PoC: And so the drama begins With Metal nabbing the spotlight in this chapter, in which PenFullofChaos819 claims no ownership of any mentioned Sega characters.

Metal: I doubt you'll do me justice, but I guess I have no say in the matter, yes?

PoC: That is correct. You're still at my mercy until this project reaches its conclusion.

Silver: Ooh! Maybe there's still hope for me yet! I bet I make a grand entrance when you reveal Sonic and co. right?

PoC: Uhh… Silver you are aware that this takes place in a time long before you showed up?

Silver: Aw… Come on! What's a little thing like time to me? Just bend the plot a tick and let me in! Please? I'm begging you!

PoC: Um… Silv…

Silver: Just as a really quick cameo? I'm on my knees here!

PoC: Look Silver, I'd like to, but the answer is…

Metal: Hell no. My story's crappy enough as it is. I doubt it needs a telekinetic hedgehog to make it any worse.

PoC: Thank you once again for the tactful foot-in-mouth interruption Metal. You're a real peach, you know that?

Metal: What can I say? I aim to displease.

Silver: Hmph! That's an understatement.

-l-

Choice

-l-

Metal penetrated the deeper halls of the not-so-complex base with casual ease. A couple of humans made for minor road-blocks along the way. However, the humans weren't his main problem, as searching for his traitorous 'ally' was highest on his priority list. The original mission and even the target itself were factors soon shoved to the back of his mind, so that he could keep his crimson eyes peeled for that renegade E-72. Finding his victim wouldn't be hard, considering 72's obsidian-colored armor stood out like a sore thumb, either when bracketed by the light blue of the sky or by the ghostly tan-grey of the base's walls.

Crushing through the feeble security doors felt very unprofessional, despite his being fueled by the raw motivation that revenge provided. Having already evaluating his odds of locating 72 in time while playing 'secret agent', Metal arrived at the conclusion that he would have to be a little brutish on this occasion, assuming he wanted to catch up to that lunatic. Using no caution, the steel-bound killer bashed through multiple doors like they were made of aluminum. Still, he took care to avoid human contact as much as possible. He didn't want to make the mess any bigger than he already had.

The doppelganger found his way to an elevator at last. Checking his provided data for the restricted sectors he soon stumbled upon his prize, which would serve to accomplish the mission and lead him right to his target; a double win.

Having successfully bypassed security, his ruby lenses peered over the selections before choosing one of the bottommost floors. The ride down was brief, but it mired his prideful mind in the depths of anticipation. The need, the want to reach his goal that much faster was eating away at Metal's normally dead-focused thinking. As the doors swung open he blasted out, paying no heed to the possible myriad of defensive implements. His urge to kill was equivalent to man undergoing an adrenaline rush. It felt like a pure pulse of power had filled his mechanical veins.

Gazing into the black abyss that lay ahead, Metal momentarily concerned himself with finding the 'Gerald legacy' Eggman wanted so badly. There were no lights, and even his on-board NV-enhancers were not permitting him more than several feet worth of vision. Tapping into his other base senses, Metal conditioned his substitution auditory and olfactory systems to pick up whatever they could. While his hearing didn't garner him much better help than his vision, his nasal regions were the picking up a very 'pungent' signal. That signal was soon verified and translated as the 'smell' of…smoke?

Calling attention to this detail put all his other senses on high alert. Just in time too, as a wave of burning energy charred the place where Metal once stood. Now that his enemy was aware of his location, 72 made no further attempt to conceal his location.

"Come to be barbecued at last, eh Sonic clone?" the delirious voice jeered at Metal "I'll have you know it's not too late to tuck-tail and run, before you be well done! Heee-hahaha!" his crazed threat carried through the air like the Plague. His grating laughter wasn't making listening any prettier for Metal.

Standing his ground in firm defiance, the copy was itching to instigate a fight with the corrupt fire-master. Having come face to face with him had, however, brought up a number of questions the hardened assassin wanted answers for. For instance, why the sudden treachery? Admittedly, Metal had been plotting his own betrayal, but it was done for practical purposes. If he had been working with anybody more reasonable, there was no way the metallic hedgehog would've plotted the way he did. In E-72's case, his actions seemed to be fueled by a vendetta, a streak of hatred for Metal in particular. This fact became more and more vivid with each partially sensible word that escaped the pyromaniac's mouth.

"Me? Run away? Not a chance." Metal spat in a rugged tone "I'm really anxious to rip you apart, but before I do I have one question: Why did you hand me over to those humans? What the hell were you hoping to accomplish?" his question almost went unfinished after being half-drowned out by the hollering shrieks 72 called laughter. Thoroughly ticked at being ignored, Metal leapt in the air with masterful speed and grace, preparing to come back down as a whirling ball of destruction.

Under the masque of his presumably distracted persona, 72 had managed to not only cleanly block the blow, but also launched his own successful counterattack, which sent the shocked mobian copy spiraling half-burnt back towards the floor. It was clear now that 72 was either the luckiest loon in the world, or he had somehow managed to control his lunacy in such a way that it didn't impact his fighting skill.

