Sonic and EQG Forces

Chapters

Eggman's Victory
The Resistance.
The Rescue is under way
A Friend in Need
Freedom
Back in Action
Rematch
Plans unveiled
To The Rescue
Reunions.
A Familiar Face
Operation Big Wave
A Spot of Hope.
Double Boost
The First Diversion
Another Distraction
Infiltration
The Finishing Touch
Victory
The Final Battle part 1
The Final Battle part 2
The Final Battle part 4
The Light of Hope
The Final Battle part 3

Eggman's Victory

Sonic was running through a peaceful and natural looking landscape with brown block based mountains in the background with a clear sky with a different amount of blocky hills around it while the whole area was covered in green grass and checkered pattern brown soil. It had a variety of flora such as palm tree, purple flowers, moving sunflowers, bushes, ivy-shaped like squares and totem poles scattered around. This area was known as Green Hill and Sonic loved running through it as one of his favorite spots.

Today, he wasn't running to enjoy the scenery though. He was running because Dr. Eggman had launched a full-scale attack with his army a couple of hours ago while he had headed out. It was completely unexpected, but what was more surprising was how quickly Eggman had moved with his conquest. He had taken over the Green Hill in no time and was now staging an attack on the city of Canterlot.

"Sonic? Are you there? Eggman's forces are everywhere in the city! I....I've never seen him do anything like this before!" Tails's voice said from a communicator Sonic had on his wrist. " Everyone else is spread out around the city and trying to do what they can, but we need you here, Sonic!"

"No problem bro, I'll be there soon!" Sonic answered as he increased his speed.

As Sonic dashed through Green Hill over wooden scaffolds, in front of him were a series of Egg Pawns. However, they looked different as their bodies were spherical white-gray, black limbs, and glowing red eyes. As they noticed him, they stuck their arms out and charged up red lasers. Before they could even fire, Sonic dashed through them as a blue streak with little effort.

"New look or not, your robots are still as lame as ever, Egghead." Sonic remarked as he moved forward.

While he was running, Sonic saw navy-wasp like robots with one orange glowing eye ahead of him. Upon seeing him, the wasps aimed their stinger. However, the same thing that happened to the robots before occurred as Sonic turned into a blue streak and struck through them. While he was mid-air, Sonic saw that in the background was a giant ocean of sand with many mountains submerged. His eyes also landed on a giant sandworm moving through with a blue body, which caught him off guard.

"Wow, that thing's huge!" He exclaimed. "I wonder what else Green Hill was hiding underneath?"

Sonic then landed on the floor and continued to dash ahead, destroying any of Eggman's robots he saw as he made his way through Green Hill. As Sonic got further in the area, he noticed that the area was all dried out and totally covered in sand. Waterfalls were now sandfalls.

"Guess it should be called Sand Hill, now." He muttered as he was sliding through sand. "I hope I don't get sand in my shoes."

Sonic then found himself running on solid ground once more. This time, he saw what looked like dozens of pieces giant robots in the shape of the Death Egg Robot, something he had fought long ago except they were colored like the new Egg Pawns. Speaking of which, Sonic noticed their number was increasing as he looked on ahead. They all aimed their weapons and tried to blast him, but he was too quick to hit. As Sonic got closer, he accelerated and moved forward with a boost, plowing through all the enemies in his path as he now found himself running on a longer wooden scaffold, which let him get a look at the damage done, which made him frown. Green Hill was one of his favorite places and seeing it wrecked like this was disappointing.

"All right, Eggman, you're gonna pay for this one." Sonic promised as he moved on the side due to the path of the wooden bridge.

Sonic then began to run on the sand once more as giant SandWorm moved over him. Despite the change in scenery, Sonic was familiar enough with Green Hill and he knew he was about to exit the area.

"Looks like Green Hill is done....time for Canterlot!" Sonic stated as he used his boost to dash through more Egg Pawns and headed for the city.

It was sunset time and Canterlot looked like it was burning. The once magnificent looking city was now covered in flames on buildings, which were now wrecked and left rubble. Thick black smoke reached into the sky due to the damage. In one area, a group of civilians, cowering in fear, were hiding behind Tails, who was defending them from incoming Egg Pawns as Dr. Eggman in his Eggmobile was looking from above.

Tails had his arm cannon and was destroying the Egg Pawns that were marching.

"Just stay behind me, I have this under control." Tails instructed to the people behind him as he fired at more Egg Pawns. However, it didn't seem to do much due to how many of them were still coming forward.

Suddenly, a blue streak blitz through the series of Egg Pawns individually, revealing Sonic as he jumped in the air and came crashing down on the last one with a powerful stomp. The civilians cheered as Tails made a look of relief.

"We have it, remember?" Sonic said as he turned to Tails.

"Of course. By the way, you missed one." Tails said as he fired a shot at an Egg Pawn that was coming for Sonic from the behind. This made Sonic give his best friend the thumbs up.

"Thanks, Tails! Is everyone ok?" Sonic asked as he and Tails looked at the civilians, who nodded.

"Good, now I can turn my attention elsewhere." Sonic said as he turned around to see Eggman, who was looking down at him with a smug look.

"I see you've kicked things up a notch." Sonic said. "Sorry Eggman, but you're temporary 'victory' ends here. Normally, I'd let you just have it for five minutes but you wrecked Green Hill, not cool."

"The only thing ending here is you, Sonic!" Eggman shot back. "Behold, my ultimate creation!"

Sonic just rolled his eyes as he clenched his fist and prepared to attack.

"You always say that and it's always the same old story, I win." Sonic cockily said as he charged towards Eggman as a blue streak.

Before Sonic could collide with the mad scientist, he was intercepted by another yellow streak, much to his confusion as Sonic was blown back. He and Tails then looked on in utter disbelief to see that it was Shadow who had clashed with Sonic as he rose from the ground and folded his arms with an emotionless expression.

"What the?! Shadow?!" Sonic nearly yelled with shock.

Sonic didn't get the chance to ask him anything as next to Shadow came a large red being a stocky build and serpentine tail. The lower half of his body was black with two clawed cyan toes. His lower jaw was covered in red spikes while his head was with black with two large protruding horns, a pair of thick cyan eyebrows and a long cyan ponytail. Two spikes came out of each of his shoulders and he wore spiked bracelets and he had cyan claws.

"Zavok?!' Sonic said as he identified the creature known as a Zeti.

Shadow and Zavok were then joined by Metal Sonic shortly before Chaos jumped down as well, which took Sonic back even more.

"Metal Sonic?! Chaos?!" Sonic shouted as he and Tails looked at the 4 foes in front of them.

"What's going on? Why are they here?" Tails questioned.

Above Sonic's 4 enemies came a new figure. He had a completely black body and was glowing with a red outline and wore metal black high tops with red underneath. Long white dreadlocks emerged from his head while a silver-colored mask with long white ears with black rings inside them and resembled a jackal, covered his face. The mask had a lightning bolt shaped scar on the right side, which was glowing red while his yellow eye was seen through a red visor on the left. The mysterious figure descended down in front of Sonic and Tails as he joined the other enemies.

Sonic wasn't sure what was going on but he also knew that now wasn't the time to be asking questions. He got into a fighting stance and charged a boost towards the newcomer.

Much to his surprise, Sonic didn't hit anything. The enigmatic figure had simply sidestepped and Sonic just moved past him. That wasn't possible. Sonic was the fastest thing alive. Or he was supposed to be.

"What?" Sonic said as he turned back in astonishment to see the figure rising in the air.

"Wow....is he faster than Sonic?!" Tails wondered.

The figure fired a series of red beams at Sonic, who evaded them before he jumped in the air due to the last one. As soon as he did, the figure appeared right in front of him and sent him crashing into a wall with a powerful kick. Sonic felt his body collide with wall and fell to the ground. He picked himself up, slightly dazed to see Zavok charging towards with him a punch that had a red outline. He managed to dodge it and blew Zavok away with a kick.

Shadow charged up a Chaos Spear and hurled it at an unsuspecting Sonic. Luckily, a charged shot clashed with it, courtesy of Tails, who then jumped and tackled Shadow on the ground.

"Shadow, what are you doing siding with Eggman?!" Tails demanded.

Tails got no answer as Shadow kicked him to the side as Tails was sent on the floor.

Sonic charged his boost towards the figure once more in mid-air, who was easily able to evade it by simply ducking. As Sonic landed on the ground, Metal Sonic came with a fury of swipes. Sonic avoided each one of them and stepped back before Metal became a spiral drill, which made Sonic jump up to dodge it. As he was in the air once more, he tried to hit the figure again with a boost, but he received the same result. Before Sonic could attack again, Chaos stretched his arm, forcing Sonic to block it.

"Hold on, Sonic!" Tails said as he rose from the ground to help his friend. However, Metal Sonic blocked his path and fired a chest laster, which Tails used his arm cannon to block as he slid away due to the recoil, feeling the pressure of the attack as he struggled against it. Then, Zavok came down with a powerful fist, which Tails managed to dodge by jumping at the last second, though he was blown back into some rubble due to the resulting shockwave.

"Tails!" Sonic shouted as he turned from Chaos. Suddenly, the figure came and kneed him in the gut, which forced him to grunt before he kicked Sonic away on the ground with much force.

"Hoho, nice hit!" Eggman praised with a clenched fist.

Sonic rose up from the floor as the figure appeared before him once more and tried to kick him, which Sonic was able to dodge. Sonic released a kick of his own that the figure blocked effortlessly. He then roundhoused kicked Sonic into another wall, making a crater as he did. Before Sonic could come off the wall, the figure moved at blinding speed and kicked him up in the air once more. As Sonic was coming down, the figure fired a beam that blew him up in the air again. Zavok then leaped and punched through Sonic, which was followed by Shadow knocking him towards the ground with both fists in the back. Before Sonic reached the ground, Chaos extended an arm and smacked him towards the side just as Metal Sonic appeared before him and clawed him back to the figure, who sent crashing him on the ground with a strong ax kick directly to the back of his skull.

Sonic was weakened as his entire body was covered in pain. He could barely pick himself up and was now at the mercy of 5 enemies. From the rubble, Tails emerged quite injured as he held his arm and was sore all over. He then saw the state Sonic was in and formed a look of panic.

"Sonic!!" He screamed as he saw best friends' body go limp on the floor.

Sonic felt his consciousness slipping away as he could only see the feet of the mysterious figure coming down in front of him.

"Is that all? I was hoping you'd put more of a fight." The figure taunted in a dark filtered voice before he conjured an impossible number of small red glowing cubes in front of Sonic. The last Sonic saw before his vision went black was the cubes heading straight towards him.

It had been 6 months since that day. The day Sonic had been defeated by Eggman. In one location, there were golden statues of the doctor, extending out in his glory. There was a sign that read 'Eggman Land' in bright pink letters with Eggman's face as yellow lights emerged from the eyes. A series large, dark search towers that gave off blue lights and had the Eggman's letters spelled out were scattered everywhere. There were many cold and curved metal skyscrapers and factories everywhere along with sphere-shaped boilers resembling the doctor cranking out dark smoke as red banners with his insignia, a dark version of him giving a sinister smile where hung around as Eggman's troops marched around. Massive blimps with the insignia floated around the city. It wasn't just this one location that was like. 99.9 percent of the plane looked the same because Eggman had finally done it. He had finally conquered the world.

The Resistance.

As another area was falling under Eggman's control as his troops swarmed over the place and citizens were being round up, far away from the outskirts, Rainbow Dash, who was in her Crystal Guardian form, looked on from above at the sight. This wasn't the first time she had seen it but it didn't make the scene any less disheartening. She clenched her fist in frustration and so desperately wanted to jump in, but she also knew it was futile at this point. Instead, she took one last look before she flew off at high speed, leaving a rainbow colored trail.

In a secret bunker of some kind, a large mechanical door opened for Rainbow as she entered a dank room with a large computer screen with controls beneath it. In the room, the rest of the Rainbooms, except for Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer, who also were in their crystal guardian forms, filled it up alongside Silver and Manic. Next to Silver, was a teenage girl wearing a short red sleeveless dress with tall red boots, each that had a white stripe. She wore golden ring bands and she had pink short hair which was curved and stylized, resembling a bob cut with green eyes. This was Amy Rose, one of Sonic's oldest friends. The room also housed 3 other new figures. The first one was a teen with a bulky build while wearing a green open jacket that had light green arms. His shirt was light green with thin stripes while his pants were the same color as his jacket. He wore white gloves with black and gold cuffs, a golden chain around his neck and black shoes. His head was covered with short green hair, which also housed a pair of black headphones. Next to him was another teen wearing a purple outfit with dark purple and black shoes with black cuffs that had golden spots and he had studded bands on his hands and ankles. He had purple hair with a triangular shape, though a part of it was yellow and protruded out. The last one was much younger than the previous two and was wearing an orange vest with a bee emblem, white and orange shoes, white gloves cuffed with orange and black pants with yellow stripes. Over his head was a black pilot's helmet with a red rim and flight goggles. They were the Chaotix, consisting of Vector, Espio, and Charmy respectively.

"Eggman's army just captured another area." Rainbow Dash informed everyone, which made looks of dismay fill the entire room. "Our forces were too late and outgunned by the time they arrived and had to retreat."

"Another one?!" Vector exclaimed. "That's the third one this week! Man, this really isn't looking good..."

"Eggman's army capturing territory at an even faster rate than before." Espio stated with his arms folded. "At the rate he's going, it's bound to increase further."

"The more he gains, the more people start to lose hope." Fluttershy added in a melancholic tone as her gaze met the floor. "I can't really blame them."

Silver then formed a stern look of determination.

"Look, I know things aren't looking our way, but we can't start giving into despair. I've been in this kind of situation my entire life and I've learned as long as there's a chance, we can still make it out alright. We have to keep moving forward, even if the odds are against us." Silver said. " And we have to show the people that too."

"Silver right." Rarity chimed in. "The fact that there's even a resistance in the first place means we haven't lost yet. Though I wish everyone could see that."

"Yeah! We can do this even though the fate of the world is resting on our shoulders and Eggman has like 99.9 % percent of the world at his fingertips and if we lose, then it means our planet is doomed and we're going to live the rest of our lives serving his robot army, never eating, sleeping, or even thinking again! Pinkie ranted in a very quick tangent.

*Gasp*, I don't wanna lose my thoughts!"Charmy suddenly said in a panicked tone as he gripped his helmet.

Everyone looked at Pinkie with slightly annoyed looks. She then formed a sheepish smile as she blushed slightly due to her outburst.

"I wish Sonic was here." Amy softly said with a voice full of sadness. "If he was, he'd know what to do. Maybe he's out there, fighting on his own."

The room then went silent as everyone took in Amy's words as sadness filled it once more as Manic tensed up and slightly shook.

"We all wish that Amy, but the truth is...Sonic's gone." Manic bitterly said as Amy put her head down. He was right.

" The truth isn't always what we want to hear but we've got to deal with it? Or end up like Tails? Even with Twilight watchin' over em, I'm still worried he's not in the right head." AppleJack expressed as she folded her arms.

Just then, the door opened up once more, getting everyone's attention as they turned to see Knuckles, who was with Sunset. She was in her Crystal Guardian form as well.

"Knuckles, Sunset. Any news on the struggle?" Silver asked them.

"Please, do you have good news?" Fluttershy said in a hopeful tone as she put her hands together.

The two of them exchanged uneasy glances before they turned back to their friends.

"Well....Our defenses at Green Hill just fell." Knuckles started off. " And I've got word from our forces in the city that the monster who took down Sonic........"

Knuckles paused as he and everyone else still wasn't used to saying that, no matter how long it had been and formed slightly mournful looks.

"He's causing our forces to panic and run". He finished as he put his arms behind his back and looked up at the large monitor.

"We still don't know anything about this guy. The boys and I have done digging but we got nothing. No name, no backstory, no blueprints if he's some kind of new creation of Eggman, there's nothing on him. It's like he's a ghost and just showed up." Vector said.

"Whoever he is, he know's his stuff. He was smart enough to attack the portal from Equestria, meaning we can't ask Princess Twilight for help." Sunset added.

"Then just send me in!" Manic impatiently said as he held up a fist. "I won't run from that masked freak!"

"I'm with Manic, that guy needs to pay for what he did to Sonic!" Rainbow Dash agreed as she put her hand in her fist.

"Settle down, you two. We all would like to avenge Sonic, but charging in ahead like this isn't going to work." Sunset told them.

"Granny Smith always said if you ain't sure you can take a bull by the horns, yer better off takin' nothin at all. Just goin' in like that is askin' for trouble." AppleJack stated.

"They're right. I get if you're feeling frustrated, but brute force alone isn't going to do any good." Knuckles said. "I know this is coming from me, but if we're going to win, we're going to have to think of another method. And I can't afford to lose you two. You're valuable parts of this resistance."

Manic and Rainbow Dash wanted to protest but they knew they're friends were right. That mystery figure could tear through their forces like nothing. The two of them backed up a little.

"All right people, let's get to work, we got a world to save!" Knuckles said as he threw his fist in the air as his friends, save for Sunset and Amy.

"So, what's the plan, boss?" Charmy asked as Knuckles raised an eyebrow.

"That was the plan, Charmy." Knuckles told him, as Charmy rubbed the back of his head.

"Oh, right. Teehee."

The Resistance then began to move around the room and get ready. As they did, Sunset gripped her shoulder and formed an anxious look.

'I won't run from that masked freak!' She remembered Manic saying as memories flooded back to her.

It was 6 months ago, during the day when Eggman had launched his attack on Canterlot. Sunset was desperately running through the burning city, distraught over what was happening. Just yesterday, she was planning to spend the day with her friends here and never could have imagined this. When she heard Eggman was behind it, she was surprised. She had met him before and truth be told, she always figured he was kind of silly. She never expected something like this from him. But she couldn't worry about that now. She had people to save.

As Sunset was running, she found a crowd of terrified citizens in the middle of the park, which was a total wreck. She stopped in her tracks and rushed towards them.

"Hey, all of you!" Sunset called out, which made them turn to her.

"It's ok. I'm here now." Sunset reassured to the frightened civilians. "I know a way out. We can leave the city. I promise, follow me and you'll be safe."

The citizens, with nothing left to lose, began to follow Sunset as she headed for her left. Suddenly, a large distorted noise was heard, stopping everyone in their tracks as the civilians looked around in a panicked tone.

"What was that?" Sunset wondered before out of nowhere, a red beam just barely missed her and blast a line in front of the people she was escorting, blowing all of them on the ground. Sunset looked around in horror to see the citizens on the ground and they weren't moving.

"No!" She screamed. "I promised them it'd be ok!"

"Well, you shouldn't make promises you can't guarantee." She heard an intimidating voice say from behind. She slowly turned around to see the mysterious figure, glowing red floating above her. When her eyes saw him, she found herself paralyzed with fear. Due to this, she didn't notice the Egg Pawns come from behind and take the citizens from the floor until it was too late.

"What, no!" Sunset cried as she saw the Egg Pawns march away. Before she could pursue them, she heard the voice once more.

"Concern for others is a weakness, child." He said as Sunset turned to see him. She had a better look at him, especially his masked face and instead of being paralyzed, she found herself beginning to quake with trepidation.

"There's no point in resisting. The doctor has already won and your hero is no more." The figure informed her.

Hero? No more? What was he saying? That Sonic was somehow beaten?

"W-what do you mean? Are you talking about Sonic?" Sunset forced herself to utter. "That's not true! Sonic would never-

"He has." The figure cut her off. "There is no point in your resistance."

Sunset couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was Sonic really beaten?

"Ah, you're shaking. You're terrified of me, how nice." The figure said, which made Sunset's fear increase as she began to now shake uncontrollably.

"Your fear...it's delicious." The figure went on.

Sunset found her body filling up with anxiety before the figure fired a red beam at her feet, scaring the living daylight out of her as she fell to the ground. She found herself beginning to hyperventilate. She tried to regain control of her breathing but it was almost impossible.

"Boo." The figure mocked as he chuckled.

Sunset didn't know what was with this guy. She had turned into a demon, fought off 3 evil sirens and two crazed magical creatures, an evil wizard and even gone into space to fight aliens. But this...this was on a totally different level.

"Tell you what, if you run, I promise I'll let you go for today." The figure offered as Sunset found herself full of terror while the figure's chuckle turned into full-blown laughter. She picked herself up and did as she was told. She ran. As fast as she could and she didn't look back.

Sunset darling, is everything all right? We have to move." Rarity asked, snapping Sunset out of her memory as she turned to see her friend staring at her with concern.

"Y-yeah. Let's go." Sunset quickly responded.

As the resistance was getting ready for action, Pinkie skipped along cheerfully. While doing so, she passed by Amy, who still had the same sorrowful expression from before as she seemed to be like dragging herself around. Pinkie then backed up to where she was, which Amy didn't notice. She observed Amy for a while as she put her hand to her chin.

"Y'know, Sonic told me and the others about his friends from before and when he mentioned you, he said you were always cheery." Pinkie said as Amy still remained silent. "Well, I don't see any of that now."

"What's there to be cheery about?"Amy answered after she let out a sigh.

"I know our situation isn't exactly all cupcakes and smiles, but Sonic also mentioned how in low times, you still were upbeat." Pinkie added, which made Amy take a seat and rest her arms on her face.

"That's because no matter how bad those situations were from before, at least I still had Sonic." Amy expressed while Pinkie listened.

" I always knew that even if things looked hopeless, he would be there for me like before and I'd at least get to see him again. That gave me the drive to look on the bright side of things as with him, there's always a chance." Amy went on before her she wiped a single tear from her eye as Pinkie looked on. "And now, he's gone. Just like that. I can never see him again. I'm just finding it hard to see what could be good in this whole situation. Sonic's not here, Eggman's almost won, and I saw the Knothole Freedom Fighters taken from me. Just what can we do?"

Amy sniffled a bit as Pinkie came and sat next to her and began to swing her legs back and forth.

"You're right our situation is looking pretty....eeeeehhhhh." Pinkie agreed. "But I don't think it's totally bad yet."

Amy then gave Pinkie a puzzled look, wondering how she could say something like that a time.

"Sonic may not be here with us himself, but he left something behind. The impact he made on all the people he touched. He's the main reason why the resistance even exists in the first place. He's inspired so many people to do what he did even when he's not here. In a way, he's living on with the resistance." Pinkie explained before she stood up. "I know he wouldn't want us moping around like it's the end of the world. He'd just tell us to be positive and look at what we can do."

"Let's do it to it." Pinkie added, doing her best Sonic impression as she made her legs spin around to mimic his speed before she sat back down.

"At least that's my two cents." She finished as she gave Amy a wink.

Amy looked at the ground and thought about what Pinkie said. She remembered how Sonic never gave in to despair, no matter what he was up against. Pinkie was right. Sonic wasn't really gone as his influence remained behind. They at least had that for them. And she knew he'd hate it if his influence didn't have an impact and people just gave up. Feeling new resolve, Amy wiped a tear as she rose up as Pinkie proudly looked at her.

"Pinkie...thanks for that." Amy thanked, making Pinkie grin.

"No problemo, it's what I do." Pinkie answered in a pleased tone.

With that done, the two of them walked further into the base, ready for action.

In one of Eggman's bases, it was a highly mechanized area with various metallic lanes everywhere. There were multiple open gates scattered around as purple lights vibrated throughout the entire area. Different hexagonal shaped windows filled the area. In the top right corner which was shadowed, Rouge jumped down from them and landed on the floor. She looked around in order to make sure the coast was clear.

"All right, entering Eggman's fortress, check. Now, let's see what I can find." Rouge said to herself.

Before she took a step, Rouge heard the sound of a gate opening up, which made her curse under her breath as she stepped back into the shadows to avoid being seen. She peeked out to see a legion of Egg Pawns marching forward, with Orbot and Cubot floating above them.

"Make sure you all head to your post. The boss wants the Death Egg completely secure." Orbot instructed, making Rouge raise an eyebrow.

"(So this is the Death Egg, huh? Figures)". Rouge thought as she listened in more.

"We better hurry, we don't want to miss the look on Sonic's face when the boss shows him his empire." Cubot eagerly said. Hearing this caught Rouge's attention. Sonic was....alive?

"I agree, but don't you think it'll be better seeing him banished into space?" Orbot responded as Cubot scratched his head.

"Oh, that too." He replied.

Rouge completely emerged herself in the shadows. What she had heard was vital. Sonic was alive this whole time. Though it might not be that way for long.

The Rescue is under way

Back at the resistance base, Knuckles was standing in front of the large computer monitor as he was pacing back and forth. He was trying to think of the resistance's next action. All he said was that they had to get to work. That wasn't even a plan at all. He had to think of something.

"Ok, so what can we do to turn the tides in our favor? Just going around and fighting isn-" He said to himself before he heard a beeping sound coming from the monitor, which made him turn to it.

"An incoming transmission?" He said as he walked up to the screen and pressed the keyboard. As he did, Rouge's face was on the computer, though there was static.

"Rouge. What news do you have for me?" Knuckles asked.

"You're gonna like this one boss. In fact, it might be enough to make you kiss me." Rouge teased as Knuckles became slightly flustered and turned away.

"J-Just tell me already." He responded in a pouting tone.

"Ok. The signal here isn't good, so I don't know how long this transmission will last. Just listen up...."

In the main resistance room, the entire group was standing and getting prepared for their next mission. Suddenly, Knuckles burst through the door with a wild and excited expression. He started to pant heavily due to being out of breath as everyone turned to see him.

"Goodness, Knuckles, you're all panting like a wild dog! What's gotten into you?" Rarity asked.

"I've....received....great news! Sonic is alive!" Knuckles blurted out.

Hearing this made the everyone stop what they were hearing as they all heard what Knuckles said. His words were like a torpedo had just hit the base.

"Seriously?! That's amazing!" Silver exclaimed before the entire room was filled with smiles and looks of happiness and relief. Sonic wasn't dead after all. The resistance then began to slightly cheer and had a small celebration due to the reveal.

"It's about time we got some goods news around here." Sunset happily said.

"He's alive! Thank goodness, thank goodness!" Amy excitedly repeated as Pinkie watched her with a grin.

"See, told you that you have to always look on the bright side." Pinkie told her.

"I knew that Sonic would never go down!" Rainbow Dash stated with a fist pump.

"Oh boy, wait till the people hear this!" Charmy stated with glee.

"Trust me, words can't express how good it is to hear that my bro is alive, but we have to know, where is he?" Manic asked as Knuckles regained his composure.

"According to the intel I got, he's being held captive in a space station." Knuckles explained.

"Space. That makes perfect sense. No wonder we weren't able to find him wherever we looked. The one place we didn't have access to." Vector stated.

"That is quite clever of him to keep his space stations hidden. I'll give the doctor that." Espio noted as he put his hand on his chin.

"If he's being held prisoner, we have to go save him!" Amy insisted.

"Of course we do! That should be our number one priority now." Rainbow DasH added.

"Um, I want to save Sonic as much as all of you, but we don't have a way to get to space." Fluttershy brought up.

"True we don't, but Eggman does......." Knuckles replied with a sly smile as he looked at the resistance. Everyone knew what he meant by that.

"Now yer speakin' my language." AppleJack said as she held up her fist. "Come on y'all, let's go get Sonic!"

Knuckles had a taken a squad from the resistance in order to take one of Eggman's shuttles. The location was located in the frigid north in a port that housed the doctor's ships with a dark sky. It was an industrial area with no natural environment and was built out at sea. Yellow and gray metallic structures emerged from the sea, giving the appearance of an oil rig. Many of them were high-tech factory based chemical plants glowing orange along with giant cranes. There were many pipes, ducts, and containers in different shapes as they transported blue chemicals. Between the structures were yellow and black roads, yellow and blue tubes, and train tracks. There were many shipping containers located. Some areas were covered in snow and above, many of Eggman's ships were floating. When the resistance arrived, they had decided to split up in order to take different routes to find a shuttle. In one area, the Chaotix were making their way throughout the plant as they moved across the tubes.

"All right boys, let's find a shuttle!" Vector declared.

"I have an idea, how about the first to find it becomes the new leader of the Chaotix! I'm gonna win!" Charmy declared as he flew on ahead, much to Vector' surprise.

"Hey, get back here! That's not happening Charmy!" Vector yelled as he increased his speed, while Espio sighed.

"I hope I don't have to end up babysitting." He muttered under his breath as he moved ahead.

The Chaotix moved across the port's platforms, where they were greeted by a series of Egg Pawns in their way. Espio released a series of ninja stars, taking a few robots out while using his strength, Vector smashed through the robots with his fist. Charmy held out his wrist and fired a series of stingers like darts from his wristbands, knocking the robots down.

"Too easy!" Vector stated cockily.

"Yay, I'm still in the lead!" He then heard Charmy say. "When I win, I'll rename us the Charmys!

"Never!" Vector denied as he furiously pursued his younger teammate with Espio not too far behind.

The three of them moved forward through the plant, taking out any enemies that got in their way before they found themselves in front of a rail and began to grind on it, with Vector in the lead.

"No fair!" Charmy complained. "There's only one route for us to take!"

"Ha, maybe better luck next time." Vector responded.

The Chaotix continued to grind on the rail before they found themselves on another platform. In front of them, they noticed a large freight train coming ahead, though the issue was that there were no more platforms for them to use.

"It's a good thing I always think ahead." Vector said. "Boys, take out the sling rings."

The three of them all pulled out a golden hand-sized ring as Charmy then flew above Vector and Espio and held his ring down. It connected with Vector and Espio's rings, making all of them attached to each other with a star like-band. The Chaotix now flew with Charmy leading.

"Now I'm never gonna win." Charmy muttered with displeasure.

"Focus, Charmy! We don't want you dropping us!" Vector instructed.

The Chaotix flew across the plant as they noticed a freight train coming ahead, which they flew past with no problem.

"See? We got nothing to worry about." Charmy said, not paying attention to his surroundings.

Suddenly, the Chaotix heard the sound of an oncoming train...which they were in the path of! All of them formed alarmed expressions as Charmy panicked.

"Charmy, get us up now!" Vector screamed as Charmy quickly rose higher and higher as they narrowly avoided the incoming train. Ahead, they noticed a pathway for them, causing Espio and Vector to let go of their sling rings as they landed on it. They were then joined by Charmy, who wore a nervous smile as Vector gave him a glare.

"What did I say about focusing?!' Vector snapped.

"Well...we made it out...."Charmy answered sheepily.

Before Vector could say any more, Espio cut him off.

"Speaking of focusing, we have a shuttle to find." Espio reminded his two teammates. "Let's go."

The Chaotix were deeper in the plant as they moved ahead. Any of Eggman's robots that got in their way they were able to take out pretty easily. They found themselves running on a tube once more, which took them to the upper part of the plant and led them to a rail track once more, which had 3 different routes, much to Charmy's pleasure.

"Yaaay! I can still win!" Charmy happily said.

"Oh no, you don't!" Vector yelled.

Grinding on the rails, The Chaotix then saw the launch pad in front of them and next to it, a giant orange space cruiser. They had reached their goal.

"Yes, we made it first!" Vector said as the three of them jumped off the rails and landed on the ground at the same time.

"Wait, so who won? We all arrived at the same time." Charmy said.

"In that case, I guess we all won and as a result, the team dynamic doesn't change." Vector decided as Charmy frowned.

"Hey, that's not how it works!" Charmy protested.

"We should alert our companions." Espio said as he brought his wrist.

"Espio here, we've found a shuttle. Meet us here." Espio informed the others.

"You did? Good job! You heard him, everyone, let's go!" Knuckles instructed.

"Okely, dokely...wait, I think my tongue is thuck on the ice!!" Pinkie said, leading to a series of groans.

"She makes you look like a grownup, Charmy." Vector dryly said.

"Thanks...wait...hey!" Charmy replied.

"I find it odd that the Doctor wouldn't have any kind of higher security for his launch base." Espio said as he looked around. "Don't let your guard down just yet. I sense something."

"What? I don't see anything." Vector said.

Just then, the three of them noticed a green swirl heading down towards the platform in front of them. When it landed, the Chaotix got a better look at what it really was. It resembled one of Eggman's robots, but was decorated like a ninja. It was wearing a green ninja outfit with a yellow triangular cross pattern chest piece. Its torso was black, it had red eyes, grey appendages, and green ninja shoes along with a green scarf. It was standing on one foot and was in a ninja stance. This robot was known as the Heavy Shinobi.

"Wow, a real ninja!" Charmy gushed with his hands on his face, which made Espio turn towards him with a not so impressed look.

"I was hoping your hunch could be wrong for once, Espio." Vector grumbled as the Chaotix got into fighting position.

Vector went first and tried to punch the Heavy Shinobi many times, though the mech was too fast and nimble for him to hit. When Vector threw another punch, this time the Shinobi jumped over him and bounced off his head, sending him to the ground. While the Shinobi was mid-air, Espio threw a kunai, which the robot caught with two fingers.

"So cool!" Charmy uttered, making Espio lower his eyebrows in annoyance.

Espio then began to throw a series of ninja stars at the Shinobi. In response, the Shinobi retaliated with stars of its own, which were starfish-like robots. Espio's and the Shinobi's weapons clashed with each other many times, creating mini explosions mid-air. When the explosion cleared, Espio was nowhere to be seen as the Shinobi landed on the floor. It looked around but saw nothing. However, Espio had turned himself invisible and was sneaking up on the robot with a kunai in his hand, ready to slice it. Before he did, the Shinobi turned around and released a powerful karate chop, blowing Espio back and turning him back to normal.

"Looks like it's up to me to save the day!" Charmy stated as he flew up and fired a series of stingers at the Shinobi, who simply moved from side to side to dodge them easily. Charmy began to fire more rapidly but it was no use. The Shinobi then jumped up into the air in front of Charmy, taking him back. It then took a katana and came down to cut Charmy. Charmy held up his wrist to block it and when the blade touched them, he was frozen in a block of ice as he was sent to the ground. When he hit it, the ice broke and Charmy rolled on the ground to Espio and Vector and started to shiver as the Shinobi got back in its original stance and faced them.

"Cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold." Charmy said with chattering teeth.

"Ok boys, round one, didn't go so well." Vector stated before he pounded his fist into his hand. "Let's show this creep why no one messes with the Chaotix."

"Eggman will pay for his mockery of the art of ninjutsu." Espio said with determination.

This time all three Chaotix charged towards the Heavy Shinobi. In response, the Shinobi jumped back and threw it's starfish shurikens at the team. They split apart in order to avoid them as the shurikens stuck to the floor. They were going to regroup to attack the Shinobi before the shurikens suddenly split apart, releasing a barrage of needles towards them.

"Get down!" Espio instructed, making the Chaotix take to the floor, narrowly avoiding the spikes as they were shot everywhere.

The Shinobi then went towards the Chaotix as they rose from the ground with its katana. Luckily, Espio with his quick reflexes blocked the slash with a kunai, though it froze, forcing him to discard his weapon as he and the Shinobi jumped back. Espio then lunged at the Shinobi and released a series of kicks, palm strikes and karate chops the Shinobi blocked with one hand. As this happened, this gave Vector an idea.

"Hey, Charmy. Fly up and give Espio a hand." Vector told him. "I think I have something which might work."

Charmy did as he was told as he flew up and fired his stingers at the Shinobi, who blocked them with his katana using his other hand. The Shinobi was now fending off both Espio and Charmy's attacks. Due to this, it was quite preoccupied. Espio and Charmy continued their assault, keeping the Shinobi on guard. When it deflected both of their hits for the last time, it jumped into the air as a green swirl. As it did, Vector came down and smashed the robot in the ground with much force, leaving it stunned when it rose up from the impact.

"He's open, let's hit him, boys!" Vector yelled.

Charmy fired his stingers once more, hitting the Shinobi and forcing it back as Vector tore into it with a flurry of punches, sending it away. Espio then came in front of it and did a body flip, creating a small vortex with transparent leaves that flung the Heavy Shinobi in the air. When it came down, Vector released a strong punch, Charmy a blow from his stingers and Espio a powerful palm strike as they smashed the robot away from them, sending it sprawling on the floor with heavy damage. The Heavy Shinobi began to glitch out for a while before it shut down completely.

"Yeah, we did it!" Charmy cheered.

"That's how a real shinobi fights." Espio declared as he folded his arms.

"Good job, boys. We've secured the launch pad for the others." Vector proudly stated.

Just then the Chaotix were joined by Silver, Knuckles, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and AppleJack, who stopped in front of their tracks as they noticed the damaged Heavy Shinobi in the background.

"What the hay happened here?" AppleJack questioned as she scratched her head.

"Nothing to worry about, just a little guard we took care of." Vector dismissed.

"There's no time to lose. We need to hurry and save Sonic before more of his kind show up." Espio cautioned.

With that said, the Resistance squad rushed towards the entrance to the ship, which was a large red shuttle and prepared to enter it in order to carry on their mission.

A Friend in Need

As the Resistance was headed in space for the rescue mission, in Canterlot, which had been ruined since Eggman's attack 6 months ago, Tails was working on a heavily damaged and shutdown E-123 Omega, who looked like he had been in some kind of battle and clearly wasn't the victor. Tails was rearranging wires inside of Omega and on his face, he wore a clearly stressed expression.The more he worked on Omega, the more frustrated he became due to his lack of progress. He then pressed a few buttons on the robot's back, hoping it would do the trick, but nothing happened. Tails then groaned in frustration as he covered his face with his hands. He wasn't feeling so good himself. He let out a defeated sigh and backed away from Omega.

"I'm sorry that I can't fix you up." Tails said to the fallen robot in an apologetic tone. "My head's not really the right place.."

How could it have been after everything he'd been through? Tails then shut his eyes and remembered back to 6 months ago.

Tails was lying in a bed with a bandage on his cheek and a larger one wrapped around his while he was unconscious. Suddenly, his eyes began to flicker as he groaned weakly.

"Thank goodness!" He heard Fluttershy's voice say. "Everyone, come quick, Tails is waking up!"

Tails blinked a few times before he opened his eyes fully and sat up straight on the bed. In front of him were the Rainbooms, Spike, Silver, Manic, Knuckles, the Chaotix and Amy rushing towards him.

"Oh, what a relief." Amy expressed."I couldn't bear to lose him either."

Tails groaned again, which made the others turn to him with concern.

"Tails, take it easy. Don't force yourself." Sunset said as she came over and helped him sit up.

"Tails, how many fingers am I holding up?"Pinkie asked she held up 3 fingers directly on his face.

"3, Pinkie." Tails answered in a tired tone. "Where am I?"

"Resistance HQ." Knuckles informed him. "During the retreat from the city, we found you all banged up pretty badly. You've been asleep for almost a month."

"A month?!" Tails repeated before he shook his head. "Wait, back up, Resistance? What's going on?"

Everyone in the room looked away while they all formed somber looks.

"Resistance against that Dr. Eggman. Tails, he's taken' over almost all of the world." AppleJack informed him, much to utter his disbelief.

"What? That can't be! It has to-"Tails started before he remembered that AppleJack represented honesty and would only tell the truth. He then leaned against his bed, trying to take all of that in. Eggman......ruling the entire world.

"Eggman launched a full-scale attack not just on your city, but around the world with his fleet. It fell under his control in no time." Espio said.

"I don't believe it." He softly said before he turned to Amy.

"Amy if you're here and not in Knothole, does that mean..." Tails said before Amy nodded to confirm his fears.

"Eggman took down Knothole and he captured the rest of the Freedom Fighters." Amy sadly told him. "I was the only one who managed to get away."

"With her and other survivors from around, we've managed to form this Resistance and try to hold out the best we can." Twilight added as Tails hung his head.

"Keyword being trying." Charmy said in a somewhat defeated tone.

Suddenly, the memories of what happened on that day flooded back to him as he stood up in an alert fashion.

"Wait, guys, where's Sonic?! Have you seen him anywhere?! Last time I remember, he was at the mercy of some new enemy who was with Eggman. Did he make it out OK?" Tails quickly asked.

The entire room went silent as everyone either hung their heads or closed their eyes in grief. Tails looked around, not sure what this meant.

"Tails...we haven't found Sonic anywhere. We just found you. And if what you're saying is true, then it confirms.." Manic replied as panic began to fill up through Tails's body.

"The boys and I are the best detectives around and we've heard no sightings of him or located any trail." Vector stated.

"N-no, that can't be!" Tails denied. "Sonic wouldn't lose like that."

"Tails, you heard them, we've searched almost everywhere for Sonic. I don't want to believe it as much as you do, but Sonic's.....Sonic's gone." Rainbow Dash said in a voice full of sorrow as she struggled to say the last part.

Tails just froze. That couldn't be. Sonic, his best friend....gone just like that. That wasn't right. Sonic never loses. He always finds a way no matter what.

"No, he's not gone! He isn't!" Tails yelled as he rose up from his bed. " Sonic wouldn't go down like that!"

"Tails, calm down." Twilight said. "You're still hurt by what happened and aren't thinking straight."

"Calm?! How can I be calm when you all think Sonic's dead!?" Tails shouted back as tears began to fill his eyes." We have to find him!"

"There's nothing to find. Manic answered. "This is a huge loss for all of us, Tails. He was your best friend and my brother, but we have to accept reality."

"No! He's not dead! I just know it!" Tails desperately insisted as he rose from his bed and wiped away his tears while ripping the bandages off of him. "I'll prove it! Even on my own if I have to."

"Tails, that's not a good idea." Silver replied. "Eggman's taken over most of the world and the only way we're going to beat him is by working together. And we have to do it without Sonic."

"Stop saying things like that!" Tails screamed. "Sonic's alive and I'll find him."

"Tails, please, listen to yourself. You're in denial and you're in no shape to be going off on something like this on your own. We're your friends, so stay and let us help you." Sunset said in a reassuring tone.

"If you wanted to help, you'd help me look for Sonic!" He snapped. " I couldn't help him back then..... but I'm going to help him now! I'm going to find him and if you're not going to join me, then fine!"

"Tails, stop being dumb! This isn't what Sonic would want you to do in a situation like this!" Rainbow Dash lectured.

"I know he wouldn't want me to write him off like all of you have!" He retorted.

With that said, Tails rushed out of the Resistance room as fast as he could pass his friends while they looked at him with worry.

"Tails, come back!" Fluttershy pleaded.

"Fluttershy, drop it." Knuckles said as everyone turned back to see him. "He's not right in the head and he's probably the most shaken up by the news. I know it wasn't easy for any us to take in. Just let him go for now. He needs time to process and heal."

"Is it really alright to leave the poor dear like that? He was so distraught." Rarity questioned.

"He'll be back." Silver answered. "Once he's come to terms with what happened. In the meantime, we have to formulate a plan to take back our world....

Twilight looked out to where Tails had run off with a concerned expression. Despite what Knuckles and Silver said, She knew that she couldn't just leave him like that going all out in the world run by Eggman. In his state of mind, something terrible could happen to him.

"Twilight, what are you thinking?" Spike asked, as Twilight looked down to see her loyal companion staring up at her.

"Some way to help my friend." She answered as she looked back out again.

Present day, Tails sat down on the ground and rested his hands on his face. 6 months later and he was no closer to finding Sonic as it had just been a dead end so far. Maybe the others were right. Maybe Eggman had finally done it and Sonic was gone.......

As Tails was thinking things over, he didn't notice the puddle of water emerging from the manhole behind him. The puddle then started to take shape as two green eyes and a brain were formed. Chaos had risen behind an unsuspecting Tails. He then stretched his arm out as Tails still didn't notice. Chaos then raised it and prepared to bring it down.

"Tails, look out!" Twilight yelled as Tails found himself shrouded in a purple aura and moved out harms way while Chaos smashed the ground, leaving a small crater. Much to his surprise, Tails turned to see Twilight with her hand out alongside Spike.

"Twilight?!" He uttered.

Before Twilight could answer, Chaos sent out his arm towards her at surprising speed, which caught her off guard. Luckily, Tails tackled her and Spike out of the way as they sprawled on the ground.

"What are you doing here?" Tails asked.

"Looking out for you." Twilight answered, making Tails confused.

"Uh guys, before we talk, maybe we should do something about him." Spike suggested, making Tails and Twilight turn to see Chaos in front of them.

"He's right." Twilight realized as she and Tails rose up. "Who is this again?"

"Chaos, God of destruction. He once went on a rampage but Sonic calmed him down. He's supposed to be good or at least neutral. Him working with Eggman makes no sense at all." Tails explained.

Chaos responded by trying to attack the two of them with a watery arm, making them jump back to dodge it as it smashed the ground. Twilight lifted some nearby debris using her powers and launched them at the monster, though they passed harmlessly through his watery body. Chaos extended a limb and smacked Twilight to the ground. Tails charged up his arm cannon and fired a series of shots at Chaos, trying to aim for his head. Chaos moved his body, letting other parts get hit instead as he was splashed around. He instantly reformed himself and sent out his arm to grab Tail's arm. He then slammed Tails down on the ground, making him grunt. Chaos was planning on attacking Tails once more as he raised a fist though he found himself trapped in a purple field, courtesy of Twilight.

"Gotcha." She said. "You're not going anywhere."

A small piece of Chaos then dripped on the floor, making a small puddle.Using this, Chaos sent out a tendril which slammed Twilight into the wall, releasing him from her grip. Twilight fell down from the wall and was at Chaos's mercy as she saw him approach her. He sent out an arm to grab her though Spike rushed through the middle of it, causing it to fall apart though it grew back quickly. Chaos then turned to see a snarling Spike in a defensive position in front of Twilight. He raised both of his hands though before he could attack, an energy ball went through his brain, causing him to turn into a puddle as Tails rushed past it and toward Twilight.

"You ok?" Tails said as he helped Twilight up.

"Yeah, thanks." She responded.

"Did that beat him?" Spike asked as he and the others turned to the puddle.

"No, it'll just slow him down for a while. We need to aim for the brain again to do real damage." Tails said as the puddle reformed into Chaos

Chaos jumped in the air and stretched his arms down to his three enemies, making small impacts on the ground as he missed due to them spreading out. While Chaos was in the air, Twilight lifted more objects and tossed them towards him. Chaos spun his arms around to smack them away and landed on the ground again. Chaos launched his arm towards her though Tails intercepted the attack with a mechanical boxing glove attached to a hook.

"Get me a clear shot at his brain." Tails ordered, making Twilight nod.

However, Chaos reformed his arm and using it along with the other one, he pinned both Tails and Twilight against the wall. His grip was powerful and they could hardly break free. He then lifted them up in the air as his grip tightened, making the two of them squirm and wince in pain.

"Twilight....try something...." Tails managed.

Twilight looked down at Chaos and using all of her might, her hands began to glow and she pointed them at Chaos, causing him to be trapped in a purple field once more. It took all of her willpower for her to keep him in that state as she struggled, causing the field to flicker but Twilight knew she couldn't lose her grip on Chaos and pushed herself to hold him.

"Perfect, I see an opening." Tails stated. Using his hook device, he dispersed Chao's hold off of him, sending him to the ground and towards his watery foe. As he was falling, Tails pulled out a yellow taser and as he got close to Chaos, he jammed it into his brain. The result caused a giant electrical pulse to be sent through Chaos's body before he broke down into a puddle. Twilight then landed on the floor, her hold over Chaos released as she huffed and puffed for a bit as Spike joined her and Tails.

"Is it done for real?" He asked, making the three of them look at the puddle. Rather than slink away, the puddle simply vanished into thin air.

"I guess so." Twilight said with a shrug.

"That's weird. He's never done that before when beaten. And didn't he just simply evaporate at all. He just disappeared as if he was never here. Weird." Tails observed.

He then turned to Twilight and Spike.

"Now, we can talk. What's this about you looking out for me?" Tails asked them.

"I saw how distraught you were after you heard about what happened to Sonic." Twilight started. "I just couldn't leave you like that, so with permission from Knuckles, Spike and I have been following you, making sure you're ok."

Tail's expression softened. It was nice to hear that they had gone all this way for him.

"Twilight, Spike, I appreciate you doing this for me." Tails said. "It's good to see you after I've had no luck in finding Sonic."

Twilight bit her lip after she heard that.

"You're still going on about that. Tails..." She said.

"I know what you're thinking. And believe me, I'm having trouble thinking the opposite , but I just don't think he's gone. I can feel it. I might've not found anything on my own, but with you helping me, maybe it could change." Tails said.

Twilight looked at Tails and was conflicted. She saw the determination in his eyes and knew he felt strongly about finding Sonic but on the other hand, part of her felt he should just accept things the way they are. She wasn't sure how to break it to him.

"Well if you're going by instinct, maybe you're on to something." Spike chimed in, which Twilight didn't expect. "I've always trusted my instincts and they've never let me down before. If you're feeling right about this Tails, then I'm all up for helping you."

"Thanks, Spike." Tails said before he turned to Twilight. "Twilight, what do you think?"

Twilight was silent for a while. She still wasn't entirely sure if Tails was right but Spike believed him. She had always trusted Spike and he'd never let her down before. Twilight finally let out a sigh.

"Tails...I'll admit, I'm not so sure if your instinct is accurate, but if Spike trust you, then I will too." Twilight finally said as Tails smiled.

"Thank you. It means a lot." Tails said. "And besides, someone has to stop Eggman."

"Sounds good to me. Where do we go now?" Twilight questioned.

Before Tails could answer, he suddenly heard a beeping sound coming from his Miles Electric. He then took it out for him, Twilight and Spike to see.

"The radar here shows Eggman's just up ahead." Tails noticed. "This is perfect. Time for us to bring him down and get some answers."

With that said, the three of them began to make their way throughout the city. The city was still a violent battlefield as they heard the sounds of debris falling and saw balls of fire crashing everywhere, making the group cringe, but they pressed on. The entire city was completely empty and in ruins as a result of what Eggman did. As Tails, Twilight and Spike moved across the city, Twilight recognized some familiar places. In pieces was Star Swirled's Planetarium, with the giant telescope on the ground and cracked. Twilight felt her heart ache seeing what had been one of her favorite place's in Canterlot totally destroyed . There were still many other buildings, so the small team didn't see the cause of all the violent noise.

As they moved further into the heart of the city, Twilight recognized the area they were in despite all the damage due to the path they had taken and realized they had arrived in her neighborhood. Up ahead, she saw her house or at least what was left of it. Half of it was demolished while the rest was full of broken windows and holes. Seeing this made Twilight and Spike look on with sadness due what had had happened to their home.

"Our house..." Twilight said as she stopped to look at along with Spike, who whimpered. Tails noticed them stop and when he saw why, he shook his head.

"I'm so sorry, Twilight." He said, giving his condolences. "It must be hard for you to see."

Twilight and Spike still stood looking at the remnants of their home for a while as if they were frozen. After a bit, Twilight clenched her fist and closed her eyes tightly.

"Come on Spike, we gotta go."She said as she and Spike headed to Tails, who continued to lead them through the city.

During their journey, the trio came across a few of Eggman's forces still in the city, who noticed them and prepared to attack. Using his arm cannon, Tails proved his aim was better than the robots as he took them down with no problem. Twilight used her powers to smash any nearby debris she could find into them or she took one robot and used it to plow through the others. Once they took care of the enemies, they continued onward, finding a section underground as the road led them down there. Enemies blocked their path, but they managed to get rid of them using their skills. It was dark in the direction they were going. As they did, Tail's Miles Electric started to beep again.

"Hmmm, it looks like there are other readings aside from Eggman." Tails stated as he looked at his device. "Wow, one reading is giving off more energy than the others."

"What could it be?" Twilight wondered.

