BREAKING NEWS

A news reporter, the same from before, stands not on a set, but out in the field, on a high elevated road of Eggman's futuristic capital city, Metropolis, appearing to be quite nervous about something. Clearing her throat, she begins, "In an…unprecedented event, Infinite, the commander of the Eggman army, has personally requested to make a live public announcement, right here, right now. We were…" She gulps. "…compelled, to allow it. Viewers, be advised…we have no idea what's about to happen." She makes a gesture to the side.

Held by an unsteady hand, the camera shakily pans over to the right, where Blacklight stands. Though he still wears the mask, scarf, gloves and shoes of Infinite, he seems to have removed the bodysuit, exposing his natural white fur beneath the glowing Ruby. He looks right into the camera curiously. "Ooh, am I on TV now?" He starts to wave excitedly. "Hi Shadow, hi–…uh…well, I guess I don't know anyone else."

The reporter comments from offscreen, "You…said you had an announcement, Mr. Infinite?"

"Oh, right the announcement." He clears his throat. "I'm here to inform you all that the Eggman Empire and I no longer hang. Citizens of the Eggman Empire need no longer fear the tyranny of the Mustache. You can all now consider yourselves under the protection of the…" He stops to think for a moment. "…mm…the…Infinite Imperium!"

Suddenly, Eggman's voice declares over a distant loudspeaker, "You won't be taking my capital today, traitorous rat!" The camera shifts and zooms upwards, onto a massive red and orange Eggman airship floating high above the city.

Blacklight clears his throat, and the camera moves back down to him. He's holding up a finger. "Hold on a moment while I take care of this." He flies straight up towards the airship, trailing a violet aura behind him. As he does, the airship begins to fire down a hailstorm of laser blasts, most of which pass him by, raining down onto the street below. Accompanied by the sound of terrified screams, the footage begins to shake and turn violently as the cameraman flees from the destruction. After one particularly close blast, the footage cuts to static.

Sonic the Hedgehog: The Chaos Project

Season 0, Episode 28

Forces of Chaos, Part 2: The Gears Begin to Turn

Written by ChaosProjectAuthor

Sunset Heights

The Jackal who was called Infinite presses his crimson blade against the Wolf's throat. He speaks through clenched teeth, "I want, my Ruby, back."

Tails, filled with fear and confusion, questions, "If you were trapped in Null Space…how did you get out?"

"Be silent, boy." He forcibly turns the Wolf around to face him, still keeping the sword pointed at his throat. "You were the one who overcame the Ruby's power. You will help me get it back."

The Wolf looks down to the tip of the sword, then back up to Infinite's scarred face, with a look of some combination of disappointment and concern.

"You find my blade unnecessary?"

Tails encourages, "He's right. We're all going after Blacklight. Maybe…we can work something out? Without threatening anyone?"

Shadow rolls his eyes. "You can't be serious."

Ignoring him, the Wolf nods to Infinite encouragingly.

Tails keeps trying, "If you want help from one of us, maybe we can all help each other. We can…" He doesn't seem to want to make the deal, but he gives in. "We can all get the Ruby away from Eggman, together."

Infinite glances down with hesitation at the sword. "I…I won't let you trick me." For emphasis, he jabs the blade forward just an inch. "You will help me get the Ruby."

Sighing at first, Shadow speaks slowly, "What would any of us have to gain from tricking you? It looks to me like you have nothing. You're pathetic and weak, and I could knock you down in a second if I wanted to. And you're trying to threaten us with a hostage we all know you won't harm. It doesn't look like you have much of a choice."

Infinite tightens his grip on the blade, glaring at Shadow with fury. But then he glances over at the Wolf, who still gives him the same look as before, lacking any fear. Slowly, Infinite lets the blade drop down to his side. Bruno the Wisp pokes his top eye out of the Wolf's Wispon, but retreats back in upon seeing the Jackal.

Tails takes a step forwards. "So tell us…what happened to you?"

Infinite again tightens his grip around the hilt of the blade. "Within Null Space, I discovered a containment device." He looks over to Shadow. "Containing a hedgehog with your face."

"And you woke him up!?"

Infinite continues without answering directly, "He deceived me for long enough to steal the Ruby, and cast me off into the void. There I remained. There was no escape. Not until…much time had passed. I don't know how long."

