PoC: Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?

Metal: Do you have a grouchy old maniac breathing down your neck? Well, do you? And what did I ever do to deserve it: Nothing.

PoC: Come now Metal, you can't help making a ton of mistakes, on the account of you being an inferior Sonic Copy! PenFullofChaos819 owns the story, but none of the characters from Sonic the Hedgehog.

Metal: I-Inferior Sonic Copy? YOU FOOL! I'm FAR greater than him in every way; anywhere from speed to power, you name it!

PoC: How about popularity?

Metal: Grr… This world is still full of blind people. But once they open their eyes, they will see how wondrous I truly am! For I'm the greatest the world has ever known! I'm the master of all living things! And I'm…I'm being trolled, aren't I?

PoC: Sure looks that way to me! XD On with the story!

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Forbid

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"Metal, I asked you a question!" thundered the same voice.

And Metal had an answer, though it was not exactly one he wanted to give. Given the sort of trouble he'd been getting himself into lately, it was no wonder why the doctor sounded ready to cook his goose. Knowing a grilling was inevitable, the doppelganger braced himself for the coming onslaught. Metal's main concern stemmed from the 'explain your actions' part of the interrogation; for he wasn't quite sure he could.

"Why are you tampering with my equipment?" Eggman's question was strange. Hadn't he seen what happened? If not, why did he ask about such an off the point detail?

It was possible, although unlikely, that Metal had been caught messing with the capsule only. Should this be the case, he hoped he could avoid the ugly topic entirely. That thought in mind prompted the light-blue copy to say "I was merely checking this equipment for safety reasons. I did so to ensure the security of your creation doctor." Metal pointed to the larger cell without breaking eye-contact.

"Is that right…" the walking egg raised a conspicuous eyebrow. Taking a rather smooth stride to the capsules side, the scientist curled his fingers around the release lever "Well then, how do you explain…THIS?" he said whilst vigorously slamming the handle down. No longer concealed, the shiny grey 'person' inside lurched back in what seemed to be fear.

Holding his now sweat-soaked head, Eggman was seconds away from blowing a gasket. His reddened face darted between the two machines, all while spouting several half-garbled obscenities.

"Allow me to translate." Orbot interjected out of nowhere "Boss is very disappointed in you Metal, and is currently plotting your untimely death." hopping up to the girl, Orbot took her hand in a gentlemanly manner "As for this fine lady, the boss is feeling very forgiving and wishes for you to take Metal's place."

Both Metal and Eggman glared at the 'helper' and simultaneously said "WHAT?"

"And while he's at it, he'd also like to make me your new navigator." Orbot grinned hopefully "Although I'm a very busy bot, I'd be more than happy to oblige!"

The prototype and Metal watched as the master dragged the already-dented talking orb away for an off-screen beating. A few yelps and crashes later, 'Santa' returned without his 'little helper'.

"Now where was I? Oh yes, you two…" having vented the better part of his rage, Eggman could once more form whole words "Metal Sonic! Why can I not leave you anywhere for a matter of minutes without you getting in my way? How many more disasters do you plan to bring me?"

"Master, this was unintentional." pointing to the small cell, Metal began to tell the true story "I was attempting to recharge here, when the prototype suddenly woke up."

Metal knew he'd made some kind of serious blunder, as the doctor's face became white as paper "Y-You did WHAT?" rushing over to the computer, the master tapped a few keys and screamed "No! No! This can't be happening! DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU'VE DONE?"

Rubbing his chin in mock thought, Metal concluded with a simple "Nope, not a clue."

The notorious Dr. Eggman dramatically sank to his knees "This creation was supposed to copy a mobian life cycle, and become the perfect killing machine!" fanning his gloved hands out he continued "But now, it has integrated itself with YOU instead! Now I not only have a failure, but the copycat of a failure as well!"

"Failure? Me?" Metal mused. How could he, the strongest of all current and future designs, be a failure? It was hard enough believing the doctor would dismiss him so lightly, but to call his latest design worthless too? Metal swore a new emotion had been given birth to that day. It wasn't just anger, but it was a feeling of distrust, almost as though he had been betrayed.

Ceasing to think about this, Metal listened to the whiny doctor, who was still ranting "I'm ruined! I'm a ruined man! Now I must find a suitable plan B if I hope to defeat that hedge-" a sudden clattering and shattering drew his gaze over to see the girl standing next to a pile of toppled boxes and parts. Given her facial expression, the culprit of the accident was clear.

"Urrrrgh! It's as destructive as you are!" Eggman griped at the metallic hedgehog "I don't think I can handle two renegades!"

"If I may boss," Orbot, now too disfigured to roll, flopped forward "Since this mistake is somewhat irreversible, wouldn't it be best to give both of them a shot?"

Three faces were intrigued by his meaning, but no one more than Eggman, who asked "Care to explain?"

Waving for his boss to come closer, Orbot whispered his answer "Well, in the best way I can say it," here Orbot's voice decided to shift "These two can both attempt to serve you, ergo you will get to see their individual progress, ergo you can judge which one is better, ergo you get rid of the useless one, ergo you'll have the better of the two, ergo you can stop your whining."

For a change, Eggman had to admit this idea had value. Sure, it would mean a headache around the base, but even Eggman couldn't deny how effective Metal was on the field.

