Chapter 3 – Metal Sonic Lives!
Inside the warehouse of the shield generator base, the Pyre Squad hid inside the crates. Although the rest of Blaze's team were captured and led outside, they snuck away and avoided getting caught. The trio peeked out, scanning for any sight of Eggman's robots. To their relief, they could not see a single one.
"Okay, the coast is clear," said Ciara. "Come on, you two. Let's see how we can be able to get out of the base."
"I wonder what's become of Cynder and her team," said Cronk.
"They must be somewhere outside fighting the robots," said Scorcher. "Still, I feel somewhat grateful that they allowed us to help them fight against Eggman."
"What are you talking about, stupid?" snapped Ciara. "Do you seriously think about siding with them? Have you forgotten about your loyalty to the Obsidian Devourers, and your pride?"
Scorcher remained silent as he did not want to incite Ciara's anger any further.
"Now hurry up and stop your foolishness, you dopey dragons," urged Ciara. "We need to see what's up with those metal brains."
Without hesitating, Scorcher and Cronk followed Ciara through the warehouse and soon they arrived at the control room. Keeping themselves a low profile, they quietly slipped inside and snuck past the robots working inside. As they hid under the desks, they could see the Egg Knight Commander staring at the monitor screen which flickered to reveal the exterior of the base. A message was being telegraphed from an Egg Tank.
"Commander, the battle is over," replied a voice. "The intruders have been rounded and they fled deep into the jungle. We need reinforcements need to continue the pursuit."
"Roger that," said the commander, and when the message ended, he turned to the other robots awaiting his order. "Send the squads for help and open the doors!"
While the robots hurried out of the control room, the Pyre Squad waited in their hiding places until it was completely clear. They wanted to check the surveillance cameras so they could see what was going on outside the base.
Knuckles and Bowser stood from the opposite sides of the now opened doors, waiting to ambush the robots at the right moment. Squads of Egg Pawns, Egg Knights and Egg Hammers emerged from the base, and Knuckles was ready to strike them when they least expect it, but then the rest of the party arrived, surrounding the robots.
"Ah well, least the entrance is open," smiled Knuckles. "Come on, team! We've got work to do!"
Bowser, Blaze, Dark and Viper followed Knuckles into the base. Klump brought in a bag full of bombs, which they were about to use to destroy the shield generator.
"That was a clever plan you thought up, Knuckles," laughed Bowser. "I never thought you had it in you, especially when you've been known for being duped by Eggman time after time, like recently."
"Yeah, and it's about time I return the favour to him," replied Knuckles, slightly miffed at being reminded of his gullibility. "This is the end of the line for that rotten egg!"
The group entered the control room, unaware that the Pyre Squad trio were still hiding inside.
"Here's the place," said Bowser.
"Good job," said Knuckles. "General Viper, do you have the goods with you?"
"Right here, Knuckles," replied Viper. "All of them set to two minutes."
"I'll need three of them," nodded Knuckles. "So after that, we only got two minutes to hightail it out of here before they go off."
While Knuckles planted the bombs, Blaze sat down when she sensed something very unusual coming from the sky. She could sense an incredible power, which she found hard to identify until she concentrated better.
"Tails, is that you?" she asked herself quietly. "So, you have achieved the Ascended Super form, I knew you could do it, and…" she paused and realised that an energy signal had disappeared, and she knew who it was. "…Sonic, you've done it… you gave your own life to save us and this world. I don't know how Amy will react to this, but I dread to think about it. Hopefully your sacrifice will not be in vain. Farewell, my old friend, and thank you for everything…"
"What is it?" asked Viper when he saw Blaze's troubled expression.
"Nothing," replied Blaze as she looked at the wrapped gauze on the left shoulder where she got shot. "I'm just recovering from the burn on my shoulder."
"They're all set!" announced Knuckles all of a sudden. "Now, let's get out of here!"
The group dashed out of the control, hurried through the warehouse, and ran out of the base just in time. They ducked down to see it go up in a devastating explosion, which continued on until it engulfed the entire base, decimating the shield generator. Everyone sighed in relief that they were all safe, but they did not notice the three figures sent flying high in the sky from the explosion and disappearing with a twinkle. With the base and shield generator destroyed, the Anthro League Space Fleet can finally resume the attack on the Death Egg.