Tails answers the unspoken question slowly. "The war ended…almost two years ago."

"Two years ago… So much time, I spent trapped in my own prison."

"Then how did you get out?"

"I don't know how it's possible…but some time ago…I believe the Phantom Ruby was damaged. And that damage was embodied by countless fractures in Null Space. I was able to escape through one of these fractures."

Shadow finishes, "So here you are, mindlessly pursuing the very thing that trapped you."

"I'll do whatever it takes to get my Ruby back."

"I was talking about Blacklight." Though he makes the remark confidently, Shadow's expression wavers after a moment as he seems to recognize a familiarity in Infinite's words.

"I don't care who has it. But if you're going to open my way to the Ruby…I'll help you do it."

Tails cheers, "Great! Now that we're a team, we should get to work!" The Wolf raises a fist as well. The other two roll their eyes in sync.

—–—

Eggman Empire Fortress

Eggman stares at the readings on a cracked but functional console screen, tugging at his mustache in contemplation. "Can you confirm these readings?"

Orbot, from the console of a familiar chamber, answers back, "Confirmed, sir. The identification codes line up with the Eggman identification system."

"And yet their specific identification numbers don't match anything registered on the system. They're my robots, but I didn't make them." He contemplates for a moment longer. "Activate the prototype. Prepare to pull them through."

"Aye aye, sir." Orbot begins to work at the console, and inside the chamber, a Phantom Ruby prototype of the traditional shape begins to glow.

While the Ruby prepares, Eggman turns to Cubot. "Cubot, status update!"

"The airship sustained heavy damage, but Infinite has just fled from the city. Metropolis is yours, boss!"

"Of course it's mine, you twit! That rat has no claim on any of my territory."

"Well, besides the half of your territory around Eggmanland that he did take."

Eggman growls.

"I'm just saying, it's lucky you had this old base as a backup, or else–"

Orbot intentionally interrupts, "Sir, the Ruby is charged, and the signals have been locked on to."

"Excellent. Open the portal."

Orbot presses a few more keys on the console, and the Ruby prototype begins to pulsate intensely. A small black point in the space in the center of the room begins to expand. Cubot flees and hides behind an empty chamber, trembling, terrified of the opening black vortex. Finally, the Null Space portal opens wide enough to let out a troop of five egg-shaped robots, before collapsing closed again.

Eggman opens his arms wide. "Let me be the first to welcome you all, to my wonderful dimension!"

The leader of the troop, wearing a billowing red cape, a jacket similar in appearance to that of the Eggman that stands before him, and a bronze chestplate emblazoned with the insignia of a regal crown, points his glass-topped scepter at the Doctor in response. Behind him, the rest of the Hard Boiled Heavies take similar stances of challenge.

"Now, now, let's not be so hasty, hm? I've been looking forward to meeting the creations of my…shorter, counterpart."

Heavy King lowers his scepter slightly, scrutinizing Eggman closely.

"Yes, that's right. I'm not the Doctor Eggman that you know. And it seems that he couldn't even be bothered to give you all voice chips. How very short-sighted of him. If you would allow it, I would be happy to remedy said situation. Consider it an act of goodwill."

The King hesitates for a moment. Then he takes his scepter back, pounding it upright into the ground. At the order, the rest of the Heavies go at ease behind him.

"I'll take that as a yes. I'll get started immediately." Eggman turns to exit from the room, and the Heavies cautiously follow him in line.

Cubot finally peeks out from his hiding spot. "Immediately? He didn't fix my voice chip that quickly."

—–—

The wide metal doors open wide as Shadow, Tails, the Wolf, and Infinite all enter the dim room with brick walls and concrete floor. Empty storage crates are scattered about, chipped paint and crumbled concrete litter the floor. Tails immediately moves over to the right, trying to activate a dusty old computer console. In the center of the floor, a plant which might have once been a blooming flower lies limp and shriveled. Infinite doesn't seem to notice as he steps on it, and it crumbles to dust beneath his foot. "So, this is where you all hid from me? It's a wonder you were able to fight back at all."

