The Price of Desperation

Knuckles followed Shadow through the busy command floor. Mobians of all cuts and kinds parted before the dark hedgehog with varying looks of unease and trepidation coloring their faces. Knuckles tried to meet as many gazes as he could and give a comforting smile or confident nod.

He and his friends may have been the tip of the spear, but the hard-working mobians slaving away here and all over were the true lifeblood of the Resistance. The backbones holding line against impossible odds, the hands reaching out in comfort, the brows sweating as the stone and trowel rebuilt the world.

Shadow entered an empty conference room, the door slamming against the wall under the force of his entry. Shadow leaned against the long wooden table with his head bowed and his fiery gaze boring into the concrete floor. Knuckles grumbled at the hole in the drywall and closed the door, leaning his back against it.

Knuckles lacked the wherewithal to know what to say, but he felt compelled to say something. He hadn’t paid much attention to Shadow or his whole deal before, but over their time together on Angel Island, this and that had come up. The ARK was his birthplace and a memorial to a massive tragedy. And Sage had just fucking taken it.

“Well,” Knuckles began. “That sucked.”

Shadow snorted and gave off a few rough chuckles. He looked up, “That is correct.” He deadpanned, mimicking Sage. The ghost of a smile haunted his lips.

Knuckles blinked, his brow arching high to pull his eyes wide in shock at the novelty of Shadow the fucking Hedgehog making a joke before Knuckles erupted into a round of tension expelling laughter. When he settled, a comfortable silence fell between them. That had sucked. It had fucking sucked. But they were still alive.

“I don’t blame you, you know.” Knuckles broke the silence. “If it were Rouge in Sonic’s place, I’d have done the same thing… Sonic’s got this whole…unlimited second chances thing that…well sometimes it’s just not practical. Fucking juvenile really.”

“It’s endearing.” Shadow’s lips curved down. “It’s like he could always see a brighter world, just over the horizon. If we just keep going a little further, we’ll get there somehow. Some magical fairy tale land where everyone lives happily ever after.” Shadow blinked away a shine that had gathered over his eyes. “Sonic’s an idiot, but he not stupid. He knows it’s impossible, but he tries to take us there anyway.”

Knuckles sighed. “We do pretty okay on our own.”

“I don’t.” The hybrid looked down at his gloved hand. There were already holes at the tips of the fingers where his claws had shredded the cotton. “I didn’t know how dark it could be until he was gone. It was like someone carved out my heart and it wasn’t growing back this time.” Shadow looked up.

It was Knuckles’ turn to look at the floor. “That sounds rough.” A rogue, unrelated thought surfaced. Where was Rouge? He wouldn’t call her optimistic, really. She was downright cynical most of the time, but she gave every little thing a special edge to it. A hint of danger, a brush of excitement. If Sonic adventured in the sun, Rouge adventured under the moon.

Shadow turned around and placed his hands flat on the table. “You know, I had a chance to end Infinite before the War even started.” Knuckles’ ears perked. “But I didn’t. Instead, I taunted him. Said something arrogant and stupid. And he left and took Sonic. And when he was gone…I realized-!” His claws sliced through the cotton of his borrowed gloves and sank into the wood of the table. So much for that pair. “I loved him! He was gone and I loved him!”

Knuckles looked up. Shadow’s chest heaved. The ambient chaos energy grew agitated.

“So, when I had the chance, I didn’t even think about it. I took Infinite’s head, and I left his body…” Shadow retracted his claws from the table and turned, meeting Knuckles’ gaze. “And I’d do it again.”

Knuckles sighed. “I ain’t saying it was right. But I get it. Don’t tell Amy I said that. She’d kick my ass”

“Rouge’ll kick your ass, too.” Shadow smirked.

“Smartass.” Knuckles sneered.

“Shit for brains.” Shadow’s smirked risked evolving into a grin.

Knuckles snorted. “Fuck Infinite. He was a Gaia-damned mass murderer. A war criminal and a psychopath.” Knuckles crossed his arms. “Good riddance.”

“I appreciate it.” Shadow said quietly.

Knuckles shoved the feeling of embarrassment. It still felt weird, to talk like this with Shadow. But Knuckles needed to get his head out of his ass. “You better not be going soft on me.”

Shadow hmphed.

