Sanctuary

They had been running through the rain for some time now, and were both thoroughly soaking. Shadow's injury was clearly bothering him, though he was too proud to admit it. His movements were strained and laboured, with his fire gone his jet-boots were not working, and he was forced to walk like everyone else. As they had moved he'd come closer and closer to Knuckles side, and was now putting perhaps more weight on him than the Guardian himself was fit to bear. Now however they could see a building on the very crest of the hill, open and prone to the elements, it was, in fact a church. Wordlessly they both found themselves heading towards it. It was only as they crossed through the graveyard that Knuckles spoke:
"Here's my ghosts, and a gothic building"
Shadow shuddered slightly "When I was young they used to leave the doors to churches open so that people could go inside whenever they wanted to… To claim sanctuary. I don't know if that's still the case now"
"We can only try… at the very least… I'd just like to get out off the rain"
"Me too"

Together the two of them approached the large, forbidding gothic building. A few gargoyles glared down on them, perversions of nature from the human mind perhaps. Knuckles couldn't help but smile, given his company. They reached the huge oak doors. Shadow pressed against them. With a small yip of glee he forced one open. Thankfully they scurried inside. In the small porch area both shook their fur and wiped their feet. They were immediately struck by the silence, broken only by the sound of the rain against the ancient roof. The smell of old books wafted up their noses as they wandered into the main hall of the church. It was a grand place, filled with pews facing towards an altar with a single candle burning on it. Both had begun to dread the scent of smoke. Above, the ceiling arched away. On either side of the hall stained glass windows dimly depicted scenes from the human's religion. Neither could deny that the place was beautiful. It had a tranquil air to it; for the first time in days both felt their nerves relax a little.
"It's warm and dry…" Shadow crooned approvingly
"Now all we need to find is a nice safe corner to curl up in"
Shadow nodded "Do you think its right for us to be here?" He asked quietly "We're not exactly the normal clientele…"
"Sanctuary…" Knuckles muttered almost to himself. He took up Shadow's hand and led him between the pews. "This looks good." Knuckles was just leading them between the hard looking seats when a cough alerted them to another presence in the building. Both swung round. As they watched an old human man dressed in smart, but casual clothes approached them. Knuckles shoved past Shadow to place himself between him and the human. To his immense surprise he smiled at them.
"What brings you here on such a terrible night my little ones?"
For a moment a frown creased Knuckles face; then he decided the man meant that as a figure of speech rather than an insult. Shadow, in submissive silence allowed Knuckles to do the talking.
"We sought shelter from the storm…"
"You do look cold and wet…" The man chuckled
"We won't do any harm we'll be gone by dawn tomorrow."
"You are free to stay… Knuckles is what they call you isn't it?" Knuckles muscles tensed, Shadow's terror spiked, had he not been injured they feared they might have lost their grip on his power. "And Shadow… You're not nearly as scary as I thought you'd be… just like wet little puppies…-" Suddenly fear crept across his face "I meant no offence!"
"We wish you no ill" Knuckles sighed "All we want is somewhere dry to sleep for a few hours…"
"You are welcome to remain… here all sins can be forgiven"
At his words Shadow reached out to Knuckles with a kind of poignant almost desperate sorrow. Its intensity shocked him, stirred in him his own grief, made him realise they both had a lot for which to repent.
"Those pews are terribly uncomfortable. They make them like that on purpose so people pay attention" The priest chuckled again "You'd probably be better sleeping in one of the side rooms, they at least have carpet. Follow me if you wish"
Knuckles raised an eyebrow at Shadow, who shrugged, and they followed the priest.
They were shown to a small room off the main hall, its use remained ambiguous, it simply held a human sized desk and some chairs. The room did seem much warmer and cosier than the open hall, Knuckles was reassured.
"Make yourselves comfortable. I think I have a few old dog blankets and towels in the back if you want them?"
Knuckles nodded perhaps a little too eagerly "Anything warm and dry would be appreciated!"
The human nodded, and took himself away.
"Do you think we're safe here?" Shadow asked softly, cautiously lowering his bag from his back.
"This room isn't too small for you is it?"
"No, its not made of metal, or empty… that wasn't what I meant… with this human… can we trust him?"
Knuckles shrugged "He seems ok… and I think I can outmatch one puny human"
"What if he calls more and tells them we're here?"
"I hadn't thought of that" Knuckles said glumly, feeling more than a little stupid. "I knew this was too good to be true"
"Do you think he would turn us in? He doesn't seem to be afraid of us… or hostile… but as you know I'm a notoriously poor judge of character…"
"Me too" Knuckles said mildly "I can't stand humans… Hate them… but this one… he seems… I dunno… He makes me want to trust him… maybe that's why he's a priest." Knuckles sighed "I want to trust him Shadow… I'm so tired… I can't run anymore…" He hung his head "I'm so very tired…"
Shadow was about to say something when the priest returned with their blankets.
"Here you are…" He handed Shadow the blankets, Knuckles had turned away and was busy pulling one of their slightly soggy ones out of his bag. The priest raised an eyebrow and looked between him and Shadow. Shadow just shook his head.
"What do we call you sir?" Shadow asked "You know our names… it seems only right that we should know yours."
"So you do speak" the priest said mildly "I'm Allen"
"We thank you for your hospitality… all being well it will be much appreciated…" There was a slight warning tone to Shadow's voice. Allen nodded
"All being well… Goodnight and God bless little ones… as you are here I will stay the night… do not mind me moving around, I do not sleep well away from my own home"
He left them. Knuckles had been arranging what, for all intensive purposes, looked like a nest in the corner of the room. Shadow helped him finish his work. Then, once they had dried the wet from each others fur and Shadow's wound had been redressed they dropped to sleep.

