Electroshock

<div id="i4c-draggable-container" style="position: fixed; z-index: 1499; width: 0px; height: 0px;"><div data-reactroot="" class="resolved" style="all: initial;"></div></div>When I came to, I was strapped to what was basically a dissecting table combined with an electric chair, in what I guessed was Metal Sonic's main base of operations, with a big-as-hell green gemstone in the middle, and a throne atop. Said green gemstone was also connected to the table through several wires that glowed ominously with green energy.

And at least six or seven cameras pointing inwards.

If not for the situation and the fact that Vanilla, Cream (both with tapes on their mouths and bound to chairs facing me), and a battered but conscious Sonic (who was kept afloat in a specialized cage that 'disabled' gravity, and therefore nullified his main method of go fast) were there, looking at me with distraught faces, I would have laughed at the face Knuckles might have made. Instead, I struggled with the chains holding me in place, without success.

And guess who came inside the room when he heard my grunts of effort? Yeah, Perry the Dastardly Fucktypus and two robots, one round and red and the other square and yellow. Even though he had no real face to speak of, for some reason I thought that the yellow bot was a moron.

"Oh hi boss!" It waved, making the red robot facepalm.

"He's not the boss anymore, Cubot."

Nevermind, he confirmed it, he WAS a moron.

"Finally awake, I see!" Starline said with a cheerful tone. "It seems that the super-steel chains can stop even the muscles of a 350 pound musclebound brute that still retains enough brains to create from trivial hovering vehicles to powerful electromagnetic weapons."

"When I get out of these chains, those 350 pounds of brainless muscle will shove that gem there up your-" I managed to say before a sharp pain in my head made me scream, which in turn made the girls scream despite their mouths being covered and Sonic to insult Starline and run on air trying to escape.

Have you ever got shocked with static electricity before? Very probably, I mean, who hasn't? But what about having said electricity being channeled directly to your brain? I think it was a miracle I could still speak coherently.

Unfortunately, the worst was still yet to come, and in about just half a minute or so.

"Sorry for interrupting your threat, I had to make sure that my machine worked."

"Hey!" Sonic screamed. "Leave him alone you jerk! And what did you do to Silver and Whisper!"

"I'll leave him alone when I want to, you despicable rodent!" Sneered Starline. "You're luck that I didn't add a buzzer to your containment unit! As for your friends, it seems that they fell off the island and to the sea below. They're dead."

I pretty much doubted that, what with Silver being a psychic hedgehog from the future and Whisper's gun allowing her to reenact Mary Poppins/Yondu's entrance. Plus, it wasn't impossible that they could indeed fall, only to survive a gruesome death because they fell in the water.

Didn't stop Sonic from screaming 'No!', and despite not knowing either of them (and the wolf trying to kill me), I still felt a bit disheartened. I mean, a theory is just a theory, they could indeed be dead.

"Where is Metal Sonic?" I asked.

"Holding the rest of the Resistance off while I work, which I hope will be enough to get the old Eggman back." Starline said. "That, or shut down your brain long enough to upload a program containing a virtual recration of the old Eggman. Of course, it wasn't easy having to change our original plan from the beginning, but you know the saying, no plan survives first contact with the enemy, just like Plan B."

"Which was?"

"Kill you and clone you from the remains to create a new, superior Eggman enhanced with technology and lack of morals." Starline said as he tinkered with the terminal. "Not that we won't do it if the new idea doesn't work out, it'll just come last if neither method works. Of course, I'd rather prefer if you simply went back to your evil self without forced assistance. Now, this might sting a little... Oh, what am I saying, this will HURT!" He cackled before activating the machine.

And then inmeasurable, agonizing pain came.

You won't believe how much pain can your brain get when several hundred volts of electricity are channeled to it, especially when its source is a magical rock whose energy comes from nowhere and is infinite. Lesser men would have died instantly. Me, being made of much sterner stuff? I just screamed in agony as the electricity coursed through me and my beard started to smoke.

Funny thing was, they didn't plan on killing my, just reset me to my former evil self, but at that moment I thought Starline wanted to do the cloning and get rid of me.

"Stop!" Vanilla screamed, having somehow managed to pull out the tape on her mouth. "You're killing him!"

"That's not the idea, but at the same time it wouldn't be a severe loss, madam! Hmm, it seems that you are indeed stronger than before! Increasing voltage!"

The pain increased, and I screamed louder, but I couldn't do nothing except struggle with all my strength to try to get free, which didn't work.

