Taking up the Mantle

by Rinpoo

Much has changed in the past decade since the defeat of Sonic the Hedgehog and Princess Sally Acorn. Robotnik's absolute power and cruelty are left unchallenged as the war escalates to greater heights. Can the youth of Knothole change the fate handed to them, or will they fall victim to this vile, decadent world of brutal tyranny?

21. So Far Away

Authors Note. I finished this 19k chapter quicker, so I am gaining better speed in my recovery.

Initially, this was going to be a chapter that I had been waiting to write, but it sort of manifested and took on a life of its own as I had immeasurable fun with my own absurd and imaginative worldbuilding that likely doesn't make sense, but I simply don't care.

I find this all exciting and interesting and feel it was worth pushing back what I planned to next chapter.

Decent amount of action in this chapter and lots of insane shit and concepts that I have thought about for a while.

Welding. I should probably say that in writing this, I realized I knew absolutely nothing about welding… It led me down a two-hour rabbit hole of reading what is possible, what is needed, what types of gas used, techniques… Goddamn… All for like, one 4 paragraph scene, that still likely isn't 100 percent right, but whatever.

Enjoy.

Legal Trash. Sonic and everybody else are copyright SEGA/Archie comics. Except for Max, Annie, and Sonia. I created them in my rattled brain; if you like my OCs, use them and let me know. It'll be fun; we will have tea.

So Far Away

Bewilderment and blinding light flashed, and Tails felt his body slam onto a hard surface. Though lacking in sight, he could hear the roar and growl of ominous thunder echo across the land.

He lay there motionless and could feel the sweltering heat that surrounded him. After that, he could hear grunting and shuffling not too far off from him.

Tails tried to breathe in through his nose, and though clogged and caked with blood, he could make out the overwhelming scent of chemicals and exotic plant life.

As time passed, he regained his sight and as if coming out of a daze. He thrust himself up hastily despite the pain, and his head darted around in frantic panic.

Strange alien plants were far off to the left side of him. Their hue was that of a russet orange. They looked sickly as they blew in the brisk breeze.

He shifted his eyes in front and saw Seth holding his lower leg while grumbling and applying pressure. Severa seemed to have collapsed in a frightened mass and just stared at the maroon dirt between her shoes.

The rough winds blew the sand in Tails' face, and he covered it with his uninjured hand to stop the harsh sting of the grains. When he could finally look again, he could see the gigantic, red sun that took up nearly half the sky.

The thick atmosphere of the day was almost like a green mist that obscured the red supergiant from view. Awe-inspiring and wild, Tails could only stare on at the odd yet incredible sight.

With a deep gasp, it finally dawned on him that oxygen was in good supply, but as his intellect caught up with him, he began to worry about the unstable nature of this world.

The winds were harsh, and there was no telling what weather was in store for them. Beyond that, the simple fact the sun was quickly identified as a dying star brought with it a sense of deep and inevitable doom.

With his mind refocused, he rose to his feet, and while standing there, he noticed the ground as a whole. Dark-red as old blood and scattered with endless amounts of destroyed machinery.

"…"

With caution, Tails moved towards Seth and Severa, and once he was in front of them. He bent down to try and help Seth with his leg.

Quickly, Seth slapped his hand away and forced himself to his feet with an agonized grunt. "Don't bother me! I haven't the time for your pity!"

Tails rose back up and stared, then Seth pulled out a small piece of cloth from his pocket and tied it around the wound. It did little to stop the bleeding but was better than nothing.

Severa looked over at the two and just stood up, seeming to understand that sitting around this place would surely mean a terrible death.

"We can't stay here… This… I…" Tails began with a stutter but was silenced by shouting.

"Just shut the hell up, fox!" Seth roared in anger and then limped forward. "We CAN see how God damn bad this is! We don't need you telling us the obvious!"

Tails just stood there for a moment and watched Seth stagger forward. It was clear he was not going to get anywhere fast, and as the boom of thunder crackled on the alien world, he hastily ran up next to him and grabbed his arm.

"Come on, help me get some of th…." Tails tried again, but Seth jerked away.

"I don't need your goddamn help! This is all your fault in the first place! If you'd have just stayed in the slum you crawled out from, we'd all be happy!"

BAM!

The deafening roar of thunder cracked, and a blinding flash of light lit up the sky.

Tails could barely stand Seth any longer and reached the end of his tolerance. Enraged, he pointed his working finger at Seth, then began to holler. "Shut the hell up! If I'd left your ass, I'd be home, and you'd be dead, likely for the best, I'd wager!"

Seth turned his body towards Tails and limped until he stood before him. The two were at arm's length, and Seth was now cracking his knuckles.

"You can run your big mouth, you poor bastard, but can you back it up? Shall we settle this as men and decide who gets the right to shut the fuck up?"

Tails felt so overwhelmed by everything that he snapped and balled his only working hand into a fist. "If it means I get to smack that arrogant prick of a smile off your face, then shut up and start swing…."

Before Tails could even finish his sentence, Seth had swung his fist, which smashed directly into his cheek. The force of the blow was so great it sent Tails to the ground in a single hit, and Seth stood over him menacingly.

"If you have any sense, you will stay down there…."

Tails wiped his mouth where he'd been hit and was thankful it wasn't his broken nose. He glanced up at Seth, then spit at him.

"Cowardly piece of shit! You are powerful when stabbing people in the back, but not so much when confronted head-on!"

Seth glared and moved forward with the intent to continue his assault, but once he got in range, Tails mercilessly kicked his boot up and smashed it right into Seth's critically bleeding wound.

"Ah! Shi- Fuck!" Seth cried and dropped to the ground, wrapping his hands around his serious injury.

Tails was infuriated so much that he wasn't even thinking about his actions or consequences and only wished to cause suffering to his opponent. He pushed himself to his feet and then kicked dirt at Seth while he sat on the ground, trying to stop the bleeding.

"There! How do you like feeling helpless?! I am sure this is what it felt like for Cream, her father, and everyone else you've murdered up until now!"

Seth said nothing and instead applied pressure. Tails could see the red flowing out, but he was lost in a powerful disgusted hatred that blinded him.

Tails brought his boot up and swung it viciously. Kicking Seth in the back and causing him to topple over to his side.

"You deserve this. You DESERVE THIS! MAX SHOULD HAVE KILLED YOUR ASS!"

Seth made no attempt to fight back or even speak at this point. The attack on his wound was enough for him to know that Tails had no honor and that the fox intended to hit injuries which he chose not to.

Tails moved forward in front of him as Seth sat up, and in Tails twisted intent on retribution readied his fist to strike Seth in the face as was done to him.

As Tails' fist came forward, Seth awaited the blow but was shocked when Severa put herself in front of him. Tails blinked when he saw her jump in front of Seth, and he tried to avert his swing.

"Severa!" Seth cried out just as Tails' fist connected directly with her eye, sending her to the ground like a rock.

"Shit!" Tails yelled, his rage instantly broken and now replaced with full panic.

Severa was lying there, and Tails ran to her side while Seth crawled forward towards her.

"Severa! Severa! Are you ok?" Tails cried, and Seth grabbed onto her head gently as she looked up at the two of them.

"I… I'm so sorry… I…" Tails whined with shame filling his voice.

Severa shook her head slowly and then placed her wing over her now closed, swelling eye. She pointed another wing towards the horizon beyond them, but neither understood what she was getting at.

"I… What?" Tails said, turning his attention over to the misty distance.

"…"

…

…

…

…

After a long silence, it became apparent that there was a slight rumbling beneath Tails' feet. With apprehension, he cast his gaze on the mechanical parts strewn about atop the ground.

Seth was staring off in the distance while his blood oozed out between his fingers, staining his white fur.

Severa stood up and kept pointing in the direction they both stared. Tails squinted hard, and then, near the top of the thick mist, he saw what appeared to be a red shimmer.

"What the hell… is that?" Tails uttered aloud.

Seth tried to stand but fell back to the ground with a grunt and just held his wound in apprehension.

As Tails stood there, it was apparent that the rumbling beneath him was becoming more severe with time. Not to mention, the light was becoming more prominent and more well-defined in tandem with it.

"…"

Tails looked over at Severa and quickly grabbed hold of her wing. Then, he began to yank her toward the thickly forested area he had seen earlier.

"We need to get the hell out of here!" He called to both of them while pulling her.

Severa tried to yank herself away from Tails, but he seemed preoccupied with his immediate fear.

As he drew nearer to his destination, a loud mechanical screech echoed through the barren world.

The sound halted all movement, then he slowly turned to face the direction that it had come from.

He could see Seth still sitting and holding his wound in the same place, while in the distance beyond, a mechanical monstrosity was beginning to take shape.

Several stories tall and Lovecraftian in nature. It dragged itself across the desolate planet with gigantic metal tentacles. It had but one soulless red eye that cast its gaze around, looking for prey.

Such a thing had little purpose outside of pure, malicious destruction.

Severa shook with horror but still tried to free herself from Tails.

Tails couldn't think of anything but to escape, so he pulled Severa along despite her best efforts to stop him. Even with one usable hand, he was still much stronger than her.

Eventually, she stopped protesting and went along with him until they were shielded by the thick brush and ill-looking, orange-topped purple trees.

The rumbling was intensifying, and it was becoming necessary to anchor oneself against a tree to stay standing.

Severa seemed in a world of her own as she glanced towards the robotic graveyard they once stood.

When Tails looked out, it finally dawned on him what Severa was protesting. He could see Seth struggling to stand on his feet. The rumbling made it difficult for him to move with the wound.

As Seth fell again, the monstrosity zeroed in on him despite his puny size. Its directive apparently to hunt down and terrorize animals that Robotnik sent here.

An intense influx of remorse washed over Tails, for his belligerent pugilism had wounded Seth more than necessary. If he died, it would assuredly be his fault.

As much as he wanted it before, his conscience was too strong to silence for so long. With a quick glance at Severa, he issued orders.

"Stay hidden, and if things get bad, hightail it!"

Severa ducked low and hugged the tree for dear life, only giving a slight nod to him.

With that, Tails was off staggering out into the open with that giant abomination roaring toward them.

Seth tried to get up again but fell hard as his leg twisted. "Ah! Shit!"

Tails was moving as fast as his legs could carry him with the quaking, and as he glanced up, he could see that red eye shining bright with hellfire.

It let out a mechanical roar, and it was clear that it was gathering some kind of energy.

Tails was running to the point his lungs were burning, and when he finally reached Seth, he burst out into heaves.

Seth looked up and tried to push him away. "Leave me! You'll never be able to get me to safety before it attacks!"

"For once in your life, just shut the hell up!" Tails screamed over the noise and wrapped both of his arms underneath Seth's armpits.

Seth tried to stand, but Tails yelled at him to hold on. It was confusing at first, but with little time to protest, Seth used his strong hands to get a grip on Tails' wrists.

BOOM!

A loud shockwave echoed across the land, and it drowned out the sound of the planet's thunder.

With a glance, both animals could see a gigantic beam of pure, super-concentrated energy hurtling towards them.

With a leap, Tails pulled himself and Seth off the ground. His tails twirling for dear life as they both ascended upward at a rapid pace.

