Spiders and Magic: Worlds Unite

Twilight bit her lip nervously, looking over the balcony at Eris and Luna, who were still trying to use their magic to delay the full merging of the dimensions, and noticed the tired expressions on both of them. The alicorn unfurled her wings as she was ready to head out, but a voice stopped her.

"And what do you think you're doing?" asked Espio, who looked over with Rainbow Dash.

The purple alicorn grunted, "I can't just stand around. I need to help those two! They're starting to wear down! They cant keep this up!" she stomped a hoof down. "They need me more than ever! What kind of ruler am I if I can't even help my world when needed?"

"Woah, easy, Twi. Nopony's doubtin' you. Luna said to stay, remember? After all, you and Peter are sorta the glue that keeps us all together, though it's mostly you, heh. And with Eggman, Bowser and Wily, we need all the protection we can get. That includes you." Rainbow assured her friend calmly, trying to ease her to the best of her ability, which seemed to work somewhat.

Espio shook his head, "You are not failing this world, Twilight. Do not fret over them for now. If they need assistance, we will aid them as soon as possible. Again, you are needed here." he folded his hands and leaned on the doorway.

Twilight nervously looked back then to Espio and Rainbow, "I-I... I'm not sure..."

It was then a small noise from a few rooms down got their attention. Concerned, the three found Eggman, Wily, and Dr. Light covered in smoke. Loud coughs heard all around. Bowser flailed an arm around over his nose, "C'mon, Docs! Couldn't ya have warned us before doin' something like that?!"

"Is everything alright?" asked the alicorn.

Dr. Light exhaled, "Our apologies, Princess Twilight. We just had a little snafu with the Master Engine. We should be cleared up in no time at all." he assured.

Knuckles muttered to Applejack, "Just like Eggman to screw up something so simple."

"I can hear you, echidna!" spat Eggman. "If you must know, a gear just sprang loose and set the whole thing aflame in the process. Can anyone pick it up?"

"Here we go!" said Pinkie Pie, a gear in hoof.

Eggman raised a brow, "How did you... Nevermind that." he snatched the gear out of her hoof.

Knuckles faced Twilight, "While you were out, I managed to snag one of the communicators. Espio and my old team, the Chaotix should be on their way soon. Hopefully this whole merged world thing doesn't get too out of hand."

Eggman growled, "Crud. I still owe them money..."

Pinkie laughed, "You what?"

Espio shook his head, "I'll be sure Vector and Charmy don't beat you to a pulp... Again."

"It shouldn't be too bad, Knuckles. At least Peter and all yer friends are able to wander about." Applejack assured.

Proto-Man spoke up as well, "And I managed to get into contact with X's Headquarters, some girl named Alia said a Reploid by the name of Axl is making his way here as well."

Twilight nodded, "Alright... That's good to hear." she looked around with a confused look on her face, "Um... Where's Mayday at?" she knew Ben was with Fluttershy and Roll at least.

Knuckles pointed a thumb back, "With Tails. Said something about a lab room or something. You should really get a map for this place. People could get lost here. Something tells me those two are going to geek out over science over something."

Tails rubbed his head nervously as he and the filly wandered Peter's laboratory, "Um, are you sure we're allowed in here, Mayday?" he wondered.

Mayday smiled, "My dad always lets me in. Except this time, he's not here. There's a reason why I wanted to come in here this time." she explained. She began to scurry around the equipment, digging into a cardboard box in the process.

"What are you looking for?" asked the two-tailed fox.

"Come on!" she groaned, ignoring his question. Some more digging around later and she propped her head back up, "Aha!" in her hoof was a piece of paper with a crude drawing on it with some words on it, "...Man, Dad has poor hoofwriting."

Handing Tails the paper, the fox glanced over it, "It looks to be a design for a hypothetical suit, Project: Unlimited. Able to harness unlimited energy with enhanced strength similar to original Spider-Armor and upgraded form. Proved untested... Worrisome consequences. Need better energy source. This is... amazing."

Mayday scratched her head, "Actually, I helped design the specs. My dad merely made the suit's design itself."

"Wow, really?!" Tails exclaimed. "That's pretty cool."

The filly pegasus blushed at the praise, "Thanks... I wanted to show you to see if you wanted to help make it for when Dad and the others get back from finding the Chaos Emeralds. From the look of things, he could use a small upgrade from the black and white suit he already has. Just in case things go wrong."

Tails cracked his knuckles, "Yeah, I think I could get some stuff to make the energy source. Just a few Chaos Drives and Power Rings should be enough to start with. I'll see if Roll or Blues can help us with this." he suggested.

Twilight again peeked out the window. She saw Eris and Luna hover about, using their magic to close the rifts as much as possible. "I hate feeling like this..." she groaned.

"Twilight?" asked Sonata, concern heard in her voice, "I got a message through to Canterlot, Sunset Shimmer is coming soon. Seems like we're going to need to space things out, huh?"

The alicorn offered her siren friend a thin smile, "I guess so... What about Shining Armor and Cadance?"

Sonata shrugged, "I'm not sure yet. I could ask Rainbow or Blues about it, though. Are you sure you're feeling all right?"

"It-It's nothing, Sonata." Twilight tried to assure, "Just having second thoughts is all."

