Chapter 117
Diablon
"Get up!" Mighty reached down and heaved Knuckles back to his feet. The scuffle with Omega had left the red armadillo with a nasty cut above his lip and a darkening bruise on his eye. "We have to keep moving."
Knuckles took a moment to compose himself. The world was still slowly coming back into focus. The temporary quiet that had preceded their approach to the gate had been punctured. A fresh wave of chaos and battle had erupted in its place. Knuckles could see scores of GUN drones spilling out of the fortress like a bee hive that had been disturbed by a predator.
"Something flew out of the Egg Carrier!" Ray dropped out of the sky and landed beside Mighty. He jerked his hand towards the sky. Knuckles looked up to see a streak of yellow zoom through the clouds in pursuit of the pink energy blast that had been fired by the Eclipse Canon.
"Tails…" Knuckles groaned. He tapped his comm. "Tails come in, can you hear me." All he heard in response was a fresh wave of static.
"We need to get moving." Mighty repeated. "Metal and the others have already gone inside. We will need to help them. There is nothing else we can do."
Knuckles wanted to argue, but even as he did so, he felt a hot wind rush against his face. The clouds above the fortress began to swirl and the sky started to turn a deep burning orange. "Look!" Ray shouted. High in the air, a ring of clouds was spiraling rapidly. In the center of the cyclone, Knuckles could see two great beams of light clashing against one another. The intensity of the clash sent sparkes in every direction. Sudden flashes of purple and white lighting crashed down from the sky and smoked the top of the canyon.
"COME ON!" Mighty grabbed Knuckles and Ray and pushed them forward. "We have to do our part."
Knuckles hesitated, but as he looked back he knew there was nothing more he could do. He led the way past the gates and into the forward section of the fortress. A battle raged inside, but Knuckles could see that someone had broken through the interior gates, pushing deeper into the fortress. GUN drones and mechs had formed a defensive perimeter around the breach, while a group of Clypeus and Lanceas held the gate.
"Throw me!" Mighty snarled. "I'll break through!" Mighty leapt into the air and rolled into a ball. Knuckles caught him and reared back. With a yell, he launched Mighty. The red ball soared through the air like a rocket. Bullets bounced harmlessly off of Mighty's shell and he collided into the drones with a deafening crash.
"Charge!" Knuckles led the way as all the Lanceas broke formation and stormed forward. In short order they had broken the defenders position. "Hold here." Knuckles told the badniks, while he, Mighty and Ray continued deeper into the fortress.
Their footsteps echoed off cold metal floors. In the distance, they could hear the echo and faint sound of fighting. The interior of GUN Fortress consisted of interconnected red hallways. White G slogans were painted upon every wall. As they progressed, they stumbled upon the remains of some barricades that Metal and Omega had broken through.
At last they reached the main atrium. Knuckles paused as it took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the strange lighting. The huge room was illuminated by bioluminous blue liquid held in cryptic looking storage tanks. Some of the tanks had been broken, spilling the glowing liquid onto the metal floor. "There!" Ray pointed and Knuckles saw the hulking silhouette of Omega.
He was locked hand to hand with a huge GUN mech that was pressing Omega to the floor. Hundreds of broken drones, GUN soldiers and discarded mechs littered the floor. Metal Sonic lay on the ground behind Omega. Sparks erupted from his chest and one of his eyes had been blasted off. Knuckles rushed forward to help Omega. He charged his shoulder directly into the mech, but that hardly managed to knock it off balance. Mighty arrived a moment later, dropping down on the mech's head and attempting to stomp through the glass that protected the pilot.
However, this gambit only served to make the mech rear back and began to fire its missiles in random directions. Knuckles lunged forward, scooped Metal Sonic into his hands and dived for cover. "ARHH!" The pilot screamed and Knuckles looked over to see that Ray had dropped one of the storage tanks onto the mech. The blue liquid ate through the metal parts and straight through the glass. Knuckles winced and turned away as the man's screams steadily faded.
"This is it," Metal Sonic said faintly. "The Eclipse Canon is beyond that wall."
