The Path May Wind

No sooner had the huge robot collapsed, rocking the ground beneath its enormous mass, splitting into several pieces and deviding it's limbs, but by this point, the creator of the vile invention had fled the scene in his classic eggmobile, puttering off into the early morning streaks of light breaking the horizon.

The blue hedgehog watched it putt off slowly, panting slightly with a light sweat breaking over his slim form. He losely clentched a fist with his right hand, then turned heel swiftly. "Good riddance.." he mumbled quietly.

"Sonic! We did it!" came an enthusiastic cheer. Sonic's companion, a young dual-tailed fox, rushed to his side. "He's gone! We did it!"

The hedgehog gave him an awry glance before grinning in response and headlocking his best friend. "Hah! You didn't doubt me, didja Tails?" he asked, playfully messing Tails' fur. The orange fox laughed, trying to pry Sonic's arm off. "Never! Never doubted you for a second, Sonic..!" With another tug at Sonic's arm, Tails pried himself lose and lost his balance, falling face-first onto the ground.

Sonic grimaced. "Uh... oops. You alright?"

Tails boosted himself up on his hands and rubbed at his nose. "I'm fine."

"Heh, sorry..." Sonic awkwardly offered his friend a hand, which Tails gladly took, rising to his feet. He staggered slightly, and Sonic caught him firmly around the waist, slinging an arm around the front of his middle. "Whoops! Gotcha."

"Mmh, oww..!" Tails whimpered, doubling over.

Instant concern hit Sonic like an arrow in the forehead. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I guess I was a little firmer than I thought."

"N- no, it wasn't you. I'm okay." Tails managed a smile, and stood himself up properly.

Sonic nodded in response and turned to go. "It's just breaking into morning now, so we'd better get going."

"Okay."

And the two proceeded back over the path from whence they'd come.

Morning started to become more and more apparent. Light leaked into the sky beyond the mountains, lighting the sleeping surroundings with hazy soft sunshine. Sonic yawned a little, stretching and putting his hands behind his head as he walked. Tails walked slightly just behind his friend, his pace wearing down due to his drowsiness. He tried to stifle an enormous yawn, but it escaped anyway. He rubbed at his eyes.

Sonic cast him a glance. "Tired? We can stop for awhile, if you want."

"I'm alright," Tails assured, quickening his pace.

They continued on for another ten minutes before Tails did stop. His steps slowed to a trudge and from there a bit of a shuffle until he merely stood on spot. Sonic took afew more steps before noticing he was the only one in motion. He turned his head. "..you sure you're okay?"

Tails nodded. "I'm okay. Maybe I'm just tired."

Sonic gave him a concerned frown, but said nothing. The fox looked up at him, managing a small smile, and summoning the strength to go on, started to walk after him. He only took afew steps before doubling over just like earlier. He grimaced. A strong throbbing cramp on his insides caused him to hug himself tighter in an attempt to relieve the sudden pain.

Sonic backtracked himself swiftly, placing a strong hold around Tails' shoulders. "I've got you."

The fox whimpered, letting go of himself, and holding tightly to Sonic instead, feebly leaning against him. "Hey... hey, it's alright," Sonic coaxed awkwardly, unsure of what the problem was.

"Mghh.." Tails managed to regain his bearings and stand on his own as the pain reduced. "I... I dunno what that was all about..."

The blue hedgehog only stood back a little, a bewildered look starting to cross his previously startled face. "Errr, is everything okay?" Sonic frowned, still puzzled.

Tails stared back at him, unsure of how to respond. His ears flicked sideways at the stiff silence, but no accurate discription of even the vaguest thoughts could properly paint a proper response to Sonic's question, because quite honestly, Tails himself didn't know what was wrong. It was probably nothing, though. Maybe he'd been walking too long. Sometimes when he ran too hard, his side cramped painfully in a way similar to the feeling he'd just encountered. That was probably it, and he was tired, too.

That's it... he assured himself mentally. I've just been walking too long.

Sonic's thin arms folded loosely across his peach colored chest. "..hello?"

"Huh..? I'm fine."

"You keep saying that, but I'm starting to think maybe you're not-so-fine."

"It's just those cramps you get when you run too hard, or in this case, walk too much and too fast, I think," Tails offered plainly.

Sonic nodded his head knowingly. "I guess that makes sense. Just relax and walk a little slower, bud." He paused to think. "Better yet..." He smiled and offered Tails a hand. With a wink, he closed a firm grip around Tails' wrist and took off in a burst of speed. The fox cried out in surprise, and his feet lifted off the ground as he billowed out behind Sonic like a ragdoll. Scenery that would take long stretches of time to pass blurred by in seconds. He clawed a little at Sonic's arm. The speed was nerve-racking and forced his breath back down his throat. He wasn't unused to this, although no matter how many times he'd done it, it was always at least a little frightening. Sonic's sneakers became a racing blur of red and white over the streaking color of the path beneath them. Sonic's head turned a little to look back at him and he grinned. Tails forced a smile in return, and tried to enjoy himself. Spending time with his best friend was the greatest feeling in the world, frightening or not.

The world sped by in a blast of colors and lines for minutes. It wouldn't seem like much, except that at a velocity as great as that, alot of ground could be covered in what seemed to be less than seconds. It was awe-inspiring, to say the least, watching something go by so fast you weren't even sure you'd seen it to begin with. An incoherent blur that made an enormous wind with it's mere movement. A hero; a very admirable one-- defender of innocents and banisher of evil. Namely Dr. Robotnik, or as he'd been nicknamed, Eggman.

There was no silence as Sonic ran, although his sneakers hit the ground so quickly and lightly there was almost no sound. The wind split by, no match for his 'mediocre' running pace. This was indeed not the fastest he could go. If he put in a little more effort, it would be greeted by a large boom, and a blast of wind as the sound barrier broke.

The speed began to decrease, dwindling bit by bit until the firm taps of his sneakers had reached almost a jog. Tails felt gravity increase on himself and he landed back on his feet, stumbling a little. Sonic's hand released his wrist. The blue hedgehog was walking calmly now, almost as if his burst of speed didn't exsist. "I woulda kept going, but it's alot harder on you than it is on me." He flashed a quick grin, and kept on walking.

