The group quickly returned to the castle, seeing the disarray the staff and guards were in as a result of Robotnik's invasion.
"Man, these guys were not prepared for Eggman," Kat muttered.
"Come on," Keith gestured. "We'd better help them out.
The group quickly made their way over to the panicking officials.
"Hey!" Sonic called out. "Take it easy. We're here to help."
"Wait, I know you," one of the guards recognized. "You're that creature that was trespassing in the castle earlier."
"Yeah, that was me," Sonic admitted, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Look, I know things seem dire now, but we will get Elise back. Before she was taken, she gave me this." Sonic pulled out the key Elise had given him. "Any of you know what it goes to?"
One of the advisors quickly pushed past the rest, wanting to get a good look at the key.
"I know this key…" he recognized, taking it. "It's the key to the treasury vault. If the Queen entrusted you with this, then you are someone worth trusting."
"I do my best," Sonic replied while Silver just crossed his arms.
"Think you can take us to this vault?" Tails asked. "Maybe there's something in there that can help us stop Eggman."
"Of course," the advisor nodded, straightening up. "Please, follow me."
…
The advisor led them inside the castle towards a large metal door. The advisor then used the key to unlock the door, allowing him to open it and everyone to walk inside. As they did though, they noticed a massive hole seemingly blasted into the wall.
"Looks like Eggman's already been here," Keith dreaded.
"Spread out," Sonic told everyone. "See if there's anything he missed."
Everyone spread around the room, searching for anything that could help them in their quest. As Silver searched through some cabinets, he opened one and found a blue Chaos Emerald inside. Turning back to make sure no one was looking, he snatched the Emerald and placed it in his fur. As he continued to search, Hope happened to glance over and notice him doing that.
"How do you do that?" she asked.
"Uh… do what?" Silver asked, trying to act ignorant.
"That thing you did. Put stuff in your fur."
Everyone turned to Silver, Blaze crossing her arms in annoyance. "What did you see him put in his fur?"
"It looked like a really large sapphire. It was blue, but it looked weird"
"It didn't happen to be glowing, did it?" Knuckles inquired, glaring at Silver.
"Yeah, a bit." Hope turned to Silver in confusion. "Why do I feel like you were trying to hide something important?"
"Because he was," Kat declared, walking over and shoving her hand into his spines. She rifled around for a moment, then pulled out the Emerald. "A Chaos Emerald."
"Hey!" Silver let out.
"You found a Chaos Emerald and were trying to hide it!" Amy accused.
"Why would you do that?" Cream questioned, looking hurt. "We're all friends, aren't we?"
"I was just holding onto it," Silver insisted.
"Look, I get you don't like me," Sonic stepped in. "but when you put a mission to save a life at risk, then I take issue."
"Easy there," Knuckles warned, holding Sonic back. "Trust ain't easy to give, especially when you're dealing with the unknown."
Sonic took a breath. "Right… look, Silver. I know it's hard to accept for you, but we want the same thing. To save our worlds. But that's gonna require a little trust from both of us."
Silver huffed, turning away. As he did, Kat looked at the emerald in her hand, her eyes narrowing.
"Hey Keith… correct me if I'm wrong here, but hasn't Eggman practically nose dived at every Emerald that's ever been uncovered?"
"Yeah…" Keith let out, catching onto what Kat was suggesting. "So why'd he leave this one behind?"
"Maybe he was after something else and he just missed it," Tails suggested.
"Which begs the question," Hope muttered, "What was more important than a Chaos Emerald?"
…
Several miles west of Soleanna, in the snowy peaks of White Acropolis, a secret base was established by Dr. Robotnik, and was guarded at the front entrance by several robots. Suddenly, the robots all went on high alert, detecting something quickly approaching. Suddenly, a fast moving figure shot out from the tree line, prompting the robots to open fire on it. The figure dodged and weaved between the shots before speeding in between the robots, causing them all to explode as a result. The figure then leapt onto one robot and used it as a springboard to leap over the gate and into the base itself, revealing itself to be none other than Shadow the Hedgehog. Seeing an approaching spotlight, Shadow hit behind some crates before pressing a button on his communicator watch.
