Writer: Ian Flynn
Pencils: Steven Butler
Colors: Matt Herms
After a brief recap of prior events, we launch right into the action as Sonic, Sally, Tails, and Khan burst back into New Mobotropolis to save the day. The Iron Queen is unconcerned when Geoffrey taunts her about her defeat being imminent, certain that with Iron Nicole under her control, she'll have no problem winning anyway.
You know, you'd think she'd have seen this coming, considering that right after Sally cut Nicole off from the Iron Queen's control for like five whole minutes, her plans started being thwarted left and right. The Iron Queen is furious and begins to use the nanites to fight Nicole, and Nicole likewise fights back with her own set of nanites, each conjuring up machines, shields, walls, and so on to battle it out. Sonic heads straight for Amy and the Iron King to help out, while Snively crawls around in a panic seeing everything he's worked so hard for fall apart around him in an instant.
You know, as much as I realize Snively is a self-serving traitor and thus obviously doesn't want to be captured by the very people he's screwed over so many times, what is he really so terrified of? Sure, Sally's angry with him, but A. she has every right to be and B. this is Sally we're talking about. It's not like she's about to sentence him to be publicly burnt at the stake or something. Even the worst of the worst get fair treatment in New Mobotropolis' prison system - three square meals a day, humane living conditions, and so on. At worst, Snively would spend a very boring few years in prison until he found a way to break out or otherwise reformed his behavior or something. Snively tries to remain confident in the face of Sally's accusations, reminding her that they still have three other clans to call on in the Dragon Kingdom, but, well, clearly he hasn't read the latest arc of SU. Khan descends on his cloud from above and calls out to the Yagyu that on his word of honor they’re free of the Iron Dominion, and to Lien-Da's shock and anger, the Yagyu on the field immediately pack up and leave, uncaring what happens to the Legion without them. However, Lien-Da suddenly realizes this could be a blessing in disguise for her, as with the Iron King and Queen tied up in their own fights and the Iron Dominion's support base crumbling, this is her chance to seize power of the Eggman Empire for herself. The Iron Queen overhears her announcement of the change in management to her troops, and tries to take control of the Legion's cybernetics to force them to continue fighting for her, but Lien-Da's already got that one covered.
…okay, yikes, definitely didn't see that one coming. The legionnaires panic upon seeing their Grandmaster basically explode in front of them, and look to Snively for guidance, but at this point Snively completely breaks and goes running off screaming, leaving the legionnaires to gather up Lien-Da's limp form and retreat to the Eggdome, leaving the Iron King and Queen to fend for themselves. The Iron King is doing a good job of holding his own on account of his invulnerability, but luckily, the heroes have access to just the macguffin they need!
It's actually never clearly stated, but the implication here is supposed to be that when the Iron King stole the fan, he hid it in the Iron Fortress, and when the Raiju occupied said fortress, Espio was able to go there and retrieve the fan with their blessing. Khan blows the Iron King straight out of the comic with the encouragement of Sonic's trash talk by his side (I mean it, too - this is the last time we ever see the Iron King), leaving the Iron Queen to fight alone. Snively sees the Iron King fly straight through the metal dome over the city and panics to the point of incoherence, heading straight for the prison and shakily typing in the code to open Eggman's cell.
Hey, look, it's exactly what I was talking about last issue. Snively, given the choice between surrendering peacefully to Sally and receiving fair treatment in prison, or going back to his abusive, controlling uncle, chooses the latter, simply because it's all he knows anymore. And even worse, Eggman totally called it. He knows just how much influence he has over Snively, and relishes it, using it to his fullest advantage to make sure he always has a loyal lackey in the end. The heroes back in the coliseum offer the Iron Queen a fair chance to surrender, but unwilling to give up, she uses the nanites to encase herself in a giant mechanical Chinese dragon in one last-ditch effort to win. Tails fires on the dragon from the Tornado, while Khan and Amy chime in with lightning powers and heavy hammering respectively, and the Iron Queen makes a break for the hole in the city's dome, trying to escape so she can come back and win another day. However, Sonic simply isn't having it, and runs all the way up the length of the dragon to ensure she can't get away.
Nice job using a catchphrase that isn't even yours, Regina. Antoine handcuffs the defeated queen while the rest of the heroes celebrate winning the day, none of them yet realizing the renewed storm brewing on the horizon now that Eggman has escaped and is sane once more. Snively tentatively suggests doubling back to rescue Regina, but Eggman refuses, saying that he's already got new plans and now that he's had time to "rest and recharge," he's more ready than ever to complete his world conquest…