Knuckles suffered with troubled dreams. Even in his sleep they were running, running from one thing or another. They would just get away from one thing to hear the baying of another enemy and be forced to take flight again. He kept waking from the dreams because they were frustrating. They whipped him into a restless fury when all he longed for was a peaceful dreamless sleep. Every time he woke he wanted to thrash about, beat his fists into something hard, to relieve some of the nervous tension knotting his muscles, but he feared to wake Shadow, who for once looked peaceful in his sleep. Against Knuckles' heart that made him angry too, he resented Shadow's peace when he could find none himself.

At length he got up, hoping a walk would ease his mind and body. He had no wish to go outside; he could still hear the rain against the church roof, and occasionally the low rumble of distant thunder. The main hall of the church was quiet, and dark, lit only by the light on that single candle on the altar, burned much lower now. He wandered slowly, allowing his eyes to grow used to the darkness. In time he could discern the shapes of some of the things hanging on the wall, the crucifix hanging as the focal point above the altar. For a moment he stood looking up at it, pondering his thoughts, its meaning, watching his world flicker in the candle light. He started when he heard soft footsteps behind him.
"Do not fear Guardian Knuckles, it is just me… Allen"
Knuckles turned and gave him a small, if weary smile.
"Troubled dreams?"
"Mmm yeah…" Knuckles sighed distantly
"Yes. If I were in your shoes I too would expect unpleasant dreams"
Knuckles wasn't sure if that was the priest's way of chastising him for all the things he'd done, and all the things the papers had said he'd done, but he allowed it to slide, whether the comment's intentions were benign or not. Allen sank to the sit on the front pew.
"Tell me of your dreams. Talking about them always helps… and you would be indulging my curiosity. I have met only a few Shremu in my time, never a Guardian and his Charge."
"I dream we're running… always… we never stop… the things that chase us never get any closer, but we can't stop. I can't make myself stop and fight, even though I want to. Its so frustrating, to be running all the time, it's like living the same thing over and over again, or fighting with a puzzle I can't solve. I wake up not knowing whether to scream or cry."
"And which do you feel like doing now, now you're awake"
Knuckles turned his head to look at him for a moment then turned back to the crucifix. "Crying" He answered softly.
"Are Guardians allowed to cry?"
Knuckles was about to say something when he realised he was speaking figuratively.
"No…" He continued to stare ahead "We have to be strong. All the time."
"And what do you think of that?"
"I think it's hard"
"And what would Shadow say if he could hear your words now?"
"Probably that I'm being selfish, and neglecting my responsibilities… Wallowing in self-pity"
"Really, is that what he would say?"
Knuckles sighed "No… Probably not. He'd probably be hurt that I feel like this… and that I'm hiding it from him… but" Knuckles turned to look at him "I'm supposed to be strong, never show any weakness… or fear. That's my job"
"Your job seems to me to be rather impossible. Everyone's faith waivers from time to time, no-one can be strong and fearless all the time. Everyone fears something, even if its one of the more abstract concepts… Even you"
"I never said I was fearless… I'm not so conceited. I cannot sleep because I'm afraid, afraid that any moment the humans will bear down on us and catch us once and for all. I cannot bring myself to imagine that that could be a good thing, in any way. All we want is to be left alone, to live our own lives… in peace… we spent so long looking for a place far enough away from people where it would be safe for us to set up home… They took that away from us… Just when we were getting used to it… We won't ever be able to go back there now. I'm so tired of running… so tired of fighting… It's just not fun anymore… not now it's real… but then… for me, fighting's been real for a very long time. I don't think I'm the kind of creature your God could forgive…"
"All can be forgiven… they just have to ask"
Knuckles sighed and looked away again "I wish I could believe it was that simple… Shadow believes his death will mean an escape, and a reunion with his beloved ones… He thinks that wherever he goes I'll be too… I'm scared I'll disappoint him."
The human remained silent for a long time "I do not pretend to understand what it is you believe in your culture, and I will not try to impress my own beliefs on you… but… I cannot like a belief system that condemns so harshly one who grieves as deeply as you seem to"
"I grieve now, but that didn't stop me taking those lives, didn't stay my fists"
"We all make mistakes"
"Yeah, but Shadow and I seem to make particularly big ones. Being a Guardian is a punishment, I understand that now…"
"Perhaps not a punishment… but a test?" The priest offered
Knuckles sighed softly "A test I've failed… I was going to do so much… Show him what Earth really has to offer… I was even ready to show him a human city… I thought through him I could learn to forgive humans for what they did… I thought they couldn't be so bad if they gave me him… If they were capable of creating him, maybe they had something to offer… But they aren't willing to give him to me… They won't let him go, forgive him, us, for our sins… maybe I don't blame them"
"Did you destroy Skytop village?"
Knuckles looked at him and shook his head "No…" His voice broke; he quickly tried to recover his composure. "Shadow doesn't even have that much range!"
"Then what are you afraid of, what have you to feel guilty about?"
"How many people were hurt because of what Shadow did to the moon? How many people did I kill in the helicopter I destroyed?"
"How many people did you save when you stopped the ARK?"
Knuckles paused, they'd done that and considered it just part of the job, he'd never really thought about it before.
"Not all humans are baying for your blood, little Guardian. Have faith… you may see the light yet… and if not, I'm sure you will not disappoint your Charge." Allen stood up and offered Knuckles his hand to shake, which he did. "Now Guardian Knuckles, to your rest, before Shadow misses you, and no more of these unpleasant dreams"
Knuckles looked at him for a long moment, head tilted to one side, before returning to the side room.

