Sneakers flew across the tile floor of the castle at insane speeds. A streak of blue with red trailing behind soared passed several citizens, guards, and castle workers. They would've been startled by such a sight, had they not been so used to it by now…
The creature behind said blue streak was on a mission of utmost importance. Having been appointed by the queen herself to fetch only the finest cuisine in the land. They carried their cargo through the castle at the fastest possible speed, while still ensuring that no harm came to it. Through hallways, up flights of stairs, in but a few more seconds, the streak of blue reached their destination. Their red and white sneakers skidded across the floor, with their matching red cape ceasing its crazed fluttering and settling down behind them. Finally, they had made it, the queen and king's dining room. Proud of their speedy delivery, they flung open the door and proudly marched in, presenting their shipment.
"Someone order a meal fit for a Blaze, delivered in fifteen seconds or less or it's free?"
"Oh, there goes your daddy again. Making a flashy entrance as usual," a lavender cat in a pink turtleneck sweater and white leggings teased, faking a pout with folded arms as she talked down towards three babies, all lined up against a long, polished wooden table.
"Aw… don't say it like that. You've put up with it this long, so I must be doing something right," replied the blue figure as he walked up and set his delivery, in the form of two chili dogs, on a plate. "Plus Dash here seemed to like it," he smirked, gesturing to one of the high-chairs.
Carefree chuckles poured out of a blue hedgehog-cat half-breed occupying the chair as he clapped for his father's performance. Purple accents lined the tips of his quills, hair, and long tail.
"Alright, Sonic. Fair enough," Blaze conceded with a light smile, throwing up her hands in defense as she began sashaying her way across the dining room to greet her husband. She strolled past her three babies. A cat sharing hairstyle, fur, and eye color with her mother sat forward, giggling and playing with her food. Her high-chair read "Blaura" near the top of the seat back. A purple hedgehog with his father's eyes occupied a slightly larger seat. He sat mostly silent, poking at his food with plastic silverware. Their chair read "Sonash." The aforementioned blue hedgecat, Dash, had lost interest in his father, and was now back to splattering food on their tray with an almost mischievous chuckle.
In a flash, Sonic closed the rest of the distance, landing a surprise peck on Blaze's lips. The lavender cat jumped, clearly taken aback, but not at all upset by the gesture.
"C'mon dear. All these years and you're still letting me catch you by surprise?" Sonic lovingly taunted.
"Hey, not like many people can help being caught off guard by the fastest thing alive," Blaze retorted.
"Hm… That is true. Not many people can keep up with me," conceded Sonic with a playful smirk.
"Plus…"
With a rapid movement of her own, Blaze grabbed Sonic's arms and pulled him in for a more elongated smooch. Even the fastest thing was taken aback by such an out-of-character assault from his wife, not that it was an unwelcome one.
The two separated, with Blaze proceeding to finish her previous thought, warmly staring into her king's eyes. "All because I'm your reserved, elegant queen doesn't mean I'm not up for a few surprises."
Upon hearing a soft splatting sound, Sonic looked past his lover to see the mess that Dash was making of his tray. "Woah, there! Speaking of keeping up. Maybe we should sit down and enjoy our meal before our food gets cold and Dash turns his tray into a warzone!"
Blaze whipped around to see the mess that Sonic was referring to. Dash had scooped up a portion of his baby food and plopped it dead in the middle of his tray, proceeding to slap it with his hands repeatedly, splattering the green mixture on his face.
"No, Dash! What did mommy tell you about making messes?" Blaze scolded, pointing a stern, accusatory finger.
Sonic couldn't hold back a snicker.
"Sonic, we already have three children to raise. I can't have you joining in," Blaze said to her husband only half-seriously. "Help me get Dash cleaned up."
"Ok, ok. I'm sorry. You're just so cute when you go into 'mommy mode," Sonic said through his dwindling chuckles.
"I am not, and I do not have a 'mommy mode!" Denied Blaze, a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks.
"Yuh'huh," retorted Sonic. "Of course, not to say you aren't cute all the time, but…"
Any further playful bickering was halted by another slapping sound coming from Dash's direction. A stern reminder to the task at hand. "Oh, right…"
Sonic lived up to his name, speeding around Blaze and to a cupboard. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Dash's high-chair, on his knees with a paper towel in-hand.
