Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

[ Fleeting Prayer - Black Clover ]

Cold… So cold…

That was the feeling of liquid metal slowly eating away at flesh and wool, attempting to cover everything warm with its cold, unfeeling infection. He could barely feel anything from moving his right index finger, much less his whole body as the sinister steel solution wrapped itself around the poor young man.

The sounds… The fighting… The screams… Everyone…

Footsteps of all kinds crunched against the grass around him. A gust of wind from something moving quickly was felt from far away. From the left side, fists connected with bodies that dropped to the floor. On the further right, older and younger voices barking commands. The closest to the teenager was a grief-stricken, motherly voice soothing him, telling him everything was going to be okay and she would stay with him until it’s all over.

Another voice, a feminine voice that was youthful like his own, also told him she’d refuse to leave his side and would stay with him as well.

The liquified mineral oozed across his body, goading him into joining its infected brethren that was closing in on everyone. One by one; the voices became muted, the sounds vanished and the light began to fade. The young man could feel himself slipping away… Barely hanging on as the cold ore took over…

Just as the metal had the boy in its grasp, the teen had a flash of memories flooding back to him. 

His life. 

The events.

How he got to this point in the first place.

Several Weeks Ago…

12:30 PM

Neo Green Hill Village

[ Battle - Sonic X ]

“Get everyone to safety! These badniks are getting out of control!” A Mobian Monkey wielding a Hover Wispon commanded a group of other Mobians.

“Roger!” One Mobian, a male squirrel, nodded. “Everyone, get to the bunker! If you can walk around, help the injured!”

The civilians hurried towards the safety bunker in the village, screaming and panicking all the while. The remaining Mobians wielding Wispons stayed back to deal with the approaching Badniks stomping towards them menacingly. The Mobian Monkey pointed his Wispon at a group of Egg Pawns, firing a concussive blast of force at them! The orange robots flew in multiple directions, crumbling to the floor in a daze. 

A female koala Mobian brandished a Drill Wispon in her hand while running towards an Egg Pawn. The drill whirled to life as she pierced through it and three more robots with relative ease. A grey knight-looking Egg Pawn raised its lance to do the marsupial in, but it was slashed to bits by an electric whip wielded by a Tenrec. 

“You okay?” He asked.

The Koala nodded. “I am. Thank you.”

“There are too many of ‘em! We can’t take all these Badniks on our own!” The Squirrel fretted. “Ever since the Eggman War, more of them have been popping up!”

“Don’t give up!” The Mobian simian assured firmly. “If we keep holding them off, help will arrive soon! We’ve always relied on him and his friends to save us, so it’s our turn to do our part too!”

This small speech reinvigorated the citizens’ fighting spirit as they ran back into battle with the Egg Pawns and its variations. On the outskirts of Neo Green Hill, a familiar blue streak raced across the grass at breakneck pace, breaking the sound barrier with a resounding BOOM! In the distance, the figure could see smoke billowing from the buildings of the village. Doubling his efforts, the blue streak blitzed off, kicking up waves in the water from his sheer speed alone.

Back in the village, the fight between the citizens and the Badniks raged on fiercely - neither side giving an inch in their attempt to complete their goals. But it seemed that the Eggman Empire was on the winning side of this conflict despite the best efforts put out by the forces of good. 

While at first; the Wispon wielders had the advantage by dwindling down the Egg Pawn variations, that was quickly stolen from them when the stronger Egg Knights and mass-produced Phis were unleashed into the fray, snatching victory out of the denizens of Neo Green Hill Village. Even the monkey leader was starting to feel dread as he was the only few people still standing in the burning battlefield. 

A golden Egg Knight stood in front of him with its glowing blue eyes, reeling its lance back for a fatal blow. The monkey shut his eyes, flinching in fear for the Grim Reaper to take him.

[ Sonic Appears! - Sonic 06 ]

Just then, a sudden gust of wind swirled around the town! 

BOOM!!

One Egg Pawn shattered into pieces by an unseen force. 

BOOM!!! BANG!!!

Two more Egg Pawns were destroyed.

BANG!!! BOOM!!! CLANG!!! CRASH!!! KA-BOOM!!!

Five automatons sent to the scrap heap! And those numbers continued rising from the series of explosions! 

The monkey slowly opened his eyes to see that same blue streak destroying each and every single Badnik with precise accuracy. He immediately recognised who that was and his suspicions would be confirmed when the streak stopped in front of the townsfolk after wrecking the Badniks. 

Dressed in a carefree outfit consisting of a sleeveless red jacket with a white stripe across it, a navy blue neckerchief and running trousers with a white horizontal line going down it, white gloves and those iconic red sneakers. 

The man needed no introduction. It was the hero of Mobius himself.

Sonic the Hedgehog!

“You all okay?” Sonic asked the crowd, getting affirmatives from them. “Good! Now go somewhere safe! I’ll handle these Badniks myself!”

Racing off through the village, the Blue Blur surveyed the damage – houses were smashed up or destroyed, people hiding in fear and the brave samaritans risking their lives to fight off the mechanical menaces. The Eggman War may have been over, but there was still a lot to clean up after everything that had transpired. 

Curling into a ball, Sonic struck down some Knight Pawns and Egg Flappers with his Homing Attack . He then smashed an Egg Pawn unfortunate enough to be underneath him with a Stomp then performed a spin kick to knock the head off a Phi, decapitating it in the process.

“See ya!” He playfully taunted before speeding through the village.

“Sonic the Hedgehog, located! Engaging priority one target!” An Egg Fighter communicated to the other Badniks, turning their sights on Sonic.

Sonic smirked, feeling the adrenaline rushing through his body. His blood pumping with excitement. The dopamine going to his brain.

Nothing was more fun than destroying all of Eggman’s toys.

The blue hedgehog used his Boost technique to burrow through the weaker Egg Pawns, making all sorts of orange and yellow fireworks in the sky. He slid underneath a Phi to trip it up, curled into a ball to homing attack an Egg Gun, ricocheting off an Egg Spear and Egg Shield respectively. Sonic assaulted an Egg  Fighter with three kicks, the third sending it up in the air where he launched a shockwave to destroy it.

Using his speed, Sonic confused the Egg Bazooka by making various afterimages which caused the moronic machine to accidentally shoot its fellow Egg Pawn, destroying it before it suffered the same fate due to the speed demon. 

“Sometimes I make it look too easy.” Sonic commented, glancing at the destroyed robots. 

His ears flickered at the sound of someone grunting, falling to the ground along with the sound of whirring machinery. Sonic ran off in the direction he heard the sounds, skidding to a stop when he found the source: A Mobian male sheep was being cornered by seven badniks. Two of them were Phis while the remaining five were Egg Pawns. 

The sheep looked to be a young teenager, around sixteen to eighteen years of age; he had black wool with a dreadlock hairstyle, brown skin and brown eyes. He wore a grey layered Crush 40 shirt with orange and white striped sleeves, light-blue denim trousers and black trainers with white laces. 

Sonic raised an eyebrow at this. Why would a small group of Badniks be after a kid?

That’s when the hero saw it. 

The familiar glow of a yellow brilliant-cut gemstone in the sheep boy’s right hand. Is that-?

“Surrender the Chaos Emerald or be eradicated.” The Phi coldly demanded. 

The young sheep glared defiantly, holding the Chaos Emerald close to him. The Phi beat its fists, fully intending to use force to take the gem for itself. As it advanced, the young sheep surprised Sonic by rushing forth and nailing the robot with a solid right hook! The Phi clattered to the ground as the young man continued his furious assault with punches to its head and body. 

The kid had spirit, that was certain. But even that wasn’t enough to take down the Phi as the wooly teen was grabbed by an Egg Pawn and thrown to the wall, causing him to wince in pain. By some miracle, the sheep Mobian kept the Chaos Emerald clutched tightly in his hands. The Phi that was struck stood back up, whirring in anger as it approached the teenager to beat some respect into him. 

Before the robot could do such a thing, Sonic sprung into action and homing attacked two of the Egg Pawns, destroying them instantly as he landed in front of the teen. 

“Five bots against one kid? Now that’s unfair!” Sonic chastised the robotic bullies sarcastically. “Then again, Eggman’s never been one to play fair.”

The hedgehog vanished from everyone’s line of sight and the four Egg Pawns were destroyed by swift yet strong attacks. Sonic landed a salvo of kicks to one of the mass-produced Gizoids, denting its body severely into shutting down, demolishing it with a breakdancing sweep kick before he spindashed into the other then finished it off with a powerful axe kick. The young sheep stared at the hero gobsmacked at just how effortlessly he took down those robots! 

He couldn’t even see half of it and when he did, it was like watching a live feed of Sonic from the news… only it actually happened before his eyes!

[ Helping Miles - Marvel’s Spider Man ]

A gloved hand came into his field of view. “You hurt, kid?”

The young sheep went starry-eyed, his mouth widening into an excited grin as he took Sonic’s hand and started shaking it quickly.

“Y-you’re… Sonic the Hedgehog! T-The Fastest Thing Alive! The Hero of Mobius! T-the Blue Wind!”

“And a few other choice words Eggman throws at me.” Sonic jokes, breaking the handshake,  “Look kid, that was really brave of you, but next time leave the fighting to the pros, okay?”

“O-okay, but what if there aren’t any around?” The teenage sheep asked.

“Well, ya can’t go and take on a group of Badniks all by yourself. Don’t get me wrong, I have Badniks surround me all the time, but when I do it–”

“Oh! Like that time you fought off many Egg Fighters in Mazuri?” The teenager pointed out one of Sonic’s adventures in the past. “That was so awesome!”

“Perfect example! You just gotta be faster than other guys and think just as quick too!” Sonic imparted before he turned to run off.

“Yeah, but that’s– that’s easy for you to say! Sorry, but I can’t do what you do!” The young man responded.

Sonic stopped in his tracks, smiled then turned back to the young black sheep. “Alright, put ‘em up, kid.”

The sheep blinked incredulously. “You serious?”

“Yeah, come on.”

Sonic got into his fighting stance as did the young sheep, they began to circle each other as the former explained to the latter how to be faster.

“First off: Speed isn’t always runnin’ in danger. From what I learned from my battles, you gotta anticipate what your opponent will do and counter accordingly. You also gotta remember to feel the environment around you, so that when something happens, you can react quicker than you usually do.” Sonic stated.

“And… how do I feel the environment around me, exactly?” The teen questioned. 

“How about I show you instead. Close your eyes.”

The young sheep did as instructed. 

“Next, I want you to feel the environment around you. Focus on anything that seems out of place and when you pick up on that, counterattack!”

The young man nodded attentively, exhaling deeply as he felt his surroundings. The gentle breeze, the rustling of leaves in the trees, the crackling of fire around him. 

…

A rush of air! 

The teenager leaned back to avoid a swift kick from Sonic then twisted his body around to deliver a roundhouse kick that Sonic blocked with his fist. Judging by Sonic’s slightly trembling hand, the teen’s attack packed some power in it.

The teen opened his eyes in shock. “Oh sh–! Sorry…!”

“No, no! That was great!” Sonic complimented. “You keep that up and you’ll be faster in no time! Anyways, lesson’s over! Gotta go!”

“Hey Sonic!” The teen called out, getting his attention. He smiled gratefully. “Thank you.”

The blue hedgehog gave a wink and thumbs up before speeding out of Neo Green Hill Village, leaving the young man in astonishment. 

“I just dodged and countered an attack from Sonic the Hedgehog…” He mused to himself in awe. 

“Nash? Nash, honey. Where are you?” An older female voice called out, snapping the youth out of his star-struck expression.

“I’m right here, Mom!” Nash replied, jogging towards his mother who had come out to look for him. 

Jogging up to Nash was a sheep woman with black wool, brown skin and brown eyes just like him. The front part of her hair was curly and fluffy while the back was dreadlocked, but her locks were far longer than her son’s own. She wore a lemon coloured polka-dot blouse, navy blue leggings, white gloves and yellow shoes. The Mobian sheep woman also had plump lips too. 

Nash embraced his mother, Felicia, in a tight hug which was returned in kind. 

“Are you okay, Nash?” Felicia asked.

“I’m fine, Mom! The Badniks didn’t hurt me too badly.” Nash answered honestly.

The caprine mother breathed a sigh of relief. “Phew! That’s good…! I honestly don’t know what would’ve happened had Sonic not shown up when he did. You could’ve been seriously hurt, Nash!”

“Sorry, Mom… I won’t let it happen again.” Nash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. 

“Good. Let’s head back into the village and help with the repairs. Then, we have to set the table for when your father comes back from work.”

“Sure, Mom! Let’s go!”

The two sheep walked back into the village, unaware that either of them were being spied on by a hidden Egg Flapper. It focused solely on Nash and the yellow Chaos Emerald in his pocket, its glasses acting as a screen for the person watching the recording from his comfortable chair in his lab. 

[ Dark Eggman - Sonic X ]

“So… the little sheep boy has one of the seven Chaos Emeralds, hm?” A deep, sinister male voice commented. 

Sat on his seat was a large, rotund man with a pinkish nose and a thick, mahogany mustache. He wore an obnoxiously pompous red coat that had four golden buttons that had white straps connecting to the back of four more gold buttons on the back. Said coat had silver linings running down the arms, back and front with yellow cuffs and two large silver buttons on the front of the coat.

To add onto his extravagantly self-important attire, He wore black pants with matching boots that had circular plates on both sides of the ankles and three square ones extending up to the shins. 

Just like his arch nemesis, this vile man needed no introduction. 

The Greatest Threat to Mobius; Doctor Ivo Robotnik! 

Otherwise known as…

Dr. Eggman!

He observed another footage of Sonic rushing off to the next village, flashing his pearly whites in a cruel smile. 

“Sonic has already survived the first trial rather quickly. Though I doubt he’ll come back to this village again since he’s heading to the next town where I deployed a battalion.” Eggman noted, pressing a few buttons on a control panel. “Send in a Super Badnik to Neo Green Hill Village… We must get that Chaos Emerald from the boy! Hohohohohohohohoho!”

[ Neo Green Hill Zone (Act 2) - Sonic Advance (Subtanx Remix) ]

Five hours had elapsed as the denizens of Neo Green Hill Village finished repairing their homes after the Badniks invasion. It took a lot of effort from the townspeople to fix up their broken homes or patch up some holes, but the entire process went by smoothly. The broken bits of machines were either thrown in the recycling bins or repurposed for better uses in their quaint little town. 

After the hectic attack on their town, everyone was now in their homes, relaxing and recovering from today’s events. In a two story house, Nash put down three plates and silver cutlery on the dining table, fixing them so that they were all neatly together. Felicia was preparing dinner in the kitchen, having taken the roast chicken and potatoes out of the oven to put on the counter to cool. 

A column of steamer pots cooked the vegetables with the hot air evaporating from the bubbling water. 

Felicia nodded contently at her hard work. “That’s dinner sorted! Nash, did you set the table?” 

“Yeah, Mom! The plates and cutlery have been set!” Nash called out from the dining room. “All that’s left is for Dad to come home!”

“I hope he’s doing alright after what happened during the War…” The sheep housewife looked down in worry. 

The teenager frowned, giving his mum a comforting pat on her shoulder. “Dad’s gonna be fine, Mom. He’s had things thrown at him all the time and he’s always gotten back up after it. Even when we were afraid he’d never come home on one of his missions… He’s pulled through, in the end. Dad’s a strong Mobian and we both know he won’t be taken down that easily!”

“I know, dear.” Felicia gave her son a smile. “I know.”

The sound of a car pulling in front of the home caught their attention. The heavy footsteps came to the front door, followed by keys being inserted into the lock, unlocking the door as it swung open. In walked a male Mobian sheep with black wool, brown skin with a notable stubble on his muzzle and grey eyes. 

He wore a navy blue uniform, a black protective vest, fingerless gloves, shin guards and combat boots. He also wore a black helmet with a “G” symbol on the front. 

The patriarch of the family, Wallace the Sheep , had returned from a long shift at his workplace: The Guardian Units of Nations, or G.U.N for short.

“Hi Dad!” Nash greeted happily. “How was work?”

Wallace gave an exhausted grunt in response as he waved hello to his son. Nash chuckled.

“Figured as much, haha!”

“Welcome home, dear!” Felicia gave him a kiss and a hug. “Dinner’s just about ready.”

“Great because after what happened at work, I am starving !” Wallace exclaimed, taking off his helmet to reveal his round and puffy hair. 

Nash and his dad sat in the chairs as Felicia brought out the food to the dining table. No longer holding back their hunger, the family tucked into some delicious roast chicken, white rice, potatoes and vegetables. Nash felt satisfied with the glorious food cooked to perfection by his mum’s incredible culinary skills, the same could be said for Wallace, who chowed down like no tomorrow. 

Felicia beamed warmly at her husband and son, digging into her own food too. During the peaceful dinner time, it was then a critical question was asked to the man of the house.

“So Wallace, what’s the current state of G.U.N?”

Wallace exhaled air from his nose. “...To begin with; our base has been heavily damaged from the War, but we managed to salvage whatever remained of our troops and rebuild our ranks. Commander Tower did find a separate G.U.N base which we set up shop in until the end of the Eggman War.”

“Is everyone at G.U.N okay?” Nash asked.

“Everyone’s fine, son.” Wallace replied, easing his son’s nerves. “It’s gonna take more than Eggman’s machines to bring G.U.N down. Though we are still recovering, we’re helping out with the Badnik clean up.”

“Speaking of Badnik clean up; our village was attacked by them while you were away. Nash was even cornered by seven of them while trying to help stop them.” Felicia mentioned.

The G.U.N soldier tensed up. “What?! Are you both okay?!”

“I’m fine, Dad! We’re both perfectly fine!” Nash bleats out quickly, cooling his father’s high emotions. “Mom hid away in the town bunker and I was saved by Sonic! He sped through here and made short work of those robots!”

Wallace breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank Chaos…! If anything happened to either of you–”

“Wallace. It’s okay.”  Felicia soothed her husband’s nerves by gently grasping his hands with her own. “We’re both perfectly safe and sound.”

The stubbled sheep gazed into his wife’s soft, caring chocolate brown orbs, feeling the tension in his body melt away by her sheer presence alone. 

He then turned to his dread-headed son, who flashed a toothy grin at him.

“And if I was in any danger, I’d be able to handle it. After all, you were the one to train me, Dad!”

Wallace laughed. “That’s true! You got the spunk of your old man in you! But why would some badniks corner you, Nash?”

Nash pulled out the yellow Chaos Emerald from his pocket, placing it on the table. Wallace’s eyes widened upon seeing the familiar gemstone, making everything click for him.

“That explains a lot. I’m surprised he didn’t ransack our village for the one that landed here during his takeover of Mobius.”

“Guess he was too busy letting his victory get to his brain to search for this one or the others.” Nash quipped, getting a hearty laugh from his dad. 

“Eggman never really thought things through, given how Sonic’s been able to beat him so many times. But that doesn’t change the fact that mustached menace is a dangerous threat to Mobius; his recent takeover was a perfect example of that. So tomorrow, you and I are going to train, son.”

Nash gave a determined nod with a smirk. “Yes Dad! I’ll train as hard as I can to be just like you and Sonic the Hedgehog!”

Wallace and Felicia smiled at their conviction radiating from their pride and joy; the former reminiscing to a simpler time when Nash was younger and had the same childlike aspiration to become a hero just like his dad and the Blue Blur that saved the world more times than not. 

Such was a modest time during those years.

KA-BOOM!!!!

A roaring explosion from outside interrupted the pleasant family moment. The three sheep jolted from their seats, turning their sights to the billowing smoke and flames emerging within the village. 

“W-What was that?!” Nash asked in shock.

Without a word, Wallace ran to the front door. “I’m going to check it out! Nash, stay here and keep your mom safe!”

“Yes Dad!”

The older sheep stepped out of the house to investigate the source of the fiery discharge. Just as Nash was about to take Felicia to a safe part of the house, the sounds of smashing glass clattered to the floor and an Egg Flapper emerged through the broken shards! Nash stood protectively in front of his mother as he prepared to do battle with the small flying machine. 

The Egg Flapper zoomed towards the young sheep who rushed forth to deliver an uppercut, but the Flapper swiftly evaded the swinging arm and circled around the teenager before exiting through the window. 

Nash and Felicia blinked owlishly. That’s it?

No lasers? No bombs? No destruction? 

It just up and left?!

Mother and son were rightfully confused… that was until the latter noticed his pocket feeling a bit empty of something important.

“Oh no… The Chaos Emerald!!!” Nash’s voice loudly echoed through the house.

Wallace sprinted through the forest of Neo Green Hill, leaves crunching underneath his boots repeatedly as he continued his trek towards the rising smoke. At the speed he was running, everything seemed like a blur to him until he heard the sounds of flames getting closer and closer. Upon reaching the end of the forest, the soldier stopped in his tracks to witness the beach in a state of ruin. 

[ Egg Cerberus/Egg Genesis - Sonic 06 ]

Fire everywhere, trees knocked over and beach equipment broken into pieces. And at the centre of it all stood the thing responsible for it;

An Egg Hammer!

Wallace kissed his teeth. “Should’ve known that madman would send one of his Super Badniks to this place…!”

The purple and red juggernaut of a robot raised its hammer with a loud beep and charged Wallace, having spotted the Mobian sheep exit from the forest. It slammed its spiked mallet on Wallace, but he backflipped to evade. He ran towards the Egg Hammer with acceleration in his feet, hitting its metal body with a rising uppercut and a spinning kick that sent the robot skidding across the sand with a surprising amount of strength. 

The Egg Hammer got back up, raising its hammer in front of itself to block an incoming punch from Wallace then force him away with a shove. The G.U.N Soldier tucked into a black wooly ball, bouncing harmlessly against the soft sand before rolling to a stop, uncurling in the process. Wallace’s eyes sharpened, performing a handstand with his knees bent and shooting his feet up to block an incoming strike from the Egg Hammer’s massive weapon that threatened to smash him into a pancake.

The force of his double push-kick knocked the hammer high in the air, stunning the Egg Hammer long enough for Wallace to capitalize on its weakened state. Wallace struck the Egg Hammer with a haymaker to its steel hide, two kicks aimed at its purple foot to bring it to its knees then a flurry of rapid punches that caused dents in its armour. 

The Egg Hammer swiped its left hand to swat his attacker away, but Wallace reacted quickly and jumped in the air to dodge. Clasping his hands together, Wallace nailed the purple and red automaton with a Double Axe Handle. A large explosion of sand kicked up from the downed Egg Hammer impacting the ground, but Wallace wasn’t finished yet.

Grabbing the Egg Hammer with his left hand, the sheep dad channeled his inner strength and willpower to his right arm which glowed with a blue energy. Turquoise vein-like lines crossing over the limb before covering it with a dark blue coating with a blue tint around it. Blue energy surged out in electric waves as Wallace reeled his right fist back and socked the Egg Hammer with a devastating right hook, sending it flying across the beach where it landed hard, its hammer hitting the sand right next to it!

Wallace dusted his hands off before addressing the robot: 

“So, do you give up? Or do I have to beat some more respect into you!”

The Egg Hammer sprang to its feet and just like its creator when things didn’t go his way, had a temper tantrum. Wildly swinging its arms and legs around with visible steam shooting out of its head. Wallace gazed at the childish reaction with a deadpan expression.

Was he fighting a robot or disciplining a toddler?

The Egg Hammer angrily reclaimed its weapon, spinning it around before slamming the queue on the sandy ground. With a mighty slam, an immense shockwave kicked up a lot of sand that blew Wallace up in the air. Then, in a surprising movement of speed, the Egg Hammer closed in on the airborne sheep and clubbed him hard with the face of its mallet, knocking the sheep to the ground. 

Wallace crashed through two trees before colliding with one more, sliding harmlessly to the ground with a groan. He looked up just in time to see the furious Egg Hammer lunge at him with its hammer swinging down at him. Wallace hopped to his feet, coating both fists in the same dark blue hardened armour as he raised his arms above his head in an X-motion to defend, generating a small shockwave from the collision. 

The army dad forced the Egg Hammer back by throwing his arms out, staggering the machine again, though this time; the Egg Hammer caught itself.

It would not fall for the same trick twice. 

The angry hammer surged towards Wallace’s right side, but it was blocked by Wallace’s coated forearm. It swung again, going for the left but that was negated too. Wallace and the Egg Hammer clashed a few times before the two entered a power struggle of sorts: the Mobian sheep’s fists meeting the raging hammer swings of the Egg Hammer, both their arms blurring at insane speeds, kicking up a maelstrom of air.

Meanwhile in the forest; the Egg Flapper flew high in the air with the yellow Chaos Emerald in its grasp. Following in hot pursuit was Nash, who had run after the flying drone to reclaim the jewel. 

“Get back here with that Chaos Emerald!” Nash barked angrily. “When I get my hands on you, I’m gonna– WHOA!!!”

Nash was nearly blown away from the immense gust of wind rushing throughout the forest. He heard the sounds of combat further ahead as well as the familiar voice of his father’s screaming followed by metal being struck and a loud THOOM!!! The Egg Flapper flew off towards the location of the fight, forcing Nash to chase after it once more.

Back to the beach, the Egg Hammer laid flat on the ground, the imprint of a fist dented into his purple armour as electricity surged around it. Wallace narrowed his eyes, he knew the machine was nearing its limits, but he still remained cautious in the event something happened. The shadow of the Egg Flapper caught his attention along with the glow of the yellow Chaos Emerald as it flew above him, lowering the Emerald towards the downed Super Badnik. Rustling leaves caused the soldier to turn to see his son, Nash running into view.

“Nash! What are you doing out here!?” Wallace shouted. “I thought I told you to protect your mom!”

Nash raised his hands up in defense. “I did! But the Egg Flapper didn’t attack Mom or me! It was after the Chaos Emerald!”

“...What?!” Was all Wallace could let out before a surge of energy outputted behind him.

Father and son stared in shock as the Egg Hammer sprang to life with a glowing electric aura of Chaos Energy, grabbing a hold of its hammer which was supercharged with the otherworldly force! It swung its hammer a few times before wielding its weapon with both hands.

Wallace glanced at his son, knowing that he couldn’t look out for him and fight the Chaos-Enhanced Egg Hammer at the same time. So he proposed something:

“Help me fight this Super Badnik, Nash! I don’t think I can take this one on my own!”

“You for real, Dad?” Nash questioned, getting an affirming nod from his father.

“Let’s take on this robot together! If you remember everything I taught you, you’ll be just fine! After all, you said you wanted to be a hero just like your dad and Sonic, right?” Wallace grinned confidently, having full faith in his son’s potential.

The bovid teenager let out a small gasp, his eyes twinkling as a memory flashed through his mind.

[ Pentagram - Black Clover ]

Nine Years Ago…

A much younger Nash, at the age of eight, was sitting on the couch next to Wallace with excited glee as his eyes were glued to the TV. On screen was a news report of Sonic doing battle with Dr. Eggman in the streets of Central City. 

The hero and villain fought each other all across the streets with the news camera capturing everything. The young sheep boy’s eyes twinkled with delight at the spectacle, it felt like he was watching a superhero show or a movie! Sonic sped past multiple missiles fired from the doctor’s machine, launching himself at the mech to strike with a kick, rebounding off a wall to collide with it again.

The hedgehog hopped off a car to land a punch to the machine, spinning around a lamp post to land a Homing Attack. The news helicopter camera caught a bird’s eye view of Sonic absolutely blitzing Eggman’s flying machine, causing immense damage before he finished things with a Sonic Storm, destroying it as Eggman fled, cursing the hero’s name!

Nash tugged on his father’s shirt, pointing to the TV ecstatically. “Dad! Dad! Look! Look! Look! Did you see? Sonic just thrashed that machine!”

“Hahahaha! I saw it, son. I saw.” Wallace laughed at his child’s enthusiasm. “You really admire Sonic, don’t you?”

“I do! At school, we were asked what we wanted to be when we grew up!”

“Oh? What do you want to be when you grow up, son?”

Nash gave a toothy grin as he pointed at his father. “When I grow up, I want to be a hero! Just like you, Dad! And just like Sonic the Hedgehog!”

“That’s a big dream, Nash. Being a hero takes a lot of hard work and it isn’t easy. But, if you’re really dedicated and brave, you can become a strong hero. Can you do that, son?” Wallace questioned.

“Yeah I can!” Nash answered quickly, swinging his arms excitedly.

Wallace stared at his son for a moment, smiled and rubbed his head. “Alright, then I’ll support you in any way that I can.”

Present Day

Nash’s body became a blur as he rushed right by his father’s side, readying himself to fight the empowered Egg Hammer. 

“Right! Let’s do this, Dad!” Nash bravely declared.

[ Fight! X - Mega Man X Command Mission ]

The tension on the beach became suffocatingly thick as the combatants stared each other down for what seemed like an eternity…

Then there was movement! 

The Chaos Egg Hammer slammed it's hammer on the ground, shooting a wave of Chaos Energy at the two male sheep who swiftly dodged it from both sides. As the wave exploded behind them, Nash and Wallace sprinted towards the large juggernaut side by side. The younger Mobian sheep performed a sliding kick towards the Egg Hammer’s feet to bring it to a knee, hopping behind it to punch it to the ground where it got a strong knee to the face by the older Mobian sheep.

CLANG!!!

The enhanced Egg Hammer thrusted the queue of the hammer into Nash’s torso, knocking the air out of his lungs. It then grabbed Wallace with its free hand and slammed him to the ground before batting the both of them away with its mallet. Wallace and Nash’s bodies bounced against the sand before they both recovered with a flip and roll respectively. Wallace rushed back into battle, evading a few heavy and swift swings from the hammer-wielding machine thanks to his danger sense. 

Parrying a hammer swing, Wallace clasped his hands together. Nash ran towards his father, his right foot stepping into the clasped hands as the latter launched his son high in the air. Nash soared at the Super Badnik, balling his hand into a fist and decking it in the face with all his strength.

The Egg Hammer bleeped in pain, its glowing yellow eyes sparking bitterly with Chaos Energy as it fired lasers at the young black caprine. 

BANG!!!!

“Keep your laser eyes off my son…” 

Before it could cook Nash with its Chaos Beams, Wallace struck the bulky bugger with a deadly uppercut, forcing its head upwards where yellow beams of light were fired into the sky. The robot was struck with two harsh blows from an angry Wallace, knocking it back as Nash landed on the ground safely.

“Thanks, Dad!” Nash said, running towards the Egg Hammer.

The teen delivered an open palm strike and a punch to the Egg Hammer’s torso, then performed a flash kick to its face. The Egg Hammer retaliated by using the queue part of its weapon to stab Nash into the ground, but Nash hopped onto the pole, dashing on it to jump over and perform an axe kick to bring the behemoth to the ground. 

Wallace landed a valorous haymaker to the robot’s face with his hardened blue fist. Streams of yellow chaotic energy were fired at the father and son, forcing them on the evasive as several explosions rang out on the beach. 

From the billowing black clouds, the enhanced Super Badnik conjured up a sphere of Chaos Energy in its hand, hurling it up and striking it like a baseball with its hammer. Nash and Wallace were taken aback by this and they were even more shocked when the sphere split into a cluster of energy balls!

Both sheep weaved around the detonating energy balls, Wallace doing a far better job than Nash thanks to his ability to detect danger. The younger sheep, having no such ability, ran around like a headless chicken to avoid being incinerated by the explosions. 

As Nash caught his breath, one stray energy sphere descended towards him from behind. Wallace raised a hand to call out to his son as he ran towards him. Just as the deadly sphere came within range, Nash remembered something Sonic had told him:

“You also gotta remember to feel the environment around you, so that when something happens, you can react quicker than you usually do.”

Nash’s eyes narrowed, his legs pushing his body into the air to backflip away the energy ball in slow motion as it narrowly missed him and detonated on the sand, scorching it. The youthful bovid landed on his feet, surprised at what he just pulled off.

“Wow…!” He let out. “I can’t believe that actually worked!”

Wallace himself couldn’t believe his eyes. His offspring just predicted where that energy ball was coming and dodged it accordingly! He’d hug his son for such a feat, but he had to stow his pride away for now. The enemy needed to be brought down!

“Stay focused, son!” Wallace yelled, “We still have to bring this Badnik down!”

“Oh! Right!” Nash turned to the Egg Hammer, only to see a flash of light appear around it then disappear. “Where’d it go?!”

The answer came in the form of a heavy swing that would’ve knocked Nash into next week had Wallace not tackled him out of range. Picking up his son, Wallace evaded the rapid slams of the Egg Hammer’s mallet before gaining some distance to set Nash to the ground. 

Charging up Chaos Energy in its hammer, the purple and red bot bashed the ground, sending a wave of energy at the Mobians. Wallace stepped forth, his right arm cloaked in blue hardened skin, punched the air with such force, he projected the strike into a blue shockwave. 

Both projectiles collide with each other, causing a green explosion to erupt on the beach. The Egg Hammer warped in front of Wallace and Nash, shooting lasers at them point blank! The two barely had any time to dodge as they were blown back by the yellow flame cloud! 

Wallace and Nash got to their feet as the Egg Hammer teleported once more. This time, the older of the two sheep sensed the immediate danger and caught the hammer mid-swing then decked the large mech a good feet away. The Egg Hammer caught itself by using its weapon to slow its fall before swinging it upwards, sending out another wave at its opponents.

Wallace punched the ground, generating a blue energy wave as a barrier to block the yellow wave of Chaos Energy. The smoke cleared in front of them as the two sheep took a breather.

‘This isn’t looking good…!’ Wallace thought while sweating, ‘This Badnik isn’t simply attacking like a mindless machine. It’s learning, adapting and thinking… The Chaos Emerald in its possession not only enhanced its physical attributes, but also enhanced its processing power. If this keeps up…’

Wallace looked at Nash who nodded in agreement, they both were thinking the same thing: 

“We have to finish this Badnik off now! ”

They took off in a burst of speed at the Egg Hammer, dodging and deflecting (on Wallace’s part) multiple lasers and energy balls along the way. Realizing they were closing in, the Egg Hammer swung the queue part of its weapon to knock them away, but both Mobians jumped to evade. 

Father and son clenched their fists to deal the juggernaut an executing blow as they rocketed towards its head.

‘This is it!’ Wallace exclaimed in his thoughts.

‘One strike will end this Badnik for good!’ Nash chimed in mentally.

This was the decisive move! Father and son were going to deliver the punch of a century! 

They were gonna triumph! They—

KA-THOOOOOOOM!!!!!!

An immensely powerful shockwave of Chaos Energy quaked the entirety of Neo Green Hill Village, disrupting electricity through the entire town! The Egg Hammer had channeled all the energy it had within its hammer and swung it towards the ground with such force, it kicked up a lot of wind and sand.

It was as if Zeus himself had heeded the robot’s command and had given it the boost necessary to knock the two male sheep away. Speaking of them, Nash and Wallace were propelled several feet in the air, their bodies sparking with yellow Chaos Energy as they ragdolled across the ground in a daze.

A small groan escaped Nash’s lips as he struggled to pull himself from the ground. He raised his head and felt his heart stop; his father was laid out on the ground, trying to drag his way to his son with two hands. The heavy footsteps of the Chaos Egg Hammer came to a stop in front of Wallace, its large shadow cast upon the older sheep as it raised its sparking hammer above its head.

Nash tried to move his legs, his arms, anything to prevent the Egg Hammer from taking his father away from him! But the pain and fatigue toxins coursing through his body prevented such actions. 

Was this it? Was this truly how Nash and Wallace were going to go out?

Losing their lives to a Chaos-enhanced Super Badnik?

…

…

…

NO!

Nash slowly stood to his wobbling feet.

He never was someone to back down or shy away from battle! 

Wallace always fought until the very end!

Sonic always fought till the very end! 

They wouldn’t back down! They wouldn’t give up! They would never let people die! They would never let Eggman win!

The Egg Hammer won’t win! Nash wouldn’t let him take his father away from him!

[ Haruka Mirai - Black Clover ]

Nash felt a spark light up within him, an ethereal energy that answered his calls for strength needed to take down this threat. A faint orange aura appeared around his body like a lit flame, becoming more and more apparent as his locs waved in the air. Snapping his eyes open, Nash let out an empowered roar as the aura flared out into a furious inferno, kicking up a lot of wind!

Wallace stared at the glowing orange light that his son was emitting, flabbergasted at the amount of power he was outputting. The Egg Hammer shared the same amount of surprise as the older sheep, this wasn’t anything its data hadn’t seen before! 

Aimaina kotoba nanka ja nanihitotsu kanawanai

( Grey words can't make anything happen )

Wasting no time, Nash ran at the Egg Hammer with such blistering speeds, Sonic himself would be impressed by it! He rocked the robot’s whole world with a kick to its stomach, an uppercut to its face, zipping behind to deliver an elbow strike to its back. The Egg Hammer spun around to smack Nash away with its hammer, but Nash parried the attack by projecting an orange energy shield in front of himself.

Wakatteru Wakatteru nda

( I know, yeah I know )

Landing, Nash zoomed up to land a vicious knee to the Egg Hammer’s face then smacked it down to the sandy floor with a double hammer fist. The robotic hand latched out at Nash, grabbing him out of the air to slam him down hard against the ground, disorienting the young sheep. 

Jūōmujin ni doko made mo habataketara na

( Wishing to fly freely across the sky )

Itsu no hi mo Yumemi teta

( I dreamed it all my life )

Shaking his head, Nash freed himself from the Egg Hammer’s grasp, spear kicking its chest then ducking to pummel it with an uppercut then a Superman punch! The purple and red machine retaliated by striking Nash with the head of the hammer, knocking the wind out of his body. Nash, however, grabbed the head of the mallet and judo-threw it and the Egg Hammer further away from the beach. 

Nash was already on the Egg Hammer in an instant, landing a flying knee to its body, sliding under it to grab at its leg to trip it off balance then jump up to deliver a devastating Stomp attack on its back!

Soredemo ippo ippo Futashikana sekai demo

( Step by step I go, though it's a doubtful world )

Nando mo Taore tatte sō

( Don't care how much I fall )

Hon'nō no mama Akirame wa shinaikara Sā

( Instinct is my guide, I never give up )

Forming an orange energy ball in his right hand, Nash hurled it at the sphere at the Egg Hammer, causing an explosion when it made contact. The young sheep evaded a hand swipe, counter attacking with a spin kick, followed by a three piece combo of right hooks and jabs to the juggernaut’s body, denting its steel armour. 

Stomping the ground with its large metal foot, the Egg Hammer stunned Nash long enough to thwack him with a Chaos-charged hammer swing. Nash grunted in pain, but performed several flips before skidding across the sand.

Harukamirai e Ima kakedashita nda

( To faraway future, I burst out running )

Nash flipkicked a downward hammer strike from the Egg Hammer, threw out another energy ball to damage its face then air-dashed behind the robot to spinkick its metallic “ribs”, making it beep in pain. 

Imada minu fuan sura subete koete

( Go beyond even the unseen fears )

The young sheep continued his assault with several punches and kicks to the Egg Hammer, who tried in vain to block the majority of the attacks with its mallet. Even with the power of one Chaos Emerald, the Egg Hammer’s might paled in comparison to Nash’s Courage. 

Ano hi egaita Boku ga boku de aru tame ni

( The vision I had, so I can be myself )

As it was propelled away by a double palm strike from Nash, the Egg Hammer suffered more attacks for its sloppy attempts to fight back. When it tried to squash the teenager with its hammer, Nash grabbed it mid-swing, wrenched it out of the behemoth’s hands and beat it over the head with its own weapon! 

Itsunohika pēji no tsudzuki egaku yo

( Someday I will write the next page )

Kimi to iu kibō to iu

( You are my hope )

Nash threw the hammer into the ocean with a splash, glaring at the Egg Hammer as its body began to spark and break down from the amount of injuries it had sustained through its battle with Nash and Wallace. 

It was time to end this!

Nash’s orange energy flared out in a flame around, his right eye releasing flame-like trails as he balled his right hand into a fist, gathering all the energy around it for one final attack.

Marude itsuka no 1 pēji no yōna

( Like that page from someday )

Kimitoboku ga deaeta

( I was able to meet you )

Kore o kiseki tte yobou ka

( I call this a miracle )

Nash’s body vanished from where he stood, kicking up sand in the process. The Egg Hammer’s eyes glowed to fire one last attack at the sheep, but its eyes cracked, causing the light to dim. This small window of luck was all that was needed for Nash to power-punch the Egg Hammer in the torso, burrowing a hole through its chest and blasting the yellow Chaos Emerald out of it! 

Electric sparks shot out from the defeated Egg Hammer, beams of light shooting out of it before it died in an explosion. Nash panted heavily, the orange glow around him fading away, but he had done it. 

He had won.

“...What was that just now?” Nash asked himself, looking at his hands in awe.

Three yellow lines appeared beside his head, perking up as he remembered something: His dad!

The younger sheep sprinted back to Wallace, who was back on his feet, dusting the sand off himself. He saw his son approach him with a perturbed step.

“Are you okay, Dad?!” Nash inquired with a worried tone.

“I’ll be fine, son.” Wallace reassured, he then looked down at his son and asked him. “Though, what was that power you just tapped into?”

Pondering, Nash shrugged his shoulders. “I… don’t know? In all honesty, I was more focused on saving you from certain death.”

“What about the Chaos Emerald?” 

Upon the mention of the sparkling gem, Nash’s eyes turned into blank white circles, small white bubbles appearing around his head as he panicked.

“Oh crap! I think I must’ve sent it flying somewhere when I punched that Egg Hammer! We gotta find it!”

Wallace placed a calming hand on son’s shoulder. “Forget about the Emerald, Nash. The important thing is that we’re both safe and we took down the Egg Hammer. Now, let’s head back home. I’m sure your mother is worried sick about both of us being out.”

“Okay, Dad.”

Nash and Wallace walked away from the ruined beach, exhausted from today’s battle. Though, Wallace couldn’t help but think to himself. 

Just what was that power his son used against that Egg Hammer?

In another section of Neo Green Hill’s forest, the Egg Flapper floated away with the Yellow Chaos Emerald in its grasp. Space distorted then tore open a yellow portal as a figure hopped out of it. 

They were a white and grey Mobian platypus male with a comb-over hairstyle. A pair of orange pince-nez glasses sat in front of a pair of calculating red eyes. The male platypus dressed in a dapper attire consisting of a purple satin shirt and slacks, a red-violet vest and a pair of brown, red-violet and golden boots. 

The Egg Flapper floated towards the smartly-dressed semi-aquatic man with the yellow Chaos Emerald.

“Ah! So that’s where the fabled gem landed.” He spoke in a calm, gentlemanly voice. He smiled at the orange drone. “Splendid work, little Flapper! That makes four of the seven Chaos Emeralds.”

The Mobian platypus opened a case to reveal three other Chaos Emeralds inside; he placed the yellow one with its brothers before closing the case.

“Come, we must search for the remaining three. Then… We’ll search for the Doctor.”

The Egg Flapper beeped in response as it and the mysterious platypus headed towards the portal as it closed behind them.

Chapter Text

9:50 AM

G.U.N Headquarters

[ Strategy - Sonic Adventure 2 ]

Large holographic screens beamed to life in the centre of the room, the many lights drew the attention of a pair of stern heterochromic eyes. On one screen to their left was a city overrun with Badniks that were quickly destroyed by a familiar blue streak. A holo-screen to their right showed a large mass of Egg Fleets flying in the sky as two blue figures did battle on top of one of the airships. 

Lastly, the big screen in the middle showed a climactic battle against a large blue robot monster and the Resistance on a floating island in the sky. The stern eyes focused on the monstrous machine for a moment, his gloved right hand unconsciously gripping his left wrist with slight indignation. 

The doors behind him shifted open as two individuals stepped into the room. One was a human woman with short sandy brown hair, violet eyes, peach skin and a slim yet athletic figure. She wore the standard navy uniform most G.U.N soldiers wore around the base, though wore blue earrings and pink lipstick. 

The other was a Mobian rabbit woman who was tall and slim. She had forest green fur with two large tufts on her head and hair that was arranged in a ponytail at the back. She had a white fluffy muzzle, blue eyeshadow and yellow orbs. Just like the human, the rabbit woman was adorned in a similar uniform but fitted for a Mobian. 

The two women saluted their superior, “Commander Tower, sir!”

“At ease, Agent Topaz . Lieutenant Clover.” Tower acknowledged as the women lowered their arms. “What’s the status of the Badnik attacks?” He questioned.

“The Badnik attacks have been slowing down in the past two weeks, sir.” Topaz briefed. “From what we gathered, it was an organised attack set by Eggman… Or at least, what we thought was Eggman.”

“From what we gathered from the surveillance footage, Metal Sonic was the one running Eggman’s operation until he was stopped by Sonic and the Resistance on Angel Island, sir.” Clover added. 

“Then where was the real Eggman?” Commander Tower asks with a raised eyebrow.

“He was located at Windmill Village by the Chaotix, sir. His battle with Sonic during the War caused him to lose his memories and become ‘Mr. Tinker’. Agents Shadow and Rouge informed us that Eggman wasn't as much of a threat as Mr Tinker, but told us they’d keep an eye on him if anything were to happen.”

The G.U.N official stroked his chin thoughtfully as he took in this information. The defeat of G.U.N during the start of the Eggman War was still fresh in the aged man’s mind. Dr. Ivo Robotnik had always been an unpredictable yet threatening foe, given his various crimes against the people of Mobius. 

But the six month war proved that the mad scientist was willing to resort to drastic measures in order to get what he wanted; total domination of the entire world. 

Tower glanced up at the two women, “I see. I’m thankful that Sonic and the Resistance were able to clear the majority of Badniks and defeat Metal before he could become a greater threat. Speaking of badniks; I heard Neo Green Hill Village was attacked by an Egg Hammer. Are Sargent Wallace and his family okay?”

“Sargent Wallace is fine, sir.” The forest green rabbit chimed in. “He called me a week ago and assured us that the Super Badnik had been dealt with and his family were safe.”

“Good, good.” Came the response from the G.U.N Commander.

“Will that be all, sir?” Topaz followed up with a question.

An affirmative nod was the response from her superior. “Yes, Agent Topaz. You and Lieutenant Clover are dismissed. Though, you two keep an eye out for anything suspicious. Things may be peaceful for now, but I have a feeling something dire will fall upon us…”

Saluting once more, the G.U.N Soldiers nodded before turning around and exiting the room, leaving Abraham alone with his thoughts as he stared back at the holo screens.

10:10 AM

Neo Green Hill Village

POW!!!

Nash skid across the ground with his arms crossed in a defensive stance. He looked through the opening of his limbs to see Wallace rushing in quickly with a side-kick to the ribs. Nash’s hands smacked away the swinging leg, then lurched forward to palm strike his father’s face. 

Wallace tilted his body to the left, swinging his fists towards Nash’s stomach that the teenager blocked with his palms before he jumped up and kicked his dad in the chest with both legs. Wallace slid across the grass, collecting himself for a moment then jumped in the air to land a Superman punch on Nash. 

On his feet in seconds, Nash dashed away at a certain feet as his father’s fist impacted the ground, blowing away some grass blades in the process. Now it was Nash’s turn to attack - the teen’s body became a blur of black and brown, closing the distance on Wallace immediately. Nash threw several punches towards Wallace who caught and parried every single strike in his open palms before he raised his right forearm to block a swinging kick from his son. 

[ Blazing Outsiders - Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 ]

“That’s enough sparring for now, son.” The older sheep says as the two relax their muscles. “I’m seeing a lot of improvement in you from the past two weeks. I’m proud of you, kiddo!”

Nash flashed a toothy grin. “Thanks Dad!” He then looked down at his hands in slight thought. “If only I could’ve tapped into that power again for our spar today like I did against that Egg Hammer, then our training could be more serious.”

Wallace silently agreed with a nod. Ever since that day, Nash had been trying to reawaken that strange energy that had enabled him to beat the Super Badnik. While the young sheep had experienced a boost in physicalities, the ethereal aura had remained dormant with seemingly no signs of returning.

“It’s best not to force it out, son. That power of yours will come naturally whenever it’s needed and ready.” Wallace advised. “But when you awakened your power for the first time, what was it like?”

Nash tapped his foot on the grass, rubbing his chin in deep thought at the question. 

“Hmmm…” He snapped his fingers once an answer came to mind. “Oh I got it! It felt like a small flame that suddenly erupted into a mighty inferno!”

Uproarious hearty laughter bellowed from Wallace’s throat. “That’s a pretty interesting way to describe the awakening of your powers, Nash! Hahahahahaha!”

“Alright, let’s expand on that analogy for your powers. The flame itself is small for now because it doesn’t have anything to keep it alight, but when more wood is added to the fire, it will gradually get bigger and bigger. Once you have control over that fire, you’ll be able to wield it as your own.”

“So in order for my powers to fully awaken, I have to find the wood to light my fire, per say?” Nash inquired with a raised eyebrow.

“Exactly. The battle with the Super Badnik showed that you’ve got potential. You just have to harness that latent power within you! It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it in the long run!” 

The young sheep stared at his father for a moment in awe then nodded in determination.

“Alright, we’ll pick up our training tomorrow. It’s time for me to head to work.” Wallace turned to walk towards the back door of their house.

“Hey, Dad!” Nash’s sudden outcry grabbed his father’s attention. “I uh… wanted to tell you that I’m heading into Emeraldville today.”

“Why?”

“To help out the new group called The Restoration .” The young sheep answered. “I was reading up on the recent online article on the Mobius News Network about how the Resistance disbanded after the battle against Metal Sonic and how the Restoration is helping with rebuilding homes, giving people shelters and resources after the Eggman War and Badnik attacks. And I was wondering if you could drive me there while you’re heading to work.”

Wallace crossed his arms with a look of skepticism. “Hmmm… I don’t know, son. While you have gotten stronger, you are still young. We don’t know if the Restoration will be like the defunct Resistance where they’ll be sending you into battle Badniks or something else if Eggman happens to spring another attack.”

Nash raised a finger as he opened his mouth…

“And yes, I know you battled that Egg Hammer with me. But that was because it was empowered by the Chaos Emerald and you were able to beat it after you had awakened your powers. You’re still inexperienced at harnessing it at will.”

… only to lower his finger and close his mouth. 

“Look I know you want to get out there and help out, but you’re just not ready yet, Nash.” Wallace finished. 

“Dad… I know you’re trying to protect me from whatever crazy scheme Eggman will cook up, but I can’t keep staying here in the village forever. I won’t be able to learn much if I’m cooped up here just waiting for you to return home.” Reasoned the dread headed young sheep. “After all, didn’t you tell me that the best way to get experience is to be out on the field?”

The older sheep recoiled a bit then rolled his head to the side as he stroked his stubbly muzzle in thought. His son made a very compelling argument for his case and he was right in a way. Wallace wouldn’t always be there to protect Nash from harm and the Restoration could give him the learning experience needed for the future. 

Plus, Nash would be around people his age so that was a bonus too. 

“Mmmm… alright. I’ll let you go to the Restoration to help out.” Wallace relented, but pointed a stern finger at his son. “But when you get there, you listen to whoever’s in charge there. Got that?”

“Crystal, Dad!” Nash answered with a smile.

The soldier patted his child on the back. “Good man! Now, let’s go!”

10:45 AM

Emeraldville - Restoration HQ

A silver-grey mini SUV pulled up on the side of the pavement. Nash looked out from the passenger side window at the Restoration HQ, a three story building that was red, brown and grey in colour and a bit run down, likely from the six month war to take back Mobius from Eggman’s gloved clutches. 

“You sure this is the place, Nash?” Wallace gave a questioning look to Nash. “This building looks more rundown than Eggman’s old bases.”

“Positive, Dad!” Nash confirms as he points to the building. “This is where the Resistance took shelter when the War happened. The Restoration is using that exact same building for the rebuilding efforts.”

“I see. Well son, I’ll see you after work. I’ll pick you up after my shift is over.”

“Cool! Have a good time at work, Dad! Love you!”

“I love you too, kiddo!”

The two gave a quick goodbye hug as Nash exited the vehicle and shut the door behind him. Wallace pulled away from the pavement, driving the SUV to his workplace. Nash stared up at the building, feeling butterflies fly around in his stomach as his hands trembled some. 

First day jitters were hitting hard, especially since there was a member of the defunct Resistance behind those doors. Nash took a breath to calm himself and walked up to the metal gate. The gate scanned him for a moment before they parted, allowing the sheep entrance into the building. The moment he entered, the young sheep was greeted with a rather hard working environment. 

