Sonic Series Fan Fiction ❯ On the Road Together ❯ On Foot ( Chapter 8 )

Chapter 8: On Foot

It was very dark when the RV left, the clouds above blinded the stars and the moon had to strive to give some light. Headlights came in handy on the road for our adventuring RV. Everyone was tired, sleeping while still wearing their Mickey Mouse hats from Walt Disney World. They all looked funny in them, especially Metal-2. Sonic was the driver that night and Metal-2 guarded from the front passenger chair beside the blue hedgehog while the crew rested peacefully. Freeway was asleep beside Tails, covered with one of the fox's tails like a warm blanket on the sofa with Shadow half-asleep; keeping one eye on a window, and Knuckles was in a bed above the two front seats, believe it or not. Remember, in a RV, space can be precious. The girls slept quietly in the back room, which had the beds. It was silent on the street in front of them.

"We got a long ride ahead of us," Sonic whispered with only Metal-2 awake to hear him.

"True," he whispered back. "But if you need rest, I suggest we stop at a rest area for the night."

"Yeah, maybe you're right," Sonic yawned, and Metal-2 helped him watch the road.

They soon arrived at a place to rest called a rest stop where mostly truckers stopped to sleep. In this rest area, no other cars or trucks were seen; not even a RV was there until ours appeared. Sonic drove in carefully and quietly as the RV turned in the area near a picnic bench. The crew continued to sleep, hardly noticing the engine fall silent after hours of driving. Shadow blinked when he looked at the window, and then he closed them again, knowing it was a rest stop. Tails turned his head in his sleep, and Freeway quietly snored cutely under the fox's tail. In the back, the girls continued to dream, undisturbed. And Knuckles slept on, dreaming of his Emerald.

"That was smooth," Sonic whispered when the RV was settled down. "Well, goodnight."

Metal-2 nodded. "Goodnight, Sonic. Sleep well."

Sonic lay back in the driver's chair sleepily, closed his green eyes and snuggled under a blanket. Metal-2 sat up, alert and watchful. He looked outside from the windshield, seeing no stars in the sky and hearing no sound. Soon they would reach Alabama, maybe in the morning. Our heroes traveled even in their dreams; not knowing that Dr. Eggman had the RV sighted. In his damaged Egg Hornet ship, the mad scientist waited for Chaos Zero to give a report with his binoculars.

"It's too dark to tell. Is it the RV we're looking for or not?" Eggman asked quietly.

"I don't know," Chaos answered, shrugging. "But have no boils, I will go and take a peek."

Metal Sonic was too damaged to slap Chaos this time, but he did shoot a glare at the creature.

"Very well," said Eggman. "Go and spy on that vehicle. See if it is indeed that blue hedgehog."

Chaos nodded, dropped his binoculars on Metal's head, and he escaped possible death from the cold blue machine. Eggman kept Metal Sonic in the ship with him, leaving Chaos to go alone. Trying to be careful and silent, Chaos quietly made his way down the hill toward the rest area where the RV was parked. He suddenly tripped on a rock, and he fell all the way down to the bottom, crashing his head against a rock. When his head was clear of stars and birds, Chaos stood up and he looked around until he saw the RV. He rubbed his hands together and approached. Sonic and the others were sleeping with pleasant dreams, but Metal-2 sensed danger nearby. Silent, he looked at Sonic. He decided not to wake up the hedgehog, but to go outside instead to see if there was a threat to worry about or not. Metal-2 quietly opened the door of the passenger side, stepped out, and then closed the door without waking anyone up. He walked away from the RV, scanning the area. It was dark with a silver mist around the trees, silent with a gentle breeze in the wind. Chaos was traveling along in his puddle, and when he arose, he came face to face with Metal-2, who was a few feet away from him. Chaos was very surprised to see the strange, dark figure in front of him with surrounding mist because Metal-2 forgot to remove his hat.

"Mighty Mouse!" Chaos shirked, and then almost like lightning, he fled in a puddle.

Metal-2 blinked with confusion. He shrugged it off and scanned the rest area. When everything turned out to be safe and quiet, he returned to the RV. He was glad to see them safe there. Terrified, Chaos had a wild tale to tell when he returned. He ran into the ship, shaking it.

"What?" Eggman asked, looking down at the dizzy creature. "Chaos! What happened?"

Chaos sat up, holding his troubled head. "It was terrifying, absolutely terrifying!"

"You finally saw your reflection, huh?" Metal Sonic made an evil robotic chuckle.

"No, worse!" Chaos said, standing now. "It was the hugest mouse I ever saw!"

"You mean the biggest," Eggman corrected him. "It could be some mutant on the loose..."

"I know the Hulk is real, but not a mutant mouse!" Chaos panicked. "The comics told me!"

With his last striking strength, Metal Sonic slapped Chaos on the head, knocking him out. Eggman sighed, looked down at his damaged computer screen. They will have to wait for light.

