"Do you think there's something out there that can grant wishes?"

I wanted to open my eyes, but darkness remained. The voice was familiar. I tried to answer her, but I couldn't say a thing. I tried to move, but I couldn't move anything. I was tied to the ground. Yet I saw myself, through my own eyes, watching myself sleep.

"There is," I spoke without meaning to.

I opened my eyes, finally seeing who I was talking to. She sat staring out a ruined building, but what was out there I couldn't see. Static filled the air outside of that place. It was all familiar. Like a memory.

I moved without meaning to.

That girl… She was the one I met in the desert! Why did she look so different here? She wasn't filled with hate. There was just this sense of familiarity. Like she was family or friend.

I don't understand.

"Really?" she turned from the view. She looked happy. "Luna told me there was something that could grant wishes, but I didn't believe him. He's a liar." She pouted, puffing her cheeks up.

I laughed. "He's telling the truth. I saw it before once."

But when I tried to remember, all I could feel was pain. But the person I saw as myself remained happy.

"Where?" she scampered towards me. Her face bright and filled with curiosity. I could see her eyes sparkle.

"My dad had one."

I watched the smile on my face turn into a bittersweet one. I could feel the sadness in my heart become one with me. I knew this feeling. The burning in my chest. It was unbearable. I couldn't breathe. But I saw myself, still sitting on the concrete floor, with a smile.

"It was green."

Stop…

"He made a wish."

Stop.

"What did he wish for?"

Stop!

"I don't remember."

That's not true. I do remember! He wished for-!

But before I could remember, the memory faded away into the dream.

Silver awoke from slumber with a gasp as he lurched forward. Sifting through his fingers was the dream, fading away like sand. His skin tingled with the lingering feeling of an emotion that would not fade and he felt drunk with the taste of that dream on his tongue. A bead of sweat rolled off his head as he breathed in the muggy air of the desert, a hand pressed against his chest as his heart beat against it. Nausea swept over him for a moment; and before long, the dream soon whisked itself away into the endless desert.

But the memory of it stayed with him.

Touched him in a way he could not explain.

Suffocated him with a knowledge that could kill him.

But it was not just knowledge that choked him. It was the sense of being so close to a truth that now haunted him. A forbidden knowledge.

He licked his dry lips, relaxing back into the spot where he had once laid. Eyes traced his surroundings, catching his bearings as his heart slowly settled into a normal rhythm.

A tent was made on the desert floor. Though that was more of a formality than truth. It was hastily thrown together, most likely in the midst of the moment. To Silver's side, Jeckt laid resting close against him. Tucked into the child's chest was the blue Chaos Emerald that Silver had given him during their escape from Babylon Garden. He held it carefully into him, much like a child clutching a blanket or pillow whilst they slept.

The sight made Silver's face twist in sorrow as he quickly looked away from Jeckt. Pity and guilt settling into him.

Babylon Garden, and Babylonia, was burned away. There was no doubt in his mind that the city no longer stood. He had seen that very same image before, countless of times. Perhaps not Babylonia exactly, but every city was the same once the facades had been stripped with fire.

Yet, as he laid here, he could not help but want to return to that place. To search for survivors. To search for Anuahnheim to reunite her with Jeckt. Even if it would have been a fruitless endeavor, Silver could only hope, could only pray, that she had made it out safely.

He flicked his eyes towards Jeckt who still slept peacefully. For a moment, Silver thought to coax the Chaos Emerald from the sleeping boy's arms, but he eventually decided against it. Instead, he pivoted his body away from the boy and slowly crawled to the entrance of the tent. He made sure to carefully exit fearing that the tent would collapse on itself with the sleeping boy inside.

Night had fallen over the dusty plains of Shamar. The heat of the day had subsided, leaving behind the chill of the night. As Silver turned his eyes upwards, he could only frown bitter at the clouded night sky. In their travels to Babylonia, Sonic and Silver had once admired the endless stars that painted across the sky with the forever half-moon that would hang in the night. But as the fires raged on, even now, hours later, the night sky was lit with flames never ending. Red seared up into the night with smoke draping over everything. But even this sight was familiar to Silver, having experienced it time and time again. His body could not help but convulse at the memory turned into reality once more. Paranoia was hard to keep in check as he shakily inhaled. He could not help but be amused at how unaffected he quickly became to the thick smoke. Already so accustomed to it from futures with such ending.

