Chapter Text
Sigma set down his tools and dusted off his hands. He'd done the best he could, but he still had little experience rebuilding Metal Series robots. They weren't too different from the Mecha series, but there was enough difference in design philosophy that his knowledge could only go so far.
Still, he'd managed to scavenge enough parts to make the robot in his workbench at least functional. It had definitely been a challenge, as a lot of smaller connecting parts had been lost to the sea. He'd even had to replace the visor, which had shattered. It wasn't easy; let him tell you. And several parts of its waist were covered in metal panels slapped together, though unlike most Scrapniks, its limbs stayed mostly the same.
"You wanted to see me, Simga?" "Mecha Sonic?" he asked as he entered the room.
"Indeed, Mecha Sonic," the E-series robot replied. "Come, take a look at this." He gestured to a small computer running off a miniature generator. "I've been examining our visitor's code in an attempt to get them back online and have noticed something odd."
Mecha examined the code, tapping his foot as Sigma began to explain.
"See, it's nothing like I've ever seen in a badnik before," Sigma continued. "And there are a couple notes in here that mention this man called 'Mr. Tinker,'" he went on. It appears like Doctor Eggman was attempting to recreate something this fellow had created. "
"Interesting," Mecha noted, crossing his arms. "But why do you need me here?"
"Because it looks to me like the code is unfinished," Sigma explained. "It seems the doctor abandoned the project, meaning it's highly unstable. And I fear that if I were to mess with it to try and remove their directives—"
"She," Mecha Sonic interrupted.
"Your forgiveness is requested," Sigma replied. "Can you repeat that?"
"She's a girl," he said, gesturing to a line of the code. Sigma leaned in to examine the screen.
"Incredible," Sigma said in awe. On the screen, there was a line of code that didn't look like it was written by Eggman, hidden in a secret file. It seemed like it was meant for holding data that would be collected over time, and among that data was a set of preferred pronouns. "Good eye," he said, sitting up in his chair.
This, well, this was a first. He'd never seen a badnik have a program like that. He wasn't sure if this was an attempt to make her learn from previous battles or something different, but it was still amazing nonetheless.
"Thank you, Mecha," Sigma said. "Now, as I was saying, I fear attempting to remove directives from her would essentially break the code and thus render her completely inoperable. So, I would like to request you stay with me when I bring her online, just in case she wakes up hostile."
"Of course, Sigma," Mecha Sonic replied. He had great respect for the E Series robot and was fully willing to throw hands for him if the stranger woke up aggressive. Sigma quickly finished closing up a couple panels and closed his programming application.
"Oh, and one last thing," Sigma began. "The Chaos Emerald—have we figured out if it'll work?"
"Yes," Mecha Sonic responded. "Mecha Knuckles has deemed that it has more than enough power to bring it all online. He'd like to show you once we're done here."
"Excellent," Sigma said, reaching for a switch. "Let's hope we can bring her in operational form as well." And with just a moment of hesitation, he threw the switch. A jolt of power raced through the cables, and with a flash of her visor, the robot on the desk awakened.
Prototype T's vision slowly loaded in, her sight immediately flashing with errors and warning messages announcing damage. She groaned as she lifted herself up as best she could, whipping her head back and forth as she realized she wasn't on Angel Island anymore.
"Take it easy," Sigma said, and she snapped her head in his direction. Quickly taking in both the E Series robot and... "Mecha Sonic." She observed as she stood up, getting off the workstation. Her limbs creaked as un-oiled replacement parts groaned.
"How do you know my name?" Mecha Sonic asked.
"From the Flying Battery Database," Prototype T said. "You fought Knuckles and Sonic."
"Correct," Mecha Sonic said plainly, quickly moving on. "What's your name?"
"I am designated Prototype T," she responded. "The latest and greatest in Eggtech. Tell me, where am I?"
"You're on Scrapnik Island, dear," Sigma explained. "I am E-117 Sigma, and there are many others we'd like you to meet."
"Scrapnik?" Prototype T quizzed.
