//------------------------------// // Victory // Story: Sonic and EQG Forces // by SonicAKG //------------------------------// A little while after the Freedom Fighters had departed, the Resistance was greeted by Shadow suddenly teleporting in the center of the room, which gained everyone's attention. He was carrying E-123 Omega's deactivated and damaged body . Seeing Omega in this state made Rouge gasp. "Omega!" She cried as she ran over while Shadow set him down. "Is he?" "I'm not sure. He's still pretty banged up but the repairs Tails did appear to have helped to an extent." Shadow explained. Rouge looked on, feeling sorrowful for seeing Omega in such poor condition. Tails wore a melancholic expression and held his arm, which Shadow noticed. "Tails, What's done is done. Besides if it wasn't for your help, Omega might've have been in even worse shape." Shadow said, which was somewhat reassuring to Tails, his look of regret starting to fade. He then faced the entire room. "What happened while I was gone?" "The Phantom Ruby's signal has gotten much weaker." Twilight explained. "That means no more of those super wacky illusions!"Pinkie added while making eccentric faces with her eyes. "We have a huge opening in front of us! We can't let it go to waste." Vector declared "This the moment we've been waiting for. Time to get even!" Silver stated. "You're speaking my language, Silver!" Rainbow Dash eagerly agreed. "We're going to hit back hard!" "With the Phantom Ruby gone, we can finally take Eggman down!" Tails hopefully said. "I understand why y'all are so enthusiastic but don't ya think we're forgettin' somethin'?" AppleJack pointed out, which made everyone's eagerness dial back a bit. "AppleJack's right. Eggman and Infinite are still on the loose. We can't it take too easy." Sonic brought up. "Correct. We can't jump in blind otherwise we might have a repeat of what happened last time." Espio said, reminding everyone of the failure that was 'Operation Big Wave.' Knuckles winced at the memory and made a determined look while the others remained silent. "Way to kill the mood Espio." Charmy muttered. "Someone had to say it." Manic said, seeing the point of Espio's harshness. "We can't afford another defeat like that. We gotta be on our toes." "This round is all or nothing. There won't be a third chance." Rouge cautioned "I just want everyone to get home safely, all right?" Fluttershy requested. She was starting to feel worried about hearing the risk involved "We will, darling. We learned from our mistake last time. Nothing like that will happen again." Rarity reassured "This time, we're going to save the day like we always do. We can all bet on that!" Amy optimistically said. "Ok everyone, game face on. For this mission, the target is Eggman at the central tower." Knuckles ordered. "Once we go in, don't stop and look back. Focus on our job, no matter what." Sunset said as a reminder. With their conviction readied, the Resistance prepared to head out for their ultimate offensive on Eggman's base. In the Green Hill Zone, Eggman watched the Death Egg's destruction via a holographic screen from his mobile.With him, were Orbot and Cubot at his side while Infinite was in front. The tyrant then smashed his fist together. "Blasted resistance! At first they were just an annoyance but now they're really starting to get on my nerves!" Eggman complained. He then regained his composure. "A minor setback. There are five more hours until the plan is executed. Infinite, we need to make a tactical retreat to Metropolis and regroup our forces." Eggman decided. Infinite then folded his arms. His body language indicated he was displeased by this. "Tactical retreat? Is that a fancy way of saying running away. I am disappointed by this, Doctor." Infinite replied "Just shut up and follow me! I know what I'm doing!" Eggman barked. The Eggmobile then hovered in the air before bursting off at high speed. Infinite was silent and disagreed with Eggman's plan. Nonetheless, he did as he was told and followed his leader. After all, Eggman was responsible for his ascension to power. The least he could do was go along with the plan. Back in Eggman's metropolis, the Resistance airships had entered, releasing all the members from the sky as they flooded the city while the ships engaged with Eggman's own fleet. Sonic leaped out one ship and crashed through the glass floor of one of the multi-story buildings. This placed him inside its interior. A welcoming party of Eggpawns stood in his path, which made him smirk. "Nice to see Eggman thought of the perfect preparations!" He happily said. The Egg Pawns fired as Sonic charged towards them, evading every shot. He then became a blue streak