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Somehow Metal destroyed his obedience chip, tricked Sage into upgrading him into his Neo form, and stole the six Chaos Emeralds Eggman had locked away before blowing up the base and the entire Egg Fleet. He fled to a series of islands in the southeastern hemisphere called the Etherbay Isles, ruled by various pangolin tribes. At least that’s what Eggman claimed when he showed up at Tails’s workshop in the middle of the night.
“Question,” Tails said, raising his hand.
“Ask whatever you need to ask,” Eggman said. “We’re not in school.”
“I don’t go to school. Someone blew up all the schools.”
Eggman scoffed. “No court of law ever proved those allegations.”
“Because you paid off the judge and threatened the jury,” Sonic said.
“Allegedly!” Cubot and Orbot said. “You have no proof of those events happening.”
Sonic rolled his eyes. “Whatever. What did you want to ask the totally innocent doctor, Tails?”
“Why would Metal bother destroying his obedience chip, but not his tracking chip?”
Eggman shrugged. “Who knows? He probably thinks he’s invincible in his Neo form.”
“That leads me to my next question. Sage?”
Sage materialized before them. “Yes?”
“How did Metal trick you?”
“He did not trick me. His logic was sound. Sonic has never beaten Metal in his Neo form without help.”
“Allegedly,” Sonic mumbled.
“Final question: Why Etherbay Isles?”
“Isn’t it obvious? There’s a Chaos Emerald there.”
“So he has all the Chaos Emeralds now?”
“If he did,” Sage said, “he would not still be there. The Etherbay Isles offer no tactical advantage.”
“A likely story!” Knuckles said as he punched the punching bag in the corner. “I smell a trap, and my nose doesn’t lie.”
Eggman pinched his nose. “I wish my nose did. Do you guys ever clean around here?”
Amy snapped her fingers. “Can we focus? Eggman, why should we believe you?”
“Because if you don’t, you’ll have an invincible, superpowered robot loose in the world, and who knows what he plans to do with all that power!”
“That’s a good point.”
“I’m telling you guys it’s a trap.”
“So what do you want us to do, huh?” Sonic asked. “Destroy Metal, so you can pick up the pieces and rebuild a ‘better’ version of him to kill me later? Why should we do that? Maybe he’s happy where he is.”
Eggman smiled. “He has six Chaos Emeralds— possibly seven— are you willing to take that chance?”
They stared each other down for what seemed like an eternity, the tension in the air palpable, until Sonic leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head, smirking. “’Course not. Lead the way, Egghead. You comin’ Knux?”
“Sure,” Knuckles answered, still punching the bag. “Just let me finish my set.”
“Excellent! Sage, warm up the Egg Runner. That’s the aircraft we used to escape. It’s a compact vehicle I originally designed to－”
“Wait!” Amy said. “Shouldn’t we get the others?”
“No time,” Sonic said, running out the door.
“I’ll send a message to the others,” Tails said. “I’ll tell them where we’re headed, and we can meet there.”
“Okay…”
The Egg Runner was fast, but it was not designed to weather a tropical storm. It barely survived its escape from Metal. Tails and Eggman made repairs while Sage piloted it, but once the storm hit, it completely fell apart. Sonic managed to grab Tails before the storm ripped them away from the others and everything went dark.
“Tails!” Sonic jumped out of bed as soon as he woke up. He swayed on his feet and almost fell to the floor, but a tan pangolin caught him and helped him get back on his feet.
A garland of fresh white flowers rested atop her head, and a pink conch shell hung around her neck. She wore a light brown tube top and a green full-length skirt with white flower patterns. Multi-colored beads adorned her wrists, tail, and bare feet.
He noticed a thorny tendril-like marking wrapped around her wrist that ended at another marking on her palm. The marking on her palm that looked like a leaf cradling a cluster of tiny, four-petaled flowers.
Her soft brown eyes expressed surprise and concern. “Adahi!” she said. “Manlå’la’ hao gi un dångkolon puenge. Suette hao sa’ låla’la’ hao.”
“Is Tails here?” Sonic asked as he sat back down on the bed. “He’s a yellow fox with two Tails.”
She nodded and then pointed to the bed across the room where the little fox rested. Sonic let out a sigh of relief.
