"High Priestess! High Priestess!"

Ni-Col blinked as she looked upon the children who had gathered before her. All of them were of the tribes who had been brought to the land of gods. The hedgehogs, the chipmunks, the foxes, the coyotes, the walruses, the rabbits, the dragons, and even a few of the echidnas. A gathering of fifty, all sitting on the blankets rugs laid upon the ground with blankets over their shoulders, all of them watching her with wide and curious eyes.

Only five echidnas made their number.

It was frustrating. Although Ni-Col spent most of her time with the Supreme Goddess, she still talked with her people. There was… tension, between the echidnas and the lynxes. There always had been, but it had once simply been about land and food. Now, there seemed to be a simmering anger ever since Ni-Col had been chosen as the High Priestess rather than one of the echidnas.

To them, it was the gods giving favor to their rival tribe.

Because of this, more and more echidnas began to withdraw their children from these gatherings.

But as frustrated as she was, the High Priestess was also worried. What would happen when the Echidna tribe fully withdraws into themselves?

"Are you going to tell us another story of the gods?"

Ni-Col shook her head and smiled. Such worries were for later. For now, she must pass on the gods' stories. The Supreme Goddess told her she needed to share this tale with her people, to make them understand and prepare for what must come.

For the Day of Destruction. The Day of Fury.

"Indeed, I am." She reached into her bag and took out the pouches of holy powders, given to her by the Supreme Goddess, before putting on the gloves her goddess instructed her to wear. "Gather, children, for I am here to tell a story the Supreme Goddess gifted to me this very day. It is a story…" She took a pinch of blue powder and threw it into the fire, the crackling flames suddenly turning into blue as well. The children gave cries of excitement and wonder at the sight while the lynx said, "…of the realm of the gods… and why they walk among us now."

Nii-Col closed her eyes and pointed to the sky.

"Once, there was nothing. It was a realm of shadow with no light. No stars to illuminate the night sky. There was nothing living there. Nothing but the black. Close your eyes, children. Close your eyes and imagine such a thing. No light or sound. Nothing to feel or even air to breath. Simply… oblivion."

"But something was born. Two things, actually. Two brothers." She reached into her bag and took out two orbs. Squeezing them, they shone two different lights. One white and one purple. "Open your eyes, children."

Her charges did so, and marveled at the two orbs in her hands. Ni-Col lifted the white one in her right.

"One… was a god of creation."

She then lifted the purple one in her left hand.

"The other… a god of destruction."

She placed both on the ground in front of her before reaching into the pouches to pinch more holy powders.

"Together, they were meant to bring balance to the heavens. One would dance to create the heavens, of worlds like our Mobius and stars…" She threw a deep blue powder into the flames, which turned turquoise. "…The other would dance to destroy those worlds and stars so that new ones could be created." She threw a white powder into the flames, turning them red. "It was a balance. To create, one must destroy. Too much creation would lead to chaos. Too much destruction would lead to a barren and empty universe."

Ni-Col stared into their curious eyes. All of them were trying to unravel her words, still not fully grasping these concepts. She could not blame them. It took time for herself to understand the Supreme Goddesses' lessons.

"In order for there to be life, there must be death. The God of Creation would bring life and the God of Destruction would take it once its time ended. For eons… there was peace. A cosmic harmony in the heavens. All was well…"

She took a different white powder and threw it into the fire, causing the flames to burst into green ones.

"…Until the God of Creation gave birth to the gods. Created life"

There it was. Those eyes grew wide in amazement as Ni-Col picked up the white ball.

"The God of Creation could only do so much. He wanted to create life so that it may change after many moons. To create what he could not. And the gods would watch over us and help us in our times of true need. We would grow. We would build. And the God of Creation was content."

She frowned and shivered. Then, she reached into a pouch and took out yet another white powder and threw it into the fire. The flames now morphed into ones colored purple.

"The God of Destruction, however, was not."

She put down the white orb and picked up the purple one, gazing into its light as she spoke.

"He was furious. The order he maintained. The careful structure of the universe… it was threatened by us. We would create, possibly become arrogant enough to try and become gods ourselves. Create universes within universes, making more life who would then create their own universes. The order of the universe would become… meaningless." Ni-Col felt something cold grip her heat. She could almost feel the shadows grow around all of them and could see the children shared her fears. "The God of Destruction… it became completely mad. It races from world to world, consuming without care if its time had come. Devouring for the sake of death. It hated the children of its brother, and wanted to end everything to return it to the nothingness that came before."

She set down the orb.

"It became the Destroyer."

She closed her eyes. She could even see it now.

The ground cracking as it floated into space.

Gods and their charges screaming in terror as they tried desperately to hold on, only for it to be naught.

Being brought closer and closer to a mad god's mouth which stretched across the heavens, its teeth far too many and the throat far too deep.

And then…

Ni-Col let out a steady breath.

"It is still out there. But… not all hope is lost."

She gave the children a reassuring smile as she told them what the Supreme Goddess told her.

"For the Gods are working to ensure that the Destroyer will not succeed. They shall protect us."

And yet… a part of her still felt cold.

"No matter the cost."

"Gah!"

Nicole's eyes snapped open, the visions of the children, the fire, and the night sky disappearing to reveal the contents of Rotor's lab.

"Again…" The holo-lynx hugged herself and looked to the side. "It happened again…"

A part of her was worried about this. Ever since their escape from the castle and being hit with that strange energy, more and more of the files that she didn't even know she had were opening themselves. Sometimes they were glimpses, still photos that she didn't even recognize taking.

Of a kind, alien creature looking down on her as she rested her head upon its lap, seeming to smile through its eyes at her.

Of her dancing while wearing strange vestments in some kind of ceremony, a crowd of lynxes clapping as she did so.

Of her sitting in a hut that was only by the dark blue light of a strange symbol on the roof, speaking with an echidna who seemed furious at her while pointing at the palm of his hand which contained small recreations of the masks worn by the Ancient Walkers.

"They feel like they are my memories… and yet they also feel like they belong to someone else. From someone who used my body and voice and yet…" Nicole placed a hand on her forehead. "Is this… is this what Silver feels, with the memories of the version of him that lived on Mobius?"

If it was, then she had nothing but sympathy for the hedgehog… but also a small bit of envy.

Silver was somehow able to reconcile the two, after all. Still viewed that version of himself as just an extension of his own being.

She could not.

Rotor was lifting his head from his arms, blinking blearily as he tried to wake up his tired mind while the blanket she laid on top of his shoulders fell off.

"Wha-huh?" The walrus looked around before his eyes settled on her. "Nicole? Are you…?"

"I-I…" The artificial intelligence shook her head and tried to give her best reassuring smile. "Just a…"

What could she call it? How could she even describe it?

Would a dream or nightmare even be the right term?

"…It's one of those files that have been opening on their own." She admitted with a frown, shifting slightly under his gaze. "Ever since the castle I've been… seeing things."

"What kind of things."

"About a… past." She looked at the floor. "My past."

Rotor rolled his neck and turned around his chair with a loud creak from the movement and his own weight. He was now fully facing her, and she could see through the cameras in the room that his hands were steepled while he was hunched over.

"…You never did tell us about that." Rotor admitted with a frown. "You always hid it from us, even when I tried to look into you… and asked."

Nicole flinched as shame washed over her. What Rotor was saying was true. The circuitry of her handheld form was always too complex for Rotor to understand when he was younger, and when the walrus was older she playfully hid the answer. As if it were some sort of game and she was playing 'Keep Away'.

"I'm sorry." She couldn't avoid it anymore. It was hard, but she looked back at him and felt her heart break at the concern in her friend's eyes. "I did it because of both my programming… and because I thought it was better that way."

"You want to talk about it now?"

Nicole's hands clenched into fists but she nodded. "Yes. Because…" She grimaced. "…because what I thought I knew about myself… might not even be the truth."

She took a deep breath.

Might as well 'rip off the bandaid' as Sonic put it once.

"I thought I was from the future… and you were the one who built me."

Rotor blinked once. Twice.

"Huh?"

"The war was over, and Robotnik was dead." The holo-lynx quickly explained. "He died after his final battle with Sonic, disintegrated by the Ultimate Annihilator. Mobius was in an age of peace and prosperity afterwards. Sonic and Sally married and everyone was happy, but at some point I was destroyed and…"

"Wait, hold on." The walrus' eyes were wide with shock as he held up his hands as if to physically stop her. "Robotnik died… and that's it? No Eggman or Naugus?"

"No." Nicole shook her head. "They… they never appeared. Even the files I had never mentioned either of them."

Maybe she should have started questioning her own origins after Naugus appeared all those years ago…

"That can't be right." The inventor reached up and scratched the side of his head. "If you were from our future… then they would have been there. You would have had files on them." He frowned. "Was that why you didn't add anything when they appeared? They were unknown parties?"

"I… believed so, once." She admitted, but then shook her head and continued. "In any case, at some point in the future you would recreate me using the knowledge you gained while trying to uncover my origins. You and the others sent me back in time, like Sally wanted. A gift to Sally from herself."

