Chapter 36

When I awoke, I immediately felt panic flooding my entire body and pulling me out from the peaceful slumber I fell into. Shooting out from the new bed I was in, I landed on my feet and I looked around wildly. However, despite being wary, I couldn't properly process my surroundings.

I only thought about that horrible blanket that I fell prey to. That relaxation, the numbness I easily submit to…I didn't even want to lie down anymore. I shuddered from how easy it was to fall asleep under that force, all while I took in the dominating red overtaking my sight…

Even thinking about the color red got my head spinning and heavy. Despite the rather peaceful sleep, I still felt lightheaded and I wondered how much went through my brain during the slumber.

Maybe it was because of the green taking over my vision. It was like I was forced to see the world through someone else's eyes.

"Obsidian? Are you there?"

I froze.

The heaviness in my head disappeared, prompted by my lips moving on their own.

"Ruby?" I said, incredulous. "You're there too?"

The ruby coughed and I felt its voice pouring through my lips. "Yeah. I feel really cramped right now. Where are we?"

I was more focused on what happened to us. This was new for the ruby to use my mouth to speak. It didn't need me to act as their body. As I tried thinking about the likely possibilities, my attention turned to something covering my entire head.

A hard, large object wrapped around my head. It was warm and sticky from my heavy breathing and sweat. I must have been wearing this for a long time since it…smelled like raw fish. Both of us gagged. Was this what wearing a helmet felt like? Touching it, it didn't seem like a typical helmet. I was tugging on a…suction cup around where my mouth would be?

Then, I found a mirror nearby and we stared at the unidentified headwear: a gas mask with a singular filter cartridge around my mouth. It covered my entire face except the back of my head, strapped in. My hands travelled to the straps keeping the mask in place, gripping them. Unfortunately, the mask was already stuck on my face. I couldn't even find any sort of button to loosen the straps.

Stopping from trying to take it off, I observed the mask's appearance. It was completely silver with the shine of metal. Tapping it, it even felt like metal. The plastic eye holes were triangular-shaped. Interestingly, the mask seemed to be missing a piece at the top as my entire white hair poked through it without drooping downwards.

"Oh god," grumbled the ruby. "What are we wearing?"

As it spoke, the eyes of the mask turned green again.

I blinked a couple of times.

My head wasn't spinning anymore whenever my vision turned green. My lips moved around easily and lightly whenever the ruby spoke, just like whenever I spoke. And the ruby said it felt cramped…

We looked around the room. A dingy jail cell room. One that had brown stained walls and minimal lighting.

I groaned a little. It wasn't my first time, but I hadn't been in jail cells for a while, so I didn't have the expertise as an escape artist. That honor would have to go to Zero. His father made sure to teach the future leader of the Jackal Squad to break out of their bonds.

To my surprise, our kidnappers were nice enough to provide me with a nice clean bed, a clean toilet that didn't look metallic and fresh-looking sink with new soap bottles!

"This seems too kind," said the ruby.

It was official. The Lightning Bolt Society took me in.

I chose not to panic. Well, since I had experience and got a powerful ruby, it wouldn't be long until we broke out.

"Think you can teleport us out of here, buddy?" I asked.

"Hmm, I can try…to…" said the ruby.

"...you sound hesitant."

"What do you expect? It feels different to how things were before!" Then, it cleared its throat. It even controlled my hand over my mouth as a cough escaped through my lips. I could still feel its emotions and it was…stressed. It felt strained. "Sorry, sorry, I'm not used to this. And…"

My ruby quietened and started to concentrate. I thought of saying something since I could feel its tension, but I decided to go along for the time being. A low hum from the physical ruby attached to my chest, but there was barely a green glow around me. The bodysuit might have hide that, but…any visible sign or feeling of power was weak.

"Do what you have to do," I said gently.

The ruby grunted in acknowledgement and concentrated again. This time, the power was growing stronger. It took control of my body again and I found myself ducking down. Legs spread out, tail lashing around rapidly, hands clutched into fists. It was the ruby's growl coming through my clenched teeth. I never felt THIS angry before.

As it shut my eyes, the power inside us grew bigger. I shuddered when I felt spikes poking through my body, lava burning in my blood, my bones glitching out of shape. The sore feeling was growing from my chest. A headache flared up in my mind, but I chose to ignore it. As if sensing this feeling, the ruby suddenly felt impatient and snarled like a rabid dog.

We both felt like a ticking time bomb until my mind could explode…

Piercing blue and yellow eyes in the dark, venturing through a glitchy void. What was this kind of predator roaming through this distortion?

Red dripped from the top of our vision, a simple painting of distress. How could such a fine, dripping paint line appear so disturbing and lifelike?

The eyes reached their destination and I could see the red fire in them. The fire grew in size with darker streaks, matching the hellish landscape of a volcano.

It was the noise that stood out. It wasn't a roar or a screech. It was…silence. White noise that only drew you into its warmth, whether you want to or not.

