I'm raising the rating on this fic to T because of paranoia for upcoming chapters. This one's fine though!

I'm baaack! Sort of. I literally just typed most of this chapter and it is NOT very good. But I intend to improve as the story will speed up very quickly and will be easier to write once I get past this story arc that starts at the end of this chapter. Sooo... I do not own Sonic or Danny Phantom. I wish I did though. I would come up with interesting plots for games. And I would make sure the jokes are not so awfully cheesy in some cases. Then again my jokes are very cheesy. I'm much better with riddles!

Last time, on Sonic Halfa Chronicles:

"I'm Maria . . . I don't . . . know. Can you help me? I don't remember . . ." she tried to convey it, but looked at me helplessly and immediately. I don't remember who I am.

"Amnesia, then? Well, I knew a Maria, once, but she can't be you. She was a human, not a hedgehog." Her eyes widened.

"Oh . . . sorry . . . um . . . I don't know much, but I think I was in a circus . . . something . . . about a promise? And Shadow the Hedgehog got me out, I think." Well, that's certainly interesting.

"That's what happened to the human Maria I think. Any idea what happened recently before you came here?"

"A guy in a fancy suit sent me here from some sort of lab and told me to help you. He told me to call him uncle, but I'm pretty sure we're not related. He said to bring Shadow to him if I wanted answers . . . I'm not sure if I want to do that. He didn't seem to like Shadow."

"Well, Maria, it just so happens that I'm Shadow," I winked. She gasped.

"So you're like me? You can change back and forth too? I'm Shade!" she smiled.

"And I think I know exactly who sent you to me. I only know one guy who wears fancy coats and owns a lab." Bartleby.

We got to the lab and made ourselves known in style—we crashed through the walls.

"All right, Scourge, we want answers," I growled. He turned, laughing, sitting sideways in his chair, with his feet hanging over the armrest.

"Oh, Shadow, Shade. Let's party—I've got answers all right, but I doubt you'd want them if you knew," he said.

"You're going to tell us what happened to Maria, and then you're going to give her back her memory. Afterwards, I'll try not to end what's left of your life," I said darkly.

"Wow, that's dark for a hero. Who do you think you are? Batman?" he grinned.

"Well, you're certainly a joker. Now spill." Shade said. He whistled.

"I was going to tell you anyway, hot stuff. (I shuddered at this. The guy was being way too creeperish for my taste.) You see, Maria Robotnik recently was taken to the hospital for cancer treatment—they were willing to test something new on her, and as she was going to die anyway, and she agreed. I happened upon her with my plans for Shadow here already intact. I was going to clone him—but each one failed, melting into ectoplasm after a while.

"However, if I started with a living base for the cloning process, then that wouldn't happen. So I took some DNA from both Shadow's and Sonic's forms and fused them with Maria's—of course, after the hospital proclaimed her dead and buried her 'corpse' which I orchestrated completely. Her parents aren't too heartbroken because they believe she's in a better place now, as I hear it. I felt that Maria's screams were so painful, I decided to wipe her memory—well, at least most of it. Be happy, little girl, because you get to live on, because the cancer treatment they were trying wouldn't have helped a bit. I saved your life, and I figured you might want to return the favor as my personal little helper," he grinned. She scowled.

"You . . . saved my life?"

"Yes, and since you're not a perfect clone of Sonic, you'll have to do. You're the granddaughter of Gerald, yes? The niece of that crackpot Ivo who ended up dying because a forklift in his own warehouse ran over him? I don't know or care about your parents, but I can tell you that you come from a family of geniuses. Gerald had the right idea. The old man was trying to make an ultimate weapon, an artificial ghost that would do his bidding. And the Box Ghost—your uncle Ivo, Maria-he gave me documents that could pretty much help me make the Ultimate Weapon. Surely that'll be enough to beat the Ultimate Life Form. I just need your help, and he'll give me access..."

"How about this, Scourge! I won't help you. All we wanted when we came here was the information. Now we're leaving," she grumbled.

"It's either you or Shadow," he said nonchalantly. "Eggman just said he wanted a half-ghost to experiment on with his box contraptions . . . he's not picky."

"How's about neither, and I'll throw in a free beating," we said together.

"Have it your way. I could just throw out some knock-out gas and send you over to him . . . I'm sure the experiments will be very painful." He grinned.

"On three, we get out of here," I muttered, grabbing her hand. I tapped my foot to signal one.

"What was that?" Scourge asked, holding up a gun that would definitely shoot gas-bombs at us, knock us out, and leave us to his mercy. I tapped my foot again. Two.

"Absolutely nothing. If you're taking anyone, it's going to be me . . ." He realized just too late that we could easily teleport out. Three.

"CHAOS CONTROL!" we both shouted, landing in my room. We transformed.

"Are you okay, Maria?" I asked.

"I'm fine. But where am I going to go?"

"My parents know my secret. They'll love to have you, I just know it," I told her. And if they didn't—which I didn't think was physically possible—then I would hide her in my room until I was old enough to adopt her. She needed a home. And I swore to myself she'd get one—one way or another.

Maria was a much better sister than Sonia, in my opinion. She and I both liked music, she wasn't a know-it-all like Sonia, and frankly, Maria was just plain awesome as a friend, too. Sonia . . . well, you can't exactly pick your family. She's annoying as they come.

"Mom? Dad? Sonia?" I asked, walking into the house, Maria holding my hand. No answer.

"Guys?" I asked again. Nothing. Then a figure shimmered into existence and grinned maliciously. I groaned.

"What do you want, Eggman?"

"You see, Sonic, I want you to bow down before me, for I am the master of all things cube and plan to—" I blasted him and put him in the thermos.

"Maria, let's find my parents." We wandered through the house. It was empty.

"This is really weird. No note . . . nothing. Please let nothing bad have happened to them…" I muttered. Maria's eyes widened.

"There is a note . . . but it's over here…" I looked to find a typed document on the kitchen table.

Shadow the Hedgehog. You broke out of my prison—now you must be punished. And if you're the Shadow I know, you're going to pay for everything. It's the rules. Until you return, I have the following people in my custody: Alena the Hedgehog, Chuck the Hedgehog, Sonia the Hedgehog, Miles Prower, Amy the Hedgehog, Rouge the Bat, Knuckles the Echidna, Blaze the Cat, Silver the Hedgehog, Fang the Sniper, and Elise Soleanne. Soleanne's parents have graciously called me and taken her and Fang back, as they are upstanding citizens in the community. I was recently made aware of your identity in this. Turn yourself in if you want them free. –Commander Stone, G. U. N.

I groaned.

"Seriously?! Come on Maria, we've got to get to the ghost zone."

"Wait, Sonic… do you need these?" she handed me two pieces of the Master Emerald, shaped like two halves of a heart.

"Thanks, Maria. I need all thirteen pieces eventually . . . that's a big help," I smiled, but inwardly I was scrambling to remember the note. Three—Chaos. Check. What's five? A trial… a trial by fire. Well at least it's not a trial by water. Still need to learn how to swim.

...speaking of riddles, I recently heard these four. If you ever use them in real life, I will feel better in knowing that I shared some useless wisdom with a few people and made a few others scratch their heads for a long time.

What gets bigger the more you take out of it? a hole in the ground

(Tell them it's a math problem, not a riddle, and they'll go nuts:) You're driving a bus. Fifteen people get on at the first stop. Three get on and four get off at the second stop. Six get off and eight get on at the third stop. Ten get off at the fourth stop. What color are the bus driver's eyes? I said "You're driving a bus"-it's your eye color!

This object has a heart and its last five letters mean "to strangle". artichoke

See you guys later!