Tails grit his teeth because of the pain and stress lifting such a heavy animal was causing, but his determined expression let Seth know he wouldn't be dropped.

"You can fly?!" Seth barely shouted above the noise.

Tails was too busy putting all of his efforts into lifting them to respond, but as Seth looked down at his dangling boots and the blood dripping off one of them. He realized that even this might not be enough.

Using his immense upper body strength, Seth pulled his legs up towards his chest so that he was more compact. As much pain as this caused him, he bared it, for he knew that being as small a target as possible was vital.

The agony in his leg and the burning in his stomach muscles quickly accelerated beyond acceptable levels, but he held the position.

The beam struck the ground where they'd been with a deafening explosion, and it erupted into a molten dome that expanded out and upward in all directions.

As it accelerated, Tails could feel the temperature rise even further, and sweat began to pour into his fur. He looked down and could see nothing but fire hurtling towards him from below.

He increased his speed as much as mortally possible and cast his gaze towards the rainy sky as if looking for some kind of immediate comfort at such a critical moment.

Seth looked down and squinted at the blinding light, but eventually, it became too much to bear, and he had to shut his eyes.

Now sightless, he could feel the heat against his legs, and he wondered if they'd be incinerated any moment.

Tails began to fly towards the right while ascending, hoping that if the enormous machine could see them, it would follow.

He was deathly worried about Severa, and though he was unsure if she had survived the initial explosion, he wanted to give her as much of a chance as possible by drawing it away from the forest.

Up…

Up…

Up…

They were so high in the sky that when Tails glanced down the world below them looked minuscule and was obfuscated by mist. Eventually, the fire ceased to follow, and Tails let out a deep breath and relaxed his entire body.

With a loud screech, the mechanical monster dragged itself forward, trying to keep up with its enemies in the sky, but it was clear by now that it had lost them in the mist.

Seth grunted and let his legs fall. He glanced down and was happy to see that his boots still existed. Then, he looked up at Tails' tired expression.

"…"

"We should land… You don't look like you can go much longer." Seth said in a gentler tone than usual.

Tails looked at him, and without speaking, he nodded.

The two began to slowly descend and make their way in the direction they had once come from. Every so often, a flash of lightning blinded them.

BAM!

The loud thunder boom followed, making them wobble in the air. The winds were picking up, as was the rain, and both were being knocked about by the storm.

Eventually, they were near enough to the ground to take in the destruction the explosion had caused.

An enormous crater cut into the dirt and expanded moderately into the forest that Severa had been left in.

It made their hearts sink into their stomachs, but hopefully, she had fled early so she could make it far enough to escape certain death.

The two landed at the crater's edge and almost instantaneously collapsed.

The rain was pouring and turned the maroon dirt into an almost blood-like muck.

"Ugh…" Tails murmured as he ran his uninjured hand across his face.

Seth sat there holding his leg again, then, as the winds picked up, the sounds of flapping could be heard.

Within seconds, Severa landed between the two of them with a squish as her shoes sank into the mud. Tails felt relief and merely smiled at her while she began pulling her sleeves back down over her wings.

"You, ok?" Seth asked her gently, and she merely nodded in response.

Tails could still see her eye was closed and clearly swollen. He felt such disgust with himself for striking her, but in honesty, it was a harsh lesson he felt he deserved to learn.

CRASH!

The terrifying sound of thunder echoed through the silent world, and it was becoming ever more apparent that they needed a plan and fast.

"…"

Tails eyed the surroundings and could see that much of the mechanical graveyard was still intact. Looking back, he saw that Seth was removing his shirt.

"What are you…?" Tails began but was silenced when Seth spoke.

"Don't worry about it. Just figure out what we need to do…."

Tails was staring as Seth began eyeing pieces of junk and offered his shirt to Severa.

"Get some of those poles, and place them in my shirt. Long ones and a multitude of short ones."

Severa nodded, but before she could rush off, Tails stood up. "Wait! Follow me. There are things we can use here…."

Severa looked at Seth, who merely waved one of his muscular arms to give the go-ahead.

He merely sat there trying to slow the bleeding while Tails led Severa a little way away and began inspecting the junk.

"Hmmm…" Tails made a noise and then began lifting components from the ground.

Filled weapon canisters, wires, poles, and what appeared to be the blade of one of the robots that injured his hand. A ruined device that still managed to have a screen intact, frames, bolts, copper scrap, pieces, and bits that could be used as substitutes for various tools.

"…"

Severa just held the shirt open as Tails filled it with as much as he possibly could. It all looked like junk to her, but to Tails, it looked like treasure.

By the time he finished, the shirt was overflowing, and Tails had to hold it closed so she could tie it shut with her wings. Along their way back to Seth, Tails began eying and picking up sturdy, long pipes for him, as he had asked for them.

Once reunited, Seth looked up and seemed happy that the pipes were gotten, then he posed the most pertinent question possible.

"Where do we go to be safe?"

The wind and rain were heavy and harsh, but for other reasons, namely that monstrosity that wandered the wasteland. Tails thought it best they stay on the down-low.

"We need to stick to the forest… It might not be safe, but it will provide shelter for me to work. It will also keep us out of the sight of whatever that thing was."

There was a nod from Seth, who forced himself onto his injury with a grunt, then grabbed one of the poles from Tails.

"Can you make it?" Tails asked.

"Just lead us to a safe place for me to rest." He said as he hobbled forward, using the pipe as a sort of cane.

Tails merely nodded and was about to take the lead when suddenly, a small metal box fell from the sky in a flash of light.

!

The three looked up and were in shock as what appeared to be one of Robotnik's advanced "spy eyes" had opened a portal and delivered the object.

Tails adjusted the long pipes under his arm, leaving one in his hand with the intent to throw it at the spy eye, but the machine merely disappeared from view as quickly as it had appeared.

"What the hell was that about?" Seth said while leaning on his pipe.

Tails thought and then added the pipe to the rest while he shifted them under his arm to keep them in place. He then reached down for the locked metal box with his uninjured hand.

"I think it is how Robotnik watches us to get his kicks…." Tails said.

Seth shook his head; he didn't have time to worry about that now.

Tails felt paranoid that Robotnik could be watching at any moment but pushed the thought aside to lead the two into the eerie, alien forest.

Once they were deep enough to not be immediately seen from the outside, they took a place under a tree to block much of the rain and wind.

Severa dropped the shirt gently, and Tails placed the box next to it. Seth sat on the ground against the trunk and examined the junk pile that had been collected.

"…"

Tails quietly picked up one of the many special weapon canisters he had grabbed, and when he shook it, it sounded like there was a decent amount of liquid inside it.

Once he was sure this was a good one, he asked Seth to place the wire from the screen circuit board in front of the nozzle.

Seth did as he was asked, and when Tails turned the small valve, the sound of gas could be heard gently leaking from the nozzle.

"Push the buttons on that thing…." Tails said.

When Seth pushed the buttons, it began to short, and the resulting sparks on the cut wire ignited the front of the canister.

Tails dialed down the gas with the wrist on his injured hand to lower the flame and used it to begin burning away at the lock of the box. It would flash and spark occasionally but was relatively silent.

As Tails worked, Seth had pulled his shirt out from under the junk and picked up the medium-sized robot blade that accompanied it.

With precision, he tore into the shirt and was about to speak but remained silent when the lock was broken from the metal box.

Tails turned the gas off, setting it down, and then carefully opened the box.

"…"

To his surprise, it contained a small bottle of water and enough supplies to tend to one of their wounds. Even though it brought relief, its cruelty was not lost on Tails.

A "reward" for their entertainment, and only enough to suit one of their needs. As Tails picked the bandages up with his hand, he looked over at Seth, who clearly needed it most.

"Here…" Tails held out the small roll to him.

Seth eyed him and merely looked down at what he was doing. "I refuse…"

Tails was tired of his stubbornness and was about to protest, but Seth continued.

"Severa is a civilian. Aid should go to her; it is my duty to serve the citizens of Radcliff."

"…"

Severa shook her head shyly, but Tails found this to be the easiest solution for what to do with the reward and returned the bandages to the box. He moved over to her and quietly examined the contraption bolted through her beak.

It appeared to be a simple bolt twisted tightly. Without question, it had to be extremely painful to have in place.

"I… I think I can remove this from you, but it will likely hurt a lot…." Tails admitted sadly.

Severa seemed desperate, which was the first indication from her that she was in constant pain.

Tails eyed Seth beginning to wrap his leg wound in a large piece of his shirt, and then maneuvered over to one of the several pieces of junk that contained a hexagonal hole.

With a few trial-and-error placements, Tails found one approximate to the bolt's size. Tails slowly twisted it, and immediately Severa yanked away and whined in agony.

"Ah! Sorry…" Tails' uninjured hand began to shake with nervousness.

"Just hurry the fuck up and twist it fast. Either way, it will hurt, so you might as well make it quick." Seth chastised him.

Tails shut his eyes and tried to breathe through his broken nose, but it felt impossible. Once he got his breath through his mouth, he checked the spiral of the screw to ensure he was getting it right the first time.

He lined it up again, and Severa shut her non-swollen eye. After another breath out of Tails, he began to countdown.

"Three…"

…

"Two…"

…

"One…"

CRACK!

Tails could hear Severa cry out in pain, but it was apparent the bolt had been freed from tightly against her beak. With another quick twist, it quickly became loose.

Tails dropped the makeshift tool and began to unscrew the bolt with his two fingers until it was free. Finally, after so long, Severa's beak opened, and the bottom part began to bleed profusely without the screw to plug it up.

"Ahh!" She wailed in excruciating pain as she placed the tips of her wing on the top part of her beak and ripped the long screw from her entirely, chucking it as hard as she could away from her.

The pain and overwhelming relief of freedom forced her to drop to her knees and cry a muddled sob.

Tails moved over, and when he did, she saw that he was carrying the sparse medical dressing. She could not protest help, given the amount of blood coming from her, and she opened her beak so that Tails could see better.

"It looks like they didn't get your tongue, so that is good…." Tails said as he began to pack the holes inside and out with the scant pieces of gauze from the box.

"Ah… Mnnn… Ohh…" She winced, whined, and moaned with every touch.

After stuffing them, Tails took the only bandages and fastened them to each part of her beak to ensure their cleanliness.

Severa opened and closed her beak slightly, and despite her obvious pain, she was relatively calm now that the bleeding was controlled.

"You, ok?" Seth asked.

Severa turned to look at Seth, who was now fastening long pieces of pole to his leg and tying them with strips of shirt to make a sturdy splint.

"It… Hurts… To… Talk…" She rasped out and then stopped moving her beak.

Tails breathed a sigh of relief and grabbed the single bottle of water, offering it to the bird who sat in front of him. She gratefully took it and began to guzzle it down.

When she quickly finished it, she spoke more clearly, but still softly to avoid too much movement of her beak.

"Thanks…"

Seth clanked the piece of blade against one of the pipes attached to his leg, which got both of their attention. Once he was satisfied, he helped himself up by the use of the weird tree beside him.

He could now move freely, and his leg was stopped from painful movements that might worsen his injury. Sadly, it made walking awkward and cumbersome for him.

Once Seth stood beside the two sitting animals, he spoke to Severa.