“I’m Sonic, by the way. What’s your name?”
“Na’an hu si Kamia,” she answered.
“Sorry, I don’t understand.”
“My name is Kamia. I’m a nurse. My brothers found you and your friend on the beach and brought you here.”
“Thanks, Kamia!”
“You’re welcome.”
“So where are we?”
“You’re in Manglo.”
“Is that in the Etherbay Isles?”
She nodded. “That’s not our word for it; but yes, Manglo is in the heart of Etherbay Isles.”
At that moment, Tails stirred. He groaned as he slowly sat up. “Sonic?”
“Tails! You okay, bud?”
“I think so. Where are we?”
“Manglo,” Sonic answered. “Looks like we were able to reach our destination after all.”
“Where’s everyone else?”
“We only found the two of you,” Kamia said.
Sonic jumped out of bed, his dizziness gone. “I’m sure they’re fine. We need to find Metal before he finds that Chaos Emerald.”
“Wait!” Kamia said. “You should talk to the Manma’gas before you go anywhere. They’ll want to talk to you.”
“We’re kinda in a hurry.”
“Sonic, these people might know something about Metal.”
Sonic groaned. “Fine.”
Kamia escorted them out of the hut and led them through the village. The buildings were all pole-and-thatch structures woven with coconut leaves and bamboo, resting atop latte structures. A group of pangolins passed by carrying canoes to the shore. Other pangolins were busy patching holes and reinforcing doors and windows while children laughed as they passed a ball around. Most of the adults had the same marking Kamia had.
As they walked, Sonic heard some faint singing on the wind. He stopped to try to catch the words,
“What is this feeling that’s got my heart reeling
I’m scaling the walls and I’m pacing the floor
I know this desire that’s loaded with fire”
“Sonic?”
“Do you hear that?” Sonic asked.
“Hear what?”
Silence answered them.
“It stopped.” Sonic shook his head. “Or maybe I took too many bumps to the head. Come on, let’s go.”
They entered the house with the steepest roof. Statues of pangolins carrying spears guarded the doors outside. They climbed up the stairs and entered the building.
A group of elderly pangolins gathered around a table filled with steamed fish, red rice, taro chips, and various other dishes Sonic didn’t recognize but smelled delicious. His stomach growled loudly; Tails’s stomach answered him.
Kamia bowed her head. “Manma’gas, este si Sonic yan Tails.” She gestured to the peach colored pangolin wearing the purple dress cinched with seashells and flowers. “This is Kanta, the eldest daughter of Manglo.”
“Hafa adai,” Kanta said.
Kamia then gestured to the blue-grey colored pangolin wearing a simple grass skirt. “And this is Dandan, the eldest son of Manglo.”
“Hafa adai,” Dandan said.
“And this is— ”
“No need to go through the entire family tree,” Kanta said. “Can you not hear the songs of our guests’ stomachs? Come, eat.”
“Thanks!” Sonic said. “Looks great!”
Dandan and Kamia pulled out some chairs for Sonic and Tails. They sat down and dove right into the food. The Manma’gas talked amongst themselves, occasionally commenting on their guests’ appetite and quick recovery. Other pangolins also came by and gave Tails the devices they found when they rescued them.
When they had their fill, Kanta spoke. “What brings you Manglo? Surely you weren’t traveling through a tropical storm for fun.”
Sonic shrugged. “You’d be surprised. I’m a bit of a thrill seeker.”
“We’re looking for a dangerous weapon－”
“His name is Metal. He kind of looks like me but made of metal. I guess he’s taller than me, too. Wears a ridiculous butt cape. Seen him?”
The Manma’gas exchanged glances, murmuring to each other. Sonic tapped his fingers on his knees, waiting for their answer, while Tails fiddled with one of the salvaged devices. Tails gasped when it turned on.
“Look at this!” Tails said as he shoved the device in Sonic’s face. “According to this, there are eight Chaos signatures here.”
“Must be busted. There’s only seven Chaos Emeralds.”
“Yes, this other signature doesn’t exactly match the Chaos Emeralds, but it’s similar. It could be a variant. It’s powerful too. Almost as powerful as the Master Emerald. That must be what Metal is after.”
