Review Responses:
To Void Reader: As for who Sally lost during the coup Naugus the Dark caused, I will not spoil who exactly died. I will say that one of the victim's fathers will be mentioned in this chapter. Perhaps Sally will explain who passed away in this continuity when she is given the chance another time. And no, Nazo wasn't anywhere near Soleanna during the alternate take of Nazo Unleashed. The kingdom was destroyed twenty years prior to this story instead of ten like in the games. But Solaris is important to the narrative.
As for the rest of you who are reading this, guess where Iblis and Mephiles are and what happened to them.
That's all for now, on with the show.
Altar of the Emeralds, Sky Palace, Angel Island
In the center of the planet, miles high in the heavens resides a floating island that seemed to be paradise. On the surface, it had many different natural environments, such as jungles, deserts, volcanos, and frozen landmasses. All of them at their distinct locations that somehow coexisted in perfect harmony.
Sitting at the center of the island were ancient ruins that were composed mostly of pillars that were all a weathered yellow in color, and vines grow unrestrained everywhere, and towers that resembled Roman's style of architecture. The ruins had bridges and beams connecting them. There were stairs that led to the top of the structure's holy ground.
On it, two flights of stairs led to an altar, which was surrounded by a giant wall built upon large pillars. The inner sanctuary consisted of seven pillars, intended as a place for particular items to rest on. The central shrine hosted a low-set pedestal on which a large green gemstone with indescribable power rested.
And standing in front of the large gem was a red Mobian echidna, which is currently a minority among the world of Mobius.
The echidna stood at least three inches taller than Sonic and possessed red fur, peach skin, with his muzzle being a bit longer than Sonic's, a white crescent-shaped birthmark, and dark purple eyes. He also had seven dreadlock-like spines around the sides and back of his head and a medium-sized, tri-crooked tail. For his attire, he wore red and yellow shoes, each with green cuffs and a gray, sextuple-bolted plate on top. He also had on large, white, mitten-like gloves with sock-like cuffs and two spiked knuckles on each hand to cover his natural knuckles.
This was Necalli, the last of the Yaotl clan. Otherwise known as the last guardian of the Master Emerald, Knuckles the Echidna.
"It's been peaceful these past three months… too peaceful." Knuckles muttered as he stood on guard. "Time and time again, my skills as the guardian of this island and the Master Emerald have been up to the test."
Since the events of the Space Colony ARK nearly collapsing into the planet up until Nazo's defeat, Knuckles anticipated a world-threatening crisis that kept him on his feet. Relaxing was barely an option, given his past naivety that led to the Master Emerald getting stolen and or broken.
"...First, it was Eggman, then there was Chaos, and then that Nazo creature as of recent. All of those who've sought after and or emerged because of the Master Emerald and its power to supercharge and nullify the Chaos Emeralds." Knuckles spoke to himself as he looked at himself being reflected by the Master Emerald. "Now I'm starting to understand what my father was preparing me for, why I was given this mission. Thanks to those endeavors, I now have more experience to fulfill my duty."
Knuckles then looked at his left hand as he clenched it, saying, "...Even still. I can't shake off the feeling that something terrible is about to happen. ...Maybe I can gain insight with the assistance of the Master Emerald."
Extending his palms above the giant diamond cut emerald, Knuckles began to chant.
"...The servers are the seven chaos. Chaos is power. Power enriched by the heart. The controller is the one to unify the chaos. O, Master Emerald, I call upon your power! Please show me a sign, show me a glimpse of the foreboding darkness that I sense!"
The Master Emerald gleamed its green hue, sending mental images to the guardian's mind. Within violet darkness, piercing red and green demonic eyes peered directly at Knuckles for a few moments. Around him was nothing but a hellish background with buildings destroyed and corpses lying around. But before Knuckles could react, the being flew straight at him while a full-blown wicked laugh escaped from the shrouded being. Knuckles woke from his trance, utterly horrid at what he witnessed.
"...W-What in the world did I just see!?" Knuckles gasped, trying to control his breathing from the hell he experienced for a brief moment. "...T-That thing...It's even more frightening than Perfect Chaos, that Biolizard thing, and Nazo's negative Chaos Energy combined!"
He looked towards the Master Emerald, stating, "...With that kind of evil, there's no way I can let that monster get to the Master Emerald. Not while I'm still breathing."
Knuckles continued to ponder about the future when suddenly he heard a distinct sound of jets several meters away from the palace. When the sounds got closer, the echidna paused to make sure he wasn't hearing this improperly. Its certainty was confirmed as multiple thuds came from nearby the altar. Turning to the direction of the sounds, Knuckles was greeted by three E-Series 121-Phi robots again.
"...Great. Now, I have to deal with tin cans." Knuckles groaned, regretting mentioning Eggman's name before putting up his fists. " Fine! If you think you're so tough, then come and take your best shot!"
Phi No. 1 charged for a right cross, but Knuckles blocked and sent it skyward with a strong uppercut. Phi No. 2 dashed around Knuckles and threw a front kick that connected towards the back of his head. Knuckles was sent forward, only for Phi No.3 to kick him up to where No.1 was. Phi No. 1 then extended its leg that was laced with energy, landing a powerful blow to the guardian. The power from the kick forced Knuckles and Phi No. 1 to hurtle downwards, with Phi No. 1 (with its other copies) to descend easier due to it possessing jets on its back while Knuckles crash-landed below the altar.
The ground shook for a moment, making the robots stay on high alert. But before any of the E-Series units could detect in time, the burrowing echidna burst from right in the middle of them with his Phi No. 1 taking the devastating Rising Drill Claw in full. The attack destroyed the first Phi, leaving No. 2 and 3. At the mercy of Knuckles.
Of course, the last of the Phi robots tried to put up an effort to engage Knuckles in hand-to-hand combat. However, All it took was a few hits from Knuckles' Maximum Heat Attack for the entire trip to be defeated and reduced into pieces.
The red aura from using his Maximum Heat Attack mode recedes, allowing Knuckles to relax.
"...Alright. Now to get back to-ARGH!" Knuckles paused as he was hit with an upcoming yellow laser on his chest, sending him straight to the ground.
Knuckles winced as he felt his chest burning from the attack. Regardless of his wounds, he sat up to see a familiar robot landing on the Master Emerald. He glared at the robot for a brief second before his eyes widened in shock.
Knuckles started at a robot who bore a striking resemblance to Sonic. While having mostly blue metal, and a yellow circular depression in its chest with a black center, which mirrored the peach skin on Sonic's chest. Its head had metal fins, resembling Sonic's quills and a pair of triangular "ears." It had a muzzle, shoulder plates, upper arms, legs, and fingers made out of silvery metal. Its palms are black, while the backs of its hands are square yellow plates. Its forearms and lower legs are blue metal like its head and torso, and its had red feet with white stripes designed to resemble Sonic's shoes. It had optic sensors with black sclera and red irises.
This was Metal Sonic, the ultra-high performance Badnik designed by Dr. Robotnik.
"M-Metal! You're here!?" Knuckles shouted as he stood up, staggering about. "What do you think you're doing!?"
Metal looked down at Knuckles with his eyes glowing a sinister crimson.
"...PRIMARY DIRECTIVE: ACQUIRE THE MASTER EMERALD!" Metal Sonic spoke in a cold robotic tone.
