Chapter 40
"Blast it all!" Eggman raged slamming his fist against the control panel as he sees Blaze and Knuckles attack his robot on the large monitor now that they have a visual on Green Hill prison, "Though I am surprised to see Knuckles there. That Elias has been keeping him hidden for so long I was beginning to wonder if he was ever going to let him out."
"Um… S… Sir…" One of the workers tried to get his attention,
"Now where is that blasted Hedgehog?" Eggman said as he started to flip through the other cameras,
"B… but Sir…" The worker sounded nervous,
"The cameras were modified to trigger an alarm when she uses her speed…" Eggman pondered,
"If… if you could…" The worker attempted to get his attention,
"Will you be quiet!" He yelled. he turned his head towards them to yell at them further as he pauses for a moment seeing Sonic casually sitting on top of the workers control panel with her legs crossed. The worker just sat there staring at Sonic not knowing what to do.
"Hey there Egghead." Sonic grins. Eggman just gawks for a moment before taking off his glasses and cleaning them contemplating Sonic being right in front of him was a trick of the eye or perhaps he had been looking at the monitors for too long. "Modified camera's huh?" She sounded unimpressed. He puts his glasses back on and moves his hand over his controls, pressing a button as the door to the room slams shut.
"Now," He slowly walks over to her still not believing she was there. "How did you get in here?"
"Front door." Sonic said, "Honestly, I've been here for a while, but I guess your special cameras could use some fine tuning." She uses air quotes,
"You came alone?"
"Course not, the others are right outside waiting to blow that door open." She said. He looks at one of the other workers and they press some buttons showing the live feed to the hallway to show that it was empty.
"So you are alone." He grins, as his worker moves out of the way.
"Dang it… I thought I got that camera." Sonic sounded disappointed; she was hoping he wouldn't call her bluff,
"Why would you come in here if you were so well hidden?" Eggman asked, if she was able to sneak around without anyone knowing why did she make herself known?
"Cuz I looked this place top to bottom. But somehow I can't find Kolt's parents and it was only a matter of time before I got caught looking around." Sonic crosses her arms with a pout,
"I hid them well then." He grins grows wider feeling proud on himself to know that even she couldn't find them. He reaches to place his hand on her shoulder as she smacks his hand away.
"Yeah you did, so how 'bout a trade?" Sonic asked,
At that very moment Tails was finally able to get the secret door open as they quickly enter and see Kolts parents locked in a cell. "Please! Just leave us alone…" Kolt's mother cried as his father guarded her protectively.
"It's okay! We're here to help." Tails said as she rushes to the computer and starts typing,
"We're friends of your son." Shadow said trying to reassure them and help them calm down as they both look shocked,
"He… he told us our son was gone…" Kolt's mother said,
"Kolt is very much alive and looking forward to seeing you." Shadow said,
"I almost have the door…" Tails said,
"Okay, then I'll warp us out of here." Shadow said,
"No… you warp them out of here. I'm staying." Tails said,
"What?" Shadow looked confused, "If you're worried, I'm positive I can warp us all." She said as Tails shakes her head,
"I'm not leaving without Sonic." Tails said looking determined. Tails had caught a glimpse of Sonic's hands shaking earlier and she wasn't going to leave her best friend alone in the belly of the beast without any backup.
"But you could get caught just trying to get to her." Shadow argued,
"I don't care! I have to try. I refuse to let her get caught again." She said as the door of the cell unlocks, "You can't change my mind."
"I don't want you getting hurt…" Shadow said,
"I'll be fine, I've been trained by the best." She smiles,
"When did Sonic become the best?" Shadow teased as she ruffles Tails' hair. "If you can't get to her right away, find a place to hide and wait for backup."
"Okay!" Tails said as Kolt's parents walk up to them.
"How do you have two tails?" Kolts father asked,
"We can explain everything later. But first let's get you out of here." Tails said, "Sonic if you can hear me, Shadow's about to warp Kolt's parents out. She'll let you know when they get to Elias but I'm on my way to come help you."
"You said Sonic, are you friends with Sonic?" His mother asked as they both nod,
"We are but again, let's talk about this outside. Take my hands, I'll be moving us faster than you can blink so I suggest you both close your eyes." Shadow said as they look at her confused but follow her instructions and take her hands. "The seven servers are the seven Chaos, Chaos is power, power enriched by the heart, the heart is the controller, the controller serves to unify the Chaos, Chaos Control." Shadow warps with Kolt's parents out of the factory as Tails quietly goes back the way they came.
