factory and then I can warp here." Shadow said, "But two warps like that would probably deplete my Chaos Emerald completely."
"You do that, and I grab Tails and speed down the way we came in before Egghead has a chance to turn his traps back on." Sonic said,
"That would be a wise escape plan." Elias said as Shadow looks reluctant. "Remember, our priority is Kolt's parents."
"I know." Shadow said letting out a sigh,
"Go get in position, I will tell you when it's time to go in." Elias said as Sonic goes and hugs Shadow,
"One more kiss for good luck?" Sonic asked as Shadow kisses her passionately as if they we saying goodbye.
"Alright you two, let's go!" Tails chuckles at them as they let go.
"Yeah! We have some parents to save." Sonic said feeling energized as they go and get into position.
Blaze and the others stayed hidden near the prison wall waiting for the signal as she grasps Cream's hand, and they look at one another. "Alright it's about time, you all ready?" Rogue said as they all nod,
"I hope Amy and Omega stay safe." Cream said,
"They can handle themselves; we need to focus on your parents." Knuckles said as they nod.
An explosion goes off blowing a hole in the wall as they hear other explosions going off within the prison, "Let's go people!" Rogue said as they follow her inside,
On the opposite side, Amy and Omega were charging into the base as they quickly meet up with some of the prisoners who had freed themselves, "There are other cells we weren't able to open." One person said,
"Show me." Omega said as they start running through the prison as they are stopped by a Swatbot.
"My turn!" Amy said running up and striking the bot with his hammer causing it to fall as he smashes the head. "Let's keep moving!" He said. They continue running as two more robots block their path.
"This is going to get annoying really fast." Omega said taking out his weapon and firing at one of the bots with the help of others who have armed themselves as Amy takes on the other one.
"Hope the others aren't meeting as much resistance." Amy said,
"Try to focus on what we're doing," Omega said as Amy smashes the bot.
"Omega's right Amy, the others have entered the prison so keep up the distraction." Sally said over their headsets.
"Right!" He said smashing the other one as they head down the path to free more prisoners.
Sonic, Shadow, and Tails were waiting near the factory wall as Sonic takes a slow deep breath as they hear their headsets turn on. "Mission is a go! Good luck girls." Elias said. They all quickly move as Sonic grabs Tails' hand and move them next to the vent as Shadow rips the vent off the wall.
"I'll go first." Tails said climbing in as Sonic follows her in then them Shadow takes the back.
"Man is it tight in here!" Sonic said, "I think these vents are smaller than the ones that were in the underwater base."
"You were in the vents?" Tails asked,
"Yeah, when I first attempted to escape… right before Eggman broke my leg." She chuckles uncomfortably.
"Try not to think about it." Shadow said as Tails stops,
"Okay, it looks like the coast is clear." She whispered as she starts to remove the vent grate. "Let's go." She climbs out of the grate and flies down as Sonic climbs out and jumps down and Shadow does the same.
"Elias, we're inside and heading to the room with the computer." Shadow said quietly,
"Roger, keep an eye out for patrols." He said as they cautiously walk forward.
Rogue leads the others down a long hallway as two Swatbots block their path. Knuckles doesn't stop running striking one of the robots down as Cream and Blaze fly up and Blaze fries the other one, "Wow! You sure know how to impress a girl." Rogue said giving Knuckles a wink as it throws him off for a moment.
"Which way?" He asked looking away,
"This way." She said going over to a large door,
"I'll get us in." Knuckles said as she stops him,
"Why break it when you can just open it?" She said pulling out a key card, "Swiped this bad boy on my last trip here." She said opening the door,
"You're pretty amazing Rogue." Cream said as they enter,
"Thank you." She smiles as they get to an open room.
Amy and Omega free more of the prisoners and continues causing havoc throughout the prison to keep eyes off Knuckles and the others, "How you doing?" Omega asked,
"I could do this all day." Amy responded smashing another bot's head,
"Good cuz here comes the real trouble." He said pointing to the guards holding guns and stun batons.
