Sonic X: Season 3: Shuffle Edition
Midgame (pt. 8)
Sonic was still staring at Shadow with wide eyes and with a gaped mouth since he couldn't believe what he was hearing. Shadow wants to fight him...due to him stealing his glory? What kind of nonsense is the Ultimate Lifeform spouting anyway?!
"'Glory'?! What glory?! I don't remember doing anything like that towards you!" Sonic yelled back in confusion and in annoyance as he frowned solemnly at Shadow.
"Of course, you don't...because you're just a selfish, arrogant show-off who likes to do good deeds just so that others could praise you! You're not a true hero!" Shadow yelled back in anger with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he crossed his arms and glared coldly at Sonic.
Knuckles looked at Chris as he muttered calmly with a little frown, "You know...He has a poi-".
"Knuckles, no," Chris interrupted calmly with a stern look on his face as he stared back at Knuckles.
"But Chris-" Knuckles retorted with a deeper frown on his annoyed face as he stared back at Chris.
"Don't 'but Chris' me, Knuckles. You know that's not the truth," Chris cut Knuckles off again while looking annoyed.
"(Sigh)…Fine..." Knuckles muttered tiredly with a sigh and with a pout as he slumped back into his seat and crossed his arms.
Sonic looked even more annoyed as he yelled back in confusion and in frustration, "What are you talking about?! Of course, I am a hero! I saved Chris' world as well as my own world plenty of times before, and I did it out of selflessness! In fact...".
He then pointed at Shadow as he added, "...You helped me save Earth that one time! We're both heroes, Shadow! Can't you see that?!".
"No! Because you got the others to praise you after I had supposedly died! You are such a selfish, inconsiderate hedgehog who takes advantage of others and never gives them any credit for their helpful actions!" Shadow yelled back in anger as he clenched his fists and steadied his body in a battle pose.
Knuckles was about to open his mouth to comment on that, but Chris looked back at Knuckles with a stern look on his face as he muttered calmly, "No, Knuckles. It's not true. Don't listen to him".
"(Sigh)…(You're just saying that because you favor Sonic)," Knuckles mumbled with another sigh and with a pout as he looked away from Chris.
"What was that?" Chris asked calmly in a warning tone as he stared at Knuckles in suspicion.
"Nothing..." Knuckles muttered tiredly with a solemn frown and with closed eyes.
"Shadow, I don't know where you got these wrong ideas from, but I'm telling you right now that they're all lies! Besides, what's important here is that you're with us again! You can help us defeat Dark Oak! Heck! You can help me defeat Dark Oak! He's lying right there in front of us! So, if you can just cast aside these ire opinions of me for a moment, we can beat-!" Sonic yelled back in annoyance and in determination as he looked both serious and hopeful as he pointed at himself before at Dark Oak.
"'We'?! Who's saying that we're going to work together?! I'm going to fight Dark Oak myself!" Shadow yelled back indignantly while looking determined and annoyed as he quickly pointed at Sonic and himself before simply pointing at himself with his thumb.
"Wait! You're what?!" Sonic exclaimed in shock and in confusion with a baffled look on his face as he jerked back in surprise.
"That's right! I'm not going to let history repeat itself by letting you steal all the glory for yourself! I'll fight this stupid poacher alone so that the credit will belong to me! Hand over the Chaos Emeralds so that I'll finish him off myself!" Shadow yelled back in determination with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as he held a fist in front of Sonic.
Sonic stared at Shadow in awkwardness as he pointed at him with a sheepish frown and with a lowered eyebrow while asking calmly in confusion, "...Uhhh...Is it just me or are you behaving a little more childishly than before?".
"Who cares of how I act?! The fact of the matter is that the only true Ultimate Lifeform in this scenario is me! Not you! Not some selfish show-off who acts like a hero! Now if you don't hand over the Chaos Emeralds in the next ten seconds, I might kick you in the balls!" Shadow yelled back in frustration with a grimace and with a vein bulging in his head as he coldly glared at Sonic while shaking his fist at him.
"...You know what? Never mind. You are the same Shadow that I know from before. I must've not have noticed," Sonic replied calmly in annoyance with a sheepish frown and with lowered eyelids as he leant forward and held his chin with his fingers.
CRASH!
Immediately after Sonic had said that, Shadow boosted into him and crashed through a wall. They made a hole as a result of the crash. Sonic cringed in pain after feeling his stomach being rammed very hard. Debris flew from the crash as Sonic and Shadow flew through the fortress. Sonic then clenched his teeth and pushed himself from Shadow before kicking him in his face.
KICK!
Shadow grunted and flinched from the attack, and this little moment had enabled Sonic to fly away from Shadow. Sonic flew upwards towards the outside of the fortress, and Shadow glared at him after shaking his head.
"Coward..." Shadow muttered irritably with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows before he flew after Sonic.
Sonic looked behind himself and saw Shadow chasing after him. He then boosted away from him while busting through the fortress' ceilings.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
Shadow narrowed his eyes at Sonic while avoiding the falling debris. He then boosted after him too in order to keep up with him. He also busted through the ceilings of the fortress as he chased after Sonic.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
He and Sonic were soon neck and neck as they glared at each other. Sonic then held his hand out towards Shadow and fired more Chaos energy out from his palm to attack him. Shadow saw this and dodged quickly in multiple directions before firing his own kind of attack: Chaos Spear.
"Chaos Spear!" Shadow yelled out in determination with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as he threw multiple Chaos Spears at Sonic.
However, Sonic dodged the attacks in multiple directions before flying ahead of Shadow. Shadow grimaced at this as he watched Sonic fly away before chasing after him. The attacks that Sonic and Shadow threw had hit the fortress instead, and multiple explosions came off from it as a result.
BOOOOOM! KAAABOOOOM! KAAABOOOOM! BOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOM! KAAAABOOOOM! KAAABOOOOM! BOOOOOOM! KAAAABOOOOOM! KAAAABOOOOM!
"Ah!" Amy, Cosmo, Chris, and Knuckles exclaimed in shock as they cringed and covered their eyes from the bright explosions above them.
"Ugh...Where am I?" Dark Oak muttered wearily as he looked up and held his head with one hand. He saw the explosions above and looked annoyed as he brooded this simple thought. Oh, great...