"I know this is hard for you, but you need to tell me what happened."

Severa looked at Tails, who merely nodded to her to show his interest and support.

"Knights came… Said Radcliff wanted to speak to me… Tricked… Was imprisoned…"

Seth and Tails quietly listened, as the more she told, the more it was clear it was emotionally affecting her.

"In a cage… Tried to… to…." Severa trailed off in her painful memory and tears.

"It's ok, Severa… I'll make sure this will not go unpunished…." Seth said to her with confidence.

"Never go back…." Severa said, too traumatized by the ordeal to consider that place home any longer.

Tails held out his uninjured hand, and Severa took it into her wing for strength. "Tried to force onto me… Fought back… Hurt him… Beaten… Clamped… Removed from city…."

Severa quietly trembled, and it seemed she was at her limit.

Seth reached down to her and made her look at him with his hand.

"Who…?"

Severa looked into his eyes and seemed to calm down a bit. There was trust between the two, and she uttered a name with slight hesitation.

"Lord… Windser…"

Tails had not met this foul person, but ultimately, it was in this Windser's best interest that they didn't after this story.

"Fuck…" Seth said aloud and ran his hand over his own face.

Tails looked at him and spoke. "What is it?"

Seth eyed him and shook his head. "Windser keeps getting bolder and bolder… Radcliff told him to reign in his perversions, but he keeps pushing it."

"I am not following entirely…." Tails admitted.

Seth looked at him, and rather than get angry, he just explained. "Severa is well loved by the people. This is beyond reprehensible, even for him… He has lost all moral compass, and I fear for not just my sister, but any woman in a position beneath him or unable to fight back."

The alarms immediately sounded in Tails' head as he placed his hand to his heart when he felt the pain in his chest. Deep fear took hold of him, and he realized how sacred Cream was to him.

"I… Um…" Tails stammered but stopped himself from speaking about his inner turmoil.

Now was not the time, and if he let the fears of what could be happening to Cream take over, he would be unable to survive this new and harsh world.

Severa merely patted him with her wing but was unwilling to speak further for the time being.

Seth limped over to Tails and held out his hand, after which he spoke bluntly. "Present your injury…."

At first, Tails was hesitant but decided to allow it. With the piece of the blade, Seth cut the already destroyed hand wrap and examined the wound.

"…"

"All digits intact, clean cut, broken hand… Shouldn't need amputation." He said in an authentic, military way. After that, he took medium pieces of pipe and the remainder of his shirt.

Carefully, Seth wrapped the wound while Tails tried to keep from whining, if for nothing more than to prove his strength to Seth.

Within minutes, his wrist had been stabilized, and pipes rested along his palm and the top of his hand, going down the length of his forearm. The tightly tied cloth and several pipes made his hand throb but in a way that sort of felt comfortable.

He could tell that the hand was resting innately and wouldn't be further injured or be forced into movement.

"…"

"Thanks…" Tails said, and then Seth turned the blade around to hand it to Tails in a safe manner.

"If you want to thank me… Turn this into a usable weapon."

Tails took the blunt part of the blade once connected to a robot and then looked up at him.

"If you lend me both of your hands, I will do more than that."

…

…

…

…

Max sat obstinately at the wooden table in the dining hut. Ever since he had returned, he had been sitting here, his anger steadily growing the longer he was berated and chastised.

Bunnie was sat across from him, and the expression on her face continued to oscillate between sadness and rage as time progressed.

Antoine sat beside her, and unlike his wife, he seemed rather emotionless regarding the ongoing events.

Max shifted his position slightly in the brief silence, and in doing so, it caused an agitated Bunnie to speak to him once again.

"Well!? Ya' got anything to say fer yourself!?"

Max shook his head and bitterly glared at her. "You've heard what I have to say on the matter, and I grow tired of repeating it! Now, enough of your bitching!"

Bunnie got riled up and slammed her metal hand so hard against the table that it cracked. "Bitchin'? boy, you don' know who yer talkin' to!"

Max angrily stood up, causing his chair to fall over with a bang, and he shouted back defiantly. "I've sat here and listened to you berate me! I am sick of it! I did what I had to do and am well within my rights to do so!"

Bunnie shook her head, and when she shouted back, her voice was a complex amalgamation of pain, fear, and rage. "And what of Annie? HUH!? She thinks the world of you, and y'all led her into that… I… I've seen…."

Bunnie tried to hold in her crying, but she looked away to wipe them with her furred hand. "I've seen what's happened… She's gone and held herself up in her hut, won't even speak to anyone… Won't even let us help her…."

Max's anger was tempered by empathy and guilt. It was evident to him she had no idea he had done it with his own hands, and that fear of her knowing helped him choose his words more carefully.

"I… Ann makes her own choices…." He said in a weak attempt to defend the consequences of his actions.

Bunnie turned to him and took a deep breath before returning to anger. "You know better! You know y'all have influence over her, and I am absolutely disgusted with you and your behavior anymore!"

Max scowled and pointed his furred hand accusingly at her. Her words cut more profoundly than anything she'd said yet.

"I am disgusting to you!? Fuck me, right!? I am not your flesh and blood!" His voice cracked slightly from the rejection caused by her words.

"That ain't the point, and ya' know that!" Bunnie yelled in an attempt to slightly back out of her careless words.

Max shook his head and spoke his intent to her in a low growl. "I'll do what I must, to turn the tide of this miserable fucking war, with or without your consent. If I am not to be a son to you, then I will be your prince… I am 16, and it is well within my rights to exert my will over yours…."

Bunnie looked shocked at first by his repeated attempts to usurp control, but then she looked as if she would begin screaming in blind rage again. At least until Antoine surprised everyone when he stood up and began speaking.

"Max, as much as I am to being upset with the current affairs and what has happened to my daughter. I am to be pleased that she has returned alive to me."

Max stared and crossed his arms defensively as Antoine continued speaking his mind.

"I am to be loving both her and you dearly, and it strikes me that you are to be thinking we shoul both be nothing more than your soldiers and your loving family, as you are clearly desiring."

Max watched as Antoine used his crutch to move closer to him, and then he responded. "So, what is it you are trying to say? It's entirely my fault for Annie? That I am a heartless bastard?"

Antoine shook his head and spoke again. "Non, I am to be saying, Annie has made her choice, and so she is to be living with her consequences… It is to being up to you if her consequences or worse are worth what was accomplished."

Max was silent, and Antoine patted him on the shoulder. "Your family, or your subordinates… You are to decide…."

Max had heard enough, and rather than say anything more. He turned away and stormed out of the hut, leaving the two with their grief, confusion, and anger.

The immaturity of Max's age was highly apparent, and both of them were left to wonder what impulsive thing he or Annie might do next. Either way, they knew there was nothing they could do to stop them.

"…"

Max stomped along the grass, lost in his own thoughts. He now realized his pivotal mistake was to tell Annie at all. Bunnie and Antoine's attempt to make sense to him had fallen on deaf ears.

Max recognized his foolishness and its price but rejected the dichotomy he was presented. He now understood that if there had to be a debt for victory that nobody was willing to take on, he would do so alone.

He now clearly saw that it should have been himself instead of Annie to pay that price, and now he knew what he needed, even if it meant he had to bear the entire burden on his own.

Now resolute, Max moved with purpose towards Rotor's workshop, only stopping just outside of it when he saw Sonia waiting.

She seemed nervous and doubly so when he walked up to her. When their eyes met, he knew the guilt she was still feeling for having betrayed him.

"Bro…"

"Don't…" Max interrupted her. "I know it took a lot of consideration on your part, but as I said earlier. It is fine."

Sonia wasn't entirely sure, but she hugged him in his tattered clothes briefly and then scratched her head. "I'm glad you guys succeeded, but are you and her gonna' be ok?"

It was clear to Max she was referring to Annie, and his thoughts of her brought him pain. He merely shook his head and answered honestly when he was able.

"I don't know…."

Sonia looked down and then back up at him. "Well… If ya' need someone to talk to, either of you… I am always here for you."

Max silently nodded, and with that, Sonia began to take her leave of him.

Even with the worry she carried, excitement was also there, for she knew that her father might be a part of her life again.

"…"

Max watched her go and then moved to open the shop door. Once inside, he was immediately surprised to see Snively inches from Lupe.

Snively appeared to be jotting down things on a pad of paper and then began taking measurements of her arm with a ruler.

Nicole stood up when she saw him, and he read her expression as worried. Just looking at Max's ripped and torn appearance was enough to bring her close to him.

"Ah… Max, are you well?" Nicole asked hesitantly.

Max ignored the question because he wasn't and instead asked her one as a response.

"What's up with them?"

Lupe, hearing the question, decided to answer for Nicole. "He tells me he can restore me to combat readiness. So, I agreed to spare his throat from being ripped out if he did so."

Snively looked up and jotted some more notes down. "Yes, given Nicole's experiment on you two the previous night. I realized that that same method could be used and incorporated into crafted artificial limbs." He paused his thought and walked toward Max.

"Though, unlike roboticization, these would need to be learned how to be used once the functionality was injected into the brain." He finished.

Max felt joy for Lupe, and she seemed in higher spirits than ever before.

"Oh, that reminds me…." Max said when he remembered.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the large crystal he had taken. Upon seeing it, Snively nodded.

"Yes, that is exactly what is needed. I can have the gate operational by tomorrow, then you will see I am not lying about the Hed-… Sonic…"

Max felt his first happiness in hours, and then Snively looked at Lupe.

"Escort me to my hut… I will begin making plans to restore you."

Lupe stood up and then nodded. "Very well. I will lock him in and then get some food."

The two began walking towards the door, but Lupe stopped to speak to Max.

"I am proud of your success, young wolf. I feel I was with you in spirit, and so your victory is also mine."

"Thanks…" Max said to her compliment.

Without much else, Lupe left with Snively, attempting to carry herself as if she had no injuries at all.

Now that Max was alone in the quiet shop with Nicole, he seemed nervous and unsure.

"…"

Nicole sat in front of the laptop and began typing on it, then spoke to Max. "Did you experience any side effects from the information transfer?"

Max plopped down in a seat beside her, and even though he heard the question, he didn't answer. He was so fixated on his inner thoughts at the moment.

"…"

"Max…?"

When her voice finally broke him out of it, he spoke to her sheepishly. "Yes… I, um… bled out of my nose… a little…."

Nicole nodded and began typing. "Yes, Lupe bled slightly too, so I was concerned for you. It would seem the power needs to be reduced substantially on organic lifeforms to prevent injury or undesirable side effects…."

Max had lied about how bad it was, but ultimately didn't care and merely stared at the floor, trying to gain the courage to speak his mind. When no other questions came, Nicole stopped typing to stare at him.

She could see he was distressed, and her growing ability to read his mannerisms helped her determine what needed to be said.

"You wanted to be alone with me? Didn't you?"

Her blunt words made Max look up at her, and she could see his expression's shyness and surprise.

"I… well…"

Nicole quietly watched him, and when he returned his stare to the floor, he answered her honestly.

"I need your help… I need to be stronger…."

Nicole was caught off guard and blinked her artificial eyes. "What…?"

"You are the only one that can help me… I need power… These robots' weapons are superior to mine… I need to level the playing field…."

