AN: If you guys didn't notice, Team Chaotix referenced how they were unknowingly hired by Dr Eggman in the game Sonic Heroes at the beginning of the last chapter. Just thought I'd bring that up. Anyway, let's finally get started with the first round of the tournament. As is also obvious by the chapter title, I had to split this first round up into separate chapters since there was just so much that this would've been ridiculously long if I'd tried fitting all of the first round into a single chapter.
Ch 3: Round One Part One
The stadium is packed with people excited for the tournament to begin.
Sonic's friends have seated themselves in two rows in the front center of the long western side of the rectangular stadium's stands (Sonic himself and Blaze the Cat are absent due to being in place for the first match).
Cream the Rabbit smiles at her mother in the seat to her right. "Isn't this exciting?"
"Chao?" Cheese the Chao asks from their place on their friend's left armrest.
Vanilla the Rabbit nods. "I must admit I've been infected by the enthusiasm of everyone around us."
"Chao," Chocola the Chao agrees from their own place on the adult rabbit's right armrest. Cheese's twin is brown to their sibling's blue and wears a blue bowtie to compliment their twin's red.
Vector the Crocodile (on Cream's left) grins at his crush. "Yeah! And don't worry about anything from the arena coming to hurt you or your daughter, Ms Vanilla! I'll protect you both!"
"That won't be necessary," Tails says from his front row seat in front of Vector. He holds a hand out to Charmy Bee (sitting on the crocodile's left). "Can I have a bit of your popcorn?"
The bee clutches his bag tightly. "No! It's mine!"
Espio the Chameleon (on the kid's left) glances at him. "Charmy."
The little bee groans. He grabs a few pieces and hands them to Tails.
"Thank you," the fox says before turning and throwing the pieces towards the arena.
Just before the bits of popcorn can leave the stands, they seem to hit an invisible wall.
"Whoa!" Charmy shouts. "What just happened?!"
Tails smiles. "An energy shield stopped the popcorn from leaving the stands. I'm almost certain WanderCo had it installed both to keep the audience from attempting to interfere with any combatants and to protect them from getting hit by anything from the arena."
Vector pouts. 'Great. I can't be Cream and Vanilla's hero now.'
The little rabbit notices that the crocodile's unhappy. "I still appreciate the noble gesture, Mr Vector."
"Very much so," Vanilla agrees with a smile.
"Chao!" both present Chao chip in, the two quite fond of Vector.
The crocodile can't help but grin at this praise.
Tails hears Knuckles the Echidna (on the fox's left) growl. "What's wrong?"
The echidna points straight ahead. "Rouge."
Everyone looks to the opposite side of the stadium (the eastern side) to find the bat sitting directly across from them at the center of the front row. She waves to the group and gives them a wink. Rouge has Shadow the Hedgehog sitting to her left and E-123 Omega on her right.
"Don't let her get to you," Tails suggests to Knuckles.
"Team Hooligan's over at the northeast corner," Espio informs everyone.
The group turns their heads to search.
"We'll have to take your word for it," says Charmy.
"Hello," a girl's voice says in a singsong way.
The group looks to see Honey the Cat.
"What's up?" Amy Rose the Hedgehog asks from her seat two places to Tails's right.
The fashion designer smiles. "I had a private box with other business types, but I knew it would get so boring so quickly. That's why I gave my spot away to a fan who seems more of the business loving kind. Thought I'd find you guys to enjoy the show with." The yellow furred cat zeroes in on Silver (sitting on Knuckles's left) and the empty seat next to him. "Hey, Pretty Boy. Mind if I sit next to you?"
The white hedgehog puts a hand on top of the seat to his left. "Actually, this'll be Blaze's seat."
That annoys Honey a lot, but the black haired cat hides it well. Noticing there's an empty seat on Espio's left, she smirks. "Yo, Super Ninja. That seat taken?"
The purple chameleon blinks, confused by the nickname. "Uh…no."
Honey instantly vaults up to the second row and takes the seat. "Thanks."