Cream and Rogue lead everyone's parents back to the main room as they see Blaze take down the massive robot as it falls to the ground. She turns and sees her parents and freezes for a moment. "Blaze, we gotta go!" Knuckles snaps her out of it as she jumps down, and they run up to Rogue and everyone.
"We're starting to get over run! Amy and I got separated!" Omega said over the headsets as Knuckles, Cream and Blaze look at one another.
"Once we get them to safety we go and help him." Knuckles said as they nod,
"Amy can you hear me? We almost have everyone out and then we're coming to help you." Blaze said over the headset, but they hear nothing as they all look at one another starting to worry.
"We need to hurry." Cream said as they quickly lead everyone's parents out towards the hole in the outer wall of the prison.
"Rogue, can you get them to Sally?" Blaze asked as her mother turns towards her recognizing her voice,
"Not a problem Hun, I'll let you know when we get there." She said with a nod, "Go save that boy." They all nod,
"W…wait…" Blazes' mom stops them before they leave. "Brandy?" She said as Blaze turns around,
"We can talk later but right now I need to go save my friend." She said as the three of them run off before they have a chance to stop them.
"Oh?" Eggman looks at Sonic surprised, "And what it is you want to trade?" He never thought she would come in here to make a trade,
"Kolts parents for me." Sonic said as he starts laughing,
"Why would I even consider that deal? I need leverage so Kolt will read the scroll. On top of that you're already trapped in this room." He grins, she had no leverage here and he knew it… But then why didn't she look worried?
"Oh yeah! I'm trapped in this room full of awfully fragile looking equipment that looks like it controls your entire empire." Sonic said sarcastically grinning back as he starts to look concerned, "Wonder how much damage I could do by just spin dashing your consol." She continued to tease noticing the sweat drip down his face showing a break in his composure. It almost felt second nature as her old routines of confronting Eggman came back to her so easily.
"It seems you actually came here with a plan; I'm impressed." He said, trying to keep face in front of his staff.
"I'll even sweeten the pot." Sonic said hoping to hear that Shadow got away with Kolts parents soon. She didn't know how much longer it would be before Eggman has reinforcements sent here to catch her. "We found another room full of information on Angel Island." Eggman looks at her with intrigue,
"There was more? Did Kolt ready it?" He asked, Sonic nods.
"He did, and he didn't like what he read. Which is why I'm making this deal." Sonic said,
"I don't follow." Eggman said,
"Kolt can't read the scrolls, the walls on Angel Island warn that if he does read them a terrible catastrophe will occur." Sonic explained as he frowns,
"So you want to trade because you don't want to risk Kolt reading the scroll?" He asked as Sonic nods,
"Bingo! There's more info, but you don't get that until we have a deal." Sonic said,
"How do I know you actually have more information?" Eggman said,
"Here's a hint, it explains more about the creation of Dark Chaos and about the Dark Chaos Emerald." She said as he smiles,
"You my dear, just spoke music to my ears," Eggman said as he slowly holds out his hand, "You have yourself deal." She goes to shake it but then quickly pulls away, she knew that was too easy… He was up to something.
"I would like to make sure my side of the deal is completed. At least confirm they are okay." She said,
"Of course," Eggman said walking over to his console waving for her to follow him. She jumps down and follows him making sure none of his henchmen try to sneak up behind her.
Tails continues sneaking towards the computer room they passed previously. She gets to the door only to realize it was now closed. She presses her ear against the wall trying to hear inside to see if Sonic was still inside. And sure enough, she could hear her talking but it sounded like they were having a casual conversation. She looked around as she sees a grate for the vents near the door and she flies up and opens it crawling inside just as two Swatbots walk up to the entrance of the computer room. Tails began to worry if Sonic actually have an escape plan or if she was setting herself up as the sacrificial lamb…
At the exact same time Shadow had warped Kolts parents just a few feet away from Elias as she collapses transforming back completely out of Chaos energy. She had overexerted herself making it feel as if she had taken off her limit rings. "Sophia!" Elias yelled running over to her as Kolt's parents open their eyes being blinded by the sun for a moment as they quickly realize they are outside,
"I… I didn't think we'd see the sun ever again." Kolts mom said with tears in her eyes. Elias helps Sophia back to her feet as she reaches for her headset.
