Chapter Eleven: Ripping Apart Reality
{Gale's POV}
I just looked up at my friend in shock. I knew that anger could make people say things they don't mean, but when Metal had said that he didn't care if reality was torn apart, it sounded as if he actually meant it. I shivered as I felt his new power rushing over me like a wave. Just how strong did that stuff make him?
I looked to Lisa, sensing her discomfort at seeing our friend in such a state. “G-Gale?”
“Yes Lisa?”
“How much has Metal had to deal with while he's been in Equestria?” She asked me with worry.
“Why?”
“Because if he's finally snapped, all of his anger and stress is going to surface...all of that, plus his anger from hearing that Nightmare and Xram killed Samantha...and all of that Apocalypse Magic...he's even stronger than my Mad Mode Four.” She answered in fear.
“Well then we've got to do something! I know he wasn't lying when he said he'd tear this world apart, we have to stop him.” I tried to get to my feet but fell to my knees, I was in no condition to fight let alone stop someone like Metal.
“I don't think we can do anything other than watch. I can try to calm him down, but I'm not even sure if I can reach him! Damnit I had just gotten him back to his normal self!”
I was about to try to get up again but I froze as I heard Lisa sobbing. I turned around and saw her with her hands covering her face and tears dripping from in between her fingers.
“Why can't I just keep my friends!?” I just sat there frozen as she yelled. “First Symbol had to go and die for me! Then my world was destroyed! Everyone keeps getting hurt and I can't do anything to stop it! Metal has been corrupted by his own anger twice in the span of a day and I almost lost the one I love! Why!? WHY CAN’T I KEEP MY FRIENDS!?”
I would have went over to comfort her, but when I tried to walk or crawl I collapsed and fell face first into the dirt. All I could do was very slowly pull myself towards my troubled partner while I watched her cry her eyes out while my best friend was about to destroy his own universe. What happened to us? Why was this happening? Why couldn't we be happy? I looked around. There had to be something I could do.
Then it hit me. I could still remember what had happened when I was corrupted just a few moments before, and Metal had gone into his super form to fight my darker self. Going into a super form in the Sonic universe allowed you to enter it and exit it in peak physical condition, no matter the circumstance! If I could just build up enough power, and fuse with Gregar, I might be able to stop this! I focused and began slowly building up energy. I gazed at my friend, waiting for my energy to build up high enough. ’Hold on buddy, I’m coming.'
{Third POV}
Metal and Alpha just floated there. Metal’s anger had consumed him, and now he was on the warpath. He would destroy anything that got in his way of killing this Nightmare. He summoned a crimson lunar blade, and charged. Alpha created his own blood red laser blade and came at Metal. The two clashed, creating a shockwave that rocked the world around them.
“So, you really don’t care if you destroy this world as long as I die in the process huh? Well that’s just perfect. I can think of a few ways we could use that anger.”
"̢̫̘̭̜̝̬̰I̴͍̬͔̲ ̙̭̘̝͡w̙̼̦̯̭̞̙į̷̭̘̘̲̘̭l̛͓̭͔͖l͖͈̝ ҉̞͇́n̘͠e̤͕̻̫̪̮͢͡ͅv͏̮͇͚̹̭͍͙̲e̥̖̳͔̙̲r͖͔̗͙̖͈̪̕ ̫̝̰̖ọ̴͖̫̻͖̞̜͘͞b҉̮̻̗̟͎͔̜̖è̴̬̣y̡̛̗̤̠͖͕͖ ̴̶̙̫̮̗̫͓͞y̴̨̩̞̜̪͇̦̩̮o̧̪̜̩͟u̵̢̩!͏̙͕̝"͈̼̣̖̬̀
Alpha merely chuckled.
“Who said it would be your choice?” The two separated. Metal fired a giant beam of red energy that Alpha simply dodged. “If attacking straight on is your strategy, I’m afraid this fight won’t last for very long.”
"̡̢͇̻̗͖̻̳̲ͅG̵͎̙̪̞͓̘R̛͖̻̟͘͢A̻̥͉̬͕͜͜A̱͓̩̤H̸̘̹̫̥͙!̶͔̹̪̱̬"̠̦̲̘̳̠̞̀͝
Metal fired more energy beams, but each one was dodged. Alpha then appeared behind Metal.
“Let me show you the attack of one who knows how to handle this kind of power.” He blasted Metal, then came at him with his laser blades. He got a couple strikes in before he kicked Metal and the fired some concentrated balls of energy at him. Each one detonated on the metal hedgehog, sending him further and further away. But Metal quickly recovered. He then vanished, and reappeared right in front of Nightmare with a charged up blast.
"̲̖̳ͅͅI̟ ͏̸͖t̶͇̞ḥ̖͟i̵͕͎̞͝n͍̣͈̖̤͔̭k̢͈͈ ̶̪̖͕́I̙̫̫͝'̸͔̱͇̠̥͇̝̦l͎͉̪͉̘̱l̨͉ ̟̞̯́g̷͚͖̱͉͎̕o̜̰͍̲͍͢͞ͅ ̷͍̣̜͈͖b̸̺͙͇̫̪̳̯̙y̺̻ ̺̰ͅý̝͖̜͉̼̰͢ơ͔̲̙̲̼͔̰͢ͅu̪r̩̲͍͉̯̟̩̯̻͠͞ ̡̛̣͖̱̥̤e̴̶̺͉͖x͏̙̘a̟͓̼̥͙̗̖̰͢m̩͎̙̭͇͈͖͞p̷̳͖̮̀l̛͏̣̺̗̟̳̜͓͉͜e̢̹͙̼̪̦̮̩̫̝͘͝!̬̝̳͚͇̘͔̣̱"͓
He then unleashed the energy beam and nailed Alpha point blank. When the beam disappeared, Alpha was gone.
