The Violet Forest
The party continued solemnly toward the forest. "Do you think Knuckles is still alive?" Cream asked Sonic.
Sonic nodded confidently. "Of course he is. Zoran's no match for him, and neither is a meager cave in." And he sounded so certain that Cream believed him, and the party's solemn mood was lifted; though Sonic wasn't so sure if it was true himself. He turned to Tails. "Where to next?"
It was easy to see why they called it the Violet Forest. The maple tree's leaves looked as if they purple, and the sunset of the sky enhanced it even more. "Over there… at that pedestal!"
He ran over to it excitedly, and the gang followed him. There were three rocks surrounding a pedestal. Sonic had no idea what they were supposed to do with the diamond, but in Tails excitement, he seemed to have been given an extra stroke of genius. He placed the diamond on the pedestal, and right in front of their eyes a warp gate appeared, appearing to lead to the sky…
"I'm going in!" Tails cried. He turned to Sonic. "Keep the warp gate open, and do not let anyone move the diamond from its place until I come back."
Sonic gave him a smile, and then he disappeared through the gate. "I suppose this would be a very bad time to take the Soul Diamond." A voice said behind them. Sonic, Amy, and Cream turned around. Zoran smiled, and both Sonic and Amy acted hostilely.
"You can't have the Diamond." Sonic told him menacingly. Zoran shook his head solemnly.
"I do not want the diamond; instead, I merely want to speak to your rabbit friend." When Zoran looked at their faces, he saw they weren't trusting him still, but would let him speak. "Do you remember when I said I was seeking the Answer?"
"Yes, but I don't know anything about it. None of us do." Cream informed him. "I'm sorry I couldn't have been more helpful."
Zoran laughed. "Of course you don't know. That's why I hate this business of the Answer. They tell you someone knows, and they don't. You have to follow your instinct, and I did. And now, I've found you, the Answer. It was lost to me for a while, I saw no w ay of finding it at first, but to my biggest surprise personally, you are the Answer. Of all people. And now I have no idea what this means."
Cream seemed to understand what he was saying a bit, but to Sonic's ears, he thought he was mad.
Zoran's ears quivered, and a strange expression came to his face. "My employer is here. I suppose he came here to do his work without me now."
The dark cloak man indeed was behind him. Sonic turned to him. "He has decided not to do your dirty work." He told him. The man laughed sinisterly.
"But he has succeeded. He has brought me to it, and I, the last of the Metarex, shall use its power and wipe this pathetic planet from the face of the galaxy!"
A/N The suspense! Don't worry, the next chapter shall be up soon! Only 2 chapters left!