It had been a few days since Robotnik's attack on the city. Clean-up efforts were underway and life was returning to normal. In the Kent household, Sonic, Amy, Tails, Cream, and Cheese were all gathered in Chuck's lab, discussing how they'd come to Earth. Chuck listened with great enthusiasm to the tale, with Keith doing his best to follow along.
"And that pretty much explains it," Tails concluded.
"Fascinating," Chuck marveled. "So this 'Chaos Control' is some kind of time space manipulation. And the source of this great power is found in seven tiny gemstones?"
"The Chaos Emeralds, yes," Amy confirmed. "Each emerald contains insane amounts of power on their own, so you can imagine what could happen if you had all seven.
"So, they're like the Dragon Balls," Keith compared. "Only, instead of a wish, you get Chaos Control."
"Yeah… I guess," Tails replied, unsure of what he was talking about.
"So, the only way for you to recreate the events that brought you here would be to locate all seven of these Emeralds," Chuck surmised. "However, I highly doubt that will be possible."
"What do you mean?" Keith asked.
"Well, considering they were last in the hands of that Robotnik fellow, he no doubt has them in his base."
"If that were true, he would have used them already," Sonic declared. "Eggman's not one to pass up on a super weapon like the Chaos Emeralds. Besides, it's said that every time the seven Chaos Emeralds come together, their power is so great, they scatter to the winds."
"Then it's safe to assume the same happened here," Chuck pointed out. "The problem is, we don't know if they're still on Mobius or not."
"But… if they're on Mobius, then we'll never get home..." Cream let out, tears forming in her eyes.
Amy went over and gave Cream a reassuring hug.
"Don't worry Cream, emeralds or not, we'll figure out a way to get home. Right, guys?"
"I'll do everything in my power to help," Chuck promised.
"Besides, considering all of you guys made it here, as well as Eggman's robots, I think it's safe to assume the Emeralds came with you," Keith pointed out.
"Keith's got a point," Sonic agreed. "And if they are here, then we need to find them before Eggman does."
"We can do it," Tails declared. "I know we can! Right Sonic?"
"You bet, buddy!"
…
Meanwhile, at a construction site on the far side of town, some heavy machinery was in the process of leveling out the ground for a new department store. Several construction vehicles were hauling supplies, moving dirt, or just ensuring everything was going smoothly. One of the scoops that was on duty began dumping its load of dirt, unearthing a fist sized emerald. The gem was a bright green color, giving off a low level of light as it hummed with power, proving itself to be none other than one of the infamous Chaos Emeralds.
…
Across the country, flying up in Airforce One, the President was meeting with several of his aids. The topic of discussion was the most recent developments with their otherworldly visitors.
"Alright, I want answers about what happened out there," the President demanded. "Do we have any idea what these creatures are or where they came from?"
"It seems the hedgehog and his friends are staying with a family in Station Square, and our agents have traced Robotnik to an island somewhere in the Southern Sea," one of the aids answered.
"Have there been any moves to capture them?"
"Actually, sir, the defense force believes that observation is the best course of action at the moment," a second aid piped up. "While Robotnik is a threat, we're still not sure about his level or tech, or the firepower he has at his disposal. Recon teams are doing what they can to learn more even as we speak."
"And the hedgehog?"
"As far as we can tell, he seems to be against Robotnik," the first aid spoke up, "Perhaps a potential ally?"
"Perhaps… but until we know for certain, I want them to be placed under surveillance."
"Of course, sir," the second aid nodded. "An undercover operative has already been dispatched to the school where the young man attends. He has orders to learn what he can about the family, as well as their animal companions."
"Excellent. I trust you'll keep me informed on any changes."
"Of course sir."
…
Later that day, at Naoto Ohshima High School, Keith was getting into his locker to grab his textbooks. As he did, someone came up behind him in a sneaky fashion.
"Heeeeeey KEITH!"
Keith was suddenly grabbed by the shoulders, causing him to jump and drop his books. He let out a long breath as his attacker began cackling. He turned around to be greeted by the short, messy red hair of his friend Kathryn Winters. She was wearing a simple tank top under a leather jacket with dark jeans and combat boots.
"Do you have to do that every time, Kat?" Keith questioned.
