Chapter 3: Caught In the Loop

The Cleaver swung it's scythe-like blade at neck height...releasing a shower of sparks from around Pia's neck and throwing her off balance. The Jumpsuit's circuits were damaged from the impact, causing the cloaking field to shimmer with glimpses of clear vision, revealing a lightweight grey armour of sorts. Pia quickly rolled out of the way of the next attack from the Cleaver, at the same time making sure to push the button to deactivate the cloaking field. It didn't fool the machine, so she might as well be able to see her arms and legs herself, rather than relying on her training in low-vision combat.

Dr. Pretorious's guard dog was a deceptively simple-looking machine. It was just a low metal box atop a set of padded wheels, with numerous robotic limbs sticking out, each one adorned with a razor-sharp blade at the tip. It shouldn't be able to move that fast, or be sophisticated enough to scan through a cloaking field, but taking advantage of the erroneous assumptions of his enemies was always Pretorious's style. Pia wasn't about to underestimate the machine now.

Pia the natural born pyro-kinetic dodged the Cleaver's blades and fought back by conjuring up some nasty fireballs, which she shot into the bulk of the robot with bullet speed. The Cleaver got bumped back against the wall, with nearly all of its limbs melted off. Pia strode forward to deliver the finishing blow, when suddenly the final remaining limb lashed out like a snake, revealing itself to be completely independent of the obvious joints built into its shape. The metal whip curled around Pia's right leg painfully tight and pulled her forward, causing her to fall on her butt and get dragged across the floor. When she was close enough, the metal box of the Cleaver brought out a trio of previously unseen blades, each one tied to free-moving tubes of SmartAlloy metal, just like one that caught the cat unaware and tied up her leg.

The blades were flung downwards toward the captive feline animaloid, and she was only barely able to avoid getting cut, by trying to wriggle out of the way of the edges. Still, her Jumpsuit took a lot of cuts. Right now she was too busy trying to concentrate for a second so she could burn her way free to worry about whether or not her Jumpsuit would still function after this. One blade caught close enough to Pia's shoulder to cut through the semi-invisible suit and the red outfit underneath, and pin the fabric to the floor, keeping the cat in place. The other two blades found their chance to strike the sitting duck...but before they could could connect, a torn-off blade edge was thrown from across the room, cutting Pia loose from the Cleaver, right before a powerful glowing force lifted the whole robot up and smashed it against the wall repeatedly until the vile machine stopped moving.

Pia spun around. "D-dad?" she said, her eyes wide.

Shorter, younger, no mustache, and all his spikes intact. This wasn't the Silver she knew. Huh. No pants either. When did her dad ever walk around bare-bodied like the guys he'd always warned her not to date?

"Don't ask too many questions right now," said the teenaged Silver with a clear urgency in his lighter-than-normal voice. "It's really important that what happens next goes the same way it did the first time. Just follow me!"

What choice was there? Pia followed Silver back into the main hallway and down a flight of polished wooden stairs. The hand-crafted mahogany door at the bottom was kicked open, revealing Dr. Pretorious's private office. The incredibly anal organisation of the paperwork and decorative pieces was unmistakeable. It was just like the old castle the villain inhabited last year before he made his amazing escape without a trace just before GUE stormed the place.

"I need to make certain of something," said Silver, immediatelly heading for the paperwork on the desk. "If that wild goose chase was really all about...yes! Of course!"

Pia strained to see what Silver was reading, but he threw the paper away before she had a chance.

"I'm really sorry about what has to happen after you take me with you back to my own time, but I can't tell you the outcome in case doing so changes things for the worse. Truth is, Pia, I don't know if I'll survive or not, but just trust me. I've got a plan."

Pia kept quiet, confused beyond measure.

Silver walked over to his daughter, who was presently three years older than him, and put his hands on her shoulders.

"You said that the other me told you this, so here goes: When what has to happen has happened, you must promise to go after Pretorious right away. Oh, and it's not your fault. Remember that."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Heh. That must be what I sounded like when this whole confusing adventure started. Don't worry. It will all make sense when you get to the point where I am right now. Trust me."

-

That was then... This is now.

