A one shot that it's a complete fault for both @0vergrowngraveyard and @wickedcriminal (who made me finally write in a while)
His heart was racing, as was his breathing, beating almost as fast as the furious blows crashing against the steel door that separated him from the threat of a horde that had followed him there.
Of all the possible scenarios, this had to be the worst one he could have found himself in. All because of a simple mistake.
The little fox wrapped himself in both tails, hoping to comfort his racing heart with the warmth of his fur, instinctively forgetting for a second that they were now nothing more than icy metal covered with spikes.
"It's all my fault" was the only thing he repeated over and over again in the whirlwind of thoughts in his head.
Maybe it was, maybe he should have been more careful when he saw the band of zombot flickies crossing the sky above his head, maybe he should have focused less on the sample and more on avoiding the zombotized chao that had clung to his tail.
Who would have thought? In the end, he had ended up with more than enough samples.
By Gaia, the only thing he was able to think about when he got back home was how the fur on his tail was starting to turn to a silvery color. He didn't know if he had lost minutes or really only seconds in his panic, but that was a moment of weakness that tormented his mind over and over again.
If he had been braver, would it have made any difference?
Of course not. He knew better than anyone that even if he hadn't wasted those seconds in panic, he still wouldn't have been able to produce a vaccine in time….
Taking a breath, the little fox wiped away his tears with the only glove that wasn't yet covered in the biological residue that was slowly spreading across his body.
Who was he kidding? He had actually never had the opportunity to carry out his plan; the infection had only become the final point in a series of misfortunes that he could never have calculated or predicted: the blackout, the zombots entering his workshop… the hard drive breaking.
With a laugh, more exhausted than frustrated, the fox realized how common this was getting to be in his life.
Less than six months had passed since he had promised himself that he would never again be powerless in the face of a threat, and there he was, feeling his lungs become too hard to breathe and his limbs too heavy to move with what remained of his organic body.
Leaning against the wall behind him, he looked toward the steel door he had barely crossed to avoid being caught when the horde had managed to break through the front door. The banging and growling were becoming more sporadic and less aggressive, as if his unwanted guests had already realized that it wouldn't be long before he joined their ranks.
Feeling the lack of blood flow to his head, the little fox was grateful that he had managed to send one last message to Tangle and Whisper before the blackout, a brief comment indicating that the information for the vaccine was taking too long to process and that he had decided to stay until the information was safe, amid a false bragging about the steel protections his house had.
In short, a bunch of lies to convince them that he was safe enough so that they wouldn't come looking for him.
Staring at the ceiling, Tails accepted that this was the best option. As if being infected wasn't enough, a zombot of his "kind" was better off locked up.
If a simple Chao had done that to him, he didn't even want to imagine what an average-sized zombot with the ability to fly could do to others.
He wouldn't be able to live with that on his conscience.
Feeling as if the world was beginning to spin, the little copper-furred fox closed his eyes, begging his mind to let him think of one last thing before he disappeared.
Tails simply wanted to cling to the one thing that had always given him hope: knowing that Sonic was still out there, running and fighting for his friends… for him.
One last tear ran down his metallic cheek, carrying with it the little fox's fleeting will before the world dropped the curtain and the blows from outside stopped completely.
Tails murmured a moment before his head fell silently against the wall with a hollow metallic sound, covering the room in silence for a moment so brief it seemed non-existent, one that was interrupted by a tiny growl announcing the awakening of a metallic creature that, upon opening its eyes, partially illuminated the room with an unnatural red hue.
That was how they had described the situation to him, two words that had made him run so fast that his spikes seemed cleaner than they had been in many hours.
He had lost many people in a very short time, he had seen hundreds, thousands, fall to the metal virus. He had fought and run from so many zombots that he couldn't keep count.
And even in the state the world was in, he couldn't believe that his younger brother was lost, or worse: infected….
As he approached the city where Tails had lost contact, a terrible feeling rose over him like the huge buildings that made up the city. Shaking his head, the hedgehog forced himself to dismiss his worst fears.
Tails was brilliant; he would surely have found a way to get to safety. The little fox was less known than him for taking rash actions.
Swallowing hard, the hedgehog sped up, focusing on the task at hand as he entered the city: finding Tails. He would think about how to get him out of a city full of infected people later.
Although thinking about it was definitely easier than doing it.
Not even a moment had passed when he caught sight of the first zombot in his field of vision.
