Sonic the Hedgehog characters are ŠSega/Dic/Archie.
WELCOME BACK. THIS CHAPTER HAS A LOT LESS ACTION, BUT IT'S GOOD. TRUST ME ON THIS ONE. IT ALSO FILLS IN THE BLANKS OF WHAT'S GOING ON, SO YOU REALLY SHOULDN'T PASS IT UP.
"Masters of the Game"
Chapter 2
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This couldn't be. Tails was entered in this...
Sonic got on his motorcycle and revved up the engine. He wished he'd never entered this stupid thing! Now he would be forced to... off his once best friend.
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Welcome to post-apocalyptic Mobius. I believe explainations are in order.
As you may have guessed, things have gone horribly wrong. Robotnik has won. He ensnared the entire world with his evil brand of justice. He did, however, stop roboticizing people; he decided it would get too boring that way. He had much more fun tormenting those who still retained their free will.
He destroyed Knothole Village as soon as he found it. The Freedom Fighters built many more bases of operation, but he always found them and wiped them off the map. Eventually, they became free agents, giving up on being a team and working solo. They found this to be rough as well, so many of them gave up and got some kind of jobs. This was very hard to do, as they had to find places that would let a former resistance member onto their workforce. In other words, things are bad.
But many found hope in the form of a contest.
It was called simply "End Game." You outwit the opponents all across the continent to beat the odds and become the Master of the Game.
The rules were simple: two guns, no bombs, winner take all. They were to eliminate the other contenstants until there was only one living to collect his prize- the rich life. Unlimited money, a paid-for condo in Robotropolis, and nothing to worry about for the rest of your life.
Assuming you would still actually have it when the contest ended. In order to win, everyone else had to lose... their lives. To kill was to gain a step in the right direction. Grab their tags, and you get credit for it, credit to be used toward extra ammo, food, and whatever you need.
Posters for it were everywhere, and many of the former Freedom Fighters jumped at the chance. They had nothing to lose, and everything to gain. It was the way out of the poverty-stricken miserable existence they now knew all too well. As much as they hated the prospect, they were desperate for a guarantee of an end to it all. Win or lose, you would never go hungry again.
But, obviously, the game was not without it's... disadvantages. You had to ice _everyone_ on the list to win. No exceptions.
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It was almost noon by the time Sonic reached Bolero. He needed to refuel, and not just his motorcycle.
The gas station attendent looked at him funny when he handed him the dogtag with the barcode as payment, but he scanned it without saying anything about it. Sonic headed out to his bike with a bag of beef jerky and a ginger ale.
He wanted to find a hotel to crash for a while, even though he just woke up a few hours ago. The rules said he couldn't hunt until 10 PM, and he wanted to rest up a bit. The next playing field, Radical City, wasn't far, about 15 miles. He'd been in a friendly race there once, against the very people he had to... he shut his brain off from the subject. He just wanted to have a peaceful evening.
There, up the road a bit. Sleep Inn. What an original name. Well, their rooms were probably crappy, but that meant they were cheap. He only had a little credit left on his tag, and he didn't want to use Nack's unless he really needed to. He pulled out the weasel's tag and looked at the lavender-grey spot on the front. He had four of these, but he only had Nack's barcode left, as he'd used up the others allready. Bars. He'd sworn off drinking after the second day. He almost got wasted in both connotations.
As he got to the hotel parking lot, he saw a girl on the corner, dressed in a tight leather mini skirt, platform shoes and a halter top. {Can't I stop in a decent town?} he asked himself. {Bolero's not much better than South-}
The girl looked oddly familiar.
He pulled his key out of the ignition and walked over to her. That dark red-brown hair, her thinly build... he knew it from somewhere. As he got closer to her, she still didn't turn around. He tapped her on the shoulder.
"Hey."
She turned around to face him. She had deep blue eyes that got wider when they saw the mysterious guy in the jacket. She started to back away.
"Wait, don't go. I know you."
She stopped. "I don't remember you, but if you're back-" She hesitated, then looked hard into his face. "Now that you mention it, you do look a little familiar."
The voice was starting to jog his memory. It seemed like the harder he pressed for her name, the faster he came up empty. "It seems like I used to know you a long time ago... but I can't..."
She suddenly gasped. "Oh, my- Sonic?!"
That was all it took to break the wall in his mind. "S-Sally?!"
