Cold Storage
Silver Sonic and Omega arrived at dawn. A cold mist covered the grounds of Tails' workshop as they landed silently outside his front door. Tails was waiting for them. He had spotted them through his visor while they were still several miles away. Even Tails was surprised by how detailed Emerl's retinal scans were. His scanners pierced straight through the fog, and the x-ray feature even allowed him to see the inner components of Silver Sonic and Omega.
Tails' new armor required some explanation. "I wasn't able to save Emerl, but I was able to make this Power Suit."
Both machines seemed impressed. "Emerl had the potential to be the most powerful of all of our master's creations, yet he was held back by defective code. I hope you will not suffer the same weakness," Silver Sonic told Tails. "With the energy of five Chaos Emeralds, you may be the most powerful creature on the planet right now. Can you handle that responsibility?"
"I don't care about that," Tails deflected. "As long as I can stop GUN from hurting anyone else. That's all that matters."
"Then we have the same goal. I care not for the terror GUN unleashes on the human public, but it is clear to me that my kind will never know peace while GUN remains in power. But I will give you this warning, great power always invites challenge. You have risen the scale, and once your power has been revealed, others will stop at nothing to match you."
Tails had no answer to this. Instead, he turned back to his workshop and gazed up at the upper window. He could see Cream's frame behind the glass. Tails raised his hand and gave her a feeble wave. Cream turned aside and left the window.
"Are we ready then?" Tails asked.
Silver Sonic and Omega both took to the sky. Each of them was wearing a jetpack that allowed them to soar swiftly through the air. However, Tails completely eclipsed him. His power boosters rocketed him into the air, the speed of his ascent caused the sound barrier to shatter. It took Tails a few seconds to slow himself down and match pace with Omega and Silver. Even just soaring along, Tails' suit hummed with a kinetic energy that was exhilarating. The amount of power at his fingertips was astonishing.
Yet, for Tails the experience was muddled. He gave his workshop a final look back. Cream had not been pleased at all when Tails had told her that she would not be going with them. The flight to the arctic alone would be difficult enough for her, but he did not want to bring Cream and Cheese into the middle of a battle. Cream had protested, arguing that she owed it to Emerl to try and bring peace back to the earth. In the end, Tails had to put his foot down. Cream and Cheese were both brave, and tough in a pinch, but they were not soldiers. The expression of hurt on Cream's face burned inside Tails' mind. She had promised to return home to the relative safety of her family.
It took less than an hour for the trio to reach the open water. A glistening gray sea stretched out in front of them for countless miles. It felt strange to fly over the open ocean without the Tornado. The thought of plummeting into the endless depths of the sea would have frightened him if Tails wasn't confident that his Power Suit couldn't handle deep water.
Tails passed the time by using his scanners to search the hidden depths of the water. He watched the passing of large schools of fish, along with the slow movement of huge whales. Eventually, Tails got bored enough to consider talking with his comrades.He turned to his right, but saw only the stoic, expressionless visages of two machines. Tails sighed and wished for the millionth time that Sonic was here. With Sonic, it didn't matter where they were going or what kind of danger they faced, Sonic always found a way to make things exciting and fun.
Several slow hours passed. The sun shone brightly above them for a brief spell before being covered by dense clouds. As they went further north, the temperature started to dip. Tails could see the falling temperature through his heads up display which marked the current temperature, his current speed, the reserves of his power banks, and any nearby heat signatures.
No one had spoken since the flight began, so Tails was surprised when Silver suddenly broke the long silence. "We are getting close. The signal is strong, but it is not a definitive location."
They had reached the far northern waters. Here the waves were an icy blue and the uninterrupted stretch of waves was broken up by icebergs. Whether it was day or night no longer made much difference. The sun was completely veiled by walls of cloud so thick that all light seemed to fade. Tails toggled to night vision, and once again was pleasantly impressed by the design of Emerl's scanners. Despite the darkness, Tails had almost uninterrupted vision over the surrounding area.
Silver pointed below and the trio landed at the coast of a huge snowy island. They stood on the outcrop of a large plateau and looked down at a valley of snowdrifts and ice. "The signal is coming from straight ahead. The base must be hidden somewhere."