“Think yourself clever do we?” Metal turned around to see Alpha, perfectly fine. “When I said that I would be unlike any opponent you have ever face,” he glared at Metal, “I meant it.”
He punched Metal in the face, sending him into the ground.
“Your anger may make you strong Metal, but your attacks are slow! You want to finish me as fast as possible, so every attack you do is at full power. That not only takes time to charge, but it wastes energy and no matter what you say or do, you still have a limited supply!” He charged up an attack. “But just slightly charging up your attacks, allowing them to have enough force to do some damage, will provide a much faster solution than going all out.”
He fired his attack, but Metal recovered just in time to dodge. He leaped at Alpha, tackling him out of the air and threw him into the ground before sending off a ball of energy after him. This time, his attack hit, and Alpha suffered some damage.
“In the physical department your doin’ just fine I’ll give you that.” He stood up, showing that he was nowhere near finished. “But you’ll need more than that to defeat me!” He teleported behind Metal and punched him in the back of the head before grabbing him, spinning him around and throwing him into the ground with great force, causing the ground to shake violently as an explosion of dirt and dust clouded the area. “You've let your anger cloud your judgement Metal, that is your mistake.”
"̷͓̮̞̳͇̥̖Á͏̣͉̟̣͓͔̝h̛̘̼̪͜a̟̳̰̲͇͍ḩ̶̹a̡̡̩͉͖̣̣͔h̶̼͍͖̰̦͎ͅa͝͏̣̟h̦̼͙̞͎̰̞͈a̡̧̛̮̠͍̫̖̬ͅh̟̥̻̦͚͚̖̲̙a̰̘͟h͍̪̥͓a̸̸̩͔̼͡!̢̛̱̫̘́ ̸̩͓͓̮͎̙͚͘A̪̻̬̺ͅͅH̻̤̯̳̖̗͞ͅA̰̬̼̯̹͡H̴̛̞̺͠A̵̧̺̮̙̘͉̝͠Ḩ̘͞A̴̱̘H̗̕͡͠A̪̜͉̻̬͜H͟҉͏͔̲A̪̩͉̠̦̥̳H̲̗͈͖͓́A҉̪̩͎̦̰͈͍ͅH̟̪̦̬̞̤̖͟͜A͏͎̟̲̺H̲̯̳̪̩͝Ạ̶H̵̵̥̠̹̻ͅÁ̴̩̩̯̭A̷̷̲̰̯̟͚͕͡A̰̞̹̙̳̳͘ͅA̢̮͖͇̮̦͘͠A̘͍̜͈̙͈͠!̝͕̙̞͟!̷̤̱̣͔͇!̗̺̪̀"͜͡҉͔
Alpha shivered slightly at the blood curdling, psychotic laugh that Metal was giving off from inside the dust cloud.
Yo̴u͟ ͡r̴e̛al͢l͞y t̨hińk̛ ͟I've̡ ͘let ̸ang͏eŕ ̨clou̴d̷ ͝my͞ j͟u͟d̕gęmén̴t?͝!͠ I'͟m͠ sti̷ll̢ as con͘scio̷u͠s as͞ ͢b̡e҉ ̛fi͡re͠ th̴i̵s ͝tr̨an̶s̀f͞o̴r͏m̴a̵tíon,̢ I̕ ̕wa͟s ͞oņly ͏w̛a҉nti͠ng҉ ͞to ̕enḑ ̧t̡hi̢s͘ ̷f̡ig̡ht ͘qu̕i̶c̶k҉ly ̨by̶ att́ack̀i̷n̨g͡ ̴w̷it͏h ̧thośe҉ s͠l̡i̷g̷h̢t̡ly ͝chárg̷e͡d͡ ͜at͢ta̴cks̢!̛ Ļi̵mi͝te͝d ̡su͜p̸pl̕y ̢o̡f̕ ҉e̛nerg͝y͢? H͏a̸h!̧ Yea҉h͝...͜k̸èep th͝ińk̴i͜ng̡ ̕ţh͢a҉t͘, beca̸us̕e I ̀c̷an͏ g̶o ̀for ͞all̷ e̴t̴eŕnit̸y̸!̴"
Metal shot out of the cloud with his claw open. Once he was close enough to Alpha he swiped his claw. The world seemed to freeze for a second before claw marks were embedded in reality. Alpha had just barely dodge the attack that would have surely killed him, seeing as Metal had just destroyed parts of the universe's reality with one swipe of his claw.
“Hmm, that could prove pr-” Alpha was cut off when Metal suddenly appeared in front of him and grabbed him by the throat. Metal chuckled darkly before shooting upwards and flying up to past the planet's atmosphere. He let go of Alpha when Gravity was weak enough to just have him float there. Metal then proceeded to add his speed to his arms and rapidly swiped his claws at Alpha, the areas of reality behind him being damaged in the process.