("The Elysian Box Theme-Live Version" from Professor Layton and the Diabolical/Pandora's Box plays here)
CRASH! CRASH!
Sonic and Shadow busted through the final ceiling together and flew above the fortress. They glared hard at each other as they floated in their battle poses. They have no doubts in their minds that a real fight is about to begin.
"So...you finally decided to stop flying away, huh? I didn't know that you were such a coward, Sonic. I guess that the Doctor forgot to mention that about you," Shadow commented calmly with a mischievous smirk as he stared at Sonic.
"The Doctor"?! Aha! So that's what this is all about, huh?! I should've known that he was the one who had planted those lies into Shadow's head! Sonic pondered in surprise as he briefly looked shocked before looking solemn again.
"So Eggman was the one who told you all that baloney, huh? Heh! Congrats, Shadow, you're an even bigger knucklehead than Knuckles!" Sonic muttered calmly with a solemn frown before he exclaimed brightly with a cheeky smile. Shadow looked surprised at that remark before he looked irritated as he growled at Sonic. He stared daggers at Sonic as he prepared himself to beat the snot out of him.
"One last chance, Sonic. Give me the emeralds, and you'll live in one piece," Shadow warned calmly with a solemn frown as he had his fists up.
"And what I don't?" Sonic asked calmly with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as he also had his fists up.
"...Then you lose," Shadow answered calmly yet simply with narrowed eyelids and with a deeper frown.
After saying that, Shadow rammed into Sonic again with both fists outward. Sonic cringed in the pain of this sudden attack while being flown through space. They both crashed through another wall of the fortress together.
CRASH!
Sonic grunted as he glared hard at Shadow before punching him hard in the stomach.
POW!
Shadow grunted at that rough punch as he cringed a lot in pain and crashed upwards through the ceiling while Sonic followed him.
CRASH! CRASH!
Before Sonic could throw another blow onto Shadow, Shadow retaliated by kicking him hard in the face.
KICK!
Sonic grunted and cringed again in pain as his body crashed through more of the fortress' infrastructure.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
Sonic then stopped himself from crashing into more walls and looked determined as he boosted towards Shadow with both fists out. Shadow frowned deeply in annoyance as he looked determined too and boosted towards Sonic while also having his fists out. They soon clashed each other on impact with both of their fists colliding with each other before they flew upwards as they crashed through the ceilings again.
BAM!
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
As Sonic and Shadow flew around each other while boosting, they repeatedly clashed at each other with their fists, and they repeatedly blocked each other's attacks with their own fists each time they collided. They both looked determined as they gritted their teeth while they kept boosting into each other.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
Sonic then tried to kick Shadow in the stomach again, however, Shadow blocked the attack with his left arm this time and tried to throw a punch towards Sonic. Sonic blocked the attack by knocking Shadow's fist downwards. He then tried to punch Shadow, but Shadow quickly dodged to the side. Shadow retaliated by throwing a kick towards Sonic, but Sonic quickly dodged to the side just like Shadow did earlier. Sonic attempted to kick Shadow's head this time, but Shadow ducked quickly to dodge the attack. He tried to use this opportunity to punch Sonic hard in the stomach, however, Sonic quickly blocked the strong attack by using his right arm as defense. Shadow tried to punch Sonic directly in the face instead, but just like him a few seconds ago, he ducked to dodge the attack. He and Shadow then tried to punch each other's face simultaneously yet again, and they both blocked the attack by hitting each other's fist again.
BAM!
"Grrrrrrr!" Sonic and Shadow growled simultaneously in frustration with gritted teeth and with furrowed eyebrows as they saw that they weren't getting any attacks in. They both flew a bit away from each other as they prepared to throw their special attacks at each other.
"Chaos Light! (*See A/N at the end)" Sonic yelled out in determination with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he threw more Chaos energy towards Shadow.
"Chaos Spear!" Shadow yelled out in determination with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he threw more Chaos Spears towards Sonic. Both strong attacks collided with each other, and multiple, bright explosions appeared as a result.
BOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOM! KAAABOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOM! KAAABOOOOOOOOM!
"You know, Amy...I really don't get it..." Cosmo muttered calmly in confusion as she stared at the explosions with an annoyed expression on her face.
"Oh? What is it that you don't get, Cosmo?" Amy asked calmly yet curiously with an intrigued look on her face as she glanced at Cosmo while having her hands at her sides.
"Why do people have to fight?" Cosmo asked calmly with slight frustration in her tone as she slightly glared at Amy with a solemn frown.
"Eh? Umm...Haven't we told you before, Cosmo, that friends sometimes fight each other? Including rivals?" Amy calmly asked back in confusion while staring at Cosmo with a lost look on her face as she had a finger on her left cheek.
"Yes, you guys had told me that, however, what I meant was why fight at the most inappropriate times?! This whole fight is pointless!" Cosmo exclaimed in frustration with a deep frown and with furrowed eyebrows as she had her fists up while staring at Amy.
"'Pointless'?! What do you mean by pointless?! Sonic is clearly trying to convince Shadow to help us defeat the Metarex together by using the most hands-on approach imaginable: beating the snot out of him! Speaking of which...KICK HIS BUTT, SONIC!" Amy exclaimed in surprise and in confusion as she looked shocked yet hopeful while having her fists up before looking back at the explosions and shouted in encouragement.
"..." Cosmo said nothing to that but had the most annoyed look on her face as she hated that Amy is encouraging this violent behavior with such enthusiasm in her voice. I'm starting to wonder if her love for Sonic was a mistake. It's not making her think right...or logically for that matter...Cosmo brooded calmly with an annoyed frown and with half-lidded eyes as she stared at Amy.
Amy soon looked back at Cosmo as she asked calmly with a little smile and with her hands behind her back, "...Anyways, you're saying?".
"Look, Amy, just think for a moment please. Wouldn't Sonic's and Shadow's times be better spent by simply fighting Dark Oak and destroying the Metarex armada? This whole story-Err-I mean-war would've finally ended already if these two hadn't started fighting! This whole fight is stupid!" Cosmo replied calmly with a solemn frown before yelling a bit in frustration as she grimaced a bit while having her fists up.