Espio is admittedly impressed by the speed the girl showed with getting there.
Vanilla the Rabbit is glaring at the newcomer, the older woman having recognized her by the voice. 'That's the one who called asking to make Cream a child model. I didn't need to meet her in person to know she's an untrustworthy opportunist. My little girl may be the world's most beautiful young lady, but I'll never allow someone like you to take advantage of that for profit! I only hope the boys are sensible enough not to fall for such an obvious user.' Vanilla sees Honey eying all the age appropriate guys around her. When the black haired cat looks at Vector, a wave of anger courses through the rabbit woman. 'Stay away from him!'
Chocola the Chao is staring daggers at the girl that's upsetting Vanilla.
As music can suddenly be heard, Amy lets out a squee that distracts everyone from other subjects. "It's starting!"
"Welcome to the WanderCo Battle Tournament!" Wander the Goat announces through the loudspeakers. "I am your host, Wander the Goat. Today is the first round of the tournament. We will be witnessing sixteen competitors face off in the hopes of becoming the champion as well as taking home the grand prize…the seven Chaos Emeralds!"
The crowd cheers as the powerful gems are displayed on the screens.
"Let's get the first match started right away. Coming in from the north entrance, she's the Princess of the Sol Dimension who has power over fire…Blaze the Cat!"
The light purple cat enters, waving to the cheering crowd as she walks to the arena (all of her experience dealing with crowds in her own dimension as its princess helping immensely).
"Go, Blaze!" shouts Silver the Hedgehog.
"You can do this, Miss Blaze!" Cream the Rabbit calls out.
"Chao, chao!" Cheese the Chao echoes.
Honey the Cat rolls her eyes. 'Some princess. She's not even that pretty. Why's Silver so crazy about her that he's keeping a seat for her beside him?'
Wander continues. "From the south entrance, he's considered to be the hero of the planet with the power of super speed…Sonic the Hedgehog!"
The whole stadium goes nuts as the blue hedgehog shows up.
"I LOVE YOU!" some random girl in the audience calls out to Sonic.
Amy jumps up and summons her Piko Piko Hammer. "WHO SAID THAT?!"
Vanilla the Rabbit leans forward so that she can put a comforting hand on top of the pink hedgehog girl's shoulder. "Relax, Miss Amy. Mr Sonic doesn't care about that person."
The girl puts away her hammer and sits back down.
Honey the Cat is staring in shock. 'Note to self: Sonic's off limits. Crazy girl has called dibs and will go psycho on any threats to keep him.'
"A few rules before we begin," Wander the Goat announces. "There are two ways for an opponent to be eliminated. Either force them out of the arena or pin them down for ten seconds. You may knock your opponent unconscious, but killing is strictly forbidden. If they die, you will be disqualified. Now, are we ready?"
Blaze and Sonic place themselves at their designated starting points just a few yards from each other.
"I won't go easy on you, Sonic," says the light purple cat.
"Good," says the blue hedgehog. "It's more fun if you don't."
As the countdown starts, Eggman and Wander are viewing the proceedings from a private box.
The mustachioed scientist glances at the dark blue-green goat. "Do you really care about the loss of life?"
Wander holds the microphone he's using away from his mouth. "Not at all. This is all to avoid lawsuits from grieving or disturbed people that might force the tournament to be stopped." When the countdown reaches zero, the goat brings the mic back to his mouth. "Begin!"
Blaze quickly throws a fireball at Sonic.
The blue hedgehog instantly dodges and appears right beside the light purple cat. "Didn't you say you wouldn't go easy on me?"
Blaze smirks and uses her power to bring the fire back and aim at Sonic again.
The hedgehog loops around the outer edge of the arena, the fireball hot on his tail.
In the stands, Bean the Dynamite is cackling at these events. "I love it! What a beautiful explosion my bombs could make with that!" The psychotic green bird pulls out a bomb to make good on that.
As Bark the Polar Bear snatches the unlit bomb out of his cohort's hand, Fang the Hunter growls at Bean. "Don't make me put you in timeout!"