as he tore through all of them. With the path clear, Sonic grinded on an orange rail downward, leading him deeper into the building. He was in an enclosed white section with different layers stacked above. Sonic scaled the wall of each layer using his speed to get ahead. The layers each housed one Eggman robot but Sonic jumped off the wall and stomped on each robot he saw. He was now at the top, which was being guarded by a squadron of Egg Pawns. With his speed, Sonic rushed into the center of them, catching them off guard. He grabbed the arm of one robot and spun it around quickly, using it to smash the other robots away before he tossed that robot into a wall up ahead. Sonic continued along a path which took him down before he raced up again. At the start of the new path were more Egg Pawns but Sonic used his streak attack, hitting them one by one. Sonic made his way through the building and reached a higher path. 8 Egg Pawns attempted to block his path as they fired but it was futile. Sonic delivered a strong front kick to one and a back kick to two behind him as he got close. He then released a straight punch, knocking a robot back before he leaped forward and smashed his elbow into one's face. With only 3 left, Sonic used his figure 8 move and released a shockwave off the ground to take them out. Sonic ran across the road ahead to outside before he jumped off it. Below him was another highway. However, 9 holes opened up, revealing a barrage of missiles. "Sonic, you have to find out where Eggman is at." Sunset told him. "We'll deal with forces, Sonic!" Knuckles said. "Do your thing." "Good luck, Big blue!" Rouge wished over the comms. "No problem. Chasing Eggman is what I do best. I'll find him in no time!" Sonic promised as he sky dove towards the incoming missiles. Sonic moved through each of the rockets as he descended downwards and got down without a single scratch. He was now aboard a long white highway. Realizing that there was no time to spare, he activated his boost, traveling ahead in a high burst of speed. The highway curve made him run on the side before he went straight again. In Sonic's way were many Egg Walkers. As soon as they saw him incoming, they ran ahead, dropping explosives as they did. The entire highway was now littered with flames. Thanks to his boost, Sonic tore through the fire with no problem and crushed the Egg Walkers out of his way. He reached the end of the road in no time. In front of him was a gap towards the side of a building. Egg Choppers, which were guarding the path, all fired a single beam the moment they saw him. "Sometimes it's just too easy." Sonic lamented as he took a big leap mid-air. Sonic used the Egg Choppers as stepping stones to get to the building, dashing through them as a streak. He landed on its side and ran upwards. Once he was at the top, he noticed a nearby building on his right and jumped towards it before going up again. At the peak, he took another jump to one more building's top before he bounced off it towards a rooftop. In the background, Sonic looked on as the resistance airships battled Eggman's forces. "Everyone's giving it their all. I can't let them down!" He vowed. Sonic moved along the rooftop, encountering 3 Egg Pawns who tried to stop him as they fired shots. The usual occurred and when Sonic got close, he did a sweep kick, taking the robots off their feet. While they were mid-air, he then performed many fast kicks, defeating his enemies. Sonic then continued on the roof and his foot landed on a white platform. Before he knew it, it transported him across an opening. He saw there were 3 more like them in front and he stepped on each of them to move ahead. Once he was on the last one, he ran up to the top of the roof. Egg Cutters then saw him incoming and headed his way with their blades spinning. Rather than take them head on, Sonic rushed around them, trapping them in a blue vortex as they collided with each other. The robotic pests were gone, leaving Sonic to continue his journey. He ran through a loop and descended into another white podium, which brought him in front of orange rail placed around a small building. Sonic used it go even further down. At the end, he soared off the rail onto another freeway. Having more space, Sonic used his boost again, plowing through Eggman robots such as Walkers, Pawns and incoming Cutters and Choppers. "We're managing for now. So far, so good." Twilight said over the comm. "We can actually pull it off this time." Manic said with hope. The highway took Sonic down to its end and with his boost still activated, he took off into the the air towards another freeway on the top, which was going upward. Sonic moved through it in no time and