Outside of a senior's home, Franklin and Scarlet got out of their car, walking up to a group of elderly folks sitting out in front of it. Franklin was on the phone, speaking in a low voice.
"Project Shadow?" he repeated. "Thanks for the information. I'll get back with you once we learn more."
He hung up as he and his companion approached an orderly who was with the elderly patrons. She was sharing small talk with the group, perking as she heard the pair approach.
"Can I help you?" The orderly asked, smiling warmly.
"Yes, I'm Scarlet Garcia for SSTV News. We made an appointment over the phone."
"Ah yes," the orderly recalled. "With Mr. Schmitz. I'm sorry to say he's declined the interview. He's not the most sociable man from the beginning, but he was quite adamant about this."
"Are you sure? This is very important."
"He declared that he just wanted to be left alone."
Franklin then stepped forward, discreetly showing the orderly his government badge.
"Please ma'am. It'll only be for a moment."
"Well… alright. Just be quick about it."
Franklin smiled, then offered Scarlet his arm.
"Shall we?"
Scarlet took his arm and they walked inside.
…
Back on the ARK, Chessie wandered into the control room to see Rouge in front of the control console. She was trying everything she could to try and get into the system, but the encryption was too strong. Chessie smirked, approaching the bat.
"Guess you're not 100% on Eggman's side after all."
Rouge glanced back at Chessie, giving a small smirk.
"Are you honestly surprised? I'm just playing nice to get the inside track on Project Shadow."
"Then it seems we have similar goals. Maybe we can help one another."
"I doubt you'll be able to help me without your cables." Even so, she stepped to the side, giving Chessie access to the console. "The entire system's password protected."
Chessie took a look, her eyes narrowing. She thought for a minute, then thought back to Shadow's small outburst before. On a whim, she tried the name he had used.
"M-A-R-I-A… Maria..."
"Maria?" Rouge questioned. "Who is that?"
Chessie hit enter and the system unlocked.
"We're in. Now, let's find out exactly who this Maria is."
She did a quick search, which brought up several sepia images of a young girl. In almost every picture, she was with Shadow, the two of them smiling. This threw the two Mobians for a loop.
"Whoa, is ole Grumpy puss actually smiling?" Rouge quipped.
"I- Think so..." Chessie let out. "It looks like they were close."
"Seems so. What else can you find on our sour faced companion?"
Chessie flipped through the files, eventually coming across the full Project Shadow file. She opened it up, taking a look.
"It… it can't be…" Chessie let out.
"If this is true…" Rouge realized, reading over the file, "then just who is Shadow?"
…
Meanwhile, Shadow stood before one of the viewports, watching as the shuttle Sonic and his friends were on closed in on the ARK.
"The faker and his comrades are on their way," he remarked.
"The fools," Robotnik remarked. "They don't even realize they're just bringing the Emerald to me."
Suddenly, Robotnik noticed something on his scanners.
"That's odd. My instruments are detecting readings from two seperate Chaos Emeralds."
"That's impossible," Shadow argued. "There's only seven, and we have six."
"They must've created a replica of a Chaos Emerald. And they thought we wouldn't notice."
"Well if those fools think a fake Emerald will save them, they're dreaming." Shadow started moving.
"Wait, Shadow!" Robotnik protested. "I will be the one to deal the final blow, not you. It's time I end my long drawn out war with Sonic, and carved my place in history as the ultimate genius!"
Robotnik then began piloting the Egg Walker towards the exit.
"Be on standby Shadow. If something happens to me, I'm counting on you to finish the job."
"As you wish, Doctor," Shadow replied with a small bow.
…
Back on Earth, Franklin and Scarlet managed to sit down with Mr. Schmitz, though he was being less than cooperative.
"I thought I made it clear I have nothing to say to the likes of you! Now both of you, just leave me alone!"
"Please sir," Scarlet insisted. "We only want to ask you a few questions."
"What can you tell us about the ARK incident fifty years ago?" Franklin asked.
"Nothing!"
"What about something called Project Shadow?"
Scarlet glanced at Franklin in confusion, and Mr. Schmitz just looked angry.
"I don't know how you learned about that, but I refuse to tell you anything about it, ARK, or the incident."
"I… know this is hard for you," Scarlet continued. "But you're the only lead we have in finding out what happened that day. Please sir… I need to know.
"I can't," Schmitz insisted. "I'm sorry, but this information is far too dangerous. For your own sake, forget ARK and Project Shadow."