Using its strength, Metal Sonic grabbed hold of the Master Emerald and began to fly off of the island. This caused the small floating landmass to fall from the sky.
"No! Wait!" Knuckles screamed as he got into a running start. "HEY, WAIT! GET BACK HERE!"
Mustering all of his speed while emitting the aura of the Maximum Heat Attack, Knuckles jumped and began to glide while luckily being carried by an updraft that kept him airborne. Metal Sonic flew about at a steady pace, making sure that the chase continued far away from Angel Island.
Prower Residence, Suburban District, New Mobotropolis
Upon returning from his meeting with King Max, Tails was borrowed by Sir Charles to go for a walk around the city. At first, Tails was confused, given that he assumed that the hedgehog would take the opportunity to spend as much time with his nephew. But Sir Charles stated that it was a royal order under the king to do so, given that it was specifically meant for Tails that we would explore the city with Charles to accompany him.
While entering the Suburban area of Mobotropolis, Tails and Sir Charles spoke amongst each other in an engaging conversation.
"So, I've heard from Princess Sally that the vicious Dr. Robotnik character sought after these artifacts that Sonny-boy was referring to," Charles said.
Understanding what he was referring to, Tails said, "Oh, you're talking about the Chaos Emeralds, right?"
"Indeed, I am," Charles nodded. "I've been studying the properties of Chaos Energy all of my life. When Azuron existed many years back, we followed the belief and teachings regarding Chaos Energy and the all-encompassing Chaos Force."
"Chaos...Force?" Tails repeated, finding the topic interesting. "That's something I've never heard of before. What is that?"
Charles and Tails made it to an intersection before crossing the street as the older hedgehog explained.
"The Chaos Force, my boy, is what one can describe as a cosmic energy force, the very source of power all wielders of Chaos draw from. It is omnipresent, all around us. It resides in us all, binding us, fate, and the universe together. It's one of three sources that help shaped all of creation."
"Wow! That sounds amazing!" Tails said with stars in his eyes. "What else do you know about this Chaos Force stuff?"
"From what I was told and from what I've studied, those who are either exposed to enough of the power from a conduit or those with a strong enough connection to the Chaos Force itself can wield its boundless powers. ...But never in my wildest dreams have I ever thought that the Chaos Emeralds actually exist. We always assumed that the Gems of Miracles was merely a myth. " Charles said, still wrapping his mind around the matter.
Tails asked why, giving him a confused glance, "Why would you think that? My friends and I use the Emeralds all the time. Almost all of our adventures involve them in one way or another. They are the reason why the world ended up being saved."
Sir Charles stroked his chin in deep thought as he responded with, "I cannot say that I'm sure, Miles. My working theory on it, however, is that each time that the Gems of Miracles are gathered and disbursed, they tend to only scatter within a certain radius or area. My educated guess is that the Emeralds have only been in neutral and Overlander territory. It has never been in the Kingdom of Acorn or the other Mobian territories."
"...I suppose that makes sense. We would have been here a long time ago if that happened." Tails agreed. "How did Azuron know about the Emeralds and Chaos Energy anyways?"
Smiling, Charles explained, "I'll explain. Queen Aleena had told me this back when I had been assigned to watch her. Imagine that we're traveling back in time, specifically over four centuries ago. Around the era of King Alexander Acorn, the original king of Acornia. Arthur Cobalt I, who would later raise one of the largest Mobian kingdoms in history, originated from a small Spagonian settlement as a young man filled with ambitions and the blessing of Illumina, the goddess of hopes, dreams, desires, and the wind. In a dream, he foresaw a vision of a land where he and his kin could live a better life. And so, Arthur became an explorer and set sail to find the land which he believed that Illumina had promised him. During their journey, the Cobalt family stumbled upon a settlement in order to trade with the local natives, a tribe of echidnas after establishing a stable relationship. However, through unforeseen circumstances, Arthur I and his kinsmen valiantly saved the tribe of echidnas from being overwhelmed by a neighboring adversary. As a token of their gratitude, the tribe's chief invited Arthur and his men to a feast in their honor. The chief referred to Arthur as the special title of "In Texotli Se", or the "Azure One" due to his unique color of fur. Several months later, Arthur and his family eventually found their new home in the uninhabited region of Grandia (now called the Great Frontier), establishing a small settlement that soon became a small new kingdom. A new kingdom where he had been accepted to reign over his people as their king. During the first ten years of Cobaltia's existence, King Arthur watched his kingdom grow alongside his wife, whom he married in that time period. However, the young king was struck with a mysterious illness. An illness that would have surely killed him, had it not been for the quick thinking of his wife. Queen Bernadetta rushed back to the echidna's tribe which her people befriended, begging for them to help cure her husband's terminal illness. Having listened to the queen's pleas, the daughter of the tribe's chief had enacted a ritual that blessed both the sickly king and the queen which involved the power of Chaos energy. In doing so, the girl cured King Arthur and empowered the couple both spiritually and physically. Forever thankful for this act of generosity, Cobaltia and the echidna tribe established an alliance that exchanged knowledge for trading goods. Through this alliance, the echidna tribe gained raw minerals and commodities not found in their territory, Royal scribes and the rulers were taught about the ancient ways of the Force of Chaos and were told about the legend of the seven Gems of Miracles. By the time Arthur I and Bernadetta begot their first child, the kingdom's name was changed from Cobaltia to Azuron, as a sign of respect to the ancient echidna people they allied with. And since then, every generation of children from the royal line was blessed with a special power that came from the blessing the first king and queen had received. Fifteen generations."
Upon hearing the lengthy story, Tails was rendered speechless given that he had now learned a bit more about his friend's lineage and his motherland's history. Though, certain details regarding Sir Charles' information caused the fox to think of another friend of Tails.
'...Hold on, so Sonic's speed resulted from a mutation passed down… Which came from being blessed by Chaos Energy? That...kind of explains a lot of this. And what he said about an ancient echidna tribe. Could Chuck be possibly talking about Knuckle's tribe? ...Nah, I'm just overanalyzing stuff again. ...Maybe I should look into this more later.' Tails mentally noted as he focused on where Sir Charles was leading him to.
After a ten-minute walk, the pair ended up finding themselves going through a few acres of land that led them to a large mansion. The mansion in question looked quite old, from before technological progress began to advance to machinery, a medieval manor of sorts. On the mansion there were tapestries that had an emblem, possessing a red cross with the Acornian royal acorn seal in the center and what appeared to be a serpent biting its tail and forming a circle coiling around the cross.
"Woah…!" Tails awed. "This place is huge! Hey, Sir Charles. How come you took me here? Is this your house?"
Sir Charles held up his left hand, shaking his head as he said, "Now, now, Miles. Formality isn't necessary among friends. You can call me Uncle Chuck like the other kids do."
Sir Charles then turned to the walkway of the mansion and said, "As for your question, no. I don't own this house. I actually live in an apartment by the shopping district. And why I brought you here, well, I wanted to introduce you to some friends of mine that I was telling you about from earlier."
Tails glanced at the old hedgehog with a questioning manner before nodding slowly.
"...Uh, sure! I guess I could meet them. ...Whoever they are. Are you sure they'll like me, Uncle Chuck?" The young fox asked.
Sir Charles patted Tails' back, saying "I'm absolutely positive,"
The two walked up to the front door. The hedgehog then rang on the doorbell then shot Tails a smile.