"I'll stop when you stop reacting so hilariously," she replied, leaning against the lockers next to him. "So, how was your weekend?"
"It was alright. Helped my dad out with a new project. How about you? Heard that Crush 40 concert was sick."
"Oh it was the best! They played all my favorite songs!" she began listing them off on her hand. "His World, Open your Heart, Knight of the Wind, all the greats! I wish you could have come."
"Me too, but my dad wanted me at home."
"Oh well," Kat shrugged. "Still, I hear that Station Square wasn't all butterflies and rainbows this week. In fact, I heard that things got pretty weird down here, for once."
Keith swallowed hard, but did his best to keep his poker face up.
"Oh? I didn't notice."
Kat snorted as the two started walking down the hallway.
"Didn't notice? You're saying you didn't see anything on a super sonic hedgehog that outran the S-Team? Or the giant robot that wrecked the Station Square Central Bank? Or the evil scientist who tried to take over the city?!"
"Uh… nope. Must've just missed it."
Kat's eyes narrowed, then she moved in front of Keith, blocking his path.
"Keith Edward Kent, are you hiding something from me?"
"What? No! What would make you say something like that?"
"Because there is no way in hell your brother just let something like getting outraced slide. He would have been calling you to rant at the very least. So try again, buster."
Keith was wracking his brain for some sort of excuse, but the timely ringing of the homeroom bell saved him the trouble.
"Uh, we need to get to class, or Miss Westerly will give us detention."
Kat let out a growl, but nonetheless ceased holding up Keith. The two began briskly walking towards the classroom as she gave him a look.
"This isn't over."
"I know..." Keith sighed.
…
Keith and Kat made it to Homeroom in time, but were surprised to find their usual teacher gone. The Principle was standing at the front of the classroom, a younger man with longer blonde hair and glasses standing with him. As the two teens took their seats, Kat leaned over to Keith.
"Do you know anything about this?"
"No idea."
"Attention class,"the Principle spoke up. "I have a brief announcement to make. Your Homeroom teacher, Ms. Westerly will be taking an extended leave of absence and will not be joining you for the remainder of the school year."
Some whispers were shared between the students before the principal cleared his throat.
"Because of this, I'd like to introduce you to Mr. Franklin Stewart. He'll be your teacher for the foreseeable future."
"Hello everyone," Mr. Stewart greeted. "I'm happy to meet you all and I can't wait to get to know you better."
His eyes scanned the room, pausing on Keith for a moment as his eyes narrowed somewhat. The principle left and Mr. Stewart clapped his hands together.
"Alright, given that I'm brand new here, I figured we'd start today off with an ice breaker. When I call your name, I want you to stand up, say your name, what your parents do, your favorite animal, and what superpower you would want the most."
Everyone kinda laughs, some of the students already discussing what they would pick.
"I'll start," Mr. Stewart announced. "My father's a stock broker and my mother's a housewife. My favorite animal is a cat and if I could have a super power, I'd choose flight." He began scanning the room before settling on Kat. "How about you go next?"
"Okay," Kat stood up. "I'm Kathryn Winter, or Kat for short. My dad's the groundskeeper for Diamond Stadium, and my mom was a nurse. My favorite animal is a dog, the bigger the better. And if I could have a super power, I'd want super strength,"
"Very nice," Mr. Stewart replied. "Anyone else want to go next?" He looks at Keith. "How about you?"
"Me? Uh… ok… My name is Keith Kent, my dad's the founder of Sega Labs and my mom is Lindsey Fair, the actress. If I had a superpower, it would be super speed. As for my favorite animal… I guess… hedgehog?"
Mr. Stewart smiled, as if his suspicions had been confirmed. Still, he moved on to the next kid without comment, continuing his 'ice breaker'.
…
Back at the construction site, the digging continued. One of the backhoes went to scoop up another batch or dirt, one of the teeth on its shovel touching down on the Chaos Emerald. The second it touched it, the controls started fluctuating as an ethereal green glow washed over the backhoe. The driver instantly began panicking as the controls started sparking.
"Hey, what's going on?!" he let out.
