SonicANIME2010 here, bringing in the Finale to the Little Planet arc… well, this is it. the last of the first real arc of the story, I'd like to hear thoughts on it and how I'm doing. After this chapter, I will give at least one or two chapters of a breather "arc" for slice of life and fallout from the stuff happening here. I don't own anything. And let's do it!
"Say
"Telepathy"
'Thought'
"Device"
[Non-Administrated Planet #97 "Earth"]
[Never Lake: Little Planet]
[Stardust Speedway: Act 3]
[Time: Future]
[BGM: "Stardust Speedway ~G" Sonic CD (JP/EU)
A beautiful cathedral overlooked the massive, futuristic amusement park themed zone. Colors of light-pink and green dominated the landscape as the region sat upon a bay with bright cities visible in the distance. Though devoid of any signs of life within the last probable half-century or so, the cityscape in the backdrop still held a majestic, awe-inspiring splendor for the eyes to behold.
If there was any blemish to the wondrous sight, it was the appearance of a race course, constructed somewhat poorly as if rushed. Sharp curves, turns and vertical loops all aplenty, but they were inconsistently spaced, aside from a string of consecutive hair-point turns close to the end. Those were the only normal obstacles one might find in a race track.
Doctor Eggman flew around the starting point of the course in his Egg-mobile. The man, oddly enough, had changed his usual outfit to a red and yellow themed jumpsuit more suited for racing; likely to go with the obvious theme he was milking. The sight was so horrendous, it made Sonic take a mental note to ask Shamal if brain bleach was a healthy means of forgetting something that you really wish to unsee.
The hedgehog's friends were not too far behind on that sentiment, even Signum felt somewhat repulsed, though one would have a hard time noticing it given her stoic expression. Mortifying mental imagery was forcibly shoved aside as the mages hovered over the starting point.
"Welcome, one and all!" Eggman announced after inexplicably producing a microphone from his Egg-mobile, "Welcome to the Mach Speed Showdown on Rainbow Road!"
"Uh, Eggman-san," Nanoha cut in, "Wrong game."
"Wait, what?" The doctor sent a looked over at the mages, "What do you mean?"
"This zone is called "Stardust Speedway"," Alicia added, "So it should be the Mach Speed Showdown on Stardust Speedway."
"Huh…" Eggman stroked his mustache, "Now where did I get that name from?"
From the ground, Sonic watched the exchange with an almost impatient tapping of his foot. It was bad enough that he had to deal with an obviously gimmicky fight of sorts with yet another of Eggman's robots, but a race?
Next to the hedgehog was a robot, created in his very image, though with a few differences. Its body was made of a metal that was but a few shades of blue off of matching Sonic and it had only half of the amount of head spikes. A yellow circular depression was featured on its chest with a black center, obviously attempting to resemble everything about the hedgehog. The metal hedgehog's head looked almost pristine, if not for the lone blemish of a comically sizable mark left behind by a hammer.
"Why do I have to race again? Moreover…" The hedgehog turned to face his metallic counterpart, "Tell this rusty doppelganger to stop mimicking me!"
"Why, Sonic, you should know why we are having this race." Eggman's tone was condescending, arrogant, "Considering what's at stake here."
With a grin, the doctor powered up a holographic projector, displaying Amy Rose. The pink hedgehog had chains wrapped around her body, tying her to a lamppost at the finish line. Several egg-shaped robots had their guns pointed at her head. The laser pointers were primed specifically on her forehead
"Great…" Sonic sighed in resignation as he slowly got himself into a ready position to start the race, "No choice then."
"Of course, you could save her now if you tell me where the Time Stones are." noted the mad scientist.
"Are you still going on about those?" asked Alicia, "I told you that we don't know."
"And I don't believe you. Are we going to have this race or not?" Eggman almost roared, "Because my new enforcer, Hyper Metal Sonic, is just dying to see how he'd fare against the real deal."
The robot across from Sonic waved its finger to confirm the reference made by the doctor. Its eyes, flickering between green and red at random intervals, stared into the emerald green orbs of its original's.
"Alright, let's do it." Sonic relented.
"I knew you'd come to see things my way." Eggman smirked as he pressed a few keys on his Egg-Mobile keyboard, "Then let's start the show!"
Both hedgehogs, mechanical and organic, took positions at the starting gate. Knees and arms were bent and feet were placed firmly on the ground. A series of lights lit up on the top of the gate, not unlike those of a stoplight or signal light.
"Three," Eggman held up a gun in his right hand.
Sonic's arms stiffened and flexed as his knees bent as far as he needed them to. His gloved hands planted themselves firmly onto the ground for balance. Metal Sonic did the same, whether it was to mimic the organic counterpart or something else could not be seen. Like the real hedgehog, the metallic one was ready to go.
"Two…" Eggman counted, "One…."
Both racers arched their back slightly as the race was about to begin.
"GO!"
The gates opened to signify the start of the race as Metal Sonic's tail thruster began to activate. Before anyone could react, the metallic hedgehog launched off with a burst of speed and smoke comparative to a drag race car.
Soot and smoke covered Sonic's face, forcing him to cough and shake it off his head at a cost of some time. He stood there for a few moments, wearing a flat-lined expression on his face; though that soon faded into a small smirk as he uttered but a few words.
"Of course, you realize this means war."
[OP: "Eternal Blaze" Mizuki Nana]
Sonic the Hedgehog: Wind of the Night Sky
Chapter 8
Little Planet Final Phase: A simple choice for a drastic outcome (Part 2)
-Several Minutes Earlier-
[Stardust Speedway: Act 1]
[Time: Past]
[BGM: "Stardust Speedway Act 1" Sonic Mania OST]
The heroes found themselves on a highway overlooking a city holding the form reminiscent of ancient Greece or Rome, complete with an acropolis with a few towns surrounding it. The ancient themed city overlooked a lake. As they were in the zone furthest away from the sun, the night sky was dark, illuminated with only the traces of fireflies. The road was lush with vegetation and vines while ancient pillars littered the path.
While they would have normally started each round in the present timeline, it was by Alicia's request that things start different from the norm. Her reasoning was that it would make a more seamless, fluid transition when travelling through time. In addition, they could save their strength when utilizing the time posts if they just took it one time-zone at a time.
From what could be seen, the Speedway zone had definitely earned its name. The roads had long straightaways, curves, turns and vertical loops with no end in sight. Pathways were compacted together to form high-speed tubes that were just narrow enough to support someone of Signum's height, though they would have to mind their head while travelling. Networks were formed of the intersecting tubes, creating a variety of different pathways or routes to take, though also making it easier to get lost.
"This is Stardust Speedway." Alicia stated as she gestured to the zone, "As you can see, this is the fastest zone on Little Planet."
"It kinda looks like a race course," observed Sonic, pointing out some of the curves and loops that appeared to be strategically placed, "If you look past all of the overgrowth."
