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“Wake up, Sonic! Wake up!”
Sonic swatted out a gloved hand, lazily brushing off the grip that had been shaking him by the shoulder. “Be quiet Tails,” he muttered, keeping his eyes closed in an attempt to remain asleep. Grabbing the soft throw blanket that rested over him, he sunk deeper into the couch. He had only been napping thirty minutes or so when the fox interrupted him.
“Sonic, I’m not kidding around!” Tails reached out to grab the blanket, pulling it off the hedgehog, causing him to nearly fall off of the couch in the process.
Sonic settled himself on the center cushion of the couch, blinking his eyes open. “Alright, alright— I’m up,” he spoke, rubbing his finger under his nose. From what he could tell, it wasn’t storming outside, nor could he hear the sound of a rampaging Eggman robot on the loose— but if Tails really was serious about waking Sonic up, it had to be important. “What’s the deal, bro?” He questioned.
Seeing him fully awake, Tails let out a relived sigh. “I picked up something on my radar,” he admitted, motioning for Sonic to follow him as he turned to walk to his computer room.
Sonic hopped up from the couch, zipping to the room. Countless monitors lined the walls, attached to endless control panels and fancy tech that Sonic didn’t even try to understand. He knew Tails’ house and workshop like the back of his hand— it was his favorite spot to crash by far— but he figured he’d never fully understand all the crazy tech his little bro was capable of making.
One of the screens was lit up, showing a display of Mobius’ atmosphere and the space around it. Tails had launched some satellites a while back, for the purpose of monitoring solar activity and the like; recently, Tails had mentioned he was going to keep a closer eye on the readings for a meteor shower that was supposed to come in that night— in roughly six hours, in fact. Now, the screen was displaying a red circle around something that was coming towards the planet.
“I’m guessing that’s no meteor shower?” Sonic asked as he looked up at the screen. Whatever was moving up there, it was coming in quick— a display of numbers next to the circled icon read it would only be an hour before it reached the planet.
“Definitely not,” Tails confirmed. “It’s moving way too fast and precise to be an uncontrolled object, like an asteroid. The readings show that it might have organic material. It could be—”
“—Aliens?” Sonic bit in, a bit amused, as if it were some fantasy. Then again, they were well aware that the universe was not barren. Their adventures on a parallel planet had proved that, alongside their previous clashes with other lifeforms. While their local system was dormant— the universe itself was very active. Even so, they didn’t often get visits from across the stars.
The foxes twin tails puffed up, somewhat irritated with Sonic’s immaturity towards what could be a very real threat. “It could be, Sonic— I think we should take this very seriously. We can go up in the X-Tornado and check it out.”
“Hold on,” Sonic raised his hands, pausing Tails before he could exit the computer room to go to his hanger. “Aren’t you still updating the X for space travel?” The last time they tried to take the X-Tornado up into space, it had frozen up, and risked shut-down. As the little genius he was, Tails vowed to upgrade the aircraft, but life— and certain evil doctors— tended to get in the way.
The fox stopped, shily rubbing at the back of his ear. “Weeellll, it’s not totally done yet— but this could act as a good field test!” He offered.
“No can do,” Sonic responded, to the disappointed look of his brother. He laid a hand on the kit’s shoulder, offering a smile. “I know you want to put your work to the test.. but I’m not letting my favorite pilot risk a wreck.” The amount of times that Tails lost control of the Tornado, or had a malfunction, were few— but Sonic was not allowing that risk regardless. He saw how hard the kid worked, and how far he pushed himself to greatness, and he did not want to see that lead to harm.
“Besides,” Sonic continued, “you’ve been talking about this meteor shower for weeks, and you still need to set up all your cameras and gizmos, right?” He couldn’t forget the way Tails had talked about the upcoming event like it was a holiday. He had been so excited to set up some telescopes and other gadgets to study the shower. It wouldn’t be cool to pull him away from that opportunity just to check out a radar reading.
“Right..” Tails confirmed, “but that can wait, and besides, if we don’t take the X-Tornado, how are we supposed to go up there and check it out?” As it stood, they didn’t have any space-faring vehicle.
Sonic raised one finger, a smirk across his face. “I happen to have the next best thing,” he spoke up. “You can work on setting up for the meteor shower, while I fly up and check out our mystery visitor.”
“’Fly up…’” Tails repeated, and Sonic let him have a moment before it clicked, and excitement spread across the young fox’s face. “You have the emeralds?!” He exclaimed. “You found the last one?!”
“Sure did!” Sonic grinned. “Found it the other day while on a run around Central City. Should be no problem. I’ll zip up there, deal with whatever’s caught that radar of yours, and be back in time to meet you and the others for the meteor shower.”
At the notion, Tails seemed reassured; even so, that meant Sonic would be going alone. “What if it’s more dangerous than we think?” He questioned, his tails twitching with worry. He knew that the hedgehog was capable of amazing feats, but that didn’t mean he liked to see his older brother go it alone when they had no clue what they were really facing. “What if you need help…?”
“I’ll have the emeralds,” Sonic responded, as if that threw any worries aside. Still, that didn’t seem to ease Tails’ anxiety, and Sonic offered a smile. “It’ll be alright, bro. If it turns dicey, I’ll use a little Chaos Control warp to come back and get help.” Tails gave a deadpanned look in response, and Sonic raised his hands in a mock defense. “I’m getting better at it!” He claimed with amusement. It was true, though, teleportation wasn’t exactly his shtick; there was another hedgehog far more skilled at it.. but he wasn’t exactly around to show Sonic the ropes.
