Author's Notes:
Just like the Hyper Knuckles vs. Enerjak chapter, I've made the final battle between Mainstream Sonic and Regime Sonic a separate, long, epic chapter. Anyways, enjoy!
Sonic gasped as his Regime counterpart walked in, having discarded his One-Planet uniform and his body exposed. Both Sonics' bodies are identical in size and color, but the difference is Regime Sonic's face five years older with a hit of laugh-lines, and no happy emotions. The face of Sonic's evil self scared him to the core; it was pure scowling, and Sonic had never seen anything like it. Even at times when a few close friends and family in his life had died, he never showed any amount of hatred as his duplicate was showing.
Mainstream Sonic, however, stood strong against his alternate self. Facing himself was something he hadn't done before, besides his Anti-Mobius counterpart Scourge, but he was ever determined to fight to the end, no matter what.
"Well, well," Mainstream Sonic spoke. "So the high and mighty king of all Mobius decided to greet himself?"
"I knew they'd pull you over eventually," Regime Sonic scowled, pointing his index finger at Mainstream Sonic. "You don't belong here."
"My obligations don't end within the borders of my crib dimension," Mainstream Sonic responded.
Regime Sonic declared, pointing a finger at himself, "I am this world's savior! I protect it!"
Mainstream Sonic was shocked. "That's what you call what's going on out there?!" he asked in complete amazement. "You call destroying public property and hurting your own citizens your way of protection?"
His alternate self gave the faintest resemblance of a smirk, one Sonic didn't like at all. It was the kind of smirk that villains like Dr. Eggman give whenever they were gloating about world domination. That's what his alternate self was doing.
"Disobedient children will be punished as they deserve," Regime Sonic answered.
"Children?" Mainstream Sonic questioned. "And that makes you 'big daddy' in a school playground? What did they ever do to you, man?"
Regime Sonic explained with a sickening smile, "The world is full of evil, Sonic. Why would I ever spend the rest of my life being the same hypocrite hero trying to promote a world not perfect to begin with? I always thought that there was good in everyone, but five years ago proved me wrong. All of the pain and suffering and deaths… it all adds up. I have brought peace, freedom, justice, and security to my planet! I've become its ruler! Its protector! Anyone who tried to resist me is evil in my point of view, even if they are 'citizens.' They don't value life. They're going to pay— pay with their lives for what they've done."
"Whoa, things are getting way out of proportion!" Mainstream Sonic exclaimed. "So you now think you're a god or something? Huh?" He tried to explain to his alternate self, "'Cause we're not. We're not gods. We don't decide who lives and who dies—"
"The decision IS mine!" Regime Sonic yelled, suddenly losing his temper and taking Mainstream Sonic off guard. "It became mine when Eggman turned me into a weapon of mass destruction!"
"Look, I feel for what you lost," Mainstream Sonic sympathized.
"And you judge me?!" Regime Sonic spat.
He circled the good Sonic, once again giving an evil smirk.
"Sally is still alive in your world, isn't she?" Regime Sonic asked. "After I've killed you, I'll bring her here. When she sees the way I've protected this world, she'll..."
"Be your queen?" Mainstream Sonic interrupted. "And together you and she will rule the world? Make things the way you want them to be?" He then scoffed, "Sally's not an idiot. She'll see you exactly who you are. Then again, she already saw you for how you—"
"IT WON'T MATTER!" Regime Sonic roared. "I'LL MAKE HER SEE THINGS MY WAY!"
"She'll be afraid and disgusted!"
"SHE'LL BE ALIVE!"
"Sally's death doesn't—"
"He STOLE her from me!"
"And you stole this planet's freedom!" Mainstream Sonic declared. "It's time to give it back."
FINAL STAGE 1: SONIC THE HEDEGHOG VS. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (REGIME)
Mainstream Sonic started the fight with a Sonic Boost to his Regime self's chest. Regime Sonic leaped up and countered with a Homing Attack to the face. Mainstream Sonic recovered, but his Regime counterpart stomped him down repeatedly, charged with Chaos Energy. He was about to stomp again, but Mainstream Sonic leaped over him and Spin Attacked him in the back. Mainstream Sonic went over and did another Sonic Boost to the chest, sending him flying through a far corner within the crater.
The two continued their fight with a series of punches, kicks, Homing Attacks, Spin Attacks, and Spin Dashes that collided with each other. Then Regime Sonic blocked one of Mainstream Sonic's attacked and pushed him back.
"Sally will be mine again!" Regime Sonic declared, readying himself.
"You want her? You'll have to go through me!" Mainstream Sonic responded.
