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The base that the heroes were using had been under siege by eggman robots for days, nearing a week. It was a collection of houses, filled with equipment and people who had fled the immediate area of Eggman’s latest scheme. The people were non-combatants injured before they even arrived at the base. The civilians were growing tired of the constant battles. The constant wave after wave was eating up their supplies. Sonic had made the call to send almost everyone out on their way for a mission. He would have to be the primary fighting force, with everyone acting from the shadows. So, it was par for the course for what always happens. There was communication with the outside world. Even Eggman couldn't destroy every little thing that Tails had set up.
Sonic lasted three days with a skeleton crew. He hadn’t slept during that time. There was just adrenaline rush after adrenaline rush. Fatigue was creeping into his bones. He was still standing, but his hits weren’t as hard.
Despite the robots still falling, his slip-ups were noticeable.
The latest wave was hard; there were hearty robots, not crumbling under one strike, like the many others before that. It was well into the night at this point, only the broken moon hanging above them.
“Hold on Sonic, Shadow is on the way.” Rouge’s voice echoed in his ear. Sonic didn’t acknowledge her. He was too focused on the battle in front of him. There was screaming everywhere as people were desperate to move out of the way. The main heroes were sent in other directions, looking for chaos emeralds.
Metal Sonic was ripping through people, knocking everyone back. The Diamond Cutters were getting innocents out of the way when they could.
Sonic didn’t even think of the consequences. He jumped in, pulling Metal’s attention. The robot’s head snapped to face him, causing a metallic snapping sound as the neck joint fought against the movement.
Sonic smirked at his metal duplicate. There was a heartbeat of silence as the two looked after each other. The wind of the outside area of the center of the base was blowing dirt, dust, and smoke around them. It burned in Sonic’s nose and throat. Despite that, Sonic kept the grin on his face.
Time slowed for the two of them, the energy buzzing through the air. Sonic dashed up to Metal Sonic, the metal duplicate, lifting his arms to protect himself. The impact sent a shockwave out. The wave slowly moved out from Sonic’s point of view, visibly displacing the dust and debris. Sonic’s earpiece was damaged in the hit, causing it to crackle and burn in his ear. Sonic hissed through his teeth and pulled it out, throwing it on the ground.
“I thought you only had an eye for me, Metal.” Sonic huffed. His voice was forced into a saccharine tone, so sweet that it turned bitter.
Metal Sonic of course said nothing. He never did. Sonic backed up, ready to swing back for a new attack.
Metal Sonic was faster. There was a swipe. Sonic heard the wind pass through before he registered the slice into his side. The pain hit all at once, causing him to freeze and stumble. The shockwave from the first impact reached the edge of the battleground and dissipated.
“Oh, you got some new tricks, do you?” Sonic grumbled under his breath. Metal turned to swipe again, but Sonic twisted out of the way, dropping down to throw himself into a kick. His metal soles made a loud impact sound as he landed the kick against Metal Sonic’s chest. The blow launched Metal Sonic back, causing a trail to be carved into the dirt as the metallic duplicate’s feet carved into the ground.
The buildings around them, shabby as they were before this night, were in flames around the group.
Anger boiled in Sonic’s blood. His quills flexed, sticking out. The green in his eyes blazed with fury. Sonic’s feet dug into the ground, bracing for the full sprint.
Sonic grew invisible to the naked eye. One second he was across the battleground from Metal Sonic, the next Sonic was pressed against Metal Sonic. There was a deafening, thundering roar as stillness took the battle.
Sonic felt the weight of the blood drip down his chest before he felt the pain of the slice. It was deep, too deep. Sonic swallowed away the rush of emotions, letting out a shaky breath. Then after three heartbeats, the pain cooled into a numbing chill. Metal Sonic’s red eyes glowed through the spray. Sonic’s throat seized up before he could yell. So he laughed. It was a dry, huff of air. The laughing didn’t despite the wet choking starting to overtake it.
Metal Sonic’s eyes flickered once, twice before the robot finally shut down. Sonic squeezed his fist, crushing the power source that was once residing in Metal Sonic. It crumbled into dust in his hand. Sonic looked up and a golden sparkle appeared in the sky, rapidly approaching where the base lay in ruins. Sonic felt himself smile at the sight. His heart fluttered, some of it from the injury.
“Hey, Shadow.” He whispered
There was a scream from somewhere to his side. Sonic turned his head and green eyes met with wide, purple eyes, with tears building in them. Sonic tried to say something, but his legs finally gave out. The ground was cold and wet, red mud splattering under the impact of Sonic’s body.
His eyes lost the bright sparkle and he stared blankly to the side, completely still.
The next wave of the neverending battle started storming the area.
Shadow, in his super form, flew down to the ruins. He floated over where the hero lay in a puddle of his blood.
His gaze focused on the body under him. His pupil contracted a second. His ear turned to listen to the incoming threat. Shadow took a deep breath, whispering something under his breath.
The incoming footfall of the attacking robots stopped, frozen in place. Shadow kicked away the hollow husk of the Metal Sonic, having seen the blood on the metal.
Shadow sank to the ground next to Sonic, resting on his knees. Sonic was still warm. Gently, Shadow grabbed Sonic’s chin, looking him over. The chaos energy of the super form caused a light to spark in Sonic’s eyes, a bright golden light deep in his pupil. Something was reaching for Shadow, deep in the chaos energy. It was familiar, warm.
“Still, fighting when it’s hopeless.” Shadow mused. Shadow moved his hand under Sonic’s head to properly support it. Red dripped from the corner of Sonic’s mouth.
“As much as you’ve earned a rest, not like this,” Shadow whispered, placing his lips on Sonic’s forehead. He ignored the tears building in his eyes, letting it fall on Sonic’s face. Shadow let out a chuffing sound, trying to purr to comfort Sonic and call to him.
The blood dried and burned away from Sonic’s fur, which was flickering between blue and yellow. Shadow pulled his head away, resting his on forehead against Sonic’s chest, which was healing, with faint scars. Despite everything Shadow was listening for a heartbeat, only to be met with silence.
Shadow felt the time limit of the chaos control start to wear down.
There were only a handful of moments left that he could spare before time would start to continue.
Chaos energy floated between the two, feeding them in an endless loop. The dark night sky was overtaken by the super forms radiating power.
Shadow took a deep, shaking breath, getting ready to let go. Then there was a soft rhythm against his ear. It was slow and weak, but there. Shadow looked up to Sonic’s face, red eyes meeting red. Sonic gave Shadow a weak smile. “Looks like you came just in time, this guy doesn’t know when to quit.”
“Let's get this over with, hedgehog.” Shadow sighed.
Time continued moving forward, and the robot’s footfall began carrying through the air.
Shadow gently helped Sonic to his feet, his legs wobbling before Sonic took flight.
“I’m inclined to agree with you. I could use a long nap.” Sonic let out a deep breath.
The siege was done before the hour was up.