Metal then formed into his spindash, which was covered in large a cloud of dark red mist and slammed into Alpha, causing the nightmare to shoot down towards the planet's surface.
"̣͖͓͞I̘̱͜'͔̳̦̳̜͓v̖̲ę͚͔ l̩̺̟̠̪͚̼e̩͎̱̹ṯ͖͚͈͇ ̩͙̟̟̺̰͚y͖̗̙̖͇o͢u͍̩ ̡̼̳̥l͢i̞͍͖͖̲̩͉v̤̥e̹ ̗̣͍͓̙l̴͎͕on͚g͟ ̙̲͙̲̫ę̩͍̙͇̫nͅo͎̪͔̯u̴͙̹̜g̤̣͓͓̗͙h͇͕̹!͖̱̜͎͕̫"͈̺̟͙
Metal held out both of his hands and built up,energy while also charging energy in his chest laser. Once a large ball of violent red energy was built up he aimed it at the planet.
“D͖̼̩̜̗͖͝Í̢̲̰͖̭̭Ȩ͙̮̙̰͎̖͇ͅ!̧̠͟͟!̨̲̦̻̥̙̳̙͈͞!̧͟͏̺̻"̢҉̹
Metal punched the large ball and sent a spiralling ray of destruction towards the planet. As it descended he just watched it from the bottom of his eye while clenching his fists tightly. He knew full well what he was doing, he would end up killing Lisa and Gale in the process, but he didn't care anymore, he didn't care about anything anymore. All he wanted, was for everything to burn.
Then, his planet destroying ball of energy was hit with a blast of energy and exploded. Metal looked to the side to see…
"͉̯̟͎͝W̛̳̲̜̬̹̬̖ͅh͈̟̠̤̼͉ͅͅó͇͎͖͉̰͟ͅ ͏̰̗̱͝t҉̱̰̫h̝͓̼̼͙̙̀͘ͅe̴̟̭̱̹͢ͅͅ ͔̙̗̞h̞͙̹͔͠ͅḙ̲̭͡ͅl̜͇̹͍͖̩̯͢l̴̴̮͔̥͖͚͕̥̱̕ ̷̧̥͎͓̳̦͎͠a͙͍̰̰̖̜͎̭r͏̧̪̳͕̟̲͕̼e҉̹̥̪ ̛̱̞̜͈͖̘́͠ͅy̡̥͙̠͔͕̼̹̳̰o̶̸͇̠̦̺̜̯ͅu̹̞̹̳̻͈?̢̬̩͕͇͈̘̥̙̝̀"̧̠̹̼̺̤̕
His gaze was focused on some sort of, bipedal creature with robotic lion armor. In short, imagine Mega Man’s beast out mode, but instead of it showing his eyes with the lion head bit above them, it was now just a robotic lion head. The unknown newcomer looked at him.
“Come on Metal. Does this form make me look all that different?” When he talked, his mouth opened revealing sharp teeth. His voice sounded familiar. It sounded like…
"̛̪͚̘̲͔̱̕G͏̻̝̀͘ḁ̵̻̖̦̦̣̲l̞͈ę̟͙?̴̬͖̜̜̟̭̯͔"̨͘͏̯̱̮͓̟͚̟̰͓
“The one and only.”
"͚̪̩̩W͏̨̗h̬͙̟̬̮͞ͅͅá̸̼̝t̛҉̱͈̪͔ ̥̦̥͖͇͜t̶͎͉̳̜͉͕̰͔̫h҉̱ę̘́͢ͅ ̛̱̗̘̹̀̕h̴̸̦͕͠e̛̘̼̦͙̠͉l̲͕͙͖̝̀͢l̤̬͘ ̧̲̫̣̫̤a̮̝̦̥̺͉̼ͅr̖̹̬͔͇͇̕e͏̸̗̪̙͔͈̣ ̧̛̻͎͚̼ỳ̨͇̞͎̫̮̣̺o̼̱̰u̢͓͇͍̳͍̬̹̫ ͉͈͓̤͎̱ͅd̛̳̻͇͚̭o͇̫͚̪̞͇̹ì͙̟̺͇̘̫̝̺͡n̳̮͍͕ͅg̲͉͓̀͢͢?̻̱̳͖͘!̶̼͓̺̻̜̜̬"̫̺
“Saving my girlfriend, as well as the home to countless civilians. What, you’d think I’d just let you destroy the planet? We may be friends Metal, but I’m not gonna let you go that far.”
"̷̳͙͍H͈̜͔̼̦̗̝o͏̪͕͖͕͜ẁ̵̫͎̝̣ ҉̬̠͢d͍͖̘͚͖̥̤̱ḭ̴̮̗̘͚̻͙ͅd҉̸̣̹̮ ̶̖̖͍y̟̳̙̹͕̮͜͢ͅo̡̖̦̬̗̮̤̼u̡̗̟̜͔͓͎ͅ ͏̤̟̬e̢̥̬̱̗͉͘v̧̼ḛ͙̪͚̖̩̙n̻̺̯̙͞ ̴̢͇͓͙̩m̱͍͙̕a͏̞̯͓̗n̮͕̬̣̪͘ͅa̛̛͚̺͚͞g̷̨̱͖̦͉̩̗̘͔̗e̶̢͎̜̟ ̰̬̩̗̮̻͉̜͢t͔̟̣͜o̭͙̺̣̫̜̞̮ ̷̻͖g̩̥̼̹̩e̟̝͚͢t̰͍̳̭́ ̡͍̼̦͞u͙̤̙̹͖̬̹͢p̥̳̳̞͇̪͉͝ͅ?̸̛̞͕"͇̭̜̘
“Simple, stopped my systems from repairing my body and had them all focus on energy build up. Figured if I entered a super form, I’d be back at peak physical condition. Looks like I was right.”
