Red’s Alert

Disclaimer: We do not own any of the characters in this fic, except Rings & Tricky. No copyright infringment is meant.
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Fall was supposed to be warm at first! Jackson Spyder couldn’t believe how cold it had become so fast without any warning. It was like a picture from his favorite graphic novel Bone where the character got hit by a solid layer of snow a minute after winter started.

Worse yet was that he had no one to spend it with. The rest of his family lived in the next state over. And he didn’t have the cash to make a visit just because. He had taken this job at their encouragement to make something of himself. Now he just felt lonely. EVEN worse was the dissapearance of innocent Keiko, angelic Robyn, and hell cat with a Big F***ing Gun Julie. He had loved them all, he had never been able to chose between them, he of course hadn’t taken the easy way out like -some- slimly people he knew. The police were left totally in the dark as to what had become of the poor girls. He knew Charlie was involved, his friends had skipped town as well before the girls had been kidnapped. He knew they had been kidnapped. Their families all talked about the letter Charlie had given to each of them to a non-existent theme park! The black soul of that man! Jackson would make him suffer ten fold for everything he had to the girls, a thousand fold! Jackson didn’t want to think about what that womanizing scum had done! Those cronies of his who had vanished as well, had planted a transparent cover story that had clearly been directed at Jackson personally due to the talk about his favorite video game, next to Gundam, of course.

People into Sonic characters. Jackson had learned for sure when Nicholas and his sister had vanished after Nicholas had started investigating the vanishing of a Mr. Perfect egotistical loud mouth who hung out with some dead end band and was part of Charlie’s circle. He knew those pigs had helped keep the poor girls in the dark about Charlie’s true nature!

He would have revealed the truth to the three angels if he hadn’t known they were so totally in the sway of the evil over sized walking manhood! Now it was too late, and who knew what he was doing them! And the rest of his gang! The police weren’t doing anything! But he’d do something! He’d be their knight in shining armor and save them from the evil sorcerer!

He finishing painting the miniature Dwarves Warrior. He remembered when he ran into Robyn while he was leaving the paint second and she was leaving the clay selection. He still remembered the discussion they had that day word for word.

He put the lead fighter in the protective box next to the giant mecha that was part of the order for the Heroscape Pro Tournament to help that weekend. The robot was a recolored version of the machine he had used in great numbers during the War Hammer session when he had gotten beaten into the ground by a girl in a para-military shirt with slacks. She actually said he was a good strategist, just his choice in war machines weren’t that hot. He had taken those words to heart and had improved greatly since then. They had exchanged phone numbers next time they played (outcome: draw).

Keiko, small thing, naive, of all the ones Charlie had ensnared to please his cock he felt dear her the most. Before the local school had cut back, he had actually been her art teacher. And of the few who actually showed talent that he didn’t give them.

When Keiko had talked about him, he never dreamed it was the same him Robyn had mentioned a few weeks earlier, after all, Keiko was still a teen, living with her family, while Robyn was an adult. Even when the collage girl Julie had mentioned a man by the same name, Jackson hadn’t made the connection. After all, that only happened in badly translated, Japanese relationship games or in teen romance novels where the writer had no creativity of their own.

That was when Robyn showed him a picture, and automatically Jackson knew who his honorable opponent was, and wished for the best man to win Robyn if it came to that. Then Julie showed off a picture... Okay, this was crazy.

Jackson barely kept his mouth shut. It just wasn’t possible. Who’d be dating two ladies so apart in age? When Keiko in her normal dream girl style had described ’her’ Charlie . . . he almost had a heart attack (Wouldn’t Grandpa be proud?). He didn’t have the heart to tell Keiko, but he did whisper it to her parents who said they’d take the appropriate steps.

Clearly it hadn’t been appropriate enough. Sadly, Charlie hadn’t really committed a crime besides being a selfish pig. Now that he had, Jackson almost felt helpless, almost. He was going to find that bastard and... He was thinking in circles, that wasn’t going to help Keiko or any of the others faster.

Knowing he needed time to think he finished packaging up the box and marched out the door locking his apartment. He could have mailed it, but it wouldn’t arrive for two days, it was in town, and the walk would help him clear his head, help him think of what to do next.

He had heard how another of Charlie’s cronies, Pen was it not? Yes, Pen. Pen’s siblings and cousin had gone looking for him, and had either gone with him to help continue the laughable cover story, or had been eliminated by their own brother/cousin. Jackson had never known such strong detest.

Walking out the modest but clean building Jackson looked around, how could people just go about their lives without a care about the people whose lives had been pulled away from them? How could people be so, so, indifferent?

Going by the news stand Jackson felt his stomach turn, those tabloids were still running that moronic cover story Charlie and the others had put into place. Just because the pictures looked good didn’t make them real. Jackson had seen Wag The Dog after all. He knew how things were often not what they appeared to be, especially with people who had a motive.

Tuning out the rag, Jackson saw police cars go by, a sign of law and order still in place in this chaotic world. Where had they been when Robyn, Keiko and Julie had all been taken?

Was Jackson the only one actually cared where they were? What was happening to them? Jackson felt a shiver, just thinking of what someone like Charlie might be doing to them in whatever hiding place himself and his friends were.

Why hadn’t he told them? He had been scared of hurting them. Now they were hurt by Charlie’s betrayal and worse having to experience his real side.

He remember one time when the younger of Charlie’s friends, Kyle, had tried to brain wash him. Telling him that Charlie wasn’t that bad, and while his dealing with girls were shady he’d never actually hurt any of them.

If he never meant to hurt any of them Jackson had countered, he would have told them he was dating all three up front instead of hiding the truth with his stupid games.

The video game junkie had no return for that (not that he had heard anyway) and rightfully so. Charlie had no right to play with these girls’ hearts. They had a right to know the truth. Their false faith in Charlie was shattered now, and he wouldn’t wish, ugh, going in circles again! How was he supposed to get anywhere? At least his feet were going in the right direction.

The place he was delivering to had changed owners and natures in the past few years more than most buildings did the past few decades. Jackson doubted this place would last much longer, he just hoped they intended to pay him for his art work instead of just taking his figures and pretending they didn’t know him knowing it would cost him more than the minies were worth to hire a lawyer to get paid!

He had to stop that train of thought, just because Charlie and his inner circle had proven to be scum of the Earth in spite of the farce that even Jackson had partially bought at first, he couldn’t go think the man behind the fruit stand, or the old lady cross the street were out to get him too.

Walking in through the rotating doors, he had to admit for a rotten location, it sure was a cool interior. Too bad it wouldn’t last long just like it’s predecessors if fate held true.

The store also had more people in it that the previous ones had in it as well. (Jackson had been in here before it became a gym before last, when it had been a restaurant, he had been the only in there besides the soda jerk)

There was a boy not ten holding an stuffed tails doll with a way too serious expression on his face looking at some wicked looking blade robots made to look like humaniod animals.

He didn’t seem to have anyone with him, but the two teenagers with Aussie hats looking through some Dragon magazines with a cover of ’Bullets in Your D&D Settings’ were likely his siblings or take takers (forget parents).

A huge guy in the back through an open door in the back was moving an impressive amount of stuff. When the pale man behind the counter told him to do something the large man didn’t say a word and just nodded and proceeded with his given task.

There was another girl weighting some dice who was clearly cos-playing an Acrobat with the fake red staff on her back, she was rather petit, but held an air of confidence about her. There was a mexican lass dressed in a green and orange plaid shirt with a white tank top who looked rather sick and seemed to be just hanging around.

Jackson thought it best if she wasn’t feeling well for her to just go home. He saw how everyone kept eyeing her as if they expected her to grab something from the store and run. But given how ill she looked, Jackson didn’t think this very likely unless she turned out to be a drug addict, but she didn’t seem to exactly look like someone who was missing their fix.

"Ah!", greeted the pale man behind the counter with childish features. He was dress in a plain blue shirt with black jeans. A pair of green blue reflect one piece shades hung from a rope along his neck. "Nice to met you Mr. Spyder. Or should I just call you Jackson?" This guy sure was friendly for an ordinary drop off.

"Just Jackson, you ordered the two dozen painted diverse two inch miniatures?"

"That would be me. Sadly my store policy says I have to check each one before accept the package and I can’t exactly do it out here in the open. Of course I wouldn’t expect you to just let me go in, break one, then get the rest for free. Come into the back and we can get started, shouldn’t take too long. Fiona, can you what the front a minute for him?"

"Yes sir." The petit girl with the fake staff said crisp and articulately. She calm put the dice back in the bin and walked behind the counter as Jackson moved so via the opposite way. Jackson had to admit these people were either bold or inexperienced, most business didn’t dare let a courier inside the back room beyond the loading dock. Jackson however couldn’t help but stare at Fiona. If not for how she moved about, he’d think she was blind with the glassy reflection in her eyes.

"She’s part of my family." Vincent explained as if hearing Jackson silent question.

"Oh." Jackson felt stupid for staring like that.

Jackson didn’t see the mexican girl look at him with purpose and built up strength in her sick body, or was it broken? She moved as if it something large and hard had hit her square in the chest making it agony to just take in a full breath, and her left side moved with a limp all it’s own. One would have wondered how she had managed to even get in here. She just moved the best she could, towards the back door and was glared darkly at but not hindered by the others in the store’s public area.

She opened her mouth to say something but she throat might as well have been crushed by a thick moving object for all the sound it made.

"Where?"

"Just there on the table is fine."

"Knife?"

"No thank you I have my own... Nice workmanship here, I can see I made the right choice in choosing you for this job. You’re quite a piece of work yourself."

"I’m straight," Jackson said bluntly.

"So am I. I didn’t mean it that way. I just meant your skill level on these. There are really amazing, and I know quite a bit about creativity, and the human heart’s need to fill the nothingness with it’s own creation. But what happens when that need is filled? What shall you do then?"

"Move onto the next I suppose."

"Sounds like what the fur traders said about some species of otters when they dreamed about wealth and happiness for themselves and their families. What happens when there is no more?"

"I guess that’s why humans don’t live forever."

"Perhaps. Didn’t I see your name in the paper a month back? Didn’t you know those ladies who vanished into thin air? No trace left at all?"

"They didn’t ‘vanish into thin air’ they were kidnapped."

"Really? The paper didn’t say a word about that, the only real clue they gave was about people turning into characters from cartoons."

"Video games, and yes, I think it was stupid too."

"Did I say it was stupid? I suppose it is irrational, after all, people have never before now turned into fantastic creatures then vanished into thin air before, why should they start now?"

"It was a lie spread by their kidnapper to confuse the police just long enough for them to make their get away, and they added to it when they made their own family disappear and used the same rumor."

"A-typical Scooby-Doo eh? Makes you wonder why the kids always thought the ghosts were real at the beginning of each show anyway, it wasn’t like they ever encountered any real ghosts until the producers got their hands on them with just dreams of squeezing every last drop of money out of the franchise."

"Because, it was made for kids who never knew better. Any adult could see right through those cheap lies."

"Not everyone, the police in the cartoons never did. Much like the police in real life are now. I’ve actually heard of a cop or two who taken these myths seriously."

"You HAVE to be joking."

"If it’s a joke then it’s on all of us. I even heard they’ve stopped looking for them total and have begun to check random video game machines at the Arcade for their faces to show up."

"Those... Those... Idiots!"

"Indeed they are."

"I can’t believe this! Keiko and the rest are suffering who knows what, and those donut munchers are sticking their empty heads at a bunch of quarter eaters?!"

"That’s how it seems. People who deserve power are never the ones to get it. And people who should never have power are the ones who always receive it."

"If I could do something about it I’d do something about it in a flash!"

"I’m sure you would, people like you who have the will are always stuck without the means, that song was wrong, this isn’t ‘a Wonderful World That We Live In.’ I know if I had the power to change the world I’d do it in an eye blink, sadly I can’t. I’m as helpless as you care in that respect. We’re both restricted by unfair rules made up by people who are scared of change and allergic to even the slightly alteration in the status quo."

"Too bad two people aren’t enough to start a revolution."