"Oh, come on, Cosmo. You're saying it as if it's a bad thing-" Amy replied calmly yet casually with a shrug and with a sheepish smile as she stared at Cosmo with a lowered eyebrow.
"It is a bad thing!" Cosmo interrupted immediately with a deep frown and with furrowed eyebrows as she glared at Amy.
"Aww, don't be like that, Cosmo! This fight is cool, and that's because my beloved Sonic is fighting in it! He's fighting valiantly like the knight in shiny armor that he is! Besides, what's the worst thing that could happen because of this?!" Amy exclaimed brightly yet optimistically with a cheerful smile and with her hands behind her back again as she stared at Cosmo.
"Unforeseen, terrible circumstances that alters the timeline completely thanks to the horrible repercussions that this fight will create!" Cosmo exclaimed in annoyance with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as she stared closely at Amy while having her fists up. Amy was about to comment on that but soon stopped herself as she thought for a moment about what Cosmo had said.
"...You know what, Cosmo? You're right. This is a stupid fight," Amy replied calmly yet tiredly in annoyance with a deep frown and with lowered eyelids as she stared back at Cosmo while having her hands at her sides.
"See?! Told you so! Seriously! What kind of moron would think this is cool?!" Cosmo exclaimed back in annoyance with a nod and with a deep frown as she stared at Amy while having her hand out towards the hole in the wall for emphasis.
"Woah...This is just...unbelievably cool to me...Two of my favorite hedgehogs duking it out in space...I feel so entranced by this that I don't even care that we're in the middle of a crumbling fortress...This fight is so awesome...It's like my dream had come true..." Chris muttered calmly in awe with a gaped mouth and with wide eyes as he watched the fight in a trance.
"Meh. I've seen better," Knuckles commented calmly yet nonchalantly with a solemn frown and with a casual shrug as he watched the fight wage on with half-lidded eyes.
After throwing their special attacks at each other, Sonic and Shadow repeatedly boosted into each other in multiple directions, quickly clashing their bodies into each other. They flew quickly around in space while fiercely throwing punches and kicks at each other and while dodging and blocking their attacks. Meanwhile, the Metarex armada shot more purple lasers at the fortress, and this action resulted in the two hedgehogs continuing to dodge and fight while in the Metarex's attack. They still looked determined as they did their best to throw blows at each other while at the same time dodge and block the quick attacks.
"Give it up, Sonic! You know that I should handle the Metarex myself!" Shadow yelled in frustration with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he flew through the purple lasers and threw a hard punch towards Sonic. Luckily for Shadow, he finally landed a good blow onto Sonic and knocked him backwards towards the fortress.
POW!
"Grraaaggh! You're wrong, Shadow! We should work together as a team!" Sonic yelled back in frustration with loud grunt and with a deep grimace as he glared up at Shadow while hovering over a part of the fortress.
"Screw teamwork!" Shadow yelled back in anger with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he threw Chaos Spears at Sonic again.
"Woah!" Sonic yelped in surprise as he quickly dodged and flew away from Shadow's attacks. The Chaos Spears struck the fortress instead, and multiple explosions came about from those strong attacks.
KAABOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Debris from the fortress fell everywhere as it keeps getting destroyed by both the Metarex armada's lasers and the hedgehogs' brawl. The interior of the fortress keeps crumbling down into the abyss, and the floors started to break too due to how much damage the foundations took as well. Not to mention, the black hole at the bottom of the abyss is very much ready to pull everything to itself.
"Thirty seconds left until the Zathura sequence begins, sir!" the one, brown Metarex robot exclaimed to Red Pine as he looked at him.
"I can see that! Hmph! ...Let everything go to waste..." Red Pine exclaimed sternly before he muttered darkly in bitterness as he glared coldly at his own fortress.
"RED ALRET! RED ALERT! DANGER AHEAD! DANGER AHEAD! EVACUATE PREMISES IMMEDIATELY! I REPEAT! EVACUATE PREMISES IMMEDIATELY!" the emergency voice said in Dr. Eggman's computer while it glowed bright red as the word "DANGER" blipped quickly on the screen.
"GRRRR! SHADOOOOOW! GET YOUR SPIKY, BLACK BUTT BACK TO THE SHIP! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL US ALL?!" Dr. Eggman shouted furiously in impatience with a loud growl and with a deep grimace as he banged his control panel while glaring hard at Shadow in the distance. He kept watching Shadow fight Sonic while he brooded in annoyance with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows. Ugggh...I can't believe that I'm saying this...but I think that it was a mistake to manipulate Shadow into hating and fighting Sonic again. Because if he wasn't so preoccupied with beating Sonic into a pulp, then I would be light years away from whatever disaster that I'm going to be forced into! These next few moments...are NOT what I'm going to be looking forward to!
"Come on, Shadow! Cut it out!" Sonic yelled in frustration with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he flew backwards a bit before throwing more Chaos energy towards Shadow. Shadow quickly dodged these attacks while throwing more Chaos Spears at Sonic. The attacks had missed and had struck the fortress instead causing more damage to it.
KAABOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOM! KAAABOOOOM!
Sonic and Shadow kept flying around while throwing more of their special attacks at each other. They kept dodging the attacks, and the fortress kept getting struck by their attacks. Many explosions flew around the exterior of the fortress while this keeps happening.
BOOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Meanwhile, Amy, Cosmo, Chris, and Knuckles looked around in worry as they saw the fortress crumbling around them at an alarming rate. They even felt the fortress rumble and shake as it was ready to collapse completely.
RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
"Okay...I may have been the one responsible for unleashing possible destruction due to me drawing out my card...but I...DO NOT WANT TO BE THE ONE RESPONSIBLE FOR CAUSING ANY OF YOU GUYS' DEATHS IF WE STICK AROUND MUCH LONGER! CHRIS! GET THIS PLANE MOVING ALREADY! WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME!" Knuckles muttered calmly yet awkwardly with a little frown as he looked back at Chris before he shouted in irritation with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows while shaking his fist and while having a vein popping in his head since he was getting impatient.
"AH! YOU'RE RIGHT! WE SHOULDN'T BE WASTING OUR TIME WATCHING THIS...THIS...awesome fight...WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE!" Chris shouted back in surprise with an alarmed look on his face while muttering quietly in awe as he briefly watched the fight again before looking back at Knuckles.
