4. Neighborhood.
.w.
Robotropolis
June 29th, 3236
Around 10PM
The sound of marching feet made Shadow's heart beat faster. Over Sally's head he could see them: rows and rows and rows of SWATbots striding past them purposefully, making the metal walls and floor shudder. The hedgehog tried to merge with the shadows even more; it seemed so easy for the robots to look back briefly and notice the four of them, clinging to the wall of a factory. Unless they weren't already observed by a dozen cameras tucked in most tricky places. This city was bound to have cameras.
Sally didn't seem too worried, though. Shadow could tell the Princess, like everyone else in their team, was pretty used to being on the enemy's territory. "It's clear," she whispered, peeking around the corner. "Let's go."
They ran. The hedgehog couldn't tell where; the roads and tunnels and facilities on their left and on their right seemed like a maze to him. He completely relied on Sally and her sense of direction now, believing that she knew where they were going. The hedgehog looked back at his other companions, Bunnie and Sonic- and it was when he noticed the latter's absence.
"Sally," he whispered, reaching out to touch her elbow. "Sonic isn't here."
"I know." She took cover inside a moderate-sized transport tunnel, waving to the others to do the same. "He has a business to take care of while we search the network. He will catch up."
The chipmunk kept her eyes on a Hover Unit stationed in front of a low and bulky building. The gates were wide open while worker robots moved in and out, loading metal boxes into their transport. From Sally's briefing earlier today the hedgehog remembered they were about to invade a computer chip factory and use one of the computers inside to hack into Robotropolis' network. Were there chips inside those boxes? Shadow was not an expert to tell for sure.
He rested his back against the metal wall of the tunnel and studied the rusty floor. He just noticed it was raining outside; raindrops knocked against the metal gently as a ghostly veil of water stood between them and the 'bots. A thin stream of it made its way through the ceiling to come in contact with Shadow's shoulder and run down his spine. The hedgehog didn't really care. That was only his second time experiencing rain on Mobius, but he could barely notice it this time. It was as if adrenaline made his blood boil and evaporated all the water long before it touched his fur.
A personal business. Right. Something so important the hero didn't want Shadow to watch him in the meantime. It was beginning to get on his nerves by now... this irrational distrust, sometimes even fear Sonic and many other villagers held against him. He felt being on unstable ground around them himself, even though the Freedom Fighters had officially accepted him as their guest and ally. Sally, their leader, remained neutral, but even she had left it to him to convince everyone else that he was not an enemy.
Save for the fact that they were in Robotropolis today solely because of him and the riddles making up his past, of course.
Finally, the heavy machine moved away and disappeared in a tunnel in front of the one they took cover in. Before all the workers disappeared inside the factory, Shadow noticed that all of them looked like Mobians rather than humans, and his heart sank. Roboticized people... Sally had told him about them before, but seeing them in reality was much worse than it sounded. They were a vivid demonstration of what doctor Robotnik truly was, and the understanding hurt almost physically.
The gate began to fall down, threatening to shut the entrance to the factory, and the three of them took off, following Sally's command. Bunnie was the first to make it to the gate; she used her metal arm to stop the movement of the plate of metal. She managed to lift it enough for him and Sally to slide underneath, but Shadow could guess how much effort it was taking; the rabbit's eyes were already shut tight from exertion as her arm shook slightly above her head. A number of unused metal boxes lay scattered around, and the hedgehog hurried to push them under the gate to block it up.
Meanwhile, Sally had already made it further into the loading hall where the control systems were. A single robot operator turned to face her, but was knocked onto the floor and decapitated with a quick chop before it could raise an alarm. The Princess took his place and plugged Nicole into a free port within seconds.
"Bunnie," she called while the supercomputer tried to connect to the factory's system and thus gain access to the city's global network. "Keep an eye on the gate. Shadow, come over there and watch the door leading to the assembly chamber. Just open it a bit and let me know if someone approaches it from the inside."