"Sonic! We're out, get out of there!" Sophia said,
"I just snuck into the vents above where you are Sonic. Also… Eggman just had two Swatbots stationed at the door so whatever your plan is it might be a good idea to do it soon…" Tails said over the headset,
"No... I… I have to go back for her." Sophia said as Elias stops her,
"How? You can barely stand, and your Chaos Emerald is completely depleted." He said, "Sonic said she has a plan,"
"I can't lose her again!" She yelled, in a panic. She swore to herself that she wouldn't let Eggman take Sonic away from her… not again…
"Have faith in her!" Elias yelled back as she stops, "She can do this."
Knuckles, Cream and Blaze run into the fighting as it looks like the prisoners were starting to take control and were trapping the guards in the cells. "Omega, where are you?" Knuckles said over the headset as they turn a corner and see him kick one of the guards off the balcony. He looked exhausted and heavily injured,
"Are you alright?" Cream asked as they go up to him while he was catching his breath.
"I'll live… But I still haven't found Amy, there were a lot of guards and we went down different hallways to thin them out."
"He's not responding either…" Blaze said looking around worried,
"No matter what we stay together, and we find him. We're not losing anyone today." Knuckles said as they nod.
"I'll continue helping the inmates, we're starting to turn the tide. We'll probably have control of the prison soon." Omega said,
"Okay, but if you get hurt anymore please go back to Sally." Cream asked,
"I will, now go, Amy went down that hallway." He points to a hallway downstairs as they jump down and run in the direction Omega pointed out trying to find Amy.
Sonic hears both Shadow and Tails over the headset, but she knows she can't make a move until the doors open. "Sir! Urgent message from Green Hills, they say you need to respond immediately." One of the workers said as Eggman lets out a sigh,
"I apologize my dear, give me a moment." Eggman said as Sonic crosses her arms and taps her foot.
"Make it quick Egghead before I change my mind and just trash the place." Sonic bluffed making the other workers flinch.
"What do you want? Can't you see I'm busy?" Eggman said. The screen changes as he sees four guards on the screen heavily beat up.
"Apologies for the interruption but we thought you'd want to see what we caught." He said as they toss an unconscious and shackled Amy to the ground on screen.
"Amy!" Sonic yelled panicked as she steps closer to the console. Eggman takes the opportunity to grab Sonic's arm as the motion triggers a hidden device under his sleeve to activate. The device electrocutes Sonic causing her yelp as her body locks up and she collapses.
"Excellent timing General. You gave me the opening I needed. Get out of Green Hills, the Prison is a lost cause but bring me the boy." Eggman said pressing the button as the door opens and the Swatbots enter. One of them picks Sonic up by the wrists before she could react and holds her in the air.
"I really hope I'm just seeing double because the world doesn't need two Eggheads." Sonic said trying to focus and shake off the numb sensation,
"Make sure her legs are restrained," Eggman said as the other robot clasps a large metal brace the wraps around both of Sonic's ankles,
"Cheater…" Sonic said as she gets movement in her body starting to struggle,
"Guys… we have two problems…" Tails whispered,
"He has Sonic doesn't he?" Sophia asked as Tails paused,
"He does… but that's not what I'm worried about. Eggman just got a message from Green Hills that they have Amy." Tails whispered,
"I'll call Sally right away and let her know." Elias said as Tails continued to watch,
"Take her to my lab, I'll be there after we secure passage for her friend," Eggman said with a grin as the two robots walk towards the door carrying Sonic,
"Eggman if you hurt him!" She continued to struggle,
"You should be more concerned for yourself my dear." He said as the door closes behind them.
"I think I just found my opening; Hang on Sonic." Tails said heading out of the vent back into the hallway.
"Agent Sally do you read me?" Elias reached out on his communicator.
"I read you, Everything here is starting to wrap up, everyone's parents are secure. How are things on your end?" Sally said,
"Not great, Sonic' been caught and we just got word on our end that some of the Guards at Green Hills have captured Amy and are going to attempt to take him." He said,
"What?" She said shocked, "I need to tell the others!" She switches back to her headset, "Knuckles! We have a problem, Some of the guards have Amy captive and they are trying to leave the prison with him. You have to hurry and stop them." Rogue rushes up with all of their parents hearing all of that,
"We need to make sure to keep an eye on the sky," Rogue tells the other soldiers as they nod.
