Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.

Who's ready to meet our favorite fiery feline?

Silver knew that going to find that cat was a bad idea.

His heart was hammering against his chest as he watched the small fire blaze in front of him and Sonic, feeling the radiating heat. Silver swallowed thickly at the flames before gazing beyond them at the cat, who had sharp eyes and fiery palms.

Silver cowered a bit behind Sonic as Amy gasped, glancing between the heat and the feline with shock etched in her features. "Wait! You're…You're the one who's staring the fires?"

The cat didn't answer. Her intense gaze never left Sonic and Silver.

"My guess is that she is…" Tails uttered, trying to put out the flames with his namesakes. Sonic helped as well, stomping the small fire down to embers before it had a chance to spread.

Silver sucked in a breath when the feline's hands glowed brighter. Before he could warn the two to move, Amy stood in front of the pyromaniac and held her arms out.

"Don't!" Amy yelled, and Silver was finally relieved of the sharp glare. The feline was staring at the pinkette now, frowning. Having her attention, Amy lowered her voice and pleaded, "Don't hurt them, please? They don't mean any harm!"

A purple tail twitched in agitation, and the flames in her hands remained strong.

Amy bit her lip for a moment until it morphed into a genial smile. "How about this…when is the last time that you've eaten anything?" The cat's expression subtly softened. It wasn't much, but it got Amy's smile to widen. "Then let's get you something! We can go to…um…"

Sonic knew that she was trailing off because going anywhere could possibly end up in another building fire. Plus, it was too risky to have the new anthro integrate in the population right now.

"How about…you go down to the beach, and we'll bring the food?" Sonic suggested, that being the only safe place he could come up with at the moment. It was still early morning too, so Emerald coast shouldn't be too populated.

The cat narrowed her eyes at him once more while Amy nodded enthusiastically. "Good idea!" she regarded the former stray, "It's the perfect place to have a little water-front breakfast!"

The feline didn't answer at first, but her rumbling stomach caused her to mutter, "Fine." Everyone marginally relaxed when the flames dancing in her palms were slowly died out.

"It'll be fun!" Amy encouraged, cautiously grabbing the other's wrist. She tensed but didn't resist. "And Tails, do you want to walk with us while Sonic and Silver get the food?"

Translation: Could you come with me in case she does something unpredictable?

"Yeah, sure!" Tails agreed. Maybe with him being a fox, a fellow predator, the cat wouldn't do anything dangerous. Or at least he could try to persuade her from doing so.

The kitten's frown was prominent, but she didn't oppose the idea.

Sonic gave a thumbs up. "Solid plan! Silver and I will pick up something and meet you guys there!"

Amy nodded once more before slightly tugging the other's wrist. "Come on! The coast is only a handful blocks away!" She strolled out of the alleyway, and the feline let herself be guided.

Silver made sure to step out of the way as they passed, avoiding the predator's eyes. Sonic put a comforting hand on his shoulder and asked Tails, "Any preferences?"

"It doesn't matter to me," Tails answered before glancing at the girls. "Just…make sure there's some kind of meat."

Sonic snickered. "Gotcha!" He watched as the trio walked away, them trying to avoid close interactions with other people as much as possible. "Well, that went different than expected."

"For you maybe…" Silver knew that nothing good would come out of meeting that cat. He faced the blue hero, not liking any of this. "I told you that she was dangerous! And now she can throw fire?"

"Which is the reason we should keep her close, Silv!" Sonic reasoned, gesturing the way they had came from. "We can't just leave her alone, because more fires could happen! Also, she's in the same situation as you. Remember how scared you were after turning? Imagine if you were out here by yourself."

Silver wanted to argue, but he realized that he couldn't. Honestly, he couldn't imagine how it would've been like if he'd been alone on the streets surrounded by everything. The feline was probably anxious and confused, not knowing what was going on. He could empathize with her on that front, but at the same time…

The white hedgehog sighed, absently rubbing his arm. "I know, but-"

"You're worried, I get it." Sonic stepped closer and mussed Silver's head quills, hoping the contact was enough to soothe him a little. He smiled at the half-amused, half-annoyed look he received. "But what did I say about protecting you, huh?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Silver took his hand and interlocked their fingers, squeezing. Sonic sucked in a breath when he leaned forward and nuzzled his cheek, whispering, "What about you? If you ever get seriously hurt-"

"By a little kitty?" Sonic lightly teased to distract himself from the fluttering in his stomach, the warmth of Silver's touch, and the fact that someone could easily see them like this and he didn't know how he felt about that yet.

