#then robotnik trying to trick him into marriage! why?? | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

eggman-empire · 6 years ago

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Run With Him

by Jen Irwin

"Sonic? SONIC!" Amy yelled, watching a blue blur disappear into the distance... again. She slumped and sighed. Why did he always have to run away?

"I love him! Why doesn't he love me BACK?!" the pink hedgehog growled, stomping angrily away from the pool area toward Downtown Station Square. She wandered out onto the sidewalk, passing by people and giving an occasional, but moody, hello to those she knew. Sitting down on a bench, Amy sighed and stared at the ground, fighting back tears. She'd do anything for Sonic, but he'd never even give her the time of day... was he just really shy? That would be hard to believe, he was never shy with anyone else, never seemed uncomfortable around other women. Did he just find her repulsive or something? That would be crazy; she was everything a cute girl hedgehog should be! Amy could not think of an explanation for Sonic's behavior. She just shook her head and sighed again. "Amy?" a young boy's voice called out. "What's wrong, Amy?" She looked up and saw Tails walking up to her, a few greasy smudges of dirt and oil scattered over his fur. Apparently he'd been doing what he does best, working on some kind of machine. He looked at her with genuine concern in his bright eyes, ears forward and alert. "Oh, it's Sonic again," she replied glumly. "He still doesn't love me... why, Tails?" She leaned forward a little, staring at the fox pleadingly. "You've got to know! You hang around him all the time! What has he said about me!? Does he hate me? Is he just afraid of me? What is it with him!?" Tails' ears twitched back a little. It was this same old subject again. "Uhh... actually he never really says much of anything about you." He took a slight step back, gaze sliding off to the side as he had no idea how to approach the situation. He didn't want to upset Amy, but he honestly had no idea why Sonic acted the way he did. Tails had never bothered to ask, really. "But do you have any ideas!? Come on, Tails, you're a smart kid, you should know these things!" "Heh, I'm a good builder, but I don't know anything about love! Come on, I'm only eight!" Amy backed off a little. She didn't like the fact, but Tails was right; perhaps he wasn't exactly the authority on feelings. She could see he was uncomfortable just being put in this situation. "Oh... thanks anyway," she mumbled, going back to staring at the ground. Tails' ears returned to their normal straightness as he sensed he was 'free to go.' "Don't worry, Amy," he said, trying to reassure her. "I'm sure something will happen eventually! Well, I gotta be going, so I'll see ya later!" He jogged past the bench and disappeared around a corner. The pink hedgehog stood up. No sense in moping around... she decided to walk for a while, maybe grab something (healthy, of course) to eat. She started off down the sidewalk, head down, still in deep thought. Amy didn't have time to react as a door ahead of her swung open and a human stepped out directly in front of her, not realizing she was there. She let out a slight yelp of surprise as she bumped right into the person's leg, then stumbled back a bit, looking up and starting to hastily utter an apology. The apology was cut short by a scream. "AAAH!! DR. ROBOTNIK!!" She stared helplessly up at him, cowering in terror. Normally she might not be so afraid of him, but he certainly did surprise her. Then she realized his look wasn't at all hostile. In fact... "Oh... Amy, I didn't see you there! My apologies; are you alright?" The cowering stopped, turning into total confusion. "...Robotnik??" Amy asked, wondering if it was actually him, or if he just wasn't feeling well or something. "Ah, surprised to see me not trying to take over the world? Heh, I don't come to the city that often on my 'off days.' I'm on a bit of a vacation, you see." He reached up and adjusted his glasses slightly. "I just stopped in to see what kind of electronics they're offering these days and grab some lunch." The hedgehog looked up at him, eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion. Was he just acting nice as a trick? Though, he really did seem quite genuinely calm and polite at the moment. Her eyes widened as she saw him smile somewhat amusedly - SMILE, mind you - and say, "Suspicious, are we? I suppose you have reason to be, heh. Well, I'll be on my way; farewell." He gave a respectful nod, much to Amy's growing surprise, and started to walk down the sidewalk. She realized something. The people who were around the square weren't reacting to Dr. Robotnik in an extreme manner; sure, he got a few stares and people were whispering, but nobody was screaming in a panic. Amy recalled now that she did hear of the mad scientist occasionally making non-hostile