By the time he was back up to speed, the now conscious Great Battle Kukku was mulling over everything that Dr. Fukurokov had reported to him. First, their unexpected but bountiful landing on none other than the Floating Island, a place of legend that had been coveted even by his earliest ancestors. Second, the Stone of Power spoken of in myth also existed, and its true name was the Master Emerald, confirming the theories of many scholars about its connection to the other gems. Third, the echidnas had not gone entirely extinct after all, as they had one working as an ally for them, although it seemed that his chief engineer had difficulty keeping a handle on him. Fourth, the replica of Prower was a design that improved upon the previous one that they'd employed, and that it wasn't the only new weapon at their disposal. And last, but most certainly not least, that damn fox and his friends had tracked them down, and by now, they had made it to the main base.

"I do hope you have a plan, Dmitri," the Emperor said expectantly, talking to his chief engineer through his built-in communicator "much as I would love to get my hands on Prower myself, I've not acquainted myself with all the new functions you have provided me. It would not do for me to face my arch-nemesis when I'm not in peak condition."

The owl had returned to his laboratory to continue his work, but kept his own link open while he tinkered. "Of course, My Liege, I had considered this scenario. There is a machine I've built that can harness the Chaos Emerald that we have, and Mecha Miles is our most powerful A.I.-driven unit to date. We should be able to handle those kids, and if that still isn't enough, we can have Knuckles provide assistance as well."

"I still believe it would be less troublesome if we were to simply Convert him," remarked the GBK as he rested his huge chin against one of his equally big hands, "he seems a bit too focused on personal matters, such as that prophetic nonsense about that vexing vulpine."

Dr. Fukurokov hooted proudly. "It's exactly that fixation that allowed me to so easily manipulate him, Sire. So long as we don't give away our true motives, we can play him for a sap no matter how hard Prower tries to convince him that we're the villains. And when the time is right, we can take the Master Emerald and use it as the new power source for the Grand Kukku Cannon, and the Battle Moon as a whole!"

The head of the Kukkus still would have preferred his way of doing things, but if this arrangement had gotten them this far, he would permit it to continue for now. And with his greatest foe knocking on his figurative front door, they wouldn't have had the time for an effective treatment anyway. It did irk him, though, that their new muscle wasn't present to help contend with the current threat. He had gone chasing after the other members of Prower's group, which had ended up with them getting away, with one of the Emeralds to boot. It reminded him of the time those twin wolves had given his son the slip during their invasion of Metropolis.

"Speedy," he uttered, both anger and longing in his voice, "he truly never returned?"

Dr. Fukurokov hummed apologetically. "I'm afraid not, Your Highness. We have considered the possibility that he may not have escaped the destruction of the Battle Fortress, but it is more likely that he survived. Much as I don't want to believe it, he has made it clear where his loyalties lie."

So, that was it then. The GBK banged one of his metallic fists into the wall next to him, putting a rather sizable dent in the material. His boy had flown the coop, abandoned his birthright and royal responsibilities, for reasons that the Emperor couldn't discern. Was it a longing for so-called freedom, like Speedy had lectured him about one time many years ago? He'd had a chance to seize that after their failure at Cocoa Island, yet the prince had dutifully stayed by his side. What had changed during the invasion of West Side Island that had made his own feathers and blood desert the Empire he'd served for his whole life?

It made his blood boil to know that fox had something to do with Speedy's change of heart. It didn't matter if his boy had been convinced through words or force, the sleight was unforgivable all the same. Of course, the former prince wasn't going to get away from this without a due punishment, but the majority of the GBK's ire was reserved for that furry freak. He would get what was coming for thwarting their previous plans and leaving him in this semi-organic state. Naturally, if his old friend and that hideous robotic copy of his nemesis could get the job done, he wouldn't complain, but he had a nagging feeling that they may not be enough. Much as he hated to admit it, Prower had a knack for turning the tables even in the worst situations; he'd demonstrated such in all of their past encounters, after all.

"Pardon me if I am disturbing any contemplations, My Emperor," Dr. Fukurokov apologized, "but our ant-eating associate is hailing me. Would you care for me to bring him on this frequency so that he may acquaint himself with you?"

The GBK hummed, thinking it over for a moment before nodding, even though he knew the owl couldn't see. "You have my permission, Dmitri."

"Very good, but remember, Sire," the engineer advised him, "he believes that the Battle Moon is the Dragon's Egg from the old legend about the island, and that I am a scholar long in pursuit of both."

Silently agreeing to keep up the act, the Emperor cleared his throat to let the other bird know that he was ready to bring Knuckles into the conversation. After a few moments, a click echoed from the line, and the call was split into stereo, with the background noise of the owl's lab in one receiver, and the steady breathing and hurried footsteps of a new presence in the other.

"Knuckles, allow me to introduce my leader and the one that funds my pursuits," the doctor announced, "the illustrious Great Battle Kukku XV!"

A grunt of acknowledgment came from the echidna's end. "Well met, King of Kukkus."

The GBK chortled at that. It may not have been his true title, but the reverence he was afforded was no different than a king, he supposed. He would allow this fool's perception of him to persist, if it would further their machinations.

