Amy is honestly my favorite character. I feel like people tend to forget how strong she can be, and how much she's grown. Thus, I ended up writing this on the forums-in parts at first, but now all together for your reading pleasure.
All Roses Have Thorns
Amy really hadn't prepared for something like this today. Honestly, who would? It's not every day you get stopped on your way back from grocery shopping by an odd assortment of jerks.
"I don't believe this." The green hedgehog, who looked too close to Sonic for her liking, scoffed. "Pinky is the target? The former bigshot of those Reformation dipshits?"
"Easy, babe." The red fox nudged him. "It's what the client wants. Even if we don't get much fun out of it, it'll at least get us some cash. Just pretend its Rosy." The snot colored doofus grinned at that.
"Can I… help you people?" Amy asked warily. She could already tell where this was going… but never let it be said she forgot her manners.
"Hmph. Targets of this caliber aren't worthy of a hunter like myself." The blue hawk grumbled.
"Indeed. A terrible test of strength for us." The gorilla crossed his arms. Amy couldn't tell if he was unhappy or stern.
"A party like this is no fun! Tis a game so easily won…" The creepy frog spouted, hanging off the gorilla's shoulder.
"I… don't really have anything to contribute." The lynx said, scratching the back of his head. The other three stared at him, as he simply shrugged.
"You know, it's rude to talk about someone when you're right in front of them." Amy scowled.
"I'm sorry, Pinky. You're right. Allow me to introduce myself." Amy could barely react before the hedgehog rushed up and decked her in the snout, sending her flying and making her drop her bags. "Name's Scourge, sweetheart. And you're about to be turned into a Rosé cadaver by me and my Destructix."
Amy got up, staring daggers at the group. Scourge only chuckled. "Aw, ain't that cute. She thinks she's threatening. Why don't you boys greet the young lady?"
Without warning, the hawk flew forward, Amy barely dodging his sharp talons. She narrowly missed being clawed, being nicked several times, tearing her dress and drawing blood. The snot colored edgelord casually walked by them as he lunged at her. "This here's Predator Hawk. Don't be surprised if he actually eats you once you're dead. Hunting's his whole… schtick." Hawk side eyed him, allowing Amy to flip backwards for some distance.
Before she landed, her arm was grabbed by what felt like a whip… a slimy whip. She was brought crashing down. As she got up, she wasn't too happy to learn it was the frog's tongue. He crawled closer to her, giggling like a mad man. Scourge grimaced as he knelt down beside her. "That's Flying Frog. Don't… don't look him in the eyes."
Just as she was about to tear the amphibian's tongue off, a large hand clasped around her entire head, the gorilla lifting her overhead (she was thankful to be wearing her skort in that split second of air time) before slamming her into the ground, cratering it with her head. "Sergeant Simian. If Hawk doesn't eat ya, Simon here might put a grenade in your mouth. FYI." Simon rolled his eyes, before throwing the pink hedgehog in the air.
Amy was struck in the sky by the lynx, who dive kicked her into a nearby tree. Before he fell forward, two kunai landed in the shoulders of her dress, pinning her. The lynx seemingly teleported right next to her. "Here we have Lightning Lynx. He's a ninja. Believe it, or whatever."
She felt another foot land squarely in her solar plexus, and looked to find the red fox giving her a smug grin. "And this here's my girl. Fiona Fox. She really doesn't like you. Don't ask, it's a long story."
"Not that you have the time to hear it, little girl. Don't worry. We'll only have a little fun before we put you out of your misery."
"You…" Amy's hands clenched. "You ruin a perfectly good dress from Honey's Spring collection…"
"You wrap your dirty mitts and your disgusting tongue around me…"
"But worst of all, you make me drop the food I was going to use to make a cake for Sonic."
"What's wrong, brat? You gonna throw a tantrum?" Fiona mocked, baby-talking to her. Suddenly, Amy's hand grabbed her leg. "Oh, look at her. She's trying to fight ba- ow, ow, OW, OW OW OW OW!" Fiona clutched at her leg as Amy tightened her grip. Scourge grew incredibly worried when he heard the bone cracking.
"A tantrum. Let's go with that." With a sickening crunch, Fiona's tibia gave way, and Amy planted her feet against the tree. Not letting go of the poor fox's leg, she tossed Fiona aside, straight into Lightning. In a swift motion, she grabbed the knives sticking her against the tree, curling into a ball. As the knives pulled out, she had enough time and support to shoot off the tree. The strength from her legs snapped the large tree in half as she shot past her attackers to a safe distance. The broken tree, meanwhile, nearly fell on the downed Lynx and Fox. Lightning barely had time to get them out of the way.
"YEOW! Watch it, Lightning! Broken leg here!"
"Would you prefer a broken everything?!"
"Shut up, moron!" Scourge shouted at him as he slid next to Fiona. "You okay, Fi?"
"Do I look ok to you?! Rrrgh, that little bitch!" She clutched Scourge by the collar. "Bring her to me alive, so I can TEAR HER HEAD OFF MYSELF!"
Scourge backed away. "Alright, alright! Geez! C'mon boys. You heard the lady. Looks like this just became personal."
"The girlie has made us taste mud! Now we will repay her in blood…" Frog licked his lips in anticipation.
"You will pay dearly for dishonoring us, Rose…" Lynx stated as he pulled out several shuriken.
"Well, well, looks like this might be a worthwhile hunt after all." Hawk grinned.
Simon cracked his knuckles. "Yes. Give us a fight to remember, girl."
Amy wiped the blood from her mouth. "A fight to remember, eh? Okay. Okay…" Her hands moved to her ring bracelets. She unclasped each one, before flicking them into the air behind her.
The moment they hit the ground, a tower of dirt shot up from each, creating tremors that reached the Destructix. The fearsome four simply smiled at the promise pf battle, thrill in their eyes. Scourge's eyes, however, only had a dose of fear. "Aw crap. I'm gettin Rosy flashbacks."
"Well? Come on, then. I'll smash you into fertilizer."
"I'm just saying- I think Comedy Chimp is overrated." Sally stated, leaning back into her chair.
Tangle gasped melodramatically. "Stay your tongue! I've never heard such blasphemy!"
"His punchlines are lame, he's got no charisma… honestly, I don't get what people see in him."
"The words coming out of your mouth… hey, Whisper, back me up on this. Comedy Chimp is a comedic genius, ain't he?"
The wolf shrunk a little. "I, uh… don't really watch television."
Tangle gasped once more.
