Sonic Forces: Not a Hero

Saving Sonic

Once we hit orbit, I noticed something flashing on the dashboard.

"Hey Knuckles," I said getting his attention, "It looks like we're getting a communication signal from an encrypted source."

"Patch it through," he said.

"Knuckles! Can you hear me?" said a feminine voice.

"Rouge. It's about time!" said Knuckles, "How's Sonic doing?"

"I'm guessing this Rouge is the spy Knuckles mentioned," I thought listening in.

"He's been better," said Rouge, "They're getting ready to banish him into space."

"What? You can't be serious!" shouted Silver.

"Eggman's been keeping Sonic alive all this time," explained Rouge, "He's been waiting to show him his completed empire before banishing him."

"And torturing Sonic just to pass the time," added Knuckles, "That's low, even for Eggman."

"Eggman got wind of our rescue plan and is moving forward with his plan ahead of schedule," said Rouge, "The clock is ticking, boss."

"But we don't even know where he's being held captive," said Amy.

"Yes, we do," clarified Rouge, "Eggman rebuilt the Death Egg. That's where he's keeping Sonic."

"The Death Egg?" said a frightened Vector, "Oh, man. That's not good."

"None of this is good, Vector," said Knuckles, "That's why it's called 'war'."

"So what are we sitting around for?" I asked, "Let's storm this Death Egg and get your friend back."

"Right," nodded Knuckles, "You all know what to do. Let's go get Sonic."

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As we approached the Death Egg, Knuckles gave us a rundown of the Death Egg. Thanks to Rouge, we have a complete schematic of the Death Egg's interior. There were multiple paths to the containment cells. Everyone was to take a different path, then meet back up at the shuttle once they found Sonic. Amy was to stay back at the shuttle to be ready for our getaway. My route had me going through some large vent-like systems. Starting with a steep slide, I began my route.

"Alright, let's find Sonic and get the hell out of here," I said rushing my way through the halls.

"Listen up, rookie," called out Knuckles.

"I swear, I'm gonna kill him," I thought.

"Our other forces are busy dealing with enemies," explained Knuckles, "How's it look on your end?"

"So far so good," I replied, "There doesn't seem to be much security here."

"It looks like you took the best route," said Knuckles, "It's up to you to save Sonic now. Find him!"

"Yes, sir," I smiled speeding up.

"The prisoners are being held in a kind of internment facility," explained Rouge, "Sonic is probably there too."

"Got it, thanks," I said as my slide turned into a spiral downward.

"Security will be tight there," warned Rouge, "So stay on your toes."

"Always do," I said as my route finally had a straight and even platform, "I need to hurry if I'm gonna get to Sonic in time."

As I continued to run through the Death Egg, I noticed many empty cells that reminded me of what some of the Jackal Squad went through during our time with Eggman.

Even though Zero had enlisted us as Eggman's personal hit squad, not all of the Jackal Squad was thrilled with the idea. So many of them that didn't follow Eggman's orders got thrown in jail cells like these. It killed me seeing my brothers and sisters getting trapped in those cells. So the night I left, I set those who had been jailed free. They wanted to follow me, but I told them to follow their own path as I disappeared. I didn't want something to happen to them because of me.

Distracted by my thoughts, I didn't see the motion detectors as I ran right through them, "Damn it!"

"Uh-oh. They're on high alert now," said Rouge as alarms blared through the Death Egg.

"Really? I couldn't tell!" I growled frustrated at my carelessness. Suddenly a door slammed in my face completely blocking the way, "This isn't good."

Then a group of metal robots showed up behind me, preparing to strike. I grabbed my Wispon at the ready, but one of the robots quickly shot it out of my hands before I could get my cube clones ready. In frustration, I tried to use my wire to launch myself towards it. I went to kick, but another robot caught it and threw me into the middle of them.

"This is really bad," I thought, scrambling on what to do next.

"Heads up!" I heard a voice call out from somewhere above me. Looking up to see a blue spinning ball quickly taking out the robots surrounding me. When the spinning ball landed, a blue hedgehog stood there smiling at me, "Easy there! Everything's cool."

The hedgehog reached his hand out to help me up, I smiled, "Thanks for the assist."

"Are you here to rescue me?" he asked.

"If your name is Sonic then yes," I answered.

"Yup, that's me!" smirked Sonic, "Can't tell you how much I appreciate it. It's been a while since I've seen a friendly face. Now that I think about it, I don't really recognize you. What's your name?"

"We can worry about introductions later," I said as my radio was going off.

"Hey rookie, you still in one piece?" asked Knuckles.

Before I could respond Sonic chimed in, "Oh, sure, don't even bother to ask how I am."

"Sonic! I'm so glad!" cried out Amy, making Sonic sigh.

"Hold up Amy," calmed Knuckles, "We're all happy Sonic is alive! But he won't be for long if he doesn't get off that egg in a hurry. We are all aboard the shuttle and ready to go."

"Is there an exit around here?" asked Sonic as Knuckles rambled. I pointed to the shuttle Amy was bringing around. Sonic then responded to Knuckles, "Your concern is touching, Knuckles."

The two of us rushed over to the shuttle, joining up with everyone. Amy leaped into Sonic's arms as soon as he arrived. I rushed over to the control board, "Let's get out of here."

We quickly left the Death Egg behind, making our way back down to earth and towards our headquarters.