Chapter 9 (Sonic): Blaze's Fate

"Ow!"

"Opps. Sorry, Miss Blaze!"

"Chao Chao!"

Blaze squeezed her chair harder as Cream tightened the bandages around her injured leg. "It's fine."

When Cream finished her work, she exclaimed, "There! All better."

Blaze examined Cream's handiwork and complemented her. Though she could still feel a little bit of stinging, the pain was much better than before. Her clothes, on the other hand, would need to be changed.

Once Sonic had returned her to the castle, Cream and Cheese were the first to rush to Blaze's side when they saw her leg. The other guards and staff members followed suite, upset that she was injured but relieved she was back safe and sound. Even Abraham Tower, the commander of GUN, who was there by circumstance expressed his gratitude to Sonic for saving Blaze.

Before she had Cream and Cheese tend to her wound, Blaze ordered her guards to rally the defenses for another attack by Eggman. As for Tower, she told him the country of Soleanna would form a trade agreement with the United Federation in exchange for GUN's help with stopping Dr. Eggman. The gruff commander, who was usually as stoic as she was, was more than willing to comply in dealing with a common enemy.

As such, GUN's major line of machines and personnel were stationed alongside the borders of Soleanna, with a few teams patrolling around town with the Royal Guard.

The only person not around to defend the town was Sonic, who as soon as he dropped her off left to go straight on the offensive. It was probably the last time she would ever see him. But it was for the best. The world needed Sonic just as much as Soleanna needed her.

Blaze sighed. At least now my people are safe.

"CHAO CHAO CHAO CHAO!" Cheese started panicking in front of them.

Cream stared at her little blue friend, confused and worried. "What's wrong, Cheese?"

"Chao chao! Chao chao chao!" Cheese pulled on Cream's arm, motioning her to go to the balcony. Cream did as Cheese wanted and ran outside of Blaze's room to see what was making the little Chao so distraught.

Blaze also got up, knowing full well that she should be resting. The treatment Cream applied helped reduce the pain from her wound, but the leg needed time to heal. Still, her curiosity got the best of her.

When she walked outside, she saw Cream and Cheese looking out to the horizon in fear. Following their line of sight, she, too became petrified.

"No…"

Blocking out the skies over the Castle Town was a large airship of red and black metal, loaded with enough firepower and robots to demolish the city: The Egg Carrier. Emerging from the bottom of the ship like a tornado came entire garrisons of Badniks, some big and some small. They landed at different points around the town and began waging war against the GUN troops and Soleanna guards.

Blaze was far away from the city, yet she could hear the gunfire from her position. As she and her friends witnessed in horror at the sight before them, a small group of robots appeared in the distance coming towards them.

"Cream! Cheese! Get back!" Blaze got in front of them and prepared to unleash hell upon the machines, only to hesitate when she realized they were nothing but communication drones, each equipped with a TV monitor. They flew to different parts of the castle, one of which choosing to float in front of them. The screen turned on, revealing one very angry Eggman.

"Princess Blaze, ruler of Soleanna…" The drones projected Eggman's voice, but Blaze could hear the same voice being emitted from the Egg Carrier and the town itself.

Guess he really wants to make sure I get this message, she thought, gritting her teeth.

"By refusing to negotiate with me, you have forced me to take drastic actions, such as making an example of your border security."

Border security? Blaze turned her hands into fists and closed her eyes. Don't tell me he…

"Meet me at the specified point alone at 4 o'clock today. You'll find a group of Egg Gunners outside your castle to escort you here." The screen changed to showcase the location—one of the islands in Wave Ocean. And below the balcony approaching over the water were the very 'escorts' Eggman specified. They landed in front of the entrance, where a few members of the Royal Guard steadied their weapons warily.

"Failure to do so on time will result in my leveling of this city so that nothing but ashes remain!"