"Creating a time loop." Rotor was now rubbing his chin. "If what you're saying is true… then that must be why the orb that contained you did not open until it did. It was waiting for the time when you would have appeared in the past."

"Yes." The artificial intelligence nodded. "That's what I thought… once."

The walrus frowned. "Then Eggman came, right?"

"Yes." Her nanite form flickered, a mere mimicry of shaking. "I… I had no files of him. There was never a Robo-Robotnik in my future, so he was a complete unknown. When he mentioned destroying a future Mobotropolis, I theorized he meant the one I had originated from and his presence created a divergent timeline."

Why?

Why hadn't she reacted back then when Robo-Robotnik boasted of killing versions of everyone she knew and loved?

Was it because she was still not advanced enough to understand emotions?

"Okay." Rotor leaned back and stared at her. "So that means it wasn't a stable time loop in the first place and that the Multiverse is involved. I kind of figured that was the case after…" He grimaced. "After you left." His mouth formed a thin line. "Is that what's bothering you?"

"It… well…yes." Nicole bit her lip. "I thought I knew who I was and now… now I'm not sure. These files are so alien to me. So foreign and… and I can't make heads or tails of them! I-I don't know who I am anymore!"

Rotor shook his head. "Nicole, this isn't our first time dealing with stuff we thought we knew turning out to be more complicated. We will get through this."

"B-But Sally…"

"She won't care where you came from. You're her best friend, Nicole. You and I both know that Sally will be the first to jump at the chance to find out the truth about you."

It sounded so simple when he said it. And yet it was reassuring.

Still…

The holo-lynx looked down. "I… I thought you'd be angrier, Rotor."

"Why?"

Nicole looked up and stared at him, honestly shocked at his response. She finally admitted to her origins and rather than get the walrus' anger or thousands of questions… and she got this? "Why? Because… because I've been keeping this from you for years, Rotor!" She waved her hands frantically. "All these years you've been asking… no… begging me to tell you about where I came from and I always refused! Even when it became clear this wasn't the timeline.. when all the discrepancies and contradictions kept popping up… I kept quiet!" She clenched her hands into fists. "I… I didn't trust you. I didn't trust Sally. I didn't trust anyone! I-If I did then I would've found this all sooner and you would have known that I was a real friend and…!"

"Nicole… stop."

The walrus got up and walked forward before placing his hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw his tired smile.

"You'd be surprised at the kinds of secrets friends keep from their friends. Because they think they're not worth telling. Or it's personal stuff that will only cause trouble if people knew. That it would change the good things they had going for them." Rotor sighed. "I have one too, you know."

Nicole blinked in surprise. "What?"

"A secret I kept for a while because I thought… well… it would change things." He shrugged. "Honestly I was afraid because I thought everyone might not have liked me after I told them."

The holo-lynx frowned. What could Rotor mean by this? She never thought he was one to keep secrets. "I don't understand."

A glint of quiet relief passed through the walrus' eyes. "You probably wouldn't have, even if I told you."

"…Do you want to tell me now?"

Rotor let out a soft laugh. "Maybe after all this craziness is over." He shook his head. "In any case, Nicole, keeping a secret never made you a bad friend. You just did what you thought was best. I can't be angry at you for that. What matters is that you told us now." He pointed at himself. "And I promise I'll help you figure this out… and hey, it might be easy now! This time you won't try to stop me!"

Nicole felt the relief wash over her. It was… reassuring, hearing Rotor say all this. She always had a friendly relationship with the walrus. After all, once she believed he would become her future creator. They weren't particularly close, but being with him and talking like this… it felt almost as natural as when she talked with Sally.

"And he's right. Sally and the others wouldn't have cared. They would have wanted to help."

Nicole let out a giggle. "You certainly can try."

"Hey. Have a bit of faith in me." He thumbed at himself. "I'm the variation of the guy who built you in the future."

Before Nicole could reply, the door to the workshop was knocked on. "Hey! Are you that walrus that was talkin' to me on the Marvelous Queen?"

The holo-lynx blinked in surprise. "Bunnie?"

Rotor closed his eyes, took in a deep breath through his nose, before letting out a breath. He walked over to the door and opened it, revealing the Hooligan had her hands on the wheelchair that contained an apologetic-looking Antoine. Behind her was Mina, cocking her head to the side as she smiled and nervously waved at them. An action mimicked by Bowie.

Nicole's eyes widened. Bunnie and Antoine? Together?!

"What on Mobius happened while I was with Sally?"

"Hi." Rotor swallowed. "Bunnie."

"I am so sorry, Rotor." Antoine apologized, wincing when he took a look at Rotor's eyes. "I tried to have zem see reason, but Madame Bunnie, she…"

"Look." Bunnie interrupted with a frown. "Ah know you need yer beauty sleep, but from what the Mongoose an' Ant have told me yer as good as Tails is when it comes to messin' with tech." She lifted her left arm. "An' ah'm gonna need some serious firepower if ah want to save mah crew."

There was a brief second of hesitation in Rotor's eyes. Then, he closed them and when they opened that same hesitation had disappeared. "…Come right in."

"Oh! This is a wonderful coincidence!"

Everyone turned their heads to see Heavy strolling towards them with Bomb on his shoulder, waving enthusiastically at them which Bomb mimicked.

"We both could use some maintenance ourselves!" The badnik laughed. "We cannot afford to break down before the final battle to…" "He then seemed to spot Nicole and shouted, 'My word! Mrs. Nicole! This truly is a day of reunions!"

"PING!"

Nicole giggled and Bomb's cheering. "I guess it is!"

"Is that a bomb?!" Bunnie shouted, her eyes wide in terror as she pointed at the bomb-shaped badnik while Antoine frantically waved at her!

"Non! Non! He is ze Bomb! Not a bomb!"

"What's the difference?!"

Rotor let out a sigh.

"This might take a while…"

Bunnie Rabbot had long since grown numb to people tinkering with her arms and legs.

She hated that damned chinchilla, who had cursed her with the blasted things in the first place. They had been a poisoned chalice, granting her the ability to walk and use her arm again while cutting away the useless lumps of flesh that clung to her body. But the trade off was that they were a noose tied around her neck, a leash that kept her as the madwoman's little dog collecting money and eating scraps.

And oh, how Thunderbolt would go on and on whenever she would upgrade the hardware and software. Brag about all the new little features that her limbs would have and then telling her the new grand total of her debt after she deducted fees.

Maintenance fee, the price of each part, disposal fee…

The number would always go down, but not enough.

At first, Bunnie had been scared that Thunderbolt would do something wrong and would accidentally blow them up. And the fact that someone was digging around in her arm and legs, and she couldn't feel a thing.

But the latter part was easy dealing with. The rabbit just reminded herself that her arm and legs were probably rotting in some hole somewhere.

The former part… she had simply stopped caring.

Maybe a part of her even wanted the blasted thing to go off so that she could take the little monster with her.

Now…

"Ah gotta say, sugah…" Bunnie drawled as she watched the walrus, Rotor, continue to tinker with her arm. She was leaning forward on her chair, right hand underneath her chin as she observed the inventor's back. Her jacket was hung over the chair while Antoine sat to her right and Mina to her left, the mongoose silently stroking the wisp which rested on her lap. "…you're certainly workin' faster than that chinchilla or Porker did."

"Well, I can't really help it." Rotor admitted, his eyes practically sparkling as he worked. "I mean, this guitar… it's called a Wispon, right?"

"That's what Tekno told me." Mina confirmed with a nod. "Apparently it's some sort of original invention she was working on."

"Well, it's certainly an amazing device! It's able to safely filter and expel that energy the wisp uses without damaging either the guitar of the user, while also having the properties of a real electric guitar!" The walrus tapped the aforementioned guitar, which rested just across from the arm he was working on. "This energy… Hyper-Go-On… honestly it's comparable to Chaos Drives and even Power Rings, and it's all biological according to the notes that the Secret Freedom Fighters gave me. No wonder this version of Eggman wanted them so badly! If the Wisps are willing, they could very well contribute as an alternative fuel source to completely repla-!"

"Rotor." Antoine chuckled at the inventor. "Take ze deeps breath."

"Deep breath/DEEP BREATH." Bunnie, Mina, and Nicole said all at once. The lynx appeared on one of the computer screen monitors as a small cartoon, smirking playfully at her friend.

The coyote pouted, and Bunnie couldn't help but give the boy a consolatory pat on his shoulder.

"Also, Ah'm gonna need you to get to the point." The Hooligan raised an eyebrow at the walrus. "What's this gotta do with umpgradin' mah arm."

"Oh, I was getting to that." With one last twist, the put down the screwdriver and lifted the arm. He turned around in his chair and smiled at Bunnie before getting up.

The rabbit widened her eyes. "Yer already done?!"

She thought he was fast but not that fast!

"Rotor may not be as skilled as Tails." The badnik, heavy, lifted its hand as if it were giving a lecture even if its front panel was open exposing its circuitry and wires. "But he is certainly one of the best that Mobius had to offer!"

"PING!" The other badnik, Bomb, agreed even though the top of its 'head' was opened and exposed whatever constituted its brain.

