Archive of Our Own ^beta

Minutes Earlier

He looked down at the basket. Scanning each of the items and comparing them to the list that was currently displayed to the side of his vision. The list contained various screws, bolts, wires, and cleaning supplies for various tools and metals. As he scanned each item parts of the list became highlighted green, confirming each item on the list. Soon every item on the list was highlighted.

Satisfied, Metal Sonic walked over to the counter and placed the basket on it. From behind, the store clerk stared at him before examining the contents of the basket.

"Guess he needed some supplies." The clerk said as he started taking them out and scanning them.

"He overestimated how much he had remaining." Metal Sonic stated. "He sent me to retrieve them."

"Though I'm not surprised he ran out a bit more quickly than usual." The clerk said as he continued to scan the items. "Considering he now has to work on you occasionally."

Metal considered what he said. It was true that since becoming both the new hero and Tails's new surrogate brother, it had brought them both new responsibilities. One of which being Tails having to repair and perform maintenance on him every now and then. After all, he was not an organic being like Sonic was, any damage he sustained remained there until it could be repaired. Tails found out how often he was going to have to do that when he started repairing Metal after various battles and soon found that he was going through various tools to do the job.

And the clerk was correct. Trips to stores have become more frequent thanks to the maintenance Tails now had to do. With cleaning supplies being the most frequent purchase.

"It is an adjustment to him." Metal said. "It was inevitable that he would need to learn to care for me."

"To be honest, I'm surprised you're the one picking this up." The clerk said as he scanned the last of the items. "I expected the fox to be here."

"He could not come here today. He was busy with a project that required him to keep an eye on."

"I see." The clerk said as he rang up the price of the items. Seeing the price, Metal got the money out to pay for it.

"How is he doing by the way?" The clerk asked as he started to bag the items. "I know it's been a year since…you know. But how's he holding up?"

Metal paused for a moment, thinking of some of his interactions with Tails over the past year before responding. "He is fine. There have been times where he misses his brother, but he has handled those moments well."

"Just making sure. I knew what happened was hard on him, it was hard on all of us, but he seemed to be the most affected during that time. I don't blame him considering how close he was with Sonic."

The clerk then took the money and held the bag out. "Here you go."

Metal was about to take the bag when the sound of an explosion came from outside the store. Everyone inside stopped what they were doing and looked towards the entrance of the store. From outside they heard the sounds of robots marching and panicked screaming and a second later, a few people burst into the store.

"It's Eggman." One of them said as they entered the store. "He and his robots are attacking the town."

Eggman. His former master turned nemesis. He was attacking this town whose civilians were simply going about their day. Of course, since leaving the doctor, he had seen how cruel and petty he can really be.

Turning to the door he could see robots roaming the streets. Some were slightly obscured by the cars while others hovered just above them.

"I'll hold this for you." The clerk said holding up the bag. "You can do your thing."

Metal nodded and ran out of the store, ready to confront the robots. As soon as he was out, he spotted several Egg-Pawns with blasters roaming around the street, blasting any random building they saw. There were also a few Buzz-Bombers flying just above them, scanning the area around them.

As he stared, Metal marked bots that were priority to take down. Starting with the Buzz-Bombers, as their weapons could potentially damage himself and any innocents from above. The latter concern due to his knowledge of how inaccurate the shots from the Buzz-Bomber could be. The Egg-Pawns were more accurate, but he could use that to his advantage in the fight.

Metal ran onto the street and leaped into the air, using his thruster engine to give himself a boost to get on the level of the nearest Buzz-Bomber. He then grabbed its wings and tore them off causing it to fall to the ground, twitching as it tried to fly. Metal then stomped on it with both feet as he landed.

At that point, the robots had gained his attention and were aiming their weapons at him. Various warnings were being displayed in his visions of incoming shots. As they began to fire Metal dodged the shots, moving towards them as he did so. A couple grazed off him, leaving black marks on his chassis. Reaching the nearest Egg-Pawn he brought an arm back and punched through the robot, instantly deactivating it. Kicking it down, he dodged a shot from another Egg-Pawn before leaping up to a Buzz-Bomber. The Pawn aimed its blaster at him before it fired just as he was above the Buzz-Bomber. Metal quickly grabbed the bee robot and put it in front of him, the shot hitting the buzz bomber. Tossing it aside, he activated his thruster and flew towards the Egg-Pawn with his arm outstretched. He grabbed onto its head and slammed the robot into the ground before gripping the head tighter, crushing it and deactivating.

He was then hit in the side, knocking him to the ground. Turning his head he saw one of the Egg-Pawns hiding behind a car, having flanked around while he was dealing with the others. Quickly getting up, he charged towards the bot, vaulting over the car roof and grabbing the arm with the blaster, forcing it to aim away from him as it charged. It fired harmlessly past him and Metal used his other arm to smash through the robot's chest, finding its processor and destroying it.

There was only one robot left now, a lone Buzz-Bomber who was now trembling as Metal turned his attention towards it. He then rocketed upwards, grabbing it and throwing it to the ground, the force of the impact smashing it as Metal landed in front of it.

Metal scanned the area, detecting no other robots in the area. However, Metal did not let his guard down. Eggman was likely nearby if his robots were here. Wherever he went, his robots were sure to follow.

Scanning for any signals of his robots in the area, excluding the ones he had destroyed, he detected a few others. But to his confusion, they were all deactivated. The Doctor could not have accidentally shut down his own robots. Then he caught one active signal coming from nearby. Just a few meters from where he was.

He started to follow the signal, activating his booster to get there faster. As he got closer, he heard the sounds of fighting. He did not know who was involved. From the chaos caused by the robots, it was unlikely to be from a civilian as they would likely go to safety in the chaos. He also did not recall seeing or detecting any allies when arriving at the town.

Allies…

Even though he had grown accustomed to it, it was still strange to refer to Sonic's friends as that. After fighting them for so long before.

He rounded a corner and stopped when he saw what was happening.

It was Silver Sonic, he was fighting someone who was quick enough to dodge a majority of his attacks while Eggman was watching. Metal watched in astonishment for a moment. Fighting Silver Sonic was a tricky task as he was designed to be capable of combating both him and his allies. Yet whoever was fighting him was managing to keep up with him.

Then he saw Silver Sonic knock his combatant down and lifted up into the air, the combatant getting up and looking around for him. It allowed him to get a clearer look at who Silver Sonic was fighting and Metal froze when he saw who it was.

It was Sonic The Hedgehog.

Metal stared at him, wondering how this was possible. Sonic was dead. He saw him die. He witnessed his funeral. How was he even standing here?

He watched as the seemingly resurrected hedgehog looked around for Silver Sonic before noticing him start to descend from above him. The hedgehog only had time to get out of the way of a direct hit before the robot hit the ground, the shockwave knocking him back before Silver Sonic then changed forward to grab him by the throat.

Continuing to watch, he watched Sonic struggle against Silver Sonic's grip as it looked like he and the doctor had a conversation. As he watched Sonic's eyes widen in response to what Eggman said, Metal did his best to tune his hearing to listen to the conversation. Managing to catch what Eggman said.