Sonic lowered his hands. “What I’m saying is— don’t stress. I’ll be alright, and I’ll be back before you know it. Promise,” he added with a wink, extending his fist out for a power bump.
Tails eyed his hand, then let out a gentle sigh. “I’ll hold you to it,” he promised as he bumped his fist into Sonic’s.
I should have listened to Tails, Sonic thought— and it was far from the first time he had come to that realization in his life. This guy really is tougher than I thought.
After leaving Tails’ home, and wielding the seven Chaos Emeralds, Super Sonic had broken through the atmosphere of Mobius, where he met the creature just beyond the Exosphere. It started with only one: a mechanical appearing figure made of dark metal, with green shadowed orbs at it’s chest and face, which was covered entirely by a helmet. Tails had said something about the readings picking up on organic life, but Sonic wasn’t so sure about that; the being talked, and appeared sentient, but Super Sonic had laid a few good hits on it and saw no signs of anything but armored machines.
That, and the invader hadn’t come alone, and his army was definitely not organic. When Super Sonic had confronted the being, he had called upon some sort of space warp— something Tails would have a much easier time identifying. From the warp came forth an endless wave of mechanical minions. They had been armored, spiky and did not display the same intelligence their leader did; their only focus was to fight— and Sonic had been their only target.
It had taken him over an hour to clear out the army. The robotic drones weren’t difficult to fight by any means— it only took a hit or two to take them out— but the sheer numbers they came in had quickly become overwhelming. That, and any chance Super Sonic had to catch his breath had been interrupted by the longsword of their leader slashing down at him. By the time the skies were filled with debris of slain soldiers, and only Super Sonic and the invader remained, Sonic was worn down and weary. Meanwhile, the leader of the army hardly had a scratch; he had been protected by his drones the entire fight.
I need to finish this! Sonic declared to himself, facing down the invader. He rushed the armored threat, clashing a kick into the creature’s side, reaving sparking wires and crumpled metals. Before Sonic could get a good look, he was met with a harsh hit from the attacker’s arm, throwing him back in space.
“Sonic,” the being spoke with a robotic voice, “your end is inevitable.” Chills trailed down the hedgehog’s spine; how did an invader from across space know his name? He knew he was cool and all, but he hadn’t thought his name was galaxy-renowned.
“I’ve heard that a couple times before,” Sonic remarked, one hand over his arm where the opposing force had hit him. He knew that he wasn’t invincible in this state— the Chaos Emeralds were powerful, but even he could not wield their full potential— but he wasn’t expecting to have such a difficult time with this one.
As the commander readied his sword, Sonic lunged forward, intent on finishing this battle here and now. The blade came down, and Sonic caught it with his hands on either side of the flat edge. Holding the force of the blade, Sonic could feel a raw sense of power coming from the attacker; it almost felt as though the blade was powered by an emerald— a Chaos Emerald— but the sensation was cold and chilling, and it made something deep within Sonic’s soul uneasy.
“What kind of power—?” Before Sonic could finish his query, the commander pulled the sword back, slashing it down upon Sonic’s chest. The blade cut at his skin, sending him flying back in the void of space. He steadied himself, his hand falling over his chest, where slight beads of golden blood trickled out; it wasn’t often he bled in his Super form either. Whatever power source that thing drew from, it was too similar to the Chaos Emeralds for Sonic’s liking. That, and he could not shake the deep, restless sense of discomfort he felt towards the energy. It was as if the Chaos Emeralds within him were warning him of the opposing power.
“Surrender the Chaos Emeralds,” the commander demanded, “and I will grant you the honor of a quick demise.”
It had become increasingly clear that the invader was not going to back down, and that he was a force Sonic could not face alone. If he were to falter— if he were to fail— this evil would take control of the Chaos Emeralds, and likely reign it’s terror on Mobius below. Tails, Amy, Cream… Sonic could not allow them to fall victim to this.
“So you want the emeralds?” Sonic remarked, catching his breath, before letting out a small chuckle. “Have fun tracking ‘em down!” He raised his hands, feeling the power swirling in his chest; the emeralds knew what was to happen, and he could sense the unrest. He could die doing this stunt— Sonic knew that, and the emeralds did too— but he had no other choice.
“Chaos Control!” At his command, the seven emeralds materialized around their host. For a moment, they lingered, almost in defiance to abandoning the hedgehog. Then, with streams of colors, they shot out into the stars; they’d be scattered across space itself, and the commander would have no choice but to chase them down— away from Mobius, away from his friends.
As the last of the emeralds power faded from him, Sonic could feel the strength leaving his body. At his glove, the golden stains of blood had shifted to a crimson red, and the pain in his chest was all the more evident. Green eyes landed on the invader, who watched the emeralds trail off with an iron clad grip on his blade, and Sonic grinned.
And Sonic was falling.
The rush of air around him pulled at his quills, burning at his fur as gravity dragged him back towards the planet. His focus was shifting in and out, but as the sky became clear, he could see the dim blue shades of evening. The meteor shower, he thought dreamily, man.. Tails’ is gonna be pissed when I don’t show… It was his last concern before he lost consciousness.
Down on Mobius below, the public was unaware of the battle that raged in the sky. In the flower fields near Floral Forest Village, a small group was set up on the peak of a hill. Splayed out on picnic blankets were a number of telescopes, cameras, binoculars and the like. In the mix of the gadgets were two baskets filled with snacks, treats and drinks brought over from the Rabbits’ cabin nearby.
