(Studiopolis, Tube Network Station)

For a long time, it'd been established in the world of entertainment that while humans had Hollywood, Animals had Studiopolis. Its skyscrapers and smaller buildings alike were decked out with neon signs and eye-catching lights; had it been nighttime, the various colored panes of the former would have helped brighten up the skyline even more. A prominent metro system was propped up on overpasses and tracks that went all over the area and across the local large lake in the center of town. The sidewalks along the streets were a mosaic of small red and pink hexagons overlaid by light blue and orange platforming, and lit up by tall lamp posts that housed spinning purple Rings. Similar azure pathways circled and looped about like film reels, some of them even connecting the roofs and higher floors of certain structures to each other and the ground level. And of course, posters and billboards of famous Animal actors, singers, and other kinds of performers, not to mention their works, were a very common sight almost no matter where you went.

As he stood within the main terminal of the recently constructed transport tube station, J reflected on the events of his life over the past several months. He thought that it had been fairly exciting as it was, being the curator of a museum, a young but respected doctor in at least one of his fields of study, and a novelist whose writing seemed to appeal to a wide number of people. He'd gone out on myriad expeditions to study both the remnants of old cultures and the curious minerals the world produced. And when he found any particularly impressive pieces from either camp, he would put them up for display or send them to other such institutions he was associated with. It was the sort of life that he'd studied for many years to obtain, and short of a few personal issues, he'd been quite content with it.

But, that past September, he'd been captured along with many others during the Battle Kukku Empire's invasion, though he'd been fortunate for the intervention of the mysterious human known as Gil. The revelation that the one most responsible for saving West Side Island had been none other than his long-lost two-tailed cousin had initially rendered him both shocked and elated. It had been awkward bumping into one another and trading information at first, but once their relation to each other was out in the open and more history about their family was shared, they'd steadily grown closer. And while writing about Miles' adventures had certainly gotten him a rather large number of fans, J was more thankful that his cousin was still around. The teen had given him a sort of motivation that he'd been lacking up until that point in his life.

'It's because of that that I've worked hard to be ready to fight alongside you,' he rehearsed in his head, 'I must do this. I've not helped you nearly as much as you have me, Miles, and I want to rectify that.'

The scene in his head was interrupted as his ears picked up the sounds of chatter coming from the direction of Canton City's concourse.

"I have to say, I'm impressed," he heard Miles say, "not only was the ride more comfortable than in the Complex's tubes, but we got here pretty quickly."

"Meh, not as fast as us," Sonic commented.

"Nonetheless, it's rather convenient," came a voice that was unfamiliar to J, "you said you were meeting someone here at this station, right?"

The cross fox saw the expected trio of his cousin and two friends entering the area, along with a fourth face that he didn't recognize. It was an Animal in sky-blue armor with a canid tail sticking out that stood about half a head taller than his cousin, toting a canvas bag over one shoulder. He shrugged casually, figuring they'd fill him in on the mystery tag-along in good time.

"I'm glad to see that you all made it," he said as came up to them, "though I honestly expected you to arrive a little earlier."

Sonic rubbed at his nose and smirked. "Don't blame us. Do ya remember that big spider bot we fought a while back? More of 'em showed up right when we were about to leave."

"Ah, I see." J smiled and held out a hand as he regarded Knuckles. "Allow me to more formally introduce myself, now that we're in person."

The Guardian nodded and shook the other Animal's glove. "I've heard that you're interested in my people's history and civilization."

"I am indeed, but I understand that now isn't the best time to be discussing that." He turned to the tallest of the four. "And who might this character be?"

"He calls himself Bomber Blue," Miles replied, "and we've only just met him ourselves, but he lent us a hand against the Auto Arachnids we fought."

Sonic flashed a thumbs-up. "Yeah, he seems like a cool guy."

"Well, the more assistance, the better," J said in an easygoing manner as he held out a hand, "pleased to make your acquaintance. I'm Dr. Jonathan P. Cross, although I prefer 'J' to keep things simple."

For a moment, Miles could have sworn he saw both of Blue's arms tremble, though he made no effort to move them. Another few moments went by before he actually extended a glove out to the offered one. It was strange, but the teen decided to file that away for another time, as he wasn't sure if he'd been hallucinating it.

"R-right, same to you," he responded in a timid tone.

That struck the others as peculiar, considering how seemingly happy and eager Blue had been to meet them. They couldn't tell what was going through his head, but there was clearly something about J that bothered him.

"Quite." The cross fox returned his attention to Miles. "Anyway, you said that Mecha Miles intended to use Cream in some sort of broadcast." He shifted and pointed towards the exit. "Then most likely, it would make use of the equipment employed at Club Spin Studios. It's the largest television broadcasting establishment in the city, and many programs that go out across the Pacific Animal Territories and beyond are aired from there."

Miles hummed at that. "That sounds like a safe bet, and I can always track Mecha with the Emerald Radar."

The teen retrieved the Miles Electric, switching over to the aforementioned app. It immediately picked up a third Emerald signal coming from the direction that his cousin had pointed out to them only moments ago.

"Wow, he got here fast," Sonic commented, "we just checked the Radar a few minutes ago and that wasn't there."

"But if Mecha Miles is already here," J said warily, "then wouldn't that mean that..."

As if on cue, all the advertisements, looping videos, and information about the Tube Network on the various monitors and TVs around them were replaced by the visage of the mechanical menace. The real Miles felt a pit form in his stomach at the sight; they'd been too late to stop the broadcast.

"Greetings, everyone," Mecha greeted the viewers over countless speakers, "I am Mecha Miles, the synthetic replicant to the vaunted Miles Prower." Its head lowered a little, though it kept its gaze locked onto the camera. "The technology here made it simple to set it up so that I'm not only broadcasting across the PAT, but I can see and hear Miles and his friends in Studiopolis at this very moment. And because I know he's watching, let's move along to the reason why he came and why I'm making this announcement."

There was a bit of an awkward feeling as the eyes of some other Animals in the station fell on them, whispers passing between them about whether the fox was the real deal. Miles soon put it out of mind and felt his fur stand on end as the picture blew up to show Cream next to his copy, bound up in a few neon blue rings similar to his Boomering. He could tell that she was doing her best to stay strong, but the fear in her eyes was evident, and that nettled him all the more.

"Miles!" he heard the bunny girl cry out for him.

Miles growled between gritted teeth and was shaking all over as his head grew hot. "Cream! Let her go, Mecha!"

"If only everyone could witness your testy reaction," Mecha taunted him, "it seems provocation is a simple matter when I hold this girl to the proverbial flame." It raised an index digit in a confident manner. "And now that I have your full attention, allow me to demonstrate one of my newest abilities."

The robot closed one of its hands around Cream's neck, just enough to hold her up, but not quite enough to choke her. A vivid blue aura surrounded the robot while the rabbit wiggled her head from side to side, trying in vain to escape its ironclad grip. After a small period, Mecha set Cream back down, the girl panting a bit as she shakily kept standing.

"Though my organic prototype and his friends are well aware, here is a lesson for the rest of you," it addressed the audience, "there is an essential element within each and every living thing: Chaos Energy. No matter what you are, all organisms possess it. And once every last bit is gone, whether through exertion or extraction..." It closed one of its palms menacingly. "You die."

Knuckles' face became grim. "I have a bad feeling about what it's suggesting."

"It can be replenished," Mecha continued, "but that requires time and rest, which I will not allow for this one." It pointed through the picture at its furry counterpart. "Miles, I am giving you ten minutes to get here. Fail to arrive in time, and I will continually siphon Cream the Rabbit's energy until she's as dry as a raisin."