"Oh great…" Amy said,
"You prisoners get back to your cells!" one of the guards yells,
"We have the Freedom Fighters on our side you don't stand a chance!" one person yells,
"It's nice to know they have confidence in me." Amy said with a shrug,
"You can't take us all on your own." The guard said,
"I think you need your eyes checked; you can see I'm most definitely not alone." He said changing his hammer to a staff.
"This room," TK said as they enter the room and shut the door behind them, all of them staying as quiet as possible.
"These patrols are so predictable." Sonic said as Tails quickly goes to the computer and gets to work.
"I'm actually impressed at how quiet you've been." Shadow teased,
"Told you I could be stealthy." She said sticking out her tongue,
"Okay I almost have the hallway alarms and traps off. Once I do we won't have a lot of time before they notice that some of their systems are offline." Tails said,
"So no more stealth?" Sonic asked,
"No more stealth." Shadow said as Sonic smiles,
"Oh yeah, let's see how fast we find Kolts parents!" She said excitedly.
"We still need to be cautious, we're awfully close to Eggman's control room and he might be nearby. But hopefully the others are doing a good enough job to distract him." Shadow said,
"Fast but cautious, got it." Sonic gave a thumbs up,
"I'll be monitoring their cameras in case anyone is coming up on your path." Elias said,
"There! The hallways we need to go down are offline let's go." Tails said. They all quickly head down the hallway as they suddenly stop in front of a door that was open and they could hear commotion from within.
"You morons get me a visual on Green Hills now!" They hear Eggman's voice from within as they peak inside and see the room full of computers and people working tirelessly. Eggman stood there yelling at people as the three of them start quietly walking past the door trying not to be noticed.
"We're trying sir, but we were able to confirm that the Freedom Fighters have been sighted within the prison." One person said,
"Blast that Blue Hedgehog! How did she find out I moved them?" He thinks as they all successfully get to the other side without being seen. Sonic couldn't help just silently chuckle at being this close to Eggman and him blaming her for what is happening on the other side of the country. "It matters not since Kolt's parents are safely tucked away here."
"Elias be sure to keep an eye on Eggman. Let us know if he moves." Sonic whispered into her coms.
"Will do, be careful!" Elias said as they walk a little further away before starting to run again,
"I don't remember there being this large of a room on the map." Cream said as they walk in looking around,
"This was one of the areas we were never able to get a visual on. But why would he need a room like this?" Rogue said looking around as the floor in the center opens up and a massive robot comes out.
"Knew this was going too well." Knuckles said getting ready to fight, "Everyone get ready!"
"I'm not sure how you figured out that your parents are here Freedom Fighters, but you aren't getting past my new robot." They hear Eggman's voice coming from the robot,
"Rogue take Cream and grab our parents. Knuckles and I will handle this thing." Blaze said,
"No it's too dangerous!" Cream said,
"We'll be fine, go!" Knuckles said as Rogue grabs Creams hand and pulls her away as they go to find their parents.
"I'll squash you and your little friends Sonic, once I have control of the cameras… Nothing will stop me from crushing you!" Eggman said, "Blast that darn fox!"
"He still doesn't know…" Blaze said,
"Let's hope it stays that way." Knuckles said as they attack the robot.
Tails points out the secret door where Kolts parents are hidden as she starts hacking the panel while Sonic and Shadow keep a lookout. "We have a problem." They all hear Elias in their headsets as Sonic and Shadow give each other a look.
"Don't like the sound of that." Sonic said,
"Eggman's close to recovering visuals of Green Hill. Once he does…" Elias said,
"He'll know we aren't in the prison." Shadow said, "Tails, how long?"
"This lock is more intricate than the others… it could take me a few minutes." Tails said looking a little stressed,
"If he finds out we're here we won't get to Kolt's parents…" Sonic said, no she wasn't going to let that happen, she promised to get them back no matter what. She starts tapping her foot in frustration trying to think of a plan.