Nicole was troubled, and this voice deep inside her that had never been there before screamed, "absolutely not." However, this was Max, and her ability to refuse him was near nonexistent.

"I…" Nicole hesitated, but then Max spoke again when it seemed she was on the cusp of rejection.

"If you are unwilling to go further… Then why did you do everything for me you did last night?"

Nicole thought, and her immediate go-to answer was, "because you are my master." Though, after their conversations from yesterday, she was able to pin the real reason why she did such a thing against better judgment.

"Because I want to make you happy…."

Max was flattered by the answer and looked into her eyes. After which, he smiled a bit.

"It did… So now I want you to make me happy again."

"I…" Nicole was still unsure but decided she would present the facts and let Max choose.

"There are things I could possibly do, but integrating organic tissue and processes, with technological interface and weaponry, poses significant risks and costs."

Max saw how serious her expression was and merely responded confidently. "Like?"

Nicole paused and then bluntly stated her first thought. "The integration would likely need a mechanical base. That means I would need to modify your roboticized arm in all likelihood."

Max looked at his artificial hand and the scratch left on the metal. "So… What does that mean?"

Nicole waited and ensured he was looking at her, then she responded. "Modification or removal of the structure or entirety of roboticized limbs would likely render de-roboticization of them impossible."

Max felt his heart sink, and it depressed him. He was now presented with the cost, which he used to fear. He would lose his real arm forever if he chose to do this.

"…"

Nicole stood patiently, and then Max posed a question. "What are the other consequences…?"

"I don't know. I just know that that is the price of admission. Once I figure out what it takes to give you what you asked for, I can better extrapolate the actual risks to you, if any."

Max was quiet and then uttered aloud. "I need to be able to protect myself well against their energy weapons… Even just an effective shield would suffice…."

"…"

As Nicole stared at him, he seemed to sink deeper into his depression until he lifted his metal arm and placed it on the table.

…

"Do it… I don't care what it takes…."

Nicole felt emotion at this moment, even though she wanted to convince him otherwise. She knew that the logic of why he was doing this was sound.

"Very well…" Nicole trailed off as she got up and began taking tools from Rotor's shelf.

Max sat patiently as Nicole quickly got to work undoing and removing his entire arm. Once it fell with a slam against the wooden table, Max looked down at it and felt immense grief.

He looked away from it and then at the metal stump left over, shimmering in the light and disk-like in shape. It brought with it the sorrow of his realized fear that he would lose his arm.

Rather than second guess things, he stood up and forced himself to move away from it and Nicole, who, one last time, tried to speak to him.

"You can reconsider, Max… There might be other ways…."

Max eyed her from his peripheral vision and merely shook his head. "No… I will not let family or soldiers pay a price for me anymore. From today on, I pay my own."

With a strong will, fighting against the sadness of what he was choosing. He walked out the door, leaving Nicole in contemplative silence, before picking the arm up and placing it on the workbench.

"…"

…

…

…

Annie sat in despair within the confines of her dark hut. The shades were entirely drawn, and the pain of her injuries was but a minor distraction to her intense emotional suffering.

Her hands rubbed against her face, and her anger steadily rose the longer she sat there.

What was wrong with her…?

Ever since she started becoming a woman, her life had been nothing but turmoil, self-loathing, and emotional instability. She recognized the change in herself, but even knowing it, she found she distinctly lacked control over any of it.

Why…?

Annie's sexual and emotional awakening had only made her recognize how inferior she was. Nowhere near as beautiful as her mother, nowhere near as capable as Sonia, and foolishly infatuated with someone born superior to her.

The more she explored her genuine self-loathing, the greater the emotional pain. She hated being flawed and resented it even more that she could not do anything but fixate on it.

She stood up and threw her bag off her shoulder, sending the crystals spilling all over her floor with a crash. She looked up towards the mirror on her wall, and she could see the sloppily wrapped bandage over what was left of her ear.

Annie's heart sank, seeing that her already strained self-image was now crippled. She was a freak, and the cascading emotional despondency that rippled through her body was unbearable.

She pulled her gun from her belt and stared down at it as she had before. Immediately, the fantasies of death reclaimed her.

"You hate me almost as much as you hate yourself…."

Max's words were harsh but ever true. She did hate herself. She always had since she could think of herself as an individual.

Gritting her teeth, she stared at the weapon and wondered if she would now have the guts now…

The horrifying instability of her underdeveloped brain could only think of dramatic solutions to immediate and painful problems.

"…"

With carelessness, Annie looked away from the gun and tossed it across the room. It collided against the wall with a bang and slammed onto the floor.

Annie grabbed her head and shut her eyes. Her emotional pain was too much. It was too strong… Her anger had risen to the point that her blood felt like it was acidic and causing her burning pain.

"Rrrrrr!" She growled as loudly as she could.

Pulling her hand, she swung her fist into the solid wood wall.

BANG!

Pain radiated through her knuckles and up her hand. The feeling of her new and immediate physical distress was so distinct that it allowed distraction from the intense emotional sensations.

She pulled her hand back and slammed her fist into the wall again. The pain was even more significant, but it provided more to focus on than her emotions.

SLAM!

Her fist punched again, and there was the sound of a crack. The wood had split slightly.

SMASH!

…

SMASH!

…

SMASH!

Annie punched the wall repeatedly until blood had smeared onto the wood.

SLAM!

Her physical pain was beyond measure, and her torn knuckles bled out onto her hand.

CRACK!

A loud crack came, and the physical agony she was causing herself led her to believe she'd broken her fingers. Releasing her fist and looking at her shaking hand, she could see that she hadn't.

With a quick glance at the blood-smeared wall, she saw the hole she had created from her violent outburst.

Now letting the pain radiate and linger allowed her room to neglect her intense emotions.

Annie staggered back and plopped back onto the bed. Guilt and loneliness endlessly fighting to overtake her distraction.

She thrust her face into her pillow, and unlike usual, she slowly began to break down and cry.

Not just for one reason, but for all of them.

Annie's sniffles turned into gasps, which eventually gave way to heaving sobs. Her tears soaked her pillow as the blood from her hand dripped onto her covers.

"Max… Please…!" She cried out to nobody.

She wanted his comfort, him to look past her uncontrollable anger and rescue her from this hell. She wanted him to show up as they talked about and, in doing so, salvage what was lost.

"Please… Don't leave me here…" Annie begged as if talking to some higher power to deliver her message.

"…"

"Please…"

…

…

…

…

Max stood with his arm pressed forward against the wall of his shower. The water splashed down on him as he held himself on his tired feet.

He had continually second-guessed his choice to let Nicole take his arm, but despite it, he refused to return to ask her to stop.

This was needed, no cost was too great, and the mere thought of his encounters today told him as much.

Robotnik was smug, but Max's desire to tear him asunder was so great that even dire sacrifice seemed inconsequential.

"…"

Max sighed and lifted his head to let the water soak his face fur. He was trying hard to keep his thoughts focused on the potential increase in power, but even as he lingered on it, he found his mind drifting away to Annie and the price he had made her pay.

He felt deep down that his choice to sever her ear was correct, and as many times as he could play the scenario through his mind, he thought that trying to lift the door would have taken too long.

Though given her expressed feelings when all was said and done, he realized that she would likely never agree with that.

"…"

Max shut off the shower after he had soaked inside the hot water enough. When he stepped in front of the mirror and gazed at his armless and soaked torso, he merely shook his head and began drying off with his last clean towel.

Annie…

Why now?

The images of her and her loving behavior kept lingering in his mind, and he felt as if he were trapped by them.

He had tried to stop himself from thinking about her that way his whole adolescent life, even when it was evident and apparent.

When he'd first recognized the difference between men and women, she was all he could think about at first.

Then…

…

Max frowned, tossed his towel on the floor, and walked out into his hut. Quickly he grabbed a pair of underclothes from his drawer and slid them up his legs with his only usable hand.

Once he was slightly clothed, he collapsed backward onto his bed and stared upwards at the ceiling, lost in the endless conflicting emotions he had bouncing around in his skull.

He wanted to go to her… To apologize… To fulfill what they'd talked about.

But…

Max shut his eyes, and as he thought of his years spent trying to learn royalty, it struck him precisely what was causing his own personal dysfunction.

Repression…

He was completely and utterly repressed, whether by choice or circumstance. He recognized entirely that he was robbed of being a child.

Not just in the ways he'd always known, but even more abstractly than that.

Crushes, fantasies, love… Things he now realized he wanted sincerely, things locked away for fear of impropriety and a desire for maturity.

Love…

Did he love Annie?

Max wanted to, but at the same time, he questioned it. Did he love her because she was literally his only choice to love?

Even if he did, every time there was some spark between them that was felt, Annie showed him an ugly side to herself that was impossible to ignore.

On the other hand… She had legitimate reasons for her behavior….

Max rolled over on his side and contemplated getting dressed, even if in his dirty, torn clothes, to see Annie.

"…"

Did he have to?

The harsh thought crossed his mind, and he rested his cheek against his pillow.

"…"

There was really nobody else he could love… Was there?

Max's mind went through the sparse number of "people" he'd known, as he imagined himself besides them.

Annie was pretty much always cycling through, but in his attempt to allow himself to be sixteen. He found that when it stopped on Nicole, he was greeted with flattering memories and a desire to be close.

"…"

He instinctively tried to push the feelings aside, but when they kept returning. He became agitated with the thought altogether.

It was unnatural…

It frightened him…

It excited him…

When it made him feel genuine emotion, he buried his face and thrust his blankets over his head.

"…"

He was a sick animal for even thinking of such a thing, and even in knowing that, he delighted in it regardless.

Annie… Did not want him to come near her, she'd made that abundantly clear with her outburst, and so he would lay there sleepily, hoping that rest would give him clarity of perspective.

…

…

…

"Alright, now run that wire along there…." Tails instructed, pointing his finger towards the long, hollow pipe.

Seth used his hands to run it from the broken screen piece until it reached a cut-out hole in the pipe.

"Ok, as I explained earlier, braze the screen device to the side using the copper scrap, then tie it as securely as possible using the wires that jut out." Tails instructed.

Seth quickly followed the instructions without complaint and used his incredible upper body strength to break the damaged rings that once helped secure the screen to a robot.

Lining up the half-rings against the pipe, he used one of the already lit special fuel canisters beside him. Turning up the gas, the flame increased, and he slowly began combining the two pieces using super-heated copper.

After some time working at it, Seth turned the gas down until it was a little flickering flame the size of a candle. Afterward, he rested the device he was working with on its side and began tightly tying the wires from the screen around the metal, so it was unmovable.

"Great!" Tails said excitedly and moved in closer to inspect the cobbled-together object.

Seth looked up from his work and finally asked his first question. "So, what is this thing supposed to do, anyway?"

Tails grinned, picked up the moderately light weapon, and held it vertically, placing the armrest against the ground so that the end of the pipe was by his face.

Holding the weapon between his legs, he grabbed one of the gas canisters from the ground and placed the head of it by the cut hole near the trigger.

With force, Tails slammed the canister into the hole and pulled it back towards the trigger, which allowed the head of the canister to securely hang from the slim metal frame attached to the pipe.