With that, the two clashed. Mainstream Sonic struck first with a Spin Dash, sending Regime Sonic back a bit. Regime Sonic recovered and performed a Sonic Boost to the chest charged with Chaos Energy, slamming him to another far end of the crater. Regime Sonic delivered a series of attacks faster than Mainstream Sonic could anticipate before punching him backwards.
Regime Sonic went in for the kill, but then noticed Mainstream Sonic in a crouching position. Before Regime Sonic could respond, Mainstream Sonic sped around and around, engulfing his body with Sonic Boost energy. With that, Sonic performed a continuous combo of Homing Attacks, Spin Dashes, and Spin Attacks faster than Regime Sonic anticipated, the last attack a Sonic Overdrive attack: a lightspeed combo of punches and kicks, and the last hit a fully charged shockwave of wind from Mainstream Sonic's fist.
Regime Sonic hits the ground hard as he collapsed on his feet. Mainstream Sonic looked over his counterpart.
"How'd you like that, Doctor Sonic-Man?" Sonic smirked at the Regime leader. "I always wanted to say that, 'cause you act just like Eggman."
Regime Sonic slowly stood up unfazed, cracking his bones throughout his body and returning them to their usual position. There was not a single scratch visible, and Mainstream Sonic's smirk turned to shock.
"That all you got?" Regime Sonic smirked back.
Mainstream Sonic growled and leapt unto his Regime counterpart. He shouted, "You want some more?!" He performed a Homing Attack, but Regime Sonic blocked it on spot and pushed him back with a burst of Chaos Energy from his body.
"Didn't anybody every told you?" Regime Sonic informed. "You have to think before you act!" He charged his Chaos Energy, "So get lost, you rotten…!" Regime Sonic summoned a large blast of Chaos Energy from his right arm. He fired his shot, but Mainstream Sonic jumped above and retaliated with a strong Spin Attack unto Regime Sonic's forehead. In response, Regime Sonic dashed to his Mainstream counterpart and kicked him in the jaw. As he fell back, Regime Sonic grabbed his duplicate's arm to keep him from falling.
"Just where do you think you're going?" Regime Sonic grinned as he repeatedly bashed his fist into Mainstream Sonic's face. With each punch, a spark of Chaos Energy was released. After multiple punches, Regime Sonic lit his fist with Chaos Energy. Mainstream Sonic responded by sweeping his feet, but Regime Sonic jumped into the air and stomped onto Mainstream Sonic's head with his Chaos-powered feet, crushing him to the ground. He then pulled up Mainstream Sonic and kicked him to his right. Mainstream Sonic regained himself as he skidded back, albeit sustaining a few injuries.
"My turn!" Mainstream Sonic readied himself. With all his might, he dealt a huge Sonic Boost to Regime Sonic's chest, sending him back.
"Don't you see what's happened to this planet, Sonic?" Regime Sonic asked coldly. "Because it's full of evil, fighting for freedom is nothing but a joke now!" He summoned a large ball of static Chaos electricity, its energy flailing around Mainstream Sonic wildly. "All I'm trying to do is make things right!" Mainstream Sonic struggled to avoid the larger blasts of thunder. "When I destroy all evil, my name will strike fear into their hearts! That way, people will finally live in true peace!" Eventually, one of the blasts hits Mainstream Sonic and sent him crashing to the ground.
"My One-Planet Regime was supposed to deal with you Insurgents, and they all fell like this…" Regime Sonic admitted. "I always thought of the Insurgency as a minor nuisance, that's why I entrusted them with your destruction." His anger fumed up, "But because of those duplicates, and the traitors siding with them, my perfect world is ruined!" He then calmed down with a deep sigh, "It doesn't matter, though. I'll finish what they could not. I'll rebuild this planet by myself if I had to."
When Mainstream Sonic stood up weakly, his eyes burned with determination. He began to laugh, "I wouldn't worry if I were you, evil me." He stood back up, "It's over! You know as well as I do… it's never gonna happen! You can blow up the whole planet and put it back together again, but you're still not getting our freedom! You only made a 'perfect world' through pain and suffering. You can't expect peace to grow from that?"
Regime Sonic said nonchalantly, "I've given what the people wanted."
"Through the means that you wanted," Mainstream Sonic corrected. "You've set yourself up to fall hard, like all tyrants do. Do you honestly think that if you rule the world through fear, they'll look up to you as a role model?" He saw the confused expression on Regime Sonic's face, and his smile festered, "It's like you said. The whole world's full of evil. But it's also full of good. Good and evil are both sides of the same coin. You can't have one without the other, because good and evil's half of everything. It's not so easy sticking it to your brain, is it, Sonic?"
