Sonic: The Tournament of Chaos

Chapter 11: The Future Warrior

Switching places with his former rival had granted Sonic some breathing space, but this didn't provide him with an easier experience defeating the opposing team. He backed away from Vath, who swiped both claws aggressively with the occasional roll, his razor sharp scales stopping the hedgehog from harming him. Even as Sonic landed the occasional kick or punch, nothing seemed to cause the pangolin physical harm.

The blue hedgehog frowned at his disappointing performance. "I can't keep going toe to toe with this guy like this! He might be strong, but there's one thing he's not: speedy!"

Vath's expression dropped, watching in confusion as Sonic suddenly closed both eyes, lowering his guard to any attack. The pangolin shrugged, happily taking the opportunity to attack the now defenceless hedgehog. Even Sonic's friends were astonished by their friend's sudden action.

"Sonic, what are you doing?" Amy cried out. She gasped, raising her voice to warn him of the impending attack. "Look out!"

Without any more hesitation, Vath launched himself forward, his fist tightened and arched back, ready to strike. Before his attack could collide, Sonic unexpectedly sidestepped, leaving a gash of wind within his place. Missing his target fully, Vath stumbled forward lightly, turning around to be met by the hedgehog's back. Growling with annoyance, he struck once more. Even with his eyes closed and head lowered, Sonic once again sidestepped.

"That does it!" Vath roared.

The scaled fighter swung his fists wildly, swiping with every ounce of determination. Meanwhile, Sonic lost himself in the flow of the moment, completely zoned out. He was no longer thinking or calculating, simply allowing his body to react to danger. He saw right through his opponent's movements, barely moving from the spot as he read every punch. Nothing else in that moment mattered except the battle.

From the bleachers, Amy scratched her head in confusion. "I don't get it. Sonic's just letting that guy throw punches at him."

"Big Blue doesn't even have his eyes open," Rouge noted. "It's like he isn't even trying."

"Is it not obvious?" Espio spoke up, catching everyone's attention. "Sonic has entered a state of pure focus. He has separated his consciousness from his body. That allows his body to move and react independently from his thoughts and emotions."

"Are you sure?" Tails asked curiously.

Espio nodded. "It is a technique I have studied before, though I am surprised Sonic is aware of such an ability. He is using this technique to keep himself safe from harm. Unfortunately, that's the drawback. The state he is in only allows for defence. Unless Sonic decides to go back on the offensive, this won't help him for long."

"Can't Sonic just keep dodging while he sucker punches that guy?" Vector suggested.

"I'm afraid not," Espio replied. "For now, we will have to wait and see."

Despite Vath's best attempts, Sonic's reaction speed was simply too quick. He roared, unleashing a series of chain punches towards the hedgehog, sacrificing his striking power for speed. With every strike, Sonic would simply move out of harm's way. This frustrated Vath, who was not used to having this most difficulty hitting someone.

"Stop moving, you coward!" he roared as he continued throwing strike after strike, only succeeding in hitting the air. "Fight me!"

With both teams losing half of their teammates, the stage appeared to be much smaller than before. This extra space gifted the fighters more space to continue their battle. This did nothing to help Silver, who continued fighting at his peak against the mysterious jackal. Had his opponent not wielded similar abilities, Silver would have simply carried him out of the arena within a telekinetic hold. Ozor's abilities interfered with Silver's psychokinesis, stopping him from simply restraining the jackal in place.

The battle, it could be said, was not going his way. The jackal, as cocky and arrogant as he was, wielded incredible abilities. Manifesting weapons from pure energy granted him unique gifts. Ozor wasn't the queen's personal guard for no reason. He fought with such aggression, his attacks carrying the weight of several men. Despite all this, Ozor refused to go for a quick finish. He took great pride in tormenting the hedgehog, wanting to demonstrate his superior strength and discourage the remaining members of Team Sonic from battle.

Silver hurled herself at Ozor, screaming with rage. Ozor jumped over Silver, who stumbled as he tried to recover his balance. Grunted in anguish as he felt the impact of Ozor's foot on the back of his head, Silver shook off the throbbing pain and swung himself around, his fist swinging directly into his face. Ozor received the blow head on, stumbling back. Pressing his feet firmly against the ground, Silver charged forward with both hands surrounded in a green psychokinetic energy, unleashing a powerful combination of strikes.

He started by elbowing Ozor away, followed with a powerful barrage of kicks and punches, ending with a heavy punch to his stomach. He threw his leg forward once more, but the jackal smiled and raised a hand, firing a beam of energy which exploded on contact, sending Silver tumbling backwards.