"We're badniks and robots that Doctor Eggman has abandoned and left to rust," Mecha Sonic explained. "Just like you."
"Shut it," Prototype T snapped, lunging forward but stumbling. Sigma reached forward and helped her stand.
"Please, save your energy," he requested. "I could only divert so much power to you to get you back online, so you're on low charge."
He was right. Prototype T only had about a twenty-five percent charge, and she felt sluggish. She stood up straight and tried to regain her composure. She noticed her tail was lagging behind, with about half its movement restricted by a variety of destroyed joints.
"I know it's a rough change," Sigma began. "But please, just hear us out."
"...So you just sit and rot on this island?" Prototype T asked as Sigma and Mecha began to lead her through the abandoned Death Egg.
"Not rot," Mecha Sonic corrected. "We may not be picture perfect, but we have each other."
"Sounds like feel-good garbage," Prototype T spat. Mecha Sonic shot Sigma a look, and he shot a worried look back. "Look at you," the robotic lemur continued. "Cobbled together with parts from inferior robots, and it's no wonder. You settle for a trash heap in the middle of the ocean."
"Perhaps we should show you something," Sigma interrupted. "We need to stop there anyway. Would you mind, Mecha?" He asked. Mecha nodded and took the lead, guiding them through the halls of the Death Egg until they reached a small room containing a bright glow. Inside was a small container holding a small sunflower.
"This," Mecha Sonic began. "It is the miracle of the island. My hope is to one day find real soil to plant it in," he explained. "It's my reminder that anything can happen and that it's important to keep moving forward."
Prototype T gazed at the flower. She didn't know how to explain it, but she couldn't help but feel warm inside at the sight. As Sigma stepped forward and the two Scrapniks began tending to the flower, a question rose in her head.
"You intend to get off this island, then what?" She asked.
"We desire nothing more than to escape Eggman's shadow," Sigma told her. "To live out lives free and not let our past define us. No following the orders of Eggman and hurting others."
Sigma turned back to help lift the sunflower's container, and Prototype T was left to think. Why did that sound like such a good thing? If she truly was abandoned... wouldn't these Scrapniks be willing to take her in? She wouldn't have to stress out about her purpose.
BRZZZT!
Her neck shifted uncontrollably for a second, the visor flashing red for a second, and then she was back to normal. She would've smacked herself for thinking like that if it wouldn't have alerted Sigma and Mecha, who hadn't noticed. Mecha carefully held the flower in his dirty claw and hand.
"Please, Prototype T," Sigma said. "We should introduce you to the others. Something big will be happening soon." He held out his hand for her to take, and she gave him a look. Still, she took it, and he began to guide her through the halls, this time splitting up from Mecha Sonic. Soon, they came to a large open room, and Prototype T was taken aback.
There was the Egg Carrier, beat up for sure, but it had apparently gone through several repairs already. Makeshift panels bolted to the sides and a large door for loading cargo. In front of it stood a crowd of Scrapniks. Sigma stopped short of the crowd and turned to Prototype T.
"Tell me, dear, would you let me introduce you as a Scrapnik to the others?" He asked. "With the power of the Chaos Emerald, we can leave the island and take you with us. And I'd greatly like that."
Prototype T looked down, gazing at her claws for a moment. She actually considered it for a second.
"Call me whatever you want," she mumbled quietly. Sigma turned and went to address his fellow Scrapniks.
"Scrapniks," he began. "Before we begin today, I'd like to introduce you to our newest addition to the family." He gestured to Prototype T, who remained silent. "It is my pleasure to bring along yet another who wishes to move forward as we finally relaunch the Egg Carrier! And I believe it to be important to thank everyone for their efforts, for we shall now be able to leave the island!"
BZZZZRT!
Sigma leaped back at the sudden jerk of her head and neck as Prototype T's visor flashed red, and she clenched her fists. Suddenly, her tail wrapped around his leg, and she snapped him up into the air.
"None of you traitors are going anywhere!" She yelled, stabbing her fist through Sigma's chest, instantly shutting him down.