Miles growled, his gloves audibly straining as his hands balled up tightly. "You do and I'll melt you down to slag!"

"Don't be too hasty now, I'm not finished yet," the robot went on, "the NBA sent forces here some time ago, and a large group of aerial units are en route. The data I've received suggests that your other friends are in their flight path, so perhaps you should inform them about it. As for the obstacles on your merry way, some of them were made with inspiration from a certain rotund roboticist." It swept a hand in an arch from one shoulder to the other the length of the screen. "And for the rest of you, this broadcast will resume within ten minutes or when Miles arrives on set, whichever comes first. Ciao for now."

All the monitors returned to showing their usual feed, and aside from the audio that came from some of them, there was an uncomfortable atmosphere in the station. Miles was now fretting at both the prospect of his adoptive siblings and the rest facing a sizable squadron, and the peril facing Cream. Sonic, Knuckles, and J all let him process this while also trying to think of a plan. On top of that, the bystanders that had been witness to what happened were murmuring among themselves while staring. For one reason or another, it was Blue who decided to break the silence.

"We don't have time to waste," he told the others, "we need to go!"

Miles shook himself out of his head space. "I don't disagree, but..."

"Your other friends will be fine!" the armored Animal assured him with utmost confidence, "just let them know about the situation and they'll handle those toy planes!"

"He's right, big guy," Sonic agreed, "Gadget and the rest will take care of those NBA guys, no sweat!"

Knuckles nodded firmly and jerked his head in the direction of the exit. J placed a hand on his cousin's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.

"Let's go show Mecha what for," he said as he pumped his other fist.

Miles let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding in and smiled. He felt fortunate to have friends and family like them by his side. And they were right: the situation with Cream was the more immediate one that needed to be tackled. The twins and the Chaotix had been in tighter spots than the one imminently facing them, and that aside, Mecha had made the mistake of telling him about it. Or maybe it had been intentional, but that didn't matter at the moment.

The amber fox wordlessly took the lead for the group, quickly heading for the front of the station and switching over to the communication app on the Miles Electric. Seeing how pretty much everyone else would be gathered in the Sea Fox, he sent out a call to Remi directly. He needed to make sure they were okay, and updating them on what was going on was vital, considering their objective was the same. He had just made it past a few streetlamps when the image of the Wolf siblings showed up on his screen. He could also see Charmy in his flight mode perched on the red twin's shoulders, and Vector in one of the back seats, while the other was occupied by Amy Rose. Miles can't say he expected to see her, but at the same time, he wasn't that surprised considering how close she was with Cream.

"Hey, little bro," Gadget greeted him, "we're just about on approach to West Side Island. What's up?"

Miles rushed past a tall building and leapt onto one of the raised sidewalks, weaving his way around other people that were taking that route. "We ended up getting teleported to Canton City since we last talked, and there were a handful of Auto Arachnids with the NBA's colors making trouble at the Chemical Plant Complex."

"What about the Jackal Squad?" Charmy asked as he stood up on the vermilion wolf's arm.

"Unfortunately, it seems they were sent somewhere else," Knuckles answered as he ran down a slope in the path just beside the fox.

Sonic was on the other flank, being a little more fancy with his footwork and side-stepping civilians mid-dash. "Sounds like they were workin' with that Al guy, too, but not anymore."

Gizmo frowned a bit at that news. "You mean Alexei? We were just talking about whether or not he's involved, but now we know." She blinked and squinted at the picture. "Is that J there with you? And who's that other guy in the power suit?"

"Hi again," the cross fox greeted them amicably, "I gave Miles an abridged account of my application, as it were." He motioned over to their mysterious ally. "And to answer your second question, this is Bomber Blue."

Blue waved shyly at the other group. "Hello."

"All of us can get better acquainted later," Miles said hurriedly, "but right now, we're headed to where Cream's being held by Mecha. We also heard that the NBA is sending aerial units to attack, and that you're apparently taking the same route they are."

The twins shot each other an alarmed glance before Gadget tapped away at his half of the console to bring up the radar, which was reflected in the lenses of his specs. He frowned as quite a few pings were picked up following a cursory scan of the surrounding ten or so kilometers.

"Lots of signals on our six," he told everyone, "and they're closing fast. Prepare yourselves!"

"Don't worry about us, foxy," his sister said with a grin, "this sky chase is about to go very badly for those birds."

Miles chuckled and flashed them a peace sign. "I'll see you when you get here, then."

"Go and teach that fake you a lesson for hurting Cream!" Amy cheered him on.

"Give him one for me and all the guys, too!" Charmy added.

They ended the transmission there, which also allowed the fox and his gang to devote their attention to the challenge awaiting them. It was just as well, for the five had almost gone as high as the road would allow most pedestrians.

Heads turned when Sonic went into a Spin Dash, sailing off the top of the steps and onto one of the reel-like paths even further up. Knuckles climbed up the nearest adjacent building to follow, while Miles and the other two dipped down again, taking the least populated way so they could keep up the pace. The red and blue pair zipped up through a couple of loops on their end, the former gliding over a wide gap while the latter used momentum from his speed to get across. That particular reel came to an end just before a skyscraper, but it was no problem for the two to make the jump. On the next bit of "film" road, it dropped off into a loop, curving up at the end so that the boys could really get some distance.

Down below, the canid trio went by a few outlets with previews of upcoming movies on their TVs, the people too distracted to notice them as they went. Blue briefly separated from them as he parkoured his way up into an unfinished building, getting a few irritated words thrown his way by workers while he ran through to the other side. Miles and J made their way to a ledge just past that same building, getting there about the same time as their armored ally and continuing on to a hill. All three went into a Roll and rode the loop there into a ramp that directed them to a yellow spring, bouncing off of it and a red one onto the outcropping of a nearby building. Seeing that they needed to go higher to save time, the teen gave his cousin a boost and offered the same to Blue, but he showed that he was capable enough with the set of thrusters built into his boots.

'A dual-vent, non-combustible propulsion method installed in the heels and balls of the footwear,' Miles mused curiously, also feeling suspicious, 'I can't help but notice it's rather similar to something I worked on.'

That was left on the back burner as they made it to the next reel, meeting up with Sonic and Knuckles just before they got to yet another loop. They Rolled down a hill and were redirected by a yellow spring, traveling along the side of a building before zooming into an incomplete loop. The opening in the reel shot them down into a nearly identical bit of film, sending them back out onto the precipice of a skyscraper and up the side of a wall. At the top of the vertical climb, they made a successive series of jumps that gradually brought them closer to ground level once more. From there, they could see a rather long and winding highway that went over the lake, and beyond that, a domed building with "Club Spin" blazing on a giant sign.

"We're almost there," Blue said hopefully, "we just need to get across the lake."

The uplift in mood was brought down when they heard several screams coming from nearby. There was a frightened crowd of Animals running and abandoning their cars to flee from a group of robots, some of which Miles, Sonic, and Knuckles all recognized. Some were based on houseflies with bodies that were shaped like cameras, with a lens where their mouths would be and a giant flash bulb on top of their heads. They had two pairs of purple legs and similarly colored wings, while their eyes were similar to Mecha's, although they had white sclera instead of black optics. There were also other, simpler machines whose main bodies were just orange spheres with capris eyes like the flies. These models were orbited by three smaller round satellites, each having a blue, green, or purple focusing lens. And last but not least, there were some familiar avian androids sporting the black, purple, and silver color scheme of the NBA.

"Badniks and Robo Kukkus!" Sonic exclaimed as he got ready to fight, "so that's what Mecha was talkin' about before!"

