Chapter 44: Metal Thorndyke's Revenge
"Chris…what happened to you?"
These were the only words Helen could utter as Eggman's robot slowly crept toward the party, ocean water quickly filling the subterranean hallway.
"Quick, everyone outta here, now!" Sonic commanded as he formed a barrier between the metallic creation and his friends. "I'll hold him off, just get back to solid ground!"
"But Sonic, you'll drown!" Tails exclaimed.
"After Amy's swimming lessons," Sonic reassured, peering over at the pink hedgehog with a smirk, "I think I'll be fine."
"I'll get Helen out of here," Amy said as she got behind the human girl, gripping the handlebars on her wheelchair.
"Sonic, even with your swimming lessons, you won't stand a chance in close quarters combat in the middle of the ocean," Tails replied.
"Don't worry, lil' buddy." Sonic gave his two-tailed brother a thumbs up. "I've got a plan. I'll meet ya back on the island."
"Alright…be careful…" Tails reluctantly turned and ran the opposite direction to catch up to Amy and Helen.
"So, Chris…we meet again." With a smirk across his face, Sonic bent his knees and raised his arms. "Haven't you learned by now? Everyone who has ever trusted Eggman has been burned in one way or another. Looks like getting roboticized was the ultimate punishment." Sonic sighed as Chris simply gave the blue hedgehog a cold stare. "What, nothin'? No pre-programmed speech from Eggman? No explosive recording? No putting others down because your family is rich?"
Launching the thrusters on his back, Metal Chris lunged forward, pulling his metallic arm back for a brutal punch. Before his fist could land, however, Sonic swiftly dodged, sticking out his leg to trip the metallic boy.
Sonic yawned comically loud into his gloved palm. "Eggman couldn't even bother to make you as fast as me?" The blue hedgehog grinned as he stretched his arms. "Looks like this battle's gonna be a piece of ca—" Sonic's words were cut short as Metal Chris stuck out his arm, releasing a torrent of dollar bill-shaped ammunition. "Your speed may be weak, but at least Eggman has a good sense o' humor!"
Metal Chris continued targeting Sonic, who dodged the dozens of razor-sharp bills launched from the cartridge built into his arm.
"At this rate, you'll drop a few tax brackets!" Sonic jeered. As Metal Chris stopped, however, the blue hedgehog heard the cracking glass all around him, the rounds having served to weaken the transparent walls even further.
"Well…fu—" Water crashed through the glass, filling the underwater tunnel within seconds, hardly giving the blue hedgehog the time to hold his breath. Sonic was now fully submerged, swimming in place as he frantically peered around for Metal Chris, expecting the metallic menace to attack him at his most vulnerable.
He was right.
Activating his thrusters once more, Metal Chris dove from above, his metallic head crashing against Sonic's head, causing the blue hedgehog to gasp, quickly filling his lungs with saltwater.
Sonic began swimming upward frantically, but as he neared the water's surface, a metallic hand grabbed his knees, swinging him down into his old jail cell, now fully exposed to the aquatic elements. Almost immediately as he touched the hard surface, he launched himself up, propelling himself past Metal Chris to reach air, flying out of the water like a dolphin.
With the precious few moments Sonic had above water, the blue hedgehog gasped for air, allowing his lungs a brief reprieve before diving into the water once more.
What met Sonic back in the ocean was the sinister, glowing red eyes of the roboticized Chris, who targeted him once more with another burst from his thrusters. The impact sent Sonic out of the water once more, his body skipping across the surface until he crashed against the sharp rocks of the beach separating the ocean from the Prison Island facility.
"Oww, my head…" Sonic pulled himself up, limping toward the prison as he held one arm with the other. As if on cue, Tails, Amy, and Helen burst through the doors, quickly meeting Sonic outside.
"Sonic, you're hurt!" Amy exclaimed.
"I've had worse," Sonic replied with a reassuring nod.
"What happened to Metal Chris?" Tails asked.