While that riveting conversation went on, Nicole combed through report after report of the Restoration's files. As they'd been currently debating their next move, Jewel had wondered if they could do some work for the Restoration. Neither of had seen why not. It was always good to help people, and it was a way to spend time with new friends and… take their mind off other things.
Nicole's had taken to analyzing squad reports. By dissecting them, she might discern Eggman or any other villain's plans by how they moved and what they went for.
Today seemed like a rather quiet day. Badniks seemed to be mostly going for supply hit and runs, and most other groups hadn't shown up, aside from those morons Rough and Tumble.
That was, until a code red report popped up from out of nowhere. Had Eggman finally made a move? She read through the message immediately.
"This is Sgt. Cutter, Leader of Wrecker Squad reporting an urgent message to HQ. At 1800 hours in Terrace View Village, my team was attacked by a band of unreported criminals. We first thought they were simply a group of troublemakers, as they were harassing the locals at the town's bar. But when we attempted to apprehend them, they retaliated. Most of my teammates were gravely injured. Thankfully, they received medical treatment and will recover. But the suspects are still at large. We identified the individuals as-"
'…No. Oh, no no no. Please, no, not THAT asshole…" Nicole wasn't much for swearing, but if anyone deserved it, it was him. "Sally."
The Robian looked to her friend, their discussion of stand up brought to a halt. "You're gonna wanna take a look at this."
As Sally walked over and read what was on screen, Tangle grew interested. "Oh! We finally gonna see some action today?"
Sally had just arrived where Nicole had stopped. "…identified the individuals as a green hedge- Oh for Chaos' sake, not him. Anyone but him!"
"Whoa. What's the matter?"
"Ugh… someone just attacked Wrecker Squad. And I know who did it. "A green hedgehog with a scar on his belly". Scourge…"
Whisper and Tangle jolted. "Surge is back?!"
"No, not Surge. Scourge. Though you might mistake em for siblings. Similar to Surge, Scourge is everything Sonic isn't. Right down to wanting to burn everything he loves to ashes."
The lemur and wolf gave each other a worried look.
"And if he's here, then that means his babd of misfits are probably here too."
"All the descriptions match, Sally. A gorilla armed to the teeth, a blue hawk with a bloodlust, a psychopathic frog, a lynx with shinobi skills, and… a red fox." Nicole's voice had some venom in those last few words.
Sally growled at that. "Of course…"
"So, a bunch of jerks are stirring up trouble in paradise, huh?" Tangle's tail clenched into a fist as she slammed her fist into her palm. "Then I guess it's time for us to show them who's the sheriff around these parts!"
"Hang on, Tangle." Whisper called for her before she could walk out the door. "We've no idea where they are now. We do not even know what their goal is."
Nicole piped up. "I can answer that. Cutter goes on to say that he and his crew heard them use terms like, " the target", and "the client", and discuss payments."
Sally pursed her metal lips. "Then they're mercenaries, hired to track down something…"
"Or someone." Whisper added morbidly. "If we are to know where they are headed next, we must discern as to who or what they're after. Where were they last seen?"
"The attack happened at Terrace View Village." Nicole answered.
"Oh, hey!" Tangle shouted out. "That's just east of where Amy lives!" The other three froze. A look of horror crept onto their faces, the single possibility etching into their minds. "We could totally ask her to come along for a lady's night beatdown and uh…" She slowed, noticing her companions' visages. "Um… did I say something wrong? All I said was that Amy… lived… close…" Tangle finally connected the dots herself, mirroring the looks of the others.
In a few seconds, the girls burst out of the room, rushing out of the building.
"I'm sending this message to Jewel immediately, with a urgent request for backup!"
"Tangle, can you reach Amy?!" Sally asked.
"She's not picking up!" Tangle shouted back. "How dangerous are these guys?!"
"They're all known for their ability to kill! She's in serious danger!"
"It would not have taken them long to get to Amy's home! We've no time to lose!" Whisper said as they left the HQ.
"I couldn't agree more." She grabbed the other two, her rockets flaring. "Sorry, you two!"
"Don't worry about it, just hit the turbo!" Tangle rebuffed. Sally boosted into the air, soaring as fast as she could.
It didn't matter how different this Amy was… she was her friend no matter what. And she would not lose any of her friends ever again.
"GAGH!" Scourge yelled as he was kicked away, sliding across the ground. As he took time to regain his bearings, Simian and Hawk landed next to him, having backed off their target. "Ugh… Miss Pocket Full O' Posies is really starting to get on my nerves…"'
"We clearly shouldn't have underestimated her. Hindsight is 20/20, it seems." Hawk added.
"Yeah, thanks for stating the obvious, featherbrain! How were any of us supposed to know she was some kind of pink powerhouse! Ol' Pinky was never anything like this!"
"It's clear by now that we must differentiate any and all familiar faces from what we know of their past selves. Rouge the Bat being far more compassionate should've been indicative enough of that. But we failed to heed that warning." Simian noted.
"Fine, whatever! It's not like we still can't take her down. Just gotta go all out and steamroll her."
"I am not so sure. We have bruised and bloodied her, but we have not dealt as much as damage as we prefer."
"And that's even if we hit her." Hawk added. "She isn't simply faster and stronger without those weights, but far more agile. She appears to have trained her body like an Olympic gymnast…"
"Ah, screw that! I don't care how much better Miss Commander is here, we can take her! Where the hell are Lightning and Frog?"
"Lightning took a particularly brutal hit and is catching his breath in the trees. Not to mention she landed quite the blow on me. I believe she may have broken a few ribs." Rather than be angry, he seemed rather impressed. "Hawk is the only one who hasn't been hit. And Frog is currently distracting-"
"NO! LEGO O MUH TOUN!" They heard Frog scream, watching as Amy had grabbed his tongue. With a tug, she flung him into the air, spinning him around like a helicopter.
"STOP! WRAPPING! YOUR! DISGUSTING! TONGUE! AROUND ME!" She shouted as Frog yelled with each roundabout. Finally, she brought him back down, smashing the ground apart, paying him back for earlier. "Pervert…"
Unfortunately for the nutcase, she wasn't done. With another tug, she pulled him towards her, grabbing his neck with her other arm. She lifted him high, as Frog begged her with his eyes.
"Imma plant me a dumbass tree!"
Using great force, Amy drove him into the ground, firmly burying him in his own tailor-made hole. His arms and legs stuck out rather comically. With a resounding 'hmph', Amy pulled his tongue back slightly before letting go, the appendage snapping back into his mouth.
Frog wasn't quite unconscious yet. "HeLlo mA'Am, mY NAme Is MuD, cOUld yOu heLP me FiNIsh thIS PoeM? ROseS aRE piNk, aNd sO ARe YOu…"
Amy leaned over the hole. "Mess with Amy, and she'll hurt you."