jumped off mid-air when he was done. "Be careful. I'm detecting Eggman just up ahead." Amy warned. True to what Amy said, Sonic noticed 3 figures on a rooftop he was headed towards. He deactivated his boost and landed right in front of his arch-nemesis, who was in his Egg-Mobile.Orbot and Cubot were on his left and right respectively. "Yo, Egghead, it's been 6 months since we last met." Sonic sarcastically greeted as he began to approach his sworn enemy. "I see you haven't shaved the stache yet." "Ah, I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss our little banter." Eggman replied with a wicked smile. "Actually, I am glad you could make it Sonic. It'd be a shame if you missed your own funeral. Sonic then stopped, wearing a puzzled look. He was then joined by Tails, who jumped down from a nearby building. Sonic then looked back at him and shrugged. "You're forgetting something, Eggman. We shut down the Phantom Ruby. You won't be able to use its power against us." Tails confidently said. "Hahaha! Did you?" Eggman cryptically boasted. "Infinite!" Out of nowhere, Infinite descended down in front of the two heroes, which put them into fighting stances. "Sonic, Tails, welcome to the end!" Infinite declared as he released a small black void from his hand. The void then began to float and crackle with purple electricity while growing in size, much to Sonic and Tails's shock. "What is that?!" Sonic wondered. "That is null space, you blue pest!" Eggman informed him while Orbot and Cubot backed away in cowardice. "It's an interdimensional pocket dimension cooked up by the Phantom Ruby, where nothing exists. Goodbye Sonic! Enjoy an eternity of nothingness! Eggman and Infinite backed away many feet, with the latter firing a red energy sphere into the hole in space. The null space void then grew even larger and acted like a black hole, sucking up all the nearby debris into it. Acting quickly, Sonic shoved Tails back near the end of the building, which made him hold on to a rail to resist the gravitational pull. "Sonic!" Tails cried as Sonic was slowly getting pulled into the hole. Above, Sunset was flying through the city with her Wispon. She was looking at everything that was happening. " Things are going much better than last time. I wonder if Sonic found Eggman yet." She questioned out loud. "Woah, woah!" Sunset suddenly heard Sonic's voice yell. Sunset looked down and much to her horror, she saw that Sonic was getting closer to a black hole of some kind. "Sonic!" She yelled. Reacting before she could even process this decision, Sunset flew down just as Sonic's lower half was getting sucked into the hole. She then grabbed his hand, desperately trying to pull him out. "Sunset? No! You'll get sucked in too!" Sonic warned. "I'm...not...leaving you!" Sunset answered as she let get of her Wispon and grabbed Sonic with both hands. She pulled with all her strength but it was no use. Eventually, Sunset couldn't do it as the black hole's gravitational pull was infinitely stronger than she was. She and Sonic were then sucked into the null space hole which then closed instantly. Tails felt that the gravitational pull had ended and looked around after he fell to the floor. To his dread , Sonic and Sunset were gone. "No....but we destroyed the Phantom Ruby's power source." He weakly said as he came on to his knees. "Poor Tails. Since you always destroy my power sources, I learned from my mistake this time and had a backup source under Metropolis!" Eggman boasted. Tails was left speechless. Their plan to take down the Phantom Ruby had failed and because of it, they had lost two of their friends. Sunset opened her eyes and found she was on the floor. She groaned slightly as she rose up. "Where am I?" She wondered as she started to look at her surroundings. Sunset was filled with uncertainty and fear as she got a good look at her location. It was a purple void with floating cubes and net-like grids above and below that extended endlessly. She looked down and saw she was standing on purple cubes, which flickered with electricity. She backed up a bit, trying to process all that was going on. "Am I even on our world?" She wondered. Sunset then remembered that she had fallen into that black hole with Sonic. "Sonic! Where is he?!" Sunset exclaimed as she looked around for her friend but saw nothing. "I have to find him but I don't even know where to begin looking." She said in a tired tone. "But I have to try." Sunset began to walk and noticed that she didn't hear the sound of her footsteps, making the entire place more ominous. She continued on with an uncomfortable expression. Sunset explored the unknown region, alone and finding nothing. She was starting to feel