It was New Year's Day at the Thorndyke's yacht. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Chuck smiled at the group. "Just a few more minutes to go!"

Amy grinned. "This is the perfect way to start the new year!"

"I agree!" Penny grinned.

"Yeah!" Chris said with a smile. "Much better than celebrating it at midnight!"

Ella smiled. "Celebrating the first sunrise of the new year!" She looked at Mr. Tanaka. "Great idea, Mr. Tanaka!"

Mr. Tanaka smiled. "Thank you!"

Penny smiled at her friends and family, holding a box of noisemakers in her arms. "Get ready, everybody!" She said with a smile. "As soon as the sun comes up, we'll pull up our noisemakers!" She said as she took one of the toys from the box. Everyone smiled as they took a noisemaker from the box, but Cream and Cheese were hesitant.

"Hold on, Penny, I think we should just wave to the sun instead, because if we make too much noise we might scare the sun away!" The little bunny cried. Cheese chaoed in agreement, hopping up and down in the air as she flew.

Penny smiled at Cream. "The sun isn't going to go away." She said.

Vanilla smiled lovingly at her daughter. "Don't you worry one bit, dear." Vanilla said. Cream looked up at her mother. Vanilla continued. "The sun will be happy to get such a nice welcome!"

Cream finally smiled. "Okay!" At that, the little bunny danced over to Penny, followed by Cheese, and took noisemakers of their own. Penny smiled. Okay. That should be everybody... Wait.

Someone was missing.

"Sonic needs one too!" She said, looking around for him. Tails laughed. "Look up there!" He said, pointing to the yacht's wing.

Penny followed his direction and saw Sonic sitting there, staring out into the sky. She wondered why he was standing there alone.

...

"I'm about to get the first rays of the new year, Rouge." Topaz told her bat friend as she layed down on a fold up chair on the beach.

"Jacques." Rouge answered. "When I go on vacation, I pick someplace nice. Like a dark cave!"

Topaz giggled. "That doesn't sound very appealing to me."

"I'm a bat. For me, a cave's a perfect place to hang out and chill!"

Topaz chuckled. "Well hanging out in a hole is just plain depressing. Now I see why your social life's so dull."

Rouge grumbled on the other end.

...

Mr. Tanaka smiled at the group in front of him, holding out his noisemaker. "Okay! Let's get ready!" He announced. "We will pull the strings all together. I will give you a signal as soon as the sun comes over the horizon. A few seconds more... the sky is getting lighter...lighter...it's almost here..."

Everyone gasped in excitement as the sun rose in the air.

"GO!"

At Mr. Tanaka's signal, Penny, Blaze, Silver, and everyone else pulled their noisemakers and cheered.

However, something dark caught Penny's eyes. She turned around, and to her shock, it was the Eggmoon. It covered up the sun completely, like an eclipse.

"No way!" Chris and Cloud gasped together.

"What's that?!" Amy asked.

"That doesn't look like the sun..." Cream whimpered, clutching her noise maker.

"It looks like a solar eclipse!" Chuck said, his eyes wide.

"What?! I thought there wasn't supposed to be an eclipse!" Penny said, her eyes wide.

...

At the Capitol Building...

"It's the Eggmoon?" The President asked, stunned.

"Yes, sir. Dr. Eggman changed its orbit. He's created an artificial eclipse."

"I want to speak to that lunatic immediately!" The President growled. Then the door opened. The President's eyes widened to see the one and only Eggman standing there, along with his two henchmen robots, Decoe and Bocoe.

"Have no fear, Eggman's here!" Eggman announced.

"How did you pass security?!" Cristina yelled.

Eggman put his hands to his side. "I pretended I was a bar of soap and gave them all the slip." Eggman said as he walked over to the President. However, the three villains were surrounded by the agents.

"Hold on!" Eggman yelped. "I came here peacefully!"

At that, the President raised his arms. "Wait, men!" He ordered. "Let's here what he has to say!"

The guards looked at the President with surprise and confusion. Eggman pushed through the guards and walked up to the President. "Mr. President, please believe me! I didn't move the Eggmoon on purpose!"

