YES! My Internet is working! …Better, anyway. I've been having some problems connecting lately, so I haven't gotten on FFN in about a week and a half. Granted, I probably still would've been a few days late with the update since this chapter is quite long.

[7/23/12 - Hi again, sonamy lover 111, and thank you for your continued support! I appreciate the numerous comments you've left letting me know what you think of the stories. To answer your question, Sonic and Tails DID get back down to the surface. They took the Grand Metropolis portal that Cream talked about in her note (which is in Chapter 5: The Killer Inside). The narrative just skipped ahead a short while to after they had already returned to the surface of earth. So from Chapter 6 onward, they are back on the surface. Sorry for the confusion, and thanks again.]

Enjoy. :)

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CHAPTER 13: Too Close for Comfort.

Sonic and Tails followed Alice wordlessly to the end of the hallway, where she gestured to the room at the right. For some reason, she couldn't – or wouldn't – look either of them in the eye. Sonic almost asked her if she felt sick, but by the time he sat down in one of the chairs and looked up again, she was gone.

Doctor Michaels came in moments later with the same distraught look on his face, not even looking at the pair at first. Sonic and Tails exchanged uncomfortable glances. The latter scooted a little closer to the former.

"There a depression plague going around in here?" Sonic joked, hoping to ease the tension, but inwardly, he was beginning to feel anxious as well.

Evan Michaels allowed a deep, drawn out sigh to escape past his lips. He was no longer the same man as he was the day before. Something had happened. Something was going on.

"I'm sorry," he finally said, voice coated with sincerity. "Pardon my rudeness."

Tails shifted his weight anxiously, looking at Sonic out of the corner of his eye and then at Michaels. "What's wrong, Doctor?" he finally asked, unable to bear being in the dark.

Moments later, he would wish he hadn't asked.

Michaels deliberated. Then, abruptly, he turned his entire body towards them. "It's like a cancer," he uttered, and the words came out fast – as if he only had a small window of time to say them. "If it had been detected earlier, we might have been able to get rid of it. I'm afraid… it's too late now. It's spread too much to be cured. It's just going to keep attacking and attacking and attacking, from the fingertips to the wrists to the elbows to the shoulders to the chest… until it reaches the heart. It's like a cancer that's progressed to the highest stages. Any treatment we gave you at this point would kill you quicker than the poison itself."

"Like a cancer," Tails repeated absentmindedly. Slowly, he raised his eyes to meet the doctor's, who hung his head in shame.

"It's been a long time since I've had to give somebody this kind of news," he told them. "I'm sorry."

He and Tails fell silent, but Sonic broke the tension before it even started. "Ah well," he began, "what adventure's fun if it's too easy? Doc, thanks for doing what you could." He stood up and snapped his fingers in front of Tails' face. The fox seemed to have fallen into a trance. "Tails? Ready to go?"

"Uh, yeah," he said.

"Hold on," Michaels said. He held out a small bottle of pills. "Tails, after the tests yesterday, I did manage to find out what's going on with those tails of yours. It looks as if they were injected with something to make them weaker, which is why they hurt when you move them too much. These should help," he explained.

Tails took the bottle. "Thanks," he said.

As they left the building, Sonic sped up. Suddenly, the eleven days they had left to save themselves didn't seem like much at all. Just yesterday, we still had three weeks. Just yesterday, we got on that passenger plane, I swear.

As if he could read Sonic's thoughts, Tails spoke. "Where'd the time go?"

"Time flies when you're having fun," the hedgehog said, dry humor in his tone.

The fox snorted. "If we're having fun, I don't want to know what it's like to not have fun."

"Me neither, bro, me neither."

"So… we go back home now? Find Eggman?"

"That was the plan, right? Does the Tornado need more fuel?"

"Yeah," Tails nodded. "I almost forgot."

The smile returned to Sonic's face. "Let's do that and get going."

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It took three days for Sonic and Tails to get back to Station Square. Three long and tedious days of flying over the ocean. And even after that, they still weren't quite there yet.

More precisely, they were thirty miles outside of their home city and the Mystic Ruins. That would be a five-minute journey if it weren't for the obstacle in their way.

"This is different," Sonic said. He stepped forward again, only to run into… nothing. He put his hands in front of him and felt the nothing. Nothing happened. Big surprise.

"Uh," Tails said uncertainly. "What is this?"