It was always hot, of course.

A few meters away, he spotted the Tornado. A large tarp had been thrown over the plane to hide it from Eggman's or G.U.N's prying eyes. Beside it, Sonic and Tails sat on the desert sand, talking amongst each other. Food had been laid out, but even from this distance Silver already recognized the food that they shared in. 'E-Z-Food' is what he called it sometimes, though they were more formally known as MREs. An unfortunate staple for him in most futures. But he couldn't complain. Food was food.

He glided over the sand towards Tails and Sonic. Carefully he sat himself between the two of them with a bitter smile in greeting, even if there was nothing to smile about.

Sonic returned the smile with a bit more enthusiasm. "Glad you finally made it up." He motioned towards the MRE. "Want some? Not as good as the food we had along the way, but it's better than nothing."

Better than nothing. Funny how often those words were spoken in the future. But Silver wasn't going to complain. He nodded, reaching over to grab one of the wheat crackers laid out and took the bottle of water offered by Tails.

"Thanks," Silver smiled as he chugged down the water.

Tails sighed with a smile, "Glad I packed them into the Tornado. I didn't bring much, but at least this will do for now." His eyes swept over to the tarp covered Tornado, eyes wistfully gliding over the hidden metal. "We should leave soon before Eggman finds us."

Sonic gave a bit of a chuckle, but there was no humor in it. "Yeah, that girl he was with seems to have it out for you." His eyes flicked to Silver as he reached for some apple sauce. "Didn't know you had girl problems too."

Even if it was a joke, the three of them found no humor in it. Silver especially.

"That's not funny," Silver frowned.

Tails scanned his eyes between Sonic and Silver. The tension palpable. "Sonic…" Tails frowned towards his friend.

Sonic gave a shrug as he dug into his meal. "What else do you want me to call it?"

Silver held his gaze onto Sonic, but quickly relaxed as he shook his head. There was no use in arguing over a simple comment. Besides, the other was right in that Silver now was having 'girl problems'. Though, Silver wasn't really sure how he would properly describe the issue either. "I don't know," there was a pause as he looked down at the cracker in his hand. "I don't even know who she is."

But he did know.

At least, there was a part of him that felt like he should know her.

Sonic held his gaze onto Silver. Serious, but not completely so. "You do know her, though." He spoke Silver's thoughts.

Silver kept his gaze on the cracker. Unable to rebut the statement. The wind merely howled. "I guess I do," he managed a whisper. "But…" Silver's voice trailed off. The words became lost as he chewed on his cheek. Memories he felt he should know became an abyss. Endless in that unknown. Yet, he stared deep into it, yearning to know what was meant to be forever unknown. Still, there was nothing. Nothing at all.

Except that dream.

"But…?" Sonic leaned forward towards Silver. Attempting to coax more out of him.

Silver kept his stare on the ground. Watched as the small beads of sand danced across the sea. Slowly, his hold on the cracker became stronger. It cracked under his strength as crumbs fell to the floor, joining with the sand, becoming undiscernible. The abyss loomed over him as it stared back at him, yet it spoke nothing of the dream he had dreamt or the memories of a time that seemed so real yet he could not place.

The emotion he felt when Sol had fall off the flame into the fire felt so real. Why did he chase for her when he had never seen her before? It felt as though he should have saved her. And yet, the thought of saving the one that destroyed an entire city within a night felt insane. He looked down at his own hand, opening and closing it, thinking of all those that he had killed before. Yet the thought of doing so to her wrenched his heart into two.

He pried himself away from those thoughts. He breathed in deep, not realizing he had held his breath for so long.

"I don't know." It was an honest reply. One that Sonic could see. "It feels like I should know more, but I just can't." Silver raised his hand, pressing it against his forehead. "It isn't like something is blocking the memory. It's almost as if the entire memory is gone."

