"Me?" Sonic said, bewildered."I-I-I was in-"

"Hear me out for a minute," Shadow said, raising his hand. "You know that whole ordeal we had when Eggman warped time and space, and there were two of you?"

"Of course." That had been so weird...

"Well... The thing I saw, looked like you. But you would never do what that thing did... That Sonic... it was... awful."

The black hedgehog began to give a description of the Sonic in the computer. Just like good old Sonic, besides, his black sclera and glowing red eyes that bled. A wicked grin across his cheeks, yellow sharp fangs. White gloves smeared with blood. He hadn't heard it speak, but they both began to have a feeling that the Sonic would sound and speak exactly like the real one.

"Oh...God..." Sonic breathed. "What am I going to do?"

"...what are we going to do?" Shadow mumbled after a while, and Sonic's ears perked up. "Yeah, I know..." he said, starting to get up, "I said I wouldn't help you. But that was before that Sonic-thing made this personal."

Sonic's eyebrows quirked. Maybe the hedgehog down the street really was his girlfriend. But he gave Shadow a curt nod. "All right." He pounded his fist into his other hand. "Let's go teach this Computer-Sonic some manners."

And as if a response, the DVD drive of the computer slid open. The hedgehogs eyed the gleaming silver disc inside, taking note of the black writing on it.

"SONIC-dot-EXE"

"Manic must have pocketed this at the Chaotix's place," Sonic said. "I bet this was the disc Tails brought to the house to show me-!" He put a hand to his forehead. "Oh, man- I could've stopped this."

"No time for regrets," Shadow said, picking up the disc and pocketing it. "I know how we can get inside of this. We just need to get to the doctor's computer." The hedgehog walked into his dark room and Sonic heard the all-too-familiar click of a loaded the armed hog stepped back into the light, Sonic didn't object. Against another Sonic, maybe a weapon was needed.

He made Shadow write a note to Cream and Vanilla as Sonic got ready. On a normal adventure, the hog would've run off without anything but a few chilidogs for the road, but... going inside a computer, a place Sonic wasn't too familiar with... he'd bring anything he could carry. The bloody Sonic's image in his head made him pack a first-aid kit, two of them. He hoped his friends weren't hurt, but... He grabbed a memento from his trip to Subspace, a Light Sword, hoping that would be enough. Five apples...no, he just dumped all the apples in the bowl into his backpack.

"Come on, Sonic," Shadow said, making the other snap his head up. His rival had a backpack of his own. Maybe he had some of his own food and bandages.

"Yeah, okay," he said. zipping it up and slinging it on his back. "Let's go."

Cream and her Cheese walked up the walkway to Mister Sonic, Mister Manic, Mister Silver and Mister Shadow's house. When she reached up to knock, she spotted a note and plucked it off the door.

Cream and Vanilla

We're going to find our friends. Please don't open anything you get on the computer until you hear from us. We don't want you to get in trouble like everyone else.

Don't worry about us. We'll be fine, and so will everybody else who's disappeared.

If Silver comes back, tell him we're going after the computer program called "SONIC-dot-EXE" Tell him everybody else has been kidnapped by it.

Please stay safe. Don't come after us. We don't know what we're up against.

Sonic

Shadow

"I take it you've done this before?" Sonic said as they pounded through the empty corridors of the doctor's base. No Badniks like last time he and Silver had run down these same hallways looking for Eggman with the intention to beat him, but now, the blue hedgehog just hoped there was still time...

"Yeah," Shadow said as he skated ahead. "The same computer."

"What do you think it wants?"

"I think it's a psychopath. And, it's you, so I think he's a he."

"That's not me, Shadow."

"I know he's not you, but, he is." They reached the main computer room, and Shadow walked in front of the keyboard. "Okay. As soon as I say so, jump into the center," he instructed, pointing. "And keep your guard up. I think he knows we're coming for him."

Sonic pulled out the Light Sword and readied himself. "Okay, do your thing, Shad."

The hedgehog slid the disc into the computer and started to pull things up on the computer. Suddenly, he slammed the edge of his hand down hard against the keyboard. The room shook, and the area above the center began glowing brightly.

"Now!" Shadow said, making sure Sonic went first before he followed and they were warped into the world of the Sonic-dot-exe. At first, blinding light with various screeching sounds stunned the hedgehogs as they were traveling into the game.

Sonic tumbled onto some grass, while Shadow landed a few feet ahead on his feet. The blue hedgehog and black one stood back to back, weapons at the ready.

"Shadow... this... this is Green Hill Zone."

Except it wasn't. Some odd, eerie music that might also come across as creepy was playing instead of that beautiful nostalgic tune. And the plane was level. Perfectly level. Nothing at all like the classic Sonic the Hedgehog game.

"I don't like this," Sonic added.

"Let's keep moving," the other suggested, taking a step ahead of the path, but then stopping. "Maybe not that way," he said, pointing his gun down the path, which Sonic winced at the sight.

Dead animals littered the pathway, bloody, gruesomely killed animals. Squirrels hanging from trees with their intestines spilling out. Birds with gouged out eyes. Beheaded rabbits.

"You think that...that other me did this?"

"No doubt. That grin on his face, and all the blood on him..." Shadow turned around, and started walking the other way. "We should try this way. If he has our friends, he probably wants us to go through hell to get them back."

They froze when they heard an echoing laugh, sounding like something out of a game, a distorted, repeated laugh, "AHA ha-ha-ha," like that. "What..." Sonic began to shiver.

AHA ha-ha-ha

AHA ha-ha-ha

The laughter seemed to come closer to them. From behind Sonic and Shadow, who exchanged glances of panic and anger and raced up the bloody path.

AHA ha-ha-ha

AHA ha-ha-ha...

Up the small slope, and they skidded to a stop at an applauding figure. Sonic clapped slowly, his eyes shut, as he rested against a tree. Sonic and Shadow backed away, bewildered.

"Hello, hello," the Sonic said, completely Sonic, same attitude and same voice, which made the Sonic beside Shadow clamp his hand over his throat to make sure he still had his voice. "Looks like you found your way in here. Nice going. I didn't think I was that smart."

"Sonic?" the other one echoed, stepping forward, but an extended arm from Shadow prevented him from going further.

"I'm Sonic. Sonic...the Executable File."

The hedgehog's eyes open as he met his guests' eye level. Red glowing dots against black. He curled his lips in a smile, revealing yellowed teeth. "But please, call me Sonic-dot-exe."

"The computer file?" The real Sonic stammered.

When Sonic-dot-exe chuckled, it was that AHA ha-ha-ha they were chased by. "Yeah. The one and only. Welcome to my world."

"You kidnapped my friends-"

"Our friends," the executable file corrected. "I am you, Sonic." The creepy Sonic began to approach the two hedgehogs. "And I didn't kidnap them. I invited them to play with me. They've all accepted their invitations. Silly hedgehogs. You're supposed to open your invites, not jump into them."

"Invites?" Shadow said, chest fur bristling. "You mean your disc?"

"You catch on fast, my cranky friend."

"If you're Sonic you should know that we aren't friends," he puffed.

"Aww... what's the matter, Fakey? Butthurt your sweet wittle girrrlllllfriieeeennnd got stolen and you couldn't save her?" Sonic chuckled wildly as Shadow growled.

"What did you do with them?" Sonic wondered. His bloody double smiled.

"We're in the middle of a game right now. Oooh! Tell ya what, let's make a deal. We'll play hide-and-seek. Our friends are hiding. And we're seeking, okay? You two are on one team, and I'm on the other.

"Whichever Sonic can find all of his friends first wins. Deal?"