As much as Miles wanted to go to Cream, he knew he couldn't just leave those people. He withdrew the Pikkon Hammer and was off in an amber blur, the others hot on his heels and eager to join in the fray. He flew up towards one of the ball-like enemies and swung at it, but it spun one of its orbiters to take the hit, then used another to try and sock the fox in the face. Miles slapped it away with his weapon while his other hand tossed a mini bomb at the main unit, reducing it to scrap and making its remaining satellites fall uselessly to the ground. The rest of the horde turned its attention to the fox and his friends, completely ignoring the civilians they'd just been chasing.

The bystanders scattered to safety but still mostly stuck around, hiding in alleys or behind bins so they could watch the action. One of the camera flies dove at J, lighting up the bulb to try and blind the cross fox. However, he'd anticipated such an obvious trick and had shielded his eyes, using his ears to determine where its buzzing was coming from. His tail whipped the Badnik, breaking the lens and shutter, and causing much of its body to cave in. As it fell, a Robo Kukku shot at him with its eye beams and came in for a swipe, only for J to duck and dodge the attacks, countering with a hook kick. His heel collapsed the side of the thing's head, watching it crumple to the ground seconds later.

"Oh my!" he remarked in astonishment, "I never realized just how much stronger I've become compared to a few months ago!"

His cousin smirked and smashed one of the Shutterbugs with a flip kick. "Nice one, J, but there are still more of them!"

"Don't forget about me, big guy!" Sonic said as he drew in a handful of enemies, "time to show off a new move: the Blue Tornado!"

The hedgehog had them where he wanted once they got close, slipping behind the group and then running around them in circles. The air was whipped into a miniature whirlwind, banging the Badniks and Kukkus caught up in it against each other and spewing them out the top of the churning funnel. Sonic skidded to a halt and Jumped up at the robots, bouncing off of each of them until a rain of scrap came down onto the street just as his ability dissipated.

"A good technique," Knuckles complimented him, "I have one I've been wanting to try out, but I need a partner to do a Rolling Jump for it to work."

"Say no more, Knux!"

Sonic sprang into the air and curled up into a ball, while Knuckles jumped up to meet him and catch him in both hands. The Echidna tossed the hedgehog a little higher and brought his arms back, a bright red aura surrounding his gloves.

"Fire Dunk!" he shouted out, spiking the kid like a volleyball with both fists.

Sonic was engulfed in a fiery glow as he came down like a meteor, aimed right for a good chunk of their foes. The moment he made impact with one of them, it exploded, but it didn't stop there. The flaming sheen around the boy erupted outwards in a fairly impressive hemisphere, blowing up most of the automatons caught in its area, and injuring the rest. Despite that and some collateral damage, Sonic was completely unharmed.

"Man, the stories don't do you guys justice," Blue said with admiration. He let out a modest chuckle. "But since we're pressed for time, let me help save some by showing off a little."

He reached into his canvas bag and pulled out what appeared to be a gunmetal gray, baseball-shaped grenade. The rest of the group got clear and behind him, making the remaining Badniks and Kukkus come at them in a concentrated formation. Blue yanked the pin, flipped the clip and hurled the object at the center of their numbers. It detonated in a brilliant cloud of silvery particulates that dusted its targets, though it didn't really do anything else. Or at least that was how it seemed until the robots started dropping out of the air and keeling over. After about ten seconds, the entirety of the "surviving" machines had ceased to function, as if someone had reached in and shut down their power.

"Not as cool as what Knux and I did," Sonic commented with a shrug and a smirk, "but ya got 'em, so good job!"

"No time for compliments, gents!" J alarmed them as he glanced at his cellphone, which he'd pulled from one pocket, "we've got more company!"

The five saw yet more Badniks coming out of the alleys and side roads near their position, and if that wasn't enough, they saw Kukku style aircraft closing in on them from above. The largest of these was a two-seated police helicopter with legs instead of proper landing gear, the siren atop the main rotor blaring almost as loudly as the propeller. At the helm was a rooster decked out in the typical BKE outfit, only with NBA colors, while his partner was a tall yet squat emu. The latter held onto the side of the vehicle with one hand while the other toted a bulky rocket launcher that reminded the fox more of a pencil sharpener than a real weapon. All the same, he knew he couldn't afford to take these guys lightly, especially with civilian lives at stake.

"Split and take out the support!" Miles ordered the rest of the group, "I'll handle the heavy artillery!"

Everyone else flashed him a salute or sign of understanding, then went in pairs down different routes of the highway. As expected, the chopper went after him along with three fighter planes, the latter opening fire with the machine guns on their wings. Miles made sure to lead them away from any cars he passed, all the while keeping just out of reach of the bullets hot on his heels. To help lay down more pressure, the other avian let loose a rocket that quickly closed in on Miles. The fox waited until it was practically on top of him, then jumped and sent it away with his tails. The redirected projectile was returned to its sender, who swerved out of the way and let it hit one of the accompanying aircraft instead, the resulting fireball falling into the lake.

Miles went down a fairly steep decline on the road, soon coming to a straightaway that was but a few meters above water. The helicopter kept on his tail while the two remaining jets strafed the sides. Just as they were about to resume their attempt to fill him full of holes, the fox suddenly sprang onto the one to his left.

"No wait, don't shoot!" he heard the pilot inside yell, no doubt to the other fighter.

Unfortunately for him, his plea fell on deaf ears as the opposite craft's guns blazed, turning the fuselage into metallic swiss cheese. Of course, it had come a moment too late to catch Miles, who'd flown from the now-downed second jet over to the third. He whipped out the Pikkon Hammer and smashed a hole in the covering, evoking a startled cry from the soldier.

"I'd bail out if I were you," Miles said with fair warning as he slapped a metal disc on the dashboard and then leapt clear.

The pilot did just that, ejecting the glass and abandoning his vehicle as it lost control, both of them splashing into the lake. Annoyed at their help having been handled without trouble, the chopper duo continued to repeatedly try pelting Miles. Each time, though, the fox would simply smack their shots aside or send a mini bomb to prematurely detonate them before they could reach him or any civilians. Finally, the rocketeer had had enough, launching an especially large missile from his weapon that burst apart into dozens of much smaller ones. Surely, they thought, there was no way that the fox could repel so many–

"Tornado Spin!" Miles shouted, a cyan aura flaring up as he spun around and whipped his two tails.

A cyclone no larger than the fox himself flew in the direction of the mini-missiles, sweeping them up and making all but a few collide with each other. Those that were left were carried right back to the helicopter faster than they'd been fired, leaving the two NBA troops unable to react in time to avoid them. Thus, like all the rest, their craft went down in flames and they were forced to take a swim. Seconds later, Miles reached the end of the highway, the other four members of his group meeting up with him from their own exits.

"Just a little further now, gents," J announced, "but we haven't much time left!"

"Then let's do it to it!" Sonic encouraged them, picking up a bit more speed.

As the one most concerned for Cream, Miles put his two tails to work and shot past his partner, focused on the approaching studio in front of him. No matter what it took, he would save her and he would make Mecha pay for everything it had done.

(Pacific Ocean airspace, minutes ago...)

"So," Amy wondered as she sat behind Gizmo's seat while they flew towards West Side Island, "are the Jackal Squad really that bad if Miles beat them when he was younger?"

Charmy, currently in his flight mode and perched on Gadget's shoulder, hummed a bit at the question. "Well, you gotta remember that he isn't a typical Animal."

"Neither are any of us," the red wolf pointed out, "but I get what you're saying. Even so, if he thinks they're a viable threat, we need to take them seriously."

"Especially after what happened on Angel Island," the teal twin reminded them, occasionally stroking at Cheese's head while it laid against her navel, "that sapphire really threw us for a loop."

Vector cocked a brow while he leaned back in his seat behind Gadget. "Is it stronger than the Chaos Emeralds?"