"It's like an invisible barrier," Sonic suggested thoughtfully. "I wonder where it came from."

"Could this have to do with Eggman? Think he's trying to keep us out?"

"I can't imagine it's only Sonic-and-Tails-proof," he said. "If we can't get through it, I doubt anybody else can, either."

Tails felt the nothing this time. "It's sort of warm, isn't it?" He asked. "Warm, and… not quite solid!" His voice rose in excitement. Sonic raised his eyebrows and again tested the mysterious material with his hands.

"You're right. When I push on it, it goes in a little bit."

Tails's eyebrows creased and his gaze focused, as if he could actually see the thing. He looked thoughtful. "I wonder what would happen if…" Tails paused, brought his hand back, and threw it forward at the barrier.

"AHH!" As his fist hit, it was stopped and held in place, tons of little sparks emitting from the point of contact. "Ah! OUCH!"

Sonic rushed up to him. "Take your hand away!"

"Uh—ah!" He grunted with the effort, but pulled his hand away from the barrier. "I was trying! It wouldn't let me!" The fox brought his hand into his chest and looked in the general direction of the barrier accusingly.

"Are you okay?" Sonic asked.

"Yeah," the fox replied. "I think I'm fine. That was really weird, though. It sort of... repels, if you push it too hard.."

Without looking at Tails, Sonic said, "We have to find a way through. Should we get back in the Tornado?"

"Hm…" The fox said hesitantly, "but don't you think this barrier or whatever would start from the ground?"

"I'm not sure, but the plane's got a whole arsenal of weapons and stuff. Maybe we could destroy it."

Tails thought. "I really doubt it, Sonic. What it did to me just now felt like being shocked – like electricity. Missiles and bombs aren't going to penetrate that, they'll just get electrocuted by it."

The hedgehog sighed. "Have any better ideas?"

"Let's run along the perimeter for a little ways, see if we can't find a way to get through. Maybe there's a switch somewhere to turn it off…?"

"Okay, let's do that, then," Sonic agreed, already beginning to jog. Tails, spinning his namesakes, flew along next to him.

"This feels a lot better. Those meds are working really well," the fox said. "I still feel a little heavier than usual, so I think they're still sort of weak, but at least it doesn't hurt."

"Good to hear," Sonic said. "Your flight may come in handy soon, too."

"There were several times already where it would have been handy…" Tails muttered.

"Yeah, I know. Same with my shoes. I think that's the idea, though. That's what Eggman wants."

"Speaking of Eggman…" Tails began, and his voice lowered as he dropped to Sonic's head level and whispered in his ear: "Should we be worried about these communicators? I completely forgot… and I have to believe he's still listening."

"Me too," Sonic said quietly back, hoping Eggman wouldn't hear. "We should have them turned off."

Tails shook his head. "That doesn't matter – he configured it so he can still hear through them, even when we think we have the connection closed. I messed around with them while you were piloting a few days ago, a little while before I zonked out."

"Should we ditch 'em?" Sonic asked, skidding to a halt so the two could communicate easier.

Tails dropped to the ground neatly, standing on his toes to reach Sonic's ear now. "Does it matter at this point? If this barrier is indeed a work of Eggman's, then he already knows where we are. And he must've heard our plans."

"Darn." Sonic's brows creased downward. Then, in the same second, his eyes brightened up again. "Hey, play along, okay?" He mouthed.

"Gotcha." Tails nodded.

When Sonic spoke next, it wasn't too low for Eggman to hear nor too loud to sound fake. "Hey, uh, Tails…" he began in a nervous tone, "did you ever grab the Chaos Emerald from the desk we set it on at that hotel?"

The fox hesitated for just the right amount of time. "…Wait, I thought you had it."

"Oh, man. We need that thing! What if Eggman goes after it?"

"Hold on a sec, let's not jump to conclusions!" Tails said, and actually jumped in front of Sonic with his arms pushed out in front of him, as if to stop him. "Maybe we did grab it absentmindedly… I don't remember leaving it there… maybe it's in the Tornado! C'mon, let's check!"

Sonic grinned at his friend's cleverness. They both paused for several seconds to account for the time it would have taken to get from where they were to the Tornado. When they 'arrived,' Sonic let out an impatient and annoyed sigh. "I can't believe we seriously did that."

"It's not there, is it?" The fox asked.