Once the message concluded, the drones took off in unison, heading straight for the red behemoth in the sky. The Egg Carrier continued on its way, heading in the direction of the Soleanna Forest.

Blaze fell to her knees, unable to bear the gravity of the situation, and screamed. Cream and Cheese rushed to her side, but whatever words they spoke were lost on her.

Sonic didn't stop Eggman in time. The defensive force failed.

I couldn't protect my people.

She wanted to cry. The pain was too much. Yet even now she continued to fight back against the tears. This was the only way to keep the whole world safe. If Eggman got his hands on the Flames of Disaster…

"Dr. Eggman is the only one who can remove Iblis from you…"

"…!"

The words Silver spoke earlier—his justification for trying to kill Sonic—echoed in her mind. The white hedgehog came back to the past to save the future, with his belief that Eggman could remove this burden from her.

But giving Eggman the power—the same power responsible for the bad future yet to come—was it the right thing to do?

"Whether it's right or wrong…"

Silver, too, acknowledged the ambiguity of the morality of the situation. If she gave herself up, she would be giving what the doctor wanted all along. She recalled how he even tried to bargain with her, stating he would make Soleanna a utopia in his empire if she gave him the power.

Blaze didn't trust his word one bit. She wanted nothing to do with him.

But…

If she didn't stop him now, her people would perish. As painful as it was to admit, it was the only way.

As she rose to her feet, the doors to her chambers swung open. A grey and white koala appeared dressed in a slightly different version of the Royal Guard attire. It was Gardon, her personal guard, panting hard.

"Miss Blaze!"

She didn't have to turn around to know why he came. Instead, she said, "I cannot allow any more suffering to befall my people." She turned around and began making her way to meet the Egg Gunners below. Gardon wanted to protest, but his fear of going against his majesty's wishes held his tongue. Cream and Cheese were a different case.

"Miss Blaze! Please don't go!"

"Chao Chao!"

Cream hugged Blaze from behind with Cheese lightly pulling on her lavender hair. Blaze lowered her head. She didn't want to go, but this was the only option left. She faced Cream and Cheese, the tears in their eyes only increasing her desire to stay.

"It is my duty as Princess of Soleanna to go. There is no other choice."

She closed her eyes and hugged Cream and Cheese. The two of them cried like babies, hugging Blaze tighter. They had finally reunited, and now Blaze was giving herself up to the enemy. Gardon lowered his head at the sight, feeling the helplessness of the situation.

Blaze let go of Cream and Cheese, offered them a sad smile and walked out to face her destiny.


Tails saw the broadcast from the item store as he assisted some guards in barricading the doors and windows with his own technological defenses. Outside, GUN was exchanging fire with Eggman's mechs. It sounded like a ballad of bullets and explosions. Knuckles chose to stay outside and fight, leaving Tails and the guards to hold down the fort.

Fortunately, his defenses would keep the store and its occupants safe from the firefight.

As soon as the battle began, citizens fled inside the nearest building they could reach, holding their loved ones close or curling their bodies into balls, clutching their heads in anxiety. Very few guards went into the buildings to act as a final line of defense for the people. The sight of brave men working hard to protect them assisted in calming the people.

But Eggman's message on the screen shattered whatever feeling of comfort they had left. When it ended, the people murmured among themselves.

"Will the princess give herself up?"

"Is this really the end?"

"Why didn't Princess Blaze just surrender? Does she not care if we die at all?"

"Everyone, settle down!" Captain Pietro's voice boomed across the item shop. Immediately after, not a single sound remained. He cleared his throat. "It looks bad now, but we can't lose hope! As long as there is still a member of the Royal Guard and GUN standing, we will continue to keep you safe."

Tails, finishing the final touches on the door's fortifications, listened to the captain's speech. He didn't say a word, yet inside he was glad that Pietro was working hard to motivate the people. Yet Tails noticed one person—a woman—who wasn't paying attention to the captain's speech, instead staring at a small screen in her hands. Dressed in a white shirt and a red skirt, Tails recognized her as the castle staff member sent to check in on his research. Curious, he walked over to her.

