"Urgh… my head…" Sonic muttered to himself as he picked himself up. The rubble beneath his sneakers shifted, causing the azure hedgehog to stumble to the ground. "Uh… I hope we managed to stop Eggman this time… I swear, he and I are going to have words next… next time we… What the–?" His breath stalled when he opened his eyes and witnessed the surrounding environment.
Ruined buildings, toppled skyscrapers, and broken-down homes littered the landscape. The area was in the middle of being reclaimed by nature, moss and vines covering and growing on top of the abandoned ruins. Sonic let out a sigh as he placed his fists on his hips. At the very least, he could take some solace in knowing that the entire world wasn't in flames.
"Where the heck am I?" Sonic muttered, his shock slowly turning into confusion. He scratched behind his ear as slowly walked around, turning his head and examining the ruined cityscape that lay before him. With a short jog, he ran towards the heart of the city, wondering if anybody happened to live there. Unfortunately, all he found was rubble, skeletons, broken robots.
"Hmm…" Sonic grabbed a nearby stick and poked the shattered robot with it. Multiple bullet holes peppered the armor of the robot, and from the looks of it, they managed to tear through all the way to the other side. "Huh. Not even GUN's weapons were this powerful," he muttered jokingly, smiling slightly to himself. He tossed the stick away and rapped his knuckles against the metal.
"These definitely look like Eggman's…" Sonic muttered as he heard the metal reverberate from the small impacts. Though the metal did sound slightly… off, to some extent. Like it wasn't made out of the same material. Sonic, of all people, would know what EggTech sounded like; he's been breaking the doctor's robots ever since he was twelve.
Sonic scratched his chin. He slipped one finger underneath the bullet and pulled, ripping off a large sheet of metal and revealing the machine's insides. Hidden deep in the center and covered in a mass of wires was a clear, spherical container that contained a small red gem inside; it was as small as a shard of class. Sonic dug the container out of the robot. The wires snapped as he pulled the core free.
"It's a Chaos Drive. Or supposed to be one, at least." Sonic realized. With the power of the container no longer being diverted to the machine's broken parts, it was free to flow out. The familiar sensation covered Sonic, making him feel slightly more energetic. "It's like someone tried to make a knock-off Badniks powered by knock-off Chaos Drive." Sonic looked at the broken shell of the robot and started cleaning its armor, looking for some sort of logo that he could easily identify. Unfortunately, he found nothing. "So, if Eggman didn't make them, who did?"
The hedgehog was pulled away from his thoughts when he heard something chittering behind him. His ear twitched, and Sonic crushed the core in his hands, allowing the Chaos Energy to shoot into his body. Feeling a bit more energized, Sonic did a couple stretches as he heard gunshots coming from a nearby building. He waited until the bullets were a few feet away before he sprang into action, leaping over them with little issue and landing on a crumbling balcony.
"Sorry, I'm gonna have to take a raincheck," Sonic smirked as multiple robots emerged from the ruined buildings. There were swarms of them; insectoid robots crawling out of small crevices. Their eyes glowed a malicious red, much darker than the red the faulty Chaos Drives produced. "I'd love to stick around, but I have some friends to find." More robots began to fire. Sonic yawned as he fell over the balcony. He turned around as he fell watching with a bored expression as the ledge he was just standing on fell apart from the bullet storm.
"Wow, so rude," Sonic snarked, a cocky smirk crossing his muzzle. "You guys don't make very good hosts, do you?" He curled into as he landed, and as he touched the ground, he took off like a rocket. In a few seconds Sonic blazed through not-Badniks, each one shattering and crumpling under the force of his Drop Dash.
"Sayonara! Hope to see you never!" Sonic laughed, he shrugged the soot and charred metal bits off his shoulder. He looked to see the streets, hoping that it would give him some clue as to where he was. His easy-going smile tightened when he saw that the words on the green signs were in Korean.
"Huh… I didn't think the Death Egg was over this place," Sonic muttered. Being one to travel all over the world, he of course knew how to speak Korean. He might be a bit rusty, but at the very least he'll be able to speak with the locals. "If I can find 'em that is," He said darkly.
Pushing that morbid though aside, Sonic reached underneath his gloves and turned on the communicator attached to his wrist. "Hopefully, the street layout hasn't changed too much… Maybe I can make my way to the National Assembly and ask for directions," He said out loud as he turned on Google Maps. He narrowed his eyes in annoyance when he couldn't connect to any nearby satellites.
"Really?" Sonic muttered. He slowed down to a crawl and tapped the screen of his device. "Whaddya mean, 'no connection!' What does this look like, a desert?" With an agitated growl, he smacked it against the nearby railing, but the only thing that he succeeded in doing was cracking the screen. "C'mon…" Sonic muttered as he entered the settings and swapped from satellite to peer-to-peer connection.
"Hey, can anybody hear me? Tails? Shadow? Whisper?" He said into the speakers. "Guys, I'm kinda lost right now. Vector? Gemerl? Anybody?" With an exaggerated huff, Sonic placed his hands behind his head and let out a long groan. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head in defeat. "Well, at least I know they can take care of themselves…" Sonic muttered. "The majority of them, anyways."
