1. Secrets Unrevealed

The white female bat had taken charge. Something suggested vaguely that that wasn't right, but any attempt to pursue the thought caused it to dissolve into nothingness. Similarly, the robot engendered faint distrust, but again there was no reason to be found. He didn't know where he was, nor why he was there, but the room and its equipment were in severe shambles after the abortive battle. It didn't seem like where he should be, but again, he didn't know why. The only thing he was certain of was that his name was Shadow. The bat appeared to know something about him. There seemed to be nothing of interest in the rubble of the room he was in. Therefore, he decided to go along with the pair until he worked out what he should be doing.

The bat, Rouge, was already leading the way out of the room. The red robot clumped after her, and Shadow, after a moment's hesitation, brought up the rear. Out in the hallway, the bat glanced up at a square hole in the ceiling, then at the robot. Clearly there was no way the latter would fit through the former. With a shrug she pointed towards a large door at the far end of the hall and asked, "Omega, can you open that?"

The robot raised an arm and wordlessly blasted the door to smithereens. Rouge blinked, then moved forward, stepping carefully over and between the twisted metal shards that were all that remained. Again, Shadow let the robot precede him.

As Shadow hopped carefully through the doorway, another robot - actually three other robots - came around a corner and spotted them. Rouge leaped into the air and did a spinning kick that resulted in a metal-toed boot removing a robotic head, while the other two robots were smashed by Omega's fists. Shadow walked forward and looked at the remains, then at Omega. Why–? It didn't occur to him to question how he knew what a robot was, but he didn't understand why the one - in spite of its attacking him - should be with them while the others were destroyed.

Rouge picked up on his confusion, apparently. "These are Eggman's usual drones; they're called Eggpawns. If they spread the alarm, others that are armed will come to capture or kill us," she explained. "Omega is a different type of robot, an E-series, which were smarter and more individual than the Eggpawns. He's against Eggman and his robots, so that puts him on our side, at least for now." She cocked her head at the dark hedgehog until he nodded.

"So," Shadow said slowly, "any robots I see that look like this, I should attack, and any that look like Omega..."

"There are no other robots like me," interrupted Omega. "I am the last of the E-series; all others have been destroyed."

"Yeah," agreed Rouge, "just attack any robots you see unless I tell you otherwise - pretty much anything you see will be Eggman's and therefore will attack us on sight."

"Eggman must be located so that this unit can destroy him," announced Omega. "Sensors do not detect a human presence in this base. We should leave and attempt to discover where he has gone."

"We need to get to the palace on Whale Island," said Rouge. "He's got a small sea/air port near there, and that's where I've got my vehicle hidden. I think he's gone on to his current project in Future City. –You needn't look at me like that, Shadow, I didn't name it.

"So let's go, you two. The exit's this way." She strode off with a confidence that left the black hedgehog vaguely envious. He looked around again at the bare walls and textured steel floor of the corridor, now littered with robotic debris, feeling like he was only half awake. As Omega's scarlet form disappeared around a corner, he finally followed, slowly.

Shadow trailed Rouge and the robot through several corridors and intersections before finally asking, "How do you know where you're going?"

"The people I work for gave me some information, and I've been in a number of Eggman bases before. He tends to build to the same general plan. You don't remember his pyramid base?"

It was really more a statement than a question, but Shadow shook his head. "Was it like this?" Nothing around him seemed familiar.

"Hardly," replied the bat, tossing a smirk over her shoulder. "Well, the layout actually was fairly similar, but it was built of stone blocks and attached to the underground tunnels of a pyramid out in the desert." There was a pause and then she asked, "You do know what a desert is, don't you?"

"A desert is an area of very dry land that receives little or no rainfall over a year. They may be sandy or rocky." Shadow's mouth seemed to reel out the facts of its own accord, his eyes widening involuntarily as he heard an answer his brain didn't seem to know.

Rouge had stopped and turned as he answered; now she gave him a long, thoughtful look. "Hmmm," was her only comment. Then she turned back and resumed walking.

Shadow shook his head slightly as he followed her. How did I know that? How did I know that without knowing I knew that? Why am I so sure I ought to know more than I do? And if I ought, why don't I? He was jolted out of his thoughts by the appearance of another robot patrol. Again, the bat and the E-series robot made short work of the Egg pawns. Shadow didn't join in, but felt like his wits were starting to wake up a bit.

Shortly after dispatching the patrol, the trio emerged through a ceiling hatch onto a sunny beach. Shadow looked around; still nothing that seemed familiar. But it was pretty. Why is that important? ...Someone...someone I knew... would like this. Then something clicked - those islands all look like FISH!