"Rouge, are you and the others inside?" he inquired.
"Just made it," she informed him. "Your grand entrance was the perfect cover."
"According to GUN," Chessie chimed in, "Eggman's made off with a Murasian scepter that might hold a clue to the Mobius/Earth crisis we're currently dealing with.
"Meaning retrieving that scepter is our top priority," Topaz added. "We need to get in, find the scepter, and get out."
"Understood," Shadow declared. "No matter what, we will save this world.."
Shadow then hung up and teleported into the base, determined to see his mission through.
…
Meanwhile, Topaz, Rouge, and Chessie stealthily made their way through the base, making sure to stay out of sight of the patrolling badniks.
"Eggman sure didn't waste time setting up shop," Topaz commented. "He must really be onto something big."
"All the more reason we need to find the scepter and get some answers," Chessie responded, pressing some buttons on her wristband. "I'll need direct access to the base servers to get a fix on where he's holding it. I can guide you two there and then we can meet up with Shadow."
"Sounds like a plan," Rouge agreed, giving her a two fingered salute. "Good luck."
Chessie nodded before heading off, leaving Topaz and Rouge to find their own way.
…
After some searching, Chessie found an air vent that led inside the main complex. Using her cables, she pulled herself up and slipped inside, crawling through carefully. She tapped on her wristband, bringing up a holographic map. A red line began to show a winding path before ending on an X.
"Bingo."
She continued moving forward, taking a few turns before reaching a vent that opened up into a security room. Inside, she could see Bokkun sitting in a security chair that was much too big for him, eating a cup of ramen as he watched the monitors. He was humming slightly, unaware of Chessie slowly lowering herself into the room. She reached into her fur, pulling out a chocolate bar before tapping Bokkun on the shoulder.
"Excuse me." Bokkun perked up, turning to see Chessie dangling the chocolate bar in front of him. "You want this? It's deluxe chocolate. With Caramel filling."
"Deluxe…?" he let out, his mouth watering. "With caramel?"
She nodded, slowly backing towards a utility closet. "Eyup. I picked it up in Switzerland. The candy capital of the world. You want it, right?"
He nodded vehemently, prompting her to toss it into the closet.
"Go get it!"
He instantly flew in after the chocolate, allowing her to slam the door on him. She then pushed a desk in front of the door, then went to take his seat. She scooped up the ramen, giving it a sniff.
"Ooh, beef." She took a bite before plugging into the system. "Alright, I'm in."
"Alright," Rouge responded. "Tell us where we're going."
"Eggman's not known for being subtle," Chessie responded, slurping up some noodles before typing away. "Knowing him, he's got the scepter in one of two places: his lab, or the Chaos Vault."
"The lab isn't likely," Shadow insisted. "He's going to be busy with his plans in Soleanna, meaning he'll want to keep his trump card as secure as he can."
"Then that just leaves the vault," Topaz noted.
"Right… and it's in the dead center of the base. Trust me, there's no way you're missing those doors."
"Roger that," Rouge replied. "Shadow, mind clearing up an exit for us in the meantime?"
"Fine, but you two better hurry," Shadow responded. "Eggman's liable to not take this invasion well."
"Good luck guys." Chessie kicked back and kept eating the ramen. "For a noisy robot, he's got good taste in noodles."
…
Rouge and Topaz made their way through the complex, staying out of sight from any robots they came across.
"According to Chessie's map," Topas reported, "the vault should be at the end of the next corridor."
Rouge nodded as they made their way down the hall, rounding the corner and coming face to face with the vault. The twin doors were adorned with Robotnik's face on either side of them.
"Now that is an ugly door," Rouge remarked.
She flew up and tried to kick the door down, but it did little more than dent it.
"Sturdy stuff."
"Right," Topaz agreed, reaching into her bag and pulling out an explosive device. "Might need to try something else."
She placed the device on the door and pressed a button, prompting the two to move back just as the device exploded. It blew a massive hole in the door, causing Rouge to smile as she flew through it. Topaz followed right behind her.