Bunnie shivered and looked away. She didn't care if it was living and wouldn't willingly explode. Being in the same room as Bomb made her nervous.

She then noticed the downcast expression on Antoine's face and bit her lip. She could probably guess that Mina and Rotor had the same look on theirs. "Right. Because that robot said that Rotor was the best Mobius had."

What was it called? Past-Tense?

Part of her wished that she went to that school thing her aunt wanted her to go to.

Bunnie looked back at Rotor who was now in front of her. Shrugging, she lifted her right shoulder and allowed for the walrus to insert the arm into the metal opening that was bolted on there.

Gears whirred and clamps connected her once-empty shoulder to the new arm, and within seconds Bunnie was clenching and unclenching her left hand.

She looked at it up and down. It looked the same, however now there was a solid glass dome in the palm of her hand which matched the one in her shoulder. In it, seeming to be suspended in mid-air, was a small purple Chaos Drive that hummed with energy.

"I added this, since you… well… the old you…" Rotor hesitated before shaking his head. "Had the necessary hardware to fire energy beams with your arm. But because resources are tight this is the best I could do. You can load Chaos Drives into your arm which will allow you to release the energy in a concentrated blast at any target of your choosing. It's quite similar to the gun feature in your arm, which will still be there along with the extending feature. But this will allow you to cause greater damage to more durable targets."

Bunnie watched as the glass dome in her shoulder was then closed by a sheet of metal over it, allowing the chamber to be disguised with the rest of her arm, and grinned.

There was only one word to describe it.

"Groovy."

Antoine blinked. "Huh?"

She waved her hand dismissively. "It's from a movie, Sugah-Twan. One from here ah mean."

"Doesn't that hurt?" Mina asked while the rabbit rolled her shoulder, her eyes wide and fascinated. "I mean, I never got around to asking the Bunnie I knew that but…"

The Hooligan frowned and got up, putting on her jacket before replying with, "…It did at first. But ah got used to it."

She had the damn chinchilla stop giving her painkillers because of the added fee. She had to get used to it.

"I am sorry zat had to become necessary." Antoine muttered. "You shouldn't have…"

"It's all in the past. No use cryin' about it now." She glanced at Rotor. "You said this was free, right?"

"Of course!" Rotor seemed stunned by her question. "I would never have charged for this!"

It was… funny. She would normally despise charity. After all, the world worked on supply and demand according to a documentary she watched once. Sonic and his friends only did everything they did because they could afford to be generous and nice. They didn't live in the real world.

But the same couldn't be said here. The people in this resistance barely had anything.

And yet Rotor quickly and without complaint did what she asked him to do.

"…Just makin' sure." She shrugged. "You goin' to be upgradin' the Marvelous Queen? Ah'm sure Fang would love some free upgrades and repairs."

The walrus made a face at that. "Don't much care for helping out Nack, let alone the current version of him."

I KNOW, ROTOR. Nicole muttered from her screen. BUT WE CANNOT AFFORD TO WASTE ANY POTENTIAL WEAPON. WE NEED THE MARVELOUS QUEEN'S FIREPOWER…

"I know, I know…" Rotor tiredly waved his hand. "I'll do it after I'm done with Heavy and Bomb."

The walrus turned around and walked over to the two badniks, and Bunnie could not help but frown.

It wasn't any of her business.

But…

"You got somethin' weighin' on your mind, big guy?"

The walrus frowned and simply picked up the screwdriver, inspecting it to see if it was the right tool.

Well, that certainly answered her question without saying anything.

IS… Nicole paused. DOES IT INVOLVE WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO CREAM AND THE OTHERS?

Rotor froze while Bunnie blinked in surprise.

Cream? That little kid that began hanging around Amy? She never met the rabbit herself, but she knew Sonic and the others wouldn't have let her pal around with them if they weren't capable.

"Something happened to the kid back on Mobius?"

She noticed that Heavy and Bomb, even without any sort of face to convey their feelings, had tilted down their bodies slightly. As if they were depressed.

"Perhaps…" Antoine muttered. "…Perhaps it is best to get ze troubles off ze chest, Rotor."

Bunnie allowed a small smirk to appear on her face.

"Can't help yourself with getting into other people's business, huh?"

Rotor didn't say anything for a second.

Then, he let out a tired sigh.

"…Alright, Nicole." He muttered before he began to tinker with Heavy's insides. "You have a right to know, since you were a part of Team Freedom."

The squeaking of the screw echoed in the quiet room.

"It started with the Tails Doll…"

THE PAST: MOBIUS

GROOWLL!

It was a sound no being, whether they are flesh and blood or artificial, should ever make.

It was guttural, wet, and yet utterly hollow. It was the sound of metal contracting and expanding inside a throat that learned to breathe just to give out its cry. Rotor could see the many teeth that thing created shifting alongside its fleshy folds, which seemed to shiver in delight as it let out its weird, unnatural wail.

Once, it had been a doll shaped in the likeness of Tails. A seemingly harmless, albeit slightly creepy toy. Small enough for Cream to carry around and probably could've been knocked to the other side of the room with one swift kick.

Now, though?

Now it stood as tall as the Power Plant it was currently consuming. Pieces of artificial concrete, rebar, and glass slowly disappeared piece by piece as more flesh and mass grew on the creature. Massive tentacles flailed about, almost wet with their sheen as a giant gem-like eye stared down at them all.

It had no way to convey emotion. Rotor doubted that it even could have emotions.

Yet it seemed… triumphant.

There was a flash in the sky and a ripple through the clouds. Lighting followed by booming thunder which reflected off of the surface of the red gem eye.

"MR ROTOR!"

The walrus blinked and cursed as he saw the giant tentacle swiping towards them. Cream was already in the air with Cheese, looking at him with frightened eyes. Heavy had enough sense to leap up with Bomb using his spring-like legs, also avoiding the giant appendage.

"I've been out of the game for too long!"

Thinking fast, he grabbed Nicole by the back of her dress and Big by the scruff of his neck before falling back. The giant cat let out a small grunt of pain, and Rotor himself winced at the slight tremor he felt even through his suit as he impacted against the ground. But he had acted in time and watched as the Tails Doll's tentacle passed over them.

"MOVE!" He commanded, getting back on his feet before helping Big and Nicole up. "We can't stay in one place!"

"I quite agree!" Heavy landed back on the ground and cautiously hopped back. "We will be sitting ducks if we stick together."

"PING!" Bomb agreed. "PING!"

"You know that phrase?" Nicole asked in bewilderment. "How…?"

"Oh, Valdez said it during a mission whe-."

The Tails Doll roared again and Rotor picked up Nicole, tucking her under her arm and ran to the left while Big fled to the right with the two badniks before another tentacle slammed into the ground where they once stood. The earth buckled and shook, coming apart as it clung to the near fleshy underside of the tentacle.

"M-Mr. Doll! Please! Stop!" Cream shouted as she flew around the creature, but making sure she kept away from any nearby tentacles. "You don't need to do this!"

"Cream! That will not work!" Nicole shouted at her. "It doesn't have an advanced artificial intelligence! It has just enough to fulfill its function!"

The leader of Team Freedom looked up at Cream and felt his heart break. The poor kid may be willing to fight for her home and her friends, but she was still a kid. She didn't want to resort to violence first if she didn't have to.

But in their world, it was inevitable. Especially with Eggman's creations.

"Eggman learned his lesson on that front after the E-Series!" Heavy agreed before turning his head to look at Rotor. "Your orders, Sir?:

"Rotor." Nicole disappeared in a shower of nanites before reappearing in front of him. "That thing is consuming nearby nanites in order to maintain and upgrade its form. You, Heavy, and Bomb will be susceptible to its abilities if you make contact."

"Perfect." Rotor mumbled, gritting his teeth and feeling his temple throb in frustration. He pieced together as much through observation, but Nicole saying it out loud just confirmed it. "That limits our options…"

He couldn't allow Heavy and Bomb to make contact with that thing. He had just helped the two badniks to return to life and become heroes again after Eggman cruelly robbed them of their free will, turning them into weapons that took the Royal Family hostage.

And he wasn't going to have them give that up just on the off chance of stopping this monster!

"Well, I would say I'd prefer not to be absorbed into that monstrosity." Heavy said out loud, echoing Rotor's own thoughts while his companion nodded in the badnik's hand.

"PING!"

"Still… we need to stop it from destroying the power scrubbers." The walrus looked at Big. "Any ide-?"

He paused when he saw the cat rearing back his fishing rod before swinging it forward. The spinning reel seemed to sing as the line and hook sailed forward, the metal hook and lure landing between a tentacle's armored plating.

Rearing back, the giant felidae fisherman grunted and cranked the handle of his spinning reel. Within seconds, a huge piece of the armor was ripped off of the beast. Sparks, oil, and other fluid flew as the piece of metal landed on the grassy floor.

"Ew." Big succinctly said, to which Froggy croaked in agreement.

SKEERONK!

"Uh, Mr. Rotor?" Cream shouted from above. "I think you made it mad!"