"You mean you moved the Eggmoon by accident?" The President asked, not clearly following the doctor.

Eggman placed his hands on the table. "The solar storm affected the Eggmoon's control system!" Eggman explained with a serious expression. "The Eggmoon went into a new orbit by mistake! I give you my solemn word that this eclipse wasn't caused by me!"

The President held his cool. "I don't believe you.."

"Please, sir!" Eggman said, clasping his hands together in a pleading motion. "I beg you to believe me! For I have a plan to make the sunshine return!"

The President rested his elbows on his desk and folded his hands. "Well, we do need the light desperately..."

"And I'm the man to deliver it, sir." Eggman said. "If I don't, lock me away!"

"What should we do, sir?" Cristina asked.

The President thought for a moment, then finally made his decision. "All right, I'll give you one chance."

"You won't regret this, Mr. President!" Eggman said, sounding promising. "My sunshine plan will leave you beaming!"

...

Topaz grumbled to herself as she packed her things away to get ready to go home.

"Oh. My vacation's been totally ruined now,"

"It's a good thing you're a hothead." Rouge told her. "You don't need the sun to keep you warm! What could be better for a bat than a planet that's dark everyday? This will do wonders for my nightlife! Girlfriend, I'm flying high!"

...

Back at the yacht, Cream and Cheese were crying about the sun's sudden disappearance. "I told you we shouldn't have made all that noise!" Cream sobbed. "The sun did get scared and now it's hiding!"

Penny and Vanilla looked at each other, unsure of what to say or do. Finally, Vanilla smiled softly at the girl. "I'm sure the sun will come back soon! This eclipse surely won't last for long!" She said, looking at the moon with worry.

Penny completely understood how Vanilla thought. She felt Cloud rest a hand gently on the girl's shoulders.

...

A few days later, Penny, Cloud, Silver, and the others were watching the news in Chuck's room. The theme song for the Sunshine balls appeared on the TV, and Penny frowned when Eggman appeared.

"Living in the dark is not only depressing in a public safety hazard, but it's bad for your lawn! The solution..."

Penny watched as Decoe and Bocoe lifted a cloth off a giant ball. To her, it looked like a giant lollipop.

"The Sunshine Ball! Thanks to my new invention, even the dingiest darkness will now be filled with luscious luminosity!"

"If you call within the next few minutes, you can take advantage of your special offer! New customers are eligible for free delivery and installation is half price!"

Eggman appeared on the screen after the robots announced that. "I wish I could offer installation for free also, but the robot union won't let me! Sorry about that!"

"Hey! We robots have to pay for oil, you know!" Decoe said, waving at the crowd with an innocent expression on his face.

"You better call soon! The Sunshine Ball is selling out!"

Penny looked over at Sonic. "What do you think?" She asked.

He said nothing, but kept his gaze at the TV. Penny knew why he was like that... he didn't rust Eggman. Not after all he's done.

Chris looked at Chuck. "What do we do?" He asked.

Chuck closed his eyes. "Well I miss the sun..." He mumbled.

Ella smiled, hands on her hips. "I hung up the laundry days ago and it's still not dry! A sunshine ball will sure be handy!"

Mr. Tanaka nodded. "I agree!"

"I guess it couldn't hurt..." Cloud said, putting his hand thoughtfully on his chin. "What harm could a little light do?"

Chuck smiled. "We should call for one right away!" He said.

Sonic stood up, and walked out. Penny looked after him.

"Sonic isn't sure that this is a good idea." Silver said. "After all Eggman's done, I'm still not sure I trust Dr. Eggman." At that, the ivory hedgehog stood up and walked after Sonic.

Amy looked after Silver. "If we don't trust Eggman we may have to live in the dark forever!"

"Maybe so," Chris said. "But how do we know Eggman's telling us the truth?"

"He sounds like he's sincere to me." Amy said.

"Maybe you're right..." Blaze said, switching her tail.

"Why else would he make a sunshine ball?" Tails asked.

"I guess you're right." Chris said.