"Nope, bro, it's not. We have to get it!" Getting into the act, Sonic's fist clenched in determination.

"But Sonic, can we afford to waste time? Eight days…!"

In typical Sonic fashion, the hedgehog's voice perked up confidently. "You know what, that's plenty of time. I'm fast enough!"

"We can do it... but we're going to have to be extra fast when we get back! We'll be down to only a few days by the time we're back here again."

"No problem. Let's get going!" And Sonic did get going… but only for the purpose of creating a sonic boom, which Eggman would surely take as an implication that the two had left for Australia again.

He came back about ten seconds later, beginning to rip his communicator off before even coming to a full stop. Tails did the same, beaming from ear to ear, and handed his to Sonic. Wordlessly, Sonic took off at a slower pace (as in, a few miles short of breaking the sound barrier again) to discard them.

Another ten or so seconds passed. "I tossed 'em in a stream a few miles away," the hedgehog said upon returning. "It's nice and loud there – Eggman'll think something went wrong with the connection. It'll sound like static."

"Perfect! That was great thinking, Sonic!"

"Yeah, that's what comes out when I hang around with you for too long," the hedgehog said with a wink. Tails grinned.

"We'd make good actors, huh?"

"Probably would," Sonic agreed. "We should take that up instead of this superhero business. More money." When Tails' expression changed to appalled, Sonic laughed. "Come on, don't you know me well enough by now? I'm just kidding!"

"I knew that," the fox said, though the blank look on his face said otherwise. His cheeks turned a little pink, and he quickly changed the subject. "So should we, uh, keep looking around?"

"If you say so," Sonic smirked. They continued where they left off, keeping their eyes peeled for a switch, an inconsistency in the barrier… anything unusual, really.

"So, Sonic," Tails said after a few minutes, "you think Eggman is just sitting there all confused? Or is he going to Australia to beat us to the made-up Chaos Emerald?"

"He's probably sending his robots to do the work for him, like always," the hedgehog answered, rolling his eyes. "Which is definitely a good thing. It'll take him longer to realize we tricked him."

"I hope he fell for it."

"How could he not? It was sweet. Besides, we pretty much forgot he was listening in over the past few days, so he heard just about everything significant we said then. Why would he suddenly think this conversation was staged?"

"Guess there's no reason for him to," Tails conceded.

"Exactly!"

"Hey, um…"

"What's wrong?"

Tails chuckled. "We do still have both of our Chaos Emeralds, right?"

Sonic's face relaxed. "Of course!"

"…Chaos Emerald!" Tails' voice changed from slightly nervous to out-and-out terrified… or at least that's what it sounded like to Sonic, who came to an abrupt stop and turned toward his friend.

"What now? You okay, Tails?"

Upon making eye contact with the fox, though, Sonic saw that it wasn't terror at all – it was excitement. His gaze was directed at something shining on the ground…

"Whoa!" Sonic exclaimed, understanding. Grinning triumphantly, he leaned down to snatch the gem. He wrapped his fingers around it, then paused, still bent over.

Tails approached him, confused. "Uh, Sonic?"

"I… I can't pick it up," the hedgehog said. "What's going on?"

"Here, let me see," Tails said. Sonic moved out of the way so he could try picking up the Emerald. He gave the gem a tug, but it was as if it was rooted into the ground. "It seems like the barrier is holding it in place."

"So… this barrier is all about keeping us from taking the Chaos Emeralds, huh? Looks like we were right – something's definitely going on behind our backs." Sonic frowned at the atmosphere, wishing that he could listen to Eggman's plans instead of the other way around.

"Hold on, I had that backwards," Tails said, reconsidering. "I think what I should have said is, the Emerald… is holding the barrier in place."

Sonic looked at him skeptically. "Like, it's creating it?"

"Yeah. Which means it has to stop somewhere, right? If we just keep following it to the end…"

"What if it's closed up? Circular, or something?"

"Didn't think of that," the fox admitted.

"I have an idea, anyway," Sonic said brightly. "Can I see the other Emerald?"

Tails saw the too-ready glint in his friend's eye, the one that said he was about to do something reckless. "What're you going to do?" He questioned warily, making no move to comply with Sonic's request.

"Just hand it to me. I know what I'm doing, I've used these things before." When Tails still didn't agree, he added, "C'mon. Trust me."