appearances in the city... heck, she once heard a rumor that he actually helped repair machinery for people sometimes. Maybe it wasn't just a rumor? "...Wait!" she yelled, jogging after him. He stopped and turned, looking over his shoulder. "Um, I guess I was just surprised, heh, sorry I ran into you," Amy continued. Robotnik made a casual, dismissive gesture with one large hand, saying, "Think nothing of it; I'm just glad you weren't hurt." Figuring that was all she had to say, he nodded again and continued walking. Amy stood there staring at his back as she realized something. Robotnik was, in fact, the only person who had known Sonic longer than Tails had. And he was, what, 45? He had to have SOME experience in life from all those years... She sprung into a run, catching up with him in a few brief seconds, then walked along at his side. Suddenly she felt really dumb. Why would she be asking Robotnik, of all people, about how to deal with Sonic? ...well, she was desperate, and there was no one else TO ask... "Umm, Robotnik," Amy started hesitantly. "Have... err... have you ever had a girlfriend?" He thought the question was very strange, but was extremely curious as to where this was leading. "Well, I've had a few flames in my time, yes... why?" "I--I was just wondering what a guy really looks for in a girl, you know?" Amy felt REALLY dumb now. In her effort to avoid asking something awkward, she asked something even more awkward. "Depends on the man in question," he said matter-of-factly. "Everyone wants something different. I always favored a smart-mouthed, sassy but brilliant sort. You know, kind of like me." He chuckled. He didn't even have to guess who this was about now... he already knew. "Are you having trouble with Sonic again?" "Yeah," she replied, still staring at the ground as she walked. She kicked a small rock off the sidewalk. "I love him! I wanna marry him and have a bunch of little hedgehog babies!" she blurted out in frustration. "But he hates me!" "Aren't you a little young to be thinking about marriage?" he asked amusedly. "You're, what, 12? Give yourself time to enjoy life before settling down, lass!" "But I've always wanted to be Sonic's wife! Why doesn't anyone understand?" Robotnik stopped. Amy took a few steps before she realized this and turned around, looking up at him. He was standing by the door to the burger shop, hands in his pockets. With a slight grin, he tilted his head toward the door briefly. "You hungry? This is gonna take a while." Though the situation was a little strange, Amy WAS pretty hungry. She followed Robotnik into the shop and looked over the menu. Nothing healthy... except the tofu burgers, but despite her careful diet, Amy didn't like that stuff at all. Robotnik leaned one arm on the counter and looked down at her expectantly, waiting for her to order first. "Aww, come on," he said, noticing that she seemed to have some trouble deciding, also knowing how fanatic she was about losing weight. "What's one cheeseburger gonna do? You'll have to eat a lot of them before you end up like me!" "Heh, well... yeah, I guess you have a point. I'll take, uh, a number 3 meal with a..." Well... no harm in a little indulgence once in a while, right? "...large strawberry shake." "That's the spirit!" Robotnik said, chuckling. He turned to the cashier, waiting briefly for the first order to be punched in, then said, "I'll have 3 double cheeseburgers, a large order of fries and a large Dr Pepper. For here." He casually flicked a $20 bill seemingly out of his sleeve and handed it to the cashier. Once Robotnik got the change back, he gestured at one of the few booths in the tiny restaurant and looked at Amy. She sat down, noticing that he didn't sit until she did. Those rumors about him being such a gentleman under normal circumstances were true...! "So, you say you love Sonic," he said, leaning comfortably back in his side of the booth. "But you think he hates you. Why? Because he always runs away?" "Yeah... and he's NOT shy, I know that much. He's never flighty around any other girls. And you know how much of a showoff he is." "Heh, indeed, I know it all too well. But just because he runs away doesn't mean he hates you. I seriously doubt he even dislikes you; don't you recall all the times he's saved you when you were in trouble?" Robotnik asked. "I sure do," he added with a chuckle. "He only saves me because he's the hero... he HAS to," Amy said, folding her arms with a sigh. "Not true... do you remember the day on the ARK, when I came very close to eliminating Sonic altogether?" Robotnik actually assumed a faintly apologetic look when Amy glared at him, remembering that. "Do you remember the way he looked at you when he said, 'Take care of yourself?'" he asked. Amy thought hard for a moment. In the terror of that situation, she hadn't really noticed a little detail such as that at the time, but now, thinking back... she DID recall that