"I'm not sure but if I had to guess...it's probably that guy...The one who fought me and Sonic." Tails said, with slight anxiety in his voice. Twilight then realized he was talking about the figure who decimating the resistance.

"Him....if we meet him, we have to be careful. He's destroying the resistance like their nothing." Twilight warned.

Tails, Spike and Twilight soon saw light up ahead and realized they weren't underground anymore. They were back up top and this time, they saw what was causing all the destruction. Giant Death Egg Sentinels were around destroying everything in their sight as they fired red beams or extended their arms. The three of them moved around carefully to avoid attracting too much attention.

While their journey continued, up ahead, Twilight saw something which made her stop in her tracks totally. In front of her was the WonderColt statue....in pieces scattered around the floor. Even worse, behind it was CHS...totally reduced to rubble. Not even a single part of it was left standing. Seeing the school in this state was just heartbreaking as Twilight's fondest memories came from here. She slowly walked ahead before she came down on her knees and gripped them with her fingers tightly. The planetarium, her home and now CHS...it was all too much for her. Tails and Spike came behind her while she was grieving.

"This....this is just awful....they've totally destroyed everything...." Twilight managed to say.

"It really is." Tails said in a melancholic voice. "But it gives us all the more reason to stop Eggman."

Tails was right. Seeing everything she loved be destroyed was painful but it was also a motivator. A reason not to give up. Eggman had to be stopped to make sure this didn't happen ever again. Twilight then began to turn her despair into passion as she rose from the ground and looked on with determination.

"Tails, Spike...let's go. We have to save our world" She said as Tails and Spike nodded in agreement.

The small group was near the exit from the city as they moved forward. They approached it and soon, they were out of Canterlot towards their next destination.

Freedom

The Resistance Squad to rescue Sonic was aboard the stolen shuttle and now in the vacuum of space itself. As they floated through it, Rarity looked out in amazement at what she saw.

"Oh my, I know we've been through a lot, but I can't actually believe I'm in space of all places." Rarity said as she stared at the neverending darkness. "This...is a little overwhelming."

"Nah, it's no big deal really." Pinkie answered in a nonchalant tone. "It's like being in an airplane when you think about it, except instead of clouds, you just look at all the blacness."

"She's right." Charmy nodded. "Once you've been in space, it's not that exciting. This is even my second time."

"Hey, me too!" Pinkie brought up as the two turned to each other and high fived.

In front of the cruiser, with some help from Espio, Knuckles plugged his communicator into the ship's controls. Doing so caused a large holographic screen to appear in front. It was blank before it received an incoming transmission, which showed Amy, Fluttershy, and Sunset with Manic and Rainbow Dash hanging around in the back.

"Knuckles. Glad to see your mission was successful." Sunset expressed with relief. "What's the word now?"

"Well, we just took off not too long ago." Knuckles answered. "How are things back on earth?"

"So far, so good. We're managing without you guys. Nothing we can't handle. Amy said.

"Though we hope you're back for anything big happens that we can't handle." Fluttershy expressed with slight worry.

"It's so unfair that you guys get into space while I'm stuck on the ground." Rainbow Dash grumbled. "Do you know awesome being in space sounds?!"

"Come on Dash, I need you on the ground to help make sure we're not totally defenseless." Knuckles replied

Before Rainbow Dash could say anything, another incoming transmission appeared. It displayed Rouge, who appeared to be hiding in a corner and looking out with caution. This got everyone in the ship's attention as they looked at the screen.

"Rouge, what's going in there?"Knuckles asked.

"Well, I have some bad news. I didn't get to tell you this in my last message because of the transmission but it turns out Eggman's been keeping Sonic alive this whole time so he can banish him into space once he shows him his completed empire. And from what I've heard, it's soon." Rouge said.

Hearing this made everyone form looks of panic. The situation had become even more than dire before.

"What?! Shouldn't be surprised Eggman would pull something like that." Silver said as he clenched his fist. "We have to get to Sonic soon then. The more time we waste, the closer we are to losing him for real."

"Silver's right, but the thing is, we still don't where Sonic is being held." Amy brought up.

"That's bad." Pinkie stated as she hung her head.

"Actually, I do." Rouge said.

"That's good!" Pinkie said as she lifted her head up and grinned.

"Sonic's being held on the Death Egg." Rouge informed the party.

"Death Egg? Just what the hay is a Death Egg?" Applejack asked as if she didn't hear right.

"The Death Egg is Eggman's top space station and his base of operations most of the time." Manic explained. "Sheesh, how many times is he going to rebuild this thing?"

"You've dealt with it before?" Sunset inquired.

"Yeah. In fact, it was how I first met Sonic and Tails." Knuckles elaborated.

"What's this guy's deal with eggs?" Rainbow Dash questioned as she raised an eyebrow.

"If Eggman's rebuilt the Death Egg, he's probably got some big plan of his. He only builds it in special situations." Vector stated. "I got a bad feeling about this."

Suddenly, in the background of Rouge's transmission, large sirens were heard and the area started to glow red, startling her as she looked around.

"One of my ships is missing from the spaceport. I haven't authorized a launch, so that can only mean one thing. That pesky resistance must've stolen it and are headed here! I want this area on full lockdown, do you hear me?!" Eggman's voice said over a speaker.

"Yes, boss! Right away!" Orbot's voice answered.

Hearing this made the resistance sigh in defeat. So much for the element of the surprise. With Eggman now aware of their plan, this made things...complicated.

"You better hurry with your mission. In the meantime, I'll try and see if I can shut down security to get Sonic free." Rouge said. "Rouge out."

The transmission of Rouge ended as it vanished from the screen.

"Guys, good luck. We leave it to you." Sunset said.

"Please, bring Sonic back." Amy pleaded. The transmission then cut, causing Knuckles to turn to the rescue squad.

"Knux, since you've dealt with this Death Egg before, just what are we in for?" AppleJack asked.

"The Death Egg is one of Eggman's most secure lairs and deadliest weapons. He'll do anything to make sure it doesn't get breached. Once we get there, be on your guard." Knuckles instructed.

"Got it. So just fight our way through. Nothing new." Vector replied.

"Hey, is the Death Egg shaped round like a ball, grey and kinda looks like Eggman's face, which is pretty creepy by the way?" Pinkie suddenly said as she turned to her right.

"Uh, yeah...." Knuckle said, surprised at Pinkie's accurate description of the fortress even though she'd never seen it. "How do you know that?"

Pinkie pointed in her direction, making the entire squad look. There, they saw the Death Egg right in front of them.

"My word....I've never seen anything so...repulsive! Who would construct such a monstrosity?" Rarity said with distaste.

"Eggman and that ego of his, that's what." Silver dryly answered.

"Now that our objective is before us, we need to focus on making sure we reach it. As Knuckle said, the Death Egg is not something to be trifled with. If we fail, Sonic and the world is doomed." Espio advised the team as they all nodded and prepared for their mission as their ship got close to the Death Egg.

The ship arrived at the landing bay for the Death Egg. The inside of it was totally metallic with large dimly lit halls with narrow corridors that were decorated with neon lights which had a sci-fi theme to them. The walls had various pipes and light panels shaped like triangles arranged in hexagons. Metallic bridges, narrow walkways and armored frameworks surrounding pipes made up various paths. Many suspended rails were carrying cargo throughout the Death Egg. Many pillars in the background had glowing red spheres around them, most likely for surveillance. As soon as the doors of the shuttle opened, the Resistance team branched off into different directions. Knuckles was with AppleJack, Silver with Rarity and Pinkie with the Chaotix.

"All right everyone, with your small groups, explore the different routes. Be careful and don't get caught." Knuckles ordered through communicators while he and AppleJack were running down a large ramp.

"Come on partner, let's find Sonic!" AppleJack declared as she and Knuckles continued down the way they were and entered a hallway.

"This place is huge." AppleJack observed as she and Knuckles moved throughout the Death Egg. "Lookin' for Sonic will be like searchin' for a needle in a haystack."

"I wasn't expecting this to be easy. Eggman's totally changed the Death Egg, I don't even recognize it from before." Knuckles stated.

As the two of them got deeper into the base, they found themselves greeted by a legion of Egg Pawns, wh noticed them and aimed their weapons.

"Well, one thing doesn't change...plenty of robots to smash!" Knuckles said with a grin.

Knuckles and AppleJack then engaged the Egg Pawns. With brute strength, Knuckles tore through them using his fist, destroying a robot with each swing. AppleJack let out a few punches of her own, leaving the robots more crunched than outright destroyed. With their combined might, they made it past the robots with little difficulty.

In front of them, the duo noticed a giant black structure blocking their path, making them look up.

"Knux, can you toss me up there?" AppleJack requested as Knuckles gave her the thumbs up.

"Sure, I'll meet you up." Knuckles said as he put his two hands together while AppleJack climbed over them. Knuckles then grunted and sent AppleJack high up in the air and on top of another platform as she landed.

When she was at the top, it was totally dark and AppleJack couldn't see a thing. Suddenly, a series of red dots appeared, revealing a series of Buzz Bombers right in front of her, catching her off guard as they aimed their stingers at her. They fired a series of beams as she moved around to dodge them.

"It's bad enough when these varmints are small..." She grumbled.

AppleJack continued to evade the robots blast but realized she couldn't do this forever. Instead, she pressed her fingers in the ground and lifted a piece of the metal underneath her to use as a shield, which took all of the lasers fired at her, making her grunt slightly with each impact. AppleJack then gripped the piece tightly and tossed it as a boomerang, taking out a portion of the Buzz Bombers. A few more were left and aimed their lasers to fire before Knuckles suddenly appeared and glided through them, turning them into scrap before he descended on the ground.

"What took ya so long?" AppleJack asked as she put her hands on her hips.

"Climbing metal is not as easy as climbing rock."Knuckles informed her.

While it was still dark, the two of them continued on ahead. As they moved on, lights began to appear, revealing they were heading down a large spiral staircase, which advanced them into the next portion of the Death Egg as they raced across the floor. More enemies blocked their path, but they were no match for the two of them and were dispatched easily.

"Rarity and I found a room and there's....nothing to report. It's empty." Silver announced on his comm link as in the background, lasers were heard along with the sound of Rarity's shields defending against them.

"Silver, we have to move now!" She said over the com.

"This place is just so...dreary. It's so colorless and just....*shiver* gives me bad vibes." Pinkie said on the other end of the com.

"The design must be to intimidate the captives." Espio reported.

"Mission accomplished!" Charmy said in an anxious tone.

"Guys, do you hear that? They're trying to surround us in. We have to deal with these forces!" Vector stated. After he did, the sound of metal being crushed and slashed along with explosions were heard over the other end.

"Looks like the other's aren't having much luck either." AppleJack noted.

"We'll just have to hope that this route is the best we've taken." Knuckles said. "I hope Rouge can turn down the security soon."

Knuckles and AppleJack moved from platform to platform as they moved up higher in the section they were in, destroying any enemies that were in front of them. As they moved forward, the comms started to activate.

"We've found a cell but it looks like it was used up until recently. Eggman must've kept our soldiers here." Espio noted.

"That's awful. It must be dreadful being trapped in a place like this." Rarity said with dismay.

"Eggman won't get away with this." Silver said with determination.

"Eggman sure means business this time. I mean, I know he was pretty bad before from everythin' I've heard but it's like he's takin' it to another level." AppleJack commented as she and Knuckles arrived on a series of active platforms, which either took them up or down.

"He's not pulling his punches. And neither should we." Knuckles stated as he put his fist together.

The two of them found themselves on a pathway once more and the moment they began to traverse on it, a large siren was heard, making them grit their teeth due to their rotten luck.

"Eggman must've put the Death Egg on high alert." Knuckles said. "Things are going to get complicated."

"Well, we're not about to let some pieces of junk get in our way." AppleJack said. "He can send as many he wants but Granny Smith sure didn't raise a quitter."

While Knuckles and AppleJack traveled on the pathway, they noticed it became more narrow and brightened. They soon found themselves in front of a blue Egg pawn which had cylinder-shaped jetpack and long laser cannons for arms. When it saw them, the robot fired a series of two beams, which Knuckles and AppleJack barely dodged as they split up to avoid the blast. In doing so, AppleJack found herself underneath the pathway to find another one that she moved on. She had to watch her step though as red bottomless pits sometimes came in front of her. Above, the Eggpawn kept trying to blast Knuckles, who has had difficulty avoiding the beams. The next time he moved, he fell down on the ground and landed in front of AppleJack with a loud thud.

"Nice of ya to drop in. I was gettin' lonely down here." AppleJack said with an amused grin.

"Oh, cute." Knuckles said as he rose up before he looked back upward with a frown. "We need to take care of that drone."

"I have an idea, Knux. With the two of us down here, it can't see us from up there. Which means we got the element of surprise." AppleJack said. " We can move down here and wait for an openin'."

"Sounds like a plan." Knuckles agreed as he and AppleJack moved under while keeping an eye on the Eggpawn, which was searching for any sign of them.

The two them tracked the Eggpawn from below before they noticed another path which took them upward and gave them a shot at the robot. AppleJack then grabbed Knuckles and with great strength, tossed him towards the Egg pawn as Knuckles smashed through it with ease using his fist, making the coast clear as AppleJack joined him from above.

"Let's keep moving." Knuckles instructed.

"Wait, I sense a presence....Sonic's presence....He's nearby." Espio said over the comms.

"Espio, now's not the time for your ninja-"Vector started before Pinkie caught him off.

"No, he's on to something. I can sense Sonic with my Pinkie sense too!" Pinkie agreed.

"What the? How the-" Vector uttered in a perplexed tone. Knuckles and AppleJack exchanged amused glances.

"You heard em. We're near Sonic!" AppleJack stated.

In another section of the Death Egg, a small control room with different monitors was seen, with Orbot and Cubot overlooking them. The monitors displayed the actions of the Resistance aboard the Death Egg.

"Oh man, the boss isn't going to like this." Cubot said as he rubbed his head.

"It's not too bad. As long as the security's up, they can't get too far." Orbot informed him.

Above, the two of them heard the sound of banging and rustling, which made them look up.

"Do we have rats?" Cubot asked as Orbot sighed due to how ridiculous the question was.

"How can we have rats? We're in space."Orbot pointed out.

The noise above them got louder and louder before a small metal bar plopped down in front of them, with Rouge coming down shortly in front of them.

"Hi, boys." Rouge greeted with a wink. "This wouldn't happen to be the control room, wouldn't it?"

The two robots backed away from Rouge. She was a super spy who dealt with Eggman's robots, so it was a no-brainer what she could do to the two of them. Rouge looked back and noticed a flipped handle on the controls. She quickly leaped over the two henchmen and landed near the handle, her hand just inches away from it.

'This is the security switch, isn't it?" Rouge said in a playful tone as the two robots exchanged worried looks.

"I'll take that as a yes." Rouge decided as she flipped the handle the opposite way.

In the prisoner's section of the Death Egg, Sonic was sitting alone in a dark cell, his hands and feets bound by blue energy cuffs. He was looking down, lamenting over everything that must've happened with him gone. Honestly, he was pretty worried about it, but he tried to look on the bright side. He was certain his friends were still fighting in his absence and that motivated him to return to them....if he could get out of here.

Sonic then heard a large rumbling noise, which made him look up with curiosity to see the source. Just then, he noticed Zavok approaching him, making him frown.

"You should savor these last moments of yours, child. The end is approaching." The red Zeti taunted in a malicious tone.

Sonic just rolled his eyes. " I've heard you say that at least 4 times in the past 6 months. Yeah, yeah, I'm doomed, whatever."

"I guess it's true what they say, ignorance is bliss." Zavok said. "You won't be cracking any more jokes anytime soon."

"Actually, once we get out of here, the first joke I'm going to crack is you." Sonic said in a mocking tone.

"You're not going anywhere, boy. The Doctor's fortress is inescapable. You can't stand against what he's built." Zavok said.

"I've beaten him before and I'll do it again."Sonic said in a determined manner. "Anyway, why are you even here, Zavok? You were lame with the Deadly Six, but you're even lamer with Eggman. Don't you hate him?"

"It doesn't matter how I feel." Zavok responded. As he did, Sonic noticed a few red glitches surrounding him, which made him raise an eyebrow.

A loud siren was then heard, making Sonic and Zavok look around. The area then started to flash red and once it did, the door to Sonic's cell was opened and his cuffs vanished. Once this happened, Sonic formed a grin as he stood up and gave Zavok a smug look.

"What were you saying about inescapable again?" Sonic ridiculed as he approached his enemy.

"Fool, being free doesn't change your fate. You're going to die anyway and the method how doesn't matter." Zavok darkly said as he clenched his fist.

Sonic then dashed outside past Zavok and turned to him.

"Come on, it's been a while since I gave you a beatdown!" Sonic said as he pointed his finger at Zavok.

Zavok charged towards Sonic with a fist, who easily evaded it with a sidestep. Zavok then jumped off the platform with Sonic chasing after him. Sonic landed on a large multi-hexagonal shaped platform and looked around, but saw no sign of Zavok anywhere.

"Huh, did he take himself out? Works for me." He said with a shrug.

Sonic then heard a loud buzzing sound and turned around to see the source. Zavok was riding a giant bee-like robot that resembled the Buzz Bombers, except it had 6 glowing eyes and large claws on it's lower body with a yellow and orange color scheme. Zavok smashed his fist togethor twice and released a powerful roar, indicating he was ready for battle.

"Of course, it can never be that easy." Sonic said with disappointment.

A series of small Buzz Bombers filled the stage and surrounded Sonic. With their stingers, they all charged towards him, who moved out of the way using his speed, making them crash into each other and explode in the center.

"Bravo. Your minions took themselves out." Sonic sarcastically said with a few claps.

"Impudent, brat! Take this!" Zavok yelled with slight anger as the robot he was on began to fire a series of lasers towards Sonic.

Sonic dashed away as the laser kept trying to home in on him, but he was just too quick for it to hit.

"That's right, boy! Run from your demise!" Zavok said.

"Are you trying to accuse me of being a wimp? Look who's talking. You can't even fight me without some stupid mechs to help you. " Sonic retorted as Zavok grit his teeth.

More Buzz Bombers appeared and when they did, Sonic turned into a blue streak to break through the entire swam mid-air. He grabbed one and smashed it into the last one. After he did that, he returned to the platform and noticed a giant shadow coming over him. Sonic looked up to see Zavok's mech coming down to smash him using its stinger. Using his speed, he pulled himself out of harm's way as the robot slammed the ground. As it did, the entire platform shook, launching Sonic in the air, which he didn't expect. However, he noticed this gave him a clear shot at Zavok and dashed towards him as a blue streak. Sonic crashed into Zavok's chest, inflicting some damage as the Zeti grunted.

"Ha, score one for me!" Sonic declared as he landed on the ground.

"Enjoy your final moment of pride, Sonic!" Zavok yelled.

In the background, Sonic noticed a few other prisoners were coming closer to the bars of their cells and looked on at the battle, with curiosity.

"Looks like I got an audience to watch me beat you." Sonic said.

"Why do you insist on making things difficult?" Zavok questioned from above.

More Buzz Bombers came towards Sonic as Zavok fired a laser once more to try and zap him. Sonic dodged the laser and while it chased him, he used it to destroy most of the robots after him. Zavok noticed this and stopped the laser, with more Buzz Bombers circling Sonic. Sonic became a streak once more and destroyed them as he moved around the platform. While he was in the air, he released a few kicks towards any incoming enemies, knocking them back into the others. He did a spin kick to get rid of the remaining pest before his feet touched the ground again. Seeing him like this, another swarm of Buzz Bombers appeared around him. As they charged into Sonic, Sonic turned into a streak as he went through them, using the mechs as a ladder of some kind as he was able to reach where Zavok was and dashed into him. Zavok blocked Sonic's blow, which sent him back. Sonic then dashed back towards Zavok as streak once more, this time unleashing a barrage of strikes. Zavok had difficulty guarding against Sonic's blows and his defense broke, which let Sonic hit through him as a streak 3 times as Zavok staggered due to the pain and Sonic landed on the floor.

The prisoners witness the whole thing and became to cheer loudly, which made Sonic smirk.

"Come on, Zavok. We haven't even started round 3!" Sonic teased.

"You're going to regret this you worm! I'm going to make you suffer!" Zavok boasted.

A few pieces of the platform then began to fall off, much to Sonic's surprise as he almost fell off but used his speed to dash back up ahead.

"Wow!" Sonic said as he now saw that the platform was smaller than before, leaving him with less space.

This time, the giant Buzz Bomber Zavok was on charged straight towards Sonic with its stinger out. Sonic ducked in order to avoid it as he slid against the ground. When he turned around, he saw Zavok coming towards him again and leaped into the air above it. While he did this, smaller Buzz Bombers tried to stab him but with his reflexes, Sonic zigzagged through each of them as a streak. As Sonic was falling down, he saw Zavok lift his mech up and come crashing down on him. It seemed as if though Sonic was going to get impaled, but at the last second, he did a boost mid-air just as Zavok crashed on the ground. Sonic then went towards Zavok as a streak, who knocked him above using a backhand. However, Sonic came down with a powerful stomp which Zavok blocked with both hands, leaving a blue impact and stunning Zavok, which Sonic used as a chance to hit Zavok as a streak, making him flinch due to the pain. Sonic then landed in front of him and Zavok shook his head. When he saw Sonic, he released a right hook that Sonic dodged by ducking. Sonic then released two quick right hooks of his own at Zavok's face, followed by a powerful kick. He did this combo again, though much faster and Zavok nearly lost his balance due to the impact of Sonic's blow. Seeing this, Sonic charged up as a more focused streak and rammed into Zavok with a powerful strike, leaving a blue flash in the aftermath.

"No, this can't be! I can't be defeated again!" Zavok declared before fell off his robot and landed on the platform below with a strong impact.

Sonic then came down in front of the defeated Zeti.

"Ah, it was nice to stretch my legs after all this time. Thanks for the workout." He said as he gave Zavok the thumbs up.

Suddenly, the red flicker from before came around Zavok's body, making his entire body flash before he vanished into thin air, much to Sonic's shock.

"What the? Where did he go?" Sonic wondered. "I don't remember him doing that last time we fought."

Sonic then felt the entire Death Egg violently shaking, making him almost lose his balance. Whatever was going on, it was a perfect time for him to make his move. He was about to dash off before he remembered all the other prisoners. Sonic saw that there were countless of them and this made him conflicted. He wanted to try and rescue them but it was risky. If he got caught again here, there would be no one to save them later on. Sonic then clenched his fist as he made his choice.

"I promise. I'm going to come back here and save all of you. Just hang on tight." He swore. This made the prisoners, although uncertain, nodded as soon as they heard this.

Sonic then dashed off of the platform to a higher area as he made his exit from the prison hall.

Sonic was rushing through the metallic complex of the Death Egg as the alarms were on high alert and the area started flashing red. While he was running, giant black ceilings were attempting to crush him as they were lowered to the ground.

"Well, so much for a subtle escape." Sonic said to himself as he avoided being crushed.

As Sonic continued to make his escape, he zipped past a hallway with a series of metallic doors closing rapidly, just narrowly making it past them. Once he did, Sonic found himself on a red rail, which gave him a view of the planet in the background on his right. A series of Egg fleets were there around with a few mechanized asteroids. In front of him, Sonic saw smaller asteroids along with metallic structures ahead.

"So, I was taken to space." Sonic realized. "Well played Egghead, but I'm sick of it already."

Sonic continued to grind on the rail until he reached the end, causing him to jump off it. He headed towards a metal platform, which housed a few Egg Pawns. Sonic turned into a streak and destroyed them so he could make his way through. He then located another rail, which he used to get back inside the Death Egg. Inside, he saw the ceiling coming down again, which made him use his boost to avoid getting crushed. As Sonic continued on ahead, the walls started to fire blue beams, which he evaded using his reflexes. Sonic then found himself at the bottom of a corridor and saw the only exit was above him. Using his speed, he wall jumped from the different sides and made sure not to get hit by any beams fired by the wall until he reached his destination. Sonic then used his boost to accelerate out of that section of the Death Egg and he bounced off a few small meteors and landed on a rail that had 3 sections. In the background, he saw an entire fleet of Eggman ships alongside the Death Egg.

"Eggman rebuilt the Death Egg again? He really likes the look of his own face. This time when I destroy this thing, it's gonna stay smashed." Sonic declared.

While he was grinding, 3 flying Egg Pawns appeared in front of him. They each fired lasers to try and hit him, but Sonic alternated between the different rails and was safe.

The rail took Sonic inside another section of the Death Egg, where he was greeted by incoming ceilings once more, which he avoided again by simply being faster than the speed at which they were coming down. Sonic jumped across a series of platforms and used his stomp to make a way down through a pile of metal blocks. He had to do this a few times in order to make a path.

"Ok, so how am I going to get out of here? I can't fly in space." Sonic thought outloud before he got an idea. "Of course! I can just take one of Eggman's shuttles. He won't mind me taking one. He already has enough."

Sonic was in an area with yet another ceiling coming down towards him. Using his stomp, he descended downwards in order to get away from it and found himself on a new pathway to run across. Sonic dashed on it and was sent out on another red rail. While he was using it, Sonic saw a few smaller spacecrafts heading his way. When one got close enough, he jumped on and hitched a ride.

The ship Sonic was on followed the others as they all approached the surface of the Death Egg. As they got closer, many rays began to emerge from the fortress.

"It's going to take more than a little light show to take me down." Sonic boasted.

The craft Sonic was on got hit, forcing him to jump to the nearest one as the Death Egg continued its assault. This forced Sonic to jump from ship to ship to avoid going down. The last ship Sonic on was then struck by a bombardment of lasers, which made him jump off of it. As he did, Sonic then fell inside another entrance of the Death Egg in the form of a large shaft. Sonic then began to skydive deeper into the shaft until he saw he was in a large loading bay with a series of ships in the background. Sonic then landed on the ground and burst ahead.

Near the end of the loading bay, Knuckles and AppleJack were fighting off some Egg Pawns, knocking them back with their strength and eventually defeating all of them.

"How long have we been here? We haven't even found any sign of Sonic yet." AppleJack asked.

"Honestly, I don't know. But if we don't find anything soon, then this whole mission will be for nothing." Knuckles said as he folded his arms.

The two of them heard the sound of robotic footsteps and saw another legion of Egg Pawns coming their way. They got into a fighting stance and prepared to engage them in battle. Before they could, a blue streak appeared and went through all of the robots, taking them out. The streak revealed itself as Sonic who dusted his hands as Knuckles and AppleJack stared in shock.

"I almost feel bad for smashing all of these robots. It's too easy now." Sonic said.

"Sonic?!" AppleJack called, which made Sonic turn to see her and Knuckles. When he did, his face broke out into a large smile.

"AJ? Knuckles? You guys are here? Awesome!" Sonic happily said as he rushed towards them. "What brings you here?"

"We're here to save you. I organized this entire mission." Knuckles said as Sonic looked at him a skeptical manner.

"You? Since when do you use your head?" Sonic questioned, making Knuckles lower his eyelids.

"Don't make me want to leave you here." Knuckles responded with a slightly annoyed tone.

"Good to see ya haven't lost your sense of humor. It's really great to see yer ok, Sonic." AppleJack said as she placed her hand on his shoulder.

"And it's good to see some friendly faces after so long." Sonic replied.

"I'd love to catch up, but we gotta go, now!" Knuckles informed the two of them.

Sonic, Knuckles, and AppleJack raced to the stolen shuttle and were the last ones to enter it as it closed up. With everyone accounted for, the shuttle then prepared for taking off as it hovered above the floor. The doors opened, revealing space as the shuttle's engines started and it took off.

Back in Action

In the resistance base, the entrance doors suddenly opened, causing Sunset, Amy, Manic, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash to turn to see who was coming through the doors.

"*whistle*, So this is your resistance base, huh?" Sonic said as he entered and took a look around. "Not too shabby. It's no Freedom HQ, but it'll do."

Sunset and the others suddenly froze in place as they couldn't believe what they were actually seeing.

"Sonic?" Sunset said in an amazed tone, which made him notice her and everyone else in the room.

"Yo, Sunset. Been a while, huh?" He cheerfully greeted.

Before she or anyone else could react, Sonic found himself wrapped in a large hug by Amy, much his surprise.

"Oh, Sonic, it really is you! Thank goodness, thank goodness! I'm so happy to see you again! This is just wonderful!" Amy blubbered with joy as her grip on Sonic grew tighter.

"Amy?!" Sonic nearly shouted. "Maybe I should've stayed on Eggman's ship."

The rescue squad then entered the room as everyone else noticed Sonic being smothered by Amy, much to their amusement.

"Is she always like this when Sonic's around?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"You don't know the half of it. I'd say this is her being calm." Manic jokingly answered.

"Wow, talk about touchy-feely." Pinkie noticed which made AppleJack and Fluttershy raise their eyebrows. She was one to talk.

Amy continued hugging Sonic, who was looking pretty uncomfortable as his eyes darted around the room. Just then, Knuckles walked up.

"Amy, I get you're glad he's here or all, but give him time to breathe or otherwise you might end up killing him yourself."Knuckles suggested.

Amy then let go of Sonic, who then took a deep breath.

"Thanks." Sonic said before he turned to the others.

"Welcome back, bro." Manic greeted as he walked up and gave his brother a fist bump. "Though we were doing alright without you, it's nice you'll give a helping hand."

"Really? That's not how I heard it." Sonic quipped back.

Rainbow Dash then approached Sonic and gave him a hard slug in the arm, which he wasn't expecting.

"What was that for?" Sonic asked in a confused manner.

"That's for making us think you were dead for six months!" Rainbow answered.

"That wasn't my fault." Sonic replied before Rainbow Dash's face broke out into a grin.

"I knew you wouldn't go down so easily." She said as she gave him a playful punch in the same spot.

"Sonic, it's seriously good to see you again." Sunset stated. "This battle has really taken its toll and it wasn't easy thinking you were dead."

"It's good to be back, Sunset." Sonic replied as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "And I'm not going anywhere until I dish out 6 months worth of payback on Eggman."

"Ummm.....Hi Sonic, nice to see you're doing alright." Fluttershy timidly addressed Sonic, who gave her the thumbs up.

"I'm glad you guys haven't gone down since when I was gone. When I was up there on Eggman's ship, I knew you'd all carry on the fight without me." Sonic praised.

"With you back, this can show the people that Eggman hasn't lost yet. That we still have a chance to bring him down. This should increase our numbers." Silver eagerly said

Sonic nodded in agreement and took one more look around the room. As he did, he frowned.

"Hey, where's Tails? And Twilight and Spike?" Sonic asked.

Sonic's question caused the entire room to turn quiet as everyone formed somber looks.

"Tails.....well, when he found out that you might be dead, he didn't take it well. He ran off to try and find you. Twilight took Spike with her to go look out for him." Knuckles explained.

"We haven't had much contact with them either, so we're not too sure of their current situation." Sunset added.

Sonic looked down on the ground for a while before his face turned into a smile.

"Heh, we've got nothing to worry about. Tails and Twilight are tough, they can handle themselves. I'm sure they're fighting just as hard as you guys have been. We can find them along the way in trying to take out Eggman." Sonic said with optimism.

Suddenly, Sonic turned to Amy.

"Amy, if you're here, what about Sally and the others?" Sonic questioned as Amy rubbed her arm and formed a sad look.

"They couldn't get away during Eggman's attack on New Mobotropolis. They got captured when he destroyed the city. Only I got away." Amy regretfully informed him.

"City...destroyed? Sal and the others got captured?" Sonic repeated as if he didn't hear right. He then clenched his fist as he felt slight sensations of anger and regret for not being there.

"Sonic, like Sunset mentioned, these 6 months haven't exactly been stellar. Eggman's taken over everything and hasn't just destroyed New Mobotropolis. He did it to Canterlot and others." AppleJack said.

Sonic then folded his arms after hearing this and started to go over everything. So much had changed in his absence.

Sonic then remembered something crucial as his eyes lit up.

"Hey, have any of you guys seen Shadow around? He was with Eggman when I got beaten by that new guy. In fact, he helped beat me up." Sonic revealed, which made the resistance form astonished looks after receiving this news.

"Shadow? Are you sure? He's supposed to be on our side." Silver pointed out.

"Hold on a minute." Pinkie stated "Did this Shadow have black hair, with 4 pieces curling upward and two curling downward, 4 red stripes on the side with a wider stripe in the middle, have red eyes and red outline near his eyelids, two red and white shoes with a little bit of paint scratched off, white gloves with black wrist, red bands and two golden shiny rings, was wearing red and black with a patch of white fur and is about your height and weight?"

Everyone in the room couldn't believe how Pinkie had specifically described Shadow while Sonic just blinked twice.

"Uh...yeah...." Sonic slowly answered.

"With an eye like that, you'd make a good detective." Vector simply said as he rubbed the back of his head, which made Pinkie beam before she turned back to Sonic.

"Then like Silver said, that's hazy-crazy!" Pinkie stated. "Shadow wouldn't do something like that...unless he's being mind controlled..... again."

"That wasn't what I was hoping to hear, Big Blue." Rouge suddenly chimed in. "I had contact with Shadow sometime before you vanished. Our signal got cut off and I haven't heard a word from him since. I figured he'd probably be off on his own crusade as usual but I guess mind control is an option. It looks like I have some extra digging to do."

Rouge then reached into her pocket and pulled a small drive.

"But before I do, I need to give you this." Rouge said as she tossed the drive towards Amy. "It should be of some help. In the meantime, I'll contact you all when we find something."

"Hold on, but is another person going on their own really such a good idea? I mean, we already have 3 missing people to worry about." Rarity pointed out.

"Don't you worry your pretty little head. They don't call me the world's number one spy for nothing." Rouge casually said.

With that said, Rouge walked out of the Resistance base, leaving the others to find out what she had given them.

"We can trust Rouge. After all, she was the one who told us where Sonic was being held. Anyway, let's see what she left us." Knuckles stated.

Amy plugged the drive in on the resistance computer. After she did, a green holographic screen was displayed for everyone to see. Many texts of writing appeared along with what appeared to be schematics for a pyramid.

"Wow, this is...this is.....uh, what is this?" Charmy said in a stumped manner.

"It's a weapons factory. From the look of this intel, it's a big one housed in the Green Hill and is producing Eggman's arsenal at an incredibly fast rate." Espio calmly explained, which caused the entire resistance to form alarmed looks after hearing this.

"Weapons factory?!" AppleJack exclaimed. "That explains why he has so many robots under his control. This isn't good."

"With that factory intact, Eggman can just keep pumping out robots to keep us at bay. We won't be able to make any progress and take the fight to him." Silver brought up.

"Then we have to wreck it to the ground!" Rainbow Dash said in a determined manner. "I'll do it! I haven't had much field action."

"You can't." Amy suddenly told her. "You're supposed to head out for a recon mission in the far north, remember?"

Rainbow Dash groaned after hearing that. She had totally forgotten about the recon mission.

"Actually, while you were gone, a lot of areas that need our attention popped up." Sunset said as using a tablet, she displayed a screen with multiple beeping points to Knuckles. "They're going to need almost all of us, which is going to spread us thin."

Knuckles took Sunset's words into account as he put his finger on his chin to think of a plan. He then turned to Sonic.

"Sonic, I know you just got back and all, but you heard Sunset. Can you take care of this factory?" Knuckles asked, which made Sonic form an ambitious smile.

"Are you kidding? I was worried about being put on the sidelines. I got this!" Sonic told him. "Dealing a major blow back to Eggman on my first mission is just icing on the cake."

"What about me? I don't have a mission yet and this factory sounds like a handful. Mind if I tag along?" Manic requested, which made Sonic place his arm around him.

"Of course not! It's been a while since we've trashed some Eggman bots together!" Sonic agreed.

"This op could use one more person just in case." Knuckles said as he looked around the room for anyone else who could go with them. " I got it, take Fluttershy with you."

Hearing her name made Fluttershy fill up with anxiety. During her time with the resistance, she had never actually gone out into the field. It was because she was actually too afraid to go out in the front lines of battle. That wasn't her specialty.

"M-me?" She slowly said in a nervous tone. "Oh, I don't know about that...."

"Fluttershy, we don't really have any options left." Sunset told her. "I know it's not easy for you but we need to use all the hands we have."

Fluttershy took a gulp. The thought of actually going out against Eggman's army scared the living daylight out of her. She timidly looked down at the ground.

"Come on, Fluttershy, you'll be fine. You've gone up against an two crazy she-demon, 3 evil sirens and you even flew up to a giant water monster. You got this." Rainbow Dash reminded her.

Fluttershy knew that Rainbow Dash had a point. But this was different. The situation was an actual war, with so many enemies to fight. She just gripped her arm in an unsure manner.

Seeing how uneasy she was about this, Manic came next to her and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Sonic and I will just blitz through the place and you can just stay back and observe us. You won't have to put yourself in danger if you don't have to. The two of us got your back." Manic promised, which made Fluttershy feel a little better as she formed a small smile.

"Thanks, Manic." She responded, though her fear was still there.

"You sure about going with her?" Vector said with skepticism as he put his hands on his hips. "No offense, but she's shaking like a leaf."

Fluttershy was feeling somewhat disappointed that her fear was so visible but AppleJack spoke up.

"Don't let that fool you. When push comes to shove, Fluttershy'll pull through." AppleJack said in her friend's defense, which also added a small boost to Fluttershy's confidence, seeing as she always told the truth.

"The three of us won't let you down. That factory's going to be history." Sonic declared as he wiped his nose with his thumb.

With that said, Sonic, Manic and a still reluctant Fluttershy exited the resistance base towards their mission. When they left, Knuckles turned to Sunset.

"Hey Sunset, we also need some people to head over to the Mystic Jungle. You up for it?" He asked her.

Knuckles' request made Sunset recall her time in the city. She remembered the masked figure floating down in front of her after he had injured the citizens she was trying to defend.

"Tell you what, if you run, I promise I'll let you go for today." She recalled the figure telling her, which made her feel insecure and form a look of uncertainty.

"Uh...I think it's best if I stay here and help out Amy with tech support. It's a good use of my skills. You know that stuff is more my speed." Sunset nervously said.

"You have a point there." Knuckles agreed. "But I still need someone in the Mystic Jungle."

"I'll do it." Silver offered. "I can handle whatever Eggman throws at me."

"Though I hate to dirty my own hands with this sort of grunt work, desperate times call for desperates measures. It's dangerous if you go alone." Rarity chimed in. "I'll come with you."

Hearing Silver sound so determined and confident along with Rarity volunteering to accompany him made Sunset feel ashamed of herself as she formed a glum look. She had encouraged Fluttershy, who was scared to death of anything violent to go out on a mission when she couldn't even go out herself. She hated to admit it, but she was even more frightened of running into that figure again than Fluttershy could be of anything.

In the Green Hill, which was almost dried of its lake and flora, making it almost covered in sand entirely, Sonic and Manic were rushing into the area, with Fluttershy flying not too far behind. In the background, they noticed a large mechanized pyramid, which had a few large pipes attached near its bottom.

"That must be the weapons factory up ahead." Manic observed.

"Sheesh, Green Hill's in even worse shape than before." Sonic said with dismay before he looked back to Fluttershy. "It's too bad you couldn't come here to see how it normally looks. You would've loved this place if all the animals were here."

"Animals? Has Eggman's work on here displaced all the critters?" Fluttershy asked, clearly alarmed at the idea.

"Probably. He doesn't care too much on animals. He uses them as fuel most of the time." Manic answered.

"Though I did see a giant Sandworm." Sonic added.

This information caused Fluttershy to feel a newfound sense of anger stirring within her. It was bad enough that Eggman hurt people, but he even had to include harmless critters? Just thinking of it made her so...peeved.

On the path they were currently on, a legion of Eggpawns blocked the team's path. Sonic and Manic quickly turned into streaks and blitz past the robots with little difficulty as Fluttershy lagged behind to not be caught up in the action.

"Too easy. Let's smash this place to the ground." Sonic stated. "Hope you can keep up with me, bro."

"Are you kidding? I should be worried that you haven't gotten slow while you were in space." Manic shot back. "When you were gone, I had to pick up a lot of your slack."

The three of them soon approached a metallic scaffold that was surrounded by over-dimensional pipes before they landed on the platforms. Waiting for them were more Egg Pawns, who noticed the incoming intruders and aimed their weapons. Seeing this made Fluttershy squeal as she covered her face with her hands. Before the robots even got a chance to fire, they were destroyed by Sonic and Manic moving around as green and blue streaks.

"Yo, Fluttershy, the coast is clear." Fluttershy heard Sonic say as she opened her eyes to see him and Manic waiting for her.

"See? Like I told you, we can handle this." Manic reassured her as Fluttershy eased up a bit. He had a point. So far, so good.

The 3 of them made their way across the scaffold and took a narrow path which sent them on a wide road close to the pyramid. Surrounding it were storage areas for shipping containers, tube systems, and other metallic structures in the desert around the pyramid.

"We're almost to the entrance, but at the rate we're going, it's going to take forever." Sonic said, which Fluttershy found odd as he and Manic were moving pretty fast already. Then again, it was Sonic, who is pretty impatient.

"I got an idea." Sonic went on. "Hey Manic, let's try a Double Boost."

Manic then formed a slight grin. "I was hoping you'd say that."

Manic dashed backward slightly and grabbed a hold of Fluttershy's wrist before he came back next to Sonic.

"We don't want you getting left behind." Manic told her. "Also, brace yourself as this might be.....bumpy."

"Wait, what?" Fluttershy replied in a stupefied manner.

Sonic and Manic jumped in the air, taking Fluttershy with them as the two of them slapped hands and faced in front of them.

"Double...Boost!" The brothers yelled in unison as they were surrounded by a combined blue and green aura and burst ahead at unimaginable speed, breaking the sound barrier. Doing so caused them to smash through any enemy or obstacle that was in their way.

As they moved ahead, Fluttershy hung on for dear life to Manic. The speed they were moving at made her experience such an intense sensation as she yelled out loud. She felt the wind in her hair and on her face as she moved forward with the boosting duo. She had never felt anything like this. It made being on roller coasters seem like snail's pace. Fluttershy was trying her best not to faint due to how fast she was moving.

The three of them moved along the road, causing them to scale up on side of the pyramid and sending more enemies skyrocketing until they reached the top. In front of them was a large vent shaft.

"Bingo." Sonic said as the boost ended, causing him and his companions to begin to dive into the entrance of the pyramid while Fluttershy was still dazed.

"Now that you're in the pyramid, be careful. Eggman probably has defenses enabled." Amy cautioned over the coms.

As the team skydived into the entrance of the pyramid, a series of red lasers suddenly emerged in an attempt to block their path, forming a grid. Sonic and Manic avoided the beams as they fell, leading Fluttershy to do the same as they continued inside the pyramid. The two of them even turned around and crossed their arms to fall in style. Eventually, they reached the bottom.

"Too easy." Manic said as he dusted his hands and turned to Sonic. The two of them noticed Fluttershy, who wasn't looking too good. Her hair was a total mess and she was sort of wobbling back and forth as if she could fall over at any second.

"Hey, Fluttershy, you ok?" Sonic asked. "Sorry, I guess we should've given you a better heads up."

Fluttershy took in a few deep breaths before she managed to regain her composure. She looked at Sonic and Manic.

"I never want to do that again." She simply said, making the two of them turn to each other as Manic scratched his head.

"So, this is Eggman's weapons factory, huh?." He said as he looked around at his surroundings. The 3 of them were inside a metallic factory full of spinning gears with a greenish color.

"We got no time to lose, let's get this place smashed." Sonic said in a determined tone.

The trio moved deeper into the factory, their path blocked by more Egg Pawns,. Before any could do anything, Sonic rushed around them, sucking them up in a blue tornado and making them rise in the air. The robots exploded as soon as they crashed to the ground while Sonic looked quite pleased with himself.

"Hey, leave some for me." Manic complained.

"I told you earlier, don't be too slow." Sonic teased as Manic just folded his arms.

The 3 of them noticed a larger clockwork to the side, which caught their attention as they moved towards it. Once they were on the platform, a squad of Egg Pawns came and surrounded them.

"Seriously? Sonic just destroyed a bunch of them." Fluttershy said. She was starting to feel more annoyed than fearful of how many robots they encountered.

Manic reacted quickly and took out his two eskrima sticks. He twirled them at high speed and released them like they were buzz saws, slicing through all of the robots like nothing before his sticks returned to him as Sonic formed an amused look.

"Maybe you're not that slow." Sonic said in a neutral tone.

"Heh, I'm not going to let you show me up." Manic replied.

The team then moved through a series of gear platforms, leading them deeper into the factory. On each gear, they were ambushed by Eggman robots, but Sonic and Manic made quick work of them, even making it a competition as sometimes Either Sonic destroyed them or Manic did. As the mission went on, Fluttershy started to relax. It wasn't so bad. Sonic and Manic could clearly handle this.

Once they passed through the gears, the 3 of them now traversed across a long pathway. At the end of it, they found a metal gate in front of them. Using their speed, Sonic and Manic leaped over it while Fluttershy just flew across, leading them downward. They then found themselves on a long and narrow metal bridge. Beneath it was a series of large missiles and torpedos.

"Oh my, these are the kind of weapons that Eggman has? This is awful." Fluttershy in an anxious tone.

"Not for long." Sonic boasted as he prepared to dash ahead.

Suddenly, a gunshot was fired just barely in front of him, making him jump back and Fluttershy yelp. The two of them alongside Manic looked up to see the source.

Coming down towards them was Fang, with his gun in his right hand. He landed down in front of the triad. Fluttershy looked worried while Sonic and Manic didn't seem too impressed with what was in front of them.

"What? It's just Fang?" Manic said in a dismissive tone before he turned to Sonic. "You go on ahead and get started on wrecking this factory. I can handle this alone."

Sonic nodded and then turned to Fluttershy to give her an uplifting thumbs up. He then quickly dashed past Fang, leaving him to face Manic.

"Fluttershy, you should step back." Manic cautioned, which Fluttershy agreed to as she went and took shelter behind a nearby structure.

"So, you decided to join up with Eggman, huh?" Manic said. "You know he's like wrecking the entire world right? I know you're in it for the money, but don't you at least have some conscious?"

Fang responded to Manic's question by firing a series of shots. Manic evaded them thanks to his speed and using his sticks, he deflected a few of them to the side.

"Sheesh, sorry if I hit a nerve. Yes or No would've just been fine." Manic complained as he continued to fend off and avoid Fang's shots.

Manic then prepared to rush towards the sniper but before he moved, Fang suddenly leaped several feet in the air, much to Manic's surprise as he looked up.

"Ok...that's new..." Manic said with a dumbfounded expression.

In the air, Fang tried to hit Manic with his shots, but Manic was still too fast to hit. Fang then started to jumping around and firing his gun at the same time, making it more difficult for Manic to both defend and dodge, placing him on an edge. After a few more rounds of this, Manic hit back one of Fang's shot back at him while he was in the air, sending him down to the ground. As he was about to hit it, Manic dashed and delivered a strong kick to his stomach, sending the mercenary sprawling on the floor. When Fang came to a stop, he was suddenly surrounded by a dark, glittery mist.

"Wow! What's that?!" Manic exclaimed in a startled tone.

The mist began to clear and instead of Fang, Bean was now there, much to Manic's confusion.

"Bean? When did you get here?" Manic asked. "On second thought, Don't start talking. You never shut up."

Bean listened to Manic's request and generated a black bomb, which he tossed towards him. Manic sidestepped to dodge it and was then greeted by a barrage of bombs thrown by Bean. Manic avoided all of them, but they each released a small explosion, making it difficult for him to see in front of him. From her corner, Fluttershy winced slightly due to the sound of the bombs going off.

"Oh, I hope Manic will be alright." She expressed.

Bean continued his assault as Manic evaded the bombs. He then jumped back and threw his sticks like boomerangs, destroying any more incoming explosives before they returned to him. Bean then twirled his arm and then generated a larger bomb his size, which made Manic and Fluttershy form looks of panic. The mad bomber jumped in the air and launched the bombs towards Manic. Seeing the bomb made Fluttershy cower and brace for impact as she gripped her head and shut her eyes.

"Ok, hope this works." Manic wished as he headed straight for the bomb.

Using his speed, Manic ran around the giant explosive, creating a small tornado that kept it airborne. Manic then went underneath it and with his feet, he pushed the bomb back up with some force, making a small green flash as the bomb was sent back to Bean in the air.

*BOOM*

Fluttershy heard a large explosion that made her squeal. However, she noticed that nothing had happened in the area she was, which is where the bomb was headed. She opened her eyes and looked to see a giant smoke cloud in the air. On the ground, she saw Manic, who was in good shape, much to her relief. He was looking up at the resulting smoke cloud with curiosity.

"Hmmm, Bean wasn't his usual talkative self." Manic noticed.

From the cloud, Manic saw the same mist from before, which grabbed his attention. As he was looking on, Bark burst through the cloud and released a powerful punch that Manic dodged as he leaped back. Bark's punch left a small crater on the ground.

"Bark?! What happened to Bean?! In fact, what happened to Fang?!" Manic wondered.

Bark charged towards Manic and tried to hit him with a flurry of punches that missed due to Manic being faster. While he was trying not to get hit by Bark, he was thinking about everything that had happened in the fight.

"(First Fang, then Bean and now Bark. I know they work together but how come they haven't all tried to fight me at the same time? Something's not right here and I feel like that mist has something to do with it.)" Manic thought.

Manic managed to get some distance between him and Bark, which gave him the freedom to move and land a blow. However, rather than trying to hit Manic, Bark smashed both of his fists on the ground with colossal strength, making a small tremor that even Fluttershy felt it from where she was and this made her cling to the structure she was hiding behind more tightly. Manic began to shake as a result of this and he saw Bark coming to him with a right hook. Reacting quickly, Manic took out his sticks and managed to block the attack at the last second, though the force of Bark's punch sent him flying back and he skidded on the floor.

Bark raised his hands once more to repeat his strike on the ground. As he did, Manic dashed in the air to avoid the aftermath of the tremor, though Fluttershy felt the ground shake once more. Midair, Manic vibrated his body at great speed and dashed to Bark with his sticks out. The resulting impact of Manic's sticks against Bark's torso was a small soundwave that blew the silent fighter several feet away on the ground as Manic looked on. Bark lifted himself from the ground and was starting to be surrounded by dark mist.

"Not this time! I'm going to find out what's going on!" Manic yelled as he moved extremely quick to Bark before he could be totally enveloped by the dark mist.

Manic entered the mist and brought down both of his sticks for a strike. He then felt as if though something had stopped his attack. The mist started to clear, revealing who or what had done it.

In front of Manic was an Eggman robot decorated like a magician that wore a yellow colored jacket with a black and white tuxedo underneath. They had a yellow top hat, red bowtie, red eyes, gray appendages and a black lower torso. The forefront was yellow and they wore blue bumpers with yellow stars on them. The robot had stopped Manic's sticks with an ace playing card. Fluttershy looked on and put her hand to her mouth.

"So, you're the one who was pretending to be Fang and the others, huh?" Manic said. "Sorry, but your magic act's over."

The Heavy Magician then disappeared in dark mist, which caused Manic to slightly fall forward. When he regained his balance, he turned around and saw the Magician poof in front of him. It then tipped its hat towards him in a cordial manner, which caused him to glare.

"I don't like your attitude." Manic said as he ran towards the Heavy Magician and tried to hit it with his sticks.