The rabbot girl nudged the hedgehog slightly, both thanking him for the help and suggesting to do what he was told. The loading section of the factory was basically a huge metal box itself, with a gate on one side and a slightly smaller metal door in the opposite wall. It was closed at the moment, and Shadow headed towards it as fast as he could. He stumbled a couple of times; at some point his skate poked the detached head of the computer's robot operator, and it clanked quietly. Shadow felt his hands tremble a little, and balled them into fists to stop it. He knew all of those robots were enemies, but the knowledge didn't make fighting them feel any less wrong.
"Connection established, Sally," came Nicole's deep voice from behind.
"Now, search the keywords: the ARK."
The door was an automatic one, and it took some effort to open it just a fraction. Shadow pushed his elbow into the crack he produced and took a peek inside. What he saw there made him gasp.
The chip factory looked pretty flat and not so big on the outside, but now he knew that size meant absolutely nothing. The assembly hall he observed had a huge oval hole in the floor, and through it Shadow could see floors and floors beneath his level. Three, five, six... he couldn't see more, but more could have remained out of sight. The sound of thousand machine parts connecting, clashing, adjusting, polishing and assembling washed over him like a downpour.
"No match found, Sally," Nicole's voice sounded as if it had to cover huge distances to reach his ears. One of them twitched slightly; the topic related to him.
"Interesting... Search new keywords: Gerald Robotnik."
"Warning: unacceptable keywords. Search aborted."
"What!? Nicole, try again."
Shadow watched and watched, taking in every detail of the factory lying before him. Each floor seemed to be a separate part of the chip production process, with different types of worker robots operating different kinds of machines, working with different materials. Lower levels worked with bulky blocks of silicon, while lines on the higher levels carried pieces so small Shadow could barely see them from his place. Some robot caught his gaze and didn't let go; it seemed to be a hedgehog like him...
As he watched, he saw a blindingly white orb explode deep inside the second level, producing a small avalanche of sparks and a high-pitched hissing sound. Several robots standing nearby stumbled back as glowing particles came in contact with their metal skin. The line stopped immediately. Dispassionate voice from somewhere under the ceiling uttered several words, and red-colored floating 'bots from the assembly hall hurried to put the small fire out. Seeing how workers on other levels didn't show signs of worry, Shadow could tell they were used to such things happening on their factory.
He was so lost in the sight he nearly missed some movement dangerously close to him. There was a curvy lane running from the assembly chamber towards the loading hall, and two SWATbots were already on it, approaching the door; Shadow noticed how both were empty-handed. Did they notice him? Were they concerned about one of the factory operators not responding for so long? Maybe his inactivity was what caused the explosion, and they naturally decided to check it out. He felt his heartbeat speed up as let go of the door, allowing it to shut again.
"Sally, SWATbots are coming this way!"
She groaned. "I need more time! How many are there?"
"Two."
"No problem. Just leave 'em to me," said Bunnie, leaving her post near the gate and heading towards Shadow. "But you better hurry, Sally-girl."
Shadow watched in awe as the rabbit moved away from the gate, with all seriousness ready to oppose two armed robots. From his only experience with them in the past, the hedgehog knew they all possessed laser weapons they wouldn't hesitate to use. Then again, unlike him, the Freedom Fighters had been in war with them for years... Maybe they simply had a reason to appear so confident on the enemy's ground he just didn't know about yet?
Bunnie patted him on the shoulder briefly when passing by. "Shadow, sugah, watch the gate for me, will ya?"
The hedgehog nodded and stepped back, still keeping his gaze on the brave lady. She took place next to the door, with her back pressed hard into the rough metal surface. Mere seconds later the door opened all the way, and the first SWATbot stepped inside. Its sensors perhaps had time to detect an occupied Princess and a wide-eyed hedgehog... before Bunnie stepped hard on its right foot, causing its next step to turn into a clumsy fall. The robot hit the floor and broke into pieces before it even managed to utter a single word.