Sonic did seem to look at her with even more worry and caring than when he spoke to Tails. If he really had fallen that day... she would have been the last person he spoke to. "You noticed that?" she asked, snapping out of her memories and looking up at Robotnik. His look softened just a bit and he smiled again, a bit sadly, saying, "It made me feel bad to press the button..." Amy stared. She opened her mouth to say something when suddenly she realized the waiter was approaching the table. Robotnik realized it, too, and with a quick, "Oh! Food's here," he moved the silverware out of the way so the dishes could be placed down easily, then nodded a thanks to the waiter and took a drink. "Ah, yes. Good stuff." "You... felt bad about it?" Amy asked, picking up a nearby bottle of ketchup and shaking it briefly. "Why did you do it?" She opened the bottle and poured some out onto her plate, then set the bottle down. Robotnik shrugged slightly. "I was out of my mind. I knew what I was doing... didn't really want to... but felt I had to." His tone was quieter than usual, betraying a feeling of regret. "But, this isn't about me," he piped up suddenly before Amy could say anything, returning to his previous calm and confident self, "As I was saying, I don't think Sonic dislikes you. I think he has a certain fondness for you, but..." He paused, pouring some ketchup onto his own plate. "Perhaps you're not letting him show it." "WHAT!?" Amy barked, instantly riled up. "I've given him every invitation to show he loves me! What are you talking about!?" "Now, just think about this for a moment, Amy," Robotnik said, holding up a hand toward her in a calming gesture. "How often have you let him actually speak much? How many times have you tried to meet up with him just to chill out instead of trying to get him to make plans for marriage and kids?" He lowered his hand to the table, taking a couple fries to eat while he waited for Amy to ponder his questions. She was silent for a moment, then asked, "But... why doesn't he like my ideas? I don't get it..." "Lemme tell you something about Sonic," Robotnik said with a slight grin, swallowing a couple more fries before continuing. "He is the definition of a free man. You say you love him, but I don't think you really know him. You might say he won't let you get to know him, but I'm pretty sure I know a way that you can." "Really!? What is it?" Amy practically lunged across the table, eager to hear. "Run with him." "What?" the hedgehog asked confusedly, chomping into a couple of fries in frustration. "But he never lets me get near him! And he's too fast!" Robotnik shook his head. "You don't have to keep up with him... I've seen him grab Tails and Knuckles and blast off with them when they all needed a boost. He trusts his friends, that's why he does that for them. He knows they won't hold him back." Amy frowned. "He... he thinks I'd hold him back?" "That's exactly what you've been trying to do with him, Amy. You've tried to keep him in one place... all to yourself, not wanting to let him have space of his own. Listen, you love him because he's a smart, fast, and presumably good looking 'hog, right?" "Of course!" "Do you realize how much it would change him to get married and have kids? Right now the guy has no responsibility whatsoever. He doesn't even consider fighting me a 'job'..." Robotnik chuckled a bit. "He does that purely for the adventure." He took a bite out of one of the double cheeseburgers, letting that bit of information sink in. "In wanting to marry him and start a family, you're asking Sonic to take on a pretty big responsibility... one that would require him to avoid adventuring so he could take care of said family." Amy looked down at the table, brow furrowing in thought. "But I always wanted a family..." "That will come in time, Amy. You and Sonic aren't going to be kids forever... and if there isn't something wrong with him, I'm quite sure there will come a day when he'll want to marry just as much as you do." "So... what do I do until then?" "Don't worry so much about being a wife and mother... start being a kid while you still can. You look up to him because he's strong and adventurous... why don't you adventure with him, and see what that life of freedom is like for yourself? You might like it!" The hedgehog looked up from the table after a moment of silent eating, then smiled a bit. "...Thanks, Robotnik. I never thought about it that way before." The large man finished one cheeseburger, took a drink and nodded, saying, "I've seen you and Sonic struggle for so long, and I think it would be nice if you could actually enjoy each others' company." "Really...? But... why do you even care? I didn't think YOU liked any of us much, either." Amy looked at Robotnik, confusion in her expression as she put him on the spot again, trying to pry into his psyche. He wondered whether he should open up to her. Pondering this, he ate a