She ran into his arms. "Geez, it's been forever! Oh my God, what are you doing here? I haven't seen you in ages!"
"Sal! I can't believe it! I didn't think I'd ever see you again!" He pulled away and looked into her face. "How've you been?!"
The squirrel brushed a stray hair out of her face. "Okay, considering. What about you? What have you been doing since everything?"
Sonic almost told her, then thought better of it. "N-nothin' much. Just hangin' around."
"'Hangin' around' in Bolero? Nobody comes here on purpose."
"Well, what are you doing here, then?"
"It's a long story." She sat down on the curb. "To make it short, the trucker I was hitchhiking with wouldn't take me any farther."
He looked at her hard as he plunked down next to her. "You, hitchhike? That doesn't sound like the Sal I knew."
She looked away. "Things change."
"I know." The guns hidden under his jacket were a constant reminder of that.
"You aren't telling me everything, Sonic."
"Neither are you, Princess."
She winced. "I'm no princess. I'm just a once-was. Now that big, stupid, oily, metallic sicko is the only existing royalty."
"Yeah. Too bad we couldn't change it when we had the chance."
"If only-" She was interrupted by a car horn. They looked up to see a goofy young zebra roll down the window of his red sports car.
"This look good to ya?" He yelled, holding out a $20 bill.
She stood up and yelled some things at him that Sonic couldn't believe were really coming from her mouth. The kid returned the favor and raced off.
She sat back down and covered her face with her hands. "Twenty. The nerve."
Sonic stood up and backed away. "So."
She looked up at him, a sorrowful look playing at her features. "I know, I know. What else am I supposed to do, huh? Starve? Die?"
"You don't need this. Anything is better than this crap, Sal."
She stood, voice hot with pent-up anger. "Like what? Minimum wage at a fast food joint? I don't know anything about working for those places. I know how to fight and strategize. I can't lift those heavy boxes all day long, or weld girders together. This... this is me." She leaned against the traffic light.
He felt a pang. How could something this atrocious happen? He moved toward the poor soul.
She gave him an even gaze. "Decide you like my profession? Want to sample the merchandise, do you? Go ahead."
He stopped. That wasn't fair. "Fine. You've made your bed. Now you have to sleep in it. Over and over again." He pulled out a $20. "Here. Don't spend it on drugs or anything. You can keep your... commodity." He turned to the inn.
"Sonic..."
He looked back at her. She was on the verge of tears. "I... I'm sorry. Thank you." She ran over and hugged him tightly. "I'm just so tired of doing it... selling my flesh so cheap, night after night. I want out, I- I really do..." She bawled on his shoulder.
"It's allright." He rubbed her back tenderly. He knew she couldn't have changed that much. "We do what we can to stay alive." He choked on his next words. "E... even kill."
She pulled away sharply. "Wh-what?"
He took a deep breath. This wouldn't go well. "Ever hear of... 'End Game'?"
Her hand automatically flew to her mouth. "You... you didn't... you aren't..."
He pulled out the fistfull of dogtags. "I am." He held them out to her, and she took them. The squirrel pawed through them dumbfounded. Then she got to his most recent two.
"Nack? Vector?!" She looked up at him, shocked and disbelieving. "Sonic, what have you turned into?"
"A player." He couldn't bear to look at her. "A hunter being hunted." He pulled out his dogtags. "A number."
She looked from them to him, back at them. Then her eyes settled on him.
"You murderer."
"You could say that."
"You'd destroy people to give yourself a chance?" she said, her not-yet-abated anger rising again. "Do you really believe you'll get what they promised?"
"They have to. If they don't, I... I don't know what I'll do."
"You killed them! For a chance at a load of money! What kind of animal are you?"
He whirled to look at her, teeth set. "They knew what they were doing when they signed up, Sally. So did I." He took off his jacket and pointed at the bandage on his shoulder.
"I got this yesterday, or early this morning, you might say." He looked at it. "Knuckles."
"Knuckles entered?" She held onto the traffic light pole for support.
Sonic didn't want to tell her any more. He was tearing what was left of her world apart with every word; he could see it. If he mentioned little Tails was competing, she might lose it alltogether.
"I'm no Freedom Fighter anymore," he said, pulling his jacket back on. "I'm a sorry disappointment. That's why I hope I lose."
Sally started. Her mouth moved, but nothing came out.
