- * - - * - - * - - * - - * - Prologue - * - - * - - * - - * - - * -

The Hidden Palace, etched from the rock by unknown hands, people

with far more power than could be dreamed of today. Unless, that is,

your dreams are of the Chaos Emeralds. For within them lies the

power to harness the chaotic forces that bind the universe together.

Within sit three figures, not one above four feet in height. Before

them sit the eight Emeralds, seven no larger than a fist, though

they rest upon pedestals meant for gems many times their size. Even

larger is the eighth, the Master Emerald which glows with an eerie

green light, illuminating the rock cavern within the central

mountain of the Floating Island.

"It's funny," says one of the three, "how they shrink again when

you release their power."

Another speaks. "No doubt they'll return to their own dimension

before long."

The third smiles. "The Master Emerald looks after its own. We in

turn look after it, and keep the power safe."

The second gets to his feet. "Well, I'm not going to hang around

here. A vacation I came for, and a vacation I'll have." Then, in

the blink of an eye, he's gone, leaving only a gust of wind in his

trail. Leaving the two, a fox and an echidna, alone in the chamber

with the green light.

Time passes.