couple more fries, then said, "You know how Knuckles and Sonic fight sometimes, but Knuckles is pretty much Sonic's best friend, excluding Tails, who functions as more of a little brother?" "Yeah, heh, it's funny when those two fight over silly rocks," Amy remarked. Robotnik looked straight at her and said, "Sonic and I are a lot like that, too." He picked up the second cheeseburger and took a bite out of it. Amy just sat there, mildly stunned. What he just said was absolutely true, but she'd never really perceived it before. "So... you actually want Sonic to be happy?" she asked. "Why not? I'm not a cruel, heartless madman... sometimes I might seem that way, when I'm really out of it... When I AM sound of mind, I'm actually quite a nice guy; nothing stopping me from helping out a friend when I can." He grinned faintly. Amy fell silent with this new information, having a difficult time processing it, though she realized it made perfect sense. In the next several minutes, the two just relaxed and finished up their meals. This was the best-tasting food she'd had in a long time... especially the shake. "Thanks for the lunch!" Amy said, pushing the empty plate and glass off to the side of the table. "Never thought I'd be having lunch with you, heh!" Robotnik wiped off his hands and mouth with a napkin, then dropped that on his empty plate. "Not a problem, I enjoyed it." He stood up, offering a hand for her to pull herself out of the booth easily on. She hesitated to take it, just because it was very strange to see him doing such a thing. She let a slightly amused but appreciative smile cross her face and gripped his hand, using it to make hopping out of the booth that much easier. The two walked out of the shop feeling quite full and satisfied. "Well, I suppose it would be a good idea for you to go and find Sonic, hmm?" Robotnik asked, dusting off his sleeve casually. Amy grinned brightly and exclaimed, "Yeah! I'm gonna go find him! Thanks again, Robotnik!" She dashed past him and headed toward the beach. He watched her round a corner and disappear, then chuckled to himself and turned to walk to his next destination, silently wishing her luck. Amy ran down the beach, having to go over a bridge or two before she did find Sonic relaxing under a big beach umbrella, sound asleep. She approached him quietly and then sat down with her legs folded under her, watching him sleep for a few minutes. Robotnik was right... Sonic was meant to be free of all responsibility. Amy recalled all of the grown, married men she had seen walking down the street every day, how they usually looked happy but still with the stresses of everyday living evident in their eyes and the way they acted. She tried to imagine what Sonic would be like in that manner and realized that he would probably be quite miserable... and all this time, she had been asking - DEMANDING - that he do just that for her. No wonder he stayed away from her. Sonic stirred a little, then opened his eyes as he sensed through his brief half-consciousness that someone was right next to him. When he saw who it was, he lurched back a bit, startled. "Ahh! Amy! W-what are you doing here!?" "Sonic, it's okay... I've, ah, been doing some thinking, and I just... well, I'm sorry for all the times I've annoyed you so much," she said calmly. He stared at her with a strange look on his face. It wasn't like her to be so calm around him, and the look in her eyes was a clear, lucid one, not the starry gaze he was used to seeing. "Well," the blue hedgehog said, "You don't have to be... sorry." He was confused as to why she would suddenly come up with this out of nowhere. "Okay, well, feel like going for a run?" Amy grinned, not wanting to bore him with the past. Sonic blinked. She'd never actually asked him something like that before, she was always wanting to go shopping or other girly activities... "Uh, sure!" he exclaimed. He was quite pleasantly surprised at this turn of events. The two stood up and Sonic immediately started to stretch, getting his muscles loosened up, and he made sure his shoes were on tight. He looked at Amy and started into a jog, watching her jump to his side and happily stay right along with him while he gradually increased speed, running easily over the sand. The strangeness of the situation began to fade as the speed picked up and he began to lose himself in the sheer pleasure of just running. He noticed that Amy was keeping up with him quite well - she'd become a much faster runner in recent years by always chasing him around. Their feet thumped loudly on a long wooden bridge with lots of sharp turns and they sailed easily off of a jump booster to another small island, springing up from landing and hurtling along the path that Sonic had memorized for maximum speed long ago. He got to the point of wanting to turn his feet loose and sprint as fast as he could, but he didn't want to leave his running partner behind... Amy