"Not collectively, but individually?" Gadget surmised with a shrug, "maybe. It was able to forcefully separate us during teleportation despite Miles using his Emerald."

"The sapphire can also apparently corrupt and drain Rings," Gizmo added, "meaning anything reliant on them could be rendered useless by its influence. Given how much tech depends on them these days, that rock could cause some real havoc if left alone."

It certainly was a sobering thought. The Jackal Squad could disable not only weapons and widgets, but even heavy machinery and entire buildings that ran on such a source. Taken to its logical extreme, if a city's power supply was dependent on Rings, the sapphire could effectively cripple it and by extension, cause real harm to a lot of people.

"What do you think, Espio?" Charmy asked as he spoke to the ship's console.

The chameleon had been listening in through his comm as he rode on the roof outside. Thus, when he replied, his voice came through Remi's internal speakers.

"The potential danger is concerning, to say the least," he answered calmly, "but I believe there may be a connection between them and Mecha."

"You mean besides the fact that their boss and that tin can both hate Miles?" Vector remarked half-jokingly.

Though they couldn't see it, the two younger members of the Chaotix could tell Espio was pondering the idea. "There may be something to that, but I don't think that's all." There was a short pause. "Let's review what you shared with us: the Jackal Squad somehow discovered Angel Island was earthbound before the rest of us, except for Knuckles, were even aware."

"That Zero guy told Miles they were there searching for the sapphire as part of a job," Charmy continued, "meaning someone else wants it badly enough that they'd hire people like them."

"Like that Alexei fellow that Speedy mentioned to Miles back at the start of the year" Gizmo suggested, "I could see him being their client."

Gadget concurred with his sister. "True, he was willing to hire the Hooligans, and when it comes to Mecha, he's the grand-nephew of its original creator. They never confirmed whether or not he was lost in the destruction of his base beneath Flicky Island either, so he could very well still be at large."

Their conversation was cut short when the display near the controls lit up and showed an icon of Miles' head. Since it had only been a short while since they reached him, they figured he had an update for them on his end. Gadget patched the transmission through and saw the fox come on screen, along with occasional glimpses of Sonic and Knuckles, as well as what appeared to be J and someone else.

"Hey, little bro," the wolf hailed him, "we're just about on approach to West Side Island. What's up?"

"We ended up getting teleported to Canton City since we last talked," Miles informed them, "and there were a handful of Auto Arachnids with the NBA's colors making trouble at the Chemical Plant Complex."

Gizmo shuddered at the mention of the giant spider robots. It was moments like this where she was glad that the sapphire had split the group. Having Cheese right there to pet also brought her some measure of comfort.

"What about the Jackal Squad?" Charmy asked as he stood up on the vermilion wolf's shoulder.

"Unfortunately, it seems they were sent somewhere else," Knuckles answered as he leaned into the picture beside the fox.

"Sounds like they were workin' with that Al guy, too," Sonic said from the other side, "but not anymore."

Gizmo frowned a bit at that news. "You mean Alexei? We were just talking about whether or not he's involved in all this, but now we know." She blinked and squinted at the picture, just now noticing the other two with them. "Is that J there with you? And who's that other guy in the power suit?"

"Hi again," the cross fox greeted them amicably, "I gave Miles an abridged account of my application, as it were." He motioned over to their mysterious ally. "And to answer your second question, this is Bomber Blue."

The aforementioned Animal waved shyly at them. "Hello."

Given the naming scheme and appearance of his armor, they figured that Bomber Blue was affiliated with Gunner Green in some fashion. Whatever his deal was, they'd find out soon enough, seeing as the others were now at Studiopolis.

"All of us can get better acquainted later," Miles said hurriedly, "but right now, we're headed to where Cream's being held by Mecha. We also heard that the NBA is sending aerial units to attack, and that you're apparently taking the same route they are."

The twins shot each other an alarmed glance before Gadget tapped away at his half of the console to bring up the radar. He frowned as quite a few pings were picked up following a cursory scan of the surrounding ten or so kilometers.

"Lots of signals on our six," he told everyone, "and they're closing fast. Prepare yourselves!"

"Don't worry about us, foxy," his sister said with a grin, "this sky chase is about to go very badly for those birds."

Miles chuckled and flashed them a peace sign. "I'll see you when you get here, then."

"Go and teach that fake you a lesson for hurting Cream!" Amy cheered him on.

"Give him one for me and all the guys, too!" Charmy added.

Gadget cut the call and leaned down to tap near the soles of his boots as his free hand pulled a lever next to his seat. Gizmo placed her green escrima stick into a compartment on her side, replacing it with a purple one while her other hand tapped a button on the dash. "Autopilot Engaged" blinked on the screen, and the twins' board-type Extreme Gears popped out from the storage space between their chairs.

"Be careful, Gad," the she-wolf warned him as she gently handed Cheese off to Amy in the back, "Lav still has your grappler."

Her brother chuckled a bit. "That's why I had Miles help modify my boots, just like you got him to help you make your newer sticks." He gazed back at the controls. "Espio, take point on Remi and help him get the kids straight to Miles and the others."

"Consider it done," the chameleon responded coolly.

Gadget grunted in affirmation, then looked at the tiny teen on his shoulder. "Charmy, you help the rest of us guard the rear and take care of our pursuers."

"You can count on me, buddy!" the bee boy exclaimed confidently.

An audible gulp came from Lavender's end. "Does that mean...?"

"You're going to have to detach the cable from the back of the craft," the red wolf confirmed, "otherwise you won't be able to maneuver to the board's best ability."

The cat let out a sigh that betrayed his anxiety at the prospect, but he said nothing more. The twins bumped their respective dominant fists, then tapped a pair of big red buttons near the center of the console. The glass dome over the cockpit opened up, momentarily subjecting the six passengers to buffeting winds before the wolves and the bee leapt free from the Sea Fox. As for the kids, Vector and Amy moved to the front seats to get a better view of the action, and in the case of the croc, to try his hands at flying. He was disappointed when he got a warning beep from Remi, the console blaring "Access Denied" in big red letters. Gizmo swiftly righted herself on her Gear with help from her grappler, while the bottom of Gadget's boots magnetized to his board and Charmy poofed back to full size. And as reluctant as he was to do so, Lavender withdrew the line he had to the vehicle.

"Just keep focused on the bad guys," the cat told himself to try and calm the butterflies in his stomach.

Thankfully, the feeling mostly went away when the twins flew over to flank him, with Charmy taking up Gadget's other side so they were all in a horizontal row. Seeing as he was the only one who could go backwards and still maintain both his speed and trajectory, the insect swiveled around to see their prospective foes. Like Gadget had said, there were quite a few people on their tail, at least a few dozen from a casual observation, and less than a couple of kilometers away when he spotted them. Most of them were single-seat monoplanes and jet fighters, with a few heavier units making up the rear line, and one large aerial cruiser. All of them sported a black, purple, and silver color scheme, and as they got closer, Charmy could make out an insignia that resembled the skull of a great horned owl.

"Here they come!" he exclaimed.

The twins pulled an 180 and headed into the fray, Gizmo with her red and purple sticks in hand while Gadget activated the Lightning Baton in whip form. Lavender stayed close to the Sea Fox, one hand ready to grapple it or his Gear if need be, the other keeping his blaster at the ready. Charmy slowed himself down enough so that he could gradually get closer to the incoming squadron, but also zip over to Espio if need be. As for the chameleon, he was standing by with all of his ninja tools at the ready, keeping a sharp eye on his surroundings.