Hardly shaken, Tails walked after him. The run had severely shortened the walking distance for now. Sonic was oddly quiet as he walked. His eyes were looking up to the leafy branches above their heads. Sunshine filtered between the leaves and tree bows, letting in small beams of light. The scenery previously had been flat; dark and grey. Eggman's bases weren't always the most colorful at night, especially when his newest Sonic-smashing creation rocked the ground it walked over, crushing even Eggman's own construction. A small price to pay for the potential death of his nemesis, Tails was sure Eggman thought.

The path now wound through the forested area, turning so frequently it was hard to see what was around the corner, often making it so you couldn't see more than ten feet of the path ahead. "Heh." Sonic clearly cracked another smile, even though Tails couldn't actually see it from just behind him. He was still looking up. "I bet it's been hours and we haven't even noticed the time." It was so sudden for him to say something like that, and he sounded so laid back.

Somewhere within the peace of his green eyes hid a strange freedom. Sonic was extremely undaunted by his seemingly blank past. He never really talked about where he came from, or what he did in the times before Tails knew him. All Tails really knew about Sonic's apparently classifed past was that he said he was born on Christmas Island. The fox wasn't all too certain about where Christmas Island was, or why Sonic had left there, but as the hedgehog loved to travel as opposed to being confined to one place forever, he guessed it made alot of sense. Despite the many places the companions had been together however, never once had they passed Christmas Island, nor did Sonic ever once mention going there. He'd just said it's name once and only once, and that was some time ago when Tails had asked where he'd come from.

'Christmas Island..'. he had responded simply with a small smile, leaving it merely at that before changing the subject.

Tails furrowed his brow slightly at the thought. The duo was greeted by no sound, other than the soft sound of their sneakers on the path, and the sound of little birds chirping in the trees overhead. Morning sounds. "Those cramps gone now?" Sonic asked. "You're bein' awfully quiet, Tails."

"They're gone," Tails assured. "I'm okay now." He smiled genuinely this time and Sonic nodded once, just slightly.

"That's good."

Gradually, the forested path melted away until there was no path at all, and the trees became less and less dense at either side. Soon it was just a dew covered field. Sonic brought a hand to his eyes to shield them from the sunlight, trekking on through the grassy and flat area until it flattened out into an almost dessert like one. It was definately not hot, so it wasn't a desert at all, but the way the scenery was put together, it almost looked like it ought to be, yet didn't at the same time. The chalky soft dirt was almost a sandy color with tufts of grass in patches here and there and bold mountains bordering the skyline. The mountains weren't really visable in the forested areas, or anywhere with tall buildings. They lay so far beyond them that they almost looked small. The sky itself was still rosy colored, drowning out Sonic's assumption that it was later than they'd expected. It was, in fact, earlier than either had anticipated. They were making apparent good time. Sonic smiled at the mountains beyond them.

"That almost looks like a sunset," Tails remarked.

Sonic titled his head and smiled at it a little, squinting to look at the brightness. "...it's a little too bright and hazy for a sunset. Kind of reminds me of something, though."

Tails looked at his friend, bewildered at what he meant by that. "Reminds you of what, Sonic?"

Sonic waved it off. "It's just a 'me' thing, I guess. Something I did once. No worries."

"Okay."

The sun rose higher in the sky, and once again, a path appeared. Where there was a path, greenery usually began to follow, and grass came into view. Shortly thereafter came small plants. The landscape in itself was quite varied, often dipping from hilled grassy fields into flat empty areas. It could be assumed that possibly not long ago, the flat chalky ground they'd walked over had been a field. Fire could've caused it to become how it was, but it was hard to know. The world was a wonderful place to explore if you knew where to look. Often, ruins or the remnants of old buildings decked hidden areas deep in forests or at the ends of rough rivers.

As they proceeded gradually back onto grassy turf, Sonic seemed to grow bored of the calm pace. He stretched as the sunshine fell upon him, and then tugged at the cuff of one of his white gloves distractedly. If things could've gotten any more peaceful and quiet, the scene would be as close as it got to perfect around there. Tails' ears had taken to constantly flicking in different directions, trying to pick up any sort of sound. There was nothing. Afew little birds could be heard from time to time, but almost nothing else. The fox had noted they were actually taking a different route going back than they had taken when racing to the scene earlier.

Nonetheless, he didn't ask why. This way back had shown itself to be obviously shorter anyhow. Because they hadn't been running for much of this course though, it was taking longer. This was a smooth walk back after getting rid of Eggman (for now, at least). Tails couldn't imagine being more relaxed after such a battle, and he was sure it was likewise for Sonic. He'd almost wondered why he and the hedgehog weren't exchanging much conversation, but it was starting to become apparent as to 'why'. There was an overpowering silence just in the area itself. Something that restricted the sound. It was an unexplained and almost eerie feeling, but the forest looming ahead boomed the command of silence over Tails' thoughts, and so he said nothing.

Sonic didn't seem to feel quite the same about the powerful reserve of the forest ahead. He yawned loudly, pretty much shattering the delicate 'barrier' of silence. "This path just keeps on going," the hedgehog observed blatantly. "It hardly cuts off anywhere."

"I see what you mean," Tails responded as he squinted slightly, trying to see just how far ahead the trail lead.

"That's fine, though," Sonic said simply. "We'll cut down some of the road. It'll save us some time." He calmly reached for Tails' wrist. Tails responded almost immediatly by crumpling to his knees. A stiff pain suddenly consumed his insides and he lurched forward, hugging himself as tightly as he could. There seemed to be no excuse for this one, and it was starting to scare him. Sonic's hand retracted swiftly. At the pace they'd been going at, this couldn't possibly be the work of straining a muscle or even pulling one. --Besides, it looked vastly more painful.

"...ow, ow, oww.." The fox breathed, whimpering slightly. His ears were folded back, making it that much more apparent to Sonic that this --whatever it was-- was hurting to him more than other times. What was worse was that he was shaking a little too, and Sonic couldn't make heads or tails of any of this.

Lost at just what sort of response he was supposed to make, Sonic titled his head slightly, a frown creasing into his expression. "Alright, this is the third time this has happened.."