"Indeed. Not that others haven’t tried and failed of course. I’m sure you wouldn’t fail though. You don’t strike me as that kind of person."

"I’m not!"

"Good for you. The world needs more people like you, a lot more."

"Too bad people like me don’t come off an assembly line."

"True enough... But you can make you yourself still count..."

"How?"

"I must confess, I had an alternate motive for hiring you for this. I wasn’t sure if I should go to you at first or just go to the police, I had to meet you first to be sure, and I couldn’t do it the normal way because They could have been watching you, or me, either way it couldn’t have turned out well. I got this envelope from a man with violet wild looking eyes, and red hair in dreadlocks.

"That’s Charlie! I’d remember what he looks like anywhere!"

"That’s his name? He gave me the envelope and told me to take it to the photo copy place and make ten copies for him or else. I didn’t recognize him at first, otherwise I would have called the police. I think he thought he was an anteater. It was pretty clear he was completely out of his mind. And I think his pants reeked of-"

"Don’t you dare talk about him like that!" Jackson blinked the last minute or two feeling hazy and he turned dimly to see the sick girl from before leaning against the door frame breathing haggardly. In spite of everything her eyes were so sharply focused they could cleave a boulder in half.

"Sir Kn-Charlie does fall back on being selfish when he’s not sure where he’s going or what he wants, it’s a reflex for him! But he’s the most devoted person alive once he realizes what’s important! He never bends! He never breaks! You can call that rigid if you want! But at least he doesn’t fold at the first gust of wind," She managed to say, though the words came out in breaths.

Vincent rolled his eyes. "And here I thought you wouldn’t even be able to keep a heart beat going in this place, let alone move your legs. You’re persistent for a puppet."

"You lost last time and you’ll lose this time." It was a whisper, but an intense one.

Jackson shooked his head. What the heck is all this about?

"You think she’s not mine? She just doesn’t realize it yet."

"Liar."

"Who are you?" Jackson asked feeling like he had walked into some badly written melodrama.

"Someone who knows the real Charlie, and knows the real you Jackson. You have a good heart. You’ve always meant well you’ve helped so many people. And you’ve always done it with a cool head. Don’t let petty anger cloud your thinking now!"

"Petty!" Jackson spat back, this girl clearly was either another of Charlie’s dolls, or even an accomplice.

"Yes. Petty. Ask yourself, are you truly angry for what you’re sure Charlie’s done, or are you just frustrated that he had each of the ones your heart belonged to before you met them?"

"Think he did? They feel for a farce! A mask of a person who didn’t exist!"

"Maybe at first.. He’s always been scared to show his real face at first, but they all ultimately saw the real him, and accepted him."

"Accepted!" Jackson gasped.

"That’s about what I wanted to show you." Vincent opened up the orange sleeve and pulled out a photograph and handed it to him. "Brace yourself."

Jackson looked at the picture. And his eyes became ping-pong balls.

Jackson felt bile in his mouth. This couldn’t be. This just couldn’t be. Even in his worst nightmares he had never dreamed Charlie was capable of this. And worse, all his friends were on top of them too. Blood seemed to stain everything mixed with other ‘liquids.’ The faces on the men, if they ever had the right to be called that, reminded him of expressions on beasts not people. And the girls, dear sweat god. Their faces. The face he should have known so well. He barely recognized them now. The blood, the bruises, but their eyes. Wild, hungry... They had destroyed them. Keiko, Robyn, Julie, the bastards, they had destroyed them. Broken what had made them who they were. Leaving just empty shells in their place. Jackson slammed the photo on the table face down, but the image was already burn onto the inside of his eyes.

"He’s dead." Jackson seethed. "They’re all dead! I’ll kill him! I’ll kill them all!" He shot daggers at the Mexican girl, she had to know. "Where is he? Where is he! I’ll rip it out and stuff it down his throat! Tell me or there won’t even be a hole there when I’m done!"

The broken lass didn’t cower, she just pleaded. "Jackson stop! Listen to yourself! This isn’t you!"

Jackson loomed close to her. "I said tell me!"

"Stop it!"

"I won’t ask again!"

"That picture is a lie!"

"You’re the one whose lying! Now sing or croak!" He had his hands on her shoulders, close to her throat.

"Knuckles The Echidna!"

"Don’t you even start that s*** with me!"

"Stop." Said Vincent calmly. "She’s as crazy as Charlie, she can’t tell you anything, but Charlie was dumb enough to leave a return address on the sleeve."

Jackson ignored the girl’s cries at this point and looked back at Vincent.

Jackson read the name, he had never been to the place but it seemed familiar somehow. ‘Station Square.’

"I’m there." He resolved.

"So what are you going to do when you get there?"

"Kill him."

"How?"

"Rip him apart."

"Where are you going?"

"Station Square."

"And what are you doing there?"

"Kill Kyle, and Ben, saving Charlie for last."

"And how are you going to do it?"

"Cut him to bloody sherds, leaving nothing but a mass of punctured gore!"

"What about the police?"

"They had their chance, if they get in my way they’ll suffer the same."

"Where to?"

"Station Square."

"To what?"

"To kill."

"Who?"

"My enemies!"

"Who are your enemies?"

Jackson flipped over the photo. "These are! Those who use and betray! Those who deserve no mercy and will receive none!"

"And those who ignored you, those who never loved you in return, those who have proven to be as bad as those whom you sought to protect them from. They are all your enemies Jackson, and you will kill your enemies."

"Not even a blood stain will be left, cinders were will scattered to the winds!"

"Yes. That’s it! Keep it focused! Don’t let go! Never let go! Let it burn, let it become a part of you. Let it BE you."

"Jackson!!!", screamed the Mexican girl.

"Be quiet! You’re not wanted or needed here! You don’t belong here! Go away little girl!"

"I refuse to!"

"You don’t have a choice! This isn’t your world! Never was. Shoo, shoo."

"Thank you," Jackson said.

"You’re welcome."

"I better get going! I’m not letting that mountain of a mole hill enjoy himself a moment longer!"

"I’ll be glade to give you a ride."

"Thanks."

"The pleasure is all mine. Now then, your shoes, they feel heavy don’t they? Hard, smooth, though as unremovable as a part of you. They’re nice so bright red and silver, able to bend almost as if they were feet. Your cloths, they won’t do at all, your shirt, your pants, your boxers, pity I can’t make you a female, what? I didn’t say anything. You’re not Native American are you? No? You sure? Your skin is all so red, maybe you have some japanese too since you don’t have any body hair save for your head. It’s all so smooth and reflective. Your muscles are all steel hard, you must work out. Especially for such a short person, you can’t be more tall than one of those characters in the games you like so much. I won’t talk about you only having three fingers. What did I just talk about? Oh nothing. I must admit those dread locks are a brave fashion statement, they look almost squarish. And they look like fire could shoot out of them at any moment. And you shoulders are so broad. Did you ever have open heart surgery? Why did I ask? That white mark on your chest made me think so. Though it looks more painted on. Your eyes are so dark, and yet such a piercing green, I’m sure most who give you trouble have nightmares about those eyes for the rest of their days. Your upper arms and legs sure are thin, and such a reflective shade of silver, just like your muzzle. Heh, when you keep your mouth closed it seems like you don’t even have a mouth, whao! Keep those nose to yourself you could poke someone’s eye out. Your joints look so knotted, they seem to be almost gears. The armor plats on your forearms are sure look like they can block most fire power. Are those knives really connected right to the back of your hands? Two on each eh? What a particularly nifty part of your design, I’m sure that’s an improvement over the original."

"Everything I am is an improvement over him, so spare me the meaningless praise."

"You surely are different from Robotnik’s other toys."

"I am no one’s toy, now can I go?!"

"Be my guest."

"Finally!" Robo-Knux, Mecha Bot-02, almost went through the steel door leading to Robotropolis’ Egg Heart Zone.

Vincent sneered at the spanish like girl as only a child could.

"I win.You know, I should almost thank you for stealing Rouge from me, it’s made today all the sweeter for me."

"Shut up."

"Truth is painful isn’t it? Humans should all just hide in their fantasies and never face up the real world."

"That’s not true."

"Really? Aren’t you hiding from a little truth my dear?"

"I’m not like you."

"I would never dare say that... I’d love to go further down that path... But I meant a truth in your mind, the one memory my sister sealed from you. You know which I’m talking about."

"I’m not scared of you."

"Who said anything about ME? You’ve been so reluctant about changing people’s memories, the hole in your heart screams it out. Let me free one trapped memory then. The only thing no living being can know, and stay bound to these worlds..."

Vincent just smiled as blood began to show underneath the girl’s dress, bleeding from no where, the girl was on her knees. She looked like she wanted to scream but her lungs were crushed. Bone sticking into them. Her eyes showed only pain.

The barrier around the forbidden memory that the place had been wearing down now broke away. And she remembered. Vincent was knocked clear off his feet by the spiritual force that entered the place, the very area cracking under her presence. Julan was picked up by her, and with a look that would have made even the most proud demon take a step back they were both gone from the empty place.

"You’ll pay for cutting my victory dance short sister, yes you will, you will, I promise." Vincent breathed, his disguise broken. Eyes like blue glass spheres, hair green like poison, skin as pale as a corpse, fingers ending in slick points, no nose at all, a face just like a child’s, but an expression of a master card shark. "We are two sides of the same coin after all."

‘Zhane’ nearly ran over her, his helmet slammed right over his head, for all his power he was still flesh and blood, mortal. He needed to eat and sleep like everyone else. And their enemy had taken advantage of that. He had to save her, she was his responsibility. They were in this together!

Then there SHE was, holding onto his her in her arms, back in what was now her true form, asleep, as asleep as Tikal could be at least. Tikal opened her eyes and looked at him.

"I’m sorry, I couldn’t save him."

"You’re here, you’re safe, that’s what important right now."

"Robotnik will use him right away, he always does... can’t let..."

"You rest now."

"I’m dead... I don’t need to..."

"And you came very close to almost dying AGAIN today."

"Still have to try."

"The memory?"

"Sealed like it should, I promise I won’t let my guard down again."

"Just don’t forget that what you remember is how you are."

"I won’t... I... uh."

"And you STILL need a bit to pull yourself back together. We’ll just have to trust in them until then."

"Agreed." The third said.

* * *

Robo-Knux couldn’t believe the state the Egg Heart Zone was in when he entered into the ‘common area’ set up in one of the storage rooms by Master Robotnik’s underlings. Why machines needed a common room was beyond RK. One could argue it was part of the necessary evils for the organic underlings that infested Master Robotnik’s ranks. But what the Chaos were SWAT bots doing here? And playing POKER with the dirty weasels Master Robotnik used when machines couldn’t be brought into play?

"Your likely hood of a straight flush is illogical." Droned the one staring down at the red furred one.

"That’s it co-unit! Hit him one in the central processor!" The SWAT bot standing besides the first one cheered on.

"Royal Flush!" Pilfer sneered.

"Error!" The SWAT bot moaned. "That was my sub-unit’s battery credits!"

"You snooze you lose." The weasel gloated.

The table was hit by a rocket fist and shattered.

Pilfer screamed like a coward yet still protecting his precious winnings.

"Just because the pond scum takes breaks doesn’t mean you do too." The arm reconnected.

"Intruder-EEP!" The two SWAT bots turned as one and quickly stood at attention shaking in their casings.

"Mechaunitzerotworoboknuckleswhatcanwedoforyousir? Ourdatabasesshowyouasoffline!"

"Rumor of my scraping are great exaggerated."

A flat screen TV turned on from the dirty show it was showing to a even less pleasant picture of Robotnik.

"Welcome back, my Robo-Knux. I actually beginning to miss your bloody, vicious, random violence on cute little innocent animals."

"This place seems to have fallen apart without me, Master Robotnik."

"One thing I didn’t miss was that big mouth of yours." Master Robotnik rolled his eyes. Robo-Knux was the only one who could get away with criticizing Master Robotnik without being reprogrammed or scraped, and he abused that privilege to no end. "Come up to the War Room, I have a little welcome back job for you and your little brother."

