Chapter 8: The Walls Come Tumbling Down
It's almost 2 AM when Knuckles drives Shadow's stolen car out of Vace Beach, and down the familiar dark road he was on the previous hour. Angel Lefthand sits quietly in the passenger seat, hands cuffed behind his back so he doesn't try anything while the Echidna is driving.
Knuckles pulls out his cellphone and dials Julie's number, knowing Dogg will answer
"I have Lefthand, AJ is on his way"
"Who?" Dogg asks
"AJ? ..oh. Right. I mean Enerjak"
"I knew you wouldn't disappoint"
"Where am I going?"
Dogg takes a long drag of his cigarette before answering
"...meet me at the waterfall near Bolton Pass, that's east of Vace Beach"
Knuckles hangs up, dials Vector's number and calls him
"Vector, head down to Bolton Pass, some waterfall down there. He'll use Julie as bait. Tell Espio to go in undetected, man. He can't be seen"
"He won't be. We'll get your girl out, I promise"
"Thank you"
The Echidna hangs up, grabs Angel's cellphone and tries to unlock it, but there's a password.
"Call your buddy who has my friends, tell him to meet us at the waterfall. Now" Knuckles orders
"Fuck you, Knux! Your little shithead friends will die-"
Knuckles strikes the gothic hedgehog with his forearm, drawing blood from his mouth.
"I'm not fuckin' around, call him!"
"Okay! Shit!..."
The car pulls over on the side of the road and Knuckles holds the cellphone next to Angel's head so he can call Mordred Hood.
"Mr. Hood? ...bring them to the waterfalls in Bolton Pass... I know I told you to kill them, but now I need them alive. We'll meet you there. Alright"
Knuckles hangs up and puts the cellphone inside the glove compartment and slams it shut.
"...we make a straight exchange and you're free to go. No bullshit 'til then, got me? Or else I'll end you" Knuckles warns
"...you really are a piece of shit, aren't you, Jonathan? You know damn well Dogg is gonna cap me on sight, and you're just going to feed me to him! You son of a bitch!"
"..the same way you've been feeding this city to your killers, right? Mr. Tuner, wasn't it? Yeah. I must be way worse than you guys.."
Angel looks the echidna in the eyes "...please, don't do this!.. just call the fuckin' cops, man! I'll take prison over Dogg! ...you're taking me to my grave, Knuckles... please-"
"You're god damn right, I am. Then you'll finally get what's been comin' to you for everyone you've sent to their deaths"
Angel curses at the Echidna in an unknown language and leans back in the black leather seat.
The feeling of dread hits Knuckles in the stomach as the car gets silent for the rest of the ride.
Either way, this will finally be over for him after tonight.
SEVERAL MILES AWAY
Mordred Hood sits in the second row of seats in this 7 seat SUV, keeping an eye on AJ, Starr and Duncan in the back seats, while another member of Angel's Flock watches Sonia, sitting in the seat next to Mordred.
Another SUV follows close behind them, serving as protection detail.
"We're here, sir" The Driver announces
"Alright. Get ready, this might be a set up. Protect the boss at ALL COSTS, understand? Angel lives through this, men. ...we owe it to him"
Just as the SUV drives through the dark bushes and branches of nearby trees, Dogg fires his Sniper Rifle 4 times, each bullet hitting all the members of The Flock.
Clove jumps around the treetops and fires her own weapon at the Protection Detail, killing them instantly.
Julie Su sits on a tree stump in the shadows, forced to watch this as she prays Knuckles comes to save her.
Clove jumps off a tree, lands next to Sleuth Dogg and both aim their weapons at the two SUV's.
"...remaining passengers! Out of the vehicle, now. Lets go" Clove orders
The back door opens and AJ steps out first. Dogg lets out one last breath as he glares at the giant teenage Echidna.
Starr stands in front of AJ and her hands glow Magenta purple as her Elemental Energy flows through her body. She faces Dogg, ready to protect her boyfriend from the hitman.
"That's sweet. She thinks she can save him from me" Dogg says mockingly
"Why don'tcha come find out what'll happen if you try it, douchebag" Starr responds
Clove points her gun at the Magenta hedgehog "This is the only thing that's gonna happen"
Clove turns her gun and fires a round into Duncan's stomach, dropping him on his back
"You fuckin' bitch!" Starr screams
Starr leans down next to the Red hedgehog as he bleeds out, groaning in pain while she presses down on the wound.
"Sh-she shot me!... oh, fuck.."
"Hopefully that shows you that we are not messing around. I'm not in the business of shooting punks, but I will in this case if you fuck with me in ANY way. Got that, kids?" Dogg asks
By the time Sonia jumps out and comes around the other side of the SUV, Duncan is barely alive and Dogg growls at the teenagers.
