Sonic Series Fan Fiction ❯ Sonic Adventures: "On the road" ❯ Way out west ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter 11: Way out west

For miles and miles, Sonic and his friends saw nothing but a dust road ahead of them as the RV entered Arizona where the desert was hot during the day but it always cooled down at night. They were far from everything and it was very quiet outside with a clear blue sky. Everything was smooth and going their way, but then suddenly, an explosion was heard outside the RV. Sonic slowed down and stopped. He jumped outside with Shadow following him. They came to the front of the RV and just as Sonic feared, they had a flat tire. Knuckles and Tails came outside and looked down at the flat while Sonic and Shadow sighed heavily.

"There's nothing around here for miles!" Knuckles said, panicking. "Here we are, in the middle of a desert and we had to get a flat tire right here. That is just awful, so terrible!"

"Tell me about it." Sonic said, almost to himself quietly. The blue hedgehog knelt down and looked at the tire, which was now flat. He saw a large cut that damaged it.

"What do you think did that, Sonic?" Tails asked him, standing by.

"Not sure, Tails, but we need to replace it before dark." Sonic said, standing up on his feet. He entered the RV and found the needed tools. He began working on it with Shadow's help.

"Of course, he needs my help, narrator. There's no way in the world he can do it without me." Shadow whispered, and then Sonic looked at him, shaking his head slightly.

Meanwhile, Knuckles found Rouge and Tikal walking near a large fenced area where horses were kept. Amy was feeding one of the horses a carrot, giggling when she felt the whiskers tickle her as the horse licked her hand clean. Rouge stopped, looking down at the ground. Tikal stopped beside her and they both looked at the same place. Knuckles shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, girls, what are you doing?" Knuckles asked them.

"We're treasure hunting. What does it look like?" Rouge asked the echidna.

"Treasure?" Knuckles asked, interested but doubted. "What makes you think it's here?"

"Tails told us that there is a hidden Emerald somewhere around here." Tikal answered.

"Yes, and everyone knows that all the world's jewels are mine to take." Rouge reminded.

"Oh, yeah? We'll see about that, bat-girl." Knuckles said, and he left to seek it.

"We should get going." Rouge told Tikal and they both returned to the treasure hunt.

= = = = =

Meanwhile, Sonic and Shadow were busy replacing the flat tire of the RV. It was hard to remove but Sonic would not give up. He was no quitter but a great winner. Tails stood by to help them and he watched as Sonic finally removed the tire and they all saw the cut.

"Man, get a load of that cut! I'm glad I'm not a tire." Sonic said, looking at it.

"Yeah, but where's the spare?" Tails asked him.

"I don't know, but I've got a pear." Shadow said, taking a bite of the fruit.

"It's under the RV. I'll get it." Sonic answered, and then he rolled under it, seeking. He reached the spare tire but he had trouble removing it. "Hey, Shadow! I need a hand down here!"

"Which one?" Shadow asked, looking down at the blue hedgehog.

"Both of them. Now, get down here!" Sonic called him for help.

"Oh, very well. I'm coming. Hold your horses." Shadow rolled under the RV, reaching him. He came to Sonic, right under the spear tire. He pulled to free it, but it would not move.

"It's snug as a bug." Sonic told him, after pulling again.

"Not for long." Shadow said, pulling harder this time without giving up. But when he finally released the tire, it fell right onto the face of Sonic. "Uh-oh." Shadow whispered.

"Shadow!" Sonic mumbled with the tire on his face. "Get this thing off!"

"Okay, okay, calm down, Sonic." Shadow said, lifting the tire off the hedgehog's face.

"If you were any other hedgehog, you would be very, very sorry." Sonic told him.

"Well, I am sorry now." Shadow said, in a failed attempt to look sad.

= = = = =

As our hedgehog heroes began working again, the red eyes of Metal Sonic discovered them. He looked through a spyglass, searching the area and then he saw Knuckles and Rouge, treasure hunting. He closed the spyglass and placed it back in his saddlebag, which was on his horse. Yes, he was riding, believe it or not. He turned to look at Chaos, but he was not there.

"Hey, Chaos, get up here! I found them!" Metal called, as Chaos struggled up the hill.

"Water… water…" Chaos panted, riding his horse up the long steep hill they had climbed.

"You are water, you crazy seal. Now listen, I found the echidna and the bat. They're looking for an Emerald down there and when it is found, we'll take it from them."

"Sounds exciting!" Chaos said, chuckling. "I love taking candy from babies."

Metal sighed. "How could the Doctor give me such a fool to work with?" He asked himself.

= = = = =

"It's closer…" Knuckles whispered when he came to a certain place where the ground was hard and coated with sand. He began to dig in that area with his hands, seeking. After three tries, he stood with a green Emerald in his hand. "I found it!" He said, proudly.

