My freedom to exercise my abilities, as expected, was short-lived. Sage was excited for us to work together alongside our Master, but his attention first went to the new base he wanted to build on the island I shaped. He took one of his airships out to the island, and from there, construction began.



What was I doing, then?



The same thing I've been doing... Watching everything else. Wasn't Sage part of the entire Eggnet? Couldn't she keep a better eye on things than I could? I could've helped with construction. I had ample experience in commanding the other pawns, but no.



... It irritated me, but at least that meant I could visit Amy Rose again. Huh. Actually, maybe this was preferable... Maybe Amy could get me to destroy something for her. Or we could spar... I needed to practice keeping my guard up around her, anyway.



When I next had the opportunity to, I went on patrol and scanned through the city. Amy wasn't there. I went to her house... and she wasn't there either. Agh!



I lay on the roof of her house to wait for her since I didn't know where she was, and she no longer wanted me to tamper with her door locks.



I received a message from Belle. Her timing was impeccable. I was so bored.





She would bother me about Amy. I knew this because we did not pinky promise about it.





Belle sent me a signal on where we should meet, which happened to be in the forest close to where the old base was. I kept my voice processor there instead of anywhere on my person since I had no way of explaining my way out of having something like that. Either way, Belle could understand me perfectly. I went towards her signal first.



More waiting... I perched myself on the top of a tree and stared at the ground.



Eventually, I heard the wheels of a carriage. Motobud cheerfully rolled along, Belle right behind in the front seat of the carriage. I dropped down in front of them, landing on my feet.



"Hello, Metal!" beamed Belle. She was less startled whenever I appeared; she probably checked my location first. She jumped out of her seat and unhooked Motobud from the carriage, letting him roam aimlessly while I approached them. Motobud said hello by pressing his head into my hand, then went off to look around the forest. "Gosh, so much has happened since we last spoke in-person. I hardly know where to start-- Wait, no! I have to keep focus!" she said, slapping her hands together.



'What do you want to talk to me about?' I asked. It actually didn't sound Amy related.



"I got a strange file a little while ago... It was on our secure connection."



...?

'I didn't get any file. Why did only you receive it?'



"Because it was from you." Belle frowned at me. "I had a feeling it wasn't actually you. I tried to look into it, which is why I'm only telling you now... Then, messaging you today, clearly you're fine and normal, so..." She tapped her chin as she thought.



'What was in the file?' I asked. My first thought was immediately about the future version of myself. Was he here after all? But... why use Belle's connection? What was he up to if he was here?



"That's the thing: I don't know. I tried to decode it into anything legible, but I can't get any of it to make sense. The text is completely garbled and has no coding or patterns I could identify. I was worried at first it would be something that could mess with your systems, but I couldn't find anything malicious." She sighed, looking at me. "I want to send you the file here, and I can help if it does end up messing with you. Maybe you can make sense of it."



I nodded at her. 'Send the file,' I said. Her eyes turned red as she accessed our connection. I immediately received the file and opened it there.



... I had no idea, either. Everything here was totally new to me, all gibberish like what she explained. I crossed my arms, then brought my focus to her. 'When did you receive this?'



"Gears... It had to have been just a few days ago. Were you doing anything then?"



I was at the beach with Amy. I certainly didn't send anything to Belle unintentionally... I didn't access our connection at all, only the Eggnet. I took a moment to check back through my logs. I could see when Sage called me while I was on the beach, but nothing was out of the ordinary. Other than the call, I saw my normal memories and backup files. I briefly checked through them, just in case.



... I enjoyed that day...



"Metal?"



Belle's voice reminded me why I was looking at the files. I distracted myself... Uh, the point was that everything looked normal. I couldn't look at Belle for the moment. 'I'm not picking up anything strange,' I told her. 'I didn't send you anything by accident.'



I checked the file again... I was bothered that something else matched my signal and could send something to Belle. Since it wasn't me, either our connection had been hacked or the future version of myself decided to send it. But...



I just... didn't know why. My future self made contact with me already in such a desperate way...



...!



'Follow me,' I said to Belle, then sped away.



"Ahh! Wait, Metal! I can't go that fast!" she exclaimed. She knew my location and I was only a minute out from our meeting spot; she'd be fine.



I went back to my old base and immediately went for my room beside the garden. I took my voice processor and reinstalled it. When I left my garden, Belle just entered the hall. She keeled over, her hands on her knees. "Y-you couldn't slow down?" she sighed out.