"I know about as much as you do about this Sonic..." Tails gasped weakly. Slowly, shakily, he stood himself up. His limbs trembled beneath his own weight, and he topped backward a little. Sonic steadied an arm around him. Growing slightly dizzy, Tails leaned woozily into Sonic. The blue hedgehog's thoughts were riddled with confusion and concern.

Tails looked up from Sonic, only to be greeted by furious spinning and sudden a blur to his vision. The landscape twisted together in a malicious multicolored and blurry swirl, threatening to pull him down into a nauseous and sudden stormcloud of delusional dreams. He didn't want that. Whatever was wrong would go away like the other times. He hoped. He gave way, however, collapsing into Sonic.

...tails...

...lo... re you okay...

...huh?

...on... n you even hear me...

...I... umm... mhhh...

...wake up!...

...TAILS!

..nnnngh... huh..?

His eyes flickered open. "What... what happened?"

A pair of exceedingly concerned green eyes stared him down. "That's what I'd like to know! One minute you're fine, and the next you get all... sick or something. You blacked right out!"

At last, Tails' mind managed to gather itself and walk back to reality. He grimaced. "...oww." His expression turned somewhat apologetic. "I'm sorry, Sonic. I didn't mean to slow you down." He came to realise that the back of his head was being supported against Sonic's arm, and the hedgehog was kneeling next to him in the grass next to the path.

"That's not what's bothering me, buddy. Was this somehow something I did?"

His response came as somewhat devoid of helpfulness. "...I dunno."

"You okay now? Feel any better? Maybe you just really needed a rest."

The fox pressed his hand to his forehead. It wasn't hot, so as far as he'd gathered, he wasn't feverish. "Maybe you're right." Silence pressed in all around the duo, and Sonic allowed his ears to flick sideways just a little for afew seconds. He looked over his shoulder, his eyes scanning over the green landscape like lock-on lazers on a target course.

Tails sighed, relaxing reasonably against Sonic's bracing arm. "...what happens when we go home?"

Sonic looked back at him, quirking an eyebrow slightly at the odd subject change. "...home? You mean 'back'?"

"Yeah. There."

The hedgehog looked thoughtful, his face angled down but tilted to the side ever so slightly. When he looked up, he was smiling vaguely, and his eyes looked almost sad. "...when you go back," he corrected somewhat soundly. "When you go back, I'll do what I've always done-- keep going."

"...again?"

"What do you mean? You just go home, okay? I have to go. I have to follow where the adventure goes, because that's my life. I'm never going to let it go. Adventure lives in me."

"...so once we get there, you're just going to go. It's going to be 'good bye' all over again. I don't want it to be the end again."

Sonic's chest lightly raised and fell with a small sigh. "Tails, there are no endings. Only beginnings." Again, he smiled a little. "Remember, okay? Besides, if you want to come, you'll find me. You always do. I think now you're begining to understand what you're here for. You see now that there's a duty in your life you want to continue to take care of."

"I always did see it," Tails responded. "I saw it ever since I met you. Ever since I saw your Tornado, and saw how you run so fast. I saw it in what you told me you did. I felt it in the stories you told me about the things you've done. Somehow, I just knew... I..." His lip trembled. "I knew that this is the way it was all supposed to go. I... I know I can't always depend on you forever, but I don't have to. I just want to help. I just wanna... help you."

"Hey, hey, it's alright. No need to get upset." Sonic's gloved hand gently ran across Tails' cheek. "I never said ya couldn't, right? You need time on your own, too, okay? You can do things on your own then. Explore on your own. You won't be alone long. Just go looking and you'll find me. You always do." He smirked. "Heck, if you can find me in the middle of nowhere to show me a note, that's enough said!"

Tails smirked too, poking Sonic in the side. "And we even got Knuckles to come along..! I knew we'd find you somewhere that you could run in. We had to show you that somehow."

Sonic chuckled. "Yeah. And Eggman's a real egghead. He let his own machine overthrow him. I bet he'll make Metal Sonic into a toaster the next time that happens."

"Toaster Sonic..!" Tails laughed.

"Yeah! He toasts bread at the speed of sound." Sonic too couldn't help but grin at his own bad joke. The down mood had evaporated like the morning dew on the grass. For a moment, nothing but the lingering silence filled the pause, but it was like something important had just happened with the way the sound was sucked from everything around them like an interval of blankness, and it was only then that Sonic awkwardly realised the only things making any real sound before had been them. He cleared his throat slightly, and scratched at his forehead. "I guess we might as well take a break here, since we've already stopped."

The blue hedgehog easily let himself fall backwards from his seated position, his head hitting softly against the grassy turf. "We stayed up through the night, so I guess we get to sleep part of the day."

"You're right. I'll probably feel better after a rest, too. Maybe this'll all be cleared up after." Tails offered a hopeful smile, laying next to Sonic in the grass. His eyes closed peacefully, and he let out a small yawn. "Where do you think we'll find Eggman next?"

"Huh. Wherever there's havoc for him to cause," Sonic responded. "But that doesn't matter, because he knows I'll be there, and as long as I'm here, there will always be something in his way." He too closed his eyes. "Y'know, Tails..?" He paused, not getting a response. "--Tails?" He half opened one eye to glance over.

"Zzzzz..."

The fox lay sleeping beside him. Sonic smirked. "I guess it really was time for a rest," he thought, amused. Closing his eyes again, the blue hero drifted off to sleep as well.

"Sonic..! Sonic, come on! Wake up! Sonic!"

Groggy, Sonic groaned in response, folding his ears back.

"Sonic! Come on!" Tails prodded at him some more. "Get up!"

With a hefty yawn, Sonic sat up. He easily rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Tails poked at his slightly grass-stained arm. He was smiling again, his eyes bright and his ears pricked forward attentively. It seemed apparent that he was feeling better after a little bit of sleep. "You slept longer than I did!"

"Heh, I see that," the hedgehog replied with a somewhat drowsy half smile. "Feeling better, huh? Pain's gone away now?"

Tails nodded. "Yes! All of it."