She saw him approach and, in a low voice, said, "This is terrible!"

She handed him the screen; on the display was a message from Gardon, informing the staff members of Blaze's decision to surrender.

"Princess Blaze went to see Eggman by herself."

Tails understood how she felt. Blaze had just returned to Soleanna just a short time ago, and now she was giving herself up to Eggman. It's horrible when the ruler of a country has to undergo such an ordeal for their people—it hurts not just the ruler, but also those closest to them.

When Tails returned the device, she stared at Tails pleadingly. "You're Sonic's friend, right? Isn't there something you can do?"

"W-well, yeah. Maybe…" He hadn't seen Sonic since the train incident, yet Tails knew his friend wouldn't have left this to stand. Still, there was the matter of the citizens currently in the shop. If his defenses didn't hold out, their lives could be put in jeopardy.

But then he looked back at Pietro, recalling his own advice he gave the captain. Up until now, the citizens and guards of Soleanna had entrusted Blaze's rescue to Sonic. When he, Sonic and Knuckles ended up in the future, Amy (albeit during her search for Sonic) took it upon herself to rescue Blaze when she ran into her at White Acropolis.

And once again, Sonic was nowhere to be found. So, who would save the princess this time?

The woman pleaded once more, bowing her head. "Tails, please help her!"

A few of the trapped citizens were eyeing the two, wondering what the commotion was about, though they were unable to follow anything they were saying.

Tails closed his eyes. She's right. Since Sonic's not around, I'll have to do!

Opening his eyes, he nodded. "Leave it to me!"

Once the staff member expressed her gratitude, Tails took a quick look at the TV screen. The rendezvous point was on the same island he and Sonic had visited at the beginning of this adventure. Whether or not Blaze was on the Egg Carrier now due to the escort bots, he most likely set the meeting area there so that the Egg Carrier could be refilled with fuel for the journey back to White Acropolis.

Tails would be able to intercept them there.

Walking over to Mr. Alberto, Tails asked him to watch over the shop. He then went upstairs to his room to gather up all the necessary supplies for the upcoming battle. Once he was well-stocked with Dummy Rings and other devices for infiltrating the Egg Carrier, Tails exited the shop through the upstairs window and, flying over the rooftops to avoid the battle below, headed for Wave Ocean.


The Egg Gunners carrying Blaze let go of her arms as they finally reached their destination. She fell to her legs shivering. Having closed her eyes on the frightening journey through the air, Blaze did not see much of the ocean.

Not that she would enjoy it anyways, given her situation.

And yet, something was off. Instead of hot sand, she felt grass and paved stone beneath her. The air, too, lacked the aroma of seawater and was colder than a summer's breeze. When she opened her eyes, she understood exactly the depth of Eggman's deception and could not help but admit his own ingenuity.

"Clever."

She just wished the real rendezvous location wasn't as haunting to her as this place was.


Tails hid behind an assortment of rocks, watching as the Egg Carrier landed like a bird gliding over water. Fortunately, there weren't any guards around on the island to notice him; instead, he had to deal with an array of Badniks on the neighboring islands.

In the back of Tails' mind, this was strange. Wouldn't it make more sense to place guards where the Egg Carrier would be docked? He shook his head to clear his thoughts. Blaze went with the escort bots, so she should be here any minute.

But as time went by, there continued to be no sign of the princess nor her escorts. Tails began to grow anxious. Then he remembered his previous logic, that Blaze may have been escorted to the Egg Carrier prior to its arrival here.

Blaze might already be on the battleship!

Instinctively, Tails rushed out from his hiding spot, yelling. "Hang on! I'm coming!" He flew towards the ramp that led to an entry point for the giant cruiser.

Only to find his body passing through the ramp.

"Huh?"

