During Fleetway Publications Sonic the Comic series in the early 1990s, Sonic the Hedgehog would meet numerous comic book exclusive allies and enemies meant to parody many famous pop-culture characters that the comic writers were fans of. However, one of Sonic's most prominently recurring ally who followed this trope was Shortfuse the Cybernik, a squirrel Mobian who piloted a mechanized suit of armor with a striking resemblance to Marvel Comics superhero; Iron Man.
Before gaining his Iron Man-inspired cybernetic battle armor, the future Sonic the Hedgehog ally began his life as Shorty the Squirrel, an easily irritated but kind-hearted individual from the planet Mobius. During an attack by Sonic's nemesis Doctor Eggman in Sonic the Comic #45 (by Lew Stringer, Roberto Corona, and John M. Burns), Shorty along with several of his friends were abducted to be transformed into mindless Badnik robots for Eggman's army. Impressed by Shorty the Squirrel's resistance, Doctor Eggman had him encased within an irremovable prototype android body meant to act as an advanced version of the badnik robots known as the 'Cybernik'.
However, Shorty's stubbornness overpowered Eggman's programming and he fought against the mad doctor's robotic armada, joining Sonic the Hedgehog's Freedom Fighters under the new moniker of 'Shortfuse the Cybernik'. From there, Shortfuse would become a frequently appearing ally of Sonic within the Sonic the Comic cast of characters. He even proved himself to be an equal to Knuckles the Echidna, after the two engaged in a brief brawl on Angel Island in Sonic the Comics #53 (by Lew Stringer, John Moore, and Elitta Fell). Shortfuse would also gain his own arch-nemesis in the form of Vermin the Cybernik.
Vermin was a rat Mabian who was an agent of Doctor Eggman and selected by the doctor to undergo the same transformation as Shortfuse, gaining a similar mechanical suit of armor. This rivalry would come to an end in Sonic the Comic #121 (by Lew Stringer, Andy Pritchett, and Steve White) after Vermin began bombarding the Metropolis Zone with his Cybernik suit's arsenal of weaponry to draw Shortfuse out for a final battle. During the fight, Vermin attempted to drain Shortfuse's suit to power his own, but after sustaining damage from Amy Rose's crossbow, Vermin's suit malfunctioned and accidentally released the rat from his suit. This allowed him to be incapacitated by Shortfuse and Amy.
Shortfuse the Cybernik's biggest contribution was when he assisted Sonic the Hedgehog and Amy Rose on an interplanetary adventure in the two-part comic book event Sonic the Comic: Game Over (by Lew Stringer, Richard Ellerson, and Ellie de Ville), where Doctor Eggman planned to harvest the life energy of Earth and Mobius to grant him god-like power. Shortfuse's technological experience proved essential in deactivating Doctor Eggman's devices, managing to use his own suit to siphon the life energy away from Doctor Eggman's body. This allowed Sonic to land a finishing blow to incapacitate the doctor, but the overload of energy caused the Cybernik suit to explode.
Shortfuse was finally free from the suit of armor that had become a prison for him, and he was able to resume a normal life. Shortfuse the Cybernik's popularity among the United Kingdom fans even garnered him to crossover from the Fleetway Publication comic books over to the fan-favorite Archie Comics Sonic the Hedgehog comic book series. He had a cameo appearance in 2004's Sonic the Hedgehog #134 (by Kenneth Penders, Karl Bollers, Michael Higgens, and Jason Jenson). Therein Shortfuse was one of many Mobian individuals who had made contact with an alien race known as the Bem, who had the technological abilities to cure individuals from the roboticization process that turned them into Eggman's badniks.
Despite having his origins as a parody of Iron Man, Shortfuse the Cybernik became an intrinsic part of Fleetway Publications' depiction of the Sonic the Hedgehog universe, with his popularity among fans granting him a cult status within the franchise. With Fleetway Publications officially being sold in 2016, it is incredibly unlikely that Sonic fans will witness a return for Shortfuse the Cybernik, especially with Sega's policy of not including comic book exclusive characters in their video games. Regardless, Shortfuse the Cybernik will remain one of the iconic standpoints of Fleetway Publications' Sonic the Comic series and a beloved character from the franchise.