"GOOD! HEY! AMY! COSMO! ARE YOU TWO GOING TO STAY HERE AND DIE?! OR ARE YOU TWO GOING TO LEAVE WITH US?!" Knuckles shouted some more in determination with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as he looked at Amy and Cosmo and covered the sides of his mouth to get his voice across the room.
"AH! UHHH...YEAH! SURE! WE'RE COMING!" Amy and Cosmo shouted back in surprise as they quickly looked back at Knuckles with startled looks on their faces. After nodding a little to Knuckles, they ran quickly towards the X-Tornado and quickly hopped aboard in the two backseats of the plane.
"Alright! It's time to finally leave this place! Let's get out of here!" Chris exclaimed in determination with a solemn frown and with a nod as he saw that Amy and Cosmo were seated safely while turning on the ignition again.
"Whew! Thank goodness for that! That's one less disaster for us!" Knuckles exclaimed in relief with a sigh and with a little smile as he wiped his forehead a bit before leaning back against his seat and closing his eyes. If only we could avoid more disasters like the one that's coming next...Sigh...If...only...Knuckles brooded calmly yet tiredly with a little frown and with another sigh as he crossed his arms again. Chris then quickly flew the X-Tornado out of the fortress while it kept blowing up and crumbling to pieces.
Dark Oak watched the plane leave while looking annoyed before looking at Sonic and Shadow again. He can see that they are still duking it out by throwing multiple special attacks at each other while dodging at the same time. Dark Oak sighed and shook his head as he looked at the crumbling fortress in annoyance.
"...This was not what I had in mind when my card was played...Ugh...Chaos Control..." Dark Oak muttered calmly yet tiredly in annoyance while face-palming himself as he decided to warp himself away from the crumbling fortress using Chaos Control. Just after he had said it, a bright light glowed around him before he vanished away to his home base.
PING!
"Fifteen seconds and counting..." the one, brown Metarex robot commented as he watched the black hole started to move a little through the computer screen.
"Grah! Hah! Grrrugh! Ngggh! Hah! Hiya!" Sonic and Shadow grunted with gritted teeth and with furrowed eyebrows as they kept throwing Chaos energy and Chaos Spears at each other. They soon stopped and just boosted into each other instead. They clashed their bodies repeatedly at lightning speeds and almost made an atom-like shape as they flew around.
"Ten seconds..." the one, brown Metarex robot commented before he started counting down while the two hedgehogs kept fighting each other.
"9..."
Sonic threw another hard punch at Shadow's face and struck him very easily.
POW!
"8..."
Shadow cringed a lot at the attack before he retaliated by kicking Sonic hard in the ribs.
KICK!
"7..."
Sonic cringed a lot when he felt his right rib being kicked hard and retaliated by simply slapping Shadow across the face.
SLAP!
"6..."
Shadow flinched back in surprise and in disgust of that attack. He looked insulted before doing the same thing as Sonic by slapping him across the face.
SLAP!
"5..."
Sonic also flinched back in surprise and in disgust before he looked irritated and started slapping Shadow across the face multiple times.
SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!
"4..."
Shadow then looked frustrated after getting slapped multiple times and started slapping away Sonic's hands in response.
SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!
"3..."
Sonic grimaced deeply at this as he kept slapping Shadow's hands just as quickly as he is with his.
SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!
"2..."
Sonic and Shadow quickly slapped each other's hands before gripping hard onto them while they wrestled each other. They both had irritated looks on their faces as they wrestled with each other.
"1..."
("The Elysian Box Theme-Live Version" song ends here)
Just after the timer struck zero, the entire fortress collapsed and fell into the black hole below the abyss.
CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSHHHH!
("Courtroom Magic" from Professor Layton Vs. Phoenix Wright plays here)
Sonic and Shadow suddenly stopped wrestling with each other after hearing that loud crash. They both looked towards the collapsed fortress and saw debris falling into the black hole. They looked a bit confused about what's going on until they looked shocked when they saw the black hole swirling quickly. They immediately released each other's hands and grimaced even further as they saw that the black hole was slowly pulling them in.
"Ah...Ugh...Aw, crud..." Sonic muttered calmly yet tiredly in annoyance while still looking grave yet alarmed as he and Shadow felt the strong gravity of the black hole pulling them in. He and Shadow grunted a lot as they resisted the strong force of gravity by flying backwards.
"Uggggh! Nggggh! Grrrrr! This is all your fault, Sonic! Grrrrr!" Shadow yelled in annoyance with a grimace as he grunted and growled a lot while flying against the strong gravity pull.
"How is this my fault?! Arrrrgh!" Sonic yelled back in annoyance with a grimace and with a loud grunt as he also flew against the strong gravity pull.
"Grraaggh! I don't know how, but I'm blaming you anyway!" Shadow yelled back in frustration with a loud grunt and with a grimace as he coldly glared at Sonic while still resisting the gravity pull.
"You know...I'm now questioning if you really are my look-a-like because you behave way more like Knuckles than me," Sonic replied calmly in annoyance with a deep frown and with lowered eyelids as he stared at Shadow while still resisting the gravity pull.
"Shut up!" Shadow yelled back in frustration with a deeper grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he kept flying backwards while glaring coldly at Sonic.
"Heh...And that just proves it..." Sonic quipped playfully with a smug grin and with lowered eyelids as he kept flying backwards while staring at Shadow.
While Sonic and Shadow were busy resisting the black hole, the Metarex armada, the Blue Typhoon, and Dr. Eggman's spaceship were busy being sucked into the black hole without putting up much resistance. Red Pine stared solemnly at the black hole as he prepares his untimely demise while he calmly brooded again. It's finally the end for me...I'm not sure if Dark Oak had already fallen into the black hole along with the rest of my destroyed fortress, but I'm very certain that these players will fall along with the NPCs...This will show the rest of the Metarex that I'm cleverer and more daring than they thought of me to be...Surely...my death won't be in vain after this...
"Okay! I may have prepared for the worst, but getting sucked into a black hole was NOT one of them!" Tails exclaimed in alarm with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as he stared at the black hole while feeling the ship slowly moving towards the hole.
