"YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE YOU F***ING F***!" Shadow was livid that his rival had both saved him, and that he had very nearly obliterated the only resistance left on Mobius.

Sonic shrugged, grinning. He hadn't thought Shadow would be fooled long. Neither of them had ever tripped, ever. He had a natural ability to either avoid or simply crush anything that would stumble him, and his dark-toned friend could glide over them.

Shadow continued to mutter under his breath. His mind control had been broken, and the metallic crown that assisted it had shattered. Now they were dashing across plains outside the city, locating the remaining Emblems on Rouge's tracker. Sonic had explained what had happened to Knuckles, Cream, Cheese, and Rouge. Shadow had bowed his head and sadly told him to let him in peace for an hour. He had complied and when he returned, the black figure had been staring at the moon. Sonic had seen a single tear on his cheek, which was wiped away. Even he, steel emotions and all, had felt their loss.

After they had reunited again, they had discussed why the first group had been mortally wounded when they were broken, and why Rouge had more resistance, with him actually alive. The answer was believed to be that Shadow had been beaten too far to resist, Rogue had given in to survive, but the others had their minds simply overwhelmed.

A beep brought attention back to the tracker. A large tripled red icon was flashing on the screen, heading towards the two. They looked at each other and nodded. Only one other trio could be together still, the combo that was most effective together. The three that had represented 'bad' before true evil showed up.

Moving quickly, a trap was set, the two hiding behind a large rock directly in the path of the oncoming Emblems. A clomping sound soon echoed across the desolate landscape, signaling the Emblems' approach.

The partners turned to each other, and Shadow counted down. At zero, they jumped out and zoomed in a circle around the three units. The largest, central one raised its arms and a shield of blue energy expanded about the machines. The two smaller robots turned back to back and raised large guns. Shadow and Sonic got ready to , though, the central one raised its arms again and smacked the other two in the helmet. A large cone extended from its 'head', and a familiar voice was heard:

"Shadow? Sonic? You're free! Gadzooks, I'd never have guessed! I was so sure Shadow was gone forever when I saw him at my headquarters, and the 'blue menace' was supposedly dead in Victor's Square!"

Shadow smiled slightly. "It's harder to kill us than one might think, as you would know. Nice to see you're still sane, Doctor."

/

Eggman:

I leaned back in my control chair, musing about conquest. First, I would build a newer version of the E- series, speed upgrades and the like, possibly invent something to slow time… Pleased by my thoughts, I started to nod off when a klaxon went off. I jerked back upright and checked the scanners. There was something approaching, but the thing that truly caught my eye was the power meter. I shook my head. It must be malfunctioning. The meter was rising rapidly the closer the mysterious figure approached. My cameras exploded when within sight range of it. I checked the meter. It was now at the power level of Super Sonic, and still rising exponentially. I started to worry. I called Decoe, Bocoe, and Bokkun into the control center from their repair stations. I pulled the defense lever. Immediately, every weapon in my arsenal was brought online. They targeted the incoming figure. I checked the meter again. Now it was beyond Hyper Shadic's power level, and still rising. I knew then anything with that much power meant business, and bad business, at that. I jerked the lever forward and my offensive grid fired everything we had. Missile after missile sped out toward the now visible hedgehog shape. Bullets spat out of every corner, and robots rushed out by the thousands. I smiled. Nothing could withstand that. I glanced at the meter again confidently, turned away, and spun back again in disbelief. It now held a single digit: infinity. I looked out the window with trepidation. A large battle was raging, and getting closer with every second. I knew I wouldn't be able to win this one, at least for the present. I swallowed and readied the Egg-Mobile for emergency transport, loading on the essentials. Decoe and Bocoe boarded, with Bokkun starting his jetpack.

"Bokkun!" I commanded. "Get going and warn anyone you can about this. Tell them I'll… I'll do whatever it takes, but get them to help me, now! And stay out of sight! If that thing catches you, you're toast."

He paled at the unspoken admission that we were royally beaten, and saluted sharply. He boosted up, and shot off into the sky. A flash of light outside caught my eye, and when I turned back, Bokkun was gone.

I sighed. I hadn't even planned anything! First a crazy Sonic, then this guy. If this was Sonic with another fancy power, then we would parlay, if possible. If not… I glanced at my large red 'Self-destruct' button on my console. I could blast out before pushing it. I turned the throttle inside the Egg-Mobile up, ready to go. The war outside had reached the inner compound, and would be inside any second-

BOOM! A large cloud of dust flew out, and a pitch-black hedgehog strode into my command center. I started to flee, but it called out in a deep malevolent voice:

"Stop! Or your friend will be destroyed." I looked, and saw Bokkun dangling helplessly from an iron grip. I slapped myself mentally. I decided to try to get him back.

"Okay, okay. What do you wish from us?"

He laughed. "I? I want nothing but to offer you the chance of a lifetime… Your lifetime."

Well, that pretty much summed up our options. "I'm listening."

He smirked. "I thought so. You have two choices: join me or I will obliterate you."

"I see. Could I inquire as to why? Or are you just h***bent on killing everything?"

He chuckled darkly. "I am eliminating possible resistance, and I am recruiting. Which shall it be? Death, or service?"

I glared at Bokkun and spoke to him directly. "You idiot. You bind me in the worst situations. I should let him reduce you to scrap. But," I turned back to the ebony figure, "I will concede. May I have the pleasure of knowing my new employer's name?"

He smiled. "I am Negatem. And you will call me Master."

I started to glare, but stopped and swallowed my pride. "Yes, Master."

