Chapter Text
Gadget
Gadget cautiously watched as the black hole continued howling into the twilight, he wasn't sure how close he should get. The trees that sat closer to the mountains were being pulled forward with the gravitational force, the mountains themselves seeming to break off in chunks and vanish into the void. He was keeping an eye on his communicator, hoping that the others would arrive soon. His side of town seemed to have been evacuated successfully in the ten or so minutes that he had been perched, but the risk of the black hole getting larger and demolishing the partially restored town was still at the forefront of his mind, there were no rules as to how fast this thing could expand, he had to stay vigilant.
Suddenly the gravitational pull intensified, yanking Gadget forward a few inches before he was able to slam his grappling hook into the wall, he tried to keep himself secured to the structure as his legs dangled horizontally. He imagined this is what it felt like to be sucked into space like those movies that he watched as a kid used to show, the force of gravity making him shut his eyes as the debris rushed past him.
Just as the pull was at its worst, the sound of the wind reaching deafening levels, a loud crack echoed across the sky and everything suddenly went still. The wolf’s eyes shot back open as he scrambled back onto the wall properly. When he looked back, the scene in front of him took a moment to comprehend. Where the black hole had formerly occupied was now a gaping hole in the mountainside, parts of the stone curving perfectly with the sphere that had just been there. The top sections of the mountains that were still intact were actively crumbling into the empty space.
Gadget sucked in a short gasp before staggering down and quickly making his way towards the crater that had been left behind, while the main threat seemed to have been dissipated, he had a gut feeling that he would find something if he ventured into the worst of the damage. Or even possibly, someone.
The terrain got worse the further in he pushed, trees pulled out by the roots, rivers emptied into the surrounding land resulting in a mud slicked ground. But he was able to navigate the area with a steel precision, bee-lining his way to the mountain’s newly formed valley.
When he got close enough, the surroundings suddenly lost most of their obstacles. The land in front of him became a rocky flattened field that had a slight curve from the black hole. There were jagged rocks stabbing out of the ground here and there, but otherwise it was disturbingly bare. As terrible as it was to see the wilderness that was once teeming with life here get ripped away, it made his job a lot easier in the fact that his eyes immediately caught sight of something in the dead center of the impact area. The body of a black and white jackal, laid out flat and covered in blood, and he looked like he wasn't breathing.
Gadget sprinted over before dropping in front of the battered body of the villain, reaching his hands out before hesitating and trying to gauge the amount of damage that Infinite had sustained. His chest looked like it had exploded, shards of the phantom ruby scattered through his fur like shrapnel. That was the source of most of the blood, but there was obvious damage to the right half of his body as well, with things looking bent in ways they never should have been. His signature mask was nowhere to be seen, the jackal’s face on full display.
The darker canine had more blood coming out of his mouth, his face scrunched up in a grimace. He was thankfully still breathing, but it was so faint that it could easily stop at a moment's notice. Gadget swore under his breath, with the state that the other was in, he would guess that the null space wasn't intentional. That, or some plan went horribly wrong and the jackal is reaping the consequences of his misstep. He didn't have any first aid supplies other than some simple alcohol pads and bandaids, not expecting something so horrendous to happen during a simple clean up mission. He didn't have any clothes to use as a makeshift wrap either, the only thing he could think to do was use his hands to try and stop the worst of the bleeding and hope that the others could get here in time.
He was not about to lose this damn jackal right after finding him again, even if the world would be better off for it. Death was an easy out, living with your mistakes and making up for them was the real challenge. Gadget ripped off his gloves and hurriedly scrubbed his hands with the alcohol pads before putting pressure on the other’s chest, Infinite wheezed out a whine from the pain.
'You’ll survive this, just keep breathing.' He looked out towards the town as he waited.
It wasn't long before sonic rocketed onto the scene, skidding to a stop when he spotted Gadget and Infinite, his eyes widening a bit before throwing on a grin.
“Woah, that's quite the temper tantrum he threw. He still kicking?”
Gadget nods, “...barely, he needs immediate medical attention.”
“Gotcha, shadow should be here in a sec. We can chaos control him back to base.” he says before looking around at the damage before throwing his arms behind his head.
“You cool with giving a run down of what happened? Village was empty when I ran through.”
As Gadget quietly relayed everything that had transpired, the footfalls of the rest of the group approaching echoed through the field.
“Oh my chaos!” Amy gasped out, staring at the two on the floor horrified. “I-Is that Infinite??”