"How the heck are we going to be able to get through here?" Vita blurted out with a tone mixed of confusion and frustration, "Not all of us are speed freaks and we still have to take out those objective thingies!"
"I know this area like the back of my hand," boasted the small blonde, "I can guide you through, the only issue is finding the teleporter. Like I said before, this is one of the fastest zones, so it will be easy to overshot anything important."
The confidence of Alicia Testarossa was well-founded as she effectively guided her party through the first stretch of high-speed tubes. A cart was placed at the beginning of each tube that was big enough to hold the whole party with Sonic pushing to provide the speed. Alicia had taken charge of the steering and would send a signal to the hedgehog if they needed to pump on the brakes.
Once the tubes were out of the way, the robots had presented themselves as a threat. The bug theme that was prevalent through the previous zones was once again seen in the speedway. Among the notable types were the Dango, a pill bug shaped robot that would roll up into a ball for defense. Their defenses when rolled up were strong enough to withstand a spin attack from Sonic, but doing so exposed its main body for an attack.
The other type of mech that generated trouble for the heroes were the Hotaru, a firefly shaped robot. These robots had made their presence known by flying through the air, firing beams of burning energy at the party, and they had been able to strategically hide their presence until the point of attack. Fortunately, they were vulnerable when striking, and Vita was able to make short work of them with her Schwalbefliegen (Swallow Flight) spell, one of her few guided shooting spells.
Much like the previous zone, the robot teleporter and projection devices were both located relatively close to one another, though both were in a cove that the party had to correctly navigate through the tubes to get to the area. There was little issue with Sonic's speed or Alicia's steering, the delay in locating the devices were due to how complex the high-speed tube network was. The timing of the turn had to be just right or else they would have skipped the turn and be sent flying in another direction entirely.
With the safety of the zone ensured, it soon came time to make their jump through time, the only complication in that was finding the appropriate sign. That complication was magnified as it meant navigating through the complex network of tubes. If nothing else, the detour allowed Sonic to pick up some useful knowledge on the terrain which made for an easier adjustment. In one of the less orthodox ways of doing so, compared to the previous methods of brute force, the party simply utilized the speed at which they were travelling to act as the power for the time warp to activate.
[Stardust Speedway: Act 2]
[Time: Present]
[BGM: "Stardust Speedway Act 2" Sonic Mania OST]
From the Greek or Roman acropolis to a modern city almost at the pinnacle of technological prime, the transition of time had brought almost a shock to all but Alicia, who was used to it. The highway itself had also undergone a significant change in aesthetics; what were once lush plant life and vegetation overgrowing the roads were now replaced by musical instruments, giving it more of the feel of an amusement park; though it was hardly a demerit to the aesthetic appeal.
The night sky was far brighter not only due to the abundance of technology when compared to the previous timeline, but also the spotlights that randomly moved back and forth to illuminate the road. There was but one blemish to the beauty of the zone, but it was a major demerit. A complete eyesore and an insult to anyone with even a sense of taste for beauty. It was such a disgrace to the eyes, that Sonic had only one guess as to who started it.
"Really, Eggman?" The hedgehog had an unimpressed mug to his face as he gawked openly, "What the crap?!"
In the near middle of the zone was a construction site that had Eggman's name practically written all over. A statue bearing his very unsightly image was in the process of being made. Every detail from the man's egg-shaped figure to his pointy mustache was on display. The statue, when finished, would have depicted the man standing tall and proud in his glory, his arms folded behind his back and spotlights shining on him.
"For the record, that was not here yesterday." Alicia was quick to point out, "Originally, it was a church and archive."
"Looks like he put alot of hard work into it considering how fast he got this set up." said Sonic, turning towards Vita, "It would be a total shame if someone were to tear it all down, right?"
"Yeah," replied Vita, hefting her hammer over the shoulder, "A real shame."
A cart bearing the design of a trumpet waited for the party at the entrance to the network of tubes. With Alicia steering and Sonic providing the speed, most of the course had passed by in a blur of flashing lights. Unlike the previous zones, there were few robots to deal with in the present timeline. Signum speculated that it was due to the close proximity to the mad scientist's base while Vita opined that it was to cover the construction zone.
The network ended once they reached the site of the construction. As the construction robots were not built for combat, they had to receive cover fire from the robots from above and it was the Hotaru who were designated as the cover due to their lasers.
While Sonic and Vita focused their efforts on dismantling the statue and the robots that were building it, Signum had shifted Laevatein to Schlangeform and loaded a cartridge to provide protection from the aerial firefly robots. The secondary form of her device a mixture of a connected blade and a whip where pieces of her blade were connected by a moveable chain that could extend to assault or trap opponents like a whip. Loading a cartridge added a flame effect to the whip for a boost of attack power which, given the weak design of the firefly robots, outright destroyed most of them in one or two swings.
The whole process took around five minutes and Vita had to use a cartridge boost for good measure, but at the end of it all, there was nothing left. Not a trace of the statue, the robots or the construction site had been left once the two had finished with their work. While the hedgehog and girl shared a high-five and a grin, the others watching had different comments.
"They went overboard again." Nanoha commented.
"At least they got the job done." noted Fate.
"And I don't have to look at that thing again," added Alicia.
"We should press on," Signum cut in, "We've lingered here too long."
With Signum's words came truthfulness as time had been spent on the necessary detour. Fortunately, the closest future time plate was a few yards away and the did not have to navigate through the tubes once more, much to a certain hedgehog's disappointment. Like in the previous timeline, the straightforward method of blazing through with blistering speed had worked its magic and sent them off to the future, where the mad Eggman waited.
[Dimensional Space]
[Time-Space Administration Bureau Space Headquarters]
[Office of Director Midget Crowbel]
[No BGM]
Attentively, Lindy and Leti watched as their director pulled several still images and recordings that backed up Lindy's reports of the last two incidents that had occurred on Earth. As she watched, the teal-haired admiral could not help but wonder what her director had planned.
"Officially," Crowbel began, "Earth is non-administered, it would be improper, nigh unethical for us to be conducting any real business on the planet, but we can still monitor the planet and act unofficially, so long as we don't break our cover and out ourselves to the local government."
"How do we go about that?" asked Lindy
"That is where my little project comes into play," The director responded, "Codenamed: Project 97."
The older woman typed a few things on her computer which brought up a simulation program that included a map of the dimensional space sector where Earth was located. An icon of a spaceship, labeled "Arthra", was present with a scaled distance just close enough to be in range of a dimensional transfer to be set up between the planet and vessel.
"This is will be a covert infiltration operation that you, Harlaown, will take charge of," The old woman explained, "We'll make sure to have your ship be fitted with some additional installments to make it invisible to most forms of detection, aside from sight."
"A covert operation?" questioned Lindy, "Why?"