"Yes, hail and well met, Guardian Knuckles," the big bird said, using his gentlemanly facade to butter up the lad, "Dmitri, the doctor, has informed me about you and everything that has happened up to now. From what I hear, the fox and his friends are giving you more trouble than you may have expected."

A growl came from the monotreme. "I underestimated the craftiness of his subordinates, that is all. The two-tailed fox himself is acting precisely according to what the doctor and my people had foretold." There was a pause that made the Emperor raise the organic part of his brow quizzically. "Although I am uncertain why he is heading for the Dragon's Egg first, rather than the Master Emerald. The mural in the Hidden Palace depicts him warring with some great beast over it, one that resembles a monstrous bird."

"That may have been an exaggeration of myself!" the GBK laughed good-naturedly, covering up the uncomfortable mumbling of his second-in-command, "you know, there is something we have in common, young Knuckles."

Knuckles let out a curious noise. "What is that, Kukku King?"

"We are both descended from ancient peoples, lad," the cyborg answered earnestly, "ones that once effectively ruled the entire world at some point in history. I know well the legacy of the last Great Civilization, established by your species, but I wonder. Have you heard of the Babylonians, perchance?"

The Guardian hummed thoughtfully. "My people do not have much information about them, but I know a few things. It was said that they came from the heavens, riding aboard a great vessel not too different from Angel Island, and that many bird Animals around today are descended from them."

"Quite so," confirmed the Kukku patriarch, "though our relatively fledgling nation has never met your people until this day, stories were passed down to me by my father, his father before him, and so on. Ones that told of ties between the echidnas' Great Civilization and the Babylonians when both were at their peak."

Knuckles uttered an intrigued grunt, which made the GBK glad the naive young man couldn't see his grin. He had no idea if the Babylonians ever even established contact with the echidnas, but he was going to milk this for what it was worth.

"After the fall of your people," the GBK went on, "the old empire of birds persisted a while longer. Alas, the sun eventually set for Babylon as well, and for several centuries, its children wandered the world, holding fast to their history and technology. Those that stayed true to the old ways and maintained mastery of these tools and implements eventually formed the Battle Kukku Empire. My direct ancestor, the first Great Battle Kukku, established himself as its founding ruler nearly seven hundred years ago."

He cleared his throat. Nothing that he just said was false, but this lesson was more to try and foster a more firm connection with the Guardian than it was to give him a lesson. That, and, he would admit to no one but himself that he rather enjoyed getting the chance to flex his knowledge like this. Perhaps he could have been a university professor, in some other life.

"I tell you this because as heir to the legacy of Babylon," the Emperor concluded, "I would rekindle the relationship once held between my ancestors and yours. The mural was surely a sign that we would aid you in your time of need; no, not just you, but the entire world! The fox seeks domination, yet he has already demonstrated before my eyes that he cannot control the Chaos Emeralds as well as he would like. All the better for us to work together, as that vile vulpine will bring about ruin and destruction if he isn't stopped!"

His words seemed to have the intended effect, as he could hear a growl rising from the echidna. If it was this easy to convince this earthbound idiot about the made-up meaning of some old picture, then perhaps the doctor was right about not needing the CT machine. After a few more moments of audible contemplation, Knuckles let out a noise that seemed to suggest he understood what the big bird was going.

"I will arrive at the site of the Egg's landing soon," he informed the GBK, "we must halt his advance before it is too late!"

And now they had him. All that remained was to make good use of his assets.

"Fortunately, we've made a path for the fox that shall lead him right where we want him," the Kukku commander replied, "he may be cunning, but even he won't be able to resist the bait we've laid out. The coordinates of the point we need you to cut him off at shall be provided to your comm device. If we succeed here, Guardian, the doomsday depicted by your kind may yet be denied!"


Miles and Sonic burrowed their way out of the heavy snow at the bottom of the pass, seeing that they'd come to the border of the Kukku base that had been built around the valley. The Battle Moon sat halfway submerged in the lilac lake, with many large red towers and cranes rigged around it. Part of the forest that stretched about the area sat between their position and the station, where they saw numerous pipes and tubes that ran above and below the water. Abstract gold and royal purple blocks made up the facility itself, where the boys could see many Kukku robots and combatants patrolling the place. Honestly, the fox found it rather impressive, albeit concerning, that the doctor had managed to set this all up as quickly as he did. What worried him more, though, was that the Battle Moon's repairs appeared to be nearly complete.

"I didn't think they were this far along already," he said, flicking his tails irritably, "I guess what we saw from the air wasn't just our imagination."

Sonic glanced up at him. "Sounds like we gotta hurry, big guy!"

"Yeah, we're running out of time," Miles agreed. Before they moved on, he gave his multitool a quick check, seeing the signal from one of the Emeralds moving in from the southwest. "Looks like the others are on their way, but we can't wait around for them. We'll just have to meet up once we get closer to the station, assuming they can find a good patch of water to land on."

The hedgehog regarded the lake as one hand reached into his own belt pouch and grabbed the ESP device firmly. "Good thing we've got the Bubble Shield."

"Don't tell me you're starting to develop hydrophobia, little buddy," teased the fox as he started jogging ahead.

