A/N: Heads up, I haven't seen the Knuckles series. I've studying up on it, but forgive me if I mess up and have Knuckles say something that doesn't line up with the show's canon.
"That's odd. I thought for sure Sonic would've been back by now," Tails said as he, Knuckles, Tom, and Maddie sat around the camp fire.
"Perhaps he has decided to test his limits and see how long it can take him to travel around the Earth," Knuckles suggested.
"You don't think he's hurt, do you?" Maddie asked.
"Nah, I'm sure he's fine," Tom said. "Hey, maybe he's got a girlfriend." This suggestion earned Tom stares from everyone. "What? It could happen."
"Tom, honey. Sonic's, you know, a hedgehog," Maddie said.
"Yeah. And?" Tom asked.
"The women of this world…aren't," she replied as if it was incredibly obvious.
"Come on. It's been little over a year since we met Sonic and in that time, beings like him have been popping up like weeds. Who's to say a female hedgehog hasn't been on Earth all this time that Sonic's been keeping a secret from us…is it right for me to assume he'd only be into hedgehogs? How does dating work on your world?" He asked Knuckles and Tails.
"I have taken an oath of celibacy since the loss of my clan. My family line shall end with me," Knuckles somberly answered.
"That's…really sad," Tom said.
"But, we respect your decision," Maddie added.
"To answer your question though," Tails quickly started to change the uncomfortable subject. "On our world, it isn't out of the ordinary to see other species date one another. Well, Sonic dating a human would be weird, not that we have those where we're from, but other animals besides hedgehogs are fine," Tails explained then at that moment a blue streak sped by into the campsite and blew out the fire.
"Hey, Sonic," Tom said reaching for something in the bag next to him.
"Sorry," Sonic apologized.
"Don't worry. We're prepared this time," Maddie said. Tom pulled a lighter out of his bag and after a few seconds the fire was relit and everyone's mouths hung open at the sight of Amy in Sonic's arms.
"Sonic. Who is that?" Maddie asked.
"Ok, so, I overshot the goal post by a lot and was about to turn around when suddenly an army of robotic duplicates of me showed up out of nowhere, but before I could take them out, the girl I'm currently carrying took them out instead singlehandedly, then went on about how my true home needs me, but fainted before I could get any further answers out of her because I asked if she'd be ok with me carrying her!" Sonic rapidly explained. Everyone's mouths remained open.
"So, she's not your girlfriend?" Tom asked.
"What? No. I just met her. Weren't you listening to what I just said?"
"Ok, you need to calm down, Sonic," Maddie told him. "Why don't you put the mystery hedgehog down, so we can make her comfortable for when she wakes up?" Amy started to stir awake when Maddie said this and Sonic gently set her down in the grass.
"Whoa, what happened?" Amy asked and slowly opened her eyes to a blurry vision of Sonic.
"Amy? Are you ok?" Sonic asked.
"Sonic," she dreamily said then glanced at the others. "A fox," she observed of Tails then looks at Knuckles. "YOU!" She shouted and jumped to her feet, hammer in hand.
"Everyone, behind me!" Knuckles shouted as his body began surging with energy; Amy's doing the same. The pair of them charged one another when Sonic ran in between the two of them with his arms outstretched
"Wait! Hold up! Time out!" He shouted and the two would be combatants skidded to a stop in the dirt. "Amy, there will be no clash of the titans going on here. I'm grateful you saved me from those robots, but I will not have you hurting any of my friends."
"But you don't understand Sonic! He's!…he's…" Amy stopped and took a closer look at Knuckles. "No metal. You're not one of them." Amy realized and lowered her hammer.
"Not one of who?" Sonic asked. "Those robots you took out. That's kind of obvious."
Amy shook her head. "Not the robots. I mean he's not part of the Dark Legion."
Knuckles kept his guard up. "Who is this Dark Legion you speak of and why did you think I was part of it?"
Sonic stood beside Knuckles with his arms crossed. "Yeah, you've got a lot of explaining to do, Amy. So, start explaining." Amy gave Sonic a nod. They all walked back over to the camp fire and sat down.
"Ok. Where would you like for me to begin?" She asked.
"How about the whole thing about my true home needing me?"
"It's kind of a long story now that I think of it."
"We've got nowhere to be right now," Tom said and Amy nodded again. She glanced at the fire and it was if a thousand stories began flashing before her eyes. She shut them and took a moment to collect herself.
"Hey, if you aren't up for explaining things," Maddie started.
"No, No. I'm alright," Amy interrupted and takes another deep breath. "It all started a few years ago on my home planet. Our home planet," she continued and pointed at Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles. "The planet Mobius."
"So that's the name of your home," Tom said, but Maddie shushed him.
"I come from a city known as Mobotropolis and it was just the most beautiful city you'd ever seen. Until the day he came." Amy pulls something out of her pocket and places it on the ground, generating a holographic image.