"But that would be acting like it never happened!" Scarlet snapped. "It would be ignoring everyone who lost their lives because of what happened… including my father… please sir, I'm begging you."
"Scarlet," Franklin cut in, putting a hand on her shoulder.
She looked back at him as he shook his head.
…
Soon, the two exited the building, slowly walking back to the car.
"I'm sorry," Scarlet apologized. "That wasn't very professional of me."
"Don't apologize. I know this entire story is personal for you."
"Yes… how did you know about Project Shadow anyway?"
"Let's just say I have friends in high-"
Suddenly, two men in identical black suits and dark glasses moved in front of them, blocking their path. They both stopped, then saw two shadows closing in from behind. A quick glance showed two more dark suited agents, the four surrounding the pair. Scarlet recoiled, a sense of dread washing over her as Franklin straightened up.
"Don't panic," Franklin told her. "Get to the car as fast as you can."
"What about you?" Scarlet asked.
"Just go!"
He gave her a shove, pushing her out of the circle of agents. She began running, ditching her high heels as she did.
"The woman's getting away!" one of the agents shouted. "Grab her!"
Franklin then leapt forward, kicking one agent to the ground. A second agent tried attacking him, but Franklin easily blocked it and knocked him out as well.
"Who's next?"
Another agent lunged at Franklin, grappling with him for a moment. Franklin smirked, then brought his knee up between the agent's legs. The agent choked, bending forward and allowing Franklin to head butt him hard, sending him to the ground. As he looked around for the fourth, he was shocked to see him wrestling with Scarlet, trying to pull her away from the car.
"Let go of me!" she screamed.
"Scarlet!" Franklin cried out, running over to her.
The agent began fumbling for something in his pocket, revealing it to be a syringe. Before he could use it though, it was snatched from his hand. The agent turned just in time to see Mr. Schmitz jamming it into his neck, injecting the contents. Almost immediately, the agent released Scarlet and crumbled to the ground.
"Mr. Schmitz…" Scarlet let out in surprise. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet," he warned. "More will be coming. Follow me, unless you want to end up like him."
He gestured to the drugged agent on the ground. The two nod as they all took off.
…
Later, the three of them were in a secluded backyard, with Franklin checking to make sure they weren't followed.
"I think we're safe," He reported. "I must say, that was some nice work."
"Same to you," Schmitz replied. "Then again, I'd expect nothing less from a member of the CIA."
"The CIA?!" Scarlet let out.
Franklin turned red, rubbing his next.
"I did say I had friends in high places… But how did you know?"
"Your training. That's not something you learn at any strip mall karate class."
"Franklin, if you're CIA, then what's going on here?"
"I don't know, and that's exactly why I'm here." He turned to Mr. Schmitz. "What is G.U.N. hiding? Why are they trying to frame Sonic, and why are they trying to kill us? Just what happened on ARK 50 years, and what is Project Shadow?"
Mr. Schmitz looked at the two and took a long breath. He seemed much older in that moment as he sat down on a simple, wooden bench.
"That… is a very long story..."
…
Up in space, the shuttle began it's approach on the ARK, everyone waiting with bated breath. As they did, Knuckles and Kat suddenly perked, feeling a familiar energy emanating from the station.
"Knux, do you feel that?"
"The Master Emerald pieces. They're here!"
Knuckles jumped out of his seat and grabbed a hold of the controls, trying to get them there faster.
"Knuckles, what are you doing?!" Tails let out.
"I have to get the pieces back!" Knuckles shouted.
"Knuckles, get back to your seat!" Keith insisted. "You're not helping!"
"He's right!" Amy shrieked. "Let go of the wheel!"
The entire shuttle jerked, much to everyone's horror.
"Mr. Knuckles, please refrain from doing that again," Tanaka pleaded, looking a little green around the gills.
"Yeah, cool it!" Sonic demanded. "We're all going to the same place!"
"Master Emerald, here I come!" Knuckles let out, steering the ship right into the ARK.
"KNUCKLES!" Everyone shrieked, bracing themselves for impact.
…
"Intruder alert!" a voice in the control room let out, causing Rouge and Chessie to look up. "Intruder alert! Sector M-14!"
Security footage came up, showing the shuttle sticking out from the hole in the base.
"They came," Chessie let out.
"So they did," Rouge remarked.