Swallowing hard, the hedgehog forced himself to turn down another street in search of a path as far away from any infected as possible. He couldn't afford to be followed if he planned to rescue Tails.
Hundreds of evasions and detours later, Sonic arrived at a familiar street, familiar only because it was evident that the zombot invasion had left nothing less than complete disaster in its wake.
Breathing deeply, the hedgehog continued running toward Tails' house, silently praying that there wasn't a single infected creature in the vicinity.
Luckily for him, when he reached the little fox's house, the streets were completely empty.
That would have been enough to ease his heavy heart if he hadn't noticed that the huge steel protection covering the entrance to his best friend's house had a huge hole near one of its edges.
Swallowing any fear, the hedgehog hurried through the same entrance, prepared for any kind of monstrosity or enemy inside in order to find his brother, but as soon as he entered in a swift burst, the only thing that kept him company was a deathly silence.
Holding his breath involuntarily, the hedgehog moved cautiously, checking that despite multiple claw marks making it clear that a horde of zombots had made their way inside, not a single one remained inside the building.
-Tails… - called the hedgehog, waiting for a response - Pal, are you here?
It was then that his foot hit something, alerting him. Jumping back, the hedgehog let out a snort when he realized it was just one of Tails' computer boxes… broken on the floor.
The hedgehog had a bad feeling as he picked up the remains of the strange machinery, and felt a chill run down his spine when a strange noise caught his attention not far away.
Following the noise despite his instincts screaming at him to get out of there, Sonic reached another giant steel door. If he remembered correctly, that was Tails' invention vault, the most secure place in the entire house.
Feeling a glimmer of hope, the hedgehog hurried to press the button that opened the gate. If his little brother had managed to hide somewhere, it had to be there.
As soon as the door let in enough light from outside, the hedgehog made his way underneath it with a lump in his throat.
-Tails? Are you…? - His eyes fell on a small silhouette sitting on the wall opposite with drooping ears… and a pair of bright red-tinge eyes -No…
Clenching his teeth as his eyes widened in terror, the hedgehog stood motionless as he faced the worst outcome he had hoped for. Feeling something tighten in his chest, he watched as the little fox looked at him lost, struggling to rise from the lethargy he had been in a moment ago.
-Grrr…
Frowning, the hedgehog forced himself to react, taking hesitant steps toward the copper-colored creature that stared at him as he clumsily stood up.
-I guess I'm too late, huh, buddy? - Hoping for some response, the hedgehog took a couple of steps forward before a violent swipe cut him off.
Backing away from the attack, the hedgehog noticed how the fox's back had arched and his ears had been positioned backward in a sign of hostility as the fox let out a clear growl, showing his rows of steel fangs, expressions that drove home the sad truth to the hedgehog that, just as had happened with Shadow, talking to Tails was a lost cause.
Tails was no longer with him.
Receiving a scratch on his arm that brought him back to reality, the hedgehog jumped back and shook his head to focus. Looking away for a moment, the hedgehog saw that many of his quills were once again covered by that metallic mass he had been running from all this time.
"Come on," he thought, gritting his teeth. "There's no time for this… Tails doesn't have time for this."
Staring at the little fox with steel tails, Sonic closed his eyes and exhaled to calm himself.
It was true, his brother was gone, but as long as he was in his hands, he could still make sure it wasn't forever.
-Im sorry, buddy, but I have to go - Dodging another swipe, the hedgehog instantly dodged the little fox, launching himself at him with open arms.
The little fox flailed and growled again and again as the hedgehog held him tightly in his arms, an unconventional hug courtesy of the fact that he himself was already infected.
-Tails …I promise I'll come back for you - murmured the hedgehog, about to throw the little fox away to give himself an opening to escape. Or that was the plan until, for some strange reason, the flailing began to stop.
And for a moment, however brief, the hedgehog thought he felt the steel creature's head rest against his chest. Looking away, the hedgehog could almost recognize the expression Tails made whenever he had a bad day.
A tiny ray of hope gave him the strength to let go of the little fox to scape and close the huge steel door behind him. With his heart about to burst, Sonic watched the curtain fall while on the other side he could almost swear that the little zombot was looking at him with his arms hanging down, not moving from his spot.
After a single second, the hedgehog ran a hand over the surface of the steel curtain, took a deep breath, and wiped his nose before running out through the same hole he had entered.
He had no time to lose; he had to run and find a cure for what Eggman had done.
After all, Tails would be waiting for him.