[ Living With Determination - Persona 3 Reload ]

Restoration members were all across the main floor carrying boxes, talking amongst one another or helping the unfortunate with their current situation. Mobians of all ages were either sitting by tables, huddled up in the corner with a blanket covering their bodies or doing something to pass the time.

Nash slowly walked through the main floor, looking around at the amount of people within the building. His brown eyes noticed a pink hedgehog in a red and white dress, gold bracelets, red and white boots that he recognised as Amy Rose talking with a disgruntled male dog Mobian wearing rugged clothes and a cap. From what Nash could pick up on the scarred man’s mumbling and twitchy movements, he heard words such as “Eggman”, “War” and other sayings he couldn’t quite pick up. 

Amy noticed Nash approaching then looked back at the poor pooch. “I know, I know. Just take deep breaths and I’ll be back soon, Mr. Salyers.” 

Mr. Salyers mumbled an ‘okay’ as he stepped away while rubbing his arms, allowing the pink hedgehog to meet Nash face to face.

“Hello there!” She greeted Nash warmly with a smile, extending her arm for a handshake. “I take it you’re here to help out with the rebuilding efforts?”

Nash clasped her hand with his and shook once. “Yeah, I am! I’m Nash! It’s nice to meet you, Miss Rose.”

“Nice to meet you too, Nash. And please, just call me Amy.” 

“Alright. So uh… what can I do to help out here?”

“Well…” Amy began as she glanced around. “Why not start by getting yourself familiar with the Restoration. Get comfortable and meet a few people.”

The pink hedgehog picked up a box filled with all sorts of edibles and drinks, handing them over to Nash. “You know, everyone here could do with some refreshments. Just hand these out to everyone and while I take care of stuff in the office, is that alright?” 

“That’s… fine.” Nash wearily watched Mr. Salyers walk by and make bizarre movements with his body. 

“Oh, don’t mind Mr. Salyers, Nash. He doesn’t bite. Much.” Amy joked with a giggle before walking off. 

“...Are you sure about that?” The dread headed sheep inquired hesitantly.

Giving the mentally ill hound some space, Nash got to work on his task. He walked around the HQ, asking people if they wanted any refreshments, some of which accepted either a bottle of water or a sandwich to tide them over before more food would arrive. 

Nash approached an Osprey Mobian boy his age. Their eyes glued to their handheld gaming console as they played without a care in the world.

“Would you like a drink or something to eat?” Nash offered.

“Apple juice is fine, thanks.” The Osprey replied while not taking his eyes off the screen.

Nash pulled out the beverage from the box and placed it next to the gamer. He peered over the Osprey’s shoulder.

“What are you playing?” The black sheep asked.

“ Wild Hunters .” The bird teen replied. “I’m a little bit stuck on the Crag Canyon level because of those damn clouds and I’m trying to find those treasure chests.”

“Oh, I’ve played that game before! Would you like some help?”

“...I don’t see why not?”

“First off, you can get rid of the clouds with the Whirl Talisman that you can buy from the shop or obtain in this level. Grab an enemy with your tail while you have the Whirl Talisman, then use your Tornado Spin or Aerial Bomber to blow away the clouds. That’s also how you’ll be able to find the hidden treasure chests located in the level.” Nash explained.

The gaming Osprey did as Nash instructed, his eyes widening in surprise at the results.

“It works…! Nice one, man!” The Mobian bird gave a grateful thumbs up as he focused on his game. “Gonna get me some hidden treasures now!”

The young bovid male smiled back, allowing the kid to play his video game. 

“Excuse me, young man!” A female voice called out.

Nash turned his head to an elderly Mobian bear woman waving him over. He wandered over to her with the box in hand.

“Hello ma’am, anything I can help you out with?” He asks politely. 

“Yes please. Can you show me how to send this to my daughter?” The old bear showed Nash her smartphone which had an image of the Restoration building and a link below it. “A friend of mine sent it over to me and I’m trying to figure out how to do that.”

“Sure! I can help with that!” Nash smiled. “I’ll show you step by step how to do this.”

For the next minute, the wooly teenager showed the elderly bear woman how to send the Restoration Building link to her daughter on the smartphone. Nash handed the phone back to the woman who took it back with a warm smile.

“Thank you, young man. I’m still trying to get used to this new smartphone my daughter got me for my birthday.”

“You’re welcome, ma’am!” Nash beamed before gesturing to the box of edibles, “Would you like any refreshments, by the way?”

“A sandwich and a bottle of water please, thank you.” The elderly bear answered, taking them from the box. 

“If you don’t mind me asking, ma’am. Why were you sending a link about the Restoration to your daughter?” Nash questioned.

“To let her know where I am until she can get a room sorted for me at her house, dear.” The aged ursine woman stated. “Due to the dreadful war that occurred six months past, I unfortunately had my house in disrepair, so I’m staying here for the time being until my home is repaired or my daughter and I can find a new place for me to live.”

The young sheep gave a sympathetic frown to the kind old lady. The frown only became longer when his brown eyes darted around at the other misfortunate people who were at the Restoration HQ due to the repercussions of the Eggman War. Homes were destroyed, lives were taken and people are suffering mentally and emotionally.

And Nash knew exactly how all these people felt…

“I’m really sorry about your current situation, ma’am...” Nash consoled. 

“It’s alright, darling.” The bear woman replied with a grandmotherly tone and smile, “I’m in no rush to leave the Restoration anytime soon. The world may seem a bit bleak for now, but we should always have faith in Sonic and the Restoration to make things better.”

Nash nodded in agreement. “Right.”

Waving goodbye to the old woman, Nash walked away to hand out more refreshments for people in the Restoration. But the moment he turned to face in front of him, he collided into someone holding a stack of papers, causing a mess of sandwiches, fruits and drinks to fall out of the box he was holding. The shower of papers gently fluttered to the floor as Nash and the person carrying them fell to the floor. 

Nash groaned, rubbing the back of his head. “Ugh… Crap…! Sorry about that! I really wasn’t looking where I was goin-” He glanced up at the person mid-apology then felt his breath hitch.

Staring back at him was a beautiful Mobian Sheep girl his age. Her entire wool was snow white, a light tan muzzle with a salmon coloured nose, diamond blue eyes with light powder blue sclera and two eyelashes on each of her eyes. Unlike Nash, who had no horns on his head, the sheep girl had two black pointy and stubby ones on the top of her head, droopy medium-long ears with light tan canals and black stubs on her fingertips. 

A large tuft of hair sat on her forehead while the rest of her hair was segmented into four buns, held together by black hairbands. Her clothing consisted of an orange long-sleeved dress with a collar under a green long-sleeved shirt, pearl earrings, white gloves and lilac and white shoes.

“Uhh… Sorry about that…!” The two sheep awkwardly said in unison before quietly looking away.

Nash and the cloudy white sheep girl silently picked up their respective items from the ground, doing it as quickly as possible given the amount of eyes that were on them right now. The two then stood up, Nash with his box in hand and the sheep girl with her stacks of paper.

“Sorry for bumping into like that, I wasn’t looking where I was going.” The dread-headed sheep muttered apologetically. 

“N-No, it’s fine. I couldn’t see with these stacks of paper obscuring my vision.” The bovid girl replied, equally as remorseful. “My name is Lanolin. What’s your name?”

“I’m Nash. It’s nice to meet you, Lanolin.” 

The two teens gave an awkward smile to each other then went their separate ways. As they were walking away, Nash lowered his head in shame while Lanolin hid her bright red face behind the stacks of paper she was carrying. 

‘Great going, Nash! You’ve made an idiot out of yourself in front of the Restoration…! ’ He internally chastised himself.

‘Oh Chaos… Why did I have to embarrass myself around so many people…?!’ Lanolin mentally berated.

12:00 AM

Frozen Peak

[ White Acropolis (Snowy Peak) - Sonic 06 ]

Meanwhile on the chilly mountains of Frozen Peak, the blue hero of Mobius trudged through the snow alongside another companion of his that was following close behind. He was a young hedgehog with silver-coloured fur, peach skin on his muzzle and inner ears, golden yellow eyes with black patterns on the edges. He had five spines pointing flaring up on his forehead and two large ones on the back of his head.

Silver the Hedgehog, a psychic hero from the future, had informed Sonic about some suspicious activity on the top of the mountains by a mysterious benefactor. Smelling something rotten about this, Sonic and Silver hiked up the mountain to investigate, properly donning some much warmer outfits for the climb. 

While Sonic could brave the colder elements with his regular clothes, he donned a red and white winter jacket with a white scarf around his neck, black trousers and modified versions of his iconic red sneakers that were suitable for the cool climate. He also wore some winter goggles on top of his head.

As for Silver, he wore a black jumper with aqua lines around the torso, sleeves and cuffs, a cyan wooly hat, dark blue trousers and his regular boots. 

“You’re sure this is the way?” Sonic asked, shielding his face from the snowy winds.

Silver nodded, hoping his jumper would keep him warm. “This is where the guy told me to go.”

“I mean, I know this seems sketchy. Random guy appears, tells me about an Eggman Base, and then just vanishes, but…”

“Nah, it’s cool. It matches up with what Tails experienced the other day. And right now, we need any lead we can get.” Sonic stated.

As the two reached the top of the mountain, Sonic and Silver noticed the base drenched in snow and quickly took cover behind a dead tree log to avoid being spotted out in the open. Both hedgehogs quietly raised their heads over their hiding spot to get a better look at what they were seeing.

“ Yo! Look up ahead! ” Sonic whispered to Silver. 

“ Looks like they’re clearing out the base… ” Silver noted as each Badnik carried a metal crate into a gateway to… somewhere. Silver then gave a smirk towards the Blue Blur, “ ...And it looks like my lead was right. ”

Sonic returned Silver’s smirk with a half-hearted snarky retort. “ Uh-huh. And when does it blow up in our faces? ” 

“Seems that they’re trying to get rid of evidence. Let’s hit ‘em fast before they–!”

WHOOSH!!!!

A shiny blue blur zoomed past Sonic and Silver when they attempted to vault over the log, causing them to faceplant into the snow. The blur circled back to where the two heroes were, revealing it to be none other than Metal Sonic! 

Sonic pulled his face from the snow to give his old rival his usual grins. “Oh. Hey, Metal. You’re fully repaired, huh?”

Before Silver could even react, he felt Metal’s cold hand grab his boot. The robotic copy spun his torso around so fast, it was like he had become a miniature gravitron. Silver’s whole world twisted around him as he tried in vain to free himself from Metal’s strong grip, but the moment the blue machine let him go, Silver was sent flying into the distance. 

“AAAAAAAAAAAYIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeee….!”

With the psychic hero out of the way, Metal Sonic turned his attention towards his true opponent. The two rivals stared for a moment, green confident eyes meeting cold red ones before the two charged at one another. 

“So who fixed you up? Tinker? Or Eggman?” Sonic questioned, nailing Metal Sonic with a punch to his “cheekbone”.

Metal retaliated by swiping his sharp claws as Sonic, who dodged swiftly, only getting some of his quills cut off. 

Sonic rubbed the top of his quills. “Oh. Right. You can’t talk as plain old vanilla Metal Sonic. Was that the real reason you went back to being Neo Metal Sonic?”

Metal sweeped his leg out to trip up the hero, but it was easily dodged as Sonic went in for an axe kick. The robotic duplicate weaved out of the range, staring daggers at Sonic who merely had his hands behind his back with a laid back expression. 

“So, can you do more than “beep-boop”? Because this is a major downgrade.” The Fastest Thing Alive teased.

“Are you here to talk or are you here to fight?” Metal retorted with an annoyed tone, surprising Sonic at the sudden speech from the normally quiet killing machine.

“Oh, so you can talk! That’s an improvement! And here I was thinkin’ you were gonna give me the silent treatment this whole fight.” Sonic quick-stepped behind the killing machine to avoid another claw swiper. “I mean, if the doc didn’t want you to get distracted by battle banter…”

A cyan field of psychic energy surrounded Metal Sonic’s person, levitating him in the air. Silver had returned from his impromptu flight on the Metal Gravitron to exact some much needed revenge. 

“...It didn’t really work.” The Blue Blur smirked cockily, giving Silver a thumbs up. “Nice catch, Silver. You okay?”

Silver nodded. “I’ll hold Metal, you go into the base and–”

VOIP!!!

Suddenly, a red portal opened up below Metal Sonic, swallowing him up and dispelling Silver’s psychokinetic hold. Sonic and Silver were stunned for a second before they heard boots crunching the snow behind them. They snapped their heads to see Metal Sonic dropping out from another portal and landing next to the sharply-dressed white and grey Mobian platypus.

[ Strained Event - Sonic Rush ]

“Gentleman.” He greeted, a condescending smile on his black beak.

Silver’s eyes flashed in recollection upon seeing the platypus. “What the… That’s the guy! That’s my informant!”

“Looks like he’s controlling that wormhole. The same kind that grabbed Rough and Tumble.” Sonic assessed before yelling at the suave semi-aquatic mammal, “Alright! I’ve got a bunch of questions, and I’m willing to bet you’re the answer to a lot of them!”

“Very astute. I am Doctor Starline, and I am indeed the one behind your present concerns.” The platypus gave an introductory bow to the heroes. 

“And why’s that?”

“I wanted to meet you - experience you - for myself.”

Starline gave a maddening smile that unsettled both Sonic and Silver. “The Blue Blur! The hero across time and space! The only being alive to be able to stand up to the overwhelming might and brilliance of Dr. Eggman through sheer skill alone!”

“Can I measure up? Can I complete my objective with you in my way? Everything about this encounter has been constructed to be the ultimate test of our abilities and willpower!”

During this crazed tirade, Sonic gave Silver an annoyed questioning look. This was his informant? A nutty platypus who was a massive fan of his lifelong arch nemesis?

The psychic hedgehog held up his hands with a creeped out expression. “He did not sound this creepy or crazy when I talked to him!” Exasperated, Silver rubbed the back of his quills as the Blue Wind addressed Starline once more. 

“At least you’re giving me straight answers. I’ll assume you busted Rough and Tumble out of jail with your sky-holes. So tell me this: what did you do with Mr. Tinker?”

“That pale shadow of the Doctor no longer exists.” Starline sinisterly uttered. “I’ve seen to it that Dr. Eggman has been restored!”

—

Dr. Eggman’s Secret Lab

“Hmm… the Metal Virus’ progression is steady, but slow.” Eggman examined the small Ricky animal that was covered in liquid bronze metal. He paced around the room. “A self-recruiting army is a nice idea, but it won’t spread far at this rate.”

“Total saturation works fine, but there’s no way I can soak the whole planet in my Metal Virus. I wonder if repeated exposure would accelerate things…?”

The small squirrel watched Eggman walk away nervously, allowing it a bit of reprieve. That small moment of peace was shattered when a shadow was cast over it, forcing the Ricky to look up in confusion. That confusion turned to panic as it attempted to flee the confines of its red, glass prison. The rotund mad scientist had returned to torment the poor creature with a Pocky that was fully infected with the Metal Virus. 

“Boop! ” He cackled evilly, repeatedly exposing the squirrel to the infected rabbit. “ Boop! Boop! Boop!”

The effects were instantaneous as the unfortunate Ricky’s infection had progressed to the point it had become a bronze, red eyed version of itself. Eggman flashed his teeth in a cruel evil smile, laughter escaping his throat at his hypothesis being correct.

“Eureka! The greater the exposure, the more rapid the effect! A mob of my infected minions will be able to convert new victims in no time!” Tossing the infected Pocky in with the Ricky, Eggman walked away to his computer. “All I need to do is administer the Metal Virus in a few locations, and the rest will take care of itself!”

—

[ Vs. Character - Sonic 06 ]

Sonic wasted no time racing around the mountain towards Dr. Starline, his modified sneakers allowing him traction within the deep snow. Starline and Metal Sonic watched Sonic speed up toward them, the former looking on in intrigue.

“Interesting… Normally, it would be difficult for you to build up your trademark speed in deep snow due to not having enough traction.” The red-eyed platypus mused, “But those snow boots of yours allow you to bypass that little weakness… I do wonder who created those shoes for you.”

Starline looked towards Metal Sonic, whose thrusters activated to meet Sonic half way just before the hero could attack the platypus. Metal tackled his organic copy, ramming him into some trees. 

Silver hovered in the air, covering himself in psychic energy. “Sonic, move! I’ll get him!”

A swift updraft kick from the blue robotic hedgehog prevented that from happening as Sonic collided into the psychic hero. Sonic latched onto Silver’s boot as he rubbed his ribs to soothe them.

“He’s too fast for you to focus on!” Sonic pointed out.

“Then I won’t grab him!”

Focusing, Silver channeled his powers to form an aqua green dome around Metal Sonic then paid the faker back by tossing him far into the distance! Dr. Starline grimaced with anger, turning back to the heroes who were now closing in on him fast.

“You fools! That was a high-quality piece of Eggman technology!” He growled.

“And it comes with a complimentary high-quality butt-kicking!” Quipped the Blue Blur as he and Silver came in to nail the sharply-dressed semi-aquatic mammal.

Starline’s expression of rage turned to smug confidence as he raised his left hand up, the yellow gem on his glove glowing in power as space distorted then tore open a portal. Sonic and Silver’s eyes shot open in surprise as they suddenly fell through the portal and straight into deep snow on the other side. Sonic curled up into a spin dash and charged towards Starline with a Homing Attack…

…Only to fly through another portal that was opened by Starline, who had the gall to disrespect Sonic by yawning as he did so.

The Speed Demon looked down to see he was on the other side of the mountain! With no ground to stand on, gravity affected his body as he descended rapidly towards the ground below. Silver immediately jumped into the portal after Sonic to save him, the distortion closing the moment he entered. 

Metal Sonic landed by Starline, who acknowledged his presence with a content smile. “Welcome back. We’re almost done here.”

Meanwhile, Silver flew down the mountain at breakneck speeds after Sonic, pushing his psychokinetic flight as much as he could. Once he was in grabbing distance, he grabbed Sonic with his psychic energy, saving him from falling to his doom. 

“Gotcha!”

“ *whew!* Thanks!” 

“You’re welcome. But… where are we now?” Silver asked, allowing Sonic to land on the ground safely.

“Going by the slope of the peak, it looks like we’re on the opposite side of the mountain.” Sonic deduced, “He must’ve scouted out the whole mountain beforehand.”

The Blue Blur’s feet revved up in a figure-eight as he pulled a move from his Classic Days: The Super Peel Out!

“Grab on. I’ll get us back there!”

Silver latched onto Sonic with his aqua green aura. “Wouldn’t it be faster if I flew us over?”

With a “WHOO!!!” ; Sonic kicked up snow as he sped off, dragging Silver along with him for a ride back up the mountain.

“Nope! This is faster! Much faster!” Silver laughed joyously.

Back with Dr. Starline and Metal Sonic, they were just about ready to head back to Eggman’s laboratory after sorting out everything in the abandoned base. Starline used his Warp Topaz to open a gateway back to the lab, turning to Metal Sonic who had just finished guarding a caravan.

“Is everything set up?” He asked, getting an affirmative nod from Metal, “Excellent. Thank you for keeping the Badnik caravan safe. You go first. I’ll give them one last second to catch up.”

Metal Sonic walked through the portal as Starline stopped to look back if Sonic and Silver would return. True to his word, the platypus waited for a second before breathing out of his nostrils in slight dissatisfaction. 

“...No? How disappointing.”

WHAM!!!

Unfortunately for Starline, that one second was all Sonic needed to ram into his torso with a mighty Spin Dash, forcing his lungs to vacate any air that was inside. Landing hard against the soft white snow, Starline let out a groan before he was face to face with the Hero of Mobius’ signature cocky grin.

“Miss me?” Sonic asked rhetorically.

Starline wheezed out a nervous chuckle. “Haha! How–? You were–?”

“Fastest Thing Alive, remember? Eggman details. Spill ‘em.”

“Everything’s been secured in the vault! Straight to the back wall! Access Code; 2-6-6-2!” 

“I’ve got it! You just keep him down, Sonic!” Silver says, flying into the entrance of the Egg Base.

Sonic nodded, turning his attention back to Starline. “I want to hear it from you , fanboy. Where is Eggman? What are you two planning?”

“E-Eggman isn’t here! He’s planning something breathtaking!” The platypus replied, his eyes narrowed as his mouth turned into a nefarious smile. And I’m planning on planting explosives inside a vault, then giving your friend the detonation code.”

Sonic felt his quills frizzle a bit, snapping his head to the entrance of the base. “Silver, WAIT!!!”

Without hesitation, the Blue Blur threw Starline aside and rushed into the entrance after the psychic hedgehog. The second he did though–

KA-BOOM!!!!

A large explosion rang out from inside the base, shaking the mountain with its thunderous noise! Starline shielded himself from detonation, lowering his hand and looking back to see billowing black smoke rising from the entryway. The platypus couldn’t believe it…

He did it… He did something that Eggman has been doing for years…!

He’d actually done it! He killed Mobius’ Champion!

Starline raised his fist in the air with triumphant glee. “WOO-HOO-HOO! I did it! I can’t believe it was that easy! How spectacular! I hope the Doctor saw that!”

Eggman’s arm peered out from the open portal and gripped Starline by his throat, eliciting a squeak befitting that of his species as his eyes bulged out cartoonishly before being dragged into the portal. Little did Starline know, killing Sonic the Hedgehog was a far harder task than anyone expected.

Inside the destroyed Egg Base, the smoke parted way to reveal Sonic and Silver were alive and well, thanks to the latter erecting a barrier around them just as the explosion occurred. The platinum hedgehog focused as hard as he could, pushing his psychic energy to its limits. 

Sonic smiled gratefully. “Wow. Way to go, Silver!”

“Th-That’s… two… you owe me…” Silver grunted weakly before collapsing in exhaustion, dispelling the barrier around them.

The last thing he heard before blacking out was Sonic calling his name.

[ The Base - Sonic Adventure 2 ]

1:05 PM

Restoration HQ

An hour and five minutes later, Silver groggily regained consciousness after expending so much energy. By his bedside were Sonic and Amy, who were waiting with baited breath for him to wake up, expressing relief when he did awaken. The fortune-teller remembered it all so vividly, seeing Sonic race into her office carrying an unconscious Silver on his back and letting him into a room to rest and recover. 

Then Sonic debriefed her on everything the two had learned while investigating the Egg Base in Frozen Peak. Badniks emptying the base full of crates, the battle between Metal Sonic and Starline, as well as the fact that Dr. Eggman was back, gathering up allies and preparing something devious once more.

Needless to say, all of this had Amy Rose shocked and horrified.

They left Silver in the room to rest and recover, letting him know that other members of the Restoration will provide him aid if he needs it. 

“This is bad! Eggman is back, he’s gathering allies, and we have no idea what his plan is!” Amy exclaimed worriedly as she walked to a laptop, “Mobius has barely begun rebuilding after his last attack. If he were to strike again soon, it could be devastating! We can’t let that happen!”

“Yeah, but where do we start?” Sonic tapped his chin thoughtfully, “We barely began to search all of his bases and labs when we were looking for Neo. He could be at any one of those now, or ones that we didn’t even find.”

“Right. So instead of wasting our time looking for where he is…” Amy pointed her finger at a red marker on the screen. “...We’ll go where he isn’t! We’ll tap into his network from one of his old unguarded bases!”

“We sure will. Let’s go!” Sonic grinned, offering his hand.

Amy blushed a bit. “Really? But I have so much work to do here and–”

“It’s your plan, so you’ve got dibs. Call it a ‘working vacation’. Though, if you feel like you’re really needed here, then I’ll head off and let you know what I find.”

“Well–”

Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Uh… Amy? Sorry to disturb you, but do you mind if we come in?” Nash called out from the other side.

The two hedgehogs met eyes for a second. “We”? 

“Sure, come on in!”

At that, Nash entered the room with Lanolin following behind him, likely wanting to talk to the director herself. A familiarity came over Sonic as he immediately recognised the two sheep Mobians walking into the room.

“Oh hey! It’s you two again!” He smirked, “Didn’t think I’d run into you both again!”

Nash’s brown eyes twinkled at the blue hero while Lanolin gave a modest yet warm smile.

“Hey Sonic! Nice to see you too!” Came Nash’s excited response.

“Hello Sonic! Good to meet you again!” Lanolin replied at the same time as Nash.

“I know you’ve met Lanolin before when we were at Riverside, but I didn’t know you met Nash, Sonic.” The pink hedgehog says.

“I saved him from a bunch of Badniks that were attacking him while I was on the way there.” Sonic mentioned. “So, what brings ya both here?”

“We were going to tell Miss Ro– er, Amy, that we had finished our current tasks and were wondering what else we could do to help out.” The white sheep explained. 

“Did we… come at a bad time?” The black sheep questioned upon reading the room. 

Amy waved her hands to dismiss that notion. “No, no! Sonic and I were just discussing a plan.”

“A plan?” repeated Lanolin.

“That’s right! Mobius is still recovering and it needs our help! All of our help!” Sonic added.

“Alright well. Call the play, coach.” Nash says, making sure to listen intently.

“Ok.” Amy began, “Sonic and I are going to head out to investigate an old Eggman base, so I won’t be here for a while. Can I trust you both and the others helping out here to look after the HQ while I’m gone?”

The dread-headed sheep nodded with a serious look. “Yeah!”

“We’ll make sure the people taking shelter here are all safe, Miss Ro– er, Amy!” Lanolin remarked after correcting herself.

“Also, Silver’s in the room resting up.” Sonic gestured to the room with his thumb. “Be sure to check in on him every once and a while to see if he’s okay.”

Nash and Lanolin gave an affirming nod at their new tasks at hand. Sonic swooped Amy off her feet, causing the pink hedgehog to let out a surprised laugh.

“Shall we get goin’, Ames?”

“Of course, Sonic!”

The Blue Blur performed his Super Peel Out as Amy held onto him with one arm. “Sorry Eggman, but it’s game over for you!” 

The two sped out of the office, leaving Nash and Lanolin behind with a very important duty on their hands. 

“Oh boy…! We have a lot to do here…!” Lanolin let out a sigh. “I’m not sure if we can look after the whole Restoration HQ, the homeless people and Silver by ourselves.”

“Let’s not overwhelm ourselves by doing everything, Lanolin.” Nash spoke, placing a reassuring arm on her shoulder. “If we work together and handle these things bit by bit, everything will be fine.”

He then flashed a toothy grin at her. “So, let’s go help out in any way that we can!”

Lanolin looked at Nash for a moment, then nodded with a small smile. “Sure. Check to see if there’s any more food in the back, Nash. I’ll go make sure the homeless are comfortable, then we’ll check on Silver to see if he’s recovering.”

“On it!”

The two sheep departed from the office to perform their respective tasks to keep the Restoration HQ in working order while Amy was off with Sonic. After some exploration thanks to a kind Mobian Owl, Nash was able to find the kitchen where more food was being prepared by other Restoration members.

Lanolin, meanwhile, was checking on the Mobians to see if they were all safe, often asking them if they’d like anything else to make them feel warm and comfortable. When those tasks were done, Nash and Lanolin would periodically check in on Silver to see if he was okay. While it took a lot of work, the two young sheep were able to push through it by working together with each other and other Restoration members.

3:15 PM

G.U.N Headquarters - Commander Tower’s office

Back at G.U.N, Abraham observed Mobius from his holo-screen attentively, hands in front of his face. His mind is thinking back to the various Badnik attacks that occurred during the past two weeks. 

Everything seemed quiet for now… Too quiet…

Tower’s eyes narrowed. ‘ Just what are you planning, Ivo…? ’

Chapter Text

Central City

G.U.N Headquarters

Wallace expected today to be busy at G.U.N. After dropping Nash off at the Restoration HQ, the army veteran prepared himself for whatever work would thrust upon his plate today. What Wallace wasn’t expecting when walking into G.U.N Headquarters was for it to be extremely hectic! 

Alarms blaring loudly, high–ranking officers barking orders at low-rank recruits, soldiers running down the halls with weapons in hand and various shuttles flying out of the hangers. It hadn’t been lively since the Eggman War or when the Black Arms invaded Mobius a few years ago.

Steeling himself, Wallace jogged through the halls of G.U.N. He bypassed many soldiers and co-workers who rushed to their stations with a quickened haste, some even dropping sheets of paper they were carrying in the process. 

“What the hell’s going on? Another Eggman attack?” Wallace muttered to himself. 

“Sargent!” 

The older sheep perked at the voice of urgency, seeing a Mobian woman running up to him. She was a dolphin girl with greyish blue and white skin with freckles on her cheeks, long fin-like hair traveling down to her hips and four fringes at the front along with a dorsal fin on her head. She had a long tail, aqua blue eyes and wore the standard uniform many GUN soldiers wore, though hers was a brighter shade of blue. 

She stopped, giving him a salute which Wallace returned in kind. “Sargent Wallace, sir!”

“At ease, Corporal Delphine. The base is on high alert. Is Eggman attacking again?” Wallace asked.

A nod came from Delphine who gestured for Wallace to follow her as she ran ahead. Wallace followed close behind, arriving into the debriefing room where Commander Tower and some G.U.N soldiers were seated. There was a foreboding atmosphere that felt suffocating to both Mobians when they walked in, but they remained silent as they took their seats. 

With everyone accounted for, Commander Tower rose from his seat with a stern expression.

“As many of you know, we suffered a devastating loss to Eggman which allowed him to take over the planet six months ago.” He began, his heterochromic eyes becoming somber, “During the War, we lost many great soldiers and had to go underground in order to replenish our ranks as well as tend to our injured. But thanks to the efforts of Sonic and the Resistance — now known as the Restoration — Mobius has now begun healing from the War.”

Tower’s eyes lit up with conviction and hope, the soldiers in the room feeling the positive shift in their leader’s mood as he brought up the blue spined speedster and his allies. But that immediately evaporated when Commander Tower’s features turned grim.

“Unfortunately, it appears that Eggman has already made his move despite Mobius entering a state of recovery…” He turned to his left, “Lieutenant Clover, if you will.”

Clover nodded and stood up with a black tablet in her hand. “Thank you, sir. Recently, one of our drones had captured footage of a moving aircraft travelling towards Windmill Village. From what we witnessed, the occupants inside were confirmed to be Dr. Ivo Robotnik, Orbot, Cubot and a Mobian Platypus by the name of Dr Starline.”

“Dr. Starline?” Delphine repeated, glancing at Wallace who shrugged his shoulders in response.

“He’s a… new ally working for Dr. Eggman.” Clover clarifies, “All we know is that he’s an underground scientist that surfaced after the Eggman War. We don’t have much information on Starline as of yet. Moving on from that – here’s the footage recovered from one of our drones.”

The forest green rabbit tapped the screen on her tablet, showing a holographic image of a space station-like aircraft that was grey in colour and had a hemispherical design to it. As per egotistical Eggman fashion, the front of the ship had his face on it. But what really caught everyone’s attention was the design of the airship in question, Commander Tower himself had to do a double take at what he was staring at.

“It… it can’t be…!” He croaked out.

Wallace’s mouth hung open. “That… looks the–!”

“Space Colony ARK!” The dolphin corporal blurted out loud. “But it looks so… small!”

“Design wise; Eggman’s new ship does bear a striking resemblance to the Space Colony ARK. But the Faceship serves a functionally different purpose which I will show you all, right now.”

The footage continued to play as the Faceship hovered over Windmill Village ominously. Then, a large mass of metallic sludge poured out of the ship’s “mouth”, covering the entire village in the liquid mercury. Many of the soldiers grimaced from the footage, though that soon turned into shock and horror when they saw what happened next. 

The mere moment the villagers came in contact with the steel solution, they underwent a horrific transformation. The metal spread across their bodies until they gained shades of their original colours, fit with a metallic sheen, eyes becoming dark red with bright pupils.  

The civilians’ fear and panic vanished almost instantly, becoming silent and hollow once they were fully infected. 

No emotion. No cognitive thought. 

Just… 

Soullessness.

“...W-What in Posideon’s name ARE those things?!” Delphine queired after finding her voice. 

Clover locked her tablet, causing the hologram to dissipate. “Those, Corporal Delphine, are the results of those infected with this substance dubbed the ‘Metal Virus’; Zombots.”

Wallace remained silent after watching the denizens of Windmill Village become mindless robotic zombies, eyes down at the table in pensive thought. If Windmill Village was hit, then that meant Neo Green Hill Village could be next! 

His wife…! His son…!

They could be-! 

No, Wallace! Don’t you dare think like that! They’ll be fine! They’ll be safe!

“So far, Windmill Village was the first area to be hit with the Metal Virus, but Eggman is heading to Seaside City and Sunset City to spread more of the Metal Virus…” Clover finished, returning to her seat.

[ Strategy - Sonic Adventure 2 ]

“Thank you, Lieutenant Clover…” Commander Tower said, his eyes hardening as he debriefed everyone on their missions. “In order to prevent the spread of this… Metal Virus, we’ve already deployed various soldiers out to rescue the non-infected and bring them to the G.U.N Headquarters. Agents Shadow and Rouge are headed towards Sunset City as we speak, but they’re going to need the extra help.

Sargent Wallace; take your team and head out to Sunset City to assist Shadow, Rouge and Omega with the rescue efforts.”

“Yes, sir!” Wallace gave a salute with a serious expression.

“The rest of you either should prepare rooms for the survivors that will take temporary shelter here or head out to aid in saving as many people as possible. Is everyone’s objective clear?” Tower asked.

“Yes, sir!” The soldiers responded with conviction. 

“Good! Now move out!” 

Walking out of the debriefing room, Wallace walked down the hall with his team consisting of Delphine, Clover and a tall, Mobian brown bear by the name of Tyson and a grey wisp that floated beside him. Together, they were known as Golden Fleece; a soldier team in G.U.N that specializes in special operations, intelligence gathering and specific combat roles. 

“So, Sarge? What’s the plan when we get to Sunset City?” Tyson asked while slipping in two grey fitness bracelets on his wrists. 

“First, we clear a path for the survivors so they can head to our shuttle safely. We avoid contact with the Zombots and if there’s any infected stragglers that try to come onto the escape shuttle, we leave them behind.” Wallace instructs with a commanding tone. “Lieutenant Clover, is there anything else we should know about the Zombots?”

“Yes; from the data I’ve gathered, the Zombots’ physical strength has increased and they retain their abilities when they were organic. They’ve also become more durable, so if they take any severe injuries, they’ll simply regenerate their bodies. On the plus side, Zombots are rather simple-minded, so it prevents them from thinking strategically.” Clover informed.

“Okay so we can’t hurt them, but we can slow them down or knock them away.” Delphine added.

“Fine by me! Let’s hope we can get to Sunset City before Eggman’s Faceship beats us there!” Tyson tapped the flat of his bracelets as they formed into grey, futuristic-looking gauntlets that covered his forearms. “You ready, Rocky?”

The Grey Wisp, Rocky, chirped happily as he flew into the gauntlets, empowering them with his Hyper Go-On Energy. Wallace, Delphine and Clover also got themselves ready as they went into the nearest shuttle heading towards Sunset City. The grizzled army bovid exhaled deeply through his nose in concern, thoughts of Felicia and Nash’s safety rushed through his head, wondering if they’d be okay during this pandemic.

Emeraldville

Restoration HQ

“What the…?!” Nash glanced around to see many helpers of the Restoration moving as if their pants were on fire. “What’s going on here?!”

He slowly walked through the HQ, eyes darting at different things happening around him. The aforementioned volunteers rushed to deliver aid to civilians, some people huddled in the fetal position and those muttering about how the end of Mobius was upon them. Nash heard bits of pieces of different conversations around him:

A virus? An outbreak? People infected?

He needed answers to what was causing all this ruckus. Fortunately, one person could provide him with those answers, and they were pink and dressed in red. And they were currently talking with a familiar sheep girl from before.

“Amy! Lanolin!” Nash called out, getting their attention, “What’s happening? Why’s everyone so panicked?”

“You don’t know, Nash?” Lanolin replied quizzically. 

“No, I just arrived here after my dad dropped me off. Can someone fill me in?”

Amy thinned her lips, her expression serious yet full of concern. “Do you remember when Sonic and I went to investigate one of Eggman’s abandoned bases to see what he was planning this time?”

“I remember,” The young dread-headed sheep answered, “Did something happen to you both while Lanolin and I were looking after the HQ?”

“...To Sonic, yes.” The pink hedgehog continued with a hint of sadness, “During our investigation in the Echo Mines, we managed to find information on a device that dispenses… something but we were ambushed by Rough and Tumble. Sonic and I fought them off, but Rough and Tumble turned into Zombots after they were infected with some sort of metal liquid. 

Sonic managed to send Rough and Tumble falling into the pit, but not without being infected himself…”

Nash felt his throat dry up at the information Amy dumped upon him. Not only was Eggman launching another attack on Mobius, but he now had some new metallic substance that could infect people and turn them into mindless robotic zombies. And to think he sprung this just as Mobius was in a state of recovery…

Lanolin pulled out her smartphone to show Nash. “Eggman’s latest scheme is quickly becoming a massive issue on the news! Look!”

[ Bikini Bottom News - Spongebob Squarepants ]

The black teenage sheep observed the screen with wide eyes as the Mobius News Network station began reporting on the recent events in Mobius. On screen, two news reporters, a male dog and a female bunny, sat in front of a desk wearing presentable suits whilst holding papers in their hands.

“Good morning, Mobius! This is the Mobius News Network! I’m Tal!” The Mobian Dog introduced.

“And I’m Tilly!” The rabbit girl added.

“Our top story; a recent outbreak has resulted in various Mobian and Human citizens being infected with a strange metal solution. Sightings have confirmed that a large mass of steel sludge was dispensed above Windmill Village with the villagers immediately becoming infected, turning into what appears to be ‘Zombie Robots’, or ‘Zombots’ for short,” Tal reported.

“That’s right, Tal,” Tilly continued, “Eyewitnesses have reported seeing a massive ship resembling that of the Space Colony ARK, albeit much smaller in size, hovering over Seaside City and releasing gallons of it on the citizens. This Metal Virus appears to cover the entire person’s body and is spread through physical contact. We now go live to Daniel in our news helicopter! Dan?”

The news feed then cuts to Dan, a brown male Mobian owl wearing a green suit and headphones with a microphone attached. 

“Thank you, Tilly! We’re currently above Seaside City where the ship Eggman’s piloting has been releasing the Metal Virus on unsuspecting people!” The news owl explained, “Dr. Eggman, responsible for the mass takeover of Mobius six months ago, was reported missing after his latest defeat at the hands of Sonic the Hedgehog and the Resistance – now known as the Restoration.

We don’t know what Eggman plans to do with the infected citizens of Seaside City, but from what this reporter can tell, it isn’t pretty…! From what I can see, the detective agency known as the Chaotix alongside Sonic, have been doing their best to rescue as many people as possible! It’s best to leave it in the hands of Sonic and the Restoration…! Thank you, Tal and Tilly. Back to you.”

Tal nodded, “Thank you, Dan. The Guardian Units of Nations have deployed their troops to help out with the rescue efforts alongside Sonic and the Restoration. And if anyone is out in the streets, we must remind you to stay clear of any Zombots you may see and run to the nearest rescue shuttle sent out by the Restoration or G.U.N. This is Tal and Tilly from the Mobius News Network and we’ll keep you posted on the story. Stay tuned!”

The news report ended as Lanolin put away her phone, leaving Nash gritting his teeth as he clenched his fists.

“I can’t believe it! Just when things were getting better, Eggman springs this on us…!” He growled heatedly. 

“I understand your frustration, Nash.” Amy consoled, patting his shoulder. “Really, I do. But we can’t help everyone here if we don’t keep a cool head.” 

“Amy’s right, Nash.” Lanolin added, “If we get upset, it will only lead to more problems. Right now, we should focus on helping everyone here and keeping the doors open for any more survivors.”

Nash’s eyes softened a bit, his hands slowly uncurling from their balled state as he took their words in. Getting angry at the rotund scientist that caused this would do them no good, especially when they’re trying to help as many people as possible. The young sheep inhaled through his nose, letting out a calming sigh.

“You’re right,” Nash said calmly yet with a serious tone, “I’ll do my best to help out here in any way I can.”

“That goes for me too, Amy.” Lanolin chimed in. 

Amy’s lips curled into a grateful smile. “Thank you both so much! Please keep everyone calm while I try to put in a call to anyone that will respond.”

Nodding, Nash and Lanolin exited the room to give the director the time needed to send out an S.O.S. For the next few minutes or so, both sheep were doing their best to calm down the survivors that were all having an existential crisis due to the Metal Virus. They handed out refreshments, blankets and even words of encouragement in order to lift the spirits of many people. 

In Nash and Lanolin’s minds, both were thinking about Neo Green Hill Village and Riverside respectively. Did Eggman target their homes too? What about their parents? Friends? Acquaintances? 

What about the other neighbouring towns? Other people lost within the crossfire?

They both shook their heads. It wasn’t the best time to think about that for now. They could only hope that everyone there was safe and sound. Away from the Zombots and the Metal Virus.

“Here you are, Mr. Salyers,” Lanolin handed the traumatised older pooch a blanket and a bottle of water, “Keep taking deep breaths, everything is going to be okay…”

Mr. Salyers nodded as he inhaled and exhaled rhythmically to calm his anxiety. “...Thank you…”

“You’re welcome. If you need anything else, let me know.” The white sheep girl gave a sweet smile as she walked off to help someone else.

“Are you doing alright today, ma’am?” Nash asked after handing a blanket to the elderly bear woman.

“Why yes! Thank you for asking, dear!” The woman replied warmly, turning to her daughter, “This is the kind young man I was telling you about, darling.”

The younger ursine woman smiled at Nash. “Thank you for helping out my mother with the Restoration link.”

“You’re welcome, miss! Just doing my part to help out!” Nash grinned while rubbing the back of his head. “Let me know if you need my help with anything.”

In this wooooorld! (His world!) Where life is strong (Life is strong)! In this woooooorld! (His world!) Life’s an open book (An open book)!

Just then, a hard rock theme played out of Nash’s pocket, causing the two Mobian women to look at him quizzically. The teenager reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone to see that his father, Wallace, was calling.

“Sorry about that. My dad’s calling me.” Nash walked away from the bear girls, answering almost immediately. “Hey Dad! Is everything okay?”

“That’s what I was calling you to ask,” Wallace replied on the other end, “Are you alright, son?”

“I’m alright, Dad. Just helping out the Restoration and the people here from the Metal Virus. Where’s Mom? Is she okay?!”

“Your mother is fine, Nash. I called her and she said she’s making her way to the Restoration HQ via a rescue shuttle right now. Don’t worry, she’s perfectly safe and not infected.”

The dread-headed bovid felt a wave of relief wash over him. “Whew…! Thank Chaos for that…! What about you though, Dad?”

“I’m heading out to Sunset City to rescue any survivors from the Metal Virus,” The older sheep mentions, “I’d come by to the Restoration to pick you up so you can be safe at G.U.N, but I think it’s safer if you remain with the Restoration.”

“Alright, Dad. Just be careful out there. Ever since the Eggman War…” 

“I know, son… I know,” Wallace caught on, “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful when I land at Sunset City. Though… I want you to promise me that you won’t get yourself infected by any Zombots, Nash.”

“I promise, Dad. The same goes for you when you get to Sunset City,” Nash spoke, “Good luck out there, Dad. Tell Aunt Delphine, Clover and Tyson I said hi and good luck to them too. I love you, Dad.”

Nash heard his father give a warm chuckle on the receiver. “Will do, Nash. I love you too.”

Ending the call, Nash went back to help out the people within the Restoration HQ while Wallace put his phone away, blowing air out of his nose with a hum.

“Was that Nash?” Delphine asks, getting a nod from the male sheep.

“I was talking to him about what was going on. Nash wished us good luck on our mission and that he said hello to you all.” He says. 

“Aww! I’ll personally tell him hello when I come around to visit next time!” The dolphin soldier bubbled cheerfully.

“That makes two of us, Delly and Wally!” Tyson laughed, “Just got off the phone with the Missus and the kids. They’re worried for me, but I told them I’ll be back at home before they know it!”

“We’re going to need that luck given how overrun Sunset City is with Zombots,” Clover notes as she showed the others her tablet, “From what I’ve calculated, the survivor rating in Sunset City is forty percent while the infected are at sixty percent!”

“Aw crap…” Tyson cursed.

“We’ll have to optimize as many pathways as possible if we’re going to rescue the survivors,” Clover added.

Wallace gave a nod in agreement. “Sounds like a plan! Alright, Golden Fleece! Let’s do this!”

[ Spidey Rhino Race - Ultimate Spider-Man (PS2) ]

The G.U.N Shuttle landed near a safe zone in the city. The hatch door opened as multiple G.U.N Soldiers rushed out in order to help the civilians of Sunset City. Golden Fleece ran alongside the soldiers that scattered to different points in the town with their Wispons in hand while the rest stayed behind at the safe zone near the shuttle in case of an emergency retreat.

Golden Fleece could feel the chaos caused by the Zombots when they entered the town, but they focused on the bigger objective: Getting as many people out of Sunset City as possible. 

“Agent Rouge, this is Sargent Wallace of Golden Fleece; do you copy? Over,” Wallace communicated through an earpiece.

“Loud and clear, Sargent. Over,” Rouge replied on her own comlink, “I take it you’re all here to help with the evacuation. Over.”

“That’s right, what’s the current situation of the survivors? Over.”

“I’m currently rounding up the survivors towards the Grand Gold Flicky Hotel. Sonic has arrived in the city and we could use some help with finding more survivors. Shadow is on route with a transport truck. Over.”

“Copy that. We’ll handle the rescue efforts and lead the survivors to the hotel, you and Sonic focus on keeping everyone safe from the Zombots. Over and out.” 

Ending the conversation, Wallace turned to his team to give out his orders.

“Alright, listen up. We’re going to have to split up and survey the different parts of Sunset City to find any survivors that are in the buildings. Delphine, you take the eastway and heal anyone who’s been injured and bring them to the Grand Gold Flicky Hotel.”

Delphine saluted. “Yes, sir!”

“Clover, you take the west area. I heard Omega’s gunfire coming from over there, that means there are Zombots trying to infect more survivors. Keep them at bay!”

“Roger that!” The forest green lagomorph replied.

“Tyson, you handle the north area. If there are any people around, lead them to the hotel!”

“Gotcha!” The large bear gave a thumbs up.

“I’ll take the center area. We’ll all regroup at the hotel then lead the survivors to the safe zone! Let’s move out, team!” Wallace finished.

With that, the members of Golden Fleece scattered in different directions at a quick pace. Delphine handled the east part of the city, where the city officers were setting up a barricade to prevent Zombots from coming in. From above, Delphine’s blue orbs saw civilians trapped in the buildings while some were on the floor, heavily injured from the damage in the city. 

“Keep the perimeter secure! We can’t let any more Zombots into the city!” A mongoose officer barked.

“We’re doing our best, sir!” Another officer, a cat, cried out, “The more we knock down, the more that comes our way! We also have to help the injured and the people still trapped in the buildings!”

“Then allow me to help out with the civilians!” Delphine announced her presence to the officers, “I’m a part of the Guardian Units of Nations! I’m here to assist with the evacuations!”

“G.U.N? I thought you all were defeated during the Eggman War?” A third officer comments.

“We were, but we’ve recovered. Just focus on keeping the Zombots at bay! I’ll get everyone out of the buildings!” 

The officers nodded, pointing their Wispons at the advancing Zombot horde. The Mobian Dolphin focused on tending to the injured people on the ground, glowing water hummed from her palms as she healed humans and Mobians of any bruises and cuts on their bodies.

Within seconds, they stood up and moved their now-healed bodies again. But Delphine wasn’t done yet; she generated water in both of her hands, swiping her hands up to create slide constructs of water below the windows of the houses. With expert control, the water suddenly froze into ice!

“Everyone, make your way down these slides in an orderly fashion!” Instructed the aquatic corporal.

One by one, every human and Mobian slid down the ice ramps to make their way to the ground floor. Parents held their children close as they went down the slides to the concrete road below. Once the last person came down the ice ramp, they broke apart into ice particles that rained down on the floor.

“God bless you, ma’am!” A human male gratefully exclaimed, “You saved us!”

“You’re welcome! Alright, everyone! I need you all to follow me to the Grand Gold Flicky Hotel! That’s where all the survivors are heading!” Delphine directed loudly, leading everyone out of the streets.

She then radioed in through her comlink: 

“The east area has been evacuated, Sargent. Heading towards the hotel. Over.”

“Copy that, Corporal,” Wallace responded, switching gears to Clover, “Lieutenant, how are things on your end? Over.”

“I’ve arrived at the west area, Omega’s hailing gunfire at the Zombots. Over,” Clover replied, “I’ll focus on getting the people out and towards the hotel. Over.”

True to Clover’s word, Omega was shooting at the Zombots hordes. She also laid eyes on Sonic who was circling back towards the heavy-duty automaton. 

“Whoa! Hold it, Omega!” He shouted with raised arms, “These aren’t your usual mass-produced badniks! These are innocent people transformed by the Metal Virus! They shouldn’t be on your revenge list!”

Omega showed the Mobian Zombot to Sonic. “IS THIS A ROBOT?”

“Well, I mean, it seems like it…” Sonic replied.

“WAS IT CREATED BY EGGMAN?”

“Technically , but–”

Omega harshly tossed the Zombot to a wall, nearly hitting Clover in the process. “DESTROY ALL EGGMAN ROBOTS! NATURE AND ORIGIN ARE IRRELEVANT!”

“Watch it, Omega! That Zombot almost infected me!” Clover cautioned as she hopped over and landed nearby Sonic.

“You okay there?” The heroic hedgehog asked.

The green rabbit woman took in the metallic steel growing on Sonic’s body with concerning eyes. “I should be asking you that question. How have you not turned into a Zombot yet?”

“Long story short, my speed is repelling the Metal Virus’ effects. But we have bigger things to worry about than my condition!”

“Right! Allow me to take over the evacuation of these buildings!”

Sonic smirked. “Thanks! I’ll clear a pathway for everyone to get through!”

Sonic raced off, kicking up a gust of wind that blew away the Zombots blocking the path towards the hotel. Clover approached the door, twisting the knob and swinging the door wide open for the occupants trapped in the building to escape. 

“Come with me, everyone! The hotel is a safe zone for everyone to huddle up in before we take you all back to the shuttles in town! A transport truck will be arriving soon!” Clover shouted. 

“Do we have time to thank that robot for saving us?” One of the citizens asked.

Clover glanced back at Omega, who was still shooting and throwing away many Zombots to keep them at bay. 

“I’ll let him know you sent your gratitude. Now, follow me! We don’t have much time to waste!”

The citizens followed Clover out of the building, rapid footsteps making their way towards the hotel where the Sunset City Officers and G.U.N soldiers were doing their best to ward off the many Zombots advancing towards the Hotel. At the same time, Delphine had arrived with the civilians from the east side. Seeing the people arrive, some soldiers and officers helped them over the barricade of cars and into the Grand Gold Flicky Hotel. 

“Thank you, Lieutenant Clover, Corporal Delphine! We’ll get the survivors inside!” A human G.U.N Soldier says.

“No problem! There are more survivors coming this way, so be ready!” Delphine told them.

Clover patched through her team. “The west side of Sunset City has been evacuated. Corporal Delphine and I are at the hotel. Specialist Tyson, have you reached the North area? Over.”

“Yeah, I’m in the North area! I’ll call out to see if there are any survivors and bring them to the Hotel. Over.” Tyson remarked. 

“Understood, Delphine and I will assist the soldiers and officers in pushing back the Zombot hordes! Over and out!” 

Heading in the North Section of Sunset City, Tyson ran through the streets, orange eyes scanning for any non-infected people in the area. 

He took in a deep breath, then shouted: 

“HEY! Are there any survivors out there?!”

“Yes!” A female voice desperately called out from within a barricaded shop, “We’re here! We can’t get free! There are Zombots blocking the way!”

“Don’t worry! I’ll take care of them!” Tyson shouts, running with his Quake Gauntlets roaring to life due to Rocky’s Hyper Go-On Energy.

Sensing the non-infected flesh, the Zombots turned away from the shop and sluggishly charged towards the large Mobian bear. Tyson took two steps towards the Zombots then thrusted his right fist out, generating an immense force that forced the metallic zombots flying off their feet and across the road. With the threat temporarily stunned, Tyson went straight to the barricaded shop and sent out a mini shockwave to break the window open.

“The Zombots are knocked down, I need you all to jump over the window and follow me towards the Grand Gold Flicky Hotel! And hurry, those Zombots are gonna get up soon!” Tyson yells out. 