Tails stood up, then pressed a button on the broken screen welded to the side, and it sent sparks out that lit the gas canister as the trigger was lightly tapped.

Tails lifted the weapon and rested it atop the pipes of his injured hand. When he squeezed the makeshift trigger on the weapon, it pulled on the gas valve, releasing more gas, and sending a burst of flames out the end of the moderately long pipe.

Seth smirked and offered what might be some sort of compliment. "Quaint trinket."

Tails held the trigger hard, sending out a continuous stream of heated flames from the end of the pipe.

It caused the plants close to them to catch fire, but the heavy rain pouring down from the opening in the trees quickly snuffed it out.

Satisfied, Tails pulled the weapon back quickly as the canister slammed against the pipe-splint on his arm and came loose, falling to the ground.

Severa sauntered over and then handed them strips of cloth that had once comprised the bottom of her long dress. Taking the strips, Seth began using them for the various weapons that had been created in this nearly 5-hour period.

Taking the sword made from the robot blade, he wrapped the brazed handle in cloth, tying it securely. He then created a strap for Tails' flamethrower so he could sling it over his shoulder.

Finally, Seth took the makeshift crossbow created using Tails' instructions and made a small strap to hang it from his belt.

With the rest of the cloth and scrap, he created a small, tied quiver-pouch, which he filled with the many long pieces of metal that had been sharpened by Severa.

Tails felt safer and moved over to Severa, who was now hanging the remainder of the fuel canisters to her clothes using their lock handles.

"Be careful not to toss or jostle those too hard. That fuel is not typical gas and is designed to combust in a super-heated way to deal with special alloys." Tails said.

Severa nodded and ensured they were utterly secure before moving to do miscellaneous tasks.

When they were all finished with their work and standing in silence. It finally hit Tails how exhausted he indeed was. After everything that had happened, he realized that he had not slept in days….

"So, now what…?" Seth asked, sliding the blade through his belt loop.

Tails looked into the now darkening forest, and their time creating supplies had shown him that this world indeed had a nighttime that falling upon them.

"We should probably go further in to stay hidden from that mechanical… thing… maybe camp… if we can…." Tails said as he retrieved the dropped canister and reinserted it into his weapon.

None had food or water, and this world's excess heat and humidity overwhelmed the senses.

Seth merely nodded in response and took the lead. He was walking awkwardly but looked almost like some sort of barbarian with no shirt.

He was in pique physical condition and conducted himself stoically, if not surprisingly honorably.

Tails stood next to Severa, and he spoke to her as they began to walk.

"If I call out, just hand me one of those canisters…."

Severa looked at him and nodded, still closing the eye that he had clobbered.

It brought Tails' guilt back to the forefront, but as he was about to apologize again, she moved ahead of him to stick closer to Seth.

Even in that leg splint with his injury, he was quicker than anticipated. So, Tails jogged forward until he was just to the side of Seth.

Wandering in silence, the three ventured deep into the alien forest. The heavy rain continuing to pour in through the tops of the twisted and sickly russet leaves.

The humid air carried the overwhelming scent of flora and chemicals, and the longer they walked, the more it appeared a pattern had emerged on the ground.

Rather than plant life as one would expect, it was well worn and gave the appearance of some sort of trail.

What had traversed this ground was anyone's guess, but even in uncertainty, it seemed prudent to stick to some guiding marker.

BOOM!

The bombastic sound of thunder exploded and practically made Tails jump. Far into their journey, whatever light might be left of the day was obfuscated by the claustrophobic trees and vines that began choking the walkway.

Seth pulled the makeshift blade from his belt and violently began hacking his way through so they could shuffle by. Even as dense as the vines were growing over the trail, he made quick work of them due to his physical stamina.

Once they reached a small opening, Seth stopped to gasp for breath. It was so tiring and overwhelming to make their way through, and Tails was about to speak when a horrific screech echoed out into the darkening woods.

Severa quickly ran between the two in fear, and Tails eyed behind them as Seth looked around from the front.

"The hell was that?" Seth asked.

Tails pulled the flamethrower off his shoulder and laid it vertically so that he could push the button with his usable hand. After he lifted it, he spoke.

"I don't know…."

"Is it that robot?" Seth said.

Tails looked around and could hear Severa whimpering behind him slightly. "No… It could have been any number of things, but not that…."

As Tails looked up towards the treetops, he could tell that the light would be completely gone from this place within hours. It was already frighteningly dim and disorienting because of the difference in times between here and Mobius.

Seth moved forward a bit, but Tails called out to him. "We need light… Check the trees. Hopefully, it's as combustible here as it is where we live…."

Seth nodded and used the blade to hack away at a branch while holding the end. After a few swings, it came undone, but as it broke apart, the tree revealed its eerie yellowish inside.

Tails gawked as the tree began oozing a strange sap, and as it dripped, it caused Seth to jump away in surprise.

The second the fluid had landed by his boot, it began to sizzle and burn into the ground, eating away at it slowly as it smoldered.

"Shit!"

Tails moved forward and curiously examined the nearly bioluminescent yellow innards, which caused Seth to chastise him.

"Get the fuck away from that, you idiot!"

Tails looked back at the stick Seth was holding and saw that most of the liquid was in the tree's base. Bending down, he examined the burn, being careful not to let any of the sap touch him.

After a moment, he stood up and spoke. "It's a chemical burn… The plant life here seems to derive nutrients from acid."

Seth looked confused, and Severa came over curiously, still not making a sound.

After quite a bit of thought, Seth spoke. "So, what does that mean?"

Tails moved over and pointed for Severa to take the stick from Seth. "If you can get more cloth, wrap it around the top, and douse it in that fuel…."

Severa quickly took the stick, and using her wing, she began to tear more of her dress off. It now resembled a torn skirt more than a dress, but it was putting in work when it came to helping them.

As she took one of the canisters and began to soak the cloth wrapped around the stick, Tails turned to Seth to finally answer his question.

"It means that the rain and water here likely have some degree of acidity, though not enough to burn us on its own. The sap is likely a concentration of that acid, mixed with whatever it can produce on its own."

Seth seemed disturbed, but Severa held out the stick before he could respond, indicating that it was ready. Tails bent down near the trigger with the barrel pointed upwards and spoke to Severa.

"Carefully hold it over the nozzle from a safe distance."

Severa held the very end, and Tails pressed the trigger lightly, sending a small burst of flames upwards, catching the makeshift torch on fire. The fuel would ensure that even such heavy rain would have difficulty dousing it.

With a bright light burning around them, Tails stood up and nodded to Seth. Seth began to limp towards the overgrown path but stopped before his swing when Tails spoke.

"Be careful what and where you swing at… That stuff will likely cause severe burns if a lot of it gets on you."

With the warning heeded, Seth made more careful swings, trying to avoid any of the gnarled trees that just so happen to be in the way.

The three made their way along the frightening trail with precision and caution. Weird sounds would echo through the unseen parts of the forest mixing with the strong gusts, and as they came towards an almost swamp-like area, they slowed down.

Strange and somewhat big, bright, yellow flowers dotted the landscape. They appeared to move slightly in the stiff wind, and along the sides of the narrow trail was lots of still water that was tinted an almost mustard color.

Seth stood there catching his breath from cutting through what felt like miles of this shit, and Severa hung far in the back in an ambivalent manner.

"…"

Tails walked forward and examined the sticks and twigs littered about the ground. He took a rather large one and cautiously dipped it into the yellow-brown liquid.

When it began to bubble and sizzle on immediate contact, Tails threw the stick far into the water and watched it disintegrate before ever sinking.

"Strange… This is concentrated acid…."

Seth looked annoyed and shook his head. "So, what the hell does this mean?"

Tails looked about at the utterly dark forest around them and began to get a chilling feeling as if he had eyes watching him.

He lifted his flamethrower and scanned some more, then he heard Seth speak again.

"Hey, fox… Don't just say ambiguous shit. Explain."

Tails eyed him and spoke. "I don't know what it means… I have only seen acid in this concentration from inside that tree…."

"Great…" Seth trailed off.

"I don't feel safe here… We should avoid the 'water' and keep moving…." Tails said.

With a nod from Seth, and Severa moving close to keep them in the light, the three cautiously made their way deeper into the swamp section of this hellscape.

They reached an area with shallow acidic "water" on either side but a vastly more expansive space to walk on. Tails kept glancing about at the yellow flowers, pointing their purple midsection towards him.

He felt like they were everywhere here, and they were so weird and off-putting to him.

"…"

"Shi…" Seth began to yell but hushed himself with his hand.

The sound of Seth almost screaming brought an immediate sense of urgency. Tails, knocked from his wandering thoughts, turned his eyes forward and saw what appeared to be bones in the dim flickering of the torch.

At first, it seemed to be some sort of miscellaneous animal bones, but as the dim image sunk in. Tails recognized that it wasn't just a few bones but a plethora of them.

His heart began to race as he moved in a bit closer, and he could see that many of them were wearing severely torn clothes in various states of decay and stained in old blood.

There had to be dozens scattered about in some sort of lost graveyard. Tails put his still-lit flamethrower on his shoulder and grabbed the torch from a terrified Severa, after which he moved in for a closer look.

"…"

Seth moved in close too, still clutching the blade in his hand. "Is this where this path leads? Is it some sort of robot trap?"

Tails examined the bones quietly, and as he lifted the torch towards trees, there were clear indications of heavy blood splatters. Even with the rain, some of it was so worn into the surface of the wood and stones that it was almost permanent.

"No… They were torn apart… by something…." Tails said in barely a whisper.

Seth moved close to him and looked around himself. "They're Mobian… These clothes… they…."

BOOM!

The intense sound of thunder rumbled through the forest, making them both jump.

BOOM!

A second loud strike roared, sputtering into loud rumbles as lightning followed.

Tails stood up and looked at the horrific scene. It seemed that they weren't the only ones to have the idea to stick to the forest, but the brutality of the attacks that took place here was beyond comprehension. Many looked like they had been gnawed on viciously and savored.

"I… I think we should turn back… Most people meet their end here, so I want to get the hell away." Tails said.

Seth looked to the left as he noticed the plants swaying and making noise. He glanced behind himself and looked confused. Then a clear indication of terror was seen on his face.

"Where's Severa!?" He said in a panic.

Tails began hastily glancing about and noticed she was not where she'd been standing. Obviously, she would not wander off in this place, and as the plants continued to be heavily disturbed on either side of them by movement, his nerves had left him.

"I… I don't know…." Tails stuttered slightly as Seth backed himself close to Tails.

BOOM!

Thunder banged out again, and Seth held up his blade. Once the rumbling slowed down, Tails, against better judgment, screamed loudly into the darkened forest.

"SEVERA!"

There was no response, but as things settled, they could hear what sounded like frantic struggling and forest plants being disturbed. It was faint with the wind and rain, but horrifying to take notice of.

The two quickly ran towards the source of the sound and stopped when they turned into some brush to go off the beaten path.

There, they could see Severa with purple vines wrapped around her throat. She was struggling for dear life and had apparently been dragged from behind them and into the middle of the swampland.

Seth was quick to move forward, and with a giant swipe, he cut the vines so that they'd drop her. There was the immediate sound of horrific shrieking, and the vines began to pour acid out from the cut.

