It had been several hours since the first attacks around the world began, and in all that time, Abraham Tower had not stopped to take a break. He had remained at GUN HQ, issuing orders to his troops around the world. The Black Aliens, who he now knew to be the 'Black Arms', were not relenting in their attacks. However, an unforeseen development had taken place.

Glyphic Canyon, which had taken to the air, began to advance towards Central City, before being intercepted by the Egg Fleet. Tower ordered his troops to pull back, seeing it better to let their two foes destroy each other. It gave him more room to breathe, and allowed him to focus his efforts on defending the capital.

Hope had also been working tirelessly. She and the other technicians had been trying to restore order to the CIA's mainframe, and she refused to break away from her screen for even one moment. "How is it going?" he asked her as he offered her a cup of coffee. It was the only thing either of them had drank this whole time.

"It's not good," she told him. "The damage is too much, and they're still in there causing more trouble. Our firewalls have been hijacked so it's a fight just to get in there."

"Hmmm… Let's hope the ARK's defence team will be enough to repel the invaders."

"Commander, incoming transmission from E-123 Omega."

"Put it through."

"This is Omega. I am calling in as requested."

"I take it that you've reached Eggman's base?" the Commander asked.

"Negative. We have just reached the outer perimeter, however, Eggman has returned from his battle and is now retreating. I am beginning my pursuit." Gunshots rang out over the transmission.

"Are you okay?!" Hope asked, jumping out of her seat in a panic.

"Your concern is unnecessary. Shadow is merely killing his inferior copies."

Tower's eye twitched. "Shadow? He's there?!"

"Affirmative. Is that a problem?"

"You know that I've ordered Shadow to be taken out! Omega, forget about Ivo for now! Destroy Shadow!"

"… You are not my superior. I am not one of your agents. And I will not prioritise anything over Eggman's destruction."

Tower gritted his teeth. Hope gulped, silently sitting back down. The entire room was tense – nobody had ever seen him so angry before. "I'm ordering you to destroy him! If you refuse, then you will become our enemy!"

"Bring it on. I am not afraid of your feeble forces. Shadow's goal coincides with mine, therefore, I will not terminate him."

"You-"

"I am ending all further communication. Do not call this number again."

"OMEGA!" The line went silent, and Tower slammed his fist onto Hope's desk. "Damnit! Order all troops at Iron Jungle to focus their efforts on Omega and Shadow!"

"Sir, we lost contact with the Iron Jungle team thirty minutes ago," one technician reported. "It appears communications are being jammed. I can only surmise Omega was able to contact us because he's an Eggman robot."

"Why are you so focussed on killing Shadow?" Hope asked, flinching as the Commander looked down at her. "H-He saved my life in Westopolis, you know?"

"… Don't be fooled by him," he told her. "Shadow's no hero. Whatever he's planning, it's for the good of the Black Aliens. He's humanity's enemy, and don't ever forget that."

"But he-"

"Hope, please stay focussed on the task-at-hand," Tower said, a hint or irritation in his voice. A soldier ran up behind the two of them.

"Commander, your transport is ready," he reported.

"Thank you. I'm heading out right away."

"You're leaving?" Hope asked.

"Central City has become too dangerous. It's been decided to evacuate the president, and I will personally escort him here."

Hope turned back to her monitor. The situation was truly serious. She didn't have time to argue. She just had to do whatever she could. "Okay. I'll keep working here."

Tower nodded, and left with the soldier to head out into the field. It was the first time he had left this room since the invasion began.

As Hope failed again to bypass a security wall, she sighed. She wanted to do all she could, but what could she do? The Black Arms had a tight grip on the CIA's mainframe. Even an elite team of hackers couldn't get through. Maybe if they had all the time in the world, but the longer they took, the closer the Black Arms got to firing the Eclipse Cannon.

And on top of that, she was worried about the team at Iron Jungle. Omega probably hated GUN now, and Shadow… She was glad that Omega refused the Commander's order, but she still wanted to be sure they were both okay.