Gadget once more nodded while looking back at the injured jackal.
“From the sounds of things it seems like our old pal here seems to have set off a portal to null space, but whether that was intentional or not is the real question.” Sonic chirped. “But for now we need to get him stabilized so we have the chance to ask him ourselves.”
Sonic turns towards Shadow, who was standing in the far back of the group.
“You up for teleporting some villainous cargo back to headquarters? I’ve heard the restoration pays well for expedited delivery.” the blue hedgehog joked with a smug wink.
Shadow sneers down at the unconscious jackal, causing Gadget to tense up.
“I’m not dragging him with us, he’s caused way too much trouble and can die here for all I care. You of all people should understand that Sonic." Shadow turned back to the other hedgehog before continuing. “He was the one that tortured you when you were missing those months in the war, if I recall correctly.”
Sonic looks away, scuffing his foot into the dirt while scoffing, “It was just illusions and the occasional badnik that Eggman threw at me, I’m fine. He doesn't need to die just because of his past actions, everyone deserves a shot at redeeming themselves.”
“And if we bring him back only for him to kill more people? Will it have been worth it then? This is just going to be another Eggman situation, we literally just saw this play out with that Mr. Tinker mess.” Shadow argues back.
“That won’t happen, we’ll have him under surveillance this time. Also he’s pretty banged up, I don't think he could hurt anyone even if he tried right now, and I'm pretty sure Eggman has no idea that he’s alive.” Sonic crossed his arms, his ears subtly angling downward.
“We can keep it that way, see if Infinite comes around and joins the Restoration, and have him work under a different name.” Sonic gazed at the ebony hedgehog, a heavy look behind his eyes.
They both stared each other down, it looked as though they were having a private conversation just with their expressions, too quick for Gadget to follow. The air was tense, neither hedgehog wanting to back down.
Sonic sighs, “Look, if he doesn't come around for the better, then we can throw him in prison. Allies are what keep us strong and I genuinely think that there's a chance that Infinite could do some good… Please Shadow? Give him a chance to prove you wrong?” the blue hedgehog implored.
Shadow closely studied the blue hedgehog for a moment longer before letting out a harsh sigh and closing his eyes while rubbing his temple. When he opened them, they were aimed at the jackal on the floor.
“I don't agree with your decision, but I’ll take him to the Restoration for now. It's better for us to have eyes on him on the off chance he does survive.” he mutters out before approaching the two on the floor. “But he needs to be watched at all times, twenty-four seven, no exceptions. This isn't some low grade Eggman pawn. He killed hundreds if not thousands during that war, and he should be treated as a war criminal.”
The Ebony hedgehog knelt down next to them, pulling out his chaos emerald while assessing the damaged chest of the fallen foe. “A wound like this would be easy for myself to recover from, but I have doubts that he’ll survive it.” He shifts his arms under the unconscious jackal’s legs and neck, forcing Gadget to remove his hands from the other’s wound as Shadow stood back up.
Sonic stepped towards them, lifting up his wrist with the communicator. “You’d be surprised what our med bay can pull off, there's only one way to know for sure! I’ll call up headquarters to let them know you’re coming.”
“Tch.” the Ebony hedgehog clicked, before turning towards the scarlet wolf. “You saw what happened to him, correct?”
Gadget nods, standing straight under the other’s gaze.
“Alright, then you’re heading back with Sonic. The doctors will probably have questions regarding his condition and I’m not sticking around to deal with it.” Shadow grumbled before focusing on his emerald and shouting out the command “Chaos Control!”
Shadow and Infinite vanished in a flash of bright green light, leaving Gadget staring at the empty space. His heart rate began to slow, before kicking back up when the events of the day hit him at full force. He had just saved Infinite , the villain responsible for so much devastation, the monster responsible for so much of the damage and pain that he had seen during his travels. Was this really a good idea? Should he have let sonic vouch for him? What if Shadow was right and because he kept the jackal alive, more people would get killed? What if-
Gadget was startled out of his thoughts by a hand landing on his shoulder.
“You heard the guy, you ready to speed after them buddy? We can hit a river or something on the way to wash some of that off.” the blue hedgehog reassured, gesturing to Gadget’s blood soaked paws. He winced at the sight, clocking the feeling of the sticky rapidly cooling substance.
Turning to Sonic he nodded, steeling himself for the future he had just set in motion. Gadget turned his now determined gaze to the blue hedgehog, “Lets go.”