Sonic Series Fan Fiction ❯ On the Road Again ❯ Remaining hope ( Chapter 29 )

Chapter 29: Remaining hope

It was a long night in New York City, and the darkness continued to roam free like a prison escapee of jail. Remembering what happened in our last adventure, we return now to our tale where Sonic the Hedgehog and his crew were in the city, and again, trouble appeared like a fork in the road. It was a dangerous time for them. Of course, there was always hope, and this remaining hope cannot be left to die, but for the team, it had to be kept alive like a fire. It may seem extremely small, but a seed can grow to become a glorious tree. Now, entering the city, we find the adventurous RV near Central Park, with Knuckles the Echidna and Rouge the Bat guarding it, while little Freeway the Deer peacefully slept. Knuckles was able to repair the damaged floor of the RV with hardly any problems, but then again, they always seem to come. Rouge tried to stay awake by reading a book, and Knuckles stood alert, watching.

"It's a little too quiet, don't you think so, Rouge?" Knuckles asked, nervously.

"It's fine by me," Rouge replied, "I don't want any circus to come to town, you know."

"Yeah, I know what you mean, but I wonder if the others are doing all right."

"What? You think there's trouble?" Rouge asked, looking up from her book.

"I don't know." Knuckles shrugged, unsure. "But this stillness makes me uneasy."

"Well, be careful what you wish for." Rouge said before returning to her reading.

"Oh, I will." Knuckles grinned, turning his face to hide his blushing.

There was only one thing that could interrupt this moment, and that was a surprise attack from Metal Sonic and Chaos. They came suddenly, out of nowhere, and they found the RV.

"So, red echidna, we meet again, and now I will seal your end!" Metal snarled, angrily.

Knuckles gulped. "I think I much rather let it be quiet now." He said.

"Silence, tomato! Now, dance!" Metal commanded, and he fired his laser weapon on the ground, forcing the echidna to dance. It was his only way to avoid the attack for that time and place.

Then Chaos stepped up to the RV, and he snatched Rouge's book away, tossing it aside on the street. The bat was furious, and she stood up, shaking him hard while holding his shoulders.

"What was that all about? And look what you did to my book!" Rouge said, shaking him until Chaos hung his head down, feeling dizzy. "I just reached chapter 29, but now, it's time for me to teach you a few manners!" The bat said, and she began to fight, while Knuckles kept dancing.

"This is your last dance, echidna!" Metal told him. "I hope you're enjoying it!" He laughed.

"It's quite a workout!" Knuckles said, panting as he danced to avoid the lasers near his feet.

When the poor echidna was almost out of breath, Shadow appeared. The swift black hedgehog kicked Metal down, but the evil robot was quick to regain a firm stand.

"Looks like someone forgot to take out the trash!" Shadow said while glaring at the machine.

"You will be destroyed with my own hands, and you will fall at my feet!" Metal said.

"Nice fantasy," said Shadow, "But right now, let's face reality!"

Then they began to fight each other in a battle, and that battle was a hedgehog against a machine, flesh against robot, and so on. Shadow ducked down, barely dodging a laser fire, and then he jumped toward Metal with a homing attack, and it was a direct hit, good and hard. Metal rose up again with no difficulty, but before the robot could strike, Rouge threw Chaos toward him, and so both enemies fell to the street, defeated on the ground. Shadow caught his breath, breathing heavily, and then Rouge came to Knuckles, and she saw that he was still dancing.

"Knuckles, you can stop now! Look, he's down and out!" Rouge pointed down at the robot.

"But I'm just getting good at this!" Knuckles said, breathlessly. "Don't you think so?"

"Yeah, you're doing so well that I want you to stop for a rest!" Rouge commanded.

"Thanks, you're a lifesaver!" Knuckles gasped, and then he fell over, very tired.

Then Amy Rose and Tikal came running to the crew. "Shadow!" They called for him.

Shadow turned to them. "What now?" He asked in a quiet voice.

"Oh, Shadow, you're hurt." Amy pointed to his arm, and he covered it with his hand.

"It's nothing." Shadow said, "It's all right, it's only a scratch."

"It looks like a deep cut." Tikal said when she saw it. "I'll take care of it." Tikal and Amy found the First Aid Kit in the RV, and they cared for the wound. Shadow did feel better after that.