"You guys heard her we need to pick up the pace." Knuckles said as they continue looking around.
"They probably have a helicopter pad. That might be where they are taking him." Blaze said,
"Wait!" Cream said as they stop. She tries to listen for noises as Knuckles punches one of the guards away from her. "I hear a helicopter! This way!" She takes the lead. They follow her to the roof as they see the four guards pulling Amy into the helicopter.
"Shit! Take off now!" The general said as the rest of them jump into the Helicopter just as it starts to take off.
"No you don't!" Knuckles quickly runs at the Helicopter as Cream and Blaze follow after him. They start shooting at them as one hits Knuckles in the shoulder, but he doesn't stop continuing to run until he gets to the helicopter and grabs the leg stopping it from flying up any higher. If he lets go of this helicopter, they will lose Amy and he was not going to let that happen.
"Let go or you die boy!" One of the guards points his gun at Knuckles' head as Cream kicks it out of his hand. He's taken off guard as Blaze jumps into the helicopter holding out her fire lit hands,
"Anyone shoots I take this whole helicopter down with all of us in it." She yelled as they all step back, "We're taking our friend and you all can leave with your lives." They look at the general as he looks defeated.
"We're dead if we go back empty handed." He said pointing his gun at Blaze.
"Blaze!" Cream screams as he pulls the trigger, but nothing happens.
"What?" He looks confused as he tries again but still nothing,
"I control all flames, including stopping small bullet explosions from going off." She said grabbing him and throwing him off the helicopter. Knuckles' feet start slipping as he's slowly getting dragged towards the edge. "Anyone else?" They all shake their heads.
"Blaze… I can't hold it for much longer…" Knuckles said fighting through the pain in his shoulder. Blaze picks up Amy with Cream's help and they climb out of the helicopter as Knuckles lets go and the Helicopter takes off. They lay Amy down as Knuckles clutches his shoulder,
"Sally, we got Amy! But Knuckles is hurt we need help." Cream said while Blaze melts the shackles off of Amy's wrists.
"We've secured the prison, What's your location?" Omega asked,
"The Helicopter pad." Blaze said as she shakes Amy trying to wake him now noticing just how beaten he was. "He doesn't look good."
"Damn, getting shot hurts!" Knuckles said wincing in pain,
"Help's on the way Knuckles, try to rest." Cream said as he nods,
"That was a close call." Knuckles said looking over at Amy, "Let's hope the others are having a better time.
Tails flies out of the vent and follows after the Swatbots as Sonic continues to struggle trying to kick them. "You mind moving me closer so I can hit you and make myself think I'm breaking free?" She said, they continue moving without a word as she notices Tails fly right behind them, "Also, anklets aren't really my style, it's really not safe to wear when your running. I could trip."
"You will not be running; you are going to Robotnik's lab." One of the bots said,
"That's a hard pass. Did the whole lab Hedgehog thing it was not my cup of tea. And back to this accessory, it's literally holding my legs together like I'm a mermaid. I think Merhogs are a thing right?" Sonic said. Tails shuts down one of the bots and flies up as the one holding Sonic turns towards the disabled one. "Maybe it has a software update?" Tails quickly reached between the head and rips out the wired shutting the robot down. "Way to go buddy!" Sonic cheered as Tails starts to mess with the bot trying to get it to let go of Sonic's wrists,
"Keep your voice down there could be others nearby." Tails said as the hands let go and Sonic falls to the ground, "Oh sorry." She lands next to Sonic pulling her tools out and kneels next to her staring to unlock the ankle restraint.
"It's all good dude, thanks for the save." She said with a smile as she reaches for her coms "This is Sonic the Merhog; I'm trying to find my jolly sailor?" She used a sultry tone,
"I'm going to kill you…" Sophia said over the coms as Tails frees Sonic's legs,
"Love you too!" Sonic giggled,
"That was a really risky plan." Tails said pulling her to her feet. "What would you have done if I left with Shadow?" Tails asked,
"Used Chaos Shield to break the robots." She said,
"What about the shackle? Or were you planning to cut your legs off?" Tails said crossing her arms,
"You can lecture me later, can we juice?" Sonic said tapping her foot. She didn't want to be here any longer.
