Chapter 3 – A Foe Returns

"Well there they are." said Tails as he rounded the top of a hill.

Sally and Amy stared as they looked at the Emerald Hills.

"Wow!" said Amy, "Talk about a lush place. How come we've never been before?"

"You didn't ask." smiled Tails.

"Oh brother!" groaned Amy.

Sally was just smiling at the landscape. She had been here before but the place never lost its beauty in her opinion. She raised an eyebrow.

"That's weird." she said to herself.

"What was that Sally?" asked Tails.

"Oh nothing really, just something weird."

"What?" asked Tails curiously.

"Well I've been here a few times with Sonic and….well it never rains much here but look at the grass." said Sally.

Tails looked, the grass was soaking wet. He knelt down and placed his hand on the grass.

"Hmm…...you're right. The ground is soaking." he said.

"It's probably nothing though. The weather changes all the time." said Amy.

"Yeah suppose so." said Tails, "I wonder where Sonic is. He probably took shelter somewhere. There are lots of caves and crevices in the Emerald Hills. Guess we better start looking."

The three of them set out into the hills.

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New targets detected at grid 13. Initiating transport systems. Confirmed. Time to target acquisition 36 minutes. Current targets now being processed. Standby. Time to alignment 8 hours.

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Knuckles strode into the kitchens in the palace. He cracked his knuckles and looked around. Inside all was a bustle with people rushing around.

"Hmm…..now where to get some food?" he said to himself.

He took a few steps into the kitchen and received a few disgruntled looks from various people. He stopped by a long metal tabletop. On it was a selection of bowls containing various fruits. He picked up an apple from one bowl and looked at it.

"That will be just right." he said to himself and made to pick up the bowl.

"Oh no you don't. Not again." said a voice.

Knuckles shook his head and turned around. Behind him was the head chef. He stood there looking very irritated.

"Oh give it a rest." said Knuckles with a sigh.

"No. I'm sick and tired of you barging in here whenever you want something to eat. We do have set meal times you know."

"I only wanted a bit of fruit."

"Well sorry you can't have it."

"Can't? You're telling me what I can do?"

"Yes."

"We'll see about that."

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A little while later Knuckles walked out of the kitchen smiling. He rolled an apple around his hand. He tossed it into the air and caught it before taking a bite. He smiled to himself and walked off. In the kitchen the head chef pulled himself out of a pile of pans and looked around. The kitchen was a total mess. Pots and pans lay every where, bits of food were splattered across the walls and several very nervous looking waiters peaked out from behind tabletops.

"I really hate that echidna." said the head chef before falling over.

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"Hey over here!" cried Amy.

Within a few minutes Tails and Sally stood next to her. She pointed out a large scorch like mark in the grass.

"Yep that's Sonic." said Tails, "Only he makes that kind of mark."

"It's heading west. Lets go." said Sally.

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Knuckles threw the apple core at the bin as he walked into the Emerald room. Inside Espio was bent over the Chaos Emeralds. Knuckles walked in and tapped him on the shoulder. Espio jumped.

"ARGH! What? Oh Knuckles, its you." he said.

"It is. Why you so jumpy?"

"I'm not I was just concentrating on the emeralds. They're acting funny."

"What do you mean funny?" asked Knuckles pushing past him.

He stared at the Emerald. The Chaos Emeralds were even more active than they normally where. Each one was emitting energy outwards. The Master Emerald also looked less grey than it usually did. Knuckles raised his eyebrow.

"What the?" he said to himself.

"That's what I thought." said Espio, "I came in here a few minutes ago to find them doing this. Weird eh?"

"Sure is. Well keep an eye on them."

"Will do." said Espio as Knuckles walked out looking puzzled.

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Tails, Amy and Sally slowed to a gentle jog as they saw a cave up ahead. There was another large mark on the ground. It was clearly visible on the wet ground.

"Yep he stopped here. He's probably inside." said Tails.