"Knuckles could've killed me earlier. I wish he had. I can't live like this anymore. I don't want to." He turned to walk away. "I want it over and done with."
"Oh, my God, Sonic. Don't do that, don't give up!"
"What?" He looked her in the eyes. "You just said-"
"I know, but if they want to die, then that's their choice." She moved closer to him. "I just found the man I-" These words came hard. It was understandable; it had been awhile since she'd had a friend, let alone... "I- love, after... oh, I don't know how long." She hugged him close. "I don't want to lose you again."
"Sal..."
She sniffled, then thought of something. "But can't you, I don't know, drop out?"
"Didn't you just say I shouldn't give up?"
"I meant on life." She wiped her eyes. "Suicide isn't all that fun, either. I know..." She looked down at the small, thin scars on her wrists.
Sonic gaped. "Oh, no. Sally, I... I should've been here," he said, hugging her close with the silly fear she might suddenly die from it now. "I'm sorry."
"You couldn't help it. Our escape from Coral Village was hectic, at best. Just... just promise me you won't die, not now."
"But I can't drop out... it's in the rules." He released her to pull out the Guidebook. "Those who wish to withdraw from 'End Game' are automatically put to death, but quickly and painlessly. It says right here."
She just stared at the black leather cover for a moment. Then she knocked it to the ground. "Stupid contest! Why does life have to be so, so..." She couldn't think of anything to call it.
"Listen," he said. "Maybe I can reason with the other two players. We could all skip outta here, outta this rotten country."
"Who's the other contestant, anyway?"
He averted his gaze. "You don't want to know."
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Sonic was torn. He was tired of this existence, and wanted to end it. But now he had hope; he had Sally back. He would survive simply to keep her from attempting to take her own life again. He didn't want that to happen.
He rolled over and looked at the clock. 9:25. He needed to get up and get ready to confront whoever was waiting for him in Radical City.
As the hedgehog pulled on his jacket, he looked at the black book lying on his bedside table. In it, Sally's number was written. When they parted, he'd made her promise not to go back to- to get a new job. As soon as this was all settled, he'd come back and get her, and they'd... he didn't know exactly what, but they'd get out. Somehow.
He checked his guns. Each pistol was only missing a couple rounds. He couldn't bear the thought of killing another soul now, but if they wouldn't listen to reason...
Sonic made his way down the stairs, all his worldly posessions in his pockets. Time to check out. He handed the clerk Nack's tag, and she scanned it without question.
"Thanks much, shuga. Have yahself a good day, y'heah?" She handed him the barcode and went back to her romance novel.
As he took it, his brows knitted. Surely, not two familiar faces in the same day... "Bunnie?"
She looked up from her reading, confused. "Yeah, hon'?"
He couldnt' believe it! He studied her closely. It was her, allright; only now she had collagen in her lips and her soft forelock was dyed black. It also looked like she had implants- er, not that he was looking, but they were extremely noticeable. He noticed she wore long sleeves and gloves to hide her robotic arm, as well as very dark pantyhose to hide the legs.
"Bun, don't you recognize me?"
"Sorry, Ah don't know many punks."
He laughed. He, too, looked a lot different than when they had last seen each other, about a decade ago; many, many scars on his face, as well as wild green hair to match his eyes. He did look like a punk with the jacket and all.
"Bunnie, it's me, Sonic!"
She started to laugh, then looked harder. "Oh, mah stars and garters, it is you!" Then she did laugh, and leaned over the counter and gave him a crushing hug. "How've ya been, shuga-hog?" She pulled back and swatted at his hair. "And what the heck have you done ta y'self?"
He ran a hand through it. "Hey, I'm too well-known. This was an easy way to blend in. What about you? The lips, the hair, the, uh..."
"Ah see yoah still the same as ever," she replied, giggling. "Just got the rack done last week." She looked him over again. "My, my, my... Sonic the Hedgehog. Never thought Ah'd see the likes of you again. Not after... well, yah know." A faraway look came over her. "Ah miss those days."
"Me too." He drummed his fingers on the counter. "You were smarter than me, though. You went and got a normal job."
"What's goin' on with y'all, then?"
He didn't want to go through this again, but couldn't think of a very good lie. Besides, he didn't like lying to friends. "End Game."
She didn't say anything for a second. "But... but ain't that the game that... mah stars." She looked at him closely. "Please tell me ya didn't..."
"Fine, I didn't," he said half-heartedly. "But it's not the truth."
