Knuckles and Kat stood before the Chaos Emerald, just staring at the massive gem. Above them, a storm was beginning to brew, but neither of them seemed to pay it any mind.
"I don't get it," Knuckles let out. "We found all the pieces. The Master Emerald is whole again… so why isn't Angel Island floating again?"
Kat put a hand on the gem in confusion, then her eyebrows furrowed.
"Hey Knux… is it just me, or does the gem feel… empty?"
"Empty?" Knuckles repeated.
"I- I don't know how else to describe it. It's like… like there's something that's just... not there anymore."
Knuckles walked up to the gem and placed a hand on it as well, feeling a similar sensation of loss.
"You're right. There is something missing."
"Nothing physical though… more like… spiritual."
"Yeah…" Knuckles removed his hand, thinking it over. "Call me crazy, but I think… I think this is somehow linked to the visions we've been having."
"I was thinking the same thing. I mean, they didn't start happening in earnest until that thing shattered the Master Emerald. It must have taken the Master Emerald's Spirit."
"Maybe… Or maybe-"
Suddenly, a crashing sound ripped through the stormy twilight. Both of them were instantly on the defensive, Knuckles with his fists out and Kat ready with her bat. They looked around and saw Robotnik laying on the ground nearby, his Eggmobile toppled over.
"Eggman!" Knuckles let out, running over to him.
He pulled the doctor out of the Eggmobile, Kat keeping her bat ready as the Echidna gave Robotnik a hard slap to the face.
"Hey, wake up!"
Robotnik came to, but was clearly delirious.
"Ch-Chaos… he's…"
"Chaos is what?" Knuckles asked.
Suddenly, Kat screamed. Knuckles turned to see her in the grip of a regressed Chaos, who ripped her satchel off of her before tossing her right into Knuckles. She landed right on top of him as Chaos vanished, taking the satchel with him.
…
Elsewhere, Sonic, Tails, and Keith were wandering the jungle in search of the X-Tornado.
"You sure it's this way?" Tails asked.
"Positive," Keith insisted. "I crashed right on the edge of the cliff overlooking the Great Sea"
"You were right," Sonic chimed in. "You do need flying lessons."
"Hey, cut me some slack. It was my first time flying, and the plane didn't have landing gear."
"It doesn't have landing gear in battle mode," Tails insisted. "All it would take is pulling a lever to turn it back."
"I didn't know that!"
Sonic just rolled his eyes smiling as he noticed something off in the distance.
"Hey, notice something off with Angel Island?" He asked.
They all stopped, looking out at the horizon.
"It looks alright to me," Tails voiced.
"Yeah, what's wrong, Sonic?" Keith questioned.
"It's still in the water. Didn't Knuckles and Kat say they had all the pieces?"
It all began to sink in.
"Now that you mention it, yeah," Keith recalled. "She was anxious to get back before he restored the Emerald."
"Somethings up. Come on!"
The three quickly took off towards the island.
…
Once they reached the island, the trio rushed towards the Master Emerald Shrine. There, they found Knuckles bandaging Kat's throat while Robotnik just lay shaking on the ground.
"Knuckles!" Sonic called out, running up to him. "What happened?"
"Robotnik ended up crashing onto the island, bringing Chaos with him," Knuckles explained. "The creature attacked Kat, took the Chaos Emeralds, then fled."
"Sorry..." Kat croaked.
"It's alright," Knuckles reassured.
"So, Chaos is still alive, huh?" Sonic remarked, turning to Robotnik. "And it doesn't seem like he enjoys taking orders from you anymore."
"No..." Robotnik let out. "I was a fool to think I could ever control Chaos. He just wants to use the Chaos Emeralds for himself, and now he's only one away from achieving ultimate power."
"That's not good," Tails dreaded.
"He will pay for betraying me, though!" Robotnik declared, getting up and racing to the Eggmobile. "That, I promise you!"
