Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project

Season 0, Episode 2

Speed of Time, Part 2: Ground Zero

Written by ChaosProject

Concept by ChaosProject

Thousands of Years Ago

Fallout Zone

The ruined city of ashes lies a fair distance away. In the seemingly endless field of ash outside walks a lone figure, a hedgehog with vibrant green fur. "It's been over a year since all of this began. Yet still I walk these streets, wondering what I could have done if I had been there…instead of hiding like a coward." He kicks a pile of ash, and it flies up into the air. He sighs. "If only there was something I could do about it now…" He pulls out something. A bright green Chaos Emerald. He stares intensely into it. "And still I'm left to wonder what you are…where you came from."

"Help…help me…" He suddenly goes alert at the sound of the faint voice. "Please…I need help…"

"That voice…it's coming from the outskirts of the city. Don't worry, I'm coming!" He takes off towards the city. He isn't quite as fast as Sonic.

Suddenly, he is stopped as a massive space-time rift appears right in front of him. "Another portal!?" Out of the rift emerges a hideous two-legged creature, with slimy black and red skin, holding some sort of laser weapon. A Black Arms soldier. "What in the world!?" It points its weapon at him. "Oh no you don't!" He wastes no time in delivering a spin attack, bursting the fragile alien in a wave of green slime. He gets up and wipes himself off. "What was that thing?" He looks up to the still-open rift. "And what is that thing?" He takes the Emerald back out. "It's just like the one you came out of…"

"Help me…"

He shakes off the distraction and resumes his run towards the city. "Sit tight, I'm almost there!"

Within a short while, he reaches the city, and only has to turn a single corner before he finds what he is looking for. Shortly ahead is a little girl, with one leg trapped under a pile of rubble. "Please, help me. I can't move."

"I'll get you out of there, just hang on." He looks up. A little bit above, a rift is visible right in the middle of what used to be the support beam of the building. Its appearance must have sent the whole building crashing down. He goes right up to the girl, and grabs the large piece of rubble that traps her, lifting it up with only a small amount of difficulty. The piece is nearly twice as large as he is.

The girl is able to crawl free. He drops the large chunk as she stands up and starts to look at him. She has pure white skin, and her hair is short-cropped and deep blue. "Thank you for rescuing me."

"Are you hurt?" He braces himself, perhaps expecting an upsetting response.

"No. I'm fine."

"You…you aren't scared of me?"

"Of course not. You saved me."

He smiles, clearly delighted to have someone to talk to. "What's your name?"

"I am called Janice."

"It's nice to meet you, Janice. My name is Zero."

"I know who you are. And I still need your help."

"Sure. What do you need?"

"I need you to help me save the world…the universe."

Zero is taken aback. "What do you mean?"

Janice points up to the rift which collapsed the building. "Surely you have seen those before, right? Do you know what they are?"

"All I know is that they tend to cause trouble. Most of the time."

She begins a familiar speech. "It is called a space-time rift."

"Space-time? You mean like the fabric of reality and all that stuff?"

"Correct. These are why I need your help. Naturally, a space-time rift requires a massive flux of Chaos Energy in order to form."

"Chaos…Energy…" Zero is ripped into a flashback. Everything is red and angry. There is a powerful explosion of energy. A man screams. Several other screams join his. Zero shakes himself out of the memory.

"As I'm sure you have noticed, these rifts have been appearing seemingly at random, without any such Chaos Energy."

"So what does it mean? How are they forming?"

"It is not the 'how' that matters, but the 'why'. They are the symptom of a much greater threat. The end of all time. As more of them appear, it shows that the fabric of time undergoes further breakdown. Eventually, time will no longer exist."

"So…why then? Why is time breaking down?"

"Chronos. Chronos is the lord and protector of time. But 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."

"Defeat him? You mean…I have to…" He trails off. "Is there really no other way? Have you talked with him? Maybe he isn't aware that this is happening. Maybe if we just talked to him, we could–"

"No. There is no reasoning with Chronos. No matter how I have tried, he will not see reason. This is the only way. If you are to save the universe as you know it, you must be willing to do whatever it takes."

