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JustAnotherNerdyFangirl: Thank you for the comment, and I'm very delighted to hear your compliments! I apologize for making you wait so long, but I do hope you enjoy today's chapter!


"Have you ever wondered if those hideous creatures are lying to you, Sonic?" Eggman asked as he inspected the blue hedgehog, prodding him lightly and hooking his fur with long, winding cables. They snaked around his arms, twisting along the ground like rotten vines. "They're very talented liars. You would be much better off with me, you know." As if to prove his point, he gently patted the top of Sonic's head, careful as to avoid the sharper end of his quills. Shadow's muzzle deepened into a disapproving frown.

"Don't you even start, Eggman," Knuckles growled angrily, raising his fist in warning. It was clear to Shadow that Eggman's words had struck a nerve in him: The doctor had, after all, on multiple occasions, tricked the gullible and sheltered echidna into helping him take over the world—although fortunately, none of those plans had ever been brought to fruition. "Do anything fishy to him, and I promise you that you'll be going to a place higher in the sky than Angel Island." It was a threat bordered by suppressed fury, and Shadow could tell by the trembling of his spiked gloves that the echidna was mustering all his self control as to not leap himself at the doctor.

"Hmph. Flattering," Eggman replied sarcastically, unperturbed by Knuckles' threat. He grinned. "Although, I am curious. If you're here, my good friend, then who is guarding the Master Emerald, I wonder?" His voice was laced with a sneer, and the guardian of the Master Emerald faltered, scowling, glaring furiously at the scientist. His violet eyes flared like charred petals, as if burned by the commanding stare of the sun.

It was Tails who responded to Eggman's inquiry. "I'm glad you asked, Eggman. I've set up multiple defense units on Angel Island that'll protect the Master Emerald from anyone who wishes to steal it. It's a project I've been working on for a very long time." He shrugged nonchalantly, feigning ignorance with a quick flick of his ear. "If you want to test it out for me, give it a go. I'm sure my mechs will appreciate the target practice." He raised a closed fist, and Knuckles gave him a fist bump, looking greatly satisfied. Their faces were both etched with triumph.

Shadow bit back a smile. Sometimes it's obvious who raised him. He stole a quick glance at Sonic. The hedgehog had not reacted to his little brother's display of genius, his face refusing to show any sign of emotion. Shadow lowered his gaze, his fingers tightening around his arms. If only it continued to remain that way.

Eggman scoffed. "Show off," he grumbled, crossing his arms. "This is why I hate working with you."

"All right, all right, let's settle down now. There's no reason to fight amongst ourselves," Amy chided. She glanced at Eggman. "How does it look? Will Sonic be okay?" Despite trying to appear calm, her wavering voice betrayed her, oozing with desperation and fear. Tails and Knuckles shot each other a worried look, quickly disregarding their banter with Eggman, and instead focusing on the situation at hand.

Eggman turned back to Sonic, rubbing his chin with his finger. Sonic gazed back at him evenly, his face stoic and cold. Eggman paused, as if he, too, was disturbed by the lack of emotion Sonic conveyed. In was unnatural, like the presence of a flame within the deepest depths of the ocean.

"His vital signs seem to be somewhat stable," Eggman said slowly, and the room breathed a collective sigh of relief. However, Shadow suspected the doctor wasn't finished with his observations, as his expression was one of confusion and curiosity, like a scientist discovering an unknown breakthrough. He narrowed his scarlet pupils, shooting Eggman with a guarded stare.

"What's the catch, doctor?" Shadow asked, unaware that his spines were rising. He braced himself for the worst.

"It's curious," Eggman was muttering numbly, sounding distracted. It was almost as if he hadn't heard Shadow, lost within the pondering puddles of his scientific mind. "His vital signs—they shouldn't be normal, as they've always been irregular compared to most other living beings. Not to mention his chaos energy is almost absent from his body."

Alarm rippled throughout the four friends, fur from each rising. "What do you mean his chaos energy is absent?" Knuckles demanded, bewildered, being the first to recover from the shock. "That can't be right. Chaos energy doesn't just...leave someone's body. It only leaves when the host is dead." Shadow nodded in agreement.

"I know that, emerald hermit," Eggman snapped, and Knuckles' spines bristled in retaliation. The echidna bared his fangs, brandishing his gloves, but Eggman ignored him, looking unbothered. "That's why I said almost absent. It seems as though his chaos energy is weakening."

Weakening? Shadow raised a brow, and Tails, Amy, and Knuckles glanced worriedly at each other. It's certainly a possibility. With Sonic's lack of energy and his monotone language, the signs of chaos and its wavering hold on the hedgehog made all too much sense to Shadow.

Had that been the reason behind the sudden lash of energy directed toward him, back when he had met Sonic's eyes in Tails' lab? It would explain a few of Shadow's unanswered questions.

