Note from OC owner: All instances of Salamon have been replaced with Sven, this is due to a major update and reevaluation with the character and such so he feels more original or as original as can get, with that said, I hope you enjoy the rest of Tides 3. And thank you Kreg for featuring him and writing him and any other OCs by other friends and writers to the best of your ability.
-GigaLem


...

Sonic and Sash: Tides of Chaos 3
Phantom Forces
Act 4

Chapter 26: Temple of Gloom


Co-written again by WritingPoke, writer of the Frosted Wings series!


The jungle overgrowth was even more heavy than before as the ruins were now choked out by plants of all varieties, the now large, alien-like jungle trees blotting out the sunlight save for very small and sporadic patches of it. Larger crystals started to poke upwards through the ground from the crushed terrain, several large stone heads lying in sideways orientation or complete rubble, some leading down deeper into the mining cave systems under the ruins. Large stone ruins not native to Relic Maze were now strewn about the area, now flooding into the lower catacombs of the underground ancient palace and holster for the once-Kingdom Stone. Vines were now scouring the lower halls as now the large predatory owls of the Lost Hex rested in their nests. Nestled within the altar where the Kingdom Stone once laid was now a larger clear stone-like structure, several large chains strapped to the inside of it, restraining the white skinned imp-like figure inside of it.

Soon enough soft footsteps would patter down the small amount of stone stairs as a similar figure entered into the room, a cyan rose in hand. The figure would look up to the trapped figure with... not much amusement.

"Not like you to be so silent about this." The figure said. "Have you finally realized how pointless your struggle is?"

"..." The figure in the prison never spoke.

"Huh, now too demotivated to even speak." The figure commented. "So pointless isn't it? Can't even muster up any sort of motivation to try and make a comment about how meaningless and pitiful this all is?"

"..."

"...apparently its as useless as trying to break you further." The figure said. "And here I wonder of how you haven't offed yourself from your depression yet. Would seem like you... me... us... whichever it is."

"..."

"...you're no fun." With that, the figure turned and left the room, leaving the figure alone and trapped in their prison. The figure would barely move inside the crystal as several Badniks would scamper into the room.

On the upper level of the ruins, the figure would come into a giant room with several Badniks scampering about the ruined floor as an Egg Pawn approached the figure.

"Lord Zor!" The Egg Pawn gave with a salute. "We've received word that Zik's outpost has been completely leveled! There's no signs of the perpetrators or the prisoner anywhere there!"

"Heh, I always knew that old bag of bones was pointless..." 'Zor' spoke, brandishing his rose. "Fell due to his old age. How sad, really. Then again, most of everything in this plot of the doctor's is sad..."

"My lord?" The Egg Pawn spoke.

"Save your servos..." 'Zor' said. "Otherwise the reaper comes for you early. Forward all front defenses towards defending the outer ruins to make sure any unwanted fun-havers see the reaper first."

"Y-yes sir." The Egg Pawn said as it rushed off towards an undisclosed location. Zor would sigh to himself as he turned back to several of the other badniks. "Get the red guy on the line, I don't have time for this stress right now..."

One of the Orbinauts nodded before throwing its spikeballs into a computer console. Zor grumbled and followed up with a light smack to his forehead.

"...preferrably one that has hands." Zor grumbled. An Eggrobo had soon went over to the console as a projector from the back cast the video feed onto a large wall, obscuring a mural whole as the red Zeti's hulking form came into view.

"Ah... Zor." Zavok spoke. "I was wondering when I'd be hearing from you regarding the... 'failures' of our associates. Regardless, I hope that you can keep your prisoner under wraps."

"Calm your worrywarts, boss, it's not like it matters in the long run..." Zor whined. "The real me is is in the crystal thing like normal. He's not getting out, and that mechanical useless owl is now shut down entirely. It's not going to be used."

"Excellent." Zavok spoke. "Now, make sure it stays that way."

"I will, I will..." Zor grumbled before shutting off the communications. A simple twirl of his finger later and a toss of the rose, several dark shadow-like bats formed into several copies of the Zeti, each one with a single red, unblinking eye.

"Spread out across the complex." 'Zor' spoke. "And if you find any of those renegades, end them. They won't make any difference anyways, but just do it."

The other shadow clones nodded before spreading out across the complex...


With the sunset cutting through the jungle's overgrowth, the five would make it to the ruin complex just out of sight of the lush valley ahead. Zeena was pensive about the white falcon leading the way; she wasn't sure she could be trusted exactly... something just felt off about her.

"We're close." Kori spoke, indicating to the entrance into the ruin valley. "From what I remember of this place, the entrance down to where the Kingdom Stone once laid is down past those twin corridors, then past another short stretch of valley to head to the old mineshaft elevator."

"Excellent." Zik spoke. "However, we must take care here. Those forces could be crawling about the complex as we speak, and I sense a dark energy approaching..."

"Chaos energy?" Zeena asked.

"No." Zik spoke, closing his eyes and focusing. "However... it is familiar..."

"Then what is it?" Zazz growled.

Zik's eyes opened again. "It appears it's energy of that of Zor's Dark Arts." He spoke. "And if those are active, this means this infiltration has gotten more difficult... and potentially lethal."

"Explain." Kori spoke. "All of it."

"Ease yourself." Zik bit at the white falcon. "Zor's dark arts are not to be taken lightly." At that moment a shadow of Zor had formed from behind the wall, its single unblinking red eye starting to sweep over the area. "His dark arts allow him to create unlimited shadow clones of himself, almost acting as his eyes across a gigantic area of coverage... and they area not to be trifled with." He glanced to the side to see the shadow clone slinking away, around a corner down into the valley ruins. "And if they pull you into the shadows... you will be lucky if your body is even found."