"He's probably gonna 'merge from the water any second," Sonic replied. "I need you guys to get as far away as possible." The blue hedgehog stood up tall, a renewed sense of vigor fueling him as the late afternoon sun warmed his wet fur.
"No way," Helen replied. "I'm through running." The young girl watched as Metal Chris slowly crawled out from the ocean. "I've known Chris much longer than any of you. Maybe I can try reasoning with him."
"No dice," Tails replied with a shake of his head. "He's been roboticized. He won't listen to anything you have to say."
"But I've gotta try!" Helen exclaimed, tears starting to fill her eyes once more. "We can't just give up!"
"We're not giving up, Helen," Tails replied. "Look… if we can incapacitate him, maybe I can unlock his self-awareness, but a computer which has been programmed to act maliciously won't be convinced otherwise with kind words alone."
Helen peered on as Metal Chris crept closer to the party. The human girl gulped as she pulled her Nintendo Switch Pro controller from the pouch on the side of her wheelchair. "If we are to take him out, at least let me help."
"We wouldn't have it any other way," Tails replied with a nod.
"Let's see what you and the Helengelion can do!" Sonic added with a thumbs up.
"Here he comes!" Amy exclaimed as she pulled out her Piko Piko Hammer.
"Helengelion…transform!" Helen pressed a button on her armrest, triggering her wheelchair to transform into her prized mech.
"Face it, Chris," Sonic called as the roboticized human crept toward him. "There's one of you and four of us. You're outmatched. Now, are you gonna play nice and let us deprogram Eggman's directives out of ya, or are you gonna make things difficult?"
Metal Chris stopped, bent his knees, and raised his arms in a fighting stance.
"I take it he wants the latter?" Tails asked.
"Most definitely," Sonic replied with a nod and a smirk across his face. "I can't wait to take him down a peg."
The blue hedgehog proceeded to charge a spindash, kicking back rocks as he launched himself at him. Metal Chris did not attempt to dodge, instead pulling back his leg to kick Sonic away like a football, sending the blue hedgehog through the brick wall of the prison facility.
"Nobody hurts MY Sonic!" Amy exclaimed as she dove forward, her hammer above her head as she prepared for a devastating counter. Before the pink hedgehog could release the might of her attack, however, Metal Chris punched her in the stomach, sending her flying back as the Piko Piko Hammer flew in the opposite direction, landing on the rocky beach.
Metal Chris' next target was Tails; diving toward the two-tailed fox, the orange kitsune used his twin namesakes to shield himself from the various punches and kicks levied at him from the roboticized boy. Finding an opening, the young fox used the opportunity to dive between Metal Chris' legs, quickly grabbing hold of the thrusters on his back and, with a precision blow, disengaging this deadly accessory with a thrust of his trusty screwdriver.
"Good work, Tails!" Sonic exclaimed, dusting the debris from his fur. "There goes Chris' super speed."
"My turn!" Helen lifted her metallic leg, but just as she was about to squash Chris under her metallic foot, her knee locked up.
"Helen, what are you doing?" Tails asked. "Do it now!"
"I…can't!" Helen called from the pilot's chair of her mech. "I can't bring myself to hurt Chris when he can't control his actions."
"It's the only way we can save him!" Amy replied.
"I…" Helen remained frozen, giving Chris an opportunity to jump high into the air, delivering a kick to the Helengelion's chest, sending her flying back.
"Helen!" Tails called. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do as Metal Chris broke through the protective glass around Helen's seat, pulling the young girl out from her mech and holding her up by the neck, his metallic fingers squeezing into her skin.
Helen's breathing became labored as Metal Chris uttered three words in a computerized voice:
"You…will pay."
It was then, while the roboticized boy dug his fingers deeper into her skin, that she realized this directive was not simply programmed into him by Dr. Eggman; the boy's toxic feelings toward her were seeping through, influencing his programming.
As Helen was on the verge of losing consciousness, a swift kick from the orange fox sent Metal Chris flying back. Before the robot could make impact with the rocky ground, however, Amy swung at him with her oversized hammer, cracking his artificial skull.