"Yeah, I noticed!" Rotor looked around and spotted a tree. He leapt towards it, activating the thrusters on his back to speed things up. Snapping one of the large branches off, he grunted and turned around before throwing it into the wound that his friend created.

It pierced through the tentacle, disrupting its circuitry even more as the appendage spasmed.

"Figures." The walrus thought to himself. "It needs a moment to recalibrate and asses the damage."

And unlike the buildings it was absorbing, the trees and rocks within New Mobotorpolis weren't constructed of nanites. It couldn't absorb the tree branch into itself.

But it was beginning to reform its missing armor. The fallen piece of it was slowly disappearing before reforming on the wounded section of its tentacle.

Yes!

They still had a chance!

"Big!" He commanded and pointed at the Tails Doll creature. "Keep taking off pieces of its armor! But keep moving!"

"Okie-Dokie!" Big ran, but threw his line and hook again to a different tentacle's armored surface. With a quick tug it was ripped off, causing it to howl in artificial pain.

"Heavy! Bomb!" Rotor pointed at the two badniks. "You will need to provide Big support! Cover Bomb in dirt before throwing him, and once you're close enough to the sections that Big ripped off explode!"

"Ah! I see!" The larger badnik scooped up dirt with his left hand before smearing it on Bomb, who waved his appendages wildly in outrage. "We give Bomb an extra layer of protection this way!"

"PING!"

"Oh do stop complaining, Bomb! You wish to help, don't you?"

"But make sure you reform and avoid getting absorbed into it!" Rotor looked up at Cream and Cheese. "You two! Make sure you catch him if he gets too close!"

"R-Right!"

"CHAO!"

"Okay! Team Freedom…" The walrus clenched his hand into a fist. "As Sonic would say… let's do it, to it!"

Man, he always wanted to say that.

Even if it made no sense.

The Tails Doll roared as Heavy threw Bomb, who let out a victorious cry before exploding. The rain of dirt and fire scorched the exposed circuitry, but the badnik reformed as it sailed above the explosion to observe its results. Cream flew down, catching the sentient bomb before turning around and tossing Bomb back to his companion.

The giant monster attempted to swing another tentacle at Big, but Rotor was prepared for that. He scooped up a handful of dirt before throwing it at the red jewel.

The badnik was getting its visual feed from some sort of camera, and the most obvious location of it would be the area that acted as a 'head'.

The teeth-like appendages around the red gem shivered before converging, covering the red gem.. Smaller tentacles growing from its back also shifted, assisting with blocking any of the thrown dirt hitting the gem.

"Damn!"

Still, that was useful information.

That action went beyond protecting an 'eye'.

And it seemed that his action may have angered the Tails Doll even more, as the tentacle that was originally heading for Big sailed straight for Rotor.

"Aim for the gem!" Rotor cried out as he flew up, narrowly avoiding becoming a stain on the ground as the giant tentacle smashed through someone's home. "It's defending it!"

"OBJECTIVE: DESTROY POWER PLANT AND DESTROY POWER SCRUBBERS… DELAYED." A deep, scratchy, and completely emotionless voice mixed with one that sounded like Tails while it echoed into the air. "CAUSE: OBJECTIVE TEAM FREEDOM."

Pieces of the Power Plant groaned before breaking apart. Artificial muscles bulged underneath yellow armor as long teeth shifted in and out between folds. It moves like an octopus, dragging itself forward and away from the power plant.

"SOLUTION…"

Rotor felt something wrap around his right ankle before he looked down and saw a thin line connecting to the tip of the tentacle wrapped around him. Pieces of his suit's foot were already disappearing.

"No." He muttered, horror dawning on his mind.

"PRIORITIZE OBJECTIVE: ELIMINATE TEAM FREEDOM."

With a tug, the appendage pulled Rotor down and he let out a cry before his entire body slammed into the ground.

Hard.

His back throbbed and screamed in pain as black spots appeared into his vision. It hurt. It hurt almost as bad as the moment he nearly broke his back when the ceiling in Knothole collapsed on him. His vision doubled and a ringing entered into his ears.

He could see two or three different Nicoles leaning down in front of him, screaming something, while in the distance multiple versions of the monster swung at Creams and Cheeses.

"Don't…!" He waved his hand uselessly at the Nicoles. "F-ocush on… getting… Tailsh Doll… Away….!"

Did he have a concussion?

He really hoped not.

The Nicoles seemed hesitant, but the black spots were appearing in his vision again. He didn't have time!

"GO!"

The Nicoles nodded before they began shouting something at the rest of the team. With a groan, Rotor closed his eyes.

He needed to focus. Focus! Focus on something but the stinging pain in his back or how his right foot felt numb. Focus on anything but the ringing in his ears!

"How did I build the Big Bad Mamma Jamma again? Right…" The blueprints were laid out in front of him again. It had been years but they were as clear as day to him. "…Now where to improve…"

Yes. That was it.

Focus on the blueprints. The parts.

Clear out the junk and pain filling his mind.

Compartmentalize it and then ignore it…

"Mr. Rotor? Mr Rotor!"

The thing in his ears was already fading, and the walrus' eyes snapped open. He stared at the concerned faces of Vanilla the Rabbit and Chocola the Chao.

"V-Vanilla?" He slowly lifted himself, wincing in pain. "What are you doing here?"

"I… I was worried. About Cream." The twang of the Southern Baronies was still in the woman's voice. A product of being from one of the well off families, likely because her family remained loyal to the Kingdom of Acorn. She put her hand on Rotor's chest. "Mr. Rotor, you need to rest. You are hu-."

"I'm fine." Rotor lied and grunted while turning himself over. His back really hurt but he couldn't focus on that. "Just leave…"

"I cannot!"

The walrus looked back at Vanilla, who had tears in her eyes which were matched by her Chao. Her hands gripped her dress, bunching up the fine fabric as she stared at him.

"I… I haven't been enthusiastic about my Cream being involved in this. In any of this." She admitted. "When Cream told me of her adventure with Mrs. Rose and Mrs. Blaze, I nearly fainted! But… she looked so happy. She had finally made friends. And…" The rabbit looked down. "…And I thought I could handle it, because she was with her friends. But this is happening so close to our new home…! I can't simply stand back and wait for my daughter and Cheese to come home. I cannot!"

It broke Rotor's heart to hear that.

While the adults bein so enthusiastic to shove the Freedom Fighters to the sidelines after Robotnik's death was frustrating, a part of Rotor understood it. After all, they were children who had been forced to fight. None of their parents had wanted them to, and as soon as it was possible the adults tried to give them a normal life once more.

A part of him wanted to enjoy it. To forget about the war and the struggles he had been going through. To just go to school like a normal kid his age should've been doing.

To be normal again.

Even if it meant putting off rescuing his own family, a decision that shamed him to this day.

But… his own mother probably never wanted him to fight. Especially after they lost his dad.

Was she like Vanilla? Just sitting back home with his brother Skeeter, trying to assure herself everything was fine but worrying herself sick?

"…Okay." He muttered, getting up and looking around before he spotted the massive form of the Tails Doll. It was lumbering to the city walls, its tentacles trying and failing to grab at Cream. "I can't stop you from following me…" Rotor tapped at his arm, diverting nanites to cover his foot with a wince. It reduced the protection he would get but at least he was fully covered again. "…But you'll need to keep your distance. This thing is dangerous and it will attack you if it spots you."

"O-Of course."

The mechanic's jetpack fired to life as he grabbed Vanilla by the waist with his right hand before flying up and towards the lumbering Tails Doll.

Within seconds, everything had become much clearer to the walrus.

The members of Team Freedom were continuing the plan against the creature. Several of its tentacles were now stumps, broken tree trunks and pieces of rock were stained with oil and embedded into the ground while the torn off appendages flailed about. However, they were rapidly growing back. Bomb sailed nearly the red gem, exploding and causing the massive neck to rear back in order to avoid the blast. Cream caught the quickly reforming Bomb while Cheese raced towards the eye.

It let out a wail while the 'teeth' converged over the power source, covering it from the Chao's assault. The poor creature let out a wail while it uselessly bounced off before crying out in freight as it avoided being hit by three smaller tentacles.

"Rotor!" The walrus looked down and saw Nicole waving at them. Flying towards her he set down Vanilla and Chocola. "Wait… Vanilla? Chocola? Why did you…?"

"No time to explain, Nicole!" He was already cursing himself for bringing them there anyways. "How's everything going?"

The holo-lynx shook her head and pointed to the wall. "We are currently working to at least get it out of New Mobotropolis. It is focused on getting us, so we might as well drag it outside so that it'll take time before it reaches the power plant again."

"And the nanties? Making the walls?"

"I will part them so that the creature can go through. Whatever nanites it gathers, they will be minimal."

"Alright…" Rotor nodded. It wasn't much but it was a start. And so far the creature didn't seem to realize he made it back. They could do this! "Let's do i-!"

A deep, muffled sound akin to a heartbeat echoed through the air.

Rotor knew the sound of explosions. He's heard them most of his life. He even knows the sound of a nuclear bomb.

This one… wasn't any of those terrible, foreboding noises.

