All was quiet around the shrine of the Master Emerald. The breeze was still, the stone pillars had done all the settling they needed for the night, and not even the gravity seemed as if it were trying to pull the leaves down from their trees. Everything was still.

Aside from the lone figure walking up the steps towards the gargantuan jewel. Their steps sounded softly in the stillness, even with shoes muffling footsteps against the stones. Finally, they reached the gem, pulling the cloak closer around their body, even with the warmth of the night lingering. They paused for a moment, before placing their gloved hands against the surface of the gem.

"... You know why I'm here, and what I need to do," they spoke softly into the night. There was no one about, and with how they were talking, they seemed to be speaking directly to the Master Emerald. "...Yes, I know it might be dangerous, but if what you told me is true-... I know what might happen, but I'll be careful... You know there's no chance of that happening. Listen, it's alright. I'll just go, do what needs to be done, and I'll be back. They won't ever have to know a thing, and I'll have one with me the whole time... See? It'll be fine." They smiled beneath their cloak, and slowly leaned their head forward until their forehead was against the gem's surface. "Now... could you please?"

Whatever or whoever she had been speaking to appeared to comply. Within moments, the large emerald began glowing a bright green, before a sudden flash of white broke through the darkness of the night, and the Master Emerald was once more dimmed, but the figure was gone.

–

"Come on Knuckle, please?" The red echidna growled as the twin-tailed fox stood a few steps below where he was lying down. Honestly, Tails was a smart kid, but didn't he know when to take a hint?

"For the last time, Tails, you are not going to use the Master Emerald in any of your experiments. It's been put through too much in the last year. I sort of want to keep it where it belongs without getting into too many more voyages through outer space, or transportation to alternate dimensions." Granted, the latter was not the fault of the fox, but he would really much rather it stay on Angel Island, where it belonged, regardless.

"But Knuckles, please, I could just bring my equipment here, it wouldn't have to be moved at all." The fox looked at him with pleading eyes, then turned them down to the potted sprout that he held in his hands. "I just thought that... maybe... if the Master Emerald had enough power... and if I could use it, then... maybe..." Knuckles looked at the younger male, perhaps a spark of sympathy in his eye. He knew exactly where that sprout came from.

"... One experiment, that's all I'm allowing. And if any of your equipment looks fishy, I'm not letting it anywhere near my Master Emerald." Tails perked up immediately, clasping at the sides of his plant.

"Thank you so much, Knuckles! I'll fly on back to my lab and be right back!" Before Knuckles could so much as reply, Tails was already gone, probably flying off to the X-Torando so that he could haul over that cumbersome lab equipment of his.

I'm not getting soft, he'll just never stop whining at me unless I just say 'yes', he reasoned with absolutely no one but himself. He was not soft, and would gladly prove that with his fist to anyone who might wish to try and prove him wrong. Ah well... might as well lie back for a while until Tails returned with his equipment. He slid his eyelids shut, intent on returning the nap which the fox had to rudely interrupted. Sure, a stone step wasn't the most comfortable of napping places, but one grew accustomed to it after a while.

However, the sudden appearance of a bright glow caused his eyes to snap open, and him to shoot up into a sitting position.

What the- He gasped and shielded his eyes with his arm, as the Master Emerald suddenly flashed with an almost blinding amount of green light. Withing moments, the light had faded out, and he was able to see his Master Emerald again (albeit with a few dark spots now flashing in his vision. What in the heck was that all about? And... just who is that?

Just before the large green gem, a figure in a hood was standing at the top step, both hands and their hooded head pressed against the surface of the gem. Knuckles was so stunned by their sudden appearance, all he could do was stare at them. Within moments of their sudden arrival, they pulled themselves away from the Master Emerald, and walked towards the edge of the shrine's top step. Apparently, whatever they were looking for in the distance, it was enough to distract them from seeing the bright red echidna only a few steps below them.

"... So, this is what Angel Island looks like now, huh?" he heard a voice come from the hooded figure. It was slightly higher pitched, he might presume female, and not to mention... strangely familiar. The hooded head turned back and forth, seeming to survey the landscape. "Wow... I can't believe that I'm really-"

"Hey!" Knuckles, finally overcoming his initial shock, did the first thing that came to mind when he found himself an intruder in his home. He yelled. Apparently this was enough to stop his surprise intruder's thinking aloud to themselves. A soft gasp escaped them, and they looked in his direction with surprise. "Who are you? And what are you doing on my island?" He got himself up to his feet, and started stepping heavily towards them. They backed away a few steps, towards one of the shrine's columns. "Hey, I'm talking to you. Answer me!" Normally he might not be quite so aggressive to someone unexpected, but considering all he had been through in the past few months, not to mention the fact that whoever this was had just appeared out of nowhere in a flash of light, he wasn't feeling particularly patient in regards to wanting some answers.

"..." There was absolute silence from this person, they seemed legitimately unable to form a response in the face of his aggressive questions. Then, suddenly, they turned and jumped off the edge of the shrine, falling towards the ground as gravity took effect.

"Wha- hey! Get back here!" He jumped off at the same place they did, believing that he would catch up with them when they both hit the ground. However, there was yet another bright flash, this time emitting from beneath the odd figure's thick cloak.

"Chaos... control!"

Knuckles gasped as he heard the familiar phrase being uttered from this stranger. As it usually occurred, the moment after the flash faded, he landed, only to find that the figure had disappeared along with the remaining light of the flash.

"...Rats," he muttered, narrowing his eyes at the place where the cloaked figure had vanished. He didn't know who in the world that was... but something told him that, whoever it was, and whatever they had come for, it couldn't be anything that would end up well for anyone.

–

"Haah, man, finally home." After a long day of bashing Egg-bots, running from Amy, traveling the country at supersonic speeds, and working with Tails on his friend's beloved plane, he was worn out. So it was good to be at home where he could take a rest in his own bed. Letting out a breath of relief, he made for the fridge, and pulled out a nicely chilled bottle of water. "Just what I needed." He closed the refrigerator door, intent on drinking the refreshing beverage as he took a moment to laze around and rest.

"Sonic the Hedgehog." The blue hedgehog whipped around as he heard his name being said. There was a lone figure in a long cloak standing only feet away from him. He couldn't see anything of them, no signs of coloring or fur, or even what the species could be beneath the thick fabric. The only thing he could find discernible was the voice, and he could only assume that it was female by the pitch.

"Wha- Who are you? Why are you in my house?!"

"I'm sorry for the sudden intrusion, but I don't have much time; and there's something very important that I need to warn you about." Sonic sighed and scratched his head between his quills.

"Just as I finally get home to rest. What, are Eggman's bots attacking again? Someone else looking for the chaos emeralds? Amy's making a potion that will-"

"No, no, none of that, I assure you," the cloaked one replied, holding up their hands. "It's... well... maybe it would be best if I just told you directly." Slowly, they reached up to their hood, and pulled it down off of their head, revealing their face to him. Sonic gasped, his water bottle falling from his hand out of shock.

"It... can't be... how are you here?"