As Tails pulls one final switch, the large monitor screen flickers to life, casting a hazy blue light over the abandoned Resistance base. "Got it!" Though the screen continues to flicker, clearly not in perfect working order, it quickly fills up with icons, documents, and other information. "I built this computer to scan the nets for any information about the war, live-time. Looks like it's still working fine." He sighs. "I didn't even have to tell it that there's a new war. It doesn't know the difference. Hey…what's this?" In the corner of the screen, a small moving image pops up. It appears to be Blacklight, speaking in the same news report seen before. "It looks like Infinite–"

Infinite cuts him off with a growl.

"Sorry, it looks like Blacklight split off from the Eggman Empire. They're at war with each other!"

Shadow nods. "Good. With Eggman distracting him, he'll be easier to get at."

"I wouldn't call it 'good'." Tails continues to sift through data as he speaks. "Two incredibly powerful parties warring against each other, and neither of them care about collateral damage. Think about how many people could get hurt with every new battle. We need to put a stop to this, and fast." The shaky footage on the screen cuts to static.

"The people will be fine when we take Blacklight down."

Infinite nods. "I agree with the hedgehog. If we already know where this Blacklight is, then we shouldn't waste any more time here."

Tails shouts with irritation, "Come on, guys! There's people out there who need our help!" The Wolf nods in agreement. "We are the Resistance now."

Two loud scoffs sound out. Shadow continues, "I'm not here to be part of a Resistance. If you aren't going to help me against Blacklight, then I'll find another way." He turns to leave.

"We will do it, Shadow! But we have to do it the right way! What happened to helping people? To giving them a chance to–" Shadow storms off with a growl. Tails runs to catch up with him.

Infinite moves to follow Shadow, but the Wolf steps in his way with crossed arms. Infinite rolls his eyes, leaning back onto a wall. He comments sarcastically, "Wonderful." He crosses his own arms. "More delays."

Tails finally stops Shadow as the door closes behind them. "Shadow, what's this all about?"

"Have I not already said it enough? There's only one thing that I care about right now. And whatever this is, it's not it."

"Shadow…why is this so personal for you? Who is Blacklight?"

Shadow hesitates for a moment. "He's my problem. That's all that–"

"No! I won't take that for an answer! Sonic said that he helped you, but it's like you're grumpier than ever! What's your problem!?"

Shadow takes a deep breath. "Blacklight…is an artificial life form like me. He died forty years ago. Until something went wrong. The timeline was changed, and I had to go back and fix it. I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I saved his life. And now, he's back. And everything he does is on me. So if you don't have any more questions, I need to go fix my mistake."

Tails looks down to the ground. "Shadow…I can't even begin…to imagine all the things you've been through. But I do know this. During the last war…when we all thought that…Sonic was…you know. Well…I blamed Eggman. And I thought…I'd beaten him before…and I could do it again. That I needed to do it, for Sonic. But the rest of the Resistance didn't care about Eggman, they just wanted to fight the war their way. They wouldn't listen to me. So I just…lost it. I ran off on my own, just like…nevermind. But…out there, all alone…I had nothing. I couldn't do anything right. I was scared out of my skin by things that I would've fought off no problem back when I knew that Sonic was out there somewhere, believing in me. I just…I can't let all my friends down like that again. And I don't want it to happen to you either."

"…Why do you care so much?"

Tails smiles. "I care about all my friends, Shadow." A rather awkward silence ensues.

Shadow seems unsure of what to say. "…I…I'll try to remember that. And…I guess I'll try to do it your way."

Tails nods happily. "And…Shadow…if you don't mind me asking…if you're so worried about what Blacklight is doing now…why do you think you saved him?"

Shadow sighs. "I tried. I tried, so hard, to get Blacklight on my side. He was so young. I thought, if I could teach him everything that I knew, we could be…brothers. Thoughts like that left me weak and gullible. And he took advantage of that, at every chance he had. I let him get into my head, tear me apart from the inside out. And somehow, I still thought I could change him. Even as he was dying in front of me, I thought that he still deserved another chance. That somehow, a few years asleep would turn him into a good person. But he's just like Wolfric King. People can't change who they are."

"But you did." Shadow takes on a slightly surprised look, but doesn't respond. "Sure, you went through your own destroy-the-world phase first, but look at you now. You became a hero, Shadow. Who's to say that Blacklight can't do the same?"

"I–"

"Exactly. You. You were faced with a split-second decision. And your instincts told you to give him that chance. That wasn't a mistake, Shadow, it was doing the right thing. Because in your heart, you know that everyone deserves a chance at happiness. Anyone can change."