"Shit, I thought we'd have more time…" Shadow said trying to think about what their next course of action should be, Sonic looks at her as she gets an idea.
"I have an idea… but you're not gonna like it…" Sonic said,
"What happened to you not offering to be bait." Tails said still trying to open the door.
"Not bait, I just buy you some more time. Make it seem like we came here looking for Kolts parents but haven't found them yet." Sonic explained,
"Same thing as the broadcast… I should do it instead." Shadow said,
"No, you have to warp Kolt's parents out pronto just in case this goes sideways." Sonic said, "This is our best shot. We're not going back without them and if that means jumping into the lion's den, I will." She said as Shadow clenches her fist.
"I swear if you get caught again…"
"I won't, and even if I do. I have a plan." She smiles,
"Sonic are you sure?" Tails asked, Saya was trying not to show it but her hands were lightly shaking. Sure she was in close proximity to Eggman during the broadcast, but this is different, she won't have backup if something goes wrong. She clenches her hands into fists and takes a deep breath.
"Yep! You two get them out and if you can't warp Tails out also let me know and I'll come grab you, okay little buddy?" Saya said giving her a thumbs up. "Elias, do you have any problems with by last minuet changes to the plan?" There's a long pause as they wait for his response.
"You better stay safe." Elias said,
"I got this!" She said holding her fist out to Shadow as she hesitantly fist bumps before Sonic runs off.
"Hurry and get that damn door open." Shadow said,
Amy and Omega were backed into a corner as the guards managed to separate them from the other prisoners, "You have any ideas?" I don't really want to get zapped by that thing." Amy said getting ready to block,
"How sturdy are you?" Omega asked as Amy looks at him confused,
"I don't understand the question…" Amy said as Omega pulls out a small devise and throws it at the guards,
"Duck!" Omega said as Amy dives out of the way as the device explodes blasting a path through the guards, "Run." Omega grabs Amy's arm pulling him back up to his feet and they run back to regroup with the others.
"Guys! Can we switch teams? Omega almost blew us up…" Amy said still processing what just happened,
"We're a little busy here Amy!" Kolt said dodging a missile shot at him as it explodes and he's blasted back,
"Knuckles!" Blaze catches him before he hits the wall,
"Thanks…" He said, "We're not getting very far with this guy,"
"If I can get to its back I could try to fry the internal wiring." Blaze said,
"I can distract it." Knuckles said as she nods. They both charge at the robot as it swings it's arm down, and Knuckles stops it while Blaze slides underneath the robot and quickly jumps on his back.
At the same time Rogue was using the key card to open another door as she and Cream rush through into a lit room where there were four cells. Cream turns her head as she sees Brandy's parents. "Are you two alright?" Cream asked as Rogue rushes over to the computer to open the cells,
"Who are you?" Brandy's dad asked holding onto his wife who was frightened by all of the noise.
"I'm a friend of your daughter. We've come to rescue you." Cream said as they both look concerned,
"Brandy? She's okay?" Her mother asked,
"Yes," Cream said with a smile as Rogue gets the door open, "Please wait right here while we free the others." They cautiously step out of the cell.
"Caroline?" She hears her mother's voice,
"Mom?" She called out moving over to the other cell as she sees her mother happy to see her unharmed. Her mother looks at her confused not recognizing her appearance.
"Who are you?" She asked as Cream looks sad as she said that. "Wait… Caroline?"
"I can explain everything, but not right now." Cream said as Rogue unlocks the other cells as her mother rushes up and hugs her tightly.
"I thought you were gone for good…" She cries as Cream holds back tears. She needed to compose herself, they weren't out of harm's way yet. Now they all had to escape.
"I'm sorry I worried you. But we can talk later. We need to get you all out of here." Cream said as Alan's parents walk over,
"Do you know if our children are alright?" His mother asked,
"Alan and Rosie are okay," Cream said as they both let out a sigh of relief.
"Alright, looks like the path is clear. Let's go people." Rogue said as they follow her back down the hall the way we came. "This is Rogue, the parents are freed and were heading back to our exit point."