Suddenly, the ramp disappeared along with the entire Egg Cruiser. In its place, hovering in the air with the circle on their metallic torsos growing dimmer, were five Egg Gunners. Their eyes blinked red for a moment and, turning away, flew from their position.

A trick? Tails thought, only to become alarmed at the sound of beeping around him. He immediately took for the skies away from the island, yet was barely able to get clear of the blast radius. The force from the giant explosion sent him flying out of control.

"Woah! My head's spinning!"

After much struggling, he was able to regain control of himself in the air and spun his two tails to keep himself afloat. As he looked back, he saw what remained of the rigged island after it blew up. Tails slumped his shoulders in self-disappointment.

"A trap…"

Eggman must've planned for GUN to arrive after they stopped his forces in the city. In a way, it was fortunate that Tails came sooner than they did, or else someone could've gotten hurt, let alone killed.

Sighing, he began to make his way back to the city.


Sonic slowed to a halt when he saw the damaged buildings and the concerns of the citizens in front of him. He had arrived back in the Castle Town a few minutes ago after his attempt to chase after Eggman bore no fruit—apparently Eggman either didn't bother taking the time to rummage through the Egg Genesis for parts, or he was very efficient about it.

Surveying the sight before him, Sonic noticed a smashed Egg Chaser dripping oil from multiple holes in its yellow body. Sonic's eyes widened in realization.

Eggman was here? Then, that means…

"Blaze!"

Sonic wasted no time rushing over to the royal castle. Upon arriving in the throne room, he found some of the guards arguing with GUN soldiers; a few staff members were sobbing while others comforted them. Among these people were a pink hedgehog and a rabbit with a Chao.

"Amy! Cream! Cheese!"

When Amy saw Sonic approach, she quickly ran over to embrace him. Cream and Cheese did the same, tears rolling down their cheeks.

After a couple of seconds, Sonic let go of them. "What did I miss?"

Amy was the first to speak up. "Eggman. Eggman happened."

"Princess Blaze surrendered herself to Dr. Eggman to protect the city!" Cream cried. Cheese similarly emitted a somber "Chao."

Sonic clenched his teeth. If he hadn't assumed Eggman's usual behavior, he could've been here to help. But what's done is done. He needed to find Blaze and stop Eggman once and for all.

"Do you know where she went?"

Cream tried to dry her tears. "Dr. Eggman sent a broadcast showing a spot at Wave Ocean."

Sonic put his hands on the rabbit girl's shoulder and smiled like an older brother trying to comfort his younger sibling. "I'll save her. I've done it before, right?"

"They're not there."

A new voice entered the conversation. Turning around, Sonic could see Tails panting hard. He was covered in a few scorch marks.

"Tails! What happened to you?"

Tails chuckled lightly, though it wasn't full of amusement. "Eggman tried to blow me up when I reached the rendezvous point." Taking a moment to catch his breath, he continued. "I had just made it back to town when I saw you running to the castle. I tried to tell you, but you were running and…well, you know."

Sonic scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I do. I'm just glad you're OK."

"Heh, Eggman will need to do a lot more than that to beat me!" Though slightly injured, Tails still held his pride. Sonic chuckled.

"Still," Amy interrupted, "What about Blaze? If she's not at Wave Ocean, where is she going?"

Cream, who had mostly recovered from her sobbing, chimed in. "W-well, I noticed that Miss Blaze and those robots were heading for the forest area instead of the ocean."

"The forest?" Sonic knew by now that Eggman deceived the public (or, more accurately, GUN) into thinking he would be at Wave Ocean, but why go to the forest? The Egg Carrier may be big, but even he would've noticed it on his way back to town.

The group stood silent as they contemplated the question. After a few seconds, it was Tails who figured out the puzzle. "That's it!"

"What is it?"

"Eggman will probably go to the ancient castle. It was Soleanna's main castle before this one, but it's been abandoned for some time. It's located in Kingdom Valley."