"Ooooh! This is very scary! If only I had more popcorn, then I could settle my nerves right now by eating them!" Cream exclaimed in worry with a sad frown and with upward eyebrows as she got her fists close together in nervousness while staring at the black hole too before at Cheese.
"Chao! Chao! Chao!" Cheese exclaimed in worry too while looking distressed as he waved his arms and legs around.
"I don't think that any amount of popcorn is going to make us feel better in this situation! We're heading straight first into a black hole, and we don't have Sonic or the others back onboard yet! Speaking of which, WHERE THE HECK ARE THE OTHERS?!" Tails exclaimed in worry with a grimace and with upward eyebrows before he shouted in panic and in frustration as he looked even more distressed.
("Courtroom Magic" song gets muffled a bit during this part)
"We're right here, Tails. Sheesh, there's no need to shout about it," Knuckles commented calmly with a solemn frown and with a lowered eyebrow as he stared at Tails with a hand on his hip. Chris, Amy, and Cosmo stood either behind him or beside him after entering the main deck.
"That's rich coming from you, Mr. Shouts-A-Lot," Amy quipped sardonically with a deep frown and with lowered eyelids as she stared at Knuckles while standing at his right side.
Knuckles glanced at Amy while replying calmly yet sternly in annoyance with a solemn frown, "Don't start".
"Ah! Guys! There you are! It's about time that you guys finally got back! But why?! Why?! Why did it have to be WHEN WE'RE CLOSE TO DYING?!" Tails exclaimed in surprise and in slight relief before he shouted again in panic and in frustration as he looked shocked before looking distressed again.
"Calm down, Tails. You're making it sound like it's a regular occurrence with us," Knuckles replied calmly with a solemn frown and with furrowed eyebrows as he stared back at Tails.
"HAVEN'T YOU FORGOTTEN THAT WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A DEADLY GAME HERE?! NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES HAVE BECOME A REGULAR OCCURANCE THANKS TO THAT CURSED BOARD GAME!" Tails shouted again in frustration as he looked irritated this time while glaring hard at Knuckles. Knuckles flinched a bit after hearing Tails shout that, but he soon looked a bit sympathetic as he can tell that Tails is at his wits end here.
Man, we really must've given that poor kid a scare. I mean. We did take our time in that fortress, and that had easily left Tails and Cream beside themselves with worry. They must've thought that we would've never come back. Knuckles brooded calmly with a solemn frown and with sympathetic eyes as he quietly stared back at Tails.
"Tails...Just chill out, okay? We got this situation under control. All we have to do now is give the Blue Typhoon a much-needed boost so that we could fly away from the black hole. After that, it's safe sailing from here on out," Chris responded calmly with a little frown and with a hand up as he tried to reassure Tails. Tails looked at Chris in surprise before he took a few deep breaths to calm himself as he took Chris' advice.
"(Sigh)...You're right, Chris. Thanks for bringing me back to reality. Alright, you and Knuckles should go and give the ship's engines a boost by powering up the Master Emerald again," Tails replied calmly with a sigh and with a little frown as he nodded a little to Chris.
"Got it!" Chris exclaimed solemnly with a little frown and with a nod as he quickly walked over to his seat and sat in it before typing quickly onto his computer.
"Will do!" Knuckles exclaimed solemnly at the same time as Chris while nodding to Tails too. Before he could quickly run to the main engine room, Tails stopped him by asking him this question.
"Oh! By the way, Knuckles, have you and Sonic played the board game yet?" Tails asked calmly yet curiously with a little frown and with a raised eyebrow as he stared at Knuckles.
Knuckles cringed at the question before he slowly moved his head back towards Tails while he calmly yet tiredly answered the question with a grimace and with lowered eyelids, "...Oh...We played it alright...And it all led up to this mess...Specifically...my mess...".
Tails, Amy, and Cosmo looked surprised at that answer before looking sympathetic as they understood that Knuckles didn't mean for this to happen.
"I...I see..." Tails muttered calmly yet awkwardly with a sheepish frown and with upward eyebrows as he stared at Knuckles. Man, that's some really bad luck. Good thing I wasn't the one who had gotten that card. My luck is already bad as it is. Getting that card would've made my luck a hundred times worse. Poor Knuckles...He really didn't mean to do it...He probably wanted nothing to do with it but was forced into doing it anyway...After all...that's how we'll ever going to advance in this strange game that we're playing together...Tails brooded calmly with a sheepish frown and with upward eyebrows as he stared at Knuckles.
"It's okay, Knuckles. It's not your fault. You didn't mean to hurt us. It's...It's the cursed board game's fault! Not yours!" Cosmo added calmly in sympathy before she exclaimed a little in concern as she stared at Knuckles with a sad look on her face while having her hands clasped together.
"Y-Yeah...Don't beat yourself up over this, okay, Knuckles?" Amy added calmly yet sympathetically with a sad frown and with upward eyebrows as she stared at Knuckles.
Knuckles looked a bit surprised when he heard the girls' reassurances and encouragements before looking rather sheepish since he still felt like this was all his fault somehow. However, he calmly responded with a sheepish frown and with upward eyebrows, "I know. I know...Thanks for your concern...But it's fine. Really. It's fine".
"Knuckles..." Cosmo and Amy muttered quietly yet simultaneously in concern while still looking sympathetic.
Knuckles shook his head at this as he replied calmly yet solemnly with a little frown, "Forget about me. Let's just focus on getting ourselves out of this crazy mess. I'll handle things from here. You girls just rest easy while Chris and I get things moving along. Alright?".
"Alright," Cosmo and Amy muttered calmly yet simultaneously in understanding as they both nodded to Knuckles.
"Good. I'll see you guys in the next few minutes," Knuckles replied calmly yet quickly with a little smile and with a nod before he turned around again and ran straight towards the main engine room. After seeing Knuckles leave, Amy turned around and quickly walked over to her seat. Cream was silent the whole time while watching Knuckles behave like that.
Poor Mr. Knuckles...Cream thought calmly in sympathy with a sad frown and with upward eyebrows as she held Cheese her arms while sitting in her seat.
Cosmo felt a bit awkward since she saw that everyone was doing at least something. She looked at Tails again and saw how anxious he was while typing onto his computer.
