Author's Note: Welcome to my first non crossover fic. Although at times it may sound like one, it's all Sonic.

I'll say it now, so I won't have to say it later.

I own nothing. Except Kaylee.

Kaylee: Thanks.

Chapter 1

The Great City

The Past

The towers seemed tall enough to touch the sky. Kaylee, princess of Atlantis, sat on a balcony overlooking the city. The only other civilizations that could rival the Atlantian hedgehogs were the Babylonians and the echidnas of Angel Island. Kaylee smiled, thinking of her close friend, Tikal.

"Princess Kaylee," a voice came from inside, "Your father has requested your presence in the Great Hall."

The orange hedgehog sighed, getting to her feet. Being a princess was not what Kaylee thought it would be. Council meetings, diplomatic gatherings… royal pains in the tail. Of course, there was another part to being an Atlantian princess, insuring the safety of the Demon Ruby.

Generations ago, Kaylee's ancestors trapped a powerful evil within the massive crimson gem that now rested in the very heart of Atlantis. Legends foretell a time when that evil will escape, causing death and destruction to all in its path. Only the princess of Atlantis has the power to vanquish the dark being, at least that's how the legend goes. There was also mention of a knight who possesses the speed of the wind. Kaylee could never figure out what that meant. She even asked Tikal, who had become an expert on Echidna Lore.

"There is mention of a warrior possessing the speed of the wind, but I do not know what to make of it," Tikal had said on Kaylee's last visit to Angel Island. She had considered visiting Babylon Garden, to see if those birds knew anything, but changed her mind after hearing the exploits of one group of Babylonians.

The guards stood at attention as she passed through the doors of the Great Hall. Kaylee was wishing that she was out in her boat instead of here. She loved the water, and was an expert swimmer.

"Ah, daughter. You've come just in time."

Kaylee was snapped out of her revere by none other than her father, the king of Atlantis. She saw that he was not alone. An old, brown echidna was present as well. Kaylee recognized him as the chieftain of the Angel Island Echidnas, and Tikal's father. Relations between Angel Island and Atlantis were always a little off balance, but there has never been a war between hedgehogs and echidnas. Tikal was also present, standing next to her father.

"Kaylee, the Great Chieftain has brought to my attention several raids along the Echidna border," King Trian said, "I believe that these raids are connected with those along our border."

"Do we know who is responsible?" Kaylee asked.

"We have this," the echidna chieftain said, tossing a medallion to her. She recognized it immediately. It was the seal of the Babylon Rogues, a band of elite thieves and bandits under the direct command of the Babylonian Emperor. Kaylee understood what her father was about to ask of her. She and Tikal were to go to Babylon Garden to speak with the Emperor.

That night, Kaylee had an unusual dream. She stood in a large city, but it was not Atlantis. Many of the buildings had sharp edges, and there were strange, metal chariots moving about under their own power. Signs written in some foreign language could be clearly seen from the street. As she moved through the city, she saw many people, unlike any she had ever seen. After wandering aimlessly for several minutes, she came across more familiar figures, two hedgehogs, an echidna, and a fox. The fox had two tails, and seemed to be good friends with the others. The red echidna looked like one of the warriors she had seen in Echidna City on Angel Island. But the thing that she noticed the most was the two hedgehogs. One was blue, and seemed to have a care-free attitude. The other was pink, and she was wearing Kaylee's bracelets. Kaylee could not understand what they were saying, but two words stood out from the rest, "Sonic" and "Amy".


Morning came with the usual fanfare in the royal tower. Kaylee pulled the covers over her head, not wanting to get up just yet. The only thing that got her moving was the constant knocking at her door. Getting out of bed, Kaylee took note of her appearance. Her normally tame quills were pointing in every direction. Shaking her head, Kaylee went to work on the problem. The knocking continued, and she finally called for the person to enter. A servant opened the door, and nearly had a heart attack at the sight of the princess's quills.

"Your highness, your boat has been loaded with provisions. I understand that you are going to stop at Angel Island on your way to Babylon?" the servant regained his composure.