Its companion joined it shortly as the rabbot girl used her metal arm to pull it inside by the ankle and throw on the floor. The door closed automatically, and Bunnie gripped the edge to prevent it from opening again; metal fingers dug deep into the door's surface. From the sound of distant sirens, Shadow could tell she was going to need all her strength to keep it in place.
"How's it going, Sally-girl?" Bunnie shouted from her position.
"Nothing yet!" came Sally's reply. "It's as if something keeps Nicole out. Oh, please don't tell me Robotnik has enhanced the security since the last time..."
"Internal error," Nicole announced in a warning voice. "The analysis module was shut down. Internal error-"
"What..?"
Sally's features stiffened, and she let out a groan. "Oh, no. Nicole, not now." She tried to wipe the supercomputer's screen dry with her vest, smearing the moisture that had been there since they emerged from the rain outdoors. It was only then that Shadow asked himself whether Nicole was water-proof. Apparently, she was not, and Sally remembered about it a little too late.
The door leading to the assembly chamber shook. Bunnie's toes dug into the floor, helping her resist the pressure. "Whoa, those creeps are impatient, aren't they?" she muttered. "Any ideas?"
Sally didn't respond.
Shadow stared at the wreckage on the floor with some dull interest. Two battle machines that looked so deadly turned into scrap after the first impact with the floor, without even making any attempts to save themselves, much less attack. It was as though Robotnik had just enough time and resources to give weapons to the scariest worker robots rather than build new ones, meant only for combat. Was it possible with someone like Sally and Bunnie and Sonic being around all the time?
Probably that was why the rabbot lady felt so confident about entering the fight.
Come to think of it... being dead, SWATbots didn't resemble humans so painfully. They seemed what they truly were: a set of robot parts attached to each other, not living beings with their own mind and free will. Attacking them would never be the same as attacking a human.
The sirens' urgent wailing drew closer, and the skin on his neck crawled when he realized that the sound was coming from behind him, not from inside the factory. He turned back just in time to see metal fingers grab the lower edge of the gate and pull it up swiftly, throwing the boxes away. There stood another SWATbot. A hover unit with more of them was there, too, but Shadow could barely make them out as the fierce light of several searchlights nearly forced his eyes shut.
His first thought was to run.
It was so easy. Grab the Chaos Stone out of his quills and warp himself far, far away from here. Knothole was probably not a good choice; some peaceful corner of the Great Forest should do fine. Nobody would get him there.
But Sally and Bunnie would have to stay behind.
He stared at the dark silhouette in front of him as he ears registered the robot's mechanical voice, but it sounded like a collection of syllables rather than intelligent speech to him. All he remembered at that time was Bunnie patting him slightly on the shoulder. 'No problem. Watch the gate for me, will ya?'
"Intruders, come out with your hands above your heads and make no attempts to-"
A surge of energy hit it square in the torso and exploded in a shower of sparks. The robot fizzled out in mid-sentence and folded, sending itself to the ground. Before that happened, another surge darted out of the hall and collided with the hover craft, discharge embracing its windshield and belly like a thin net of white light. Deep inside of it, all control systems malfunctioned at once, startling the robot pilots. The craft careening dangerously was the last thing Shadow saw before the gate dropped down onto the fallen SWATbot, having lost its support, and cut off the thick steam of light. A loud crunching sound indicated that the robot was definitively done for.
"Whoa," Bunnie said. The hedgehog saw her green eyes glow a little in the semi-darkness of the loading hall as she stared at him. "Nice shot, sugah-hog. But now we are stuck in here."
"No problem," he said, surprised at how calm his voice sounded. His hands still shook a little, but his head was completely clear for once. "I can Chaos Control us all out of here when Sally is done."
Sally cast a glance at him, considering his words. Even if she was impressed by his sudden show of power, she didn't indicate that in any way. "Yes, but Sonic will think we're still inside. I can bet he's already on his way here, and we need to let him know he has to get out of the city as well."
The Princess unplugged Nicole and put her into her pocket; Shadow noticed that the supercomputer's screen was black.