As if to somehow try and prove him wrong, the hoglet dashed past him at a much faster pace, getting a snicker from the teen. He followed after him, the both of them keeping pace as they ran through a pair of transparent posts with red rims and black globes inside. The instant they did, the spheres lit up and a klaxon rang throughout the region, no doubt alerting the Empire of their arrival. They didn't have to wait long to find out before they had to dodge out of the way of a couple robots that swooped down at them. They were small gray seagulls with red plating on top, with thin beaks and tiny black eyes. Their wings were oblique rather than true to the bird they're based on, and they seemed to lack feet and legs entirely. Aside from their diminutive stature, they were easy to deal with, but they weren't the only forces that the pair had to contend with.

Climbing the hill just beyond the alarm, the boys encountered several Kukku hoverpods, all of their cannons trained on them. A massive spinning gray turbine was beneath the enemies, which would have been uneven and difficult ground, if not for the capabilities of the fox and the hedgehog. The former put his twin tails to work and soared above the shots that went for him, taunting the soldiers with a flip and a roll here and there. The latter used his speed to effectively stay glued to the turbine's surface, following its rotation and ending up behind the group of birds when we came back up. Caught in a pincer on both sides, the troops were swiftly grounded and left unable to counterattack as their weapons were stripped and subsequently destroyed.

On the other side of the makeshift bridge, the pair hopped aboard a horizontal lift that carried them across a gap. Just a bit further was a blue glass elevator with a red and gray egg-shaped capsule serving as the car. After getting inside, their ride spun around briefly before shooting straight up, letting them out in front of another security gate. The duo gave it a wide berth, clearing a couple of hills and climbing into a gold and purple bowl-shaped platform attached to a tall pole. It spun about the support like a key ring around a finger, bringing them an outcropping. They leapt atop a structure onto a wide steel beam, then sprinted and hurled themselves over a gap to the top of one of the base's high buildings. Even up there, they found they couldn't let their guard down, tripping a floor buzzer that brought in more seagull Badniks.

Once they were dispatched with timely Rolling Jumps, Miles and Sonic continued on to a support tower with a metal hangar that was attached to some sort of zip line. The fox grabbed on while the hedgehog held fast to his shoulders, letting the thing ferry them to the front of an even taller building. Instead of continuing forward, Sonic elected to roll down the hill behind them and right through a tunnel that was lower down. Miles followed after him, letting out a yelp of surprise as he hit a sudden drop and was nearly singed by a flamethrower trap at the bottom of a decline. A Spin Dash sent him up and over a bump in the flooring, depositing him onto an alternate path that went in the opposite direction and dead-ended at a red spring.

The fox looped through a pipe and came out the other end like a cannonball, continuing to build up speed as he barreled down yet another hill. A few Kukku ground units were bowled over like pins as he made way, his spherical self bouncing along the ground until he was fired upwards into an access shaft. The teen took a moment to look around and try to find his partner, but there was no luck. Scratching his chin, he flew up to the next ledge, then even further to another zip line, where he discovered he needn't have worried about Sonic.

The hedgehog had crossed a rotating turbine and entered a different side of the building they'd seen a minute ago, speeding by a few laser turrets that were far too slow to hit him. His pace let him run up a wall just outside and into a bowl platform, where he smashed through a security box and opened a red and black banded gate. After dismantling a handful of Robo Kukkus and exiting, the boy met Miles on the other end of the hanger's rail.

They resumed their run by breaking apart the thin ceiling just above, but no sooner did they surface, than they were set upon by yet more seagulls, hoverpods, and ground units.

"Really rolled out the red carpet for us, didn't they?" the kid commented as he cartwheeling and Rolled around each shot that came his way.

Miles grinned and dug into his pockets, then threw his arms wide to scatter a bunch of bombs and Dummy Rings. "It's not just a reconstruction site for the Battle Moon. This is their main HQ until they can get that thing space-born again, so of course it's going to have heavy defenses."

"They can throw as much at us as they like," Sonic boasted, kicking a seagull into the barrel of a walker mech and causing both to break down, "we'll still win!"

The blue blur pin-balled himself off a pair of walkers, then Jumped into the air to bounce three consecutive times into just as many seagulls. The amber fox spun on his hands as he used both his heels and tails to strike out at grounded and aerial foes alike, the fluffy appendages slicing through the armor plating like a hot knife through warm butter. Both were careful to avoid maiming the pilots themselves, but that's not to say they got away scot-free. By the end of their brawl, there were piles of metal scrap everywhere, and at least a dozen unconscious Kukkus.

"Too easy," the kid remarked with a smirk as he stretched his arms over his head, "gotta say, Tails, I'm kinda surprised."

Miles tilted his head. "About what, Sonic?"

"Just all the stuff we've done today," Sonic replied, gesturing with his arms spread wide, "even after all that, I don't really feel tired. Do you?"

Now that the hoglet mentioned it, the fox noticed that he wasn't feeling that fatigued himself. A week and a half ago, they would have gotten about half as far in the day as they did now, and while he couldn't speak for Sonic, Miles was certain he would've been fairly beat. Eleven days of exposure to a weakened set of Emeralds, and not all at once usually, couldn't have produced such an increase in stamina. There was one possibility that did come to mind, however.