Blaze strolled over to the table, sitting down at the end and smiling as she watched her husband clean and calm the mischievous infant.
"Now, Dash. I know you're just trying to have fun, but you can't be making messes like this. You know how that makes mommy and I feel," Sonic spoke delicately as he leaned in and carefully wiped Dash's face. The infant slammed their eyes shut, scrunching their face as the paper tower glided over their cheeks and mouth. Following that, he moved onto the tray. Making quick work of that mess as well. "There we are. Good as new!" Sonic said triumphantly, shooting up to a stand.
In another burst of speed, the soiled paper towel was deposited in a trash can, another plate was grabbed from the cupboard, and one of the chili dogs was moved onto the new plate. Sonic reappeared in a chair, with the aforementioned food in front of him. "Lunch is served, your highness," he said, finishing his performance.
"Ha, ha. Very funny, his royal kingliness," Blaze teased back, picking up her knife and fork.
"I still can't believe you eat chili dogs like that," the astonished king stated before going whole hog on his own chili dog.
"We've been over this before. I prefer not to risk getting my clothes dirty," Blaze responded plainly, popping a small bite into her mouth.
"Well, yeah, but that's half the experience!" Sonic protested after gulping down a large bite. "You can't eat something as messy as a chili dog and not chow down on it!"
"Hmph, I guess we really do have four children in the family," the smirking feline teased sarcastically. Sonic simply shrugged his shoulders and hummed in reply, his mouth being too full to actually respond. After another bite, Blaze continued. "Anyway, how was your meeting with Gardon and Marine this morning?"
Sonic ravenously swallowed his latest mouthful of chili and beef. "Oh, it was fine. Nothing outta' the ordinary. Patrols are doing fine, new recruits are showing promise, still no sign of discount Egghead…" he listed off, counting on his fingers as he went.
"Hmm... Still no reported activity from Nega," Blaze replied contemplatively. "That worries me more and more everyday."
Sonic froze in his tracks before the last mammoth bite of food could enter his mouth. He looked over at Blaze in confusion. "Huh? Why's that?"
"It's been over a year. He must be planning something big to go silent this long. We have to be ready for what he may throw at us," Blaze explained while Sonic took the opportunity to finish off his meal.
"Oh, relax," Sonic said nonchalantly with a dismissive hand gesture. "Maybe all those extra pounds finally caught up to him, or maybe he finally realized he can't beat us. Either way, I'm more than happy to keep adding onto my 'days without a failed Nega scheme' counter."
"I'm… not so sure," the pyrokinetic cat replied. "He's been at it this long, no reason for him to quit now."
Sonic shot up and ran his plate over to the sink, washing and drying it thoroughly before depositing it back into the cupboard and returning to his seat in seconds. "Eh. I'm sure it'll be fine…" the speedy monarch assured, leaning back in his chair casually. "What more could he possibly throw at us? I've conquered an interplanetary slave guild designed to power an evil theme park, a time eating monster, even the world getting turned into a jigsaw puzzle!"
"I don't know," Blaze conceded, staring down at her half-eaten hot dog. "I just get this feeling…"
"Mother's intuition. I get it," said the blue blur, ceasing his leaning and returning his gaze to his wife before continuing. "I'll tell ya' what. I've got an open schedule tomorrow, and I haven't run long distance in too long. If it'll make you feel better, I'll do some high-speed searching to see if I can find out what ol' Neghead is up to."
"I'd appreciate that. Thank you Sonic," the unsettled queen responded.
"Hey. What else are high-speed husbands for?"
The two rulers' conversation was interrupted by the cries of an infant ringing throughout the room. They looked to find its source. The middle chair, Sonash. Moments later, a pungent, all-too-familiar odor entered the parents' noses.
"Ugh! I guess that's what else," Sonic nasally said, holding his nose with a look of disgust. "I'm on diaper duty today. You go ahead and finish up."
Blaze thanked Sonic as he zoomed behind Sonash's chair and scooped him up delicately. The father began his trek to the babies' room using a very rare, but necessary means of transportation given his delicate cargo. Walking.
Blaura and Dash didn't seem to notice or care about their brother and father's departure, their consistently present giggling continuing.