"Yes sir."

* * *

"I’ll have one of those, and one of those, and one of those." Tricky The Tanuki pointed at the list things at the menu one after another.

"Tricky you’ll pop if you down all that, and I think my wallet is going implode." Rings the Raccoon warned.

"Come on big brother! We have a Princess with us, and she didn’t have her money all stolen by a big fat guy when she was five!"

Sonic kept his mouth shut but scowled at the little raccoon dog.

"There is such a thing as taking advantage of people Tricky."

"Oh I don’t mind." Sera replied politely, making a bow she had picked up while she was ‘gone.’ Of course being the hottest female in Station Square, the human cat hybrid could have gotten half the meal free with or without her credit cards. (She still remembered when her dad had melted down her first one when she thought they were unlimited charge accounts and didn’t understand the concept of ’compound interest.’) "You’re all guests here, let him."

Ben would have asked if this was really Sera, given how she hadn’t charmed Sonic to pay for their lunch for her, but he knew this wasn’t the Sera everyone in Station Square knew. However, the populace didn’t mind this change in their public image and ’unofficial’ emissary to Knothole. Ben had been thinking who Sera could be. Julie-Su was too obvious to be true. When Rouge began to steal statues as well as jewels Sonic could guess who she might have been. But who did Charlie know who was polite to a fault? Tim knew Charlie better than Ben...

The Burger Shop was right near City Hall, where Chris was supposed to officially let himself back into the public spot light. While some wondered why they weren’t at a fancy restaurant with the richest girl in the human nations, but Sera only played the prim and proper role when she needed to. Otherwise she was just another teenage girl. Then again, Sonic didn’t want to think what Tricky would have done at a formal place, not that Sonic wouldn’t have broken out in a pox just by being there himself.

"So where’s Knuckles-kun, Tails, and Mighty?" Sera asked innocently.

"Chris wanted to introduce Knuckles and Mighty there at the press conference with him. Ya think he’s getting attached to those two?" Rings asked.

"Chris has been spending a lot of with Knuckles, he is the only guy who knows enough about how ’chaos’ works to teach Chris anything useful," Sonic admitted, something hard for him to do, admitting that Knuckles was better at something than him. The next part was much easier, "Mighty sees himself as Chris’ guardian, and teaches him how to fight ta’ boot."

"And Tails?" Sera pressed cheerfully, wonder just where Sonic’s shadow was.

"And I want to buy this dress, and this skirt is to die for, do you think this blouse is too much for me Tails?" Amy asked as the fox moved his head to see past the mountain of boxes he was holding. He just knew they were going to be late.

Was this divine punishment for him skipping out on Cream’s Ballet recital and wanting to give moral support for Chris today instead?

* * *

In the War Room, a large TV was tuned in to Station Square news. The newscaster was of course, the famous Scarlet Garcia. In the background were a group of Mobians near a podium. Four of them were readily recognizable to Robo-Knux. His rival, Knuckles, along with Sonic, Tails, and Mighty.

Upon Seeing their flesh and blood counterparts, the two Robots immedately darkened.

"Knuckles the Echidna...", Robo said darkly in Knux’s voice.

"Miles Tails Prower... Kyle...", Cyber said, equally dark in Tails’ voice.

"Good. I want you to destroy them all.. But... Offer Sara a chance to live, if she comes with me..."

"I seriously doubt she’ll take that offer," Robo commented, earning a glare from his master.

"Give her the choice anyway," Eggman commanded.

"Sure. Just warning you ahead of time."

The robots turned to leave.

"Oh, and one more thing," Eggman stated, causing the robots to look at him, "If they possess any Chaos Emeralds, you know what to do."

* * *

In front of Station Square, Chris was answering many of the people’s questions.

"Chris, why did you not come forward until now?", asked one reporter.

"I was... Afraid. Afraid that I’d get my friends from around here in danger. Afraid that I’d lose control of these new powers of mine. And... most of all," Chris said, looking directly at his ‘good friend’ Helen, "Afraid I’d be shunned by people I care about."

"Where have you been living since the incident?"

"I stayed in Starlight City, but I live with Mighty. He’s been taking care of me since then. He’s the one who convinced me to eventually come forward. Without him, I probably would have stayed incogneto as Chris Foxx."

"Where will you live from now on? In your Family’s mansion?"

"I’m not sure. I’m going to stay with Mighty until I can make up my mind."

"Actually," Tails interrupted, "I was thinking that when my parents come back, maybe you’d like to live with us. As a brother."

Chris was speechless at this admission from his two-tailed friend. Did he really think of him as such?

"We’ll see, Tails. That option is on the top of the list, okay?", Chris responded. Tails smiled back and nodded.

"What are you going to do with yourself now?", asked one of the many reporters.

"I think I shall start helping Sonic out. I-- I feel I have a responsibility to go after Eggman because of this. Before you say anything, I know it’s dangerous, but it’s one of the few things I can think of. Other than possibly moving in with Tails like he just offered, and Training my strength and powers with Mighty and Knuckles."

"What will you do with your families’ vast fortune?", Scarlet Garcia asked.

"This one I’ve thought about for some time. I’ve decided to donate at least 50% to charity. I feel that I’ve taken life for granite up until this happened to me. I also will donate some to Chuck Bobowooski, Rotor Walrus, and Tails to help them in their research of various things. I’ll keep a bit for myself including enough for College, because I still intend on going. I’d also like to donate some to friends of mine, but before I can do any of this, we’ll have to read my parents’ wills to see what they said about this."

* * *

"Chris, why did you hide from us, anyway?", Daniel asked his now fox-ified friend.

"I... I was afraid that you wouldn’t like me anymore."

"Come on, you know that we’re not per... preduj..."

"Prejudice," Frances corrected.

"Yeah."

"Alot of people are though... and not just humans..."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, this one Mobian, Geoffery St. John, hates me because I used to be human, and he’s saying that I’m only ‘disguising myself’ and that I was ‘weak’."

"I can’t believe anyone would say that. Your one of the strongest people I know, to be able to go through that and still be sane," Helen said, offended.

"Thanks, Helen"

"And anyway, I think you look kinda’ cute like this," Helen whispered to Chris.

Chris turned a beet red. It could even be seen through his fur. This caused Frances and Daniel to laugh a bit.

"E-Excuse me, I think I need some fresh air," Chris said as he walked to the exit of the building.

"Say, Chris, what’s up?", Mighty asked as he saw how red faced his prostegé was.

"...Uh... Umm... Helen said something that... well..."

"What?"

"She said I looked cute like this..."

Mighty gave a little laugh, "I think you’ve got an admirer. It’s all part of growing up, Chris."

"Yeah, I know... It was just so sudden."

"Girls are like that sometimes."

"Yeah, looking at Amy, I guess you’re right. But... I... I really don’t understand... She gives me this wierd feeling..."

"Ah. and you’re wondering if you’re in love with her too."

"Yes."

"I really couldn’t tell you. The one with the most expertese in matters of the heart is Knuckles, but he’s not one I’D go asking for love advice. But you can if you want."

"...I guess I could... Because I really don’t know how to handle this... You sure you don’t know? I mean, you an’ Tiara..."

"No. I’m sorry, but I... I really can’t explain. I know what love is like, I just can’t explain it very well."

"I dunno... Maybe Sonic can help?"

"He would if Sally were back, asking him now will just put him in a bout of depression."

"Sonic... Depressed?"

"There’s more to Sonic than you know, Chris. Sonic and I have been friends as long as I can remember, and probably longer than that. Nobody knows him better than Johnny, Tails and I, and Johnny’s not here to support my statement, while Tails is... preoccupied."

"Alright. I’ll ask Knuckles..."

Chris walked to the Echidna, who was drinking some Grape juice.

"Uh, Knuckles, I’ve got something to ask you," Chris asked.

"Yes, Chris?", Knuckles replied, while taking a large sip.

"I... umm... I kinda’ want to know about girls..."

Suddenly, Knuckles spit out his juice, his eyes wide.

Tricky and Rings couldn’t help but burst out laughing at the scene. That was a reaction they’ve NEVER seen from Knuckles - it’s something they’d expect from his father, Locke.

"Well, uh... you see...", Knuckles stammered. He was going to have to answer him a bit more tactfully than his father did this same question for him.

In a cloud of pink dust, Amy Rose zipped between the duo.

"Asking him for advice on girls? That’s like asking Eggman for advice on being a humanitarian!"

"Hey, what’s that supossed to mean," Knuckles questioned, offended.

Amy withdrew her mallet and glared at Knuckles, know took a few steps back. She put it back and turned back to Chris.

"Now, I’ll show you what women want. Follow my advice and you’ll have women clinging to you like..."

She didn’t get to finish before they heard something apporaching from the West. For once, Chris was glad for an ineruption.

"What is it?" Chris asked.

"Don’t worry the police will take care of it," ‘Knuckles answered.

Amy didn’t get a chance before the pavment under them began to shake as though an earthquake were taking place. The group stood up and looked arround as a fissure seemed to come from nowhere, streaming towards the group as it stopped and threw them all onto thei rear ends with an undignified thud. The shaking stopped, although there was considerable dust cloud before them. The five of them couched until the dust cleared, revealing a pair of robots, one the group recognized, another looking a basterized version of Knuckles. Both stood with their arms folded, arrogant smirks on their faces.

"Holy mother of..." Knuckles started, "It’s Cyber Tails and Robo Knuckles! I thought Robo was sent to the scrap pile!"

"It’s you .... MURDERER!" Chris yelled at Cyber. He stood, ready to blast the robotic fox before him. He hated the thing, not just for what it did, but for the fact its very form was a basterization of his friend. He may have calmed down so that whenever he thinks about it his Chaos Powers don’t activate, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want revenge anymore.

Amy withdrew her mallet and leapt at the fox without saying another word. Unfortunatly, it grabbed the handle of the mallet and spun her arround before throwing her almost twenty feet into a glass wall. The glass shattered, people inside, screaming and running as Amy’s cut and bleeding form sprawled onto the ground.

"Next," the fox said, arrogance beyond anything the remaining group had ever heard.

"Maybe I can turn him," Tricky started, a grin on his face.

"No Tricky, that thing is dangerous!" Rings asnwered.

"But I don’t wanna let you guys have all the fun!" The Tanuki protested.

"Don’t be a fool, run!" Knuckles yelled as he apporached his duplicate.

Tricky sighed and vanished using a leaf. Chris’ hands were starting to glow, Rings wished he could fight somehow, but after what those things did to Amy, he knew he needed to get the innocent people away from there before someone ended up dead. He ran towards the smashes glass and leapt though the breach, running to Amy’s side. He knelt down and put his hands on her neck, she still had a pulse but she was cut up pretty bad. He thought of using her hammer in her place but he coulden’t even lift the darned thing.

She’s stronger then she looks. If he can do that to her then... he heard a bang and saw Knuckles flying backwards into the table, toppling it, sending it contents flying. Chris launed some sort of ice attack at the Tails robot but it dodged them, the ground beside him ended it coated in ice.

Rings turned to see a group of paniced civlians. He didn’t consider any civilian causalities acceptable and yelled at them to run for the emergency exits. While he looked for the others. He picked up Amy’s bloddy form when he was sure it was safe to move her. She may have come on so strong but the thought of her dying hit him like a katanna blade though the heart. Amy opened her eyes and moaned as she looked up at him. Rings heard explosions from outside and the entire foundation of the building seemed to shake.

Darn it, they’re going to bring this entire place down on us.

"It’s all right, I’m going to get you help. Just hang on," Rings said.

I hope Tricky really got out of there, if anything happens to him while I’m not there, I’ll never forgive myself.

He saw a young human woman run by. He stood up. "Miss, please get her help, she’s badly hurt," he said.

The young woman looked at him and nodded her head before Rings handed Amy to her.

Please be okay, please be okay.

As the woman ran off with Amy, Rings turned to seek out Sonic and Mighty, they had to be arround here somewhere.

Chris’ friends, they’re just kids, I have to get them out of here.