Chessie quickly bolted out of the room, determined to meet up with her friends. Rouge watched her go, then slipped a small device from her fur, inserting it into the console, beginning to download all the information available.
…
Back with the others, they all let out groans of pain as they pulled themselves out of the ship.
"Everyone ok?" Keith asked.
"Yeah..." Sonic let out, popping his back. "Just peachy. What was Knuckles thinking, taking over the ship like that? I thought we were toast for sure!"
"I knew he was desperate to get the Emerald Shards back, but that was beyond stupid!" Kat declared. "Knux, you better be alive, because I'm about to kill ya!"
That's when everyone noticed that Knuckles was nowhere to be seen.
"Huh?" Kat let out. "Where is he?"
"Looks like he bailed," Tails realized.
"What?!" Kat exclaimed, seething as she grabbed her bat. "Oh I am going to kill that Echidna!"
She scanned the hall, closing her eyes as she tried to get a bead on the sensation she'd felt earlier. It was incredibly faint, but she managed to get a lock on it.
"Gotcha."
She then took off down the hall as fast as she could.
"Kat, wait!" Keith called out. "Ugh… I'll go after her!"
"Master Keith!" Tanaka let out as Keith ran off.
"Don't sweat it, Tanaka," Sonic reassured. "Keith'll be fine. He can take care of himself."
"Meanwhile, we need to find Chessie and that Shadow guy," Amy insisted.
"And stop Eggman's cannon," Sonic added. "There's not a lot of time left before it fires again."
"Luckily, I brought the X-Tornado with us," Tails declared, heading back into the shuttle.
He came out a few minutes later, the X-Tornado in Cyclone mode.
"That'll help even things out," Sonic remarked.
"As will this," Tails replied, pulling out the fake Emerald.
"The Chaos Emerald?" Sonic asked.
"A fake one," Tails corrected. "I planned on using it to power the X-Tornado, but now I have a better idea. Since it's not as powerful as a real Chaos Emerald, the energy should cause the power to double back on the others and destroy the system.
"Now that's a plan I can get behind," Sonic agreed. "Let's do it!"
…
Elsewhere, Knuckles made his way through the colony, finding himself in a massive bottomless room with four intersecting catwalks above it. Floating in the middle of this intersection were several Master Emerald shards, roughly half of the gem if he guessed correctly. As he started making his way across one of them, Rouge flew down in front of him, a smug expression on her face and Kat's bag on her shoulder. It was stuffed to the brim, a distinct green glow giving away its contents.
"Long time no see, Knucky," Rouge remarked. "I don't suppose you found anymore of my Emeralds for me."
"Oh that's a good one, 'your Emeralds'. Talking to you is a waste of time!" Knuckles took a fighting stance. "Now hand over the bag, now!"
"Oh, this?" Rouge placed a hand on the bag. "I rather like it. It can hold so many beautiful gems and jewels."
"How about holding this!"
Knuckles swung a punch at her, but she easily dodged it, delivering a kick in kind. He leapt back to avoid it, prompting Rouge to run at him. She delivered a hard slap across his face, causing him to stumble back before delivering a punch to the gut. She flew back, landing on her wing in pain.
"You're gonna pay for that!"
Rouge got back up and ran at him, attempting to kick him in the head, but he easily blocked it and tried to uppercut her. She backed away, but her foot stepped off the ledge, causing her to start falling. Seconds before her descent truly began, Knuckles grabbed her hand, catching her.
"I got ya," he told her, pulling her back up.
After pulling her back onto the catwalk, the two shared a silent moment before Rouge pulled her hand away.
"Oh get your hands off me!" She insisted.
"Is that how you say thanks to someone who just saved your life?"
"I have wings, you knucklehead! I could fly! You were just looking for an excuse to get fresh with me, weren't you?"
"Fresh?! Are you kidding?! Think what you want, batgirl, I was saving the Master Emerald!"
Rouge snorted, then took Kat's bag off her shoulder and threw it at Knuckles.
"You want it, then take it."
"Just like that?"
"It's yours isn't it?" Rouge remarked. "Besides, that old bag's not really my style. It fits your wild-child friend much better."
"If that's what you thought, you should've just given it back in the first place," Knuckles insisted, taking the last few pieces.
"Whatever," Rouge shrugged. "I'm outta here."
"Hey, wait!"
"What?!" Rouge snapped, turning back to him.
Knuckles just sighed in response.