"Well let's go see." said Sally walking into the cave.

She found she could see fairly well without a light but lit one anyway. The three of them walked into the cave. After a while they came across Sonic's backpack and the partially set up camp stove.

"Hmm…I wonder where he is?" said Sally.

Tails bent down to examine the stove.

"This thing has been out for a while." he said.

Just then they heard Amy cry out. They jumped up and ran to where the cry had come from. They found Amy breathing deeply a little further into the cave. She stood in front of a skunk's dead body. Sally yelped when she saw it.

"What is going on here? Where are Sonic and the children?" asked Sally also breathing heavily.

Tails eyed the cave. There was nothing else here. He took a step backwards and suddenly his world was enveloped in a large white flash. He closed his eyes. He felt himself swoon and then the light died out. He opened his eyes again. He was standing on a small metal platform. Next to him were Sally and Amy. They were both looking around.

"What was that?!" cried Amy.

"I don't know." said Tails slowly looking around.

He stepped down off the platform. He was in a small metal room. There were a few computer banks along one wall, a door to the far right and along another wall was a large window. The window showed nothing but blackness. Curious, he walked over to it and looked out. He gave a yelp and looked away, his whole body gave a shake.

"What is it?" asked Amy concerned.

"Were in……..in…….in……SPACE!" he said.

Sally and Amy joined him and looked out. Below they could see the planet Mobius.

"How'd we get here?!" asked Sally getting scared now.

"I don't know but we have to find out." said Tails heading for the door.

As he approached it slid open revealing a long corridor.

"Come on." he said.

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Targets acquired. Initiating final procedures. Confirmed.  Beginning hatching procedure. Confirmed. Time to alignment 1 hour.

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Tails brushes his hand along a console. The dust was disturbed and it rose into the air.

"Hmm…whatever this place is it's old." he said.

"I'll say." agreed Sally.

They walked on a bit further. Amy began to shiver.

"I don't like it here. I have a funny feeling about it." she said nervously as she rubbed her arms.

"The same as before?" asked Tails.

"No it's different. It's strange but it's the same feeling I got when Sarath first appeared."

"That's strange." said Sally.

Just then they reached the end of the corridor. The door was shut. Tails walked up to it and tried to push it aside. Nothing happened.

"Oh well….looks like we will have to go another……"

The door suddenly slid open. The three of them stared inside into the darkened room beyond. They walked in cautiously. The door suddenly slammed shut and locked. Tails ran to the door.

"Damn. It's locked. Looks like were stuck in here. I wish we could see where here was."

As if to answer his request the room suddenly lit up. Sally screamed. In the room were several large tubes filled with a green liquid. In three of them were Sonic, Miles and Alicia. They floated in the middle of the tank lifelessly. Sally rushed to the side of the tank Sonic was in. She looked at the tank in a panic.

"Tails! We have to get them out!" she cried her face filled with panic, tears welling in her eyes.

Tails ran over to the tank and looked it over quickly. He took a step back and then threw his weight at the tank. He hit it and bounced off.

"Grr……why you stupid!" he growled as he rushed at the tank again and again bounced off it.

Sally was now totally in a fluster. She was running from one tank to another banging her fists against the outside.

"Tails what should we do?!" she screamed at him as she turned away from the tank Alicia was in.

"I…..I don't know!" said Tails starting to look worried, "Any ideas Amy? Amy?"

Tails turned to where Amy was. She was curled up in a ball in a corner of the room. She was breathing quickly and rocking backwards and forwards.

"Amy? Are you alright? AMY?!" asked Tails.

"Feeling…..cold……..feeling……..stronger…..…closer…….." Amy gave a shiver, "…..can't breath………gotta get out……yes……out!"

Amy curled tighter into a ball and started rocking again.

"AMY?! What wrong? Please tell me! PLEASE!" cried Tails as he shook her.

