All characters are copywrite Sega, and other media companies responsible for the
international Sonic franchises (including DiC and Archie). This applies to all 'Glint' stories.

Story is by: M.C. Griffin (unless otherwise stated... I guess.)
*********************************

When you finally regained consciousness, a little mouse girl offered you a dead cat. The blues and whites of your surroundings seemed to fit harmoniously with how you felt. This was 'Evolution'.

The girl looked so happy with herself. Like she accomplished something praise worthy. Bunny came from behind you and kissed your neck. As you stood there looking at this creepy little mouse girl, Bunny placed kisses higher and higher on your neck. Upon the fourth kiss you held her head there. She began sucking on your neck, flicking her tongue on your furry skin every once in a while. You pulled her up and the two of you embraced with a kiss. A long, deep kiss. Bunny's lower torso seemed colder than ever. Her cold, stimulating hand reaching down your waist.

The two of you collapsed off of the fallen building that you thought you had fallen off of already.

Images of Sonic began to flash in your head. Unclear and vague, but they were becoming larger and a bit less static every time. Just like before.

Except before is right now. Everything leading to this moment was right now.

And with dead cat in hands, arms raised, there stood the mouse girl.

No! You thought, I have to keep my head in the moment.

You pressed up against Bunny's large bust.

Out of the corner of your eye you saw a flash of blue.

Her natural hand grabbed your ass.

It was Sonic, but you couldn't see him. Your vision was obscured.

You kissed her with tongue.

As he darted around, adverting your eye, you realized you didn't want to see him.

You pulled your head up.

Bunny spoke.

"What's wrong.... did I do something wrong?"

Your head spun.

"C'mon. Tell me what's wrong."

You focused on the mouse and her cat.

"Please..."

"Evolve." the mouse said.

"What's wrong Sonic?" Bunny asked.

You saw him. Sonic stood there, reflecting back at you on a mirror. Sonic was you, or at least, you were him.

Equal! Equal! Equal!

The cat leapt out of the girls' arms and on a collision course with your blue furred body. It exploded into milk and fireworks.

Everything went white, as the milk enveloped the world. The only thing interrupting the blankness being fireworks sparking up in the empty white. Gravity set in, and you floated to the ground in spite of the surrounding liquid. You could breathe, as if your lungs weren't filled with the smooth milk.

The mouse girl swam into sight. She moved child like as always as she approached your face.

Floating there, right in front of your face she asks, "Why do you say fuck?"

"What?"

"Why do you say fuck?"

"When?"

"Whenever? Why do you say fuck?"

"I guess... because..."

"Why do you masterbate?"

"Hey..."

"Why do you kiss other women?"

"Just a moment!"

"Why do you have lust for those you hate?"

"I don't..."

"Why do you hate?"

"STOP!!!"

"I'm sorry."

"What does it matter!? I'm guilty okay? And my continuing persistence in these actions makes me feel guilty, alright? Is that what you want to hear?"

"You needn't feel guilty. You just can't do those things."

"Why not?"

"Because this is rated TV-Y."

"Wh-what?"

"Bye."

Then, as she swam off, the milk began to sower, and become black, until the darkness and the blackness clogged your vision, and nothing could be seen.

As if your eyes were closed.

And then they open.

?: Did you ever have a mother?

A rusty voice, echoing with a chrome sound.

It was the guardian. His metal face reflected the moon. His red eyes illuminated the building sides. His cloak lifted and fell all around you.

"I'm tired of dreaming." You said.

He replied, stepping through the rusty valley.

Guardian: Yes. Why dream when you can live a nightmare?

He was holding you in his arms like a child, much like Rotor did. His cold, metal hands reminded you of Bunny's cold hand. It wasn't till you tried to curl into his arms that you realized how tall he was, and therefore, how high you were. You looked down to find, what seemed like miles of robots.

Little robotocized animal heads stretched out as far as you could see with your limited vision. This was why your scanner drew up a blank. Out stretched hundred of those which it couldn't detect.

"What is this?" You asked.

Guardian: Let them explain.