"He's getting away!" Tails declared as Robotnik flew off.
"Let him go," Sonic told him. "We've got bigger problems."
"Sonic's right," Knuckles concurred. "If Chaos gets that last Emerald we're done for."
Before any of them could say anything further, the red light returned, now visible to everyone. Sonic gasped, Knuckles and Kat doing the same as it engulfed all five of them in its light.
…
Suddenly, the group found themselves at the burning altar of the Master Emerald.
"Not again," Sonic let out.
"Wait, you've been here before?" Knuckles asked.
"We were too, but it wasn't on fire then," Tails added.
"When were you guys here?" Keith questioned.
"We've been getting visions all day, even one back in Orient City during the first Emerald Hunt," Kat explained.
"I thought it was some weird dream," Sonic replied. "But now…"
"Wait," Knuckles let out, watching the scene play out. "Something's happening."
Down at the altar, Tikal was standing in front of it along with several Chao, blocking it from her father and the warriors he brought with him.
"Get out of the way!" Her father ordered.
"I won't!" Tikal insisted.
"Tikal, you will obey me! We need those Emeralds to give us the power we need to defeat our enemies! It is for the good of all our clan!"
"Not like this! Once you've had the taste of power, you will always crave more! You will regret this choice! Please father, I beg of you!"
"I don't like the way this is going..." Sonic let out, remembering his previous vision.
"I refuse to be deterred by the words of a child!" Her father dismissed. "Warriors, attack!"
The warriors charged forward, much to the horror of Tikal and those watching from afar. She, along with the Chao were trampled mercilessly as the Echidna's raced up the stairs. Knuckles looked away in disgust, gritting his teeth and clenching his fist. Kat gently took him by the shoulder in an attempt to console him.
"What are they doing?" Tails questioned. "Why would they do that to one of their own?"
"They wanted the Emerald…" Knuckles let out. "My people's most cherished treasure… was seized like this."
"Guys… The Emerald," Keith called out, pointing at the top of the Shrine.
Everyone looked up and saw that as the Echidnas seized the Chaos Emeralds, the Master Emerald began to glow ominously. Then, from the center of the gem, emerged Chaos in his original form.
"Chaos!" The onlookers shouted.
"Augh, it's a monster!" Tikal's father shouted in terror.
Chaos scanned the base of the temple, where he saw Tikal and the Chao littering the ground. He began shaking in rage, the Chaos Emeralds glowing ominously in the grips of the Echidna. Then, the Master Emerald began to glow, the light swallowing the Echidna in one fell swoop. The light died, leaving the onlookers speechless.
"They're all… gone?" Keith questioned.
"Not all of them," Sonic replied, turning towards Tikal.
Tikal slowly picked herself up, seeing the carnage that had been brought upon her people.
"I knew this would end in disaster… but I never imagined it would be like this..." Tears came to her eyes as she dropped to her knees, scooping up one of the Chao and burying her face in it's body. "Why… Why didn't you listen to me, Father?"
Just then, a roaring sound came from the altar. Tikal gasped, then rushed up to the top of the Shrine. The five onlookers quickly followed. Once at the top, Tikal stood before the Master Emerald, having one last chance to stop more suffering.
"The servers are the seven Chaos. Chaos is power enriched by the heart. The controller serves to unify the Chaos!"
Knuckles perked up upon hearing that.
"The servers are the seven Chaos…"
"The message we heard in Orient City..." Kat gasped.
"What does it mean?" Sonic questioned.
"The seven Emeralds can change our thoughts into power, but if the heart that wields them is filled with nothing but fear and anger… then that power will bring pain and destruction to the world. Please, you must stop Chaos!"
She closed her eyes and spread her arms. Light engulfed the entire group, returning them to the present.
...
All five of them were reeling hard from what they'd seen, Knuckles utterly shaken.
"I… I can't believe it…"
"Knuckles," Kat said softly.
