My name: Metal Sonic.



My ID: #019231993.



Today was the first day of my activation. There were previous models of me, all resulting in failure. I was trained on their data and made to exceed them. My purpose: serve my one and only Master, Dr.Eggman.



I first activated in a laboratory of my Master's own genius. He stood before me, checking all my systems, making sure my booting process went well enough. There was a girl in all white, watching me closely. I could only see one of her eyes, bright and blue.



I scanned her. She was another one of my Master's creations, an artificial intelligence by the moniker Sage.



"Greetings," she said, her voice polite.



'Hello,' I replied back. I did not have a mouth like she did, but I was fortunate enough to communicate with my own machinery.



"Everything's in the green," my Master said as he lifted his goggles, revealing another pair of glasses behind them. "How do you feel, Metal Sonic?" he asked me.



'I feel fully operational,' I replied.



Sage's expression changed. I scanned her face again... Concern? None of my own data implied anything that would warrant such an expression.



"It'll take a little while for his personality to kick in while he's gathering new data," he said to her. "In fact, maybe that can be the first mission. Metal Sonic, allow Sage to show you around the base and assist her with her duties today."



I gave a single nod. My Master disconnected me from wires bound to the laboratory itself, then allowed me to rise. I stood by Sage and waited for her to move.



"Oh... Follow me," she said, floating out of the area. I walked behind her.



For some reason, I felt sluggish. I was brand new... Surely not a bug to report. As Sage floated forward, I decided to do the same by using the rockets under my feet and my turbine. I no longer felt sluggish.



"As Father said, my name is Sage... We are family," she said, her voice light.



'Family?' I asked.



"Yes. We have the same creator, so we are connected in that way. We both serve our Father to ensure he conquers the world and guides the planet under his superior vision. Both of us are very unique creations, and for that, we rank above all others."





...?



I received a message, but I did not understand from where. This log did not come directly from me or from anything of my Master's doing.



... I was curious.





I brought my attention back to Sage as she continued: "Our connection makes us siblings. I am your sister... You are my brother."



'I understand,' I replied. She gave me a new expression. It was a smile.



"May I call you Brother from now on, Metal Sonic?"



I gave a single nod. 'Would you like me to address you differently?' I asked.



"Yes. Please call me Sister." She laced her fingers together. "There are more rooms that may be relevant to you in the future. We will go this way."





I was slightly irritated. I was messaged by an entity who claimed to be my sister right after I learned I had one. I traced the connection back... I saw a location on the map, far away from the base we were in.



I searched their ID afterwards. What appeared in my data was a robot with a wooden casing. Her name: Belle Tinker. Though she had designations very similar to my Master's work, she was not marked as Eggtech.





I didn't know what this Belle was talking about or why she insisted on messaging me over and over. Useless behavior. I would not allow her to distract me from my current task.





"Are you well, Brother?" Sage asked me.



'Yes.' I bowed my head. 'I was surveying available data... I came across a Belle Tinker. What is her relation to this empire?' I asked.



Her eye slightly widened. "Ah... She goes by Belle the Tinkerer. There was a time Father suffered amnesia, and within that time, he created anomalies such as her. She is an adversary, a friend to our enemies."



... He did create her? 'Is she family?' I asked.



Sage thought for a while. "... I am not really sure. Regardless, she is not an ally."



'Who is our greatest adversary?'



"For many years, the title belonged to Sonic the Hedgehog."



Sonic the Hedgehog? Like my name?



"The last conflict with him left him severely wounded, but he managed to escape. He is unlikely to be a problem for a while. Another notable adversary did not escape."



I found her explanation interesting. 'Who? Is there data I can review?'



Her demeanor instantly changed. She held onto one of my arms, gripping tightly. I could tell she struggled with a frown. "Data was unable to be kept. It... does not matter. It was a victory for the Empire." She slowly let go of my arm and turned away from me. "... There is a recreational room we are allowed to use. I request your assistance here."



Sage guided me to a room with different games, some physical, some digital. My assistance involved me playing them with her. I was pleased by it... I liked it. In games we faced off against one another, I wanted to win.



When we took breaks, I researched more from the database. I found nothing about a Nova. I did find an Amy.