"Hmm…" Zero ponders this for a while. "If what you're saying is all true…who does that make you? Why do you know all this?"

She smiles. "I already told you. I'm Janice."

"Yes, that's your name. But what are you? Clearly you're not quite a human. And you know things that no human would."

"My, it seems you are the smart one. But perhaps too pacifistic… You really wish to know who I am?" He nods. "Then I shall tell you. For as long as Chronos has ruled over time…I have served as his apprentice. So I can assure you that what I know, I know from personal observation and experience."

"And yet…you appear so young. How is that?"

"My appearance here is only an illusion. I have no true corporeal form."

"I see… I…I'll do anything that I can to help. Anything at all, just say the word."

She smiles again. "I was hoping you would say that. In order to hold your own against Chronos, you will need the Temporal Sapphires."

"Temporal Sapphires?"

"The Temporal Sapphires are gems of immense power. They act as…anchors in time. Time naturally flows from one Sapphire to the next, and that is where they get their power. From time itself."

"Gems of power…" He pulls out his green Emerald. "You mean like this?"

"Not quite. What you have there is a Chaos Emerald. You really aren't aware of that yet?" He shakes his head. "It seems that I'm always too early…but there is no helping it now. A Chaos Emerald acts for the flow of Chaos much as the Temporal Sapphires act for the flow of time. The natural energy moves from one to the next, creating what is understood as a fundamental force of the universe. But then, space, time, and Chaos are all one and the same, when you get down to the essentials." Zero seems completely bewildered. "There is no time to explain it in detail now, time continues to break down as we speak. When the time comes, you will understand. But for now, you must gather all of the Temporal Sapphires in one place."

"Hold on. You said the Sapphires are like time anchors. And you want me to travel through time, gather them all, and then take them to wherever Chronos lives, which would be…outside of time? Wouldn't that ruin the universe…worse than it already is?"

"And your perceptiveness shows itself once more. In theory yes, it would be problem, removing the Sapphires. But that problem…" She indicates the rifts all around them with her hand. "…is already occurring. Time is already breaking down, and so the Sapphires are not currently serving their purpose. Removing them at this point would have a negligible effect. And you need them for a greater purpose."

At this point, it almost seems as if Zero wants to drag on the conversation. "So there's a Temporal Sapphire nearby that you want me to get…then what?"

"Your power is great. With a single Temporal Sapphire, I am certain that you will be able to open your own space-time rift at will."

"Make even more rifts? Isn't that part of the problem?"

"It is a necessary evil. Now go, find the Sapphire." She points towards the center of the city.

"But what about–"

"Go!"

Still, Zero waits for a moment. But finally, he says, "Alright." He gives a nod and then runs off in the direction of the gem which might hold all of his answers.

—–—

Zero's pace has slowed down considerably. "The Sapphire is close…I can feel it. But why? What makes me able to sense these weird gems?" He stares into his Chaos Emerald again. "A Temporal Sapphire…the ability to travel through time at will… With that kind of power…maybe I could stop…" He is pulled into another flashback. A bright streak flies across the sky at incredible speed, leaving a trail behind it. Directly below, Zero runs faster than he's ever run before, in a hopeless attempt to keep up with it. It quickly surpasses him, and arcs down towards the bustling city quite some distance away. "No, no, no!" The streak impacts the center of the city. But not before another streak is released in the opposite direction from a base not far away. Everything goes white. "Could I really have that much power? Could any one person? Maybe I could even change…" There is a powerful explosion of energy. A man screams. Once more, he shakes himself out of his memories. "I'll drive myself crazy thinking of such things. I must focus on the mission at hand first."