"Fine!" Tails said rolling her eyes,
"Ready to go at Super Sonic speed?" She asked as Tails smiles looking excited,
"Let's do it!" Tails said as Sonic picks her up and they run down the halls as the alarms start to go off as they make their speedy escape.
Sonic and Tails run back to Elias and Sophia, she lets Tails down as she's laughing excitedly, "That was awesome!" Tails cheered,
"Remind me to take you on more runs." Sonic said with a chuckle, Sophia quickly runs up and hugs her.
"Why do you have to be like this." Sophia said kissing her,
"Because it's why you love me." She smiles, "Are you doing okay?"
"I'm a little burnt out, but I'm alright." She kisses her again as Sonic stops her,
"Wait, what about Amy? Eggman's lackeys have him." Sonic said,
"I just got word that they got to him before they could take him away from the prison. And all of their parents are safe as well. They are almost back to HQ." Elias said as they all let out a sigh of relief, "I hate to admit it but if you weren't in the room with Eggman we wouldn't have overheard that information. We would have lost Amy if you didn't take that risk." Elias said,
"And we saved Kolts parents, man we are on top of our game!" Sonic said with a cheer,
"Yours and Amy's situations were still close calls." Elias said giving her a look, "We should go before Eggman starts a search for us." They all climb into the Helicopter.
"You all know our son?" Kolt's father asked as they took off,
"Yep!" Sonic said with a smile,
"And you're Sonic?" His mother asked as she transforms back,
"I also go by Saya." She said as Tails transforms back as well,
"H…how?" His father asked looking confused,
"We can talk about it after you see your son." Sophia said as they head back to HQ.
They return to HQ and see that everything is in an uproar, they first see Brandy and Caroline with their parents talking to Saya, Sophia and TK's parents as they all go over to them, "You guys okay?" Sophia asked as Caroline's mom recognizes them all and goes to hug them,
"I'm so happy you girls are safe!" She said,
"It's good to see you too, have you seen Kolt?" Saya asked,
"He and Alan are in the infirmary. Kolt got shot in the shoulder." Brandy said as Kolts parents look horrified,
"He's okay!" Caroline tried to stop them from panicking,
"I'll take you to the Infirmary." Saya said, "Sophia, you should go chill with Tikal for a bit until you feel better." She leads them down the hallway,
"Saya's right, You're looking a little pale." Sophia's mom said putting her hand on her forehead,
"Just a little tapped out, I just need to take it easy for a bit." She said pulling her hand away,
"I'll go with you." TK said as they walk away,
"You still need to explain everything young lady!" Brandy's father said crossing his arms.
"let's go grab something to eat and we and explain everything." Caroline said as they all head towards the cafeteria,
Saya and Kolt's parents enter the infirmary. They see Kolt sitting down as Dr. Starline is helping him into an arm brace. "Kolt?" His mom called out as he turns to see them,
"Mom?" He said. They all have tears in their eyes as they both rush over and hug him. "Ow!" He winces in pain as they quickly let go,
"What happened?" His father asked,
"I was rescuing a friend." He said looking over at Alan lying unconscious with his parents and Rosie sitting next to him. He turns and looks at Saya who was also looking at Alan concerned, "Sally told us what you pulled." He glares as she chuckles,
"I told you I'd get your parents back no matter what." Saya said,
"At the risk of being captured yourself?" Kolt said sounding angry,
"I don't understand, what are you talking about?" Kolt's father asked,
"Well, we needed more time to get to you guys free, so I pretended to offer Eggman to trade places with you to distract him." She said as they both look shocked,
"Why would you do that? You don't even know us." His mom asked,
"You'd sacrifice yourself for total strangers?" His father asked,
"I mean, you're Kolt's parents. You're important to him so you're important to me." Saya said with a smile as they smile back at her,
"That was still really dangerous!" Kolt said giving her a hug with his free arm. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened to you because of me."