"I'd trust you with anybody's life but your own," the fox said simply. He folded his arms. He knew he was going to give Sonic the Emerald… but why not give him a hard time first? If he's going to be so impulsive, maybe it's time I started to let him know I'm not happy about it. He's my partner in crime; I gotta look out for him, too!

"What's that supposed to mean? I'm not a kamikaze pilot, here – I just want to try something. Be experimental."

"Experimental is a nice word for it," Tails said. "You're going to try and break through, aren't you?"

Sonic folded his arms, too, but not impatiently. "Eight days…"

That did it. "…Okay, fine," Tails gave in, tossing Sonic the Chaos Emerald.

Holding one Emerald in his left hand and the other in his right, Sonic closed his eyes and rose into the air. Without actually moving, he drifted backward through the air until he was a reasonable distance from the barrier. Tails got out of the way.

Sonic opened his eyes as a translucent, glowing film surrounded him. Tails watched as he simply floated there for some seconds, seemingly gathering energy. Then – leaving the Chaos Emeralds behind in case something went wrong, but hanging onto the power they had lent him – he bolted forward.

There was a loud cackle, several flashes, and a cry of either shock or pain. Or both. Then Sonic was lying on the ground, devoid of his Chaos powers, on the same side of the barrier he had started on. Predictable.

Tails walked swiftly toward his injured friend, as if he'd been prepared to do so. He started to ask if he was all right, but by the time he approached, Sonic was pushing himself to his feet. He gave Tails a weak thumbs-up.

Tails just shook his head and smiled an I-told-you-so smile. "Masochist."

"It didn't work…?" The hedgehog said, breathing heavily. "There's no way I shouldn't have been able to overcome that. I had two Emeralds, and there's only one creating this barrier. It doesn't make sense!"

"There's only one? You know for sure?"

"We ran for a good ways, and it's the only one I've seen," Sonic said. "But… you're right. I don't know what other explanation there could be." He stopped and looked at the barrier… or rather, through it, since it was invisible. "This thing must be colossal."

"But... then... now what, Sonic? If we can't get in, then we have a huge problem."

The hedgehog grinned at Tails's constant jumping to conclusions. "If there's one thing I've learned from all the battles I wind up in, it's that everything has a weakness. I'm thinking I'll take a run around the entire thing, see how many Chaos Emeralds it's running on, find out if there's a way in," Sonic said.

"After what happened last time, splitting up probably isn't the best idea," Tails began, "but since we're low on time anyway, want me to take the Tornado up? Maybe I can come up with a way to break through…"

"If you want to," the hedgehog agreed. "I'd make sure your shields are working, though. Never know when we're going to get ambushed again."

"Should we meet up back here?"

"Sounds like a plan. Twenty minutes good for you?" Sonic asked.

"Depends on how big the barrier is," Tails pointed out, "but yeah, let's start with that. And don't worry, the Tornado's shields are working. Besides, what're the chances we'll get attacked in this fifteen minute window? It's not like Eggman can track us anymore."

Sonic stifled a laugh. "What were the chances we'd get knocked out for half a year and wake up poisoned? What were the chances Zorro was still alive that night after we transformed with the Super Emeralds? What were the chances I'd almost end up paralyzed for life in Eggman's base a few years ago?"

"The shields are working," Tails repeated.

"I know. Just messin'. You asked for that one."

"Yeah, I sort of did," Tails conceded, and then said, "Hey, eight days. We should get to work, Sonic!"

The hedgehog nodded in compliance and ran off without a second thought. Tails's already spinning propellers caught the air as he headed in the opposite direction and back to the Tornado.

Tails was the first to discover something, and it was before even ten of their twenty minutes went by. He was flying low – only about three hundred yards up – and had a clear aerial view of the area beneath him. Every once in a while, a glint would catch his eye, and he would assume it to be a Chaos Emerald. This time, though, it wasn't a tiny gem, but something significantly larger – a subway entrance. A metal structure created the tunnel that descended underground… and it also created the glint that the fox was watching.

"Goin' down," he said to himself, and began to bring the plane back toward the ground. It didn't take long to catch sight of the speeding bullet that was Sonic. Upon seeing him, he accelerated the Tornado and swooped down. The hedgehog, hearing the noise, slowed down enough for Tails to catch up.

"Hop on!" Tails said when he was flying alongside his friend. Sonic obliged, leaping up and letting the right wing catch him.