The headache was replaced by the sudden and loud screaming of my ruby. Still piloting my body, we jumped backwards and crashed into the bed, flailing my arms around. Only when I felt the soft blanket beneath me, I regained my body and forced myself to get back on my feet.

However, I felt the fear left in my body. I couldn't move, thinking something would jump out of the blue again.

Through my mouth, the terrified ruby was breathing heavily.

"T-That thing!" my ruby squeaked out. "It's…it's…"

It must be the reason why we were stuck like this.

I wasn't sure if I want to know. "What is it?"

The ruby winced, clearly reluctant to talk about it. The eyes of my mask slowly turned a pale, timid shade of green, uneasy and uncomfortable. I didn't need to ask again as I felt my chest still heaving up and down, nearly breathless.

The ruby finally spoke, its voice becoming raspy and quiet. "I kept seeing it whenever I try to reach my limits. It's like eyes I've seen before, but…b-but!" It whimpered and I wrapped my arms around myself as if trying to give the ruby a comforting hug. "Not in a friendly way."

"Is…that what's keeping us down?" I asked.

"There was…also a lot of pain," explained the ruby.

I frowned, trying to recall. Those eyes looked vicious, but they were also humanely mad.

"There's a voice that sounds familiar," I followed, thinking back to the white noise we sensed.

"And there's this feeling keeping me down…" muttered the ruby. "This hopeless, resigned feeling telling us to never stop until we come out from the other side."

"And it won't let us go," I said.

We mused for a while before we said in unison, "It's anger."

Those angry eyes were the same ones I saw before I was knocked out. It came from Zero.

As I thought back, I remembered when he threw me to the ground, sending a silent message to me as I fell unconscious. It even seemed like the forced numbness came from him. My ruby didn't tell me where the power exactly came from, but it dragged me into a peaceful dream without thinking about waking up…

"You should have stayed when we gave you the chance."

Then, the other memories started to rush in like water pouring through a broken dam. My head was growing heavy again.

The sight of Breezie getting buried by the burning helicopter. The reveal of Rosemary's betrayal, followed by her dropping dead. The words of the survivor who called us for our help at Area 99. And then, Zero's red sword swiping in the air in front of me…

I felt faint.

And then, in my near breakdown, I realized that I didn't feel too out of reach from reality. If so, then my body would be already glitching around…

The ruby noticed this. "But…we aren't wearing the Blocker Rings!"

"Could it be the mask?" I said. "I think so. Though you're still talking."

The ruby stayed silent for a while.

I thought I said something wrong until it piloted my body again and clutched the sides of my It laughed and my mouth twisted into a broken smile. Never before had I seen my ruby losing its immeasurable confidence.

"Great, that's great," it whimpered. "Just another day in the office. Perfectly fine! Ha ha ha!"

Glitching or not, the insecure ruby was close to panicking. The fear returned in my body again. This time, I didn't try fighting back. I was also scared, knowing that we were stuck in a state where we were powerless but somehow not voiceless.

Almost too casually, Dave walked in.

His entire body was cloaked in his robe and a fez was sitting on his head. We didn't even hear his approaching footsteps or a door opening. He just appeared from the outside, watching us from the side of the cell. The cyan nutria kept a bored stare at us as he came closer to us.

He didn't seem pleased.

"Deja vu, huh?" he said. "Kinda sucks that now we're on separate sides."

His eyes were blank again. I expected him to look excited, but it seemed like the energy was drained out of him whenever he met up with me. Or at least when he seemed to be at a very low point. When he stopped, he didn't dare to provoke and leaned against the cell bars.

With nothing better to do, I marched right up to him and my arms were still crossed. Me and my ruby forgot our earlier panic, our attention on the seemingly invincible Dave.

"OK, one, what is up with the gas mask?" I asked sternly.

Dave shrugged, disinterested. "It's just a special thing Eggman made. He knew that your ruby would grow beyond its purpose, so the mask just inhibits your powers and spares the ruby's consciousness. It's why it can only speak."

It didn't explain why we had a flash of Zero's eyes in a sea of black and red. I let my ruby give its two cents as my vision turned green and I looked down with a slight hidden pout.

"Clever," growled the ruby, seething. "And what do you want from us? Our participation?"

Dave pretended to ponder before he cheerily said, "No." Brushing the shoulder part of his robe with a confident smile, he proceed to explain his plans coolly. "We came to an agreement with Eggman that you are the perfect extra battery for our weapon! You know, the one we have been building in Central City for months."

"Um, I don't want to be that kind of guy," criticized my ruby, twiddling my thumbs. "But are you sure you know what you're doing? You're just robbing random…parts…"

Dave scoffed with a playful smirk. "Well, no, we're not! That's what you think." I raised one eye and this reaction made his smile grew wider. "Making a weapon that's so unrecognizble and freshly new is more easier than hiding mass-produced gunpowder from the authorities. But nuh, uh, uh!" He wagged a finger in front of my eyes. "I still can't show the surprise to you yet. At least not until we fit you into the battery canister."