Silver leaned back with a quiet huff. "By a cat who could fry you up crispy in a second."

"But what about you?" Sonic reminded. He wanted to ease Silver's phobia was much as possible. "You're not helpless either, or did you forget about your cool powers?"

The psychic knew that he couldn't rely on them though. "It's not like I know how to really control them yet…"

"I'll keep a pack of pepper on me in case she tries anything."

Silver couldn't stifle his chuckle. It wasn't fair how Sonic could do that. Just…lighten his mood so easily. Well, he couldn't be surprised because Sonic had always been a happy person. And, from what he had seen from his little enclosure, he was an expert of cheering other people up too.

Silver wanted to learn all he could from him.

"So, uh…" The topic of the cat wasn't going anywhere, so Silver switched it up. "What're we getting for breakfast?"

Sonic tapped his chin in thought. "Hm…I had promised you eggs earlier, but we gotta get somthin' with meat too-" He snapped his fingers, getting an idea. "Biscuits! Never can go wrong with those!"

"They have eggs and meat on them?"

"The kind we're getting are! Bacon, egg, and cheese!"

Silver was somewhat familiar with eggs and cheese, but, "What's bacon?"

"Oh, you'll find out!"

"Whoa! That's the ocean?!"

The awe in Silver's voice caused Sonic to smile fondly. He watched Silver shuffle through the warm sand, wonder etched into his features. The beach had never been Sonic's first pick for a vacation spot, but Silver's reaction alone might get him to change that.

Sonic was relieved when all of the psychic's tension melted away at the shifting waves. Silver had been jumpy the whole time they were getting food. Sonic assumed that he had gotten used to the city at least a little bit, but he guessed that the fire feline's appearance had put him on edge.

Now that they had made it out of the bustling crowd, enjoying the emptier beach, Silver was more open. Sonic hoped that he stayed that way when they met up with Amy, but he had a feeling things wouldn't be so easy.

Silver jogged closer to the shoreline, stopping where waves barely lapped at his borrowed shoes. The cool sea breeze rustled their quills, Silver's longer ones flowing freely in the wind. He closed his eyes with a carefree smile as the breeze caressed his face.

Sure, the ocean was breath-taking, but Sonic couldn't take his eyes off Silver. It was just amazing how a small smile could make his heart swell, how it made him want to…hug him? Kiss him again? Sonic didn't know, but the sun's rays were hitting those silvery quills the right way, adding to Silver's softness, and Sonic couldn't believe that he had known him all this time.

Who knew that a strange piece of cat food would affect his life this much?

"Sonic! Silver! Over here!"

Thrown out of his thoughts, Sonic searched for the source of the voice. Tails was flying high in the sky, waving them down. Right under him were Amy and the newcomer. They were sitting at a circular table shaded by a large umbrella.

"Comin'!" Sonic responded before gesturing to Silver to follow. When they reached the group, the blue hero sat beside Tails, Silver settling on the other side of him. Ignoring the feline's sharp gaze, Sonic put the big bag he had on the table, grinning. "Who's ready to chow down?"

"After everything I've been through today? I'm starving!" Amy was the first to reach into the bag. "You got biscuits? They smell so good!" She took out the wrapped breakfast item and a water bottle, setting them in front of her quietly observing neighbor. "Go ahead and dig in!"

The feline glanced at Amy and then sent a distrustful look at Sonic, sharply frowning. The speedster gave a friendly smile, and she looked back down at the biscuit, making no move to touch it.

Tails was unwrapping his own breakfast. "Maybe she needs some encouragement…?"

Amy grabbed another biscuit and bit into it. "It's great!" She nudged her neighbor, who stiffened, and gently encouraged, "Go ahead, I know you're hungry."

The cat looked around the table again. Tails and Sonic were enjoying their food, the latter trying to be as innocent as possible. Silver was losing himself in the bursts of flavor, keeping his eyes on the distance waters to avoid her gaze.