"ThANks…"
With that, Frog slipped into dream land. Scourge pinched the bridge of his nose, as Simian groaned. "As I was saying, Frog is indisposed of."
"Grrr… okay, look." Scourge began whispering. "Seeing her now, she's got slash wounds everywhere. Any more and she'll start suffering blood loss. Her right eye is all swollen, must've gotten a black eye when one of us punched her. And it looks like she's nursing her left arm. One good blow and I think we can dislocate it. Now if Lightning can get up off his ass…"
"I am here, and have heard. Thank you, dear leader, for your heartwarming concern." He spat out the last bit.
"Fuck off, we lost Frog while you were taking a lunch break."
"Lightning received a gut punch and had been winded. As was I, from narrowly dodging many blows. And Simian suffered a broken rib cage. You were merely grazed by a simple kick. You had plenty of time to save Frog with your "faster than Sonic" speed." Hawk sniped, defending the lynx.
"Indeed. Where were you on that one, dear leader?" Lightning jabbed.
"Shut it! It was a harder kick than it looked!" He growled. "Now listen, will ya? If Lightning comes at her from her blind side, it'll give me the chance to pop off that arm. Then, Simian will come at her from the from the front, drawing her and her good arm's attention. That'll leave Hawk to come down and slash her to pieces from behind. She'll be pretty much done for after that. Fiona tears off her prissy little skull, we go home and ask for more money so we can pay our medical bills. End of job. Does that sound about right?"
"It is sound." Lightning agreed.
"Acceptable." Hawk added, relishing his part. Simian only nodded.
"Alright. Let's gut her, then."
Amy watched as the four whispered among themselves. "These bozos are definitely dangerous… they'd make the hooligans cry for their mommies…but they seem to know barely a thing about me… that means they don't know all my moves. Guess it's time to pull out the ones I haven't used in a while."
Suddenly, the Lynx disappeared. Put on high alert, Amy searched around, only to be hit on the right side. She found the ninja there, his leg high in the air. "Watch your left, Rose."
Before she could process that, she felt an agonizing pain on her left arm. As if Sonic himself spindashed her. She could feel her arm popping out of its socket. She cried out in agony, clenching at her arm.
She had no time to recuperate, as she heard stomping coming from in front of her. Simian stampeding towards her. With only one working arm, Amy knew she didn't have many other options. With a flick of her wrist, Amy summoned forth her hammer, swinging it at Simian, who caught it just in time. Though down an arm, Amy proved to still be incredibly strong, as Simian was unable to pry the weapon from her. Neither gave up their ground.
As Amy wrestled with the ape, she could just barely make out a whistling on the wind. Turning her head, she saw Hawk swooping in for her. "A trap!" Thinking fast, she leapt up, pressing her feet against its head. She kicked off, letting go of the hammer, the force staggering Simian. She landed a few feet away, facing down Predator Hawk.
"Ha! Dumb bitch gave up her weapon!" Scourge laughed.
Simian was not so amused. "Can't she simply-" Before he finished that thought, the hammer vanished from existence. Simian realized too late. "HAWK! GET OUT OF THERE!"
But he could not turn in time. All he could do was witness the hammer reappearing in Amy's hand, as she brought it down upon him. It slammed into his body, bringing him down and sandwiching him between it and the ground. Tremors were sent hundreds of feet.
Hawk would spend the rest of the day resting.
Amy had no time to admire her carpentry skills, as she felt a body slam into her from behind, flinging her several feet.
Simian snorted, watching her hit the ground. Lightning came up to his comrade's body, inspecting it. Scourge ran up, even angrier. "What the hell?! She's never pulled a stunt like that before!"
"To think of a battle plan so quickly… her mind is sharper than we assumed as well." Simian contemplated.
"It's no good. He's out like a light." The lynx lamented.
"What? The wuss. She only hit him once."
"Yes, because I'm sure you'd hold up well after being pancaked by a hammer." Lightning sneered.
"We're dealing with an opponent where one hit is more than enough." Simian said. "Now we are down three."
"Ah, screw it. So she got three of us. She's still too busted up to fight the rest of us at the same time."
"Hmm. We shall see. She fled into the forest."
"Well, let's go get her. Hey, maybe we should wait till Frog and Hawk wake up, then watch em fight Fi for murder rights."
Meanwhile, resting on a tree, Amy bit down on the handle of her hammer. With a muffled scream, she shoved her arm back into place. Breathing deeply, she rubbed her poor eye, and watched blood pour down her body. "Can't keep going like this… too wounded. Let's hope… I still know… how to do this… don't have much time…"
She clasped her hands together, almost as if to pray. She delved into her thoughts. She saw Tails, the boy she considered a little brother, excited over his inventions. She saw that dork, Knuckles, whom she enjoyed a good arm wrestle with. Cream, her little sister, so eager to be a hero like her and Sonic. Big, the lovable, gentle giant as he fished with her. Shadow, Rouge, Blaze, Silver… each and every one of her dear friends and how she spent time with them. And of course… Sonic. In a flower field, resting, feeling the breeze of a cool, quiet day. Moments and people that live in her heart.
The three Destructix walked through the forest, searching for their prey. Scourge was getting impatient. "Rrrgh… COME ON, PINKY! I'm completely done with this shit! Stop pissing in your panties and get out here!"
"Must you always be so uncouth?" Lightning chided.
"I'll show you uncouth you- wait. What's that?"
"What is it?" Simian asked him.
"A really damn weird noise. Don't you hear that?" The two others listened closely… a sound akin to twinkling bounced off the trees, hitting their ears.
"I think I know where it's coming from." Lightning said, hopping into the trees, and leaving Scourge and Simian to themselves.
Scourge sighed. "This is becoming a real pain in the ass."
"I fail to see why you're complaining." Simian interrupted him. "You've barely done a thing."
"What?!"
"You hang back and land only one blow- with help, I might add. You get taken out by measly hits and seem to try and avoid the target." He smirked. "Perhaps you should set your fears straight before you chide us for our performance."
"Fear?! What do you mean fear?! I don't fear her! I don't fear anything pink! It's just a terrible color! You ever look at it head on?! It's like a bull seeind re- hang on a sec. The noise stopped."
The two looked around. Wary, they looked at where Lightning had gone off. "Uh, Lightning?" No answer. "You… find anything?"
Scourge was met with a rapidly approaching lynx, snapping through all the trees in his way. Hedgehog and ape ducked away as their teammate rushed by, until he hit a particularly thick tree, finally stopping. Scourge and Simian watched as Lightning slumped over, completely knocked out.