The first wave came in range of the wolves, those closest to the pair opening fire with their turrets. Given that they were even smaller targets than the ones attacking them, however, Gadget and Gizmo were able to evade the hail of high-caliber rounds with little issue. The red twin cocked his arm back as he advanced on one of his attackers, flipping and twisting around the shots sent his way. When he was close enough, he lashed his whip at the controls to overload them, and the enemy fighter swiftly went down. The teal twin dipped down and came up on the rear of another, her purple escrima lighting up as she leapt from her board. She went higher than she normally would've been able and came down in her Rolling state right in front of the cockpit, knocking the plane out of the sky and bounding back to her Gear in short order. The two went on to tag-team a third combatant, Gadget drawing its attention while Gizmo closed in and jammed her red stick into the fuselage, yanking it away and getting clear once sparks started to fly.

"Wow, those are pretty cool!" Charmy exclaimed as he watched the twins in action, "can't let them have all the fun, though!"

With a boom, he buzzed over to the closest approaching craft and went into a mid-air Spin Dash, tearing through one of its wings and making it spiral out of control. Another tried to fill him full of holes, but he shrunk down to his flight mode and became nigh impossible to hit. He enlarged again once he was within spitting distance and stuck his stinger into the control panel of the cockpit. A third doggedly chased him around for several seconds, only backing off once Charmy nearly caused it to crash into one of its comrades. As it dove to avoid the collision, the bee was on top of it with a Drop Attack, his posterior point piercing the armor and taking it out of commission.

The survivor and a few other members of the first wave ignored those three and went after the Sea Fox, putting Lavender up to bat. The cat increased the blaster's power setting until it couldn't go any higher, then went into a squat with his grappler hand on the front of the board. The wind and speed at which he was traveling made aiming all the more difficult, so the next time a jet crossed his gun's sights, he squeezed the trigger. He was shocked when a concentrated beam streamed from the barrel instead of an energy projectile, catching his mark across the front and going through the engine. His surprise changed to satisfaction watching the jet go down, but he had no time to celebrate getting his first downed foe.

Swallowing back a lump, Lavender managed to total a second target after taking careful aim. He unfortunately didn't get more than that, as the remaining fighters gave the purplish cat a wide berth and went for the Sea Fox itself, each of them unleashing a missile to try and blow it to pieces. They were intercepted by a handful of shuriken courtesy of Espio, who followed that up by tossing out a couple of kunai with slips of paper attached to them. The blades did nothing on their own, but the moment sparks from metal striking metal landed on the tags, they exploded with the same amount of force as Miles and the twins' mini bombs. The aircraft went down just as quickly as they'd approached, marking the complete routing of the first wave.

The second one, more than a dozen strong, was quick to replace them, and unlike the initial squad, weren't keen on engaging the group. The chameleon ninja attempted to intercept them, but only managed to nick a couple before they flew past the Sea Fox towards the steadily enlarging island on the horizon. It seemed that even with the opposition they faced, they were determined to get to whatever objective they were tasked with. This left the gang to deal with an even bigger third wave, not to mention more ships beyond them than they'd initially believed.

"Uh, guys?" Lavender called out over his comm worriedly as he dodged more cannon fire, "isn't this a bit much without our power trio here to help?"

"Of course it's a bit much, Lav," Gadget replied while he lashed and brought down another fighter, "but we can't just let them get away!"

Another flash lit up the air as Charmy brought down his fourth foe. "Yeah, we can't let West Side Island go through a second invasion!"

"There won't be one," came a voice none of them expected to hear over their channels.

A green and white blur zoomed past each of them, slamming into any NBA aircraft in its way. Nearly ten jets were taken out within less than that many seconds, and the previously unidentified newcomer showed himself to the others. While not everyone in Miles' extended circle had met him, all of them at least knew about him, whether from the news or stories. And for more than a few of them, he was the last person they expected or even wanted help from. But now that they knew that since the NBA was central to the current conflict, then his involvement, much less his assistance, was inevitable.

"Leave this to them," Speedy told the twins as he flew up alongside them, motioning in the direction he came from.

When they looked, they saw a few dozen Blue Eagle jets, along with numerous Gun and Rocket Beetles, moving in to intercept the NBA's forces. The approach to West Side Island changed into a hectic dogfight, with the Animals having to make some distance so they didn't get hit by enemy or friendly fire. Seeing as how G.U.N. was now handling the brunt of the matter, the team decided to regroup and resume their mission to rendezvous at the island. As Speedy joined them, one of the Eagles broke off from the group and followed after him, revealing his partner, Rouge the Bat, at the controls.

"Hey there, it's been a while," she said to the others with a smirk, also tapped into their frequency. When answered with accusatory stares and silence, she let out a chuckle. "Still sore about me trying to do my job, huh?"

"Stealing is stealing, even if the world's biggest paramilitary organization orders it," Gadget told her plainly, "and don't give me that 'he doesn't own it' nonsense." He narrowed his eyes. "If we want to split hairs, G.U.N. has no more right to it than he does."

The agent shrugged, never losing her smile. "I don't disagree with you there, Red, but I don't like giving up on things that catch my eye."

"Don't antagonize them, Rouge," Speedy said, "we need each other's help, as reluctant as both Miles and I are to admit it." He folded his arms mid-flight. "As for the case regarding his Emerald, it's been dropped for the time being in light of recent developments."

Gizmo, having been there back during that bungled theft, had plenty of choice words for the bat, but bit back her tongue for the moment. She would still keep an eye on Rouge, as she didn't trust the suspension of an assignment to keep the operative from being greedy.

'Especially not when she's so so unabashed about it,' she thought with a toothy frown.

"Speaking of, I noticed that your fearless leader isn't with you," the ace said as he looked over the group, "nor is that prickly pal of his. I thought you were all together, last time I talked to him."

"When was that?" Lavender asked.

"When you all were on Angel Island," Speedy replied, "I also heard that you came across the Jackal Squad, and that they were looking for something. Although he didn't say, I suspect it was a certain unique specimen of a sapphire that they're after."

Charmy looked at him with an impressed expression. "Wow, he didn't tell you, but you got it right! Maybe you'd make a good detective, Speedy."

The former prince let out a heavy sigh of his own, partly at the bee's commentary and his partner giggling in his ears. It seemed that the more concerning possibilities he'd thought about were set to happen. Still, there were some gaps in information and apparently communication, as they didn't know he and Miles had been in recent contact. If they were to beat their common foes before things got too chaotic, everyone needed to be on the same page.

"Hey, Lav," Gadget called over the comms, "want to make a bet with Sis and I?"

The cat let out an intrigued hum. "What kind of bet?"

"We bet you 1000 Rings that when Miles rescues Cream," Gizmo elaborated, "they're going to kiss on the air."

"What? No way," Lavender scoffed, "Miles might be brave, but he doesn't have those kinda guts. And Cream really doesn't strike me as the kinda girl that would do that, either."

The red wolf snickered. "So it's a bet, then?"

"You're on!"

Speedy rolled his eyes; this was going to be a long flight to West Side Island.

(Studiopolis, Club Spin Studios)

"You might think this is a good idea, but it isn't!" Cream shouted at her captor.

Mecha peered over at her while it remotely adjusted the cameras and lightning on their set. "You only say that because I haven't divulged all the details."

"What do you mean?" the bunny girl inquired, a little less uncertain after hearing that.

The artificial vulpine finished up its work, then hovered over to her. It cupped her chin in one hand, making her shudder at the cold, metallic surface against her soft fur that was so unlike the real Miles' touch.

"I am based upon an intelligent, but emotional individual," Mecha began, "he devotes such time to mechanical and personal improvements among other projects, yet he will come for you, or his surrogate family, or anyone with even a slight modicum of significance at the drop of a pin."