Every Scrapnik panicked and bolted as she threw Sigma's remains into the crowd. She bolted forward, running up the ramp and into the Egg Carrier. She slammed the button to the door, and it shot downward. But just before it could shut, Mecha Knuckles slid underneath and forced it upward, struggling under the weight of the mechanism.
"Try me!" He yelled, and Prototype T took up the challenge, swinging her leg around and crashing it directly into his waist. He buckled but held his ground and began forcing the door upward, the mechanism groaning and screaming under the strain. "You call that a kick?" Mecha Knuckles mocked, enraging Prototype T.
"I told you all, NONE OF YOU TRAITORS ARE GOING ANYWHERE!" She shrieked, grabbing at the door and forcing it downward. Combined with a sloppy strike from her tail, it overwhelmed the Mecha Series robot and forced him outside as the door slammed shut. There was silence, followed by the sound of metal slamming against the door.
Prototype T steadied herself, taking in her situation. The fight had dragged her charge down to nineteen percent, making her even more sluggish. She needed to weigh her options if she wanted to use the Egg Carrier to get back to Eggman.
"They're using the Emerald to power this wretched thing," she said to herself. "I can use it if I can find it, and it'd stabilize my charge."
She began running throughout the Egg Carrier, running lower and lower until she found the engine room. Down the end of a long hall, she saw the Chaos Emerald, resting inside a machine designed to draw power from it. If she could've smirked, she would have. Instead, she simply stomped forward, reaching out for the Emerald. But before she could reach it, she was slammed aside by a powerful spindash from Mecha Sonic.
"Shit!" She groaned as she recovered. It seemed Mecha Sonic had been storing his flower on the ship and had heard the commotion.
"If you think you're taking the ship back to Eggman, you're dead wrong." Mecha said as he drew into a fighting stance, buzzsaw leg forward. Prototype T readied her own fighting stance, but it was sloppy. She just needed to get past Mecha and to touch the Emerald once.
"You know I don't get you," Prototype T began as her charge began to dip dangerously low to ten percent. "An inferior Mecha Series robot like you has no room to make demands. Who do you think you are, traitor? Some hero in costume with that cape of yours?"
"I'm not a hero," Mecha corrected as he lunged forward, and Prototype T did the same. "I fight for the good of my family!"
"You're a fool!" Prototype T yelled as she ducked and rolled under a punch, turning on her heel. "You think you can beat the pinnacle of Eggtech? Then you're more delusional than all the rest of the traitors."
"Live in denial all you want!" Mecha yelled as he swung his fists down, attempting to slam into her head, but missed, damaging the floor. "But I used to be like you! I was the best of Eggman's creations, and that was never enough for him! He's a madman with the attention of a toddler, always chasing a new toy to build!"
"Liar!" Prototype T snapped, her charge teetering to five percent.
"I'm telling you from experience," Mecha said, stopping his attacks to try and talk things out. "You can spend all your life trying to convince yourself he won't drop you when you're at your lowest, or you can move forwards and build yourself into an actual person."
A sudden shift in Prototype T's demeanor caught his attention, and Mecha Sonic realized they'd swapped positions in the fight, with Prototype T right next to the Emerald as she cackled.
"How many times do I have to repeat myself?" She laughed as the charge reached one percent, and she slammed her hand down on the Emerald. Chaos Energy shot through her arm and to her battery, immediately blasting her to one hundred percent and even beyond. She began to glow, just for a brief moment before letting go to face Mecha and dropping it. "I. AM. THE. PINNACLE. OF. EGGTECH!" She screeched, slamming her fist into him and blowing him back.
She picked him up and dragged him along the floor, firing up all engines as she passed by them. The ship rumbled as he tried to struggle but failed. She threw him into the control room, pinning him by slamming her foot to his chest. She grabbed his flower's container and drew her face close to his.
