Jade knew what they were thinking inside but she didn't care. The end of the pole was lit up with thousands of volts of electricity. Without warning she jabbed the robot next to her and it fell in a heap. The fight was started and she allowed instinct to take over her body. Jab a robot, punch a robot, and hope her hand didn't break. Punch a robot, jab a robot right in the face. She matched her breathing to her movements. The fighting felt like a dance until Sonic's scream pierced the air.

Sonic, who had been just behind her, ran past the wrong robot. He was wounded badly and Tails had just landed the plane in the hill she told him to hide at. She needed to get to the conch.

Eggman made a tsk, tsk, sound when she eyed the conch. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." He pointed at a robot she'd never seen before. This robot had cannons instead of guns aimed at her house with her brothers inside of it. "You'd better make the right choice, child. You can come with me quietly or you could sacrifice everyone for your own safety."

To Jade there was no choice. Her hands trembled. Didn't Sonic gather the rest of the emeralds? What happened? She looked at Sonic wanting to ask him so desperately.

"Don't do it," Sonic whispered.

"3…2…" As Eggman counted down the sound of the robot getting ready to fire surrounded the air. "1…"

Finally Jade threw the rod at the robot. Usually her aim was horrible but this time she wasn't aiming at any particular part of the robot and this time she wasn't throwing rocks. The rod pierced the robot's cannon and shocked it. "Too bad it wasn't the head…" she whispered as the only robots standing trained their weapons on her. It shouldn't be too bad right? Just do whatever I did last time, she thought as Eggman took not only her but Sonic as well onto the ship.

Zavok punched the wall of the house so hard that he allowed the wind and rain inside. This shouldn't have happened! None of this should have happened! Was there some god cruel enough to let this happen to a little girl?

"Zavok," Zik scolded, "your anger will be of no help. We must get to Eggman's ship."

"But how? Eggman has the conch. As soon as he sees us he'll just blow it and…" Zeena dared not say the last part of the sentence.

"You're right. We must ask Tails for help." Zik took off in the direction they saw Tails plane go in. Zavok and the others followed close behind. They found Tails not too far.

"Where's Sonic?" He didn't understand.

Zik told the fox quickly of what happened.

At first Tails seemed taken aback. Zavok was afraid maybe he couldn't think rationally and would break down into tears or into a depression like Zor often did. He was surprised when Tails said, "I can only take a few of you. More if Zomom or Zavok don't come."

Zik stroked his beard and looked up at Zavok for a moment. "Zavok, then."

Tails nodded. "Hop aboard, then."

This scene seemed familiar to Jade. All around there were Emeralds and she stood in the middle. Sonic was slumped in a corner, too beat up to do much.

"How did Eggman get all the emeralds?" Jade finally asked Sonic while they waited in boredom for the machine to start up.

"I wasn't watching them very closely," Sonic admitted sheepishly. "He stole them from Tails while I wasn't around."

"Where were the others?"

"They figured since you were home their work was done and left to get Knuckles so he could get the Emeralds from us." Sonic chuckled darkly. "Seems this is all my fault."

No, this was bound to happen. It was simply fate that brought us back to this spot. Outside the rain beat mercilessly against the window. Jade was so entranced by the storm that she nearly didn't feel Cubot attach a cuff to her arm.

"What's this for?" She demanded.

"So that we don't have the same mistake as last time." Eggman answered over a monitor. As soon as Cubot was safe in the room the machines hummed happily.

"Will it really hurt?" Sonic asked in a sad tone.

Jade couldn't bring herself from telling him the truth or a lie. She just stared at him until the first shock started at her spine.

Jade screamed and fell forward and before her hands hit the floor another shock went through her body. How could Eggman be so cruel? Sonic became angrier and angrier with each shock that sent her screaming and writhing in pain.

He got up and went to run to save her but as soon as he took a step a shock came up from the tile.

"I thought you might do that," Eggman growled. "So I had a few special tiles installed."

"How could you do this, Eggman? I didn't think you were this cruel!"

Eggman just laughed. "Then you don't know me at all, Hedgehog."

The lights to the room shut off but the machine continued.

"What's going on?" He demanded of his robots.

"Turning on the backup generators." Cubot said but then short after added, "backup generators are not responding, sir."

"How long until we're finished here?"

"The Chaos Emerald should be appearing in less than 30 seconds." The countdown began.

Lightening flashed outside and Sonic could see at the door a huge Zeti with a small fox. When lightening flashed again the fox moved forward. The tiles weren't working anymore.

"…10…"

Tails ran to Sonic.

"How is the machine still working?" Sonic asked in a whisper.

"It must be on a different generator." Tails whispered.

Suddenly Sonic became aware of the timer. "1…" Then the whole room glowed in many lights.

"Zavok!" Eggman yelled as Sonic turned around. Zavok had stopped just short of the circle of Chaos emeralds. Jade's body looked lifeless and peaceful. The white Emerald glowed in the brightest light Sonic had ever seen.

Zavok covered his ears and doubled over in pain, trying to shut out the painful noise of the conch. "Jade!" He yelled. "Wake up! Jade!" But Jade never answered him.

Something around them changed. Sonic couldn't put his finger on it but something was about to happen and whatever it was it was behind them. He turned around and saw a robot with its weapon trained on Tails.

He wasn't sure what he screamed out. All he heard was the ear splitting sound of a shot and a light