They continued on foot, each searching intently for a sign of some kind of hidden entrance. It was difficult for Tails to believe that humans would choose to set up a base in such an inhospitable environment. A quick check on his HUD told Tails that the temperature was currently hovering at negative sixty degrees celsius.
Their search seemed to be in vain. Tails saw nothing but uninterrupted hills of snow and glaciers. It wasn't until Tails stepped to the very edge of the ravine did he even see the sudden drop. His foot slipped, but Tails managed to jump back before falling. He peered over the edge and his mouth dropped. Impossible to see, until one was right at the mouth, a huge ravine plummeted down into a massive basin enclosed by walls of ice. The basin ran almost the entire length of the icy island, but was kept safe from snow and wind by the walls of ice. A huge system of buildings and walkways was built into the basin, appearing like the root systems of some enormous tree.
Tails gave the signal and Silver Sonic and Omega rushed to his position. "Impressive," Silver Sonic said. "Perhaps my maker was not as unique among humans as he claimed." Silver Sonic checked his scanners and confirmed that the signal was coming from the subterranean base.
"We should try to avoid detection for as long as we can," Tails advised. Following his lead, the trio floated softly down into the ravine. The sheer complexity of the base would have made navigating it impossible if not for the robust capacity of Emerl's scanners. Tails used the information to formulate his best guest as to where the primary security houses were. The trio landed on an open guardrail which ran the length between two neon white buildings.
"I think the main security tower is this way," Tails whispered as he indicated the building to their right. "If we can shut it down, hopefully we will have enough time to break Metal out and get out of here."
They all crouched down and approached the sealed door. A camera was set over the keypad, so as soon as they were in range Tails raised his hand. He fired a light ion pulse with just enough force to turn the camera so that it was covered by the wall. Tails went over to the keypad and studied its design. To his surprise, the keypad did not seem to be connected to a larger computer terminal. In fact, it seemed the locking mechanism was an isolated purely mechanical structure. "I can't hack it," Tails admitted. "But if I'm reading this right, the door is connected to a larger security system so we should be able to break it down without raising the alarm."
Omega shouldered his way forward. He used his dagger-like fingers to delve into the steel door. With a thunderous heave, the door was ripped off its hinges. Tails exhaled as the night remained quiet. The open door led them into a hallway lit with faint blue LEDs. Tails led the way forward, using his scanners to see through the walls. There was a stairway beyond the door to their right which wound up to a room where Tails detected five heat signatures. Tails whispered this information to the others, and they took the stairs as quietly as they could.
They emerged into a dimly lit security room. Five guards were aimlessly monitoring dozens of live camera feeds. Two were ignoring the cameras all together and were instead playing a game of cards. "No killing," Tails whispered.
The sound made the guards turn, but it was already far too late. Silver Sonic sprang forward like a flash of steel. He struck the nearest two guards in the throat causing them to choke and collapse. Tails targeted the two playing cards. All it took was relatively light taps on the back of the head to send them crashing to the floor. Tails marveled at his new found strength.
"Behind you!" Silver Sonic shouted. Tails had been too busy admiring his Power Suit, to notice the sixth guard. He wore no uniform as he was wrapped tightly in a thick blanket. The man gave off the faintest heat signature as his skin was icy blue. He had reached one of the terminals and his hand was already pulling up a red phone. Omega's hands rearranged into the barrels of machine guns. Tails flung out his arms but Omega had already fired. The first bullet cut off the man's hand, detaching him from the phone. The second struck him in the chest just below the collarbone.
"Stop!" Tails cried. He lunged forward and caught the man as he fell to the floor. Cloudy eyes looked up at Tails as blood pooled out of the man's open mouth. He gasped faintly and then collapsed. Tails lowered the body onto the floor. "I said no killing!"
Neither Omega nor Silver Sonic had any reaction. "He was about to raise the alarm."
"We could have stopped him," Tails insisted.
"This is not a game. How many have these humans killed in their pursuit of power? Like it or not fox, this man will not be the last to die before this war is over."