Knuckles quickly shook his head, trying to focus.
"We can't dwell on that now, but now the visions all make sense."
"Right. Tikal was showing us how Chaos came to be," Tails realized.
"And that the world is in for a major storm if he gets all seven Emeralds," Sonic added.
"Meaning we have to find that last one, fast," Knuckles declared.
"It should still be on the X-Tornado," Keith informed. "Come on!"
…
At the crash site, the five heroes hurried as fast as they could to reach the X-Tornado. Thankfully, they found it exactly where Keith had landed it, albeit with a ticket taped to it from from the park ranger. Keith dismissed it as he opened the cockpit and saw the red Chaos Emerald inside.
"Bingo!" he declared, pulling it out. "I got it!"
Just as Keith was ran back to the group, a massive crack in the ground began to open up as a large geyser shot up into the air, swallowing Keith and the red Chaos Emerald.
"Keith!" the other four all shouted.
Instinctively, Sonic charged forwards and dove into the geyser. He grabbed hold of Keith's hand, trying to pull him free of the geyser's grasp. To help, Knuckles ran forward, delivering a powerful kick that severed the geyser. Sonic and Keith both dropped to the ground, coughing up water. As they did, the Emerald rolled out of Keith's hand and onto the ground.
"The Emerald!" Tails shouted.
He dove for it, but the ground opened up around it, swallowing the Emerald. A massive geyser even bigger than the first lifted out of the chasm, a loud roar shaking everything before it retreated once more.
"No!" Keith let out. "It's gone…"
"Now Chaos has all seven Emeralds," Knuckles dreaded. "He'll become more powerful than any of us. There's no way we can stop him now."
"Doesn't mean we won't try," Sonic spoke up.
…
In Station Square, everyone was going about their usual day. Sam Kent was out on patrol in the city, keeping an eye out for any who might impede on the rules of the road. Mr. Stewart meanwhile, was going over his attendance, finding Keith and Kat absent for yet another day.
"I hope those two are alright," He said softly.
Everything seemed normal, until as Sam drove over a manhole cover, a burst of water shot it out of the street, much to his shock.
"What the heck?! Did a water main burst or something?"
Suddenly, more streams of water erupted upwards along the street. Before long, the very street itself was cracking apart, with water shooting out from them. Soon, windows on buildings shatter open, with water shooting out of them all across the city. Bit by bit, the city was becoming flooded.
"Everybody, get to high ground!" Sam ordered as people ran for shelter.
Just then, a wave of water swept down the street, carrying him away before he could react. As the city continued to flood with water, another building exploded. Water shot out of it, forming a massive water dragon with a small brain on the top of its head. This was the form of Perfect Chaos, who roared at the crumbling city below him.
…
At the White House, The President, Christina, Topaz, and Rouge were all watching a news report on the situation in Station Square.
"Station Square is flooded!" Scarlet reported. "We don't know the exact cause of the disaster yet, but eyewitnesses reported that something went horribly wrong in the city's water system. As you can see, there's complete devastati-" She was cut off by a massive roar, then something in the water shifting ominously. "Oh my.. There's something down there…"
The camera moved down to show Perfect Chaos skulking through the water below as he let out another roar. From his mouth came a jet of water that tore through a building.
"We've got to stop that thing!" The President declared. "How soon until we can scramble our forces?!"
"It will take some time," Christina replied. "All our missile launchers in the area were caught in the flood."
"Then scramble fighters! Contact everyone and tell them I am authorizing any means necessary to stop that thing!"
"Understood, sir."
"What is that thing Rouge?" Topaz asked as they watched the TV. "Do you think it's Mobian?"
"If it is, it's unlike anything I've ever seen."
…
At the Kent house, Chuck watched the news with nervous anticipation. He kept trying to call Keith's phone, but it kept going straight to voicemail. The same thing happened when he tried Kat, and now he was pacing around the living room, unable to stay still. Just then, there was a knock at the door. He went to answer it, only to find the Birnbaums, Cream, Cheese, and Big standing there.