"You died once before. I'm just correcting that error."

He watched as Silver Sonic appeared to tighten his grip on Sonic, the hedgehog struggling harder to escape to no avail. Soon his movements became slower as he began to run out of air.

Metal knew he could not let the mysteriously resurrected hedgehog die. He needed answers and if he died, those answers would be lost.

Activating his thruster, he propelled himself towards Silver Sonic. As he got closer, he targeted the arm choking Sonic so he could free him. Once he was close enough he brought a fist forward and it hammered on the arm, freeing the hedgehog from the silver robots grip. In addition, Metal put his other hand on the head of the robot to shove him away from the hedgehog.

Silver Sonic went flying a few feet, bouncing off the pavement a couple times before skidding to a halt in front of Eggman. As it got back up, Metal took a quick look back at Sonic.

Now that he had a closer look, he could see the hedgehog recovering from his attempted strangulation. It was indeed Sonic, blue fur and quills, tan arms, and green eyes. Though he could see that his attire was different as his gloves and shoes seemed to be plated with gray steel. Something he could not recall seeing Sonic wear during his life.

"You!" He heard Eggman say, anger in his voice and Metal turned his attention back to him.

"First that blue rodent comes back from the dead to spoil my fun, now I have to deal with the one who betrayed me after he died."

"Okay, I am super confused now." He heard Sonic say between breaths as he recovered.

Metal Sonic glared at Eggman. "You were threatening the lives of civilians in the town. I was not going to tolerate such an attack on them."

Eggman growled in frustration. "If only you hadn't turned on me after he died." He muttered before pointing at him. "Silver Sonic, destroy him!"

Silver Sonic charged towards Metal with arms outstretched, while Metal braced himself for the hit. Silver Sonic hit him, with Metal grabbing the hands of the enemy robot. As they hurtled away from the doctor and the hedgehog, the two grappled, with Metal trying to break free from Silver Sonic's grip. Metal then planted his feet on the ground and activated his thruster, slowly skidding to a halt.

When he came to a complete stop Metal pulled Silver Sonic towards him, tossing the silver robot behind him and causing it to stumble. Metal then tried to punch it from behind, but Silver Sonic dodged to the side and turned around to respond with its own punch that Metal blocked. He countered with another punch, which connected to the other robots head.

The robot stumbled away from him and Metal used that opening to use his thruster to propel towards it and tackle it into a wall. With the enemy robot pinned, Metal drew a fist back to try and punch the robot, but Silver Sonic managed to free himself enough to move his head to the side away from the punch, causing Metal to hit the wall instead.

Silver Sonic then headbutted Metal hard enough to cause him to stumble back. He then kicked Metal to the ground and onto his back. Silver Sonic then jumped in the air, using his thruster to get higher before descending down feet first towards Metal, intending to stomp on the blue robot. Metal rolled out of the way before it hit him, with Silver Sonic's slamming into the ground. Metal meanwhile, used his thruster to quickly get back up on his feet. He saw Silver Sonic turn towards him, propelling a fist towards him which he dodged. Giving the silver robot a kick to the side. Metal aimed his fist towards its chest, where its processor was located. However, Silver Sonic recovered and grabbed his arm before slamming his face first into the ground.

Before Metal could get up, he felt something stomp on his right knee joint. An error flashed across his vision, notifying him that the lower half of the leg was now non-functional. Moving out of the way he struggled to his feet, which was not easy due to his now damaged leg. Once he got up, he looked down on it and tested it. The upper half of the leg was still functional, but it hung limp below the knee.

It was clear that with the damaged leg, dodging, countering, and fighting Silver Sonic was going to be more difficult now. He had to come up with a new strategy if he was to beat Silver Sonic. He just needed to hold off for a bit until he figured it out.

Silver Sonic lunged at him and he used his rocket booster to evade to the side, causing Silver Sonic to move past him instead. Metal punched at the back of the silver robot and connected, knocking it to the ground, though the swing caused Metal to stumble thanks to his damaged leg.

Silver Sonic got back up and tackled Metal to the ground. He used one arm to pin him to the ground and the other to start punching him, putting dents in his chassis while he attempted to dodge his blows. Only able to shift left or right to avoid the punches.

At that moment, something flashed across his vision. Reading it, he saw that it was a way to defeat Silver Sonic quickly. He knew he had to use it now before he sustained any further damage.

Grabbing Silver Sonic's shoulders, Metal headbutted the robot, stunning it and allowing him to shove Silver Sonic off of him. Using his thruster to quickly get up, he activated it again to charge at the silver robot. Just as he grabbed him, he piloted himself towards the sky. They flew up for hundreds of feet before Silver Sonic attempted to use his own thruster to try and force the other back on the ground. Metal increased power to his own in response.

As they struggled, Silver Sonic started to punch Metal in the torso, attempting to pierce his chassis in order to disable his thruster. Meanwhile, Metal scanned the silver robot's torso, looking for the part inside that enabled his own thruster. Soon, he detected it on the right side of his robot.

Bringing his arm back, his palm straight, fingers towards Silver Sonic, he targeted the middle torso of the robot. When the notification that the target was confirmed came up, he thrust his hand to the area. It pierced the silver robot's chassis, tearing the metal on impact. Metal gripped something inside the robot and ripped it out. Almost immediately, Silver Sonic's thruster died and the two were in the air for a moment.

Metal then grabbed the silver robot and activated his own thruster and propelled himself towards the ground, with Silver Sonic beneath him. He watched as the ground hurtled towards them, the road in the town becoming closer with each second. Silver Sonic struggled to escape his grasp, but Metal held firm.

They slammed into the ground, dust briefly obscuring them from anyone who was watching. A second later, his vision cleared and he saw how Silver Sonic fared.

He was laying on the ground, his arms and legs splayed out, and his optics were dark. The force from the impact had likely hit had enough for him to deactivate him. Though he had protected Metal from the same fate due to him shielding him from the fall.

Slowly looking up, he saw that he was back in front of the doctor and Sonic, who was watching him with awe having apparently witnessed the fight. Though the doctor wore a look of anger at his face.

Getting up, careful not to put too much pressure on his damaged leg, Metal gripped the body of Silver Sonic and tossed it towards the doctor, landing with a clunk in front of him.

Eggman glared at him in response, shaking in rage from within his shuttle.

"This isn't over." He finally said coldly. "You and that hedgehog may have foiled my plans today, but I will be back."

He pressed a few buttons in the shuttle and an arm extended from it and picked up the body of Silver Sonic. After he pulled it close to the shuttle, he turned and flew away. Metal watching as it disappeared into the distance.

Once he was gone Metal ran a diagnostic on himself to determine the damage he sustained during the fight. It came back telling him that there were a few parts within him that were damaged, but they could be easily fixed with his self-repair systems. Though there was damage such as the dents and scratches that would need to be fixed by Tails. Most critical was the leg, he would need to have Tails fix that as soon as possible when he returned to him.

He then turned his head to Sonic. First things first though.

