Chapter 15: Eggman Nega Makes an Offer

Silver kicked through the rubble and was immediatelly shot at by a pair of security droids. It was unnerving to see the big fat bullets hovering so close to the hedgehog's neck. He hadn't seen that one coming, and nearly didn't react in time to freeze the shots. So much for the adrenaline rush. With an annoyed expression, Silver picked the two N-series bots out of the air and sent both crashing into the opposite wall.

The room that Silver and Blaze had arrived in was some kind of computer terminal station. The area was abandoned, covered in sand and dust, and frankly it was a miracle that the teleporter still functioned. That is to say, it got them both there in one piece. There was that one awkward moment before Silver plucked the red jewel out of his forehead and handed it back to its rightful owner. On the whole, it could've been a lot worse. That funky indentation in Silver's fur should go away soon enough.

With the arrival-point looking so run-down, it was a surprise to see fully restored corridors beyond. After that little encounter with Nega's minions, there was no question about it. Since his last lair was raided by GUE, Nega must have moved his operations to Dr. Eggman's old pyramid. Pretty clever, since the Echidna Preservation Society and the Recent History Archeological Society weren't likely to ever come out of that deadlock on which group should claim rights to the site. The latter claimed that since Dr. Eggman had desercrated the ruins while setting up his base, the site was their field. The former countered with the argument that in spite of Eggman's modifications, there was still more than enough intact ground for the area to fall under their juristiction. Meanwhile, the Independent Nation of Angel Island was adamant that all Echidna ruins should just be left alone indefinitely, though their voice was usually silenced after a hefty donation from the EPS. As said, no resolution was likely in this century. Probably not the next one either.

Blaze stepped through the hole in the wall after Silver. The two ran down the corridor covered in Echidna hieroglyphics, and stopped when they came to a security camera.

"Nega! We need to talk," said Blaze, stepping into view.

"That's right. Your life depends on it as much as ours."

There was no response, but after a short interval a Negapawn showed up and beckoned for the two to follow it. As much as Nega might despise his ancestor, he certainly followed suit when it came to robot designs.

Eggman Nega's seat of control was on a pedestal. Typical of the guy. The command room seemed unprotected, but Blaze noticed the big red button in Nega's chair. The villain's hand was never too far from it, so it was an easy guess that once it was pressed, they'd find themselves in a far worse situation.

"You want my help to defeat Metal Sonic," said Nega bluntly. It wasn't a question.

"That's right," said Silver. "And, in return-"

"In return you will recover the power cores from the time machine your GUE friends stole and deliver them to me."

"What?"

Nega snapped his fingers. It was obvious that he'd been expecting the pair and had rehearsed his lines beforehand. A side passage opened up, and out stepped Metal Sonic. One of them, anyway. Blaze tensed for battle, but Silver put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.

"You remember MY Metal Sonic, Silver?" said Nega. "I took the liberty of undoing the damage you and those other spiny-headed miscreants inflicted on it in the past."

"You built it based on the original, didn't you?" Silver asked.

"That's right. But unlike that idiot Ivo, I made sure my version has no capacity for betrayal. It merely mimicks intelligence. It has no self-awareness, no ultimate programmed objective it must complete, and no personal desires whatsoever. Oh, but that's not all. Just a single vocal command from me, and my Metal Sonic will purge all its data and reset to default settings. Imagine what would happen if that same feature was included in the rogue Metal Sonic."

"Sounds like you've already got a plan," said Blaze.

"Of course. I am the greatest genius of all time!" Nega boasted. "This Metal Sonic generates the same signature signal as the one you're after. All you have to do is get my Metal Sonic connected to the fold, and you'll be able to shut down every single one of them with a single command."

"That's pretty good," said Silver. "It might actually work."

"Of course it will! But since you two bungling idiots will be handling the delivery, there's always a chance you'll screw up everything. If this plan fails, then the world will certainly be conquered or destroyed or whatever it is Metal Sonic has in mind. That's why you two are going to go get my power cores back before I let you take my Metal Sonic anywhere. If...herhm, WHEN you two ruin my brilliant plan, I'll be free to escape back in time."

"You'll go back to stop Metal Sonic?" Blaze asked suspiciously.

"It would be my civic duty. AFTER I've conquered the world in the past, of course. Muahahahaa!!"

Silver didn't attempt to hide his outrage. "What if we just kick your butt right here and take your robot whether you like it or not!?" he shouted.