"… Sorry Commander, but I think my talents are needed elsewhere at the moment."

Omega and Shadow chased the Egg Balloon through the metallic runways stretching through the jungle. As they fired at its reinforced armour, the Egg Balloon itself fired back, destroying parts on the runway and forcing the two to find new paths through.

Suddenly, Omega felt a strange sensation in his circuits. He paused, wondering what it was.

"Hello? Omega?"

"Hope?" Omega looked around, but found nothing. "Does not compute."

"Sorry Omega, but I had to do a trace on your last transmission to call you back."

"I cut off communications. It should not be possible for you to be talking to me right now."

"Well, I used the data from when I was working on you to find a backdoor. Please, just hear me out. The Commander isn't here right now, and I promise that I won't ask you to attack Shadow."

"… I will give you a chance. I owe you that much, for the repairs."

"Thanks. I don't know why the Commander thinks Shadow is evil. He saved my life in Westopolis, so I know he's a good person."

"Omega, aren't you coming?" Shadow asked.

"Affirmative," Omega said, to both of them. He and Shadow resumed their trek through the area.

"Omega, sorry to ask you this, but can I tap into your optical sensors? I want to see what's going on there."

"I will allow this. You must be curious to see how your weapon enhancements fare in the field."

Hope laughed. "Sure, that too. Say, about what you said earlier, when you mentioned Shadow was fighting his 'inferior copies'. What did you mean by that?"

As if to answer her question, the two stopped as a group of Shadow Androids dropped before them. "This is what I meant."

"Shadow Androids?! But I thought they still weren't ready!"

"They are not. Eggman is desperate. But even incomplete, they still pose a serious threat to you and your human forces. I will exterminate them all."

"Hold on Omega. Can you try to leave one of them whole?"

"Why?"

"You can link up with them, right? See if you can extract any information about the area."

"… Shadow, hold your fire," Omega said as Shadow prepared to take on the androids. Omega rushed ahead and grabbed one, slamming it to the ground and pinning it down as he unleashed a rain of bullets on the other two. He then peered down at the remaining android and exchanged one of his gatling guns for a jack plug. He inserted it into a slot on the back of the android's neck. "The data is here, but it is encrypted."

"That's fine. Patch it through to me and I'll decipher it."

"Affirmative. We shall continue pursuit." After finishing the Shadow Android, Omega continued his pursuit, Shadow racing ahead of him. They fired at the Egg Balloon as they ran, prompting it to retaliate with missiles and bombs that scattered along the runway.

Shadow shot down an army of Eggman robots that intercepted their path, and grabbed the rocket launcher that one of them held as he ran through the wreckage. He swiftly turned and fired its salvo at the Egg Balloon, causing one of the turrets to explode.

"Egg Balloon is descending," Omega pointed out as the airship began to lower its altitude, heading towards a tunnel too far for either of them to reach.

"We'll have to cut it off," Shadow said. The two advanced but came to the end of the road as they entered a room. The only way to go was down, into what was clearly a trap… but neither one was concerned. They jumped down, welcoming whatever ambush Eggman had planned.

Shadow Androids fell from above, greeting them with a barrage of lock-on missiles. "Beware of fake Shadow's missiles!" Omega cautioned as he dodged a salvo and returned fire.

"Damn imposters, out of my way!" Shadow ran into the centre of the group of androids and brought his arms over his chest. "Chaos…" Omega stopped firing and retreated to a safer position, behind some containers. "BLAST!"

A shockwave shook the area as an intense light filled the room. "Omega, what's going on?!"

"There is nothing to fear. Eggman's forces are no match for us."

When the attack was over, the Shadow Androids remained nothing more than piles of charred metal. Shadow looked around and spotted a switch, connected to the elevator that sat at the centre of the room. "Let's get moving."

"Omega, wait."

"Shadow, wait."