Blaze looked up from cutting the last bit of her chili dog and grinned happily at her two babies. "Aw… My cute widdle things…" she cooed in a parent-like voice about two octaves higher than normal. Her two children laughed in response. Or maybe that was what they were going to do either way.
With only herself and her two children occupying the room. Blaze swiftly finished her food and went to help Dash. Looking around cautiously, she bent down and carefully removed the spoon from his flailing hand. Grasping it in her own hand, she scooped up a small portion of baby food.
"Here comes the airplane…" she teased, still using her mommy voice as she playfully guided the food into Dash's awaiting mouth. "Good job! Who's my cute widdle Dashy?" the loving mother slowly leaned in, intending to plant a kiss on the little hedgecat's forehead.
"Uh… your highness?"
Blaze paused and looked up to see the source of the intrusion, a stubby koala with a blue shirt and fez. Her eyes shot open wide and she stumbled backward, barely catching herself with her hands. "Gah! Gardon, don't sneak up on me like that!" she commanded, frantically scrambling to her feet as her face turned a shade of red that would put Knuckles' fur to shame.
"O-oh, I'm sorry!" Gardon apologized, standing in the doorway that Sonic had left open.
Blaze elegantly set the spoon back on its tray, taking a deep breath and dusting herself off, allowing her blush to recede. "It's quite alright, Gardon…" she paused, her eyes focusing into a soul piercing glare before continuing. "But you saw nothing, understand?"
Gardon took an instinctive step back, his legs trembling in fear. "Y-yes, your highness!" he stammered.
"Good. Now, what brings you here? Has Nega finally decided to make a move?" Blaze asked, maintaining her serious tone.
Gardon breathed a sigh of relief, realizing he was in the clear. "Oh. No, nothing like that. You have a visitor!" he finished cheerfully.
Gardon's news was met with a raised eyebrow from the queen. "Visitor? Who?"
"Your good friend and ally, Miles 'Tails' Prower. He says he comes with urgent news regarding the safety of his majesty's home dimension."
"Hmm… A threat that warrants travelling across dimensions to enlist our help must indeed be a serious one," Blaze thought allowed with a hand resting on her chin contemplatively.
"Indeed so. Shall I send him to the throne room to await your arrival, then?" inquired the koala.
"Yes, thank you, Gardon," replied Blaze.
As Gardon saluted and turned to leave, Blaze stopped him one more time. "Also, we've talked about this before, Gardon. There's no need to refer to me as 'your highness' when we're without an audience. 'Queen Blaze' or just 'Blaze' is fine."
Gardon turned back around, scratching the back of his head. "Oh right, I forgot! My apologies, your hi- I mean… Queen Blaze," he finished with a nervous smile.
The small royal guardsman was met with an appreciative nod before turning to exit the room.
The door closed behind him, and Blaze stood still for a few moments, making sure the koala had indeed left. Once the coast was clear, she turned her attention back to her two babies, who'd been enjoying themselves without a care in the world. Taking one last look at the door, Blaze strode over to Blaura's chair and prepared to give her the same treatment as Dash.
"Aww… you want some help with that?" she teased in her motherly voice as she bent down and grabbed Blaura's spoon.
XXXX
"And here we are!" Gardon announced following the opening of the large door to the throne room.
The koala stepped in with another figure in-tow. A tall yellow fox with red sneakers, a matching checkered headband, and a leather belt and sash. Nothing out of the ordinary, if not for the usual one tail akin to most foxes being replaced by two, swishing passively behind him as he followed.
Miles had been in the throne room before, but somehow it still managed to captivate him every time. He looked around in wonder, enjoying the modernism that contrasted with the more classical external design of the palace. Marble pillars lined the perpendicular sides of the room, and a majestic purple and blue, gold-lined rug spanned almost the entire floor. On the ceiling, a pair of elegant chandeliers reflected beautiful rays of light across the room. All these details and countless others characteristic of a throne room of its size and stature continued to flood the fox's senses.
"The queen and king should be here shortly. I've notified them of your request, as well as its urgency," Gardon explained after stepping further forward and turning to face Miles.
"Thanks, Gardon. Nice to see you again, by the way!" the two-tailed fox replied.
"The pleasure is all mine, Doctor Prower," the royal guardsman formally insisted with a modest bow. "Any ally of the royal family is a friend of mine."