That was enough to tell me what this weapon was gonna be. I knew a lot of times when people crafted their own weapons, but I didn't think that the Lightning Bolt Society would go out of their way stealing random things to make one that wasn't identifiable for G.U.N. I bet no one could even detect it through hacking as well…

Rice cookers, school books, jewelleries, A.I. chips from broken animatronics…

The worst case scenario would be their ultimate weapon falling apart in a cloud of smoke.

Even my ruby was shuddering at the sound of this. While we both knew that it wasn't as powerful as the original Phantom Ruby, the ruby could accidentally cause a new crater strewn with body parts, especially from the Lightning Bolt Society.

Despite the ruby shaking my body, my voice was devoid of that and more of utter disbelief.

"You know that, even by neutralizing me, you won't even get this weapon up and running," I pointed out.

"That won't be a problem," answered Dave. "Zero helped us." His smile faded away. "You know, we COULD have a safer way of hooking you up IF you joined us in the first place. And I'm not asking when."

The flat expression overtook his entire face again. Saddened would be the right word to describe how he was feeling, but his eyes were unreadable with a foggy filter. I couldn't even tell if he was unhappy with my constant refusal. I gazed at the jaded nutria as he simply stared back, his dull eyes no longer looking for a weak spot of mine to attack at.

I let my arms fall to the side, suddenly feeling curious. In a way, I felt a little bad for him, guilt-ridden. "Then why bother?"

Dave sighed and his eyes shifted to appear narrow, solemn. "One, I'm sorry. I meant what I said the first time we talked. And before, I thought you were ruthless. I don't have anything against you after watching you dilly-dally in this stupid American Dream." He awkwardly bit his lip, wincing in slight repulsion. "But Eggman wants you to teach everyone a lesson. So, I have to do what I do, so that me and the Lightning Bolt Society reach our glory."

My ruby stirred and its fury took control of my body, pointing a finger at Dave.

"You talk about glory?" it growled. "Start talking about the people you're going to hurt for your glory! Your friends will be collateral too!"

"We're not exactly hurting people! We're just…" Dave paused in the middle of insistence, suddenly lowering his voice to a whisper. "...sending a message. We're taking a page from Eggman's book: shooting a hole at the moon. That will shut down everyone who mocks us for once. And for, well, you know."

He chuckled with a knowing look, a mischievous glint dancing around in his eyes.

"Blame the earth for not keeping its oceans stable and the government for not protecting their coastlines. Moons can break on their own! Not the world and they wouldn't even notice."

The implications sank in and I realized that not many people would pick up the Lightning Bolt Society's responsibility when their shores could fall apart in reaction to the moon breaking. It also sent a late message to the entire world that they could fire the weapon again. Nobody could stop them, too, since the Lightning Bolt Society knew how it exactly worked.

No wonder why Eggman and Zero took an interest in them.

As the thought of the unspeakable came to light, I found myself clutching the bars. I kept my eyes on Dave and my head just spun around the more I stared at his devious smirk.

I was the battery for their plan…and we couldn't do anything about it unless we imploded the entire place.

Dave rolled his eyes. "Don't give me those buggy eyes! You would do the same to make your peers respect you! Clearly, you're hiding back, aren't you?"

I swallowed, not even caring that my throat was dry. Some part of me whimpered at the sound of this. Maybe I wouldn't exactly feel better leaving behind the old life…

However, there was no second thought or urge to relapse.

All I felt was disgust and outrage. It came to me that those dull, flat eyes indicated his willingness to hide under a villain's facade. A fleeting image when Dave was already on the run, not to mention many of his men were arrested at Area 99. Who knows how many people he also fed with useless lies down their throats?

Hell, Dave no longer looked like Willy Walrus, compared to the first time I met Dave! I could see why people found him and his club insufferable in the first place. All they did was find excuses to commit more offenses, more damage, more casualties…

I didn't even realize the slight green glow around my fists. But the ruby and I were smart enough not to retaliate. We couldn't do much, but we could speak. We already knew a lot and that was enough. The thought of Dave encouraging the worst in people got me riled up like a bomb's shell being shredded apart before it burst.

Both of us done with the false ideals and telling ourselves that we weren't enough for anyone. I was also done making up shortcuts in my life.

When I opened my mouth, I heard both mine AND the ruby's voice speaking in unison.

"That's NOT me anymore," we snarled with a sharp glare at Dave's forehead. "I don't put my head in the clouds to survive. Just wish that YOU could see through those clouds so that you know what you're leaving behind."

Dave's eye twitched.

"I'm not leaving anything at all," he said firmly. "For the record, I am NOT who you think I am. It's Willy Walrus who was on your side. If anyone here had the strength to do the 'good thing', it would have been him."

The argument came to an end when a flash of red filled my vision.

The ruby shrieked and I couldn't stop myself from falling. My eyes felt heavy and I was quick to realize that it was the same powerful slumber. With the ruby suddenly in control, I felt my arms flailing around, clawing at my mask to stay awake. And despite the heavy breathing, I could feel my breaths slowing down as the world around me blurred into nothing but soft colors.