"So... shadow clones, sixth sense, assimilation..." Kori muttered, writing it down. "Anything else I should be aware of?"

"Don't be reckless against them like you were when you rescued me. The clones can and will take you down swiftly, and are Zor's most powerful ability." Zik answered, only to be met with the rolling of Kori's eyes.

"Listen, I've heard it all before. 'Oooh, be careful against this guy, Kori! His ability is super deadly!' Give me a goddamn break." She scoffed before going ahead. "It isn't my first time going against a shadow that overestimates its own damn ability, believe me..."

"...Zeena, keep an eye on her." Zik spoke to Zeena. "We'll go onto the lower corridor, you two take the upper one."

"Right." Zeena nodded before going after the falcon, with Zik, Zazz, and Zomom going to the lower corridor...


Zeena caught up with Kori not long after Zik's command for her to do so.

"The hell are you following me around for?" Kori asked, not bothering to look in Zeena's direction. "You're better off going with the others."

"Yeah, Zik told me to make sure you don't keel over on us." Zeena answered. "Zor is not someone to be taken lightly at all, and going at it alone would only get you killed."

The falcon glared at Zeena for a few seconds before turning around. "Anyways, we're going to go for the upper purple corridor. I suppose the others are going under, given the fact you're the only one going with me." She spoke, gesturing to a pair of purple pillars in front of a doorway with a purple token on top. "So, if I recall correctly, there was this block golem that you'd have to beat before getting past and into the next room. We'd have to find that thing and bust its head open to get past."

"Uh huh, and if it's not there?" Zeena asked, raising an eyebrow, giving Kori some pause.

"...That's a good point. The last person who beat that thing was Sash, and that was when the Kingdom Stone was stolen…" Kori spoke, thinking for a while. "Shang Tu hadn't replaced that thing since the Brevon incident, so what the hell is it now?"

"Only one way to find out." Zeena responded, using her Energy Tether to zip to the door, Kori following close behind...


"Ugh, this is so boring! When are we going to tear some bots apart, huh?!" Zazz growled. "This silence is gettin' me bored!"

"Patience, Zazz. We have to remain cautious, especially now. Getting ourselves caught by Zor's Dark Arts would be nothing short of a death sentence." Zik told the magenta Zeti. "It would actually be better if we didn't destroy all the Badniks here, as doing so may cause more shadow clones to show up."

Then, Zomom's stomach growled loudly, interrupting Zik. "Uhh... Sorry 'bout that..." Zomom mumbled. "It's been a while since I ate last..."

"It's been half an hour! How are you still hungry?!" Zazz spat at Zomom.

"Ease yourself." Zik spoke, tossing Zomom an orange as large as Zik himself, the rotund Zeti gleefully eating it in full. "We had better get going. Who knows what lies ahead for us?"

"Beats me, but we're certainly not gonna find out loafing around here!" Zazz responded, leading the group as Zik and Zomom follow.


With light disturbance of the overgrown underbrush, the white falcon and green Zeti had soon found their way into the deeper ruins of this overgrown labyrinth. With vines nearly intersecting them at every turn, Kori had to use her icicles and shred through the massive overgrowth as the two continued on... and started ascending up the ruins?

"We're closing in on that arena." Kori breathed, ice hands starting to form. "Watch your six."

"Right." Zeena responded, keeping her back to Kori as the two entered into what looked like an abandoned arena of some sorts; the vegetation from Silent Jungle was choking out some of the ruined structures to begin with, several moai heads now where they shouldn't belong. The door ahead was sealed by the yellow bricks, indicating something was indeed here...

"Alright, where's the block thing?" Zeena said.

"You mean the golem?" Kori spoke.

"Yeah... its clear the way's blocked by those brick things." Zeena said, indicating to the blockade. "So... where's the golem?"

"...that is a very concerning question." Kori said, scanning the surroundings. "...in fact, there doesn't even appear to be any sort of guardian here..."

"So... did we just waste our time then?" Zeena said. "Well... that's a disappointment."

"Well, at least this hopefully means that-" Kori started to speak, but then the pulsating sound started to kick in. Kori tensed up as Zeena grit her teeth, both starting to get into a defensive position.

Not long after that a shard of a ruby had lowered down, that pulsating sound getting louder as soon enough the Zor Shadows started to materialize from the walls of the arena. The two tensed up and as the shadows dove into the ruby fragment, soon enough a large shadowy-like golem with a hulking build and and a single unblinking red eye stared down the two before letting out a massive roar.

The two tensed up; their trip just got a whole lot harder...


"Ah, this must be the lower areas of the sanctum." Zik spoke, hopping down from on top of Zomom as the path ahead into the stone labyrinth separated into three pathways. "And it appears to be a test of collaboration."

"A collab test?" Zazz asked. "Whuzzat supposed to mean?"

"It means they're testing us." Zik spoke. "Zomom, would you be so kind as to lift me up to that smaller center pathway?"

"S-sure thing Master!" The large hulking yellow Zeti said, picking up the blueberry of a Zeti and holding him up to the smaller upper passage.

"Now, both of you be on your way down the other pathways. I presume we will meet up ahead." Zik spoke as he took off down the small tunnel.

"Alright wide-load, you take left, I take right!" Zazz said, taking off down the right corridor.

"...why do I always miss getting a say in these things..." Zomom muttered before plodding down the left corridor.


"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING?!" Kori shouted, stepping back and firing a few icicles at the golem, all of which had next to no effect.

"You tell me, I'm not even from here! I thought you knew!" Zeena spat back as she tried to strike it with her energy whip, which had a bit more effect. However, the golem soon began to roll towards them as a cartwheel.