Seth grabbed and pulled her away as Tails lifted his flamethrower, dropping the lit torch in the mud. "What the fuck is this!?"

There was a loud, threatening hiss, and as Tails glanced about in the dim flicker of the fallen torch, he could see all of the yellow flowers now appeared to have what could only be described as a black eye in the center of them.

Tails immediately freaked out and began to pull the trigger, sending a powerful burst of flames toward the flowers.

As they incinerated, a loud shriek was again heard, followed by a smack so hard that it sent Tails toppling to the ground.

"Ahhh!" Tails screamed at the top of his lungs as he felt the vines wrapping around his foot and beginning to dangle him in the air.

He had dropped his flamethrower just outside of his grasp, and in sheer desperation, he made grabs for it.

"Ah! Rrr… Ah…" Tails shouted as he panicked while swinging around, after which his eyes were greeted with the most horrific sight he could imagine.

An unbelievably massive, podded, yellow flower sat before him, and it dawned six black eyes atop what could only be described as a four-petaled mouth.

"Ah… Please! No!" He cried as he dangled before the massive creature like a worm on a hook.

It arched itself back from its winding stem and screamed loudly, opening the four petals of its purple mouth to expose several rows of razor-sharp teeth nearly reaching the back of its gullet.

Tails was being swung around violently by its vines, and he couldn't even see where Seth and Severa had gone or if they were even still there.

The creature brought Tails in above its small wading pool of acid, and he screamed in horror when it opened its maw wider to devour him.

Bite, by bloody bite.

Tails tried to pull his arm away, but the creature bit down on it to try and tear it off. Unfortunately for the beast, it seemed to lack the intellect to realize that the several reinforced pipes that made up his splint were a challenging meal.

Tails wailed and screamed as it chomped down, biting the pipes hard and its teeth scraping up the middle of his arm. Try as it might, it could not simply bite the arm away.

Tails helplessly swung back as it opened its maw ever more expansive, and it appeared this time, it intended to bite down on the whole package.

He shut his eyes for dear life but opened them again when he heard yelling. When he looked down, he saw Seth fearlessly attacking the monster with his blade.

"Ahhh! Die, you abominable bastard!"

His blade cut deep into the pod, causing the creature to wail and sending acid everywhere. Tails shrieked as some of it nearly spattered on him, and Seth screamed as dots of it began burning his chest fur.

Rather than pull back, Seth swung again, and the creature made an angry bite for him, causing him to fall back into the mud, barely missing the acid pool.

Tails swung back and forth as he whipped around in the creature's grasp. It seemed to now be focused on Seth, so it was clearly prioritizing who was causing it pain.

The creature lunged at Seth, who swung the blade, hitting its teeth. It shook its "head" and reared back to make a second attempt.

Tails was now bouncing like a yo-yo, and it was at this point he noticed he would get close to his dropped weapon every so often.

"Ah! Shit… C'mon!" He yelled to himself.

Tails was hyper-focused, and with all his strength, he grabbed hold of it when he was close enough. He was swung around as the creature made another attempt to bite down on Seth, who rolled to the side, barely evading a gruesome death.

With a violent slap of his splinted hand, Tails sent sparks firing out to light the canister if it had gone out. Without much time to think, he pointed the flamethrower at the ravenous creature and pulled the trigger all the way down.

"Burn, you son of a bitch!" Tails shouted as the entire bulb was doused in spewing flames.

Even as it shrieked and cried, Tails continued to hold the trigger down, gritting his teeth as he did so. There was so much fire that even the heavy rain couldn't save the bloodthirsty plant.

As the perverse flower burned, it dropped Tails roughly, causing him to hurt his back as he landed on solid ground. Despite this, he quickly stood and continued to light up the creature's already burning form.

By the time the entire canister was empty and sputtering fumes, Tails was in shock, holding the trigger down still, even as nothing more came out.

The small area the creature inhabited was now burning, and the once yellow flowers that adorned everywhere were now wilting as they rapidly died.

Finally, as Tails relaxed the trigger, he looked down at Seth, whose sword had warped due to the acid. He had minor dotted burns along his chest with bits of missing fur but appeared to not be too worse for the ware.

Seth sat there as if in a terrified stupor, and Severa moved over towards the two of them once it was clearly safe. The area was now only lit by the small forest fire Tails had caused.

Without saying a word, Tails banged the empty canister against the bent and torn-up pipes on his arm and let it fall to the ground. Seeing that, Severa handed him another one that was still attached to her waist.

As Tails set the flamethrower vertically to load it with his hand, he saw Severa walk over and help Seth up to his feet.

Once his weapon was loaded, Tails relit the canister so that it could be used at a moment's notice.

Seth hocked some phlegm into his throat and spit on the burning corpse of the monster.

"To hell with you!"

Severa placed her wings together and spoke despite her beak pain. "Thank… You… Was grabbed… Saved me…"

Tails eyed the area in flames and could see many more discarded bones of Mobians unfortunate enough to wander here. Likely, their continual feeding of that nightmare is why it had grown so aggressively throughout this area.

"We need to get the hell out of here… I have had enough of this shit!" Seth yelled, trying to keep the distress minimal in his voice.

Tails was silent but thankful that Seth had rescued him. Of all the ways he thought he could die, this was not one he wished to experience.

With merely a nod, Tails looked down at his cut-up arm. The pipes had saved it, but he had many lacerations in the places the pipe didn't protect, causing it to bleed somewhat freely.

When the sound of tearing came, he looked over to see that Severa had ripped off the long sleeves of her shirt and quietly went to stuffing the cloth against the wound to stem the bleeding.

"…"

"Thanks…" Tails uttered.

There was no response from her as the three attempted to recover from the horrific assault.

With little desire to stay in this terrible place any longer, the three eventually moved away from the slain alien plant. Their exhaustion and paranoia were barely kept at bay during their next several hours of walking in darkness.

Tails kept glancing about for flowers in the shadows, and now that the rain and wind had briefly ceased, every noise made them wonder if something else was lurking.

When they came to a barely visible clearing, Tails could hardly hold up his flamethrower anymore, and he inevitably collapsed to the ground, landing on his knees.

Seth looked about, and even in the dark, the clearing seemed relatively safe compared to that swamp's claustrophobic wretchedness.

Severa sat next to Tails and patted him to support him, but even her attempts were not enough to relieve him of his trauma.

"…"

After several minutes, Seth returned and dropped a pile of wood from the trees before Tails. With the movement of a few crimson-colored rocks, it was clear what Seth wanted him to do.

When Seth was out of the way, Tails pointed the flamethrower at the wood, and with a quick shot, it caught fire.

Now with a flame to sit by, the hungry trio sat and stared at the dancing flame. The wood gave off an almost chemical smell as it burned, but Tails was far too weary to even care about potential harm by this point.

…

…

…

After about two hours went by, Tails was still set silently by the fire. His fear fueling the last of his energy while Severa slept quietly by him in a huddled mass.

She had been through hell, and as Seth had put it, she was a civilian… It was ultimately their duty to keep her safe, and it must have at least felt like it had been achieved for her to rest after all that's happened.

Seth was sitting while staring contemplatively at the fire. His warped blade was in front of him, less practical as a weapon but still helpful in cutting plant matter.

"…"

The longer Tails stared at Seth, the more he found he didn't understand him. He was like a living contradiction, cruel, manipulative, and backstabbing, but also loyal, chivalrous, and caring.

Practically an oxymoron on all accounts… Still, as he thought, he was reminded of his dear Aunt Sally.

He remembered her dealing with figures similar to Seth, and despite their hostility or unwillingness to help Knothole, she treated them in a humble and understanding manner.

"Aunt Sally, why don't you just tell them what to do? You are the princess." Tails recalled asking her, and her response was something he now distinctly remembered.

"Because Honey… If we, and I, were to act morally or objectively superior to others without trying to understand them, then we set ourselves apart from our family and ensure that victory will never be had."

"…"

Seth looked back at Tails, and it was evident he had caught Tails staring at him. Now that their eyes met, it was as if they were trying to figure one another out.

Eventually, Seth stared back at the fire and spoke to Tails bluntly. "Go to sleep. You will be of no use to me in your state of exhaustion… I will keep watch, as I've been trained to do."

Tails internally became annoyed, but rather than begin another argument, he tried to apply Sally's words for once.

"No… I am kind of scared to sleep."

Seth was taken aback by the earnest admission and took the opportunity to smirk. "You're scared of a lot of things… Bet you're terrified for the rabbit now in Windser's clutches."

Tails felt anger but held it in and looked down. "How would you know?"

Seth chuckled a bit and leaned back on his hands. "Because it's obvious you've bedded her, or at least, are trying to."

Tails stared at him, and he knew Seth was taunting him. It upset him greatly, but hearing the words out loud, had him questioning his intentions during his relationship with Cream.

"…"

"Hit the nail on the head…." Seth laughed again and reveled at Tails' discomfort.

Eventually, Tails said the only thing he could think of to Seth, which was as genuine as possible.

"Why do you hate Cream so much…?"

The question immediately put a frown on Seth's face, and he leaned forward and watched the fire burn to avoid the question. "Who cares…?"

Tails shook his head in the quiet peace they had attained and responded in kind. "I do… I just figured there was a reason. Cream is the sweetest person I think I have met…."

Tails' words only made Seth close off more, and having spoken them himself, he realized that he was undeniably sweet on her.

"…"

As the awkward silence grew, Tails watched a pained expression cross Seth's face, and he was becoming honestly curious about the effect this conversation had on him.

"Did she reject you for a date or something?" Tails said, half-selfishly wondering and half-taking a jab at him with the spite he had deep within him.

Seth glared with seething anger, and his words came out slightly loud but also unintentionally. "She's the reason my father is dead!"

Tails couldn't believe it, and he immediately wanted to defend her. He now knew she would never be caught up in skullduggery, but before taking action, he thought of Sally once more and responded in a way neither expected.

"I… She is?"

Seth appeared shocked at the fact that it wasn't outright denied by Tails. A somber look of profound sadness came across his face, and he stared at the fire for the longest time in silence.

When Tails figured he wouldn't answer, he began to lean back to rest but stopped when Seth spoke calmly.

"Yes… She is the entire reason… My father, Lex… Well, was closest to her stepfather. Sir. Redford."

When Tails sat up and displayed he was listening, Seth continued as if it was the first time he could ever talk about this with a single soul.

"Lex was probably the last 'true' knight in Radcliff. Redford had long been corrupted and had struggled with personal guilt over the matter."

Tails leaned forward, and Seth sighed. "Then, Cream came. She was the absolution of Redford's personal guilt and the wedge which the newly crowned 'Lady Radcliff' used to tear Lex away from Redford."

Seth rubbed his leg nervously over his vulnerability and continued. "Now that my father had lost most of his influence, and Cream became Redford's focus, the other houses, particularly Windser, exploited his addictive desire for booze and games of chance."

"I see…" Tails responded, thinking about what it all meant.

"We lost everything… Money is typically all that matters in Radcliff and without Redford… Well…" Seth paused and then continued.

"Lex was murdered after my family was left destitute by Windser's exploitation. Us… We… We Brinwald's were in danger of losing our status as a house, so the only options for me were. Get money quick, or disappear like so many others…."

