Chapter 11: Partners in Crime
Blaze peered over the ledge, the city streets far, far below and the numerous street lamps, roads, and people mixing together into an orange and black mess. Her vision swam, rocking back and forth like a swing and she pulled back, scrunching her eyes shut. Deep breaths, she told herself.
Silver touched her shoulders gingerly, making her jump for a second. He rubbed her tense muscles and she relaxed in his hold. A chilly night wind whipped over them atop the thirty-story building's roof and she leaned into his chest fur, savoring its warmth. By Mobius, it was always so soft, like a feathery pillow.
"Alright, we don't have time to waste," Rouge said, pulling the ski mask down over her face. She flattened her ears inside of it until they were two little lumps, then tugged at various parts of the black pants and long shirt she wore, stretching the fabric. Then she reached into her duffel bag and tossed the same outfits to the pair of them. "Get changed."
"It'll be fine," Silver told Blaze as they pulled on the clothes. "I'll make sure you don't fall. Trust me."
She nodded at him, despite her churning stomach. Blaze trusted Silver. No doubt about that. He'd been by her side throughout the years, dedicating all his energy and time to stopping Eggman and any others who threatened this world or any other. He was reliable and whenever they were together, she knew he had her back. Especially since that day in their little garden where their relationship had blossomed into something else entirely. Something she cherished deeply.
Unfortunately, Silver was always a little too trusting and a little too eager to help. So when he told her he'd volunteered to help out with the recent auction, she thought that was just like him. Then Jewel convinced him to be the special guest. Blaze had her reservations, but supported him and decided to attend the auction to see him on stage.
However, shortly into the bidding, someone called a high price on Silver, easily outpacing everyone else. Jewel accepted the bid and sent Silver over to the winner. When the lights raised, Blaze spotted exactly who won Silver and was at his side in a moment.
"What do you want with him?" she asked Rouge suspiciously.
The bat sat leaned back in her chair, her boots up on the table, one of her gloves off as she examined her nails. "What else? To spend the day with him, of course." She smiled, her sharp teeth akin to a predator playing with its food. "I'm sure a hedgehog like him can help me out with a few things. Can't you, doll?"
Silver scratched the back of his neck, evidently sensing ill intent. "I guess," he said slowly. "What did you need help with?"
"Oh, I'm sure you and I could find plenty of uses for your," she looked him up and down, "talents."
Blaze's temper flared at the mere insinuation. She shoved herself between Silver and Rouge, blocking the bat's view, and folded her arms. "He's not available."
"Easy there, Princess," she said. "I was only teasing." She winked at Silver and Blaze's hand flexed, desperate to form a fireball right at that moment. "No, I actually do need his help with a job."
"I know all about your 'job,' " Blaze said.
"Good. Then I can skip the preliminaries and get right to the important details."
"We're not going to help you steal something and he's not going with you." Blaze took Silver's hand, grasping it firmly.
"Is that a fact?" Rouge asked, completely unaffected by her assertion.
"It is."
Rouge slid her glove back on and nodded at the stage, where Jewel was talking to Tangle. "The special guest is obligated to spend the day with the winner. That's the rules. If you want to take it up with Jewel, go ahead." She shot a glare at the auctioneer and added, in a mutter, "They want to make me jump, now they can make others jump for me."
"What?"
Clearing her throat, Rouge said, "My guess is they'll force Silver to spend the day with me, no matter what. After all, he did promise to uphold his end of this."
"I did," Silver said. "No matter who won, I have to."
Rouge tilted her head toward him and eyed the princess, pointing out that she was outvoted. Blaze rolled her eyes. Why did she have to love such a true-to-his-word, sweet hedgehog like him? "Very well. Then I'm coming too."
"Fine by me. The more hands the better. Besides, this is important." She waved at the seats beside her and they sat down. Rouge waited until Jewel and the others left the auction hall, then slipped a data pad out of her glove. She tapped a few icons on the screen and laid it flat on the table for both of them.
A spinning image of a thirty-floor building in the city took up the center of the screen. Details about the building scrolled along the left side. Each floor's departments, maximum capacity, number of doors and windows, and more. On the right side, another image displayed, which caught both of their attention.
"A Chaos Emerald?" Silver asked.
