NACK'S PAYBACK
  
  
       "The rings and monitors are the real things that stand in our way, not
Sonic and Tails!!" Shellcracker declares.  He is having a discussion with
his fellow badniks, Moto Bug and Butterdroid, in the Metropolis Zone.   
   
       "I concur," says Butterdroid.  "While it cannot be denied that Tails
and Sonic are extremely dangerous, even THEY cannot be everywhere. Unfortunately, 
the monitors and rings ARE!"   
  
       "Yeah!" Moto Bug shouts.  "And what's more, us badniks can't even touch
or use either of them, let alone destroy them!  It's so infuriating!"   
  
       "And Robotnik is always having to try to find new islands and zones to
conquer because Sonic and Tails keep teaching his former captives to fend
for themselves using the rings and monitors," Shellcracker sighs.  "You know, if
only there was ONE Mobian who.....hmmmm....yes!  That's it!  He's the
one!!!"
  
       "Huh?" says Moto Bug and Butterdroid in unison.   
  
       "Have you two ever heard of Nack the Weasel?" asks Shellcracker.  
  
       "You mean the notorious treasure and bounty hunter?" replies
Butterdroid. "What about him?"  
  
       "He'll do anything for money, right?  And we have accumulated plenty of
money from our former captives.  We never needed it, so we put it away for
collective purposes.  We could pay him to gather up or destroy the monitors
and rings for us!"  
  
        "Hey, that's a good idea, Shellcracker," Moto Bug says.  "One problem,
though.  Even if we do get him to rid Mobius of every ring and monitor, Sonic
and Tails will still be around!"   
  
        "Actually, I'll bet he'll want to get rid of them, too.  Ever since
they captured the Chaos Emeralds before he got a chance, he's been wanting to get
some payback!"   
  
        "Then I guess it's settled!" cries out Butterdroid.  "First we get the
money, then we go to Nack's!"  The three badniks go off to do so. 
  
        A few days later, Sonic and Tails were racing toward the Hill Top
Zone.
  
        "Somebody has been scooping up rings and destroying monitors in the
Hill Top Zone, leaving the people who live near there defenseless," explains
Sonic.  "And I aim to find out who!"   
  
        "But who would do such a thing?  And why?  It can't be the badniks,
because only real Mobians can touch those things!"  Tails asks.  
  
        "THERE'S YOUR ANSWER!!"  Sonic shouts, pointing to a vehicle in the
sky.  Sure enough, it was Nack the Weasel on his airbike, no less.   
  
        Nack spots Sonic and Tails.  "Well if it isn't those two furry
mosquitos!!" he sneers.  "I've waited a long time for this!!"   
  
        "Looks like he's spotted us.  We'd best be careful, Tails.  He may not
be as fast as we are, but he's extremely clever!"  
  
        "I say we split up and attack him from both sides!"  
  
        "You read my mind, two-tailed wonder.  Let's bolt!"   
  
        Tails then takes off after Nack in the air while Sonic makes tracks on
the ground.  Nack sees Tails coming at him and jets off.  Meanwhile, Sonic
passes both of them from down below and heads for a hill.  On the hill was a
spring platform.  Sonic jumps on it, sending him up high in the sky and
heading straight for Nack!  Sonic is in front of Nack, and Tails is behind
him.  He's trapped!  
  
        "You're ours, Nack!" Tails shouts.  
  
        "Your reign of terror is over!" yells Sonic.  
  
        Suddenly, Nack does the completely unexpected.  He uses his tail as a
spring to jump off of his airbike, and goes toward Tails!  Sonic ends up on
the airbike, surprised.  "Wha...?!" he says.   
  
        Nack then lands, tail first, on Tails' spinning tails.   "ARRR!!!"
Tails yelps.  Before he knew it, his two tails were wrapped around Nack's
tail. They both start to fall.    
  
        "Happy landings, brat!" says Nack.  He uses his tail as a strong whip,
sending Tails down to the ground faster.  Tails lands hard tails first on
a solid platform, surrounded by lava.  "OOOF!!" he says.   
  
        Nack, still falling, quickly gets out his airbike's remote control and
calls for the airbike, which Sonic remains on.  Nack then orders the airbike
to turn upside down, causing Sonic to fall off!   
  
        "AYIEEEE!!!"  screams Sonic, who is heading for the same platform that
Tails is on.  He lands on it face down.   
  
        "SONIC!!  Are you all right?!" Tails asks.  
  
        Sonic lifts his head up slowly.  "I...I think so...how about you..?"  
  
