Previously in the Sonic the Hedgehog Series…

[Sonic]: (As seen in Sonic Adventure 2. Sonic looks into the dull yellow Emerald he holds.) "Somehow, I managed to use the Chaos Control…"

—–—

[Sonic]: (As seen in Sonic Colors. He looks down at a broken wreck of a robot.) "Wow, sometimes I even impress myself! For a second there I wasn't sure if I was going to pull it off. Oh, who am I kidding? We both knew how this would end."

[Tails]: (Walking in from behind. Sonic is startled by his sudden appearance.) "Uh…are you talking to the broken robot who can't hear you?"

[Sonic]: "Uh…maybe. That's between me and the robot."

—–—

[Knuckles]: (As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog.) "Now, how can we get back to our own time?"

[Shadow]: "You need a space-time rift. But this requires a lot of energy."

[Sonic]: "I see. You mean using your Chaos Control will…"

[Shadow]: (Pointing at Sonic.) "Yes, but that alone is insufficient."

[Sonic]: "Okay, Shadow. It looks like we need to work together."

—–—

[Shadow]: (As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog. Holding an Emerald, Shadow looks to Silver.) "With a Chaos Emerald's power, I can control time and space…

[Silver]: (He pulls out his own Emerald.) "Can't lose…not when I'm so close!" (He cries out as he charges at Shadow.)

[Shadow]: "Chaos…"

[Silver]: "Chaos…"

[Both]: "…Control!" (Both leap out of the way as the Emeralds react to each other, creating a space-time rift.)

—–—

[Elise]: (As seen in Sonic the Hedgehog. She is holding a small flame.) "If we put out this flame…Solaris will never exist… It will never have happened…" (She blows out the flame, and everything goes dark.)

And now, the continuation…

Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project

Season 0, Episode 1

Speed of Time, Part 1: A Glitch in Time

Written by ChaosProject

Concept by ChaosProject

December 26th, 1 year B.E. — One year before the Day of Earth's Demise

White Hill Zone

Sonic crunches over the thick layer of snow on the ground. Tails trudges alongside him. "Sonic, are you sure Eggman's up to something? In the middle of winter? In the middle of nowhere?"

When Sonic speaks back, his voice, as usual, is nasally and low in pitch. "Chill out, dude. We came out here to have fun, remember?"

Tails is suddenly pelted in the side of the head with a snowball. "Hey!" Sonic is bent over, racked with snorting laughter, still holding a second ball. Beginning to laugh as well, Tails makes a snowball of his own.

Sonic is hit just as he recovers from his laughter. Wiping the snow off of his face, he shouts, "Oh, it's on now!" He rolls out of the way of a second shot from Tails, then throws the snowball he still holds.

Tails covers his face and braces for the impact. But the ball never hits him. He slowly lowers his arms and looks curiously at the strange, colorful energy vortex which has formed between him and Sonic. "What…what is that?"

Sonic seems perplexed as well. "I dunno…it looks kinda familiar though…" He shakes his head. "I'm sure it's nothing. Come on, let's–" He stops as the vortex begins to pulsate more intensely. Suddenly a small, red, dome-shaped robot pops out, standing on one wheel. Its front is covered in snow, presumably hit by Sonic's lost snowball.

Tails observes, "It's a Motobug!" He gets into a fighting stance.

"Hold up." Sonic puts a hand out in front of Tails, stopping him. He observes the confused, blinded robot more closely. It's face is blue instead of black, and it doesn't have any spots on its back. "It…it looks like an old model. I haven't seen one like this in years. But…a robot is a robot!" Sonic effortlessly attacks and destroys the defenseless bug. The small animal contained inside happily bounces away.

"I sure wish I brought my Handheld. I'd love to study this distortion a bit more. Maybe it's some kind of…teleporter?"

"Whatever it is…I smell a rotten Egg behind it. He must have a base near here."

"Well, let's go find it then!"

"That's what I like to hear! Let's roll!"

—–—

White Base Zone

Sonic and Tails stop at the foot of a massive building built into the side of a hill. "What did I tell ya? Was I right, or was I right? Score one for Sonic the Hedgehog!"