The war veteran said, "Trust me, you'll feel right at home."
A pair of footsteps was heard before an older and firm voice asked, "Who is it?"
Sir Charles answered by responding, "It's Chuck. And I brought a special guest with me."
With an eye looking through the peephole, the sounds of a few locks were undone and the sound of the front door knobs began to turn. As the door swung open, Tails' eyes dilated in shock at the sight of the pair who owned the mansion.
Standing in front of Tails and Sir Charles were two Mobian foxes who seemed young but were in their early to late forties. The male had brown fur with light brown patches of fur on his face, a visible blue right eye, and wavy hair that went down to his neck. He wore the attire of the Acornia Royal Army similar to Armand and covered his left eye with an eyepatch. The woman had the same colored fur, scarlet-colored hair, and sky blue eyes, and wore a purple dress and golden necklace.
"Chuck! It's great to see you again! It's been quite some time since you came to visit." The older fox greeted Sir Charles.
"It's been far too long, Amadeus, Rosemary." Sir Charles said as he shook Amadeus' hand and hugged Rosemary.
"It certainly has been," Rosemary started before her eyes wandered elsewhere.
The female fox started at Tails for a few seconds, mustering all of her strength to not entangle the young boy in a maternal embrace.
"...And I take it that this young man with you is this guest?" The wife of Amadeus noticed while trying her best to sound normal.
Sir Charles pushed the young fox along, insisting on Tails introduce himself.
"Yes, of course! This young man just came to New Mobotropolis today upon being royally summoned along with another youth." Sir Charles said before speaking to Tails. "Go on, introduce yourself."
Tails couldn't help but feel timid around the two seemingly important figures. Still, he preserved and answered, "...Uh, hi. M-My name's Miles, but my friends call me Tails."
The couple glanced at each other and turned back to the two visitors.
"Please, come inside right away." Ushered Amadeus.
The fox couple led Sir Charles and Tails into the living room while Rosemary went to the kitchen to get refreshments for everybody. Amadeus sat in his chair adjacent to the guest coach, where Sir Charles and Tails sat.
"So, tell me...Tails, was it?" Amadeus asked, to which Tails nodded. "...What's a young lad like yourself doing all the way out here in New Mobotropolis?"
"Oh! Hehehe! I flew all the way out here with my best friend because we received a letter from your king that he was in need of our service." Tails answered, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
Rosemary came back with four glasses of freshly made lemonade with three ice cubes in each cup on a tray. She then served them all the drinks while saying, "Oh really? Who's this friend of yours, Tails?"
Smiling with pride, Tails answered, "His name is Sonic, Sonic the Hedgehog."
"Sonic?" Amadeus echoed after taking a sip of lemonade out of his cup, seemingly recalling the name of the teenage hero. "As in that kid who stopped that water monster in one of the cities in the Overlanders' territory a few years back?"
Tails nodded to the soldier's question.
"Oh yeah, that was him! I remember reading about that in the newspaper," Rosemary remembered after taking a seat on her own chair next to her husband. She turned to Sir Charles and asked, "And I recall hearing rumors amongst the council you, his majesty, and the princess theorizing Sonic to be little Oliver all grown up. Is this true?"
The older hedgehog let out a confident chuckle reminiscent of the famous Blue Blur as he confirmed, "...Well, that's the thing. It cannot be a theory if it's confirmed to be the truth."
Sir Charles reached into his pocket from his vest and took out the used Proto-Warp Ring, rendering Amadeus and Rosemary silent and awestruck.
'...It's Oliver's prototype!' Both husband and wife screamed to themselves mentally.
Tails, now inquisitive at their behavior with little context he was given, asked the fox couple, "Wait, how do you know about Sonic so much? Do you mind telling me your connection towards him and his family?"
Amadeus and Rosemary quickly focused on the child's question with Amadeus answering, "...Ah, yes. You see, Chuck, his late brother, Jules, King Max, and I were all a part of the same team back in the day when we were serving the country during the Great War. We knew each other beforehand since we were all knights and allies, but the war brought us closer."
"Woah… That's so cool!" Tails said with eyes shining with stars in them.
Rosemary then asked the younger fox, "Say, Tails? Tell us more about yourself. What do you exactly do with Oliver-, I mean Sonic?"
Tails answered with fond memories flooding his mind, "The short of it is that, well, we just hang out. We've been friends since I was five years old, so whenever we're not saving the world or fighting Dr. Eggman, Sonic and I simply live our lives like normal kids and teenagers. It's always been like that since his grandparents adopted me."
"Grandparents?" Amadeus questioned in bewilderment.
"...Adopted?" Rosemary mirrored in a whispered, slightly heartbroken at Tails' words.
Before either of the adults could react, Sir Charles came to Tails' rescue and gave context to the couple.
"I'll keep it brief. Remember when I was talking about that theory we had about Oliver? It turned out to be true. According to Sally, Oliver was found and raised by old Harvey Who after the coup. He and his wife adopted Oliver, who recently repressed his memory of that day. That's why Oliver was renamed "Sonic". When Oliver began his chase after that Overlander who's been attacking us, he ended up befriending Miles and allowed him to join him on his adventures. That's probably how Harvey added Miles to his family."
"Well, where is Harvey? We haven't heard from him since he retired." Amadeus inquired, responding faster than his wife to spare the males from her maternal hysterics.
Tails looked down solemnly, quietly answering, "...Old Man Owl and Granny Owl passed away three years ago. It was right after Sonic and another friend of ours stopped the Space Colony ARK from falling. ...It hasn't been the same since."
All three of the adults in the room fell into a depressing silence, mentally taking in the answer Tails provided half-heartedly. All three of them then stared at each other with a determined and serious look, and turned back to Tails.
"Miles," Sir Charles spoke after letting out a sigh. "There's something that you need to know."
Tails tilted his head, noticing the odd expressions that the hedgehog and the fox couple were giving him, and said, "What is it, Chuck? Is something wrong? What's going on?"
"Remember when I told you the reason behind coming here to see these two?" The hedgehog asked, gesturing to Amadeus and Rosemary. "There's more to it… The king issued this royal order because it pertains to you specifically. Mainly, though these my friends here?"
"Huh?" Tails blurted out, blinking while turning to Amadeus and Rosemary. "What is he talking about?"
Rosemary rose from her seat and slowly walked over to the two-tailed fox cub, saying, "Tails...M-Miles… there's something you should know."
Knowing where this was going, Amadeus followed his wife and said, "Twelve years ago, there was a coup that was started by that treacherous bastard, Naugus. It was during that time that Rosemary gave birth to our child."
Tails listened attentively, trying to see where the story was going.
"When I was given my baby, I was told he was a boy. He was my handsome little baby boy. I still remember the first time I held him in my arms. When I lifted the blanket off of his face, I fell in love with his unique yellow coat of fur…"Rosemary started, with her husband next to her staring at Tails.
"When I walked next to her to look at our son, I noticed how he inherited his mother's baby blue eyes and my facial features. ...The kid's even got my tuft of hair with three bangs coming down off his little head." The war veteran's vulpine continued, causing Tails' heart to slow a bit.
"But the one thing that was remarkably special about our little angel was that when he came into this world, he had not one, but two incredibly soft tails. I couldn't believe it, and neither did his father or the doctor that delivered him." Rosemary said.