"̸̱̟͉͔͈̗͘͝I̲̭̱̣͍'̢̭͚̬̘v͚̳͕̜̱e̡̞͎͇̪͘ ̟͇̼̟͜n҉̧̭̮̗̜͕̳e̠͢v̪̮̘͉̮e̴̵̝̼̩̟͉̟̭r̠̻ ͔̩̮̗̲͙͖̜͞s͉̘͚͓̗̱͖e̠̲͍͙͕͍͈͙̹͘e̠̰̖̪n͚̙̰̜͉͘͝ ͙̬͉̠̦̯̱͠͡a̭̟͖̬̺̝ ̗̯̻̺͓̞f͔̳̟̲̘͖̤ǫ̙̘̱͚̣̩ṟ̴̦̦͍̭͔͘m̫̝̱͕̥̭̳͙͜ ͏̸͎̩̜̗͟s̸̷͚̱̝̼͜u҉̷̣̘̣̰͙͟c̶̖ͅh̫̭̺̦̖͘͞ ̸̧̗̟̥̮͢ạ͈̝̯̪͈̗͉͘͟͞s̳͘̕ ̢̛̺͖̘̕t̨̠̻͎͠h̬̖̘́i̡̟͉̜̱͠ş̺̜̘̩͚͚͞.͠҉̫̳ ͝҉̵͇̤̦Ḥ̷̗̘͔̲͚̬̭̀o̸͚̭͙͖͉͞w̡̟̱͘ ̛̝̳̟͈̬̭̲d̸͎̙͈͍͡i̢͇͕̺ḑ̴̜̻̯̬͍̹ ̣̹̞̺y̵̵̺̣o̟͎̥̜̦͈̱̕u̸̦̺̠͘ ̣͖̗͖m̵̢̻̳̺ạ͓n̨̲̩̪̮̫̘̝̪͝ḁ̵̣̮̦̰͜g̢͍̬͈̝̘̲̗̦e̵̡̝͡ ̡̹̫͝t̸̜̗̣̙̻͜o͏̺͓̝͉̜̤̜ͅ ̴̗̦̫͕̥͇ͅt̖̺͖͎̲r͕͓͓̣a̸̰͇ṉ̣͈͉̀s̖̲f͎̯͍̥͉͕̠͓̬o̵̮̹̱̫̺͟͟r͕̟̣m̢̙̲͇̯̦͔̺̘͠ ̖͓̱͘l̷͚͇i̱̙̺̺k͏͖̙̮͙̻͝ͅe̕҉̜̗́ ̨̙͔̦̻͚͉͕t̥̘͙̖̕͜h̵̻͈͉͝á̡̖̞̹̩̙̳̤t͉̞̥͉̘̬͉͝?̵̷̢̝̖̤̥̠̼̪̮͙"̱̪͓̦͚̟̞́ͅ
“You met my pet Gregar right? Well, let’s just say he’s got a few… special functions.” Gale smirked as Metal hardened his glare.
"͍̬̺̠̕Y̨͇̟̕͞o̧̘̦̗͡u̷̝͚̥͙͚͔ ̷̴̦̭̫m̪͈̲̦̪̭̝͜͞ͅe͏̷̳͓a̶͇̗͈͙̘͎͡n̹̲̻͚̞͓ ̩͟͡t̷̰̜͕̞͡o̖ͅ ͔̩̫̝̙͕̱̭̙͜s̵͉̠͈̭t̰̞͎̘͝ó҉͖̯̮̜̻̦̣͕p̳̻̰͝͡ ͙͉̘m̧̲̻̩̣͉̰͓͚͠e͈̭̙͓,̸̩͔͔͕̗̺͙̜̕ ͓̗̱̮̖͈̖f͔͖̩̹͡͝r̬͓̯̯͖̖̪o̬̞̦̠͘͢m̴̨̘̪̖̤̝̠͟ͅ ̧̯̦͇̩͡ḏ̳͉͈͔e̶̵͚̣s͈̜̫̗͕͕͜t҉̡̥r͉o͍̦̗̱̠͙͉̬͞y̡̡̧̳͇i͏̞̰͖̝͇̪̟̳̖͠n҉͈̺͓͉̜̬̮̝͞g͏̡̘̪̘̤͓͢ ̙͔̱̼͎̦h̰̩͝i̶̜̟̜̳̱̥͎̜͇m̖͓̜̪̤̖̗̰?̮̬͇̣͜"̢̦͚̗͈͡
Metal pointed a corrupted finger at Alpha. Gale looked at him and shook his head.
“What? No no no. I’ll deal with him soon enough. But for now,” he turned to Metal, “I need to deal with the one thing that threatens an entire planet far more than that Nightmare does.” Metal stared at him, before he started to laugh. His laughter grew louder and more insane by the second before he stopped and looked at Gale.