Just as he was about to turn off his comms, the speakers started to let out a horrible screeching sound. His ears flattened on his from the sudden, unholy screech coming from, but at the same time, it caused his heart to soar. "Nice!" Sonic exclaimed. Now he knows that at least one of his friends is close by. He just needed to find them.
"Alright then, where's the signal strongest at…?" Sonic muttered. He raised his arm into the air and started walking around in circles. Turning towards the ruined city, Sonic's ears twitched as the static cleared up by a miniscule amount. It wasn't much, but hey, a lead is a lead.
"So, back into the city I go, huh?" A wide smile appeared on his face as he dropped to the ground, ready to take off. "Alright then. Here we… GO!" Sonic took off a steady pace of 750 miles an hour and jumped off the bridge, the speed and power of his legs launching him right into the heart of the abandoned city.
"I apologize for calling all of you here on such short notice. However, we've been informed of some rather… concerning developments."
Deputy Chief Andersen stood on the opposite side of the conference table, adjusting the cuff of his suit as two of the Big Three sat on the opposite side. Ingrid, CEO of Elysion, sat with her arms crossed under her chest, glaring at Syeun. The CEO of Missilis did not pay attention to Ingrid in the slightest; her eyes were locked onto her phone as she scowled at it.
"Where is Mustang? I assumed he would be here as well," Ingrid asked, referring to the flamboyant CEO of Tetra.
"He had some business to attend to, and is currently unable to join us," Andersen explained. "I will personally inform him of these matters at a later date."
"Why is Mustang allowed to skip?" Syeun said with an annoyed growl. "I was attending to incredibly important matters myself! If this is something that will be discussed at a later date, I will happily–!"
"Unfortunately, we do not have that luxury," Andersen interrupted her. Syeun let out an offended scoff, which caused Ingrid to smirk. "What we are about to discuss is top secret. You are allowed to inform only one Squad from your respective company. There will be serious repercussions should any authorized personnel learn about this."
"Understood," Ingrid nodded thoughtfully. She already knew who she would be informing.
"...Alright," Syeun muttered. Like Ingrid, she already knew to tell. "So, can we get on with it now?"
"Of course. Be sure to inform Triangle of your choice by the end of day," Andersen reminded them. With that, he tapped a button on his desk and turned on a holographic screen. It depicted a wavelength moving around chaotically. It was never consistent; never stable. One moment, the wavelength and amplitude would be small and short, and other times, it would distort completely. It should shift, constantly, randomly, forming into a wavelength that it would never shift back to again.
"What is this? It looks like a child took a colored pencil and scribbled all over the screen," Syeun huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"What we are looking at is… unclear. At first I assumed that it was some Alva Particle variation, however, that was quickly ruled for obvious reasons," Andersen began. As he spoke, the wavelength soon took the exact same shape as an Alva Particle for a split second before changing into an unintelligible mess once more.
"What this energy is exactly is unimportant. From what our top scientists have gathered, this type of energy is similar in intensity to the cores of Rapture's, for lack of a better term. They theorized that this wavelength can somehow be contained and focused into a source of energy."
"Okay, great, so we found a new energy source," Syeun muttered impatiently. "Why is this being kept from everybody else? Why don't we just send a team to investigate and recover what's emitting this energy?"
"If only it were that simple," Andersen commented, drawing a confused glance from the two CEOs. "If this was merely like the readings we discovered from the energy plant, I would've already sent out a team to investigate. Unfortunately, this is impossible." The deputy chief tapped another button. The diagram of the wavelength was shrunk and moved to the corner of the screen, while a map of the world appeared in the center. "This wavelength was first detected in what used to be Ecuador."
"Ecuador!?" Ingrid shouted in confusion. "That shouldn't be possible. The Ark's sensors should only be able to detect energy 500 miles away from Seoul. How in the world are we detecting energy all the way from the Western Hemisphere!?"
"I'm afraid that's not all," Andersen continued. Multiple dots appeared on the world map, fourteen in total. "We've detected these strange places from all over the world. Russia, England, Canada, the Philippines, even Antarctica." As Andersen continued, the dots blinked away and reappeared in other parts of the world. "They're moving around rapidly as well. At the most, whatever's emitting this energy will stay still for approximately 10 minutes to 3 hours, before somehow warping away to another part of the world."
"That… that shouldn't be possible… It's not even just the fact that energies can reach us, it's that these readings move so quickly, and that we know where they are almost instantly!" Syeun pointed to the screen. "This one was in Nigeria of all places only a few moments ago! And now it's in the middle of Norway! This shouldn't be possible!"
"And this should be concerning. Given how these energy signatures move around the globe rapidly and randomly, it's possible they could fall into the hands of the Raptures," Ingrid noted, her face turning this. "I assume this fact is why you wanted to keep this under wraps?"