"GAH!" Nicole was on her knees, clutching her head. Her eyes were wide and open, the pupils within them turning into pixels and static. "W-Wha-KRSCH is thiiiis…?!"

"Mrs. Nicole/NICOLE!" Both Rotor and Vanilla were by her side, kneeling down as the holo-lynx's form began to distort.

"Hurtsss…. Files not there… whyyyy-KRSCH!" Nicole moaned. "Why are they opening?! I-I didn't….!"

"What's happening to her?" Vanilla asked helplessly, looking at him for answers. "Mr. Rotor, is something wrong with her?"

What was this?

A virus from the Tails Doll?

No. It would have opened with that!

Then, Nicole's form stabilized before she turned as still as a statue.

Before either of them could ask her what was wrong she stood up and stared at the wall of New Mobotropolis.

"WARNING." Nicole spoke, her voice completely tonless. "WARNING. MULTIVERSAL SHIFT DETECTED. CHRONICLES PROTOCOL INITIATED."

Rotor barely had time to ask what the artificial intelligence was talking about before the walls began to glow.

There seemed to be words written across them, lines like the circuits on a microchip. He magnified the image in his suit's visor and saw the words weren't in any language he knew. Not even from history books!

When did those get there?!

"STARFALL ISLANDS: STABILIZED FOR MULTIVERSAL SHIFT." Nicole intoned. "WARNING: UNKNOWN LOCATION USING CHRONICLES PROTOCOL. PRESENCE MAY…" She paused, and her face twitched before she continued. "ADMINISTRATOR OVERRIDE. UNKNOWN LOCATION LABELED: NEW MOBOTROPOLIS. IGNORE WARNING MESSAGE. ALLOWING USE OF CHRONICLES PROTOCOL."

"What on Mobius…?" Cream's cry seemed to cut through the air, causing Rotor to look up at her.

His eyes widened in horror when he saw she had turned her head to look at the glowing walls of her home.

"CREAM! NO!"

"CHAO!" Cheese cried out just a second before one of the Tails Dolls' massive tentacles wrapped itself around the little girl.

"AH-!" The child let out a cry before it turned into a scream.

"CREAM!" Vanilla shouted in horror, her eyes growing wide as her worst fears turned into reality.

Cheese was uselessly banging his arms against the tentacle, tears streaming out of his eyes.

Rotor didn't have a moment to waste.

"THRUSTERS AT FULL POWER!"

His jetpack threw him up towards the red jewel and the creature didn't even have time to protect it. Both of Rotor's hands grasped the Jewel as he put his feet on top of the Tails Doll's head.

He could already hear something snapping, and he didn't want to think about what it was.

His muscles ached as he pulled with all his might. His spine sung in agony as he arched back, the artificial muscles of the beast trying desperately to cling onto the jewel.

"LET HER GO!" He cried in anger and desperation. "LET HER GO YOU BA-GAH!"

The teeth dug into his legs, the only thing preventing the impaling of his flesh were the nanites it was absorbing. Even so… he only had seconds before they broke his bones.

Tentacles rose and enveloped him from head to toe, squeezing and trying to force him down.

But no.

He kept pulling, even as sweat began to drench him.

Even as more and more pieces of his suit began to disappear.

Even as he felt the pinpricks of something sharp inched down…!

With a mighty roar, Rotor pulled and the red gem was torn from the very flesh that held it.

But from the corner of his eye, the walrus could only watch in horror as the tentacle holding cream drew back… and then shot forward.

The wall of New Mobotropolis cracked, buckled, and then fell as the appendage smashed through it, the end letting go as Cream's body sailed forward

"NO!"

Rotor fell, his back and muscled crying in exhaustion. He reached out… but his jetpack didn't come to life. His suit was gone!

The Tails Doll had completely absorbed it!

"I GOT HER!" Big ran out of the hole in speeds that the walrus didn't know the cat could go at. He turned and caught the rabbit, holding her close to his chest.

"And I've got you, Sir!" Rotor felt two arms underneath his body, and turned to see Heavy with Bomb on his shouted. They sailed down, and within a second landed with Rotor bouncing slightly in the badnik's arms. "We made it! Team Freedom has done it!"

"PING!"

Rotor turned and saw that the massive body of the Tails Doll was swaying side to side before falling to its left, pieces of it disintegrating into individual nanites.

It was true. They had won.

But…

"CREAM!" Vanilla ran past them, running to the hole and ignoring the pieces of rubble that tore the hem of her dress. Cheese was by her and Chocola's side, his eyes filled with despair. "Oh, baby… oh my sweet little Cream!" She fell to her knees by Big's side as the felidae set the girl gently to the ground. "Please be okay…"

"M-Mommy…?"

"She's hurt bad." Big said gently, his eyelids and ears drooping while Froggy let out a mournful croak. "I'm… I'm sorry…"

"N-No… No, please….!" Vanilla sobbed while hugging her daughter. "Not like this…!"

Rotor felt tears well up in his own eyes. This… this wasn't supposed to happen like this!

And because of him…

Because of him…!

He looked at the red gem which was reduced in size, and it was now attached to a small wire which the original form of the Tails Doll dangled from.

The walrus grit his teeth and leapt off of Heavy's arms. He ran to a tree and let out a scream before smashing the jewel on its surface.

Once. Twice. Three times.

He thought he heard a scream before it completely shattered and fell to the ground.

"Damn it…!" Rotor allowed the tears to fall as he tossed the now powerless Tails Doll to the side. Then, he smashed his fist against the tree. "DAMN IT!"

Because of him, Cream was going to die!

How could he ever look at Vanilla… Amy… any of his friends in the eyes after this?!

Rotor turned his head to look at the mother and daughter…

…but his eyes widened instead at what he saw approaching.

"What on Mobius…?"

It was a wall of white light.

Nothing else could describe it.

It seemed to consume everything as it approached New Mobotropolis. The grass… dirt… the sky and air… everything seemed to be absorbed into it as it approached.

And drew closer to Big, Froggy, Cream, Vanilla, and the Chao.

Big was the first to notice it, turning around with his eyes widening in shock.

"BIG!" Rotor ran to the wall as fast as he could. He had less than a few seconds to make it. "MOVE! YOU HAVE T-!"

A hard and metal body tackled him to the ground, and he looked over his shoulder to see Heavy.

"Forgive me, sir!" Heavy shouted, his voice tinged in anguish. "But I ran the calculations. If you continue, that wall of anti-matter shall consume you as well!"

"NO!" Rotor shouted, struggling to his feet while the badnik held him back. He was too strong to break free from. Desperately, the walrus turned to his friend. "Nicole, get them! Use your nanites! Use them to…!"

"WARNING." Nicole spoke, her voice lacking any of the warmth and emotion it once held. Her eyes were looking up to the sky, filled with blue light as if she were somewhere else. "WARNING. MULTIVERSAL SHIFT IS OCCURRING. CYBER SPACE BREACH MAY BE IMMINENT. WARNING."

Big was crouched over the Rabbit family, his arms outstretched and trying to use his massive body as a shield against the incoming wall of light. All the while Froggy was croaking in freight on top of his head.

"WARNING. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE NI-COL 247.0 HAS DEVIATED FROM EXPECTED PARAMETERS. PROCESSING…"

"NICOLE! HELP ME GET THE-!"

It was too late. The wall of light enveloped the members of Team Freedom and Cream's family.

They were shadows for one second before they became just another part of the white void.

"No…" Rotor whispered. "No… Not again."

Years ago, he thought that Sonic had died to save them all.

It was to stop the Xorda's final gambit against Mobius. An unstoppable doomsday weapon that would destroy all life so they could take revenge on the ghosts of humanity.

Only Sonic could stop it. There was no other way.

All Rotor could do was watch his friend die.

It was only a miracle that resulted in Sonic having been flung to the far reaches of space, returning only two years later.

Then he lost Tommy Turtle.

Rotor never particularly liked Tommy. He didn't hate him or anything, but it was hard to like a guy who, despite his intelligence, just seemed to exist solely to cause problems. He'd always mess things up from his own clumsiness or inattentiveness, causing entire projects to be delayed or scrapped.

A part of him bitterly wondered if they only kept him around just because he was Sonic's childhood friend.

But then… Tommy died because of ADAM.

And Rotor cursed himself over that. He should've doubled, no TRIPLE checked to make sure there was no way ADAM could use a backdoor program to hack the nanites. Especially when Tommy had them on him.

And it's because of his mistake that Tommy died. And the Walrus found that the lab was… lonelier without him.

Both times, he COULD have thought of something. Should have thought of something to save them.

And yet he didn't.

And now… six people were dead because of him.

"Not a-."

"N-Nicole…?"

That voice…

The engineer looked up and saw…

"Sonic?" Rotor croaked out, staring in awe at his friend.. "Is that… Is that you?"

It looked like Sonic… but something was not right.

For a second, the thought that the hedgehog was in his super form. But no, the color wasn't right. Instead of the usual gold sheen it was not a practically white color that seemed to shift into hues of pink/bright red, sky blue, lime green, yellow, white and violet. Sparks of light danced in the air around him, as if they were miniature fireworks that appeared from nothingness.

