-Sonic-

Poor Shadow... he sounds so tired... and he looks it, too. The only thing in those red eyes right now is a great weariness. I'm about to turn to Tails, ask him if there's anywhere else I can take Shadow, when somebody to my left, who I hadn't noticed before, speaks.

"Sonic." I turn and look at the speaker. He's a young squirrel, red-furred and blue-eyed. Behind him are several others - two young human children, a black-and-white cat in pink top and blue shorts, and, sitting against the wall, a tall, sturdy grey squirrel. Silvery scar traces run through his fur, the regrown fur paler than the rest. He looks unconscious; someone must have carried him here. But none of these are the most surprising thing - the young squirrel didn't sound at all surprised to see me.

"The others call me Blaze. This is my brother, Crossfire." He indicates the unconscious squirrel. I'm not sure I would have guessed they were brothers if he hadn't told me; they look very different. And yet... something about the eyes says otherwise, though I can't even see the other's eyes. Those eyes... where have I seen that colour before? I look hard at them. The eyes don't seem to match the young, innocent face - those eyes look as if they have seen several lifetimes, but if anything come through stronger than before, unharmed even by the terrible fighting that must have been going on here for years. Ancient eyes... of an oddly familiar shade... in that young, innocent face. He holds my gaze unwaveringly until I suddenly turn away, to Tails.

"Tails, what happened to the Chaos Emeralds? Do you have them?"

"No, except for one," Tails replies. "But that's not important anyway. You wouldn't be able to go Super, I'm afraid."

"Why in the world not, Tails?" I don't get it. Even if they're not fully charged, that can be remedied easily enough. And if I go to Super, I'll cut through Eggman and his robots like so much melting butter, finishing this terrible time for good.

"Because Eggman destroyed one of them - that's what Shadow was trying to stop him from doing. We had all of the others, then, but Shadow was holding them, so we lost them."

What?! Destroy a Chaos Emerald?! I didn't think that was possible! I glance to Shadow, who gives the tiniest fraction of a nod in affirmation.

"It was the blue one - not the pale blue, the other one. Now we only have the green. I think Robotnik has the rest," Tails continues. I can hardly believe it. The blue Emerald... gone? It doesn't seem too long ago since I last held it, felt its power. How could Robotnik destroy something as powerful as a Chaos Emerald? Well, if I can't go Super, I can certainly still do a lot of other stuff. But... where did all that power go? I feel like I've seen it recently - but that's crazy. I've been asleep for years, after all; I'm just remembering the last time I saw it. It feels like all that business with the hostage happened only yesterday.

"Sonic, you should take Shadow someplace safe, where he can rest. Your old bed is probably the best place." Blaze's voice sounds odd; while it's only a suggestion, it has a tone to it that says, this is the way that things will be. But it's an obviously sensible thing to do. I nod, slip my arm under Shadow's, and together we slowly walk off, back the way I think I came. Shadow's practically asleep on his feet; it seems all he can do to keep himself upright. I'm still feeling a bit unsteady myself.

Together, we make it to the room I woke up in. Shadow lies down on the bed, an expression of gratitude flitting across his face as his eyes close completely. He almost whispers something, something I can only just make out.

"Take care of them, Sonic..."

For some reason, I almost want to cry.

"Just rest, Shadow."

But he's already asleep. I blink twice, fast. What could have done this to Shadow? How terrible have these years I've missed been? Why couldn't I have been there to help them? All these years... all these years have passed... it's so hard to believe.

Yesterday... whatever happened to yesterday?