The Magician vanished in a dark mist and then reappeared behind Manic. Manic then faced it and rushed towards it for another attack, but the Magician did it's disappearing act once more. Manic repeatedly tried to land at least one hit on the Heavy Magician, but it was no use.

"Stop that! Stop...spamming!" Manic yelled with frustration.

The Magician appeared in front of Manic and this time, Manic increased his speed and lunged at it before it could teleport. He then smashed his sticks onto the Heavy Magician's sides.

"Yes!" Manic cheered, glad he had finally managed to land a blow.

The Heavy Magician appeared to be stunned due to Manic's assault. However, it then exploded into a puff of confetti, startling Manic.

"What the?!" Manic shouted before the confetti expanded and wrapped around him tightly, leaving a single strand hanging.

Due to being in the air, Manic started to fall to the ground and he braced for impact. Before he reached the ground, his body came to a sudden stop in a bullwhip effect. He looked up to see that the Heavy Magician had the loose strand in its hand.

"What? But you were just....How did you..." Manic started to say until he was rolled up towards the Magician as if he was a Yo-Yo. When he reached it, he started to feel dizzy.

The Heavy Magician then released Manic back towards the floor and he landed on it with great force, making pain shoot through his entire body. The Magician then rolled Manic back to the top before sending him back to the ground again with another powerful impact. The Heavy Magician kept repeating this while Fluttershy looked on, disturbed due to what was happening to her friend.

"(This is terrible. Manic's at the mercy of that robot and Sonic already ran up ahead. Knowing him, he might've run off too far and if I call for back up, it might be too late. Manic needs help right now, but it's just me. What can I do? I'm not a fighter.)" Fluttershy said in her head.

Fluttershy continued to watch as the Heavy Magician kept flinging Manic towards the ground, wincing due to each impact. He could end up unconscious at this rate. Fluttershy knew she had to do something, but combined with the fact that she was absolutely terrified at this point and she had no combat skills made the situation even more difficult. She sank to the ground and covered her knees with her arms.

"Come on, Fluttershy, you'll be fine. You've gone up against an two crazy she-demon, 3 evil sirens and you even flew up to a giant water monster. You got this." She remembered Rainbow Dash saying earlier.

"When push comes to shove, Fluttershy'll pull through." AppleJack's words echoed in her mind.

Fluttershy thought to back to what the two of them said. In all those situations, she was frightened, just like she was now. But yet, she had always managed to come through and help her friends when they were in danger. Right now, Manic was in a dangerous situation and he needed her.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and rose up from the ground. She had made her up mind. She was going to stand her ground like she had done from before.

"Ok, Fluttershy. Think, there has to be something I can do." Fluttershy said to herself as she looked around the room for a while.

Suddenly, an idea came to her as she formed a wide smile on her face.

"I got it!" Fluttershy exclaimed as she rose from the ground and flew in the direction towards the entrance of the pyramid from which she, Sonic and Manic had come through.

Manic was slammed on the ground once more. At this point, it was a struggle for him to stay awake. His entire body was sore and his head was pounding like crazy. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. He was then rolled up to the Heavy Magician again.

"Ohhh....I think I'm gonna be sick...." Manic groggily said.

The Heavy Magician snapped its fingers and Manic was no longer wrapped up by confetti. Now, his entire body was locked in some kind of floating box as he looked around frantically.

"What now?!" Manic wondered out loud.

The Heavy Magician tipped it's hat to Manic once more and from the hat, a giant saw emerged, causing the color to drain from Manic's face. He knew what was going to happen next. He then tried to struggle out of the box, but it was futile. He was too weak from being used as a toy by the Magician. The saw approached Manic's box and started to cut through, making him grit his teeth.

An echoey roar was then heard, causing both Manic and the Heavy Magician to turn to their left, which was the source. Shortly afterward, many crashing sounds were heard. These noises grew louder and louder until in front of Manic and the Magician was a giant sandworm, making its way through the factory and wrecking everything.

"Oh, wonderful. As if things weren't bad enough." Manic sarcastically said.

The sandworm got closer and Manic closed his eyes as he expected to become its next meal. Instead, the sandworm moved right past him and straight to the Heavy Magician, forcing it to vanish. Doing so released Manic from the box he was in a dark puff of smoke and he started to fall to the ground. He then landed on top of the sandworm's body and looked around in a perplexed manner.

"Ok, I'm confused." Manic said as he scratched his head.

"Manic, over here." He heard Fluttershy's voice say.

Manic looked up to see Fluttershy flying towards him. She then sat down on the worm's body alongside him.

"Fluttershy? What's going on?" Manic quizzically said.

"Well, I saw that you were in trouble and I needed to do something. Then I remembered how Sonic mentioned that there were sandworms around here, so I flew out of the pyramid and found one of them on the outskirts. I explained how Eggman was the one who had ruined his home to build this nasty pyramid and I asked him to lend me a hand. He was more than happy to help." Fluttershy explained.

"Fluttershy, you're amazing." Manic complimented, which made her slightly flustered. "With this thing, we can destroy this factory easily. But first, we just need to take care of that."

Manic and Fluttershy looked up to see the Heavy Magician flying away from the rampaging sandworm, which was still trying to eat it. In response, the Magician took off its hat and aimed it at the sandworm, releasing smaller wasp-like robots towards it. However, due to the thick hide of the sandworm's skin, it didn't feel a thing as the robots exploded all over its body.

"Trixie would probably like to learn a thing or two from it." Fluttershy observed.

"It is pretty tricky. Even if the worm gets close enough, it'll probably do some stupid magic trick or something." Manic informed Fluttershy.

"In that case, why don't you try grabbing its attention?" Fluttershy suggested, which caused Manic to grin.

"Be distracting? That's one of the many things I excel at." Manic responded as he ran across the sandworm to get closer to the Magician.

Manic saw the Heavy Magician from the side he was on and jumped off the sandworm towards it.

"Yo!" Manic called, which made the Magician turn towards him. "You're magic act blows! I want a refund!"

Manic twirled his sticks rapidly and sent to the Heavy Magician. In response, the Magician took off its hat and caught Manic's stick in it before it sent them back to him, forcing him to duck to avoid getting it. The Heavy Magician then reached into its hat and Manic felt his hair gripped by a hand. He then found himself yanked through a misty, dark dimension of some kind and was face to face with the Magician, still holding him by his hair.

"I'm not even going to try and wonder how that works." Manic dryly said as the Magician pulled him in closer.

"Oh, and by the way, you shouldn't look away when there's a giant worm after you." He added with a smug grin.

The Heavy Magician turned around to see the mouth of the sandworm coming down on it. While it was distracted, Manic placed his feet on the robot's chest and pushed it away, releasing a green shockwave that pushed the Heavy Magician right into the jaws of the sandworm, crushing it while the worm descended downwards. Manic then landed on the sandworm, joining Fluttershy as the sandworm held the Magicians body to the ground, causing a small explosion in its mouth and taking out the threat.

"Yeah! We did it!" Manic said with joy as Fluttershy couldn't help but smile.

Near the end of the factory, Sonic was still racing through, wondering what was keeping Manic and Fluttershy so long.

"The two of them should've joined me by now. It's just Fang after all." Sonic said to himself.

Sonic then heard the sound of wreckage from behind, making him stop running as he turned around to see the source. He then saw the giant sandworm demolishing the weapon's factory, taking him back a little.

"Wow! Do I have to fight that?" Sonic asked.

"Nah, he's with us." Manic answered, making Sonic look up at the top of the worm to see his brother and Fluttershy riding it.

"Manic? Fluttershy? It's about time! What took you so long?" Sonic questioned as the two of them jumped down to join him.

"Well, turns it out, it wasn't really Fang. Some magician robot just disguised itself at him and gave me some trouble. Luckily, Fluttershy convinced that sandworm to help." Manic elaborated.

"Ah, makes sense. This makes the wrecking the factory like 10x easier. Way to go Fluttershy! We owe it you!" Sonic congratulated.

"Thanks, Sonic. I have to admit, being out here with you two of you is probably one of the scariest things I've ever done. I wasn't sure if I would be of any help." Fluttershy confessed. "But seeing my friends in danger is even scarier. I just can't stand around and do nothing."

"Really glad we brought you along or otherwise, I would be in two by now." Manic said as he placed his hand on Fluttershy's shoulder. "And getting us out of a hard job."

"Well, I guess our work is done. We better report back to base that this factory's history." Sonic said.

The three of them then began to exit the factory as the sandworm continued to go around and reduce it to rubble.

Rematch

The doors of the resistance base opened, revealing Sonic, Manic and Fluttershy as they entered the room. It was almost empty, except for Amy and Sunset at the computer, who noticed them enter.

"You're back already? Judging from your faces, the mission was a success?" Amy inquired, as Sonic gave the thumbs up to confirm.

"Consider Eggman's factory trashed. This should make taking out his army less of a handful." Manic said. "And we owe it to Fluttershy."

"True. Talking to animals is pretty cool when you can command a giant sandworm." Sonic agreed.

Fluttershy slightly blushed due to the praise she received, feeling a little embarrassed. Sunset then walked over to her and placed her arm around her friend.

"Fluttershy, I'm really proud of you. You managed to get through your fears and helped make a huge change." Sunset congratulated, which made Fluttershy beam.

"Um..thank you, everyone." Fluttershy responded. "Though honestly, I hope I don't have to do anything like that again."

Manic then noticed how empty the room was and placed his hands on his hips as he turned to Sunset.

"Wow, you weren't kidding when you said these missions were going to spread us thin." Manic observed, before he winced slightly and grabbed his arm, still feeling sore due to his fight with the Heavy Magician. "I just hope everyone else has as much luck as we do."

Suddenly, there was a large beeping sound heard on the computer, getting everyone's attention as they all approached the screen in order to see what was the source.

"What is it?" Sunset asked.

"It's coming from the Mystic Jungle. There's some kind of power....a huge one, it looks like something is attacking the area." Amy said.

"Can anyone hear me?" Rarity's voice said over the comm in an alarming manner. "The situation isn't looking good. Silver went up ahead and-

Rarity's voice was cut off by Silver's, which was followed by a large distortion noise in the back, making everyone in the room worried.

"It's him! The one who beat Sonic! He's here!" Silver's voice was heard over the comm before the distorted sound was heard once more, cutting off communication entirely.

"Oh no! Silver sounds like he's in real danger." Fluttershy said in a scared tone. "Especially if that awful monster is there."

Hearing that the one who had caused his capture had reappeared made Sonic clench his fist as his body was filled with ambition. Sunset on the other hand, started to feel her fear of the mysterious figure coming back and let out an anxious sigh.

"They need backup. I'm heading out there now." Sonic quickly said as he rubbed his nose with his thumb. "I owe this guy one."

"Sonic wait. This guy already beat you once and we just got you back. I don't want to lose you again." Amy said as Sonic faced her.

In response, Sonic formed a small grin.

"Don't worry, Amy. That guy got the drop on me once but it won't happen again. I promise." Sonic reassured.

Amy didn't seem too convinced at first, but she remembered it was Sonic. He always found a way in the end. She decided to put her trust in him and nodded.

"Be careful, Sonic." Sunset cautioned.

Sonic gave the thumbs up and then sped out of the room, leaving the others behind. Fluttershy held her hands in worry and Amy was looking slightly concerned, causing Sunset put her hand on her shoulder.

"Sonic's got this. He'll be back in no time." Manic told the others in the room, having full confidence in his brother.

Sonic was running at night through a blocky mountain landscape with layered soil. The region was covered with tropical trees, grass, and ferns. Rushing rivers and calm lakes were surrounding the area. It was also covered with ancient ruins in the form of roads, pillars, walls, and temples alongside lit torches covered in vegetation. All the ruins had yellow glowing runes. As a result of Eggman taking over the region, there were many neon signs in various shapes and colors present along with palm-shaped street lights. While Sonic was making his way through, he saw the sky was filled with Eggman's ships, which began dropping a series of bombs, causing the entire forest to be covered in fire. Sonic swerved around in order to avoid incoming flames.

"Does Eggman have to wreck every place he goes?" He questioned with distaste.

"This isn't good. Our forces in the Mystic Jungle are being bombarded!" Amy stated over the coms.

Sonic realized he had to pick up the pace due to everything that was happening. He then trigged his boost, propelling him further through the region and knocking back Eggman's robot's along the way. As he got further ahead, Sonic's boost vanished and he found himself in front of a pathway that led upward, which he decided to take. It led to him to various different platforms, which Sonic got through by turning into a streak and using Eggman's flying robot's to make a path for him.

Sonic then dashed from the final platform and started traveling on a half-pipe that was covered with purple Eggman robot's shaped like ostriches. The robots saw him coming and in response, ran away from while firing missiles. Sonic sidestepped in order to avoid the incoming missiles for a bit until he rushed past a row of them and using his speed, he created a mini-vortex that changed the direction of the missiles, launching most of them towards the robots and taking them out for him. Sonic grabbed a hold of one and used it to carry him forward for a bit as he hung on to it. He then got closer to the last robot and threw the missile on top of it, creating a small explosion as Sonic resumed running on the halfpipe. He reached the end and jumped off it. Mid-air were Eggman robots with round shapes and propellors on the top of their heads. Sonic became a streak and attacked across them to reach solid ground.

Sonic dashed through a small tunnel and when he exited it, he was running on another half-pipe, using his streak to take out Eggman robots on the way as he moved from one enemy to another. Sonic then performed a power slide, creating a small blue energy field around his leg to knock enemies over him and sending them on the ground. Due to this, Sonic was able to deflect any missiles coming towards him, sending them scattering around to other enemies.

"Eggman's assault is too strong. We have to fall back!" Sonic heard a soldier say across the coms as he got up and ran again.

"No problem. I can take it from here. Just get your troops out of here." Sonic responded.

"According to the readings I have, Silver and Rarity are up in the ruins ahead. Along with that new enemy." Sunset said.

"Got it. I won't be too late." Sonic said with determination.

Sonic moved way from the half-pipe and grinded on a neon-yellow rail to reach the ground. He was now moving through a more heavily forested part of the jungle. As he ran, Sonic then heard a loud rumbling noise and felt the entire ground shake violently, which sent him up in the air.

"Sonic, watch out. It looks like there's something else there too." Sunset said.

"Yeah, I noticed." Sonic replied.

Suddenly, something erupted from the ground and in front of Sonic was a giant snake that bared its fangs as soon as it saw him.

"Wow, a snake?!" Sonic exclaimed with shock as his eyes widened.

"All of the action in the jungle must've woken it up." Amy deduced.

"I can tell. This thing looks pretty angry and I understand that, seeing as it was woken up from a nap." Sonic said as he turned into a streak once more and smacked the top of the creature's mouth, closing its jaws and letting him run along its body.

"Looks like I have to fight my way through." Sonic observed.

"Oh, don't be too rough with it, Sonic." Fluttershy requested. "It's probably more scared of you than you are of it."

Seeing how huge the snake was, Sonic doubted that was true. He then jumped off its body in an attempt to move forward, but the snake wasn't dumb. It saw this as a chance, and it moved in front of Sonic and opened it's mouth, swallowing him whole.

"Not a good idea." Sonic commented from inside the serpent.

The snake then felt a violent sensation throughout its body, causing it to move around in a random and disorientated manner. The snake howled in pain before it fell on the ground and from its mouth, Sonic was then flung forward to the end of the ruins.

Ahead, before the ruins, Rarity had a series of large shields ahead, using them to defend while many Egg Pawns unleashed a barrage of lasers. Behind her were injured soldiers and a few were standing, fighting back with their own weapons.

"We're doomed! We can't hold out any longer!" One soldier cried.

"Don't be like that!" Rarity called back. "We're going to make it out of this!"

Rarity then took her shields and threw them like boomerangs, cutting many Egg Pawns down, which allowed for other soldiers to fire and make some hits. However, from ahead, many Egg Walkers were flying down and began to drop missiles. The action fashionista formed a look of dread and as fast as she could, she made a large barrier to defend her and the soldiers. Many explosions erupted and when they cleared, Rarity's shield was cracked and began to chip away. She was huffing and puffing as well. The Egg Walkers came down and prepared to fire rockets again. Rarity braced herself as she stood and prepared to make more shields, though she was unsure how long this could last.

Just then, a blue streak tore through the robots many times, taking them out of commission. Sonic then slid to a stop in front of Rarity, much to her relief and delight.

"Sonic! Thank you, so much." She said. "Things were starting to get out of hand."

"Don't sweat it." Sonic replied. "I heard your comm and you mentioned Silver, where did he go?"

"Up ahead." Rarity answered. "Then that dreadful noise appeared and Silver announced he found that masked monster. I hope he's alright. You have to go help him. I can manage from here on."

"Got it. I'll make sure Silver's ok and leave it to you." Sonic agreed.

He then sped off forward

In the ruins of the Mystic Jungle, Silver was floating in a cyan aura. Hovering above him was the masked figure, coated in red energy. He looked down at him condescendingly.

"Well, what do we have here?" He said. An annoying pests that need to be swatted. I must admit, I was only here to scout the rest of the area, but this works for me. Taking out a major figure of this 'resistance' sets an example. Shows the trash the true nature of how pointless their struggle is."

Silver clenched his fist, irritated due to the words of the figure.

"I'm done hearing you talk." Silver declared. "I've heard nonsense more times than I can count. It didn't discourage me then and it's not going to discourage me now."

"Heh heh....looks like you need to learn your place." The masked enemy replied as he adjusted his mask.

Silver lifted a large amount of rubble from the ground and sent them towards the figure. In response, the masked figure waved his hand and released a red wave from his body, reducing his attacks to nothing.

"It's going to take more than beginners attacks like those to deal with me." He taunted.

Silver then flew closer to the enemy and using both hands, he wrapped around the figure tightly with a psychic aura, who seemed curious as to what he was up to.

With great force, Silver then prepared to smash his mask foe into the ground. However, the figures mask began to glow and from his body, a red energy pulse emerged, freeing from his Silver's hold and blowing him away. The figure dusted himself off and seemed bored.

Silver looked on at his masked enemy and his fists tightened.

"Enough warming up!" Silver said. "Here I come, you freak!"

Silver then flew towards the figure in a cyan aura, causing him to do the same in a red one as they both flew around the area, clashing while they flew through each other . While they clashed, Silver felt an enormous pushback each time. This guy was formidable and it was hard for Silver not to be blown away entirely, only sticking around thanks to his psychokinesis. As they did, a red gem of some sort dropped from the ground, but it went by unnoticed.

Silver and the figure flew through each other once more and this time, the figure generated two laser beams from his hands towards the psychic youth. Silver flew upward, evading harm as the beams hit some ruins in the back. He and the mysterious enemy then floated across from each other.

"I'm impressed. You've lasted this long and haven't run away screaming. Well, ignorance is bliss as they say" The figure said. "Allow me to correct that."

The masked figure raised his arms and a series of red cubes formed around it, much to the Silver's confusion. The figure then sent the cubes as a straight line towards his enemy.

In response, Silver conjured nearby debris to make a shield in order to defend himself. Hisdefense proved to be useless as the cubes tore through the rocks like paper and enveloped him instantly. This caused him to experience an extremely warped sensation as everything around them was red and trembling along with an impossibly loud temporal distortion sound.

"What-What is this?!" Silver yelled as he frantically looked around.

Silver was no longer in the Mystic Jungle and now floating in some sort of swirling pink portal. This caused him Silver raised an eyebrow, perplexed at his situation.

"What? Where am I? Where did that masked enemy go? He questioned.

Suddenly, Silver realized something.

"Of course. This is probably an illusion of some sort and none of this is real. I've dealt with this before. When I was in that dream world." He casually said.

"But the question is, how do I get out of here?" The young psychic wondered.

Before Silver could think it over, a shapeless swirling mass of darkness appeared before him, gaining his attention as he focused on it. The darkness then formed into a dark skull-like face that was glowing blue with many horn-like limbs extending from it. The face then released a loud ear piercing roar, whose force shook Silver.

"I'll admit, that feels real!" He shouted.

The limbs that were protruding out of the skull face extended out and reached out to grab Silver an alarming speed. He used his powers to dissolve any limbs that reached him but they seemed to endless. He didn't understand what was going on. He had been trapped in an illusion before but this seemed so real and lifelike, he was beginning to doubt if it was an illusion at all. Silver was then starting to be engulfed by the dark arms, leaving just his faces barely uncovered.

Silver then felt a powerful force ram into him, sending him flying several feet back and he collided with a wall, forming a giant crater. When it was over, Silver saw that he was back in the Mystic Jungle and the figure was floating several feet away. However, his entire body felt so weak and littered with pain. Silver's eyes drooped and he fell down on the floor.

.
"That wasn't too difficult." The masked enemy said. He then noticed Silver was starting to rise up from the ground.

"Looks like this one still has a bit of fight left in him. Let me fix that." The figure decided as he charged in a red aura towards Silver.

As the figure was about to hit Silver, his attack was intercepted by Sonic's boost, sending the two of them away from each other.

"Just made it in." Sonic said as he slid in front of Silver.

"Well, this is unexpected." The figure said with amusement as he looked down at Sonic, who gave him a fierce glare. "If it isn't the little blue pest? I'm surprised. I defeated you once easily and yet, here you are. You have guts. I like that."

"Well, you hurt my friends and I don't like that." Sonic shot back. "Just who are you anyway? Last time we met, you didn't even give me your name, which is a rude thing to do during introductions."

"Well, I suppose it is sad to die without even knowing who finished you off. My name is Infinite." The figure revealed while he adjusted his mask once more.

"Infinite, huh? Then you must be tons of fun then. Ever heard the saying fun is infinite?" Sonic mocked as he paced back an forth. "Since we're getting to know each other, how about some icebreakers? I'll start. The source of my power is my speed. What's yours?"

"That is none of your concern." Infinite coldly answered, making Sonic shake his head with disappointment.

"No fair, I shared with you mine." Sonic complained. "Oh well, guess I'll have to beat it out of you."

"Beat it out of me? I changed my mind. You don't have guts. You're just simply a fool." Infinite berated.

In response to Infinite's taunt, Sonic ran towards his masked foe. However, red energy began to form around the gem on Infinite's chest before it expanded to create a large red energy field that engulfed the entire area. Sonic then found himself slowly being lifted up into the air as if gravity was nonexistent.

"Wow, wow, wow..." Sonic said uncomfortably as he moved his arms and legs around. He couldn't see well either as the whole region was covered in red flashes.

Infinite then released a strong kick that launched Sonic away from the area he had confronted him. As Sonic flew in the air, Infinite flew after him.

Sonic flailed in the air for a while until he noticed he was falling towards the body of a large snake. He then found his footing and managed to make a landing. He then noticed Infinite come behind.

"I'm going to finish what I started back in the city." Infinite vowed as his body glowed red, making Sonic grin in response.

"Heh. It's payback time!" He stated.

Infinite flew closer to Sonic and fired a barrage of red darts towards him. Sonic dashed away to avoid the blast as Infinite pursued him alongside the snake. After a while of this, Sonic turned around and headed towards Infinite. Infinite continued his assault as Sonic sidestepped to avoid his beams.

"(Hmmm, his speed is slightly more impressive than before.)" Infinite noticed, but he just shrugged it off. What could one person do against him?

Infinite then generated two red spheres in his palms and sent them to Sonic, who jumped to avoid the first one and he kicked the second back at Infinite, who blocked it with no problem. Sonic then followed up by striking with a powerful streak, leaving a blue impact that forced Infinite back a bit as Sonic bounced off him. Infinite then charged up with both hands a larger sphere of power, which Sonic noticed. Thinking quickly, Sonic used a stomp surrounded by a blue field before Infinite could fire. The result was a small explosion that sent Sonic away and forced Infinite further back, making him off balance. Infinite regained focus as Sonic landed.

Sonic then rushed at Infinite and released a punch, which Infinite evaded by tilting his head slightly back. However, Sonic wasn't done yet. Sonic then unleashed a combination of kicks and punches at high speed, which Infinite was able to dodge. Infinite then vanished after Sonic released a side kick and appeared on Sonic's right with a roundhouse kick. Using his reflexes, Sonic blocked the hit, but due to Infinite's strength, he moved a few inches back. Sonic then raced around Infinite, making a small current, which he then released as he raised his fist, making a cutting wind surround Infinite. Infinite defended against the gust as red sparks emerged from his body due to the sharpness of the wind. Infinite then raised his hand and dispersed the wind using a small red field.

"Headshot!" Infinite heard Sonic yell as Sonic crashed into him headfirst as a streak, making Infinite slightly grunt and recoil due to Sonic's blow and float away backward.

"You say that as if it is anything significant." Infinite said as he rose higher in the air.

Infinite spread his arms and suddenly, many clones appeared around as Sonic looked up. Infinite and his replicas all aimed their hand to Sonic and unleashed a straight red beam. Sonic leaped into the air as the resulting blast made a red flare on the ground. Sonic was facing the many Infinites and turned into a streak as he hit through each of them quickly, making them vanish upon contact. Sonic then reached the real Infinite with a streaking strike that Infinite stopped with his hand. Sonic then followed up with an ax kick, which Infinite deflected and returned him to the ground.

"It's about time you realized how outclassed you are." Infinite said as he stuck his hand out.

Sonic heard the same distorted sound from before and coming at him from both sides were a series of red energy cubes attempting to crush him. Sonic sprinted forward as he narrowly avoided the cubes and continued towards Infinite. However, Infinite generated a rectangularly shaped series of cubes and sent them to Sonic. When Sonic saw them incoming, he tilted himself sideways in order to move past through them unharmed. Sonic thought he was safe as he resumed running but when he took another step, a field of red cubes appeared in front of him. It was too late as Sonic's feet fell into the cubes.

The moment Sonic made contact with the cubes, he heard an echo of the warping sound everywhere and his sight was now totally red and vibrating. His hearing was muffled by the noise and he couldn't even hear the sound of his feet running against the snake's body.

"This is insane!" Sonic uttered with disbelief. "This is what he's capable of?"

Sonic continued to whiz through this strange dimension and while he did, a series of large rolling spike balls came his way. Despite how thrown off he was due to Infinite's cubes, Sonic turned to avoid getting crushed. But that wasn't the only problem. Out of the ground, rows of spike appeared randomly. Sonic had trouble dodging these due to how unpredictable it was as he had to leap over them purely on instinct.

"Just where did he go?" Sonic wondered out loud about Infinite, but he could hardly hear himself speak.

When Sonic took his next step, he found himself heading right onto a line of spikes as he nearly lost his balance. Reacting quickly he launched himself into the air with his boost at the last second and charged straight into Infinite, ramming into him at supersonic speed and knocking him away, returning everything back to normal.

"Grrrrgh!" Infinite grunted while Sonic moved away from him as well.

"Hey, I'm back to where I was from before." He observed. "All right, Infinite, no more tricks!"

Sonic then charged up another boost towards Infinite again. To counter this, Infinite surrounded himself with a red aura and went to Sonic at a similar speed. The resulting collision knocked both of the fighters away from each other. But Sonic wasn't done yet. He charged up a boost once more and Infinite did his previous maneuver as the two of them crashed into each other and were pushed back with great force. They repeated this for a while until when Sonic was blown away for the last time, he used his figure 8 move while remaining stationary in order to charge up speed. Sonic did this for some time before he released himself while performing his boost at the same time, giving Sonic a burst of speed that broke the sound barrier as a sonic boom and enveloped him in a more destructive aura that released streams of air as he was propelled to Infinite. To counteract Sonic's incoming attack, Infinite flew towards Sonic with a more focused aura and when the two of them made contact, they were at a stalemate as they each tried to force the other back.

"(Absurd! He's fighting me to a standstill!)" Infinite said to himself as he actually felt himself having to struggle not to be pushed back by Sonic. "(This is impossible! I have the ultimate power!)"

For Sonic, this wasn't easy either. It took almost every ounce of his strength to keep up his Sonic Boom.

Sonic and Infinite were both in a deadlock until both of them gave out , blowing both of them away. Sonic fell to the floor and Infinite was tossed back mid-air. Sonic picked himself up from the ground and huffed and puffed. He was feeling himself become exhausted.

Infinite shook his head and let out a slight sigh as he gripped his mask.

"Well, I'm impressed. You aren't as weak as before. But this doesn't change your ultimate fate." Infinite boasted. "Take this!"

Infinite formed a giant red field around his body, catching Sonic in a warped dimensional space, making all of his senses disorientated. Sonic had difficulty standing or even looking ahead of him. Infinite created two spheres in his arm and tossed them at Sonic, who barely managed to dodge one as the other hit him right in the chest, blasting him off the snake and down on the ground with a loud thud. Infinite looked down at Sonic while around his own body, his aura fading and he gained a few glitches around him in the process. Infinite looked down at his hand and clenched it.

"(Tsk. It seems as if though it's running out of power now. No matter, he's not worth finishing off anyway.)" Infinite thought.

Infinite floated higher in the air and flew away, leaving Sonic behind as he groaned in pain and slightly rose from the ground.

"Urgh....Ok...He's tough." Sonic weakly said. " I have to know why he's so strong, but first, I have to make sure Silver is ok

Sonic then zoomed back to Silver's location and found Rarity there. She seemed fine but Silver didn't look so good as he held his arm while Rarity helped him rise from the ground. Sonic then felt parts of his body ache as he approached the two of them.

"Sonic! Thank goodness you're all right." Rarity expressed.

"What happened to that guy? Did you beat him?" Silver said in a quizzical tone.

"No. He got away." Sonic said with dismay. "How're you two holding up?"

"I think I'll manage." Silver answered as he stood on his own and limped. He, Sonic and Rarity were now in a circle.

"That enemy is strong. Just look at what he did to you two." Rarity pointed out.

"Well, his name's Infinite. And if we don't find out the source of his power, the whole Resistance could be in real trouble." Sonic added. "We should head back to the base to tell the others and also, we need to rest up."

Sonic then bolted towards the exit of the Mystic Jungle, with Silver and Rarity following him.

Plans unveiled

Tails, Twilight and Spike were wandering in the Green Hill. However, this area was different from the others as aside from the sand replacing the waterfalls and lakes, it appeared to be undamaged. Tails looked down at the readings from his Miles Electric.

"According to these readings, Eggman is close." Tails stated. "This perfect. Once we get to him, we can take him down and end this war."

Tails prepared to move along ahead but he felt Twilight's hand on his arm, causing him to turn to her.

"Tails, I think we should have some kind of plan." Twilight began. "I understand you blame yourself for what happened to Sonic and want to make it up, but we need to be smart. If Eggman has that monster with him, we can't rush into a fight that we can't win."

Tails looked down at the ground, taking in Twilight's words. She was right. He was letting what happened to Sonic cloud his judgment and that wasn't going to do any good in a situation like this.

"You're right, Twilight. Getting ourselves beaten isn't going to solve anything." Tails agreed. "I'm glad you're here to snap me back to reality."

Twilight beamed. "Anytime."

"So, what is our next move then?" Spike asked.

"Well, if we catch up to Eggman, we should lay low. See if we can find out the secret to that new power of his. Once we know that, it could give us the edge." Tails explained. "Let's move, we can't let Eggman get away.

The three of them then began to move across the Green Hill. As they did, Twilight took the time to admire the location. It looked relatively peaceful and the scenery was a nice change of pace from all the wreckage she had come across.

"I have to say, this place is beautiful. No wonder Sonic liked running here so much." Twilight said out loud.

"This looks like the perfect area to chase some squirrels." Spike added, his tail wagging at the thought.

Tails then smiled after hearing their comments. "I'm glad you like this place. It's good to see at least one area isn't ruined. But we can't let our guard down. According to my Miles Electric, there are still enemies in the region......"

The trio reached a bridge and as they moved past it, they were suddenly surprised by 3 red piranha robots jumping out towards them from below. Twilight screamed outloud as she tumbled back as Tails took Spike and jumped ahead.

"Like that." Tails finished as he and Spike turned back to Twilight.

When the robots came down, Twilight encased them in a purple aura and sent them back from where they came. She then wiped her brow.

"As long as they don't jump us like that anymore, I think I handle this." Twilight said as she rejoined her companions.

The small team continued through Green Hill, encountering enemies along the way. Tails activated his arm cannon and shot any enemy that in his path while Twilight flung them away with her powers. They then traversed down a lower path, dispatching any Eggman robots that came after them. The path then took them upward to a series of moving landmasses. The three of them managed to get by it with no problem thanks to Twilight levitating them with her telekinesis and they safely reached the next part. In front of them was a small kind of tunnel.

"Ok, for this part, either you might have a lot of fun or lose your lunch." Tails cautioned as he slipped through the tube. Twilight and Spike both turned to each other, his words not exactly encouraging, but they had no time to lose. Spike leaped into the tunnel, leaving only Twilight behind. After some hesitation, she took a deep breath and entered the passageway.

Twilight was rolling at high speed through an S-shaped tube. It was like going through a water slide, but much, much faster. The sensation was insane.

"Woaaaaah!" Twilight yelled as continued through the tube and was suddenly flung outward in the air, but she floated down with no problem thanks to her ability to fly. She saw a bridge in front of her alongside Tails and Spike.

"That was awesome!" Spike happily said. "When this whole thing is over, can we come back here and do this again?"

Tails and Twilight chuckled in response to Spike's request.

"I'd love to, Spike." Twilight said with a small laugh.

Tails, Twilight and Spike moved along the bridge through a drier area of Green Hill, which brought them upwards to the more grassier part. In the background, they noticed Green Hill was covered by a desert with a pyramid in the background.

"Well, so much for Eggman not ruining this place." Tails said in an annoyed manner.

"This must've wrecked havoc on the eco-system of this place." Twilight deduced.

While the small group continued in Green Hill, the platforms they moved on suddenly started to break beneath them, nearly causing Tails and Spike to fall below to a series of spikes. Luckily, Twilight reacted quickly and managed to catch them in purple aura's. Spike looked down at the sharp objects below and gulped.

"I thought this area was supposed to be a peaceful landscape. Why does it have so many dangerous things?" He wondered as Tails shrugged.

Twilight carried herself and her friends to another platform, in which they found another small tube to move through, much to Spike's pleasure. After the three of went through it, they entered another tube, which released them on an upward path. At this point, Twilight was starting to feel a little dizzy, but she shook it off.

A series of different Eggman robots greeted the trio upon their arrival. Twilight brought down a row of debris in order to block the shots that were fired by the mechas. Due to this, Tails was able to release three wind up bombs shaped like mice towards the enemies and when they got close enough, three explosions were heard. The group was unaffected due to Twilight using the debris as a barrier. Once the enemies were dealt with, the team moved on ahead as Twilight moved the debris away. They then approached a long wooden bridge.

"Eggman's signal is closer." Tails said before he turned back to his partners. "Be careful."

Twilight and Spike nodded and they followed Tails across the bridge. As soon as they did, they were bombarded by an entire row of piranha robots jumping out towards them. Startled, Twilight threw her hands in front of herself and managed to stop all of them from moving forward before she threw them down below as Tails and Spike looked on. She then took in a long deep breath.

"I hate that!" She complained.

"Well, you did a great job taking care of them." Tails stated. "Let's get moving.

Tails, Twilight and Spike then moved deeper into Green Hill. The signal on Tail's Miles Electric beeped more rapidly as they approached a few large rocks. From them, they saw Eggman in his Eggmobile floating and he was talking down to Infinite. Seeing this made Tail's eyes widen.

"It's him! He's the one who beat Sonic!" Tails said in a loud whisper as he, Twilight and Spike knelt down below the rocks.

"Let's listen to what they're saying. Maybe we can hear something interesting."Twilight suggested.

Infinite crushed a magenta gem in his hands as the pieces fell to the floor.

"That's the last of the Phantom Ruby experiments, doctor." Infinite said.

"Good. Now that we know the full extent of its powers, we don't need defective models. The analysis was finished in the Mystic Jungle. lab" Eggman responded. After this, he raised an eyebrow.

"By the way, I heard you met Sonic after he escaped."Eggman continued. "Did you finish him, this time?"

"There was no need. He was powerless against me." Infinite replied, which made Eggman form a bewildered look as he tightly gripped his Eggmobile.

"What?! Why did you let him go?! I told you not to underestimate him! Sonic is always a thorn in my side!" Eggman berated as Infinite adjusted his mask.

Hearing this made Tail's body fill with joy. He was right this whole time. Sonic was indeed alive . Twilight seemed relieved as well to hear that Sonic wasn't a goner either along with Spike.

"I knew Sonic was alive." Tails whispered.

"That's great news. But what's this Phantom Ruby?" Twilight wondered.

"I already told you, he's no threat to me." Infinite simply said as Eggman leaned back in his vehicle.

"The power of the Phantom Ruby ran out, didn't it? I warned you that you should recharge before you headed out." Eggman scolded while Infinite didn't seem too concerned.

"A minor folly. Doctor, you know as well as I do that I am the only one who can use the Phantom Ruby's power to its full extent." Infinite responded. "I don't like repeating myself, so I'll only say this once more. Sonic is not a threat to me. I can crush him anytime I please."

Eggman didn't seem too convinced by Infinite's word but he remained silent.

"The plan is still good to go, correct?" Infinite then asked.

"Of course. Once it's completed, the Resistance will be no more! They won't even see it coming. With them gone, there will be nothing to stop the Eggman Empire's construction!" Eggman boasted.

"They will submit to the Phantom Ruby. None can resist its power and allure." Infinite declared with desire as he rose into the air, his body glowing red along with the scar on his mask.

Infinite then flew off into the distance, leaving a red trail behind. Tails and Twilight then turned to each other.

"Well, we know that Eggman has something called the Phantom Ruby, but we still don't know anything about it." Tails whispered.

"And he has some plan. If only we could find some way to get more information." Twilight whispered back. "We can't let him get away."

"I got you covered." Spike whispered.

Before Tails or Twilight could say anything, Spike leaped out from his hiding place, much to their shock. He then ran over to Eggman, making the doctor turn to see him barking angrily.

"What the?" Eggman said. "Wait, I recognize you. You're that dog who's with Sonic's friends! Then that means..."

Eggman turned to his right to see Tails and Twilight coming out to Spike. Their presence made him growl.

"Spike, what were you thinking?!" Twilight yelled as she scooped up Spike while Tails glared at Eggman.

"Someone had to get his attention." Spike answered.

"Well, what do we have here? Sonic's sidekick and one of his cheerleaders." Eggman taunted. "I'm surprised you two have survived my reign."

"Nothing's taking me down until you're finished, Eggman!" Tails shot back. "We're going to stop you!"

"Hohohoho! You think you can stop me?! Sonic couldn't! What chance do you have?" Eggman retorted. "I'll crush you two here right now!"

The top of the Egg mobile was covered in a glass dome as Eggman pushed a button on its controls. As soon as he did, from behind him emerged a large red robot shaped similar to a dragon. Its torso was humanoid and bulky with spiked shoulders. It had highlights in front and a smaller torso at the top where the Egg mobile could fit. It had two thin arms, two wings made of red energy and an exhaust pipe on the back. Its right arm was a large drill and it's left arm was six barrelled cannon. On the bottom were a lower belly and two small talon-like cannons. Eggman descended on top of the mecha as it displayed its full body while Tails, Twilight and Spike looked on, alarmed by what they saw, with the latter whimpering.

"The Egg Dragoon?!" Tails shouted with disbelief.

"Hohoho! Weren't expecting this were you?!" Eggman said from his cockpit. "Get a load of this!"

From its bottom torso, the Egg Dragoon launched a large fireball towards the 3 heroes.

"Look out!" Tails screamed as he grabbed Spike and tackled Twilight away from the fireball.

When the flames it, it generated a large explosion as Eggman looked on at the resulting smoke, forming a wicked grin.

"Got them in one blow?" He wondered.

Inside the smoke, the trio was hidden behind some rocks, using the smoke cloud as a cover. Twilight coughed out loud as Tails turned to her.

"You ok?" He asked her.

"*cough* Yeah, I'm not too hurt." Twilight responded. "Though how are we supposed to fight that?!"

Tails then began to press a button on his wristwatch, forming a yellow homing signal on it.

"A good scientist is always prepared." Tails answered. "I have something which might help, but it might take a while to get here. During that time, I don't think Eggman is going to wait around and the smoke should clear soon. Twilight, I know I'm asking a lot of you, but can you keep it busy in the meantime?"

"Me?!" She repeated as if she didn't hear right.

"I know how strong your powers are. Remember from Camp Everfree with that boulder and all those brambles. You helped turn the tides in our favor. I believe you can do this." Tails told her.

Tails did have a point. Her magical power was indeed powerful. But she was still hesitant seeing as this mecha was huge. Uncertainty covered her face.

"You can do this, Twilight." Spike encouraged. "You've always taken what the bad guys throw at you and haven't run away."

Seeing Spike's face of sincerity along with Tails's faith in her boosted Twilight's confidence. She then closed her eyes, clenched her fist and made her decision.

"Ok. I'll try and buy you some time." She promised.

"Great. We'll be back. Come on, Spike." Tails said.

Tails and Spike ran away from Twilight, using the smoke to cover their escape while Twilight flew through it towards the Egg Dragoon. She then emerged from it and came face to face with Eggman.

"So it's just you? The others perished in my fire then? Shame, I was hoping they could witness my ultimate plan." Eggman stated.

"That's not going to happen because your plan's going to fail." Twilight said, which made Eggman burst into laughter.

"Hohoho! Why? Because of the likes of you? What do you hope to do against me alone?" Eggman mocked.

"I'm not alone." Twilight insisted as she brought up her fist.

"Foolish girl! Take this!" Eggman yelled.

The Egg Dragon aimed its arm cannon at Twilight and began to fire a series of giant bullets. Twilight's eyes filled with panic and she flew out of their way as fast as she could. While the shots missed her, they hit the ground and caused eruptions of dust to occur. This made it harder for Twilight to fly around but the sounds of incoming the shots navigated her away from them. The Egg Dragoon continued its assault but Twilight managed to avoid getting hit.

Seeing as the guns weren't working, the Egg Dragoon retracted its cannon and using its legs, it flung large amounts of debris towards Twilight. Seeing all the incoming rocks headed towards her, Twilight covered her arms and moved around to get out of harm's way as the rocks landed on the floor. However, this gave her an idea.

"(I got it! If I send these rocks back at it, I should be able to do some damage.)" Twilight realized.

With her telekinesis, Twilight levitated 3 rocks from the ground. Due to their size, it was a struggle as she grunted while doing so, but she managed to hold them in place. She then turned towards the Egg Dragoon and using all of her strength, she launched the boulders at the mecha. The rocks crashed onto the Egg Dragoon, stunning it upon impact.

"Grrr! Crafty little pest!" Eggman said.

The Egg Dragoon then aimed it's drill arm at Twilight and fired it towards Twilight. Thinking quickly, Twilight lifted another large rock with her powers to take the hit instead, though the aftermath blew her back slightly. The Egg Dragoon wasn't finished yet. It then continued to fire its drill arm to Twilight, who flew around to avoid the incoming impacts as the drills crashed onto the ground.

"(I can use this to my advantage!)" Twilight said in her head as she noticed the drills laying on the floor.

Twilight surrounded a drill in a purple aura and began to lift it. It was much heavier than the boulders she had lifted from before, so this required a lot of concentration. She felt sweat roll down her face while doing this task as the Egg Dragoon prepared to fire another drill. When the Egg Dragoon fired, Twilight raised the drill fully from the ground and flew above the incoming drill sent. Seeing that the Egg Dragoon was now open to an attack, Twilight sent her own drill towards the torso of the Egg Dragoon, smashing into it and causing some damage. Twilight was glad she was able to hit it again, but she was starting to feel drained.

"I'm starting to hate you almost as much as Sonic!"Eggman shouted.

The Egg Dragoon then launched another drill missile towards Twilight, this time which was crackling with electricity. Twilight flew over the missile to avoid its impact. However, when the missile fell on the ground, it released an electric pulse around the area, which Twilight didn't notice until was too late. A surge of electricity was sent through her body, shocking her.

"Ahhh!" She yelled as she started to fall towards the floor.

Twilight was having difficulty staying awake but she knew she couldn't pass out. Tails and Spike were counting on her. At the same time, she didn't have enough strength to fly herself to safety. She had to think of something as she fell to the ground. Before she reached it, Twilight surrounded herself with her own telekinesis and landed on the ground without a crash. Unfortunately, this took a lot out of her due to everything she had lifted before and she rested on the ground, exhausted.

"Finished already?" Eggman wondered. "I'll admit, you gave me some trouble, but it's over now!"

The Egg Dragoon hovered above the tired Twilight, but before it could do anything, it was suddenly bombarded with a series of missiles, sending it back.

"What?! Who dares?!" Eggman demanded.

Twilight and Eggman turned to see the source of the missiles was Tails, who was driving a red plane shaped like an X with a futuristic design. Behind him was Spike in the other seat. Tails increased the speed of his plane and flew towards Twilight's location. As soon as he approached her, he extended his hand out and pulled her into Spike's seat. Twilight then began to pant while Spike licked her face to wake her up more.

"Tails?!" She said, a little dazed.

"Good work on keeping him busy, Twilight. I knew I could count on you." Tails praised. "Now, let's finish this!"

Tails aimed his plane at the Egg Dragoon and unleashed a barrage of missiles towards it. Combined with the previous damage it had taken, the full brunt of this attack heavily damaged the Egg Dragoon as it began to smoke and fall apart. Eggman grit his teeth and slammed the buttons on his Eggmobile, ejecting himself as the Egg Dragoon started to explode and fall to the ground.

"This doesn't mean anything. I'll finish you and your entire resistance soon!" Eggman swore.

Due to the damage sustained from the Egg Dragoon, Eggman's Eggmobile was having difficulty flying and started to head towards the ground, which Tails, Twilight, and Spike noticed. Tails then flew down after Eggman. The Eggmobile then slid on the ground as Eggman fumbled around inside before coming to a complete stop while the trio of heroes got off Tails's plane.

"We did it!" Tails cheered.

"I knew you could do it, Twilight!" Spike said as Twilight smiled, though she was still feeling somewhat worn out. It was nice to have a victory.

"Hohohohoho!" The three of them heard Eggman laugh as the top of his cockpit was retracted.

"Like I said before, this little victory of yours is meaningless." Eggman boasted. "You should savor it though, as it's the last one you're ever going to get. In 3 days, my final plan will be completed and the resistance will be destroyed."

Tails, Twilight and Spike backed up, worried by Eggman's words.

"3 days? What are you planning?" Tails questioned as Eggman pulled the lever of his Eggmobile, which got it airborne once more as the engine roared.

"You'll find out." Eggman replied with a sinister sneer.

The Eggmobile rose in the ground before it sped off at amazing speed as the mad doctor laughed once more, leaving the three heroes behind.

"We may have found out that Sonic's alive, but Eggman's plan is concerning. We don't have much time." Twilight said.

"You're right. We have to keep moving. We can't let Eggman succeed." Tails said with determination.

Tails, Twilight and Spike climbed back into Tail's plane. He started the engine as the plane floated in the air and burst off into the air.

To The Rescue

In the resistance base, the doors opened up as Sonic, Silver, and Rarity walked forward to meet Sunset, Amy, Manic, and Fluttershy. The the former two were looking somewhat weary due to their encounter with Infinite.

"You're back! Thank goodness! I was so worried that monster might get you again." Amy expressed with relief towards Sonic.

"I told you I'd be back." Sonic stated before he winced slightly, his injuries from fighting Infinite still lingering.

"You don't look so good." Fluttershy said to Sonic and Silver. "Was the enemy really that strong?"

"Well, first of all, his name is Infinite." Silver replied. "And as for your question, yes he is. The power he has is remarkable."

"Infinite? He sure sounds like he has an ego." Manic said with distaste as he crossed his arms. "Just what is his power anyway?"

"That's the thing. We don't know. He could transport us to these different places with horrible things and it felt too real to be an illusion." Rarity explained. "Sunset, does that perhaps sound familiar?"

Sunset then thought about what Rarity said.

"From all my years of studying with Princess Celestia, I've never heard of any kind of magic causing that. Whatever Infinite's power is, I don't think it's related to magic." Sunset shared.

"We have to find out what it is quick and a way to beat it. Or otherwise, we won't be making any progress" Sonic declared.

"But first, you need to rest up. The mission's clearly taken its toll on you." Amy stated.

"You're right about that, darling."Rarity agreed as she sat down next to Fluttershy, who placed her hand over her head. "I wish I had my fainting couch right now."

The doors of the resistance opened once more as Rainbow Dash entered at high speed and came to a stop.

"Yeah! I bet I'm the first to complete their mission first!" She boasted before she opened her eyes to see the others in front of her.

"A little late for that Dash." Manic answered with an amused smile.

Rainbow Dash let out a slightly annoyed sigh. She then noticed the condition of Sonic, Silver, and Rarity as they rested up.

"What happened to them?" She questioned.

"They encountered the masked enemy, whose name we now know is Infinite." Sunset told her. "From the looks of things, he's no pushover."

"What? Man, I'm always missing the action!" Rainbow complained.

"So, you would enjoy being beaten around by a horrid monster in a mask?" Rarity asked as she raised an eyebrow.

"You know what I mean." Rainbow Dash responded.

The computer screen then began to beep before it turned into a communicator with different signals broadcasting from different locations. Amy and Sunset walked over to examine it.

"This is Knuckles. From what I've heard, the missions are going good so far. Just a bit more and we should be done." Knuckles reported.

Suddenly, a red beeping signal appeared on the center of the screen.

"What is this?" Sunset asked as she clicked on it in order to gather more information. When she did, her eyes widened. "It's a distress signal coming from Canterlot! Eggman forces have broken through and are making their way into it!"

Hearing such bad news gathered everyone's attention.

"It looks like there are still plenty of civilians trapped in there. They need help getting out of there!"Amy added.

"What?!" Silver exclaimed as he rose up. "We need to get to them as fast as we can or they'll be left at the mercy of Eggman troops!"

A flash of pain appeared on Silver's leg, forcing him to sit down after that.

"You, Sonic, Manic and Rarity still need time to heal." Amy told him.

"Ok then, who can we send?" Knuckles asked on the screen.

"I'll go! I'm still in good shape!" Rainbow Dash eagerly offered.

"It's too dangerous on your own." Sunset told her. "You should take someone with you."

"We're under fire in the north." AppleJack chimed in. "I don't think we can send anyone here."

"This is Espio. My team and I have just finished up our mission." Espio stated over comms. "I'm free to head to the city on the way back."

"Perfect! I'll meet you on the outside of Canterlot." Rainbow Dash said. "But first...Fluttershy, you're with me."

Fluttershy's eyes widened in surprise. after Rainbow called her name.

"Me?!" Fluttershy questioned. "Why?"

"Because you know Canterlot almost as well as I do and good paths through the forest to evacuate people to safety." Rainbow Dash explained.

Fluttershy was slightly nervous as she put her hands together. She had just come back from a mission and hoped to never do something like that again.

"Hey, don't sweat it." Manic told her. "You were a huge help in the pyramid, this will be a cakewalk."

Fluttershy felt her anxiety fade as Manic's word were indeed true. If she could take out one of Eggman's elite robots, then she could do this. After all, it wasn't like she had to blow anything up this time. She then turned to Rainbow Dash.

"O-okay. I'll go." Fluttershy agreed as she walked up and joined Rainbow.

"Ok then. Rainbow, Fluttershy, Espio, I'm counting on you. Get those people out of there." Knuckles instructed.