Regime Sonic's fury had reached its peak. His eyes were full of hatred and wrath. In a scream of rage, Regime Sonic released a mighty shockwave of Chaos Energy upon himself. Mainstream Sonic stood his ground, but the wave of energy was pushing him back. Regime Sonic's body surged with a large amount of Chaos Energy, flaring like a wild battery.
"SHUT UP!" Regime Sonic bellowed. "WHAT DO YOU KNOW?!"
"More than you!" Mainstream Sonic shot back. "I think it's about time you learn the first thing about respect and accepting the world as it is! It's about the guy who others can respect and respect back! It's about doing the right thing, even after everything we care about is gone! It's about fighting enemies not by killing them, but bringing them to justice to let the way of the world work things out for you!" He bravely stared at his raging Regime counterpart, "Listen to yourself, Sonic! You brought it all on you, and you've set the stage of what precedent will be done to you."
But looking into Regime Sonic's eyes, he saw nothing to suggest that he wasn't convinced. The hedgehog with the cool attitude, personality, and strong sense of justice was dead, consumed by a world in darkness and chaos. The eyes spat cruel vengeance, because they no longer knew how to do anything else.
"Oh, yeah?" Regime Sonic replied. "You don't know who you're messing with. I'm a lot stronger than any of you ever dreamed. I could take over the world by force anytime I want!" His Chaos Energy erupted into cosmic proportions, "AND YOU'RE NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO STOP ME! YOUR BEST BET IS TO JUST GET OUT OF MY WAY!"
Mainstream Sonic glared, "Sounds like you're just begging for someone to knock you down a few notches. I can do that!" He summoned all the might he could muster for another Sonic Boost to the chest. No matter how hard he tried, Regime Sonic's Chaos Energy looked to be cushioning the blow.
"Come on! You can do better than that!" Regime Sonic pressed his hand onto Mainstream Sonic's chest. The Chaos Energy flew onto his chest and sent him skyrocketing. Regime Sonic went on to unleash a massive aerial combo that decimated Mainstream Sonic. With a final kick, he forced his Mainstream counterpart to the ground. He was on his back, moderately injured and paralyzed by static Chaos Energy.
Regime Sonic raised his arm towards the sky, a large stream of Chaos Energy pouring right into him. He called, "Can you feel the energy from the Chaos Power I've summoned forth?"
Mainstream Sonic did his best to move his body, but his injuries kept straining him. Even with the endurance pill he took, his strength seemed to fail him. He argued, "What the heck? I can't… move a muscle!"
The Chaos Energy levitated above and formed into a giant floating ball ready to drop. Regime Sonic declared, "It will plummet from the heavens, and turn you into ash! Chaos Bomb!" He gave the order as the giant ball dropped from above, crashing down on Mainstream Sonic.
KABOOM!
A shroud of light vacated. As soon as the smoke cleared, Regime Sonic's rage turned to a slight smirk. He chuckled, "So who's the fastest thing alive now?" No response came from the smoldering rubble. His voice then erupted into incomprehensible laughter, "GUESS YOU CAN'T REALLY ANSWER THAT QUESTION SINCE YOU'VE TURNED TO DUST!" His laughter subsided to make way for his cool flair, "This is it. Once I done with the Insurgency, I'm going after your world! And then, Sally will be mine again!"
"You wish!" a voice shouted.
To Regime Sonic's complete surprise, he gazed over the other side to see Sonic in his Super form for a third time, having used the Chaos Emeralds just in time to save himself from certain death. The golden-furred hedgehog stared fearlessly at his evil duplicate, Chaos Energy dancing off his spines.
"Super Sonic?!" Regime Sonic demanded. "You stole the Chaos Emeralds, and somehow, you brought them back?!"
Super Sonic grinned, "I just thought I could use an edge to even the score."
Regime Sonic scoffed, "You equal my power?" He laughed cockily, "You'll end up dead soon anyway. Anybody who dares to stand in my way will be eliminated!" Waves of Chaos Energy flailed around Regime Sonic as his eyes filled with nothing but anger, flickering yellow to white. He continued, "It's true that one of us is the fastest thing alive. The question is, who deserves the title?"
Super Sonic readied himself, "Let's find out, shall we?"
FINAL STAGE 2: SUPER SONIC VS. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (REGIME)
Super Sonic charged in at Regime Sonic. The first step was to wear down the Regime leader with rapid punches, kicks, Homing Attacks, Spin Attacks, and Spin Dashes. Until Regime Sonic can't take no more, Super Sonic punched back, forcing him to scoot back farther. Regime Sonic charged up his left arm and swatted Super Sonic back, who recovered in the air and countered with a Super Spin Attack, hitting Regime Sonic.