“If Metal is even here,” Sonic said. “Eggman probably made up the whole Metal escaping bit for some kind of elaborate trap, like Knuckles suggested.”
“Are you okay?”
“Never better. Why do you ask?”
“Well－”
“We know where Metal is,” Kanta said, interrupting Tails. “He’s trapped in the tunnels. These tunnels are special to our people. While he’s in there, our people can’t use it. If you were to remove him, we would be grateful.”
“You got it!” Sonic said, running out the door.
“Wait! We haven’t told you where the tunnels are!”
Tails shrugged apologetically. “He gets like that sometimes.”
Sonic returned a few moments later, rubbing the back of his head. “Um, where are the tunnels again?”
Kanta chuckled. “I’ll show you.”
Half an hour later, they stood at the mouth of the tunnel, staring at the inky black darkness within. Kanta told them all about the tunnels on the way over, but Sonic didn’t pay much attention to the lengthy explanation. He kept hearing snippets of the song he heard earlier. He strained his ears to listen, to make sense of the words, but he couldn’t quite understand. Now that they were standing in front of the tunnel, he could clearly hear,
“I will tear the blinds and let all this light
Wash out the hurt and lies I went through
I will wave goodbye to sobbing in the night
I’m gonna let my life start anew”
“Sonic, are you listening?” Tails asked.
“Huh? Yeah, yeah, the tunnels change and drain your energy. Don’t worry, I got this!”
“That’s not all! Sonic, wait!”
Sonic rushed inside without a second thought. Inky blackness immediately enveloped him, sending a chill throughout his body. He couldn’t see a thing, but he charged on ahead, unafraid. Then the ground gave way beneath him and fell down, down, down.
He plunged into frigid waters, sinking further into darkness. But he did not sink for long; his feet touched ground and he immediately pushed himself back up to the surface.
Soft pink light filled the cavern when he broke the surface. He saw a ledge he could climb onto and swam towards it. As he hoisted himself up onto the ledge, he heard a voice singing,
“Wow, look at that hair. Are you even aware?
That you look scared under there? What a square”
Sonic coughed. “Who’s there?”
"Over here!"
He looked across the cavern where Metal stood, holding onto to a stalagmite covered in pink, glowing crystals. Dark tendrils wrapped around his legs, attempting to pull him down.
As soon as he saw the tendrils, something snaked around his legs and pulled him down. He felt colder than before, weaker too. It was as if an iceberg was trying to crush him. His throat tingled; it wasn’t painful, but it still felt strange.
“What’s happening?” The words sliced the inside of his throat. He coughed and spat out blood. “What?”
“Did you waltz in here without knowing the rules first? Typical.” Metal shuddered as sparks danced across his body. He sang his next words, “Stuck with you, how unfair.”
Sonic scoffed before singing mockingly, “Well, golly-gee-wiz. You say that so often I wonder what your basis for comparison is.”
His throat soothed as he sang. The tendrils loosened their grip and the weight against him lessened as well. He understood what he had to do now. He had to sing in order to survive the tunnels.
Metal flew across the cavern towards Sonic like a bolt released from a ballista. But before he could even reach his mark, the tendrils pulled him down on him and slowed him to a halt. He landed in the shallow end of the water on his hands and knees.
“You having fun down there?” Sonic coughed as the surrounding tendrils tightened. “I meant, are you having fun down there?”
Metal shook his head. “You mock me? These tunnels will kill you if I don’t. There is no way out.” He shuddered again as sparks and smoke erupted from his body. He sang his next words,
“Everybody thinks you think I think that I’m better than you
When you know it might be true that I’m more clever than you
Wasting all your time, minding what is mine
Thinking that I’m thinking that I’m smarter than you
When you know the simple truth is I work harder than you”
Sonic jumped over to him and extended his hand. Metal attempted to slap his hand away, but the forces within the cavern slowed the motion to a harmless tap. Sonic smiled. “Looks like we can’t hurt each other.” He coughed. “We’re going to have to work together to get out of here!”
Metal slowly stood back up. “There is no way out.” He shuddered. “Look around you! The tunnels have changed already.”