more anxious but kept her cool. Suddenly, up ahead, she noticed a familiar figure running forward. "Is that Sonic?" She questioned as she started to run. "Sonic! Sonic!" Further ahead, Sonic was moving through, trying to see if there was a way out. He then heard his name being called faintly and stopped in his tracks. "Sonic!" Sunset yelled as he turned around to see her coming towards. "Sunset! Man, I'm glad to see you're ok!" Sonic expressed with relief as Sunset came in front of him. "Likewise. When I woke up, you were gone even though we came in together." She answered. "Yeah, I noticed that too. I spent who knows how long running trying to find you and someway out of here." Sonic explained. "Just what is this place?" Sunset asked. "Null Space. Some prison of nothingness that goes on forever. Eggman was telling me about it earlier. Unlike most of his plans, I actually had to pay attention to this as it seemed dangerous." Sonic elaborated. "A prison that goes on forever." Sunset repeated. "That's terrible. We have to make it back to our friends." "Agreed. We just need to find out...how." Sonic responded. The trapped friends looked on, seeing that everything seemed endless. It looked like there was no way out. "Could be worse."Sonic started to say as Sunset gave him an odd look. "What could be worse than this?" She quizzically said. "Either one of us could have come in alone." Sonic continued. "At least we have each other for company." Sonic's words put a smile on Sunset's face. Even in a situation like this, he always remained upbeat. "You're right about that." Sunset laughed off. "There has to be a way out." Sonic and Sunset continued to explore Null Space, trying to find any hint of an exit. It didn't look like the odds were in their favor, but they had to try at least. As they walked along, they heard a voice. "How are you enjoying your stay?" Infinite said in an echo, making the two heroes stop in their tracks. "Infinite!" Sunset reconized but they didn't see him anywhere. "Come out! Where are you?!" Sonic demanded. Infinite then appeared above Sonic and Sunset, causing them to look at him. He stared them down in a condescending manner. "What do you think? Wonderful, isn't it? Now, do you understand the power of the Phantom Ruby? Do you understand how hopeless your situation is?" He mocked. "Whatever man!" Sonic dismissed. He noticed Infinite's silhouette glitch and realized it was a hologram. "Big talk coming from a guy who's not even here!" "I was expecting to see you in despair. Guess I'll have to wait for a bit longer." Infinite simply said. "You can say whatever you want but we won't listen. We are getting out of here and we will stop you." Sunset firmly said. Infinite then let out a chuckle. "Your optimism is charming but you need to be realistic. There is no way out." Infinite insisted. "We'll find one." Sonic said with dedication. Infinite was started to feel agitated. They should have been trembling before his power but they stayed the same. "You're separated from your comrades in another world that is endless and there is no exit. Why don't you give up? I don't understand." Infinite said, an edge in his voice. "No, you don't." Sunset agreed. Infinite was slightly taken back by her courage before he felt his irritation growing. "Surrender and maybe I'll consider freeing you." Infinite bargained. "Get on your knees and beg me for it." "You wish. Your whole tough guy act doesn't fool us. You're too scared to face us so you had to throw us in here." Sonic mocked."It doesn't matter what you do because in the long run, we're going to win. I'm the fastest thing alive and no one's better at running than me." Infinite clenched his fist and was now somewhat angry. No! He wasn't afraid! How dare they assume that about him?! He had all the power! Nothing scared him! "Those are just words."Infinite scoffed. "You've lost." Infinite's illusion then began to flicker before it vanished, leaving behind Null Space's captives. "That was cool and all, but we really need to get out." Sonic said. "I know! What if I run really, really fast?" Sunset looked at Sonic as if that was one of the dumbest things he had ever said to her. He then rubbed the back of his head. "Ok yeah, that does sound pretty stupid." Sonic sheepily admitted. "What could be a better way?" Sunset pondered loudly. "We need to find something quickly. The more time we spend in here, the more in danger our friends could all be. We have to get back to them." Sunset's determination was beginning to grow. Due to being feelings of friendship, her magic activated as she gave off a faint orange glow. In doing so, a pink flash came out of her pocket. This came to both hers and Sonic's