The rebound of his nasty fall pelted Metal with considerable concussive force. Though Metal was inwardly praising the E-series warrior for his skill, the hedgehog could not afford a moment of lapse, or else he knew he'd end up paying dearly for it. Concentrating on his opponent's erratic locomotion, the Sonic copy gradually started to pick up his opponent's attack rhythm.

"Since you're too scared to make another move, I'll think it's time for a bit of show and tell!" 72 exclaimed whilst spreading out a wild barrage from his beam, showing no interest in whether he hit the mission's target or not "First, allow me to let you in on a little secret." his explanation carried on while still hunting the elusive Metal down with his cannon "While they may call me a lunatic, all of us E-robots feel the same thing, the same burning hatred for Sonic blazes inside each and every one of us! And from the way I see it, you, oh prickly one, are nothing more than his clone and thus are a disgrace to us all!"

Doing his best to evade and dodge the incoming assault was made only more cumbersome by E-72's speech. Weren't they all created for the same reason? Didn't all mindless members of the E-series and all the rest unite under the same ultimate goal, that being to kill Sonic and earn the respect of their master?

If so, then what caused E-72 to make such rash moves to eliminate him? Didn't he realize that killing Metal and/or harming the target were both in opposition to the doctor's orders? Why the intense show of personal desire? This act didn't seem to be a part of the egg-scientist's big scheme, so why?

"Why 72?" Metal demanded fiercely, finally getting one of his own attacks to connect "Why would you risk disobeying the master's orders just to kill me?"

Somersaulting in, intending to make a deadly strike from above, the E-robot replied "Don't ask 'why' you moron! You of all disobedient renegades should be able to answer that!" pulling his arm back in a feint swipe, 72 tricked Metal into dropping his guard long enough to douse him in flames. Pressing the copy roughly against a damaged control panel, the madman -or robot- went on to say "Because I possess the rare gift of 'choice', something that you and I have, unfortunately, in common! We both express 'free will', and you and I are both huge 'mistakes' in the eyes of our master because of it! Oh yes, and I'd bet my arm that that precious prototype you're so fond of, is one of us too!"

Metal took advantage of his position by forcing 72's arm-mounted weapon into the panel he'd previously been embedded in. Thinking in a fraction of a second, the doppelganger pulled the flame-bot's weapon trigger effectively welding his arm to the thick mess of machinery. Now mostly helpless, 72 was at the mercy of Metal's unfettered wrath. But even after absorbing an overwhelming amount of punishment, the psychotic traitor kept right on with his unwarranted cackling.

"Heh-heh-hee! Beat me all you like, Metal Sonic, it won't make you any less defective." his reward for opening his mouth was a swift blow to the jaw "As long as you act outside the 'normal' crowd of idiots, you'll be deemed sooner or later to be 'malfunctioning', and be likely killed for it, so why bother? Enjoy your existence by doing everything and anything you feel like!"

Metal stopped his cold assault to hear his former partner out "Why did you really provoke me, 72? I can't believe you did it out of some petty hatred for my identity alone." getting in a good deal closer, he asked again "So why did you do it, knowing I'd probably destroy you in the process?"

Exposing what Metal figured was a grin of sorts; the hot-wired robot gave his confession "Very shrewd, for metallic mobian puppet. Why do you think I did it? I was having fun, and getting what I wanted at the same time! If I had gotten you killed, then I would've succeeded in destroying the object of my hatred" with that said, 72 suddenly burst into a fit of garbled coughs/laughter "But if I failed, then I'd be going out the way I always wanted, with a bang! Otherwise, I'd sooner or later end up getting strapped down and hauled away to the junkyard, where I'd be ground up and recycled into a normal slave for that obese imbecile everyone calls 'master'! I'd much rather live one day as a 'mistake', than be forced into a lifetime of 'normal'! Tell me Metal: Do you really want live your whole life in faithful service to that sack of blubber?"

Confused, thoughtful, and even a bit awestruck, there simply weren't enough words to accurately describe how Metal felt about what he'd heard. He had, in his short lifespan, considered 72 a raging fool, and inexcusably loose cannon. Maybe those labels still held their truth, but amidst all that appeared random and pointless, Metal had gleaned something of an important message. The ideas of normalcy, and perhaps even success, were now sounding quite arbitrary and meaningless, at least for a robot. What would he gain from the master's love anyway? What was the point in merely fulfilling his every desire; to become his greatest servant? Was that an aspiration Metal really wanted to strive for?

Life had handed him yet another tangled web of riddles, and as luck would have it, there were still too many questions. His thinking had yet again been tested by the aggressive, yet astute, ramblings of a lesser design.

In light of his comrade's condition, the copy opted to let him live while he finished the mission. This was likely because Metal was now under the influence of another more rare emotion in ever-expanding arsenal: Sympathy. He couldn't find it in him to resent the E-robot for what he did, as much wished for the contrary. Placing his attention back on the job led him over to a decently-sized capsule containing the shadowy silhouette of…something inside. A quizzical examination identified not only the shape of the figure inside, but also a rectangular plaque with some words etched in:

Subject 2466. Codename: Project S-H-A-D-O-W.