"Precisely," Rouge said, zooming onto the red emerald. She stared intensely at it for several long moments until Blaze cleared her throat. Rouge blinked and looked up. "Yes, the emerald. It's being held by an associate of Clutch."
Clean Sweep Inc's leader and criminal head. Silver and Blaze had heard talk of how they competed with the Restoration to clean up and recover Eggtech. Their altruistic guise being a cover for their true purpose: rebuilding Clutch's criminal empire and overtaking the Restoration.
Rouge pinched the display and it returned to the full screen that included the building. "Seems this associate came across the Chaos Emerald recently during a clean-up. According to my source, Clutch plans to pick up the emerald tomorrow, so we need to take it tonight."
"Wait, wait, wait," Silver held up his hands. "If a Chaos Emerald is at stake, shouldn't we involve the Restoration in this?"
"The Restoration and Clean Sweep have a standing truce at the moment," she said. "I doubt Jewel would be eager to break that based on my word alone."
"What about Sonic then?" Blaze suggested.
"I've tried contacting him, but word is he, Tails, Amy, and a few others are handling something with Eggman up north. Besides, I think this job calls for a delicate touch, if you know what I mean. Otherwise, I'd bring some hot-headed muscle of my own. I think the three of us can handle it."
"Why should we trust you? What's to stop Silver and I from going at it ourselves?"
Rouge smiled, as though waiting for just that question, and tapped the screen. Immediately, dozens of red warning windows popped up along the building's sides about armed guards, suspected routes, and security systems. "Because you couldn't take one step in there without getting caught. I have the know-how and experience to bypass their systems.
Silver snorted. "Still doesn't explain why we should trust you."
"Would you rather Clutch get his hands on the emerald?" she asked, looking between them. When they still weren't convinced, she phrased it differently. "Fine, what's the lesser of two evils? A criminal mastermind who plans to use it for some diabolical plan that most likely causes destruction and mayhem, or an innocent little thief who only wishes to display it in her home and admire it?"
That still didn't fully win Blaze over, but the incorrigible bat had a point. If Clutch got hold of the emerald, who knew the trouble he'd cause? The risk was too great and, like it or not, Rouge had proved herself when it came to stopping imminent world destruction. "Okay, fine. We'll help. But if you're lying or double cross us—"
"Yes, yes. I'll never live to regret it. Heard that a million times and it's always good for a laugh."
Blaze glowered and Silver clenched his fists under the table. The princess gripped his knee, shaking her head slightly, and he caught onto his unspoken message. They could always get the emerald from Clutch, then take it from Rouge to give to the Restoration, ensuring it stayed safe. He settled down and she tried to keep a level head.
"How about a sign of good faith to calm things, Your Highness?" Rouge traced her finger from the top of the building and throughout the floors, a yellow line trailing in its wake. "All we need to do is start at the roof here. Go down the side of the buildings and enter on the twenty-seventh floor." The screen spun around to a window and entered a 3D recreation of a hallway.
"Avoid the guards inside." Several indistinct gray Mobian models appeared, walking along the corridors. "Get to the central office here. Once inside, take the stairs hidden behind a bookcase down to the floor below, where the building's vault lies. I crack the vault, take the emerald, go back the way we came, and we fly out of there."
Blaze didn't like that last part. The thought of flying out of a building hundreds of feet up turned her stomach upside-down. Swallowing the rising nausea in her throat, she asked, "There's no other way?"
"Sure, about a dozen. Unfortunately, we don't have the time for some elaborate plan. Also, uh, Clutch and I have had run-ins in the past, so his associate might know about me." She flashed a toothy grin. "Therefore, quick and dirty it is."
"If it's that simple, what do you need us for?" Silver asked.
"Back-up. There's a lot of guards and one little old me. If things go haywire, I'll need support. I think a psychic blast or a fireball or two should work in that case. Now, shall we get going? We're running out of daylight."
Blaze hated this entire thing. However, there was a Chaos Emerald at stake. Silver patted the princess' hand reassuringly and turned back to Rouge. "Lead the way."
Blaze tucked her ears into the ski mask, preparing to pull it down over her face. The whole outfit painfully pinched and dug into all sorts of odd places. How does she stand wearing this? She eyed their thief leader, who stretched her back, rolled her shoulders, and crouched over the edge, murmuring to herself.
