Chapter Text
Springs fly open into the air, shaking from the impact of the explosion. Wires dangling from every gap, static electric sparks on its ends. Upon closer look, human skins now resemble more of a metal case. They have just beaten Eggman like usual, but somehow, this one is a fake. A dummy bot. Weird. This was never the case. He never failed to show up, haughtily displaying his mecha’s prowess for a chance to kill a hedgehog. Just as the other is analyzing the situation, Knuckles and Tails exchanging ideas on what actually transpired behind the scenes, Sonic has his mind running a million thoughts.
What happened to the real one? Were they unharmed or the opposite? Who could have done this and what are their motives? Why would they take over Eggman’s fleet when they could have been a much bigger threat being themselves? To cover themselves up? If they can jump over every single brain cell that’s wiring in that Egghead’s brain, then surely they can solve that crisis easily. This doesn’t add up. Something is definitely stirring deep below.
Just as they approached the coy, a recording began playing. “Muhahaha! Once again, you fools have been tricked!”
“From these canyons, watch as I conquer the world with my air fleet.” It resumed, “And this time you can’t stop me!”
“Drats!” Sonic hissed, “This fake’s wasting our time!”
Without any more seconds to spare, Sonic makes way for the giant airship in the sky. Not minding if his friends are right behind him or a distance too far for teamwork, he dashes with a rushing speed. The moment he laid his eyes on them, he assessed with thorough details, scouring his memories to compare with their battle history. Those are Eggman’s craftsmanship alright. He recognized the design and colors. Of course, the most clear evidence is his terribly large face pasted on them. It was his thing, all of it, but he’s confident the one behind the wheels is not.
Eggman is pretty direct in his assault. Magic stones that could warp time at ease, utilize its power to mess up a small globe. Relic to control an ancient deity at his beckon and calls, doing it openly as he steals their Emeralds one by one. Blowing up the moon using the ARK, even announcing it to the whole world. He’s never the type to scatter distractions to stall time. There’s distractions to kill him, but never to grace more minutes for a plot twist. The guy is as impulsive as he is. With impatience running in his veins, it’s only natural he’d put what he did to immediate use without considering its downside.
This might be absurd to make a comparison to, but his laughing was different. He didn’t notice it at first, but after seeing that fake robot of the doctor, something clicked. Its syllables, its words, its sound, whoever’s acting in his shoes definitely doesn’t know him enough to be convincing. His laugh has a certain pride to it, an intonation that hits a nerve upon hearing. But this one, it lacks them. It was a cheap imitation. It couldn’t even be called a mock-up.
Whichever back hat has been messing around with Egghead’s tech needs to be stopped. The more chaos he wrecks, the more he’ll get away with it. He deserves the same butt kicking as Eggman. Maybe even more vicious.
Once they got a ride on the ship, the real villain finally showed up. Everyone has gathered on the deck to witness the reveal in real time. They unveiled themselves to be…Metal? Metal Sonic, the same robot that’s nothing but a loyal servant to that Egghead? And what's with that glow up? Gothic style makes his beautiful blue hue drained of colors. Not a good look. At the very least he’s glad that the metalhead didn’t resort to killing. He knows a certain robot wouldn’t mind putting holes across his body. Still, it’s a bizarre occurrence. His rebellion, where did the idea come from? Frustration? Anger? Or something…deeper?
“Come, my loathsome copy!” Metal Sonic’s voice grumbled, “I’ll show you what I’m truly made of!”
Sonic smirked. Now he understands why Metal Sonic acts like this. He is his copy, through and through. Not only strength and speed, but personality as well. He must have wished to be free, escaping the chains that Eggman locked him in. He must have wanted to live a different life, not just as another robotic copy to discard. He must have wanted an answer, to be more than just another Sonic in the shadow. He’s a rebel, just as solid as he is.
The speedster was intrigued. He certainly welcomed this unexpected event with full arm. Especially now that he can prove to Eggman that he can never be replaced, and the freedom in him will never be diminished even in another fake copy of himself.
“Even with the Chaos Emeralds, it's not enough!” Eggman exclaimed in distress, “It’ll take a miracle to defeat him in this state!”
“Leave that to me, doc.” Sonic proudly uttered, “Consider your prayers answered.”
***
Eggman cursed loudly as he kicked the locked door of his office. No amount of venomous profanities were able to burn it down despite its lethality. It was supposed to be just like any other day. He worked on a plan to conquer, possibly kill Sonic in the middle of it, and reign supreme over the earth. But no. Something had to happen, something bad too. And it couldn’t be more perfect to be Metal out of all robots to misbehave.
All he did was give an instruction, another fetch and trap of the Flickies to power those robots. To even believe he would go against his order, even knocking him faint and taking over controls, he ought to decode his free will once he got his hands on that rusty piece of tin can. He would ensure that he won’t even be thinking about disobeying any commands in his entire lifeline. That rebellious attitude out of all things, he just had to inherit something so abhorrent from the rodent.
In desperation to get himself out, he came upon a pair of handsets. How miraculous. This blessed coincidence is hard to come by. He had to make a call fast. Someone reliable and smart enough to figure out he was replaced, entrapped, impersonated.
The ideal person on the other side, he was in disbelief of how narrow his choices were left at hand. Only that irritating blue hedgehog appeared as the answer. He dreaded dialing the numbers. It tormented him to even think of him out of anyone. He got into this situation because of what he did. The betrayal, the treachery. That traitor now even influenced his creation that’s supposed to be more perfected than him walking in his shoes. He was reliable, sure. But that hog definitely would mock his plea for help. He couldn’t take anymore humiliation as is.
An advert couldn’t pass by at a more opportune timing. Seeing it blaring on screen albeit its brief appearance, Eggman tinkered with his device pronto. Then, he began recording.
“I’ve heard good news about you, Chaotix.” Eggman smirked, “I require your detective services and of course, I’ll pay you handsomely.”