        "As well as could be expected.  But I don't think I'll be flying for a
while.  My tails hurt something awful!"   
  
        "Thanks to me!!"  boasts Nack, who is back on his airbike.  He studies
our heroes' situation.  "Tsk tsk. The both of you are on that platform
surrounded by lava and have no way to get off at the moment.  Allow me to
put you out of your misery!!"   
  
        Nack presses a button on his airbike that aims a large missile at
Sonic and Tails!   Since the platform they are on is rather small, there was no
way to dodge it!   
  
        "TAILS!!  HOLD ON TO ME!!!" Sonic yells.  Just as Tails does so, the
missile gets to the platform and explodes fiercely on contact!   
  
        A moment later, after the smoke clears, Nack takes a look at what's
left: nothing!  The platform is no more, and apparently neither is Sonic and
Tails.
  
        "YES!!!  I've done the impossible and even lived to tell about it!!
I HAVE DESTROYED SONIC AND TAILS!!" Nack screams out gleefully.  "Wait until
those badniks hear about this!!"   
  
         Later in the day, they do hear about it...and from Nack, himself.  
  
         "It's too good to be true!" says Butterdroid.  
  
         "See, my fellow badniks?  I told you he was the right man for the
job!" Shellcracker blurts out.  
  
         "Okay, Nack, now all you have to do is get every monitor and ring on
Mobius and the sky's the limit!" says Moto Bug.  
  
         "Oh, I will.  On one condition."  
  
         "What do you mean, 'on one condition?'" asks Butterdroid.  "We paid
you all the money we had!!"   
  
         Nack smiles fiendishly.  "It's nothing you three have to do.  The
condition is whether or not the Mobians will pay me for not ridding them of
the rings and monitors!!"     
  
         The three badniks are shocked.  "Now you look here, you double-
crosser!  We had a deal!!" sputters Shellcracker.   
  
         "A guy can change his mind," laughs Nack.  "With Sonic and Tails
pushing up daisies, I'll be the protector of the Mobians.  Only it's gonna
cost them this time!  Heh heh heeh!!!!  Now I have your money, and I'll 
soon have all of the Mobians' money as well!!  So long, suckers!!"  
  
         Then he takes off on his airbike, leaving three very ticked-off
badniks.
   
  
         "Right man for the job, huh?!!"  Moto Bug tells to Shellcracker.  
  
          Nack heads straight for the town next to the Hill Top Zone.  He
shouts out to its inhabitants,  "Listen up, people!  Your town is vulnerable
now without any rings or monitors!  If you pay me the right price, I'll give
them back.  If you don't, badniks will invade your town like there's no tomorrow!
The choice is yours!"   
  
          "They choose....NOT!!!" someone shouts in back of Nack. 
  
          "That voice....it can't be...it's IMPOSSIBLE!!!!"  Nack turns around
and finds to his horror that Sonic and Tails were heading for him at full speed 
with their fists in front!   
  
          "NOOOO!!!" yells Nack, who then gets hit in the face by both heroes'
fists!  The combined blow sends him flying through the air and to the jailhouse.  
Sonic rushes ahead of him and opens the jailhouse door, allowing Nack to go through.  
Then Tails speeds past Nack to open the prison cage door, again allowing Nack to go 
through.  The wall inside the prison cage is what stops him....and rather hard at that.   
  
          Soon, after Nack comes to his senses in the prison, he asks Sonic
and Tails, "HOW DID YOU SURVIVE???!  HOW!!!?  THERE WAS NO WAY YOU COULD HAVE
AVOIDED THAT BLAST!!!"   
  
          "You're right, there wasn't.  That's why I used my Insta-Shield,"
replies Sonic.  "You see, when the missile hit the platform, I jumped, while
holding on to Tails, and generated enough energy to form a shield that protected 
us both. The explosion touched my Insta-Shield and it sent us flying far away 
from any danger, including the lava."  
  
           "You see, Nack, you may have become more tricky, but so have we,"
Tails adds.  
  
           "When I get out of prison, you'll see just how more 'tricky' I've
become!!" Nack fumes.  
  
           "And may that be a loooong time.  Let's go, big guy!"  
  
           "Where to, Sonic?"  
  
           "To replace this zone's rings and monitors."  
  
           "Oh.  You know what?  I hope one day will come when no zone will
need rings or monitors.  Or us, for that matter.  Not that I don't enjoy
being a hero, it's just that..."  
  
            "I know what you mean.  But until that day comes, we just gotta
keep on fightin' the good fight!"  
  
            And then they go off.  
  
  THE END