"No Hedgehog is an Island, pt. 1"

Sonic's eyes open up, before he slowly pushes himself up on some grass. He looks around to see Tails slowly pushing himself up next to him.

"Tails, bud, are you okay?" Sonic places a hand on Tails' back.

"I'm fine," Tails says, before looking up at him. "Just a little shaken."

Sonic looks over to see the crashed Freedom Stormer, its wings bent, a couple feet away.

"Hold still, bud," Sonic says, before he speeds into the Freedom Stormer.

Inside the Freedom Stormer, Antoine, Bunnie, Sally, Rotor, and Uncle Chuck are slowly waking up.

"Is everyone okay?" Sonic asks, before he helps Sally up. "Sal?"

"Yeah, I-I think we're good," Sally says, before looking at Sonic. "What about Tails?"

"Sonic! Sonic!"

Everyone looks at the plane's exit, before running out to find Tails is several feet away, looking through some brushes.

"Tails, what's wrong?" Sonic asks, as they approach Tails.

"Look," Tails says, pointing past the brushes.

The rest of the Freedom Fighters join Tails, looking past the brushes to see the end of the landmass, which is miles above the ground.

"W-W-We're far from the ground," Antoine says.

Sally steps back, "This is just like the Floating Island, where the Time Stones were." Sonic stands up next to her, as she looks around to see a forest of trees and a large mountain in the distance. "But this looks nothing like it. Besides, the Floating Island was miles away, at a different location."

Uncle Chuck and Rotor approach the Freedom Stormer.

"What do you think, Rotor?" Uncle Chuck asks.

"From first look, it appeared only the wings were seriously damaged," Rotor says.

"Agreed," Uncle Chuck adds.

"So you can fix it?" Bunnie asks, as she and Antoine approach.

"I had brought some tools in case of an emergency," Uncle Chuck tells her. "We should be able to get it flight worthy."

"That is reliving," Antoine says.

Sally holds up NICOLE's computer, "NICOLE?"

"I've confirmed, the landmass we found ourselves on is the location that the Scrolls gave," NICOLE responds.

"Then it's settled," Sally says, before turning to her friends. "Rotor and Sir Charles will work on the Freedom Stormer, while the rest of us will search the island."

"Alright, exploring time," Tails says.

"Not you, Tails," Sally says. "You will stay with Rotor and Sir Charles."

"But…" Tails starts.

"We don't have time to discuss it, Tails," Sally says, before she turns away.

Tails looks down, disappointed.

Sonic, Sally, Antoine, and Bunnie are walking past a flowerbed.

"You know, Sal, Tails did an amazing job on the Destroyer," Sonic says to Sally, as the two fall behind. "You should really let him help out more."

"Tails can't get involved in any more dangerous situations," Sally tells him. "He's just too young."

"And he's growing," Sonic says. "You can't baby him all his life."

Bunnie notices Antoine, as he looks around, almost panicky.

"Are you okay?" Bunnie asks.

"M-Mon think something's watching us," Antoine says.

"You're just nervous," Bunnie suggests.

"Mon?" Antoine stops walking, alongside Bunnie. "Mon's never nervous."

Antoine and Bunnie step forward, before they fall down into a deep pitfall hole, as both yell.

Sonic and Sally run to the end of the hole to see Antoine and Bunnie lying on the bottom of the hole.

"Bunnie, Antoine, are you okay?" Sally asks.

"Been better, sugar," Bunnie says, as she and Antoine return to their feet and look around. "Don't worry, I can get us out of here in no time at all."

Bunnie holds onto Antoine's waist, while she blushes, as her roboticized legs start to stretch, but just before they reach the top of the hole, wooden bars spring out of the sides of the hole's top, blocking their way.

"What in the world?!" Bunnie calls out.

"It's a trap," Sally realizes. "This means, someone else is here."

Suddenly, a large log comes swinging at Sally on vines, with Sonic pushing Sally to the ground, as the log swings harmlessly over their heads.

"Whoever it is, they aren't too friendly," Sonic says to Sally.

An escape pod is lying on its back in a meadow, when suddenly its door is blasted off, before Naugus and Snively climb out of the pod.

"This is indignity," Snively says, as he falls from the escape pod, then stands back up. "A man of my stature, I should command respect."

"Enough of your prattling," Naugus says, with Snively looking over to him. "I can already sense we are close to what I seeked."

"And what would that be?"

Naugus and Snively look around.

"Who is there?" Naugus asks.

"Who do you?!" Suddenly, jumping from a tree branch and landing on a hill in front of the pair is a red echidna, with spikes coming out of his fists. "I am Knuckles the Echidna, the Guardian of Angel Island."

"Guardian, heh?" Naugus whispers.

"I repeat, what do you seek… creatures," Knuckles says.

"'Creatures', why you little…" Snively starts, before Naugus shoves a hand in front of him, stopping him.

"All we seek, noble Guardian, are vile villains," Naugus claims. "Who, I fear, are after great power."

Knuckles crosses his arms.