"I'm just looking at the data you've sent me, and… there should be a door somewhere in that room. There's something in there that will help you."

Omega scanned the room and found the door. "I see it. Proceeding to break it down." Omega unleashed a barrage of missiles at the door, blowing it open. He and Shadow found a small storage space inside, and up against the wall lay four Tank Cannons, each one loaded and ready to fire. Omega picked one up, holding it with ease. "Heavy artillery acquired."

"That should do some damage," Shadow said with a grin. "By the way, who have you been talking to, Omega? Somebody from GUN?"

"Affirmative. Her name is Hope, but she is not like the others. She says that she met you in Westopolis."

"Westopolis… The girl who looked like-" Shadow shook his head. "Never mind that, let's get moving." Shadow ran back into the room, activating the elevator. Omega followed and the two rode up, exiting the room to find the Egg Balloon off in the distance. "Alright, let's see what this can do."

Shadow took the Tank Cannon from Omega and knelt down, positioning the barrel at the Egg Balloon. He fired, feeling the recoil as a shot burst through the air and hit the Egg Balloon directly. He fired the remaining shot, and this time the airship exploded.

"Egg Balloon has split into two," Omega reported.

"Where's Eggman?" Shadow asked.

"Activating thermal sensors." Omega studied the two compartments, and then pointed to the front end that was still heading towards Lava Shelter, albeit losing altitude fast. "Eggman is in there."

"Well then, enough games. Let's go finish this off." Shadow discarded the spent cannon and raced on ahead through the jungle, Omega right behind him.

Soaring high above the sky in one of GUN's fortified battleships, the President of the United Federation sat in despair as he thought about the city he was leaving behind. He understood the importance of his survival, but to think that he would run away and protect himself, while his people fought bravely against these alien invaders.

"We'll arrive in one hour, Mr. President," Tower reported as he entered the room, standing at attention. The evacuation of Central City is going smoothly, thanks to the assistance of Knuckles the Echidna. The Egg Fleet has fallen, but the time it bought was more than enough to rally our troops and push back the initial wave of Black Aliens."

"To think that I would owe my gratitude even to Eggman…"

A soldier ran in behind the Commander. "Reporting! The Black Aliens are in pursuit! They have started to attack our surrounding ships and are making their way here! We believe that their target is the President, but this is still unconfirmed."

"I feared this might happen…" Tower said. The President hung his head as he sighed.

"We've also received a request to board from a small aircraft, piloted by Miles Prower!"

"Tails? Grant him permission to dock at bay eight!"

"Yes, sir!"

Tower turned to the President. "Don't give up hope yet, sir. We've already planned for this eventuality, and with Tails' help, we should have nothing to worry about."

"I don't like the idea of children fighting on my behalf," the President began, "But Tails has proven himself more than capable on several occasions."

"His quick thinking and ingenuity saved Station Square from Eggman's attack, and though I hate to admit it, he has even proven a match for GUN in the past. I have confidence in his abilities."

As the nearby bay doors opened, Tower escorted the President away to another room. Tails landed in the battleship aboard his Cyclone, greeted by a squad of GUN soldiers who all saluted him. "T-There's no need to do that, guys," Tails said as he departed his plane.

"It's the least we can do," one of the soldiers said. "You're practically a hero! The way you fought off the Egg Fleet before it could advance on Central City."

"And the way you and your friends stopped the ARK from falling down to Earth," another soldier said.

"And that time you stopped the Battle Bird Armada from launching its invasion!"

"Wow, you even heard of that one?" Tails laughed, nervous as the soldiers crowded around him. "Ah, there's no time for all that! I saw the Black Aliens heading this way, with several gunships! I heard the President's on-board. How can I help?"

"We're glad you're here, Tails," Tower said as he approached the Cyclone. "We have a plan to get the President out of here, and we would certainly welcome your help to pull it off."