Knuckles dragged Metal Sonic over to the edge of the atrium. Omega was attempting to pry the missile launcher off the beaten mech, while Mighty was comforting Ray. "I didn't know it would do that…" The squirrel was saying pensively.
Metal Sonic recovered himself and faced the huge iron wall that separated the atrium from what lay behind it. "Are you sure this is where they stored it?" Knuckles asked. He had expected GUNs fortress to continue underground, and they would only find the Eclipse Canon at the very bottom level.
"This is it. That Rouge the Bat told us it would be here." Metal paused and turned to Knuckles. With one eye missing, the metallic counterpart to Sonic looked even more menacing. "About earlier…"
"We'll deal with that later." Knuckles turned aside and approached the wall. He placed his hands against the split that ran down the middle. If there was an entrance here, the walls would have to slide apart. "These won't be easy to break." He put his massive hands at the cracks of the seal and made an effort to pry them open. Even with his considerable strength, Knuckles could hardly move them.
"Together." Mighty arrived and placed his hands on the seal. However, even with the two of them, the walls only parted a few inches.
"All of us." Omega arrived along with Ray and Metal Sonic. With all of them pulling with all their might, they managed to make a gap, just wide enough for one of them to fit through. They stopped at once and the doors slid back together.
"I will go," Metal Sonic demanded. "These humans started the war with me. Let me finish it."
"No," Knuckles insisted. "You're already wounded. It needs to be me." He fixed the metal replica of his friend with a withering stare that brokered no argument. Metal Sonic inclined his head.
"Very well."
The others got into position and pulled. Once the gap was wide enough, Knuckles squeezed through. As soon as he had done so, the wall slammed shut behind him. He exhaled slowly as he began to walk forward. Knuckles had entered what appeared to be a massive laboratory. The ceiling was lost in the darkness as there was no light, other than the strange purple and neon blue glow that came from directly ahead. Encased by a series of platforms and scaffolds, was the Eclipse Canon. The weapon was enormous and the pistons that moved along its length gave it the impression of life. A rainbow of glittering light emitted from the machine. It served as a kind of transparent veil, blocking access to the Eclipse Canon. Knuckles, who had an acute sensitivity for this kind of thing, felt that sense of sacredness, that otherness that he had always associated with the Master Emerald.
Yet, this was not the power of nature or of god. Knuckles found himself being drawn forward by the light. A hunger arose in his stomach. He had the sudden vision of himself using this power to wipe out his foes. Knuckles recalled with vivid detail the dream in which he had seen the armies of the echidna harness the power of the Master Emerald into a blast that had devastated its foes. A desperate desire to have that power rose inside him.
Pink light danced in his eyes. Knuckles drew closer and saw the X formation of the weapons trunk. Seven open pedestals awaited the Chaos Emeralds that served as the weapon's power source. Only now, the pedestals were retrofitted with crude metallic plates. In place of the Chaos Emeralds, Knuckles saw faint pink gems. At once, his awe and greedy desire faded. Disgust and revulsion roared in their place. Knuckles drew back his fist and smashed the machine. One of the metal plates broke apart and fell to pieces on the ground. He seized the pink gem and crushed it in his hand. It turned to a pink powder that faded to the wind.
"You never understood." Knuckles whipped around. The voice was coming from somewhere out of the darkness. He looked up to see a gigantic red mechanical monster descend from the ceiling. The mech was shaped like a human torso with two huge arms and a helmet topped with a funneled cannon. A sparkling blue visor covered the eyes. It was at least three times as large as the other mechs.
"You have only delayed the inevitable. In five minutes the Eclipse Canon will be recharged and ready to fire again. You cannot stop it." The mech slammed its metal hands together. The impact made the air crack and Knuckles had to stagger backward.
"So you've finally decided to fight for yourself!" Knuckles recognized the voice as belonging to the human commander.
"How long did you stand vigil over the greatest power this world had to offer? Did the light of that glow blind you to reality? Power is good in itself. Power protects, power makes true. It is unconquerable. This is Diablon, the ultimate realization of everything GUN stands for, the final deterrent."