Finally, as the roboticized boy was launched toward the prison facility, Sonic was at the ready, charging a deadly spindash that produced sparks all around him. Launching himself, the blue hedgehog collided with the disheveled robot, sending one of his arms and one of his legs flying, sparks jutting out from the gashes throughout his artificial body.
Metal Chris was out of commission, allowing the party to rush to Helen's aid. The three Mobians surrounded her as she lay on her belly, her breathing labored. This sign of life made them sigh in relief.
"Amy, can you gently pick Helen up while I revert the mech?" Tails asked.
"Yes," she replied with a nod. The pink hedgehog knelt down, picking up the human with both arms and slowly bringing her to the mech, which was now transitioning back into her standard wheelchair. With help from Sonic, the two hedgehogs secured Helen back into her seat.
"These marks look nasty," Amy noted as she inspected the bruises around her neck, "but they should recover no problem."
Helen slowly opened her eyes to the delight of the party.
"Did…we win?" Helen asked as her consciousness slowly returned to her.
"Yes we did, Helen," Tails replied as he placed a gloved palm on her shoulder. "Metal Chris is out of commission, and we'll take him back home to hopefully get fixed up."
"Yaaaay," Helen replied with a weakened voice. She ran her fingers along her neck, remembering the coldhearted stare in Metal Chris' eyes, sending shivers down her spine.
The orange fox peered around until he found, in the short distance, his Tornado biplane. "We better make our getaway soon."
"Yeah…about that…" Amy peered over at the Tornado, whose metallic casing was cut up by the rocks they landed in during their rescue mission. "Helen and I didn't realize until our arrival that there'd be no convenient place to land, and with the Airforce grounding us, we had no other options."
The orange kitsune inspected the plane. "It doesn't appear any of the vital components were damaged. Much of this is just cosmetic! I just need to install new landing gears really quick..."
With careful maneuvering and teamwork from the three Mobians, they were able to safely secure Helen in her designated spot aboard the Tornado.
"Alright Sonic," Tails began, "can you do us a solid?"
"Sure, Tails. What up?" Sonic crossed his arms.
"I would like you to run really fast around the perimeter of the Prison Island facility. With enough speed, the rocky surface should be smoothed out a bit, just enough to allow us to make our escape."
"In other words," Amy added, "with Sonic's speed, he can make us a runway around the island's perimeter?"
"Exactly," Tails replied with a nod.
"Say no more, lil' bro," Sonic said as he gave the two-tailed fox a two-fingered wave from his brow before immediately running circles around the island. His speed was relatively slower at first, but as he flung away the smaller rocks and smoothed out the others, he was able to increase his momentum, eventually turning the thin circle around the prison into a wider path, just large enough for the three-wheeled biplane to safely utilize.
Meanwhile, as Sonic was preparing the path, Tails got to work fixing the Tornado from the damage sustained from Helen and Amy's crash landing; in a metallic compartment on the side of the biplane, he kept a set of extra landing gears, and thanks to his trademarked modular designs, he was able to secure these wheels to the base of the Tornado with relative ease.
"There's some damage to the exterior, but I can patch that up later," Tails said as the girls watched Tails return his spare set of tools to the Tornado's side compartment. "Welp, looks like my work here is done."
"What about the boy?" Amy asked as she tilted her head toward the lifeless body of Metal Chris.
"He's small enough to fit as a carry-on," Tails replied as he picked him up, tossing him in alongside his extra tools before closing the hatch. "There we go! Now we're about ready to head home."
Sonic screeched to a halt in front of the Tornado. "I don't think it's gonna be that easy."
"Yeah," Tails replied from her seat in the biplane. "The workshop will be swarming with agents by this point. We're gonna need to find a safe place to reestablish our base of operations."
"Can they even do that, though?" Helen asked. "Technically Angel Island is not on US soil. It's essentially a sovereign mass of land floating above Station Square."