"Great work, guys," Chessie told them. "However, that explosion kinda called attention to you. Find the Scepter and get out. Quick."
"Working on it," Rouge replied, looking around the vault.
She kept looking around until she found the scepter sitting in a glass case being looked over by several scanners. She quickly kicked the case and pulled the scepter out, flying to meet up with Topaz.
"Got the goods," Rouge informed. "Let's get out of here."
…
Outside, Shadow was engaging with the new Swatbots, spin dashing into one before teleporting out of the way of another's shots. He reappeared behind the robot, bringing his foot down on its head, crushing it as he landed. He then turned around, seeing two more approaching him and causing him to smirk.
"Chaos Spear!" he cried out, summoning several energy bolts that took out the robots.
The robots crashed down to the ground as the others came running out of the base.
"You three took your time," Shadow remarked as they came up.
"Not our fault," Chessie countered. "The place is harder to navigate than an outlet mall."
"Have I ever told you how cute you two are together?" Rouge retorted while smirking.
Both Shadow and Chessie just rolled their eyes in response. Shadow then turned to Chessie, his eyes narrowing. "Is that a ramen noodle on your snout?"
Chessie blushed and instantly began batting at her snout to get rid of it. "No! Maybe… I got hungry!"
"Alright, that's enough," Topaz interjected. "We should really get out of here before Eggman sends more of his kill bots after us."
"Right," Shadow agreed. "Let's-"
Suddenly, there was a loud rumbling sound coming from the distance. The four agents braced themselves for whatever might be coming for them.
"So, what do we think it's gonna be this time?" Chessie asked, readying her cables. "Robotic turtle? Six armed mech? Triple layered battle tank?"
"Not sure," Shadow replied. "But whatever it is, it's big."
The rumbling continued, only getting heavier as their quarry continued its approach. Eventually, something leapt over the walls of the base, touching down to reveal a giant dog-like robot with red lights dotting its metal armor and an antenna on the top of its head.
"Big is right," Rouge noted.
She instantly took off towards the metal beast, delivering a kick to its face, causing it to stumble a bit before snapping back and trying to bite her. She quickly took off upwards, avoiding the jaws just in time. Topaz quickly took out her gun and opened fire, hoping to hit some kind of weak point in the robot. The bot turned towards Topaz and tried to step on her, prompting her to roll out of the way. Shadow took his turn next, skating towards the robot and leaping into the air, rolling into a spin dash and hitting the robot dead on. He landed on the ground, turning back to see the robot shaking off the attack and staring him down. It took off after Shadow, prompting him to skate away as the robot maintained pursuit. Chessie quickly ran towards the robot and used her cables to sling herself up onto the top of the robot. Once there, she felt around on the back of the robot's neck, looking for any exposed panels.
"C'mon, give me something…" she muttered.
Finally, she lucked out, and found a panel that she could pry off. She quickly did just that and started pulling wires. This caused the robot to start bucking around erratically, causing Chessie to have trouble with her grip. After a minute, she ended up flying into the air. She didn't fall far before Rouge swept in and caught her.
"I know cats always land on their feet, but I'd rather not risk it," the bat quipped.
While Rouge was flying her to safety, Shadow took this chance to circle around the robot and leap onto its tail, grinding it up so he could leap off and unleash a Chaos Spear at the exposed panel, frying its circuitry. The dog roared loudly as electricity crackled across it., causing small explosions to ring out along its exterior. Finally, the creature toppled over, completely dead.
"That should do it," Shadow noted, landing on the ground.
"Then I suggest we get out of here before anything else like that shows up," Topaz proposed.
"Agreed," Chessie concurred. "Let's go."
The four agents quickly took off, unaware of an ominous glow coming from the scepter.
…
The next day, the heroes met up at an outdoor cafe so they could go over the facts of their latest adventure. They ordered some brunch, everyone eating happily. Everyone except Silver, who kept eying Sonic with suspicion. Amy noted Silver's untrusting gaze and groaned, deciding to walk over to him.
"Are you just going to keep leering all day?" Amy questioned.