"…You…you really think that's true?"

"I do." Tails looks over to the door back into the base, where Infinite and the Wolf still wait. "And I mean anyone."

—–—

Eggman, wrench in hand, steps away from the last Heavy. "And there we have it. Your voice chips are all ready. Care to try it out?"

The Heavy King's mouth glows red as he emits a low-pitched mechanical sound. Slowly, the sound develops into speech, a deep, commanding voice. "Where…where is the Phantom Ruby?"

"Well, as I'm sure you saw, I have a Phantom Ruby prototype already prepared for your use, as well as several more in–"

"The real Phantom Ruby?"

Eggman clears his throat. "Well…at the moment…I'm working on…getting that back."

The Heavy Gunner shouts in a gruff tone, "This guy's useless! Let's blow this place down and get out of here!"

Heavy Shinobi adds in a quiet, thickly accented tone, "It seems, such things as this, are consistent in any dimension."

Heavy King pounds his scepter into the ground. "Silence." They immediately obey. "Your… 'act of goodwill' has been noted, Doctor. We won't cause you any trouble. For now. But we have a Ruby to collect. Heavies!" He pounds the scepter again, and the troop forms up behind him. He begins the march off without another word, the rest following behind him.

Eggman takes on a devious smile as he pulls out a small device. "I'm afraid you won't be going anywhere." With the press of a button, all of the Heavies freeze in place.

Heavy King shouts with anger, "What's this!?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention? Your new voice chips came with some special obedience programming. You all now serve me. Now, I command you to face me."

With stiff mechanical motions, they each obey. Heavy Magician shouts in a loud, confident female voice, "The old man pulled a trick on us! I'm supposed to be the trickster around here!"

"Just as I said, my dear Heavies, you'll find me far more competent than my poorly-dressed counterpart."

Heavy Gunner growls, "I knew it! We should've blown this place to the ground the second we got here!"

Heavy King once again demands, "Silence." He glares at Eggman. "You have our attention, Doctor. What is it that you want from us?"

"You know, it's actually quite adorable the way you think that you can bargain for your freedom. You're much too valuable for that."

"You dare insult the Hard Boiled Heavies!?" In a rage, Heavy King swings his staff directly at Eggman. But it freezes just inches away from its target. Eggman doesn't flinch.

"Yes. Now that that's out of the way, I believe you just volunteered to lead my forces in an attack on Central City. Consider that an order." Heavy King silently retracts his staff. "Oh, and take the new Ruby prototype with you. It hasn't been charged yet, but I'm sure you'll be able to make use of it. As for the rest of you…" Eggman makes a sweeping motion with his hand. "I'll be deploying you all across my borders as Generals."

Heavy Magician objects, "You're breaking up our act!?"

"Precisely. A little close-at-hand leadership is exactly what my armies have been lacking. Not to worry, though. You'll all be working together again, once I'm prepared to send you after the Phantom Ruby. You see, I want it just as much as all of you. And we're all going to benefit from getting it together. Whether you want to or not." Heavy King tightens his grip on the scepter. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get going!"

"If we are to be separated…I wish to confer with my team, first."

"Fine, fine. Just make it quick." He turns to walk off, Orbot and Cubot following behind him. He shouts back, "Just don't forget the Ruby! I don't want you to embarrass yourself on your first mission!"

Orbot looks over to Cubot. "I had no idea the Magician was a girl."

In an unusual twist, Cubot smacks Orbot in the back of the head. "Of course she's not a girl!" He clasps his hands by the side of head, staring distractedly off into the distance. "She's a lady."

Orbot shakes his head with a sigh.

Heavy King slowly approaches Heavy Rider, speaking quietly. "Did our…package, arrive safely?"

Heavy Rider kneels to the floor, speaking in a deep female voice. "With minimal damage, my liege."

The King turns to the Magician. "And it has been hidden?"

"Have a little faith, boss. Disappearing acts are my specialty."

"Excellent. These chains will not bind us for long, Heavies. And once we are free, the Phantom Ruby will finally be ours again."

—–—

Infinite, eyes closed, still leans back against the wall with crossed arms. Without moving, he suddenly speaks, "Don't look at me like that. I don't want your pity."