Tails looked down at the man. A deep cold seemed to seize Tails, making his entire body shiver. He did not want to be here in this cold place with these cold companions. Tails wished with all his heart that he could be back beneath the warm sun, running along green hills with his best friend. However, wishing would not get him there, and daydreams would not protect the rest of the world from GUN. Tails owed it to Sonic to see this mission through, to ensure that the earth is safe from those that would want to dominate it.
Tails turned his back to the others and started investigating the computers. He was able to pull up the blueprints on the rest of the facility. To his disappointment, he found that most of the security systems were locally operated. Only the cameras could be shut down from here. Tails rerouted the systems so that the cameras would show footage from the previous day. Once that was done, Tails searched the logs for the place that they were holding Metal Sonic.
"I think I've found him," Tails said. "There is an elevator that goes down through the ice and into an underwater part of the facility."
"That doesn't give us many access points," Silver Sonic pointed out.
"No, and in the event of a security breach, the facility is primed to be flooded."
Silver Sonic and Omega exchanged looks. "We can handle a bit of water."
"Not at this temperature. If they release the valves, water is going to come rushing in at intense pressure and speed. Once the water slows down it will freeze, trapping everything down in that facility in ice before the weight becomes so intense the entire base crashes down into the ocean. We must get Metal and ourselves out of there before that happens."
Now that they knew what they were facing, the trio left the security room. Tails led the way as they went back outside and crossed another catwalk. The building which led to the elevator was guarded by drones. Tails told the others to wait while he lined up a shot. He used Emerl's scanners to target the drones as he held up his hand. Tails fired two quick repulsor beams which destroyed the drones on contact.
Feeling even more confident in his power armor, Tails gave the signal and the trio rushed into the main facility. Tails used his thermal scanners to identify guards, leading the trio towards the elevator while avoiding human contacts. Eventually, he had no choice but to confront a live guard. Tails made sure to handle this one, tactfully knocking the man out with a low density shot. Once they were at the elevator, Tails hacked the security console and they filed inside.
Tails felt a pang of dread as he activated the elevator. The entire car shuddered as it slowly started to descend. Within moments the pressure changed as the car submerged into the icy water. Tails tapped his foot anxiously as he stared at the console. At any moment, someone could notice the elevator and switch on the flood controls. Fortunately, that did not happen and the sliding doors opened.
Tails crept forward. Harsh blue light filled the narrow hallways. It was completely silent, and Tails winced everytime he took a step. Tails could not see anyone with his thermal scanners. It seemed that G.U.N did not trust anyone with the secrets of this facility. At the end of the first hallway, Tails encountered a door locked behind an old fashioned mechanized console. Without any means of hacking it, Omega was forced to once again, use his brute strength to pry open the doors.
Beyond the doors was a massive cargo hold. However, in a space that could have fit a large container vessel, was now filled with hundreds of single unit frames. Within each frame was a diamond plated replica of Metal Sonic. Tails stopped short and held his breath. His heart skipped a beat as he contemplated the sheer number. Among the metal army, a dozen had glowing pink gems inserted into a groove on the machine's forehead. The pink gems pulsed with menacing energy.
Omega and Silver Sonic stepped forward and gazed unfeelingly at the new robotic army. Tails, however, had noticed a faint red light issuing from behind a door on the far side of the room. He hurried over, careful as to not make a sound. As he went, his mind turned over. How had GUN created this army? Even with Metal Sonic on hand, Tails had never imagined that GUN's scientists had the skill to replicate him. His gut told him that there had to be something more going on.
Tails reached the red door and opened it cautiously. Inside, was a cramped laboratory filled with computers, spare parts, and various machinery. The red light was coming from a container filled with a pulsing red liquid. The real Metal Sonic floated eerily inside the liquid. His red eyes were open, but he did not move or seem to register Tails' entrance.
Tails searched the main computer for a release valve, but the system was locked behind an encryption. He set about to try and break the code just as Silver Sonic and Omega returned. "What have they done to him?" Silver Sonic hissed.
"I'm not sure. I haven't the faintest idea of what that red liquid is."
"And what about this?" Silver Sonic held out one of the pink gems.
Tails shook his head. "I don't know. It must be some kind of energy source."
"I will have Aurora analyze it after we leave." Silver Sonic walked over to Metal Sonic's case and placed his hand on the glass. "The humans claim to hate and fear us, yet they do not hesitate to use our designs to make an army of their own."
