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alterchaos · 1 month ago

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A POINTLESS WAR

(cw: written blood/gore, intense violence, body horror)

Purpose...it's what drives us to do incredible things...but what happens when that purpose proves to be built on false assumptions? Maybe we aren't all so different after all...

PREVIOUS CHAPTER: ZELKOVA STRIKES BACK

NEXT CHAPTER: REGROUP

The fox and the Metarex lord stared each other down through their respective ship windows, neither willing to yield against the other.

“Chris.”

“Yeah?”

“Are they out of range?”

The scientist smiled, “They are now, captain.”

“And Zelkova didn’t see them leave?”

“No. It doesn’t look like it.”

“Good.”

The flight deck fell silent for a moment.

“Listen…if anyone else wants to go-”

Amy stood up from her console with a confident smile, “Not a chance! You’re stuck with me no matter what!”

Knuckles smiled as well, “Me too!”

Chris nodded, “We all know the risks. Besides…” He winked knowingly, “...this was to protect Sonic wasn’t it?”

Tails jolted, “Huh!? How did you-”

The human smiled, “Same as you. I had a feeling about where that message was going, which is why I blocked it when I did. If Sonic had heard that last part…”

The fox’s eyes grew worried, “Yeah…I know what you mean…”

Zelkova…he was out for revenge…

…revenge…against Sonic…

Though he didn’t want to think about it, he had a nagging suspicion about what really happened back on the evil scientist’s base. It made too much sense…the corrupted energy…Eve’s burns…

The ashes surrounding him…

There was no doubt in Tails’s mind that his brother would have offered himself up had he pieced those facts together. He was too broken mentally after everything that happened and wasn’t thinking straight. Nobody needed the IQ of a genius to know that much. Had it come to that, there would have been no stopping him.

That was why, even if it tore him apart inside, he had to send him away.

Even if it meant goodbye…

Forever…

Tails wiped his tears fully dry and pulled back one of his levers, forcing the thrusters to oppose the Metarex ship at maximum drive with newfound determination, “Enough of that! Knuckles, it’s all on you now!”

“Roger that, Little Brother!” With that, the echidna raced from the scene towards the engine chamber.

The fox pressed a few more buttons, “Chris, start launching our frontal attack! Amy, aim for the rear! On my signal, Chris, release the communications block. With his emotions high, we can maybe play Zelkova right into our hands and further distract him.”

“On your mark, Captain…”

The ship shook some more from the excessive force of the tractor beam.

The weapons were launched.

BOOM!

“NOW!!!”

beep

The golden Metarex lord appeared on the screen once more, shaking with rage as he stared down the young captain, “WHERE IS HE!!!??”

“...”

Zelkova slammed his fist down on the side of his control panel as a few more missiles hit, “WHERE IS THE BASTARD THAT KILLED NARCISSUS!!!??”

“Heh.” Tails grinned in a cocky manner, “Why don’t you tear this ship apart and find out for yourself?”

“RRRRRRRRGHHHHH!!!!!”

BOOM!

BOOM! BOOM!

“Or is it that you’re too scared to face us head on again after that dent we gave you last time…”

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHH!!!!!” The vengeful warrior thrust his control stick to its maximum position, pushing the beam’s force to its limits and dragging the Blue Typhoon down further despite its resistance, “I’M NOT AFRAID OF ANY OF YOU!!!!!”

The ship continued to shake, creaking slightly from the strain.

BOOM!

“I WILL KILL HIM!!!! NO!!!! I WILL KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!!!!”

The ship’s sirens began wailing once more as red lights began to flash. Tails began to sweat. Crap! The engine couldn’t take much more without tearing the ship apart!

He tapped his wrist communicator to call Knuckles, “Hey!! Any time now!!”

The echidna raced up the steps of the makeshift emerald altar, “I’m working on it!!!” He reached the top, praying to chaos for extra strength in the fight at hand, “The servers are the seven chaos…”

The gem began to glow.

All systems’ outputs were boosted.

“DIVERT ALL POWER NOW!!!!”

The weapons stopped firing as the power canon roared to life.

Tails smiled.

