Authors note: Hi, sorry readers for the delay. Well, thanks for those have reviewed, for those who have read and enjoyed it, and to those...who are willing to give it a chance. Keep up the reviews and here we go...ch.3 is a go.

CH.3-The Pale emerald

In the Thorndyke living room the group took in what Tails had said; none really believed it. In short Tails had told them of a legendary Chaos emerald called the Pale emerald. Its powers were used for healing, in the wrong hands it could bring back the dead. All they had to do was travel to Oak Stone Mountains and retrieve it, all within nighttime. It seemed impossible, but Tails thought it could be done. "Only a few of us can go, but who will it be?"

"Hey, Chris you found Sonic!" Daniel stood in the doorway holding a basketball and a backpack, it then dawned on Chris he had school. "You do remember we have that exam…right?" Chris slapped his head.

"Yeah, sorry guys, looks like I'm out." Tails could see the disappointment in Chris's eyes, but knew an exam couldn't be missed. As Chris left silence once again was held. The next to go was Mr. Tanaka, he too had seemed eager to go.

"Searching for a legendary treasure, it would've been so fascinating to unearth it. Yet I have another business meeting that proves useful in my career." Tails didn't like the role of leader, no fun involved and everyone always expected 100 .

"It sounds dangerous," Cream the rabbit said. Her eyes held many emotions, yet he could tell from her shaking that Cream didn't like trouble. The two had been always been bumping into trouble, so he couldn't see why. The group was now: he, Miles Prower Tails, Amy Rose, accompanied by Lily, and Big the cat.

"We leave at 1300 hours, no sooner or later. Sonic has maybe a few more hours, let's take that time and add to it. I knew in these trying times Sonic would have some humorous joke; fact is I'm no Sonic. We'll be going by foot to fool Eggman; any other transportation must be left behind. You are dismissed." The plan was set, the timer was ticking, and the team was assembled. Leadership is the key, he thought, am I up to it?

In his dark lab, Dr.Eggman was hunched over beakers and watching each chemical fizz to the top. After his two dim witted lackeys came back with bad news he tightened their bolts and sent them to clean the place. It was in here that his rank Dr. came in. These Chaos emeralds are boiling too fast, he thought humidly, what I need is something that can take the heat. Walking over to a shelf full of recipes of evil, he came upon a dusty covered book. As he flipped through the web of pages he placed his finger on a particular emerald. The date was scratched up, but in his youth he knew this whole book page to page. The passage in particular he remembered was about a legendary jewel, said to harness a lot of power:

In the olden days there was

An emerald of a pale color. The

Great kings used it to destroy

Kingdoms not save them. Whoever

Claimed this emerald, would be

Invisible to all prey or projectile.

Its home, for those brave enough to

Venture, is the Oaken Mountains.

Hmmm, Dr.Eggman mused to himself, maybe this is the very answer I seek. "Decoe get Bocue, we're going on a scavenger hunt!"

Sonic heard voices, all were too far to get an answer; or for that matter an identity. He remembered a dark smelly forest and his friend Chris Thorndyke, but the rest was fuzzy. He opened his eyes and he was in a lair of bones and wilting flowers, the stench from the pool was nauseating. As he took a step towards the exit a low laughter sent him to the ground.

"Going somewhere hedgehog? In case you're wondering where this is, I'll help you." The room was lit up and Sonic realized the smell…was death! It all came back now: the smell in Eggman's factory, the smell in the forest, in face he had the smell memorized. "I've always been there Sonic, and will always be. Right now your friends are seeking a very powerful emerald, along with an older foe. Please take a seat; it may get a little busy." Always in the shadows, the form of death left through a pair of doors with skulls on it. The wind was chilly and forced Sonic away from the exit.