The former Siren tilted her head, "Second thoughts about what?"

"Celestia picking me to follow her legacy. I'm sitting here while Eris and Luna do most of the work! I'm supposed to be one of the rulers! Nd Peter's out wandering these different dimensions to find the Chaos Emeralds. It feels like I'm being useless..." she sighed. "I was told to lead and I feel like I disappointed everypony."

Wrapping an arm around her friend, Sonata replied, "I have those moments too, especially when I was around Adagio and Aria... Trust me, Twilight, you're far from useless." she comforted, embracing her friend in a hug. She giggled, "And if it makes you feel any better, I'm sure Peter's having these same thoughts and thinking about how you'd handle such a position better than he would."

Twilight paused, "I-I'll keep that in mind, Sonata. You, Rainbow and Espio have been telling me that... Maybe it's about time I did something." she exhaled.

The alicorn then looked out the window again, "Luna, Eris, Celestia... I promise I won't let you down..." she sighed to herself.

BOOM!

The two cringed upon hearing that sound. "We're all right!" shouted Bowser a few rooms over.

"Why did you plug in the capacitor when I specifically said not too!?" Wily questioned.

"Cause I wanted to be helpful!" Pinkie shouted.

Knuckles said, "I don't mind. Eggman's running around with a flaming mustache so that's a win for me."

"Help me--!" Eggman could be heard begging. Whatever else was said was drowned out by Rainbow's laugher echoing through the halls.

Twilight rolled her eyes, "I'll get the bucket of water." Sonata giggled at the chaos happening.

Perhaps taking charge wasn't the smartest idea.

The Lost Hex...

Sigma gazed upon the monitors and put a finger on his chin, "Hm... It seems as though those three have eluded me." he commented, referring to Eggman, Bowser, and Wily. "No doubt they have retreated to ally with their nemesis against us."

"Oh, yes. We can make sure they don't survive the merging process if you wish." Starlight suggested.

The Maverick leader hummed, "Of course. In fact, with the power of the Genesis Portals, I can command quite the army. Bowser's minions have been implanted with my armor tech, Eggman and Wily's robots are still here, and I have all of time and space bent down to my very will." he boasted, raising his arms. Crackles of purple electricity sparked from his metal fingers.

A rift opened up at last and the first to step out of the purple rift was an army of animal-looking robots, each with a unique design. "I know of those traitors' hiding spot. And I feel it isn't worth the effort of making an appearance quite yet." Sigma admitted, "So, I have called upon my old minions..."

"Sting Chameleon, Spark Mandrill, Wire Sponge, Wheel Gator, Boomer Kwanger, Rainy Turtleoid... So many Mavericks..." Sigma purred. "But perhaps I should talk advantage of our crisis." with a snap, another rift opened up. This time, two mechs hovered out. both with large mechanical legs and weapons massed on the cockpit.

Starlight raised a brow, "What are those supposed to be?"

"Military mechs from the organization G.U.N. in Mobius. Unlike the originals, these are unmanned, giving me complete control over their actions."

Sigma smirked, "Now Starlight... Open the portal..."

Nearby the merging fields of Mushroom Plains and Emerald Hill was a blue blur. He sped through the canyons as fast as he could, avoiding any obstacle that stood in his path. He moved so fast that when he ran over the puddles in his path, they left rainbow particles in his wake before fading off.

There were a bunch of curved trees. The blur jumped and ran off them twirling perfectly through the terrain. Once he was in the clear, he ran up a rock formation shaped like a half-pipe and jumped off, curling into a ball as he bumped off small rocky protrusions coming from the ground in the blink of an eye.

He made his way through a small cavern and felt the ground beneath him crumble as he got back to the field, his feet curling into a red figure 8 motion. He hopped off some small rock formations and even soun off one before placing both of his palms on top of the tallest one, his legs stretched out once he got his bearings.

The figure put a hand over his eyes as he got a closer look at what was ahead and blinked, a determined look on his face. Suddenly, he jumped off, continuing his run. He made his way to a small body of water and began to swim, his feet moving fast enough to carry his body over in a red exagerrated blur and his legs flailing about, jumping off some more rocks in his way before running up the cylinder wall, a proud smirk seen on his features.

He jumped off some more boulders before reaching the grass and vanishing in the blink of an eye.

The blue figure finally stopped once he looked up, seeing some boulders coming his way. Without hesitation, he jumped off the falling rock debris coming towards him easily. As the largest one got closer, he halted himself in midair and curled back into a ball, making his way through the rock.

He landed on top of the boulder and jumped off it as it shattered, making a quick run up the formation nearby, circling around the entire thing before reaching the top and standing still with a scowl as he inhaled, ready to see what was next.

The blue figure looked like Sonic, but with some differences. He looked younger, chubbier, his spikes were shorter, and he had black eyes instead of green. The younger Sonic saw the Castle of Friendship not too far away from where he was standing. Not only that, but he could see the effects of the merging dimensions nearby, seeing question mark blocks, buildings, and terrain all coming together in a horrible mashup that causes destruction.

Realizing what was at stake, the younger Sonic hopped off from his spot and rolled into a ball, where the formation ended in a ramp.

With his momentum, Sonic flew off, uncurling and arms at his sides. His destination: the crystal castle in his line of sight.