Silver hesitated with his own mask, looking at Blaze. "What?" she asked, checking herself. "Did I forget something?"
"No," he said slowly and took a sudden interest in his feet. "It's just…I didn't know you look good in black. It works for you."
She yanked the mask down over her cherry red cheeks. "I asked you not to do that. Not out in public," she murmured.
"Sorry, I couldn't help it." He donned his mask, hiding his embarrassment too.
She shuffled over to him, head turned away, and touched his hand. She tickled the center of his palm with the tip of her finger, letting him know that she wasn't mad at him. Not really. Simply overwhelmed. "Thanks."
He interlaced his fingers with hers and they enjoyed the moment. At least until Rouge rudely interrupted it. "Hey, lovebirds, we don't have all night." She secured a belt with pouches along her thigh and pulled back her glove, checking a wristwatch. "The longer we wait, the more likely we're found out."
Rouge leapt off the corner of the roof, flapping her wings and descending slowly. A teal hue surrounded Blaze and Silver and he used his powers to follow. Blaze shut her eyes tight, refusing to look down. She considered the sky, but the openness of it was just as bad, reminding her that only empty air stood between her and the roads below.
Silver drifted close to her, opening his arms and calling her name. She leaned toward him gladly and he held her close to his chest. She focused solely on him, his strong shoulders supporting her cheek and his concerned golden eyes watching her. His presence eased her and she told herself that they were almost there. It'll be over soon. It'll be over soon.
They stopped at the twenty-seventh floor, where large rectangular windows looked out at them. The few windows without drawn blinds showed furnished offices. The corner office was currently empty and Rouge hovered in front of the window. She flipped open one of the pouches and pulled out a small handheld device with a screen. Pointing it at the window, she pressed a couple of buttons and it beeped.
She beckoned Silver and Blaze closer as she took out a foldable glass cutter from another pouch. "Okay, we have a minute before the sensors come back on. I'm going to need you to catch this thing. We can't let it shatter."
He nodded and she carved a large circle in the window. Once she finished, she pushed it in and Silver extended his hand, levitating it above the floor. Rouge crawled through the open hole and ushered the others through. "Hurry up! Forty seconds"
Blaze didn't need to be told twice. She scrambled through the hole and collapsed onto the soft velvet carpet. She could've kissed it and took a moment to dig her hands into it, confirming that it actually was beneath her.
Behind her, Silver lifted the glass piece back into the hole while Rouge directed him. "Fit it in perfectly. Hey, Princess. How about a hand here? Can you seal it up?"
"Yeah." Blaze stood on wobbly feet and pressed her fingertip to the cut glass. Instantly, her finger heated the glass and it bubbled into a warped seal as she traced the circle.
"Ten seconds," Rouge called out. Her eyes flicked back and forth between the slowly sealing edges and her watch. "Pick up the pace."
"I'm trying." Blaze held another finger at the opposite end and went the opposite way with it, racing fast. Several seconds later, her fingers touched and she stepped back. It was a slap-dash, terrible seal, but it held firm for now.
"And they're back on. Don't touch it or we'll set off the alarms throughout the floor."
"Won't we get caught anyway?" Silver pointed at the seal. "They're going to notice that."
Rouge grabbed the chain dangling from one end of the window and pulled the blinds down. "Not right away they won't. We'll be out of here before then. Now, let's move it."
Slipping to the door, Rouge opened it, checked the hallway, and waved for them to follow her. They scurried down the hall, turned the corner, and went down the next, avoiding the occasional security camera. They stopped at one intersection where two guards stood at one end in front of a break room.
Rouge checked her watch and retrieved a small, compact pistol from one of the larger pouches. Blaze immediately grabbed her elbow, jerking the gun down. "I thought you wanted to do this whole thing quietly. Now you're about to fire that thing off?"
"Relax," Rouge said, pulling back the slide and showing the inside. Instead of a bullet, a plastic syringe laid in the chamber. "It's a tranquilizer. However," she eyed the guards, then held up the gun, "I only have three shots and I'd prefer to save them if we can." She pointed at Silver. "Could you maybe make some psychic barrier that hides us or something?"
"That's not really how my powers work," he said, swapping places with her and peering around the corner. "But I have an idea."