... Here goes nothing. "I'm re-checking the file with my voice processor installed," I told her.



Her eyes were wide. "You can talk?!"



"With the voice processor, yes. I got it from the same creator of the file you were sent... Maybe." It was worth a shot, anyway. I understood most of the code of the voice processor, but there was a bit that seemed 'vestigial' to me. Because the chip I took from the arm confirmed it was from some version of me, I didn't see any caution at the time. I re-accessed the file and tried to translate it with my new installation.



...! I was right.



I could read the file. But... It was nothing new.



Irritating. I tilted my head. It was the same code that made the shape of a flower I couldn't recognize. I already received this message. He should have anticipated I would've examined the entire arm. So... why send the same message to Belle? Was it more than a message?



Belle tapped her index fingers together. "So, uh, you've been quiet for a bit. Find anything new?"



"... Have you seen this imagery before?" I asked. I sent a screenshot of the properly displaying file over to her for her to review.



Belle blinked. "This is the same file? I've never seen this flower before, sorry..."



... She was involved with whatever was happening, so I saw no harm in explaining what I found at Little Planet. I... conveniently left out that I was with Amy and it was a date. Belle nodded along during my explanation, then crossed her arms when I was finished.



"So what do you interpret the flower to mean, Metal?" she asked.



"I think something will happen when I see it in a form different than the file," I told her with full honesty. "I don't know what exactly, but..."



Belle gave me a concerned glance. "I guess we'll see... I'll be sure to let you know if I find anything, okay? I'll keep your image saved, and... what about the file?"



"Keep it," I told her. "There's a reason you have it. Don't know why yet." I did find it interesting that I could better see what was in the file thanks to my voice processor, but the file itself was the exact same. I didn't think I had all the pieces to the puzzle yet. But... I was frustrated that my future self just didn't tell me directly. Why was he being so nauseatingly cryptic...?



Was it better to keep me in the dark, too? What role did I have? Thinking about it made me less sure I was dealing with a future version of myself. But the flower...



...



I had to be patient... and cautious. I looked over to Belle. "If you ever get another message, please tell me immediately."



"Of course," she replied, smiling at me. "Hm... Do you think it's worth checking the future at Little Planet? Maybe what we're looking for is there."



... Not the worst idea.





Belle was in no state for combat, but her ingenuity could be useful to me. Motobud and the carriage were stationed by the old base while I carried Belle to Little Planet.



"G-gears and starters!" she exclaimed, covering her face. "S-slow down just a little bit! Please!"



She was less fun to carry than Amy. I gave her an irritated glare and slightly decreased my speed. Her exterior was made of wood so I guess it would make sense to not try to burn her with any heat I radiated.



Little Planet was there above Never Lake as it always would be while in orbit. If we were to check the future, I didn't want to give any possible signs I saw the arm before. I went to Stardust Speedway; it was above-ground, easy to travel through, and predictable for me.



My memories here were more embarrassing than anything else. I remembered the exact stretch of road I damaged myself on, the result of my first taste of rivalry, desperation, and defeat. I saw a city skyline dotted with millions of lights... though I wasn't sure if it was a real city or not; I never saw another person around. Despite it being daytime, the atmosphere darkened into a never-ending night as we got closer to ground-level.



As soon as I saw a good spot to land, I descended and put Belle down.



"Oh, wow..." Belle gasped out as she gathered her surroundings. "How beautiful. The roads look like they're made of gold!" She leaned over to examine the side of the path and touched a decoration that looked like a musical horn. "What fascinating technology and craftsmanship... I wish Motobud could see this!"



At least one of us liked this area. "I'll look for a signpost. I'll come get you when I find one."



"Aw, wait!" Belle trotted over to me. "It's been a while since we hung out. Let's look together."



"... Fine," I said, hanging my head a little. I lifted my head when she grinned at me. I walked ahead while she eagerly followed at my side.



"You must be in a good mood," she hummed. "There was about a fifty-percent chance you were gonna ditch me."



"Eighty-five," I responded.



Belle giggled. "Well, I'm grateful you didn't. There's so much I'd love to talk about. Such as: your voice! Wow!"



Was my voice really that big of a deal? Amy freaked out about it, too... I should've been the only one to care about it. "Why is that worth talking about?" I asked.



"I just wanna know what you think about it. A future version of yourself gave you a voice? That's a long way to go for something you could technically make now..."