Sonic gave him a firm pat on the back. "See? Laughter and some sleep makes good medicine. Ready to go?" He got to his feet, dusting the blades of grass off of his red sneakers.

"You betcha, Sonic!" the fox answered confidently.

Sonic flashed him a thumbs-up and a wink. "All cool. Good thing we weren't asleep too long. It's still light out." His eyes wandered distractedly, his ears flicking slightly in different directions. "...but I've got a bad feeling that wasn't the last of Eggman yesterday."

A look of uneasiness crossed Tails' features. "..you sure, Sonic? It's hardly been a day."

"He's tricky, Tails, but I know there's no way he can ever win." He stopped. "Listen."

Both stopped, listening hard. Tails was sure at first that Sonic must've been wrong. He couldn't hear anything. The late afternoon yielded no real sound. Tails focused harder, flicking his ears at the slightest sound in the attempt to pick something up. Still nothing.

"Sonic, I don't--"

"Shhh. Keep listening."

Tails frowned slightly, but listened as intently as he could. Still nothing. No sound but the breezes stirring in the tree branches, or playing in the grass. Nothing. Nothing beyond what surrounded them. Nothing beyond the peaceful haven of the grassy field or its checkboard path. No sound.

...It came quietly.

It was hardly even there. A clanking. The sound of metal cluttering the ground.

The fox gawked, awed that Sonic could have heard that before. The sound was distant, although ever-presently drawing nearer. "H- how did you..?"

"I didn't hear it all along, Tails. I just knew Eggman wouldn't give up as quickly as he did. Knowing that, I knew we'd be hearing something."

"What are we going to do..!"

Sonic stretched, smiling confidently. "Same thing we always do. Kick his butt." He put out a hand, grasping Tails around the wrist again. "Let's go!"

"WAH!"

FVROOM. Sonic took off in a flurry of speed, pulling his friend along behind him. At first, Tails made the vain attempt of trying to keep his feet on the ground. He stumbled pathetically, incapable of making his sneakers touch the ground as fast as Sonic's, then gave in to being pulled along for the ride.

The course was smooth for the mostpart with afew gently rolling hills. Sonic cut over and around the landscape, darting over small obstacles with acrobatic ease, his feet light with the run. Up, over and around. The greenery sped by, blurred together in an undefinable mesh of color. The time was just as hard to define as the blurred scenery. It was hard to know how long Sonic had been running for, although it was certain that the ground they'd covered in the short period of time would've taken hours to walk.

A city started to appear on the skyline. It was difficult to see because of the blurring scenery, but it was as though for the whole trip, Sonic had been storing up momentum, and as soon as he saw that city, it was like a burst of super nitro went into his sneakers. Tails could've sworn he was going twice as fast, likely bordering a sonic boom, or getting close to. There was a cry of thrill from Sonic. "Fly!" he shouted suddenly.

Taking afew moments to respond, Tails forced his tails to spin, and as Sonic was aware he could catch himself, he let go, and Tails was hit with a massive blast of wind. KABOOOOM! And that was it. You could see nothing. He was going so fast, he was out of sight in an instant. The fox sighed unevenly, touching down only a moment before giving himself a proper lift-off, and tearing after Sonic. Within fifteen minutes, he hit the edge of the city, where Sonic stood calmly waiting for him. "I'm glad you caught up. Way to go, Tails!"

Tails nodded with a smile in acknowledgement. "Thank-you."

Sonic nodded in the direction of the entrance. "Come on."

The duo had hardly gotten far in the city before a massive explosion errupted, shaking the ground they stood on. The force was strong enough that part of the roads has even cracked. Robots poured everywhere, cluttering the paved streets. Frantic citizens ran for cover. The city was pretty well in a panic. Sonic's expression creased into a frown.

"Eggman," he breathed. "How did I guess you would be here to do something like this?"

"This is terrible, Sonic..!" Tails cried out.

"It's terrible, but it won't last!" There was a flame of detirmination in Sonic's bold tone. He instantly sprung into action, destroying every robot in his path. There was a strong wind all around him as he sped through, and Tails shielded himself from the occassional bit of metal that would fly through the air. A spinning jump, a somersault, a spindash. Torn metal and sparking wires littered the ground in under a minute.

The hedgehog looked around at his handiwork, and decided they could proceed. "I think that's all of 'em over here. Let's find that Eggman!"

"Right, Sonic!"

Sonic sped off with a flying Tails at his heel.

"DA - HA HA HA HA!" A loud laughter could be heard, followed by a frighteningly large explosion. Sonic and Tails both covered their ears at the sound, looking up to see none other than whom they'd come to expect. Doctor Eggman. He clutched several small bombs, all lit. With a broad grin, he tossed each ahead. The bombs hit the pavement with sickeningly loud detonations. The evil scientist laced his fingers, still grinning broadly at his company.

"Ah! Sonic and Tails. I wouldn't expect any less."

"Of course not," Sonic responded easily. "I didn't expect any less of you, either."

Eggman scowled. "Don't get smart with me. You'll pay soon enough."

"We'll see, Eggman. I came here thinking you would be the one who would be paying." Sonic smirked lightly.

His nemesis scoffed. "You're cocky and you're fast, but I'll tell you now that you won't be winning this round. Farewell, hedgehog." The ground rumbled behind them, and though neither Sonic nor Tails had opted to go after Eggman in hopes there were more badniks, there were anyway. The metal assassins trampled everywhere in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors. When it came to originality with machines, Eggman was tops. Even in previous times, his badniks and ships were always different than the last he'd used, constantly trying to revise and improve to prevent failure.

These badniks, just like all the designs before them, had been created for the purpose of Eggman's bidding, and to distract and side-track Sonic while Eggman continued his plotting and worked out his plans. They all came equipped with at least one dangerously sharp edge in the hope that one of these days, Sonic would lose ground and hurt himself on them. Sonic didn't cower, though. He smirked at Eggman's army of metal.

"Keep trying, Eggman! I don't think you made enough!" Sonic chuckled and sprung into action once again. "Tails! You wanna gimme a hand? Breaking these guys is like denting soda-cans!"

BLAM! A supersonic spin took out three at once.

CRACK! A jump that landed atop one broke it right in two.