He saw Daniel crouched by a window watching the battle. He ran over to the boys side.

"You have to get out of here before," suddenly Knuckles went flying through the air, smashing though the glass, barley avoiding the duo.

The echidna landed only a meter to Rings right side. He immedatly jumped up, nodded at Rings and ran back into the fray.

"I think that’s our cue to get out of here," Rings said.

"Awe, come on Mr. Raccoon... I wanna watch Chris kick their butts! The heroes always win!" Daniel said.

"It’s not always like the movies, Daniel. Now please..." Rings commanded.

"Oh okay," Daniel said before standing up and running.

Meanwhile outside, things were falling apart.

And that could not have been more literal. Tim gritted his teeth and every muscles in his body bulged. He had told Knuckles not too long ago not to worry about him and just concentrate on the orange and red trash compactors, he could hold up the support beam of the building all by himself.

While Chris had wanted several pieces of Cyber-Tails, the small blade factory was interested in gunning for Tails, this being their first encounter, now it intended to cut Tails a foot shorter from the neck up. And Robo-Knux had charged with Knuckles with Kamakazi zeal, both machines ignoring the flustered Sonic and Mighty to no end. And trying to set into the fights was like trying to walk through a mobian sushi machine. Knuckles was frustrated poka dots (he was already red) by actually being made to fall back against his robotic mirror image. Tails found himself retreating as well, they two heroes had backed up, and the enemies respective attacks hit at the same instant. Damaging a support beam of the commercial building. It might have still held if Chris hadn’t taken the chance to blind side Cyber-Tails, a cheap shot, the machine ducked to avoid. The frozen column (since the attack had been meant for Cyber, Chris’ emotions had empowered it dramatically) cracked, shifted, and finally, fell apart, Mighty had stood in as a dummy pillar, wait, that sounded wrong. At least the killing machines were more into their targets to really care about the huge helpless enemy no less than a dozen away from them in plain sight.

Now Tim was pretty sure the weight of the building was going to smash him right into the sewer tunnels beneath the city streets, if he wasn’t turned into a pancake first. But he had been so confident, certain that whatever Knuckles could do, he could better. Which he could. He remember when he had had a similar debate with Charlie when he was still Charlie. They had always argued over which one of the heroes was better at what they did. Tim had been rather pleased with himself when he learned how Mighty had played much more important roles in things than in th video games and comics. It was part of the reason he had toyed with Robotnik’s weapon that fateful day with Chris and Cyber-Tails. And he paid for it. He vowed he’d never do that again... Tim just hoped that Ben and the rest got all the civilians out.

At least Tricky hadn’t tried to distract the enemies, the kid would be more harm than help against these opponent, he didn’t realize not all things had a sense of humor. The raccoon dog was out of sight for the moment.

People who had only heard the destruction outside or just seen the blasts thought that maybe Chaos had returned to finish the job it started years before. That a water main had blown open had helped things in the worse possible way.

Others, were not quite so smart.

"Get away from him!" Sera came from behind the red robot, her claws cutting right through the ends of her designer gloves, and doing a nasty mark on Robo’s paint job. Sadly, this was when the assassin droid chose to pay attention to a secondary target.

"Oh it’s you." The robot said plainly. Knuckles cursed, he could punch the bot’s head off with it’s attention away, but it would go right through Sera if he did! "Master Robotnik ordered me to give you the chance to reject his gratuitous offer to become his queen. Please say no so we can move on with the plot? You unfaithful, dirty thing!"

Sera was struck by confusion and rage, where had that last part come from? "I’ll never been marry that fat pig!"

"Glad we have that settled, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind just robotcizing your head and leaving the rest of you to play with, but me? I’m SO going to enjoy seeing your slutty body in tiny red bite sized-" The red robot was sent flying back through a wall missing a window by inches from the giant metal piped Knuckles had grabbed with both arms and swung like a baseball bat that been unearthed after he and Robo had congo lined their ‘Shift-Rock!’ techniques.

"Stay down!" Knuckles ordered the first daughter. Sera was startled at Knuckles barking orders at her. When she just stood there, Knuckles knew they were in trouble, they girl simply had zero combat sense, she had as much business off the side lines as Chris had in the early days, why Sonic & Tails let the human tag in those times was a total mystery to the Guardian. Ugh! Back to the present or there wasn’t going to be a future! He told Sonic to get Sera out and make sure she stayed out, for once, Sonic didn’t turn everything he said into a comeback.

A moment later Robo flew in his dreads burning at full speed. Knuckles caught it before he could be impaled on that tiny sharp nose. "You womanizing animal, it’s time to die!"

"Hey!" Knuckles turned poka-dots again. "Save it for the rags you cheap copy!"

Pouting Sera was forced to listen as Sonic told her again not to come in after him. That was when he saw a stranger carrying a bloody and beaten Amy. The pink lass was a pro at offense, but she had almost no fortitude compared to the others, compared to power types like Knuckles she was:.. fragile. And Sonic had never seen her looking more fragile than in that moment. Amy almost never got hurt, she was just that good at offense, seeing her like that, was too unnerving. All things aside, Ben considered her a friend. Sera put her hands to her mouth seeing Amy like that. Sera like Sonic had just -assumed- she had bounced back like she always did. This was so not right.

"Hey! You!" Sonic demanded of the human. "How’d you get Amy?"

"A blue raccoon gave her to me," The woman explained. "He just wanted her out of there! Chaos is coming! We have to get out of here."

Ben felt a headache coming on.

"It’s not Chaos, ma’m. It’s Robo-Knux and his new sidekick Cyber-Tails," Sonic told the human. Apparently, some humans were still paranoid about the Chao’s God, not that Sonic could blame them. After all, he did destroy most of the city. The only good point was that hardly anyone was hurt.

"How could...?"

"Apparently, Eggman has given them both an upgrade. Get Amy out of here, like Rings, that’s the Raccoon, said. My friends and I will handle this."

The woman nodded and, with Amy in her arms, ran to safety.

That’s when Sonic noticed Mighty holding up a building. "Mighty, you okay there?"

"Yeah, I’m fine. But I’m pretty sure you know I can’t hold this up forever. Can ya’ do me a favor and get these people out in about four or five minutes?"

"I won’t even need half that much time."

"Now’s no time for..."

"No, look," Sonic said as he quickly showed Mighty a Blue Chaos Emerald.

"Where’d you get that? And when?"

"Chris, Tails, and I entered a special zone earlier today."

"Ah. Chris’s first time in Special Zone," Mighty said smiling, deciding he’ll ask Chris what he thought about it later, "Well, think you can Chaos Control the people out of there? I know Chris would hate me if Helen got crushed."

"Huh? Why?"

Mighty just gave a smirk. Ben knew that look. Tim had given it to Ben when he had first met Terra. Sonic also knew that look. Mighty had given it to Sonic upon seeing his reaction to Sally the first time. It made it obvious what he was implying.

"Aaah. I see," Sonic stated, a grin on his face.

Sonic held out the Emerald, "Chaos Control!" he shouted.

Sonic teleported into the building. Alot of people have gotten out, but he found Helen was stuck since the elevators weren’t working, and she couldn’t move her wheelchair down the escalator.

"Helen!", Sonic shouted.

"Sonic! Thank goodness you’re here," she said, "I can’t seem to get down."

"Don’t worry. I’ve got ya’," Sonic said, and he held out the Emerald, "CHAOS CONTROL!"

With that, Sonic and Helen were teleported to the safety of the outside of the building. Waiting for them, near Mighty, were Daniel & Rings.

"Is everyone out?", Mighty asked as Sonic & Helen appeared.

"I didn’t see anyone else, and the place sounded empty," Sonic said as he put away the Emerald.

As Mighty let go of the building, Daniel suddenly saw Frances reaching the entrance, "FRANCES!", he shouted.

With that name, Rings quickly shoved by everyone and got Frances out of the building, however, Mighty didn’t have time to grab the building up again, and Rings was still inside. The building collapsed...

The Raccoon-Dog brother of Rings’ suddenly reappeared, "No!"

A massive dustcloud surrounded the area as the ground shook from the impact of the building falling. The entire group was knocked to the ground. Tricky stood up, tears welling in his eyes as he dashed towards the fallen remains of the building, running through the massive cloud of dust and other debris, couching and hacking but determined to get to his brother.

Mighty stood up, his eyes going wide when he realised Rings wasen’t outside. "Shit!" he yelled, forgetting that four children were present.

"Oh my God, he was still inside, get search and rescue teams now!" Sonic yelled as he bolded for the building. Mustering all of his strength, Sonic ran arround and arround as fast as he could to clear the smoke and debris as other ran towards the wreck.

"You’ll pay for that!" Knuckles yelled, as he charged his robot double and pounded the ground before it, knocking and Tails double to the ground, as well as Chris and Tails in the process.

"I’m on your team you idiot!" Tails said.

"Hey, same team, Knuckles!" Chris protested to his chaos-power sensei.

Seeing his teammates were taking care of the robots, Mighty went to work trying to remove the debris from arround where Rings would be.

Tricky was on the ground tears streaming his face as he lay there in a fetal position.

Rings meanwhile was watching his friends look for him from slightly above them, that is he seemed to floating and...

Oh no....

It didn’t take him long to realise it, if he were seeing this and *floating* that meant he was dead. But if I’m dead, what happens to Paul?

Paul ... he remembered his brothers name, his real name, in fact he remembere who he really was. I don’t understand.

"Maybe I can explain..." he heard a voice say, it wasen’t a voice from someone on the ground but from above. The entire world seemed to fade, the voices growing fainter until, he found himself floating in pure light. His form didn’t seem to have defnition, it was humanoid but that was it. Yet, he could still speak, or was he thinking and she was reading his thoughts? He turned to see a female enchida, a pretty young lass, she wore Spanish looking clothing.

The last thing I remember is getting a kid out from that building, then I heard a terrible crunch, felt something hit me, and then I was floating above everything and everyone. Now, I remember who I am, or was. Am I dead?

"I’m afraid so..."

Sorrow filled Rings/Mark’s soul. Paul, I don’t want to leave him behind, He needs me. I don’t know why this happened to me, going to that world or why I coulden’t remember, but I don’t care. I don’t want to leave Paul behind.

The enchida, now Mark knew who she was, it was Tikal.

The echidna nodded.

What about Paul and the others. They need me. Is there anything you can do?

"I can’t exactly bring people back to life Mark."

Another void appeard from behind the Echidna, "But perhaps I can," it was a hedgehog, or so, it looked like one, he was in a suit like those timecops or temporal investigators for those who liked technolbable always wore in the movies.

"Who?" Mark asked.

"A friend. You sacrified yourself to save that girl, an honorable course of action. If you wish to go back, then perhaps I can make an arragment."

"Yes, like that time we saved Chris," Tikal said.

"Just make sure you keep that brother of yours away from him, he’s a bad influence," the hedgehog said, with a smile.

He needs me.

"And he will have you again," the hedgehog said.

Tikal walked over to the form of Mark and touched him, her touch was warm and he could feel her emotions, her love are care for their world.

Can I remember who I am?

"If you wish, but perhaps it might be more humane if you do not," Tikal said.

I want to remember, who I was, is a part of who I am.

"Very well then Mark... Rings, but arround those who do not... For the moment that is, you need to maintain the secret."

I understand.

"There is one condition on sending you back, but you will also gain something. We can restore your body but the process will regress you back to twelve years old. It’s complicated as to why this will happen but it’s neccessary. We will also grant you to ability to cloak yourself, but know that it doesen’t render you completely invisible."

I understand and thank you.

Tikal walked back and smiled and nodded. "Good luck."

The brightness faded and Mark... Rings felt warmth and then a rush of sounds entered his ears just before someone cleared a boulder from just above his head. He was surrounded by debris. When the light poured in, he saw Mighty’s face. He started couching as the armadillio cleared the other debris arround him, reached his right arm in and touched the side of his face.

"Rings is that you?" he asked.