Tails, Silver, Shadow and the dragons looked down to where Sonic flew with Metal Sonic, and all they could see was the bright flash of light which lasted for a minutes before diminishing back to darkness. The team remained silent and shocked and what just happened, while Tails exhaled, overwhelmed with sadness and despair. Tears started welling in his eyes that he could not hold it any longer.
"WHY, SONIC?!" he screamed, followed by the echoes of his voice ringing all over the throne room.
"No, it couldn't be…" said Cynder. "Sonic, he's gone…"
"Sonic, no…" said Draco as he felt the tears sting his eyes.
"Why did you do it, Sonic?!" sobbed Tails with his head face down on the ground. "You shouldn't have made that sacrifice!"
Draco stepped forward to comfort his friend. "There now, Tails…" he said softly, wiping his tear away. "It's all over with. Both you and Sonic saved our lives and the planet…"
Tails sobbed harder. "Don't say that!" he choked. "This is my fault! Entirely my fault! I should have finished off Metal Sonic when I had the chance, and I didn't! Instead, I let my new power take control of me! Sonic is dead because of me!"
"I know how it feels," said Draco. "But listen, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself. Regardless if your power controlled you or the other way around, your power saved us, and that's the truth, buddy."
"Draco is right," said Charonus. "All you needed was to find the balance in yourself, and only then will you be able to have full control of your power. I'm speaking out of experience, Tails, so take my word for it. Besides, you may have missed the look on Sonic's face, he was very proud of how strong you've grown and much you accomplished, like when you saved the cities from the nuclear threat, as an example."
Tails looked up to Draco and Charonus, still crying with tears. The two Charizards helped him to get back up on his feet.
"Come on, Tails," said Draco. "Let's go home."
"As a matter of fact, we should start returning to Earth," said Cynder. "I sense that the shield protecting this battle station is down, so the Anthro Space Fleet would be starting their attack any time now."
"Can we wait for a moment, please?" asked Tails. "I need some time alone to think and recover for a bit."
"Do you what you must," said Silver. "Take all the time that you need."
Tails slowly trudged his way past the group and looked down to the Chaos Emeralds on the ground. He then looked at the Master Emerald resting behind them while he reminisced back to when he and Sonic first met. As he remembered, it happened a long time ago after saving Cocoa Island from the dreaded Battle Kukku Empire, when he was at the age of four. The first time he witnessed Sonic's speed left him a great impression that he tried hard to keep up with him. He then remembered his encounter with Eggman, when he kidnapped the young fox, forcing him to write a letter to Sonic on collecting the Chaos Emeralds so he could be rescued. The memories then shifted to when he and Sonic travelled all over West Side Island to save the world from Eggman's first Death Egg, and finally he recollected his first heroic deed when years later he saved Station Square from being blown up by Eggman's missile, which helped him realise that he did not have to rely on Sonic all the time and that he had to find his own voice to have his own identity. After a heavy, he looked up to the sky.
"Sonic…" he whispered. "Thank you for helping to find myself. I'll continue to value the friendship we shared for the rest of my life…"
Meanwhile, Silver, Shadow and the dragons waited anxiously for Tails to decide if they were ready to leave, when Cynder suddenly felt a presence. At first, she thought that Sonic was not dead, but soon became horrified when she realised who the power belonged to. In an instant, a strong wind blew up from the abyss, catching the attention of everyone else. Shadow also picked up the sinister presence much to his shock and horror. Then, the wind turned into a cloud of smoke accompanied by electrical surges, a dark shadow crept up from below obscured by the clouds. Without warning, there was a flash of light, and an energy beam shot from within, striking Silver on the stomach. The hedgehog was sent sailing backwards and knocked unconscious as soon as he landed and reverted back to his normal form.
"Silver!" everyone gasped in shock, with the exception of Shadow who stood speechless and alarmed at the sight of Silver's motionless body.
The figure emerged from the clouds, revealing himself as Metal Sonic, still in his Supreme Metal, and not completely defeated.
"Oh no!" screamed Lily. "Metal Sonic is back!"
Author's Note: Just when you thought the battle was over, it's far from it! Metal Sonic is still alive, which means that Sonic's sacrifice was for nothing! What will our heroes do now? The situation looks bleak, and the evil robot must be stopped! The upcoming chapter will be a real intense one, so don't go away!