Just then, Rouge the bat flew down from climbing on a large rock. She landed on her feet in front of the red echidna. "You just don't know when to give up, do you?" She asked him.

"What are you talking about? This Emerald is mine, fair and square." Knuckles told her. He held it in his hand, closing his eyes for a moment. At that moment, as luck would have it, Metal Sonic came riding passed him and he snatched the Emerald right out from the echidna's hand.

"What the…?" Knuckles gasped, as he watched with surprise and shock.

"Oh, you dirty thief!" Rouge screamed at Metal.

"Look who's calling who a thief." Knuckles murmured to himself.

"I despise anyone who takes jewels from me!" Rouge said, "I won't give you a chance!" The bat ran and she surprised Knuckles very much as she jumped onto a horse, riding after Metal.

"Hey, come back here with MY Emerald!" Knuckles called, jumping on a horse also.

Metal Sonic held the Emerald in his hand, riding his horse and thinking that he had victory, but Rouge changed his thoughts when she came to his side. The robot hedgehog was surprised that she had made it to him so quickly, but he was prepared for it.

"Give up, bat! You already lost!" Metal tried to discourage her.

"Don't count on it, chump! Now, give me back my Emerald!" Rouge demanded.

"Your Emerald? HA!" Metal laughed, and Rouge took a chance as she reached for the Emerald. She even amazed herself when she took it from the robot with great success.

"Looks like I win, as usual." Rouge said, escaping with the jewel, leaving Metal empty-handed. She turned away from Metal but to her surprise, Chaos came riding also and he was able to steal the Emerald from her, suddenly. The villain escaped, laughing.

"Look! I got it, Metal!" Chaos told him, but then, all the sudden, Knuckles came to his side, riding a horse and he took the Emerald with Chaos hardly noticing it.

"My Emerald, my destiny!" Knuckles said, and he held his treasure tightly in his hand. But then again, his victory became a target for Metal Sonic. The robot gripped the jewel, but Knuckles did not let go. He fought for it. The two hands both held the Emerald, struggling for it.

"Let go, Big Red, and I shall show mercy on your life!" Metal said, holding the jewel.

"No, forget it!" Knuckles continued holding it, trying to pull the Emerald away.

Metal pulled also with no signs of giving up, and so the battle began. It seemed like a never-ending war when suddenly, the Emerald slipped out from both of the fighting hands, falling to the ground. Rouge was the first to see where it fell but Chaos was close behind her. The bat was able to catch the Emerald with her rope as she rode on the horse. She pulled the Emerald up toward her but before she could reach it, Chaos took the jewel and he cut the rope with scissors. Rouge gasped with surprise as the villain turned away, escaping with the Emerald but then again, suddenly and surprising everyone there, Tikal came gliding by and she took the Emerald from Chaos. She safely landed on the ground, holding the jewel in her hand.

"Oh no! Failed again!" Chaos said, as the rope of Rouge wrapped around him, capturing him in a snare. He fell from his horse, all tied up and unable to move.

Rouge stopped her horse and looked down at the loser. "Not too bad, huh? I'm pretty strong all right!" Rouge let everyone know that.

"Here, you two can keep each other company." Knuckles said, as he let the captured Metal Sonic down beside Chaos. The red echidna came to Tikal and he helped her onto the horse. "We better get back and fast. I smell a rat around here and it's with no doubt Eggman." Knuckles said. And so, the treasure hunters left together with great victory won.

"What a fight…" Metal said, shaking his head and he watched them leave.

"Yeah, it was great. Who won?" Chaos asked, forgetting he was tied up.

= = = = =

On the side of the road, we find Sonic and Shadow placing the new tire on after removing the flat. Tails and Amy stood by, watching as Sonic carefully stepped back, looking at the tire. He closed one eye, looking again and then he nodded as a sign of approval.

"Well, that takes care of that problem." Sonic said, as he brushed the dust from his arms.

"That wasn't so hard." Shadow added, standing beside him with his arms crossed.

"Now we need to head for town and find another tire." Sonic said, while he was storing the tools away. "The RV is ready to roll back on the road again. But where are the others?"

"The others? Well, uh…" Shadow thought, but before he could speak, they arrived.

"We're here, Sonic!" Knuckles called, running toward him and he stopped beside the RV. Tikal and Rouge were right behind him.

"Great! You guys are just in time. The tire is taken care of and we're ready to go now." Tails reported, and Knuckles smiled, nodding his head.

"Hey, I hope you guys didn't get dead bored out there. We tried to hurry, you know." Sonic said, climbing into the driver's seat of the RV to drive.

"Oh, no. Not at all, Sonic. We found some things to keep us busy." Knuckles winked his eye at the others. And so then, before the sun was gone, the team began to move on in the journey. They would reach a city soon to find a new tire, but they could possibly face something worse than a flat on the road ahead of them. Time will tell.