Sonic Forces (Revision)

* Chapter 3: Virtual Reality

The bottom of a vent shaft flung down as an albino bat leapt down from the air duct. Once she was on the ground, she dusted herself off, causing particles of dirt and grime to fly around her. As soon as she was satisfied with her cleaning, the bat held her arm out in front of her and pressed a button on the grey device. "Alright Knuckles, I'm in."

Up popped a small screen. It almost looked holographic with the image being suspended in mid-air. A red echidna showed up on the screen with a pink hedgehog behind him, typing madly on a computer. "Great to hear, Rouge. Tell me if you find anything."

"Will do." The bat replied as she closed the hologram and quietly ran down the hall.

As she came up to a corner, the bat pressed herself against a wall, swiveling her ear around to find out if the coast was clear. Unsurprisingly, it wasn't. Two robots were heading her way. They only appeared to be talking though. Judging by the voices, they didn't seem to be any of the numerous Eggman robots that she had done research on during her time with GUN. Still, she had to be careful.

The bat moved back a bit and grabbed the knob of a door she planned to hide behind. The knob wiggled and jiggled but wouldn't budge. As the voices closed in, Rouge began to sweat. She reached into the pocket of her suit's jacket and grabbed out a pick. After moving it around the keyhole a bit, there was a click. The door opened. Rouge quickly scrambled inside, closing the door enough for her to barely see what was going on.

Both robots passed the door. Just as she suspected. They were Eggman's lackies, Orbot and Cubot. The two were having a normal conversation, most consisting of banter.

"Hurry now, we have to deliver this sandwich to Dr. Eggman." Orbot stated, holding up a brown paper bag to show Cubot.

The yellow robot cocked his head. "You know, why does he even have food station on a prison in space?"

"For once, you ask a smart question." The red one shot back. He sighed. "Sadly, I don't have an answer to it. Perhaps he has it for the prisoners?"

Cubot scanned the room, causing Rouge the close the door more. "What prisoners?"

"Well...when he does have prisoners." The red robot answered. He floated ahead at a quicker pace. "Now come on, we've wasted enough time. Dr. Eggman's been waiting for us near one of the prisoners."

"But I thought you said he didn't have prisoners."

The red robot just ignored the question and pushed on ahead, causing the yellow to speed up his pace just to catch up with him.

Once both were out of earshot, Rouge pushed open the door. She glanced down the metallic hallway. "Intriguing." She pulled up her communicator. "Hey Knuckles, I think one of our own is here."

The red echidna glanced back at Amy who promptly shrugged before pushing an earpiece back in and continuing her key clacking. "Are you sure?"

"Two of Eggman's lackies practically told me."

"Hm, could be a trap. Just be careful. I've already lost two friends; I don't need to lose another."

The albino bat gave a short laugh. "Don't you worry about me Knuckey, I'll be fine. I am a spy after all. We do well staying hidden." With that, she closed her wristwatch once more and lightly ran down the path Orbot and Cubot had gone down.

To her surprise, no robots were in sight. If Eggman truly did have a prisoner, it made sense to her to guard them or something. She'd seen abandoned bases of his more highly secure than this. She opened the flap of her jacket and pulled out a small earpiece from one of the many pockets. Once it was placed into her giant ear, she tapped it. A large blue visor popped down, covering up one of her eyes with its high-tech vision. Although she did trust her ears a great deal, she still didn't trust them to always be right.