Tails nodded. "I'll do what I can!" He looked behind Tower, at the GUN soldier standing behind him, a tinted visor over his eyes. "Is that…"

"It's good to see you again, Tails," the President said, extending his hand to shake the young fox's. "Commander Tower suggested I wear a disguise."

"If the Black Aliens are really after the President, then it would be for the best if he didn't stand out." Tower began to lead the group out of the room. "Come, this way." They walked through the ship's corridors, to a large hanger where several small planes sat ready to be deployed. "These escape crafts have been prepared in the event of a sudden emergency. They're not very fast but they're heavily armoured, able to withstand even several blasts from a tank before showing any damage."

"The Black Aliens are relentless, though," Tails said as he studied the crafts. "Their ships are way too fast. You'll never get away in one of these."

"Unfortunately, you're right. That's why we're going to send one through the battleship as a decoy." Tower motioned towards one craft that was being prepped. Standing outside was a man wearing the President's suit, with a wig that reflected his hairstyle. "Agent Stewart will act as the President's body-double. In the event that the Black Aliens make it aboard, he'll buy our troops the time they need to create an opening, and escape in the real escape craft."

Tails nodded. "Okay, just leave it to me! I'll keep the Black Aliens busy, and lead them far away from the President!"

"I knew we could count on you," Tower said with a smile. He handed Tails an earpiece. "You can use this to keep in contact with us and Mr. Stewart."

Tails put on the earpiece. "Hello? Can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear, Tails," Mr. Stewart responded. "And might I say, it's an honour to be working with you on this mission. I'm putting my life in your hands."

Tails laughed nervously. "Well, I'll do my best…" The battleship rocked suddenly, causing everybody to lose their footing. "W-What was that?!"

"Sir! The Black Aliens are breaking through our defences!" a soldier reported. "They are landing on top of the battleship and are cutting their way through!"

"Already?!" Tower turned to the President. "Mr. President, we must move to a more defensible position."

"Lead the way, Commander."

"We'll do our best to draw their attention away," the soldier said with a salute.

Tower pointed at three of the soldiers. "You're with me. No matter what happens, keep the President safe!"

"Sir!"

Tails flew down to the decoy escape vehicle, where Mr. Stewart was getting ready to board. "I hope they'll be okay," the President said as he looked down at the two.

"They'll be fine. They're stronger than they look," Tower assured him. "Mr. President, we need to get moving."

The President nodded. "Yes, of course."

The Commander led his squad and the President out of the room, leaving the remaining soldiers to run down and join Tails in defending the decoy craft.

When Shadow and Omega arrived at the crash site, they had found that Eggman had already retreat and promptly gave chase. They arrived at the entrance to his base and busted down the doors blocking their path. Inside was a large, arena-like area with several paths branching from it.

"Great. Which way did he go?" Shadow wondered as the two approached the centre. Suddenly, the pathways receded, and in the centre of the arena, a large, mechanical contraption appeared. Eggman was in the head of the robot, looking down on the two of them. "Doctor!"

"Shadow and Omega? Why you traitors! You two are going to stop me?! Move aside!"

Omega readied himself to fight, but Shadow seemed less certain. He held a hand out to stop the robot and stepped forward. "Doctor, please! I need to know… Those androids, the ones that look like me… Am I-"

Eggman grinned, a glint appearing in his eye. "Yes!"

Shadow took a step back. "What?"

"You and Omega are my creations! But you betray me as you stand here before me!" Eggman sat down, and his robot began to move. "So now, I will destroy you both, turning you into scrap metal!"

"Eggman, I will defeat you once-and-for-all!" Omega threatened.

Shadow fell to his knee, staring down at the ground as he tried to process this new information. "I'm an… an android…"

"This is what you get for turning against your master!" Eggman's robot fired two laser beams, prompting Omega to pick up Shadow and move aside. "You won't get away!"

"Shadow, snap out of it!"

"Omega, I'm picking up movement near you! Robots are coming in!"

Omega noticed several robots coming up from the floor. He tried to gun them down, but another attack from Eggman forced him to move Shadow again, the hedgehog still out of commission.