"Given my brief study of this country's laws," Tails replied, "the US military could be authorized by the President to engage a vessel that enters US airspace. They could define Angel Island as being a hostile threat to national security."
"Plus, it's not like the US government abides by their own rules anyway," Helen added with a shrug of her shoulders.
"Woah, politics…in my fanfiction?!" Sonic exclaimed. "Let's head out before we alienate the readers."
"My bad," Helen replied as she chuckled nervously, scratching the back of her head with her tongue sticking out like a kitten.
"That doesn't resolve our dilemma, though," Amy said. "If we can't safely return to Angel Island, I'm sure Helen's place wouldn't be safe either, even if it wasn't currently under heavy repairs from Eggman's evil appliances."
"I got it!"
The party turned their attention to Tails, who raised a finger to the air. "We could hide out at Chuck's barn!"
"But wouldn't that be, like, the third place they'd look?" Amy asked, tilting her head in confusion.
"You assume the government is aware of Chuck's home away from home," Tails replied, scratching the base of his nose. "He bought it off the books and later registered the property under an alias. He scrambles any and all signals from smart devices, so they can't trace him there either."
"I admit that would certainly help us in the moment," Amy noted, "but why?"
"Paranoia," Helen replied. "Plus, where else could he store his extra marijuana?"
"Fair, fair," Amy replied with a nervous chuckle of her own.
"To Chuck's farm!" Tails exclaimed as he flew up to the pilot's seat. Sonic and Amy shared the seat behind him, and with Helen already secured above, and the discombobulated body of Metal Chris stored away in the Tornado's side compartment, the gang was ready to leave Prison Island…hopefully for good.
Engaging his start-up routine, the Tornado slowly crept forward, the landing gears rolling along the smoothed-out path created by the blue hedgehog minutes earlier until the biplane gained enough speed to lift itself off the ground.
"Oh Tornado, I missed you," Tails said affectionately as he ran his gloved hand across his dashboard.
"Looks like Tails finally found a girlfriend," Sonic jeered from behind, causing Tails to blush profusely, placing his face in his gloved hands.
"Nah, I'm jus' teasin', bro," Sonic reassured as he gave the orange kitsune some head pats from over his seat's headrest.
Realizing he would likely never live down this embarrassing moment, he focused his attention to the skies above, gradually shifting direction so he could make his way to the old farm, staying low enough to avoid detection from the US Air Force but not too low as to become a risk to pedestrians or catch the attention of law enforcement upon reaching the mainland.
"Oh yeah, I should let Chuck know we're coming," Tails said as he initiated a call with the encrypted phone built into the plane.
"Hello? Tails!" Chuck exclaimed.
"Hey Chuck," Tails replied warmly.
"I've been worried sick!" Chuck exclaimed. "How'd you let the government get the drop on you anyway?"
"And where's Helen?!" Alicia exclaimed as she stole Chuck's phone. "I knew she was in good hands with you and Sonic, but with you two in prison, I've been worried sick too."
"I'm right here, mom!" Helen replied through her onboard microphone.
"Oh, thank god." Alicia sighed.
"And where's my Cream?" Vanilla asked, grabbing the phone from Alicia.
"With Knuckles," Amy replied. "Don't worry, she's totally safe."
"I never had a doubt!" Vanilla replied, secretly wiping a sweat drop from her brow with a handkerchief.
"Where are you guys, then?" Doug asked as he took his turn to commandeer the phone.
"Lemme just put it on speaker," Chuck suggested as he yoinked it from Doug's grasp, placed it on the kitchen countertop, and activated speaker mode.
"We're on a secure line," Tails replied, "but I want to make sure it's just you four in the immediate vicinity before I share my destination."
"Yes, it's just us four," Chuck replied with a nod, missing the pair of bat-like ears poking up from the bushes, hardly visible from the kitchen window.
"Great!" Tails replied with a smile. "Sonic, Amy, Helen, and I are on our way to the farm."
"Brilliant idea!" Chuck exclaimed. "That way here, the government can't track you. I'll meet you there. Just make sure they're not tailing you!"