Tracing the source, the two looked to where he came from. There stood Amy, her black eye unswollen, and her cuts and gashes closed.
"Not done yet, boys. But you will be, soon enough."
"It appears she can heal…"
"Yeah, I get that. Tell me something I don't know!" Scourge bit back.
"Calm down." Simian growled, but kept his voice low. "Look at her, how she breathes. Her wounds have healed but her stamina has not replenished. The effects of blood loss and exertion have taken their toll. So long as we play things smart, we may yet take her out."
Scourge took that in mind. She was still breathing rather heavily. And her stance wasn't as composed. She probably didn't have much left in her. "Okay… okay. Yeah. I got a plan."
"And that would be…?"
"We get her mad. She gets sloppy, swinging at us like crazy. We dodge, she tuckers herself out, and boom. Mission accomplished."
"As I keep emphasizing, this is not the young Rose from the old world."
"Ah, yeah, yeah, 'New Pinky' and all that. But there's something that gets any of these twats as angry as a Tasmanian devil. And that's when you spite em with ol' Blue."
Before Simian could argue further, Scourge walked forward. "Alright, Pinky. I'll admit. You've got moves. Fancy moves, at that. But let's face it. You're on your last legs."
"I'm still standing."
"Barely. Now I'll admit, we were a little "unprepared" for you… but we put you through the ringer plenty before this point. I'm guessing you've put everything you got into this fight, but me and Simian are still raring to go."
She gave him a deadpan look. "I don't know what you're so proud about. You barely did anything."
"The point is," Scourge interrupted, not having this conversation again. "Your only hope at this point is if you get back up. Considering we got you on a lonely night, far from any city, and you didn't keep any lifelines to your old club, well… that doesn't seem likely."
"You'd be surprised." Amy retorted.
"Yeah, I'm sure you're counting on that. Cause if we're being honest… you're scared out of your mind, aren't you?" She said nothing, just glaring him down. "Ah! I'm totally right! Because you know as well as I do-" He sped forward, getting right in her face. "-We're here for blood. You could die here, without ever seeing the faces of any of your weak buddies ever again." He turned and walked away, only to glance back. "Not even Sonic."
He noticed her tense ever so slightly. "Yeah. I told you we should be honest. And we both know you want him to come the most, to have him run in and sweep you off your feet. I can just see it now. "Oh, Sonic, you saved me! Please marry me! If you don't, I might just chase you down, and smash your head in till you're dumb enough to do it!"" He said in a mock girl voice. "A little passive bitch, so desperate to convince yourself that he likes you that you'd even take a pity fuck."
Amy's hands clench around her hammer. "But we know what he thinks of you. Everyone knows what he thinks of you. You're the tagalong he can't get rid of, the scum on his shoe that just won't come off… the stalker who can't take a hint. I'm sure he's more than sick of you." He chuckled. "Not that it matters. Even if he did come here he'd be dead. For as much as you ride him about how great he is, he's nothing but a pathetic, limp-dicked loser who doesn't have the cojones to admit to himself what that he's putting on an act…"
"And who are you to act like you know him?!" Amy pointed her hammer at him, teeth bared.
"I'm Scourge, sweetheart." He presented himself, a maniacal grin on his face. "I'm him… only better. I'm faster. I'm stronger. And unlike him, I know that whatever I want is mine for the taking. And I'll crush any weakling who gets in the way of what I want. Most importantly, though? I'm the truth. To every little lie he tells himself, to act like he's some paragon of goodness. All it takes is one bad day, and he'd turn out just like me." He pointed at her. "And hey… if you really think he gives a shit about you, then seeing your mangled body on the floor might just make it today. So, take solace in that, if you gotta."
Amy lowered her hammer, her body quivering. Scourge knew he had her, readying a stance. "That's right, you twat… get angry."
*Snnnnrk*
Both Scourge and Simian were caught off guard when the girl snorted. As if… holding back laughter. And then, she couldn't take it anymore, giggling like mad.
"Hee hee heh… oh, s-sorry. I just- *snnk* -that was something. Just what kind of girl do you take me for?" She finally composed herself. "You lot really must've gotten some bad intel if you thought that would work- maybe no intel at all considering how you fought."
Scourge was so stunned he failed to notice Simian nursing his temple behind him.
"Yeah, that probably would've gotten under my skin a year ago. But I've done a lot of growing since then. I've had wars to fight and people to look after. Questions that I've had to ask myself… and all of that has helped me become better. Even so- what was… any of that? From the moment you started talking, nothing came out but a bunch a hooey."
Scourge scowled at her, but she simply continued.
"First of all, I don't need you or anyone else to tell me what Sonic thinks of me. He's my friend, and I'm his. He trusts me with his life, and I trust him with mine. Do I hope we might be something more someday? Of course. But I'm happy with what we have now. I know where I stand with him." She rolled her eyes. "And I definitely don't care what anyone has to say about my old habits. Of course I'm not fond of how I used to act. But that's for me to reflect on, and for my friends to tease me with. The rest of you can shove it."
"Well, isn't that nice-"
"And then there's you. "Grrrr, I'm faster than Sonic. I act like a total jerk and I'm proud of that. Sonic wishes he were me. Uggghhh…"" She said, doing a gruff mock voice. "Give me a break. And you call me desperate? Sounds more like a guy who's jealous like nobody's business."
Scourge's blood began to boil. "Now you listen here, you-"
"I've fought alongside Sonic more than long enough to know that he'd never stoop to your level. Not even close. He's faced down superweapons, gods and even come close to death. But he's come out of all of standing tall. He's stuck by his morals no matter what. You on the other hand… I know the kind of person you are. You think you know people, that inside everyone is a monster just waiting to come out. You throw your power around like a child, bullying people so you can have your way. You put people down to make yourself feel better. But for as big as you boast to be, inside you are just so small."
Scourge's fists clenched tightly. He growled in fury.
"Better than Sonic? Please. You're rude, cowardly and lack any sort of charisma. You're not better than him. You're just a cheap copy. A bootleg. A knock off."
"Don't you dare…"
"A faker."
His eyes widened rapidly, pupils constricting. Then, they closed. And he just breathed in…
"Mmmmmm…." And exhaled, a growled from behind his lips, which bore a wicked grin. His eyes focused on nothing but Amy. "You know what, Simian? Maybe you're right. I haven't been doing my part."
"Scourge." Simian tried to dissuade him.
"But now, I think I'm ready to make up for lost opportunities."
"Scourge." Simian said more sternly.
"Cause you, Pinky… ya shouldn't a said that."