Sonic the Hedgehog, Metal-2 and Scotty the crime fighter arrived soon after the attack, and they came to the RV to find the team safe. Tails and Jenean returned to the RV together, and they were unharmed. Sonic counted everyone twice, and when he did not see Freeway, he was told that she was asleep inside the RV, and so he knew everyone was there, and they were safe.

"Okay, crew…" Sonic said to them, "Now that we're all here, we can take them out!"

"And not out to dinner." Metal-2 added.

Scotty sighed. "After flying over Manhattan, and falling in the Harbor, I think I lost my appetite."

"Then let's move on to some dessert, shall we?" The voice of Eggman asked.

"Oh no!" The crew gasped, turning to see the mad scientist in his ship, hovering. Metal-2 armed his blasters, and he aimed to fire on the enemy ship, but the scientist made an evil grin.

"If you dare to fire, you mistake, its farewell to Amy Rose over there!" Eggman pointed and the crew saw in horror that Metal Sonic had captured Amy with a weapon pointing to her head.

"Metal-2, disarm your blasters!" Sonic commanded, and Metal-2 obeyed, silently.

Scotty kept his hand on his laser sword, which hung on his black belt. "Release her at once, you villain, or we will be forced to take drastic measures!" Scotty warned him, firmly.

"Measurers? Ooh, make it a foot long!" Chaos said, chuckling to himself.

"Enough!" Sonic yelled. "Okay, Eggman, what is it you want?" He asked.

"World domination, of course!" The scientist answered, laughing out loud.

Scotty covered his ears. "Whew! With a laugh like that, he'll wake up all of Long Island!"

"He really is in love with himself," Sonic realized, "I thought it was just a birthday thing."

"Maybe we've come to a dead end, after all." Shadow said, sadly.

"I hate dead ends because they give me the creeps." Knuckles gulped.

Rouge shrugged. "But when in a dead end, you can always turn around and go back."

"But how do we go back in this difficult time?" Tails asked, wondering.

"There is no time machine, so we should find a solution." Jenean said, answering.

"Still, this event was most unexpected." Metal-2 said, and he faced his robotic enemy.

"HEY!" Amy screamed. "Is anybody going to rescue me, or what?!" She asked.

"We won't let you down, Amy! I promise you that!" Sonic said, meaning it.

"How dramatic this is." Eggman said, sarcastically as he sniffed. "But the truth is, my hedgehog adversary, evil often triumphs with victory over what you call good. If you deny that, I think somebody has been watching too many Saturday morning cartoons." He rolled his eyes.

"Ooh, I love Spider Man and the Medabots!" Chaos shouted, and Metal Sonic snorted.

"Quit showing off your foolishness!" Metal Sonic spat, scolding him. "Shame on you!"

"Shame on you?" Chaos asked the robot, not understanding.

"Silence, water mouth! I must be going with this kidnapping job!" Metal Sonic then escaped with Amy screaming. Chaos followed after them, falling a few times before he began to glide.

"Where are they taking her?!" Sonic asked, demanding answers.

"To the Niagara Falls, and you must show up in that RV, or else, she will have the best tour of it, and one that she will never remember!" Eggman laughed, and he escaped in his ship.

Sonic growled at the sight, and then he turned from the enemy ship to face his team. They all had worried faces, and Sonic could understand that. But he could not, and he would not give up.

"Team, we're moving out, and we're going to get her back alive! Let's see what this RV can do!" Sonic called for them, and they followed the blue hedgehog into the RV with haste.

"Lock and load!" Shadow said, and they were on their way in the adventurous RV.

"Tails, we need your maps!" Sonic requested, and then Tails began to sweat.

"Uh…um…It's a long story, Sonic, but my laptop is no more." Tails told him.

"No more?" Tikal asked, "But now what can we do without the computer maps?"

"We do it the old fashion way." Shadow answered, and he opened a map of New York.

"Shadow?" Sonic asked him while driving. "Are you sure this will work out?"

"Yes, trust me. Shadow is good, and Shadow is wise." He smiled with assurance. Indeed, the map did guide them well, and Shadow proved to be a great navigator to get to the destination.

Tikal sat down with Jenean and Tails on the sofa, Metal-2 stood alert while watching the road ahead, and young Freeway remained wrapped in a blanket, worried for Amy, and the baby deer closed her eyes, sadly. Knuckles was with her, and he pat her on the head, trying to help.