In response, Regime Sonic flew up and fired back a barrage of Chaos Balls. Sonic dodged them all, and countered with a lightning fast series of punches and kicks, followed by another Super Spin Attack. Super Sonic then performed a combination of multiple Homing Attacks and Spin Dashes, and concluded the combo with a raging Super Sonic Boost attack, launching himself like a fireball of golden light. It hits the Regime leader to the chest, sending him flying in the air and crashing into a nearby ruined small building, destroying it in a smoldering cloud of dust.
Just when Super Sonic was going to celebrate, his evil duplicate's voice peered through the smoke. As it cleared, Regime Sonic emerged, his body moderately injured.
"Don't get cocky, you stupid hedgehog…" Regime Sonic groaned. "I've still got one more trick up my sleeve!"
Super Sonic crossed his arms and grinned, "Go ahead. I'm ready for whatever trick you can pull on me. Tricks get outsmarted every time."
Regime Sonic asked, "You want to know why my body was filled with so much Chaos Energy? I'll let you in on that little secret. I haven't told anyone about this except my friends, because I'd hate to let out my regime's inner workings. But I guess I can trust you…"
Regime Sonic's small smile grew vicious as he chanted a few words:
"Chaos Limiter: Release."
Once again, the Chaos Energy pulsing from Regime Sonic's body erupted into electricity spreading everywhere. Only this time, the golden color was replaced with pure black. The more the Chaos Energy surged, the more its color turned black. When the darkness continued spreading, Regime Sonic's normal appearance changed. His fur was now blue-indigo with white streaks, four golden rings surrounded his wrists and ankles, and his gloves and shoves have completely disappeared. Regime Sonic's eyes opened, revealing to be pure white.
Chuckling evilly, the newly transformed Regime Sonic declared with a more demonic voice.
Super Sonic's face and voice changed to shock, "Darkspine… Sonic?!"
"Surprised by my new form?" Darkspine Sonic grinned. "It is the absolute true form of my Chaos Power when I absorbed all the negative energy from the Chaos Emeralds. Of course, I saved a small portion for Perfect Chaos, but the rest… it was all me."
Super Sonic's eyes widened with realization as he said, "So that's why I undid Perfect Chaos so easily! He wasn't fighting back when I made the first hit! How?!"
Darkspine Sonic answered, "Finitevus helped me. During the experiment, all of the Emeralds' negative energy transferred to my cells, the procedure increasing my power over the Chaos Force to unimaginable levels, taking me beyond all others! I don't even have to transform into Super Sonic for this one! Unfortunately, my new powers have proven to be much… unstable. So Finitevus created for me a limiter that contains my powers, and only I can override it."
"A limiter?" Super Sonic asked. "You mean to tell me you've been holding back this whole time?"
Darkspine Sonic explained, "Obviously, if I unleashed all my powers from the get-go, everything around me tends to die, and that wouldn't be too much… fun."
Super Sonic demanded, "You mean you're STILL holding back?!"
Darkspine Sonic chuckled, "You know, it's been a long time since I used the Darkspine technique. It is very intimidating, don't you think? In case you haven't noticed, I'm much more powerful in this form. You don't have a chance of winning, and you'll all be dead."
Super Sonic looked at Darkspine Sonic in anger, "That's going too far! Your evil ways have gone long enough. One way or another, I'm taking you down!"
Darkspine Sonic laughed maniacally, "You think I'M evil?! Don't sweat the details, Sonic. The Chaos Energy I absorbed was negative, yes. But if there's one thing I learned, power trumps everything else." His dark expression festered, "Power is peace. Power is justice. Power is knowledge. Power is desire. Power… is everything. Everything… everything… everything."
His body bursts with thunderous negative Chaos Energy spreading throughout the city. Darkspine Sonic's voice rose to a glorious roar, "POWER IS WAY PAST COOL!"
With that, Darkspine Sonic vanished and reappeared in a flash of darkness in front of Super Sonic. The evil hedgehog's eyes narrowed, and Super Sonic's punch was caught one-handed. The dark energy flared up around Darkspine Sonic, as he pulled back his other hand. He unleashed a brutal, devastating series of punches and kicks in the ground, then in the air, then on the ground again, the last blow sending Super Sonic through multiple buildings.
As soon as Super Sonic recovered, he flew towards his evil counterpart with a vicious glare.
"Here we go again…" Super Sonic sighed as he readied himself for the real final battle.
The fate of both worlds will be decided!