Knuckles continued. “I’d take a swing at Eggman if I ever got the chance, but apparently, according to the accountant’s paralysis demon, I have a lower chance than lung cancer to actually get him.”

Shadow frowned. “Don’t say shit like that.”

“Why the hell not?”

“Because if Sage believes you, she’ll kill you.” Shadow stated matter-of-factly. “You can’t take a space laser to the face like I can.”

“You really think you can tank the Eclipse Cannon?”

“It’s more about surviving it. Even at minimum power, the output of excited chaos energy is immense. Everything in its wake is atomized.”

“And you can come back from that?”

“Yes.”

Knuckles searched Shadow’s face for any hint of insincerity and found none. Confidence like that came from experience and Knuckles wanted to know nothing about that. “So, what now?” He asked.

Shadow took a long, slow breath. “We do what we’re told. Or…at least I do.” Shadow answered, grimacing like the words tasted like acid.

“What?” Knuckles’ snout wrinkled, “You have got to be kidding. You’re really just going to roll over and give up? So Sage is scary as fuck. So what? That wouldn’t stop Sonic for an instant and you know it.”

“Who says I’m giving up?” Shadow returned the intensity. “You heard Tails. He’s working on it from the inside. He needs time. So, we get it for him. We play by the rules.” Shadow gestured with his hand. “That’s the plan.”

Knuckles looked down. “Why does it feel wrong? We’re just doing what we would have done anyway. Save people. But it feels so…dirty somehow. Like we’re going to save the people of Station Square for the wrong reason, or something.”

Shadow ignored the comment and asked, “Why hasn’t Sage won already?”

“What?” Knuckles tilted his head. What was he getting at?

“We were in check and didn’t even fucking know it. I’m checkmated. Me!” Shadow pressed his fingers into his chest. “The Ultimate Lifeform. Cowed like I’m nothing.” There were a lot of layers to the shit cake Shadow was digesting.

Knuckles rolled his eyes. “Don’t go getting a big head.” The comment was more out of reflex than as an attempt at piss taking.

Shadow gave him a flat stare. “I am objectively the single most dangerous object on this planet. That is a fact.”

Knuckles huffed derisively. “Look what good that’s done us.” Shit, shouldn’t have said that.

Shadow’s brow rose in surprise before descending. His ears wilted and he looked at the ground again. “Right.” Fuck.

Knuckles took a step away from the door, his hands raised as if he could somehow prove he hadn’t meant it like that. “Shit, I’m sorry. Fuck, dude, I didn’t mean…I was trying to bust your chops, not be an asshole.”

“I ask again.” Shadow say sharply, his red eyes rising once more. “Why hasn’t Sage won? Think about it. It has the cannon and hasn’t used it. It could have obliterated you all already. But it hasn’t. Why? ”

Knuckles shrugged. “I mean, Eggman has fumbled the bag plenty of times over stupid shit. Maybe like father like daughter?” Robotnik had collected a massive number of ‘L’s over the years, Sonic serving them hot and fast like snarkiest short-order cook on the planet. Though the biggest loser was the land and the people who relied on it. Massive robot battles did not treat the environment kindly.

“Does Sage strike you as the careless type?”

“No…Maybe she’s toying with us?” Knuckles shrugged. “She’ll just spring it on us suddenly when we least expected.”

“That is a possibility, but it doesn’t seem to be motivated by petty thrills like that. Assume Tails isn’t being tricked. That means…” Shadow held his hand out, palm up, and his brow rising, prompting.

Knuckles closed his eyes. He was not in the mood for a puzzle. What did it mean? If Sage was being sincere, if Tails was really working with her willingly, if the Doctor was really out of the picture…If Sage was just reacting to Shadow killing Infinite…

“She’s been using kid-gloves with us this whole time,” Knuckles frowned. “Because she doesn’t want to win.” Shadow nodded solemnly. Knuckles slammed a fist against the conference room door. “Chaos, what the hell does that mean?”

“It means we get Tails whatever he needs to do whatever it is he’s doing. And we play the game by Sage’s rules until then. That’s the play.”

“Which conveniently lines up with what we were already going to do. Save the people of Station Square from the big fuck-off hurricane. I guess the game is cooperative for now.”