Their punches and kicks were shaking the entire stage, their incredible abilities giving them power beyond belief. Silver stopped himself in mid-air, breathing heavily and charged again, blind to the consequences. He launched a flurry of punches and kicks, and Ozor dodged left and right, walking slowly backwards as Silver's fury worsened his aim. After several seconds, Ozor elbowed Silver in the neck. He followed up with a punch to the stomach, and Silver doubled over, gasping for breath. Ozor kicked him away, dashing around behind the hedgehog before he could hit the floor, stopping Silver's fall with his fist. In mid-air, Ozor threw Silver to the floor. The hedgehog groaned, trying to stand, but failing.

His body trembled from pain, the powerful strikes from his opponent beginning to bear too much for him to withstand. As Ozor advanced, Silver swiftly placed both hands forward, unleashing a blinding flash of light. The sneak attack startled Ozor, forcing the jackal to shield his eyes. This proved to be a mistake, a lesson he learned as he felt Silver wrapping one arm around his waist and the other around his neck.

With a collective combination, Silver drove his knee into his back before throwing Ozor over his shoulder. As he crashed to the ground, Silver landed on top of him, driving his foot into Ozor's back. Enraged with the jackal's actions through this tournament, he grabbed Ozor's head in both hands and slammed him against the ground once more. The second time, Ozor countered with a backhanded fist, taking the opportunity to jump to his feet. Silver began hurling energy blasts his way. The jackal countered by deflecting them all away before charging forward once more.

Ozor caught Silver's arm in a lock and followed with three devastating strikes to his chest, then a fourth to knock him down. Before Ozor continued his onslaught, Silver spun on the ground with one leg stretched out. Ozor was quick to dodge with a small jump, but not quick enough to avoid his second leg which struck Ozor in the stomach. As Silver jumped to her feet once more, Ozor raised his arms to block. They commenced countering and blocking the others' attack, relying solely on their hand to hand skills to fight. Ozor sidestepped to avoid Silver fist. Swiftly, he struck the side of Silver's lower torso before striking in the stomach.

Silver stumbled, but quickly retaliated with an elbow strike to his face, stunning him. He jumped up and delivered two kicks into Ozor's face, knocking him off balance yet again. Unleashing a growl of brief frustration, Ozor spun around behind the hedgehog. Silver threw one arm towards him, but to his horror, his fist went straight through, hitting his image instead. A kick to his back confirmed the jackal had used his powers to create an afterimage of himself.

Losing energy faster than he was, Silver was forced to admit he could not keep up the fight any longer. Ozor was far superior to her in every way. Strength, skill, speed and overall power. There was nothing more he could do to defend himself. The jackal hit harder, he moved faster, he was better trained and so more. The two briefly broke off their attack, standing parallel towards each other. Ozor showed no signs of backing down while Silver clutched one arm over his stomach.

"What's wrong, kid?" Ozor inquired, his tone carrying no hint of concern. "Can't take anymore?"

"Shut up!" Silver growled, easily falling for the jackal's taunts. "I won't let you win."

The jackal cackled at this remark, pausing to wipe away an amused tear. "You say that like it's a choice. Just face the facts: kid. You don't have a chance."

His endless torment awoken a fury within the hedgehog, his gentle demeanour vanquishing with every passing. "Why? Why are you so cruel? You're worse than Eggman!"

Ozor frowned at this comment, crossing his arms with both eyes narrowed. He lazily pointed one finger to the scar across his cheek. "You think I get this from playing hopscotch? I've been at this game for a long time, kid. I can see you're still young. When you get to my age, you learn a thing or two about the world. It ain't a nice place. Nobody is gonna play fair."

"Aren't you a personal guard to your queen?" Silver questioned. The jackal nodded before the hedgehog continued. "Don't you have any sense of honour?"

Chuckling softly, Ozor brushed one hand through his long hair. "Honour is a luxury we can't afford in our kingdom. Do you know what honour cost us? Lives were lost, homes were destroyed. We learned long ago you can't afford to play nice. Like it or not, this is the way it is, kid. So, you have two choices: you can fight fair or fight with all of your resolve. Take your pick."

The future warrior fell silent, struggling to stop his body from trembling. The aftershock of the jackal's attacks were beginning to take effect. He pondered the warrior's words, questioning whether or not he made a valid point. Ozor was the eldest fighter on Team Etastie, at least twice the age of Sonic. Years of fighting at his queen's side had made him bitter, losing any sense of honour he once wielded. In spite of all this, the hedgehog refused to believe anything he had to say.

