Chapter 17: The Space Colony ARK

A bright green glow appeared in the ARK and then vanished, revealing Chris and his friends. They looked around cautiously, on guard for any attacks by Mephiles or Sonic. Chris sighed and glanced at Shadow, making eye contact with him.

"What is it?" Shadow asked.

"We have to find Sonic. He's obviously using the Chaos Emeralds to power up the Eclipse Cannon. Do you know where that is?"

Shadow nodded. "Follow me."

He ran down the hallway, turning corners left and right. Finally they came to a huge door that was sealed shut. Shadow tried to open it but couldn't. He sighed and shrugged his shoulders.

"Beyond this door is the Eclipse Cannon. If I am right, that is where the emeralds are stored. We need to find a way to get inside this room!"

Vector frowned. "This door is sealed tight, though. Do you thing a Chaos Spear or Chaos Blast could open it?"

"Let me try," Chris said. He raised his hand and shot a Chaos Spear at the door but the attack didn't make a dent. He then motioned the group to back away and let out a Chaos Blast. The door still didn't open.

"Can't we just teleport inside?" Chris asked Shadow.

Shadow pursed his lips and thought about it. "It might be possible," he said. "But it's worth a try." He closed his eyes and started to yell out the command. Before he could finish his sentence, though, he felt something slam into his back, forcing him to fall to the ground. He got up and looked around for his attacker.

Mephiles stood behind them, glaring at the group. A Chaos Lance was building up energy in his right hand, and he was aiming it at Shadow. Chris, Blaze and the Chaotix all got into battle stances, ready to fight the demonic hedgehog.

"You're not going through that door," Mephiles said. "I'll make sure of that, Sonic has a great plan, and he does not want to be interrupted. The Eclipse Cannon is almost ready to fire, and with the combined power of the Chaos Emeralds, Master Emerald and Sol Emeralds, it will obliterate Earth until no trace of the planet is left. He also has a secret contact with him, one that you have faced before."

"Who is it?" Shadow asked.

Mephiles grinned evilly. "You'll find out. Now, it's time to die!"

He sent the Chaos Lance towards Shadow, who dodged it. The attack hit the door and bent it inwards, cracking the metal. Shadow saw this and smirked, then vanished and reappeared behind Mephiles. He kicked Mephiles in the back and circled around him, punching the demonic hedgehog in the stomach. Mephiles gasped but stood his ground.

"You think you can defeat me now? Every time you've tried to kill me, you and your friends have failed! What hope do you have?"

Shadow looked at him, then at Chris. He nodded to the hedgehog, who made a Chaos Blast that threw Mephiles back against the wall. Mephiles screamed in pain as the energy washed over him. He struggled against the blast but it was too much for him and he groaned weakly, falling to his knees.

The blast had also collapsed the door to the Eclipse Cannon, and the path to the room was now open. Shadow took one last look Mephiles before running into the room, not noticing Mephiles slowly get up and teleport away. The group kept on until they saw a huge machine in the center. The Chaos Emeralds, Sol Emeralds, and Master Emerald were inside the machine, powering it.

"That must be the Eclipse Cannon," Blaze said. She walked toward it but then jumped out of the way when a blast of energy came toward her. Sonic walked forward and stood in front of them, grinning evilly.

"Well well, you found me," Sonic said. "Mephiles tells me that you want to destroy the cannon and stop it from firing. I can tell you one thing: that's never going to happen."

"He also told us that you had a contact who was helping you!" Shadow shouted. "Who is it?"

Sonic's grin grew wider. "It's someone that you've met before, Shadow. You once saved the world from him when you were trying to recover your memory!"

Shadow's eyes grew wide. "No...you can't mean..."

"Yes, Shadow. It's me," a voice said. A figure stepped out behind Sonic and glared at Shadow, his three red eyes gleaming evilly.

It was Black Doom.