Rings felt smaller, his clothes were far too big for him now, then he realised he wasen’t hurt ... at all. He knew what happened wasen’t a dream.

Rings stood up and Mighty lifted him out of the debris and carried him to his brothers side with gentleness he’d never have expected from the Armadillo given his strength. Tricky was still crying but stood up and wiped his eyes when he saw Rings. He leapted at his brother and hugged him, nearly knocking Rings down.

Sonic and Mighty looked at Rings. "Rings... What...? Why do you look so young?"

Rings looked into the distance seeing the others battling the two robots.

"I’m okay, but they need help. I’ll explain later. I need to talk Pa... Tricky," Rings said.

"Pa? I’ve never even met your father is he here or something?" Sonic asked.

"I’ll explain later," Rings said.

With that the two ran towards the battle sight as Rings looked Tricky in the eyes.

"Paul..." he said.

"You remember? What happened to you bro?" Tricky asked.

"I... I think I died," Rings answered, sitting down.

Meanwhile...

Together, Kyle and Chris were seriously damaging Cyber-Tails. Chris was finally going to get his revenge for the death of his family and Mr. Tanaka. Suddenly, the robot spun around and slashed at Chris’ arms, keeping him from using his Chaos Powers.

"You’ll pay for that!", Tails said, pulling out his red Arm Cannon - an invention of his that looked straight out of Mega Man, ready to blast the Robot to bits with an Energy Ball attack.

"You sure you want to do that, Kyle?", the robot duplicate asked in a hushed voice.

"Wait... how do you know...?"

Suddenly, the voice of the Robot changed from Tails’ own voice to that of a small boy Tails had known as Kyle... The voice of his own cousin, Tommy, "Why wouldn’t I know, COUSIN?"

"T-Tommy?", Kyle asked, lowering his weapon.

"You deserted me," The Robot now identified as Tommy shouted as he rushed at Kyle.

"Tails! What are you doing? Attack that thing!", Chris shouted

"You took what was meant for me," Tommy continued. Kyle stared in horror. He was about to die if he didn’t do something... but... He couldn’t hurt Tommy...

"STOP!" Suddenly, a Glowing Blue Blur collided with the robot, throwing him back. As the Blur landed on the ground, everyone could see it was Sonic, "I don’t know what your problem is, but if you want to hurt them, you have to get through ME first."

"Sonic, don’t destroy him, I know him,"

"What the Hell are you talking about? This is your first time meeting this robot."

"No... That’s not what I mean. I’ll explain later. Just don’t destroy him."

"....Alright, you’ve got your reasons, I guess...", Sonic said, "But what do you expect me to do?", he said as he dodged the Robot’s attacks.

"...Get Rings here, he could use that EMP blast weapon of his to stun T--Cyber, and then I can bring him to my lab."

"...Sorry, I don’t think he’s in a condition to do that, Little bud. See for yourself."

Tails looked over, and, unless he was imagining things, Rings looked... Smaller?

Knuckles wasn’t doing much better against Robo-Knux, "Now you’ll pay for your womanizing ways!", the Robot shouted.

"What do you care? You’re just a cheap imitation!", Knuckles shouted, trying to get up. He had left a good size indentation in the side of a building. He was starting to get tired of this, which was odd. He usually never tired of fighting.

Suddenly, Mighty leapt in and blindsided Robo with a Jump Kick, "Need help, Knux?"

"You could have gotten here sooner!", Knuckles said, as Mighty helped him up.

"Well excuse me for caring about People. Let’s just Trash this bot."

"Fine with me."

Tails started at Rings, his shirt was now far too big for him, and he definitly looked younger.

"Who are you looking at Kyle?" Cyber demanded.

"Who is Kyle?" Chris yelled. He hated being left out of the loop.

"What happened to Rings?" Tails demanded.

"It’s a long story," Sonic answered.

"Turn and face me. Or are you afraid of me cousin?" Cyber demanded.

Kyle turned and looked into the robot’s eyes.

"Tommy would never talk to me like that. You’re not Tommy! You’re just try to distract me!" Tails yelled.

"Oh, you’ll see that I am Tommy; the great Robotnik has shown me the way," Cyber said. "He said he’ll give me what is rightfully mine once I destroy you once and for all."

The robot spun its’ rotor blade and apporached Kyle, the weapon dangerously close to his chest.

What have they done to him? I can’t destroy him but... he could feel the heat from the weapon as it closed in on him. Then out of nowhere, a blast of frigid chaos energy blew the blades off off the robots arm, which knocked it onto its back.

"Chris ... no!" Kyle cried.

Chris leapt at the robot on the ground and started pounding with his fists. Kyle leapt towards the grabbed Chris’ right shoulder, begging him to stop. Chris turned, fury in his eyes as tears poured down his face.

"This monster murdered my family, took everything from me! Why are you trying to stop me? I thought you were my friend!" he cried.

Kyle was torn, if someone didn’t stop the robot, it would kill him and perhaps others but if he destroyed it or let Chris destroy it, they’d be murdering Tommy. The boy would never do any of this willingly. He wished someone would leap in and do the right thing. For the first time in he wasen’t sure how long for either him or Tails, he wished he was just a normal innocent and not the one making these difficult decisions. Suddenly, Chris went flying throught he air and hit Kyle, kocking both onto the ground as it stood up. Chris had damaged it and sparks were shooting from the left side of its face and right arm.

"Tommy, please listen to me," Kyle cried as he stood up. "This isn’t who you are, let me help you."

"Who is Tommy?" Sonic asked.

The robot stared at the trio and seemed almost ready to back down when Chris shot another wave of energy at it. That bolt hit it in the chest, which ripped it’s armor off and sent it flying twwnty feet into a lamp post, which bend over and smashed it on the head. The impact seemed to disable it. The trio ran over to it, Tails begging Sonic to hold Chris back, saying he’d explain everything later. He knelt down before the robot.

His eyes were starting to well with tears.

"Tommy, please, just stay down ... I beg you," he cried.

"Kyle..." the robot said, its voice weak, "Master Robotnik said if I destroy you, he would give me what’s rightfully mine: A real body..."

"He was lying, think about it," Sonic interjected. For the moment, Chris was staying put, but his eyes still burned with hatred. "Why would he make you flesh and blood, he hates flesh and blood, he thinks it’s weak. He’s a coward, getting you to do his dirty work. You get hurt, and what does he care? By fighting is, you’re giving him what he wants not the other way arround."

The robot didn’t respond. Sonic then looked at Chris and then at Tails.

"If you destroy this robot here and now, you’ll be taking someone close to Kyle from him. Do you really want to put him through what you’ve been through?"

"But he murdered my family!" Chris protested, tears starting to flow.

"He wasen’t acting of his own free will. Nothing can bring them back, not killing him or Robotnik or anyone. Revenge is a vicious cycle, it never ends until everyone is dead. Please, do the right thing and let us help him," Sonic said.

Chris looked at the robot and hung his head.

"I hope you’re not making a mistake Sonic."

Me too, Chris. Me too. Sonic thought.

"But one more thing, who is Kyle?" Chris asked.

"It’s a ... long story" Tails said.

Tails then leaned towards Cyber, almost whispering. "Just go to sleep Tommy, we’ll help you." he said.

Just as the robot seemed ready to deactivate itself, there was a smashing sound behind them, it was Robo-Knux.

"What are you doing brother? What are you waiting for? Kill them already!"

They then heard the sound of a weapon powering up. Rings was standing there, EMP rifle in hand, "I got your back if he tries anything,"

Robo looked the group over and smiled.

"Another time perhaps then. But let it be known that no one defects from the great Eggman Empire and gets away with it. This isn’t over brother!" he yelled before running off.

"Shoot it down!" Shouted a GUN officer who had just NOW finally shown up on the scene in the middle of the rubble, fallen building, smashed in store fronts, and tore up streets. "Shoot it down!" The troop of GUN 01’s that flanked the officer aimed fired repeated pot shots at the retreating red robot, all of them missing, many of them leaving streaks on Robo’s paint job. "Shoot it down!!"

Rings tried to heave the weapon to aim it at the Mecha Bot, however, things could not have turned out more pathetic as his misjudged the shot and hit two GUN 03’s that had decloaked right in front of the assassin droid ready to shoot it point blank, the EMP wave however hit them dead center, clearing the path for Robo who wasted one moment to sneer a ’thanks’ at Rings before continuing to power glide his escape.

"Gah!" Rings dropped the now oversized weapon. "This doodad sure is heavier than I remember..."

Rings was quickly beginning to realize some of the disadvantages of being younger. He also realized he had just said ‘doodad.’ His checked his memories, he still remembered he was once Mark the human being, he remembered that he was Rings the Raccoon, he remembered he just been killed and resurrected at the cost of being reduced in age. But he had just called an advanced technological device a ’doodad!’ Worse, he was feeling a stronger awe and split boredom at Tails being able to do what he did.

He still remembered he was supposed to be twenty one, but at the same time. He checked his mind, yes he remembered all the rules of stealth and surprise. But it just felt like-

"Dammit!" The GUN officer spat. He was a tall man, a larger man, brown almost black skin and eyes that just pulled you in like the jaws of angler fish. He looked at Tommy, a slight smile on his face. "At least one bot didn’t get away . . . O1s! Change target!" Simultaneously each robot turned and aimed at the fallen Mecha Bot.

"Don’t you dare!" Tails spat.

"This bot’s a prisoner of the Mobara & Acorn Kingdoms!" Sonic said trying to sound official.

"On my order." Laser cartridges cocked.

"Stop!" Sera’s dress was thick with dust and more than a few cuts had marked her legs. She had no idea why Sonic and Tails wanted to protect one of Robotnik’s machines, but she trusted them with her life. "That’s an order!"

"I obey my superiors! Not Royal Brats! Or half-breeds!"

There’s were a few things one never called Sera, and half-breed was one of them. Everyone expect her to claw the man’s eyes out on the spot. Instead she just used herself as a shield for her friends.

"What will you tell the City Council that you shot the First Daughter and the Ambassador to Knothole?"

The large man’s eyes twitched. "Weapons down." The machines’ arms drops like cut puppet strings. He whispered. "Make sure your dad stays in office little girl, cause you’ll find the real world a lot more painful!"

Sera’s face stayed amazingly firm. She remembered somewhere, she had faced another authority figure, one just as big, powerful, and frightening. But she couldn’t remember where.

The GUN officer was not impressed and looked at the O1s. "Crowd control. Allen Tracer’s Authorization for full force to prevent all looting. Assist rescue teams as situation warrants."

 

"Guys!", Mighty shouted as he and Knuckles ran up to the others, "Why are you keeping Cyber around?"

Tails looked up at Mighty, "It’s Tommy."

"Who?"

"My Cousin."

"I’m guessing the fact that none of you sent Chris away means that one of you had your real names said in front of him, huh?"

"Yeah," Sonic said.

"REAL Names? Mighty, what do you mean by that?", Chris asked.

"Uh... Chris, we’ve got to discuss this for a moment..."

"Alright," Chris said, as he walked off to find his other friends, and make sure they’re alright.

"We’ve got to tell him," Tails said, "He won’t trust us otherwise."

"I have to agree with Kyle. Yes, it’d hurt him, but it’d hurt him MORE if we wait for a long time to tell him," Mighty added

"Truths... Can do more harm than good." Knuckles said suddenly and soberly.

"Knuckles...what are you...?"

"That look in your eyes. It’s the same one Arcemedes had... When he finally told me my dad was alive."

"... And I agree with Knuckles... We can’t tell him. He’ll hate us for it," Sonic said, "And I don’t think I could imagine what it’d be like with Chris hating us."

"Alright, so we won’t tell him... Yet," Mighty concluded.

"Yeah. But what do we tell him then? He’s expecting an answer."

"I’ll tell him that it’s complicated," Mighty said, "And that we’ll explain as soon as we can. It’s true right? We don’t exactly understand it either."

"That’s true..."

Mighty nodded and went to go get Chris.

"So... what are you talking about anyway? Did it have anything to do with what you were talking to your siblings about that day?," Knuckles asked.

