『Sontails』Mechanical Remnants

Vex Gate

No, no, no!

Sonic stared blankly at Tails' left arm, or rather, where his left arm should have been—nothing remained.

Tails gasped raggedly, unable to speak, his body trembling uncontrollably from the pain. Tears streamed down his fox face, mixing with dirt and blood, accentuating the helplessness, agony, and despair in his expression.

Too slow, too slow, I was too slow!!

The stump of Tails' severed arm was practically cauterized by Void energy—or more accurately, frozen, as Void energy leeched energy. Crimson blood still seeped from the gruesome wound.

Revenge—I'll—No—Calm down! Sonic forced himself to regain composure. Now wasn't the time for vengeance. Tails needed treatment, pain relief, a tourniquet—there was no time to lose—

"Son...ic...Look...out—!!"

Tails' desperate, heart-wrenching cry snapped Sonic back to reality—but it was too late.

The instant he turned, a beam struck his head. Impossible—how could it penetrate Ward of Dawn...? No, it wasn't a beam, but some kind of device, it...burrowed...into...???

The last thing Sonic heard was Tails' shattered, mournful scream...

✲✲✲✲

Sonic jolted awake. The same nightmare...For ten years. Year after year, it never ceased to torment him.

Beside him, Tails sat up, sleepy-eyed. "Hmm...? Another nightmare...?"

"It's okay, it's okay." Sonic ruffled Tails' hair and glanced at the clock. "But we should get up. Can't be late today."

"...Yeah, right." Tails sighed, his ears drooping.

Today was the memorial service for Fireteam F. Aside from Sonic and Tails' specialized two-man A-Team, all other fireteams consisted of four members. But now, only one member of Team-F remained.

Three Soldiers were lost...never to return. The Vex onslaught had been too fierce; their bodies couldn't be recovered. The memorial service felt pointless—perhaps what remained of them had already been converted into Vex.

However, the service wasn't strictly for the deceased, but for the living. It was the same for all memorial services across the world.

Sonic and Tails donned black cloaks and arrived early, taking their seats. The speaker had initially wanted them to address the crowd, but Tails declined. There wasn't any particular reason, he simply didn't want to. Anyone could offer empty platitudes.

...Especially not them, the two who had lost their entire friends ten years ago. 'The fallen are gone, but the living must continue to fight for tomorrow'—such pretty words. Coming from Sonic and Tails, they would only ring hollow.

Tails barely registered the speaker's words. His and Sonic's presence was symbolic rather than substantial.

"If I could, I really wouldn't want to be here," Tails thought selfishly, the somber atmosphere only deepening his gloom.

"Tails," Sonic murmured, "what will happen to the last remaining member of Fireteam-F?"

"...What else can they do? Retirement is out of the question, you know the state of the shelter City's manpower." Tails sighed. "They'll...be reassigned to another fireteam. Five-man and four-man teams aren't that different. But he'll probably...need some time to recover."

Sonic turned to look at the surviving soldier. Surprisingly, he wasn't crying, but that was the most unsettling part. His eyes were completely vacant. As if...he'd lost his mind.