The last thing I could see was Dave apathetically waving goodbye.

The blanket fluttered right onto my body and the world was covered in red that looked too pleasant.

Despite how much it hurt, all three Weasel Bandits stood in pride and resistance to all adversaries, as evidenced by their spotless and unbent legs in the reflection of their mirrors. In their own bathroom, they got the proper space to move around safely without the watchful eyes of their enemies. It gave them security in standing tall without crumbling. Sort of.

All three mumbled in agitation, struggling to stand in one spot. The blue-bandanna weasel, in particular, let his agitation show in his eyes, glaring at his reflection in self-loathing and desire for another image. Even after being inactive, he couldn't get himself standing. He didn't look like a proud villain. G.U.N really did a good job of keeping them until they decay.

The only reassurance was that the Lightning Bolt Society already had everything they needed to proceed with their plan. So, nothing was terrible for the weakened Weasel Bandits to follow from where they left off, right? It was only a shame that Willy Walrus wasn't too into the plan, even if Dave ignored his silence. For the Weasel Bandits, they just had to do what they could without their voices.

He let down his blue bandanna a little, trying to muster a smile on his muzzle. It twitched, pained by his left leg shaking. Once he moved his left leg into another spot, he felt a smile of relief washing over. Yet, he knew it would be for a limited time. Just like the fact that G.U.N wouldn't find them in time.

As much as the Weasel Bandits didn't want to admit, they didn't want the opportunity taken away from them.

Willy Walrus stared at the robe wrapped in his fingers. The soft silk material felt comfy to hold, hang and swing around. He once enjoyed wearing it, like his own personal superhero cape. But he wasn't sure anymore. It wasn't because of the wheelchair making it difficult for his robe to move around lightly without the wheels accidentally catching its long cloth.

He looked out of the window, catching the sun resting on top of the horizon. He could spot the dark colors slowly fading into the disappearing warm colors. Then, he looked around his room. A fancy-looking red bed, an office desk and a closet just for him. Willy felt like he didn't deserve this. In fact, he didn't want anything with this place anymore.

His expression appeared calm, but his eyes were shaking in worry. Worry for what awaited him and the others if they continued their dire plan. Time separated from the rest of the Lightning Bolt Society made him feel safe from the chaotic ambitions and the frightful crimes committed. He missed the fun from before and he already missed the tranquillity before he was 'welcomed back'.

Willy knew they would cause more damage once they shot the moon. Even worse, Obsidian was gonna be one of the many batteries for their weapon. Leaving him there, even with his Phantom Ruby likely alive, felt like an act of spite. Willy was already tired of hating and he couldn't bring himself to live in his self-serving paranoia.

As he looked closely at the robe, Willy Walrus found himself dissociated from it. It was just clothes he could throw away.

Dave could have asked for a better lair. But, as an intern, this was the best he could afford. He should be grateful that Eggman provided him with one far away from humanity, hidden underground. And it was spacious too! From the high balcony he was watching, he observed the spacious clearing, a large stage with velvet curtains and the doors leading to their new kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms.

Looking down on everything, Dave felt like the place needed a paint job after seeing a lot of browns, but the size of the lair counted.

He checked his watch. In a couple of minutes, he would need to test the weapon. Just shoot at the false Death Egg created to make it look like someone was taking down Eggman in space. Then, their honored guests would arrive; those who heard about the Lightning Bolt Society or had connections with Zero and Eggman. And finally, it would be showtime and hearts would break at the sight of the moon breaking.

Dave knew that he was only masking. He knew the fight inside. Obsidian might be right. The weapon could malfunction since they used a lot of random parts. While safer than picking known weapons that were easy to detect, anything could happen. But that fear was only accompanied by his determination not to fail. The cyan nutria knew that they already made it this far and nobody else was questioning their plan.

He looked down at his colleagues bringing out long tables for the feast. The dinner was just a festive bonus. The real show would be a treat for all, a promise.

"I won't let all of you down," Dave said fiercely to the friends below him. "I'll give you the recognition you need. I swear it."

"Batteries in place? I don't want anything leaking."

"All set to go! That ruby is definitely gonna help with creating a huge laser!"

When we finally woke, my immediate reaction was to lunge out. Moving around was only a luxury. I could only describe it as a couple of hands pulling me back. All of them were holding onto my body tightly. There was no other spared limb I could move around to escape except for my darting eyes and my shaking head.

Right next to me were what looked like battery barrels, metallic with glowing spots of cyan. They were held back by multiple metallic shackles, the same ones holding me back. Wires poked into them and looking down, I saw at least four wires attached to my ruby.

I tried moving again. I couldn't budge. My body was weighed down.

"What's happening?!" squeaked the ruby.

Fortunately, I could slightly move my head to see the thing behind us. It was the weapon the Lightning Bolt Society had made the whole time.