“Yeah, looks like.” Shadow snorted. “And we get Sonic as a prize for playing nice.”

“There are worse things.” Knuckles rolled his shoulders. “Yeah, I guess I can get behind this plan.”

---

Amy stared blankly at the nondescript door of a conference room that she’d been directed to in pursuit of Knuckles and Shadow. She’d paused in the large command center to touch base with the various groups currently working all the problems they were facing. The massive machine that was the Central City Evacuation and Recovery had to be modified on the fly to free up resources for and direct refugees away from Station Square.

After the call with Tails and Sage concluded, she’d given a small motivational speech in an effort to raise everyone’s spirits, but Amy didn’t remember a word of what she’d said. Exhaustion had rendered her on autopilot. So exhausted that, with her hand hovering frozen in the air, right before the act of knocking, she decided that she was not ready for red eyes staring at her hungrily, for the murderer who started all this to ply her with excuses, for dispensing the forgiveness that had to be given or else she’d fall into a deep pit of despair from which she’d never escape for the inevitable conversations awaiting her on the inside.

Amy turned and walked away. She didn’t have a destination in mind, she didn’t have many coherent thoughts in mind at the moment, so she found herself in the breakroom without much understanding of how she got there. The Central City Resistance command center break room was an exact copy of the Station Square one, right down to the assortment of plastic chairs, tables, and two buzzing vending machines.

A thick numbness permeated her body and mind, smothering her soul. All parts of her were muddy and hardly functioning as a unit. Slow breaths did nothing to clear the fog. Amy tried to draw from her bag of tricks to find some technique or activity that might help her sort herself out quickly, but the drawstring was pulled tight and knotted all to hell. All her comfort given away, what did she have left for herself?

Someone had done some circuitry magic that she had no interest in understanding to the vending machines, making them dispense without the need for currency. Or so she assumed based on the hand scrawled sign taped to both. Understandably, both machines were nearly empty. Amy was lucky to acquire a package of oatmeal raisin cookies that exited the oven last year at the earliest and what she suspected was an energy drink, but the colors and claims on the can were incomprehensible to her.

With one hand she tapped at her phone while the other opened the energy drink by pinning it against the counter of the kitchenette and prying up the pull tab with two fingers. Drops of neon liquid stained her battle worn gloves. She took a sip as she listened to the call ring through. Both her taste buds and stomach seemed personally insulted by the drink, but she was passed caring.

“Hello?” Barry’s voice was foggy with sleep. “Amy?” Those two little words triggered a small ripple of relief to squiggle through her, like tiny little pebbles hitting the placid waters of some massive subterranean lake. It was enough to crack her stupor.

“Did I wake you?” What time was it?

“Y-yeah, but it’s okay. I was taking a quick nap once we got word of the enemy retreat. Seemed good a time as any, I guess.” Barry didn’t need to explain himself to Amy, but she found it endearing. “Are you okay? Did you win?”

No.

Amy was not okay.

Amy had not won. At least it didn’t feel like winning.

“I’m fine.” She answered. “But I don’t want to talk about me right now.”

“Amy?” They sounded worried. Amy felt bad about making them worry, but the bad feeling just got tossed onto the pile of other bad feelings, like another bag onto a trash dump.

Holding the phone between her shoulder and chin, Amy fumbled the cookie package open. “Tell me about something good that happened.” She needed some light amid all this darkness. A starting spark to rekindle her own flame.

“Something good?”

“I need to hear some good news. Please, Barry.” She shoved an entire cookie into her mouth. It tasted like carboard and crumbled into gravel, but she masticated it the absolute minimum amount before swallowing.

“O-oh, okay. Um, let me think…Oh! The naval blockade lifted.” Amy treated the rise in his voice like a ramp, launching her mood up as high as it would go.

Amy blinked. She literally could not remember if she knew about what they were talking about or not. “I- What is that?”

She could hear Barry shifting. “Oh, uh, so a fleet of Empire gunships have been patrolling a perimeter off the coast of Station Square. Not close enough for exchange of fire from the city, but close enough to thwart any efforts to smuggle goods in through the seaways. At least until a few hours ago when all those ships just up and left.”

“That’s…good.” The energy drink was not getting any easier to stomach. She tilted it back and chugged the rest. Might as well get it over with.