Amy didn't respond. Tails was getting worried now. What was going on? What had happened to Sonic and the children? What was Amy doing? He couldn't take it. He got up and looked around. He saw a small computer console in the corner. He went over to it.

"One problem at a time." he said to himself, "First to get Sonic and the kids out."

"I don't think it will be that easy little freak!" came a voice.

Tails' ears shot up. It couldn't be! That was impossible. He spun as he heard the door open. He immediately took up a fighting pose as the figure emerged from the shadow. Sally gave a small yelp and hid behind a tank. Amy cried out and curled up even more. Out of the shadows emerged a grey fox. He glared at the three of them as he strode into the room, his cape flapping behind him.

"SARATH!" cried Tails completely astonished.

"That's right little freak!" said Sarath.

Tails just stared at him for a second and then suddenly dived at him. Sarath wasn't expecting this but it didn't matter. As soon as Tails got within two feet of him he was thrown back across the room by an invisible force. He picked himself up and growled at Sarath.

"Nice try freak but no good. You see you cannot defeat me this time." said Sarath with a smirk.

"I don't see why not!" cried Tails, "I did it before!"

"That you did. Do you know what its like to be dead? Probably not. And I don't see why I should spoil the surprise for you."

"So you're going to kill us then?" said Tails.

"Eventually. Once I've taken what I need from you."

Tails growled again and launched himself in a ball at Sarath. Sarath swung his arm out and caught Tails in mid air. Tails struggled against the invisible force.

"It's no use freak. You cannot win against the dark force." said Sarath as he threw Tails across the room.

Tails landed on a small platform and before he could do anything a large glass case descended around him. He quickly got up and pushed his hands against the glass. It was just like the robotisiser all those years ago but this time he didn't know what was going to happen. He banged against the glass.

"It's no use freak. Your mine now." said Sarath.

There was a whooshing sound and Tails felt his feet getting wet. He looked down to see that a green fluid was being pumped into the tank. He panicked and banged his shoulder against the glass again.

Sally watched on in horror from her hiding place behind another tank. Tails was now pinned at the top of the tank treading water with his feet and tails. The fluid had almost reached the top of the tank. Tails took a final breath as the tank filled. He started glancing around to find a way out. There wasn't one. Slowly the little air he had ran out and he passed out. His body began to float in the tank. Sally gave a scream and ran to the tank. She started running her hands over it to try and find a way to release the capsule.

"There is no way out for him queen." said Sarath.

Sally spun to face Sarath her face full of anger and grief. Sarath just smiled at her.

"Now I'm afraid it's your turn."

Sarath threw his hand up and picked up Sally from across the room. He threw her across the room landing her on another platform. She quickly got up and leaped off the platform as the capsule slid down.

"Hmm impressive. But not good enough." said Sarath.

He put his hand up again and caught Sally. He threw her backwards knocking her head off a wall and making her lose her footing. He quickly picked her up again and threw her onto another platform. This time the capsule came down before she could get out of the way. The capsule started to fill immediately. Within a few seconds she was up against the top of the tank. She took a deep breath and ducked down under the fluid. She pushed her feet against one side and her back against the other and tried to break the glass. It didn't work and soon she passed out too. Sarath turned to Amy who was still rocking around n the floor.

"And you little Acolyte will do nicely too." he said.

Amy gave a small yelp and closed her eyes. She felt as if the whole world was closing in around her. She didn't know what was happening. Before she knew what was happening she was in a capsule and then she was unconscious.

"Excellent." said Sarath to himself, "Now to the next part of our plan."

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Knuckles bent over the platform holding the Master Emerald. The emerald was glowing a soft green colour but was still grey in colour. Knuckles was puzzled by it. Since the Master Emerald had been drained three years ago it had sat lifelessly on the platform here in the palace doing absolutely nothing, until now. The Chaos Emeralds had become, strangely, more active in the past few days. They had been emitting more sparks and now Knuckles couldn't go within a few meters of them or he'd risk going super. He stepped back and frowned as Espio came into the room.