Suddenly, the backhoe started driving forward on its own. The driver tried to stop it, but the machine just kept on going, even raising and lowering its shovel randomly. The shovel came down on a dump truck, smashing the glass and forcing the driver to bail out. It then ran over a large set of steel I-beams before barreling across the site. It wasn't until the shovel got caught in a dirt pile and the backhoe fell into a ditch that the rampage ended.
"Get the driver out of there!" the site manager snapped.
Several other workers ran over and pulled the driver out of the backhoe. He was shaking badly, his face as white as a sheet.
"You ok, pal?" one of the workers asked.
"I… I think so," the driver answered. "That thing just took on a mind of its own all of a sudden."
The backhoe began shuddering, causing everyone to jump and scramble away from it. Off to the side, the Chaos Emerald gleamed.
…
At the Kent house, Cream was reading a children's book on the couch while the news was playing in the background. Cheese was sleeping on the couch, enjoying a small nap. As they enjoyed themselves, the news began playing a report on the construction site.
"This is Scarlet Garcia from SSTV news with a shocking report. A strange stone was found at the construction site of a West Jingle department store, one that caused severe malfunctions in all of the construction equipment that came near it. As far as authorities can tell, the stone appears to be radiating highly-charged energy. Now, some of you watching at home may be experiencing some static. This is a direct result of the gem's magnetic power."
Cheese slowly began opening his eyes, blinking and rubbing them. As he looked up at the screen, he saw the glowing emerald appear. With a loud cheer, Cheese rushed over to Cream, flopping onto her head to get her attention. As soon as she saw the emerald, her ears shot straight up.
"Cheese, is that what I think it is?"
Cheese began chirping loudly, pulling on Cream's dress. The rabbit immediately got up.
"You're right! We have to tell Sonic!"
…
Outside, Sonic was sitting in a tree, tossing a small golden ring in his hand.
"I wonder if this is worth anything around here?" he pondered. "Knowing my luck, probably not."
"Sonic!" Cream shouted as she and Cheese came running into the yard. "Sonic, guess what?"
"Hey, Cream. What's up?" Sonic asked.
"They found one! They found a Chaos Emerald!"
"What?!" Sonic quickly hopped down from the tree. "Are you sure?"
"Uh-huh! They said it made all the machines at a department store construction site act all weird! It has to be an Emerald!"
"If one Emerald made it through, then the others must've too. Where is this construction side?"
"It didn't say… Maybe Keith will know."
"Good idea… but where's Keith?"
"Keith's at school."
"Do you remember the name of the school? I can't just run to each school in Station Square until I find the right one."
Cream began trying to remember as Cheese flew off through an open window. He returned after a minute, holding what looked like Keith's student ID. It had the name of his school written at the top, much to Sonic's delight.
"Thanks Cheese," Sonic replied before running off.
…
Meanwhile, in Robotnik's island base, the mad doctor was watching the report as well, grinning from ear to ear.
"Authorities are conducting a thorough investigation of the surrounding area to determine the possible source of the gem. SSTV will continue to keep you posted with further updates. This is Scarlet Garcia, SSTV News."
"Well what do you know?" Robotnik let out. "A Chaos Emerald hidden right under my nose."
"Really?" Cubot questioned, looking under his nose. "I don't see it."
Robotnik sighed irritably, turning away.
"I'll need to recover the emerald quickly. Considering the publicity this report's gotten, it's only a matter of time before Sonic catches wind of this."
"All you need now is the bot for the job," Orbot told him.
"Indeed. This one will need to be versatile and quick, but still pack enough firepower to deter any interference from the locals."
Robotnik scanned through his robot files until he found the bot that met his specifications.
"Aha! Beakon. Perfect."
…
A few minutes later, a large purple bird shaped robot took off from Robotnik's base, with Robotnik himself following close behind. Unbeknownst to the scientist, a team of government agents had been stationed on the island to keep an eye on Robotnik. When one of them spotted Beakon and the doctor flying towards the mainland, they immediately began phoning it in.
"Robotnik is on the move! He's got a new robot with him and he's headed for the city."
Up in the air, Robotnik continued soaring behind his metal creation.
"Once I get my hands on that Chaos Emerald, I'll use its power to create an even better robot. One that will have every single person on this planet cower before me."