"I know, but we were literally on a time crunch and it was the first idea that popped in my head," She said,
"Your first instinct needs to stop being self-sacrifice." He said letting her go. "For all of our sakes,"
"I'll work on it. But I also know every last one of you would do the same for me. Am I wrong?" She said crossing her arms,
"No," He said ruffling her hair,
"Alan?" They hear Rosie say. They turn to see him stirring as they walk over to him as he opens his eyes as his mom grabs his hand,
"Hey Sparkler." Alan smiles,
"How are you feeling?" His dad asked,
"Like I took four stun batons to the face." He groans as he smiles at his parents, "I'm glad you're both okay." Alan's mom takes his hand with a smile.
"You look like you took ten to the face." Saya jokes as he turns to her,
"Oh good, you guys got back okay too." Alan said,
"Barely, I got caught there for a bit because of you." Saya joked as he chuckles,
"How'd I manage to do that?" Alan asked looking confused as he struggled to sit up,
"The guys who beat you up tried to take you back to Eggman, I was keeping him distracted while Soph got Kolt's parents out. But when you showed up on the screen… I kinda lost my cool and Egghead got the jump on me." Saya looked away feeling embarrassed.
"My bad, glad you're okay." He said looking at Kolt's shoulder, "And what happened to you?"
"Took a bullet trying to stop a helicopter trying to fly off with your dumb body." Kolt joked,
"Dude, you took a bullet for me? That's so romantic." He teased,
"Don't make me punch you Alan." Kolt glared trying to hid the fact the he was blushing as they all start to laugh,
"Hey Saya, do you know where TK is?" Alan asked,
"I left her with the others to bring Kolts parents here." Saya said,
"You remember that orange electrical current?" Alan asked,
"What about it?" She asked,
"I think I saw something similar… right before I got clobbered." Alan said,
"You sure?" Kolt asked as he nods,
"That happening twice is not a coincidence…" Saya said,
"Three times," Alan said as they look confused, "Elias told us he saw something similar at HQ 2.0. in the infirmary by Dr. Q's desk."
"What?" Kolt asked confused as Dr Starline walks up to them,
"Apologies for interrupting, but I think it would be best for Alan and Kolt to get some rest so that they can heal." He said,
"Starline's right, you both need your rest. I'm going to go check on Sophia." She said waving them off as she leaves,
TK and Sophia were in the Alter room. Sophia lies in the grass letting out a loud sigh as Hope flies over and lays on her stomach, "Feeling better?" TK asked,
"Little bit." Sophia said, "How did you do it?"
"Do what?" She asked,
"Get over the fear of something happening to Saya?" She asked turning her head as she pets Hope's head.
"I guess I was always used to it. Maybe it's the Tails part of me that's been around Sonic their entire lives or that it was pretty similar to that in this life too." TK shrugs as she sits down, "I always worry when she's in danger,"
"But how do you stop it from overwhelming you? I feel numb whenever she's in danger like I've lost all control." Sophia asked,
"That happened to me when the Zarkon took her. But then I remembered all the close calls we've had and that no matter what happens, Sonic always wins. Plus, you became a really good leader." TK said, the compliment taking her by surprise. "I guess I started to have faith that we can help her, or she'll be able to help herself." She smiles,
"Just gotta get over it I guess… she'll always be in danger. But I also know I can't overprotect her, or she'll start feeling trapped." Sophia lets out a sigh,
"Are you afraid you'll lose her like you did Maria?" TK asked as Sophia paused thinking back to what happened in her past life. Maria sacrificed her life to save Shadow from being killed from the GUN soldiers that only saw Shadow as a weapon.
"Maybe… Seeing your best friend killed in front of you when you can't do anything definitely leaves some scars." She said, it didn't matter if that was a lifetime ago… The scar that left on her soul will always be there.
"Just try to remember that Saya is strong, and you make her stronger." TK said as Sophia smiles. The door opens and Saya enters.
"You both look relaxed." Saya said walking over to them and sitting next to Sophia, "Feeling better?"
"Yeah, good idea for me to come here. I'm probably healing faster here than in the infirmary." She said as Hope flies over and lays on Saya's lap,
"Chao!"
"How are Kolt and Alan?" TK asked,
"They'll live, but Alan is definitely hurting. Oh hey TK, you remember that orange electricity I saw?" Saya asked,
"Yeah, why? Did you see it again?" She asked,
"No, apparently Alan did just before he got clobbered." Saya said,
"Are you sure?" TK asked,
"He seemed pretty sure." She said, "And he told me that Elias has also seen something similar when Dr. Q went missing."