"Sonic…are you feeling alright?"

"What's there to feel bad about? We're about to storm a base, smash some bots, and crack some Eggs. Can you think of anything more fun?"

"That's…not exactly what I meant… I mean lately you've been…nevermind. Let's take care of Eggman."

"You got it! Let's–" Something shiny lands right on his head. "Ow! What the?" He looks down at the object that hit him. It's the cyan Chaos Emerald. "Oh, cool!" He picks it up and examines it.

"A Chaos Emerald? And it just fell out of the sky?" They both look up to see another vortex, some distance up overhead. "Maybe Eggman isn't behind this. Why would he be throwing Chaos Emeralds at us?"

"Maybe he ran out of robots." Sonic promptly strolls into the base, not questioning his own logic for a single moment. Tails doesn't even bother to suggest otherwise, and follows him in.

—–—

EGG ROOK

Sonic runs into an interior room, Tails close behind. "Hey, Baldy Nosehair! Why don't you show yourself already!?"

"I'm right here, you pathetic blue porcupine." From the shadows, Eggman floats in on his Eggmobile. "I don't know how you found my base, but now I'll make you pay for it!" He presses a button on his hovering craft, and a large section of the floor parts to reveal a massive mech rising from the ground.

"'Porcupine'? You insults are slipping, Egghead. You can do better than that, can't ya?" He says aside to Tails, "Well, I guess he's not out of robots."

"Oh, and you find your own insults to be any more original? I've heard it all a hundred times. And I grow tired of it." Eggman's craft lowers into the center area of the mech, a heavily armored machine with broad shoulders rimmed similarly to the the top of castle walls.

"And really with the chess robots again? I thought you were done with that. Man, you really are running out of ideas."

"Silence! Egg Rook, attack!" The mech slams down its bulky fist at Sonic. Sonic Easily slides out of the way, and hops onto the arm.

"Come on, Egghead! You're making this too easy!" From his position on the arm, Sonic is easily able to jump off and deliver a spin attack at the mech's cockpit. "How am I supposed to have any fun if you don't challenge me?"

"Thank you for reminding me, Sonic. I had almost forgotten." He presses another button, and four thick walls rise up around the cockpit, closing up at the top. Eggman can still be seen through a thick window at the front. He now talks through a speaker. "After all of our many engagements, I've finally realized what I've been doing wrong. I've always left you a weakness! But that ends today. You can't touch me!"

"We'll see about that!" Skipping Eggman's attack, Sonic begins scaling the mech on his own accord. Eggman unsuccessfully tries to swat him off. But when Sonic goes for the cockpit, he thuds harmlessly off of the glass.

Tails yells, "That didn't work, Sonic!"

"Your fox friend is right, Sonic. You've already lost."

Sonic stops and thinks. He looks at the enclosed cockpit. There is a considerable amount of open space inside. Then he pulls out his new Chaos Emerald. "You're wrong, Egghead. It's you who's lost!" He holds the Emerald high in the air. "Chaos Control!" In a flash of light, Sonic appears suddenly inside of Eggman's cockpit. Immediately, he begins tearing at the machinery inside. Eggman cowers and shields his face. Once Sonic is satisfied with his work, he warps back out. After a moment of wobbling, the mech topples over with a crash.

"Curse you, Hedgehog!"

"Oh, yeah! Am I cool, or what!?" He looks down at his Emerald. "I…I almost forgot how good that felt."

Tails steps forward to congratulate him. "Now let's finish the job and blow this place, right?"

"You got it! Let's go find the core!" He turns to the fallen mech, which Eggman is still struggling to get out of. "See you next time, Eggy!" Sonic and Tails run out.

Eggman finally squeezes out of a back hatch. Then he stops. "Wait a minute…" He pulls out a Chaos Emerald. It's cyan, just like Sonic's. "How very interesting… I must investigate this further!"

—–—

"Help me…" Sonic skids to a stop as he hears the faint voice. "Please…help me…" He runs off in the direction of the voice.