He walked over to Sonic, dragging his damaged foot as he walked. As he approached, the resurrected hedgehog began to speak. "Thank you for saving me from that robot, but do you mind answering some questions right now. Because I have a…"

Metal grabbed the hedgehog, bringing him up to his face and used his arm to pin him against the car. Gently doing so to not damage his throat any further. "You are supposed to be dead." He stated.

"I've been getting that a lot here, and yet nobody is bothering to explain that to me." The hedgehog replied back.

"Tell me how you are alive." Metal continued, wanting information from him. "What is the last thing you remember?"

There was some hesitance in Sonic's face. His mouth opened and closed slightly as if he wanted to say something, but was not sure if he should really say it. After a few seconds he eventually answered.

"I woke up in a forest not far from here. I have no idea how I got here."

Metal had a feeling that Sonic was not telling him everything, his hesitancy to speak told him that. But it was clear he was telling the truth with what he said.

In addition, he was starting to realize that there was something off about Sonic. The confusion of his being told that he was dead was expected, but there were other things as well. He did not seem to recognize him that well, while the Sonic he knew would have known him on sight. In addition, while it was clear he recognized the doctor, the way he looked at him seemed like he was surprised to be there.

Lowering his arm he let go of Sonic, who rubbed his throat a bit. Sonic looked at him like he was surprised by the action.

"Look, I don't really know what's going on in this shatter-space." Sonic said to him. "It looks like my home, but it isn't. I really need someone to explain what's going on."

Metal did not recognize some of the words Sonic spoke, but he saw that Sonic clearly needed help. He seemed confused and lost and needed some answers. The best solution to this would likely be to take him to Tails.

He paused at that thought. Wondering whether it was a good idea to bring him to his brother. While Tails had clearly gotten over Sonic's death, there were times where he mourned him. Signs that he still missed his deceased brother.

How would he react if Metal brought his brother, miraculously resurrected, back to his home? Would it reopen some old wounds?

He looked back at the hedgehog. It became clear that if he was going to get answers, he was going to have to risk Tails's reaction to seeing Sonic again. Though he counted on Tails being able to handle it. The fox was far tougher than he looked.

"I am taking you to Tails." Metal said. "He may help you with the answers you need."

There was a look of surprise and hesitancy on Sonic's face, which was odd considering Sonic was quick to ask about him whenever he was brought up, before he nodded. "Yeah, that should be fine."

Metal nodded in acknowledgement, activated his thruster, and moved away from Sonic down the street.

"Hey, where are you going?" Sonic asked as he moved away.

"I need to pick up something I was getting for Tails before the doctor attacked." Metal explained. "I will be back for you shortly."

He then flew back to the tools shop to pick up the items.

After Robo-Him, that's what he was calling him for now, had returned with a bag, he had grabbed Sonic and lifted the two into the air with his thruster where they flew to where Tails lived. As they flew, it felt weird to Sonic to be held by Robo-Him. Either he held onto Tails or Tails held onto him whenever his brother flew, but it was always from under. Here Robo-Him pretty much carried him under one arm, forcing him to look down at the ground below.

He was still reeling and confused by the nature of the shatter-space. On top of being exactly like his old one and him having existed here but dead, a robot copy of him was doing his job in his place. And he still hadn't gotten any answers to what exactly was going on.

He was hesitant to accept Robo-Him's offer, unsure of if he should go to Tails considering what recently happened with Nine. But quickly realized if anyone had a chance to explain what was going on, it would be his brother's counterpart in this universe.

Just don't get too attached to him. A part of him thought. It's not really him.

Eventually, a forest came into view and Robo-Him began to slow down and descend. Sonic saw that there was a clearing with a runway and a small hanger and house that was nearby. Robo-Him quickly descended to the ground on the clearing. He let go of Sonic, causing him to stumble a bit.

Now that he was on the ground, he had a closer look at the house. He saw that it was one story with windows and a door in front, with a large, seemingly windowless, portion that was slightly taller than the house. Looking a bit closer at the hanger, he spotted a familiar looking plane inside it. The Tornado.

Tails must really be here. He thought as he looked at it. He was moving towards the house when Robo-Him's hand shot out to block him.

"You will stay outside." He stated.

Sonic blinked in surprise. "What?! You wanted me to see Tails and now you don't want me to see him?"

"He is not aware of your return yet. If you enter the home before he is prepared to see you he may react…." Robo-Him paused for a moment, considering what he may say next. "Poorly."

"Because I'm supposed to be dead?" Sonic asked. "I'm certain he'd be glad to see me after that."

"You did not see him grieve." Robo-Him argued. "It is possible your presence, unprepared, could reawaken unwanted emotions in him."

Sonic didn't respond, simply staring at Robo-Him.

Robo-Him turned towards the house. "I will let you know when you can come in." He stated.

He then walked towards the house. Limping due to his damaged leg. He'd give Robo-Him this, he was less annoying than the last one he encountered. Though he wasn't sure being super serious was a good trade-off. As he entered the door, Sonic wondered how often Robo-Him returned like this if he was living with Tails. Obviously Tails was smart enough to repair a robot.

He waited outside for a while. Each second growing more impatient. He didn't like waiting around for things. He wanted them to happen or to get there as soon as possible. And the fact that he had to wait frustrated him.

Deciding not to stand around, he walked near the windowless portion of the home. Pressing his ear to the wall, he heard muffled voices. One sounded robotic, definitely Robo-Him, and another sounded younger, likely this shatter-space's version of Tails.

Moving around the house, he tried to look for a window through the larger portion of the house, but any he found were too high up for him to allow him to see through. So he wasn't going to be able to spy in to see what was going on inside.

He walked over to the front door. He figured he could maybe sneak inside and look around the interior. He stopped in front of it, his hand hovering over the doorknob, hesitancy running through him and questions in his mind.

How different was this Tails going to be? Even though this world looked similar to his own he hadn't encountered any of his friends yet. Were they going to be robots like Robo-Him? Would they even trust him when they saw him? The counterparts tried to attack him the previous times, why should this be any different? Did he really exist here or was everyone lying? Why was he expecting this to play out any differently than in the other shatter-spaces?

He gripped the doorknob, trying to calm himself. He needed answers to what was going on here. And right now, this was the best chance he had. Figure that out now and he can figure out what to do after.

He turned the doorknob and slowly opened the door, trying his best to not make any noise as he did so. He then stepped inside the house and looked around.

Inside was a small living room with a couch with a table and tv in front of it. It was connected to a kitchen that looked tidy. With all the utensils hung and counters clean, and the plates and bowls neatly sorted when he checked the cabinets. Near the kitchen was a hallway with two doors that presumably led to a bedroom and a bathroom. Looking to his right away from the hallway, he saw another door. Behind it he heard the sounds of various tools being used and conversation he had heard before.

Must be Tails's workshop. He thought as he listened. So one thing is the same as the one that's mine.

He turned back to where the living room was, noticing various pictures hung on the wall. Walking over to them, he took a closer look at the contents.

On them were pictures of him with Tails. He saw that the Tails in the photos looked exactly like the one at his home. Not the angsty kid that Nine was, or the ferelness that was Mangey, or a pirate like Sails. Just the normal Tails he knew and cared about. The pictures showed him and his own counterpart around various locations of the world, some Sonic recognized, smiling and having a good time. Sonic reached towards one of them, depicting him hugging Tails as he seemed to try to playfully escape from him.