She slowly yet quietly walked in front of his seat as she coyly asked in concern, "Umm...Tails? Do you...Do you want a hug?".
"H-Huh?! Wh-Why would you ask th-that?! What brought this along?!" Tails exclaimed in surprise and in embarrassment with a gaped mouth and with wide eyes as he looked back up at Cosmo while blushing a little.
"It's just that..." Cosmo muttered calmly yet quietly with a little frown and with downcast eyes as she held the tips of her fingers together and looked downwards while continuing sadly, "...everyone else is doing something useful...I thought that I could be of use to you by giving you a hug since...you look so rattled...".
"O-Oh...Uhhh...I see...Well...Umm..." Tails muttered calmly yet awkwardly in embarrassment with a sheepish frown and with flushed cheeks as he rubbed the back of his head. He honestly didn't expect Cosmo to offer him a hug while in the middle of a crisis, but he understood her concern for him since he is feeling rather anxious right about now.
He then smiled shyly at her as he calmly added, "...O-Okay, Cosmo. You may hug me. After all, hugs do help someone feel better...and...I do need some help here...I need a little boost...".
Cosmo looked surprised before she smiled warmly yet shyly at Tails as she saw that he's willing to take her offer. She watched him hop down from his seat before walking over to her and leaning in for a hug. Cosmo opened her arms and pulled Tails in for a warm hug. Tails happily hugged Cosmo back while smiling brightly as he felt the warmth from before returning to him and giving him strength.
"...Thank you, Tails...I'm glad that I'm being helpful here...even if it's for the smallest of things like hugging for example..." Cosmo whispered softly with a warm smile and with half-lidded eyes as she hugged Tails dearly in her arms.
"Hey, hugging is more like the biggest of things when it comes to helping others. You wouldn't believe the incredible science that hugs do to a person's brain. To put it simply, it's like receiving all of the seven Chaos Emeralds and turning super as a result of that. That's the feeling Sonic has every time he goes into Super Sonic. It's the most relaxing, powerful feeling in the world," Tails replied calmly yet gently with a warm smile and with half-lidded eyes as he hugged Cosmo back just as dearly.
"Ah! R-Really? It is?" Cosmo asked calmly yet softly in surprise and in awe as she stared at Tails with wide eyes and with a gaped mouth.
"Yeah, it is. In fact, I'm not afraid of the dire situation anymore since you're hugging me right now. I feel much bolder and much more confident in myself than I was before...and it's all thanks to you hugging me, Cosmo. You're really more helpful than you give yourself credit for. Thanks for your help, Cosmo. I really needed it," Tails replied calmly yet gently with a warm smile and with a nod as he hugged Cosmo slightly tighter for emphasis. Cosmo looked stunned that she really was being helpful here. She personally didn't think that hugs would be that useful to someone, but it looks like she was stand corrected.
She smiled much more warmly as she closed her eyes and replied calmly yet gently while hugging Tails much tighter in response, "You're welcome, Tails. I'm glad that I had given your courage back...and maybe...you giving back mine...".
"Anytime, Cosmo. Anytime," Tails replied calmly yet gently with a warm smile and with closed eyes as he rubbed Cosmo's back a bit. Cosmo kept smiling warmly as she hugged Tails, and Tails smiled warmly too as he felt glad that Cosmo is happy with herself. Cream watched Cosmo and Tails hug it out while having an intrigued yet sympathetic look on her face.
"Hmmm...'the biggest of things when it comes to helping others', huh?" Cream muttered quietly to herself with a little frown and with half-lidded eyes as she held Cheese in her arms.
"Chao...Chao..." Cheese chirped quietly yet sadly with a sympathetic look on his face while nodding a bit as he understood what his friend is thinking.
("Courtroom Magic" plays at full blast again)
Meanwhile, hundreds of Metarex spaceships were sucked into the black hole and exploded immediately upon impact.
BOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOM! KAABOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
"This is it, sir. Within the next few minutes, all of our forces and us will be destroyed along with the players. Are you sure that you want to go out like this? We could retreat if you want, sir," the one, brown Metarex robot said as he watched the other ships explode before looking at his commander.
"No, we should not retreat. A strong commander isn't someone who makes wish-washy decisions. They must remain steadfast until the very end. Besides...I'll go down in honor of my people and what I'm trying to do for all of them...For all of us..." Red Pine replied calmly yet solemnly as he stood firmly while staring at the black hole without showing any signs of fear or regret. After saying that, he stayed silent while feeling his ship slowly yet surely being pulled into the black hole.
So long, my fellow poachers...my fellow brethren...and my old...ex-friend...Dark Oak...Red Pine brooded calmly one last time as he felt his ship rumble a lot while it plunged into the black hole. Soon enough, it exploded with a loud bang.
KAAABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Meanwhile, Dr. Eggman's spaceship is slowly being sucked into the black hole too. Dr. Eggman looked very displeased as he saw that his robots aren't doing anything at all in this dangerous situation.
"Are you guys watching the fireworks or something?! Don't just sit there and gawk! Work! Work!" Dr. Eggman yelled in irritation with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he stared at Decoe and Bocoe.
"But I can't, Doctor! The explosions are so pretty!" Decoe exclaimed in awe as he watched more Metarex spaceships explode.
"I'm so entranced that I don't care if I get blown up!" Bocoe exclaimed in awe too as he watched the Metarex spaceships explode as well. Bokkun looked afraid and frustrated after hearing Bocoe say that and ran towards his seat to yell at him.
"Well, I do! Do what the Doctor says, you dummy! I want to live another day!" Bokkun yelled in frustration with a concerned yet irritated look on his face while holding the side of Bocoe's seat.
"But Bokkun...Look...The lights...The pretty, pretty lights..." Bocoe muttered calmly in a trance as he pointed at the explosions in the distance. Bokkun looked at the explosions after Bocoe had said that and was a bit impressed with them.
"Hmm...They are really pretty to look at...Aww...Now, what do I want? Safety or explosions?" Bokkun muttered calmly yet sadly with a sheepish look on his face while looking downwards with a sweat drop on his head.
"Who cares about what you want?! I want to get out of here! Work right now or else get dismantled for trying to murder me!" Dr. Eggman yelled in anger with a deeper grimace and with a vein bulging in his head as he banged his control panel a little to get his robots' attention.