"It's... You know how it would be viewed," I said, averting my eyes. "I like having a voice, but I'm not sure what's interesting about it."



"Well, I'm happy for you. And I'll keep it a secret, don't worry." She offered her pinky to me.



...



"We are also promising to not speak of Amy Rose," I said, holding my pinky out in return.



Belle retracted her hand. I let out an irritated beep. She raised her hands in the air, but she didn't dare look me in the eye. "Listen...!"



"No." I crossed my arms.



"You said--!!" She suddenly lowered her voice. "You said you gave her a letter," she whispered. "You shared that with me. Pleeeease, please tell me more. I don't think Amy would bring it up with me, so it has to be you." She clasped her hands together. "I never annoyed you about it until now. Please."



She was correct: she was annoying me in this moment. How interesting she did it despite knowing how grating I would find her.



"This is the biggest thing that's ever happened to you since we became friends," she continued.



"We're not friends," I quickly replied.



"Metal...!" Belle frowned.



I didn't like the way she was looking at me. "... You're... more like Orbot and Cubot," I mumbled.



Her eyes brightened again. "... Like a sibling?"



I prepared myself. "... Technically..." Or a subordinate.



"Metal...!" She repeated my name, but this time she sounded a lot happier. I glanced at her and I could swear she had tears in the corners of her eyes. "I view you like a sibling, too."



"So then you agree to not speak of Amy Rose," I said with a firm nod.



"Huh? I didn't say that--"



I slowly pushed her away by pressing my hand to her face. "Orbot and Cubot do not know about my relationship with her, and they never will."



"Aw..." Belle let her arms fall to her sides and she slouched over. "You know I wouldn't tell anyone...!"



I rolled my eyes. "Why do you find it so interesting, anyway? You're rarely so nosy."



Belle walked closer to my side again despite how I pushed her away before. "When we first connected, Metal, I saw how... unhappy you were. Of course, I didn't poke through your files on purpose, but the one thing that didn't cause you total misery was... you know..." Belle was a little too shy herself to be direct, but she spoke of Amy, my files and memories of her. "And you actually confessed to her... You seem to be much happier now, but I don't actually know what happened. I want to support you, that's all."



We were quiet for a while.



Ugh...



"... She eventually reciprocated my feelings," I said.



I thought Belle would freak out or wildly gesture, but instead, she gave me a warm smile. "She did?" she asked, her voice softer. I wasn't sure which interaction I found more uncomfortable...



"... Not at first." I tried to stay on-track by scanning for any nearby signposts. Of course, while we were having this conversation, none of them were coming up. I noticed that I'd been fidgeting with my hands, closing my palms and rotating my fists as I tried to figure out what to do with them. "She eventually warmed up to the fact that I left her the flowers."



The last letter Amy gave to me in-person expressed more of her feelings... It was my favorite letter so far, far better than any of the ones she thought went to that awful Hedgehog. Her words were for me... and they were beautifully written. I felt lucky... the good luck charm she gave me was already working. I would've taken out the charm to look at it, but then Belle would ask about it, and I would become irritated.



Belle laced her fingers together as she looked at me. "Amy is a very kindhearted person. I knew she would understand eventually... I am a little surprised that--" She stopped herself, then didn't talk. I waited for her to continue her thought, but it never came.



"What? Say it," I said.



"... I dunno, I think it might be mean," she muttered.



"Say it."



Belle sighed. "I'm surprised she eventually... uh, returned the feelings. She really liked Sonic."



I was quiet for a little while. I noticed Belle was nervous. I shook my head, hoping to dispel the tension. "I was surprised too," I said.



"Whatever you wrote down must have really gotten through to her. The flowers, too. That's pretty serious," she hummed. "Even though she liked Sonic so much, she still came around to you. I think that's really special."



I never really thought about it like that. I believed Amy in that I was her favorite, but the 'why' had me a bit lost when I took the time to ponder. Yes, I was the superior Hedgehog and she cited me as the better gardener and writer, but she already loved him and for years. I tried to let go of her and struggled immensely, so I couldn't imagine what she experienced. At least she no longer spent all her precious time on him... and I could more directly give her warmth.



"Is she your girlfriend now?" Belle asked.



I snapped out of my line of thinking. "... Girlfriend?" I repeated. "... Oh." We hadn't really referred to each other that way yet... Was she my girlfriend?



"Oh, well, don't worry about it either way. It's clear she likes you a lot! When I last talked to her, she was so energetic." Belle grinned at me. "I hope you two can continue to be happy. I'll always cheer you on."