"Remember how I told you that my body absorbs bits of Chaos Energy via exposure and use of the Emeralds?" he inquired of the boy. When he got a nod in return, he frowned a little. "Well, it's also possible that I permanently took in the power that I had after I transformed." He shuddered and let out a labored sigh. He really didn't like thinking about that part of himself and the feelings it stirred. "Even if it's only a fraction, it would still make for significant gains. Maybe some of it bled into you as well when you helped bring me back to my senses."

Sonic crossed his arms and bowed his head in thought. "Hmm, that'd be something." After a moment, he shrugged and pointed onward towards the lake. "Well, hope you've got enough juice to get to the end."

"You know it, kid!" he said confidently, peering above his specs and giving young his partner a wink.

Leaving the battered baddies behind, the boys leapt from one ledge to the next, passing over a spike trap and tripping a floor alarm as they entered the building ahead. This time, there were more simplistic Badniks, albeit ones that still looked rather threatening. They were nothing more than dark gray balls with pairs of black eyes, but what made the heroes cautious to approach were the four spike balls they had orbiting around the central spheres. On the flip side, their movement was limited, and the speed at which they approached the pair to menace them was less than stellar. Miles knew that he could probably take it out with his explosives, but he wanted to save a bit of his stockpile for the tougher fights ahead. Ultimately, they decided to go around the slow-moving Badniks and run along the side of a turbine to the building's exit.

Miles and Sonic got inside an elevator like the one they'd used some minutes before, which brought them to an area with a couple floating platforms and a support beam between them. With a skip and jump, they crossed the gap, grabbing a zip line in the next "room" and taking it to the other side of its track. There was a black and purple crushing trap with golden spikes between two pillars, which the boys used as an impromptu lift to access what appeared to be a maintenance tunnel. At the other end, Sonic Jumped into a red box with a green screen on the front, causing a black and red checkered gate to open in front of them, revealing a small cache of Rings. Miles "alleviated" the Empire of some future power sources for their forces, then rode the curve in the back wall down to a steep decline. Both Animals curled up to maximize their acceleration, passing through a divot and then rocketing into a pipe at the bottom of the slope.

They looped around in the metal and were fired up into a second line, then a third, until they shattered the ceiling at the very end of that dizzying path. The pair were practically at the shore of the lake now, with one last sturdy structure standing between them and the water. Without hesitation, they entered, flying up to a rotating bowl platform and using it to reach a second one higher up. The moment that one arrived at the top, however, a massive BOOM echoed up from the ground floor, fire quickly rising up to meet them!

"Hurry!" Miles shouted as he grabbed his companion by the arm and scrambled for the window near where the platform ended up.

The heroes dived out of the opening and fluttered down to a balcony-like space between the building they'd just escaped from, and one in front of them. The gold and purple bricks came apart as the foundation crumbled, the death trap they'd just avoided seeming to melt as it collapsed. It was just a trick of the eyes, though, and a thunderous clatter soon rang out, a huge cloud of dust and debris kicking up from the ruins.

"Can't believe they tried to turn us into sloppy joes," Sonic said as he rubbed under his nose, "that doc's got no sense of a good fight."

The fox scoffed at that. "What do you expect from a coward? I've fought a ton of his creations, but he's only fought me 'directly' twice."

"Is that counting the time you, me, and your siblings whooped him in Mystic Cave?" the kid asked, wanting clarification.

"Yep."

"Wow," the hoglet murmured, his opinion of the owl dropping even further, "that's mondo lame."

Miles snorted and laughed at his partner's bluntness. But before they could amuse themselves further with smack talk about their enemies, they were interrupted by a rocking tune coming from the Miles Electric. The fox brought it out, seeing a super-deformed model of Gadget jumping up and down on the screen, indicating that it was an urgent call.

"What's going on, Gad?" he inquired of his brother, "you called me using the priority frequency."

"We were coming in when we saw that building collapse a moment ago," the wolf replied, "are you guys alright?"

Upon hearing that the others were close, Miles perked up his ears, and indeed, the Tornado's rocket engine could be discerned in the distance from among the ambient noise. "Yeah, we're fine. We're right near the edge of the lake, and it looks like there's a spot you could make a water landing."

"I've got your position locked in," Gadget confirmed, "we'll see you in a few!"

With that, Miles ended the call and proceeded with Sonic through the building before them into yet another of those bowl-shaped platforms. They rode it down to where a massive series of pipes stuck out of the water and tunneled through other structures, likely using the lake as a power source in addition to the stores of Rings. The two descended the one they stood on like a fireman's pole, coming down to a ledge that went several meters out into the water. The boys sat down close to the end of it, their eyes on the sky as they waited for the rest of the group to arrive.


Things had been happening at a much more blistering pace for the relaxed and easygoing Big than he was used to. The morning had started off nicely enough, with him and his little pal Froggy going out to do some early fishing at the valley. Knuckles had come running past his spot, looking more serious than usual, and for the short time that the cat had been distracted by the echidna, his amphibious friend had wandered out of sight. He went to search for him, but didn't find him in any of the typical locations around the lake, so he'd backtracked near his home in the jungle. Then he'd nearly gotten shot after stumbling into the camp of a few Animals that weren't natives of the island, but also weren't with those birds that had shown up last week. They were pretty nice after calming down, and they'd even offered to help him look for Froggy.