Miles chuckled at the utterance of his scholarly name. "Gardon, we're friends! Please don't feel the need to be so formal around me. Just 'Miles' is fine."
"Oh, of course!" The sheepish koala replied. "Well, 'Miles.' As I said, the queen and king will be here shortly. I have some duties to tend to elsewhere so feel free to make yourself at home."
"Thanks again, Gardon. See ya'round," the cheerful fox replied with a modest wave.
Mere seconds after the panda left and closed the door behind him, another door squeaked open. Miles watched the doorway on the left side of the far wall as two immediately recognizable figures strode out.
"Sonic, Blaze!" Miles exclaimed enthusiastically, running across the room to greet his long-time friends. He closed the distance in seconds, offering a hug to the blue blur. "How've you guys bee-"
"And you think that's an acceptable way to speak to a monarch?" Sonic said sternly, a serious expression painted across his face. "You will bow and show the proper respect."
Miles stiffened up, freezing wide-eyed at what his practical brother had just said to him. Had this much time spent as royalty really affected Sonic in such a way? More eerie seconds passed, Miles having no idea what to say in response. Should he bow and ask for forgiveness? Should he-
Miles' mental panicking was interrupted by an uncontrolled fit of laughter.
"Pfft! Haha, you should've seen your face!" Sonic whaled, not able to hold his stuck-up royalty impression for more than even a few seconds. "Oh boy… that was priceless!" He finished, holding his stomach and weakly pointing at Miles.
His nervous expression and posture melted away in realization. "Sonic! You almost gave me a heart attack!" He teased, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
Blaze rolled her eyes with a smirk, even herself clearly being impressed by Sonic's short-lived performance.
Following a short hug and a little bit of casual catching up, Sonic and Blaze moved to their thrones, preparing to address the real reason for the vulpine's visit.
"So, Miles. I hear you come here with urgent news regarding your dimension's safety?" Blaze questioned.
"Lemme guess, round as a cannonball, doesn't know when to quit, starts with 'egg' and ends with 'head?" The nonchalant hedgehog scoffed before Miles could respond.
"Yep, you guessed it," the two-tailed inventor replied.
"What's his genius plan this time? Eggman Land Three? Time Eater round two, electric boogaloo?" Sonic jeered from his blue, gold accented seat.
"Not exactly…" Answered the fox, dawning a solemn expression and glancing down at the ground. "As you may know. Over these last few years, Eggman hasn't exactly been the type to play games like in the past. His plans have slowly become more sinister and to-the-point. In other words, he's stepped up his game."
"Oh?"
"He's developed a new technology, something he calls the 'Egg Drainer.' Capable of sucking the vitality out of any living thing, plant, animal, or otherwise, seemingly converting it directly into energy to fuel his Faceship Mach Three and his army."
"That does sound very serious," Blaze thought aloud before addressing Miles directly. "How many casualties have there been so far?"
"He's drained two small towns already. Estimated death toll is in the mid-three-hundreds, but it's hard to get an exact number because of how his weapon functions. It's like it vaporizes organic matter completely. The two towns he's fired on so far are almost indistinguishable from the old ruins of Wild Canyon. Everything's just… Gone…" Miles finished, hugging himself in discomfort.
"Man… Talk about 'stepping up his game…" Sonic trailed off, his voice devoid of his usual optimistic, cheerful tone. "What about the freedom fighters?"
"Shadow's been M.I.A. for the past few months, and Knuckles is convinced that it's some kind of ploy to lure him away from the Master Emerald, so he refuses to leave its side. The Chaotix, as well as Tangle and Whisper are willing to help, but without our two hardest hitters…"
"Yeah," Sonic replied blankly. "That's why you came here, then. You want Blaze and I to help take him out?"
Miles nodded, confirming Sonic's assumption. "Mhmm… I know you two've got a bunch of duties here, not to mention your children, but I really couldn't see an alternative. If it's too much to ask, though-"
"You kidding me? A chance to crush Egghead for old times' sake? I wouldn't miss out on that for the world, buddy!" Interrupted Sonic, who proceeded to turn to his wife. "How 'bout you, dear?"