I gave Belle a single nod. "... I'm not talking about this anymore," I said. "... And neither are you." I offered her my pinky again.



"F-fine!" We locked pinkies and did a firm shake. "Well, regardless... you know I'm always here for you."



Belle always was there for me. Literally, we couldn't truly sever our connection without her operating on me again. But... doing so was too much risk and hassle. I may also have minded our connection less over time. She gave me space most of the time and she didn't have any authority or control over me. We were connected and that's all it had to be.



When I looked over at her again, she was giving me such a hopeful gaze. She was cute and it disgusted me. I moved her away with my hand again.



She locked her arms around mine, pulling my hand off of her head. Ambush. "I'm thankful we met the way we did too, Metal. I was there to say goodbye to my father, but I gained a brother in turn."



"All of you are so obsessed with the idea of family..." I grumbled.



"It's okay to rely on others, you know. And you compared me to family first!"



I ignored her. Luckily, our conversation could come to an end. "There's a signpost," I said, gesturing to one in the near distance. "We have to go fast enough to go through the vortex. When we're there, stay hidden."



The cheer left her face. "What do you think we'll see?" she asked.



There was only one way to find out. I released her hold, then picked her up. I charged up enough energy, then blasted by the sign. Belle held onto me tightly, whining a little but otherwise trying to stay calm.



...



There was no vortex.



I increased my speed. I was going in a straight line. The vortex never came. I stopped.



"Are we there?" Belle squeaked.



"No..." I... didn't understand. I had time traveled using the signs before. How did one of my arms go through time, but not me? I went back to the signpost, just to make sure it actually was a real sign.



It was the same as it always was, just marked to go into the future. I backed away further, then sped through the sign again, going my top speed.



...



Still nothing.



"What...?" I asked myself. I put Belle down, then rocketed towards the sign again. I went the opposite direction. I put myself into overdrive.



No vortex.



"This..." I slowly returned to Belle. "This has never happened before."



"Are you doing it wrong--"



"No, I'm not!!" I snapped. "I time traveled using Little Planet's pathways several times! I did it as recently as last year!" I glared at my surroundings, then saw a sign to the past in the distance. I picked Belle up again and sped over to that one. I blasted through the sign--



There was a vortex! We were surrounded by bright green lights in a long, winding tunnel.



I stopped as soon as I saw the end of the path. Golden roads turned mossy, brassy, green. There were huge, old buildings in the distance instead of what could be construed as city lights.



"Whoa...!" Belle looked around, her eyes wide. She stepped away as she examined everything around her. Nothing was different from what I could tell; the appearance of Stardust Speedway in the past matched my previous records.



"... I could go into the past," I said, looking around with her. "... Why can't..."



"Uh... Is..." Belle scratched her head. "Something must be blocking access to the future, I guess...? What would do that?"



"Maybe technology that disrupts the gateways, or... Little Planet doesn't exist that far in the future," I said. But it at least existed a few days ago. The possibilities were worrying; either something really didn't want us to go to the future, or something really didn't want more messages to be sent to the past. At least, that's all I could gather...



That... was enough information for today. I took a brief detour to a vibrant orange flower I saw growing on the side of the road, harvesting one of its seeds. I put the seed away in the compartment on my left arm. I at least didn't want my trip here to be a total waste.



"Aw...!"



"Quiet." I pointed at Belle. "We're leaving now."



I went back through a sign that took us to our current time. Luckily, that vortex existed, and we were back in present-day Stardust Speedway. Just to make sure no stone was left unturned, I went to Collision Chaos too and discreetly checked for the place the arm was before. There was nothing out of place at all... And none of the future signposts had working gateways.



So much for learning about whatever was going on... I felt like everything new I learned just made me more confused.



I left Little Planet with Belle in tow, then reunited her with Motobud outside the old base. We said our goodbyes and she peacefully left. Before I went back home, I decided to plant the seed I gathered. I re-accessed the file Belle shared with me...



... After I first saw the flower in the code over a week ago, I did some brief research to see if it was something I could grow. I didn't find anything at the time; none of the flowers I could grow could possibly look like that, but... I hadn't graphed out every possibility to be sure. I also didn't look at any flower species outside of the ones from Little Planet...



My Master was unlikely to call for me while he was so focused on the new base he was building, so I had plenty of time to spend on my own. I went to the desk in the room beside the garden and brought out all my existing files about flowers. It was time to see what I could do.