He held out his hand, concentrating hard on the guards. Or rather, beyond them in the breakroom. In the corner, a cupboard open and a box of sweetener toppled out. It landed on top of a coffee pot, dumping it over and spilling coffee everywhere on the pristine tile floor.
The guards turned to the commotion and swore. "Great, just great," one of them said, tearing off fistfuls of paper towels from a dispenser in the break room. The other grabbed the coffee pot before it rolled off the counter and tip-toed over the mess to the sink.
The three thieves dashed across the intersection with neither of the guards the wiser to their presence. "Good job," Blaze told Silver.
Rouge stowed her gun. "Yeah, great. All the power of common household mishaps at my disposal. Well worth the bid."
They reached the target office soon enough, which was pretty devoid of any furniture or amenities, making it appear very large. A desk was pushed to one side and two bookcases lined the other walls, filled with binders and ledgers. "Look for any out of place," Rouge said, running her hands along one of the bookcases.
Blaze and Silver examined the other bookcase and after a few minutes, she noticed a blue leather book amongst several others. In gold lettering on the side it read 'Security Manual,' which seemed out of place amongst the business books on either side of it. She tipped the book toward her and realized the pages were fake. It was a block of white sandwiched between the leather binding.
As she pulled the book out, a latch clicked behind the bookcase. The book snapped back into place as the case slid aside and into the corner, revealing a set of stairs behind it.
"Excellent. Let's head down," Rouge said, taking the lead, the bookcase sliding closed behind them.
At the bottom of the stairs, a short hallway ended at a square metal vault door. No other doors or decoration besides deep-sea blue neon lights stretching high on the walls. On the right side of the vault, a keypad and display waited for a user to enter the correct code. In the corner, a security camera pointed at the front of the vault. Rouge flattened against the wall and flew up to the camera. Taking a small, flat disc from a pouch, she attached it to the underside of the camera and waved a hand in front of it.
"That should set it on a loop," she said, lifting her mask, as did the others. "But anyone watching might get suspicious before long. Now, watch my back." She retrieved the handheld device again from her supplies, knelt in front of the keypad, and held it up, tapping on her screen.
"Isn't this a little strange?" Silver asked. "I expected more guards."
"Yeah," Blaze said. The same thought had occurred to her. The way Rouge described the building, she expected security to be tight and nearly impenetrable. "It's almost too—"
"Don't!" Rouge hissed. "Don't you dare finish that sentence and jinx us!"
Too late. The damage was done as they heard the bookcase open up the stairs. Rouge silently cursed and Blaze looked around. There wasn't anywhere to hide in the hallway.
Suddenly, her body lurched off the ground and her stomach plummeted into her feet. She flattened against the ceiling, surrounded in Silver's hue. Beside her, Silver and Rouge both laid at odd angles, making themselves as small as possible. There was little chance this would work. All the several people coming down the stairs needed to do was look up and they were goners.
Rouge pulled out her tranquilizer gun and twisted it down at the approaching party. Six security guards exited, each carrying Eggtech energy rifles. Behind them, a weasel with shifty eyes, a pressed suit, and a sycophantic smile waved on the final member, talking excitedly about the Chaos Emerald.
"I knew you'd be very interested in it," the weasel said.
"Yes, if it's the real deal you have here," the last said, taking off his bucket hat and revealing a green opossum. He was garishly dressed, in a way that oozed money, from the gold cufflinks accenting his pinstriped jacket to his gold tooth when he grinned. He raised his cane and pointed at the vault. "Let's see it then."
"Of course," the weasel hurried to the keypad and, using his body to cover it, entered the code.
Blaze glanced at Rouge, who mouthed what she suspected. "Clutch." Then they were too late. He must've come early. Although why?
She noticed Clutch staring up at the security camera. His penetrating eyes narrowed, studying it for a moment, and Blaze suddenly realized that he knew. He knew someone would try to swipe the emerald and must've arrived a day beforehand to prevent that. Which meant they had walked right into a trap.
Rouge and Silver appeared to arrive at similar conclusions, as the hedgehog edged the three of them back to the stairs. The vault door swung open and inside, the ruby red Chaos Emerald sat on a plush pillow atop a display pedestal. Clutch and the weasel entered while the guards lingered outside, blocking them.