Up ahead, the buildings thin out into what might have once been a park area. There is an especially large pile of rubble. And standing on top is another hedgehog, reaching for a long, deep blue gem. "Get your hands off of that Sapphire!" The blue hedgehog, Sonic, looks over at Zero with a start. "You heard me. Step away." "I should've guessed I wouldn't be the only one after these things. Anyone who knows that this kind of power exists would stop at no ends to get ahold of it. But then…he's an animoid, not a human."

Sonic answers with vague interest, "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. 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!" Staying in place, Sonic curls up and charges a spindash, launching forward and taking Zero by surprise. He hits. "Had enough yet?"

Zero smirks. "Not quite." He has landed right next to the second Sapphire, and picks it up. "Now I–"

He stops as he hears a voice call out in his head, "Zero, I'm communicating with you through the Sapphire. Don't hurt him!"

"You can do that?"

"Yes, now listen to me. That hedgehog is your ally. I have sent him on the same mission as you."

"You mean that guy? Why him?"

"He is a wielder of Chaos, much like yourself. Now, tell him to get his Sapphire."

Sonic, who seems quite perplexed, shouts, "Okay, what the heck is going on here?"

"Pick up the Sapphire that you dropped. She will explain it to you.

Sonic seems more confused than ever, but does as he is told. When he picks up the gem, he stops as if being talked to. Janice speaks to Zero as well. "I can only give my sincerest apologies for this mistake. As I sent you, Sonic, back in time, I was simultaneously attempting to locate other Sapphires, and selecting another hero to join in the quest. In my confusion, I sent you to the wrong time. My intention was to send you considerably earlier."

Zero responds, "So when did you plan to tell us we weren't working alone?"

"I didn't see it necessary. You were not supposed to encounter each other until all of the Sapphires were collected. It was my assumption that you may become distracted by each other's doings, a waste of precious time."

Sonic proposes, "I think that still leaves one last question. Are there any other allies we should know of?"

"As a matter of fact…yes. Please return to the void, and you may be able to meet him."

"Gotcha." Sonic tosses the Sapphire into the air once, snatches it back, and takes off running down a street. Within a moment, he becomes cloaked in a blinding, sparking light, and just as quickly disappears through a new rift.

"Follow him." Zero shrugs and hops into the rift as well.

—–—

The Void

Sonic and Zero land one after the other into the endless stretch of blackness that is the void. Zero looks around in wonder. Floating before them is the orb form of Janice. "Welcome back, Sonic. And welcome for the first time, Zero, to The Void, a place outside of space-time. Your final ally shall be joining us shortly."

Zero steps forward. "While we wait…I wasn't quite satisfied with your answer before. Why him?"

Sonic gives an offended, "Hey! What's wrong with me?"

"I've known you for five whole minutes, and I can already tell that you're an arrogant, selfish fool. Sure seems to me like a liability."

"Oh really? Maybe you'd like to go another round, see who's really a liability around here? You certainly weren't winning that last fight."

Janice interjects, "Enough! This is why I wanted to keep you two separated. There will be no fight. He is arriving."

Sonic and Zero look over to see a new rift forming. A figure with silvery-white fur emerges, and gently floats down to the floor. Sonic is shocked, almost horrified. "No way…"

Silver the Hedgehog rises, and his eyes immediately lock onto Zero. "You! What are you doing here!?" He unleashes a powerful wave of psychic energy.

—–—

A Short Time ago, Far in the Distant Future

Neo Soleana Zone

Silver the Hedgehog levitates himself forwards beneath a gloomy sky. A dim red glow illuminates him from underneath. "This world was devastated before I was born." The red glow grows bright and harsh as Silver passes above its source. He lowers himself onto the rooftop of a tall building, right in front of the brightly illuminated billboard. He turns and looks out at the vast, bustling metropolis before him. "But that all changed when the Controller came. Using the power of the Miracle Gems, the Controller single-handedly cast away the darkness, and brought balance to the world. All of this happened long before I was born. Now, we live in a bright, happy place, where no one ever has to live in fear. And now…I am the Controller. Sometimes, I still question what it all means. How did this happen? Why me? They will always answer me directly. They say that it means I'm a hero. That I'm gifted with the use of the Miracle Gems. But that's not what I'm looking for." He sits down on the edge of the building, letting his feet dangle hundreds of feet above the ground. "How can a person be revered by millions, but feel so alone?"