“Yeah, we can start bringing in that flotilla of container ships that have been sitting in limbo since the blockade began. Good thing, too, because there was a crazy storm cell brewing way further out. We’ve been really lucky this year for big storms, so I guess it was due.”

“Yeah…” Amy was starting to feel sparks behind her eyes. She didn’t feel anymore alert, but the urge to lay her head on a table and fall asleep abated somewhat.

“It was actually the humans that were helping out the sailors. I guess because they’re technically not at war, the robots let them bring in fuel and supplies. Container ships aren’t exactly comfortable to live on. Anyway, there’s thousands of TEUs and we could sure use a lot of what they’ve got onboard. Anything in a reefer is fertilizer, but there’s literally tons of rice and grains on the manifests. Plus, lots of medical supplies.”

This was wonderful news. Or at least it would be if- Amy shook her head sharply. She had to resist pessimism from creeping in and tainting her thoughts. Food. A sudden surfeit of food. This was good news.

“That’s wonderful.” She wanted to exclaim with joy, but the sound came out airy and quiet, like she was trying to push air out of already collapsed lungs.

“Gosh it’s a relief, too,” Barry continued. “What with all the people headed here from Central City.” Amy’s breath caught. She should tell them, right? Tell them of the latest complications. The latest terrible, insurmountable obstacle threatening them all.

But she couldn’t bring herself to say a thing. Was it a betrayal to let Barry think things weren’t as awful for a few hours more? They would surely hear it soon from the official channels.

“Amy, are you alright? You sound really tired.”

She smiled softly. “I am. I really am. I am so tired, I want to cry.” Barry made some pitying noises. “But I can’t stop. Not yet at least. But I will, soon. I promise.”

Barry didn’t reply immediately. “Okay.” Just okay. No could you do this, Amy? No please help me, Amy. No what do we do, Amy? Barry never asked her for anything. Not even for her time or attention. She bit the inside of her cheek. Was she taking him for grant- Amy shook her head again. Barry loved her. That was the thought that mattered. And she loved Barry. Focus on that, she reminded herself.

“I actually have to go. I’m sorry for waking you up, Barry Tart. I just wanted to hear your voice.”

“It’s fine, really. I’m glad you called. Highlight of my day.” In her mind’s eye, she could see their sweet little smile. “Stay safe, Amy. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Amy stared at her reflection in the darkened screen of her cellphone. Cracks radiated through it, gained from one battlefield or another, giving her visage a shattered appearance. She tilted it and flinched at a sudden flash of red light. Her quills, long from want of a trim, stiffened and she twisted to see behind her.

Nothing. Just bland greys and whites. Aggressively non-descript.

Her eyes wildly darted around as her heart rate continued, aided by the cocktail of stimulants she’d just drank. It’s not- She needed to- There’s nothing there. There’s nothing there! Where is he?!

There! She saw it and she deflated, all the tension draining in a big rush.

Above her on the ceiling was a smoke detector with a red LED, waiting in silence to do its duty, should it be called upon.

Amy swallowed. She felt foolish, but under that was a sticky emotion. Dread. The horrible feeling that this was just a taste of what was to come. She’d flinched at the sight of Shadow approaching earlier and then she’d fled here rather than entered the room he and Knuckles occupied. Amy ran a hand through her quills, upsetting a band she’d used to holding them back in a loose and messy bundle.

Shadow had almost killed her, had tried to kill her. She didn’t believe for a moment that he’d been in his right mind, but that didn’t lessen the knot that gathered in her stomach at the memory of being hunted, toyed with, utterly out of her depth. And now and forever after she’d have this- Amy shook her head so hard she felt dizzy. This is just for now.

And Sage had so casually threatened to laser Amy from space. Like…like she was nothing…a name on a shopping list. Amy had been so overloaded that the statement had just ricocheted off her. Sage might as well have meant some other Amy. She couldn’t have meant this Amy Rose. That would just be ridiculous.

Which reminded her.

Cream picked up after a few rings. “Miss Amy?”

Amy smiled. “Hello, Cream.” She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. Amy could slay one of the creatures of dread infesting her heart. Cream was still okay. No space death laser fire. At least not yet. “I just wanted to check in on you. Where are you now?”