"I told you to shut up, Pretorious!" Pia said through gritted teeth. Her cat canines were particularly intimidating.

"Sorry. No more dawdling," said Dr. Pretorious, then shot Silver at point blank range.

Silver the Hedgehog, the one that only minutes earlier had thrown himself on his couch after narrowly managing to get away from the victory celebration at GUE HQ, saw himself clutch his blood chest and drop to the floor.

"No!" Pia shouted, moved as if to rush towards the mortally wounded hedgehog, but then instead ran at Dr. Pretorious.

There were two identical Silver the Hedgehogs in that room at the same time. One had been hiding behind the curtains next to where Pia had appeared through that blinding display of temporal energy, and had thrown himself in front of the other Silver when Dr. Pretorious fired.

His mind numb from confusion and horror, the surviving white hedgehog let his instincts take over, and crossed the space towards the overdressed villain with a Teleport Dash. Only Dr. Pretorious reacted faster, pressing the two buttons on either side of his wrist watch. Pia, Silver and Pretorious collided with each other at exactly the right moment for the cat and the hedgehog to get pulled into the vortex of time as the evil raccoon made his emergency exit.

Afterwards, all that was left was an immobile Silver lying in a pool of his own blood.

-

This was then...

"If you think I'm so naive that I'm going to take you with me back in time just because you kind of look like my father, then you've got another thing coming, kid," said Pia, prodding the self-claimed Silver in the chest.

Silver sighed. "Okay, fine. I really didn't want to do this, but you, I mean the other you, did say to mention a certain something to convince you that I'm who I say I am."

The look on Pia's face when she heard what Silver said was one of greater horror than she'd displayed during the her fight with the Cleaver.

"Alright, I believe you. Never ever repeat that to me or anyone else ever again, got it?"

"Wouldn't dream of it. I kind of wish you hadn't told me about it in the first place."

"So you know where Dr. Pretorious went, right? Where am I supposed to take you with me to?"

"Where it all began. My apartment at 9.03 PM, August 24th, in the year-"

-

Absolutely fascinating, Dr. Pretorious wrote. My hypothesis was incorrect. My nemesis was not erased from existence after the death of her father. Even more intriguing, the Silver the Hedgehog that I attempted to ensure the demise of was rescued by none other than himself. Was the second version of the hedgehog one who'd lived long enough to concieve a child, thus saving my nemesis, or do the rules of time allow for an effect to continue to exist once its cause is removed?

More research will certainly be necessary to find an answer to this conundrum, but for now my efforts remain tied to my original plan. Since my nemesis is now alive, and joined by the earlier version of her father that I attempted to kill, I will have to review my approach carefully before proceeding with the second phase.

The rules of predestination bother me. The second Silver, whom I shall refer to as Silver B, arrived at the exact moment to prevent the first one, whom I shall refer to as Silver A, from suffering a premature death. Can the existence of Silver B imply that my original plan will fail? I must discover the exact point at which Silver A becomes Silver B, thus closing the time loop. Once Silver A is removed, I expect to see a proper closure to this unexpected deviation from history, and an answer to the question of why my nemesis still exists.

(Note to Self: Review schematics of Eggman Nega's Portable Time Portal. The safety function that ensured that the two who intruded on my path through time arrived a safe distance apart from my own exit point has now been confirmed to be working to satisfaction. I must modify the machine later on to prevent the possibility of multiple travellers against my will.)

So far I have not found any reason to believe that my presence at this point in time has been detected by any authority in the present. Nevertheless, I will not attempt a second jump forward to reach a more useful location and time of day. I shall spend the night in this jungle hideaway and make contact with the residents of Angel Island in the morning. My nemesis will most likely follow the regulations of her organisation and avoid contact with individuals from the past at all costs. That error of judgement on her part will work to my benefit.

Doctor Trevor K. Pretorious.

In the next chapter:
- Silver and Pia get their bearings, having no idea where or when they've arrived.
- Dr. Pretorious wastes no time making sure a certain group of echidnas live up to the reputation of gullibility.
- First in a series of multi-chapter episodes in noteworth points of Sonic world history as the chase begins.