Not in My Data: Act II Chapter 2

Catching Up

"We can't have any more incidents like this, Nicole," Sally sighed as she leaned back against the wall of the palace break room. Elias, Nicole, Sonic, and she had decided to meet about the problem Metal was posing during his stay at Mobotropolis.

After the events with Eggman and the destruction of the Eggdome (which had served as the capital of Metal Sonic's Grand Mobian Empire), the android's body needed repairs beyond any normal mechanic's abilities. Since he was already within the presence of both Tails and Rotor, he had donned the nanites-Lynx Mobian body Nicole had created previously before. It was released to the public that he was staying as a guest until his mechanical body had been restored, and the AI decided to repay his debt to Elias by aiding with the hunt for Dr. Finitevus. Though, since an official task force had not been created yet, Metal had volunteered to assist with domestic problems.

Metal Sonic had left Mammoth Mogul and Honey to watch over his kingdom in his place alongside the G.M.E. council. With Honey practically managing the kingdom, Mogul's presence was merely to keep political power status quo in the prince's absence. The AI was sure that the council would try to obtain more power (like that of the Council of Acorn), and the great mammoth's talents and persuasive abilities could keep them in check. When asked about possible attempts at a coup d'état, the immortal Mobian assured that he would have his own taskforce to defend the throne.

It was all according to plan. This was his backup plan in case anything went wrong. And something did go wrong; he lost his body.While it was temporary, there was no use telling when Tails and Rotor would be able to repair such a high maintenance article of machinery and technology. Both technicians had to admit that Eggman was ahead of even himself when he created Metal Sonic, and the term "hard work" had been given new meaning. Not to mention the pressure from the AI who was quite clear that everything had to be 100% the way it was. No changes.Metal Sonic had to admit he didn't trust the Mobians, but Nicole managed to convince him to give them a chance. Besides, she seemed happy that he was able to use her nanites bodies she created for him, and the now-lynx had to admit there were definitely perks.

Still…he would prefered his real body for the current situation. After Tails retrieved the Zone Receptor left behind from Scourge, he and Rotor had analyzed its properties and technology. By the looks of it, it was not a mass production unit, and took considerable time and effort to create. But Scourge was merely a test subject, and that meant Finitevus's plans had already been set into motion. Metal Sonic had calculated the albino echidna would take quantity over quality to destroy zones quicker, not to mention building an army to defend himself. Plus, Eggman was still on the run, and Metal Sonic's rogue attitude wasn't helping the mood of uneasiness.

"He almost killed our only lead," Sally continued, "I know he's trying to help, but…we just can't have him do want he wants. This is ourcity."

The brown lynx's ears drooped while Sally continued talking. As usual, she was right. The news was all over the exploding van, but for some reason there were barely any people who opposed Metal's methods. Maybe it was because he was some sort of celebrity to them now, but one of the civilians interviewed on what they thought:

" 'Heck, it's about time we got more serious with criminals in our own city! The Freedom Fighters have been getting too soft in my opinion!' "

That almost sent Sonic berserk. He couldn't believe something like this was happening again. What was wrong with people? Didn't they understand the consequences of taking a life? Didn't they understand that wounds needed to be healed, not made worse? He calmed down eventually, but was still disappointed with the city's take on Metal Sonic's ruthlessness.

The blue hedgehog leaned against the wall and stared out the window. His mind couldn't let go of Scourge's last moments. He was scared and alone, and wouldn't be missed by anyone. The last words his evil counterpart said to him were still ringing in his ears…

"-am I right Sonic?"

The hedgehog snapped out of his daze, "Huh? Oh, uh, yea. Definitely Sal."

The princess rolled her eyes, "Thanks for the support. But in all seriousness, are you okay? I mean, you're the one that wanted to have this talk, but you don't even seem to be able to pay attention."

"I'm…fine. Just thinking, that's all," the blue hero dismissed the concern, "Right now we should get Knuckles and any other friends we can contact to form teams to hunt down Finitevus. Metal can wait, but the bottom line is that he has to be controlled. His body is made of nanites, right Nicole?"

"Y-Yes," she cautiously answered back; she didn't like where this was going. Out of all the emotions she had experienced, fear and anxiety were her least favorite. Sonic couldn't be hinting that he wanted her to—

"Now hold on a minute," Elias interjected, "Even if he is going too far, Metal is still a diplomatic guest here. You've got to understand that the G.M.E. could mistake our actions and jump to the wrong conclusions. Then we'll be in an even bigger mess than we are now. Metal seems to trust Mogul and Honey to take care of things while he's here. I,on the other hand, don't trust that villain at all, and I'm sure he'll use any opportunity he'll get to seize power for himself."