Or at least what looked like one. I couldn't tell if it was even a laser ray weapon. In the shape of a tall, circular hill, the machine's exterior was built from stitched metallic tiles of different colors, mostly mauve red and orange. Spikes decorated near the gaps as if meant to hold the machine together. Multiple arms poked out from the weapon, carrying pieces of jewellery facing towards the center of the weapon's top roof.

Judging by how much the weapon kept shaking, the machinery inside didn't seem fit to use that much energy. The weapon rocking around reminded me of one of Twinkle Park's fastest and most daring roller coasters. It wasn't the smooth kind of rocking and it probably shouldn't be the case for scientific weapons.

What kind of pieces did they use to create the machine?!

Something told me this weapon wouldn't last for long.

Despite being unable to use my ruby, the two of us knew what the ruby's energy could actually do to the weapon and neither of us wanted that.

"Set a course for the fake Death Egg!" called Dave, circling around the weapon. "We need results very soon before the guests arrive!"

"We know!" crowed multiple members of the Lightning Bolt Society.

There wasn't even a way out. A line of curtains surrounded us. Multiple technicians pulled levers, pushed buttons and checked the weapon's systems from faraway computer tables. Looking back up, I saw the attached pieces of jewellery glowing brightly. I looked down. The wires attached to my ruby were glowing green.

Even worse, me and the ruby couldn't feel the energy transferred into the machine.

What we did feel was the machine shaking violently.

How much energy could this weapon actually take from me and the other batteries around us?

"What is this?" I cried out. "Is it going to explode?"

"Have you ever tried this out before?!" asked the ruby.

Dave stopped, hanging his head. "Ugh, no, it's not! It's not going to explode. We already created cooling systems, safety software, all that junk. Eggman's imprint on this should stabilize it!"

This wasn't enough to convince me and the ruby. At this moment, we found the Weasel Bandits and Willy Walrus standing nearby. For the latter, he was sitting in his wheelchair with a frown. All four of them watched with their hoods over their heads, a shadow hiding their eyes. It became clear that they weren't gonna stop this abomination of a freakshow from sputtering and squirming around.

At worst, everyone who was aware seemed too calm about the machine's instability. It was a cult for their likely deaths to come.

"You have to turn this off!" I pleaded. "Something doesn't seem right!"

"Machine runners!" called Dave, looking away. "Start the firing process!"

As the weapon continued to rock dangerously, my back felt warm. A hissing noise emitted from the machine. Looking behind, I noticed a white glow forming in the middle of all the jewellery pieces. Then, my back felt like I was pressing against lava. My fur felt burning until my skin was exposed to be fried and melted.

Two decorative spikes suddenly popped out from the weapon.

"SHUT THIS OFF!" I shouted, nearly maniacal. "SHUT IT OFF!"

"IT'S GOING TO EXPLODE!" begged the ruby. "YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!"

"Shut it, you two!" snarled Dave, snapping his eyes at us. "I'm the one who designed this! I know what I'm doing!"

The weapon reached a peak as a massive tremor rumbled the entire room. The lights from above were starting to flicker. As I looked upwards, I saw that they already opened up a hole in the ceiling with the weapon's firing range pointed towards the dark, starry sky.

I only imagined smoke and fire going through that hole.

Another tremor and the glow forming above the weapon nearly blinded everyone in the room.

POW!

The lights fizzled out and the weapon seemed to die down, emitting a low humming noise. It didn't sound like the machine imploded. It just…powered down. With the entire room dark, everyone else started to panic, clamoring at the blackout. Dave's voice tried rising over the chatter to maintain his control of the situation.

Before long, the shackles that tied me down suddenly released and I found myself falling into the arms of a stranger. I didn't see who they were before I could feel my body carried away from the scene. Dave's shouting faded in the background as we escaped from the curtained stage.

The ruby coughed a couple of times and the mask's eyes turned bright, allowing me to see better. At the same time, our savior stopped and planted me down on my feet.

Willy Walrus looked gritty, tossing his robe away in repulsion. I knew he didn't mean to, but when he looked back at me, he appeared gritty. It reminded me of his determination when we went on the diamond heist together, never letting anything distract him.

Now, he was sure of his actions.

"What did you just do?" I asked in a whisper.

He mouthed to me, "I bought you five minutes."

"He said he bought us five minutes," repeated the ruby.

Willy didn't explain further and grabbed my hand. I followed along with him as we ran across the hallways we entered. We heard hurried footsteps behind, madness in the dark. Sure enough, we were really faraway from the weapon.

And as we ran, I felt a smile creeping up on my face.

"I knew you would come to help," I whispered proudly.

Willy glanced at me with a doubtful look. However, it didn't last when his eyes softened up.

"I didn't," he mouthed silently.

He was still ill, unable to speak. Despite his injury, I was surprised he had the will to move around and help me. Guess that you couldn't tell him to rest and it turned into a good thing. As we ventured through the dark for the next few seconds, I wondered how much he knew about this place since Dave accepted him back too easily.

