Mirror Image

XVII - Fear of the Unknown

He pressed his nose up as close as he dare to the glass, trying to ignore the fingers of nervousness that played his spine like a Steinway. He had no reason to be afraid; there was no way anything could get through the reinforced glass, or the blast plate covering the door. Still, he knew what was coming, and that it would make his heart jump into his mouth and do the samba, but he had to see them again, see him.

Something about the monstrosity in its cage fascinated him, as well as terrified him. From a scientific point of view, it was a marvel; with good intentions the technology could work wonders.

But he knew it was more than just scientific curiosity that drove him. A perverse sense of excitement gnawed at his mind, accompanied by that most comforting of voices.

If something frightens you, little buddy, don't run away from it. Face it head on. The rush of fear keeps you on your toes, makes you ready for anything.

He found it to be sound advice when Sonic had his back, not so much when he wasn't around. He supposed that's why he stared at the glass now; without Sonic, he had to face his fear head on.

His whole body jolted upward in alarm when something hammered on the glass from the other side. Fake Sonic stood leering through the pane. His body had almost taken on Sonic's form completely, but still sagged in places, running into liquid in others.

"Boo!" he shouted, before giggling, "Never gets old, does it Tails?" Tails could only stand in silence, trying desperately to pluck up his courage to tell the fake to shove it.

"I'm gonna have a lot of fun with you once I get out of here," Fake Sonic said, clawing his slimy fingers down the glass, "I'll show you what it means to be truly afraid."

"I-I'm n-not afraid of you," Tails stammered, hardly convincing himself, "I'll never be afraid of someone like you." The fake Sonic's expression shifted from sadistic pleasure to dark malice.

"You should be," he snarled, "I hate you, Tails, for what you've done to me, for the way you've betrayed me. We were a family."

It's not Sonic saying that, thought Tails, It just looks and sounds exactly like him, saying words that would kill me if he was the real deal.

"I haven't betrayed you, idiot!" shouted Tails, trying to put the unwanted thoughts to one side, "We were never a family, because you're not real! Haven't you noticed your body is falling apart?"

"How long do you think you can keep up with these pathetic lies?" said Fake Sonic, "I wonder if you'll lie to me when I'm skinning you alive?" He began to laugh, grinning again, that horrible murderous grin that turned Tails' stomach. Stepping backwards, Tails held his head in his hands.

I'm sorry, Sonic. It's too much to take. I can't do this without you.

Tails jumped when he backed into someone standing behind him. Spinning around with his fur standing to attention, he looked up to see a white female fox looking down at him.

"Tails?" said Dr. Samuels, "what are you doing in here?"

"I-" Tails response caught in his throat; how could explain it to her? I was trying to prove to myself that I'm a big boy, how lame is that? He saw Samuels looking over his head, her face a cross between confusion and disgust. Turning around, he saw the Fake Sonic still pressed against the glass, leering at them both.

"Horrible, isn't it?" said Samuels, "I would have purged the chamber when they first started moving, if it weren't for Baxter... I mean, the Commander's orders."

"What did he say?"

"He didn't want to divert any of our Chaos reserves to do the purge, in case we needed to up our shielding to fend off another attack." She knelt down, placing a comforting hand on Tails shoulder.