The roaming lights of a police car picked something out at the side of the road. The officer hailed his counterpart and bid her to stop. She pulled up behind the vehicle parked at the side of the road.
"That look like our renegade jeep?"
"Yeah… dunno what's so important about it they had do drag us out at this god awful time in the morning!"
"Didn't ya hear, the army's looking for that Project Shadow thingy…"
"We're out here looking for a hedgehog and an Echidna at four o'clock in the morning in the pouring rain?"
"Yep"
"I do not get paid enough for this"
"What was the plate number on that jeep?"
"Not that one" She said "But call it in anyway, that old guy's bound to have gotten it wrong, how many of these do you think there are out here? Besides I am not getting out of this car to look for fur or Shremu sized footprints in this weather"
"Especially not when there's a rabid hedgehog running around huh!"
They both descended into laughter.

Master Almer couldn't believe it had happened again. Everything seemed to be fitting into sickening duality. Another murderer stood before him, a girl this time, her whole form shaking; her eyes terrified. Her name was Terra, she'd always been so gentle, she hadn't been expected to position very highly in her ranking battles. She wasn't picked as a fighter. Now she had killed her competitor, a much stronger male Echidna, almost twice her size, it just didn't add up. Almer smelled a rat. The incident with Kreb just a few weeks before made it all the more appalling. He had a temper, but no-one would have thought him a murderer. The thought that Almer could be sentencing another to the Marchac made him cringe. He still couldn't dispel the memory of Kreb hanging from the frame, the ropes biting into his wrists, and the look in the eyes of the youngest trainees, somewhere between confusion and disgust, as though they didn't know whether to approve. Master Ribern hadn't been able to look himself in the eye for weeks after he'd sentenced Knuckles to it. Almer was almost able to again after sentencing Kreb. It was a duty he had hoped he would never have to perform again. Kreb was still ill. The problem was both these incidents seemed accidents. Both had discovered wells of power they had been unaware of and had been unable to restrain themselves. With Terra more than Kreb something did not add up. There were disturbing reports coming to Angel Island across the message network. Almer increasingly had the impression Kreb and Terra were not isolated incidents. Angel Island was emptying at a truly alarming rate as more and more too young trainees departed to Bond to the Shard-Touched. It was all beginning to add up to an equation Almer did not like. As a consequence he decided to postpone Terra's sentencing, until he knew more. Almer was worried, he'd stood before the empty Master Emerald Shrine, and shivered. Perhaps the Coreinth was getting its revenge…