It took a minute or so, but she eventually copied Amy's actions and nibbled into the biscuit. Her eyes widened marginally before she took a bigger bite, her contently swishing tail opposing her controlled expression.

"How is it?" Amy asked after swallowing.

The feline silently nodded.

Sonic chuckled, riding his face of crumbs. "Guess that's better than nothing!" He faced Silver and raised in interested brow. "What about you, Silv?"

"Huh?" Silver tore his gaze off the ocean, slowly processing the question. He ultimately nodded. "Oh, yeah! It's pretty good. Kinda dry though." He reached for a water bottle, brow furrowing as he examined it. "Uh…how do you open this?"

Sonic took another bite and answered around the egg, "You just gotta twist the top!"

After trying and failing, Silver frowned. "Are you sure? Because-"

"You might wanna try the other way."

He followed Sonic's rather delayed instructions, opening the bottle with ease. Silver was about to point out how amused Sonic was seeing him struggle, but there was a sudden tickle in his nose that made his gut drop. His hands were too preoccupied to do anything to stop it.

Silver suddenly sneezed. The water bottle flew right out of his hand and straight for the distracted feline, dowsing her in the cold water.

She yowled in surprise, the last bite of her biscuit was burned to ashes by her red-hot fingers, and Silver's life flashed before his very eyes.

Amy gasped and attempted to calm the other down, rushing out, "It's okay! It was an accident! Silver didn't mean to-"

That was as far as she got before a fireball was launched right at Silver's face.

He screamed, closing his eyes and holding up his hands to block. He was ready for the intense heat, but it never came.

"Whoa…"

Tails' stunned voice caused Silver to peek his eyes open to see why the flames hadn't hit him yet. His breath caught in his throat at the sight of the fireball floating over the table. A cyan aura surrounded the red and orange sphere of heat, freezing it mid-air.

Everyone, including the purple feline, was staring in various stages of awe.

Sonic was having trouble scraping his chin off the ground. "Silv, you…that's awesome!"

Tails temporarily forgot out his breakfast, leaning forward in interest. "You can say that again! Can you move it around, Silver?"

"Um…" Shock and wonder filled Silver's veins now, but the terror was still there as well. The cat was staring with a furrowed brow – he didn't know if she would make another move, and honestly, he'd rather not try to move it because he'd never forgive himself if he burned someone here. "Maybe? But I…" He focused on his own glowing hands. "I don't know how well I can control it, and I don't want to hurt anyone."

Sonic chuckled. "Isn't it a little too late for that?" This wasn't the first time that his powers went wonky. "Moving it a bit shouldn't hurt anybody, right?"

Silver bit his lip, hoping that Sonic was right. Swallowing thickly, he shifted his hands slightly to the left, and the glowing ball followed the movement.

Sonic and Tails seemed even more amazed while the cat stared in confusion. Amy was smiling broadly as she fished in the bag for napkins. "You have better control over your powers now, Silver! I wonder what changed from before?"

Silver had no clue. He did know that he didn't want to hold this extremely hot fire anymore, so with the upmost concentration, he carefully floated the ball over Sonic's head and positioned it over the golden sand. Then he remembered that to turn it off, he had to relax.

After loosening his tense muscles and taking a steadying breath, the fireball dropped to the sand. It sizzled before eventually burning out, leaving charred grains.

"Ok, so." Sonic threw an arm over Silver's shoulders, giddy about this new find. "We're definitely playin' with this power of yours later! It's crazy!"

Tails nodded enthusiastically. "Not only can you move still objects, you can control projectiles too! You're full of surprises!"

Silver softly smiled at the praise and contact, flexing his fingers.

"Speaking of surprises," Amy handed the feline some napkins, and she eyed them, slightly puzzled. Amy took the rest and started to dry the dress as best as she could. The other copied her actions after a moment. The pinkette gave her a light chastising look. "Why did you throw that at Silver? He didn't spill water on you on purpose!"

The feline threw Silver a dirty look – he took a sip out of Sonic's bottle to distract himself – before refocusing on Amy. "Even so, I'm still wet."

Her tone was so unapologetic that it made Amy frown. "Could you at least say that you're sorry?"

She remained silent.