"Regain your senses already, or else I will be forced to leave you!"

"What does it matter?" Shadow asked, looking down at his hands. "I'm just a useless hunk of metal, after all. I have no memories. My life is meaningless…"

"… Is that how you feel about me?" Omega asked, moving Shadow to avoid another attack from Eggman.

"Stop that!" Eggman shouted.

"I am not organic, either. And yet, I would consider myself far from worthless. Being fleshy is overrated."

"Omega, can you make it possible for him to hear my voice?"

Omega turned and began firing at the robots approaching them. "I will put you on speaker."

"Thanks," Hope said. "Shadow, can you hear me?"

"You're… the girl I saved."

"That's right. Shadow, I don't know what you're thinking right now, but are you really going to just accept the Doctor's word? Rouge told me you're looking for your memories. That you've been looking since your battle with Metal Sonic. Isn't it a bit early to jump to conclusions?"

Shadow gritted his teeth and clenched his hand into a fist. "What do you know?"

"I know that the Shadow who saved the Earth from total destruction, was a hero, willing to sacrifice even his own life to keep us safe!"

"That Shadow's dead! I'm just a copy!"

"I don't think you are! Because you did the same thing all over again. You saved me in Westopolis, too, and I don't think it was just an accident! Whether you're real or a robot, you're Shadow the Hedgehog! Are you going to let that creep get in your head, and call it quits before seeing things through to the end?!"

"Shadow, I am going to leave you if you do not move!" Omega warned as he watched Eggman prepare another laser attack.

"Shadow, I believe in you! Please, don't give up!"

Shadow gasped. "Maria?" Jumping to his feet, Shadow lifted Omega with one hand and circled the arena. "Maria, you received the data Omega extracted earlier, right? Do you have anything on this guy?"

"It's designated 'Egg Breaker', and it's packed with powerful attacks, but the cockpit is largely undefended! If you can get high enough, you can disable it!" Hope paused for a few seconds. "By the way, my name is Hope."

"Uh, right. Sorry." Shadow noticed a launchpad nearby and stopped, letting Omega down.

"Carry me like that again, and Eggman will be the last thing you need to worry about."

"Can you hold off the robots for me?" Shadow asked, ignoring the threat. "I'm going to use this to get up to Eggman."

Omega readied his gatling guns and opened his chestplate, revealing a missile salvo ready to launch. "Affirmative!" He began firing, taking down robots rapidly as they charged towards them. "… Shadow, it is good to have you back."

Shadow found the latch to ready a rocket and pulled it. "I'm not giving up here. Whether I'm real or fake, I'm going to see this through to the end." Shadow grabbed the rocket and held on as it launched. "But one thing I'm sure of…"

Eggman gasped as he saw Shadow in the air, high above him. "S-S-Stay back!"

"I'm nothing like those lifeless machines! I'm Shadow the Hedgehog!" Shadow spun into a ball and crashed down into the cockpit, pushing the Egg Breaker down off its pedestal and onto its back. He bounced back and landed next to Omega. "I'm the one who will find the truth about my past, and forge my destiny from there! That's who I am!"

Eggman righted himself and stomped around the arena, glaring at the two as he raised his robot's right arm, the end of which was affixed with a large mace. "Ugh, you asked for it! No more Mr. Nice Guy!"

The Egg Breaker leapt into the air, and came down fast on the two of them. They split off into separate direction, avoiding the attack and the shockwave that ensued.

"Take this!" Eggman shouted as the robot spun, firing explosives that scattered all around the arena. "You know what they say: the more the merrier!"

Shadow took cover behind a sheet of metal, whilst Omega kept running, weaving between the unrelenting explosions. "Omega, my data shows he has an excessively large stock of those things! He's not gonna run out anytime soon!"

Shadow Androids appeared in front of Omega, forcing him to gun them down as he also tried to focus on evading the explosions. "Recommendations?"