"And we're coming too," Alicia added. "With everything going on, I want Helen home ASAP."
"But moooom," Helen complained.
"I'm sorry Helen," Doug added, "but things are getting a bit too hairy. You have way too much to lose."
"Your parents are right, Helen," Tails replied. "If you stick around too much longer, you may be branded as a fugitive yourself, stunting your future career and academic opportunities, or perhaps even landing you behind bars."
"Talk about Helen hangin' out with the wrong crowd," Sonic replied with a snicker.
"Sonic, that's not funny," Amy complained.
"Alright dear," Sonic replied as he ran a gloved hand through his blue quills, a grin across his face.
"We'll see you in a little bit," Chuck concluded.
"See ya, Chuck!" Tails replied before hanging up the call.
"Cheer up, Helen," Amy called from below. "Your parents just want what's best for you is all."
"Yeah, I know," Helen replied as she peered off into the distance, the sun slowly starting to set over Station Square. "I just wish it wasn't so…complicated, you know?"
"What do you mean?" Tails asked.
"Well, with you guys," Helen explained, "you've been able to basically do as much heroing as you pleased on Mobius, right? And because you're still trying to get back to your home planet, it's not like any threats of having a bad mark on your record are going to deter you from doing what you feel is right." The young girl sighed once more. "With me, however, I have to weigh my actions against the threat of having punishments put on my permanent record."
"I just wish life were simpler, you know?" Helen concluded. "Like…I just wish I could live on Mobius. Sounds much more pleasant, even with Eggman."
"My long-term goal," Tails replied, "is to not only allow all of us who came from Mobius to return home but to allow us to freely travel between our dimensions as well. I'm not quite sure if it's possible just yet, but even when we get back to Mobius, I would still want to visit you and Chuck, maybe show you two around my workshop in the Mystic Ruins and give you a tour of what our planet has to offer."
"That sounds pleasant," Helen replied with a warm smile, her downcast mood replaced with a ray of hope; she realized that, despite her current difficulties, she will ultimately be okay in the long run.
"Oh, I need to contact Knuckles!" Tails exclaimed before transmitting a call to the red echidna.
"Okay…Cream, Bokkun, Cheese…don't make a sound."
Knuckles tiptoed as he approached a soldier standing guard near Tails' workshop on Angel Island while the other three watched from behind a tall bush. The red echidna tapped the soldier on his back with his tipped knuckle, causing him to turn around in fright, only to be met by a fist to the belly. This sent the soldier flying back, colliding with a tree and sliding down to the ground unconscious.
"It's safe to come out now," Knuckles called, waiving the rest forward.
"Okay, Mr. Knuckles," Cream replied with a nod. She was the first to emerge from the bush followed by a skittish Bokkun and Cheese. The young bunny turned her attention to the messenger robot. "Don't worry, Bokky; with Knuckles here, we have nothing to worry about."
"I suppose you're right," Bokkun replied, standing up straight as the fear melted away from him after hearing Cream's reassurance. Cheese, who was riding on the robot's shoulder, sighed in relief.
The three followed Knuckles to another bush, giving them cover as they studied the nearby entrance of the workshop.
"Damn, there are soldiers posted everywhere," Knuckles complained. "Then again, I should've expected them to come back here to investigate."
"What's the plan, Mr. Knuckles?" Cream asked from his side.
"We certainly can't ask them nicely to leave," Knuckles replied. "I could take them on myself, but I don't want to put any of you in harm's way."
Knuckles' cell phone vibrated in his dreadlocks. The red echidna pulled it out and answered the call.
"Hey Tails, kinda in the middle of somethin'. Soldiers are patrolling your workshop."
"Sorta figured," Tails replied. "Hey, so here's the plan: you remember where Chuck's barn is?"
"You mean the place that smells like dead skunks?"
"Precisely," Tails replied with a nod. "That'll be our new headquarters until we get things straightened out. Are you able to get there with Cream, Cheese, and Bokkun?"
