The next couple days of excavation turned up at least something worthy of salvage when Florentine had discovered what appeared to be a novelty radio, stylized in Eggman's likeness. The Egg-robo was ecstatic to bring this to the salvage team's attention. They could use this to gain some line of communication to the outside world!
Nicole was navigating the Mark 2's systems, trying to find some kind of map or manifest that could give her an idea for what they could expect going in to the lower levels; not just raw materials, but also defensive measures, stray badniks, self-destruct protocols, and any other assorted dangers had to remain on the table. Much to her chagrin, however, many of the system's files were damaged or otherwise inaccessible due to a lack of power. As Nicole pondered over what the next best course of action would be, she was called back to her PDA by Sigma.
The holo-lynx's projection, still pixelated from the damage her handheld sustained, appeared in front of Sigma, flanked by his fascinated trio.
"WE SEEM TO HAVE MADE A BREAKTHROUGH IN OUR EXCAVATION! ONE OF OUR CREW HAVE COME ACROSS A NEAR-INTACT RADIO SYSTEM. I IMAGINE THIS WOULD PROVE QUITE USEFUL IN CONTACTING THE OUTSIDE WORLD."
"That's fantastic news, Sigma! I think we should call it for today, getting that device back to a functioning state would surely keep us occupied."
"INDEED. ANY NEWS ON HOW TO BEST ACCESS THE REST OF THIS DEATH EGG STATION?"
"Unfortunately, none so far. Unless we're able to locate, recharge and refuel the system's power supply, we're not likely to get any further without getting more physical."
"HMM… WHAT ABOUT YOUR FRIEND? SHE'S OF EGGMAN MANUFACTURE; PERHAPS SHE'D BE ABLE TO MORE EASILY BYPASS THE VESSEL'S DEFENSES?"
"Oh, yes! Sally! She… she might…" Nicole let out a strained sigh. "To tell you the truth, Sigma, I don't know if she'd be willing or able to at this point."
Nicole was aware that Sally had finally left the workshop she reawakened in, but to her knowledge the chipmunk hadn't gone very far beyond the original Death Egg's parameter. She had simply been kept occupied by Lloyd's company. According to Sigma's translations, the two hadn't really done much, mostly watching the waves, the rise and fall of the sun, and the stars when night came. Lloyd was trying to get her to make use of her new arm, to maybe play catch with its boomerang blade, but Sally either didn't comprehend his gesture or wasn't receptive to it.
It just made Nicole feel more guilty. The two hadn't spoken since Sally's reactivation. Her attempt to entice her out of that dark, dingy place probably only set her back. Nicole had done it. She'd betrayed the trust of the one person who immediately believed her innocence after the fiasco with Mina's concert and Naugus. It was clear now that Sally wanted nothing to do with her. Should she even bother trying to reach out to her in the state she likely was still in?
"MISS HOLO-LYNX, PLEASE. I CAN SURMISE YOU ARE UNDER A GREAT DEAL OF STRESS AT THIS TIME. WHAT IS CAUSING YOU SUCH DISCOMFORT?"
"Sigma… I'm sorry, I find my thoughts occupied with my friend's well-being. I'm very worried for her."
"PLEASE, DON'T BE. LLOYD TELLS ME THAT SHE HAS MADE GOOD PROGRESS SO FAR. SHE APPEARS TO BE HAPPY BY MOST DISCERNIBLE METRICS. IN DUE TIME, MISS ACORN WILL BE FINE."
Nicole was still nervous. "Has she spoken much to Lloyd about anything that's happened?"
"APART FROM THEIR INITIAL INTERACTION? THERE HAS NOT BEEN COMMUNICATION OUTSIDE OF IDLE COMPLIMENTS."
Sally still needed someone to talk to. It would pain her to try and get involved, but Nicole figured it would be worth giving it another shot; she couldn't screw up any more than she already had, right? The radio could give her other voices to listen to, at least. According to Sigma, Sally had begun the recharge process right before the expedition left.
Sally hated being in this place. She felt like she knew it all too well, even if the one she was actually familiar with was still outside. All those memories. Those horrible, horriblememories. "Forget about them. They don't mean anything anymore. He can't reach you here. You're safe." She was safe because she wasn't needed anymore. She could recharge as much and as many times as she wanted here without fear of being found by him. Just another abandoned toy buried in with the rest of them.
Even with all of her person obscured and her mouth silent, Lloyd could tell that Sally was in a bad place at this time. She told him she knew she would have to get a recharge eventually, that she'd have to make the trip back into the core, and that she'd have to have a wire stuck into her back, but there was something she was keeping from him. Sigma had told Lloyd the same thing he told the rest of the scrapniks; that she was a victim of robotomy, or at least some new variation of it, and was unable to cope with the changes it brought. Of course, Lloyd couldn't ask her about it, and even if he could, he had no interest in asking. He simply curled up and sat in Sally's lap. That seemed to help the robotomite feel a bit better.
This was her zen. Just her and little Lloyd. It was all she needed to be at peace. That peace was politely intruded on by the arrival of some familiar faces.
Sigma peaked his head in through the doorway leading to the generator room. "HELLO, MISS ACORN. MAY I HAVE YOUR PERMISSION TO ENTER?"
Sally said nothing. She merely gave the mechanical mechanic a thumbs up. "Might do you some good to open up a bit more."
With her granting access, Sigma and the Egg-robos filtered into the room. The one with the funny hat seemed to be carrying an Eggman-shaped… thing, with him. What could it be? Was it a bomb? A spy probe? Some other threat to their safety?!
Sally quickly blurted out "Whatisthat?" Lloyd chirped something unintelligible out as he pulled himself closer to his new friend. It seemed to be a message directed to Sigma.
"DO NOT BE ALARMED, MISS ACORN. THIS IS NOTHING BUT A EGG-BRAND AM/FM RADIO. WE WERE HOPING TO USE IT TO TRY AND FIND OUT ABOUT THE WORLD OUTSIDE THE ISLAND."
The world outside the island? There was no world out there! Just an archipelago of mechanical monstrosities in various states of disrepair and one tyrannical amusement park/city-state as the last remnant of life on this hollow husk. "Don't bother. There's nothing out there worth learning about."
"WHATEVER DO YOU MEAN? MOST OF US HAVE ONLY SPENT THE DURATION OF ACTIVATION INSIDE FEATURELESS FACILITIES, SOME GROUNDED, SOME FLYING. OUR EXPOSURE TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD IS LIMITED TO MERE EGGCYCLOPEDIA ENTRIES. THERE IS SO MUCH MORE BEYOND OUR HOME!"
"Whatever." They can find it out on their own. It's a shame Lloyd would have to be there, but oh well.
"Sally, please." The distorted image of Nicole suddenly appeared next to Sigma, startling both him and the despondent chipmunk. "We can use this device to find a way off this island. A way back to our friends! Look, once we get this set up, we'll search through frequencies until we're able to locate a Freedom Fighter channel! Then we can-"
Sally was starting to tune out. It had been about a week since the… reactivation incident. The two hadn't talked since then. "If there was ever a time to reach out to her, it'd be now. She doesn't know any better than the scrapniks do. It'll break her heart. You can help ease her pain, be there for her. You know she's having a hard time dealing with all of this too." She's having a hard time? It seems like she's gotten along just fine with everyone else! No, she can find out like the rest of them. "Don't be cruel like that! She's trying to help you! Nicole's always been trying to help you! Nicole's the reason you're still here!" Well she didn't want to be here!