"Hey up there! Can you give me a hand?" Suddenly a green necklace went around his neck, blurring his vision. When his vision was fixed he had a green stopwatch on his neck, the weird thing was it was going backwards. This wasn't good, and for his friends up there, what if they were late? Sonic took a seat on a lumpy couch and picked up a magazine titled "Death wish". What he needed was some speed, so he got up and ran, not exactly. He was running in place and he was breaking a sweat! Walking over to the soda machine the only flavor available was orange. "Am I supposed to go insane in here?"

"On the contrary Sonic, I only wish for your stay here to be as nice as possible. Speaking of which, you look dirty, why don't you take a swim!" The floor below opened up and his stomach dropped at the sight of the green liquid. As he started to fall he held onto a pipe and hung above the liquid.

"I won't give in too easily," Sonic said through his teeth, "for as long as I have my friends I can face death a million times through. Go after my friends…and face a deadly and cunning foe." Flipping over the pipe he stood before the figure in dark robes. Understanding the hedgehog, the robed figure retracted the platform. "How did you end up down here?"

"The friends I once had betrayed me; so I took it upon myself to get revenge. You are different from the other souls I receive; perhaps I'll meet others as challenging. I hope we never meet again," he said with a hint of humor and seriousness. The room now was very bright and sent Sonic over to the pit of green liquid. The robed figure stared at him. "Someone loves you Sonic, I'd take care to return it." Hurtling head over sneakers he saw the green waves greet his body, and then he felt nothing.

"This should be it," Tails said. He, Amy, and Big were at the base of the Oak Mountains. Their walk here was one full of silence, Tails tried to lighten the mood, but to no avail. Tails flexed his gloved hands and regretted not being at the controls of the X Tornado. Tails was the scout, Big was the defensive backup, and Amy was the formidable offense. Lily flew with Tails at times, but preferred the familiarity of Amy's presence. Once again Tails flew to the sky and shielded his eyes from the sinking sun. The climb ahead was long and Tails alone couldn't lift Big. Deciding what he knew was right he flew back down and tied his tails. "Let's climb."

"But Tails your tails are tied," Big said with alarm, "won't you fall without your special?" Ignoring the protest Tails grabbed the rock and hoisted himself up. Big followed him and so did a reluctant Amy. By the middle, perspiration dotted his forehead and Big looked ready to let go. "Tails…I can't do it."

"Focus on your goal, not your weakness." The rock shards were biting into his gloves and his eyes were trailing up the towering peak. Amy sweated it out and her determination wouldn't let her die now. The three made it to the top and the moon's silvery beam played across the black sky. A temple of rocks was there covered in vines and statues. "Inside is Sonic's cure."

"Well…let's go then!" Amy pushed ahead and entered a very narrow hallway. Holding her Pico Pico hammer in her hands she kept her green eyes ahead on the goal. Big was in the back and his nerves jumped on every noise uttered. Tails was in the middle and his courage was tested on every unfamiliar turn. The next room was covered in platforms on water. Big jumped onto one and felt its weight shift. Amy was light and her only fear was whether it would set off something. "Hurry up Tails, get a move on."

"Ok, here I go." Jumping onto the nearest platform sent a few rocks into the water. A loud hiss pierced their ears and a serpent popped out of the water. Amy swung her hammer and smashed the serpent's head, leading to a whiplash that sent her into the wall. Big used his weight and smashed the serpent's spine, only to be sent into the water for his troubles. Tails looked over at the unconscious Amy, the helpless Big in the serpent's pool, and Lily by Amy's side. Braving the depths of the serpent's home Tails dove in and lugged Big to the safety of land. He then felt something grip his tails and hurtled him to the ceiling. The impact loosened something and not having time to register the pain he was back in an iron grip.

"Tails hang on!" Nothing could be heard as Tails felt every bone in his body break. Using his inner strength he made a barrier, as the barrier grew he too became stronger. Until he busted out of the tail and went plummeting to the cement. "What are we going to do?" Tails got up weakly and pulled off the rope that blinded his special. He then flew up and faced the serpent's busted face. As the iron like tail whizzed at him in incredible speed, Tails grabbed the tail and with strength not really known to him, he lifted the serpent from his water.

