At gizoid base everyone was standing around a holo-unit staring at a projection of Emerald Hill. Tails was listening to Sally giving briefing everyone "Even though we still have some preparation to do before we strike the Empire's factory, I want to do a" "Tails" he then heard inside his head. He looked around for a second before listening to Sally again "A small unit should be able to handle this" "Tails". Tails looked behind Sally and thought he saw a silhouette of a hedgehog when "Tails?". Tails was snapped out of it and saw Sally staring disapprovingly at him "Care to join the briefing?" "Sorry. Yeah. No, it's just I… thought I saw something" "This is your mission, Tails. I need your full attention". Tails nodded "Yeah, you've got it. Sorry" "Alright. So first, you'll slip into the system and study the Empire's orbital distance" "Tails". He could focus on anything when Sonic touched his shoulder "Something wrong?". Tails held his head "No, I… I thought I saw something". Sally continued "The Recon Team leaves as soon as we're loaded up. Questions?" "Is Admiral Mogul there?" Wave asked, "We have reports of an increase in capital ships, but no confirmation-" "Tails". Tails kept looking around and saw the silhouette getting closer, he then realized it was Scourge. He back up into Sonic "Tails, what is it". Tails tried to move back then hit Tex "Hey, kid. You feeling alright?" "There! Look!". Tex turned around but didn't see anything "What am I looking at". The voices in his head got louder, Sally started to look concerned "You don't loo good" "Tails, what'd you see" Sonic asked. Tails held his head as it started to hurt before he fell onto the holo-unit unconscious "Tails!" Sally and Sonic said in unison.
Tails suddenly jumped up "Whoa, Tails. It's okay. You're safe". Tails saw Sonic sitting next to him then he realised he was in the medical bay. He saw the others standing on his other side "You want to tell us what's going on?" Sally asked. Tails sat up "It was Scourge" "You mean at the briefing?" Wave asked. Even Tails knew this sounded crazy "I saw him. He said my name. He was right behind me. I mean, he was right there". Tex looked concerned "Kid, I was standing next to you. There was nobody else there" "Maybe it was some kind of Force version" Sally suggested. Sonic pondered "Mmm, maybe". Tex shrugged "If you as me, the kid's just been working too hard" he left the room with G-merl following with a beep "Gem!" Sally yelled. Tails sighed "No, he's right. I should get back to work" "You sure?" "I feel fine. I just had a bad something. No reason to stop an uprising, right? Come on, Wave. We gotta prepare for our mission". The two of them left the room. Sally looked at Sonic and even with his face covered she could still read him "Tell me what you're thinking, Sonic" "I'm thinking whatever Tails went through with Scourge, it's not over yet".
Outside the Hurst Wave and Fixit were arguing over supply changes but Tails was staring at Scourge on the other side of the landing platform "It's him". He ran across towards him "Tails!?" Wave yelled after him before sending G-merl to get Sonic. Tails pushed passed two pilots "Out of they way! There he is!". Scourge disappeared but Tails could still hear his laughter "Tails, stop!" he heard Wave yell. Tails turned and saw Scourge directly in front of him. Tails pushed him back, stood over him and ignited his lightsaber ready to kill. He was about to drop it, but he suddenly froze. He saw Sonic next to him with his hand out "Sonic, what're you doing" "Tails, it's not Scourge. Look!". Tails looked back down but then saw that it was Wave looking incredibly nervous Tails stumbled back "Wave, I'm… I'm sorry….". He fell to his knees and clutched his head which began to hurt "What's happening to me?".
Later Sally was walking with Sonic "Maybe I should postpone the mission, stay here with him" "Tails will be fine. I've got a plan". Sally sighed "Be careful, Sonic" "We will", Sally boarded the Hurst. It took off as Wave stood next to Sonic "I'm surprised she got on the ship" "I told you I had a plan". Wave smirked "And she went anyway?" "Very funny. Come on". Sonic entered the Sneak and took out a wrist commlink "This is Tails'. I need you to put a tracker on it without him knowing".