"I need to think this through. If you'd excuse me, please." Penny suddenly said, standing up from her seat. The girl brushed herself off, and walked after Sonic and Silver.

She too didn't trust Eggman completely. Not yet.

But what if he was telling the truth?

...

"Steady now." Bocoe said as he and Decoe helped Helen's family apply their new Sunshine Ball to the roof of their house. "Man, this is wobbly!" Decoe said.

"We need to attach it to the base!" Bocoe said.

"Roger!" Decoe said.

"Turn it clockwise...keep going...a few more turns and we will be done." Bocoe said.

"This certainty is hard work." Decoe said.

"We should ask for a raise!" Bocoe said. He turned down to Helen and her parents and announced, "The Sunshine Ball is all set!"

"We are ready to test it out now!" Decoe said. They turned it on...

...and a bright light filled the whole place.

"It feels so warm!" Helen said, clasping her hands in excitement. "And best of all, the light is almost as bright as real sunshine!"

...

Watching from above, Knuckles was deep in thought. "It seems like Eggman is trying to help everybody, but can he really be trusted? I guess we don't have a choice."

Knuckles stared out into the world.

...

Soon, the whole colony of Station Square was filled with Sunshine Balls.

"Everybody should have a Sunshine ball!" Helen told Decoe and Bocoe. "Thank you!"

"Sounds like another glowing recommendation!" Decoe said, giving an excited glance at Bocoe. The two laughed, and drove off.

"You know," Bocoe told Decoe. "It feels wonderful to help others. My circuits are flowing with positively charged energy!"

"We should do this all the time!" Decoe said in agreement.

...

Meanwhile, at the City Counsel...

"I represent people on the west side of the city!" Jerome said angrily. "Why don't WE have Sunshine Balls yet?!"

"It'll take time to light up the whole city!" One of the Sunshine Ball producers said frantically.

"You expect us to live in the dark forever?!" Jerome yelled, slamming his fist on the table. "We demand our Sunshine Balls now!"

Everyone around him started chanting angrily.

"Let's just discuss this calmly" The Sunshine Ball producer said nervously.

"If we don't get Sunshine Balls in the next 24 hours, we'll march to the East Side and take them!" Jerome said threateningly.

...

"Hello?" Bokkun said as he answered a call. In his hands were four other phones. "Please hold! Yes? One moment! We're a little bit backed up by now! We'll get there as soon as we can! Thanks for calling!" The little robot squealed excitedly as he threw the four phones down, and flew over to Dr. Eggman. "Hey! Dr. Eggman!"

"Consumer Demand is greater than I expected!" Eggman growled. "We'll need another mirror tower to produce more artificial sunshine."

"Maybe the President can help us out!" Bokkun said excitedly.

Eggman sneered as he picked up the phone.

"Yes? This is the President speaking." The President answered on the other end.

"This is Dr. Eggman calling, Mr. President." Eggman said. "Can the government give me some free land to build another mirror tower? With all the demands for Sunshine Balls, our business is blazing!"

"Of course, Dr." The President said. "Whatever you need!"

"All I can say is Hail to the Chief!" Eggman said, laughing hysterically.

...

Over at the town park, everyone was surrounding one of the Sunshine Balls, excited to have the light back.

"We don't have to live in the dark anymore!" Jerome said, clasping his hands together in relief.

Sitting on a bench, an elder couple stared at a nearby Sunshine Ball. "It's not as bright as real sunlight." The husband said.

"But it sure beats not being able to see when you go outside," His wife said in agreement.

...

"You don't say!" Eggman said through the phone in excitement.

"A major crisis has been avoided, thanks to you, Dr. Eggman." The president said. "You're truly a hero!"

At that, Eggman started to get even more excited. No one had ever called him a hero before!

"A hero?" Eggman asked. "You mean just like Sonic and Silver?"

"That's right!" The President said.

"I've never been a hero before!" Eggman thought. "Having a squeaky clean image could really help me get a lot of dirty work done!"