We stopped around a corner. Peeking around, my eyes spotted a couple of silhouettes dashing from the hallway we were seeing.

After seeing the massive army they gathered at Area 99, I had no idea how many people were in this new lair. Their numbers must have reduced ever since, but with Eggman's forces working with them, I wouldn't be surprised that a thousand people would be poking around here.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked.

Willy just gave me a smirk before pulling me forward.

That didn't sound like a clear plan. Just running forward to find the exit wouldn't work.

"Wait, what about the weapon back there?" asked the ruby. "They'll use it as a fatal warning to the world!"

He shook his head and glanced at me. However, he mouthing too quickly that neither I nor the ruby could tell what words he was trying to form with his lips.

The smirk was gone and his eyes were wide in hushed anxiety.

"What is it exactly?" I asked.

The lights switched back on and Willy Walrus suddenly screeched to a stop. I failed to realize that until I bumped into a particular someone.

Zero.

Stumbling backwards, I nearly thought of running in the opposite direction.

He didn't even flinch when I bumped into him. He was motionless. His arms crossed and his pointed eyes refused to waver.

I wondered if it was him at all.

The familiar stern look on his face felt different somehow. Evidently, his blue and yellow eyes were still in the same dark shade I had seen before, except they seemed…plastic. Lifeless. If they were vibrant, then he would be moving around, not standing really still.

The ruby whispered something, but I couldn't avert my gaze.

Zero remained in his spot, his furious glare fixed on me and Willy Walrus. At this point, his expression became hard for me to understand. Before, I would be able to read his thoughts. At this moment, his glassy eyes looked more like the eyes of a soulless robot. They lacked the warmth of the jackal I knew from before.

It didn't last long when his eyes turned blood red.

Willy suddenly let out a sharp gasp.

Whipping around, I saw him floating out from his wheelchair, clawing at his neck. His eyes were shut tight as he struggled to seize the invisible hands tightening his throat. All he could touch was the red glow surrounding his neck and the pressure applied didn't look pleasant. The squeezed muscles looked like they could easily pop out!

"Willy!" I screamed.

A red glow wrapped around my entire body on the second I tried running forward. Frozen in place, it was too heavy for me to move. A new raw energy was pulling me down.

I could feel the ruby grunting, but we couldn't break through.

I gritted my teeth, desperately twitching my arm to move forward.

A headache flared in my head…and it fizzled out.

No amount of energy to get us going.

We were completely weakened.

"Zero!" cried my ruby in horror. "Put him down, you psycho!"

"I knew the walrus was only dead weight," spat Zero. The words from his mouth sounded uncannily robotic, a voice that wasn't like his own. "But I'll spare him the mercy and let him bear the full despair of his consequences later on."

Willy gasped a second time and the red glow devoured his entire body. He wasn't moving anymore. Zero let him drop and Willy's frozen body bounced onto the floor. I feared that would kill the walrus on impact, but I couldn't tell if he was even alive at that spot. Sprawled on the floor, his hollow and stressed eyes stared at me like an idle torch rolling around.

His raspy breathing was growing quiet yet constant. His mouth tried to move, only for his lips to freeze in a silent scream.

I turned my eyes back at Zero. I remembered the utter cruelty in leaving his former partners for dead, using them as a trap to lure Molly, Antoine, Matthew and many others into an explosive trap. I wouldn't be surprised if he were willing to use the same ruthlessness on me.

"He's not dead," said Zero monotonously. "Knowing the youngblood, they would freak out if I killed him on the spot. As for you…"

His eyes returned to the same blue and yellow I knew before. The dark shade disappeared and they appeared vibrant again. The eyes that were once filled with ferocious passion.

"Zero!" I blurted out.

I didn't know why I said that out loud. Was it out of joy to see my old friend? Or was it out of instinct from the growing tension in my body? My ruby couldn't answer that, quiet from the stress keeping us uptight.

I still thought of running. The jackal before me looked too good to be true to be my former boss.

Zero's gaze softened up, sensing my worry. For a moment, he didn't look like a monster. He just looked as normal as he could be.

"I know what this looks like," he said quietly, bowing his head in grief. "The others didn't see it that way, so I had to stop them before they could do worse."

Those words felt wrong to hear from his innocent soberness. It answered our burning questions of why he brought his former teammates to the chopping board. It was a little expected, but I didn't know that he would appear THIS willing to do his job right.

I took a step back, afraid.

"You did what you had to do to survive and protect the family you got," continued Zero in the same tone. "It's a good accomplishment that you killed Ice before he could ruin many more."

Tears welled up in my eyes, stinging. "I-I don't know about..."

Before, I considered it was for the best that Ice had to go. However, after knowing Zero's intentions of murdering his former partners, I wasn't sure whether killing should be justified or not. I thought back to his father's advice and it became clear how willing Zero wanted everyone around him to burn to get his own way.

"The ones who committed to not question their killing are the people who fall beneath the strong."