"That does it!" Silver barked, throwing out his hands aggressively, building energy and igniting his green aura. Psychic energy charged within, strengthening his powers. With enough charge, he bounced forward and released a strong shockwave of psychic energy with a swing of his arm. "Prepare to meet your doom!"

Unconcerned with the Psycho Smash hurling towards him, Ozor grinned and spread out his arms, welcoming the attack. The powerful beam hurled towards him, threatening to injure anyone who dared to stand in its way. The jackal realised his fatal error too late as the attack shot towards him at frightening speed, carrying enough weight to shatter buildings.

From the corner of his eye, Silver watched as Vath the Pangolin broke off his attack with Sonic, hurling himself towards the jackal, moving just as fast as Silver's attack. "Ozor, move, you idiot! You can't block that!"

He kicked his teammate out of harm's way from the blast. It sped by, catching Ozor by the shoulder. Vath roared as endured the full attack. At the final moment, the pangolin tried to throw up his arms to cushion the blast with his scales. Unable to put up a defence, the Psycho Smash paralysed the warrior and carried him out of the ring. Sonic watched as his opponent smacked against the edge of the ring, bouncing a few times before his body finally fell.

Ozor, while clutching at his partially burned shoulder, had raced forward in a desperate attempt to save his ally. "No, Vath!"

It was too late to reach him. The pangolin splashed against the water below, his scales causing him to sink like a rock. The tournament's staff were one step ahead, diving into the water to save him before he drowned. The Psycho Smash immobilised the pangolin's limbs for a while, leaving him with no chance of recovering. Ozor continued staring towards the ocean, ignoring the fact he left himself unguarded for a potential sneak attack. He inhaled sharply, now burdened with guilt for his reckless actions. His arrogance cost them a valuable member.

"Vath has been eliminated!"

Ozor shifted his attention back to Silver. The hedgehog was breathing heavily, completely exhausted from using his inner power. Composing himself, the jackal grinned. "Not bad, kid. Seems I underestimated you. You have pretty good energy control, but it's too bad it won't be enough. Shall we end this?"

Sparks started to build around his body, the stage shaking as Ozor's power built up within him. Silver's reactions were still sharp, tired as he was, and he knew he had to strike now before his enemy had finished preparing his attack. Silver leapt forward, throwing a punch at Ozor's throat, but the jackal caught it in one hand. With the other he dealt Silver a devastating blow to the side of the head. Silver staggered back, clutching at his aching skull.

The jackal roared and threw both hands forward, unleashing a scorching blue beam. Silver looked up just in time to see the oncoming attack, and the blast hit him full-on. A huge smoke cloud formed, and when it blew away, the hedgehog was still standing. At first he appeared unharmed, but then the damage kicked in. He stumbled forward, falling to one knee with a painful grunt. He forced himself to stand, arms slumped forward with his head hung low.

"You fought pretty well, kid," Ozor praised with sincerity, admiring the hedgehog's persistence. "But let's get this over with."

Silver closed both eyes, the gentle glow of his aura beginning to disperse. His mind raced with stressful thoughts, dwelling on the future that was to be. Despite giving everything he had, it made the smallest of differences against the jackal. He accepted there was no hope, no technique or power that could stand against Ozor. Everyone had been counting on him to win, now he was going to fail them once more.

No.

Refusing to be a victim any longer, Silver reached deep within, finding reserves he never knew he had. His hands clenched tightly, his power began rising, particles whirling round him until blocks of energy began to cover him whole. The blocks of energy cracked and broke away, revealing his form to the max power. Calling on the deep dark corners of his energy, the true extent of her his power had finally been awoken, pushing past the limitations he endured for so long.

A vibrant, fiery and emerald green aura surrounded him, a calm mind allowing him to sustain the form gently as the occasional dazzling and small sparkling particles of energy travelled upwards. His muscles swelled, his slender body began to thicken. He roared without warning and continued charging, every aspect of her his beginning to build and thicken. With one final roar, the aura doubled in size.

Ozor, shocked at this unexpected transformation, gawked in horror. "What in the…?"

Blaze shifted focus, sensing the growing energy. Her eyes briefly widened, amazed at the sight before her. "Silver…"

Recovering from his previous injuries, Silver thundered and charged directly towards Ozor, landing a direct blow under his chin. Caught off guard by the sudden counterattack, he sprawled through the air, unable to balance himself in time to avoid another strike. Silver vanished above him, landing a powerful roundhouse kick directly into his opponent's skull. The jackal roared as he was carried through the air, sprawling across the ground with a loud screech.