SMASH! Another landed in several pieces on the sidewalk.

BANG! FIZZLE! POP! BOOM!

Eggman growled at the hedgehog as he effortlessly destroyed every badnik in sight. Tails too joined in, and the two of them easily finished of the brigade. "This isn't the end, Sonic!" Eggman cried frustratedly, jetting off into the sky in his ever-present eggmobile. He was headed to the other side of the city, ready to cause more havoc there, no doubt.

Sonic stood puzzled for a moment. "He gave up way too quickly. He's got more cards up his sleeve, I know it."

"So what will we do?"

"Huh. We'll head straight to the place Eggman was headed for. We can cut 'im off, and see how it goes from there. I think we can expect alot of badniks, too."

"Okay!"

Thunk.

Sonic's green eyes darted swiftly in the direct of the sound. A mini parade of badniks was patrolling towards them. "Augh! I knew it!" Sonic muttered. He turned to his friend. "Tails! We'll finish these guys off and get a move on."

"Sonic!" Tails cried urgently. "There could be more than this..!"

"Exactly. We'll have to leave before they get here, though. The sooner Eggman is stopped, they will be stopped." With a super spindash, the blue hedgehog rolled ahead, bowling down four robots and proceeding to smash each of them. Tails ran after him, taking out afew with a quick whack of his tails. Sonic efficiently managed to get through most of them in a reasonably small period of time, and in a moment, they were off running to the other side of the city.

"MUA HA HA! OH HO HO!"

Frightened people screamed and fled from the area, some chased by badniks, others shielding themselves and their friends as they ran. Eggman grinned, repeatedly pressing the big red button on his control panel like the immoral tyrant he was trying to be. With each press of that button came more of his badniks. Sonic was fuming. How could anyone be so downright low!

"Eggman! I think you forgot something."

Eggman turned his floating eggmobile around, his ever-present grin visable past his large bushy moustache. "Ah, it seems we have some unwanted visitors," he said to no one in particular.

"You bet! And you're one of them," Sonic said hotly.

"We'll see, Sonic," Eggman replied calmly. "You should be nothing more than a rock in the road."

"Yeah, a rock in the road you keep tripping over."

The mad scientist's face twisted into a frown, but it wasn't long before a fiendish sparkle came into his eye. He straightened the small round shades perched on his nose. "Well then... I guess as my guest, you've merely come for your... just desserts." He laughed like a maniac at his own joke. "But very well! I'll give you what you've come for!" He hopped out of the eggmobile, revealing his most peculiar anatomy which had earned him his nickname.

CRASH. CRASH. CRASH. CRASH.

Step by slow step, a massive robot trudged into view. It was approximately ten times Sonic's height at least, making it almost thirty feet tall. Each step it took rocked the ground and buildings nearby, splitting the pavement and creating huge holes in the ground like it was walking on thin ice. Its face had clearly been built in the image of its creator, and it sported huge powerful hands with gun barrels for fingers. Its shoulderpads were rocketlaunchers for homing missles, and its back bore a jet spurting deadly flame as it empowered the massive robot. This one was at least twice as tall as the last Sonic had seen, but it was apparent that this was made for nothing more than annihilating the hedgehog. Every part of the machine's exterior was a danger in itself.

Eggman opened a panel on front and hopped inside to control the massive creation.

From behind Sonic, Tails gawked at the huge death messenger. He had faith in Sonic, though; there had to be a way to get rid of this one like all of the others. There was always a way.

...right?

SLAM!

"Whoa!" Startled, Sonic just leaped out of the way of the robot's massive fist slamming down. The impact shook the ground, causing the hedgehog to unwarily lose his balance. He quickly got to his feet, darting to a new location.

SLAM!

The fist came down again. This time prepared, Sonic got himself easily from harm's way and darted around the back. The robot whirled around, swiping its palm across the ground and knocking Sonic over. Before he managed to pick himself up, the hand swept by again, knocking him firmly to the pavement.

Tails let out a small squeak of surprise. "..Sonic!"

"Ergg... You can't get rid of me like that!" With a small grin, he pushed himself up, slightly scraped, and got to his feet. "You have to hit me alot harder." Clearly aggrivated from inside the machine, Eggman lashed out.

SLAM! CRASH! CRACK! BOOM!

A fist hit the ground. Another. Another furious sweep. A stomp. A punch. All of it was useless, and Sonic darted around all the attacks with acrobatic ease. A glowing light ignited from the palm of each metal hand.

VOOM. VOOM. VOOM!

Thin bright red lazer beams faster than speeding bullets began cutting through the air after the hedgehog. What was even more taunting was that Sonic actually started to laugh. "TRY HARDER!" He zoomed around the designated battle arena, dodging and spinning past everything Eggman threw at him. Growing more aggrivated than before, the robot stomped violently forward, leaning toward Sonic a little. Missle after missle shot from its heavy armed shoulders, tagging after Sonic all around the small arena. Nothing hit; nothing came close. Things went this way for minutes. Eggman couldn't land a single hit, but he got smart.

He stopped.

Sonic skidded to a halt, too, staring up at the huge machine. "Something break in there?" he asked tauntingly. "...like the driver, maybe?" The robot stood boldly still, and with it, so did the hedgehog.

"Sonic! Go after it!" Tails urged, becoming antsy.

"Nope," Sonic said cooly. "We'll see what's coming." He spindashed around the machine's ankles in almost a playful manner.

Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.

"Uh..?" Edging to the outer rim of the arena, Sonic looked around. What was that sound, and where was it--

"ACK!" A paralysing ray scanned him up and down, restraining his movement. An Egg Keeper. This was no new badnik, although it certainly came at an inconvenient time. He squirmed frustratedly. "This is no fair play, Eggman!"

"Bwahaha, you told me to 'hit harder'," responded Eggman coldly via the speaker on the chest of the stilled robot still standing not far away. "And this is merely me 'hitting harder'." The machine thunked heavily across the ground and threw a solid punch toward Sonic. Its bad aim sent it sprawling over the ground, and sent Sonic into a fit of laughter. This was no light situation, though, and he realised if he didn't act fast, there would be a punch that didn't miss, and that punch could cause some heavy damage not only to the scenery, but to Sonic. He had almost forgotten about his little ally, however, and although he'd been idling, he knew what to do now, be it the only thing he could do in an effort to help.