"Dr. Birnbaum," Chuck realized. "I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"When we heard about the flooding, we left immediately. This was the only safe place I could think of."
"Of course, come on in."
Everyone made their way inside, with Cheese fidgeting in Cream's arms.
"Calm down, Cheese," Cream insisted. "Why are you acting this way?"
Cheese just chipped frantically in response.
"He's been acting like that ever since we left," Helen told Chuck. "He tried flying off several times."
"He's acting like Froggy did," Big insisted.
"He did seem to know that creature," Cream recalled.
Cheese chirped insistently in response. Before anyone could ask anything else, there was a frantic pounding on the door.
"Please tell me that's the kids," Chuck hoped.
He went to the door and opened it up, seeing Al in the doorway.
"Kathryn!" He called out, pushing his way in. "Please, is Kathryn here?"
"I'm sorry, no. I've been trying to reach her and Keith all day."
"She told me she would be looking for those Emerald shard things…" He covered his mouth in horror "Oh God… please tell me she wasn't in the city when that thing attacked..."
Cheese let out even more chirps of concern, this time flying right out the door.
"Cheese, wait!" Cream called out, chasing after him. "Come back!"
"Cream!" Helen called out. "Big, we have to follow her!"
"Helen, no!" Dr. Birnbaum insisted. "It's too dangerous out there!"
"But we can't leave Cream alone. She and Cheese need us."
"Helen-" Mr. Birnbaum tried.
"Dad, please!" Helen cried out. "I can't just sit here and do nothing! My friends are out there!"
"I'll take care of her," Big promised. "Don't worry."
The Birnbaums looked at each other reluctantly, then at Helen's determined face. They both took deep breaths.
"All of you better make it back safely," Dr. Birnbaum declared, looking Big in the eye. "All of you."
Big nodded, pulling Helen from her chair and taking off after the rabbit and the chao.
...
Meanwhile, the heroes flew towards Station Square in the X-Tornado, with Sonic running on the bridge below.
"How are we going to stop Chaos?" Keith questioned. "He's got all the Chaos Emeralds now?"
"We'll think of something," Tails insisted. "We always do."
"Well, I hope we think of something fast," Kat let out. "Otherwise, I don't know how much will be left of Station Square."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Sonic asked over comms. "Let's haul it back to Station Square before there's nothing left to save!"
…
Back in the city, evacuation efforts were already being put into place to get people to safety. Mr. Stewart was overseeing the evacuation of his students at the school, ushering them into an emergency transport helicopter.
"Alright!" He called out. "Everyone, to the chopper! They'll transport us to the mountains, where we'll be safe."
As the students loaded themselves onto the copter, Mr. Stewart activated his watch.
"This is Chalkboard Charlie to homeroom. Requesting reports on any sighting regarding Sonic and his friends."
"Roger Chalkboard Charlie. Last known sighting was in the Mystic Ruin on a straight shot for the City. Known parties include Tails, Knuckles, Keith Kent, and Kathryn Winters."
"So they're ok," Mr. Stewart realized, sighing in relief. "Thank God. I'll stay here and continue with the evacuation of the students."
"Roger that. Be careful."
"Will do."
Mr. Stewart then signed off, returning to helping his students.
…
Elsewhere, Sam floated aimlessly through the waters of the city, barely conscious. As he floated there, he felt several hands grabbing him as a few citizens pulled him to the safety of a roof. He coughed, sagging onto the carpet as someone brought him a towel.
"You okay?"
"Yeah… thanks."
Just then, the sound of helicopters filled the air, prompting Sam to look out and see military copters flying towards Perfect Chaos.
"Alright, the cavalry's arrived."
"Target in sight," one of the copters reported. "Commence attack formation, bravo!"
"Copy that, squad leader," Another copter replied. "Let's take it down!"