FINAL STAGE 3: SUPER SONIC VS. DARKSPINE SONIC
Super Sonic shot forward with a vicious head butt colliding with Darkspine Sonic's chest, followed by a lightning fast 100-hit punch combo, and concluded with a kick that knocked him skyward. Super Sonic then charged with a Spin Dash, flew at the speed of light, and struck an airborne Darkspine Sonic with an upward kick, followed by a Super Spin Attack that sent the evil hedgehog pummeling to the ground. Recovering quickly by slamming his feet to the ground, cracking it on impact, Darkspine Sonic looked up to see Super Sonic charging his left hand for a trademark attack.
"Super Sonic Wind!" Super Sonic shot down the crescent-shaped energy blade towards his evil duplicate. Darkspine Sonic ducked at the last moment as the Super Sonic Wind sliced a building in half, a clean diagonal cut causing the top of the building to slide off. Darkspine Sonic countered by firing a gigantic Chaos Beam towards his duplicate, Super Sonic firing another Super Sonic Wind. The two energy blasts exploded, temporarily blinding Super Sonic. When he opened his eyes, Darkspine Sonic was rushing up to meet him. In a furious clash, a flurry of punches and kicks flew thick and fast and were expertly dealt, dodged, or blocked by both hedgehogs. Finally, Darkspine Sonic kicked Super Sonic back a few feet.
"Not bad, evil me. Not bad at all!" Super Sonic grinned, charging up his Chaos Energy.
"I'LL CRUSH YOU!" Darkspine Sonic declared, and in turn, charged his own Chaos Energy.
The two hedgehogs crashed into each other, the two energy forces struggling to overcome one another. When the energy collision subsided, Super and Darkspine clashed at unprecedented speeds throughout the whole city of New Mobotropolis. The clash ended when an ill timed punch from Super Sonic was blocked by Darkspine Sonic, who returned the favor with a vicious hook to the gut. Air gasped out of Super Sonic's mouth as his duplicate doubled over.
Seizing his chance, Darkspine Sonic delivered a devastating punch-combo to Super Sonic that flew like a machine gun, mixed with a few Chaos Control teleports from one part of the city to the next. Unable to block the rapid fire punches, Super Sonic found himself being used like a punching bag. Before Darkspine Sonic would hit again, Super Sonic ducked a right fist and grabbed his wrist. Super Sonic swung his evil duplicate around and around, and finished by launching the dark hedgehog into multiple buildings, and finally crashing into the face of a large building. Stunned for at least a few seconds, Darkspine Sonic opened his eyes, an evil grin appearing on his face.
Darkspine Sonic recharged his energy, the intensity causing the building to collapse as a result. He leapt back into the fight, and launched millions of Dark Chaos Spears at his golden-furred duplicate. With his supersonic speed, Super Sonic dodged them all as he approached his dark counterpart. After another exchange of blows and dodging of moves, Super Sonic countered with a shoulder to Darkspine Sonic's face, sending him to the ground. Super Sonic fired multiple Super Sonic Winds to his distracted evil duplicate, but Darkspine Sonic teleported out of range, reappeared, and sent him plummeting to the ground with a two-fisted hammer punch.
With a vicious growl, Darkspine Sonic charged his Chaos Energy to tremendous levels. Black lightning flashed as darkness gathered in Darkspine Sonic's outstretched palms.
Darkspine Sonic chuckled evilly, "Some people just can't WAIT to die!"
Stuck on the ground in a seemingly bad state, Super Sonic groaned, "Why don't you just give up the fight? This planet doesn't belong to you… It never will!"
"Oh, yeah?!" Darkspine Sonic smirked. "Chaos Spear: Infinite Dark Rain!" On cue, dozens of dark energy blasts rained down on Super Sonic, hitting him a million times over. Super Sonic's invulnerability would have allowed him to endure this much many, but seeing that Chaos-attacks are effective against Chaos-coating, it is extremely painful. Super Sonic screamed in agony as the onslaught of Dark Chaos Spears scorched his body, his Super form about to wear out at any minute. Every blast connects, forming a Chaos energy bubble pinning Super Sonic to the ground. Darkspine Sonic then swung his hand upward, charging Chaos Energy into the air to create another giant Chaos Bomb, its black electricity sparkling above.
"Dark Chaos Bomb!" screamed Darkspine Sonic. The energy bomb flew deadly and straight, striking the pulsating white energy bubble at its base. The point of impact blew up in a blast of dark light, the concussion. When the blast died down, Super Sonic was transformed back into Normal Sonic out of the rubble, bruised and battered.
Darkspine Sonic floated down towards the rubble, looking disdainfully at his Mainstream counterpart's wretched state. He informed, "Didn't anybody ever tell you to respect your elders, punk?"
