Chapter 3 – Sonic vs. Knuckles
Sonic realised that things were going to get uglier between him and Knuckles, and he knew that the village would be trashed if they began their fight right there and then. He had to come up with a plan quickly so that they could take care of their business without hurting anyone.
"Alright, fine, I will fight you, Knuckles," he conceded. "But we're going to have to settle the conflict somewhere else. This isn't a good place as I can't afford to have anyone unfortunate to be in the way to get hurt."
"What are you doing, you two?" exclaimed Tails as he stepped in between his two old friends. "Don't you realise that this may be something that Eggman wanted? It would be better that you solve this pointless argument with words."
"Move out of the way, Tails," warned Sonic.
"No, I won't," said Tails. "If you're going to fight Knuckles, you'll have to go through me first!"
Sonic flinched, but he knew there was no other way around. "Then I'm really going to have to do this," he said as he reluctantly started to perform his Super Spin Dash.
Tails, Blaze, and even Knuckles were surprised as Sonic continued to charge up his attack as that would mean he would hurt his two-tailed fox friend.
"Oh, no, he wouldn't!" gasped Draco. "He can't knock out Tails!"
"It looks like he's going to," said Cynder. "I'm afraid he's done for."
As Sonic charged up his Spin Dash even more, Tails could only look at him in disappointed and sighed as he finally stepped out of way. At last, Sonic stopped charging, seeing just how sad Tails was.
"I'm really sorry, Tails," he said.
"Yes, so am I," replied Tails. "I know a place where you two can have your fight. Follow me."
"Tails, let me come with you," said Blaze. "It would be unbearable for me if anything happens to you from the fight."
"No, Blaze," said Tails. "This would make me more worried for your safety, and besides, the others will need your help protecting the two Chaos Emeralds if Eggman comes in and tries to swipe them."
"Very well, if you insist," said Blaze. "Just please be careful."
"I'll do my best to keep my distance," promised Tails. "At least you could assist them in cleaning up the mess Knuckles made when he charged in."
Blaze nodded, and joined in with the Jimmy, the dragons, and the Kremlings as they were tidying up while Tails led Sonic and Knuckles out of the village.
"So what's happening?" asked Jeremy.
"Sonic and Knuckles are going to have their duel," said Blaze. "Tails is leading them someplace away from here, and I'm going to help you guys clean up."
"What about the Chaos Emeralds?" Jimmy asked.
"We're going to have to keep them guarded, in case Eggman shows up," said Blaze. "Now then, let's hurry up and sort out this mess."
After a short while of flying through the forest, Tails finally saw a small clearing ahead, and recognised it as the same place where the dragons had their big battle with Ash. He then looked behind his back to make sure that Sonic and Knuckles were close behind him.
"Here we are, guys," he said. "This wide open area in the woods is the perfect place to fight since you won't have to worry about smashing through the trees."
"Humph!" snorted Knuckles. "I couldn't care less about the state of the forest. All I want to do now is give Sonic the most brutal beating he will ever get!"
"Man, you sure don't have any mercy, buddy," said Sonic.
"Of course I'm not going to show any mercy!" declared Knuckles. "And I'm not your buddy, don't forget that!"
Sonic and Knuckles assumed their positions as they stood at opposite ends of the area. They stared at each other, filled with determination to best each other. In a split second, Knuckles made a rush towards Sonic.
"You're going down!" he shouted as he delivered a flurry of punches. Sonic dodged each and every one of them, but then Knuckles managed to land a hit on the hedgehog.
"Oof!" he groaned.
Knuckles then grabbed Sonic, kneed him on the stomach, and kicked him to the ground. Sonic got up and noticed Knuckles chasing after him, so he quickly ran to the other direction to fully recover. He then returned with some kicks, but Knuckles blocked them back with his own and did a backwards flip. Landing to the ground, the echidna did a side kick, which Sonic evaded by ducking down and rolling over with his Spin Dash. Knuckles delivered a violent headbutt, successfully hitting Sonic, and he punched him repeatedly on the stomach. As soon as Sonic recovered, he was able to grab both of Knuckles' fists before he could hit him again and kneed him twice on the head before kicking him into a tree.
"How do you like that?" he gloated.
Seething with anger, Knuckles got up and front flipped his way towards Sonic. They were now inches from each other's face. Both of them charged up their Super Spin Dash attacks and then they launched forwards, causing friction upon collision. Knuckles leapt up and glided to the ground, leaving Sonic to spin uncontrollably towards a tree, but in the nick of time, he stopped before he could crash. Sonic ran towards Knuckles to deliver a strong punch. Knuckles got his punch ready and both hit each other in the face at the same time. Enraged, Knuckles started to punch Sonic in the stomach, catching the hedgehog off guard, and he repeated his punches in succession. Sonic tried to recover, but it was no good as he was powerless. Knuckles then kneed him in the stomach.