"Though it is true that the last two major incidents happening on that planet were not originally started there, it was where they ended and it brought to our attention a very simple fact that the planet is not as non-magical as we had first thought." Crowbel explained, "Aside from the current Mistress of the Night Sky living there, we've also confirmed an interesting presence that provided some unexpected help in resolving the Book of Darkness."
"You're referring to the blue hedgehog, the other wild card in that incident," noted Harlaown, "Sonic the Hedgehog."
As soon as the admiral had said the hedgehog's name, Crowbel nodded and pulled up the recordings from the hedgehog's first encounter with the Lieze and his efforts in the NachtWal battle. Several things had become notable to the three women as they watched. The hedgehog's speed had well exceeded Mach 1in several instances during both battles and his power was something of a major note as well, but neither of those were what the old director had in mind when she brought his reference up.
The instances where Sonic had used his rings and absorbed their power were those that Crowbel had paused the videos on. Readings of his power output before and after each absorption were put on display, indicating that it would rise from A to S- in a matter of seconds.
"These items that the hedgehog used appear to be boosters of some kind." Crowbel said, "I want to know what they are, how they work, and if we can duplicate them."
"Doing so could be a boon for our forces." Leti noted, "If not to the degree our blue friend has, but close to the Belkan cartridges."
"Indeed, Lowran," nodded the director, turning to face the one who had spoken, "Also, I have a task for you regarding this project."
"Ma'am?" questioned the purple-haired woman.
"Given your position in Resource Management, I would like you to handle the logistics of this operation." requested the director, "Make sure that Harlaown is well supported with resources and a quality support staff."
"Understood," Leti nodded firmly, "I will do what I can."
"Use any resources to your discretion, but to no excess. The fewer that know of this the better." the woman motioned for Lowran to stand up, "Dismissed."
Admiral Lowran saluted to the other two present as she departed the office to work on her new orders. Only Lindy Harlaown and Midget Crowbel left in the office. The debriefing appeared to have concluded, but it left the younger of the two with a few questions to answer.
"What of the ones on Earth?" the young admiral asked, "What am I to tell them?"
"As much as you feel that they will understand. I doubt they need to know the specifics of what we're doing. So long as the Mistress of the Night Sky and her knights see this as an opportunity for redemption of their actions..." Crowbel replied, "There is one other thing I would like for you to find out."
"Yes?" Lindy questioned.
"This new mastermind on Earth that you are apparently dealing with in this incident that you mentioned." said firmly, "I want to know what he is, how much of a threat he poses and if we should step in and stop him."
"If what the local reports indicate on the planet, he is quite formidable," the other woman replied, "But I will see to it that we find out all that we can."
"Good," the director nodded, "You are dismissed."
"Ma'am." Lindy saluted once before departing.
The older woman sighed as she watched the last of her guests depart before turning to face the screen behind her. Images and videos that she had put on display rolled through her mind, making her contemplate on the events that had unfolded leading her to make this decision. There was so much at stake and one false move would be costly.
"Well, this should be interesting."
[Non-Administrated Planet #97 "Earth"]
[Uminari City, Japan]
[Residential: Yagami]
[No BGM]
Arf waited almost impatiently from the dining room as Amy came out of the guest bedroom from whence she had the report with the enforcer. Though by accident due to her enhanced hearing, the wolfwoman was able to pick up on some bits of the conversation and the scandalous speculation that had been brought up. She did not like it, but once the cogs spun in her head, everything started to make sense.
"Sorry about that," Amy spoke to Hayate as she sat down, "Chrono-kun wanted a progress report."
"It's okay," nodded Hayate, gesturing to Arf, "Though I think you have someone about to go crazy here."
"Oh, crap" Arf could see the teen's eyes widen as the girl gulped, "You heard some of that."
The wolfwoman nodded but said nothing more. Her eyes were firmly locked on the front door as her mind was made up. If Fate was not back then she could still be in trouble, and even though it was but pure speculation, Arf would not put it past the old woman to suddenly make an appearance in Fate's life once more.
'Just when Fate was starting to get over her too.' the wolf let out a growl in thought.
"Ah, I think I can guess what you're thinking, but please calm down." Limietta's tone grew nervous, "After all, we haven't heard enough about this new party to say, let alone any form identification."
"I contacted Signum to see if she would provide any clues, but she could not give me straight answer." Reinforce noted as she sat down, "All she told me was that it was complicated."
Arf suddenly stood up, coming close to slamming her palm on the table. Frustration filled her emotion as her patience had reached its end and she would wait no longer. Damn the consequences, Fate needed her, whether she knew it or not.
"I'm going out there." She declared loudly, "I am Fate's familiar. I can't just sit here knowing that my master is out there potentially getting herself hurt."
"Ah…" Amy was taken by surprise, "Are you sure that's okay…"
"It's fine," Reinforce assured her, "With Zafira and Signum, we are plenty guarded here. If need be, I can also fight, though I would prefer not to."
"Alright…" sighed the teen, "You better hurry then."
The wolfwoman's smirk was wide as her confidence. Considering who her master was, speed was hardly an issue. With a clear head and determination steeled in her face, the familiar took to the skies and soared at a blistering speed towards her master. Little did she know that her race against time was not the only one that had commenced.
[Never Lake: Little Planet]
[Stardust Speedway: Act 3]
[Time: Future]
-Race: Sonic the Hedgehog vs Hyper Metal Sonic Mk.001-
[BGM: "Running in the 90s" Initial D]
Two flashes of blue blurred through the first part of the long track as Sonic the Hedgehog, Hero of South Island, raced swiftly to keep pace with his metallic counterpart and Eggman's newest enforcer. Though the latter had gotten off to a better start due to its explosive acceleration at the beginning, Sonic did not have to reach Mach 1 to catch up.
The reason for that, which became apparent to the blue hedgehog in the early goings, was that they both were holding back their top speed. Sonic was neither surprised nor bothered by that as he knew the course was long. While they were almost evenly matched on the speed factor, Sonic was able to notice a few things that differed between him and Metal in their application, creating distinct advantages and disadvantages between them.
In terms of pure acceleration, Metal had the edge as the robot was able to gain speed at an astonishing rate, giving it the advantage on the straights. At the same time, the robot would quickly lose speed on the turns which made cornering a weak point for the robot.
On the flipside, Sonic had great agility to compliment his high speed, he was able to drift and bank on the sharp curves with little to almost no loss of speed. His acceleration, while still solid, admittedly was not as great as his rivals, so the matchup was decidedly even.
From the skies above, the heated race was watched by Sonic's group, consisting of Nanoha, Vita and Alicia while Eggman was the lone support for Metal. Fate and Signum appeared to be acting as the referees as they were positioned between them.
Sonic let out a chuckle as somehow Alicia had produced a microphone and roped Nanoha into providing some commentary for their race.
"Both racers are off to a brilliant start today, they are nearly neck and neck with Metal Sonic having a slight lead." Alicia announced loudly, "But Sonic got a great boost off that last turn and boy, does he have momentum."