Big smiled when he thought about Giselle in particular. She'd been the one to go along with him, and asked him about a number of things about both him and Knuckles. She didn't get to talk very much at all about herself or the two-tailed fox—Miles, if he recalled the name right-–but that was okay. The she-wolf had been thrilled when he gave her that hammer he found, as it apparently belonged to the fox, and it made him happy to know he would be pleased. She'd then helped him cook and sat down for a simple, but filling meal, then explored the Azure Lake region with him afterwards. She had impressed him with her agility and skills, and they had even come across one of the Chaos Emeralds, which the cat hadn't seen in several years.

It was a shame that their time together had been cut short by Knuckles, though. The wolf had sounded like she really wanted to try and talk with his friend, but the Guardian just wasn't having any of it. He even pushed Big aside and nearly brought himself to hurt the cat when he stepped in to stop him from hurting his new friend. Fortunately, Giselle had managed to get away with his help, and Knuckles had been predictably angry with him. He didn't stick around to lecture him for long, though, and had left to pursue the plane that the wolf had hitched a ride on.

That had left the feline fisher alone at the top of the plateau, pondering whether he should follow or continue his search for Froggy. On the one hand, he was really concerned about his friend, as he and the Critter had never been apart for quite this long ever since they met. On the other hand, something big was happening, and if things went a certain way, then he and everyone else he cared about would be in for a bad time. In either case, Big was uncertain.

"Mm, what do I do?" he mumbled aloud, tapping his fishing pole against his shoulder as he padded around in small circles, "I wanna find Froggy, but I'm worried about Giselle and the others."

"You need not choose one over the other, young cat," came a deep voice from behind him.

Big turned around and found his worries melting away as he saw who it was. It was a human with olive toned flesh, ocean blue eyes, and curly, jet black hair that came down to his shoulders with lush, matching facial hair that dropped just as far. He had a powerful, but not overly muscular build that was framed by a simple black tunic with matching pants and a pair of brown leather boots. While his state of dress was different now, it was indeed the same man that both Miles and J had met aboard the Battle Moon.

"Oh, Gil!" the cat exclaimed as he waved and walked up to the guy that was nearly a head taller than even him, "I haven't seen you for a few days. I'd love to go fishing again, but I can't right now."

The man nodded at him. "I'm aware of your predicament, and I've come to lend you a hand."

"Oh, really?" Big asked him, then decided that the why of the matter wasn't important, "well, I appreciate it, but what're you gonna do?"

Gil made a gesture of sliding two fingers down his face. "All you have to do is cover your eyes, and then I shall do the rest."

The large cat did as he was instructed, flinching for a brief moment when he felt a hand on his shoulder. The human hummed softly, the volume steadily increasing as a warm sensation passed into the Animal's body. It reminded him of the times he'd gotten hurt and Knuckles healed him with his abilities, although there was no pain to relieve in this instance. Instead, it was accompanied by a pit in his stomach, similar to what one experiences when very nervous, which was a seldom feeling for him. It was like the whole of his being was lighter than the air itself, though it lasted for only a fleeting instant.

Once it was over, he noticed that the turf under his boots felt different than it did a moment ago, and that Gil had released his shoulder. Opening his eyes, Big saw that he was back on the shore of the lake that the Dragon's Egg had landed in, right near the spot he'd been fishing earlier that morning. He had no idea what sort of shortcut the human had taken them through, but he had been considering coming back here to look for Froggy. It was also where his new friend had been going, so if the stars aligned, he'd get to see both her and his little buddy soon enough.

"Hey, thanks a lot for this, G–"

When he turned to express his gratitude, Gil was not there to receive it. Big scratched at his ears bemusedly with his free hands, then shrugged it off.

"I guess he left already," the cat said simply, "oh well, I'll probably see him later."

He turned in the direction of all the construction and took in a whiff of the air. His brow creased as the stench of oil, grease, and other unpleasant artificial odors assaulted his nose. And yet, underneath all of the nearly overpowering smells, his keen senses picked up the scents of Animals. Most of them were birds, but there were a couple of unfamiliar ones that stood out. He concentrated more, detecting numerous Critters in the area, such as Flickies, Cuckies, and...

"Froggy!" he exclaimed happily, "so he didn't leave the area after all!" His smile faded and he tilted his head when he realized his friend's distinctive scent was coming from the direction of the Dragon's Egg. "What are you doing over there, buddy? Knuckles said it's not safe. I better go get him before something bad happens."

With that, the portly cat started the long journey of walking around the circumference of the lake to get closer to where his friend supposedly was.


"There they are!" Sonic exclaimed as the other three Animals in their adventuring party pulled the Tornado up close to their position.

Miles was happy to see his siblings and their mutual friend in one piece along with the plane. He'd caught sight of several batteries of anti-air weapons firing upon them when they came in for a landing, though he knew better than to doubt their ability to pull through. They'd gone through much worse with their last adventure, after all. Once he got a better look, however, he started to fret over the state of his sister, who looked like she'd taken her fair share of lumps.