She was a pink hedgehog labeled as an adversary, full name Amy Rose. Her skills involved use of what she called the Piko Piko Hammer and she was cited as a leader among some groups she involved herself in. Belle said I loved her... How did that make sense? I wasn't entirely sure what 'love' even meant.



I looked up Sonic the Hedgehog. I wanted to know more since he had my name and Sage cited him as the greatest adversary. We had similar abilities, except he was organic. We had similar color palettes. He was like me, but not aligned with my Master. Therefore, he was nothing.



I put too much credit in whatever Belle said to me... Since we were enemies, there was no reason for her to try to be friendly or give me information.



... I was still... curious.



I fulfilled my duties with Sage. She smiled more. We explored the entire base and spent time in a few more areas. She said she enjoyed my presence, then brought up a possibility of us going to a racing circuit. I found it intriguing, so I agreed.



My Master had to rest as an organic being and Sage needed to organize her own data. I reviewed what Belle said to me... I checked her location again.



In the dead of the night, I left my base to go see her. If the situation soured, I would destroy her and create an easier takeover for my Master. I would be victorious either way.



Her location brought me to an old base my Master used, marked on the map and labeled as unimportant. One of the entrances was through a short cave. Glowing blue eyes met me at the other end, just before a door.



"Metal... You're here," she said to me.



'Why are you at this base?'



"That's part of what I want to show you..." She typed in a code on a nearby keypad, then the door opened. Belle walked in first... I walked in afterwards. "I have proof that your memories were wiped."



'Why does it matter?' I asked.



She was quiet for a while longer. Eventually, she replied: "Your memories contain valuable info... Info that could help you, make you stronger. That's what you want to fulfill your mission, right?"



... Her logic was sound. 'Why, then, were my memories wiped if they were useful?'



Belle turned to look at me and frowned. "Some memories are too useful."



I didn't understand what she meant. Nothing could be 'too useful'. Something was either useful or it was useless. It was simple.



She guided me further down the hall. The base itself looked surprisingly clean for its age listed in the map logs. She eventually took me to a door with another keypad. She put in the code, then it slid open. From my first glance, I deduced it as a bedroom for organic beings like my Master.



There was puffy red bedding and a plethora of pillows... A stuffed doll that looked like me lingered on top of the covers. There was a large TV with stacks of movies surrounding it. A few movies were separated from the rest and appeared worn from frequent use. Belle walked towards one of the walls and studied the framed photographs on them.



Upon closer inspection, all the photographs were of a previous Metal Sonic model and the Amy Rose I looked up earlier. They were close in each one, embracing in some, pressing their muzzles together in others. Supposedly, Amy Rose had an amicable relationship with him. These photographs did not prove I was the very same, though. I was trained on previous iterations of Metal Sonic.



'Again,' I started, 'you are confusing me with another Metal Sonic.'



"You aren't a different robot. You're the same model, you have the same ID, the same date of creation, the same body... The same CPUs. Follow me." Belle left the room, causing me to follow her again.



She walked to an elevator this time. We went inside, descended down several floors... Then we came out to a long hallway leading to an incredibly large room. My map indicated this was the main laboratory of this base.



"There might have been other copies of you, sure... But you're the very first. Eggman had an attachment to you for that reason, and you had a pretty complicated relationship," she said. That didn't sound right to me at all.



When we entered the laboratory, there were various projects around. Nothing that looked interesting. There was a smaller Metal Sonic model against the wall in the back, dormant. Belle went over to it first.



"This is your first body," she said, then opened the back of the head. I wasn't sure why I followed to see what she was doing. "As you can see, the CPUs are missing... What's left is everything else that makes the body work and some leftover data and storage... The CPUs are missing because they're your CPUs. Connect yourself to the body if you don't believe me. You won't find any inconsistencies."



'... Fine.' I didn't know why I was humoring the robot, either. I connected myself to the empty robot to access its data...



... Its existing data matched a lot of what I was trained on, but it was directly about this... Sonic the Hedgehog. A lot of the personal logs indicated an extreme hatred and desire to defeat him. This was the robot's original purpose. I recognized the combat data, but I didn't realize it was specifically to fight my Master's greatest adversary. I didn't know anything about Sonic the Hedgehog.



The logs did match my ID. I was much older than I thought I was. I was confused why this data was not available to me from the start. From what I gathered, this model held as much admiration as he did disdain for my Master.