"And if I am?" Silver snipped, reluctantly eating his food while hiding how good it was.
"Then I'd tell you to knock it off. Sonic's not going to destroy the world over breakfast… or at all."
"How can you be sure of that?"
"Because I know Sonic. He would sooner put his own life at risk than hurt anyone. He doesn't hurt people, he helps them. And inspires them. He helps them become the best versions of themselves… he did that for me."
That got Silver's attention. "What do you mean?"
"Well… when I first met Sonic, I was a thoughtless fan girl who only wanted to meet her hero in the hopes that we would have a future together. He was quick to give me a reality check, and I realized that my thoughtlessness was only going to cause trouble. So, I decided to better myself. To work to become a more capable person. To be my own hero…"
…
Sonic sped through the open pains of Mobius, a smile of enjoyment gracing his face as he did. His trek carried him to the Floral Forest Village, a quaint little town that seemed to pique Sonic's interest. He slowed his run down to a stroll, taking in the sights around him.
"Wow," Sonic let out. "Nice place they got here. Real quaint."
As Sonic went along, a female rabbit happened to look up from her gardening and see him passing by, causing her to gasp.
"Amazing…" she let out, getting Sonic's attention.
"Everything ok, ma'am?" Sonic asked, walking up to the fence.
"Oh, sorry. You just reminded me of someone I knew. His name was Charles Hedgehog, and-"
"You knew my Uncle Chuck?" Sonic asked, instantly intrigued.
"Your uncle?" The rabbit suddenly realized something. "So you're Charles' nephew, Sonic? I must say, you look just like he did at your age."
"Really? Huh. cool."
"Oh where are my manners," she got to her feet and walked over to the fence. "I'm Vanilla the Rabbit. I was a field medic during the Great War and served alongside your uncle. He was a good Mobian."
"One of the best," Sonic lamented, his face dropping a bit.
He suddenly perked up when he saw what looked like a younger rabbit hiding behind some bushes.
"Uh, looks like we have a little spy," Sonic remarked, causing Vanilla to turn back.
"It's alright, sweetie," Vanilla reassured. "This young man's a friend. No need to be shy."
Slowly, the girl came out, holding her Chao friend close as she approached.
"This is my daughter, Cream," Vanilla introduced.
"Well hi there, Cream," Sonic greeted, kneeling down so they were level. "My names Sonic. It's nice to meet you."
"Hi…" Cream greeted nervously, holding up the Chao. "This is Cheese. He's my special Chao friend."
"Well hello there, Cheese," Sonic greeted, causing the Chao to perk up smiling. "You making sure Cream stays out of trouble?"
Cheese chirped in response, causing Cream to giggle.
"What'd he say?" Sonic asked.
"He said that he does his best, especially when there's cookies involved."
Sonic and Vanilla laughed in response, only for Sonic to look towards Cream and see a red dot on her face, causing his face to drop.
"Oh no…" he let out, spinning around to find the source of the dot. "Both of you get inside!"
Suddenly, several red dots were aimed at Sonic, causing him to look up and see numerous Buzz Bombers cutting through the tree line, as well as several Crab Bots coming out of hiding as well, causing him to narrow his eyes. Vanilla scooped up Cream and ran inside the house, leaving Sonic to charge forward. He leapt up and kicked one Buzz Bomber into another, causing them to explode. He then narrowly dodged another Buzz Bombers blast as he dropped into a spin dash, destroying a Crab Bot before homing attacking several others. He landed in front of one Crab Bot and grabbed it by the claw, chucking it at a group Buzz Bombers behind him.
"This is a nice village," Sonic told the robots before charging forward and bashing more of them. "You! Will not! Mess it up!"
As Sonic continued fighting against the Badniks, several Swatbots creeped out of the tree line, aiming their weapons at the battling Hedgehog.
