AUTHOR'S NOTE: I should really mention this as a disclaimer: I have never, in my entire life, finished a Sonic game. This means I have very few to no knowledge about the canon Sonic timeline, nor about the intricacies of its world such as various stage/place names, the size of Super Emeralds, how they turn from regular Chaos Emeralds, Knuckles' prayer lines in order to make that happen (assuming that is required), etc.; all of which I had to know from the Sonic Wiki or other sources of info like other people's media, animation series such as Sonic X (which I have finished a long time ago) and Sonic Boom (nearly finished, halfway at the second season), etc. I suppose what interests me in the fandom in the first place is the character designs, their personalities, and the chance for me to use my imagination to come up with comedic situations for them or anything else.
With that being said, I am also quite sure that this is going to be a rather subpar fanfic since this is my very first one; in fact, I came up with the basic idea of a "Sonic vs. Tails" fanfic (which isn't very original, I am aware of that [*ahem* Archie Sonic issue #179 *ahem*]) in 2014/15. I've made several renditions of it, it's went through several hiatuses, and years later, I intend to hopefully finish it once and for all so that it won't bother me anymore. Either that, or it ends up in another (perhaps permanent) hiatus due to my rather busy college life, but hopefully not. (update: it has been finished, thankfully) I can honestly list a lot of reasons why this is going to be rather subpar, but y'know what, I'm not gonna beat myself up about it. Instead, I'm gonna let you beat me up about it with a review or two. Enjoy.
AUTHOR'S NOTE V.2.0.: This story has undergone a rewrite. After a thoroughly brilliant review from Haloixix13, getting inspiration from reading other stories on this site, and after going through this entire thing over and over again, I've decided that the play/script format I initially used is indeed rather faulty, especially for the introduction which I think is rather weak and can be improved through this format change. Although plot-wise, not much has changed other than the addition of the alternative ending. My apologies for not being able to completely fix everything Haloixix13 mentioned.
Chapter 1: That Day
Eggman's base, 12 PM mid-day. After picking up a Chaos Emerald signal on Tails' radar system, which seemed to be emanating from the heart of said base, our two heroes now stand outside the walls to the base, attempting to infiltrate and swipe the emerald from the doctor's possession after effortlessly bypassing the security of the outer perimeter. Sonic the Hedgehog waits rather impatiently at the side, crossing his arms and tapping his foot while Tails slowly and carefully carves an arch in the metal wall with a blowtorch. Soon, the blue blur, desperately lusting for some action, begins to lament.
"So tell me again. Why can't we just do this the old-fashioned way and blast through the front gates? It'd be easier and faster that way," said the hedgehog to his twin-tailed fox sidekick who is occupied at the moment with the weld work. Upon hearing his complaint yet again, Tails lets out an annoyed sigh as he takes off his welding mask and puts down his blowtorch.
"For the fifth and last time, it's too risky, loud, and dumb. We don't know the exact numbers of Badniks inside," replied Tails.
Small bicker such as this isn't rare among the two Mobians and recently, it has been happening even more. For there exists an ironic dichotomy between the two; whilst Sonic is the thrill-seeker type who would prioritize acting before thinking, Tails is the exact opposite, preferring to approach his problems rationally before engaging to action. In fact, moments before this mission is put into place, Sonic and Tails had briefly argued about whose methods to use and this time, Tails' stealthy approach had won, much to Sonic's dismay.
"So what? That never stopped us before. What are you, scared?" Sonic mockingly replied.
"Look, I've got the security system disabled already and it could come back on any second. We're wasting time. We're doing it my way, the smart way, and that's final."
"Sheesh, fine. I'm just saying my way could be more fun," Sonic scoffed as he averts his uncaring gaze away from Tails.
"At least we won't risk ending up dead this way," dismissed Tails.
After a brief moment of interruption, Tails dons his welding mask and picks up the blowtorch once again to finally finish what he had started. Seconds later, the blowtorch reaches the other end of the arch and the thick metal wall falls backwards with ease, exposing an entry gap. Tails then removes his welding equipment and beckons Sonic to proceed first, seeing that he is the leader of the team and all.
"Let's go. Remember, do not take on the guards unless neces-"
"Yeah, yeah. Sure thing, boss. I'm sure you know best," Sonic sarcastically cut off Tails' words, generating an irritated grumble from Tails as a response.
Soon, they begin their infiltration as they advance slowly on the tip of their toes, remaining close to the wall whilst carefully peeking through every corner before proceeding. But after a few minutes, they noticed something odd.
"Where are the guards? This doesn't seem right… there should be at least several of them patrolling here right now…" Tails whispered.
"What are you talking about? This is great! You want some guards instead? Come on, let's take advantage of this!" Before Tails could prevent him from doing the thing he knows he's about to do, Sonic took off, dashing through the hallways without a care in the world, inviting danger to come and challenge him.
"No no no, wait! …aww, what's the use," lamented Tails as he picks up his pace to catch up with the speedster.
