Open your eyes. Now. Open your eyes.

"Jade! Wake up! Jade!"

"Zavok," she thought she heard herself say. It felt like her eyes were open but she knew they were closed. She tried to open her eyes but they weren't her eyes that opened because when she looked at herself her body was glowing and yet she also saw her body lifeless below her. She wasn't dead, however. She could just barely make out the dust on the ground moving with each breath.

"Sonic!" Tails screamed and Jade looked over to see Sonic. She covered her mouth.

"No! Sonic!" Her voice sounded very far away to her. Sonic fell on the ground with the life leaving his body.

Jade tried to pull in the Emeralds but she could feel the shocks of the band around her arm. She hugged herself and started to cry. What was she to do?

Stop crying! She heard a voice in her head.

Zavok, in all of his pain was trying to reach her body.

"We finally have it!" Eggman yelled. The floor started to glow under each emerald.

"The machine should be powered in 20 seconds," Orbot told him.

She tried to pull in the Emeralds again. This time they moved a little before she was shocked again and Zavok was shot at. The robot probably would've hit him had Tails not hit the robots arm as hard as he could so it, instead, shot the band's cord.

At first everything went dark and then the light came through. She was face to face with Zavok. Jade felt warm and happy and felt the smile come across her face. She pushed herself off from the foor.

"The machine failed to charge."

"I saw that." Eggman growled.

Zavok stared at her in awe and she looked down at herself. She was glowing! Tails ran to Eggman's safety room and Jade ran to Sonic. The robot aimed its weapon first at her and Sonic but then it changed and shot at the air. Zavok had forced it to change direction despite the threat of the conch.

"Sonic," Jade whispered and put a hand over him.

Sonic, at first, saw a light and the light was tempting. Then, a voice pierced through the darkness. This voice was familiar to him. It was warm and soft and reminded him of a nice summer day. He followed it into the darkness and woke to the fresh sunlight, the smell of rain, and the sounds of a new day.

"Sonic!" Tails hugged him.

"Hey, bud. Where are we?"

"We're on the Hex." Tails explained. His hand was wrapped in a bandage.

"Wait, what happened, though? Shouldn't I be dead?" Sonic tried to sit up but the darkness started to surround him again and his head plopped back onto the pillow. A light laugh came from the doorway.

"Don't do that, Sonic. I have healing abilities but even they go so far." Jade said walking over to him and sitting next to the bed. "Now, let's check on that bullet wound." She pulled back the blanket. His torso was covered in bandages.

"How?" Sonic breathed out the question.

"The Chaos Emeralds hold very…peculiar powers, Sonic. I just wanted you back alive and it happened. I can't explain it." Jade slowly helped him sit up and leaned him back against the pillows so he wouldn't black out. "Tails delivered the Emeralds to your friend, Knuckles a few days ago."

"Wait, days ago? How long was I out?"

"You've been in a coma for almost a month, Sonic," Tails looked worried suddenly. "I…" his eyes filled with tears and he hugged Sonic again, crying and burying his head in his shoulder.

"I don't die that easily, Tails." Sonic said to try and get a laugh out of him but it didn't work very well. "How's everyone else?"

"They're doing well."

"And you?"

Jade laughed. "I am fine, Sonic. The shocks gave me some scars and sent my heart into shock but Tails checked me out and said I should be fine to resume normal activities in another week."

Sonic smiled. "Good…good…" he fell asleep.