Ruby sat on one of the airship's seats and looked out the window.
It flew, along with many others, towards Metropolis. The main quarter of the Eggman Empire. Therefore a place heavily guarded and usually to be avoided by the Resistance. But also a place of information.
When both she and Shadow had been told of the plan they, of course, hadn't reacted positively. But Knuckles had persevered and explained to them `Operation Big Wave´.
Basically, a huge amount of the Resistance´s best fighters would attack several parts of Metropolis´ borders, try to breach the security and cause some chaos among the heart of the Empire. Yet at the same time they shouldn't go too deep into the city. It was supposed to look like a legitimate attack at the city, but in reality everyone should be able to retreat quickly. The attack was noting but a distraction for the real part of the plan. While Eggman´s forces were being busy taking care of the `intruders´, Tails and Rouge would infiltrate the doctor´s main base and hack into his system. Hopefully the distraction would keep the focus of them long enough for them to gather the information about Infinite and his powers, and more importantly, a potential weakness. In the case that the masked entity or Cinder, maybe even Eggman himself appeared, the troops had been told to step back and let someone like Sonic handle them.
In short: The Resistance made sure to minimize the risk as much as possible. But it was still there. Everyone knew that. Including Ruby. Absentmindedly she tapped her fingers against the folded Crescent Rose on her lap. She was ready to give it her all during this mission. Not only for her to finally get information about how and why she got here and could be send back home, but also to help all these people from being free of Eggman´s tyrannical reign.
Ruby had always wanted to become a huntress to help people. Be a hero like her mom, to make the world a better place. And now the moment had chosen her to be that: A hero.
This battle could be a massive turning point for this war and each and every single warrior would be important to tip the scale to their favor. Had Ruby known about her future back when she was enrolled to Beacon Academy, she would have been ecstatic about it in the moment. Right now, she tried to control her nervousness.
After everything she had been trough, the Fall of Beacon, seeing Pyrrha die, being stranded on another world, fighting beings beyond anything Remnant has to offer, and her close encounter with Cinder in Mystic Jungle, the silver-eyed girl was well aware of how terrible everything could backfire. And even without taking the vengeful Fall Maiden into account, the machinery of Eggman´s ingenuity was note something to be taken lightly…
"Hey Ruby."
The human girl flinched a little when she was pulled out by her thoughts from a friendly voice. Sonic was sitting beside her and gave her a concerned look.
"How are you holding up?" he asked.
"Fine, I guess. Just… y´know… nervous… scared."
The hedgehog tried to give her an encouraging smile.
"Hey, we got this. Not only do we have a powerful special attack our enemies don´t know about, but you also improved during your training!"
After the announcement of Operation Big Wave, Shadow had doubled down on the training. He made Ruby pretty well versed in drawing Energy from the Chaos Emerald to strengthen herself and not lose herself to the power… most of the time. But even after weeks, the black hedgehog still didn't teach Ruby about more complicated stuff like Chaos Control, said she wasn't ready. And he wanted her not to just train on using Chaos Energy. He fought her, to push the limits of her fighting capabilities and tried to teach the silver-eyed girl some hand-to-hand techniques (which was still a work in progress). Sonic as well gave her some training, but it was less brutal than what his fellow hedgehog put the human girl trough. The blue speedster trained together with Ruby on their speed, be it together with the Chaos Burst or team tactics, or what she could do with her Semblance alone.
And Ruby had to admit that she had not only gotten physically stronger, but her Aura as well. And, together with her Wisps, she had also picked up new tricks.
"I know I can handle myself. But even being the best doesn't always save you from failing." She had short glimpses of a burning Pyrrha and image of her mother before she disappeared. "And I´m mostly worried about Tails. He will go directly into the lion´s den, or I guess the jackal´s den. Like he told us, he still scarred of Infinite after what he put you and him trough."
Sonic´s smile disappeared. It would be a lie to say that he himself wasn't worried about his little bro. With the circumstances, how could he not? But what his previous adventures had taught him…
"I´m worried too, but I trust Tails. Sometimes we can do nothing more but put our trust into others. That is one of the important things when working together as a team."
These words put Ruby slightly at ease. True, she had seen what Tails… and her friends on Remnant were capable of. She needed to trust them to be able to hold their own and that they all could see this trough.
"How are you two holding up?"
Sonic looked towards Amy. The pink hedgehog was approaching the seats the speedsters where sitting on. She and Knuckles had decided to aid the Resistance not only trough strategy and leadership via intercom, but for this mission, with their physical presence aswell. Their strength would be needed in keeping their troops safe from whatever the Empire would throw against them. Of course, for Amy it also meant to be there for her fellow mobians and humans emotionally.