"Uh, yeah," Nanoha added, "He does…"
At about 20% through the race came the first big obstacle in the form of a vertical loop that was followed by a stretch of three consecutive sharp turns. The difficulty that the upcoming obstacles had presented came in the form of speed management and control.
Both racers chose that moment to up their game. Metal Sonic went into the loop first, using its propulsion to scale the uphill part and ride the momentum on the downhill part, though it had to decelerate to avoid crashing onto the ground before heading on towards the turns.
As for Sonic, his approach was slightly different. He ran up the vertical loop and curled up into his spin form at the apex and rolled down. He then took the momentum from the previous portion and practically glided through the stretch of turns, putting him just five inches behind his metallic rival.
"Whoa! Amazing!" Alicia gawked as she commentated, "Did you see what he did there? He rolled up into a ball."
"Yeah, that's what he normally does," Nanoha, somewhat awkwardly, added.
Sonic and Metal continued to keep their current pace as they trekked through the track. While the metal hedgehog turned up the rocket boosters for more speed, Sonic had countered by running his feet in a circular figure-8 pattern. Turn after turn, both hedgehogs were neck and neck.
As Sonic ran, he could see the lights around him dim as a large shadow reminiscent of the Egg-Mobile descended upon him.
"Heh, let's add some drama to this race." Sonic could hear the maniacal laughter of Eggman from above as a burst of light shone dangerously upon him, "Egg Laser, ready! FI-"
"Schlangeform!" Laevatein's voice cut in as a cartridge was loaded.
"Kōryū! (Luminous Dragon)" Signum's voice soon followed.
A fiery bladed whip slammed into the Egg-Mobile, wrapping around the vehicle and constraining it. The fire incinerated the laser cannon installed on the bottom completely.
"Thank you!" Sonic gave the swordswoman a thumbs-up as he sped on ahead.
"Hey! What the heck?!" roared the mad scientist, "How dare you inter-"
"Be silent!" the pink-haired woman silenced the man with her Signum Glare™, "This is your only warning. Interfere again and this farce will end!"
"Y-yes, ma'am" Eggman reflexively gulped and nodded vigorously.
"Signum-san is scary…" Nanoha commented, idly sympathizing with the doctor for once.
With the possibility of interference from the sidelines quashed outright, the race continued as Sonic easily caught up with his counterpart once again. Metal Sonic kept the lead through the first 40% of the race, but Sonic was right on his tail.
"This next stretch of the race is presented by H2O. Stay hydrated, stay healthy," Alicia commented somewhat randomly, "H2O, drink it!"
"Alicia-chan…" Nanoha countered, "That's water."
"Oh," giggled the small blonde, "I knew that, I was just testing you."
The halfway point of the course had taken the form of a tricky stretch of consecutive vertical loops filled by four sharp turns in a row. The sight made Sonic grin in anticipation.
Given the robot's weakness for cornering, it was little surprise that Metal had taken the obstacles incredibly slow and that allowed Sonic to close the gap until he was less than a foot behind. Little did he know that his rival had a nasty surprise in store for him.
As they were about to enter the last of the turns, Metal Sonic abruptly ceased its acceleration and emitted a harsh electrical field from its body. Sonic had to jump high and far in order to avoid getting electrocuted. On the plus side, he was able to take the lead. Metal Sonic's dirty offensive trick had seemed to backfire on the robot, but Sonic had a feeling that there was more in store.
"Well…" Alicia commented awkwardly, "At least Sonic has the lead now."
"Mhmm..." Nanoha nodded, "Oh, also, if you're hungry after school or need a quick bite on your way to class. Stop by the Midori-ya cafe, great service, great food. Why not stop in after the race?"
"Hey, that's my job!" the smaller blonde sent a scandalized look at her counterpart, "Also, what's Midori-ya?"
"My family's cafe." replied the girl with a smile
"I like you" Alicia grinned in return.
"Oi!" shouted Vita, "Cut the chatter!"
60% through the race and Sonic had a significant lead, his speed had jumped up once he had taken the lead as he looked to make a statement with his speed. His pace picked up more as he entered the longest straight in the course. For a moment he had looked back to see what Metal Sonic was up to, and he wished that he had not.
Metal Sonic began to overload his circuitry as sparks emitted from his body. A destructive energy field formed around the robot's body as it leaned forward. The rocket booster supercharged and made an explosive launch that sent the robot in a head first charge for the organic counterpart. Sonic had let out a yelp as he leaped to get out of the way, prioritizing safety over his lead position.
"Whoa!" Sonic shouted, "I was almost dinner."
"Oh-ho-ho-ho!" Eggman laughed loudly, "Metal Sonic pulled out the trump card, Egg-cellent!"
"Wait a minute!" Alicia let out a laugh, "Did he just…"
"Yeah," Nanoha nodded rapidly, "He did."
Meanwhile, Sonic could not stop the grin on his face from growing as he pulled out one of the rings Reinforce had given him. If Metal was going to pull out all of the stops then so shall he. His acceleration started to pick up as he gripped the ring in hand, absorbing its power.
[BGM: "Max Power" Initial D]
The results could be felt immediately as a burst of wind and power surged through Sonic's body. Curling up into his spin-form, he paused for a second to rev up before launching off in an explosive burst of speed. Sonic booms reverberated through the air as the sound barrier was absolutely shattered. What was more, the speed had not impacted the hedgehog's agility, allowing him to drift the corners with minimal speed loss and powerful acceleration on the exit.
He not only caught up to the metallic imposter, Sonic blazed past him and took the lead. Like a ball on the track, Sonic rolled through the remainder of the curves and loops, barely losing any speed as he took to each obstacle. The hedgehog moved so fast he was almost a blur those who were watching.
"So incredible!" gawked Alicia, "Are you still seeing this?"
"Nope," Nanoha shook her head, blinking rapidly, "Totally lost."
"Oh finally, he pulls out that trick." huffed Vita, "I thought he forgot that he had those."
Metal Sonic had also taken to a late push approach, the robot supercharging its circuitry to the very limit that it could go. The electrical field enveloped its body as the thrusters activated to full power, driving it into a dead run of a final sprint. Sadly, there was one advantage that the real Sonic had from the fake copy, the speed of sound. While Metal could not even dent the barrier with its speed, Sonic had shattered it, leaving the robot to eat his dust.
True to his speed, Sonic had passed the finish line first, watching as Metal came up on his tail less than ten seconds later. Amusingly, Sonic was treated to the satisfying sight of his metallic imposter slamming into the hard girder that served as a post for the finish line, breaking down into a smoldering mess in a matter of seconds.
-Winner: Sonic the Hedgehog-
[Jingle: "Act Clear" Sonic CD (JP/EU)]
The blue hedgehog triumphantly went into his usual victory pose in the celebration of his victory, briefly forgetting about the supposed prize for winning the race for the moment. Once his celebration was finished, Sonic turned his focus on the pink hedgehog and the robots that had held her captive. He was about to do something with them when the others arrived; most of them, aside from Signum, looked quite gob-smacked.