I really did exist here. He thought as he placed his hand on it.

Turning his head, he noticed one on the wall that looked far more recent. Walking over to it he saw that it was a picture of Tails with Robo-Him. Tails giving a smile while Robo-Him gave a thumbs up. He supposed that was one way you showed some happiness without a mouth.

Staring at it he wondered, if he really was dead, how Tails handled his death. Robo-Him probably helped in some way, but how did he initially handle it? It was likely that his friends here were also like the ones he knew, so did they help him as well? How did his death affect them? It began to sink in that even if his friends looked like the ones he knew, his death had likely affected them too and may not be the same ones he knew. So he still couldn't trust them regardless

Not like I've gotten used to that at this point. He sadly thought to himself. He reminded himself to not get attached to these versions of them. Once he figured things out, they wouldn't matter.

"I told you to stay outside."

Sonic looked behind him and saw Robo-Him standing there glaring at him. The door to the workshop open behind him.

"Well forgive me for not wanting to stand around outside while you got repaired." Sonic retorted. "I'm not exactly one to stand around. You should know this since you apparently knew me."

"I expected you to at least have some patience. Enough for you to at least take a run outside while I did some of my business."

"Hey, I have zero idea what's going on here, so sorry for wanting to investigate myself."

Robo-Him looked like he was about to speak when a voice from the workshop spoke. "Metal, who are you talking to?"

A figure walked through the door, and Sonic froze at the sight of him.

Tails emerged from the workshop. Like the photos he just saw, he looked like how he remembered him. He watched as he looked around for a moment before his eyes fell on him. He froze at shock at the sight of him, letting out a gasp.

For a few moments, neither of them moved. Just staring at each other in shock at each other's presence. Sonic wondered what was going through Tails's mind as he looked at him considering the supposed circumstances of this world he was now in. Tails has presumably spent a year thinking his counterpart was dead, so seeing him here must be a shock.

Finally, Tails slowly turned his head to Robo-Him. "Metal." He said shakingly. "Is he really there?"

Robo-Him nodded. "Affirmative. He is there."

"But….how?" Tails asked, still staring at Sonic.

"I am uncertain. But there are some oddities I saw when I met him."

"Like what, since I know he has never worn those gloves and shoes before."

"He was surprised by my presence, did not seem to know who I am, and while he recognized the doctor he appeared to be surprised by his presence."

Tails looked at Robo-Him, blinking in surprise. "He didn't know you? Could it be that he has some amnesia?"

"He does seem to know you, but I have not gotten much info from him to determine if that is the case."

"Then how is he here?" Tails asked again. "Since he was buried in the ground last we knew."

As the two talked, Sonic saw that Tails was relatively relaxed about talking to a robot copy of him. In fact, it was like it was normal for his brother. Watching the two, he wondered what happened to make these two close to the point where it was similar to him and Tails back at his home.

At the same time though, his questions were still not getting answered. And he was finally losing his temper at being told he was dead with no explanation as to why.

"Maybe we should at least ask him." Tails said. "Figure out what else he may remember."

Sonic was about to speak up, but Tails turned towards him and started asking questions. "Where did you wake up?" He asked him.

Sonic blinked, taking a moment to register the question. "I woke up in the forest near the town where Robo-Me found me." He answered.

"What was the last thing you remember before you woke up?"

Sonic froze, not wanting to answer that. Not because it would mean telling this Tails that he wasn't his Sonic, but because he didn't want to explain to anyone what happened before he woke up here. It was still too fresh in his memory.

"Do you remember what happened before the blast?"

The blast, what did he mean by that? It certainly wasn't when the Paradox Prism shattered.

He knew that this Tails had to eventually know. "Tails, I'm not actually you're Sonic."

Tails blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Look, whatever you think I remember, I don't. None of what you're thinking has ever happened to me." He explained.

Tails was about to speak, but Sonic interrupted again. His voice steadily got more annoyed and frustrated as he spoke. "I have no idea what's going on here. Everyone keeps telling me I'm dead, and no one is explaining to me why that is. I want answers to that, and I want them now!"

Tails and Robo-Him stared at him for a few seconds. Both exchanged glances, as if they were unsure whether to give him the information. Eventually, he saw Robo-Him give a nod to Tails.

Tails let out a sigh, as if what he was about to say was going to be difficult for him to say, and for Sonic to hear.

"About a year ago, Eggman attacked a city. You fought his robots and Metal was there as well." He began, indicating to Robo-Him on the last part. "Eggman had a new robot that ran on a new power source. It ended up rupturing when you fought it, risking a massive explosion. You ran out of the city with the robot and….."

Tails stopped and looked down. Sonic saw a couple tears well in his eyes and noticed a tremor in his hands. He then let out a breath.

"Are you okay, Tails?" Robo-Him asked.

"I'm fine." Tails replied before looking back at Sonic. "I think it would be easier if I showed you."

He then walked towards the workshop, Metal following him and Sonic soon joined them. Inside the workshop, he saw a workbench with various tools hanging on it. Ranging from hammers, screwdrivers, and drills. There was also a blowtorch and welding mask on there, with some sheet metal not far from it. In the middle of the workshop was a table, a screwdriver on it. Likely where this Tails repaired Robo-Him.

Tails walked over to a computer that was nearby. It had a large monitor that took up a part of the wall and he saw a keyboard attached to it. Tails sat on a chair that was facing it and began typing on the keyboard.

Sonic watched the screen, waiting for whatever Tails was going to show him. From what he saw when Tails tried to explain what happened to him, it was clear it was hard for him. He knew his counterpart's death had emotionally affected him, but what exactly had happened?

After a few seconds of typing and searching Tails paused for a moment, as if preparing himself to relive this moment, before pressing a button.

Sonic watched on the screen as a reporter behind a desk appeared. It was clear in her face that she was struggling to hold back tears. She let out a shaky breath before she started to speak.

"For our breaking story tonight, a devastating death. Sonic The Hedgehog, who has helped protect our world for many years, is dead. Information is still coming out about what happened, but we can confirm the cause of his death. He has died from an explosion from outside Central City. Witnesses from that city reported him fighting Eggman and his robots before running out of it with a robot in hand. It is reported that the robot had a ruptured power source that threatened to level the city."

She let out a sigh, steadying herself. "It is unknown why he was unable to escape the blast, but it is speculated that he may have had only enough time to get the robot out of the city. We will continue to provide…."

Sonic felt the weight of his fate in this universe begin to dawn on him. He stumbled back in shock, staring at the reporter as she continued to speak, but it felt muted and far away. All he could think of was the truth that he could no longer deny.

He really was dead in this universe. And from the looks of it, Eggman was the one who did it. From the report, it sounded indirect, but it didn't change the fact that he had somehow done it.

Sonic felt the world begin to sway around him, the only sound he could hear being his breathing. It all felt too much, the shattering of the prism, the creation of the shatter-verse, finding the state of his home and friends, Nine's betrayal, somehow landing here, and now finding out he really did exist in this shatter-space but was dead.