Sonic nodded towards Amy. "I'm fine."
"I guess I am okay as well. Just nervous, because this is big, like REALLY big! But Sonic helped a little with calming me down," Ruby added.
"Don´t worry partner, as long as we´re together the sky is the limit of what we can achieve!" the blue hedgehog proclaimed to cheer the younger speedster up further. It worked. Ruby stood a bit more upright. The tapping on Crescent Rose stopped and a little shine of confidence was seen in the silver eyes among the anxiety.
"I´m glad to hear that," Amy said. "Sonic had always been good had helping people. Be it from simply lifting their spirits or saving their lives."
She gave a sigh. "I am a bit jealous to you Ruby, that you can fight on his side. I will be needed elsewhere if we want to cover the backs of many people as possible."
Boy, am I glad Amy has become so mature. A few years earlier and instead of saying this, she would´ve smacked Ruby with her hammer for being near me, Sonic thought.
Just then a black bird mobian in a pilot´s suit was approaching the group.
"Miss Rose," he exclaimed.
"Yes?" both Amy and Ruby exclaimed simultaneously. The girls looked at each other, then at the bird. They pointed at one another with a questioning look in their faces.
"What are you… oh wait, you both are… a-anyway, I meant Amy Rose. I wanted to say that we have reached our destination. The other pilots are also on their designation and ready to embark."
"Okay then. Thank you for the information," Amy nodded to the bird and then spoke loudly trough the airships corridors:
"Everyone! Be ready to stand up and fight! Operation Big Wave is starting NOW!"
With this, the hedgehog wandered away from Sonic and Ruby, out from their flying method of transportation. The speedster duo stood up and followed her, just like everyone else did.
When they came out, the small army found themselves in a mountain valley. Metropolis was in a vast, rocky area. There were ravines and mountains everywhere. It provided plenty of natural barriers against attackers. But with the help of skilled pilots, it was possible to use these barriers as places to hide and land. Alongside the one Amy, Ruby and Sonic traveled in, there were several others who landed all in different location in close proximity to Metropolis. Attacking it from several directions should further divide the attention of their enemies. Unfortunately, the land directly around the city was rather flat and the resistance would be exposed during their attack. But again, the plan of Operation Big Wave was not without its risks.
The troops marched silently through the mountainsides. Nobody said a word, partly because of the tension, partly because one false noise was enough to draw the Empire's attention too soon. They reached the rocky plain around Metropolis.
The city itself was made of mostly white and silvery metal, the architecture of the buildings tall and of… creative and downright bizarre designs. If those wouldn't have been a giveaway for their creator being eccentric, the black Eggman logos being plastered on the facades of skyscrapers definitely were. Surrounded was the city by a huge wall of the same white metal. Razor wires were on top of them, alongside watchtowers with searchlights manned by Badniks. Egg Watchers were crawling on the vertical surface of the wall, giving the security additional sets of eyes.
It didn't take long for some of the robots to take notice of the armies approaching them from several directions and sending signals to the rest of their fellow machines.
The Egg Pawns inside the watchtowers turned their all their lights towards the coming intruders. Parts of the high wall opened up and together with the Egg Watchers, Egg Cutters crawled down and towards the Resistance.
Amy summoned her Picko Picko Hammer while Sonic took a battle ready stance and Ruby pulled out her weapon, alongside several other soldiers. Beside her training, the silver-eyed girl had also been busy tinkering with Tails, so some members of the Resistance had their own versions of Double-Wispons.
With raised weapons and battle cries, the organics stormed ahead to confront the approaching machines.
Amy hit an Egg Watcher with enough force to send if flying trough the air and crash into more robots when gravity reclaimed its hold on it. She then dodged swipes from Egg Cutters and smashed them into the ground.
Sonic and Ruby zipped around, using their speed to scrap and cut the machines apart. Five Egg Watchers jumped towards Sonic, but he wouldn't be the fastest thing alive if he couldn't dodge all of their attacks and then proceeded to ran behind them. He destroyed four of them with homing attacks, before the last Egg Watcher managed to turn around and punch Sonic back. It then raised and rotated six of it´s eight claws and tried to pounce on the blue hedgehog, but Ruby ran past in front of it, cutting of it´s raised limbs and finished it of with a shot trough the head. She then went to Sonic and helped him up. Nods where shared as acknowledgment for there was no time for words, the two of them went right back into fighting Badniks. A group of Egg Cutters surrounded them, but Ruby knew what to do.
