It was amazing how much smoother things went with Eggman out of the equation. With the Wisps on their side, finding and destroying the robot generators was laughably easy. It still took a few days to get all the planets free and ensure the roboticization was reversing, but Tails didn't mind. Exploring the Wisp planets was the most fun he'd had in a while, and he could tell Sonic was enjoying it, too.
His brother was still… different. It wasn't mind control; Tails had run every kind of scan, just to be sure (many of them at Sonic's own insistence), and the results were clear. No, this wasn't something so easily fixed. Sonic was more subdued than usual, and he seemed perpetually off-balance. Sometimes he jumped at every sound, while other times he was dangerously unaware of the world. And there was always a certain melancholy about him that hadn't been there before.
Maybe he was just worn out from everything they'd been through, or maybe it was something more. Whatever it was, Sonic wasn't willing to talk about it. They would, eventually; Tails would make sure of that. He wasn't going to make the mistake of ignoring something being wrong until it was too late again. But for now, he let Sonic have his space.
"Where do you think he went?"
Tails blinked and looked over to see Sonic standing in front of the portal Tails and the Wisps had sent Eggman through. After destroying the last generator, they'd returned to the space station. They'd be going home soon, but first Tails wanted to poke around in Eggman's lab some more. To make sure they didn't miss anything, of course, definitely not because he wanted to steal his expensive tools.
"I don't know," Tails said thoughtfully. "I know the portal doesn't go to any of the Wisp planets, but beyond that I can't say. Not unless we turned it on."
Ember, hovering nearby, hissed aggressively at the idea. {Bad place,} the translator supplied succinctly. {Dangerous.} The other Wisps growled in agreement.
"They don't seem to like that idea," Sonic observed. "Maybe we should board it up for now and check it out when we have back up."
It was as good an idea as any. The Wisps were happy to help, and with Ember's laser they soon had a solid shield of metal welded around the portal's opening. At the very least, they'd know if someone came through the portal while they were gone.
"Now that's done…" Sonic said, dusting off his hands and looking at Tails inquiringly. "Homeward bound?"
Tails smiled. "Definitely."
Ember chirped. {We stay here. Watch door.}
Tails still needed to figure out how to get the translator to differentiate between "door", "portal", and "window", but the meaning was clear.
"Thank you," Tails said. "We'll be back soon to take care of it for good."
Ember bobbed in the air—the Wisp version of a nod—, then zipped off.
Tails smiled and headed out the door. When no one joined him, he paused and glanced back. Sonic was lingering by the sealed portal, looking up at it with brow furrowed.
Tails felt a prickle of worry. "Sonic? Are you coming?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah." Sonic blinked, shaking out of whatever trance he'd been in, and hurried over. He glanced back at the portal, frowning. "I just… Felt something."
"We'll check it out," Tails promised. "With back up this time."
Sonic smiled lopsidedly. "You'd think we'd have learnt by now. Anything that can go wrong…"
"Will go wrong," Tails sighed. "Let's just go before Eggman bursts through that thing with a new eldritch abomination to try and kill us."
Sonic laughed. "Race you to the elevator?"
Tails grinned. "You're on."
He reached the elevator a full fifteen seconds before Sonic by virtue of actually knowing the layout of the space station and not slamming into every wall along the way.
"Stupid boost," Sonic grumbled as the elevator started down.
"You know, if you just waited to time it right…"
"Now where's the fun in that?"
Tails sat down and buckled up, while Sonic studiously insisted on staying standing like the bad role model he was. Tails had a sic-sac ready, but surprisingly, he hardly felt nauseous as the elevator shot down to Earth. The steady descent couldn't really compare to the dizzying chase when they'd fled Nega-Sonic. After that experience, Tails didn't think he'd ever be sick on a rollercoaster again.
"How do you think everyone back on Earth is holding up?" Tails wondered, looking out the window. He hadn't appreciated the view before. The stars really were beautiful from here. "I just hope Pretzel and Whip haven't completely destroyed Amy's apartment by now."