Scotty was watching Shadow with the map, and then he had the sudden urge to turn around. He did so very slowly. His blue eyes saw the back bedroom, and the window was seen. The hedgehog began to walk toward the window when he sensed something. He could not quite understand what it was at the moment, so he came closer, carefully. He stopped at the bedroom doorway, listening and watching. Then a sudden flash of light caught his eye just outside the window. Unaware of the danger, Scotty took a step toward the window, and then with no warning, something came crashing into the back of the RV, which was the bedroom, and that is where Scotty was standing. Sonic and the others felt an impact behind them. Something hit the RV, and the glass of the back windows shattered, sending Scotty down to the floor.

"Scotty!" Metal-2 called, and he quickly came to him.

Scotty was on the floor, on his back, eyes were closed, but Metal-2 saw him breathing. The robot held the hedgehog's hand, and then Scotty opened his eyes, only enough to see his friend. He opened his mouth to speak, but then another impact prevented him. Metal-2 used himself to shield Scotty from the broken glass, which shattered from the bedroom and to the hallway.

"What's going on?!" Sonic asked, "Who in the world is hitting us like wild?!"

Shadow looked in the mirror, and he could hardly believe what he saw. "It's the Predator, and he's in a helicopter!" He reported, and then there was a sudden third impact.

Scotty felt a cut on his head, and it began to burn with pain. He held the robot's hand as tight as he could. "Metal-2, stop him for me." He requested in a whisper, and the robot heard him.

"I promise." Metal-2 said, and then he stood up, facing the bedroom.

Before the helicopter hit the back of the RV again, Metal-2 pushed it back, but he could just barely. He was struggling against the helicopter, and the Predator thought it was amusing. The helicopter's nose pushed against Metal-2, fighting to destroy him. The RV had taken awful hits, and so there was an opening behind it. Metal-2 was standing in what was left of the bedroom, and Knuckles took Scotty by the arms, pulling him away from the dangerous area.

Predator let the black helicopter push Metal-2 again, and it almost overcame the robot hedgehog, but Metal-2 pushed even harder with his arms shaking. Then Metal-2 lifted his raging eyes to Predator, and he suddenly leaped out of the damaged RV, hanging onto the helicopter.

"Metal-2, NO!" Tails cried, and Knuckles had to hold him back to keep him from danger.

Outside, over the RV, the helicopter flew with difficulties, but Metal-2 did not fall. Instead, he punched the glass windshield, breaking an opening. Predator was unmoved, and he continued flying toward the RV, his target. Metal-2 gripped the enemy robot by the throat, and Predator did the same to his robotic foe, furious. But flying a helicopter and fighting a robot at the same time proved to be unsuccessful with Predator. After hitting a tall lamppost, the helicopter began to fall, crashing down to the street below. Predator lost control of the helicopter, and just before it crashed, Metal-2 escaped with a jump, but the force of the crash threw him down.

The RV came to the area, and Sonic was shocked to see the helicopter explode with fire. He made a complete stop, and he jumped outside with Shadow and Tails following him.

"Metal-2!!" Sonic called, and then he backed away from the fire because of the heat.

"Sonic, where is he?!" Tails asked, and before Sonic could answer, Tails cried on him.

"I don't know, little bud." Sonic replied in a broken whisper, and he held him tight.

"Wait, listen." Shadow said when he heard a sound that he heard before, no doubt. The crew looked up, and Metal-2 landed, unharmed on the ground in front of Sonic and Tails.

"Metal-2, you're all right!" Tails said with gladness, but Sonic kept him back.

Metal-2 was silent as he turned to face the burning helicopter. When he saw something moving in the raging flames, he armed his blasters, ready to fire. But it was only a tire, not a threat. He watched the burning tire fall to the street, and then he slowly lowered his weapon down.

"We should go." Metal-2 said to the driver Sonic. Then the blue hedgehog nodded.

"My thoughts, exactly!" Sonic agreed, and he led the way back to the RV. They were on the road again, driving to reach the area where Amy was being taken, and they had to make it in time.

When they came near to the Niagara Falls, the RV became hard to control, and Sonic almost crashed into a building's wall, but he was able to regain control, driving safely again. But the impact was enough for some cargo to go overboard. The compartment on the left side of the RV was damaged, and Emeralds fell out, into the street. Knuckles saw this, much to his horror.