The choppers opened fire on Perfect Chaos, but it seemed to have no affect on him.
"Switch to missile fire," the lead copter ordered. "Now!"
The copters fired dozens of missiles, but much like their earlier attacks, they didn't do anything. In fact, Perfect Chaos merely absorbed the missiles, took a breath, then shot them back at the copters. Everyone watched in horror, not sure if there was any way to beat this creature.
…
Not too far away, Sonic had arrived in the city, seeing the carnage that Perfect Chaos had wrought.
"If I hadn't seen what I saw… that monster would be a real menace!"
Sonic then leapt from one wrecked building to another, working to reach Chaos in time.
…
"Systems are operational," Orbot reported.
"Ready to launch, Doc," Cubot informed.
"Excellent," Robotnik replied as giant metal doors opened up overhead, allowing a second Egg Carrier to rise up. "I had the Egg Carrier 2 constructed for just such an eventuality. Chaos will soon learn that Dr. Robotnik always gets the last laugh!"
The Egg Carrier 2 then launched, prepared to deal a massive blow to Chaos.
…
Back in the city, Sonic managed to catch up with Perfect Chaos, still tearing his way through the city.
"That's it, Chaos!" Sonic declared. "Your path of destruction ends here!"
Sonic leapt towards Perfect Chaos and rolled into a spin dash, hoping to do some damage. Perfect Chaos however, just batted Sonic away with one of his tentacles, causing him to land on a destroyed street.
"Is that all you got?!"
Sonic then ran towards a wrecked skyscraper, running along the side of it before launching himself at Chaos. The monster merely absorbed him, spitting him back out like a wad of gum. As he fell, a massive wave rose up to try and drown him. By sheer dumb luck, a large piece of wood had fallen into the wave, which Sonic landed on and began using as a surfboard. Sonic surfed along the water as best he could, but he didn't know how long before he was eventually overtaken.
"Sonic!"
Sonic looked up and saw Keith in the X-Tornado, holding out his hand towards him. Sonic quickly leapt up towards him, grabbing his hand as they flew off.
"You alright?" Keith asked.
"Yeah, fine. But Chaos is more powerful than ever."
"I'll be honest, Sonic," Knuckles spoke up. "This is one fight I'm not sure we can win."
Suddenly, Perfect Chaos shot out several water spears towards the X-Tornado, causing Tails to swerve frantically in the air. Before they could make another move, the shadow of the Egg Carrier 2 overtook them.
"Now what?!" Sonic let out.
"It's Eggman!" Tails realized.
"Guess he's after Chaos, too," Knuckles reasoned.
…
"All weapons systems are online," Orbot reported.
"You're finished, Chaos!" Robotnik declared. "You have defied your master, and the price of disloyalty is total annihilation! Open fire!"
Every laser and missile onboard the Egg Carrier 2 fired directly at Perfect Chaos, but he just summoned a forcefield that blocked every strike. Perfect Chaos retaliated by firing a giant laser from his mouth, completely destroying the Egg Carrier 2. Robotnik and his flunkies were soon seen being flung away in the Eggmobile.
"Not even Eggman could stop that thing!" Knuckles realized.
"Well we've got to do something!" Sonic insisted.
"Damnit..." Kat let out. "Why couldn't Tikal have been a bit more upfront with how to stop Chaos!?"
Just then, a familiar red light appeared, taking hold of the X-Tornado and landing it on the ground below. Sonic and Knuckles leapt down to the ground as they saw the light approach them.
"That light…" Knuckles recognized.
"It's her…" Sonic realized. "Tikal…"
The light flashed before their eyes, turning into the physical form of Tikal.
"Ever since the day my father attacked, my soul has been confined to the Master Emerald, along with Chaos'" She explained. "Until the day some fiend destroyed the Master Emerald and awakened Chaos."