A continuous cough plastered from Mainstream Sonic's mouth. He replied with much anger he could muster, "Like heck…"
"That was your last mistake, freak! NOW I'M GONNA OBLITERATE YOU!" Darkspine Sonic roared, and he channeled his Dark Chaos Energy to insurmountable levels than he had ever reached before, making the rubble and dust rise from the ground. The four golden energy rings on his wrists and ankles shattered into pieces and fell off, unleashing Darkspine Sonic's true power. With a Chaos fuelled roar, Darkspine Sonic's inner Chaos Energy bursts to the surface, his dark aura growing the size of a building.
He's completely lost it! That much Chaos Energy could not just wipe out Sonic, but the whole city as well! Darkspine Sonic bursts with maniacal laughter as he continued powering up.
The level has already been reached. It was time.
"CHAOS… BLAAAASSSSTTTT!"
An immense torrent of Dark Chaos Energy spread with blinding speed, engulfing nearly the whole city into its basking darkness. The people in it, along with the Regime and Insurgency members, were ensnared as well. All of New Mobotropolis was a darkly lit haven…
But…
…Just then, the entire spread of Dark Chaos Energy halted. It suddenly split itself up into multiple beams of energy and flew off in a group in a horizontal direction.
And as the beams reached their destined target…
…they were all sucked in! A brilliant shining light vacuumed the torrents of Dark Chaos Energy into the large green gemstone standing on top of a nearby building. It was the Master Emerald! And it was not alone. Knuckles and Tails must've brought the Master Emerald from Angel Island to help their world's Sonic… by chanting Tikal's Prayer to cancel Darkspine Sonic's ultimate attack!
Mainstream Sonic used all his remaining strength to move his head and look at the rooftop. He weakly cried, "Tails! Knuckles!"
Tails yelled, "Sonic! Now's your chance!"
Knuckles added, "Get him!"
Nodding with determination, Mainstream Sonic found new resolve as a yellow aura of Chaos covered his body. "Now it's time to get serious!" he growled.
With a mighty scream, Mainstream Sonic turned back into Super Sonic, the transformation instantly restoring him to full health. He stood up from the ground and floated in the air, confronting Darkspine Sonic one more time.
Super Sonic smirked, motioning his hand to dare his evil counterpart, "Ready for Round 2?"
"WHY, YOU LITTLE…!" Darkspine Sonic was not pleased that his Mainstream counterpart still lives. His rage had reached its final limit. "I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU I'LL KILL YOU I'LL KILL YOOOOOUUUU!"
As if answering Darkspine Sonic's frustration, Super Sonic started charging his Light Chaos Powers, his evil counterpart doing the same with his Dark Chaos Powers. The two hedgehogs clashed once more at unprecedented speeds, their energy flashing throughout the city. Punches and kicks were expertly blocked or dealt by both hedgehogs, the crashing of blows echoing like thunder and lightning. The whole planet of Mobius was at a standstill as every citizen watched news reports of the planet-shaking duel between Super and Darkspine.
Finding himself knocked back, Super Sonic boosted, the full power of the Chaos Emeralds flowing through his body. The golden hedgehog flew at Darkspine Sonic to the chest with a mighty Super Sonic Boost, followed by a speed-of-sound fist colliding with the villain's cheek. Darkspine Sonic was sent flying backwards, followed by Super Sonic, who delivered a lightning fast 150-hit combo. A swift upwards kick then sent Darkspine Sonic careering into open outer space. As soon as Darkspine Sonic recovered, he charged his fist with Chaos Energy, Sonic doing the same with his.
"Super Sonic…"
"Super Sonic…"
"WIND!" Both hedgehogs fired their respective crescent-shaped energy blades, Super of blue color and Darkspine of black color. The two blasts neutralized each other, and the two super-charged hedgehogs continued their fight.
After another clash of unprecedented speeds out of Mobius's orbit, Darkspine Sonic was slammed into an asteroid, breaking through and ending up on another one beyond. Teleporting back to Super Sonic, he took the hero by surprise, a double axe-handle sending Super Sonic crashing into the surface of the moon. Recovering quickly, Super Sonic charged for a Super Sonic Spin Dash, hitting Darkspine Sonic in the midriff and carrying his foe back to the planet's surface. Super Sonic increased his speed to cosmic levels before kicking Darkspine Sonic straight back to Mobius, crash-landing at the square of New Mobotropolis and creating a huge crater as a result of the searing heat from passing through the planet's atmosphere.
Darkspine Sonic weakly stood up, moderately injured and breathing hard, having been pushed to his limits by his Mainstream counterpart. Super Sonic reappeared on solid ground, no worse for wear from the interstellar battle.
Super Sonic rubbed his nose and cockily smiled, "Had enough yet?"