"Gone?" Tails drew back in confusion. "But you remember her name."

Silver drew quiet again. He remembered her name, sure, but it felt like he had just a single piece to a missing puzzle. Honestly, he wasn't even sure how he could begin to explain. His body moved to try to help her when she was tossed off Eggman's machine without even thinking and he uttered her name with clarity as if he had known her for a lifetime. Yet, the hole in his mind never once cleared. Which was all the more frustrating because she seemed to know who he was.

"I guess," Silver managed. The subject was beginning to become uncomfortable to him. Suffocating. "But nothing about it makes any sense…" he turned away from them, finally relaxing his hold on the food as he brought it to his mouth to take a bite.

Tails rubbed his chin, staring at Silver. "Does time travelling inflict selective amnesia? Maybe she came from another future where you knew her."

Silver gave a shrug. "Maybe." He couldn't help but give a pained laugh, "If that was the case, I wish I forgotten a lot more than just a few people though."

Sonic stared at Silver for a time. Watched his companion's expression of sorrow and pain. Though Silver always tried to hide the emotions that he carried upon himself, it was always so easy for anyone to see the truth for what he tried to hide. For a moment, Sonic opened his mouth to speak to offer a gentle word to his friend. But before he was able to, the shuffling of sand drew near towards the small group. The three of them looked towards the tent, watching a bleary Jeckt approach with a yawn, the Chaos Emerald carefully held close to his chest.

"Jeckt," Silver called with a small smile. "How are you feeling?"

Jeckt approached, depression draped over his body. "Bad," was a simple reply. Slowly he lowered himself to sit amongst them, his body heavy. "I want to go home."

Tails sighed, drawing close to Jeckt and giving the other a hug. Jeckt was quick to return it, tears now streaming down his face. "It'll be alright. We'll try to get you someplace safe."

Upon hearing Tails' words, Jeckt drew back from the hug. Eyes were wide, and the sorrow seem to fade away. "No!" though the tears remained, his face took on a new vigor. "If I'm not going home, I want to travel with you all!"

Tails drew back in shock, but Sonic could only give a chuckle. "Kid, you might wanna rethink that. We're not exactly the safest place on Earth right now and I really think Anu would kill us if anything happened to you."

Jeckt frowned, wiping the tears from his face to hide his sorrow beneath a façade. "I deserve to come with you! If there's no way I can go home, then I want to travel with you to get revenge."

There was a thick silence that hung in the air upon hearing the words of vengeance. It echoed across the desert. Dancing across the sand. Something within Silver tensed at Jeckt's words as he felt as though he should stand to defend Sol against his hatred. It was quick to subside, but the feeling remains deep within him.

Sonic opened his mouth to reply, but Silver beat him to it.

"Revenge?" Silver stared at the boy.

Jeckt nodded his head. The word was heavy upon them.

"What do you plan to do when you meet them?"

Jeckt opened his mouth to reply, but the words never came. Instead, he frowned, then sighed, then looked away. Those words were the thoughts of a child, a child who did not understand how the world worked and imagined reality worked as fairy tales. None of them could fault him for it.

"Maybe it might be a good thing if he comes," Tails kept an even tone, attempting to be the mediator. "He can't go home, but he knows more about this world than any of us." Jeckt perked up his head, staring at Tails who replied with a smile. "Maybe we might learn a thing or two from him."

Though the heavy air of vengeance did not subside, there was a glimmer of hope that shimmered across Jeckt's face. The child within him flickered once more and excitement for a new adventure begun to take hold of the youthful spirit. Both Silver and Sonic were thankful that Tails was able to redirect the child's anger into something more positive, but the troublesome belief Jeckt held still remained. Sonic had seen firsthand what grief and anger could drive someone to do and although he did not think that Jeckt would go so far as to kill the Earth this was not something that could be easily ignored. Perhaps that was why Tails wanted Jeckt beside the three of them, to ensure that the boy would not fall into the same destructive ways they had fought against.

"I guess it's settled then," Sonic nodded his head. "So, our next stop is Angel Island?"