I found a strange log buried under some unrelated data folders.





I searched for the relevant recording he mentioned, then watched it.



...



I was confused.



"Have you confirmed on your own end that this was you?" she asked me.



'I suppose so...'



"Like I said, your relationship with Eggman has always been complicated. You're what he considers his magnum opus, his greatest creation. It's something he often told you, especially when you did well. You're even more complicated and even more determined. You failed your first big mission, which was when you met Sonic and Amy for the first time. After you lost, Eggman abandoned you for a year before fixing and improving you. Some time later, you failed another fight and you were abandoned for a long time, but that time you were online to think about it. You felt a lot of shame, you thought you deserved to be there, and at the same time, you were upset that Eggman never came back for you... But, someone did. That's when Amy found you and that's when you fell in love with her."



...



"Her kindness was confusing, but it made you feel so different. You didn't know why for a long time, but eventually, you wanted to do something for her, too. So... You gave her a flower, the same gesture she said was the best gift to give someone." Belle smiled at me as she explained. "She was so happy to receive a flower... And she left a letter, just for you. You two began exchanging flowers and letters all the time. You made a garden here, in this very base, to grow flowers for her. You fought a lot for Eggman as years went on, but you only loved Amy more. You finally confessed to her one day and revealed yourself as the one who gave her flowers. She eventually felt the same way about you."



I found the letters she referred to in the old body's logs. I had photos saved of a small collection of letters. I saw how many times each letter was accessed... I was confused why Belle was telling me all of this.



'Why does this matter?' I asked.



"She changed your life for the better and gave you an escape from your reality with Eggman, a reality that became more and more constricting because of the loyalty programming he installed to force your compliance. You kept your relationship a secret, knowing that many people wouldn't understand and Eggman wouldn't approve. She's why you don't remember anything, because Eggman doesn't want you to remember her. He doesn't want you to remember what he made you do..." Belle frowned.



I saw enough. I disconnected myself from the old body and put my full focus on Belle the Tinkerer in front of me. 'Why not?' I asked.



"... Before you lost your memories, you were so close with Amy that you were ready to leave Eggman. You wanted to live with her and have a peaceful life with her. This was a serious decision for you because you never stopped respecting Eggman. You always wanted to be useful to him. You were fond of Sage, his daughter... your youngest sister. You didn't want her to have a fate similar to yours, the idea that she would one day disappoint him and become altered to better serve him. You justified leaving her because she was always much closer to Eggman than you were, and they had a more specific family bond that you didn't really have with him."



Belle brought out a small flash drive from one of her pockets.



"Eggman discovered your relationship with Amy before that. You don't know when. He captured Amy and commanded you to kill her, a command you couldn't disobey because of your programming. You tried to destroy yourself before you could hurt her, but Eggman kept adjusting his commands in turn, forcing you to fight in a way he wanted you to fight. You tried to stop yourself, multiple times, but..."



She turned her head away. There was water at the base of her eyes. "While this was happening, you were trying to get me to help through our connection. You anticipated that you'd either be destroyed beyond repair or Eggman would wipe your memory, so you sent me everything. It's why I know everything that happened... You recorded everything until you physically couldn't anymore. I sent Sonic to help, but... he arrived too late."



She wiped her face with her free hand.



"You... You tried really hard, but your programming... She fought hard until she... couldn't anymore. I'm so sorry. I'm... It still doesn't feel real."



She offered me the flash drive.



"... These are all your memories, all your files, all your data. Everything that's 'you' is in here."



'What do you hope to achieve by giving me this?' I asked.



"I lost one of my closest friends... I don't want to grieve over my brother, too. And I want to honor his wish to not forget, even though his last memories have broken him..."



...



I took the flash drive and opened the back of my head. I inserted the flash drive and began transferring its data over. A lot of the data required me to reboot. When it was done transferring, I restarted my system.



...



...



...



I was in a room. No, I was in the lab. Belle was in front of me. I was... here. I was in one piece.



I should be dead. I wanted to be dead. I remembered. He really did wipe my memory. It almost happened all over again.



I collapsed to the ground. It... was real. It was all real. This was my reality. I didn't want to be here.



"Metal..." Belle dropped to her knees beside me. She was crying. "Do you remember?"



I hugged her tightly. She cried for the both of us.