“Tell your mom I said thanks for all the treats she made,” Amy Rose commented as she settled down beside Cream on the picnic blanket. The sky had gotten dark enough, and Tails said it was almost time, so they had set aside their games to wait for the display to begin.
“I will!” Cream promised, holding her chao companion, Cheese, in her lap. She looked up at the sky excitedly, her eyes searching for the first sight of shooting stars. “Is it almost starting, Tails?” She asked, looking towards the fox, who was adjusting the details on the telescopes for the umpteenth time.
Tails sat back from his telescope, looking towards his laptop, which displayed the time— and his radar. “Only a couple minutes left,” he mentioned, although he was struggling to focus on the upcoming wonder they’d see. Instead, he was watching the radar again. He had been keeping an eye on it over the last couple of hours, since Sonic had flown up to investigate.
He had seen Super Sonic ping the radar and approach the other alert. When he had checked again sometime later, they were both gone— and the radar had been silent since. Odds were, Sonic had figured out what the sensor had picked up and dealt with it, and he had returned to Mobius unharmed.. but that had been hours ago, and the meteor shower was about to begin, and he hadn’t shown up yet. Tails knew that Sonic was more than capable of taking care of himself— and he liked to explore the world and all— but he had made a promise…
Across the picnic blanket, Amy let out a wistful sigh. “This would be soooo romantic if Sonic were here,” she dreamed outload, holding her hands together over her chest, “just imagine— us watching the stars together. It would be so dreamy~”
Cream let out a giggle at her antics, turning her attention to Tails. “You think he’s going to show up?” She asked sweetly. Everyone knew that Sonic went wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted, but the fox always had the closest ties to him. If anyone could track down that hedgehog, it was the two-tailed kit he had practically raised.
Tails’ tails twitched with worry, but he laid a hand on them to hide the motion from the younger rabbit. “I don’t know, Cream,” he admitted, “you know Sonic— he’s probably getting a better view from some crazy mountain top where only he could end up.” Yeah, that’s it, Tails tried to convince himself, he’s just watching somewhere else…
“Well that’s his loss!” Amy declared, reaching into one of the baskets to pull out a platter of cookies; they were warm, just recently baked by Vanilla. “That means more for us!” She cheered as she held out the plate, allowing Cream and Tails to grab a couple.
The small chao creature, Cheese, reached out to grab a cookie— one almost the size of their head. Just as they were about to take a bite, their eyes suddenly lit up with thrill. “Chao! Chao!” They exclaimed, pointing one round hand towards the sky.
Tails turned his head to look up at the horizon, seeing the first stream of light across the sky. “It’s starting!” He shouted, quickly rushing to one of his telescopes, almost tripping over the blanket in excitement.
One after another, brilliant streams of light began to sore across the sky. Cream let out a gasp of awe, trying to count the shooting stars before quickly loosing place. “There’s so many!” She exclaimed, Cheese happily chaoing in her lap.
“There sure are!” Tails agreed. “We only get one this big every five hundred years! We’re super lucky to be able to see it!” He had been waiting forever to see this, and to try and get a closer look, but even in his thrill.. he was searching for something else. He was hoping that maybe, just maybe, one of those streaks of light would have a golden hue—
And one of them did?! Tails’ heart raced as he followed the meteor, hoping to get a glimpse of golden quills. The brilliant glow was off-course from the other shooting stars, and heading towards them. It had to be Sonic! He was stopping by to join them after all! Relief was the first thing that Tails felt, although it soon turned to confusion as the golden glowing turned reddish— as if burning up in the atmosphere. “Is that…?”
“Tails!” Amy shouted, grabbing onto the kit’s head as she pushed him down, her other hand on Cream’s back to ensure they were all flattened against the ground. In the next moment, the falling object flew over them. The force of wind pulled at their fur and clothes, scattering their snacks across the flower field. Then, with a loud crash, the object settled into a tree it had toppled over, smoke rising into the air.
Tails quickly sat up, his breathing sharp in his chest from the shock. “Is that— a ship?!” His realization came shocking to himself as he stood, stumbling off the blanket into the grass as he ran towards the crash site.
“A ship?!” Amy echoed in disbelief, quickly helping Cream and Cheese up so that they could follow on foot.
Sure enough, as the three approached the site, the scene revealed a spaceship crashed into the dirt. It was far from high-tech, from the looks of it; the impact had badly damaged it, but the ship was tiny. It almost looked more like an escape pod than anything that would be fit to travel space— let alone fly through an active meteor shower.
“Look there!” Cream gasped, pointing towards the nose of the ship, which was driven into the ground. Laying there in the grass— almost blending into it— was the figure of a creature. She was small, closer to Tails’ build than Amy’s. She had crem colored skin with green hair, and red rosebuds sprouted where her ears would be; she wore a dress of white and green, resembling a lily flower, with a red oval gemstone at her chest. She didn’t look like any Mobian Tails had ever seen— but she was unconscious, and likely hurt.
Tails moved to the girl’s side, carefully resting her in his lap; the girl let out a dull groan in response, but was unable to come to her senses. “She needs help,” Tails spoke softly, turning his attention to the girls. “Cream, your house is the closest. We can take her there.”
“Right,” Cream nodded, a look of determination crossing her expression. She always wanted to help people, no matter the cause— even when they fell from the sky in an alien spaceship. “I’ll go warn mother you’re coming!” She announced, her ears raising as she took flight, her chao friend at her side.