Sally stepped forward, "So then what? Who's going to watch him while we're looking for Finitevus? Cream and Vanilla?"

"…I don't know," the king admitted while holding his chin, "But…we can't decide on this just yet."

"Um, excuse me…"

As all eyes turned to Nicole, the AI jolted a bit before getting the courage to continue, "I don't believe any of you have asked my opinion about this. I can help…I know Metal more than any of you…and, um, he listens to me."

The three Mobians shifted their eyes to the floor. This wasn't the first time they'd forgotten Nicole's feelings on Metal. The last thing they wanted was for her to leave them again, which is why Sonic had made sure Tails and Rotor work on Metal's body as slowly as possible. No one knew what would happen when he'd be able to go back; would Nicole go back to the G.M.E. with him?

Sally took her best friend's hand, smiling reassuringly, "Nicole, why don't you take Metal out somewhere? He probably needs to let off some steam and he'll have to find other things to do in his spare time anyway. We'll all talk about this with the Council of Acorn later."

The AI nodded and vanished in a green light to find her trouble making prince, her unsure look turning into a happy grin. The chipmunk looked back over to the other two, "Now, let's get started on recruitments."

New Mobotropolis Prison:

"I spy…with my little eye…something…."

"I'm going to kill him; I'm actually going to do it this time."

"Something…hmmmm…something…"

"Just let 'em talk himself to sleep again, Lightning. It's not like we're new to this."

"Yes, let Frog utter like a moron until the guards have had enough and come beat him to submission. That's one of the perks of sharing a cell with him."

"That actually leads to a question I've been pondering…why are we stuck in the same cell and Fiona has one of her own?"

"To torture us."

Once again, the Fearsome Foursome (known as the Destructix now) were in prison due to the Freedom Fighters. It was almost like a running gag now. They were interrogated about Finitevus, though the only thing they knew was that Scourge worked for him. Fiona explained that she was as in the dark as they were about the Echidna's plans and the Zone Receptor. The fox was silent for the first few days after being told of Scourge's demise. But she and the Destructix realized that Finitevus might not want some loose ends in New Mobotropolis, and they were eager to receive any protection possible.

"Something…ooooh, something gold and circular!" exclaimed Flying Frog.

Simian looked up with hope, "A glazed donut?"

Fiona had now gotten up from her cell to see a Warp Ring appear in the walkway between her and the Destructix. As an army boot connected to grey pants stepped out, the team of four knew exactly who it was.

"Sleuth!" Lightning Lynx cheered in a whisper.

The dog smirked as he turned to his old cohorts, "Been a while boys. I see things have been normal without me."

"Are you here to set us free, good sir?" the crazed amphibian questioned, "Impeccable timing, I was just getting started a game of I Spy."

"No time for games," Sleuth commanded, "Though I am here to get you guys out. We're hired for some muscle work."

Predator Hawk raised an eyebrow in interest, "Who's our target?"

The dog smirked again, "No one, we're on security detail."

Frog's face fell, "That sounds…incredibly boring."

Hawk ignored his friend's remark, "Who's your—I mean, our—employer? The last 'boss' we had didn't work out so well…"

Fiona pressed up against the glass wall; she was definitely interested in getting out. The fox hadn't seen Sleuth since he retired and handed the Destructix over to her. Why was he back?

"Your friend and mine," Sleuth remarked, "Good ol' Mammoth Mogul."

Simian felt bubbly inside. Everything was going back to the way it used to be. Sleuth was going to be in charge again, they'd work for Mogul…Drago wasn't there, but that wasn't a problem to the ape. The four nodded to each other in acceptance of the new contract and watched as Sleuth opened the Warp Ring to the Destructix's cell; entering it and reappearing inside with them. He then activated the Ring once more to their new designation.

"Just walk through here boys," he ordered, "Mogul wants us as his own personal secret service agents to make sure things don't get out of hand at the temporary capital of the Grand Mobian Empire."

Predator Hawk and Simian froze. Looking at each other they started laughing at the irony of their new job and happily walked through the ring, disappearing from sight. Sleuth moved to follow.

"Hey! What about me?"

The dog turned to see Fiona glaring back at him, "You can't just waltz in here and take my team and leave me behind!"

"I just did," Sleuth snapped back before vanishing into and along with the Warp Ring.