"...You were spying on me, weren’t you?", Sonic accused.

"...So what if I was?"

"Look, I’ll explain in a bit. Right now, we’ve got to get Cyber to one of Tails’ labs, so he and Rings can work on fixing his programming."

"Why do you want to save that robot anyway? He used to be a simple stuffed animal!"

"How do you know that?"

"Robo mentioned it. Said that Tails and Chris weren’t doing good against ‘a doll’. I put two and two together."

Mighty and Chris came walking back, along with Tricky, "...So, now we’re gonna bring him to one of your labs, right Tails? Which one’s closer?"

"Mystic Ruins is the closest, it’s just a train ride away," Chris replied, still not happy that they’re helping the enemy.

"But how do we get the robot there without creating a panic?", Rings asked.

"Let me try something," Rings said.

"...What are you planning, big brother?", Tricky asked.

"You’ll see," the Raccoon said with a wiry smile.

Rings put a hand on the shoulder of Cyber-Tails, and then both he and the robot promptly vanished.

"Woah!"

"Did he teleport?", Asked a confused Chris.

"I don’t think so," Replied Mighty.

"What do you mean?"

"I can still see him, barely. He’s bending the light around him and Cyber, thus allowing himself to appear to be invisible. However, since the light is bent, if you pay close attention, you can see a small distortion."

"Ah! Like a cloaking device," Tails concluded.

"Exactly."

"How do you know these things?", Chris asked, confused.

"I play videogames," Mighty said, winking.

Chris blinked in confusion. /MIGHTY? Playing VIDEOGAMES?/

"Heh. Cool huh," Said the invisible Raccoon.

"When’d you learn that?", Sonic asked.

"After... After I saved that Red-headed friend of Chris’."

Chris was confused, "You mean Frances? You saved her? From what?"

Mighty looked a bit guilty, "From being crushed by that building that you accidently clobbered with a Chaos Freeze. I let go of the support beam little too soon."

"Thank you, Rings."

Rings & Cyber decloaked, "Don’t mention it. Tricky here says you and Mighty saved him and Ray. It’s the least I could do."

"Umm... Chris. I think you’re gonna need a change of clothes," Knuckles spoke up.

"Why?"

"Your sleeves and gloves froze themselves off. You used such a strong concentration of Chaos Energy, that it destroyed your clothes."

It was True. The White Sleeves of his shirt were gone, now his shirt resembled a Muscle Tee. His Gloves had also frozen off. Strangely, the crystal rings that Tikal had granted him were completely intact. Could they be magnifying his power?

"Heh. Yeah. But this Shirt adjusted to my size when I changed. Do you think anything I have will actually fit me?"

"If not, we’ll have to go buy some more," Mighty stated.

"Speaking of buying clothes, aren’t you gonna check on Amy, Sonic?", Chris asked the hedgehog.

"I can check any time. Besides, if she’s concious, she’ll follow me out if I’m there."

"And Speaking of Clothes being too big, what am I gonna do?", Asked Rings.

"I got something for you back at my Workshop. I’m sure I can cut it down a bit," Tails grinned, "Now cloak again, and let’s get going."

"Right," Rings agreed and cloaked himself and Cyber once again. The group got onto the train, and went off to Mystic Ruins.

* * *

At Tails’ Workshop, Tails had hooked up Tommy to his computer, and was searching through his "Files"

"...Eggman put all his memories and things in the trash!", Kyle said, angered. He made sure he deleted the directives that Eggman had activated in his cousin, and then he undeleted all other information. About Friends, Family, Birthdays, and everything else.

"I can’t believe he would stoop so low," Rings said. He now had on a Purple Vest with small microchips on it. Tails had made it some time ago, but he had nobody the right size for it. Luckily, it fit Rings perfectly!

Knuckles & Chris were outside practicing advanced Chaos Powers, leaving the others to talk amongst themselves.

"So, your saying Tikal’s assistant is a Blue Hedgehog wearing futuristic armor, right?," Asked Ben.

"Yes. Is that anyone in particular that you know of?," Mark inquired.

"Yeah, there is someone like that in the Archie Comic," Tim added.

"Zonic," Ben finished.

"Yep."

"I thought he doesn’t like to directly interfere with a ‘Zone’," Kyle wondered aloud.

"Maybe he’s making an exception," Mark concluded.

The group was surprised to learn that Paul had remembered everything the whole time. Apparently, Paul just liked his new life as Tricky much more than his old life. Paul vowed to stop thinking everything was a game, after seeing his brother die before his eyes.

"Now, we only have three more mysteries to solve," Kyle said.

"Oh? And what are they?," Rings asked.

"Who’s guiding Tikal and Zonic, who’s responsible for Tommy’s Transformation, and most of all WHAT happened to the originals to cause us to have to be changed into them?"

"All very good questions..."

A while later, Kyle had finished fixing up his Cousin’s memories.

"Alright, I’m gonna give it a try."

"We’d better wait until we are sure before we get Chris in here," Mighty reminded Tails.

"Good idea," Tails said as he activated the Robot.

As Tommy re-activated, his programs ran self diagnostics. Spyware was detected which routed his location and sensory input to Robotnik, his programs deleted it on the spot. His viewers came into focus as his memory files became active. He saw two figures standing over him. Their facial expressions indicated concern ... for him?

\Wait a minute\

It all came back to him, the battle and who he was.

He looked at Kyle, he looked like Tails but it -was- Kyle. Then he looked at Rings, why did Rings look diffrent somehow? Had his memory files sustained damage in the attack?

"Kyle," he said, his voice weak.

Why coulden’t he feel anything? He could move his arms but there was no feeling at all. He didn’t feel warm, cold or any pain from the damage he’d sustained. Only his diagnostic programs told him someone had repaired it. That and a visual inspection was his only clue. Someone had restrained his arms and legs in an alloy unknown to him. He wasen’t a threat, he would never harm Kyle; would he?

"Welcome back Tommy," Kyle said, looking close.

"Careful Kyle, we don’t know if he’ll try something or not," Rings said.

Robotic logic told Tommy that Rings was right, caution was warranted. Something inside of him felt -something-. He knew he should have felt something! Why coulden’t he feel anything? He ran another diagnostic, something was missing, something someone took from him.

"It’s okay Tommy, we won’t hurt you," Kyle said.

Files controlling emotions; someone had deleted them. Why had they deleted them? He saw Rings looking at something; a display?

"He’s trying to access files that whoever did this to him deleted. I thought we undeleted it. Give me a minute," Rings said, walking out from Tommy’s field of view.

"It’s all Tommy, just stay calm," Kyle said.

"Kyle... what happened to me?" Tommy asked.

"Okay, looks like something was blocking them. Something you-know-who probably put it just in case, I’m removing that block," Rings’ voice said.

Tommy stayed silent then they hit him. A massive array of new feelings, no not new, feelings taken from him against his will. He felt relief at seeing Kyle again, but upset over not being able to feel anything then the true nature of his experience came into focus. Feelings of guilt and remorse washed over him. He knew what he’d done to Chris’ family and what he’d tried to do to others.

"No!" he cried.

He’d become a monster, a killing machine. Eggman didn’t really care about it, he was just using him. Why had he believed it?

"I’m a monster!" he wailed.

"Tommy, listen to me... Please," Kyle said.

"No, I want be myself again, I want to go home!" he yelled.

Rings and Kyle looked at eachother.

"Who did this to you?" Kyle asked. Kyle’s eyes were weeling with tears. Rings appeared concerned and had put a comforting hand on Kyle’s shoulder but it didn’t seem to be doing much to help him. Tommy tried to remember what happened to him... he struggled. The files pretraining to that seemed hard to find but he knew they were there. Images of the man flowed back slowly, bits of description hitting him.

"Pale skin... Toy... Felt strange. What happened to me Kyle? I want to go home Kyle, I don’t want to be a monster!"

Rings and Kyle looked at each other.

"Anyone you know?" Rings asked.

"I... Maybe... But could it be...? Oh my God, no," Kyle said.

"What, who is it?" Rings asked.

Kyle didn’t respond.

"Tommy, if it was who I think it is, it wasen’t your fault. I don’t know if we can go home, not yet. You’re not a monster, you’re still my cousin no matter what you look like. We can help you. We won’t leave you behind again!" Kyle said.

"Why did those bad people make me do those evil things? Am I evil? Did I deserve this as punishment?" Tommy asked.

Kyle started crying. No, he was still hurting Kyle. He didn’t want to hurt Kyle.

"Tommy," Rings started holding Kyle as he cried into his chest. "I don’t know who did this to you but I know enough about bad guys that brainwash people to know you’re not to blame for this. You’re not a monster, no matter what you look like. They did this to you because they’re cowards, the worst kind. They’re too afraid to fight their own battles so they hurt you and made you hurt people because they’re afraid to fight. It’s okay to feel sad for what’s happened to you. We will do everything we can to help you and to make them pay for what they did to you."

"Chris will hate me," Tommy said.

"We can talk to him," Rings said.

Kyle seemed to calm somewhat and looked at up Rings, his eyes still wet with tears. Rings dried them and petted Kyle’s back.

"When did you get to know stuff like that?" Kyle asked.

"Well put Rings, although comforting him is my job."

Sonic ran into the picture.

"How’s he doing?" he asked.

"It’s going to take time, but we’re not going to give up," Rings answered.

Kyle now stood appart from Rings, nodding his head.

"Sonic meet Tommy, he’s my cousin," Kyle said.

"What did they do to him? Who did this to him?" Sonic asked.

"He mentioned something about a guy with pale skin," Rings said.

"You don’t think it could be...?" Kyle started.

"No," Sonic answered, not out of disagreement but out of shock. "Void." he whispered.

Tommy remembered. Oh he remembered.

"I hated how you got to be Tails," Tommy said plainly. "Why did you get to be Tails and not me? I wanted to be Tails. But... now..." Tommy shuddered in his metal body.

Kyle was stunned silent, he had openly tried to ditched his existence as Tails, and now, he learned, the enemy had turned his cousin into his worst enemy because Tommy had -wanted- what Kyle had tried to reject.

Now lacking the total dispassionate displacement of a machine, Tommy’s mind relived his multination in gruesome detail. Kyle could only watch as Tommy curled into a ball as best he could with his design and tried to cry. There was just one problem of course. He couldn’t cry. He wasn’t alive. He was a machine. Machines couldn’t cry. Tommy felt his emotion swell and twist inside him with no way out.

"I want to be me." Tommy moaned. Blood. So much blood. None of it his own.

Tommy was now just a ten year old child, trapped in a super weapon’s body, and until Miles, Tommy had no hardship and scars of war to prepare him for such a horror. "Help me!" The sheer volume took everyone in the room off guard.

-90 degrees from everywhere-

"One way to settle this. Let’s see... programming reset, memory rewrite, loyalty to Tails/Kyle protocols all set-"

"NO!"

"What are you doing Julan? Out of the way."

"I said no! I won’t let you do to him what they did to him!"

"He’s a baby! He’s either going to go crazy and kill everything around him or go crazy and self-destruct!"

"You don’t know that!"

"What do you think he’s going to do? Pick flowers?!"

"Kyle’s there for him! And he wouldn’t be there for him if we have solved his loss of faith your way!"

"Stop being so selfish looking to make up for Void out playing you! This is for the sake of the world!"

"Selfish?! I just wanted to let go and die! I’ve wanted to go screaming to them because they were left in the dark, but I did as I was told because you said it was ’for the greater good!’ If I was selfish I’d have walked away into the light when you first had me rewrite Jane’s memories! I let myself have faith and hope in Kyle being strong enough, and he’s become stronger because of it!"

"I believe Tommy can become stronger too! Since I know you aren’t going to return him to normal -or- let him go back to the home he wants to so badly!"

"What home?! Void erased his life remember?! And we can’t spare the resources to put it all back right now! And a human child who Tails will put his life on the line to protect will either create a another Shadow or give the weapon the perfect hostage that Amy and Sera were never able to be! This is for as much his sake as everyone else’s! All I’m asking you to do is have faith in what the people you’ve chosen to uphold these roles can do. Have hope! All the other Sonics I’ve seen always had that in common! Even the most selfish and irredeemable ones never gave up."