"Not all humans," Tails corrected. "GUN is obsessed with safety and control, which they believe can only be attained by holding all the power. Not all humans think this way."
"Our master did. You seem insistent that this is not the way of humanity, but I have seen no evidence to the contrary."
Tails hesitated. "I have to believe that there are good people, that there is a way for us all to coexist."
Silver Sonic's clawed fingers scratched against the glass. "Humanity will spread upon this planet until their corruption has destroyed it. My master understood this. He knew that for his species to survive, this world must be changed, to become as unnatural as humans are. Only under the dominion of a single master could humanity ever be forced into peace. It is their nature, why resist the truth? One day, you will have to choose whose side you are on."
"There is another way," Tails insisted. "We can make a better world, one that everyone can share in. Technology doesn't have to be the end of nature. Eggman was too short sided, too unwilling to believe that maybe there were things that his genius couldn't understand."
"You risk much on faith. Humanity has already taken the first steps. You would be wise to rally your kind together, to prepare them for an inevitable war. The powers that even scales are slowly being destroyed. Soon there won't be anyway to stop humanity from claiming absolute control. Your sacred places will be destroyed, your green fields leveled, the sky itself will turn black. I know this, for it is the vision my maker instilled in me upon my first creation."
Tails continued with the keyboard. He had successfully bypassed the security and was ready to release the valve. "Things won't ever be the same as they were," Tails admitted. "But that doesn't mean they have to be worse. When this is over, when GUN is defeated, there can be a better world. It might be hard to think about working with humans again after this, but I once felt the same way about you. I never thought I'd work with Eggman's cruel imitations of my best friend, but here we are. You, Omega, Metal Sonic, it's possible we could all end up enemies again some day, but I'm here to help, because I don't believe that will be the case."
Tails entered the code and the red liquid within the case started to drain. They all stood back and watched as the glass case slowly emptied. Hinges were unfasted, and there was a loud click as the locks holding the glass in place were unlocked. Omega removed the glass and Silver Sonic stepped up behind Metal Sonic and pressed something on his back.
Metal Sonic's eyes flashed. At that moment, everything went wrong. Sirens blared at such a loud volume, Tails was momentarily knocked back. Lights flashed and heavy metal doors slammed down all around them. "MOBILIZE. MOBILIZE." A robotic voice echoed out of an intercom.
"We need to go!" Tails yelled.
Omega slammed his shoulder into the metal door that had just locked them into the room. The metal bent slightly, but did not give. Tails joined in, and he and Omega managed to break down the door. The cargo hold was now alight with flashing red light. Dozens of the Diamond Metal Sonics had been activated. Those with the pulsing pink gems came charging forward. Tails fired at them with his repulsor beams, but his attacks bounced off the diamond coated armor.
"That won't work." Metal Sonic came up beside Tails. "Careful, each of these are ten times as strong as me. Our only hope is to pry off those gems."
There was no time to form a strategy. Three Diamond Sonic's attacked Metal Sonic, while four chased after Tails. Tails exploded into the sky, hoping to get some distance. The Diamond Sonic's pursued him at lighting speed. Tails only got glimpses of pink as he was swiftly surrounded. Good thing I brought these. The entire cargo hold flashed with white light as Tails tapped into the power of the Chaos Emeralds. He felt his power suit vibrate with intensity, making his teeth rattle in his skull. For a moment, Tails thought the surge of power would be too much and his suit would break, but the power stabilized with a satisfying hum.
The Diamond Sonic's exchanged a look of concern. Tails fired and his repulsor beam was so intense the kickback knocked him backward. A bolt of white light struck the nearest Diamond Sonic and its torso exploded. "All right!" Giddy at his own strength, Tails vanished in a blur of rapid motion. The Diamond Sonic's could not track his movements as he sped around them. One by one, he attacked, crushing their diamond armor with Chaos powered impacts.
His victory gave Tails a chance to survey the rest of the battlefield. Metal had managed to pry a gem off one of his foes, but the other two were beating him down. Silver Sonic and Omega were locked into vicious one on one fights. Tails went to help, but three more Diamond Sonic's flanked him. "More for the trash heap," Tails quipped, surprised at his own euphoria for battle.