"̵͕͈̲Y̨̟̰͙o̮̙̘ú͈̮ ̸̯͙̲͇t̷̢̪ͅh͏̩͡į̴̳̟̫͉͉̻ņ̤̹̤̘̘̬̭̟k̲̩͈̘͖ ̧̙͍̦̝͖͍y̴̼͉̫̥̳ͅo̵͎͍ư̪̗̤̳̹̥͡ ̦̖̀͜c̘̪̝̻̕͟ͅa̶͓͓̹n҉̸̲̻̻̰̘̜ ̦̬̫̝̹̘͡͠s̢͎̙͙͇̘̬̩̳͘t̻̞̗̀ͅò͈̼̙͈͡p͠҉̜̰̺ ̴̟̱̠̮͇̬͖̕͠m̜̲͈̮͍̼̠̪͜͞ͅe̠̲̤̜̖?̷̛͍͎̬͙̞̼"̙̯̣
Gale smirked, as if accepting the challenge.
“Don’t believe me?” He crouched a bit, getting into a fighting stance. “Just watch.”
Suddenly he was right in front of Metal. Metal didn’t have time to react before an intense amount of force was plowed into his gut in the form of a kick. He was sent flying with surprising speed before he recovered.
"̢̨҉̦̮W̵̡̺͍̫̖̙ͅh̛͔̗̩ḁ̖̻̪͢t͝͏̼͔̖̦͘ͅ ̧̢͉͈͇͍̬͠t̷̮͍̙̬͔̕ͅh̯̘̗ę͖̠͚̼̪̜́ͅ ̴̪̤̲̖̕h̠̱̟̦̺̞͝e̛̞̩̺̜͜l͏͖̯̥̫̺̫͇͈̖͘l҉͇̲͇͚̳͍̣͚̜͠?̸̗͈͍͚̝̞̦̱͚͡"̴̲͉̭̫̜͠
“You may have the advantage in energy right now Metal. But in the speed and physical strength department,” he got into a fighting stance, keeping himself loose as he bounced on his feet, “let’s just say you’re outclassed.”
With a grunt, Metal went at Gale full speed, wanting to prove him wrong. However, Gale was suddenly gone, and an unexpected kicked was being delivered into Metal's side. He was flung a good distance before he recovered. He quickly looked around, trying to pinpoint Gale. He found him, but not where he would have liked. Gale was suddenly in front of him, and started throwing punches. Metal could barely bring up his arms to defend before the fists hit their mark. He blocked a few before he attempted to swipe at Gale with a laser blade. Gale just moved forward, rolled over Metal's back, before he made a low sweep with his legs. Tripping Metal up, he got a clear shot by bringing his hands together and slamming them into his gut. Metal was sent downwards the planet before he once again recovered.
This was impossible. Gale should be easy for Metal to defeat. So why was he doing so bad? He did admit, Gale was pretty fucking fast right now. Faster than he could be without losing control. Physical strength was on a whole nother level too. What was going on? Metal didn’t have time to question it as he saw Gale flying towards him. He ready a fist and threw it forwards, causing it to collide with Gale’s already incoming punch. The resulting force created a shockwave so massive, the very planet shook.
Metal had put a lot of energy into that punch. Gale had too, and to compensate for what he couldn’t match up energy wise, he used physical power to counter Metal’s attack. The two separated before they started going at it. Metal’s fighting style was fierce and deadly. He would make powerful strikes, and try to land as many fatal blows as possible. His ferocity made him dangerous, and his power just added to that.
Gale’s fighting style on the other hand, was loose and flexible. His attacks were quick and skillful, hitting points that were breaking Metal’s defence. He kept up his momentum in order to make powerful strikes, as well as to keep himself moving. This allowed him to dodged whenever Metal went in for a fatal blow. His physical strength also provided an advantage.
Gale had thought he had the upper hand, he was wrong. Metal had taken no damage whatsoever, and his energy levels were the same as the beginning of the fight. “Ok, that could be a problem.”
“Y͙͖̜̫o͏͉u̜̜̗̫̟ ̧͖̤̺̞̤̰̹i̵̙͚̱̯̲͇͍d͓̩̙̦i̳̝̺͈̫̞o͉̦ţ̞̠̥̫.͔̬̗͔"̛̹͍͔͖
Gale just looked to Metal who was shaking his head in disapproval.
̜"̮͓̠̜̲D̳̘̼͖id͈̖̖̞̪ ̴̜͖̗̹y̩̺̦̱̦̺o̮u͔͇̺̯̭͉̱ ̫̻̗̟͉r̥̤͞e҉͈̜̜̻̼̼a̹̫l̺͕̹̗̠ĺ͇̱y͏͔̙̩͎̣ ͍̺͚̬̤̰͡t̕h̗͎̯̖̜͝i͚͈̩n̻̕k̜̮̻ͅ ̖I͉̻̼ ̠̞̖g̘̦̹̩͚̗̤a̵͇̥̰̟v͡e̛̜̼ ͈̬̱̝̗͟u̝̣p̯̟͙͕͓̣͜ ̜̠̼̺̟͈͢m̡̜y̧̭̲̝̭̼̼ ̗̥̫͈̀s̛p̴̫̦̖͓̞̪ee͖͇͍d̦͙?̠̘ ̞D̢̬̖̞̙̠̪i̫̤̙d͔̗͇̰ ̮̘̤̭y̠͔̫o̦̰͇̲̪͎u̺ ̪n̹̝̝͕̯̗̜o̙̙̪ṯ̞͉̤͔ t͖h̞̻̼͡i̙n̩͍ͅk̩͓̻͚ ̻̳͇͖̣̬̮th̳̘̣̻̗̫̣a̟̦t̺̘͖̞̯̲̫ ̯͙̯͎̰I͙̭̦͉̤ͅ ̟͎w̳̫͈̩o͖u̗̭͕ͅḽ̗͓̜̥d͖̤͍̬̹͎ ̧g̭͙͍̞͞e̟t̷̬͉̘̝̠̘̮ ̙̫̺̭̜́f̱̙͠ͅa̴͙̰̥̙̲͕̗s̭͓̼t̹͈̤̫͠ḛ̻͙̺͓̩r̖͠?̜͚͚͈̥͓̘"̮̤̖
Metal just smirked and was suddenly in front of Gale before grabbing him by the throat.