Silver guiltily watched her clean herself up. Accident or not, he did start the whole mess, so he built up as much courage as he could and stuttered out, "I-I…" He almost clammed up when sharp golden eyes met him, but he kept going when Sonic gave him an encouraging squeeze. "I'm sorry I s-spilled water on you."

Her intimidating gaze made him instinctively want to look away; however, he didn't know if it was Sonic by his side, or the fact that he could possibly block any of her attacks, but he fought to maintain eye contact. If she was going to stick around, he had to get used to her soon anyway…

It wasn't until Amy nudged her that she responded with a curt, "Just don't do it again."

"G-Got it!"

When Amy sighed, Tails finished his biscuit and tried to see the bright side. "At…least it's something?"

"Yeah, yeah, it's something." Amy continued to dry the other off, huffing. "But you have to start being nicer to people, especially my friends, okay?" No response. Amy pushed harder. "Come on! Ever since I found you, I've fed you. Don't you at least owe me this?"

Silver didn't know if it was his imagination, but something in that golden stare shifted. "I'll try," she finally conceded. "As long as they keep their water to themselves."

Sonic grinned, glad that there was no more fire-throwing. "Sounds fair!"

Amy examined the feline, seeing that there was nothing left to do but to let her air dry. "At least it was just water, not like it really mattered with this dress," she said, pulling at the frayed ends of the sleeves.

"Oh, I've been meaning to ask about that!" Tails pointed at the dress. "Was she wearing that when you found her, Amy? Because Silver wasn't wearing any socks or anything when he transformed."

"Nope! I found it in the second hand store we were beside. Same with her sandals so the concrete wouldn't ruin her feet." She eyed the dress's questionable condition. "They're not the best, but they were free."

Tails' brow creased. "Wait, so does that mean she had been walking around-"

"We're not going to think about that." Amy instantly shut the thought down, facing her neighbor with a gentle smile. "And instead focus on something else! I don't know if you've thought about this, but would you mind if I gave you a name?" At the suspicious look she received, Amy added, "It'll be great to have one! And you don't want us to just call you 'cat', right?"

She didn't seem too convinced, but she asked anyway, "What name?"

Amy brightened. "Well, before all of this, I had planned to name you Dot because of the spot on your forehead." The other frowned up at that, clearly not liking it, and the pinkette waved her off. "But now, I think you deserve something fierier! Like um…maybe Ember?"

"After seeing what she threw at Silver?" Tails decided to give his opinion. "That was bigger than an ember. How about…Scorch?"

Amy scrunched her nose up at the sound of that one, but before she could turn it down, Sonic hopped in. "Seriously? She can do way more than burn! Under the right circumstances, I'm sure she can bring any Eggman lab down in a fiery bl-" He gasped, perking up. "That's it! We could call her Blaze!"

Tails shared his excitement. "That's perfect!"

Amy tried the name on her tongue before asking the pensive feline, "Do you like the name Blaze? Can we call you that?"

She glanced over at the smiling Sonic, holding his warm gaze for a moment, and answered, "It's fitting…and I like the sound of it." The words 'Even though it came from him', hung in the air.

Amy ignored the implication, clapping her hands at the development. "That settles it!"

Silver was hesitant. "Are you sure about this, Amy? Naming her after what she did to your apartment?"

The pinkette sobered up a bit at that. "I'm not going to hold that against her. If she's anything like you, then her powers are still a little unreliable too." She addressed Blaze, who seemed more withdrawn than before. Amy subtly frowned. "Were the fires accidental, Blaze?"

She nodded, to everyone's relief. "I didn't mean to destroy your home." Blaze dragged a finger through the ashes of the leftover biscuit. "I had been hungry, and…"

She trailed off, but there was an expression on her face that Silver could sympathize with. He had been terrified when it first happened. Plus, if she was like him, then extreme emotion could be a trigger. "Scared?" he delicately provided.

Blaze didn't confirm it, but she didn't oppose either.

Amy quickly grabbed one of her hands and squeezed, startling her. The pinkette didn't let go, her determined gaze unwavering. "You don't have to be scared anymore because you have us, okay? I feel so bad about you being all alone like this for so long! From now on we'll be here to help you adjust like we're doing with Silver, and-" Amy smiled. "-whenever you want more of these biscuits, just say the word!"

