Commission for TheMaskedTime on DeviantArt. I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or The Mask.
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Floating high above the trees, Tails tried to keep his energy up. What had started as a long day had only gotten longer.
A bit of detective work had led him to conclude that Amy had made her way to the Final Egg tower before she somehow lost possession of the mask - and given her luck, was almost certainly in Eggman's clutches. The problem now was finding Sonic, or whatever the mask had made out of him. He was the only one who could rescue Amy and save the day. Based on the fifteen or so seconds of actual interaction, his attitude was anything but that of a hero.
So Tails continued on, in a futile search for his new green friend. Too bad his plane was low on fuel, he would have to go it alone. If only he had an actual tornado to travel with - alas, that was a luxury only afforded to whoever the mask possessed at the moment.
Flying above a lonely beach, his eyes tried to focus on anything of interest - and by incredible luck, he found the needle in the haystack. Resting on a chair below, there was Mask Sonic, taking in the beaming sunshine. Now Tails just needed to get his attention.
"Sonic, up here! Come on, Amy's been captured and we need your help!!"
Lifting up a pair of black and red shades, Mask Sonic looked rather annoyed at this interruption to his state of bliss. It was that childish two-tailed fox dude - what a buzzkill.
"Can't you see I'm busy?!? Handle it yourself for once!!!"
Landing on the sand, Tails stomped towards his "friend", a loosely defined term at this moment. In some way, he had to get through to the hero under the green rubber face.
"Look Sonic - I know that mask gave you incredible power, now we need you to use it! You wouldn't want Amy to be hurt now, would you?"
Mask Sonic burst out laughing, eyes and tongue popping out of his green skull.
"AMY?!?!?!? You want me to rescue that little pink rascal? Oh boy, you should take that to a comedy club, that's the best joke I've ever heard!!!"
Tails scowled. "Sonic, I'm serious!!! That mask is messing up your mind! Pull it together! You're worse than me with it on, and I nearly destroyed Station Square!"
Finally stopping his howling laughter, Mask Sonic wiped the tears from his eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'll be serious for a moment. My serious answer is - sorry, I'm too busy to fight crime! I've got to work on this incredible body, don't you know! Go ask Knuckles or somebody!"
It was no use - Tails didn't know who to ask next, but he wasn't going to deal with this being called "Sonic" anymore.
"Fine!" Tails stormed off, yelling in disgust. "I'm sure Knuckles would love to be crowned the world's greatest hero!"
About to lie back down, those words somehow made it through Mask Sonic's huge green ears and into the part of his brain that was still regular old Sonic. It left an unpleasant feeling. Could he really tolerate being second best?
"Hold up, say that again?"
"I said, I'm sure Knuckles would love being crowned the world's greatest hero!"
That did it. His leather jacket and boots back on, Mask Sonic was suddenly right at Tails' side.
"Where is she? And where is Eggman?"
Tails smiled, happy his message had finally gotten through. "I believe they're in the Final Egg tower, but we'll need to check it out. Are you going to help?"
Flashing a confident grin of his huge white teeth, Mask Sonic grabbed Tails' hand.
"Hold on. We'll be there in a flash."
And the twister was off again, whizzing through the forest at ludicrous speeds before it came to a halt at the tower's base.
"So, what's the plan of action?"
"You deal with Eggman, I'll try to find and rescue Amy…as soon as I catch my breath." Still queasy from the tornado ride, Tails questioned how the mask was capable of surviving these twisters - perhaps he'd get the chance to experiment sometime.
As Tails rose to his feet, the two of them were all set for action. In the blink of an eye, they were on the tower's top level, and split up to find Amy and Eggman.
Zooming his way past various small bots, Mask Sonic stopped outside a large metal door. Ear raised to its surface, he could hear a familiar rambling voice on the other side.
"Would you listen to that! I think I heard an eggy man!"
His outfit shifting into that of a karate master, Mask Sonic gave the door a great kick, sending it flying off his hinges. Spikes forming on his gloves, he stared back at a familiar foe, ready to give him the ultimate beatdown.
"Doctor Eggman…we meet again!!!"
Meanwhile…
In a different corridor, Tails had finally found Amy, locked up in an electromechanical crate and shivering cold. It took a few tries to crack the lock combination, but he was finally able to get her out. Holding him in her arms, Amy sobbed as she was finally free.
"Oh Tails, thank you!!! I thought I'd never get out! Where's Sonic? And what about the mask?"
Tails gulped. "He's off battling Eggman at the moment…and, um, he's wearing it."
"He is?!?! We need to help him, Eggman's got a new dangerous weapon! Come on, hurry!!!"
For a girl who had been alone in a cage for nearly a day, Amy still had an incredible amount of energy, and Tails was quick to follow her lead.
Back in the control center…
Eggman was surprised at the sight that burst through his door, and yet pleased that everything had gone to plan. Sure, there was the small matter of his mortal enemy with the gigantic green head that mask had granted its wearer. But he had a trump card up his sleeve, and he hoped to have an opportunity to use it.
"Indeed we do meet again, Sonic the Hedgehog. And what a joy, you've brought just what I'm looking for!"
He sneered. "I know your pathetic friends are headed this way, there's cameras on every square inch of this place. Let me present you with a choice, a decision if you will. Take off that mask, and you and your friends will be unharmed as you watch my great victory. Otherwise, you will die painfully as I rip that mask off your face!!!!"
Mask Sonic pondered this, before spinning into a soccer player's shirt and boots. "Hey Eggman, I've got a better option. Option K for KICK YOU IN THE FACE!!!!!!"
He fired the flaming ball straight at the doctor, the portly man dodging this blow as it left a deep hole in the back wall.
"So we're going to play hardball, huh? Well then, I've got a surprise for you. Enjoy your last few seconds of existence!!!"
Blindly firing his new pistol, Eggman savored how soon he was to ultimate victory, waiting for Mask Sonic to writhe in pain. Unfortunately, his target was off - zipping out of the way, Mask Sonic was ready to engage his rival again when he heard a sudden scream.
"TAILS!!!!!"
It was Amy, horrified as the green beam of energy struck the young fox and sent him out cold. Rushing to his side, she could only hear staggered breathing and a murmured heartbeat as she put an ear to his chest.
In mere milliseconds, a switch had been flipped in Mask Sonic's mind. His friend was hurt, and his arch nemesis was prepared to kill all of them if he didn't act fast. Pushing the mask's deluded thoughts away, it was time to take control. Armed with fantastic reality warping abilities, it was time to put them to use.
"Eggman…you're gonna PAY!!!!!!!!"