Knuckles strode forward. He needed to keep the human commander talking while he got into a better position to fight. "You claim to worship power, but all you do is prove that you are a slave to it. My people once thought the same way. They wanted nothing more than to dominate and control, and in the end, it cost them everything."
"I will not be preached to by a rodent!" Diablon floated down until it was hovering directly over Knuckles. "This world stands at a precipice. You cannot save it. If GUN falls, then humanity itself will fall soon after. GUN is humanity's only hope."
"What are you talking about?" Knuckles snarled.
"If you destroy that weapon there will be nothing left to stop him. He will come, and he will conquer this world."
"Who?"
"Eggman." Diablon pointed towards the Eclipse Canon. "Who do you think provided us with Sol Gems? It was Eggman. He orchestrated this entire war so that the earth would be weakened, and be ripe for his conquest. He wanted to use GUN to destroy the enemies that had so long plagued him."
"And so what? You played right into his hand!"
"No!" The commander's voice cracked. He sounded almost deranged. "I only ever pretended to. I accepted his boons, but I never would have fallen under his yolk. In secret, I have prepared for his arrival. Even as we speak my armies gather, but our best defense is still the Eclipse Canon. If Eggman attempts to take the earth, then I will destroy his world."
"You're insane," Knuckles said hoarsely. "All you've done is made things easier for Eggman. We could have beaten him if we had all just worked together."
"You cannot grasp my plans. The nature of true power continues to elude you. The Master Emerald was at your fingertips. You could have conquered this planet, instead you will be trampled beneath the machine of progress." Diablon struck, and though Knuckles had been anticipating it, he had not expected the mech to be so fast. Its huge metal fist destroyed the platform Knuckles had been standing on. He leapt into a glide, but had to swiftly drop down as Diablon fired a series of laser blasts out of his visor. The beams were extremely hot and, even when he avoided them, he felt them burn the edges of his fur.
Knuckles landed on one of the lower scaffolds. His eyes darted around, searching for some way he could approach Diablon without being hit. However, there was no time for him to form a strategy. A barrage of missiles fired out of Diablon's shoulder. They seemed to have some kind of heat tracking ability because they followed Knuckles around as he attempted to evade them. Roll, leap, glide, climb, jump, punch, dodge, no matter what Knuckles did, Diablon prevented him from getting any closer.
The mech was too large and had too many weapons. Every moment of combat felt immeasurably longer, as Knuckles was forced to use all of his combat instincts just to stay alive. The exhaustion of the day's long battle was catching up to him. Knots were forming in his legs and he was gasping for breath. "Got you!" Knuckles avoided a laser with a lazy jump, and he had not paid enough attention to where he was. Diablon struck out and caught Knuckles within one of its massive hands.
"ARGH!" Knuckles screamed as Diablon squeezed. He felt his ribs groan as his bones threatened to break. Blood spilled out of his mouth as he lost air. His vision blurred, but Knuckles would not allow himself to pass out. He summoned all the strength he had in his body and pushed back. Diablon tried to resist, but Knuckles slowly squirmed out of his grasp. The mech attempted to catch Knuckles with his other hand, but Knuckles used that as his opportunity. He dodged the metal fingers and raced up the gigantic arm. Lasers fired out of the visor, and Knuckles was too close to dodge. He covered his face with his hands and absorbed the blow. He then dropped into a spin dash and surged into the visor. CRACK!
The visor broke and Knuckles was sent flying backward. He landed hard against the wall and slumped down to his knees. His arms were burned and bloody from taking the laser blast, but the gambit was worth it. Diablon waved its arms in desperation, clearly unable to see. "No matter!"
Wing-like metal plates erupted out of Diablon's back. They started whirring with electrical charge, and a yellow shield projected around it. The cannon on its head started to glow as it charged energy. Knuckles jumped onto one of the walls and started to climb up. Diablon's cannon fired and the entire lower laboratory was decimated by blue flames.
Knuckles leapt down from his vantage point. He knew he needed to destroy that cannon, but when he tried to attack his fists glanced harmlessly off the shield. This failed assault altered Diablon to his position. "Die!" A fist slammed into Knuckles' back, sending him crashing into several platforms.