She thought a second. "So... how many people have yah..."
"Killed?" he choked out.
"Stop it, shuga," she wispered. "Yah sound so... so blunt, an' heartless."
"I'm not proud of it, Bun. I just... did it." He looked at her. "I'm getting out."
Her eyes widened. "But, they put th' ones that try tah drop out tah death!"
"I can beat them. What're they gonna do, shoot me? You think I don't already have enough experience dodging bullets over the past few months?" He leaned forward. "I've stayed alive, long enough to remove four Mobians off the face of the planet. I won't do it again. I can't."
Bunnie couldn't believe what she was hearing. She could feel herself starting to get angry. "Why stop now? Why not go on an' kill th' othah two? Y'all will be set fah life."
He bit his lip. "The last two contestants..."
"What about 'em?"
"Knuckles, and... and Tails."
She about lost it. "What's this world comin' ta?! Is everyone Ah know in this dang thing?"
"Not anymore..."
"What? Why?" No answer. "Tell me what ya know, Ah can handle it."
Sonic bit his lip harder. "I didn't kill him, don't get mad at me!"
"Who? Sonic, tell me!"
He held his breath. "Antoine's gone."
Silence.
A minute crawled by. Bunnie couldn't process the information, and Sonic couldn't think of anything to say. Then he walked around the counter and put his hand on her shoulder.
After a moment, she turned and cried into his jacket. "My gawd... Ah... Ah can't believe..."
Sonic mentally kicked himself. He had known it would shatter her. He shouldn't have told her; it would've been better that she think he was still alive somewhere.
Suddenly, he felt her grip his jacket harshley. "Who done it? Who killed mah... who was it?!"
"A player by the name of Jest. I took him out a while ago."
He never would've guessed she would respond this way. "Good." Then she released him, wiping her eyes. "Ah'm sorry Ah mussed yoah jacket, hon'."
"This thing's seen worse than your tears, Bunnie." He patted her on the shoulder. "Y'know, the way I hear it, he snuck up behind him and shot him in the head. He didn't even have time to be scared."
She let out a shuddering sigh. "At least he... didn't feel no pain." Her arms rested on his shoulders. "Listen, Ah... Ah guess Ah can't blame ya fo' what yah've done."
"Why not? I do."
"Yah so bittah, shuga-hog... the past years musta been terrible."
"My life was a living hell... until now." He pulled out his guns, and Bunnie sucked a breath in through her teeth. "I may never have to use these again. I can't say I hate 'em, but... I won't miss them much."
"You scare me," she said as he put them away.
He didn't expect that. "I'm sorry, that was dumb, I shouldn't wave my pistols around like that."
"Oh, it's alright. Yoah used to 'em." She blew a bang out of her eyes. "So, aftah ya ditch the game... what're ya gonna do?"
"Well, I... ran into Sally."
"Oh, ya did?" she said, wincing. "Ya didn't happen tah see her at... work, now, didja?"
Sonic folded his arms. "Yeah, I saw her 'working'." He sighed. "I feel so bad for her. That life is... much worse than mine."
"She lives heah, yah know. Room B25."
"Thanks," Sonic said, checking his watch, "but I have to go. I gotta try and stop this mindless carnage, Bun."
"Good luck, shuga. Look me up when ya get back. Ah live heah, too."
He wasn't sure how to read that, and didn't want to think about it. "Will do."
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The rain pelted Sonic's face as he roared along the highway. He reached into his pocket and put on his goggles. They looked stupid, but it was too dark for shades, and they saved his eyes.
He wished he didn't have to do this. He wanted to send somebody else. He wanted... he didn't know what he wanted.
The motorcycle skidded to a stop on the slick pavement, just barely. He moved it into place behind a billboard and took the key out.
As he walked into Radical City, he couldn't help thinking about his childhood lost. Robotnik was more than a tyrant, he was a theif; he'd stolen their entire lives, driving them to these desperate means. He just hoped Knuckles and Tails weren't over the edge so far they couldn't come back.
This brought to surface the issue of afterward. Where would they go? Downunda? He heard Robotnik had bombed the place, but he didn't think he'd bothered to take it over; it was a possibility. The Floating Island? No, it was quarrantined for radiation. Maybe Mercia...
Well, he could think about it later. Right now he had to concentrate. He was either going to walk away from here with an ally... or his tags.