Rouge looked longingly at the emerald and Blaze flailed her hand, vigorously trying to wave her off. This wasn't the right time. They were in the heart of enemy territory. One wrong move and they'd bring the entire weight of the building's security down on their heads.
"Magnificent," Clutch said as the weasel lifted the glass case surrounding the emerald. He picked it up, examining it closely. His greedy gaze sparkled like Rouge's, both enamored by the jewel's luster. "It certainly looks like the genuine article."
"Oh, it is," the weasel said. "Had it checked several times myself."
"Pity you didn't put forth the same effort for thieves," Clutch said.
The weasel straightened and looked at their bodyguards. Blaze signaled to Silver silently. Get us out of here now!
"I did," the weasel said.
"Not well enough. Your camera's been tampered with." He gripped the emerald tight in his fist and swung around. "Someone reached the vault before us."
Immediately, Rouge fired her gun. Three darts hit three bodyguards and they slumped to the ground. Silver released his hold on the others and Blaze fell to her feet. The remaining bodyguards raised their weapons and fired, narrowly missing as red lasers struck the staircase.
Blaze shot forth fiery blasts, searing the ends of their rifles. The unburnt pieces of the rifles glowed red hot and beeped warning lights. The bodyguards hurled their rifles away and Silver caught them, surrounding the pieces in a misshapen teal bubble. Once it closed, the rifles exploded, filling the bubble with fire and smoke and knocking Silver flat on his back.
"Silver!" Blaze ran for him, helping him sit up.
"The vault!" Rouge shouted.
As Blaze turned to it, the door slammed shut, locking Clutch and his partner inside. Rouge ran for the door, the bodyguards forming a line to block her. She easily dodged their attempts to grab her and kicked one in the jaw, sending a couple of teeth flying. The other two hesitated, giving her ample opportunity to deliver a one-two punch to the second.
The last bodyguard backed up to the vault, raising his hands high. Rouge stomped over and kneed him below the belt. He fell before her, cradling himself in immense pain, and she slapped him senseless with such force that it echoed throughout the hall.
Then Rouge turned her ire on the door. Pounding on the metal, she yelled, "Clutch, you snake! Give me that emerald!" Blaze helped Silver up and they joined her at the door.
"Rouge, fancy seeing you again." Clutch appeared on the screen above the vault's keypad, smiling wide. "If I'd known you were coming, I could've planned ahead. Some finger foods, drinks, a bomb collar for that pretty neck."
She gritted her teeth. "I thought you weren't coming until tomorrow."
"That was the plan, but then word reached me that a thoughtless associate let slip what was in this vault." He glared at the weasel beside him, who shirked under those black filled eyes. "I couldn't let someone take my emerald. But I suppose I should thank you, Rouge. Going through all this proved that this must be a real Chaos Emerald."
"You can thank me by opening the door," Rouge said, her eye twitching.
"Tempting, but no," he said absently, admiring the emerald and showing it off to the camera. "Instead, I'll give you a little present. Something you absolutely deserve."
A sudden alarm blared throughout the hallway, hurting Blaze's ears, and the lights above switched to a deep red. "Intruder alert!" a mechanical voice announced, echoing throughout what seemed like the entire floor. "Intruder alert in the vault!"
Clutch laughed to himself and Rouge pulled Blaze and Silver aside. "You," she pointed at Silver, then the hallway. "Can you keep the bookcase from moving?" He nodded and raced up the stairs. "Now, Princess, can you get us through the door?"
Blaze looked at the vault and examined it. The metal was thick, no doubt, but they didn't have much choice. "I'll try." She placed her hands on the vault door's bottom hinge and summoned her strength, her hands heating up and catching fire in her palms.
"What are you doing?" Clutch's voice was barely audible over the constant alarm.
Blaze poured on more power and to her delight, the first hinge began to melt into a orange, goopy slurry, pooling on the floor. Then she reached up for the next one.
"You might want to stand back," Rouge said, grinning.
Clutch stumbled away from the camera as the second hinge dissolved. Rouge grabbed Blaze under her arms and carried her up to the final hinge. Upstairs, Blaze heard shouting and commotion, followed by several thumps and an energy blast. Silver.
"Focus," Rouge told her.
