The smooth sound of gently flowing water and a calm, ethereal glow were the constants of this place. Two stories underground, it experienced little disturbance. Pearly onyx marble formed the whole of all the structures in the room. A finely cut cylindrical wall supported a domical ceiling. The ceiling held a brightly-colored mosaic crafted by an unknown artist. The polished floor of the chamber was circular to match the roof and had various planters of green hedges carefully placed as to be aesthetically pleasing. The concentric rows of hedges led to the monolith placed in the center of the room. The monolith was built like a cone with its top removed. At the squared-off tip was a bubbling fountain that garnered clear water from an underground spring and allowed it to waterfall down to the basin below. Surrounding the monolith were seven gleaming black columns, rectangular in shape and ionic in design. Each column had a different colored jewel levitating slightly above it. The seven emerald-cut gems radiated an energy that illuminated the entirety of the large underground chamber.

A female lilac cat was sitting near the top of the flight of stairs leading up the conical monolith. She sat so still and erect that were she a black cat she would look as if to be a statue in the room. Her eyes were closed but her sensitive ears were perked, constantly on the alert for any sound or movement, for she was the protector of this hallowed shrine. Her name was Blaze the Cat.

Tranquil with no disturbances. Everything is exactly as it should be.

Allowing herself the briefest respite, she opened her cadmium-yellow eyes and snuck a glance at the circular ceiling, once again scanning the peculiar mosaic impressed upon it. Its meaning seemed…significant somehow. The large piece of artwork portrayed what appeared to be two shining figures of light, one of them orange and one gold, fighting against two spherical black and red figures, all against a seizure-inducing background.

Actually, they look less like perfect spheres and more like…eggs.

Blaze held back a grimace. Her thoughts had been drawn to the only person she could equate eggs to: Dr. Eggman Nega. Many wished to enter this sacred place, but none so desperately as him. It wasn't the pristine fountain or the beauty of the mosaic that attracted Nega to this place, but the seven jewels silently providing light to the shrine. It was easy to believe someone coveting the gems, for they were the size of your fist and cut so precisely that it looked as if divine hands crafted them.

However, Nega hadn't the capacity for anything as trifling as vanity or monetary worth. No, he desired them for their power. Each of the Sol Emeralds was an unbelievably powerful and condensed power source. The legend was that if all seven emeralds were used in partnership with each other, their power would create a miracle.

Nega wanted to use this energy to power a machine that he would use to take over the world, for he was no good doctor. He was a mad scientist with a severe case of megalomania and the means to act upon it. He had gone toe-to-toe with Blaze in a number of battles for possession of the emeralds, but she had managed to defeat him time and time again.

Yet every time I am unable to capture him. I will apprehend him someday!

Worked up from thinking about her failure and Eggman Nega, Blaze felt the need to freshen up. She climbed up the remaining steps to the top of the monolith where the gurgling fountain was.

Focus on the water, she cupped her hands in the fountain and splashed some liquid on her face.

Feeling a bit more relaxed, she sat on the top step, listening to the splashing of the water. She was about to splash some more on herself when the fountain stopped flowing. The sound of the waterfalls ceased. The whole chamber was deathly. A trickle of drops remained on the slopes of the monolith, seeking travel to the basin below yet unable to go there.

That's strange. The basin leads back to the underground spring that provides water to the fountain, so how—?

Fine dirt fell from the ceiling, followed by a low rumbling sound.

There is danger here! The emeralds!

She started to make a run for the columns, but the monolith exploded under her feet, propelling her into the wall.

"Uhn…" she moaned, shakily trying to get up.

"Oh ho ho ho!" guffawed a voice, "So these are the highly esteemed 'Sol Emeralds'…"

The voice emanated from a large snake-like mech. Its long body was slithering out of the hole it had drilled from underneath the fountain and its "head" served as the cockpit, housing the one who had spoken.

"You know what the Sol Emeralds are Nega!" Blaze angrily shouted, shifting into a battle stance.

The pilot of the machine laughed again, "Foolish girl, I am not the Eggman Nega you know."

The top of the cockpit opened, revealing a man with black trousers, a crimson jacket, a large gut, and a long, coppery moustache. Even though he wore a pair of round glasses, he had a set of goggles strapped to his head.

"I am Dr. Eggman, the greatest scientific genius this world has ever seen!"

Blaze looked at him in disbelief.

It's not possible. There is a great resemblance yes, but…

Eggman flipped a switch in his machine, "Egg Snake! Go!"

He separated from the cockpit, flying on his Eggmobile toward the emeralds.

"No!"

Blaze jumped for the vehicle, but the Egg Snake, now controlling itself, blocked her with its body and shoved her back. True to her name, Blaze summoned fire to her hands and shot it at Eggman but again the Egg Snake shielded him. With Eggman freely taking the emeralds from their columns, Blaze desperately tried to run past the protective Egg Snake but it caught her by the shoulders and began squeezing her like an anaconda. She blasted fire around herself, but though the surrounding metal began to melt, the grip did not loosen.

Eggman greedily snatched the seventh Sol Emerald with a grin, That was even easier than tricking that knucklehead guardian of Angel Island.

He turned to see parts of the Egg Snake melting off and the emerald guardian going blue with the lack of air, "That is enough. We're going!"

The Egg Snake released its suicidal grip on the guardian and slithered to combine with the Eggmobile once more. Blaze was on all fours, gasping.

Once Eggman was securely locked in the cockpit of his mech once more, he pressed a button that began to emit a whirring sound.

"I must say that I'm disappointed with your performance, Guardian," he taunted.

The whirring grew louder.

Eggman continued, "But I suppose not much can be expected from one softened by life in a palace!"

Blaze clenched her teeth, her clawed hands forming fists.

"An overly-pampered princess, wishing to do good yet cannot because she is so weak!"

The whirring sound now included a white light that started swallowing Eggman and his machine.

"Graaaah!" Blaze leaped at the cockpit, ready to claw out Eggman's throat for his insults, but before she reached him, the light encompassed her too. In a white flash, they were gone.

With all sources of illumination gone, the Sol Emerald Shrine was as dark as the stone it was made of. The monolithic fountain was completely destroyed, its rubble strewn about the room. The once pristine hedges were burnt and crushed. The wall and columns were smashed in various places, cracks like spider webs travelled across the floor. The mosaic on the ceiling hung undamaged, now invisible due to the lack of a light source. It loomed over the room complacently, unaware of the destruction below.

Fun Author's Note: This is supposed to take place right before the events of Sonic Rush. The Sol Emerald Shrine is supposed to be the counterpart of the Master Emerald Shrine; I even added a prophetical piece of artwork just like the one in the Hidden Palace Zone. Hope you enjoyed it!