Metal debris buried Knuckles forcing him to try and climb out of the wreckage while Diablon fired a fresh barrage of missiles. Explosions detonated all around him, knocking Knuckles side to side. A sharp piece of metal lodged itself into his calf causing Knuckles to cry out in pain. He rolled into a ball and dashed up a fallen platform that had shaped itself into an incline. This launched Knuckles into the air, and temporarily out of Diablon's firing range.
Knuckles caught himself on a wall and used the momentary reprieve to pry the shrapnel out of his calf. He gasped as blood trickled down his leg. "Energy Cells at 87 percent. Firing capacity will be online in one minute." A female computer voice spoke over the intercom. Knuckles turned and saw the pistons of the Eclipse Canon start to gyrate. A palpable hum of energy started to swell around the weapon's console.
There was no more time to waste. Knuckles dived and twisted himself like a drill, aiming straight down on Diablon. When the mech turned to fire at him, Knuckles canceled into a glide. This prompted Diablon to begin to charge up its cannon. In that brief moment, Knuckles noticed that the energy shield dropped. I can hit it when it's charging.
Knuckles fell out of his glide straight into a spin dash. The cannon blast exploded behind him and Knuckles just managed to avoid the explosion. "I'm here!" Knuckles roared as he uncurled and started running in circles around Diablon. The mech took the bait and began to charge up its cannon. Now! Knuckles sprang up with his fist loaded for a final strike.
But it was Diablon that had laid the trap. The cannon had only been a feint, and once Knuckles was in range, the huge hands converged. Knuckles just managed to avoid being squashed by the clapping metal, but he could not avoid being grabbed. To prevent his escape, Diablon held Knuckles with both hands, squeezing as hard as he could. "Now do you see? You cannot win."
Diablon held Knuckles up and forced him to face the Eclipse Cannon. The weapon was now alive with bubbling energy. Pink and neon light swirled about it, and smoke billowed out of the top. "Now feel the heat of all the lives you have doomed."
Knuckles struggled to free himself, but Diablon was too strong. His bones felt on the verge of snapping, and he couldn't breathe. For a moment, Knuckles considered giving in. He had tried, he had done all he could, but as with Angel Island, it had not been enough. Knuckles had failed to safeguard his home, and now the earth would share its fate. His vision blurred and the laboratory dissolved in front of him. A new image replaced it. Knuckles saw himself standing before the altar of the Master Emerald. Its green glow shone upon him, filling him with warmth and peace. Yes. He thought. Just rest. All he had to do was give in, and this peace would be his. An orange light glowed in the peerless surface of the Master Emerald. Knuckles turned around and saw a ball of light transform into the image of Takal. She took him by the hands and looked him in the eyes. "You must conquer yourself, rise above your despair and fear. Take charge of the power within you and use it to protect those that cannot save themselves. Let that be the legacy of the Echidna. Of all these treasures, none is as precious to us as you, the last of us." She smiled again and placed her hand on his cheek. "Do not despair. You are not alone in this fight."
With a colossal effort of will, Knuckles pulled himself back to the laboratory. Diablon held him firm and waited as the Eclipse Cannon finished its activation sequence. I won't lose. Knuckles breathed deeply in preparation and then jerked violently. The movement caused a pop in his shoulder as it separated from his arm. With only half an instant to act, Knuckles squirmed out of Diablon's grip.
He dropped to the floor with his left arm dangling uselessly by his side. "You have spirit. I will give you that. Fight to the bitter end, if you must. It will make no difference. Your resistance will burn away in the fires of oblivion."
Knuckles could hardly stand. His legs wobbled beneath him and the pain in his arm and calf was agonizing. The world around him was dim and blurry, dominated by the sole figure of Diablon floating above him. Knuckles clenched his fist and reared back. Everything is riding on this punch. There would be no second chances. Knuckles crouched down and despaired as his legs threatened to collapse. But then he saw it. Floating just above Diablon's head, the flashing orange orb. "You are not alone in this fight." Knuckles gritted his teeth. If this was to be the end of the Echidna race, then Knuckles would make sure to show everyone who the true warrior race was on this planet. A sudden surge of energy swelled inside Knuckles as if his entire spirit was willing to burn itself away in this last attack.