“NOW YOU ALL WILL DIIIIEEEEEE!!!!”

vreeeeeeeeeee

Tails flicked open the hidden button’s cover atop his control stick.

“Sorry, Zelkova! This ends HERE!!!”

He clicked it.

shooooom!!!

CRASH!!!

BOOOOM!!!!

The energy from the laser blasted a giant hole through the Metarex ship’s center, destroying the engine and half of Zelkova’s controls in its wake.

His video feed grew staticy, “NO!!!! NONONONONOOOO!!!!” He tried to regain control but it was no use. The fiery planet’s gravitational force was too strong, and what was left of the ship began to be pulled in against his will.

“Haha! We did it-WOOOAAAHHH!!!”

The Blue Typhoon continued to shake, being dragged down towards the planet as well. Despite half of his systems being offline, Zelkova maintained a solid pull on the ship within his tractor beam.

Tails gritted his fangs, “WE’RE GOING DOWN!!! BRACE YOURSELVES EVERYONE!!!!”

BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEE-

CRASH!!!

BOOM!!!!

SKRRRTTT!!!!!

THUNK!!!

—----------------------------------------------------------

“N-Nnnngh…”

The young fox’s hand twitched a few times as his eyes slowly fluttered open. Everything was fuzzy, his head spinning from the force of the ship’s impact against the rocky surface. Thankfully, he’d managed to land them in a way that minimized damage to the infrastructure, though the same couldn’t exactly be said for the rest of them. He and Amy had flown from their seats, the latter currently unconscious against a far wall, hammer lying out next to her. Chris was still behind his control panel, though it appeared that he’d hit his head against the console and was knocked out as well. Knuckles was nowhere to be seen, having been with the Master Emerald throughout the entire endeavor.

Tails coughed a couple times before pushing himself up onto shaky, stumbling legs. He tripped, falling forward onto his knees as he gazed out behind him, his eyes flying wide as he did.

They’d managed to land safely…

However…

The fiery pits of lava beneath the rocky surface reflected against the cracked glass, illuminating the young fox’s terrified face.

If…

If they’d landed only a few inches further…

He gulped, backing away frantically as he attempted to push himself onto his feet once more, “I…I-I have to…g-get the systems online…I h-have to-”

BANG!

CRASH!!!

Tails gasped as the door to the flight deck flew off its track, Zelkova stepping through. His towering presence frightened the small fox, the terror he felt only heightened by the Metarex lord’s battered state. His armor was dented in various places now, small pieces of his helmet and armor shattered off, revealing a soft, green figure underneath. The exposed eye radiated fury and bloodlust, a stark reminder that the Metarex were, indeed, actual people beneath the suits.

People with thoughts…

Histories…

Beliefs…

Dreams…

Goals…

Tails stumbled again as the Metarex lord slowly approached, “Z-Zelkova…please…w-we…we can talk this ou-MMPH!!!!”

The towering figure grabbed the fox by the face, lifting him high into the air as he kicked and squirmed. His hand could so easily crush him if he wanted, but no…

Zelkova had other plans.

“Go on…call for your supposed ‘hero’…” He produced a small seed from the palm of his hand, causing Tails to let out a muffled scream as he fought harder to escape, “I want him to watch helplessly as the light fades from your ey-”

“HEY, ZELKOVA!!!!”

The golden-clad Metarex lord turned to face the figure behind him, his exposed eye narrowing with hatred. The echidna marched through the busted doorframe, each stride leaving behind a distinct trail of glittering light. He pounded his fists together in righteous fury, the immense energy blasting off of his prismatic, glowing figure in a threatening gesture. His amethyst eyes danced with small flecks of gold, the echidna sparkling like the light caught in the eye of a rare diamond. He cracked his neck before fixing his eyes once more on the threat before him.

“That’s our captain you’re messing with.”

Zelkova trembled slightly, though he refused to let go of the young fox. He’d been expecting to face the might of the gathered emeralds…but this…this was…something more…

Something…beyond…

“Tsch! You’re not that same echidna I fought last time, are you?”

“That’s right, and I’m going to leave you with a lot more than a small dent and some hurt pride if you don’t let him go…now.”