"Yo͝u͏r̡ ͠m͝is͜t͘a͞ke w̴as forgettin͟g͢ t̸ha̸t̵ I̶ ̶c̡a̴n ͠inst̵an͏t͟l͏y̷ ̡ch͟an͝g̡e m͢y ͟fi̧g͞hti̸n͠ǵ ̢s͢ty̡ļe͢,͜ I̢ ̛w̛an͠t͜e̵d̨ ͘t͠o̷ give̢ y͟ou a s̶wìft ̕d̶ea̛t͢h, ̨but no̸w it̴ ̕w̴i̧ll̀ ҉hav̕e͏ tǫ ̷be͢ p̀aìn̛fùl."
Metal suddenly disappeared and Gale was bombarded by rapid strikes, each less than a millisecond from each other. When Gale managed to grab Metal, Metal quickly placed a hand on Gale’s chest and blasted him point blank before forming into his spindash and shooting towards Gale who was thrown back. Gale prepared to block the homing attack but as Metal was only a few centimeters from impact he changed his course and hit Gale in the back.
Gale expected him to break away but he was wrong. What followed was a relentless barrage of homing attacks, each immediately after the other. When Gale managed to get his shield up his eyes widened as Metal came out of his spindash and spin kicked the shield, shattering it effortlessly and allowing him to fire a charged chest beam into Gales face.
Gale steadied himself and met Metal with a glare. ‘This isn't good, I didn't expect him to adapt so quickly. Hmm, looks like I’ll have to move to plan B.’ Metal lifted up a his hand and charged up a ball of energy.
"̨͏̖͍̰̹ͅN̺̬̗̱͎͙̼̘͢͡o̶̩͍͉͞w̧̛̻̻͙͡,̵͓̰͈̖̺͔̕͞ ̲̻̯̳̭̱̠p̯͚̤͈̜̕ͅŗ̮̹̖͕̺͔͠ͅe͎̠͟p̸̜̺͚̤̹̹á̩͚͍̕r̸͏̘̣̩͈̼̲̠͜e̸̮̱͡ ͏͎̖̙t̵͏̟̣̩͍̥̺͢ọ̴̰̰ ̴̛͔̯̤̥̳̩̫̖D͏̷̙̥̀I҉͎͚̤̦̝̥͍̻E҉̰̦ͅ!̰̰̱̯͖"̨͎̱̯
Gale sighed. “I didn’t want to have to do this Metal, but you leave me with no choice.” Metal was about to question when Gale closed his eyes. Suddenly, they reopened and they were green.
”APOCALYPSE HYPER METAL SONIC SCAN COMPLETE.” Gale’s voice had gone monotone and robotic. Before Metal could figure out what that meant, Gale’s eye turned red. ”REPLICATING”
A burst of energy rushed through Gale as a copy of Metal’s apocalypse magic built up inside of him. His body turned crimson, giant dragon wings formed from red smoke seeping out of his back. He vanished, then appeared behind Metal as he delivered a roundhouse kick. Metal was sent flying. He quickly recovered and gazed at Gale’s new form.
"̲̮͈͈̖̟̩H̷̤͇͍̳̘̬͓͓̀o̡̟̯̫͓̬w͏̛͙ͅ?͜͏̣̰̫͕ ̢̫͖͖̻̗̯̟̕H̢͈̬͉̳̤̼̺o̡͎̤̖̞͇͕̱̰͡ͅw͝͏̩͖̜͚̤̫͍̙͟ ҉̙̘̳͎i̮̮͚ͅs͕͈͔̥͙̞̮͘ ̸̜̱t̴͇̠̦̖͎̬h͉͓̫̠̫͠ͅi͔̪s̵̶͉̤̟̩̰͖ ̙̫̺̥̣̳̰̭͝p̨҉̦͇̭̗̟͘ó̩͖̘̪͎s̨̩̙̝̗̪͓͍̲͝s͖̟͚̻̳̭̹͚̪̀į̬͍͇̺̞͙͔ͅb͍̫̳̱̮̫̩̙͘͞l̵͙̘̱̞̲̣̩e̦̣̹̼̩̻̝̕͢?̷͇̳̙͎́̕!̸̤͞"̣͈͍̣
Gale said nothing. He simply charged, crimson laser blade at the ready. Metal summoned a lunar blade before returning the assault. They clashed blades and began trading blows. They started fighting at impossible speeds, time seeming to slow around them as they fought. Each strike was met with another. Every attack blocked and countered, which only resulted in a blocking from the other combatant. However, they were not completely equal. After all, Gale still had a little bit of a boost from his previous forms. This gave him just enough to dodge, and land a deadly blow on Metal. Metal swung one of his lunar blades, but Gale dodged and plowed his own laser blade into Metal’s chest. He knocked him away and fired a blast of energy.