"She turned off seconds ago," Sally muttered in response to his silent question. "I don't know whether it was the water or Robotnik tinkering with security measures, but our visit was a waste. I'm sorry, Shadow. Now-"
She was interrupted by a brief screeching sound. Before they could locate its source, a loud clanng and a surprised yelp from Bunnie followed. The hedgehog noticed some tall and angular machine with a huge claw tear the whole door out of its place and pull it inside the assembly chamber along with the rabbot whose fingers were still stuck in the metal. The machine lifted the door to its cabin covered with reflective plastic to inspect it- Bunnie took the opportunity to kick the plastic hard enough to leave a dent in it- and then threw it away carelessly.
"No!"
Shadow couldn't hold the cry back as both he and Sally took off. He was inside the assembly hall before the Princess could make a single step towards it; his eyes were searching for traces of Bunnie hastily. Soon enough he spotted it - a trail of broken and fizzling machinery on the second level. The hedgehog dashed forward and leaped into the oval gap in the floor, landing hard on the level he needed.
"Bunnie?"
She was alive, sitting among the wreckage and shaking her head repeatedly. It took her eyes some time to focus on Shadow. "Oh my," she said. "Talk about robots who don't know how to treat a lady..."
He felt relieved beyond belief as he hurried to help her to her feet. The rabbot girl managed to stand up almost by herself, but didn't push Shadow's hand back. "Thanks, sugah. Now, let's find Sally and get out of here. Not that I expected a warm welcome, but-"
Bunnie trailed off, and Shadow learned why when he followed her gaze.
They surrounded them without making a single sound while the two Mobians exchanged niceties. All robots working on this floor, some still holding implements like pincers or cutters, all studying them in silence. Shadow shivered as he made eye contact with one, two, five, more of them... Impassionate oculars where eyes are supposed to be, all glowing red. Not a single spec of any other color.
"Shadow..." Bunnie gripped his arm tight.
"I know," he said quietly.
They had been living being long ago, betrayed by Robotnik and turned into his puppets, his slaves doing the dirty work in Robotropolis. Now their their true personalities were dormant so deep inside their metal bodies they might not even be there. It just dawned on Shadow that those Robians didn't take the implements because they had been using them in their work- they took the tools to attack the two breathing Mobians among them.
A shriek came from above, and a chill ran down Shadow's spine. Now Sally was in danger as well.
Bunnie shook off her shock first. "The lane," she whispered into his ear while nudging him.
He understood and gripped her hand tight, pulling both of them onto what remained of the chip production conveyer. A screech accompanied the leap as a pair of pincers ground against Bunnie's metal feet. Shadow himself had to dodge a piece of metal pipe thrown at him. He turned away after the first few steps; looking back at rows of bared metal teeth could throw him off balance. His ears briefly registered low mechanical howls escaping their speakers, and filtered them out as gibberish.
Leap, leap. Bunnie was heavier than a regular Mobian thanks to her roboticized limbs, so she was slowing Shadow down a bit. He felt the line shake below her steps. The line went up gradually, and several more leaps brought them onto the first level, just below the assembly floor. Robians here turning to face and even try to chase them, but none was fast enough to catch up. Several leaps later, Shadow had to stop himself. The lane was ending abruptly, with no visible ways upwards in sight. How on Mobius were the chips getting there?
Something tremendous seemed to be going on above their heads. Roaring of the angular machine echoed through the factory, followed by series of clanking noises and Sally's occasional yelps. By the sound of it, several metal giants were clashing there, and it was a miracle Sally still managed to stay alive while being caught in between them.
"The elevators," Bunnie pointed to the right when she discovered the way up - several big elevators in the far wall. And immediately added, "No way. They'll cut the power off, and we'll be stuck. We'll have to climb there by ourselves."
"I can Chaos Con-" Shadow began, indeed reaching for the Chaos Stone.
"Hold it, sugah-hog. You'll need it when we get Sally."