“...”

Zelkova lunged, ready to force the seed into the young fox’s face.

Tails screamed.

SHAZAP!

BOOM!

“GUH-!!!”

Without a word, Knuckles teleported before the Metarex lord, blowing his arm clean from his shoulder in a single, controlled chaos blast. The free limb landed before the busted doorway, its golden blood splattering along the walls as it flew.

“GAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!”

Zelkova dropped the trembling fox as he clutched the bleeding stub where his arm had once been. In a matter of moments, an arrangement of yellow carnations blossomed from the open wound, halting the bleeding in a sort of scab. Tails’s eyes widened at the sight as he recalled his friend’s eye from before.

Zelkova…

The Metarex…

No…

It…It couldn’t be…

They…

They were-

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!!!! I’LL MAKE YOU PAAAAAY!!!!!” Zelkova pulled his lightning spear from his back, sparking it to life with the power from his armor. He lunged at the hyper-speed echidna, “I’LL MAKE YOU ALL PA-”

SHAZAP!

Knuckles grabbed Zelkova before teleporting him outside the ship and away from where they could cause harm to the others. Tails watched as they flew about the thundering skies of the fiery planet, fighting at speeds unmatched by even Super Sonic’s standards. Each clash shook the heavens, rocking the planet to its very core.

RRRRRRRUMBLEEEEE….

“-!!!??!?”

Tails fell to his stomach as the force of the distant attacks pushed the Blue Typhoon closer and closer towards the edge of the cliff they’d landed beside. The ground shattered underneath, causing the massive ship to start sliding forward towards its magma-infused end. Tails screamed once more, shielding his eyes in his helpless and shaken state.

SHAZAP!

Knuckles appeared at the nose of the ship, gently lifting it from the earth, as if it was no more than a mere feather, and teleporting it over to more stable ground. As he laid it down, he suddenly shook and fell to the ground, his light flickering slightly.

“D-Damn…c-chaos…o-overloa-”

WHAM!

In a single hit from his enemy’s spear, Knuckles was sent careening miles away. Zelkova floated down to the rocky surface, his face now fully visible thanks to his shattered helmet. He resembled Cosmo somewhat: the pale, green skin; the leafy hair; the blossoms for ears…

He held out a hand towards the ship, “N-Now…to…e-end this-”

c-crack

“GNH!!!??”

Zelkova lurched forward suddenly as the gem adorning his chest began to crack slightly. His eyes widened in horror as he dropped his staff, clutching it with everything he had to keep it from shattering.

“N-No…I…I-I can’t-”

SHAZAP!

WHAM!

THUD!

SKIIIID!

Zelkova rolled across the rocky terrain towards the cracked earth as Knuckles punched him once more, his light flickering a bit more erratically than before. The Metarex lord continued to hold his gem as he neared the edge, halting his momentum by digging his armored feet into the earth below. The golden metal cracked a bit more, revealing more of his leafy flesh beneath. He gritted his teeth, quickly producing another seed from the late scientist and throwing it up into the air before grabbing his gem once more. He leapt up, kicking his leg around him and launching the seed at the echidna as he approached.

Dodged.

Knuckles, with Zelkova’s spear in hand, raced up to the Metarex lord for one final confrontation. He deflected the warrior’s flurry of kicks with the weapon, eventually knocking him back hard enough to cause him to stagger. Knuckles then drove the spear into Zelkova’s cape, trapping him along the edge, unable to escape.

Knuckles released a few heavy breaths, “There…Now you can’t chase us anymore…”

The earth rumbled around them.

Zelkova smiled.

“Fine…i-if I can’t win…”

He sweeped his legs underneath Knuckles’s feet, knocking him over before locking his knees around his neck.

“...then none of you can.”

RRRUMBLE…

CRACK!

SHATTER!

Tails watched in horror from the distance as his brother disappeared with Zelkova beyond the rocky cliff.

“KNUCKLLEESSSS!!!!!”