"Correct. Should the public ever learn about this, there will be mass hysteria. There's no doubt in my mind that the Heretics will soon learn of these energy signatures, if they haven't already," Andersen said gravely. "Once you have chosen your Squad, I want them to be on stand-by at all times. Should one of these energy signatures be detected close by, they are to be immediately deployed to that location and recover the source of energy signatures."
"I understand," Ingrid nodded.
"Fine," Syeun muttered.
"Good," Andersen told them. After a while, he stood up and began to readjust his cuff once more. "That will be all for today. I have a meeting in about five minutes. Be sure to notify Triangle once you've decided which Squad you want to assign to this mission."
Smoke and the sounds of gunshots covered the ruined city. Buildings toppled as a loud, animalistic roar caused the remaining windows to shatter.
In the center of the ruins, a large gray robot made of flesh and metal roared as it slowly bled out. Standing before the massive robot was a group of Nikke's and their Commander, each one taking cover behind a large chunk of rubble. The monstrous robot, Chatterbox, growled and roared as it swung its arms blindly, trying to strike back at an opponent it couldn't see.
"He's putting up a bigger fight than I thought," Mihara muttered to herself as she reloaded her assault rifle.
"He seems to be slowing down. I think he's just about done for!" Another Nikke, Anis, commented as she fired another bomb from her grenade launcher. The explosion landed on Chatterbox' forehead, causing the Rapture to reel back in pain.
Mihara laughed darkly, a sadistic glee in her eyes as she aimed her gun at Chatterbox's head. "Let's speed it up, then!" She laughed. The Nikke's of Counters and Wardress all fired simultaneously, and an endless barrage of bullets and rockets pushed the Rapture back.
"Exchanging senses…" Chatterbox muttered to himself as pain rocked his body. The monster snarled as he grasped onto one arm. With a heaving grunt, he dug his fingers into his own flesh and pulled, tearing out a chunk of his arm. Mihara's eyes widened in realization just before the incredible pain hit her like a truck. She gasped as she instinctively grasped her arm.
Chatterbox, meanwhile, laughed wildly as the Nikkes stopped firing. "It's delightful!" Chatterbox howled as he tore off more and more of his body. Mihara, who was normally able to handle some pain, dropped to the ground as she felt herself being torn apart from the inside out. "Destroying my own body… It's bliss! Ha ha ha ha! Come now! Feel my pain as your flesh is torn asunder! Let me see how long you last! Human imposters!"
Chatterbox reaches for his chest and rips out a large chunk of flesh metal. Mihara's eyes roll into the back of her head as she finally gives out and falls unconscious. Yuni looks at her shock, her eyes widened as Mihara trembles and twitches next to her. "Mi-Mihara!" She managed to say before she was knocked aside by Chatterbox's tail.
"When your vision is impaired, attack the previous location of your enemy. Understood, imposters!?" Chatterbox shouts with glee. The Tyrant-Class Rapture laughs demonically as he body begins to repair itself, any flesh he lost instantly growing back in an instant.
"Self-repair!? Raptures can do that!?" Anis shouts in annoyance as Chatterbox stomps towards them. It raises its fist and slams Anis into the ground, causing the ground to crackle around her. Its back was struck by the blast of a shotgun, and in response Chatterbox flicks its tail and slashes at Neon's leg. The Nikke stumbles as she grips her leg, allowing him to slap Neon into a nearby building.
"Lend me your ear. I mean you know harm," Chatterbox speaks loudly as he finishes his onslaught, his voice nearly sounding as though he was capable of rational thought.
"No thanks. I'm not in a listening mood," The Commander said back. He moved from behind his cover and ran towards the fallen Mihara, trying to avoid as many stray bullets as he could.
Chatterbox growls as his head snaps towards the direction of the Commander. "So be it," the Rapture growls. "No matter. Even if I have no limbs, my functions remain unaffected," Chatterbox growls. He smiles creepily and lunges towards the Commander, a hand raised to crush him.
But before he could, a red blur latched onto his back, knocking him off balance. The Commander looks up, and his eyes widen when he makes eye contact with Rapi pulling on the Tyrant's neck. The brief moment of surprise allowed the Commander to flee before Chatterbox could turn him into a bloody paste.
"What's this!?" Chatterbox growled as he tried to reach behind and pull Rapi away. "How can an imposter do this?" Rapi says nothing as she weaves between Chatterbox's grasp, her nails digging into her back to keep herself from falling. As she does, the Rapture pauses briefly and starts laughing again.
"I see… You're a fairy tale model, yes? Red Hood, I believe?"
"Shut up," Rapi says sharply, prompting another bout of laughter from Chatterbox.
"It really is my lucky day!" The monstrous robot shouts as he thrashes around, trying to throw Rapi away and crush her. The Nikke slammed her rifle into the monster's back, the barrel burying itself against the synthetic flesh. She pulled the trigger, and Chatterbox howled as multiple high-caliber bullets pierced through his body and burst out of his chest.
"Commander, go! I'll buy you some time, just get out of here!" Rapi shrieked as one of Chatterbox's claws managed to scratch her shoulder, creating a deep gouge.