He grinned evilly, noting the momentary hesitation. "Good. Now, you will built me a special station, where any and all I choose will be embedded in a special machine, allowing me to control their mind and actions. Also, I want to be able to track them at all times. Understand?"

I bowed my head. "As you wish, Master." I said reluctantly. "Can I have Bokkun back, now? For the building."

"Nay. I believe you are intelligent in surrendering, but I will imbed this in your mind. The price," He held up the weakly struggling Bokkun, "of resistance" he grinned and stared at me, "is death." In one swift movement, the loathsome devil flexed his clawed hand, and his captive's cranium imploded.

I half cried out, knowing he was gone. I slumped to the ground. Bokkun had been with me for so long, so very long, and now… Gone. By the callous actions of one psychotic hedgehog. I swore then and there that I would find a way to find my revenge. I pulled myself up. Not today, but eventually, I would get him.

Said spawn of Satan laughed and tossed the corpse at my feet. I gathered up what was left and, with the help of two friends I had left, brought it to my workstation. I put it in a metal container. Without looking at them, I told Decoe and Bocoe to begin working. They complied, knowing what I was feeling, and knowing I couldn't handle any sympathy for now. I sank into a chair, put my head in my hands, and sobbed. After a few minutes of this, I wiped away my tears, and I brought out a grid paper. I would design his gizmo, oh yes, but with a few extras included. I scrabbled my pen furiously. I would have my revenge. That b****** would pay for Bokkun's death, and by one creature I could be sure would escape his wrath.

/

I worked for hours, building his precious machine. After backbreaking labor, it was finished. It was a room-size cylinder with a sliding door on the side. Inside, a special robotic system was in place for the purpose of synthesizing a mechanized suit around the person inside. It would give a direct link to Negatem, and thus keeping everyone under his control. While Decoe and Bocoe physically put the parts together, I had tried to get any type of response from Rouge or Shadow. Nothing, not even their eyes shifted. I sighed.

Negatem strolled down the stairs to check on me. He clapped his hands, seeing no work being done, and correctly guessed we had finished. He asked me about the controls, and I gave him a brief outline, noting some of the peculiarities that all my machines possess, such as the unit resembling the original figure in some fashion, although generally transformed into a weapon. Negatem was pleased and congratulated me on my work. I simply shrugged and lowered my eyes. Even the joy of inventing couldn't conceal the pain I felt. Negatem called Rouge over.

"Ready for a test run, doctor? I'd like to see a confirmation that this won't simply blow up in my face."

I slumped, knowing that whatever I did, he would win. So I reluctantly began the start-up protocol and instructed Rouge to enter, which she stiffly did. I typed in the final commands and brought out a red button. I stared at it, and something inside wouldn't let me press it. I turned to Negatem and held up the console, ready to smash it. Unfortunately, he thought I was offering it to him, so he snatched it and pressed the button before I could protest.

The cylinder flashed and beeped, the parts whirring and churning. I sank to my knees in horror at what I had created, a machine that actually suppressed free thought. I shook my head. Even I wanted the freedom to think as I chose, and I was supposed to be the villain here!

After a few minutes, the machine shut down. The door slid open, and a flow of steam obscured the figure inside. It slowly cleared to reveal… A robotic unit standing within. It was sleek, black, looking as an assassin would. Gazing at it, I saw a tracker, explosives, and a thin blade.

Negatem clapped his hand on my back, then commanded the unit to stand by Shadow. He grinned, wild with his conquest.

"Well, it seems your reputation in well deserved, doctor! As a reward to you, you shall be the head of these mechanics, and answerable only to me."

I mumbled my thanks. He ignored me and turned to Decoe and Bocoe. "And what help you have! Tell me, have you discovered the secret to artificial intelligence?"

I shrugged, for once uninterested in science or explanation. "No, these two were part of a program that had some very unintended errors. I can replicate the programming, but I can never be sure of the results. I believe these are the only two specimens I could create containing AI."

"Ah." he said, eyeing them oddly. "You are the 'bad guy' who faces off against Sonic, am I right?"

I nodded slowly, puzzled by the off-topic question. "Yeah, but he usually wins."

Negatem chuckled. "But that was while you were hindered!"

"What?"

"Do you wish to defeat Sonic?"

"Well, sure, but-"

"A true artist in the art of destruction; a crudely referred to "villain" must have nothing holding him back. These," he flicked his finger at my robots, "hold you down. You said it yourself, you should have reduced them to scrap once you gained any relationship to them other than master to slave. I will rectify this for you now, then you will be a true servant of darkness."I gaped, unable to move. I thought, stunned, "No… not them too! Not everything, not my… friends."

"Yes, your friends." He said to me. I stepped back, alarmed. He had read my thoughts!

The sinister black hedgehog focused his eyes on my two robots, and began to emit a wave of black energy toward them. Their eyes widened, then slowly blanked. The shifted from their usual lazy slouching to a strict attention, unmoving. Negatem pulsed once more, harder, and then stopped. He turned to me.

"Now now, I couldn't let you be weighed down with this lot. I do hope you see it my way." he said with an evil snicker.

I just stared, shocked. I jumped up and went to them, checking every diagnostic I could, trying to find any remnant of their wills. Nothing. I stepped back, shaking. They were, in effect, dead.

Negatem laughed callously and began walking upstairs. "I'll leave you to your new friends now. Don't forget to beef them up for battle, they seem a little puny." He laughed again. "I leave now to test out Rouge's capabilities in the field. Perhaps you'll have a few new toys to play with!"

When he had left, I sagged down into a workbench and put my head in my hands. My fellows, now simply mindless machines, stood stiffly and stared straight ahead. I had lost everything, my freedom, my friends, my life's work. I was desolate, alone.

///