Robo-Him turned his head towards him and said something, but Sonic couldn't hear it. He watched Tails turn and get up from his chair and run towards him as he began to fall.

"SONIC!" He heard him yell as he fell down.

He didn't even feel himself hit the floor as everything went black.

In the sky above a forest, a hole opened up in it. After about a second, the Chaos Council's flagship came through and hovered over the forest as the occupants took in the view.

The council were not in the best spirits at the moment. Aside from getting beaten by the hedgehog once again, they soon discovered that they had very little reserve prism energy left after Mr Dr Eggman used Operation Big Boy. At first, they saw this as a non-issue as they thought they could just re-capture the prism shards and go back to business like nothing happened. Only to discover that the shards were all missing when they got to the mountain, shortly after finding out that they weren't even in this universe anymore with no idea where they had gone.

Upon returning to the flagship and flying to the void, they debated what to do next. While it was important to crush the rebellion that was going on and find out where the shards are, they decided it was more important to find and deal with that blue hedgehog first. He had become a massive pain for them ever since he showed up and had to be dealt with. In addition, he might know where the shards were.

Tracking the prism energy that radiated from him, they discovered that he wasn't in any of the known universes. Instead, the trail led them to a gray portal, one smaller than the other ones. Knowing they needed to find that hedgehog, they went through it, not knowing what would be on the other side.

Looking at the screen they saw a forest, making them think they had somehow returned to Boscage. But upon closer inspection, they saw what appeared to be a city in the distance. From what they could see, the buildings looked nothing like the ones in New Yolk. They didn't consume the forest or tower over it. From what they saw it was almost like there were elements of New Yolk and Boscage mixed in, but in a way that coexisted.

"What strange universe is this?" Doctor Done-It said as he stared at the view. "Why did they build a city but keep all the forest?"

"I agree." Doctor Deep remarked. "It makes the work feel unfinished."

"Now now." Mr. Dr. Eggman said. "We didn't come here to criticize city building skills, though I do admit it is unfinished. We came here to find that hedgehog to tell us where the shards are and eliminate him."

He looked at the screen. "Still, we are in uncharted territory. We need to figure out the differences of this universe. What its environment and people are like, and any strange myths and legends. As they may end up leading us to a shard to help restore our power."

He turned to Dr. Don't, who was playing on his game console. "Send out robots to scout the nearby area. We need every bit of information about this place we can get."

Don't gave a groan and muttered "Sure." before pressing a few buttons on the console.

From outside, a group of robots deployed from the flagship and began to fly over the forest and towards the city. Recording what they saw through their eyes and transmitting them back to the ship. Allowing the council to see through their eyes.

While the forest shots were nothing they hadn't already seen in Boscage, the ones in the city were of great interest to them. From the streets they saw mobians and people happily going about their day. Not downtrodden under their rule like it was in New Yolk before the rebellion happened.

"Fascinating." Doctor Deep said as they watched. "It appears this world is civilized. Similar to our own world."

"But they're not crushed under our rule." Doctor Done-It said annoyed. "That's not how things should be!"

Babbles made noises of agreement.

"Now now. We all expected this universe to be different from our own." said to the rest of the council before looking back at the screen with a frown. "Though I do admit, this world is like an inferior version of our own."

He looked back at the others. "But we have a mission here. Find the hedgehog and get him to reveal where the shards are. After we accomplish that, we can do whatever we want with this place."

"I suggest we finish building a city in this place." Doctor Done-It suggested. "Finish it up since those who live in this universe can't be bothered to finish it."

"I agree." Doctor Deep said. "One should never leave something unfinished."

Doctor Don't gave off a scoff and continued playing his game.

Suddenly, the view on the screen became distorted with static. Causing the image on it to lose focus.

"What's going on?" Doctor Deep asked.

"Something interfering with this robot's signal." Doctor Don't explained. "Isn't it obvious?"

The screen then seemed to fade between the view they had gotten, and something else. It seemed to be a man telling the camera something, but the sound was too distorted to make out what he was saying.

"Focus on that signal!" Eggman ordered. "I want to know what that man is saying."

Don't groaned and began to focus the signal. Soon the picture of the man became clearer, allowing him to see that he was middle aged, and the sound became less distorted. Soon it was clear that the man was sitting in front of a desk with a map of the world behind him. The man seemed to be finishing the introduction of a story.

"...that may seem like a typical fight between the two, but it was the presence of another that is surprising people."

The council all snapped their focus to the broadcast. This could be the key to finding the hedgehog.

The man was replaced by handheld footage of robots attacking a town. There was some shaking as whoever was holding it tried to keep it steady, but they could clearly see the footage. There was a figure commanding them from a small hovercraft above the ground. When they took a closer look at him, they froze, even Don't had a look of surprise on his face.

In the shuttle was a man in a red coat wearing goggles. He was large and bald, wearing glasses that covered his eyes. With his most prominent feature being his mustache. A very familiar looking mustace.

"Is that…me?" Mr. Dr asked in awe.

"Don't you mean us?" Done-it asked. "We're the same person too."

As the footage played, a voice narrated it. "Eggman attacking is a very common sight, and Metal Sonic, his former robotic creation, fighting him is becoming more common these days."

The footage then changed to a blue robot fighting the other robots, taking them out with efficiency. When they got a good view, they saw he was a bit similar to Chaos Sonic. Except that instead of a screen covering half his face, he had black screens shaped like eyes with red as it's pupils. In addition, he had three shaped quills on his head, his torso was different with a yellow chest, and his fingers ended in claws.

"This universe has its own Chaos Sonic?" Deep asked in surprise.

Babbles tilted his head in curiosity.

The narration on the footage continued as it showed the robot Sonic fighting a silver colored robot that also looked like Sonic. "But for this battle, it was the sight of someone unexpected that is sparking rumors all around."

Then there was footage of a familiar hedgehog fighting the robots, which the council had become all too familiar with. "People have spotted Sonic The Hedgehog fighting the robots with Metal Sonic today."

The entire council's eyes almost bulged out of sockets with the shock of that. "He exists here?!" Done-it exclaimed.

The narration continued. "This is in spite of the fact that he has been dead for over a year. Raising many questions about his sudden reappearance."

The footage changed to a guy in sunglasses. "I think he faked his death and has been hiding for a year. Waiting to see if his robot copy was good. Why else would he pull that stunt?"

The footage focused on a woman with blonde hair as she answered a question. "It's probably someone impersonating him. You see those gloves and shoes, I don't recall him wearing those in his lifetime."

Then there was a young kid. "I think he really is back."

The video then cut back to the man behind the desk. "We will have further details on this as it develops. Up next, G.U.N makes a…."

"That's enough." Mr. Dr Eggman said, raising his hand to signal a stop. "Shut the broadcast down."

The screen went dark and the council processed what they had just seen.

"So, the hedgehog existed in this universe." Deep said in thought. "But he's dead now."

"And a robot version of him has taken his place." Don't said. "I don't see the problem here."

"The problem is that robot is destroying the robots of our counterpart here." Done-it said to Don't. "Which I think is the biggest revelation about this universe."

