Chapter 12

I awoke to the sounds of my friend's voices. They were startled and screaming, "Let him go!". It was only when the light of the doorway came into view that I realized..they were talking about me.

My eyes shot open as the memory of The Good Doctor's experiment filled my heart with pure, cold terror, and I began to fight. It wars the two, black bunnies that were taking me, and though their grip was iron, my frightened self easily overpowered them, and I ran back to the bed, breathing hard.

My friends, at seeing this, stopped their cries and watched in fearful silence. Though I had said that I knew nothing about this particular experiment, they now saw that I had been lying.

I pressed myself against the wall, one of the bunnies sighing in her robotic way and walking with annoyance toward me. Her index finger switched itself out with a needle, and with a look of pure terror, I knew that they were going to take me weather I cooperated or not.

Suddenly, Tail's outline filled the dark room in front of me, his breath shaking as tears fell down his cheeks. His arms were spread wide and he stood protectively as he screamed at the rabbits, "Though he may be afraid of you-I'm not!" He risked a glance at me, and my heart fell. His beautiful blues had gone gray with all the pain, and bloodshot with the sleepless nights. He didn't deserve this, none of them did..

But he still continued, "If you want to hurt my Big Brother, you're going to have to get through me!" A long forgotten image filled my head. My sister had done this once before, her voice saying the exact same thing. But…

"That's enough, Tails." A soft, yet dangerous voice filled the air as I spoke. Any joy that had been there before vanished, reality taking its place, "You don't need to get yourself hurt for a selfish jerk like me..." I had stopped shaking, my eyes broken as I jumped down from the bed and stood in front of him, "Go back to sleep...you'll need it, buddy." I felt his head fall on my back, his silent tears now telling in his voice as he truly cried.

"Don't take him!" He was still trying to protect me, "Can't you see...you've done enough already!" He began pounding on my back, and I let him, closing my eyes to hold back my own tears. I knew what this experiment was, but he didn't. All he knew was that I tried to run from it in terror, and that alone broke him into trying to stop it. But no one could...not even her.

She had done the same thing as him, but she was just sedated and pushed out of the way..then she was due for a water punishment the next day. Though I doubted that The Good Doctor would do such a thing to Tails, I wasn't ready to find out what he would do.

I turned with my tired eyes to face him, and he cried into my chest, "It'll be okay Tails...they're just taking me to get some tests done.." I petted his head, trying to calm him down, "I overreacted because of a nightmare I had." I lied as I had not had dreams this night, but it was okay as he began to calm down.

"So you won't be hurt?" He was still sobbing, but it wasn't as bad.

"I won't be hurt." I looked into his bloodshot eyes, "Now I need you to get some sleep, alright?" The innocence of a child was too precious to take away...why did this man have to take it away?

He nodded, and I handed him off to Amy, whispering in her ear, "Take care of him, would you?" She looked at me with tears in her eyes, but nodded all the same.

"I will."

"And...if I start screaming..." I still whispered, "Make sure he doesn't know." Her eyes widened when I finished. But with nothing more to say, I turned away and walked to the waiting bunnies. They had watched the entire thing, and yet, held no feeling toward it. It was just another setback, another pesky, childish banter, and though I wanted to be angry at them, I couldn't. They had been programmed to be that way. It wasn't their fault as much as it was his.

Silence filled the room as I was led out, my heart slowly descending back into the darkness it had just come out of. The panic I felt was overpowering, and once we had gotten far enough away from the room, it overflowed. I pulled myself out of their hold and tried to find a way to escape, but they were way ahead of me. Before I even had time to think, the one I had pushed pressed me against the wall. I struggled, but it was too late. He needle had sunken into me.

The effects of the sedative took hold almost immediately, relaxing my muscles forcefully, and numbing my mind to the world. I fell to the ground, unable to even stand with that strong dose. My mind was whirling, my heart breaking as they now dragged my ragged body to hell. I could do nothing to get away anymore.

They had each taken an arm, and were dragging me on my back so that I could watch the lights flicker above me. One...two...three...four. Desperate to hold onto something, my mind counted them as they passed by. One more down until my immanent defeat.

A soft, ironic laughter filled the air. How silly..to think that I would be defeated so easily after all that I've accomplished. I've faced gods, demons, and all manner of things so much more powerful than this cruel man. I didn't even know how it happened. One day I was playing with my friends, free as a bird. The next, I was down here, living my memories and nightmares all over again. It was purgatory down here...was this my punishment for all my sins? Was this my punishment for leaving her here? The laughter turned from ironic to just plain sad. If so, than it was fitting. She lost everything because of me, and now, I guess it was my turn.