"Inconceivable!" Eggman slammed his egg-mobile in frustration.
"Eggman-san," Nanoha pointed out, "I don't think that word means what you think it means."
"Well of course I know what it means!" The doctor countered, "You think that I don't?"
"At any rate…" Signum cleared her throat, "We have won your game, it is time for you to uphold your promise."
Eggman looked between the heroes, his hostage and the robots that had held her at gunpoint. He could have taken the high road and relinquished the prisoner as promised, but he was hesitant. A scheme soon formulated in his mind that sent the doctor into a fit of laughter.
"I don't think so," Eggman, brimming with confidence, declared, "I still have the upper hand in my hostage!"
"Hey!" Amy Rose shouted, "What the crap! Sonic won! You should release me! That's hostage protocol 101!"
"You intend to go back on your word then…." The swordswoman gripped the hilt of her blade,
"That's not nice," Nanoha added; the calculations running through her head as she readied her device for action.
"Well, duh! I'm like totally evil you know." Eggman's tone had become mocking and condescending, "Now if you try anything funny, it's light's out. Now are we going to have our talk?"
The tension between both parties grew as a stalemate formed. Neither side had been willing to give in. By rule of honor, Sonic's party was in the right as Eggman had lost, fair and square; it was up to him to own up to his word. However, the doctor had felt that by doing so would mean admitting that he was defeated, something that his pride could not allow. Time had gone into a complete standstill between both sides. Something would have to give to break the tension, the question was who would make the first move.
"Chain Bind!"
Suddenly, orange chains materialized out of the air and wrapped around each robot in succession, disarming them in the process. The chains began to move towards the point of origin, where a large orange-furred wolf stood in wait. As the robots were dragged, the wolf channeled another spell that generated yellowish-orange spheres of electrical energy.
"Photon Lancer," the wolf growled, displaying her razor-sharp hackles and canines, "Multishot!"
In a consecutive order, the photon spheres were fired off, each one that was fired was automatically restored to keep the constant stream of fire going. It did not take long before each robot had met with an untimely, unfortunate demise. There was barely even traces of scrap metal left behind when the onslaught of spellfire ended.
"W-what?" Eggman gaped at the sight of the ferocious newcomer, "Who the heck are you?"
"Someone you do not want to cross." a hot-blooded feminine voice growled as the wolf approached the scientist dangerously. She let out a loud roar that even sent shivers down Sonic's spine, "Now get out of here!"
Letting out something that almost sounded like a girly scream, Eggman made his departure from the zone. The distraction allowed Sonic to break Amy Rose from her position, leading to the pink hedgehog clinging to him for dear life as a result.
"Oh, Sonic!" Amy tried to keep herself from crying, "Thank you!"
"Uh, no problem." replied Sonic, awkwardly, "Amy Rose."
"Just call me, 'Amy'," the pink one said, "And I'm sorry for earlier."
"I'm not the only one you should apologize to," noted Sonic.
"Right…" sighed the pink girl.
Meanwhile, the wolf looked at the scene with suspicion, at least until her eyes met the burgundy red orbs of her master. In a drastic shift of mode and atmosphere, the wolf shapeshifted into a wolf-woman and tackled Fate in a tight hug.
"Fate!" The new arrival shouted in worry, as she pressed her poor master into her chest, "I was so worried!"
"I'm fine, Arf, really" Fate sputtered as she struggled to breathe in her familiar's bosom, "Can't breathe though."
"Oh, woops" the wolfwoman giggled as she released her master, "I'm sorry."
"Whoa, what a cute doggie!" gushed Alicia as she tried to stroke the new arrival's bushy tail, "Is she yours, Fate?!"
"I'm not a dog! I'm a wolf!" snapped the woman as she turned to face the smaller blonde, "Also, who the heck are you?"
"Ah, Arf, that's Alicia." Nanoha answered quickly, "What are you doing here? I thought you were at Hayate-chan's house."
"Eh?!" the wolfwoman was gob-smacked, "What the crap is going on here!?
"Ohh boy…" groaned Sonic, "Here we go."
[Eyecatch #1: Sonic: Wind of the Night Sky bio card #15: Amy Rose]
Name: Amy Rose
Katakana: エミー・ローズ(Emī Rōzu)
Gender: Female
Age: 8
Height: 65 cm
Weight: 20 kg
Color: Pink
System: None
Device: None
Rank: B (Ground)
[Eyecatch #2: Sonic: Wind of the Night Sky bio card #16: Precia]
Name: Precia Testarossa
Katakana: プレシア・テスタロッサ(Pureshia Tesutarossa)
Gender: Female
Age: 54
Height: 165 cm
Weight: 54 kg
Color: Purple
System: Mid-Childa
Device: Unnamed
Rank: SS (Conditional)*
[Metallic Madness: Act 1]
[Time: Past]
[BGM: "Metallic Madness ~P" Sonic CD]
A lavender-hued construction site was what awaited the heroes in the first part of Eggman's base. All of the computers and buildings were functional and were strewn about the ceilings, girders and everywhere the mad scientist had been able to fit them.
The coming of the final zone marked that the end of the adventure was close at hand. Much like before, Alicia had opted to have her group start in the past to avoid having to backtrack and find signs corresponding to the desired time period. The only difference to the heroic party was that now it had the addition of Amy Rose and Arf, Fate's familiar.
Via telepathy, Fate had explained the situation as far as she could understand it, to her familiar as they walked. Needless to say, Arf did not take the news of Precia's return with happiness. She took Alicia's return well enough though, given how much the smaller girl had done for them in accepting Fate without a second thought. It helped that Alicia was as cute, likeable and energetic as Fate had remembered her to be.
Arf had also taken the time to explain her motives and reasoning for leaving her previous post to join the battles. From start to end, the adventure was taxing on Fate's emotions, and as her familiar, Arf had felt most of it, growing restless with worry. It came to the point where she could stand it no longer and, with permission, she took off to join the ranks of battle.
Needless to say, Fate was extremely guilty for having put Arf through such stress, but any attempts of apology were outright dismissed by the wolfwoman herself. It was her duty as Fate's familiar to protect her master from harm, and Arf had felt that she had been negligent in that duty.
While Arf was getting the unabridged version of the story, Sonic and Nanoha gave Amy Rose the more abridged version, leaving out any information regarding the Administration Bureau and anything they felt she need not know. Though they did tell her about operating the time plates.
"So, if I get this right, we are currently in the past of this zone," Amy Rose listed off the things she was confirmed, "We are taking out a teleportation device here to save it from Eggman's rule?"
"That's about it," Nanoha nodded, "Are you sure you can handle yourself properly?"
"I don't carry this for show," said Amy, hefting her piko-piko hammer on her shoulder, "I know how to take care of myself."