Sonic and Tails arrived at the forest where Ixis appeared, Tails almost expected to see a giant Scourge but thankfully Ixis looked normal. Sonic nodded to him "Ixis. You knew we were coming" "Yes. You're not exactly quiet creatures, mm?". Sonic nudged Tails forward "Tell him what's happening" "The dark side wielder I told you about, the one who wanted to join the chaos drives together. I've seen him here on Blue Ridge". Ixis looked annoyed "I warned you, joining the drives together could bring both great wisdom and great danger" "I know. I felt their power. And I did see things, but my vision, it was incomplete" "Incomplete?". Tails nodded "Yeah, I let go before either of us got the answers we wanted, and then the drives were destroyed" "Aha. I see. Well, that's not good". Sonic stepped forward "What do you mean. What can we do?" "What do you want to do, hmm?" "I want to stop seeing Scourge". Ixis tilted his head "Then don't turn around". Tails and Sonic stared at each other before turning around and seeing Scourge grinning at them Ixis, what should we do?" Sonic asked but he then realized Ixis was gone. Scourge walked towards them "This is a strange place. Very remote. The Empire will have great difficulty finding you here".
Sonic and Tails ignited their lightsabers, but Scourge remained calm "You think I came here to fight? I came here to speak with my apprentice" "He's not your apprentice" Sonic told him. Scourge grinned and stared at him "Yet" "How did you find me?" Tails asked. "When you abruptly severed our connection with the chaos drives, you mixed up the information. You learned a bit of what I want to know, and I learned a bit of what you wanted to know. But there were fragments and memories left in my mind". Tails' eyes opened wide "Like the location of our base". Scourge chuckled "Yes. Very good. You do learn fast, apprentice" "Look, I can't make sense of what I saw. I couldn't even describe it if I wanted to" "And that is why you need to come with me, so I can retrieve the answers which are just of reach". He put his hand of Tails' shoulder, but he pushed him off "So you get your answers, but what do we get out of it?" "I will keep your base secret". Sonic shook his head "No deal. You're not walking off this rock in one piece". Scourge laughed "I've planted a beacon nearby. Kill me and it activates, revealing to the Empire. You have knowledge that is rightfully mine. I have knowledge that you want. The key to defeating the Raiju. What I propose will satisfy us both". Tails sighed "Alright". Sonic turned to him "Tails, you're not doing this" "He's going to expose Gizoid Base" "We'll move, build a new base". Tails sighed "He won't hurt me, Sonic. He needs me. Besides, this might be our last chance to learn the secret of how to destroy the Raiju". Sonic sighed "I do not like this. But we don't really have a choice, do we? I'm gonna trust you on this". Tails turned to Scourge "Alright. We have a deal". A shuttle then arrived and landed behind Scourge "After you, apprentice".
Sonic arrived at the Sneak which Wave was working "I'm tracking Tails' signal. They just made the jump to hyperspace" "Then let's get going. I don't wanna lose them".
Tails was in the cockpit of the shuttle when they jumped out of hyperspace and saw a red planet "Where are we?" "Beryl, my home". They landed and exited the shuttle "If this is your home, where are your people?" "I'm the last survivor. My family, the Yagyu, were killed. The sisters were masterful witches. A threat to the Empire. I know you can relate". Tails looked around and saw the wreckage of old fighters "These witches, they use the Force?" "An aspect, yes. But it was their connection to this planet that made them strong. That is why we are here, to perform some old magic". They headed to what was eft of the Yagyu temple "Yes. Yes, everything that we need lies within the cave". Tails stopped "I'm not moving until you tell me how this works" "The only way to access the knowledge we seek is to merge our minds again. The effect will only last a moment. Just enough time for each of us to find the answers to our questions. Trust me, Tails". He began to look desperate "I only want the answers I deserve, nothing more" "What do we have to do?" "Come". They entered the temple and walked past a stone slab which the sight of caused Scourge to cringe and clutch his leg. They entered a small room "I have gathered many things, secrets to help us restore our memories" "Look at all this junk" "Don't touch anything. These are artifacts from my past, from a time when I had… so much more". Tails looed around and saw a painting of a female chameleon on the wall. Below it looked like a strange looking lightsaber handle. Tails was about to touch it but "Get away from there!". Tails turned to him "Is that a lightsaber" "Yes, but not like any that you would know. If your Wispon friend was here, haha, she could explain it to you".
Wave was flying the Sneak towards Beryl "Why is Tails so willing to trust Scourge again and again?". Sonic paused before sighing "I don't think he does. But I do know he's taking a big risk".