Based on the move she managed to pull off with Omega in Ash Hill Zone, she strongly held Crescent Rose with her one hand and used the other to grab onto Sonic´s. The mobian used his speed to quickly ran around in a small circle and shredded the surrounding robots with Ruby´s help. Some Egg Watchers took notice of that and send a signal requesting for aerial aid. Buzz Bombers rose from behind the wall into the sky and immediately aimed towards the speedsters. But before one of them could fire, the mechanical insects where shot down by the different firearms of the Resistance. Lasers, fire, bullets, rockets (both of Wispon and rocket launcher origin), lightning bolts and many more.
The Egg Pawns on the watchtowers saw how the other robots were gradually being decimated by their opponents. They looked at each other and gave affirmative beeps. The machines grabbed weapons of their own, pushed some buttons, and then jumped from the towers to engage in battle themselves. The buttons activated mechanism hidden under the stony ground around Metropolis. Huge chunks of it split apart and opened holes to underground chambers. From there, platforms raised up into the battlefield and brought new foes into it.
There were massive Egg Pawn like robots, but with tougher, darker outer armor and huge hammers in their hands, fittingly named Egg Hammers.
In contrast where the brightly colored E-2000 with their sleeker but nonetheless tall builds, armed with a laser canons and shields.
And then there were war machines similar to tanks, but with three canons on top of each other. They could freely rotate around and had different types of ammunition. The top one fired yellow lasers as either beams or single shots, the middle one explosive rockets and the bottom one worked as a flamethrower. These Egg Tanks caused wild devastation by shooting wildly around and causing varying forms of destruction.
Resistance members scattered to make it harder for these tougher Badniks to aim and attack.
Ruby saw one Egg Tank approach her, the barrel of its highest canon filling with yellow energy. Remembering how she caused Neo Metal Sonic a devastating blow, she aimed her sniper towards it and was ready to fire a laser of her own into it. Hoping to cause an explosion that would destroy the laser canon, maybe even the entirety of the Egg Tank. Before Ruby could fire however, an Egg Watcher jumped onto her from behind. It gripped her back with two claws and grabbed Crescent Rose with two more, wrestling with the human girl for control of the weapon.
"Hey, let go! You-" Ruby´s struggle with the heavy machine on her became worse as it used it´s remaining claws to squeeze her neck. Her Aura flared as it protected her windpipe from getting torn by the sharp metal or immediately crushed. But it couldn't do anything as her air supply was cut of. The Wisps flied out of Crescent Rose and tried to attack the robot, but it always managed to briefly let go with one claw and swat them away. And to make matters worse, the Egg Tank fired… but it missed Ruby, for Amy had seen the grim situation the silver-eyed girl had found herself in. She had run towards the war machine, jumped and knocked aside the barrel of the laser cannon. It started to recharge while the flamethrower pushed the hedgehog girl back with fire and the canon in the middle kept Resistance soldiers at bay with rockets. Or at least most of them.
Sonic weaved between the missiles and stopped more of being fired by using homing attacks to dent the barrel of the canon beyond recognition. Then he zipped towards Ruby and rid her of her blight with a Spindash. Once free from the heavy weight on her shoulders and the cold metal around her neck, the fifteen year old collapsed on her knees and gripped her sore throat. She gasped for air. Her face had taken on a blue hue that was slowly disappearing.
Sonic and the Wisps gently laid a hand on her shoulders to steady her. A part of him wanted to make a joke on how blue was more his color and she should keep it with red to lift the mood. But he realized that it would be inappropriate and instead picked Ruby up bridal style and ran away with her as the Egg Tank fired another laser shot, Kurtis and Zen closely following him.
The hedgehog stopped behind a wrecked Egg Hammer, some people having managed to cut away and blow of it´s limbs and head, for some cover. There he put Ruby back on her feet. The human girl was still breathing heavily, but her face had regained a more healthier hue. Zen patted her back reassuringly while Kurtis inspected the marks on Ruby´s neck.
"How are you holding up?" Sonic asked. Ruby took one last heavy breath and then sighed.
"Better, thanks to you. If you and Amy hadn't noticed what was up…"
"But we did. I know this was a close call, but don't forget that we have each others backs. Just… try to be more aware of your environment. All three of you."
Ruby, Kurtis and Zen nodded with grim expressions. The former looked like she wanted to say something, but a shadow fell on the group.