"I'm sorry… if I hurt you…"
With that, he grabbed the bag and Shards, then ran off, leaving Rouge a little surprised. She then shrugged, then left herself.
…
Back with the others, they continued making their way through the colony in the X-Cyclone, everyone looking around at the grim surroundings.
"This place sure is lonely," Amy remarked.
"I suspect it has been empty since the incident," Tanaka remarked.
"Giving Eggman plenty of room to play around," Sonic remarked. "How much farther until we get to the control room?"
"It should be just up ahead," Tails answered.
As the group continued moving, they were unaware of the shadowy figure watching from afar. Suddenly, a massive claw shot out, smashing one of the windshields and grabbing Amy.
"Amy!" Sonic called out.
A spotlight shone on the X-Tornado, temporarily blinding everyone as Robotnik's laugh echoed through the room.
"Let her go, Eggman!" Sonic demanded.
"Let's not get hasty for once, shall we Sonic?" Robotnik replied. "Hand over the Chaos Emerald, and then I'll give you your little girlfriend."
"Don't do it, Sonic!" Amy insisted.
"I won't risk anyone's life," Sonic replied, grabbing an Emerald and leaping down. "It's a deal."
"Good boy. Place the Emerald in the center of that circle and back off."
Sonic just smirked as he walked forward.
"Super weapons, gambling lives," Sonic noted, walking towards the circle. "You've turned into a big time villain, haven't you doc?"
"You have no idea."
Just as Sonic reached the circle, Robotnik pressed a button, causing a glass capsule to drop down on Sonic.
"What the-?!" Sonic let out.
"Hahaha!" Robotnik cackled. "Did you honestly think you could trick me with that fake Emerald?"
"What?!" Tails realized. "How did you know it wasn't the real one?!"
"I didn't. I had scanned and found two Emerald signatures, but I didn't know which one was real until you just told me, fox boy!"
"Oh no…"
"Still, I expected such deception from you. And now, I will finally be rid of Sonic the Hedgehog once and for all!"
"No!" Tails let out.
"Tails, I'm counting on you," Sonic told him. "It's all on you now. And Amy… take care of yourself."
Tears started building in Amy's eyes, dreading what was coming next.
"Farewell, Sonic the Hedgehog!" Robotnik declared, pressing a button that launched Sonic into space.
"SONIC!" Both Tails and Amy cried out.
Robotnik cackled, dropping Amy and allowing her to run to the glass shielding that now covered where Sonic had been dropped. She could see the capsule floating away, spinning lightly as it got further and further away from the ARK. Robotnik then grinned, pressing a few buttons.
"Aim outer defense turrets at the ejected pod!" he commanded.
"No!" Amy cried out.
The laser shot fired from one of the cannons, hitting the capsule and causing it to explode.
…
In another room on the Colony, Shadow was watching the display, shrugging at Sonic's apparent destruction.
"I guess he was just a regular hedgehog after all."
…
"I did it!" Robotnik proclaimed. "I finally rid myself of that blue nuisance forever!" He then turned towards the grieving heroes. "In fact, I'm in such a good mood, I'll make you a deal. Give me the Chaos Emerald, and I'll let you all go free. I'll even throw in the purple traitor as a bonus. You have my word."
Tails looked down in anguish, before a look of determination came across his face.
"No…"
"What?!" Robotnik let out.
"Sonic just asked me to do something for him. I won't let him down! I'll never surrender to you!"
He primed the X-Cyclone, getting it into a fighting stance. "Tanaka, get Amy out of here! Find Chessie! I'll handle Eggman!"
"Fight with honor, Tails!" Tanaka called out as he and Amy fled.
"You've tried my patience for the last time!" Robotnik declared. "Now it's time to end this!"
Robotnik then used the Egg Walker to open fire on Tails, prompting him to take the X-Cyclone into the air to return in kind.
…
Mr. Schmitz sat on the bench, wringing his hands as he began his story.
"Our mission seemed pretty simple at the time. There was an accident on the ARK so we were told to close the facility."
"But there wasn't an accident," Franklin deduced. "Was there?"
"No… A rumor had reached our ears of Dr. Gerald Robotnik was using Project Shadow to hide the construction of a super weapon, one that he intended to unleash upon the world. G.U.N. had been the ones to commission Project Shadow, and had provided Gerald with all the tools and funding he asked for. If word got out about what they had allowed to happen…" He gritted his teeth, looking away. "I didn't learn this until after the fact. At the time, me and a few of my fellow soldiers were aware something was fishy, but none of us had the guts to speak up."
