War for Mobius
Chapter 22

Sonic can’t wrap his mind around what he’s seeing.  One moment things were bad: Johnny died, no word from Rotor and his team, and the supposed location of the emeralds in Robotnik’s base appeared to be false.
He, Sally, and Tails had found the blasted container where the Emeralds were supposedly left, empty.  That’s when the bad news came in.
Fiona contacted them for help.  Apparently the tower she and Ben were hiding at had fallen under attack.  The message was cut off before more details could be obtained.
As expected, Sonic had quickly volunteered to go check it out, determined not to lose anyone else, only to have Knuckles arrive with even worse news: Robotnik was on his way back to Angel Island.  The Guardian insisted that they gather everyone and find the Emeralds before Robotnik had a chance to destroy the Island.  
Normally the blue hedgehog would have been willing to face Robotnik, but if the results of the mission thus far told him anything, they had no chance to face Robotnik now.
He swallowed his pride and suggested they should evacuate.
It should have been for the best, but nobody could really know what was to happen next…
Sally ordered Sonic to go rescue Fiona and Ben, and hopefully, find Rotor, Antoine, and Bunnie before a final decision can be made.  The rest would continue searching for the Chaos Emeralds.  
That was the plan, but no plan survives contact with the enemy….
…or the unpredictable.
Even when he arrived at the Communications Tower, the blue blur knew something was amiss.
Robots were everywhere.  SWATbots and Badniks fired not only upon the tower, but a squad of Overlander Soldiers backed by a large bipedal walker.  They too fired upon the tower.
Sonic couldn’t understand where did the Overlanders come from?  Why were they here?  He doesn’t have the time to ponder the answer for long, and he knows it.

Captain Zane Kalzier takes aim at one of large, slightly overlander-shaped robots and fires.  The walker’s Gatling Gun tears through the machine easily, and the robot collapses, smoldering with bullet holes.
“Eggman and his forces don’t stand a chance against these new F-6ts,” he laughs to himself, and turns his attention back to the tower.
The F-6t Walkers had been based highly off a design created by Robotnik himself many years ago, and was ideal for combating infantry squads.  Weighing over 100 thousand pounds, and standing 18 feet tall, it was quite the force to be reckoned with.  
The walkers are all armed with a M32 A-1 Gatling Gun and a payload of air-to-surface missiles.  Bullets and laser-bolts were repelled by the machines armor.  None of the robots were going to even scratch his paint.  
Kalzier is just locking on one of the missiles to strike the tower when the motion detector picks up a new contact heading his direction.  Based on the side and speed of the thing, it had to be a missile or rocket of some kind.  
Reacting quickly, the G.U.N. Captain activates the walker’s boosters lifting it into the air briefly allowing the machine to turn instantly to face the attack.  Even before it comes back down, the Gatling Gun is firing upon the incoming projectile.  The whole maneuver takes maybe 3 seconds.  
Bullets spray from the Gatling Gun towards missile which reacts by…
…Changing Direction?
Robotnik designed a projectile that could change its direction and dodge attacks at will?!
That was impossible!
By the time the walker’s feet touch the ground, the missile has resumed its course, barreling towards him.
“Spider Troop, scatter!” the overlander barks over the communicator.  Even if the missile does penetrate the F-6t’s armor, which he doubts, at least his men could avoid being hit in the explosion.  
The foot soldiers scatter away from the walker, never taking their eyes off the robots still firing upon them.  Spider Troop had suffered no casualties thus far, and Kalzier wasn’t about to let one happen now.  He widens the walker’s stance and prays beneath his breath that the armor would hold.
Before he can react the Walker is hit and tumbles over backwards.  
A dud?  Seriously?
He didn’t even see what hit him.  There was a blue blur but nothing more than that.  Not even an explosion!
The overlander checks the walker’s readout on the monitor.  Minor Damage, and the booster engines have overheated.  The canopy in front of him has cracked due to the impact, but the damage beyond that was miniscule.  However the walker was down until the boosters could reset.
What the heck hit him?
“Hostile Mobian detected!” a soldier shouts over the com, “He’s knocked down the Captain!”
A mobian knocked him down?  There’s no way….

Sonic jumps the guy shouting to the other overlanders, ripping the rifle from the man’s hands.  The weapon is much heavier than Mobian firearms.  The hedgehog had never been a fan of guns.  Sure he knew how to use them, quite well actually.  Uncle Chuck had trained him to use them in fact.  However Sonic never felt comfortable with one in his hands.  Usually to avoid the problem he would pretend no to know how to use one, but right now that wasn’t necessary.
He drops the clip from the rifle and tosses the weapon towards a charging buzz bomber, knocking it from the sky.
“Who is in charge here?” the mobian asks the overlander he jumped.
Even weaponless the man was quite brave, “Like I’d tell a freak like you.”
Sonic responds by kicking him below the belt, “Wrong answer.”
The trooper’s comrades aim at the hedgehog with their own weapons, Loyal to each other to say the least.  Before they can fire however, the robots attack again.  The Overladners’ focus returns to the machines that are now barreling towards them.  Even the one Sonic kicked ignores the hedgehog to return fire at the machines, using a fire arm he kept at his side.  
Since the robots distracted the soldiers’ attention away from him, the hedgehog makes his way towards the tower.  He had hoped that if could have talked to their commanding officer he could reason with them.  However since the Great War, Mobian and Overlanders haven’t really seen eye to eye, perhaps he was hoping for too much.
He just reaches the door when he notices something out of the corner of his eye.  Two SWATs have climbed up onto the walker he knocked down and were aiming at the pilot inside.
“I know I’m going to regret this…”

