Sonic Forces (Revision)

* Chapter 5: Search and Rescue

Spikes and missiles flew everywhere as the redness of the docking bay grew darker and darker. The Chaotix and Knuckles were trying to dodge whatever attacks they could, however throwing their own attacks was another thing. No matter what was thrown at the jackal; shurikens, blast of music, sting, or even a punch, the crimson foe just blocked it as if it were a useless toy and went back to his own attacks.

As the commander and leader of this small rescue team, it was Knuckles' job to make sure everyone got out alive. He was even skeptical about calling Silver and Wendy back, especially with how the battle against the crimson foe as Super Silver and Wendy's battle at Westopolis had gone. The two did still deserve to know about the incident here and be allowed to help though, especially since he and the Chaotix weren't doing so well anyway.

Espio landed next to the red echidna, throwing a dagger towards the crimson foe with the results he expected. A smack to the ground before throwing a red cube. With a sigh, the purple chameleon expressed his concerns to Knuckles. "Commander, I'm not even sure if we could make it to a shuttle at this rate. He knew we were coming and planned for it. I know what plan you have in mind, but no doubt he'd also planned for us to split."

"I know, but we've already come this far. If even one of us can make it onto that shuttle and on the Death Egg, I'd say our job was well done." Although it wouldn't be an accomplished task, Knuckles knew it was at least a step in this complex plan. Glancing up for a split second, he noticed a familiar cyan aura glowing over the cargo boxes. Even with the red tint messing up his vision, the faint glow was still quite recognizable. "Keep trying to hold him off, I'll be right back." Espio nodded and ran over towards Vector and Charmy to assist them.

The red echidna waved his arms above his head, trying to flag down the ivory hedgehog. Luckily, he was seen, and the other two members of the team landed safely right in front of him. Silver leaned, looking over Knuckles' shoulder at the crimson foe and Chaotix battling against each other. "What's going on Commander?"

Looking down towards the ground, the echidna knew that it was only a matter of time before the Chaotix were overwhelmed by the jackal. A massive array of red cubes had already begun to appear all around the crimson villain, blinding the surrounding area in a red glow that was blinding even behind the large bins. With only a single motion by both hands, the crimson villain sent the cubes down towards the ground, causing the Chaotix to dodge to the best of their ability. Despite that though, the attack was so concentrated, that they all still got hit and had to relive fighting the dangerous obstacle course they had just escaped from.

Despite all the echidna's worries, laying them down on Silver and Wendy, who already had their own burdens, would not be the right thing to do. Instead, Knuckles replied, "I'm relieved to see you're both okay. We have a situation as you can see. I'm not sure how much longer the Chaotix can hold him off." He motioned beyond the cargo they were behind, at the loading docks. A flurry of cubes, shurikens, noises, and stings danced around the wide, open area. It seemed like a confusing mess from where he was standing.

Knuckles continued. "The jackal shouldn't know you're here. He hasn't seen you yet." The red echidna began to move back towards the action. If he were hidden any longer, the enemy might question his disappearance. "That's why I want both of you to head to that shuttle as quickly as possible. We already have everything set up."

Wendy was about to protest, most likely questioning Knuckles' decision. The red echidna was skeptical too, especially about letting a rookie like herself take on such an important mission. Before the brown wolf could say anything though, Silver pulled her back. "You might think you can't do this, but you chose to come here for a reason. Whether it was to prove yourself or help us out, you still believed you could do something. Don't doubt that choice. Both Knuckles and I believe in you. Try to believe in yourself."