Blaze grabbed the last hinge and easily melted it. Rouge dropped her back on the ground and flew up to the top of the door. Bracing herself against the ceiling, she dug her heels in between the door and the wall, prying at it. Blaze quickly dragged the unconscious bodyguards out of the way, then helped her, pulling at the side. However, they couldn't get a good grip on it.
"Silver!" Blaze called. "We need you!"
"Hang on!" he yelled. A sudden whump followed, then a bodyguard tumbled down the staircase, landing flat on his back and groaning. Silver rushed down the stairs after. He took in both girls prying at the door, the melted hinges, and raised his hands. The vault door glowed brightly, overpowering the red lights for a moment, and slowly, inch by inch, started to move.
"Keep going!" Blaze said. She worked her fingers in the slowly widening crack, pushing with all her might. Rouge kicked at the top and together, all three brought the heavy door off the wall and crashing down onto the floor with a resounding bang that rattled their teeth.
Inside the vault, Clutch backed up to the other side of the room, holding his cane out in front of him. His weasel associate yelped and scurried to the corner, curling up into a frightened ball.
"This here's my emerald," Clutch said, aiming the bottom of his cane at them. "You aren't going to take it."
"Move!" Rouge ordered.
Blaze didn't understand the problem. What was his paltry cane compared to the three of them? Too late she saw the empty cylinder where the ferrule should be capping off the cane's bottom. In the center, a glowing red light similar to the Eggtech weapons built up and fired off like a shot.
Silver was faster on the uptake. He tackled Blaze aside and they fell to the ground inside the vault as several shots rocketed off. He lifted himself up, his eyes frantically scanning her. "You okay?"
"Fine," she said. She'd kiss him later for that. Right now, she turned her burning anger on the underhanded opossum.
Clutch spun his cane toward the pair, but Silver caught it this time with his power. The cane flung upwards, firing into the ceiling harmlessly. Blaze dashed forward and punched Clutch in the jaw as hard as she could. He collided against a wall of lockboxes in the rear of the vault, dropping both the emerald and the cane.
Rouge snatched up the gem while Silver grabbed the cane, lifting it high in the air and twisting it into a teal-hued pretzel before letting it fall. Clutch looked at his weapon and snarled at them. "This isn't over."
"Oh, I think it is," Rouge said, walking out. She faltered when she saw other jewels in broken display cases along the wall, but took a breath and kept moving. "Control yourself, girl. I'll come back later." That didn't stop her from brushing her fingers along the case of one glimmering opal gemstone.
Blaze and Silver followed her, glass tinkling on the ground in their wake. The hedgehog raised the vault door up and set it back against the wall. He winced and Blaze noticed a scorched bit of fur along the top of his shoulder. She reached for it, but he shook his head. "I'll be fine. Let's go."
They hurried up to the top of the stairs, where a dozen voices or more shouted on the other side of the bookcase and multiple fists hammered on it. "I had to break the motor on it," Silver said.
"What now?" Blaze asked. "We can't get back in the way we came."
"True," Rouge said, tucking the emerald in one of her pouches. "That makes this easier."
"Easier?"
"Well, simpler. When I say, blow a hole in this, get out of the office, and run down the hall to the nearest window."
"That's your plan?" Blaze asked incredulously. "I thought you were a master thief."
"Master thieves know when they have to improvise. So unless you have something better…" Rouge rummaged through one of the pouches and pulled out a little round black ball. She tugged her mask down and ran her finger over a button along it. Once Blaze and Silver pulled on their masks, the bat nodded. "Now!"
Blaze blasted an intense fireball at the bookshelf and it exploded outward. Several guards collapsed behind it, piled over each other and coughing violently. Rouge pressed the button on the ball and tossed it in.
The ball hissed as jets of white smoke billowed out of it, quickly filling the room. The three thieves stumbled over bodies and each other, racing as energy beams fired wildly about them. There was so much commotion that Blaze fired fireballs randomly, hoping that she didn't hit Rouge or Silver. The other two collided with each other at some point, as Rouge grunted and yelled, "Get off me, you klutz!"
"Sorry, sorry!" he said.
In the hall, the three took a sharp turn to the right, heading for the windows ahead. "We need an exit!" Rouge shouted.
"On it!" Silver hurled a sofa in the hall at the window with all his might, shattering the glass.