Tails' eyes dilated, trying his best to fathom what was just told to him. His body began to shake from the weight of Rosemary's words.
'...It can't be… That's not possible…' The boy repeated in his mind, trying his best to stay strong.
Amadeus then walked near Tails' side of the couch, placing a hand on his shoulder as he finished saying, "...And when I got to hold our son, I realized how much he resembled my brother, Al. But he also looked like Rosemary's father. So I said, You know what? I'm going to name him Miles. Miles Alphonse Prower."
The younger fox squeezed his eyes as he started to quiver. The sorrow made his body tremble, though he did his best to keep calm. The angst came in the form of his teeth closed tightly shut. Tails kept his head down, not daring to look at the people that claimed to be his parents.
Rosemary, obviously worried about Tails' emotional and mental state, asked, "M-Miles? Please, don't shut us off. Say something. Anything!"
"You are free to speak your mind." Amadeus allowed.
"...W-why?" Tails asked shakily, with pain, anger, and anguish etched in his tone. "Why did you two abandon me?"
"...What?" Rosemary gasped, clearly horrified at the answer. "What do you mean? We didn't do anything of the sort!"
Feeling something snap inside of him, Tails glared at the two foxes, shouting, "Well, what do you expect me to think?! I've spent four years in an orphanage where most of the people were either turning their head away from me in revulsion or glared at me in utter hatred! I had no friends because I was too smart for them to relate to other kids and because I was born with another tail!"
The Prower couple was taken aback by the sudden shift in Tails' tone but recognized the pain in every sentence that came from his mouth.
Sir Charles watched in silence, waiting for the right moment to intervene if necessary and when needed
"You two haven't got a clue… You don't get it. You don't know what it's like to feel alone. I had to watch everybody else get picked. To have a family of their own… And every time the place is emptied out, I end up going back to my room and listening to the other adults scream and debate whether or not I should just get thrown into the streets. And despite Longclaw being there for me, it didn't stop me at the time from feeling that nobody could ever love a freak of nature! Not even my own parents! ...T-That's why I ran away! So why else would I think that! Huh!?" Tails finally answered in an emotional manner that he started to tear up.
While the mother also started shedding tears, a solemn realization fell unto both parents. It all made sense. Why Miles couldn't be found and how he met Oliver. Tails wasn't killed by those killer death traps of machines like they all thought.
Tails ran off, feeling unwanted.
Not being able to restrain herself, Rosemary gently embraced her long-lost son. Instead of bawling her eyes out due to her heartbreaking from her son's story, she kindly rubbed her back while Tails' head was safely pressed against his mother's chest. The younger fox weakly repeated the question "why?", though his anger gradually lessened due to the silent sobs he led out.
"Shhh… It's okay, Miles. Mommy's here." Rosemary comforted, soothing her son's aching heart.
After a couple of minutes of this Amadeus patted his son's back while giving Tails an apologetic glance.
He said, "There's no amount of apologizing that can make up for all the grief we've caused you, son. But best believe us, neither your mother or I ever wanted this to happen to you. We always wanted you here with us. When you were born twelve years ago, we were the happiest people on Mobius."
Pulling away from his mother gently, he peered in his father's direction, asking, "...You don't seem to be lying... I-I just don't get how I got from here to an orphanage…"
The forty-five-year-old male fox sighed before he answered the question.
"...There was a contingency plan," Amadeus answered grimly. "The last resort that Rosemary and I vowed to enact if and when absolutely necessary. We agreed to this plan just in case there was an ambush or assault from any remaining fragments of the Overlander faction."
Sir Charles joined back in the conversation, adding, "Acornia was already recovering from the Great War which lasted for about ten years. The crown and (Old) Mobotropolis were still in the process of reconstruction and regrowing our forces. So, you can only imagine how startled we were when those crystal monstrosities came and started bursting through our walls...Well, we were blindsided."
"Right after I had you," Rosemary continued. "I watched as the neighboring buildings combusted and heard multiple cries of pain and agony. It was literal hell out there… And I was afraid that you might have had to grow up enduring that nightmare. It was only when Amadeus stared at me with that knowing glance of his that I knew what needed to be done. And to this day, I hated myself for not holding on to you longer than I did."
Amadeus finished by saying, "Long story short, I ran through the crossfire of the coup, guarding you as best I could as I took you to a friend of mine, Arthur Mongoose. He risked his life to take you to one of our secret ports where you were given to a family friend of ours. She took you away from Acornia to West Side Island in a care center to watch over you until the coup was over. …You know her as Longclaw."
"What!?" Tails exclaimed. "You guys know Longclaw!? But how!? When!?"
Sir Charles answered, "She was Harvey Who's niece once removed."
"...Oh." Tails blinked, finding the situation he was in to be convenient. "Well...why didn't you guys come back to get me after the coup?"
Both husband and wife looked at each other with grief in their eyes. Seeing that it was still a sore spot for them, Sir Charles saved them the trouble.
"...Miles, your parents were in a coma for the past eight years." Said the older hedgehog.
"...What? B-But how?" The fox responded.
"Amadeus suffered a powerful blow to his left temple when General Armand found him. He was lying unconscious a few meters away from the building he left your mother in. As for your mother, well, there were complications that were occurring in her body after birth. My guess was that due to the stress of her labor, the coup, and sending you away had placed Rosemary into a catatonic state where she regressed into a mental state so fragile, she was void of all responsiveness." Sir Charles explained.
Tails' heart sank out of the sudden wave of guilt that washed over him.
"...It took Chuck to develop the Artifical Power Ring to restore our sanity and health back to normal. However, when we received the news of your absence...we assumed the worst had come." Amadeus sighed, rubbing a saddened Rosemary.
"...We grieved for twelve months straight." The female fox confessed. "Not a day went by where we didn't think about what could have been. ...I only got to hold you a single time. ...But I never thought it would have been the last time."
Tails looked to the ground, expressing, "...I didn't know."
Sir Charles excused Tails with a grin that would match Sonic's, saying, "Hey, it's alright. There's no need to feel bad. You weren't aware of the situation. Fortunately, I deduced that you were alive and well since I caught you in a frame of one of the pictures with Oliver during the flood of Station Square. We were quite surprised when we discovered your impressive feat of disarming a city-leveling bomb in a record time."
"Then, it was just a matter of time before we would be reunited again. Of course, we thought Chuck was simply mad at first. ...Yet, here you are, a grown young man. Standing tall, gifted, and a good head on your shoulders." Amadeus finally ended with a sense of fatherly pride.
Rosemary pulls the other two foxes into a nice warm hug, saying, "Now, we can be a family again, never to be separated."
Tails took a moment to get accustomed to his parents embracing him. It was rather awkward for a moment, but he quickly melted into it, given how subconsciously familiar their warmth was.
'...This feels...right. I'm finally home!'
Sir Charles smiled at the sight, proud of his contribution to bringing the Prower Family back together.
He thought back to his own family and mentally lamented, '...If only you two were here, Jules, Aleena. We could all be just as happy.'
Meanwhile, On the Outskirts of the Great Forest
The guardian of the Master Emerald had been in a struggle for about an hour since he started his chase with Metal Sonic. Every time Knuckles would charge at Metal with his Maximum Heat Attack, Metal Sonic would either dodge it with expert aerial maneuvering, bruise him with a passive counter-attack, or activate his nearly indestructible three-dimensional Black Shield to repel the echidna. Still, Knuckles would always keep on gliding, using high winds to keep him in the air.