"Let me make one thing clear," she began. "I am not abandoned. Nor WILL I EVER BE!" She yelled before kicking open an emergency exit door and chucking both Mecha and the flower out of it, sending them crashing to the ground. The glass of the flower's container shattering on impact and causing it to flop down. Mecha reached over to check it was okay, then went offline. Scrapniks crowded around him, panicked.
Prototype T watched from above, raging burning hot as she slammed the door shut and began to fly the Egg Carrier out of the Death Egg. All the Scrapniks watched in despair as the Egg Carrier disappeared into the clouds, never to be seen again.
Meanwhile, halfway across the world, Sonic suddenly grabbed at the sides of his head as a wave of strong emotions struck him. Anger, desperation, and an attempt at reasoning, with a glimpse of hope, followed by despair. Then everything went dark.
"Sonic, is everything alright?" Tails asked, concerned.
"Tails. We need to go to Scrapnik Island," Sonic said as he shut his eyes tightly. "Right. NOW!"
---
"Sigma!" Tails screeched, approaching the E Series Robot while Sonic checked on his counterpart.
"Crap, what the hell happened here!?" The hedgehog asked any nearby Scrapniks.
"Prototype T happened," growled Mecha Knuckles from the side.
"You can talk—ya know what? Not the point," Sonic said as he shook his head. "That metal copy of Tangle that's been terrorizing everyone?" The Blue Blur scowled.
"If that's how you know her, then yes," Mecha Knuckles said. "We took her in, and then she took our only way off the damn island."
Sonic gripped Mecha tightly, seeing red. This was going too far. He could tell Eggman was gearing up for something big, and he needed to stop it.
"I promise you guys," the hedgehog growled. "That I am going to beat Eggman's forces to pieces for you. Prototype T is included. And then we'll find a way to get you guys off this island."
---
The Egg Carrier slowly ground to a halt just outside of the base Prototype T knew as Eggman's headquarters. More Badniks stepped from the base as she descended, slamming into the pier with a loud THUNK! The robots hesitated, noticing her makeshift repairs. But a sharp glare from the prototype sent the right message, and she stepped past, entering the building.
It was dark; very few lights were on. Yet, she could still see clear as day. She hadn't noticed on Scrapnik Island, but the fuzziness in her sight was gone. It seemed cleaning up her visor and sensors was among many of the repairs Sigma had delivered.
"Doctor," she called out into the silent room, her voice echoing off the building. The door to his office slowly opened. Then Prototype T stepped back in shock. "You aren't Eggman!" She yelled. "Who the hell are you?"
"So it looks like despite all that damage, you've gained the one repair that makes you useless to me." The green opossum chuckled. "I will admit, Prototype T, you were one of the better Badniks I took from Eggman. But now that you've brought me the Egg Carrier and the Chaos Emerald, I can finally bring about the last stage of my plan."
"You... used me!?" Prototype T snapped, lunging forward to attack, only to get blasted back by a swift shot from his cane rifle. She let out a scream of pain as she clutched her waist, error messages blaring all in her vision as she steadied herself against the wall.
"Now, now, don't take it personally." The opossum laughed. "I use everyone and everything to get to my destination. It's what makes me much more of a threat than Eggman or Starline. Of course, everything has to be discarded after it's no longer needed." He chuckled, snapping his fingers. "And that time is now for you."
A storm of Badniks and Eggpawns suddenly raced in, quickly cornering Prototype T and trapping her in place against the wall. She tried to fight back, but an Eggpawn began repeatedly slamming its fist into her head.
She wanted to scream, to beg, to even have a chance to fight. But with one final punch, a fatal error message flashed on her visor, and she completely shut down, going limp in the Eggpawn's hands. It let go, and her lifeless body fell to the floor.
Clutch smirked, then clapped his hands, causing the Eggpawns and Badniks to snap to attention.
"Let's get to work," he said. "We need to get to work on ensuring that Egg Carrier is presentable."
All of the Badniks and Eggpawns raced outside to get to work. Clutch returned to his room and smirked. Finally, all the pieces were falling into place, all thanks to that naive little prototype that was desperate to be useful.