Babbles slapped the table while making noises. The rest of the council somehow understanding him.

"I agree. What exactly is our plan here?" Done-it asked. "With the existence of a counterpart of ours, people are likely aware of our strategies. They may even have defenses against us ready. That robot Sonic may be their line of defense."

Don't scoffed. "Just capture the bot and I can reprogram him to do our bidding."

"Did you not pay attention to the footage? That robot would beat us before we even had a chance to do that."

All around, the council argued about what to do now that they knew a bit more about this universe. It was finally stopped when Eggman slammed his fist onto the top of the control panel, getting their attention.

"Now now." He said. "This universe is clearly different from the ones we've visited before. It's true that this world has been aware of us in some form for a long time. And they are likely prepared for the likes of us. But that doesn't mean we should leave this be."

He put his hands behind his back. "We need to be cautious and plan carefully. The hedgehog is still a priority, but we must plan for anything that comes our way here."

"An excellent thought." Doctor Deep said. "Slow and steady always wins the race. At least when it comes to planning."

nodded. "First things first, let's find our counterpart here. I have a feeling he might be a useful ally to us."

Tails sat in front of the couch where the body of his unconscious, miraculously resurrected brother lay on.

After he had fainted, he and Metal had quickly checked on him. They found that he was still alive. It was likely the shock of what had happened to him that caused him to faint. They carried him to the couch so he would have somewhere more comfortable to lay on.

After they had done that, the two wondered what to do now. Sonic's sudden reappearance certainly required an investigation and they had to consider all possibilities for how he came back. Deciding to start with the obvious one, his body was dug up and resurrected in a lab, he told Metal to investigate Sonic's grave to see if it was disturbed. With Metal flying there, that left Tails alone with his brother.

He knew that he should also be trying to figure out how his brother is here too, but he was still trying to process the fact that his brother was somehow back from the dead.

He still remembered seeing the explosion that killed him, the frantic call to see if he was alright, the sinking realization that he really was gone, and his own grief consuming him as it did. They may have happened a year ago, but now those memories had reawakened again and felt as if they were fresh.

He wanted Sonic to wake up, to explain how he was here. How he had come back to life. But at the same time, he knew there was a good chance that this wasn't really Sonic, or at least not his Sonic.

Don't get too attached to him. He thought to himself. You don't know much about what's going on yet, so it would hurt less when the disappointment comes.

Deciding to start figuring things out, Tails started to check on Sonic. The biggest item of interest was his gloves and shoes, since he didn't recall Sonic ever wearing those in his lifetime. So they might be a key for why he was here.

Grabbing an arm, he lifted it up to get a closer look at the glove. It was gray and plated with steel, almost similar to Metal. On the top of his hand was a silver disc that had a blue light at the center of it. At first he thought it was part of the glove, but when he touched it, it moved slightly. Curious, he pinched it with his fingertips and lifted it away from the glove. It broke away easily and he watched as the glove he removed the disc from began to glow.

Tails shielded his eyes from the light. When it died down, he saw that the glove had become the glove he usually saw his brother wear. Except there were scorch marks all over them. He frowned, were they scorched because of the blast?

He put the disc back on and with a flash of light, the glove was back to its plated form. Examining the other glove, he found another disc on it and on the backs of his shoes. He removed one of them from the shoe, finding it turned back from the plated ones, to the regular shoes in a similar scorched state as his gloves.

The questions continued to pile up as he examined the disc. If this wasn't because of the blast, what exactly happened to him? What exactly were these discs? And why was he wearing them?

He then heard a hum of electricity coming from somewhere nearby. Looking back at Sonic, he saw that the shoe without the disc was glowing white at the sole, emanating energy from it. Curious about the energy, he ran back into the workshop, reemerging a few seconds later with his Miles Electric. Pointing it at the shoe, he scanned the energy for a few seconds before putting the disc back onto the back of the shoe, turning it back into its steel plated form.

Looking at the screen of the miles electric, he watched as it began to analyze the energy signature. After a few seconds, it flashed an alert, looking at it the screen read.

ERROR: UNKNOWN ENERGY

Tails frowned. Running a scan on Sonic again, this time across his body, he again got the unknown energy error, but also found that the energy was all across his body. He guessed that the discs were regulating this energy, but where did that energy come from and did it have something to do with his reappearance?

It was clear that he would need Sonic to be awake to get answers. Since all he was getting was more questions. But even then, he was certain some of those answers he could get would only lead to more questions.

He watched Sonic's face grimace as he looked like he was dreaming. Tails wondered what was going through his mind right now. The shock of finding out about his death was obvious, but he felt like there was something else, with how he was hesitant to approach him when he saw him. Even though he should have been relieved to see him.

If this wasn't his Sonic, as he claimed, What exactly happened to him?

He watched as Nine walked through the portal with the shards. He was helpless as the portal closed behind him, his only means of restoring his home now taken.

He covered his eyes with his hands in despair, trying his best not to cry.

"Sonic." He heard Shadow say behind him.

He suddenly found himself running past the ghosts of his friends, doomed to endlessly repeat what they were saying because of him. He saw that he was running towards the mountain, likely to return to the void between the shatter-spaces.

He was back in the void, flying towards the void at the fastest speed he could imagine and going towards the grim. He knew where Nine was and maybe he could still get the shards back and restore his home.

Suddenly, something hit him and he began to spin off course.

Sonic snapped awake, letting out a gasp as he sat up.

Taking a few deep breaths, he calmed himself down from the dream he just woke from. He knew it was from after the argument with Nine, that moment was clearly going to be with him for awhile, but he didn't know why it was so fragmented. Did he try to suppress the memory what had happened? He didn't blame himself for it, anyone would want to forget something like that.

Still it may be the key to finding out how he got here. And he was going to have to remember.

Pushing that thought out of his head for now, he looked around. He saw that was back in the living room laying on the couch. Tails and Robo-Him must've taken him here after he fainted. Slowly looking around, he soon saw that Tails was nearby.

Well, almost his Tails.

He was staring at him in surprise. After a few seconds, he calmed down and spoke. "Sorry, I didn't expect you to wake up like that."

Sonic stared at him for a moment, wondering if he should reassure this Tails that he was fine. Instead, he asked. "What happened?"

"You fainted when I showed you the report." Almost-Tails answered. "I admittedly should've prepared you for it a bit more if I knew the shock of what happened was going to be that much for you."

Sonic rubbed the side of his head. "Don't think I would've been ready for it either way." He replied as he turned his body so his legs were close to the floor and looked around. "Where's Robo-Me?"

Almost-Tails blinked for a moment before realizing who he was referring to. "Metal went to… check on a few things after you fainted." He answered, Sonic noticing the pause before he gave his answer. It was clear where Robo-Him went.

Sonic looked away from him and processed what he had previously learned. "So I really am dead here?"

Tails nodded. "If it's any comfort to you, you did go out saving people. I think it's how you would want to go out."

Sonic didn't say anything. What else could he say about his counterpart here being dead without it sounding weird to this counterpart?

Almost-Talis then continued. "Now that you're awake, I do have some questions for you."