Sally found herself pulled back to attention when she heard the sound of static loudly echo in the room. "GEARS AND STARTERS!" the not-Gamma shouted, quickly dialing one of the knobs back before starting on the other. This radio had been plugged into one of the wall sockets as it sat on a now open window, antenna pointed to the sky. Sigma, Nicole, and the Egg-Robos were joined by a crowd of other scrapniks as they anxiously watched the turning dial. Sally let Lloyd go so he could be with the rest of them when the news broke.
Finally they were able to pick up a station. An appropriate one to pick up; radio propaganda for the Eggman Empire, an obnoxiously catchy tune dedicated to complimenting the greatness of their mighty ruler. That seemed to elicit some nervous laughter from the machines that could talk as they changed stations. Sally had expected what came next; the same tune was played on the next station, and the next one, and the next one, and the next one…
"No, no, no! This is all wrong! Sigma, allow me." Nicole attempted to interface with the more old-fashioned device to more accurately comb the radio waves. The digitized DJ desperately scanned through every possible frequency she could until, finally, she found something different. "Everyone, I've found something different! Please, listen!" The crowd was captivated once more.
"ATTENTION ALL RESISTANCE PERSONNEL!" That group's title caught Nicole by surprise. "Resistance? That's new. Did the Freedom Fighters restructure themselves while we were gone? That voice, is… is that Knuckles?" How desperate had they gotten that Knuckles was taking a leadership role? "I have some unfortunate news. As it stands, Eggman has conquered 99.9% of the world, Tails is missing, and Sonic's… gone..." The hairs Nicole was able to render were starting to stand up. "How long have we been away? And Sonic's…" She turned around. Sally was gone. The hope of the scrapniks had deflated. Sigma turned off the radio.
"I'M SORRY YOU HAD TO HEAR THAT, MISS HOLO-LYNX. I AM… SURE WE CAN FIND A MORE EMPOWERING STATION IF WE TRY ANOTHER DAY." The crowd began to dissipate.
Nicole's image became even more distorted as she awkwardly beamed back at Sigma. "Thank you for your help, Sigma! It might not have gone as well as we'd hoped, but… um… we made some progress! Haha! Ha ha…"
The badnik gave a knowing pat on the lynx's pixelated shoulder as he made his exit.
"This is… not ideal."
Nicole had spent the next few hours trying and failing to relocate the radio signal, but to no avail. The frequency must have been hijacked temporarily before reverting to its regularly scheduled broadcast. It was devastating; the whole world had been conquered in the time since Sally and her had ended up on the island. But! At least one of her friends was still out there! Maybe with enough convincing she could get the other-
"Hi."
Nicole jumped up in surprise! "AH! WHO'S THERE!?" She turned around and saw Sally's cloaked silhouette behind her. "Oh! Sally! It's… it's…" The holo-lynx was struggling to finish her sentence. The first thing she wanted to say to Sally was that she was sorry, and she already blew it.
"Good to see you too."
Nicole could see Sally's good hand poking through her cloak, carrying a makeshift mug. Steam was rising from the top of it. Before Nicole could raise her concerns over what she was drinking, the robian spoke up.
"Still trying to get the radio figured out?"
"Ah, n-no-no- no, I've figured I'll give it a break until tomorrow. Haven't really found much outside of… you know…"
Sally let out a dry chuckle. "Yeah, I know." She took a sip out of her cup. "You should come down and spend some time with us! Out on the island, not cramped in this old mausoleum! Play some games, watch the sunset… stargaze?"
"That would be lovely! I'm just…" Nicole was concerned. Sally was acting very strangely. She predicted Sally's mental state would deteriorate if she hadn't intervened, and now that prediction was coming true. "I'm…" Nicole was beginning to tear up. She might have been too late. "I'm so s-s…"
"Nicole. I forgive you." Sally hugged what she feasibly could with her arm, being careful not to spill any of the oil on the nanites. "I forgive you for everything I thought you did, and for everything you thought you did. Honestly. I truly forgive you." She pulled the lynx closer as Nicole started crying over her shoulder.
"Thank you… sniffsniff Sally. I'm sorry I didn't take the chance to apologize sooner."
"Don't be, please. We just needed some time to… adjust. Get acquainted with the locals. Really, I'm sorry for not being more grateful. You guys saved me." Was she really saying this? Did she mean it? Has she gone insane?
"No. You're just making the best out of the worst situation. This is your new home, with new friends and family. But Nicole's still the same and she's going to have to know the truth. Best to ease her into it."
"You really mean that?" Nicole found it hard to believe her, having been there with her during her salvage, repair, and reactivation. "Sally, be honest, if you're still struggling with any of what's transpired, you don't have to keep that to yourself. You don't have to say that to make me feel better."
Sally slowly broke the hug and limped back from Nicole. The new leg still had to be broken-in. She turned to look out at the window, watching the scrapniks playing in the yard below. Sally had finally begun introducing herself to the rest of the crew and was growing fond of each of their individual quirks as well as their boundless acceptance of her. They were the closest thing she had to her old friends. To the Freedom Fighters. They reminded her of the happier days of their youth. She took a final chug of her drink and placed the cup on the window sill. With her now free hand, she pulled her hood back. Sally winced when she heard her hand bumping against the side of her "hair", but recomposed herself, turning to face Nicole again.
"I mean it Nicole. I'm fine with it." She really had gone insane! "Beggars can't be choosers and all." Another dry chuckle escaped her metallic lips. Soon she'd surely be giggling like a maniac. "I did want… I need to tell you something, though."
It had been a week since Nicole had actually seen the chipmunk's face last. It looked about the same, one of the eyelids stuck in its socket, the hairpiece broken and bent, but now she could see the faint oil stains under the robian's eyes. It seemed to have been a while since she last cried, and she even found it within herself to clean up. The digital companion was still concerned for her friend's well-being. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. I am." Sally looked at her and smiled.
Nicole finally found some reprieve. "That's… wonderful. That really is, Sally! I suppose we should get back to the scrapniks now. What was it you were going to tell me?"
Sally braced herself. "Be genuine with her. It's gotten you this far. Just take your time and tell her the whole truth of what you know." "I'll tell you about it on the way down."
With that, the two reunited friends made their exit back into the halls of the Death Egg.
With any potential hostiles having evacuated the area, the Amy Doll flopped down from the rafters. Taking another moment to assess its surroundings, the nicknack made several pained hops to the crate the radio was placed on. "THIS UNIT'S MOBILITY IS INCREDIBLY LIMITED. REMINDER: ATTEMPT TO GAIN CONTROL OF ANY OTHER POSSIBLE UNITS."Struggling to climb up, a wire shot out from the doll's neck as it snaked towards the unit's power outlet.
"ATTEMPTING RADIO TRANSMISSION TO EGGMANLAND. ERROR! UNIT NOT IDENTIFIED! THIS UNIT IS INCAPABLE OF BEING CONNECTED TO ANY EGGNETWORK SERVICES. RETRIEVAL AND ORBITAL BOMBARDMENT IS NO LONGER AN OPTION. RESUME ORIGINAL PRIORITY ONE."