"SCOURGE!"
A sonic boom snapped the trees around them as green rammed into pink with the force of a bullet train, the two hedgehogs careening into the darkness of the night. Simian was left in the debris. "Damn it all…"
He didn't know if Rose had purposefully taunted Scourge to counter his goading. Had she meant to lure him into a plan of her own? She may not know what she had gotten herself into. With Scourge no longer inhibited by the image of Rosy, now fueled by his wounded ego, there was no telling what he might do to the poor girl.
"I cannot tell if you are brave or stupid… should you survive, I may have to ask you myself." He knelt down to Lightning, hoisting him onto his shoulder. "For now, though, it may be best to collect my comrades and wait for whatever outcome comes of this."
"You're not going anywhere!" Simian heard a shout from above and had very little time to dive out of the way. A figure slammed into the ground, sending dust flying out. When it cleared, he took note of the three new individuals. A robian, from what it appeared, carrying a lemur on one arm and a wolf on the other. They shakily got out of her grip before she stepped forward. Her red 'hair' reflected the moonlight.
"Wait a minute… it can't be…" "Princess Acorn?"
"I'm only gonna ask you this once, Simon…" She reached her arm in front of her, a blade extending out. "Where is she… Where's Amy?"
The two she arrived with stood on each side of her, intent on capturing him.
"I said I wouldn't ask again, Simon." Sally's blade hummed louder.
Simian observed his situation. He was injured, dealing with several cracked or broken ribs. Whatever Rose had done to Lightning, he hadn't awoken from yet. His other comrades were back in the clearing, either sticking out of the ground like bizarre plants or dealing with a shattered tibia. His leader had sped off to god knows where to beat up a young girl that made fun of him.
Meanwhile, he was faced with three new threats, two of which he didn't recognize. The lemur on the left had a large tail, that seemed to grow and extend, even balling up into a 'fist'. In her eyes he saw much of the adventurous air that Sonic and his friends had. The wolf had a more dour demeanor, and held herself much like he did; she was a mercenary, no doubt. Her weapon changed shape, though it was a firearm, all the same. Finally, there was the one he recognized: Princess Sally Acorn, roboticized and- knowing Eggman- armed to the teeth. And yet, she seemed to have her wits about her again.
Hmm… not the worst situation he'd been in. "I can't say that I would know, Acorn. Not that I would tell you if I did. We do have a job to do, after all."
"So you are here to kill Amy. Why? Who hired you to do such a thing?!"
"Client confidentiality, Princess."
Sally's metallic eyes narrowed as she brought out her other arm blade. "You will tell me, or I'll-"
"Or what?" Simian smirked. "Don't tell me that the leader of the Freedom Fighters has lost her sense of composure. You certainly wouldn't have implied death back when you were flesh and blood. I'd assumed you were free from the Doctor's control… but perhaps he still holds you in chains, even now."
Sally growled, taking a step forward.
SALLY…
She stopped as Nicole's voice filled her mind, and her image appeared in her optics.
DON'T LET HIS WORDS GET TO YOU. YOU'RE FREE… AND WE WILL SAVE AMY. WE JUST NEED TO DO THIS RIGHT.
Her soothing voice filled Sally's ears, calming and assuring her. He lowered her arms, remembering exactly who she was. "You may be right, Simon. What he's done will haunt me forever, even if I regain my flesh and blood. But I will never stop being Sally Acorn." She steadied herself. "Regardless, even if you aren't willing to talk, you and the rest of the Destructix are coming with us."
Simian scoffed. "You've caught us at a bad time, I'll grant you. To most, it would seem smart to go quietly." He knelt down, being wary not to arouse suspicion as he enacted his strategy. "But know this... just as you are Sally Acorn, I am Sgt. Simian. The weapon forged by my clan's cowardice and Eggman's arrogance, sharpened by Mongul's vision, and preserved by my comrades. Loathed as I am at the pun, it makes it no less true- above all else, this weapon has mastered one thing... guerilla warfare."
Without warning, Simian threw a rock straight at Whisper. Whether she shot at it or blocked (of which she chose the latter) did not matter, as it gave him time to throw his true weapon- one of the grenades from his sash.
Sally's attention had been drawn for only a split second, but when she turned to retaliate, her optics lit up. The seconds slowed as the words appeared before her.
INCENDIARY EXPLOSIVE
RANGE: 20 METERS
ALLIES AT GREAT RISK
With little time to lose, Sally grabbed her two friends and dove away, her move boosted slightly as she flared her rockets. The explosive went off, the lemur and wolf just barely escaping the blast radius. She got to her feet quickly, witnessing the now raging bonfire. Simian had disappeared from sight.
"Dang it, he's getting away!" Tangle shouted, her tail stretching for a branch.
"Wait, Tangle!" Sally intercepted, as yet more warnings lit up her visor.
Before she could even begin to read them, more explosions rang from further into the forest, fiery infernos raging from the blasts.
"That monster... Whisper gripped her weapon tightly. "He is causing a wild fire!"
"Agh, that rat! He knows we can't leave this thing to burn!" Tangle stomped her foot. "Guerilla tactics, my foot! More like chicken tactics!"
"Focus!" Sally spoke up. "We need to contain this fire!"
"WE ARE JUST BARELY LUCKY!" Nicole resounded from Sally's body. "THERE IS A STORM MOVING IN. WE JUST NEED TO KEEP IT FROM SPREADING FOR 30 MINUTES!"
"Okay... Tangle, use your tail to excavate any dirt you can. Bury this thing. Whisper, you'll need to multi-task. Get some of your wisps to save any creatures and danger, and get the rest to snuff out this fire. I'm going to cut down any trees already burning and get them away from the rest. Better to lose some trees than all of them." They nodded and ran off. Sally looked into the darkness of the night. "Hang on, Amy. just a bit longer..."
Amy felt the wind knocked out of her as she was thrown straight into a tree. As she struggled to breath, Scourge smashed right into her side with a spin dash, sending her flying further. The onslaught continued as a swift kick was delivered to her mouth, followed by a punch to her gut, and another kick to her chest. She strained to get off the ground, made even harder when a foot crashed down onto her back. She collapsed back onto the ground, wincing and crying out as Scourge dug his heel into her spine. "Not so mouthy now, are ya?! Ain't got some clever retort now that you're eating dirt, huh?!"
He continued, picking her up by the scruff of her collar, turning her around and grabbing her by the neck. Thunder echoed in the distance as lightning lit up his face for Amy to see, nothing but bloodlust filling them. "Let's get one thing straight, Pinky. Nobody talks to me like that. I beat the shit out of both Sonic and Shadow at the same time; you think I'm gonna let a pissy little twat like you act like she's better than me?!"
