UGH. Sorry about the wait :/ I just wasn't happy with this chapter. Nothing came out how I wanted it to...
A huge thank you to you wonderful, patient people: h.p.123, Super-Shadow1248, Skyelara, 4everLucky18, anon, xxBrownSugarxx, Viky, Alexandra the Leopard, Hollie the hedgehog, Comrade Athelwine, Mephiles-Lover-2011, Karanma Maeryl, ChillyNight, Danielle Fenton, xxRozuMariixx, Mi123, Randomkid2012, Miss Topaz, shirinuigoddeviantart, Juliix, ShadAmy4Eva, sonamyfangirl1234, rainbowprincess, Maximum Miles Hedgehog, RachelTheHedgehog, demon and Jade the Fox. I can't thank you all enough.
I just really hope that you enjoy this chapter. I must admit I'm doubtful, but I'll leave it to your judgement...

Chapter 18 - Destruction

The doors of the workshop slammed open as Sonic raced inside. He zipped between the rooms, checking for any sign of Tails. The journey there had been nothing compared to his usual distances and yet he was panting as if he'd never run a day in his life. He sped into the kitchen, noticing a yellow Post-it note stuck to the door. In neat, print-like handwriting, Tails had written, 'Sonic. I've gone to help Andy fix Amy's door. I should be back soon. '

Sonic ripped it off the door, crumpling the paper in his fist. Andy wants to fix Amy's door, huh? Yeah, I bet he does, he thought bitterly. He felt every muscle in his body tense with rage. Within seconds, he was back out of the workshop, leaving the note in a scrunched up ball on the floor.

"That should do it," Tails said, wiping his brow.

Amy stepped back to evaluate their work. Large wooden planks with rough edges were nailed over her door in an attempt to cover the gaping hole that Sonic had made. It worked, but it was unsightly to say the least. She bit her lip, deciding that when this was over she was buying a new door. Tails must have picked up on her scepticism, as he turned back to smile at her, almost apologetically.

"I know it's not perfect but it will keep out any more burglars," he said. "I'm just worried about what Amy will say when she sees it."

"Nah, it's… it's good," she assured him, while trying to assure herself. "Amy will be glad that we've fixed it."

.

Tails nodded, looking over the door again. "If only we could test it," he said thoughtfully. "It's hard to say whether or not the lock's been damaged, and we don't have any keys to see if it is."

"Maybe these will help," a new voice growled. It was a familiar, masculine voice, and anger seeped out of it.

Tails and Amy whipped around to see Sonic walk out of the shadows, clenching something in his fist. Amy felt her stomach drop and a sickly sensation churn her insides as her eyes fell on what he was holding. She froze. He lifted the bunch of keys higher, his gaze focused solely on her.

He knows, she thought, panic flooding her system. She felt her mouth dry up as she desperately tried to conjure something to say.

.

"Sonic! Aren't those Amy's keys?" Tails asked, watching his hedgehog brother with wide-eyes.

"Yeah," Sonic said, still glaring at Amy.

Tails glanced between the two hedgehogs, bewildered. "But… where did you get them from?"

"Why don't you ask Andy?" Sonic briefly surrendered his fierceness, giving Amy a chance to answer. There was a hint of hope in his eyes, as if he was waiting to hear something that would fix everything.

Amy fidgeted, clenching and unclenching her fists. "Sonic, I…" she tried, struggling to voice something from the hundreds of phrases in her head. "I just…" She paused again, unable to look away from him. She was forced to stare into his lime green eyes, as emerald flames of anger flickered across his gaze. "It's not…" Her breathing grew heavier, ricocheting inside her ears, and she swallowed, unable to continue.

.

Sonic narrowed his eyes again. "You lied," he said, his tone dangerously low. "You've been lying the whole time."

"I didn't think–"

"You know exactly where Amy is, don't you?"

Tails stared at them, his ears flattening. He stayed silent, afraid to interrupt.