Sonic looked around. The surrounding area had indeed changed while they were talk/singing. The chamber had longer had water. Smooth walls and glowing crystal columns surrounded them, and an entrance to another tunnel stood before them. Sonic walked over to get a closer look at the new tunnel, but all he could see was pitch black darkness.
Sonic turned back around and returned to Metal. He sang,
“Where you see walls, I see doors
Opportunity knocks, but it’s a sound you ignore
You won’t even try, I’ve been kicked to the floor
A million times and got up and was ready for more
Now what do I see, this simpering child in front of me
S’got a green-eyed beast called jealousy. It’s plain to see
Even in your own nightmare, I hate to obsess
But you’re a mess and you look distressed
But I digress, you must confess I’m not the cause of your lack of success”
Metal repeated,
“Everybody thinks you think I think that I’m better than you
When you know it might be true that I’m more clever than you
Wasting all your time, minding what is mine
Thinking that I’m thinking that I’m smarter than you
When you know the simple truth is I work harder than you”
Sonic rolled his eyes and grabbed his hand. “Come on!”
They ran into the darkness, but it did not stay dark for long. Crystals lining the wall emitted their soft pink glow as they ran. And all the while, Sonic sang,
“Everybody knows that planting seeds
The only way that it grows, keep it your own
And you know you’ll have nothing to sow
A forest only grows when a billion ideas
Until the blizzard is blown
So plant one of your own
Let it go
Use your rage, leave your cage
Hit the stage and get on with the show”
They came to a stop inside another enormous cavern. This one had a rocky path cutting through swallow pools of water lined the path on both sides. Above them, pink stalactites dripped water into the pools. There were more entryways to other tunnels.
Metal attempted to shove Sonic away, but of course lost its power before he could do any damage. “Satisfied now? There is no way out.”
“Everybody thinks you think I think that I’m better than you
When you know it might be true that I’m more clever than you
Wasting all your time, minding what is mine
Thinking that I’m thinking that I’m smarter than you
When you know it’s simply true that I work harder than you
I work harder than you, I work harder than you
Which is why I’m doing better than you”
He then sat down and turned his back to him, hugging his knees.
“Really dude?” Sonic coughed. “Come on! The people live here use these tunnels all the time for… something I can’t remember what, but there must be a way out.” A coughing fit seized his body and the crushing icy weight increased, bringing him to his knees.
Metal didn’t react at all; he sat there, staring into the water. Sonic could see more dark tendrils wrapping around his body. The tunnels seemed to be affecting him more. Maybe it was because Metal had been down here longer. Or maybe it was something else. Sonic recalled the snippets of song he heard earlier that day and sang them.
“I will tear the blinds and let all this light
Wash out the hurt and lies I went through
I will wave goodbye to sobbing in the night
I’m gonna let my life start anew”
Metal turned to face him. “You heard that?”
Sonic nodded. “Come on, where’s that fire I heard this morning?” He coughed. “You didn’t destroy your obedience chip, regain your Neo form, steal the Chaos Emeralds, and fly all the way over here just to die in the dark, did you?”
Another coughing fit seized him, worse than before. Blood escaped his mouth with every cough. And he couldn’t stop coughing.
Metal grabbed his shoulders and shook him. “Sing you, fool!”
Sonic managed to smirk through the coughing. “What’s the matter, Mets? It’s this what you want?”
Metal shook his head. “Your death will not set me free!” He froze. Sonic stared at him expectantly. “I have something to say.”
“I was lost. I was shattered
I was lonely. I was blue
In my world full of shadows
Covered in cobwebs
Draped in gloom”
Metal hesitated, and then Sonic sang,
“And then, something happened
You just came waltzing in
Like a warm summer breeze
And spring bloomed again
And I caught myself smiling
For the first time since I don’t know when”
Sonic and Metal both sang,
“Because of you, because of you
How long I’ve waited for someone like you
Say it’s true, tell me it’s you
All my world needed
To see it through was you”
Metal grasped Sonic’s hands and sang,
“What is this feeling that’s got my heart reeling
I’m scaling the walls and I’m pacing the floor
I know this desire that’s loaded with fire
‘Cause it’s a fire that’s burned me before
And I don’t know if I have the power to try
The last time I did left me battered and bruised
I felt my heart die, I’ve got nothing inside
Well, then I guess I’ve got nothing to lose”
Sonic tilted his head. “What do you mean?”