The hedgehog felt something sharp dig into his left ankle and give it a powerful tug. Before he knew it, Bunnie's fingers slipped out of his hand, and he landed onto his back next to the lane. A robot cat jumped onto his chest and pinned him down, claws digging into the hedgehog's neck. Shadow gasped as metal tore through his sensitive skin, and tried to push the Robian off of him. The metal head snapped back after his punch, but the grip wouldn't loose by a fraction.
"Capture Project Shadow!"
It was nothing like Nicole's gentle voice. Mechanical raspy mumble that sent chills down Shadow's spine came from the robot's head. The hedgehog barely registered the words; claws digging into his flesh were his main concern at the moment. He tried to squirm out of the grip and hissed when it only increased the pain in his neck. Shadow squeezed the metal fingers with one hand as he struggled to reach the Chaos Stone with the other one. If only he could take it out...
"Get off..." he breathed.
"Capture Project Shadow! Capture Project-"
Some incredible force swept the cat away. From the loud clanking noise Shadow could tell Bunnie put all her force into that roundabout kick; the Robian flew into the insides of some machine and didn't move anymore. Shadow jumped to his feet, wincing a little and clutching his throat. The gash was bound to disappear very soon, but even his advanced healing abilities couldn't ease the pain so quickly.
"Move it, sugar-hog!" She gestured him to follow her.
There were more robotisized Mobians in their way. Knowing that they still could be possibly returned to their original state someday, Shadow was reluctant to harm them beyond repair with Chaos Spears. Bunnie kept dealing more kicks, but it was obvious she was holding back a great deal as well. She reached the oval pit first and disappeared from his view, hopping onto the higher level in one movement.
He tried to follow her and yelped when another robot grabbed his hover skate from behind. His motion was broken, and his body was sent tumbling down into the pit. Several levels flashed past him before his chest rammed into a thick rod protruding from the wall. Out of breath in an instant, Shadow could only grasp the rod frantically with his palms and knees to stop his fall, and gaze into the hole below him.
All of it was before his eyes now. Rows, rows, rows, so many of them he wouldn't even start counting. All of them had stopped by then, machinery wheezing to a stop; scraping of hundreds metal feet and sirens' distant wailing were there to fill the silence. For a second, he thought the structure was more than just plain chip production plant; there were way too many levels inside. The lowest ones were clad in darkness, and all Shadow knew was that he didn't at all want to fall in there.
The Robian who tried to stop him, apparently, lost its balance as well, for now it whooshed past Shadow with a shrill screech. At the moment it was the last of his concerns, though. Wide-eyed, he watched the sea of metal below him stir into action. Unlike SWATbots, worker robots didn't have weapons built into their arms, but they were many and they could cooperate. Like ants gathering to get to something out of a single ant's reach, they started to form a robot pyramid to get a hold of the hedgehog stuck between two levels. Their simultaneous cry to capture project Shadow turned into a low-pitched buzz.
Bunnie, he remembered. He had to go up. Shadow wasted a precious moment to take a quick look above his shoulder and measured his chances of getting there by jumping. No... wouldn't do. He reached for the Chaos Stone tucked in his head quills.
"Capture Project Shadow."
The voice nearly made him let go of the rod. Right there, just below him, was another roboticized Mobian, a hedgehog this time. Probably the one he had seen from the loading hall. As their eyes met, it reached forward to grasp Shadow; sharp claws made a scratch on his cheek.
"Capture-"
"Chaos Control!"
Here he was, back to the assembly level at last. Sally and Bunnie was nowhere to be seen, but he could guess they were somewhere inside that vast crowd of robots. Above them was towering the angular excavator-like machine from earlier, turning about with a constant grinding noise and using its boom to deal blows at someone below.
"Sally! Bunnie!" Shadow called, his voice barely audible in the noise.
He jumped onto a pile of boxes and from there he finally saw them, and sure, they were in the middle of the metal carousel, with the Princess fighting back several Robians and Bunnie struggling to make her way to their leader. The machine made another swiping movement; being sluggish thanks to its size, it failed to get Sally, but very conveniently knocked off the robots she was fighting. It looked like SWATbots were not the only victims of Robotnik's mechanical genius...