"Oh, so now this thing does gymnastics too. Great." Kori grumbled as she tried to punch the legs with ice fists, knocking it off of its balance. "Looks like the legs are its weak point!" However, just as she said that, the golem punched the ground in front of the avian, sending her flying backwards.

"Kori!" Zeena shouted before gritting her teeth at the golem. Alright. This thing's weak point is the legs, so if I manage to do this just right... Zeena thought before maneuvering behind the golem as it attempted to roll over Kori once more. Now the tether, wrapped around its legs, threatened to topple the colossus over. "Kori, get him!"

"Ughh..." Kori grumbled before looking up to see the golem threatening to flatten her. Acting on instinct, she immediately flew out of the way and manifested an ice spike on the ground, piercing the head and causing the entire mass to dissolve. A noise would be heard in the distance, causing the duo to look over. "Seems like this was the trigger to get us out." Kori noted.

"Right. That was a bit of a pain..." Zeena replied. "Let's get out of here. Hopefully the others have-" Zeena spoke, only to find Kori was running ahead of her. "...Or just go ahead and do that, I guess." The green Zeti sighed as she went after the avian.


"Alright, do you see a rotating pillar ahead of you Zomom?" Zik spoke from his smaller corridor above the larger room where the yellow Zeti was.

"Which one?" Zomom said. Indeed, the room ahead of him had several of the pillars with rotating cogs with handles around their bases, a series of tunnels connected above where Zik was.

"The first one ahead, turn it to your left." Zik spoke calmly. The large yellow Zeti would plod over to the large pillar and rotate the cog, the stone pathway shifting above so that Zik could advance.

"Excellent, the path is clear." Zik said, starting to move forward.

"Alright boss." Zomom said, stepping back from the cogs... as they almost rapidly swung back into their original position, nearly slamming the corridor close inches from Zik's face. The blueberry Zeti jumped back in shock before sighing heavily.

"Zomom..." He spoke. "You're going to need to hold those gears in place."

"What happened?"

"I almost became the contents of a meat pie." Zik sighed in exasperation.

"Oh... sorry boss." Zomom answered, shoving the cogs back into the position they were in before, the passageway for Zik rotating back into place.

"Now hold it there until I tell you otherwise." The small Zeti spoke, now moving through the corridor before coming up on a split hallway, a single switching door blocking one of the two halls. "Alright then, Zazz, where are you right now?"

"Looks like some sorta lever room or something?" The pink Zeti grumbled, several lever switches dotted across the room.

"Alright, one of those levers should be able to switch the doors up here." Zik said. "Now, take your time with finding which one it-"

Zik was interrupted as the door swung and changed the hallway openings.

"...is." Zik spoke. "You brute forced it didn't you?"

"Yeah?"

Zik merely sighed as he advanced down the newer opened corridor, soon reaching a room with a small switch. Upon throwing the switch, a door would open up in Zomom's room, allowing him to advance. The blueberry Zeti would then backtrack to the previous corridor as Zazz would throw the switch again, the other corridor opening up as Zomom would head through the door to another corridor.

Entering into the next room, Zomom's weight would push down a pressure switch as the next corridor in Zik's pathway would open up. The trio would continue deeper into the ruins...


As soon as Zeena got out of the room, she saw Kori staring ahead at the pathway between the two corridors where the gates were held up. However, the gates were nowhere to be seen, and a single path ahead lay before them.

"Hey, Kori?" Zeena asked, sitting beside her. "Why are you always going ahead? You'd be safer if you stayed behind with us."

"Why the hell would I?" Kori scoffed, not bothering to look ahead. "Staying behind for you guys would only leave this mission being completed slower. Besides, I have no choice but to stay behind to make sure these guys aren't dead or injured."

"They aren't." Zeena assured.

"Good. Then we go ahead." Kori spoke, standing up before her wing was grabbed by Zeena.

"Stay." Zeena simply spoke. "You need to wait for them."

"Why?" Kori snapped. "The sooner we get Zor, the sooner we get out of this and move on!"

"Yes, but the likelihood of you dying increases." Zeena countered. "You saw just how it could be when you went up through the vents last time. That's what happens when you just go on by yourself. I want you to work with us just for once. Can you do that?"

"Look, I don't get why you're going after me for this shit, but can you cut it out?" Kori asked. "Seriously, it's getting on my nerv-"

"You're lonely, aren't you?" Zeena asked.

Kori kept silent.

"...Was there any problems in the past? Is that why you can't trust us?" Zeena pressed on.

Again, Kori kept silent, although this time for only a short while. "...I've been betrayed too many damn times in my life. It'd only be a matter of time before you and your friends left me." Kori spoke. "You'd let go of me once I got the gang back together, and I'll just go back to laying in my own filth until this whole thing blows over."

"You know I wouldn't do that." Zeena assured. "You're just as much a part of us as anyone within the Deadly Six. You do have some notable skills, and besides, it'd be nice to actually have another girl to talk to."

"...Fine." Kori spoke softly. "I'll wait."

"Alright. We can talk more about this later, if you want." Zeena spoke to the avian.

"...Okay." Kori relinquished, finally seeming to loosen up and sitting down.


"Door's open boss!" Zomom yelled.

"Excellent! Now then," Zik answered. "We will need to backtrack to the entrance to meet up with the other two. This could take a bit, bu-"

Zik was interrupted as Zomom just smashed the way back open.

"At least he's wanting to get a move on!" Zazz said. "C'mon old man, let's scramble some badniks already!" The pink Zeti said before taking off back towards the entrance.

Zik would sigh, following after the Zeti. "He really needs to learn his patience..." He grumbled.

"H-hey, wait up boss!" Zomom said as he plodded after the two. Though the loud footsteps wouldn't exactly be the stealthiest option...