Blaze's eyes were wide as she took in Amy's welcoming features, searching for any lies or deceit. Then the smallest of smiles adorned her face, and she whispered, "Okay."

Amy beamed, giving her yet another squeeze before letting go. "But first thing's first, we have to introduce you to some people. They're close friends of ours and are who we're probably going to be staying with for a while."

Tails was doubtful when he caught on to what she was saying. "Is that a good idea, Amy?" He didn't want anyone getting hurt or another building to be burned down.

"Definitely!" she replied in confidence. "Do you know anyone who could hate Cream and Ms. Vanilla for more than thirty seconds?"

"…Does Eggman count?"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Any hate Eggman has for us all stems from Sonic, so that doesn't really count." She sent an encouraging grin Blaze's way. "But anyway, I'm sure you'll love them! And maybe Ms. Vanilla will have some old clothes you could borrow!"

Blaze's smile had waned at this point. "We're really staying with them?" The reluctance in her voice was palpable.

"Yeah, but everything'll be fine!" Amy reassured. "I trust them, and you trust me, right?"

It took a while, but Blaze ultimately nodded a yes.

Sonic couldn't help but to smile at that, remembering using the same logic with Silver. It was a very effective strategy.

"Great!" Amy chirped. "They should be awake now and would be happy to meet you, Blaze!" After a beat, she addressed at the psychic, "And I guess you too, Silver!"

Silver was excited to properly meet them too, but, "We're leaving now?" He aimed his next question at Sonic, struggling to keep the disappointment out of his voice. "Can we come back to the beach later?"

There was a sparkle in his eyes that Sonic couldn't say no to, not like he was going to do it anyway. "Of course we can, Silv! The water's not goin' anywhere!" He stood up, collecting his trash. "And it's a great place to practice your powers! Not a lot of stuff to break out here in case of a wayward sneeze," he teased.

"He could still throw you." Tails smirked at him as he, along with everyone else, gathered their trash. "You might be learning how to swim today if you get too close to the water!"

Sonic almost regretted the suggestion now.

Silver rose a brow at the speedster, stepping up to his side after they passed a trash can and dumped their stuff into it. "You don't know how to swim?"

Amy giggled with Blaze silently listening on the other side of her. "Swim? He barely knows how to float!"

"I can float!" Sonic puffed out his cheeks, hoping that Silver believed the slight lie. The chuckles coming from him was a bad sign, however. "You can't laugh, Silver! You don't know how to either!"

Silver had enough vivid memories of swimming laps in the bathtub to dispute that. "Yeah, I can! And you've seen me do it!"

Sonic rolled his eyes. "You were in your old body! That doesn't count."

"Pretty sure that counts," Tails quipped, them both snickering at how Sonic muttered about trust and betrayal.

All smiles then instantly dropped when a booming explosion sounded off in the distance.

Sonic whipped his head in that direction, seeing rising smoke and hearing screams. He was willing to bet anything that a particular egg-shaped man had made a surprise visit.

Before he could even think about blasting off, trembling fingers had his arm in a vice grip. Sonic met wide and frantic eyes, knowing already what Silver was going to beg him to do. But he couldn't especially with the screams growing louder in the background.

He kept his voice kind yet stern. "I know you don't want me to go, Silv, but I gotta-"

"I know." Silver took a deep breath, steeling his expression. "I know you have to, but I'm coming with you."

Sonic instantly shut that idea down. The visual of Silver possibly getting hurt by wayward missiles or hostile robots was almost too much. Silver wasn't ready for any confrontation yet, so he should stay as safe as possible.

The blue hero shook his head with a reassuring smile. "You're not ready yet! Once we get your powers more under control, then we can let you face Eggy. Until then-"

"No! No." Silver stepped closer to him, his grasp borderline painful. Many emotions were swirling in those golden irises; Sonic was left almost breathless at their intensity. "You're not leaving me alone again."

Sonic remembered Silver's heart wrenching cries after the first fire, and he was torn. He refused to let him get hurt, but at the same time, knowing how terrified Silver would be made something in him twist. Also, he fully realized that Silver wouldn't take no for an answer.