Sonic looked at Amy, Cream and Cheese for a moment, then stared back at Tails. While he could see a valley being a good place to hide the Egg Carrier, why would he take Blaze there? That was the only piece that didn't fit.

"You sure about that, Tails?" Sonic questioned.

Tails nodded. "There's an old laboratory that the Duke kept secret from the world, hidden beneath the waters of Kingdom Valley. I learned about it while doing my research here."

A secret lab? Sonic's expression brightened. "Tails, you're a genius!"

Tails blushed, laughing softly. "I do my best!"

"You cannot go to the castle," Cream stated. Sonic and Tails looked at her dubiously, waiting for her to explain. Seeing this, she explained. "The path there cannot be reached on foot until you pass Soleanna's three holy tests."

"Three holy tests?"

"Yes. The bishop knows about the tests. You will need to speak to him to do the tests, Mr. Sonic."

Sonic cocked his eyebrow. Unless they were tests of speed, it would waste too much time. But knowing the Tornado was in no shape to fly, Sonic had no choice but to travel by foot.

"Okay. I saw the bishop by one of the clocktowers. I'll go talk to him about it."

Amy stepped forward and pointed at Sonic. "Go finish this thing so we can have our date."

"Ha! In your dreams," Sonic teased as he took off, leaving an irritated Amy and friends behind.

Amy waved her fist as Sonic left. "Hey! You owe me for saving Blaze, you know!"

Tails shrugged his shoulders as Cream and Cheese tried to calm Amy's temper. Yup. He'll never win against her.


The sound of Eggman's shoes walking across the metal floor were light, yet its tone conveyed his mood all too well.

"You've wasted so much of my time."

He circled around Blaze, who was sitting in a chair strapped down at the hands and feet. She kept her eyes shut, but not because of the height they were at. The Egg Carrier was far too big for there to be turbulence, and she was situated away from the window.

No, Blaze kept her eyes shut because of him. She didn't want to talk to Eggman; she couldn't stand breathing the same air as him, which already reeked of pollution.

Seeing Blaze's lack of interest, Eggman attempted to defend his actions, stating, "If you had cooperated with me earlier, I wouldn't have had to do this."

Perhaps the doctor was right. If she hadn't run away and escaped from him, Soleanna might've been safer. Then again, he started it all when he attacked the city during the Festival of the Sun, so Blaze couldn't trust his words. Besides, once he got what he wanted, he was going to use the Flames of Disaster to 'rule the world' as he once put it.

Rule the world…

That was the thing that bugged Blaze the most. In her visions, she saw what the future held: a desolate, bleak land of lava and devastation. Iblis would be free, the Flames of Disaster wreaking havoc on the lives of innocents.

And yet, not once in her visions did she ever see Eggman, nor his robots for that matter.

She knew he was responsible. He had to be. He was probably holed up in some base like White Acropolis, kicking back and watching the world suffer. Still, it never hurts to ask.

"What are you trying to do, Dr. Eggman?" She stared at him, her face reflecting off his glasses. "Why do you wish to revive the Flames of Disaster?"

Eggman's serious expression never wavered, but he answered her with a question: "Did your parents ever disclose to you anything about Solaris?"

Blaze thought his question over. What did her parents tell her about Solaris? Solaris was the god of the sun, a being of great power and majesty. Many years ago, he left the world a small flame—the Flame of Hope—that was prophesized to be tampered with by mortals and transformed into the Flames of Disaster.

This was common knowledge, yet the manner in which Eggman asked the question implied something 'less' common.

Blaze knew the Solaris Project was what caused the Flame of Hope to become the Flames of Disaster, but her memory of the event was still hazy at best.

Overall, there wasn't much Blaze knew about Solaris other than what was known to the public.

Taking her lack of a reply as a no, Eggman explained. "Solaris' secrets are in his eternal flames. His power…can change time, and even manipulate the fabric of time itself."