"You got it!" Rainbow Dash said with a salute. "I'll have them out so fast, even Sonic will be jealous."

"This isn't a competition Rainbow Dash." AppleJack said with a slightly annoyed tone.

"Hey, it's good motivation." Rainbow defended.

"Also, I'm right here y'know." Sonic said from his bench.

On the outskirts of the city, Rainbow Dash arrived in front as she left behind a rainbow trail, with Fluttershy not too far behind as she flew down next to her.

"Ok. We're here. Now, where's Espio?" Rainbow Dash wondered.

"I'm standing right here. I have been for some time now." Espio's voice suddenly said, startling the two Rainbooms as they looked around for the ninja. He then appeared in front of the two girls.

"Were you invisible?" Fluttershy said in a quizzical tone, making Espio nod to confirm that was indeed the case.

"How the heck did you do that?!" Rainbow Dash demanded in a bewildered manner.

"I'm a ninja. It's one of our many talents." Espio said. "We need to hurry. We have to people to save."

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy nodded and with Espio, they entered Canterlot. The city was still in a ruined state due to Eggman's attack as the three of them moved across the road .

"According to the intel I received, the remaining civilians are located in this direction." Espio said. "You two are familiar with this location, correct?"

"Of course! Though with it wrecked like this, it's kinda hard to recognize where anything is." Rainbow Dash admitted.

The team followed the path they were on, which took them to a higher level that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy reached thanks to their ability to fly while Espio ran across the walls, much to Rainbow Dash's amazement. When they reached the higher platform, a small legion of Eggman robots appeared before them, which made Fluttershy squeal. Rainbow Dash headed straight towards them and using her speed, she shoved many of them away while Espio released a series of ninja stars to pierce the robot's heads, taking care of them with little difficulty. The three of them moved down to a lower level, in which a greater number of robots were waiting for them, much to Rainbow Dash's delight.

"Awesome! I was worried there wouldn't be enough of you guys to smash!" Rainbow Dash said with glee as she flew ahead and used her speed to fly through the robots with a rainbow trail.

"Well, at least someone is enjoying themselves." Fluttershy said to Espio before he jumped down and took out a kunai, which he used to slice through the robots on the grounds while also kicking them back.

Once the enemies were dealt with, the trio pressed on ahead on the road. As they reached the end, they noticed a large ramp in front of a huge gap.

"Your ninja skills don't happen to let you fly, do they?" Rainbow Dash asked as Espio shook his head.

"Then hang on!" Rainbow Dash replied as she flew and grabbed Espio in order to move him across the gap as Fluttershy followed them.

While they moved across the gap, the squad noticed a giant Death Egg sentinel in the background, as other resistance members in the city fought against it, firing lasers at its torso as the robot spun it's body around. The sight of the giant robot frightened Fluttershy as she put her hands to her mouth as the group were now traveling a road that led downwards

"They're mass producing the Death Egg Robots now?!" Espio said with great concern as Rainbow Dash put him down.

"Oh, that doesn't sound good. Look at the size of it." Fluttershy said in a worried tone.

"Come on, it's nothing we can't handle, Fluttershy. And you know what they say, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. I'm up to smash some giant bots!" Rainbow Dash said as she put her fist in her hand.

"But our purpose isn't to engage. The civilians are the priority."Espio reminded her.

As they moved down the road, the three of them entered a round plaza, filled with Eggman robots. Upon seeing the three resistance members, the robots fired on sight. Fluttershy panicked as she quickly dove behind a series of roadblocks while Rainbow Dash used her speed to avoid the shots. Espio placed his hands together in a ninja sign, rendering him invisible. Rainbow Dash pushed some robots back with her speed while others began to fall to pieces unexpectedly. When the robots were taken care of, Espio became visible while holding a kunai and Fluttershy emerged from her hiding spot and walked up to join the two of them.

"Just to let you know, I'm a black belt in karate." Rainbow Dash told Espio with pride. "So I guess that sort of makes me a ninja."

"Actually, it doesn't. The art of Ninjutsu is a separate branch from karate." Espio informed her, which made Rainbow Dash slightly surprised to hear and a little embarrassed by her lack of knowledge.

"Oh...well I totally knew that. I was testing to see if you knew your stuff." Rainbow Dash quickly said, but Espio and Fluttershy weren't convinced as they formed unimpressed looks.

Rainbow Dash and her two companions moved deeper into the city and encountered a section that required them to scale up on buildings to progress. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew up as Espio jumped from wall to wall and the three of them found themselves on a series of rooftops while defeating Eggman robots with Rainbow's speed and Espio's skills and
reached another road to move across, which later led them downwards. While this was happening, there were a series of explosions of background, making Fluttershy cringe each time.

"Looks like the fighting's getting worse. We gotta find these people fast!" Rainbow Dash. "Let's pick up the pace."

Rainbow Dash flew back and took a hold of Fluttershy's arm and then increased her speed, with Espio being able to keep up due to his skills. For Fluttershy, it wasn't so bad, as after the double boost with Sonic and Manic, nothing really surprised her anymore.

The trio eventually found themselves in front of a slightly collapsed structure which had a few broken windows.

"This is where the civilians should be." Espio said as he, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy approached the building.

When the three of them got close enough, Rainbow Dash suddenly cupped her mouth.

"Hey! Anybody, in there?! We're here to save you?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"Rainbow Dash?!" Scootaloo's voice said as she emerged from the front of the building, much to everyone's astonishment.

"Scootaloo?" Rainbow Dash said with almost disbelief before Scootaloo ran forward and tightly hugged her idol as hard as she could.

"It is you!" Scootaloo said. "I knew you would save us!"

From the shelter, Principal Celestia, Vice Principal Luna, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Flash Sentry came out.

"You were the ones trapped in here?" Fluttershy questioned, not expecting this.

"You know them?" Espio asked as Fluttershy turned to him.

"They're people we know from our school." She replied.

"We're thankful someone was here to get us out." Principal Celestia as she approached the trio. "We weren't sure what was going to happen."

She then turned to Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy and beamed.

"I'm glad to see some familiar faces." She continued.

There was a sound of another explosion heard in the background, making everyone else shake.

"While I'm all for reunions, I think that's a sign we should get going." Vice Principal Luna suggested.

"She's right." Espio said. "This area is dangerous."

"All right then, Fluttershy." Rainbow Dash called.

Fluttershy clutched the geode on her neck as it glowed pink and sent out a pink energy wave across from the city and outward. It was uneventful for a while until a series of woodland critters came to where the party was. Once they did, Fluttershy knelt down in front of them.

"Hello there. Sorry to call all of you out in such a scary place, but we could use some help. I need you to take us through a safe route in the forest. Can you do that?" Fluttershy requested from the animals.

In response, the animals nodded and then trodded off.

"This way." Fluttershy called to the others, as they started to follow her and the animals. Espio looked on as if he just couldn't believe what happened but just accepted it as he went along with the crowd.

In the resistance base, Knuckles and AppleJack had joined the group the former was examining the computer screen.

"All right! It looks like our forces managed to make the enemy retreat from the city!" Knuckles joyfully said. "I just hope the rescue operation was as successful."

After he said that, the doors of the resistance base opened up, making everyone in the room turn to see who entered.

"Whoa, this place is pretty cool actually." Flash Sentry said with wonder as he looked around the base, surprising most of the people in the room.

"Cool? This place is awesome!" Sweetie Belle gushed, which made Rarity perk up.

"Is that....Sweetie Belle?" Rarity slowly said as she and the others saw her sister, Flash, Celestia, Luna and the other Crusaders enter the room.

"Rarity!" Sweetie Belle shouted as she ran towards her older sister, who stood up and embraced her younger sister in a long hug.

"Oh, Sweetie Belle, it's so great to see you again!" Rarity said with much happiness.

"Big Sis, I missed ya so much!" Apple Bloom yelled as she rushed over to AppleJack for a strong hug, which her older sibling gladfully returned.

"Not as much as ah did, Sugar Cube. But what are y'all doing here? Didn't you get out when the city was evacuated?" AppleJack questioned as she looked at the other survivors from the city.

"Luna and I tried to make sure any student we could find could make it out of the city. We stumbled upon these 4 as the last ones and tried to make it out, but the evacuation process came to a halt when the city became overrun with all those machines. We were stuck for quite a while." Celestia explained as Espio, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy now entered the room.

"Wow, gotta admit, that was pretty cool of you, Principal Celestia." Sonic said in an impressed tone.

"What is truly admirable is this resistance of yours." Luna praised as she looked around the world. "It takes an immense amount of courage to do what you've all done and the fact that our very own students are part of such a process makes it an honor to have known all of you."

Luna's word boosted the morale of the resistance as they all started feeling proud of themselves for what they've managed to do.

"She's right. Things might not be looking good so far, but if you guys are trying to fix it, then everything's going to turn out all right." Flash added as he looked directly at Sunset, making her form a small smile.

"We promise, Flash. We're going stand our ground and win this." Sunset declared as she put a reassuring hand on Flash's soldier.

"Our soldiers can take you to one of our many safe centers." Espio said as he leaned against the door.

Apple Bloom and the other Crusaders detached their hugs from their sisters or in Scootaloo's case, sister figure and looked up at them directly.

"Ah really don't wanna leave ya, but ah know you've got something important to do." Apple Bloom said.

"Once it's over, we'll definitely see each other soon." AppleJack vowed.

"We're going to end this as soon as we can to make sure all of your reunite with your families." Silver guaranteed.

"Good luck, sis!" Sweetie Belle told Rarity.

"Stay safe, sister." Rarity said back.

"Rainbow Dash, take out as many robots as you can for me." Scootaloo said as Rainbow Dash grinned.

"You got it!" Rainbow Dash answered.

"Again, thank all of you for your efforts." Celestia said as parting words as she and the other survivors began to exit the room.

"We won't let you down." Knuckles vowed.

When the civilians were gone, the resistance started to feel much better of the work they had accomplished despite how difficult things were. Seeing the reunion between family members reminded them exactly why they were fighting so hard against Eggman's forces. There were still so many people like that who needed them and they couldn't let them down. There was still a lot of work to be done.

Reunions.

In the Tails's plane, the Tornado-1, himself, Twilight, and Spike were flying through the air. Tails was filled with indescribable joy due to what he had overheard during the encounter with Eggman.

"Sonic is alive! This is the best news I've heard in months. I knew I was right to not give up hope." Tails cheerfully said. He almost thought it was too good to be true.

"You were right all along this whole time. Sorry I doubted you." Twilight said to Tails from the backseat. "Now that we know he's alive, what's our next move?"

"We should find him and tell him about Eggman's plan, which is happening in 3 days. He seemed so confident that it would work, so it sounds like something we should be worried about." Tails responded as he looked back at her. "Eggman said that Sonic was last seen in the Mystic Jungle. We should head there to see if we can find anything."

Tails then began to descend the plane downwards as the team headed for their next direction.

Later, Tails, Twilight and Spike were walking along a path in the Mystic Jungle after having descended from the Tornado-1. Twilight and Spike looked around, impressed by all the neon lights and decorations in the area.

"Wow. This place looks like it would be a lot of fun." Spike commented. "If it wasn't owned by a crazy mad scientist that is."

"It's a very large area. Do you think we'll find Sonic here?" Twilight asked.

"Sonic doesn't stick in one place for very long, so I'm not really sure. I just hope luck is on our side." Tails answered.

While they were talking, the trio didn't notice that the path was leading them down some sort of hole. When they took their next step, all three of them suddenly fell downwards and on some kind of spring.

"Woah!" Twilight exclaimed as she felt the spring cushion her fall. "Tails, what is this?"

Tails felt the spring loading up and as a result, he recognized what it was as his eyes widened.

"Oh boy, hold on ti-" Tails began.

Tails never got a chance to finish his sentence as he, Spike and Twilight were suddenly launched into the air by the spring, all of them yelling as they soared through the air, though Spike wore a smile during the entire time. Twilight used her ability to fly to stop herself mid-air while Tails landed on a small platform ahead. Spike, on the other hand, fell into a small slot machine in front of Tails. He was in there for a while until he fell out.

"Spike, are you ok?" Twilight questioned as she flew down towards her canine friend.

"That was so much fun!" Spike exclaimed as he panted excitedly and shook himself. "I'm liking this place already!"

Tails and Twilight formed amused smiles towards Spike's enthusiasm. Spike looked behind the two of them and his face broke out into a grin due to what he saw.

"I want to try that!" Spike said with excitement as he rushed past Tails and Twilight towards a giant green flipper. Spike leaped on it and was sent up in the air shortly. While he was airborne, he bounced off a few small bumpers that sent him towards another platform as Tails and Twilight looked on.

"After this, he probably won't want to go on normal walks anymore." Tails told Twilight as she slightly laughed at the idea.

Twilight flew up to meet Spike while Tails followed the dog's path to meet him up ahead. Once they did, they descended on a road that sent them towards another large flipper that Spike eagerly jumped on, with Tails not too far behind. Both of them went high up in the air. While watching them, Twilight was starting to feel a little jealous that the two of them got to have so much fun in this area. She had no excuse seeing as she could already fly.

The three of them met up on the higher platform and continued to move along it. It led them into a region below, which was filled with small bumpers in the air that Spike and Tails bounced across to go on ahead as Twilight floated behind them. The trio then came across another large springer, which they placed themselves on and were once again shot into the air through the Mystic Jungle. When they started to descend, Tails and Spike landed on an entire road of bumpers, that made them ricochet slightly in the air with each step, with Twilight looking down at them with a slightly sour expression. It really looked like a lot of fun.

"So far, no sign of Sonic here." Tails said.

"Perhaps he's in the center?" Twilight suggested. "We should head there to check."

Tails, Twilight and Spike moved across another pathway they found and reached a bottom region of the Mystic Jungle. It contained many triangular-shaped bumpers on top of it, which Spike gleefully leaped on, with Tails doing the same. Once they were done with this section, the three of them were in front of many large green bumpers leading upwards.

"This place keeps getting better and better." Spike happily stated.

Spike jumped towards the bumper and jounced off each of them as he moved towards the top, even performing a few tricks as he did, which made Tails and Twilight try not to laugh as they watched the whole thing. The two of them caught up with Spike in no time and faced a wall that had the triangular-bumped alongside it. Almost instantly, Spike pounced towards the wall and bounced back and forth between the wall to move up, with Tails joining him and Twilight flying up ahead. The three heroes reached a trail that guided them towards another spring launcher at the bottom, hurling them through the casino-like forest. As they started to reach the bottom, Twilight saw that there were no bumpers to break the fall of Tails or Spike and thus, she used her powers to levitate the two of them down safely. She and her two friends were now near the exit of the casino, which featured a large multi-colored neon palace in the background.

"Ok, if this place isn't destroyed by the time we beat Eggman, we can come back here, right?" Spike requested.

"We'll see, Spike." Twilight answered with a smile. "But first we need to find, Sonic. There's still no sign of him here at all."

"Hmmm, knowing him, he probably left this place already. We should probably find another destination if we can" Tails stated.

With that said, Tails and his companions began to exit this area of the Mystic Jungle.

In the resistance base, the main members had successfully completed their missions abroad and had returned to the headquarters, taking a breather. While they were, the computer suddenly began to flash, as Amy and Sunset looked on to see what was causing it.

"It looks like there are three readings coming from the Mystic Jungle." Sunset said as she saw 3 pulsing dots from that area on the map.

"Mystic Jungle? We were just there." Silver replied. "What else could be there? Some Eggman robots he left behind?"

"No, they're life readings." Sunset told him.

"If they're life readings, who or what could they be?" Amy wondered.

"Whatever it is, it looks like we should send people to check it out. " Knuckles said. "We don't want to take any chances."

"Ooooh, send me, send me!" Pinkie eagerly said as she waved her hand.

"Hold on, if you're going, then someone should go with you. I don't mean any offense darling, but the Mystic Jungle is filled with a series of colorful lights and you tend to get *ahem*, distracted." Rarity said to Pinkie.

"Colorful lights?!" Pinkie said as excitement started to fill up her body. "That sounds like so much fun! And don't you worry, I can focus!"

To prove a point, Pinkie grabbed a hold of Charmy's face and began to stare intently at him, causing him to giggle, which made her do the same.

"Like I said, distracted." Rarity dryly said as she turned to Knuckles, who let out a tiny sigh.

"I'll go. I'm starting to feel better from my whole fiasco at the pyramid and I need to stretch my legs." Manic volunteered as he stood up and stretched loudly. "Don't worry about Pinkie, I'll keep an eye on her."

"Ok then, check out the readings and report back as soon as you can." Knuckles told him. "And make sure Pinkie doesn't get lost."

In the Mystic Jungle, Manic and Pinkie Pie were making their way across a road which was surrounded by many small neon-decorated castles on the side. Pinkie was totally mesmerized by what she had seen as her eyes began to reflect the neon colors.

"Oooooh, so glowy!" Pinkie gushed as she looked around the area, not watching where she was going. Due to this, when two separate pathways came in front of her and Manic, with one being unveiled and the other leading into a hidden passage, Pinkie took the latter route.

"Pinkie, I know the lights are pretty and all, but we really have a job to do." Manic said as he took the open path on the right. He didn't hear a response, which puzzled him.

"Pinkie?" Manic said as he looked back and saw that she was nowhere to be found, much to his dismay. He then did a facepalm.

"Ah man! Not even 5 minutes in this place and I already lost her." Manic grumbled as he ran. "I'm really in the hot seat now."

Manic then came near the end of the path and dashed from it, sending him towards a waterslide below. As Manic was falling into it, he saw Pinkie emerge from a tunnel on the left, much to his shock.

"Wheeee!" Pinkie yelled with glee.

"Pinkie?! Where did you go?!" Manic shouted, which made her turn towards him.

"Oh, hi Manic! I went through a small tunnel which didn't have as many pretty lights but it had some red ring with a star inside it. That looked like a collectible, so I took it. That means bonus points for me!" Pinkie quickly explained.

Manic looked at Pinkie, not understanding a single word she had uttered. Before he could say anything, he and his pink partner landed on the waterslide, which had an extremely strong current.

"W-w-w-wow!"Manic said as he slid across the current, trying his best not to be thrown off the slide due to how strong it was.

"This...is....the best!" Pinkie shrieked with euphoria and moved on the water with no problem at all. "This has to be the best water rider ever!"

Manic was moving so fast that he was starting to get dizzy. He was trying to shake it off, but it was a struggle.

"P-P-P-Pinkie! Try not to-"Manic said before Pinkie took another route on the water slide and disappeared from his sight completely, making his jaw drop. He heard her laughter in the background

"Come on!" Manic yelled with frustration. He had literally just met up with her.

Manic continued to move through the water slide, making maneuvers to ensure that he wasn't thrown off. As Manic moved on ahead, the water slide pipe became larger and he saw Pinkie land next to him with a huge smile.

"Hi Manic!" Pinkie said as she waved to him.

"Pinkie! We. Need. To. Stick. Together!" Manic told her in a tired tone.

"Okiely-dokiely!" Pinkie responded as she gave him the thumbs up.

The water slide reached it end, sending Manic and Pinkie ahead towards a two-level plateau where they found flying Eggman robots greeting them on the lower level. Manic took out his eskrima sticks and with his speed, he used them to smash through the robots while Pinkie put some sprinkles in her hand and tossed them towards the enemies, making a series of pink explosions occur. With the enemies gone, the two of them were free to move forward to the top level, which also featured robots. Manic tossed one of his sticks like a boomerang at high speed and it went through the robots while Pinkie placed sprinkles in both hands and released them, creating a much larger explosion from before.

"Ok, the coast is clear, let's go, Pinkie." Manic said.

It was silent as Manic turned to see Pinkie looking at one of the neon signs, totally hypnotized. This made Manic lower his eyelids. He then grabbed Pinkie's hand and dashed with her off the plateau. Manic and Pinkie found themselves headed towards another water slide as Manic's face sunk while Pinkie's lit up.

"Yesss!" Pinkie cheered.

"Oh no..."Manic said in a small voice as he and Pinkie reached the waterpipe.

The water current was even stronger than before as Manic was thrown from side to side while Pinkie easily adjusted. The slide then split into three narrow ones, with Manic going down the center and Pinkie on the right. There were so many sharp turns that had Manic on the edge of his seat while Pinkie giggled and laughed. She was clearly having a blast. The water slides then reached their end, sending Manic and Pinkie into the air and in front of them were many yellow neon towers. Manic jumped across each of them to get by while Pinkie put in her hand a few sprinkles and tossed them beneath her, propelling her into the air with each explosion.

"Whoopee!" Pinkie yelled.

"The life readings are very close now." Amy said. "You should see them soon. We'll send reinforcements just in case."

The two resistance members reached solid ground and came in front of what looked like an entrance towards a laboratory of some sort.

"Ok, so where are those life readings?" Manic wondered as he looked around.

Pinkie looked around the area as well until she noticed a pink glimmer in front of her. With curiosity, Pinkie approached the source, which Manic noticed.

"What'd you find Pinkie?" Manic questioned as Pinkie picked up what caused the pink sparkle.

In her hand, Pinkie held a magenta colored icosahedron ruby of some sort with black stripes around it.

"Oooooh, pretty!" Pinkie said with awe as she gazed into the ruby, which gave off a pink glow.

"What could that be? Never seen anything like this before." Manic observed as he examined the ruby alongside Pinkie.

Before the two of them could say anything, they heard voices, making them turn around to see the source.

"Still no sign of Sonic. I guess he really did leave." Tails said, which made Manic and Pinkie perk up.

"Tails?!" Manic uttered in an astonished tone.

Hearing Manic's voice made Tails, Twilight and Spike stop moving as they noticed him and Pinkie in front of them.

"Manic?! Pinkie?!" Twilight with surprise.

Twilight suddenly found herself wrapped in a large hug by Pinkie Pie as she took her off the ground. Pinkie's strength was astounding and made Twilight grunt.

"Twilight! It's been sooo long since we last saw you! I missed you sooo much!" Pinkie exclaimed.

"*grunt* Nice to see you too, Pinkie.." Twilight said, wincing due to how tight Pinkie's grip was.

Pinkie let go of Twilight and quickly turned to Tails.

"Tails, it's so great to see you again! You haven't gone cuckoo have you?" Pinkie demanded as she suddenly gripped his cheeks and looked directly into his eyes.

"N-no." Tails said.

"OK! Just making sure!" Pinkie said before she went to Spike and gave him a long belly rub.

"What are you two doing here?" Twilight said in a quizzical tone.

"We picked up three life readings and came to check it out. Glad it's just you guys. It's a relief to see you're all fine." Manic told her as he put his hand on his hip. "And speaking of fine, do you know that Sonic's-

"He's alive." Tails finished. "We overheard Eggman when we ran into him. Long story, but I think we have a lot of catching up to."

A Familiar Face

"Sonic!" Tails gleefully yelled as he ran straight towards his best friend and hugged him as hard as he could while the rest of the resistance looked on.

"I'm so glad you're ok! All this time I refused to believe you were actually dead and I was right!"Tails went on with immense joy, which made Sonic crack a smile.

"Thanks for not giving up on me, bro." Sonic replied as he ruffled his best friend's head. "And I'm proud of you for doing so well this entire time."

"I didn't do it on my own." Tails said. "I had some good friends looking out for me."

Tails turned around to see Twilight, Spike, Manic, and Pinkie enter the base.

"Heh, long time no see, Twi." Sonic greeted as he gave her the thumbs up. "And you too, Spike. I owe you guys for making sure Tails was doing all right."

"It was nothing. What are friends for?" Twilight responded. "I'm just happy to see you're still alive."

"Tails, come here!" Amy cheerfully said as she embraced him. She then gave him a glare. "Don't you ever run off like that again! You had us worried!"

Tails just looked down at the ground in a sheepish manner, feeling a little embarrassed due to his outburst.

"Twilight, Spike!" AppleJack happily said as she noticed the two of them. "Good to see y'all are still around and kickin' after all this time. Ya could have called us every now and then."

"Sorry, I was just really preoccupied." Twilight replied.

"Anyway, it's good to have you back, Twilight." Sunset said as she walked over and gave Twilight a hug. She then looked at Tails and Spike when the hug was over. "All of you back."

"And it's good to be back." Twilight agreed.

"Well, I'd say this is pretty good. We have almost everyone here regrouped. Now that the entire team is here, we should take down Eggman pretty soon." Knuckles confidently said as he put his hand into his fist.

Tail's eyes then widened as he remembered the information he needed to tell Sonic.

"I hate to interrupt this moment, but we have some bad news." Tails said as all eyes landed on him. "We ran into Eggman and he told us he had some plan that will destroy all of us within 3 days."

"He didn't say what, but he sounded so sure that it would work." Spike added.

"Unlike the other Eggman plans, we have to take it seriously considering the circumstances." Manic said with dismay as he crossed his arms.

"Three days?!" Fluttershy said, her tone full of fright. "I'm getting scared by the fact that he's going to carry it out in such little time."

"What are you talking about?" Sonic expressed with disagreement. "Three days is more than enough time. A lot can happen in that time."

"Sonic's right. We have three whole days ahead of us. Heck, we can even stop Eggman before he even carries out whatever he has planned." Rainbow Dash agreed as she clenched her fist.

"If we knew more about it, that would be pretty helpful. But Rouge is off looking for intel on her own. Looks like we're going to have to race against the clock." Knuckles said as he put his hand on his chin.

Before the conservation could continue, the computer started flashing red and projected a large red holographic screen ahead for the entire resistance to see as they looked up to see a digital report coming in.

"What the heck? Shadow's taking out our troops in the city. They sound like they need help and fast." Vector observed as he read the message.

"Shadow?" Twilight said as if she didn't hear right. "That can't be right. He's our friend."

"I'm not too sure about that. When I saw him, he was working for Eggman." Sonic told her, which made her put her hand to mouth with surprise.

"There's obviously something crazy going on!" Pinkie said. "It makes no sense for Shadow to work with the bad guys...unless he's being mind controlled."

"Sonic did mention he was with Infinite when he fought him. Maybe Infinite's using his power to control him somehow." Silver suggested.

"True. He could do all sorts of things with his powers. I wouldn't rule out mind control." Rarity chimed in.

"Whatever it is, I'm going to find out. Or knock some sense back into Shadow." Sonic said full of determination. "Besides, I owe him one for kicking me around."

Sonic was going to dash out but suddenly remembered he had something to do.

"But before I do, Sunset, can we talk for a bit?" Sonic requested, much to her surprise.

"Me? Ok." Sunset agreed.

Sonic and Sunset walked to the back of the room for some privacy. Once they were there, Sonic spoke up.

"I didn't want to say anything in front of everyone, but I gotta know, is everything ok with you, Sunset?" Sonic suddenly asked. "I noticed sometimes you get this scared look on your face whenever missions are mentioned. Like when before I went off to the Mystic Jungle. Is there something you need to get off your chest?"

Sunset froze. Was her fear really that noticeable? Or maybe Sonic was just good at this sort of thing. Either way, he knew that something was wrong with her. Sunset saw no point in trying to deny it if he already noticed and just simply sighed.

"Yeah, there is." Sunset confessed as she formed a look of guilt on her face. "Sonic, this whole time, I've been afraid. But it's not because Eggman took over most of the world. I've been afraid of Infinite. When I was in the city a couple of months back, I ran right into him. He..he scared me out of my mind. I had never met anyone like him before. And...I ran. I ran away from him. I was supposed to be helping the others but instead, I just turned around and ran. That's why I haven't been out in the field. I've just been using tech support to hide the fact that I'm terrified of running into Infinite again. When I see you and the others going off to challenge him, it makes me feel worse. Like I don't deserve to be beside you guys. Infinite nearly killed you and yet the first change you get, you run off to face him."

Sunset then held her head down, her entire being full of shame. To her surprise, she then felt Sonic's hand on her shoulder and looked up to see him smile.

"Sunset, I don't blame you for running or being scared. All of us have been there and it's nothing to be ashamed of. None of us have been in a situation like this before and it's ok to be scared." Sonic said with reassurance. "But you can't let your fear own you. You've gone through a lot and I know you can beat this. Don't let that masked clown get the better of you. Move on and don't let your fear get in your head. Sunset, you've always been there for us whenever we've had our moments of doubts and it's our time to be here for you. You'll have your time to shine."

Sonic looked past Sunset towards the resistance, who were planning their next move, which made her turn around and realize how many friends she had beside her. It made the anxiety she felt begin to wane. She then turned back to Sonic, whose face was radiating with such confidence, she felt as if though some of it might rub off her. Sunset formed a small smile.

"Thanks, Sonic. I really needed this." Sunset said with gratitude. "Just get out there and find Shadow."

"You got it!" Sonic said as he held his hand out for a fist bump, which Sunset returned.

With their conservation done. Sonic then dashed out towards the resistance exit, leaving a blue trail.

Back in the city, Sonic was rushing through the area, which was in complete chaos. Buildings and other structures were crumblings as fireballs crashed into them. He ran along the road while observing the entire scene.

"This place is even worse than before." Sonic commented as he looked over all the destruction.

In the background, Sonic noticed there were about a dozen Death Egg robots wreaking havoc in the city as resistance members fired their shots towards them from below.

"Is Eggman mass producing the Death Egg Robots?" He wondered. "Just one of those is bad enough. I need to hurry and find Shadow."

Sonic triggered his boost and blazed on the path he was, removing robots and obstacles in his way and he reached the denser area of the city. Due to this, he couldn't just push through with his boost. Instead, he turned into a streak and blitz past enemies in front of him across slopes. He then arrived on a sloping street with a gap in front. Sonic used his boost to make his way along the gap and reached the other street. Sonic continued on downward towards a plaza, which was being guarded by a few robots. The robots aimed their weapons but before they could fire, Sonic pierced through them, splitting them in half as he moved on ahead. He then moved upwards and sped ahead, coming across a shuttle loop which took him into another area of the city.

"There's been a sighting of Shadow." Amy said over the coms. "He's moving above the city at high speed."

Sonic looked upwards but saw nothing.

"I don't see anything." He responded.

"Keep an eye out. He's bound to show up again." Sunset advised.

Sonic continued to make his way through the city and scaled up the side of a building, taking him the rooftop. He then traversed across the roofs in the city until he found a rail to grind him, leading him back to the ground towards new road. Sonic raced along the road and encountered, a squadron of Egg Pawns, which he took care of by boosting into them. He moved through another shuttle loop and reached a higher pathway. Sonic ran along the path downward.

"There's been a recent sighting just up ahead. He doesn't appear to be moving. Be careful." Amy informed him.

" Find out what's wrong with Shadow and bring him back." Sunset requested.

Right in front of him, Sonic saw Shadow standing in place with his arms folded while wearing an emotionless expression. As Sonic got closer, he suddenly came to a stop as he was now face to face with his arch-rival in an enclosed area of the city. He clenched his fight tightly as he stared down Shadow. It had been a long time since he had faced him as an enemy.

"All right Shadow, what's going on?" Sonic demanded in an irritated tone. "Why are you helping Eggman? You've changed and are on our side now. None of this makes sense."

Shadow simply said nothing as he continued to stare at Sonic, not showing any sign of emotion. Sonic raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Well? What's the deal?" Sonic questioned but Shadow remained silent.

"Say something, faker!" Sonic nearly shouted in an exasperated tone. This reminded him of his first encounter with Shadow, where he was also demanding answers from him and received none. Recalling this memory made Sonic feel a bit nostalgic as he let out a smile small.

"The silent treatment, huh?" Sonic continued. "Well, I guess there's only one way this can end then."

Sonic got into a fighting stance while Shadow still didn't move.

"It's been a while since we last fought. Hope you're not too rusty." He mocked. He was also hoping the same for himself. Sonic knew that Shadow could beat him in a fight.

"Really? Nothing at all? No rant about how you're the Ultimate Lifeform and the coolest or how I'm inferior. You're no fun, man." He complained.

Shadow suddenly unfolded his arms and dashed towards Sonic at high speed, taking him off guard. Shadow threw a punch as he reached Sonic, who reacted quickly and narrowly avoided the hit as Shadow moved past him. Seeing a chance, Sonic released a roundhouse kick to but Shadow blocked it with his wrist, blowing Sonic away from him. Sonic slid on the ground and turned to Shadow with a smirk.

"Ok. Now we're talking, faker." He said with enthusiasm.

Sonic turned into a blue streak while Shadow became a yellow one and the two of them clashed with each other many times as they moved around the entire area. After a while, the two of them rammed into each other and had their arms pressed against one another, each trying to move the other back. Their lock suddenly broke as they began to exchange highspeed punches and kicks, matching each other blow for blow. Shadow then released a punch with more force that Sonic blocked, but he was pushed back due to the impact. Sonic into and came towards him with a combo of blows that Shadow dodged. He moved out of the way of Sonic's punch and kicked him in the stomach, blowing him a few feet back. Sonic shook off the damage and charged to Shadow as a blue streak, who avoided it by moving in the air. Shadow then came down to the ground with a punch but Sonic dashed back to avoid Shadow's fist as it collided with the ground. Sonic transformed into streaks once more and knocked Shadow back when he made contact with him. Shadow landed on the wall of a building with his feet and jumped off it to see Sonic jump in his direction and release an ax kick. Shadow then teleported in a blue flashed and appeared behind Sonic and kicked him in the back as Sonic hit the floor.

"Teleporting is cheap!" Sonic complained as he rose up and turned to see Shadow teleport once more.

Shadow suddenly reappeared in front of Sonic and tried to hit him with a right hook, which Sonic barely dodged as he ducked. Sonic then launched Shadow in the air with his two feet. While Shadow was still airborne, Sonic went towards him a streak but Shadow vanished before Sonic could make contact. Sonic then felt his right leg grabbed as Shadow suddenly smashed him on the ground, which made him grunt. As Shadow's hand was still on Sonic's leg, Sonic spun around at high speed in a circle as a small vortex and threw Shadow into a wall. Sonic then got up and using his figure 8 moved, he rushed towards Shadow with a powerful punch and crashed into his dark counterpart, sending them both through the wall and into the more open areas of the city. However, Shadow had caught Sonic's fist, using his rocket skates to move forward and the two of them were now in a stalemate which broke quickly as they moved away from each other.

"Nice to see you haven't lost your touch, faker." Sonic praised as he did a few stretches. "But it's time we kick things up a notch."

With a burst of speed, Sonic zoomed across the streets of the city, with Shadow in hot pursuit. The two rivals then raced next to each other through the region. As the two of them moved through the city, Sonic triggered his boost, launching him ahead of Shadow, who did the same as he was enveloped in a yellowish-orange aura, letting him catch up to Sonic. While in their boost, the duo rammed into each other a few time, repelling them apart slightly. Sonic and Shadow came across a gap in the city, which took them into the air. Moving through the air with their boost, both of them began to get closer to each other until they collided with so much force that undid their boost and were blown apart. The speedsters headed straight for the ground in opposites directions and landed another enclosed city area.

Sonic groaned as he rose up, having hit the ground pretty hard and was slightly dazed. He looked ahead to see Shadow getting up as well and could tell he also took damage from the fall as he had trouble maintaining his balance but was shrugging it off. Sonic then began to pant slightly.

"Ok, Shadow, since you haven't said a word at all, I'm just going to have to guess that you're being mind controlled." He said. "Come on man. This is like what, the 3rd time? I thought you were the Ultimate Lifeform. Aren't you supposed to be better than that?"

In response to Sonic's taunts, Shadow generated a Chaos Spear in his hand and fired at his blue rival. Sonic quickstepped to dodge it, but by the time he had moved, he saw Shadow was preparing to toss another one. The spear was released from Shadow's hand and Sonic ducked to avoid it. Shadow then unleashed a barrage of Chaos Spears that Sonic dodged by moving around the area, but with how fast Shadow was shooting them, he couldn't afford to be sloppy and it took all of his concentration to evade the spears.

"(I can't go on like this or I'll never knock some sense into him.)" Sonic thought as he continued to avoid Shadow's assault.

Rather than being on the defensive, Sonic decided to move towards Shadow and evaded his Chaos Spears using his quickstep, moving from side to side. As Sonic got closer, he transformed his legs into his figure 8 motion. When Sonic was only a few inches from Shadow, he released a shockwave from his legs and jumped back from the recoil. Shadow fired a Chaos Spear which collided with Sonic's attack, making a small explosion.

Sonic heard Shadow teleporting and he quickly turned to his right to see him coming down towards him with a kick. Sonic brought his arms up to defend himself just in time as Shadow's foot made contact. Due to the impact, Sonic moved back a few feet. He then lowered his arms and faced off with Shadow, ready to go a few more rounds.

Shadow was charging up another Chaos Spear but before it materialized in his hand, red pixels surrounded his body, stunning him. His hand fell down and Shadow crouched down with his hand placed on the floor, much to Sonic's shock.

"Hey, that's the same stuff that was on Zavok." He recalled as he looked in with curiosity.

Red pixels began to move around Shadow's body as he attempted to stand and his body began to glitch out in the process. Shadow appeared to be in great pain, which was shown by the expression on his face. He could barely move and began to spaz out. Sonic's face then turned to one of worry.

"Yo, Shadow. Are you ok?" Sonic questioned.

Shadow continued to move his body around like crazy as red pixels began to fade in and out. During the process, it seemed like Shadow as splitting in two as a holographic image of him began to appear on his right. The image continued to separate from Shadow and Sonic suddenly heard yelling. The whole ordeal looked pretty painful. The holographic image then began to solidify and now it appeared Shadow had duplicated.

"Arrrgh!" One Shadow screamed as he completely broke off from the other and fell forward while the other Shadow tumbled backward. He was kneeling on the ground and gasping while Sonic looked in on disbelief.

"Another Shadow?!" He exclaimed as he couldn't believe what he saw in front of him.

Unfortunately, Sonic was caught off guard and the Shadow he was fighting suddenly began to skate towards him. He leaped in the air and prepared to drop kick Sonic, who didn't have time to react as he looked up with surprise.

"Chaos...Control!" Sonic heard Shadow's voice say with difficulty.

A blue energy field covered the area, stopping time and causing both Sonic and the other Shadow to be frozen. Shadow then jumped up and released a powerful kick to the stomach on the Shadow who was trapped in mid-air, resuming time. Sonic then saw one Shadow sent flying backward and slammed to the ground while the other came down in front of him.

"Ok, what? Why are there two Shadows?!" Sonic yelled in a bewildered tone.

The Shadow lying on the ground was covered in red pixel and began to flicker before he vanished completely, which made Sonic's eyes widen with astonishment.

"He...vanished." He stated.

"That's because it was a fake." Shadow said as he turned around to face Sonic with his arms closed.

"A fake?" Sonic said in a quizzical tone. Suddenly, he noticed that Shadow was actually speaking and gasped out loud.

"Shadow! You're actually talking!" Sonic said before he frowned. "Ok, we need to back up. What's going on? I'm so confused right now."

"Infinite has the power to make virtual reality constructs," Shadow explained. "Their bodies are physical but they don't have any souls. They are just mindless extensions of his will."

"Virtual reality? So that explains why Zavok, Chaos and even you were part of Eggman's army." Sonic responded, which made Shadow nod.

"Precisely. Infinite can also make an endless supply of them." He added, which made Sonic form a concerned look.

"So you're saying no matter how many we beat, he can just keep making more fakes?" Sonic replied as Shadow nodded once more.

"Correct. This explains why Eggman's conquest has been so successful." Shadow answered. "At this rate, it's almost impossible to win."

"Heh. Well, you know us. We do have a track record of beating the impossible." Sonic said full of confidence as he rubbed his nose. "Now I have a question for you. Where were you this entire time? Why did you come out of that fake?"

"6 months ago, I was on a recon mission for G.U.N. I was looking for Omega, who was apparently destroyed in combat. I found myself in one of Eggman's bases and that's where I met Infinite. Using his power, he made a red flash cover everything with this distortion sound. He had trapped me in a virtual reality. In there, I saw people I knew, but they kept saying and repeating things that didn't make any sense. There were these red cubes after me everywhere I went. Everytime one touched me, I was transported to an area I knew after everything around me turned red and became distorted and I faced a familiar enemy. It was endless. Infinite must've used this to trap me in that replica he made. During your fight, you must've weakened it, which did the same for the illusion I was in and eventually, I was able to break free." Shadow elaborated.

"Wow, sounds trippy." Sonic said. He then formed a grin. "But I'm glad you're not being brainwashed or are evil again. It's good to have you back, faker!"

"Hmph. I don't understand why that fake gave you so much trouble. You should have handled that inferior copy with no problem." Shadow berated, which made Sonic's grin fade.

"Hey, give me a break. It may have been a phony but it was still just as strong as you." Sonic said in a defensive tone as he placed his hands on his hips. "I thoughts, 6 months after all that and not seeing your friends would've mellowed you out. Speaking of which, we better head back to resistance base. They'll be glad to hear you're still on our side and your info will help us a lot."

Operation Big Wave

While Sonic was dealing with Shadow in the city, the resistance members were waiting around at the base for their next move. Just then, the doors opened, revealing a very enthusiastic Knuckles, who wore a very large grin on his face.

"What's with the new look, Knuckles?" Pinkie questioned. "Normally, when you come in, you usually have a face like this."

Pinkie changed her expression to that of a solemn and stern face to prove her point.

"That's because I've got some important intel. Everyone listen up!" Knuckles began as he was now the center of attention. "I just received word that Eggman's forces are underhanded at his base in Metropolis! Do you know what this means?!"

"He must be sending them out for another part of his plan." Espio said. "That means...his defenses will be considerably weaker."

"And which gives us a chance to take the city." AppleJack realized as her eyes widened.

"Exactly!" Knuckles stated. "That's why for our next move, I've decided that we're going to launch a full assault on Metropolis. It's called Operation Big Wave."

Hearing Knuckle's plan was a complete shock to the resistance. No one was expecting such a bold plan

"Sounds good to me." Silver agreed as he clenched his fist. "It's about time we take the fight to Eggman."

"Silver's right. With this attack, we can end this war in just a day!" Rainbow Dash eagerly said.

"A full frontal assault?" Sunset said with some doubt. "I'm not sure Knuckles. It's pretty risky to launch all our forces in just one strike."

"I know it's a big risk, but this could be our only chance to deal a major blow to Eggman." Knuckles responded. "Sonic's fighting Shadow, but we can't let him do everything for us. We've survived so long without him and I'm proud to stand with all you. There's no one else I'd rather be with to pull this off."

Knuckle's word of confidence began to boost the morale in the room as everyone turned to each other. He did have a point. They had already made this far and this looked like a good opportunity to strike.

"That was beautiful Knux." Vector complimented. "Now I'm ready to give Eggman a beatdown."'

Tails thought over Knuckle's idea as he placed his finger on his chain.

"Even with Eggman being underhanded, we are still outnumbered, but a quick strike wouldn't be bad." Tails pointed out.

"Eggman also wouldn't see it coming. If we spread out and attack the right places, he wouldn't have time to react." Twilight added.

"Then let's get going!" Rainbow Dash cheered. "Besides, all 7 of the Rainbooms are here and whenever we're together, we always win!"

"It's settled! Let's go people! We have a world to save!" Knuckles commanded as he raised his fist in the air."

The resistance members scattered around the room as they prepared to launch the attack. Sunset, on the other hand, held her arm. Knuckle's had just ordered for all their forces to attack metropolis, herself included. She would be going out in the field for the first time and it was a huge mission. But she had to do this. She wasn't going to leave her friends to do something this dangerous on their form. She formed a look of confidence and stood up straight, ready to join in on the action. As everyone else was still getting ready, Knuckles noticed Sunset and began to approach her.

"Oh, Sunset. Since you're joining us, you should take this." He said as he handed her an object.

Sunset looked to see that it was a red weapon that shaped like a fireball. It was held together by several black nozzles attached to a white barrel and had 3 holes on the front. It featured a black handle on the back for a comfortable grip.

"What's this?" Sunset questioned as she looked on with curiosity.

"It's a Wispon. Tails was working on it before he left us. He and Twilight made the finishing touches on the latest model when they got here." Knuckles elaborated. "It's a weapon based on the Wisp after studying them. It harnesses their energy and channels it without transforming your body. This is the first one."

Sunset took the Wispon from Knuckles and held it awkwardly. She had never used a weapon before, but there was a first time for everything.

"Thanks, Knuckles. Let's do this." Sunset said with conviction as Knuckles nodded.

Knuckles walked on ahead and before Sunset could follow, Pinkie suddenly appeared in front of her.

"Pinkie, whatever you need to tell me, I'm sure it can wait. We're kind of in the middle of something really important." Sunset quickly said, knowing how distracting her friend could be.

"But I actually do have something really important to tell you." Pinkie protested, which made Sunset raise an eyebrow.

"Important important or Pinkie important?" Sunset dryly questioned.

"Important important!" Pinkie promised as she reached into her pocket and pulled out the jewel she had picked up earlier, which caught Sunset's eye.

"Wow. Where did you get that?" Sunset said in a quizzical tone.

"I found it at the Mystic Jungle." Pinkie answered. "I didn't know what it was and I figured you might as it might've come from Equestria."

Sunset took the gem from Pinkie's hand to get a closer look at it as she held it up.

"I don't think it's anything Equestrian. I don't feel any magic coming from it." Sunset said. "I've never seen anything like it before."

Sunset eyes gazed into the gem's pulsing color. Its appearance was so mesmerizing and Sunset could feel herself losing her train of thought by just staring at it.

"Hey, everyone! We're moving out now!" Sunset and Pinkie heard Knuckles say, which snapped the former back to reality. The two of them looked to see the others heading out.

"Oh, we should get going." Sunset said as she placed the gem in her pocket. "Come on, Pinkie."

Sunset and Pinkie were the last ones to head out as the Resistance moved forward with their operation.

Eggman's capital in Metropolis was a magnificent and pristine but at the same time, sterile white city. It had geometric themes all over its construction along with various skyscrapers, each having a different design. Numerous large video screens and see-through highways covered the entire city along with orb shaped sentries and hover cars flying around. The sky was clear and blue but also littered with dozens of large white cruisers as the Resistance launched their attack on Eggman's headquarters. From the ships, members poured out of them as they flooded the city and engaged with Eggman's forces. From the main ship, Sunset flew from it and headed towards the action. She looked around as the battle was raging on with clouds of black smoke emerging to showcase this. This was kind of overwhelming but she didn't let that bother her.

"All right, everyone, Operation Big Wave is underway. Sweep the enemy out!" Knuckles commanded over the comms.

"Let's crush em!" Pinkie eagerly said in a deep voice.

"I don't even know where to start." Sunset lamented as she landed on a highway.

Sunset looked in front of her and noticed a few Egg Pawns heading her way.

"Well, I guess this is a good place." She said. Sunset then looked down at her Wispon.

"Ok, let's see what this can do." She added with curiosity.

Sunset aimed the Wispon in front of her with both hands and pulled the trigger. When she did, she closed her eyes, expecting some kind of recoil. Instead, a large stream of flames emerged from her weapon and collided with the robots, making them explode instantly. Sunset opened her eyes and saw burned robot parts in front of her, leaving her quite surprised.

"Wow, this thing is the real deal." Sunset commented with amazement. She then looked up to see her path was free. Having defeated those robots made Sunset slightly more confident and she pressed on ahead in the city.

From his headquarters, which was in a large white skyscraper in the center of the city, Eggman observed the Resistance's attack via a screen while he was seated in his Eggmobile. He looked on as he placed his fingers together.

"Those idiots! Do they really think they can beat me like this? I'll crush them an instant!" The Doctor declared as he clenched his fist.

Outside, Sunset was traveling across another highway as a legion of Egg Pawns blocked her path. Sunset activated her Wispon and blew all of them apart with a large blast of fire, leaving her free to go on ahead.

"This isn't so hard." Sunset realized. "I'm getting the hang of this Wispon."

Sunset flew on the highway and as she did, she encountered a series of laser turrets placed alongside it that quickly activated. Red beams then headed her way, which made Sunset gasp and she floated above in order to avoid getting hit. She then saw that she was at the end of the path and flew out between the buildings.

While Sunset was soaring through the sky, she heard a faint distortion sound coming from behind her, which made her raise an eyebrow. As soon as she turned to see the source of it, she saw Infinite flying next to her, which made Sunset let out a small gasp as her entire body filled with panic. When she heard that Eggman's forces were undermanned, she assumed he had left Metropolis as well. Infinite's gaze then met her's and she felt as if she was paralyzed. Before she could do anything, Infinite burst ahead in a magenta aura.

"Infinite! Activate the Phantom Ruby and make them regret coming here!" Eggman demanded, which was heard throughout speakers in the city.

Infinite raised his hand and red sphere appeared in it. Suddenly, a large distortion sound was heard as a pink wave covered the entire city, making everything inverted in the same color. Sunset found herself completely frozen in place mid-air. She couldn't even scream. She then felt herself being slowly turned upside down and everything returned to normal colors. However, Sunset was now heading upwards, as if gravity didn't even exist.

"Woahhhhhh!" She cried as she couldn't stop herself from going up.

As she was doing is, on her sides, Sunset saw two giant monstrous clones of Infinite which were lanky and menacing looking like a serpent. Sunset formed a look of horror as the color drained from her face.

"Everyone, stay calm! This has to be some kind of trick!" Knuckles said in an attempt to reassure his soldiers.

Sunset heard the sound of buildings tumbling and then screams of panic while she landed on an upside down platform. She frantically looked around, clearly frightened by everything that was happening.

"That doesn't seem like a trick to me!" Manic yelled over the comms.

"Those monsters....they're everywhere!" Rarity cried out. "We can't find a place for cover!"

"Our troops are scattered in a panic! We-AHHHH!" One soldier yelled before he was cut off, much to Sunset's dismay.

"Unbelievable! We had our troops all organized and now it's all ruined!" Silver stated.

"Darn! Isn't there anything we can do?!" Rainbow Dash said with frustration. "Everyone's going crazy! We're stuck!"

"What's going on?! How did this happen?!" Fluttershy cried out in panic.

"It must be that Phantom Ruby Infinite was talking about!"Tails deduced. "He was talking about it's power earlier!"

Sunset was completely lost for words. Their operation had failed before it could even advance. She could feel the same dread which she felt during the day she met Infinite creeping up on her as she was stunned by all that had just happened. Sunset then crouched down behind a block as lasers fired in her way, which hit the block instead of her.

"What was I thinking?! This was a terrible mistake!" Sunset shouted to herself as she shut her eyes tight. "I....I'm scared! Infinite's too strong! I...I don't know what to do!"

Sunset continued to hear the chaos going down beneath her and the various cries for help that the Resistance soldiers shouted. It made her think back to the time in the city where she was trying to save the people and had failed because of her fear. She had felt terrible for letting all those people down because she always wanted to help if she can. She had never wanted to feel like that again. Sunset looked down at her Wispon and realized something as her eyes widened out loud. Since she was here, she was in a position to help. She couldn't let any more people down no matter how she felt. Sunset gripped her Wispon tightly and took a deep breath.

"The Resistance needs me. No more running." She said to herself in order to gain confidence. "I can do this....I have to do this!"

Sunset forced herself to rise up and float over the incoming barrage of laser turrets in front of her. She then headed across the pathway, though it was difficult due to being upside down. She felt herself beginning to feel dizzy as the blood rushed to her head but she tried her hardest to shrug it off. Before she could get any further, one of Infinite's clones brought it's hand down and smashed the path in front of her as rubble fell beneath her, stopping Sunset in her tracks.