"You may have had everyone else fooled, Eggman." Sonic thought to himself he and Silver stood in front of an generator that was powering the Sunshine Balls. "But not me or Silver. You built these towers to make sunshine, but you're keeping everybody in the dark about your real plan!" Sonic frowned. "But Silver and I know what you're up too!" Sonic said the last thought out loud.

Sonic and Silver looked at each other, and nodded.

With a spinning dash, the two hedgehogs smashed into the generator.

...

Helen hummed to herself as she planted a flower in the garden.

"Don't forget to water them," Her dad smiled at her.

Then, their world went dark.

Helen and her parents looked in surprise and confusion and worry at the Sunshine Ball. "Our Sunshine Ball went out!" The girl gasped. "What do we do now?!"

...

Around town, each Sunshine Ball was shutting off, leaving everyone in the dark.

"What's wrong?!" Knuckles asked aloud as he watched the whole thing.

...

Ella sighed as she tried to do her laundry without the light. "Without the Sunshine Balls, we're all washed up!" The maid said as she looked up at the Sunshine Ball with concern.

...

Over at the Thorndyke house, Penny and the others were watching the news of the blackout. However, deep down, Penny knew that Sonic and Silver were doing the right thing... she just wasn't sure on how to tell the truth to everyone else. Penny nervously fiddled the edge of Shadow's gold bracelet once again. "What should I do, Shadow?" The girl thought worriedly.

"I'm coming to you live from Eggman's Emergency Press Conference. The Doctor has prepared a statement on the blackout."

The camera turned to Eggman, and Eggman began his speech. "Today, a mirror tower collapsed, which overloaded the power grid and caused the system to shut down. We are doing everything we can to repair the damage quickly and we hope to turn the lights back on in a few hours."

"Do you know why the mirror tower collapsed?" Scarlet asked Eggman. Eggman looked at her seriously. "We're investigating now." He said.

"Sonic...Silver..." Chris muttered to himself.

"What did you say?" Tails asked Chris. Penny looked at her younger brother. "Oh... It was nothing." Chris said, and then looked down. Chris looked back up and muttered, "Nothing much."

Penny wondered what Chris was thinking about. Penny basically knew that Sonic and Silver had destroyed the mirror tower for their sake, but Chris would never really understand.

...

"I don't believe it!" The President exclaimed in surprise. He, Rouge, Topaz, and the rest of the President's agents were watching the whole thing from the recording. They watched as Sonic and Silver smashed into the mirror tower, destroying it.

"Are you sure this isn't a mistake?!" The President asked.

"We're positive, sir." One of the agents said. "I'll zoom in for a close up." The agent took the remote, and zoomed into the image of Sonic and Silver. There they were, clear as day.

"It is Sonic and Silver!" The President said, shocked. "How could they?!"

"Sonic could be wild sometimes," Christina said. "But committing sabotage isn't his character!"

"But Sonic nor Silver can't stand Dr. Eggman." Rouge said. "I'd bet my wings that they knocked down those mirror towers out of jealousy."

"What are you talking about?!" Topaz whipped around to stare at Rouge. Rouge motioned to the video. "We have all the proof we need on that video." She said. "Eggman is trying to help us, but Sonic and Silver still think of him as the enemy. He resents that we're working with Eggman."

"That's ridiculous!" Topaz shot back.

"You're suggesting that Sonic caused a world wide blackout because Eggman's on our side now?!" The President asked Rouge, and she shrugged. "Who knows?"

The President just stared at Rouge in shock.

"We should release the tape now, sir!" Christina said fiercely. "The public must be informed that Sonic and Silver are a danger!"

The President groaned, and clutched his head. The phone rang, and the nearest agent picked it up. "Hello, this is the President's office."

A pause.

The agent gasped. He moved the phone from his ear and turned to the President. "Sir. We have an emergency. We just lost another mirror tower!"

"We have to do something!" The President said, beginning to panic.

Christina walked up to the paused video of Sonic and Silver. Then she turned back to the President. "Do you want me to inform the media, sir?" She asked, a serious look planted on her face.

The President sighed. "Yes. Give them the tape."

...

Around town, people were going ballistic when they saw Sonic and Silver destroy a mirror tower on the big news screen.