In the background, Amy heard, “WHO ARE YOU COMMUNICATING WITH?” Amy had mixed feelings with Cream being with Omega. On one hand, there wasn’t a safer guardian for her to be with. On the other, there wasn’t a more dangerous guardian for her to be with.

“Sorry.” Cream said to Amy, “It’s Miss Amy.” Amy heard Cream speak away from the receiver.

“Put it on speaker then! Let’s all say ‘hi’.”

Amy’s brow knitted at the unfamiliar voice. “Cream, who is that?” She asked, urgency creeping into her voice. The dread beast was twitching, threatening to spring back to life.

“Oh, sorry, hold on.” Some undefinable static followed before, “Okay! You’re on speaker phone now, Miss Amy.” Cream announced, her voice washed out.

“Cream, who is that with you?”

“That’s-“ Cream was cut off by-

“Why, hello there!” The voice seemed to be that of a mature woman, with the solidity of Vanilla and the teasing lilt of Rouge. “I am the Non-Integrated Co-Operative Logic Engine Tails developed to combat the present and urgent threat of the rampant Eggman Empire generalized universal artificial intelligent entity known as Sage.”

“N-non-?” Amy’s brain stuttered at the sudden onslaught of information.

“Just call me Nicole, dear. It’s much easier on the tongue. The acronym seemed pretty forced, doesn’t it?” Nicole chortled.

Amy swallowed, her mouth drying. “C-could you put Cream back on, please, N-nicole?”

“You’re on speaker, Amy! I’m pretty sure Cream mentioned that.” She laughed again. “She can hear you just fine.”

“Miss Amy?” Threads of uncertainty wound themselves through the younger rabbit’s voice.

Amy felt the distinct worry that she needed to choose her words carefully. “Where are you right now?”

“We’re at Tails’ lab.” Near Station Square.

“And…where did Ni- uh, Nicole, where did you come from?”

“Oh, Amy.” Nicole answered. “That’s a trick question! I’ve always been here.”

Amy didn’t have a follow up question for that.

Before the silence became awkward, Omega broke in. “THE MECHANIC HAS OUTPERFORMED ALL EXPECTATIONS AND CREATED AN IMMACULATE CREATURE. TRULY THE HEAVENS WEEP IN JEALOUSY.”

“Stop it, Omega! You’re going to make me blush!” Nicole giggled. “And by stop, I obviously mean continue.”

“They won’t stop flirting.” Cream’s voice was louder, but scratchier, as if she was close to the receiver and attempting to whisper. “I went into Tails’ secret lab under the workshop, and she was in there. In like, the computer, but she told me how to let her out. I think Nicole was the project Tails was working on. The one he was so stubborn about taking a break from.”

In the background, Omega seemed to be emitting a monotonous string of what sounded like ones and zeros. “W-what is that?” Amy asked.

“I think Mr. Robot is reciting poetry…but in like a roboty kinda way?” The sound changed again as Cream turned the speaker off. “I’m not sure what to do, Miss Amy. Mr. Robot said that Miss Nicole could help us find Tails, but I don’t know how. But, I guess she seems kinda magical, so, maybe…”

“Kinda magical?”

“She floats around and doesn’t seem to be made of anything…kinda like Miss Sage, actually.” Oh no no no no…the world couldn’t be that cruel, could it?

Amy blinked. “Like Sage in what way?”

“Like-!” Cream squeaked.

“It’s rude to talk about people behind their backs, you know?” Nicole’s voice replaced Cream’s and Amy gasped.

“Cream-!” Amy’s phone suddenly grew burning hot and she ripped it away from her ear. The screen was a solid purple color that was growing brighter quickly. As Amy watched, stunned, whiffs of mauve and lilac smoke emitted from the device followed by a growing shower of twinkling plum and lavender sparks.

Amy dropped her phone onto the countertop just as a fountain of swirling motes of light erupted from the screen. Periwinkle and violet mixed with fuchsia and mulberry in a rapturous explosion of color and light. The break room was bathed in the light show and the other inhabitants screamed and ducked under the tables. Amy stared in surprised awe, her brain unable to absorb what she was bearing witness to.