Tails nodded in acknowledgement, holding the girl as he got to his feet. He looked down at her, seeing a gleam in the red gem at her chest. Who is she…? He wondered to himself, and does she have something to do with what Sonic went after…?
The meteor shower was starting to fade, the last of the shooting stars fading into the night. The man sat at the large glass window, seeing the spectacle fade. Such a mystical event of nature.. although he thought it would look better across a mechanical backdrop of his Eggman Empire reigning over this world. Then it would truly be a wonder.
The doctor’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a gasp, movement coming from behind him. He turned in his chair to see the blue hedgehog, who had been laid down along a metal table, blanket and pillow laid under him to aid in comfort; across his nemeses’ chest, Eggman had tied a bandage over a cut that must’ve come from a nasty blade. Now, Sonic the Hedgehog was awake, gathering his senses as he looked back and forth around the room.
“About time you woke up,” The doctor grumbled, seeing the confusion in Sonic’s gaze when they met his tinted glasses.
“Eggman,” Sonic spoke, as confused as he was weary towards the fact he had woken up in an Eggman base, “what am I doing here? What happened?” He looked down to his chest, seeing the bandage wrap— and Robotnik had his own line of questions about that. After years of throwing badniks and mechanical monsters his way, Eggman had seen Sonic overcome marvelous feats without so much as a scratch. To see the hedgehog injured by something that had not been his own creation was.. troublesome— only because it meant there was something else out there that posed a threat to the doctor’s expanding empire.
“I’ve been waiting a couple hours just to ask you the same thing,” Eggman retorted. “I found you while I was on one of my regular jogs— to ensure my perfect physique—” he added, to the lack of amusement from the hedgehog, “—when I spotted the likes of you washed up on the shore. You looked pretty rough, Sonic— and it was a tough decision: should I save you, or wait for the tide to come in?” The doctor let out a hardy laugh at the remark, but he had decided to take in the hedgehog after all.
Floating from above, one of Robotnik’s usual lackies, Bokkun, landed on the metal table Sonic was sat on. The little black robot carried a mug of tea, setting it down on the tip of Sonic’s shoe. “So how’d you end up in the ocean?” He asked, leaning forward in anticipation of the answer.
Sonic’s thoughts were still catching up to him from the daze of sleep, and his body was still sore and heavy, but he could not forget what he had seen up in space. “I was fighting someone…” he admitted, his voice quieter. Then, the realization hit him all at once: the meteor shower— his friends! He had to make sure they were alright! He shot up to stand, the mug tilting off his shoe and splashing in the face of the messenger robot. At the sight, Sonic let out a small laugh. “Sorry— but I gotta go!” He jumped up from the table, facing the doctor now.
“You’re leaving?” Eggman asked, intrigued by the situation. For Sonic to have been fighting someone, without the aid of his pesky friends, in a battle harsh enough to splash-land him on the beach at Eggman’s base… It all reeked of trouble. Besides, the hedgehog had hardly truly rested, and he was already looking to the door.
“Thanks for the save,” Sonic spoke to the doctor, offering a wave before speeding out of the building. As Bokkun shouted insults his way— retorting how ungrateful the hedgehog was— Eggman remained seated. There was no use in trying to stop that blasted rodent, and besides, Eggman had already gotten his repayment for saving his foe’s life— Sonic just didn’t know it yet.
There was fire everywhere… The impact of explosions shattered the ship, causing Cosmo to stumble as she ran down the hall. Fear coursed through her, her breathing shaking as she forced her feet to keep moving. All around her, there was chaos and destruction— she could hear the cries of her family as they were caught by those beasts.
Slaughter. They were going to slaughter every last one. The Metarex were going to make sure that every last one of them was slain. Her home, her people— everything she loved would wilt at the hands of those monsters. She was helpless to stop them, powerless to resist, and all she could do was run.
“Cosmo!” The voice called through the halls, although she could not tell from what direction. “Cosmo! Run! Please!”
Just as Cosmo was going to locate the origin of the voice, the wall next to her exploded outwards. Cosmo stumbled, falling to her feet as she stared up in horror. From the blasted hole in the wall, one of those horrific creatures came forth. It’s burning red eyes landed on her, and from them, Cosmo felt the chilling string of death. She was to die here— she was to die like all the others. The Metarex stepped towards her, a sharpened claw reaching forth, and—
Cosmo’s eyes shot open, and as the blur of her nightmare faded, her vision settled on a ceiling fan moving in calm circles. Slowly, she shifted to sit up, although there was a deep aching within her body; the last thing she truly remembered was flying among the meteors, hoping they’d disguise her ship from Metarex radars, before loosing control.
“Careful dear,” a sweet voice drew her attention, and Cosmo turned to fully take in the room around her. It was a small room with floral decals along the walls. Around the bed where she laid, there was a small group of people. The one that had spoken was the tallest, an adult bunny of light cream and brown colors, in a pink dress. With her was a younger rabbit, who bore a strong resemblance— a fox with twin tails, and a pink hedgehog in a red dress. They were all funny looking things, Cosmo thought, but then again, she must have looked unnatural to them too.
“You were in a bad crash,” the pink hedgehog spoke up, “you’re lucky that you’re okay…”
Beside her, the younger rabbit spoke up in worry. “Can you tell us your name?” She asked, and she was holding something in her arms. At first, it looked like a small, light blue toy; then, it exclaimed “Chao!” as it raised it’s arms, startling Cosmo slightly. The rabbit gave the creature a small pat on the head, looking back to Cosmo. “Can you tell us where you came from?”