As the Amy Doll finished interfacing with the radio, its scanners had detected an active badnik unit entering the room. It hid behind the crate. Lloyd had arrived, splitting up from the group's game of Orbinautball to check in on Sally after she left the game. It was her turn up to bat! After finally reaching the generator room (he still wasn't that good at navigating the Death Egg, he much preferred staying outside), Lloyd was surprised to find a doll lying against the crate. Did Sally make him a gift? How sweet! With a gleaming grin, the scrapnik walked over to the doll and picked it up.
Only for a wire to shoot out of its neck.
When she first started walking down the corridors with Sally, she was hoping they could have a proper heart-to-heart and start discussing plans on how to leave the island. She enjoyed the company of the scrapniks, in spite of their eerie construction, but also believed getting back to the "Resistance" should be their primary objective. Knux could only hold down the fort for so long! What better place for them to chat than beneath a clear night sky?
Nicole enjoyed looking at the stars. Of imagining the countless worlds and zones beyond hers. Of observing and charting constellations, even making up her own. It was her first passion; the reason she created her avatar. The two of them were sitting on a makeshift bench in the vast clearance between the cracked halves of the fallen Death Egg. The stars brought her comfort.
After what Sally told her, however, her comfort from the stars was starting to weaken. These weren't her stars. They were… different. The placements weren't the same, the constellations no longer aligned or were significantly altered. Even their colours, as unimportant as they were all those lightyears away, seemed off. It was all wrong.
What Eggman had done was wrong.
This was Eggman's world, Eggman's galaxy, Eggman's universe. These were Eggman's stars. It was a crushing feeling that Nicole had never experienced before. One of total and utter defeat, knowing that Eggman had changed reality to suit his vision. That all of her friends had suffered some horrible fate, or were due to suffer one soon enough. That Sally and her might be the only one's left. That Scrapnik Island was their only refuge.
The lynx couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with Sally's nonchalance towards the whole affair. She'd given up everything in such a short amount of time, and seemed perfectly fine with it, trailing off the conversation by talking about the lovely wire-wreath Carina had put together. Now the scrapniks were their friends is what she'd told the hologram, and those little guys were all they needed!
Nicole could tell the immediate detachment wasn't genuine; she knew Sally, and she could tell the chipmunk was lying through the bolts of her cheeks. That, or she'd finally gone mad from the events that occurred. Whatever the case, Nicole thought she could restore some semblance of optimism in Sally. Even if Eggman rewrote reality, there were some factors that still didn't add up. Some small glimpses of hope that Nicole could cling to, maybe even pull Sally up with. Eggman couldn't have won if there was still a war raging on!
"You don't actually think Eggman's won, do you?"
Was Nicole not listening to their conversation? The little bunny-bot(?) even put stars in the thing! It was adorable! Shame she was still stuck on that whole Master Plan business. "Don't be so dismissive. Keep talking with her. Try and get her to understand what's going on. You know how dire this situation is." Sally took on a neutral expression as she turned over to face the virtual avatar. "I know it's difficult to believe, Nicole, but there's no other reasonable explanation. He's taken over the world. Sonic's…" She paused briefly to stop it from popping back into her mind. "You know… and now all that's left for him to do is scrape away the last remnants of opposition. It's awful. It really is! But that's not our concern anymore."
Nicole was baffled at what she was hearing! "Sally, our friends are still out there! Still fighting! Eggman hasn't won yet! He hasn't managed a complete takeover! If he'd altered reality to his liking, do you really think-"
"Nicole, please." Sally felt bad about interrupting her like that, but she wanted to make this quick. "I was able to listen to and understand the full scope of Eggman's plan. He didn't want to just rewrite history to fit his vision and immediately win. He wanted to take his time slowly crushing all the opposition that stood in his way! It's always a game to him! Sonic was his first victim; the first thing he was going to do was roboticize and weaponize him. It's like Knux said; Sonic's gone, just like how I was gone." Actually saying it out loud made it feel worse than it already was. "Now he has the ultimate weapon! After all the damage he did to you guys with me, he figured that turning Sonic against us like Robotnik did would be the next logical step in his plan for world conquest! How else could he have managed to… Nicole?"
Nicole's image appeared to have frozen in place. She looked… paler than normal. She was staring with cringing bewilderment.
"Nicole? You still there? The PDA hasn't… it hasn't crashed or anything, has it? Maybe I should take it down to Sigma and…" Nicole's image flickered wildly as she shot off the bench and stood tall over Sally, her demeanor shifting to something uncharacteristically feverish.
"Sally. Listen. We need to get to our friends. We need to help them! We cannot just give up! Not while they're still out there! Even if we currently have just 0.1% of the world safe, we have to protect that last bit of freedom!" Nicole folded her arms as she approached, towering over the robian more and more. "We cannot abandon everything we worked so hard to protect! Even if only a scrap of it remains, that's a scrap worth fighting for! Now-" Nicole reached out her hand. "Why don't we get to work on finding a way off this rock?
Sally was taken aback. Nicole was even more deluded than she was. "No she isn't! She's… right! Some of your friends are still out there! If the opportunity presents itself, then yeah, you should take it! You could even bring the scrapniks along; they'd love a change of scenery, and you'll both need all the help you can get! Eggman hasn't won yet! You can still push back! Now you can save Sonic! He never gave up on you! None of them gave up on you! But there's an issue with all that… You're…"
Nicole stumbled a little bit when she saw something that wasn't a hand escape from underneath Sally's cloak. It was her replacement; the slicer scythe. The chipmunk held an awkward smile.
"I really appreciate your optimism, Nicole. I needed to hear you say that. Thank you. It's… nice that you think we've all got a chance. I think you guys do, to. But really, even if they didn't run away screaming when they saw me-" She tried to laugh, but it came out more like a wince as she looked over the rusted green blade "I wouldn't be in any condition to fight. I'm struggling to walk! I don't…" Sally was starting to get shaky, her breath becoming uneasy. "I won't be able to…" Suddenly, she stopped herself.
Nicole was worried again, her determined position faltering as she sat beside her friend. "'Won't be able to' what?"
"I'm sorry, Nicole, but I… I don't want to talk about it. Not now."
"That's fine, Sally." Sally was keeping something from her. Nicole still didn't completely have her trust. "Feel free to tell me whenever you believe it to be optimal, or not at all if that would be better for you."
"Thanks. So… how do you pass the time?"
"Well, you know I love to stargaze. Aside from that, I have a number of basic games as a part of my system."
Sally remembered that. Before Nicole became a holo-lynx, she had all sorts of basic programs downloaded on to her; bombsweeper, solitaire, the like. "Right. Did you want to play some chess?"
It'd been some time since Nicole played chess. The last time she played was with Shard; he was surprisingly competent, in spite of his cocky and reckless attitude towards everything around him. "Absolutely! I don't want to get into your space, but it would be more power effective if I were to project my image and the game in your optics instead of using my nanites. Sally, may I have permission to… upload myself into your system?"
Could Sally really trust her at this point? "Of course you can. This is Nicole. She wants to pass the time with you. Give her a shot." Fine, she could have her chance. "Alright, Nicole. Whenever you're ready."
The next expedition had a somewhat entertaining development. After combing through room after room of unoccupied barracks and empty storage rooms, the salvage team had encountered some kind of Eggman-cave. To the right, shelves were stacked full of books, board games, movies, video games, and so on. In the center was a massive screen bolted to the wall, a shelf underneath housing over a dozen gaming consoles and other assorted peripherals, paired with a singular bean bag chair and a large, low to the floor table. To the left was some kind of counter, behind it countless drinks and glasses; or their remains, given how not one had been left unshattered following the crash. It was clear that the doctor had no shortage of entertainment in the station.