Blaze sat in contemplation for a moment. "Hmm… It is true that our kingdom's well-being is very important, but this sounds like a very serious threat. One that may demand putting our duties on the backburner temporarily."
"So you'll help, then?" Miles beamed optimistically.
"Yes. I will contact Gardon and leave him in charge of watching Dash, Blaura, and Sonash," Blaze confirmed. "Will you be ready to leave on the hour, Sonic?"
"Ready? Remember who you're talking to, dear!" Replied Sonic with a confident smirk.
"Thanks so much. I'll be outside the southern gate when you guys are ready," Miles exclaimed.
As Miles turned to leave the room, his request fulfilled, Blaze tapped a small button on the armrest of her lavender throne. An electronic static was swiftly replaced by the voice of Blaze's most trusted royal official.
"Yes, Queen Blaze?" Gardon's attentive voice inquired from the other end of the line.
"Could you come here at your earliest convenience, please? Something urgent has surfaced, and I have an important task to assign to you."
"Oh, most certainly, my queen. I will be there shortly!" Replied Gardon, followed by a swift click.
XXXX
"So, you're sure you left detailed instructions in the kitchen?" The protective mother pressed as she walked hand-in-hand with her husband through the kingdom, a modest red leather bag hanging from her shoulder. Sonic had changed out of his royal attire and into a vest that matched his shoes, while his wife wore her same turtleneck sweater and signature white leggings.
"Yes, dear. It'll be fine…" Sonic insisted. "You know even better than I do that Gardon's the perfect man for this job. I wrote out the instructions and left em' on the table while you packed, just like you asked me to."
"Ok…" Replied Blaze, clearly lacking confidence.
"Honey, it's one day, and it's not like we're asking Gardon to defuse a bomb. It's just babysitting!" The caring spouse added in another attempt to calm his wife's nerves as their trip to the southern gate neared its conclusion. "Just take a deep breath, they'll be there tomorrow, waiting for you with their cute smiling faces. Then you can go into mommy mode all you want."
"I do not-" Blaze began before cutting herself off and smiling shyly, deciding to take her husband's playful teasing for what it was. "Thank you, Sonic. I'll try and relax."
"That's what I like to hear!" Sonic beamed.
The two parents continued their stroll, deciding to slow things down for a change. Their subjects happily waved and yelled to them as they passed, some wishing them well, and others thanking them for their work in bettering the kingdom. The couple neared the sizable kingdom gate. Sonic and the keeper, a mahogany bear, made eye contact, followed by a mutual nod of acknowledgement. A bell was rung, and shortly after, the gate began to open. Allowing the rulers out.
"Have a safe trip, my liege!" The masculine gatekeeper called out to his king.
Sonic's head swiveled back around to acknowledge his subject. He waved, thanking him.
The metal gate creaked shut behind them, accompanied by the clanking of chains. The couple glanced around, swiftly spotting their twin-tailed friend, leaning up against a tree a stone's throw away from the kingdom's lavender walls.
"Yo, Tails!" Sonic called out, waving his hands.
Miles caught the wrench he'd been tossing up and down and turned his head towards the source of the voice, immediately recognizing its owner. "Sonic!"
The blue blur responded by living up to his name, closing the distance almost instantly and appearing in front of Miles.
"Really? All this time and you're still calling me by that silly nickname?" Miles questioned.
"Hey, buddy. You may be all grown up now, but you're still my little bro," the speedy monarch teased with a wink.
"Oh, Sonic, sometimes I think you're still that sixteen year old from all those years ago," replied Miles, rolling his eyes.
"What can I say? I'm a kindred spirit," conceded Sonic, throwing up his hands in defeat.
"Are we ready to depart?" Blaze inquired, having caught up with her hasty husband.
"Sure thing! Just give me a sec to get the machine calibrated," Miles began, sticking his tongue out and scrunching his face in concentration. "Wouldn't want us to end up five meters underground or five miles above ground."
The nervous queen's eyes widened for a moment, her lips curling up before quickly righting themselves.
"Everything alright, Blaze?" The vulpine questioned, tilting his head in curiosity.
"What? Of course!" She hastily replied.
"I think you spooked her a little bit with the 'five miles' analogy there, Tails," Sonic smirked, playfully elbowing his wife before putting his hand between his mouth and her. "She's a bit scared of heights."