"Sigh... fine... we’ll play it your way... anything that goes wrong is on your head..."

"Better than the alternate." How much longer can I keep going like this?

- Back in Tails’ Workshop -

"Tommy! Tommy! Kyle’s here! I’m right here!"

"Why can’t I feel anything?! Why is everything made out of really tiny squares? Sensory input missing! Unable to compensate! No manual errors found!"

"TOMMY!" Kyle hugged his cousin, the blades of his helicopter and others cut through his fur and into skin, letting blood drip. Kyle didn’t care. "Don’t go away! Don’t fall back on the machinery! You’re here! That’s what matters! I love you!"

Silence. "I still want to cry."

"I promise I’ll make everything alright, you’ll get to cry again real soon."

"Really promise?"

"Yea. I do."

"Thank you."

Ben shook his head. "Now we just gotta figure out how to explain all this to Chris."

* * *

"Paul. Why did you never say anything?" Mark asked, still confused at his brother’s choices, and still trying to get used to being pretty much eye to eye with him. If this was their destiny, growing up again being nearly the same age... Okay, not really the same age even biologically, but the gap had been seriously lost.

"You seemed happy enough, I figured we all had enough confusion, I mean, the bad confusion, with everything going on. And what I told mom and dad before I came here was true. This life, this me, this you next to me, they’re just all more, ’real’ than Mark was, than Paul. I guess I did kinda lose it going along with the flow of being smaller. And please, just call me Tricky, Rings."

"That has to be the most serious I’ve heard you since you got here."

"Since I got back... I still feel that coming here was like coming home. Like I was always meant to be Tricky, that you were always meant to be Rings."

"Paul-"

"Tricky!"

"...Tricky, no offense, but that seems a rather scary concept, and it makes my life back home seem, meaningless."

"I still think when mom and dad get here fixed up we’ll all be a family again."

"And you think that life’s not going to have problems by being Tricky opposed to Paul?"

"I don’t... Think so... Maybe they’ll just be problems that I know I can face... Besides, we are helping out here right?"

"I guess." Rings moaned in the younger voice he knew he was going to have to get used to from now on. When mom and dad saw him, they were going to freak even worse than when they first saw him.

"Rings... One more thing."

"Yea?"

"TAG!" Tricky slapped his brother in the shoulder. "You’re it!" He took off running.

Mark resisted the urge to go after his brother laughing for a whole ten seconds, before giving in, if he was now destined to grow up again, he might as well enjoy what he could. Besides if he didn’t, he knew Miles was never going to let him live it down... Heh, and this still didn’t mean he was going to let Miles sneak out of learning more about Mobius... looks like they were going to be learning together from now on.

* * *

"Why did I have to take everything off?" Chris protested, human modesty still being part of his psychology, and probably would be till his dying day.

"Because I’m guessing you like your shoes, and you told me on the way over you thought the crystal ring bracelets augment your powers. I told you before that the more emotionally charged you are, the power your power flows through you, but the harder it gets to control. We’re going to practice something very simple, you’re going to picture everything that Cyber did to your family, and NOT let your anger cause your powers to freeze everything." Knuckles was also keeping his fire element on the balance scale just in case Chris did lose control. Normally he’d do it on Angel Island, but he figured whatever they were doing to Robotnik’s toy was going to take a good long while, and no time like the present.

Chris had NEVER been known to get angry in the old days, at least in the levels that Cyber had brought it to. Thus, Chris’ ability to control that anger was weak at best. If anything, Knuckles was realistic, and brought his fire aura up a few seconds in the lesson, knowing what was coming.

Kyle came out to check up on the explosion thinking that Robotnik had come for Tommy to find a pocket of his island blast out in a crater of ice.

"My air strip!" Tails cried in despair. "Why is it always my stuff that get wrecked?!"

Knuckles had a flash back to trying to teach Julie that not all political debates were solved with blowing up buildings. This felt like a similar headache. "Why do I always get stuck with the hard cases?" Speaking of which, why had Robo been so on fire about Sera’s love interest, and Knuckles being the unwilling center of a live star burst? Robo had always just shouted ‘prepare to die!’ before. All Knuckles knew was, it had to be connected to why Tails had wanted to protect the other mecha bot who had returned from the scrap yard. And that the answer was in his dreams.

* * *

Chris, Sera, and Rings were in a local mall. Chris needed some new shirts and gloves, and possibly something to wear if he ever decides to go on a date with Helen - though he would never admit that much. Rings needed new Shoes and Gloves. And Sera... Well, she loved to shop just as much as Amy.

Plus, she wanted to make sure that, if Chris did pick out something for his little date, that it would look good. It was no secret among the group that Chris was thinking about going out with Helen. Everyone, with the exception of Tricky and Amy, knew.

"So.. Your first time huh?", Sera said, grinning.

"Uhh... What do you mean by that?", Chris asked, confused.

"On a date. With that girl, what’s her name? Helen?"

Chris blushed, "It’s---It’s not like that! I’m just trying to get new clothes because my old ones froze! That’s all!"

"Then why are you blushing, Chris?", Rings joked.

"Rings! Not you too!"

"Alright, we’ll leave you alone, for now."

"Thanks Sera. I also want to thank you for keeping from having my family’s old mansion given away."

"It was nothing. After Sonic and Sonia told us about your parents’ death, I decided to have Daddy purchase the mansion... I’ve always wanted to get to know you. I’ve watched all of your Mother’s Movies, you know."

"Yeah, I’ve heard," Chris said, sweatdropping. He remembered hearing about Sera being at most of his mother’s Movie premieres.

"That’s not the only reason I wanted to meet you tho. You’re probably one of the few people who knows how I feel."

"Huh? About what?"

"Well, we’re both the only children of some of the most prominent people in all of Station Square. We’re pretty much sheltered, and don’t have many friends. Before meeting Sonic, you had 3... I had even less... none."

"I didn’t know that about you, Sera," Chris said. I thought I had it rough.

"You know, before we all disappeared, I actually took a visit to my mom’s home country for the first time a couple years back..."

"And you were just as out of place there as you are outside your dad’s inner world?"

"...Bingo."

"I know that feeling. I’ve always felt out of place too. Now I feel that way even more. I’m a human being trapped in a Mobian’s body, and I didn’t even have that much experience at being a human to begin with..."

"With my dad around to tell people to accept me, though it took me years to even realize that was the case... among human beings I’m too much of a Mobain to be one of them. I thought ‘home’ it would be different, my mom’s home at least."

"And you were too human to be one of them."

"Are you reading my mind?"

"No. It’s exactly the reason I was scared of coming out and telling the world immedately, what had happened. I was afraid that people would treat me different. My fears were almost confirmed when I ran into Geoffery St. John. He said that I’ll never be accepted by him, because I’m just a ‘human in a disguise’, and ‘a weakling’."

"Why did he call you weak?"

"Because Cyber ended up with the Green Emerald that a fan had sent my mother. It’s the whole reason he was after us, at least, so I thought. Now I realize that even if we didn’t have an Emerald, Eggman would have sent Cyber to kill or capture us, eventuially. It’d be a blow to Sonic and Tails, and thus, exactly what Eggman needed to weaken them."

"...I’m guessing you also felt like a burden to Sonic & Tails at times."

"Not really. They always took me along, once the X-Tornado was built," Chris said, as he looked through a selection of shirts, trying to find one that matched the one he usually wore.

"I see. I guess that’s where we differ. He never did let me come along, but that’s because that Eggman always wants me to MARRY him or something, yuck."

"That is gross."

Chris finally found a shirt like his usual one and grabbed it. Sera shaked her head. She didn’t understand why guys seemed to like wearing the same outfit all the time.

"I’ve been wondering..."

"Yeah?"

"How is it like? To be fully human and fully mobian? It’s obvious I haven’t been either before."

"I... I really don’t know if I can explain that...", Chris stated.

Rings came back (he had left earlier during the conversation), with a pair of purple sneakers, and two pairs of gloves. A Large pair and a snug pair. He also had gotten some plain white gloves for Chris.

"Thanks Rings," Chris said.

"Now... about what you’re gonna wear on that date?"

Chris Groaned, "Seraaaaa..."

"Oh, so you’re saying your not in love with Helen? Maybe your in love with someone else?"

"W-What do you mean?"

"Maybe you like older women?"

"Huh?"

"Like... maybe... Me?"

Chris turned beet red, this time more with anger than embarresment, "What? No! No way! Now I know how Sonic feels!"

* * *

"I’m sorry madam but you’re not allowed to leave the hospital until we’’re certain none of your cuts have suffered infection."

"I’m fine! Now let me out of here!"

"No! And don’t try going out the window again or you’ll find you’re much higher up this time, and the 500-pound Gorilla Mobian outside your bedroom door has been militarily trained to go without sleep for days."

Amy huffed in the white bed, her red dress replaced by a hospital gown. How humiliating, after all the battles to save the world, and in one street brawl she finally landed in the Station Square Mobian Ward.

She had been stuck look at fours walls and a rotten TV set for the last two days! She was fit as a fiddle! So what if she now had stitches on down one whole side of her body and one of her ears had almost been completely torn off, and they had to change her bandages twice since she got here? And why hadn’t anyone visited her? Okay, so the area in front of City Hall was a disaster area taking up area taking up her friends time to clean up. And okay, Rob had called in (she was surprised he had a phone) to make sure she was fine. She told him to stage a rescue operation and to try and live up to his name.

And Cream HAD visited her yesterday with Big in tow. (Froggy and Cheese weren’t allowed inside the hospital). But where were Sonic and Tails? She thought they were her friends. And where the heck was Rings?! He hadn’t even called her!

Her previous two escape attempts (er, decisions to leave early) had landed her some extra attention. They had also promised to strap her to the bed if she tried to sneak out again.

"Miss Rose, you have a visitor."

Sonic?

"Amy?" A young raccoon with a purple techno-vest stuck his head through the door. He also had the standard Mobian attire of gloves and custom sneakers. However, the Gloves were quite large, like the pair Big wore.

He was so small, yet, there was something VERY familiar about him. A face she just couldn’t seem to place.

"Yes? Who are you?"

"It’s me... M-Rings."

"Wha!" Amy stood up and immedately regretted it as she was struck by a dizzy spell and landed right back in the bed.

"It’s a long story... Oh, Amy... Your ear..."

"It’s just a scratch! That stupid bot will never catch me off guard again! Now Rings, is that really you? How could it possibly BE you?"

Mark was at a loss for words, what could he say? What could he say and not let on that Amy wasn’t who she thought she was?

"I... kinda... died."

"You WHAT?!"

"And I had a vision from Tikal."

"That crazy ghost who from the whole Chaos mess?!"

"Yes and... She brought me back to life... A few years behind the times..."

Amy slapped herself on the head, and nearly knocked herself out.

"I’d say something... But I’ve seen a gizmo that turns people into bots, a floating piece of rock in the sky, half the moon being blown up, seven glowing rocks that turn my hero’s quills golden, and blobs of water that put King Kong to shame... This isn’t so weird."

"You... You believe it’s me? Just like that?"

"I’ve had my experinces with age progression AND regression. Long story..."

"And . . you’re not upset?"

Amy gave him a dangerous look. "Are you kiddin’?! Now my little man. Guess whose listening to who now? Plus... you don’t exactly look like you can legally live on your own now... Looks like you’re staying with me. Twenty-Four Seven!"

Rings paled, Tricky, who had entered the room alongside his brother, burst out laughing.

"That includes you too, littler man." Amy cooed.

Now Tricky stopped, and Rings giggled.

"Uh, how long until you’re out?"

"The doctors said a day or two. Sooner if they let their security lax."

"We better enjoy our last few days of feedom then." Tricky laughed. He took out two leaves. "Now what do with these little things?"

Tricky threw a leaf at Mark, a poof of smoke later: "Nurse, this patient is ready for electro-shock therapy."