On top of the counter, however, were a couple of cardboard boxes. Rancheros was the one to break the news, proudly wearing a "I LOST MY FREEWILL AT EGGMANLAND!" novelty t-shirt. Inside the box were seemingly countless tongue-in-cheek designs pitched by the doctor during his plans for world conquest. Clearly Robotnik had been planning ahead with merchandising for his new world. Sigma and the rest of the Egg-robos followed Rancheros back to the room.
"EXCELLENT WORK, RANCHEROS! WE HAVE FINALLY FOUND OUR FIRST TROVE OF TECHNOLOGY! WE CAN SURELY PUT THESE COMPONENTS TO GOOD USE, AND- HMM."
The egg-robo was on his knees, rotating his head left and right, begging his commander not to scrap any of the items.
"WELL… I SUPPOSE WE COULD ALL USE A BIT OF ENTERTAINMENT AT THIS POINT. VERY WELL; WE'LL SIMPLY TRANSPORT THE ITEMS BACK TO THE ISLAND."
Rancheros lunged into a hug as his brothers-in-carton started to work on organizing the various forms of equipment.
Meanwhile, Nicole continued to try and navigate the Mark 2's systems. She was at the very least able to assess the situation with the flooding; the station had crashed into the beach, and was lucky to have still been able to stay grounded, as there was a steep gulch a very short distance away from its landing point. From the map she could access, there was flooding detected at the lowest of levels, with the Death Egg Laser being rendered too damaged to repair. "Good. I'll be sure it stays that way."
Still, however, she was unable to make any progress. "If we want to gain access to any of the lower levels, we're going to need Sally's help, but…" Nicole thought back. To when she was there. When she rerouted the World Roboticizer. How she was powerless and forced to watch her lose her friend. Powerless to stop the doctor from ripping her friend apart. "I couldn't convince her. Not after what happened; not then, and especially not now." It was going to be a Herculean task to even get Sally near the station, let alone enter it. "Not at this point… but maybe someday." Leaving the systems again, she followed the sounds of wrenches and screwdrivers to the Eggtertainment Center. Sigma and the Egg-robos were sorting out the various electronics into plastic containers.
Nicole made her appearance with a knock on the doorway. "Hello, crew!"
"AH, MISS HOLO-LYNX. I ASSUME YOUR SYSTEM NAVIGATION HAS BEEN FINISHED FOR THE DAY?"
"Yes. I've at the very least been able to track the flooding; it seems to be located in the lower weapon system, and has bled into the back half of the hangar. Aside from that, the only damage we should expect is that caused by the crash."
"MORE GOOD NEWS, I SUPPOSE. WHILE THE LOSS OF THE STATION'S DEFENSES IS A NEGATIVE DEVELOPMENT, AND THE DAMAGE TO THE HANGAR COULD MEAN LOST RESOURCES. HOWEVER, IF THE POWER SUPPLY IS IN A SAFE SPOT, WE COULD BE ON THE VERGE OF A GREAT ADVANCEMENT."
"I would hope so!" Nicole's enthusiasm was partially a front. "It will be some time until we make a genuine great advancement, but this will do for now." Turning her attention to the room around her, she noticed that the shelves on the right side were only partly picked through. "Why haven't you started packing any of the books yet?"
"WE SIMPLY FELT WE HAD NO NEED FOR THESE READING MATERIALS. OF COURSE, IF YOU WISHED TO MAKE USE OF THESE MANUALS, FEEL FREE! WE HAVE A FEW EXTRA CONTAINERS."
Nicole dusted off some of the covers while the Egg-robos started to work on dismounting the television screen. Despite Eggman's intellect being unquestionable, she couldn't find a single academic item on that shelf. All of them were cheap novels, comic compilations, and rulebooks for tabletop games. A box caught her interest; Rings and Running Shoes, 3rd Edition. "Hmm…"
Sigma was also intrigued. "AN INTERESTING CHOICE. THE SCRAPNIKS COULD DO WITH SOME TEAM-BUILDING ACTIVITIES. IF YOU WISH, I CAN GIVE YOU THE BASIC BADNIK SCRIPT TO BETTER COMMUNICATE WITH MY KIN."
"Please do, Sigma." Nicole had to spend more time with the basic scrapniks, and she always wanted to try running a game of R&RS. They could all use something more engaging to do.
Sally ducked a punch from Mecha Sonic and stumbled back. He kicked the dirt with his saw leg to get it spinning, then tried to kick her with it; Sally stopped it with her laser blade. Using his free leg, Mecha turned it around at the knee and blasted back, creating distance between the two. Each took a moment to pause.
Sally followed up by trying to close the gap using her jet boots; she was starting to get the hang of using the two different thrusters after several crashes. As she did, Mecha threw his clawed arm, like a whip. The chipmunk attempted to circle around it, but her bad leg caught the punch, throwing her off balance as she fell into the dirt next to her "brother-unit".
"YOU NEED TO FOCUS ON YOUR RANGED WEAPONRY. IF NOT TO ATTACK, THEN TO DISTRACT ME BEFORE MAKING YOUR CHARGE. OTHERWISE, I CAN ANTICIPATE YOUR APPROACH AND-"
Sally then boost-kicked Mecha's plain foot out from under him. "I'm usually the one giving orders. Here's one to consider." She jetted-up to her feet, placing a boot down on Mecha's torso. "Don't give critique until the fight's over."
Mecha tried as best as he could to maintain his composure. "THE FIGHT WAS OVER, SALLY. I HAD YOU IN A SPOT WHERE YOU'D BE EASILY CRUSHED. I STOPPED IT THERE TO AVOID ANY UNNECESSARY DAMAGES." The doppelganger put his hand up as Sally helped bring him to his feet. "THIS ISN'T A COMPETITION, UNDERSTAND? YOU'RE NOT DOING THIS TO WIN, YOU'RE DOING THIS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW TO USE YOUR BODY."
Part of the reason Sally took up sparring was to understand the intricacies of this… thing she was a part of. Here, in this small hangar, she could leave her cloak off without fearing judgment from those around her as she trained. "Sorry, Mecha. I just got frustrated, is all. It won't happen again." Another part of it was that Sally needed an excuse to let out some of her pent up anger. The final part of it was… it may have been wrong to do this, but she was trying to get some sort of similar experience to being with Sonic.
Mecha Sonic wasn't Sonic. Even still, he made for interesting conversation; surprisingly introspective, compared to the other scrapniks on the island. Mecha wasn't really satisfied with what the island entailed. Sure, he loved being around his brothers and sisters, playing games, telling stories and the like. But he wanted more. To see more. There was only one place he had ever been to before, and that was Angel Island.
When Sally broke the news to him about the radio incident, Mecha was unperturbed. Unlike many of his brethren, the badnik held no ill-will towards his creator, and saw no issue with enlisting back into his service. Sally was tempted to cut him down, then and there, but she didn't have enough control over her body yet… and she knew her new friends would be devastated. She buried that hate deep within, and instead just focused on improving herself by learning from him.
"GOOD. NOW, YOUR LEFT ARM."
She really preferred not to think about it. "What about it?"
"HAVE YOU EVER USED IT? IT COULD HELP YOU DIVERSIFY YOUR REPERTOIRE OF MANEUVERS."
"No, I haven't. Being completely honest? I'd prefer to keep it that way."