Back at the entrance, the two would be waiting for the other three Zeti as they arrived on the scene.

"Ah, there you three are." Kori said, getting to her feet. "Now then, we need to make our way to the elevator that heads down deeper into the ruins. From there we head towards the original Kingdom Stone housing."

"How deep is it?" Zomom asked. "I may be strong, but I don't think I'm 'dig us out of a cave-in' strong. Not without a Drill Wisp, anyways."

"I'm aware of that." Kori spoke. "There's an exit mineshaft out the back end of the cave system. Once we bust Zor out of where he's held up, we escape out the back holding and keep our tracks silent back to base."

"I know you've said you know what you're doing..." Zeena spoke. "But are you sure this is going to be a good idea?"

"I can't confirm we'll leave unscathed..." Kori countered. "With how many Badniks and shadows are possibly crawling down there, there's no telling what could happen-"

-CRACKSH-

A few raindrops followed by a torrential downpour soon swept over the jungle and ruins as the group looked up, soon seeing the rain sweeping over the area without warning. "...Motherfucker." Kori groaned.

"Mmmhh..." Zik mused, stroking his beard. "The sudden coming of a storm can signal a large disturbance. I estimate this will not be easy..."

Kori nodded. A few raindrops above her would freeze, spreading into an umbrella to shield her from the rain. "Alright, let's head in there." The rest of the Zeti nodded before the group headed into the ruin entrance...

The leaves rustled nearby before... Coral stepped out?

"You keeping a good eye on them sis?" Carol's voice said over the comm unit headset.

"They're making headway on freeing the rest of their group..." Coral spoke, keeping her distance. "However... The bird that's joined them has me a bit wary... She looks familiar..."

"Not sure who that bird is, but keep a close eye on the group, and make sure you help them if they get in trouble." Carol said. "We can't let them fall now, not when they're close to rescuing the last of them."

"Always putting others before yourself lil' sis..." Coral spoke. "Alright, I'll meet back up with you later."

"Roger." Carol said, ending the comm unit as Coral followed in cover...


"Ugh! It's so dark in here!" Zazz snapped. "Anyone got a light?"

"No." Kori responded. "Besides, the entire place relies on its own natural light source." She spoke before summoning an ice fist and slamming the wall, revealing a luminous, glowing crystal. She tore it out and held it, illuminating the surrounding area. "This should do fine. If need be, I can potentially get more."

"Good to know." Zik nodded. "However, sometimes the path forward should not be illuminated at all."

"Uhh, could you speak in a language we can understand, old man?" Kori replied.

"He means that Zor knows where we are now." Zeena pointed out, referencing the fact that there were quite a few Shadow Zors behind them.

"...You've got to be kidding me." Kori spoke, slamming one of the Zors with the ice fist, only to have it completely swallowed up by the dark mass. It made a strange screeching noise as it dashed towards the group.

"Everyone, run!" Zeena cried out as she and the others began to run away. The Zetis were calm and composed, while Kori seemed to be slightly shaken by the fact that her typical plan of attack won't work on those things.

"Got any ideas?!" Kori cried out as she began to freeze the area behind her, trying to slow down the Zors as best she could.

"If you can create a barrier, it should be able to completely stop them in their tracks." Zik noted. "They are physically strong with grabs and slashes, yet they are not strong at all in terms of raw physical strength."

"Noted!" Kori replied, her eyes narrowing as she erected an icy wall behind the group. The Zors kept scratching the wall, but they soon gave up, going in alternate paths instead.

"Too close for comfort there..." Zeena breathed before looking at Kori. "What's ahead?"

"Normally there would be two more puzzles. But given what we encountered, there's clearly going to be more differences." Kori addressed. "Up ahead, we'd normally have to deal with two more trials before heading into the Kingdom Stone's former chamber: the Bone Ostrich and another puzzle. But Zeena and I saw that some things in here had changed, as the Block Golem changed."

"And there's no two puzzles." Zazz pointed out, pointing straight ahead. "There's only one path ahead."

Kori sweated. "...Something's not right. Keep your wits about you." She spoke, the others nodding as they moved ahead...

The rushing of waterfalls would soon come into earshot as the roaring waters dumped into the cavern as the group came out into what appeared to be a larger, winding room that led downwards and deeper into the maze. Large stone faces adorned several massive pillars, all washed in an ominous bluish-purple glow. However, everthing else was as if it was washed in shadow; a complete pitch black compared to the starkly different background, an-

"Holy shit I'm a shadow now!"

Oh right, that.

"Blueberry, explain." Kori snapped.

"That's Master Blueberry to you." Zik spoke, poking the front of Kori's beak with his staff, causing the falcon to back off a bit.

"Well you certainly as hell ain't mine." The falcon exasperatedly sighed. "We don't have time for this. Explain."

"Very well." Zik spoke, stepping forward. "Right now Zor has his dark magic cast across this entire area of these ruins, leaving everything merely as a shadow of itself. Meaning if we were to attack anything..." Zik said, while swinging his staff at Zomom... and it phasing right through him like it wasn't even there. "...it would be like trying to fight your shadow itself; physically impossible. The same cannot be said for robots, however."

Kori was silent for a moment before she spoke again. "Noted; then how the hell are we going to fight anything in here if they get in our way?"

"I can answer that one." Zeena spoke. "There's an ancient lighting system that runs throughout these old rocks. We pull down on those levers, the place lights up hard and dispels the shadow magic around for a set time, giving us the chance to thrash some bots before they try anything."