= = = = =

The next day…

The sun arose early to start a new day, but it was hardly noticed because the dark clouds were still hanging on to that part of the sky. The mist vanished mysteriously with the wind that seemed to carry it away. The sweet morning air arrived with the songs of birds in the treetops above. The sound of one bird reminded Sonic of his alarm clock at home. Almost automatically, Sonic reached for his red shoe and he threw it, but the shoe did not hit an alarm clock. It hit Shadow.

"GAH!" Shadow awoke with a shoe in his face. "What was that? Who dares to--?" Angry, he picked it up, and when he saw that it belonged to Sonic, he threw it back at him.

"Ouch!" Sonic yelped, awakening from a dream in an instant. He picked up what hit him, and it was his shoe. Confused, he looked at Shadow. He saw the angry face. "What's the idea?"

"You answer that, sleep disturber!" Shadow said, "And keep that stinking shoe away!"

"It is NOT stinky," Sonic assured him, taking a sniff. "See?" He grinned.

"That's just because it's of your own kind." Shadow chuckled, pouring coffee for himself.

"My kind? I'm a hedgehog!" Sonic stood proudly. "And you're a hedgehog, too."

"Not just a hedgehog…" Shadow winked. "I am the Ultimate!" He laughed.

Sonic rolled his eyes, thinking otherwise. Just then the door opened and the girls returned from brushing their teeth. Knuckles and Tails also returned in time for a quick breakfast.

"We better get going now," Sonic said after breakfast. "Is everyone ready to hit the road?"

"YEAH!" The crew shouted the answer with excitement.

Before Shadow could, Sonic jumped into the driver's seat, leaving him the passenger side. Using the CD player, Sonic selected his theme song before moving. "Okay, we're off! Hang on!"

Everyone sat down, ready to go. Shadow was buckled and reminded Sonic of the low tree branches there. Careful to avoid them, Sonic made it out on the road again. High on the hill, Chaos saw the RV leaving the rest stop. He used his binoculars to see the moving vehicle.

"Hey, look, they're leaving now, and the driver looks like a giant blue rat…"

Surprised, Eggman took the binoculars away. "Give me those!" He looked in from one side, and Metal Sonic peeked in from the other side of them. "…IT'S THEM!" They said together.

They watched the RV turn out of the rest stop and drive on the road, departing.

"They won't get away this time!" Eggman tossed the binoculars away and Chaos caught them. "My Egg Hornet will surely outrun them and they'll reach the end of their road!"

He laughed as the Egg Hornet began to move, but because of the damage back in Walt Disney World, it dropped down to the ground, unable to move. Furious, Eggman growled, hitting the controls. Metal Sonic sat back, resting in the ship. He was too damaged to fly at the moment, and in a way, he was glad. Chaos shrugged, and then he turned, watching the RV vanish from sight.

= = = = =

Location: Alabama State Line…

It was either a bad sign or just bad luck when the RV entered the state of Alabama. It was a rather peaceful place, but the sudden storm changed that. The wind blew like a furious breath, and the trees shook with leaves falling. Sonic stopped the RV at a stop sign, watching the weather.

"What's going on here?" He asked, "It seemed fine back there, but why the sudden haywire?"

"I don't know, but just don't ask that cursed question again," Knuckles said.

"Or else…" Shadow added, holding the tape, which made Sonic sweat.

Suddenly, another burst of strong wind blew against the RV, causing it to shake. Amy and Tikal screamed when dishes fell to the floor with a crash. A pot landed on Freeway's head for a hat. Metal-2 chuckled and then he gently lifted the pot from the fawn's head. She was unharmed.

"Sonic!" Tails called, approaching the front seats. "Alabama is under a tornado watch!"

"I've got a tornado watch," Knuckles showed it on his wrist, and Rouge slapped it. "Ouch!"

"That sounds dangerous," Sonic said after Tails told him the news. "We're IN Alabama!"

"Things can't get any worse." Rouge sighed, and just then, hail fell down from the sky.

"Whoa! Ice attack!" Knuckles shouted, pointing at the windshield.

"We better find some shelter, quick!" Sonic drove the RV onward.

"Any tornadoes yet, Tails?" Amy asked, sitting beside the fox with the radio.

"No, it's just a tornado watch, so none have touched the ground," he answered.

They were not in a city yet, but on a country road, so shelter would not be easy to find. Sonic drove carefully on the wet road. Shadow kept chewing on bubble gum because he was nervous, and Tails listened to the weather news on his radio while Tikal tried to keep things from falling everywhere in the RV. Amy held Freeway, Rouge watched the window with Metal-2, and Knuckles wondered if he should prepare swimming gear or not. With no warning, a large tree fell onto the road in front of them. Sonic gasped and he hit the breaks to stop. The RV slowed down and came to a stop in front of the tree, but its nose slightly slammed into it.

"Is everyone okay?" Sonic asked, quickly turning to see the others.

