Chapter 28

Heat scorched his skin and turned the air to vapor. Espio panted as glops of sweat traced down his back. His legs were shaky and every fiber of his being urged him to stop and rest, but his pursuer offered no relief. The fire felt no pain or fatigue. It burned perpetually without fuel or spark.

It chased him through the endless labyrinth of the garden. The flames burned slow enough for Espio to stay ahead yet swiftly enough to always blaze at his heels, always keep him in the maw of the sweltering heat, always in range of the pain. Espio ran and ran and ran until the skin melted off the soles of his shoes. Every turn he took returned him to the same path. The garden walls circled and circled, rarely changing but every so often giving a hint or a clue that he was reaching the pool in the center.

If Espio could just reach the water he would be safe. Sound was muted beneath the greedy tumult of the fire but every so often Espio could hear voices whispering to him. This way. He followed them blindly, trusting in their familiarity even if he couldn't recall their names.

Espio was not alone in the maze. Shadows stalked the corners and wraiths glided atop the hedges. Whenever his eyes drifted from the path to look up at the glistening moon he would see enemies made of darkness training him with their guns. Espio could not evade their barbs but the bullets passed through his body.

Many times Espio considered giving in and leaping into the pursuing flames. The pain would be like nothing he had ever experienced but at least it would mean an end to his struggle. Yet Espio found he could not turn around. Invisible hands pushed at his back whenever he stopped moving. Come on Espio. Don't give up.

This time he recognized the voice. Charmy implored him to keep moving, so Espio did. Even if he was fating himself to an endless torture of pursuit, Espio would never let Charmy down again.

His tears vaporized on his face and all his senses started to fade into one ever present feeling of burning. The fire was getting closer. Espio was moving as fast as he could but it seemed his body had finally given up on him. He would not stop to welcome his foe. At Charmy's insistence, Espio would fight every step of the way.

Is this all you can do? You're Espio, our resident ninja and ace-in-the-hole. Vector sounded amused more than disappointed. Ain't no way you're going down this easy. Espio gritted his teeth. There was no water in his mouth, just the taste of sulfur and salt. He made himself go faster. The pool was near, it had to be.

One more turn. Two more turns. One more turn. Espio promised himself again and again as he weaved through the maze. Before his final surge depleted, Espio finally reached the center of the maze. He staggered towards the enormous shrine that was set above a crystal clear pool.

Water! It was the one thing that could save him from his torment. He was a few feet away when something emerged from the cold depths. A figure cloaked with a dark watery veil drew back its hood. Master Sakai's face was transfigured by a strange ethereal light. His old kind eyes were replaced by vengeful red orbs. A blade materialized in his hand. Espio took a step back and drew his own. His black katana was darker than the water, darker that night itself.

Espio knew what he had to do if he wanted to live, if he wanted to escape. It would not be easy but Sakai was old and would have gladly given his life for Espio. As if the phantom could read his mind, it raised a hand and two more figures emerged from the water. Charmy and Vector had lost all of their previous charm. They appeared beastial and enraged.

The fight left Espio and his blade nearly slipped from his hand. The guardians of the pool did not leave the water but they did not need to. Espio was too terrified to approach and the flame was inching closer to him. Tongues of fire licked at his back and Espio cringed and fell to his knees. It was over. At last.

Suddenly, the strangest sound of all shattered the fire's dominion over the sense; music. Heavy rock guitar joined with frantic drumming crescendoed over all other sounds. Espio wondered if he had finally lost his mind when he heard three voices. "The power has arrived in a dream team. A force where one and one makes three. And when the trail's gone cold and the lies have been told. This crew will find what you can't see."

What you can't see. Espio finally understood. He rose to his feet and charged headlong at the phantoms. Espio closed his eyes and dove headfirst. He passed through the phantoms like walls of mist and plunged headfirst into the pool.

Espio opened his eyes to see a dimly lit purple ceiling. He tried to swallow but found that his mouth was far too dry. His head throbbed and the power to sit up was beyond him. Content to remain prone, Espio took in what he could of his surroundings. He laid on the couch in the center of a lavishly furnished apartment. It was austerly decorated with paintings and artwork that would have looked at home in an upscale gallery. The walls and cabinets were laden with display cases showing colorful gems of various sizes and shapes.