The bruised and weary guardian's teeth were clenched in agitation and frustration. He thought to himself, 'Damn it all! Metal's got his creepy claws on the Master Emerald and I can't even land a single hit on him! At the rate things are going, He's going to make off with it more successfully than Nazo or Eggman ever could! Come on, Necalli! Think! Think!'
...And that's where it donned on him.
Metal Sonic kept his hands on the Master Emerald, then recalled his defeat at the hands of his living counterpart along with his friends. His eyes gleamed a dangerous crimson hue as he decided to secretly extract a small portion of its power.
"INITIATING CHAOS ENERGY EXTRACTION. ...PROGRESS...FIFTY PERCENT COMPLE-"
Metal Sonic's willful thirst for power was interrupted by a loud crashing sound. Much to Metal's surprise, Knuckles used a strong punch that shattered the Master Emerald into seven large pieces. Glowing, the shards scattered all across the Acornia a few of the Mobian Alliance's territories, with one landing nearby a particular kingdom.
Smiling, Knuckles stopped gliding with a victorious smirk on his face as he fell down toward the location of the first Master Emerald shard. Turning his head towards the ground upon descent, Knuckles started to sweat from the upcoming amount of branches he was about to fall in.
"...Crap."
When he tumbled, the echidna landed on a series of several branches that were thick enough to leave a few marks on his body. He then landed on the ground hard face first, leaving a full body imprint.
Struggling at first, Knuckles managed to pull himself up with a slight limp due to his left leg being sprained.
"...Come, body! Argh! ...D-Don't fail me now! ...Not until I find that first shard!" Knuckles grunted as he persevered through the forest.
Freedom HQ, New Mobotropolis, Acornia
Within the building of Freedom HQ, Rotor Walrus, Bunnie Rabbot, and Antione D'Coolette sat in their respective chairs while occupying the conference room, having their own conversations.
Particularly regarding Sonic's actions against Dr. Robotnik
"...And did you see the way that he landed that finishing blow to that giant robot? He annihilated that thing! I swear, the newspapers describing his powers didn't do enough justice!" Rotor praised, still in awe at what happened.
Antoine nodded with great respect, adding, " It seems to be that Oliver takes after his father in more ways than one."
"Wayul, whudja expect?" Bunnie asked with a smile on her face. "This is Charlie's nephew n' Jules' son we're talkin' bout. Hay wuz bound to jump into action sooner or later. Besides, Ollie's still wunna us. He's uh Freedom Fighter at heart."
Antoine and Rotor nodded their heads while saying, "Yeah,"
Just then, the elevator door opened from a few meters away from the three Freedom Fighters.
"And here is where we man the command center." A familiar feminine voice spoke.
The masculine, yet youthful voice complimented, "...Not bad, not bad at all!"
Turning their heads, the members of the militia saw their leader, Sally, appeared in the room with Sonic himself while touring the headquarters.
Both the chipmunk and hedgehog turned in their direction and waved at them.
"Oh, hey guys. I didn't expect you guys to come back here." The princess said.
Sonic saluted them with his right index and middle fingers, saying, "Yo!"
They all got up from their seats and greeted them, with Bunnie being the first.
"Speak of thuh devil! How's it goin', Sally-girl? An' mah, oh mah! Ya even brought ol' Sugar-hog along with you. " The cyborg said, with her hands on her hips and a coy smile.
Sally blushed a little, quickly stating, "It's not like that! ...We were just catching up, is all. Speaking of which, Sonic is starting to remember things again."
Bunnie gasped, then smiled excitingly while holding Antione's hand. She asked, "Really?"
Being the curious walrus that he was, Rotor turned to Sonic with a question.
"What do you remember exactly, Oliver?" Rotor asked politely.
Sonic held up his right hand, saying, "They call me Sonic, thank you. As for what I can remember… Well, my birth name, I've always held on to my date of birth, I grew up in...I guess you guys call it "Old" Mobotropolis now, huh? ...Uncle Chuck jogged my memory a bit about him and the king. I also have vague memories of my early childhood. ...And I kind of recall hangin' out with Sally most of the time."
"Do you remember any of us, Sonic?" Antoine asked, prompting the other Freedom Fighters to look at him for an answer.
Sonic first turned to Bunnie, who stood in between Sally, who was on his right side, and Antonie who stood next to Rotor. Squinting his eyes, Sonic stared at Bunnie's form until an image of a smaller rabbit that wore purple overalls, a white shirt, gloves, and bows at the tip of her ears.
"...You're...Bunnie, right?" Sonic asked.
"Thets whut mah Momma called may, yes," The girl giggled, pulling him into a friendly hug. "Welcome back, Sugar-hog."
Sonic thanked her as the rabbit and the hedgehog go. He then glanced at Antoine for a moment in an inquisitive manner. While placing a finger under his chin, an image of a frightened young coyote wearing a blue smock and a red ascot with red boots flashed in his head.
Snapping his fingers in realization, Sonic said, "Say, you were that kid who used to be afraid of bugs and the dark! Antoine, was it? Yeah! You've done one-eighty since the last time I saw ya!"
Rotor snorted while the other two girls giggled a bit at Antoine's expense. Though, taking the compliment, Antoine slightly bowed while saying, "Eh.. And salut to you as well, Sonic. I see that your "wit" is still as sharp as ever."
Smirking, Sonic's green eyes darted to Rotor, and an image of a smaller walrus wearing green overalls came into mind. "...Yo! You're that dude who used to host that eating contest with your folks years ago! ...You would bring that cool boombox! So I called you Boomer back then."
Rotor rubbed his neck sheepishly, saying, "Ha ha ha! Oh, that's right! I remember that. I always liked that nickname. Though, my name is actually Rotor."
"Ah, I'll keep that in mind, Rotor!" Sonic said with his thumb up from his right hand.
Rotor turned his attention back to Sally and asked, "Not that it's a problem with him being here, but what's Sonic doing at Freedom HQ anyway? It's not like you gave your previous dates a grand tour beforehand."
Rolling her eyes at the walrus' playful jab, Sally explained, "Disregarding that comment, Sonic's here because I wanted him to get familiar with the place. He will be working with us, after all."
Tilting his head, Antonie asked, "Pardon me, princesse. What do you mean by that?"
Sonic and Sally smiled at each other before looking at the rest of the team with Sonic announcing, "It's just what it sounds like. I heard what went down in the coup, and what you guys have been dealin' with up to this point. I figured that you guys could you use a helpin' hand, so I'm stayin' for now."
The other Freedom Fighters' jaws dropped while Rotor inquired, "Y-You don't mean…!"
"Heh heh!" Sonic chuckled while rubbing the bottom of his nose. "That's right! Tails and I want in on this Freedom Fighter group. That is… if y'all are alright with it?"
"Darn right, we're mighty fine with it! Cher wunna us, Sugar!" Bunnie exclaimed excitedly.
Antonie smiled proudly, saying, "It would be ahn honor to serve beside ahn old friend. Ze help iz much needed and appreciated. You and Miles both have my full support."
"Aw, man! This is going to be so awesome!" Rotor cheered, happy at the announcement.
Sally was about to say something when someone else came into the room. Everybody shifted their heads to see General Armand walking over to them.