"Well, now that there won't be any more interruptions, I think I can talk a bit more freely about the future." Starline said, which I barely heard over my screams. "Like the one the psychich hedgehog comes from. Yes, that silver idiot dropped the picture, and let me tell you, I can't imagine anything more disgusting from someone of your caliber: clear and sunny skies, aliens and Mobians walking together without being slaves, not an armed robot in sight... And that horrible statue of you standing with these... these plebeians! Fortunately I think we can still change the future for the better."

Vanilla, unable to see me suffer any longer, had somehow managed to escape her bounds (later I learned that it had been Cheese and Chocola who set them free and pulled Cream's tape; I didn't see them because of all the pain and Starline was busy monologuing to see the Chao) and ran at Starline.

"Stop torturing him, you monster!" She screamed as she attacked him with just her hands. Unfortunately, she was just a housewife, whereas Starline, while still nowhere as strong or tough as even Amy, was still taller and stronger than her.

"You furry pest!"

He slapped her, then opened a portal from which she went through, falling from the ceiling. Even before she fell, and despite the pain, I could see a trickle of blood coming from her mouth.

The bastard had slapped Vanilla with his gloved hand with enough force to make her bleed, while also dropping her from a high enough height to do some lasting damage.

My eyes widened in horror when I saw the woman that gave me a place to stay when anyone else would have thrown rocks at me crash against the ground. Overly emotional from my part? Maybe, but that didn't change the fact.

Starline. Hurt. Vanilla.

I stopped screaming, and started struggling like a gorilla on meth.

"MOTHER!"

"You piece of trash!" Sonic screamed.

"I'm that and more, and after this session is over they'll be next, only I won't stop until their hearts explode!" Starline screamed back. "Now that I've taken care of that, I can...uh?"

My left arm, the one still broken, snapped the chains holding it. Either the electricity had weakened it, or I had enough adrenaline to kill an elephant, I didn't care.

(Some minutes later, I found out it was neither of those possibilities)

Then, my other arm, my left leg, my right leg, the rest of my body, and finally my head were freed.

My body was still cracking with enough electricity to power an entire city, but instead of killing me it just... was.

It had also changed to a red coloration, but I didn't know it at the moment, as angry and tired as I was after being a dummy for electroshock therapy for at least a minute.

(Remember the bolstered strength and the red lightning, because they will play one hell of a part a bit later)

I was tempted to rip him in half, but that would still leave Metal Sonic, who going by his comparison of Sonic could use the Master Emerald to power himself. Plus, that thing was the reason I was Electro.

"No more magical rocks!" I shouted as I grabbed the green rock and threw it away through the walls. In hindsight, that would bit me in the ass, but at the moment I wanted to get rid of the thing that nearly did to me what happened to that guy in The Green Mile despite Starline not wanting to kill me, at least at first. Then, I stomped towards towards the now panicked Starline, my fists raised. I also had freed Sonic, but at the moment I didn't care "No more shock-happy platypus!" However, before I could punch him to Hell, the orange stone he had glowed and a portal appeared out of nowhere, and he went through it, the portal closing behind him.

I really wanted to just go after him, since he couldn't have gone very far, but I had to take care of Vanilla. She was just a housewife, I had no idea of how would her body handle that kind of damage.

"Sonic, go help the others with Metal, I'll stay here!" I ordered Sonic, who instead of arguing back nodded and sped off as I ran towards the sprawled form of Vanilla, a crying Cream next to her, who was being conformted by 'Cubot', while the red one inspected Vanilla.

"Don't worry sweetheart, your momma will be alright. Not 'alright' in the sense she-" I slapped him in the head before she finished the sentence, I was pretty damn sure what he was getting at. Then, I turned to 'Red'.

"How's she?" I asked him.

After a couple more seconds of looking at Vanilla, Red gave a sigh. "Well, this may sound callous of me, Sir, but Miss Vanilla might not even need to go to an hospital." He replied. "A torn lip and very bruised, but nothing more serious."

"She might be more than able to survive this, Red-"

"Orbot, Sir."

"Right, Orbot, but she's not like Sonic or me or the others. She's just a single mother that takes care of ther six-year old daughter, not a Resistance fighter, she's simply not tough."

"E-ggman?" Vanilla suddenly asked, blood on her lower lip

"Vanilla?"

"Mother?"

"E-eggman? Cream?" Vanilla said again as I held up her head. "You're wounded."

"I can handle it, it's you who is bleeding! We gotta-"

And then we were crushed by a giant, dragon-like Metal Sonic.

No, we didn't die.

<div id="i4c-dialogs-container"></div>