"Sleuth, what're you doing?!" Sonia shouts
Dogg rolls his eyes "Oh, for fuck sakes, the hell are you still doin' here, Pinky?!"
"Don't do this, you don't have to kill anyone!"
"Yes, I do! That's the whole reason I called this meeting! Angel, Knuckles, Enerjak - they all die tonight! Then, I'll disappear for good. But I have to end this"
"Dogg!"
Clove looks at Sonia "What're you, his girlfriend?"
"No. She's Knuckles' girlfriend" Dogg answers
Julie Su jumps out of her seat "No she isn't, I'm the one pregnant with his child!"
Sonia's eyes widen as she makes eye contact with the pink Echidna, while Clove laughs hysterically
"Wait, so Knux knocked her up, left her and is bangin' this chick, now? That's amazing!" She says as she laughs
"Yeah, pretty great role model for the kids, right" Dogg adds
Starr is able to stabilize Duncan's wound, and even use her telekinetic powers to pull the bullet out and finally close the wound. He is still in immense pain, but at least he'll survive.
Meanwhile, Vector and Espio sneak through the bushes as quietly as possible so they don't tip off Dogg.
Vector calls Knuckles "We're here. Yeah, they're all down there. Dogg's new girlfriend helped him shoot everyone in Angel's Flock, but I don't see Shadow... we'll cover all exits as best as we can. Get here fast, the girl just shot Duncan... His patience is already worn thin, man"
Dogg suddenly sniffs around the air, his sense of smell alerting him to the trees.
He pulls out a machine gun and sprays bullets all over the tree lines, but he only sees small birds fly away so he puts his weapon down.
Espio used his invisible camouflage and ducked to avoid detection, but Vector took a couple bullets to the right arm. He does his best to avoid making any noise while the blood pumps out of his bicep.
"...get here. Now.." Vector says to his phone, his voice starting to get weak
Another 10 minutes goes by before Knuckles shows up, driving through the bushes and following the same path Mordred's driver did.
Dogg fires a warning shot "That's far enough"
Knuckles puts the car in park, but doesn't turn off the engine. He steps out and looks at his friends, all standing behind Dogg and Clove. Sonia and Julie look him in the eyes as he walks towards the group.
"Alright. Here's Angel. You got me, now just let everyone else go" Knuckles says
Dogg looks inside the car "...get him out here. Bring him to me"
Knuckles steps around the car. opens the door and grabs Angel's right arm.
"Knuckles, Don't!" He pleads
The Echidna ignores this and drags him out of his seat, then throws the handcuffed warlord to the ground.
Angel slowly looks up and sees Dogg looking down at him with a menacing grin.
"Sleuth, listen-"
The hitman kicks the defenceless hedgehog in the face, unable to block the shot.
"Alright, you got 'em. Everyone else gets to walk. That's the deal!" Knuckles says
Dogg puts his gun down, leans against a tree and lights up a cigarette
"..It's been awhile since we've all been together. Do you remember that, Jules? I remember you. And you too, kid. AJ, you call yourself? ...well, I remember when you put a hole through my skull. And I can't forgive that. I ain't built like that"
AJ gets ready to fight when he sees Dogg stand up straight
"...I understand you and this Enerjak thing aren't the same guy, but you shot me in the head-"
"Remember down at the beach? You already got him back, asshole!" Starr shouts
Clove aims her weapon down at Duncan "You shut your mouth or he dies!"
Dogg finishes his smoke and reloads his handgun
"..I gotta finish you"
Knuckles steps in front of AJ, Starr and Duncan
"They're just kids. This started with me, you and Angel. Keep it between us" Knuckles says
"Now he wants to be The Guardian. You don't owe these kids nothing! The fuck are you still protecting them for?"
"...because I haven't been when I needed to"
Dogg points his gun towards Julie "Fine, then I'll just-"
Espio throws 6 razor sharp Shurikens down at the Hitman, causing him to drop his gun. Clove turns her weapon to Knuckles, but Starr uses her telekinetic abilities to disarm her and push the female thug away from the group.
"Go!" Knuckles shouts
Sonia gathers the teens and sends them off through the woodlands, while Vector protects Julie as they escape through the opposite side.
Knuckles tackles Dogg and punches his face with amazing speed, drawing blood instantly. He doesn't stop his assault, kneeing and stomping on his head savagely.
Angel sees his chance to run away, so he gets to his feet but remembers Knuckles put his phone in the glove compartment of the stolen car. The gothic hedgehog gets back inside and struggles to open the compartment but eventually grabs his phone.