Ozor roared with frustration and vanished along with Silver as their light speed movements and attacks began again. This time, Silver was maintaining his cool much too easily and Ozor could sense that any edge he had previously possessed was now gone. Originally, with his maximum power, he estimated his own physical strength to have a significant advantage over his the hedgehog, but as he continued to exert himself, his power began to falter. He was tiring out and to his frustration, Silver seemed to have hardly taken much damage.

Silver hurled his iron fist into Ozor's gut. He coughed as spit flew out of his mouth. He couldn't breathe. The future warrior's fist was lodged firmly in his torso. He yanked his hand out swiftly before striking with his open palm, applying enough pressure to launch the jackal away. Ozor stopped himself from going over the edge, regaining his footing as Silver slowly advanced towards him.

"All my life, I've had to watch the people I care about suffer because of those who would cause harm to others, but no more!" Silver announced. "I'm going to beat you, Ozor!"

As he lectured his opponent, Ozor forced himself upwards, grunting as he clutched one arm tightly around his torso. He panted and wiped a small trail of dust from his mouth, facing upwards to lock eyes with him. Frustrated that he no longer had the winning edge, he spread his arms challengingly. "I'd like to see you try!"

Silver stretched back his fist, focusing all his inner energy into a single fist, sparking and trembling with wielding such power in a single position. He lunged forward and dived towards his opponent, his free arm placed to his side and legs pressed tightly together as he flew forward with a determined roar. "I'm coming at you with everything I have!"

Growling with frustration, Ozor refused to back down. He threw his arms forward and crossed them against each other, preparing his defence. "Go ahead! I'll block it!"

Intending to block against the future warrior's attack, Ozor stood his ground firmly. He was a wielder of incredible strength, the personal guard to Queen Serenity himself. He refused to lose to this hedgehog, a being who was beneath him in every way. He adjusted his footing, eyes narrowed with all his inner strength focused towards his defence. The jackal's arms glew in a blue aqua aura, wielding every last ounce of power within.

The gap between them closed rapidly, both fighters growing more cautious with every passing second. Silver continued to charge, his fist tightened and concentrating with everything he learned. Ozor adjusted his footing against the ground, bracing himself for impact. If Silver's attack failed, Ozor would have a clear path to victory. All he needed to do was be patient and wait for the moment to counter.

As Silver finally closed in, Ozor steadied his defence. The jackal's grin vanished as the hedgehog suddenly threw out his free hand, launching a Psycho Knife. With Ozor's defence focused on protecting his upper body, this left his lower half unguarded. The blast collided with his legs, forcing Ozor to jump back in surprise and drop his arms.

This proved to be a mistake he would live to regret. As he snapped his head forward, Silver suddenly dashed forward, too fast for Omega to keep up. Without hesitation, he slammed his fist into the jackal's face, the impact causing both of them to be blasted away from the powerful impact.

Silver hurled away before he was able to regain his balance. He clutched one hand over the other, soothing his trembling fist. The impact had partially damaged his fist from wielding such power into a single position, but this was nothing in comparison with his foe. Ozor screamed with agony as the hedgehog's fist collided with his face. His roars echoed around, and tears formed within his eyes, his power dropping to nothing more than an empty shell. Several of the crowd covered their eyes, shocked at the sight before them.

Ozor hurled over the edge of the stage, unable to stop himself from falling. Knowing there was nothing further he could do, he closed both eyes and accepted his failure. "Forgive me, Queen Serenity, I have failed."

"And Ozor is out! Another victory for Team Sonic!"

The jackal hit the water with a sickening thud, carrying enough force to splash several of the tournament's staff waiting on standby. Everyone's concerns eased as the jackal emerged from the water under his own strength. He briefly turned his head towards the stage, guilt weighing heavily within his heart. The queen was no longer protected. Having failed in his duty, Ozor allowed the staff to carry him out of the water and onto dry land.

Silver, however, didn't relish in the victory as much as he had hoped. His raging purple finally settled, allowing him to regain his calm demeanour. The crowd were surprised to see the hedgehog's look of sorrow, not carrying a single trace of joy. Despite the jackal's cruel taunts, Silver took no pride in beating him the way he did. In spite of all this, there was no time to mourn. The rest of his team needed him, now more than ever.