He was interrupted by a hammer head smashing into his snout. Amy had found an opportunity to summon it while Scourge was talking, its reemergence into existence forcing the green hedgehog's face to make room. Unfortunately, Amy wasn't fast enough to capitalize- Scourge disappeared from sight when she tried to swing at him.
She was rewarded with a knee to her exposed side, before Scourge used a homing attack right into her face. Then her shoulder. Then her stomach. Her arm. Her leg. Her back. Scourge had unleashed a volley of homing attacks from all sides, barraging the poor girl relentlessly. When he finished, Amy lurched forward, barely catching herself with her hammer. Scourge stopped a few feet away, glaring daggers. "DO YOU GET IT YET?! I'M THE MOST POWERFUL FUCKING THING ON THIS PUNY PLANET! I'm set to rule this rock and you don't even know it! If I want you to kneel, you'll kneel. If I want you to kill your best friend, you say 'how slowly?'. If I want you to die, then you pray to me that you'll end up as something more damn useful to me in your next life! NONE OF YOU FUCKING WEAKLINGS ARE FIT TO GIVE ME SHIT ABOUT ANYTHING! I'M THE KING, AND YOU'LL ALL HAIL THE KING, BABY!"
Amy grinned. "You trying to convince me... or yourself?"
Scourge was downright furious. "RRRRRAAAAGH! I'M GONNA TEAR YOU TO SHREDS!" Just as he sped towards her, Amy swung down her hammer. Scourge dodged it, sliding to the side... but hitting him wasn't Amy's intention. Making sure that her body lifted off the ground, supported by her hammer, her blow sent a shockwave through the ground. Scourge was unprepared as he shot upward. While he flipped around in the air, Amy planted her feet back into the ground, swinging her hammer around, spinning around once... before it slammed into Scourge, sending him straight into a cliffside. Amy paused to catch her breath. She was already as wounded as before. Broken ribs, felt like... her other eye was swelling now... her arm and leg felt weak, likely cracked... and she was bleeding from her mouth. The pain was unbearable... but she had to keep going.
Sadly, her attack hadn't been near enough. Scourge clutched the edges of his crater, pulling himself out. He'd barely gotten hurt. Amy knew she might have a chance to heal herself... but she couldn't use too much more energy. She had to save it for later...
Scourge's mind had gone full tilt at this point. He couldn't stand this pink little nuisance any longer. He held the ground, revving up his feet behind him. "JUST DIE ALREADY!" Rocketing forward, he slammed his fist into Amy's face. She was flung backwards into a boulder. But Scourge wasn't done- immediately, Scourge smashed into her with a ferocious spindash, sandwiching her between a spinning set of spines and a hard place.
Amy could no longer suppress it. "AAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!" She screamed out in agony as Scourge bombarded into her body, not letting up even as the rock cracked behind her. Soon, the stone could take no more, and it split straight in half, Scourge smashing Amy straight through it. As she fell into the ground, Scourge unrolled. Blood trailed down from her forehead and mouth, her dress even more torn than before.
The sight was apparently enough to satiate Scourge's bloodlust- when he witnessed it, his crazed visage morphed into a psychopathic grin. "Hehehehehehehe... Hahahahahahaha! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Well, look at her now! Miss Former Commander of the Recyclers! Beaten and bloodied, wishing for death! Oh man, if I had a camera, I'd so take a photo. I'd show all your little followers. They'd get a kick out of it! Well, I would anyway. They'd probably be upset. But I got something better in mind..." He stepped closer. She coughed up blood, splattering it onto her own dress. "Aw, man! 'Bring me my red shirt', and all that corny crap, right? Hey, don't get your panties twisted, twat. You were right! Sonic's gonna get mad at your death after all! Cause when he sees how I mutilate you... well, it'd get him upset no matter how much he hates you, eh?" He picked her up by the front of the collar.
"S...Sonic?" She whimpered, opening her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. Cry out for little boy blue. Pretty poor choice of final words, honestly..."
"Y-Y-You're... here..."
"Huh?!" Scourge whirled around, more scared than he would have ever admitted at the thought of his other being here. But he found nothing. "Oh, ha ha. Real funny, Pinky. Trust me, that last little petty potshot won't be worth it."
"I was... I was so... scared..." She stared at him... dreamily?
"Uh... Pinky." He looked around him again, before noticing the dazed looked in her eye. "Oh no... are you hallucinating?! Damn it, I went too hard! what the hell is the fun in killing somebody if they don't know it's you?"
"M-My... hero..." She puckered her lips, much to Scourge's dismay.
"Ah great..." He looked off to the side. "Maybe I should wait until she snaps out of it..." His eye forcefully blinked as a glare hit it. "Wha-"
A pink glow emanated from Amy's lips, much to Scourge's bewilderment. Distracted by his own confusion, he was unprepared when a small, glowing pink heart shot from her mouth, straight into his cheek... and even less prepared when the pink light exploded from that heart, wrapping around him rapidly. "What the-?!" In only a second, it had him in its grasp. He couldn't so much as lift a finger, much less keep Amy from pulling herself out of his grasp.
Though she struggled to stand, she mustered the strength, her head lifting to show Scourge her eyes. Determined, focused and full of pure will power.
[Stone Ocean Unreleased OST-String]
"I call that... my 'Amy Flash'. Been inspired to make it... ever since we met Shadow. Doesn't pause time, but it... holds people in place. Don't know what that pink energy is... but I've had it... ever since I had the hammer... and I can mold it into virtually anything. So what the hell? Might be magic..." She summoned her hammer once more, pulling together the strength she had left. "Takes a lot of energy... needed you to sit still... long enough. Not hard... you talk, and talk and talk." She lifted her weapon, and spun her body around, the same pink energy building around her hammer. Once... twice... then after the third... she swung her Piko Piko right at him, slamming her foot down into the ground. "Thankfully now... I CAN SHUT YOU UP!"
[0:47]
As the energy left the hammer, colliding with Scourge, it pulled him up... swirling into a massive pink tornado.
"W-WHAT THE FUCK?!" Scourge spoke in disbelief. Unable to move, he was forced to endure the fearsome winds, that felt like they wanted to tear the very skin from his body. But it didn't end there. boulders and trees and all sorts of forest debris were pulled from their places as the tornado roared, each foreign object smashing into Scourge, cutting him, bludgeoning him. All the while, the vortex sucked the very air from his lungs, leaving him gasping for air.