"Ack! Y-Yes, sir! Right away, sir!" Decoe, Bocoe, and Bokkun exclaimed simultaneously in surprise as they all quickly worked together to try to escape from the black hole.
Meanwhile, Sonic and Shadow are still resisting the black hole, however, they are now gripping onto one of the remains of the fortress. They still grunted as they tried to hang on to the rubble.
"Uggggh...Nggggh...You still think this is my fault, faker?" Sonic asked calmly in annoyance with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he laid low onto the rubble while grunting a bit.
"Grrrrugggh...Yes...Uggggh...One-hundred-percent..." Shadow replied calmly in annoyance with a grimace and with a closed eyelid as he held onto the rubble in a sitting position while grunting a bit.
"Tch. You know, Shadow, the definition for insanity is doing something over and over again to expect different results, and you're repeatedly thinking negatively of me while hoping that I'd agree with your line of thinking and admit that you're right. But I'm telling ya right now that it's not working," Sonic replied calmly in annoyance with a grimace and with narrowed eyelids as he moved his head to stare at Shadow.
"Oh, shut up!" Shadow yelled back in frustration with a deeper grimace and with a cold glare as he looked at Sonic now.
"Heh...Looks like someone is sounding a little cuckoo right now..." Sonic quipped playfully with a coy smirk and with a raised eyebrow as he stared at Shadow.
"Don't make me throw you into that black hole, Sonic! Because I'm going to if you don't shut your trap already!" Shadow yelled back in frustration with a deeper grimace and with a vein bulging in his head as glared coldly at Sonic.
"...And that insane mind is dipping deeper into insanity," Sonic quipped playfully yet again with a coy smirk and with a lowered eyebrow as he stared at Shadow.
"Grrrrrrr! Why I outta-!" Shadow yelled back in irritation with a loud growl and with gritted teeth as he was about to lunge towards Sonic before he was surprised and confused when Sonic exclaimed this.
"Huh?! Eggman?!" Sonic exclaimed in shock and in confusion with a gaped mouth and with wide eyes as he spotted Dr. Eggman's spaceship flying past Shadow.
"What the-?! Doctor?!" Shadow exclaimed in shock and in confusion with a gaped mouth and with wide eyes while he looked behind himself and slowly turned his head as he watched Dr. Eggman's spaceship slowly get sucked into the black hole. Sonic and Shadow stared at the spaceship with stunned looks on their faces.
Oh, shoot! I forgot that Dr. Eggman was here with us! I was so busy fighting Shadow that the old Egghead had slipped my mind! And now look what he's into now! He's going to be turned into scrambled eggs soon if his ship doesn't escape in time! I...I honestly wish that I could help, but I need to get back to the others soon! If only someone else could save him for me...Sonic brooded in concern with stunned yet worried look on his face as he watched his enemy's spaceship being slowly pulled into the black hole. He then slowly looked at Shadow as he finished brooding with a grimace.
Come on, Shadow...Save him for me...I know that you can do it...You're a hero for crying out loud!
Shadow just gawked at Dr. Eggman's spaceship while feeling stunned, confused, and strangely enough, concerned. He can't help but replay those strange memories in his mind as he watched Dr. Eggman fly his ship towards sudden destruction.
...What...What are these images that I keep seeing? Are they real...or are they...fake? Grrr...No, they can't be fake as much as I wanted them to be...I can't get rid of them even if I wanted to! But then...why do they exist in the first place? Are they truly...my memories as that boy and Rouge say they were? I...I just...I...I can't...No! I just can't remember! But what should I do with them?! Ignore them?! Or...Or...see them...as an...omen...? Shadow brooded solemnly with a stunned yet frustrated look on his face as he shook his head a little and closed his eyes before slowly opening them again and gaping his mouth widely again.
"...I...I must...do something..." Shadow muttered quietly in awe with a gaped mouth and with wide eyes as he slowly got back up and hovered again while staring at Dr. Eggman's spaceship.
"...! Shadow!" Sonic exclaimed in surprise with a gasp and with a gaped mouth as he stared at Shadow in shock.
"I...I must...save the Doctor...I mustn't let...this bad omen to come true...whatever it is..." Shadow muttered quietly to himself with a gaped mouth and with wide eyes as he stared at Dr. Eggman's spaceship.
"..." Sonic was speechless as he stared at Shadow with wide eyes and with a gaped mouth.
...Is Shadow doing what I think he's doing? Sonic thought calmly in shock and in confusion with a stunned look on his face. He was surprised again when he saw Shadow doing exactly what he was thinking.
Saving Dr. Eggman.
Shadow flew himself downwards towards Dr. Eggman's spaceship with his arms outstretched. He looked determined to save the Doctor from this perilous situation. He knew that the only way to save him was to use Chaos Control, but of course, teleporting a whole ship like that requires a lot of energy, and the only energy that he has right now are...the Chaos Emeralds.
Oh, screw it! Shadow brooded in irritation with a deep grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he landed on top of Dr. Eggman's spaceship before closing his eyes and raising his fists while he gathered up all the energy from his Super Form to commence Chaos Control. Just seconds before Dr. Eggman's spaceship had entered into the black hole, Shadow used Chaos Control to warp the ship to a different section of space.
PING!
After that flash of light, Dr. Eggman's spaceship had disappeared and soon reappeared in a different, far-away location. Shadow then felt exhausted after using so much energy to teleport himself and Dr. Eggman's spaceship away to safety. As he fell down, he had this one last thought before his mind drifted away from consciousness.
Well, would you look at that...I'm still cool...
"Great job, Shadow. I knew that you could do it..." Sonic muttered calmly yet quietly with a little smile and with a closed eyelid after seeing Shadow and Dr. Eggman's spaceship disappear.
Because Shadow had finally given up the Chaos Emeralds after using their energy, they had fallen into the black hole, which unfortunately made it worse for Sonic since he's losing his Super Form rather quickly.
"Uh oh! I'm losing the Chaos Emeralds' energy! I better not hang around here much longer! I need to get back to the Blue Typhoon fast or else I'll be the one who's scrambled!" Sonic exclaimed in alarm with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he saw that his quills are flickering blue to indicate that he is indeed losing Chaos energy.