So, he as willing to compromise. "How 'bout this…you can come watch, but stay out of the fray, okay?" Sonic winked. "I'll take care of this guy in no time! It's just Eggman! It'll be no different from the videos we showed you."

Silver's heart was pounding in his chest, and he hated the idea of Sonic fighting period. At least he was able to witness, not given the chance to assume the worst.

"I'll stay hidden," he breathed out. "Just don't get hurt."

Sonic ruffled his head quills. "Don't worry so much, Silv!" Then he faced Amy and Blaze, the latter narrowing her eyes at the rising smoke. "While we go, I think you guys should stay here. Don't want the wrong things getting burned down, y'know?"

Amy nodded, completely understanding. "Yeah, it's for the best! We have to keep everyone as safe as possible."

Sonic gently grabbed Silver's wrist, getting ready to zoom away. He beckoned Tails to follow. "You come too, bud! I want you to have a bird's-eye view just in case Egghead wants to pull any crazy tricks."

Tails saluted him, whirling his namesakes. "On it!"

As more ashes rose into the air, Sonic took off with a wave. "We'll be back!" Tails flew after him, and Silver swallowed his nervousness as he was pulled along.

Sonic sped into the city, careful while he darted through traffic and around blocks so he wouldn't whip Silver around too much.

He reached the site of chaos within the minute.

Sonic skidded to a stop in a neighboring alleyway, peering out at the giant robotic mech standing in the middle of the street. There were several holes in the buildings nearby with smoke rising from them; there weren't any fires in sight however.

A boisterous laugh filled the air, and Sonic's drifted his gaze back up to the robot's head. Inside, he could clearly see Eggman at the controls, enjoying every second of this.

Well, his fun was about to be over.

Sonic let go of Silver's wrist and faced him. He was almost taken aback at the amount of terror swirling in those golden eyes as they stared at the imposing machine.

"Hey." Sonic cradled Silver's face with both hands, making the psychic snap his attention to him. Their foreheads were almost touching. Sonic wanted more than anything to transfer all the confidence he had swirling within to Silver, but the best he could do was softly whisper, "Just trust me."

"I…" Silver's voice was just as quiet. It took a second, but his features relaxed and he nodded. "I trust you."

Sonic brightened. "Now watch this."

The speedster was a blur when he sprinted out of the alley, avoiding Eggman's line of sight. He bolted straight toward one of the robot's legs and curled into a tight ball. Sonic careened into the sturdy limb, slicing through the metal and wires like a knife through butter.

Eggman shouted in shock as Sonic uncurled and skidded to a stop on the asphalt, spinning around with a smirk. The robot was dangerously leaning now, smoke spewing from the destroyed leg.

There was cheering from frightened bystanders, and Sonic soaked it all up. "Funny to run into you again here, Eggface! Didn't expect ya to bounce back from your terrible defeat so soon!" It had only been a few days since Metal City, but Sonic honestly couldn't be surprised. That doctor was a very stubborn egg.

The neck of the robot twisted until Eggman found him. Any sign of surprise was gone from the man's face, it replaced by a devious smile. "Ah, it's about time you showed up, rodent!" The arms rotated as well, and Sonic prepared himself for any spontaneous attack. "You kept me waiting for far too long!"

From this angle, Sonic couldn't see if Silver was actually staying hidden, but he had faith that he would listen. The hero rolled his eyes at the doctor's words, still smirking. "I had been busy, Eggy! Caught me in the middle of something! Can we make this quick so I can go back to enjoying my day?"

"Oh, this will be quick, pincushion." Eggman didn't seem bothered at all that his bot was literally on its last leg. "Because I've only come here today to relay a message to you." He was too giddy about something, and Sonic was instantly put on guard. Eggman twirled his mustache. "You see, in three days, the two bombs I've planted in this city will detonate."

Sonic almost fell for it until he realized who he was talking to. He scoffed. "Yeah, right! You're gonna have to make a better lie than that, Egghead!"

Eggman leaned forward in his seat, his smile growing. "In seventy-two hours, buildings will be leveled, cars will disintegrate, and well, let's just say that anyone within the radius of the blasts won't be leaving unscathed. If they leave at all. Believe me or not, it's your choice."