Doing as they’re told, the civilians hopped over the window carefully into the streets with the aid of Tyson carrying out any children or people that were smaller. Once everyone was accounted for, they all ran towards the direction of the hotel when a pack of Zombots appeared to try and infect them. 

“Oh no!” One of the citizens screamed, “Zombots!”

“Everyone get behind me! Now!” The specialist commanded, channeling his Quake Gauntlets once more, raising both fists in the air. “Seismic SMASH!!!!”

Both heavy fists impacted the concrete with incredible strength, kicking up dust, dirt and asphalt in the air! The crowd behind Tyson held onto each other as a much more powerful shockwave that bodily propelled many Zombots far into the air and in different directions, clearing a path for everyone to get through. The citizens looked on in awe as Tyson rose to his feet, gesturing with his head to follow him.

“Was that you, Tyson?” Wallace asked as he patched through.

“There were a few Zombots blocking the way, so I had to clear a path to get the people to the hotel,” Tyson answers, rubbing the back of his head, “Hope I didn’t cause too much damage…”

“We’ll deal with that when we return to base. I’ll catch up with you all when I’ve cleared the centre area.”

“Roger! Meet you at the hotel!”

At the centre of Sunset City, Wallace was in the process getting a group of survivors out of the Zombot-infested area as officers and G.U.N Soldiers alike were keeping the menaces at bay with Wispon fire. 

“Come with me, everyone! We’re going to make our way to the Hotel, and then a transport truck is arriving shortly!” Wallace guided the people through the war-torn Sunset City. 

“We got everything handled here, Sarge! Get these people to safety!” One of the G.U.N soldiers stated.

Nodding, Wallace carefully led the survivors away towards the safety of the hotel, knocking away Zombots with blue shockwaves released from his fists that attempted to try and infect him or the survivors.

Fortunately, it didn’t take long for Wallace to meet up with Tyson on the way to the hotel where they, along with their rounded up group of survivors, were taken in by the rest of the soldiers and officers there.

“Is that all of the survivors?” Delphine queired, heading towards her teammates.

“Yes, we managed to evacuate everyone that was trapped in the buildings or were barricaded due to Zombots,” Wallace confirms.

“Great! Now we just have to wait until the transport truck arrives so we can take the survivors to the shuttle!”

“And it better hurry soon; the Zombots are starting to advance in both directions!” Clover mentions as she brought up her tablet to show them.

Tyson groused. “There’s no end to these Gaia forsaken things, is there?” 

“Don’t panic, everyone. So long as we work together, we’ll be able to hold the Zombots off until the truck arrives!”

Clover’s ear perked up then she grinned. “We won’t have to wait long…”

HOOOOOONNNNKKK!!!!

Suddenly, a truck bulldozed over a school of Zombots skidding around the gold Flicky fountain as Sonic ran over to the driver side door as did Golden Fleece. Sonic coughed as he fanned away the kicked up dirt the tyres generated. 

When the dust cleared, out stepped a black and red hedgehog wearing a greyish-white, v neck T-shirt revealing his white chest fur, a black jacket with the G.U.N symbol on the left sleeve and back, dark jeans, gold rings on his wrists and ankles, and signature Air Shoes.

Shadow the Hedgehog had arrived on the scene, his red eyes burning holes into Sonic with contempt and anger. He regarded Golden Fleece with a simple head nod of acknowledgement as he turned back to the infected blue hedgehog.

“There you are!” Sonic exclaimed in his usual jovial self, “What’s the matter? Couldn’t find a bigger one?”

“Be quiet,” Shadow pointed a finger at his rival, “I warned you, Sonic. I warned you what would happen if we left the Doctor alone in Windmill Village! And look what happened…”

“Hey, don’t pin this all on me!” Sonic fired back, “How was I supposed to know some creep called Starline would make him evil again! Nobody could’ve seen that coming!”

“Starline wouldn’t even have existed if the Doctor was disposed of sooner, but shame on me for expecting you to make a practical decision…”

“Gentlemen.”

Both hedgehogs turned their attention to Clover.

“This is no time to be shifting blame upon one another. We have more important things to deal with such as the evacuation of the survivors.” The rabbit woman reminded them sternly.

“Clover’s right. The more time you two waste arguing amongst yourselves, the less time we have to get everyone to safety!” Wallace added urgently.

Sonic and Shadow looked at each other for a moment, the former rubbing his head with a guilty sigh as the other scoffed in defeat. The veterans were right, pointing fingers only made things worse, much less try to fix their current situation. People needed to be saved and that wouldn’t happen if both of the fastest things on the planet were trying to tear each other apart.

Sonic turned to Shadow with a serious expression. “Look Shadow, the only way we’re going to stop Eggman this time is if we work together. But I’m not of any use with this infection all over me, so you, Rouge, Omega and these guys–”

“Golden Fleece,” Shadow says.

“–Golden Fleece aid in the rescue efforts. I’ll go take care of my infection.”

A hmph escaped the Ultimate Lifeform’s throat, “Very well. I’ll keep the Zombots at bay.”

“Remember, Shadow. Do NOT let the Zombots touch you,” Clover cautioned.

“Be careful out there, Shads. Don’t get yourself infected now,” The Blue Blur gave a snarky grin.

“Heh, you talking to me?” Shadow retorted with a roll of his eyes and a small smirk. 

[ Crisis City (Modern) - Sonic Generations ]

With that, Sonic raced off to deal with his infection. Rouge floated above the truck to oversee the evacuation as the members of Golden Fleece got to work in getting everyone into the truck. This left Shadow with the fun part: Dealing with the advancing Zombot hordes. 

Yellow sparks of energy gathered in Shadow’s hand, channeling them to a point before he hurled out powerful projectiles that knocked the Zombots off their feet. His Air Shoes hovered to life, generating flames that burned the robotic monsters and pushed their owner into an elegant backflip. With a snap of his fingers, a purple and white distortion of Chaos Energy blasted the Zombots away. 

When two Zombots approached Shadow from both sides, the latter raised his arms up high then brought them down to his sides, generating spheres of Chaos Energy in his hands.

“Chaos Nightmare!!!” 

The Zombots jittered from the sudden distortion of energy, knocking them far away into walls. Shadow held out his hands as yellow-green Chaos Energy gathered into one point, forming into a spear! The Ultimate Hedgehog twirled the spear above his head, bringing it to his side then charging towards the Zombots. 

Shadow jabbed his energy spear at one Zombot, piercing its chest before twirling on his feet to perform a sweep attack that knocked many Zombots off their feet and freed the one lodged on the spear. With his left hand, Shadow attacked a Zombot behind him with a Chaos Upper then teleported away from the hordes of Zombots to get some distance. 

“Keep it quick and orderly, people! Get cozy! There’s only so much space!” Rouge yells out as all the people make their way into the back of the truck.

“ADVANCE SO I MAY SHOOT YOU!” Omega unloaded a sea of bullets into the Zombots.

“Sit tight in here, you’ll be safe here with your mom, okay?” Delphine gently consoled a child who was hugging their mother tightly as they got into their truck.

“Rouge, we’re gonna take the rest of these people back to the G.U.N Shuttle so it’s less crowded!” Tyson says.

“Fine by me,” The bat girl replied, “A rescue shuttle was also sent by the Restoration. They picked up my distress signal when the Zombots invaded Sunset City.”

Clover glanced up at Rouge. “ETA on the Restoration rescue shuttle, Rouge?” 

“Three minutes.”

“Alright, we’ll have to protect the survivors till we can find a clear path for escape!” Wallace hardened his forearms, punching his fists together, “Golden Fleece! Engage the Zombots with caution!” 

“Roger!” Delphine, Clover and Tyson shouted, summoning their weapons or powers.

Rouge flapped her wings to see where her brooding partner was among the sea of Zombots, her answer showing itself from an explosion of Chaos Energy that sent three Zombots flying, followed by Shadow himself ascending above the Zombots to throw his Chaos Spear at the ground then snapping his fingers, causing a yellow-green pillar of energy to explode, blowing away many Zombots in different directions.

“I appreciate him keeping the Zombots at bay, but I wish Shadow didn’t have to be so reckless…" Rouge chastised with some sass in her voice.

Shadow warped to the ground, watching the Zombots get up after his various attacks upon their bodies.

“Hmph! These things are resilient, but at least they’re focusing on me,” Shadow muttered to himself as he performed a spin-kick at some Zombots, “That faker better be back once he’s done dealing with his infection… Hopefully by then, Golden Fleece would’ve evacuated the survivors from the city.”

Speaking of Golden Fleece, they were doing their best to clear a path for the citizens and the transport truck to escape. Wallace and Tyson blew away Zombots with shockwave punches, Delphine fired off blasts of water to wash them away and Clover aided by using her sabre and gun; the Integrity Sabre and the Hope Buster , to shoot and cut down any Zombots in their way. 

Omega continued to rain down all types of hell on the Zombots, not allowing them near the truck in the slightest. Rouge even aided in the efforts by throwing out her specialised bombs to the advancing hordes from above, the explosions blowing back many Zombots. Little by little, the Zombots were pushed back, allowing Golden Fleece to advance with the survivors that couldn’t fit into the transport truck due to it being filled with other survivors.

A black tornado formed around the area, pulling many Zombots into its suction before spitting them all out in different directions. At the apex of the tornado, Shadow summoned orbs of Chaos Energy that homed into the airborne Zombots and blasted them out of the sky. He then came down with a powerful Stomp attack, generating an orange-yellow shockwave that stunned the Zombots!

“Rouge, how is everything on your end?” Shadow asked.

“Transport truck is still safe from the Zombots thanks to Omega and myself, and the Golden Fleece are making their way to the G.U.N shuttle,” Rouge answers, “What about you?”

“Everything’s good on my end. The Zombots are focused on me and I’m doing my best to keep them away from you.”

“Great to hear! When this is over, I’d like to take a warm bath and a vacation.”

“We’ll do that after we stop the Doctor.” Shadow turned to look at his partner, only for his eyes to widen in concern.

A lone Zombot had appeared behind Rouge, arm outstretched to pass on the Metal Virus to her skin. Rouge’s ears flickered, spinning around to see the Zombot slowly coming towards her. The spy flapped her wings in an attempt to fly away, but the Zombot raised its hands up high in order to grab at her heel boots.

“Hey! Keep your hands to yourself, pal!” She screamed.

Without warning, Shadow instantly appeared in front of the Zombot, eyes glowing with fury as he decked the metallic creature with such force, not only did its face have an indention of Shadow’s fist in its face, but it also made acquaintance with the opposing wall in a head-on collision! 

“Are you okay?” The black hedgehog asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine— uh, Shadow…?” Rouge pointed to his right hand.

Shadow glanced at his hand, seeing the liquid steel forming from where he punched the Zombot.

“...Shit.” He cursed.

“Shadow… why? Why would you get yourself infected like that?” Rouge asked with a concerned, scolding voice.

Shadow lowered his head, eyes covered by a black shadow. “It’s better than letting you turn into a Zombot… I won’t let that happen.”

A small gasp escaped Rouge’s mouth. “Shadow…”

“We need to get back to the truck! There are too many Zombots to keep track of!” Shadow scowled. 

“Omega, we need cover fire over here!” The bat thief called out to the massive juggernaut.

“Negative.” Omega replied, still shooting at the Zombots, “TARGETS ADVANCING TOO RAPIDLY. SUSTAINED FIRE REQUIRED TO PROTECT TRUCK.” 

Rouge turned back to the members of Golden Fleece. “Hey, Sargent! Could one of your troops aid in the cover fire here?”

“Sorry, Rouge!” Wallace shouted, “My team and I are preoccupied with trying to keep the Zombots away from the survivors!”

“Can’t Delphine just wash away these guys with her hydrokinesis?”

“I’d generate a huge wave of water, but I don’t want to wash away the truck filled with survivors or anyone else here!” Delphine added.

Dread filled Rouge’s body as she raised a hand to the comlink in her ear.

“Amy? This is Rouge – do you copy? Send whoever you can to Sunset City now . This situation just went from manageable to disastrous… ”

To be continued…

Chapter Text

As things began to look bleak for Sunset City, Sonic had finally returned with most of the Metal Virus burned off due to his speed. When he arrived, he saw the number of Zombots increasing by the dozens, Shadow infected by the Metal Virus, Rouge calling for help and Omega and Golden Fleece doing their best to keep the Zombots at bay. 

Sonic zipped through the city to meet up with Shadow. “Got infected, I see.”

“Tsk! It was only to save Rouge from being infected herself.” Shadow huffs.

“Well, since I’m back, we can both even the odds and protect everyone!” Sonic got into a fighting stance.

“Rouge! Is everyone accounted for in the truck?” The black hedgehog questioned loudly.

“We just finished!” Rouge shouts back.

“Then get out of here! We’ll cover you!” Sonic yells out through the Zombots, he glanced at Golden Fleece, “You guys should also get out of here! Shadow and I will handle things from here!”

“Right! Come on, team! Let’s move!” Wallace commanded.

“Ro ge r!” The Golden Fleece members shouted as they ran off with the survivors towards the G.U.N Shuttle.

Sonic smirked confidently, “Looks like we got the whole party to ourselves! Just like old times, eh Shads?”

“Hmph! Yeah, just don’t get in my way…” Shadow got into his own fighting stance.

“Right back at ya, pal!”

[ For True Story (Vs. Shadow)- Sonic Generations ]

Just then, Omega suddenly landed behind the two hedgehogs with a heavy thoom! At first, Sonic and Shadow were taken aback, then they both smirked as they re-engaged into their battle stances.

“Well, well, well! Look who decided to stay behind and help!” Sonic quipped.

“NEGATIVE. EGGMAN’S ROBOTS REMAIN. THIS MUST BE CORRECTED. VIOLENTLY.” Omega states.

“I’m calling it ‘help’, and you can’t stop me!” Sonic retorted, curling into a Spin Dash to ram into a Zombot.

“URGE TO MAIM - RISING .” Omega punched away another Zombot.

Shadow shot Sonic and Omega a heated glare while fighting. “Enough, you two. We have to keep these Zombots focused on us while Rouge and Golden Fleece are fleeing with the civilians!”

Sonic spin-dashed on the spot, gathering up kinetic energy before he shot out an air of concussive force at the Zombots, blowing them away. He then performed a Humming Top kick at one of the airborne Zombots, blue wind-like aura surrounding his leg, before finishing with his Sonic Eagle technique. 

Shadow, playing things a bit safer than his rival, threw out Chaos Spears to keep the Zombots off himself, Sonic and Omega. Spinning on his heel, Shadow delivered a devastating tornado kick towards an advancing Zombot, raising his fist behind him to generate an orb of Chaos Energy around it on a Zombot that tried to grab him from behind, then performed his Chaos Nightmare to blow away a group of Zombots. 

Lastly, Omega was throwing off many Zombots that tried to jump up and tear him apart. He punched, kicked and shot at the zombie machines, but the Zombots kept advancing until they jumped on top of him… until Omega whirred his body in a quick 360 motion, shaking the Zombots off his body.

“Darn…!” Sonic grunted as his infection progressed, “The more I attack these things, the worse my infection becomes…!”

“ASSESSMENT: YOU SHOULD LEAVE.” Omega advised bluntly.

“He can’t, Omega. Golden Fleece and the truck aren't far away for Sonic to leave yet…” Shadow countered. 

“Plus; I’m not leaving my friends behind while I go on a treatment run,” Sonic added.

Omega stared coldly at Sonic. “WE ARE NOT FRIENDS. YOU ARE IN THE WAY OF MY MASSACRE.”  

“You can’t destroy the Zombots! So instead of wasting ammo, how about we get out of here while Shadow and I still have energy to run?”

“NO RETREAT! NO MERCY!”

Shadow felt a migrant forming in his brain as he snapped at the bickering pair. “Oh for Chaos’ sake, we have no time to argue! If you have time to do that, then at least–!”

BANG!!!!

Before Shadow could even finish his sentence, Omega was struck by something and was struck hard . His steel body skidded across the asphalt, coming to a stop across the road. Sonic and Shadow stared at the E-series robot’s downed form, slowly turning their heads to the assaulter in question. 

“No way!” They yelled in unison.

Standing in front the two hedgehogs was a Zombot, though unlike the others; its shiny, metallic body was purple in colour and it had glowing yellow eyes. It lowered its fist slowly, assuming a more powerful stance as opposed to its Zombot brethren, golden orbs focused on Sonic and Shadow. 

“That’s… a new one…” Sonic uttered in disbelief, “Never seen this type of Zombot before.”

“Where did this one come from?” Shadow eyed the new, purple Zombot cautiously.

“Ain’t too sure, Shads, but it’s obvious it ain’t nice!”

[ Suitable Opponent - Sonic Adventure 2 ]

The superior Zombot then advanced towards the two hedgehogs quickly with its fist raised to pound them into the dirt. Sonic and Shadow acted quickly, dodging the incoming punch then countered with a Homing Attack . The Zombot outstretched its hands to intercept the blue and black spin balls, but both hedgehogs altered their course of their attacks to strike from behind and in front respectively. 

Sonic landed a flurry of kicks on the purple Zombot’s back while Shadow struck hard with fast punches and kicks on its sternum and solar plexus. The Zombot’s body jittered from the attacks, though retaliated with a vicious elbow to Sonic’s stomach and a kick that sent Shadow reeling from the force. 

Recovering quickly, Sonic and Shadow both revved up into a spin-dash, launching themselves towards this unknown adversary at great speeds. Purple arms rose quickly to match their pace, grabbing the rotating eulipotyphlans with both hands, barely skidding back from their speed before slamming Sonic and Shadow down hard on the ground.

Before it could put an end to them, an incoming plasma shot exploded upon the Zombot’s body!

“Thanks for the save, Omega,” The Ultimate Lifeform says, rubbing his head.

“YOU ARE WELCOME. EGGMAN ROBOTS WILL NOT LEAVE THIS AREA UNSCATHED.” Omega turned both of his hands into arm cannons.

From the billowing smoke and fire, the sturdy Zombot emerged out of the wreckage. Its body had some minor injuries that began to slowly heal from the explosion, cracking its knuckles in irritation.

“Ugh…! Whatever this thing is, it’s certainly a lot tougher than the regular Zombots…!” The Blue Blur groaned.

“It appears it has a high level of thinking as opposed to the Zombots we fought previously…” Shadow assessed, getting back up on his feet.

“DATA ANALYSIS SHOWS THIS VARIATION OF THE EGGMAN ROBOT HAS A HIGHER LEVEL OF COGNITIVE FUNCTION THAN THE OTHER EGGMAN ROBOTS. STRENGTH, SPEED AND DURABILITY ARE GREATLY ENHANCED.” Omega affirms.

“Okay, it’s smarter and more powerful than the average Zombot… Just what we need…” Green eyes rolled with sarcasm. 

“On the plus side, we can actually touch it. When striking this Zombot, I didn’t feel my infection progressing.” Shadow noted.

“Hey, you’re right! Guess we can go all-out after all!”

“COMMENCING ERADICATION OF THREAT!”

Omega took advantage of the situation by shooting plasma shots at the purple Zombot, though the Zombot dodged out of the way and darted at Omega with a kick to his body. Undeterred, Omega grabbed the Zombot by its face and slammed it down hard on the floor, laying into it with punches and energy blasts. An army of Zombots arrived to restrain Omega by his arms, forcing the robot to try and shake them off.

Shadow skated towards Omega to help. “Hold on, Omega!”

Before he could even rescue his teammate, the magenta Zombot drove its entire forearm into Omega’s chest and tore out several wires from within as the lesser Zombots tore the machine’s arms off. 

“MUST! DESTROY! ALL! ZRRK! ” Omega’s body sparked with severe damage as he fell to the floor, allowing the other Zombots to pile on top of him.

With the powerhouse machine down, the superior Zombot did something that confused both Sonic and Shadow at first.

It snagged a few Zombots from the ground and tossed them with the strength of an American Football player. Both hedgehogs could only stare in shock as the flying Zombots were heading in the direction of…

Golden Fleece!

Wallace perked his head up, turning quickly to see the airborne Zombots descending. “Oh crap! Everyone, MOVE!!!”

The survivors didn’t know why Wallace was shouting, but the sudden impact of Zombots hitting the ground answered that question quickly. Screams filled the special op team’s ears as the civilians ran towards the safe zone where the G.U.N Shuttle was. Wallace, Delphine, Clover and Tyson ran ahead as well, dodging the falling Zombots that were falling upon them.

“Where are all these Zombots coming from?! I thought Sonic, Shadow and Omega were keeping them off our backs!” Delphine shouts, weaving out of the way of a falling Zombot.

“That’s what I’m thinking too! These Zombots aren’t smart enough to make their way over here by themselves!” Tyson ponders while dodging a grab from a Zombot.

Clover frowned in thought. “You’re right about that, Tyson. These Zombots are too simple-minded for that… Unless…”

“Unless what, Clover?” Wallace inquired. 

“Someone or something must have the cognitive thought to perform a task like… throwing the Zombots towards us, preventing us from escaping!” Clover concluded.

The realisation of that dawned on Golden Fleece as more Zombots dropped onto the ground, picking themselves up to try and infect them and the fleeing survivors who were currently skittering towards the G.U.N Shuttle. The team did their best to not only evade the falling Zombots, but also knock them away with their abilities when they got too close. 

“Make your way to the shuttle! We’ll hold the Zombots off!” Delphine told the panicking people as they all entered the safe zone.

As the G.U.N Soldiers by the shuttle ushered everyone inside, a lone Mobian child had dropped their stuffed toy on the ground while running with their mother, and quickly ran back to retrieve their best friend. Though this action didn’t go unnoticed by their mother, who frantically tried to push past the soldiers in order to grab her kin.

“No! You don’t understand! That’s my child!” She screamed in distress.

“Ma’am, please! Get on the shuttle! We’ll get your child back!” A Soldier replied as he held her back.

Aqua blue eyes noticed the child running into the danger of zombie robots, scooping up their lost plushie and hugging it closely. Then the Zombots began to approach the child as they tried to run back to the safe zone where their mother was.  Delphine immediately sprung into action, sprinting towards the child and scooping them up in her arms before the Zombots could grab them.

“Don’t worry, kid! I’ve got you!” Delphine flashed a smile at them, “Let’s get you back to your mom! She must be worried sick about you!”

The dolphin girl made a dash towards the safe zone, carefully maneuvering around the Zombots with spins, hops and jumps. It wasn’t easy with a child in her arms, but Delphine was determined to not let them get infected. 

Golden Fleece seemed to be in the clear. Just a few more steps to the shuttle, then everyone would be saved! The mission would be a success! Sunset City is evacuated! They—!

Two shadows appeared above Delphine, growing closer and closer to her and the kid in her arms. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Delphine turned her head to see two Zombots falling towards her with their arms outstretched. 

Wallace and Clover raised their hands to call out to their partner as they ran towards her. Delphine held the child close to her while using her hydrokinetic abilities to speed herself up, but the Zombots’ descent matched her increased momentum.

As it got closer, Delphine could hear her own heart beating in her chest.

It was over. She was going to get infected.

Then she was going to infect the child.

She was going to become a Zombot. The child would become a Zombot.

There was nothing she could do.

Just as the Zombots neared Delphine’s tail, a blur of brown, black and red swiftly appeared in front of her to block their path. By this point, Delphine had hugged the child to protect them from being infected, but opened her eyes when she saw she wasn’t under the effects of the Metal Virus.

But then, who saved her?

“...Ehehehehe… You okay there, Del?” Tyson’s voice reached Delphine’s ears.

Her eyes met his orange ones. “Ty… No… Y-You didn’t…!”

Traces of the Metal Virus could be seen on the specialist’s body, traveling across his broad torso and arms. Wallace and Clover watched on in concern as their teammate was slowly succumbing to the infection. Even his wisp partner, Rocky, escaped out of Quake Gauntlets with concern over his owner. 

“Go…” Tyson wheezed, “Get out of here…! I-I can’t risk… infecting everyone on the shuttle…! Take Rocky with you…!”

Delphine opened her mouth to argue, but no words could form. Tears welling up in her eyes as Tyson’s infection was starting to cover the lower part of his body. Wallace clenched his fist in slight anger and sadness while Clover looked down melancholically. Even the child hugged their toy in fear and sorrow at what was happening.

“...We’ll find a way to cure you, Tyson…” Clover mumbled barely above a whisper, “That I will promise you…”

A weak chuckle escaped his throat. “I know you will, Cloves… Hey, Wallace… Tell the Missus… and my kids… that I won’t be coming home… And… I’m sorry…”

Wallace gave a silent nod as he, Delphine and Clover ran back to the shuttle with Rocky in toe, unable to bear witness to their teammate, no - their best friend turned into a mindless Zombot. Grieving tears streaming from Delphine and Rocky’s eyes as they finally arrived on the shuttle. 

[ Boss (Dr. Eggman) - Sonic 4: Episode 2 ]

Things weren’t faring much better for Sonic and Shadow back in Sunset City.

Not only was Omega being torn apart by the rest of the Zombots, but the purple one proved to be more than a match for both speedy hedgehogs. It shrugged off most of their physical attacks and was able to return much stronger ones in kind, and it was starting to take a toll on them.

Sonic stood on one knee, “This thing’s tougher than it looks…! It could give Knuckles a run for his money!”

“Not to mention the amount of Zombots in our way…!” Shadow added between breaths, eyes locking onto Omega, “I hate to do this but… Omega! We’ll have to retreat! There’s too many of them!”  

“VICTORY OR DEATH!” The stubborn robot exclaimed as the Zombots tore him apart piece by piece.

Shadow glared at the machinations ripping his ally apart then at the purple Zombot that cracked its fingers in anticipation for their next move. First; Eggman unleashed a virus onto Mobius, then Sunset City got infected and now, Omega was out of commission and he wasn’t sure if Golden Fleece made it out alive. 

All of this enraged Shadow to no end, his eyes glowing a bright crimson and a fiery aura appearing around his body. A growl escaping his throat with his fangs bared. 

“Shadow! Chill out!” Sonic’s voice snapped the black hedgehog out of his anger, “I got an idea on how we can take down this Alpha Zombot .”

Shadow silently glanced at Sonic with his arms crossed.

“Since we can touch this thing without getting infected, let’s hit it with our strongest attacks! It may be sturdy, but it has to have a limit on how much punishment it can take!” The blue hedgehog deduced.

The Ultimate Lifeform chuckled. “You never cease to surprise me.”

Flashing his cocky grin, Sonic curled up into a spin dash, gathering up as much kinetic energy as his body would allow him. Yellow-green energy sparked around Shadow’s hand, charging up a much stronger attack, lightning surging out from the immense power output. 

The Alpha Zombot stared at the two hedgehogs curiously then lowered its centre of gravity for whatever they were planning to do. Debris rose into the air, the ground rumbled as all the Zombots turned towards Sonic and Shadow and ambled towards them. Blue winds of energy gathered around Sonic’s spinning form while a red aura flared from Shadow’s person. 

Realising the immediate danger, the Alpha Zombot charged towards the hedgehogs like a furious bull seeing red. 

“Wait for it…” Sonic thought.

Heavy footsteps pounded into the asphalt, quickly gaining more momentum. 

“Just a little closer…” Shadow beckoned internally.

The gap between them closed significantly, the Alpha Zombot raised its arms high in the air to finish Sonic and Shadow off for good…

…Which was the opening they needed to end this fight!

“Sonic… WAVE!!!!”

“Chaos… LANCE!!!”

In complete synergy, Sonic and Shadow unleashed their strongest techniques at the Alpha Zombot! The Sonic Wave and Chaos Lance travelled across the ground at breakneck speed, the energies merging together to form a powerful green wave of wind and Chaos Energy: The Chaos Surging Storm!

The Chaos Surging Storm struck the Alpha Zombot dead in the torso, dragging it and other Zombots in its way out of Sunset City where a twinkle of green light appeared followed by a large green explosion, kicking up a lot of rocks and dust! 

When the smoke cleared, the purple Zombot was still standing, but the injuries on its body were clear as day. It buckled underneath its own fatigue, dropping to its knees then onto its stomach, motionless.

Sonic and Shadow both smiled victoriously, having bested the Alpha Zombot. And their luck only seemed to get better as many of the Zombots surrounding them were covered in a familiar turquoise green energy that suspended them in the air.

“Sonic! Shadow!”

Looking up; they could see Silver, now wearing a cyan V-neck shirt that exposed his large chest fur under a navy blue and dark green jacket, dark green trousers and his iconic boots. Alongside him was Miles “Tails” Prower , who wore pilot goggles, a pale blue shirt underneath a cyan V-neck sweater, jeans as well as red and white shoes. 

“I’ve cleared you both a path! Run! ” Silver urges while holding the Zombots in his psychic grip.

“The Tornado is just outside of the city to the east! Meet us there!” Tails added.

Sonic gave a weak thumbs up then raced off to the east. Shadow glanced up at Tails and Silver with his arms crossed.

“I’ll head back to the G.U.N headquarters! Tails, retrieve Omega’s head and take it with you.”

Tails nodded, “Don’t worry, Shadow! I’ll fix him right up when this is all over!”

With that, Shadow sped off towards the direction of the G.U.N shuttle. Tails flew down towards where Omega was and retrieved what was left of him; his head. 

“OBSERVATION: YOU ARE STRONG TO LIFT ALL OF MY MASS SO EFFORTLESSLY,” Omega commented.

The two-tailed genius glanced down at Omega awkwardly. “ Yeeeeeeeah… About that…”

Tails ascended in the air with Omega’s head in hand as Silver put down the rest of the Zombots to fly off towards the Tornado. On the other end of Sunset City, Shadow entered the shuttle where Golden Fleece and the remaining survivors were residing. With everyone accounted for, the G.U.N shuttle took off back to G.U.N headquarters. 

[ Unbound - Sonic Adventure ]

Shadow stood far away from the survivors, arms crossed as he felt the somber mood within the shuttle. He saw Wallace trying to console a tearful Delphine who was holding Tyson’s wisp in her arms like a plushie, already figuring out what happened to the large jovial bear. His eyes lowered to his hands, covered in the steel solution from where he punched the Zombot that attempted to infect Rouge. 

He gripped his fist indignantly. “I’m supposed to be perfect…! Immune to all diseases! How could the Doctor’s Metal Virus have affected me…?!”

“Shadow?”

Shadow was brought out of his thoughts, glancing to see Clover standing a distance in front of him.

“When we get back to base, I’m going to analyse your body so we can properly combat the Metal Virus. Though that does mean you’ll have to be quarantined until then, I’m sorry…” Clover spoke apologetically.

“...I understand,” Shadow replied, “Do what you must in order to help everyone here…”

Clover nodded as she and the Ultimate Lifeform looked at the depressed Delphine with sympathetic gazes. The former walked up to give her friend a hug while the latter closed his eyes solemnly. 

Emeraldville

Restoration HQ

Outside of the Restoration HQ, Sonic leaned against the wall patiently. Small pieces of the Metal Virus remained on his quills, having burned off from running so much. A deep sigh escaped his mouth as he looked at his now-clean hand. 

The large metal doors swung open, revealing an adorable teenage cream, white and princeton-orange rabbit girl in the doorway. She had an orange tuft of hair on her head and was dressed in a presentable manner. 

A neat vermillion shirt with yellow sleeves and a white collar, a light blue cravat and skirt with a white accent on the bottom held up by a yellow belt, white gloves and vermillion orange, yellow and white sneakers. 

“Mr. Sonic? We have a safe way in ready for you,” The bunny girl smiled brightly at him.

Sonic returned the kind smile with his own. “Thanks, Cream . Sorry for being a pain.”

“Oh no! You’re not a pain!”  

[ Gaia Gate - Sonic Unleashed ]

He chuckled as he followed Cream inside the HQ on the top floor. On the bottom floor, Nash was helping the many survivors downstairs along with other members of the Restoration. He caught a glimpse of Sonic and Cream passing by on the top floor, the hedgehog flashing the teen his signature grin despite bits of the Metal Virus on his quills before returning to talk to the young rabbit.

Despite everything seeming bleak, Sonic was still moving forward. 

“Hey kid?” A Restoration member tapped Nash on the shoulder. “There’s a black sheep woman asking around for you.”

Nash perked up immediately, jogging through the survivors to see his mother, Felicia, waiting alongside a rabbit woman who looked like an older version of Cream, only her hair and parts of her ears were dark orange and she had brown eyes. 

She wore a burgundy vest and low-heeled shoes that were the same colour, but had a yellow detail to it. A long lavender dress with a white trim on the bottom, white gloves with gold cufflinks, a blue ascot and pink lipstick. 

“Mom!” Nash called out, getting the attention of Felicia and the rabbit woman.

“Nash!”  

Both mother and son ran up and embraced each other in a warm hug, Felicia gently stroking his hair before pulling away.

“Are you okay, Mom?” The young sheep asked, looking her over.

“I’m fine, dumpling. I didn’t get infected or anythin’,” Felicia replied, “Are you okay, Nash?”

“I’m alright, Mom. Just helping out all the survivors in the Restoration. It’s a little difficult, but I’m managing.” Nash explained before turning his attention to the rabbit woman to give her a friendly wave, “Oh! Hi there, ma’am!”

“Hello there, dear,” The lagomorph waved back politely.

“Nash, this is Vanilla . She’s someone I met when we arrived at the Restoration. Vanilla, this is my son, Nash.” Felicia introduced.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Vanilla!” The young sheep boy smiled.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Nash. You and your husband have raised a fine young man, Felicia.”  

“Thank you, Vanilla! I can also say the same for your daughter, Cream! She’s very polite and well-mannered.”

“Speaking of Dad,” Nash began, a troubled expression on his face, “Have you heard anything from him yet, Mom? Did he, Aunt Delphine, Clover and Tyson make it back safe and sound?”

Felicia’s lips twisted into an uncertain frown. “I’m not too sure, baby. I haven’t contacted him since this morning. But I’m sure he and his team are okay.”

Nash’s own frown deepened, wondering what could’ve happened out there on his father’s mission to rescue the survivors with Golden Fleece, Team Dark and Sonic. 

Seeing the anxious look on the teenager's face, Vanilla began to speak up. “It’ll be okay, dear. Everyone here is under a lot of pressure due to the dreadful Metal Virus, but so long as we all put our trust in Mr. Sonic, your father, the Restoration and G.U.N; everything will turn out alright.”

“...You’re right, Miss Vanilla,” Nash replied, schooling his features, “Sonic’s always been there to help us all out even when he doesn’t have to, so now it’s time to return the favour by helping everyone here in the Restoration.”

Felicia sent a silent thanks to Vanilla with the latter reciprocating with a gentle head nod. 

Nash turned to a passing Restoration Member. “Hey, do you think my mom and Miss Vanilla can help out with the refreshments?”

“Well… given the amount of survivors here, we could use all the help we can get…” The member pondered for a moment then gave an affirming nod. “Sure! Come with me, ladies. I’ll show you both to the kitchen.”

Both mothers nodded as they followed the Restoration Member to the kitchen, conversing with one another on the type of dishes they were going to make. Nash felt a sense of ease in his body as he returned to helping out the survivors within the Restoration. 

Meanwhile in Amy’s office, things were already hard-pressed the moment Sonic walked inside. He saw various Restoration members talking and running around, Rouge on the large computer and Amy talking to someone over her comlink.

He went up to Rouge. “Yo, Rouge. Play secretary?”

“Planning my next move,” She clarified, crossing her arms, “Shadow?”

“He went off with Golden Fleece on the G.U.N Shuttle. He’s safe.” Sonic says.

Rouge inhaled through her nose and exhaled deeply, relieved that Shadow had made it out okay.

“Good. I’ll head back to G.U.N and see if they need any more help.”  

The bat woman left the office as Sonic walked towards Amy, baring a tired smile on his face.

“Hey Amy. You wanted to see me?” He spoke with a casual wave.

Amy’s exhausted eyes brightened when Sonic arrived. “ Sonic! Yes! I wanted to make sure you were okay!”

The blue hedgehog chuckled. “I’m still standing. I’d like a three week long nap, though. How are you?”

“Tired, to be frank,” The pink fortune-teller admitted, “I’m doing my best to keep everything under control, but I’m not sure how much longer I can–”

Just then, the screen flashed crimson red of danger as Amy got a distress call from one of the Restoration Recon groups.

“Say again, Echo-Eleven? ” She picked up immediately.

…

“WHAT?! W-well, try to keep a low profile!” Amy instructed, rushing to the computer, “Echo-Three! Echo-Thirteen! Echo-Eleven went down on Turtleshell Island! They need immediate support!”

“ Echo-Three , do you copy?” She asked, getting no response from the group, “Has anyone heard from Echo-Three ?!”

Sonic winced at the panic in Amy’s voice, a sense of guilt filling his heart. He couldn’t help but think that if he had just listened to Shadow, if he allowed Shadow to dispose of Eggman sooner or later… none of this would’ve even happened.

“Sonic?”  

The Blue Blur was snapped out of his thoughts, turning to see Lanolin holding a clipboard and looking rather worried for him.

“Oh, hey Lanolin! What’s up?” He greeted her casually.

“Uhm… Tails wanted me to tell you he needed you in the next room,” Lanolin replied, “And that there was someone who wanted to see you.”

“Cool! I was heading there anyways,” Sonic walked towards the door, “You doin’ okay?”

Lanolin nodded despite the stress bags forming under her muzzle. Sonic gave her a thumbs up before walking out of the office where Gemerl was guarding outside. On his way to the second computer room, Sonic spotted a yawning green, goldenrod-eyed crocodile and a purple, yellow-eyed chameleon walking out.

The crocodile was wearing black headphones, a white vest, a black jacket, a gold chain around his neck, saggy jeans, white gloves with black wristbands accompanied with gold buckles. He also wore black, white and yellow boots.

The chameleon was dressed in a shinobi outfit that was dark purple in colour along with a black scarf, white gloves reinforced with arm bracers, purple and black shoes with bandaged cuffs on his ankles.

Sonic waved at them with a weary smile, “ Vector! Espio! What’s up?”

“Sleeping shift is over, so we’re back to it. Finding survivors. Finding supplies,” Espio says calmly. 

“Hopefully, we’ll run into Charmy and be able to bring him back safely…” Vector added.

Sonic raised an eyebrow. “You sure bringing Charmy back is a good idea?”

The lead detective narrowed his eyes, pointing a finger at Sonic. “As good an idea as you being here.”

“I’m being careful!”

“ Are you?” Espio eyed Sonic suspiciously, “When was the last time you slept?”

“It’s… been a while. I can only afford little naps. Otherwise, the infection might spread and… y’know.” Sonic turned around, “Anyways, Tails wanted to see me about some plan. Be safe out there, Chaotix.”

“You too.”

The blue speedster entered the room to see Tails, Silver and another hedgehog that bore a striking resemblance to Sonic. He had light blue fur, peach skin, thick white eyebrows and a matching mustache, blue eyes and glasses that rested on his muzzle. He wore a green turtleneck sweater, a long-sleeve brown jacket, light brown trousers, white gloves and brown shoes with two yellow accents going across them. 

“Sonic! We were wondering where you were!” Tails chirped happily.

“Hey there, sonny! How’s my favourite nephew doing?” The older hedgehog asked with a fond smile.

The fatigue from Sonic’s eyes evaporated immediately, replaced with a wide, heart-warming expression.

“ Uncle Chuck !” Sonic exclaimed as he ran up to him, “Boy, am I glad to see you!”

Uncle Chuck laughed. “Me too, my boy! Me too!”

“I’d give ya a hug, but…”

“I’m aware of your condition, Tails explained everything to me over the phone. But it wasn’t that hard to figure out Eggman is behind this.” Charles then looked Sonic over, seeing the creases under his eyes. “You do look a little worn out, though… Have you been taking care of yourself? Getting rest?”

Sonic ruefully rubbed the back of his quills. “Ehh… Not as much due to the Metal Virus on my body.”

“When we sort out this mess, I want you to have a good long sleep.” Uncle Chuck stated. 

“Heh heh! Gotcha!” Sonic turned to Tails and Silver, “Thanks for the save back there. If it weren’t for you two, Shadow and I would be shuffling around with the shiny masses.”

“That’s two you owe me now.” Silver joked.

“Oh? Keeping count now?” Sonic quipped back.

“Well, you clearly aren’t.”

“I’ve had a lot on my mind lately. For instance – you said that when you returned to the future, the world was all metallic and lifeless. Do you think it was the Metal Virus?”

The psychic hedgehog nodded. “I’m sure of it. And while things are bad now, hopefully by me being here, we can find a way to stop it from destroying the world.”

“Were there any Zombots in your time, Silver?” Uncle Chuck asked.

“That’s the thing, Professor Charles, I didn’t see anyone there.” Silver revealed.

The older hedgehog stroked his chin thoughtfully at that bit of information. No Zombots roamed in the future. Whatever could’ve happened to them? What caused the near extinction of Mobians in Silver’s time?

Could the Zombots have…?

“How’s it hanging, Omega?” Sonic asked the bodiless Omega. 

“CORE PROCESSOR AND OPERATING SYSTEM INTACT. RAGE OPERATING AT 110% CAPACITY.” Omega stated.

“Tails, Uncle Chuck, you think you can rebuild him?” Sonic gesturing a questioning thumb to the robot.

“Eggman tech is notoriously weird, but Uncle Chuck and I can build something comparable and install his head into it though.” Tails says, putting his hands on his hips.

“Though, given the situation, we’re going to need some time and supplies on hand.” Charles added.

“INSTALL A JAW MECHANISM. I WILL BITE THEIR ANKLES OFF.”

Everyone in the room blinked at the bodiless machine’s suggestion, a sweatdrop appearing over their heads as Tails and Uncle Chuck shared bewildered glances at one another.

“We’ll… keep that in mind.”

“Today was a close call. Too close…” Sonic began, “Not only are the Zombots appearing everywhere, but these new purple ones have started showing up.”

“ Purple Zombots ?” Uncle Chuck repeated.

“From what Omega told me; he, Sonic and Shadow took on a new Zombot that was different from the regular ones,” Tails started to explain, “Not only was it stronger and faster, but it also was smarter too. As if it had some cognitive awareness of its surroundings and enemies.”

“On the plus side, Shadow and I were able to touch it without our infection getting worse.” Sonic chimed in.

Charles stroked his white mustache. “Hmm… I believe this must be the Metal Virus’ doing. It must be picking suitable hosts and evolving them to become much more powerful than regular Zombots.”

“And the regular ones were already bad enough…” Silver growled under his breath.

“That’s why we need to stop this now. Are we any closer to figuring out the Metal Virus?”

The teenage fox shook his head as he typed on the computer. “No. The analysis we took of you wasn’t robust enough. But after discussing things with Uncle Chuck, we believe we have a solution.”  

“Right, you said you had a plan with Unc. I’ll help out in any way I can.”

“From what I’ve witnessed on Tails’ computer, your speed is combating the Metal Virus. Not curing it, but it burns off the more you run. Hence why Tails and I invented this!” 

Tails revealed a brace-like device in his hand, handing it to Sonic.

“This sensor we created will read your biometrics when you run. Hopefully, it’ll give us more insight into the Metal Virus and how it's reacting to your system.” He informed his older blue brother, only to frown when he turned to the computers, “Unfortunately, the computers here can’t handle that kind of data. I’ve got a lab back in Central City that can… if Eggman doesn’t attack there.”

Charles stepped forward. “Don’t worry, Tails. I’ll come with you if things happen to go pear-shaped while you’re doing the analysis.”

“I’ll cover the both of you if you need me,” Silver offered.

“And what if you’re called away to help somewhere else?” Tails mentioned.

“Then someone else from G.U.N can tackle that. We have all the help we need!”

Sonic smirked. “Silver’s right. We’ve got to stay optimistic. And with this doo-hickey you and Uncle Chuck made, we’re finally about to see things turn around for the better!”

“Yeah! You get us the data, we’ll process it to find a cure, and Amy can coordinate everything from there!” Tails happily exclaimed.

“Then we all better get moving! We’re burnin’ daylight!” Charles instructed.

“Your future is as good as saved!” Silver concluded with hope in his eyes.

Above in the Sky

The Faceship

Starline let out an exhausted sigh, rubbing his temples with his non-gloved hand. “I hate to admit this, but Eggman has no plan to control the Metal Virus. Even with the new purple variations popping up, they seem to operate on their own will rather than following the Doctor’s commands…”

“We’re scheduled to test override signals tomorrow, but… Eggman has overlooked or forgotten so many of his assets. Perhaps there’s something he’s used in the past that can help with that?”

His fingers typed in something on his computer, searching for anything that could be of aid. On screen, a file was revealed to Starline’s crimson eyes which widened with intrigue. 

Lost World project? Lost Hex ? Zeti? Deadly Six ? Electromagnetic powers ?

The platypus’ curious expression slowly morphed to that of evil brilliance, an idea forming in his brain.

“A race of beings that can will robots into obedience? Yes… YES! Why find a way to control millions when we can shepard them all with just six .”

Chapter Text

Central City

G.U.N Headquarters

[ Military March - Dragon Ball Z: Budokai ]

Bright lights flashed on, nearly blinding Shadow as he stood within a spacious, red and white room with not much inside aside from a seat, speakers and a bed. Once his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he saw a large window in front of him where Clover was observing him from the outside.

“How are you feeling, Shadow?” Clover asked over the intercom. 

“I’m fine, thanks,” Shadow replied through the speakers, “Have you managed to run an analysis on my body yet?”

Clover nodded. “I have and I’ve given my notes to the scientists down in the lab. They’re currently working hard to break down the properties of the Metal Virus so we can effectively find a cure for the infected.”

“And how long will that take?”

“It could take quite a while before we get any results on a cure, but the boys at the lab are doing their best to study how the Metal Virus works.”

Shadow nodded once, looking over at his infected hands once more. The metallic substance slowly spread around his hands, he then clenched them in slight irritation. An action that didn’t go unnoticed by his fellow G.U.N Soldier who gave him a concerned look.

“You’ve been doing that an awful lot since you’ve been quarantined, Shadow… Are you okay?”

The black hedgehog shook his head negatively. “No. I saved Rouge from being infected by a Zombot and got infected myself. And that’s what irks me; the Doctor’s Metal Virus affected me of all people…! And I should be immune to all diseases. All afflictions…”

“...I understand how you must be feeling, Shadow,” Clover began, placing her hand on the glass to comfort him, “But let’s be completely fair here; nobody could have foreseen this outcome. You, Rouge or even your creator, Professor Gearld Robotnik. He was one of the smartest minds of his time and as intelligent as he is, not even he could have anticipated or predicted that his grandson would create a robotic virus that would affect someone as powerful as you.”  

Shadow conceded to that. His creator may have been a brilliant mind, but even he had his lists of flaws and imperfections. Just then, the door swung open as someone ran into the room. 

He was a tall Mobian deer with different shades of brown fur, long antlers protruding out of his head and had rather long ears. He dressed smartly with a button up shirt, navy blue trousers, black shoes and a white lab coat with the G.U.N symbol on the coat pocket. A pair of square glasses rested upon his nose behind brown eyes.

“Lieutenant Clover! Agent Shadow!” The deer yelled out, getting their attention. 

“Ah, Professor Brian! Good to see you here!” Clover gave a small smile, “Have you managed to break down the Metal Virus’ properties?” 

“We’ve done more than just that with the analysis you gave us and the sample we took from Agent Shadow, Lieutenant!” Brian pulled out a tablet similar in design to Clover’s own, showing the duo the screen. “After careful studying of the Metal Virus, we discovered that the virus is able to evolve through mutations in its coding. This explains why those new purple Zombots have been appearing more frequently alongside regular Zombots.”

“Omega stated that these Alpha Zombots are stronger and smarter than the regular Zombots, why is that?” Shadow asked.

“Due to the Metal Virus’ evolutionary ability, it’s picking suitable Zombots to evolve into much stronger variants. It does this by targeting the victim’s adrenal glands, sending epinephrine to the body and brain. Because of this, the Alpha Zombot’s metallic bodies become more solidified which explains their increased strength, speed and durability. It also forces the brain out of dormancy, allowing them to think like a normal person.” Brian explained.

The lieutenant’s eyes widened in realization. “...So that explains why those Zombots were flying our way when my team and I were escaping. That Alpha Zombot must’ve thrown them in order to prevent us from fleeing with the survivors…”  

“Exactly,” The professor confirmed, “On the plus side, there are some new weaknesses the Alpha Zombots have. For one, they cannot infect people like regular Zombots can. This is why you and Sonic were able to hurt it without your infections getting worse, Shadow.”

“I figured as much…”

“Secondly, the Alpha Zombot’s regenerative healing has significantly been lowered. Likely to compensate for its increased strength and higher brain function.”

“At least we know how to combat the Alpha Zombots,” Clover says, “But now onto the prospects of a cure, Professor.”

“Ah yes, that.” Brian nodded in agreement, “The cure is going to take some time to develop, especially with everything going on. From what you told me, Sonic is able to burn off the Metal Virus due to his immense speed.”

“That’s right. And what about Shadow? How is he resisting the effects of the Metal Virus?” The green lagomorph questioned.

Brian showed the duo Shadow’s biometric data. On screen, red bacteriophages with an Eggman Empire decal were seen doing battle with red and black antibody cells. On some occasion, the black and red cells turned green and zapped the bacteriophages while some overcame the cells. 

“This is what I saw when I put Shadow’s infected quill under the microscope. It has to be a combination of the large quantities of Chaos Energy within Shadow’s body as well as his unique DNA .” Brian told them.

Clover and Shadow knew exactly what Brian meant by “unique DNA”.

“By reverse-engineering Shadow’s DNA, we could be able to manufacture a cure for the Metal Virus. Though like I said, it’s going to take some time. But we are doing our best.”

“I expect nothing less from either of you,” Shadow smirked, his willpower shining through. He glanced at Clover. “If you require extra help, I suggest contacting Tails. His intellect would be very useful for making a cure.”

“I’ll get right on it. And if you need anything, let us know.” Clover says before heading out the room with the deer, leaving the Ultimate Lifeform in the quarantine area.

Central City

Tails’ Workshop

[ Tension - Sonic Rivals 2 ]

In the outskirts of Central City, Zombots filled the streets in droves. On the opposite end, G.U.N Soldiers were dispatched to evacuate the survivors to the G.U.N Headquarters and stop the approaching horde. Assisting the soldiers were two Mobian girls; one a grey lemur with short hair, purple eyes, a long striped tail and wore an athletic attire consisting of a small, cropped, sleeveless amber-yellow top over a short sleeved black bodysuit with dark orange stripes on the sides. She also wore amber coloured hi-top trainers with white laces, soles, black details and orange cuffs. 

Her forearms were decorated with orange sport tape around, black ‘fingerless gloves’ that were really more  sports tape and an orange backing.

The other girl was a wolf girl with biscotti, brown and cloudy white fur and narrowed eyes. Her hair was stylised in a ponytail and had two fangs protruding out of her frowning mouth. In contrast to her athletic companion’s attire, the wolf’s clothes were more combat-focused. 

A cream-coloured tube top, light-grey leggings, dark grey arm sleeves with elbow pads, dark grey and light grey gloves with claws on the tips, dark grey knee sleeves with knee pads, black, dark grey and light grey combat boots and a cloak draped across her shoulders. Over her face was a specialised mask with one sole eye. In the wolf’s hands was a uniquely created Wispon that took the appearance of a sniper’s rifle.

Tangle the Lemur and Whisper the Wolf did their best to help with the evacuation efforts. The former used her prehensile tail to launch random objects at the Zombots while the latter used her weapon to fire out Hyper Go-On energy rockets and lasers at the mechanised menaces. 

While many Zombots continued to advance, the efforts of Tangle, Whisper and the G.U.N soldiers were beginning to show as they pushed back the horde. Inside the workshop, Tails rushed into his lab where Uncle Chuck was at a large computer. 

The older hedgehog turned to the young genius. “How is everything outside?”

“Well, Silver actually called it. G.U.N Soldiers are pushing back the Zombots and Tangle and Whisper are providing them aid while evacuating any non-infected civilians.” Tails answered as he sat down on his chair. 

Charles nodded. “That’s good. This will give us time to figure out a cure to the Metal Virus.” 

“Yo, Tails! Uncle Chuck! You both there?” Sonic answered over the speaker.

“We’re here! Where are you?” Tails asked.

“I’m not far outside Barricade Town. Everything going well on your end?”

“Yes, but also no…” Uncle Chuck mentions wearily, “The good news is that the bio-scanner Tails gave you is coming in perfectly. The bad news is that Eggman has hit Central City with the Metal Virus just as we arrived.”