"Says the one who got kidnapped," countered Vita, hoisting her own hammer over her shoulder, "By the way, mine's bigger."
"Yeah, right!" Amy laughed, staring at the polo mallet, "There's no way yours is-."
"Gigant" Graf Eisen interrupted the hedgehog as it shifted to the desired form.
"Bigger…." the pink hedgehog rightly silenced herself, "You win."
Vita had reasons for utilizing the third form of Eisen other than for showing off. The whole zone was a factory for Eggman's forces, even if it was under construction in the past. The knight of the iron hammer was set to destroy the madman's forces outright and send a message. With the combination of Graf Eisen and Vita, the list of things they could not destroy could only be counted with one hand.
Eggman had pulled out all of the stops in his robot selection for the final zone and a majority of them presented a grand threat to the party in their gimmicks and abilities. The Poh-Bees, bots that resembled bees like their name, carried dual maces attached to the chains on their stingers, presenting a dangerous threat to those on the ground. The Mecha-Bu, beetle-like bots with razor wheels in front of their faces, often rushed the group in a kamikaze fashion.
While those two robot types had presented a major threat, it was the Bigboms, the large bomb-bots, that were most dangerous. The way they had operated was that once a foe was detected, it would walk towards them and then open up its chassis, spitting out a smaller version of itself. The process would repeat, much like Matryoshka dolls. What had the party scrambling for cover was that each robot would have the same blast radius of their self-destruct sequences, despite the smaller size, creating a chain of dangerous explosions that had Nanoha and Fate glad that they teamed up for a combined Multi-Defenser spell.
"Whoa!" Sonic yelped, "How the heck did those smaller things make the same explosions?!"
"He's really going all out," commented Nanoha.
"Doesn't matter!" shouted the iron knight, "We'll take them all down!"
The team fought their way through Eggman's factory and all of their skills were put to the test, from Signum's swordsmanship and Vita's strength to the magical prowess of Nanoha, Fate, Alicia and Arf. As for the hedgehog contingent, Sonic's speed and skill were well established already, but Amy Rose had proven herself to be anything but a liability to the group. While her skills with the hammer paled in comparison to Vita's centuries of mastery, the pink hedgehog had something of a second sight or sixth sense, likely stemming from her use of divination, that had allowed her to successfully predict where every robot and obstacle was and how to deal with them.
The only thing she could not locate through this method was the robot generator device, though the party found that one on their own. It was strategically well-placed, but it fell to Signum's blade in mere seconds. The destruction of the generator sent a chain reaction that destroyed every robot in the past, eliminating one issue to contend with.
"Ah, I see now." Arf nodded, "We should have an easy path to the final boss, right?"
"Not so fast," Sonic, ironically, said, "We're at Eggman's stronghold, he's probably got a few robots leftover in the present."
"If that's the case, why the crap did we destroy that thing?!" The wolfwoman asked the hedgehog, "Does it do anything?"
"Supposedly, yeah," shrugged Sonic, "It at least makes the place we fight him at look cooler. Though it's still basically putting lipstick on a pig."
"An ugly pig." muttered Arf.
Finding the time warp plate to the present was just as arduous a challenge as finding the teleporter in the first place. Death traps and spinning saws made progressing through the base difficult while the whole base was built like a labyrinth, making it difficult for anyone trying to find something important. Still, in the end, they were able to locate the plate and initiate the all-too-familiar time warp.
[Stardust Speedway: Act 3]
[Time: Future]
[No BGM]
After taking a few moments at the cathedral in the zone to recollect her thoughts, Precia continued on her flight towards where her daughters were. She found herself stopping, however, when she caught sight of the downed Metal Sonic. Taking caution, the woman took cover behind a wall and observed from afar.
The metallic hedgehog's eyes flickered to life briefly as the robot stood up. A signal must have come in from its master, registering in the form of several beeps and whirrs that echoed from the robot's body. A large hologram flickered to life before the robot, revealing to Precia the face of her true enemy.
"Good thing I installed a fake death command in you, Metal Sonic, but I confess I used it far too late," The doctor's voice sounded almost remorseful, but Precia could tell that it was hardly such, "Now I know that you're not in the best of shape, but I need you back at the base. You see, our interlopers have taken out a majority of my forces and crippled my actions here.
"My last signal should have given you enough of a power boost to get back here before the others do. I programmed the shortest route back to me in your mainframe" Eggman spoke as the hologram started to fade, "Use it and get here as fast as you can, that's an order."
Metal Sonic nodded its head as the hologram cut off. Sparks flowed through the robot's body, charging its circuitry to an acceptable level of function. With the desired route programmed into it, the metallic hedgehog launched off with a great burst of speed.
'Such pitiful planning, issuing commands to your forces in the open field, uncaring of the possibility of eavesdroppers,' Precia shook her head in thought, 'Still, I can use this to my advantage if I keep tailing it.'
The old woman exited her cover and took off in flight to tail the hedgehog. She planned to follow the robot as far into the stronghold as she could for the moment until she saw cause to eliminate it.
[Metallic Madness: Act 2]
[Time: Present]
[BGM: "Metallic Madness Zone Act 2" Sonic Mania]
Doctor Eggman's rule of this zone was absolute and made obvious as the party jumped through the time warp into a base, ruled by technology and machine. Turbines were built into the floors while death traps like moving buzz-saws, spinning bar cages and wheels with spinning blades had been strategically placed to disrupt any attempt of progress. Tints of green and purple generated a feeling of animosity and darkness as the hornet's nest was open.
"Scrap Brain eat your heart out," whistled Sonic, "Mustached Baldy really pulled out every trick in the book."
"Feh," Vita huffed, "It's all scrap metal in the end."
"Tread carefully," Signum advised.
There was a brief period of discomfort for Arf and Amy Rose, both who were unused to all of the time-travelling. It was a wonder how either of them were able to keep their breakfast down. Both hedgehog and wolf were ready to go after they had their moment though.
"How are you used to this crap?" huffed out Arf.
"You get used to it after a while," replied Fate, "Hang in there, Arf."
"Bleh…" sighed the wolfwoman.
Much like Sonic had predicted, the destruction of the generator in the past had done plenty to reduce the numbers of robots in the present, but it was not enough as Eggman still had the original robots from his initial invasion force. The assortment of robots came not only from the previous time period like the BigBom and Poh-Bee, but also the previous zone such as the Dango and Hotaru.
As Sonic and Amy were the only two units on the ground, they were the ones most affected by the death traps and gimmicks, but a combination of the former's speed and the latter's divining had allowed them both to navigate through them with relative ease. As for the aerial mages and knights, they had to contend with the swarm of robots that struck from the air.
It was an arduous and trying challenge, but the heroes managed to prevail and navigate their way to the Time Warp plate for the future. Vita's hammer slammed into it and caused yet another spin, but this time will be the last time. The last time warp for the future and the final showdown with Eggman.