"Now die!" Diablon charged up its cannon and fired.
Knuckles roared and charged directly into the blast. Everything around him turned into a white void. He closed his eyes and pushed all his power into his fist. Knuckles pushed straight through the attack until he was only inches away from Diablon's chest. "WHAT?" BAAAAAM! Knuckles' punch made solid contact. The impact was so huge the metal frame shattered to pieces. Diablon was thrown backwards with such force it struck the wall behind it and broke it apart.
Knuckles fell to the floor. "Eclipse Cannon ready to fire in five…four…"
"DESTROY IT!" Knuckles looked up in a daze just in time to see Mighty, Ray, Metal Sonic and Omega sprint into the room. They all combined their strengths into a single attack aimed directly at the Eclipse Canon. BOOOOOOOOOOOM! The laboratory shuddered as the entire fortress seemed to shake as if an earthquake had just been triggered. Then, slowly at first, but then rapidly, the Eclipse Cannon collapsed into a metallic ruin.
A profound silence followed. Then Mighty and Ray started to laugh. "YES!" They shouted in unison. "That's for Team Chaotix! That's for Espio!"
Knuckles slowly rose to his feet. He limped towards the broken remains of Diablon. The head had been completely destroyed with only wires and a remote screen left in its place. "He's not here." Metal Sonic said as he came over.
"I thought he had finally decided to fight." Knuckles said dryly.
"Metal Overlord." Knuckles heard Aurora's voice speaking out of Metal Sonic's comm. "I'm detecting a ship leaving the fortress."
"Take it down!" Metal insisted.
"Negative. The Egg Carrier has no weapons systems. We should retreat now."
"Damn." Metal said coldly. "If Argus is still alive…"
"He can't hurt us now." Knuckles said. "This was his last shot."
"I can't believe he is such a coward." Mighty and Ray walked over and Mighty kicked
Diablon's head across the room like it was a soccer ball.
"Argus must die," Metal insisted. "Until he is this war will-"
"Metal Overlord. Hostiles detected. There are hundreds of them coming this way." Metal's remaining red eye flashed.
"Come on. We need to get out of here!"
Knuckles tried to keep pace with the others, but his injuries were too severe. Mighty had to stay back and help drag Knuckles out of the fortress. By the time they got back outside, the badniks had formed a defensive perimeter around GUN fortress. Metal and Omega stood at the head of the army, both were looking up into the sky. Knuckles followed their gaze and his stomach dropped.
It seemed as if a cloud made of diamonds had floated over the canyon. Only when it moved, did Knuckles realize that it was actually a thousand individual robots. "What the hell are those?" Knuckles groaned.
"Diamond Metal Sonic." Metal replied coldly. "The humans made them using my design. I thought that we had destroyed all of them…"
"Are they strong?" Mighty asked.
"They are." Omega answered as he pointed up. Knuckles looked closer and saw a faint glint of pink light shining out of the center of the cloud.
"Are those…."
"Sol Gems." Metal answered. "The same power source the humans used to power the Eclipse Canon."
Knuckles leaned further onto Mighty. He was fighting just to remain conscious. What were they going to do now? Their army had been decimated down to a third of its original force. All of them had been severely injured by the fighting and now…
"They're coming!" Mighty pushed Knuckles back as the cloud of diamond suddenly broke apart. Knuckles' heart failed as he saw how quickly the Diamond Sonic's were rushing towards them. Pink light flashed as gems inside the robots' chests started to glow. Knuckles covered his face.
BOOOOOOOM! A hundred lasers fired at once, but none of them reached their targets. The ground shuddered as something heavy landed in front of Knuckles. Tails had arrived. His power suit glowed with golden energy as he projected a shield around their entire army. While doing so, Tails looked back at the others. "Sorry to keep you waiting."