"I'm sorry!" Amy choked. "I'm sorry, Sonic, I didn't mean–"

"I trusted you!" Sonic shouted, making Amy flinch. His rage was partly tinged with hurt, as he continued. "I trusted you, and you were lying to me!"

"I know! I'm sorry!" Amy had been worried about how Sonic would react when he found out the truth, but she'd never thought that he'd be this angry. He was almost livid. She'd never seen him like this before and it scared her. It was horrible, having him glare at her like that. There was so much resentment in his expression, and it pained her to think that it was her fault.

.

"I-I can't believe you'd do something like that!" Sonic cried, his voice rising even higher. "You acted like you wanted her to come back and yet you were with her, weren't you? You were just hiding her away from everyone!"

Amy stared at him, suddenly feeling very confused. "What?"

"There's no point in denying it now!" Sonic exclaimed. "You just admitted it! While everyone was wondering where she was, looking for her, worrying themselves sick about her, you were with her!"

Amy shook her head, her eyes wide. She definitely was not expecting this. "I don't understand," she said quietly.

"Oh, I do! I understand, Andy!" he sneered. "You used me so you could be a better fighter, but your side of deal doesn't matter, does it? No! Instead of finding her, you were the one keeping her away.

.

"You set this whole thing up just to be with her! And let me guess, you told her to write that note? What exactly was your plan, huh? Once you'd taken advantage of everyone you were just gonna leave with her, is that it?"

Despite everything, Amy almost smiled in relief that he'd got the wrong idea. He couldn't be this angry at the truth. "Sonic," she breathed. "You've got it all wrong."

"Have I?" he demanded, his tone dripping with acrimony.

"Yes."

.

Sonic shook his head. "No, you're the one that's wrong if you think I'll believe that for one second! It all fits, Andy! Everything proves that you're keeping her away! That's why your 'friendship' with her was a secret, isn't it? That's why you had her purse and that's why you were there on the night that I heard something inside her house! That wasn't a burglar at all, was it? That was you! Which explains why you had these," he snarled, holding up the keys again.

.

"No!" she insisted. "No, Sonic, it's not like that! Just listen!"

"So you can lie again?"

"No, I'm trying to tell you the truth!"

"I know the truth!" he yelled.

Amy's ears lowered. She stared into his angered eyes, suddenly feeling very small. "Sonic, please, just-"

"Don't bother, Andy," he said, his voice finally lowering. "I'm done with the lies, and you've got what you wanted."

.

Amy's eyes welled up with tears. Sonic's quieter voice was almost worse than the shouting; it just made her feel even guiltier. "S-Sonic," she stuttered, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I hope you and Amy are happy," he said, his tone expressing the very opposite. He shook his head, and with one final, hard look into her eyes, he ran, ruffling the trees with his burst of speed.

Amy watched him leave, hardly able to believe what had just happened. The argument echoed in her mind, but it didn't feel real. In the all of the movies she'd seen, fights were deemed as passionate. The two lovers would shout and scream at each other, and just when all hoped seemed lost, they would end up kissing in the rain. But now that Amy had had her first fight with Sonic, it was nothing like that. There was no sudden fix, no feeling that everything would work out in an instant.

.

She didn't feel any rush of adrenaline or passion. She just felt empty. Over and over again, she heard his words in her mind, saw the bitterness – no, the hatred – in his eyes. He looked so disgusted, so betrayed. Amy hugged her arms, unsure of whether or not the cold was from the evening air or from Sonic's expression. How could it all have gone so wrong? Maybe Sonic's anger was for something that wasn't strictly true, but she'd still lied to him, and she genuinely couldn't be sure that he would forgive her anymore.

.

She'd almost forgotten that Tails was still with her, until he sidled up to her, his eyes wide.

"Andy?" he said quietly. "Is… Is all of that true?"

Amy shook her head, burying her face in her hands. "No," she said, her voice muffled. Her throat ached from holding back tears, and they began to leak from her eyes, soaking into her gloves.