“I—” as the memories rushed back, Cosmo covered her hand over her mouth for a moment. All the things she had seen.. all the things she had fled from— everything she did was to come here, to this planet, to find him. “I can’t tell you,” she admitted quietly. Until she found him— the one who would save them all— she had to keep to herself; there was no telling who could be trusted.
“Why is that?” It was the fox who spoke up. He had been looking at Cosmo in concern since she woke up, but in a sense, he seemed interested by her.
“I’m— I’m looking for someone,” Cosmo spoke quietly, careful with how many details she felt safe to give out. Then again, she could never hope to find one creature out of countless on an alien planet if she didn’t get some sort of help. “I’m looking for someone named Sonic— it’s very important that I find him.”
At the mention of the name, the four creatures shared looks with one another; the smaller one in the rabbit’s arms exclaimed, and if Cosmo didn’t know better, it almost looked excited? The fox spoke up, seemingly speaking for all of them: “You can talk to us. We’ll help you.”
“I can’t tell you,” Cosmo responded softly, holding the blanket that had been laid over her. These creatures seemed kindhearted.. but she had to stay true to her goal: to find Sonic.
A less kindhearted voice sparked up next, as the pink hedgehog leaned forward. “I think I have the right to know!” She proclaimed, startling Cosmo. “I’ll have you know that Sonic is my boyfriend,” the others exchanged glances of weary amusement, “and you better not be trying to make a move!”
“Amy!” the young rabbit spoke up, reaching out to calm her down as her small companion chirped “chao!” in agreement. “She didn’t come here to date Sonic! She’s looking for his help!”
The fox beside her let out a sigh, turning his focus to Cosmo. “I’m sorry,” he spoke up for his friend’s outburst. “You see, we’re friends of Sonics— promise! My name is Miles Prowler, but everyone calls me Tails,” he mentioned, his set of two tails twirling in display.
The young rabbit looked to Cosmo, flashing a cheery smile. “I’m Cream!” She announced, “and this is my mother, and my very special chao friend, Cheese!” Her companion— the chao— flew in the air on little wings, proclaiming: “Chao! Chao!”
“And my name is Amy Rose!” The pink hedgehog butted in, and she still didn’t appear convinced that Cosmo was not a threat to her claimed relationship. “So what do you want to find Sonic for exactly?” Cosmo kept her head down, unable to answer.
“Chao! Chao!” Cheese’s voice came more distressed, as they were flying in the air in front of the rooms window. As the group turned to look at them, they pointed franticly towards the night sky. “Chao!”
“Cheese!” Cream spoke, surprised by the sudden panic. “The meteor shower is over.. what are you looking at?” She asked, moving over to stand in front of the window as the others fell in beside her.
Carefully, Cosmo raised herself from the bed. Soreness still stiffened her movements, but she could not allow herself to be hindered. She moved to stand behind the others, looking up to see what the chao was warning them off— and she drew in a gasp of fear. There, descending from the dark night sky, was “—a Metarex…”
Angel Island— a floating fortress of perfection. For as long as Knuckles could remember, he had guarded the island and lived with one soul purpose: to protect the Master Emerald that kept the landmass floating over the vast ocean. At times, his responsibility was daunting. Often, he was reminded that he was alone: he was the last of the echidnas, the last guardian of the Master Emerald, and he was the last to inhabit the island and it’s ruins. The burden was a heavy one, and yet, the island gave him plenty. On Angel Island, he had a home, peace— and a perfect spot for watching the meteor shower.
Tails had told him about the event. The fox liked to drop by occasionally to visit— sometimes with friends, sometimes with trouble. For the most part, Knuckles always welcomed the company; it was when they dragged him, his emerald, and his island into mischief that he detested the times his friends appeared. Tails seemed excited about the whole thing, and had invited Knuckles to come down and join them, but he had declined. It sounded nice and all, but he had his place on the island. He wasn’t entirely interested in the idea of shooting stars— but he didn’t have anything better to watch.
Now, he was stationed at the base of the Master Emerald’s shrine. He sat across the top step, basking in the warm glow of the gemstone, his eyes on the sky. It was a marvelous display of the universes wonders, one that Knuckles could appreciate. Countless shooting stars were cast across the sky, displaying beams of light that streaked against their dark blue background. He had to admit, they were a sight to behold— but in truth, he was searching for something else among the stars.
It would have been hours ago by now, Knuckles figured, but he had spotted a golden glow in the sky. He had caught it out of the corner of his eye while doing his rounds on the island, but that golden power was unmistakable. For whatever reason, Super Sonic had been flying through the sky, heading straight up, past the clouds until the gleam of chaos power was no longer visible. Knuckles knew that he was close to gathering the last of the emeralds, and as reckless as Sonic could be, he doubted he would use them just to have a joyride fly into space. If he was transformed into Super Sonic, heading for the stars, it had to be for a reason.
Since then, Knuckles had been eyeing the sky, trying to catch a glimpse of that golden glow returning to Mobius. It had been hours, and he had seen nothing of the sort. Then again, Sonic was the fastest thing alive; odds were, he had zipped back so quick Knuckles hadn’t even noticed, and he was off causing trouble or bantering with Robotnik. The odds that Sonic had run into serious trouble in space of all things was laughable— and yet, as the meteors faded, Knuckles continued to watch the sky in hopes of seeing one last stream of light…
“Ha!” Knuckles couldn’t help but exclaim as his eyes landed on something coming from above the clouds. The meteor shower was long over, but finally, that smug golden bastard was coming back down. He probably went all Super Sonic just to chill among the stars and view the event from above— the chaos-abusing jerk. Just as Knuckles thought, Sonic was just fine and dandy, and would probably make a pitstop on Angel Island on his way down.
