Sonic Series Fan Fiction ❯ On the Road Together ❯ Stop Sign ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter 4: Stop Sign

Drip drop went the sound of morning rain as the RV came near North Carolina, leaving Virginia behind its bumper to travel onward in the road journey. Sonic the Hedgehog held the steering wheel, keeping his eyes on the road ahead. It was dark, misty, and windy outside. The windshield wipers stroked up and down to help the driver see when the raindrops came down.

"It's not even April, but it's raining like it," Sonic said to the windshield.

"Next you'll say the Easter Bunny is crossing the road," Shadow joked.

"It is?" Knuckles asked, opening his eyes wide. "Where?"

"Nowhere," Sonic replied, ignoring Shadow's grin for the moment to drive safely.

"We're nowhere?" Tikal asked, surprised like all the others in the RV.

"No, we're somewhere!" Sonic told them.

"Where's somewhere?" Shadow asked, joking again, and Sonic growled.

"Calm down, folks," Tails opened his laptop computer, opening his road files and maps. "According to this, we're now entering North Carolina, and just in time for a storm, too."

"Then why on Earth didn't you just say so?" Rouge asked the blue driver.

"I was going to, but it's hard to keep from-Hey!" Sonic suddenly felt the RV vibrate uneasily. The hedgehog steered carefully toward the side of the road to avoid any danger.

"Easy, Frank!" Knuckles shouted when the RV tire screeched on the wet road.

"I'm Sonic," he reminded one and all. "Sonic the Hedgehog!"

Knuckles snorted. "Well, excuse me, Sonic the Roadhog."

"Enough!!" Amy shouted, causing all to freeze for a moment. "What happened?"

"Good news and bad news," Sonic said, still gripping the steering wheel.

"What's the good news?" Tikal wondered.

"We made it to North Carolina right on time, and there's no sign of Eggman following us."

"Okay, great, but, what's the bad news?" Metal-2 asked him.

Sonic swallowed, shrugged, and then he answered, "We're stuck."

"Huh? We're what?" Knuckles asked.

"Stuck," Sonic repeated, "S-T-U-C-K."

"Oh, I thought you said tuck-What?! What do ya mean we're stuck?!"

"The RV is caught in this dirt road and I can't get it to move."

"It's like quicksand!" Tails said, looking outside a window to see the trapped tires.

"Whoa!" Knuckles gasped, almost falling over when the back of the RV sank deeper.

Sonic jumped from the driver seat. "Come on, Tails!" he called, heading for the door.

"Sonic, what are we going to do?" Tails asked.

"Rouge, take the wheel, Tikal, you're the co-pilot, and Amy, keep an eye in the back." Then Sonic turned to the others, and he said, "Guys, we're going out for a little pushing."

"Push the RV?! Are you crazy?!" Knuckles asked, but when he felt it sink again, he nodded.

"Besides, Metal-2 is very strong. I'm sure he can help us out," said Tails.

Metal-2 lifted a thumb; winking and Sonic did the same in return. "Let's go!" Sonic tried to open the exit door, but when he did, it slammed closed again because of the strong wind outside.

"Step aside," said Metal-2, and when Sonic moved away, Metal-2 forced the door open, and he kept it open until they were all outside. "Over there!" Metal-2 pointed to the trapped tires.

"Knuckles, Shadow, you take the left side!" Sonic shouted, and they moved to their places. "Tails!" Sonic called for the fox who was holding onto the RV with his eyes closed.

"Sonic!!" Tails screamed, slipping away, and he flew into the hedgehog, knocking him down.

Sonic blinked, opening his eyes. "Tails! Hey, Tails, you all right?" he asked with concern.

Tails got up to his feet with his friend's help. "I'm fine, but how's the RV?"

"Still trapped, but don't worry," Sonic said to him. "There's nothing we can't handle."

"Sonic, look!" Metal-2 called, pointing at the sinking right tire, which was now barely seen.

"Oh no," Sonic whispered to himself, and he hurried over to it. "We gotta get it out, fast!"