Sonic was beginning to get a bad feeling about this. Eggman was way too calm and confident. "Even if you are tellin' the truth, I'm sure that the remote is hidden in that robot of yours! I could just-"

"They are already live and counting down as we speak." Eggman leaned back in his seat once more. "The only way to disable them is getting me to do it."

Sonic waved him off as worry was blossoming in his chest. "They're just bombs! I'm sure any trained professional could figure it out!" He was trying to shake that ever confident grin. "Plus, if push comes to shove, we'll just evacuate the city so no one gets hurt! Didn't really think this thing through, did ya?"

Eggman's goggles glinted in the sunlight. "Oh, I think I did. If you want those bombs gone, simply surrender to me, and I'll do so at this very moment."

Sonic snorted. "As if! You have no proof of anything! This could all be a big bluff!"

Eggman shrugged, smugness radiating off of him. "It very well could. You'll see in three days." There were a series of clicks, and a hovercraft separated from the body of the robot. Eggman cackled. "I'm sure you'll be able to find me if you change your mind!"

Sonic was about to run after him, but the giant mech collapsed with a rumbling thud, causing dust and debris to fly into the air. Sonic had raised a hand to protect his face; when everything settled, he lowered it and Eggman was gone.

Concerned chatter then filled the air from the people coming out of hiding, and Sonic couldn't blame them. A bomb threat would leave anyone at least a little anxious. Sonic didn't know how to feel. On one hand, Eggman could just be lying to spook them all, but on the other, he could be telling the truth.

"Sonic!" Tails' familiar voice called from above. Sonic glanced up to see the kit flying towards him and landing at his side. Tails looked as unsure as he probably did. "Do you think he's telling the truth? Are there really bombs hidden away somewhere?"

Sonic rubbed the back of his neck, unable to really answer. "I dunno…but I think it's best if we try to look for 'em." That was better than taking a huge risk and ignoring the situation altogether.

Tails gestured all around them. "But the city's huge! How are we going to do that?"

"With a little help." Sonic was sure that a specific organization would have to get involved. "GUN should have a group that handles this type of stuff."

"Even so…" Tails wrung his fingers together. "To search every nook and cranny of the city in three days? That's-"

"Totally possible!" Sonic gave him a thumbs up. "Don't be so down, Tails! GUN as tons of people who could help, and plus, going through places with me and Shads will be a cakewalk!"

Tails sighed. "I guess, but…I really hope that Eggman's lying."

"Yeah, me too." Sonic bobbed his head over to where he came from. "After we find Silver, can you go fill Amy and Blaze in while we head over to the headquarters?"

"Sure! Want us to meet you over there?"

Sonic pursed his lips, thinking about Blaze, before answering, "Nah. Don't think that we should bring Blaze back into the thick of things so soon. We'll head back to the beach when we're done."

When Tails nodded, Sonic led him over to the alley, giving on-watchers an easygoing grin that should ease their fears at least for now. Silver perked up at their appearance, and Sonic boasted, "Wasn't that awesome or what?"

Silver would've shared his positivity if the threat of dangerous explosives hadn't been dropped on their heads. "It was kinda cool, I'll admit, but what is with that man? I get that he might have a rivalry with you or something, but he's willing to...kill innocent people?"

Sonic shook his head. "Despite what it looks like, Eggman…" He was about to say that he never really aimed to kill, but that wasn't exactly true. "Nevermind, it's exactly what it looks like."

Silver wasn't reassured by that at all. Tails stepped in. "We haven't gotten the chance to really understand Eggman yet. Sometimes, he holds back, but other times, he does things that threaten the wellbeing of our entire planet."

Silver had no words for that.

"But I never let him get too far!" Sonic exclaimed, seeing how the other blanched. "Like with this bomb thing. We're stopping his plan for sure! Especially since we'll probably meet up with more of our friends."

Silver raised a reluctant brow. "Are they as nice as Cream and Ms. Vanilla?"

Sonic and Tails shared a look before the former smiled. "Let's just say yeah! Once you get used to them!"

"Wait, what's that supposed to-"

"Let's go meet 'em! See you in a bit, Tails!"

Sonic took Silver's wrist once more, and they blasted off.

Silver already missed the cool sea breeze.

Eggman's definitely up to something…but at least Blaze's introduction went kinda smoothly, right?