He sat you down amongst the robots. You expected to be ripped limb from limb, but you were so weak that if it had happened you would be powerless. They all seemed docile, though. They didn't seem angry. They didn't seem hostile. They didn't seem like they wanted to kill you.

Guardian: This is she.

They all reacted, calling all attention to the chrome, cloaked figure towering over you with those glowing eyes.

Guardian: This is she who delivered unto us, the messiah.

You swung around, putting your back to the crowd. You peered up into the hood, glowing red with his eyes. You couldn't wrap your brain around what he was saying.

Guardian: My brethren! Make a path.

A robot pig.

A robot duck.

A robot bird.

A robot cat.

So many species. Such variety. Each as individual as any living thing, but made the same by that beautiful, infernal machine. Their supposed individuality taken away by the roboticizer in a common fashion for each.

They all cleared a path down through this decrepit part of the city.

This must have been an abandoned portion of what used to be Mobotropolis. One of the many parts of the city that I didn't need. A portion of it that could serve no purpose, and would be too much of a waste to tear down. Maybe some day I will use it for something practical. Another SWAT Bot factory, maybe. Or possibly a roboticization chamber

The ancient, scorched remains of your once magnificent city towered over you, marred by age and battle. Polluted and dirtied by so many years shrouded in smoke and darkness. As you walked behind the congregation of metal animals, you began to recognize certain landmarks. Even after such destruction ripped the city into pieces you could still become nostalgic from walking the streets. For small, fleeting moments revolution seemed like the right idea. When the thought had struck back that this revolution still might have ended her best friends' lives.

Step. Step. Step. You walked with this precession of robotic animals. Like life-sized wind-up dolls from your youth, they walked in the same pattern as always, never waning or altering themselves. Past crude oil wells and dismantled buildings, raped and forgotten along with the legacy they once held.

Your parade had finally arrived, and a great metal cave of torn metal and scrap loomed over you like a great gape-mouthed creature ready to swallow you whole. The animals with their chrome-metallic complections made a path for you and waited for you to pass as they stared at the great structure. Quite a paradox, this. A structure made from destruction.

You didn't move. You couldn't. It was too fearful of a sight, the kind of horrifying cavern that you would read about in a children's story, and all this nostalgia wasn't helping that. They were just robots though. They wouldn't hurt you, you thought. If they hadn't shown force by now, then they never would without a warning, so you just stood.

You just stood there, legs aching, as they all looked on at this cave of twisted metal, as if they had only just stopped. Like children lost in thought, they just stared at it. Then, you began to notice a sound. A hum. It was all around you. A low, consistent, and ever-present buzz. It was the robots, and though it was always there, the sound seemed to get increasingly grow. Now that you had realized this sound you couldn't stop hearing it. You wanted to run, but as you turned your eyes met with those of The Guardian, who let off the biggest hum of all of them. Those eyes. The sound seemed to radiate in the same way that the sound did.

Just when you thought that you couldn't take it anymore, a huge screech echoed throughout these wastelands. Your head whipped right back in front of you to discover the squeaking heads of all the robots turning to look at you. Now, where once they stared at this great, looming structure, they now stared at you.

Blank, eyeless stares.

Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

"Graaah!!" You stormed into the great gaping thing, leaving those creatures and their noises behind.

As you stepped further and further into this odd, dark and eerie place, you began to feel cold. Everything was metal. Like the inner workings of a robot. Every bar of torn metal a reminder of how ever-present danger always is in Robotropolis.

As you stepped deeper into the dark recesses of this cave of metal, you began to hear another noise. Deeper and deeper into the cave and it kept getting louder. Closer. You didn't want to continue, but you had to. It simply came down to necessity, not preferability.

A green glow lit up deeper into the great metal structure, and you felt yourself incredibly curious of whatever was making this phenomena occur. As you approached, the humming became louder as well. A green glowing buzz of sound.

You finally came into eye contact of the mystery object within this metal cave and all you could even think was:

"Oh. I seem to have forgotten something."

It was Nicole.

Nicole was the name for beauty and wisdom. Guidance. Maturity. Knowledge.