"Wake up!" A low voice was saying, shaking him "Wake up you stupid Guardian!"
Knuckles' fist only narrowly missed Allen's head.
"What!" He asked angrily, it seemed as though he'd only just gone to sleep.
"Something about your vehicle being found, the police and the army are all over the place! It won't be long before they come to look here! My car is outside I do not usually spend the night, they will know something is not right!"
With Knuckles' mind fuzzy from sleep the human's words were too much to take in. His expression must have given him away.
"They are coming for you!"
That got Knuckles' attention. He was on his feet, and grabbing Shadow's sleeping form all in one motion. With a yelp Shadow woke too. Just the look on Knuckles face told Shadow all he needed to know. The two of them started running, abandoning their blankets and bags to the church. They were half way down the central aisle before Knuckles shouted back.
"Thanks!"
"I'll hold them off as long as I can!" Allen called in response.

A cold damp morning embraced them as the church door slammed shut behind them. They set off down the other side of the hill, away from the road and their car. Knuckles found the aching pain of exhaustion in his limbs little relieved by a few hours sleep. They couldn't stop. They had to find somewhere new to hide, all around them they could sense frantic human activity, and distantly the baying of dogs, probably trying to sniff out their scent. Knuckles hoped the previous night's rain would have washed it away. With Shadow bleeding as he was he knew their combined scent would otherwise be strong enough for any dog to track. The hill down which they were running was steep, it gave them speed, Knuckles was grateful for it, it eased their fatigued muscles back into motion gently. However the grass was wet, and slippery, twice he had to rescue Shadow from sliding from his feet. Then as they neared the bottom of the slope, he returned the favour. Now they were running over fairly flat ground, fields marked out by low walls or hedges. They crossed them quickly, pushing their way through hedges and jumping over walls. On any other day Knuckles might have punched through them, but now it seemed like wasted energy when both were simply focused on running. Knuckles hoped the layout of the terrain, with all these boundaries would slow their human pursuers, though he half expected them to suddenly appear on horseback. Then as he heard a now familiar low drone he knew their luck was running out. Walls would not stop a helicopter, and they certainly couldn't outrun one. Shadow's limbs chose that moment to give way. He suddenly became unable to support himself, he staggered and fell. Knuckles too intent on moving forward failed to catch him. He looked back as Shadow lay in the mud, groaning.
"Shadow, stand!" Knuckles ordered, there wasn't time to be gentle about it. Through the Bond he attempted to take hold of Shadow's limbs, and force him back to his feet. He soon discovered that Shadow was physically incapable of standing. He sighed to himself and returned to him.
"Put your arm round my neck" He said firmly. Shadow obeyed as Knuckles wearily lifted him into his arms.
His feet slipped on the muddy ground as he attempted to run, behind them he could hear the sounds of helicopters, drawing ever closer. He couldn't run much further. Knuckles knew they were almost out of time. Ahead he could see a long row of trees, like a thick hedge. He looked between it and the pursuing vehicles, and made a decision.

He found a thick section of trees and put Shadow down.
"Stay here Shadow!" Knuckles said firmly, paralysing his legs to prevent him trying to follow. He went to move away but Shadow grabbed his hand.
"Promise you'll come back for me"
Knuckles turned back to him, he reached out with his big Echidna hand and tenderly stroked the side of his wet cheek. "Have I ever let you down?"
Shadow couldn't answer. Only as Knuckles drew away and broke cover could he shout a response.
"That wasn't a promise Knuckles!"

Knuckles ran, alone for the first time since they'd been forced from their home. He pushed his burning muscles to the limit of their capacity. He crossed an open field far slower than he would have liked, his hasty feet sinking into the mud, splattering it up his legs. As he ran a delirious thought crossed his mind. He would have given just about anything at that moment to be doing a rout run round Angel Island, rain and all… He'd have given anything, to be safe, and back in the company of fellow Guardians. With that he heard himself crying out, calling for help, using breath he didn't know he had.
"Guardian Calls. Human danger. Charge pain. Help!"
Somehow he didn't expect to be answered. Any Echidna hearing his message would see his situation and wisely back away. Only a Guardian would be foolish enough to answer. He did hope however that maybe he could call some help for Shadow, even if it was too late for him. He forced his way through a spiny hedge, the thorns tore at his flesh, but he didn't even wince. The helicopters were over him now. Desperately he hoped none of the humans had spotted where he'd hidden Shadow. He felt like a fox being hunted. He ran down a gentle slope, ahead he could see the humans coming towards him. He couldn't stop now, there was no-where else to run to. He simply tried to put as much distance between himself and his Charge as possible. At least this way he could face them head on.