gasped slightly as she felt a sharp tug on her arm and she was literally pulled into the air. Suddenly she was moving much faster than usual, sailing out behind Sonic by one arm and watching the ground pass by so fast it became a crazy blur. She was scared for a moment, as anyone would be when out of control of the situation, then remembered who WAS in control. Sonic felt her hand grip tightly to his arm and, knowing she was secure, poured on all the speed he had. The two turned into one big blur in a matter of seconds, blasting through the sound barrier and taking incredibly sharp turns despite the fact that they were moving so fast. Springs and speed boosters along the path, which became lush with green grass and lots of vegetation for a stretch, added to the haste; the risk; the freedom. They could go anywhere, take any alternate route they wanted. Sonic would change direction almost at random to fill the trip with surprises for Amy, grinning to himself when he heard her shriek and then laugh with glee behind him. Feeling the wind whipping through his quills as he flew off a final jump booster and sprinted down the home stretch, Sonic realized how good he felt despite Amy being right with him. Usually he felt like he was expected to behave a certain way around her or risk her wrath... he expected endless marriage proposals and plans for a family, but this time, all Amy wanted to do was run with him. This was a very pleasant change, one that he had wanted for a long time now. The rusted heap of one of Robotnik's old holding capsules stood at the very end of the beach where Sonic skidded to a quick stop, spinning around on his axis a few times to slow Amy's momentum so she wouldn't stop with a potentially painful jerk to her arm. Once the momentum lost its force, he let her to the ground. "That was awesome, Sonic!" The pink hedgehog grinned up at him, then suddenly tackled him before he could say anything. He yelped in surprise, hitting the ground and rolling over the sand with her for several feet, both of them laughing as if it were just a game by the time they came to a stop. Neither even got a bruise, considering hedgehogs are inherently very good at taking a tumble. Amy landed squarely on Sonic with a thump, then looked down at him, smiling hopefully. She didn't want to make him nervous now, but certainly liked the idea of cuddling him... He opened his eyes and met her gaze, realizing for a moment just what situation he was in. But... it was different this time. She wasn't cutting off his circulation by possessively clinging to him. She wasn't raving about future plans or telling him that he needed to move in with her at her house. In fact, he felt quite relaxed, partially due to the fact that she was also relaxed and really enjoying the moment. "Amy, what... what brought this on? I've never seen you like this before," Sonic said, smiling slightly with confused curiosity. "Heh, well..." She glanced very briefly at the rusted capsule nearby, then grinned. "I... asked a friend of yours about you. Found out some things I didn't know before." Assuming he knew who she was talking about, he said, "You did? But... Tails has told me a lot in the past that you talked to him, and nothing changed then." "It wasn't Tails," Amy said, mischief evident in her voice. "...Knuckles!?" He couldn't believe she would actually be desperate enough to approach the echidna on the subject of her feelings. "Not him either!" she replied, giggling. Sonic shook his head and gave her a humorously confused look, grinning a little. "But nobody else knows me better than they do!" "Are you sure about that? Hehe..." She shot another glance at the capsule. He noticed her look this time and his expression went from confused to totally amazed. "Wait a minute... are you telling me you asked...?" Amy laughed. "Robotnik knows a lot more about you than you'd think, Sonic! You should have heard what he had to say about you! He's actually a really nice guy, you know? It was neat to talk to him!" She smiled a bit, her voice becoming a little more quiet. "I just wanted to make you happy, you know... that's why I ended up asking him about you." "You went through the trouble of dealing with that egghead just for me?" Sonic asked with a large, amused grin. "Well, thanks, Amy... I didn't think you'd do something like THAT, that's crazy!" She giggled, looking down at him with a loving stare and saying, "Well, they do say love makes you crazy." He said nothing in reply, instead just staring back up at her through half-lidded eyes with a comfortable, relaxed smile. She raised a hand to gently run her fingers along the side of his face and shivered very slightly when she felt one of his hands rest on her back. Sonic had, in a way, always wanted something like this, but he never consciously thought about it. He liked having someone to share an adventure with; usually Tails and Knuckles fit that part nicely, but now he