(I do not own Sonic X etc.)

Flip Card 1:

Name: Badnik Robotic attack drones

Age: Designed and then used in the Eggman Empire a few months ago

Brief Description: Built using an unknown source of technology, badniks use living people as a power source, keeping them trapped inside. They are stronger, faster and even more durable than any robotics technology currently in existence.

With a loud thump Bark finally dropped the heavy burden he'd been pulling around London onto a forklift truck and it was carted off with a large crowd of Techicians following closely behind. Arriving at a G.U.N base in France, technicians had insisted at once at examining this intact piece of advanced technology. So far, all they'd managed to salvage from the battlefields had been a few shattered pieces. This was the first whole badnik they'd been able to get their hands on.

Tails took one look at the inside and out of this new robotic solider and he growled to himself, shaking his head.

"Not good." He began, crossing his arms in front of himself as they hauled it roughly up onto a large metallic platform; a large entangled collection of monitoring devices hanging above it.

"Something wrong?" Okida asked, giving the robot a look over himself. Tails nodded.

"Oh yes. I've been working on Eggman's robots for years now. I know their designs inside and out. Whatever this thing is, it's far too advanced; even for him." Okida paused, before looking back, not comprehending exactly what Tails meant by that. "He couldn't possibly have created all that by himself." The fox continued. "This technology is like nothing I've ever seen before." Before he could add anything more, a large mechanical device descended from the ceiling and begin probing the robotic shell, testing the metals strength.

"As far as I know." Okida began. "Eggman is the only source of advanced technology on Earth." Tails crossed his arms.

"Then he must have gotten it from somewhere else." He muttered to himself, a few theories that verged on the edge of Sci-Fi suddenly appearing unbidden in his mind.

"Look, I just don't see why I have to hang around." Hare began angrily as he, Bean and Bark walked into the technician area. The mobian rabbit looked even more annoyed than usual, having just been told that he was required to stay on the base perimeters. "I've got friends in Paris I can hold up with, so why aren't I allowed to go?"

"You can thank Bean and Bark here." Okida replied, turning towards him. Hare narrowed an eye questioningly. "Well, according to their reports you held up well under pressure and immediate danger in London. As well as being extremely helpful in acquiring enemy technology." Okida put in, handing the rabbit a piece of paper with a large offical stamp on it. "And under the present Emergency Powers Act I'm authorized to recruit any and all personnel I see fit."

"You've just been drafted." Bean said with a hint of satisfaction in his voice. Even Bark was finding it hard to suppress a large grin, Hare's left ears twitched and anger began seeping into his face, his eyes diluting in utter rage.

"YOU BASTARDS!" He screamed, drawing a fists back.

Sonic would never admit it, least of all to himself; but he found himself regretting how much grief he had caused so many people. His half a year nap had tested Amy's character to extremes. Shadow had disappeared, lost to some place unknown and to top it all of, one of his new friends lay in thirty or more shattered pieces, hardly even alive.

Metal Sonic had been one of their most hated enemies, then a valued alley and at the end a good friend. Sacrificing himself to save both Shadow and Sonic from a destructive blast from the Biolizard. Standing over the table upon which the robotichedgehog's remains had been placed, Sonic could see someone had been trying to repair him; but by the look of it was not doing very well.

"Hey…" A voice began. Sonic barley looked up as he saw Chris approach. "Glad to see you up." He said, hiding behind a small smile the utter glee and joy he was experiencing to see his friend finally awake.

"Not as much as I am." The blue hedgehog stated with a sigh. "What I saw in my nightmares…" He shuddered involuntarily, remembering the utter despair that had taken hold of him as that horrifying darkness swirling around. He owed Tikal one for that. If she even had been there. Perhaps it had all been a dream like he'd anticipated.

"Grandpa's been wracking his brains out trying to get him up and running." Chris stated. "I don't think he's getting anywhere though."

"Nope." Sonic muttered, looking as the scrupled mess of burnt wires and metallic shells that lay on the table. All that remained of the intact body was an arm and the head, the quills lancing out the end burnt clean off. "I really oweMetal oneChris." He stated with a stern amount of determination in his voice.