He let out an evil laugh as he and Beakon vanished into the distance.
…
At the Kent house, Tails fired up the Tornado as Amy climbed into the passenger seat.
"I can't believe Sonic ran off after a Chaos Emerald without us!" Amy fumed.
"You know Sonic," Tails replied. "Once he gets an idea in his head, he goes off full force."
"But he doesn't even know where to go!" Amy pointed out.
"Sonic will figure it out, like he always does. We just need to be ready to help him."
With that, the Tornado began taking off, its occupants hoping they could find the Emerald in time.
…
Across town, Sonic was running back and forth in search of Keith's school. He kept checking that student ID card so he made sure he got the name right.
"Naoto Ohshima… Ugh, you think a name like that would be hard to miss."
He picked up the pace, continuing his search.
…
Out above the ocean, Beakon and Robotnik were making their way towards Station Square. Suddenly, Robotnik's radar began to beep. He glanced down at it, seeing for blips approaching from the rear.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Someone's actually trying to follow me."
He glanced over his shoulder, seeing four missiles closing in on him. Rather than panic, the doctor just grinned.
"Oh Beakon, do me a favor and sink these finks."
Beakon flew towards the missiles, getting them to follow him as he turned back towards the ocean. He flew perpendicular to the water, turning at the last possible second. The missiles did not corner as well as Beakon did, and thus exploded harmlessly in the water. Robotnik cackled as Beakon rejoined him.
"How disappointing. I'm actually starting to get bored. It's times like these that I miss Mobius. Ah well."
With nothing left to say, he continued his way towards the city.
…
At Naoto Ohshima High, Keith was staring out the window, bored out of his mind. In front of the class, Mr. Stewart was writing out some problems on the board for the class to solve. The rest of the class was following along, or were at least pretending to.
"Hey Keith, what did you get for question 6?" Kat asked, nudging her friend.
"I'm not telling you," Keith told her.
"Oh come on, you know I suck at cosines."
Just then, a blue blur whizzed past the window, catching Keith's attention.
"Hello? Earth to Keith," Kat urged. "Come on, help a girl out."
The blue blur then doubled back as Sonic came to a stop under the window. He waved at Keith, urging him to come outside.
"Keith!" Kat hissed. "Are you even listening? What are you looking at anyway?"
"I need one of your get out of class kits," he said bluntly.
She blinked in surprise as he faced her, carefully making sure to block any chance of her seeing Sonic.
"You… want one of my get out of class kits? Mr. Perfect Attendance?"
"The answer to six is 17.82."
She glanced down at her paper, scribbled the answer, then grabbed a large red backpack covered in patches and safety pins.
"Pea soup or cream of potato?"
"Potato."
She nodded, then glanced back at Mr. Stewart. His back remained on them, so she reached into her bag and pulled out a jar of cream of potato soup. She opened the jar, then splattered it on her shirt. Stowing the jar, she gasped in horror.
"Oh my god! Keith just threw up on me!"
Mr. Stewart turned around and saw the mess, as well as Keith holding his stomach.
"Mr. Stewart…" he wheezed. "Can I go to the nurses office?"
"Oh god, it's all over me!" Kat cried, acting disgusted.
"Go on, both of you," Mr. Stewart urged.
Kat grabbed both her backpack and Keith's as she rushed out of the room, Keith trailing behind and acting like he was about to blow chunks at any minute. Once they were out of the classroom, Keith grabbed his backpack and took off.
"I owe you big time for this!" He swore.
"Heck yeah you do!" She agreed. "And I will collect!"
She headed off to get changed as Mr. Stewart watched from the classroom window. He turned to his students.
"I'm going to go and check on your classmates. Continue working on the problems on the board until I return."
…
Outside the school, Keith made it outside as Sonic rushed over to him.
"Sorry to bug you at school, but I need your help."
"With what?"
"The news crews found a Chaos Emerald at a construction site and I have no clue where it is."
"Is that all? There are a few construction sites around."
"Cream said it was for some department store."
"Oh, I know where that is! I pass it every day on my way to school."
"Great!" Sonic looked around, trying to figure out an idea. "Got anything with wheels we can use?"