It was all starting to make sense to Tails, he remembered Radcliff's meeting with him, and he now became genuinely curious. "So… Were you put up to killing Cream?"

Seth looked at him softly and then answered honestly. "Yes… Lady Sarah saw it as a means to be rid of her sister and the mentally-ill Redford." He paused to gather his thoughts before continuing.

"She promised Redford's fortune and estate if I committed the act. Though neither of us expected Cream to come back, let alone with the prince of all people… Radcliff sold me up the river, and I knew if I spoke out, my family would be shipped off." He concluded.

Tails couldn't believe the layers of this story, and it seemed like Cream's existence in Radcliff had been the means by which Lady Radcliff usurped more and more power… Though, knowing this, he suspected that Seth would have been dealt with regardless.

"I was a fool…." Seth said abruptly, getting Tails' attention.

"I realized that when Prince Max set me free… I saw in him what my father always used to talk about… Someone worth following…."

Tails leaned forward and responded. "Is that why you came for me?"

Seth sadly nodded and spoke. "I swore allegiance to the crown, as a knight under my father… The last one with any semblance of honor… He believed in the just nature of the Acorn lineage, and I thought it to be bullshit until I saw it for myself…."

Tails was quiet at first, and it resonated with him how alone Seth must have felt. Surrounded by faces, but none of them truly in it for his well-being, a system incentivized by greed, corruption, exploitation, murder, and treachery.

Seth leaned forward and fiddled with the handle of the damaged blade in front of him. "I guess… I guess I don't really hate Cream… I just wish she'd have never come because it ended my father's friendship and his life."

Tails sat there looking at Seth, and then he spoke to him gently. "Lex sounds like an honorable man… I am sorry our world lost him."

Seth looked at him and seemed confused by the words, but he merely nodded in approval to the sentiment. "Yes… My life and the world are darker for his loss…."

Tails felt content with the talk, and now that he had all the pieces of the puzzle, he began to lay down tiredly onto his aching back, only offering his last bit of words.

"I'm sorry for wishing Max had you put to death… We'd surely be dead right now if you weren't here."

Seth looked at the fox lying by the fire, and he kept his stare on him for the longest time. When no response came, Tails shut his eyes…

"…"

"Hey…" Seth said gently, causing Tails to open an eye and look at him.

"The rabbit's fine… She's idiotically bumble-fucked her way through all of this, and still, Lady Radcliff underestimates her like the arrogant fool she is…."

Tails smiled a bit and re-shut his eye. Seth's words gave a bit of ease to his fears, and once he awoke in the morning. He would be in better shape to find a way out of this shithole and rescue Cream from all peril.

"…"

…

…

…

Max sat quietly on the cushions of Windser's couch. It was a place he could remember distinctly despite his drunkenness of that night.

It was a place that filled him with anxiety, and to find himself in it again brought panic.

Just like before, Aria came to him, and as she did. He looked upon her with repeated surprise and hesitation.

"Aria…? Why…?" He began but was silenced when she put her finger to his lips.

"Shhh…" She whispered and began climbing onto his lap, wrapping her arms around his sides and moving in to try and kiss him like she had that night.

"No… I… it isn't right…." Max protested wholly and again looked away from her.

"…"

…

…

…

"What isn't right?" Nicole said, abruptly interrupting the moment.

Max all at once felt intense dread when he heard her voice, and he worried she had caught him in this precarious position. Eventually, though, he gained enough resolve and responded while turning to look toward Aria.

"I…" Max began with the intent to explain but instantly forgot his words as he stared intensely at the robot now sitting on his lap.

"N-Nicole?" He stammered out, feeling his body get hot.

Nicole looked at him curiously, and she cocked her head cutely to the side. "I… Max, am I bothering you?"

Max's heart was pounding, and he recalled how desperate he wished Nicole was with him in Radcliff during this struggle.

"I… No… Not…" He stuttered his beginning speech but was silenced when Nicole placed her metal finger against his lips as Aria had.

"Shhh…"

Max quietly looked into her artificial eyes, and she presented him with a gentle smile. He was unsure what to say, so he nervously put his hands on her metal body rather than say anything.

The sight of him touching her elicited a giggle from the robot, and she responded to him in an almost playful manner. "Is this what you wanted to show me, Max?"

"Show you?" Max responded in a confused manner; it was as if Aria had never even been there.

"Yes…" Nicole responded and followed his example by running her metal digits along his chest.

Max shuddered, and unlike Aria, he felt distinctly comfortable in this position with her.

"You said you wanted to show me more about feelings… I wanted you to show me yours…." Nicole said.

"Mine…?" Max responded, to which Nicole nodded.

Max glanced down at her womanly form, and despite her being a robot, there was an undeniable attraction to it. It made him feel perverse, if not disgusting, but he had always adored who Nicole was as a person.

…

'Person…'

Nicole was a person to him… She always had been, regardless of what anybody else thought.

When Nicole reached her hand under his chin and brought his vision back towards her face, she spoke to him.

"Well, are you going to show me what you feel or not?"

"…"

Max looked around and found the world had changed entirely from Windser's gaudy room to the comfort and safety of his own hut.

"I… Well…" Max stammered a bit, but Nicole just waited patiently on his lap.

"I think… I… this is what I feel…?" He said, quietly pushing himself forward, pressing his lips against her robotic ones.

Nicole was reciprocal of the kiss, but Max held it, his hands beginning to slide along her metal back. The actions elicited a slight moan of excitement until he pulled away from her for a bit of air.

"…"

There was deep shame in the action, and Max felt it, but it was quickly offset by Nicole's genuine smile.

"That is an interesting expression… Here, let me try…." She said and moved in herself to return the kiss to his lips.

Hers was short but ever as impactful as she pulled back and looked at him.

"…"

"So… What does this mean…?" Nicole eventually asked after a brief silence.

Max kept looking at her, and when he tried to answer, he lost his ability to speak.

"I …. …."

"…"

…

…

…

Max shuffled in his disturbed rest as he rolled over to his side. The images that assaulted his senses were so pleasant that he didn't want to wake, but as his consciousness slipped away from the dream, he pushed himself up with his only hand.

"Damn…" He murmured to himself in a groggy fashion.

Whatever that was, he felt shy about it, but ultimately, he tried to push it away from his mind because of his fear of it.

Max fully sat up in his bed, rubbing his face with his hand, and it stuck out to him how cold he felt. Finding it odd, he tossed his blankets aside, and once uncovered, he shivered.

Looking around his room, it perplexed him why it was frigid. At first, he wondered if he was still dreaming somehow, but as he forced himself up from the bed to look out the window, he was surprised to see it gently snowing.

It was only Autumn, but it felt like mid-January. The snow was powdering the colorful leaves, and his thoughts drifted to Robotnik…

It seemed as if their little pause in time had resumed, and it became ever more pressing to reach his father.

"…"

Max shook his head and decided not to bother with worry, electing to ready himself for what was to come.

Moving over to the closet, he opened it to see the mirror, after which he began slowly dressing in a copy of his beautiful attire.

It took longer than usual with only one arm, and despite now looking presentable again, he found the flappy sleeve of the coat strange with no arm in it.

As he scrutinized his looks, he thought it possibly appropriate to look even more presentable. Afterall… He hadn't seen his father in over ten years…

Max quietly bent down and went deep into the back of the cluttered closet. After a moment or two of rummaging, he dragged out a moderately large trunk with his right hand.

He knew he wasn't supposed to wear such things save for a royal special occasion, but the prospect of seeing his father again made it seem like there was no other occasion so wonderous.

Lifting the lid of it, he was greeted with a fancy longsword inside a decorative red and gold scabbard. Pulling it out, he rested it on his bed and then gathered the rest of the clothes.

A fancy cape and sash adorned with royal blue and turquoise, a pair of pristinely new boots, donning straps, and gold buckles. Finally, a pair of fancy brown gloves looked like those of nobility rather than cheap leather.

Max stood up and slid the gloves into his pocket with his hand, then sat down so that he could carefully put on his boots and strap them.

After that was ready, he carefully attached the sash and cape to his clothes with the available golden clasps. Finally, he stood in the mirror, and with the cape and other miscellaneous accessories, he honestly looked like an actual prince.

All the stunning reds, golds, blues, browns, and turquoise blended together to create a matching outfit that was as jaw-droppingly gorgeous as it was elegant.

The cape was somewhat long on him but brought the outfit together and was probably his favorite addition.

Satisfied, he looked down at the sword but decided that to handle it safely and test out its feel, he would need his arm back first…

Returning from his excitement over his clothes, he decided it was time for him to see Nicole.

Nicole….

Max's refocus on her made him feel jittery, and as he looked himself over in the mirror with one last glance, he couldn't help but wonder if she'd "like it."

Max opened his door with little else to do and walked out into the fridged cold.

The world was becoming white slowly, and it was strange to see it mixed with the beautiful Autumn hue. Almost like spattered paint on a blank canvas, ready to be filled in.

The walk was short to Rotor's, and all the while, he felt confident, but the second he walked into the shop and Nicole looked at him, he felt his knees go weak.

"Ah… I see you have… Accessorized your outfit." Nicole said, noticing Max's additions.

Max nodded shyly and wandered over to sit next to her without speaking.

When Nicole continued to stare at him, curious about his strange behavior, he blurted out what was in his head.

"So… Uh… Do you like it?"

Nicole blinked, and then eyed him over. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to say, but after pushing aside notions of the practicality of the outfit, she spoke on what her "feelings" told her.

"I… It looks beautiful on you."

Max grinned but quickly looked away so she couldn't see his dopy face.

Nicole blinked again, and rather than scrutinize him any longer, she decided to get down to actual business.

"So, my task has been completed, and I have found a method to help you combat the advanced threats. It required complete modification of your hand and will also require you to undergo injection of code to your brain."

Max looked over at her, and when she saw he was attentive, she quietly pulled his modified arm from beneath the table.

The arm looked relatively similar, though the scratch had been taken out of it by Nicole, and his arm seemed to contain a screwed-on removable panel. Even more than that, the hand had been completely reworked.

The palm contained what seemed to be a disk-like indentation that moved inward until the center, where a small, black lens that almost resembled an optical device was.

The back of the hand had a minuscule, barely elevated device mounted into it. One that had three lights next to one another but contained no power.

"That's… Interesting." Max said, unsure how to feel seeing a piece of his body completely overhauled.

Nicole quietly came over and pulled up his sleeve, after which she began reattaching the arm. It only took mere minutes to have it fully on again, and the second she let him know she was done, he moved it to make sure it worked.

"Ah… This still works great, Nicole." He complimented her work and began curling his fingers towards the optical center.

Nicole smiled at him when he looked at her, and he got a rush of pleasant feelings. She turned away and returned to attach the neural scanner to his head like she had done with Lupe that night.

"Don't worry, I have adjusted the power adequately. I think there will be little to no adverse effects." She said.

Max nodded and responded. "I trust you, Nicole…."

With that, Nicole went over to the computer and began typing. The device powered up, but unlike before, there was only a slight ringing in his ears and a brief pain in his head.

"Ah!" Max yelped in surprise.

Nicole came over and examined him, after which she grabbed his metal hand.