Metal managed to recover, but not before getting hit by that blast of energy. He glared at Gale. So, no matter what he did, Gale could copy it and add it to his arsenal? Metal wasn’t feeling so invincible anymore.
However, unbenounced to him, Gale was having a hard time keeping it together. The sudden addition of energy was putting a huge strain on his body, as it was not able to gain the power naturally. The reason he didn’t speak was because his voice box was turned off. In fact, every non essential thing except for body movement, energy control, and eyesight, were turned off in order to focus on keeping this new form from breaking apart.
’Gale, this form won’t last very long before your body overloads and discharges the energy. You must end this quickly.’ Gale nodded. He thought that it was pretty cool that while fused, Gregar could work as some sort of AI for Gale. But he was right. He needed to end this, fast. He looked up at Metal, an internally cringed.
Because of the overflow of energy rampaging through his body, even the slightest movement caused him serious pain. He had even turned his pain receptors off, but the system that allowed for that had been damaged, so he was still feeling the full brunt of this uncontrollable strength. Thankfully, he could power through it. At least…
… he hoped he could.
With another mental grunt Gale shot forwards and spin dashed into Metal. Metal attempted to put up a defence, but it was in vain. He was knocked back, and Gale forced the Apocalypse magic into his robotic quills, causing them to shred Metal worse than they usually would have. He uncurled and kicked Metal with his heel, sending him down towards the planet. He immediately followed, catching up to Metal and began beating him senseless. He punched, kicked, stabbed, and blasted, before he tackled Metal into the ground, creating a massive crater. Gale recovered quickly and jumped a short distance away from Metal before he started charging up again.
Charging up the attack was taking longer than normal however. All of that movement had put Gale through an agony of the likes he had never felt. Not even Metal’s strikes when he was only fused with Gregar hurt this much. He couldn’t put all his focus into the attack, there was just too much pain to deal with. He saw Metal get up, and look at him with surprise.
’Well, here goes nothing!’ Gale moved to fire off his attack.
But then his systems overloaded.
The energy was too much, his body couldn’t handle it anymore. Without getting that strength naturally, there was no way his body would have been able to adapt to it fast enough. Electricity flowed inside and outside his body as unimaginable pain coursed throughout his being. He shouted in pain, his voice now turned back on, as the wild and corrupted copied apocalypse magic shot out of him in all directions before immediately disappearing.
Metal watched as his best friend cried out in torture. The apocalypse magic was now leaving his body, seeming to do as much damage as possible to him before it left. Metal felt sorrow for his friend and wanted to help. And yet, for some reason…
… he smiled.
As the last of the apocalypse magic finally left his body, Gale collapsed onto the floor. He wasn't unconscious, but he was in such pain he might as well be. Metal walked up to his friend and began to charge up a blast.
"̷T͞h̵̨͞a̴̵t̸ wa҉̕s ̕͡q҉͢͝ų̛i̡̛t̴͞e̸̢̛ ́͝a v̧́͝a̡͞ĺ̢͏i̶̷͟a͞n͢͞t̡͡ ͢e̸̢̧f͏͞f͠ort̵̵ ҉̵G̴̢͜a̵͝l͏̨e͠͞,̶̴ ͜b̡u̴t̡ ͞I̕'̸̕͟m̶͢ ҉á͞f͞r̢͜a̢̢i̵̢͝d̕͟҉ ͠i͞t̸ w҉a̛͜ş̛̕n'͏t̕ ̀͞҉e̸nǫ̛͏u̡g҉҉̕h̵̛.̵̛ ̵̕͞Ḩơw̨͠e͝v̷̡é͘͟r̡̛,̶͘ ́͟c͟͠ò͟ǹs̵̡i͟d̡̢er̴̵i͜ń̢̨g̸ t͟͏h̴e͢ ̕͜m̴͞͏a̢͘s͡s̵͠iv͏́͞e͏̡̕ a̧m҉̵où̡n̵̡ţ ͘o̕҉͟f̶͝͡ ̸̸̴p̶͝a̧͝͠i̵̡n҉̕ y̵͜͝ơ͠u̸̶͘ ͜͡j̡͡u͏̷st̶͟ ̴̀̕w̵̵è͝nt̵͠ ҉͞t̵̡ḩ́r̶͏͏o͠ug̵̵h͘, ̸҉̢I̵̡̕ ś͜͡u̕͢p̧͜͝pose͝ ̵Ì̕'̷l̸̨͜l̸̀ ͞s͘h̴͡͝o̴͜w̛ ͏͡͏m̨̛e̸r͟͏c̀́͟y̸ a̵̛͢n̷͜d ̷̀͢k͠ill͜ ̀̀͝y͟o̶u͏̕ ̛n͢ow̕͜.͝҉ ͘D҉͢o̢n̵̷'̢t̢͟ ́̀͢w̕ǫ͘͟r̢͠͝r҉̀͞ỳ,̡ I̶'͜҉l҉̷̷l̶͟͡ ̡̀m̕ak̛ȩ̢̕ ̷̢҉ít̷ ̵̛q̧̡͟u͜͢i̕͢ć̨̢ķ̷͠ ͏͡ą̶nd̀ ̴p̴a҉̴ínl̴̡e̵͠s̀s̷.̷̸"̕͜͝
Gale struggled to look up at his friend.