"That's right," Kaylee replied, finally taming her wild quills. She quickly got dressed, choosing a blue and white tunic that she was fond of. After eating breakfast, she made her way to the harbor. There, lined up next to several other boats, was Kaylee's boat. Although as a princess she could have a larger ship with a crew, Kaylee preferred the small, three man runabout. It was rigged so that one person could easily control the boat. With the wind at her back, Kaylee set sail for Angel Island.

She was only a few miles from the city when it happened. A massive wave hit her boat from behind, and a sound unlike any she had ever heard tore through the air. Kaylee looked back, and gasped. Atlantis was gone.


The Present

Station Square gleamed in the summer sun. If they were able to pull it off, many people were taking a "sick day" to enjoy the sun. One of the Emerald Coast's beach lounge chairs was occupied, but not by a human. He was taking a mid-afternoon snooze, when a pink hedgehog walked up to him.

"Hey Sonic!"

Startled by the sudden and unexpected calling of his name in his ear, Sonic the Hedgehog jumped, and landed in a heap next to his lounge chair. Poking his head over the seat, he pulled his sunglasses off his face.

"Amy, do you enjoy scaring the life out of me?" Sonic asked. Amy just smiled, hearts filling her eyes. Sonic rolled his eyes, and climbed back into the lounge chair. Placing the sunglasses back over his eyes, he tried to ignore the love struck girl hovering over him.

"It's a beautiful day, Sonic. You wanna go for a swim with me?" Amy asked, forgetting about Sonic's hydrophobia, which came from not knowing how to swim. Before Sonic could respond, something caught his eye. Thinking that anything would be better than swimming lessons with Amy, Sonic leapt from the lounge chair, and took off.

"Sonic! Ooooo… he's such a brat sometimes," Amy said.

As it turns out, what Sonic saw was his newest rival from the EX World Grand Prix, Jet the Hawk. Sonic skidded to a halt, sending sand up like a tidal wave. The sand landed on Jet, who started complaining about some joker throwing sand. As soon as he saw the blue hedgehog, Jet rolled his eyes.

"Sonic," he said, brushing sand out of his emerald feathers, "Is this a social visit, or did you just decide to bury me in the sand?"

"I saw you and figured I'd say hi," Sonic shrugged, "Besides, I needed to get away from Amy."

"Oh, having trouble with your girlfriend?" Jet said, knowing full well that Amy was not Sonic's girlfriend. The blue hedgehog glared at the hawk. Before he could respond to the jab, a girl skidded to a halt on her hover board, burying Sonic in sand.

"Jet! I found something I think you should see!" Wave the Swallow said, getting off her board. Jet looked over at the pile of sand, saw a pair of eyes glaring at him, and burst out laughing. Wave looked at him like he was crazy, until Sonic escaped from the sand pile.

"Oh, Sonic," She said sarcastically, "I didn't see you there."

"What did you find?" Jet asked, curious as to what Wave had found. The swallow pulled out a picture, and handed it to Jet. Sonic, curious as well, peered over Jet's shoulder.

"The tablet was found by archeologists in the Mystic Ruins. The thing is, it's not written in ancient echidna," Wave said. Jet looked her in the eye. Sonic didn't know what that meant, and looked at her as well with a blank look. Wave sighed, and decided to explain.

"Centuries ago, there were at least three civilizations that had great power. They were the echidnas of Angel Island, the Babylonians, and one other only spoken of in legend. I believe that this tablet was written by someone from this other civilization."

Jet thought about it for a moment. Sonic continued with the blank stare, still not knowing what Wave was talking about. Jet's eyes widened as he realized what Wave was saying.

"You can't mean…"

"I think the humans found something from Atlantis," Wave said.

"Atlantis… I can't believe it. I've heard stories of Atlantis, but I never believed them," Jet said. Sonic still didn't know what they were talking about. One thing he did know was that if there was a chance this "Atlantis" was real, and had some ancient treasure, then Dr. Eggman might try to find it. Of course, the Babylon Rogues might beat him to it. Jet and Wave continued to talk about Atlantis, completely ignoring Sonic. Something caught Sonic's eye again. He turned, and saw an orange hedgehog dressed in blue and white. Before he could say anything, she was gone. Sonic left the two birds, and headed towards where the orange hedgehog was. There was no sign of her anywhere.