Soon, he arrives in what appears to be a dungeon, full of cells. But one of them isn't empty. Sonic runs right up to it. "Hey, are you alright?"

Inside is what appears to be a young woman, but with pure, glowing white skin. Her hair is long, wavy, and dark blue. She speaks softly, "Are you Sonic the Hedgehog?"

"That's my name! Don't wear it out."

She gives him an odd look, but then continues, "I knew you would find me here eventually. I've been searching for you."

"Hang on a sec, I'll bust you out of there." She takes a step back, and he attacks the bars of the cell, destroying them.

"Thank you, brave hero. But if you will allow, I require your help further.

"Sure thing. Whadaya need?" She steps out of the way, revealing yet another energy vortex. "It's another one of those things!"

"Do you know what this is?"

"It looks kinda familiar…but no, not really."

"It is called a space-time rift." Sonic seems intrigued by the name, but comes no closer to remembering. "These are why I need your help. Naturally, a space-time rift requires a massive flux of Chaos Energy in order to form."

"You mean like with Chaos Control?"

"Yes, but larger than that. But as it seems you have noticed, these rifts have been appearing seemingly at random."

"Are they dangerous? Is that the problem?"

"On their own, no, they pose no specific danger. They are the symptom of a much greater threat. The end of all time."

"End of time? How does that work exactly?"

Tails, who has apparently just caught up, says, "I think I can explain. In this building alone, I've found twenty-four separate rifts. This one makes twenty-five. And each one is growing. Let's assume that, somewhere in the universe, there is one rift leading to each moment in all of time. And let's say that two of these rifts that are close to each other grow large enough that they actually cross each other's boundaries. What do you suppose would happen if something went through the two intersecting rifts?"

"Well…you would go to both moments at the same time…right?"

"As little sense as that makes, yes. So then what would happen if every last rift grew large enough to encompass the entire universe?"

"Uh…then the entire universe…and all of time…would all be at the same moment."

"Exactly. Then there would be no time, because all of time would be at the same…time." Tails looks up to the woman. "You seem to know more about this than we do. Does that sound about right?"

The woman answers, "An interesting interpretation, well suited to a linear train of thought. I would explain your flaws…but I do not believe your mind can comprehend the extradimensional physics involved."

Tails is about to make an objection, but Sonic speaks first. "So what exactly do you need me to do?"

"Hmm…if you would allow me to use a similar linear interpretation to your friend…the source of the problem is Chronos. Chronos is the lord and protector of time. But he…" She stops to think for a moment. "…after having watched over time for so long…he has grown lazy. He is slacking in his duties. And so, time is falling apart. The only way to save the universe as you know it is to defeat Chronos."

"Alright, where can I find this Chronos? I'm ready to take him on, right now. He's got nothin–"

"Don't be a fool! Chronos is an ancient offshoot of the almighty Lords of Chaos! He cannot be defeated without use of the Temporal Sapphires, scattered throughout all of time!"

Sonic and Tails both stand agape at the sudden outburst. Then they start to process what she said. Finally Sonic hesitantly asks, "The Lords…of Chaos? Temporal Sapphires?"

"You mean to say that you aren't aware of the Lords of Chaos?" She shakes her head. "Oh dear, maybe I've chosen the wrong Hedgehog… There isn't enough time for this. Sonic, I need you to assist me, in collecting the Temporal Sapphires, and putting an end to the reign of Chronos. Will you help me?"

"A time-travelling adventure to stop an evil ruler from ending the universe? Sounds like fun. Count me in!"

Tails cheers, "Yeah, me too!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Nuh uh, no way, not happening. You are staying right here in this timeline, and that's final."

"Aww, howcome?"

"Time travel is dangerous business, Tails. One wrong choice, and you have no chance of coming back. I'm not going to put you in that kind of danger again."

"Sonic, we came here to sabotage and destroy the secret lair of a mad, deadly robot-building doctor. Danger is part of my job, I already know that."

"Tell you what. You go back to the lab and get or build whatever recording equipment you need. Study the rifts. Learn every last thing you can about them. From here, you might just glean that bit of information we need. You can do a lot more for us here than you can in there. Sound like a plan?"