"So… what was Sonic talking about?"

"H-he's got it wrong," she sniffed, wishing that her voice wasn't quivering in front of Tails. "But it's my fault!" The image of his face flashed in her mind, and she was once again reminded of the bitterness in his expression. "And now he hates me!" She allowed herself to release a sob.

.

Tails reached out to her, looking nervous despite his sympathy. "Andy?" he said, gently touching her shoulder. "Erm… are you… crying?"

Amy said nothing for a moment, wiping her eyes. "No," she whispered. She wiped them again, taking a deep breath, before turning to her friend. "You believe me, don't you, Tails? Sonic's got the wrong idea."

"Well, I… I don't believe that you'd lie about something like that," he said carefully. "But if Sonic's wrong then what's the truth?"

"I can't say," she murmured. Amy knew that she'd have no choice but to tell the truth before long, but after everything that had happened between her and Sonic, she decided that he had to be the first to know. She felt it was only right. "I'm sorry, Tails, but I need to tell Sonic first. It's complicated. Please understand."

.

Tails tried to send her a smile, though he looked doubtful. "All right," he said. "You can come back to the workshop with me, if you want to. Then you can talk to Sonic if he's back."

Amy sniffed again, hoping to dismiss the sickly feeling in her gut. "Thanks, Tails. I just hope he'll listen to me." As the fox began to walk home Amy held back for a moment, breathing deeply. She stared into the sky, as if it would provide the answers. "What have I done?" she whispered.

.

Tails's offer had given her a slither of hope that she could make things right. If she could just talk to Sonic, explain everything to him, maybe he would understand why she'd gone through with this crazy plan. She prayed that he would. But her hope evaporated the moment that she walked through the workshop doors, finding it completely empty. Tails scratched the back of his head and sighed, after having checked all of the rooms once more.

"I guess he's still running," he said quietly. "It doesn't look like he's going to come back tonight."

.

Amy held her fist up to her mouth, mostly because she was afraid she would start crying again.

"He's done this before," Tails added, hoping to reassure his friend. "Sometimes he just stays out of town for a few days. But he'll be back eventually."

The saddened hedgehog nodded. "Thanks anyway."

"You… You could always stay overnight?" he suggested. "Maybe Sonic just needs to cool off. He might come back tomorrow morning, and you could talk to him then."

Amy considered. "I would really appreciate that, Tails. Thank you," she said, trying to sound a bit more cheerful. "You're a really good friend, you know that?"

"It's nothing really. You're welcome," he smiled, his tails swishing.

.

The young fox was more than hospitable and he tried his best to make Amy feel at home. She was grateful for his efforts, but nothing could seem to quell the worry that was swirling around in her head. He offered her a spare bed that was perfectly comfortable, and yet she tossed and turned that night as if she was lying on a pile of stones. She clutched the duvet close to her body, trying to encourage all of the comfort she could get from it. What if Sonic didn't come back tomorrow? What if he didn't come back for the rest of the week? What if he didn't come back at all? She felt the sickness in her gut grow at the thought. What if he just decided to stay wherever he was forever? What if he ended up finding a new home and new friends and broke off contact with everyone else?

.

The surge of questions was driving her crazy. She rolled over again, deciding to give up on trying to sleep. How could she sleep when she had no idea where Sonic was? Maybe she'd have to look for him… But she didn't know where she would possibly start. It was killing her, this feeling of hopelessness. There was nothing she could do that would get him back.

.

Then she realised. This was what it felt like. This was what Sonic must have been feeling when he found out that she was gone. He thought she'd just disappeared without a trace and yet she was there the whole time, and now it was happening to her. Amy clenched her eyes shut as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Oh, Sonic," she whimpered, clutching her pillow. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I'm so sorry, Sonic."