Nega yawned. "Then you'll just be wasting your time," he said. "Only I can reprogram my Metal Sonic to take orders from anyone but me. If anyone else tries to tamper with it, then the core processor will self-destruct, rendering it completely useless."

"I don't think we have a choice, Silver," said Blaze.

"Fine! We'll get your power cores, Eggman Nega. But when all this is over, you're gonna pay for this extortion!"

"I'm sure. Since it's in both our best interests that you get to GUE HQ fast, I'll lend you both some hoverbikes. N-302 will show you the way."

"I don't like this at all," said Silver after they'd left Nega's command room. "Even if everything works and we defeat Metal Sonic for good, Nega's just going to go back in time again and set up a whole new problem."

"I know, but we have to take this chance," Blaze responded. "Seeking Nega's help was your idea, remember?"

"I'm not so sure it was a good one anymore," said Silver, looking away.

"Don't doubt yourself. You were right, this is the only chance we have. I just hope Nega is more concerned with getting rid of Metal Sonic than getting rid of us."

"That's exactly what I'm worried about! What if he lied about what his copy can do? What if he just wants to get his time machine working, and sends us on a suicide mission to make sure we won't chase him back in time like we always do?"

"If he's as intelligent as he claims to be, he should know that Metal Sonic will definitely try to go back in time to kill Sonic. The past won't be a safe place to hide for long."

-

Eggman Nega couldn't stifle his laughter after listening to Silver and Blaze's conversation via his surveilance system. Just a few levels below his seat stood the fully operational time portal in Nega's laboratory, power cores intact.

Very soon, Nega would destroy Metal Sonic himself and at the same time be rid of those interfering rodents forever.

-

Conquest the Bat was worried sick. She'd seen Super Shadow board the Ultimate Overlord, but then nothing. No matter how much opposition he faced inside, he should be capable of neutralising the threat in a matter of minutes. It'd been half an hour now.

For the first time, Conquest started to doubt the outcome of this conflict. No matter how bad things got, she'd always kept the secret hope that Shadow would save the world. With that hope lost, she wasn't sure what to do anymore. Was there even any point in trying? If they appeased Metal Mastermind, maybe he'd at least let them live. If any attempt to battle the hostile ship was suicide, then perhaps she should just pick the approach that left the crew of the flagship alive.

No. They were soldiers. To give up without a fight and let that insane machine conquer everything would be an insult to everything GUE had fought for over the years.

Steeling her resolve, Conquest left the bridge of the flagship to go meet with Sergeant Terkal, the leader of the Angel Echidna squadron.

It wasn't over yet.

-

A wave of Metal Mastermind's hand, and a huge screen grew out of the empty air. The image showed Earth up close, then panned out to bring the Ultimate Overlord into view. The eye of the ship was pointed towards the planet.

"The final destruction of the world will be quick and painless," said Metal Mastermind to the captive Super Shadow. "Without the seven Chaos Emeralds, the task will require a great deal of time spent in unrelenting suffering and chaos. Let me show you."

The largest tentacles of the Ultimate Overlord bent forward towards the eye and formed a circle around the glowing pupil. Strands of energy flowed from the tip of each tentacle to the next, then converged at a spot above the pupil.

"Let me assure you that what you are seeing is happening in real time, Shadow. The eye of my vessel is pointed towards an unpopulated desert. If you refuse to cooperate, then the next target will be a crowded metropolis. Watch."

Shadow was seeing a sight from his nightmares. The beam of luminous death struck the planet, scorching the surface to such an extent that it was fully visible from space.

"The Eclipse Cannon! How?"

"Weren't you aware that the complete blueprints to the weapon are stored in the GUE archives?" Metal Mastermind asked. "All the data I needed was right there, at my disposal. However, it is not the weapon I intend to use when I destroy everything. That one is of my own divising, and will not be unveiled until I have the seven Chaos Emeralds. Don't fret, Shadow, I'll make sure you get the best seat for the show. It'll be a real blast."

-

"What's that noise?" Silver asked.

Then the pyramid collapsed...

In the next chapter:
- Did Silver, Blaze and Nega survive the destruction of Eggman's pyramid by way of Eclipse Cannon fire? It wasn't a direct hit, so there's a lot of "maybe" involved.
- Is Shadow going to hand over the Chaos Emeralds, or will a couple more locations have to be blown to smithereens first?
- Can Conquest do anything at all?