"This is your home…I can't believe you never had a topside view of it. Now here's a special move only Miles Prower Tails can show you; it's called splashdown." Throwing the serpent over his head he watched as it sailed into the water and made it go out. His energy wasted, Tails fell also.

"So, the legend was true," Dr.Eggman said from the newly opened entrance. The serpent was a Chaos beast and now emanating brilliant energy was the Pale emerald. As he walked forward he took in the falling fox and Big the cat with an amused grin. The emerald was within his grasp and already he could smell Sonic's decaying body. "Thanks for the work…and the reward."

"Eggman that isn't…yours," Big said hesitantly. He never knew where he was until he could see the big nose and found figure of Eggman. He never had courage to face the enemy of Sonic's, but right now he was the strong one to fight. Eggman considered him with seriousness, but disregarded it as he stared at his enemy. "That's Sonic's cure, and if you take, he won't be well." Dr.Eggman laughed at him.

"You plan to stop me? I believe Sonic or Knuckles when they say that to my face, but not some cat with a fishing rod. I hear there is some fish upstream, why don't you be like a good cat and catch some…trout." Big curled his fingers into his palm and pulled back with his left. He then hit the bright ruby nose of Eggman and watched as he fell to the ground.

"Trout are my friend," Big said. The emerald shrunk to carrying size and Big attached it to his fishing pole. He then placed the two unconscious forms of Tails and Amy on his back and set off for the Thorndyke home.

Chris Thorndyke hated exams, especially when his friend Sonic was ill. Daniel and Francine sat across from him and they too hated exams. Helen sat in her wheel chair calmly. Mr. Stuart came in and briefed them on the material of the last chapter. The test was handed out with no delay and Chris focused his energy on the test, his concerns for Sonic were put on hold. The last part was tricky and asked about the continents. The bell rang and Chris handed in his exam with relief. His three friends accompanied him home.

"So will Sonic be alright?" Helen asked. She had blonde hair and due to an accident had to wheel around in her chair. She really liked Sonic as a friend, as did Daniel and Francine; Chris wasn't jealous, in fact when they saw Sonic they could have a sleepover and play videogames. His grandpa was due for visitors any day soon and his parents would be back the following week. Figuring he had time Chris sat on the side of the road and stared at the shifting clouds. "Chris aren't you supposed to be going home?"

"Yeah, but this is relaxing, and besides that we just took a heavy exam, why not rest here and think of what is to come," he suggested. Daniel grinned and Francine smiled and Helen giggled. Chris really enjoyed the company of his friends, especially when he could be loose. The four laughed and laughed and until Chris wiped a tear away, "you know as we grow older, I don't think we'll have Mr. Stuart as a teacher," Chris said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, I wonder if our next teacher will show us the way," Daniel said with concern. Francine picked up a flower and stared at its bright colors; Daniel and Chris picked up some grass and chewed on it, and Helen stared at a figure in the road. "Shouldn't we be going Chris?" Shaken from his peace Chris led his friends' home, while Helen kept her gaze on a pair of familiar eyes.

"Maybe when I visit grandpa you guys could visit Knuckles, the last one to see him was Tails; and right now, he needs some company." Up ahead was Chris's home and his friends left to go home. Chris walked up the driveway and noticed a dark figure near his doorway. Why did this remind him of someone?

"So, the hedgehog is fine," he said dissatisfied. "To tell the truth I thought he'd die hours ago, but I guess we can't always get what we want, can we?" Chris jumped into the brush as the dark hedgehog sped at him and down the road. Brushing himself off he rushed inside and found light hovering in the middle of the room. Sonic's dead body was hoisted from the table and beams of light pierced Sonic's body in multiple places. Chris shielded his eyes as the light enveloped the room and exploded in a fiery brilliance.

"Sonic!" The pale emerald was gone…as was Sonic! It wasn't clear where he was, but it was clear who took him.

Authors note: Alright, good huh? See you in ch.4 sometime...I'll try and get that up soon.