Blaze didn't know if she could leap out from this height. However, the gunfire arcing overhead convinced her otherwise. Taking a deep breath, she jumped with the others and flailed her arms.
Silver caught her with his telekinesis and they quickly shot off with Rouge, flying into the starry night and away the building.
"We did it!" Silver whooped as they landed on an apartment rooftop, far from the building. He ripped off his ski mask like the others and tossed his into the air. "I can't believe we did it!"
"Yes," Rouge said, sauntering over to him, and leaning in close. Too close and Silver backed away. "Looks like my rings were well worth it."
Blaze pushed her way between them, crossing her arms staunchly in front of her. "That's enough. It's the end of the day, he's helped you, so you can back off."
"Relax, Princess," she said. "I prefer a guy who knows what he's doing after all. Not," she circled her hand at them, "whatever you two have."
A pair of warm hands wrapped around Blaze's waist, startling her. When she heard Silver's tender voice in her ears, she relaxed in spite of herself. "I like what we have together."
She turned to him, nuzzling underneath his chin and sighed. "I do too."
"That's nice." In a flash, Rouge pulled out her pistol, aimed, and fired. Silver grunted and a small syringe jutted out of shoulder, pumping him full of a clear liquid. "Oh, did I say I had three? Must've miscounted."
"Silver!" Blaze cradled him as he slumped to the ground, dragging her down with him. She whipped her head to Rouge. "Are you crazy?"
"Relax, it's a light one. He'll be a little loopy for ten minutes or so. Enough time for me to get away." She leapt into the air and flew over Blaze's head, annoyingly out of reach.
"After we helped you?"
"Spare me. Did you really think I was going to let the two of you take my emerald from me after I worked so hard for it? Don't act like you weren't planning to. It's written plainly all over your face."
Blaze glowered at her, holding Silver's head in her lap. "It needs to be kept safe."
"And it will be. Along with all my other pretty gems." She swooped above her, chuckling to herself. "You two really do make a cute couple. Thanks for your help. We should do this again sometime." With that, she was off, disappearing into the night sky.
There was no way Blaze could chase her down. By the time she found someone who could fly, Rouge would be long gone. She flared her nostrils and instead turned her attention to Silver, who mumbled and flopped his head from side to side.
"Blaze?" he asked, slurring the word.
"I'm here." She stroked his quills. "How you feeling?"
"Pretty good." He scrunched his eyes shut and opened them, trying to focus on her. "Emerald?"
"It's gone. Rouge took it."
He shook his head and pointed at his quills. "No, here."
She cocked an eyebrow and moved her hand to where he pointed. "What? Does it hurt there?" He shook his head again and jabbed at the spot, digging his fingers into his quills. Blaze copied him and felt a hard lump amongst them. An injury? No, it was too misshapen and loose for that.
Wrapping her hands around the strange object, she pulled it out and her jaw dropped. The Chaos Emerald, glittering in all its ruby brilliance. "H-How?" she stumbled over her words. "How did you get it?"
"Made a little swap," he said with a big toothy smile, evidently pleased with himself. "During smoke, lifted it out." He wiggled his fingers around and they glowed for a moment, which caused him to stare and laugh at them. He repeated it, making ghostly noises. "Whoooo, I'm haunting yoooou."
The tranquilizer had to be fully setting in. "Then what does Rouge have?" Blaze asked.
"A shiny blue one," he said, then looked back at her. "Anyone ever tell you you're pretty in black?"
She grinned and bit her lip. "Yes, I think you do."
"Well, I want to do it again." He struggled to sit up and tapped her nose. "You're really pretty. All. The. Time."
Blaze wrapped her arms around him and kissed him deeply. His mouth worked awkwardly around hers, but she didn't care. She kissed him until he lost his balance and fell back in her lap.
"I like that. Can we do it again?"
"Later," she said, standing and helping him to his feet. She threw one of his arms over her shoulders. "We need to get off this roof and get you to a hospital for that." She nodded at his singed arm.
"Yeah, it does hurt a little." He rotated it and dropped it limply at his side. "Ow."
"Here. First the hospital," she pocketed the emerald, "then we have to get this to the Restoration."
"Then more kisses?" he asked hopefully.
She giggled and dragged him along. "Yes, more kisses. Lots more." Silver cheered and the promise put an extra, stumbling pep in his step as they headed down to the street.