Back to Chapter 91

Robotnik fumed, slamming his fat fists onto his control panel. He’d been sure the Landslide Limbo Zone would be the one to finish off Sonic and the others. How did that accursed hedgehog keep on finding ways to outlast every trap Robotnik threw at him? Robotnik was so angry he would have been tearing his hair out if he only had any.

Trembling with rage, Robotnik did his best to regain his composure. He tried taking a deep, calming breath but, for some reason, this only served to irritate him all the more. The devious doctor ground his teeth with fury.

He only had one Zone left between Sonic and the tower.

Robotnik paused.

The anger dissipated as he began to laugh.

He’d saved the best ‘til last. All the data he’d gathered told him Sonic loathed water. The Wild Water Way would be his end.

Landing safely and comfortably at the bottom of the pit after a short drop, Sonic, Ray and Mighty heard the sound of rushing water. Following a tunnel leading out towards sunlight, they were met with a familiar sight.

“Robotnik’s Tower,” Mighty stated.

“Are we really going in there?” Ray shuddered.

“’fraid so, buddy. We have to confront him”

“Hey, guys,” Sonic called out, “I found a rope bridge leading over from this side to the tower. Let’s go!”

Mighty raised a hand, “Hold on, hold on, I know you’re the fastest thing alive and all that but what’s the rush? Let’s think about this logically, shall we? Based on everything that’s happened to us today, that bridge is probably going to start collapsing the moment we set foot on it”

“So we’d better be fast then, hadn’t we?” Sonic smirked and set off on the bridge. Seeing no alternative, the others followed.

Sure enough, as soon as all three animals were making their way across the bridge, the end connecting it to the side they’d come from detached and the planks began to slip down below into the rushing waters.

“See?” Mighty rolled his eyes, “What did I tell you?”

“Oh, come on,” Sonic tried to be jovial, “We expected that would happen!”

As the three friends outran the collapsing bridge, they soon came to realise it led to a doorway. As Sonic came within mere inches of it, a steel shutter slammed down over the doorway.

“Ah,” Sonic announced, “Well, we didn’t expect that”

“No,” Mighty replied, “But we probably should have”

Something else the trio hadn’t anticipated came next as the entire bridge disconnected itself from its moorings, dumping them in the waters below. The splash startled a passing Mobini turtle who swam away in surprise.

Sonic reached into his sock. His hand ran around his ankle. His eyes widened.

Surely the other one then?

He checked the other sock, the other ankle. The realisation of the depth of the situation dawned on Sonic.

He’d forgotten his rebreather.

Sonic felt Mighty’s hand on his shoulder, getting his attention. He turned and saw a huge pair of motor fan blades whirring towards the trio. Sonic almost let out a yelp but forced his mouth closed when he realised he’d only be giving up valuable oxygen.

With no alternatives other than getting chopped up, the three friends did their best to get away from the blades. Ray and Mighty were both quite strong swimmers, but the panic of the situation had led Sonic to forget pretty much everything Joe and Tux had taught him. And Robotnik had been sure to construct this area with absolutely no cracks to let oxygen bubbles through. Sonic’s mind raced.

Without warning, a huge eel Badnik shot out of a nearby rock. Knowing time was of the essence, Mighty punched the machine’s head clean off. A tiny Mobini fish swam out and to freedom. Hoping to slow the fan blades, Mighty launched the remains of the robot at them. The blades whirred and sliced the Badnik shell to pieces but didn’t slow.

Ray, meanwhile, was doing his level best not to come within reach of the giant clams scattered about the floor. Naturally, these weren’t really clams but mechanical traps, programmed to grab and swallow anyone unfortunate enough to come near. Ray looked back at the others. Mighty hadn’t noticed it but Ray now saw Sonic was panicking. Air bubbles flowed from his mouth. He was losing control of the situation rapidly.

Turning back, Ray swam with all his might, his arms pounding in pain from exertion. He grabbed Sonic by the hand and swum to the surface with Mighty not too far behind.

Sonic coughed and spluttered, “Th… thank you”

“Don’t mention it, buddy,” Ray smiled.

“No, really…” Sonic shook his head, “I don’t really do water. At all”

“Hey, pal, can’t be good at everything,” Mighty smiled.

“Ray, you saved my life. Thank you”

Ray smiled. His doubts about what he brought to the team instantly dissipated.

“Well, I don’t know about you but I’m in no rush to get back in the pool,” Mighty quipped, “Ready for another climb?” He nodded in the direction of a rocky wall, with stones protruding from its surface.

“Ah, what the heck?” Sonic shrugged with a smile, “Once more for old time’s sake”

“I’m ready if you are,” Ray added with more determination and vigour than he’d shown in some time.

The three friends swam over to the wall and began the climb upwards. Their luck refusing to hold out for more than a few seconds at a time, Robotnik’s next trap began to spring.

“Guys…” Sonic spoke first, “I’m starting to think this is no mere climbing wall”

He pointed at a crack that had emerged in the wall. Followed by another. And another.

Suddenly, the first crack exploded with a rush of water.

“It’s a dam!” Mighty shouted, “And it looks like it’s about to burst!”

The trio scrambled madly, thrusting their arms and legs up to arm and footholds. Out of the water, Sonic’s climbing training with Sally kicked in once more.

He wondered what she was doing right now.

No, not the time.

As the top of the dam came closer, Sonic realised that if the dam was meant to hold back water- then water was exactly what he’d find at the top.

Sure enough, as he, Mighty and Ray found themselves atop the dam wall, Sonic was greeted by the site of boards of wood floating downstream.

“Do we make a jump for it to the other side?” Ray asked.

Sonic folded his arms, “What, like some arcade game? Do I look like a frog to you?”

Mighty looked down beneath their feet. The dam wall was shaking and about to collapse, “Guys, I don’t think we have much choice”

The others nodded once in agreement. The three of them bent their knees and at once hurled themselves onto a passing board. A mad dash ensued as the three leapt from board to board, heading upstream and trying not to knock one another off.

Ray pointed at the other side of the rushing water, “Look! Over there!”

They were back in front of the tower. At the base, sure, but they’d made it. The trio drew closer to the entrance.

“Alright, you two, one last jump,” Sonic said.

“Just the one? That’d be nice, I’ve had enough for today,” Mighty chuckled.

“Well, I suppose I can’t promise. Come on!”

The three Mobians hurled themselves onto solid ground. Getting up and dusting themselves off, they shared a look. With a breath and a moment to regain their composure, they entered Robotnik’s Tower.

Their showdown was imminent.

On to Chapter 93