"Hi Knuckles." he said cheerfully.

"Huh? Oh hi there." he said still looking at the Emeralds.

"Knuckles? What's up?"

"Many things." replied Knuckles with a grunt, "Firstly this."

He gestured towards the emeralds and shook his head.

"I'm a bit puzzled by it. The Master Emerald hasn't done anything in three years and suddenly it does. It's too strange."

"I hear you buddy. Anything else?"

"Yes. Sally, Tails and Amy should have been back by now. They only went to find Sonic. It shouldn't have taken this long."

"Oh you worry too much." said Espio slapping Knuckles on the back, "They probably decided to spend some time there too."

"Hmm…you're probably right but……..I keep getting this sense that something isn't right."

"Knuckles! If you're THAT worried why not go and check on them? I can take care of things here."

"Well if you're sure. Ok then. I'll go and check on them."

"Good. Oh and do try to stop worrying so much!"

"I'll try."

With that Knuckles turned and walked out of the room. Espio turned to the emeralds.

"Well, looks like it's just you and me for a while." he said and sat down on a chair.

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Sarath walked up to computer console. The monitor had a small countdown in one corner. He pressed his finger on the counter and it enlarged filling the whole screen. It read 00:01:23.

"Excellent just over a minute to go." he said with a smile.

Sarath stepped back a few feet and turned around. At the other side of the room was a small platform. Above it several large antenna looking devices pointed downwards. There was a strange dark cloud floating above the platform. Sarath walked over to the platform and stepped up onto it. The cloud surrounded him and a capsule came down around him.

Far out in the solar system the final planet came into alignment. A perfect line was made between all the planets and the sun. The space station slowly moved into the alignment. The panels mounted on the outside turned into the line and glowed. Inside the capsule with Sarath in it lit up. After a few moments the light dimmed and the capsule rose. Sarath stepped out, the cloud no longer there. He looked at his hands for a moment.

"Hmm…excellent. It worked. The joining was successful. Now to drain what I need from our….guests." said Sarath giving a little laugh.

Just then a monitor blinked and a small buzzer went off. Sarath walked over to the console. There was a message displayed on it.

Alignment at T plus 1 minute 12 seconds. Target located at grid 12. Initiating transport systems.

"Hmm…..the games afoot eh? Now matter. I will deal with this target too."

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The target in question had just landed in the Emerald Hills. He picked himself up and looked around.

"Gliding sure is quick." said Knuckles to himself as he looked around.

He spent the next few hours searching for everyone else. He couldn't understand where everyone was. Even if Sally, Tails and Amy had gone back Sonic, Miles and Alicia should still be here. He finally found some tracks and followed them. They led to a large cave. He stopped at the entrance and called in.

"Hello?! Red echidna calling someone! Hello?"

There was no reply. Knuckles decided to go in and have a look. He walked along the passageways. They had lost there dark glow and Knuckles hadn't brought a light. After a while and several incident of wall bumping he came into a cavern. His eyes had become more accustom to the dark and he could see quite well now. He soon found Sonics camping gear and shortly afterwards the dead racoon. Knuckles didn't like it. Just then there was a flash and Knuckles found himself standing in a small metal room. The sudden change in light made his eyes water. It took several moments to clear them. He stared at his surroundings. Where was he? He checked out the room and then left by the door. He finally came to another door. It was locked but a sharp punch from Knuckles broke it down. The door slid open. Knuckles' jaw hit the ground. There floating in six green tanks were his friends. He ran up to the tank Sonic was in and looked around for some way to open it. There was none. He tried to smash the glass but it didn't work. He stepped back and pressed a small button on each wrist. A large set of blades extended from behind his hand and stuck out a few inches over the end of his fingers. He drew his hand back and punched the glass again. It spiders sending cracks all over but didn't break. Knuckles punched again causing even more spidering and several creaks from the glass. Knuckles quickly stepped back as the capsule shattered splashing green fluid all over and causing Sonics body to fall to the floor. Knuckles ran over to him and checked him over. He wasn't breathing but he still had a pulse.