CRACK!

A dented body piece from the Egg Keeper fell to the ground, the effects of its paralysing rays wearing off its captive just then. Tails flicked at it with another tail attack, rolling the round body piece across the cracked sidewalk.

"Thanks, Tails..!"

"Anything to help, Sonic!"

Just then, the heavy robot regained its composure and managed to stagger its massive form to its feet. Sonic gave Tails a light push. "Go. Don't worry; this is my fight and I can take care of it." He didn't even follow his friend with his eyes as he backed off the arena. The robot was of prime importance right now. Its large form clunked across the small arena as Sonic darted out of the way. From the front, the machine could guard itself with its arms, but from the back, it was blind.

FBOOM. WHAM!

A spinjump smashed into the back. The impact was hard, but the metal was harder. Sonic fell back down, trying to figure out the weakest point on the metal. Possibly its burning fuel jet in back? He would have to risk hurting himself for the sake of trying, but wasn't that Eggman's plan? This whole battle in itself was slow, although it was extremely destructive. If Sonic didn't finish the machine here, it would wreak havoc throughout the whole city.

If Sonic couldn't figure out how to get rid of it, he wouldn't risk dragging Tails into this battle, whether or not it meant a second set of hands and a second head to think with. Maybe he could come down on the robot's head. It was the highest part of it, and likely the next most vulnerable since the cockpit wasn't visable. It probably took some sort of transmition in through a signal that came from part of its head, too, and that could mean more badniks. However, to come down well enough on this machine, Sonic would need to be thrown down on it into a sonicspin, and he couldn't do that without Tails. Maybe there had to be some sort of risk taken for anything to be done.

"Tails!" Sonic called, concluding his decision. "Give me a hand!"

"Sure thing, Sonic!" Tails responded brightly. Sonic pointed skyward.

"I need to come down from about a meter above that hunk of junk," he explained.

"Got it!" Tails lifted off into easy flight, catching Sonic in midair and continuing up to the said height above the ground. Sonic wasn't all too heavy, although he did start to become a strain on Tails' arms if he airlifted too long. As spectator of this battle, the fox wasn't at all happy about how well it was going. So far, the only time the robot had been damaged was when it collapsed itself with its off-thrown punch, which meant it was pretty tough. "...high enough?"

"Good to go." Sonic let go of Tails' gloved hands, coming straight down on the top of the machine in a spin.

BLAM!

As he had suspected, it was like tearing tinfoil.

"This is fruitless, Sonic," Eggman forewarned fuzzily via the speaker. "Give up before I crush you and your friend." He stomped the machine violently around, causing the airborne Tails to dart out of harm's way just outside the arena. There wasn't much he could do to help here.

Clutter. Claaaang.

Tails' ears perked up at the sound. Sonic hadn't noticed it as he darted around his nemesis, still keeping up the slowpaced fight. Although the head itself had proven weak, the alloy just under the surface was extremely durable. The hedgehog was taking no heed to anything but his current opponent, but this could be trouble.

The two tailed fox turned, staring hard at his surroundings. Maybe he'd only heard one of the many sounds Eggman's indestructo-bot seemed to be making as it charged around after Sonic. But no. There was something up, although he couldn't see what.

A cry of surprise caused Sonic to jump and lose his concentration. The tall robot bowled him over in an instant, starting on him like a bug. "Tails!" Sonic yelled out between narrowly avoiding being squashed by the massive metal hands. "What was THAT for!"

A small whimper was the only response from Tails, and he stared flatly in the direction facing behind Sonic. Sonic managed to steer clear of Eggman long enough to take a look back. It almost looked like a wave; a multicolored wave. It swept boldly over the roads and as it drew nearer, it became appallingly clear that it was a massive swarm of badniks. Sonic choked out afew words of surprise. In a time like this, he couldn't charge off to blow away the minions when he had the master to deal with-- and such a destructive one, too.

"Tails!" Sonic called firmly. "I can't leave here. You're going to have to deal with the badniks on your own for a bit."

"But... I... I... there's...!"

"I know there's alot of them, but it's like denting soda cans, remember? You can do it! GAH!" He hopped out of the way of a lazer shot and resumed chasing the robot around, trying to get the better of it, or at least keep it distracted. Eggman wouldn't be allowed to go on with Sonic as the barricade.

Tails turned back to the forthcoming swarm of machines. One-hit breakable or not, there were hundreds of them, and each one was armed with at least one pointed object or sharp appendage. However, this was a fight to help Sonic, and to help the city, for that matter. He braced himself before running straight into the crowd, whacking at what he could with his tails. He almost speared himself more than once on the javelin of one bright red robot before he sent it backwards. It crashed into afew others, and they flailed pathetically until Tails short circuited them. Although Eggman mass-produced robots like this, they lacked durability. He fought on this way for at least half an hour, but the work grew tiring. Metal and data chips littered the ground as well as enough sparking wire to wrap around the entire city six times, as far as Tails figured.

What was most bewildering about this is why none of the larger and stronger models had accompanied the small ones. Why had the little guys been sent first? ...or were they just sent out to make a red carpet for the big guys to follow? Tails gulped at the thought, trying to push it from his mind, shoving more metal from the way. 95 of the time when one worries, the problem doesn't even occur, and so he tried to console himself with this.

Scraped up and a little bit dirty, Sonic was faring pretty well despite the hour and a half this fight had dragged on for. Eggman's giant assassin seemed to be wearing down. Its once boldly shining exteroir was now extremely dusty and scratched from the battle, and it was missing several fingers on its right hand. Pieces of armor from the back and one forearm had come off. Sonic panted lightly at he jogged around it. Struck in the right place, he could possibly bring the smoking hunk of junk to its knees. He spindashed into its limb again, causing it to tremble in its standing position. The ground here was completely smashed and cracked. Homing missles and the robot's enormous weight had taken a toll on the roads. Sonic felt that at last, he was finally gaining the upperhand; this machine had to either run out of fuel or ammo sooner or later. There was no way Eggman could win because Sonic had set his full attention on defeating him.