I thought back to Dave's previous encouragement to join him and redeem Zero…and the tears started pouring down my face. I felt something caught up in my chest and it was hard to sob. Not in front of my former boss. I didn't want to expose myself as weak. Despite my chest hurting, I could only stare pathetically at the undisturbed Zero in silence.

Somehow, my hands felt like the already sticky grime underneath the gloves was blood from his acts of desperation.

Zero's eyes flashed red and the gas mask released its grip on me. Once it flopped off, I felt the cool air in the room. It was relaxing, free from all constraints. Yet, I didn't choose to take this opportunity to escape.

Not with Zero still around.

Not with Willy in need of help.

Not when I made this mess…

"I'm so sorry for leaving you," I coughed out.

I winced and bit my lip. It sounded so fractured, so weak.

Zero didn't deter his stare, his softening eyes appearing apologetic. "I can't promise what Eggman will do to you is good. But I can make sure that you won't be hurt again. It's only me and you. We can fix everything."

That was the thing. Could we? We have already grown too different from where we started off.

Noticing my refusal to give any sort of answer or comfort, Zero sighed and took a few steps forward. The sluggish feeling overcame my body, stopping me from leaving. That and his unflinching walk towards me appeared more sinister than kind. Once he got close, I wondered what he would fire back at me face-to-face.

But then, he closed his eyes. Opening them, they were red. However, they didn't look like the evil eyes I saw before. They seemed friendly, beautiful like rubies.

"The thing is, I hate you so much for leaving us," spoke the new voice through his lips.

My ruby gasped and my body responded as well, leaning back.

It was Zero's ruby linked to him. It wasn't visible, but the two of them were already close.

"I'm sorry, but it's the truth."

The jackal lowered his head, ashamed. The voice sounded mechanical but so close to Zero's natural voice. Just like my ruby, it responded to the changes he went through. It grew to be its own person. There was emotion in its voice.

It was despair.

"You're a good person, just like our squad, I get that. It was never in the cards for you to take the world."

The jackal clutched the sides of his head, scratching his fur as if in irritation. Their red eyes widened in horror, but this hint of humanity was…uncomfortable to stare at.

"Oh, we made a big mess," it said anxiously. "But we can clean it up together. Start anew with a completely blank state where no one can hurt us again and things will finally be different." Zero looked up and his eyes started to water, a sign of the ruby's desire to make things up. "What do you say?"

It only served to make their horrific actions more horrifying. If Zero's ruby felt the same struggles he did, then it responded in the ways Zero would after he let himself become a menace. I wanted to believe they were sincere in knowing what they did wrong.

It was the fact that they remained persistent in their own self-serving goals…that made me worry so much about being around Zero and his ruby.

My ruby knew that and it wasn't happy.

Without warning me, the ruby took over my body and a wave of emotions rushed through my head. Thanks to Zero's powers, I couldn't move to clutch my own head. I only shivered as the ruby fought to make sense of the situation, its fearsome emotions flowing through my brain. The more it tried doing so, the more I started to feel like I was cramped…

There was rage. Rage towards Zero's utter neglect and cynicism of the world. My teeth were bared, exposing my sharp canines. There was an irresistible urge to roar at his stupid face.

There was mania. A lust for dancing around these new revelations with hyperactivity and careless rampage. A need to rid the chains holding us back from doing something good.

Finally, there was…pain. Agony from the losses I suffered and witnessed. Hurt by the many people calling out my bluff and twisting my wants for their own good. That was what Zero was doing, poorly resurrecting what we used to have into a mere weapon.

Zero wasn't being fair at all. What he did to our hometown and his former partners was excessive and cruel.

A growl rose through my throat and I couldn't stop it. I felt like I didn't want to stop it. I kept thinking it was pointless since I already clarified that I was done. I didn't want to stay silent after taking a punch to the face. The blood boiling in my veins was enough to stir me crazy, war-prepared.

Before I even knew what I was saying, before I could take control of my body, I opened my big, fat mouth.

"So you forced and slaughtered our people just for that?!" roared my ruby through my lips. "Do you know how much I want just to leave that kind of madness?! Why are you fighting against those people when you could have fought for us?!"

Zero flinched and leaned back, but my head forcefully leaned forward to reach his. My eyes were narrowed and they couldn't stop tearing up.

"You made me feel like we have nothing good left!" croaked out my ruby, its voice cracking in anguish. "I had to listen to voices telling me I'm not needed!"

A sliver of guilt broke me out from following my ruby's voice. It was because I was one of those voices for the ruby. It was because I didn't fight enough to…

"I know," whispered Zero's ruby, his eyes dilating. "Give me the chance to start-"

"No," spat my ruby with a tearful glare of remorse and hatred. "You have no idea how to start over! You only see the worst in everything!" It paused and raised a hand over my teary eyes, trying to wipe the tears away. "Agatha's right about you. But don't worry, you won't have to prove her right today."

A pang of horror shook me when I saw my hands glowing dangerously.