"General?" Sally asked, confused as to why Antoine's father made his presence known.
"Father?" Antoine spoke. "What are you doing here?"
The general nodded to the princess, acknowledging her as he answered his son's question.
"We've found an outsider near our borders, where the old Freedom HQ used to be located. He has a few minor injuries, mainly a concussion and bruises. Interestingly enough, the outsider appears to be a male echidna."
"An echidna?" Sally echoed, prompting the other Freedom Fighters except Sonic to look at Armand in confusion. "Is this person an ambassador of Aurora? One of our allies?"
"...That's the strange part, Princess. This echidna is much bigger than most, possesses a strange white mark on his chest, and has very strange spike-shaped protrusions on his hands. The bewildering feature was that his fur seemed to be very red, unlike most echidnas nowadays. He's a Rosso Corsa type of red if I were to make an educated guess." The general described.
'Wait a minute! ...That sounds awful like-' Sonic trailed off.
Sonic's thoughts were cut off by Antoine's father confirming the hedgehog's suspicion.
"And another bizarre feature that the echidna has was that he was in possession of a large emerald-colored gem shard with a strange glow to it," Armand explained.
"...Ah shoot, here we go again." Sonic facepalmed, gaining everybody's attention. "...Guys, I think know who the outsider is."
The Freedom Fighters then turned to Sonic and said, "You do?"
Sonic placed his fists on his hips, explaining, "Uh huh, the big lug is an old pal of mine."
Sonic then set his sights on Armand and asked, "Yo, general. Do ya know where your men took my friend?"
Shaking off Sonic's casual tone with the general, Armand motioned Sonic and the others to follow him.
Fifteen Minutes Later, at Queen Alicia Memorial Hospital
Knuckles laid on a hospital bed with bandages covering his forehead, his left arm, and had his right leg hung up in a harness. Waking from his slumber, the guardian muttered to himself in a slur.
"...Urg...where...am I?" Knuckles slurred.
Looking around, on Knuckles' right side was the window, and on his left was an IV machine and a nightstand with a lamp. Moving his head upwards, He peered his head onto a white ceiling, then his head went back into its normal position.
"...How did I get here? ...Wait a minute! The shard! Where's the shard!?"
Knuckles was about to start a panic and rage when the door swung open and a voice spoke to him.
"Yo, Knuckles!"
The echidna was now staring at his former-rival-now-ally, Sonic, who arrived with other mysterious people entering his room.
"...Sonic? Ugh! I should have known I'd run into you… Where am I, how'd I get here, why are you here, and who are these people?" The echidna pressed before he cringed in pain.
Sonic held his hands up while forming an instinctively incongruous grin, saying, "Woah, there! Easy there, Knuckles."
"You're currently in Queen Alicia Memorial Hospital, which is in New Mobotropolis. It is within the Kingdom of Acornia. As for how you got here, General Armand, here, and a few of the Royal Guard found you within our territory about an hour ago. You were in pretty bad shape." Sally explained in a soft manner.
Knuckles turned his attention to Sally, asking, "Is that so? And who might you be, miss?"
"My name is Sally Acorn, princess of Acornia and leader of a resistance group known as the Freedom Fighters." The chipmunk said, gesturing to the others besides Sonic to introduce themselves.
"Ahm Bunnie Rabbot! Thuh roughest an toughest in thuh group!" Bunnie said, flexing her real arm.
The older coyote bowed slightly, saying, "General Armand D'Coolette. The right hand of the king."
"And I ahm Antoine D'Coolette, son of ze Generahl and royal guard of ze crown. I ahm ahlso ze sword of ze Freedom Fighters." Antoine said, mimicking his father's action in a similar fashion.
"Hi, there!" Rotor waved at Knuckles. "I'm Rotor Walrus. I'm the group's engineer and technician."
Knuckles nodded slowly, greeting back, "...A pleasure. My friends call me Knuckles, Knuckles the Echidna."
Said echidna then turned to Sonic, shooting him a light glare, saying, "And you still haven't explained to me why you're here. Start talking, Sonic."
Sonic chuckled at the echidna, retorting, "Heh! Still as blunt as ever, I see. Alright, I'll bite. I was called here by Sally's Dad, King Acorn. Basically, Eggman's been tryin' to steal their magical tech and add it to his dangerous toys of the month. And you know how that song and dance goes."
"That Egghead is always up to no good." Knuckles growled. "That still doesn't tell me why you're still here."
Sally came in, and said, "Sonic has joined the Freedom Fighters in order to help us battle against both his adversary and our own. We anticipate them joining forces."
Knuckles sighed, getting another headache.
"...I guess that explains my circumstances…" He grumbled.
Sonic was about to ask him a question when Tails entered the room.
"Knuckles! Is that you?" The young fox questioned.
The others turned to see the young fox with Knuckles cracking a small smile.
"Tails, long time no see. There's no leaving you behind, is there?"
Tails smiled at him, saying, "Not a chance. It's good to see you too, Knuckles."
"Hey there, lil' buddy!" Sonic waved. "Where did Uncle Chuck take ya?"
Tails smiled brightly again before stating, "I'll go and show you later, Sonic."
Knuckles tilted his head, echoing, "...Uncle...Chuck?"
Sally turned to the young fox and the blue hedgehog to get their attention, asking, "How do you two know this echidna?"
"Knuckles has been a friend of ours for quite a while. We met him a few years ago after I tagged along with Sonic on his adventures."
Knuckles took over the story, saying, "I hail from a small floating landmass in the heavens which is known as Angel Island. There, I live as the last of my clan, the Yaotl clan. They were once mighty people who were given a task to protect a powerful relic bestowed to them by the very Chaos Gods themselves."
"You live on the Floating Island!?" Sally and Rotor asked, utterly amazed at their odds of finding a resident of the lost landmass of Argentia.
Knuckles nodded, explaining, "Yes, I do. ...Why do you ask?"
"For years, scholars have been tearing out their fur and hairs trying to find out more about the legends surrounding a "floating island". Some say that an ancient civilization had one day ascended to the heavens, never to be seen again. ...We assumed that you were of the nation of Aurora." Rotor explained.
Sally added, "Many Mobian researchers have tried their hand of figuring out the location of the floating island. It wasn't until recently that there have been sightings of what was believed to be the floating island."
Tails said, "Recently?"
"Like I've said before during our tour, the whole world was watching your endeavors in stopping the monster from three months ago." The general clarified.
Knuckles nodded slowly, "...That makes sense. The island tends to relocate to avoid any unwanted attention. That's why other people weren't able to find it so easily."
"I guess that makes Tails and I lucky after all, given we found it by chance," Sonic commented. "Long story short, We met ol' Knucklehead over here after tailing Eggman. ...We weren't exactly buddies at the time. Eggman fooled him into thinking that we were the bad guys that were out to mess with his island. By the time we settled the score with each other, Eggman ended up showing Knuckles his true colors. All three of us had to work together and take the doctor down and save Angel Island."
While the others looked at Sonic's situation as if it was a grand adventure, Armand couldn't help but shake his head amusingly.
'...Oh, Jules. Only your son would be accidentally finding himself in bizarre places and impossible situations.' Armand sighed mentally.
"Speaking of relics, how come you're all the way over here, Knuckles?" Tails asked. "Aren't you supposed to be on Angel Island guarding the Master Emerald?"
