Hey, everyone. I am deeply sorry for seemingly abandoning this story. School just really caught up. Enjoy!

Also, in the first chapter, where Gerald says, "Take it to my granddaughter." This was just a typo. (The doc got deleted, so I can't change it.) Maria is his daughter.

"Where is he?!" asked the G.U.N. Commander.

He was in a board room in the G.U.N. Fortress with six other men. They were all responsible for finding Professor Robotnik. None of them answered the commander's demand.

"Well?"

One of the members was brave enough to speak up. "Well… He has a daughter, Maria…"

"Yes, yes, yes. We know that. She wouldn't know where he is. Anything else?"

"He h-has a s-s-son… Ivo Robotnik. He works in the same field as the professor."

"Would he know?"

"…Probably not."

The commander screamed in fury. He faced away from the members to the wall to calm down.

"That man," he said, "must be condemned for his crimes. We need that baby, too."

"But…" said one of the members, "he is human. He needs to live a human life."

"Yes," agreed the commander. "What is why we only need access to the child. He will remain in custody with Maria."

"Commander?" said another member.

"Yes?"

"Who is the father of this baby?"

8 Years Later

Christmastime. A time where families get together. The Robotniks strongly believed in family values… probably because their family was very small. It was just Maria, her son and her brother Ivo. Ivo, like his father, Gerald, was a revered scientist. He was known for building war machines and advanced robots for G.U.N. He'd contributed a lot to G.U.N. in the past three years. He'd also picked up the nickname "Egg Man", since his body was shaped like an egg. He had a pointy pink nose and a large, bushy mustache that hid most of his mouth. He was a very nice man, and had always been a good brother to Maria. No one could believe that they were siblings since they didn't look anything alike. Maria took the appearance of their mother, while Ivo took the appearance of their father.

…Who they hadn't seen in eight years.

Maria still looked young and vibrant. She was pulling the turkey out of the oven while 8-year-old Matthew was "assisting." She heard a knock on the door. It must've been Ivo. Fashionable late, as usual. After knocking one more time, he let himself in. He was family after all. He had present under his arm, all wrapped up and with a ribbon on it.

"Uncle Egg Man!" Matthew yelled gleefully. He ran to his uncle and hugged his leg.

"Hey, kiddo!" Ivo harked. He reached down and patted Matthew's head. The scientist was very tall, standing nearly seven feet thanks to his long legs.

"Mommy got me a present!" declared Matthew, pointing to a train set laying on the floor.

"Just wait till you see what I've got for you!" Ivo said. He always founded like he had a laugh in his voice. He gave Matthew the gift box.

The boy immediately went to the couch to open in it. He quickly demolished the wrapping paper and opened the box. After getting through a couple layers of bubble wrap, he lay his eyes on the magnificent gift.

"A gun!" he exclaimed.

Maria looked up from the turkey in shock, until he took it out of the box and let her see what it really was. It had a wacky design. It was perfectly fitted for Matthew's hands.

"Pull the trigger," Ivo told him.

A large stream of bubbles came bursting out. Matthew laughed hysterically.

"Built it myself," Ivo added quietly. He faced Maria. "How's everyone doing?"

"Well, it's just us," she replied. "Nothing much ever happens."

Ivo looked around the room. "You haven't done much to the house. Of course, there isn't much you can do…"

Maria just shrugged. "Time to eat!" she said to Matthew. "Put the gun down."

"But Mom!" he protested. "I'm shooting monsters."

"It's Christmas. I'm sure the monsters have to eat, too," she said, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Yeah. They wanna eat you!"

One everyone had sat down, Maria began serving up the turkey. Ivo watched Matthew eat his. He couldn't help but notice how good his manners were. He handled the fork properly. He used his napkin. He chewed with his mouth closed. He never complained about his food. It made Ivo wish he had a child.

"So, Dad couldn't make it?" Ivo asked Maria. It was more of a statement, not a question.

"Yep," Maria answered simply.

"Eighth year in a row," Ivo grumbled.

"Mom?" said Matthew.

"Yeah?"

"Where's my dad?"

The question caused Maria to feel a pang of sadness and regret. "He's… gone."

"Where?"

"Someplace… Someplace far away."

"Where?"

"I don't know where he is, honey." Now she was starting to sound fed up.

Ivo was becoming intrigued. "Who is his father?" he asked.

"Ivo!" she scolded. "Not at the table."

She's forgotten many times that Ivo was unaware of the story behind Matthew. It made her sad that he didn't know his nephew was a monster. Matthew's origin was to be a secret to all that weren't involved.

"Excuse me for wondering," Ivo said hotly. He began to eat his turkey, careful to not get any on his prized mustache.

"When are you going to shave that thing off?" Maria asked.

"What thing?"

"Your mustache."

"My mustache. B-but.. it's practically a part of me!"

Maria giggled. "How long have you had it?"

"Since I was younger! I've had it since I was 14!"

"It started off as just a line above your lip, and now it's long and flowing."

"It should be at the top of your head," Matthew said.

Ivo didn't like being reminded that he was bald. He pretended to pout as he finished his meal.

The scientist left a few hours later. He was staying at a hotel in downtown Westopolis, not far from Maria's suburban house. Matthew had fallen asleep in his mother's arms. It made her a little sad how peaceful and innocent he looked. His birth was still fresh in her memory. He looked so hideous and disgusting. She couldn't believe he was that thing that lived in her womb. When they made him look human, did they take away that monster, or did they just hide it inside?

The past eight years had been tough for Professor Gerald Robotnik. After G.U.N. established a search for him, he relocated to Central City and built a lab there. He was so distanced from humanity, he felt like he was about to go insane. Mad scientists were the best scientists, he believed. How could G.U.N—no, the world—betray him like that? He was about to create something that would surmount humanity. Matthew, once his true identity was revealed, would a symbol for the world, and G.U.N. just took it away! He would never forgive them for that. Bringing Matthew into a war zone? As a child? Their ideas were more insane than his! The professor knew what he had to do. In time, he would find Matthew and help him find who he really was. What Maria really gave birth to. Then, the search would begin.

Gerald left his desk and went to a special part of his home/lab, a part he called the "Chaos Room". In it were seven canisters. Two of them already contained a Chaos Emerald, the name "the Chaos Room".

"I will find the Chaos Emeralds!" he shrieked.