Shadow felt herself on the verge of collapse as he suffered another combo of vicious kicks, punches, and elbow strikes that sent him sprawling across the stage. As his body trembled with his mouth tasting of blood, he pushed himself up and inspected the damage. Alongside small cuts and dirt, he was otherwise unharmed. He was greatly outmatched by the wolf's ferocity, beginning to accept just how difficult this battle was going to be.

"I do not know why you fight me in vain," Chax inquired as he strode casually over towards the hedgehog. "Do you really believe you had a chance?"

In response, Shadow brushed off the small rubble and turned his neck around, bones cracking as he released tension. "It's going to take more than that to stop me. I haven't even begun trying."

"You speak as if you can suddenly win this battle easily," Chax spoke with a sceptical tone while preparing his next attack.

With a sudden rushing momentum, he moved to hit Shadow directly in the gut with a flying knee-kick, causing the hedgehog's concentration to be broken and his eyes widened with pain. He swiftly dodged another strike and drove both knees into his torso and followed with cupping his hands and slamming them into the Ultimate Lifeform's head, the blow knocking him down once more.

As Chax moved to continue, a single foot collided with the side of his face, knocking the wolf sideways. He jolted his head to the side, watching intently as Sonic stood before him once more.

"Shadow, you okay?" Sonic asked with concern.

Shadow pushed himself to his feet, standing by Sonic's side. He nodded in response before both hedgehogs shifted their gaze towards the wolf. Chax calmly waited for their attack, carrying no doubt in his mind about fighting the two of them at onces.

Intrigued by this proposal, Sonic turned towards his former rival and grinned. "What do you say, Shadow? It'll be just like old times."

A small smirk crept on Shadow's face, returning the gesture. "Let's do it, Sonic. Follow my lead."

Without hesitation, Sonic and Shadow unleashed a cry of determination as they lunged forward simultaneously, stretching back their respective right and left fists. Chax raised his arms and blocked both of their attacks before the all-out battle began. Sonic and Shadow moved onto the offensive, striking hard and swift to force Chax backwards. The wolf blocked and dodged most of their attacks, choosing to stay on the defensive.

Together as one, Sonic and Shadow charged towards Chax and continued their persistent attacks, refusing to give Chax any room to breathe if it meant sustaining victory. Chax remained on the defensive, patiently waiting for an opening in their attack to exploit. He was slightly puzzled as such an opportunity never presented itself. The wolf held his composure.

Sonic and Shadow threw their fists forward, unable to strike as Chax caught both their wrists within his own. Swiftly, they raised their free hands and slammed hard in his torso, knocking him a few feet back. Refusing to give him any breathing space, they charged and continued their attacking, mixing up their styles to avoid creating an obvious pattern that could be predicted. Sonic chose to fight mostly with his feet, kicking Chax's feet with every opportunity. Shadow, the more aggressive of the duo, struck hard with his fists.

Growing tired of remaining on defence, Chax threw his hand out towards Sonic and slammed him backwards. As the blue hedgehog fell back, Shadow threw his fist into the wolf's lower torso. Chax moved to counter, only to be shoved back by Sonic. Together, Sonic and Shadow kicked him backwards and returned to their coordinated attack. Chax was beginning to grow more and more restless. He threw one hand forward to push them away. Sonic intentionally lunged forward to take the strike, allowing Shadow to overtake him and headbutt the wolf.

While briefly stunned, the hedgehogs charged forward and struck. Shadow ordered Sonic to move as he threw a single Chaos spear towards their foe. Chax swiftly crossed his arms and blocked the attack head on, receiving nothing more than a small singe. He jumped back to avoid their combined kick, performing a backflip to kick Shadow towards the sky as his foot connected with his face.

Sonic threw his leg towards Chax's head, forcing him to duck down to avoid. Halfway down, he was punched into the torso by a returning Shadow. Acting quickly, Sonic raised his leg and struck Chax directly into the side of his face. Shadow followed suit and added a punch of his own to Chax's lower side.

Their heavy punches stunned the wolf and forced him to take up a defensive stance. Together, they lunged forward with their legs raised. Chax raised both hands and caught their legs halfway, spinning a full one-hundred and eighty degrees before releasing his hold. The hedgehogs were spinning away, barely stopping as he came hurling towards them.

Chax caught Shadow by his throat and slammed his fist into his face. As he threw a second punch, Sonic kicked him against the head and briefly stunned him long enough for Shadow to break free. With Chax's attention focused elsewhere, Shadow allowed himself to fall, placing both hands against the ground to cushion the drop. He stood on a handstand before hurling himself forward upside down, landing a successful double kick.

