Chapter #17: Discovery in Canyon City

The sun was setting in the company's faces as they marched westward along the train tracks. For a while, the scenery remained the same—meadows and forests flanked the track. Then the tracks turned right into a canyon with tall sides. The canyon ended in a wall, but the track continued through a dark tunnel. The tiny army lit torches and trudged onward into the darkness. After about fifteen minutes of walking, they reached a small cabin that had been built into the side of the passage. A train switch sat close by it. Further ahead the track split into three tunnels, each darker than the original. The company halted at K.K.'s signal.

"All right, dudes, the track splits up, and we gotta do the same," he declared. "Stay with your squad."

The army split into three groups, and two began marching down the middle and right tunnels. Ratchet, Clank, and Sonic stayed with K.K. and Copper, since they were part of their group. They took the left tunnel and went on in silence. After about fifteen more minutes of jogging, the tunnel ended in a dim, red light. They came out into a small meadow of wildflowers of all colors, and they continued following the train tracks.

The sun was almost gone for the day, glowing blood red on the horizon when they finally reached the remains of a train station. There was no roof, and the clock from the tower was lying on the ground, with its hands stopped on the exact time the bomb had struck. Sitting close by it was a sign that said, "Welcome to Canyon City". (A/N: Once again, this town can't be typed in the game.) The entire town was silent.

Slider slowed down and gestured to the rubble of the train station. "Here's our stop."

Copper groaned. "Canyon City? Why here, K.K.?"

Clank, who was once again in his backpack mode on Ratchet's back, peeked over the Lombax's shoulder at the two dogs. "Is something wrong? Is this residence considered hazardous to the surrounding lands?"

The police dog nodded. "This place is a hangout for all sorts of shady characters. Lately Big Boss has sent some of his spies here to collect information, and we think that he plans on hiring more spies and taking over the town, since there are lots of criminals he could recruit." Then he turned to the musician and snapped, "Which is why I'm askin' why we came here!"

"This is the place where I learned about the ACSP and some of Big Boss's other plans," K.K. answered. "There's another, more important reason, though. I was talkin' with some animals earlier today, and they said that the Secret Police retreated here after it was bombed. I wanna see if they're right. Sonic, Ratchet, and Clank, I want you guys to follow me into the town. Everybody else will stay and keep an eye on things; see if anyone is comin' and goin' through here. "

"That includes me, right?" asked Copper.

He shrugged. "'Course, dude. Who else will take charge of our group while we're gone?"

The police officer folded his arms. "Fine. I didn't want to go in there anyway."

Together, dog, hedgehog, Lombax, and robot crept into the dark, silent town. They stayed in the shadows, just in case someone might still be living there. They checked all of the buildings and houses in the village and often found looters sleeping inside, with bags of stolen items all around the rooms. K.K. decided to leave them alone. Their search brought up no robots.

"Oh well, I guess it was just a myth after all," he sighed.

"Wait a sec, K.K.! I just remembered!" Ratchet cut in. "The robots might be hiding in an underground base in the police station, just like in AnimaCity!"

Sonic slapped his forehead. "How could we forget?! Let's check it out!"

They went back to the police station and found it silent and normal. That is, until Ratchet showed them the secret door in the locker. Once again, they were confronted by a pitch-black tunnel.

Sonic whistled and said, "Okay, who's goin' inside the dark, robot-infested tunnel first?" (A/N: Yes, I got that from National Treasure. XP)

"Sonic, now is not the time for silly jokes," Clank said firmly.

K.K. pulled out a flashlight and led the way into the inky darkness. Sonic stayed in the middle, and Ratchet, with Clank on his back, watched their backs with his N90 Hurricane loaded. They eventually came to a steel door much like the one in AnimaCity, but it didn't have a slot near the top. Clank analyzed it and stated that a computer on the other side probably controlled it. They realized that the trick Ratchet had used on the other door probably wouldn't work again, and they decided to wait until a robot came to the door.

They didn't have to wait long; an ACSP soldier marched down the tunnel and came to the door. It spoke the password, and the door creaked upwards. When the robot was far away from the door, they darted forwards and made it through just before the door shut. They high-fived each other before continuing onward deeper into the tunnel.

They reached another door, but light was coming out from under it, and there were voices, most of them robotic. The foursome listened intently to the conversation.

"Chief, Company B is armed and ready for combat."

"Very good, Sergeant."

Ratchet's eyes narrowed, and he growled, "It's that Secret Police Chief again!" The other three shushed him.

"Permission to speak freely, sir," the robot sergeant continued.

"A strange request, but I shall grant it. Go ahead."

"Self-unit was briefed on Operation Apocalypse, but not on this mission; details of this new operation are requested."

The Chief sighed. "I should've expected this. Fine then. First of all, this isn't a new operation. This is Operation Apocalypse: Phase Two."