"I gotta get you out of here, but not without the others." said Knuckles to himself looking at the other five tanks.

"You really think it will be that easy?" said a voice.

Knuckles was instantly on his feet and in a fighting stance at the voice. It seemed familiar but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Who is that? Show yourself!"

Slowly a figure emerged from the other side of the door. Knuckles' jaw hit the ground again.

"Sarath?! But that's impossible. You're dead!" he said.

"Yes I was……but now I'm not." replied Sarath with a wry smile.

"Grr! What have you done to them?!" demanded Knuckles.

"What have I done? I have done nothing. It was this station that did this."

"What do you mean?!"

"So you don't know. I thought as much. Let me explain it then. Every several thousand years the planets in this solar system align and cause a surge of energy that helps the planet Mobius. However, every hundred thousand years or so the normal planetary alignment in this solar system is different. It feeds the dark energies. During the last dark alignment long ago the ruling civilisation worked this out. That civilisation has long passes out of all knowledge and has been forgotten but they did leave behind something."

Sarath paused for a moment before continuing.

"They created this station so that when the next alignment came around it would be different. You see the station absorbs the dark energies from the alignment and amplifies it. This energy needs someone to….carry it."

Knuckles finally understood.

"You?!" he cried.

"Yes echidna. This station has been scanning for potential candidates since it went operational. It selected me. It used my DNA codes to…….clone me."

Sarath suddenly looked uneasy as if the idea of him being a clone disgusted him.

"What's this have to do with them?!" asked Knuckles.

"Well you see this station can also absorb other things. It can absorb feelings, personalities and even life-force. They are simply extras."

Knuckles couldn't believe what he had just heard.

"You won't get away with this!" he cried.

"You forget. It's not me, it's the station and yes we will. The joining is already complete. You have no hope in stopping us. And now you will join your friends."

Sarath raised his arms picking up Knuckles and throwing him across the room.

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In Mobotropolis, Espio was running around the emerald chamber in distress. The Chaos Emeralds were floating in the air and glowing brightly. The Master Emerald was also glowing a dark green although it still remained grey in colour.

Espio stopped running around and gazed in awe as each of the Chaos Emeralds shot a beam of energy towards the Master Emerald. What was going on he thought.

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Knuckles hit the glass again causing the capsule to shatter just as the liquid neared the top of his shoes. He dived out of the way. This was hopeless. That had been the third capsule he had had to break out of. Sarath was just too strong. He didn't know how though. He landed behind a console and caught his breath.

"Very impressive echidna but you can't go on like this forever." came a call.

Knuckles knew he was right. He was tired already. He had barely made it out of that capsule. He got up and dived out from behind the console almost knocking Sarath of his feet. Sarath spun to the side and picked him up again, throwing him into the ground hard. He walked over to the exhausted Knuckles.

"And now echidna you will join your friends."

Sarath raised his hands but suddenly there was a large green flash. The room filled with a soft green glow and Knuckles found himself encased in a clear bubble. Sarath tried to throw Knuckles but it didn't work. Meanwhile Knuckles was brought back to full alertness. It was strange. The last time he had felt like this was when the Master Emerald had protected him from Sarath's amulet on the Floating Island. A thought struck him.

"No." he said quietly to himself, "It can't be."

Sarath was getting quite annoyed right now. He growled loudly and waved his hand at Knuckles, trying to throw him. It didn't work again. Knuckles dived over to Sonic and rolled over him, picking him up as he did. He stood up holding Sonic in his arms.

"We will finish this Sarath! You have my word!" he cried.

There was a bright flash and Knuckles disappeared from sight. Sarath roared.

"BLAST! That dratted echidna!" cried Sarath before he calmed himself, "No matter. I will deal with him later."

He turned to the remaining five capsules.

"Soon. Very soon."