Cream could infer that there was something else to what Mecha was saying, but she couldn't figure out what exactly. In response, she just, prompting the mockery of her significant other to chuckle in an eerie, synthetic tone.

"The thing is..." The ferrous fox leaned in a bit closer. "That pitiful force attacking his friends, as well as the units here in Studiopolis, are naught but small fry. I have no real expectations of them actually standing a chance against my prototype and his group."

The bunny girl's eyes widened. "Then this whole show you've put on..."

"Is an elaborate distraction from the real operation," Mecha finished for her, "Alexei was planning to announce his return and conquest at some point, so he had this location secured a few weeks ago. I simply made use of what he installed, along with other things."

"But why go to all this trouble?" Cream questioned, "weren't you created to fight him?"

The steely canid folded its arms. "That is my primary objective, but I was ordered to merely bait him away from what the NBA is truly up to." Its optics gazed more intently at her. "Although, I am not programmed to obey Alexei's every whim like I was my original creator. For instance, I didn't have to tell you what the real purpose of me abducting you was, nor did I have to give Miles advance notice about how the NBA's air force was going to run into his friends."

Before Cream could consider just what Mecha was getting at, a series of interspersed beeps came from the robot, its optics brightening in anticipation. For the rabbit, however, she was instead filled with dread, as she knew that sound could only mean one thing. But just as the automaton was about to make the cameras start rolling, the doors to the set were blown off their hinges by a very angry Miles. Sonic and Knuckles were by his sides in a flash, with J and Blue taking up a couple of rear positions. Upon seeing the Animal it's based on, Mecha removed its hand from Cream's neck and turned to face them.

"Well now, it seems you arrived just in time after all," Mecha commented, letting out a synthesized laugh as its optics centered on the fox, "although you cut it rather close there, wouldn't you say?"

Miles breathed in and out rather audibly as he took a few steps forward, gloves taut. "You wanted me here, so here I am."

"Indeed you are," the robot replied calmly, taking hold of one of the Binding Rings around Cream, "and your little rabbit is no worse for wear than when you last saw her."

"How gallant," J remarked sarcastically, "now, how about you release her?"

Mecha simply ignored the cross fox and snapped its fingers, making the others shield their eyes as the massive studio headlamps flipped on. The sound of grinding metal reached their ears next as some of the walls were pulled back to reveal the room was even larger, and rows upon rows of spikes were soon sticking out from the ceiling. Last but not least, three machines hovered onto the set that were similar to Dr. Robotnik's hovercraft, but with some notable differences. They sported the colors of the NBA, and each was piloted by a Combatant with traditional BKE colors. The pods differed in that one had three headlamps instead one, another had blue windmill plates on its sides, and the third had a green and yellow Tesla coil-like attachment on the bottom.

During all of this commotion, Mecha had taken Cream off to one side. Miles was about to go over to them himself, only to step back when one of the hovercrafts fired a blast at his feet. He gritted his teeth as he saw his doppelganger waving a finger at him admonishingly.

"Hello again, everyone," Mecha greeted the audience through the cameras, "Miles Prower arrived in the nick of time, and so this young lady lives." It pointed to the three Combatants. "But before she can be safe, there are a few fellows that wish to pay the fox back for the humiliation he's dealt them."

"That's right, Prower!" crowed the one in the pod with the lightning coil, "as surviving members of the Empire, it is not only our personal desire, but sworn duty to defeat you!"

The other two let out a cheer along with the first one to show their camaraderie. However, when it came to the fox and his friends, they all shared questioning and confused looks.

"I have no idea who you guys are," Miles told them bluntly.

A collective gasp came from the trio. "We fought you and that blue brat last time we ran into each other! Don't tell us you don't remember!"

"I don't remember these guys," Sonic said with a shrug.

Another of the Combatants spluttered in disbelief. "T-they're messing with us."

"If anyone's messing with anyone, it's you weirdos," Blue jeered at them.

"Weirdos!? I'll have you know that we were the formidable pilots of–"

"Shut up!" Knuckles interjected, punctuating it by lunging at them with a fist drawn back.

The pilot let out a fearful squawk and dodged the oncoming Explosive Punch, which left a rather sizable hole after striking the nearby wall. Mecha let out a sound of amusement at the preemptive move, folding its arms as it stood back and watched the action unfold.

"You heard the Guardian," it said in a commanding tone, "they don't care, so just attack."

The windmill pilot growled and activated the plates on his pod, the bottom side opening up and sending out an immense gust of air. It was so powerful, in fact, that it swept the five Animals off their feet and into an updraft, steadily carrying them towards the ceiling spikes. Sonic and Knuckles both grabbed onto the support beams above the stage where the lights were, hanging tight as they rode out the currents. Blue fired up his jet boots to zip over and come to J's aid, leaving Miles free to strike their foe. Using his two tails, he closed the gap between him and the active hovercraft and flipped himself under it, using the updraft to Roll into it.

This temporarily disabled the device and caused the winds to subside, the Combatant a bit shook up by the blow as well. The fox landed and went into a Spin Dash, hoping to catch Mecha napping. His doppelganger had anticipated this, however, and deployed its Amber Barrier, causing Miles to ricochet off of the crystal-shaped shield. And to dissuade a repeat attempt, the robot pressed an arm cannon against one of Cream's cheeks.

"Careful," Mecha reproved him, "another stunt like that, and your rescue efforts will have been for naught."

Miles hissed between his teeth and backed off, unwilling to risk her life any further than it already had been. As he went to rejoin the rest, the Combatant in the triple-lights hoverpod tapped at his console, rotating the set's headlamps so they covered as wide an area as possible. They went from bright to nearly blinding, but the heat from them intensified even more than the luminosity, to the point where the ground beneath them visibly began to radiate.

"Yeow!" Sonic yelped as he part-hopped, part-dashed over to an unlit area, "it's startin' to feel like Padon Tunnel in here!"

Both he and his partner brought out their projectors and brought up a Fire Shield, rendering the burning rays from the lights ineffective against them. Blue's armor allowed him to keep above the places of exposure, while Knuckles and J retreated to cooler spots. Given that there weren't many areas to run to, it was fairly predictable where they would end up, and the Combatants were counting on this. As two of them tried to keep the main fox and hedgehog pair busy, the third one fired a volley of energy from the hovercraft's front.

To his frustration, the Echidna easily danced around his shots even in the limited space, and though the cross fox was having a harder time of it, he still managed to avoid getting nicked or singed. Noticing this, the avian prepared to focus the next round on what seemed to be the most vulnerable target. He brought his metal hand over the firing button and–

CRICK!

The hovercraft rocked a bit due to a blow from above, prompting the Combatant to glance upward. His one good eye practically bulged out of his head as he saw that the tempered glass dome was heavily cracked. Adding to that, Blue was kneeling down on the center of the damage, loading a round into his launcher.

"Couple problems with your gimmicky heat tech," the full-suited fellow informed him, "first off, the space directly above and below your pods isn't illuminated, making it safe." He angled his weapon so that it was perpendicular to the glass, scanning his prospective targets with his visor. "And second, those lamps are really big and obvious."

A thump came as he pulled the trigger, but barely more than a second passed before the mortar-like ammo's shell broke. More than a dozen mini-missiles fired from the exposed core, all of them screaming towards the lights around the set. While not cast into darkness, the room was a lot more dim after the dust had cleared and the damage was done. Still reeling from how suddenly his advantage was taken away, the Combatant was oblivious to the cockpit's cover further breaking until he felt a weight fall into his seat. He barely got the chance to notice Blue had already retreated and left a spherical grenade in front of his lap when it went off, subjecting him and the pod to a short-range EMP. Both of them dropped to the ground in a heap, the vehicle totaled and its pilot unable to do more than crawl free from the wreck.