"Shadow?" Metal tried the name out "No more unoriginal than my I.D. Still, it sickens me how much it looks like my copy." he pointed out, scowling at the idea of taking this thing in. Wasn't Eggman satisfied with one faker? The decision was out of his hands of course, but that didn't make the task any more desirable. Strapping the transfer coordinates to the carrier, Metal turned on his radio to confirm his position "This is Metal Sonic, do you read me? I've secured the target and I'm now awaiting transmission."

Static reigned temporarily, before the response finally fizzled its way in "We read you loud and clear Metal. We'll begin evacuating you and the target shortly, well done. Tell us, what the status of E-72?"

Hesitating initially, Metal craned his head in the fire-bot's direction. 72 met his gaze with stout-hearted shake of the head, thereby prompting Metal to respond "R.I.A. I'm afraid." as he said this, a sigh of contentment was released from the dying E-machine's mouth.

"I see… That's most unfortunate, but I'm sure the master knew the risks when he sent him. Nevertheless, you've done a fine job, Metal. You can return to us proud." with his part said, the pilot cut the line, leaving the hedgehog to drop his own connection.

Strangely, Metal was starting to feel burdened for his choice to leave 72 behind. He knew he would've been more satisfied with a clean kill in fair combat, but this, this just felt wrong. Knowing he personally grudged the idea of being abandoned, even as a frigid-spirited killer, Metal was feeling very sickened with himself.

"Don't sweat it…" 72 spoke up, his voice becoming more deathly by the second "This is my doom. I should be allowed to decide where and when it happens." when the doppelganger expressed visible surprise, 72 chuckled "Yeah I knew what you were thinking. You had that stupid look of guilt in your eyes." he observed, while shifting his weight to a more relaxed position "Don't morn for me, you thick-headed fool. Just get out so you can take care of that girl."

"What do you mean by 'take care of her'?" Metal queried with some tension "Why would I need to? She'll soon be perfectly self-sufficient."

Shaking his head in disgust, the Eggman robot answered insultingly "Man you really are dumb. Haven't you been listening to a word I've said? You two are bound to screw up sooner or later, and when you do, you'll both be branded as 'malformed'." 72 lifted his finger in a pointing gesture "You need to be by her side when that happens, unless you never want to see her again."

Jarred by his dark implications, Metal struggled to understand what his warning meant. It hadn't occurred to him that he'd become very distressed when Silvia had been brought into the picture "I don't get it. What's going to happen to her? Tell me!"

Amused by the clone's ignorance, the mad-machine let out his final laugh along with his last words "Someday you'll have to choose Metal Sonic. You have to decide who's more important to you: the precious Master Eggman, or that pretty friend of yours."

Metal had every intention pressing the discussion further, up until his radio issued its untimely intrusion. Distantly he could hear the pilot telling him link up with the device for transmission. He subconsciously knew they couldn't wait forever; for once they'd thrown the switch the situation was basically out of their hands.

Little did it matter now, as he looked back just in time to see that 72's power supply had already fizzled out.

Though Metal did eventually adhere to his orders, he wondered why everything in his life had to be so complicated. Regardless of how simple a problem started out being, it would always end with him feeling lost. This was probably why he continued to keep 72's last words at the forefront of his mind. He held on to the slight chance that somewhere, someday he would find out just what the now-expired soldier meant.

-l-

End of Chapter Fourteen

-l-

A Metal-centric chapter! Excuse this one for my sloppy proofreading (I just didn't have the time to do a thorough check). If you guys can find it in you to like this chap, warts and all, that'll mean I had a pretty successful evening! Don't hesitate to comment on whatever errors might be present. Oh yes I know the Shadow intro is NOT in continuity! I stretched it more to my liking :P.

Serenity: Yeah I didn't want Metal to spare the poor general, but I did like making him the one who Metal learns something from (not E-85 like I led others to believe). Silvia is a sneaky gal indeed. Too bad we didn't see her in this chap :(. Ah but you know, all in good time.

Dancedream: I just wanted to say first and foremost that I regret not being able to talk to you sooner. I've been keeping you and your family in my prayers all week; I simply didn't have the means to tell you :(. I'm sorry to hear that's happening in your small group. I hope you don't mind that I asked my family and church to pray as well. Yeah we may not know each other, but I couldn't turn down someone in need. I hope you get an account soon so that we can have more conversations like this :). Thank you again for reading and reviewing even in these tough times.

Infamousplot: I know I'm getting a little ahead of you, but I still await your comments. If you'd like, you can simply review my latest chap and pm the rest later. I'll be awaiting your constructive criticism!

Super Shadix 520: Heh yup! Suspense is such a difficult thing to manage. More often than not though, I believe I've managed to make it work for the best. If you want more, then I suppose it'd only kind of me to deliver, no? Hope this chap slakes you thirst for answers!

Until next time!