"Priority one hedgehog detected," one of the bots reported leveling its weapon. "Target locked…"
As the Swatbots, prepared to open fire, something struck one of them from behind, causing its head to flatten and Sonic to perk up, hearing the noise. He turned around to see the damaged Swatbot topple to the ground, revealing a female hedgehog in a pink dress wielding a large hammer. The girl then gripped her hammer and swung it around, nailing another one of the Swatbots before it could get off a shot. Sonic took this chance to run over and give the girl a hand, spin dashing right into one of the Swatbots and obliterating it. He then landed behind one, kicking its legs out from under it, so it would fire at another Swatbot, taking it out. Once that Swatbot landed on the ground, the girl leapt up into the air and brought her hammer down on it, smashing it.
With that, the last of the Swatbots were down, allowing Sonic to turn towards his unexpected ally.
"I don't know where you came from, but thanks," he told her.
"Honestly, this is a favor that was long overdue."
"Favor?" Sonic questioned, cocking an eyebrow.
"For saving me from my own stupidity, and frankly 'the most reckless and irresponsible thing' I've ever done."
That jogged a memory in Sonic. "You… you're that girl I saved from the Scrap Brain Zone. the one that said that-"
"We were destined to be together?" she blushed hard upon remembering that. "Yep, that was me."
"I see. Well… I am sorry for letting you have it so hard."
"Don't be," she insisted, holding a hand up. "I needed a reality check. I decided to take your advice and become my own hero. And… here I am."
"I'm warning you now. If this is some elaborate attempt to get me to fall for you-"
"It's not!" she insisted, hands raised defensively. "I was a selfish, self-centered brat. I was a delusional simp and I needed that jolt of reality to see that. Now, I want to do something worthwhile. Something that can make a difference. Like you do…"
Sonic gave the girl an earnest look, seeing the sincerity in her face. Finally, he let out a breath.
"I'm still not looking for a soulmate… but I will accept a friend. What's your name?"
"Amy," she replied, holding out a hand. "Amy Rose."
"Sonic," he replied, shaking it.
…
"And while I admit I can still be a little… clingy at times…" she confessed. "I still get a chance to fight by his side and be something better."
"You… really think that highly of him?" Silver questioned.
"I do…" Amy admitted, looking back towards him. "I really do…"
As those two continued to talk, the others were sitting at a table, discussing their next move.
"So, what's our next move?" Keith asked.
"We have to figure out where Dr. Eggman is based out of," Tails deduced. "His new battleship seemed to be heading west, so it's more than likely to be in that direction."
"It still leaves us with a lot of ground to cover," Knuckles commented, turning to the former Robotnik robots. "Any suggestions on where to start?"
"Dr. Robotnik usually chooses his bases with a mindset of strategic advantage and concealment from prying eyes," Orbot informed.
"And he likes to put his face on stuff," Cubot added. "He likes his face a lot."
"Yeah, we've noticed," Sonic remarked. "Still, we need a place to start."
"Personally, I'm curious what he wants with these 'Flames of Disaster' he mentioned before," Chuck commented. "If they lead to the devastation Silver warned us about, Robotnik could be playing with powers beyond his understanding."
"You don't know the half of it. When I asked Elise about it last night, she said the Solaris Project was about harnessing the power of Solaris itself."
"Harness the power of a god?" Keith questioned. "For what?"
"No idea. But if that's what Eggman's after, I get the feeling it's gonna make Chaos flooding Station Square look like a day at the beach."
"Right," Keith grimaced.
Before anyone could say anything else, a high pitched laughing rang out, causing everyone to become on edge as they looked up and saw Bokkun flying down towards them.
"Hi ya guys," Bokkun greeted before seeing Orbot and Cubot. "Oh great, you two. Just for the record, Dr. Robotnik isn't gonna want to give you two your jobs back!"
"And here I thought he loved us…" Cubot lamented.
"He never liked us," Orbot recalled.
"Oh yeah…"
"What do you want, Bokkun?" Kat asked, reaching for her bat.
"Dr. Robotnik's got a message for Sonic," Bokkun answered, pulling out a tablet. "So pay attention!"
Sonic stepped forward as the tablet turned on, showing Robotnik's face.
