Chapter Text
One more hour. One more hour until the CyberGuild servers are open to the public.
Sonic lazed on the couch as he zoned in on the clock on the wall like it was the only source of entertainment. The rest of the world around him was tuned out ages ago. This party was far too overstimulating for him than he originally thought it was going to be. The cheers and banter from everyone, the noise from the video games being played. It was all far too loud. He glanced at the books he purchased at the game shop. Ugh! I don't feel like reading. He and Tails already completed the setup and preinstallation process for everyone’s headsets because Sonic was already overstimulated and bored. After setup, everyone went ahead and decided on their guilds. The plan was to split up into guilds of up to five since that was the maximum amount allowed per guild— at least that's what Tails stated from the reviews of the beta testers.
Sonic glanced over at Shadow. He was in a similar condition to himself. He stood in the corner of the room, leaning against the wall, staring out the window like he was looking at an endless abyss. He completely isolated himself from the crowd around him. Sonic noticed the ebony hedgehog's crossed arms and the highlighter orange earplugs in his ears. He looked agitated and like he wanted solitude.
A blush suddenly came on Sonic's face as his thoughts spontaneously traveled to a place he swore only his brother's mind traveled. Not the time, Sonic! He's not the affectionate type, anyways. He forced his thoughts away with a much more wholesome thought. Maybe I could challenge him to a race.
Sonic hopped up from the couch and stretched. He then grabbed a stray chilidog from the coffee table and devoured it in one bite. He wiped off the excess chili that collected itself on his mouth with his forearm. Next, he brushed through his quills with his fingers to tidy them up. He skipped over to Shadow and tackled him into an embrace, resulting in Sonic being instantaneously pushed away, slightly rougher than last time.
"Faker?" Shadow addressed the blue hedgehog, keeping his attention on the world on the other side of the window.
"Love you too, Shads." Sonic rolled his eyes. He wrapped his arm around Shadow's neck, which earned him a glare and a purr that contradicted the icy cold glare. Sonic gave Shadow a half-lidded glare full of mischief. He pulled the ebony hedgehog closer to him, their bodies now practically touching. He traced Shadow's jawline with his free hand. "Let's get outta here for a bit." He whispered. He pulled back and prepared himself, "Race ya to Station Square!" He took off, not sparing Shadow a single second.
If there was one thing Shadow hated the most, it was losing. Especially against Sonic. He grumbled a curse under his breath and chased after him.
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Infinite snarled as he looked at the clock. One more hour until we can take down CyberGuild. He rolled his eyes at the thought, annoyance and resentment for the company filling his thoughts.
Infinite was the main story writer for CyberGuild, then was fired for creating a "dogshit", yet overly gruesome story. They didn't give him the chance to fix it or make the story more kid-friendly so the MSRB (Mobius Software Rating Board) wouldn't bitch about anything they would deem not appropriate for sale, which would get the game banned from all models of the Nova VR headset.
He spent hours looking at various sources to gain the perfect inspiration for the game’s story and setting. He even looked at the company's past games to try to emulate their writing style. No matter the amount of work he put into the story, they still discarded it without a single thought. At least that's what he thought... According to Mimic, the infiltrator, RoboEgg used a majority of Infinite’s storyline for the game.
Even worse, his ideas weren't credited in the slightest.
In all honesty, he held back on making the story even more gruesome. His behavior around the company and the content he created already raised several red flags as it is. He didn’t need to announce his side job of being one of the most feared mercenaries on Mobius—The Masked Jackal, as they would call him—to one of the most influential companies on the planet, which would result in his arrest, probably even the death penalty if they looked at his kill count.
After learning about the misuse of his ideas from the ex-beta tester, he formed a group with the ex-lead developer and the ex-lead artist, whose work for the game suffered a similar fate. Their sleepless nights bringing the game to life were in vain. No recognition, no credit, and fired without a single thought.