The blue hedgehog left, unaware that he was being watched. Silently, the orange orb followed, as if looking for something, or someone.

Amy found Sonic walking along the boardwalk, and ran over to him. She tackled him in her excitement, and hugged him. Sonic gasped, feeling like he was about to pass out from lack of oxygen.

"Some things never change."

Amy let go of Sonic, and turned to see who spoke. Sonic breathed a sigh of relief. Sitting on the rail, looking as if he just happened to be there, was Shadow the Hedgehog. Amy looked up at the black hedgehog, thinking that he looked out of place on the beach. Sonic smiled, getting back on his feet.

"Long time no see Shadow," he said.

"Tails asked me to find you," Shadow said, getting straight to the point. He hopped down from the rail, and casually approached the pair. Sonic thought that it was weird for Shadow to do something like this. Normally, he would not have even bothered. The black hedgehog crossed his arms over his chest. Amy asked him about what Tails wanted, curious as to why the two tailed fox didn't come himself.

"It has something to do with some rock with symbols on it," Shadow explained, "He thinks that it might have something to do with a tablet that the humans found."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Sonic said with a smirk. Before Amy could say anything, Sonic disappeared in a blink of an eye. Shadow just shook his head. Amy sighed, wishing that she was as fast as the blue hedgehog. Shadow grabbed Amy by the arm, and dashed off after the blue blur.


Tails' workshop rested on top of a cliff overlooking the ocean. The perfect place for a camouflaged hanger and runway. Inside, a certain two-tailed fox was examining an unusual crystal. The crystal fit in the palm of his hand, and looked like it was carved with great care. The symbols on it were unlike any he had ever seen before.

There was a knock at the door. Tails got up from the table, and walked over to the door. Sonic was waiting on the other side. Shadow skidded to a halt, with Amy in tow. Tails shook his head, smiling.

"Sonic, you're late," he joked. The sapphire hedgehog placed a hand on his chest, faking shock.

"Me? Late? Never," Sonic said.

Shadow shook his head. Amy greeted the two-tailed kit, then made her way to the kitchen inside. Tails shook his head again.

"Come on in, guys."

Sonic and Shadow followed Tails over to the table that he was working at. There, resting on the table, was an intricately carved crystal. Sonic whistled at the sight. Shadow picked it up, examining the crystal from every angle. It had symbols all along one side, and two prongs sticking out the bottom. The way it was carved, it looked like it fit into something else, almost like a key. With a finger, Shadow tried to scratch the surface. After several attempts, including running it along the edge of the table, he gave up. The surface of the crystal remained unscratched.

"I still haven't figured out how it was carved," Tails said, "It seems to be harder than even a diamond."

Amy came out of the kitchen with a glass of orange juice. Her eyes were drawn to the crystal like a magnet. Sonic noticed the change in Amy's expression, and decided to ask about it.

"Hey Amy, you look like you've just seen a ghost," he said.

"I feel like I've seen that thing before," Amy said, "But I don't know from where."

"I found it in the Mystic Ruins," Tails explained, "Back during the Chaos Incident."

"Chaos Incident?" Shadow asked, unsure of what he meant. Tails told him about the battle against Eggman and Chaos. Shadow nodded, interested to learn about the real Chaos. He had encountered Artificial Chaos on the ARK, so he was eager to hear more. Amy put her glass down, and reached for the crystal. No one noticed that as she approached, the crystal started to glow. Her fingers brushed up against the smooth surface, and a blinding light erupted from the crystal. Everyone tried to shield their eyes from the blinding light, and Sonic thought he heard something fall over.

The light faded, and everyone blinked. It took a few minutes for Sonic's eyes to readjust. The blobs of color faded from his sight, revealing Amy passed out on the floor. Shadow dropped the crystal like a hot potato.

"What happened?" the black hedgehog asked.

"Some sort of energy discharge?" Tails guessed.

"Amy, you alright?" Sonic asked. Nothing.

"Amy? Wake up, Amy. Come on!"

Sonic tried everything, short of kissing the pink hedgehog, without luck. Amy was out cold.