"What are you, insane!? If we fight, then we're fighting together!" The Commander shouted back, his eyes watering slightly. After Marian, he couldn't bare to lose anyone else.
Rapi's expression grew somber. A grim smile appears on her face, but it quickly disappears. "We're in no condition to protect you anymore." The Commander stalls for a moment and turns around. They see Mihara on the floor as she twitches, with Yuni by her sighed and crying her eyes out as she begs for her partner to wake up. Over to the left he can see Anis coughing up blood as she tries to lift herself up out the crater. Neon is nowhere to be seen.
"Please, head back and tell the Deputy Chief that–!?" Before Rapi could finish, Chatterbox leaps up into the air and falls back down. He lands on his back, crushing Rapi between his body and concrete. As he lifts himself up, the Commander could barely see Rapi's crumpled limbs twitching slightly and the trembling rise and fall of her chest as she barely clung to life. Though, they could barely make out Anis' heart wrenching scream, since their gaze was locked onto Chatterbox as they smiled cruelly at them.
Chatterbox lunged towards the Commander and raised his fist. The wind began to howl as the Rapture moved forwards. The Commander scrambled backwards into an attempt to escape, though they were quickly covered by the Rapture's large shadow. Chatterbox slams his fist down.
"Commander!" Anis shouts as the ground trembles from Chatterbox's attack. Rapi's eyes widen in terror as dust picks up from the strength of the attack. Strangely, however, no blood or gore was sent flying. Chatterbox growls questioningly as he lifts his fist and looks down, but nothing is there.
"My, that's a pretty snazzy performance there!" The Nikke's and Chatterbox look up and the nearest pile of rubble. The Commander manages to peel their eyes open to see a small, blue and spiky… thing standing right next to him.
"What is this…!?" Chatterbox growls, slowly stomping towards the furry creature. "You dare to take my prey away, Hedgehog!?"
"You shouldn't play with your food, pal! You'll end up making a mess," The blue thing snarks back, crossing his arms as he looked down at Chatterbox. The glint in its green eyes displayed an overwhelming amount of confidence. Its expression rivaled Syeun's in pure smugness.
Chatterbox growls as the blue creature taps its foot impatiently. The Rapture grinded his teeth together so fiercely that sparks began to fly out of his mouth. The animal, a hedgehog according to Chatterbox, only sighed as he glared at him. The hedgehog disappeared in the blink of an eye to the surprise of everyone, and the very next moment, Chatterbox was sent flying. A foot-shaped imprint appeared in the center of the head.
Chatterbox roared as he tumbled rolled across the street. With a loud howl the Rapture slammed his hands into the ground to steady himself. His muscles twitched as the hedgehog walked down, a burning rage simmering down in Chatterbox's very being.
"Hedgehog… I have never seen you before…" The Rapture growled as he stomped towards the creature. "But I can but abhor your very existence. Everything about you drives me mad with rage!" Chatterbox howls. He charges forward, the ground shaking as ran forwards. The hedgehog only smirked as he saw the Rapture racing towards him, and it only grew wider as the monstrous came closer.
"Wait! You can fight that thing alone!" The Commander shouts, raising an arm to grab at its ankle. The creature moved much too quickly and had already jumped off the platform and landed on the ground before the Commander even moved an inch.
"Relax! I've faced uglier before!" The creature reassured him. The Commander started it blankly. Even as the floor rattled from Chatterbox's rage-filled charge, his smile and swagger didn't falter in the slightest.
"You guys get to safety. I'll handle this," The creature said in a calming voice, devoid of humor. Just as Chatterbox leapt into the air to attack, it turned around and revved up into a tight ball. Again, Chatterbox was blown back as the creature shot into the air and was slammed into its chest, dealing more damage than any present Nikke could do.
"Hedgehog!" Chatterbox snarled as he was kicked to the ground. The creature lands on Chatterbox's chest. He leans down, nose inches away from the Rapture's sharp teeth. The nose wrinkles from Chatterbox's abhorrent, disgusting breath.
"I think I have some breath mints on me. Want one?"
"HEDGEHOG!" Chatterbox screams as tries to grab at the creature. Smirking, it jumps away and Chatterbox gives chase, seemingly forgetting entirely about the Nikkes that just tried to capture him. "I'll pluck every bit of flesh from your bones! I'll rip you apart and swallow you whole!"
"How swallow me whole if I'm already in pieces? Seems like you dropped out of elementary school, pal." Chatterbox releases an enraged shout as the chase the Hedgehog ran away, leading the monstrous Rapture away from the group. Just as the Commander was beginning to process what the hell just happened, a white-hiared woman with a tattered cloak leapt down from… somewhere and cursed to herself, running after the two as they ran across the city.
! ! !WARNING! ! !
Boss Signal Detected
Sonic leaped through an old office building, crashing through desks and broken computers as he curled and spun inside the room. He bashed his shoulder through the fire escape and ran up the stairs. He landed on the helipad and rolled over to the west side of the building. The setting sun shone down on him as his shadow extended to the center of the pad.