He dials a number frantically "Earnest, I need a ride! Dogg has me, come RIGHT NOW!"
Dogg pushes Knuckles off, grabs a hidden gun from an ankle holster and fires a few shots into Angel's back, dropping him to his knees as he screams in agony.
Knuckles kicks the gun out of his hands and picks the hitman up
"You wanna threaten my pregnant girlfriend?! You piece of shit?!"
He punches Dogg as hard as he can, and he takes the shots like they're nothing. Dogg lifts his knee and elbow-strikes Knuckles, knocking him to the ground.
"Give me a second, dickhead... let me finish this prick!.."
Dogg picks up his gun and fires the killing shot into the back of Angel's head. Blood splatters all over, satisfying the hitman.
Knuckles gets to one knee when Dogg points the barrel at him
"You lose"
"WAIT!" Sonia shouts
Dogg points the gun at her, stopping himself from pulling the trigger
"Get outta here, Pink! Don't watch this!"
Dogg can't react fast enough to stop Knuckles from tackling him, taking the gun away and shooting him in the chest until he runs out of bullets.
Meanwhile, Clove runs up to Sonia and pushes her into the deep waterfall.
Knuckles gets off Dogg, forearm-strikes Clove and jumps in after the pink hedgehog. They freefall all the way down, but Knuckles grabs her before they slam into the ice cold waters below.
The impact causes Sonia to cry out in pain underwater, clearly hurt.
Clove helps Dogg to his feet and they stand over Angel's corpse, confirming the gothic hedgehog is finally dead.
Back down in the water, Knuckles and Sonia struggle to stay above the rapids sweeping them down the coast, so he puts Sonia on his back while he holds his breath.
They reach a patch of dirt and Sonia climbs up, while Knuckles stays in the rushing water.
"You alright? Sonia! Can you swim?" He asks
"My neck really hurts.. I'm not sure I can"
Knuckles looks around "Alright, don't worry about it, I'll get us outta here"
If they follow the current down the coast, they'll be taken miles from Bolton Pass and they can swim for the nearest shore.
"Okay, we're gonna follow the current, I'll hang onto the branches in the dirt so we don't get swept under. Just stay on my back and hold on, okay? We'll make it out, I swear"
Sonia nods "I trust you"
"Come on, lets go"
She hangs onto his shoulders and Knuckles digs his fists into the dirt, muddying the waters as they slowly inch down the coast.
He almost loses his grip a few times as the current gets stronger, but he hangs on.
Sonia looks ahead and her heart stops once she sees what's waiting for them
"Knuckles, WAIT!"
"What?!"
"It's Angel's Flock!"
He looks ahead and sees 3 medium sized boats with search lights, clearly looking for someone.
"...fuck it, I can take 'em"
"Knuckles, they'll kill you!"
"Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence.."
"They have machine guns! Think, Knuckles! You can't beat them all before they start shooting"
"Never hurts to try.."
Sonia jumps off his back and swims in front of the Echidna
She grasps his cheeks "Knuckles, you're going to be a father, that child is going to need you!... Angel is dead and the whole world knows the truth, now! Forget them. Lets go home"
Knuckles begins to calm down as he thinks about this, then Sonia leans into kiss him, while struggling to stay above the water.
One of the search lights spots them
"Is that the boss?"
"No, it's Rochov and the Echidna!"
"Kill them!"
Knuckles throws Sonia up back onto the small dirt hill and he barely ducks out of sight before the bullets hit him. He climbs up and they race into a small cave to avoid the gun fire.
They get 12 feet in when a giant stone wall stops them.
"Fuck!" Knuckles shouts
"There's gotta be another way out!"
"...I've got an idea"
The Echidna starts punching the wall, his spiked gloves break through the stone with ease.
The Flock make their way upstream, so Knuckles punches as fast as he can.
Then he knocks the foundation down, causing massive chunks of stone to fall on his shoulders.
"Knuckles!"
"Stay back, I got this! ARGH! Holy Fuck!" He grunts and strains
"It's going to crush you!"
"I can do this, I CAN DO THIS!"
More stones fall from the mountain side like an avalanche, smashing on top of the giant piece Knuckles is holding up.
One final piece smashes the through the dirt they stand on and water begins to flood the cave.
"Sonia, grab my hand!"
In an instant, everything, and everyone, is pulled into the undertow.
Knuckles can't see anything in the muddy water, but searches for Sonia. He pushes chunks away and feels through, but doesn't find her.
Come on. Find her. She's not dying.
The Echidna digs and swims around for minutes, not bothering to go up for air. He tries to clear the water but nothing helps.
He looks for her until he drowns. Everything fades from dark grey to pitch black.