The short bird slumps down in his seat. "Aww."
In a different part of the stands, E-123 Omega's analyzing the fight going on in the arena. "Destructive capabilities of Blaze the Cat: Admirable."
Rouge smirks at Shadow. "Think Sonic might actually lose this one?"
The black hedgehog keeps his eyes on the fight. "He isn't allowed to lose here. I will be the one to defeat him."
Soon, Blaze decides to put an end to the chase by bringing the fireball back to herself and using it to create a ring of fire around her. Then, she makes it expand outward.
The whole crowd reacts as the fire hits the invisible shield and vanishes (Bean once again cackling and Honey the Cat silently deciding to not pursue Silver in a romantic capacity after this display of power).
Sonic, who jumped to avoid the fire, lands and smiles as he gets an idea. He starts to run in a small circle around Blaze.
Tails gasps as he realizes what his best friend is doing. "He remembered!"
"What?" asks Amy.
"I once told Sonic that fire can't survive without oxygen."
Espio smiles. "He's using his speed to create a vacuum to suck out the oxygen."
Honey eyes the purple chameleon. 'Pretty clever of this guy to figure that out so quickly. Shouldn't be surprised since he is a part of Team Chaotix.'
Silver's feeling worried. "Won't Blaze suffocate though?"
"Relax," Knuckles assures the time traveling hedgehog. "Sonic won't let it get that far."
In the arena, Blaze tries to create a fireball to throw at her opponent, but it disappears due to the lack of oxygen. The Sol Dimension's princess starts gasping for air.
Sonic instantly uses this to grab the light purple cat and throw her out of the arena.
Wander the Goat, having not expected such an abrupt end to the match, has to quickly get his mic and turn it on. "Blaze the Cat is out of bounds! Sonic the Hedgehog wins!"
Blaze stands as the crowd cheers, her ability to breathe quickly coming back. "Quite the clever tactic, Sonic."
The blue hedgehog smirks. "Just remembered something Tails told me before. That's all. Speaking of him…" He uses his speed to head back the way he came and get to his seat between Tails and Amy in an instant. "You've got this, little buddy."
The two tailed fox stands. "Yeah. I can take out Fang, no sweat. By the way, that was so awesome of you, Sonic."
Everybody else gets in on praising Sonic's win, followed by wishing Tails luck as the fox leaves for his fight.
Meanwhile…
Fang the Hunter gets up to head out for his fight against Tails.
Bean the Dynamite stands on his chair. "Use the tail, my Padawan!"
The purple jerboa ignores the reference he doesn't understand and focuses on the tail part. "Not happening."
"Come on! It'll be fun!"
"It's embarrassing."
"They won't know what hit em!"
Fang glares at the short green bird. "I need our clients to take me seriously. If I ever use my tail, that won't happen. End of discussion." The jerboa leaves as Bark the Polar Bear covers Bean's mouth to keep the short bird from pouting very loudly.
Meanwhile…
Blaze is slowly making her way back to the others. She's surprised when Silver meets up with her halfway. "What are you doing here?"
The white hedgehog gives the light purple cat a comforting smile. "I know you. You've already started to beat yourself up over the loss, even if you're trying to get over it by saying that Sonic's a great warrior."
Blaze lets out a slight laugh. "It's amazing how accurate you just were. That still doesn't change that I have poorly represented the Sol Dimension and my capabilities as its protector and princess by losing in the first round."
"Listen, you may not have won, but you and Sonic were a heart stopping introduction for this tournament. That's something no one can take away from you."
"How do you know what to say to put an end to my self criticism?"
"I don't know. Lucky guess? A surprise gift I have?"
The two laugh as they head back to the others.
Soon…
As soon as Wander gets word that the next fighters are all ready, the dark blue-green goat turns his microphone back on. "Attention. It's now time for the second match of the WanderCo Battle Tournament. Coming in from the north entrance, he's a mercenary who's currently on the payroll of Dr Eggman…Fang the Hunter!"