"What?" Sophia said sitting up,
"Now I definitely want to go back to HQ and check it out." TK said,
"Let's wait a few days, Eggman's going to be fuming for a while after he realizes that we took all of his leverage away." Sophia said,
"Yeah we definitely need to stay put for a little bit. That was not fun." Saya said with a chuckle,
"You kept your cool in front of Eggman really well until you saw Alan." Tails said,
"You forget that I'm made of cool." She jokes, "But jokes aside… I'm really thankful you had my back TK. It definitely got dicey there at the end."
"Someone has to save your dumb face." She teases as they all laugh,
"Can't believe that plan worked," Sophia said, "And with only two of us injured."
"We're definitely starting to get the hang of this." Saya smiles,
"I guess we just take it one mission at a time now until we figure out how to beat Eggman." TK said,
"Now that all of our parents are together, I'm worried that they won't want us going on missions anymore." Sophia said,
"I mean, technically we're adults so they can't really stop us." Saya said,
"True… it's so weird to think that we're all eighteen." TK said,
"If we want to be technical we're still seventeen because we missed the time skip." Sophia said,
"They don't need to know that." Saya said,
"Even if we were still underage, that never stopped us in the past." TK said,
"Yeah, Sonic was destroying Badniks since he was five." Saya said,
"Wasn't that also because all of the adults were robotisized?" Sophia said,
"Beside the point." She said,
"You just don't want to do homework." TK said,
"Of course not!" Saya said, "Homework is dumb!"
"Alright, we should go I'm feeling much better and there's a lot to do now." She starts to stand up as they leave the Alter room.
The next week was busy as they attempted to adjust having all of their parents around. Elias had them all on a week break to help them adjust to their new lives and keep them hidden while Eggman began actively searching for them. TK received permission to go and investigate at their old base and they all prepped to go. "Are there any other tools we'll need?" Kolt asked helping TK with some of her equipment.
"No I think that's everything." TK said,
"Don't forget that you all need to be back here by this evening before the briefing for our overnight trip to Soleanna." Sally said
"It shouldn't be too long, and with everyone helping me it'll take a lot less time to check everywhere." TK said,
"We're not splitting the party anymore after what almost happened." Brandy said,
"Yeah, that was a little too close for comfort." Alan said,
"Elias wants an update around noon." Sally said,
"Will do." Sophia said as they all climb into the Helicopter.
"Does Soleanna sound familiar to any of you?" Saya asked as they all shake their heads,
"Should it?" Caroline asked,
"Not sure… just a feeling I guess." She shrugs as they fly off, for some reason that name was familiar to her, but she didn't know why. "But why are we going there?"
"We're discussing it during the briefing. But Elias mentioned something about another Echidna temple underneath the abandoned castle." Sophia said,
"Abandoned castle?" Alan said,
"Apparently it's haunted," TK said as Saya grabs Sophia's arm,
"B… but we're staying there overnight…" Saya said looking scared,
"Yeah, it's too far for us to travel back and forth and Elias wanted to make sure that I had plenty of time to decipher things." Kolt said,
"You'll be okay, you survived the ruins at Angel Island right?" Sophia said patting her head,
"Y… Yeah…" She said,
"I told you before if there are any ghosts, just punch them." Kolt said,
"I'm pretty sure that's not how that works." Caroline said,
"Worked in the past." He said crossing his arm as he winces for a moment,
"Your shoulder still hurting?" Brandy asked,
"Yeah, it's taking a lot longer than I thought it would to heal." He said,
"Dude, you got shot. Regular people wouldn't even be able to move after what you did." Alan said,
"On top of that you held down an entire Helicopter while injured, that's not anything to laugh at." TK said,
"You all complimenting me is freaking me out." Kolt said,
"I can insult you if you want." Saya grinned,
"I'll pass." Kolt lets out a sigh as they laugh,
"How are your parents adjusting?" Sophia asked,
"Mine are alright, my dad made a joke 'bout my hair turning pink and I considered hitting him with my hammer." Alan said,
"What's wrong with pink?" Saya asked,
"That's what I said!" Alan said as they both shrugged,
"My mom is just worried about us getting hurt." Caroline said,
"My parents want me to stop fighting," Brandy said,
"So do mine," Kolt said,
"What did you tell them?" TK asked,
"That we can't sit by while the world is in disarray especially when we have the power to help people." Brandy said,
"I said something similar." Kolt said as the helicopter lands back in their old base,
"Alright, I want to check out the infirmary first before we split up and look around." TK said as they all grab their stuff and head towards the infirmary. It was eerily quiet, the only remnants of the abandoned base being disturbed was of the footprints they left behind after they returned from Camelot,
"It's still so weird seeing this place abandoned like this." Caroline said,
"We need to be careful, there could be wild animals living here that might not like us being around." Sophia said as they get to the infirmary. All except the large furniture was gone from the room.