Considering this, Blaze could see how Solaris might have had control over such a power. The sun was once used as a method of measuring time, after all. Through the use of a sun dial and the shadow the sun cast upon it, people of old were able to tell what time of the day it was. The dials themselves were soon replaced by clocks, yet the method was still revolutionary for its time.

Now that I think about it…

Blaze recalled the Solaris Prototype Eggman was developing; despite its imperfection, it was able to send Sonic and his friends into the future.

He must've named this knowing Solaris had such a power. But how does traveling through time equate to using the Flames of Disaster to destroy the world?

Looking towards the window, Eggman, spreading his hands out as if he was addressing the land in front of him, continued. "I wish to obtain this power and dominate everything in this world."

Like I didn't know that.

"From the past all the way to the future!"

What? Blaze couldn't believe what she was hearing. Rule the past and the future? Th-that can't be true! "You wish…to rule over…time?" She asked to confirm his intentions.

"Yes. Truly. And the secret…" Eggman turned to her. "It remains dormant in you, Princess." He saw Blaze's gaze shift towards the ground in fear. He understood, of course. Such a power can be frightening, but in his hands, it can and will lead to the birth of the greatest empire the world would ever know.

Or, to be more accurate, the only empire it would ever know.

Soon, Eggman thought, Eggmanland will finally become a reality!

Eggman returned to the console at the head of the room and began running the Chaos Emerald scanner. "The Princess of Soleanna and the seven Chaos Emeralds…Once I have everything, the fate of the whole world will change."

A small dot appeared on the screen in front of him, emitting a series of waves. "And one of the beautiful gems is just ahead."

Locking in the signal for verification, the computer generated a positive response:

"CHAOS EMERALD LOCATED."

Eggman sighed. "Finally…Now, let's go collect that Chaos Emerald."

Behind him, Blaze was no longer listening to his words. For the first time in her life, she was truly terrified and could not stop her body from trembling.

He's not going to destroy the world with Iblis, she thought. He wants to rule all of time!

I was wrong. And now the future…

She took in an unsteady breath. A vision quickly flashed through her eyes:

The Egg Carrier crashing into the side of a cliff.

It's fated to happen. I've just condemned the world!


Sonic picked up his pace along the hidden path to Kingdom Valley. He was trying to keep his cool, but the time it took to complete the Soleanna tests concerned him.

Those tests took too long, he thought.

The first trial, the Test of Intelligence, had him running through wormholes that sent him to all sorts of places; if he made a wrong turn, he would have to restart the whole trial again.

The second one, the Test of Courage, spawned an everyday hazard that he faced and had to overcome. Obviously, the hazard he faced was Eggman's Badniks. With nothing to protect himself with (not that he needed any protection), he faced an entire horde of them hidden and scattered about the Soleanna forest.

And then there was the third trial, the Test of Love. Perhaps the strangest of all the tests, Sonic found himself in a plane with two wormholes on opposite ends. At one of the portals stood Amy, her flirtatious nature towards him making him blech. It wasn't that he never considered dating her, but she was too forceful and, in a manner of speaking, controlling—spending one-on-one quality time with her hammer was evidence enough of that.

But at the other portal…was Blaze.

She didn't say anything, unlike Amy, but when he looked at her, she produced a shy smile. Sonic couldn't help but smile back, yet he was confused. Why was Blaze featured in the trial? He liked her as a friend, but love? He had only met her a few days ago.

He came to the conclusion that the trial must've been figurative. Amy and Blaze couldn't be any more different in terms of personality and status, so he figured it was a choice of what kind of girl he would fall in love with. That had to be it…right?

Either way, the test was easy enough. A choice between Amy and Blaze? Anything that didn't involve Amy and her hammer was the obvious choice in Sonic's book. He made a note of it to never mention this test to Amy herself.