As the purple jerboa walks into the arena, he gets booed by the crowd. "Ah, shut up!"
Honey the Cat frowns. 'Too bad that Fang guy's personality is complete dirt. He's pretty good looking for an older guy and that giant tooth is kind of exciting.'
Eggman glares at Wander. "Did you have to reveal he's working for me?"
WanderCo's CEO smirks while holding the mic away from his mouth. "It adds dramatic tension for the audience when they know you're in the mix, as indirectly as it may be." The goat gets back to announcing. "From the south entrance, he's a young fox with twin tails which allow him to fly and an intellect that rivals Dr Eggman…Miles 'Tails' Prower!"
The whole stadium cheers for the boy genius.
Once Tails reaches his designated spot, he glares at Fang. "We won't let Eggman get the Chaos Emeralds!"
The purple jerboa snorts. "Big talk from a little kid."
"Before we begin," Wander the Goat's voice announces. "I should take time to mention a rule concerning flying. You may use your ability to fly, but there's a height limit in place. If you go more than twenty feet high, it will be considered a ring out and your opponent shall be named the winner. Now then, let's start the countdown."
As the countdown starts to flash on the stadium's screens, Fang flexes his fingers over his blaster while Tails has his two tails spinning.
When the countdown hits zero, Wander shouts, "Begin!"
Fang pulls out his blaster and fires.
Having seen this coming from miles away, Tails jumps up and flies off, avoiding the laser blast completely.
The jerboa growls and fires more shots.
The flying fox dodges all the laser blasts with ease.
"Look at him go!" Charmy Bee shouts to the others in the stands.
"Go, Tails!" Amy Rose cheers.
Vanilla the Rabbit has a hand over her heart. 'Oh my. That criminal is firing at young Mr Tails. I hope that boy can win this, not just for his own sake. I couldn't bear it if my dear Cream had to face that horrid man.' The older rabbit smiles as Chocola the Chao pats her arm.
Unknown to everyone else, Tails isn't just dodging Fang's laser blasts. His brain's noting how long it takes for the jerboa to aim his blaster again after each shot. 'By my calculations, my opening should be right about…'
Fang misses another shot, aims again, and places his finger on the trigger.
'…NOW!" Tails rushes at the purple jerboa, dodging the next laser blast in the process. The flying fox head butts the mercenary in the gut, sending him back a good few feet.
"YEAH!" Vector the Crocodile shouts with glee.
"Don't let up, Tails!" Silver the Hedgehog advises the young fox.
Fang's blaster is now on the ground after the head butt, so Tails grabs it and throws it out of the arena.
"NO!" Fang screams out. Without his precious blaster, the big toothed jerboa's severely handicapped.
"You've got him now!" Knuckles the Echidna shouts to Tails.
The match quickly becomes very one sided with Tails hitting Fang and backing off before the jerboa can hit him back. The fox is steadily forcing his opponent to the edge of the arena.
Blaze the Cat, now sitting beside Silver on his left, stands up. "Tails, deliver the finishing blow!"
Fang's just now realizing he's losing a fighting tournament to a child who hasn't reached double digits yet. Not only is that embarrassing, but it also makes him lose credibility in the eyes of potential future clients. That's much worse than any issues the jerboa has with using his tail's ability. So, he twists his tail into a spiral shape.
Espio the Chameleon's the only one who notices. "Fang's up to something."
Honey the Cat realizes what's about to happen thanks to the warning. "Uh oh."
As Tails is flying in for the final hit, Fang falls back onto his now spring shaped tail. The purple jerboa then springs forward, a loud 'Boing' sound accompanying it, and knocks the young and unsuspecting fox out of the air.
"YAY!" Bean screams as he jumps onto Bark. The little bird hangs off the polar bear's scarf, choking the poor guy. "He listened to me!"
Before Tails can get back up, Fang pins him. He has a hand forcing the young fox's face into the ground, a foot pressed down on Tails's back, and his free arm holding the kid's two tails to keep them from being used.
"Mr Tails!" Cream the Rabbit calls out in despair.