“On the plus side, though; G.U.N Soldiers are keeping the horde at bay. Tangle and Whisper are also helping out with the evacuation.” The two tailed fox added.

“That’s good! Because I was gonna make a U-Turn and help ‘em out!” Sonic says. 

“You focus on running, sonny. Your speed data will be invaluable for Tails and I to make a cure and-” 

The conversation was soon interrupted by a call notification popping up on screen, a familiar “G” symbol plastered on the caller ID. 

“G.U.N? Why would they be calling us?” Tails tilted his head in slight confusion, He pressed the green call button and answered. “Hello?”

“So this is the right frequency!” Clover’s voice appeared on the other end. “Pardon my intrusion on your conversation, but I was advised to contact you regarding your assistance in making a cure to the Metal Virus.”

“Who are we speaking to?” Charles asked.

“My name is Lieutenant Clover of Golden Fleece. I’m also a technician at the Guardian Units of Nations.”  

Sonic perked in recollection. “You’re the rabbit woman I saw helping out Shadow, Rouge and Omega with the evacuations in Sunset City!”

“It’s very nice to meet you, Clover!” Tails grinned, then got the conversation back to its original discussion, “You said something about making a cure to the Metal Virus?”

“That is correct. Our scientists at G.U.N have broken down the properties of the Metal Virus, but we’ve also scanned Shadow’s body since he was infected and we’ve found out something interesting,” Clover explains.

“What did you find?” The bushy browed and moustached hedgehog questioned. 

“Much like how we know Sonic’s speed is burning off the Metal Virus, Shadow’s unique biology is fighting off his infection much like how antibodies fight against pathogens in the body’s immune system.”

“And if Shadow’s unique biology is fighting off the infection, by reverse-engineering his DNA, you’ll be able to make a potent cure that could stop the Metal Virus!” Tails accurately answered.

“A+ for the boy genius,” An elated Clover complimented, getting the teenager to chuckle.

“So we have two options for a cure; Sonic’s speed data and Shadow’s DNA,” Uncle Chuck listed off, “Both are going to take a while to create and could have different effects on the populus if used separately…”

“That’s true, Uncle Chuck. Separately, Sonic’s Speed Data and Shadow’s DNA would possibly erode due to the Metal Virus’ evolving nature… So both cures would be useless…” The fox boy states, “However…” He continued.

“...If we were to unify both Sonic and Shadow’s data together along with a strain of the Metal Virus…” Clover went on.

“We’d be able to produce a much more stabilized cure that could rid the Metal Virus for good!” Charles finished.

Sonic pondered with a grin. “ Unification , huh? Sounds like a neat trick Shadow and I could use in the near future!”  (1)

“Then it’s settled! I’ll send over the notes the scientists and I took for you both to look over, then we’ll share progress on what we’ve made so far!”

Nodding, Tails clenched his fists confidently. “I’ll see if I can snag a sample of the Metal Virus so Uncle Chuck and I can research how Sonic’s speed deteriorates it! We should also notify Amy about getting a Restoration Shuttle to Central City in case G.U.N doesn’t have any space for the survivors.”

“You leave that part to me, kiddo!” Uncle Chuck says, “Go and get that sample, but be careful!”

“I’ll leave you three at it! Go be brilliant!” Sonic encouraged his uncle, younger brother and new ally.

“We’ll try!”  

Tails carefully flew out of his house with an invention to snag a sample of the Metal Virus. Charles began typing on the computer as Clover sent some files over, his eyebrows furrowed as his mouth grew into a long frown.

“...Out of all the things you could’ve done, Ivo… This has to be the worst one…” He grumbled quietly.

Emeraldville

Restoration HQ

[ Sonic’s Event - Sonic Rush ]

At the Restoration, things were a bit lively due to the mass inclusion of survivors within the building. In the kitchen area, Felicia and Vanilla had just finished cooking a large quantity of delicious food for everyone to eat. Despite the limited amount of supplies and ingredients, both mothers were able to make enough to feed a whole town. 

“And that’s that!” The black sheep woman says, placing her hands on her hips. “I gotta say, Vanilla, your carrot casserole looks absolutely scrumptious! You gotta share your recipe with me one day!”

“Thank you, Felicia! I have to say the same about your lasagna! I have to learn what ingredients you use to make it taste so nice!” Vanilla chirped happily. 

“Of course, hun! I’ll write down the recipe for ya!”

Nash sat down on a stool as Cream stood behind him, using a scrunchy to hold some of his locs in a ponytail, leaving a few dreads hanging at the sides. She stepped back after the task was done.

“There you are, Mr. Nash! Now you can hand out the food without your hair getting in the way!” The teenage rabbit beamed, showing the young sheep his temporary hairstyle.

Nash gave a warm smile, standing up and patting Cream on the head. “Thanks Cream! Now, let’s do our best to make everyone happy!”

“Okay, Mr. Nash!”

Nash, Cream and a few volunteers took trays of food and headed outside to the common area where everyone was either standing or sitting on the ground. Felicia and Vanilla looked on at their children proudly as they helped out, happy that they were still in good spirits despite the bleak situation that everyone was currently in.

Outside, everyone was pushing and shoving in an attempt to make some space for the influx of new survivors. It was a good thing that G.U.N had taken some of the survivors back to their headquarters for shelter, otherwise the Restoration HQ would’ve looked more cramped than a tin of sardines. Nash, Cream and the volunteers passed food around to the civilians, making sure everyone had enough to eat and drink while also raising their spirits with some encouraging words. 

Lanolin directed some survivors inside to the common area, some finding spaces to lean against the wall or sit down. The snow white sheep girl had to estimate that the number of people within the HQ (not counting the volunteers) had to be in the hundreds or so. 

“Oh boy… I think the HQ is going to need an extension,” She sighed, massaging the bridge of her nose. 

“Tell me about it…” A Mobian ant volunteer agreed. “Hey, Lanolin. Why don’t you take a break for now?”

Lanolin shook her head. “No no, there’s still so much that needs to be done…”

“Come on, Lanolin. I understand you want to help out, but it’s not healthy to run yourself ragged like that.” The ant insisted. “We’ll take care of any workload that you’ve tackled. Take a break, please.”

Sighing, she finally relented. “Alright.”  

As Lanolin walked off to take her break, Cream went upstairs to the top floor with a plate of cookies shaped in Sonic’s likeness, a teapot with steam billowing, a tea cup and a jug filled with whipped cream. 

The doors swung open as Cream happily declared:

“Break time, Ms. Rose~!”

Those words were music to Amy’s ears as she practically flopped on her desk chair, exhausted.

“Yes please! Thank Gaia ! What do I get? Five minutes? Weeks? Years? ” Amy turned to her best friend, snagging a Sonic-shaped cookie off the plate. “How do you do it, Cream?”

“It’s Mother’s recipe, and she learned it from her mother. I’d be happy to teach it to you!” The teenage rabbit bubbled.

“I mean stay this upbeat and… sunny,” The pink fortune-telling hedgehog clarified. 

Cream looked down sadly. “...It isn’t easy. I still can’t sleep very well. I dream of Cheese and Chocola, and what happened…” Tears welled up in her eyes but she gave Amy a look of bravery. “But I know Mother is afraid, too. I see everyone hiding here is just as scared. And that spreads just like the Metal Virus. So I’m gonna be as brave as Cheese was! I’m gonna put on the biggest smile I can and share it with everyone!”

“And I can do that because of you. You’re a hero, and an adventurer, and you never give up! You and Mr. Sonic and all of our friends will find a way to save us. So why be sad when I know things will be okay in the end?”

Amy sniffled, tears of happiness forming in her eyes as she cuddled Cream. “You’re my hero too, Cream. Thank you so much.”  

The orange-haired rabbit girl broke the mug, grabbing the mug filled with whipped cream. “Now then – how do you take your tea?”

“Right now? Plain’s fine,” Amy answered, munching on a biscuit, “I just need something to keep me up.”

The large computer monitor beamed to life, revealing Charles the Hedgehog’s face on screen. “Charles to Restoration HQ. Do you copy? I’m just checking in to see how everyone’s doing.”

“I’m here, Uncle Chuck. How’s the cure coming along?” The hammer wielder asked, placing the half-eaten cookie on the plate.

“It’s slow but progress is being made,” The light-blue hedgehog revealed, “Tails has just snagged a sample of the Metal Virus so we can research it further and we have some help in the form of Lieutenant Clover from G.U.N.”

“What about the evacuation? Do I need to send the shuttles now?”

Tails appeared on screen. “G.U.N’s handling the evacuation efforts with Tangle and Whisper. Though we’ll let you know if we need some shuttles our way.”

“I’ll tell the pilots to go ahead and prep. Be careful, you two and good luck!” Amy says, giving the two geniuses a thumbs up.

“Thanks! Tails and Uncle Chuck out!” Tails says as he and Uncle Chuck returned the thumbs up, the screen switched back to a map of Mobius. 

“Thank you for the refreshments, Cream,” Amy gently ruffled Cream’s hair, “I’d love to relax with you, but I have to get back to work.”

“Me too.”  

Giving one last hug, Cream left the office while waving goodbye to Amy as she enjoyed her lovely cup of warm tea. Down on the lower floor, Lanolin was sitting on a crate taking a swig from a water bottle. She noticed the large sea of Mobians parting as Vector carried a Zombot Charmy in a container as Gemerl tried to stop him and Espio. 

She gave a conflicted expression upon hearing the lead detective and gizoid argue about bringing the infected teen bee around so many people. Gemerl did have a point that Charmy could infect so many people, but Vector also made a valid argument that nobody gets left behind, not even a member of the Chaotix.

“Hey Lanolin,” Nash approached her with two plates of lasagna in his hands. He placed the plate beside her. “Figured you might be hungry.”

Lanolin took the lasagna as Nash sat next to her on the crate.

“So, what’s going on with the Chaotix and Gemerl?” Nash asked.

  “Well…” Her blue eyes darted over.

“I’ll look after him! And I’ll have an easier time without you breathing down my neck!” Vector bellowed.

“This unit does not breathe.” Gemerl replied bluntly.

“YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN!!!” The crocodile blew up in comedic anger.

Nash and Lanolin sweatdropped visibly, both shaking their heads in slight amusement as they had lunch together. Lanolin took a bite out of the lasagna and felt her taste buds explode with flavour as her eyes became wide and sparkling.

“Oh. My. Chaos…! This lasagna tastes amazing!” Lanolin exclaimed, “Who cooked this?!”

“My mom did!” Nash proclaimed proudly.

“Give her my compliments because this is delicious!” Lanolin took another ravenous bite of the lasagna, then another and another. 

Nash watched in astonishment as the sheep girl had polished off her plate of lasagna in the span of a few seconds, leaving only bits of crumbs on the dish before she set it down, rubbing her satisfied stomach. 

“Wow…!” The dread-headed sheep let out, “You must’ve really been hungry!”

Lanolin’s muzzle reddened slightly. “Ehehehe… Sorry you had to see that, Nash.”

“No sweat! I can’t entirely blame you for finishing your lasagna so quickly, you should’ve seen Cream and Miss Vanilla when they took a bite of it!” 

Nash ate his lasagna, smiling contently. He felt every bit of effort and love Felicia put into the food, which made helping out all the more satisfying. After finishing his food, Nash and Lanolin watched Cream converse with Gemerl and convince him that the infected Charmy was in good hands while bantering with him a little.

[ Dearly Beloved - Kingdom Hearts 2 ]

“...She’s so brave.”

Nash turned to Lanolin, who had a gentle smile on her face. “Cream?”

“Yes. Despite the world going through another crisis, seeing so many people sad and scared, she’s putting on a big smile and powering through it all…”

“I know. A girl her age would be really traumatised by the current events and yet, she’s being so brave for everyone…! It’s… honestly uplifting and inspiring!”

The white sheep nodded in agreement. “...I honestly wish I had that kind of determination and courage as Cream.”

“Y-You do?” Nash asked, getting a nod from Lanolin.

“Ever since the Eggman War, I was… so frightened… Scared, even. I thought the world was going to end and that… Eggman had won for good. But when Sonic came back and saved Mobius, it still showed me that even when things seem bleak… hope will always shine through.”

“Even after the war had ended and my village, Riverside, was attacked; I still felt terrified to even help out. But when Sonic saved my village, I decided to join the Restoration in order to help everyone out. So that they don’t feel the exact same way that I felt back then; helpless and afraid.”

Nash remained silent after Lanolin’s soliloquy, his facial expression morphed in sympathetic understanding. Lanolin meekly turned her head towards the black sheep, her eyes sad and mouth in a long frown. 

“Do… Do you know how that feels, Nash? To be so frightened that… you can’t do anything to help?” She questioned painfully.

“...I do…” Nash replied, his voice barely above a whisper and head lowered. 

A small gasp escaped the bovid girl’s lips, surprised by the dread-headed teenager’s answer.

“When the Eggman War happened, I felt scared too. Not just because Sonic was defeated, but because of my dad. He was fighting against Eggman’s forces to try and stop him from taking over the planet… And when I heard that G.U.N was defeated, I thought Dad was… gone .”

Lanolin felt her heart sink when Nash put emphasis on the word, ‘gone’. Small tears welled up in her eyes as Nash continued.

“Just like you, I was afraid. Terrified even. For my village, for my mom and dad’s wellbeing. And that Sonic was defeated for good… But there was something that my dad would tell me is that everyone, even heroes, feel fear. But what causes them to act is when people’s lives are at stake.”  Looking up at Lanolin, Nash flashed a toothy smile. “That’s why I look up to both my dad and Sonic, because they never let fear overtake them to do the right thing. And I strive to be just like them someday!”

The sheep girl felt the sheer confidence and drive flowing from the sheep boy. It was almost like his body was wrapped within a warm flame that melted any chilling thoughts of Mobius’ doom in her mind. Just like Cream, Nash was being just as courageous and not letting the negativity get to him. 

Inspiring, he was.

“We just have to have faith. I had faith that my dad would be okay and he was, we had faith that Sonic would return to defeat Eggman and he did,” Nash gently placed a hand on Lanolin’s shoulder, giving a charismatic grin. “Sonic and his friends have saved us more times than we can count. So, I think we should return the favour and do our part too!”

Lanolin stared at Nash in awe… before her lips curled into a smile. “You’re right.”

[ Event: Madness - Sonic Adventure 2 ]

The pleasant conversation was suddenly interrupted by panicked screams of the survivors. The two bovid teenagers jolted immediately, seeing the masses running away from a red monkey covered in a familiar metallic shine. 

It couldn’t be!

“A Zombot!” Nash cried out, “How did a Zombot manage to get in here?!”

“I think that monkey must’ve been infected beforehand and slipped through the crowd of civilians!” Lanolin theorised. She hopped to her feet, turning to Nash urgently. “We have to evacuate the survivors and prevent any more infections!”

“Right!”

Hopping onto the box, the sheep girl shouted loudly:

“Attention, everyone! Make your way to the upper floor and towards the exit leading to the shuttle! I repeat, make your way to the upper floor in an orderly fashion!”

“You heard her, people! Make your way upstairs in a quick yet orderly fashion!” Nash yelled.

Heeding their instructions, the civilians made their way up to the first floor but not in the orderly fashion Lanolin had advised. In the ensuing chaos, the infected Charmy had managed to escape from his containment with the intent of infecting as many healthy people as possible. Those who weren’t quick to rush towards the stairs or that had tripped during the commotion instantly turned into Zombots. 

The alarms began blaring loudly which only added to the stress of the Restoration members and the civilians. Gemerl flew out to try and retrieve Omega’s head, Amy used her Piko Piko Hammer to knock away the Zombots. As this was going on, a scream caught Nash’s attention, making him whirl around to see Cream crying out for Vanilla, who had been infected by a Zombot.

“Miss Vanilla!” He screamed, running towards her. “Don’t worry, I’m–!”

“No, darling! Stay back!” Vanilla told him as she backed away. 

“But-!”

“You cannot get infected because of me…! It’s… too late for me…!” The rabbit mother looked over at Amy, tears welling up in her eyes. “Ms. Rose! Please! Get my little girl to safety!”

Amy’s tear-stricken face morphed into sheer, concentrated valour as she used her hammer to launch herself towards the flying Cream, grab her and take her to safety. Nash gave Vanilla a guilt-ridden stare as he ran towards the steps along with Lanolin, but then… something dawned on him. 

“Wait… where’s–?!” 

“NASH!!!” Felicia’s voice cried out from afar.

The young sheep turned his head to where he heard his mother’s screams, seeing her run towards him while doing her best to avoid touching the Zombots and risk becoming one herself. 

“MOM!!!” Nash yelled, running from the steps and towards his mother without a second thought.

Lanolin raised a hand to try and stop him. “Nash, NO!!! You’ll get yourself infected!!”

Nash continued running to Felicia. He didn’t care about his well being or his safety. All that mattered was saving his mum from danger. He couldn’t save Cream’s mother, but he could still save his own. Just before either sheep could get close to one another, Zombot Charmy flew towards Felicia quickly, his stinger pointed straight at her as other Zombots began to swarm the bovid woman.

Time seemed to slow around Nash, all sounds faded from his eardrums aside from his own beating heart. His eyes trembled at the thought of losing his mother to the Metal Virus.

It was just like before in the Eggman War. And with the Egg Hammer that attacked his village two weeks ago.

He almost lost his dad. And he was about to lose his mum.

He won’t let that happen! He will never let something like that happen again!

Nash refused to let the Egg Hammer take his father away from him! And now, he won’t let his mother get infected by the Metal Virus!

[ SA2 (Main Riff) - Sonic Adventure 2 ]

“Leave… LEAVE MY MOTHER ALONE!!!!”  

B W O O S H ! ! ! !

An orange flash of light shone brightly within the Restoration HQ followed by a shockwave that blew away every Zombot within the vicinity in all directions! Even Zombot Charmy was blown back from the immense force, causing him to miss Felicia entirely and smack into the wall hard! 

The light dimmed around the area, revealing Nash whose body was covered in the same flowing, ethereal orange aura like before! His powers had once again resurfaced in a time of great need. Wasting no time, Nash rushed towards Felicia, scooping her up in his arms.

“I got you, Mom! Now let’s get out of here!” He says, bending his knees then kicking off the ground in a high jump.

Nash landed on the first floor platform then rushed towards the doors with his mother in tow, leaving an orange trail behind. Once they were within a safe distance, Nash put Felicia down safely. 

“Are you okay, Mom?” The bovid youth inquired with concern, his orange aura fading from his person.

The mother stared at her son in amazement, her mouth slightly hung open as she nodded. She never expected that her child would have such incredible powers! It almost reminded her of Wallace and his own unique abilities!

Felicia wasn’t the only one that was shocked as just about everyone in the Restoration had witnessed Nash’s orange energy flowing out of his body. Nash could feel the astonished gazes of everyone on him, it was starting to get a little uncomfortable.

“Nash… I… You…!” Amy began flabbergasted. 

“I… I don’t believe what I just witnessed…” Espio added, also shell shocked.

Vector pointed at Nash while trying to close the door. “Gemerl, was that–?”

“I SCANNED NASH AND HIS MOTHER FOR ANY TRACES OF INFECTION. I CAN CONFIRM THE ENERGY THAT HE EMITTED IS NOT CHAOS ENERGY,” Gemerl states.

Lanolin blinked twice, walking up to him. “Nash… you never told us you had powers…!”

“It’s uh… kind of a long story…” Nash rubbed the back of his head with an embarrassed smile.

“You can tell us all about it later, kid! Right now, we have to close the door before–!”

Through the small crack in the metal doors, Zombot Charmy flew right in, heading straight for the survivors. Reacting quickly, Vector tackled the insect teenager to the ground forcefully. 

“Oh no, you don’t!” The Chaotix leader grappled the zombified Charmy in his arms, getting himself infected in the process. “I swear, kid. You’re such a pain in my tail!”

Espio’s heart spiked with terror, raising a concerned hand. “Vector-!”

“VECTOR IS COMPROMISED. IMMEDIATE QUARANTINE REQUIRED.” Gemerl advised, doing his best to hold back the Zombots trying to break through the small crack in the doors.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I guess that’s what I get for lookin’ after my own!” Vector charged into the horde of Zombots, kicking one in the face. “I’ll beat ‘em back! Close the door behind me!”

Turning around, the crocodile gave a two finger salute as he winked at Espio. “Hey Espio. You’re lead detective now.”

CLANG!!!

And just like that, Vector was gone. 

Amy stood frozen, hand over her mouth and tears pouring from her eyes. Nash, Felicia and Lanolin were also shocked to their core, all three filled with a sense of sorrow as the leader of the Chaotix was… gone.

But none took it harder than Espio. Two of his best friends were now Zombots, and he was helpless to do anything but watch. He dropped to his knees, staring blankly with tears forming in his eyes.

Gemerl placed a comforting hand on Amy’s shoulder. “VECTOR IS… VERY STRONG. AS A ZOMBOT, HE WILL BREAK DOWN THE DOORS SOON.”

“Y-You’re right. We need to go,” Amy wiped her eye, helping up the traumatized purple chameleon. “Espio… c’mon. We’ve got to escape.”

“R-Roger that…” Espio replied with restrained sadness.

With most of the survivors now inside, the shuttle took off for Central City.

Central City

Tails’ Workshop

“How’s progress on the cure, you two?” Clover asks. 

“It’s going swimmingly, Clover!” Uncle Chuck states happily, “Tails’ computer has managed to process Sonic’s speed data!”

“What about you, Clover? Have the scientists back at G.U.N managed to make a cure with Shadow’s DNA?” Tails asked as he looked at holograms of the Metal Virus and Sonic’s speed data.

“After a lot of trial and error, I can confirm that our scientists have made the cure using Shadow’s DNA!” The rabbit woman declared triumphantly.

Tails’ blue eyes sparkled. He looked up at Charles with a hopeful smile and the old hedgehog returned his expression with a proud grin.

At last! They were going to cure everyone! 

“Let me upload everything to you, Clover. And then once we’ve synthesized the cure using Sonic’s speed data, we’ll combine it with the cure you made using Shadow’s DNA!” Tails typed on his computer screen, sending his research over to Clover.

“Sounds good, Tails! When that happens, I’ll send someone to deliver the cure to you!”

“This nightmare will soon be over! Well done, everyone!” Uncle Chuck expressed with a pat on the boy’s head. 

“All that’s left to do is–!”

ByOoOoOoW!

As quickly as hope was established, it was snatched away from the heroes. The entire lab went dim as the two intelligent Mobians looked around in shock.

“Oh, what the HELL?!” Uncle Chuck shouted. 

“No… no… NONONO! What happened?!” Tails rapidly tapped on his keyboard.

Outside, the infected Cheese and Chocola ripped apart the fuse box to Tails’ house, having seen the fox snag a sample of the Metal Virus and thus, did their best to stop him and Uncle Chuck’s attempts at finding a cure. The mustached hedgehog silently gestured to Tails to head out quickly while he went to grab the server blades plugged into the ground. 

BOOM!!!

A purple hand broke through the doors, tearing them open. Uncle Chuck took a step back, startled as the assailant stepped inside; an Alpha Zombot! As it and the other Zombots advanced, Charles reacted quickly and threw out a small ring at them. The ring glowed brightly, releasing a discharge of electromagnetic energy that shocked the Zombots, making them shake violently before they dropped to the floor motionless. 

The ring even affected the Alpha Zombot, forcing it to stagger and fall on one knee. With the Zombots temporarily disabled, Uncle Chuck pulled the server blades out of the computer, storing it inside his coat pocket before turning to run. However, a shiny purple hand grabbed the cyan hedgehog by his wrist to prevent his escape.

“Impossible!” Charles exclaimed as he looked back at the Alpha Zombot in disbelief, “That EMP Ring should’ve affected you for much longer!” 

The superior Zombot tried to pull Charles towards the horde that was starting to slowly recover from the EMP blast, but the hedgehog put up a struggle in an attempt to free himself. Fortunately for Uncle Chuck, an explosion from the garage propelled the Alpha and many other Zombots away from the professor.

Within the wreckage was Tails in his famous Cyclone mech, smoke billowing from the barrels. 

“Uncle Chuck! Are you alright?!” The two-tailed genius questioned. 

“I’m alright, kiddo! Good thing that was an Alpha Zombot and not a regular one. I’ve got the server blades, let’s move!”

Taking aim, Tails blew a hole through the door of his house and fled quickly with Uncle Chuck right on the side of the wings. Zombot Cheese and Chocola were in hot pursuit of the scientists, but the Cyclone morphed into its cart form and sped away, leaving the infected Chao in its dust. Tails and Charles gave the small creatures a sympathetic look as they left.

Downtown in Central City, the battle raged on between the Zombots and G.U.N. At first, G.U.N held the advantage with their weapons and higher numbers, but that quickly went away when some of the Zombots had evolved into Alphas. And with their newfound intelligence, the Alpha Zombots were able to beat back some of the G.U.N Soldiers. In the air, Tangle and Whisper were floating in the air due to the latter’s Wispon utilising the Hover Wisp. 

The lemur paged into her comlink. “Tails! Professor Charles! We’re heading down to the dock! Where are you?!”

Her question was answered relatively quickly as the Cyclone skidded to a stop, knocking away several Zombots in the process. Uncle Chuck hopped off the wing as Tangle and Whisper lowered themselves to the ground.

“That was AMAZING~!” Tangle exclaimed, all starry-eyed. 

“I’ll cover you! Go with Uncle Chuck and protect the survivors!” Tails instructed.

“Gotcha! But I wanna drive that thing later!” 

Tangle, Whisper and Charles raced towards the docks where a group of survivors were awaiting for the now-arriving Restoration Shuttle. The trio brightened when it arrived, but didn’t notice any other shuttles.

“Why… why is there only one?” The lemur asked as the ship descended near the dock.

Uncle Chuck narrowed his eyes, a bad feeling crawling down his quills. He pushed that thought down when the shuttle door opened, revealing the rest of the survivors. 

“Okay, everyone! Make your way inside! We have to move quickly!” Charles instructed.

Tangle’s long tail formed into a pointing hand. “You heard the professor! C’mon people! Hustle! Hustle! Hustle!”

The survivors of Central City filed into the shuttle with Tangle, Whisper and Uncle Chuck being the last to enter inside. Tails did his best to keep the Zombots at bay with his Cyclone mech firing off lasers and missiles, but he was slowly overwhelmed by the sheer number of zombie menaces. 

“Tails! We’re airborne! C’mon!” Tangle called out.

The two tailed fox stared at his precious Cyclone being torn to shreds right in front of his eyes by the Zombots. Knowing that he would become a Zombot next, Tails reluctantly hopped out of the mech and gave it a pat.

“Thank you for all your hard work. You deserved better.” He tearfully spoke.

The Cyclone died honourably in an explosion as Tails flew into the escaping shuttle, landing by a despondent Amy Rose.

“Wait… where are the other shuttles? We didn’t have many, but…”

“We’re on the only one that made it out.”

Uncle Chuck’s eyes widened. “Amy… are you saying?”

“Restoration HQ has fallen… and almost everyone with it.”

Tails lowered his head in depression. “No… I-It can’t be…! And without my lab, our hopes for a cure–”

“--Is still available!” The white mustached hedgehog interrupted, getting Amy and Tails’ attention.

“You mean the data for the cure? It’s…”

“Right here, Amy,” Uncle Chuck pulled out the server blades from his coat pocket, “I managed to grab it just as you were getting the Cyclone, son. All we have to do is patch through to Clover, then wait for Sonic to return with the Data Analyzer intact. We haven’t given up yet!”

Charles almost fell over from the sudden tackle-hug Tails gave him, absolutely overjoyed and hopeful once again!

“Thank you, Uncle Chuck! You’re a lifesaver! Hahahahahaha!” Tails proclaimed, happy tears falling from his eyes. 

“Hahahaha! You’re welcome, Tails!”

The entire shuttle felt the mood shift considerably due to the quick-thinking of Professor Charles. Their chances of survival had increased significantly and pretty soon, everyone would be cured of this dreadful Metal Virus. 

“Jewel?” Tangle tapped onto her comlink, “Yeah, I can hear– Slow down. What’s happening?”

Amy twisted her head over to Tangle and asked: “Tangle? What’s wrong?”

“I just got a call from Jewel…” The lemur grimly says, a perturbed look schooling her features. “Spiral Hill Village is overrun with Zombots!”

Chapter Text

[ Event: Anticipation - Sonic Rivals ]

Restoration Shuttle

The skies above Spiral Hill Village

“Alright. We should be arriving at Spiral Hill in a few minutes,” Amy muttered to herself, watching everyone prepare themselves. She turned to Tails and Uncle Chuck. “I’ve managed to contact Sonic and fill him in on the situation. He’s heading to Spiral Hill as we speak.”

“Hopefully, he still has the Data Analyzer on him,” Tails says with an optimistic tone, “With the server blades containing Sonic’s Speed Data, we can start creating the cure!”

“All we need is some resources, a strong computer and Shadow’s DNA from G.U.N, then we can make that cure!” Uncle Chuck added. 

A gentle chuckle escaped the pink hedgehog’s mouth. “I’m glad there’s still hope for a cure. For now, we should focus on evacuating as many people from Spiral Hill Village.”

The geniuses nodded, getting themselves ready to save the survivors of Tangle’s village. Cream quietly sat by herself, occasionally wiping her teary eyes as she tried to keep a brave face for everyone here. 

“How’re you doing, Cream?” Felicia asked gently, walking up to the teenage girl.

“I’m…” Cream sniffled a bit before continuing, “I’m doing alright, Mrs. Felicia. I’m getting ready to help everyone out…”

“That’s good, honey,” The sheep mother smiled but gave Cream a concerned look, “Are you feeling alright, though?”

Cream shook her head slowly. “No, Mrs. Felicia… I miss my mother, Cheese and Chocola…” Tears formed in her eyes. “T-They’ve become Zombots and I-I’m afraid I’m never going to see them again…! I’m… so scared…”

Felicia wrapped her arms around the distraught rabbit girl, pulling her into a warm embrace as she sobbed. 

“Oh… I know, baby, I know. Everyone else is scared too…” She consoled, “And I know you miss your mom and your friends too... Professor Charles and Tails are working very hard to make a cure for the Metal Virus. So don’t you worry, honeybun, you’ll see your mom and friends again soon. Okay?”

“...Okay. I-I’ll be brave… For my mom, Cheese and Chocola!”

Cream wiped her eyes then wrapped her arms around Felicia, returning the comforting hug. Nash watched the exchange with sympathetic guilt in his eyes. Seeing Vanilla get infected right in front of her daughter’s eyes was extremely traumatising for her and to make matters worse, all Cream could do was watch as her mother became a part of the Zombots. 

What stung the male sheep even more was that he tried to save Vanilla from the Zombots as she was being infected. Yet he was able to save his own mum, but he nor Cream could save Vanilla. 

It wasn’t fair. It isn’t fair.

If only his powers had activated sooner when he needed them the most, then maybe Vanilla would be here with Cream alongside Felicia. 

“I AM DETECTING HINTS OF EMOTIONAL PAIN WITHIN YOUR HEART, NASH. ARE YOU OKAY?” 

Turning to his right, Nash saw Gemerl looking at him in worry despite not showing any emotions. 

The young sheep sighed a bit. “Not really, Gemerl… I feel terrible for Cream. Miss Vanilla got infected by a group of Zombots and I couldn’t even save her during the evacuation. If I had full control over my powers…” Nash stopped himself as he looked at his right hand.

“YOU SHOULD NOT BLAME YOURSELF FOR CIRCUMSTANCES OUTSIDE OF YOUR CONTROL, NASH.” Gemerl logically stated, “NOBODY COULD HAVE FORESEEN THE OUTCOME OF AN INFECTED COMING INTO THE HQ UNDETECTED.”

“...That is true. The guards were thorough with their search for infected people and yet, someone managed to slip by undetected.”

The Gizoid patted Nash on the shoulder, “I KNOW YOU ARE WORRIED FOR CREAM’S WELLBEING. BUT CREAM IS A STRONG AND BRAVE GIRL, THIS UNIT IS 99.9% SURE OF THAT.”

“What about the 0.1%?” The dreadlocked teenager quipped light-heartedly.

“THIS UNIT CANNOT GIVE YOU AN ANSWER ON THAT.”

“I was just playing, Gemerl.”

“AH. SWITCHING TOPICS FOR A MOMENT, NASH. YOUR POWERS ARE UNLIKE ANYTHING I HAVE EVER WITNESSED BEFORE.” Gemerl mentioned offhandedly.

“Yeah, this is the second time they’ve surfaced since that battle with the Egg Hammer two weeks ago.” Nash commented.

“THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME YOU HAVE AWAKENED THEM?” Gemerl’s curiosity had been piqued, he stroked his chin thoughtfully, “INTERESTING. WHEN I SCANNED YOU EARLIER, I COULD DETECT A POWERFUL EMOTIONAL RESONATION WITHIN YOUR BODY. COULD THAT BE THE SOURCE OF YOUR POWERS?”

“More than likely. My mom says that my dad has a similar emotional spark when channeling his powers, so I possibly inherited them from him.” Nash explained.

“I SEE. PERHAPS YOUR FATHER, TAILS OR PROFESSOR CHARLES CAN HELP YOU WITH YOUR POWERS WHEN YOU FULLY HARNESS THEM.”

“Good idea! I’m gonna get back to preparing for the Spiral Hill evacuation, that’s our main focus.”

“OF COURSE. BE SURE TO STAY AWAY FROM THE ZOMBOTS, NASH.”

Nash gave a thumbs up as he and Gemerl parted ways. On the side, Tangle and Whisper were currently talking about how they planned to save Spiral Hill Village when the young sheep walked up to them with a friendly wave.

“Yo!” He greeted, getting the duo’s attention.

“Heya!” Tangle waved back at Nash, “Don’t think we’ve met before, have we?”

“Not until now. I’m Nash!”

“Nice to meet ya, Nash! I’m Tangle and this is my best friend, Whisper!” 

“Hello,” Whisper timidly wiggled her fingers in greeting.

“Nice to meet you too!” Nash replied with a smile, “So, the village we’re heading to; Spiral Hill? Is that where you’re from, Tangle?”

Tangle nodded, “Eeyup! Was born and raised there my whole life! Spiral Hill was normally peaceful until Eggman’s robots attacked it two weeks ago.” She smirked proudly while puffing out her chest, “You shoulda seen Whisper and I when we helped Sonic and the others take down Metal Sonic on Angel Island! It was awesome!”

Nash blinked in astonishment. “You and Whisper helped Sonic defeat Metal Sonic?! Aww man, I’m so jealous!” He added, though his tone was light-hearted and joyful in nature.

“Heh! Whisper and I make a great team together! Especially after we worked together a week before the Metal Virus occurred! Ain’t that right, Whisper?”

The biscotti wolf nodded meekly with a small smile. The grey lemur’s big grin faltered slightly, her eyes becoming a bit downcast. 

“You good, Tangle?” Nash asked upon taking note of Tangle’s vibrant energy dimming a little.

“I’m alright. I’m just… worried for my friend, Jewel,” The athletic primate lamented, “I’m hoping she managed to get out safely when Spiral Hill was overrun with Zombots.”

“Don’t worry, Tangle. I’m sure Jewel has kept herself barricaded in her museum,” Whisper comforted.

“We’ll save as many people as possible from your village, Tangle. I promise you that.” Nash added.

Tangle flashed a big grin, “Thanks! You two are the best!” She glanced towards the dread-headed sheep. “By the way, where did the white sheep girl go?”

“I’m right here! I was just getting changed for the evacuation!” Lanolin’s voice gained the attention of the trio, causing Nash to turn around.

When he did though, his eyes widened at what his Restoration partner was wearing. Instead of her orange dress and green shirt that she wore previously; Lanolin was wearing a red, pink and black jumpsuit with black knee, elbow and shoulder pads, red hairbands, red fingerless gloves, red and pink shoes with white toes and dark gray soles. 

She stood with her hand on her hip, expression stoic and determined yet a subtle smile could be seen on her lips. 

Nash stood there, positively stupefied. Mouth agape and blushing slightly at Lanolin’s new outfit. 

“W-Wow…” He let out quietly.

A bubble appeared with the chibi-fied faces of Tangle, Whisper and Felicia all witnessing this small interaction.

“Yo Nash! You dropped your jaw! Might wanna pick that sucker back up, hehe~!” Tangle jokes.

“I think he’s too far gone, heh.” Whisper chortled quietly.

Felicia giggled, placing a hand over her mouth at her son’s reaction. Her motherly intuitions clued her into what was going on.

[ Theme of the Resistance - Sonic Forces ]

Amy cleared her throat loudly to gain everyone’s attention. “Alright, everyone! Listen up! We’ll be arriving at Spiral Hill Village shortly! As we all know, the place is infested with Zombots so we’ll all have to work together in order to save as many survivors as possible!”

“We also need to prevent more people from being infected, so for those who cannot fight or take part in the evacuation, stay behind on the shuttle!” Uncle Chuck advised, “For those participating in the evacuation, grab a Wispon when we land!”

“To begin, we’ll put people in pairs! Tails and Cream, take to the skies and rescue people from above! The Zombots can’t infect anyone who is airborne,” The Rosy Rascal instructed.

“Roger that! / Yes, Amy!” Tails and Cream replied in unison.

“Espio, Tangle, Whisper, Nash and Lanolin; you five contain the Zombots as much as you can! Do NOT let a single one touch you or infect any survivors!” Amy ordered, getting a nod from the five mentioned.

“We’ll do our best, Amy!” Lanolin says, putting on her red goggles over her head.

“Allow us to handle the fighting,” Whisper added, putting her mask over her face and readying her Variable Wispon.

Uncle Chuck walked up to them. “Just before you all go, take these.” He handed the group a small brown bag containing Rings inside.

“What are these, Prof?” Tangle asked.

“ Electromagnetic Pulse Rings or EMP Rings for short. I created them with the purpose of disabling Eggman Tech, and it works just as well against Zombots. Though use these sparingly since we only have a limited supply.”

Nash pocketed the bag, giving the older hedgehog a determined smile. “Thanks, Professor Charles! We’ll make good use of these!”

“You all have your objectives! Now let’s go save Spiral Hill Village!” Amy declared.

“YEAH!!!!” Everyone yelled in unison.

[ Luminous Forest - Sonic Forces ]

The Restoration shuttle touched down on Spiral Hill Village, the hatch door opening as everyone rushed out quickly! Tangle, quite literally, sprang into action using her long tail to launch herself into her village. 

“LOOK OUT BELOW!!” She yelled excitedly from above.

“Someone’s eager to get started,” Nash mumbled quietly with a smile, watching Tangle descend into battle and run into the village.

“She’s being completely reckless…” Lanolin critiqued, “But who am I to stop her?”

The Zombots spotted the running lemur and slowly stalked towards her. Before they could grab at her, the Zombots were shot with an orange rocket by Whisper. She then switched out her Orange Wisp for the Green Wisp, and hovered up to one of the rooftops. Tangle gave her bestie a thumbs up before rushing towards the Mineral Museum to check on Jewel. 

Espio rushed forth, using his camouflage ability to make himself invisible to the Zombots as he stealthy parkoured to the top of the buildings. Inside, a group of survivors sat huddled in the corner with the door barricaded to prevent the infected from entering. The survivors nearly jumped out of their skin upon seeing the window open by itself, but soon settled when Espio made himself visible.

He raised a finger to his lips, “Shh! Keep quiet and make your way out of this window. The Restoration Shuttle is just at the edge of the village.”

The ninja quietly ushered the non-infected villagers out of the window carefully, where Tails and Cream grabbed onto their hands and carried them off to safety. Just as Espio was about to exit through the window, the barricade broke apart as a sea of Zombots rushed into the room!

With lightning reflexes, Espio reached into his brown bag and tossed an EMP Ring out at the Zombots which sent out a powerful pulse that stunned the infected into a state of motionlessness. Taking a breath, Espio hopped out of the window and ran towards another building to rescue more survivors. 

In another part of Spiral Hill, Nash led a group of survivors out of a house and towards the shuttle. Given the lack of control over his powers, the black sheep was given a Burst Wispon to keep the Zombots at bay for the time being. And the weapon worked like a dream as Nash shot out streams of fire that knocked away the Zombots! 

Just as he rounded the corner, a pack of Zombots approached, forcing Nash to reach into his bag for an EMP Ring as the survivors huddled behind him for protection. Just then, a powerful shockwave sent every single Zombot flying in multiple directions. Nash looked over to see Lanolin, armed with a Hover Wispon, walking up to him with her own survivors following behind her.

“Thanks for the save, Lanolin!” Nash smiled gratefully.

“You’re welcome!” Lanolin responded with her own smile, “Come on, we have to get these survivors back to the shuttle before any more Zombots show up!”

“Gotcha! Follow us, everyone” Nash told the survivors.

The two sheep ran towards the Restoration Shuttle with the survivors following closely behind. Once they arrived at the safe zone, Uncle Chuck and Amy led the survivors inside. The pink hedgehog gave the duo a thumbs up as they rushed back into Spiral Hill to keep the Zombots away from the shuttle with their respective Wispons. At the same time, Tails and Cream had lowered the survivors to the ground safely, allowing them to walk into the ship safely. 

“Got the survivors out of the top floor!” Tails says, wiping the sweat off his head.

“Any sign of Sonic yet?” Amy asked.

Cream shook her head. “No, Amy. Mr. Sonic hasn’t arrived yet.”

“I’m sure he’ll be here soon… Keep evacuating more survivors and bring them back here!” 

Cream nodded robotically, flapping her ears as she flew away with Tails. Tails tossed out a few Dummy Ring Bombs from above, blowing away multiple Zombots with the scattering of Dummy Rings. The bunny teenager, on the other hand, tossed out one of the EMP Rings at the infected, disabling them with the electromagnetic pulse. 

With the threat temporarily taken care of, the Mobian Fox and Rabbit ran through the village in search of more survivors to airlift back to the Restoration Shuttle. Tangle swung around from lamp post to lamp post with her tail, swiftly dodging and weaving out of every Zombot that attempted to grab her. 

The lemur pulled off an elegant slide underneath one of the Zombots as she flicked an EMP Ring into the air. She rose up, spun on the spot then hit a pose with her right hand on her head, her left hand pointed out as her body leaned forward slightly. (1)

“Booyah~! I’m bad and you know it~!” She yelled as an EMP blast went off behind her, disabling the Zombots.

Tangle jogged towards the Mineral Museum, opening the door. “Jewel? You okay?”

Her answer came in the form of her friend, Jewel, flying out of the door and looking rather metallic and dead-eyed. Tangle threw out another EMP Ring just as the infected Jewel touched her, releasing a burst of electromagnetic energy that knocked the beetle out.

“I’ll take that as a no, then.” The athletic primate answered as she looked down at her Zombot companion.

In the distance, a familiar blue streak raced towards Spiral Hill Village, kicking up dust and grass from the sheer speed alone. Unknown to the blue Hedgehog, something was observing him as a metallic purple foot stepped on the grass to the village…

Central City

G.U.N Headquarters

[ Analysis - My Hero Academia ]

The atmosphere at the Guardian Units of Nations held a grim aura for its many soldiers and operatives. Survivors sat in various safe rooms provided by the military force, most sitting on the bed or floors with despair written all over their faces. Soldiers running in and out to help the non-infected or keep the Zombot hordes under control. Some of them were in the medical bay, completely fatigued and exhausted to keep fighting. 

Clover paced outside of G.U.N lab doors, a long frown stretching her lips and eyes locked to the ground in distress that she tried to keep under wraps. After receiving the files of Sonic’s Speed Data from Tails, she had lost contact with him and Uncle Chuck due to the Zombots attacking his lab. She had filled Shadow in on the situation and while the black hedgehog was concerned, he reassured the grassy-green rabbit woman that the two tailed fox and Sonic’s Uncle would be fine.

But it wasn’t Tails and Charles’ safety she was concerned about. Oh no.

It was the cries of Mobius.

Clover could see it. She could hear it. She could feel it all around her.

Words of doubt ringing in her long ears. Hope fading into the darkness of despair.

“Can G.U.N even save us from the Plague if they couldn’t save us during the Eggman War?”

“Mommy…! I’m scared! Will Sonic be able to help us from this bad infection?”

“How can we rely on G.U.N to fix this? They should’ve disposed of Eggman sooner before he became a great threat!”

“Can the Restoration even prevent this… hopeless situation from becoming worse?”

“I don’t even think Sonic can save us from becoming like those metallic freaks…”

Clover felt her heart squeeze in her chest. ‘No…! We can stop this! We won’t let Ivo win!’

The sounds of boots hitting the floor snapped Clover out of her thoughts. She stopped her pacing to see her partners, Wallace and Delphine, approaching her. 

She ran up to them quickly. “Wallace, Delphine! I’m so glad to see you both! How’s the evacuation efforts going?” 

Wallace took off his helmet with a sigh, “We managed to get the last of the civilians to safety. Delphine and I were attacked by one of those Alpha Zombots on the way back here.”

“Those things were as strong as the Mass-Produced Death Egg Robots we fought during the War!” Delphine stated, taking off her helmet, “But Wallace and I managed to fend it off as best we could!”

“The Zombot Outbreak is starting to become worse…”

“Ugh… Tell me about it…!” Clover massaged her temples with a groan, “And to think this happened just after the six month war on the planet!”

“Not only that, I’ve also been hearing people starting to lose hope in us… Lose hope in… him.” The dolphin woman spoke wearily.

Wallace turned to his lieutenant in hopes to change the subject. “Any progress on the cure, Clover?”

“The scientists in the lab are working hard to synthesize Shadow’s DNA into a cure. Once that’s done, we’re going to try and send it over to Tails and Professor Charles so they can combine it with the cure created from Sonic’s Speed Data.” Clover explained. 

“That’s… good news, at least,” Delphine says, her eyes casting down to the floor in sadness, “...I miss Tyson…”

Wallace pulled her in for a comforting hug. “...Me too.”

“...We will find a way to cure him and everyone else…” Clover joined in on the group hug, “I made a promise to him and I’m going to keep it.”

Delphine wrapped her arms around her friends, pulling them closer into the hug as if the Metal Virus itself would tear them away from the dolphin Mobian. She shed tears of both sadness and joy as Wallace and Clover comforted her in this difficult time. 

The lab door opened as Brian stepped out ready to tell Clover something, only to stop when he saw the three members of Golden Fleece in a group hug. 

“Uhm… I hope I’m not disturbing you all,” The deer piped up, getting the team’s attention. “You three seemed to be having a moment so I’ll just come back when you’re done.”

“Hold on, Brian.” Clover stopped him as she broke the hug, “Is it related to the cure?”

“It is…” Brian confirms before his expression contorts into anxiousness, “...Do you mind if we have a word privately, Lieutenant?”

“Sure,” The forest green bunny turned to her friends, “I’ll be right back. This may be important.”

Wallace and Delphine gave a nod, understanding the monumental importance of the talk. Clover and Brian strolled to a more private part of the headquarters, away from any ears and eyes that might hear or witness their exchange. 

The G.U.N Professor inhaled deeply then exhaled. “Okay, I’ve got good news and bad news.” He began.

“What’s the good news?” Clover questioned.

“The good news is that we’re 90% complete with synthesizing Shadow’s DNA into making a cure! We just need to test it out before we send it over to Tails and Professor Charles!” Brian revealed.

Clover’s yellow eyes light up like a Christmas tree at the news. “That’s stupendous! Oh, thank Chaos! We’ll finally put an end to the Doctor’s Metal Virus when we combine it with Sonic’s synthesized Speed Data!” 

Her smile then faltered. “And… the bad news?”

Another exhale of unsettling air. That wasn’t a good sign. 

“You might want to look at this…” The deer pulled out his tablet and showed Clover the screen. “This is what I discovered when doing another scan on Shadow.”

The screen demonstrated the red and black antibody cells zapping the red bacteriophages with Chaos Energy as per usual. But instead of burning away like before, the bacteriophages simply multiplied as they started to consume the antibody cells, forming more bacteriophages in the process. 

“It’s… adapting to Shadow’s DNA…!” Clover spluttered out in disbelief.

Brian nodded solemnly, “Shadow’s DNA is the reason why he hasn’t turned into a Zombot yet. It’s doing its best to fight the infection, but with the Metal Virus’ constantly evolving nature and its ability to adapt to anything… Shadow’s body is starting to lose its ability to resist the Metal Virus…”

“...Fuck!” The rabbit woman cursed angrily. “...Excuse my French, but this is horrible!”

“Indeed. Shadow hasn’t turned into a Zombot yet which is fortunate. However, if his infection progresses and he turns into one… Given his strength…”

“He could break out of quarantine and infect the survivors…” Clover finished as she swallowed a lump in her throat. “…Have you told Shadow about this?”

Brian shook his head nervously, “No… I’m afraid of how he’ll react if we tell him the news.”

“We have to tell him. If we don’t, we could be putting more people in danger if Shadow turns!”

“Alright, we’ll notify him about it and see if we can get him transported somewhere. I’ll go check the progress on the cure, I’ll keep you posted.”

Brian walked back to the lab. Clover watched him leave, letting out a despondent hum from her throat. 

“I hope Tails and Professor Charles are okay…” She muttered quietly.

Spiral Hill Village

[ Out of Control - Four Knights of the Apocalypse ]

Things were continuing to heat up in Spiral Hill Village as the Restoration was working in overdrive to evacuate the populus and push the Zombots back. Fortunately, Mobius’ Champion had arrived to assist with the evacuation efforts with his legendary speed! Bouncing off a Zombot’s head to scale the barbed wire fence, Sonic raced over to Amy and Uncle Chuck who were currently with Nash, Lanolin and other volunteers who were discussing plans to push back the Zombot hordes.

“Hey, Amy! Hey, Uncle Chuck!” Sonic greeted as he came to a stop.

“Sonic! Perfect timing!” Uncle Chuck grinned, relieved to see his nephew back in one piece.

“Fashionably late, as usual,” Amy joked as she held her Piko Piko Hammer.

“You know how I love to make an entrance. What do you need me to do?”

“Espio, Tangle, Whisper, Nash and Lanolin are keeping the Zombots distracted while Tails and Cream find people. Uncle Chuck gave them EMP Rings in order to help disable the infected if they get too close.” Amy briefed. 

“We’ve made a choke point so Amy, Gemerl and I could fend off any Zombots that happen to find us.” Uncle Chuck added, “We’re nearly done with the evacuations, but when we take off, the Zombots will swarm us… or worse.”

Sonic cracked his knuckles, “So cover the escape. Gotcha. I’ll find Tangle and see if she’s got any ideas. It’s her town after all.”

“Hold up, Sonic!” Tails shouted, flying down towards him alongside Cream.

“Yo, Tails! Hey, Cream!” Sonic waved to them.

“Hello, Mr. Sonic…” Cream replied, her tone uncharacteristically quiet and cold. The Blue Blur looked at the teenage rabbit in concern.

“Her mother held back the Zombots so we could escape. Cream saw everything.” Amy whispered to Sonic, causing the blue hedgehog’s eyes to flash a teal green in anger.

Tails ran up to Sonic with a hopeful yet desperate smile, “Please tell me you have the data recorder stashed somewhere!”

The Fastest Thing Alive looked away guiltily, crossing his arms. “It’s… destroyed.”

“Destroyed?” Professor Charles repeated, “How did it get destroyed?”

“I ran into Eggman and… I overcharged the Data Analyser with a Sonic Storm… I’m sorry, bro. Sorry, Unc. I botched everything…” Sonic turned away, gripping his fists.

“...Don’t worry, Sonic! We still have the server blades intact!” The fox teenager pointed out. “Even if we don’t have my lab or the headquarters, 

we still have the data we collected as well as G.U.N making a vaccine with Shadow’s DNA!”

Charles nodded in agreement, “We haven’t lost yet, son! We can still overcome this crisis, so don’t beat yourself up over the Data Analyser!”

Sonic smirked at the good news. It was just what he needed to hear!

“Current status of the evacuation, Tails?” Amy asked.

“We couldn’t find anyone else. Everyone’s become Zombots, but there are no Alphas in sight.” Tails told her.

The fortune teller had a conflicted expression at the news. She exhaled with a nod before steeling herself. “Then it’s time to go. Go signal the others to retreat.”

“Right. I’ll find Tangle and coordinate with her.” Sonic says.

Tails spinned his tails around to take flight. “I’ll find Espio and Whisper, then.”

“Nash! Lanolin! How are things on your end?” The light blue hedgehog called out.

“We’ve set up a barricade and we’re currently pushing the Zombots back!” Lanolin responded.

“Keep them off our tail for a little longer! We’re retreating soon!” 