"I am not afraid of heights!" Blaze denied vehemently, her drooping ears accompanying her crossed arms.
"Sure… and I'm not the fastest thing alive," Sonic sarcastically quipped back.
"Done!" Miles exclaimed, breaking up the couple's bantering. A pure white portal surged out of the small handheld device in the inventive fox's hands. It swirled around the edges, beautifully illuminating the surrounding trees. "I've gotta be the last one to enter, since it closes once the emitter passes through."
"After you, m'lady," Sonic offered smoothly, beckoning towards the awaiting portal as it continued its soft and inviting low-pitched hum.
Blaze rolled her eyes, but accepted the offer with a grin, being the first to enter the dimensional gateway. It was like she'd entered an opaque pool of water as Sonic watched her body pass through, disappearing inch by inch.
As Blaze's brief journey concluded, Sonic looked over to his two-tailed friend. "See you on the other side, buddy," he said with a wink prior to turning to enter the portal, crossing over himself to his home dimension, old friends and older enemies awaiting his return.
XXXX
In a flash of white light accompanied by a moment of disorientation, Sonic was through. He'd left the portal as he'd entered. Its low pitched hum still tickled his ears, and its glowing white light still illuminated his surroundings. However, said surroundings were what had really changed. His eyes had adjusted, and he took a moment to look around. A sizable cylindrical room with modern, almost futuristic light fixtures and color palette. Simple white walls house a variety of gizmos and gadgets, the most notable of which being a giant monitor with an accompanying keyboard that would put him and his wife's flat screen to shame. Around the middle of the room was a pedestal-like structure, projecting the all-too familiar figure of a "Faceship" in three dimensions. It wasn't that which he was interested in, though. It was the familiar figures gathered around it.
There, gathered around the central structure, staring at him almost as-if their study setting had been interrupted, was the Chaotix, Amy, Tangle, and Whisper. "Sonic!" The group collectively shouted.
"It's so good to see you, man!" Exclaimed Vector, leading the charge and marching up to his long-time ally.
"Hey Vector! How's it hangin'?" Sonic asked, stepping away from the portal to give the crocodile a respectful handshake.
"Never better!" The middle-aged detective responded. Following, this Vector kept ahold of his friend's hand and pulled him in close, bringing his snout up to his ear. "How're things going with the wifey? You gotten any third-degrees yet?"
"I'm standing right here, you know," Blaze blankly interjected, standing behind her husband with crossed arms.
"O-oh! Of course!" Vector stuttered, pulling away from Sonic and waving in embarrassment.
Before Sonic could continue the friendly greetings, he looked back upon hearing his two-tailed friend stepping through the gateway of his own creation. It almost imploded behind him with an appropriate sound accompanying the closing.
"Well guys. Much as I'd like to take some more time to catch up, by the way Tails here made it sound, we don't have much time to fool around," began Sonic, dropping his easygoing tone and pointing with his right thumb to the fox behind him.
"I concur," added Blaze. "We need to defeat Eggman before he can claim more innocent lives."
"I couldn't agree more," Miles replied from behind the two, walking up to pass them. "We've gotta' go over the plan before that behemoth is ready to fire again."
The pink, red-jacket-clad hedgehog nodded to the inventive fox, leaning down and tapping a few keys at the base of the projector. An electronic beep was joined by a few pronounced red dots appearing on the blue projection of the Faceship, as well as one on the newly-projected image of the city below. "While you and Blaze were on your way over, we developed a method of attack," Amy began.
"Proceed," Blaze responded plainly.
Miles nodded, adding a grunt of acknowledgement. He reached his destination and spun around to face the group. He pointed to locations as he called them out and elaborated. "Team Chaotix is responsible for damage control on the ground. Eggman sent a sizable squadron of robots down to Apotos to try and control the civilians and prevent them from leaving. Their job's gonna be to keep them safe and bash some bots while they're at it."
"Hmph!" Vector grunted with a grin and crossed arms, having rejoined his team.
"You can count on us!" Cheered the bee of the Chaotix.
Miles continued. "Myself, Tangle, and Whisper'll be landing in near the midsection of the faceship, but then, once I've managed to hack into the system and find the reactor room for the Egg Drainer, we'll work our way down and neutralize the threat."