“So, this is the thanks I get? For coming all this way, just to save your ass? Heh, I should have expected it I guess. Fine then, kill me. But if you do, then you’ll lose everyone you hold dear, you know that right? Luna will think of you as a monster, Rainbow will be terrified of you, Lisa will hate you to no end, and Samantha would probably think you’ve become another Martin.” Metal stopped, looking at Gale with suspicion.
"͏̞̮̹̩͇͉̬W̨̲͖̫̣̪̥̠̯h̵̢͔̹̲̥̬͇̹̠̟͝a҉̦͇̠͉́͝t͉̳̮͔͔͈̺͕́͘ ̻̞̠̥̕a҉̸͙̗̩͇͖̺̠͡ŗ̳̘̱͇̘͝e͇̬͎̝ ̟̣͕y̗̥̺̜͘͞o̷̡̢͎̰͓͔̠̖ͅu̫̫̝̭̯̩̬ ̘͚̖̝͖͍ͅt̸̨̰̹a͔̘͜͢ḻ͙̬͡k͍̲͚͙̥̞̗͕̲i̭̪̣̝͖̮͖n̖̬̙͔͟g͍̦͈̠ͅ ̢҉̭ͅa̧̭̻̙̹̬̝͕̦͢b̳͈̰̟́o̫u̖̤͜t̶̸̗̰͉̮͢?̸̩̞̫͔̮̲ ̨͏̤̗͢S͏̩̲̺̤̩̩a͇̥̙̖͡ͅm͘҉͍͙̫̦̩͚a͎͉̞̥̞͎͜n̨͚̯͙͉̗͚̮̙̹͘t̕҉̳͖ͅḥ̶̢͈́a̴҉̣̰̲̜̞̤̮̩ ̡̹̗͠ͅi̧̳̰̫͙͝s̴̨̩̮ ͖̼̲̙̭̠̬̜̝g̬̬͈̩̱̤̭̯o҉̶̜͕̙n̤̙̠̩͕̦͇̱é͓͇̘̙̲̣̮͢͠!̸̧̘̩̖̰̯̰"̸͈̯
Gale chuckled.
“Yeah? Your point? Symbol was gone, but now he’s been hanging out at my world for a little bit. My brother was gone, but now he’s getting married. Hell, I was gone, but I’m here now aren’t I?” Metal was even more confused. What was Gale getting at? “Look Metal, we know plenty of forces that can bring Samantha back. For instance, reality stars, the Soul Carin, other displaced or displacers with some power over souls. They can help bring Samantha back. Hell,” Gale slowly but surely got up and looked his closest friend in the eye, “there are probably some forces that would bring her back, whether we want her to or not. She may be dead, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still save her. I mean, even if DEATH himself has her soul right now, Epidemic and Symbol together could probably beat him senseless and bring Samantha back.”
Metal wasn’t sure whether or not he wanted to believe what he was hearing. Could… Could they really bring her back? Gale made it sound so simple and yet… was it possible?
"͙̀͡͞Ỵ̡̰͈o̯͔̥̪̗̟̲͢͝u̢͚̜̖̜̳.̛̜͔͎͇̖̤̗ͅ.̷͍͕͖̀͞.̧͓͈̯̰̘̳͖́ͅ ҉ͅY͕̩̳̳̼͠o͓͉͈̗̲̙͓u̵͔̙͢ ̷̸̧̜̥̠̘̯͇̞̮̜c͚̫̺a̴̩͇̮̦̩̗̜n̤'̦̝̺͓̹t̸̤͉ͅ ̴̳̼̥͓b̸͙̼̼͖̰̯̫͎̙̕ę͍̖̣ ͓͍̫̼͜s̵̨͓̩̥̳̱̠ę͙͚̘͕͓̝̬͡ͅr̛̖̮̣͝i̧̝̩̬̮̖͈͔͈̠̕͟o͚͉̼̪̕u̮͉͎̹͉̣̼s͚̝͘͝.̶͈̯̟̜̲"̵͍̥̮͓
Gale smiled. “I can be, and I am. But, in order to make that happen, you need to calm down. After all, I don’t think you harem would apreciate the head male being a corrupted monster would they?”
Inside of Metal, something snapped back into place. His pain was starting to dissipate, his anger was evaporating. Gale must have noticed this, because he nodded his head approvingly. Metal grabbed the side of his head and grunted in pain as his quills began to get shorter and his body began to change back to normal. Once he was back to his usual self he fell onto his hands and knees. Closing his eyes he punched the ground, a feeling of shame washing over him as he realized what he had just tried to do.
“Alright, isn’t that better? Now come on! We’ve got a girl to-” Gale sentence was cut off as a laser blade stabbed through his chest. He stopped, shocked, and shakily turned his head around.
What he saw, was the Alpha.
“Sorry there Gale, but we can’t have Metal get back to normal just yet. That would interfere with our plans. To insure that something like this doesn’t happen again, I’m afraid I’ll have to kill you.” With that, he drew back his blade, and roundhouse kicked Gale’s head off.