"Did Knuckles do this to you?" he asked her as he helped her off the aircraft and lent her a shoulder.

Gizmo was a little unsteady on her feet, but managed well enough with the fox's help. "Yeah, he was in no mood to talk, unless you count fisticuffs as conversation."

"Bastard," mumbled the fox, feeling his head heating up at the image of the echidna beating up the she-wolf. He took in a few deep breaths to calm himself, then brought them to sit down so he could look her over. "Need me to heal you? I'm not sure how much I can do with the Emeralds in their current state, but I can try."

She perked up at the offer. "I'd like that, yes, but before we give it a go..." Gizmo smirked as she reached into a pocket of her own utility belt and retrieved the blue Emerald, handing it over to Miles without hesitation. "Here. This brings the count to six, right?"

"Yeah, just one more. Thanks, Sis," Miles said gratefully, clutching it tightly after taking it off her hands, "now let's patch you up."

The teen closed his eyes and placed his free hand on the she-wolf's sternum, trying to find the energy within the drained stone. It took him longer than he would have liked to establish a connection, and as he'd feared, it would require more effort to draw the necessary amount to mend Gizmo's wounds. But, it didn't matter, so long as his sister would be okay. He felt the stamina leak out through his palm as he wordlessly communicated his desire to restore her body. His ears picked up a light gasp, followed by a relieved sigh, opening his eyes to see for himself that Gizmo's scuffs and bruises were vanishing.

Once he pulled his hand away, Miles felt momentarily overcome by a dizzy spell and dropped the faded mineral. His head throbbed painfully for a few seconds, the teen clutching at his bangs as he grit his teeth. Eventually, it faded away, but the fox was still feeling a bit woozy. He hadn't expected this kind of feedback from using a drained gem for such a task. Perhaps in their weakened state, the Emeralds' power was even more discordant than it typically was. At least, that was the theory he came up with to try and justify why he'd be experiencing such side effects when he never had before.

"You okay, big guy?" Sonic asked him, slight concern etched on his face.

Miles hummed and brushed his bangs out of his face, sliding the blue Emerald into a spare pouch. "Yeah, I'll be fine. How're you feeling, Giselle?"

"Much better, thank you," she said with a smile, then frowned a bit as she peered down at herself, "I know now's not really the time, but I've got a bit on my mind. I'm still fairly winded, too, so maybe I can think things over while I catch my breath."

The fox wanted to say something to cheer her up, but she was right. Gizmo needed this brief respite, and whatever was eating at her, she could get through it without him trying to figuratively hold her hand.

"We can't stay grounded for long anyway," Gadget told them, "I'd rather not leave the Tornado sitting out here in the open when they already know we're here. And in the event you can't stop the Battle Moon from taking off, we'll be around to give you a lift before it gets too far."

Fuchsia took a seat by her friend, giving the heroic duo a casual salute. "If you need a hand sooner, just give us the word and we'll be there!"

"Two cool guys like us should be fine, but it's your call, Tails," Sonic remarked with his usual confidence.

"That's pretty much how I was thinking this would go," the fox answered, not having to give it much consideration, "we've got backup if we need it, whether or not we're able to keep the station from relaunching."

He gave each of the twins a firm hug, then bumped fists with the cat, while Sonic gave a high-five to each of the three older Animals. The teen double-checked the location of the final Emerald, which was coming from the direction of the colossal vessel itself. He grabbed his partner and lifted the both of them back up to the pipe that they'd dropped down from just a little bit ago. They dipped down into a curve before descending closer to the lake's surface, jumping atop one of the support platforms that held up the pipes. Their toes barely avoided touching the water as they flew up and over to more solid ground, only to be set upon by more seagull Badniks. Once those were dispatched, the boys utilized their Spin Dash to travel up the path of a wall, briefly sprinting across the ceiling and landing on the other side of a spike trap.

They traveled along with the rotation of a turbine to avoid a few spiny robots, grabbing hold of a cargo crane and hitching a ride to a higher spot. There were a pair of zip lines that were situated a few meters further up, but with their speed, they didn't need them to get to the ledge they led to. Miles flew to the highest platform that was immediately on the path, with Sonic electing to run up the pipe to the same destination. They dove into a maintenance shaft, with the fox having to use his tail to quickly swerve them out of the way of several flamethrowers. A security gate served as a brief impediment, only to be easily circumvented by the hoglet smashing its control box. Rolling down a lengthy pipe, the duo came close to the water before rolling up a hill in the metal and leaping from the top of it to the base of construction crane's tower. Miles went on ahead, swatting a few seagulls out of the air while his companion went for the walker units that were strangely guarding a section of piping.

As the fox took the high road, the hoglet Spin Dashed through his opposition as well as the exterior of the metal tube. He cried out as a surge of water swept up his spherical self, unable to reach for his shield projector and helpless to do anything but go along with the flow. Luckily, the pipe did open up soon enough for him to catch his breath, depositing him near another turbine. The boy hopped over an alarm barricade and sped across the cylinder, past a pair of spiked ball Badniks into a series of vertical curves that left him next to one of those bowl platforms. This brought him to a short tunnel that connected to a corkscrew pipe, causing the kid to twist and turn up and down for a brief period. A dip in the path caused him to soar high into the air and land onto a ledge close to a large crane and two makeshift bridges.