Kori sighed, a wing in her face before she looked back to the group. "Fine then, let's get moving." She said before the group started their descent into the ruined chasm. It was then that they started to notice the gravity was starting to defy itself as it twisted and turned onto the walls and center of the room, leading downwards. Zik would move on ahead, but soon they'd see that the shadows were starting to form...

"Might wanna find that switch now!" Zeena said, starting to pick up the pace. Zomom would lumber ahead before he jumped and grabbed what looked like a large lever, pulling it down as the area suddenly lit up, washing the surroundings in light as the blue-purple glow in the back was muted a bit. A screeching sound was heard as the shadows retreated back into the dark corners.

"We've not much time before that light wears off." Zik spoke. "Move, now!" The group would waste no time as they took off deeper into the mine-ruins, the audible ticking growing slower and slower with each passing second they progressed. Kori would round the corner as the others were hot on her heels, Zeena soon dive-rolling past her and swatting an oncoming shadow Zor away into the inky walls.

That's when Zeena noticed: where was Zomom? I mean, she was sure he was right behind them...

"Comin' through!" Zomom's voice bellowed as soon the rest of the group was scooped up into a minecart from behind as soon he hopped in himself, the metal screeching as it took off deeper into the mines. With the cart screeching along the rails and letting out a storm of sparks, Zazz grabbed what looked like a torch off the walls and stuck it in the sparks, soon catching it alight.

"At least the light might help a bit..." Zeena said. "Hey, is there a torchlight on the front of this thing?"

"How the hell should I know?" Kori growled, before Zeena leaned over the front to look.

"Ah, we've got one!" The emerald Zeti said. "Zazz, pass me the torch!"

The pink Zeti shrugged before handing the torch to Zeena, leaning over the front of the cart and igniting the floodlight in the front, a blast of bright light spewing forth into the cave ahead as they spiraled down further into the deep into the shaft. Though the ride would soon turn perilous as the tracks split, with one set headed straight for a drop-off. With less time to react, Zik soon spotted the rail switch on the left side of the tracks, and without a moment of hesitation, perched himself on the left side of the cart and swung his cane, setting the switch off and switching the rails, sending the group's cart down the next shaft.

"Don't let your guard down yet!" Zik spoke. "Here they come!"

No sooner had the blueberry of a Zeti said that hordes of the shadow bats swarmed the cart, looking to put out any light on it, but the fighting aboard the moving cart made it grow unstable, partially due to Zomom's flailing trying to hit the bats.

"Zomom, ease up! You're gonna capsize the entire cart!" Zeena yelled. "Stop flailing!"

"I can't unless you want us to become bat food!" The fat yellow Zeti responded, the cart creaking and groaning with the massive weight shifts of his girth.

Then, the snap of metal was all the confirmation they needed as soon the group plummeted off the rails and into the chasm of the mineshaft. Zeena, in a blind panic, would activate her magnetic energy beams and grapple using both her arms and legs as the beams slammed into the walls of the shaft, grinding along the rocky faces as she tried to slow herself...

A sharp scream left her mouth as she soon felt the full weight of the cart and the rest of the group slamming into her backside, straining her body and nearly threatening it to fail underneath the titanic weight of the group and the cart. She grit her teeth as she felt tears of pain starting to leak from her eyes, the skidding starting to slow down across the walls...

Soon enough the drag would stop with her stomach merely a foot off the ground, breathing heavily in pain from the strain being put on her body frame and feeling like her limbs were going to fail at any minute.

"You okay Zeena?" Zazz asked.

"F-fine..." She sputtered out of grit teeth. "C-can you guys g-get off me now? C-can't... f-feel..."

"Shit, my bad." Zazz said, hopping off of Zeena's back as Zomom rolled off as well, taking the cart with him as Zik lept off his hulking frame onto a smaller spire nearby. With the weight gone Zeena released the tethers as she soon collapsed to the ground, panting heavily as the white falcon came down to the ground, checking her pulse.

"You'll live, but there's no way in hell you're fit to fight." She spoke, looking to Zomom. "You able to carry her?"

"Am I normally hungry?"

"...ye-"

"Trick question, I'm always hungry." Zomom said, grabbing Zeena and hoisting her over his shoulder.

"Agh!" Zeena gasped in pain.

"Sorry! Sorry." Zomom said. "Forgot about that."

"J-just be more gentle..." Zeena said, coughing a bit. "Not sure how you'll be able to fight Zor carrying me though..."

"Unwise idea." Zik spoke. "It would be wiser for you two to stay here until we rescue the real Zor."

"Blueberry's got a point." Kori said. "With five of us, we may have the numbers advantage, but that also means we'll be more likely to get in the way of each other. It would be better if it was just three of us to take him on rather than all five of us."

Zik smirked. "It seems my intuition about your logic is on-point." Zik spoke. "Very well. Zazz, avian, we shall be the ones to take on Zor in his domain."

"It's Kori." Kori spat.

"What, like you calling me Blueberry?" Zik spoke.

The falcon shot a glare, seemingly miffed she had just been outplayed by the small blue Zeti.

"Well, exactly how the hell are we gonna get there?" Zazz growled. "Need I remind you we're currently sitting in Pit City!"

"Bird, remember?" Kori said.

"You sure you can carry me?" Zazz pushed.

"Can definitely carry you better than I could the walking buffet line over there..." Kori countered.

At that moment Zomom's stomach growled. "...aww, that just makes me hungry." He then sighed. "I need an intervention..."


Sirens were blaring in the main control room as the Egg Pawns scrambled across the area, trying to check the security cameras for where the intruders were, but they'd soon find the cameras were being broken before they could even get a clear shot at the intruders.

"..." The fake Zor breathed from the small throne in the middle of the room "...this is fine."