…
Space Colony Ark, 50 Years ago…
Inside one of the ARK's labs, numerous scientists were gathered around a large, green lizard-like creature, securing it to a life support system. Suddenly, the doors were blown open as soldiers poured in. Gunfire filled the room, drowned out by the roars of the creature.
"What's going on?" Schmitz questioned, looking on in horror.
"They resisted," another soldier answered coldly. "We had no choice."
"But… but this isn't-
"We have our orders. Kill ALL who resist."
The emphasis on the word "All" made Schmitz blood run cold. Suddenly, there was a shout from just down the hall.
"I found it! I found the creature!"
Schmitz and the other soldiers quickly rushed in the direction of the shout. There, they found several soldiers surrounding Maria and Shadow. She was standing right in front of him, arms spread in an attempt to protect him. Schmitz stepped forward, reluctantly training his gun on the pair.
"Kid, please," he begged, "Stand down and step out of the way."
"No! I won't!" Maria cried out. "Shadow hasn't done anything wrong! Why are you doing this?!"
The soldier from before stepped forward, also aiming his gun.
"We're just following orders. Now get away from the creature or we WILL use lethal force."
"No! This is wrong and you know it! Don't do this! Please!"
"Maria…" Shadow said softly from behind her.
The soldier remained unmoved, taking aim. Schmitz turned to them in horror.
"She's just a kid! There's no need to-!"
"We have our orders," the soldier insisted before turning back to Maria. "Last chance kid. Get out of the way."
Maria stood her ground.
"If you want to hurt Shadow, you have to go through me!"
"So be it."
He raised his gun, and Schmitz's eyes widened.
"NO!"
The gun went off...
…
"She was just a kid..." Schmitz let out, his hands shaking as he buried his face in his hands. "Just an innocent kid..."
Scarlet placed a hand on his shoulder.
"After that… the creature took her and ran off. When we finally caught up with them, he was gone, ejected out of a pod that landed who knows where. It was… too late for her. We sealed away everything else, got rid of every scientist left on the ship, and had Gerald Robotnik imprisoned. Everything was then covered up and we were all sworn to secrecy."
"What about my father?" Scarlet asked.
"You nearly suffered the same fate he did. Anyone who asks too many questions or refuses to back off is quietly 'disposed of'. It's why I'm the only one left from that fateful day..."
"... thank you… for telling me this."
Franklin just observed the two, unsure of what to say.
…
Back on the ARK, Kat and Keith were still running through the halls, searching for the red echidna. Eventually, they found him sitting in the hall, putting the pieces of the Master Emerald together. They both came to a stop, Keith just staring in amazement as the last piece slid into place, the Master Emerald whole once more. Once the Emerald was safely on the ground, Kat took a deep breath.
"Knuckles… you IDIOT!"
Knuckles jumped, turning just in time to receive a hard punch to the head from Kat.
"What were you thinking, running off like that?! And after completely wrecking the shuttle we were on! Do you have any idea how worried I was?! We're supposed to be a team! Teammates don't run off without warning or leave their friends behind to try and find them on an unknown space station!"
"Ok, I'm sorry," Knuckles replied.
"Darn right, you're sorry! You're lucky I could sense the Master Emeralds energy and follow it, or I'd be even more pissed!"
Knuckles just grabbed her bag and held it out to her.
"Would this make up for things?"
Kat paused, looking at Knuckles, then at the bag. She then took it, sliding it onto her shoulder where it belonged.
"Apology accepted."
Keith just stared at the two for a long moment before just letting out a breath, shaking his head.
"... man you two are nuts," Keith commented.
…
Meanwhile, Chessie was still running through the halls of the ARK, trying with all her might to reunite with her friends. As she ran, a bright glow suddenly manifested in front of her, stopping her in her tracks. As the light died down, Sonic seemed to appear in front of her, landing on the ground.
"Sonic?!" She exclaimed, bending down to help him. "What the heck? What's going on?"
"Oh… hey Chessie…" He greeted weakly. "I guess it worked."
"What worked? Sonic, what happened?"
"Eggman tried launching me into space. So, I decided to take a page out of Shadow's book and use Chaos Control."
Chessie's eyes went wide.
"What? Chaos Control? But, you don't have the Emeralds!"