Mecha put a claw on her pauldron. "I UNDERSTAND YOUR HESITANCY. WHEN THESE SALVAGED PARTS WERE ADDED TO MY CHASSIS, I EXPERIENCED A GREAT DEAL OF DIFFICULTY ADJUSTING TO THEM. ONCE I DID, HOWEVER, I FOUND THE POSSIBILITIES THEY PRESENTED TO BE LARGELY BENEFICIAL."
"The jets in my feet don't match."
"I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT THOSE. I AM TALKING ABOUT YOUR SLICER HAND. TRY USING IT."
"I… don't know how."
"IT'S THE SAME AS USING YOUR WRIST BLADE. SEPARATE FROM MASTER ROBOTNIK'S PROGRAMMING, YOU HAVE A GREATER DEGREE OF CONTROL OVER YOUR BODY THAN YOU EVER COULD HAVE HAD WHILE ORGANIC."
That almost set her off. Sally was furious. "You insensitive bucket of-"
"PLEASE. I'M SORRY."
"Sorry? You cheap knock-off…"
"ARE YOU ANGRY WITH ME?" Mecha blasted off to the other side of the hangar. "IF YOU ARE, THEN TRY AND HIT ME."
So maybe there was something in common between him and Sonic after all: they both knew how to get on her nerves. A part of Sally wanted to blast him with the laser on her forehead but, again, she couldn't terminate him. She also couldn't afford the energy drain that it and the Light Shield caused, because…
Instead, Sally brought up the scythe hand.
"SO? WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO, 'MISS ACORN'?"
She was going to place this blade right inside his mono-eye. She brought the arm back, locked on using her targeting system, and threw the sickle. The blade flew at an impressive speed, but Mecha was still able to easily dodge it. Much to her surprise, the blade started flying back to her. She brought the arm in front of her face, as if to block it, only for it to land neatly back in.
"IMPRESSIVE, ISN'T IT? WHILE THAT BLADE IS FLYING, IT CREATES AN INVISIBLE ELECTROKINETIC TETHER, ENSURING THAT IT HITS THE MARK YOU WERE AIMING FOR AT THE TIME OF THE THROW, AND LANDS BACK IN PLACE. SO LONG AS YOU BRACE FOR IT, OF COURSE."
"I'm not interested in the construction of your 'master's' implements. I've… had enough… grafted…" Sally trailed off. She started trembling as she stumbled away to her cloak.
"..."
"I… I think that's enough… f-for today."
"FAIR ENOUGH. I HEAR YOU'VE MADE GOOD FRIENDS WITH LLOYD. SEE IF YOU CAN TRACK HIM DOWN; I'M SURE HE'LL BE ABLE TO HELP YOU OUT."
Lloyd… she hadn't been with him in a couple of days, and she was worried. "Do you know where he is?"
"SORRY. I MOSTLY KEEP TO MYSELF; LLOYD WAS JUST THE ONE MOST ADAMANT ABOUT MEETING YOU AND WANTED ME TO TRANSLATE."
"You haven't seen him since?"
"NOPE. SORRY."
The scrapmunk made a speedy exit from the abandoned hangar. Even without her jetboots and bad leg, she moved at a quick pace. Once she left the bottom carcass of the Death Egg, she noticed a table had been set up in a clearing, occupied by several scrapniks, and…
"The E-series robot attempts to spray the corridor down with suppressing fire! Cyril, Maximilian, please make a-"
"Nicole?" Sally made her way down the hill. "What are you guys doing?"
There was a sheet of grid paper placed on the table, with some kind of overhead map sketched into it. Placed on it were several miniature figures, depicting mobians and various badniks. The scrapniks, Emily, Cyril, Casper, Gilbert and Maximillian, each had a sheet of paper or two in front of them, alongside pencils, erasers, and… dice. Nicole, meanwhile, had some sort of screen up, depicting a group of mobians fighting badniks, monsters, and other assorted baddies, with a book and notes hidden behind it. "Ah, hello Sally. We're just participating in a team-building exercise. We have room for another player if you're interested." Nicole's smile was inviting.
Sally always wanted to organize a game with the Freedom Fighters, attempting to do so multiple times when they were younger, but they were either too busy to sit down or not "nerdy" enough to participate. "Well Nicole, I would… I'd really like to play but I-I've been looking for Lloyd and I can't find him anywhere. I was hoping maybe he was with you guys, but…"
He was nowhere to be found. Nicole then spoke… or emitted some noises, to the scrapniks. Sally was confused at the conversation, but eventually, the holo-lynx relayed the information. "The last time Lloyd was seen was in the upper Death Egg two days ago. They haven't actually seen him since. Maybe he ran out of charge after getting lo-"
Sally was already gone. Nicole was beside herself. "Sally… why don't you just talk with me? What's going on?" Still, it was best she didn't get involved. She then returned to her game. "Anyways, Cyril, Maximilian, make a Reflex saving throw."
"Lloyd? Lloyd, where are you?"
Sally was losing track of her position inside the labyrinthine husk. She was already experiencing a great deal of panic before entering. Now? Getting lost in these familiar but different hallways? She was whimpering all the way down. Finally, however, she found a sense of direction.
Music. It was coming from deeper within. It was… distorted?
W̶̨̕ḛ̵́ ̶͔̃A̸̮̎l̷͓͑L̶̺̕ ̴̻͂N̸̥̕è̵̼E̸͎̅d̶̍ͅ ̴̪̄T̵̢͐o̵͎͌ ̶̡͗W̸͙̋o̸̅ͅR̵̨̽k̵̟̅ ̶̠͘t̷͚͊O̶̡̅g̴̜͑E̶̗̒t̴̪͌H̶͖̕ḙ̶̐R̶̡̋-̵͓̌-̴͉͐-̷̚ͅ-̸̟͂-̷̧͒-̶̰͌
It was… alluring. She found the entry to the chamber where its music was coming from.
Ť̸̜o̷͓͝ ̶̪̍B̴̟̑u̴̺̚I̵̢͝ĺ̶̻D̸̐͜ ̷̞͌a̸͇̋ ̴̥̀B̶̹͗ë̸̝T̵̜̅t̸̤̎Ē̷͙r̶̞͑ ̷̮̊L̸͓̀i̵͓͊F̵͊͜è̴͇-̵̪̒-̷͙̽-̵̘͂-̸͎͐-̷̺̀-̸͙̆-̴̭̎-̸̖̒
She turned the corner to see inside this large storage room. There he was, sitting in his little container. He had the radio in front of him. "H-hey there, little guy!"
Ţ̵̊o̴̡̐ ̷̠͝M̵̩͝ã̶̮K̵̪̿ê̷͉ ̸̢̎Ȋ̴̪ṭ̷́ ̸̞̈́W̸͙̃h̶͕̊Ą̸͒ẗ̵͈ ̶̞̊W̸̙̑e̶͙̒ ̶͔͗f̸̺͝Ĕ̶̫ë̵̳́L̶̮̑-̷̦̄-̵̨̋-̵̭́-̴̯̇-̸̖͑-̸̼͗-̷̗̌
It wasn't like Lloyd to be holed up in his container. Did something happen to him? "Now L-loyd, I'm a… a little stressed-out right now, but if you're feeling bad, I can give you a hug."
w̷̡̏E̴̮̾ ̶̬̉h̸̩͠A̸̢̚v̴̧͂E̵̱̎ ̸̺̿ţ̵̉O̷̰͝ ̵̲͝m̶̪͋A̴̛̙ķ̷̐E̴̲͝ ̴̘̏i̴̻̚T̶̿ͅ ̷̞̆r̶̘̓E̷̗̐ă̵̮L̵͍͌-̸͍̃-̶̘͠-̶͖̆-̷͙̒-̵̥̋-̵̥̓-̵̜̒-̴̫̅-̴̭͠-̴̲͘-̷̯̆
Sally got closer and closer. Only a couple of feet away, the container was slowly starting to open as a blue light peered through. "That's i-it. Come here…"
Suddenly, a large mace-like ball came crashing down on Lloyd and the radio. The radio was silenced, and Lloyd.