However, Knuckles’ certainty was beginning to fade as he watched the figure decent. It was moving far to slow to be Sonic, and as it was getting closer, it lacked a distinctive golden glow. No, it was definitely not Sonic— it was bulky, shiny and metalic. The closer it got, the better Knuckles could make out the details: it was made of dark metals, with shiny prongs protruding from it’s head. At it’s chest, there was a dark orb, matching the one that sat in the center of it’s helmet. It didn’t look like an Eggman robot— it lacked his distinct logo and fanfare— but it didn’t appear any less threatening either.
The robot touched down among the trees, and stood tall above them. Then, from it’s marble eye, a red laser flashed out. It scattered into lightening patterned beams, crashing down upon the trees; leaves caught fire, quickly spreading across the forest. Knuckles jumped up from his seat. “It’s going to burn the whole forest down!” He snapped, rushing towards the edge of the island to take a leaping glide down.
The air rushed under his quills as Knuckles extended his fist. “Knock it off!” He shouted to the Metarex, who turned at the commotion. Knuckles crashed his fist into the orb at the robot’s chest, and where many things would otherwise shatter at the impact, the glass dome was unphased. Before Knuckles could prepare another hit, the metal arm of the Metarex slammed into him, throwing him to the ground; he caught his footing, reading himself for another blow when a whizzing sound broke through the air.
Torpedoes cut through the night air, exploding on impact with the Metarex’s chest, hardly causing the beast to stumble. Knuckles turned his gaze to the sky, spotting a familiar armored plane sore by. “The X-Tornado,” Knuckles remarked, a hope lighting in his chest, “we can take this thing out together!”
Up in the X-Tornado, Tails piloted the craft around the Metarex, taking in the powerful sight of the attacker. In the seat behind him, Cosmo was looking on in a trance of fear; she had insisted on coming along, despite Tails’ warnings. Down below, Knuckles continued to clash with the Metarex, throwing relentless waves of punches. “He needs backup!” Tails announced, pulling the aircraft in closer. “I’m going on the attack— are you ready?” He warned his passanger.
“I’m ready!” Cosmo claimed, although her voice, even in proclamation, was meek sounding. She held on tight as Tails steered the plane towards the Metarex, firing off shots along the armored body.
Waves of bullets rained down on the attacker, and the moment the assault stopped, Knuckles was in close with forceful hits. Even so, the Metarex seemed unbothered, hitting the echidna aside as if he were an ant and not one of the strongest fighters on all of Mobius. The fight was starting to look hopeless, and there was no sign of Sonic coming to their aid. Tails’ fears were building; if Sonic had encountered one of these.. and lost…
“We’re hardly putting a dent in this thing!” Tails snapped, pulling the aircraft just out of reach as the Metarex shot out another wave of lasers, catching more fire to the forest around. They couldn’t just give up! There had to be something they could do, even if it took every last thing they had.
Cosmo was watching the scene below, wincing as Knuckles was flung into the base of a tree. “You’ll need much stronger attacks if you wish to beat a Metarex,” she claimed.
Tails looked back to her in the passenger seat, the comment resonating with him. Cosmo knew of these Metarex; somehow, she was apart of all of this, and they needed information on their attackers. “Do you know why it’s here,” he prompted, “and why it’s attacking the forest?”
“It’s mission,” Cosmo began, her voice heavy with grief, “is to find the life force of this planet.. and take it.”
“Life force…?” Tails echoed, being left with more questions than answers. He had done extensive study on flora and fauna, and questioned endlessly about the origin point of life, but never came close to finding a singular “life force,” let alone one that could be stolen.
Before he could question further, a blue blur caught his eye. Flying past the plane, a ball of spinning energy slammed into the chest of the Metarex, sending it crashing into a burning tree. The spin-dashing hedgehog bounced back, landing on his feet at a local rock ledge. Sonic stood bold, overlooking the burning forest and the Metarex as it pulled itself back to it’s feet.
“Sonic!” Tails exclaimed, relief and hope washing over him. “He’s okay— he’s back!” He had been worrying since he allowed Sonic to go alone that evening, but then again, Sonic always liked to show up fashionably late. Even so, he had broken his promise— and that was unlike him.
In the seat behind him, Cosmo let out a quiet gasp of awe. “That’s Sonic?” She spoke, eyeing the blue figure. “That’s him…” She was speaking more to herself now. “That’s Sonic… our final hope.”
Sonic eyed the Metarex, it’s mechanical body screeching as it stood among the trees. This one didn’t seem as sentient, nor as powerful, as the one that clashed with him in space; even so, it was much stronger looking than the army of underlings the commander had unleashed. Regardless— and in spite of the persistent soreness in his body— Sonic was not one to avoid a good fight. A smirk fell across his face, the adrenaline of it all coursing through him. “You’re the one going down in flames,” he proclaimed to the invader.
“About time!” Knuckles shouted from the ground, seeing the smug hedgehog on the rock ledge. Although he’d never admit it, there was a relief within him. His questions on whether or not Sonic had returned from space were anwsered, and he had someone to assit him in the fight— but he wasn’t letting Sonic off the hook! Odds were, whatever he was going to space for caused this hunk of fire starting junk to appear in the first place.