The lemur of the group, clad in black, short overalls and an orange undershirt, playfully elbowed her spouse. "You ready to mash some metal just like old times, babe?"
The shy wolf looked away, pulling her grey coat tighter with a bashful smile, a light blush creeping onto her face. "Yeah," she whispered.
"We're gonna have to move fast, though," Miles added, tapping another button to display a time beside the Faceship. Glowing blue, it read "0537."
"By my observations, the Faceship can fire about every twelve hours. Considering it was last used this morning, we may not have long to disarm it before it's ready again."
Tangle nodded in acknowledgement.
"Finally. Sonic and Blaze," Miles turned to the couple. "You two will be taking on the fat man himself. There's no way he'll be expecting you two to be here. Chances are, he won't be prepped for Blaze's fire powers or Sonic's speed."
"Sounds good to me. I'm always down for giving ol' Egghead a thrashing!" Sonic exclaimed, dashing up to Blaze and wrapping an arm around her with a grin. "And with my super strong and amazing wife to back me up, boiling that egg'll be a piece'a cake!"
"Now, now Sonic. Don't think that showering me in compliments is going to let you sneak that past. It is indeed you who will be backing me up," Sonic's fiery bride corrected, playing along.
"Hmph, guess we'll have to wait and see," the blue blur quipped back with a wink.
"Aww… You two are so cute!" Amy cheered, eyes sparkling in captivation, prompting a chuckle and a bashful smile from the king and queen respectively.
"Oh, and one more thing!" Miles recalled. "I've got something for you two," the couple watched as he jogged over to the desk below the large computer monitor and grabbed two circular yellow devices. Striding over to the monarchs, Miles outstretched his hands, offering one to each of them.
"What are these devices?" Blaze asked, turning over the band in her hand.
"They're special wristbands of my own design that allow Amy here to monitor your location and vitals. They also double as communicators just in case," Miles paused, seeing that Blaze was about to interject. Seemingly predicting her worry, he continued. "Oh, and don't worry Blaze. These babies are cased in a special tungsten-carbon alloy that I cooked up. They can withstand temperatures of up to six thousand degrees!"
"Impressive…" The fiery female acknowledged with admiration.
"Great work, Tails!" Congratulated Sonic.
"So, does everyone know their assignments?" Espio asked with crossed arms, having remained mostly silent.
"Sure do! You're team 'save the town,' you're team 'meet the fat man,' and we're team 'destroy the death laser before it can suck all the life out of another city!" Tangle cheered with enthusiasm, pointing to each group as she called them out with her made-up names.
"Heh, sounds 'bout right," grunted Vector.
Amy took the lead, asserting herself to finalize the preparations. "Everyone, feel free to make the necessary preparations. Blaze and Sonic, I'll escort you two to your room. It's probably nothing on-par with the 'royal suite' you two are accustomed to, but it'll get the job done."
"I'm sure it will suit our needs just fine," insisted Blaze.
"It may not be a five star hotel, but I'm sure we'll just barely manage to scrape by," Sonic smirked, narrowing his eyes holding his index finger and thumb a sliver apart.
"That's good to hear, your highness," Amy jeered.
Miles stepped over to the central projector and tapped a few buttons. The image of the Faceship and threatened city below faded away, replaced by another, far simpler projection.
"Current Time: 14:47"
Miles stepped away, standing up straight and preparing to address the group. "Everyone be ready to meet in the aircraft hangar at sixteen hundred hours. That'll give you an hour and some change to prepare."
"Yeah! Let's put away the fat man for good this time!" Tangle cheered, springing up on her tail and punching towards the sky. The rest of the freedom fighters joined in cheering for their expected victory.
XXXX
Another explosion shook the castle. The frantic pattering of shoes on stone was drowned out by the sound of creaking metal and falling rubble.
"Clear a path!" A short, grey koala shouted as he sprinted down the hallway as fast as his little legs could carry him, pushing precious cargo ahead of him. A fast-approaching battalion of soldiers, most of them not too dissimilar from the koala in question, but holding laser rifles and clad in camouflage combat armor, acknowledged the command, stampeding around him.
The precious cargo in question? An extra-wide stroller, carrying none other than the very future of the kingdom itself, the royal children. The purple vehicle's wheels clanked along the ground, its driver trying his damndest to push it and its wailing passengers to safety.