Amy cheered at their teamwork, applauding loudly while clapping her hands. "Yes, keep at it, guys!"

"Their teamwork is paying off," Knuckles agreed, surprised to see the hedgehogs work so well as a coordinated team.

"Beat him, guys!" Charmy whooped.

"Knock the wolf into next week!" Vector agreed.

"You can do it, Sonic!" Tails exclaimed.

"Give it all you got, Shadow!" Rouge added.

The only one not watching the hedgehog's brave efforts was Cream, who was focused towards the opposite end of the stage, growing concerned for her friend's well-being. "Oh no, Blaze!"

The battle had not been kind to the princess as she fought valiantly against the queen. Blaze panted with exhaustion, her body drained of energy. She stood strong against all odds, one arm grasped tightly around her torso. She forced herself to stand upright, mustering the strength to fight, but deep down, the odds were slim to none and she couldn't hold on much longer.

"It is over, Princess Blaze," Serenity stated, his voice calm yet commanding. "You fought a good match."

Between her exhausted pants and trembling arms, Blaze stepped forward and locked eyes with the queen, refusing to be intimidated into surrender. She tightened his fists and charged, throwing two strikes towards Serenity's head, who calmly moved to avoid them. Serenity crossed his arms to block a kick from Blaze, retaliating by tripping her opponent. As Blaze stumbled backwards, she swiftly raised one hand and unleashed a single fireball.

Serenity swatted the blast as it exploded. She advanced, throwing her fist into Blaze's arm as she made one desperate attempt to block. As they held position, Blaze threw her free hand forward, missing once more and allowing Serenity to slam her own fist directly into the princess' ribs. Blaze briefly cried out in anguish, biting her tongue to contain her distress.

Relentless as ever, Serenity followed with two sharp jabs across her face and spun, landing one final kick to Blaze's chest and sending him towards the ground. Blaze collided, her head smacking against the ground. The impact stunned him Blaze from retaliating, her head filled with dizziness as she desperately fought to remain conscious. The queen approached, examining the defeated Blaze with interest. No one had ever lasted this long in a battle against her. She respected her opponent's resolve, but knew their time was over as she raised her hand, preparing to unleash one final ice blast.

Serenity summoned her strength, preparing to end the battle. She suddenly gawked as a strong gust of wind passed, its strength almost forcing her to stumble. As Serenity regained her composure, she was surprised to see Blaze was no longer within her sight. "What trickery is this?!"

Blaze slowly opened her eyes, regaining her sense of reality. She blinked softly to restore her vision, meeting the concerned gaze of a familiar hedgehog. "Silver?"

Having saved the princess from certain defeat, the future warrior now carried her bridal style as he flew towards the other end of the stage, as far away from the queen's range as possible. "Blaze, are you okay?!"

Blaze softly nodded. "You… Saved me."

"Of course," Silver said with a soft smile. "Why wouldn't I help a friend?"

The two briefly gazed towards the other in silence. Blaze, thankful for the hedgehog's kindness, couldn't stop herself from smiling with appreciation. Silver was taken back by this gesture, noting it was rare to see Blaze smile like this. It suited her better than the stoic expression she carried on a daily basis. He hoped to see it more in the future.

"Silver."

"Yeah?

"...You can put me down now."

"Oh, right!"

The hedgehog gently set Blaze on her feet, stepping back as he rubbed one hand through his quills. The awkwardness didn't last much longer as they spotted the queen racing towards them, her hands wielding ice blasts. The two friends stood their ground, preparing to fight as a team. With the elimination of Ozor and Vath in such a short time span, Team Sonic now outnumbered Team Etastie by two to one. In spite of their numbers, defeating Chax and Serenity would be no easy feat.

Silver clutched both hands tightly, summoning his psychokinesis powers. "What do we do, Blaze?"

The princess narrowed her eyes as flames formed around her body. "We run."

"Yeah! Wait, what?"

"She is too strong for a direct confrontation, even if we both attack together! We must retreat until we can find an opening to exploit!"

Trusting his friend's judgement, Silver nodded before the two raced off, circling around the stage with Serenity pursuing them closely. Within the centre of the stage, Sonic and Shadow continued fighting Chax as a team, but in spite of their coordinated attacks, the wolf continued fighting against all expectations. The battle was nearing the end very soon.

Only one team would be victorious.