The next building over, a pair of bright red eyes shone brightly. Followed by an enraged shout, Chatterbox leapt out of the window, causing the rest of the building to topple behind him. The large Rapture landed in front of Sonic and howled, spittle flying from its mouth as it screamed in rage.
[ EGG BARGHEST ]
Sonic smirked as Chatterbox lunged and swung his large, stocky arm in a wide arc. He easily ducked under the attack and the follow up swing from the other arm. As the second arm flew over his nose, Sonic reached up and grabbed one of the metal pieces on Chatterbox's wrist and was dragged along the arc of his swing. He let go at the apex and was sent flying into the air, before he dropped like a rock and slammed into Chatterbox's face.
Once his feet hit the ground, Sonic dashed forwards and struck Chatterbox in the chest. As the Rapture skidded across the floor, the Hedgehog kicked his feet widely and rapidly, sending pressurized blades of wind at the monster. Chatterbox howled as he swung his arm again, knocking away the Sonic Booms with ease.
The center of Chatterbox's left arm glowed red as he thrust his arm forward, firing a massive laser that was twice Sonic's size. The hedgehog in question side-stepped the attack, and jumped over when Chatterbox swept the laser back in his direction. Once the laser died down, Sonic revved up into a spin ball and dashed towards Chatterbox. With a howl, the Rapture charged forward and clashed his head against the spinning Sonic, knocking him towards the satellite dish.
Sonic uncurled and started running around the rim of the dish, quickly building up speed as his feet blurred into a figure eight. Chatterbox howled the missile launches embedded in his back burst out and took aim at Sonic, firing multiple explosives his way. Sonic boosted off the satellite dish with enough force to send it flying off into the distance. Covered in a light blue aura, time itself seemed to slow down as Sonic gathered up all the missiles Chatterbox launched into a tight ball. With all of them collected, he kicked the ball of bombs back at the robot.
A large explosion covered most of the helipad as Sonic landed. As time returned to normal for him, Sonic clapped his hands to remove the soot he collected on his run, and whistled a cheery tune as he was about to leave. Just as he was about to leap off, Sonic communicator sputtered to life. The hedgehog flinched momentarily from the sudden sound just as Chatterbox emerged from the dust cloud slightly damaged, and quickly regenerated any health he lost. With a swing of his, Chatterbox slammed the arm into Sonic's back, knocking his breath out of his lungs as he was sent flying.
Sonic yelled as he slammed into the reinforced window on a nearby skyscraper. It was strong enough to keep him from breaking through, so Sonic had to hold onto the ledge with his claws to keep himself from falling down. As he struggled to regain his breath, Sonic's eyes narrowed as he saw the visage of Chatterbox flying towards him. Sonic pushed himself and curled into a ball. His spines dug into the concrete of the wall as he revved up into a Spin Dash, allowing him to move away before Chatterbox crashed where he once clung to.
Sonic uncurled and ran across the walls, letting his own speed propel him upwards. His ears twitched as he heard Chatterbox breaking through multiple floors, windows shattering as the enraged Horizon Badnik chased from inside the skyscraper. The red glow of Chatterbox's arm cannon bled through the wall Sonic was running on, and as he quick-stepped, the red beam flew past him, the intense heat singing his blur fur.
Sonic frowned as the smell of burnt fur entered his nostrils. As Chatterbox powered up another laser blast, the hedgehog changed directions and ran down, jumping into the building through the hole the earlier laser made. He ran across the office floor and ran up the stairwell in record time. He found the holes Chatterbox made during his ascent and jumped through.
As Sonic jumped through, Chatterbox opened his large maw and lunged forward. Ever since he laid eyes on the rodent, an old piece of code seemed to have reawakened, old instincts returning to him. Despite never having encountered Sonic before, something inside him reaffirmed that Sonic would try to sneak behind and strike.
And he was correct. To an extent.
Upon seeing Chatterbox's poor attempt at consuming him, Sonic curled up into a ball, charging his Drop Dash. Sparks went flying as Chatterbox's teeth tried to chew and crush the hedgehog. However, Sonic's speed and sharp quills grinded against Chatterbox's dirty fangs. The more pressure Chatterbox applied, the more Sonic grinded away until there was practically nothing left.
Once Sonic made direct contact with the Rapture's jaw, he rushed forwards, hitting the back of his throat. Chatterbox's eyes glowed bright as he attempted to swallow the spinning hedgehog, but the further he forced Sonic down his esophagus, the more excruciating pain he had to endure as Sonic quills tore through synthetic flesh and metal. Chatterbox collapsed on the ground and writhed in pain as he tried dry heaved. Black liquid was spat out of the Rapture's mouth, and the monster banged his chest in an attempt to dislodge or force Sonic down into his stomach. The former occurred as Chatterbox landed a powerful blow to his own stomach, vomiting the hedgehog out of his throat and multiple puddles of synthetic blood.