"I need to find another way or otherwise, I'll be wide out in the open." Sunset said. She looked ahead and saw a path inside one of the buildings.

Thinking quickly, she flew straight towards it and entered the building. Sunset saw Eggman robot's shaped like snakes as they emerged from hatches and fired energy shots at her as soon as she entered. Sunset managed to maneuver past their attacks and unleashed a burst of flames from her Wispon, clearing the path and she continued on ahead. She reached the end of the wall and just as she was about to move, she heard the same distortion sound as another pink wave covered the area. Sunset then saw that gravity was back to normal as she was right side up and landed on the floor beneath her.

"Thank goodness." She said with relief. "I don't know how much longer I could have gone through that."

Sunset moved through the building and was greeted by more of Eggman's robots. While she moved left to left., Sunset used her Wispon as a flamethrower, blowing her enemies to bits. She then jumped down towards a lower pathway. When she was there, she saw laser turrets beginning to charge up beams. Sunset moved to a lower place on the path in order to avoid contact with the beams once they fired. When they were finished, she hurried on ahead and flew out of the building.

Sunset was covered in a pink wave as the distortion sound was heard once more and she froze again. This time, gravity was turned on its side and she was now on the side of a building.

"Oh, come on! Can this guy make up his mind?!" Sunset expressed with annoyance.

Sunset flew from the building she was on towards another one and began to scale it. From the top, various laser turrets fired rays at her, but she moved from side to side and was kept out of harm's way as she headed towards the top. Above her, she noticed a dozen resistance ships.

"Eagle Squad here, we're caught in the enemy crossfire!" A soldier yelled over the coms.

"Snake Squad, we need backup!" Another one requested.

"This is Fox Squad, we can't hold out much longer!" Another soldier cried.

"We've lost about 80 percent of our forces and are gradually losing contact with rest!" Amy announced.

"That many?! Is there anyone left?!" Twilight wondered.

"I'm still out here, Twilight."Sunset responded as she reached the top of the building. "I'm ok. I'm moving through the city!"

"At least some of us are still holding it together. We were totally unprepared for this!" Vector stated.

"Sunset, get yerself to safety!" AppleJack urged. "Things are getting worse!"

Sunset looked down from above and saw the entire thing as soldiers were fleeing and explosions happened everywhere along with Infinite's clone's wreaking havoc. AppleJack was right, the situation was dire. But she still couldn't give up.

Sunset found herself caught in a pink wave again as the distortion sound occurred. This time, gravity was back to normal. Sunset continued to fly across the city and as she was, one of Infinite's clone brought its hand down and destroyed the bridge in front of her, blocking her path. Before the clone saw her, Sunset quickly flew towards her right and found another path instead. She narrowly avoided another hit from one of Infinite's clones while doing so.

"We can't go on like this. We're getting wiped out." Knuckles groaned.

""We were too ambitious. We should've figured Eggman would plan for an attack like this." Silver begrudgingly stated.

"Knuckles is right. It's too much for us to handle." Twilight agreed. "What should be our next course of action?!"

"It's hard to admit but the wise thing to do would retreat with what we have." Espio suggested.

"Everyone run!" Charmy shouted.

"Arghhh! I hate running away...but we have no choice!" Rainbow Dash said with great reluctance.

Sunset heard everything. She agreed with Espio that retreating was the best thing they could do. It was either that or stay and be wiped out.

"Everyone, tell the soldiers to fall back and head for the ships. Grab anyone you can find!" Sunset instructed while she fired a row of fire towards the Egg Pawns on the path she was moving across.

"You heard her! Move it, people!" Pinkie screeched.

Sunset flew as the path led her to an interior section and then she was outside again. The path in front of her was covered with laser turrets that immediately fired but Sunset rose above to safety and made her way across.

"So much for Operation BigWave......" Knuckles said in a distraught, melancholic voice. "Everyone.....I...I'm sorry....."

"Don't blame yourself, Knuckles. You couldn't have known this would happen." Amy told him.

"Besides, we're not done yet. We can still regroup with what we have." Rarity added.

Sunset continued to fly on the highway. As she did, little did she know that Infinite was watching her every move.

Infinite observed all the destruction around him while on a highway as he folded his arms. The pillars of rising smoke, the cries of anguish as the Resistance's attack had failed....it pleased him. All of this was because of him. It was a symbol of his strength.

"Look at them, they're nothing compared to me. They're just waiting to be crushed." He gloated. "Though I must admit, I am still curious to see if this world can still offer me a real challenge."

Infinite heard steps and he turned to see Sunset walking along the highway, looking around for any ship she could hop on.

"I wonder where the nearest ship is?" She said out loud. She then stopped in her tracks as she saw Infinite right in front of her and caught her breath.

"Well well, how unexpected." Infinite said as he was now directly staring at Sunset. He remembered her. She was the girl who ran away from him in the city a few months back.

Sunset couldn't move. Infinite, the one who had scared her so badly, was here with her. Not one of the illusions he made, the real deal. She felt her breathing get louder and deeper as she began to slowly back away, remembering their last encounter.

Before Sunset could go anywhere, Infinite appeared just a few inches from her face in a red flash. He then leaned near her ear.

"What are you going to do now, girl?"Infinite questioned in a belittling tone. "Are you going to run away again or did you come here to die by my hand."

Infinite then raised his hand and clenched his fist, making Sunset backup. She had no answer, clearly spooked. Honestly, her body was screaming 'run'.

"Don't let that masked clown get the better of you. Move on and don't let your fear get in your head." She suddenly recalled Sonic telling her. Being reminded of Sonic's words calmed her down a bit.

"You'll have your time to shine." The memory of Sonic continued.

Sunset clenched her fist tightly. She wouldn't let her doubt get the better of her again. She couldn't be afraid of Infinite forever. He was right in front of her and now was a good time as ever to face her fear. Besides, she had already resolve earlier not to let anyone down ever again. And she always kept her promises.

"No. I'm not going to run. Not ever again." Sunset answered, filled with conviction and standing her ground.

"What?" Infinite asked as if he didn't hear right.

"My friends have helped me get to this point and I won't turn my back on them!" She insisted.

"Friends? They mean nothing. Just an illusion. The only one you can rely on in this world is your self and your own strength." Infinite retorted.

"You're wrong." Sunset shot back. "My friends are the reason why I'm not going to be afraid of you anymore."

Infinite noticed the look on Sunset's face had changed, her fear washed away. He was slightly surprised that her fear of him was changing before this surprise turned to irritation. She, someone insignificant, was mocking him by not being afraid. He couldn't let this slide.

"Fine, it seems like you need to learn your place." Infinite replied as he closed his fist. "It seems you've forgotten how terrifying I am. Allow me to remind you."

Infinite's body began to glow red along with the scar on his mask as he rose in the air and looked down at Sunset, who gripped her Wispon tight.

"(Ok, Sunset, here he comes.)"She thought to herself.

Infinite started by firing a red beam that startled Sunset but missed her, landing a few inches away.

"Oops. Bad shot." Infinite said in a mocking tone, which made Sunset give him a glare.

"Stop messing with me!" She demanded, which made Infinite adjust his mask.

"Well, since you requested it." Infinite responded.

In his hands, Infinite generated two red energy spheres, which he immediately tossed towards Sunset, who flew to avoid them. Now that Sunset was mid-air, Infinite began to fire a series of red shots at her, putting her on the defensive as she flew around in order to avoid being hit. She continued to evade his attacks for a while until she noticed she had a clear shot. Sunset aimed her Wispon and unleashed a surge of flames at Infinite. However, Infinite raised his hand and when the fire touched it, the torrent split into two, leaving Infinite unscathed.

"What was that supposed to do?!" He cackled, which made Sunset grit her teeth.

Infinite flicked his wrist, creating the familiar distortion sound and two waves of energy cubes were sent out towards Sunset. Sunset backed away and began to flee throughout the area as the cubes began to pursue her.

"I knew you'd run." Infinite taunted. "It's only natural. The weak die and the strong survive!"

The cubes continued to chase Sunset, who was still on her guard. She flew around until she was directly across from Infinite. Suddenly, she stopped flying and turned to face the incoming homing shots. Sunset brought up her Wispon with both hands and pulled the trigger, setting out another burst of flames that blast through the cubes and covered Infinite before he had any chance to react. She lowered the Wispon and began to pant, hoping that did at least something.

Infinite emerged from the flames, his body giving off a bit smoke, which he simply dusted off.

"Clever." He complimented. "But, you're not the only creative one around here."

Sunset suddenly heard the distortion sound below her and she looked down to see an entire wall of red cubes burst from the ground. It was too late as she was completely covered by the cubes. Sunset then felt a strong pressure all over her body as her ears began to ring with the distortion sound and everything turned red.

"Wh-what's happening?!" She screamed as she shut her eyes tight and covered her eyes due to the sensation.

Sunset no longer heard the loud noise in her ears, which surprised her. She slowly opened her eyes to see that she wasn't in Metropolis anymore, though everything around her had a red filter, including the sky. Much to her shock, she was standing in front of Canterlot High, completely restored.

"CHS?!" She exclaimed. "But that's impossible. It was destroyed during the attack on the city."

Sunset began to walk to the school in order to get a better look until she heard a loud rumbling sound coming from behind her. She turned around to see a familiar pile of brambles emerging from the ground. Sunset looked up and saw someone she never expected to see again...Gaia Everfree, who was descending towards her.

"Gloriosa?! That can't be! We turned you back to normal at Camp Everfree. You shouldn't be here!" Sunset yelled.

Gaia Everfree said nothing and simply floated in front of Sunset. She then noticed a white tear in reality on her left and turned her attention towards it. Emerging from it were two black wings, which suddenly expanded as the tear shattered into glass-like pieces everywhere to reveal Midnight Sparkle, who turned to Sunset with a crazed grin.

"Midnight Sparkle?!" She cried in disbelief. "No, Twilight got rid of you! I was there! This doesn't make any sense!"

Sunset then recognized the sound of an alluring song on her right and she looked to now see that the 3 Dazzlings in their ponied up forms along with their siren avatars had appeared before her. Their eyes were glowing red as they gave Sunset an intense glare, who was stupefied by their presence.

"The Dazzlings?! What is this?!" She questioned.

Sunset was now surrounded by her former enemies, who began to circle her and get closer with threatening looks, making her take a few steps back.

"There's no way I can fight them all off on my own." She said to herself. "I need to think of a plan."

Sunset looked back at CHS and decided that if she went in there, maybe she formulate a way out this. She quickly turned around and sprinted towards the entrance of the school. However, before she reached the doors, a giant black fireball crashed down into the school, creating an explosion that blew Sunset to the ground. She then looked, mortified to see her beloved school burning before her very eyes.

"No!" She shrieked. "CHS is..."

Sunset was caught off as she noticed a figure emerging from the flaming wreckage. When she realized who it was, she was totally appalled. Rising from the fire was...her! She was in the she-demon form that she had transformed into at the Fall Formal. Sunset's demon self looked at her with a sinister sneer.

"This can't be happening. This can't." Sunset slowly said as she began to crawl back from her doppelganger. She then turned around and saw her other enemies blocking any means of escape and looked back to her counterpart. She was totally surrounded and helpless as the group of foes were getting closer and closer, all of them bearing wicked grins. She felt her fear rising and began to despair, thinking there was nothing she could do.....Sunset's thoughts then turned to her friends. She thought of them in the city, desperately fighting off Eggman forces despite their plan having failed. They weren't going to let themselves fall right there.

"(No! I can't give up.)" She forced herself to think as she began to rise from the ground and stand her ground, courage replacing her fear. "(I can't let them stop me here! I don't care if they outnumber me. My friends are fighting a hopeless battle right now and they need me! I will always be there for them!)"

Sunset stood tall and stared each of the enemies from her past. As she did, her body began to glow with an orange hue, her magic activating. At the same time, a large pink glow emerged from her pocket, which she didn't notice. It gem gave off a reddish-white flash and everything froze as the 4 villains coming towards Sunset stopped moving. The entire area turned the same color as the distortion Infinite made from earlier when he twisted gravity.

Immediately afterward, everything became to fade away, leaving a very confused Sunset as she looked around. She was now back in the city with Infinite floating above her.

"I'm in the city?" She said with astonishment. "Or maybe....... I never left it at all."

"What?!" Infinite nearly yelled in an incredulous tone as he saw that Sunset was perfectly fine. "That's impossible! You shouldn't have been able to withstand that!"

Sunset then turned to Infinite with a glare.

"I'm not sure what just happened either." She confessed. "But maybe I can find out!"

Sunset quickly flew towards a still surprised Infinite and grabbed a hold of his arm as fast as she could. Her eyes turned white as she prepared to read his mind in order to uncover the truth about what happened or maybe Eggman's plan. Instead, a red surge of electricity was suddenly sent through her body.

"Ahhh!" Sunset cried due to the pain of being electrocuted. She has then blown away towards the floor away from Infinite. It was now difficult for her to remain conscious as she struggled to rise from the ground.

"Foolish girl, did you really think you could read my mind?" Infinite said as he tapped his temple. "It looks like I was worried about you for nothing. You must've simply gotten lucky, that's all. In two days, your luck is going to run out. I'll leave you to contemplate the inevitable."

Infinite then headed away, leaving an injured Sunset to pick herself up from the floor and held her arm.

"Urgh...just what are they planning exactly?" She muttered to herself. Sunset then saw a Resistance airship appear before her shortly after.

"Sunset, what are you doing?! Let's go!" Rainbow Dash urged from an entrance on the side. She then motioned for her to come.

Sunset was still feeling sore but used all of her remaining strength to levitate and fly towards the ship's entrance. As soon as she got inside, the door closed and the airship rose higher into the air and sped off at full speed along with the other ships.

A Spot of Hope.

The doors to the Resistance base opened as each of the members entered with defeated expressions on their faces, feeling sorry for themselves. Their one chance to take the city and possibly end the war had been a total disaster and a large amount of their army had been severely weakened. Things had taken a turn for the worst.

Inside, Sonic and Shadow turned around to see the others enter in.

"Oh, there you guys are." Sonic said. "Where've you all been?"

Sonic's question wasn't answered right away as the Resistance members were focused on who was with him. They were shocked to see Shadow, who was supposed to be an enemy right now.

"Shadow?!" Tails said with slight surprise.

Before Shadow could say anything, Pinkie Pie quickly came to close and gripped his arms tightly.

"All right, buster! You've got a lot of explaining to do!" She yelled as she put her faces inches from his. " Where have you been for the past months?! Why are you being a bad guy again?! What time is Gummy's favorite t.v show?!"

Shadow placed his hands on Pinkie's arm and pried her away from him.

"I was going to answer those questions. Except for that last one." Shadow calmly said. He then folded his arms and turned to face the rest of the Resistance, who were looking at him with uncertainty.

"The me who's been working with Eggman's army was a fake. It was a virtual reality construction created by Infinite." Shadow explained. "I was trapped within it in a virtual reality illusion this whole time."

"So that's what his power is." Sunset chimed in as she remembered her recent encounter with Infinite. It made perfect sense to her. That's why all of her previous enemies appeared.

"That explains why we've been seeing the likes of Chaos and Zavok among Eggman's army." Amy deduced.

"And it also answers the question of why all those monsters just showed up in the city to take out our forces." Twilight added.

Hearing this made Sonic frown and he made the timeout signal with his hands.

"Wow, back up a bit." Sonic stated. "Forces? City? What happened while I was gone?"

Sonic's question made the members of the Resistance form looks of sorrow as they each looked away, ashamed of their defeat.

"We launched an attack on Eggman's base in Metropolis while he was undermanned." Knuckles began in a tone full of remorse. "It was going fine until Infinite activated that Phantom Ruby of his and took out our entire operation."

"What?!" Sonic exclaimed in an offended tone. "You guys launched a full-scale attack on Eggman and left me out of it?!"

"That's not the point, Sonic. The point is with that Phantom Ruby, we got nearly destroyed out there." Rainbow Dash informed him with bitterness.

"And this has dealt a heavy blow to our Resistance. We were lucky to regroup with what we had." Espio stated.

Sonic rubbed his head, a little embarrassed by his reaction. They were completely right.

"Even if they're just virtual reality projections, whatever the Phantom Ruby makes feel just as real as their counterparts. Like with that fake Shadow. That puts us at a real disadvantage." Silver pointed out.

"What can we do? If Infinite can make awful monsters appear out of thin air whenever he wants, how are we supposed to handle something like that?" Fluttershy wondered.

The Resistance was left stumped by her question. Suddenly, there was the sound of an incoming transmission coming from the Resistances computer, making everyone turn towards it.

"Please let it be good news." Manic expressed in a wistful tone. "After what happened, we could really use something positive."

Amy walked forward and clicked a key to receive it. A holographic screen that showed Rouge was then projected for everyone to see.

"Listen up. I have major-" Rouge started before she noticed that Shadow was among the people she was talking to. This made her form a look of disbelief on her face as she leaned forward.

"Shadow?! Is that really you?!" Rouge questioned. "What happened to you?! You didn't get brainwashed again, did you?! I thought we were done with that."

"I'll explain later, Rouge." Shadow quickly answered. "Now, you said you had some major information?"

"Oh, right." Rouge replied. "I was doing some digging and found out that Eggman's database is located in one of his Chemical Plants. Checking out seems worthwhile. Who knows what kind of information is stored there?"

"Well, I guess every cloud does have a silver lining." Vector said in a pleased tone as he crossed his arms.

"It's refreshing to hear some good news. If we can find out what's in that database, maybe it can tell us about everything we need to know about that Phantom Ruby." Twilight realized.

"Exactly. I'm heading there right now and I could use some backup." Rouge stated.

"I got this one." Tails volunteered. "Rarity, feel like giving me a hand?"

"Me? Head to someplace called the Chemical Plant?" Rarity said with distaste. " With all those chemicals there, who knows what it could do my hair?"

Rarity then found herself on the receiving end of many unimpressed looks.

"Oh, excuse us, Rarity. We forget the most important thing in this whole war. It would be a complete disaster if yer hair was messed up." AppleJack said in a sarcastic tone, which made Rarity frown. She then cleared her throat.

"*Ahem*. What I meant was, I'd love to accompany you, Tails." Rarity stated as she stood with confidence. "Now then, we shouldn't dilly dally. Onward to that...Chemical Plant."

"That ok with you, Knux?" AppleJack asked as she turned around to see Knuckles, who was still looking pretty down with his eyes glued to the floor.

"Hey, earth to Knuckles!" Charmy said loudly, which briefly snapped Knuckles out of it.

"Huh? Oh yeah, sounds good." He said half-heartedly. His reaction didn't go unnoticed by AppleJack, who raised a concerned eyebrow.

With the order given, Tails and Rarity exited the base of the Resistance as they headed towards the Chemical Plant.

Up north, Tails and Rarity found themselves on the outskirts of a large gray factory with a giant mechanical crane at the top along with gray and yellow platforms. Smog was coming from giant yellow towers and giant tubes housing blue goop of some sort covered the era. Seeing the toxic gel made Rarity shudder.

"I really hope I don't have to go anywhere near....whatever that is." She expressed with disdain

"You'll be fine." Tails told her. "Sonic and I have been here before and that stuff usually stays in those containers. The only thing you'd have to worry about is the Mega Mack."

"Mega Mack?!" Rarity nearly shouted before she let out a defeated sigh. "It better not leave a stain."

"Over here!" Tails and Rarity heard a familiar voice shout from their left. They turned to see Rouge waving over to the two of them and quickly walked up to meet her.

"Nice to see you made it, Tails." Rouge greeted the young hero. She then turned to Rarity. "And?"

"Rarity, at your service." Rarity courtly greeted.

"Well, now that we have our little team, let's find that database." Rogue declared as she began to walk forward.

"Wait. The Chemical Plant is huge and there's a lot of ground to cover." Tails brought up. "We could be at this for a long time."

Rouge let out a small laugh. "Tails, don't you remember who you're talking to? I know a shortcut that should take us to the database. Just follow me."

Rouge led the two of them near a backdoor entrance. It was a large gate with two smaller containers with goop besides it. Guarding it was a small squadron of Egg Pawns.

"We don't want to draw too much attention. I'll get us in." Tails said to his teammates. He pulled out a small mouse-shaped bomb with a wind up on it's back. He wound up the knob for a bit before he sent the bomb moving on the ground towards the Egg Pawns.

When the bomb got near the squadron of robots, it got their attention as they looked down with curiosity. The mouse bomb then stopped moving but still kept making a wind-up noise. The Egg Pawns didn't know what to do as they each turned to each other with confused expressions.

*BOOM!*

A large explosion emitted from Tails's bomb, completely wrecking the Egg Pawns as robot parts were sent flying everywhere. With the coast clear, Tails, Rogue and Rarity walked out and approached the entrance. As they did, Rarity looked up and slightly frowned.

"We can't even see what we're going into. Are you sure this is the right way?" She asked.

"Like I told Tails, follow my lead. I know what I'm doing, sweetheart." Rouge casually said. "They don't call me the world's best spy for nothing."

Rarity was still feeling a little hesitant but when she saw Tails and Rouge go inside the building, she decided to move forward. She then made her way into the darkness of the entrance.

Inside, it was totally pitch-black and Rarity couldn't see a thing. This made her uncomfortable as she was worried about stepping into that ooze by mistake.

"Rouge, we can't see anything. How will we know when we've arrived at our destination?" Tails quizzically said.

"Don't worry about it. You'll know." Rouge simply answered.

The 3 of them moved through the blackness for quite a bit. Rarity was still on the edge due to a fear of stepping into something unpleasant. As she moved to take another step, she suddenly felt that there was no ground for her to place her foot on.

"What the-Ahhhhhhhh!!!!" Rarity shrieked as she instantly began to fall down. The problem was, she couldn't see where which made her even more worried.

Rarity heard another scream coming ahead of her and due to the sound, she figured it was Tails.

"Tails! Tails!" She cried out.

"Rarity! Where are you?!" She heard him yell back.

"I don't know! I can't see!" Rarity answered. "Where's Rouge?!"

Suddenly, a cyan light appeared, letting Tails and Rarity see that they were falling down a large tube. The light was due to the cyan rings surrounding it. Tails saw that Rouge was falling in front of him while Rarity was behind him. Now being able to see, Rarity used her ability to fly to control her landing.

"Rouge, did you know about this part?!" Tails demanded as he and Rouge began to skydive.

"Maybe. Maybe not." She cryptically answered. This answer made Rarity frown once more.

"What made you take this path out of all the others?!" Rarity inquired, which Rouge heard from behind her.

"Like I said, it's the quickest way. And besides, who likes things being too easy?" Rouge replied

As the team began to fall, large blue orbs began to come out of the walls. Much to Rarity's horror, it looked exactly like that blue goop from before.

"Careful, this stuff is toxic." Tails warned as he and Rouge strategically maneuvered around the orbs to avoid touching them.

"No, no, no. Not happening." Rarity said with panic. She covered her entire body in a diamond-shaped dome, protecting her from the incoming orbs as they splattered against her shield.

After falling for a bit more and avoiding contact with the blue orbs, Tails, Rouge and Rarity saw a platform at the end. The orbs stopped coming and Rarity undid her shield. The three of then safely landed on the tube's bottom.

The team was now inside a closed off industrial center that was entirely mechanical. The background was covered with giant pumps, chemical containers, pillars, structures shaped liked buildings, chemical tube systems, rotating cylinders filled with blue goop and rails carrying cargo. It was also covered in thin red haze. Yellow pipelines with blue chemicals were interwoven and served as roads. Black and yellow hazard stripes marked many structures. The roads were plated with yellow colored metal and moved between various structures and along pipes. Thin yellow pipes with red chemicals ran in the background. Underneath, the bottom section was flooded with pink liquid.

"Well, wasn't that fun?" Rouge questioned with a teasing smile as she turned back to Tails and Rarity. The latter didn't look too amused while the former simply shrugged.

"Fun isn't the right word." Rarity said with a slightly annoyed tone.

"Now that we're in. Finding the database shouldn't be too hard. Let's go." Tails stated.

The 3 of them made their way across the long road and headed downwards on it. As they moved down, they found that the road was now taking them upward. The trio followed the path and now began to travel on a large multi-leveled platform. They easily moved past this and after they did, they found a dead-end. A large silver wall was right in front of them. However, behind them, a series of moving cubes were rotating from side to side.

"We can use these cubes as a staircase." Tails explained. "We just need to wait for the right timing."

"No need. I can move across on my own." Rarity said. She then floated up towards the higher platform.

Back on the ground, Tails and Rouge waited for the cubes to come towards them. When they did, they formed a staircase like Tails said.

"Be careful, they move even when we're on them." Tails cautioned to Rouge.

"Please, this is just child's play." Rouge dismissed.

Rouge jumped and moved along the shifting staircase quickly, with Tails not too far behind. The two of them were now caught up with Rarity. In front of them, was another set of shifting cubes leading to a higher platform. Rarity flew up towards while Tails and Rouge used the cubes once more. This time, they found another dead end but no other possible routes.

"There's nowhere to go." Rarity realized. "Now what do we do?"

"Actually, Rarity, there is a path." Tails responded.

Tails moved towards a closed tubed in front of him. Using his arm cannon, he then opened it up using a shot.

"We just have to move through this tube and it'll take us through the plant." He elaborated.

Tails jumped in the tube and was sent moving forward at high speed while Rouge and Rarity watched. The two of them approached the tube and looked down.

"After you." Rouge offered to Rarity.

"Oh, I don't do well in tight spaces." Rarity said with discomfort.

Rouge just formed a neutral expression and headed down the tube. After she did, Rarity looked down at it once more. It just looked so tight and uncomfortable. Definitely not the a relaxing feeling. She then let out a sigh and went in.

Rarity found herself moving through the tube at an insane speed as she felt the strong wind moving across her face. She felt a few turns and twist, which made her began to feel dizzy. The whole experience was crazy and she'd never felt anything like it. Shortly afterward, she was shot out of the tube and landed on the ground. Dazed. Rarity wobbled and shook her head. She then saw Tails and Rouge in front of her.

"So, how was it?" Rouge asked in a teasing manner.

"I think I'm going to need to lie down after all of this." Was Rarity's answer.

The team moved along a long route that led them to two floating platforms. When they moved on to them, the platforms lead them further down into the plant. While moving down, they noticed the room was redder than before. Upon reaching the floor, they noticed another route going downwards, which they followed. They reached the end shortly after, and much to Rarity's dismay, there was another highspeed tube.

"Oh dear." Rarity said with a displeased expression.

Tails opened the tube using his cannon again, letting him and his partners travel inside it. The tubes led them to a higher area of the chemical plant and they were shot out in the air and landed on the ground shortly after.

"Please, just let that be the last one." Rarity said in a faint tone as she tried to get her balance.

"That depends how much more ground we have to cover." Rouge replied.

Before anyone took a step, Tails put his arms out. This was due to the fact that in front of him and the others was a large pool full of Mega-Muck. Rarity recoiled at the sight of seeing the pink liquid.

"We have to be careful not to fall into this stuff. It's really tricky to get out of." Tails stated. "But there are no platforms to get us across. I know! Rarity, can you make us a path?"

"Of course." Rarity replied. She then walked closer near the edge of the platform. She looked down at the Mega-Muck and formed a disgusted look. Rarity then extended her arm, making her hand glow white. Suddenly, a diamond pathway formed above the water. Seeing the jewels made Rouge's eyes light up.

"Oh..."She expressed with delight. "Now that is a power."

"Let's go. I want to move across this...muck as soon as possible." Rarity insisted.

Tails, Rouge and Rarity moved along the diamond road Rarity made. While they were, Rouge couldn't keep her eyes off the diamonds she walked on and was mainly looking down. Rarity's path led them to edge of a platform. They each climbed up to reach the heights above. Once everyone was together, Rarity turned around to undo her diamond path. When she turned back, she saw Rouge approaching with a huge smile on her face.

"You can make jewels just out of thin air?" She questioned in an impressed tone.

"Well, it is my power." Rarity said in a modest tone. Suddenly, she felt herself being hugged very tightly by Rouge, much to her surprise.

"Where have you been all my life?!" Rouge squealed. "I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."

Rouge then let the confused Rarity go, while having a big grin.

'Those diamonds are gorgeous!" She gushed, which made Rarity beam.

"Oh, aren't they?" Rarity responded with flattery. "It's nice to meet someone who has a good eye for beauty."

"How many can you make? What size? What shapes?" Rouge eagerly asked.

"I just have to put my mind to it." Rarity said. To demonstrated she formed a basketball sized diamond orb. Seeing it made Rouge's eyes sparkle with delight and her jaw almost dropped.

"I think I can retire early." Rouge said with a dreamy expression on her face.

"Uh, girls." Tails suddenly said, which made the two of them turn to him.

"It's great you're getting along and all, but don't you also think it's strange we haven't seen any enemies around. It's almost too quiet if you ask me." Tails pointed out.

"Now that you mention it, it's odd the Doctor would leave a plant with access to his database so unguarded." Rouge agreed.

"Maybe he figured no one would find this place? That's why he's let his guard down." Rarity suggested.

"Maybe. Or he has something in store here." Tails added.

"Knowing Eggman, that's probably more likely." Rouge stated." We should keep our guard up."

"This place just keeps getting better and better." Rarity dryly said.

The three of them continued to make their way through the Chemical Plant as they went higher and higher due to various platforms. When they reach one platform, they noticed an EggPawn blocking their path. Before the robot could react, Rouge jumped and delivered a powerful ax kick, smashing it on the ground and leaving the path open. She and the others climbed two other slopes and after they did, a row of 3 EggPawns appeared before them. The robots aimed their guns but Rarity formed a large diamond in her hand and threw it like a boomerang. The gem sliced through the robots with ease, taking them out. Rouge watched with a look of approval.

"They're beautiful and dangerous." She complimented, which made Rarity get a twinkle in her eye.

Ahead of the team, a series of cubes floated around. They then formed a staircase leading downwards, which Tails and Rouge used to get descend while Rarity floated down. They then moved across from platform to platform, heading deeper into the Chemical Plant. Tails, Rouge and Rarity found themselves on ground level once more and moved along the road at the bottom.

While walking on the road, Rarity noticed the Mega-Muck was closer to the ground than before.

"Hey, is it just or me, or does that pink water seem...higher to the road." Rarity brought up.

Hearing this made Tails and Rouge stop and examine the water. Rarity was right. It seemed nearer to them than before.

"She's right." Rouge said. "What do-

Rouge's sentence was suddenly interrupted by the Mega-Muck suddenly rising higher above, much to the shock of everyone present.

"The Mega-Muck level is rising!" Tails exclaimed as the pink liquid reached up to his and the other knees. Rarity gasped out loud upon contact with the Mega-Muck.

"No! I worked so hard to avoid this...gunk!" She shrieked.

The MegaMuck level quickly rose and was beginning to envelop the team. However, before it covered their faces, Rarity used her powers to form a diamond sphere, protecting her and her teammates.

"Whoa, nice move Rarity!" Tails praised.

"Saved by jewels. A dream come true." Rouge happily said.

The diamonds that Rarity made were see-through, allowing Tails to look up ahead and notice the edge of another platform.

"Rarity, can you float us up there?" Tails requested.

Using her magic power, Rarity floated the diamond globe upwards inside the Mega-Muck. Since she could see where she was going, it was a breeze for her. She carried the team to the ledge and once they were there, her diamond shield barrier vanished. Though Rarity looked displeased as part of her outfit was wet.

"This stuff doesn't stain, right?" She asked Tails.

"I don't think so." Tails answered, which gave Rarity some relief.

The three of them traveled from the top of the shaft and headed right on another road. This time, the path led them to a path which had gaps of Mega-Muck. At the end of a path was a silver door with Eggman's insignia in red.

"We're here. Behind that door, Eggman's database will be there." Rouge said.

"And we haven't come across anything terrible." Rarity added. "I guess this place wasn't well guarded after all."

The group was going to move forward until something jumped down from above. Upon touching the ground, a powerful shockwave was felt, nearly taking the three heroes off balance.

Tails, Rouge and Rarity looked to see an Eggman robot with a brown torso and black lower half. It wore a belt that had a red Eggman insignia on it. It had red eyes along with brown feet and gloves that had black stripes on them. Its hands were white and on its chest were two exhaust pipes that emitted steam. It shoulders were pointed and square shaped with black stripes. The robot appeared to look angry as it clenched it's fist tightly.

"Haven't you learned by now to not say things like that?" Rouge told Rarity, whose face had a slightly distressed look to it.

"We're so close to the database. But we can't waste time with this thing. By the time we're done, Eggman could send reinforcements here and ruin our mission." Tails explained.

"Then you go on ahead. You're the one who can access the database." Rouge told him.

"She's right. The two of us will deal with this brute." Rarity said in compliance.

Tails looked at the two of them and realized they were right. He then nodded with approval towards them.

"Ok then. I'll leave it to you." He agreed.

Tails charged towards the Heavy Brawler, which opened its arms in order to grab him. When Tails was a few inches away from it, he activated his arm cannon and blast it towards the ground. This sent him flying over the Heavy Brawler, much to its surprise. Tails landed in front of the door and he released a charged shot, blowing it down and allowing him to enter the data room.

The Heavy Brawler turned around and was prepared to pursue Tails. Before it could go any further, a diamond wall suddenly appeared in front of it. The Brawler turned around to see Rarity with her hand extended while Rouge was now in a fighting stance.

"Sorry, if you want him, you'll have to play with us first." Rouge said. She then winked at the Brawler.

The Heavy Brawler hit it's fist together, indicating it was ready for battle. Rouge rushed towards the robot and released a powerful kick. The Heavy Brawler countered by throwing a strong punch, making both of their attacks collide. Rouge then unleashed a series of rapid-fire kicks, which the Brawler blocked by raising its arms. Rouge's attacks didn't seem too effective as the Brawler withstood all of her strikes. After Rouge did another kick, the Heavy Brawler undid it's guard position and raised it's fist, attempting to smash Rouge on the guard. Luckily, due to her superior agility, Rouge jumped as the robot's fist crashed to the ground instead, leaving a large dent on the floor.

"This thing hits almost as hard as Knuckles." Rouge expressed with slight surprise as she was now next to Rarity.

Rarity generated a diamond shard in her hand and sent it towards the Heavy Brawler. The Brawler saw this incoming and released a punch that shattered Rarity's gem as if it was nothing, much to her surprise. Rarity glared and launched three more gem shards, each bigger than the last. When they reached the Heavy Brawler, it just simply punched through all them with ease.

"It's ripping through my diamonds as if they're paper." Rarity uttered in surprise.

"Let's try for a coordinated attack." Rouge proposed, which made Rarity nod in agreement.

Rouge jumped in the air and released a powerful whirling kick as she headed towards the Heavy Brawler. The Brawler launched a punch towards Rouge's drill attack, leaving the two of them at a stalemate. While this happened, Rarity formed a series of thinly shaped diamonds and launched them at the Heavy Brawler. Using its other arm, the Brawler defended against the gem shards, each of them breaking upon contact. Steam then came from the Brawlers exhaust pipes, making its eyes glow red. The Heavy Brawler received a sudden boost of strength as it pushed Rouge back with its fist, sending her crashing to the ground beside Rarity. The fighting machine then grabbed a handful of Rarity's diamond shard and tossed them at the two girls. Rarity formed a panicked look and ceased her attack to make a shield to block the incoming diamonds. However, due to the force, they were thrown with, this nearly shattered her shield.

"Are you all right?" Rarity asked as she looked down at Rouge.

"I'll be fine." Rouge answered with a slight grunt. "But he's stronger than I-Watch out!"

Rarity was perplexed by Rouge's warning and turned to see the Heavy Brawler incoming with a punch through her shield. The collision with the Heavy Brawler's punch destroyed Rarity's shield. Rouge and Rarity managed to evade contact with Brawlers fist by leaping as it hit the ground, leaving another dent, though it was larger than the one from before. The Heavy Brawler turned it's attention to Rarity and brought down both of its hands to smash her. Rarity generated another shield to defend herself but it was quickly destroyed. The Brawler continued on with its assault while, Rarity was moving back. creating shield after shield. The Brawler easily got them out of its way. Doing this repeatedly was starting to feel taxing for Rarity and she began to sweat. The Heavy Brawler broke through another shield, leaving Rarity unsure if she was able to conjure another one before it attacked her.

The Heavy Brawler raised it's fist to attack. However, it was interrupted due to Rouge delivering a drill kick to it's back. It didn't do much damage but it turned the Brawlers attention towards Rouge. The Heavy Brawler grabbed Rouge's leg and gave a mighty toss, sending her crashing into Rarity. The two of them were blown across a gap of Mega-Muck and landed on another section of the platform. Rouge rose from the ground and let out a groan. She was shortly joined by Rarity, who winced. Across from them, the Heavy Brawler raised it's fist in glory while steam came from its chest.

"So far, we haven't been able to make a dent in that thing. It's ridiculously strong and powerful." Rouge complained.

"It can't be invulnerable. There has to be something we can do." Rarity insisted.

"Our options aren't looking too good. Even my hardest kicks are barely doing anything." Rouge responded.

Hearing the phrase 'hardest kicks' suddenly gave Rarity an idea as her face lit up. She then looked down at Rouge's boots.

"Rouge, lift your leg up. I want to examine your boots." Rarity requested.

"What? Why? I get if you like the way they look, but now is really not the time for this." Rouge said.

"Trust me, darling. I have a plan." Rarity confidently stated.

Rouge was still confused but she did what she was told. Rarity closely examined Rouge's boot. As she did, the Heavy Brawler watched on, wondering why the two of them weren't attacking. Steam was released from it once more, making its eyes glow red. Rouge noticed this, which made her incredibly concerned.

"Rarity, whatever you're doing, hurry it up. I think it's getting ready to attack." Rouge informed Rarity.

"Finished!" Rarity said. "Leave your leg up."

Rarity then placed her hands on Rouge's boot. Rouge's leg was then beginning to be covered in diamonds, much to her surprise and pleasure.

"Oh, I quite like this." Rouge said with pleasure.

"If you're hardest kicks aren't enough, then we just need something harder." Rarity elaborated.

The Heavy Brawler smashed it's fist together and charged towards the duo, ready to hit them with extreme force. Rarity finished surrounding Rouge's legs with diamonds. When the Brawler got close enough, it threw a punch. In return, Rouge released a hard snap kick that hit the Heavy Brawler before it's fist collided with her or Rarity. This resulted in the Brawler being sent back a few feet, much to Rouge and Rarity's joy.

"It worked!" Rouge exclaimed. "Do my other leg!"

Acting quickly, Rarity encased Rouge's leg in gems as fast as she could. The Heavy Brawler was slightly dazed from Rouge's kick but recovered just in time to see Rouge heading towards it. The Brawler unleashed a right hook but Rouge ducked to avoid it. In response, Rouge sent out a kick to the Brawlers center, stunning it. Rouge then launched a barrage of kicks to the Heavy Brawler. Each hit left a powerful impact on the robot, making it flinch. Rouge ended her flurry with a flip kick, making the Heavy Brawler back up a bit.

The Heavy Brawler wobbled for a while due to Rouge's strikes but managed to shake it off. Steam came from its chest and its eyes glowed once more. The Brawler was prepared to raise its fist again. However, a series of diamonds suddenly covered the exhaust pipes on its chest. The steam was unable to leave the Heavy Brawlers body and began to dangerously rumble and build up. A giant burst of steam erupted from the machine's chest, breaking the diamonds off it while also blowing it up in the air.

When the Heavy Brawler was mid-air, Rouge leaped high enough above it. She then became a drill and crashed into the Heavy Brawler's chest. Rouge drilled on its torso, which also chipped the diamonds off her boots. When all the diamonds came off, Rouge stopped spinning. This pushed the Heavy Brawler downwards, headed to a pool of Mega- Muck. Before it landed in the liquid, Rarity formed a diamond chain around its leg, complete with a crystal ball. The Heavy Brawler then fell into the Mega-Muck, with the weight of Rarity's chain ball causing it to sink faster than it normally would have.

"Yes. We are victorious!" Rarity cheered as Rouge landed down in front of her.

"Jewels really are a girl's best friend." Rouge commented. "When this is over, you don't mind upgrading all my wardrobe with jewels, do you?"

"Of course not." Rarity said. "I'm always happy to please a customer."

With the Heavy Brawler defeated, Rouge and Rarity moved across the platform and entered the room Tails went in. The two of them found Tails in front of a large computer, which displayed various schematics.

"How's it coming along, Tails?" He heard Rouge's voice say, which made him turn to see her and Rarity.

"Whew. You guys are ok." Tails expressed with relief before he turned his attention back to the screen. "And to answer your question, it's taken me a while to access the data here. Eggman has a lot of junk here. Failed battle plans, old robot designs. A confidential folder. I don't even want to know what it's in there.

Just then, Tails' eyes widened.

"Found it! Virtual reality weapon: The Phantom Ruby." Tails read out loud. "Now, let's see what this says."

Tails clicked on the folder and when he did, a large amount of text appeared along with designs and blueprints centered around a pink gem.

"Oh, that's a nice looking gem." Rarity said with awe.

"You said it." Rouge concurred.

"Ok. So according to this text, the Phantom Ruby is a weapon that takes control of people's visual and depth perception to give the brain false information. This leads to the formation of a false reality." Tails said.

"It's just like Shadow described to us. And it's consistent with what we experienced in the city. Or what happened to me and Silver in the Mystic Jungle." Rarity chimed in.

"It says here that Eggman experimented with various prototypes until he used the final version on Infinite." Tails continued on. He began to scan the data until he let out a gasp.

"I think I found something important. If I'm reading this right, then it looks like there is a weakness!" Tails nearly shouted. "This is huge! We have to get this back to the others! With this information, we can finally beat Eggman!"

Author's Note

Heavy Brawler belongs to Cylent Nite on DeviantArt:
https://cylent-nite.deviantart.com/art/FAKE-SPOILER-Heavy-Brawler-Classic-E-123-Omega-699140703

Double Boost

While Tails, Rouge and Rarity were on their mission in the Chemical Plant, the rest of the Resistance were waiting around in the base and taking a breather. Aside from finding Eggman's database, there wasn't much to do. However, not everyone could take it easy, such as Sonic who was pacing back and forth due to his impatience. He wasn't the only one as Rainbow Dash kept tapping her foot loudly. The two of them were eager for action. Strangely, Knuckles wasn't in the room along with the others.

"I have to say, it's pretty nice to be able to take it easy for a while after that whole operation." Manic expressed with delight while doing a loud stretch.

Immediately after he said, the Resistance computer started beeping loudly, indicating it had picked up something up. Everyone in the room groaned loudly while Manic just formed a displeased look on his face.

"Thanks for Jinxing it, Manic." Amy dryly said as she and Sunset walked to the computer to see what the reading was all about it.

"It looks like Metal Sonic has been spotted in the city." Sunset read.

Hearing the name of his robotic double caught Sonic's attention as he stopped moving and listened carefully.

"Is it another copy?" Shadow questioned.

"Isn't Metal Sonic already a copy of Sonic anyway?" Pinkie brought up as she put her fingers on her temple. " So if they make a copy of a copy, what does that make this thingie? Can it even be called a copy?"

"Why would Egghead even make a copy using the Phantom Ruby? He can just make more like usual." Sonic wondered. "I'll never understand that guy anyway."

"Who cares what it is?! We're trashing it either way, Sonic!" Rainbow Dash eagerly said, placing her fist in her hand. This made Sonic turn to her.

"You sure sound excited." He noticed.

"Of course! I've always wanted to take a shot at this thing! It's a robot you!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"Well, I can normally handle Metal on my own, but with the Phantom Ruby, who knows what he could do? Let's go, Rainbow!" Sonic said with enthusiasm as he did the thumbs up.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash were running across a red stone bridge on the mainland, which was just on the city's outskirts. The bridge led towards a blocky hill landscape at the coast with different colored layered soil.

"This is the area where Metal Sonic was spotted." Amy informed the speedy pair over the comms.

"Weird. I don't see him anywhere." Sonic replied. "I figured a robot version of me would stand out pretty well."

"Maybe he figured we were coming and is hiding because he's too scared." Rainbow Dash suggested, her voice full of confidence.

"Doubtful. Just be on the lookout for anything strange." Sunset cautioned.

Once Sunset finished her sentence, Sonic and Rainbow Dash suddenly felt the ground under them break, instantly launching them high up into the air. This was due to a Death Egg Sentinel suddenly rising up

"Whoaaaa!" The two of them yelled as they along with various debris from the bridge were mid-air.

Rainbow Dash flew down to a ledge behind the sentinel. Sonic jumped off the various broken bridge pieces and quickly joined her.

"That was close." Sonic uttered with relief.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash turned around to see the Death Egg robot bringing its arm down to try and crush them. Before it made contact, the two of them easily evaded its attacks due to their speed by jumping. They found themselves in mid-air once more.

"Ha, what a slow poke. This will be easy!" Rainbow boasted.

The eye of the Death Egg Robot began to glow red and it released a large red beam. Acting quickly, Rainbow Dash grabbed Sonic and flew away from the beam as it chased them. The laser ended up destroyed parts of the landscape instead. Rainbow Dash took her and Sonic around and underneath the machine's torsor before they came in front of its eye. The Death Egg Robot began to charge up up another laser.

"I don't think so big guy!" Sonic taunted.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash transformed into a combined blur and crashed through the robot's eye, making its head explode in a burst of flames and sending it tumbling in the water below. The two of them were now headed in the direction of a pit with a sewer line and fell in a tunnel of some sort.

"Nice moves out there Dash." Sonic praised as he and Rainbow reached the ground. His comment made her chuckle.

"It was nothing. I eat guys like that for breakfast." She answered.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash then began to run out of the tunnel and approached the exit, which led them to another bridge. Once they got out of it, a familiar distortion sound was heard, stopping them in their tracks.

"And here it comes." Sonic remarked.

A flurry of red cubes appeared before the two heroes. They circled a purple energy source until they combined to form Metal Sonic. However, this one was somewhat larger than the ones that came before it and was surrounded with red pixels.

"Yeah! Now we're talking!" Rainbow Dash cheered.

"He's bigger than he usually is." Sonic commented, taking note of his robotic doppelganger's change in size. Hearing this made Rainbow Dash's eyes lit up with excitement.

"For real?! Then I'm going to look even cooler taking him down!" She declared before she turned to Metal. "Come on, show us what you're made of!"

Sonic slightly shook his head but did it with a smile on his face.

Instead of staying to fight, Metal Sonic flew ahead with a large burst of speed, leaving behind a purple trail as he did. This left his two challengers perplexed by his actions.

"Is he running away?!" Rainbow Dash yelled in a quizzical manner. "What gives?! Get back here!"

Rainbow Dash then sped off in a hurry, leaving a rainbow trail and Sonic behind.

"Can't let her hog all the action." He muttered to himself before he joined her in her pursuit of Metal Sonic.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash chased Metal Sonic, gaining on him. While they pursued him, debris from around the two of them began to crackle with purple electricity and float. The debris then combined above to form several purple electric walls, each placed in different positions along the road. Rainbow Dash nearly crashed into one but she managed to maneuver around it, but this took her off balance. Before she crashed to the ground, Sonic placed her back up with a slight nudge. He gave her a friendly smile while she had a slightly embarrassed look.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash moved around the laser pillars and got closer to Metal Sonic. When they did, Metal Sonic turned around to face them. His body suddenly began to be surrounded by robotic parts as a shield of some sort. Metal Sonic then launched the robotic parts at the two speedsters.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash jumped in the air and using their speed, they each moved through the robotic parts. Rainbow Dash shoved them to the side while Sonic pierced through them as a blue streak. Doing this brought the two of them nearer to Metal Sonic. Sonic then charged into Metal Sonic as a streak, making him recoil while Sonic jumped back. Rainbow Dash then tackled Metal, which pushed both of them away from each other. Sonic and Rainbow Dash regrouped while in the air and this time, the two of them collided into Metal Sonic as a combined blur. The force of their blow sent Metal Sonic crashing to the ground and sprawling.

"Yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she and Sonic returned to the floor.

"You can't let that get to your head, Dash." Sonic lectured. "It's gonna take more than that to take down Metal."

True to Sonic's words, Metal Sonic flew right back and not too fazed by their attacks. His body suddenly began to glow dark purple before he released a barrage of electricity from his body. The bolts generated struck everywhere around the bridge indiscriminately, creating small explosions. Sonic and Rainbow Dash split apart when they saw the electricity nearly strike in their direction. Due to this electric surge, Metal Sonic began to draw in countless robotic bits and pieces created by the Phantom Ruby until they covered his body entirely.

"Hey, what's he up to?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Is he trying that same trick again?"

"It's not like him to repeat things. I think-" Sonic started to say.

Sonic's sentence was cut off by Metal Sonic expelling all the robotic pieces off his body and straight towards him and his partner. A shower of metal was headed their way, causing the two of them to form looks of panic.

"Wow!" Sonic cried out while he and Rainbow Dash slowed down.

"It's like a robot storm coming towards us!" Rainbow Dash shouted.

"If we get hit by that, it's over. And there's too many of them to plow through to reach Metal in time." Sonic observed.

"Well, we better think of something fast!" Rainbow Dash replied. "It's getting closer and closer."

Rainbow Dash suddenly got an idea as she nudged Sonic.

"I got it! What if we were able to send all that stuff back towards Metal Sonic?" She suggested. "If we run fast enough and make a tornado, we could be able to pull it off."

"I don't have any better ideas, so let's try that!" Sonic quickly agreed.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash stopped running briefly. They then resumed, but this time, they ran around each other, starting supersonic speed. They couldn't afford to hold back. The two of them zipped around in a circle, getting faster and faster with each lap while the debris closed in on them. Shortly afterward, a small vortex formed. The two of them picked up the pace and their vortex gradually transformed into a tornado. The tornado began to stabilize as Sonic and Rainbow Dash continued to run. Eventually, it collided with the all the metal sent by Metal Sonic. The tornado held the debris in a swirl.

"Ok, we're going to need to time this right, ready? Rainbow Dash instructed.

"Ready!" Sonic yelled back.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash ran for a bit more, keeping the debris cycling. When the direction was just right, the two of them came to a sudden stop and slid across the ground. With them no longer keeping the whirlwind stable, it slowly fell apart. In the process, the wreckage it contained was launched in Metal Sonic's direction. The result was Metal being assaulted by a barrage of metallic pieces all over his body. This was too much for the robot to handle and Metal Sonic was blown back, landing on the floor with his knees. He then slid back a few feet.

"Wow, I can't believe that actually worked." Rainbow Dash expressed with slight disbelief. "What am I saying? Of course it worked!"

"Just keep that kind of thinking up. Cuz it's not over yet." Sonic warned.

The two teammates saw Metal Sonic rise into the air, his body beginning to emit a purple electric pulse. The electricity then began to turn yellow until Metal Sonic was covered in a giant energy field. Sonic's metallic rival then charged towards the speedy duo at an incredible speed, leaving behind a purple electric trail on the ground.

"Watch out!" Sonic screamed as he and Rainbow Dash barely dodged Metal Sonic's maximum overdrive attack. However, the two of them were blown away from each other due to the force it left behind and crashed to the floor.

"What was that?" Rainbow Dash wondered as she rose up, somewhat dazed.

"His maximum overdrive attack." Sonic explained. "It's pretty nasty. But he should-"

Sonic was cut off by Metal Sonic coming straight towards him and comarde once more in his energy field, taking him by surprise. This time, two of them had a close call as they just managed to dodge at the last second by jumping apart. They didn't get away unscathed though. Sonic's sleeve was slightly burned due to being close to Metal Sonic's field while Rainbow Dash's right wing was missing the top portion and smoldering.