Behind him, Sonic chuckled, but part way through the sound turned into a strangled cry. Tails whipped around in alarm, just in time to see Sonic collapse to the floor. He fumbled to unbuckle and scrambled over to Sonic, checking him over for wounds. Nothing, no sign of why he'd collapsed like someone had shot him through the chest. He didn't stir at Tails's touch. Tails checked his pulse and felt his own heart lurch. Sonic's heartbeat was slowing. What was—
Tails gasped as a sudden pain stabbed through his own chest. A moment later it eased, only to be replaced by a strange… draining sensation. Nausea churned in his gut, and this time it had nothing to do with the elevator. Something was terribly wrong.
They couldn't reach Earth fast enough. The moment the doors slid open Tails dragged Sonic out, blinking in the sunlight. No rain this time, no people bustling about. Adabat was eerily still and quiet.
"Tails!"
Never before had he been so relieved to hear Amy's voice. He looked up to see her running toward them, anxiety creasing her face.
"Is Sonic okay?" she asked, already kneeling to help Tails lift him up.
"I don't know," Tails said. "He just— collapsed."
"Come on," Amy said, hefting Sonic into her arms. He always forgot how strong she was. "The plane's this way."
"The plane?" Tails asked, hurrying after her. "Why not just use the temple?" Ever since Pretzel and Whip had taken up residence with Amy, she'd used the temple portals—powered by the Gaias' energy—to get around instantaneously. If there was ever a time to fast travel, it was now.
Amy shook her head, worry clear in her eyes. And… tears? She swiped them away and forced a smile. "Let's just say a lot's happened in the past few days. The temples have stopped working. Rouge flew me here in one of GUN's planes." She looked down at Sonic, still unconscious. "I'm glad we came to the right place."
"The temples aren't working?" Tails echoed. "What do you mean?"
Amy bit her lip. "I don't know. Something happened to Pretzel and Whip, and now it's like the temples are dead. And— I'm not sure about this, but I thought I saw something like a laser coming from the sky."
"From the space station, you mean?" Tails asked.
Amy shook her head. "From beyond the space station. You feel it too, don't you, Tails? It's like something's sapping all my energy."
Tails nodded. He still felt that peculiar draining, a creeping exhaustion like when he stayed up too late working on a project or pushed himself a little too hard on a run.
"I'm worried, Tails," Amy said softly. "Whatever this is, it's… it's really bad."
He didn't have a response.
"What happened?" Rouge asked, straightening from where she'd been leaning against the plane. It looked like some kind of modified business jet, likely a GUN exclusive. At any other time Tails would have loved to take it apart, but now— but now—
"I don't know," Tails said again. He hated not knowing.
Rouge nodded, understanding. She helped them lift Sonic into the plane, and Tails hopped up beside him, for once glad there was someone else to fly. Sonic's heartbeat was steady, but still uncharacteristically slow.
"Where to?" Rouge asked as Amy hopped up into the co-pilot seat.
Tails looked at Amy, but she just shrugged helplessly. He chewed his lip trying to think through the confusion and worry. "Somewhere we can figure out what's going on. One of my labs, maybe. And somewhere with a temple," he added. Would there be a way to get the portals going again? Would there even be a point if they did? His mind whirled, jumping from one problem to another. The Gaias, Sonic's collapse, the ray from the sky, the strange energy sapping—it was all too much.
"Empire City it is," Rouge decided, starting the engine.
The plane coasted down the runway and lifted into the air. As they rose, Tails peered through the window at the jungle below. His brow wrinkled. The trees looked strangely dull, and the world was oddly quiet. It almost reminded him of…
Tails scrambled to pull out his Miles Electric. He quickly retrieve the old parameters, modified them for Earth, and set the sensors to work. His heart plummeted as the results came in. Just like on the Wisp worlds.
"Tails?" Amy asked, twisting around in her seat to look back at him. "What is it?"
Tails lowered the Miles Electric, staring at the world below. His world. Earth.
"It's dying," he whispered. "The whole planet is dying."