Across from him, the Wolf's expression shifts from concern to surprise.

Infinite opens his eyes. "Whatever it is that you think of me, I assure you it's wrong. I haven't 'changed'. Infinite has not disappeared without the Ruby. The only thing I regret is underestimating the hedgehog. And when I get my Ruby back, I will burn this accursed world."

The Wolf shakes his head slowly.

"And you still don't believe me? I don't know why ever created illusions for you. Your head is already full of them."

The Wolf continues to look at him.

"…You went looking for me, didn't you? You saw a poor soul in pain, and couldn't resist the desire to help him. It must have been quite disappointing when you had to give up your search. There was nothing to find." Infinite shakes his head with disappointment. "Did you lose all hope? All purpose? What was there left for you, after failing at such a foolish task?"

The Wolf still doesn't say anything.

"No, you weren't wrong. Of course there's pain for me. There always will be. But if that's what it takes to be Infinite…it's a small price to pay." Somewhat absentmindedly, he lifts his crimson blade up to the base's dim light, and examines his own reflection through its flat side. It reflects a yellow eye.

The Wolf stares curiously at the weapon from the opposite side.

"You're curious about my Ruby Blade?" He chuckles. "When I first donned the mask of Infinite, I thought this blade the last vestige of my weak self." He turns the weapon sideways, so that the blade now reflects his scarred blue eye, while the small blue sapphire in the weapon's hilt sits where the reflection of his opposite eye would be. "But I just couldn't bring myself to get rid of it. So I hid it away instead. I suppose it's lucky that I did. Or else I'd have nothing left at all. Although…perhaps luck had nothing to do with it."

The Wolf seems quite interested.

"You wish to know what makes it so important, hm? Very well. The Ruby Blade is an ancient artifact, highly valuable. One-of-a-kind, in fact. According to myth, in the heat of battle, the blade could give its wielder a glance into their future. Of course, I thought it was a bunch of nonsense. But such an artifact could fetch quite a hefty bounty. And it was sitting uselessly on display. The Jackal Squad and I got it in mind to…liberate it. We had every intention to profit from the heist. But we were caught. We were swarmed. And I fought off my enemies with the very blade that was being stolen from them…though I didn't leave the battle unscarred." He runs a finger down the scar over his eye. "As I stood above my fallen opponents, I held the blade up to the light. And do you know what I saw?"

The Wolf shakes his head.

"In my own reflection, I saw a mask. And behind it, a city, burning to the ground. This city. For a fleeting moment, I saw the destructive force that I would become. And suddenly, nothing else would ever be enough. From that day forward, I ran through the motions, waiting for my time to come. And with every injustice I saw in the world, I thought only to how I could one day make it burn, just as I would to the city. And from that day, the blade never left my side. Not until the day this very blade struck against the Phantom Ruby, showing me the future I desired, within my grasp."

The Wolf looks on questioningly.

"The rest of Squad Jackal? They're a bunch of worthless traitors." He looks over to the door out of the base, where Shadow and Tails must still be talking. "What remained of them fled with their tails between their legs when your friend showed up. It was pathetic. I haven't heard from them since." Though he sounds quite angry, some hint of another emotion can be heard in his voice.

The Wolf doesn't have to say anything.

"No. I don't care about them. They can burn with the rest of the world." He closes his eyes again, clearly done with the conversation.

In the quiet, Bruno once again pops his head out of the Wispon. This time, seeing the Jackal leaning back with his eyes closed, it cautiously ventures the rest of the way, looking up to the Wolf questioningly. He happily nods it on. Slowly, the Wisp floats over to Infinite. It gives a curious squeak. Infinite opens one eye to look at it, and even that movement is enough to make it recoil back. But it quickly regains enough courage to move up close again, giving two more excited squeaks.

Infinite looks past Bruno to the Wolf. "What does this…thing want?"

The Wolf gives him a look.

"No. I don't want to be its friend."

Suddenly, the Wisp takes on a scowl. Its starts to jabber very quickly and angrily, furiously shaking a tentacle balled up like a fist. The Wolf, apparently understanding its language, appears quite shocked and slightly embarrassed by whatever it's saying. Infinite gives an irritated sigh, and closes his eyes again.

The door to the base slides open, as Shadow and Tails come back through.