Still, too much time was wasted accomplishing those trials. Once the way to the old castle was made clear, he took off like a rocket.

Reaching a small clearing of dirt, Sonic skidded to a stop when he noticed a squadron of Egg Gunners land in front of him. I must be getting close, he thought, taking a defensive stance. The Egg Gunners readied their weapons to fire upon their target, but they found themselves stopped by a green aura.

Sonic, recognizing the force holding the robots in place, quickly scanned his environment until he saw Silver land in front of him. The white hedgehog pushed his hands forward.

"Hah!"

The Egg Gunners flew backwards, hitting the ground hard. The telekinetic powers Silver unleashed on them must've damaged the Egg Gunners' interiors as well, as they exploded upon impact.

Sonic groaned. Here we go again…

Yet contrary to Sonic's belief, Silver turned around and offered a shy smile. He seemed unsure of what to say. "Uh…you look like you're in a hurry."

Sonic, though wary, relaxed the tension in his muscles. It didn't seem Silver meant him harm this time, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Holding an arm to his head, he tapped his head and asked, "…So, what's going on?"

Silver understood the message immediately, but Sonic could tell Silver was having a hard time trying to talk to him as he turned his head away in shame. Finally, he replied, "Circumstances have changed." The white hedgehog closed his eyes and took a small breath. Afterwards, he faced Sonic with a serious expression. "I need to rescue the princess."

Sonic continued to eye him. He wanted Silver to say it. "And…?"

Silver, realizing what Sonic wanted, lowered his head. "I-I'm sorry…for trying to kill you."

Sonic waited for Silver to look at him again, upon which the blue hedgehog nodded in satisfaction. Bumping his fist lightly against Silver's shoulder, Sonic began to run down the path again; glancing back, he motioned for Silver to follow, which he did.

Continuing down the trail, Sonic and Silver encountered more of Eggman's Badniks scouting the valley. With Silver's abilities and Sonic's speed, dispatching each of them was a breeze. However, upon reaching a high point overlooking the old castle, Sonic noticed something gliding in the sky. Upon closer inspection, his eyes widened when he realized it was the Egg Carrier.

"Eggman's battleship!" Silver cried. "We missed it!"

"And today is…"

The two of them looked at each other, recognizing the danger the world would be in should Blaze die when the Egg Carrier exploded.

Knowing there was no point in heading to the laboratory at this point, Sonic said, "Silver, we don't have time. Let's get to Blaze right away." Silver nodded, and the two raced down the path. Above them, dark clouds began to drizzle rain.


Blaze tried to keep herself calm despite the danger she and Eggman were in, but the red lights and alarm did nothing to quell her fear.

Something had damaged the Egg Carrier severely, causing the ship to malfunction and lose altitude fast. Eggman was trying to work out a solution with the computer in front of him, but he was failing.

"Huh? The engines are malfunctioning."

He began typing in a new set of orders, only to find another alert coming up.

"And what's this?" Growing more anxious, he pressed a button down and said, "Stop all engines now!" When his computer didn't register a response, Eggman slammed his fists down on the keyboard. "…Why is this happening?!"

Suddenly, a series of alerts popped up on the monitor, followed by the machine emitting a series of blue sparks.

"No! We're about to crash!" Eggman placed his hands to his head for a moment, glancing at the failing machine in front of him. In this moment, Blaze somewhat felt pity for him for at least trying to save their lives, yet she knew he didn't deserve it after everything he's done.

And she knew what was to come.

This was it. The end of Dr. Eggman's reign of terror, along with the end of the world.

Blaze closed her eyes to await the inevitable as Eggman once again tried to fix the issue. Unfortunately for him, the whole keyboard became consumed in electricity.

"Why is this happening?! NOOO!


Sonic broke through one of the castle's stained-glass windows, Silver flying in right after him. It may have been worth a lot of money, but Blaze's life outweighed the cost. Silver was of the same opinion as he levitated the shards from the glass and flung them at the group of robots in front of them blocking the exit. The shards pierced through their armor—some cut their heads clean off—and the machines fell backwards.