"Of course!" Knuckles realized. "Chaos didn't destroy the Master Emerald, he was inside it!"
"No wonder the Emerald felt empty!" Kat exclaimed. "It actually was because Chaos was gone!"
"Eggman must've found a way to revive Chaos for his insane plan," Sonic rationalized.
Perfect Chaos soon let out a massive roar, causing everyone to look up as the Chaos Emeralds were spat out of his mouth, scattering across the city. One of the Emeralds landed in front of them, turning grey before their eyes.
"Oh no!" Tikal let out. "He's absorbed the Emeralds' power."
"What?" the group let out.
"How is that possible?" Knuckles asked.
"Chaos is a being of pure energy, one that has been influenced by the power of the Emeralds for centuries," Tikal explained. "Ever since the day my clan attacked, Chaos has known only anger and hatred. He will use the power of the Emeralds to destroy your world."
"Then we only have one chance," Knuckles reasoned. "We have to seal Chaos back in the Master Emerald!"
"It won't work!" Sonic protested.
"What?!" Knuckles replied.
"Even if we do seal him back, it won't change how he feels inside," Sonic insisted. "His heart will remain in turmoil, and his anger just won't vanish! He'll just be trapped until some other madman breaks him out and the cycle starts all over again."
"He's right," Kat agreed. "We need to show Chaos another way beyond anger and hatred."
"But, how?" Tikal asked.
Everyone remained silent, unsure of how to answer.
"Sonic!" Cream called out.
Sonic turned and saw Cream running towards him.
"Cream?! What are you doing here?"
"I was looking for Cheese when I found this." She holds up a powerless Chaos Emerald. "I wanted you to have it."
Sonic smiled, taking the Emerald.
"Thanks Cream. Now let's-"
"Hey, Sonic!"
Sonic turned and saw Amy running towards him, with Lily and her family following and a Chaos Emerald in her hand.
"Amy?!"
"Here." she hands him the Emerald. "Thought you might need this."
"We found one too!" Big cheered, Helen happily waving an Emerald around as the duo approached..
Seeing all of this play out, Tails suddenly perked up.
"That's it!"
He quickly flew off, searching for one of the Emeralds. He spotted one on a nearby building, scooping it up before flying back to Sonic.
"What's it, Tails?"
"Remember that poem Tikal said?" Tails reminded, landing in front of them.
"It's not a poem," Tikal corrected. "It's a prayer."
"Right. You said Chaos is power enriched by the heart, right?"
"Yes..."
"Well, if the Emeralds are like any other power source, then they have a positive and negative energy."
"So feelings of anger and hatred…"
"Would only allow Chaos to feed on the negative power of the Emeralds," Tails confirmed, handing his Emerald to Sonic. "Meaning if you manage to harness the positive power of the Emeralds, you should be able to defeat Chaos!"
"Sounds like a plan to me!" Sonic agreed, shooting him a thumbs up.
The group all split up, desperately seeking the last two Emeralds. Knuckles found one embedded in a window. He pulled it out, tossing it to Kat who batted it back to Sonic. He counted them all out, smiling.
"Just one more..."
"Hey, Sonic!" Keith called out, running up to him. "I found it.
He quickly tossed it to Sonic, who easily caught it. As he looked down it, the Emerald began to glow, its color returning as the others followed suit.
"The Emeralds are getting their power back!" Keith let out.
"Tails, you were right!" Tikal realized. "Anger and hatred alone can't power the Chaos Emeralds."
"Not at all. When everyone gave their Emeralds to Sonic, it was out of compassion and trust. Caring is more powerful than hate, and that's how Sonic's gonna defeat Chaos!"
"Yeah, Sonic!" Some of the crowd cheered.
"Go, get em, Sonic!"
"You can do it, Sonic!"