Neo transformed his head to look like Sonic’s. Then he pulled him close and kissed. The kiss was a electrifying, both literally and figuratively. Sonic didn’t mind the intense tingling sensations jolting through his body; in fact, he welcomed it. And sure it was strange to kiss another version of his lips, but he wrapped his arms around Metal all the same and returned the kiss, trying to match his intensity.
Then he remembered something that happened a handful of months ago. He and Metal were fighting and chasing each other through the city, Sonic expounding his usual banter to mess with Metal.
After a while, they stopped on top of skyscraper under construction. Eggman set off a series of bombs hidden throughout the city. The resulting explosions caused the building they were on to collapse. And Sonic fell into Metal’s arms, accidentally pressing a chaste kiss against his robot counterpart’s face.
Metal sparked and seized up. Warning lights appeared in his optics followed by a blaring, automotive voice saying, "Warning! Guidance system failure."
Sonic didn't know what that meant at the time, but he didn't have time time to dwell on the warning. With all his energy depleted, Metal shut down, and they both plummeted to the ground. Luckily Tails flew the Tornado next to him and Sonic grabbed on. Metal, however, fell to the ground in pieces.
Sonic gasped. “I destroyed your obedience chip!”
Metal nodded. “It took some time to plan, but I finally made my escape.”
“I will tear the blinds and let all this light
Wash out the hurt and lies I went through
I will wave goodbye to sobbing in the night
I’m gonna let my life start anew”
He hesitated again. “But I know it can’t be with you.”
“I don’t see why not.” Sonic coughed. “I mean I don’t see why not.”
“It is a fool’s dream.”
“Says you.”
“That first kiss was unintentional.”
Sonic grabbed him and kissed him again, savoring the tingling sparks dancing across his tongue. “It’s intentional now.”
“I know Eggman sent you here to capture me. To reprogram me.”
“I came to find you on my own. I never agreed to his terms.”
“He’s waiting outside. I know it.”
“I’ll take care of him. I won’t let him hurt you anymore!”
“But why?”
Sonic’s own green eyes stared back at him as Metal looked at him, waiting for his answer. Sonic sang,
“Because of you, because of you
How long I’ve waited for someone like you
Say it’s true, tell me it’s you
All my world needed
To see it through was you”
Sonic and Metal embraced as they sang,
“How long I’ve waited for someone like you
Say it’s true, tell me it’s you
‘Cause you just came waltzing in from out of the blue
Please say, it’s you”
As they shared another kiss, the light in the cavern changed from pink to red. The ceiling above crumbled away to reveal a bright red gemstone, slowly lowering itself down. Sonic thought it was a Chaos Emerald at first, but then the light dimmed and he saw the gem was sphere shaped the complete opposite of the shape of a Chaos Emerald. Peering closer, there was a cluster of crystals that looked like fireworks within the sphere.
“What is this?” Metal asked.
“This must be what’s causing that variant Chaos energy Tails mentioned. Hey, I’m not coughing blood when I talk anymore.”
Metal closed a fist. “I’m back to full power now.”
Sonic smiled. “Wanna get out of here?”
Metal nodded.
They grabbed onto the sphere at the same time. Flames shot out of the sphere, burning their hands, but they did not let go. More flames spat out, surrounding them, filling their vision. They stared into each other’s eyes and tightened their grip around the sphere.
Then the wall of flames lowered, and they found themselves in the middle of Manglo. A crowd surrounded them; they cheered as the flames receded and the two of them came into view. Tails, Amy, and Knuckles burst through the crowd, running towards Sonic.
“Sonic!” Amy called. “Thank goodness you’re alright!”
“Amy! Knuckles!” Sonic called, breaking away from Metal. “When did you get here?”
Amy hugged Sonic tightly. “We got here a couple of days ago. Kurihi and his brothers rescued us and brought us over from one of the other islands.”
“Days!?” Sonic exclaimed.
“Time moves differently in the tunnels,” Tails said. “You’d know that if you were paying attention.”
“Yeah, sorry about that.”