Nash gave a thumbs up, “Gotcha, Professor Charles! We’ll hold the Zombots off until then!”

As Sonic and Tails raced off to find Tangle, Whisper and Espio, Gemerl approached Amy and Uncle Chuck.

“AMY ROSE. PROFESSOR CHARLES. I PERFORMED A SCAN ON SONIC.” He began.

Amy placed a palm on her head. “He’s infected. We’ve all known that for a while.”

“CORRECT. HOWEVER, I RAN CALCULATIONS ON THE LEVEL OF INFECTION HE EXHIBITED. IT IS HIGHER THAN PREVIOUS ESTIMATES SHOULD ALLOW.”

Being the smarter of the two, Uncle Chuck slowly realised what Gemerl was getting at. “...Are… Are you saying that–?”

“SUMMARISING: SONIC’S SPEED IS LOSING THE ABILITY TO STOP THE VIRUS.” Gemerl concluded.

Amy and Charles felt their hearts sink into their stomachs. The former shivered as if she was dumped into the frozen waters of Ice Cap Zone while the latter’s fists clenched hard as his eyes trembled in both dread and fury. The old hedgehog inhaled deeply through his nose and exhaled deeply.

This wasn’t the time to get angry. Charles knew that all too well. Instead, he channeled that negative emotion into a strengthening resolve to work double time on the cure to save not just his nephew, but the whole of Mobius. 

Meanwhile, Nash and Lanolin were firing out streams of fire and shockwaves respectively at the approaching Zombots to keep them away from the shuttle. A large barricade stood protectively in front of them and other fighters who were firing energy bullets with the White Wispons. With all the survivors rescued, the two sheep focused on preventing the Zombots from advancing towards the shuttle. 

That task, however, was easier said than done.

No matter how much flame, shockwave, energy bullet or EMP Rings the Zombots were hit with, more appeared in place of their motionless brethren. And those that were disabled by the EMP Rings simply got back up after a long duration of being knocked out. This was starting to take a toll on the Wispon Fighters, who were starting to back away nervously as the Zombots grew closer and closer.

“There’s too many of them!” Lanolin cried out, firing another shockwave at the horde, “I’m not sure how long the barricade will hold out!”

“We just gotta keep them back until we get the signal from Amy! Don’t let them pass this barricade!” Nash insisted.

“Will it even hold up until Amy signals for us to retreat! Nash, we could really use your powers right about now!”

“I’m not sure if I can just tap into them at will!”

“Do something! We’re getting overwhelmed here!”

“Okay, hang on…!” Nash gripped his fists and focused hard. He let out a strained grunt as orange energy flickered in his hands only for them to dissipate quickly, much to his horror. “Oh crap…!”

Lanolin looked back. “Anything?!”

“Nope! Nothing!” He replied before groaning loudly, “Of all times for my powers not to show themselves right when I need them, it had to be during a town evacuation?!”

“Just use your Wispon, Nash! We’ve almost kept the Zombots at bay!” The white wooly caprine girl turned back to fire at the Zombots, only to scream in horror.

Hearing the scream, the black male bovid spun his head to see a Zombot scale over the barricade, its sickening, cold hands raised to turn Lanolin into one of them. Lanolin backed away nervously, the Hover Wispon trembling in her arms as she tried to open fire, though her mind was too clouded by fear to even shoot. Much less run away. 

She was too frightened. Too afraid. Too scared to do anything.

Lanolin was going to become like them. Like the Zombots. And there was nothing she could do about it.

In a split second decision, the Burst Wispon in Nash’s hand dropped to the floor with an audible clunk! , his black trainers pounding hard against the stone ground. His feet kicked off the ground in a desperate jump, arms outstretched to shove the frozen Lanolin out of the Zombot’s grabbing range. Both teenagers hit the ground, grunting in slight pain as Nash fell on his stomach and Lanolin fell on her butt. 

“Ughh… You okay, Lanolin?” Nash queired, slowly standing to his feet.

Lanolin rubbed her backside, “Yeah, I’m fine… Thanks for the–!” She gasped.

“What?” 

Lanolin raised a shaky finger and pointed to Nash’s right arm. The dreadhead instantly felt the cold feeling of liquid steel. 

No… It can’t be…! It couldn’t!

Nash dared not raise his right arm to confirm his suspicions, but he did and looked down. His brown pupils shrank in terror as his muzzle became pale. His hand had traces of the Metal Virus forming on his fingers and the sleeve of his shirt.

He had been infected.

“Oh no…” Nash let out quietly, “No, no, no, no, NO!!!” 

Lanolin stood to her feet, ready to run to his side but stopped herself when she remembered that touching Nash would lead to her getting infected too. The sheep girl kicked herself for freezing in the heat of the moment, but knew there were bigger things to worry about.

“...Come on! We have to head back to the shuttle now!” She instructed.

“...Right! Let’s get out of here!” Nash agreed.

The two ran back towards the shuttle where Sonic, Tails, Amy, Cream, Uncle Chuck, Espio, Gemerl and Felicia were waiting outside. The moment Nash came into view, Gemerl’s scanners alerted him to the young sheep’s condition.

“NASH HAS BEEN COMPROMISED.” He announced loudly.

“W-Wha?!” Felicia looked down at her son’s arm, seeing traces of the Metal Virus forming. “No… No, baby… What happened?!”

“He saved me from being infected…” Lanolin murmured quietly.

“Hey! It’s not your fault, Lanolin!” Nash countered.

“But–!”

 “Do not blame yourself for something I did… please!”

“Nash’s right! We gotta get going!” Sonic reminded them. “I’ll ride on the outside!”

“Where’s Tangle?” Amy asked.

Sonic’s face became stern. “She got infected too. She’s staying behind to cover all of us. She said she was “sorry”... but heroes have nothing to be sorry about.”

Shocked. Grief. Sadness. Tear-Stricken.

Those were the emotions exhibited by everyone huddled around the Restoration Shuttle. 

Amy felt the tears well up in her eyes, Cream covered her face in fear, Tails had a long frown, Espio crossed his arms and looked to the floor, Uncle Chuck breathed heavily from his mouth, Nash had a look of dread on his face, Lanolin was despondent and Felicia had her hand over her mouth.

But none of them took the news harder than Whisper. 

Her best friend, gone. Taken, just like her old team. And she was powerless to do anything about it…

Her expression morphed from shock, then horror and finally, complete and utter devastation as the normally soft-spoken hound bellowed at the top of her lungs:

“TANGLE!!!!”

She ran off the ship to try and rescue Tangle but Amy swiftly grabbed her, preventing Whisper from going any further. 

“Whisper, don’t!” The pink hedgehog struggled to hold back the soldier, “Sonic, help me!”

“I can’t!” Sonic replied as he helplessly watched Whisper hysterically overpower Amy’s grip. 

“...We have to leave and we have to leave now!” Charles firmly stated with finality. 

“Gemerl, please! You have to let Nash onto the shuttle!” Felicia begged, tears forming in her eyes.

“I AM SORRY, MRS. FELICIA. BUT NASH CANNOT COME ONTO THE SHUTTLE.” Gemerl regrettably replied, seeing the pain in the sheep mother’s eyes. “HE COULD INFECT THE OTHER SURVIVORS IF WE ALLOW HIM TO COME WITH US.”

“ I don’t care, Gemerl! I’m not leaving my son behind!” Felicia screamed in motherly agony.

Lanolin jumped in to defend Felicia’s case. “Mrs. Felicia is right! M-Maybe Nash can ride outside with Sonic! Th-That way he doesn’t infect everyone inside!”

Nash gazed between his mother, Lanolin and Gemerl with a somber look, flinching at the suffering in their eyes. 

Espio walked up to Felicia. “I fully understand what you both are going through, but we cannot stay here any longer… We need to escape.”

“I’m not leaving without my son…!” The black sheep mother wept defiantly.

“MRS. FELICIA, PLEASE–” Suddenly, Gemerl turned his head, scanning something in the distance. “WARNING: INCOMING PROJECTILE DETECTED!” Missiles shot out from Gemerl’s back, colliding with something that soon exploded.

“Now what?!” Tails exclaimed.

Sonic raised a hand over his eyes, narrowing them before they widened in shock. “Oh no… Look!!”

Standing just in the centre of Spiral Hill Village was none other than an Alpha Zombot, one that was human and decked out in G.U.N attire. In their right arm was a high-powered rocket launcher, the source of the projectile Gemerl had stopped. The Alpha Zombot took aim at the shuttle’s engine and fired again. 

The rocket whizzed through the air at incredible speed but blew up when Tails shot it out of the sky thanks to his Arm Cannon.

[ I Don’t Need A God Who Only Takes Away - Asura’s Wrath ]

“That Alpha’s gonna shoot us out of the sky if we escape!” The fox yelled out. “We have to draw its attention away from us!”

“In that case, I’ll–!”

“I’ll go…” Nash says abruptly as everyone looks at him. “I’ll lead it away…”

“N-Nash…?” Lanolin sputters out.

“Are you sure, kid?” Sonic gave him a look of concern. “Those Alphas are no joke…”

“Sonic, you can run off the Metal Virus… I can’t. And if I come with you guys, I’ll only risk infecting people. I can draw its fire away from the shuttle so you guys can escape…”

Felicia stepped forward, tears pouring in desperation. “Nash… Don’t do this, baby! Please! Come with us…!”

Nash shot his mum with a regretful look, shutting his eyes to prevent his own eyes from welling up. “...I’m sorry, Mom. Lanolin…”

Spinning on his heel, the young sheep sprinted into Spiral Hill Village. His mother tried to run after him, but Espio quickly grabbed her and firmly yanked her onto the shuttle.

“No, no, no! Don’t let him go! PLEASE!! YOU HAVE TO LET HIM ON!!! NASH!!! NAAAAASH!!!!” 

Felicia’s pained cries echoed within the shuttle as everyone went on with Sonic jumping onto the roof as it took off. Nash ran as fast as his legs would carry him into town, tears streamed from his eyes as they fluttered into the wind. The Blue Blur looked back at the two people that sacrificed themselves so they could escape, lowering his head in guilt. 

The Alpha Zombot readied their rocket launcher, taking aim to shoot the Restoration Shuttle down but a stream of fire knocked them back.

“HEY!!!” The superior Zombot’s yellow eyes locked onto Nash who armed himself with his Burst Wispon, “You want me, come get me!”

Narrowing its eyes, the Alpha Zombot aimed the bazooka at Nash, shooting a missile at him. The teenager rolled to the side to dodge, running out of Spiral Hill with the Alpha Zombot and regular Zombots, including a fully turned Tangle, hot on his tail. 

On the shuttle, Whisper and Felicia were a sobbing mess. Cream comforted the withdrawn canine along with her Wisps as she broke down in tears. Uncle Chuck and Espio did their best to calm the grieving bovid mother who cried in pain at the loss of her son. 

Lanolin stood there quietly. Her face was in shock, a muted feeling of dread and grief. Small tears formed in the corners of her eyes as the weight of the entire situation finally processed in her mind. Her legs wobbled, unable to bear it anymore as she dropped to her knees silently.

Central City

G.U.N Headquarters

Wallace gasped sharply, a perturbed look schooling his features. Delphine turned his way in concern.

“Sargent! What’s wrong?!” She asked quickly.

“I… I just had a terrible feeling…!” Wallace grimaced, “Nash… and Felicia…!”

“Oh no… Y-You don’t think-?!”

“They have to be okay…! I can’t stomach the thought of anything happening to them!”

“I’m sure Felicia and Nash are okay, Wallace…!” Delphine reassured the sheep. 

Just then, Wallace’s phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, seeing his wife on screen. He walked out of the room and leaned against the wall, praying to Chaos that it was good news. That’s all he needed right now.

After a moment, Wallace answered. “Felicia, I’m here. What–?”

His words halted in his mouth the moment he heard his wife sobbing on the other end of the line. 

“F-Felicia? Are you alright? What’s the matter?!” He fired off question after question.

Felicia hiccuped after calming herself down a bit. “I-It’s… It’s… It’s Nash…!”

Oh no…

Wallace felt sweat forming on the side of his head, his hand gripping the phone tightly. His heart was beating rapidly which he tried to calm with steady breaths.

“What about Nash?! Is he okay?! Is he with you right now, Felicia?! What’s going on?!” 

“H-He… He’s… He’s…”

“He’s… what?! What happened to him?!”

He could almost hear Felicia fight back the urge to break down before she delivered the dreadful news to her husband:

“Our son has been infected by the Metal Virus!!!”

Wallace’s heart stopped.

He remained frozen stiff as Felicia’s words echoed within his ears. His expression in complete denial as if he was in a nightmare. His hand became numb, the phone slipping out of his hand as if time had slowed to a crawl before it dropped to the floor with an audible thunk!  

Wallace breathed slowly, his face still in frozen shock. Memories of his son flashing before his eyes. The breathing shifted from slow panic to an indignant hissing then angered huffs. His hands balled into fists, eyes furrowed into anger, pupils dilating intensely. 

That man. 

That large, rotund scientist. He did this.

He caused all of this. The War on the Planet. The downfall of G.U.N. The Metal Virus.

Eggman took his son away from him. And that was the LAST thing he would ever do.

Wallace finally unleashed a booming roar of grief-stricken fury that echoed throughout the G.U.N headquarters followed by a powerful strike against the wall that dented it.

Chapter Text

Central City

G.U.N Headquarters

[ News Intro ]

“This is the Mobius News Network bringing you some distressing news…” Tal began, a melancholic frown on his face. “Streets continue to fill with Zombots as the infection rate of the Metal Virus has continued to rise by 70%. There have also been sightings of a purple Zombot variant that many are calling ‘Alpha Zombots’.”

“From what eye witnesses have stated, these Zombots are significantly more dangerous than the regular Zombots.” Tilly informed, “The President of the United Federation has issued a lockdown throughout Mobius while G.U.N does their best to mitigate the Zombot outbreak. Though some people don’t particularly hold the Guardian Units of Nations in high regards…”

From the debriefing room, Commander Tower sat in front of the holoscreen alongside other soldiers, watching the news report quietly. While Tower’s expression was stoic and controlled, his heterochromic eyes slightly quivered in irritation.

Tal continued his serious report, “The G.U.N commander - Abraham Tower - has given a statement regarding his army’s defeat at the hands of Dr. Eggman six months ago during his takeover of Mobius, ensuring us that they will do everything in their power to help the citizens of Mobius. However, some people believe that G.U.N does not have to proper manpower to—”

“Turn it off…” Tower’s quiet voice broke through the silence, the holoscreen vanishing upon his command. A slow, measured sigh rumbled from the man’s throat as he mulled over the events in his head.

Topaz rubbed the bridge of her nose with her fingers. “This is an utter disaster! First; Eggman takes over the planet for six months, then we have to deal with the Badnik attacks for two weeks and now he releases a virus that turns people into zombified robots!” She leaned back in her seat, defeated. “When will this nightmare end? ”

[ Reaper of the Old Bailey - The Great Ace Attorney ]

“Commander Tower, it’s clear that Eggman has become an increasingly dangerous threat since his six month takeover of the planet!” A male G.U.N Soldier exclaimed while standing up, “We should’ve disposed of Eggman when he was Mr. Tinker so that we wouldn’t be in this mess!”

Another G.U.N Soldier, a female Mobian, stood up as well. “I agree! We’ve always let Eggman get away with causing untold destruction whenever he does battle with Sonic or tries to take over the world! He’s affected many lives due to his conquest, so we should just eliminate Eggman right this second before he ends up hurting any more innocent people!”

A select few soldiers within the room murmured agreeingly, some preferred to stay silent while others were put off by the sudden proposal to end Eggman’s life. 

“H-Hold on a second!” Delphine called out, “Please think about what you’re suggesting for a minute!”

“We have, Corporal,” The male soldier argued back, “We’ve thought about this ever since G.U.N was defeated by Eggman and his newest lackey six months ago. After the Doctor’s defeat, we should’ve sent a squad of soldiers to Windmill Village and put him out of his misery before he even created the Metal Virus!”

“You know we can’t just do that! What would that say about G.U.N as an organisation to the people of Mobius?!"

“That we’re not willing to take chances with threats like Eggman.”

“Then that means we’d be killing anyone who poses a threat to Mobius and the planet itself,” Wallace interjected, “What you’re suggesting, soldier, is a nuclear option. Something that should be saved as a last resort.”

“I agree with Sergeant Wallace and Corporal Delphine,” A hedgehog soldier spoke up, “If we just sent a troop of soldiers to Windmill Village without warning and shot Eggman on sight, especially when he was Mr. Tinker, we’d be seen as cold-blooded murderers in the eyes of some people.”

“Not to mention, soldier; that very mindset was the catalyst for the Raid on the ARK fifty eight years ago,” Clover added, the mention of the dreaded incident sent chills down the spines of many like a cold knife touching skin.

Strongest of which coming from the G.U.N Commander, who despite having a stone-faced expression, was perturbed by traumatic memories of the past. 

Clover sent an apologetic look to her superior officer before continuing, “...There are other options we can use that don't always end in bloodshed, soldier. We learned from that mistake several years ago and that is an action we wouldn’t dare repeat again.”

“Jumping off from Lieutenant Clover’s point; we could’ve arrested Eggman when Shadow and Rouge informed us that he was in Windmill Village.” The blue-grey Dolphin Mobian reasoned, “Or at least, took him in for questioning before locking him up.”

“Even if we had the authority to arrest him, Corporal Delphine, we’d still be convicting an seemingly innocent man who lost all of his memories from his last battle with Sonic!” The male G.U.N Soldier countered swiftly. “Going by the argument presented by one of the soldiers who worried about our reputation of killing Eggman, arresting him as Mr. Tinker would’ve made us look just as bad!”

“The people in Windmill Village would also be fighting for Eggman’s freedom if we were to arrest him as Mr. Tinker. In their eyes, he helped them out with repairs in the village, so we’d have no other choice but to release him.” Topaz chimed into the conversation. 

The male soldier nodded at Topaz, “Thank you, Agent Topaz.”

“However,” The sandy brown woman went on, “Out of the two options presented - arresting him is a lot better than killing him. Sure, we’d have to deal with scrutiny from people, but we wouldn’t be branded as psychopaths if we took a squad of soldiers to Windmill VIllage solely to shoot Eggman dead.”

The man sighed, cooling his emotions. “Look… all I’m saying is that we shouldn’t be lenient with someone like Eggman. I mean, he isn’t above kidnapping children or defenceless people out of desperation to lure Sonic out into fighting him. We’re losing our soldiers to the Metal Virus! Some of us have even lost family to this virus thanks to Eggman!”

Silence befell the room with some of the soldiers looking towards Wallace, who gripped his fist with anguish. Delphine placed a comforting hand on his wrist, giving a small smile of reassurance. She remembered nearly jumping out of her skin when she heard her friend scream out in grieving rage and punch the wall hard, rushing out to see what was going on. 

Upon Wallace informing her of the distressing news about Nash being infected, the Mobian Dolphin woman quickly embraced her sergeant in a hug and ushered him back into the room out of other people’s view as they too had come to see what all the noise was about.

“How many more lives will suffer until Eggman is stopped? How many families will be torn apart because of his lust for world domination? And how long until Sonic finally decides to stop treating this like a game and put an end to Eggman for good?!” The female Mobian barked, punctuating her point with each critical question. 

She slammed her fists on the table hard. “Sonic is one of the fastest and most powerful beings on this planet, and yet he doesn’t have what it takes to put down the Doctor for good! If he did, Mobius would be a lot more peaceful!”

“And say if Sonic or our soldiers happen to kill Eggman and usher in a new age of peace, who’s to say there won’t be a new threat that will take over Eggman’s legacy?” Clover pointed out. “And I’m not just talking about Metal Sonic or Starline. Eggman could potentially have some unknown relatives that not even he knows about that could finish what he started and unlike him, this person could be ten times worse than Eggman.”

“As twisted as his plans for world domination are, Eggman wants people to rule over. Even when kidnapping people, he never harms them. Eggman’s not that needlessly cruel,” Delphine added.

Commander Tower finally stood up to say his peace. “This discussion has gone on for long enough! I understand that everyone has conflicting feelings on the matter of Dr. Ivo Robotnik, what he has done recently and how we should handle him going forward, but dealing with the Metal Virus is our top priority! And while some of you may have differing views on the way Sonic handles things, he and the Restoration are the only ones we can rely on to stop this situation from getting worse!”

Everyone in the debriefing room became silent, nobody said a word. The two soldiers raising a stink slowly sat down in their seats, grumbling quietly. With order restored, Commander Tower finally had the headspace to think again.

“Lieutenant Clover, what is the status of the cure’s progress?” He asked.

“It’s been completed and tested, Commander,” Clover answers, “The scientists are now going to send the cure to Professor Charles and Tails to Angel Island via a drone.”

The G.U.N Official nodded once. “Good. That just leaves us with making sure the survivors of the Metal Virus in the G.U.N Headquarters are safe and protected.”

The debriefing room door suddenly swung open as one of the scientists barged into the room, panting heavily. All eyes turned to the man who took a second to regain his breath.

“Commander Tower, sir!” He started, “Sorry to interrupt the briefing, but I have urgent news to tell you!”

“What is it?” Tower questioned.

“Agent Shadow has vanished from quarantine! He’s gone!” The scientist shouted.

Clover’s long ears extended in shock. “HE WHAT?!” 

Angel Island

High in the skies of Angel Island; a tall red echidna stood guarding in front of an altar with a large green gem behind him. His clothes consisted of a brown starred cowboy hat, a white shirt, a brown jacket with a yellow star on the sleeves, matching brown trousers, red and yellow shoes with green cuffs that had metallic and sextuple-bolted plates on them.

Knuckles the Echidna had remained on Angel Island ever since Metal Sonic’s attack two weeks ago, determined not to let anyone take his precious Master Emerald. It had been relatively peaceful… that was until he noticed a Restoration Shuttle land on his island along with a nearly infected Sonic who sped around Angel Island in order to burn off the Metal Virus.

The Guardian found himself meeting some familiar faces and some new ones he hadn’t met before. Tails, Amy and Uncle Chuck had spent thirty minutes bringing Knuckles up to speed on everything that had happened thus far; from Eggman’s return to the Metal Virus. Needless to say; it left Knuckles sitting on the steps of his altar trying to process everything as the others set up camp on the island.

“Hey. You up to speed, Knux?” Sonic asked, skidding to a stop from his treatment run.

The echidna massaged his temples in annoyance. “Ugh… You sure brought trouble to my island. Again . To think Eggman could create something this… vile!”

Speaking of the devil, a portal suddenly opened in front of the altar, getting the group’s attention. Out fell the aforementioned Doctor, his protege and his robotic servant who were panting heavily. In an instant, the atmosphere shifted to a much darker vibe as Tails, Amy and Uncle Chuck bore holes into the man that had caused all this mayhem. 

“Oh, thank heavens!” Starline sighed in relief, “We’re out of range of Zavok’s control!”

Eggman glanced up at the pink hedgehog who spawned her hammer in her hands, gulping nervously. “And in even worse trouble…”

Felicia took notice of Eggman and Starline who stood up quickly while backing up from the heroes. The sheep mother stepped away from both Lanolin and Cream, strolling slowly with her hands in front of her as if she was heading to a funeral. Her expression was grim yet calm as she walked closer and closer towards the two doctors. 

Sonic was quick to stop Amy, being the first to notice Felicia approach Eggman. She stood in front of him for a brief moment, still holding that calm yet stern expression…

THWACK!!!! 

“NRAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!”

Eggman clutched his shin, hopping on one leg as he cried out in pain. Felicia lowered her leg, having kicked the robotist square in his ankle. 

“THAT’S for infectin’ every last person in Mobius with your damn Metal Virus, you Egg shaped fool!” Felicia then slapped Eggman across the face once he dropped to his knees, leaving a red mark on his cheek. “And THIS is for infectin’ my baby boy!”

The Doctor held his stinging, red cheek with his hand with a wince. Starline took a notable step back as not to further enrage the already irate sheep mum. But Eggman’s pain was just beginning; Amy gave Sonic a look and the latter nodded, the former narrowed her eyes as she raised her Piko Piko Hammer high above Eggman and–

PIKO~!

Eggman laid flat on his back, groaning quietly with a large bump appearing on his head, fingers twitching in pain. Amy’s hammer had visible smoke rising from it, which she promptly blew off with a huff. 

“Feel better?” Sonic asked.

“Much better!” Amy answered, satisfied. 

Ignoring the groans of his nephew’s arch-nemesis, Charles got to interrogating the two mad scientists. “Why are you both here? Normally, you wouldn’t come to us without your machines. So tell us everything that happened right now!”

Eggman sat up with a growl, “...Fine, I’ll tell you everything. You see…”

—

[ Deadly Six Theme - Sonic Lost World ]

Flashback

Eggman’s Faceship

A portal opened in front of Eggman and Starline, who bowed before him. Out stepped the notorious Deadly Six; Zavok, Zazz, Zeena, Zomom, Zor and Master Zik! Upon seeing the Zetis present in his Faceship, the rotund doctor sent a scathing look to his protege.

“Starline, you traitor! ” Eggman bellowed.

“Not at all, sir.” Starline defended, crossing his arms, “I brought the Deadly Six here to solve the problem you could not.”

“I’ll deal with you later! Metal Sonic! Destroy for Daddy!”  

“YES DOCTOR.” Metal flew towards the Deadly Six with the intent to kill. 

He wouldn’t make it far as Zavok raised his hand, generating a magnetic field that stopped Metal in his tracks, causing his eyes to shift to a purple hue.

The red Zeti tutted, “Honestly, Doctor. You know we can control your robots. And yet you send one to attack?”

“ Precisely why I brought you here. You six will keep the Zombots under control while Eggman researches a better way to contain the Metal Virus.” Starline pulled out a spiky indigo conch shell, “You see, Doctor? I am making up for your lack of foresight with…” 

Zeena and Zazz immediately flanked the platypus on both sides, forcing him to use the Cacophonic Conch, “Excuse me.” 

Starline took in a breath and blew into the magic conch shell, stunning the two Zetis in place. Though the semi-aquatic Mobian’s lung capacity gave out, making him wheeze and gasp for air. 

“*huff* Back in line… *huff* beast…” Starline commanded with haggard breaths.

Zazz headbutted the Mobian scientist in the head, leaving a red mark as Zeena snagged the Cacophonic Conch from his hand swiftly, giving it to her leader.

“What was that about ‘lack of foresight’?” Zavok grinned evilly, patting the green Zeti girl on the head.

Starline fearfully took a step back. “But… The Conch…”

“It only works as long as your lungs last, idiot!” Eggman berated. 

“Then we’ll remove those first,” The leader of the Deadly Six ominously said. “Now then, how did you put it? Ah yes… Metal Sonic. Destroy for Daddy.”

Metal Sonic, with no control over himself, flew towards his creator and protege, the latter fiddling with his Warp Topaz to open a portal and escape from this situation. Eggman squealed just as Metal flew towards them, but they swiftly escaped. This left the Deadly Six alone with Orbot and Cubot along with the mystical seven Chaos Emeralds.

—

Present

Angel Island

“And that’s what happened after pea-brain let the Deadly Six onto the Faceship! They took over everything!” Eggman finished. 

“Well, thanks to Doctor Fanboy over here; we have an even bigger mess to clean up,” Sonic rolled his eyes sarcastically. 

Starline quickly rose to defend himself, “A good idea! Just… lacking in execution…”

“Mm-hm,” Felicia moved her head back and forth with an unamused expression. “More like lackin’ in common sense. For a genius, you really didn’t think this one through, did you?”

“And I’m supposed to take this type of talk from some fa…!” 

Felicia suddenly appeared behind a fiery background, her face covered by a black shadow with glowing white eyes as she loomed over Starline. “Go ahead, bird boy… Finish that sentence… I dare you…”

Starline, now terrified, appeared all chibi-fied while looking up at the furious housewife, his insult almost dying in his mouth, "...aaaaaaaaaaaantastic woman who I am offering my sincerest apologies to after making this situation far worse than it needed to be! Hahahahaha…!”

Felicia kept her angry gaze on the petrified platypus, crossing her arms sternly as she looked away. Starline breathed a sigh of relief, how could he have forgotten Life Lesson Number 1?

“Getting back on topic…” Knuckles says after a moment, “Why should we trust a single word either of you say?! You caused all this mess and quite frankly, I think we should just throw you off my island so you can be infected!”

“I’d be inclined to agree with you, Knuckles, but Eggman and Starline are the creators of the Metal Virus. So they may be of some use to us if we allow them to help with making the cure with Sonic’s Speed Data.” Uncle Chuck reasoned. He shot Eggman and Starline a look, “But don’t think either of you are getting off the hook for this one!”

The two evil scientists said nothing. 

Espio soon appeared in a puff of smoke, “Everyone! I just got word from Rouge! Hurry!”

A few moments later; everyone gathered into the shuttle, huddled around the computers. Knuckles, Espio and Felicia kept a close eye on Starline while Uncle Chuck plugged in the server blades containing Sonic’s Speed Data into one of the computers. It was a slow process given that the Restoration Shuttle computers weren’t as powerful as the one in Tails’ lab, but it was all they had given the limited resources at their disposal. 

Lanolin, now wearing a black tanktop, baggy jeans with matching orange gloves and trainers,  tapped on one of the computers with tired eyes, occasionally looking back in worry as the infected Sonic sat above her.

“Glad to hear from you, Rouge! Eggman, Starline and Metal Sonic just appeared on Angel Island!”Amy informs. 

“Ah, figures!” Rouge says on the other line, “Turns out Eggman was powering his ship with all seven Chaos Emeralds. Zavok has distributed them to the rest of the Deadly Six and sent them out to the world. With that kind of power, Mobius is in serious trouble.”

Eggman leaned in with a scowl, “Exactly how long have you been on my ship?”

“A few days. It was a mission from G.U.N to see what I could find out about your Metal Virus. I was also going to steal the emeralds when the Deadly Six arrived. But now, I’m coordinating with Orbot to spy on their deployments and coordinate our counterattack.” The bat thief explained. 

Eggman huffed, “I can’t hire good help, but I sure can build it.”

“You don’t get to gloat after what you pulled!” Tails barked, flying towards Eggman, “You’re lucky we even have a cure to the Metal Virus, right now!”

“You’ve created a cure?” The doctor replied in astonishment, “I didn’t think that was possible given how much the Metal Virus has evolved.”

Charles gave him a look, “Did… did you even try to create a vaccine, Ivo?”

“Unfortunately, Professor… The Doctor didn’t create a vaccine,” Starline revealed abruptly.

The silence that followed after the Mobian Platypus unveiled that bit of information to everyone was palpable. 

Tails blinked a few times while tilting his head with a crooked smile, “…I’m sorry. He what? ”

“…I really hope my hearing isn’t going away, but did you say Ivo didn’t create a vaccine for the Metal Virus, Starline?” Charles asked, hoping that what he heard wasn’t true.

“I’m afraid I didn’t misspeak… The Doctor didn’t create a vaccine.” 

“So then what was your plan if you were gonna get infected, Eggman?” Sonic asked, turning around to face his archenemy.

Eggman glanced around at everyone for a moment, tapping his fingers, “…To not get touched by the Zombots?”

Sonic and Felicia rolled their eyes, Knuckles sneered, Amy’s jaw hit the floor, Espio and Lanolin facepalmed and Tails looked like he had just lost whatever remained of his mind as he massaged his temples. Uncle Chuck silently stared at Eggman, his expression eerily calm and composed. 

The portly man cleared his throat, “O-On the subject of my research regarding the Metal Virus. I’ve found that as it mutates, it becomes unsustainable. Any infected heterotrophic eukaryote cells will eventually suffer a form of apoptosis. Autotrophic cells will endure slightly longer, but not by much.”

“What does that mean?” Knuckles asked.

“It means the Zombots, regular or Alphas, will disintegrate.” Tails answered, filling the room with dread, “How long do we have?”

“Eh, two hundred years, give or take.” Eggman says, wagging his finger, “I’ll have evacuated to a different planet before then.”

“He’s right,” a familiar voice called out from the entrance. All eyes turned to an injured Silver the Hedgehog who dusted himself off and crossed his arms sternly, “In my time, all that was left were ruins and metallic plants. The future I came to stop is already coming to pass! Because of this monster!”

Silver winced in pain, but kept up his posture as Amy ran over to him in concern.

“Silver! You’re hurt! Where’s everyone from Ice Paradise?” She questioned quickly.

“The shuttle was shot down by an Alpha Zombot and everyone was infected but me… I defeated the Alpha, but… I couldn’t save anyone. Is my time doomed because of my failures here?” The psychic hedgehog lamented bitterly.

“...So let me get this straight, Ivo,” Charles began, his tone ominously quiet, “You created a virus that turns people into Zombie Robots, some of whom are capable of evolving into stronger variants, right after your six month takeover of Mobius. And we’ve just learned that the Zombots will disintegrate in Silver’s time, and you didn’t think to manufacture a vaccine? And your grand plan to avoid getting infected was not. To get. Touched?”

“Yes…” Eggman nodded before giving it some thought, “Though, when you put it like that , Charles, I realise now that this… wasn’t one of my more… brighter schemes–”

“NOT ONE OF YOUR BRIGHTER SCHEMES?! THIS IS EASILY ONE OF YOUR WORSE EVIL SCHEMES YOU’VE THROWN AT US THUS FAR!!!!” Uncle Chuck bellowed at the top of his lungs, cutting off the Doctor who flinched as if he was a child being scolded. “I mean, REALLY?! You didn’t THINK to create a vaccine for your biohazardous virus that has infected millions across Mobius?!”

“I didn’t think my Metal Virus would become THIS unstable!” Eggman defended, “I couldn’t even control them, much less get the Zombots to bend to my will!”

“And that’s exactly the problem here! You don’t think your plans through or how they affect the people around you!” Uncle Chuck raised a finger, “Aside from what you normally do on a daily basis with your badniks, you caused the flooding of Station Square by feeding Chaos the Emeralds to assume his perfect form, not to mention trying to level Station Square with a missile!”

“You blew up the Moon with the Space Colony ARK! You split the planet into seven pieces to awaken Dark Gaia! You were responsible for the Time Eater’s actions! Are there any more examples I’m missing?” 

Sonic raised a hand, “He caused all sorts of problems on Little Planet.”

“He manipulated me into thinking Sonic was evil in order to steal the Master Emerald from me…” Knuckles mentioned.

“Kidnapped me, Tails, Cream and Vanilla a few times to lure Sonic out,” Amy points out.

“And let’s not forget your six month takeover of Mobius… which we are still recovering from,” Tails ended.

“There you have it, Ivo! Those past experiences and the current situation we’re in now is all because you couldn’t think about the long term consequences of your plans! You’ve affected many people’s lives in and outside of this shuttle!” The light blue hedgehog barked, “And to make matters worse, your ‘protege’ brought in the Deadly Six who are capable of controlling the Zombots!” He shot Starline a hateful gaze, “For all your genius and accomplishments, you really give being a Quack Doctor a new meaning, you phallic fowl!”

Starline placed a hand on his chest, clearly hurt and offended by Uncle Chuck’s harsh words. Eggman, however, wasn’t going to take this verbal beating any longer. So he stood up, looking Charles square in the eyes.

“And you think you’re the one who should be judging others for their mistakes and sins, Charles?” Eggman spat, “You talk as if you haven’t got as much dirt on your hands as I do! Need I remind you of the Roboticiser and the effects it had on people?”

Sonic saw his uncle’s expression visibly darken as he slowly turned away from Starline to face Eggman. The hero of Mobius cringed slightly at the look Chuck gave his mortal enemy, as did everyone else who knew the Doctor had brought up a very sore subject for the old hedgehog. 

“...You don’t think I know that, Ivo?” Uncle Chuck spoke with a cold yet fierce tone. He looked to the ground sorrowfully. “The pain I’ve caused with that… machine? I scrapped the Roboticiser after knowing the damage it caused to Mobians. I have to live with that mistake every day of my life, wishing I never invented that blasted machine...” 

His blue eyes returned to look at Eggman. “But I learned from my mistake, unlike you! IQ of 300, my neck! Of all the universities you graduated from, the only degree you didn’t obtain was common sense!”

The robotist let out a small, throaty growl in anger. The two geniuses stared each other down, the atmosphere around them tightening. 

“Alright, everyone calm down! We’re all here to try and prevent the spread of the Metal Virus and stop the Deadly Six, not try and fight each other!” Amy quickly chimed in. 

Uncle Chuck and Eggman looked at the pink hedgehog, then each other. They sighed; knowing that this wasn’t the time to be arguing, especially when they could be working on the cure. At this very moment, Cream ran into the shuttle holding something in her hand.

“Mr. Charles! Mr. Charles! Something came for both you and Tails!” She exclaimed with excitement.

“What is it that you’ve got, Cream?” Uncle Chuck asked.

Cream handed the hedgehog a small vial of red liquid inside. Gently taking it, Uncle Chuck realised this vial contained the first half of the cure synthesized from Shadow’s DNA. He patted the teenage rabbit girl on the head with a smile.

“Thank you, Clover! And thank you, Cream! You’re a gem!” 

Cream blushed, placing both hands behind her back as she giggled. 

“Is that…?” Tails asked.

“It is, Tails! And with the first half of the cure, we can get to work on creating the second half of the cure with Sonic’s Speed Data, then combine it to create the full cure!” 

“YES! We still have a chance! I just hope we can finish it before Sonic turns!”

Sonic grinned. “In the off chance that doesn’t happen, we’ll still need a backup plan. I’m currently runnin’ on fumes and I can’t keep burnin’ off this infection forever…”

“Leave the planning to us, Sonic! Tails and Uncle Chuck will be working on a cure while we’ll think of a backup plan in case the cure isn’t finished!” Amy sprang up from her seat, her fighting spirit reinvigorated, “Everyone, let’s head outside so Tails and Uncle Chuck can work on creating the cure!”

—

[ Adagio for Tangle - Adrenaline Dubs ]

Everyone convened outside of the Restoration Shuttle, having set up tents and such for many survivors. The heroes, Eggman and Starline, were currently discussing the backup plan on how to get the Chaos Emeralds from the Deadly Six while Sonic himself was running on a treadmill to keep his infection from getting worse. 

Felicia sat beside one of the tents, looking up at the skies in pensive thought about Nash. She looked over at Whisper, who was huddled together with Cream and the head of E-123 Omega, her heart aching for the two girls who had lost very important people to them. Felicia blew air out of her nose sadly, her eyes downcast at the grass.

“Hey Mrs. Felicia,” Lanolin slowly walked up to her, “How are you feeling lately?”

“Hey Lanolin, I’m… I’m doin’ a lot better lately…” Felicia says after a moment, “What about you, baby? How’re you doing?”

The sheep girl sighed before answering, “I’m… doing okay. I’m currently helping out with getting everything set up for the survivors.” 

“That’s good. That’s really good…” 

“...Is… Is everything okay, Mrs, Felicia?” 

The bovid mother closed her eyes for a moment, “...I’m worried about Nash.”

Lanolin’s face slightly quivered, but was quick to not let Felicia catch it as she let the older sheep continue. 

“After seeing him sacrifice himself to let us escape… I just… felt powerless. Like I failed as a mother… I’m supposed to protect my child and yet, all I could do was stand and watch as he got infected and ran off to protect us from that Alpha Zombot…” 

The teenage sheep girl felt her hands tremble as she heard Felicia take a shaky breath, as if to prevent the tears from coming out. Lanolin closed her eyes, sucking in air to withhold the cracks in her emotional dams from forming. 

“I can’t even imagine what his father must be going through after learning our son got infected by the Metal Virus… And now, I don’t even know if Nash is still leading that Alpha away or if… he’s turned into a Zombot…”

Felicia dreaded that possible outcome, especially after learning what will happen to the Zombots in two hundred years time. 

But then, she hears it.

A choked sob, followed by a tear splashing against the grass. 

Then another one.

And another. 

Looking up, Felicia’s eyes see Lanolin with tears falling quickly down her muzzle, her hands trembling as she tries to wipe them.

 “I… I’ve been… trying to stay strong for everyone…” Lanolin sniffled, her voice breaking between sobs, “B-But… I can’t help but worry if we’re ever going to make it out of this… I’m scared, not just for Nash’s wellbeing, but for everyone else here…”

She dropped to her knees, breaking down in tears. The resolve and strength the white sheep had been trying to keep up for everyone’s sake had shattered. The events of everything had piled on until Lanolin couldn’t take much more of it, and it had worn her down emotionally and mentally. 

“I… was searching for Nash’s location on the shuttle’s computers to see… if he was okay. Despite what he tells me, I still blame myself for what happened to him… If I hadn’t frozen up… If I had just…” Lanolin hugged her arms, more tears streamed down her face, “W-Why…? Why do I still feel so useless and weak…?!”

Felicia felt her own heart tear apart from seeing the snow white sheep girl so broken and hurt, feeling like she was at fault for Nash’s infection and sacrifice. It pained the mother to see someone trying to hold in their pain and suffering just to stay strong for everyone else on Angel Island. As Lanolin cried, she soon felt two arms wrap themselves around her and pull her into a warm, gentle embrace.

“It’s okay, baby…” Felicia spoke in a soft, motherly tone as she stroked Lanolin’s head, “You’re doing the best you can and to me, that doesn’t make you useless or weak. You are a very strong, young woman, you hear? Everything’s gonna be alright…”

Lanolin’s blue eyes widened in surprise at the hug Felicia had given her. It was something that the young bovid girl hadn’t felt before in… a long time; a mother’s reassurance and comfort. 

It was practically alien to her and yet, Lanolin didn’t pull away. She wrapped her arms around Felicia’s back, pulling herself close to the black sheep mum as if she was an anchor of protection preventing them from floating away. Felicia gently soothed Lanolin’s tears, rubbing her head softly as the latter cried softly.

Central City

Neo Highway

The number of Zombots continued to rise with the Deadly Six now in control of Eggman’s Faceship. Multiple cities were destroyed or overrun by each respective Zeti who commanded the Zombots as well as the Alphas to their whim, and throughout all the chaos, one lone sheep boy was caught in the centre of everything trying to lead an army of Zombots away from infecting any more innocent people.

Nash had managed to arrive in Central City, avoiding many Zombots that attempted to speed up his infection; he noticed a floating island far in the distance. Good, this was the right direction to where they went.

He swiftly dodged an incoming missile fired from the Alpha G.U.N Soldier, the explosion obliterating the side of a building in an instant. Ignoring the smell of burning concrete, Nash stopped in his tracks and turned around to face his pursuing opponent. 

[ Sion Barzhad’s Theme - The Bouncer ]

“Alright, buddy… No more running away!” Nash declared, taking up a fighting stance with his Burst Wispon, “Let’s settle this! You and me!”

Taking these challenging words, the Alpha Zombot readied itself to do battle with the teenage sheep. It charged at Nash with speed that nearly rivaled Sonic, swinging its rocket launcher like a baseball bat. Nash leaned his body back to evade a crushing blow to his torso, aiming his Wispon directly at the Alpha’s stomach and firing out a blast of flames! The superior infected was blown back by the fire, but powered through, taking aim at Nash with its rocket launcher to fire out missiles towards him.

Nash eluded many missiles by running, even using his Wispon’s wire function to grapple onto one of the lightposts to swing from place to place. He shot out a wire to the Alpha Zombot, pulling himself towards the infected to land a flying kick, but the Alpha swatted Nash away with a backhand that sent the teenager rolling across the ground. Groaning from the pain, Nash quickly rose to his feet just as a missile was launched at his location. 

With a nimble dodge roll, the dreadheaded teenage sheep took aim with his Wispon and fired a large fireball towards the Alpha Zombot who super-jumped out of its range, crushing a poor car underneath its feet. Pointing its weapon skyward, the Alpha fired a series of missiles in the air in rapid succession, forcing Nash to book it as the city streets filled with explosions. Nash grappled onto multiple lampposts to evade the falling missiles before swinging around to run towards the Alpha Zombot. 

The Alpha narrowed its eyes, preparing to engage Nash in combat only for the sheep to jump over the swinging rocket launcher, grapple onto the infected’s back and perform a zip kick to its head, the momentum forcing the Alpha to its knees. Nash quickly followed up with a fireball from his Wispon that exploded, sending the Alpha flying across the street. Recovering some, the Alpha slowly rose to its feet with small flames around its body. 

Despite taking a heavy blow, the Alpha was undeterred by the teenager’s attempts to knock it down so he could keep running out of Neo Highway. Not only that, Nash also had to worry about the other Zombots such as Tangle who attempted to grab him while he was distracted. Nash quickly used his Wispon to whip the Zombot lemur in the head, jumping a few feet to avoid speeding up his infection.

“This Alpha’s tough! It’s even tougher than the Chaos-empowered Egg Hammer Dad and I fought weeks ago!” Nash assessed as he grit his teeth.

The Alpha Zombot took aim with its rocket launcher once more, but instead of shooting at Nash, it opened fire on the lampposts! The missiles reduced the street lights into severed poles, getting rid of Nash’s means of zipping around with the built-in wire function of the weapon. This prompted the sheep boy to shoot out fireballs towards the missiles to destroy them before the Alpha could level the streets. 

Nash valiantly kept fighting, shooting out a stream of flames to keep the regular Zombots from advancing any further. One unfortunately managed to pass through the flames and grab his left leg, spreading the infection as Nash shot it in the face and hopped away. 

But then, an idea brewed in his mind. 

What if he could…?

‘This may be a long shot given that my powers have only resurfaced twice, but what if I could empower my Wispon with that energy ?’ Nash thought to himself.

He closed his eyes and placed a hand on his Wispon, he exhaled deeply as he focused. 

‘Imagine that small flame kindling into a massive inferno…!”  

The ethereal orange energy hummed around Nash’s hands, coating his Wispon in the wispy aura. The Zombots began to advance towards the teen, the Alpha Zombot taking aim at him with the bazooka in order to try and break his concentration. The three holes in Nash’s Wispon began to glow brightly with his power infused within. Nash’s eyes snapped open, his right one flowing with flame-like entrails as he aimed his weapon straight at the army of infected and pulled the trigger.

FWOOOSSSSSSHHHHHH!!!!

Instead of a flamethrower or a fireball, Nash fired out an orange beam of energy straight towards the hordes of Zombot and the Alpha! A massive explosion erupted within the town, shattering multiple windows and blowing away parked cars, Nash shielded himself from the immense winds that were kicked up from the explosion. When the smoke cleared, he saw a smoldering crater alongside multiple Zombots all over the floor and no sign of the Alpha Zombot.

Nash breathed a sigh of relief. “That takes care of that Alpha. Gotta keep moving!”

With that, Nash bolted down the street towards Angel Island, using the grappling hook to swing from a lightpost to a building in order to get there quicker. From the billowing black smoke, a missile was suddenly fired towards the young Mobian at blistering speeds. Sensing danger, Nash looked back but not enough as he was knocked out of the sky from the exploding projectile. 

The black sheep crash-landed onto the asphalt, bouncing across the street with his Wispon sliding across the road. His entire body ached, ears ringing and vision blurred as he slowly opened his eyes to see his weapon several feet away. Nash staggered to his feet and trudged towards the Wispon, nearly dropping to his knees due to the pain. 

The Alpha Zombot landed in front of Nash with a heavy THOOM! It loomed over him with its towering frame before advancing towards him. Nash defiantly threw a punch at the Alpha, but the Alpha merely grabbed his arm, kneed him in the stomach and threw him across the street towards his Wispon. 

Nash placed a hand on the weapon only for the Alpha Zombot to rush in and kick it away. Despite his injuries and infection slowly progressing, Nash rose to his feet fearlessly and got into a fighting stance. Sensing the young sheep's determination and spirit, the Alpha dropped its rocket launcher and decided to grant his opponent an honourable defeat. 

The superior Zombot balled its hand up into a fist, raising it above its head before throwing it towards Nash. The teen flinched when he heard a blow, but strangely, it wasn’t him that was hurt. Looking up, he saw the Alpha Zombot careen towards a building, creating a dust explosion as it impacted the wall.

“Hmph! Looks like I arrived here just in time…” A familiar, gruff voice spoke.

Nash’s eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw who had saved him. 

“Shadow?!” He exclaimed in astonishment. 

[ All Hail Shadow - Magna-Fi ]

All hail Shadow

Heroes rise again

The Ultimate Lifeform himself, Shadow the Hedgehog, stood in front of Nash with his arms crossed. His body was still covered in traces of the Metal Virus that appeared to be spreading, but he didn’t look bothered in the slightest. 

Obliterating everything that’s not your friend

“Are you okay?” Shadow asked, looking back at Nash.

Nash gave a nod. “Aside from my infection slowly getting worse and my aching body; yeah, I’m good.”

Nothing can stop you now

No ghost to bring you down

When there’s nothing left to lose, you win!

“Good to hear. Hope you can still fight, kid…” Shadow cracked his knuckles as his eyes glowed red, “Because we have a lot more Zombots to deal with before we head straight to Angel Island.”

Nash had a look of awe at the black hedgehog, his resolve to fight returning to him. Nash gave a determined smile as he and Shadow raced down Neo Highway towards Angel Island.

(BOW YOUR HEADS LOW
ALL HAIL SHADOW)

Chapter Text

Mobius was nearing its final hour. 

The Metal Virus had reached its peak potency as cities and streets filled with Zombots marching towards a desired location of Angel Island. The Deadly Six commanded the zombified people into finding the man responsible for making this horrific plague; Doctor Eggman. Most of the people who were able to escape the infection took refuge upon the floating island or the G.U.N headquarters. 

Fear and despair filled the hearts of many people. People began to doubt that the forces of good would triumph over this recent evil. Almost as if the end of the world was upon the Earth itself, a horrifying vision of what will transpire in the future.

And the only thing standing in the plague’s way of total domination…

Was the Restoration and Mobius’ Champions.

—

Central City

Neo Highway

Nash and Shadow sped down the barren streets of Neo Highway. Behind them, an army of Zombots pursued the duo through the roads with every intention of infecting them in order to prevent their escape. Despite bits of the Metal Virus spreading across their bodies, Nash and Shadow continued to run (or skate in the latter’s case) through Central City’s highway towards the last safe haven; Angel Island.

“So kid,” Shadow began, looking over at Nash as he skated, “Mind telling me who you are.”

“I’m Nash,” The young sheep pointed to himself while running. 

The Ultimate Lifeform’s eyes flickered with familiarity. “Ah, I see now. You’re Wallace’s son, aren’t you?”

“You know my Dad?”

“Myself, Rouge, Omega and Sonic helped him and his team out with the evacuation efforts in Sunset City.”

“Is Dad, Aunt Delphine, Ms. Clover and Mr. Tyson okay?!” 

“Your father, Delphine and Clover are back at GUN safe and sound… Tyson, however…”

Shadow’s red eyes narrowed in pained anger as he looked away from Nash, the teenager immediately understood what had befalling his father’s best friend. Hearing someone that he saw as an uncle figure become infected by the Metal Virus caused Nash’s heart to ache for him as well as his family. 

“Don’t worry, Nash… We will cure Tyson and everyone infected by the Doctor’s Metal Virus,” Shadow continued, reading Nash’s sadness on his face. 

Nash glanced at Shadow with small tears pricking his eyes. Wiping them clean, he nodded with newfound resolve as he picked up the pace. 

“Right…! Though, I do have two questions, Shadow – What are you doing here in Neo Highway and how did you find me?” The dreadlocked teenager asked.

“To answer your first question; I heard and saw explosions from where I was coming from and saw you battling the Alpha Zombot,” The black hedgehog answers, “As for why I’m here…”

—

Flashback

Central City

Shadow appeared in the streets of Central City in a flash of blue light, skating through the Zombot-infested streets as quickly as possible. The infected picked up on Shadow’s presence and gave chase, though none of them were fast enough to catch up with him.

“Rouge, are you there?” Shadow asked through his comlink.

“Shadow?” Rouge’s confused voice answered back. “Good to hear from you! How’re you holding up?”

“Still infected, but I’m not letting the Doctor’s Virus get to me,” Came his gruff reply, “What about you? Where are you?”

“On board Eggman’s faceship. Apparently, Starline gathered the Deadly Six in order to control the Metal Virus, and the results went about as well as you think.”

“Tch! Figures that Starline would’ve followed in the Doctor’s footsteps. What is the Restoration’s current location?”

“They’ve taken refuge on Angel Island. I’ve informed them about the Chaos Emeralds and that I’m working with Orbot and Cubot to coordinate a counterattack against the Deadly Six.”