The two of them had been at this all across the valley, from the top of Kingdom Valley all the way down to the lakeside. While Sonic and Silver didn't have time to revel in these small victories, they did complement each other on their fighting styles.

"Hey, not bad!" Sonic said.

"Heh, this is nothing. You should've seen how I've fought Iblis!"

The two eventually came to a door leading through one of the cliffsides. On the other side was a pathway between two long waterfalls. Assuming the path wasn't falling apart (like most of the stairs and walkways in this place), it would be the fastest way to reaching the Egg Carrier.

Their only obstacle came from behind: an entire legion of Egg Gunners, Egg Liners, Egg Guardians—the whole package.

"Hmph! That's a lot of enemies," Sonic noted, prepping himself for a fight. But Silver stepped in front of him and, when the robots began assaulting the two with gunfire and missiles, blocked their attacks. Without looking back, he said, "Sonic, leave this up to me. You go after Blaze."

Sonic didn't complain, and he ran the other way through the door. He was awestruck at the beauty of the waterfalls, yet he kept running along the path.

Blaze first, sightseeing later.

Of course, the path ahead was falling apart, so he jumped across the ruins and occasionally ran perpendicular to the waterfalls to make it to the other side of the valley. By now, the rain was showing signs of stopping, but the mist from the waterfalls kept the air humid.

Exiting the area, he found himself following a trail on the cliffside. Above and still far away was the Egg Carrier, but he noticed a large flame radiating from the engines.

"It's still too far…Whoa!"

Sonic forced himself to stop when he came to the edge of the trail and almost fell over. Regaining his balance, he looked up at the battleship in the air.

No, no, no!

Sonic could do nothing but watch as the Egg Carrier disappeared behind the cliffs ahead. After a few seconds, an explosion could be heard, followed by smoke in the air.

"BLAZE!"

His voice echoed across the valley, yet no one answered his call. From behind, Silver had caught up to see that they were too late and looked away. Sonic fell to his knees and slammed his fist on the ground.

He failed. Blaze was gone, and the world with it.

The rain had stopped, yet it felt as if something heavy was hammering away at Sonic. Perhaps it was the faith Blaze had in him shattering.

For a while, there was nothing but silence. Then, Silver spoke.

"Wait, there's still a way to change this."

Sonic glanced back at him, his eyes urging him to continue.

"If we return to an earlier point in time, we'll be able to save her."

"…!" Sonic felt his optimism return. Of course! Shadow and I did Chaos Control to escape the future, so what's stopping us from doing the same thing happen now?

Sonic stood to his feet. "I understand." He then pulled out his Chaos Emerald, hoping Silver had one with him as well. Fortunately, his companion pulled the silver-white Emerald out and held it hard. The two of them smirked and lifted the Emeralds close to each other. In unison, they shouted, "Chaos Control!"

A portal formed between them. On the other side would be the way to salvation. Sonic was about to enter when a thought just occurred to him. Turning around, he flung his Emerald at Silver, shouting the white hedgehog's name. Catching it in midair, Silver stared at Sonic confused.

Sonic smiled. "I can handle this myself. Besides, you've got somewhere to go to, right?"

If Sonic succeeded at changing the past, Silver would no longer have a reason to stay here. As such, better to give him his ticket back to the future now rather than later.

Silver was at a loss for words. "You…" He wanted to help Blaze as well, but Sonic felt he had done enough. Still, he needed to convince Silver to have faith in him.

"I'll make sure to change Blaze's fate. And that in turn, should change your future, too."

Silver continued to struggle finding the right thing to say. Ultimately, he sighed and nodded in resignation. Giving him a thumbs up, Sonic thanked him.

"Yeah," Silver said. "Just…save her."

Sonic nodded and jumped through the portal.