"If we're careful enough," Knuckles replied, "we should be able to get off this island undetected. Right gang?"
"Yep!" They replied, nodding their heads enthusiastically, excited to soon be leaving the once tranquil island in favor of a safer place.
"Actually…" Knuckles pondered for several moments. "We have one pitstop to make before we head out to the barn. Call me with any updates."
"You do the same, Knuckles," Tails replied.
"Alright, I'm out. Talk to you soon." Knuckles hung up the call and returned his phone to his red dreadlocks.
"What sort of detour are we taking?" Bokkun asked.
"No time to explain," Knuckles replied as he crept through the bushes going northward. "Just follow me and be very quiet."
"Right," Bokkun replied, gulping as he made every tiptoeing step as careful as possible, caring to prevent himself from stepping on a branch.
Several minutes of creeping through foliage later, the party emerged from another large bush to reveal the Master Emerald shrine, Knuckles' cabin just down the path.
Waving them forward, the red echidna led the pack up the long stairs, walking slowly as to avoid making as much noise as possible. Finally, the four gathered around the Master Emerald.
"I hate to do this, but I can't let the Master Emerald fall into anyone's hands." Stepping back, and taking a big breath, the red echidna charged his arm back and tightened his fist before delivering a devastating punch to the large, mystical gem, shattering it into several crystal-shaped pieces. Instead of falling on the ground, however, the pieces floated in the air.
Knuckles raised his arms and opened his palms, using his mystical connection to the Master Emerald to raise the crystals. "For the protection of Mobius and Earth, I will spread your pieces across the island!" Knuckles waved both arms forward, scattering the Master Emerald pieces in several directions, leaving streaks of rainbow-like colors across Angel Island, a majestic sight to be seen. Before all could escape, however, Knuckles grabbed one sole crystal, placing it into his dreadlocks. "Even if the humans manage to find all the shards on the island, it will be useless without this final piece."
"How clever, Mr. Knuckles!" Cream exclaimed.
"Chao, chao!" Cheese added.
"We gotta move quickly before the i—" Knuckles was interrupted by the shaking beneath their feet. "Right on schedule. The island's gonna fall any second." The red echidna turned to his companions. "We've gotta get out of here!" Knuckles exclaimed. "Cream, on my back, now."
"Right." Cream nodded, furrowed her brow, and climbed on top of the red echidna's shoulders. The guardian proceeded to jump from the tall altar, gliding northward just as the floating island began its descent toward the ground.
"What's going on?" Bokkun asked, flying to Knuckles' side with his jetpack. "Why's the island falling?"
"Chao, chao," Cheese added as they sat on the messenger robot's shoulder.
"Without the Master Emerald's power," Knuckles replied, "the floating island can't float. I just hope everyone directly underneath the island gets away quickly. It's late, so the park should be pretty empty. Regardless, any casualties from this would pale in comparison to the damage one could do with the power of the Master Emerald."
Knuckles glided in silence as he led the rest of the party away from the once floating island, landing on top of a tall building bordering the Station Square Municipal Park.
"Let's not look back," Knuckles advised as Cream and Bokkun watched worriedly from the roof. "The faster we can find the Chaos Emeralds and sort out the message with the humans, the faster we can restore Angel Island to its proper place in the skies above.
With that, the red echidna jumped from the building, gliding from tower to tower as Cream flew closely behind with her ears, Bokkun with his jetpack, and Cheese with their small, fairy-like wings.
With any luck, they will arrive at Chuck's barn undetected.
First, I want to apologize for the long delay! I've always made it my mission not to have too long of gaps between chapters, but this is the first time it has taken me over a month to publish an update. To be fair, I've had a lot going on in my personal life (all good things) which have been keeping me busy. My goal is to get the next chapter out in November, so stay tuned!
In the meantime, feel free to follow me on Twitter, Tumblr, or Reddit to see what I'm cookin' up beyond the realm of fanfiction. My usernames are on my FFN profile.