With the cracks in the canopy, one direct shot could end Kalzier's life, and he knows it.  And with the machine on its back there isn’t much he can do about it.  
Unfortunately it seems that Eggman’s robots were also aware of this weakness.
Two of them stand on the canopy aiming right at him.  Even if the first shot only breaks the bullet proof glass, the second would definitely hit him.  Instinctively Kalzier’s hand reaches for his own weapon, but he knows it’s a futile attempt.  
If he shot before they did, he’d just break the glass himself.  If he shot after…
Unexpectedly, one of the SWATs suddenly is knocked from the canopy.  The other turns to fire at whatever attacked its fellow robot.
The G.U.N. Captain tries the boosters again.  They roar briefly but fail to come back to life.  The action causes the remaining SWATbot to return focus onto him.  Again it aims.
And just as before he is saved before it can fire.  This time however he sees it.  A blue mobian.  It tackles the robot at impossible speeds, knocking it from the walker.  
During the mere seconds it takes for the Mobian to dispatch the SWAT, its eyes meet with the overlander’s.  The Mobian had intentionally saved Kalzier’s life.  
But then why did it attack him in the first place?
Not waiting around to find out, Captain Kalzier fires up the booster yet again.  This time they roar to life, lifting the F-6t back to its feet.  He scans the battle for the Mobian.
There by the tower.  It can really move.
The mobian needed to get into the tower, that’s why it attacked him.  But why did it need in the tower?  It wasn’t working for Eggman, clearly.  
Come to think of it the robots were attacking the tower as well.  
That train of thought is interrupted as energy-bolts bounce off the walker’s armor.  
“Spider Troop,” Kalzier orders over the com, “Regroup and push the clankers back!”

“About time you showed up,” Fiona mutters as Sonic enters the room.  She clumsily holds a large ax she found from somewhere.  Judging from the blood on the blade, likely Ben had it.
“Don’t you have anything uplifting to say?” the hedgehog groans, “Like ‘Oh thank you Sonic’ or maybe ‘My Hero’?”
The red fox shrugs, “Complaining is how I deal with the stress of my job.”
“Fair enough,” Sonic shrugs, “I inflate my own ego.”
“I’ve noticed,” she gives Sonic a legitimately friendly smile, “So are you going to wait around till Robotnik shows up or are you gonna grab Ben and get us out of here?”

Between the might of the F-6t and the skill of Spider Troop, it doesn’t take long for the overlanders to turn the tide of the battle back into their favor.  Even better, Spider Troop still has suffered no casualties.  A few wounds perhaps but nobody died.  
“We’ve got them on the ropes,” a voice cheers over the coms.
“Great job kid, don’t get cocky,” Kalzier replies.
He turns his attention back to the tower.  The blue hedgehog has come back out.  It’s carrying another mobian, slung over its back.  A third is following the hedgehog.  They glance briefly at the walker before heading off into the trees.
It was a rescue op; the hedgehog was saving his comrades.  That’s why it attacked him.
“Sir,” a voice crackles over the communicator, “The Mobian that attacked us is retreating to the rear.”
The captain smiles, though his soldier can’t see it, “Then let’s buy them some time shall we?  Spider Troop covering fire.”
“But sir…”
“Orders were to stop Eggman.  If the Mobians aren’t hostile then we shouldn’t be either.”

Meanwhile on another section of the island, Commander Brass and his Commandos touch down.  
“Alright boys and girls, this island is a hostile environment.  Spider Troop has already come under attack by Eggman’s Forces.  So cover your butts and keep moving.”
“Sir, Yes sir!”
The Commandos double time out of the transport.  One pauses to survey the area as the others take up defensive positions on the beach.  
“Sir, drop ship landing to the east of us!”
“Make?” Brass asks, strolling casually over to the surveyor.
“Unknown sir, but it has Eggman’s insignia on it.”
“Well looks like company has arrived.  Let’s give them a warm welcome.”

Alright lads,” Geoffrey St. John barks as the ‘liberated’ hover pods touch down on the island, “Rumor has it that some of our comrades from Knothole are here on the island and are in need of assistance.  As you know Knothole was the Royal Family’s hidden safe heaven.  If this is true, we may have just found blokes who know the whereabouts of Princess Salina Acorn!”
His troops cheer at the news.
“But that means we have to find these Knothole agents alive,” St. John continues, “And since Robotnik seems to want them for himself and this island paradise seems to have his name all over it, you’ll be up to your necks in trouble out there.”
“But you can handle it your sleep, right?”
“Yes Sir,” the troops salute.
“Good,” the skunk smiles, “Because if you fancy your eyes to the west it looks like Robotnik himself is just arriving.  So we’re going in hot.”