"Finally. Does that mean we can leave now?"

Another voice objects, "What, and let me miss out on all the fun?" By the base's other entrance, Knuckles stands with a smirk.

Tails greets happily, "Knuckles! What are you doing here?"

"This used to be my base. I made sure I'd know if anyone ever came back here. Didn't want to risk showing up late, like I almost was–" For the first time, he realizes the Jackal in the room. "You!" He dives at him, tackling him to the floor. "You dirty, no good, backstabbing little–"

Tails shouts, "Knuckles, stop! He's on our side!" Bruno, who had been nodding happily in agreement with Knuckles, crosses his arms and pouts in disappointment.

Knuckles, still pinning the Jackal to the floor, looks over to Tails with shock. "On our side!? This guy is Infinite! He leveled cities! And he tricked us into believing his little good-guy act last time!" Infinite looks over to his dropped sword, which is well within his reach. But he seems to think better of it.

Tails calms, "There's no act, Knuckles. He agreed to help us put an end to this war."

Knuckles looks down to Infinite with a growl. But he gets up, letting him free. Infinite reclaims his blade as he brushes himself off with the other hand. "I agreed to nothing of the sort. You agreed to help me get my Ruby back."

When Knuckles has finished staring mistrustingly at Infinite, he turns to the Wolf. "Rookie! You're back! Where you been?" The Wolf and the Jackal glance at each other for a moment. "Either way, it's good to see you again." Knuckles pats him on the back a little too hard. Then he walks up to the main screen, turning to Tails. "Alright, Tails. Catch me up. What're we looking at?"

Tails moves up to the console and begins typing commands, pulling up a moving image of a spinning globe, as everyone else gathers around. With a few more commands, colors wash over the landmasses of the globe, mostly red, but with a considerable amount of blue. Tails begins, "Over the past few weeks, Eggman's conquered about sixty percent of the world's major cities. But…" He presses a few more keys, and half of the red becomes replaced by yellow. "…now that Blacklight's split off from the Empire, it looks like he's taken control of about half of that territory. So as it stands…the world is split an even three ways."

Knuckles nods. "We've turned around worse odds before."

Infinite growls, "So where does that put the Ruby?"

Tails turns to face him directly. "Right in the heart of Blacklight territory, defended by entire hordes of Replicas, not to mention Blacklight himself. In other words, no. Right now, we need to take this war one step at a time."

Knuckles nods. "That means starting by finding a weak point. If we're lucky, we can take some territory, and we'll be in a better position to fight from there."

Something starts to beep on the console. Tails turns to it with concern. "Uhh…Knuckles? I think Eggman might have the same idea." He points to a small part of the globe, which is flashing between blue and red. "Eggman's forces are massing to invade Central City!"

"Central City!? He must be crazy!"

Shadow nods in agreement. "All of GUN's forces are going to be amassed around the capital. He's walking into the most heavily-defended territory on the planet."

Infinite growls, "But we can't?"

Tails ignores him, shaking his head. "Eggman wouldn't do something like this without a plan. Especially not after just losing half his territory to Blacklight."

Knuckles clenches a fist confidently. "But I'll bet Eggman wasn't planning on us. Alright everyone, here's the plan! I call it, 'Operation: Great Wall'. We're going to defend Central City with everything we've got!"

Infinite rolls his eyes. "Great. So we're going to waste time with one of your disastrous plans, it's going to fail utterly, and we're going to have even less of a chance of getting at the Ruby than we did before."

"Disastrous!?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did you think your little Big Wave idea was a success? I remember you well, oaf. How many do you think you ordered to their deaths on that day? I certainly wasn't keeping count."

"You little–!" Tails and the Wolf have to restrain Knuckles to keep him from diving at Infinite again. "Let me go!" Still struggling to get free, he glares at Infinite with a fiery intensity. "That was all your fault! You're a psycho! A murderer! You think that you can just walk in here, and start telling me how I should lead my team against more monsters just like you!?"

Infinite glances at his sword for a little while as Knuckles struggles. "…Yes. That's exactly what I think. I know how wielder of the Ruby thinks, I know what he can do, and I know that you in a position of leadership is not a good idea."

Shadow adds, "He has a point."

"What!?"

"No offense to you, but I'm not interested in taking orders. From anyone."