Knowing that her luck couldn't last forever, Shadow sent the first surge of energy towards the machine. The light flashed through the bars of the beams, causing no harm to the contraption at all. The machine shifted, preparing for another attack; the beam rose, hitting Shadow square in the chest on its wake. He collided with the wall with an umph, somehow managing to keep hold of the gem in his hand.
Meanwhile, Bunnie finally made it Sally and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her away from the battle. Near the door leading to the loading hall, walls became narrower, leaving little room for the machine to maneuver. Given the pace at which it was obliterating its own allies with the claw at the end of the beam, it was soon bound to find itself fighting alone.
And it did. When the last robot fell, the beam lowered almost remorsefully, and the engine came to a stop. Two Mobian girls exchanged glances and moved towards the cabin slowly, expecting a surprise attack. It came in a form of the cab's door opening with a whoosh.
"Need a lift, ladies?"
"What?" She stared at Sonic beaming at her from the operator's seat. Its previous occupant lay by the hero's feet, now being a mere pile of scrap metal. "How did you..?"
"Used a shortcut," he winked. "And took up this guy's post right after he crushed the door. Sorry I couldn't stop him earlier, Bunnie."
"S'alright, hun," the rabbit said in a weak voice.
"We're cool, then." With those words, Sonic finally jumped out of the cabin. The broken robot followed him and formed a metal mess on the floor. "Now, where's our free first-class ticket to Knothole?"
"Shadow?" Sally asked after a tiny pause. "Well... you threw him into the wall."
"Me? Whoops," Sonic addressed a shy smile to his dark twin who had just detached himself from the wall. "Didn't notice you there, buddy. You really should watch where you go, y'know."
The black hedgehog glared at him from afar.
"Oh, come on," Sally grasped Sonic's arm. "You'll settle this when we are back at Knothole. Or are you up for another round? I can say another wave of them is incoming."
"I think not. I mean, it was fun and we have a job already done, but home is home and stuff like that."
"About 'job done'..." said Sally, and Sonic's smirk disappeared in an instant. "Can't say it was a success for us. But you are right: we better head home right now."
"Sure thing. Can't wait to hear how it went."
Shadow was already beside them, glaring a hole in Sonic's fur, knowing precisely that the hit was not a coincidence. The blue hedgehog returned the inimical look, as if saying: 'If you were the one who screwed it up, I'll know it and make you regret it.'
"Chaos Control."
.w.
M7, control center
September 8th, 3236
Afternoon
"...Of course, it was Charles who told Sonic about a roundabout way to the factory. When we returned to Knothole, Sonic told me what he heard from him. Nothing new, actually: all SWATbot groups were given an order to look for a black hedgehog, but there were no info on where he came from," Sally said, sitting back in her chair and stretching her shoulders. "It's as if Robotnik himself didn't know Shadow's story."
"Or decided to keep it secret even from his own computers," guessed Tails from behind her. "What if he could see there was a spy in Robotropolis?"
"Oh, Tails..."
She spun in her chair to have a look at the fox prodigy. The kid occupied the table in the middle of the room, studying two pairs of melted sneakers lying before them. The base had severe problems with materials suitable for his purpose, so it was no wonder he looked so desperately lost in his work.
The Princess bit her lower lip, once again weighting the changes in Tails' personality she was noticing. Compared to his vibrant happy self she knew back at Knothole, this Tails was more quiet, more reserved, more thoughtful, more... cynical? She wondered whether it was the right word to describe his mood.
One thing was in common, though. This Tails was just as scared as his previous self had been.
She approached him and hugged him briefly, patting him between big triangular ears. "You should have a rest, Tails. I'm sure it's better to solve such a problem with your head fresh."
It was not meant as an insult or accusation, but Tails lowered his head abruptly. "Yes, but- I have to do it, see? Without his sneakers, Sonic will... I mean... you know."