While the general and the other Freedom Fighters grew perplexed as to what Tails was talking about, Knuckles' face turned grim.
"I would be there right now if I wasn't dealing with an issue." The echidna answered.
"Let me guess… Did Eggman pay a visit to see the Master Emerald again?" Sonic thought out loud.
Knuckles shook his head, saying, "Surprisingly, no. ...It was Metal."
Sonic and Tails froze with a certain chill that ran down their spines.
"You can't be serious!" Tails exclaimed.
"...I wish I wasn't, Tails. But I'm afraid that I am." The echidna confirmed.
"But why him? Why Metal Sonic?" Sonic asked, crossing his arms.
Bunnie asked, "Whut in thuh hay iz a Metal Sonic?"
"To keep it short, Metal Sonic was an old Badnik that Eggman put together as an answer to me and my trademark Sonic speed. I put him down before, but he comes back from time to time to challenge me. But don't take him too lightly. At one point, he pulled a fast one and hijacked his creator's army. Came real close to starting a hostile global takeover using nothing but machines, had it not for my friends and I."
" ...Oh mah stars…" Bunnie gasped.
"That's not all. Metal is not only designed with an advanced AI that possesses high intelligence, but he also has Sonic's life data. So, he is pretty much an evil robot Sonic that can tell between right and wrong but chooses to align with evil. And thanks to that advanced AI and programming, he can further evolve to achieve more powerful forms and copy other people's abilities and skills." Tails added, horrifying the Freedom Fighters.
"Sweet Mobius…" Sally whispered, covering her mouth.
Rotor's face hardened, imagining Sonic's powers and abilities as a machine, and said, "...That Robotnik guy's insane and rotten to the core. To design a machine that is dangerous out of ambition and spite."
"What did this Metal Sonic want with you, Knuckles?" Antoine asked, trying to get the conversation back on track.
"Right," Knuckles nodded. "I was visited by three of Eggman's robots. Because they wanted trouble, I sent them back to the scrap heap. ...And that's where Metal came. He cheap shot me with a laser to stun me and flew off with the Master Emerald. I've spent a good hour chasing after him, trying every attack I had to stop him. But it didn't work. Out of options, I had to smash the Master Emeralds into seven different pieces. And looking back on it, I think he was betting on that."
"What do you mean by that, Knux?" Sonic asked.
"...Metal could have easily taken off in the sky with the Master Emerald for Eggman to get. That's not what he did here, though. He flew at a constant speed for a long period of time that wasn't too fast for me to be out of reach." The red colored echidna deduced.
"Hm… It seems to me like Metal was ordered to toy with you long enough for you to get off of Angel Island. And if I were to make an educated guess, perhaps the Master Emerald being broken was intended too." Tails hypothesized.
"...That don't sound like Eggman at all. He would be thrilled at the chance of stealin' the Master Emerald again. He's already done it a few times." Sonic pondered aloud.
"You three keep mentioning a relic. This "Master Emerald". Is this relic related to the Gems of Miracles?" General Armand questioned.
"Gems of Miracles? You mean the Chaos Emeralds, don't you?" Tails specially asked.
"You're familiar with the Gems of Miracles?" Sally asked, looking at the three. "I thought they were a fable. Although various cultures throughout history speak of kings and other powerful figures possessing at least one of these artifacts, nobody in the modern world has ever documented these gemstones to have actually existed."
"Seriously?" Sonic said, scratching the back of his head. "Ya'll are buggin' out, big time. The Chaos Emeralds are totally real! They are a huge reason why we're still alive and kickin'. The reason why ya'll couldn't find them in the past was either due to us or Eggman havin' them at the time, or because they were hidin' in Special Zones."
Knuckles then added, "And as for their relationship to the Master Emerald, it's quite simple. A single Chaos Emerald is so powerful, it can warp space and time with a single thought. According to what my father told me as a kid, a single Chaos Emerald can rule over and exalt a piece of the world. So when all seven of the Chaos Emeralds are gathered by one user, nigh-infinite power is drawn and bestowed upon the one who utilizes their power. ...So, to counteract this power, the Master Emerald came into existence to bring order upon the powers that be. It can neutralize the powers of the seven Chaos Emeralds as long as the guardian can call upon its higher power."
While the others gawked in awe at such higher powers aside from Team Sonic, Sally bit her lip at what all three of Team Sonic were insinuating. Then she put two and two together and said, "...It may not be a tactic of Dr. Robotnik's, but this has Naugus written all over it."
Everybody turned to Sally, with Sonic asking, "You sure about that, Sal?"
"Positive. If what you guys said about the Master Emeralds and these Chaos Emeralds are true, then it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility that he would want to seek out these artifacts while not having to worry about anything or anybody being able to cancel out their power." Sally deduced.
"Of course! That's why Metal was acting strange!" Knuckles, growling under his breath in anger. "Ugh! I swear when I get my hands on that Egghead, I'll–"
Pullin a sore muscle from his injured limb, Knuckles cringed in pain. Rotor took a step forward towards the echidna.
"Easy there, Knuckles. You're still injured. You've got to rest." The walrus said, easing Knuckles' ire.
"I don't have time! Every minute that is wasted, Angel Island might succumb to dangers! I need to restore the Master Emerald!" Knuckles argued back, stressing his body further.
Step forward, General Armand said, "We are aware of your duty, which I can sympathize with given my role as the king's right hand. However, a warrior that doesn't know how and when to rest is useless to their superior and their mission."
"B-But...the shard! Where is the shard?" Knuckles asked.
"From what the general told me, my father, the king, has taken possession of the shard you held in your arms, safe guarding it. Once you're fully recovered, we can all talk about the situation." Sally explained.
"In other words, sit tight and rest up, buddy!" Sonic ended, sticking his thumb out of his right hand.
Knuckles sighed, relenting at the eyes that stared at him.
The general advised the others to retire for the day to discuss the next plan of action the next day, which the others did. While the Freedom Fighters returned to their respective homes, Sonic stayed at Sir Charles' apartment while Tails decided to rest with his parents in the Prowers' mansion. Knuckles remained in his hospital room after everybody left, plagued at the thought of what kind of threat this "Naugus" posed.
Eggman's Base, Great Forest Mountain Range, Acornia
Two figures watched on the center computer screen a recording. What was being taped of Knuckles flashing in red as he charged at the Master Emerald and shattering it.
One was the Ixis Warlock, Naugus the Dark, and the other was Dr. J. Ivo Robotnik. Both sorcerer and mad scientist's eyes were fixated on the results of their combined plan having formed a new alliance amongst each other.
Originally, Dr. Robotnik was wary of allying with the creepy magical being, given his history of either losing control over said ancient and powerful entities and/or being double-crossed by those he allied with. But there was one thing that Naugus had promised him something he yearned for more than anything else in the world.
...The destruction of Sonic the Hedgehog.
The other two benefits to the alliance were the access of the Power Rings that he had duplicated produced over the time he had been driven away by the Freedom Fighters and the opportunity to experiment with a fellow scientist over in the nation of Aurora. And all he did was the cooperation of the doctor.
And like that, Robotnik agreed.
Naugus, smiling gleefully at the Master Emerald shards scattering across the nation.
"...Good, the Yaotl guardian shattered it as I predicted…" Naugus relished gleefully with a sinister undertone.
