Collared Sonic: Part 3

Tails and Knuckles were successful, and Blaze, Silver, and Moonbeam had made a huge difference. Nobody else was captured, no matter how stealthily Collared Sonic tried. Every time someone was grabbed, one twin, the other, or both grabbed kidnapper and kidnapped. However, Collared Sonic was too strong to capture or defeat, so the fighting continued.

The turning point came a couple of weeks later. Tails was walking in the forest alone, to clear his head. The day was beautiful, and the birds singing cheerfully. Out here, Tails could almost forget about his enemy.

Or was Collared Sonic his enemy? His dream had only repeated each night, as had Knuckles' two. Both seriously doubted that Collared Sonic was acting of his own will, but if they voiced their worry, they'd be shut down.

Tails was thinking about this when who should he happen upon but Collared Sonic? Collared Sonic was alone, looking for something. His eyes locked on Tails, and fear filled them. Suddenly scared, Tails froze and stayed where he was. Collared Sonic casually brought his hand up to his collar and turned a spike. An angry voice poured from it.

"... can't believe he let you go like that!" it was saying, "I order you to go back!"

"It's a spy mission," Collared Sonic said.

"Then go to the place you're supposed too! Right now you're standing where anyone can see you!" the voice yelled.

"But-" Collared Sonic started.

"No excuses! Or have you forgotten that I have Tails?" the voice threatened, "get going or I'll zap him!"

Collared Sonic gulped and looked directly at Tails.

"Yes, sir," he said.

Collared Sonic turned the dial down, then headed towards Rebellion HQ. That could not stand. Tails jumped him, knocking him to the ground. He knocked the collar off Collared Sonic. Collared Sonic threw Tails off and jumped back, cracking the collar by accident. He jumped on it again just to be sure, then turned to Tails.

"What do you understand?" he asked.

"Huh?" Tails asked, confused.

"What you just heard," Collared Sonic said hurriedly, "please hurry, I'm rushed."

"Oh! Right," Tails paused, thinking, "Oh! someone has your Tails captive and uses that collar to control you. But that doesn't explain your actions..."

Tails trailed off as he saw Collared Sonic look down.

"You're forced to," he realized.

"Yeah," Collared Sonic said, "disregard everything I told you about me. It's all a lie. It... it has to be."

A beep came from the collar, and both boys jumped.

"I have to be going soon," Collared Sonic said, turning back to Tails.

"Is there a way we can communicate?" Tails asked, seized by the desire to keep talking to this enemy.

"Yes, I've thought of ways the entire time," Collared Sonic replied, pulling off his gloves, "I think we can sew little pouches in the inside of our gloves. Then, during a fight, we can 'lose' them, and swap em'. Sound good?"

Collared Sonic looked up. Tails thought about it, wondering whether or not to trust him. Seeing Collared Sonic's expression of hope, Tails made his decision.

"Yeah," he said.

The two shook on it.

_____________________________________________________________________________

It had worked. Tails had told Knuckles about the exchange, and Knuckles agreed to cover for them. He didn't fully trust Collared Sonic-Tails didn't either- but he supported Tails' decision. During the fight that morning, Collared Sonic and Tails had secretly swapped gloves. They'd still beaten each other up, of course. According to everyone but Knuckles, they were enemies. The act had to be kept up.

Tails retreated to his room in the HQ. Collared Sonic's glove was different from Tails', but not so much that anyone had noticed. Now he cut open the small pouch. A folded piece of paper fell out.

Knuckles opened the door. Tails jumped.

"Sorry for startling you," Knuckles apologized, "but I want to hear this too."

Tails nodded, then unfolded it. Knuckles sat next to Tails on the bed. Tails began to read the letter softly.

"My world is Mobius, and it's unlike this world by a lot. Most of the planet is covered by desert, with one Mobius Jungle and the Ice Territory as some of the few exceptions. I'm the Hero of Mobius there. I've fought Dr. Ivo Robotnik since I was about 12 years old.

"I don't have a home. I wander around the planet with Tails, camping wherever we wind up that night. My Tails is a lot younger than you. I found him as a baby when I was 12, and he kind of stuck to me. He's 4 ½ now.

"I've been stuck like this before. Tails is the most important thing in the universe to me, and I can't stand to have anything bad happen to him. I hate it, but I would destroy the world to keep him safe. I'm ashamed to say that I made my world the Robotnik Empire.

"Tails is my younger brother, and I've had to raise him on my own. That sort of responsibility changes you, you know? The only way I can rebel against Eggman and Robotnik is if Tails is free. It's the only way I can free my world and my friends.

