-- I WILL BUILD MY EMPIRE.

     Mephiles was no ordinary individual. If the fox were to find the information required, some more... extreme measures would be required. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, they say!

     "Don't worry, Doctor. I won't be long." So venture he would. Such is why determination lines his brow, namesakes whirling into a twirl behind him. Propelled is the Prower as sneakers skip mid-dash, twin-tails flinging him further through the compound. He ushered a challenge unto that umbran nightmare. THE CHOICE TO DO WHAT REALITY DEEMS IMPOSSIBLE. He is no little mouse shaking beneath the weight of something greater, waiting placidly for the beast to rip out his throat.

     He will see Mephiles dealt with, in one way or another. He just needed a little help.

     The fox ducks and dives, flight following the darkened Egg Monitor through whatever hall or passageway it navigates through. And to the Eggman's credit, these bases are certainly well-built. Often, during a siege, the young kit and his friends go through the path of most resistance. Whichever door is open, really. But... so many more hidden entrances lie in wait for the finding, don't they?

     A secret door here, an invisible chute there— he rolls down a pipe and pops out like a cannonball above a seemingly endless pit, one where only the advantage of flight can save oneself from inevitable doom. Anti-Sonic design indeed... though it made for a lovely shortcut for one such as the fox-kit. He'd laugh and say it'd be nice to take routes like these every time they had to raid an Eggman base, but... he knew his brother loved the long way around.

     The path came to an end. Grandstanding doors with the ever-familiar glow of digital screen glare thrumming through whatever slight crack it could. A deep intake of air... (stale. stagnant. it screamed 'far from home') ...And a slow, drawn-out exhale. (he felt cold. like he should see his vaporous breath, despite the season.) A glove presses palm to thick iron, arm bending as it's thrown open with gusto and zeal.

     He steps through. He stands tall.

When Tails opens the door, he’s leaned back in his seat, hands clasped over his knee with a wild grin. The glint in his specs shows a man eager for negotiations, as well as one eager for knowledge. Because what could Miles “Tails” Prower possibly want from him? And then, most curious, the kit asks a question that perturbs him. His face doesn’t quite drop, but it doesn’t quite react either. Mephiles the Dark… it’s a name he doesn’t recognize, but at the same time, feels like he should. Eyes light with remembrance and sudden interest.

Eggman then turns to his dashboard, typing a few keys before swizzling back around to face Tails. The screen behind him displays a myriad of documents, photographs, newspaper clippings, and audio files. A cluttered mess, but it made sense to the right people. The right people just couldn’t put two and two together. Himself and Tails, however—

“ The millennium boogeyman, “ he responds, then snaps his fingers. He shuffles his chair, and Cubot haphazardly rushes in with another. There’s barely a glance from the man before his minion vanishes again, and he gestures to Tails to take a seat. A look that says—we’re going to be here a while. “ A shadow creature that’s plagued this world for thousands of years. Or that’s what the conspiracy theorists say, at any rate. “

nobody is coming to save you. get up.

let us live, since we must die.

don't trust the beginnings, truth is told in the last moments.

i don't think i'm the hero type.

this was supposed to be closure, not the beginning of another mistake.

underneath your hands, i become poetry. this is the alchemy that you do.

two souls don't find each other by simple accident.

how do i look away now that i've seen you?

it is okay to be gentle, it does not make you weak.

let me fall if i must fall. the one i will become will catch me.

you said i killed you – haunt me then!

tell me every terrible thing you ever did and let me love you anyway.

i'm, as the poet says, a mess!

i am a collection of dismantled almosts.

do you exist? have i made you up?

ignore every instinct to flee. remember: you are a monster, too.

you were destined for me. perhaps, as a punishment.

i crave affection and run from it.

forever is a dangerous word.

you left fingerprints on my soul, but they feel more like bruises now.

am i suffering beautifully? is my agony laveable?

i desire violently – and i wait.

i died a lot to live a little with you.

not yet corpses. still, we rot.

i am made of untamable demons and unfillable voids.

…what i am aches in me.

do not mock a pain you haven't endured.

blood will be spilled. i know it. let it be mine, not yours.

i feel as if i belonged to another world.

memory is punishment.

i dream of you in fractured ways, in hollow nights, and haunted days.

do you remember what i told you last time?

have you been doing well since i saw you?

that's not what you told me back then.

when was the last time i saw you?

you were shorter then.

i'm picking the restaurant this time.

we've known each other since we were children.

always knew i could count on you.

that time was different. this is worse.

you're not going to let me live that down, are you?

i seem to remember a conversation we had back then.

so you changed your mind about it?

do you remember our encounter in paris?

you should know me by now.

am i the only one that knows the truth?

we had a lot of help back then.

your mom told me to look out for you.

you just love bringing that back up to annoy me.

maybe don't mention my past indescretions?

this was never going to work out between us.

i told you not to get attached.

i know more about you than you think.

i was there, remember?

i'm not about to forget all the shit you put me through.

you told me you were going to try and make this work.

remember what i said to you?

the last time i saw you, things were good between us.

you never mentioned this before.

that was the longest flight of my life, and you made it worse.

can i still trust you after all that?

at least we tried to make something work.

we never discussed what happened between us.

okay, but i'm driving the car this time.

i haven't forgotten what you said last week.

i'm still thinking about your comment.

i didn't realize it was you when i first saw you.

you seem to make a lot of enemies around here.

there's not much for us to talk about.

we worked it out last time.

i know you far better than you know yourself.

we have a long history.

is that the shirt you were wearing last time?

what don't i know about you?

i haven't told them about us.

you were the only person i could go to.

you know me.

this is bigger than both of us.

i can't stand your driving.

are you taking me to the place we had dinner last time?

that's not at all what you said.

didn't we agree on that?

i thought i made it very clear where i stand.

are these the same people that came after you last time?

are you still going on about it?

can we talk about it?

staying silent about it won't help.

you're the only person who knows the real me.

And he catches the head in one fell swoop, giving it a momentary glance. Oh, they're always too big for their CIRCUITS. " MY mess? Now, now, don't take me for something disingenuous -- "

He tosses the leftovers behind him, uncaring to the way it smashes into the ground.