attention. Sunset reached in and pulled out the gem she had from before, which was glowing. "Wow, what is that? It looks like...a Phantom Ruby?" Sonic said. Sunset then remembered the gem on Tails shared with the schematics he got and noticed the similarities it had to the stone she was holding. "You're right! I didn't pay much attention to this before but it does look like a Phantom Ruby. I almost forgot about" Sunset said with compliance. "Where'd you find that?"Sonic asked. "Pinkie gave it to me after we reunited with Tails, Twilight and Spike." Sunset explained. "She must've found it. I get it now! This must've have helped me escape Infinite's illusion when I was in Metropolis earlier." "So, that thing can cancel out Infinite's illusions? Then I'm betting it's our ticket out of here." Sonic deduced. "Most likely," Sunset said. "Honestly, I'm not too sure how it works but right now, it seems that it responds to my magic. Let me try this." Sunset began to concentrate on her feelings of friendships such as her dedication to get back to her friends, which fuelled her magic. Her glow became more prominent and the ruby she held continued to shine. Sunset then thought about getting out of Null Space and as she did, an orange portal started to form in front of her and Sonic. "It's working! Keep it up, Sunset!"Sonic encouraged. Sunset continued as the orange portal grew larger and stabilized itself. She opened her eyes and formed a smile. "I did it!" She gushed. "Awesome! Now let's kiss this place goodbye!" Sonic eagerly said Grabbing Sunset's arm, Sonic raced into the portal as everything began to turn white. Back in the city on the rooftop with the Null Space Void, Tails was still shaken by the loss of his two friends. This time, had he lost Sonic for real? "Tails!" He heard Twilight's voice say as he turned around to see her floating towards him. "Sonic and Sunset's signal's just vanished. Do you know what happened?" She questioned. With dismay, Tails looked at the void ahead, which made Twilight do the same. She gasped when she saw it. "Did they.."Twilight began, beginning to realize with fright what happened. Before she could finish her sentence, the Null Space void started to ripple, which caught both her and Tails's attention. From it, Sonic and Sunset emerged from it and came directly in front of the young geniuses. "Sup, guy." Sonic casually said. Sunset found herself in an immediate hug courtesy of Twilight, which she returned. "Sonic?! Sunset?!' Tails said in a mixture of shock and relief. "You guys..are alright..." "Just what happened? Tails pointed at this void and I knew you two were sucked in and now you're out!" Twilight frantically said, ending her hug. "Well explain later once this is all over." Sunset told her friend as she picked up her Wispon. "I agree. It's time to find Eggman!" Sonic declared. "You two should help out with the rest of the mission." Tails and Twilight nodded and turned around to get off the rooftop. Sonic and Sunset went in the opposite direction as they leaped down. Sonic landed on an orange rail and grinded ahead with Sunset flying next to him. "Sonic! Where were you guys? According to the comms, you just vanished." Knuckles exclaimed over the comm. "Nowhere, literally." Sunset answered, leaving Knuckles lost by what she said. "I don't get it...... but ok!"Pinkie cheerfully and casually answered. Sonic and Sunset moved through the city and noticed the ongoing battle. The Resistance ships had engaged the Egg Fleet and the fighting was affecting the city. Explosions on buildings erupted due to the shots fired. As they did, Egg Chasers appeared in the path and released beams. Sonic jumped off his rail and became a streak to dash through them. He found his footing again and rejoined Sunset as they went on ahead. They then reached the top of another rooftop. Once they landed, an Egg Pawn squad surrounded the duo, ready to attack. In response, Sunset used her Wispon as a flamethrower, blasting all the enemies around, which cleared the threat. "*whew*, Never figured I'd see you do something like this." Sonic commented. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. Honestly, I'm still not that comfortable with this." Sunset admitted. Sonic and Sunset then went to another lower part of a different building via Sonic leaping and Sunset floating there. Once again, Egg Pawns were there to try and stop them. While mid-air, Sonic landed with a kick on one Egg Pawn and then unleashed a quick 3 hit combo consisting of two punches and a side kick on 3 others. Two more were left, whom Sunset got rid of with a blast of fire. Sunset then flew higher up the building as Sonic ran upward. At the top, Egg choppers hovered above and fired shots. Sonic moved side to side with his speed as Sunset became airborne. She then clicked the trigger of her Wispon twice and shot out a small burst, taking down half of the enemies. Sonic went in the air and circled the rest before he unleashed a cutting wind with his fist that sliced the enemies to pieces. He then noticed another rail ahead and used it once more while Sunset tailed him from behind. The path they moved across gave them a better view of the battle. "How's the battle?" Sonic asked over the comm. "We're doing great. Right now, we have the upper hand. If we keep up this pace, we'll win." Amy said. "Great to hear!" Sunset exclaimed. "We're actually winning. I can't believe it." Fluttershy happily said. "Too bad you can't take part in all action, Sonic." Rouge happily teased. "Don't worry. I'll tell you what you missed." Rainbow Dash bragged over the comm. The last comment made Sonic and Sunset roll their eyes, though playfully. They then came along some platforms once their route ended. Egg Pawns descended downwards and surrounded them. Sonic quickly became a streak as he moved around to take out some enemies while Sunset fired a blast of fire while moving her Wispon around. With the enemies beat, Sonic dashed to a rail ahead and Sunset soared along with him. They explored the battlefield even further this way and were taken around the city, passing by different structures and other buildings. They were then brought upwards to the bottom of a massive alien tower with several spheres attached to it, and gate-like rings on top. "I think we found what we've been looking for." Sonic said as his feet touched the platform. "Race you to the top!" "You know that's unfair." Sunset jokingly responded. Egg Pawns guarding the tower tried to stop the two from going forward as they released ammunition. Sunset pointed her Wispon on the ground and blew herself in the air with a blast of fire. From above, a stream of flames blast the Egg Pawns. Sonic ran throughout the platform, using his fist to knock Egg Pawns down. Once this was done, they ascended higher to another surface. There, Egg Walkers fired missiles to the intruders. Sunset looked distressed as she moved to evade getting blown up. Sonic, on the other hand, waited as missiles headed to him. With some force, he kicked them back to where they came from. No more enemies meant it was safe to move ahead. Sonic scaled building's side and Sunset flew right next to him At the peak, Eggman was in his Eggmobile but his back was turned. Infinite was next to him as well. They were observing the fight. Eggman seemed unnerved while Infinite showed no emotion. For them, it wasn't looking good. The Egg fleet was on the verge of defeat. He didn't notice the two Resistance members who had joined him. Sonic folded his arms and tapped his foot, waiting to be noticed while Sunset put on a defensive look. The sound of feet tapping made Orbot turn around and he gasped when he saw the source. "Boss?" Orbot said, tapping Eggman's shoulder. Eggman turned around and when he saw his foe and his ally, he felt as if though he nearly had a heart attack. "What?!" He shrieked. His cry made Infinite turn as well. The sight of Sonic and Sunset made his eyes widen. "What's wrong, Eggman? You look like you've seen a ghost." Sonic teased. "I guess you're stuck with me." "This is impossible! Nothing can escape Null Space! How did you get out?!" The doctor demanded. "We have our ways."Sunset simply said. The Phantom Ruby like gem she had came in handy and she had a feeling it was best to keep it a secret. "Anyway, we've found you. It's over." "This is absurd. I don't know how you've been able to overcome the Phantom Ruby, but it ends now!" Infinite announced with his voice rising. His body began to glow. These two worms shouldn't have been able to resist his power. He had tolerated this mockery for far too long. Sonic and Sunset stood tall, ready for whatever Infinite had planned. "Infinite, no. We'll have the last laugh in the end." Eggman interrupted. Infinite felt irked as this would be the second time they would have to 'retreat'. He then thought of the plan Eggman had and this alleviated the feeling. Seeing the looks on the Resistance's faces once they faced the inevitable was going to be sweet and much more satisfying. He followed instructions as his aura vanished. Eggman then retreated into the largest ship with Infinite not too far behind. It's engines activated and the mad scientist began to flee the scene. While he was doing so, the Egg Fleet began to crumble as ships started to fall in the city. Sonic and Sunset witnessed this from where they stood. "He's leaving. We did it! We won!" Sunset cheered. "We won!"