"He shouldn't be able to do it twice in a row like that." Sonic continued. "But I guess due to the Phantom Ruby, anything's possible. What a pain."

"So I guess that leaves out dodging. He'll get be bound to get us if we continue with that." Rainbow Dash responded.

"In that case, I guess we'll have to take him head-on." Sonic decided. "I'd say it's time for the two us to team up. It doesn't matter what Metal throws us at us. We can take him."

"I like the sound of that." Rainbow Dash agreed. "Yeah, let's show this toaster what real speed is."

Sonic and Rainbow Dash turned to see Metal Sonic flying back to them with his energy field. The two of them got in a runners stance to charge up their speed. After a while, they leaped in the air, surrounded by blue and rainbow colored energy. They slapped hands before they came down on the ground.

"Double Boost!" The two of them yelled in unison.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash burst ahead, pushing their speed at a higher rate than usual. Sonic was surrounded in his boost while Rainbow Dash left behind a small Sonic Rainboom. As they ran together, their speed combined and shrouded both of them in a white aura of speed that gave off blue swirls. They approached Metal Sonic, getting in closer and closer until....

*Boom!"

A large explosion erupted in the center of the bridge. From the flames, Sonic and Rainbow came flying out while red cubes dispersed. They both landed on the ground and slid to a stop and observed the aftermath of their clash with Metal Sonic.

"*Whew*, that was tight." Sonic expressed with relief while placing his hands on his hips. He then faced his quick companion. "How you holdin' up, Dash?"

Rainbow Dash had her hands her knees while panting.

"That....was....Awesome!" Rainbow suddenly cheered as her eyes lit up with joy while sporting a huge grin on her face. "Did you see that?! I was so cool back there! That old buckets of bolts didn't see what hit him! What a slowpoke! It was me...."

Rainbow Dash continued to brag about the victory and make various fighting poses, causing Sonic to roll his eyes with an amused look. It seemed like she already forgotten that he had helped too. While Rainbow was busy gloating, from behind her, Sonic noticed the red cubes that emerged when Metal Sonic was destroyed were starting to spiral.

"Rainbow Dash?" He said as the cubes began to spiral faster.

Rainbow Dash didn't hear him. She was too busy gushing over her actions. As she went on, a giant pink hexagonal outline formed around the cubes while crackling with yellow electricity. This made Sonic's face shift from one of curiosity to one of concern.

"Rainbow Dash..." He said a bit louder than before, but she still didn't pay him any attention.

The outline and the cubes began to grow larger and larger and gave off a many pink flashes. This made Sonic's eyes fill with panic.

"RAINBOW DASH!" Sonic yelled, which finally got her attention. She stopped the poses she made and turned to Sonic with an irritated look.

"What?! What are you yelling for?!" Rainbow Dash demanded

A giant pink flash suddenly occurred and made the same noise as the Phantom Ruby along with the sound of a piece of the bridge collapsing. Hearing this caused Rainbow Dash to freeze in place. She then slowly turned around to see the source. What she saw made her jaw drop while Sonic looked on with a stupefied appearance.

Towering over the two of them was the upper body of a two-story tall giant Metal Sonic. It had a more hefty design, with extra armor around its shoulders that had pipes coming out of it. Instead of a mouth, it had a yellow energy cannon protruding. Metal Sonic's eyes were now red and slanted, with his claws appearing to be sharper than before. On his chest was a glass container that stored swirling red energy cubes. The giant Metal Sonic released a piercing electric sounding roar.

"Oh, that's why you kept calling my name..." Rainbow Dash realized in a small tone while she and Sonic began to back away slightly.

"I don't think I need to tell you this but....RUN!" Sonic suggested with urgency.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash bolted away from the Titanic Metal Sonic, which instantly began to pursue them. While Metal Sonic moved much slower than before, it destroyed partss of the bridge with its mobility.

"What do we do? What do we do?!" Rainbow Dash frantically asked as she flew next to Sonic.

"One thing's for sure. We can't let it near the city. A thing that huge is going to wreck that place. We're going to have to stop it here." Sonic decided.

Rainbow Dash looked a little uneasy at Sonic's suggestion. Her mind then drifted to thinking about the situation she was in. How cool would it be if she actually managed to take down something like this? Despite feeling nervous, she started to feel a little thrilled as well.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash were a considerable distance away from Titan Metal Sonic due to their superior speed, meaning the behemoths rampage was only damaging the bridge. It seemed the two of them were safe. However, the robot aimed it's face downwards and suddenly, a flashing red bomb with Eggman's insignia was released from its cannon. Many more of them followed soon after. The bombs bounced across the bridge towards the two speedsters, flashing yellow while they did. One bomb managed to appear a few inches away from them and suddenly exploded, leaving a small flare. Sonic and Rainbow Dash flinched as a consequence of the burst. More bombs started to catch up to the two of them and detonated, creating a barrage of blazes. In order to avoid getting caught in the blasts, Sonic and Rainbow Dash slowed down and maneuvered around them, racing around the bridge. , They managed to evade serious damage but were slightly affected by the aftermath of the explosions, placing their arms up to guard against them.

"Dash, *grunt* you OK?!" Sonic cried out amongst the outburst.

"I'm *flinch* fine! It's gonna take more than this to put me down!" His ally proudly responded.

The blue duo soon moved through all the explosives unleashed by their colossal foe. Though they had some smoke and a few black spots around them, they were fine. Furthermore, Titan Metal Sonic was still quite far from them. But the giant was done yet. In its mouth cannon, Titan Metal Sonic started to gather purple energy and raised its head forward. The super fast partners turned back to see Titan Metal Sonic charging an attack and knew what they were in for, forming alarmed faces.

"Incoming!" Sonic yelled as Titan Metal Sonic unleashed a large purple laser towards him and Rainbow Dash.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash diverged away from each other to move out of the way of the robot colossus's ray, which completely devasted the part of the bridge they were on and reduced it to mere rubble. The beam then moved down from that area, destroying the path of the bridge that came before it. The earth shattering force of the blast and the ground splitting apart blew sent both the Blue Blur and the Rainbow Trail away in the air. Though she was stunned for a while, Rainbow Dash was able to float in the air safely a few moments later and regain her balance. However, Sonic wasn't so lucky. With the ground gone and the powerful impact of the blast knocking him senseless, he started to fall down to the water below.

"Sonic!" Rainbow Dash shouted with distress.

Rainbow Dash acted on impulseand flew towards her descending friend. Just as it looked like Sonic would fall into the water, Rainbow Dash grabbed his arms. She then pulled the two of them higher in the air.

"Sonic, say something!" She cried.

Sonic shook his head to regain his senses. He looked up to see Rainbow Dash and gave her a grin.

"Looks like I owe you one." He said with gratitude.Sonic then looked behind him and noticed there was only a small fraction of the bridge remaining after Metal Sonic's attack. Seeing this caused a frown to form on his face face.

"The bridge can't take any more damage." He observed. "If we're going to stop Metal, it has to be here."

"Ok. We can do this. I mean, we took out one of these Death Egg robots earlier." Rainbow Dash brought up. "We found a weak point on it. I'm pretty sure it's the same for this thing."

Sonic took Rainbow Dash's words into consideration and examined the incoming Titan Metal Sonic. Most of his body was metallic and attacking there wouldn't do any good. His eyes then landed on his center, which had the glass container. A smirk emerged on Sonic's face afterward.

"Well, it'd probably be smart to hit that important looking glass on his chest." Sonic suggested. Rainbow Dash then took a look at the area for herself, recognizing the fragility.

"Duh!" She exclaimed.

"Ok then. On my mark...3...2.....1!" Sonic instructed.

Rainbow Dash tossed Sonic in the air before she joined him not too long afterward. There, the two of them grabbed a hold of the other's arm and transformed into a combined streak. With their united speed, the streak moved at a blinding rate towards the weak point of the robotic giant and smashed into it. This resulted in a crack forming slightly. Sonic and Rainbow Dash weren't done yet. The two of them continued to dash through Metal Sonic's glass core, each attack forming a fissure on his weak spot. After hitting it one more time, they were mid-air and prepared to strike once more. Before they could, Titan Metal Sonic lowered his head and charged up a purple beam on his cannon again.

"Sonic, he's going to fire another blast! We can't let it hit the bridge!" Rainbow Dash pointed out.

"Yeah, I know. It seems like to stop it, we're going to have to take it head-on." Sonic determined. "You up for another Double Boost?"

"Heh, do you need to ask?" Rainbow answered.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash let go of each other's arms and built up speed, which was shown by a blue/rainbow aura beginning to shroud them just as Metal Sonic continued to ready his laser. Once they were prepared, the speedy partners slapped hands.

"DOUBLE BOOST!" They both yelled in unison at the same time Titan Metal Sonic's ray was fired as he lifted his head slightly.

Sonic and Rainbow Dash dashed side by side, covered in a joined rainbow bluish field and breaking the sound barrier. They collided with Metal Sonic's laser, placing both attacks in a deadlock. The pair pushed with all that they had against their enemies foes. Doing so caused them to release small white bursts of air around them. Slowly, they began to move through Metal Sonic's shot until they plowed right through it. Due to the angle that Metal Sonic fired his laser, this resulted in the speedsters charging straight into his glass core and shattering it. This caused Metal's body to turn into a pink hue before he broke into many pink shards. The end result saw Sonic and Rainbow Dash moving down towards the water. Rainbow Dash used her ability to fly to grab Sonic and whisked the both of them to what was left of the bridge. When they landed, they both nearly collapsed on the floor. Sonic crouched while Rainbow knelt down. Performing two double boosts in such a short span of time was pretty draining. They took time to catch their breath.

"So...*huff* you're first *huff* Metal Sonic fight and he goes all super robot. " Sonic quipped. "I'm *huff* jealous. He didn't do that for me *huff* until a couple fights later. I *huff* thought we had something special."

"Well of *huff* course he had to bring his *huff* A game. He was against the two of us. *huff*." Rainbow Dash cried. "That was great though!" Best *huff* fight ever!

"For now." Sonic replied.

Sonic extended his hand out in a fist towards Rainbow Dash. In response, Rainbow Dash made a fist and the two of them fist bumped as sign of celebration for their victory.

The First Diversion

Sonic and Rainbow Dash entered through the doors to the Resistance Base after their victory. There, they found the other members they had left behind. They were now joined by Tails, Rarity, and Rouge, who had returned from the Chemical Plant.

"Tails! Good to see you back, buddy." Sonic greeted.

"Likewise. So Metal wasn't too hard this time?" Tails asked.

"Heh, he was nothing! Sonic and I took him down with no sweat! Even when he turned into a giant robot, we mopped the floor with him!" Rainbow Dash boasted." I'd like to see anyone top that!"

"Savin the world ain't a contest, Rainbow Dash." AppleJack lectured after she rolled her eyes.

"It is when I'm involved." Rainbow replied, pointing confidently to herself.

"Giant robot? That explains the huge energy reading we read on the chart." Sunset realized.

" Was it that dragon thing again?" Vector asked, recalling when Metal Sonic had transformed into Metal Overlord.

"Nah, something different. A lot lamer." Sonic dismissed with a handwave.

"Cool. And with Metal down, Eggman's lost the last of his enforcers." Manic brought up. "That's sure to deal a major blow to his army."

"With that, it means we're much closer to ending this awful war." Fluttershy said, her voice filled with hope. Everyone else was feeling more optimistic about their victories now. Things were starting to look up for them.

"It seems you've forgotten about the Phantom Ruby." Shadow said in a corner. "With it, Infinite can simply make more copies. Defeating our enemies doesn't matter with it still around."

Shadow's word quickly got rid of the hope spot the entire room was starting to feel.

"Oh, Shadow, do you always have to be a half-empty kind of guy?" Rouge scolded. "You didn't forget about the good news, did you?"

"Yes. I'd say we've had two success stories today. Tails, Twilight. Please share." Rarity added. The two geniuses then stepped forward, with Spike by Twilight's side.

"While you two were gone, Tails had me help him re-examine the data he found at the Chemical Plant." Twilight began. "And by going through it, we managed to come up with a plan to stop the Phantom Ruby."

Sonic and Rainbow Dash's eyes lit up with curiosity. This was game-changing news.

"Really? Great work guys!" Sonic praised.

"So, let's hear it!" Rainbow Dash requested.

"But first, we need everyone present to hear our plan. Has anyone seen Knuckles lately? He hasn't been in the room for a while. As our commander, we need him here." Tails pointed out.

The Resistance members realized that Tails was right and looked around. Knuckles had been noticeably absent for quite a bit.

"I haven't. I hope he still doesn't blame himself for what happened with Operation Big Wave." Amy said in a worried tone.

"Ah I thought Ah saw him head down the corridor earlier. Ah'll go find em." AppleJack volunteered.

AppleJack took a turn on the right and began to move down the resistance hallway.

AppleJack continued down the corridor, looking for any sign of where the Resistance commander could be. She walked for a little while until she came across an open room on her right. AppleJack peered into it and there, she saw Knuckles sitting down on a bench with his back facing her.

"Knuckles?" AppleJack called.

Hearing AppleJack's caused Knuckles to turn around to see her. He wore a melancholic expression on his face.

"Oh, it's you, AppleJack." He responded in a half-hearted manner.

"What are ya doin' in here?" AppleJack questioned. "We've got big news. Tails and Twilight came up with a plan to beat the Phantom Ruby. We need ya for the briefing."

Knuckles simply turned around after hearing what AppleJack said.

"Yeah, right." He scoffed. "I think we're all better off without a screwup commander like me."

AppleJack formed a concerned look on her face. She then walked further into the room.

"What do ya mean?" She said in a quizzical manner.

Knuckles then released a deep sigh.

"AppleJack, what kind of commander am I? I was the one who planned Operation Big Wave and led us right into it. And what happened? It flopped and we lost a big part of our army. We had a chance to take down Eggman and under my leadership, we blew it. And this entire time, we've just barely held our own against Eggman, making no progress. It wasn't until Sonic came back that things started looking up. I just feel like this entire time, I've failed as a commander." Knuckles confessed with sorrow while hanging his head in shame.

AppleJack's expression softened after hearing Knuckle's issues. He was really taking their latest defeat hard. AppleJack approached the bench Knuckles was on and sat down next to him.

"Listen Knuckles, that Operation did go pretty badly. But ya don't need to blame yerself for everythin' that went wrong. Eggman had that Phantom Ruby with em, remember? No one could have seen that coming. I promise, not a single person here holds ya responsible for what happened out there." AppleJack started.

Knuckles realized that AppleJack did have a point but he still wasn't feeling much better.

"But I can't blame the Phantom Ruby for why I've been such a screw up as a commander." He replied.

"Knuckles, if we really thought you were a bad commander, we would have asked for a change. But that hasn't happened." AppleJack pointed out. Knuckles saw that she was right and raised his head to look at her.

"We all follow ya because you've had the most experience with Eggman after Sonic and Tails. Everyone trusted ya to help us handle em. This war hasn't been easy on anyone, but you've helped us get through it. No matter what happens, ya always stayed strong and kept fighting. If ya ask me, that sounds like a mighty good commander." AppleJack praised with a smile.

Knuckles looked at AppleJack and saw the sincerity in her eyes. He thought about all the various battles he'd been in. No matter how hard it got, he kept fighting on, whether it was to protect the Master Emerald or help out his friends. His mind then drifted to thoughts about the other members of the Resistance. Despite everything that had happened, they were still ready to continue. He couldn't let them down with his own weakness. He had to support them as the leader. Knuckles clenched his fist and rose up, his confidence rising.

"AppleJack, thanks for the pep talk." He thanked, which made AppleJack beam.

"Anytime, sugah cube." She responded.

"Hey,could you do me a favor and not mention this to Sonic." Knuckles then asked. "I really don't need his 'teasing'."

AppleJack raised her arms in defense. "Ah won't say a word. But if anyone asks, just remember Ah'm supposed to represent honesty."

Knuckles wasn't too pleased to hear that last part and hoped the incoming conversation with the others could skip over why he was missing. With his spirits raised, Knuckles walked out of the door while AppleJack was not too far behind.

Knuckles and AppleJack entered the main room of the resistance, catching everyone's attention.

"There you are. You weren't thinking about quitting were you?" Rouge asked in a playful manner.

Knuckles cleared his throat and faced the rest of his companions.

"Of course not. I just needed a little...motivation. Everyone, I promise, I'm going to stand by all of you until the end." Knuckles vowed. "Tails, Twilight, let's hear this plan."

All eyes were now on the brainy duo as they began to discuss their plan.

"According to the readings I found, the Phantom Ruby needs a large amount of power, which can only be provided by the Death Egg." Tails explained. "All we have to do is cut off the transfer of power and the Phantom Ruby is useless."

"You make it sound like that'll be easy." Silver said. "The Death Egg is probably Eggman's most guarded facility. Getting in there is going to be a challenge."

"Tails and I thought of that, Silver." Twilight responded. "The two of us came up with a plan. First, we're going to distract Eggman. With his attention elsewhere, we use the Chemical Plant's database to hack the Death Egg's weapon system and shut it down. This will leave it totally defenseless."

"With the defenses gone, we can head in and bam, take it out." Tails finished. "No Death Egg means the Phantom Ruby is useless."

The Resistance took some time to digest Tails and Twilight's plan.

"Sounds risky...but who doesn't love a little danger." Rainbow Dash decided. "I say we go for it!."

"I'm with Rainbow Dash, sounds good to me." Knuckles agreed. The other members didn't appear to have a problem with his judgement, meaning the plan was good to go.

"So we first need a distraction. How is this going to work exactly?" Rarity questioned.

"Tails and I figured that the Green Hill and Seaside Hill are the best places to aim for. Eggman usually has a tighter grip on those areas for the moment." Twilight stated. "So, who wants to be our decoy?"

"Pick me, pick me!" Pinkie eagerly said as she waved her hand up in the air. "I can be distracting!"

"Maybe the thing is, yer too distracted." AppleJack dryly expressed.

"Hang on, I think she's on to something. Eggman wouldn't expect her at the Green Hill. To add on to our distraction, I'll go with her. I've barely been out, so this is sure to throw Eggman off." Amy offered. She then turned to Sunset.

"You can handle communications while I'm gone?" She asked.

"Sure thing, leave it to me." Sunset promised.

Amy suddenly found herself wrapped in Pinkie's arms, who was very excited.

"The two of us are going to be the best distraction, ever!" Pinkie gleefully declared while Amy just did a small smile.

"A hyperactive pink party girl who can blow things up and always carries confetti?" Manic said. "Eggman definitely won't be able to ignore that."

"Then we have the Green Hill covered. What about Seaside Hill?" Silver wondered.

"The boys and I can handle it." Vector boasted as he placed his hand in his fist."

"Yeah, we can handle it!" Charmy repeated.

"Hold on. If the three of us head out, Eggman will be familiar with our attack pattern." Espio brought up. "It wouldn't be something unexpected. I propose we do a mixup in our formation."

"Then Ah'll go in yer place." AppleJack said."That Eggman'll never see me comin'!"

Espio then nodded to AppleJack, giving her his approval.

"Well, then it's settled. Get going all of you! There's only a day until Eggman's plan is executed." Knuckles ordered.

Pinkie gave a military salute in response to Knuckle's command. She and the others then prepared to head out on their missions.

"Do be careful." Fluttershy called out as they all left.

In the Green Hill, Amy and Pinkie were moving across a pathway. In the background, Eggman's pyramid was smoking, indicating that it was beginning to crumble due to the attack it had suffered earlier. However, the rest of the area was still suffering from heavy desertification,

"So, since we're going to need to cause as much noise as we can to get Eggman's attention....." Amy started.

"I have just the thing." Both She and Pinkie uttered with a sly smile.

Out of nowhere, Pinkie took out a large blue cannon, much to Amy's surprise. Amy, on the other hand, had taken out her signature Piko Piko Hammer, which caught Pinkie's eye.

"Where did you get that?" Amy and Pinkie both said in a quizzical tone.

"One never goes anywhere without their party cannon." Pinkie responded.

"And I never leave without my Piko Piko Hammer." Amy answered

"Piko Piko just sounds so much fun to say!" Pinkie praised with a giggle. "I gotta look into a name like that for my party cannon!"

" Party cannon, huh? Ok, let's get this party started." Amy uttered with a grin.

Amy and Pinkie Pie began to wreak havoc in the Green Hill. Amy swung her hammer around, sending Egg Pawns flying as she came across them. Pinkie filled her cannon up with sprinkles that glowed the instant she touched them. She then started firing ammunition everywhere, laughing while she did. Pinkie fired indiscriminately, destroying Egg Pawns while also causing damage to the landscape.

"Best...Mission....ever!" Pinkie cackled.

"Eggman's can't ignore us." Amy claimed.

The two distractions continued their actions while they moved through the Green Hill. Eventually, they came across a winding tunnel, which peaked Pinkie's interest.

"Ooooh, this looks like it'll be a fun slide!" She voiced.

Pinkie immediately entered the tunnel, her laughter being heard while going through. Amy noticed this and let out an amused smile.

"She treats this like it's a video game." She commented before she went into the tunnel after Pinkie.

The pink partners were transported to a more industrial area of the Green Hill after they exited the tunnel. Pipe platforms covered the entire region. Pinkie Pie looked on, not impressed with what she saw.

"Wow...we went from our pretty place...to this snoozeville." She complained. "What a way to kill the mood."

"That's Eggman for you." Amy said. "He ruins anything he gets his hands on."

Amy and Pinkie traversed through the platforms, being greeted by a squadron of Egg pawns shortly after they started moving. Amy swung her hammer with much force, causing her to spin around like a small tornado. She knocked back any robot she came into contact with. Pinkie looked on Amy's technique with eagerness.

"I so gotta try that!" She exclaimed.

Pinkie began to spin herself around rapidly, firing her shots all around. She wasn't as precise as Amy when it came to hitting enemies but she managed to blow some of the, back due to this. When the enemies were dealt with, Amy and Pinkie stopped spinning. Amy was fine due to being experienced though Pinkie was slightly dizzy.

"Hey, you ok?" Amy questioned as she noticed her ally's condition.

Pinkie shook her head and recovered her senses in no time.

"Yesindiddily. I love being dizzy!" Pinkie said in response.

The two of them found themselves at a dead end as a metallic wall blocked their path when they continued across the area. It looked like the only way was to head up.

"Well, it's a good thing I can fly." Pinkie said. Before she took off, Amy grabbed her hand.

"Wait, I have something you might like to try." Amy suggested. "Stand close."

Pinkie did as she was told and came next to Amy. Amy took out her Hammer and whacked the floor with colossal strength, leaving a pink flash. This resulted in the two girls being catapulted high up in the air. Pinkie squealed while they headed upward. At the top, a few Egg Pawns were waiting up ahead. While mid-air, Pinkie fired a shot out of her cannon, blowing the bots to bits. Amy and Pinkie then landed, now back in the flora covered part of Green Hill.

"That was so much fun! That was better than any trampoline I've been on!" Pinkie Pie gushed. "Can we go again! Can we? Can we?"

"Let's finish our mission first, then we do it over and over." Amy complied.

The diversion pair continued to make their way on the road while also leaping off different platforms. Pinkie was a natural at the latter part, happily humming and skipping while doing so. However, she got a little distracted and when she made another jump, she didn't notice there was no platform for her to go on. Instead, Pinkie ended up falling down into another industrial place of the zone. Amy saw her fall and quickly descended down towards her, looking slightly concerned.

"Pinkie, are you all right?" Amy wondered as soon as she reached the bottom.

Much to her surprise, Pinkie was standing on both legs, looking perfectly fine.

"Nice of you to join me." Pinkie cheerfully greeted. "You don't need to worry, I always land on my feet."

Amy and Pinkie were back in another industrial area of the Green Hill, with different layered pathways leading higher. The two of them moved ahead on the lowest path. When they reached the end, they turned the other way and jumped on the other path. Blocking their way were Egg Pawns lined up in a single row. Acting quickly, Amy took a big swing and smashed the lead robot, sending it crashing into the others before they could attack. All of the robotic minions were jumbled together. This allowed Pinkie to blow them to bits with a single shot out of her cannon. The path was now free, letting the girls move across safely. They then reached the highest pathway, which was also guarded by Egg Pawns. Pinkie rapidly fired 3 rounds from her cannon, destroying the first half of squadron. This left the other members stunned. Due to this, Amy was easily able to sweep in and smash the remaining members to bits and pieces using hammer swings. With the enemies gone, the pink heroines were free to move out of the industrial area and back to the more natural setting.

"We're sure to have leveled up after that." Pinkie mused. Amy found her comment a little strange.

"So, do you act like missions are a game to make things more fun?" Amy asked.

"Yeah, 'act'." Pinkie cryptically answered with a wink. Amy didn't understand what she meant.

The two companions moved across gaps across Green Hill before landing on another trail. Egg Pawns began to approach both of them, ready to take fire. Before they got the chance, Amy slammed her hammer on the ground, generating a giant pink shockwave which lifted the robots off the ground. While the bots were mid air, Pinkie took aim and fired multiple blasts, destroying the enemies. In the aftermath, she eyed the sparks left behind.

"Ooooh, pretty fireworks!" She said with glee.

"Huh, guess something nice can come out of the Egg Pawns." Amy mused.

Amy and Pinkie resumed their mission and continued through the Green Hill. They shortly found themselves in another mechanical pathway, with more Egg Pawns coming their way. Amy spun around to perform her Hammer Spin as Egg Pawns were smashed all over the place. Pinkie floated mid-air and shot rounds down below. The enemies were down in no time an Pinkie rejoined Amy on the ground. The two of them then ran out of their current location and back to the Green Hills natural landscape

"I think we've made a pretty good diversion." Amy stated. "I think it's time to head back."

"You sure?" Pinkie said. "We haven't fought the boss yet."

"Pinkie, it's fun to pretend this is a game and all, but it won't go exactly like a game." Amy told her. "I'd say our work here is done."

The rosy damsels continued to make their way past the Green Hill Zone. As they moved further along, they came across another modified area of the Green Hill. However, this region appeared to a racing arena of some sort, with two ramps placed across from each other, both having a smaller one lead up to them. Two tall pillars with orange tips were between the ramps.

"Huh, what's up with this place?" Amy said in a quizzical manner.

"It looks like some kind of racing track!" Pinkie observed. "That's pretty cool!"

Suddenly, Amy and Pinkie heard the sound of a motor coming from behind them, making them turn around to see the source. Heading their way was an Egg Robo decorated as a purple colored knight. On its head was a gray colored helmet. Its torso was black and it possessed red eyes and gray appendages. Its forefeet were purple and spikes covered its chest. The robot was riding a large Moto Bug with crazy, swirling red eyes. It was also carrying a large flail in its right hand, swinging it around like a madman.

"Well, would you look at that. Here's the boss." Pinkie casually told her partner.

"Get ready Pinkie, we've got a fight on our hands."Amy cautioned, clutching her hammer in a battle stance.

The Heavy Rider charged towards its two opponents at ramming speed while spinning its flail. When it got close enough, it brought the mace down to smash the two heroines. Luckily, Amy and Pinkie managed to avoid the attack by jumping apart. However, the Rider quickly stopped to a swerve and drove to the heroines. They noticed that due to the speed the Heavy Rider was moving at it, dodging was out of the question. In response, Amy prepared her hammer and released a swing when the Heavy Rider came closer. Amy's hammer and the Rider's flail clashed but due to the momentum the Rider had, Amy stumbled back. The Heavy Rider drove on ahead before making another turn back to its enemies. This time, Pinkie fired shots out of her cannon while the Rider was driving. In response, the Heavy Rider veered from side to side, evading Pinkie's attacks. Using its trusty stead, it bounced in the air to evade her other shots, much to Pinkie's astonishment and wonder. The robotic knight was directly above Pinkie and heading down to crush her with its ride. Pinkie formed a panicked look and used her cannon to propel herself out of harm's way as the Heavy Rider landed on the ground. Strangely, the metallic rider began to perform doughnuts afterward. This made Amy and Pinkie look on, stumped by what they were witnessing.

"Ok, I'd say this robot probably has a few screws loose. Literally." Pinkie remarked.

"Maybe, but that makes it unpredictable. We're going to have to be careful with this one." Amy decided.

The Heavy Rider continued to drive in circles, almost as if it was ignoring the fact that it had two foes to fight. It then unexpectedly faced Amy and Pinkie once more and went straight towards them, still spinning its mace. In order to counter this, Amy performed her Hammer Spin attack, causing her weapon to repeatedly clash against her mechanized adversary when they made contact. This left the Rider unable to progress. Seeing a chance, Pinkie fired her cannon towards the Heavy Rider. Instead of taking Pinkie's shot, the machine being leaped off its Moto Bug in a manner akin to that of a stunt. This resulted in Amy ending her spinning due to the Rider going upward. Instead, the Heavy Rider's steed attempted to ram into her. Amy used her hammer as a guard against it, but she was struggling and slowly being pushed back due to the force of the ladybug robot. This left her wide open, which the Heavy Rider did not overlook. It began to descend back to the ground, its arm raised to crush Amy with its flail. Pinkie let out a small yelp when she saw what could happen. Thinking fast, Pinkie used her cannon to boost herself forward once more. With this tactic, she grabbed Amy out of the way just as the Heavy Rider came down and brought its mace down on the ground, leaving a crater where Amy used to be.

"Thanks for the save." Amy expressed with gratitude.

"No problem." was Pinkie' answers. She then looked at the Heavy Rider with a frown. "That robot is bonkers! And if I'm saying it, it means something."

Instead of changing its direction to where its enemies were, the Heavy Rider drove up on a smaller ramp. With it, it continued to ride towards the bigger ramp. The Rider made its way towards the gap ahead and performed a stunt jump to get across the other side. Doing this made scream "Yay!" while also unleashing confetti everywhere. Pinkie beamed while Amy was totally baffled.

"What is this? First, it's trying to kill us and now it's putting on a show." Amy said with disbelief.

"Confetti!" Pinkie shrieked with delight with her hands on her face. "Maybe this robot isn't so bad..."

What appeared to be a harmless show then turned deadly as from the two pillars near the ramps, spews of flames suddenly emerged, spraying everywhere. Amy and Pinkie immediately took down ground to make sure the flames didn't touch them.

"Forget what I said." Pinkie flatly said as she and Amy turned to each other.

The flames died down shortly after, with the robotic stuntman driving back on the ground again . Amy and Pinkie picked themselves up, ready to continue their battle.

"This thing is a real pain in the neck. It's just so unpredictable." Amy complained.

The Heavy Rider turned in the direction of its opponents and began to rev up its Moto Bug.

"What could it be now?" Amy wondered out loud, gripping her hammer tightly.

Pinkie took into acconunt about Amy's recent comment of the Heavy Rider being so erratic. If they were going to counter it, they had to be wild too.

"I've got an idea!" Pinkie suddenly said. "I'm going to shoot you out of my cannon!"

Pinkie's suggestion caused Amy to look at if she was absolutely insane.

"What?! Are you crazy?" She replied.

"Well, don't we have to out-crazy this robot in order to win." Pinkie brought up.

Taking Pinkie's statement into consideration, Amy realized she had a point. They had to match the unexpected by acting in the same manner. She then performed a shrug.

"Ok, it's better than nothing. Let's do it." Amy finally agreed.

Amy placed in herself inside Pinkie's cannon, surprisingly managing to fit. When she finished doing so, the Heavy Rider finished revving up and burst towards her and Pinkie, leaving behind a trail of flames in the aftermath. Amy looked slightly anxious as she saw the robot incoming while Pinkie formed a mad grin.

"Let's see how you like our stunt!" Pinkie yelled as she pulled the trigger on her cannon.

Amy was then shot out as a projectile, travelling at an incredible rate. She and the Heavy Rider were getting closer and closer very quickly. With this occurring, the Rider displayed it's mace, preparing to attack. Amy clenched her hammer as tight as she could. When she and the Rider prepared to collide, Amy brought her hammer forward. Her weapon landed on the Heavy Riders chest before it brought down its mace.This caused Amy's attack to form a powerful pink shockwave that sent the robot flying several feet while also creating a giant dent in its chest. This also left her Moto Bug without a rider and it just moved forward towards Pinkie. Pinkie then blast a hole in front of it, making the robotic insect fall into the pit. It was now trapped while its wheel kept turning, but to no avail. The Heavy Rider rose from the ground, damaged due to Amy's hit. It looked up to see it's rose colored opponents getting closer

"Not so tough without your little ride, are you?" Amy taunted, holding her hammer with a sly smile.

In response, the Heavy Rider started to swing it's flail and launched it to Amy. Amy released a swing of her own, with her hammer crashing into the Rider's flail. The impact caused the Rider's mace to be crushed into pieces, leaving the robot shocked and defenseless. Amy gave it a menacing look while Pinkie's was smugger. The Heavy Rider started to back up a bit, realizing things were only to get worse.

"My turn!" Pinkie called out.

Pinkie unloaded her entire can of sprinkles into her cannon after they started glowing. Inside her cannon, the sound of an explosion building up was heard until Pinkie fired. This unleashed a larger blast than the ones before that tore the Heavy Rider apart after hitting it square in the chest.

"Yes, we did it!" Amy cheered.

Amy and Pinkie grabbed a hold of each other's hands and did a victory jump.

"Wait a minute." Amy said, interrupting their celebration. "Why didn't you destroy that robot's ride?"

"Because...this!" Pinkie claimed.

Pinkie rushed back to hole that the Moto Bug fell into. With some difficulty, she pulled it out of the pit and placed it on the ground. She then immediately jumped on the Moto Bug, rocking back and forth excitedly

"Let's ride!" Pinkie exclaimed as the Moto Bug started to rev up before it took off with Pinkie as it's new rider.

Pinkie rode around the area, laughing loudly while doing so. Amy looked on, certainly not expecting this. She then looked up at the sky.

"I hope the others at the SeaSide Hill are doing ok." She wishfully said.

Another Distraction

Seaside Hill, once a beautiful beach with fascinating architecture, was completely transformed under Eggman's control. The once clear blue water was now heavily polluted with oil, giving it a dark and murky color. The natural terrain was mostly covered in metallic plating. The area was originally home to palace-like ruins but these were now crumbling, with holes and crates littering the remaining pieces. It was now replaced with mechanical pieces such as pipes, metal buildings and barriers along with wires everywhere. A metallic factory was in the background, with large generators by its side. The once luscious green plants were now dry and orange colored. Alongside the seaside were red colored guard rails. Vector, Charmy, and AppleJack arrived and were displeased by what they saw.

"This used to be a beach?" AppleJack questioned with disbelief.

"Yikes. Eggman really did a number on this place." Vector commented while shaking his place.

"Aw man. I loved this place! Remember when we had to find crabs?" Charmy brought up, which made Vector grimace at the thought of such a tedious task while AppleJack looked confused.

"Why were y'all lookin' for crabs?" She asked.

"Eh, our client, which turned out be Eggman, wanted to test our detective skills or something. It's a long story. I just never want to see another crab here again." Vector explained.

The small team then started moving across the ground of the SeaSide Hill. Shortly after they did, they all felt and heard a large rumbling sound, stopping them in their tracks. This left them bewildered as they began to look around.

"What in tarnation was that!?" AppleJack wondered out loud.

Near the background of the Seaside hill, a giant battle mech was making it's way across. It resembled a large mechanical crab with eight legs and was the size of a building. It had a disk-shaped body with a large dark and gray shell while having a pale gray underbelly. Up front, it had many red featureless eyes, a small flat nose, and small dark gray claws. Its legs were made of dark gray metal and covered in spikes while having flat feet. 3 of them were blocking the path of the trio. AppleJack and Charmy looked on, shocked by its sight while Vector's face fell.

"You have got to be kidding me? Is this some kind of joke?" He expressed with dismay.

"Look at the size of that thing!" Charmy exclaimed as he lifted his hands up high to display how tall it was.

"I guess I shouldn't be too surprised Eggman had another weapon up his sleeve." Vector grimly said.

"Weapon or not, we still got a job to do." AppleJack said, her voice full of determination. " I aint gonna let no oversized crab stop me!"

"Yeah! But it's weird that both times I was here, I have to deal with crabs." Charmy pointed out.

The second distraction squad moved on ahead. They made their way across using moving platforms, which lead them to a higher path. The three of them were now in the section of a mechanized factory, with Egg Pawns littering the area.

"Now, it's time for us to be distracting. " Vector declared as he cracked his knuckles.

Charmy began to fire his stingers, piercing through Egg Pawns and also parts of the factory, leaving his needles stuck on various places. AppleJack and Vector brawled through their enemies using their fist, smashing any robot in sight. However, they also got creative. AppleJack took out various chunks of metal from either the ground or the walls, tossing them at the robots. Vector dug his hands in the metallic floor and lifted it up. This threw his mechanized foes into the air and they crashed randomly, either on the floor or other parts of the factory.

"Finally! A fun mission!" Charmy cheered while firing around.

"It's good to let loose and be wild! I haven't had a good time since Eggman's conquest!" Vector stated as he bashed a robots head into the ground.

"This is one mess Ah'm ok leavin'!" AppleJack said, noticing the heavy destruction she and her teammates unleashed on the factory.

Once the enemies were gone, the team continued to go through the factory section until they exited it back to a more a basic area. The three heroes moved across the metal pathway, with Charmy going the fastest.

"That was so much fun!" Charmy said as he flew on ahead. "Come on guys, hurry up!"

"Hey, hold on Charmy!" Vector scolded from behind.

"Heh, he's just like Pinkie." AppleJack said to Vector with a slight smile.

"And just one of him is a handful." Vector replied with a sigh.

Charmy continued to eagerly fly. When he noticed how behind his two partners were, he turned around with a frown.

"Hey, guys! Stop being so slow!" Charmy yelled up ahead. This made Vector grit his teeth in annoyance.

"Charmy you-" He began

Vector's sentence was cut off as his and AppleJack's faces shifted into ones of horror. One of the Death Crab's legs was coming down, straight on top of an unsuspecting Charmy.

"Outta the way!" AppleJack yelled.

Charmy looked up to see why AppleJack was yelling and froze in fear when he witnessed the foot of the robotic crab, which was heading to crush him. Charmy closed his eyes and expected the worst. He then heard the sound of metal crashing into something and a grunt. Charmy opened his eyes to see AppleJack struggling to hold up the Death Crab's leg. She was feeling the pressure and her knees wobbled a bit.

"Move, partner!" She instructed.

Charmy instantly did as he was told and flew out of the Death Crab's shadow. With him gone, AppleJack continued to hold the Crab's leg, getting closer to kneeling. After a little bit, she leaped ahead, causing the robot's foot to slam the ground. She and Charmy were safe but separated from Vector, who was still behind. Before they could go on ahead, the Death Crab dropped three more of its leg in front. A few seconds passed and all of its legs were lifted. The trio then moved by as fast they could and managed to regroup when they got past the last leg.

"Charmy, you ok?" Vector asked.

"I am thanks to AppleJack swooping in!" Charmy gushed as he admired his rescuer with awe.

"It was nothin'." AppleJack modestly replied. "Seein' ya like that made me think of ma sis bein' in danger and I just acted as fast as I could."

" You didn't let that big crab stop you at all! That's one of the coolest things I've seen!" Charmy praised, making AJ a little more flustered.

"Hey, we've done plenty of stuff together and you've never said that about me." Vector brought up.

"Eh, we're always together, so it's nothing special." Charmy dismissed, which made Vector form a sour look on his face.

The team went further into the area. This led them into the damaged ruins of the Seaside Hill's palace, which was in the process of being converted into a part of Eggman's base. Instead of Egg Pawns this time, there was a squad of 4 large robots 3 times their size. They shared the same color scheme with a black lower half, an armored neck collar, and large hands and feet. Each of them possessed a large gray spiked hammer.

"So, a change of pace from the regular bots we've been smashing? Fine by me!" Vector loudly stated. He then cracked his knuckles.

Vector charged straight towards an Egg Hammer just as it was bringing its hammer down. His fists clashed with the robot's weapon many times, putting both of them at a small stalemate. The Egg Hammer lifted it's hammer and tried to swing again but due to his superior agility, Vector avoided harm with a jump. Midair, Vector clasped both his hands together and smashed down on the Egg Hammer's helmet, slamming the robot in the ground. He bounced off the robot's body and came down for two more smashes in order to ensure it was down for the count. Another Egg Hammer was trying to smash AppleJack, who moved around quickly to dodge. The Egg Hammer then released a swing towards AppleJack's side. However, she caught the robot's hammer and yanked it out of her enemy's hand. AppleJack then released a series of powerful swings that smashed the Egg Hammer back and it crashed to the ground. The last two Egg Hammers kept frantically waving their mallets, desperately trying to hit Charmy. Charmy was too small and fast to hit and kept taunting his enemies by making obnoxious faces. Eventually, he came between the two Egg Hammers, leaving him seemingly trapped. The robots both unleashed two mighty swings, hoping to crush him. Instead, Charmy simply flew down, causing the Egg Hammers to take each out as they smashed each other clean in the head.

" I'd say these fellas weren't too much of a step up from the usual robots." AppleJack commented as she, Vector and Charmy came together.

"We're just that good!" Charmy boasted.

"Yeah. You the way I took out that robot, right? Pretty amazing, huh?" Vector rhetorically asked Charmy

"Eh,anyone can do that. I've seen you do better." Charmy simply said in an unimpressed tone. He then flew on ahead, leaving behind a stumped Vector.

"What the? But? Vector stammered as he looked at AppleJack

"Who knows, partner?" AppleJack told him. "Maybe you'll wreck somethin' bigger."

The distraction team traversed in the area until they made it out the ruins. As they moved forward, Vector and AppleJack tore through metallic wires around the Seaside Hill, with Charmy flying above. They soon came across a gap with metallic platforms across it. Before anyone could move, 3 of the Death Crabs leg's slammed ahead. They rested for a few seconds before they lifted up, allowing the 3 heroes passage across the gap. The group then headed towards the outskirts of an industrial section. When they began to get closer, two robotic crabs legs stomped the ground, stopping them in their tracks.

"Eggman's new machine is really getting on my nerves." Vector said in an irritated tone. "I'm really starting to hate crabs now."

"So far, it hasn't been able to see where we are exactly. So far, so good, hasn't really stopped our mission. Let's hope it stays that way." AppleJack commented.

The legs of Eggman's newest weapon were then raised up, with AppleJack, Charmy and Vector getting past them in no time. With the limbs no longer being a barrier, they entered the industrial section, which was filled with Egg Pawns and an Egg Hammers.

"Time for more smashing!" Charmy cheerfully announced.

Charmy used his stingers to fire at Egg Pawns, bringing them down. AppleJack took out her lasso and rounded up 3 Egg Pawns. She then swung them all over the place, taking out other robotic minions in the process. With much ferocity, Vector ripped apart Egg Pawns using his bare hands. During the battle, no one noticed the Death Crab in the background had taken a gigantic leap into the air. With the Egg Pawns gone, this left the Egg Hammer. It raised its hammer but before it could use it, AppleJack wrapped around the weapon with her rope. She then pulled with great strength, which brought the Egg Hammer down on the ground.

"Vector, fastball, fastball!" Charmy pleaded.

"I heard ya." Vector answered.

Vector grabbed a hold of Charmy with both hands. He aimed Charmy at the head of the Egg Hammer as it rose up and using much of his strength, he tossed him as if he was a living arrow at the robotic brute's head. Charmy stuck out his arms so his stingers were in front. He then penetrated through the top of the robot and came out the other side. The Egg Hammer fell to the floor with a large thud instantly while Charmy floated on the other side.

"I love doing that!" He exclaimed.

"Let me guess, he came up with that?" AppleJack questioned, to which Vector nodded.

"It kills two birds with one stone. Gets the job done and he has fun too." He elaborated.

"Ah just hope Pinkie doesn't come up with a crazy idea like that." AppleJack wishfully replied.

"Seeing as they are so much alike, I'd say you better start practicing." Vector jokingly advised.

Seeing as the enemies were defeated, AppleJack and the two Chaotix members went on ahead into the direction of another wrecked palace, though it wasn't bad as the one before, due to it only being slightly mechanical.

"I'd say we've made a big enough ruckus." AppleJack decided. "I'd say it's time for us to head back."

"Aw, already?" Charmy said in a disappointed tone.

"I would say our work here is done." Vector started. "But we haven't seen that mechanical crab in a while. Something doesn't add up...."

Before anyone else could speak, an enormous thundering noise erupted behind the 3 members of the Resistance. This immediatley caught their attention and they turned around to see that the Death Crab had landed on the ground, a couple of feet away from them. It lifted its hind legs up, winding them up before it started to charge towards the trespassers, crashing through the remains of the oceanic palace like it was nothing. Vector, Charmy, and AppleJack gasped and formed frightened looks as the metallic behemoth was headed their way.

"Run for it!" Charmy shrieked as he and his teammates began to flee from their pursuer.

"I really hate crabs!" Vector yelled while he ran.

"We can't let it get to the Chemical Plant or otherwise this will all have been for nothin'. We have to keep it busy here." AppleJack ordered.

While it was in hot pursuit, the Death Crab lifted up large pieces of debris from the ground, sending it towards the 3 man team. Thanks to his size and speed, Charmy was able to maneuver around them while airborne. On the other hand, AppleJack and Vector occasionally turned to smash the large chunks into pieces with punches.

"This is no good. It's got us on the run." Vector realized, knowing he and the others couldn't keep this up forever.

AppleJack saw that there was truth in Vector's words. She then remembered his fastball special with Charmy and decided to act. She once again took out her lasso and swung it for a while.

"Hey, Charmy, up for somethin' fun?!" She called out to the hyperactive flyer.

"You bet!"He quickly replied from above.

While avoiding rubble instead of hitting it like Vector, AppleJack grabbed a hold of Charm with her rope.

"Hope this works!" She called out as she swung Charmy back towards the center of the Death Crab's eye.

"Wheee!" Charmy called out.

Charmy pointed both of his stingers and jammed them into the eye of the mechanical crustacean, stunning it and causing it to fall back slightly. This left the eye cracked and giving off some electricity.

"Surprise Suckah!" Vector declared, seeing there was an opening for him to attack.

Vector took a mighty leap and unleashed a powerful punch on one of the Death Crab's leg, making it stagger. This sent it even more behind as all its leg fell front. It was now stationary.

"Great, let's get it y'all!" AppleJack announced.

The Death Crab lifted it's legs up and prepared to bring them down. However, Charmy started to fly around it, firing his stingers. They didn't do much damage, but they left his robotic enemy disorientated.

"Vector, can ya give me a toss?" AppleJack requested.

"No problem." He complied as he grabbed AppleJack by the shoulders.

Vector aimed AppleJack straight towards the Death Crab and flung her in the air. As she was headed towards the Crab, AppleJack took out her lasso and wrapped it around one of its legs. She then swung around to the closest limb and placed the remainder of her rope around it, entangling it. Due to this, the Death Crab fell and crashed to the ground upside down. It was now helpless as it started to slide on the ground.

"Now to make sure there's no more out of you!" Vector shouted as he jumped in the air, placing his two hands together.

Vector smashed down on the Death Crab with a powerful belly flop, leaving an impact. This left a large dent in the weapon's center and made all of its light's flicker out, indicating it had shut down.

"Now that's one cracked crab." Vector quipped as he dusted his hands. He then turned to see Charmy and AppleJack coming in to join him.

"Great work, y'all!" AppleJack congratulated. "That's one less weapon for Eggman to use."

"This was the most fun I've ever had on a mission!" Charmy cheered. "AppleJack, that rope makes fastball so much cooler! I go a lot faster and I swing around like a yo-yo! Can you go with me on my next mission and we can do that all the time?"

"Heh, we'll have to see what's in store for us." was AppleJack's answer.

"Ahem, aren't you forgetting something, Charmy?" Vector pointed out. "I was the one who took down that mech in the end. Who's the coolest now?"

"Well, it was more of a team effort. You wouldn't have been able to if AppleJack and I didn't help." Charmy reminded him.

Vector placed his hand on his face face.

"Ah, come on." He complained while AppleJack chuckled slightly.

"Like I said earlier, you'll probably get somethin' big guy." AppleJack said to comfort him.

Vector just let out a hefty sigh while an oblivious Charmy pranced around in celebration.

Infiltration

Up in the frigid north, Sonic was racing across a metallic pathway which had yellow pipelines with blue chemicals flowing through them. He was heading towards one of Eggman's Chemical Plant's. While he was doing so, his communicator began to beep, catching his attention.

"Sonic, our two distractions worked perfectly! Eggman has his hands full with the Green Hill and Seaside Hill." Knuckles informed him.

"Sonic, we need you to take this Chemical Plant and shut down the Death Egg's weapons system." Sunset chimed in.

"No problem, leave it to me." Sonic reassured. "I've been waiting to bust some heads for a long time."

Sonic jumped across a gap on the metal road before he reached the other side. There, he used his speed to make a larger leap which led him towards a grind rail. Sonic began grinding on this one until he switched to another rail due to the previous coming to an end. Ahead, He noticed a zip line coming up. Sonic then dashed off the rail and grabbed a hold of it. The zip line hurled him to another a rail shortly after. He released his hands off the cord and began to grind through the Chemical PPlant, switching between different tracks. Using the rails allowed Sonic to reach another road.

"Hmmm, I was expecting more of a welcoming party." He muttered to himself. "Well, with those diversions we had, it's not too surprising."

Sonic quickly moved along his trail and reached another series of rails. His feet landed on them and he started to grind again. Through this passage, Sonic was taken to another zip line, which he instantly grabbed a hold of. He then flung off it into mid-air. Sonic then began to jump off the different walls of structures in the plant, taking him higher. With this method, he found an entrance into the Chemical Plant via an open tunnel at the top.

"Bingo." Sonic said as he began to leap down into the tunnel.

Sonic started to free fall into the factory and as he did, a series of rotating laser blades appeared. This caused him to grin.

"Ah, wouldn't be an adventure without the old laser security system." He joked.

Sonic dove down at a faster pace while evading the lasers. He shortly reached the bottom, landing on a metal pathway.

"Ok, got in. Now I just need to find the computer room." Sonic stated. "Though I feel like this is more like Vector's thing."

Sonic ran ahead, with a glass tube surrounding the passage he moved along, which led him into another part of the Chemical Plant. At the end, Sonic found himself at a dead end but noticed he could move downward due there being an open passage. He leaped down deeper into the terminal. The interior had a dark-colored facility in the background with the routes covered in yellow metallic plates. Before Sonic moved ahead, a flood of Mega-Mack poured down right in front of him.

"And it wouldn't be a Chemical Plant without that gunk." He commented

Sonic waited for the liquid to cease falling before he moved further. He descended downwards and when he turned around, a few Egg Pawns stood in his path.

"Finally. Bots to smash." He eagerly said.

Sonic became a streak and tore through the first Egg Pawn with ease. He then delivered a roundhouse kick, knocking two of them. back The remaining three tried to blast with their beams but he easily avoided harm. He leaped in the air and crushed one with a powerful stomp. He flipped over one of the last two Egg Pawns and smashed it into the other one, killing two birds with one stone.

"Eggman just doesn't make him like he used to." Sonic criticized.