And you had somehow managed to lose her somewhere along the line.

Now don't you feel irresponsible.

You still couldn't even remember what mission it was that Nicole had been lost. One day you thought of something you might have needed her for. You checked your satchel. Oops, it's gone. Move on.

What a great leader you are.

But now, there Nicole was perched. Stood up on a makeshift podium made from junked parts of various different machines. It was made just for her. The small, compact computer was opened and sat upright. It was practically a shrine for this computer. Goddess Nicole. On a pedestal to be worshiped.

You looked back down the cave, and at its opening stared back the eyes of so many robots. Simply as if you were looking into an empty sky and the stars were just that much closer, those eyes glowed, hovering in the black.

Nicole: Greetings Sally.

The voice of reason.

"Oh, Nicole. It's been so long."

Nicole: Not really, Sally.

You felt so much more secure now, and a wave of warmth fled through your body, making you tremble. Everything could be better now. Everything could be smarter now.

"Nicole. Explain this structure." You pointed your compact computer at the odd construct she had been sitting on.

Nicole: This crude machine was constructed from the work bot 1.0 units residing in these parts. This was made from machines of similar design for the sole purpose of rejuvenating my power cells.

"Nicole. Why would they be interested in recharging your cells?"

Nicole: Their original intent was to inspect my mechanisms for possible use in Robotnik's machines. Their soul purpose in these parts was to find things in the city which could still be used, analyze them, and apply them to the inner workings of the city. They had sapped this part of the city of technology and machines entirely, and were never reassigned. When they came upon me, they began to inspect my practical uses. One downloaded my data, and found such concepts as morality and justice. Knowledge of the revolution was now accessible. Their programming was to find the practical uses of any machine or information. With these new ideas of Robotnik's evil, they now wish to use this information to stop him.

A moment of silent humming.

Nicole: It's only logical.

Robot: Sally.

You turned your head to the entrance. A robot had spoken up. Eventually they all took his cue, and began to chant your name as if it was simply binary code. Even such concepts so abstract like morality could be broken down to simple digital information applicable to a situation.

Nicole: They've heard much of you, Sally.

You placed Nicole with the rest of your equipment and began to walk out of the jagged, metal cave. All the while, the chrome voices of hundreds of robots chanted your name in systematic unison. Like a rhythm of one word. Your word. The only word.

Sally. Sally. Sally. Sally. Sally. Sally.

Anywhere. Nowhere. Somewhere Sonic was running.

Somewhere he was ripping through SWAT Bots and destroying hover units.

Somewhere he was with Bunny, who had lost her arm, and was slightly contaminated because of Sonic's inexperience with filtering out her bladder and urinary valves.

Somewhere they were barely surviving, but surviving nonetheless.

Somewhere they had become dependant.

How long had it been?

Somewhere.

Sonic stood amongst the remains of his enemies. A robotic leg over here. A mechanical arm over there. Dust swirled all around this dark alley of Robotropolis in Sonic's wake. His temple bloomed sweat. His knuckles quivered. A trail of blood slid down his lip like a new born river. He left it unattended.

Bunny lay behind him on her side. Her eyes were wide open with the shine of coming tears glazing over. Her position seemed awkward with the absence of her robotic arm. Her fingers brushed the dirt around. Her left leg on top moved up and down, almost simply to remind her that she was alive.

"We have to keep moving." Sonic said, not moving.

"Can we?" The leg stopped.

"What do you mean? Come on! We're meat if we stick around in one place!"

Bunny lifted herself up with her one arm and stared violently at Sonic. "We're meat anyway!!" She broke down in tears. Sonic could hear the dripping piddle paddle of crying in a puddle. He didn't know how to handle the situation. He just stood there, watching Bunny's fur get soiled by the ground, and the ground get soiled by her tears.

His fist tightened.

His head tucked in.

She cried still.

His eyes opened upon her with a stare showing the God he was inside.

"FUCK YOU!"

The alley echoed as Bunny looked up through streaming tears at Knothole's hero.

"Do you think that your lack of confidence means anything to this revolution!?"

"Wh-what?"