Infinite paced the petty excuse of a secret lair in frustration from the near thought of RoboEgg but also anticipation to finally take them down. The wallpaper on the walls showed its age by peeling from the just as ancient brick wall. The hardwood floor creaked with every step the jackal took. The only things that occupied the room were a couch that looked older than himself and the stereotypical multi-monitor computer that served as the only light source. The former lead developer worked away at the computer, completely blocking out the rest of the world.
"Doc, do we still have our dev accounts?" He addressed his former coworker as he continued to pace the floor.
"RoboEgg isn't thorough or organized enough to delete them." The former RoboEgg developer grimaced at his former employer's lack of organization.
Infinite approached his now ally and propped himself against his chair, crossing his arms over the top of it. He observed the computer, looking blankly at the tech jargon he could only dream of understanding. "And Mephiles?"
"Running late."
Infinite sighed.
"He dislikes his tardiness as much as we do." The former developer rested his head on his hand. Plans are going wrong…he hated that.
The jackal glanced down at the empty mug on the desk. "Coffee or tea?"
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Sonic and Shadow stood in line at the Station Square Coffee Shop. Shadow won in the race against Sonic so Sonic agreed to treat the victor to a drink.
"Yo, Shadz, Coffee or tea?" Sonic asked.
"Tea…please"
Sonic turned his attention to the cashier. "Hi! Can I get a lavender tea for him and an iced vanilla coffee for myself?" He leaned against the counter, making himself closer to the crimson canine cashier in front of him.
The cashier stumbled back, flustered. “A-anything else?”
Sonic glanced over to the showcase of pastries. Cakes, cookies, brownies, and other pastries filled the shelves. “Um...three...no, five cake pops. One of each flavor. Oh! And one slice of that rainbow cake you have there.” He paused briefly, “That’s all!”
“That’s-” The ding from the card machine interrupted the cashier. He sighed. “Your order will be right over there soon.” He pointed over to the other end of the counter. The blue hero instantly dashed over, leaving the striped hedgehog behind.
Shadow facepalmed at the actions of the blue hedgehog then turned his attention to the cashier. “Thank you.” He dragged out some change from his quills and put it in the tip jar. “Sorry for his...lack of manners.” He caught up to Sonic who was already holding their order, barely holding on to everything. He grabbed his tea and the package that had the slice of cake. He glanced up at the store's clock, they had time.
Shadow walked over to a nearby table and motioned Sonic over. He placed his items on the table and sat down. Instantly, he grabbed a book from the shelf that was placed above the table.
Sonic pulled a cake pop out of the bag and shoved it in his mouth, devouring it in one bite. Chocolate! The best flavor! He pulled another one out and offered it to the ebony hedgehog across from him. "Yo, these are soooooo good you should try one."
Shadow took the baked good from Sonic's hand and took a bite. Cookies and cream, not bad. "Thank you." He devoured the rest of the cake pop and chased it down with a sip of his tea. It's going to go cold soon. He put the book back on the shelf as he looked at the blue hero in front of him. Sonic was already on his phone, scrolling through social media or whatever he spends his time doing. Now sure that Sonic was distracted, He snatched the bag and took out another cake pop. He instantly took a bite. Strawberry. Rouge would love this one. Amy would too.
Sonic looked up from his phone to attempt to grab another cake pop to notice that the bag was no longer where he left it. He looked up at his rival to see that he had the bag, clutching it with no intention of letting go. In his other hand was a half-eaten cake pop.
"Hey!" Sonic yelled, bringing in the theatrics. "Hand 'em over!" He stood up and kicked his chair out of the way, putting on a show.
Shadow teased Sonic by shaking the bag with a small grin on his face. He instantly got up and sped out of the coffee shop.
Sonic briefly paused in shock. He did not! He quickly chugged his drink, leaving not a single drop behind. "What's worse than a speedy hedgehog? A speedy hedgehog fueled by caffeine and sugar!" He took off after his rival.