With his path free, Sonic jumped down into another gap of the terminal and landed into another part. In front of him were 4 rotating platforms. Above, purple liquid trickled down before turning into a downpour of MegaMack, which landed on one of the platforms. This made the others rotate faster, which Sonic noticed. Acting quickly, he dashed on one of the platforms and was taken across in no time. Sonic was then greeted by 4 Egg Pawns, which took aim and prepared to fire. However, Sonic used his super peel out technique to plow through them using his fist. Once his enemies were gone, Sonic attempted to continue his journey. Before he could, more Mega Mack came down in front of him. He waited a few seconds for it clear and then he moved upwards by running up the wall. This brought him to more rotating platforms, with one being flooded by Mega Mack as well. Sonic jumped on one and was quickly taken across due to the increased speed of the platforms. Sonic landed on a wall and scaled it with his speed. Up top, 3 Egg Pawns blocked his path. Sonic became a streak as he bounced off each of them, taking them down instantly. He then ran using a long road, which made him run through a semi-loop. When the road ended, Sonic found himself in an enclosed section, with only a small entrance to a tube being available. Using his stomp, he entered the pipeline, which transported him around the Chemical Plant. When he exited it, Sonic landed on a platform. Across it were 3 others, which had gaps in between them and each housed an Egg Pawn. Instantly, Mega Mack poured down between one gap.

"I'll have to play this smart or otherwise, I'll drown in Mega Mack." Sonic said, realizing the danger of the situation. "Not a cool way to go."

Sonic waited until the Mega Mack was done pouring and became a streak, reaching the other platform and smashing the Egg Pawn on it at the same time. It was safe to go across, so Sonic dashed forward and unleashed a kick to an Egg Pawn on the next platform, blowing it backward. Before the Egg Pawn could go any further, Mega Mack appeared and sent it down below into the factory. Once the flooding was over, Sonic made it to the last platform in a blur, which took the Egg Pawn on it off guard and it was quickly destroyed with his streak attack. He then used another turning platform with Mega Mack pouring on it to take him up higher before he jumped off different walls to reach his destination. Sonic had an open pathway in front of him and dashed across it, though he had to make the occasional sudden stop to the sudden appearance of Mega Mack. When the path reached its end, Sonic turned around and moved down once more and landed on yet another revolving platform. Sonic was taken to a metallic trail, with Egg Pawns lined up to attack. He used his boost attack to take them out of the way and move faster. This road was longer than the other ones and at the end, Sonic saw a metallic gate. With his boost, he smashed it down once he came into contact with it. This took him out of the Network Terminals' interior and into a well lit and highly advanced computer room. 3 large monitors were displayed ahead, each having their own keyboard.

"Found it!" Sonic victoriously declared as he came to a stop.

Sonic marched up to the 3 computers and began to examine them.

"Ok, so I just need to shut down the Death Egg's defenses. I'm not a tech guy, so I'll just do it the old fashioned way." He decided,

Sonic wound up his fist for a bit before he slammed down on one of the keyboards, making a hole into it. This made the computer it was connected to short circuit, a phenomenon which was transferred to the screens next to it. All 3 machines turned blank, which was followed by the entire room shutting down, leaving Sonic in darkness.

"Looks like it worked." He noticed before he tapped his communicator. "This is Sonic. I've shut down the Chemical Plant's computer. The Death Egg is now weaponless and ripe for smashing."

Sonic then sped away, leaving the terminal stuck in pitch black.

The Finishing Touch

Back at Resistance HQ, the other members who had stayed behind during the various missions suddenly noticed a transmission incoming. Sunset walked over and answered it.

"This is Sonic. I've shut down the Chemical Plant's computer. The Death Egg is now weaponless and ripe for smashing." Sonic's voice stated.

Hearing the news of the success made almost everyone beam.

"All right, he did it!" Knuckles cheered.

"Everything's going so well. For once in a long time, I'm optimistic." Fluttershy happily said as Sunset came and placed her arm around her shoulder.

"That's the right attitude, Fluttershy." Sunset praised. "Things are really starting to look up."

"Now's our chance to attack. We need to be quick. Who knows what Eggman could have up his sleeve?" Rouge urged.

"We know. We just need to head up there and cut off the Death's Egg power supply and destroy it." Tails said. "As well, we need to rescue any prisoners still on board. "

"Silver and I will go for this part." Twilight added. "With our telekinetic powers, it should be easier for us to destroy the Death Egg. It'll also be easier for us find any captured people. You ready, Silver?"

"Of course I am. I've been out of action for too long!" Silver eagerly said. "The Doctor's going to learn I'm not to be trifled with!"

"Besides...I can get to go to space!" Twilight gushed. She then realized everyone was looking at her nerding out and became slightly embarrassed. She then noticed Sunset giving her an amused smile.

"You guys are making this sound like it'll be a piece of cake. This is the Death Egg after all." Manic pointed out.

"Don't worry about it. With Twilight, they got this." Spike reassured.

"Good luck you two. Just go and smash that horrid looking...thing." Rarity said, shivering at her remembrance of the Death Egg's appearance.

"Keep your guard up and be prepared for anything." Espio advised. "Don't be too overconfident, even this late."

Before Silver and Twilight could leave, Shadow suddenly came forward.

"I was wondering, while I was gone, did any of you come across Omega?" He asked.

Hearing this jogged Tails's memory as his eyes widened.

"Right!" Tails answered. "I was fixing him up in the city before Chaos attacked."

"What?! We've been looking for him for months! Why didn't you say anything?!" Rouge snapped with irritation.

"I'm sorry, with everything that happened..." Tails said, clearly beginning to feel guilty.

"Don't be too hard on him. Spike and I were with Tails in the city too and we barely noticed." Twilight interjected, coming to his defense.

Shadow was silent for a while until he began to head off towards an exit.

"Shadow, where are you going?" Sunset quizzically said.

"To find Omega. With all that's happened, I doubt the Doctor's even noticed him in his condition. And he won't notice me." Shadow answered.

He then quickly sped off before anyone could chastise him. Rouge just put her hand on her face and shook it.

"We have to remember he's not much of a team player, even now. We should get going too, Twilight!" Silver suggested.

Twilight nodded and the two of them headed for the resistance exit.

Using the stolen Eggman cruiser once more, Silver and Twilight traveled into space and towards the Death Egg. In no time their ship arrived at the entrance dock of the fortress and came to a landing. The two of them exited out of their craft, ready to start the mission.

"I still can't believe I'm actually in space!" Twilight said in awe. "Flying through it was incredible, even if it was short! I'll have to come back once this whole war is over!"

"Let's make that happen quicker then." Silver said as his body began to glow with a faint green aura. "Time to trash this thing."

The region they were in appeared to be some kind of facility, with dimly lit halls of colossal size and narrow corridors. It had many high tech features such as cables, pipes, and laser cannons on the surface. In the background, many singular red mechanical eyes were shown. As soon as Silver and Twilight began to walk forward, the area started to flash red while a loud alarm went off. This startled both of them and Silver looked around frantically.

"What's going on?!" He cried. "I thought Sonic shut down the Death Egg's defense systems?"

"They must have switched over to auxiliary power." Twilight explained before her face turned into one of frustration. "Arrgh! Tails and I should have calculated this."

"Well, what's done is done. Besides, I'm sure we can handle it." Silver confidently stated.

Silver's confidence made Twilight smile and the two of them moved ahead in the Death Egg by flying towards their right, passing over a series of glowing conveyor belts in the meantime. In front of them, the walls suddenly began to fire blue energy spheres. Using his powers, Silver put them to a stop and sent them scattering back once they came, creating a series of small explosions. Twilight, on the other hand, lifted various pieces of metal off the floor and walls to use as shields, protecting her from harm. She then slammed them into the laser walls, taking them out, which was shown by blue sparks apppearing. The path was free and the telekinetic duo flew forward. Eventually, they came in front of a series of energy spheres creating a bridge going upward, stopping them in their tracks. The beams then changed to make a bridge going straight.

"What path should we take?" Twilight wondered.

"We don't have time to think it over. Let's just go up." Silver decided.

Twilight agreed and the two of them levitated themselves upward to a more enclosed section of the Death Egg. When they reached the top, they found Egg hornets blocking their path. They aimed their stingers but Silver unleashed a psychic wave which paralyzed some of them as green electricity surrounded their bodies. They then malfunctioned and fell to the ground. Twilight grabbed on in a purple field and use it fire lasers at the others, taking them out. Once this was over, she slammed the robot into the side. In front, Silver and Twilight noticed two conveyor belts. Ahead of them were heated tops. This gave Twilight an idea.

"Silver, can you help me bring down the top belts on the others? Seeing how heated they are, a collision would cause them to short circuit and cause damage to this base." She requested.

"No problem. " Silver complied.

Silver and Twilight used their powers to take hold of one heated top. With some strength, they managed to force it down as it crashed on the bottom. This caused sparks to emerge as a heating noise became louder.

"We should hurry and do the next one. It might cause a small explosion." Twilight warned.

The two psychics repeated the same trick on the next conveyor belt with the same result and quickly moved onwards. While flying, they noticed a factory of some sort in the back. Yellow-eyed orbs were being carried around by different devices such as conveyor belts, rails, gears, and grabbing claws.

"This looks pretty important. You thinking what I'm thinking?" Silver asked his partner with a mischevious smile.

Twilight nodded and shortly after, the different kinds of factory equipment began to glow green and purple. They were then quickly dismantled, causing metallic pieces to fall down everywhere, making loud noises. This act resulted in Silver and Twilight being surrounded by bat-like robots with rotating yellow blades around them.

"Well, should have expected this." Twilight admitted, recognizing how loud they had been.

The robots charged at the two heroes, intending to cut them up. However, Silver and Twilight caught them with their respective auras. Working together, they smashed all of the robots into each other, leaving small explosions which affected the surroundings of the Death Egg. The walls had dents in them to showcase this

"When will the doctor learn? These guys can't take us down." Silver boasted.

The pair then continued on ahead and on their way, a series of laser bridges blocked their way up. Using his powers, Silver split the beams apart, making it easier for him and Twilight to go ahead. At the top, laser cannons on the walls aimed for them. Acting quickly, Twilight used her powers to bend them upwards, causing them to hit parts of the Death Egg instead. With this done, both of them flew up and down through narrow halls. When they reached the bottom, they were face to face with a series of stacked conveyor belts. Coming down through them were Egg Pawns. However, these ones were silver and had turrets for arms. Upon seeing the intruders, they began to fire rapid shots. To avoid this, the two of them combined their powers to lift one heated belt at the bottom and use it as a shield.

"One...two...three!" Twilight yelled

Silver and Twilight pushed the machine forward, crashing into the Egg Pawns and causing a small explosion. After this, Silver sent out a psychic pulse above, which brought down the rest of the conveyor belts. The two resistance members then continued to fly around the Death Egg. Through their journey, they came across a few spinning gears in the back. They seemed to power the other machines they had seen before.

"Let's take these apart too." Silver suggested

Silver and Twilight used their telekinesis to remove giant screws on the gears. Due to this, they became unstable and started to crash down everywhere.

"I've never made a mess like this before." Twilight said. "It feels...kinda good to let loose a bit."

"I hear you. Sure is a good way to get rid of all the stress this war has caused." Silver replied with a smile.

The young heroes continued on a straight pathway. When they came forward, they were suddenly faced with three narrow beams heading straight towards them. They split apart quickly in order to avoid harm. They both turned turned to see the source belonged to a squadron of Aero-Chasers. The robots then unleashed a barrage of lasers, placing the two psychics on the defensive as they maneuvered around to dodge them. Silver created an energy knife and sent it ahead, slicing two of them in half. Twilight grabbed one and turned it's direction, causing it to blast 3 of them before she slammed it into the wall. 4 aero chasers remained and they all unleashed missiles to attack. In response, Silver and Twilight smirked at each other. With their abilities, they grabbed the rockets and used them to blow their enemies to bits.

"Rockets against us? Really?" Silver said.

"Well, they are simple robots. They don't have the capacity to learn aside from their basic functions, which is to destroy us." Twilight informed him, which made Silver shrug.

The duo was free to pass and explore the fortress further. The pathway they traveled on took them down again and past grabbing hands which were transporting spheres around. Silver created another psychic knife and used it to slice the tops of many hands. Twilight made use of her powers to make many hands lose their functions, shown by purple waves fluctuating. They then crashed into each other instead. When this was over, they resumed their mission. At the end of their path, the two of them were unexpectedly trapped in a yellow electric field. They were paralyzed and couldn't move.

"What the?! What is this?!" Silver demanded through grunts.

"Could it be a-" Twilight began to say.

Twilight's sentence was cut off as she and Silver were suddenly transported around the Death Egg through yellow loops at a rapid speed.

'Whooooaaaaaa!!!!" They yelled in unison.

They were suddenly brought to another platform, ending their ride. Twilight was very dazed and wobbled while Silver was on his knees.

"What..was that?!' Silver cried out.

"I-you-ughhh....why do all these places have crazy rides or something." Twilight questioned. "Pinkie might love this stuff but not me!"

Silver and Twilight took a moment to regain their composure. Once this was done, they went straight forward. The only way available was through a long way down. Using their powers, they slowly descended downwards.

"You know, this is kind of nice. Feels a bit like an elevator ride." Twilight commented as she and her companion gently drifted down.

"I'd hold my breath if I were you. We have company." Silver responded. He then pointed up to the incoming silver Egg Pawns coming down.

"Come on! After that, can't we have a little break?!" Twilight exclaimed in a slightly frustrated tone.

Silver flicked his wrist and sent a psychic wave to smash the Egg Pawns to the side. Twilight pushed them side to side as she caught them in a purple aura.

The bottom was one long heated conveyor belt, guarded by flying Egg Wasps. When they saw the intruders, they started to fire with their stingers. It was useless as their targets simply moved to avoid getting hurt. They then used their powers to stun the enemies and slammed them into the heated regions, making mini bursts The enemies were gone and they flew past the conveyor belt. Near the end, they felt that they suddenly couldn't move again as the same yellow field appeared once more

"Oh, not again!" Twilight cried before both she and her partner were flung around the Death Egg in loops again.

The loops brought Silver and Twilight upwards. Due to going through it before, this time, they were only slightly dizzy, which they quickly shook off. The two companions had been placed in front of a long moving road. It was littered with Egg Pawns coming down towards it.

"Twilight, try this." Silver suggested.

Silver then surrounded himself with a cyan aura. He then nodded at Twilight for her to do the same. Once she did, Twilight turned to Silver with a confused look.

"Now what?" She asked.

"Now..charge!" Silver eagerly said as he rushed towards the incoming enemies, much to Twilight's surprise.

When Silver came into contact with the robots, he smashed through them due to the force of his aura. Twilight looked on, unsure if she could pull it off. However, she also realized that there was no time to waste. She took a deep breath and followed Silver's lead while shutting her eyes tight. Twilight felt the collision of ramming into the robots but no pain. It didn't make this any less unnerving for her, however. Everything felt bumpy, like the worst roller coaster she had ever ridden. With this method, they managed to deal with their enemies and move forward into the Death Egg.

The moving road led the partners into a corridor before leading them into a large area with a hexagonal platform in the middle. Around it were many prison cells, stacked on the different layers. There were people inside them. Twilight looked mortified while Silver's expression was simply grim.

"This must be the prison hall were Sonic was held." Silver realized. "I didn't come across this the last time I was here."

"This is terrible. Being put in a horrible place like this." Twilight expressed with sadness. "We have to get these people out of here."

Silver and Twilight split up and flew around the cells, using their powers to short-circuit the security system. The door system flashed purple or green. This resulted in the doors opening and the captured people emerging out in droves. Loud cheers were heard while the liberators continued their work. Twilight then came across one cell and did her job as usual.

"Wait." Twilight heard from behind. She then turned around to see who was calling her.

Emerging from the cell was a girl with short, dark auburn hair. Her clothes consisted of black shorts with white rimming, dark blue boots with white outlines on the buckles, and white gloves with blue rings. She wore a closed blue vest with a black crop-top hidden underneath. Her skin was tan and she had blue eyes.

Behind her were 3 other prisoners. One of them was a large teen with a slim but large build. He had short violet hair with a pair of yellow goggles on his head. For attire, he wore black and white shoes while sporting yellow gloves. He also wore a brown bomber jacket with fur around the collar, a purple shirt underneath and purple pants. He had a green tool-belt across his shoulder. His eyes were green and he had two prominent sharp teeth emerging from his lip. Next to him was another teen with neatly combed blonde hair. He was wearing red boots and arm cuffs with two sword straps that connected on his chest, forming an "X"-shape over his brown, French army styled uniform. He also had a belt, which was colored red and white, that had a gray belt buckle. He wore white-colored gloves and leg cuffs. The last one was a teen girl with pale yellow hair, starting with a tuft of bangs at the front, in a ponytail. She was wearing a pink singlet and had emerald-green eyes. Her most noticeable features, however, were her cyborg limbs, with her left arm and lower torso from the waist being cybernetic with sleek designs. She had a white glove with a pink cuff on the right.

Twilight paused as the first girl came up to her.

"I was wondering, do you happen to know Sonic?" The girl asked.

"Sonic, yes I do. He's one of my friends and a part of the resistance we have against Eggman." Twilight responded. "Do you know him?"

Before the girl could respond, Silver flew up to where Twilight was.

"Twilight, I've managed to free the other prisoners." He informed her. He then noticed the people she was talking to. "Who are they?"

"My name is Sally Acorn." The girl answered. "My friends here are Rotor, Antoine and Bunnie. We're the Knothole Freedom Fighters."

Hearing the name Freedom Fighters made Silver's eyes light up along with Twilight.

"Wait, Freedom Fighters?!" Silver repeated, which made Sally nod. "Then you guys are Sonic's old team!"

Sally nodded with a smile while Antoine rolled his eyes.

"It's not just his team." He muttered under his breath. "Are you a fan?"

"Eh, sort of." Silver explained, not sure if he should mention the whole 'time travel' thing."

"I remember. Amy mentioned you were captured by Eggman after he took over your city." Twilight recalled.

"Yes, his army was unbeatable that day." Rotor said, as he hung his head. "We were held in one of the bases on the ground. But a few days ago, we were transported to the Death Egg along with the other prisoners."

"How is Amy? Is she ok?" Sally asked.

"She's doing fine. She met up with us and has been a huge help for our resistance." Silver explained. "We weren't going to give up, no matter what Eggman threw at us."

"We held out for six months until we found Sonic. Since then, we've been making progress and have found a way to beat Eggman. Which is why we're here to take down the Death Egg and free all of you." Twilight added.

Hearing this news caused the Freedom's Fighter's face to light up with hope and joy. Sally in particular almost seemed shocked.

"Then that means..Sonic's alive!" She happily stated.

"What a relief! It's also good to hear of this resistance. We were afraid Eggman might've won for good. Great to hear y'all still kept fightin'." Bunnie said.

Hearing Bunnie's accent made Twilight somewhat perplexed, which she noticed.

"Was it somethin' ah said?" She asked her.

"No, it's just that you remind me of a friend." Twilight told her.

"I think we can save the catching up for later. If you have a job to do, we should move as fast as we can." Rotor suggested.

"Rotor's right." Sally agreed. "You two know the way?"

"Of course. Follow us and we'll get you all out of here." Silver promised.

With the prisoners and the Freedom Fighters behind them, Silver and Twilight escaped the holding cell using a long connecting bridge. They traversed crossover for a while and were led into a large room. It housed a massive orb with black rings orbiting around it. This made everyone stop in their tracks to look up at the sight.

"This must be the Death Egg's power generator." Rotor deduced, somewhat impressed with what he saw.

"To take the Death Egg out once and for all, I guess we need to take it out. But it's size is unbelievable. Even with our powers, Silver and I are going to have trouble destroying something that big." Twilight said, feeling a little overwhelmed by the thought of the task.

"Not to worry. You won't have to do it alone." Bunnie said with a grin.

Bunnie's left arm then transformed into a laser cannon,much to Silver's surprise and Twilight's fascination. She then aimed at the enormous sphere and began to charge up a pink laser. She then fired the shot.

However, Bunnie's shot didn't hit the generator. Instead, 3 red missiles hit it, creating an explosion. Everyone else looked on, confused by what happened.

"Who did that?!" Bunnie cried.

Heading towards the large group was an Eggman robot decorated as a police officer. Its design reflected that of a blue and black uniform and a white motorcycle helmet with a red siren on top. It had two yellow straps crossing over on its chest in an "X"-shape, with a star-shaped badge in the middle. It also possessed a microphone communicator on its helmet, red eyes, white gloves, gray-colored appendages, and blue forefeet. It was equipped with a jetpack on its back and carried a white and green rectangular prism-shaped weapon on its left arm. This robot was known as the Heavy Gunner and was floating before the heroes.

"Seriously? We're so close and so far at the same time!"Twilight said with frustration."Though I shouldn't have expected this to be too easy."

"What are we going to do? We cannot fight zis and evacuate ze prisoners at ze same time." Antoine brought up.

Silver grew a determined look and turned around to Sally.

"We don't have to. Can you and the others take the prisoners back to Twilight and mine's ship?" Silver requested. "The two of us will hold this thing off. Besides, we need to take out the generator."

"Of course. We'll find it."Sally agreed. She then turned around to her teammates.

"We focus on getting these people out of here. We'll leave the fighting to these two. Let's move!" Sally ordered.

Sally and the Freedom Fighters then began to organize the prisoners while Silver and Twilight floated up to the Heavy Gunner to get its attention.

"You want them? You'll have to deal with us first!" Silver announced.

"We won't let you stop us!" Twilight followed up.

In response to their claims, the Heavy Gunner charged up its bazooka and instantly fired two rounds of missiles. The speed at which it fired briefly caught Silver and Twilight off guard but they managed to fly out of harm's way. The Gunner wasn't done yet. It then began to fire missile after missile, trying to hit its foes. This placed Silver and Twilight on the offensive as they soared around the room to avoid getting hit. During the confusion, the Freedom Fighters took the previously captured inmates and exited the room.

"Is it just me or is this robot enjoying this a bit too much?" Twilight pointed out while trying to avoid getting hit. She was also noticing how much of a frenzy the Heavy Gunner was in. It didn't seem to care that it was also hitting parts of the Death Egg.

"In that case, it's in a for a big disappointment!" Silver stated as he continued to dodge shots.

The Heavy Gunner's firing speed made it difficult for Silver or Twilight to catch a missile and throw it back as they were more focused on evading. However, the next time the Gunner released an attack, Silver saw a chance as a missile was clearly headed towards him. He then stuck his hand out.

"Ha, the doctor was a fool to use this kind of enemy against us!" He boasted.

Silver expected the missile to turn green and stop in place. Instead, green energy was dispersed around it and it kept coming towards him. He was left stupefied to why his power wasn't working.

"What? What's going?!" He wondered as he kept trying but to no avail. His tone had a frightened edge as the missile was getting closer.

The Gunner's shot was dangerously close and in an act of desperation, Silver cloaked himself in a psychic field as it hit. An explosion occurred which sent Silver crashing into a wall.

"Silver!" Twilight cried as she flew up towards him. The Heavy Gunner did a victorious salute.

Twilight came to Silver and saw he was in crater through the smoke. It hid the both of them from the Gunner for the time being. He was somewhat injured and began to grunt.

"Are you ok?" She asked him.

"I'll be fine. My psychic field reduced the damage but it still hurt." Silver explained while wincing. "I don't get it. I couldn't use my power to grab the missile."

"That is odd." Twilight agreed.

The smoke then cleared fully, giving the Heavy Gunner a good shot. It wasted no time in firing another round. Silver and Twilight formed panicked looks and flew in the opposite directions, escaping harm while a blast occurred behind them.

Using her powers, Twilight took pieces of metal of the wall and released them at the Gunner's shots, making a series of small burst. Silver created an energy knife and sliced through missiles, making them fall harmlessly to the ground. His knife went to the Heavy Gunner, who easily evaded it by flying up. Twilight then shot more debris at the Gunner, who fired a shot to disperse them. Silver took apart the rails of the bridge below and surrounded the Gunner with them. To counter this, the police robot aimed down and it blew itself higher with its cannon. It was safe from Silver's attack as a result. The Heavy Gunner then aimed its cannon, which began to charge a blue colored shot. It then unleashed two blue missiles at the psychics.

As usual, Silver and Twilight moved to avoid getting hit by the missiles. However, it didn't end there. The missiles then changed direction to where they had moved.

"Perfect. Heatseekers." Twilight groaned.

Silver and Twilight hovered around with the missiles hot on their trails. Eventually, Silver turned around to create a vertical knife to try and slice the rocket. Much to his disbelief, the missile curved to dodge and kept coming towards him.

"You've got to be kidding." He complained. He kept generating energy knives to try and hit the missile but it seemed futile.

Twilight, on the other hand, turned around and tried to her use her power on the missile. This was done in order to see why it would have no effect. She noticed an electromagnetic field flickering as her purple energy was deflected.

"I get it now. The missiles must have electromagnetic repulsers to resist our powers. Clever." Twilight deduced.

The Heavy Gunner looked on, waiting for his enemies to go 'boom."

"Silver!" Twilight called out while fleeing from the missile. "The missiles have electromagnetic repulsors! That's why our powers don't work!

"Ok!" Silver called back. "Any ideas on how to beat something like that?"

"Well, it could take a while." She answered.

Silver knew that he and Twilight couldn't offer to waste more time and he desperately tried to think of something. He then noticed the giant power generator again and this gave him an idea.

"Twilight, come to me!" He said. "I have an idea!"

Twilight followed Silver's instructions and was next to him in no time.

"Now what?" She wondered.

"Follow my lead." He told her.

Silver then flew onward, with Twilight behind him. The two missiles continued their chase as Silver lead Twilight right in front of the power generator. The heat seekers were now getting closer, which made Twilight nervous.

"Silver?" She said to her ally.

"Ok, let me try this!" Silver said as he took a hold of Twilight's arm and glew green.

Silver shut his eyes and just as the missiles were going to reach him and Twilight, he vanished in a green electric flash. This caused the missiles to collide into the power generator, making a medium size explosion on the sphere. The Heavy Gunner looked on, stunned by what happened as its eyes widened.

Silver and Twilight reappeared in a green flash. Twilight looked amazed as she turned to Silver, who seemed a bit dazed.

"What was that?" She questioned.

"Teleporting. I'm not that good at it as doing it gives me a little headache. I need more practice." He responded while holding his head.

"Well, your plan worked, good thinking." Twilight praised."Though we still have him to deal with."

The duo then faced their robotic foe, which appeared to be irritated. The Gunner's siren on its head then started to flash red and make noise, leaving Silver and Twilight stumped by this.

Suddenly, a blue police helicopter-like mecha crashed through a wall above. The Heavy Gunner flew upwards and entered the cockpit while placing its bazooka on a holder underneath. This was right next to...another launcher.

"Silver, it's getting more tenacious." Twilight said. "Are you sure you're ok after that stunt?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Silver insisted. "It'll take more than that to put me out. Let's finish this!"

The Heavy Gunner's chopper fired red missiles from both bazookas. In response, Silver and Twilight took metal from the walls and smashed them into the rockets, creating many flares around. Through the flames, Silver then emerged in front of the Heavy Gunner and began to rapid fire energy pulses. The Heavy Gunner fired missiles from one launcher to take the brunt of Silver's attack. While he was preoccupied with this, it fired another set of missiles using the left launcher. Luckily, Twilight pulled down a large sheet of metal from above to be hit instead. The force of the explosion did send her and Silver back a few feet though. The Heavy Gunner rose a few inches higher to have a better view of the resistance members. It's cannons then displayed a blue flash.

"It's going to try heat seekers again. I'm not sure if teleporting out of there is an option." Silver admitted. "Do you have any ideas now?"

"Well, to counter the pulse generated, we'd have to make a stronger one. One which could make the ones on the missiles bounce back. To do that, we'd have to use our powers." Twilight suggested. "But it's going to need to be really strong for it to work."

"Heh, that's not a problem." Silver proclaimed. "I'll take anything it throws at me!"

Silver and Twilight stood next to each other with their auras emerging. They both concentrated on building up as much energy as they could. This caused their energy shrouds to slowly grow in size. The Heavy Gunner's blue flash then began to flash more quickly until a barrage of blue missiles were shot out. The incoming assault placed Silver and Twilight on the edge, causing them to feel anxious but they stood their ground.

"Ok, ready Silver?" Twilight asked as the rockets were approaching.

"No doubt about it! Now!" Silver yelled.

Silver and Twilight spread out their arms wide and sent out their auras as a colossal green/purple psychic wave. The wave then struck the fields covering the missiles, causing them to fluctuate and tremble before all of them were spun around back to where they came. The Heavy Gunner's eyes then began to flash bright yellow, indicating it was in a state of panic. There were too many projectiles for it to evade and it was bombarded by its own weapons, creating a gigantic explosion, which also reached the Death Egg's generator. From the remains, a flaming copter emerged and crashed into the generator, setting off a chain reaction blast. A rumbling sound was heard as the Death Egg began to flash orange. Above, Silver and Twilight descended, feeling exhausted. They began to pant as they landed on the remainder of the bridge.

"Yes..."Silver tiredly said. "We...won."

Twilight looked on at the damage done to the Death Egg as metal started to fall apart and mini-explosions happened around.

"Silver...the Death Egg is starting to crumble. We have to get out of...here." Twilight explained between breaths.

Despite their tired state, the victorious rebels powered through whatever fatigue they felt and flew on as fast as they could through the decaying Death Egg. They instantly zoomed past room and room, hoping to meet up with others.

At the Death Egg's launch bay in front of the ship, The Freedom Fighters had felt the quake caused by the damage done to the power generator. The prisoners with them began to form worried looks and murmured among themselves.

"Zut alors! Ze Death Egg is starting to fall. We need to get out of here. But where are zhose two?" Antoine wondered out loud.

"I hope they're on their way." Rotor expressed. "We can't stay much longer."

Up ahead Bunnie saw two figures getting closer. It was Silver and Twilight, who were looking in pretty bad shape as they were starting to get closer and closer to the ground.

"Ah see em!" Bunnie announced.

Using the rocket booster from her legs, Bunnie quickly flew towards the fatigued heroes and caught both of them in her arms. She then flew back in front of the ship.

"Perfect! Now let's get out of here!"Sally said.

The prisoners then started to board the ship in numbers, followed by the Freedom Fighters, Silver and Twilight. The ship started it's engines and flew out of the Death Egg, which continued its destruction.

Back in the Resistance base, most of the members, save for Shadow, were back in there to regroup. They were waiting on Silver and Twilight to return.

"It's been a while since we last heard from them." Fluttershy expressed with concern.

"I hope they're all right. So far everything's been good." Rarity answered. "I'd hate for our streak of good luck to come to an end."

"I agree that the silence is concerning. We're just going to have to hope for the best." Espio cooly commented.

The doors to the base then opened, revealing Silver and Twilight, who were still feeling a bit tired. Seeing their comrades safe and sound gave everyone feelings of relief.

"Twilight!" Spike yelled as he rushed to his best friend and started licking her face. "We were worried when we didn't hear anything."

"Well, the mission just proved harder than we though." Twilight replied as Sunset came over

"About that, did you guys manage to take out the Death Egg?" She asked.

Silver nodded. "Yes. The Death Egg is done for!"

The news of the mission's success was great to hear. Looks of happiness came over everyone while Sunset hugged Twilight to congratulate her.

"Yes!" Knuckles cheered with a fist. "That means we can beat the Phantom Ruby!"

"Great work, you two!" Sonic praised.

"By the way, we also found some old friends of yours." Silver added as he faced Sonic.

Shortly after Silver spoke, the 4 Freedom Fighters entered the room. This made Sonic, Tails, Amy and Manic astounded to see their old friends who they hadn't seen in a while. Likewise, the Freedom Fighters were feeling the same way.

"Sally?" Sonic uttered.

"Sonic..you really are ok." Sally replied, amazed to see him personally.

"Sally! Everyone! I'm so glad you're all ok!" Amy shrieked as she ran and gave Sally a huge hug. "After you were all captured, I was just so..."

"It's nice to see you too, Amy." Sally grunted. Her grip was tight

"Rotor, great to see you man."Manic greeted as he and Tails approached him. He then shook both of their hands.

"I'm just glad to finally be out of that cell." Rotor replied.

"And I'm glad you held out for so long. So you were all on the Death Egg?" Tails inquired.

"Not at first. We got taken there a few days back." Rotor explained. "Eggman moved all his prisoners there for extra security."

"And we now know it was cuz you managed to get out, sugah." Bunnie told Sonic as she put her arms on his shoulders. "We just didn't know what to do when we heard you were gone. Antoine took it pretty hard."

Sonic looked over to Antoine, who was trying to avoid eye contact.

"Aw, didn't know you cared that much, twan?"Sonic teased.

"Well, now I remember not that much." Antoine dryly said.

The remaining members of the resistance looked on. It was nice to see this reunion of friends.

Amy then let go of Sally, which allowed her to get a good look around at the Resistance headquarters

"So, this the base for your...resistance?" Sally questioned.

"Yeah. We've been holding out for all this time under my leadership." Knuckles explained as he came to Sally. "Good to see you, Sally."

"You? Didn't think you were the leader type." Sally commented.

"Shows he isn't always a knucklehead."Rouge joked in the back, which made Knuckles sigh slightly.

Sally and the other Freedom Fighters looked on to see the rest of the Resistance, mainly the Rainbooms.

"I see you've put together quite a new team while we were gone." Rotor stated.

"Yeah, we're kind of a big deal." Rainbow Dash pridefully said as she put her arms back.

"Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie!" Pinkie quickly said as she came up in Antoine's face, startling him. She then quickly moved around the others. "What are your names? Where are you from? What kind of parties do you like? What's your favorite kind of frosting?!

The Freedom Fighters were put back by Pinkie's eagerness. Before she could ask further, AppleJack put her hand over her mouth.

"Sorry. She gets like that around new people." She explained.

Sunset walked to Sally to formally introduce herself.

"My name is Sunset Shimmer." She said. "The ones who saved you are Silver and Twilight Sparkle. Sonic's mentioned his old friends before. Nice to finally meet you."

"Same to you." Sally said as she faced Sonic with a smile. "I need to thank you all for fighting while we were imprisoned."

"Well, I'd say this a nice bonus." Vector spoke up. "With the Freedom Fighter's extra help, we should be able to take down Eggman's fortress with no problem!

"Yeah!" Charmy cheered.

"Vector's right! Eggman doesn't stand a chance now!" Silver agreed.

The Freedom Fighers formed somber looks, which everyone noticed.

"Guys? What's up?" Sonic wondered.

"Sonic, as much as that does sound like a good idea, we had..other plans." Bunnie started.

"With Eggman's army beginning to weaken, this means his grip on his territory is starting to loosen. That includes places like Knothole." Rotor added.

"You mean you plan to leave now? But you were just freed." Amy protested.

"We know Amy. But Knothole needs us now. We have to go there." Sally elaborated.

Amy looked disappointed but she knew Sally had a point.

"No worries. We get it." Sonic said as he and Sally were face to face. "You do what you gotta do." He then gave Sally the thumbs up.

"Sonic's right. We can still pull this off without your help." Tails reassured.

"In that case. Good luck." Sally said. "And take Eggman down."

The Freedom Fighters then began to exit the room. As they did, Sally looked back at Sonic, giving him a nod that she was counting on him and the others to fix everything.

Victory

A little while after the Freedom Fighters had departed, the Resistance was greeted by Shadow suddenly teleporting in the center of the room, which gained everyone's attention. He was carrying E-123 Omega's deactivated and damaged body . Seeing Omega in this state made Rouge gasp.

"Omega!" She cried as she ran over while Shadow set him down. "Is he?"

"I'm not sure. He's still pretty banged up but the repairs Tails did appear to have helped to an extent." Shadow explained. Rouge looked on, feeling sorrowful for seeing Omega in such poor condition.

Tails wore a melancholic expression and held his arm, which Shadow noticed.

"Tails, What's done is done. Besides if it wasn't for your help, Omega might've have been in even worse shape." Shadow said, which was somewhat reassuring to Tails, his look of regret starting to fade. He then faced the entire room. "What happened while I was gone?"

"The Phantom Ruby's signal has gotten much weaker." Twilight explained.

"That means no more of those super wacky illusions!"Pinkie added while making eccentric faces with her eyes.

"We have a huge opening in front of us! We can't let it go to waste." Vector declared

"This the moment we've been waiting for. Time to get even!" Silver stated.

"You're speaking my language, Silver!" Rainbow Dash eagerly agreed. "We're going to hit back hard!"

"With the Phantom Ruby gone, we can finally take Eggman down!" Tails hopefully said.

"I understand why y'all are so enthusiastic but don't ya think we're forgettin' somethin'?" AppleJack pointed out, which made everyone's eagerness dial back a bit.

"AppleJack's right. Eggman and Infinite are still on the loose. We can't it take too easy." Sonic brought up.

"Correct. We can't jump in blind otherwise we might have a repeat of what happened last time." Espio said, reminding everyone of the failure that was 'Operation Big Wave.' Knuckles winced at the memory and made a determined look while the others remained silent.

"Way to kill the mood Espio." Charmy muttered.

"Someone had to say it." Manic said, seeing the point of Espio's harshness. "We can't afford another defeat like that. We gotta be on our toes."

"This round is all or nothing. There won't be a third chance." Rouge cautioned

"I just want everyone to get home safely, all right?" Fluttershy requested. She was starting to feel worried about hearing the risk involved

"We will, darling. We learned from our mistake last time. Nothing like that will happen again." Rarity reassured

"This time, we're going to save the day like we always do. We can all bet on that!" Amy optimistically said.

"Ok everyone, game face on. For this mission, the target is Eggman at the central tower." Knuckles ordered.

"Once we go in, don't stop and look back. Focus on our job, no matter what." Sunset said as a reminder.

With their conviction readied, the Resistance prepared to head out for their ultimate offensive on Eggman's base.

In the Green Hill Zone, Eggman watched the Death Egg's destruction via a holographic screen from his mobile.With him, were Orbot and Cubot at his side while Infinite was in front. The tyrant then smashed his fist together.

"Blasted resistance! At first they were just an annoyance but now they're really starting to get on my nerves!" Eggman complained. He then regained his composure.

"A minor setback. There are five more hours until the plan is executed. Infinite, we need to make a tactical retreat to Metropolis and regroup our forces." Eggman decided.

Infinite then folded his arms. His body language indicated he was displeased by this.

"Tactical retreat? Is that a fancy way of saying running away. I am disappointed by this, Doctor." Infinite replied

"Just shut up and follow me! I know what I'm doing!" Eggman barked.

The Eggmobile then hovered in the air before bursting off at high speed. Infinite was silent and disagreed with Eggman's plan. Nonetheless, he did as he was told and followed his leader. After all, Eggman was responsible for his ascension to power. The least he could do was go along with the plan.

Back in Eggman's metropolis, the Resistance airships had entered, releasing all the members from the sky as they flooded the city while the ships engaged with Eggman's own fleet. Sonic leaped out one ship and crashed through the glass floor of one of the multi-story buildings. This placed him inside its interior. A welcoming party of Eggpawns stood in his path, which made him smirk.

"Nice to see Eggman thought of the perfect preparations!" He happily said.

The Egg Pawns fired as Sonic charged towards them, evading every shot. He then became a blue streak as he tore through all of them. With the path clear, Sonic grinded on an orange rail downward, leading him deeper into the building. He was in an enclosed white section with different layers stacked above. Sonic scaled the wall of each layer using his speed to get ahead. The layers each housed one Eggman robot but Sonic jumped off the wall and stomped on each robot he saw. He was now at the top, which was being guarded by a squadron of Egg Pawns. With his speed, Sonic rushed into the center of them, catching them off guard. He grabbed the arm of one robot and spun it around quickly, using it to smash the other robots away before he tossed that robot into a wall up ahead. Sonic continued along a path which took him down before he raced up again. At the start of the new path were more Egg Pawns but Sonic used his streak attack, hitting them one by one. Sonic made his way through the building and reached a higher path. 8 Egg Pawns attempted to block his path as they fired but it was futile. Sonic delivered a strong front kick to one and a back kick to two behind him as he got close. He then released a straight punch, knocking a robot back before he leaped forward and smashed his elbow into one's face. With only 3 left, Sonic used his figure 8 move and released a shockwave off the ground to take them out. Sonic ran across the road ahead to outside before he jumped off it. Below him was another highway. However, 9 holes opened up, revealing a barrage of missiles.

"Sonic, you have to find out where Eggman is at." Sunset told him.

"We'll deal with forces, Sonic!" Knuckles said. "Do your thing."

"Good luck, Big blue!" Rouge wished over the comms.

"No problem. Chasing Eggman is what I do best. I'll find him in no time!" Sonic promised as he sky dove towards the incoming missiles.

Sonic moved through each of the rockets as he descended downwards and got down without a single scratch. He was now aboard a long white highway. Realizing that there was no time to spare, he activated his boost, traveling ahead in a high burst of speed. The highway curve made him run on the side before he went straight again. In Sonic's way were many Egg Walkers. As soon as they saw him incoming, they ran ahead, dropping explosives as they did. The entire highway was now littered with flames. Thanks to his boost, Sonic tore through the fire with no problem and crushed the Egg Walkers out of his way. He reached the end of the road in no time. In front of him was a gap towards the side of a building. Egg Choppers, which were guarding the path, all fired a single beam the moment they saw him.

"Sometimes it's just too easy." Sonic lamented as he took a big leap mid-air.

Sonic used the Egg Choppers as stepping stones to get to the building, dashing through them as a streak. He landed on its side and ran upwards. Once he was at the top, he noticed a nearby building on his right and jumped towards it before going up again. At the peak, he took another jump to one more building's top before he bounced off it towards a rooftop. In the background, Sonic looked on as the resistance airships battled Eggman's forces.

"Everyone's giving it their all. I can't let them down!" He vowed.

Sonic moved along the rooftop, encountering 3 Egg Pawns who tried to stop him as they fired shots. The usual occurred and when Sonic got close, he did a sweep kick, taking the robots off their feet. While they were mid-air, he then performed many fast kicks, defeating his enemies. Sonic then continued on the roof and his foot landed on a white platform. Before he knew it, it transported him across an opening. He saw there were 3 more like them in front and he stepped on each of them to move ahead. Once he was on the last one, he ran up to the top of the roof. Egg Cutters then saw him incoming and headed his way with their blades spinning. Rather than take them head on, Sonic rushed around them, trapping them in a blue vortex as they collided with each other. The robotic pests were gone, leaving Sonic to continue his journey. He ran through a loop and descended into another white podium, which brought him in front of orange rail placed around a small building. Sonic used it go even further down. At the end, he soared off the rail onto another freeway. Having more space, Sonic used his boost again, plowing through Eggman robots such as Walkers, Pawns and incoming Cutters and Choppers.

"We're managing for now. So far, so good." Twilight said over the comm.

"We can actually pull it off this time." Manic said with hope.

The highway took Sonic down to its end and with his boost still activated, he took off into the the air towards another freeway on the top, which was going upward.

Sonic moved through it in no time and jumped off mid-air when he was done.

"Be careful. I'm detecting Eggman just up ahead." Amy warned.

True to what Amy said, Sonic noticed 3 figures on a rooftop he was headed towards. He deactivated his boost and landed right in front of his arch-nemesis, who was in his Egg-Mobile.Orbot and Cubot were on his left and right respectively.

"Yo, Egghead, it's been 6 months since we last met." Sonic sarcastically greeted as he began to approach his sworn enemy. "I see you haven't shaved the stache yet."

"Ah, I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss our little banter." Eggman replied with a wicked smile. "Actually, I am glad you could make it Sonic. It'd be a shame if you missed your own funeral.

Sonic then stopped, wearing a puzzled look. He was then joined by Tails, who jumped down from a nearby building. Sonic then looked back at him and shrugged.

"You're forgetting something, Eggman. We shut down the Phantom Ruby. You won't be able to use its power against us." Tails confidently said.

"Hahaha! Did you?" Eggman cryptically boasted. "Infinite!"

Out of nowhere, Infinite descended down in front of the two heroes, which put them into fighting stances.

"Sonic, Tails, welcome to the end!" Infinite declared as he released a small black void from his hand.

The void then began to float and crackle with purple electricity while growing in size, much to Sonic and Tails's shock.

"What is that?!" Sonic wondered.

"That is null space, you blue pest!" Eggman informed him while Orbot and Cubot backed away in cowardice. "It's an interdimensional pocket dimension cooked up by the Phantom Ruby, where nothing exists. Goodbye Sonic! Enjoy an eternity of nothingness!

Eggman and Infinite backed away many feet, with the latter firing a red energy sphere into the hole in space.

The null space void then grew even larger and acted like a black hole, sucking up all the nearby debris into it. Acting quickly, Sonic shoved Tails back near the end of the building, which made him hold on to a rail to resist the gravitational pull.

"Sonic!" Tails cried as Sonic was slowly getting pulled into the hole.

Above, Sunset was flying through the city with her Wispon. She was looking at everything that was happening.

" Things are going much better than last time. I wonder if Sonic found Eggman yet." She questioned out loud.

"Woah, woah!" Sunset suddenly heard Sonic's voice yell.

Sunset looked down and much to her horror, she saw that Sonic was getting closer to a black hole of some kind.

"Sonic!" She yelled.

Reacting before she could even process this decision, Sunset flew down just as Sonic's lower half was getting sucked into the hole. She then grabbed his hand, desperately trying to pull him out.

"Sunset? No! You'll get sucked in too!" Sonic warned.

"I'm...not...leaving you!" Sunset answered as she let get of her Wispon and grabbed Sonic with both hands. She pulled with all her strength but it was no use.

Eventually, Sunset couldn't do it as the black hole's gravitational pull was infinitely stronger than she was. She and Sonic were then sucked into the null space hole which then closed instantly. Tails felt that the gravitational pull had ended and looked around after he fell to the floor. To his dread , Sonic and Sunset were gone.

"No....but we destroyed the Phantom Ruby's power source." He weakly said as he came on to his knees.

"Poor Tails. Since you always destroy my power sources, I learned from my mistake this time and had a backup source under Metropolis!" Eggman boasted.

Tails was left speechless. Their plan to take down the Phantom Ruby had failed and because of it, they had lost two of their friends.

Sunset opened her eyes and found she was on the floor. She groaned slightly as she rose up.

"Where am I?" She wondered as she started to look at her surroundings.

Sunset was filled with uncertainty and fear as she got a good look at her location. It was a purple void with floating cubes and net-like grids above and below that extended endlessly. She looked down and saw she was standing on purple cubes, which flickered with electricity. She backed up a bit, trying to process all that was going on.

"Am I even on our world?" She wondered.

Sunset then remembered that she had fallen into that black hole with Sonic.

"Sonic! Where is he?!" Sunset exclaimed as she looked around for her friend but saw nothing.

"I have to find him but I don't even know where to begin looking." She said in a tired tone. "But I have to try."

Sunset began to walk and noticed that she didn't hear the sound of her footsteps, making the entire place more ominous. She continued on with an uncomfortable expression.

Sunset explored the unknown region, alone and finding nothing. She was starting to feel more anxious but kept her cool. Suddenly, up ahead, she noticed a familiar figure running forward.

"Is that Sonic?" She questioned as she started to run. "Sonic! Sonic!"

Further ahead, Sonic was moving through, trying to see if there was a way out. He then heard his name being called faintly and stopped in his tracks.

"Sonic!" Sunset yelled as he turned around to see her coming towards.

"Sunset! Man, I'm glad to see you're ok!" Sonic expressed with relief as Sunset came in front of him.

"Likewise. When I woke up, you were gone even though we came in together." She answered.

"Yeah, I noticed that too. I spent who knows how long running trying to find you and someway out of here." Sonic explained.

"Just what is this place?" Sunset asked.

"Null Space. Some prison of nothingness that goes on forever. Eggman was telling me about it earlier. Unlike most of his plans, I actually had to pay attention to this as it seemed dangerous." Sonic elaborated.

"A prison that goes on forever." Sunset repeated. "That's terrible. We have to make it back to our friends."

"Agreed. We just need to find out...how." Sonic responded.

The trapped friends looked on, seeing that everything seemed endless. It looked like there was no way out.

"Could be worse."Sonic started to say as Sunset gave him an odd look.

"What could be worse than this?" She quizzically said.

"Either one of us could have come in alone." Sonic continued. "At least we have each other for company."

Sonic's words put a smile on Sunset's face. Even in a situation like this, he always remained upbeat.

"You're right about that." Sunset laughed off. "There has to be a way out."

Sonic and Sunset continued to explore Null Space, trying to find any hint of an exit. It didn't look like the odds were in their favor, but they had to try at least. As they walked along, they heard a voice.

"How are you enjoying your stay?" Infinite said in an echo, making the two heroes stop in their tracks.

"Infinite!" Sunset reconized but they didn't see him anywhere.

"Come out! Where are you?!" Sonic demanded.

Infinite then appeared above Sonic and Sunset, causing them to look at him. He stared them down in a condescending manner.

"What do you think? Wonderful, isn't it? Now, do you understand the power of the Phantom Ruby? Do you understand how hopeless your situation is?" He mocked.

"Whatever man!" Sonic dismissed. He noticed Infinite's silhouette glitch and realized it was a hologram. "Big talk coming from a guy who's not even here!"

"I was expecting to see you in despair. Guess I'll have to wait for a bit longer." Infinite simply said.

"You can say whatever you want but we won't listen. We are getting out of here and we will stop you." Sunset firmly said.

Infinite then let out a chuckle.

"Your optimism is charming but you need to be realistic. There is no way out." Infinite insisted.

"We'll find one." Sonic said with dedication.

Infinite was started to feel agitated. They should have been trembling before his power but they stayed the same.

"You're separated from your comrades in another world that is endless and there is no exit. Why don't you give up? I don't understand." Infinite said, an edge in his voice.

"No, you don't." Sunset agreed.

Infinite was slightly taken back by her courage before he felt his irritation growing.

"Surrender and maybe I'll consider freeing you." Infinite bargained. "Get on your knees and beg me for it."

"You wish. Your whole tough guy act doesn't fool us. You're too scared to face us so you had to throw us in here." Sonic mocked."It doesn't matter what you do because in the long run, we're going to win. I'm the fastest thing alive and no one's better at running than me."

Infinite clenched his fist and was now somewhat angry. No! He wasn't afraid! How dare they assume that about him?! He had all the power! Nothing scared him!

"Those are just words."Infinite scoffed. "You've lost."

Infinite's illusion then began to flicker before it vanished, leaving behind Null Space's captives.

"That was cool and all, but we really need to get out." Sonic said. "I know! What if I run really, really fast?"

Sunset looked at Sonic as if that was one of the dumbest things he had ever said to her. He then rubbed the back of his head.

"Ok yeah, that does sound pretty stupid." Sonic sheepily admitted.

"What could be a better way?" Sunset pondered loudly. "We need to find something quickly. The more time we spend in here, the more in danger our friends could all be. We have to get back to them."

Sunset's determination was beginning to grow. Due to being feelings of friendship, her magic activated as she gave off a faint orange glow. In doing so, a pink flash came out of her pocket. This came to both hers and Sonic's attention. Sunset reached in and pulled out the gem she had from before, which was glowing.

"Wow, what is that? It looks like...a Phantom Ruby?" Sonic said.

Sunset then remembered the gem on Tails shared with the schematics he got and noticed the similarities it had to the stone she was holding.