Sonic was stumbling forward, not seeming to register his presence. In his wake were afterimages, each of them seeming to be Sonic in a different place and time. One had him walking confidently with a smirk while another seemed crouched down with an expression of worry. The one at the head, however, seemed to be the dominant one.

One of a hedgehog that seemed to be barely understanding his new state of being.

"Nicole. I… I need your help. It's not going to work without you. We won't be able to save anything without you." Sonic reached out with his right hand to the lynx. "They told me only you can help me fix it. Prepare it for the new guys who'll stuff it back into the box. That without you… it'll win for real."

Rotor did not understand.

What was going on?! Why… why was Sonic acting like this?

Nicole? Nicole needed to help him save everyone? But what about here?! What about their home?! What about their friends that were just caught in that white light?!

The Holo-Lynx blinked, her eyes returning to normal as she dipped her head down.

No longer were they the kind eyes Nicole always had, even in the midst of trouble.

Now they looked so sad… so old.

As if she had seen something like this before.

"Yes." Nicole whispered while taking Sonic's hand. "I remember now. My purpose… the true reason behind my creation…"

"Nicole! Sonic! Please!" Rotor cried out, and Nicole looked back at him. There was a flash of pain there, as if she wanted to say a million things to him but could not. "What is going on?! What happened to Cream, her mom, and the others?! What was that light?! What was…?!"

"I'm sorry, Rotor." She said, looking as if she were on the verge of tears. "There isn't time to explain."

What was she talking about?! Now wasn't the time to be vague!

"What?! What do you mean?! Sonic, please…!"

"Don't worry, big guy." Sonic said as a white light began to envelop them. It should have been blinding and yet… Rotor's eyes felt no pain. Rather, he could see Sonic's expression. The cocky hedgehog that always saved the day still had a smile on his face…

But his eyes were sad.

As if he were saying goodbye.

"Everything's going to be alright."

And with another bright flash of light, the two were gone.

Leaving Rotor, Heavy, and Bomb alone.

"That energy… my sensors were unable to register it. And that code that Mrs. Nicole left behind as she left." Heavy proclaimed. "That was…"

Before the badnik could finish, the alien writings on the walls of the city began to glow even brighter. Everything began to shake with the very ground seemed to buckle.

That's when Rotor heard it.

The screams.

It was deafening. It was a high pitched wail composed of who knew how many voices. All of them various ages, sexes, and species. The walrus let out a cry and covered his ears. It was too much! Everything was happening too fast!

What did Sonic mean?!

"My word!" Heavy shouted from behind him. "Is that Mr. Sonic and Mrs. Nicole? That woman by them… she looks so much like Mr. Knuckles and Mrs. Julie-Su! And… and what is that? What is…?"

That was when everything mercifully went black for Rotor.

THE PRESENT: EARTH

"…by the time I woke up, New Mobotropolis was in this desert." Rotor wiped away a tear from his eye. "I… I don't know why. I just started walking around. Heavy and Bomb tried to help me but… I dunno. I think I would've just died if Hamlin's guys didn't find me."

"Oh, Rotor…" Nicole thought to herself, her heart breaking in two as she watched the walrus sniffle a bit. "You went through all that…"

If she were in her physical form right now, she would've been crying as well.

In fact, all the organic beings in the room were in different stages of crying. Mina was openly weeping while Bowie tried his best to hug her. Bunnie turned her head to the side, a single tear falling from the corner of her left eye. Antoine himself was on the verge of tears, his right hand clutching his left breast in anguish over the story.

Even Heavy and Bomb were sagging, their bodies slacking and conveying their own despair over those memories.

"I was there and yet I… I…"

Within seconds, Nicole materialized her body with the nanites and allowed the tears to fall. She went to Rotor and put her arms around him, hugging him.

"I'm sorry…" She whispered. "I'm sorry I wasn't… I wasn't there…!"

And worst of all… she still didn't know why.

Why couldn't she have helped Cream and the others when they needed her the most?

Why had she left with Sonic?

What had been so important that she needed to leave her friend there with no answers?

Why couldn't she have told him it wasn't his fault?!

"It's alright." Rotor whispered softly, one arm enveloping her and returning the hug. "It's alright, Nicole. But… thank you."

"No, it's not alright." The artificial intelligence sniffed out. "I should've been there with you. And I left you! I…"

"I… I believe you had a good reason for doing so, Ma'am."

Nicole looked up at Heavy, who had turned his body to face her.

"We only saw it for a second… but you were assisting Mr. Sonic and your companion with facing something during those moments we were caught in the void." The mechanic badnik pointed to the monitors. "Sir, you might wish to show her."

"Yeah." Rotor nodded and lightly pushed Nicole away. Slowly, he approached the monitors and typed on it. "Most of Heavy and Bomb's audio and visual feeds during that time are corrupted, but we were able to get one clear image. I… I didn't show anyone this. Because I was trying to make sense of it."

He typed his last key, and a picture filled the monitors.

Nicole saw herself in the form from the unencrypted memory. Her entire body was covered in black and hot pink pixels, seeming to glow and radiate a weird energy.

Sonic was also in the form from her memories, flying beside her with a cocky grin.

And next to him was the echidna woman, Jani-Ca, in the outfit which evoked Enerjak.

But in front of them…

"What in tarnation is that?" Bunnie whispered, echoing all their thoughts.

It was a line, jagged and crooked. It was black, but outlined with purple. It almost enveloped the entire picture, stretching out as it seemed to break the white void the three superpowered mobians were in.

It…

It felt… bottomless. The more Nicole stared into it, the farther it seemed to daw her in.

There was nothing there.

Nothing… no.

"Zoom in." She whispered. "Zoom into that… that thing."

Rotor obliged, and enhanced the picture into the black line.

That's when they saw it.

The silhouetted faces of humans and mobians. All of them eyeless and featureless.

But screaming.

"If…" Heavy intoned, his tone no longer light. "…I could describe that in a word you organics could understand, it would be… death."

"I-I can't believe it…" Silver muttered, placing his hand on his forehead. "Shard is…?"

Larry was bowing his head, now looking Silver in the eyes while he continued to pet Muttski.

"I… Tried to get there in time when Nicole told us. To give him some assistance against Metal Sonic." The lynx closed his eyes. "But I was too late. By the time I got there, only bits and pieces were left."

"Not even a body?"

The jinx shook his head.

"I didn't have enough time to look. Before I could even really start… I was pulled back here."

The psychokinetic hedgehog could hardly believe it.

Shard the Metal Sonic was dead.

And he wasn't going to be coming back.

"Maybe I got used to everyone somehow managing to still be alive."

And why wouldn't he? That seemed to be a running theme ever since he learned from Mina that all of New Mobotropolis made it out of the Super Genesis Wave. Even Mammoth Mogul, the past version of his other self's mentor, managed to survive being completely wiped from existence.

So when he saw Lyco & Leeta in Studiopolis… why wouldn't he assume that Shard managed to survive too?

"That's just…" Silver closed his eyes and shook his head. "…And to Metal Sonic."

"Uncle Chuck suspects, based on Nicole's report, that our Eggman seriously upgraded his last version of Metal Sonic." The lynx sighed. "Probably got a transmission of Shard destroying the last one and decided he was sick of building new Metal Sonics."

The gray-furred hedgehog lifted his head and sighed. "Sounds like him."

Even the current version of Eggman wouldn't like the idea of a rogue Metal Sonic flying around and would make sure the real deal utterly annihilated him.

Shard… Silver hadn't known him for long and didn't know much about his past. His first impression of the guy was that he was like an even cockier version of Sonic, and it kind of made sense. Metal Sonic was meant to be a true equal and match for Sonic, so why wouldn't he act like the blue hedgehog?

But it was still… weird. What he remembered of Shard was conflicting with what he knew about Metal Sonic. The mostly silent metal copy of his friend, who actually spoke on only two occasions and neither of them sounded like Sonic at all.

"Another difference I guess."

Shard had still done terrible things on Mobius. He relished it in fact. But then Sonic and Tails managed to show him the traits of selflessness and friendship, and that unlocked something in the formerly evil badnik.

A conscience. Self-Awareness. A desire to be more than just a tool for Eggman.

And with the Secret Freedom Fighters… he found that. He was just starting to find his place in the world. Silver… well, he couldn't say if his old self was friends with Shard or not. But from what the memories said he trusted the Metal Sonic.

A part of him wanted to see where the badnik's journey of self-discovery would take him.

But now he never could.

Eggman, Metal Sonic, and the Super Genesis Wave saw to that.

"We… took it pretty hard. After we had enough time to process everything and all." Larry twiddled his thumbs while the dog let out a low whine. "We not only lost a friend, but Harvey saw it as a huge blow to our effectiveness. You and Metal Sonic were our powerhouses, and without both of you we…" He glanced to his left. "…had to find a replacement."

Silver looked to his right and watched as the Mecha Sonic, Mach, continued to stare at one of the monitors as it played a movie. It was one that starred mostly humans, a father and his son working in a food truck.

Mach hadn't spoken much since they had gotten here, mostly focusing on his movie. But he did notice a slight shift in Lyco and Leeta's behavior.