As his corrupt mind conjured up even more ways to put the pair to good use, Eggman stood up in his stage-like fashion to say "Very well then. I have to think about this at greater length, but since you are active you might as well go through basic training." losing some of his bravado, Eggman forgot a small issue "Hmm… The program I made is meant for a trainer and a trainee. You'll need an ally to complete the test. The question is who?"

"Uh… Boss." Orbot said tapping his shoulder.

"Quite you fool! I'm trying to think. E-99? No, he's too slow. E-72? Too explosive. E-69? Not a combat model. E-85? I don't need a medic. Argh! Why is this so difficult?"

"DOCTOR!"

The shout knocked the good doctor flat on his rear. Rubbing his sore backside, Eggman was preparing to squeeze the life out of his ever-round servant "Besides someone interrupting my 'me' time, I HATE my thoughts being interrupted the most! Any last squeaks for you?"

"I'd…say…she's…decided." Orbot choked out and pointed over the doctor's shoulder. Heeding him at last, the great egg saw a peculiar sight. There was the deadly prototype clinging to the equally deadly, and currently un-amused, Metal's arm.

"Oh no you don't." the robotics genius protested "I'm not putting you two destruct-o-bots in the same room! Now you come with me!" grabbing the prototype's arm, Eggman ripped her off of cold hedgehog, and left in a hurry.

Metal was inclined to ask one good question, even if it was rhetoric in nature "Did I miss something?"

"You can't be too sure with the boss. He's very spontaneous." Orbot spoke the golden truth with that statement. Metal didn't know how someone so random could be so brilliant. The whole conversation went from lumping him in with the girl, to splitting the two of them up the next minute.

"Count your blessings this time." Orbot advised "You've placed your life in serious jeopardy. If it weren't for my intervention, you'd be taking a nose-dive for the incinerator by now." not able to get even grunt out of the Sonic copy, the helper-bot excused himself "Well at least you can rest easy." then he added, albeit in a much quieter voice "For now that is…" and tumbled away.

Metal was sensing a divide inside. Seeing how well his latest blunder went over, he figured he'd be happy. And while he had every reason to be, a persistent cascade of ideas filled his insulated brain, of which most, if not all, led his thoughts back to the prototype.

"I wonder what kind of danger I've put her in?" this absentminded thought granted him permission to face-palm "What am I thinking? She's not the one to worry about! Why do I care anyway? I should be hoping for her to take the fall." though his logic agreed, Metal couldn't bring himself to fully accept that last part.

Screening it all away for another day, the copy pondered how to spend his unofficial free time. Suddenly, he sparked an almost forgotten memory. Pulling out the little square of odd paper he'd recovered from his first mission, he knew exactly what to do.

"I have a lot of questions for her anyway." he set his mind on the medical wing "She'll know what this is; at least, I hope so."

Setting an earnest pace, Metal left the dark cells behind to seek out his answers.

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*2-3: Training center*

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"Now I have set out a data sheet of all the possible aid you can receive." the doc explained without realizing how little she was really getting out of his speech "I can choose for you, but I'm giving you a chance to decide for yourself."

The girl picked up the chart with small interest. She strangely understood the values just fine, due mostly to her extensive pre-programming. Still, the numbers and words felt numb to her. They just didn't have what she was looking for.

Eggman was never a waiting man; however, he did keep his temper down as he said "I see something is not to your liking. Do you have a specific request?"

Raising her colorless irises to meet the master's, the girl spoke with reluctance "Um…I was wondering if I could work with someone else."

Trying to retain his cool, the doctor gave his head a firm temple massage "You cannot, nor will ever, work with the one you met at your awakening. I forbid any contact with him until I say otherwise. Do you understand?"

Not exactly pleased, the girl then settled for another request "May I know his name, master?"

Wanting to end this time waste, Eggman replied "I'll tell you, as long as you pick a trainer I've provided." seeing her nod he said "His full title is Metal Sonic, and he is currently one of the most advanced machines to date. He does suffer from a number of…"

She never heard the end of the master's description. Instead, she was set on memorizing that name.

"Metal Sonic…I want to see him again." she didn't seem to register that the very idea was the exact opposite of Eggman's will.

But by the time this fact was even considered, her mind was already made up.

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End of Chapter Seven

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And I thought I could get this out sooner. Meh shows what I know. Anyway, my bad with the late-night update people. Having family in town over the weekend slows everything down :\.

Serenity: Thanks for having faith in me, it means a lot! My stuff may not be majorly popular, but if someone likes it, it's all worth it! :D Yup Tails Doll is on his way (he's another important part of Metal's growth). I hope you don't mind if I make him less evil, and more…well you'll see! XD.

DanceDream: No disappointment is good for me! I hope to keep it that way! The silver girl is a hybrid for one thing, and her total design is a trap for Sonic in general (I suppose you could say she's like Amy, but her appearance is unique). Eggman will soon explain what he wanted her to be, as opposed to what she is now (thanks to Metal's careless link-up with her). I can't draw for shtuff, so I'll have to be as descriptive as possible in the next chapter! And yes, a Metal romance is a thorny thing indeed XD.

Infamousplot: Hey, cutesy stuff may not be up this guy's alley, but if you liked it, I'm glad! If you want to know a little bit more about 'her' I can tell you this: She's meant to target Sonic specifically. This means she bears some physical and emotional traits of his friends. Ironic that she'd end up getting synched with his copy (Metal) XD.

Until next time!