The four eavesdroppers exchanged shocked glances, and K.K. gasped, "Phase Two?!"

"This can't be good," muttered Sonic.

"Self-unit does not fully comprehend, sir," droned the sergeant. "There was no briefing on a second phase of Operation Apocalypse."

"And for several reasons. One: This was highly classified; even our most trusted spies weren't told of it. Two: We weren't sure if this phase would be enacted or not. Three: The plans weren't entirely completed."

"Self-unit requests motives for reasons."

Ratchet, Sonic, and Slider were confused, so Clank whispered, "The sergeant asked why."

"We were waiting to see what the survivors would do after the bombing," answered the Secret Police Chief. "They acted exactly as The Boss predicted; they ran to their leader, Tortimer, who has been hiding in AnimaCity. We've suspected that AnimaCity is the true HQ of the Animal Alliance."

K.K. groaned. "They've found us."

"The bombing was the easy part; it's Phase Two that will be tough. Phase One was just herding the cattle in the pens. …Now it's time for the slaughter."

The three organic intruders gulped, and Clank said, "Oh, dear."

"The slaughter, sir?"

"In Phase Two, the Secret Police will invade AnimaCity and take everyone captive! Not one Rebel will escape from the ultimate trap."

The heroes' eyes widened, and K.K. almost fainted in shock.

"Does that satisfy you, Sergeant? Or do you want to hear more and make the plan late?"

"…Negative. Request time for deployment."

"Now. Tell them to surround the town and give them a chance to surrender. If they do, move in and sweep the entire village clean of the rebel vermin. Arrest any suspected Alliance member and anyone who resists you! Do not rest until you have the entire town in your control and every suspected Rebel is accounted for. The Boss is offering a promotion to the soldier that apprehends the ringleader of the resistance, Tortimer the mayor. He is Priority One. There may be a reward for the capture of that storekeeper Tom Nook, too; be on the lookout for him and his twin brats. We also have information on a white dog named Totakeke, or K.K. Slider; arrest him as soon as you see him."

Upon hearing his name, K.K. whimpered and fainted.

"What are you buckets of bolts doing just standing here?! Phase Two has begun! Begin the invasion!"

Ratchet and Sonic saw what was coming next, and they pulled Clank and the unconscious K.K. into the shadows before an entire company of ACSP soldiers marched out the door. Hugging the walls, they followed them through the computer-controlled door and back to the locker entrance. They halted and waited for the Secret Police to leave the police station before creeping out. They revived K.K. in a thicket and tried to make sense of the situation.

"That army is too big for us to take out," the white dog moaned.

Ratchet laughed, "Ha! You kiddin'?! I can take 'em out with my R.Y.N.O.!"

"Not this time, Lombax. The total of active ACSP soldiers comes to 200 robots."

His green eyes grew wide, and he checked his ammo reserves. "You're right. I don't have enough R.Y.N.O. ammo for that many 'bots!"

"I'd better contact Copper and tell him to retreat to the tunnels and find the other groups pronto!" He pulled out a walkie-talkie and spoke into it. "Copper, this is K.K. Slider. Come in, Copper!"

"I'm here, I'm here," came the hound's voice over the radio. "What's the problem?"

"Pull back into the tunnels! I repeat: pull back into the tunnels!"

"What for? Some kind of robot invasion?"

"Yes! The entire ACSP is marchin' your way!"

"What?!"

"No time to explain! Just get the heck outta there!"

"Where do I go?! Back to AnimaCity?!"

"No! Anywhere but there! The police are goin' to invade it! There's not enough time for you to get there and warn them! They'll be on top of you before you can get everybody out! Get the other squads and get as far away as you can from their course!"

"What about the town? We can't just abandon them!"

"My squad will watch from a distance, but that's all we can do!"

Suddenly he felt a hand grip his arm, and he looked up and met the gaze of Sonic.

"Wait a minute, K.K.!" he said. "I have an idea! Gimme the radio!"

Wordlessly the musician handed him the radio, and waited to see what he would do.

"Copper, this is Sonic!" the blue hedgehog said into it. "Can you tell me if there's a quicker way to AnimaCity?"

"Two other ways, actually: through the countryside or on a boat."

"Which is quicker?"

"The land, if you have a car."

"Or supersonic speed?"

"Yeah, sure…wait a minute, what are you getting at?"

"I have a plan! Get the other teams and head to Canyon City's jetty! There are some motorboats there; take them and go to Paradisa, or better yet, the AnimaCity jetty! Take all the boats so you can load extra people onto 'em!"

"Sonic, what about us?" Ratchet interrupted.

"You'll go with them!"

"'You', not 'we'?" K.K. said with a cocked eyebrow.

Sonic explained the rest of his plan to the others, and also held the radio close so Copper could hear him. "I'm taking the way through the countryside on foot! I can get there faster than the 'bots or those boats! I can warn them in time!"