Miles had fluttered above the pipe that had separated him from his pal, slicing through a few Robo Kukkus with a Rolling Attack. He did a quick U-turn up a pipe and once again used his tails to get to the highest point he could find, passing over a pair of turbine bridges riddled with spiny Badniks. This didn't get him clear from seagulls, but their basic flight and attack patterns were trivial to deal with. He skidded to a halt at what appeared to be a dead end, noting that one portion of the pipe in front of him was thinner and colored differently from the rest. He didn't even have a few seconds to ponder this before Sonic barreled into him from behind, blasting the metal apart and sending them both through the pipeline. They came out the other end in a heap, with the hedgehog laying atop a thoroughly soaked fox.

"Whew, reminds me of when we did that in the Chemical Plant Complex, only we're a lot wetter," Sonic commented, drying himself off in a blur.

Miles pushed himself to his feet and fluffed up after wringing and shaking most of the water from his fur. "Blegh, I feel like I just got out of a washing machine. Let's not do that again, if we can help it."

"Yeah, I've already been through two of 'em," the boy groaned, digging some fluids out of his ears.

Once they were good to go, the two went down and pulled an 180-degree turn, passing through a structure and dodging laser fire as well as actual flames. They grabbed hold of a maintenance crane and used it to travel down what appeared to be the final stretch of pipes to the site of the Battle Moon itself. Aside from the towers erected around the station, however, there was no more solid ground for them to traverse, and no easy place for them to get on board. Or at least, it seemed that way until Sonic got a bit closer to the surface of the lake from the last ledge they were standing on.

"Check it out, big guy!" he exclaimed, waving the fox over to where he was, "you're not gonna believe what I found!"

Wondering what could cause the kid to create such a commotion, Miles hurried over to see what the big deal was. And when his eyes caught sight of it, he felt his heart leap to his throat and his breath halt. There, parked in the water with its cockpit open seemingly in wait for him, was what appeared to be the Sea Fox, only sporting the colors of the Empire. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things, and when the vision of his departed creation's underwater form remained, he clenched his teeth and his fists.

"That old bird has some real nerve doing this," the teen growled as he glared daggers at the replica of his most faithful and endearing invention, "mocking the sacrifice of my friend...he thinks this will get me to do what he wants and go where he wants me?" He let out a sigh and gave Sonic a rather serious look. "Well, he's right, but it doesn't matter that this is a trap. Things aren't going to go his way!"

"Just keep cool, Tails," Sonic told him gently, "you know those jerks love to push your buttons. Long as you don't let 'em get to you, we've got this."

Miles simply nodded and hopped into the cockpit of the imitation Sea Fox, waiting for his partner to do the same. Just before the hedgehog was about to, he let out a yell as he was swept away and intercepted by a huge and fast machine. The teen was about to go after him when the canopy slammed shut overhead and the craft lifted out of the water into the air, moving entirely on its own. He had expected this whole setup to be fishy, but he didn't think it would go in this direction.

"No, Sonic!" he yelled as he banged on the glass.

It didn't even budge against his slamming, nor did the craft slow down at all when he tried fiddling with the controls. It was already programmed to take him wherever it was headed, meaning the console was just for show. A low rumbling filled the air and caused his ride to vibrate, and its source became almost immediately apparent when he turned his head. The water around the Battle Moon began to churn, and the buildings that had been constructed around it began to fall away. The gargantuan station was slowly rising from the lake, its giant thrusters stirring up the surface even more.

Close to one of the highest crane towers in the facility, Sonic grunted as he was thrown against one of the pipes that connected to the structure. A colossal weight shifted his position as it touched down, the hedgehog gritting his teeth as he looked up to see what it was. There was a huge mecha modeled after an albatross, possessing a powerful and sharp-edged gray bill attached to a crimson head, soulless black eyes peering down at the kid. The rest of its body was similarly tinged with dull silver and deep red, with notes of black on its massive pair of wings. There was a crown of spikes jutting from its head and around its breast, while its webbed feet had been given short but vicious talons on its toes. A number of other holes studded its form, giving the hedgehog the unsettling feeling that those were all weapon ports.

"Hello again, boy," came the grating tone of Dr. Fukurokov, an obvious grin on that beak, "I was hoping to use this against Prower, but you will make a more-than-adequate replacement as the first test target of my most impressive procellariiform piece!"

Sonic scoffed and rubbed the underside of his nose. "You sure like to brag a lot about stuff that's gonna get broken."

"Bah, not even a back-handed compliment about my craftsmanship?" the owl griped, "at least Prower would give me that!"

After getting in some quick stretches, the hedgehog grinned and pointed at the avian. "The only thing I'm gonna give you is another notch in your losing streak, doc!"

"We'll see about that, brat!"

Back with Miles, the fake Sea Fox pulled into the very bottom level of the Battle Moon, which was an unexpectedly open area with little in the way of equipment or anything else. It was mostly purple catwalks and platforms suspended by golden support poles, with a few stairways and elevators going up into the vessel itself. The replica of his old companion came to a halt at the very edge of the floor, the top opening up to allow him to climb out. The teen did so, and as he glanced around for the nearest proper entrance to the place, he found a familiar, but unfriendly face waiting for him: Knuckles.