Zero's body remained still. "Please, listen to me. I need you."

"And?" growled my ruby.

"And what?"

"And?"

Zero looked close to tearing up too. "And because you're my friend."

"You're absolutely right. Just a little bit too late. I'll make sure to prove THAT."

The bloodthirst kicked in. This time, it felt less like a desire and more of a demand.

I managed to regain some control, shakily lifting my hands up.

"Buddy, please calm down," I ordered.

The ruby regained control, stomping a foot. "Don't tell me to calm down, Obsidian! We both know what he did!"

"Ruby, that's ENOUGH!"

After yelling loudly, my soul felt physically thrown back into the vessel. Nearly faint and limp, I gritted my teeth upon feeling the leftover anger still burning inside my body. The ruby had a lot going on inside, a mixture of anger, despair and raw screaming. If that could kill me, I wouldn't know what else would. As I crouched down, the fire simmered into a sore ache and I finally felt calm.

The only emotion left from the ruby was guilt.

What have I done?

Zero even retained control and his eyes turned back to normal. He clutched his chest as if he was in pain. Tears had already spilled out, but he growled as he fought them back. The sadness of his ruby was hard for him to break through. On the other hand, the stubborn jackal himself denied the chance to open up and be honest.

He shut his eyes and took a deep breath in, tidying up all his emotions into a dark cave.

I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Everything around us felt cold.

I didn't mean-I just felt like…

The distant clamoring faded in the background as I could only hear my rapid heartbeat.

I'm sorry. Be calm.

The tears stopped pouring and I found the energy to stand up properly. My back still ached, but it wasn't the time to try to soothe myself. But when I faced my former boss, a sense of hopelessness crashed over me. Here, there was nothing I could fix by myself. Escaping felt like it wouldn't go well either way.

The Lightning Bolt Society could fire that dangerous weapon whenever they want. I might not know how to rescue Willy Walrus since he proved himself a traitor to them. In front of me, Zero already got the hint that I was over him.

I'm so sorry, Zero…

I crossed my arms in a self-hug needed for the ruby. Our outrage was inevitable

Zero stared at me for a long time before he whispered, "There is no 'us'. Not without you helping us?"

Me and the ruby couldn't bring ourselves to argue against that. Not after everything we said and the energy we spent on that rant. What was left was fear towards the monster Zero became and the sadness of him turning a blind eye to making a wiser choice.

We knew it wouldn't be easy, but it was heartbreaking to see Zero thinking that following Eggman's example was the 'best' idea to thrive.

We couldn't even flee. I screamed inside my mind to make a move, but I didn't. The frozen Willy Walrus was still here in peril. Footsteps from the approaching members of the Lightning Bolt Society were closing in. My ruby couldn't break out from Zero's spell.

Sensing my answer, Zero's eyes hardened and the warmth was gone.

The gas mask suddenly shot upwards and wrapped around my head.

Zero's body turned into just a shadow and his glowing eyes stood out from the rest of his body. They turned a darker shade and pounced at me. The world around us spun and glitched and we started to fall…I screamed when it came to me that we were just falling into a bottomless path. The only thing keeping me company was the angry, horrific pair of burning eyes.

Everything was starting to hurt. There was no other way to say this in full detail. There was pain and fire all around me. My ruby was already crying, but not just in pain. A whisper danced around my head, telling me to stay down. And as I yelled in desperation to make it stop, I felt my head crashing into something.

Voices swirled around me. One from Zero, swearing under his breath. Another from Dave, babbling in terror. A third from Willy Walrus, his breathing returning to normal.

The world finally turned black. That was more comforting than seeing red.

AN: Ha, ha! Obsidian's in danger!

But seriously, now he's back to square one. However, Willy Walrus won't receive the torture just yet. For this chapter, there's some inspiration from 'Ready or Not' and 'Happy Death Day 2U' to map out the activation of the secret weapon and Willy's attempted rescue of Obsidian. Additionally, I originally wanted to give Zero a monologue based on 'Pearl', but I decided not to for a more authentic emotional moment between him and Obsidian.

Don't worry. Willy has one more trick up his sleeve.

It's a bit of a challenge writing Obsidian's thoughts alongside his ruby's perspective since they are bottled up together and already reached the end of their character development. I had to look back and while I wrote this chapter more quickly than before, I had to pause to remind myself what I needed to remain consistent with. And after double-checking, it turned out just fine here! It came with understanding what they already know, what they could sense from each other and their ultimate desires at the end of the day.

Here, we see Obsidian no longer investing in the criminal lifestyle and realizing the deep end his enemies chose to take. His ruby even wanted to live the same peaceful life his host desired, leading to its eventual anger.

Next chapter will be the ultimate showdown and the ultimate result of the Lightning Bolt Society's work. Well, we all know what will come next for them. That weapon is gonna blow a fuse anyway! You know the drill: favourite or follow and comment on your thoughts of today's chapter.

Until then, keep on rocking!