Just before he could lose consciousness, the winds died down as fast as they came. He even felt his body slowly being able to move... but it was too little too late. He caught a figure jumping high into the air: Amy had leapt into the sky, before curling into a homing attack herself. She shot towards Scourge at a breakneck pace, her hammer jutting out of her curled form all the way. Her hammer collided with his face, and Amy let out a scream from her very soul.
"HRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!"
Scourge crashed into the ground below him like a meteor, the dust cloud dwarfing even Amy's weights from earlier. The ground itself upheaved at his impact as Amy fell back to earth, her strength gone. Though she landed on her feet for a split second, she immediately collapsed forward, completely spent. All she had was one thing left to say. "Gotcha, asshole."
That confidence never left her...
...Even as Scourge's hand shot out of the ground, grabbing onto the edge. Scourge crawled out of the hole that was made for him. His right eye was leaking blood, forced shut. Gashes covered his body. He had a limp. Yet all he felt was rage.
He picked up a sharpened stick, dragging himself over to Amy. The smirk never left her face, no matter how close he got. "Are... you done?!"
"Yep... I'm... done..."
"Good... cause I'm gonna carve out a good time... for every second of that..."
"Well, there is... one last thing..."
"Oh, really?" He growled.
"When I mastered... cartomancy... I gained... this neat trick... I can sense people... and let's just say... I may be done... but he just started."
Scourge's eyes widened... before a blue blur shot out in front of him, delivering a swift kick to the face. The green hedgehog was sent sprawling, his temporary weapon knocked out his hand, as Sonic the Hedgehog took center stage.
Scourge spat out blood as he found his counterpart staring him down. A confident grin, the same one Amy had, etched on his face. Rain began to fall as the storm clouds finally arrived, the downpour becoming intense rather quickly.
"You."
"With a capital Y." He snarked.
"Oh, I'm gonna enjoy this." He stood up, not smart enough to acknowledge his wounded body. Or too blinded by his own pride, perhaps.
"SCOURGE!" The king baby- sorry- king, baby, peered to his side. Simian was carrying the other fearsome four in his arms, while Fiona sat on his shoulders. She had a makeshift splint made out of branches on her leg. "The mission is a bust! We are leaving!"
"You leave! I got em right where I want em!"
"Scourge, I swear to all that is sane, I will knock you out if I have to!" Scourge glared at her, which she returned in kind.
"Rrrrrrr- FINE!" He turned to Sonic, hatred in his eyes. He limped forward, till he was face to face with him. He knew Sonic wouldn't risk a fight while Amy was down. He glanced down at the girl, who looked up at him defiantly, before he returned his attention to the Blur. "Remember this- keep your bitch on a short leash. Cause the next time I see that cunt, I'm gonna parade her mutilate head on a pike around every single one of her club's bases... so that everyone knows not to cross King Scourge."
Sonic frowned for a moment, clearly... 'unhappy' with his choice of words. His eyes went from playful to serious... until the same grin as before returned. "I'm not worried." Scourge scowled. "She obviously kicked you and your posse's behinds tonight. She'll do it again. But I'll have her back, regardless."
Disgruntled by the response, Scourge only scoffed, walking into the forest, their forms melding into the shadows.
The grin left Sonic's face as he quickly knelt down to Amy's body. Very carefully, he moved her flat onto her back. She winced a couple times, but seemed okay otherwise. "Not that... I'm not glad to see you... but... how...?"
"I go where the wind takes me. Cause it always takes me where I need to be."
"Heh... sorry I didn't save any for you.'
"You kidding? I saw all of em. You gotta tell me all about it. Later, though..." He sat down next to her. "I need to figure out how to get you some medical help. I know you'd like if I picked you up, but..."
"Not... a good idea right now." She agreed. "Phooey."
"I'd usually run and get a doctor... but I don't want to leave you here. Specially not with the chance of those jerks coming back. And I don't know how bad you're hurting." He had to think on how to approach this...
"Oh my god, Amy!" Sonic was brought out of his thoughts by a familiar voice. Tangle leapt into the area, with Sally not far behind, carrying Whisper. The three landed next to the hedgehogs, all of them shocked and worried.
"Yo! You guys couldn't have come at a better time! Can we get a call for a medic?"
"I'm on it!" Tangle said, urgently dialing for Jewel. "Jewel! The bad guys are gone, but Amy's seriously hurt! You got any doctors with those reinforcements?"
"I had a medical team assigned to them just in case! The entire squad is thirty seconds out! They'll get Amy stabilized and to a hospital, pronto!"
"My god..." Whisper muttered, looking at the damage. "What happened here?"
"Don't know. Amy practically did all the work. All I did was come in right at the end and look pretty."
"Aw... you're sweet... but... come on... you saved me..." She tilted her head slightly. "As did... all of you."
Sally knelt down beside the hogs. "I can't see it that way. How could I let this happen to you?"
Sonic interjected. "Hey, none of that. No one could've anticipated those guys."
"I could've. They're from my world. I should've known-"
"You're not responsible for anyone from your world or ours. They're the ones who decided to attack a sweet girl like Amy."
"All this... sweet talk... all it took... was-" She coughed up more blood, scaring the robo-munk and blue blur. "Well... this."
Sonic looked at her in concern. "We can banter later. Save your strength. Nicole, can you give us a medical report?"
"IT'S BAD. BROKEN BONES EVERYWHERE, HER ENTIRE RIBCAGE IS SHATTERED, MANY TORN MUSCLES, AND DEEP WOUNDS ALL OVER. THANKFULLY, WITH MEDICAL ATTENTION SO CLOSE BY, SHE CAN MAKE A RECOVERY. BUT IT'LL LIKELY TAKE WEEKS, MAYBE MONTHS."
"See that? I couldn't pick her up in a state like that. If y'all hadn't come when you did, who knows how long she could've gone without help." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "You did your part." He gave her a thankful smile- she returned it in kind.
He laid down, right next to Amy. "The medics should be here any minute, Ames. Get some rest."
"S'a little hard... everything hurts."
"Don't worry. I'll be right here next to you until they arrive."
Sally watched as Amy gave him a weak smile, her eyes fluttering shut. Sonic's eyes soon closed, too. She felt relieved that Amy would be okay. But even after what Sonic said, her fears remained. Amy had come so close to dying. Even now, she'd be bedridden for weeks. She had to do better. She'd already lost so much... she couldn't handle losing anymore.
Sally walked through the hallways of the hospital, the rabble of the crowd outside being heard even on the higher floors (much to the chagrin of the doctors). Sally was more than a little overwhelmed at the turnout. She knew Amy had been a popular Commander. As the Restoration's founder, she'd set the organization's core principles and rules. Reconstruction, relief efforts, public defense… despite having been in the position for only a few months, the work she had done set the bar.