"You guys are gonna pay for that!" cried the one piloting the pod with the coil.

The forecast brought on by the Weather Globes changed for a third time, calling forth a billowing gloom that obscured the spiky ceiling and brought down rain. The dark clouds flashed and threw lightning all the same, each of them striking close to one of the heroes. Miles and Sonic also had their Fire Shields disabled by the downpour, leaving them without a buffer against the elements. The Combatant that had just used his Weather Globe chuckled and cawed triumphantly at his handiwork.

"How do you like that, fox boy?" he sneered, "and with your fear of lightning, you'll be easy pickings!"

Miles back-stepped away from a bolt and gave the bird a very unimpressed look. "I got over my astraphobia a while ago, and even if I hadn't?" He switched the setting on his projector and spent another Ring to reactivate it, covering himself in a Lightning Shield. "I have this, which renders your artificial thunderstorm useless."

To demonstrate, he threw his arms wide in a daring pose, tempting any of the storm clouds to respond. He didn't have to wait long to get what he wanted, and as expected, the supercharged plasma did nothing.

"You just have an answer for everything, don't you?" the windmill craft's Combatant grumbled, "well, how about a gust to go with that? I bet that barrier doesn't protect you from getting kebab'd!"

As before, the winds came to sweep the fox and his friends off their feet, but they were ready for it that time. The three that couldn't fly in some way or form grabbed onto something to keep them from ascending further, while Blue went to cover them as Miles went in to counter. He halted when he noticed that the clouds, and by extension the rain and lightning, were steadily dispersed by the second gale storm. The two remaining Combatants felt their beaks drop at the revelation that their machines couldn't be used in tandem. Said shock swiftly became anger that was directed towards each other.

"Look what you did, you idiot!" griped the one in the storm hovercraft.

"No one told me the Globes couldn't work together!" argued the other.

Their squabble was prevented from devolving any further by an amber blur bouncing off of them like a pinball. The windy pod lost half of its plates from the hit, causing the winds to once again die down. The pilot hurriedly put his ride in reverse, hoping to get away before Miles came in and dealt him an even bigger blow. He didn't realize that he was backing up towards Sonic and Knuckles, the latter being juggled in his Rolling state by the former. The hedgehog threw the Echidna up into the air and jumped up after him, winding back one of his legs.

"Thunder Shoot!" he called out, giving his friend's form a firm kick.

The second Weather Globe's engines were wrecked by the combination attack, falling to the ground and popping open its dome, the Combatant tumbling out dizzily. Though intimidated by both of his partners being downed, the third former BKE soldier once again brought forth storm clouds. Miles carried on undeterred thanks to his Lightning Shield, giving the front a good mid-air Spin Dash. This knocked it back a bit to where J was, the cross fox fishing out his own Emerald from under his damp shirt.

"Time to show what you can do," he remarked as a bright white aura outlined his mostly dark fur.

J performed a Rolling Jump from his perch in the rafters to knock the enemy down a bit. From there, he landed and dashed so that he was directly below the vehicle, concentrating the sheen around him into his tail. Though already pretty dark, the fluffy limb suddenly became black as pitch and as smooth as glass. Moreover, the edge of the cross fox's appendage had become flat and thin, so much so that it reminded his cousin more of a blade. And that was precisely what J had in mind when devising such an ability with the white Emerald's power.

"Obsidian Scalpel!" he shouted as he sprang up and slashed at his target with his tail.

He cleaved through the bottom of the hovercraft, taking out not only the coil, but also the floor beneath the Combatant. The bird shrieked and scrambled to hang onto the console as his seat dropped out from under him. Without its critical control device, the second bout of rain was even more short-lived than the first. And now that he no longer had complete protection, it was easy for J to jump back up and grab onto his boots, forcing him to fall due to the added weight. They both got free of the Weather Globe in time to avoid it coming down on top of them, and the fox made sure to knock the other fellow out for good measure.

"And that's all three!" Sonic exclaimed as he struck his usual pose, "alright, Mecha, now you–huh?"

Everyone glanced over at where Mecha and Cream were, only to find that while the rabbit was still there, the ferrous fox had given them the slip. On top of that, Cream had also been released from her bonds, and she wasted no time in running over to them and throwing her arms around Miles. The two-tailed teen didn't hesitate to do the same, lifting her a little so she could rest her head on his shoulder.

"He didn't do anything else to you, did he?" Miles asked her quietly.

Cream shook her head against him. "No. He just let me go and left after you guys took care of the second machine."

"I guess I'll have to take care of him another time." He set her down, flashing her a smile with no small amount of relief reflected in his eyes. "Anyway, I'm glad you're okay."

The two of them shared a little laugh, then embraced once more, with Cream sneaking a quick peck on the fox's muzzle. Miles chuckled bashfully and tucked her head under his chin as he felt his cheeks burn, getting a giggle from the rabbit in turn. After a few more moments, they let each other go and turned around. It was only then that the realization hit them: not only had the other four seen their display of affection, but they were still being shown on the studio TVs. With speed that thoroughly impressed even his young partner, Miles went around disabling all of the cameras in the area.

Not a minute later, the Miles Electric went off with a familiar metal tune, Gizmo's icon blinking on screen. The fox hesitated for a moment before he answered, letting out a dreadful groan at what greeted him on the hologram. The twins both had broad and knowing grins on their muzzles, and their younger sibling could see that all-too familiar glint in their eyes.

"Normally, we'd give you hell for what we saw, little bro," Gadget remarked deviously.

"But we'll save the teasing for another time," Gizmo said just as devilishly. Her features softened and became a bit more pleasant after a couple seconds. "We're very happy you're okay, Cream."

"Yeah, Mecha gave us a real scare with what he did to you!" Charmy added as he came into the image, giving his best friend a peace sign, "good work on kicking his butt, buddy!"

There was an awkward silence in the studio as Miles turned his head away with disappointment on his face and Cream tapped her fingers sheepishly. When it became apparent that neither of them were going to answer for a hot second, J decided to step up to the plate.

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news," he told them apologetically, "but we were preoccupied with a few...footnotes, as it were. And while we were contending with them, Mecha left Cream behind as he made his exit."

"Yeah, but it should be easy to find him," Sonic said dismissively, "he's got an Emerald we can track with the Radar."

That was true enough, Miles thought. There was still the matter of the Jackal Squad to deal with, though. Also, the fact that the Tornado was still on Angel Island; that was going to make getting around difficult if they wanted everyone along.

"Maybe he's going back to Alexei," Cream supposed, turning everyone's attention to her, "he did say that the broadcast was meant to be a distraction."

"Wait, what!?" Amy shouted as she butted in on the call, along with an indignant chirping Cheese, "he nabbed you and set this all up just for that!?"

Miles put his hands on the rabbit's shoulders and looked at her square in her cinnamon-brown eyes. "Did he tell you what it's a distraction from?"

"Not specifically. He only said that it was meant to bait you away from the NBA's real operation, but I don't know what that could be."

The fox sighed, but offered her a gentle smile all the same. It couldn't be helped if his doppelganger didn't give her anything beyond vague wording. Besides, it wouldn't be too difficult to dig around and find out what it was that Alexei was really up to. There were three perfectly good soldiers nearby that they could persuade to tell them, one way or another. But before any ideas of interrogation could be entertained, Blue walked up so that he was close enough to be seen by the other party.

"I know what it is," he said seriously.

"You do?" Sonic questioned, part of his brow perked.

Blue nodded firmly. "If it's not too much to ask, I'd rather wait until everyone is here in person before I go into specifics."

It was an odd request, but Miles didn't see a problem with granting it. It would take some time for everyone to be brought up to speed, anyway.