Knuckles is finally released as he steps right up to Shadow. "Oh really? Well, if you think you'd make such a good leader, let's hear your big plan."

"Simple. Eggman won't be entering the city without a large army, which means a lot of robots to deal with. We all go in, and we split up, each of us cover a sector. But we need to stay in contact, be prepared to meet back up in case Eggman tries anything. That means someone needs to stay behind and coordinate."

Tails raises a hand. "I can cover that."

Shadow looks back to Knuckles. "Good enough plan for you?"

"Well…you didn't have to go into that much detail." Shadow groans.

Tails interjects, "If that's settled, then you all need to get going."

Knuckles raises a fist. "Right."

Infinite sighs. "Remind me why I should go anywhere that doesn't lead to my Ruby?"

Knuckles answers, "I know better than to leave you here alone with Tails. So unless you want go on a suicide solo mission after your precious Ruby, you don't have any other choice."

Shadow growls, "Enough wasting time. Let's go."

—–—

Eggmanland

Blacklight lays down sideways across the seat of a massive, ornate throne, far too shiny and elegant to belong in the mechanical base. He stares at the ceiling, with his hands folded over his stomach, tapping his thumbs in alternation against the Ruby. His mask lies on a small table by his head. He speaks up to the ceiling, "What's your report, Muscles?"

Before the throne, a Replica of Zavok kneels to the floor. Spitting with his snake-tongue, he speaks in a strange, high-pitched, whispery voice, "All of the sssurrounding territoriesss have been sssecured, Massster."

"The Doctor's forces have been expunged?"

"Yesss."

"Excellent. That's why I like you, Muscles. Always so…efficient." He holds up a finger. "Help me out with something, would you?" He cranes his neck backwards to look around the back of the throne, at the bare metal wall behind it. "That wall is sooo barren, don't you think? I was thinking of hanging something up there. But what?" Zavok doesn't answer. The Phantom Ruby starts to pulsate slightly. Suddenly, Blacklight turns his head sharply to glare into the empty eyes of the mask that sits on the table. "What do you mean, 'more important things to do'!?" The mask sits, unmoving. "Fine, fine, we can conquer something instead. Tin Can! Get in here!"

A Metal Sonic Replica jets into the room, kneeling beside Zavok.

"Yeesh, what took you so long? Why can't you be more prompt, like Muscles over there?" He swings his legs down to sit upright on the throne. "Nevermind, just, just show me good places to conquer."

Metal Sonic's face detaches from the rest of the head and lifts away, revealing a monitor screen underneath. After a moment of static, the screen shows an image of Eggman's Metropolis.

"You're joking, right? We were just there." He directs his hands out for emphasis. "We lost." He suddenly shouts at the mask, "No, shut up, it wasn't because I don't know how to use the Ruby! I do know how! I do!" He turns back to Metal Sonic, clearing his throat. "Next, please."

The image changes to show Central City.

"Another boring old regular city? No, thank you. Next." The image begins to shift steadily from one to the next, showing several familiar locations, as well as a few less recognizable. "Nope. Nah. Not feeling it. Keep going. Stop it!" Though the image freezes on a view of Green Hill Zone, Blacklight is once again shouting at the mask. "Yes, yes, I'll have to conquer it all eventually. But there? Really? Who would want to go to a place that looks like that?" He indicates the image of Green Hill with emphasis. "Fine, fine, I'll just send Bubbles to do it for me." He cups his hands around his mouth. "Bubbles! I need you!"

A puddle of water forms together on the floor, which quickly rises into the form of a Chaos 0 Replica.

"And where have you been?"

A small object rises out of the Replica's watery hand and into its grasp. It's the purple Chaos Emerald. The Replica starts to speak, though its voice bubbles as if it were speaking from underwater, making it completely unintelligible.

"What…what is that?"

The Replica makes more bubbly sounds.

"A…Chaos Emerald? You brought me…a Chaos Emerald?" He pauses for a long moment. "How dare you!?" At his shout, the Phantom Ruby releases a massive surge of negative energy along with its familiar pulsating sound, disrupting the forms of all of the Replicas, and even the throne that Blacklight sits on. The Emerald clatters to the floor, before the energy fades and the illusions resolidify. Blacklight stares at the still-stationary mask with curiosity. "Why…why wouldn't I want it? … No, I don't need the power. But why wouldn't I want it? … It's you, isn't it? You are the one who wants to be rid of the Emeralds, not me. A want so great that I felt it as my own, even before I heard your voice. … Perhaps I underestimated you. … Of course. Us." Blacklight finally turns back to Chaos 0. "Bubbles, go forth and conquer. And…hold on to that little gift for us."