He then quickly got himself back up and turned around before flying away as fast as could to the Blue Typhoon. He even boosted just to reach the ship faster as well as to escape from the black hole. He looked a bit worried as he saw that the Blue Typhoon is still struggling against the black hole. As much it may be easier for Sonic to reach the Blue Typhoon, it made it much more worrisome for him that the ship might not escape in time.
Come on, guys! I know that you can get out of this! Don't give up now! Sonic thought encouragingly with a grimace and with furrowed eyebrows as he flew determinedly towards the Blue Typhoon while his body flickers in and out from his Super Form.
Luckily for Sonic, his friends are doing just that since Knuckles and Chris are ready to charge up the ship's engines.
"Knuckles, have you gotten the Master Emerald ready?" Chris asked calmly through the speakers.
"Yes, I got it ready. Just leave this to me," Knuckles replied calmly with a solemn frown after typing a bit onto the computer.
"Alright. I'm prepared too," Chris replied calmly with a solemn frown after typing a bit onto his computer too. Knuckles nodded in understanding after hearing that and focused on praying to the Master Emerald.
"Please, O Mighty Master Emerald, for one moment, show us Your magnificent power! I beg of you! Show us Your unlimited power!" Knuckles prayed loudly with closed eyes and with clenched fists before he opened his eyes and raised his hands and head up to the air. The Master Emerald glowed brightly in response to this prayer and charged itself up to show Knuckles that it had listened.
"Yes! It's working! Now, Tails! Do a full 180!" Chris exclaimed in determination with a solemn frown as he pressed some buttons onto his computer before looking at Tails. Tails was back sitting in his seat after hugging Cosmo for a while. He held tightly onto the two pulleys that steers the ship and looked ready for action.
"Right! Turning now!" Tails exclaimed in determination with a solemn frown and with a nod as he pulled one pulley back while the other forward. As Tails maneuvered the Blue Typhoon to the opposite direction from the black hole, the Master Emerald powered up the ship's engines to one-hundred percent.
"We're maxed out! Tails! Use all of the ship's boosters, and we'll be able to escape from the black hole!" Chris exclaimed in determination with a solemn frown as he saw that the energy levels on his computer screen are full.
"Will do, Chris! But wait! Uhhh...Is Sonic back y-?!" Tails exclaimed brightly with a little smile before he looked surprised and confused as he looked around for Sonic.
"Here I am! Now, let's head on out of here, Tails!" Sonic exclaimed brightly with a grin as he ran inside the main deck and stopped in front of Tails while giving him a thumbs-up and a wink.
"Sonic!" Chris, Amy, Cream, Cosmo, and Tails exclaimed in unison with happy looks on their faces as they all stared at Sonic.
"Heh! Missed me?!" Sonic exclaimed brightly with a grin and with a wink as he looked back at the rest of the gang while still giving a thumbs-up. Chris, Amy, Cream, and Cosmo nodded to him in agreement while still wearing happy smiles on their faces.
Tails looked even more determined than before as he also nodded to Sonic before exclaiming brightly with a bold smile, "You bet I did, Sonic, and you got it! Let's escape from this deathtrap!".
Tails then pulled back on both pulleys to move the Blue Typhoon forward. The ship's engines are on full-blast, so, it boosted forward in no time at all. The black hole tried to suck the ship in, however, with all the boosters on, it was fruitless as it flew fast. The debris from the destroyed Metarex armada and fortress may have fallen into the black hole but not the Blue Typhoon itself. Sonic and his friends were smiling calmly as they saw that we're escaping just fine.
("Courtroom Magic" song ends here)
After seeing that they were out from the danger zone, Chris breathed a deep sigh of relief and leaned back into his seat as he felt the exhaustion from this daring adventure all at once.
Whew...Man, I feel so tired...I hadn't expected anything like this at all when I had woken up this morning. Who would've thought that all of us would escape from death again? It feels so surreal to think about...Still though...Chris brooded calmly with a little frown and with closed eyes before he opened them halfway and leant his head onto his right hand as he finished brooding with these thoughts. ...just what were the Metarex thinking? If they knew that there was a black hole here, then why would they want to corner us while playing at the expense of their own lives? These poachers are really something else...and perhaps...more deadly than I have ever expected...Hmmm...I wonder what they are going to plan now after this?
"Well, I've never thought that a failed plan could produce fruitful results. Talk about a paradox. I may have lost my ex-friend, his entire armada, and his own fortress, but we were somehow able to force the players and the NPCs to lose the Chaos Emeralds. It seems that Black Narcissus had arranged the cards correctly. Exploiting the players' and the NPCs' weaknesses and using them against them will give us the advantage that we needed. Even if the players figure out what we're up to, we'll always have their weaknesses in mind, and once we're ready to pounce, we'll rip them apart without showing any mercy! Mwahahahahahahaha!" Dark Oak calmly monologued to himself while sitting safely in his home base as he watched the Blue Typhoon fly away through his computer screen.
The Midgame may finally be over, but the game is still on...
...And the Endgame will be nothing like the Midgame...Not...one...bit...
Well, I have never thought that we'd finally get here, but here we are! Midgame is finished and so is episode 64! It took quite a lot of months to complete, but I finally did it! Now, we can move on to episode 65! But first, we have a couple of bonus games to finish before we continue on with the story! They will no doubt be light and fluffy just to give the story a breather because man that was intense! Two episodes back-to-back without any breaks! But now, we got the break that we finally deserved! So, it'll take a bit before we get back right on track! Also, I hoped that I made the Sonic and Shadow fight scene a bit more dramatic (if not a little silly in the end) and maybe a bit cinematic with the song in the background! Hey, I wanted some scenes to have fitting music playing the background! It's not a crime! It's called aesthetic! But anyways, I hope that you have enjoyed this chapter and the story so far and be willing to read some more in the future if you had liked it! Please R&R as always, and I'll see you guys in the next chapter! Bonus games here we come!
*P. S. The whole Chaos Light thing was my idea for the new move that we technically saw in the episode. I'm pretty sure that it didn't get an official name when it was first debuted, so, I gave it one myself! It does sound like a move that Sonic would yell out in his Super Form, but that's just me. Anyways, if you like that little edition, feel free to comment about it. I like to hear your thoughts about it!