"All this deliberation and angst that every fuckin' body in this whole god-damn, so-called revolution goes through every fuckin' day does nothing for the cause!"

Bunny just shrank even further into herself and the ground.

"We're here to fuck shit up and kill the fat man! Isn't that what you want!?"

"It's too big."

"That's what he wants!" Sonic grabbed the broken toy rabbit girl from her crying puddle and pointed at the egg fortress that I called home. "That's what he wants! Does he need the size? Does he need all this big for his conquest!? No!! It's a trick for your head so you can know that you can't win!"

Bunny stopped crying.

Sonic continued. "You were letting him win in your fuckin' hidden village! We were beating ourselves down after mission after mission failed to surmount to anything! We did little pissing jobs before, but now we're in the shit, and all you can think of is how great home would be! How nice it would be back in the green wonderland where we can pretend that we can win and that magic is real and that love is undying and that miracles can happen! Well, fuck that! For some of us this is still home."

Bunny looked up, her tear stained face draining of sorrow and absorbing every one of Sonic's words.

"Before I remember any of this I remember processed food on my tongue. I remember capitalism. I remember fountains and chariots. I remember the thrill of dashing along the sides of great, towering skyscrapers wondering how anything that big could ever be created. I remember my uncle showing me how lucky we were. Lucky that we could live in this magnificent city and not selling chilli dogs to travelers in the meadow."

Bunny stood and wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"I had this green. I love nature, but it's a second home. This is what I want back. Mobotropolis grows back where Robotnik's blood falls. Understand?"

"Yes."

"Good."

"Sorry about that, I guess I needed to be reminded of why we were here."

"Ya. No problem."

"Ya... It'd probably be easier if we weren't fucking."

"We fucked, we're not fucking."

"Please... it's going to happen again. I know you too well. You can't stop."

Sonic grew silent as Bunny coiled her arm around his.

Bunny continued, "And neither can I."

"It's best if we don't even talk about it."

"No. Recognize it. We've always wanted each other."

"...Sally..."

Bunny dropped to her knees and put her head in her hand. "I feel sick."

"Me too."

She played with his shoe with her hand, leaning on his leg for balance. Playing became rubbing, which began to crawl up his leg. Her soft fingers caressing up and down his leg. "Please." She said, "I don't want to be alone in this place."

"You're not alone."

"Please!" She squeezed tight on his leg.

"Don't touch me!" Sonic jerked his foot away.

He stomped away in anger, and as his distance from Bunny increased, so did his speed. He began to gain some notable distance, when a call of "Stop!" made him slow to a stop once again. Dust filled the air at his sudden stop, and Bunny finally caught up with him. Her hand clapped down on his shoulder. "You can't leave me."

They just stood there. Dust settling.

"We need to keep moving."

"Come. We'll rest together. We'll camp back in that alley where all those dead robots that we killed together are. We'll forget."

"I wanted this with her."

"I want this with anyone."

"I hate myself."

"Don't. Hate me instead."

Somewhere nothing was sacred.

Somewhere eyes were closed.

Somewhere there was sweat and panting.

Somewhere there was shame.

Somewhere else, you walked with Nicole back in your boot and many robots, along with The Guardian trailing you behind to one of the many abandoned buildings. A large dome shaped building, once lined with bright, vibrant colors, it now was dull and grey, yet still retained it's recognizable design. One of the many establishments of fine dining for the late Mobotropolis.

Nicole: Sally. Doubtless, to you the time from your fall and your awakening was perceived to be a few moments, but in truth you've been unconscious for many weeks. In this time these robotic slaves have learned much, and although they cannot physically help you, they wish to contribute something to the revolution. Though they have no memory of their organic lives, they understand what they once were. Here is the fruits of their labor.

You opened the doors.

You smiled.

After all this time of being away from the city. After Knothole had become the place you called home. After you were blowing stuff up in the city you once inhabited. Mobotropolis. Robotropolis. Fuck it all. Here and now. That's home.

You looked through the door.

Yes, this was home.

No place like it.

*******************************

This is still not the end. To be continued.