"The Piscine Islands," announced Rouge. "An ancient sea-going civilization lived here once; they left some splendid buildings and the whole thing is an archeological preserve of sorts - or at least it was until Eggman took it over. I've found some very interesting things hidden around here in the past."

Piscine, meaning fish. That part made sense, at least. "Which one is Whale Island?"

"You can't actually see it from here," she answered. She set off at a jog along the beach. "This way, guys. You two ready?"

"Warning," said Omega. "Immediate destruction if distracted."

"Hmmph. Hope you can keep up with me," muttered Shadow, still a bit annoyed with the robot for trying to shoot him earlier. The sunlight did seem to be clearing the last of the fog from his brain - though he still could remember nothing prior to opening his eyes in the underground room - and he suddenly had a strong urge to run. His shoes turned out to possess some sort of hovering property that gave him even more speed than the bat and the robot possessed, so he modified his pace to match theirs.

It was an interesting trip. Ruins made of decorated white marble, some of which moved as they approached, were scattered around the islands. Shadow wasn't sure if the moving stones was due to ancient engineering or more recent modification. Access between the islands was improved by the decidedly modern additions of ramps that launched one a distance and aerial boost rings that Rouge identified as "dash rings". Passing through a dash ring propelled one in the direction the ring was facing. It was certainly easier and faster than trying to row from island to island.

Shadow found it rather an exhilarating challenge to race along the dunes and cliffs, dodging or destroying robots as they went. There seemed to be several types, with variations, mainly in weapons, within each type. The Eggpawns, for instance, might be armed with several different weapons, some had spears, some guns, some even had shields. Another type looked rather like a small plane; most of these were not armed, but some had guns mounted on their bellies. The plane type often had to be knocked out of the sky before Shadow and Omega could attack them; Rouge picked Shadow up and tossed him at the enemies and he'd instinctively curl into a ball right before he hit them. He had some internal targeting system evidently, that didn't need memory to function. Robots on the ground, of any type, he simply ran at and jump-curled when he got close. He had clearly done this before, often enough to be good at it, so why couldn't he remember?

Omega just whipped out his gun (Shadow was finding it increasing difficult to think of his traveling companion as an 'it') and blasted the opponents to components, often with a comment of "Worthless consumer models". The robot had several different weapons and a hand stored in each arm and was able to switch from one to another at will.

In addition to the robots, they kept encountering strings and clusters of strange 'gold' rings. He wasn't sure what they were actually made of - pure energy, perhaps? They hung suspended about a foot off the ground, but he could easily pick them up. Each one he collected seemed to boost his energy level slightly, and cleared his mind further. Regrettably, they didn't seem to help him remember anything, but he quickly got in the habit of snagging them as often as he could. Rouge and the robot did so as well.

The race continued until they suddenly hit a stretch of open water full of huge turtles. To Shadow's amazement - and Rouge's, apparently - each turtle bore more of the ruins on their backs. An assortment of launch ramps and dash rings provided access from one to another leading across the strait to some buildings on the far side.

"Is that the palace?" he asked Rouge.

She shook her head. "That's part of the complex, but the palace itself is a bit farther on." She looked at the turtles again. "That's just plain weird."

Shadow shrugged. For all he could remember, perhaps all turtles carried stone platforms. "Let's go."

Another period of running, jumping, and fighting - plus a desperate scramble to dodge a trap of enormous rolling stones decorated with bulls' heads and "horns" - brought them at last to the palace. Rouge led the pair around to the side and out onto a sand bar. "Eggman's port is this way," she started to explain.

However, as they stepped out on the sand, a large plane shaped like a bird roared down in front of them. A human with a ridiculously large moustache was at the controls of an open cockpit, and two Eggpawns manned guns on either side. "So, YOU'RE the ones who have been playing games with my army!" cried the human. Shadow didn't find the man the least bit familiar, but his companions certainly seemed to.

"Primary target detected," droned Omega. "Destroy Eggman!" And the hawk-like plane dove in with its guns blasting away, then retreated up the beach above an ancient causeway. The trio pursued until it came to rest on another sandbar.

Shadow homed on the engines until they broke, while Omega pounded the plane's fuselage into a welter of dents. Rouge put a stop to the robots manning the guns. At the last moment, the cockpit ejected and flew away, with the human screaming threats as he fled.

Rouge shook her head and sighed. "That's Eggman. He always escapes, and he never gives up. He'll be back.

"Come on guys, my plane's over this way."