“Then I’ll make my way towards Angel Island by going down Neo Highway. Let me know if there’s any updates on what the Restoration is planning.” 

Rouge gave a smile, “Roger that, handsome. Rouge out!”

Shadow ‘hmph’ed, his red eyes sparking with orange lightning before he zoomed down the highway, kicking up wind that scattered Zombots aside in the process. 

—

Present

Neo Highway

“Ah, so that explains a whole lot,” Nash mused.

“Angel Island’s orbit is currently within the range of Central City. If we can get close enough to it, I can use Chaos Snap to get us to the island quickly.” Shadow deduces. 

“Sounds like a plan! We’ll have to blast through the Zombots though and hope we don’t run into any Alphas on the way!” The teen says, picking up his pace.

“Then let’s get MOVING!” Shadow yelled, dashing ahead leaving a trail of orange sparks behind.

[All Hail Shadow - Magna-Fi]

All hail Shadow

Heroes rise again

A mass blockade of Zombots appeared down the street, led by a Mobian Deer Alpha Zombot that was dressed in Samurai clothing. Upon seeing Nash and Shadow heading their way, the Deer unsheathed his sword and with expert proficiency, slashed down with a swift motion. What followed was a rapid-moving air slash that traveled towards the two, forcing the sheep and hedgehog to jump out of the way.

Obliterating everything that’s not your friend

Shadow narrowed his eyes at the Zombot Swordsman as he stood up alongside Nash. The Alpha walked towards them with his blade drawn, his yellow eyes glowing dangerously before picking up speed. Yellow chaos energy gathered around Shadow’s hands, forming a spear in front of the hedgehog that blocked the deer’s strike head on! 

Nothing can stop you now

No ghost to bring you down

When there’s nothing left to lose, you win!

Shadow forcefully shoved the Alpha away, spinning his Chaos Spear before getting into a low stance. 

“Grab a weapon, Nash! I’ll handle the Alpha, you keep the Zombots at bay and clear a path!” He ordered.

“On it!” Nash replied, grabbing a Hover Wispon that was discarded from the floor. “Hope whoever used this doesn’t mind me borrowing their Wispon for a while.”

(BOW YOUR HEADS LOW
ALL HAIL SHADOW)

As Nash used the Hover Wispon to blow away the Zombots with shockwaves, Shadow clashed blades with the Alpha Zombot swordsman. Sparks flew as the Chaos Spear collided with the katana at blistering speeds, arms moving so fast, they were a mere blur to the naked eye. Shadow went for a spinning low sweep with his spear, but the infected deer hopped into the air, extending his leg out to kick Shadow square in the face.

The kick sent the Ultimate Lifeform skidding across the asphalt. The golden spear was stabbed into the ground to prevent its owner from flying away. Shaking his head, Shadow looked up just in time to parry an iaido slash that could’ve chopped his body in half, stunning the Alpha Zombot momentarily. 

Shadow took this chance to jab and poke the swordsman with his Chaos Spear, aiming at his torso, arms and legs before lunging with a piercing strike that knocked the Alpha off his feet! The purple-steel coated deer tumbled to the ground, but backflipped and used the momentum to swing his sword, releasing another air slash at the Ultimate Life Form.

Suffer long and it will set you free

Shadow tossed his energy spear at the compressed razor wind, dispelling it after a brief power struggle. The Chaos Spear spun several feet in the air with Shadow jumping up to grab it out of the sky and come down with a lunging dive attack.

Only through trial do we find the strength we need

The Alpha Swordsman tilted his blade horizontally, taking a defensive stance to block Shadow’s deadly strike. The ground beneath the warrior’s feet caved, unearthing bits of concrete as he held firm against Shadow’s Chaos Spear.

It’s never over, just another day

However, Shadow anticipated this, using his spear as leverage to deliver a devastating spin-kick to the deer’s cranium with his Air Shoes’ propulsion. The purple Zombot flew across the street as Shadow teleported right in front of him to lay into the menace with a series of fast-paced punches and kicks.

Of hope and tragedies and everything that comes our way

Shadow resummoned the Chaos Spear, tossing it towards the Alpha Zombot before snapping his fingers. The spear glowed brightly as the Alpha was consumed in a flash of light, resulting in a pillar of chaos energy shooting straight up into the sky.

Determination of the strong

Found the meaning that you’ve searched for so long

Within the rising black smoke, a flash of reddish-orange light twinkled. Then several slashes along with the sound of igniting fires, the dark clouds parted to reveal a large flaming lion head that soared across the road, leaving behind scorch marks. Shadow reacted quickly, crossing both arms in front of himself as the fiery feline projectile connected, generating an explosive inferno!

All hail Shadow

Heroes rise again

As the Ultimate Life Form continued to do battle with the Alpha Samurai, Nash remained focused on keeping the Zombot horde away from himself and Shadow. Though such a task seemed difficult given the mass amount of infected within the streets. 

Each time Nash blew away Zombots with his Hover Wispon, more appeared in their stead or the ones he knocked down got back up again, undoing all of his efforts. To make matters worse, his infection was slowly getting worse as he fought off the Zombots. The black sheep shivered as if he were in the middle of a heavy snowstorm with nothing but the clothes on his back, the only thing keeping him warm was a single flame that threatened to blow out due to the harsh elements.

Obliterating everything that’s not your friend

‘I can’t… give up yet…!’ Nash’s inner voice told him, his cold trembling halting. ‘I have to keep going…! Keep fighting…!’

Reaching into his pocket, the black sheep pulled out a brown bag that was filled with Uncle Chuck’s EMP Rings from earlier. He pulled out one of the rings and tossed it towards the Zombots. The sudden pulse took effect, stunning a large group of the infected into stillness. 

Nothing can stop you now

No ghost to bring you down

When there’s nothing left to lose, you win!

Nash pointed the Hover Wispon at the motionless Zombots and fired out a powerful shockwave that sent the collection of them flying in different directions. He continued firing out shockwaves upon the Zombots, effectively clearing a path for himself and Shadow to run through. Nash soon heard the sounds of multiple footsteps behind him, he glanced back only to see Zombot Tangle and the rest of the Zombots he left behind advancing slowly. 

He kissed his teeth. “Oh great…! Just what we need right now…!”

(BOW YOUR HEADS LOW
ALL HAIL SHADOW)

Angel Island

Back on Angel Island, everyone was hard at work with formulating a plan to retrieve the seven Chaos Emeralds from the Deadly Six’s grasp. Tails and Eggman crafted a device that utilised Starline’s Warp Topaz that created multiple portals to different locations. Lanolin and the volunteers kept watch over the current survivors of the Metal Virus, providing them with tents, sleeping bags and whatever remains of food they had left. 

Within the Restoration Shuttle, Uncle Chuck was working diligently to create the cure to the Metal Virus using both Sonic and Shadow’s synthesized data. Sonic’s Speed Data had been properly created, evident by the vial of blue liquid next to the vial of red liquid that was inserted into a device. Typing on the shuttle’s computer, a holographic screen showed both a DNA sequence of Sonic and Shadow’s data. 

“Okay… Time to put an end to this blasted Metal Virus,” Charles muttered to himself. He tapped a few keys on the keyboard and the computer began to isolate both Sonic and Shadow’s data.

The familiar sound of boots rang out inside the shuttle as Amy Rose approached the professor from behind. 

“Hey, Uncle Chuck. How’s work on the cure?” She asked.

“It’s going well, though with the shuttle’s computers and the resources we have, it’s a little more difficult than I expected,” Uncle Chuck replied, still typing on the computer. “How’s everything going outside?”

“We’ve currently prepared everything in order to retrieve the Chaos Emeralds from the Deadly Six. Tails and I will take on Zomom, Espio will take on Zazz, Silver and Whisper will handle Zor, Gemerl will take care of Zeena, and the Babylon Rogues will battle Master Zik.” Amy briefed.

“That just leaves Sonic, Knuckles, Ivo and myself on the Island with the survivors. That way, I can focus on the cure to the Metal Virus.”

Amy sat down on the computer chair, typing on one of the keyboards. “Right now, I’m going to fill Rouge in on our plan, then I’ll head off with Tails.”

The mustached hedgehog nodded, “Understood. I’ll keep working on the cure and I’ll keep an eye on Ivo as well…”

“Thank you, Uncle Chuck! Your help is greatly appreciated!”

“You’re very welcome.”

The holoscreen in front of Amy whirred to life as Rouge was seen hidden in a part of Eggman’s Faceship. “Rouge, come in! We’re all prepared here. How are things on the faceship?” 

“Zavok’s been asking a lot of questions, trying to figure out where Eggman’s escaped to.” Rouge notes, “If we’re going to make our move, it needs to be soon.”

“We’re heading out as soon as we can! Uncle Chuck is currently making a cure to the Metal Virus as we speak!” Amy mentions. 

Uncle Chuck popped into frame. “The cure’s being slowly developed, once it’s completed, I’ll run some tests on it then I’ll use Sonic to see if it works.”

“Alrighty then. I’ll let Shadow know about the plan as he’s currently on his way to Angel Island,” Rouge stated, “I gotta go. Rouge out!”

The holoscreen disappeared, ending the communication line. Giving a quick goodbye wave to Charles, the pink hedgehog ran out of the shuttle to meet back up with the other Restoration Members.

Eggman’s Faceship

Meanwhile on Eggman’s former flying fortress – the leader of the Deadly Six, Zavok, was currently searching for the robotist after he and Starline escaped via the Warp Topaz. He walked into a room where Eggman’s two robot helpers, Orbot and Cubot, were observing holoscreens to see where he had vanished off to.

“...And there are no life-signs at his hideouts?” Zavok inquired. 

“NOTHING MORE THAN NESTING FLICKIES AND RICKIES, NEW BOSS.” Orbot says while typing.

“Where did you go, Doctor…” The red Zeti pondered for a moment, his eyes glowing with anger. “He wouldn’t be so foolish as to hide in my own castle on Lost Hex. RRRGH! WHERE IS HE?!”

Whirling on the small red bot, Zavok pointed at the screen aggressively. “Bring up a list of every location he’s held a base! I don’t care how remote or obscure!”

“RIGHT AWAY, NEW BOSS.” Orbot tapped a few buttons on the holoscreen, bringing up various images of planets as well as the planet itself.

Zavok frowned. “These are all on other planets! If he’s fled that far, how can I…” Purple eyes suddenly stopped and glanced down at one specific location that his large red finger pointed at. “Wait. What is ‘Angel Island’?”

“OH, A FASCINATING ISLAND.” Orbot piped up, “SHALL I TELL YOU ALL ABOUT IT? IT WILL TAKE QUITE A WHILE.”

Cubot nervously tapped something on his holoscreen before spinning around to the towering Zeti. “UH, SORRY TO INTERRUPT, BUT WE’VE GOT AN ALERT IN THE METAL VIRUS-MAKING-THINGIE!”

“If that’s Sonic sabotaging my plans, I’ll rip him in half!” 

Zavok stomped away to the dispenser room as the two robots watched him nervously. Once he was out of sight, Rouge descended from the ceiling, landing on the ground quietly. 

“WOW! YOU WORK FAST!” The dimwitted yellow bot smiled.

“You have to when you’re out of time,” The bat girl states matter-of-factly, “Send Amy the latest coordinates of the Deadly Six. Tell her they need to attack now.”

Orbot saluted. “RIGHT AWAY. HOW WILL YOU GET THE EMERALD FROM ZAVOK?”

“I’m still weighing my options. Just keep playing along for now.”

Rouge flew up into the shadowed ceiling, leaving the two minion bots to tap their holoscreens.

Central City

Neo Highway

[To Hell with Gattai - Gurren Lagann]

POW!!!

The Alpha Zombot crashed into a parked car, his sword landed into the concrete just a few feet away from him. Before he could stand up, Shadow appeared right in front of him, his leg lashing out in a crescent motion that would’ve knocked the Zombot off his feet had he not raised his left arm to block the attack.

The deer’s arm trembled momentarily before grabbing Shadow by his leg and throwing him away, giving the swordsman enough time to grab his sword. The black hedgehog curled into a ball, revving up into a Spin Dash before launching himself towards the Alpha. The warrior lowered his katana to where Shadow rolled upon it then with a flick of his arm, the swordfighter deflected Shadow’s spin attack, sending him into the sky.

Unfurling out of ball form, Shadow brought his left arm to his side as yellow bolts of Chaos Energy danced to life around his hand. 

“Chaos… SPEAR!!!”

Swiping his arm out, yellow energy bolts were unleashed upon the Alpha Zombot who took off to avoid them. He hopped from car to lightpost and took to the skies, channeling his inner energy to his katana that had streams of water flowing from it. 

Shadow raised an eyebrow. First fire, now water?

Regardless, the hedgehog readied himself for what the Alpha swordsman had in store for him. Once his opponent closed the distance, the weapon was raised above their head and brought down upon Shadow with a swift motion. Shadow caught the blade in between his palms, but the momentum of the deer’s sword forced the two to plummet to the ground at high speeds. With the ground getting closer and closer by the second, Shadow let go of the katana and Chaos Snapped out of the blade’s range, resulting in the sword and its owner impacting the ground with an explosion of water shooting up.

Appearing several feet away from the rising steam, the black and red hedgehog crossed his arms as bits of water droplets rained down on Neo Highway. A mighty swing from the deer samurai dispersed the steam around him instantly, his glowing yellow eyes piercing Shadow’s soul. Unintimidated, Shadow glared right back as his eyes glowed with orange Chaos Energy. 

Nash, meanwhile, was fighting off Zombot Tangle and the hordes of Zombots with his Hover Wispon. Each Zombot was blasted away with a powerful shockwave as Nash jumped onto a large van to avoid his infection from getting worse. From above, the teenage sheep fired shockwave blast after shockwave blast, propelling many Zombots across the road so they wouldn’t climb up onto the van. 

He occasionally glanced over at Shadow who was still doing battle with the Alpha Zombot before focusing on his task of clearing the path of Zombots. He fought through the slow progressing infection of the virus as he shot out compressed air towards the Zombots, knocking them away from the van before taking a running start and jumping off the vehicle. Pointing the Wispon at the ground, Nash pulled the trigger for it to fire a compressed air blast to propel him away to a safe distance. 

Landing on his feet, Nash buckled to his knees as he panted. The long trek to Central City from Spiral Hill had started to take its toll on his body, and fatigue began to set in. Battling the Alpha Zombot GUN Soldier also consumed his energy considerably, but despite that – the dreadheaded teenager stood back on his feet and powered through his exhaustion. 

Shadow skated away from unearthing rock stalactites that attempted to skewer him, the Zombot Samurai having performed one of his elemental attacks to get an edge over the Ultimate Life Form. Shadow suddenly warped out of a jutting rock structure before it could stab him, the Alpha Zombot looked around for the hedgehog carefully with his sword drawn. 

Upon feeling a distortion of space behind him, the deer turned around but not fast enough as Shadow generated a small aura bubble of Chaos Energy around himself.

“CHAOS BURST!!!!” 

The Alpha Zombot was struck by the attack multiple times, launching him away into three of his rock structures before coming to a stop against the road, his body motionless and still. Shadow took a moment to recover his strength then teleported over to Nash, who rose to his feet upon seeing him.

“You okay, kid?” He asked.

Nash gave a nod. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’ve cleared the path for us, so we can keep moving…!”

“Good. We still have a long way to go before we reach Angel Island. Are you sure you can still move, Nash?”

“Don’t worry about me, Shadow…! I’ll be fine!” 

Nash flashed a confident grin that reminded the black hedgehog of the sergeant sheep himself. Even with his infection and exhaustion, the kid was still pushing himself past his limits to make it towards Angel Island by any means. Shadow couldn’t help but smirk at Nash’s perseverance.

Just then, Shadow’s communicator went off in two beeps. He answered almost immediately.

“This is Agent Sh-”

“Shadow! What on Mobius were you thinking going AWOL like that?!” Clover’s stern scolding interrupted the Ultimate Life Form’s greeting.

Shadow sighed as if he expected this reaction. He went to defend his case. “Look Lieutenant Clover, I understand you’re upset for me suddenly disappearing from quarantine, but it was the only option I could think of to not infect the survivors if I did turn.”

He heard Clover blow air out of her nose. “Shadow, I understand that the news Brian and I gave you about your body losing its ability to fight the Metal Virus wasn’t good, and I’m sorry that we had to inform you about that. But if you were worried about infecting people, I could’ve had the Commander or one of the soldiers airlift you to another place! You didn’t have to teleport out of the base!”

“It cannot be helped now.” The black hedgehog shrugs, “Though if there is any consolation, I did find Sergeant Wallace’s son on my way through Neo Highway.”

The forest green rabbit went silent for a moment. “You found Nash? How is he?”

“He’s infected with the Metal Virus, but is doing fine despite that.” Shadow says, looking over Nash’s condition.

“…I’ll let Wallace know that Nash hasn’t turned. He’ll be relieved to learn that bit of information. You should keep following the path towards Angel Island and stay away from any Zombots.”

“Copy that. Shadow out.”

With that, Shadow and Nash bolted down Neo Highway without a moment’s notice. They sped past many streets, taking sharp turns while knocking away any Zombots with Chaos attacks or shockwave blasts from the Hover Wispon respectively. 

For the second time today, Shadow’s comlink rang in his ear, causing him to answer mid-skate. He perked slightly upon hearing Rouge’s voice.

“Shadow, I just got back from talking with Amy as well as Orbot and Cubot. Zavok’s found Eggman and he’s making his way to Angel Island.” She notified him.

“Damn it…” Shadow swore, “Have you told Amy about this?”

“Orbot and Cubot are giving her the coordinates right now. As for what the Restoration are doing, they’re going to grab the Chaos Emeralds from the rest of the Deadly Six while Sonic’s uncle is working on the cure to the Metal Virus.” Rouge continued.

The black hedgehog grinned slightly, “Perfect. At least we have a backup plan in the off-chance the cure doesn’t work. I plan to teleport myself and Nash when I’m in close proximity to Angel Island.” 

“Oh, you’ve found Sergeant Wallace’s boy? What was he doing out on his lonesome in Neo Highway?”

“He was heading towards Angel Island much like myself. Nash is currently infected and I’m going to make sure he’s unharmed on the way.”

“You both better hurry quickly! It won’t be long until Zavok–!”

Both Nash and Shadow sensed something heading towards them fast. They dodged out of the way of what appeared to be a ball of light that zoomed past them and exploded in the distance. Collecting their bearings, Nash blinked at the smoke in astonishment. 

“It can’t be that samurai Alpha, can’t it?!” He exclaimed. 

Shadow turned over to the source with angry eyes. “...No, it’s another Alpha.”

That theory would be proven true as another Alpha Zombot stepped out to face the duo. This one was another Mobian, a Crane wearing a full gi and a headband around his forehead. 

“I heard something explode! Are you and Nash okay, Shadow?!” Rouge questioned, tone full of concern.

“We ran into another Alpha Zombot! I’ll call you back later, Rouge.” Shadow finishes.

“Shadow wai-!” 

Beep!

Nash groaned. “Another Alpha?! Just our luck…!”

“We can’t waste any more time fighting him with Zavok making his way to Angel Island! We’ll have to keep moving while keeping it at bay!” Shadow suggests, cracking his knuckles.

“Good idea! I just hope the others are fairing better than we are, right now…!” The teenager grumbles before rushing off with the Ultimate Hedgehog following close behind. 

[Akuma Boss Theme - Street Fighter x Tekken (Remix)]

The Alpha Zombot stomped the ground hard enough to kick up dust then sprinted after the two, rapidly gaining on them. Once in range, the Alpha Zombot pointed his arm at Nash and shot out a maelstrom of energy balls at him. Nash reacted with incredible swiftness, jumping out of range of one energy ball, using his Hover Wispon to propel himself away from another then used the grappling hook function to pull himself out of a third energy ball. Rolling on the floor, the dreadheaded sheep continued running as the streets exploded around him from the descending energy blasts. 

The Crane took flight above Nash then dived towards him with an outstretched arm to deliver a chop to his back. Though Shadow’s foot put a stop to that effort, forcing the martial artist back as Nash kept running. The two fighters disappeared in a blur of black and purple, a series of thunderous shockwaves and explosive sparks could be seen from where Shadow and the Alpha were fighting. 

Nash could feel the pressure of the fight while running, even having to weave out of the brutal exchange between Shadow and the infected martial artist whenever they got too close. The purple Zombot Crane threw out some fast jabs and swift kicks towards Shadow’s face and midsection, though the hedgehog bobbed and weaved out of strikes with his incredible speed and agility, even managing to throw some punches and kicks back at his opponent. 

Shadow’s fist surged forth with haste to rock the martial artist’s world, though the Crane leaned his head to one side allowing the arm to pass by him. Shadow’s entire body folded in on himself as he felt an immense force strike his body so hard, his soul nearly left his mouth. The G.U.N Agent flew through the air, his form bouncing across the asphalt before crashing into the side of a wall. 

“Shadow!” Nash cried out. 

Shadow pulled himself from the wall with a grunt. “I’m fine, kid. Just keep going!” He instructed firmly as he rushed back into battle. 

Heeding the hedgehog’s instructions, Nash grappled onto a building with the Wispon’s hook and swung away. The Zombot Crane would’ve flown after him had Shadow not blindsided it with a Homing Attack, knocking the martial artist out of the sky and into a building. Rebounding onto an opposing building himself, Shadow zoomed across it so fast that an orange-yellow aura surrounded his body! The sheer speed was enough to break multiple windows alone!

From the forming dust cloud the Alpha Zombot made upon impacting the side of the wall, a blur of purple flew out of the cloud, covered in an indigo aura. The fighter channeled his energy into his open palm, taking aim at Shadow. The Ultimate Life Form narrowed his eyes, charging up a Chaos Spear in response, but then stopped when he saw the Alpha change his trajectory to Nash instead! 

“NO!” Shadow yelled, but the heartless Zombot tossed his deadly energy attack towards the wooly teen.

Nash, who had resumed running after swinging from lightpost to building, looked back to see the projectile heading his way. Stopping in his tracks, Nash pointed his Wispon at the incoming energy ball, ready to push away the ball of Qi. Suddenly, Shadow appeared right in front of him, hand a lit with Chaos Energy as he threw a Chaos Spear straight at the energy ball! 

BOOM!!!!

An enormous cloud of black smoke rose in the air. The Alpha Zombot descended to the ground, assuming a fighting stance. He knew that both his opponents weren’t knocked out or deceased, but he wasn’t going to take the chance. From the smoke, Shadow’s silhouette was seen raising its arms up as red streams of light peered out.

“Playtime is over… Time to step it up!” 

A burst of energy parted the plume of smoke, revealing the Ultimate Life Form as he was coated in a sparking crimson aura. Nash briefly covered himself from the air that kicked up when Shadow powered up, while the fighter lowered his stance further. 

Shadow had now entered his Chaos Boost state. 

Determined to end this fight quickly; Shadow skated at high speed towards the Alpha Zombot, leaped up and swung his leg out with newfound speed. The Alpha barely managed to lift his arm to mitigate the strong blow, but suffered another kick that sent him flying. Nash watched the exchange with awe and intrigue, muttering something about the fight being ‘cool’. 

He felt a large shadow pass over him, urging him to look up in the sky. And when he did, the black sheep saw the steely familiar face of Eggman flying past him. 

The Faceship!

“Shadow! The Faceship just passed by us! We gotta get moving!” Nash shouted.

“Go on ahead! I’ll finish things up here!” Shadow told him while battling the zombified martial artist.

Nash sprinted off in the direction of the Faceship as Shadow did battle with the Alpha Zombot. The two exchanged a flurry of blows before Shadow won the power struggle by kicking the Alpha square in the face then grabbing him in a chokehold. The black hedgehog then gathered up energy into one point…

“Chaos… BLAST!!!!”

KA-BOOM!!!!!

…And released it in the form of one of his signature attacks; the Chaos Blast!

A massive red energy dome filled the city streets, destroying it within a matter of seconds. The Crane Zombot was sent hurdling across Neo Highway, crashing through multiple cars and buildings before coming to a screeching halt against the concrete. Panting heavily from the amount of energy he exerted, Shadow spun on his heel and skated off to catch up with Nash and the Faceship.

Speaking of the teenager, he chased after the flying aircraft as fast as he could. His sprints started to die down into jogs then pitter into a slow, exhaustive walk until he dropped to his knees. After miles of running, hours of battling and escaping, all of the energy Nash had left was completely depleted. 

“N-No…!” He moaned out weakly as the Faceship grew smaller and smaller the further away it got, “I… have to… keep… moving…!” 

Despite his body’s cries for rest, Nash willed his legs into moving again. Though his movements were sluggish as he limped the rest of the way. Shadow managed to catch up to see Nash slowly trudge his way towards Angel Island which was in view.

“Nash?” The Ultimate Life Form looked over the sheep’s struggling form with concern, “Nash, you have to stop pushing yourself. You’re completely exhausted!”

Nash stubbornly shook his head, “I… I can’t… stop here…! If we stop now… we’ll become Zombots…!”

“I admire your tenacity, kid, but that doesn’t mean you should push yourself to the point of breaking your body!” A sigh escaped the black hedgehog’s lips. He looked up at the floating island. “We’re in range of Angel Island’s orbit, I’ll teleport us there so you won’t have to keep moving.”

Nash let out an exhausted breath before nodding silently. But then, both of them felt a nasty chill down their spines as they whipped their heads around to see a familiar indigo glint suddenly explode into a furious geyser of aura. Within the pillar of energy, the Alpha Zombot martial artist floated high in the air with glowing yellow eyes. 

Shadow scoffed. Why wouldn’t this zombified bird just stay down already?!

The crane brought his arms forward and drew them close to his side. Within his cupped hands, streams of light gathered into one singular point. Both Nash and Shadow’s eyes shrank in horror, knowing exactly what the Alpha was planning to do. And while Shadow could theoretically survive the attack, Nash could not. Once the Zombot had finished charging his attack, he thrusted both hands out as a massive beam of energy at the two. 

And it. Travelled. FAST!

Without warning, Shadow quickly grabbed a hold of Nash’s non-infected shoulder with his non-infected hand and disappeared in a flash of blue light just as the laser beam hit where they once stood, causing a huge explosion of energy and the ground to shake as if an earthquake had hit Mobius itself!

Angel Island

[All for my sake - My Hero Academia]

“Finally! I’ve finished the cure!” Charles triumphantly cheered as he put the combined cure into an Injector Gun. 

He rushed outside with the cure in hand, but stopped when he saw the Faceship hovering over Angel Island. Zavok had found them. Sonic and Eggman turned to the cyan blue hedgehog as he approached them. 

“You finished the cure, Unc?” Sonic asked.

“Yes, the Anti-Metal Serum is completed.” Uncle Chuck confirmed, before he frowned slightly, “Unfortunately, this is the only sample we have and–”

“Only one sample, Charles?!” Eggman yelled heatedly, “That’s all you were able to make?!”

Charles shot Eggman a glare. “Given the limited resources and the shuttle’s computers, it took a while to synthesize the Anti-Metal Serum! So, yes! This one sample was the only one I could make under the short time crunch we have!” 

“That’s all we need for now, Uncle Chuck.” Sonic says, calming his uncle, “Time to see if this cure will work.”

Uncle Chuck nodded, walking over to his nephew to test out the Anti-Metal Serum. Just then, space distorted behind them as two bodies thumped against the grass. Turning to the noise, everyone was astonished to see Shadow and Nash right in front of them. 

Shadow slowly rose to his feet, his infection slowly getting worse by the second. Though Nash was in far more severe of a condition than the black hedgehog. His entire body was covered head to toe in large bits of the infectious steel, his expression in a near-lifeless state as laid there, completely worn out.

“SHADOW!!!” Sonic and Eggman yelled simultaneously. 

“NASH!!!” Lanolin and Felicia cried out as they ran towards him. 

Felicia’s eyes welled up with tears as she kneeled down to her child, horrified by his infected form progressing further. Lanolin gripped her chest with her hand, unable to bear the emotional pain of seeing her friend in such a severe condition.

The mad scientist slowly approached. “S-Shadow, how did you—?”

“Save it, Doctor.” Shadow’s cold tone halted Eggman instantly, “I’ll deal with you when this is all over. Now what of the–?”

Tails, Amy, Espio, Silver and Whisper had returned with three of the seven Chaos Emeralds. Though Cream, Gemerl and the Babylon Rogues were nowhere to be found, only two Chaos Emeralds shot out of the portals. Shadow grabbed the green Chaos Emerald while Sonic ran to snatch the red one.

“That’s all five of the seven Chaos Emeralds,” The Ultimate Life Form mused. 

“Just two more Emeralds and we’ll all become Super in order to save everyone from this disaster and my future!” Silver added. 

“Either that or Uncle Chuck should inject the cure into either Sonic or Shadow, because Zavok has found us!” Tails screams out.

“I know, I know!” Uncle Chuck yells, clearly stressed out, “Sonic, give me your–!”

“Professor Charles…!” Felicia managed through sobs, “Please…! You have to use the cure on my son! I don’t want to see him turn like this!”

The old hedgehog stared at Felicia for a moment, his heart panging with sympathy before looking back at Sonic. His nephew gave a gentle smile and a nod of confirmation at his uncle, the smile that said he would be fine with or without the cure. Uncle Chuck felt tears forming in his eyes, returning the nod before walking up to Nash, pulling up his shirt sleeve to reveal his brown arm. 

“Don’t worry, son. You’ll be perfectly fine once you get this cure...” He says, his voice slightly breaking as if fighting back tears. 

Using the medical gun, Charles injected the Anti-Metal Serum into Nash’s arm. Everyone watched with baited breath, they hoped, they prayed to Chaos that the serum would work as planned.

The Metal Virus on Nash’s body stopped spreading, bringing an aura of hope to everyone on Angel Island. Uncle Chuck had a wide, open smile on his face, filled with such elation, one would think he pulled off a miracle! Felicia felt her heart soothe, hopefully that her son would finally be cured.

That hope was immediately snatched out of their hands when Nash’s infection continued to progress! Charles’ smile was now replaced with complete and utter shock as was the sheep mother who could only look at the hedgehog in disbelief.

“T-The cure...!” Amy began, her eyes trembling.

“It… didn’t work…?!” Whisper added, also shocked at this sudden event.

“But how?! It was made with both Sonic’s Speed Data and my DNA!” Shadow yelled angrily.

Eggman turned to the professor. “You said that the cure was complete, Charles!”

“I did say that!” Uncle Chuck admitted, “But what I was going to say before you interrupted me, Ivo, was that I didn’t have time to test it out properly! That’s probably why the cure didn’t work!”

“...So what now…?” Tails asked.

“Can you see them from your hiding spot, Sonic?” Zavok’s voice boomed over the intercom. The Blue Blur growled as the Zeti continued. “The faces you failed to save?”

From below, multiple Zombots stood across the opposing land where the Faceship hovered above them. A lot of them were people they knew and loved while some were innocent civilians Sonic and the Restoration weren't able to save. Casualties of Eggman’s Metal Virus.

Zavok observed the island with his hands on his hips. “Angel Island. It looks smaller than Lost Hex, but no less beautiful. I cannot wait to bathe it in Metal Virus.”

WARNING! FACESHIP HAS LOST ALL REMAINING POWER! ENERGY LEVELS DROPPING RAPIDLY!

“What in blazes…?!” Zavok muttered as he noticed the electricity in the Faceship beginning to fail.

“Goodness! Does this one Emerald power the whole ship?” Rouge’s quipping voice caught the Deadly Six Leader’s attention, turning to glare at the bat. “I had wanted to do this more elegantly, but I suppose brute force works for a brute like you. Tuck and roll, boys!”

Rouge flew out of the Faceship with the white Chaos Emerald in hand. Orbot and Cubot followed close behind as the aircraft began to slowly plummet towards the ground where the Zombots were located, Zavok could only let out a scream as the Faceship crashed into Zombots and the land, exploding on impact.

“Alas! There goes my best effort to date…” Eggman mourned.

Sonic cringed at the burning remains of the Faceship. “I’m just glad the Zombots can survive that kind of damage. Sheesh!”

Rouge flew towards the group, handing the Chaos Emerald to Sonic. 

“Good work, Rouge.” Shadow complimented, “That makes six Chaos Emeralds now.”

“You’re welcome!” She gave a wink to her partner and friend.

“What about the one Zavok had?” The blue hero asked as he took the white Chaos Emerald. 

“Once the fires are out, we can dig it out of whatever’s left down there. He’s not going anywhere.”

Eggman pointed in the direction of the wrecked Faceship. “Actually, he’s coming right for us!”

True to his word, Zavok had emerged from the burning scrap metal. His eyes glazed over in a rage he had never reached before. Using the purple Chaos Emerald, the red stocky Zeti let out a bellowing roar as he suddenly grew several stories larger and wider! Veins bulged out of his emerald core and arms as electric energy angrily sparked around his form.

Zavok took in a deep breath and shot out a fireball straight to Angel Island, causing everyone to shake as the fireball exploded. But he wasn’t done there. That irritating blue pest and his allies were going to pay for messing up his plans! Zavok’s large hand scooped up a large mass of Zombots, charged them with his electromagnetic abilities and threw them at Angel Island. 

Sonic and the others back away nervously as the Zombot horde advances upon them. They were cooked…

“Looks like this is the end…” Eggman grimly stated. 

“I really hate to agree… but he’s right,” Whisper lowered her head in defeat, “It’s over…”

“NO WAY!!!” Sonic yelled defiantly, “I’m not giving up that easily! Not when we’re so close to finishing this!”

Amy stared at Sonic with tear-stricken eyes. “B-But… the cure…”

“Okay, so the cure didn’t work like it was supposed to! But are you really going to throw in the towel when we already have a backup plan with the Chaos Emeralds?” He continued, “We’ve managed to overcome a lot of Eggman’s schemes over the years! Even when he took over Mobius for six months, we never gave up and kept fighting until we took back the planet!” 

Sonic pointed to Nash’s lying form on the ground. “Even while infected with the Metal Virus, this kid never gave up and still managed to make it all the way over to Angel Island with the help of Shadow! Are we really gonna let Zavok or Egghead get an ego boost by seeing us all give up to the Metal Virus or are we gonna do what we usually do and keep running till the very end?”

Everyone remained silent for a moment after the hedgehog’s inspiring speech. Even while nearly infected with the steel plague, his spirit and willpower never wavered in the slightest. 

Tails grinned confidently. “I’m with you, Sonic! All the way to the end!”

Amy wiped her eyes and smiled with newly-lit fire in her eyes. “Me too! You’re right, Sonic! We can still win this!”

“You always bring trouble to my island… but at the same time, you just know exactly what to say to make me help you out,” Knuckles smirked.

“Look at you, Big Blue. Even when things seem bleak, you never give up hope,” Rouge chuckles to herself. 

“If you’re willing to keep fighting for your world, then I’ll do the same for my future! I’ll help out in any way that I can, Sonic!” Silver smiled as he gave a thumbs up.

“...I’ll also provide assistance to you, Sonic. If you won’t give up, then I won’t either.” Whisper pulls out her Variable Wispon.

“Your spirit is commendable, Sonic…” Espio mutters in astonishment before nodding, “We haven’t lost yet, we can overcome this hurdle…”

Uncle Chuck proudly smiled at his nephew. “You know what to do, Sonny. Keep running, no matter what.”

Shadow huffed while crossing his arms. “Even though you made a less than practical decision in sparing the Doctor, he was the one who caused all this mess…” Then he smirked. “Then again, your charisma is just as infectious as the Metal Virus. Only it brings out the best in people.”

“What can I say? I have that magnetic personality!” Sonic flashed his signature cocky grin. “Tails, Amy, Rouge, Uncle Chuck and Eggman; you take care of the Zombots! Knuckles and Espio, you handle the Alphas! Shadow, Silver, you two are gonna help me grab the last Emerald from Zavok! Now let’s go save Mobius!”

“RIGHT!!!” Everyone yelled in unison. 

Everyone rushed off to do their respective jobs. Tails, Amy, Rouge, Charles and Eggman used whatever weapon they had on hand to fend off the regular Zombots, shooting or hammering away at them to keep them at bay from the survivors. Knuckles and Espio worked together to take on the Alpha Zombots, keeping them occupied as Sonic, Shadow and Silver rushed over to nab the final Chaos Emerald from Zavok’s giant self.

On the sidelines, Felicia and Lanolin sat by Nash whose infection was at its peak potency. With the Chaos Emeralds being their only hope, the two sheep women remained by the young man’s side so that they’d be the last people he’d see before becoming a Zombot. 

“It’s gonna be okay, baby…” Felicia wept silently, “I’ll stay by your side till it’s all over…”

“Me too, Nash…” Lanolin added, her voice breaking in grief. “S-Sonic and the others will save the day… like they always do…”

Little did they know, Nash’s index finger started to twitch slightly.

As the two women cried softly, they heard sounds of the grass crunching towards them. Both glanced up to see an Alpha Zombot, the same Mobian crane Nash and Shadow fought, approaching them slowly. Felicia trembled in terror, tears pouring from her eyes as the infected advanced towards her and Nash.

Lanolin bravely jumped in front of the Alpha and spread her arms out. “Stay back! You’re not hurting either of them!”

The Alpha Zombot fighter proceeded to punch Lanolin hard in her stomach, knocking the air out of her lungs. The sheep girl buckled from the pain, but fought through it in order to protect Nash and his mother from harm.

“Lanolin, hun! You have to run!” Felicia shouted desperately. 

“N-No…! I… won’t leave you or Nash behind!” The white sheep coughed. 

The purple crane seemed annoyed by Lanolin’s resistance and punished her with a brutal chop to her side, causing her to cry out in pain. He then struck her in the face with his palm, nearly knocking the poor bovid girl off her feet. But Lanolin refused to submit to this monster.

“Grgh… There’s no way I’m going to let him get past me, Mrs. Felicia…! I’m not going to run away or freeze up like before!” She declared boldly. 

—

[Percival - Four Knights of the Apocalypse]

Within Nash’s mind, he was in a black void that was currently going through an immense snowstorm with him shivering in front of a barely flickering flame. But then, the small flame suddenly grew in size just a bit as a blue log manifested and was thrown into it.

“T-This feeling… Was that… Sonic…?” Nash blinked as if he could hear what the log was saying. 

A second log appeared, this one orange in colour as it landed in the fire, causing it to grow ever so slight.

“This voice… it’s Tails…” He continued as more logs of varying colours began to manifest.

—

In the real world, Lanolin rushed towards the Alpha Zombot with her Wispon drawn, her eyes full of determination.

“Just like how Sonic won’t give in, neither will I!” She yells, shooting out shockwaves that the Alpha effortlessly dodged, “It’s just as Nash told me earlier, even heroes get scared sometimes! But whenever people’s lives are in danger, they act in order to save them!”

Nash’s index finger started to quiver more, followed by the rest of his fingers.

“So now, I’m doing my part too! And I’m not going to allow you or Nash to get hurt, Mrs. Felicia!”

Nash’s right hand shook more and more as Lanolin continued to fight off the Mobian crane, who landed another painful palm strike to her ribs. Though he crossed his arms to block a shockwave attack from Lanolin’s Wispon. 

“Nash… you gave me the confidence to keep fighting, even when things seemed hopeless. You gave me a drive to push myself into action. More than that… you gave me the courage to stand on my own two feet. Because you’re…” 

—

In the black void, the flame had grown much larger. The blizzard had now diminished into a mere snowfall as Nash felt everything become much warmer and warmer as he walked into the fire.

— 

“...The most inspiring person I’ve ever met.” Lanolin spoke with conviction, just as the Wispon was knocked out of her hand.

Nash’s right hand balled into a fist as orange wisps of energy started to flow from his body. Felicia gasped as she looked down at the strange phenomenon that was happening with her son. She could feel a strange warmth emanating from him, almost as if his body was on fire! 

And Felicia wasn’t the only one who felt this energy. Shadow stopped in his tracks, glancing over at Nash as did Sonic, Knuckles and Silver who also wondered what was going on.

Lanolin was knocked onto her butt by the Alpha, who stood over her as he pointed his splayed hand straight at her, charging up an energy ball.

Astonishingly, Lanolin glared at the infected in defiance. “I’d rather die than let you hurt them!”

The Zombot fighter’s yellow eyes shone furiously, the ball of light glowing brighter in his hand. But before he could put an end to Lanolin, Nash’s eyes suddenly snapped open as orange energy burst from his body, shooting straight up into the sky! The immense force was felt by everyone in the vicinity, who stopped what they were doing to stare at the rising pillar of orange light! 

Even Zavok had to cover his eyes from just how bright it was. 

“What’s this?!” He barked.

“Is… Is that… the child?!” Eggman questioned, shielding his face.

“Wow…!” Tails let out.

“Whatever power he’s releasing… it’s immense!” Knuckles pointed out.

“Incredible…!” Espio mumbled in awe.

Sonic couldn’t help but smirk. This kid was full of surprises.

Within the pillar of energy, Nash stood up tall with a strong stance. His face hardened and focused. A majority of the Metal Virus had been burned off by the sudden burst of power he unleashed, his right eye surged with flame-like trails as he stared down the purple Zombot Mobian crane.

Felicia and Lanolin watched in stunned awe as Nash wordlessly walked towards the Martial Artist, ready to use his powers to protect the ones he loved.

Chapter Text

[Own Little World - Celldweller]

(Na, na, na, na)

(We will never die)

(Na, na, na, na)

My own little world

Nash, now overflowing with power, advanced towards his infected opposition with a fearless glint in his eyes. Sensing his newfound strength, the Alpha Zombot shifted into his fighting stance, prepared to do battle with Nash. The teen continued his slow approach towards the Mobian Crane, then in a flash, he immediately closed the distance! 

Nash and the zombified martial artist clashed fiercely, generating a shockwave that could be felt by everyone on Angel Island, their hands locked in a power struggle. The two fighters glared into each other’s eyes, their arms trembling slightly in an attempt to overpower the other. The ground beneath the Alpha Zombot’s feet caved as Nash’s strength began to slowly overwhelm him. 

The two brawlers separated, skidding across the ground before they charged at each other once again. 

Mutual sight, mutual sound

Mutual struggle for shared ground

(It's safe to say, they'll try to take from me)

I'm just another one for them to break down

Nash and the Alpha exchanged a series of fast-paced attacks, punches and kicks connecting with valorous pressure. The Alpha Zombot’s movements were swift yet deadly as his arms and legs swayed to harm Nash, though the teenager was not slouch when it came to fisticuffs. As the Alpha’s ferocious attacks drew near, Nash parried and dodged with an equal amount of grace and swiftness. 

Nash weaved out of a karate chop and countered with a right hook to the martial artist’s oblique, then uppercutted him in the chin. The Alpha Zombot staggered from the strong attacks, but retaliated with a crescent kick to Nash’s face that sent the teen reeling. 

The martial artist’s next attack would’ve been a punch to the chest, but the infected underestimated Nash’s recovery speed as the black sheep spun around to land a tornado kick, the heel of his sneaker connecting harshly to the Alpha’s cheek.

Steeped in denial, oh the daily grind

Dream of a world for me and my kind

(It's safe in the alternate reality)

So stick your standards where the sun doesn't shine

Skidding across the ground, the Alpha Zombot intercepted a punch from Nash, arm lashing out to deliver a vicious palm strike to the boy’s face. The Crane followed up with a devastating kick to Nash’s ribs, then swinging his left hand down for a karate chop to the head.

Nash immediately crossed his arms above his head defensively to block the chop from his infected adversary, feeling his feet briefly cave the grass due to the immense strength of the blow. Nash grabbed the offensive limb, forcefully yanking the Alpha Zombot towards him to land a flipkick to the beak!

The Alpha caught himself with his own hands, using his body’s momentum to backflip into the air then dive at the dreadheaded black sheep with an incoming Superman punch.

They're for themselves, it doesn't matter what they say

Promise the world then take it from you anyway

They'll break you down, making your vision fade away

It's time to go! (Get outta my space!)

Nash hopped out of the way as dust kicked up in the grass from the superior Zombot’s punch. The smoke dispersed instantly as the zombified crane appeared in front of the teenager in a flash! The martial artist threw out a flurry of fast-paced attacks with Nash matching his tempo beat for beat, the air dispersing around them as well as the grass kicking up from their thunderous blows and rapid movements.

The two combatants traded powerful strikes, weaving and bobbing out of the other’s swinging fists or legs or negating an attack with a well-timed block. Fortunately for Nash, he feinted the Alpha Zombot out with a jab and struck hard with a spin-kick to the ribs!

The Alpha’s expression contorted into that of pain, his oblique stinging from the attack. This opened up a window of opportunity that Nash took advantage of almost immediately.

Welcome to a world where the air I breathe is mine

Nothing to overwhelm me and nothing to cloud my mind

Be anyone, do anything I'd ever want to try

Time doesn't exist here, I will never die

Nash assaulted the Alpha Zombot with a barrage of well-placed punches and kicks to their person, his orange aura coating his hands and feet which enhanced his physical strength greatly, making his attacks feel like the Alpha was hit with the force of a freight train!

The bovid teen reeled his right hand back, balling it into a fist as orange trails of energy gathered around it. And before the Zombot Crane knew what hit him, Nash’s glowing orange fist did. Hard. 

The strength behind the power punch rattled the skull of the Alpha Zombot fighter, sending painful reverberations surging through his brain that travelled down to the body. That damage was only amplified fourfold when the Alpha Zombot’s body was consumed by an orange light that expanded with a resounding BOOM!

(My own little world)

My own little world

(My own little world)

My own little world

(My own little world)

As the smoke billowed in the air, the streaking forms of Sonic, Shadow and Silver raced through the carnage on Angel Island with the six Chaos Emeralds in hand. They passed by Tails and Rouge dropping bombs and Dummy Ring Bombs at the Zombots from above, Knuckles and Espio going toe-to-toe with two Alpha Zombots, Uncle Chuck and Metal Sonic fighting against the Zombot hordes as Eggman stood back.

Whisper sniped off multiple Zombots with the Laser Wisp, the reflecting light bouncing off crystals that hit each infected in rapid succession! As she switched out for the Rocket Wisp, her mask detected a presence behind her, forcing her to whip her head around to see Zombot Tangle approaching her.

The sight of her best friend’s state almost caused the soft-spoken hound to hesitate with her Variable Wispon. Just then, the zombified Lemur was struck in the face by a fast moving object!

Explain the reasons, explain the rhymes

It's not required, inside our minds

(It's safe to try, no need to justify)

Or take their guilt trip at the end of the line

The object in question; The Piko Piko Hammer homed in on various Zombots, striking down each and every single one in a circle before returning back to its owner’s open hand. Amy landed by Whisper, who was grateful for the save. As more infected people trudged towards them, both girls nodded at each other.

Exchanging her orange wisp for the blue one, a hammer construct formed around the sphere of Whisper’s weapon. Spinning her own hammer, Amy and Whisper both lunged at the Zombots.

They're for themselves, it doesn't matter what they say

Promise the world then take the universe away

They'll break you down, making your vision fade away

It's time to go! (Get off of my case!)

Both Mobian women swung their hammers with expert proficiency, knocking away many Zombots that attempted to go near them, the remaining survivors or the Master Emerald. Whisper smacked away a Zombot, flattened another to the ground and released a blue energy wave once she slammed her Cube Hammer with incredible force!

The energy wave collided with a group of infected Mobians, the resulting explosion sending the collection of them flying. Amy and her hammer engaged in a duet of pummelling every last Zombot that came her way. She swiped her weapon with an elegant yet deadly motion at any metallic zombie, knocking them away. 

When a larger Zombot stepped towards them; Amy and Whisper stamped their foot into the ground, caving it as they walloped it right in the chest, sending it flying off Angel Island and crashing into the wreckage of the Faceship!

Welcome to a world where the air I breathe is mine

Nothing to overwhelm me and nothing to cloud my mind

Be anyone, do anything I'd ever want to try

Time doesn't exist here

Cutting over to Knuckles and Espio, the two longtime allies were up against two Alpha Zombots. The first being a Mobian Lion that had herculean strength that matched the red echidna blow for blow, throwing jabs and hook punches with the skills of an experienced boxer.

The second was a Mobian Leopard wearing ninja garbs much like the chameleon and they were just as skilled in ninjutsu as Espio too. The two clashed Kunai blades, their dominant arms a blur as sparks danced around the tips of the steel. Both weapons were thrown at the same time, resulting in them spinning into the air, though neither ninja let up against one another as they engaged in Taijutsu.

Knuckles skid across the floor, wiping his cheek after getting decked in the face by the boxer Alpha Zombot.

Slip into a world where the air I breathe is mine

Nothing to overwhelm me and nothing to cloud my mind

Come with me into it and you know what you will find

Time doesn't exist here, we will never die

The infected feline boxer charged at Knuckles with a sprint, fists up to their face to avoid any blows to the head. The Guardian gripped the grass and with his impressive strength, ripped a large chunk of the earth out of the ground! He hurled the boulder at the Alpha Zombot, who barely had enough time to raise his arms to catch the massive rock.

Astonishingly, the Lion Zombot held up the boulder despite how heavy it was. He would’ve tossed the boulder back at Knuckles had the Ninja Zombot not crashed into him, destroying the huge rock in the process. Espio landed by Knuckles in a low stance, the duo running towards the dust cloud. 

But before they could get close, a large shiruken parted the cloud of dust at incredible speeds! Knuckles shoved Espio out of the way, allowing himself to be struck by the spinning Ninja star! 

The sharp blades slashed up the echidna, slicing up bits of his clothes before the shiruken poofed away, revealing two clones of the Leopard Alpha Zombot that blitzed Knuckles with punches and kicks in a leap frog manner. 

Espio attempted to help out, only to get a severe blow to his ribs from the Zombot Boxer’s strong right hook, sending the Chaotix member sprawling to the floor. Knuckles and Espio picked themselves off the grass, grunting in pain as the two Alphas surged towards them. 

An incoming energy ball soared towards the infected pair, exploding on the grass. Knuckles and Espio knew where that energy ball came from and were delighted to see Tails flying down at them with his arm cannon out to assist.

All three of them had the exact same idea brewing in their heads. 

Tails and Espio curled up into spinning balls and Knuckles scooped them up in his palms, using his two friends as boxing gloves!

(Our own little world)

Our own little world

(Our own little world)

Our own little world

Knuckles flash-stepped to the Leopard Zombot, paying him back with a mean barrage of punches to his face and body then socked him with a powerful uppercut, clattering the Zombot ninja’s teeth. The echidna jumped in the air right after the Alpha Zombot, reeling his “orange boxing glove” back, igniting it with fire before spiking his infected opponent down with a fiery punch, creating a massive shockwave that rippled through the Alpha Zombot’s body.

The moment the Alpha impacted the ground; a red inferno detonated in the shape of a dome, spreading fire everywhere as a result. Knuckles walked out of the flames with a serious expression, the first of the two Alpha Zombots merely approached without a lick of fear in its body as the other slowly rose to its feet after a moment of recovery.

(Na, na, na, na) (We will never die)

(Na, na, na, na) (Na, na, na)

Throughout the entire fight, Felicia and Lanolin watched Nash do battle with the Alpha Zombot martial artist in awe. The way he fought, moved and utilized his powers reminded her of his father — never backing down from his opponent even if they were much more powerful than him. 

Even when Nash got knocked down by the Alpha, he just got right back up and continued fighting. Felicia couldn’t help but smile at her son proudly.

Lanolin herself was spellbound by Nash’s performance. Seeing his weave out of the Crane’s physical attacks, deflect energy attacks and return them in kind was… nothing short of incredible! Even as he took damage, Nash was still fighting regardless.

Inspiring, he was.

(Na, na, na, na) (Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na) 

(Na, na, na) (We will never die)

(Na, na, na, na) (Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, ooh)

But the two sheep women weren’t the only ones watching this fight…

“Impossible…” Eggman muttered, his black pince-nez glasses catching Nash’s fighting form. “That child should’ve become a Zombot at his current stage of infection. And yet… he somehow managed to burn off most of the infection just like Sonic with that strange power of his…”

The mustached scientist rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he observed Nash, speculating on how his powers even awakened in the first place.

Was it Sonic’s rousing speech? Was it the white sheep’s actions after she protected him and his mother from that Alpha Zombot?

There was no way it could’ve been the Chaos Emeralds. He’d know for sure if this boy had Chaos Energy in his systems.

But then, Eggman thought of that one sheep from G.U.N who exhibited the same type of phenomenon as Nash. It wouldn’t surprise him if they were related.