"Elias said he saw orange electricity by Doc's desk yeah?" Saya said walking over to her desk and looking behind it. She was trying to keep focused, being here and seeing their previous home abandoned like this because of what happened still left a weight on her. Saya stopped saying it out loud because the others would protest every time she did, but she still blamed herself for how the world had changed because she wasn't here to stop Eggman.
"I'm not seeing any readings." TK said walking around, "Just like at the obstacle course."
"Did you feel anything when you saw it?" Kolt asked looking at Saya and Alan,
"Similar to when you build up a static charge and the hairs on your arms stand up." Alan said,
"Yeah, that feeling you get right before you get shocked," Saya said as Alan nods in agreement.
"So we keep that in mind while we walk around." Sophia said as they all nod
"Hang on," Kolt said taking a look at the desk and pointing out scratch marks. "I don't remember these." He said as Sophia walks over and has a look,
"These look like scratch marks from something metal, could be a button or a zipper." Sophia said,
"Why would there be scratch marks like that?" Brandy asked,
"Hey look," Alan said moving one of the old cots and revealing an empty syringe. "Doc's not the type to drop stuff like this." TK goes over and he hands her the syringe.
"I'll see if there's any residue inside that I can analyze. It might be a longshot with how long it's been here." She said,
"So we can probably confirm that Dr. Q did not leave here of her own volition." Kolt said,
"That was a big word red," Saya teased,
"Don't push your luck blue," Kolt huffed as she chuckles,
"But how does that connect to the orange electricity?" Caroline asked and TK hands them all a small tablet.
"That's what we're going to find out. Use the com's to let us know if you're getting any readings." TK said,
"We'll be done in no time." Saya said as they all split into groups and start searching the base.
A few hours pass and they don't find any readings throughout the entire base as they begin to reconvene in the hangar bay. "Did we want to check the back before we leave?" Saya asked,
"No, if there is any energy reading out there it would probably be from the dimensional rift that was created when we left Camelot." TK said,
"And you are definitely staying far away from that." Sophia said giving her a look as Saya chuckles,
"Yeah… I definitely don't want to go back to Camelot any time soon." Saya said,
"I just let Elias know that we're heading on our way back shortly." Caroline said,
"And he was worried we'd miss the briefing." Saya said as they climb back into the helicopter.
"I'm going to make sure to start analyzing the syringe before the briefing." TK said as the helicopter flies back to HQ.
"I have two questions," Brandy said, "The first one is, Who took Dr. Q? and Why?"
"If it was Eggman, one of the agents working on the inside would have seen her by now." Saya said,
"So who other than Eggman would come after the Doc?" Alan asked as they all pondered.
"Whoever they are, they are working very hard to stay hidden and after what happened to both Saya and Alan, they are definitely our enemy.." Sophia said,
"We need to be on our guard," Brandy said,
"I just hope Dr. Q is okay…" Caroline said lowering her head,
"We'll find her." Saya said confidently as they get back to HQ. Elias sees them exit the Helicopter and walks over to them.
"Anything?" Elias asked. He was trying to keep a stoic face, but they could all feel the hope for any news radiating off of him.
"We found a syringe under the cot next to Doc's desk." Kolt said,
"I'm going to go start having it analyzed before the briefing starts." TK said as she heads to her workshop,
"So she was taken…" Elias looked worried, "I shouldn't have left her alone,"
"We're still not sure why they would take her in the first place." Sophia said,
"Thank you for looking into this." Elias said,
"She's our friend too." Brandy said as he nods,
"You all should grab something to eat really quick, you'll be leaving right after the briefing." He said walking away.