Tails could only watch helplessly as the battle heated up. He could tell that Sonic was losing, but there was no way he would be able to intervene, lest he ended up getting hurt by Knuckles as well.
"Oh, dear," he said worryingly. "This is not good. I really hope they would stop soon as there are more pressing matters going on."
Meanwhile, back in the village, Blaze, Jimmy and the dragons have managed to finish cleaning up the mess Knuckles caused. The ground was now free of dropped food and Lily had the plates back in her hut.
"That sure took a while," said Draco as he wiped his brow. "But the job is now done."
"Yes," said Cynder. "Even with so many of us working too, it was no easy matter disposing all the scattered litter."
Blaze looked out to the direction where Tails left with Sonic and Knuckles. She was hoping that they would be okay and that Knuckles would finally see sense and realised the trick he had fell for.
"Somethin' the matter, Blaze?" asked Jakkin.
"It's the three I'm worried," replied Blaze. "For what Tails has told me, he, Sonic and Knuckles worked together many years ago, so it really pains me how there are instances where they just can't get along."
"Hey, it's best that we check on the Chaos Emeralds for a bit," reminded Percival. "Tails wants us to make sure that they are safe and sound, remember?"
"Yes, of course," said Cynder. "Fortunately, Eggman's not around to steal it."
"Oh, but I certainly can," said a voice.
Surprised, the group turned to the direction and saw a shark-like robot standing at the village. Instantly, they recognised him as one of Eggman's Robot Masters.
"I spy with my little eye a pair of Chaos Emeralds," said Sharkinator. "And those two are mine for the taking!"
"Uh-oh," gulped Draco.
Having dealt so many punches from Knuckles, Sonic regained his ground as he started to get some punches in, and Knuckles was getting some too. Sonic swung towards Knuckles, but the echidna made a backwards flip and glided down behind his opponent.
"Sonic, look out!" cried Tails.
Quickly, Sonic turned around to see Knuckles delivering a Flame Uppercut. He tried to avoid the attack, but he was too late. With a swift blow, Knuckles hit Sonic in the stomach so hard, that he sent him hurtling up into the sky. Sonic fell down and he grabbed onto a tree branch. Feeling battered and bruised from the attack, Sonic hung on for dear life, and he wondered on how strong Knuckles became.
"Man, oh man, Knuckles certainly has been training hard for the last ten years," he said to himself. "I could only look back to our first fight together in the Hidden Palace of Angel Island, and even though he was a tough customer, I have managed to best him before Eggman went ahead and stolen the Master Emerald. I could also remember our second fight in the Mystic Ruins, and he has come a long way since then."
Suddenly, Sonic felt a jerk and then saw that the tree he was hanging was starting to tip over. It became clear to him that Knuckles was the one who cut it down with his fists. When the tree collapsed into an angle, he released the branch and sped down just in time before it crash the ground. This was just the opportunity Knuckles had been waiting for, and when Sonic came within range, he grabbed the hedgehog by the arm, swung him around rapidly, and then threw him into another tree. The force of the throw caused Sonic to crash through several trees, bringing each of them down to the ground. Groaning from the crushing damage, Sonic tried to get up, and he saw Knuckles approaching him with a nasty smirk on his face. He then proceeded to grab Sonic while he was immobilised and he started pounding him like a punching bag.
"What's the matter, Sonic?" he taunted. "Not so fast and cocky anymore, aren't you?"
Knuckles then prepared to deliver the finishing blow, but then, Sonic broke free of his rival's grasp and angrily pounded him repeatedly on his gut before tossing him into a hollow tree.
"Ack!" groaned Knuckles. "Okay, I give! You got me!"
Feeling uncertain about Knuckles' sudden surrender, Sonic made his way to the tree, and before he knew it, Knuckles lunged out of the darkness and held the hedgehog tightly by the neck, causing him to choke and gag. He was about to finish off Sonic once and for all, when without warning, he got kicked from the side, releasing him. Knuckles got up and saw a black hedgehog that resembled Sonic standing where he was.
Author's Note: That sure was an intense fight between Sonic and Knuckles, and now Shadow steps into the fray! All the while, Blaze and the dragons are in trouble with the third Robot Master. Let's see where this goes from here in the next chapter!