Sonic and Tails pushed and pushed the RV's bumper, trying their best to free it, but the mud held it tight, and it was very heavy. Metal-2 stepped between the two, and with a strong grip on the bumper; he slightly lifted a tire out from the trap. This gave Sonic hope to push harder, and he did, surprising even himself. Tails' grip slipped away when Sonic and Metal-2 pushed it out, using their speed, ability and strength. Knuckles and Shadow were at the other trapped tire, trying to push it out, and they were both surprised to see it being set free. The RV began to move out of the mud and onto the street where it was called. Sonic and Metal-2 pushed, one running and one hovering, and Tails had to quickly hold onto the RV's ladder to go with them. Knuckles and Shadow held onto the fast moving RV from the side for the ride of speed with the wind and rain.

"What's happening?!" Knuckles asked with his eyes shut at the wind.

"It's that blue hedgehog and the android!" Shadow answered, hanging on tight.

"Sonic, we're moving again!" Tails said from the ladder.

"Good, we're moving outta here!" said Sonic, and Metal-2 winked an eye.

Inside, Rouge the Bat was having quite a time driving while Tikal was afraid of the sudden burst of speed. Amy and Freeway watched from inside, next to a window in the back of the RV.

"Rouge, watch out!" Tikal screamed at a low tree branch, and Rouge laughed as she made a turn.

"I should drive more often; this is so much fun!" Rouge said, and then Tikal felt faint.

Back outside, Knuckles slipped away from his grip because of the wind, and he landed on the RV roof. Shadow blinked at the red echidna that suddenly disappeared, and then he looked up.

"Hey, Knuckles, where on Earth are ya going?!" he asked.

Unsure himself, Knuckles replied, "I don't know, but I'll let you know when I get there!"

Tails tried to open his eyes, barely able to see that the tires were now free. "Sonic, STOP!"

"Okay!" Sonic nodded, and so he began to slow down to come to a safe stop on the road.

Metal-2 helped the hedgehog stop the moving RV. The engine was off, but it moved because of their speed, and so after some screeches and smoking shoes, Sonic stopped running. The RV was safe, free, and even though it had mud all over it, everyone was fine, and thankfully, no injuries.

"Great job, guys!" Sonic praised his crew. "We did it. Pretty clever hedgehog, aren't I?"

"You're not so clever," said Shadow, standing while crossing his arms.

Sonic turned to face the black one with wonder. "Oh? And why not?" he asked him.

"The RV is on a hill." And before Shadow could even finish saying that, the RV moved forward, away from them, and what was worse, Knuckles was still on the roof.

"SONIC!" Knuckles yelled as the RV went downhill.

"Hurry! After that RV!" Tails shouted, and Sonic nodded, quick to move as he ran.

Shadow ran at the blue hedgehog's side. "How do you plan on stopping it, Mister Clever?"

"Well, I don't know, but I can't be wrong!" Sonic answered, shrugging.

"Metal-2, quick!" Tails said, and the android moved in front of the RV, pushing it back.

"Tails, tell them to apply the breaks!" Metal-2 requested, and Tails nodded, flying.

"Rouge, hit the breaks!" Tails shouted at the RV's windshield.

Tikal saw Tails first, and she pointed with her hand. "Rouge, look! It's Tails!"

"What does he want?" Rouge wondered, still in the driver's chair with the steering wheel.

"The breaks!" Tails shouted again, but he was hardly heard in the storm.

"The rakes? The cakes?" Tikal tried to understand. "Quakes? Banks? Shakes?"

"BREAKS!" Tails shouted as loud as a fox could, and then the two girls heard him.

"The breaks, of course!" said Rouge, and she used them to slow the RV down until it stopped.

Sonic and Shadow stopped beside the RV, watching Metal-2 let go of it, and Tails landed. "Good work!" said Sonic, and then he looked up. He saw something red, and he laughed.

Shadow lifted an eyebrow, looking. "What's so funny to you?" he asked, hardly interested.

"Look!" Sonic pointed at the stop sign. "After all that trouble, we still managed to stop!"

"Is that ALL?!" Shadow stomped his foot, which splashed water on Sonic from a puddle.

Sonic laughed, and then he did the same thing back to Shadow. This became a puddle fight. Tails and Metal-2 watched, blinking, and Knuckles peeked down from the RV roof when it was calm.