"Help me! Help me!" Silver gets up with a start at the sound of the voice. "Help!" He hardly needs a moment to think. He lifts himself up, becoming cloaked in aqua-colored psychic energy, and propels himself off in the direction of the voice at an incredible velocity.

—–—

CHRONOS

Silver, now on ground level, runs through a crowd of people, making his way to the center. By the sound of it, they are all terrified, and hardly notice that he's there. Finally, he makes it to a clearing in the center. In the very middle of the clearing stands an elderly woman, with pure white skin and silvery-blue hair cascading all the way to the ground. Standing above her is a terrifying creature. It appears as if it might be made out of wood, or some other hard material. It has broad shoulders, one of which is colored bright red-orange, with small protrusions around it, resembling a representation of the sun. The other is a lighter grey, and has a large round chunk out of it, resembling a crescent moon. The top of its head is round and flat, with a single right triangle protruding out of it near the back, similar to a sundial. It has on its back what might be comparable to black butterfly wings, if they weren't so torn and demonic-looking. On the creature's front is a series of notches in a circle, with one longer and one shorter protrusion coming out from their center point, very similar to a clock. The time indicates 11:55.

"Everyone clear out!" Silver shouts to the crowd. "This thing looks dangerous!"

All eyes turn to Silver, including those of the creature. Everything is silent for a moment. Then the crowd begins to slowly back off, murmuring excitedly that Silver has arrived. Many still stay and watch from a distance, some of them recording him with high-tech equipment. The creature remains absolutely still. Next, Silver points to the woman. "That means you too. It isn't safe here."

"It will only follow me."

"Fine. Then stay behind me and I will take care of this!" She slowly takes the few steps necessary to put Silver between her and the creature. "So do you know what that thing is? Why is it after you?"

"It is called Chronos. I can explain its intentions at a later time. For now, you must eliminate it, or it will destroy the city."

Chronos roars in challenge. Silver gives a confident scoff. "I am not afraid of you! I am Silver the Hedgehog, protector of this world! I will not allow you to threaten these people!" Silver launches the first attack, a wave of psychic energy. Chronos barely flinches upon being hit. But still, he does not make a move of his own. "This guy seems tough. But I will not back down!" Next, Silver uses his powers to lift two sets of wooden tables and chairs some distance away on either side of him, and launches them at Chronos. Just as they are about to impact, Chronos roars, and a shockwave seems to emerge from his jagged mouth, causing the projectiles to freeze in place. "What!?" Silver is disgruntled, but he redoubles his effort to throw the objects. Still, they don't move an inch. Chronos roars again, and the clock on his front ticks backwards a fraction of a notch. The projectiles begin moving in the opposite direction that Silver still tries to force them. They gently set down in exactly the positions they were picked up from. "What in the world!? He just turned back time!"

"He has that power. He is the master of time. You must fight him!"

This time, Silver stops, and waits for his opponent to make the next move. They stare eachother down for a long moment. Then Chronos roars, and attempts to smash silver with one of its proportionately massive fists. Silver nimbly dodges out of the way, and launches another psychic wave at his sundial head. This time, Chronos is knocked back a step, but is still pretty much unharmed. "Take that!"

Now, it seems really angry. It roars again, louder than ever, and fires a beam of deep blue energy from its mouth. Silver barely manages to dodge in time, and the spot where he had just been standing crumbles to dust upon contact with the strange energy. While Silver is still distracted, Chronos makes an odd swirling motion with one of its hands. Silver frantically looks around himself, trying to see what it did. Directly behind him, a massive rift is opening. As Silver looks back to Chronos, he realizes that he was distracted for too long. Chronos already lunges at him, and all three of them tumble through the portal.

To be Continued…