Darkspine Sonic breathed raggedly, "No… This can't be… I'm the savior of this world… I'm supposed to be invincible… I'm supposed to be… unbeatable…" His rage rose to its highest, "You stupid hedgehog… Shadow and Finitevus… The Insurgency… Those duplicates… The pathetic people of this planet… EVERY WORLD IN THIS UNIVERSE… AND THE ENTIRE MULTIVERSE!" He then roared at the top of his lungs, "YOUR TIME IS OVER NOOOOOOOWWWWW!"
Overwhelming power surging through him, Darkspine Sonic rose up into the air, both hands holding together above his head to form a gigantic raging ball of energy the size of a small planet, filled with every ounce of Dark Chaos Energy.
Super Sonic, still stood on terra firma, held both arms out to the side, and called upon the power of the Master Emerald. His Chaos Energy resonating with the large green gemstone, its limitless energy rose up, drawn towards Super Sonic like a magnet. The golden energy sparked in with the Master Emerald's, gathering more power than he had possessed before.
Two incredible forces of nature united against one formidable force of darkness.
In sync with each other, the colossal Dark Chaos Energy Ball hurled down, while Super Sonic unleashed his own ultimate attack: the Master Super Sonic Boost. The two attacks met, each trying to outdo the other. Suddenly, Darkspine Sonic's energy ball moved away, shunted back by Super Sonic's increased power. In desperation, Darkspine Sonic fired four smaller blasts into the gargantuan energy ball, its power now beginning to overwhelm Super Sonic. The ball crept closer and closer to the surface. Super Sonic closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, putting everything he had into stopping the ball of destruction.
Just then, two of Super Sonic's trustworthy allies came to his rescue. With a roar, Knuckles allowed the power of the Master Emerald to wash over him. An explosion of Chaos Energy, and Hyper Knuckles stood glowing, his pink fur glowing with pure power. Tails let out a shout of his own, as the Master Emerald turned his orange fur golden. The protective Flickies circling his body suggests that Super Tails was ready.
The two newly transformed heroes shot into the sky, appearing behind Darkspine Sonic. Super Sonic looked up in surprise to see his friends there, risking themselves to help him. Darkspine Sonic, on the other hand, registered shock and fear. Super Tails grabbed hold of Hyper Knuckles' wrist and spun into a tornado of gold and pink, before launching the hyper echidna, fists first towards Darkspine Sonic.
With the evil hedgehog's attention diverted, Super Sonic pumped every ounce of his energy into his Master Super Sonic Boost. The ultimate dash attack pierced through Darkspine Sonic's gigantic energy bomb, obliterating the buildup of Dark Chaos Energy. Hyper Knuckles collided with Darkspine Sonic, his momentum pushing the villain headfirst into the Master Super Sonic Boost!
"No… No… NOOOOOOOOOO!"
KA-BOOOOOOOM!
"I— HATE— THAT— HEDGEHOG!"
Darkspine Sonic lets out a defining torturous scream, ringing loud and clear, as his body was pierced through the chest by the Master Super Sonic Boost. Still screaming, the evil hedgehog desperately held his chest in his arms as fell down into the streets below, already feeling the positive power of Chaos Energy taking effect. A bright light left behind by Super Sonic's trail enveloped Darkspine Sonic's fur in bright light, his negative Chaos Energy vanishing afterwards...
In the end, Darkspine Sonic was no more. He has been reverted to his original blue form with his hands and feet bare and exposed.
He lay there, unconscious, not moving.
As Super Sonic, Super Tails, and Hyper Knuckles glided down, they reverted back to their normal forms and looked over the defeated leader of the One-Planet Regime.
Sonic wiped his head from sweat, "Wow! That was cathartic!"
"We did it!" Tails cheered excitedly. "We won! We knew you could do it!"
With a beaming grin on his face, Sonic complied by bumping fists with Knuckles, and ruffling Tails hair. He replied, "Thanks, guys. You're a big helping hand."
Knuckles placed his hands on Sonic's shoulders and laughed, "You jerk! You should've saved some action for us! But what do you think friends are for?" A thumbs-up from the blue hedgehog was his only answer.
Before the celebration could continue, the unconscious body of Regime Sonic finally moved. Distorted groans were the only noises he could make. The groans are followed by continuous coughing, a few giving a little bit of blood from his mouth.
Mainstream Sonic smiled sarcastically, "Aw, am I awake? Good! But ending a stand-off between two Sonics would do that, wouldn't it? You hear me, evil me? You're done. Your reign is over." He knelt down over his beaten duplicate, "I'll leave the speeches about 'winning the day' and 'conquering evil' to my friends in my world. I'll be content with 'nyah nyah' and 'I win.'"