Sonic rushed the Metarex, curling into a spindash as he aimed for the center gem. Knuckles must have been holding his own for a while, because the glass of the gemstone was scuffed and scrapped, but not yet broken. Sonic’s attack crashed into the robot, his quills cutting at the glass before he was forced back. In retaliation, the Metarex let out a robotic growl, holes opening up along it’s arms as clawed ropes spewed forth. They flew towards Sonic, aiming to snatch him out of the air.
Knuckles lunged forward, his fists clashing with the metal claws of the hook closest to grabbing Sonic; it crumbled at his fists, but not before another could reach out and smack the echidna out of the air. Sonic landed on the ground, wincing as Knuckles crashed beside him.
“It’s.. kinda tough,” Knuckles muttered, clearly worn down from having fought before Sonic arrived.
Sonic reached out, grabbing Knuckles’ arm as he helped him to his feet. “I know,” he spoke with a grin, “but we can beat him, buddy.” Unlike in space, Sonic wasn’t alone in this fight. The X-Tornado was flying overhead, and he had Knuckles at his side; the two made a dangerous combo, and Sonic was well aware of that.
“You got a plan?” Knuckles muttered, his eyes shifting to the Metarex. It had ignored their existence, turning it’s focus on burning up more of the surrounding trees. They needed to finish this fight before nothing was left.
“Well sure I do,” Sonic figured, rubbing his finger under his nose, “we just keep beating up on it— as a team,” he offered, to no amusement of the echidna.
Up above, Cosmo watched as blue and red clashed against the Metarex, drawing its focus once more. Her gaze was focus on the hedgehog.. although he was not living up to the legend she had been searching for. Quietly, she admitted, “I thought Sonic would be much faster than this…”
Tails glanced back at the sound of her voice, before following her gaze downward. Sonic was running around the Metarex, drawing its focus so that Knuckles could launch an attack, and she was right… Sonic was still quick, but hardly fast… His movements lagged in comparison to his trademark speed. “You’re right,” Tails spoke, worry entering him at the sight, “he is moving slower than normal…”
The Metarex raised its arms, red lightening shooting from its eyes at the attackers. As Sonic and Knuckled braced themselves, Tails flew the X-Tornado in close, laying down another barrage of fire against the machine. “This isn’t working!” He spoke in frustration, seeing the smoke of the shots clear as the Metarex was unphased. “We need more power…” His eyes landed on Sonic down on the field— Sonic, who hours ago, had wielded all seven Chaos Emeralds…
On the ground, Knuckles was thinking the same. “I’ll keep it’s focus on me. Sonic— you go grab the Chaos Emeralds!” After all, he had seen Super Sonic flying into the clouds not terribly long ago; that meant he must have stashed them away somewhere before returning. “As Super Sonic, you should have no problem taking this thing out!”
At the mention, a look of light guilt crossed the hedgehog’s face. “I’d love to.. but I don’t happen to have the Chaos Emeralds with me,” he offered, raising his hands in a mock display.
“You… don’t?” Knuckles realized. “But— I saw you earlier. You had them, all seven of them, you were Super!”
Sonic rubbed at the back of his ear, embarrassed by the notion. “Well, yeah, I had them.. but then I got into this fight in space— and the bad guy was gonna take ‘em from me.. so I sent them away,” he concluded.
Knuckles was staring at him with a look of disbelief. “You finally got all seven Chaos Emeralds… and you ‘sent them away…’”
“Exactly!” Sonic proclaimed.
“Are you crazy?!” Knuckles grabbed onto Sonic’s shoulders, shaking them as if that would cause the emeralds to suddenly materialize and fall out of his quills. “What are we going to do, wise guy?!”
Sonic bared a stressed grin, even when he tried to play it cool. “Guess we’re gonna have to find ‘em all again.”
Before Knuckles could consider pounding Sonic’s head in, a metal claw from the Metarex launched out, slashing into the two. They flew back, landing in the dirt as the smoke of the burning forest rained around them. Knuckles struggled to his feet, scruff and bruises on his body. Beside him, Sonic didn’t look any better; he hadn’t been fighting this Metarex as long as Knuckles had, but he looked rough and battered as he caught his breath. Knuckles helped him up, holding one hand on his arm. Was his fight in space really that serious…?
“Sonic!” Amy’s voice shouted in worry. She had been stationed on a nearby hill with Cream and Cheese, watching the fight play out in fear. “They’re hurt—!” She exclaimed, but was cut short as a roped claw was sent flying their way. Amy grabbed onto Cream, who was holding Cheese, and pushed her to the ground as the claw whizzed over their heads.
“We need to help them!” Cream protested, laying under Amy’s arm against the grass. Cheese flew up, waving their arms in fear as they called out.
“We need answers!” Amy interjected. “This isn’t a coincidence— that girl knows something!”
Down in the clearing of toppled trees, the Metarex raised one spiked arm before diving it down into the earth. The ground cracked, splitting forth as burning trees toppled, shaking the ground. From the pinpoint, a glow burst into the sky. The Metarex stood in anticipation as a shimmering gem rose up from the glowing beam; it was rectangular in shape, almost appearing made of glass, and within was what could only be described as a galaxy of swirling colors and patterns.
“No!” Cosmo shouted, her hands pressed on the glass dome of the X-Tornaodo.