The echidna screamed as he fell, he and Zelkova landing on a small foothold unreached by the surrounding lava. The Metarex lord laughed, a bit of golden, sap-like blood dripping from his lips. He smiled at Knuckles tiredly, still clutching his slowly cracking gem as he sat.

crack

“I…m-may not have taken down Sonic…b-but I hope this can be revenge e-enough…”

Knuckles stood up, the last remnants of the master emerald’s energy fading from his weak, tired figure.

crack

“...brother.”

“Huh?”

Knuckles paused, taking in what Zelkova just said.

“Brother?”

crack

The Metarex lord sighed. It wasn’t as if telling him would matter anyway at this point, “Yes…Narcissus…” He chuckled slightly though with a twinge of regret, “For…F-For all of his faults…he was…s-still my…l-little brother…”

“...” Knuckles’s eyes grew sad.

crack

This caused Zelkova to jolt in embarrassment before turning his face away, “W-Well…it isn’t as if animals like you c-could ever understand…w-what that kind of love t-truly means…”

Knuckles sighed, “...Is that what…Dark Oak told you?”

“W-What of…it?”

crack

Knuckles sat back down beside the Metarex lord, “...You know…that fox back there? He’s my little brother…”

“-!!!”

crack

“I…can’t imagine what it would be like…to lose him like that…” Knuckles looked at his hands, “Us older brothers…even though we want to see them grow…become their own person…it’s our duty to protect our siblings…They look up to us…sometimes even want to be us…and to fail them is just…”

crack

“...”

“It’s unspeakable…”

“...”

crack

“I’m sorry, Zelkova…I wish I’d been able to do something for him…for both of you…I really do.”

crack

The large seedrian remained quiet as he watched the lava bubble and slowly rise. Everything he’d just heard, everything Knuckles said, it all went against what he’d been taught.

To love someone like that…

A mere animal…

No.

crack

A person…

One who perhaps wasn’t so different from him after all…

And if that was true…then…

Well…

crack

The seedrian chuckled slightly, smiling tiredly as he leaned his head back, looking up into the starry sky beyond the fiery pits.

“This war…”

“Huh?”

Zelkova released his hand from his gem.

crack

s h a t t e r

Knuckles jolted in fright as large branches began to emerge from the heart where the gem had been, though he was unable to run in his overloaded state. He froze as Zelkova grabbed his hand, smiling with warmth as he did.

“D-Don’t…w-worry…o-our branches…th-they don’t…spread…”

Knuckles’s demeanor softened, “Then…why would you-”

In response, the transforming Seedrian lifted Knuckles to the rocky wall behind him. His hands began to grow into thick, long branches, gently raising the echidna towards the cliff’s edge with care. The emerald guardian’s eyes widened as he reached back out below.

“NO!!! WAIT!!! ZELKOVA, TAKE MY HAND!!!!”

The seedrian slowly shook his head, a small creak from rapidly spreading bark escaping his figure. He looked back up at the echidna, smiling as he forced himself to stand with the last of his energy. He raised his arm higher as roots spread from his feet, planting him firmly on the rocky foothold.

“040…806…”

“What?”

“G-Give your…crreeaakk…b-brother those…cough cough…c-coordinates…crreeak…”

“Zelkova-!”

“G-Go…there…cough crreaakk…e-end this…p-pointless…creeaak…w-wa-r-”

Knuckles was almost at the surface.

“ZELKOVA!!!!”

The tree-like seedrian smiled once more as his voice gave out, a few small branches escaping his lips. He closed his eyes, accepting his fate with peace as he grew still.

Brother…maybe we can find happiness…together…in the next life…

Knuckles reached the cliff’s top, pulling himself to safety as he looked back down on his hands and knees at the fully grown tree below in distress.

“ZELKOVA!!!!”

There was no response.

“H-Hang on, Zelkova!! I-I’ll get help!! Then we can find a way to turn you ba-”

FWOOSH!

Too late.

Knuckles watched in horror as the lava reached the foothold, the wood immediately catching fire throughout what was once the body of the great Metarex lord.

“ZELKOVAAAAAAA!!!!!!”

All he could do in that moment was watch helplessly as the lifeless tree burned like that of its former brother, he whose life was stolen by the warrior as free as the wind upon which its ashes now flew.

CHAPTER END

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