The Zombot crisis was technically her only hiccup. Even Amy had considered it a failure on her part for varying reasons-lack of experience, failed spot checks, losing rescue parties… but Sally believed that was a losing battle, regardless of who was in charge. In the fave of a highly aggressive virus that far surpassed any and all Roboticizers ever made… Amy made the best decisions she could. Honestly, it was just a string of terrible luck, things jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. She prayed that Eggman left that idea dead in the water. It no wonder that she had decided to step down after such an exhausting nightmare.
Even though she perceived it as a failure, Amy remained popular, regardless who stayed with the organization and who left. From what she heard, Amy still offered her help when she crossed paths with Restoration forces. According to the social media groups Restoration members used, she was kind yet stern, and very down to earth. Shockingly, people seemed to find it easier to approach her than Sonic, as she felt 'relatable', compared to Sonic's larger than life aura.
So, she figured she shouldn't have been surprised when so many people had swarmed the medical center. Jewel had to hand pick individuals who could keep professional attitudes as security detail.
She'd finally arrived at her room, giving a quick knock for courtesy. As she stepped inside, she found Amy in deep thought, using a technique she'd also been surprised by: Her patented 'Rosé Restore' ("Amy Heal just sounded boring!" She said) sparkled around her, healing her much quicker. According to her, Sonic and Shadow had created healing techniques during the Emerl incident, and everyone ended up playing follow the leader with their own abilities.
"Don't push yourself, Amy." She said quietly. "Nothing wrong with going the long way around."
"Maybe." The lights died down as she ceased. "But I fell out of using it, along with a few others powers, so it's good to get back into practicing them. Besides, the Doctor says that, so long as I don't overexert myself, it should be fine to use it. At this point, I should be on my feet in a quarter of the time!"
"Let's hope so. I don't think I…" She stopped herself.
"Don't think you what?"
"No, it's nothing."
"Sally…" Amy took her hand. "You can't bury your emotions. You can tell me…"
"It's not that, it just… feels inappropriate when you suffered from the attack itself, and-"
"If I can have a sense of humor about my own near death experience, I can handle someone dealing with very understandable emotions about it." She patted the side of her bed, urging her to sit. "Sonic tried to look stoic about it, too. I have to coax out his troubles every now and then because he thinks he shouldn't look like anything but a hero. It's just not healthy."
Sally was hesitant. But Amy looked at her, her gaze filled with warmth and care, comforting her. Her reluctance melted away and she sat down. "I… when I saw you, last night… I was so scared. That I was too late. That I could've done more. That it was my fault." She winced. "Back in the old world… it wasn't hard to feel like we could take on the world. We lost people, and it hurt. But it felt like so long as our little ragtag group pushed through, we could rise to meet any challenge. But then…" She paused, grimacing at the memory.
Amy brought her other hand over, clasping Sally's in both of hers, letting her know that she was safe. The Princess continued.
"Looking back, losing Rotor was probably an early omen. Forced to retire from a simple back injury. But I think we moved past it because he gained a position on the council. He was still fighting, just in his own way." She winced. "But then I got roboticized. And through my eyes and Nicole's stories, things just kept getting worse. Nicole was exiled. Antoine was put into a coma. Bunnie left us. Little by little, we were torn apart at the seams, and all I could do was watch and listen. Then the worst blow came… and everything I knew was gone." Tears started to form in her visor. "I've never felt so vulnerable. I can't bear the thought of losing what little I have left. You may not be who I remember… but you're my friend, no matter what. I can't lose you, I-I-I…"
Amy let her cry, caressing her head all the while. They stayed like that for some time, the hedgehog knowing she needed this. After a few minutes passed, Amy finally spoke up.
"I can't pretend to know what you're going through, Sally. The entirety of reality reshaped around you… even hearing it just feels so taxing. You've lost so much. The one thing I know for sure is, in the face of all of it, the people you love will help you past it. I and everyone else you've come to know will help you through the pain you've endured." Sally looked her in eyes. "Even if we can't bring back what he took, we'll be by your side to help you save what you have now and help you build it up. Together, we can show the world what we can do. Okay?"
She wiped a tear from her optics. "…Okay." She noticed the oil staining Amy's poor bed. "Do you mind if we leave it at that for now?"
"Of course. Just know that I'm here when you need an ear."
"I… have been meaning to ask how you fought off the Destructix."
"Oh boy. Get strapped in, cause this was a total farce. So, I'm walking home from the grocery store, right? When all the sudden, in my way come these band of weirdos, and some green hedgehog who thinks he's hot stuff. And he's wearing the dumbest set of shades and lamest jacket I've ever seen. Total lack of fashion sense…"
"Forgive me for not understanding, sir. But... why are you still paying the Destructix?" The employee asked.
"I never expected them to kill Miss Rose. I sent them to test her. Unlike the Mobians of the previous world, even the Princess, I could see the potential she had gained. But I wanted to know what her limits were precisely. Adding onto that, it was a wake up call for the Destructix. And well… it is always entertaining to watch Scourge get his."
"I see."
"Send them whatever they need to pay their medical finances on top of what was initially offered. I need them in top form for their next job." He sent the worker out of the room, observing the healing Amy with his psychic prowess. "You exceeded my expectations, Miss Rose. I see your abilities only growing more powerful in the future... I am curious as to what this 'pink energy' of yours truly is. But your combat abilities only scratch the surface of your potential... In spite of being a commanding figure of both the Resistance and the Restoration for only a short time, the loyalty and admiration you have garnered is unparalleled. Sonic is seen as a hero, but many cannot relate to his nomadic nature and heroic is still a young boy, as intelligent as he is. And Knuckles, for all his determination, is often too gullible and hard headed. Perhaps you do not see yourself furthering a career in heading a militant force... but your potential as an icon can work in other areas..." He got up from his chair, strolling towards his balcony. "All of them to my advantage. The Princess may try to warn you of me... but the rules have changed, dear Acorn. For both of us. And even with your knowledge, I am confident that I will be able to use Amy to achieve everything I need... Sonic be damned."
He fixed his suit as he peered out over Sunset City. His tusks reflecting the sun, glowing like alabaster. "If Mammoth Mogul cannot have the previous world... then he will have this one."
I edited it only slightly, there was a line or two I dislike, looking back. That's it for now. Expect more, soon!
Now, just to be clear, if they had gone in fully serious, Amy would probably be dead. But they made several mistakes and didn't take her seriously till it was too late.