"No, but I do have this." Sonic opened his hand, revealing the fake Chaos Emerald. "It's a fake, but it works."
"How is that possible…"
"Not entirely sure, but I know I can put it to good use. I hate to ask, but can you find Tails and the others? They might need help."
"Sure, but what are you gonna do?"
"Get to the cannon before it fires and slam dunk this baby in there!" Sonic declared before running off.
…
Back in the Control Room, Rouge was checking on the download she had started, still pouting about the Master Emerald.
"It was such a lovely thing too… Still, he did save me."
"Rouge," Topaz called over comms. "Are you there?"
"I'm here Topaz," Rouge replied, answering the comms. "I'm copying the data I found on Project Shadow as we speak."
"Just be sure that you get every bit of information. The Eclipse Cannon, Project Shadow, there's so much we've been kept in the dark about. It's high time this information came into the light."
The download finished and Rouge removed the device she'd inserted before. She smirked, sliding it into her fur.
"Mission accomplished. I got all the information we could ask for, even some tidbits Eggman wasn't privy to."
"You'd better get out of there then."
"In a sec. First, I wanna grab the Chaos Emeralds."
"Of course. You'll never change, will you Rouge?"
"Why change perfection?" Rouge quipped, chuckling slightly.
"Self preservation comes to mind."
Rouge snapped around and saw Shadow in front of her, snagging the radio and crushing it in his hand.
"Meaning you'd better leave those Emeralds alone if you value your life, Agent Rouge."
"So, you've been keeping tabs on me have you? Wouldn't that be an invasion of privacy?"
"I could say the same about you."
"Well, my work here is done, and since things weren't going your way, I figured I'd take what's mine and get out of here."
"You're not going anywhere, imposter."
Rouge let out a snort.
"Imposter? You're one to talk."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
…
Meanwhile, Tails and Robotnik continued fighting each other, mech on mech. Tails managed to easily maneuver around Robotnik's blasts, finally getting in close to him.
"This is for Sonic!"
Tails opened fire at the same time Robotnik did, causing an explosion that knocked both their mechs back, totaling them. Tails managed to pull himself out of the wreck, coughing a little as he did.
"Sonic… I did it…"
Just then, a claw reached into the wreck, and grabbed the Chaos Emerald, much to Tails' horror.
"No!"
"Better luck next time, kid!" Robotnik remarked, making his getaway.
…
"According to this," Rouge informed, showing him a paper detailing Project Shadow. "The body of the research project dubbed 'the ultimate lifeform' was sealed away more than fifty years ago."
"So?" Shadow dismissed. "That was merely a prototype. I was the original model made afterwards."
"That's the thing though. The report says there were two capsules jettisoned from the ARK when it was shut down. Both on and off record, they were never found. And if they were never found, then how did you end up on Prison Island I wonder."
Shadow just stared Rouge down, unsure of exactly what to say. Suddenly, his radio began beeping.
"Shadow, I've gotten a hold of the last Chaos Emerald. However, it seems someone is trying to reach the Eclipse Cannon. There's not much time left before it fires again. Get down there, fast!"
"I'm on it," Shadow replied before turning to Rouge. "If you want to live, leave the Chaos Emeralds where they are. As far as I'm concerned, the fake Emerald is good enough for you."
He then turned to leave, Rouge calling out for him.
"Wait! Don't you understand you're not the real Shadow?"
"Says you."
"Nothing about you is real! Not even your memories!"
That last comment made Shadow stop for a moment.
"Even if my memories aren't real… they're all I have. As is my promise to Maria. That's all that matters to me now."
Shadow then took off, hoping to see his grand design through.
…
Meanwhile, Knuckles, Kat, and Keith were heading down one hallway, the former carrying the Master Emerald above his head. In another hallway, Tanaka and Amy were running as well. Down one more, Chessie was booking it. Surprisingly, these hallways all met up at an intersection, the group coming together in the middle.
"Guys!" Chessie let out.
"Chessie!" Amy and Tanaka shouted.
"You alright, Chessie?" Keith asked.
"I'm fine. Feeling rather naked without my cables, but I'll live. What's the situation with you guys?"
"Good news is I found the Master Emerald," Knuckles declared. "If push comes to shove, I can use it to shut down the Chaos Emeralds and stop the Eclipse Cannon from going off."
"Hey, where are Tails and Sonic?" Keith asked, noting their absence.