"What in the name of Freddy Krueger is that!?" Sonic shouted at the image of a fearsome trollish looking creature.
"Whom we need you to save us from. A wizard known as Ixis Naugus. When he invaded Mobotropolis, he had only one decree. Kneel before him or die before him. Our king wasn't about to kneel before the likes of him though and went to war with Naugus. But, all too soon, Mobotropolis' forces fell and we were forced to flee into the woods. In time, we formed a new society kept safely hidden by the wizard Merlin."
Sonic unexpectedly snickered at this. "Hold on, you have a wizard called Merlin on Mobius?"
"Yeah. Why is that funny?" Amy asked.
"It's, um, uh. Never mind. I'll explain later. Please continue," Sonic apologized.
"As I was saying," Amy continued, "we still sought to liberate our old home and rescue those held prisoner, and so when some of us grew older, we formed a resistance under the leadership of the king's daughter. We've had some victories, but no matter what we do, it's never enough." Amy's voice trailed off at this moment and she wiped away at some tears forming in her eyes. Maddie immediately got up from her seat and sat beside Amy, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.
Amy gave Maddie a small smile. "Thank you. I'll be ok, really."
"Of course. Take whatever time you need," Maddie replied, but Knuckles cleared his throat.
"I'd rather not sit out here all night, so please do not stop your tale."
"Knuckles!" Maddie chided with a sharp look.
"No, he's right," Amy agreed.
Sonic raised his hand. "Then can you explain how I factor into this? I know you're a big fan of mine, but in case you aren't aware of the exact extent of my adventures, I've only ever fought two mad scientists, a tragic hedgehog, and, no offense Knuckles, an Echinda with some serious anger issues."
"Offense has not been taken," Knuckles informed him.
"Thank you. Anyway, the point is that this is way above my pay grade. What makes you think I can fix any of this?"
Amy beamed at Sonic at this question. "We don't think. We know." She pressed a button on the holographic imager and it swaps out Naugus' image with that of a mural. Sonic's eyes widen in shock.
"That's me."
"Not just you," Tails jumped in. "You've gone Super," he continued, pointing out Sonic's glorious golden image floating before Naugus who was firing some type of energy blast at him.
"We discovered this mural in some catacombs beneath the city and when we showed it to Merlin, he confirmed it was a glimpse of the future; your future, Sonic." Amy's dreamy smile returned. "Some of us were skeptical, but then Merlin was able to use his powers to show us everything you've done. Everyone you've ever helped."
If this were a movie, I'd be complaining about how familiar this part feels, Sonic thought sparing a quick look at Tails, who seemed very engrossed in Amy's story.
He was almost tempted to ask if they had watched him in the shower, but didn't want to put that image in Amy's head. "So is this Merlin guy how you found me?" He asked instead.
Amy's smile dissipates and her face goes back to storyteller mode. "Yes. It took a lot of doing on his part, but he was able to foresee when and where on this planet you would be for me to find you. There's more to tell, but that's the gist of it. Sonic, you're our only hope. Not to just take back Mobotropolis, but to make sure Naugus can never hurt anyone on Mobius ever again."
Sonic felt his throat go dry and his heart start to race at this declaration. He wiped away some sweat forming on his forehead and stood to his feet. "Oh boy. I just. I need a moment." Without another word, he walked away from the campsite.
Tom got to his feet as well. "I'll go after him." And he was off.
"Don't worry about Sonic," Tails said to Amy. "This is just, you know, a lot to take in at once."
"I understand," Amy said.
Knuckles then cleared his throat again. "Now that you have spoken of Sonic's role to play in this forthcoming battle, perhaps now you can explain this so called Dark Legion."
"We don't know much about them," Amy said. "Just that they're a technologically obsessed group of Echindas that allied themselves with Naugus. That's how I realized you weren't one of them once I saw none of your body was robotic."
"This cannot be," Knuckles said. "My people, all of them were wiped out in the battle with Longclaw. How could there be more of them?" Just like Sonic, Knuckles felt his world suddenly turn upside down, but instead of feeling overwhelmed, he felt something else entirely. Enraged. His eyes narrowed, his fists clenched, and the campsite became illuminated with his energy. "And how could they serve such a monster."
Miles away from where Sonic and his friends were camping out, a robot flew through the darkness. It landed at what appeared to be an abandoned facility and approached the front door, which scanned it.
Welcome, Metal Sonic Prime
The doors opened and Metal Sonic Prime entered the base. It reached the central chamber and stepped inside of its recharge station. Its eyes illuminated and it began broadcasting images of it watching Amy destroying the Metal Sonic Battalion from a distance.
"So, there's another one," Agent Stone said watching the footage; a noticeable edge to his voice. "Well, the more energy I can harvest from these creatures, the merrier." He looks over his shoulder at a bed and walks beside it. "And then you will rise once more, Doctor." Stone gently placed a hand next to Doctor Robotnik's comatose body. A multitude of tubes and other life saving tech connected to it.
To Be Continued...