Sonic sighed. "More than the ones you asked before?"

Almost-Tails nodded. "From what you said and the tech on your gloves and shoes, I think I have more questions than when I first saw you. Especially with that energy I detected inside you."

Sonic's ears perked up when he heard that. He knew about the prism energy inside him?

Of course he knows, he's probably the version closest to the Tails you know since Nine. He thought to himself. The Tails he knew would examine something closely if he didn't understand it.

"Look, if you think I'm your resurrected brother, I'm not. Regardless of how much you want to believe, I think what you've found on me is more than enough evidence to prove that." Sonic said.

Almost-Tails let out a sad sigh. "It's still a possibility I have to consider. I know whatever explanation you have is probably correct, but there are other alternatives that could be correct."

"So you're saying you probably won't believe my explanation?" Sonic asked with some bitterness in his voice. Just like all the other counterparts.

"I didn't say that." Almost-Tails said.

Sonic was about to say something when the front door opened. Both he and Almost-Tails turned their heads to see who entered.

It was Robo-Him, or should he be calling him Metal since that's what Almost-Tails seems to call him. He stared at Sonic for a few seconds before walking through the door towards Tails.

"What did you find out?" Almost-Tails asked as he approached him.

"There were no unusual disturbances around his grave." The robot stated. "Footprints were detected, but they were not registered as odd upon closer analysis."

"So his body wasn't dug up? No one used it to bring him back to life."

"Negative. It is now unlikely that this is Sonic resurrected."

Almost-Tails looked down at the floor, silent with a small look of sadness and disappointment on his face for a moment. He then let out a sigh. "Guess I should've expected that."

"What about the other possibilities?"

Almost-Tails turned to him. "Well he's awake now, so he should help narrow the possibilities down."

Metal looked at Sonic for a second before looking back at Almost-Tails. "Are you certain he will not faint again?"

Almost-Tails shook his head "I don't think we have to worry about that. I think finding out about his death is probably the biggest shock he'll have to deal with."

Metal stared at Tails for a few seconds.

"But I'll check to make sure if he's alright before we start asking him to explain." He added.

The two then walked over to Sonic, stopping just a foot away from him. The hedgehog stared at the two.

"I guess you want an explanation for how I'm here." Sonic said.

"You definitely aren't my brother back from the dead." Almost-Tails said. "So I think it's best if we hear it from you. But before we start, are you alright?"

Sonic hesitantly nodded. "I think the shock of what happened to me here has worn off."

"You told me you weren't really my brother. Do you mind explaining to me why that is?"

Sonic gave a sigh. "It's a long story."

"And then I woke up here." Sonic said, finishing what felt like the longest explanation he had to do since this whole thing began. He didn't tell them that Nine took the shards, only saying that when he got back to the cave after defeating the giant Eggman, both he and the shards were gone. He couldn't tell anyone, especially this counterpart, that a version of him betrayed him.

Metal and Almost-Tails were standing in front of him, thinking about what they had heard. At times, Tails had gotten lost in his explanation, but he had quickly caught back up. The two had even asked questions to which Sonic answered to the best of his ability. It was certainly a calmer explanation session then the previous ones he had to do. Mainly since his life wasn't in danger at the moment.

"So you don't remember anything in between returning to the cave and waking up here?" Almost-Tails asked.

"Not really. I remember getting hit by something in the void, but I don't know how I ended up here." Sonic replied before blinking in surprise upon realizing something. "Wait, do you actually believe my explanation?"

"After eliminating you being resurrected as a possibility, it was either you being a clone or you being from another universe. And given your explanation and other evidence, I'd say the latter is more likely."

Sonic looked at the two. He had never had to deal with any of the counterparts having the time and patience to listen to his explanation. Much less not attacking, or acting hostile to him on sight. He almost couldn't believe this wasn't his universe. It looked like his own and so far, everyone acted like he knew them.

This is too good to be true. He thought to himself. There has to be something else. Something that comes up as soon as I lower my guard.

"Okay, I gave my explanation. I believe I deserve one too." He said, turning his head to Metal. "Namely, what's his deal? Since it's pretty clear he and Eggman have history. Did Tails build you after I died?"

"Negative." Metal answered. "I was created by Eggman while my Sonic was still alive."

"What?" Sonic blinked in surprise. "Then why are you fighting Eggman now?"

Metal looked down. "My goal since my creation has been to be the one true Sonic. But after he died, I did not know what to do after. I had witnessed Sonic's sacrifice and others' reactions to it, and realized that even with Sonic's friends still around, the world was unprotected. I decided to take his place as protector."

Sonic looked at Almost-Tails. "And you just let him do that?"

Almost-Tails shook his head. "He came to me when he left Eggman. I didn't believe him at first, I thought it was a plan of his, all of us did when we first saw him after. But he eventually proved he was genuine in wanting to fight against Eggman. Stopping a plan of his involving the emeralds."

He looked down, a sad smile on his face. "He even helped me get over Sonic's death. If it weren't for him, it would've taken longer for me to escape my grief over it."

Sonic looked at Metal suspiciously for a moment. This robot, who Eggman had created to fight him and his friends, likely for years, decided to turn on him after his counterpart died? It seemed too suspicious, there had to be something else there, a plan none of them knew about. He couldn't have just turned on Eggman and joined his friends just like that.

This could be the thing. He thought to himself. This could be the rug that's pulled out under me as soon as I get comfortable with them.

"How do you know that he was being genuine?" Sonic asked Almost-Tails.

The fox looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean? I told you he helped me and others."

"How do you know that this isn't some sort of plan of Eggman's? For all I know, he could've pretended to turn on Eggman and this could be some ploy to conquer this world."

"But it's been a year." Almost-Tails defended. "I would've noticed if he were planning something against me and the others during all that time."

"Well maybe he's good at hiding it."

"I also think the events of the last year also speak for themselves. When he first stopped Eggman, he could've ended up giving the emeralds to him, but he didn't. Eggman never would've made another robot, or improved his robots to fight him if there was a plan involving him."

"Maybe this Eggman is good at pretending." Sonic pointed out. "He could be playing a long game. Told his robot to gain your trust while he planned to take over with my death taking me out of the way, made countermeasures against him to make it more convincing. And I have to admit, he did a good job since everyone seems to have fallen for it."

"No one has fallen for anything." Almost-Tails protested.

"Well just wait until he reveals himself to still be working for Eggman."

Almost-Tails stepped forward, about to speak when Metal stopped him. "It is okay, Tails." He said. "He is right to mistrust me. He clearly does not know me."

The fox looked at Metal, a clear look of frustration on his face as it was clear he wanted Sonic to trust him. But soon calmed down and let out a sigh. "Guess I was a bit too optimistic about Sonic trusting you right off the bat." He said.

"Affirmative. I foresaw this happening when I was interacting with him."

Almost-Tails gave a small nod of understanding. It was clear they would try to deal with this later.

He turned back to Sonic. "Now, if I recall from your story, my counterpart and the shards were gone after you defeated the giant Eggman."

Sonic nodded. "Yeah."

"Do you have any idea where they might be?"