The king and queen had entrusted him alone with the duty of caring for the royal children. The most esteemed and honorable duty he'd ever received. He'd be dead or completely incapacitated before he'd let anything happen to them.
The attack had begun mere hours after the monarchs' departure. His new battleship, no, battlefortress, had swatted away the royal navy like flies. Now, he was on the castle doorstep...
A crack slithered down the wall beside him like a strike of lightning as yet another explosion went off, threatening to make the royal guardsman lose his footing, but his resolve did not waiver.
A left turn, a right turn, more rumbling.
"Just… one more corner!" He huffed. "Safe room…"
The koala approached a T-section in the hallway. All that stood between him and his objective was this last right. He scurried up to the corner and prepared to enter the home stretch.
With his next step, an ear-rattling concussive force shattered the stone wall in front of him. No amount of resolve would save the panda from being knocked off his feet this time. He flew back a few feet, the stroller sliding along with him. He lost his grip.
"No!" He screamed.
As the stone crumbled and the dust cleared, light from the setting sun poured in, casting long, and quite round shadows on the ground beneath the figures responsible. He shook off the stun of the blast and looked up in horror, praying in vain that he wasn't going to see who he thought he was going to...
"Why, hello there!"
Eggman Nega. Arch nemesis of the kingdom and Queen Blaze's old and most feared enemy, stared down at Gardon through his sunglasses with a purely sinister grin. A small squadron of round, crimson robots loomed menacingly behind him.
Gardon scrambled to his feet, quickly returning his hands to the stroller handles and preparing to make a break for it.
"There's no use running. Even a pea-brain like yourself should realize that much," Nega sneered, adjusting his sunglasses.
Gardon screamed in defiance, bolting away at speeds he never thought possible for a tiny koala such as himself.
Nega's crooked smile only widened, he remained calm, turning to face the now-fleeing guardsman. He raised one arm, pointing at the objective and administering a simple, yet deathly effective command.
"Get them."
Sweat poured down the panda's face, the safe room's heavy steel walls and doorway lied only seconds away, but the horrid clanking of metal feet on the ruined tile floor behind him told him that he may not even have that much. His legs powered on, and as-if through some sort of miracle, he reached his destination.
He thrusted the stroller inside with all his might, immediately bounding over and pressing the large green button on the wall. It immediately turned red, the panel above it switching from reading "ready" to "locked."
With one final motion, Gardon sprang inside as the door slammed shut. The metal fists of robots crashed against the exterior of the room, the walls holding firm. This was it. The room could now only be opened from the inside.
Gardon cautiously rolled the cart to the back of the windowless steel box. A symphony of crying children and metal-on-metal continued for what felt like an eternity. The light flickered a few times, and then went out.
Now cowering in the fetal position, the horrified koala waited for the worst, the sound of metal being peeled like an onion. He quivered more violently with each passing moment.
But it never came.
The banging and crying ceased. The room was still pitch black, but what did he care? He and the kids were safe.
Safe…
Just as an agonisingly long-awaited sigh of relief was flowing out of Gardon's lungs, the room was illuminated with flashes of tangerine light and the whine of melting metal. The koala looked on in horror as the red hot blade of the laser sword that pierced the door began to move. Sparks flew everywhere as it made a sizable horizontal incision before moving to the vertical.
Gardon's hyperventilating resumed in full force and then some. He stumbled back, making contact with the cold, steel wall of the safe room and gluing himself to it.
The three royal children wailed in fear as the blade continued its journey.
Countless long and agonizing seconds later, the whining and sparks ceased. Gardon beheld a rectangle-shaped incision going straight through the six inch steel walls. With one final crash, the door fell forwards. Light that would've otherwise poured in was instead inhibited, obstructed by the sinister silhouettes of Nega and his robots. The faint, blood red glow of a laser sword was all that illuminated the room.
"Now…" Nega began, his shadowy figure stepping forward over the downed door, following his cutter robot in. The red glow illuminated his black silhouette, revealing the same sinister smile as before.
"Let's try this again, shall we?"
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All Sonic the Hedgehog characters and concepts are owned by SEGA. All original characters, as well as the AU concept as a whole is by Sonicxfan64 on DeviantArt.