"Is-is it safe now?" Knuckles asked, slowly climbing down to the street beside Tails.

"As safe as it gets, I suppose," Metal-2 answered, and Tails just nodded.

Amy opened the RV door, and she saw the two hedgehogs, soaked. "You're all wet!"

Sonic and Shadow froze, looked down at themselves, then glared at each other. "Your fault!"

"Silence, or else…um… or no hot chocolate!" Amy threatened.

Sonic gasped. "No!" he said, "We'll just dry off with towels, no problem."

Shadow was silent, and Tikal gave them each a towel so they could dry themselves. Tails dried off his tails, and then his head. Metal-2 looked at the fox's hair, and he helped to straiten it. When everyone was clean and dry, they returned inside the warm RV, out of the cold storm.

"Let's get going," said Sonic. "I don't think we can stay much longer here in this storm."

"We should find a place that's calm," Tails said. "And dry," Knuckles quickly added.

"Hot chocolate for all!" Amy announced, and everyone cheered.

Sonic hopped into the driver's chair, buckled up, and Shadow took his place also up front.

"And now for the last time, no more careless turns." Shadow pointed to Sonic.

"Hey, I was just following the road plan," Sonic defended. "And I always obey signs."

"Well, let's move on, shall we?" Rouge asked, and the crew agreed, of course.

Sonic nodded and he drove the RV out into a clear road that was nice and smooth. The windshield wipers were at work, but it began to become foggy, causing the vision ahead to be blurry. In the stormy darkness, red eyes glared out from the fog. When it cleared slightly, Metal Sonic appeared, but he did not stand there long. Chaos Zero was right behind him and almost blind, the creature walked into the blue robot, causing them both to stumble.

"Ouch! Ouch! Another fat rock!" Chaos said, rubbing his head, and Metal growled.

"No, you watery fool, it's me!" The robot pointed to his cold self.

"Me who?" asked Chaos, still unable to see him clearly.

Metal Sonic slapped his own face, and then he answered, "Me Metal!"

"Boy, you can't even talk right. You're suppose to say, I'm Metal."

"I know, you lamebrain, but I had to speak at your low level of intelligence."

Misunderstanding, Chaos shrugged. "What does that mean?"

"Forget it, which I'm sure is too easy for you. Now, look, the RV is approaching."

Chaos looked, and then he saw bright headlights. "Ooh, scary monster eyes!"

"Silence, you miserable tidal wave," Metal scolded. "We need a plan to stop them."

Chaos scratched his head, and then he jumped to his feet with excitement. "I got a plan!"

"Oh, I'm full of excitement!" Metal said with no seriousness whatsoever in his voice.

"Watch this." Chaos winked, and then he ran out onto the road, holding something.

Confused, Metal Sonic followed to see what Chaos was holding up. It was a stop sign.

"See?" said Chaos, "Driver's have to obey the rules of the road, so maybe they'll stop."

"I don't think so," Metal said quietly, turning to see the approaching RV.

Inside the moving RV, Sonic looked carefully ahead. "Man, I can't see a thing!"

"Let's stop in the next town until it clears," Tails said with a map. "It's not far from here."

Back outside, Metal Sonic looked at Chaos, then at the RV again. "They're not stopping…"

"Don't worry, Metal, they will." Chaos was sure of it, and assured with himself.

"…They're NOT stopping!" Metal backed away from the wet road to safety in time.

Chaos bravely held up the sign. "Stop, sardine vessel, stop in the name of the--"

And SPLAT! The RV hit Chaos, and Sonic felt the sudden, unexpected impact.

"Whoa! What was that?" he asked, and Shadow peeked out after a sip of coffee.

"It's just a big old bug," Shadow said, closing the window to buckle again.

When the RV was gone, Metal Sonic jumped out from behind a large rock and he found Chaos on the road, still holding the stop sign in his hand. Metal Sonic lifted the creature up and shook him. "You failed again, as always, and how dare you stand in the middle of the road? It's dangerous!"

"Sorry, but now what? How can we catch them when they're moving like this?"

"We'll have to take a shortcut for the next town. That's where they're going." And they left.