"Hold on, I'm reading through the data and… Okay, it looks like you can disable it if you apply enough damage to the front of the robot. There should be a glowing spot."

"Leave that to me!" Shadow shouted as ran out from his cover, a Chaos Emerald in his hand. "Chaos Control!" Shadow warped ahead, appearing before the mech in an instant. He found the spot Hope was talking about and delivered a devastating kick, forcing the mech back and ceasing the never-ending attack.

"You-" Eggman, but he was unable to continue as he began receiving shots from behind.

As Omega attacked from behind, Shadow jumped up and delivered another blow to Eggman's cockpit, this time smashing the control panel.

"Curses! Next time we meet, you won't be so lucky!" Eggman pulled a lever, and was ejected from the robot moments before it exploded.

"Eggman is escaping!" Omega noted as he watched the Doctor's hovercraft moving swiftly through the air. He attempted to fire, but a Shadow Android shot him from behind, throwing his aim off.

"Omega!" Hope cried.

"Bastard!" Shadow rushed the android and kicked it, sending it flying off of the arena and into the jungle below. "Omega, you alright?!"

Omega picked himself up, checking himself before responding. "All systems are still functioning. Damage is superficial… But Eggman has escaped."

"You can still catch him. Topaz's team are on their way, and can join you in Lava Shelter."

"You go on ahead," Shadow said, crossing him arms. "I have no more business with that lying Doctor. Me, an android? I don't buy that for one second!"

Omega tilted his head. "Were you not just moping because you believe the Doctor to be telling the truth?"

Shadow turned his head away, sweating. "A secret we'll take to our graves."

"… Agreed, as long as you do not reveal that I allowed the Doctor to escape by letting down my guard."

"Agreed." Shadow and Omega shook on it, the hedgehog grinning. "Anyway, I'm done here. The Doctor was a dead-end, so I'm back to my original plan. The Chaos Emeralds are the only way to get my missing memories back."

"Will you be okay on your own?"

"There's no need to worry about me. I'll be just fine." Shadow turned and left, leaving Omega alone in the room full of busted-up robots.

"Shadow is stronger than any other organic lifeforms I have met," Omega said. "Your concern for him is unnecessary."

Hope laughed. "You're right. I'm going to have to break contact now. The Commander's on his way back."

"Understood. I will give Eggman one good punch for you."

With that, Omega left to pursue Eggman into his base.

The battle had been raging on for ten long minutes now, and to the President, it felt even longer. The Black Aliens had yet to show themselves to him, instead chasing the fake President through the fortified ship. Tails contacted them frequently to update them on the situation.

The Commander directed and observed the attacks on the Black Alien ships outside. There were two that were in the perfect position to gun down any escape craft that tried to leave. If they could be taken out, then they could safely evacuate the President! The problem was that they were heavily defended, not only by other ships, but also by the flying aliens that could fire some sort of projectile attack. There were swarms of them out there and it made approaching the enemy ships difficult, almost impossible, even.

But the Commander was not one to give up just because something was 'impossible'. "J-1, J-2, fall back and regroup with H-Squad. Focus your attacks on the flying creatures and create an opening for H-2 and H-4."

"Roger!"

"S-Squad, continue advancing and don't let up. Break the enemy's position and flank them."

"Roger that!"

"Watch your altitude! The Black Aliens' gunships are stronger against enemies that are below them!" It was something that the Commander had noticed from studying footage of the gunships in action. Their weapons were designed to lay suppressing fire on targets below them, specifically on cities and foot soldiers. But when GUN's fighter jets arrived at Westopolis, the gunships struggled to retaliate and were forced to retreat. Perhaps the aliens weren't used to fighting a species that could rival them in aerial combat? If so, then it was a weakness that the Commander was all too eager to exploit.

"… Commander, I realise that now may not be the best time, but there's something I wanted to ask you," the President said, drawing Towers' attention.

"What is it, Mr. President?"