I wanted to run, be free again. I wanted to see all my friends smiling and happy. I would even love to see Eggman causing trouble again. I want to go back...nothing he ever did was as bad. I want to go back… I want to see her again...I want to take her with me through that grate. She had been my light, my comfort, and only now did I realize, that though I had had her...she had had nobody. When she had nightmares, there was no one to sing her to sleep. When she had screamed, there was no one to hug. She had been completely alone in this condemned facility. I deserved to be forgotten. She didn't deserve the pain and tears she went through...

But it wasn't just her. It was my friends too. I dragged them down here with me just like I always would. I would always get them into dangerous situations because I knew I could have always just saved them...but who would save us now?

I just wanted this all to end. There was no point in continuing down this cruel, dark road.

I didn't want to be the hero...I just wanted a peaceful life with my sister, and my friends..was that too much to ask? This whole time, I had been holding onto the hope that we would somehow be saved, and this would all go back to the way it was. But deep down, I knew that wouldn't happen...at least, not before I was completely gone.

The laughter returned to the ironic, but it was a sinister and dark sound. Maybe this would finally do me in! The terror turned into a false joy, the lights flickering in and out like a heartbeat. Why be afraid when you can be happy? My heart was racing, my mind numb and lifeless beneath the hold of the sedatives.

Finally, the room came where the lights went out. I still laid on my back, staring at the black ceiling gloomily. All laughter was gone, my mind finished with thinking. I knew where I was. I had been here before. It was a memory that had haunted me my entire life, the one I could never forget.

The mechanical arms I knew were there latched onto mine and pulled me into the center. A giant spider web made from lies and pain. I didn't have the strength to fight it, or to even speak. The fear paralyzed me despite the drugs.

"Are you ready, Maurice?" His voice came through the intercom, monotone and lifeless. I did nothing, said nothing, but he wasn't waiting for my answer, "We only have six emeralds, but luckily, we have a spare." A crane brought down the big, beautiful gem that was the Master Emerald. It was almost six feet tall, and shown emerald even in this overwhelming darkness. Cables hooked up to it right before my eyes, hissing and seething with it's power. Then it sunk below me, completing the circle of gems.

My eyes watched it for as long as it was in front of me, then faded with the darkness.

"Nothing to say?" He asked. I heard scribbles as he wrote down my responses, "Well, no matter. The test will continue despite it." I didn't even blink, there was no reason to.

I waited for the test to begin, but it didn't for a bit. It were as though he were thinking, hesitating. I looked up at the camera watching me, a small hope in my heart that maybe we wouldn't do this after all. But I was wrong.

As soon as I looked at him, I heard scribbles, then the machine whirring. Panic filled my lungs and stopped my breathing. My mind began to race with my heart following after. My eyes were wide as they followed the electricity on the wires, then shut as the pain tried to make them explode.

It was so much worse than what I remembered, the pain restarting my heart every second, and destroying my mind beneath the pressure. The Master Emerald was the reason, and it's overwhelming power was crushing my tiny body with ease.

I screamed, long and true throughout the facility, then everything was gone.

I was alone in a dark void, the shaking, black room shown to me through a pain of clouded glass. I tried to stumble toward it, another terror filling my heart at being here...but it was too late. He was already there.

Give up, child. He whispered in my ear, his hand over my mouth as I tried to struggle, You don't need to fight anymore.

I still tried to get away, but the shadow held firm, Don't be afraid, child. I'll make sure that no one will hurt you anymore. I stopped, my mind bending to meet the darkening dawn.

That's it, Sonic. Don't fight me anymore. I heard the buckle of the muzzle as he put it on my mouth gently, sealing it to the chains he had placed about my wrists and feet, I'll keep you safe from them. He won't bother you anymore.

He took me by the scruff and dragged my mangled body to the front to watch him work through my own eyes. I could no longer do anything. I couldn't even touch the window, and he knew it.

You've been so abused, so broken lately...I won't let them do that to you anymore. He was cold, but I knew that he cared. He had visited me before when I was younger...he had hugged me that day, telling me that he would be watching. He's almost taken hold multiple times when things seemed hopeless, but I was always able to regain control...but this time was different. I didn't know if I could regain control anymore...and in truth, I didn't know if I wanted to.

I felt his hand as he petted my head, my glassy eyes watching the screen without emotion or care.

Goodnight..Sonic.