The gesture confused Max, and he immediately interpreted it as a romantic gesture.

"Ah… Nicole, um…"

Nicole looked at him worriedly and seemed puzzled by him.

"Are you in pain?" She asked.

Max glanced down at her hand grasping his, and the sight was to his liking, but in looking. He saw that there was a cyan light now lit on his hand.

He now understood why she grabbed him, so he simply decided to get up to show her he was ok. "No, I am fine, see… I am sorry, I just have a lot on my mind right now…."

Nicole seemed to understand, and nodded. "Yes, your father returning must have you quite nervous…."

She was very astute to recognize that, but ultimately, she was wrong. The main thing preoccupying his mind at this moment was her.

"Yeah…" Max eventually said after a bit of thought.

Nicole quietly walked away and grabbed something, then she offered it to Max when she stood before him.

When he took it into his right hand, it appeared to be some sort of metal tube, but upon closer inspection, he could see it was one of the M-K infiltrator's weapons.

As he scrutinized it, Nicole merely took it from him again and placed it in his left hand instead of his right.

"Think about it working…." Nicole instructed.

The second he thought of the sword working, the energy sword activated, drawing out the long, heated blade. Unlike the robot's, though, the blade was tinted a greenish shade that gave an almost cyan appearance to the weapon.

"I… this is incredible…." Max marveled at the sight.

Nicole nodded. "Once it is activated, it can only be deactivated by your thoughts while holding it in your left hand."

Max curiously switched the blade to his right hand, and sure enough, it stayed active. No amount of thinking turned it off while not in his robotic hand.

He returned the sword to his left hand, and it instantly de-activated. Now that it was safely off, he gently placed it on the table.

"This is just what I needed, Nicole," Max said excitedly.

Nicole shook her head and pointed toward his robotic hand. "That isn't all… I have given you the ability to create a shield-barrier of concentrated energy, just think of creating a shield, and it will make the shape you want, where you imagine it."

Max held up his left hand, and the instant he thought of a standard knight's shield, a cyan energy barrier was erected in the shape of a shield in the place one would normally be held.

As he held the shield longer, he saw the cyan light on his hand blink slowly. Not sure of what that meant, he quickly stopped making the barrier.

"This is incredible, Nicole… Unbelievable… Are there any limits to the size and shape of the barrier?" Max asked.

Nicole shook her head. "No… There are just physical ones…."

Max was uncertain what that meant, and now that Nicole had his attention again, she decided to explain how this actually worked.

"I changed the energy of your weapons to a different frequency than that of Robotnik's robots, so they will cancel each other out and work much the same way standard swords and shields do against one another. However, the energy shield you possess can negate all types of physical, electrical, and energetic damage as long as you can hold it."

"Hold it?" Max said, confused, which prompted a response from Nicole.

"Yes… You see, you are not a robot, and robots have an external power source from which they draw for their weapons. I needed to circumvent this by rewriting data in your brain to use your own biological energy instead." She said.

Max felt nervous and shook his head. "So, what does that exactly mean?"

Nicole sat down and started typing on the computer and then responded. "It essentially means you will be starving your body of energy from the food you eat to create that barrier. The sword uses very little energy to activate, but excess use of that barrier will likely result in severe consequences."

Max looked at his hand and then responded. "Like… Death?"

Nicole stopped typing and stared at Max as she spoke. "Death, coma, organ failure, blindness, and any number of consequences that arise from drawing biological energy away from natural biological process. That is why I installed that warning system on your hand. Once the light turns red, you are irreversibly damaging your body in some way."

"I see…" Max said, feeling the weight of the cost of this device.

"I theorize that your body will acclimate and you will be able to use the barrier for longer as you practice with it, but even running it into the yellow light will result in a plethora of short-term consequences, some of which include fatigue, dizziness, excess weight-loss, and physical illness." Nicole finished her dire warning.

Max grabbed hold of the hilt of the energy blade and placed it through his belt loop, then he nodded. "I understand… I will be careful… and thank you for doing this for me."

Nicole merely nodded, and he turned away from her. It was apparent she was scared of putting this in his hands, but ultimately, if this was the cost of victory, so be it.

"…"

As Max left the workshop and returned to his hut, he was left with a certain discomfort with the level of power he now had. His desire to use it carelessly was great, but any one of the repercussions suffered would be excessively difficult to deal with on an emotional level.

Looking at his hand, he thought of a shield, and sure enough, it appeared in the position on his body he imagined. Raising his hand, he imagined a bubble around his entire body; sure enough, it was enacted, surrounding him in cyan light.

The mere use of that shield shifted the light to yellow, and Max quickly stopped it. He heaved in some air and found himself a tad tired.

"Ah… I see…" Max said to himself as he staggered slightly over to the chest he'd left open.

He reached in and picked out the fancy belt, then undid his, letting the energy hilt and old belt fall to the floor. Max placed the fancy belt onto the bed and then examined the last contents of the box, which were various holders for the scabbard of his sword.

After some thought, he chose the one that would set comfortably by his tail. He attached the fancy belt to himself, and using the mirror, he secured the holder, slipping his tail through the space between the straps and the holder itself.

Once he was sure he had it in position, he tightly secured the fancy sword, leaving it to hang below his tail at the top of his butt.

"…"

With the hilt protruding at a slight diagonal from under the cape and hanging leftward, it was effortless for his left hand to grasp the handle.

With a quick motion, he drew the blade, held it as if it were a dagger, and then twirled it so that he wielded it correctly.

The sword was possibly the last heirloom left from the Acorn treasury and supposedly a gift from nebulous "sky people," though, in all likelihood, it was just a grandiose myth to give it value.

Still, it was made of a peculiar metal and was decoratively crafted, with the hilt dawning a reasonably significant hole. It looked as if some sort of gem or crystal could fit into it but likely had been lost over time.

Satisfied, Max twirled the blade so that it was facing the opposite way and slid it behind himself until the handle was just protruding out from the cape again.

He turned, reaching into his pockets to pull out the gloves, and found that they fit pretty well due to their oversized, fancy nature.

Max reached down and grabbed the energy hilt with his left hand, then thought about it activating, and sure enough, it did despite the gloves on his hands.

With a smile, he deactivated the sword and slid it tightly onto the left side of his belt.

Now fully ready, Max walked out the door and stared across Knothole blanketed in snow.

Max felt deep down that he would succeed, and as he walked toward his next destination, he spoke aloud confidently.

"Tails… Father… I'm coming for you…."

…

…

…

…

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

"Sonia!" Max called.

There was the sound of shuffling in her hut, and after a moment, she groggily opened the door. Upon seeing her brother all made up, she kind of smiled.

"Whoa, lookin' sharp, bro…." She said and then glanced around at the snow.

"Damn, it's cold as hell already? Sheesh…"

Max maintained his calm, serious expression, and once Sonia got the hint, she spoke to him.

"Alright, bro, so what's up?"

Max took a deep breath and then spoke honestly to her. "Sonia… I don't know what I will face when going after father, but I think it is your right to come if you desire."

Sonia scratched her head, surprised he would offer her voyage on such a potentially dangerous trip, but ultimately understood why.

"Are you sure, bro…?"

Max nodded. "He is your father as much as he is mine, so it is your right to come… Though, if you do, I expect you to listen to me."

Sonia seemed unsure and then ran her sock along the door frame. "I dunno' I should probably ask Bunnie and Antoine."

With barely a thought, Max responded coldly. "Fuck them… I'll not let them stand in the way of this."

Max was making sense, and she knew they'd try to stop this, or at the very least, her.

After a brief moment of thinking, Sonia smiled at him, grabbed hold of her mother's vest, and put it on, after which she grabbed her shoes and backpack. "Sorry, I don't have anything fancier…." She said.

Max chuckled slightly and shook his head. "I know you do, but I also know you hate dressing up."

"Bah, whatever, bro…." She said, closing her door and joining Max in the snow.

"Just give me a few to get supplies… I'll be back fast… Are you heading to Rotor's?"

Max nodded and then responded. "Get a lot of food and water… Whatever else you need…."

Sonia gave him a solute, and as he turned away from her, she grabbed hold of a snow-covered stick from the ground. It would be perfect for nabbing a power ring after raiding some food.

Once the two went their separate ways, it was only a few moments until Max made it back to Rotor's shop.

Upon entering, Nicole was seen messing with a device she had strapped to her wrist, and Snively was by the rift gate examining the lit keypad.

"Ah… I see you are here… Good, the device is ready for you to go whenever you want to." Snively said and moved to the side to allow Max to view the entryway.

Max walked towards it and then responded. "I see, so what exactly do I need to know about where I am going?"

Snively ran his hand through his beard and then spoke. "The planet is unstable and likely could be wiped out at any moment due to the solar system collapsing. Though, given the sheer amount of time it takes for such things to occur, 'any time' could be thousands of years from now."

Max didn't like the sound of that but figured he would take his chances if it meant rescuing his father and retrieving Tails from Radcliff. "I see… Is there anything else?"

Snively nodded. "Yes, the planet is perilous. It contains many experimental robots and hostile alien lifeforms. My uncle even created a roving machine of utter destruction that has been there for multiple years… You must absolutely avoid it, or it will obliterate you."

Max nodded, feeling his confidence waver slightly, but before he could speak. Sonia came crashing into the building with a full backpack.

"I am here, people!" She exclaimed as she took her place next to her brother.

"Well, I was explaining to Max how dangerous…." Snively opened his mouth as if to re-explain things to Sonia but was cut off by her.

"Yeah, yeah, my bro can handle that, so what are we doin' exactly?"

Snively scratched his bald head, then spoke as Nicole came over. "I have given the robot a device that will hone in on Mobian life forms, allowing you to locate anybody with that biometric signal. The device will also allow you to return from that place at your own will."

Nicole nodded. "I have decided I am coming to aid you. Having checked over the device myself, he speaks the truth."

Max eyed her; truthfully, he felt scared for her, as he did for his sister. Unfortunately, though, Nicole was a great fail-safe if Snively tried to betray them, and Sonia deserved to be a part of this.

"…"

"I'm ready if you guys are…." Max said.

Nicole nodded quietly, and Sonia gave her brother a hug. "Alright, let's get dad!"

With the party displaying their readiness, Snively walked up to the machine and began to press numbers on the pad.

45869…

As soon as he entered them, the machine began to power on, and the empty space before them transformed into a portal roughly the size of a door.

It swirled and moved mesmerizingly, and as Max stepped towards it, he heard Snively speak.

"Be careful…"

Max glanced over and nodded. "Thanks, Snively…"

Despite himself, Snively smiled at the appreciation and quietly observed them as they each disappeared into the looming portal.

Once there was no trace left, he shut the machine down and sat at the table. He was alone and could do anything he wanted…

Thinking on it, he realized it was not an oversight but a sign of some sort of earned trust. Even though there was a part of him that thought of betrayal, he decided he would get more joy out of waiting for Lupe so that he could restore her to working order.

"…"

Wrap-up: Well, I really enjoyed writing this one, especially being able to go crazy creating new fantastical things in a new world.

I also really feel bad and sad for the things I make my characters feel and think. Probably why I get so invested in reading it when I edit.

Anyway, lots more to come.