The doctor nodded in agreement, stating, "Why of course he would, dear sorcerer. Knuckles have always been the kind of dimwitted dolt to make hasty decisions when pushed into a dire situation. I would have gone and done the thieving myself but I figure with Metal Sonic's enhanced speed, he could have got the Master Emeralds' shards sent farther away, unlike my standard hovercraft. ...However, I do wish you'd tell me why you thought of such a tactic?"
Naugus then explained, "The Master Emerald was created to serve both as a medium and harmonizer for the Chaos Emeralds. When they accumulate negative Chaos Energy, the Yaotl would use the Master Emerald to purify them and ensure that the malefic essence could not be weaponized or threaten the life forms within their floating island. But by shattering and putting the one item in the universe capable of cleansing the Chaos Emeralds out of commission, they are free to absorb as much negativity and evil as they like. For Chaos is neither good or evil, simply the formless entropy that encompasses our reality…"
"That may be so," Eggman admitted. "But given that the Master Emerald's power far exceeds the power of all seven Chaos Emeralds combined, wouldn't it be more sufficient to acquire that gemstone's power rather than going through the hassle of finding all of the Chaos Emeralds?"
"Maybe you are right, but one can't be too lenient. And besides, good doctor…I enjoy the thrill of the hunt…it's intoxicating..."
Eggman nodded, understanding the feeling of feeling alive every time he got one step closer to achieving his ambitions. He would often revel in the feeling at the height of his stronghold in a territory he would occupy and rule.
"...I see. Say no more, sorcerer." Robotnik said with his own evil smirk.
Naugus chuckled under his breath before gazing at Robotnik with his demonic eyes.
"With the Master Emerald in pieces, we must focus our efforts on the Chaos Emeralds. I shall leave the task of locating and retrieving them to you, Robotnik."
"That is not a problem. I recall that you are in the possession of a certain kind of technology I've been searching for. I was wondering if you could be so kind as to supply me with it so I can start working on newer projects so that the fruits of my labor could benefit our alliance? It would be much appreciated." Eggman said, bowing to Naugus with his signature toothy grin.
Naugus grinned back at Robotnik before taking the arm that was folded into his cloak and extending it outwards, showing Robotnik what looked like large gold rings.
Reaching out his right hand, Robotnik felt amazing power emanating from the ring as it glowed a golden hue.
"...Extraordinary! I've never felt anything like this since I first held the Chaos Emeralds! What is this?" Robotnik inquired.
"One of Acornia's greatest weapons, the Power Rings. A perfect unison between the primordial forces that make up our existence. Though the energy within these rings come from the Chaos Emeralds, it's the alloy, the matter the rings are forged from that is important and of value to you, good doctor…"
Eggman cackled in delight stating, "With this, I can not only create newer machines and mechs, but I can improve on older models and units! Hehehehe!"
Eggman turned to Metal Sonic, who was in sleep mode. That's when another terrifyingly ingenious idea came into mind.
"...Say, Naugus? Can this material serve as a...conduit of such to other foreign forms of energy and properties? For example, uh, ...Your Ixis magic?" The mad doctor questioned.
Naugus chuckled once more before taking one of the Power Rings and then started to channel his sinister Ixis magic into it, making the ring become pastel blue with a violet glow to it, making it look as if it was on fire.
"You're quite inquisitive when you need to be, Robotnik." Naugus said as he then telekinetically made the now corrupt Power Ring levitate in the air before clenching his fist and making it melt into a puddle of liquid metal, then lifted it up into a moving sphere of pastel glowing ooze. "The matter that the Power Rings are composed of are the ultimate conduit for all energies within our universe. Magic, life force, Chaos Energy, electricity, digital data, it can all be stored within this primal matter…"
"Oh...Hhehehehehe! Wohohohohohohoh! This is perfect! Absolutely perfect! With this material, your sorcery, and my genius, the possibilities are seemingly limitless! ...That hedgehog and his little friends won't know what hit them!" Robotnik chortled. "...Naugus, I believe this is the start of a beautifully malicious partnership."
"Yes...yes indeed...shall I demonstrate just how powerful your automaton can become through this Ixis empowered metal?" Naugus asked as his grin widened.
Motioning his arms towards the direction of a sleeping Metal Sonic, Dr. Robotnik said, "After you, sorcerer."
Naugus moved the corrupted liquid metal around him in a circular motion before he splashed it onto Metal Sonic, making the Badnik glow with a violet fiery aura.
"Potestas tenebrarum, audi vocem meam. Sume quod quondam fuit omnium origo, et cum hac metalli ac fulminis bestia!"
"...Yes! ….YES! You best be watching yourself, hedgehog! Because your day of reckoning is coming sooner than you expect! OHOHOHOHOHOHO!" The doctor laughed maniacally.
Naugus had stopped chanting and simply crossed his arms, making Metal Sonic's glow disappear and instead the metallic pieces on the Badnik started to change shape and wrap around its body like a cocoon before taking on more complex shapes. Metal Sonic became taller, his build more in line with a human or Overlander, though he still resembled a flat imitation of a Mobian. The liquid metal soon solidified and cooled down as his eyes became visible and gave off a sinister glow of red and green.
To Be Continued...
Author's Note: Once again, I'd like to thank my good friend, UltimateDemonBeast65 for lending a hand once again as the person who writes lines for Naugus the Dark along with King Acorn (who will appear next chapter).
To clarify something, Power Rings are, indeed, a naturally occurring item like in SatAM. However, in this continuity, Uncle Chuck created the artificial Power Rings, which he then created artificially crafted Warp Rings. And those are simply Mobian-made Special Rings that are naturally forming rifts between pocket dimensions and other universes.
Amy, Cream, and Vanilla will definitely be making their appearances in the next chapter (hopefully), as they will be a part of Sonic's team. Shadow and Rouge will be featured in future chapters. You'll just have to keep on the lookout.
Tell me in the comments about how each chapter was portrayed? Did you like it? Was it not your favorite? What did you like about the chapter, the events that took place? What could be improved, what was done well? If you have questions; leave them in the comments or PM me.
As a retcon for the map being used in this story, Argentia was originally Downunda, which Angel Island was a part of at one point. That's where the Yaotl people (Knuckles' clan of this continuity) came from. When things happened (which will be explained later) and time passed, it was renamed Argentia.
One last thing before I go. There are deities that created the Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emeralds. And no, they are not the Ancient Walkers. The Chaos Gods are personifications of light and darkness, good and evil, day and night, and so on. They are the Great Harmony. That harmony created all of existence, including the Emeralds.
The Ancient Walkers are the spirits of those who already possessed the connection towards the positive aspect of the Chaos Force. Those spirits were then chosen to become heralds, being imbued with cosmic and god-like power in exchange of eternal servitude to the Chaos deities to maintain balance in existence. There are spirits who serve different and or special roles, such as Tikal, a Walker who inhabits the Master Emerald as a spiritual guardian and a guide to Knuckles. The method one becomes a Walker is either by studying and mastering Chaos energy or upon death, they ascend into the Chaos Force if deemed worthy.
For anyone wanting to know what the translation of the spell was, it's "Power of darkness, heed my call! Take what was once part of the Source of All and meld with this beast of metal and lightning!"
Anyways, you guys have a great Turkey Day, and have a happy holiday!
-DarkShadowGames451