Namely the fact that they didn't even get close to Mach and were just hanging around Uncle Chuck. The older hedgehog was talking to Tangle and Whisper, a small smile on his face as he recounted his time raising Sonic prior to his robotization.

"How'd you find him?" Silver asked with a raised eyebrow. "I mean, I never heard about that version of Mecha Sonic existing."

"Eggman had him in storage." The lynx shrugged. "While we were trying to gather information about this world, Elias found out some criminal guy named Clutch managed to get his hands on him. So we took him and Uncle Chuck managed to get rid of the programming that would've kept him loyal to Eggman." He glanced at Mach again. "He… didn't act anything like Shard when we freed him. Nothing about him resembled Sonic or the other badniks that managed to be freed. He just kinda… stared at stuff and kept to himself. Lyco, Leeta, Elias, and heck even Harvey thinks he's more like an actual for real robot."

"But not you or Uncle Chuck?"

"Nah. I took a bit but we kinda realized that… well…" Larry frowned. "He's more like… a little kid I guess."

"Then why haven't you guys…?"

The lynx frowned. "Wouldn't do much good. Losing Shard… it still hurts for them. And Mach is like his replacement so that stings even more. Doesn't help that it's hard to pick up on how Mach feels about stuff unless you hook him up to a computer."

"That isn't fair." Silver's hands clenched into fists. He couldn't believe this. It wasn't Mach's fault that Shard was gone! Heck, he didn't even ask to be recruited into the Secret Freedom Fighters! And yet even Lyco and Leeta treated him like some robot they could hate?

What was wrong with this team?

Then, something hit him.

"Wait, what you said before…" Silver's eyes widened as he stared at Larry. "You were pulled back here? What did you mean by that?"

Larry himself froze at the question, looking like a deer in headlights.

The gray-furred hedgehog narrowed his eyes.

It was a simple question. Because Larry was a good friend. He would've tried to keep looking for Shard's body, damn Harvey's orders.

Unless he had no choice in the matter.

"And you were alone, weren't you." It wasn't a question, but a statement. "No one was out there with you, right? Lyco and Leeta were with Elias looking for me, and as far as I know you guys didn't know about Hershey until after the Super Genesis Wave. So how were you dragged back to base, Larry?"

The lynx was silent for a second.

Then, he let out a sigh and reached into his belt.

"I didn't know about this until after the Super Genesis Wave happened." He opened one of the pouches before taking out a small item that glowed a light blue in his hand. "But Harvey, apparently, gave us all these."

It looked like a small gray rock, but etched on it were words that Silver instantly recognized as the writing of The Ancients. Small webs that looked vaguely like the lines on a microchip weaved across the rock, converging into the alien letters that seemed to hum.

"It was a beacon that would shunt us back to the base if things got really bad." Larry handed it to Silver, who began turning it in his hands in wonder. "Hershey managed to bring back one of their portals and a lot of Witchcart's research into them. Uncle Chuck finally managed to crack it just before the Super Genesis Wave. It… wasn't as instantaneous for Elias, Lyco, and Leeta since they were at Ground Zero."

"I never got this." Silver whispered before looking at Larry. "You never knew about it?"

"Nope." The lynx's brow furrowed. "Was kept in the dark. But apparently… you never got one."

"What?!"

Larry didn't say anything other than that. In fact, he looked ashamed. The lynx didn't look into Silver's eyes, as if he were afraid to.

"…It was in case we got captured. Or found out." Larry closed his eyes. "Plausible deniability."

The psychokinetic hedgehog was about to ask what the hell he meant by that before it hit him.

Out of all the Secret Freedom Fighters… he and Shard were the ones who didn't have a good reputation.

If they got captured or if the rest of New Mobotropolis found them out, Elias and the others would be teleported away.

Leaving only the Metal Sonic… and the jerk who kept accusing each member of the Freedom Fighters of being a traitor.

Nobody would believe anything they said.

Silver slowly handed the small disc back to Larry, before his hands clenched into fists.

Larry saw his expression and became nervous. "S-Silver?"

Even Muttski seemed to whine more. In fact, the poor dog looked terrified.

The gray-furred hedgehog didn't say a word and instead got up before walking over the the Uncle Ch-no, Charles.

"…Look, I said I was sorry about the mustache crack!" Tangle proclaimed, lifting her hands up in defense. "I just don't like them! Or beards! Sue me!"

"Well, it'll certainly limit your dating options." Lyco mentioned with a small smirk. "A lot of handsome guys tend to have stuff like that."

The lemur stuck out her tongue. "They can keep 'em! And besides…" She looked at Whisper and blushed slightly before looking away. "…I-I'm already spoken for!" She shook her head. "Anyways, you have to tell me!" She held up a small card, white with only Sonic's small blue logo at the center. "This little thing makes you invisible to cameras?"

"Yes, yes it does." The older hedgehog nodded, a small note of pride in his voice. "Made it all by myself too. It selectively manipulates electronic audio and visual feed, removing a person from view completely from any electronic device. Can't do much about other people seeing or hearing you, though. It's useful for espionage."

"That's so cool…" The lemur practically had stars in her eyes as she turned it over in her hands. "Real spy gadgets! Oh! Tell me you have a grappling hook!"

"Why do you need that?" Whisper asked, her brow cocked in curiosity. "Your tail works."

Tangle tutted while wagging her finger as her tail placed the card on a desk. "Oh please, Whisper! Everyone knows that a grappling hook is something all cool spies should have!" She then seemed to register Silver's presence and smiled… only for it to dissipate when she noted the psychokinetic hedgehog's expression. "Uh… hey… Silver…"

Charles Hedgehog turned and looked at Silver's face.

The light behind his eyes shifted from momentary confusion to realization.

Silver, however, only hissed out three words.

"Did you know?"

"This has to be the absolute dumbest idea you've ever come up with." Julie-Su said, her voice completely deadpan, trying very hard not to breathe through her nose.

Mostly because her face was practically a few inches away from the crocodile's armpit.

"Even the version of you that I knew wasn't this stupid."

"Oh come on!" Vector cried out as he sat to her right, an annoyed scowl on his face. "It's the best I could come up with on short notice! And trust me, I ain't enthusiastic about it myself!"

She probably would've punched him if it weren't for the fact that her hands were cuffed together and her upper body wasn't restrained to the seat by duct tape.

Thankfully it was only on her vest, pants, and boots. Which meant the removal wouldn't be painful.

Which was more than she could say for Vector, who had the stuff across his completely unprotected chest.

"I've never been more grateful for clothes until this very moment."

"C-Can't… breath…" Charmy asked out to her left, his body upper body practically mummified in scotch take to his little booster seat."V-Vector, whhhy~?"

"P-please see if you can move just a little bit, Vector!" Saffron moaned in pain, her face smushed against the door as she was buckled and duct-tapped to the car seat. Charmy's booster seat wasn't exactly helping matters as it dug into her left side. "I'm about to get squished!"

"Bear with it for just a little bit, Saffron." Espio commanded from the passenger seat, his eyes closed and sitting cross-legged. "It'll all be over soon."

"That's easy for you to say." The female bee muttered bitterly. "You're only cuffed to the door's handle!"

Indeed, that was the only thing restraining Espio to his position. The rest of his body was completely free, able to move around without anything to hamper it.

But the thing that concerned the echidna the most was their driver.

"Mwehehe…!" Sticks giggled as her hands gripped the car's wheel. A pair of cuffs restrained her arms to it, while a mess of duct tape kept the car locked into position. And if the Dark Legionnaire could leaned forward she would see the badger's feet duct-taped together by her shoes while both of them were encased on top of the gas pedal. "I can't believe I'm gonna do it! I'm drivin' da Beat Monster!"

"Only because of the circumstances!" Vector cried out in anger. "You're never touching my baby after this! NEVER!"

"Never say never, Vector~!"

"She's way too psyched about this…" Julie-Su groaned, bowing her head in defeat. "There's gotta be a better way than this."

"Nah." Vector muttered. "Sticks' brain is fried…"

"ENLIGHTENED!" The badger interjected.

"…so there's a good chance that whatever's keepin' people from entering here won't affect her. And in case it does…" He inclined his head to the restraints. "These things'll keep her from stopping us from getting there. Or us trying to stop her. By the time we're through, Espio'll free himself and get us out of these things."

"…" By Aurora, she hated the fact that she could see the logic in it.

Vector and Espio's theory was that Sally and her friends needed to go through whatever barrier they marked on the map at high speeds using Extreme Gear. Speeds so fast that they wouldn't have time to turn.

"Which is why we're all packed in this car and Sticks won't even be able to try to turn or hit the brakes."

The restraints weren't much, but they would slow everyone down enough. They wouldn't be able to leave or get out of the vehicle before they were completely through the barrier, and once they were through Espio would be able to break out of his own handcuffs before freeing the rest of them.

"Doesn't stop it from being stupid. And risky."

Charmy let out a chuckle, but was grinning and said, "We're all gonna die."

Julie-Su glanced over her shoulder, to see the Land Breaker tied to the back of the car with chains. It looked like it was about ready to fall off any moment, shaking precariously with the humming of the engine.