"Chao!" both Cheese and Chocola the Chao cry out.
As Eggman celebrates this turn of events, Wander the Goat starts counting to ten.
"Get up, Tails!" shouts Knuckles the Echidna.
"Don't let it end this way!" Vector the Crocodile exclaims.
Tails struggles and struggles to free himself from Fang…all the way until Wander reaches ten.
"That's a knockout!" the CEO announces. "The winner is Fang the Hunter!"
The purple jerboa puts a fist in the air as the crowd boos him.
Bean the Dynamite's grinning maniacally. "Celebratory explosions!" He pulls out a pair of bombs, but Bark the Polar Bear grabs them before they can be lit.
Sonic speeds down to the arena and helps Tails up. "You okay?"
The two tailed fox is frustrated and embarrassed. "I almost won, Sonic. I had Fang beat, but I let him take me by surprise."
"It's not your fault. I forgot his tail could do that, it's been so long since he used it." The blue hedgehog glares at Fang, the purple jerboa smirking at him as he gets his blaster back. "We won't let that guy get any farther."
In the stands, Knuckles the Echidna sighs as he gets up for his fight with Rouge the Bat.
"Good luck," Amy Rose encourages the red echidna.
"Please win this," Espio the Chameleon pleads. "I have a bet with Vector going and I've chosen you."
The green crocodile laughs. "He won't be able to handle fighting his girlfriend."
Knuckles turns to Vector with a growl. "That bat's not my girlfriend!" He stomps away.
Honey the Cat glances at Espio. "So…is this Rouge girl Knuckles's girlfriend or not?"
The purple chameleon shrugs. "See them interact and decide for yourself."
Meanwhile…
Rouge the Bat lazily gets up with an eager smirk.
"Remember what I told you last night," Shadow the Hedgehog says without even looking at the bat.
"You worry too much. I'll beat that gullible echidna and have fun messing with him too. A win-win situation. See you in the next round."
After Rouge has left, E-123 Omega brings out a flag with the bat's face emblazoned on it and robotically waves it.
Soon…
Wander the Goat is notified that the next fighters are ready and preps his mic. "The third match is now upon us! Coming in from the north entrance, he's a citizen of the legendary Angel Island with spiked fists…Knuckles the Echidna!"
The red echidna walks out attempting to be stoic, but the audience's cheers put a smile on his face and he raises a fist into the air to pump them up even more.
"Go, Knuckles!" shouts Amy Rose the Hedgehog. "You can do it!"
While the others cheer for the echidna too, Tails is still stewing over his own loss. When he's given a comforting shoulder pat from Sonic, the young fox is able to get over his depression enough to pay attention to the goings on in the arena.
"From the south entrance," Wander continues. "She's a government agent who's off time is spent as a renowned treasure hunter…Rouge the Bat!"
A majority of the cheers coming from the crowd are from men attracted to the voluptuous bat. They get wilder as Rouge saunters out, winks, and blows kisses to the crowd.
Honey the Cat rolls her eyes. 'This girl's only exciting the guys in the crowd for attention and to swipe treasure off any real gullible ones. At least I go for guys I'm actually attracted to.'
Vector the Crocodile smirks at Espio the Chameleon. "You wanna just pay me now or do you prefer to suffer through the show first?"
The ninja just gives an annoyed grunt.
When Rouge gets to her designated spot, she smirks at Knuckles. "Don't be a gentleman and go easy on me, Red. After all…" She winks. "…I like it rough."
The echidna becomes flustered and warm all over, not even noticing that the countdown's over and Wander just shouted, "Begin!"
Rouge leaps into action. She starts kicking and punching at Knuckles, using her wings to back off when he tries to retaliate. "What's the matter? Am I too much for you?"
This pattern goes on for a minute or two. Rouge getting a few hits in, Knuckles trying to get her right back, the bat backing off while making an innuendo, rinse and repeat.
Knuckles soon gets tired of this and tries to charge.
Rouge, however, was waiting for this all along. She uses this reckless charge by tripping the echidna. Just as he's getting back up, the bat tackles him. She pins Knuckles down in a very suggestive position.