"Regarding your order, that Shadow is to be killed-on-sight. Why did you give out such an order?"

Tower brought his hand up to the bridge of his nose. Even the President disagreed with his decision, but he knew he had to stand firm. "Mr. President, Shadow is-"

"I understand that you must have mixed feelings, considering it was GUN who designated Shadow a threat to all of humanity."

"I don't need GUN to tell me that," Tower responded. "I've seen it with my own two eyes! The monster that killed all those people on the ARK. My parents, and Maria!"

The President was taken aback by this. "Shadow? You… are sure you're not mistaken?"

"I'm sure," the Commander said. "There's no way I could ever mistake the horrific sight of that black hedgehog, being created in complete secret…"

"And you saw him… kill the people of the ARK?"

"I was there when the outbreak occurred," the Commander said. "I was one of the ones lucky enough to survive."

"That's not what I-"

"Reporting in!" Tails said suddenly through the radio. "We're almost at the front of the ship. The craft can't take much more!"

"I'll be fine," Mr. Stewart assured, though his shaky voice suggested otherwise. "But I don't know how much longer we can keep them focussed on us. As soon as this bird lands, they'll know I'm not the President."

The Commander slammed his fist against the window. The battle outside was a stalemate. They needed more time! He glanced across the room and caught sight of the Cyclone, still parked where Tails had left it. "… Tails, return here as fast as you can!"

"But the decoy-"

"Has done its job, but it'll be pointless if we can't take down the gunships pinning us down. Your cyclone should be nimble enough to get the job done, but you're the only one who can pilot it!"

"Okay, I'm heading back n- WHOA!"

"What happened?! Tails!"

The President froze as the radio fell silent. His head slowly hung as he fell back into his seat, a nearby soldier rushing to steady him.

"… Sorry about that," Tails said, though there was a lot of static on the line. "The decoy craft is down. Mr. Stewart got away, but I've lost sight of him. I'm returning now."

Tower breathed a sigh of relief. "Please hurry. This may be our last chance."

Two minutes passed as they waited, and continued watching the battle outside unfold. "Commander, enemy forces incoming!" a soldier reported as he ran into the room. "There are five of the smaller ones and three of the giants!"

The soldiers moved into position as the President took cover behind a wall of bulletproof glass. The Commander grabbed a nearby rifle and joined his troops. "Mr. President, when I give the signal, hit the emergency lever to your side. It will drop you into the service tunnels. Make a run for the escape crafts, board the nearest one, and leave right away."

The President nodded, holding his hand near the lever. He watched tensely as the soldiers stood waiting for the coming attack. Then, bullet began firing. One soldier threw a grenade, and the explosion echoed loud. Another soldier was hit and fell to the ground. He wanted to run over and help the man, but he had to stay put. It was infuriating, but these brave men were putting the lives on the line for his sake. He could not dishonour that by recklessly endangering his own life now.

"Hold your fire!" Tower shouted suddenly. The President heard the sounds of large objects being thrown against steel walls outside, and wondered what was happening. Then, Tower and the soldiers ran back into the room and approached the Cyclone.

Tails and Mr. Stewart ran in shortly after, the latter panting as he rested against a wall. The President ran out from his cover. "You made it!"

Tails grinned, scratching his nose the way Sonic would. "Nothin' to it!" He turned to the exhausted agent still catching his breath. "Actually, it was thanks to Mr. Stewart. He showed me the fastest way through the ship."

"Tails, we must hurry!" Tower said, wheeling the Cyclone into position. Tails rushed to his plane and jumped in. "There are two gunships that need to be taken down." The Commander pointed them out, and Tails nodded.

"How is he going to leave with all that going on?" Stewart asked, noticing the countless numbers of Black Aliens flying around outside.

"We're going to drop a number of escape crafts to draw their fire. It's not much but it's the best we can do."

"That should be plenty," Tails said as he booted up the Cyclone. "Okay, ready when you are!"

Tower reached for his radio. "Drop the cargo!"