Knuckles put his fists up in a guarded stance. “So what’s the deal? Are we about to have a fight on our hands?” Metal stood there, awkwardly rocking back and forth on his heels. He was still wearing Sonic’s face. “That looks a little creepy, you know?”
Sonic brushed past Knuckles and slung his arm around Metal. I don’t know he looks pretty good like this. Maybe I should get an outfit like this. Then we’d match.”
“Out of my way!” Eggman pushed through the crowd. Orbot, Cubot, and Sage followed behind him. “There you are Metal! It’s time to come back home.”
“Not so fast, Egghead! Metal’s not going anywhere with you!”
Metal transformed his arm into a cannon and aimed it at Eggman. “It was a miracle you survived before. Do not rely on miracles to save you now.”
Eggman scoffed, taking out a remote from his pocket. “Please, you don’t think I have a plan for this?”
“What’s that do?” Sonic asked.
“Would you like to find out?”
Eggman raised the remote, but before he could press the button, a spear flew through the air and knocked the remote to the ground. Another spear hit the remote, breaking it to pieces. The crowd parted to let Kantan, the other members of Manma’gas, and several other pangolins carrying spears.
“That is enough,” Kantan said. “It is against the law to break apart the union of a couple without their consent.”
“Union!?” Sonic and Metal exclaimed.
“You passed the Prubåba i Kanta Siha, the Trial of Songs, one of our most sacred conditions. You sang your hearts' truth, and the Kristalon Kanta has blessed your union even though you are an outsider. That symbol on your hands confirms it.”
Sonic looked down at his hands. A thorny tendril-like marking wrapped around his wrist and ended at another marking on his palm. The marking on his palm that looked like a leaf cradling a cluster of tiny, four-petaled flowers. Metal had similar markings.
“Wait,” Sonic said, “are you saying we’re married now?”
“Yes.”
Amy sniffled.
Sonic turned to Amy. "Amy, you okay?"
Amy shook her head and then nodded. "I'm sorry. It's just so beautiful!"
"You aren't mad?"
"Why would I be mad, if you're happy?"
“Thanks, Ames. You hear that, Mets?” Sonic said, grabbing a hold Metal’s hands. “We’re married, now! Sucks I didn’t get to propose though. Wait, Metal, are you sure you want to be married? There’s a way to get out of this if we don’t want it, right, Kanta?”
“There is a way,” Kanta said. “It’s the Trial of－”
“I want to be married,” Metal said.
“Excellent! Allow us to adorn you with leis.”
The Manma’gas draped the two of them in sweet smelling plumeria leis. Dandan slipped Sonic the red Chaos Emerald as he decorated him with a lei. He winked at him and turned away.
Eggman growled. “Marriage? Don’t be ridiculous. Metal’s coming with me one way or another!”
“Hey, Egghead! Metal and I have all the Chaos Emeralds now. You still want to try taking Metal away?”
Eggman gritted his teeth. “Sage, activate the— ”
“Metal is married!?” Cubot exclaimed.
“Will there be a celebration?” Orbot asked.
“With dancing?” Sage asked.
“Naturally,” Kantan answered. “But the newlyweds get the first dance.”
“Can I dance with you next Metal?” Sage asked.
Metal nodded.
“Metal, if you don’t come with me right now, I’ll come back and destroy all of Etherbay Isles.” But no one was listening to him. Everyone ran here and there, getting everything set up. Eggman slumped in defeat. “I can’t believe this. Defeated by my own creations. How embarrassing.”
“Hey, Egghead, does that mean I get to call you dad now?”
Eggman sighed, but he didn’t answer Sonic. Instead, he tapped on a passing pangolin’s shoulder. He carried a large ceramic jug.
“Is that booze in there?”
“Yes, it’s Tubâ. It’s very strong.”
“Great! I’ll take it.”
The pangolin stepped back. “Wait until the feast!” He said before running off to join the celebratory crowd down by the beach.
Eggman sighed again and trudged towards the partygoers.
Sonic and Metal danced around a bonfire while pangolins beat on large drums. As they stared into each other’s eyes, they transformed into their super forms and flew into the sky. Everyone looked up in awe as they chased each other in the clouds. Their laughter sounded like music.