His smile faded when he saw water burst out of a nearby pipe. Tails had forgotten all about the flooding procedure. Water, fire, energy beams, everything mixed together in a disorienting haze of combat. Tails felt time slow down, as the severity of his need seemed to draw out more power from his suit. He fought back the Diamond Sonic's as he pulled the other mechas to him. With tons of icy water pouring down on top of them, Tails created a cocoon of energy.
Everything went black, as the underwater facility collapsed all around them. Tails closed his eyes and focused all his effort on maintaining the barrier. The ground slipped away and the cocoon sank into the open ocean. Tails felt dizzy, but he drew out even more of his suit's power. Slowly, the cocoon started to rise, breaking out of the water and surging up the now destroyed elevator shaft.
As soon as they were back on land, Tails dropped the barrier. He felt light headed as he dropped to one knee. A quick check on his HUD told him his suit's energy had dropped to one percent. Silver Sonic picked up Tails and the four of them raced forward. Alarms were still blaring, however the human security and simple GUN drones were not match for the mechas. Tails allowed himself to be dragged, it seemed that the Chaos Emeralds had drawn from Tails' own energy when making the barrier. He felt exhausted to the point of sickness.
Just before they could leave the facility, they heard a loud rumble. Tails turned back and let out a cry of fear. Diamond Sonic's were crawling out of the destroyed elevator shaft. Like ant's erupting from a hole, they crawled over one another in a mass of metallic bodies. Omega seized Tails around the middle and hoisted him up. "Go!" Metal ordered, and the mechas started to retreat at full speed.
Tails clenched his teeth as the sound of churning metal grew louder behind them. Somehow they made it to the exit. The doors slid open, leading them onto another catwalk. As soon as they were outside, they were assaulted with gunfire. GUN drones swarmed the trench, while human gunman fired at them from the roofs of the other facilities. Omega held up his arms, using his imposing frame as a shield.
It was now or never. Tails tried to stand, but his legs wobbled. "We have to get out of here," He managed.
"No, not yet." Metal Sonic countered. "We can't let those copies escape. We must destroy this facility while we have the chance."
"There's no time," Tails breathed.
"You all go ahead," Silver Sonic drew out the pink gem he had been holding. "I'll use this to supercharge my self-destruct sequence. The blast will bring this entire glacier down on top of them."
Tails tried to protest, but the effort made him swoon. His eyes fluttered and he watched the exchange between Metal and Silver Sonic as if looking from out of a tube. They said something to one another that Tails did not hear. Silver Sonic gave his jetpack to Metal and turned aside.
"Omega, cover our escape," Metal ordered.
"Rodger." Omega's hands spun into machine guns and he fired a volley, destroying most of the GUN drones. The humans took cover which gave them a chance to take to soar into the air. Omega carried Tails who watched feebly as Silver Sonic remained on the walkway. Just as they had flown above the top of the trench, the facility broke open. Hundreds of Diamond Sonic's poured onto the catwalks, swarming around Silver Sonic. There was a flash of brilliant pink light that seemed to swallow all sound.
When sound returned it did so with a vengeance. There was a deep roar as the icy ground broke. Thousands of pounds of ice started to slide towards the edge of the trench, collapsing inward. Tails watched in awe, as the entire island of ice and snow seemed to collapse into itself like a dying star.
Once they were safely out of range, Omega and Metal stopped.They turned back to watch the smoke rise, and instantly freeze above the icy waves. Tails knew that they were watching for signs of activity, to see whether or not Silver Sonic's sacrifice had been in vain. Remembering his scanners, Tails scanned the area. "I'm not picking anything up," Tails said at last. "I think it worked." He turned cautiously towards Metal Sonic. "What happens now?"
Metal Sonic closed his fist. His red eyes flared with rage. "I return home. It is clear to me now that there will be no peace. If humans want a war then that is what I will give them. What about you?"
"Something isn't right. Those pink gems, I don't think those came from GUN. Someone else is providing them, and I wouldn't be surprised if that other party provided the designs for the Sonic copies as well. But…as long as GUN has access to the Eclipse Canon then they are the main threat. I…I'll go with you."