"What's up?"

"There's a subway over there a little ways, and I think it's right outside the barrier's limit," Tails explained.

Sonic shot him a confused look. "I'm starving, too, but don't you think the sandwiches can wait?"

"Not that subway, silly. I'm thinking that the barrier won't reach too far underground. If we can get in the subway station, we might be able to sneak past that barrier, too. Get what I mean?"

"Yeah. That's not a bad idea."

"I'm turning a little now," Tails warned. Sonic dropped to his hands to grip the wing. As the plane swung to the right, he saw the subway Tails was talking about. "Keep hanging on, I'm gonna come in for a landing right from the turn."

"Got it," the hedgehog said, and once the plane got close enough to the ground, he hopped off and landed smoothly on one knee – a move a normal person wouldn't be able to pull off without snapping their patella or femur. He strolled forward towards the stairs as Tails landed the plane on the side of the road.

"Hold up, I'm comin'," Tails called from a short distance back, climbing down from the Tornado. He caught up to Sonic and walked alongside him. When they got to the stairs, they both came to a stop.

"Wow, this thing isn't even running, is it? It looks dark down there."

Sonic nodded in agreement. "I wonder if Eggman's got something to do with this…" he said. "Why would a subway be shut down at this time of day? People are getting off work for lunch and stuff. You'd think…"

"You know, now that you mention it, there aren't even people around here. Where are we, anyway?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Sonic answered. "It's not Station Square or Central City – I think those two are further in. Maybe there aren't a lot of people around because this could just be a quiet city. Who knows?"

"Eh, I don't think so," the fox said, seeing through Sonic's attempt at comfort.

"Me either," Sonic admitted.

Tails cast a glance down that dark path, biting his lip uncertainly. "Should we go down, then?"

"Guess we should. Watch your step." Sonic started forward into the darkness... but stopped a few steps later when Tails wasn't at his side.

The fox had his hands placed firmly on either shoulder, like he was cold. "Hey, do you mind if I, uh, hang onto you? So we don't get separated, and so…"

"So if you fall, you'll bring me down with you? Sure, why not?" The hedgehog finished. Tails didn't have a phobia for darkness, he knew, but at his age, it probably still made him a little uneasy.

"I'm not scared," Tails said, as if reading his mind. The words seemed pretty genuine. "Really. Not of the dark itself, anyway. I just don't want us to get split up again. This could be a trap. Maybe Eggman has the barrier set up this way because he wanted us to go down there. And I don't want to risk…" he paused, searching for words, "losing you. A little over a week left for us to hang out is short enough already, and…"

"We have more than a week, Tails. We'll find the antidote. Don't worry about it." Tails didn't respond. "Come on, let's go down. What could be so harmful about a subway?" Sonic smiled at his friend, then began leading the way. Tails headed down as well, but not without grabbing onto Sonic's arm first. He fell quiet after that, his heavy breathing the only noise he made.

Sonic, becoming concerned at the fox's panic, asked, "What brought this one? You weren't having separation issues a little while ago when we split up to find a way through the barrier."

"I know," Tails answered, and his voice had an undercurrent of desperation. "I just don 't feel good about this, that's all. Maybe it's instinct."

"The subway, you mean?"

"Everything. Why there were no people around, how dark it is, and… what we're going to see at the other end of this subway. Sonic, there's a reason for all of it! Eggman's been up to something big, and we're bringing ourselves right into it!"

"So, what's new?"

"Sonic…" Tails pleaded. "You don't feel it too?"

"I feel like I normally feel under these kind of circumstances. There's nothing different about it. We've been in this kind of situation before."

"There is something different," Tails disagreed. "I'm not trying to sound hopeless or pessimistic. It just feels different. I can't explain it!"

Both of them fell silent, Sonic trying to understand what Tails was experiencing. They had stopped subconsciously about halfway down the stairs. There was just enough light coming from the top for them to see each other's faces. "Look," Sonic finally said, and Tails looked up at him. "Let's just hurry up and get ourselves out of here. Then we'll see how you feel once we're in daylight again, okay?"

"This isn't fear, Sonic," Tails insisted. "It doesn't have to do with the dark. Something just doesn't feel right."

Sonic gave his friend a gentle push and they began walking again. He put an arm around Tails's shoulders. "That better?"

"A little," he said.