"S-- SOOONIIIIIIIIC!" A half choked yell directed Sonic's eyes back.

Half stumbling, half running (although most likely from fear), Tails scrambled into view, pursued by a large formation of lazer-canon bearing shield robots. He was cut and scraped as much as Sonic was, if not moreso.

"I thought I told you to get rid of the badniks!" Sonic yelled frustratedly.

"I did!" Tails almost wept. "I did, but once they were gone, these ones came instead..! I can't hit them because of their armor, and they have such good aim, all I can do is run. I'm not strong enough..!"

Sonic glanced quickly back at his current fight, then back at Tails, trembling and near tears. Tails would have to hold off on his own for afew minutes, or both of them would die here. "Do what you can," Sonic responded calmly. "I'll be there to help as soon as I can." He ran around the other side before his friend could respond, or Eggman could attack.

Having no other choice, Tails nodded shakenly and checked his status with the large robots not far behind. There was still a bit of distance between them, and seeing this, he took off running again. Sonic resumed his fight.

"Da ha ha!" Eggman laughed bitterly. "You abandon your little friend so you can play around here?"

"It was that, or we both die and you win," Sonic answered quietly.

"Ah, well I wouldn't have much of a problem with that myself, really," he said. The speaker had gotten much more fuzzy and alot of static did cover Eggman's voice, but Sonic could hear the cruel smile in his words.

The hedgehog said nothing in response, flying back into action. He rammed a superspin into the robot's shin, practically toppling it over. Again and again he did this until the off-thrown balance of the machine caused it to fall over backwards. A large dust cloud rose up with the impact and the ground shook violently. Sonic soundly managed to saw through the joint on one arm while it was down, cutting off the power to it and yielding the limb useless. Without both hands, the robot couldn't push itself up; it was too heavy.

Sonic stood back a moment, breathing heavily and breaking out in a light sweat, but very proud of his handiwork. He indeed did have the upperhand. This was a beautiful moment, and he was swallowed in the perfect thought that no matter how tough things seemed, he would always find a way to break through.

Tails.

Sonic's eyes flew wide open. How far had the fox gone! Had he rid himself of those shield robots? ...Did Sonic yet have the time to help him..? He didn't have another second to ponder this, though, because something slammed into him from behind. Sonic fell to the ground, and his attacker landed on him, panting hard. Tails.

Shaking a little, he clung tightly to Sonic around the waist, even as he practically pinned the hedgehog to the broken pavement. At least this proved he'd made it out of the sticky situation somehow. Sonic ran a hand across the back of Tails' head in almost a comforting gesture. "You got rid of them?"

"No.." Tails panted. "I can't run anymore. I can't run anymore and I can't fight them. They aren't holding their shields, but I'm too slow to hit them now." Once again, he felt he had yielded himself useless to Sonic, incapable of defending himself until Sonic could run to the aid. "I'm sorry..."

Sonic exhaled slowly, sitting up, still allowing Tails to hold tightly to him. "You tried, and that's what matters, okay? You're alive, and so am I, and you gave it a shot. Don't be sorry." He got up, pulling Tails to his feet.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Behind them, Eggman's robot beat its remaining fist furiously on the ground. A blast of fire ignited behind it-- the jet booster. After minutes of lying helplessly, it got itself up.

"You're really stubborn," Sonic said with a weak grin.

"Not as stubborn as you are," Eggman argued. "You refuse to get out of the way."

Tails managed to lift off the ground, and he extendend a hand to reach for Sonic's. Quickly, Sonic took this chance, and Tails gained enough altitude for Sonic to throw another head-on attack at the robot. He spun straight into it. It twitched violently, its circuitry apparantly having had taken a little too much, but it didn't fall. It charged at Sonic, stomping angrily, trying to crush him. At last, the robots after Tails had caught themselves up. Firing multiple shots, they too followed Sonic and Tails around their designated fighting ring.

"I'll finish these guys off right now!" Sonic said confidently.

Safely behind Sonic, an example of perfectly bad timing set in. "Oww.." Tails sunk down, painfully clutching himself tightly around the middle. "Not again..!"

Sonic's mind went blank like a piece of fresh paper. Of. All. The. Rotten. Luck. He turned straight around and picked Tails up in his arms, just escaping afew more of those shots. Hastily, he dodged around Eggman's robot, and for the first time in just nearly two hours, he ran right out of their little fighting ground. He put his friend down gently on a somewhat peaceful sidewalk and knelt down next to him. "What is GOING ON!"

Tails' eyelids flickered, trying to stay open. "I don't know... I thought whatever this was had gone away..!" He leaned into Sonic, getting dizzy like the last time.

"So did I, and this is probably one of the worst ti---"

FWOO. FWOO.

Lazer shots were fired, and Sonic leaned over Tails defensively. The lazer streaks narrowly missed him, but he didn't even flick an ear. He would defend all innocents, and something was terribly wrong, so at a time like this, Sonic would not fight. He had to protect, because if he were to get up and fight, it could very well cost his friend's life. These robots were no problem, but with no vague clue as to what was wrong with Tails and with Eggman's massive robot back on his feet, all of this could prove very problematic.

And he heard a line he thought he would never hear.

"Deactivate and stand down, you stupid hunks of junk," Eggman ordered, his voice blurry but recognisable even through the busted up speakers. The robots lowered their aim and came to a halt. Tails let out a small sigh and let go of consciousness. Sonic held him tighter, the defensive part of his mind taking hold of him. What was Eggman doing?

The huge machine clunked closer, and Sonic folded his ears back, leaning over Tails. "I don't care about you hitting me right now," Sonic said in a low voice with almost a growl. "At least I'm protecting someone else from you."

"Don't be ridiculous," Eggman replied. The front panel of the robot swung open and he hopped right out. Sonic was somewhat startled to see that the entire cockpit of the robot had remained in one piece, and Eggman himself was one hundred percent unharmed. "What did you think happened to your little friend?" he asked almost teasingly.

"I don't know," Sonic admitted flatly.