"There's been a late-breaking development in the mirror tower case." Scarlet's voice boomed around town. "A videotape just released by the government shows the towers being destroyed by Sonic and Silver the Hedgehogs!"

...

"What?!" Chris yelped. "No way!"

"Looks like a total way." Blaze said, frowning at the image of Silver on the screen.

"Sonic doesn't do things like that!" Cream whimpered. "It has to be a mistake!"

"Yeah," Tails said. "I bet ya that video's a fake!"

"But that sure looks like Sonic and Silver!" Cloud said, clenching his fists and growling at the screen.

Penny couldn't take it anymore. The girl stood up and quickly left the room, and she passed Mr. Tanaka. She stopped near the bottom of the stairs as he made an announcement. "An unruly mob is gathering outside the mansion!"

Penny's eyes widened. This can't happen now!

"Wonderful." Chuck frowned.

...

Soon, they were outside the mansion, watching the unruly mob shouting out for Sonic and Silver.

"What do we do?" Penny heard Chris ask. "It sounds like they're really angry with Sonic and Silver! What made them do something so crazy?"

"Sonic got pretty upset when he saw Eggman on TV." Tails said.

"Do you think they did it just because they didn't want Dr. Eggman to be a hero?!" Amy yelped. "That's an AWFUL THING TO SAY!"

"But..." Tails gulped. "What other explanation could there be?!"

"I'm sure he had a good reason." Penny softly muttered, clutching the wrist that had Shadow's bracelet.

"Then why didn't they tell anybody?" Tails asked, looking at Penny with worried eyes.

"They're breaking through!" Ella yelped in panic. Penny's eyes widened in fright as the mob started to climb over the fence.

"Don't worry!" Amy growled, unleashing her hammer and running towards the crowd. "Nobody's gonna get past me!"

"Come back!" Chuck yelled after her. "You're only going to make the situation worse if they see you attacking!"

Amy stopped. "What else can we do?!" She asked.

"Let me try to resolve this peacefully!" Chuck took a dashing leap towards the mob, and ran towards the gate.

"GRANDPA!" Chris yelled as he ran after him.

"CHRIS!" Penny cried, reaching out to her younger brother. She yelped as the gate fell down with a loud slam, and the mob ran in, shouting and raising their fists, and Penny's eyes widened as the mob ran over Chuck and Amy.

"Leave them alone or you will face me!" Mr. Tanaka said threateningly as he ran to the crowd. He tried to attack, but ended up getting trampled.

"CALM DOWN, EVERYBODY!" Chris yelled over the noise.

"Sonic, Silver, where are you?!" Penny thought frantically in her head.

...

Cops everywhere stood near the next mirror tower, awaiting for Sonic and Silver to come. The cops began to panic as the two hedgehogs dashed closer.

"Sonic and Silver are charging the tower!" One cop yelled in his communicator. "What are we supposed to do?! Pull them over for speeding?!"

"Do whatever it takes to stop him." An officer said on the other end.

"But how?!" The cop frantically yelled. "Sonic and Silver are too fast for us!"

The cops gave a startled yell as the two hedgehogs dashed right through them, and smashed into the mirror tower. When the tower fell, the cops stared in shock in the debris.

"My kids all look up to Sonic and Silver!" An officer said. "How in the world will I explain to them that they've become bad guys?!"

...

Over at Eggman's place, Eggman spun in his own President chair. On his desk, a sign noted that he was now President. He smirked. "Sonic and Silver are finally showing their true colors." He said. The door to his office opened and Decoe and Bocoe came in, rolling in a covered board. "Doctor, now that you're the hero," Decoe began.

"It's time to make a change!" Bocoe said.

Eggman smirked evilly as the cover was tossed off, and a TV was now present, with the words EGGMAN X.

"I LOVE it!" Eggman smirked as he faced the readers. "Join us next time on Eggman X when the universe's greatest super genius finally puts the breaks on those spineless speedsters Sonic and Silver the Disgust Bag!" He lifted his head in the air, and gave a victorious evil laugh.