These humans knew what they were doing, that was the problem. They knew Shadow was too badly injured to be a threat. So they'd brought their vehicles close, run them ragged. Knuckles had responded by doing what every Guardian would, he'd sent Shadow to ground, hidden him where he would be safe until he could get back to him. Shadow was not fit to fight, neither was Knuckles, but he wasn't about to admit defeat. He'd tried calling his Hyper-Form several times, but it remained stubbornly absent. Last time it had come on him it was in Shadow's defence, this time the humans appeared to know better. Knuckles had nothing left, his body and mind had reached the edge, he tottered as though on the blade of a knife, at breaking point. He stood now, his chest heaving, fists bared, waiting for the humans to attack, they could have shot him, but obviously, they wanted them alive, Shadow was still too expensive an investment to be allowed to bleed to death in the dark and cold of an early autumn day. He was surrounded by a ring of humans, their stinking cars, noisy helicopters circling above-hurting his ears. He just hoped Shadow would do as he'd been told, and stay hidden, somehow he didn't have much confidence. The humans were approaching him armed with clubs, further back he could see one loading a dart gun. This was not going to be pretty.

He growled-how base of him. Coherent speech was beyond him, besides, he knew these humans weren't the kind who would listen to reason. All the fur on his body stood on end, rippling like a frightened cat. A few of the humans paused in their approach, they were the ones to watch, the frightened ones, they would either run from him, or use their fear to drive them on and give them strength. He'd stopped calling for help, not even a Guardian would be stupid enough to come to his aid now, he was entirely alone. Knuckles frowned, if there was going to be a fight, no-matter how hopeless, it would be on his terms. He called the lasts of his dwindling strength together, and jumped into the air.

He went for the human with the dart gun first. The human fumbled with the weapon, it went off with a bang, and the dart flew disconcertingly close over Knuckles' right shoulder. In the next instant he felt the satisfying crunch of Echidna fist meeting human bone. The human staggered back from him, Knuckles landed on the ground, swung his fist, and took the legs out from beneath a soldier, with another satisfying snap. Humans, he thought to himself, such fragile creatures. The low blow of a bent human hit him in the back, and sent him flying into another. He smashed into him, sending blood splattering into the air. He wasn't entirely sure whose. Suddenly breathing became hard, his chest ached. Maybe Echidna were almost as fragile. He landed on his feet, but only just, dazed. He saw the human approach, raise his weapon, but was not fast enough to bring his arms up in defence. He dropped his head, heard a sickening, loud, thud. Just as the ground came up to meet him he realised what he was… bait.

He knew it had ended badly. Knuckles' imposed paralysis cut out suddenly, leaving him dazed. Shadow remained motionless, listening to the sound of the helicopter engines. He shivered-his fur soggy with mud. He was at a loss. Knuckles would not be back to collect him, their cries for help had not been answered. No Guardian would be coming to offer a helping fist. Shadow felt sick. He pressed his hands into the mud and tried to sit up. Pain washed over him, his arms threatened not to support him. He frowned to himself; he was not going to be beaten by a single gunshot wound. His father had built him stronger than that. He forced himself into a sitting position, then slowly to his feet. He stood there, swaying for a long moment, trying to get his balance. He took as deep a breath as his chest would allow, and staggered forwards. If they survived, Knuckles would be the one lightly grilling him for disobedience.

He moved across the field through which he'd seen Knuckles disappear at what a human would have described as a sprint, but which was to him little more than a painful jog. It was all his tattered body could manage. At the other side he hid in the hedge again, Knuckles had obviously passed through here; Shadow could smell his scent all around him. He looked down a low sweeping hill to where the humans had gathered in a rough circle. He could see them carrying their wounded away. For a moment he smiled, pleased at his Guardian's handy-work. Obviously he hadn't gone down without a fight. Shadow watched, wheezing, it didn't look like Knuckles had added to their number of human dead, and so given them more reason to resent them. He waited, but his breath wouldn't catch. He looked down; the bandages once meticulously tied round his chest were hanging loose, brown with mud and red with blood. This was not good. The human medical vehicles sped away, but somehow Shadow was certain Knuckles was not contained in any of them. The humans were spreading out from the centre, probably looking for him. Then Shadow's ears picked up a voice, amplified many times.