[Metallic Madness: Act 3]
[Time: Future]
[BGM: "Metallic Madness ~G" Sonic CD (JP/EU)]
Free of Doctor Eggman's influence, the technologically advanced complex was shown in a brighter light. Metallic floors and walls gained a sleek, clean look with a bright blue hue. Mechanical plants and fountains adorned several areas, giving the base an aesthetically pleasing look and feel. One would be forgiven for mistaking the complex for a shopping mall as it had the sprightly futuristic element to it. Despite all of that, the death traps were still present. The zone was still dangerous even if it looked more inviting.
Knowing that the final battle was up ahead, Alicia paused for a moment to reflect on all that has happened. The reunion with her clone, accepting her as a sister, the epic battles and all of the fun she had. It was truly an experience that she would never forget for the rest of her life. Still, there was something missing; a specific presence that she had privately longed for since the third zone. Tears started to flow from her eyes, dripping onto the cold ground beneath her feet.
"H-hey," She could feel the hand of the wolfwoman, Fate's familiar if she recalled, awkwardly placed on her shoulder, "Are you okay?"
"Mama..." Alicia could not bite back the sobbing noise in sadness, "Mama's not here..."
"Y-yeah..." Arf stuttered, "I guess she didn't show up."
Alicia was not a fool, she could feel how torn Fate's familiar was, and she knew why. Knowing the truth of her mother's actions and the harm they had caused in the past, she could understand why the wolfwoman was hesitant to say anything beyond that. The smaller blonde looked up at her sister's longest-trusted ally and forced a smile on her face.
"I-it's alright, though," Alicia said, "I'm sure that Mama will come around and at least see us off, I know that you didn't like her much, but she's not the same now as she used to be."
"Look, I know this is hard for you, I can see it in your eyes," the wolfwoman replied with a frown, "Fate wore that same expression too."
"To be expected of my imouto's familiar," sighed Alicia, "You were Fate's lone source of support and strength for a while."
"Yeah, until she met Nanoha," Arf nodded, "But my point is, you don't have to censor yourself on this. You and I have different feelings regarding your mother, but don't let that stop you from letting them out."
"I just…" hiccupped the small blonde in sadness and longing, "I want her here."
"Then she will come," Alicia knew that it pained the wolfwoman to say such, but she did so anyway, "If you want her here then she will come when you need her."
"Thanks..." a genuine smile found its way on Alicia's face, "I needed that."
It took all of Arf's willpower not to hug the little cutie there. Given the obvious resemblance between Fate and Alicia, the two had the tendency to share the same cuteness when they smiled.
With higher spirits, the group pressed on through the base. The deathtraps were prominent and present, but the impeccable timing provided by Amy had allowed them to traverse it all with ease. After the last set of traps, a set of Hotaru-type robots attempted to ambush them in a dark room with their lasers, bot Sonic made scrap metal of them with a well-timed spin attack.
Once that room was cleared, the party pressed on into the final room of the zone. It was wide with tall walls and high ceilings, giving the feeling that it was the absolute perfect place for an ambush or to host an all-or-nothing battle,
"Congratulations on making it this far," Eggman's voice echoed throughout the room, "Though I'm sorry to say that this is the end of the line for you."
-VS Boss: Final Fever-
[BGM: "Final Fever" Sonic CD (JP/EU)]
The doctor dropped down before the party in his final machine, a devastating mechanism containing four rotating multi-purpose blades. Each blade looked sharp and demonstrating its cutting power by shearing through the metallic walls in the room. As if to make matters worse, the blades were able to rotate all the way around the mech, making sure it had a full range of motion, keeping the party from trying any attacks.
"Wow, you've outdone yourself this time," complimented Sonic.
"Oh, I have more up my sleeve than this…" Eggman pressed a button on his console, "Behold!"
Rockets began to fire from the back of the machine in a vast volley, presenting a danger to both aerial and grounded heroes. Mindful of the blades, the group had to disperse, into separate groups. Unfortunately, it also left Fate and Alicia in what was called "No-Man's Land".
"Oh ho, my first phase of the plan worked, divide and counter," Eggman set his sights on the separated duo, "Now for phase two…"
Grinning, the doctor maneuvered his machine in a head-first charge for the two blondes, bringing his blades upon them in a dangerous manner that left them with no room to dodge. Fortunately, their barrier spells had managed to stave off the assault of blades and pushed them back, but the spell work was sheared through in the process, leaving them both defenseless and with nowhere to go.
A volley of spellfire from Nanoha, though physically ineffective, suddenly jolted the doctor's attention towards the rest of the party. They had managed to group up after the initial assault, but due to theirs and Eggman's positioning, were cut off from the two blondes.
"Don't forget about us!" Arf shouted in her wolf form, "Photon Lancer: Multishot!"
The wolf's bolts were fired off in succession like before, only this time, the heavy armor of the mad scientist's machine had neutralized them outright. Enraged, Arf fired off another volley, but to the same result.
"Now, now, wait for your turn. In the meantime, I think I will let my top enforcer deal with you. I think it wants payback!" Eggman pressed a few buttons on his console, "Oh~ Hyper Metal Sonic! Come out and play with your toys."
Silence fell upon the room for what felt like minutes as the doctor's call had went unanswered. Anxiously, he tried again, but had the same result. A feeling of awkwardness mixed with foreboding fell upon the doctor, and Sonic was the first to notice that his enemy's plan had more than a slight flaw to it.
"Yo, Eggman, is something wrong?" smirked the blue hedgehog, "Because I thought for sure that you were going to call out your top enforcer."
"H-he must be delayed! No matter…" Eggman's sights locked upon the two blondes whom he still had trapped, "I can still eliminate these two interlopers."
With a press of a button, the doctor fired off a volley of missiles at Alicia and Fate. Both girls clung to each other as they threw out shield spells, one after another, desperately trying to stave off the assault, but each spell was shattered by the volley, and with each shattering came the sense of fear and helplessness.
"Fate-chan! Alicia-chan!" shouted Nanoha.
"Fate!" shouted Arf at almost the same time.
"Hehe~!" The doctor grinned, "Say goodby-!"
Premature detonations interrupted the doctor as the final volley of missiles met with an array of multiple hexagonal shaped barriers, each one bearing a purplish color to them. The wall off to the side where the heroes had entered suddenly exploded in debris as what appeared to be Metal Sonic's head came flying out from the impact.
"Huh?!" Eggman turned off his mechanism, and looked at the head of his enforcer and the new hole in the wall in shock, "Now what!"
A tall silhouette exited from the smoky hole, heeled steps could be heard on the metallic ground as an old woman, all too familiar to everyone aside from Amy Rose, walked into the room, heading straight for the cornered blonde-haired girls.
"W-who…" Eggman shouted, "Who the heck are you!?"