"Okay…"

The woman grows impatient. "Are you ready to go, then?"

"I'm ready."

"Then follow me…" She turns and walks straight into the rift.

Sonic takes one last look at Tails. "Sonic…watch your back out there. You're not invincible, and you won't have anyone out there to watch it for you."

"Don't sweat it. This'll be no problem!" With that, he leaps into the rift.

Knowing that he can't be heard, Tails shouts anyways, "I was trying to tell you not to get overconfident!" He sighs and shakes his head. But then he stops. "Wait a minute…did he say 'put you in that kind of danger again'? What does he mean, 'again'?" He is left alone to ponder.

—–—

Eggman intently watches the security footage of Sonic's departure. "Hmm…how unusual. That dungeon was meant for misbehaving robots! I never took any prisoners. So who is that strange woman? Orbot, Cubot, where did she come from?"

His not-so-trusty block-shaped servant responds, "She's really pretty… Maybe she's an angel, and she came down from the sky!"

Cubot's spherical counterpart smacks him on the back of the head. "Sir, earlier footage shows her emerging from the space-time rift in the cell."

"So why did she lock herself in one of my cells?"

Again, Cubot is the first to answer. "Maybe she takes her freedom for granted and wanted to see what it was like to be a prisoner of Doctor Eggman. I know I wouldn't have done that if I were her."

Eggman mutters, "Maybe I ought to lock you up in one of those cells…"

Again, Orbot corrects, "Maybe she wanted to make herself seem more trustworthy to Sonic by portraying herself as an enemy of you, Doctor."

"Hmm…it seems someone is trying to deceive Sonic…but why? Could she be responsible for the duplicate Chaos Emerald? Or…could this have something to do with that other gem…?" He suddenly stands up. "Orbot, Cubot, begin immediate research into the space-time rifts. I want to know exactly what they are, where they come from, and what they do!"

Both give a salute. "Yes Sir!"

—–—

The Void

Sonic falls out of the rift and looks around. All there seems to be in every direction is blackness, besides a strange orb of blue light, and a few other scattered rifts. "Whoa, where am I?"

In the woman's voice, the blue orb responds, "You aren't. You are nowhere, you are nowhen. You are in a void outside of space-time."

"What happened to you?"

"The form you saw before was only an illusion. I have no comprehensible corporeal appearance. This is the closest you can come to seeing my true appearance."

"Speaking of appearances, what does this 'Chronos' look like?"

"Much like myself, Chronos has no physical appearance. However, it is a strong possibility that he will attempt to interfere with your attempts to defeat him. If he does so within your three-dimensional world, he could theoretically appear in whatever manner he chooses. Or whatever manner you choose."

"I choose?"

"Yes. He may leave it to your mind to interpret what he might appear as. For example, he may take on the appearance of an enemy of yours. Or perhaps something more familiar to you, such as another hedgehog. Or, he could choose his own appearance. There is really no telling, so you must be ready for anything."

"Alright! So how long do I have to wait here before the fun starts?"

"This is no game. The fate of the universe is at stake."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I've heard that already. The way I see it, it's the danger that makes it worth doing. That's just how I roll!"

She sighs. "I suppose we can begin now, then." For a moment, the orb begins to glow brighter, then dies down as something seems to come out of it. It is a tall, floating gem of a brilliant blue color. "This is a Temporal Sapphire."

Sonic grabs it out of the air. "Well, it's certainly pretty. What does it do?"

"With that Sapphire in your possession, you will be able to travel through time at will. All you have to do is reach a high enough speed."

"Are you suggesting that I might not be fast enough?"

"I had no doubt of your abilities when I selected you for this task. Using that Sapphire, you must collect the others."

"How many are there?"

"Well…that is an interesting question. There are…many. But I can find them all."

"If you have the ability to find them from here, how do you not know how many there are?"

"Silence! I will not question your abilities if you do not question mine. Now, I believe it is time for you to get going."

"Okay…where exactly am I going?"