Could it be? A theory had begun to bloom within Shadow's head, and he frowned, thinking.

"Doctor," he said slowly, and Tails, Knuckles, and Amy glanced at him, harbouring expressions full of inquiry. "What kind of state is Sonic's chaos energy in?"

Eggman turned back to Sonic, assessing the monitors that read the hedgehog's vital signs, twirling his mustache as he did so. "Let's see... Hmph. His chaos energy appears to be active, rather than a passive state like I theorized. Impressive. It seems as though the hedgehog still has some fight left in him." He drew back, falling quiet.

As I thought. Shadow's muzzle deepened with worry.

Amy turned to him, catching his grim expression with an anxious one of her own. "What is it, Shadow? Have you found what's wrong with Sonic?"

"Take it as a hypothesis," Shadow corrected. He didn't want to worry the pink hedgehog unnecessarily. "Chaos energy, as the echidna stated before, will be present as long as the host is alive. Therefore, it can occupy only two states: passive and active," he explained. "When chaos energy is passive, it often means that the host is maintaining equilibrium. When chaos energy is active, it tells of the opposite: that there is a change in the host that requires chaos energy in order to maintain homeostasis. This can include wounds, exhaustion...and, as I assume in this case, corruption from a foreign source."

Tails' eyes widened. "So what you're saying is that the reason for Sonic's current state is not a direct cause by cyber energy, but rather a defensive measure enforced by his own chaos energy?"

Shadow nodded wordlessly.

"Interesting. The cyber corruption operates almost—if not completely—identical to a bacterial disease," Eggman mused. "Sonic's body—or rather, mind, as only his intellectual abilities seem to be impaired—will soon succumb to the corruption, paving way for the cyber energy to take hold." He let out a low chuckle, crossing his arms, seemingly impressed. It was moments like these that revealed the twisted nature of the scientist. "Terrifyingly grim, even I can admit." Knuckles bared his teeth at the doctor, an unamused growl resonating deep in his throat as he narrowed his eyes, pinning him with a violent glare.

"It's only a matter of time until the cyber corruption fully takes over Sonic," Shadow went on, ignoring Eggman's obvious jeer. "His condition will only worsen from here. We have to find a way to expel the cyber energy safely from his body." His gaze darkened. "If we fail to do so..." He trailed off, falling silent. But judging by the looks of those present, he knew they were aware of the potential consequences—even Eggman looked serious, his usual arrogant air stifled by the cold grips of truth.

Sonic may be lost to us forever.

And if that happens, what of the threat that lurks within him?

The youngest's quiet, fearful whine told all in the room what they needed to know.


Tell me, mortal. Why is it you fight?

Sonic took a deep breath and focused on the protective barrier around him, ignoring the hypnotic pulsing of the cyber energy brushing against his chaos energy. His quills quivered, bristling into a substance sharper than knives, sensing the danger he was in. His legs yearned to run, and his ears felt isolated without the wind's constant howling, an empty presence near forgotten. But he refused to move, remaining still with a patience that could impress even the gods of Gaia.

Focus.

Your determination wavers.

He slowed his breathing, applying more chaos energy to the barrier. Cyber energy screamed in retaliation, a shrieking melody telling a story of inevitable destruction. Images flickered, echoes of his past. They clashed alongside chaos, battling the static virus, fueling him with a new determination.

Remember.

I first deemed you an obstacle. But it seems you still have some use after all.

He opened his eyes, a gasp bubbling against his lips. Pain erupted through his body—shooting past his legs, gnawing at his arms, filling his eyes, roaring in his ears—and a wave of cold fear washed over him, his body stiffening as panic engulfed him, as powerful as the agony he was afflicted by. He bit his lips to prevent his screams from being heard, curling into a tight, shivering ball. He would not surrender—he couldn't.

You cling to your precious memories with such passion.

Chaos crackled, weakened against the wailing void. Shattering, breaking, tearing apart like cheap fabric, it crumbled beneath his hold, as delicate as a vase made of rich china. It was as if his mere existence was a punishment created by the gods. He had, after all, killed many of their brethren.

Perhaps this was revenge. A plot created by external forces, his fragile mortality serving as nothing more than a kokeshi doll during ancient times.

But they will serve as your downfall.

No. Sonic pinned his ears against his head, desperation beginning to rise as alarm stiffened his muscles. His breath rose to his throat, where it remained, trapped, a message of fear stuck to his tongue. I won't...I won't let you hurt them...him—

He wanted to escape. Flee. Run.

So what was holding him back?

He could no longer recall. Not while bearing this kind of pain.

You misunderstand, mortal.

He could feel its desires, twisted yet fair, as clear as the moon on a starless night. It served as an eternal presence, a necessary truth with an existence spawned since the beginning of time.

And he?

You are the key.