"Not quite," Tails redirected his attention towards Sonic. "Between here and Angel Island is Soleanna, it might be a good idea to quickly stop there to refuel and resupply."

"A quick pit-stop then?" Sonic nodded his head. "Doesn't sound like a bad idea. The sights there are pretty nice too."

Silver frowned, "We're not there for sightseeing."

Sonic replied with a shrug, "Yeah, yeah. But maybe we might get some more info on G.U.N. or some more help from the locals. Besides, we still gotta find Knuckles." Sonic looked towards Jeckt. "Is Soleanna a hater?"

Jeckt reached over for some water, taking a small sip before replying. "Soleanna is talking to G.U.N. to resolve some border issues. I think." He furrowed his brows, "I think my mom mentioned something about that, but I didn't really pay attention." The child gave a nonchalant shrug, before looking down towards the ground. "I wish I listened to her more," a heavy sigh left his lips.

Sonic reached over, patting Jeckt on the back. "It'll be alright. She'll be fine and you've already been a big help." Jeckt looked up, giving Sonic an uneasy smile. "Then it's settled. Soleanna, then off to see the Master Emerald and whoever the great guardian is now."

Though their plans for their next adventure were set in motion, Silver sat quiet within the group as he watched the sorrowful merriment. Even though he was hopeful in their crusade against the forces that hunted him down, he could not help but feel a forgotten pain that he felt shouldn't be. Eyes drifted towards the sky, watching the smoke rise into the night with black turn red and the forever half-moon that hung in the sky.

He wondered whether the girl he met was someone whom had once been a friend whom now hunted him for a betrayal he could not remember.

The glass reflected Luna's features as he stared into the other room where Knuckles sat quietly but impatiently. Ice slowly kissed the edges of the glass where thousands of particles formed into infinite different flakes of snow that soon crept over the glass and fogged the observation that Luna held on the echidna. He watched for a moment more, drawing back as the door to the room slid open to turn his attention towards the woman who entered with a rigid salute.

"Commander Ismael," Luna greeted with an even tone.

Ismael's skin was thin and aged, whilst her hair was salt and peppered that fell past her shoulders unkempt. Blue and yellow eyes, a signature of genetic testing, gazed sharply at Luna, piercing into him. Though she dressed with formal attire of that of a Commander, it was hardly kept together as several buttons were loss and hardly tucked within her pants. She gave an uneven scowl as she stepped within the room, the door sliding shut with a hiss.

"Spare me the pleasantries, Luna. We both know it doesn't suite you." Ismael replied with a wave of her hand with an annoyed huff. She walked past Luna to stand in front of the fogged glass to stare at Knuckles. Silently, she begun to light a pipe, pressing it into her mouth and drawing an inhale as another hand rubbed against the glass to clear it of ice. "I commend you for managing to bring this echidna into our grasp, but I have yet to decipher the game that you are continuing to play with me."

Luna kept an even stare, watching her in the reflection of the glass. Though her eyes were settled on Knuckles, he knew she was watching him instead of the echidna kept in the interrogation room dressed as a lounge.

"What do you mean? I only wish to serve G.U.N." Luna kept an even stare, his features carefully hiding away the truth.

"I've received intel that you've been sharing some information with someone." She showed her hand, but Luna was already unsure if she hid more cards within her sleeves. She tapped a finger on the pipe, watching Knuckles. "Care to elaborate?"

"I'm not allowed to talk to my family?" he maintained an even tone, but Ismael managed to see the worry draw over his face.

Thankfully, she chose to ignore it.

"Only when you reveal classified information." She placed the pipe back in her lips as she drew another inhale. "Tell me, how were we able to discover the location of the two Chaos Emeralds in Babylon Gardens only for it the city to be burned away in a single night with no Chaos Emerald in sight?" Her eyes finally flicked over to properly stare at Luna in the glass reflection. "I know you have a sister, Luna. I know everything about you. What I fail to know is your motives."

She turned to face him now, her lips turned into an uneven smile. Yet the rest of her face betrayed that kindness.

