Prologue

"Hmph, of course I'll be able to. It's not like I'm Eggman," a robotic voice scratched. "I don't always fail."

"Maybe not always, but you still do," a human voice replied.

"Hey, that incident in Station Square didn't count."

"Yes it did."

"No it didn't."

"Well, whether it counted or not, you failed."

"Oh shut up."

"Blah blah."

"Hey! You can't talk to me that way!"

"Sure can. I helped repair you."

"...shut up."

"Ehehe. Anyways, you might want to see this..." the human finished the long argument as a metal door opened. It was completely dark inside the room, except for a few spotlights around a tube containing a liquid - and a figure.

"Is that...?"

---

Sonic was speeding along Capital City, down the main road until the familiar sound of the Cyclone in the air barely keeping up with him reached his ears.

"You're...not...going full speed," Tails managed to mumble as the Cyclone was pushing its limits.

"That's because I knew you'd come looking for me." Sonic grinned.

"Anyways," the kitsune continued, "Stop when you get to Station Square and wait for me in front of the Train Station. I have to show you something."

"Aye, captain!" the blue hedgehog shouted as he sped up.

"Ugh, the sonic boom," Tails said, "Always hate it."

---

Fifteen minutes later, Tails arrived, out of the Cyclone, toting a newspaper clipping. He said nothing and handed it to Sonic.

"What is this supposed to be, Tails?" he asked, scratching his head with his free hand.

"Just read the freaking thing," Tails said, exasperated. He had grown an attitude, since he had turned eleven in the past month.

It had been two years since the Overlord accident. They had recovered - Shadow went somewhere, they didn't bother to find out where,

"Okay, let's see..." Sonic mumbled, fumbling with the clipping. "Erm...

'Large explosion rocks Station Square's Twinkle Park.' So that's why its closed..."

"Continue."

"Okay...

'A hole in the wall, shaped like–,' ...no...it can't be..." Sonic stopped.

"...continue." Tails was obviously shaking too.

"'Shaped like Chaos 0, who had terrorized the city four years ago.' That's...I killed him...but...wait. Chaos 0?"

"Yes, strange, huh? We killed him in his Perfect Form, yet his original form attacks. Maybe it's a robot?"

"Wait. Wasn't there some guy who works on some island off of Emerald Coast?"

"Yeah, Doctor Pike. What about him?"

"Islands are in the sea, right?"

"Mhm, duh."

"And what was Perfect Chaos made of?"

"Water."

"What was the city?'

"...flooded."

Chapter One

CRASH!

A shining figure jumped through the wall of the Station Square Hotel and landed on a panel of glass that was laying near the swimming pool. His strategy was simple - Sonic always came here to relax in the morning. It was four o' clock in the morning. Two hours he would wait.

But first - he would report back to his master.

He quickly ran through the gate to Emerald Coast. The whole beach was dark so being seen wasn't a problem.

To speed up things, instead of walking on the wooden platform to the other side, he simply bounded across the gap. He landed with a splash a few inches short of the sand, in the shallows. He wasn't too far.

He leaped into the water a few feet ahead of him and dove. He swam until he reached a small cove, containing a house on a small island of land - and with a large lab - at least twice the size of the house - added on to the back.

He climbed up on the island and knocked on the door.

---

Sonic yawned as he sat up in bed. He stretched and got out of bed, then shuffled slowly to the bathroom of his apartment. He glanced at the clock - 5:30. Okay, good. He thought to himself. I have more then extra time to get to the hotel before they open.

He brushed his teeth, ruffled his quills more, then sped out the door.

---

The being jumped into the pool a few seconds before Sonic walked out the door into the pool area. He smiled and laid down on one of the chairs. "Ah, no one else here, as always."

"That's your mistake, hedgehog!" a robotic voice cried.

"What! Where's that coming from?" he asked uncertainly, sitting up.

"Here!" a long watery arm shot out of the pool and grabbed Sonic unawares. He shouted as he was lifted into the air.

"You! You ruined my perfect self! Ruined! And now you will PAY!" the arm slammed Sonic into the brick wall opposite of the hotel. Sonic's back was scraped and his head hit it pretty badly. A sharp pain screamed from the back of his head, but the voice just laughed. "Done already? Well I'm NOT!"

The arm slammed him this time into the hotel wall and let go. Sonic was flung into the counter as the hotel owner leaned over and mumbled, "Mr. Sonic, you...okay?" There was a gash on Sonic's head, and his back was bleeding very heavily. "I'll call an ambulence!" The owner quickly dialed the number. Before he began to speak, the arm grabbed Sonic again.

He slowly crushed Sonic. Sonic heard a rib crack and moaned even louder.

"We need an ambulance here, now! Sonic is getting demolished by a monster!" he quickly hung up and ran out the door to wait.

The arm let go of Sonic, causing his to fall ten feet and land on the floor with a thud, and retreated back into the pool. The figure the arm belonged to then jumped over the brick wall into the ocean...

---

A few weeks later...

"Sonic, how did it happen?" Tails asked, sitting on a chair next to Sonic's bed in the hospital. His body was wrapped with bandages in most places - he had a cast on his right arm.

Knuckles, leaning on the wall next to him, nodded. "Yeah, you got pretty beat up."

"Well," Sonic started, "I went to the hotel at six to rest and wait for the sun. Y'know, by the pool. Then a watery arm grabbed me, and slammed me against some walls then threw me. It then squeezed me really hard, then let go. Dunno what it was though."

The kitsune and the echidna soaked it in.

"Wait. Watery? You mean...could it have been Chaos?" Knuckles slowly asked Tails.

"M-maybe, but...Sonic, did you notice anything else about the arm?" Tails asked.

"Well, it was pretty solid in the middle of the arm. Like bone maybe."

"Sounds like Chaos 2 to me," Knuckles stated. He had fought him when he was in his second form, in the hotel restaurant.

"Or...maybe...metal!" Tails exclaimed, standing up.

"Sorta like Metal Sonic?" Knuckles began to catch on.

"What do you think, Sonic?" Tails asked, but frowned. "Hm, he's asleep. Well, he was put through a lot of crap."

"Okay, let's go," Knuckles said as he left the room.