Chapter 6: Kingdom Valley

The commander looked at Shadow, his eyes wide. He cleared his throat and said in a stern voice, "If this is what Sonic will do, then you need to stop him. Head to Kingdom Valley immediately; Rouge is headed there as well. I don't know what his plan is but if he released Mephiles, that won't be good."

Shadow nodded to the commander and headed out the door, followed by Blaze, Amy and Chris. The black hedgehog turned to face them, a grave expression on his face. He sighed and clenched his fists. Chris looked at him curiously.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Shadow looked at Chris. "You heard the commander; we have to reach Kingdom Valley. Sonic could release Mephiles any minute, and I have a feeling he is expecting us. It could be a trap; we might have to fight him. Now let's hurry and get to Kingdom Valley."

He ran off. Chris fell silent, thinking about what Shadow said. Then he shook his head and ran after Amy, Blaze and Shadow, heading towards Kingdom Valley.

Rouge the Bat stood at the entrance to Kingdom Valley, gazing up at the large castle in front of her. The castle in Kingdom Valley was in ruins, although some of it was still standing. She looked around, seeing that the castle was surrounded by broken pillars in water. Many of the pillars were toppling to the ground, making huge splashes in the water. Rouge sighed, and then walked into the castle.

Sonic stood in the center of the room, looking at something. Rouge could see it was the Scepter of Darkness. Suddenly, the Scepter started crackling as energy surrounded in, lighting up the room. Rouge gasped and started to back away when Sonic set the Scepter on the ground, and turned to face her. He grinned evilly, and Rouge stopped in her tracks, suddenly afraid. Sonic walked closer to her and stopped in front of Rouge, still grinning.

"Well well, if it isn't Rouge the Bat. How nice of you to come," Sonic said. "I was just about to start the ritual to release Mephiles. But I have a feeling you came here so that couldn't happen."

Rouge was petrified, astonished at how evil Sonic looked. The hedgehog tapped his foot impatiently, waiting for Rouge to speak. Finally, the bat found the courage to talk.

"Yes, you're right. I have orders from GUN; they wanted me to find out what you're doing. It looks like I just found out. Tell me, what is it you're planning?"

Sonic chuckled. "Like I would tell you! You'll just go back to GUN and reveal my plans to them so that they could form a counter-attack. Well, I'll tell you something...you won't be alive to find out!"

He rushed at Rouge, picking her up and holding her by the throat. Sonic clenched his hand, tightening his grip on Rouge, choking her. Rouge gulped for air but couldn't do anything. Her breathing slowed and then stopped. Sonic grinned and threw her across the room, causing her to hit her head on the stone wall. He laughed as blood poured out of her skull, staining the wall in red. Sonic turned away and headed back towards the Scepter when he heard more voices.

"Rouge! Oh my God, what happened?"

The voice belonged to Shadow the Hedgehog. Sonic turned around and saw Shadow running over to Rouge. He kneeled down and checked her pulse, sighing in relief when he felt that she still had one. He looked up at Sonic, hatred in his eyes.

"What did you do to her?" he growled angrily.

Sonic chuckled, and then let out an evil laugh. "She came here by herself, intent on reporting my plans back to GUN. I couldn't let that happen, so I did what I had to do."

Chris, Blaze and Amy also ran up next to Shadow. They looked at Sonic, staring at him in shock.

"Why do you want to release Mephiles?" Blaze shouted. "What are you planning this time?"

The evil hedgehog scoffed. "Like you don't already know? You're from the future, so you should know exactly what I'm planning to do! Isn't that right, Blaze?"

Blaze stared at Sonic and yelled. She raised her hands, causing fire to shoot out from them. They fire aimed at Sonic, who merely smirked and dodged it instantly. Suddenly, Sonic was directly in front of Blaze and punched her in the stomach. Blaze's eyes widened as she doubled over, sinking to her knees. Sonic looked up at Shadow and the rest of the gang.

"Anyone else?" he asked. When no one responded, he turned and walked back to the Scepter and picked it up, holding it in his hands. He raised it above his head and closed his eyes. A bright light shone from the Scepter, causing everyone to shield their eyes. Shadow immediately rushed at Sonic but a massive blast of energy hit him, forcing him back. Electricity crackled across the Scepter, sending out waves of dark energy. Sonic's dark aura started to increase also. He screamed and threw the Scepter on the ground, shattering it. When that happened, a dark pool of energy formed on the ground and took on a familiar shape. The light faded away instantly.

Shadow opened his eyes and gasped in shock. Standing next to Sonic was a hedgehog that looked almost exactly like him.

Mephiles the Dark had been released.