The Replica speaks unintelligibly once more, before dissolving back into the floor, Emerald in hand.

"And you've been sitting there for long enough, Muscles. Get out of here. We don't really care where, just leave. And try to make yourself useful."

"Underssstood, Massster."

"As for you, Tin Can…let's continue, shall we? We'll probably settle on something eventually." Metal Sonic's screen finally changes again, this time to show the familiar city of Westopolis. "Ooh, Westopolis, hm? Imagine the look on Shadow's face when he learns that we conquered it! We… I…I wonder what Shadow's doing now…" He starts staring off into the distance. "I'll bet he's mocking me." He puts a fake scowl on his face and starts to mimic in a rather impressive imitation, "'That Blacklight is so stupid. He's so stupid, he couldn't even beat stupid Mustache in a stupid fight. And he never could, because he's so evil, and I'm so perfect, and blah, blah, blah.' Well, I'll make you pay for saying such things about me, Shadow! I'll…I'll…oh, who am I kidding? Shadow's a cool guy. He would never say something like that. Or…would he? Oh, if only I knew…" He looks back to the wall behind the throne again, as if struck by a new idea of what to put there.

The empty eye of the mask continues to glare at him just as it has been.

"Yeah, yeah, back to work. Keep going, Tin Can. We desire somewhere better."

—–—

Central City - Radial Highway

Shadow blitzes through the highway leading to the center of the city. As he approaches a large cluster of Eggman robots, he suddenly disappears, reappearing instantly behind a robot, striking hard, and warping to the next, eliminating them all with incredible speed. He lands on the ground with a crouch, putting a hand up to a communicator in his ear. "The highway is secure. His main route of attack is cut off."

—–—

Central City - Cityscape

Infinite hacks and slashes his way through the sloped streets of the city's interior, cutting down robots with impressive speed and agility. He finally comes to a stop, still with a vicious smirk on his face. A straggling robot charges at him from behind. Without turning, Infinite flips the blade around in his hand, then plunges it backwards into the robot.

On the rooftops above, the Wolf battles against just as many robots, many of them airborne, making skillful use of his flame-shooting weapon. He quickly turns and fires his grappling wire at one behind him, dragging himself in for a direct attack. Squeaking confidently, Bruno emerges from the Wispon, and flies straight into one last robot. A moment later, the robot explodes from the inside. Bruno celebrates happily in the smoke and debris. He flies back to his Wolf partner, and bumps a curled tentacle against his fist. The Wolf looks down to the Jackal on the street below, giving him a thumbs-up.

Infinite finally rips his blade free from the robot, and it collapses to the ground behind him. Almost immediately, he lifts the blade up to the light, letting it reflect the scarred side of his face. There doesn't seem to be anything unusual about the reflection. But then he starts to angle the blade slowly, letting the reflection sweep across his face. On the opposite side, an eye just as deep and pure a blue as his scarred one is revealed. The Jackal gasps, momentarily shutting his eyes and shaking his head. When he opens the eye again, it's the same piercing yellow that it's always been. Lowering the blade, he reaches for his communicator. "The streets have been cleared."

—–—

Central City - Mission Park

Knuckles raises his fists in challenge against the swarm of robots that completely surround him in the city's grassy park. All at once, the robots charge. Unfazed, Knuckles fights back against the swarm, powering through large groups at once, knocking some into others, using their numbers against them, all while showing off his impressive strength and fighting style. Every last one is quickly dealt with. Panting slightly, Knuckles starts to reach for his own communicator. But he freezes as he spots something in the air.

Grabbing hold of a slowly descending claw device with one hand, the Heavy King is lowered towards the ground. Contained within the glass orb of the scepter held in his opposite hand is the Phantom Ruby prototype, pulsating slowly. He suddenly leaps away from the claw, pounding onto a pile of rubble on the ground, and standing back up straight.

"Guys…I think I'm gonna need some backup."

To be continued…