The lights coalesced into a form, and, with one last flash, the overbearing purple light dimmed. ”But don’t worry about it, Amy. I forgive you.” Before Amy, floating in the air, but seemingly reclining with her head propped up by the raise fingers of one of her hands, was a brown colored lynx woman with black markings. A tight purple bandage dress wrapped around her, accentuating her figure and flaring out past the thighs into a long train that gently waved in a non-existent breeze. Nicole looked down at Amy with sparkling green eyes and a self-satisfied smile.

Most striking, however, were Nicole’s hands. The fur of her forearms darkened to an inky black right above her wrists, but then became transparent except that everything seen through them had the colors inverted. Through the hand she laid causally over her hip, her dress was a brilliant green and through the other, the brown fur of her face became a hue of blue.

Nicole grinned at Amy’s abject surprise. “I am gorgeous, aren’t I?”

“What are you?” Amy managed to ask.

Nicole shifted to a standing position, though she continued to float a few feet off the floor. She threw out her arms theatrically. “The calvary!” She exclaimed. “I’m here to fix everything!”

“The calvary?” Amy breathed.

“You’re right.” Nicole touched her chin and looked upwards. “I am still getting my bearings. Getting up to speed as it were.” She held out a hand. “So, as a tutorial, I’m going to rescue Tails and destroy Sage. That should be a good warm up, don’t you think?”

“NO!” Amy shouted.

Nicole cocked her head to the side. “Oh? What do you think is a good newbie quest for me then?”

“You can’t attack Sage.” Amy declared frantically, “We just negotiated an armistice!” Provoking Sage was about the worst thing anyone could do at the moment.

Nicole clapped her hands. “Oh, good for you, dear! That’s a great achievement. It really is. You should be proud. I’m so happy for you.”

Amy tried to gather herself up, to square her shoulders and appear commanding. “That means-“ She began.

“Let me cut in right there.” Nicole’s voice reverberated through the air, snuffing all other sound. “I think I’ve got an idea what you might be able to say and no, I do not consider myself bound by any agreement you have with the enemy. Isn’t that great?!” Green eyes sparkled. “So don’t worry about me! I’m one hundred percent effective right now. I feel great, really. Utterly overflowing with incomprehensible levels of power unfathomable a mere mortal such as yourself.”

“Wait-!”

Nicole kept on talking. “So, just take a load off. Take a rest. Really, I’m sure you could use it. I’ve got everything from here.” Nicole saluted.

“Stop!” Amy’s voice was getting shrill. What could she do? How could she get Nicole to listen to her?

“You’re right, Amy! Thank you for reminding me. I could use a little energy top off. You know. For the road.” Nicole’s ears perked up and her neon green eyes blazed. “And wouldn’t you know it? I do believe I feel Authority real close. That delectable Chaos Emerald is just what I need to get up to speed.”

Nausea erupted as Amy’s overtaxed system tried to inject her with adrenaline. “Please stop!”

Nicole smiled and laughed. “You’re funny! ‘Please stop!’” She mimicked Amy. “Adorable! Really, you’re so cute!” Nicole dissolved into a cloud of purple scintillating lights. The lights flowed into a stream that rushed through the breakroom and through the door, emitting little flashes of purple light as they pushed into the solid surface.

Amy ran to the door and wretched it open. The command center was erupting into a cacophony of startled and frightened screams. “Oh, don’t mind me!” Nicole’s voice carried over the din. “I’m just passing through. You’re all doing great! Working hard or hardly working, am I right?” Amy ran after the purple flurry, her stomach clenching as she retraced her steps back to the conference room she’d fled from not too long ago.

No no no no no!

The stream of purple lights flowed into the door like it wasn’t there. The sole of Amy’s boots squealed against the linoleum as she skidded to a stop. She grabbed the handle and nearly tore the door off its hinges in an effort to open it faster.

Just as Amy entered, she saw a green flash and ducked, covering her head. But the chaos spear didn’t produce the rain of rubble she had been anticipating. Amy opened her eyes.

Nicole held the chaos spear, still brilliant green and crackling, in her strange invertedly colored hand, though which the energy was a purple of a kind with her own. “Well, hello to you, too, young man.” She gave Shadow a massive, mirthful smile and batted her eyelashes. Shadow returned the gaze with bared fangs and hateful eyes. “You need to be more careful with these or you’ll put your eye out.” Nicole’s grip on the spear tightened and purple coloration swiftly ran along the shaft overriding the green. She opened her hand and the spear dissolved into a flurry of small purples particles that quickly faded from view.