Vanilla the Rabbit immediately covers her daughter's eyes (Cream doesn't understand the reason for this, but trusts her mother's doing what she thinks is best). The older rabbit is relieved when she sees both of the Chao have covered their own eyes.
Vector the Crocodile does the same with Charmy Bee.
"Hey!" the little kid complains. "I'm missing the fight!"
Amy Rose covers Tails's eyes too.
"Is that really necessary?!" the young fox asks.
Sonic just starts having a laughing fit, which is only made worse when he sees both Blaze the Cat and Silver the Hedgehog doing their best to look in any direction but the arena.
Honey the Cat smirks. "If they're getting that spicy out in the open, there's definitely real crazy stuff going on behind the scenes." She looks to Espio. "Don't you agree?"
The purple chameleon doesn't respond. He wants to look away from what he'd classify a very indecent act, but he can't seem to take his eyes off it.
Bark the Polar Bear covers Bean the Dynamite's eyes.
"Who turned out the lights?!" the short green bird asks. "Or have I gone blind?!"
While Fang the Hunter dislikes Rouge about as much as anyone else, he's feeling jealous of Knuckles right now. "Lucky echidna."
Shadow the Hedgehog and E-123 Omega…just don't care.
Knuckles himself is completely embarrassed by the position he's in with Rouge, which is made worse by the sound of Wander the Goat beginning to count to ten over the loudspeakers.
As the count goes on, Rouge leans in so she's near the echidna's ear. "Is that all you got? Not very satisfying."
Out of nowhere, Knuckles smirks. "You want rough? I'll give you rough."
Rouge realizes too late that leaning forward has messed up the weight distribution, which allows her opponent to brute force his way out of being pinned.
Free, Knuckles lifts up the bat and throws her.
Rouge spreads her wings, stopping herself from hitting the ground. However…
"Rouge the Bat is out of bounds!" Wander the Goat announces to the stadium full of still recovering from the risqué display people. "Knuckles the Echidna wins!"
As most of the audience cheers, Espio the Chameleon holds a hand out to a very annoyed Vector. "Payment, if you please."
The crocodile grumbles to himself as he pays the purple chameleon.
Rouge descends to the ground, scowling at Knuckles. "You got lucky."
The echidna smirks. "You say you like it rough, but this loss proves you can't handle me when I'm rough."
The bat turns and leaves.
Amy Rose stands up. "It's my turn. See you guys later."
The others wish the pink hedgehog girl luck as she leaves.
Meanwhile…
Bean the Dynamite leaps to his feet. "Time to rollout!" The green bird cartwheels away.
Bark the Polar Bear and Fang the Hunter stare after the little weirdo, wondering why they work with him for the hundred billionth time.
Meanwhile…
Rouge the Bat returns to her seat, a frown on her face.
"I warned you," Shadow the Hedgehog says without even looking at the bat.
"Yeah, yeah."
"You made a rookie mistake."
"I know. Believe me when I say it'll never happen again."
"I should hope not. It wouldn't serve me well to work with somebody that could hold me back."
Before Rouge can respond, she notices E-123 Omega approaching. "Where were you?"
"Disposing of unnecessary item," the robot says as it sits back down beside the bat. "The flag is worthless to possess now that you have been eliminated from the tournament."
Rouge pouts. "What is this? Roast Rouge Day?"
Meanwhile…
Knuckles the Echidna returns to his seat, a confident smile on his face, most of the others congratulating him for winning.
Vector the Crocodile is the exception. "You made me lose a bet."
"What can I say? I got her real good."
Sonic snickers. "And you won the match."
As Knuckles sputters at that, Cream the Rabbit looks to her mother. "What did Mr Sonic mean?"
Vanilla desperately wants to change the subject. "I believe it's about time for Miss Amy's match, Dear."
"Here we are at the fourth match," Wander the Goat happens to announce at that moment by pure coincidence. "Coming in from the north entrance, she's an outgoing young lady who is in possession of a large hammer…Amy Rose the Hedgehog!"