Sally knew. With every day spent without his speed, Sonic's mood were becoming more and more unbearable. Even she caught herself not wanting to stand his presence at times.
"Plus, we need to do something about that machine in the forest," Tails continued. "And quickly."
"...About that machine," Sally said, letting go of Tails and leaning against the table. Her fingers drummed against her upper arms. "I still think we should visit Robotropolis first and deal with the machine later."
"Yes, I know. We still don't know what we're up against, but we have to know it, and besides, the machine digs in the wrong part of the forest," the fox said, repeating Sally's earlier words loosely. "Just, letting SWATbots do what they wish in our Great Forest... it feels so wrong."
"I know." She felt it, too: their home was in danger, and nobody was there to protect it. And yet she couldn't afford simply rushing to the rescue like the old days, having to painstakingly calculate their every step instead. More than that, she also had to convince the rest of her team to do the same, and she didn't seem to be very good at it so far. "Don't give up, Tails. No matter what he did, Robotnik hasn't won the war yet."
"Oh yeah," came Sonic's voice from the door. "Whoever is winning this war right now, it's definitely not Ro-butt-nik."
He was standing in the door frame, legs and arms crossed, expression unreadable. For someone who had had mere several hours of sleep after a tense battle, he seemed to be in pretty good shape. Sally sighed internally; she secretly hoped Shadow would be the first one to give up and replace Tails on duty.
"Your spirit is an inspiration to us all as always, Sonic," she said, returning to her seat in front of a row of monitors.
"Oh, hi, Sonic," Tails rose from the table, apologetic look on his face.
After a brief and awkward chat with his younger brother, Sonic stood behind Sally. She could almost feel his puzzled look jump from her head to the columns of numbers before her and back. "You don't mind Shadow being alone with himself now, do you?" the chipmunk asked casually.
Sonic remembered his habit of trying to follow his twin wherever he went when both of them were not on duty. He just couldn't help it; the dark hedgehog wasn't trustworthy enough to disappear out of their sight like this. "He snores like crazy. There's only so much of it my poor ears can take."
"What?" She sounded incredulous and amused at the same time. "Come on, we both know Shadow doesn't sleep."
"That's just what he wants us to believe."
"Oh, please," she almost laughed.
A small pause occurred.
"Any progress yet, Sal?"
"Not really," she replied without turning away from the screens. "I had an idea on where other Magnacore stations might be based on current SWATbot activity in the Great Forest, but it didn't seem to work."
"Aw man. And what about all those computers in this one?"
"Still not much," the Princess sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly. The screen flickering made them hurt after so many hours of work. "Right now, I can say for sure they were used to store and process a lot of data."
"What data?"
"No idea. It was corrupted purposefully so nobody could learn what it was about. I'm afraid I might not even be able to recover it at all. We are lucky that I and Tails managed to restore the station's control systems- they were also dysfunctional. All I can say for now is that Robotnik considered this data too important to keep in Robotropolis where we could discover it during our raids."
The hedgehog muttered something under his breath. Sally thought she could make out words 'Robotnik' and 'jerk', but she didn't feel like asking him to repeat.
He watched her go back to work while fighting an intense inner battle. It was clear he owned her an apology, even though he felt hurt and annoyed rather than guilty. Shadow could do without any, but Sally was a completely different matter. She tried hard to keep their small team going, and the hero had a very vague feeling that his own behavior hadn't been that much of a reward for her. It's not like he could do anything about it, though; it was the position he had been forced in to blame.
In any case, something had to be said right there and then.
"Look, if you feel like apologizing, go ahead," he said. "I can understand it, and I promise I won't laugh."
Sally looked back at him, not entirely understanding his words. "What are you talking about?"
"You know, today. It wasn't cool of you to lash out on me like this for messing up the whole mission. I was really worried if you could make it through. So, yeah, a 'sorry' should do it."
The chipmunk just watched him address a tiny smile to her, not knowing whether she wanted to laugh or throw a tantrum.