As the crowds cheered Sonic on, the Emeralds began circling him. They went faster and faster, until finally, Sonic was transformed into Super Sonic. His eyes flew open and he grinned, flying right at Perfect Chaos. Perfect Chaos generated a force field to try and block him, but Super Sonic just tore right through it like it was nothing. He collided with Perfect Chaos, knocking him back slightly as Perfect Chaos shot out his tentacles at him, turning them into drills. Super Sonic rolled into a spin dash that shattered them upon impact. Perfect Chaos became enraged, roaring as he shot out a laser beam at him. Super Sonic easily dodged as he flew in for another blow. Perfect Chaos sent out several water spears that forced Super Sonic to dodge and weave through. Perfect Chaos then shot a laser right at Super Sonic, hitting him dead on. Super Sonic was knocked back slightly, but remained uninjured.
"You can't stop me!"
…
Back at the Kent house, everyone was watching the events unfold on TV, feeling much more hopeful now that Sonic had engaged the monster.
"Do you think Sonic can stop that thing?" Dr. Birnbaum asked.
"If anyone can, it's him," Chuck reassured.
…
Perfect Chaos roared once more, whipping a tentacle towards Super Sonic. Unflinching, Super Sonic caught the tentacle in his hand, stopping it instantly. Super Sonic then used his Chaos energy to dissolve it, causing him to smirk confidentiality.
"Come on Chaos, let's finish this!"
Perfect Chaos roared once more firing several water spears at Super Sonic. He just plowed right through them as he raced towards Perfect Chaos. The monster fired one more energy blast in an attempt to stop Super Sonic, but he just powered through it, causing the energy to double back on itself as Super Sonic flew right into Perfect Chaos' mouth.
The resulting energy caused Perfect Chaos to glow gold with energy, with streams of light shooting out of it as Super Sonic landed on the ground away from him. Finally, Perfect Chaos exploded, causing a massive release of energy. As Sonic's super form faded, the crowds around him cheered his victory. Sonic couldn't help but smile in response as his friends ran up to him.
"You did it, Sonic!" Keith cheered.
"Alright!" Tails let out.
"Way to go!" Amy congratulated, hugging him.
Just then, a small puddle washed up on shore, forming back into Chaos' basic form. Everyone was at first uneasy, until Cheese came flying right up to him. The chao gave the beast a hug on the arm, chirping happily.
"Cheese!" Cream let out, happily.
Chaos looked down at the Chao, then reached down and pet his head, gurgling softly. Just then, several more Chao appeared, rising out of the water and going over to Chaos. Upon seeing them, Chao seemed to beam in happiness, holding his arms out. They all rushed towards him, gathering in a hug.
"Chaos… is good again," Kat realized.
"The plan actually worked..." Knuckles let out.
"When Super Sonic flew inside Chaos, he overwhelmed him with positive Chaos energy," Tails reasoned. "Opening his heart to happiness and kindness again."
"But where did all the Chao come from?" Keith questioned.
"Maybe the Chao colony you guys found wasn't the only one on Earth," Amy reasoned.
Tikal approached Chaos, the beast lifting its head to look at her. He released the Chao, carefully reaching out for her. He seemed regretful and sad, his hand retracting before he touched her. Tikal took the hand, making Chaos stop and turn back to her.
"I know you regret everything you've done, to my people, and to this world. And I forgive you."
If Chaos had a mouth, he would smile. He then looked down at the Chao around him.
"Yes, these are the Chao you kept watch over. They now live and thrive in this world, existing in peace at last. Maybe now, you can find peace too."
She holds out her arms, as if offering a hug. Chaos steps forward, then the two hug. The two then begin to fade out of existence, shimmering red lights flickering as the do. Before long, the water that flooded Station Square began to subside, allowing the people to exit the building they were held up in. Off in the distance, Knuckles could see Angel Island ascending back into the sky where it belonged.
"Now the Master Emerald is truly whole."
"You did it, Sonic," Keith told him.
"Hey, we all did it," Sonic replied, flashing him a thumbs up. "Together!"