This despair, this anxiety, this utter sense of being powerless was what Sonic had experienced, because of her. She couldn't have imagined that it would feel this bad. The main reason that she'd set up this stupid scheme was so that she could be closer to him and make him happy, but she'd only ended up hurting him in the process.

.

She wiped the wetness off her cheek and breathed deeply, trying to calm herself down. There was no point in worrying now; she just needed to hold on until tomorrow. That was the thought that she clung onto as she fell asleep, and it was the final ray of hope that managed to get her out of bed the next day. Amy had always been an early riser but she soon found that she'd slept in so late that it was just past midday. Tails was already in the kitchen, and he offered her a tired smile as she walked in. She tried to smile back, but immediately her attention was stolen by the fact that there was no blue hedgehog in the room.

"He's still not back?" she said, adjusting her cap.

.

Tails shook his head. "Sorry." He reached for one of the cupboards, but paused as his wrist-communicator starting beeping, its tiny light flashing wildly. He opened it. Both he and Amy gasped as the distant sound of screaming and explosions filled the room, as a voice tried to make itself heard.

Amy strained her ears to listen while she deciphered the voice as Cosmo's.

"Tails?" Cosmo called over the noise in the background. "Tails, can you hear me?"

"Yeah, what's going on, Cosmo?" Tails cried, panicked.

"Eggman's attacking the city! He's got those robots you were telling me about, with the huge arms! But there are more of them! They're everywhere, I don't know what to do! Is Sonic with you?"

.

Tails ran his hand through his bangs. "He's not around right now," he said, his blue eyes flickering with worry. "But I can bring the X-Tornado! Just hang on, Cosmo, I'll be there soon as I can!" He slammed his wrist-comm shut and ran into the garage, shouting, "Come on, Andy!"

Amy ran after him, feeling sick. He was already inside the plane and hurriedly flicking switches when she reached him. He gestured for her to climb aboard and she swallowed. She couldn't do this as Andy, but she wasn't ready to be Amy, not without Sonic.

.

"I can't," she said, sounding as helpless as she felt."I'm not good at this sort of thing."

"Yes, you can! There's no one else who can help us! We need you, Andy!" Tails exclaimed. "Hasn't Sonic been training you?"

Amy looked down, clenching her fists. He had been training her, and what for if not for situations like this? Wasn't this her chance, what she'd been waiting for? She'd learnt so much without her hammer that she was confident enough without it. She could finally prove her strength as a fighter. Maybe this really was Andy's time to shine.

.

Without another second's thought she jumped onto the plane, swinging herself into the seat behind Tails. "Let's do this," she said.

The glass cockpit shield lowered automatically to encase the two, as the engines fired up with a roar. Tails pulled a lever and the plane began to accelerate across the ground. The sound of the engines grew louder as it sped up, until the wheels were lifted off the ground and they soared into the sky. Amy held onto her seat, mentally preparing herself for the battle ahead. She could do this. She had to, to prove that everything had been worth it.

.

Her mind reached out to her hours of practice with Sonic, recalling the techniques that he'd taught her. With each memory that passed through her mind, the image of Sonic's face lingered, trying to weigh her down with guilt. She suppressed it, forcing herself to focus solely on what he'd taught her. The different moves that she'd learnt circled her mind as she ticked off each one. She hardly even noticed that they'd arrived until a nearby explosion shook the plane, making her jump. She looked out of the window, and was met with the sight of the town in ruins.

.

Cosmo hadn't been exaggerating. There were far more robots than last time. Smoke was billowing from several wreckages of buildings, and the ground was webbed with cracks. As Amy climbed out of the X-Tornado, the smell of burning hit her nose. She scanned the area, grateful that nobody had been hurt. Most of the citizens had clustered on the borderline of the town, watching in horror. Amy's hopes rose as she saw that Knuckles and Rouge were already in the area, fighting off some of the robots. They had destroyed two or three, though it hardly compared to the mass of machines that still plagued the streets. Eggman floated above the action in his Egg Mobile, a malicious grin across his face.