"And these villains," Naugus looks to the side, placing a hand on his forehead. "They already shot down our ship, while we were in pursuit of them."

"What do these villains look like?" Knuckles asks.

"They're all different… creatures," Naugus says, looking back at him. "But the most dangerous of them all is a blue hedgehog."

Using her roboticized arm, Bunnie punches through the bars, breaking them apart, before her legs continue to stretch, with Antoine clumsily pulling himself out of the hole. Bunnie then pulls herself out, with her legs retracting back to normal.

Sally holds NICOLE's computer around, "Anything?"

"Sorry, Sally, I am unable to scan for any more traps," NICOLE explains. "Strong energy signals are interfering with my scans."

Sally closes the computer, "Could it be a Chaos Emerald? The one in the Bottomless Marsh caused similar interferences."

"Then Chaos Emerald made traps?" Antoine asks.

"Seriously doubt it, Ant," Sonic says, with a hand on his hip. "Chaos Emeralds can't create traps like this."

"And Naugus and Snively didn't have the time to create them either," Sally says, with everyone turning to her. "Which means I was right. Someone IS on the island. Which just beg the question. Who?"

Knuckles, Naugus, and Snively are walking past some trees.

"Not too long ago I sensed a Chaos Emerald being uncovered," Knuckles says.

"Such an amazing ability you have there," Naugus says, with a grin. "But yeah, that was the actions of the hedgehog and his comrades. And if all of the Chaos Emeralds fell into their hands, then no one on Mobius would ever be safe."

"Not many can truly tap into the Chaos Emeralds' powers," Knuckles says, before glancing at Naugus. "And you better not try."

"Oh, no fret friend, I have no interest in their powers," Naugus claims. "I only want to protect them for the greater good."

Snively rolls his eyes.

"Actions speak louder than words," Knuckles says.

Naugus then notices something, and walks past Knuckles, before looking past a tree, "My actions gonna speak for themself."

Knuckles and Snively stand beside Naugus, as they see the four Freedom Fighters in the distance, walking between a couple trees.

"The hedgehog and his friends," Naugus starts. "They must be stopped, for good."

Knuckles narrows his eyes.

"Perhaps we all should head back to plane?" Antoine suggests, as he stops walking.

"No, we must continue," Sally says, as she, Sonic, and Bunnie also stop.

"Sal's right," Sonic says. "Besides, no trap's gonna stop us from the Chaos Emerald."

Knuckles ducks behind a tree, "Disagree." He uses the spikes on one hand to cut a vine sticking out of the ground.

Suddenly, a couple nets are launched from below the grass.

One net falls onto Sally, entrapping her.

Another net falls on Antoine and Bunnie, entrapping them together.

Sonic speeds back and forth, dodging a couple nets as they fly past him.

Bunnie grabs a part of the net with her roboticized hand, "I'll get us out of here, sugar."

Knuckles steps out on the other side of the tree, pulling down a short branch, with a bola launched out of the tree's knothole.

The bola wraps around Bunnie, pinning both arms, surging electricity around her roboticized limbs, with her falling to her knees and her roboticized arm go limp.

"I-I can't move…" Bunnie says, before tearing up. "I'm useless…"

"What's happening here?" Sonic asks.

Sonic starts to turn his head, when Knuckles jumps at him and punches Sonic, sending him flying backward.

Knuckles stands straight, "I'm happening."

Snively is watching behind a tree, when he turns and notices Naugus is walking away.

"Where's you going?" Snively asks.

"Like I said, my actions will speak for themself," Naugus says, as he's walking.

Uncle Chuck is holding onto one of the Freedom Stormer's mostly straight wings, as Rotor is hitting it with a hammer.

Rotor swipes some sweat from his brow, "It shouldn't be long now before the Freedom Stormer can soar again."

"Before Sonic and the others get back I assume," Uncle Chuck guesses.

Rotor looks around, "Huh, where did Tails went to?"

Uncle Chuck tabs the side of his head, "Tails, come in, Tails?"

"Something's wrong?" Rotor asks.

"There's interference," Uncle Chuck tells him. "But I'm certain Tails'll be fine."

Sonic starts to push himself up, "...What… What hit me?"

He looks up to see Knuckles, several feet away, clenching his fists.

"Ah, guess that was you," Sonic says, clenching his own fists. "Then I own you."

"No one will claim the Chaos Emerald," Knuckles says.

Sonic and Knuckles start to run at each other, about to collide.

Tails is flying through a forest, looking around, "Don't believe I was being sidelined again…" He starts to look down. "Though the Destroyer blowing up… and the Freedom Stormer getting damaged… that was my fault…"

Tails sighs, before he looks ahead to see at the end of the forest is a round temple.

Tails flies toward the temple's single entrance and finds inside is a round shrine, which Naugus is walking through. Around the shrine's walls were seven small holes, all empty, except for one, which had the red Chaos Emerald inside it.

"Finally," Naugus says, as he gets closer. "I will get what is mine."

Naugus' reflection appears in the Chaos Emerald.

TO BE CONTINUED…