It was at that point the doors to the room crashed open and slammed into two separate hordes of Badniks, crushing them into scrap metal as Kori, Zik and Zazz burst into the room. The fake Zor merely turned to look at the trio and sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Of course I'd know the idiots wouldn't be able to slow you down. Figures." 'Zor' spoke, crossing his arms. "I suppose you want to fight me now... meh, fine then."

"You certainly don't seem enthused about it." Kori growled.

"Like it'll matter in the long run..." 'Zor' said, soon summoning his shadow clones. "Once the hound activates the project, we're all gonna die anyways..."

Zazz looked confused. "The hell are you talkin' about? I thought the two little runts blew up your little space station!"

'Zor' chuckled. "You really think that thing would be the project? Your group is dumber than I thought." He said, looking at the white bird. "Especially you, I thought an assassin like you would actually know more information about what it is."

"!" The falcon growled, glaring daggers at 'Zor'. "What the hell are you-"

"Don't play coy Kori." 'Zor' interrupted her, before looking smugly at her, a glint of malice in his eye. "Or I'm sorry, I believe it's Yuki, isn't it?"

"GH!" The falcon froze, her pupils contracting, her frame shuddering as she tried to keep her composure.

"Exactly, that name still haunts you, doesn't it?" 'Zor' voice taunted her. "After all, it's been only about a decade since the incident, or do you dare claim I am wrong? You'd sooner rid yourself of any potential allies all out of some fear that you'd be hurt again... Or worse... Hurt someone you care for..."

"ENOUGH!" Yuki screamed, immediately charging a giant icicle to fire at the fake Zor.

"Kori, stop! You're falling into his trap!" Master Zik attempted to tell her, but it was too late. The fake Zeti dodged it as soon as she fired, the icicle breaking through the crystal prison of the real Zor and pricking his forehead, having stopped only a bit short of causing irreversible damage.

"And thus, your fears were proven to fruition. Your past still haunts you. Your past will still continue to haunt you." 'Zor' spoke mockingly. "And you are unable to admit the fact that all of your problems ever since then are all. Your. Fault." 'Zor' spoke, his voice having changed to that of Infinite to drive the point home.

"Shut up..." Yuki growled, tears of anger now starting to stream from her eyes as she gripped her head, the voice permeating her mind like a thousand hot daggers. "ShutupshutupshutupSHUTUP!"

In a fit of pure rage, Yuki lunged at 'Zor' with ice fists ready to kill, but the faker sunk into the shadows before rematerializing and delivering a smashing punch to the solar plexus. The falcon's eyes widened as a spit of blood flew from her mouth, causing her to collapse to the ground, holding her torso in pain.

"As I said." 'Zor spoke, holding an energy blast straight to Yuki's head. "All."

"Your."

"Fault."

"Enough of this!" Zik shouted, launching a strawberry-like missile object, slamming into the fake Zor and knocking him away from the falcon. "I will not stand for these mindless mind games any longer! Your faulty illusion will no longer affect us!"

"I don't care what you are or how you know somethin' we don't, but you fuck with one of us, you fuck wit' ALL of us!" Zazz growled, readying his moon. "I hope you're ready for a serving of some knuckle sandwiches, because I'm runnin' a free meal deal on them for you being an ASSHOLE!"

"Wh..." Yuki sputtered, looking between the two Zeti now defending her.

"It don't matter 'bout your past kid!" Zazz said, looking back at the falcon. "What matters is right now, and right now you're on our side! And together, we're gonna kick this faker's ass so hard, he's goin' home in a box!"

Zik merely nodded. "We do this, together!"

"Hmph, your funeral then..." 'Zor' said, his voice back to normal as the shadows readied for assault...


"...nngghh..." The green Zeti mumbled to herself pacing back and forth in a worrying manner. "Ugh!"

"Calm down Zeena." Zomom said. "Like Master Zik said, we can't risk trying to fight along with them against that faker, otherwise we'd just get in the way."

"But we can't just sit here and do nothing!" Zeena said. "There's gotta be something we can do, right?"

Zomom merely shrugged while he laid back. "Again, not much we can do in that situation. We just gotta play it by ear for right now."

"...you don't even have ears." Zeena said.

"Well neither do you." Zomom shot back.

Zeena growled to herself as she continued her worried pacing. "Damnit... there's gotta be somethi- agh!"

Zeena soon had felt her body becoming extremely heavy, collapsing to her knees as she held her head in pain. "Wh... what is this feeling?!" The green Zeti's thoughts raced. "Wh-why is my head suddenly throbbing so hard?! What's this feeling?!"

"Uhhh... you okay Zeena?" Zomom said, sitting up. "You look like you're acting kinda funky."

"I-I think so- AGH!" Zeena gripped her head tighter, the invisible force pounding on her head like a stampede. "Wh-why is this hurting so m-much?! I... I..."

Zeena then screamed in pain as soon enough her body lit up like a beacon, she could feel some sort of burning energy swirling inside her body, being released in a searing blast of light across her being before she hit the ground in a heap, breathing heavily.

"What... what was..." She breathed, before she felt another surge through her body, and her vision went... dark? No... no this was very different. It was almost like the world had blacked out around her, but she could still see the outline of her surroundings... represented by a dull dark blue coloring. Zeena's eyes darted around the area, the location still bathed in the dark blue... until what was appearing to be a yellow glow coming off of Zomom's hulking frame.

"Wha...?" Zeena breathed, looking at Zomom.

"Hey uh, you okay there Zeena?" Zomom asked. "Your eyes are kinda doing that glowy-thingy Master Zik does every once in a while."

"Wh-what?" Zeena stuttered, before realizing what this meant.

She could sense Chaos Energy now.