"If you tell me, we might be able to come to an agreement." She approached him, her steps calculated, but Luna's face remained unchanged. "A different one from the one we made years ago."

Luna kept an even stare, his eyes kept to the glass behind her. "Fire is fertile for the ground. I'm sure G.U.N. can work out the rebuilding efforts there."

Ismael scowled. "I'm not one to play games, Luna. But you are a valuable asset so I will not draw this discussion out any further."

"I guess you didn't come here to reprimand me. So why did you come?"

"Perceptive as ever," she mused to herself as she took a long draw into her pipe. "Once you finish here, I want you to travel to Soleanna once more. I believe the people there finally wish to give up their Chaos Emerald in order to maintain peace at their border."

"We're backing off?" Luna raised his brow.

"Momentarily, of course." She cracked a smirk, "The Master Emerald deserves our full attention, and though the fires at Babylonia delay our conquest it affords us a moment to provide our gracious supplies to the downtrodden."

"Ah-h-h-h." Luna nodded his head. The pieces were beginning to make sense now. He supposed the gamble of telling Sol so quickly the location of the Chaos Emeralds paid off. "And if they do not give it us?"

Ismael shrugged as she walked past Luna towards the door. It slowly opened, but before she exited, she pivoted her body slightly to look back towards Luna. "Use force if necessary. I'm sure you can make it look good for us." Quickly, she stepped out of the room, and the door slid shut.

Once she had exited, Luna gave a large exhale, finally relaxing his shoulders. The tension still remained in the room, but her oppressive energy afforded him a moment of relaxation, albeit brief. He afforded himself a moment of peace before he steeled himself once more, drawing over his face a new mask as he approached the door into the room that Knuckles lazed in. A perfectly kept smile, open body language, and kindness now marked him as he entered the room.

Knuckles sat up as he watched Luna walk into the room, regarding him carefully but with familiarity. "Took you long enough," Knuckles gave a huff as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Sorry about that," Luna gave a smile as he sat down opposite of Knuckles. He gestured with his hand with feigned annoyance. "My co-worker stopped me on the way here. Wanted to talk about politics or something." He shook his head, taking out a folder from his side and laid it on the table. "Do you need anything? Food? Water?"

Knuckles shook his head, "I just want to know what has happened to my Master Emerald after all this time."

To the point. Luna was grateful that he did not play the same games as Ismael did. He was ever so grateful, as well, that Knuckles had taken the news of his apparent 200-year disappearance well, and the lies that he fed him were soaking well into his brain. If he played his cards right, then he wouldn't have any more use for G.U.N.

But he still had to be careful. Show his hand too early and Ismael would catch on. Too late, and he would have more trouble on his hands.

"Of course," Luna smiled. "I apologize, I just want you to be comfortable." Carefully he picked up the folder, sifting through the papers. "As you were gone for 200 years, your Master Emerald was under the protection of G.U.N. But recently, someone overpowered us, taking over guardianship and abusing the Master Emerald to find her Chaos Emeralds."

"Another guardian?" Knuckles grimaced, his teeth baring as anger flared across his face. "The Master Emerald would never accept another guardian that would abuse its power!"

Luna shook his head, "Not if the abuser is as strong as the Master Emerald."

"Stronger than the Master Emerald?" Knuckles reiterated those words with shock. "That's impossible."

"You know him well," Luna shook his head. Sorrow. "Time changed him, and you're the only other person we know who might be able to stop his tyranny."

Knuckles leaned forward, his hands clenched atop the table, staring into Luna. "Tell me who it is! I'll do anything to make sure the Master Emerald is kept safe, no matter who it is!"

Luna managed to hide the smirk on his lips, but his eyes sparkled with the gleam of deception. Carefully he thumbed a finger into the papers within the folder, searching for the photo. Then, he slid it across the table, and watched how Knuckles gasped with wide eyes taking in the one he had fought against and beside all those years ago.

Enemy once, then an ally.

And now, his new enemy.

"Shadow the Hedgehog."

And Luna could not help but smile as Knuckles stared at the photo, his hands shaking in rage as his teeth grit together with fury, unknown to Luna's expression of deceit.