Chaos Corrupts Absolutely

Chapter 12

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[Time - 1:10 P.M.]

[Date - July 4th, 23XX)

(Location - The Mystic Ruins, Train Station)

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Amy stepped down off the train as the station's intercom said {Now Departing, Train 22 for Green Hill Heights.} The automatic doors slid closed behind the pink hedgehog before the brakes hissed and the steam whistle could be heard echoing throughout the open plateau. Numerous individuals had already left the platform and were making their way across the deck towards the stairwell. From her previous discussions over the phone with Tails, she knew it was unlikely her beloved blue hero would be here, nonetheless she found herself scanning the vicinity, searching for any signs Sonic might have been there. Frowning, after watching the train disappear off into the distance, she too made her way down into the Mystic Ruins' train station.

'I really hope he's okay.' Amy thought to herself as she descended the stairs. Her heart continued to throb with sadness as she worried for the safety of her lover. Yet, knowing that she couldn't do anything other than search for him, she carried on with that singleminded task.

"Hey, Amy!" A younger boy's voice called out to her.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, she jerked her head in the direction she just heard her name being called from. She should have known it wasn't Sonic by the higher pitched voice, still she felt slightly bummed out to see that it was only Tails; not that she wasn't overjoyed to have him helping her on this. Forcing a smile for him so he wouldn't think she was a completely distraught wreck, she waved to the yellow kitsune as well. "Hey Tails... Thanks for meeting me here."

"It's no problem at all." Tails replied as he stood up from a nearby bench. "After all, he's my best friend and practically my brother. I'll do anything I can if I think he needs my help." Walking up to him, Amy saw that he'd gotten a slight bit taller since the last time she'd seen him. Now that they weren't on constant adventures together, each time they encountered one another, she could see the progress of him growing, going from him being a kid to the pre-teen he is now. His yellow body fur had thickened and the white fur on his muzzle had more definition due to his jawline having grown more prominent. Even his white chest fur had expanded along with his broadening chest. In spite of his increase in height as well as other maturing changes, he still looked like the same two tailed fox he'd always been. His canine ears perked up, his bright blue eyes were glad to see her, yet underlined with dark circles, indicating he'd been awake for quite a while. The black oil stains on his chest and the disheveled tool belt he wore around his waist provided a clue as to what he'd been doing.

"You're the best brother he could ever have, Tails." Amy replied as the two gave one another a quick hug.

Tails returned the hug before asking. "I take it you haven't heard anything from him?"

Pulling out of the hug, the pink hedgehog shook her head. "Sadly, no... I've tried his cell about a hundred times. At first it was ringing, but the last ten times I tried, it just went straight to voicemail."

Sighing, Tails wiped downward, pulling on his face in defeat. "What the hell could he be doing? He told me he was on his way to see me and then ghosted me. It's the same thing that happened last time, only we don't have any clue where he is at all. The time before, we had a decent hunch that he was in danger, but now we don't know where he is at all."

"What-..." Amy hesitated to say. "What if he's with Eggman again?"

Tails held up his hand, palm flat facing her, as if to tell her to stop. "Don't-... Don't say that, Amy. I'm telling you, he's not with Eggman. There's no way he'd willingly go back to that evil tub of lard."