"Tails is being held in this world so that our friends in my world can't free him. They know why I did this. You're the only one in this world who knows. You're my hope. You can save Tails. If you don't want to go that far, it's okay. Just having someone to talk to is helpful.

"I'm really sorry for capturing your friends. I could see how much it hurt you on your face. I know you're not my Tails, but you're still a Tails. It hurt me as much as it hurt you.

"Sorry if this is a bit much for the first note, but I have a lot to get off my back. I'm able to talk to my Tails over a video screen occasionally, but it's still only been twice so far. Tails has been praying for God's help this whole time, and so have I. I'm hoping you're that help. Again, sorry if this is a bit much.

"-Sonic"

Tails sat back and thought this over for a bit. He had to agree with Collared Sonic- this was a lot at once. Tails appreciated it. It showed Collared Sonic's faith in Tails. At the same time, Collared Sonic was a good actor. He could be manipulating Tails.

All this was going through Knuckles' head as well. His and Tails' dream came back to him. Tails' friendly greeting, Collared Sonic's apology, and the 'deal'. Knuckles being so kind to the young Collared Sonic, the hedgehog bursting into tears when confronted about his past. With that, Knuckles' mind was made. Collared Sonic was now an ally.

Looking at Tails, Knuckles saw his decision reflected. They shook hands in silent agreement.

Collared Sonic entered his room after a long day. While every other day he slouched with exhaustion, today he had to force himself to. Yesterday, he'd made contact with the outside world. Today, he told his story. He also had Tails' note.

Sonic walked to the collar's charging station. The collar gave a click, and it opened. Sonic took it off and plugged it in. He was free. For now. Sonic sat on the bed, jittery as he pulled off his right glove. The paper fell out and Sonic snatched it eagerly. He paused, a little terrified at how desperate he was. Shaking it off, Sonic opened the note.

I'm not sure what to say. I'm not even sure what I'm doing, trusting you so readily. But no matter- I will help you however I can.

I will tell you that I told Knuckles. Both of us have had weird dreams since we met you. We both suspected you might be more than you said. These dreams convinced us to trust you. Not fully, not yet, but enough.

-Tails

It wasn't much, but it was enough. Sonic put the paper in the pocket dimension, then knelt down next to his bed to offer a prayer of thanks. After 2 ½ months, freedom was in sight.

_______________________________________________________________________________

The next month was a blur of communication and planning. To most, Tails had gotten over a brief bout of shock from Sonic and Shadows's capture. In reality, he was working to free them. A plan was made, and a date set. On Thursday, four prisoners would be set free.

Thursday dawned early and bright. Tails and Knuckles woke with more energy than they'd had for a while. It was torture to go through the day like it was normal, but they managed. Collared Tails' well being, and Collared Sonic's mental health were in the balance. It took an eternity, but night finally fell.

After the other Resistance members had gone to bed, Tails slipped out of Freedom HQ. He would leave on foot to Robotnik's Fortress. Collared Sonic had sent them directions, a map and a detailed drawing of the place. Knuckles had scouted the area yesterday. Tails was as ready as he could be.

At the door, Knuckles shook Tails' hand.

"Good luck," he whispered.

Tails nodded and left the HQ. Knuckles couldn't go because only one person could free Collared Tails. Collared Sonic would do all the freeing for Sonic and Shadow. If one went wrong, Knuckles could come to either. It would take a while, though. Knuckles hated staying behind as much as Tails hated going alone. It couldn't be helped, though.

The trip there was without incident, and Tails found himself in front of a huge fortress. A panicked question popped into his mind. How was he supposed to get in? But even as the question came up, Tails shook it off. Collared Sonic was not one to leave details fuzzy. Others may be suspicious of this, thinking Tails was heading into an ambush. Tails knew his reasoning for trusting Collared Sonic was illogical. He didn't care.

Circling around the back, Tails found the place Knuckles had been working at. Digging this tunnel had taken the better part of a month since Knuckles had to silently drill through bedrock. Now it was the gateway to freedom.

Tails paused at the mouth of the tunnel. Everything that could go wrong came to slap him in the face. For the first time, the full danger of this plan dawned on him. Tails shook it off. 'The blessing comes only after the trial of your faith,' after all. Tails chuckled. Gosh, he was starting to think like Collared Sonic!

Tails slipped into the tunnel, emerging into the basement of the Fortress. From here, it was a short walk to the holding cell. An empty walk to the holding cell. Scratch and Grounder were the only bots here, and they were stationed at Collared Tails' cell. Since the two bots didn't exactly follow orders, there was a good chance Tails wouldn't find them there. Luck wasn't on Tails' side, though, as he found Scratch and Grounder right where they were supposed to be.