"Yeah, I think so," Knuckles replied, on his head. He sat up normally. "What happened?"

"A tree," Shadow answered, pointing ahead.

Tails sat up and shook his head, and then he picked up his radio, which broke in the crash. He sighed and then he felt the wind grow much stronger outside. The RV was stuck in the tree, even though Sonic tried to back it up and turn. Shadow blew a bubble with his gum, and then it popped in his face when a real tornado came down on the ground, not far from the RV on the road.

"A tornado!" Tails shouted, jumping to his feet.

"Oh, great," Tikal sighed. "And I just rearranged the dishes for the third time!"

"Come on, guys, we gotta go!" Sonic warned, unbuckling. "Quick, outside!"

"What?! Out there?" Knuckles asked, surprised and quite shocked at the twister.

"You heard him," said Metal-2, lifting the echidna up. "Outside!"

Rouge opened the door with Tikal helping push against the strong wind, and then Tails jumped out with Amy carrying Freeway and then Knuckles stepped out. Metal-2 turned back for Sonic who was leading the blind Shadow to the door. They all made it outside, and after Shadow ate his bubble gum again, his eyes widened at the tornado. It was dangerously coming toward them.

"Hurry, this way!" Sonic shouted through the wind, and he ran for low ground.

Knuckles helped Tikal and Amy get through the wind to reach Sonic, and Rouge followed. Sonic stopped on the side of a road where there was low ground, and he waited for the others.

"Get down!" Knuckles shouted, shoving Amy and Tikal down with Freeway. "You, too, Rouge!"

The bat blinked her eyes, astonished. "Me? Rouge the Bat dive in the dirt?" she asked, and after a strong wind blew behind her, she nodded. "Good idea!" She jumped in with Amy and Tikal.

"Get down, Knuckles!" Sonic shouted, pushing him, and then he looked behind. "Tails?!"

"I'm coming!" Tails answered, pushing himself to run faster, but he could hardly do so. Then before he knew what hit him, Tails was blown away into the air, off the road. "HELP!"

"NO!" Sonic yelled, "TAILS!!" He tried to reach out for him, but he was gone.

Metal-2 flew up after the fox to find him, and Sonic lost sight of them both in the storm.

"Sonic, get down!" Knuckles pulled him back, but Sonic tried to get to Tails. "Sonic, stop!"

"TAILS!" Sonic called again, but Knuckles pulled him down all the way to the low ground.

Together they ducked down low; covering their heads and holding on to stay safe. They kept their eyes closed, hearing the loud noises of the storm and the wind continued to blow harshly. They heard more trees fall, thunder and the roaring of the tornado. Then as sudden as it came, it left. The storm came to an end and died. After a moment of silence, Sonic blinked his eyes. He sat up, shaking some leaves and dirt off, and then he looked around for his friends.

"Guys?" he asked, looking, but he saw no one. "Guys, come out! The storm's over, it's gone!"

Just then, Knuckles popped out from another pile of dirt. "Well, thank goodness!"

Rouge came out next. "Yuck! I feel like a pig!" She made a sour face at her dirty clothes.

"At least we're alive!" Amy said, climbing out with Freeway, who was still shaking.

"Yeah," Tikal sighed weakly, and when she stood up, she screamed.

"WHAT?" The crew asked, and Tikal was speechless when she pointed at the road.

One by one, the others stood up, and when they saw the road, they were quite shocked.

"The RV!" Sonic gasped. "It's…it's…" he stopped, and Knuckles sadly nodded.

"It's gone?!" Shadow asked after he jumped out from a pile of dirt and leaves.

"It just disappeared!" Amy exclaimed, staring at the damaged, empty road.

"What now?" said Knuckles, "Without the RV, we're not on the road; we're on foot!"

"Don't change the title!" Rouge said, brushing the dirt off herself.

"I'm more worried about Tails and Metal-2. They disappeared, too." Sonic sighed.

"We'll find them," Tikal said with hope.

Shadow swallowed his bubble gum. "Well, for now, I will lead us out of here."

"How can you?" Knuckles asked. "We don't even have a map of this crazy place!"

"Just follow the road," Shadow said calmly, pointing.

"But what about Tails and Metal-2?" Amy asked, very worried.

"Don't worry," Shadow assured one and all. "If they're alive, they're in the next town."

"What do you mean 'IF'?" Sonic asked, glaring at the black hedgehog.

"Calm down, Sonic," Tikal said gently. "We better hurry and find them before dark."

Sonic sighed, shrugging off his anger. "You're right," he said, leaving. "Come on, let's go."

Knuckles and Tikal followed after Sonic, Rouge and Amy also followed with Freeway, but Shadow stood still. He looked around. It was quiet now after the storm. Sonic looked back.

"Come on, Shadow," he called, and then the black hedgehog followed.

Now on foot with no transportation, Sonic and the crew moved on without giving up. First they had to find their two missing friends, and then locate the RV, wherever it may be.