Sonic landed on a collection of overturned desks and monitors, shivering as he felt the black liquid drip of his gloves and spines. "Urgh, gross…" Sonic muttered as he shook his body like a wet dog to rid himself of the mess. The smell persisted, however.
Once Sonic was clean, he leapt off the desks, and cracked his knuckles, ready to go another round with Chatterbox until his communicator sparked to life again. This time, he could hear a scratchy voice coming through the speakers. Although the sound was distorted, Sonic would always be able to recognize that voice, no matter how hard he tried.
"Tails!?" Sonic shouted, a smile growing on his muzzle he recognized the hum of the Cyclone in the background. His joy was short lived, however, as Chatterbox struggled to his feet and laughed cruelly.
"A friend of yours, rodent?" Chatterbox wheezed as blood trickled from his mouth. "How exciting. After I crush your legs beneath my heel, I'll flay him alive in front of you." Pieces of Chatterbox's armored face cracked off his skull, revealing six red, beady eyes stuck to his forehead, three on each side.
Sonic initially frowned at the Rapture's assertion. However, instead of making a snarky remark back, Sonic just rolled his arms and bounced up and down on his heels. A confident smile erased his frown as Sonic got into a rough and untrained fighting stance.
"Please. What makes you think you hold a candle to any of my friends?" Without giving Chatterbox a chance to respond, Sonic ran up to Chatterbox and began to run in circles. The Rapture let out an enraged shout as he blindly slammed his fists into the ground in an attempt to squash Sonic. On the fourth swing, however, Chatterbox's body was sent spiraling out of control. He hadn't even noticed that Sonic had created a small tornado around him. "Going up!" Sonic yelled as he grabbed Chatterbox's tail. The two were launched upwards, the Rapture howling in anger as he slammed through multiple floors.
Outside the skyscraper, the Cyclone flew over the ruined city as it fled from the jet plane. Sniper bullets clanked off the Cyclone back, causing the already damaged mech/car/jet plane hybrid to stutter in the air. Tails cringed as he pushed down on the controls, weaving through the tall skyscrapers and buildings to avoid further attacks.
"Alright, I received a signal from Sonic's communicator a while ago, so he should be around here somewhere," Tails muttered to himself as he hid the Cyclone behind an office building.
Just as he was about to turn on the radar for his Miles Electric, he could hear concrete ripping apart. Lifting his head, he could see a Blue Tornado tearing apart a nearby skyscraper. "There he is!" Tails cheered as he pushed forward, moving towards the blue-tinted storm.
Sonic lands on a piece of rubble as the Blue Tornado takes them higher. Chatterbox howls as he struggles to control his movement. With a small chuckle, Sonic Spin Dashes his way to flailing Rapture, only to get knocked away by his tail. As Sonic flew out of his storm, Tails flew by and grabbed onto his wrist, using his tails to maintain the Cyclone's current elevation.
"Finally, you showed up!" Sonic said as Tails hoisted him onto the back of his hybrid jet.
"Sorry! I didn't have the time to repair the Cyclone since we came here," Tails apologized, scratching the back of his head. "Plus, I think I'm being chased by the local government? At least, I think they're some form of government."
"Cool, you can tell me about it later," Sonic nodded. He pointed to flailing Rapture inside the Blue Tornado. "Right now, we need to destroy that guy."
"On it," Tails said as he flew to the enraged Chatterbox. His nose wrinkled as they did, and he turned to Sonic. The hedgehog looked back at him and raised an arm. After a quick sniff, he reeled back with a gag.
"Looks, it's been the day of all time," Sonic muttered. "Once we're done, we're heading to the nearest lake and taking a bath. Tails chuckled and nodded as he turned on Vulkan Cannon and flew towards the robot.
Chatterbox howled as he saw the Cyclone approaching. His back spikes jutted outwards and began firing multiple energy bullets at them, but Tails veered out of the way. As he barrel rolled, Sonic leapt from the hybrid jet and landed on a wide piece of rubble. He revved up a Spin Dash, and Chatterbox pointed his arm cannons at the hedgehog.
Before he could fire, multiple shots from the Cyclone's Vulkan Canon struck Chatterbox, completely destroying his forearms. Before Chatterbox could even process the pain. Sonic slammed into his chest, his quills slicing through multiple layers of flesh and metal. Sonic uncurled and kicked Chatterbox away, causing him to slam into another flying piece of rubble.
Howling, Chatterbox fired more missiles at Sonic, each of which were shot down by Tails. When the infuriated monster looked up to aim its rockets at Tails, Sonic homing attacked his head. Chatterbox's skull cracked from the force of the impact, snapping it in two. Chatterbox howled in pain as he tried to recover, but multiple shots from the Cyclone peppered his body with holes. Chatterbox brought his broken arms to defend himself, but Sonic blasted his defense away with a Spin Dash. Sonic uncurled and smirked at Chatterbox, landing a devastating axe kick a few seconds later, launching Chatterbox out of the Blue Tornado and down a skyscraper.