On top of that, Robotnik was there too. It had to be Robotnik since no one else could be so... unsightly. Tails pressed himself against the wall, hiding behind the corner.

"...talk to Tails," Robotnik was saying, "tell him what you've been doing."

"Thank you," Collared Sonic's voice said.

Tails mentally slapped himself. He had been fooled.

"It's been so long, Sonic," a small voice said, "is there any hope of us getting out?"

That was Collared Tails. Tails caught his breath. He sounded so weak! Doubt crowded Tails' mind.

'It was a trap!' the logical voice in Tails' head screamed.

'No,' the voice that wanted to believe Collared Sonic said, 'maybe Collared Sonic didn't know this would happen today.'

Tails leaned on the second voice. Maybe, just maybe, Collared Sonic told the truth. He was pulled back to Earth by Collared Sonic's reply.

"I don't know, keed," Collared Sonic sighed, "but what I do know is this: one day, Robotnik will be judged by God, and on that day, we will be redeemed."

"Yeah," Collared Tails said in an annoyed voice, "I know. What I mean is, will we ever be free in this life?"

There was a moment of silence. Tails held his breath. Was it time? Was it the time Collared Sonic would betray him?

"... I don't know, keed," Collared Sonic finally said, "I don't know."

Tails reminded himself to breathe. Collared Sonic was sincere. He hadn't known this would happen. The thing that shocked Tails was how gently and earnestly Collared Sonic talked to his Tails- besides the 'being free in this life' bit, which had to be kept quiet. Any remaining doubt in Tails' mind vanished. He kept to the shadows as Robotnik cut the communication line and left the cell.

"Be extra careful tonight," Robotnik instructed Scratch and Grounder, "allowing Sonic to see Tails always puts me on edge."

"Yes, Gluteus Maximus," Scratch said.

"Of course, Your Esteemed Egginess," Grounder promised.

"You'd better!" Robotnik snarled, then left the room, barely missing Tails.

As soon as Robotnik was out of earshot, Tails pulled out a small wrench. It wasn't much, but it was the tag that would get this going. The tag read: 'To Dr. Robotnik's Favorite Robot'. The wrench was the perfect golden apple.

Tails slung it over the robots' heads to make it seem like it had come from the desk. The wrench landed with a slight clatter on the table. Both robots looked at it.

"What's this?" Scratch asked, picking it up, "'To Dr. Robotnik's Favorite Robot'. Hey, that's me!"

"Of course not, beak-face, I'm Robotnik's Favorite!" Grounder argued.

The argument quickly turned into a brawl, and Tails hurried past to the door. He entered the code and got in, closing and locking the door behind him.

When Tails saw Collared Tails, he was appalled. Collared Sonic had told him that his Tails was tied to the wall, but Tails hadn't taken it as literally as Robotnik had. Collared Tails hung tied to the wall, strung up in the air by bands with embedded wires. The bands held his wrists and ankles, threatening electrocution by their mere existence.

Collared Tails looked up, a confused expression on his face.

"Who are you?" he asked softly, "am I dreaming?"

"No. I'm you from this world," Tails answered, "call me Modern. I'm here to bust you out."

Joy filled Collared Tails' expression. He barely managed to stay quiet as Tails unlocked his cuffs. Standing unsteadily on legs that hadn't been used for a good three months, Collared Tails grinned at Tails.

"It's great to be out," he whispered with a sigh.

"Not quite," Tails said, removing plaster from the wall behind a small desk.

The plaster opened up to a tunnel system between rooms that Knuckles' tunnel had tapped into. Tails helped Collared Tails into the tunnel. Once they were both in, Tails moved the desk, then plaster back into place. The bots wouldn't be able to tell how Collared Tails had escaped.

Collared Tails was overjoyed when they reached the open air. Despite his weakness, he launched himself into the air and laughed. Surprisingly, Collared Tails stayed in the air for a good minute before landing from fatigue.

"I forgot how it felt to fly," he said, not upset about his limited flight at all.

Tails couldn't help but smile. At the same time, he felt sorry for the young fox. He was only 4 ½ but had been forced to not move a muscle for 3 months. Tails let his counterpart fly for a little longer, then put a hand on his shoulder.

"We need to get going. We're meeting up with both our Sonics in an hour or so. Come on!" Tails said.

That got Collared Tails' attention.

"We're meeting with Sonic already? Way past cool!" he said, practically bursting with anticipation, "which way?"

Collared Tails launched himself into the air again, but Tails grabbed his wrist.

"Slow down, there," Tails laughed, "not so sudden. Follow me, and I'll get you to where your Sonic is. Okay?"

Collared Tails landed and nodded eagerly.

"Okay!" he agreed.