"Sonic…" Amy tried to say. "He's…"
"Fine," Chessie piped up. "Appeared in a big ball of light in front of me. Get this: he somehow used a fake Emerald to transport himself with Chaos Control."
"Sonic's alive?!" Amy let out. "That's great!"
Suddenly, Tails came flying in from down the fourth hallway of the intersection, his tails spinning a mile a minute. He came skidding to a stop, having heard Amy's shouts.
"Sonic's alive?!" He exclaimed. "Are you serious?!"
"Dead serious," Chessie promised. "He said he was gonna stick the fake Chaos Emerald into the Eclipse cannon and sent me to find you guys."
"Then I hope he hurries. Eggman's got the last Chaos Emerald."
"WHAT?!" Everyone exclaimed.
"I tried to stop him…"
"We'll worry about that later," Knuckles reassured. "Right now, we've got to hurry."
…
Elsewhere, Sonic was making his way to the Cannon via a conveyor belt, hoping to get there in time to stop it.
"You never cease to surprise me, blue hedgehog," Shadow remarked, walking alongside him. "I honestly thought you died when that capsule exploded."
"Hey, what can I say? I die hard," Sonic remarked, leaping to another conveyor belt going the opposite direction. He walked along it, keeping up with the other belt while holding the fake Emerald. "You actually saved me, you know."
"The fake Emerald? But there's no way you could've activated the Chaos Control, using an Emerald that's fake."
"Fraid I did. Sorry."
Sonic then took off sprinting, with Shadow following close behind.
"So, there's more to you then just looking like me," Shadow noted. "Who are you, anyway?"
"What you see is what you get. Just a guy with a need for speed, and a love for adventure. I'm Sonic the Hedgehog!"
"I see. Of course you must know I can't let you live. Your adventuring days are coming to an end!"
The two then bolted down the conveyor belt, hoping to end their confrontation once and for all.
…
In the ARK computer room, both Orbot and Cubot were typing away at the console.
"The Eclipse Cannon is nearly ready to launch again, Doctor," Orbot reported.
"So, where are we gonna destroy first? Washington? Chicago? Station Square? Pittsburg?"
"All of the above," Robotnik replied, clutching the Emerald. "And so much more."
…
Down in the Cannon, Sonic and Shadow continued racing along the conveyor belts. Sonic tried leaping at Shadow, but Shadow easily leapt over it.
"Time to vanish! Chaos Spear!"
Shadow then rained down energy spears at Sonic, prompting him to leap out of the way. Sonic then tried spin dashing towards Shadow. Shadow easily dodged the spin dash, raining down another Chaos Spear bombardment.
"What's he trying to do? Barbecue me?" Sonic remarked.
Sonic continued dodging the Chaos Spears, causing them to hit several parts of the cannon.
…
From one of the viewports, the rest of Sonic's team could see the Eclipse Cannon taking some severe damage.
"The Eclipse Cannon!" Chessie called out.
"Sonic," Knuckles recognized. "He did it."
"Now all we need to do is get the Chaos Emeralds away from Eggman!"
"Then what are we waiting for?!" Amy shouted. "Let's go!"
…
Back in the control room, red lights were going off everywhere.
"Several parts of the Eclipse Cannon have suffered catastrophic failure!" Orbot exclaimed.
"What is that hedgehog doing?!" Cubot shrieked.
There was another explosion, then Orbot saw something frightening on the screens.
"Oh dear. It seems the gun battery is sustained damage."
"What?!" Robotnik let out. "It doesn't matter. Just fire it anyway."
Robotnik then placed the final Chaos Emerald into place, shoving the two aside.
"Eclipse Cannon, fire!"
Robotnik then punched a button, causing all the Chaos Emeralds to glow. However, the glow stopped almost as soon as it began, all of the lights dimming. Everything began to shut down, the console doing dead.
"What?!" Robotnik let out. "What happened?! Why didn't the Cannon fire?!"
Suddenly, all of the monitors turned back on, this time displaying a simple countdown. It was set for twenty seven minutes and fifty three seconds. Then, on the final monitor, an image of Gerald Robotnik appeared on screen. He was chained to a chair, sitting in the very cell Sonic had been imprisoned in on Prison Island.
"Grandfather?"
"This is a death sentence for all mankind. In twenty seven minutes and fifty three seconds, the Space Colony ARK will crash into your planet and all of you will die."
The countdown had begun...