Moments later, Tails reaches one of the doors to the central storage room to find Sonic, already standing there with his arms still crossed and his foot still tapping. Fortunately, no guards were alerted and no alarm went off. Still, Tails went on to scold Sonic after catching his breath thanks to Sonic's unexpected (yet cliché) maneuver.
"Do you realize how reckless you were!? You could've alerted the entire place!" Tails whispered to Sonic in an angry tone.
"Yeah, well I didn't. So what's your point?" Sonic retorted, prompting another annoyed sigh from Tails.
"Okay, fine. Just don't do it again. And keep it quiet! This isn't over until we have the emerald in our hands," whispered Tails once again.
Tails then inserts a small chip into a slot on the keypad next to the door, runs his fingers all over the buttons (which, to the untrained eye, may seem like they're pressed in a random order), and the door opens easily, revealing a Chaos Emerald, hovering above a small pillar protruding out of a small hole on the floor in the middle of the vast, circular room with 3 other doors surrounding it.
"There she is. This is too easy, lemme tell ya," said Sonic confidently as he walks over to the pillar only to be halted by Tails grasping onto one of his arms.
"Wait, stop. Don't you find it suspicious? What if it's a trap?" Tails warned, only to be brushed off by Sonic's lack of insight.
"Oh come on, we were fine when we dashed through that hallway. Ol' Egghead's probably taking a nap or something," said Sonic as he releases his arm from Tails' grip and proceeds to the pillar.
But the moment he even got near its proximity, two half pieces of glass tubing suddenly appear from the floor and ceiling, trapping Sonic inside with the pillar which had now vanished into the floor along with the emerald. And to worsen their predicament, the four doors of the storage room were forcefully shut, wiping Sonic's smug expression off in a flash.
"SONIC!" Tails yelped as he runs over to the glass tube to knock it a few times, confirming his fear for the worst. "No, no, no! This is reinforced glass! It's going to be tough for you to break out!"
Not long after, a familiar, slightly distorted voice can be heard through the speakers on the ceiling.
"Excellent observational skills, my little friend! I've been expecting you. I'm flattered to see you two visit me," said Dr. Eggman welcoming his intruding nemeses through the microphone in his security room.
"We're not here for you, old man! Shouldn't you be at a retirement home or something!?" Sonic yelled to the speakers on the ceiling.
"Hey show me some respect, you brat! Anyway… you two came at the right time. I've been working on something, you see, and you, my little chopper-tailed friend, are the perfect lab rat for my experiment. So, here's the deal: if you let me "have fun" with you for a while, I'll let your blue rodent friend go. How's that sound?" Eggman bargained as he rubs his hand in a typical villain-ish manner.
"What exactly are you working on!?" Tails asked.
"It wouldn't be a surprise if I tell you now, would it? Just answer the last question."
Tails stayed silent for a while, contemplating his answer. For all he knows, there's a very high chance of it all being an elaborate ruse that would end badly for him and/or Sonic. But after thinking it through and coming to the conclusion that he has no other choice, Tails reluctantly agreed to the mad scientist's offer.
"…fine. Bring it."
"Great! So, this is the thing that I've been working on."
The doctor then pushes a button on his console, prompting one of the huge doors of the storage room to open. Behind it stood a blue robot bearing quite the resemblance to Sonic, standing ever so menacingly as it waits for Eggman's inputs; a terrible revelation for Sonic, knowing that Tails won't stand a chance against the metallic replica. The young sidekick had always been rather inexperienced in hand-to-hand combat and Sonic, being the protective 'older brother' figure that he is to Tails, knows this well.
"Aww no. Tails, what are you doing!?"
"I know what I'm doing, don't worry," assured Tails as he musters all his courage in order to save his best friend and, for once, return the favor.
"I'll be honest, it's not much work. Just a slight algorithm adjustment, some bug fixes, yada yada yada, software things. But of course, I'll need to test it to see if it works. Metal Sonic, ENGAGE!"
At Eggman's immediate command, Metal Sonic charges forward towards Tails, who couldn't dodge in time and is hit by Metal Sonic's tackle, sending him flying backwards a few meters before sliding on the cold, metal floor. Tails slowly gets up while groaning in pain. Sonic then knocks on the glass tube a few times trying to get Tails' attention.
"You gotta anticipate his attacks! Don't let your guard down!" Sonic yelled from inside his cylindrical tomb.
"I'm trying, I know!"
Metal Sonic then dashes forward and unleashes a rapid chain of attacks consisting of hard-hitting punches and kicks which Tails could only block as he is slowly pushed backwards by the force of the robot's strikes.
"Don't just block! Hit 'em! Get on the offensive!" Sonic advised once again.
"I'm trying! But I'm not seeing any open- ARGH!"
Sonic's words only proved to be detrimental as it had distracted Tails, leaving an opening for Metal Sonic to break through his block and land several punches to Tails' body and chin, sending Tails flying back yet again. Tails gets up once more, propels himself towards his opponent with the help of his namesakes, and was eventually able to land a punch followed by a kick on Metal Sonic as well; which only proved to be futile since none of Tails' strikes managed to even put the slightest dent on the robot nor make it flinch. Metal Sonic then retaliates by delivering a roundhouse kick, knocking Tails down to the floor yet again.