"Greetings, my fast fleeing foe. As you know, Queen Elise has become a guest of my latest stronghold. But I like to think of myself as a reasonable evil genius. So I'm willing to propose a trade. The Queen in exchange… for your Chaos Emerald," the last part caused Sonic to perk up. "Oh yes, I know about it. Deliver it to me, and the Queen is yours. I'll even throw in the Kintobor girl as a sign of good faith."
"Aggie…" Hope let out.
"If you accept, come to my base at White Acropolis. Until then, Bokkun?"
"Right," Bokkun replied, tossing the tablet to Sonic before flying off.
Freaking out, Sonic tossed the tablet to Knuckles, who in turn tossed the tablet to Kat, who quickly tossed it towards Amy, who in a panic tossed it to Silver. Running out of people to throw it to, Silver just held it until it finally exploded, leaving Silver covered in soot.
"Are… you ok, Silver?" Blaze asked.
"Honestly, that was nothing. Iblis was so much worse."
"You're a tough one," Knuckles commented.
"So, what do we think?" Keith asked.
"That it's obviously a trap," Tails responded. "Offering us everything we want for just one Emerald? Yeah, I'm getting ARK flashbacks."
"Yeah, that was not fun," Amy commented.
"Still, this is the best chance we have to rescue Elise and stop Eggman," Sonic replied. "I say we stop by this White Acropolis and see what's what."
"So when do we leave?" Silver asked.
"Sorry, I'm gonna need you to stay here, Silver."
"What?! You can't be serious!"
"After that stunt you pulled with the Chaos Emerald, I can't trust your vendetta against me isn't gonna get us in trouble. I promise, we'll hash things out when I get back," he turned to Amy. "Mind keeping an eye on him?"
"No problem," Amy reassured.
"I'll stay as well," Blaze declared. "I'm not well versed with this Eggman, but I know Silver."
"Let me come with you guys," Hope insisted. "Even if this is a trap, I have to save Aggie."
"Sure, but stay close," Sonic instructed before turning to the bots. "Gonna need you two as well. You guys know Eggman's setups."
"We will perform to the highest capacity we can manage," Orbot promised.
"I don't know," Cubot replied. "Can't we just do our best instead?"
"... sure," Orbot reassured, patting the bot on the head. "Just do your best."
"Can do, buddy!"
"Alright," Sonic declared. "Let's get going!"
"Are you sure, this is safe, Sonic?" Cream asked, sounding more than a little concerned.
"Not sure about safe, but it's the right thing to do."
"But-"
"It's gonna be ok, Cream," Sonic reassured, placing a hand on her shoulder. "We're all gonna come back just fine."
Cream was hesitant, but she nodded, signaling Sonic she was alright.
"Alright," Sonic let out, turning to the others. "Let's get to work."
…
From his secret base, Robotnik was viewing Sonic's team planning their next move, a sly smile gracing his face.
"First tip on being a super villain," Robotnik instructed. "Keep tabs on your foes at all times. It gives you ample time to plan your next move."
"Nifty," Agatha commented.
"Impressive Doctor," Stone commended.
"Glad you think so, Stone," Robotnik responded, spinning around to face him. "Because I have an assignment for you."
Stone was taken aback by that. "For me?"
Robotnik pressed a button, showing the footage of Team Dark destroying the robotic dog.
"It would seem Shadow and his little commando unit broke into the facility and stole the Scepter of Darkness from my vault. I need you to track them down and bring it back."
"Consider it done, sir," Stone responded, saluting.
"Do a good job, and you just might get yourself promoted to the yes man pool."
Stone nodded before taking off, leaving Robotnik with Aggie.
"What about me?" she asked. "What can I do?"
"Oh I have a very special assignment for you…"
…
Later that day, Team Dark was making their way into Kingdom Valley, the crumbling remains of the old Soleanna Castle. They made their way towards the main section of the castle, looking around at the wreckage.
"So this is the old Soleanna Castle?" Chessie noted. "Certainly seen better days."
"From what I've read, the royal family used to reside here until the Solaris Project failed," Rouge informed. "Nobody's lived here since."
"Makes you wonder just what the Solaris Project really was," Shadow noted, looking around the destroyed room.