"Just try and shake it off. Maybe it's just in your head."

"Maybe," the fox allowed. Then: "Hey, Sonic?"

"Hmm?"

"I can still see you. Do you notice it's not getting any darker in here?"

"Hm, yeah, you're right. Looks like there's a little bit of light coming from the bottom of the stairs, too."

"None where we need it," Tails muttered, looking up at the dark ceiling above them. "Someone must really want us to fall down these stairs."

Upon reaching the bottom, they discovered the source of the light: they were the lights inside the buses that were rushing by. "The subway is running," Sonic said. "The station lights just aren't on. Wonder why?"

"I don't know, either. That's sort of weird. Sort of pointless, too," he added.

"Yeah, I guess it doesn't really matter. Should we hop on one of the buses?"

"Easier said than done," Tails replied. "They're not stopping. They're just whizzing on by." As he spoke, another one cruised right past their station, not even slowing. The wind whipped the fox's bangs to one side.

Sonic took his arm away from Tails' shoulders and walked closer to the track. "It looks really high-tech, doesn't it?"

"Yeah. No drivers or anything," Tails said. "It's all automatic. Seems like something Eggman would create, doesn't it?"

Sonic never answered Tails's question, for as soon as he asked it, the system came to an abrupt stop. All lights went black, all trains halted with a loud screech.

Tails inhaled a deep breath. "What's—" He began, but was cut off by another noise: a loud slam coming from somewhere above them. "Was that the entrance?"

Sonic looked up the stairs. He could no longer see the speck of light coming from the subway's entrance. It was closed off. "We're trapped."

There were a few minutes of quiet while Tails struggled to keep himself together. Sonic didn't have to see his face to know he was still tense. Whatever it was that had him on edge had really taken its toll – the hedgehog knew Tails didn't normally overreact like this.

When the fox did finally speak again, though, he had calmed himself down. "You know what, maybe it was all in my head. Maybe it's all the Chaos power from this barrier. Chaos Emeralds can do stuff to your head, right?"

Sonic nodded, then remembered Tails couldn't see it and said, "Definitely. Even if you're only a little wound up, the Chaos Emeralds can take that and make it worse. They run on emotion, so you have to keep your own emotions in check."

"But I've never had this problem before," Tails said. "Whenever I'm around all seven Emeralds, I've never been like this."

"Well, think about it. This is the first time you've been near so many Chaos Emeralds since we transformed with the Super Emeralds six months ago. Now that your body knows and recognizes Chaos energy, your mind is probably more bonded with it, too."

"Probably. I wish we could use the Emeralds physically right now, though. We can't even use the ones that are making this stupid barrier. All we have are our two."

"Speaking of the Chaos Emeralds," Sonic began thoughtfully, "Do you think all the energy could be messing with the subway's mechanisms? Maybe that's why everything shut down. Maybe it blew a fuse, or something."

"That makes a lot of sense," the fox agreed. "And if that's what happened… Sonic, I might be able to get it running again! Oh, but…"

"What's wrong?"

"On second thought, I don't know. It might be really hard to get it running again with the barrier still all powered up. Even if I can pull it off, all the energy above us will probably cause the same thing to happen again only minutes later. The circuit will blow again."

"Hmm… I can't deactivate the barrier," Sonic said, "but if I use our two Emeralds, maybe there's a way I can weaken it temporarily. It wouldn't be nearly enough for us to get in and out of it… but maybe it would be enough to let the subway run again for a while."

"Will that hurt you, though? I mean… we know the barrier must be made up of more than two Emeralds, since you couldn't get through it using ours—"

"Five."

"What?"

"Five Emeralds. I had already run the perimeter when you came back down earlier, and all the Emeralds we don't have are making up the barrier."

"See, that's what I mean. Can you weaken the power of five Chaos Emeralds with only your two?"

Sonic smiled. Even though his eyes were adapting, Tails could barely see it. "You bet. I'm pretty experienced at this, you know – don't doubt me!"

"Okay," the fox said. "I'll give it a whirl, then. First, I have to go find where the circuit failed."

"How do you do that?"

"It shouldn't be too hard, actually," Tails said. "It would likely be right under where all that energy is compacted; right under the barrier. Somewhere around here. I do wish I had some light, but my eyesight is pretty good in the dark, so I should be able to find it." As he spoke, he wound up his tails and rose, flying toward the tracks.