The woman ignored the man as she walked right past him, her foot idly crushing the head of what was once Metal Sonic in the process. She only stopped moving once she was at an arms-length distance away from the two girls.
"Mama!" Exclaimed Alicia in part shock and relief
"Kaa-san!" added Fate equally, though an underlying note of fear was present in her tone.
'Oh great…' groaned Arf in thought, 'Her!'
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Alicia, Fate." Precia kneeled before the two so she could be at eye-level with them both, "It took some time, but I am here now."
"I knew you'd come around at some point," smiled Alicia in a genuine manner, "You just had to."
"Kaa-san…" Fate spoke up, "I-..."
"We will talk later, Fate…" The woman stood up and turned to face the current threat to her children, "But for now…"
Eggman slammed his console as he started up the mechanism again. The blades spun rapidly, creating a whole-field barrier of defense.
"You have alot of nerve to interrupt me when I'm on a groove," The mad scientist proclaimed, "Just who are you, anyways?"
"Someone sharing some parallels with you, Doctor," the old woman spoke coldly, "Like you, I was once a great scientific mind, excelling in my field, but like you I also fell into madness. That is where our similarities end, however."
"Very nice," Eggman feigned interest with a nod, "But that doesn't answer my question. Who are you?"
"Who am I…" Precia began, "I'm a failure. A failure of a human being who has broken her promises to her children. I have seen what sins I have committed under my madness, the pain I forced my children to experience, be it directly or indirectly.
"I've caused so much pain that my heart is full with nothing but regret." The woman tapped her staff on the ground, creating a purple circular glyph underfoot, "And so, I must atone for what I've done, right the wrongs I have committed..."
The ground shook as purplish lighting bounced off the floors, walls and ceiling in the room. Power, sheer absolute power could be felt from the woman, even to those who were not sensitive enough to detect it. Unconsciously, Eggman shivered in his seat.
"I may be a failure, but I am still a mother; and mothers protect their children…" Precia's eyes narrowed as a wave of foreboding, killer intent fell upon the unlucky man before her, "And anyone, who would even think to lay a finger of harm on my daughters, shall DISAPPEAR from my sight!"
"Them's fightin' words," Eggman declared, "Can you back the-."
"Be silent! Fool of a man!" The woman interrupted, allowing a smirk on her face as she tapped the ground at her feet, summoning seven gems of power behind her, "I trust you know what these are."
"The Time Stones!" cried the doctor in shock, "But how?!"
"All this time, that which you seek was right under your nose," The woman knelt down and pressed her hand against the glyph, "And it will be your end."
Before the doctor could react, purple chains sliced through the mech's blades and trapped it in place. The missile launchers in the back were stripped clean off of the machine, rendering it completely helpless to the oncoming assault.
"Oh no!" The doctor cried out, "The controls won't respond!"
"What's wrong? Did you not want the power of Little Planet?" The woman raised her staff to the sky, "The power of the Time Stones. This nigh infinite power, was it not what you sought?"
"Y-yes." shouted the doctor in fear, sweat rolling down his face, "But n-not like th-."
"Then have it!" The woman slammed her staff down, "Thunder Rage: Crucifixion!"
A flash of lightning bound the machine in place with the doctor inside. The clap of the thunder rocked throughout the whole room as Eggman was struck point blank by a massive blast of sheer power. Like a blade through paper, the energy sheared through the machine, electrocuting its creator in the process.
In a matter of seconds, the mechanism was wrecked into oblivion, and it was only Eggman's timely press of the ejector seat that had allowed him to escape through a hole in the ceiling that was just created with Precia's spell.
-Battle End-
[No BGM]
The woman tapped her staff on the ground, releasing her telepathic hold of the Time Stones. The gems made a clanking sound as they fell to the ground, but they did not break. Hefting out a sigh of fatigue from the effort she put into the spell, Precia turned to face her daughters, standing tall above them.
"That…" Alicia let out a gulp, "That was amazing…"
"Kaa-san, did you…" Fate could not help but ask, "Did you really mean all of that?"
"Yes…" The old woman nodded, kneeling to face her youngest daughter, "I am truly sorry for what I have done. All of the pain I have caused. If I could now, I would have taken it all back, but I can't. The most I can do is atone.
"I know that there is a long road for me, for us." Precia's eyes locked firmly onto Fate's, "But, if you'll have me, I am willing to go through it."
"Y-yes!" Fate stuttered as she started to cry, tears dripping down to the ground like waterworks, "Kaa-san!"
Though it took some urging from Alicia, Fate and Precia shared a hug. The small blonde allowed her sister and mother a few seconds before she tearfully jumped into the embrace. For but a few moments, the Testarossa family was as whole as it could have been, and the moment had everyone, even Arf and Signum, moved to tears for but a few seconds.
Despite witnessing the embrace and feeling the genuine emotion from her master, Arf was not so easily convinced. As swiftly as her legs could take her, she approached the woman and tightly gripped her shoulder.
"For your sake, you better mean what you say." the wolfwoman spoke with a protective heat to her tone, "Because if you break your word..."
"Arf…" Fate spoke softly, "Please…"
"It's fine. Given what I've done in the past, I would be disappointed if such a threat is not made to keep me in line" The woman turned to look at the familiar of her second daughter, outright shocking the latter, "I trust that you will be the first to correct me if I fail to hold to my path. Fate's dutiful, protective familiar."
"Yeah!" nodded the wolfwoman, gob-smacked, 'What the hell!? Not only did she LOOK at me, I could have sworn that she PRAISED me too.'
Suddenly, the room shook as Eggman's base started to crumble from all of the destruction that had stemmed from the previous battle. Large chunks of metal fell from the ceiling. It was only a well-timed hexagonal barrier spell from Precia that had kept the party from getting crushed.
"If I may," Signum interjected, "We have overstayed our welcome on this realm."
"Yeah," Sonic added, "Let's make like Eggman's hairline and recede before we get caught up in it!"
The ground cracked underfoot as the sense of peril set in for the ones gathered. Time, a concept that never takes anyone's side, had started to work against the heroes as things went from bad to worse. It was only a matter of time before the whole base collapsed, could our heroes get out in time?
[ED: "Mi-Ra-I" Run & Gun, Sonic X]
[End of Chapter 8]
Author's notes: Cliffhanger! Aha! But yeah, this marks the end of the Little Planet arc. Sorry that it took so long… but I was sidetracked with real life. Several things to note here, and they are as follows
Arf's appearance: I figured that to put in a scene with Precia and Fate, I needed Arf in here, and I had her set up for this for a long while.
Precia's magic ranking: The SS is real, but the conditional is a big one. She can tap into alternative sources for her power. and what made he so powerful in canon was having access to the Garden of Time. for this canon, Little Planet serves as that major boost of power, she just hit Eggman with the power of the planet itself, not just her own power. On her own, her magic power is likely around AA or so.
For those thinking Precia's battle against Eggman was OP, it was supposed to be