realized that Amy could make a great partner too... and hey, let's face it - under the right circumstances, even he liked a little romance. At present, the circumstances couldn't have been more right. As Robotnik had told Amy, Sonic valued freedom above all else, and now Amy was enjoying that with him - they didn't have a care in the world. He shut his eyes, sighing happily. Amy let her forehead rest against his and closed her eyes too, just listening to his slow, even breathing. Feeling the closeness and warmth, his breath on her face... she couldn't contain herself. Knowing she was taking a rather large risk - but that she was supposed to live for risks now - she slid her hand to the side of his jaw and pressed her lips against his in a gentle, lingering kiss. He was startled for a moment; she expected this, considering she was pretty sure he'd never kissed anyone before. Neither had she, actually, but she watched enough chick flicks to know how it's supposedly meant to be done... Amy broke the kiss and pulled back very slightly, opening her eyes halfway to see his reaction. Sonic's eyes opened a little and he looked up at her with a gentle expression on his face, as if he didn't really know what to do, but was certainly enjoying the moment anyway. She took that as a sign that she could continue and kissed him again, avoiding being too forceful like she would have in the past. When he started to kiss back - although he wasn't very good at it, she noted in amusement, but he'd certainly get better with practice - it became obvious that he did indeed have feelings for her. Now that she wasn't smothering him, he was able to show them... and he seemed quite happy to do so, much to her delight. Back in the city, Tails and Robotnik had run into each other and had a discussion about alternative energy types for a small project Tails was working on. "...yeah, I might try the rings! I noticed this is something you recently started doing, huh?" the young fox asked. Robotnik nodded. "It's much more efficient than my original methods. Use caution, though; those rings have quite a lot of energy in them. You only need one to power a robot indefinitely." Tails grinned up at his fellow genius mechanic. "That usually seems to be the rule of rings: You only need one! Heh heh. Well, I guess I'll be heading back home. By the way, have you seen Sonic around here? I haven't seen him in a while." Reminded of his rival, Robotnik grinned slightly. "Well... I did have a discussion with Amy about Sonic, and I suppose you should know that I managed to convince her of a few things that would give her the ability to get along with him quite well. ...I think they're both rather busy at the moment. You might not see either of them for a few days!" He chuckled a bit as he saw Tails' reaction. The fox's ears slowly drooped down and he got that 'why me' look on his face. "Oh, NO," he moaned, "You got Amy and Sonic together!? Now Sonic's going to be acting all lovey-dovey and WEIRD!" Robotnik laughed, reaching down to ruffle the fur on top of Tails' head reassuringly. "Ah, I doubt Sonic will act that weird. I know you're still young and you don't understand teenage emotions yet, but at least now you won't have to hear him complain whenever Amy shows up, right?" "Heh, yeah, that's true!" Tails snickered a bit, his ears perking up again. "Well, I guess I'll see him when I see him," he said wryly. "Thanks for the info on the rings, gotta run!" The doctor watched the little fox run off toward the train station, then slowly started to walk toward the front of the city to the shoreline, suddenly in deep thought. He felt his mind clouding up with a lust for power again as realizations pieced together... briefly, dismay struck him as he knew he was losing his mind, but an instant later he didn't care. He mumbled quietly to himself, "Tails is working with an unfamiliar concept, and Sonic is distracted..." "...heh heh... heheheh... eh hehhehehehehhh..." He leapt up into the escape pod that he parked next to a little boat at the shore, saying to himself, "Ah, Ivo, you're a GENIUS, even when you aren't trying! Muaahahahaha!" By this time, people were looking at him strangely. He turned the pod around to face the city briefly and yelled with a grand gesture of one arm, "See you soon, citizens of Station Square... when I'm sitting in the President's seat! MUAHAHAHAAHAHAAAAA!" The madman flew off quickly, leaving everyone rolling their eyes and shaking their heads, until people started murmuring, "Well, guess we better let Sonic know," and asking each other if they'd seen him. It quickly became apparent that nobody knew where he was. Generally they would have at least had some idea... As Dr. Robotnik's laugh faded into the distance, the reality that things may be a little harder than usual this time sunk in with the citizens, and they all retreated into their homes to anxiously await the next time they'd spot Sonic.