"We all do." Chris answered with a short grin.

The Elite had been, before Eggman arrived, bankers who controlled a lot of the world's wealth. Using their influence, they'd been slowly corrupting half the governments on Earth paving the way for their take over. When the Eggman Empire arrived and the world was being overrun with the Doctor's robots, they saw opportunity knocking and began hording vast amounts of technology stolen from the downed Egg Fleet to create their own Mech Walkers, ready to help the Eggman Empire overrun the world.

When their leader, General Saddler had been exposed they changed strategies and began openly supporting the invasion force.

"This is a crisis." Their new current head began as they sat around a long table, Eggman himself setting at the far end with his arms crossed. "With Sonic back in the way, we're put right back to square one."

"Your robots failed to defeat him." One of them stated sharply turning to Eggman, who watched him back with a malicious glare. "Sonic is one of the greatest threats to our advancement and he must be destroyed."

"So far in fact Sonic seems to have made a mockery of your so called advanced technology." Another added. Again Eggman said nothing, only replying with a steely glance.

"You should have taken him down before this campaign began." This however, broke Eggman's tolerance levels.

"That wasn't my job gentleman!" He snapped angrily, nearly foaming at the mouth with the eyes behind his glasses sparking with anger. "If I remember correctly, it was your responsibility to destroy Sonic with your revived Biolizard. A responsibility you failed to live up to." The room fell silent. Everyone looked like they had an objection poised on their lips but were afraid to speak. "I will deal with Sonic myself when the time comes; he is not your concern!" Eggman shoved his chair aside and stood up, slapping his hands down on the table. "Now I'm going to make this very clear from the start; personally I consider you all aristocratic scum with a Napoleonic complex. I don't care how long you've been plotting to take over the world. This is my conquest and if you even want a shred of power, you'll do actually as I say." A short moment of tense silence followed. All of them silent, with their mouths hung open in astonishment; all expect one, who in blind rage stood up with anger burned into his face.

"How dare you talk to us like this! We were here long before you were! We had the world ready to sign itself over to us when you showed up, we only joined with you because it's profitable. Don't think that we can't…" He never even finished a sentence. Eggman simply clicked his fingers and the badniks standing around the outside of the room raised their laser rifles and fired a volley straight at him. It body shook at the impact, before he toppled backwards over his chair and landed with a loud thud on the floor, blood staining his shirt.

"Anyone else want to be an idiot?" The scientist asked; eyeing the occupants of the room his itchy trigger finished tapping the table expectantly. No one darted to move, every one of them scared witless. "Good. Nice to see I have some people with a brain cell under my command. I will not tolerate insubordination. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal…" One of them muttered quickly.

"This is my empire, not yours. You would so best to remember that." Even as he spoke, badniks were already marching the captured citizen out to begin work on the thousands of new depo's and factories Eggman had ordered the construction of. With the help of the Nanotechnology they should be complete very soon. With the nation's defence up and under his command, the doctor had secured his power base.

The fact that the hedgehog had chosen to push his nose into his business again was off little consequence now. Nothing could stop the events the Doctor had set in motion. This world would come under the Eggman Empire's control…given enough time.

"Decoe, Becoe; a word in private if you please." The two hence-bots cast each other a glance before followed their fat master into a side room shutting the door behind them. "Sonic's re-appearance does mean trouble, and my empire isn't ready for a head on collision with him yet." He admitted reluctantly, sitting down in a chair facing a window overlooking his new territory. "I have the Egg Moon, but it's too close to the Earth to be an effective major base of operations. What I need is a place I can built without constant interference from G.U.N or blue boy." He looked back over his shoulder. "Any suggestions?"

"Well sir." Decoe began cautiously. "You could try using another orbiting station to launch attacks from." Eggman paused, then turned back to face the window.

"Managing an invasion from the moon is difficult enough. The last thing I need to be burdened with is the construction of a Second ARK." He stopped, his eyes widening in a sudden realization. "Hang about!" He shot to his feet. "Of course the ARK! It's perfect!"