Regime Sonic slowly bent his head towards Mainstream Sonic's face. His eyes opened, giving a mean stare at his duplicate's sarcastic eyes.
"N-No…" Regime Sonic gritted his teeth. "I won't… let you win…"
With all of his remaining strength, Regime Sonic pointed his open palm in front of his Mainstream counterpart, attempting to fire a blast of Chaos Energy…
…but no energy was channeled. No blast was fired.
No matter how many times he tried, Regime Sonic's Chaos Energy failed him.
"How…?" Regime Sonic weakly exclaimed. "Why…?"
Mainstream Sonic chuckled, "Well, well, well. Looks like my Master Emerald-juiced Super Sonic Boost destroyed every bit of negative Chaos Energy in your body, especially your cells." His sarcastic grin festered. "That means you're back to what you used to be before you acted so high and mighty: a sad, hopeless, empty hedgehog whose sense of righteousness burns out."
"Cheated… on me… I'm… a savior…" Regime Sonic snarled weakly. "I protect… this world… You're… nothing…"
Nonchalantly, Mainstream Sonic punched his Regime counterpart two times, followed by a knee to the jaw.
Angrily grabbing Regime Sonic's fur, Mainstream Sonic pointed out, "You're no savior. And you're no protector. You're a big bully, and that's it. You take the easy, nasty way out of the good side and instead, you chose the wrong side. Because you're consumed by madness."
"Oh, really?" Regime Sonic growled. "What if what happened to me, happened to you?"
Mainstream Sonic shoved Regime Sonic away, releasing his grip. He replied, "It's like I said before. It's about accepting the world as it is, even if there is too much evil in it. It's about respecting others and respecting back. It's about doing the right thing, even after we lose the things we care about. It's about letting the way of our world work things out for people, good or bad. And me? I do things the right way, even if life isn't always fair for me. I help others make something bigger and better than just mean. The good guys always win in the long run." He then smiled and pointed to himself, "And there isn't anybody who can run longer or better than I can." His expression then turned serious, "That's why you'll never be a hero. That's why you'll never be a protector. And that's why… you'll never be Sonic the Hedgehog. You won't hurt these people any longer."
For a brief second, the façade of cruelty was replaced with aching fear in Regime Sonic's expression. All of the rage, the aggression, the madness… it was all just a mask to comfort himself from all the pain and sadness five years ago… because he was alone.
Alone in a world where he was feared by everyone he knows. Alone in a world where no one would accept him.
Forcing himself up, Regime Sonic forced himself up a bit to tell Mainstream Sonic something.
"Fear…" he groaned. "...is the only thing anyone would understand. One day… you'll learn…" With that, Regime Sonic fell back.
Mainstream Sonic and his friends looked to see that their world's versions of Amy, Bunnie, Antoine, Espio, and Monkey Khan had arrived along with the Insurgency's Shadow. They surrounded the fallen High Councilor, who knelt on his feet.
"You'll have to kill me," Regime Sonic warned, shooting a mean look.
"No," Insurgency Shadow replied. "Not even you. There's been enough killing."
"The High Councilor has fallen!" Monkey Khan declared with a loud and clear voice to the heavens, raising his sparkling thunder staff in victory. "Victory is ours!"
That was the cue. The Freedom Fighters, the Insurgency, and the whole planet of Mobius erupted into cheers as the feeling of the One-Planet Regime's ultimate downfall overwhelmed them. They have succeeded! They were free!
Freedom… What a glorious feeling it must have been. Freedom is something they've been longing for since the end of the Great War and Robotnik Prime's ultimate demise, especially when Dr. Eggman's robotic city of New Megalopolis blew up.
"Sonic!" The voice of Sally Acorn echoed throughout the same street where the ex-High Councilor had fallen. Even he himself heard that familiar voice.
Sally came to her world's Sonic, placing an arm on his shoulder and letting out a light-hearted chuckle.
That's all Regime Sonic needed to see.
"Sally…"
The sound, the whole victory celebration drowned out around him. Upon seeing the face of his long lost love one last time, Regime Sonic's face contorted in despair with tears, barely hearing his voice cry out a sobbing cry.
The soundless sobbing turned into similarly silent yelling, then howling, then screaming. He repeatedly screamed Sally's name over and over, suddenly catching the attention of Mainstream Sonic and his world's Sally amidst the small respite. He was suddenly joined by the Insurgency's Tails, Fiona, and Fang. Their hands began dragging Regime Sonic away. He struggled against the hands, tearing them away in fury, desperately trying to get to Sally… but every attempt failed him.
His friends were gone. His family was gone. His hopes were gone. His dreams were gone.
Sally Acorn, the only one he ever loved in this world, was gone from his life.
He had lost everything.
He now had nothing.