An Egg Hammer had approached them and raised its name giving weapon to splatter the organics into the ground. The four of them scattered to dodge the attack, the Wisps returning into Crescent Rose. Ruby turned it into its sniper rifle form and took aim. With a precise shot she destroyed one of the Badnik´s eyes. The robot gave some sort of a mechanical grunt in response and its remaining eye looked onto the human girl. It jumped forward and smashed its hammer onto her. Ruby merely dodged aside with Petal Burst. When the hammer head burrowed beside her into the ground, she managed to keep her bearings, despite the slight tremble it caused, and jumped onto the weapon. The Egg Hammer tried to pull it back up, but Ruby already ran up the staff and jumped towards the head of the Badnik. Midair she transformed Crescent Rose into a scythe and buried her blade into the metallic skull of the Egg Hammer. It let go of the weapon, tumbling around aimlessly while raising its twitching arms toward the human on it. Sonic stopped it by running trough the joint of the left knee with a Boost, severing the limb from the body. The Egg Hammer now tried to regain its balance by flailing its arms around. Ruby pulled Crescent Rose out of the machine and jumped from it. The slight push she gave was enough to send the Egg Hammer falling on it´s back. The robot writhed on the ground, before its damaged machinery could no longer keep it moving and the massive Badnik went finally still.
Having gotten rid of this opponent, the speedster duo ran back to Amy, who they had left alone to deal with the Egg Tank. Luckily the pink hedgehog had already taken care of it.
After ducking under a laser, she had used the piece of another destroyed Badnik as a stepping stone to jump over the attacks of the flamethrower and, using the momentum of her jump, smashed it and the remaining canon to bits. When the war machine still moved around, she pounded on it until its systems stilled.
Amy waved towards her fellow hedgehog and Rose.
"Hey guys, already took care of it. I guess this time you were to slow, Sonic."
She gave a cheeky grin. The blue hedgehog rolled his eyes. They widened when they saw something behind her.
"Amy, MOVE!"
This, alongside Ruby raising her sniper, made the pink hedgehog do a side role. She barely dodged the shot of the E-2000 that had tried to attack her from behind.
It lowered its canon to instead raise the shield on its arm to protect itself from the laser Ruby had fired. Amy quickly went behind it, but the Badnik turned around to block her hammer with the shield and push her back. The robot raised its canon toward her and slowly filled it with energy, when it picked up on steps rapidly approaching. The E-2000 turned around once again and fired the laser shot towards Sonic and Ruby. They ran apart, the attack destroying the ground between them.
Sonic ran ahead and activated a Boost. The E-2000 blocked it with its shield and then raised the barrel of the laser canon across its face to hinder Amy from pounding it in with her hammer. Both hedgehogs pushed their respective attacks against the machine with all their strength. Before the robot could retaliate, Ruby reached the spot behind it. She briefly stopped to grab the white Chaos Emerald in her pocket. She charged herself with its energy, her Aura and Crescent Rose briefly lashing white, before she dashed ahead with a raised scythe… and appeared before the E-2000, her weapon now lowered. The Badnik looked briefly at the young human, its sensors trying to understand what had happened. Then its two halves fell apart, cut down right in the middle. Sonic quickly canceled his Boost and Amy lowered her hammer. She gave Ruby an admiring look.
"Wow. So THAT is what you´ve been up to with Shadow."
"Yeah… but he says I´m still not good enough to do any of the really cool stuff."
Sonic raised his eyebrow. "Ruby, you successfully managed to harness Chaos Energy and destroy an E-2000. Any idea how tough these things are?"
Screams brought all their attention to a group of soldiers being attacked by three of these Badnik model alongside Egg Cutters and an Egg Tank.
"Tough enough to know that these people need help," Amy muttered, having quickly become serious again. She turned to her friends.
"I hope you can manage on your own now. These people will need my support."
"Don´t worry Amy, we got this. Right, partner?"
Sonic gave Ruby his signature grin. She flashed him a grin of her own.
"You got it." The silver-eyed girl pointed forward to a group of all three stronger Badnik Models, accompanied by some armed Egg Pawns, marching towards them, drawn by the presence of Sonic the Hedgehog and the spike of Chaos Energy Ruby had given of. "I think it is time to show these guys what we can do, Sonic." Her grin broadened to an excited smile. "Together."
"Heh. You got it!"
Realizing what they were planning, Amy had been told by them about their battle with Neo Metal Sonic and watched some of the speedster duo´s training, she gave them an encouraging nod and ran to the troops in need of her help.