A voice drifted from the other room but it sounded as if it was coming from a T.V. What was said didn't make any sense. "We are just now receiving reports of a major disaster in Emerald City. Exact figures are uncertain but it appears that a massive explosion has decimated entire downtown blocks. The explosion was noted from several miles away and the-"

Espio ignored the voice. He looked at the side table next to him and saw a bowl of water muddled with blood and a metal bullet casing. The sight triggered all of Espio's memories. His heart skipped several beats and adrenaline allowed him to sit upright. "Charmy…" He tried to move but only managed to spill out of the couch and collapse onto the table.

There was a sound of rushing feet but Espio could not get up in time to meet his attacker. Espio groaned as he made a feeble attempt to push himself upright. "Here, let me help you." A soft voice said as a gentle hand took him and pulled him to his feet.

Espio allowed himself to be returned to the couch. His vision was blurred but his savior slowly came into focus. "You!" Espio again tried to move but that only made Rouge the Bat giggle.

"Is that anyway to thank me for saving your life?" Espio ignored her. He tried to use a

jutsu to summon a kunai but he was too weak. "Relax," Rouge said with an exasperated sigh. "No one is attacking you."

"GUN attacked us….they…" Espio tried to form the words but a lump formed in his throat.

"GUN killed your friends," Rouge finished. "Like I told you they would."

Espio made a fist but rage was as pointless as everything else. "So you told me so. It's that why you've kept me alive, so you could gloat before you finish me off?"

"Like I'd waste my time."

"Then why am I here? Why did you save me?"

Rouge examined him and Espio had the feeling that she wasn't really sure of the answer either. Her inner conflict made her frustrated and she threw her hands up. "Who can say? Perhaps I've gone soft."

"That's not it. You seemed willing enough back at Eggman's base."

Rouge paused and for a second her shield of external bravado cracked. "The definition of a willing agent keeps changing…" She said, almost to herself. "There are some things I can stand by and watch…but not everything." Rouge's expression softened as she looked at Espio and then back at the other room. "Give me a second."

She left him on the couch. Even talking was taking its toll on Espio. He leaned down to catch his breath and noticed he had knocked down the bowl with the water and the bullet. Espio reached down and took the shell casing. He examined it and noticed a small scratch near the base. It looked like a tooth or a Fang. Espio shivered.

Seconds later, Rouge returned with a laptop. She picked up the table and placed the computer on top. She unmuted the screen and Espio saw that she was watching the news. A red breaking news blurb ran along the bottom but what it said was so insane Espio figured it must be some kind of hoax. A visibly shaken reporter spoke gravely to the camera.

"Many within Emerald City were still under lockdown orders from the terrorist attack earlier that day. Approximately, two hours after GUN had declared that all enemy ships had been removed from U.F air space, an explosion triggered somewhere within the mountains at Hot Crater. The blast is figured to have exceeded the explosive potential of a three hundred megaton nuclear bomb."

Espio lurched forward. "What is this? What's happened? How long have I been out?"

Rouge inclined her head. A single tear fell down her eye, streaking her makeup. "You've been out a week. I took you here because it was the only safe place I could think of. I wasn't sure you'd make it but I couldn't dare bring you to a hospital."

Espio felt nauseous. The room was spinning. It was difficult to focus but he made himself listen to the news report.

"Witnesses on the edge of the blast radius reported seeing a white light and then an all consuming blast. Military officers are suggesting that it may be possible that those sheltering within the subways of the city may have survived the blast but as it stands the city of around five million is beyond federal aid. Wait…" The woman tapped her ear as someone off screen fed her new information.

"More news coming in. Do we have cameras on that? Switch to action." The newsroom vanished to the feed of a shaky camera. A helicopter's wing roared in the mic. Espio gasped. From the sky the camera could see a partial view of black clouds swollen with fire and lighting. Near the edge of the storm stood half a city. A black hole of fire and ruin loomed next to it but something held the full brunt of the destruction in place.

Espio got closer to the screen. Something was flashing by again and again at rapid speed. Is that… "It appears that something is holding the explosion back." The reporter said. The streak whirled past again and this time Espio noticed the blue.

"Is that-"

"Sonic." Rouge leaned forward. She seemed equal parts impressed and concerned. "What does he think he's doing?"

The screen returned to the newsroom. "It appears world renown hero Sonic the Hedgehog is attempting to hold back the blast radius. GUN military ships are racing to the scene right now to attempt an evacuation."

Rouge stood up and closed the laptop. Her hands were shaking. "This is it."

"This is what?"

"The provocation."

"What does that mean?"

Rouge turned back to him. "It's the reason I saved you, the reason we're here." Instead of explaining right away the bat left him and went to the other room. She returned with a glass of water for Espio and wine for herself.