Her gaze jumped towards Tails in search for support, and she gasped quietly. "Oh my gosh. Tails!" No use: the kid was already dead to the world, nuzzling Sonic's sneaker in his sleep.
"Poor guy," whispered Sonic. He wasn't smiling anymore. "I'll get him to the living block. It's my turn anyway."
The kid didn't wake up when his older brother lifted him, and only murmured something in his sleep. Compassion prickled Sonic's heart; he wanted to cry to the heavens how much Tails didn't deserve to go through this hell. None of them did, but the fox was too young to compare the mental damage. The thought made helplessness even more unbearable; the hedgehog's contracted, squeezing the sheets on the spare bed in the living block. His brother lay on it, in a section separate from Shadow's, and Sonic hurried back into the passage. He needed fresh air desperately, but M7 could offer him none.
After he was done, Sonic returned to the control room and took the seat Tails had occupied. His sneakers were still on the table, and he stared at them blankly. Of course he realized they couldn't be used anymore, but... he just still remembered how exciting it was to be fast again.
"Is there anything I can help with, Sal?" he asked randomly, looking away sharply.
"No... I don't think so. I'm sure there is a way to put all the pieces together, and I just need to think a little bit harder. But thanks for offering, anyway."
Sonic knew she missed her supercomputer the most at the moments like this one. Sally was bright, but two bright heads- well, a head and a collection of chips- could work much more effectively than one. It wasn't his fault that Nicole was missing in the first place, but this thought didn't help the hedgehog feel better at all.
"I hate being useless like this," he mumbled.
"Well, we all could see this." Sally turned with her chair to observe him thoughtfully, though she didn't feel like kicking up another quarrel. "You should have more faith in Tails, Sonic. He is a smart kid, and he will figure out how to fix you up. Oh, and Speaking of use; if you feel bored, you can take these papers and some food to level two," she pointed to a bunch of paper prepared on the other side of the table.
A tiny spark of amusement ignited in his black eyes. "Aww, come on. Don't you know how jealous Shadow will get because of that?"
"And this is exactly why you will do it."
"Reading my mind right here, Sal."
He grabbed the papers and whooshed out of the room- not at his trademark sonic speed, but still too fast to be followed with a gaze. Boxes with nutritious pills were heaped at the entrance of the living block, next to a tiny artificial fountain of water. Sonic filled a glass bottle in it and then took several small sips himself, wincing at the strong chemical flavor. He didn't want to wake Tails with the noise of the elevator, so he again used the ladder to get upstairs.
This time he crossed the main dock and entered a spacious passage at the other end. He went past abandoned cargo bays until there was a small room fenced in thick metal bars on his right. An arsenal in the past, it had exactly one occupant at the moment.
"Yo, 'Botnik. How are you today?"
No reply came. Next to the farthest wall lay a mattress with an ugly and massive figure on top. By the look and the sound of it, the person was deep asleep and wouldn't wake up to some hedgehog's calls.
"Ah, come o-on." Sonic kicked the bars, earning exactly zero reaction. "Tell me I didn't come here just to see you have a nap."
Robotnik's loud snoring suggested he had.
"...Whatever," the hero murmured, pushing the food and the papers into the improvised cell. Back then, the three of them were surprised to discover that Robotnik ate nutritious pills as well- the Freedom Fighters had believed his diet was mostly oil- and having paper and pencil was sort of the only means of entertainment they allowed him. "That was so much fun, duh..."
It was so unfair. Suspicious, too; it couldn't be a coincidence that the doctor showed most activity when Shadow was near his prison. Sonic shook his head and headed back to the loading dock.
He only made a few steps when a strange feeling crept up his back; the feeling of being watched. The hedgehog slowed down, pretending to examine his feet, and then turned back sharply. Through the bars he could see the same silhouette, still unmoved, still asleep. The feeling was gone as fleetly as it had come.
Sonic looked at a ceiling-mounted camera turned towards the ex-arsenal, shrugged and went away.