(Somewhere in the Pacific...)

Tao stood on the edge of one of the multiple tiers of a Japanese pagoda, which itself was but one of several built at points in the perimeter of an ancient castle. Though snow covered the windows and prevented most from being able to see, the abandoned estate possessed a rather expansive printing press within its interior walls. Decorative Hansen Writing Balls, conveyor belts, and crates and crates of ink, paper, and replacement parts could be found in many of the rooms. Pink vines were everywhere in spite of the cold, some of them slipping through cracks in the stone and continuing to grow inside. The outer areas, such as the courtyard and garden, were filled with spectacular cherry blossoms that almost seemed to glow in the wintry landscape. A slew of smaller karahafu and mokoshi style buildings could be seen as well, several of which were decorated with paper lanterns. And beyond those surroundings, the monochromatic jackal could see snow-capped mountains and a nearby valley with what appeared to be a rural little village built around an equally modest river.

Much like when they'd been transported to that rather verdant location a while ago, their Ring-powered devices had been rendered temporarily inoperable by the Sapphire. Unlike that previous place, there weren't a whole lot of Rings to replace the depleted ones, and so the group had scattered the grounds to search for any. Tao had already located some, and he'd promptly put one into his comm so that he could be hailed once the others got theirs back online. Moreover, he'd also restored his map tool, and with a few minutes to adjust for the dramatic change in location data, he determined where they were.

And yet, the second-in-command of the Squad hadn't reported back to the rest of them just yet. In fact, he hadn't moved from his current spot for the past several minutes. He'd simply been gazing out at the landscape and all its beauty, and though he wasn't used to it, he wasn't bothered by the cold. But while his eyes were on the castle and the area around it, Tao's mind was elsewhere. Rather often, he found himself thinking deeply about a lot of things that seemed to go over most of the other jackals' heads, at least when he felt like sharing.

"So here's where you were," came the voice of the Squad's fearless and ruthless leader.

Tao glanced back over his shoulder at Zero, who stepped out of the nearest window on that level of the pagoda. "Just been enjoying the view, Boss."

"Yeah, I can see that," the head jackal replied in his usual gruff manner, "so, where are we?"

"According to my GPS, we're somewhere in a mountain range northwest of Kyoto, Japan." Tao shrugged, pulling out a hand-rolled cigarette and a flip-top lighter from a waterproof pouch. "Pretty far from where we were just a little while ago."

Zero hummed and crossed his arms. "Any sign of the fox and his gang?"

"From what I can tell, it seems like they got sent somewhere else this time." The taller jackal lit his stick and took a small puff. "Gives us a little breathing room for the moment."

The jackal with yellow and blue eyes grunted and stuck out a couple fingers, gesturing for his subordinate to hand him a cigarette. Tao obliged and also got the end of it burning for him, watching his boss take in a deep drag and let out a big cloud of mixed smoke and steamy breath due to the cold.

"Good job getting us out of that mess, by the way," Zero commended him.

Tao shook his head. "It's nothing that's not expected of me, Boss."

"Damn right about that. Still, you did well." The leader took another hit. "And I bet you saw something weird when you touched the gem, huh?"

The oddly patterned jackal stopped just as he was about to have another puff and gazed at Zero. "What makes you say that, Boss?"

"Because I did, so there's no way you didn't," Zero answered him bluntly.

If his superior was willing to admit to such a thing, then Tao knew he couldn't argue. He said nothing else until he had that drag he'd been meaning to partake in, letting it out with a long sigh.

"Alright, I did," he admitted, returning his gaze to the scenery in front of them, "but it's not important."

Zero snorted. "Should've just said that at the start." He flicked some ash off the end of his cig. "I normally don't like fixating on stuff, but what I saw is something I just can't stop thinking about, Tao. Lend me an ear, will ya?"

Tao nodded lightly, listening intently as his leader told him about the shadowy scene that the Sapphire had shown him when he first touched it. The blasted battlefield and the countless corpses and weapons that littered it, the hunting parties that pursued fleeing survivors, and the general bedlam that had seized the entire world. He noticed the sinister satisfaction in Zero's eyes and voice when recounting this strange vision, and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't at least a little bothered by it.

'That's nothing like what I saw,' he thought, staring at the other canine uneasily, 'just what's up with this gemstone that Al wanted us to get for him?'

"Anyway, that's what I saw the first time I touched it," the leader of the Squad finished, "and you know something, Tao? It made me realize that some part of me's wanted to make that happen for a long time. Guess I never really felt motivated until that rock showed me what it'd be like."

Tao took more than a moment to respond, his eyes on the wisps rising from his cigarette. "You know what we have to do next."

"Yeah." Zero held up the Sapphire and gazed at the eight-pointed black star in its core. "Al said we needed both this and that 'Phantom Ruby' if we wanted to make things real. And since he's got the Ruby..." His other hand ran along the blunt side of his scimitar's curve. "We need to find him and take it from him." He flicked his spent cigarette over the side and started walking back towards the window. "He's probably doing something to keep us from scanning for him or whatever, but he can't hide forever. You know what to do."

The taller jackal bowed his head. "I'll flush him out so you can pounce."

"That's why you're our scout and my right hand guy, Tao. Now hop to it!"

"Of course, Zero." Tao stiffened a bit at the glare that Zero gave him upon turning his head. "Sorry, Boss, slip of the tongue."

The Squad's leader harrumphed and waved it off. "I'll let it slide this time since it's just us two here. Don't call me by name in front of the others, though, you know I don't like it."

And with that last bit of warning, Zero ducked back into the pagoda and went on his way. Tao decided soon after that he'd had enough of the cold for now, snuffing his stick and heading back inside the building. After climbing to a higher floor, he found a room that was mostly barren aside from some Japanese candelabra and a dusty, blanketed kotatsu with an old-fashioned charcoal brazier. There were enough lumps and chunks to get it going, and after lighting the pieces of blackened wood, the jackal managed to heat up the space around the covered table frame. After beating some of the dust out of the blanket, he put it back on the frame, slid his legs beneath it, and retrieved another cigarette from his waterproof pouch. He lit it up and pinched it between his teeth as he took in a deep puff, leaning back on both of his hands after exhaling.

'So that's what that was,' he contemplated as he blew a few smoke rings, 'a vision of what I really want.' He dragged some more on his stick and let it out a bit more forcefully. 'I've been at this for so long, I'd almost forgotten about it.' The jackal shook his head. 'Zero would hate me even more if he heard it, though. Our greatest desires contradict each other in too many ways; wholly incompatible.'

Of course, just because his leader would never let Tao have his way didn't mean the right hand couldn't get it. He could help them get the Ruby, and then nab the Sapphire during Zero's self-congratulatory hubris. He could spirit the gem away and use it to get to Alexei, whereupon he could easily grab the other one. There was even the possibility of getting rid of Zero altogether and taking his place as the head of the Jackal Squad, leading them himself to strike at the owl and the fox. But no matter how many scenarios he ran through his head, Tao knew he couldn't actually go through with any of them.

'I swore that I would stay with Zero,' he mused morosely, 'that I would help make him strong enough to live whatever kind of life he wanted.' He looked down to see he was already halfway done with his cig, then flicked off the ash and breathed in some more. 'I'd never purposely get in his way, but if that fox beats us again? Then maybe we should retire from raiding.' He put on a toothy frown as smoke filtered through his fangs. 'As if he'd ever let us break away from the Squad. He wouldn't even let me live a normal life once he was old enough to know how to properly handle a blade.' A bitter chuckle escaped his muzzle along with more smoke. 'I wonder where we'd be and what we'd be like if I'd stopped him from doing what he did back then. What could've been, huh?'