The crowd cheers as the pink girl happily waves.
"I believe in you, Miss Amy!" Cream the Rabbit calls out.
"Claim victory!" Blaze the Cat shouts to her friend.
"Don't let Eggman have another win!" Silver the Hedgehog requests.
"From the south entrance," Wander continues. "He's an odd little fellow with a fondness for bombs on Dr Eggman's payroll…Bean the Dynamite!"
The crowd starts to boo…until they see him.
Honey the Cat stares in shock at what she's witnessing from the green bird. "Is this really happening?"
Espio the Chameleon nods. "We expect anything to happen with Bean at this point."
Fang the Hunter face palms. "And he's walking in backwards. Of course he is."
Bark the Polar Bear hunches down in an attempt to make himself smaller (he still towers over almost everyone) out of embarrassment at Bean's antics.
Eggman massages his temples to relieve the headache he's getting. "Why must he act so bizarrely?"
Wander chuckles at the scientist. "I look forward to the little bird providing a few laughs before losing." The goat turns his mic back on. "Mr Bean, you're supposed to stand in the white circle across from Miss Rose."
Once the wacky bird is in place and the countdown starts, Bean looks at his surroundings. "Wow! This place is super huge!"
Amy summons her Piko Piko hammer. "I won't allow you to get the Chaos Emeralds for Eggman. Everyone's counting on me. Especially Sonic."
"Begin!' Wander shouts over the loudspeakers.
"I wanna explore!" Bean claims as he turns and…runs in the opposite direction.
"Hey!" Amy shouts feeling indignant. She charges after the green bird. "Don't you dare ignore me!"
Bean spreads his arms out and makes plane noises as he runs around the arena.
Fang the Hunter tilts his brown stetson hat to cover his face from shame at his associate's weird display.
Bark the Polar Bear also chooses to cover his face, not wanting to see any more of Bean's current insanity.
"Get back here so I can hit you!" Amy shouts while swinging her hammer at her foe.
Bean just keeps on running around the arena, seeming unaware that the pink hedgehog is even there.
Eggman groans. "Why am I stuck with such an eyesore of a lunatic?"
Wander just laughs.
Amy leaps and smashes the ground with her hammer, creating a crater.
The force of the hit briefly sends Bean flying into the air. "Whee!" He lands squarely on his feet and starts spinning in place.
Amy grins at the bird's choice to stay where he is. "Got you!" She charges.
Sonic, who has been enjoying this very entertaining match, sees something on the ground that makes him leap to his feet. "Amy! Look out!"
The pink hedgehog looks around after this warning. She notices the bomb at her feet just before it explodes. Amy gets sent flying and lands…outside the arena.
Wander the Goat is left just as stunned as the rest of the audience by the turn of events. It takes a few seconds for him to remember his responsibilities. "Amy Rose the Hedgehog is out of bounds! Bean the Dynamite wins!"
Sonic rushes down to Amy's side. "You okay?"
The pink hedgehog sits up. "Did I just lose? To Bean?"
"Afraid so."
The two look up and get an unpleasant surprise.
Bean has a wicked grin on his face.
Amy now realizes something horrifying and even more humiliating than if she'd just lost. "He played me."
The green bird blows a raspberry before skipping away.
Sonic glares after Bean. "We can't underestimate him again. Eggman's that much closer to getting the Chaos Emeralds now."
AN: Yeah, Team Hooligan is proving to be more of an issue than Sonic's friends initially thought. Also...Bean. He really is the most random as hell character in terms of his behavior. I wish he'd be utilized more by SEGA, but then again, they'd probably characterize him differently than he is in the comics since that's mostly done by a team of mostly American writers. Although, the current IDW Sonic comics are being overseen and approved of by SEGA, so maybe I'm wrong. I can bet there are some of you readers wondering what position Rouge was in with Knuckles that could be seen as so inappropriate. I'll leave that to you people to imagine. Come back on Saturday to see the second half of the first round.