Scourge and Tails were back in the main room of the temple with him handing Tails a cup "I've studied the ways of the Yagyu sisters and found a spell that suits our needs". He went over to an alter and mixed three jars of liquid together "Now, to merge, we must each drink this potion". He poured it into hi cup before doing the same for Tails' "We must drink" "You first". Scourge clanged the drinks together before drinking. He then stared at Tails "You must drink it all". Tails reluctantly did so and suddenly both their eyes glowed green with smoke coming out "Where is he!?" Scourge yelled, "I want to know how to destroy the Raiju". They both looked upwards "I see. I understand" "Who is that. I know him". They both fell to the ground and their eyes returned to normal "Of course. It ends where it began. A desert planet with twin suns". Tails looked surprised "He's alive. I-I can't believe he's alive". Suddenly the fires in the cave all went out "It is time to pay our debt" "What's happening?". The stone slab glowed green and spiritual shapes emerged. Tails backed away in fear "What is that?" "Pay our due". Scourge gasped "The spirits of the Yagyu. They must be compensated for the use of their magic" "So pay them and let's get out of here" "I'm afraid the price is in flesh. Don't let them touch you!". They both tried to avoid the spirits when "Tails!" they turned and saw Sonic and Wave at the entrance. "Stay back!" Tails told them but the spirits flew towards them and flew inside as they began to scream. Tails watched in horror as they both stood up with their eyes closed and walked over to the slab "Stay back!" Scourge warned Tails.
"Sonic? Wave?", Sonic removed his mask revealing his glowing green eyes. He then went for his lightsaber and attacked Scourge who blocked with his own. Wave the raised her Wispon and shot fire at Tails who jumped out of the way "Wave! It's Tails!". "Destroy the alter!" Scourge yelled. Tails immediate hit the alter with his lightsaber destroying it, the spirits screamed and disappeared except for the two in Sonic and Wave who remained. Tails saw Scourge fighting Sonic "You better not hurt him" "We cannot defeat the spirits of the Yagyu! Follow me. I will show you how to save your friends". They both ran tot eh cave entrance as the Yagyu chased them. Once they got outside Tails noticed Sonic and Wave weren't following "Why'd they stop?" "The alter is the source of their power. They can't leave the cave". They watched Sonic and Wave backing into the darkness "It's unfortunate about your friends, Tails. But this… this is your opportunity to embrace your destiny, as my apprentice". Tails angrily turned to him "I told you, that is never going to happen!". Scourge started to get angry "Forget the past! Forget your memories! Forget your attachments". Scourge began to sound like he was pleading "Our future converge on a planet with two suns. We can walk that path together, as friends, as brothers" "My friends are trapped in there because of us. I can't just leave them". Scourge sighed and started walking back to his shuttle "You disappoint me, Miles Prower" he laughed as he entered the shuttle and flew away. Tails took a deep breath before entering the temple.
Wave then jumped down in front of him "You were unwise to re-enter our sanctum" she held out the darksaber and ignited it. Tails blocked her attacks "That doesn't belong to you" "Then take it from me, Shinobi". Tails smiled "If you insist" he jumped over her and pushed her with the Force towards the cave exit. She clawed at the ground trying to stop "No! No! No!" she screeched. Tails pushed her outside and the green spirit exited Wave and flew back into the cave. Tails ran over to Wave who looked shaken "Tails, whatever you got out of Scourge, I hope it was worth it". Tails stood up and looked into the cave "Sonic's still in there. I have to go in and convince those spirits to let him- What're you doing?". Wave was adjusting her wispon which turned Indigo. She pointed it at the cave and Tails suddenly heard screaming "NO!" Sonic suddenly flew right out of the cave and Wave turned off the wispon causing him to fall to the ground. The spirit flew out of his body and towards the cave. Tails was confused "How did… How did you get him specifically?" "I took samples of all your blood. I can lock onto you". Tails stared at her with his hand over his stomach "Were you gonna ever tell us this?". Wave smirked "I told you right now. If you tell the others I'll lock the red setting on you". Tails gulped and then heard Sonic waking up "Sonic, you alright?" "Uhm this is the last time we're working with Scourge" "I hope so" Wave said. Sonic put his mask back on and stood up "So, was it worth it. Did you find out what you wanted to know?". Tails nodded "Yes. The secret to destroying the Raiju is Espio the Chameleon" "You think he's still alive?" "He must be. But, Sonic, Scourge's also looking for him". Sonic nodded "So he knows where he is now?" "The chaos drive didn't tell us that. It just told us the planet with two suns" "That hardly narrows it down" Wave said. Sonic pondered "Well, we're gonna have to figure it out, because if we don't find Master Espio before Scourge" "There won't be anyway to stop the Raiju". Wave then looked to the ground. She picked it up and examined it before placing it on her belt and following Sonic and Tails to the Sneak.