"Well, hopefully when we get this back to base," Rouge replied, holding up the Scepter. "We can get some answers on that."
"Hate to break it to you," a new voice spoke up.
The group turned towards the voice, seeing Agent Stone approaching with a laser rifle in hand and several Swatbots on either side of him.
"But that Scepter's going back where it belongs," he continued before aiming the gun. "In Dr. Robotnik's vault."
"Stone!" Topaz let out, drawing her own weapon. "You've got a lot to answer for!"
"I answer to a new boss now. And unlike GUN, he actually values my loyalty."
"If by that you mean boot licking," Chessie commented. "Take it from someone who knows Stone, Eggman's a crap boss who'll dump you when you become a problem."
"Then maybe I'll get on his good side by dealing with you."
Stone then opened fire, causing Chessie to sling a cable and zip away. Shadow sprang forward, but was fired upon by the Swatbots, forcing him to dodge and weave between the shots. Topaz opened fire on Stone, prompting him to roll out of the way as he returned fire.
"Rouge, take the Scepter and get out of here!" Topaz called out.
Rouge nodded before taking off into the air. Stone saw this and tried shooting at here while commanding the Swatbots to pursue. Rouge easily dodged and weaved between the shots, unaware of a Swatbot flying up behind her. As Shadow took down a bot, he looked up and saw the threat behind Rouge.
"Rouge, look out!" he yelled.
Just as Rouge turned around, the Swatbot struck her across the face, causing her to drop the Scepter as she fell to the ground. Not wasting a beat, Shadow skated forward towards one of the Swatbots and leapt onto its head, using it as a springboard so he could leap up and catch Rouge. Before anyone could make a move, the Scepter fell to the ground, shattering upon impact.
"No!" Stone let out.
"Bet your new boss isn't gonna like that," Topaz commented as she went over to the remains.
All of a sudden, a black shroud shot out of the scepter, much to the surprise of everyone.
"What on Earth…" Chessie let out.
The shroud then descended to the ground, plowing through the Swatbots and destroying them instantly.
"Get me out of here," Stone commanded. "Get me out of here, now!"
Two Swatbots quickly grabbed Stone by the arms and flew away. As the shroud finished the last of the Swatbots, it shot straight up into the air before darting back down towards where Topaz was. Thinking fast, Shadow rushed forward and shoved Topaz out of the way just as the shroud hit the ground right on top of his shadow. Shadow looked down at his shadow as the others moved towards him, unsure of what just happened. Before anyone could say anything, his shadow began to move, before collapsing in on itself and becoming a swirling void.
"What's happening?" Topaz questioned.
"That thing…" Rouge let out. "It absorbed his shadow…"
Eventually, the shadow began to rise up off of the ground, taking physical form. It looked almost like the real Shadow, but the black of its spines had an almost navy tinge to them, and the red streaks were a teal color. Even creepier, it didn't possess a mouth. The creature looked down at itself, as if seeing itself for the first time. Before anyone could make a move towards him, the creature let out a bone chilling laugh, before looking right at Shadow.
"Oh how ironic fate can be. I never would have imagined I would be resurrected from your shade," it then took a mocking bow. "I thank you… Shadow the Hedgehog."
Shadow was taken aback by this, turning towards Chessie.
"How does he know my name?" he asked.
"I don't know," Chessie admitted. "I've never seen anything like this before.
The creature lumbered towards them, his head still lowered. "I am Mephiles. Mephiles the Dark. Surely, you could not have forgotten me."
"Sorry," Shadow replied, him and the others taking a step back. "My memory isn't what it used to be."
Mephiles tilted his head. "Hmm… Time… such a fickle thing. A tangled web only a few can see the pattern of."
Shadow gave a confused look as Mephiles continued moving towards them.
"It's no matter. I remember you, and what I promised you before… a one way ticket to oblivion."
Mephiles raised his hand, an orb of purple energy appearing inside it. He raised his hand, allowing the orb to expand and consume him and the four agents. They barely had time to cover their faces before vanishing into the darkness. When everything cleared, there was no sign they were ever there…