"It is not a question of where, but when. And the answer to that question is to many thousands of years into your past. That is where the next Sapphire lies."

"And how do I get there?"

"Do not concern yourself with that part. I shall guide your travels. All you have to do is run."

"Now that I can do." He's about to take off in the opposite direction, but he stops. "Who are you, anyways?"

"Me? I am called…Janice"

"Nice to meet ya, Janice. You already know who I am. And I guess it's time to get out of here." He takes off at high speed into the darkness. The orb of light shrinks away behind him. As he picks up speed, the Sapphire in his hand begins to glow intensely, and release a shower of sparks. Then sparks start forming around Sonic himself. The sparks become an entire aura cloaking him, and after a sound like lightning, Sonic is gone, a new rift left in his place.

—–—

Fallout Zone

A rift tears open, and Sonic pops out, landing in a pile of ashes. He gets up and dusts himself off. He begins to take a look around, and is awestruck by what he sees. A short distance away from him is what once might have been a great thriving city. Now, it might be mistaken for ancient, ash-colored ruins. Even from outside, it is clear that most buildings have been reduced to rubble, though many still stand. The ones that do have all of their windows blown out, many still with shards of glass inside. There is no life. Only the dull grey. "Whoa…I thought she said this was the past, not life after the apocalypse."

"I did. And it is."

"Hey, where'd that voice come from?"

"We can communicate through the Temporal Sapphire, you fool."

"So what happened here?"

"Now is not the time for a history lesson. Go find the Sapphire."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." He starts moving toward the city.

"Be warned. When you see a rift, anything might come out of it. And if Chronos is on to our plan, it is likely that he will send opponents through these rifts specifically to hinder your progress. Knowing him, this would likely consist primarily of enemies you have faced in the past. Be ready for anything. I don't see it likely that Chronos will come after you himself. But if he does, you must be prepared for that as well."

"Quit worrying. I'm the one and only Sonic the Hedgehog, and I don't need caution."

"You are a fool." Sonic ignores her, and quickly crosses the line into the city, leaving footprints in the ash behind him.

—–—

ZERO

"A few Eggman robots and a couple of Dark Gaia minions? I was expecting better out of Chronos than that."

"If he doesn't see you as enough of a threat to spend much effort stopping you, then that is a good thing. The less trouble you have, the better. Even what you have done so far may be enough for him to change his mind at any time."

"It's his bad for underestimating me. Now, where is that Sapphire…?" He begins searching around once more. He stops upon seeing a glint of blue hidden in a clearing of grey rubble. "Aha!" He runs for it. Once he gets to the center of the clearing, he kneels down and brushes the ash off of the gem. "Now all I have to do is pick it up, and–"

"Get your hands off of that Sapphire!" Standing on the opposite side of the clearing is another hedgehog. His fur is a vibrant green. The spikes on the back of his head start off at an upwards angle, and sharply turn to angle downwards instead about halfway back. He has a single larger spike on the top of his head that goes slightly higher than the rest. "You heard me. Step away."

Sonic thinks back for a moment. Janice had said to him, "Chronos has no physical appearance… he could theoretically appear in whatever manner he chooses… For example, he may take on the appearance of an enemy of yours. Or perhaps something more familiar to you, such as another hedgehog." "Another hedgehog…you must be Chronos. Do you expect me to be afraid of you?"

"I expect you to do what I say if you don't want to get hurt. I don't want to hurt any animoids, but I will if you force me to. And…did you call me Chronos? I'm afraid that you've been severely misinformed. Just step away from the Sapphire, and we can discuss this like civilized creatures. My name is Zero."

"Trying to pull one off on me? Even I'm not that dumb. And is 'animoid' supposed to be an insult? I think you need to work on that one."

"Enough! I don't know who you are, but I won't let you get in my way!" He charges at Sonic.

"Bring it on!" Sonic takes off as well. "Sonic, stop! That's–" The voice of Janice is cut off as the two hedgehogs collide, sending Sonic tumbling back, and causing him to drop the Sapphire.

"You have another one!? Who are you!?"

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog. The guy who's going to take you down!"

To be Continued…