#eggman #robotnik #amy rose #tails #sonic #jen irwin #fanfiction #fanfiction jen irwin #fanfiction one shots

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mobius-prime · 5 years ago

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99. Sonic the Hedgehog #60

Arsenal of the Iron King

Writer/Pencils: Frank Strom Colors: Barry Grossman

This is another one of those issues that introduces someone who would appear to be a one-off character, but ends up later becoming a major player. I won't spoil it for those who don't already know, but just go ahead and pay attention to some of the people introduced here and see if you can guess.

Sonic and Tails are continuing their adventure, this time flying not by plane but by Tails' namesakes, when they encounter a mountain that is completely engulfed in flame, yet somehow isn't burning the forest around it. They quickly become exhausted by the heat and land in a nearby village, hoping to get some water and answers.

Seeing the dire state of things in this land, Sonic suggests the residents of the village simply pack up and leave, but an old Mobian lion nearby shoots that idea down. He introduces himself as Li Yuen, and the girl as Li Moon (the whole area is given a very Chinese flavor, and indeed was revealed to be in not-Asia later in the comic), and explains why the mountain is burning like this.

Truer words have never spoken of thyself, Sonic. They begin heading towards the Iron King and Queen's fortress to retrieve the fan, but the two see them coming - the Iron King appears to be a massive Mobian bull, while the Iron Queen is a normal human (er, Overlander) woman, making this comic years ahead of Sonic '06 as far as portraying interspecies relationships. The king and queen send out a pawn of theirs to intercept Sonic and Tails, and the pawn turns out to be none other than Monkey Khan himself, brainwashed to do their bidding!

I really like Sonic's line about Monkey Khan being a "harmless psycho," honestly. I don't know, something about it strikes me as hilarious, especially because it does basically describe Monkey Khan in these earlier issues. Anyway, the Iron Queen makes the mistake of showing up in person to egg Monkey Khan on and taunt Sonic, and while Khan is distracted cornering Sonic at the edge of a cliff while the queen heeheehees maliciously, Tails dives for her staff, knocking the magic crystal off of it and robbing her of her control over Khan. She flies away on her cool-ass floating tech platform in anger as Khan comes to, and Tails points out that it appears she was using the power of some magic rings to exert control.

Now with Monkey Khan along to help their mission, they head into the imposing-looking fortress to search for the king's arsenal. They find it fairly easily, but of course, the king arrives to try to beat them down. Tails goes searching while Sonic and Monkey Khan fight back against the king, and soon, sure enough, Tails finds the thing they're looking for.

Wow, it's that easy? You'd think this guy would have had it better locked up if it's this powerful, man. With the Iron King blown away, Khan gives Sonic a ride above the mountain on his magic cloud, and despite the queen reappearing to try to stop them with more magic, Sonic blows the fan onto the mountain, putting out the entire fire at once without issue. The queen flies away promising future revenge, and the three heroes return to the village to let Li Yuen and Moon know about their success. And apparently, Monkey Khan's a pretty special guy!