"When I get out of here! You’re not gonna be able to sit down for a month! I promise!"

Needless to say Amy made good on her word, but Tricky & Rings enjoyed the show so much, they didn’t exactly mind.

* * *

There was something bothering Tim. That much Ben knew. Was it about Tommy?

"...Ben, I just don’t think I can do this," the Armadillo stated.

"Do what?"

"Lie to Chris. Whenever I look at him now, I see myself. How I felt, after my adoptive parents were murdered by Mike and his gang. Only, he’s had it worse. They were his birth parents, and he had to watch them die. At least I was home when it happened to me."

"...There’s also the fact that he wants to kill Tommy. You wanted to bring Mike to justice, but you didn’t want to kill him."

Tim looked away, tears were actually in his eyes, "No. That’s not true. I did... I... I wanted to be rip Mike apart. I hated living alone. As used to it as I was, I still couldn’t take the fact that I no longer had a family. The only reason I didn’t is because Blair was my friend, and he believed that Mike still had some good inside of him."

"He was wrong tho."

"I know. But I couldn’t bring myself to tell Blair otherwise... But, when I didn’t tell him, and he eventually found out himself, he didn’t speak to any of us for a long time. We’re lucky we’re still friends with him. I don’t want to have to go through the same thing with Chris."

"But how do you know he won’t be just as crushed if we tell him?"

"...We don’t. But I’d at least feel like I did the right thing."

"I’m not saying we shouldn’t ever tell him, I’m saying we can’t tell him until we know the whole story."

"I already feel bad enough because his family died. It was my fault. I was being too arrogant about my strength. I swore to myself that I’d never do anything else to hurt Chris."

"You care about people alot, Tim. And that’s admirable. But there are some times when your not supposed to tell someone something, especially if you don’t know the full story. Are we permanant or Temporary replacements? We still don’t know that."

"No, but we COULD tell him what we DO know."

"You mean that Void and Zonic are involved... Yeah, we could, but I still would like to know the whole story. And I’d have to explain to him who Zonic is and what he does."

"So... what, we just say Tommy’s Merlin Prower’s Son?"

"I guess. Merlin wouldn’t mind, I’m sure."

"I guess that makes sense."

"You can keep dropping hints if you want."

"You-you noticed?"

"Yeah, that videogames comment was an obvious clue for someone who knows you inside and out in both worlds."

"Heh. I do hope he peices together the hints, or when he finds out normally, figures out that the hints I’m dropping means that I’m trying to tell him in a sutible way. I really don’t think I want my first student to be mad at me."

"Student?"

"Yeah, when Bill, that’s my Dad in this universe, comes back, I’m planning on opening my own dojo."

"Boy, the repair bills are going to be Hell."

Tim glared at his speedy friend, "Drop dead, Bonner."

* * *

Helen, Daniel, and Frances stood on the streets beyond beyond where GUN and other local authorities had sealed off the sight shortly after the attack.

The three had been interviewed by various reporters who had finally left them alone, leaving them by themsevles to comtemplate the recent turn of events.

"So Chris ... a Mobian. I dunno if that’s really scary or cool," Daniel said.

"I dunno, I think he’s kinda cute like that," Helen said.

"You have a crush on him or something?" Daniel asked.

"I ... no, not at all," Helen answered, a little too quickly. She noticed Frances was quiet. "You okay Frances?"

"Yeah, I’m fine, I guess," she answered.

"You just guess? Man, you almost died back there," Daniel protested.

"I know. If it wasen’t for that raccoon guy, I would have. It’s kinda scary," she said

"Don’t tell me you’re developing a crush on him now?" Daniel jibbed with a smile on his face.

"No ... of course not. Anyway, Amy tells me, he’s hers and to keep my hands off of him. That was pretty brave of him though," she said.

"Man, it’s just one disaster after another for this place isn’t it? What is it with these bad guys?" Daniel asked.

"Well, considering how close I came to, you know there, I think we’ve had more then enough thank you very much." Frances said.

"What do you think about Chris now?" Daniel asked.

"It’s kind of cool. But, if he’s one of them now, then those bad people are going to want to hurt him!" Frances replied.

Daniel grinned and gently elbowed Frances, "Don’t worry with your raccoon friend to protect him, he’ll be just fine," he said with a giggle.

"Danny!" Frances protested. "I do hope we can still be friends and that he’ll be okay though. Although, after what happened, I don’t think my parents will want to let me out of their sight ever again."

"Duh; you almost got killed. Your parents will probbaly want to treat that raccoon guy to dinner and give a medal and everything. It’ll be just like a date," Daniel said.

"Okay Danny, the joke is over," Helen said.

"I know Chris will be all right. He’s smart and strong enough to get himself out of trouble. And I know he’ll take good care of the rest of his friends."

"I told you she has a crush on him," Daniel whispered to Frances.

"What was that?" Helen asked, irked.

"Um, nothing," Daniel said, trying to look innocent.

The group kept walking. All, especially Frances realsing how lucky they were to be alive.

Besides, if he kept up this annoying persona, Francies would never realize that it was just a farce so she wouldn’t notice him and ruin their friendship, knowing he didn’t have a chance with her anyway. Yea, cliches are cliches for a reason.

* * *

"You lost Cyber!" Eggman snarled. The metal fist underneath his white glove left a dent in Robo’s head. "You worthless, cheap, hunk of junk... Must have been bad raw materials."

"I did everything I was supposed to!" Robo protested. "Something went wrong with the kid’s programming! You must have screwed up!"

"How dare you!" The metal fist again. "My designs are perfect!"

"Then why is the blue bushrat and the red anteater still screwing on our turf? Those pests would be dead by now if-"

"Silence! That is an order!"

Robo silently grumbled.

"Well this sure stinks." Loot mumbled.

"Are you kiddin? I hated that thing? I think it WANTED me to mess up just to slice and dice me." Rob returned.

"I don’t see what the deal is." Pilfer finished. "Less of them means more work for us."

"Yea." Fang snapped, "The work meant for the killer bot gets passed on to us. Meaning we’re all the more likely not to get paid since Eggman pays only IF we come back alive."

The three other weasels hadn’t seen that one coming.

"Don’t worry bro." Nicollete gave loading her anti-personal rifle. "The egg head’s got plenty more where that orange can opener came from."

She looked outside the spartan room’s only, tiny, diamond glass window. The E-series marched to and fro, getting ready for their big debut. And Zero, Zero was built ready. Still, they were saddened to hear the fate of their senior warrior Cyber, Chaos Gamma perhaps wondered if HE could talk some sense into the boy next time they saw each other. If Master Robotnik hadn’t ordered him destroyed on sight of course.

"Cyber has been stolen from me... but no matter. Soon he will be replaced by a far more powerful machine... One that shall crush The Sonic Heroes and Freedom Fighters -- like insects! Then the real games will begin, my sister!"

* * *

Chris had changed into his clothes, and had approached Tails’ Workshop carefully. Despite that the others said he was harmless, he still was wary. The automaton did kill his family, after all.

Chris opened the door and saw Cyber floating beside Tails. Also in the room were Sonic and Mighty.

"I’m sure you want to know exactly why we spared Cyber-Tails, don’t you, Chris?", Mighty asked.

"The thought has crossed my mind, yes," the blue fox responded dryly.

"Chris... I’d like you to meet my cousin, Hunt Prower," the two-tailed fox said to the boy.

"C-Cousin?"

"He’s the son of Tails’ Uncle, Merlin Prower," Sonic explained.

"I... I didn’t know..."

The Robot floated over to Chris and offered a handshake. Chris looked away, not quite ready to forgive. The robot looked down and lowered his arm, "I didn’t think you’d forgive me, Chris. And I don’t blame you. I hate myself for what I’ve done."

Chris looked into the Robot’s ‘eyes’, "It’s not that I hate you anymore, I just don’t have a reason to trust you yet," Tails stated.

Mighty slapped his forehead, "Oh great, now you’re picking up habits from Knuckles!"

"But... If Sonic, Tails, and Mighty trust you....", Chris stated, "Then I’ll give you a chance."

"Thank you Chris. I won’t dissappoint you," replied the robot.

"One thing. Why were you calling Tails ‘Kyle’? And why was he calling you ‘Tommy’?"

"It’s from a game that he and I used to play before... well, this happened to him," Tails stated.

"I see... And is there any way to change him back?"

"We’re going to have to find Uncle Merlin. He’s a bit difficult to find tho, he’s always travelling," Tails replied.

"That sounds familiar," Cyber said, giving a glance at Sonic and Mighty.

"What!?", they asked in complete unison.

"Nothing, nothing...," The robot replied. Suddenly, what could only be described as a glimmer of michief flashed past his eyes, "So... Chris, did you decide to ask Helen out yet?"

Chris looked shocked. Sonic was stunned. Mighty’s eyes widened. How’d he hear about that?

Sonic smiled, "Chris... I hope you eventually forgive Hunt, because he was being controlled at the time. And you almost totaled him out there anyway."

"Yeah... I’m sorry about that, I got carried away."

"It’s alright, all systems working 100%. unit would have used the same tactics were I in the position that you were," Cyber said.

"Huh?", Chris asked, totally confused.

"He says it’s okay, and he would have probably done the same if it was you in the robot, and him fighting with rage," Mighty explained.

"Oh. Can’t you get him to speak normal? I thought you got ride of all his robot side," asked Chris.

"This isn’t roboti-- typical roboticization, Chris. His loyalty to Eggman wasn’t hardwired for some reason, but he’s still a living soul in a container that his soul was never meant to inhabit... It just has to adapt to continue, free of restraints and filters or not," Kyle replied, before he actually realized what he just said... Did this mean, that, what Paul had told Mark, about, being more real as-, no, Kyle wouldn’t accept that, not yet, not until there was no alternative.

Chris finally approached the robotic fox, and put his hand on his shoulder, "Your cousin’s smart. I’m sure he can figure a way to save you. Either that or your dad will."

- Everywhere and Nowhere -

"....I’m not sure if we’re allowed to let them go to Merlin," Zonic stated.

"I’m sure ‘she’ wouldn’t mind."

"But what if they ask why they were chosen? Merlin is the one person who remembers everything that happened the last time around, and his magic powers make him practically clairsentient."

"I somehow doubt they know that he’d know about them."

"You’re right. I think I’m starting to get paranoid," Zonic said.

"In your profession, you have every right to be," Julan told him, with a smile.

"Now, I’ve got somewhere to go...", Zonic said.

"The next heart?"

"Hearts, Tikal. Hearts," Zonic said, somewhat colder than usual, as he vanished, leaving a confused Echidna behind.

* * *

Robo had hammered his head back into shape, by himself. He was designed for self-maintenance. Sitting on top of Egg Heart Zone, he looked down at the endless factories, generators, storage centers, computer banks, as far as the eye could see underneath a yellow green sky choked with Master Robotnik’s machines.

By all logic they should have conquered the world years ago... But Master Robotnik’s childishness and foolishness kept them back. Metal had tried to do things without Master Robotnik in the picture, it had been the exact same disaster.

Sonic and his fellow Freedom Fighters seem to defy all logic. Then again, what did you expect with teenagers, brats, and genetic freaks of nature?

But the Eggman Empire would win, they would succeed, all flesh and blood throwbacks would either be given the gift of being part of the robot kingdom, or disposed of like the out dated models they were.

Robo stood up, those filth animals, they couldn’t control themselves, they needed to be made into something that could be controlled. Something that could be orderly. They were unworthy of the gift, but robot’s burden and all that spam.

However, Robo’s thought of Knuckles and those females would fought violently over the male they claimed to love. Such a mockery of the biological process mammals were so fond of, they didn’t deserve to be brought into the fold, weather the stupid Master Robotnik wanted that half-breed for his queen or not.

Robo clenched his fists. He would exterminate his original, with zeal, cleanse the world of garbage like him, and the selfish, greedy, short sighted, self deluded, spawn that gathered around him. If they couldn’t settle on which one of them would be with him, than none of them would.

"Long live the Eggman Empire."

~Fin