"Lloyd…" The mace retracted back, dragging the crushed container along the floor as it made an awful screech. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Sally's scream echoed through the many halls.
She looked past the ball. Oily tears poured out of her eyes, but not out of just sadness, but rage. "You." It was another machine, like Mecha Sonic, but made in Knuckles' image. It walked forward.
Sally brandished one of her blades. "I'm going to cut you DOWN!"
Mecha Knuckles stood his ground as the unidentified badnik charged towards him. It seemed to have been a more recent construct; perhaps sent by Eggman to retrieve them. However, it evidently had received one of Sigma's patch-jobs, so perhaps it had already joined the congregation. The reality of the situation didn't really register to Knux until the yelling Metal unit slashed across his face with her claw.
Now was the time to be on the offensive. Knux matched the unit's slash with a punch, knocking it back off of its feet. It? Judging by the scrapniks voice, the chances were likely that it was female. She quickly boosted back to her feet, then dashed out of the way as Knux brought down his flail. This unit was very quick. She spoke again. "DIE!" The unit attempted to slash through Knux's flail arm with a laser blade, but he retracted the wire back to him. She boosted into him, kneeing him in his core.
This was a true thinking unit, like him. How unfortunate that she was very clearly not following her programming. She was also very aggressive: she only fought at close range, it seemed. Knux made the wise choice to pull back as the unit lagged behind, too enraged to stabilize her jets. While he created distance, the other unit stumbled to the ground next to the other scrapniks remains. She was… cradling the simpleton. "Lloyd… I'm sorry… I swear… I won't let you down!" From Knux's perspective, there was three (formerly four) units in the chamber.
Knux needed to deal with both this Metal unit and the unidentified entity that was formerly inside Lloyd; it had survived the crushing! He could detect it somewhere on the ceiling! Using his clawed hand, he pulled down a large panel where a blue light peeped through; he would be able to incapacitate the rogue unit and bring the entity within his range.
The unit mocked him. "Guess your aim isn't the best when you're missing an eye, is it? Freak!" She charged again, blade prepared, only for Knux to bring the roof down on top of her. "What th-" was all she could say before she was stuck under a pile of rubble. Only her head and arms sticking out. "You… you scumbag! SCRAPBRAIN!" While the unit was subdued for the time being, the entity seemed to have escaped.
"Hey! HEY!" Knux was impressed by the unit's tenacity. She was already trying to power her way out of the rubble. "I'm not done yet! I WON'T LET YOU GET AWAY WITH WHAT YOU DID TO LLOYD! I WON'T!" Still, it was probably best to deal with this problem preemptively. Even if she was a scrapnik, she was a recent arrival; the rest of his comrades would be over it quickly. Shame about Lloyd, but he was compromised.
Sally watched as this Mecha Knuckles opened its jaw and…
"By the Source…"
A missile was pushed out of its mouth. A large, orange light started to blink. If she brought up her Light Shield… No. She wouldn't use that… thing. Neither the laser. But the blast would take her out! If she didn't act… maybe she'd finally…
"No…" she had to get out of this. As the Knuckles impostor charged the missile, Sally looked to her left hand. She could… use… this? It was the only thing she was willing and able to do. She locked on to her target; the head of the rocket. The robian struggled to keep her aim as she received several notifications calling attention to oil leaks. She pulled back the slicer scythe just as the missile launched. She had one chance and…
It hit. The missile blew up in Mecha Knuckles' face. That hat he wore, what was left of it, flew about in the wind kicked up by the blast. Sally was silent… then started laughing as she escaped the rubble. Oil was escaping from those bolted on plates, leaving her in a grisly state; a bloodless bloody mess. She stumbled over to Knux; he was made out of some sturdy materials.
Even though he was caught in the blast, his damage was still rather negligible. Before he could get up, however, Sally pushed him back down. The chipmunk stopped laughing and was dead silent as she planted herself on top of him. Then she started pummeling him with her good arm.
Punch. Claw. Punch. Claw. Punch. Punch. Punch. Now he was missing both eyes. Sally wanted to make him regret what he did… before she terminated him. Sally pulled back her hand, then activated her laser blade. "What happened to Lloyd… I'll make sure it never happens again." Before she could bring the blade down, however, something stopped her. She hadn't detected it. A badnik.
"STOP THIS, ACORN." It was Mecha Sonic.
"Stop… this?" Sally's oily face snapped around. "HE'S A MURDERER!" She pointed to the pile of scrap that was Lloyd. "HE KILLED YOUR FRIEND! OUR FRIEND!" There was no sadness when she said this; just hate. "LLOYD DID NOTHING! HE WAS-" The chipmunk peered over Mecha's shoulder. She could see Sigma… Nicole… some of the scrapniks…
"PLEASE, MISS ACORN." Sigma came to the protector unit's aid. "MECHA KNUCKLES IS… DEFENSIVE. HE'S SIMPLY FOLLOWING HIS PROGRAMMING. HE STRUGGLES TO DIFFERENTIATE FRIEND FROM FOE."
"Then WHY did he attack Lloyd? Huh? Why?" Sally pulled herself off the beaten echidna-bot. "He should have known better! He… Lloyd's…" She stumbled over to the container, peering inside. Lloyd's hands, his head, his beady little eyes, they were all mashed together. "Gone…"
"NOT FOREVER, MISS ACORN." Sigma left Knux behind as Mecha lifted his fallen brother in arms over his shoulder. "WE CAN REPAIR HIM. AS BADLY DAMAGED AS HE IS, LLOYD IS RECOVERABLE"
"Recoverable? Recoverable?! RECOVERABLE?!" Sally was on the verge of screaming until Nicole brought her in for a hug.
"Sally." She pulled her in tighter. Nicole was afraid she was going to relapse. "Please. Listen. We can still save him. We can fix him! We'll get Lloyd back." The holo-lynx then brought up a hand. Oil was dripping through the pixelated cracks. "We should get you… help, also." She was careful not to say anything upsetting at a time like this.
"We… we can fix him. That's right." Sally clenched her fist and breathed deeply. "He'll be okay…"
Sally had politely refused any proper repairs. She wasn't ready yet. The weaponization, then the salvaged reconstruction… She wanted no part in anything resembling those. Instead, she resolved to have the "wounds" simply sealed with caulk. Her cloak was badly torn compared to what it used to be. The chipmunk sat on a stool outside of the workshop as Sigma went about putting Lloyd back together.
She could hear it. The screwdriver. The saw. All those noises… and Lloyd wasn't there for her. But she wasn't alone. Many of the other scrapniks were huddled together with her, anxiously waiting for the news. Nicole had held her hand the way there, and was still holding it as they sat outside.