"Roger!"

Outside, the Black Aliens and their gunships began laying supressing fire on something below the battleship. The GUN mechs and fighter jets took advantage of this to start thinning out their numbers. The bay doors opened, and Tails blasted forwards, making his way towards the gunships as he avoided incoming fire.

He managed to slip by the Black Aliens and circled around the first gunship, locking onto various points along the top and unleashing a barrage of missiles. The ship took heavy damage and began to lower its altitude, but Tails positioned himself behind it and charged his frontal cannon. It fired, and it caused an explosion that triggered a chain-reaction, causing the entire ship to fall apart in the sky.

The soldiers onboard cheered as the first ship went down, and Tails quickly moved to the next one. This time, however, the Black Aliens had noticed him and had focussed their efforts on taking the fox down. He tried to blast his way through, but any aliens he took down were soon replaced.

"There are too many of them!" He tried to launched missiles through the holes in their defences, but the aliens would just move to block them, with no regards to their own lives. "It's like they're a hivemind. They act as one unit and self-sacrifice means nothing to them."

"Tails, we have more of the Black Aliens on the way! We're going to go on ahead to the escape vehicle! Please clear the way for us quickly!"

A tall order from the Commander. Some GUN units had arrived to help, but there was just no getting through the swarms of Black Aliens to reach the gunship. Not without some sort of distraction…

"Tails, is the route clear? Please confirm!"

"Can you drop more escape crafts to cause a distraction?"

"Negative! We only have one left!"

Tails held his head. What could he do? He needed something to distract the Black Aliens, something they couldn't resist… "I got it! Hang on just a little longer!"

Tails flew back to the battleship, towards the hatch where the President's escape craft would be launched. He flew inside and landed next to the Commander's group, who were confused to see him back. "Mr. Stewart, you're still dressed as the President!" he cheered.

"Uh, yes. There hasn't been time to change."

"Tails, what are you planning?" Tower asked.

"We need something to distract the Black Aliens so we can take out that gunship. Well, what's more distracting than the exact thing they're looking for?"

Mr. Stewart gasped. "I see! You're thinking if the Black Aliens see me, they'll think I'm the President and will chase after us!"

Tails nodded. "Everyone, get onboard! We'll have the way cleared in one minute!"

Tower nodded, and ushered his team aboard the escape craft. Mr. Stewart joined Tails aboard the Cyclone and the two left to return to the battle. As they neared the gunship, the Black Aliens fired relentlessly. "I think they saw me," Mr. Stewart said, keeping his head low.

"Now let's hope they follow us," Tails said as he blasted past them. The Black Aliens turned and gave chase, leaving behind an opening large enough for three of GUN's fighter jets to break through. "It's working!"

"Great, but now how do we get them off our backs?"

"No problem! Just watch this!" Tails pressed a button, and the Cyclone began to change shape. It became more sleek, and its weapons were retracted in favour of a more streamlined formation, as well as two additional engines at the back.

Tails performed a 180-degree turn and the two watched as the gunship began to fall. "COMMANDER, NOW!"

"Roger!"

The escape craft left the battleship, and although many Black Aliens attempted to stop it, it withstood their attacks and quickly outpaced them. The other gunships were not able to reach the craft before it got ahead of the convoy.

Tails and Mr. Stewart cheered as they raced through the skies, quickly catching up to the craft. "We did it!" Tails sang.

"Excellent work! We'll return to GUN HQ and plan our next move!"

Mr. Stewart sighed, removing his wig and slumping into his seat. "I guess it's not over yet." As the two soared through the skies, he gazed out into the horizon, now painted a fiery orange from the setting sun. "What a beautiful view." Tails nodded in agreement. "Might be the last time we ever see it…"

"We'll make it though this. All of us." Tails gripped the wheel as he stared out into the sunset. "Still, I can't shake this feeling that something big is coming… I guess I've always taken sunsets for granted. I'm afraid of nightfall, tonight."