And if this boy has the same kind of supernatural ability as the one from GUN…

“This child may become a potential thorn in my side in the future if his powers continue to flourish…” Eggman grumbled to himself, his glasses reflecting against the light.

“Ivo!” Charles barked, startling the robotist out of his thoughts, “Quit staring at Nash and help out with keeping the Zombots at bay!”

“Fine, fine…” Eggman mumbled with a huff as he shouted a command at Metal Sonic. “Metal! Cease your current objectives! Your new goal is to help Sonic, Shadow and Silver! Activate your defensive measures and do as they say!”

“UNDERSTOOD, DOCTOR.” Metal nodded, flying towards the three hedgehogs to assist them.

My own little world

My own little world

My own little world

Metal Sonic zoomed past Uncle Chuck, who smacked away Zombots with a sword-sized wrench with the skill to rival most weapon masters. Many of the infected attempted to grab at the robotic hedgehog, but he was far too fast for them to touch (and because he was immune to the Metal Virus, anyways).

BOOM!!!

Circling back to the battle with Nash and the Alpha Zombot, a loud explosion rang out from where they were fighting. The infected Crane had fired out one of his Qi attacks to put an end to the teenager. This nearly had Felicia and Lanolin deeply worried but to their relief, Nash had erected an orange barrier around himself to block the energy ball.

They're for themselves, it doesn't matter what they say

It's time to go! (Get outta my face!)

Pointing his hand out, the shield shrunk in around Nash’s palm as an orb of orange light formed. He shot it out at the Alpha Zombot, who raised their arms to block. The energy ball exploded, breaking through the Alpha’s guard and forcing him on his knees.

Welcome to a world where the air I breathe is mine

Nothing to overwhelm me and nothing to cloud my mind

Be anyone, do anything I'd ever want to try

Time doesn't exist here

Nash stepped forward to the zombified fighter, his face calm yet filled with determined fury. The Mobian Crane tried to get to his feet, but the damage from his battle with Shadow and this battle were starting to catch up to him. Still, the Alpha Zombot refused to fall without giving it all he had! 

In one last attempt, the Alpha Zombot cupped his hands and charged up an attack that would use up the remainder of his Qi. Nash, sensing what was up, flared out his orange aura while spreading his arms out and pointing them at the martial artist.

Streams of orange light gathered around Nash’s palms as the flaming trails around his right eye became more prominent.

Slip into a world where the air I breathe is mine

Nothing to overwhelm me and nothing to cloud my mind

Come with me into it and you know what you will find

Time doesn't exist here, we will never die

Orange and indigo lights shone from Angel Island. From afar, it looked like two stars were ready to explode! 

Narrowing his eyes, the Alpha Zombot fired out a large fireball towards Nash, the energy projectile soaring across the grass with impeccable speed!

“Courage… WAVE!!!”

At the same time, Nash shot out his energy attack that zoomed across the air at the same speed as his opponent’s aura sphere! The two projectiles clashed, lightning surging out in all directions as the grass beneath it singed. 

Both powerful energies seemed evenly-matched with it looking like they would both detonate at any point. But at the end of the day, the Alpha’s energy attack was slowly pushed back by Nash’s Courage Wave, dispelling into indigo particles as the young sheep’s attack grew closer and closer to the Mobian Crane.

The last thing the infected fighter could do was only watch in stunned silence as the orange light consumed him.

(Our own little world)

Our own little world

(Our own little world)

Our own little world

(Our own little world)

We will never die

Angel Island shook violently as an huge orange explosion filled the sky followed by billowing black smoke from the aftermath of the energy blast connecting to the Alpha Zombot. 

When the dark clouds finally parted away, the superior Zombot was lying flat on his back, completely motionless as wisps of smoke rose from its purple metallic body. He wasn’t deceased, obviously, but he wouldn’t be getting back up any time soon.

Nash stood triumphant over his foe, his aura flowing from his body as he breathed a sigh of relief.

He had done it. Just like before with the Chaos-Enhanced Egg Hammer, Nash had won.

—

Cutting over to the hedgehogs, they all raced off the edge of the island to grab the final Chaos Emerald from Zavok. Metal Sonic managed to catch up with them, grabbing his organic rival’s arm and flying him off towards the red Zeti while Silver used his Psychokinesis to grab a hold of Shadow. 

Zavok scoffed at their pitiful attempt at saving the day. “This is your last show of resistance?! This is all you can muster?!” He scooped up some of the Zombots from the wreckage of the faceship, hurling it at the hedgehogs and metal robot. “You may have destroyed my means of creating more Metal Virus, but I still command the Zombots! I will have them infect every inch of the globe! I will see your precious world grow sick and perish!”

Metal Sonic weaved out of the rubble and Zombots tossed their way to make sure Sonic’s infection wouldn’t progress further.

“Head straight for the Chaos Emerald on his chest!” Sonic instructed.

Metal wordlessly dove straight towards Zavok’s hulking form with the infected blue hedgehog in his grasp. Though the giant Zeti anticipated this and shot out a massive fireball at the duo! Shadow, using his quick reflexes, charges up a Chaos Spear and fires it straight at Zavok’s projectile, causing an explosion to occur.

Sonic breathed a sigh of relief, winking at his rival, “Thanks, Shadow!”

“Don’t mention it. Now, hurry! Grab the last emerald!” Shadow barked.

Nodding, Sonic directed Metal to the purple gem that sat directly on Zavok’s chest. The robotic hedgehog zoomed towards the massive Zeti who attempted to grab them out of the sky, but a psychic shield appeared in front of his palm, blocking him. With this distraction from Silver, Sonic and Metal Sonic soared towards the final Chaos Emerald. 

But that effort was immediately squandered when Zavok took in some air and blew them out of the sky as if they were mere flies. Crashing into the wreckage, Sonic staggered to his feet as his infection grew worse and worse. 

He just needed a bit more speed… Just enough momentum to run up Zavok’s body and nab the final Chaos Emerald… 

Sonic just hoped his friends and uncle would hang on… just a little bit longer!

Back up on Angel Island, the battle against the Zombots raged on! Tails shot energy bolts at the infected Cheese and Chocola with his arm cannon, flying around to avoid getting infected himself. Knuckles and Espio managed to defeat the Alpha Zombots, making sure they were completely unmoving before trying to avoid the touches of Zombot Charmy and Vector. 

Whisper was locked in an emotional struggle against Zombot Tangle, who staggered towards her slowly. Despite working with Amy to knock the Zombots down, the Guardian Angel couldn’t bring herself to shoot down her best friend…

Nash protected Felicia and Lanolin from the approaching horde of metallic Mobians, firing out energy blasts to keep them from touching his mother and his friend. Bits of the Metal Virus on his wool started to grow over once again, but the use of his new powers kept the infection from progressing for now…

He didn’t want to withdraw his powers in the off chance the Metal Virus would still be on his person.

Uncle Chuck slammed his oversized wrench to the ground, generating a shockwave that knocked many Zombots back. 

“AHHH!!! Get back!” Eggman squealed, crawling away from the Zombot Big who lumbered towards him.

Uncle Chuck tossed his wrench towards the large zombified Mobian cat, the weapon clonked Big on the head before returning back to the old hedgehog’s hand. He ran towards Eggman, helping him to his feet.

“Thank you, Charles…” Eggman expressed reluctantly. 

“You’re welcome… Though this doesn’t change anything between us.” Charles says curtly.

“I didn’t think it would…”

Amy landed right by the two scientists, “Uncle Chuck! Are you and Eggman okay?”

“We’re fine, Amy. How’s Sonic and the others doing?” The cyan hedgehog asked. 

“...They’re still trying to grab the last Chaos Emerald from Zavok,” Amy informed, “And the Zombots numbers are slowly starting to dwindle.”

“Good. Aside from Big, are there any other Zombots we need to worry about?” 

Eggman’s glasses shone deviously before he pointed somewhere, “Over there, Charles.”

“Where?” 

“Look a bit higher.”

Both Charles and Amy turned to where Eggman was pointing, giving the scientist the opportunity to kick Amy into Big’s stomach and punch Charles to the grass. 

“Left yourselves wide open!” Eggman then sped off in the opposite direction with surprising agility for a man his stature.

Uncle Chuck grunted from the blow to his face, turning his head to his nephew’s nemesis, “Ivo, you…! What are you doing?!”

“Making my daring escape!” Eggman declared with his evil laughter as he ran, “You both slowed him down for me! Get to their shuttle, get out of here and–!”

Unfortunately for the mad doctor, he stepped on the Zombot Froggy who had been sitting on the grass, causing him to slip and fall flat on his face. Seems that karma wasn’t done making Eggman pay for the crimes he committed on Mobius.

Eggman shrieked in horror as the infected frog bounced into the air, “NO! NOT LIKE THIS!!”

“...Serves you right… Ivo…” Uncle Chuck wheezed out.

Things were starting to look bleak. Zombots continued to spawn to approach in numbers and the Restoration were starting to lose ground. Amy and Tails had been infected by Big and the two Chao respectively, Knuckles and Espio were starting to wind down against the two infected Chaotix members, Whisper reluctantly shot a Zombot Tangle while keeping herself away from the other Zombots and Nash erected a shield around himself, Lanolin and Felicia as the Zombots began to bang on it.

Sonic himself was currently grappled by multiple Zombots, speeding up his infection even more. It wasn’t until Metal Sonic rammed into them with a Boost attack, freeing his rival from their grasp.

“STAND UP, MY LOATHSOME COPY…!” Metal demanded, “YOU HAVEN’T LOST YET…”

Sonic grinned weakly, “Heh… I was just catching my breath is all…! Take me up… Metal.”

Metal grabbed Sonic and flew above Zavok’s leg towards the Emerald located on his chest. Shadow and Silver nodded, the latter flying towards the huge Zeti as he charged up purple energy around his body.

“Accept your fate, Sonic! You have lost…” Zavok bellowed before releasing a burst of electromagnetic energy that hit Metal dead on, “...And all machines are mine to control!”

Sonic raced up towards the purple Chaos Emerald lodged in the Deadly Six leader’s chest. Shadow landed right beside him, assisting the Blue Blur in pulling out the purple Chaos Emerald. The two of them fell towards the ocean with Silver flying towards them with the six Chaos Emeralds as Zavok made one final attempt to crush them with his giant hands.

Zavok clapped his hands together hard, seemingly crushing the three hedgehogs in his grasp. 

He had done it… he had finally gotten rid of that annoying blue hedgehog and the other two hedgehogs once and for all!

…

…

…

[Event: Super Transformation - Sonic Adventure 2]

Suddenly, a flash of light exploded within Zavok’s palms. It exploded outwards, forcing the Zeti to release his grip and back away a few steps! Everyone that wasn’t a full Zombot turned to the bright golden light above Angel Island, staring at it in awe.

Within the light, the hedgehog trio floated above the masses as they took on a brand new appearance with the Chaos Emeralds and Warp Topaz around them. Sonic was not only cured of the Metal Virus, but he had a strikingly different look! His blue fur was now a shiny golden yellow, his quills stood up on ends and his emerald green eyes were a vivid red! 

Shadow himself was also rid of the infectious steel on his body and had undergone an enhanced state of being much like Sonic. His black fur had turned a golden ivory colour and his eyes shifted to a ruby red colour. Even with these little changes, one could tell that power was radiating off the Ultimate Lifeform in waves.

Lastly, Silver had also transformed due to the power of the seven Chaos Emeralds. His silver-white fur had become a pale-gold colour while his chest fur became a darker golden yellow that pointed up much like his two long back quills. His yellow eyes had shifted into a red hue and the teal glow on his gloves, cuffs and boots were now a bright gold. 

They had become Super Sonic, Super Shadow, Super Silver respectively!

“All right. Are you both ready to save the world?” Super Silver asked.

“Yes, though we have one problem to deal with…” Super Shadow says, staring up at the red behemoth in front of them.

“Don’t worry, guys. We’ll take care of him in a sec.” Super Sonic spoke with a serious tone, far from his usual cocky self.

Zavok glared at all three golden beings in front of him, his overwhelming size making them feel like small fireflies. Though the hedgehog trio were unbothered by the Zeti, Super Sonic even flashing a confident smirk at him. That simple action only irked Zavok as he inhaled deeply and breathed out a large mass of flames from his maw at the super hedgehogs! 

Super Sonic, Super Shadow and Super Silver simply remained where they were as the fires consumed their forms, causing an explosion to occur! Nash, Lanolin and Felicia felt nervous for the heroes of Mobius suddenly falling against the Deadly Six Leader, though the ones more familiar with the Super Transformation knew that such a beastly attack wouldn’t put an end to the hedgehogs. 

Zavok’s sinister smile turned into a look of shock when the smoke cleared, revealing the super hedgehogs were perfectly fine with not a single scratch or blemish on their shiny golden bodies to show for it. To them, it felt as if they had just gotten back from a relaxing trip to a sauna.

[Stand On The Edge - Jun Senoue]

“WHAT?!” Came the disbelieving bellow from the giant red Zeti. 

Super Silver merely shot Zavok with an unamused look. “…You call that a flamethrower? Blaze could produce a mightier inferno than that small firework.”

Zavok’s face contorted into sheer rage, his attempt to roast the hedgehogs backfiring on him thanks to the psychic hedgehog. Before he could even think to punish Super Silver for his disrespectful tone, the mindhog got up in the red Zeti’s face instantly and decked him with the strength of Zeus himself! 

Zavok felt his entire skull rattle from the force of the punch, staggering him long enough for Super Shadow to deliver a mighty kick that would’ve broken Zavok’s spine! This was followed by an uppercut to the crimson beast’s chin and a potent backhanded chop that nearly knocked out one of Zavok’s teeth whilst causing him to spin on his feet! 

After regaining his footing, Zavok swung his right fist in a hook to punch Super Shadow and Super Silver. Though Super Sonic appeared in front of his fellow eulipotyphlan, raising his left arm to stop Zavok’s punch. Sparks of golden energy flashed out from the golden hedgehog negating the attack, he barely even flinched at all. 

Super Sonic calmly raised his right arm at Zavok, index finger curled against his thumb and flicked said finger at his giant foe. The Deadly Six leader felt a strong concussive force equivalent to that of a planet striking his entire body, causing his skin to reverberate and knock him off his feet where he landed harshly into the ocean with a huge SPLASH!!!! 

Droplets of water rained down upon the super hedgehogs and the residents on Angel Island, the trio of hedgehogs fist-bumping each other for a job well done. Nash, Felicia and Lanolin could barely believe their eyes – Just one moment, Zavok seemed like an impossible threat that not even Sonic himself could take down with his infection, but now with the power of the seven Chaos Emeralds? 

Zavok was nothing more than a joke to them.

Sonic, Shadow and Silver were no longer mere mortals like them. To Nash, Felicia and Lanolin – they were like Golden Gods that descended down from the heavens to save Mobius from whatever threatened it. 

Eggman stared up at the three glimmering hedgehogs, a bead of sweat falling from his forehead. Memories of that accursed Super State filled the Doctor with slight worry and anger, but he thanked his lucky stars that Zavok was on the receiving end of the Golden Gods’ wrath and not himself.

Speaking of the red bugger, he picked himself up from the lake and stood up to face the three shining heroes. The damage on his body was seen by all; a nasty bruise with Super Silver’s fist imprinted on the side of his cheek, his back and chin burning in agony from Super Shadow’s kick and uppercut respectively and a large abrasion on his torso and head from Super Sonic’s flick. 

But what stung worse than the beating was his wounded pride. 

The blue rodent shouldn’t have been able to turn things around so quickly! He and his friends were practically at his mercy given how infected Sonic and Shadow looked! And yet, his allies managed to fight off all the Zombots on Angel Island and the hedgehogs gathered those seven gemstones to ascend to a form that rivaled –if not– surpassed the Zeti at his full power! 

How could they have this much power?!

Super Sonic placed a hand on his hip, lips curling into a grin. “Had enough yet, Zavok? Shadow, Silver and I would love to play with you some more, but we have a world to save from the Metal Virus.”

Zavok’s eye twitched, his teeth clenched hard as he shot the hedgehogs with a hateful gaze that would’ve burned holes into them if it had the ability to. Despite feeling winded from the attacks he took, Zavok wasn’t going to go down like this. He refused to let Sonic and his friends humiliate him any further! 

“I’ll put an end to this once and for all…” Super Shadow declared, reeling his hand back to charge up a Chaos Spear.

All of a sudden, the three golden gods felt a shift in the air as a massive spike in energy rose ominously. The area itself rumbled as if an earthquake was occurring, the ocean rippling from the growing output of power. Eyes turned to Zavok, whose body glowed a bright amethyst with energy volts arching out of him violently, his veins bulging out disgustingly on his chest and arms. 

A low growl escaped Zavok’s throat that crescendo'd into a booming roar as a purple aura enveloped his entire being, exploding into a pillar of orchid light! Super Sonic, Super Shadow and Super Silver braced themselves from the copious amount of wind that was kicked up from Zavok’s unsettling transformation! 

Once the purple shine simmered to a twinkle, everyone was in complete shock at the red zeti’s new appearance. Zavok’s eyes were now glowing purple with energy trails flowing out of them, his red skin became a reddish-purple, almost burgundy in colour. A violet aura flowed out of his body like an angry inferno completed with electricity dancing around his form.

“Wha?!” Super Sonic cried out.

“No way!” Super Shadow yelled in disbelief.

“He used the Chaos Energy within himself to become stronger?!” Super Silver shouted, just as shellshocked as his two allies.

“...Is such a thing even possible?! Even if the Chaos Emerald he had was taken from him?!” Lanolin questioned, unable to make heads or tails of this developing situation.

“I don’t know, hun! But all I do know is… those boys are in for the fight of their lives…” Felicia says, sweating nervously.

Nash remained quiet as he stared at the newly-transformed Zavok with a frown, vividly recalling the Egg Hammer using the power of the yellow Chaos Emerald to enhance itself when fighting Wallace and himself. And unlike the Super Badnik, Zavok knew how to wield such chaotic forces of power. 

The empowered Zeti looked down at his palm, purple Chaos Energy exuding from it. He clenched his fist, his attention focused on the three Super Hedgehogs.

“Heh…! Who knew that little gem could provide me with such power…?” Zavok spoke, his voice reverbing due to the energy within him. “Now, Sonic… You and your friends will face your inevitable doom… against a Chaos Colossus!”

“Rouge? How long do we have until everyone is infected all across the world?” Super Shadow asked.

“Five minutes until we become infected here as well as all over Mobius!” Rouge answers while flying above the island. “I suggest defeating Zavok quickly, so you can get rid of the Metal Virus!”

“We’ll try and defeat Zavok in three minutes! Two minutes tops!” Super Sonic confidently says before turning serious as his aura flared up, “You guys ready?”

Super Shadow and Super Silver nodded silently, their bodies flashing with Chaos Energy. The newly christened Chaos Colossus Zavok chuckled darkly, punching his fist into an open palm as electricity shot out from it. 

The Battle for the Fate of Mobius was about to begin.

[Live and Learn/Solaris Phase 2 Mix]

Powering up from both sides, the three golden lights flew towards Chaos Colossus Zavok at breakneck speeds as the titan ran towards the hedgehogs with his claws raised. Super Sonic weaved around the empowered Zeti’s punch to land a devastating punch to his face, followed up by several rapid kicks. 

Super Shadow assisted by punching Zavok square in his stomach, his fist charged with Chaos Energy. Super Silver used his enhanced psychokinesis to unearth a massive boulder from the water and hurl it straight at the behemoth. These attacks hit Zavok hard, but he shrugged them off and struck back hard with a backhand to all three Super Hedgehogs. 

While they were stunned, Chaos Colossus Zavok smacked Super Silver into the water with such force, an explosive splash was generated from the psychic hedgehog impacting the water. He punched Super Shadow hard with his gargantuan fist, knocking the air out of him and sent him flying into a mountain. Lastly, he paid Super Sonic back for the flick from earlier by flicking him towards Angel Island where the golden hedgehog crashed into the grass, creating a long divot into the dirt.

Super Sonic rubbed his head with a groan as he sat up. “Guess Zavok has the strength to hurt us while we’re Super… This is gonna be tricky.”

He hopped out of the ground and flew right back towards Zavok just as Super Silver surfaced from the ocean and Super Shadow teleported to his fellow hedgehogs. They reacted just in time to see the Chaos Colossus breath out a cluster of purple energy spheres from his mouth at them. The three super hedgehogs split up, flying in different directions of the orchid energy balls as they homed in on their respective target. 

Super Silver raised his hand, stopping the plasma spheres with his psychic energy before hurling them back at Zavok. The Deadly Six leader raises an arm to block his own spheres as they each explode on the limb, slightly singeing him. 

With a swing of his hand, Super Shadow tossed multiple Chaos Spears at the purple energy balls, causing a myriad of yellow and purple discharges to occur in the orange skies. Super Sonic used his incredible speed to create afterimages of himself that the orbs passed through as each of them splashed into the ocean, detonating as a result. 

Chaos Colossus Zavok scratched the air in an arc, sending waves of compressed slashes at Super Sonic, who evaded the air slashes then curled up into a ball and launched himself at the beast’s stomach at super speed. Zavok felt his stomach cave into itself once Super Sonic’s Spin Attack collided into him with immense force! The pain only intensified when the golden hedgehog’s spines cut into his skin as he revved up the monster’s chest to deliver a flipkick to his chin. 

Super Shadow and Super Silver flanked Zavok with their own Spin Attacks to his head respectively, the latter charging up a teal ball of psychic energy and launching it at the Zeti. The energy not only damaged Zavok, but locked him in place to restrict his movements. 

This allowed Super Shadow to zoom in and land a punch on Zavok’s face, then fly above the Zeti’s horned head to deliver an axe-kick that sent painful shockwaves across his head. Chaos Colossus Zavok managed to free himself from Super Silver’s psychic hold, turning his head to the Ultimate Lifeform to shoot out a stream of purple flames at him. 

Super Shadow teleported out of the fire’s range, appearing beside Super Silver, but the magenta inferno followed them closely. The two superpowered beings soared out of harm’s way, Super Shadow zooming towards Chaos Colossus Zavok with a fist glowing with Chaos Energy. But the colossal behemoth grabbed the hedgehog out of the sky in a bone-crushing grip!

Super Sonic and Super Silver rushed in to save their friend, only to get snatched out of the air by Zavok’s other hand. Channeling his Chaos Energy, Zavok sent electric currents coursing through his arms at the three hedgehogs, electrocuting them. The hedgehogs’ cries of pain rang out to those on Angel Island; their bones, muscles and organs screeching in agony as the electric current damaged them. 

Zavok relished in their screams of anguish and injuries, his grip on them slowly tightening in an attempt to squash these insignificant bugs. 

But then, he noticed Super Shadow’s body glowing a bright red. Then Super Sonic’s body glowing yellow and Super Silver’s a bright teal green.

“Chaos…” 

“Super Sonic…”

“Psychic…”

Zavok’s glowing eyes shrank as the hedgehogs’ bodies reached the apex of their shine.

“BLAST!!!” Super Shadow and Super Silver shouted.

“HURRICANE!!!” Super Sonic roared.

What followed was a simultaneous discharge of Chaos, Psychic and Wind Energy that consumed Zavok’s entire being, his body burning from the chaotic and psychic energy whilst experiencing a cutting sensation all over his skin from the razor sharp gales! The combined explosive attack was powerful enough to free the Super Hedgehogs from Zavok’s grasp, though their bodies still stung from nearly being squashed to death.

A large plume of steam rose from the explosive energy waves, clearing away to reveal no sign of Zavok anywhere! The trio of Golden Gods were now on high alert, knowing that Zavok could appear when they least expect it! 

The moment they heard space distort behind them, the hedgehogs were struck by a force that sent them all careening in different directions. Super Silver crashed into the wreckage of the Faceship, Super Shadow plummeted into the rocks below Angel Island and Super Sonic was knocked straight into the ocean!

Chaos Colossus Zavok focused his attention on Super Sonic, landing valorous punches on his downed form as the water splashed from each consecutive strike. He raised both fists above his head, channeling as much Chaos Energy as possible for a fatal blow.

Those efforts were squandered when Super Sonic instantly rose from the water to land a vigorous kick straight into Zavok’s chest, a massive shockwave forced up a lot of wind and water into the air. Super Silver floated up from the remains of the Faceship, his eyes and palms glowing brightly as bits of scrap metal were pulled from the ground and merged together in front of him.

Nash, Lanolin, Felicia and the rest that weren’t infected couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Floating in front of both Super Silver and Chaos Colossus Zavok was a massive sword created from the pieces of the Faceship! 

Even Super Sonic gave a long whistle of astonishment at this extraordinary show of power. 

Using his psychokinesis, Super Silver wielded his makeshift sword and swung it at Zavok who barely managed to evade such a dangerous swing. When the next slash came, Zavok was more than ready to counter the blade with his claws. The two engaged in a fierce clash of sword and sharp claws, sparks shot out from their respective parries and attacks, shockwaves ringing out and kicking up waves in the water from each impact.

Super Silver waved his hands around as if he were conducting an orchestra of heroic justice against Zavok, who was trying his best to counter and block as many sword slashes as possible. There were a few times he did get cut, but the Zeti’s durability and endurance allowed him to keep fighting. 

After this exchange of bladed weapons to claws, Chaos Colossus Zavok fired out a purple beam of Chaos Energy from his mouth at Super Silver. Narrowing his eyes, the psychic golden hedgehog turned his sword to the flat side to block the beam! The beam’s light reflected against the ocean floor, creating a dazzling lightshow for those witnessing the battle. Eventually, a huge explosion put an end to the power struggle as bits of scrap metal splashed into the water.

From the dimming light and steam, a purple orb of energy angrily charged at the two super hedgehogs. Before Super Sonic or Super Silver could react, Super Shadow appeared in front of the purple sphere with his arm outstretched, stopping it with his palm. Using his masterful control over Chaos Energy, Super Shadow dissipated the energy ball.

“Is that all you three possess?” Chaos Colossus Zavok questioned with boastful confidence.

The three shining eulipotyphlan all looked at each other and nodded with grins on their lips. Super Sonic and Super Shadow revved up into a Spin Dash while Super Silver gripped a hold of them with his psychokinesis then tossed them both at an immense speed. Chaos Colossus Zavok countered by clapping his hands together to produce a thunderous shockwave that met the golden spinning balls halfway.

Super Sonic and Super Shadow powered through the thunder clap’s force, gradually pushing it back to the point of dispelling it, leaving Zavok open to be struck in the face by the two Spin Dashes. Uncurling from their spherical forms, Super Sonic and Super Shadow laid the smackdown on Chaos Colossus Zavok with punches and kicks that boomed throughout Angel Island, shaking its very foundation with each strike they landed on the giant beast.

Super Sonic landed a flurry of lightning fast kicks on Zavok’s person, his arms crossed with confidence as he skillfully twisted his body around to land ten consecutive kicks to Zavok’s face, air compressions ringing out from each successful strike landed.

Finishing his aerial foot assault with a devastating axe kick, Super Sonic flew out of range from Zavok’s swinging arm that attempted to swat him away as he reunited with his fellow hedgehogs.

“We have to end this quickly! We only have three minutes left!” Super Shadow yells urgently.

Super Sonic stretched his arms with a determined frown. “Then we’ll have to go all out and hit Zavok with everything we have!”

“I hear you! Let’s finish this so we can save your world and my future!” Super Silver says, clenching his fists.

Agreeing with this sentiment, Super Sonic spindashed on the spot to gather up kinetic energy. The psychic hedgehog grabbed the Hero of Mobius and charged his psychic power while wind whirled around Super Sonic’s spinning form. Recovering some, Chaos Colossus Zavok began to sprint towards the three hedgehogs, his right fist sparking with purple Chaos Energy. Super Shadow snapped his fingers as a distortion of Chaos Energy stunned Zavok’s entire being, giving Super Sonic and Super Silver the chance to land their duel technique.

“SUPER PSYCHIC STORM!!!!” 

Super Silver launched Super Sonic, who in turn, shot out a blueish-green shockwave of unbridled destructive power at Zavok. The projectile exploded upon the Zeti’s body, causing serious injury to his person. Super Sonic then rapidly circled around Chaos Colossus Zavok, forming a large yellow tornado that trapped the monster in place. 

Super Shadow and Super Silver then summoned a large amount of Chaos Spears and Psychic Knives, a single point commanded them towards their target: Chaos Colossus Zavok. 

Streams of yellow-orange and teal lights streaked towards Zavok, causing miniature explosions on his body, burning him as a result. Super Sonic’s right hand swirled with blue winds as Super Shadow’s left hand sparked up with yellow Chaos Energy, the duo raising their respective arms in the air. 

“Super Sonic… WIND!!!!”

“Chaos… SPEAR!!!!”

Throwing out their signature attacks, the Super Sonic Wind and Chaos Spear travelled towards Zavok, merging together into a green swirling energy attack dubbed the Chaos Wind! 

The Chaos Wind landed on Zavok’s face, exploding instantly. Chaos Colossus Zavok staggered away all before he felt his body suddenly freeze on itself. Super Silver held out his glowing right hand at the behemoth, holding him in place with his psychokinesis. 

“NOW! FINISH THIS, SONIC!!!!” He bellowed passionately.

“Time to put an end to this madness! SUPER SONIC STYLE!!!” Super Sonic powered up, his aura erupting in a furious inferno as he suddenly vanished and blitzed Chaos Colossus Zavok from all sides at lightspeed! 

He moved so fast that nobody aside from Super Shadow and Super Silver could track his movements! Chaos Colossus Zavok felt every part of his body get pummeled by the golden hedgehog, each strike feeling like he got hit with the wrath of Chaos himself! Super Sonic appeared right beside Super Shadow and Super Silver as they watched the Deadly Six Leader titter over on his back towards the ocean.

“...Is it over…?” Super Silver asked, sweating a bit from the effort they put in to beat the Zeti.

Super Shadow intently watched Zavok fall over slowly… 

Zavok’s body fell in slow-motion, his newfound power slowly beginning to leave him. He couldn’t believe it — even after gaining access to Eggman’s Faceship, taking control of the Zombots and having the Chaos Emeralds in his possession. 

That blue rat still managed to somehow ruin all of his plans and humiliate him again! And that enraged Zavok to no end! 

Screw taking over Sonic’s world! Screw covering Angel Island in Metal Virus! That blue prick was going to pay for this mortification… with his and his friends’ lives!

Super Shadow's eyes widened in shock when he saw Zavok’s body suddenly stop itself from falling. “No! It’s not over yet!” 

[Time Eater (Modern) - Sonic Generations]

A humongous mauve geyser of energy exploded violently followed by a booming roar of pure, unadulterated rage and hatred from Chaos Colossus Zavok, rattling Angel Island and nearly pushing the Super Hedgehogs back from the force! The Zeti’s eyes were glazed over with purple energy, glaring straight at the ones who embarrassed him. Chaos Colossus Zavok opened his repugnant maw, streams of purple light gathering in his throat as it began to ignite with magenta flames.

“W-What’s Zavok doing?!” Lanolin asked, taking a step back fearfully.

Tails sweated nervously as his infection started to progress. “Zavok’s… gathering up a large amount of Chaos Energy…! He’s… going to hit Sonic, Shadow and Silver with it…!”

“And if they manage to evade his attack… we could be hit instead…!” Uncle Chuck continued with a tone of dread.

“HE’S GONNA WIPE MY ISLAND OFF THE FACE OF THE MAP?!” Knuckles bellowed with justified anger and concern, getting a nod from both Tails and Charles.

Nash gulped. Even with his powers fully harnessed, he wasn’t even sure that he could produce an energy shield big enough or strong enough to withstand the immense amount of energy Zavok was charging up in his mouth. Lanolin held onto Felicia, the two women praying to Chaos that the three Golden Lights of Mobius would save them from being incinerated by Zavok’s desperate attempt to defeat Sonic.

Sensing the imminent fate that would befall their friends, the innocent people and Eggman if the purplish-red Zeti was to launch his fatal attack, the three Super Hedgehogs flew in front of Angel Island quickly. The amethyst flames glowed brighter and bright, becoming more intense as Chaos Colossus Zavok reached the pinnacle of his attack being charged. 

“IT’S OVER, HEDGEHOG! NOW BURN! BURN TO ASHES!!!!” Zavok exclaimed, shooting out a powerful beam of fiery hot Chaos Energy at the three hedgehogs. 

The purple flames grew closer and closer as everyone began to brace themselves for what would be their last day on Mobius. Fortunately for them, the trio of Golden Gods wouldn’t allow that to happen.

[Live and Learn (Junkie XL) - Sonic Movie 3]

“You’re right, Zavok… It’s over…” Super Sonic began, his tone fully serious. He flexed his arms to his sides. “FOR YOU!!!!” 

A bright golden aura surged out of the hero’s body, his expression hardened with a tranquil fury. He gave a look to Super Shadow and Super Silver, the two hedgehogs nodding with their own stern faces as they too released their full power. As the violet beam traveled towards them at lightspeed, the three small dots suddenly expanded into large golden lights. 

“CHAOS… LAMBENT!!!!!!” (1)

Super Sonic, Super Shadow and Super Silver reeled their arms back then thrusted them out and from their palms, they fired out a massive golden wave of Chaos Energy straight at Zavok’s energy beam. The beams soared towards each other, reflecting across the ocean until they clashed for a second. The Chaos Lambent effortlessly tore through Chaos Colossus Zavok’s attack like a bullet through wet paper and towards the Zeti himself. 

Zavok let out one last chilling roar of defiance, disbelief and defeat before he was consumed by the immense golden power of the Chaos Lambent. A humongous explosion of yellow occurred, shaking the very world and the heavens itself! Everyone held onto whatever surface or person that was nearest to them to avoid being blown away by the forceful gales of the explosion’s aftermath. 

The moment the light dimmed, everyone saw Zavok falling towards the wreckage of the Faceship, shrinking back to his normal size and back to his red self again. His body singed and burned from the Super Hedgehogs’ Chaos Lambent as he crashed into the pieces of scrap metal, unmoving but still alive.

“Bit overkill, don’t you think?” Super Silver smirked at Zavok’s smoldering form.

“Ain’t no kill like overkill.” Super Sonic quipped with his arms crossed.

Super Shadow glanced at the Warp Topaz’s cracking state. “We’ve wasted a few minutes fighting Zavok. The Warp Topaz isn’t going to last long with all this Chaos Energy.” 

“Then we better work fast! Shadow, you help me with the warp portal! Silver, you handle the rest with your psychokinesis!”

“Got it!”

Summoning his powers, Super Silver stripped everyone on Angel Island of the dastardly Metal Virus on their bodies as Super Sonic and Super Shadow created a massive portal in the sky to space itself. Within seconds, everyone that was Zombots – regular or Alphas – were cured of their affliction. Many people were confused as to what was happening and why they were all at a location they’ve never been at before. 

“Ngh…! It’s working!” Super Silver grunted, “Where are you both sending it?”

“We’re dumping it in a place where it won’t hurt anyone ever again!” Super Sonic yells.

Super Shadow growls as he sees the Metal Virus enter the portal to the Sun. “Let’s see the Doctor’s Metal Virus adapt to THIS!”

Large globs of the Metal Virus touched the surface of the sun, burned to ashes against the fiery hot rays of plasma much like Eggman’s plans to control Mobius with it. But even with the combined powers of the three Super Hedgehogs; the Warp Topaz began to grow more and more unstable, vibrating and shuddering as if it were about to explode.

“We better hurry! The Warp Topaz won’t last much longer!” Super Shadow warned.

“Hang on! We’re kicking it into supersonic speed! Super Sonic says with urgency.

The Golden Gods flew away from Angel Island, traveling across Mobius to strip all the infected Mobians and humans from the Metal Virus and tossing it straight into the sun. Yellow streaks of light danced across the skies like a pencil on paper, redrawing over the canvas of Eggman’s latest scheme into one more victory for the heroes.

By this point, the Warp Topaz had reached its limit and the hedgehogs could tell. They needed to get rid of it and fast! 

Super Sonic, Super Shadow and Super Silver all placed their hands on the unstable crackling gem, their hands glowing brightly as they attempted to Chaos Control to teleport the Warp Topaz away. Just as word “Chaos…” left their lips—

SHA-BOOOM!!!!

—The Warp Topaz exploded above Angel Island!

Shadow and Silver were blown back by the explosion, crashing on opposite sides of the grass. When they stood back up, both hedgehogs were back in their normal forms after the Warp Topaz’s demise. Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Uncle Chuck ran towards Silver while Rouge flew down to Shadow to make sure the two were okay. 

Nash looked up at the bright green aurora in the sky in awe, his body fully cleansed of the Metal Virus.

“They… they did it…! They saved us…!” Nash uttered with a big hopeful smile on his face.

The young sheep was suddenly wrapped in a tight hug by both Felicia and Lanolin, the two of them overjoyed to the point of tears that he was okay and cured of the Metal Virus. The two sheep women held onto him, refusing to let him go as if the world itself would tear him away from their grasp.

“Nash…! My sweet child…! Thank Chaos, you’re okay!” Felicia sobbed happily as she kissed his forehead, “I thought I almost lost you! I’m so happy you're safe!” She gave her son a stern yet worried look as she pointed at him. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again, young man!”

“Same here! I thought you were going to become a Zombot or worse!” Lanolin cried, “I’m just glad that you’re alright!”

Nash gave a gentle smile to his mother and friend, tears of happiness pricking his eyes. “I won’t ever scare you both like that again. I promise.”

He wrapped his arms around Felicia and Lanolin, returning the warm hug in kind. 

Central City

G.U.N Headquarters

“THEY DID IT!!!!” 

Everyone in G.U.N erupted into uproarious cheers, celebrating Sonic’s latest victory over the mad doctor’s scheme and the Metal Virus. Soldiers hugged each other tightly, everyone patting themselves on the back and civilians had their faith restored in the Blue Blur and the Restoration. 

Commander Tower watched everyone jump for joy with his hands behind his back, a small smile creasing his lips. 

Tyson had managed to return back to the headquarters, fully cured of the Metal Virus to which he was tackle-hugged by both Delphine and his wisp partner, the latter two practically weeping with joy that he was back to normal again. Clover wiping her teary-eyes as she watched the heartwarming display, knowing that her friend and everyone else was cured.

Lastly; Wallace looked up at the screen showing Nash, Felicia and Lanolin all embracing each other in a tight hug, safe and well after the Metal Virus had been destroyed. He finally breathed a sigh of relief, allowing his tears to fall from his eyes, happy to know that everyone in Mobius, including his wife and son were going to be okay..

Chapter Text

It was all over, finished and done. With Eggman’s Metal Virus permanently destroyed, the Restoration knew they had finally won.

Everyone was in high spirits after being cured of the Metal Virus — Families reunited, longtime friends singing together and people cheering for the heroes that saved them from the Doctor’s latest scheme over the beautiful aurora in the sky.

But that raised an important question; where was Mobius’ Champion? 

Where was the one who saved them all alongside Shadow and Silver?

Where was Sonic the Hedgehog?

“You okay, Shadow?” Rouge asked as she landed by her partner. 

“I’m fine…” Shadow replied, dusting off his jacket as he looked up at the green aurora. His eyes slightly narrowed as he tried to locate someone.

Rouge glanced around Angel Island, picking up on the lack of a certain someone. “Wait, where’s Blue? Shouldn’t he be here with you and Silver?”

“I’m not sure where Sonic went… When we used the Warp Topaz to get rid of the Doctor’s Metal Virus, we tried to use Chaos Control to teleport it away because it was unstable. But it exploded before we could even do so.”

“...Are you saying that–?”

“I doubt it.” Shadow firmly interrupted, “That hedgehog has never been one to keel over so easily…”

Rouge looked up in the sky, a pensive frown on her glossed lips. “...I hope you’re right, Shadow.”

Near the Altar, Silver had informed Tails, Amy, Knuckles and Uncle Chuck of the events that had transpired with the destruction of the Metal Virus and the super hedgehogs’ attempt at Chaos Controlling the Warp Topaz away as well as the possible fate of the Blue Blur. Amy, Tails and Uncle Chuck felt fear and grief prick at their hearts, dreading the outcome of their friend/nephew.

Knuckles, however, gave a scoff while smirking. “Tch! He’s just being dramatic! He’ll come floating down, all golden and smug, any minute now!”

Charles wanted to believe the Knuckles’ words.

He wanted to believe that it was all for dramatic effect. Sonic would float down in his Super State, arms crossed with his usual cocky grin to greet them all. 

He wanted to believe his nephew, his pride and joy, would be okay after he saved the world with Shadow and Silver. 

Sonic can’t be dead…! He isn’t! His nephew has come out of dangerous scraps before! He should be fine!

As everyone either pondered where the Hero of Mobius was or celebrated the end of the Metal Virus, the one who caused all this chaos quietly began to make his escape towards the shuttle. Eggman knew his mortal nemesis better than anyone, something as powerful as an explosion wouldn’t do him in, but he was going to take advantage of this situation and make a retreat as soon as possible.

Just as he entered, Eggman heard a distortion of space from behind as well as a familiar, gruff voice growl; “Where do you think you’re going, Doctor…?”

The rotund man turned with a grunt, seeing the Ultimate Lifeform glaring daggers into him. “Grgh! S-Shadow!!”

Shadow slowly advanced towards Eggman, his eyes angrily brimming with Chaos Energy. “Do you really think I’m going to let you escape after all the madness you’ve committed against the world?!” 

“You might as well give up now, Eggman.” Rouge says, floating towards the black hedgehog, “Your plans are in ruins and you’re not getting off without paying for everything you’ve done.”

Eggman broke out into a sweat, a low growl escaping his throat as he looked between Shadow and Rouge as well as his one free ride off Angel Island. Near the wreckage where Cream and Vanilla stood, Gemerl began to oddly stalk towards them, the younger rabbit pushing her mother out of the way as a heavily beaten and smoking Zavok appeared with his hand glowing a bright purple. 

Lanolin’s eyes bulged out of her head in disbelief. “No way…! Even after everything they threw at him, Zavok’s still standing! What’s he made out of?!”

“Stubbornness,” Nash answers, “Looks like it’s not over yet…”

“Stop it!” Cream yelled at the towering, injured Zeti, “All of your mean friends were beaten! You’ve lost! Just go home!”

Felicia boldly stepped up to Zavok, pointing a finger at him. “Cream’s right! You betta’ take yo’ red and black self off this island and walk yo’ sorry butt home!”

Zavok loomed over the three Mobian women. “No. I will not suffer another humiliation from Sonic again! I will never accept defeat!”

“You don’t have any Zombots to control, the Metal Virus has been destroyed and you no longer have access to the Chaos Emeralds!” Nash pointed out. 

“Not to mention, you’ve been seriously injured from your fight with Sonic, Shadow and Silver! Do you really intend to fight everyone here in your current condition?” Lanolin added.

“Foolish girl…! Even if I don’t have all those things at my disposal, I can still tear this world asunder with my bare hands!” 

Zavok attempted to swing his claws at Cream and Vanilla, but Cheese quickly intercepted him with a Chao Punch to his face! He was then nabbed by Tangle’s prehensile tail, wrapping him up in her strong appendage. The Deadly Six leader freed himself before the Chaotix, with the help of Silver, began to jump him! Vector held Zavok in a headlock as Charmy kicked him in the face and Espio delivered strong taijutsu punches and kicks to the zeti’s body.

The blows nearly made Zavok buckle, his injuries from his battle against the Golden Gods intensifying with agony. Though he managed to break free with what little strength he had and knocked away the Chaotix with a punch and claw swipe respectively, cutting Vector’s white shirt. 

“I. Will. Not. FALL!!!!” He roared.

Whisper smacked him over the head with her blue Wispon Hammer, allowing Nash to follow up with an orange energy punch to the zeti’s muffin! Zavok screamed in pain, all before Silver restrained him with his psychokinesis, applying pressure on him until Zavok finally fell to his knees.

“I… will… have… my… revenge… on… you… all…” He panted, “Your… blue hero… won’t… save you… from my… wrath…! All of… Mobius…! All of… the world–!”

An orange muzzle construct appeared around Zavok’s maw, cutting off his vengeance monologue. 

Nash lowered his hand as his aura faded, breathing a sigh of relief. “Will thank me for shutting you up.”

Zavok shot Nash and everyone a murderous stare, his purple eyes trembling with barely contained rage… then they closed as he finally lowered his head in exhaustion, the fatigue and damage catching up to him. As the others kept a close eye on the downed red zeti, Eggman was promptly thrown on his backside by Shadow and Rouge, the former grabbing a hold of him by the scruff of his red jacket.

“N-Now now, Shadow…!” Eggman stuttered nervously, “I’m aware that I took things a little too far with the Metal Virus and all…! But there’s no need for such hostility–!”

“The Metal Virus isn’t your only crime against the people of Mobius…!” Shadow spat heatedly, “There’s also the six month war on the planet and your takedown of GUN. People have lost everything because of you, Doctor! I should’ve done what I planned to do when you lost your memory and disposed of you immediately…!”

Eggman gulped, seeing Shadow’s free hand glow with Chaos Energy. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Metal Sonic rising from his dirtnap after Zavok’s attack on him. The two briefly locked eyes for a moment as Metal powered on his back thruster to save his master from an early grave. 

The roboticist grinned evilly at the black hedgehog. “Too bad you won’t get your second chance, Shadow…! Metal, now!”

Shadow perked up, turning his head just in time to see Metal Sonic barreling towards him. The robotic hedgehog tackled Shadow off Eggman, allowing the evil genius to spring up on his feet and make a break for the Restoration Shuttle. 

Shadow kicked Metal off him and shifted into a fighting stance. “Rouge! Stop the Doctor before he escapes! We can’t let him get away!”

“Right!” Rouge turned to Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Uncle Chuck and shouted out; “Hey! I may need a bit of help! Eggman’s getting away and Shadow’s busy fighting Metal Sonic!”

“Oh great…! Just when we had taken care of Zavok…!”Amy moaned, pulling out her hammer.

“We still have the other Deadly Six to take care of as well, but we should focus on preventing Eggman’s escape!” Tails comments.

Knuckles nodded, beating his fists together. “If Eggman flees from here, it’s all over…!”

“Then we better stop him fast! He can’t run away from his actions!” Uncle Chuck insisted. 

Eggman sprinted towards the Restoration Shuttle, his skinny legs working in overdrive to carry his portly self towards freedom. It wasn’t long before he heard rapid footsteps crunching the grass behind him alongside the twirl of two tails and the flap of wings. This only caused Eggman to double his efforts into running for his life. 

Tails and Rouge flanked Eggman from above, both shooting/throwing energy balls and bombs respectively at the ground to halt Eggman’s progression to the ship. A series of explosions rang out, forcing the doctor to stop to avoid being caught in the blast and turn the other away for an alternate pathway. The moment he did so, however, Knuckles dropped in front of him with a Superman punch, shaking the ground with the impact of his fist.

“I don’t think so, Eggman!” Knuckles growled.

Eggman attempted to run but was intercepted by Amy, then Uncle Chuck. Tails and Rouge landed on the ground, the five Mobians boxed in the doctor as they all aimed their respective weapons at him. 

Charles spun his wrench and pointed it at Eggman. “This is as far as you go, Ivo! Dodging the consequences will only make things worse for you in the long run!”

“Blast you all!” Cursed the frustrated mahogany mustached man.

[Radical Highway - Sonic Adventure 2]

While the five Mobians had Eggman surrounded, Shadow and Metal Sonic were currently duking it out in a no-holds bar battle! Shadow tossed out several Chaos Spears that were easily blocked by Metal’s Black Shield. In response, Metal threw out his own Chaos Spears that Shadow easily evaded before he zoomed towards the robot and punched him square in the face. 

Shadow followed up with a backfist then an uppercut that sent Metal Sonic in the air, but before he could grab him, Metal recovered quickly with an axe kick that was clearly replicating Sonic’s own axe kick: The Sonic Eagle. 

The Ultimate Lifeform raised his hands to catch Metal’s leg, spinning him around then tossing him away. Straightening himself out, Metal Sonic spun around vertically, launching himself at Shadow like a torpedo (1). Shadow quickly raised his arms to block, but the steel eulipotyphlan’s super strength broke through his guard, sending the black hedgehog spinning into the air. 

Soaring into the air, Metal Sonic clasped his hands over his head and spiked Shadow down hard like a volleyball. Shadow crashed into the grass, kicking up earth and dust as a crater formed in the ground. Metal crossed his arms, drawing energy towards his compressive chamber on his torso as lightning danced around his metallic form. 

He then fired out a laser beam on Shadow’s downed form, a large explosion following soon after along with a shockwave that caught the attention of Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Rouge and Uncle Chuck. This small window of distraction allowed Eggman to quickly slip away from the distracted quintet. 

“Ha! That was almost too easy! Time to get out of here quickly!” Eggman chuckled, continuing his jog towards the shuttle.

Knuckles quickly turned back, noticing Eggman running away from their box formation. “Oh damn it! We let Eggman give us the slip!”

“Amy!” Charles called out.

Nodding, Amy took aim at Eggman’s fleeing form and tossed her Piko Piko Hammer at him with incredible strength. The mustached man heard the whoosh of the hammer flying at his head, forcing him to narrowly duck to avoid having his head cracked open. 

He glanced back at the pink hedgehog, sticking his tongue out to taunt her. “Ho ho ho! You missed me! I’ve seen athletes throw with better accuracy than you!”

That, unfortunately, was the wrong thing to say to someone with as fiery a temper as Amy Rose. Because the Rosy Rascal’s face turned beet red with rage, steam shooting out of her ears with a factory whistle noise accompanying it. Amy raised her hand, calling her hammer back where it spun around so the mallet pointed in Eggman’s direction. The moment he turned around, the doctor noticed the speeding hammer soaring towards him furiously for daring to mock its owner. 

Eggman’s mustache drooped comedically as he casted the reader a worried gaze. “Perhaps I shouldn’t have teased her like that…”

CLANG!!!

The last thing Eggman saw was everything flashing white before the world around him swirled then fell…

Metal Sonic scanned the billowing black smoke for Shadow, knowing that a laser beam wasn’t enough to do him in. A flash of blue light appeared behind Metal, revealing Shadow who wasted no time spiking the machine to the ground with an axe kick! The black hedgehog landed on the ground, skating towards the rising dust cloud to fire a Chaos Spear. 

With lightspeed reflexes, Metal Sonic performed a Ring Spark Field to knock Shadow away, dispelling the Chaos Spear in his hand. Skidding on his feet, Shadow and Metal glared at each other then collided into each other, generating an intense shockwave that shook Angel Island. 

Blades of grass tore from the ground from each resounding blow Shadow and Metal exchanged with one another in their deadly duet of domination. Their bodies moving with incredible speed and graceful tempo, becoming blurs of black/red and steel blue as they fought all around Angel Island, shockwaves ringing from each strike! 

Shadow and Metal Sonic revved up into a spin ball, exchanging powerful Homing Attacks like a dangerous game of pinball. The two spin attacks clashed into each other, small sparks shooting out of them in all directions before the two jumped away and uncurled, landing safely on the ground. 

From Metal’s POV, his HUD homed in on the Restoration members restraining Zavok, the reticle specifically locking onto Nash out of the group. The boy had a very interesting power unlike anything he’d seen before…

-

Copying data…

> Courage Energy

[Data Copied]

-

Metal Sonic lowered his stance, his eyes briefly flashing a distinctive orange for a moment. A familiar saffron aura surged out of his body as wispy-like energy surrounded his metal hands. It’s time to utilize this emotion-based power for himself…

Powering on his jet propulsion on his back, Metal rocketed towards Shadow with his right fist raised. Shadow’s eyes briefly widened at the copied power the robotic hedgehog was now using, but regained composure to sway out of the incoming empowered punch that was thrown his way. Smacking the fist away, Shadow threw a palm strike at Metal’s torso only for it to get parried and for him to dodge a kick aimed at his temple. Nash and Lanolin stared at the confrontation between the two rivals of Sonic the Hedgehog, focusing on the orange aura flowing out of the machine’s body.

“Nash…? Isn’t that…?” She pointed with a trembling finger.

“That’s my power!” The black sheep exclaimed. “How is Metal Sonic able to use them?!”

Silver kept his psychic grip on Zavok, casting a glance at Nash. “He must’ve copied your abilities while we were all busy taking care of the Zombots and Zavok…!”

“I didn’t know you had powers, Nash!” Tangle noted excitedly, “When’d you get such a cool ability from?!”

“...You missed quite a lot while you were a Zombot, Tangle.”

Back with Eggman, he slowly sat up with a hand on his throbbing face, letting out a pained groan. His glasses had cracks in the lenses and his nose was redder than usual from the Piko Piko Hammer striking his head.