Meanwhile, Sonic continues to shout commands and advices from behind the glass, but to no avail. Tails would continue to throw himself over and over towards his enemy in hopes of freeing his trapped older brother, only to have his attacks deflected again and again while continuing to receive hits from Metal Sonic instead. Even after resorting to using projectile-based weapons such as his Energy Cannon, Tails still couldn't land a hit on his fast-moving target (albeit not faster than the original Sonic himself).
Having had enough, Sonic attempts to break through the glass tube by using his Spin Dash ability, bouncing around wildly inside the tube, but not even a small crack appears. Sonic then tries again, and again, and again, all while the one-sided fight continued in the background. Several small cracks finally start to appear, but at the price of Sonic's body bruising a lot and an open wound on his forehead, bleeding. At this point, it's an ensured victory for Metal Sonic. Tails lies face down on the floor, injured, exhausted, and unable to get back on his feet. Metal Sonic then grabs him by the neck and lifts him up in the air as he frantically tries to release the solid grip from his neck, wriggling about and struggling to breathe. Sonic could do nothing as he watched everything unfold before him in his prison cell.
"Tails, no!" Sonic shouted as he desperately knocks on the cracking glass tube with his fist, before the sharp pain all over his body puts him on his knees. "Argh… this hurts…"
"Hahah! Glad to know I've got it right this time! Should be another 4 months before the next update. Ah, just one more feature I've yet to test. And I think you'll like this, Sonic. Metal Sonic, exterminate."
Upon said command, Metal Sonic transforms its other free hand into the shape of a triangular blade and swiftly drives it into Tails' gut. A sharp scream of pain escapes Tails' mouth as he winced in agony.
"NOOOOO!" Sonic screamed as he is left powerless beyond Tails' reach.
Metal Sonic then pulls out his blade-hand from the newly created wound and throws Tails' weak body to the side to bleed out. Now furiously enraged, Sonic attempts to Spin Dash through the reinforced (yet cracking) glass one last time, which finally worked as he manages to shatter his cylindrical tomb and fly straight towards Metal Sonic, knocking it onto the wall before falling down onto the floor in just one hit. Still engulfed in vengeful wrath, Sonic approaches the now incapacitated Metal Sonic, sparks of electricity escaping its body, before proceeding to stomp its head 3 times.
"YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SCRAP METAL SHIT!"
Although Sonic isn't normally one to resort to vulgar language, seeing his metallic duplicate gut his beloved 'younger brother' was officially crossing the line for him and on the 3rd stomp, the robot's head shattered into pieces, leaving it decapitated. Still not satisfied, Sonic then kicked its headless body, sending it flying across the room and turning it into nothing more than a heap of metal rubble after crashing onto a wall.
"Whoa, hey, watch your language, young man!" The doctor said in a condescending tone, only to receive another biting response from the blue hedgehog.
"HEY HOW ABOUT FUCK YOU, HUH!? YOU FAT PIECE OF SHIT!" Sonic screamed at the ceiling as he desperately tries to hold back his tears at the thought of losing his true companion.
"Perhaps you should tend to your friend rather than curse at me."
Meanwhile, Tails, lying on a small puddle of red with tears streaming down his face due to the unbearable pain, beckons to his ally for help, extending one of his hands to reach Sonic while using the other hand to cover the gaping wound as best as he could.
"Agh… S-Sonic…" Upon hearing that meek voice for plea, Sonic wastes no time to rush to his friend's aid and kneel down next to him.
"Oh shit, no no no no… you're gonna make it, it's alright, I'm gonna get you out of here, okay? Just hang on," said Sonic in a panicked tone as he puts his arms underneath Tails' head and legs to lift him up.
"It… h-hurts, Sonic…" said Tails as he coughs out several spurts of blood, his consciousness slowly fading away due to the blood loss.
With his dying companion in his arms, Sonic cursed at Eggman once more before taking off to safety.
"I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS, YOU BASTARD! I SWEAR IT!"
"Sure, you will. Come back anytime, boys. I'll be waiting! Hahahahaha!"
Sonic then makes his haste towards their initial entry point with Tails still within his grasp, all while dodging the attacks of dozens of Egg Pawns waiting for them in the hallways.
After a 15-minute run, Sonic finally manages to get Tails to a hospital in Station Square. The doctors who handled him said Sonic got here just in the nick of time. A few more minutes late and they would've lost him. Tails had lost a lot of blood, went into shock, and had to be hospitalized for a full month before he was allowed to go home. During this time, Sonic never stepped foot outside of the hospital (or even Tails' room, unless necessary). He stayed by his friend's bedside 24/7, making sure his needs are attended to and providing him with company. It was also during this time that Sonic felt a massive guilt being laid upon him, a guilt for not being able to prevent that gruesome incident in time. After much time thinking, Sonic finally comes to a very hard decision which he felt is inappropriate to break down to Tails while he's still in recovery.