#pikos

[fallesto]

move! it's a trap! / from @pikos to Shadow!

He is caught off guard, and stumbles backward, his boots scraping against the pavement. He quickly regains his balance and glares at Amy, his sharp quills bristling with annoyance. But before he can say anything, a barrage of robotic arms shoots out from the nearby bushes, aiming straight for him. As his head quickly turns and his eyes narrow for the moment.

"What the—?" His eyes widen as he realizes the gravity of the situation. He rolls away just in time, narrowly dodging the metallic grasp with her aid in pushing him away. The arms retract, and the bushes rustle as a group of Egg Robots emerge, their red eyes glowing ominously in the fading light. He turns to Amy, who's already poised with her Hammer, ready for action.

"Thanks for the save," He grunts, his voice tinged with sarcasm. "But I can handle myself." He cracks his knuckles, the sound echoing through the quiet street. “Suppose I can give you a few for scrap.” As he cracks his head side to side and is more than ready to fight with her, against this horde of machines.

[lair-of-bees]

[bunchofcockyfools]

The bois are Here! Ask any of them a question.

[fallesto]

Just give me five minutes and my hammer; I’ll tell you if they were lying or not / from @pikos to Shadow!

His intense gaze is unwavering, his fur bristling slightly as he assesses the room, not the machine. It's not like he doesn’t trust her. But he's seen enough explosive-laden contraptions in his life to know that sometimes the most obvious solution is the least effective. That what she wished to do, was a complete and utter waste of there time and energy, these machines are cold, ruthless and dangerous, information would not be given, they would terminate themselves.

"We don’t have time for that. We need to keep moving."

The room they’re in is a stark contrast to the serene forest they’d just left. The air smells faintly of burnt metal and ozone. The walls are lined with screens, flickering with a strange blue light that casts eerie shadows across their faces. The silence is thick, only pierced by the occasional beep or whir from the damaged technology around them. It's a stark reminder of the world they’ve been thrust into—a world where danger is never far behind.

“I’ll give you three minutes.”

He rolls his eyes. He's heard that line before—about machines and information. They always claimed to have secrets to spill, but once you cracked their code, it was usually just a bunch of nonsense or a trap waiting to snap shut. Plus, they were on a tight schedule. The Eggman's forces wouldn’t be fooled by a simple detour for long. As he leans against the wall, arms folded, one foot resting against the stone and merely let’s her do what she wishes.

[fallesto]

"You know you're a nag? A very pretty one, but a nag." / from @pikos for Shadow!

He just stands there for the moment, confused as he snaps around and his eyes meet hers with a silent, unreadable gaze. He's heard that one before. He's not one to be easily swayed by words, especially from her. But this time, he feels something different in her tone. It's not the usual playful banter they share. There's a tinge of seriousness, a hint of something deeper. He tilts his head slightly, his quills ruffling in the evening breeze. "I am trying to keep you alive. What's wrong?" he asks, his voice low and steady.

He looks at her, he can see that she hesitates, her expression a mix of frustration and vulnerability. She's been holding onto something, and the dam seems ready to break. "~If it is about working with me, then quit anytime you want." He says as he looking at her fidgeting with her fingers. "I know we're supposed to be a team, but… we're just going in circles. Your methods are too soft at times, your slowing us down" He glances around as if expecting someone to jump out and prove him wrong and there is nothing, he is not used to working with anyone at all.

As he breathes out a small sigh, his gaze never wavering from hers. The wind whispers through the grass around them, carrying with it the faint scent of adventure and danger. He understands her worries; they've been chasing shadows for days, following a trail that seems to lead to nothing but dead ends and empty promises. Yet, he feels a strange pull, something that tells him they're on the right path, no matter how convoluted it may seem. 

If she cannot go the distance with him, he can go alone.

[fallesto]

The best revenge is not to be like your enemy. / For Shadow from @pikos

He rolls his eyes, his quills ruffling slightly with the gesture. He's heard that one before. The room is dimly lit, the only source of illumination coming from the flickering neon sign outside the window, casting a red glow across the worn-out furniture. He's not in the mood for philosophy, not tonight. The air is thick with the scent of greasy pizza, a stark contrast to the usual sterile environments he's accustomed to in his line of work.

He does not need another lecture. He does not need her standing on her soap box. He does not need her telling him what is right and what is wrong.

"Yeah, yeah," he mumbles, taking a sip from his drink, the carbonation bubbling against his lips. The TV in the corner blares out the latest news, the reporter's voice a droning background to his thoughts. The headline reads: 'City in Chaos: Mysterious Attacker Leaves Trail of Destruction'. He knows that trail all too well, but he can't help but feel a pang of doubt as he recalls the chaos he's been leaving behind lately. Is he really any better than the ones he's fighting?

He is fighting, he is always fighting. His entire life he has been fighting against everyone trying to use him. She has no idea what it is like.

The pizza box between them is half-empty, grease stains forming a odd pattern on the cardboard. The cheese has congealed into a gel-like substance, the pepperoni slices curled up at the edges like tiny, defeated soldiers. The silence stretches out, uncomfortable and sticky like the residue of a bad memory. As he glances away from her and huffs, what did she want from him, humans only know violence, you have to use it against them, there is no room to try and speak sense and reason to them, the soft approach leads to a cell and experiments and he is not going back to his prison.

His gaze lingers on the TV, watching the footage of buildings crumbling and fires raging. His heart races, a guilty throb in his chest. The chaos was his doing, a side effect of his vendetta. But it wasn't supposed to be like this. He was the hero, the one who brought order to the madness. Now, he's just another villain with a flashy coat of black and red fur.

“Everyone is my enemy, the world is against me, they don’t want me here.”

[fallesto]

"You're really not good at reading people, are you?" / from @pikos to Shadow!

He turns his head slightly, his piercing eyes boring into hers. "I read people just fine," he retorts, his voice devoid of emotion.

The silence that follows is thick with unspoken accusations and tension. The engine of the motorbike ticks as it cools, the only sound in the otherwise quiet alley. As he had stopped there little journey with what she had just said to him.

He simply continues to stare at her, his gaze unwavering. The neon lights from the nearby street reflect off his quills, casting a soft blue glow around him. His silence seems to stretch on forever, but it's his stillness that's truly unnerving. He has never heard such a thing before.

He is a people person, right?

He knows how to break there bones, how to hurt them, how to hit them hard enough to injure them, but not to kill them.

He sighs for a moment and runs his hand down his face. His eyes, normally filled with a fiery intensity, are now unreadable pools of darkness. The shadowy alley feels eerily quiet, almost as if it's holding its breath alongside them.

He takes a step closer to her, closing the distance between them. His movements are fluid, almost predatory, and she can't help but feel a shiver run down her spine. His silence is deafening, and she wonders if she's made a mistake by pushing him like this.

“Why do you care anyway?”