That’s the last time he’ll ever mock the pink hedgehog…

The thunderous sounds of Shadow and Metal Sonic’s battle snapped the doctor out of his stupor, his attention now drawn to his creation who was emitting the same tangerine coloured energy as the sheep boy. He stroked his chin in thought, remembering how Nash used his powers against that Alpha Zombot.

Eggman then spotted Orbot and Cubot getting pulled out of the rubble by Gemerl, then looked back to see the five Mobians rapidly gaining on him.

“Metal Sonic! Grab Orbot and Cubot and meet me in the shuttle!” He commanded while springing to his feet, “We have to make our escape quickly!”

Heeding his master’s order, Metal Sonic spread his arms out and brought them in front of him, much like Nash did against the Alpha Zombot. Streams of amber light drew into his steel palms to form an energy orb which Metal fired at Shadow. The Ultimate Lifeform raised his hands to catch the mimicked Courage Wave, holding it back for a few seconds before tossing it into the sky!

This allowed Metal to zoom towards Gemerl and punch him hard across the face, knocking Orbot and Cubot out of his hands. In a swift motion, the robotic hedgehog snatched both minions and flew off before anyone could catch up to him. As Uncle Chuck and the others chased after Eggman, Metal Sonic fired out another laser from his chest compression to halt their efforts. 

Eggman ran towards the shuttle with tremendous speed, hopping inside as his three robots flew in after him. Plopping his fat self into the seat, he pressed a few buttons and manned the wheel. 

“Alright, time to make our escape back to the base while those pests are recovering from their long battle! Since Sonic is MIA, I’ll have to strike while the iron is hot…!” Eggman smirked, pressing a button to power on the Restoration Shuttle.

The others had made it just in time to see the shuttle thrusters roaring to life as it began to take off from Angel Island. The Mobians came to a stop, watching it slowly rise into the air.

“NO! Eggman’s getting away!” Knuckles shouted.

“He won’t get far…” Uncle Chuck pulled out one last EMP Ring from a small pouch and tossed it to Rouge. “Take aim at the shuttle and throw this EMP Ring, Rouge! Hurry!”

“No need to tell me twice!” Rouge took off into the air after Eggman, clutching the EMP Ring in her gloved hand. “Special delivery, Eggman!”

Reeling her arm back, the bat girl tossed the EMP Ring with the proficiency of a baseball pitcher. The ring gleamed in the moonlight, soaring towards the fleeing ship where it got in range to the thrusters. A burst of electromagnetic energy rippled through the aircraft, causing the controls to malfunction and the thrusters to shut off. Robots such as Metal Sonic, Orbot and Cubot even had their systems go haywire, forcing them to shut down. 

The shuttle took a harsh landing on the grass, scraping across the ground with an ear-splitting screech. The door to the ship opened, revealing Eggman staggering out of the partially wrecked aircraft with only minor injuries on his person. He let out a frustrated growl, his one way trip to freedom was snatched out of his hands!

Curse those insipid Mobians!

Speaking of; the black and red hedgehog teleported in front of Eggman with a look that could kill. The other five Mobians caught up and surrounded the robotist, forming a semi-circle that he couldn’t escape from. 

“It’s over, Doctor…” Shadow stomped towards Eggman, chaos energy sparking around his hands. “Time to pay for your crimes…”

Eggman backed away in terror. “W-Wait, you all! L-Let’s not do anything hasty here! I-I’m aware I may have gone a bit too far with the Metal Virus–!”

“You didn’t just go “too far” with the Metal Virus, Eggman! You nearly caused the end of Mobius… twice!” Tails fired back, interrupting the Doctor’s pleas.

“If anything, you did too much damage to the world for us to let you roam free…” Rouge continued. 

“You’ve caused a lot of pain for everyone here on this island and on Mobius! Even before the War and the Metal Virus!” Knuckles spat.

“And we’re not going to let you run away from your actions…” Amy followed up with a calm yet angry tone.

“W-What do you plan on doing with me…?!” Eggman stuttered out.

Uncle Chuck stared at his nephew’s arch-nemesis with an unreadable expression, his eyes darting over to Shadow. “Shadow…?”

Nodding, the Ultimate Lifeform channeled his chaotic energy as he pointed both hands at the doctor.

“Chaos…!”

Eggman flinched, letting out a high-pitched squeak. 

“Restraints!”

Restraints?

Eggman slowly opened his eyes and looked down to see something completely unfounded. Vermillion chain constructs made out of Chaos Energy were fastened around his upper body and wrists! The mustached man tried pulling at the chains and even shuffled about, but the constructs felt as if they were made of the strongest metal on Mobius!

Since when could Shadow do this with his Chaos Energy?!

Rouge placed her communicator on her ear, tapping on a button. “HQ, this is Agent Rouge. Mission accomplished. The Metal Virus has been destroyed and Dr. Eggman has been apprehended. Requesting a chopper here on Angel Island, stat.”

“Copy that, Agent Rouge. Sending a helicopter ASAP.” A GUN Soldier replied.

Amy exhaled deeply with a smile. “Finally… now it’s all over.”

“You said it, Amy,” Tails grinned.

Charles silently wrapped both arms around the pink hedgehog and two-tailed fox, smiling warmly at them.

Sol Dimension

Imperial Palace

Night had fallen over the regal Sol Empire, the purple-black skies covered in a blanket of stars and the bright crescent moon above. Staring up at the starry night was a slim lavender cat girl with a white muzzle, peached coloured ear canals and a red gem on her forehead that had a small golden crown placed where the gem was.

Her four plumes of hair were held up in a red hair tie and she wore a purple tailcoat with a rose trim going down from her torso to the bottom of her coat with gold shoulder pads, connecting to a collar around her neck that also had a red gem at the center. She also wore white gloves, leggings, purple-pinkish fluffy cuffs on her wrists and ankles as well as high-heeled rose ankle boots.

Blaze the Cat, a lifelong friend of Sonic, had resumed her royal duties after aiding her friends from the Chaos Dimension defeat Metal Sonic a few weeks back. Fortunately, the castle or village wasn’t attacked by her own egg-shaped arch-nemesis or a band of pirates during her trip to Sonic’s World. 

Blaze heard the bedroom door open as a grey-furred koala wearing a long blue hat, a vest, long slacks and brown shoes walked in. He took off his hat before bowing down to the princess.

“I come with the evening security report, Your Hig– I mean, Princess Blaze,” The koala announced, quickly catching himself before he said that dreaded word.

“Proceed, Gardon,” Blaze responded.

“There’s nothing to report at all. All is peaceful.” Gardon reported.

“Excellent. It’s nice to see that everything hasn’t been under attack by a certain someone while I was away…” 

“We haven’t heard so much as a peep from… you-know-who. But you know how devious Eggman Nega is, Princess Blaze.”

“I’m aware, Gardon…” Blaze glanced down at the railing, her hand gripping it tightly, “Seeing the destruction Eggman caused to Sonic’s world in his acquisition of Mobius made me realise that we cannot afford to be careless if Eggman Nega plans to launch an all-out attack against the Imperial Palace or other locations. While Eggman is a dubious foe in light of his recent events, not even he holds a candle to what Nega is capable of.”

“Then perhaps it would be an appropriate time to discuss preparations for the Knights Selection Exam that will occur in a few months time?” The royal guard suggested.

The pyrokinetic princess gave a nod. “Ah yes. I’ve already had one of the guards prepare the leaflets for the upcoming event. We should expect many strong combatants from various kingdoms to arrive at the palace soon. That means—”

“Making sure the castle is decorated, the gardens are tended to, checking the catering, testing the food, heightening security, confirming the guest list and the participants list as well as making sure that the medical staff is on standby.” Gardon recited without missing a beat. 

“Exactly. Thank you, Gardon. Is there anything else of note?”

“Marine has written you a letter regarding her latest adventure on the sea, Princess Blaze. She’s currently doing well… while making sure to stay out of trouble.”

Blaze’s lips curled into a heartwarming smile. “I’ll be sure to write back to her in the morning. If that is all, then that may be your report for many nights to come.”

SHA-BOOM!!!!

The ground quaked with a mighty explosion, startling Blaze and Gardon out of their pleasant conversation. The former immediately became serious, rushing out of her palace with her personal guard following behind with his sword at the ready. Blaze was prepared for the worse, but what she wasn’t prepared for was lying unconscious within a smoldering crater.

It… it can’t be…! There’s no way…! It’s…

“Sonic the Hedgehog?!” Came the outcry of the Sol Princess.

[News Broadcast]

Chaos Dimension - Mobius

“Good evening, everyone! This is the Mobius News Network!” Tal spoke with renewed optimism, “I’m Tal!”

“And I’m Tilly! And today, we have some uplifting news this evening!” Tilly tittered, “People around Mobius have since been cured of the Metal Virus after Sonic the Hedgehog and his allies managed to destroy it once and for all!”

“Eyewitnesses reported seeing three streaks of golden light soaring across the skies as huge globs of the Metal Virus were disposed of in large portals towards the sun. Seconds later, a bright light filled the sky then a green aurora appeared above Angel Island.” Tal continued on, “Following this explosion, the hero of Mobius; Sonic the Hedgehog, has been reported missing after he saved Mobius from the Metal Virus with Shadow and Silver the Hedgehog.”

Tilly fixed her glasses, proceeding with her report. “The one responsible for the Metal Virus; Dr Ivo Robotnik aka Eggman, has been apprehended by members of Team Dark, Shadow the Hedgehog and Rouge the bat. We now go live to our owl in the sky, Daniel, for further reports! Dan?”

The feed transitioned to the exterior of the GUN HQ where many soldiers were standing around the perimeter attempting to keep the crowd of civilians at bay. Standing outside of the HQ was Commander Abraham Tower with his hands behind his back stoically, ignoring the flashes of cameras and mobile phones. Right in front of the large building stood Daniel with his headphones over his ears and microphone in his hand.

“Thank you, Tal and Tilly! I’m currently standing outside the headquarters of the GUN where Commander Tower and many soldiers are awaiting the arrival of Dr. Eggman,” Dan elaborated. “Various Mobians and humans who had taken shelter within the GUN HQ have since been released after the Metal Virus’ destruction. As of now, GUN’s primary focus is capturing the remainder of the Deadly Six who have either gone into hiding or are causing chaos in different cities!”

The sound of rapidly whirring chopper blades caught the attention of many onlookers, the cameraman pointed the camera towards the descending GUN helicopter, the spinning propeller blades fluttering up dust and pebbles of asphalt. The helicopter’s engine spluttered to a stop, the door opening as Shadow and Rouge stepped out first alongside a handcuffed Dr. Eggman.

Soldiers aimed their weapons at the scientist, a message made clear as day if he were to try anything funny. The crowd of people hounded Eggman with expletives and yells of justified fury, not holding back a single thought as he walked by slowly.

“Monster!” One Mobian yelled.

“I lost my wife and child in the war, thanks to you!” A male human fumed.

“Hope you’re happy, Eggman! Our homes and businesses have been ruined because of your crimes!” Another Mobian shouted.

Eggman felt something wet splat against the side of his head, causing him to grunt. It didn’t hurt, but given the sogginess of the object, it had to have been a tomato thrown by one of the angry citizens. As the GUN Soldiers kept the tempestuous crowd at bay, Daniel swooped in to interview the doctor himself alongside the cameraman.

“Dr. Eggman! Can you comment on your actions regarding the war you caused on the planet six months ago? And what about the Metal Virus? What spurred you to cause a global epidemic that infected millions across Mobius?” The news owl interrogated.

Eggman let out a drained sigh. While he’d normally be up for plastering his face all across the screens of Mobius, the scientist clearly wasn’t in the mood to be hounded by the press.

“I’m not in the mood for questions, right now…” He tiredly responded.

Daniel didn’t back down from his questioning. “Really? Are you officially stating that you aren’t taking responsibility for your previous and current actions? And who else were you working with when you manufactured and distributed the Metal Virus all across Mobius?”

“I have no comment… Now please, go away…”

Eggman continued his walk of shame into the GUN HQ, facing more jeers and curses from the crowd of humans and Mobians. Fortunately or unfortunately for him, Rouge decided to stay behind outside and answer any questions Daniel had for the news station about the doctor’s actions. 

Inside the base, Eggman was led down a large hallway filled with various prison cells by Topaz and two Mobian GUN soldiers. His extravagant red coat, black pants and boots were replaced with a dingy orange prisoner jumpsuit and off-white shoes. Eggman felt his wrists chaff from the tightness of the steel handcuffs, the chains jingling audibly in his ears. 

The robotist hoped he would finally get some form of peace and quiet after suffering a verbal lashing from the crowd outside. Sadly, criminals aren’t the quiet type nor are they peaceful when a new occupant arrives. Some crooks began mocking the doctor for getting arrested, others sung their praises to him while a select few expressed hatred towards him for all that he’s done.

“Quiet down, all of you! NOW!” Topaz’s loud commanding voice silenced the prisoners in their cells. 

After a long trek down the hall, they arrived at a specially designed jail cell for the doctor. The door’s lock automatically unlocked itself and opened, revealing the interior; a standard bed, a toilet and a sink. 

“Well… this is rather unflattering,” Eggman grumbled indignately.

Topaz unlocked his cuffs with a huff, directing him into the cell. “For someone like you, I see it as poetic justice given how you kept Sonic in a cell for six months.”

Eggman stepped inside his cell, the door shutting and locking automatically behind him. The sandy blond GUN soldier glanced down at her fellow workers.

“Keep his cell guarded. Knowing Eggman, he’ll definitely have something up his sleeve to try and escape,” She told them firmly.

The two Mobian soldiers saluted, “Yes, ma’am!”

[Lost and Destroyed - Cheshyre]

Topaz walked away, the two Mobians standing in front of Eggman’s cell with their guns/wispons in hand. Sitting on his bed — the man who terrorised Mobius for several years, the greatest scientific genius in the world, the mighty Dr. Eggman — was now imprisoned with the rest of the criminal scum of the underworld.

And by the organisation he had defeated months prior, no less…

Eggman sat there silently, alone with his own thoughts. Memories of Mobius being raised to the ground in his successful takeover of the planet flashed within his mind – he had everything; the world at his fingertips, a powerful minion in the form of Infinite and his arch-nemesis defeated and locked away for six months. 

And then… it was all taken away from his grasp. Infinite, his control over the world and even his memories after his previous defeat at the hands of Sonic and his meddlesome allies. 

“...Even after all I did to the world for six months, those villagers at Windmill Village still took me in when I wasn’t myself…” Eggman sighed, remembering the kindness he was given, “They offered me such hospitality and what do I do in return once I’m back to normal? …I cover their village in Metal Virus and turn them into mindless Zombots. They didn’t deserve that…”

Charles’ exact words echoed in his head, “And that’s exactly the problem here! You don’t think your plans through or how they affect the people around you!”

“...As much as I loathe to admit this, but Charles was right,” Eggman growled guiltily, “I didn’t foresee the consequences of the Metal Virus becoming unstable… nor did I think to create a vaccine if things were to go south like me possibly getting infected…”

The more he thought about it, the more the scientist realised that he should’ve listened to Starline. Even if he made things worse by bringing the Deadly Six on his ship, the platypus had more foresight than even himself.

Eggman’s guilt quickly shifted to that of confidence. “No matter. Sonic is still MIA, so that means I still have a plan for those Restoration fools! Hopefully Metal Sonic still has Omega’s head and if so, then I won’t be staying here for much longer…” 

Rubbing his hands, Eggman chuckled sinisterly to himself…

[Bingo - Wii Party]

Spiral Hill Village

“YAHOOOOOOO!!!!”

*POP!!* *POP!!* *POP!!*

Things were certainly lively at Spiral Hill Village as a party was being thrown in celebration of the Metal Virus’ destruction and Eggman’s imprisonment. Tangle had invited everyone to her village for the momentous occasion while Felicia and Uncle Chuck cooked up some delicious food for people to enjoy. There were people dancing, cheering and overall, having a great time!

“Hmph! Looks like the party started without me!” Knuckles joked, landing on the ground.

“Knuckles!” Amy shouted happily, running up to hug him. She broke the hug before looking at him in confusion. “Shouldn’t you be guarding the Master Emerald on Angel Island?”

“Don’t worry, Amy. The Master Emerald’s been moved to the Hidden Palace, so nobody can snatch it.” Knuckles reassured. “Besides, with Eggman in jail, there’s no way I’m missing this!”

Tangle ran up to the guardian. “Right on time, Knuckles! Come take a load off and enjoy yourself!”

“Tangle’s right, Knuckles! It’s not everyday we get to celebrate like this!” Tails gave a toothy smile.

“Why not? I’ve been on the island a little too long, time to have some fun and spend some time with my friends!” The echidna laughed as he joined everyone.

Nash walked around Spiral Hill Village with a Chaos Cola in hand, a joyful grin on his face as he bobbed his head to the music. He passed by many denizens of Spiral Hill, many of whom were in high spirits after nearly suffering the effects of the Metal Virus. He heard Jet, the Leader of the Babylon Rogues, green with envy over not having a sculpture of his own.

He let out a solemn sigh despite his upbeat mood. ‘I wish Sonic was here to see how happy everyone is…’

A familiar tuft of white wool caught the teenage black sheep’s attention, making him look over. There was Lanolin, dressed in a sleeveless green shirt, an orange dress, long green socks and brown shoes, wandering over to the table to grab a Chaos Cola: X-Treme Berry Blazzzt Limited Edition.

Smiling, Nash walked up to the sheep girl. “Hey Lanolin! Enjoying the party?”

“Yes, it’s pretty nice. Tangle really went all out here, didn’t she?” Lanolin replied, holding her drink.

“Given how we’ve managed to overcome the Metal Virus and what happened with Eggman, I’d say she more than deserves to go all out here!” The dreadheaded sheep chuckled. 

The white sheep giggled to herself, popping the cap off on her Chaos Cola and took a sip of it. The fizzy sweetness of the drink caused her taste buds to jump about in joy.

“Any updates on your town, Riverside?” Nash asked, drinking his own Chaos Cola.

Lanolin pulled the drink from her lips. “It’s currently in a state of disrepair… but it will be rebuilt after a few days. I just hope everyone was evacuated when the Metal Virus occurred…” She frowned.

“...I’m… I’m sure everyone in your hometown made it out okay. I’m sure GUN and everyone here in the Restoration was thorough in their evacuation efforts.” Nash rationalised in an attempt to lift his friend’s spirits.

Lanolin exhaled deeply through her nose, giving a small nod in return. She knew that some people would’ve gotten infected, but anyone there that she cared about must’ve been rescued safely.

“What about your town, Nash? Neo Green Hill?” She questioned.

“From what my mom told me when she got off the phone with my dad, Neo Green Hill was subjected to the Metal Virus as well and it was also wrecked. Fortunately, it’s also in the process of being fixed up, so we’ll be back home in a few days.” Nash explained.

“That’s good to hear. I’ll be honest with you; I thought we were almost done back there on Angel Island when all the Zombots and Zavok arrived… Especially when I protected you from that Alpha Zombot.”

“Heh… We kinda cut it a little close there, didn’t we? If my powers hadn’t kicked in when it did or if Sonic, Shadow and Silver didn’t use the Chaos Emeralds, we’d all be Zombots by now.”

Lanolin looked up at the sky with a melancholic smile. “...I wish Sonic was here to see this… wherever he is.”

“He’d love the fact that we’re all alive and well, having the time of our lives…” Nash added, giving his own smile. 

[Let’s Groove - Earth, Wind & Fire]

The DJ switched the music to something extremely upbeat, causing everyone to run towards the centre of town in order to vibe to the tunes. Vector, feeling the beat of the song, pulled out a microphone from… somewhere in preparation. 

“Oooooooh! This is a good one!!” Nash exclaimed excitedly, glancing back at Lanolin, “You know how to dance, Lanolin?”

Lanolin shrank back nervously, her muzzle turning crimson. “Uhm… N-Not really…? I feel like I’d embarrass myself in front of everyone if I did…”

“It’ll be okay, Lanolin. It’s just for fun. Don’t think, just… feel the music,” Nash offered a hand to her. 

With some hesitance, Lanolin took his hand with a timid smile and the two headed towards the centre of Spiral Hill. Switching on the mic, Vector began to sing the iconic song.

“Let’s groove tonight / Share the spice of life / Baby, slice it right / We're gonna groove tonight!”

Everyone started dancing to the vibrant music, allowing their bodies to flow with the beat. Tails and Cream did a waltzing duet in the air, both laughing the whole time. Amy, Rouge and Jewel were also engaged in the music, dancing along with one another. Knuckles, Shadow and Espio merely watched everyone have fun, bopping their heads to the catchy beat while Charmy flew about in the air, dancing about happily.

Being the more reserved of the two, Whisper opted not to dance out of shyness, though Tangle wasn’t gonna let her canine bestie miss out on the fun without busting a few moves. 

Lanolin danced a bit awkwardly, the shame still present on her features. But she pushed past it to allow herself to get lost in the vibe, just as Nash performed a clean slide up to the white sheep and hit her with a fingergun. 

“Let this groove get you to move / It's allllright, alright, alllllright / Let this groove set in your shoes

So stand up, alright, alllllright!”

Nash and Lanolin began dancing in perfect sync, both reading each other’s tempo beat for beat. Both teens touched arms rhythmically, connected soles, tapping elbows as Nash grabbed Lanolin by her arm, pulled her underneath his legs where she flipped and landed on her feet as the two bumped chests. 

“Gonna tell ya what you can do / With my love, allllright / Let you know, girl, you're looking good / You're outta sight, allllllright!”

They then swapped places in their duet, continuing to bust some moves. Nash swung his arms and upper body while bending his knees as Lanolin swung her arms and hips in a rhythm, still in perfect unison with each other.

“WOOOOO!!! That’s it, baby!” Felicia cheered happily.

“Just moooooooove yourself and gliiiiiiiiide like a 747 / And looooose yourself in the skyyyyyyyy / Among the clouds, in the heaven, 'cause!”

Rouge flew up to Knuckles, batting her eyes at him for a dance. Knuckles, at first, crossed his arms and looked away… until he relented and took the bat by the hands and the two began to waltz with one another. Tails twirled Cream in the air, the teenage rabbit girl giggling the whole while as Cheese mimicked the dance moves of everyone present. 

Even the Babylon Rogues joined in on the fun, Wave and Storm running up to dance with the rest. Jet stayed behind, still sulking over not getting the recognition he deserved… And while his face was sour, his body occasionally grooved to the music. 

“Let this groove light up your fuse / It's allllright, alright, alllllright, ooh-oh-oh / Let this groove set in your shoes / So stand up, alright, alllllright! / Let me tell ya what you can do / With my love, alright / Gotta let you know, girl, you're looking good / You're outta sight, allllllright!”

Vector continued with his musical prowess, “Just teeeeeeell the DJ / To plaaaaaaaay your favourite tune / Then you knooooooooow it's okay / What you fooooooound is happening now, oh!”

Throughout the groove session, Rouge noticed that Shadow was hanging back with a brooding frown on his face. She knew he wasn’t one for engaging with parties or celebrations, but the look on his face had her quite concerned. 

Rouge turned back to Knuckles. “Lemme take five, Knuckie~. Just need to check on Shadow for a moment.” 

“That’s fine with me,” Knuckles replied indifferently as Rouge walked over to Shadow.

“Not joining everyone in the dance?” She quipped with a hand on her hip.

Shadow shook his head silently, still staring up at the moonlit sky. Even while trying to keep his expression calm, Rouge read him like an open book.

“Thinking about Eggman?” She accurately guessed. 

The Ultimate Lifeform sighed. It was really that obvious, wasn’t it?

“...Yes. I know the Doctor isn’t going to remain in captivity for long. And I believe we’re celebrating too early.” Shadow stated with a cautious tone. “You know how crafty the Doctor is, Rouge.”

“I get where you’re coming from, Shadow, especially after what has transpired. But even if he does escape, everyone here can take care of him,” Rouge rationalises, “Plus, GUN will keep a close eye on him especially if he causes trouble again.”

Shadow huffed. “I still think we should’ve remained at GUN to keep an eye on him…”

“And miss this little get-together? Pfft, nah! Besides, the Commander has given us a vacation so I say we should enjoy the peace while we can. Come on, why not grab some food? I hear there’s some pizza here…~”

The Ultimate Lifeform perked at this, kicking up off the wall to head towards the food table. He hadn’t eaten since he was quarantined at GUN, and his body was craving some sustenance right about now. 

“You better come back here, hedgehog…” Shadow thought, snagging a plate and nabbing seven pizza slices much to the shock of some onlookers.

G.U.N Headquarters

Prisoner Unit

Two hours had passed since Eggman’s incarceration and things had seemed particularly quiet in his cell. The guards keeping watch half-expected the scientist to be bemoaning about his latest defeat and cursing Sonic’s name to the high heavens.

But instead, there was silence.

Scarce… Ominous… silence.

One of the soldiers gestured to the door with his head. “What do you think he’s doing in there?”

“I don’t know? Probably moping about his latest defeat or something?” The second guard theorised.

“Wouldn’t he be much louder if he was?”

“Maybe. Still though, there’s no way Eggman’s coming out of that cell after all that he’s done to Mobius. Lost a few friends because of him…” 

“I hear ya… My uncle was among the casualties in the war six months ago…”

The second guard frowned sympathetically. “Sorry for your loss, man…”

“Thank you. My condolences for your friends.” The first guard replied, “Hey, when we’re free from guard duty, do you want to grab some drinks? I know a place down in Station Square that sells good drinks!”

The second guard gave a nod of confirmation. “Sure. Could use some fresh air anyways.”

Inside his jail cell, Eggman sat patiently on the bed tapping all five fingers together. It wouldn’t be long now… after two solid hours of biding his time, his patience would soon be rewarded shortly.

The room filled with a bright flash of light as a figure with glowing red eyes stood in front of him. Eggman flashed his usual, sinister smile at the figure.

“I knew you’d come for me,” He spoke with proud glee, “Have you started preparations already?”

The figure nodded in response.

“Attaboy…! Now let’s get out of this dump before those fools notice something is up.” Eggman says with quick urgency.

The figure, revealed to be none other than Metal Sonic, grabbed a hold of his creator’s hand and disappeared with him using Chaos Control. 

—

Eggman’s Secret Base

Cubot was currently observing E-123 Omega hovering above the air inside a machine that was built ahead of time while Orbot was typing on one of the computers, getting a feed on the Restoration partying at Spiral Hill.

“HM, IT SEEMS THAT EVERYONE THERE IS HAVING FUN,” Orbot mused. 

Cubot perked from his current task. “REALLY? ARE THEY DOING THE MACARENA?”

“NO,” Orbot says, “BUT THINGS CERTAINLY ARE LIVELY AT SPIRAL HILL, I’LL SAY THAT.”

“WE SHOULD THROW OUR OWN PARTY!”

“...WHY WOULD WE DO THAT, CUBOT?”

“IF THE MOBIANS ARE ALLOWED TO HAVE A PARTY, WHY SHOULDN’T WE?”

Orbot facepalmed while shaking his head, deciding to continue observing the Mobians. A distortion of space would suddenly occur within the room, causing both robots to glance over. Eggman and Metal Sonic stood, the former dusting off the orange jumpsuit he was wearing.

“DOCTOR! WELCOME BACK!” The red circular bot greeted Eggman warmly. “I SEE YOUR STAY AT G.U.N HAS BEEN CUT SHORT.”

“DID YOU TRY ANY OF THE PRISON FOOD?” The cube robot dimwittedly asked.

“Yes and no,” Eggman answered briefly, “What’s the status of Omega?”

“METAL HAS MANAGED TO PROVIDE HIM WITH HIS BODY BACK AMONG OTHER CAPABILITIES. WE WERE JUST WAITING FOR YOU TO RETURN SO YOU CAN DO THE REST.”

“Excellent, I’m going to change out of these drab prison garbs, then we’ll spring our attack on those whelps in Spiral Hill Village!” 

Eggman turned and walked away with his hands behind his back, but Orbot quickly flew over to him.

“W-WAIT, DOCTOR! SHOULDN’T WE ADD ANY FINISHING TOUCHES ON OMEGA BEFORE WE STRIKE?” He advised.

“Without Sonic there, it’s best to seize the opportunity now rather than later…” Eggman continued to walk away, but stopped before turning his head at Orbot. “Oh and if the files for the Metal Virus are still on my computer… erase them.” 

Orbot blinked, relatively confused by such a command from his creator but acquiesced.

Spiral Hill Village

Uproarious laughter came from both Nash and Lanolin as they stood by a table, drinking some more Chaos Cola after dancing with the whole town. 

“See? All you had to do was just let loose and have fun!” Nash grinned.

“I suppose you’re right!” Lanolin bubbled, “You had some good moves out there, Nash!”

The black sheep rubbed the back of his head with an embarrassed chuckle. “Heh… My mom and dad both taught me a few things...”

“Either way, I’m having a good time! Though I am a little hungry after all that dancing.”

“Let’s grab something to eat! My mom and Professor Charles made a lot for everyone. I kinda want to try out some of his chili dogs, I hear they taste good!”

“Sure! Let’s–!”

CRASH!!!

[Eggmanland - Sonic Unleashed]

The sounds of exultation were replaced with screams of terror as a building crumbled to dust from a large object crashing into it. Frightened footsteps pounded into the ground as the heroes turned to the source of the destruction. Towering over the heroes was a MASSIVE robot that bore a striking resemblance to Omega with a cockpit on the top of its head. In the center of the machine’s body was Omega himself, used as a power core.

“Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! The life of the party’s here!” Boomed a shockingly familiar voice. “And I’ll be ending all of yours!” 

“You’ve gotta be kiddin’ me!” Tangle blinked in shock.

“It can’t be…!” Lanolin let out.

Nash growled. “Eggman!”

“But-but-but-but… I thought he was locked at G.U.N!” Knuckles spluttered out.

“That’s what I thought too!” Charles turned to Shadow and Rouge, “You both took him to G.U.N, didn’t you?!”

Shadow clenched his fists. “Damn it! I knew he would escape from captivity! We should’ve remained at G.U.N to oversee him, Rouge!”

“Cool it, Shadow. We all can handle this just like before and free Omega from Eggman’s grasp.” Rouge says while flexing her wings. 

Eggman’s pompous laugh echoed throughout the crackling flames. “Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho! I think not, Rouge! I don’t intend on spending the rest of my days locked up in G.U.N’s prison unit! With you all gathered here in one place, it makes destroying you all so much easier!”

“Amy. Orders?” Whisper asked, her mask on and Wispon at the ready.

“I’m not leading the Restoration anymore. I passed it off to Jewel!” Amy revealed nervously.

Whisper turned to Jewel at that. “Jewel. Orders?”

“I DON’T KNOW!” The panicked beetle shouted while holding her head in despair. “I’m just handling the paperwork! You’re all the hero-types!”

[Egg Dragon (Silent Dream’s 2023 Remix)] 

Uncle Chuck placed a hand on Jewel’s shoulder with a gentle smile. “Calm down, Jewel. Allow me and Vector to take over for you.” He turned to the others with an authoritative gaze. “All right, everyone! It’s time for one last fight against Eggman! We’re going to need everyone’s help if we’re going to defeat him!”

“Whoever cannot fight, keep the civilians safe! But the rest of you, you’re with us to take on that mecha!” Vector added.

Tails summoned his arm cannon with a serious expression, Amy pulled out her hammer while Knuckles beat his fists together, entering a fighting stance. Cream and Cheese put on their bravest faces, Gemerl activated his jet thrusters on his back, Shadow fixed his gloves while Rouge flew beside him with her bombs at the ready.

Espio pulled out his Kunais, Charmy flapped his wings with a determined frown. Tangle brought up her dukes as she gave Whisper a confident smirk, the latter cocking her Variable Wispon while nodding in agreement to her best friend. Lanolin felt her heart slightly pound with fear until Nash stepped up to her, placing a hand on her shoulder as he handed her a Hover Wispon.

She took the weapon, feeling a sense of bravery welling up inside her as she nodded at him with a look of resolve. Nash channeled his courage powers, his right eye emitting flaming entrails as his orange aura exploded out of his body.

Ladies and gentleman, the final showdown against GIGA OMEGA had begun!

The Restoration charged at the imposing mecha with the intent to defeat the Doctor and save Spiral Hill from an inevitable fate of destruction. The flight team consisting of Tails, Cream, Cheese, Charmy, Rouge and Gemerl flew with impressive speeds at the cockpit where Eggman was stationed – The two tailed fox taking aim and firing out energy balls at Eggman while Cream tossed Cheese like a ball as the little Chao curled into a Spin Attack, much like Sonic, to ram into Giga Omega.

Rouge evaded the wide swinging arms of the colossal robot of her teammate, elegantly twisting her body mid-flight to land a strong kick at the tree-trunk sized arm. Using the momentum of her spin, Rouge tossed one of her bombs at Charmy who bicycle-kicked it towards the top of Eggman’s cockpit.

Gemerl shot homing missiles out of his back at Giga Omega’s head to break the glass, though the lumbering machine raised its arm to swat away the missiles, causing them to veer off and explode in the air. One of the machine guns took aim at Cream and Cheese in an attempt to shoot them down, but Gemerl’s reaction time was faster, catching the rabbit girl and her Chao before they had more holes in them like swiss cheese.

In a rage, the black and yellow Gizoid flew at Giga Omega. “YOU WILL NOT MENACE CREAM ANY FURTHER!”

“Gemerl! Be careful!” Cream shouted.

Eggman grinned, pressing a button in his cockpit. Suddenly, cyan cables ensnared Gemerl’s limbs, zapping and pulling him into the massive mecha! Giga Omega surged with immense power after assimilating Gemerl within itself, much to the shock of the Restoration.

The doctor cackled loudly. “That’s two wayward creations back under my control! Now I have twice the combat coding and processing power – A quadruple power-up overall! So thanks for the upgrade!”

To show his gratitude (or lack thereof), Eggman peppered Spiral Hill Village with as MUCH firepower as possible. Missiles, machine gunfire, laser beams, everything! The Restoration acted fast, the airborne team taking to the air to avoid getting gunned down while the ground team protected the civilians from getting caught in the crossfire.

Giga Omega slammed its humongous arm down at the heroes to crush them, but Knuckles and Vector held back the arm with their combined strength. Shadow skated towards the left leg, curling into a ball to Homing Attack the knee, causing the machine to buckle slightly. Espio appeared out of camouflage to toss a Kunai towards the left leg joint of Giga Omega, the weapon exploding the moment it made contact.

Whisper and Lanolin took aim at the right knee joint with their respective Wispons, opening fire with a concussive shockwave/rocket powered projectile that damaged the joint in the process. With both legs damaged, Giga Omega fell to its knees, allowing Knuckles and Vector to push the arm up and deliver a duel uppercut to the torso! 

Tails pulled a Chu2 Bot out from his… well, tails and tossed it at Giga Omega, the small contraption releasing a burst of electromagnetic energy that shocked the large robot, bolts of energy dancing around it. Eggman noticed his large machine was starting to malfunction, evident by the flashing lights on screen.

“N-No! The controls won’t respond!” He cried out.

Tails breathed a sigh of relief. “That brought us some time! Now to free Gemerl and Omega with a little program…!”

The fox pulled out a yellow tablet, his Miles Electric, and got to work on developing something. Meanwhile, Nash and Tangle took advantage of the lagging machine almost immediately. 

“I’ll take care of one of its machine guns! You can handle the missiles or the laser beam, Nash!” The athletic lemur declared, flexing her long tail.

Nash clenched his fists with a frown. “For me to hit the laser cannon, I’m gonna need to jump up high and get a clear shot at it!”

“Then I’m your girl for that!” Tangle pointed her thumb into her chest proudly. 

She latched out her long tail at the machine gun, wrapping her tail around it. Tangle then ran towards Whisper and Lanolin where they grabbed a hold of her waist and end of her tail respectively and pulled, stretching it.

Nash ran towards the stretched out appendage. “Let’s do this!” His trainers pressed against it hard, pulling him back before catapulting him straight into the air. 

Whisper and Lanolin grunted, pulling on Tangle’s waist and tail as hard as they could. The sounds of tearing metal from Giga Omega showed their efforts weren’t in vain. Eggman stopped fiddling with the buttons once he heard the machine gun getting torn off by Tangle, Whisper and Lanolin.

“Hey! W-Wait! Stop, you three! No, this is a delicate machine!!” He choked out.

Nash flew towards Giga Omega’s centre cannon with his right fist reeled back, wispy orange energy flowing around it. “Courage… STRIKE!” 

KA-BOOM!!!!

The black sheep slugged Giga Omega’s frontal cannon, resulting in a huge explosion of emotional energy. At the same time, Tangle managed to tear off one of the rotary cannons with Whisper and Lanolin’s assistance. Giga Omega staggered back, sparks shooting out of its damaged frontal cannon and missing pieces of its machine gun. 

Eggman slammed his fists on the control panel, his face flushed with rage. Now look at what these four brats have done to his precious mecha!

“I won’t let some teenage upstarts get the best of me like that!” He fumed.

Pressing a button, the multi-missile launcher opened up and expelled a school of missiles aimed at the four teens. Nash, Lanolin, Tangle and Whisper all scattered from where they were standing, avoiding several explosions from the impacting projectiles. The not-so-lippy lupine and dreadheaded sheep threw out their own shots in the form of laser beams and energy blasts that collided with the missiles, creating a light show in the air.

Rouge flew over to Tails who was currently showing Uncle Chuck something on his Miles Electric device.

“Everyone’s distracting Eggman. Got a plan, sweetie?” She asked.

“I’ve written some code that should interfere with that thing’s systems and eject Gemerl, but there’s no wireless receiver!” Tails explained.

Uncle Chuck stroked his mustache thoughtfully. “Seems that Ivo must’ve anticipated that you’d hack into his new machine, Tails. You’ll have to connect it into a port manually.” 

“Leave that part to me, hun!” Rouge cracked her knuckles, “Tell me when you’re ready to go!”

“Look for an access panel on the back in three… two… one… GO!”

The teenage genius and bat agent flew around to the back of Giga Omega, who was still battling the rest of the heroes. Rouge and Tails latched onto the back of the robot, the former shifting open a hatch to reveal the access panel in plain view. 

“Guess the Doctor didn’t have time to refine this thing while putting it together in a hurry, given his imprisonment.” Rouge mused to herself. 

Tails nodded to the bat in thanks, connecting the cable into the USB port. “Now to ruin Eggman’s night!”

Within seconds, the code Tails had created began to work its magic on the towering machine’s systems, discharging blue energy as Gemerl was thrown out of its grasp and caught in the caring arms of Cream and Charmy. 

“You okay, buddy?” The concerned teenage bee asked.

“SySteM… ReBoOT… InItIaTeD…” Gemerl shuddered out in a deep, pixelated voice.

“Gemerl’s been freed! Everyone, hit the robot with everything you’ve got while Ivo’s distracted!” Charles commanded.

“Yes, sir!” The Restoration responded with vigour, springing back into battle.

The heroes of Mobius struck hard and fast, not holding back for even a second against Giga Omega. Punches to the large arms, kicks to the lower legs, hammer strikes to the knee joints, long appendages wrapped around the leg joint, kunais and shurikens thrown to the rotary cannons, Wispon fire at the upper body, Chaos attacks on the torso, Chao charges at the side of the body, sharp teeth chomping into circuitry, emotional energy attacks towards the arms! 

The relentless attacks didn’t let up for a second, even as Eggman pulled out a specially-designed gun that fired deadly lasers at the heroes. An exhaustive effort on everyone’s part, but results were beginning to show on Giga Omega’s body. 

It was missing part of its right forearm, its main body (except Omega) had deep cracks in its steely body, deep scrapes decorated its form and it was missing a lot of its weapons, evident by sparks shooting out. But as per Eggman, he had one more trick left up his sleeve… or in this case, destroyed forearm.

A hidden laser rifle! 

“You all put up a decent fight, but it’s time to raze you and this village to the ground!” Eggman cackles darkly as the cannon charges up a deadly laser.

Drained as he was from fighting Giga Omega as much as the next person, Nash wasn’t about to let his mother or anyone here die from the impending laser beam. In a move of both courage and recklessness, Nash ran towards Giga Omega as it fired its energy blast and with a strong roar of desperation, the young sheep formed a massive orange barrier in front of Spiral Hill. 

Eggman’s laser collided with Nash’s barrier, and a massive power struggle of good and evil began. Sparks of energy shooting out in all directions as everyone watched with baited breath on if Nash’s shield would hold up.

“Not bad, boy…!” The rotund robotist complimented in a mocking tone, “Your abilities are certainly a marvel to behold, but you made a risky decision to stop the attack head on. Why don’t we increase the power by… oh, I don’t know? 25%?”

Pressing a button, the laser’s size and power increased much to Eggman’s twisted glee. Nash broke out in a cold sweat, focusing all his efforts into keeping his shield up. The backlash of the energy beam was starting to affect him with his feet dragging against the concrete. Cracks began to appear around the orange barrier, much to the concern of everyone present.

“I’m gonna pee my pants if that beam breaks apart Nash's shield!” Charmy shrieks out fearfully.

“Don’t think like that, Charmy!” Vector barks, “The kid will hold out! We all will!”

Everyone else began to either prepare themselves to save Nash or began praying silently for something, anything to save them from this disaster!

[His World (Remix)- Retrospecter]

*Ding!*

BWOOSH!!!

From the skies above, a torrent of flames crashed down in front of the power struggle, dispelling the laser and Nash’s shield! Within the inferno, a spiky figure glanced up at Giga Omega, a familiar green glint peering out of the streams of orange and yellow fires. 

Raising their right hand up to their left shoulder, blue wind particles gathered around their fist before they swung it out, kicking up a powerful gust of air that put out the fires in Spiral Hill Village!

Everyone covered themselves from the immense winds blowing in all directions before it eventually settled, revealing the person standing in the centre of town.

“Hey guys. Miss me?” Sonic asked, his cocky grin as present as ever.

Eggman’s eyes bulged out of his head in fright. “No…! Not you!”

Smirking confidently, Sonic vanished from everyone’s view. Eggman’s Giga Omega was struck from all sides repeatedly by streaks of blue, severely damaging it and freeing Omega from its main torso. Tasting his first glimpse at freedom, Omega unleashed his pent-up wrath in the form of plasma fire upon his larger doppelganger, destroying it!

Eggman flew out of the wreckage in his Egg Mobile, growling. “Enjoy your victory while you can! I’ll be back with another sinister plot that will be unbeatable! Till next time, you wretched hedgehog!”

Sonic crossed his arms with a smirk as the Egg Mobile grew smaller and smaller from view. “I’ll be waiting for ya, Egghead. Rinse and repeat.”

The hedgehog nearly fell over from the tackle hug an elated Amy gave him. Tails was the next to follow before the others followed suit in a group hug. 

Knuckles crossed his arms with a smirk. “Guess ya back after all…!”

“Hmph…! Welcome back, faker…” Shadow scoffed with a light grin.

—

Celebrations in Spiral Hill Village eventually resumed after cleaning up the mess from Eggman’s attack for an hour. Nash and Lanolin sat down near a table, chowing down on some delicious chili dogs. 

“Today certainly has been eventful, huh?” Nash says, swallowing his food.

Lanolin nodded. “You said it. Wasn’t expecting Eggman to show up when he did, but… at least we fended him off.”

“I doubt he’ll be trying anything for a while… but you know how Eggman is.”

“Unfortunately, he’s persistent…” Blue eyes rolled over before panning over to her knees. Lanolin sighed deeply. “You know… today’s events really showed me just… how helpless I was, even when I was doing my best to help the Restoration out. And if it wasn’t for everyone here… I don’t think we would be here right now…”

“Seeing everyone, you included, continue to fight despite all the odds made me realise what I have to do moving forward.” Lanolin turned her body to Nash, her expression hard with conviction and resolve. “I’m going to become stronger so that I’ll never feel helpless as I was during the Metal Virus. And so I can help inspire other people to become braver too, just like how you and Sonic inspired me to act today, Nash.”

The black sheep stared back at the white sheep in awe after hearing her self-reflective speech. The look in her eyes clearly showed Lanolin was completely serious about this, especially after learning that Nash himself was one of two people that awakened this drive within her to become more courageous. 

And from that bit of determination, he knew that Lanolin could do this.

Nash placed a hand on her shoulder with a warm smile. “Well I say, that’s a good drive to have and I fully support it. And it’s a drive I’m gonna share with you since I also gotta train my powers, so I can protect the ones I love!” He held out his fist. “Let’s both be greater… together!”

Smirking, Lanolin fistbumped him. “Yeah!”

“You two did pretty well out there!”

The two sheep twisted their heads around to see Sonic walking up to them, placing a hand on his hip with a proud gaze in his green eyes.

“Even though things seemed tough, you both stuck it out til’ the end. You should feel proud of yourselves for hangin’ in there!” The hero praised the two youngsters. 

Nash and Lanolin felt a sense of pride well up within them, the former flashing an awkward smile while rubbing his muzzle with his finger. The latter’s muzzle turned a light shade of red, rubbing her arm in embarrassment.

“Uh, thanks Sonic…!” Nash murmured, not expecting such a compliment from the Hero of Mobius himself.

“T-Thank you…” Came Lanolin’s bashful reply.

“By the way, Nash. I wanted to ask ya somethin’,” Sonic continued, “Where in the world did you get one of the Chaos Emeralds from?”

Nash looked at Sonic quizzically for a moment. Then his eyes widened slightly, a memory recalling in his mind.

“Oh right! The yellow Chaos Emerald! It landed in my village two years ago when I found it on the beach. I thought someone had lost it so I took it to various jewel shops in order to see if someone would collect it. After I learned what it was, I kept the Chaos Emerald somewhere safe in my room in the off chance that you’d come and get it.” Nash explained.

The Blue Blur stared at Nash with an unreadable expression, taking the information in. This certainly explained why the Chaos Emeralds didn’t warp to Lost Hex or why Eggman didn’t have them in his possession after he took over the planet for six months. Guess his ego boost from his victory made him overlook that…

Nash’s shoulders sagged with guilt. “Unfortunately, the Chaos Emerald was taken away when my village was attacked by an Egg Hammer… I’m sorry for losing it…”

“No sweat! All that matters is that we used them to save the world and they’re not in Eggman’s grasp!” Sonic says with a wave of his hand.

The dreadhead breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that Sonic wasn’t upset with him for losing the Emerald.

“SONIC THE HEDGEHOOOOOOOOOOOOOG!!!!”

Nash and Lanolin nearly jumped outta their skins as did the rest of Spiral Hill Village from the booming scream that tore through the air. Sonic stood where he was, unfazed by the scream, though turned his head to the source with a quirked eyebrow.

Tangle the Lemur strutted out confidently from the crowd, her right arm raised in the air with an exaggerated motion before pointing straight at him with a challenging glare.

Sonic met her gaze with an intrigued stare. “Tangle?”

“I challenge you… to a Chili Dog Eating Contest!” Tangle boldly declared, eliciting murmurs from party-goers.

“Oh…? You’re approachin’ me on a Chili Dog Eating Contest?” The Blue Wind’s body turned to face the ringtailed lemur. “You’re gonna lose, Miss Lemur. Think you got what it takes to dethrone the Chili Dog King?”

“Oh I know I can…~” Tangle grinned.

“Uncle Chuck!”

Charles came running in with two large plates of chili dogs in hand. “No need, sonny! I already came prepared!” He placed them on the table in front of Sonic and Tangle who both took their seats.

Amy turned to Tails and Knuckles. “So, do you think Sonic’s going to keep his title of ‘Chili Dog King’?”

“He is. I don’t think anyone’s beating Sonic at a Chili Dog Eating Contest.” Tails replied with complete bias.

Knuckles shrugged. “I think Sonic’s got this in the bag, but I am interested in seeing how Tangle fares against him.”

“Been a while since we’ve seen one of these, huh Shadow?” Rouge mused, taking a sip of her drink. “Think Tangle’s gonna beat Sonic?”

“As if I’d care about some measly eating contest…” Shadow scoffed as he looked away, though he’d know Sonic would win regardless.

“I betcha Sonic will win this!” Vector proposed to Jet.

Jet pointed a finger at the croc with a grin. “I bet double that the lemur girl will wipe the floor with the hedgehog!”

“You’re on!” 

Espio looked over at Wave with a knowing glance. “Jet is going to regret his decision…”

“Ooooh, big time…” Wave agreed with a deadpan expression.

“Sonic’s totally gonna win this competition!” Charmy says with a cheeky grin.

“I think Lemur girl’s gonna beat Sonic at his own game!” Storm challenged. 

Jewel let out a sigh as she flew away. “...I’ll go get some water.” 

Nash and Lanolin blinked at the display, their eyes meeting for a moment before looking back at Sonic and Tangle getting themselves ready for the contest. 

“...So who do you think’s gonna win?” Nash asked.

“I think we both know who’s gonna win.” Lanolin shot Nash with a look and an obvious smirk on her lips.

The black sheep laughed.

“Are you both ready?” Charles questioned Sonic and Tangle, getting nods from the duo. “On your mark… get set… EAT!!”

Sonic and Tangle instantly got to work, devouring as many chili dogs as possible with incredible speed. Sonic practically gobbled up the chili-covered hot dogs, all of them going down his throat without needing to chew them. He even flipped a chili dog into the air and gulped it down with no effort. Astonishingly, Tangle wasn’t that far behind him, inhaling the chili dogs down like a vacuum cleaner. She used her tail to grab five and feed them to herself, swallowing them down afterwards.

“Wow! Look at them go!” Amy expressed in astonishment. “Never thought Tangle would eat that much!”

“Guess her athletic lifestyle makes her metabolism really high!” Tails pondered.

“Come on, Sonic! Defend your title!” Knuckles cheered.

“Go lemur girl! Make him eat your dust!” Jet barked competitively.

“Good luck, Mr. Sonic and Miss Tangle!” Cream giggled with unbiased nature as Cheese chirped with pom-poms in his hands.

The crowd cheered for the two eaters as they continued to chow down on every single chili dog on their respective plates. The more they ate, the less chili dogs that appeared on their plates. Sonic chomped down each chili dog in his hand with an eating sound from a retro arcade game while Tangle chewed each chili dog like she was in a game all about crafting things from scratch.

After a solid ten minutes of eating chili dogs, Sonic and Tangle were currently down to one last chili dog. The blue hedgehog’s torso looked relatively slim, his body’s metabolism burning through all the calories he’d just eaten. The lemur’s stomach, however, had protruded outwards slightly, her high metabolism had served her well, but it was starting to reach its limit despite her brave smile. 

“Sudden death, Tangle. If one of us can’t eat the last chili dog, the other wins!” Sonic says.

“Pfft! I got this in the– Urrup! –bag!” Tangle boasted after hiccuping a bit. 

Sonic watched his opponent grab the last chili dog on her plate and took one bite out of it. The crowd gasped as Tangle opened her mouth to take another bite… only for her to fall on her back with swirling purple eyes, the chili dog landing on her round stomach.

“...Can’t… eat… anymore…!” The lemur dizzily stated.

The table clattered from a sudden strike, the chili dog flying into the air and landing straight into Sonic’s mouth as he chewed it confidently and swallowed it. He grabbed the half-eaten chili dog on Tangle’s belly and gulped that down too.

[Level Clear - Sonic Adventure 2]

“YES!” Sonic fistbumped the air, having defended his title of Chili Dog King.

Everyone broke out in uproarious cheer and applause for the Blue Blur’s undefeated streak at another Chili Dog eating contest. Whisper walked up and helped Tangle to her feet, who let out a burp while groaning. 

“You did your best, Tangle…” Whisper says, hoping to eat her friend’s stomach ache.

Jewel came back with a glass of water, handing it to the Guardian Angel. “Here, this will hopefully help.”

“I’ll… try again next ti–ooooOOOooOOOUUUUURRRRRRWWWWWWPPPPPP!!!!!” The lemur belched loudly into the air, hiccuping afterwards.

Vector counted up the money he had earned from Jet over their little bet with a grin. The hawk screamed out in defeat before hanging his head in shame. Wave shook her head at him as she and Storm dragged their despondent leader away.

After having some more fun partying and having fun, everyone soon went back to their homes or stayed at Spiral Hill Village for the night. Sonic sat on top of a roof, watching the morning sun rise for a brand new day. He was back home, healthy and content that everything was back to normal.

Sonic stretched his arms and legs. ‘A new day means new adventures! So no more lying around…’ He then hopped down and raced off through the grassy field. “...Time to find out what comes next!”