"Want me to do anything yet, Tails?"

"Not yet. No need to waste your energy. Hang tight until I find what I'm looking for here, and I'll let you know, okay?"

"You got it."

Tails flew cautiously over the tracks until he ran into one of the trains. Feeling his way up it, he crawled on top and looked out over the tracks from there, squinting hard. Something caught his eye and he snapped his head in that direction. After a few seconds, he saw sparks there. "That was easy enough."

"Find something?"

"Yup," the fox replied, flying down back down to the tracks. He paused every once in a while, waiting for another spark to guide him, until he was close enough.

"Where are ya?"

"I'm down here on the rails. This rail here doesn't seem to be part of the actual track, although it's right between the two track rails. I think it's a conductor rail," he explained.

"You didn't bring any of your tools, did you?"

"No. It didn't occur to me that I'd need them. This can be dangerous work to do in the dark as it is, much less with bare hands. I don't even have my rubber gloves."

"Should we find another way, then? Electrocuting yourself isn't going to get us much further."

"You got yourself electrocuted on the barrier a little while ago," Tails reminded him. "Besides, I think I know what I'm doing. As long as the wires are covered, I shouldn't have to worry too much. After all, maintenance workers have to do this, too."

"Should I weaken the barrier, yet?"

"Sure, whenever you're ready," Tails told him. "I managed to get a section of the rail open here, thanks to a loose screw. Now all I have to do is…"

Sonic tuned the rest of his friend's technical babble, closing his eyes. The two Chaos Emeralds rose from his hands and began to glow, illuminating the room slightly. He was so adept at using the powerful gems that emotion was rarely an issue; he could always find the pleasant feelings and thoughts and bring them to the surface, making Chaos transformation easy to accomplish time after time.

He had never tried transforming when he was impatient or angry. He didn't want to know the result.

Seconds ticked away. Normally, Sonic would have finished his transformation by now, but since a lot of energy was needed to do what he was about to do, he took his time, concentrating on the wisps of power flowing from the Emeralds to his body.

A few seconds later, he began to sense an emptiness from the Emeralds. He had taken almost all their power. Dropping his hands, he let the drained Emeralds clatter to the ground. Then he ascended upward, almost to the ceiling, and floated there.

Breathing deeply, Sonic directed the energy within him outward, keeping the vision of the other five Chaos Emeralds vivid in his mind. The five Emeralds making up the barrier responded immediately to the interference, as if they were trying to block it out.

Just as I thought. Those five are adapted to each other, but not to the two outsiders. These two probably haven't been near the others since we were put in comas, so they'll be hard to adapt.

Sonic continued to focus. He knew he couldn't draw on the barrier's Chaos power alone, but with the aid of his two Emeralds, it was possible… if he could only get them on the same frequency as the other five. As he willed the Chaos Emeralds to come together, as they had done so many times in the past, he felt it: something overwhelming, something beyond comprehension unless it had been experienced. It wasn't pain, nor was it pleasure, but a mix of the two that somehow managed to feel entirely different from both. Sonic's method was working.

There was a loud rumbling, and suddenly, everything began to vibrate. Under different circumstances, Sonic might have become unnerved… but he knew exactly what the cause was. It was just like putting a cold-blooded animal in a hot climate; eventually, it would have to adjust or die. Seeing as how the Chaos Emeralds were incapable of being permanently disabled, they'd had no choice but to adjust. The result: a flash of bright light ascending from all seven Emeralds, signifying that they were one. The sudden energy had caused a near-earthquake.

When Sonic had found Chaos Emeralds in the past, they hadn't needed to adapt because they were never apart for that long – and if they were, they had usually adapted before the hedgehog had needed to use them. Therefore, Sonic had known that what he had just accomplished was possible, but he'd never actually done it before. Hah! I'm good!

The hedgehog began to descend back towards ground again, his surprise (and his ego) distracting him momentarily. Realizing his mistake, he refocused on the barrier, now starting to absorb its power as well. It wasn't easy, since he wasn't the only force trying to control the energy. The barrier itself seemed to be opposing him, and he swore the pressure he felt was partly physical, as well. But so far, he was winning the battle. For a second, he wondered if he couldn't bring the barrier down all together this way, but then pushed the idea away. That was something to worry about later, and not while they were standing on the edge of life and death.