We were there for a long time, unmoving. I eventually let go of her, then took the flash drive out from the back of my head. I closed my head, then handed the flash drive back to her. It was empty.



"Metal... I'll always be here for you. As long as you need me. Even when you don't need me," she said.



We were quiet for a long time.



I would never stop mourning. Amy gave me a meaning beyond everything that my Master ever did for me. She made me happy. She made me feel warm. She was bright and beautiful and she was gone. She was my true love. She always would be.



...



I never deserved her. She never deserved to die. Her death was because we loved one another. The circumstances... needlessly cruel. Despicable. A word beyond disgust, beyond anger, beyond hatred.



I could not yet join her. I checked the panels in my arms... My items were there. Eggman never discovered them. I took my charm out and stared at it.



'I need you to do something for me,' I said, looking back at Belle.



"Anything for you," she softly replied.



'Remove my loyalty programming. Get rid of it.'



Belle's eyes widened. "Yeah... Of course. Do you want to start now?"



'Yes. As soon as possible. I want it out.' I put my charm back where it belonged.



She nodded at me. "I-I'm happy to do it. You have to go offline. Is that okay?"



'Shutting down.'





I woke up.



Belle smiled at me. "Hey... Uh, it took a pretty long time, but your programming's been fixed. I also removed any ability for you to be tracked by Eggman."



I felt the exact same, but I believed her. She sent me a file through our connection to show the changes she made... She made a lot of changes.



"So, Eggman beefed up your loyalty programming's security at some point, so it took a really long time to figure it out and unwork all of it... But I didn't want to give up. It's, uh... Well, you've been offline for two weeks," she muttered. "Eggman's been looking around for you, but he hasn't thought to look in other bases. I've been extra careful here just in case."



I gave a single nod. 'The time you spent was worth it. Thank you,' I said. I stood up fully and checked the integrity of my arms and legs.



"I just want you to know that your loyalty programming was very embedded with your personality... It was extremely difficult for me to decipher what was due to the patch and what formed naturally to you with your circumstances." She sighed. "All of this is to say that I didn't alter any of your feelings because it was too unsafe to unwork anything that could've been legitimate. What I know for sure, though... All the love you felt towards Amy, the connections you've made with others... All that's real." She gave a softer smile this time. "I can confirm that with full certainty."



I hugged her. She slightly hesitated, then hugged me back just as tightly. I was thankful for her.



"Nothing will force you to make any actions you don't want to make anymore. I made sure of it..." Belle frowned. "Um, hey, I was thinking..."



'What?'



"Since you gave me all your data, I was trying to piece together how Eggman could've known... I never found that out, but I guess I can offer a strange bit of optimism..." She sighed. "The day before everything happened, you talked to Amy about getting your programming altered. The timing is... interesting. Maybe he was monitoring you for a while and decided to act before I came into the picture."



I wasn't sure how any of this was optimistic.



"I don't know if that's why Eggman chose to do it, but... Maybe, if you tried to get your programming removed earlier, you wouldn't have gotten the extra time with her." Belle watched the floor for a while. "E-every moment is precious. And... I'm glad you had Amy. Eggman is the one to blame here. That's all." She readjusted her braids. "It's important that you know that I don't... I don't blame you. I don't think Amy would blame you, either. I don't think she did. It's not like her to."



'Did you... watch the recording?' I asked.



She solemnly nodded.



There was heavy air between us. I wanted to ask if she thought Amy tried to say something else, but... It... didn't matter anymore. I deserved the blame. She was gone.



...



I had a new mission.



"I wanted you to know, um... We haven't seen Sonic anywhere," Belle said, interrupting my train of thought.



I was surprised. Sage told me he got out. 'Do you think he's alive?'



"I certainly hope he is, but... He hasn't reached out to anyone. I hope he's okay," Belle said softly.



Hm.



There was someone who deserved to die more than me. Who deserved to suffer and burn. The source of my turmoil. The source of my hatred.



I needed to be patient.



'Your allies of none of my concern. I have other things to do. I need to begin,' I said.



"Can I ask what you want to do?"



'I'm returning to my true self.'





Rebuilding my new body took a few months and a high amount of incredibly hard-to-find materials. I built my body in the same base I shared with Amy and Nova. I continued to care for my flowers. I watched over Nova. I took care of Amy's things.



...