In her surroundings she looked around the dull-blue landscape, seeing only traces of energy obviously coming off of herself and the other Zeti further off into the deeper parts of the... wait... what's that larger energy spike near the-

Zeena's heart nearly stopped when she realized what that glow meant.

That fake Zor had a Chaos Emerald.

"They're in trouble!" Zeena said, taking off for the chamber.

"Wait, who's in danger?" Zomom asked. "Zeena?"

By the time the fat yellow one had asked that the green female had already taken off down to the chamber.


'Zor' darkly chuckled to himself as he looked down upon the three, looking to pick a fight with him in a feeble attempt to save the real one. "You really think that all of you can take down me? Numbers don't mean everything old man, I thought you knew that through your senility."

"I'll teach you to curb that tongue!" Zik said, slamming his staff into the ground as energy orbs would pop up from the point where the staff struck. Zik would leap into the air as the force of his small palms contacted the energy, launching it straight at the fake Zor. The phantom Zeti merely chuckled as he sunk into the shadows, away from the assault of orbs before reappearing on another stalagmite. However, Zik had already been accounting for this, as he would know the fake Zor would deflect the shot, had soon manifested his energy from below and blasted it upwards through the rock, launching the white imp-like Zeti.

"Zazz, now!" Zik yelled.

"Let's make some noise!" The pink Zeti yelled as he grabbed his moon. "I'm goin' bowling for fakers!" He'd then launch his moon at an incredible speed, the jaws of the yellow mech crunching down on the imp Zeti halfway as it ripped it in its mouth and thrashed it around like a ragdoll.

"Make him your toy moon, don't let 'em move an inch!" Zazz cheered on like a rabid fan, however Zik could already sense something was wrong.

"This would be too easy..." Zik's eyes started to glow as he faintly sensed the energies around him in the area. "There's no way he could have-"

"!" Zik tensed up as he saw the energies... they were converging straight onto Yuki!

"Yuki, move, now!" Zik yelled at the falcon. The falcon seemed to snap out of whatever trance she was in and take flight out of the way right as a pair of shadowy maws snapped down on right where she was standing a moment ago. She tensed up as the temperature dropped several degrees as icicle missiles fired off at the maw, shredding through it like paper as they retreated back into the floor, the fake in the mouth of the moon dissolving as well as it slunk into the dark.

"Where is he?!" Yuki growled, gripping her wings in anger. The fake Zor's laughter seemed to echo around the area before the shadows conglomerated back into a form near the far edge of the chamber, right on top of the crystal prison that the real Zor was trapped in.

"Well, I think we've gone on with this petty little game long enough..." 'Zor' said. "I think it's about time we end this... with the walls of this cavern being your tomb!"

"Master Zik!" A voice yelled as soon Zeena and Zomom burst into the room, breaking down the blocked entrance.

"Zeena!" Zik responded. "Didn't I tell you and Zom-"

"He's got a Chaos Emerald!" Zeena screamed, pointing to the fake Zor.

Everyone else in the room soon turned in shock as the copy grinned maliciously, soon unveiling the white gemstone as it glowed a bright burning light, causing the entire group to shield their eyes from the searing brightness... before the light died down and revealed a horror to the group's eyes. It was a beast; a massive, hulking beast made of shadows, it's front forearms bent forward in an unnatural angle, sharp, obsidian black claws mounted on them. It's mouth was wide and jagged, uneven sharp black teeth lining its gums, its horns curved inwards like the original Zeti. It's single giant unblinking eye stared down on the entire group, the Chaos Emerald making its pupil and giving it form while the prison the real Zor was in became the main body of this disgusting creature.

"What... What the hell is that thing?!" Yuki cried out, immediately trying to fire icicles into the creature's eye, only for it to do very little actual damage. Attempting to fire more icicles over its body, she found they did nothing. It was truly, utterly,

"Futile." 'Zor' grinned before he began his attack, dark tendrils beginning to slash at the avian. Yuki attempted to parry the attack, but the speed, the power... It was too much. It cut her midsection, the falcon crying out in pain as she flew to the other end of the room, slumping against the wall.

"The creature's hide is too thick to take attacks like that!" Zik noted, immediately taking out a long spear of asparagus and attempting to stab its eye, once again to no avail. "How will we be able to defeat this thing?!"

"Well, there's nothin' a little *brute force* can't break!" Zazz grinned, immediately jumping over to pull the Chaos Emerald out, only for it not to budge as a tendril soon came out of the eye and whipped him harshly off of his body.

"Oh man... What are we gonna-" Zomom began, only for the beast to lunge after them, jaws wide open and ensnaring the trio of Zeena, Zomom, and Master Zik.

"I'm telling you, it is infinitely pathetic seeing you flounder like this..." 'Zor' spoke, in his throat, a facsimile of Infinite staring at them. "And you will soon find yourselves swallowed by the abyss, much like your own pathetic attempts at stopping the inevitable..."

"Guys... I can't hold on much longer!" Zomom wailed, his arms growing shakier as the pressure increased.

"...That's it." Zeena spoke, a determined glare in her eyes as she looked up. "In order to defeat him, we must be swallowed by the abyss! The only way out is through!"

"What?!" Zazz yelled.

An idea came to Zik. "Yes! That's it!" He exclaimed. "Zomom, release the maw!"

"What?!" Zomom asked in shock.

"Just do it, quickly!" Zik spoke again.

Zomom released the maw...

...as it came crashing down, swallowing up the group of Zeti into the darkness. 'Zor' darkly chuckled to himself as the beast body rerightened itself, slowly starting to slunk towards the downed falcon.

"And now for insurance..." 'Zor' spoke, slunking closer...

...that was, until bright lights starting coming from its backside area near the crystal prison of the real Zor!