Through his focus, the hedgehog heard a triumphant "Got it!" from Tails. It was faint, like background music in a noisy store, but it was enough to snap Sonic out of his trance. He opened his eyes. Tails was watching him, able to see him slightly due to the glow. "Sonic, I think I fixed it!" He said. "Now I just need to find the power switch that turns the system on and off. I'll have to turn it off again, then turn it back on, and we should be all—"

Tails was cut off by the roar of something mechanical coming to life. Then the lights flickered and came back on. "Wh-what?" He asked to the atmosphere, confused. "But I thought it wouldn't come on until I restarted it. Normally, when you blow a fuse, you have—"

"Tails, get off the track!" Sonic suddenly hollered. His focus on the barrier was ripped in half at what he saw as he shouted those words: a bus was coming. With the sudden lack of concentration came a drastic drop in Chaos energy; he fell to the ground, catching himself on his hands and knees.

Time slowed as the hedgehog witnessed what was about to happen.

"AHH!" Tails's eyes widened in utter terror, and suddenly, he was petrified to the spot. It was as if all the muscles in his body had forgotten how to work.

"Tails…!" Sonic yelled, though this time it was weaker. Adapting the Chaos Emeralds had taken its toll; he was on the verge of passing out. "Tails, move…!"

Help me! HELP ME! The fox thought, but he couldn't bring the words to his lips. He didn't remember how. All he knew in that small window of time was how close that bus was to him. He had about two seconds to get himself out of the way… and he couldn't move fast enough… and for some reason, Sonic wasn't coming…

He didn't know where the strength came from, but flight-or-fight responses finally kicked into gear. Instinct rather than conscious thoughts took over as Tails threw himself flat on the track, face down, arms tucked under his body.

Hot air surrounded him as the bus sped over him noisily, its wheels screeching over the rails. The body of the train was raised just enough to miss Tails, cruising over him by inches. The level of fear the fox felt was so high that he couldn't even scream. He realized his back was burning, but even when the pain registered, he couldn't make a sound. What were mere seconds in reality seemed like minutes.

And then everything was quiet. It stayed that way for a long time. Both hedgehog and fox were rooted to the spot, one out of instinct and one out of fatigue.

Finally, the silence was broken with an agonized, pleading question that sounded nothing like Sonic.

"T-Tails? You okay?"

Sonic's voice was the trigger that sparked life in the fox again, and no sooner had he spoken the words when Tails scrambled away from the track and up onto the solid, harmless ground again, breathing hard. He found himself nearly face to face with the hedgehog, who was struggling to sit up. Upon seeing the fox, Sonic's expression collapsed with relief.

"You... you didn't get hit," the hedgehog managed, awe breaking through the weakness in his voice. "You're not... you're not hurt?"

"I'm…" Tails paused to swallow. "I'm fine," he breathed. He got down on his knees, catching his breath, before asking, "How about you? You just sort of… you know, fell down."

"I'm okay," the hedgehog grunted as he finally pushed himself up.

"What's wrong, then?" Tails asked, sensing a 'but' in his voice.

Sonic just watched him for a moment, then shook his head once and smiled a little. "Nothing," he said. "That was really quick thinking on your part."

"Yeah. That was close. That was way too close."

"Nice job."

"Uh, thanks," Tails said, not sure if Sonic was referring to getting the station running again or escaping death. "We should… we should hurry up and get to the other end of this thing. I don't want to have to do that again."

"Me neither," Sonic admitted.

"Did you have a hard time?"

"A little bit. It's not easy getting Emeralds to adapt to each other. That's what all the shaking was, by the way."

"I figured as much," Tails replied. "Come on, let's go right now."

"You're going to leave the Tornado behind?"

"It won't fit down that tunnel," the fox said. "Otherwise I would bring it. But it's okay; I can come back for it after we bring down the barrier. I was working on a Tornado 2 archetype at home, anyway. Well, assuming home is within the barrier's limits."

"It is," Sonic assured. "Most of Mystic Ruins is part of this, too."

"Most of?"

"The barrier didn't extend to Angel Island," Sonic explained. "I'm willing to bet it's because of the Master Emerald."

"At any rate…" Tails said, shaking his head.

"Right, let's go. Grab on!"

Tails nodded and clutched Sonic's arm, ready for the ride. The fear that had overcome him earlier was gone for now; he was ready for whatever lied ahead.