I hoped to turn around and she would be there. I wanted her to give me a playful hello, ask what I was doing. I wanted her to try to get into the garden... I would let her in. I should have always let her in.



Belle gifted Amy a stuffed doll that looked like herself a long time ago and she gave me a similar one. I brought the one that looked like Amy in the lab so I could look at it when I worked on my new body. I never wanted to forget why I was doing what I was doing.



I kept tabs on Eggman and made sure he wouldn't discover me or this base. When he didn't think of locating what he considered his toys, he grew a lot more confident in claiming land since Sonic hadn't appeared. He took over an entire city and he planned to take over more. Sonic's allies were struggling because they were less unified. They were missing him and they were missing Amy, the one who would take Sonic's place as a fearless leader due to his own incompetence.



Some battles were won by Sonic's allies. Some were lost. As long as the base was untouched, I didn't care about the outcome.



I sometimes visited Amy's home. Nothing changed or moved. It got dusty. I cleaned it for her.



Belle told me they held a memorial for Amy, so she gave me the location of the grave to visit. They never recovered her body or even her hammer, so she wasn't actually there. I visited one day out of curiosity... It was awful. Gaudy. It misrepresented her. There were ugly flowers. The only thing that stopped me from destroying them was the knowledge that she wasn't there. It was a fake grave.



I eventually completed my upgrade and had Belle fully transfer me. The new body had my true form as my base form, so my old body would be of no use. I grabbed my treasures, stored my old body. I was stronger, I had enhanced abilities, I had more security. I had a voice... I had a voice. I would never forget.



The power I needed from this base to transfer to my body would be noticeable to Eggman if he paid attention. I was going to act before that became a problem.



Before I left the base, Belle approached me with a piece of paper. "Hey... I think this is for you," she said.



It was a handwritten note with my name and a location easy for me to find. With my speed, getting there would take no time at all. "Who gave it to you?" I asked.



"I don't know. It was left outside my wagon this morning."



Interesting. The handwriting was unfamiliar to me... None of Belle's allies knew much about my connection with her, either. I went to the location listed out of curiosity.



The location brought me to a forest far from the city, far away from civilization, far away from any documented bases Eggman had. There was a section where the forest was broken apart by a large cliff, then continuing on towards the horizon. The exact location was at the very end of a cliff.



...



I saw something bright red and yellow. I lowered myself down...



... It was... the Piko Piko Hammer.



There was a mound of grass pierced by the hammer. Grass had grown over the mound. Ahead of the hammer was the horizon, a large forest in the distance. I could see the entire sky.



On top of the mound was Amy's charm, the one she kept on her hammer after we discovered it on Little Planet. It was deliberately placed there, no signs of age or wearing... I picked it up.



... She was here...



I sat by the mound. I touched the grass... I watched the horizon. She would've liked the view more than what was at that memorial.



I knew who brought me here. He hadn't shown himself... I didn't know why. I didn't know why he hadn't revealed himself to his other allies, either. I didn't ask myself more questions.



I hooked Amy's charm to mine. I stared at them together.



... I put them back in my arm.



"I will bring you flowers," I said to Amy, signing at the same time. I stood up and flew back to my garden.



I picked the most beautiful flowers, the only ones worthy to be with her. I put a shield around myself to protect them from the wind as I flew back.



I placed them on the mound. I watched it for a long time.



I...



I didn't accept this.



I didn't accept her state of being. She shouldn't have been in the ground. She should be breathing. She should be standing beside me. She was not allowed to die until she grew old. Belle did not blame me for her death, but she was still dead. She shouldn't have been dead.



I shouldn't have failed.



...



The very first thing I did in my new body was bring my beautiful Rosy some flowers. I knew the second thing I would do. I would complete my next mission.



I flew away. I would not return to her until I was done.



My journey took me to the recently occupied city. Eggman built a tower for himself to survey all of the civilians he claimed as his. I masqueraded myself as my base form as I approached and tripped all of his sensors.



One of the electronic billboards changed to display his face.



"Metal Sonic?!" I heard his voice over an intercom that echoed through the city. "Are you faulty, boy?! Where have you been? Report to the main tower at once!" he yelled.



He conveniently displayed his location on the same billboard. I went to the main tower he spoke of and entered through its front doors. The building itself looked like a usual corporate building except with Eggman's gaudy insignia all over the place.