"All right!" exclaimed Copper. "We're on our way!" There was a click, and then static as he turned off his radio.

"You sure you can make it, Sonic?" Slider asked as he took the walkie-talkie from him.

The hedgehog smirked back. "I'm sure."

"Do you even know the way?"

"I rode with Tails in the Tornado part of the way here, and we passed over this area. I know the way!"

"All three of us wish you luck on your run, Sonic," Clank said.

"Thanks, I'm gonna need it. Adios!"

Sonic sped away into the night, and the remaining three ran over to the jetty and began prepping the boats for launch. About five minutes later, Copper and the rest of the company returned. The other groups had gotten their searches done right before Copper had called them and informed them of the situation. They all boarded the boats and raced away from Canyon City in a desperate attempt to reach AnimaCity before it was too late.


At about the same time, Sonic was running through forests, over ditches, across bridges, and even over fences. His mind was racing almost as fast as he was. If he was going to warn the town, he had to be brief and to the point. He couldn't stop and explain the whole story to every animal that asked him! He had to find Tortimer, and quickly! But he couldn't just ignore the refugees; they were in danger just as much as the Animal Alliance. What could he do to warn them?!

As he jumped onto the AnimaCity Train Station's platform, it dawned on him. He ran frantically to Nookington's, where he knew Tom Nook would be staying. He shouted the shopkeeper's name until the raccoon's head peeked out of the second story's window.

"Sonic! What in the world—"

"Tom! Find Tortimer and tell him to begin evacuating the Allies to Paradisa now! The robots are coming!"

"What?!"

Sonic didn't wait to explain. He darted away to the Post Office and banged on its door. Porter answered it.

"Oh! Sonic! Where's everybody else?"

"No time! Get everybody out of the Post Office pronto! There's gonna be an invasion!"

"Huh?! Eeeeeeeekkk!!" The monkey attempted to run for his life, but Sonic grabbed him.

"Keep your cool! You've gotta get those animals out first! Take them to the Wishing Well!"

Once again, he left without explaining anything. By now he had a good idea of how to warn everyone in the fastest way possible. He ran through the town, shouting at the top of his lungs, "The robots are coming!" Lights in houses came on everywhere he went with the news, and terrified animals came out of their houses and ran for the Wishing Well.

Sonic's final stop was at the Museum. He pounded heavily on the door and shouted for Blathers. The owl eventually answered while rubbing his eyes; he had been taking a nap.

"Wot wot? What's all this?"

The boys, SpongeBob, Patrick, and Tails had been awakened by the noise, and they were also at the door. Tails' face lit up when he saw his best friend. "Sonic! You're back!" he exclaimed.

"You okay, Sonic?" asked Spike. "You look like you've run a 1000-mile marathon…ten times, in your case."

Sonic was indeed a little winded by his run, and was bending over on his hands and knees, breathing heavily. "…I came…to warn you guys."

"Warn us?" said SpongeBob. "About what?"

Patrick grinned stupidly and asked, "Are the dinosaurs attacking?"

"Shut it, Patrick," Spike said with a glare.

"What?! Are the robots attacking the city?" Jimmy said. He only meant it as a joke, but when Sonic looked at him seriously, he froze and gulped. "I guessed right, didn't I?"

Tails' eyes widened. "Uh oh."

Spike slapped his forehead and groaned, "Oh great."

"Yipes!" yelped SpongeBob.

Patrick whooped and clapped his hands. "Yay! Dinosaurs!"

Blathers, now fully awake, could only squawk, "Oh my…"

"Everybody's meeting at the Wishing Well," said Sonic. "Come on!" He grabbed his sidekick's hand and pulled him along. The others raced after him.

They found pandemonium at the meeting. Tortimer was on his stand again, trying to calm the crowd of terrified refugees. Tom Nook stood behind him, and his sons clutched his legs. When Sonic walked forward, people stepped out of his way, and he made it to the mayor.

"This better not be a joke or a false alarm, sonny," Tortimer said, his face grim. "These animals are all worked up."

The blue hedgehog shook his head. "I wish I was joking, but I'm not. Ratchet, Clank, K.K. and I heard the Secret Police Chief order his robots to surround the city. They're going to arrest every animal suspected of being an Ally and anyone who gets in their way."

"Where are the others?"

"On their way here by boat. Copper and the rest of the company should be with them."

The tortoise stood up and said loudly to his comrades, "All right then! We'll need to move all the agents onto Paradisa and even move them somewhere else if necessary. Let's git some supplies and weapons to fight back with! We don't want them buckets of bolts jumpin' on us!"

Suddenly there were loud gunshots, and bullets whizzed over their heads. The crowd dropped down to the ground almost in unison, and the heroes and the Allies looked toward the hills. Many gasped in horror.

An entire army ofrobots had surrounded AnimaCity, with their guns ready. The police numbered exactly 200; the Animal Alliance was greatly outnumbered. There was no escape.