"Well, I do have my rollerblades I was gonna use for gym."
"Good, put them on."
Keith reached into his backpack, pulling out his skates and a helmet. He put them both on and Sonic quickly grabbed his hand.
"Hold on tight, and don't let go!"
The hedgehog took off, dragging Keith along behind him. Mr. Stewart saw this through a window, heading for his car and taking off after the pair.
…
Up in the sky, Amy and Tails scanned the city for any sign of Sonic. After a few minutes, they spotted a familiar blue blur streaking down the street.
"There he is!" Tails cheered.
"Sonic!" Amy shouted.
They flew down a bit closer, seeing that Sonic was pulling Keith along with him.
"Hey guys!" Sonic called out. "Follow us! Keith knows the way!"
"You got it!" Tails nodded.
...
At the construction site, the entire area was cordoned off by police tape. Many officers were gathered around the entrance of the site, keeping civilians, media, and anyone else out of harm's way. Scarlet and her news crew were gathered around their van, just resting and shooting the breeze.
"You think they're connected?" the cameraman asked.
"What?" a crewmember asked.
"This gem. You think it's connected to those weird creatures and that Robotnik guy?"
"Maybe," Scarlet allowed.
Before the conversation could continue, the sound of an engine reached their ears. It seemed to be coming from above them, so their eyes drifted upward. Scarlet gasped, dropping the coffee she had been drinking.
"Quick, get the camera rolling!" She insisted, the camera man rushing to comply. "It's Robotnik again!"
Sure enough, the camera focused on Eggman and Beakon as they flew overhead. Once people caught sight of him, they immediately began running the other way.
"It seems my reputation is starting to proceed me," Robotnik noted. "Good."
…
As Sonic arrived at the scene, he saw the fleeing crowds up ahead. Keith looked up, gasping when he saw Robotnik and Beakon terrorizing everyone.
"Looks like Eggman learned about the Emerald too!"
"Figures," Sonic remarked. "I'll deal with Eggman and his new toy. You go for the Emerald."
He gave Keith a hard shove forward, sending him flying forward as Sonic darted up a building. He reached the roof and began darting across them, right into Robotnik's path.
"Hey! Egghead!" He shouted. "Don't you know this is a strict, No-Fly zone?!"
"Ah, Sonic. Off on a little treasure hunt, I'd wager?"
"I was in the neighborhood, figured I'd do a little rooftop run when I caught sight of your ugly mug. Honestly, you would think someone as repulsive as you would stay indoors more often."
"Well unlike you, I have better things to do than pick needless fights. Beakon, deal with him!"
Beakon then swept down towards Sonic, who quickly rushed out to meet him. When they collided, Beakon sent Sonic flying. Robotnik chuckled in response as he descended towards the streets. As Sonic tumbled through the air, Beakon swooped down towards him again. He swatted the hedgehog again, keeping him airborne and disoriented. As Sonic was being knocked around, Tails and Amy flew down in the Tornado.
"Sonic!" Amy cried out. "We have to help him! Shoot that robot, Tails!"
"I can't!" Tails pointed out. "I could hit Sonic!"
"Then try and get in closer!" Amy insisted. "We can't just leave him there!"
The Tornado began circling Beakon as Robotnik cackled.
"Seems like our speedy little friend is in a bit of a pickle. Now I can claim my prize."
Robotnik then began descending towards the construction site, hopping out of his transport. As he moved over to where the Emerald was, he was shocked to see Keith holding it in his hands.
"So, this is what brought Sonic here," he mused as he wiped dirt off the gem. "I thought it'd be bigger."
"Haven't you heard the best things come in small packages," Robotnik remarked, snatching the Emerald from his hands.
"Hey!" Keith snapped, making a grab for the Emerald. "Give it back!"
"Sorry boy, finders keepers."
Robotnik quickly made his way back to the Eggmobile, hopping in and starting it up. Keith immediately ran over to the Eggmobile, latching onto the side while trying to climb in.
"I'm not gonna let you take that Emerald!"
"Beat it, pipsqueak!"
"Fat chance, Eggman! Give me the Emerald!"
"How about I give you a hand instead!"