"Another brilliant plan as usual sir." Becoe put in. "How do you come up with them?"

"It's a gift." Eggman was an intelligent man, he was however easily flattered.

"Might I suggest sir..." Decoe began, butting in. "That once ARK is occupied again, you consider expanding your territory to another planetoid. Say, Mars for Example?" Eggman put a fore finger and thumb to his chin, thinking the suggestion over. It did have merit. Travelling through space was, fortunately, not one of the hedgehog's many talents. There and on ARK, he could construct all the factories and Badniks he would ever need while those G.U.N amateurs concentrated on his base in England. However, he disliked the idea of running just because the hedgehog reared his head again. And he disliked the idea of leaving those Elite in charge of anything for an extended period of time. "Just call it a tactical retreat sir." Decoe added as if reading his mind.

"Yes I like that." He stated, rubbing his hands together with a sinister smile under his moustache. "Who says I have the limit the growth of the Eggman Empire to this planet anyway?" He sat back down in the chair, chuckling lightly to himself. "Have you got the report from the excavation sight yet?""

Yes sir." Becoe quickly began, pulling up the digitally delivered report on in internal database. "They say they've managed to withdraw most of the technology out of the ground and it's ready for transfer back to the Egg Moon. Although they do recommend that they stay longer to see if they missed anything important."

"Times not a luxury I have at the moment." Eggman declared. "Have them meet up with the Egg Carrier 3 in a few hours time. I'll be taking our precious cargo home personally."

Maginary world, a plane of reality formed by the consciousness of beings throughout the universe, was at war with itself. Void himself had returned and once rallying enough supporters began waging a bloody campaign against the Angel that currently held power; Queen Illumina herself.

Tikal carried very little for the conflicts in one realm. It was the fate of all she had to concern herself with; even through with that realization came an inherent sadness she hadn't counted on. Maginary world was not stable. It alternated, changing from one form into another in varying places. The culmination of sentiency throughout the universe, as diverse as it was, conflicted with each other so much it made the very nature of his dimension unstable.

Still, it had enough of the laws of physics to allow visitation. Tikal gazed out across the flat nothingness that spanned out before her. Following the trail of near depleted Chaos energy, she had tracked Shadow to this dimension. The black and red Hedgehog was in here somewhere. The only question was, where? It could take eons to find him if she tried it on foot. She would just have to try and sense him out. But even that would take far too long, and she did not want to be in this realm for longer than was absolutely necessary. Getting caught in a cross fire between opposing armies did not appeal to her for some obscure reason. From here, she could see the glows radiated from armies clashing across the length of the dimension. Tikal decided that this was close enough.

She needed a little help if she was going to find Shadow on any sort of time scale. Sliding out from her shadow, forming a puddle on the floor came the liquid creature known only as Chaos. Sliding upwards into its most primitive form, forming arms and legs, two dreadlocks lancing out the back of its fish like head. The liquid inside its head shimmer brightly and its brain appeared, nerves trailing down inside its dreadlocks.

Tikal looked back briefly, meeting its own gaze from its emerald green eyes. Without a single word they parted, the female Echidna heading in one direction and Chaos in the other, their own chaotic nature radiating outwards, searching for traces of the Ultimate life-form.

Finally after probing at the fabric of existence in this world; they discovered Shadow's trail; but found it had been purposely disturbed by something. Whatever that something was, it had the power to bend Chaos Energy and far more efficiently than they could. Shadow was in this dimension all right, but as for where precisely; remained to be seen.

There were only two beings in this dimension with the power to bend dimensional fabric. And only one of them had the motive. Tikal narrowed her eyes in frustration.

"Void…"

(In Chris' voice)

Sonic's going to need all the help he can get against Eggman as the fight heads into space; but things are turned upside down when Void arrived with another scheme to get back at Queen Illumina. And if that wasn't bad enough, Chuck's about to be hurled headlong into a murder mystery. Find out what happens next time as the Sonic Shuffle Saga begins, next time on Sonic X: Void's game. Don't miss it!