Tails held on. "Is everyone all right? We should be there, at the Niagara Falls soon." He said.

"Oh no!" Knuckles gasped. "Our cargo has fallen, it's lost, gone, deceased, lifeless, extinct!"

"Don't sweat it, Knuckles." Sonic said to him, calmly. "The only thing in that cargo compartment is those Emeralds."

"What do you mean don't sweat it?! Park this thing and let me out!" Knuckles demanded.

"Hey, what are you doing?! Oh no!! Don't touch that control!!" Then Sonic and the entire crew screamed when a certain red echidna took over, all except for Knuckles and Metal-2.

"WHOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! !"

= = = = =

Location: Niagara Falls…

Finally, at long last, the RV with the team arrived at the famous waterfall. It took long enough, and after meeting some delays, the RV stopped in a safe location there.

"What's with that knucklehead, anyway? Trying to take over the RV! I thought we were toast for sure!" Sonic said as he turned to his team. "Now where did he go?" He asked about Knuckles.

"He left with Rouge to find the missing Emeralds." Tails replied.

Scotty removed his hand from his head. "Well, maybe it's for the best." He said.

"How's your head, Scott?" Sonic asked him.

"It's fine now, just a little sore." Scotty answered, quietly. He smiled at Metal-2.

"Now we must find Amy." Tikal said, reminding them of the rescue mission.

"Right." Jenean agreed. "But where do we start, and where do we go from here?" She asked.

"From the top, I suppose." Shadow gave an answer.

"Tops spin." Metal-2 said, and then everyone looked at him, surprised.

"He has an odd sense of humor." Shadow said, and Sonic nodded in agreement.

"Strange." Sonic said, slowly.

Metal-2 made the sound of a sigh. "I guess I will never grasp such a basic thing as humor."

"Nice to meet you, Commander Data." Scotty said, and he grinned at the robot.

Metal-2 looked at him with wonder. He did not understand, and Scotty saw this.

"It's just a joke." The crime fighter told him, and then Metal-2 considered it.

"Hmm, interesting." Metal-2 said, and he nodded with understanding.

{You're going to be an interesting companion, Metal-2.} Scotty said in his mind, and only the machine heard him.

Sonic turned toward the waterfall, gazing. "Now I wonder where the fat one is…"

Just then, they heard a familiar laugh, and there was Dr. Eggman in his hovering ship. But when the scientist saw the blue hedgehog, he stopped his celebration.

"What? You?" He gasped. "How is it that you're still alive, Sonic?" He asked him.

"Letting Knuckles drive the RV is more dangerous than you could ever be!" Sonic said.

"Wrong answer!" Eggman said, angrily. "But at least my little surprise left its mark." He pointed toward the damage of the RV. "I am such a scientific genius, the greatest of all!" He laughed.

"You're crazily sick, Eggman!" Sonic said, and then he demanded, "Release Amy!"

"Ah, but first you must fight him!" Eggman pointed toward a silver puddle, and Predator arose from it. The mad scientist grinned with satisfaction while the crew stared with surprise.

"Hey, I thought he was blown to kingdom come!" Tails said, remembering the helicopter.

"This has gone far enough!" Sonic said as he stepped toward Predator. "You kidnapped my friend, damaged the RV, and you attacked my crew! I won't tolerate that!"

"You're dead, hedgehog!" Predator hissed with hate, and they attacked each other.

When Metal-2 tried to help, Metal Sonic suddenly appeared, and he stood in his way. The two robots began fighting while Sonic had to face Predator in a raging battle. Shadow stepped in to help, but then he heard Eggman laughed.

"Don't even think about it, Ultimate pest, or Amy will suffer!" He pointed toward Chaos, who held Amy over the dangerous waterfall, which would swallow her to drown her, no doubt.

"No, you can't, you wouldn't dare!" Tikal screamed, covering her eyes.

"Oh, yes, I can! It's easy!" Chaos said, laughing as he loosened his grip enough for Amy to slip away slightly, almost falling. The girl hedgehog closed her eyes tight, screaming.

"NO!" The crew yelled, very worried, and then Shadow backed away to stand with Tikal.