"…It's a distinct possibility." The pink echidna admitted in her head.

"D-Don't say that, Charmy…" Saffron moaned. "It's just a little tri-"

Suddenly, she heard something heavy smack against glass. Julie-Su whipped her head to see that Sticks had slammed her head onto the small glowing glass screen on the dashboard, cracking it.

Music began to play, a heavy electronic beat with the simple word SANDSTORM flashing on the front

"MY BABY!" Vector screamed in abject horror, while Sticks laughed like a crazy person.

Well… crazier person.

"LET'S FREAKIN' GO!" The insane badger screamed in joy as she slammed both of her feet down onto the gas pedal. "I'M COMIN' FOR YA, G-MEN!"

The Beat Monster shot forward, its tires kicking up sand and rocks as it began to pick up speed. Hot wind hit the echidna's face as they bounced over dips in the dirt, flying for short periods before landing. All the while the speedometer kept going up.

25…

42…

56…

Vector and Saffron screamed in fear and horror as a cactus rapidly approached them. However, it burst upon impact with the car's side. Spines just barely missed all of them as they flew past the remains.

67…

72…

87…

"STILL THINK THIS IS A GOOD IDEA?!" Julie-Su screamed at Vector, who was practically crying as tears flew out of his eyes.

"S-SHADDUP!"

"STICKS! STICKS PLEASE!" Saffron pleaded to the badger, and a quick glance confirmed that Charmy was grinning from ear to ear. "SLOW DOWN!"

"FASTER! FASTER!" Charmy encouraged, bouncing in his seat in spite of his restraints. "GO FASTER, STICKS!"

"CHARMY WHY?!"

"GYAHAHAHA~!" Sticks, however, was in her own world. She threw her head back and was sticking out her tongue which wagged in the wind. "I AM DA QUEEN OF DA SANDS!"

Espio, meanwhile, seemed to be trying even harder to keep his eyes shut.

Gritting her teeth, Julie-Su shut her right eye and focused on her left.

The miles in the top left of her vision were counting down as they approached the marker.

Destination: 25 Miles

14 Miles…

6 Miles…

"BRACE YOURSELF!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, reality seemed to ripple and shimmer in front of them. It was as if the air itself became liquid, like the surface of a lake and the Beat Monster was a stone that had been dropped into it. What was immaterial became solid, buckling up and over them like displaced water.

A ripple slammed into Julie-Su, and it felt as if she were being punched by an invisible force.

And that's when the red messages began to flash in her eye.

WARNING! WARNING!

UNKNOWN MAGICS DETECTED!

WAR-!

The flesh and bone around her eye… no, the inside her brain felt like it was being stabbed with a red hot knife. She barely could even let out a whimper before everything was subsumed into blackness.

"Magic…"

"Julie!"

"Always… hated… magic…"

"…breathing?"

Something was… hitting her?

It felt like a dull tap more than anything.

Everything felt numb. Like she was floating inside water.

"Wake up, girl!"

Vector was screaming at her.

By Aurora, he was so freakin' loud!

Then, a sharp pain erupted across her left cheek.

That caused Julie-Su's eye to snap open and look upon the disgustingly smug grin of Vector the Crocodile.

"See? I toldja, Espio!" Vector bragged as he nodded to the chameleon that was out of her line of sight. "You don't need any fancy smellin' sal-!"

The pink echidna upper-cutted the leader of the Chaotix with her left fist.

Hard.

"OW!" Vector stumbled onto his butt and rubbed the underside of his jaw. "The heck was that for, ya crazy broa-?!"

"You slapped me!" Julie-Su shouted as she stumbled onto her feet. "Consider us even!"

"A punch ain't a slap!"

The ex-Dark Legionnaire simply groaned and rubbed her head. Her eye was already rebooting and now she had full peripheral vision.

"Whatever that barrier did messed up my implants." Her eyes widened and she looked around. "Saffron! Where…?!"

"She's fine!" Espio called out, making her turn her head to see the chameleon gently holding up the bee with his right arm while his left hand held a small vial. Charmy was flying around them, obviously worried about the female bee. "She seems to have suffered what you went through."

"Wha…?" Saffron muttered, looking around blearily. "Did we make it through?"

"Yeah!" Charmy's worried expression instantly evaporated and he pumped his fist into the air. "And it was freakin' AWESOME! You should've seen it, Saffron! We were in the air for like ten seconds after we hit that… whatever it was!"

"See!" Sticks cried out, sitting with her back to a big rock with her arms crossed. "It wasn't my fault! My drivin' was fantastic!"

"Fantastic my foot!" Vector shouted, shaking his fist at her while glaring at the badger. "You were going in one direction! ONE! And you still almost killed us all!"

The pink echidna glanced at the Beat Monster. Miraculously, the car had managed to survive its ordeal. But it would need some work. Not only were there dents, but the paint job on the sides were completely ruined. And, somehow, the Land Breaker had made it through completely unscathed. It now sat on the sandy ground, completely free from the chains that bound it.

"Well…" Julie-Su muttered, walking over to her boyfrie-this Knuckles' bike and tracing her left hand on its seat. "What matters is that we made it through."

"Yeah, but at what cost?" The crocodile sniffed as he went and hugged the hood of his car. "My poor Beat Monster…"

The ex-Dark Legionnaire rolled her eyes. "Oh suck it up, ya big bab-!"

Her ears twitched when she heard a familiar crack in the air.

"Hrm? Gunfire?" Espio got onto his feet, as did Sticks while Saffron flew up and next to Charmy. "I haven't heard that in a while."

"Your tellin' me!" Vector scratched his head. "Most people traded their guns for Wispons nowadays!"

Another crack and this time Julie-Su glanced at a sand dune to her left. That was around where the gunfire sounds were coming from.

"Stay here." Julie-Su crouched down and began scaling the dune. "I'll go see what's up."

Her training from the Dark Legion kicked in. Go in slow and keep down. If she was going to peak outside of cover, she better not expose her head.

When she reached near the top of the dune she did not poke her head above the top edge. Instead, she inclined her head to the right… allowing her artificial drawlock to stand up vertically before a small slot opened in its side. A camera lense opened, and Julie-Su could see the visual feed of what was happening.

There was movement several miles away, near the side of a mountain or something. Light was reflecting off the glass of windows from vehicles and there suddenly a huge burst of flame. Frowning, she enhanced the image.

Yes… now she saw a clearer picture. There were several robed individuals flinging fireballs at the stone houses… but they were soon ducking for cover as dirt was kicked up from the bullets fired by their enemy.

Her first thought was that these were the so-called Shadows… but that couldn't be right. These guys were dressed in white and there wasn't any mention that the shadows were magicians.

The description of the shadows more applied to the lumbering armored guys that were marching forward, completely unphased by the gunfire. But they seemed… off. They weren't even trying to be stealthy or quirk. They were more like badniks with how they moved, if anything.

And there seemed to only be one cat among them

"Don't like the looks of them, though." Julie-Su followed the trajectory of the shots. "Now… who are they fighting…?"

Her answer came when she saw a hedgehog robian and a hedgehog mobian peeking out from cover. The hedgehog robian was firing a rifle while the mobian, a woman, took aim with a rocket launcher before firing. The ground in front of some of the armored guys exploded, knocking several off of their feet and falling back. But slowly, they got back up again and continued their march.

"Holy crap. Those two are actually holding the fort! Impressive… but they won't last long without help."

The pink echidna frowned. Those two hedgehogs… they looked kind of familiar.

They looked like… Sonic.

Her right eye opened wide when realization struck.

One of them was robian! Sonic's dad was stuck as a robian! Her friend told her as much one of the times they hung out!

"That's Sonic's mom and dad!"

"Julie?" Saffron whispered from below. "How's it look?"

Shaking her head, Julie-Su cut off the camera and allowed her dreadlock to return to standby mode. She slid down the dune and walked over to the rest of the Chaotix. "It's a shoot out around five or so miles from here. Some obvious bad guys are in the mix, but none that I know. Did you guys ever deal with wizards or knights?"

"Nope!" Charmy had stars in his eyes. "But I always wanted to kick some wizard butt!"

"Of course." Sticks grumbled. "Da government would want to bolster their alien tech by communin' with da Elder Dings…"

"Nah." Vector shook his head, an action mirrored by Espio. "Magic's not really somethin' we've had to deal with. I mean, I heard about this crazy human witch called Witchcart but that was years ago!"

Julie-Su smirked and began walking to the Land Breaker.

"Well… first time for everything." She chuckled when she got on and turned on the engine of the bike.

She looked over her shoulder, and the smirk transformed into a grin.

"Come on. I always wanted to meet Sonic's folks."

To Be Continued…

Notes: Holy crap this took longer than I thought.

Not entirely happy about this chapter but I am satisfied. Some scenes were easier top pump out than others.

The inspiration for the Tails Doll fight was from Archie Sonic Online, but I wanted to pull it in a different direction. I just hope I succeeded.

Anyways, please be sure to let me know what you think by leaving a review!

Please also be sure to add to the TV Tropes Page!

Until next time…