.

"Try as you might, you can't win!'" he crowed, as Knuckles and Rouge continued to tackle the robots, one at a time. "My F-Series robots are made of the strongest reinforced steel! By the time you've disabled them all, it'll be too late! This city will be demolished, ready for the construction of the Eggman Empire!"

"That's what you think!" shouted Tails, as he and Amy ran to join the scene.

Eggman cackled. "Oh, how pleasant!" he sneered. "Everyone's here for the revolution!" Then he looked around, his grin briefly morphing into a scowl. "Where's that blue hedge rat, Sonic?" Then his maniacal smile returned. "Well, it looks like we'll have to continue the celebrations without him! F-Series robots, attack these fools who dare to defy my empire! We can finish play time later," he snickered.

.

Every single robot present turned away from the buildings and focused their attention on the heroes, their glowing yellow eyes narrowing. Tails began to twirl his namesakes, ready to fly into the air at any moment. Knuckles and Rouge immediately attacked the robot closest to them, working together to bring it down. Several of the mechanical beasts stormed towards Tails and Amy, who assumed their battle stances. Tails began to fly around the robots, narrowly avoiding the swings of their giant arms, allowing them to crash into each other. Amy stood with her fists clenched, allowing the pieces of advice from Sonic to repeat in her mind.

Wrist straight, she reminded herself, as a robot advanced on her. Relax. Breathe in, breathe out.

.

Panic threatened to rise up her throat as the robot reached her but she forced it back down. I can do this.

The robot raised its huge arm and swiftly brought it down again. Amy dodged it, feeling the air beside her change as it missed her arm. She used the second of pause to slam her fist into its body, and winced as a familiar pain reverberated through her arm. The panic resurfaced.

It's not working!

.

Suddenly Tails was hovering beside her. "Their weak point is their joints! They have no armour there!" he cried, moving away again as the robot swung at him. To demonstrate, he kicked another robot's knee, and sparks flew as the metal creature staggered.

"Got it!" Amy called, recalculating her moves. She ducked as the robot swung its arm again, and ran towards the base of its arm, finding that its armour did indeed have a small gap. In one, fluid motion she sprang upwards and punched its metal shoulder as hard as she possibly could. It hurt just as much as the first punch, but to her relief the metal dented and the arm slanted, almost broken completely. A crackling sound emanated from the robot as the wires in its arm snapped.

.

Amy inwardly cheered, but that was only half of her problem. It swung its other arm straight at her and she dodged it at the last second, nearly losing her balance. She gritted her teeth. The arm whipped towards her again and she jumped, pushing off of it to slam a kick into the single joint that was holding it up. In seconds the robot was rendered defenceless. Amy quickly punched its mechanical knees, and it toppled to the ground, fizzling. The light in its eyes died out as the metal creature shut down. Amy frowned, wiping her brow. It had taken a lot of effort just to destroy one robot and there was still a hoard of them to be taken care of. She was handling it well enough, but she didn't know for how long she'd be able to keep it up.

.

As much as she'd learnt and felt confident enough alone, she found herself praying that, sooner or later, Sonic would show up. He always did. He somehow seemed to know when Mobius was in danger, and he'd always come just in time. She eyed the new load of robots advancing on her, and she tried to conjure her hero's self-assured smirk. She had to do this not only for Mobius, for her friends, for Sonic, but for herself. She was determined to defend her town to the very best of her ability, and nothing was going to stop her.

Well I hope you all enjoyed that. I just got so frustrated with myself that I wasn't updating soon enough and, ugh, I don't know... I can't help feeling that it comes across as rushed?
Anyway, tell me what you think. :)

P.S. I've made a new poll, to find out how you guys heard of my stories (perhaps a bit cheeky of me :P), so, please, check it out and cast your votes! ^_^ Thanks.
Also, I'm working on a cover for this story. It's taking forever, even though you probably won't even be able to see the detail, but oh well...