“That’s it, isn’t it?” Tails realized quietly, staring in awe as the glow from the ground dimmed, and the gemstone remained floating in the air. “That’s the lifeforce of Mobius…”
“Yes,” Cosmo confirmed sadly, “the Planet Egg…”
The Metarex clutched the Planet Egg within it’s claw, and it no longer cared to fight the pesky creatures that challenged it. Thrusters sparked under it as the Metarex began to rise, preparing to leave the planet behind. “It can’t go!” Cosmo cried out. “If it leaves with the Planet Egg, your world will die!”
Below the X-Tornado, Sonic was two steps ahead. He didn’t know what that glowing stone was or why these guys wanted it, but he did know that he could feel the immense power from that gem. It wasn’t the same as Chaos power, but he knew it to be important. “Hold it!” He snapped at the Metarex, leaping into the air to aim a spindash towards it.
A claw clashed with Sonic’s attack, and red lightning rushed down the rope to the metal pincer. It sparked into Sonic’s body, forcing him out of the dash as the pain lit through him. The Metarex slapped him down, continuing its accent from the planet.
“Sonic!” Knuckles called out, jumping into the air to grab the falling hedgehog. The two crashed into the ground, both battered and worn from the battle. On the ground, Amy, Cream and Cheese were rushing towards them. As Knuckles sat up, and aided Sonic in doing so, he looked over the bent quills and faded bruises along the hedgehog’s body; those weren’t from this fight… “Sonic— what was that fight in space about again…?” He asked, but was cut off by the worried rambles of Amy Rose as she threw herself into Sonic’s arms.
Above them, the burning trees rustled from the force of the X-Tornado shooting into the sky. “I won’t let him get away!” Tails proclaimed, right on the Metarex’s heels as they went higher— higher— and the boosters of the Metarex turned on full throttle as it launched through the atmosphere. Tails struggled at the controls of the plane, ignoring the warning readings across the dash as he forced it higher— until the air began to thin and grow cold.
“Tails!” Cosmo’s voice came in warning, her hand tapping on the window, pointing to the wings of the plane, where ice was starting to form.
“Ugh!” Tails let out a huff of frustration, eying the last twinkle of the Metarex’s boosters as it faded into space, and he began to steer the X-Tornado lower. “I’m sorry— I couldn’t make it, the X-Tornado isn’t ready for space yet,” he admitted in frustration. If he had completed his work sooner, then he could have stopped that thing— he could have gone with Sonic when the radar went off…
“It’s.. okay.. Tails,” Cosmo spoke, although she seemed dizzy from the sudden ascent.
“I’m sorry,” Tails muttered again, brining the plane down to a more reasonable level above the trees.
Cosmo was looking at the glass that was over the seats now, placing her hand on the window. “Tails… can you open this?” She questioned. “I’d like some fresh air…”
“Well.. I don’t know if that’s a safe idea,” Tails spoke, confused at the request. “I can take us down for a landing, it won’t take long.”
“Please, Tails?” Cosmo asked.
“I— alright,” Tails gave in, pressing a button on the dash of the control panel. “Just make sure to stay in your seat and— Cosmo!” When Tails turned back to look at her, he was met with an empty seat. Cosmo had stepped out onto the wing before taking a leap off, racing towards the ground. Before Tails could think of catching her, the dress Cosmo wore splayed out, catching her fall as she began to slow her decent. Tails let out a relieved breath, the stress still present in his body as he piloted the plane towards a landing zone.
At the scene of the fight, Amy had finally released Sonic from her clutches, although he looked more roughed up than usual from one of her love bombs. Knuckles was staring him down, eyes narrowed. “You didn’t put up much of a fight against that thing,” he accused, his words low, “are you sure you’re feeling okay?”
“That’s right,” Amy agreed, the concern forming across her expression. “You weren’t that quick either— and you didn’t show up to our picnic!” She added with more accusation, before her anger simmered back down to care. “Did something happen?”
Sonic brushed off their concerns, rubbing some dirt from his fur and quills; luckily, the scar the doctor had bandaged up hadn’t been too noticeable underneath his chest fur, and the others didn’t seem to spot it; the last thing Sonic wanted was his friends worrying over the likes of him. “I guess it’s been a long day,” he figured, offering a trademark grin to try and throw off their worries.
Before the others could question him further, their attentions were drawn above, where Cosmo was floating down. She landed delicately, smoothing down her dress as her focus landed on Sonic. “My name is Cosmo,” she spoke up, “and I’ve come a long way to speak with you.”
“Uh— okay,” Sonic responded, and to be honest, this wasn’t the weirdest thing he had seen all day. Robots with weird chaos-like powers, waves of mechanical drones, fire-starting alien invaders, weird galaxy-like rocks from within the core of their planet— and now a plant-looking girl that wanted to have a chat. Sure, why not?
Cosmo clasped her hands together, a spark of hope rising in her chest; finally, she had the chance to speak to the hero himself. “I have sought you out because I know you have the power to wield the Chaos Emeralds. You are the one who can rescue the galaxy!” She proclaimed, offering a slight bow of respect to the hedgehog.
“I am?!” Sonic responded in shock, his eyes shifting to the others around them. They shared similar expressions, unaware of what this girl was claiming.
“Yes!” Cosmo doubled-down, meeting eyes with Sonic now. “You are the one who will save us all from the reign of the Metarex. You are destined too—” her words were cut short with a gasp, her hands covering her mouth, as Sonic’s eyes rolled back, a quiet breath escaping him as his body collapsed into the grass.