Author�s Notes: ::singing:: Speed, give me what I need... You know, I�ve never once read a fic just about Sonic running. Not once. I mean, isn't that what he's all about? That's what his games where for! This little pixilated ball of blue running around on your screen! I realized this fact and decided to get off my lazy bum and write one. And if there already is a fic like this, too bad, I'm writing another! MWAHAHAHA! ::disolves into a coughing fit::
Warnings: None! Wow, I actually wrote a Sonic fic that wasn�t slash. Well, they could be together if ya wanted them to be, but there�s no where in it to indicate they are. And the only reason it�s PG is �cause of one cuss word.
Sonic�s feet pounded against the grainy dirt, each footfall coming so close to the other they ran together into one sound, forming a steady patter that filled the almost silence of the air. The only accompanying sound in that large, desolate desert was that of the coarse wind hammering against his body and his own harsh breathing. That, and also the equally fast strides of his partner, racing along beside him.
Knuckles met Sonic�s quick glance, answering him only with a lightening-fast grin before turning his attention back to the flat, barren land in front of him. Trying to speak to one another would have been a waste of time; with the three hundred miles per hour speed they were traveling along at, the winds would have ripped the words right out of their mouths.
Even the monotonous landscape, just plain sand-colored ground flashing by underneath for miles behind and ahead, could not discourage Sonic from his rapturous mood. Speed was what he lived for, what he yearned for and the one thing he was addicted to. It was the one thing he was the best at, and no one could beat him.
As if reading his thoughts, Knuckles suddenly pulled ahead, flashing him another smirk, this time filled with mischief and challenge. The echidna zipped ahead and in front, making sure to kick up some dirt into Sonic�s face before picking up speed, pulling in front by a good half a mile.
Sonic smiled fiercely. It was a contest that both he and Knuckles knew who was going to win. The hedgehog sped up also, azure spikes fluttering wildly in the increasing wind. As the surrounding landscaped blurred by, all his attention was on the ground racing beneath and the bright red back steadily enlarging in his sights.
Knuckles had to laugh as Sonic passed him easily, waving his middle finger and mouthing �fuck you� (he could have been yelling it; there was no way to tell the difference anyway). Though the Guardian was resigned to lose, he was set to at least giving the hedgehog a run for his money.
Knuckles pushed himself harder, pulling even with his rival. They had already hit the four hundred mark and pasted it, reaching for five. To anyone watching, they would have seemed to be twin blurs, one blue while one was red, the after images twisting, weaving and entwining together to form an almost purple color, just before being blasted off their feet by the sheer force of their wake.
Out of the corner of his eye, Sonic could see Knux straining along beside him and once again amplified his pace, trying to gain distance between the two. But like before, Knuckles kept right with him, even if he was panting rather hard by then. Knuckles had enough force of will to beat anybody into submission, Sonic had to at least give him that.
As Sonic tried once more to pull up into first, he felt the familiar beginnings of building pressure in the hot air. He knew exactly what it was and smiled aggressively, throwing himself full-heartedly into the wall of air. The wall �responded� by pushing back equally as hard, buffeting and pounding against his body. Knuckles also hurled himself with an extra burst of unexpected energy, building up more speed to fight against the forces of nature trying to fling him off his feet.
The two�s struggles were soon rewarded as they felt the wall �break� as they pasted through the sound barrier, Sonic�s sonic boom resounding through the vast wasteland and Knuckles� coming just a few milliseconds later, adding to the already deafening sound and making it agonizing to the ears. But the pair heard none of this, already far past the distance the sound waves could carry. Mach One and accelerating.
To put it more accurately, Sonic was, Knuckles wasn�t. The speed of sound was the echidna�s limit and he knew it. Already his breathing was coming in ragged gasps and he had almost stumbled, a dangerous thing to do at the speeds they were traveling. Sonic knew this also and lunged over quickly, grabbing one flailing wrist just as Knux�s feet decided they didn�t want to be underneath him anymore. Knuckles let his body go limp, feet and dreads flying behind as Sonic went faster.
Traveling faster then the speed of sound was a weird experience. All sounds they made seemed to never happen at all, just them going through the motions without the effects. The wind that still ripped at their bodies was silent and Knux couldn�t even hear his deep, breathless pants as he struggled to catch his breath. The world suddenly seemed so much quieter; the only sounds able to be heard where the one happening long before they got there, and what they did hear was strange and compressed, never the actual noise. And in the desert, there was not much to be heard in the first place.
Knuckles could feel Sonic�s muscles, taunt with effort, gearing down before he could see the definite change in speed. Once again they pasted through the barrier, ripping out a lot easier than they had come in. This time they did hear the boom, but only as a distant rumble as the sped away.
Sonic suddenly put on the brakes, skidding to a halt and spaying up a jet of sand. He let Knuckles hurl past him, before using his own momentum and twisting on a heel to flinging him in the opposite direction, letting go of his wrist at the same time. Knuckles was expecting this though, and instantly transformed his hurtle into a glide, circling around to reduce velocity then coming in for a graceful landing.
Both Sonic and Knuckles looked worn, gasping for air, fur completely displaced. But as they met each other�s gaze, they wore identical grins, large, wide and ecstatic from their mutual love for speed.