The force of the impact, mixed with Chatterbox's weight and the speed of descent caused the already shaky foundations to crumble completely. Chatterbox was buried underneath a veritable mountain of debris. Large chunks of concrete pierced through his body, each one weighing him down as he struggled to pull himself free.
"No… this can't be…!" Chatterbox grunted in pain as he struggled to dig himself out of the collapsing building. His self-repair functions struggled to keep up with the damage and pain he had been inflicted. Even though he savored pulling apart his own body moments ago, he despised the feeling now. "I was feared by all…! I killed those imposters! I've always won! How… How could I LOSE to a FILTHY RAT!?"
"That was your first mistake." Chatterbox eyes flickered as he looked up to see the silhouette of a smirking hedgehog. Green eyes sparkled as Sonic slowly walked, his jog turning into a sprint, slowly picking up speed as he broke the sound barrier. "I'm not a rat!"
Tails winced as a large fireball emerged from the center of the collapsing building. The explosion pushed the falling debris away, sending them flying into the nearby buildings. Sonic leapt out the explosion, carrying something under his arm. He landed on the same helipad from the start of the fight, smirking as he spun Chatterbox's decapitated head with one finger.
"I'm a hedgehog!" Sonic tossed Chatterbox's head into the air and kicked it. The head completely shattered from the force of the blow, and pieces went flying every which way, never to be seen again.
Sonic smiled to himself as the Cyclone moved beside him, hovering over the edge. He gave Tails a thumbs up, and the young fox returned his gesture.
"So, we're stuck in a completely alternate world we know nothing about, and we have to find our friends and the Chaos Emeralds in order to get back home?" Sonic asked casually. Tails nodded his head and smiled.
"Just another adventure for Sonic the Hedgehog!" Tails said. "Hope on! I've already set up a crude camp with Omega, since we've landed so close together. It's only a short flight away."
"Good, cause I am hungry. Are there any lakes that I can use for a bath?"
"Probably. Omega's scouting the area now, so we'll know when we get there."
"Works for me!" Sonic said. He walked towards the Cyclone confidently, a hand on his hip as he moved. But just as he was about to jump onto the jet's wings…
Sonic's eyes widened, as did Tails'. Looking down, Sonic saw a bullet buried in his hip, the sight causing an intense wave of pain nausea to rock his body. Sonic fell down from the roof, and Tails let out a horrified cry as pushed the controls down. The fox was knocked off balance when a rocket and multiple machine bullets crashed into the side of the Cyclone, severely denting the metal.
"No! SONIC!" Tails shouted as he tried to control the Cyclone's flight path. As he crashed into a nearby shopping mall, Tails leapt out of the cockpit and raced outside, flying as fast as he could to grab his surrogate brother. A cool hand grabbed onto the scruff of his neck, pulling him back before he leapt out of the building. "No! Let me go!" Tails said, thrashing his arms wildly as he tried to pull himself away. "I have to save Sonic this time!"
"Calm down," The owner of the voice told him. Tails calmed down and looked behind him to see a white-haired woman with glowing yellow eyes. Large weapons were strapped to her sides, and she was covered mostly in a tattered white cloak. The fit vaguely reminded him of Mecha Sonic.
"They're not going to kill him. Not yet anyways," The woman told Tails as she gently set him down on the floor. Tails looked at her, his expression unreadable as she walked up to the hole the Cyclone made as it crashed. Peering through, he could see the jet that was chasing him had landed next to Sonic. Three other women, a small girl with a rocket launcher, an older, brown-haired woman with a machine gun, and a cranky looking woman with a sniper walk out and surround him. Despite falling from the top of a multi-storey building, Sonic was still conscious. And cracking jokes at the woman's expense, based on the cranky-one's expression.
"Okay, and?" Tails responded hotly to the woman's early comment. She turned back to glare at him. "Sonic and I have been through a lot together. We've always had each other's backs, and I'm not going to let him down this easily ever again. I've broken into a military base before to rescue him, and I can do it again." He got into an amateurish fighting stance, looking into the woman's golden gaze with a look filled with determination.
"You're not lying, are you?" The woman said slowly. Tails didn't say anything, but the look in his eyes did. Sighing, the woman stood up and glanced at the Cyclone. "It looks strong, but I don't think it can handle taking an entire military base in that condition." Tails' expression faltered as he glanced back at the damaged Cyclone. He shook his head to calm himself, his mind racing as he came up with ideas and plans of attack.
"In that case, here's what we'll do!" Tails suddenly said. He walked up to the Cyclone and pulled out an extra communicator. He tossed it to the woman who caught it with ease. It was a bit small to fit across her wrist. "Can you follow them? While I repair the Cyclone, you can keep tabs on what the security is like and keep Sonic safe in case something bad happens!"
The woman glanced down at the small screen and turned it in her hand, examining it from all angles. Her yellow eyes glinted curiously, almost excitedly, as she admired the make of the device. "And what makes you think that I'll help you?" She asked in a cold voice, tightening her fingers around the object in her hands.