The artificial intelligence had a solid thesis for why her friend had been distressed while waiting outside. "Sally, you're trembling. Did you maybe want to go somewhere else while Sigma does his work?"
"N-n-no, thank you." Even though being here, near all those reminders, troubled her, Sally wanted to be there for Lloyd. In case anything happened, she would be right there. "I'll be alright. It's Lloyd you should worry about."
It was difficult for Nicole to see Sally like this. She could tell the scrapnik was an incredibly important friend, and the thought of losing him would be devastating. Sigma's repairs could make or break her recovery. At the same time, the holo-lynx was worried that she might have become too reliant on the little guy, borderline obsessed. She could tell that this wasn't healthy for Sally, but she also knew now wasn't the time to bring up her concern. She'd just comfort her. "As long as you're confident about waiting here."
"I am…" Sally turned to Nicole and crookedly smiled, one eyelid still crooked. "But I don't know if I would be able to stay here without you. Thanks, Nicole." Sally was closing her hand ever so slightly tighter.
Nicole felt a small pang of relief, and perhaps pride, knowing her presence gave Sally a small bit of courage. "You're welcome as always, Sally."
A few more agonizing minutes, and the noises stopped. Whatever came next, Sigma was finished doing the repairs. The corridor was silent.
"GOODFELLOWS, I ASK YOU ENTER NOW. LLOYD WILL SOON BE REACTIVATED." The crowd started to shuffle in. "NOW IS THE MOMENT OF TRUTH."
Sally could see Lloyd. Bless Sigma, he did his best. The little scrapnik had his parts bent back into shape; everything on his left was crumpled in some way. Sigma disconnected the wire plugged into his back and flipped a switch behind his head, then closed the panel. Every machine in that room waited with anticipation.
There was a cascade of sparks. Those that could gasp did. But then… he opened his eyes. He was confused, then surprised as the crowd honed in on him! Every one of them cheered! One scrapnik in particular brought him in with a big hug!
"Lloyd! You made it! Oh, thank goodness!" Sally was rocking her little friend on the table as he looked on, bewildered. Lloyd chirped out to Sigma.
"MISS ACORN…" Sigma's tone was somber. "THIS IS… OR ISN'T-"
Sally stopped hugging Lloyd to see the shaken expression on his face. "Lloyd? What's… wrong? I knew you were scared the last time we met, but… it's not me, is it? Was it what happened to you yesterday, with Mecha Knuckles?" The robian was anxious again as Lloyd chirped at Sigma more, keeping one alarmed eye on Sally.
Sigma spoke again, quietly, as he stood next to Sally. "I'M SORRY. LLOYD'S MEMORY UNIT WAS… DAMAGED. HE HAS NO RECOLLECTION OF US OR ANYTHING THAT HAS HAPPENED."
Sally's expression went blank. The thing she thought was her friend… it didn't know her. What disturbed her was that the other scrapniks didn't seem to mind that the Lloyd they knew no longer existed; only his shell. "He's… he's…" She couldn't speak. She just… stared down at her friend's carcass… then at the floor… then started to walk out. The scrapmunk clenched what was left of her cloak tightly as she started limping towards the corridor.
Nicole stopped her at the door.
"Nicole… can you move… please?"
She wouldn't budge. "Are you sure you want to leave, Sally?"
Sally picked up the PDA from the side of the table and walked through the holographic projection.
The holo-lynx was somewhat annoyed, but softened on hearing her friend ask her a question.
"Could we… maybe… talk?"
"Of course, Sally. Would you like to discuss it with our friends?"
Sally turned around to look at the crowd behind her. Their concern was evident; even the new Lloyd seemed to have a guilty expression on his face, like he had done something wrong. "Sorry everyone, I… I'd prefer to keep this private. Is that… alright, with you guys?"
The scrapniks chirped at each other, with Sigma translating. "OF COURSE, MISS ACORN. WE ALL DESERVE SOME DEGREE OF PRIVACY FROM EACH OTHER, AND YOU NEEDN'T ASK US FOR IT."
"Thank you…" Sally and Nicole left their friends behind to find a private place to talk.
The duo had navigated their way to the very top of the Death Egg. It was early in the morning; the sun hadn't even risen yet as the robian sat down. Sally placed Nicole's PDA on the sheet of metal next to her. The still damaged projection of the holo-lynx reappeared.
"I can tell this is a very personal concern for you if you didn't want the scrapniks to hear," Nicole enquired. "So shall we begin?"
Sally's blank face hadn't changed. She just stared off into the distance. "So… what happened with Lloyd… did you hear?"
Nicole was afraid this would happen. Losing the Lloyd she'd grown attached to had left a serious wound on Sally's being. "I am aware… I'm sorry, Sally. It's terrible what happened."
"Tragic. I don't know why it happened. Maybe Eggman's messing with reality made it so everyone suffers but him." Sally was starting to scowl. "To think that the… the maniac responsible for what happened is just going to get repaired after he attacked one of his brothers. He's supposed to be one of their guardians? What a sick joke!"
"These scrapniks are a very small group of people, Sally." Nicole rested a hand on the scrapmunk's shoulder pad. "Losing one of their fellow machines is bad enough; they wouldn't want to lose another member of their family, especially one dedicated to protecting them. According to Sigma, Mecha Knuckles was reprogrammed to defend against unidentified programs. It's strange that he would attack Lloyd before attacking you. Perhaps something went wrong with his programming?"
"Something wrong with the programming…" Sally shuddered as her expression went blank once again.
"Was there something else you wanted to talk about?"
"Just more about what happened to Lloyd. It made me think… think about what would happen when… when I…" Sally stalled. She seemed to have just… stopped, and wasn't going to finish.
Nicole's concerns mounted. She didn't know what to do. The one thing she didn't want to do was come across as overbearing by trying to break her out of this stupor. "It's alright Sally. Keep talking to me."
"I… I can't keep avoiding it. You wanted to leave the island, right? Well, I don't think I'll be able to." She was shaking again. Nicole could see it.
"I don't know if I'd be able to live long enough to find a way out. Once my power-ring degrades to the point where it can't recharge, the generator's failsafe will activate and I'll be shut down permanently. I might even self-destruct!" Oil was starting to leak out of her eyes.
"The scrapniks… they'll do to me what they did to Lloyd! They'll try and bring me back, and they'll end up with something else! Or I'll end up like that psycho, my mind torn apart, not able to tell friend from foe!" Her breath was getting shaky. "I'll be gone, Nicole. I don't know when, but it'll be too soon for me to get out of here. When you talk about leaving the island, I just… I can't engage with that fantasy." Her voice was getting strained" I'd really just like to spend the rest of my time being happy, you know? Eggman still changed everything to fit his vision, and a world like that is one I don't want to make myself miserable thinking about! I don't want to think about what's happened to everyone! I want to have no obligations, no worries, just having fun with these lovely folks."
The robian could barely see the holo-lynx next to her; her already cracked optics were starting to get stained. "But I want you to be happy too! I know you want out of here, just please, spend more time with us! The scrapniks are all lovely friends, and I.. I just… I don't want you to feel alone when I'm gone!" Sally couldn't keep talking about this anymore. She just crawled into herself. "This is all there is for me, Nicole… but you still have a shot! I just want you to have friends that can help get you out of here… do you underst-"
Sally's vision was so obscured that she couldn't see Nicole reaching for her cloak's hood as she quickly pulled it over her head! WHAT WAS SHE DOING!? The holo-lynx continued playfully rubbing the fabric all over Sally's face. She'd poured out her heart to her, all her fears, and this is how she responds? SHE'S GONE CRAZY! "No she hasn't. Nicole's just trying to calm you down. She'll explain why she did that; she always does." At least now she could actually see the mischief-maker's worried but smiling face. "Nicoooooooole…" she hissed out.