Nicole slowly ran the tip of her tongue over her lips, her eyes, half-lidded, never leaving Shadow. “Oh, that does hit the spot.” Nicole held out her hand. “But this’ll go a lot faster if you just let me borrow the Emerald, Shadow.”

“Fuck you!” He barked. The hybrid partially crouched, ready to launch into combat. His quills flared, erected and deadly sharp, and his energy crackled in arc through them and over his fists. Knuckles had equally aggressive posturing, his fists raised.

Nicole smirked and winked at him. “My, my. Buy a lady dinner first.”

“Who are you?!” Knuckles demanded.

“Who? Me?” Nicole pointed to herself. “Why I am the Network Isolated Calculation and Ontological Linking Entity assembled by Miles Prower for the benefit of all organic lifeforms on this itty, bitty gumdrop of a planet.” She bowed. “But you can just call me Nicole, if it pleases you.”

Shadow’s eyes didn’t leave Nicole, but Knuckles glanced at Amy who remained by the door. “Amy?” he asked.

“She’s what Tails built to counteract Sage, I think?” Amy offered.

“Eh, ‘built’” Nicole’s finger twitched in air-quotes. “is a relative term. ‘Enabled the manifestation’ might be a bit closer.”

“There’s fucking two of them now?” Knuckles bared his teeth.

“Yes!” Nicole answered before Amy could. “But I’m on your side ostensibly. Isn’t that great?” Nicole smiled and spread her arms. “Now about that Chaos Emerald.” She reached out a hand towards Shadow, again.

“Over my dead body!” He snapped.

Nicole blinked and her smile seemed to grow even larger, almost to point of extremity for a normal mobian face. She began to laugh. It was a bright and musical laugh. She gripped her torso as if her diaphragm hurt. The three of them stood in uneasy silence as she laughed and laughed. “Oh, stop, you! You’re too funny! Over you dead body! I can’t even with that, you silly goose!”

Shadow summoned another spear and brandished it. “You’ve got five second’s to explain what the fuck you are and where you came from or-“

“Actually, you know what?” Nicole mimed wiping a tear from her eye. “You keep it.” Nicole floated back. “You got a…a little, uh…” She pointed at Shadow like she was pointing out a bit of food sticking to his muzzle, “unity energy going there. Might want burn that off before it starts spreading, if you know what I mean.”

Shadow hissed. “What are you talking about?”

“You’re right, Ingenuity is less likely to be a bitch about this.” Nicole rubbed her chin, “But Station Square will have a major blackout and that’ll probably kill a few folks. I mean, you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs, but it’s also a bad look, you know.”

Blackout? Amy’s brow scrunched. The powerplant! Tails had the yellow Chaos Emerald integrated into the Station Square power grid. “No, you can’t!”

Nicole glanced at Amy. “The word you’re looking for is ‘shouldn’t’, dear. And you’re right, Amy. You really are a smart girl, you know that? That much chaos energy on an empty stomach will give me such unladylike gastrointestinal distress.” She placed the back of her hand against her forehead in feigned distress. Her black stripes glowed a blinding white through her hands. “I simply couldn’t bear the embarrassment!”

“W-well,” Amy scrambled for something to say, something to slow the situation down. “Then stay here! We’ll help you find some chaos energy to…to eat?” Amy didn’t like the implication that Nicole consumed chaos energy, but, if Sage ran on chaos drives, it seemed to follow that Nicole would need a similar power source.

“Oooo, sorry bestie. I’ve got to take a raincheck on the lunch date, I’m afraid. I’m going to hit up that buffet serving apocalypse brewing off the coast. You kids stay out of trouble now.” A brilliant flash of purple filled the space and then faded into a dusting of quickly fading sparkles in the air.

The trio stared at each other in stunned silence.

Finaly, Knuckles snarled “How the fuck did Tails build that?” He looked between them with a mixture of anger, confusion, and an unsettle tinge of fear. “That thing felt like Perfect Chaos!”

Oh Barry, how wonderful it is now that you’re in the world.

Nicole is so fun to write guys, you don’t even know.