Chapter Three: The Calm

Shadow had explained his plan over the maps of Robotropolis that Rotor had brought from his archives in Knothole. The plan called for the newly formed group of freedom fighters to be broken into three separate attack groups for the initial part of the assault on Robotropolis. The entire plan was going to be enacted during broad daylight, despite knuckles protests; because he didn't seem to grasp the fact that while Robotnik's robots would probably have some sort of night vision, most of the team would not.

The first group would consist of Shadow, Sonic, and Mina. Those three would storm Robotnik's headquarters from the inside out using Shadow's Chaos-Teleporting techniques. Once inside, their objectives were to destroy the heavy perimeter defenses, then to hit several other targets of opportunity, such as supply depot's, fueling stations, cafeteria's and the only Starbucks in the city, targeted by Sonic, who was amazed that there was only one in the entire city, and was thus, the only supply of good coffee. Then they were to hold a predetermined spot outside of Ivo's main office and wait for the other two teams to arrive.

Group two, consisting of Rotor, Knuckles and Bunny, would – after letting the perimeter defenses get taken offline – storm the west gate of the city and cut a mighty swath though Robotnik's troops to that same predetermined location outside of Robotnik's base. Knuckles and Bunny's primary objectives were simply to protect Rotor, and to take out any other targets, should any present themselves. Rotor on the other hand had the more direct job of eliminating all of the main buildings defenses from afar with his auto cannon, also to provide cover fire for Groups 1 and 3 if necessary.

Group three, that is to say, Rouge the bat, was to take to the skies and provide new orders "on the fly", if necessary. This would give Shadow's plan some flexibility to adapt to anything Robotnik could throw at them, this was important because they admittedly knew next to nothing about the currant state of affaires in Robotropolis. As well as serving the dual purpose of giving the air bots something to focus their attention on besides exerting their aerial advantage over groups 1 and 2.

Some time later aboard Rotor's plane towards Robotropolis, Shadow had the idea of giving everyone a pep talk. He didn't know why he had the idea, it just seemed nessecary to do so. He began regret his descision the moment he stood and cleared his throat.

"Alright, everyone ready to give Robotnik some of his own medicine?" Shadow the Hedgehog called over Rotor's noisy prop plane.

"As ready as we're ever going to be handsome." Rouge winked from her position at the bay door.

Shadow heard Sonic make a growling sound, and immediately intended to smite the fool, had knuckles not done it first.

"Get your head on straight!" The echidna bellowed rubbing his spiked mitten.

"Maybe I could if you'd stop hitting it Knucklehead."

"Maybe you both could shut the hell up so we could get going?" Shadow yelled. "There, now let's get serious. We're seven mobians up against a relatively unknown force of robots and gods know what else, so now is definitely not the time to be bickering amongst ourselves." The black hedgehog looked around the plane. He received silent nods of approval, except for Rotor, who had to fly the plane of course, as well as Sonic and Knuckles who were too busy keeping up with their staring contest to notice much of anything else around them. He was about to smack some sense into the two fools when Mina Mongoose spoke up.

"Oh come on, Shadow. We've got this." Mina chirped, "I mean we've got some of the worlds best heroes with us on this plane. Besides I'm sure that Robotnik doesn't have an 'Ultimate Life Form' on his side." She added with a smile.

Shadow smirked "Indeed." He paced over to Mina's chair, and with a slight bow he extended his hand out to her. "But there is only one way to find out, my dear."

"Well then, lead on kind sir," Mina giggled as she took the dark ones gloved hand.

"Alright, Rotor, Rouge you know what you're doing?" Shadow got nods from both the large walrus and the seductive bat. "Good because we're ending this war. right NOW!" With that last word shadow reached out and grasped sonic by the head, and used Chaos control to teleport all three to the street's below.

"Well isn't he the take charge type. I like that in a man." Rouge stated with a smile as Shadow's smoke dissipated.

"Well you do live with him. I'd be surprised if you DIDN'T make a move on him." Knuckles bristled.

"And just what the hell is that supposed to mean, huh?" The bat snapped back.

Knuckles was about to tell her exactly "what the hell that was supposed to mean", but fortunately Rotor spoke up first.

"Rouge, job, vengeance, remember? Get going."

"Hmph, yeah, we'll just have to finish this later Knucksie." She blew the perturbed echidna a kiss as she let herself fall out of the plane door, allowing the wind to catch under her leathery wings as she glided easily down to the city below.

"Knucksie!" Bunny cooed from her comfortable spot in the corner. 'That's just too cute, sugah."

"Shut up." Knuckles growled.

"Just not your day, is it Knuckles?" Rotor teased from the cockpit.

"Gods can we just get this plane on the ground so this all can be done with?"

"Now that, my dense echidna friend is not a problem even in the slightest. Better hold on to your dreads, Knucksie." Before Knuckles could react by soundly kicking the walrus in a place he was almost sure had never seen the light of day, Rotor threw the plane into a steep nosedive towards the ground, sending Knuckles tumbling end over end.