"I was expecting this," the peculariarly shaped mustached man replied. "I was expecting that as things turn out, you wouldn't have been affected at all."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ah, well, just as you were exiting my zone the last time, I realised I'd made a mistake. Due to a combination of things I won't care to explain to you, a fume released when my machines caught fire there released a toxin. I had hoped that in the midst of this 'unfortunate' mishap, you'd have been contaminated by this and affected, because although the result isn't fatal, it slows you right down." Slowly a thin smile edged across his face beneath the mustache. "I detected high traces of it just after you exited my grounds, but you hadn't been inhaling it for long enough. It hasn't touched you."

Sonic's frown deepened. "How could it hurt Tails and not me? We were both there for an equal amount of time."

"It's quite simple," Eggman continued. "When you run, you go fast enough that the wind surrounds you. Due to your high-speed maneuvering, the air around you almost acted as a barrier and you likely only breathed in a small amount-- definately not enough for you to be affected. Your friend, on the other hand, does not run as fast as you. There was nothing of the sort to guard him from it. I was protected by my machine, and I only came in contact with the toxin as I left."

Sonic knew he couldn't be lying; there was a definate ring of truth to his tone. "You said this isn't fatal. If that's true, then explain what's happening now."

The evil genius crossed his arms loosely front of himself. "Simple. The toxins are reaching his brain, and in which case, telling his brain to make his body react to pain he hasn't got. In other words, he feels like he's in pain when nothing is actually wrong."

"Shouldn't this have worn off by now?" Sonic asked, somewhat unable to mask the concern. The sun was dipping beyond the skyline in the distance, setting it in close to evening. The warm colors of the sky made Sonic's blue quills look darker than usual, and he cast a long shadow over the dark pavement.

"No; it would vary. In me, it would probably last about six hours, but because you're both smaller than I am, it would probably have a bolder effect."

Sonic looked down at Tails lying motionless in his arms. Aside from his chest rising and falling with his breathing, he didn't move or stir in the slightest. He almost felt it would have been better for himself to have taken this rather than his friend, but he realised if he himself had inhaled this stuff, Eggman could very well be winning right now. "I can't protect him and fight you at the same time, Eggman. You know that."

Eggman stared at Sonic through his round shades. If there was one thing he would never understand, it was the way the hedgehog could put others before himself. He hadn't moved from his place next to Tails, vigilantly holding him and boldly sitting guard. His ears flicked forward at the occasional small sound, but for the most part, they were nearly folded back. The citizens of the city were still frightened and were undoubtedly staying inside until this attack raid was finished, so the area was quiet. For now, niether knew what to do.

Sonic turned his head as he heard Eggman start walking back to his robot. "Get up," he said. "If you don't, this city will be mine within the day, and you know it."

With a small sigh, Sonic gently laid his friend down and rose to his feet. Blood from his scrapes had caked over and his face was scratched and a little dirty, but a flare of detirmination shone in his eyes brighter than the gold color of the sky.

"Aha, I thought you said you would stand down to protect your friend," Eggman sneered.

"That's exactly what I'm doing," Sonic said smoothly. "I'm protecting him, and all of the people in this city from you." He clentched a light fist, and spun back into action immediatly after Eggman resumed his place in the cockpit of his machine. "So get out of the way!"

WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!

It was like he'd been filled with a strength several times his own, fueled only by his detirmination. The robot shielded itself with its remaining arm, but Sonic repeatedly slammed sonicspins into whatever else was within hitting range, specifically its limbs. Again and again, and Eggman could do nothing to defend. Sonic was filled with an inhuman power; the power of a heart deep inside that beat with detirmination and will. A heart full of memories both good and bad. A soul that would forever remind him of his purpose in this world.

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!" Eggman yelled out fuzzily.

"I can!" Sonic cried. And once again, as always, the robot collapsed to the ground, rocking its surroundings as its tremendous weight smashed down. The broken and torn pavement shuddered briefly, and the robot twitched once or twice before giving out altogether. Sonic knew there was nothing more now; the badniks were gone, and Eggman would have to go for now, too. Somewhat shaken, the evil genius clambered out of the broken machine, summoning his eggmobile like always. He hopped into it, glaring Sonic down. "This isn't the end."

Sonic nodded slowly in acknowledgement with a weak smile. "Sure, you always say that."

"Hrmph. Til we meet again, Sonic, and that next time, I will come even more prepared than this." And with not another word, he sped off into the rapidly setting sun, not bothering to clean up the mess he'd left. This stuff was all fixable, though; the people of the city could send all the scrap metal to the junk yard, and the road could be repaired where it had been broken. Sonic smiled lightly. Despite the mess, there was peace here, and it made him happy. He walked back to Tails and slowly crouched next to him.

"Yo, Tails," he said softly. "Time to wake up, buddy."

"Mghh..." Tails' eyes fluttered open, and he stared at Sonic's sneakers for several seconds before realising who was talking to him. "...Sonic..?"

"Yeah, you bet." He smiled a little.

"Huh...?" The two tailed fox sat himself up, looking around drowsily. Cautious people were heading back out onto the streets, seeing that the danger had passed. "Where did Eggman go?"

"Away," Sonic replied, gesturing to the sunset. "I finished off his dumb-bot there, and he left. I hope he doesn't come up with any more cheesy plans like that."

"Yeah.." Tails smiled a little too, and picked himself up off the ground, although still feeling a little dizzy. Sonic rose to a standing position, too.

"Let's go."

Tails nodded in response, and took Sonic's hand. "Okay." The brightness was returning to his eyes as the slight drowsiness wore off.

Sonic half smiled, and lightly squeezed Tails' hand in his own. "You'll stop getting that pain soon," he said. "The stuff that caused it will wear off of you soon, and we don't need to worry."

The fox's ears flicked forward curiously. "How did you know that..?"

The hedgehog shrugged slightly. "Eh. Eggman told me when he was wishing it was me that got it. There was a toxin in the air that affected your brain's ability to tell when you're in pain or something like that. You'll be okay." With his free hand, he smiled and messed Tails' hair playfully.

His friend laughed and nodded, and they both started to walk off into the darkening horizon. Beyond the city lay new adventures awaiting, and even beyond that, there lay the path, still as winding and unpredictable as the future itself.