"I told you before that an agent can't afford to get soft. To protect the world, sometimes one has to be willing to make sacrifices. I always believed that. No matter what GUN did, I always believed in its mission."

"What happened?" Espio urged.

Rouge looked at the laptop. "All we need is the slightest provocation." She wiped the tear from her eye. "That is what he said to me when he showed me the Eclipse Canon." Rouge took a long sip from her glass. "When I returned to base I told them what had happened. My commander assured me that you and your team were nothing to be concerned about. You could take your little story and run with it, in the end it would mean nothing. He was more interested in me. He said that I had passed his little test. Though I failed to secure the intel, I had proven my loyalty to GUN." Rouge pressed her fingers into her temple as if she had a headache.

"He took me to see it. I wasn't allowed to know where it was but he wanted my opinion on how it looked compared to when it was on the Space Colony Ark. I was a trained agent, I knew how to lie. They had it totally rebuilt and ready to fire. Whenever they wanted they could send it up into orbit and have it rain death upon any enemy. It was a weapon that would change war forever. No more ground battles to determine missile bases, no more warning times from missile silos. This was checkmate. I was horrified but not not necessarily surprised. You need silver bullets when there are monsters to put down. It doesn't mean you have to use them. But before we left I saw Commander Smith smile. I saw the greed in his eyes. All we need is the slightest provocation."

She took another sip and hung her head. "He told me he had a trap ready for you and your friends. He also said he hired Fang. I…I couldn't just stand by." Rouge exhaled and took another slow sip. "This was the truth your friends died for. The truth…I will die for. For now, GUN thinks you're dead. Fang was too eager to get paid and too lazy to finish you off. But GUN knows I've gone awol. They've already ransacked all my other hideouts. This is the last one. All the work I've done my whole life, thrown down the tubes, simply because I didn't have the stomach…how would he put it? How pathetic?"

For a woman accepting her own death, Rouge seemed oddly calm. Espio flexed his fingers. "The only pathetic thing would be to give up."

Rouge shot him a sideways glance. "You're not a quick learner are you? Do you not understand what's happened? A U.F city has been destroyed by the uranium given to a madman by the U.F's own military! They made that trade, and they would make it a hundred times over. The power of the Eclipse Cannon is more than worth a few million lives. A slight provocation ha!" Rouge let loose a bark of sardonic laughter. "GUN will be able to justify any war they want now. Anyone that knows the truth, anyone that could possibly challenge them will find a target on their back and a knife at their throat."

"If they want a war, I will give them one." Espio tried to sound confident but even as he tried to sip his water his dry throat caused him to cough it back up.

Rouge shook her head. "You just don't know when to give up, do you? You can live. Hide yourself like you do and stay underground. GUN isn't looking for you anymore. Honor your friends and live."

"And what about you? Aren't you friends with Shadow? He could protect you from GUN."

Rouge dismissed that suggestion with a wave. "I don't want to bring anyone down with me. I'm a part of this. I helped GUN rise to prominence. It's my life's work…my child…the only family I've ever known or will ever know." Rouge looked into the dregs of her finished glass. "I got rich and comfortable playing for them. It is only fitting I die here, surrounded by all my gems, the monuments to my own ego."

Espio realized he was speaking with a broken person. All the horror and destruction GUN had wrought was falling on her conscience. "You owe me," Espio started. "Because of you, Charmy and Vector are dead. They never would have given up. Never. You have to keep going."

Rouge met his eyes and they both understood that they were both speaking about the other. Giving up would be the easier thing to do. The next easiest was to throw themselves into an unwinnable battle to die with their pride intact. The hardest thing, the almost impossible thing to do, was hope. "GUN has to pay for their crimes. For the lives they've stolen, for the lives they plan on stealing." He gestured to the laptop. "Sonic and Shadow can save cities and planets but only we can bring the offenders to justice. That-" A tear streaked down Espio's cheek. "That is what Team Chaotix was all about."

Rouge considered him. Her large eyes were unguarded and Espio could see into the depths beneath. There was more to this GUN agent than Espio had ever figured. "If you won't join me. At least point me in the right direction. How can I find this Fang the Sniper?"

Rouge blinked and her shield of charisma returned. "Commander Smith would know. He is the contact point for most agents. But you'd never manage to break into his office alone. You'd need an insiders perspective." She rose and stretched out her arms to yawn. "I'll give you a few more days to recover then we will set out."

"Does this mean you'll help me?"

"Help you?" Rouge laughed. "I am a contract agent. If you can fit the bill then I'll do what I can?"

"Bill? I don't have any money-"

"Money?" She shooed the word aside. "I prefer gems!"