Meanwhile, also high above the streets of Robotropolis, the master of the metal city spun lazily in his chair. The room around him was aglow with computer screens, all stating things that he neither knew nor cared about. He considered everything in that room to be beneath someone of his intellect. It all just suddenly seemed so dull to the large man, now that he knew he was little more then a figurehead at best, glorified bait at worst. So he was contented to spin slowly in his black leather "Laz-E-Dictator" chair. As he closed his eyes he began to have a happy daydream, one in which he portrayed himself as the valiant and scrappy doctor, narrowly defeating the deranged Dark Sonic in mortal combat. Standing over his fallen foe he would declare that the world was forever in the benevolent iron grip of the Robotnik Empire and a reign of peace and harmony would surely follow. His dream-self was just about to confront that dimension-shifting bully Ssyrin and cow him into leaving the skies of the newly christened "Robius" forever, when acting much like an alarm clock, the doorbell to his office caused him to almost topple from his lofty perch.

"Go away, damn it! I am engaged in contemplating plans to rid this world of those pesky freedom fighters forever, and I do NOT wish to be disturbed!"

It was just as Robotnik had bellowed these last words that, he became fully aware of his error. For you see, dear reader, up until this point in his life, the only beings living alongside Ivo in Robotropolis were Snively and his army of robots. Logically since all of these were completely bent to the doctor's will he never particularly felt the need to treat them with any kind of respect, hence he never did. This, quite naturally, would lead one to bellow such remarks though a closed door without knowing exactly who, or what was behind it. However this was no longer the case.

"Oh really, good doctor, pray tell, would you care to share with me these thoughts that so demand you attention?"

That voice made Ivo's skin crawl, which was not an easy thing to accomplish. With a groan the overweight dictator slowly opened his eyes, only to find himself staring into the strangely flat grey emotionless orbs that were "Chaos's" eyes.

"Please, share your thoughts, I'm curious and I am sure the master could find them most useful, what with your proficiency in that subject." Thecreatures remarks were almost literally dripping with sarcasm, however its face held no amusement. Or anger, sadness or much of anything Robotnik surmised. It was as if it wore a mask of pure liquid for a face.

"Well, I..I." Ivo started, attempting to B.S. his way out of this one, a skill he noticed he had to use almost continually with these new "partners", but that was as far as he got into his explanation before Chaos cut him off.

"Silence you flabby, stuttering fool. We, and by 'we' I mean you, have much bigger problems then trying to save your fat ass from your own incompetence."

The old doctor, quelching his rage, cocked his bushy orange eyebrow at this. "Oh? And just what manner of problems would you be referring to?"

"Namely, that Shadow the Hedgehog and two others have just appeared in the center of your shabby little town." The creature stated flatly.

Doctor Julian Kintobar leaned heavily back in his large chair, making it groan under the pressure. A huge grin spread over his face, and he set his large powerful fists on the desk in front of him, fingers intertwined. "My dear fellow. I'm sure all of you up there aboard the Sonic Demencia are accustomed to the very best of everything the Multiverse has to offer, hence why you would dare to call my grand empire here a 'shabby little town'. I do however have some pieces of technology that I take great pride in and one of those things is my early warning system. So I assure you that there cannot be any sort of invasion happening "right now". I mean come on, I have been fighting these foolish 'freedom fighters' for several years now, and I'm sure that any sort of int…"

It was here at this point in his speech that, as if some cosmic malcontent fate had purposely set it up as such, the alarm system sounded it's deafeningly shrill cry, purely to poke fun at Robotnik's expense.

Instead of staying and facing Chaos's eerie emotionless laughter, the heavy set doctor quickly spun his chair around to face the control panel set into the wall behind him. He first made sure the defensive shield around the grounds of Robotropolis proper was operational, to keep any future invaders outside, and to make sure that the current group could not escape his wrath. Next he activated the defensive turrets as well as all auxiliary battalions of Swatbots, and Eggpawns. If it really was Shadow and two others (presumably Sonic and Knuckles) then even these normally formidable defensive measures wouldn't do much more then buy him time, however the ball was not quite out of Ivo's court yet.

"Chaos, I don't suppose you would mind lending an old doctor a hand with a few pesky freedom fighters. Just remember, I want them alive, they are ever so much more useful that way." Robotnik waited patiently for an answer but yet he heard no response from the cold and callus Chaos clone.

"Chaos?" The doctor spun around in his chair again, only to see that the crimson liquid creature had vanished leaving a softly melting metal door behind him.

"God damn it!" Robotnik brought his heavy forearm down on the desk causing it to crack down the middle soundly. "Damn it."

Elsewhere on Mobius, a female hedgehog in a simple red dress sat meditating in her sanctuary. She breathed deeply and calmly letting the air pass softly between her lips.

Suddenly she felt as though someone or something was trying to contact her, to tell her something. Then it hit her, a brilliant spark of insight shot though her heart. The Seven who belong to One have whispered in her ear. They have whispered of events past, present, and future, though she knows not of what they mean. She knows, somehow that things in the balance are not as they should be. She knows that unknown players make shadowy movements in the dark, and she knew then that she must act.

As she readies her mighty hammer for the coming battle, three masked figures watch her from afar.

"She is close." One stated from behind its grey bulbously mask.

"She is, but she is not yet ready to take upon her full role yet." Responded the second.

"Aye, but let her take her place in this battle and in the storm to come. She will be the lynch pin of all that we have created. We cannot allow her to fail us. She is the only one who can turn the tide of war, but ultimately it will be the quickster's decision." stated the third. The others only nodded.

And just as they had arrived, the three masked figures left the apartment, just as she did, heading for the G.U.N. base, towards a nonstop flight into destiny.