Robotnik shoved him off as he started to fly away. In a last ditch effort to reclaim the gem, Keith grabbed onto the stabilizer on the bottom of the Eggmobile. Looking down, he saw the ground slowly start to get further and further away.
"This was a bad idea!"
…
Back with Sonic, he continued to get tossed around by Beakon, and was becoming more and more irritated by the second. However, when he heard the familiar sound of the Tornado's engines, his face lit up.
"Sonic!" Amy cried out. "Grab on!"
Thinking fast, Sonic leapt off the robot and grabbed onto the wing of the plane. As the plane flew upwards, Sonic quickly leapt off and rolled into a spin dash, plowing right through the robot and destroying it as he hit the ground.
"Finally! I was getting sick and tired of being used as a hacky sack."
As he began scanning the sky for Robotnik, he was horrified to see Keith dangling from the bottom of the Eggmobile.
"Oh no! Keith!"
Sonic immediately sped off in pursuit of the Eggmobile, with the Tornado following close behind. Onboard the eggmobile, Robotnik marveled at his find, unaware of Keith struggling to climb up the side of the vehicle.
"Rock climbing ranch don't fail me now," he whispered, finally managing to swing himself onto the wing.
Robotnik noticed Keith's efforts and grinned. Without a word, he tilted the carrier hard, making Keith lose his grip. WIth a yelp, Keith struggled to maintain his hold on the wing. When he did finally manage to get up, Robotnik gave it another hard shake. Keith lost his balance and started scrambling for something to hold onto. Unfortunately, that something turned out to be Eggman's oversized mustache. Robotnik cried out in pain as Keith held on for dear life.
"OW! You grubby little urchin, let go of my mustache!"
"Not a chance!" Keith snapped as he clawed at Robotnik with his free hand. "Now give me the Emerald!"
"Forget it!"
Robotnik finally managed to push Keith off, sending him plummeting to the streets below. Once he was gone, Robotnik smoothed out his mustache.
"That juvenile bilgerat certainly was a handful," Robotnik admitted before realizing his hands were empty. "What?! My emerald!"
…
Keith was plummeting to the ground, clutching the green Chaos Emerald to his chest. He screamed the entire time, screwing his eyes shut as he waited for the inevitable splat. Down below, Mr. Stewart caught sight of the falling teen and went into panic mode. He hit a button on his dash, which opened up the top of his car and inflated his back seat into a safety cushion. Unfortunately, even at full speed, he wasn't sure he'd reach the boy in time. Just behind him though, Sonic ran straight towards the car, leaping up and landing on the cushion.
"Excuse me," Sonic said, springing off the cushion towards Keith.
He caught him midair and landed on the ground safely before speeding off. Mr. Stewart slowed his car down, letting out a long breath
"Well… it's nice to know there's someone else looking out for him," He commended. "Which reminds me, I better get back to school."
He made a U-Turn, then started heading back to school.
…
At the Kent Household, Chuck looked Keith over for injuries, more than a little relieved to find his son unharmed,
"Keith Kent, that was either the bravest thing you could've done or the most foolish," Chuck told him. "If Sonic hadn't been there in time, you could've been killed."
"I couldn't just stand there and let Eggman get away with the Chaos Emerald," Keith argued, holding out the glimmering gem. "I had to do something."
"It's a good thing he did," Tails spoke up. "Even in the Tornado, I don't think I could have caught up to Eggman in time."
"And now that we know the Chaos Emeralds are here, we have a shot at getting back home!" Amy cheered.
"We'll get to go home after all, Cheese!" Cream gushed happily, her chao friend chirping excitedly.
"Still, I have my reservations on keeping the Emerald here," Chuck admitted. "The power it emits could cause some serious problems with my equipment."
"I'm sure we can build some sort of containment device for the Emeralds," Tails offered. "In the meantime, if any of your stuff breaks, I'd be happy to help fix them for you."
Chuck considered the idea, then gave a nod. As this went on, Sonic went over to Keith.
"You sure you're alright?" he asked. "While us Mobians can handle falls like that, I doubt you have such luck."
"I'm good," Keith reassured. "In most part, to you. Thanks for the save."
"Don't sweat it. After all, that's what friends are for."
The two smiled, then shared a fist bump.