You don't say, Sonic! Seriously, everyone in the comic at this point has some kind of mystical prophecy surrounding them except Sonic. But then again, you could say that's what makes him so special and interesting as a main character - that in a world of prophecies and chosen ones, he's just an ordinary guy with extraordinary powers, who's determined to keep saving the world even though he doesn't necessarily have to. Just another reason why I love Sonic as a character, man.

The Ultimatum

Writer/Colors: Ken Penders Pencils: Manny Galan

All right, ready to see Sally's night ruined, everyone? Her father calls her into his room, and he mentions how she's been avoiding him lately, admonishing her for "questioning his judgment" ever since the "let's dismantle all the Robians" incident. Despite her protestations, which are totally, 100% reasonable considering that she had witnessed her father calling for the Robians' mass murder not once but twice not too long ago, he opens a closet and leads her into the secret passage hidden within, much to her amazement.

Sure enough, he leads her into the room containing the pool of the Source of All, mentioning that she should have undergone this ritual when she was ten years old, but due to the war he was unable to ensure such - but now that he's back, he intends to have her complete the ritual now. Also, apparently she'd be the first female Acorn to undergo the rite, a detail which seems a little unnecessary to include. I mean, there's been really no indication within the worldbuilding of this universe so far that sexism is really an issue, no one's ever questioned any female character's abilities just because of their gender (barring that one really bizarre issue that made Robotnik out to be a misogynist, also penned by Penders, shockingly enough), so what, did the Acorn line just have a general propensity towards having male babies or something until now? Penders wrote this into the Guardians' history as well, with Janelle-Li being the only female Guardian in the line's unbroken history, again with no real precedent in the worldbuilding. It just seems odd and I don't really have a good explanation for it other than Penders' own unacknowledged biases.

But I digress. Sally is immediately ready to fulfill her duties until the king interrupts her to say that once she undergoes the rite, she will need to think about marriage so she will have a suitable king to rule alongside her one day. She waffles a little, mentioning how she's not ready to get married yet and how "Sonic would run for the hills if I even mentioned the subject," and the king practically explodes, yelling at her about how Sonic is absolutely out of the question. Apparently, the Acorn line just loooooves arranged marriage, with the king's own wife having been chosen for him when he was eleven and their marriage commencing on his eighteenth birthday. Sally is still a bit confused and uncertain until her father mentions Antoine being a good fit for her husband, at which point she loses it and starts shouting at him in anger.

Okay, honestly? Good for her. I mentioned before how this whole thing seems incredibly cult-like, and I fully believe that the only reason this thing has been going on for so long without any issues is because all the future monarchs are essentially tricked into bonding with the Source of All when they're too young to understand what such a thing would entail. King Acorn even mentioned this to Dr. Quack in that earlier issue, that at the time he was just instructed to dunk himself under the surface of the liquid, but that he "didn't know at the time" that he'd bonded with the Source. Now the king is facing resistance from his daughter, and I'd wager the reason is because she's actually had it explained to her what such a thing would mean, not to mention that she's been an independent and strong leader from the very beginning without him, since he was lost at the beginning of the war. She's had almost her entire childhood to make her own decisions and grow into her own vision of a leader, and now that her father is back and trying to exert his more traditionalist control over her, she's fighting back. She's being put into a very hard situation, torn between her traditional duties and her belief in her own independence - ironically, in a way, life was easier for her when her father was still missing.

Furthermore, that last line of the king's is a little bizarre and ominous - his "other option"? Who or what could he be referring to? I wouldn't be surprised if some people thought that the other option was Geoffrey given the "Next: Geoffrey" text right next to him, but no, it's not him. He doesn't have the precious royal blood, after all. *sigh* *grumble* Stupid monarchy…

#nala reads archie sonic preboot #archie sonic #archie sonic preboot #sonic the hedgehog #sth 60 #writer: frank strom #writer: ken penders #pencils: frank strom #pencils: manny galan #colors: barry grossman #colors: ken penders

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