"Now I'll show you true power! Kneel before your Metal Overlord!"
Sonic stood frozen in horror. There was nothing left for him to do.
Metal Sonic had them cornered. He had captured the Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald. He had the Phantom Ruby. He had the Egg Fleet. He had countless badniks, as well as the full extent of Eggman's tech. They were severely outnumbered and there was no way out.
Sonic protectively pushed Tails behind him. Knuckles stood beside them. Even he wasn't sure what to do. He dug his heels in and stood his ground anyway. His fists clenched with restrained fury.
"Can't punch your way out of this one, huh?"
Knuckles huffed. Leave it to Sonic to crack a joke in a situation like this.
It really shouldn't be a surprise though. What did surprise him was how unfazed Tails seemed. Even at his bravest, Tails still trembled slightly. A tiny whimper would slip out even as he steeled himself and took control of the situation.
But Tails stared at Metal calmly. He didn't even look angry.
Metal noticed. He sneered at the show of defiance. He reached for Tails. His talons gleamed despite the stormy skies.
Sonic immediately threw himself at the tyrant. He didn't care what would happen to himself. There was no way this narcissistic knockoff would ever get away with threatening his brother.
Metal swatted the incoming homing attack aside effortlessly. Sonic rushed right back, powered by pure reckless fury. Metal swept Sonic off balance. His next strike knocked the hero out cold. Knuckles threw a punch, but Metal caught his fist and shoved him back. The unexpected force sent Knuckles stumbling away. With a single command, a swarm of badniks pounced and stunned him unconscious.
Now unresisted, Metal grabbed Tails by the scruff of his neck and lifted him. Tails grit his teeth, forcing down a pained squeak.
He found himself face to face with the megalomaniac, helpless to defend himself.
He kicked at Metal, but only grazed the robot's torso. Metal chuckled at Tails' useless struggling. The deep, metallic laugh made Tails shudder. Still, he kept his composure.
"What do you intend to do to me, pup? Your friends cannot help you. They proved to be useless in your time of need. You cannot face me yourself. I am much more powerful than I have ever been before, much too powerful for you."
Metal haphazardly flung Tails toward the waiting badniks. They immediately took hold of him.
"Put him somewhere secure. I will deal with him once my inferior has regained consciousness," Metal nudged Sonic with a foot before continuing on, "This worthless organic being will see what happens to those who refuse to submit."
Tails fell limp as the mass of robots descended upon him. Despite the danger, he still felt calm.
It was an unexpected development, but he could work with it.
Metal wouldn't act without an audience, after all.
Tails hummed as he sat in his cell. He ran calculations in his mind and examined his plans thoroughly. He couldn't afford to overlook anything.
The sound of a door sliding open got his attention.
It was go time.
Metal stood at the entrance, clutching a dazed Sonic. He marched into the room.
"Release the fox."
A wall of the cell slid open and Tails stepped out obediently.
Sonic's eyes widened as he began to realize what was happening. He thrashed. "No! No! Let him go! Do whatever you want to me! He's just a kid!"
He choked when Metal tightened his grip.
"This is what I want to do to you. I want you to watch and see what your pathetic attempt at resistance has earned you."
Metal extended a hand and a group of badniks moved toward Tails.
Tails looked the swarm over. "Huh. For an all-powerful ruler, you sure do a lot of delegating. How did you manage to conquer the world if you need an army of robots to deal with a single little fox pup?"
"Be quiet. Your skepticism means nothing to me. You will see my power."
"Power? Pfft. Sonic's kicked your butt when you were ten times stronger than you are now."
"This is not my final form, child. You will understand my true power if you live to see it."
"Then why aren't you using it now? Go ahead and show me what I'm supposed to be scared of. I can't take you seriously when you look the same as you always do."
"Do not doubt me. I am more powerful than you can understand."
"I thought you said you didn't care if I doubted you?"
"Silence!"
"Someone's grouchy."
Sonic giggled, despite Metal's claws digging into him.
Tails smugly continued his taunting. "You keep saying 'I'm sooooo powerful'. I don't think you mean it. You're bluffing."
"I am not!"
"Prove it."
"Do not test me. It will not end well for you."
"I'm testing you anyway. What are ya gonna do about it?"
"Insolent little pest! I will exterminate you like the rodent you are."
"Ooh. Such a scary and original threat! You can't even tell I'm not a rodent! Just like you're not really as powerful as you say you are."
"I will show you! I will show you my true power!"
"Bring it on, Metalhead!"
Metal dropped Sonic to the floor.
He puffed out his chest and stood tall as his form began to dissolve into a shapeless metallic mass.
He began to reform, starting to take the shape of Neo Metal Sonic.
But he suddenly destabilized.
Metal collapsed to the ground, struggling to regain control. His attempts to establish a solid form failed. The silvery ooze churned. It was becoming obvious that he was panicking.
Finally, a distinct shape began to emerge.
It was noticeably smaller than even Metal's basic form. Possibly even smaller than his classic model.
As the shiny liquid crystallized into a finished body, the tension in the room dissipated completely.
Instead of a monstrous machine, Metal's new form was rather adorable.
It was tiny, almost toy-like. Most of it was painted a shade somewhere between dark blue and indigo. A few remnants of the intended form still existed. It had extra eyes like the ones possessed by Metal Overlord. It had disproportionately large quills. It had huge, shiny eyes and cute little stripes. It had a cape akin to Neo Metal's.
All in all, it looked like a baby version of Neo Metal.
Metal was clearly taken aback by this development. All he could manage was an undignified squeak.
Sonic was in tears from laughter. He struggled to breathe when Tails picked up the helpless Metal.
Tails smirked. "Not so powerful are you now, huh?"
Metal made a screech of fury. He stretched an arm toward his badniks, but they ignored his unintelligible commands.
Tails helped Sonic to his feet. Sonic reached for the miniaturized robot and Tails handed him over.
Sonic was still laughing as he asked, "How in the world did this happen?"
Tails grinned, "I may have sabotaged his shapeshifting data banks."
"Awesome!" Sonic cradled Metal teasingly. "C'mon little dude."
With Tails at his side, they started on their way out of Metal's now abandoned lair.
They'd definitely have a story to tell once this mess was cleaned up.
Author's Notes:
I know it's been a long time. A really long time. :T Sorry.
But good news. I am not dead and my ongoing fic is not dead. The same cannot be said for my laptop. Farewell, dear friend. It was a good 7 years. But my new laptop is ready to roll and it is lightyears better. No more wondering if the poor thing will even turn on. And I will not be spilling peppermint tea on it this time.