"You came, as expected," the echidna claimed, already looking like he was spoiling for a fight, "it seems the doctor and the emperor were right after all."

Miles' fur stood up at the mention of the latter Animal. So, the GBK had finally come out of his coma, had he?

"I don't know what those two told you," the fox said as calmly as he could while his fists trembled, "but you need to stop this foolishness, Knuckles."

The Guardian snarled defiantly. "What is foolish is letting you carry on! They have built the means to remove the Dragon's Egg from Angel Island, which is more than I could have hoped for!"

"Oh, for the love of...this isn't the Dragon's Egg!" Miles shouted right back, throwing up his hands in frustration, "I highly doubt your ancestors thought it was made of metal, or that it had a big and blatant insignia of a rooster skull on the front!"

"What are you saying?" Knuckles asked him incredulously, "there is no symbol like you describe! And the material of the shell was not specifically disclosed, so that matters not!"

The fox couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did this guy really not see the sign of one of the most nefarious groups in the world? He could understand how someone like Knuckles could be ignorant of who the Battle Kukku Empire really was, but not even spotting that big old thing? It had been there when they first arrived, and was still present when they showed up at the boundary of the base.

"Okay, this is going to bug me like hell unless I can figure out one thing," Miles remarked, confusing the echidna as he held up three fingers. There was a few meters of space between the two, which worked for his test. "How many digits do you see?"

Knuckles stood there for a few moments, squinting a bit before eventually answering. "I fail to see what this has to do with anything, but if you need an answer, I see...five!"

The fox had to keep himself from making a face as he heard the echidna's reply.

'This guy's vision is almost as bad as Gad's,' he thought in a deadpan manner, 'no wonder he couldn't see the insignia.'

"Well, you're wrong. There are three," Miles told him plainly.

The echidna growled and put up his dukes once again. "Stop trying to distract me! I will not let you bring the Dragon's Egg back down upon my home!"

The hero puffed out a sigh from his nose and did the same, seeing as the other animal wasn't about to listen to reason. But before either of them could make a move, an amber blur that wasn't Miles rammed right into the Guardian's back. The echidna cried out as the impact launched him clear from the platform, sending him tumbling into the clouds the Battle Moon had now risen above. The fox wasn't even given a chance to call out and go after him before he felt a harsh and blunt force strike him across the face, making him bounce and skid across much of the barren space. He wiped off the bit of red that trickled out from his nose and stood up to face his assailant, only for his jaw to tighten.

Miles remembered the poor imitation of him that had been presumably sent to deal with him aboard the Battle Moon. It had never gotten that chance, as Gil had apparently been the one to do it in. What he saw in front of him bore only a passing resemblance to that robot, and for all his vileness, the doctor had done a bang up job with this one. He'd actually nailed a respectable evil robot version of himself.

"You look a lot more intimidating than that doll of me the doctor made the last time I was here," he complimented the automaton, "it's kind of a shame I have to scrap you here."

"Incorrect, Enemy Number One," it responded with an off putting version of his own voice, "this unit, the Mecha Miles Mark II, is superior to you in every respect. There is only one logical outcome to this battle."

Without knowing it, Miles mimicked the same cocky expression that his partner often used, then fell back into a fighting stance. "I've heard that before. Prove to me that you're all that you say you are!"

"That is what I am programmed for," Mecha fired back, extending its claws and revving up the wheels in its feet, "executing objective: eliminate Miles 'Tails' Prower!"


Author's Note: No boss fight this chapter because the next one is dedicated to the two that are starting up! After that, we can start moving into the Sonic & Knuckles half of the story. Rather than having everyone fight a Big Arms stand-in (or Big Wings, in this case), I felt this was a good place to bring in Mecha and have him face off against his organic counterpart. Meanwhile, Sonic is going to have to stand on his own against Dr. Fukurokov...or will he?

Gil is back, although his time with Big was even more brief than his first outing with either J or Miles. As for what he's doing on Angel Island and what his aims are, you'll find out in due time. Speaking of Big, he's not one that usually gets phased by a lot of things, even a man that's taller than him. But he's got more important things to worry about anyway, like finding out where Froggy is in this place!

The detail about Knuckles being near-sighted and thus not seeing the Eggman insignia on the Death Egg was something that was in the original Japanese canon of Sonic 3. I decided to honor that little tidbit here, both for humor and for a character trait that's rarely touched upon even in fan-fiction.

Last, but not least, the final chapter count is now revealed. I have a good idea of the ending, but there are a couple of details I'm uncertain about. And while I normally wouldn't ask this, I'm giving the readers a chance to decide how certain things will go. Without spoiling anything, there are four different possibilities I have in mind, and if you feel like commenting, you can vote for A, B, C, or D. Even if nobody decides to contribute, I'll have a method of sorting things out, so don't feel pressured; it's entirely optional.

Anyway, that's all for now, and I'm glad to see there's still some interest in the series. Get your favorite arrangement of Big Arms ready for next time as we delve into Part 2 of the Sonic 3 finale, where it's Miles vs Mecha and Sonic vs Dr. Fukurokov!