Meanwhile, Metal-2 was slammed into a wall again, and again as Metal Sonic fought hard to destroy him. His left arm was badly damaged after that, and then Metal Sonic punched his enemy's right eye, trying to blind him. Metal-2 used most of his strength to throw Metal Sonic against the wall, damaging him badly. Before Metal Sonic could stand up, Metal-2 fired his blasters until his robotic fell into defeat.

"Metal!" Chaos cried, and he dropped Amy, sending her down far below.

"AMY!" The crew cried, and the girl hedgehog was falling into fate.

But there is no need to worry when Knuckles the Echidna suddenly came gliding over, and on the way to the RV, he caught Amy, breaking her fall, and she was unharmed.

"Whoops! Got ya, but that was too close!" Knuckles said while gliding to safety.

"Hey, Knuckles!" Sonic called; glad to see him again, even though Predator had him up against a wall. "Now, I say again, you ugly slime of shame; let me go!" Sonic demanded.

"Sonic!" The voice of Rouge called from above.

Sonic looked up to see the bat fly over him, and she let a yellow box fall down toward the blue hedgehog. It broke open, and then Sonic was seven Chaos Emeralds. Predator hissed at the bright light, and then he was forced to let Sonic go. The blue hedgehog became a golden miracle.

"I've got a steadfast heart of gold!" Super Sonic shouted, and he attacked Predator again. After only a few homing attacks, Predator became weaker after every strike. But he still stood firm.

"Sonic, get down!!" Scotty warned him, and when Super Sonic turned, he saw Scotty with the Emerald Sword, activated, and he held it in front of Metal-2, who aimed his blasters toward it. Then Sonic knew what they had in mind, and he quickly ducked down.

"Metal-2, fire!" Scotty commanded, and then the robot fired his blasters at the green laser sword blade, and when the blasters fire passed through the strong emerald light, it gave the attack more energy, therefore damaging Predator to the point of destruction.

When Predator stumbled backward to the edge of the wall, Super Sonic jumped at him, forcing him down to the waterfall, but the hedgehog went down with the Predator. Without saying a word, Metal-2 flew down to the waterfall, following after the falling Predator and Sonic. They all three disappeared in the white mist, leaving everyone silent and still. Even Eggman began to sweat while nibbling on his fingernails with nervousness, while the crew watched, waiting.

Then like an eagle, Metal-2 flew above the waterfalls mist, and he lifted Sonic above it, flying high in the sky. When Sonic opened his green eyes, he saw the waterfall far below his feet, and then he looked up to see Metal-2, who saved his life. The Predator was swallowed in the dangerous water, and he was never to rise again. Metal-2 brought Sonic down, safely landing.

"Thanks, Metal-2." Sonic whispered, smiling at his friend, but his smile faded away when he saw a drop of water on the robot's cheek. To Sonic, it looked like a teardrop, and he gently wiped it away with his hand. Then he hugged the robot, closing his eyes. "Metal-2…" He whispered.

"Sonic…" Metal-2 said in response as he returned the friendship embrace.

The crew standing with the RV sighed with great relief, and they smiled at the sight, but Dr. Eggman blow his nose on a bandana, crying with tears, really.

"Oh, the drama! I can't take it anymore!" Eggman cried again. "Chaos, take Metal, and let's go! The battle is over, but the war is far from over! I'll get you next time, hedgehog pest!" The three enemies retreated with failure in their hands, and victory belonged to Sonic and his crew.

Then the others came running to Sonic and Metal-2, and they greeted them.

"My goodness, Metal-2, are you okay?" Tails asked him with concern.

"I--I need a vacation!" Metal-2 said, shakily at first, but he quickly steadied himself.

"That goes double for me!" Amy said in agreement with the robot.

"Triple for me!" Sonic said after a deep breath, and then Knuckles looked at the RV.

"Whew! Man, we better fix up the poor RV before we head back, huh?" He asked.

"We'll do that, Knuckles, and when we work together, the job will be easier." Scotty said.

"And I'm sharp when it comes to cars, very good." Jenean reminded them.

"Then let's get to work!" Shadow called, and he ran with Tikal and Freeway.

Of course, it is always harder to build than to destroy, but with helping hands, the crew worked together, each one according to their abilities and strength, each with a mind to work. Then soon, like an ark, the RV was ready to move on. The crew had it repaired, and they drove out.