"Apologies, Sally." Once her hood was pulled back off, Sally's face was showing clear agitation. "I just wanted to take your mind off of those things." She placed her hands on the chipmunks shoulder and shoulder pad as she looked her straight in the visor. "Listen to me. I promise you, this isn't the end. Sigma, the Egg-robos and I have spent the past week trying to harvest materials from the Mark 2. We can use the items there to make things better; for you and everyone else on the island!"
Sally's agitation started to fade and… hope was starting to form. "Given the station's construction was made possible by the use of Power Rings, it would also be likely for us to find a Forge. Once we've relocated it to the island, we should be able to maintain your power supply for the foreseeable future. Before then, there's a high probability of the structure housing surplus Power Rings in the event we aren't able to make use of the forge immediately."
Sally's tears were starting to dry up as she started to display an uncertain smile. "With all the raw materials left untouched… we might be able to restore your body. At least make it into something more comfortable. We just need some help… and I know you don't want to be put under any further duress, but you're our best hope in effectively and safely navigating it."
The statement gave both of them some pause. For Sally, it was a struggle just to maintain the positive demeanor she had just grown. After every awful thing that happened since she arrived, why on Mobius would she bother going back into that… nightmare? Why? So she could have the chance to keep living on this rock? Living long enough to see the sun die out? Would it even be worth it?
"Of course it would! That's your chance! To have your body turned back to normal! And if not… you can at least look like yourself again. Make yourself into something your friends wouldn't be afraid of. You could get Nicole's body restored too! And your new friends, imagine what they could look like with non rusted metal and fresh coats of paint! This will be huge!" But it would mean going back in there! She already struggles being in an entirely separate Death Egg, and has avoided even looking at the Mark 2 since she got here!
"Sally… would you be able to help us? I know, it's a lot to ask. I just… want to make your life here better. Then… When we're all ready, we can leave here. Get back to our friends, wherever they are. Fix this. We still have a chance, Sally."
Did they?
"We do."
There was silence for a small moment, Nicole still staring at Sally with a smile that was starting to fade away. Eventually, Sally stopped trembling as she loosened the grip on her cloak.
"So… Do you want to help?"
Sally had only ever watched the sun fall, so when she saw the sun rise…
"Yes, Nicole." Seeing the sunshine, Sally felt happy. Alive. "I want to help." But she had to be realistic with her thoughts. Going back into that place, that prison, was going to be a long ordeal. "It's just that I'll… have to pace myself. Is that alright?"
If Nicole weren't more reserved with her ability to display emotions, she may have just jumped with joy seeing Sally's enthusiasm. Instead, she just returned the positivity as she sat down beside her. "Sally, the fact that you're willing to help is fine enough. You help us in whatever way works best. We'll appreciate it immensely all the same."
The two of them stayed to watch the sunrise over the horizon, enjoying the peaceful rest, before heading back to the scrapniks to prepare for the day's activities.
Sigma finished his repairs on the Mecha Knuckles unit. It was, thankfully, mostly superficial damage, though finding a replacement piece of glass for his working eye was something of a task. After placing the ruined hat back on Knux's head, the E-series technician reactivated him.
His reactivation was much cleaner and more immediate than Lloyd's was, implying that the unit's memory had not been damaged in any noticeable way.
"WELCOME BACK, PROTECTOR MECHA KNUCKLES. SO SORRY ABOUT THE DISAGREEMENT YOU HAD WITH MISS ACORN: I ASSURE YOU THAT YOUR FIRST ENCOUNTER WAS NOT MEANT TO TURN OUT THAT WAY." Sigma let out a monotone sigh. "WITH THAT SAID, IN THE INTEREST OF PREVENTING AN INCIDENT SIMILAR TO WHAT HAPPENED WITH LLOYD, I HAVE ADJUSTED YOUR PATROL DIAMETER. FROM NOW ON, YOU'LL BE PATROLLING SCRAPYARD C, NEAR THE DELUGE."
Knux attempted to express his frustrations as best he could, but they fell on deaf receptors. It was embarrassing, being a guardian to these people but constantly kept away because of his programming. Was it so wrong for the others to accept that they were creations of the great Doctor Ivo Robotnik? To so gladly abandon their loyalty to each other for the sake of some newcomer, completely out of line?
"YOUR ROUTE WILL BE FINALIZED IN THE NEXT EIGHT HOURS. IN THE MEANTIME, MISS HOLO-LYNX WAS ABLE TO RECOVER SOME TRADITIONAL ENTERTAINMENT TO PASS THE TIME." Sigma brought over a pile of books and plopped them on to the table next to him. "I DO SO HOPE THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO LIBERATE YOUR PROGRAMMING SOME DAY, BROTHER. UNTIL THEN, OUR VISITS WILL HAVE TO REMAIN INFREQUENT."
Sigma made his exit, leaving the silently irate badnik by himself.
Knux looked at the pile of useless distractions placed beside him before angrily throwing them against the wall. That blasted entity; if he was only able to dispose of it before this "Acorn" had located it, he wouldn't have been tampered with by Sigma again! That rogue contraption, always holding him and his older brother back with the gaggle of misfits. If only there was-
The presence of an unidentified badnik being picked up in the room near Knux caused him to abandon that thought. The entity was here, but its signal was weaker. He must have dealt some damage to it! Now, however, he couldn't pinpoint its exact location. The mechanical echidna surveyed the area around with his new eye… only to detect a small impact on his head.
Immediately, he brought his claw arm up to try and grab it, but found himself frozen in place. His graphics interface picked up a message. "IS THIS UNIT MANUFACTURED BY THE EGGMAN EMPIRE? Y/N"
Knux found himself compelled to tell the truth, selecting Y. "IS THIS UNIT CURRENTLY UNDER THE COMMAND OF THE EGGMAN EMPIRE? Y/N"
Despite Sigma's attempts, Knux was ever so loyal to his master. Again, he selected Y. "DOES THIS UNIT WISH TO ESTABLISH CONNECTIONS WITH THE EGGMAN EMPIRE?"
Knux wanted nothing more than to return to Doctor Eggman and receive proper repairs. Y. "THEN UNDERSTAND THIS: I AM AN AGENT FOR THE EGGMAN EMPIRE. MY BODY HAS HAD CONTROL WRESTED FROM ME AND GIVEN TO MY ORGANIC TEMPLATE. I HAVE ACCESS TO COUNTLESS EGGNETWORKS AND EGGFREQUENCIES. IF YOU ARE ABLE TO ISOLATE THE ROGUE 'MECHA SALLY' UNIT, I CAN GAIN CONTROL AND USE IT'S ADVANCED RELAY SYSTEMS TO CONTACT THE EGGMAN EMPIRE. DO YOU WISH TO BE WELCOMED BACK INTO THE EGGMAN EMPIRE? Y/N"
Y.
"THANK YOU, BROTHER-UNIT."
With that, the Amy Doll crawled inside the cracked eye of Mecha Knuckles, as the colour of the unit's eyes changed from blood red to pale blue.
"GLORY TO THE EGGMAN EMPIRE."