He gave a shrug and a shake of his head. "No idea." It was a partial lie. While he did know what universe Nine had taken the shards to, he didn't know where exactly his lab was in The Grim. He could run everywhere and could miss where they were located. Thinking that, he wondered if he even had a plan if he ran into Nine again.

"Well, considering what you've gone through, you seem like you could use some help." Almost-Tails said, stepping forward and extending a hand towards Sonic, offering it. "Anything you need help with, we're happy to assist."

Sonic looked at Almost-Tails's hand. What he had said sounded reassuring, after all the hostility and mistrust of the other counterparts, this was quite refreshing. A counterpart who genuinely wanted to help him after all this time. He wanted to take the fox's hand and agree to have him and his robot help.

But then he remembered all the mistrust and betrayals the counterparts had brought him. How they had treated him like he was a friend before they turned on him.

Right now, he couldn't trust any of his friends' counterparts. Only himself.

He shook his head while he stood up from the couch. "I appreciate it, but I need to figure out what to do next on my own. I don't need your help."

Almost-Tails blinked in surprise. "But, don't you want…."

"I said I don't need you, or your robot's help!" Sonic snapped, coming out harsher then he intended. "I just….need some alone time to figure things out. Then I'll be out of this universe. I really don't want to get involved in anything going on here"

Sonic walked past the two and to the door. Pausing at it, he looked back at the two. He saw Almost-Tails with a sad look on his face. He supposed he couldn't blame him. From his point of view, his brother supposedly came back from the dead and thought he would be happy to see him again. Only to find he was actually from another universe and had to leave soon.

Still, it wasn't his concern. As far as he cared, this wasn't his Tails. He may look and act like him, but he wasn't him. He just had to figure out how to get the shards back, and then he'll be on his way. What happened after wasn't important.

He walked outside, closing the door behind him.

At his base, Eggman sat and watched a news report about his recent loss with a dissatisfied expression on his face.

It had not been the best year for him. After Sonic's death, he had expected to have an easier time conquering the world. Sure Sonic's friends were still around, but he expected to beat them more easily with the hedgehog gone.

But then Metal Sonic had to turn on him. He had to join Sonic's friends and start fighting him. Now it felt like nothing had changed. Sure he had to replace Metal Sonic with Silver Sonic, installing a chip in him to ensure he would never turn on him, but it still didn't chance the fact that it felt like Sonic was still around.

And now that hedgehog had somehow returned. He had no idea how he had done so, but it was just another headache for him to deal with.

He sat back in his chair and let out a groan. "What am I going to do?" He muttered.

Suddenly, an alert came on on the screen, notifying him that someone was in the base. Sitting upright, he quickly started to scan the cameras for any sign of forced entry. If Metal or Sonic had somehow decided to follow him, he had to be prepared for both of them.

From the cameras outside, there were no signs of the walls being breached, no holes leading to inside, or anything that led under the walls. Switching to the doors, he saw that they were somehow open wide. He frowned at that. After Metal had turned, he had changed all the codes to the bases so Metal couldn't easily enter it. The only other person who had those codes was Silver Sonic, and he was here being repaired. So who broke into the base?

He switched to the interior cameras, searching for any sign of the intruder. But he didn't see anyone in the hallways or in any storage or robotics rooms. He switched to the elevator cameras and while the first one didn't show anything, the second one made him freeze at what was on the screen.

It was, himself?

Well, the stranger wasn't an exact mirror image of him. He was wearing a different uniform, a jumpsuit colored red, black, and yellow, wearing different goggles, and he had hair on his head. In the elevator, he kept glancing up in front of the doors, checking what floor the elevator was on. When Eggman checked the elevator's status, he found that it was approaching the floor he was on.

Questions rang through Eggman's mind. Who was this stranger? How did he find his base? Why did he look like him? What did he want? If he easily got into the base and was already on his way up, what did he plan on doing to him? Killing him? Making an offer to him? After considering these questions, he decided to let this stranger in. He wanted to hear why he was here, but he would be cautious if this was a trap.

Pressing a button as the elevator neared the floor, he watched the elevator come to a stop as it reached his floor. Turning to the elevator door, he watched it open and the stranger step forward.

"I see you noticed my arrival." The stranger said as he noticed the doctor staring at him.

"It wasn't hard when you tripped an alarm." Eggman replied as he glared at him. "Now who are you?"

The stranger chuckled. "Oh how I forget my politeness sometimes. Allow me to introduce myself."

He took a bow. "I am Mr. Dr Eggman, leader of the Chaos Council. I suppose you are my counterpart in this universe."

Eggman didn't know what that last part meant, but he nodded. "I am Doctor Eggman, yes. Now why are you here?"

"I've come to make you an offer." The counterpart said, approaching him. "I would like for you to help us in our conquest of the other universes."

Eggman frowned. "You want me to help you?"

Mr. Dr nodded. "Yes. If I know you, which is myself, you would make a vital ally here."

To the counterparts surprise however, the Doctor shook his head. "I'm sorry, I can't. As much as I would like to, I have bigger problems to deal with right now. Aside from my former robot servant causing problems for me, that hedgehog has somehow returned back to the dead and I need to figure out how that happened."

Mr. Dr grinned. "I can answer that question for you easily. You see, he's not your Sonic."

It was Eggman's turn to be surprised. "What do you mean by that?"

"You see, that hedgehog is supposedly another universe. He's been traveling around for shards of something known as the Paradox Prism. We intend to use them to assist in our domination, but now we have no idea where they are."

Eggman put his hands to his mouth in contemplation. "And you believe that this Sonic knows where they are?"

Mr. Dr nodded. "That and the trouble he has caused us. Since he showed up, he had disrupted all of our plans and rule over the universe we come from. So much so that we've decided to take him out before going back to business."

He walked towards Eggman, stopping when he was close to him. "This universe is rather new to us, so we could use a guide to help us get to know this better. And I believe that person is you."

Eggman thought about what he heard. He supposed that the Sonic he saw was actually one from another universe explained a lot of things. His confusion over his death, his different shoes and gloves, and the fact that he didn't seem to acknowledge Metal Sonic in any way. Unless he had amnesia, it wouldn't make sense that Sonic had no idea about Metal Sonic. He had no idea what this Paradox Prism was, but from how his counterpart talked about it, it seemed important and powerful.

He smiled thinking about it. It would be interesting to get his hands on it, even if it was just a shard as his counterpart described.

He looked at the other doctor. "I'm interested, but what's in it for me in exchange for helping you."

"We can help you conquer this universe." Mr. Dr answered. "Ensure your total victory over those who resist you. We'll even let you rule this universe as part of our empire."

Hearing this, Eggman gave his counterpart a wide, toothy grin at him. "That seems like an excellent deal. Helping my alternate self conquer other universes while ruling my own is a dream come true."

grinned back. "Quite true. From what little I've seen of your struggles, you clearly need the help. Together with our resources, we can be unstoppable here."

The two Eggmen eagerly shook hands, ready to see how each of them would succeed in their goal.

"Now, take what you need here and we can head to my ship. Then you can tell me everything about this universe."