"Wha-" was all that came out of the fake Zor's mouth before the rear burst of light as the four other Zeti emerged from the other side and skidded across the floor of the room, Zomom holding the giant crystal prison.

"Never underestimate the power of an awakened Zeti!" Zik said. "Zomom, now!"

Zomom quickly nodded before tossing the orb into his maw before his jaws chomp down, the shattering of glass echoing across the chamber as the real Zor was finally freed from his crystalline cell, now five of the Deadly Six back in their glory.

"NOOOOOO!" The fake Zor screeched, lunging for the group.

"Clockwork! Deal with him!" The real Zor yelled, soon the mechanical owl bursting through the ground and slamming straight into the creature, the floodlights from its eyes literally burning through the creature as it roared in agony. Soon enough the mechanical owl burst through the other side of the monster as the shadows burned away to reveal the fake Zor, inside the gigantic eye with a death grip on the Chaos Emerald. Zeena had soon lashed her energy whip out, latching onto the Chaos Emerald. Beads of sweat rolled down her face as she pulled hard and tried lodging the Emerald from the grasp of the fake Zor. That was when the mechanical owl slammed down on top of the fake Zor, releasing its grip as the white gem flung to the green Zeti's hand, who held it triumphantly like a trophy.

"That makes six." Zik said, walking to retrieve his cane. "One more, and we may finally be able to turn the tides of this war."

Zeena nodded. "And I get the feeling wherever Zavok is, that last Emerald must be with him as well." She spoke. "We should get back to base; the sooner we get back, the soon-"

"Hey, who the hell are you?!" Zazz yelled, causing the rest of the Zeti to look over to see the mint-furred wildcat picking up the body of the unconscious falcon.

"Wait... aren't you..." Zeena started to speak before the wildcat interrupted.

"Carol's sister?" The feline said, turning to the group. "Yeah, that's me. Felt like I needed to track you guys just in case something went wrong."

"Hmph, I'm impressed by your stealth." Zik spoke. "Even with my deadly accurate senses, I couldn't even tell you were there."

"Well, a Tea is known for her stealth." She said, holding the bird. "I'll get this one back to base; she needs med attention stat with these wounds."

Zik merely nodded. "We must return posthaste, with a Chaos Emerald in our hands it makes us a target for that madman's forces."

"The base has a medbay." Coral spoke, looking to Zor. "You. Does your owl do good with passengers?"

Zor merely nodded.

"Good." Coral spoke. "Call it here, we shall return to the Resistance base as soon as possible."

"Alright." Zor said, turning to the large mechanical owl. "Clockwork, take us out of here!"

The autonomous avain replied as it picked up the group and took them out of the cavern...


With the warping back into the Mobius Resistance base, Yuki would have already been taken to the medbay as Zeena hands the sixth Chaos Emerald to Amy.

"I can't believe how much progress we're making!" Amy said, setting the Chaos Emerald with the others. "Six of the Emeralds finally retrieved, and with that new Hidden Palace and Knuckles and Shade having already moved the Master Emerald there, we just might have a shot at fully taking back our worlds!"

"A pleasure to help." Zeena said. "We've almost got all the Six back, all we need now is to find Zavok."

"You wouldn't happen to have an inkling of where he might be held up, would you?" Zik inquired.

"Sadly, there's... not much help I can do in that situation." Amy said. "Scanners have been difficult tracking down the real Zavok; it seems that Eggman's empire has just been making more Phantom copies of him the more you guys have been reuniting. I haven't been able to get a clear signal to where he is."

"Ah..." Zik muttered. "Most unfortunate."

"T-that doesn't mean we're not trying though!" Amy clarified. "I've had Tails and Carol trying to help hone the signal in on where he might be. While we're not getting too many concrete results, we have seen fluctuations on the radar itself. Meaning Zavok very well may be out there."

"That's... hopeful, at least." Zor finally spoke. "Just so long as we know he's alive."

"That's... a bit different than what you've said in the past Zor." Zomom said. "You sure that fake of you didn't rattle your head a bit?"

Zor merely chuckled. "Let's just say this whole war has... more or less given me a bit of a better look at life."

"Ah, yes," Zik responded, pacing forward a bit. "'Sometimes the greatest of hopes can lie even in the greatest of strifes.' That was a lesson from one of my younger days."

"Alright, enough talk!" Zazz said. "Whadda we do now?"

Amy was about to speak before Tails had burst in from one of the side rooms.

"Amy!" The kitsune said. "We've got a massive opportunity coming up we can't afford to miss!"

"Wait, what?" Amy asked. "What's going on?"

"Sven's Buzzbomber unit has just intercepted a message from Eggman's headquarters!" He exclaimed, running over to her. "They're planning on launching a full-scale attack on Grand Metropolis near Golden Bay Zone within the next four hours!"

"Oh shit, that soon?" Amy said, reaching for the keyboard. "I'll send a call out to all Resistance Members and G.U.N. in the immediate area there. If we can counter this assault, we might have them on the run!"

"That's not the best part!" Tails said.

"Wait, this is supposed to be good?" Amy said.

"Apparently Eggman said he was personally going to be there himself!" He said, a grin wide as a mile. "And chances are he's going to have Infinite alongside him as well!"

Amy's eyes lit up. "You mean..."

"We might have a chance of saving Sonic and Sash!"


With the Deadly Six almost back to their full potential, Tails' burst of sudden great news skyrockets the morale of the Resistance for a new fight. With the doctor himself bringing Infinite along to monitor over the invasion, the idea of rescuing Sonic and Sash from their eternal prison might be able to finally get underway. But will things finally go as planned? OR might things spiral into a drastic turn for the worse? Tune in next time for Chapter 27: "Heroes Never Die"...