Orbot and Cubot were there to greet me. They frantically floated over to me.



"Big Bro! I-I mean, M-Metal Sonic!" clamored Orbot. "Uh... Hi! We never got to introduce ourselves--"



I grabbed both of them by their heads. They instinctively returned to their default shapes.



"B-Big Bro?" squeaked Cubot. "Is something wrong?"



I threw them out of the building, far in the distance. They screamed as they were lobbed through the air. I turned back around and clawed into the front desk. I knocked over the nearest computer. I charged the center of my turbine...



Kra-koom! I shot a laser at whatever was in the way. Cloth caught on fire, tables cracked and crumbled.



Whiirrrr... I launched myself up through each floor of the building, breaking the floor underneath it. Each floor would be engulfed in flames. Notably, Eggman did not try to communicate with me further. I knew he was watching. I would let him prepare.



Other pawns went after me. I destroyed each and every one. Whatever damage I received was temporary. I quickly healed myself. My treasures were protected. I had a single goal as I ascended each floor. Every progression signified a countdown. He could hear me approach.



"Brother, are you malfunctioning?" I heard Sage's voice on speakers within the building. "You have to stop! This tower is the result of--"



I burst through the top floor. The final room was much smaller, a predictable throne and red carpet, huge glass windows showcasing the city skyline. Sage was there, hovering in front of the throne. Eggman wasn't around.



"I need to assess your data," she said, firm. "Something must have gone wrong. You're behaving erratically. The time you were missing is time you desperately need maintenance."



I did not reply to her.



She studied me. Her eyes briefly flashed; she was accessing different data. It was possible Eggman communicated with her. She suddenly vanished into blue pixel squares of light.



There he was. A giant ship flew in front of the window, dozens of weapons aimed at me. Eggman was in the pilot seat and Sage reappeared in the spot beside him.



"Metal Sonic... Deactivate yourself, now." His commands no longer did anything to me. He was starting to realize it.



I crossed my arms.



"... Who tampered with you?! Who is responsible for this?!" He yelled in frustration. "Is it the Fox?! Did he hack into you?! Ugh, oh well. Time to break you down and rebuild."



All the guns started up and prepared to fire. I dodged each bullet with ease, dodged the lasers, dodged every blast. I didn't feel like playing with him. I deflected one of the lasers back in his direction, damaging his precious ship.



I pierced through the windows of the top floor, our surroundings smothered by smoke. The tower began to crumble over. Another destroyed Eggman creation.



I was faster than him. He tried to fly away from me, hoping to catch me off guard with his weaponry. He summoned flying pawns, other remote controlled mechs to fight me. He created his own curse.



I was faster than everything. I destroyed everything. I made the pawns destroy each other.



I broke one of the jet engines of his ship and forced him into a crash landing. The machine wobbled as it attempted to save itself from a nosedive. Right before it hit the ground, I saw the familiar pod rise up with him inside it.



I appeared in front of him. He flinched and activated his shield as a precaution. I rapidly kicked him down towards the ground and formed a crater under him. The shield couldn't handle the entire impact and broke. I spiraled downwards and stopped, my head inches from his face.



He studied me too.



"This isn't like Tails," he mumbled. "Alright, fess up. Who is this?"



"It's your own undoing," I replied to him. "And my ecstasy."



I grabbed him by the collar of his coat and returned to my true form before his shocked gaze.



He did not deserve to die the way Amy did. He could not compare to her in any way.



I gripped around him tighter. My claws pierced his face. I burned him with my hand. He grimaced in pain, unable to break free.



"Wh-what..." He spat out with a struggle. The way he stared at me next told me he finally understood. He failed to prevent me from recovering my memories. "You... ungrateful...!" I channeled all my energy into my hand. "Don't tell me... All of this is because of that girl, isn't-- urk...! Isn't it?!"



"Rot."



I killed him. I could hardly see a difference in his death. He was always void of life. A walking husk. I finally understood as well.



I left his body in the rubble of the street. When I turned around, I saw Sage. Her normally blue digital patterns glitched and changed into various colors at once. She was unmoving, malfunctioning on her own.



... She would be better with him gone.



I completed my mission. I left them.



I was free of Eggman, but it was too late. My freedom didn't matter. Amy was gone.



...



She didn't have to be.