Shadow swiftly dashed through the Sky Sanctuary in search of Rouge. She wasn't answering her communicator, so he was forced to locate her. It certainly wasn't out of concern; merely that Rouge would certainly appreciate Shadow's newest acquisition: a Chaos Emerald. Shadow halted, his heels buffeting the cobblestone floor, at the sight of a small anthropomorphic bat silhouette. "Rouge," Shadow began, "I've brought you some-"
Shadow's voice faltered as he saw that Rouge was crying, her face buried in her hands. "What's the matter?" Without looking up, Rouge replied,
"Nothing. Nothing's wrong. You said you had something for me?" she asked in an attempt to change the subject. Shadow nodded.
"Indeed, perhaps it will help you feel better. I know how much you love jewelry, and I really have no use for it, so this Chaos Emerald is yours." Rouge tensed.
"No," she said. "Get that away from me!" Shadow was startled. Rouge used to obsess over Chaos Emeralds. What could have caused such an abrupt change? Shadow noticed that Rouge refused to look up.
"Rouge," he ordered, "look at me." Rouge attempted to make Shadow uncomfortable with that command.
"That's a slightly creepy request," she said. "So, I'd rather not." Rouge expected Shadow to say something along the lines of, "You're right; sorry," with a flustered expression. Instead, he repeated himself.
"Rouge, look at me." Reluctantly, Rouge obliged and looked up. Shadow's eyes widened in shock. Shadow though it lucky Rouge could not see that, because it may have seemed like mockery.
"How did this happen? How did you lose your sight?" he demanded. Rouge didn't find the strength to relive the horrid memory and instead once again began sobbing. Angrily, Shadow clenched his fist. He forgot that he was holding the Chaos Emerald in that hand and ended up destroying it. "Oh shoot," Shadow interjected. The shattered emerald began to emit a brilliant white light. Shadow averted his gaze, but Rouge no longer had the need to do so. At last, the light died out. Shadow turned to look at the new figure before them. The being was roughly the size of 2 Omegas put together. His hair was made of flames. Held firmly in the figure's fist was a small mace, though it was clear that the weapon could grow at the owners' will. The being resembled a knight, but instead of legs it had a cloud of vapor that seemed to be sucking the color from the environment, like some sort of rag. Shadow almost snickered at the thought of what an amazing Sham Wowmascot this guy could make. The more light absorbed by the cloud, the brighter the cloud became. Soon, all the light within a visible radius had been sucked up, and the three stood in a scene of black and white. "I don't suppose you'd tell us who you are?" Shadow asked. The giant being scowled.
"I have nothing to hide, and that includes my identity," he said. "I am the spirit of the 4th Chaos Emerald" Rouge looked puzzled.
"Spirit?" she asked. The spirit nodded.
"Every emerald has a spirit locked inside of it. What do you think gives them their power?" he asked. Shadow looked down at the 4th emerald, and indeed it had lost its glow.
"Well—what should I call you?"
"#4."
"Well, #4," Shadow said, "could you help my friend here get her vision back?" #4 shook his head.
"I'm afraid that's beyond my power." Rouge put her head down in disappointment.
"However," #4 said, "the spirit of the Master Emerald can." This time it was Rouge's turn to shake her head. "The Master Emerald is the one that blinded me in the first place. Why would it restore my sight?"
"Because," #4 said, "it was being influenced by someone."
"Tikal," Rouge growled.
"Your friend here," #4 said as he gestured towards Shadow, "can manipulate Chaos Emeralds as well. The Master Emerald is very easily influenced. However, to undo what it has done to you, bat, the Master Emerald must first be woken, liberated."
"So if we free the Master Emeralds's spirit," Rouge concluded, "I can have my vision back."
"Indeed. However, I know the other Chaos Emeralds' spirits would never approve of us disabling the Master Emeralds' use for the "heroes" of this world."
Sonic and his friends, Shadow thought.
"We must make sure not to let them awaken. They were always so obsessed with order. I am different." Rouge smiled for the first time since she had lost her sight.
"Thank you for your advice!" Rouge said.
"That is not all," #4 said. "As a token of gratitude for freeing me, I will aid you and your friend on this quest." Rouge cheered in joy, and Shadow began laughing menacingly.
"This is perfect!" he exclaimed. "With the power of a Chaos Emerald manifested as a living being, along with my Chaos Control, there's no way we can be overcome!" He then turned to Rouge. "As the first bat born with sight, you never bothered to learn how to 'see' with sonar waves, did you?"
"Unfortunately, no."
"Well you have 3 days to learn. After that, we're beginning our quest. I have a score to settle with the hedgehog that I'm certain this Tikal is with. And even if you learn sonar, I'm sure you're much more comfortable seeing." Rouge nodded. "Then get to work."
"Right!" Rouge ran into a cave, perhaps to practice or to rest before doing so. Shadow returned his attention to #4. "You and I," Shadow said, "have some things to talk about."
Eggman opened his eyes, regretting it instantly as salt water poured into his eyes, stinging with the intensity of a white star .He tried gasping for air, but it was like trying to inhale knives. Finally, he recalled that he could transform his bifocals into swimming goggles with the press of a button. He did so, and now that he could finally see, swam down to the surprisingly shallow lake, passing by a few scraps of Mecha Sonic's remains on the way there. The lack of oxygen was building up pressure in Eggman's chest that only got worse the deeper he submerged. Just when Eggman thought his lungs would burst, he finally saw the switch at the bottom of the lake and pressed it. Instantly, he was sucked in by a large tube that sent him down to his underwater base. He landed sprawled on the floor, soaking wet. Drops of water dripped down his body and created a small puddle on the floor. He panted heavily. He was too exhausted to get up just yet. "Oh my!" Cubot cried in concern as he raced over to the doctor. "What happened to you? Did you try swimming without a ring again?"
"No," the scientist responded in a hushed tone. Orbot came over and tried to get him to sleep.
"I have no time for this nonsense!" Eggman protested. "I must put to use a weapon I've been saving for a special case. And with this, I will see to it that the stupid cat suffers." Eggman opened up a compartment in his lab's floor, and a large Mech Suit emerged from it. Alongside it was the Tails Doll. Eggman let out a maniacal, sadistic laugh that echoed through the ocean, but was unheard by Sonic and his friends.