"Project Shadow" He hated being addressed by that name "You're Guardian is expendable" he watched as dogs were offloaded from one of the vehicles, immediately they started barking "You will be found. We know you are hiding nearby, show yourself now, or your Guardian will be shot." The voice laughed. Now Shadow could see the man, he realised he recognised his voice "I think if we did that we would be able to find you by the sound of your screaming." Knuckles had been right, they should have killed him. "I'm not a patient man" Paul Spencer chuckled and pointed at Knuckles motionless form laid out on the ground, and a man holding a gun to his unknowing head.

Shadow wracked his mind. If Chaos Control was to work for him he couldn't possibly hope to draw enough time to get down to where he was, and carry him away. The most Chaos Control would give him was the equivalent of about 30 seconds. He wasn't strong enough to carry Knuckles anyway. He was now, for all the scientists' prowess, and the Shards' power, just a ball of muscle, bone and blood. A terrified one at that. He could feel himself shivering. He forced his fear back, not that it mattered, half incapacitated as he was. He had the Shard in his hand.
"I'm waiting hedgehog!" Paul called "Ten… nine…"
Shadow spoke to himself and started running. Paul's countdown ceased, Shadow felt Chaos Control sucking the lasts of his strength away. It couldn't even give him thirty seconds. Mentally he counted down the seconds until the humans would be moving at the same pace as him again. He staggered as he ran, between the human's seemingly frozen shapes. Reaching Knuckles was a release. He pulled his body from the aim of the humans' guns, covering it with his own, as time caught him with a rush.

Most of the humans jumped at his instant appearance, accompanied only by the smallest flash of light. Shadow had nothing left, it was all he could do to draw air into his damaged lungs. The lasts of his energy was spent. He looked up at the humans, clinging to Knuckles, pondering the foolishness of his latest rash mistake. Then as he watched many hands grabbed him, he clung to Knuckles for as long as possible, until his heavy body slipped from his grip. He tried to struggle, to get back to him, but he was like a puppy held by the scruff. He recognised a needle, saw it find a vein in his tightly held arm. The last thing he was aware of before unconsciousness embraced him was the repulsive smell of human sweat.

Angel Island was in complete Chaos. News of Terra's accident had become public knowledge, despite the Masters' best efforts. Unfortunately some of the cleverer Trainees had come to the same conclusion as Almer. The Shards were rising…

Guardian legend said that when the Coreinth, the ancient jewel was broken by the hands of five ancient Echidna it split into the Master Emerald, the seven Chaos Emeralds, and the Shards. The Shards had gone into the hands of the Echidna, cursed them with their strength and a heart of stone. However the Shards did not just touch Echidna, they went out into all the elements of the world, and made contact with other creatures, endowing them with power to be used for good or ill. Up until now the other Emeralds had had a restraining influence on the Shards, now as the only fragments of the Ancient Coreinth the Shards were loose, touching more and more people, and giving those already under their influence more power than they could cope with. That was why young Guardians were moving out, to take on Charges they had never expected, the Shards had disrupted the balance the Coreinth had once represented and were wreaking havoc. The Guardians, bound to the ancient Emeralds were attempting to cope with those suddenly under the Shards' power, to help those new Shard-Touched understand their new blessing and curse. There were not enough Guardians to go around. The mood on Angel Island was electric, Trainees and Masters alike were afraid. Afraid who would be touched next, or which of the too young Trainees would be taken to help a Shard-Touched. The world was getting out of control. The balance had to be righted, but Almer knew the only ones who could do that were on the run. The message network was on overdrive, Echidna everywhere were now on the lookout for Shadow and Knuckles, but Almer had the worst feeling the search would be too late…

That afternoon he received a summons on the only radio on the island; Corin, the Guardians' representative in the humans' senate had come to the same conclusion as to the cause of events, and seemed much better informed as to their extent. Corin, in his wide knowledge of human affairs was deeply worried. Almer, and a delegation had been summoned to speak, and he knew he could not afford not to attend. Leaving Master Drew in charge he left instructions for the search for Shadow and Knuckles to be maintained and that he should be informed as soon as they were found. Then he left in a Shremu built aircraft along with four other high ranking Masters and a small group of Trainees.