Sonic and Ruby, on the other hand, ran towards the Badnik Horde coming their way. Egg Tanks, E-2000s and Egg Pawns with guns started firing, but they did it too late.
"Chaos…"
"…Burst!"
BOOOM!
The Chaos Burst tore trough all the attacks and the metallic army behind them. They were either thrown trough the air like rag dolls or torn apart by the powerful force of the special attack. Even the more heavy and powerful Badniks stood no chance. But once they were all scrapped, the Chaos Burst didn't stop. No, instead it dashed right towards the high wall surrounding Metropolis.
A loud and massive shattering was heard when metal and cement was torn apart, pieces flying trough the air. Amy and her troops dodging them while the more clunkier and less agile Badniks were having less luck.
Mobians and humans alike looked in awe to the duo standing in the huge tear inside the wall. The hero of Mobius having pulled out another impressive feat to stand up against the force of Dr. Eggman. And Ruby Rose, known by most of the Resistance as the girl from another world, has shown that she has one or more tricks up her sleeve.
Both of them looked into the streets of Metropolis in front of them. Somewhere between all those buildings and machinery, there was their friend, playing his own, and arguably more important, part of the mission. Maybe they will encounter him during this.
Or maybe not.
Tails, whatever you will face in there, I hope… no, I know you will be doing fine, Ruby and Sonic unknowingly thought the exact same thing.
What the two of them also didn't know was the fact that they were being watched by several cameras, giving a direct feed to Eggman´s main base…
"Unbelievable!" the mad doctor yelled. He was sitting inside his office like room with the wide window as a back wall and the massive onyx chair in front of him. On the several computers on top of it he viewed how the Resistance tore the ingenious design of his incredibly creations apart and even dared to step foot inside HIS city of HIS Empire!
"The sheer audacity of these pests! Who do they think they are? Cinder, Infinite, are you seeing this?"
Via the intercom inside of their mask and cybernetic enhancements, the duo listened to the ranting of their boss.
"We´re seeing this, Doctor," Infinite calmly stated. He was currently inside another, more shadier room. Most of the lights had been destroyed, alongside mechanical test dummies. Orbot and Cubot were hovering in front of the masked entity, projecting the feeds Eggman saw on his screens.
Unlike the doctor, Infinite was calm. At least on the outside. Inside he was full of excitmend. His golden eye watched trough the red visor of his mask the feats the Resistance pulled of. Especially that Special Attack in the end. Infinite chuckled.
"It appears they haven't used their time to just bid it away. They have gotten stronger, more powerful. How an encounter with the fastest thing alive would go now? Who else has the Resistance brought with them?"
"I don't care who else they have brought with them, even if it is Santa Claus! Get out there and FIGHT! Fight and destroy these meddlesome, robot destroying anarchists!"
"Don´t worry, we will." The intercom was cut of. Infinite kept reviewing the scene of the Chaos Burst. "Truly what power these two have achieved together. But if they were to stand alone…"
Infinite produced another chuckle as he turned to a shady corner of the room, it´s darkness concealing the person standing there.
"… I´m sure a certain Rose will learn that she isn't the only person who has become stronger."
In the shadows an amber eye lit up with a burning energy and stared with hate toward the holographic feed that showed Ruby Rose.
Here we have the first chapter to Operation Big Wave. And I finally was able to use more of the regular enemies from Sonic Heroes, alongside an original creation, the Egg Tank. But that isn´t all for Ruby is already showing the fruition of her training. And there will be more in the future. But she isn´t the only one who has gotten stronger…
To ArguableReader: Yeah, the beginning had me fumbling a bit. I wanted the trio to talk about their personal feelings but I had struggle finding the right words.
I wouldn´t call Ruby a Rookie, with the destruction of two Phantoms, several successful missions and bringing back (and upgrading the former) of Omega and Tails, she has some pretty good feats in comparison to most common folk the Resistance is made of. And that is not mentioning the stuff she pulled of in Remnant. And while Shadow wouldn't bother with giving training to most people, the fact that Ruby reminds him of a certain other purehearted human girl he had known, he already as developed a soft spot for her without even fully realizing it.
To Guest: Thank you. I really appreciate it.
To SuperSaiyanFever: Shadow is relentless with his training, but he still pulls his punches. He doesn't want to kill Ruby.
That describes it actually perfectly well. And it will be more relevant than one might imagine.
Hm, this is actually the first time if have heard of it. I will take a look and see if it can be incorporated with what I have planned.
To Monster King: Thank you :)