"Nothing, really, but I need your help. We know next to nothing about this world, and the more time we spend here, the less time we have to search for the Chaos Emeralds!" Tails explained. His expression shifted to one of embarrassment, and he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "Oh, sorry. I'm probably not making any sense to you, am I? It's a long story to be honest and–"
"You can tell me about it later," The woman interrupted. She attached the communication device to her cloak and looked at the hole again. Sonic had been loaded onto the jet that had been chasing Tails later, while the three armed women started to survey the area. "They're going to be looking for you, now that they have your friend captive. How long will it take to fix your jet?"
"I don't know. At a glance, most of the damage seems to be superficial, but I won't know for sure until I run a diagnostics. At the bare minimum, it should take… an hour, give or take. But that's only if I don't need to scavenge the area for parts." Tails explained.
"Understood. I'll keep them busy while you repair the jet. I'll let you know the moment I see an opening for you to rescue your friend," The woman told Tails. His eyes sparkled with joy at her assistance.
"Thank you so much! I promise I'll explain everything soon!" Tails said. As he was about to head back the Cyclone, he skidded and ran back to her side, looking up at her with curious eyes. "By the way, my name's Miles Prower, but friends call me Tails. What's your name?"
"Hello… Miles," The woman said slowly, waving a hand at him. "You can call me Snow White." She paused awkwardly, unsure of what to say next. "And… Thank you. Thank you for destroying Chatterbox, once and for all."
"Don't worry about it!" Tails said, giving Snow White a thumbs up. "Me and my friends might not be from around here and we might have been here for long, but as long as we're around, we'll do everything we can to help take back the planet!"
SONIC [SEGA]
Wind / Rocket Launcher / Attacker
Squad: Team Sonic [A group of incredible Islanders famous for battling Dr. Eggman. The have fought with the mad doctor ever since the beginning.]
Backstory: A free-spirited hedgehog that lives on South Island. Alongside his friends, he fights against the evil Dr. Eggman to keep the world from falling into his clutches.
CV: Roger Craig Smith (Eng) / Jun'ichi Kanemaru (Jp)
SKILLS
Normal Attack (Charge / 4 Ammo / .6s Reload):
Deals 125% ATK as damage.
Charge time: 6.1s
Full Charge Damage: 454%
Deals 300% damage when attacking core.
Skill 1 - Dash Spam
Activates when casting a normal attack without Full Charge 4 times. Affects Self:
-Charge Speed ▲ 12.56%, stacks up to 15 time(s) and lasts 12 sec. Charge Speed ▲ 5.31% for each additional stack.
Skill 2 - Phantom Rush
Activates landing 2 normal attack(s) within 3 secs. Affects self.
-Max Ammunition Capacity ▲ 3 rounds(s) for 15 sec. Reload time ▼ 12.77% for 15 sec. Explosion Radius ▲ 19.91% for 15 sec.
Activates when using Burst Skill. Affects all allies (except self).
-Saved Ya!: 32.67% chance to save an ally if they would be dealt damage greater than 45% of their current HP. Stacks up to 3 time(s) by saving allies. Chance ▲ 5.89% and HP Requirement ▼ 4.3% for each additional stack.
Burst Skill III - Light Speed Attack
Affects designated enemies (max 24, enemies can be locked on multiple times).
-Deals 200.6% of caster's final ATK to all designated enemies twice.
TAILS [SEGA]
Electric / AR / Supporter
Squad: Team Sonic
Backstory: A young boy who was kicked out of his village after he was born with a genetic abnormality. He learned to appreciate his two tails after meeting Sonic for the first.
VA: Colleen O'Shaughnessy (Eng) / Ryo Hirohashi (Jp)
SKILLS
Normal Attack (Normal / 75 Ammo / 1s Reload)
Deals 16.1% attack as damage.
Deals 200% damage when attacking core.
Skill 1 - Dummy Ring Bomb
Activates entering Full Burst. Affects all enemies.
-Spawns Dummy Ring Bombs continuously for 10 sec(s) (only 5 Bombs can exist on the field at a time.) Attacked Bombs explode. Deals 74.92% as damage, and stuns enemies engulfed in explosion for 10 sec(s).
Skill 2 - Lock-On Cannon
Activates when attacked 20 time(s). Affects all enemies.
-Core Radius ▲ 9.99% for 10 sec(s)
Activates when attacked 20 time(s). Affects all allies.
-Hit Rate ▲ 7.89% for 10 sec(s). Damage to Interruption Part ▲ 12.77% for 15 sec(s). Crit Rate ▲ 14.83% for 20 sec(s). Crit DMG ▲ 6.78% for 10 sec(s)
Burst Skill I - Cyclone Cannon
Affects self.
-Grants unlimited ammo for 25 sec(s). Gain pierce for 10 sec(s). 34.64% chance to stun core-struck enemies for 3 sec(s). Taunts all enemies for 7 sec(s)
Affects all enemies.
-ATK ▼ 3.48% for 10 sec(s) if stunned. DEF ▼ 5.76% for 10 sec(s) if stunned.
Affects all allies.
-ATK ▲ 15.67% for 15 sec(s).