"You're right! I didn't pay much attention to this before but it does look like a Phantom Ruby. I almost forgot about" Sunset said with compliance.

"Where'd you find that?"Sonic asked.

"Pinkie gave it to me after we reunited with Tails, Twilight and Spike." Sunset explained. "She must've found it. I get it now! This must've have helped me escape Infinite's illusion when I was in Metropolis earlier."

"So, that thing can cancel out Infinite's illusions? Then I'm betting it's our ticket out of here." Sonic deduced.

"Most likely," Sunset said. "Honestly, I'm not too sure how it works but right now, it seems that it responds to my magic. Let me try this."

Sunset began to concentrate on her feelings of friendships such as her dedication to get back to her friends, which fuelled her magic. Her glow became more prominent and the ruby she held continued to shine. Sunset then thought about getting out of Null Space and as she did, an orange portal started to form in front of her and Sonic.

"It's working! Keep it up, Sunset!"Sonic encouraged.

Sunset continued as the orange portal grew larger and stabilized itself. She opened her eyes and formed a smile.

"I did it!" She gushed.

"Awesome! Now let's kiss this place goodbye!" Sonic eagerly said

Grabbing Sunset's arm, Sonic raced into the portal as everything began to turn white.

Back in the city on the rooftop with the Null Space Void, Tails was still shaken by the loss of his two friends. This time, had he lost Sonic for real?

"Tails!" He heard Twilight's voice say as he turned around to see her floating towards him.

"Sonic and Sunset's signal's just vanished. Do you know what happened?" She questioned.

With dismay, Tails looked at the void ahead, which made Twilight do the same. She gasped when she saw it.

"Did they.."Twilight began, beginning to realize with fright what happened.

Before she could finish her sentence, the Null Space void started to ripple, which caught both her and Tails's attention. From it, Sonic and Sunset emerged from it and came directly in front of the young geniuses.

"Sup, guy." Sonic casually said. Sunset found herself in an immediate hug courtesy of Twilight, which she returned.

"Sonic?! Sunset?!' Tails said in a mixture of shock and relief. "You guys..are alright..."

"Just what happened? Tails pointed at this void and I knew you two were sucked in and now you're out!" Twilight frantically said, ending her hug.

"Well explain later once this is all over." Sunset told her friend as she picked up her Wispon.

"I agree. It's time to find Eggman!" Sonic declared. "You two should help out with the rest of the mission."

Tails and Twilight nodded and turned around to get off the rooftop. Sonic and Sunset went in the opposite direction as they leaped down. Sonic landed on an orange rail and grinded ahead with Sunset flying next to him.

"Sonic! Where were you guys? According to the comms, you just vanished." Knuckles exclaimed over the comm.

"Nowhere, literally." Sunset answered, leaving Knuckles lost by what she said.

"I don't get it...... but ok!"Pinkie cheerfully and casually answered.

Sonic and Sunset moved through the city and noticed the ongoing battle. The Resistance ships had engaged the Egg Fleet and the fighting was affecting the city. Explosions on buildings erupted due to the shots fired. As they did, Egg Chasers appeared in the path and released beams. Sonic jumped off his rail and became a streak to dash through them. He found his footing again and rejoined Sunset as they went on ahead. They then reached the top of another rooftop. Once they landed, an Egg Pawn squad surrounded the duo, ready to attack. In response, Sunset used her Wispon as a flamethrower, blasting all the enemies around, which cleared the threat.

"*whew*, Never figured I'd see you do something like this." Sonic commented.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures. Honestly, I'm still not that comfortable with this." Sunset admitted.

Sonic and Sunset then went to another lower part of a different building via Sonic leaping and Sunset floating there. Once again, Egg Pawns were there to try and stop them. While mid-air, Sonic landed with a kick on one Egg Pawn and then unleashed a quick 3 hit combo consisting of two punches and a side kick on 3 others. Two more were left, whom Sunset got rid of with a blast of fire. Sunset then flew higher up the building as Sonic ran upward. At the top, Egg choppers hovered above and fired shots. Sonic moved side to side with his speed as Sunset became airborne. She then clicked the trigger of her Wispon twice and shot out a small burst, taking down half of the enemies. Sonic went in the air and circled the rest before he unleashed a cutting wind with his fist that sliced the enemies to pieces. He then noticed another rail ahead and used it once more while Sunset tailed him from behind. The path they moved across gave them a better view of the battle.

"How's the battle?" Sonic asked over the comm.

"We're doing great. Right now, we have the upper hand. If we keep up this pace, we'll win." Amy said.

"Great to hear!" Sunset exclaimed.

"We're actually winning. I can't believe it." Fluttershy happily said.

"Too bad you can't take part in all action, Sonic." Rouge happily teased.

"Don't worry. I'll tell you what you missed." Rainbow Dash bragged over the comm.

The last comment made Sonic and Sunset roll their eyes, though playfully. They then came along some platforms once their route ended. Egg Pawns descended downwards and surrounded them. Sonic quickly became a streak as he moved around to take out some enemies while Sunset fired a blast of fire while moving her Wispon around. With the enemies beat, Sonic dashed to a rail ahead and Sunset soared along with him. They explored the battlefield even further this way and were taken around the city, passing by different structures and other buildings. They were then brought upwards to the bottom of a massive alien tower with several spheres attached to it, and gate-like rings on top.

"I think we found what we've been looking for." Sonic said as his feet touched the platform. "Race you to the top!"

"You know that's unfair." Sunset jokingly responded.

Egg Pawns guarding the tower tried to stop the two from going forward as they released ammunition. Sunset pointed her Wispon on the ground and blew herself in the air with a blast of fire. From above, a stream of flames blast the Egg Pawns. Sonic ran throughout the platform, using his fist to knock Egg Pawns down. Once this was done, they ascended higher to another surface. There, Egg Walkers fired missiles to the intruders. Sunset looked distressed as she moved to evade getting blown up. Sonic, on the other hand, waited as missiles headed to him. With some force, he kicked them back to where they came from. No more enemies meant it was safe to move ahead. Sonic scaled building's side and Sunset flew right next to him

At the peak, Eggman was in his Eggmobile but his back was turned. Infinite was next to him as well. They were observing the fight. Eggman seemed unnerved while Infinite showed no emotion. For them, it wasn't looking good. The Egg fleet was on the verge of defeat. He didn't notice the two Resistance members who had joined him. Sonic folded his arms and tapped his foot, waiting to be noticed while Sunset put on a defensive look. The sound of feet tapping made Orbot turn around and he gasped when he saw the source.

"Boss?" Orbot said, tapping Eggman's shoulder.

Eggman turned around and when he saw his foe and his ally, he felt as if though he nearly had a heart attack.

"What?!" He shrieked. His cry made Infinite turn as well. The sight of Sonic and Sunset made his eyes widen.

"What's wrong, Eggman? You look like you've seen a ghost." Sonic teased. "I guess you're stuck with me."

"This is impossible! Nothing can escape Null Space! How did you get out?!" The doctor demanded.

"We have our ways."Sunset simply said. The Phantom Ruby like gem she had came in handy and she had a feeling it was best to keep it a secret. "Anyway, we've found you. It's over."

"This is absurd. I don't know how you've been able to overcome the Phantom Ruby, but it ends now!" Infinite announced with his voice rising. His body began to glow. These two worms shouldn't have been able to resist his power. He had tolerated this mockery for far too long.

Sonic and Sunset stood tall, ready for whatever Infinite had planned.

"Infinite, no. We'll have the last laugh in the end." Eggman interrupted.

Infinite felt irked as this would be the second time they would have to 'retreat'. He then thought of the plan Eggman had and this alleviated the feeling. Seeing the looks on the Resistance's faces once they faced the inevitable was going to be sweet and much more satisfying. He followed instructions as his aura vanished.

Eggman then retreated into the largest ship with Infinite not too far behind. It's engines activated and the mad scientist began to flee the scene. While he was doing so, the Egg Fleet began to crumble as ships started to fall in the city. Sonic and Sunset witnessed this from where they stood.

"He's leaving. We did it! We won!" Sunset cheered. "We won!"

The Final Battle part 1

In the Resistance base, the members of the group were back in there. Most of them were standing around in the room while Tails, Twilight and Manic were working on the damaged E-123 Omega, whose back was open. Everyone was feeling really good about their victory in Metropolis. After all this time, they now had the upper hand.

"I still can't believe it. We actually managed to win." Fluttershy cheerfully said. "Today's been really good for us."

"Yeah. Our luck's finally turning around!" Charmy agreed.

"I'm glad you all feel that way, but we can't celebrate just yet." Knuckles said. "There's only one more hour until Eggman's plan."

"There's no more time. We need to break in and enter his fortress." Shadow declared.

"This is our chance to bring peace back to the world." Silver said with convinction.

"It's about time. After the city, I feel like I'm ready to tear down that creep's fortress." Rainbow Dash announced as she put her fist into her hand.

"Glad you're all pumped. But like ah said before, we shouldn't let winnin' in the city get to our heads." AppleJack warned.

"Indeed. There's still one more battle to fight before we can truly be victorious."Espio remarked while polishing his kunai.

"Ok, everyone. We'll gather our forces for one large organized attack. We'll fight as a group and force our way in." Amy suggested.

"Liking this direct approach." Vector said with approval.

Tails, Twilight and Manic finished putting some last minute screws on Omega and closed his back.

"There. That should do it for this guy. He should be good to go." Manic finished.

"Thank you." Rouge said to the mechanics. "We're going to need Omega for something this big. But don't expect him to say thank you."

"Speaking of which, we need to talk about the other edge we have." Tails said. "Sunset, take out that gem you found."

Sunset took out the ruby out of her pocket to display.

"Oh my. What a lovely gem." Rarity gushed. "What are you doing with that?"

"Pinkie found it and gave it to me."Sunset said. "I forget about for a while but this thing's saved my life before. It helped me back in the city for the first time and also allowed for Sonic and I get out of Null-Space."

"You're welcome by the way." Pinkie said as she came next to Sunset with a wink.

"Tails and I re-examined the notes Eggman left and it looks like this must be one of his Phantom Ruby copies." Twilight explained.

"So we have our own Phantom Ruby on our side. Sweet." Sonic said with the thumbs up. "So I guess it's time we give Eggman a taste of his own medicine."

"Not sure if it works like that, Sonic." Tails said. "Sunset, can you pass it here."

Sunset gave Tails the Phantom Ruby and he clenched it tight. Nothing happened. He passed it to Twilight and nothing happened.

"It looks like I can't activate it." Tails said.

"The Ruby responds to my magic usually." Sunset shared.

"That makes sense. The notes did mention how it reacts specifically to the DNA of the one who activated it." Twilight said while she gave Sunset the Ruby back. "Your Equestrian Magic must have triggered it."

"Guess I'll hold on to it then." Sunset decided as she placed it back in her pocket.

"Ok, everyone. This our last chance. Give it your all!" Knuckles commanded as the Resistance cheered in response. It was time to take back their world.

The massive army of the Resistance filled with the main members at the front and soldiers, carrying Wispons, had arrived at Eggman's fortress. It was located in the center of a barren gray wasteland with similar-looking mountains surrounding it. In the background was mperial Tower, a massive high-tech tower with tall metallic pieces forming hoops circling around it. The sky here is also completely overcast by gray clouds and filled with Resistance ships, which were used as transport, on one side. The other side had Eggman's fleet. Mechanical structural loops were on this side as well.

As the commander, Knuckles stood at the center, standing tall and proud. Before anyone could move, red glitches appeared in front of them. They soon materialized to make an army of copies, consisting of Shadow, Chaos, Metal Sonic and Zavok. Knuckles clenched his fist and turned to Sonic with a nod.

"Charge!" He ordered as he and his forces ran towards the masses of Replicas.

The final battle had begun. Knuckles started off by punching a replica of Zavok back. He then unleashed a barrage of punches towards any enemy he could find. With great strength, he then struck the ground, making a fiery explosion occur around him and setting his enemies back. AppleJack grabbed her lasso and wrapped around a Zavok clone. She then swung it around to smack around other fakes before slamming it to the ground, making a small crater. Shadow teleported around the area, hitting phantoms with either punches or kicks. Pinkie released a series of shots out of her cannon, blowing the copies back. Silver placed his hand on the ground and set out a psychic wave, paralyzing many replicas. This allowed for soldiers to fire at them with their Wispons. On the enemy side, Shadow clones unleashed Chaos Spears while Metal Sonic clones fired chest lasers. With her power, Rarity made a series of shields to block the attacks, which left her diamonds cracked. She then extended her hand and smashed them into her various enemies. Manic took out his eskrima sticks and used them as buzzsaws, slicing through all the fakes he came across. Next, to him, Vector used brute strength to clobber the clones while Charmy rapidly fired stingers to hit them. Espio unleashed ninja stars at first until he pulled out a kunai and joined Manic in cutting down the replicas. Fluttershy clutched her geode tight and it gave off a pink hue. Suddenly, a flock of birds emerged and started to swarm Eggman's army. This left them disorientated and open to further attacks from the soldiers. Twilight lifted many phantoms in the air, making them glow purple. She then pushed them back with her telekinesis. Rainbow Dash used her speed to shove her enemies way. Amy took many swings withher her hammer and slammed down the counterfeits. Rouge struck with kicks towards the replicas, taking them out. Tails activated his arm cannon and shot his enemies as he ran forward. He then used an enerbeam via his wrist, which was a yellow tether made of energy bolts.He latched on to a Chaos copy and pulled himself in for a strong kick. This sent the mimic crashing into many others.Sonic turned into a streak and hit through duplicate after duplicate. Sunset used the Burst Wispon as fire plowed through the knockoffs The Resistance was managing to get through Eggman's forcea and pushing forward. Behind all the clones, Infinite was floating above, watching. With Sonic at the front, the core members ran ahead towards Infinite, who had more stationary phantoms behind him.

"Yo, Infinite." Sonic greeted as he and the others came to a stop. Everyone except him looked up at the masked foe with tense eyes. "How've you been?"

"I've just been so anxious to finish off you and your annoying friends once and for all!" Infinite replied as his body started to glow red.

Infinite then unleashed a red distortion wave, blowing back Sonic and the others a few feet, causing them to cry out as they fell to the ground.

"Ready for the end?" Infinite asked as his enemies rose from the floor.

"If not, then don't feel too bad. It'll be over soon. Maybe."He sadistically added.

Suddenly, a series of green energy beams tried to hit Infinite. Reacting quickly, he dodged them all.

"What?! Who dares?!" The masked fiend demanded.

Coming down towards the battlefield was a fully functional E-123 Omega, with a wrist laser. He then landed on the ground as all eyes were on him.

"Target confirmed. Extermination mode initiated. Payback inevitable." Omega declared.

"Omega! You're here!' Rouge happily yelled.

"The talking canine informed me of the situation. Stand back meatbags. Leave the destroying to the experts." The root ordered.

Omega's body then activated all his weaponry. Machine guns, flamethrowers, cannons, and lasers blasters. He was now a walking artillery.

"I suggest we move back." Shadow suggested as he moved backward, with everyone else doing the same.

"Pest!" Infinite yelled as he motioned his hand forward. In response, his phantom army ran towards Omega.

The living weapon then unleashed a devastating assault of his entire arsenal. Sensing the danger, Infinite floated above as his clones were covered in a series of enormous flares. The result was a large explosion, much to the awe of the Resistance. A giant smoke cloud was seen from above and started to rise. The smoke began to clear and the result was that the imitations were no longer to be seen, leaving everyone else amazed.

"Wow, he took out all of those fakes like it was nothing." Manic said, dumbfounded .

"I'm sure glad he's on our side." Rainbow Dash expressed.

Infinite closed his fight tightly upon seeing his creations defeated so easily. He turned back to Omega and the Resistance

I will burn you and your Resistance to cinder!" The villain stated as he was surrounded by his aura.

Infinite then launched an orange spark into the air, which caused everyone to look up. The spark then transformed and engulfed the sky.......as an enormous sun! The sight of this filled the entire resistance with horror and shock. They were feeling overwhelmed by the sight.

"You've got to be kidding." Knuckles managed to say. "It's...just another fake...right?"

"No. While we're under the Phantom Ruby's control....it's real." Tails informed him.

"The sun?! He's going to drop the sun on us?!" Pinkie shrieked while holding her face.

"Talk about overkill!"Sonic simply said

"What can we do against that?!" Espio wondered.

"Ohhh, it's the end!!"Fluttershy cried as she covered her eyes.

Eggman looked on from his Eggmobile and began to chuckle.

"Yes. I have them right where I want them. The sun will crush them all!" The mad doctor proclaimed.

Despair was beginning to overcome the Resistance. There was no way to counter a star of that size. Some of the soldiers began to crouch on the ground in defeat.

"And we were so close!" Silver yelled with frustration as he punched the ground. "It can't end like this! All this effort...wasted!"

As everyone was starting to feel the situation was hopeless, Sunset reached in her pocket and pulled out the Phantom Ruby copy.

"Everyone, don't give up yet. " Sunset reminded as she showed it off. "I still have this with me.

"Right! With that, maybe we can stop that artificial sun." Twilight realized.

Sunset displayed the ruby up and noticed nothing was happening.

"Time to fight fire with fire. If I can get close to that sun, maybe I can make it go away." Sunset decided as she looked up at the incoming flare.

"Sunset, no. You'll be burnt to a crisp if you go there alone." Knuckles protested.

"Knuckles is right. It's too dangerous." Vector agreed.

"Then she won't go alone." AppleJack suddenly said. "Ah'm coming with ya, Sunset!"

"Me too! Me too!" Pinkie announced.

"If they're coming along, I might as well go too I suppose."Rarity offered.

"Count me in too." Twilight volunteered.

"Kicking the sun's butt? No way I'm sitting out this one!" Rainbow Dash excitedly said.

Fluttershy watched as all her friends had just offered themselves for their most dangerous mission yet. She herself was feeling terrified. It was the sun they were dealing with after all. But she knew she couldn't stay back.

"I'm coming as well." Fluttershy shared as she fought back her fear.

Sunset looked on at the rest of the Rainbooms, touched by them risking their lives for her.

"All of you...thank you." Sunset simply replied. She always knew she could count on them.

"Ok then, it's up to you." Sonic said.

"There's a small chance but at this point, it's our only hope." Tails explained. "Go for it."

"Please, all of you come back in one piece." Amy requested.

"No worries. Like I said before, when all the Rainbooms are together, nothing can stop us!" Rainbow Dash boasted.

The Rainbooms then went off ahead to approach the incoming sun by going deeper into Eggman's fortress. As they did, Infinite looked down and noticed them moving.

"What are they doing? Don't they realize the futility of their situation?" He wondered. "Tch. What will it take for them to realize that they've lost?"

Seeing the Rainbooms continue despite the situation they were in began to vex Infinite slightly. His body then began to glow as he raised his hands.

Ahead of the Rainbooms, 6 magenta silhouettes appeared, making them stop. They then began to materialize one by one. It was...the Hard Boiled Heavies. However, there was something different about them. The Heavy Gunner and Shinobi no longer had limbs. Instead, they were replaced by giant blue jetpack that contained a missile launcher and eight blades that surround the Shinobi. The blades were green with yellow tips, with a gray line that connected the blades together onto the Shinobi's body. The Heavy Magician looked the same but in front of them were 3 giant metallic cups. The Heavy Rider now was riding her steed Jimmy, who had been transformed into a large motorbike with a large front wheel. The Heavy Brawler now had 4 arms instead of two. Lastly, there was a new robot. Decorated as a mixture between a king and a knight, the robot had a red cape, signifying its rank among the other Hard Boiled Heavies as the leader. It had spiked knee joints and triangular shoulder pads along with red boots with golden forefeet. It also wore bronze-colored armor-plating on its chest with a white crown symbol. It had gray appendages and red eyes. This was known as the Heavy King.

"We can't let these ruffians stop this or otherwise it's over!" Rarity said with an annoyed look.

Suddenly, Amy came by the Rainbooms. Shortly afterward, she was followed by the Chaotix, Silver, Manic, Rouge and Omega.

"Go on. We can handle them. There's no time!"Amy urged.

"Thanks. We won't let you down." Sunset promised

Amy and the others then took charge and headed towards the Heavies. The Heavy King stuck his hand out and ordered for his subordinates to attack. The Phantom Brawler clashed with Vector who caught two of it's punched and struggled to hold them back. With its other two arms, it attempted to punch him, but they were grabbed by Espio and Charmy. With his powers, Silver trapped the Phantom Rider, who revved up its engine as it tried to move through. Silver had to concentrate to hold it in place. The Phantom Shinobi set out blades, which were intercepted by Amy hitting them with her hammer and Manic using his sticks. From it's back, the Phantom Gunner shot out missiles which began to fall down. Omega activated his gatling guns and shot them in the air, making small flares. The Phantom Magician opened it's cup and unleashed purple lasers, placing Rouge on the defensive as she jumped and dodged them. The Heavy King observed the fighting and was too preoccupied with commanding his subjects that the Rainbooms were able to slip by him.

The Rainbooms moved across the battlefield and into Eggman's fortress. The high-tech fortification was located in the middle of a deep crater whose edges were surrounded by high walls. These walls extend into the depths of the crater, forming staircase-like levels. Rising up from the center of the crater was a massive high-tech tower with tall metallic pieces forming hoops circling around it. The tower was surrounded by floating layers. Each of these layers consisted respectively of hexagonal-based frameworks, metal barriers, and metallic platforms, the last of which make up the playable roads. Noticeably, the platform had gears equipped to them. Also, the layers were equipped with surveillance orbs and metal barriers.

The 7 Rainbooms looked up at the tower they had to scale.

"Wow, it's really high up...." Fluttershy expressed.

"We just have to get up there, then?" Rainbow Dash said. "No problem!"

The Rainbooms began to move ahead and flew across a small gap to reach the next section. There, Egg Pawns saw them arrive and aimed their guns to fire. Luckily, Rarity made a series of shield to protect her friends. Twilight used her powers to slam two in the ground while Pinkie tossed a handful of explosives to defeat the rest. The girls then descended down to a lower pathway and traversed across. As they did, Egg Pawns guarding the bottom tried to stop them as they readied to fire. However, Rainbow Dash used her speed and knocked them off their balance by ramming into them.

"Come on, slowpokes!" She called from across.

"This is ain't a race." AppleJack said with slight annoyance.

"Actually, it kind of is as we have to move as fast as we can in order to stop the sun from burning us and our friends, so it does mean we're in a race against time." Pinkie explained quickly.

"Well, when she puts it like that..." was all Rarity could say

AppleJack opened her mouth to speak but Pinkie was technically correct. She said nothing and moved on with the rest of the group.

The Rainbooms regrouped at the leftmost of the path and noticed there were side walls going upwards. The 7 heroines easily flew up to the next level. Once they reached the next stage, Rainbow Dash quickly took off to move ahead. As she moved, she didn't notice sparks of electricity forming on the ground. Her friends, on the other hand, did and formed looks of fright.

"Rainbow Dash! Stop!"Sunset cried.

Rainbow stopped and turned around, annoyed.

"Stop,why would you-" She started to say before she heard the sound of small sparks and looked down. She then formed a panicked look as the floor started to become filled with electricity.

Just when it looked Rainbow Dash was going to get zapped, Twilight used her powers quickly and levitated her in a purple shroud, freeing her from harm. She then sighed with relief.

"Thanks, Twilight!" She said as Twilight let her aura go and Rainbow Dash floated in the sky.

"We have to be on our guard here 100%. We can't rush in blindly."Sunset advised to her teammates. "This is the peak of the enemy's territory and I want us all to be safe."

The others nodded and the 6 of them rose up and flew to where Rainbow Dash was.

Meanwhile back on the battlefield, the Phantom Heavies were continuing the battle with the Resistance members. The Phantom Gunner fired missiles which moved around in a frenzy at Omega. Due to Omega's lock on scanner, he was able to hit all of them with his guns. He tried to hit the Gunner, who was too quick to be shot.

"Why does Eggman insist on making these defective models?" He wondered while continuing to fire.

Silver lifted up debris and kept trying to smash the Phantom Rider, who was driving around like a madman and avoiding damage.

"This thing is almost as hard to hit as Sonic.." He grumbled.

Silver continued his assault but the Rider was able to evade it easily. It then revved up its bike quickly and came off the ground to try and hit Silver with its wheel. Due to its speed, Silver was barely able to defend himself by gathering rocks around him. The Rider's wheel moved against Silver's defense.

The Phantom Brawler tried to smash Espio, whose agility caused each attempted hit to miss. It then punched downward, making Espio jump back. This resulted in a small shockwave that blew him away a bit. Ahead, Charmy fired stingers but they just bounced off the Brawler. Espio threw shurikens as well but they were ineffective. Vector came and threw punch after punch, which the Brawler blocked with two arms. It used the other two to grab Vector and place him in a bear hug. This made him grunt as he struggled to move while Espio and Charmy rushed to his aid.

Rouge jumped high in the air and tried to kick the Phantom Magician, who vanished in dark smoke. It reappeared behind her and Rouge turned to attempt another kick, but the Magician teleported again. Rogue then kept trying to land a kick but the Magician just repeated the same trick. When it reappeared, it opened up its cups and fired 3 beams. Rouge leaped high in the air to dodge them and came to the Magician with a spiral kick. To counter, the Magician used one of its cups as a shield. Rouge's drill pressed on it for a while until she fell back.

The Phantom Shinobi continued to send out blades as Amy and Manic hit them back. The Shinobi then caught back all of its blades and began to rotate them at high speed. It turned itself into a deadly wheel and came for the two heroes. In response, Amy spun around with her hammer and began to clash with the Shinobi. However, the Shinobi proved to be stronger and rosy heroine was blown back to the ground. Seeing her vulnerable, the Shinobi quickly headed in her direction. Manic then used his speed and pulled Amy out of the way. He then released his sticks to the Shinobi, which simply bounced off all the blades and came back to him.

"Ok. This is gonna be harder than I thought." The green haired freedom fighter said as the Shinobi came as a wheel towards him and his friend.

"We just have to stall them until Sunset and the others turn off that sun." Amy responded as she and Manic split apart to dodge the wheeling ninja.

The Rainbooms made it across the electrified floor and rose up to the next level of the fortress. This led them to a small platform, but that was it. They all looked around for where to go next.

"Uhm...up there?" Fluttershy suggested as she pointed up to a platform which was a few feet up ahead.

"Right. Nice eye, Fluttershy." Twilight praised.

The magic group flew to where Fluttershy had pointed and arrived on another pathway. They then started to move left. While moving, they suddenly a large rumble, making all of them stop.

"What was that?!" Fluttershy said in a frightened tone.

The Rainbooms looked above them and saw small balls of fire were dropping and crashing into the parts of the fortress.

"Wow, the sky really is falling!" Pinkie commented

"The blasts look like they are falling indiscriminately. It doesn't seem likely we'll get hit." Twilight deduced.

"You're right on that. I think it's safe to move." Sunset agreed.

"It can't stop us anyway." Rainbow Dash added.

The septer continued along and hovered above the mini gaps ahead. On the small platforms in front, holes opened up and they began to fire purple energy spheres. The girls scattered as they avoided getting hit.

"Everyone, come to me!" Rarity said.

The other Rainbooms huddled to Rarity, who surrounded all of them in a giant diamond sphere. With it, she started to move across. When the blasts hit, it shook the sphere a bit and left small cracks.

"Wow, it's just like bumper cars!" Pinkie giggled.

"Really? Now?" AppleJack drly said.

Rarity's shield held out until the girls reached the end. They then descended down. After they did, they were greeted by Egg choppers coming to them with their swinging blades, accompanied by Egg Pawns. Using her lasso, AppleJack took hold of an Egg Pawn and it pulled it close to her. She then jumped in the air with it and punched it ahead, causing it to slam into the Egg Choppers, creating a small explosion. There were still some Egg Pawns and Rarity shot a diamond like a boomerang, slicing them down to size. Sunset pulled the trigger on her Wispon and took care of the rest with a stream of flames. The path was free and the 7 girls moved ahead. They saw they needed to move down again. Unfortunately, their next destination had Egg Pawns on it.

"Anyone else getting sick of these creeps?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"It is to be expected. We are in the fortress." Twilight said.

AppleJack saw a red hook up ahead and this gave her an idea. She took out her lasso and wrapped it around it.

"No worries, y'all. Ah got this." AppleJack told her.

With her rope, the strongest Rainboom then swung down and using her strength, she kicked through all the Egg Pawns in no time. The floor was now safe for her friends to come down, who joined her in no time.

"Good thinking, AJ." Sunset said.

"That looked so fun! Let me try next time!"Pinkie excitedly said.

"If we can. We gotta get goin!"AppleJack answered

The Rainbooms moved through the fortress, accompanied by the small flares crashing around. It did disturb them for a bit but they moved through it. They reached the end in no time and flew higher to the next part.

"Do you think we'll make it in time?" Fluttershy questioned.

"We can't worry about that now, Fluttershy."Rainbow Dash said. "Just keep moving!"

The team of 7 then came across more floors unleashing energy spheres on them. Rather than huddle them together, Rarity made a diamond floor beneath to take the blast and it began to crack quickly.

"Hurry!" She urged.

The Rainbooms quickly flew across their friend's diamonds and reached the next stage as the diamonds cracked.

"Rarity, is doin' all this ok for ya?" AppleJack asked with concern.

"I'm fine. We have to make it up there. No matter what." Rarity said as she wiped some sweat from her head.

Egg Pawns then jumped down to attack the Rainbooms. Pinkie threw as many explosives as she could to take them out. Twilight pushed them out of the way with her powers while Rainbow Dash flew back and came down to knock a few them of backward. The Rainbooms were free to rise higher and get closer to the sun.

"Ok, we're this far. It's all up to us now." Sunset told her friends.

The magical heroines flew across different metal barriers and this took them on a road at the top.

"Made it." Twilight said. "At the rate we are-"

Twilight's sentence was cut off by the sound of energy coming behind her and the others. They all turned around and much to their horror, a giant blue energy laser had formed...and was coming for them.

"Aw, ya've got be kiddin'!" AppleJack complained as she and her companions began to fly as fast as they could from the incoming laser beam.

"Really does feel like a final level, huh?" Pinkie simply said

On the ground, Amy and Manic somersaulted out of the Phantom Shinobi's path. It turned around to try the same trick and they rolled out of its way to dodge. The Shinobi came to a stop and Manic saw an opening and rushed towards it. The Shinobi's quick reflexes caused iy to fire blades, putting Manic on the offensive as he used his sticks as a defense. Manic then vibrated quickly and hit his sticks together, making a small soundwave that blew the blades back.

"Amy, quick!" He called out.

Amy rushed forward with her hammer but blades were still in front. Amy then improvised and used her hammer to hit the knives to the Shinobi. The Shinobi dodged most but one was lodged in its abdomen, making small circuits appear.

Omega kept on destroying missiles of the Phantom Gunner. Despite his love for destruction, he was starting to find this repetitive.

"You are supposed to be one of the Doctor's elite robots? Show me. Enough with the missiles. Surprise me." He demanded.

As if it listened to Omega, the Gunner stopped short of its missile fire.Its jetpack began to glow red and it fired blue missiles, which rained down to Omega. Before they hit, the missiles then split into smaller ones, making hundreds head his way.

"Finally. An enemy who gets it!" Omega said as he gleefully activated his weapons to take on the incoming rockets. This resulted in a semi-large explosion happening in the side.

Rouge noticed the explosion and sighed.

"Omega must be having too much fun...." She simply said.

The Phantom Magician opened its cups and razor-sharp cards headed in the spy's direction. Rouge took to mid-air and became a drill once more as she kicked through the cards. Once she was on the ground, she unleashed an ax kick towards the magician and it seemed like the attack landed. However, the Magician then exploded into a jack in the box, with it's giant head startling Rouge as she fell back. The Magician appeared above her and Rouge gave it an intense glare.

"Ok, you're really asking for it now!" She threatened

The Phantom Brawler continued to hug Vector as he tried to pry its arms off him.

"Come on. All that weight lifting wasn't for nothing..." The detective said as he continued to struggle.

On the back, Charmy kept firing stingers but the Brawler didn't even notice.

"Let him go! Let him go! Let him go! Stop ignoring me!" Charmy angrily yelled.

Suddenly, a small swirl appeared around the Brawler, taking it by surprise as it was suddenly lifted in the air. This caused it's grip on Vector to loosen.

"Gotcha!"He said as he broke free and took hold of the Brawler and slammed it right into the ground. This left only its feet sticking out. Vector then dusted his hands as Charmy flew next to him. Espio then appeared, no longer invisible.

"Thanks Espio," Vector said. "Why didn't you do that from the start?"

"I needed to wait for the right moment. And besides, it isn't done yet." The ninja informed his leader.

Using its hands, the Brawler took itself out of the ground easily. It then turned to the Chaotix as steamed emerged from it.

" Ok, now I think he's mad." Charmy said.

The Phantom Rider kept leaping in the air, performing stunts and trying to hit Silver as he kept dodging each strike.

"Ok seriously...Knock it off!" Silver angrily ordered as he managed to grab the Rider in a psychic aura finally.

As he did, the Rider revved its engine and stream of flames came in Silver's direction. The psychic youth used his powers to split the flames apart, but this caused him to let go of the Rider. The robotic daredevil continued to drive around, making Silver sigh in frustration.

The Rainbooms continued to frantically flee from the giant beam chasing them. Blocking their way were some Egg Pawns on the ground, looking up and ready to fire. Sunset unleashed flames from above, causing them to combust. The group reached the leftmost and flew up again to a higher region. The section they came across was enclosed and seemed like they had hit a dead end.

"Now what?!" Fluttershy worriedly said.

With a keen eye, AppleJack noticed a part of the ground was covered with some breakable red flooring. She quickly flew ahead and unleashed a punch, causing it to break apart. A new path was open.

"Come on!" She yelled.

The Rainbooms instantly followed their companion and flew down the hole. It led them to a longer platform, which was littered with Egg Cutters. Pinkie Pie quickly pulled out her cannon and fired a barrage of shots, taking the enemies out before they could do any damage. This allowed the 7 of them to fly up to another level. Where they were at, they saw Imperial Tower up ahead.

"There! That's the way to the sun!" Sunset pointed out.

The Rainbooms flew towards the lowest part of the Tower. They kept moving once they reached out, going around it, while the death ray kept on pursuing them

"You think you can stop the sun?!" Eggman boasted from above. "Give up! You'll be burnt like moths drawn to a flame!"

"Ignore him. We can do this!" Twilight said to raise her friends's morale.

Egg Pawns tried to stop the heroines from going ahead but Rarity threw slim diamonds that impaled the enemies while Twilight released a psychic wave to push them back. The Rainbooms were free to fly up to the tower's next level. There, more of Eggman' soldiers blocked their path. Rainbow Dash flew around them quickly, making them turn dizzy as they tried to keep up with her. While stunned, AppleJack grabbed one with her lasso and smashed it into the others. With this done, the 7 friends reached another higher level. Here, the paths were getting more narrow, forcing them to strategically fly around. This slowed them down as Eggman's ray was incoming.

"Just a bit longer..."Rarity uttered with determination.

Sunset and her friends reached the penultimate part of the tower and soared as fast as they could as the blue laser beam was getting closer and closer. Adrenaline was pumping through all 7 girl's bodies, pushing them to the limit.

"We can make it." Sunset reassured everyone.

The Rainbooms reached the end of the second highest level and flew on ahead as the death laser collided with the end, making a blue flare behind them. The direction they headed too brought them to the tower's top and the virtual sun was right above. When they landed, they collapsed due to exhaustion and caught their breaths. It was a real close call.

"Whew. We're finally...here." AppleJack said while panting.

"Is it just me or is it like really hot?" Rarity wondered outloud as she fanned herself

The Rainbooms started to sweat due to being close to the virtual sun and felt its heat. It was worse than any hot day of summer, borderline unbearable. Combined with the fatigue they were feeling, it seemed like they were sapped of all strength. Sunset was barely able to rise and she lifted up her Phantom Ruby copy weakly.

"I....I...." She said.

Sunset felt like she was going to pass out until she felt someone grab her hand. She turned to see an equally tired looking Twilight, whose free hand had Fluttershy. Fluttershy was holding Pinkie, who in turn held Rainbow Dash's. Rainbow Dash used her other hand to grab AppleJack, who also grabbed Rarity.

"We're all here, Sunset." Twilight said.

"And you know what that means?" Rainbow Dash said.

"Time for some lasers!"Pinkie cheered.

The Rainbooms floated in the air and all started to glow with a white aura. Each of their geodes lit up and they felt power surging through all of them. With renewed strength, Sunset aimed her gem at the sun.

On the ground, Infinite watched as the small Resistance faced off with the Phantom Heavies while the others looked on as the sun was getting closer and closer. They were anxious to see if the Rainbooms had succeeded or not and hoped for the best.

"Your last hope has failed. Make peace with your end." Infinite taunted.

"Three...Two....One...." Eggman eagerly said.

Sunset's ruby began to glow due to the activation of magic. She and her 6 firends fired a white beam covered with rainbows towards the sun. Upon making contact, the sun then began to flicker before it vanished. This caused Eggman, the Heavy King and Infinite look up with disbelief. The fighting between the other Heavies and the Resistance members ceased as well as the sky was back to normal.

"The sun, its gone!" Knuckles proclaimed, making the entire resistance roar with applauds.

Shadow looked up and gave a small smile.

"Just as I expected." He softly said.

"They did!" Tails joyfully exclaimed.

"What?! What happened?!" Eggman demanded in a mixture of surprise and rage.

The doctor flew up to Imperial Tower quickly to see the Rainbooms fall on the floor, extremely exhausted. From her hand, Sunset dropped pieces of her ruby, which Eggman noticed.

"Impossible! All the experiments were destroyed!" Eggman yelled in a bewildered fashion.

"A costly...oversight.." Twilight managed to say. "You should have.....double-checked."

"Everyone...good luck down there." Sunset softly said.

"All right everyone, time to win!"Knuckles told his army as they all hollered with joy.

They then charged forward just as another replica army was made, resuming the battle from before.

"That sun must have used a lot of the Phantom Ruby's power." Tails said. "That must mean Infinite's weakened."

"Then it's time to finish things. I'll go find him!" Sonic said.

Sonic then zoomed past the ongoing clash. Due to the confusion, he or anyone else didn't notice that Shadow had disappeared as well.

"Sunset and the others got rid of that sun." Manic said. "Now let's finish these guys!"

However, before the fight could continue, the Phantom Heavies suddenly turned into pink shades and were drawn back. The shades then entered the staff of the Heavy King and flashed pink. The King then unleashed a large pink ray in front of Amy's team, blowing them back to where most of their comrades where. They all grunted and slowly picked themselves up off the ground.

"He must be the boss behind those robots." Vector guessed as the King joined the battlefield.

Knuckles then hit his fist together as he walked ahead.

"Leave this to me." He said. "I need to smash something and these fakes just don't cut it."

The Heavy King's eyes flashed red as it held up it's staff, indicating it was ready for battle.

The Final Battle part 2

In the sky, the Resistance Battleships were engaged in a fierce battle with Eggman's fleet. The sound of lasers roared in the clouds as they littered the sky. On the ground, Sonic was grinding on a rail from the edge of Eggman's fortress and making his way through until he reached solid ground. He then began to run across a path, which took him downward.

"The Rainbooms opened a path for me to finish Infinite. I'm not going to waste it!" Sonic declared.

The Blue Blur reached another pathway, located in the metallic canyon. In his way, Egg Pawns formed a blockade and they all fired at once. Sonic easily evaded the barrage of lasers and split through the robots as a single streak. This made them fall in half while he continued on ahead.

Sonic went down even further and reached a darkened area. The only light available was red lasers in the gaps between and the dark purple lights on the platforms below. Coming his way were 4 Egg chasers, whom quickly unloaded their beams. The speedy hero sidestepped and was safe. He then became a streak and blitz through each of the flying enemies. Doing this brought him to the platforms more quickly. Sonic sped along and came into the daylight again. The region he was in now had many smaller platforms to fill it. With his speed, he jumped off each of them and landed on a rail. Via grinding, Sonic was taken around Eggman's fortress and landed on a highway. As soon as he did, he used his boost and burst through any enemy he came across, which included Egg Cutters, Egg Walkers and Egg Pawns. The highway ended in another large canyon, with larger platforms. The super sonic youth continued with his boost and used it to fly across an enormous gap ahead. He reached another path up ahead and turned his boost off. Egg Pawns prepared to stop him but Sonic quickly unleashed a shockwave from his feet before they had the chance. With the path free, he raced through and it became light once more. Here, there were many small bridges placed around. Sonic ran off each of them and started down a steep slope. He ended up on another highway and traversed through it. Egg Choppers flew above him, but he made quick work of them with his streak attack, hitting them one by one. He was now in another canyon and it consisted of parallel paths at different heights and longer platforms than before. The fastest thing alive leaped from platform to platform before he took the highest path. He then took a small jump across and reached one more highway. Egg Walkers, who were hovering above, dropped bombs while Sonic ran ran. Now, he was running through bursts of flame all around, but this didn't phase him much. He'd been through worse. In order to stop the assault, the blue warrior created 3 vortexes as the bombs fell. This carried them back into the air, making them denote ahead and taking out the Egg Walkers.

"Got you with your own weapons." Sonic smirked.

Sonic reached the Highway's end and ran towards the entrance of Imperial Tower. There, he found Infinite waiting for him, who floated in a magenta aura. He stopped in his tracks and glared up at his foe.

"Pathetic boy. Even if the Phantom Ruby is weakened, I'm more than enough to finish you." Infinite threatened. "I'll show you how outclassed you are."

"Yeah, yeah. Do you ever stop with the overly-dramatic lines and threats? It got old a while back. Time for me to shut you up!" Sonic boasted.

Infinite's body split apart and in his place, a barrage of rotating x-shaped waves of cubes towards Sonic. The blue hero dashed through each of them, timing his movement by going through each of the narrow gaps. Once Sonic had moved past all of them, Infinite reappeared and Sonic lunged towards him as a streak. The dark villain simply moved right and Sonic missed. He skidded to the ground and tried to hit the illusionist once more with the same maneuver. This time, Infinite flicked his wrist and sent Sonic back before he made contact. Once he landed on the ground, Sonic sprung right back into mid-air and tried a kick downward. Infinite effortlessly blocked it but in response, his heroic adversary unleashed a barrage of kicks from his right foot that Infinite caught with one hand. Sonic then tried another kick using his other leg, which made Infinite tilt his head backward slightly. The azure speedster then tried a punch, but his enemy took a hold of his wrist and blew Sonic away with a red pulse. Infinite then teleported behind him, ready to strike. However, thanks to his quick reflexes, Sonic suddenly moved over his masked rival, and kicked him down with a reverse ax kick. Before Infinite hit the floor, Sonic pursued him as a streak and crashed him into the ground. Sonic then landed on his feet but Infinite was nowhere to be found. Suddenly, he felt a sharp sting on his back.

"Arrgh!' Sonic grunted as a red beam hit him directly. This made him fall back a bit.

"This will be how it ends. This place will be your grave." The master of illusions promised as he charged up two energy spheres before he fired them.

"Nah, it would suit you more." Sonic disagreed as he shrugged off the pain and avoided Infinite's spheres.

Sonic then charged towards Infinite, unleashing a frenzy of streak attacks. Infinite teleported and dodged every single one. When the last one was over, he appeared in front of Sonic and tried to kick him. Sonic responded with a kick of his own, which collided with Infinite's, though Sonic slid back a few feet. The Phantom Ruby's bearer then floated in the air and created giant walls of cube above the quickster in an attempt to crush him with them. Sonic zipped ahead out of their way and turned into a more focused streak to hit Infinite. Infinite defend himself but due to the nature of Sonic's attack, the latter pushed against the former. Infinite struggled a bit but sent his opponent back with a red distortion wave. Sonic reached the ground safely and turned to see that Infinite's glow was more prominent.

"The Phantom Ruby is recharged Sonic. You're finished. Now..Die!" The masked villain yelled.

Suddenly, a yellow spear headed towards Infinite, who quickly dodged it.

"What?" He said as both Sonic and himself looked to see who fired it.

Heading towards the battle was Shadow, much to both Sonic's and Infinite's delight, though for different reasons. Shadow arrived next to Sonic and quickly glared at Infinite.

"Shadow?!" Sonic questioned.

"You." Infinite said. "Hahahaha. This is wonderful. I was so thrilled when I saw you were out of my prison. I wanted you to be aware of how much stronger I am than you now. It was a wonderful show, wasn't it?"

Shadow tightened his fist.

"It's over Infinite." He simply said. "Sonic, stand back. I'm going to finish him."

Before Sonic could protest, the Ultimate Lifeform disappeared in a blue flash, which made Infinite vanish in a glitch. Above, Sonic saw a mixture of red and blue distortions appear randomly in the air, signifying his newest foe and arch rival clashing. After this occurred for a while, Shadow was sent back away from Infinite and returned to the ground. He conjured another Chaos Spear and attempted to use it to pierce Infinite. However, Infinite simply caught it with a simple grip.

"Wow there, that could have been dangerous." He sarcastically said.

Infinite's hand glowed red and he fired a beam at close range. Shadow blocked it by crossing his arms but was sent back further in the air. Eggman's lieutenant then flew towards him and unleashed an ax kick. Again, the black blur blocked it but the impact sent him to the to the surface blow.

"I told you before. This power is un rivalled." Infinite boasted as he shot forward a flurry of cubes to Shadow.

The dark hero skated forward and teleported in small sequences to avoid them. He then appeared above Infinite and became a streak. However, Infinite charged to him in a red aura, which caused Shadow to be repelled away from him when they made contact. He then returned next to Sonic and found his footing. Shadow then grit his teeth with frustation.

"What's wrong, Shadow? Are you feeling helpless? Weak?"Infinite taunted. "It's only natural before me."

Shadow remained silent and prepared to engage Infinite once more. However, pillars of red cubes erupted around him, leaving him trapped in a box of some sort. He looked around at the sight as the cubes got in closer.

"Now, you will submit to my power!" Infinite declared as the cubes started to engulf his hated nemesis.

However, from a narrow opening at the top, Sonic descended through in an attempt to try and help his number one rival, much to Shadow's surprise.

"Sonic, what are you-" He started to say as his blue counterpart came down next to him.

"You can't hog Infinite all to yourself. He and I have something special." Sonic joked. "Now, we can-"

Sonic's sentence was cut off as he and Shadow were enveloped by red cubes, which caused a giant distortion sound to be heard.

When the two speedsters opened their eyes, they found themselves in a red shaded area and glitchy area.

"Just what was that back there?" Shadow questioned. "You just walked right into his attack."

"Ok, I admit, I didn't have a plan." Sonic confessed. "But no worries. Now the two of us can take him down together."

"What part of I'm finishing him did you fail to comprehend?" His anti heroic rival answered.

"And how's that going so far, faker?" Sonic retorted.

Before Shadow could answer, the area around them suddenly materialized. Sonic and Shadow were standing on a metallic floor, with the rest of the room matching its design.

"Where did he-" Sonic began before he stopped short due to the sight of the planet....which was visible through a thick glass window right in front of him and Shadow. This made both of them start to recognize the location they were in.

"Shadow...are we..."Sonic began to say.

"Yes. This the Ark." Shadow finished. "I don't know what Infinite is up to bringing us here but we need to stay alert."

"Fake or not, sure brings back memories. It's where I first beat you." Sonic teased.

"A self-serving memory is dangerous." Shadow replied with a slight smirk.

"Shadow?" The voice of a young girl suddenly said from behind.

Hearing this caused Shadow to freeze up instantly. The voice, he recognized it. He could never forget it. Shadow slowly began to turn around and a few feet away was Maria, alive and healthy. The black wind was totally stunned to see his deceased foster sister before him and was speechless.

"Shadow. It really is you!" Maria exclaimed.

"Wow, this is just messed up." Sonic grimly said as he clenched his fist. He felt anger surging due to what Infinite was doing, defiling such a precious memory of Shadow's.

"Shadow, I've missed you so much.I'm so glad we can be together again." The young girl went on went on. "Come. My grandfather is waiting for us."

Shadow just stood there, still processing everything that happened. This made Maria confused.

"Shadow? What's wrong?" She questioned.

"Back up. We both know this is fake, so whatever mind games you're up to, it won't work." Sonic quickly said.

"Fake? Shadow, what's he saying? You know it's me. Don't you think we've been separated for too long?" Maria went on. "Why aren't you glad?"

"Didn't you hear? We-" Sonic began before Shadow raised his arm.

"Sonic. Let me." His dark ally requested. His tone was much softer than usual. This made Sonic back down but he looked at Shadow with concern.

"You. No matter how much the Phantom Ruby wants me to believe. No. No matter how much I want to believe. You aren't real." Shadow said in a monotone voice with his head slightly down.

"What are you talking about, Shadow? I'm-"Maria said.

"No. You aren't her." Shadow interrupted, looking at Maria right in the eyes. "Maria died a long time ago. I will always treasure her but, she's the past. I live for the present. I promised both her and myself."

Maria suddenly formed a sad look as Shadow started to turn his back on her.

"Shadow. Don't go. Are you going to let me die again?" She asked.

Sonic's eyes widened with worry while the black colored hero kept quiet for a while.

"Sayanora...Maria." He answered. "Sonic, let's go."

"Right." His blue comrade agreed as he also turned his back to the fake Maria. The two of them sped on ahead. While they did, the area around them began to glitch out before it shattered entirely.

In the real world, Sonic and Shadow both fell forward slightly and took in a few breathes as Infinite looked on.

"Well, since you two made it this far, I shouldn't be too surprised that you could resist my illusions for a bit. But it still must have had some impact?" The sadistic villain gloated.

Sonic angrily looked up at Infinite.

"Infinite, you've gone too far!" He yelled while Infinite chuckled slightly.

Shadow then rose up slowly with a straight posture as Infinite watched. The look in his eye was much more intense than Sonic's, fuelled by total fury.

"Oh, what a glare." Infinite said in an amused tone. "I must have touched a nerve."

"Sonic, get back." Shadow ordered as he prepared to remove his inhibitor rings.

"Wow, think about it faker. I get you're mad and all but doing that will do no good. We're not totally sure that Chaos Blast will work and if it doesn't, you'll just be drained and vulnerable." The blue haired youth brought up.

For the second time, Shadow hated that Sonic had a point. He then brought his arms down.

"Then what do you suggest?" Shadow said, taking Sonic back.

"Wow, you're actually listening to me?" He said with slight disbelief.

"Hurry up before I change my mind." The somber warrior demanded.

"Oh, well how about a lightspeed attack to throw him off?" Th upbeat fighter suggested.

"Hmph." Shadow simply responded, which Sonic took as a yes.

The two rivals then began to run and skate in place respectively. In doing so, many orbs of light began to enter their bodies.

"What's this? No matter what you do, it's useless!" Infinite announced as he stuck his hand out and shot many large cube streams.

Sonic and Shadow continued to charge as the cubes headed their way. Just before they made contact, the two of them burst ahead in the form of cyan and bright yellow beams of light. Infinite's cubes missed and he was now surrounded by the two beams moving around in a frenzy.

"I told you. It's useless. A small light show won't stop me!" The masked one gloated as he charged up a red aura and prepared to unleash a shockwave.

Before he could, Infinite suddenly felt a strong force ram him in the back, which made him lose his sense of balance.

"What?!" He yelled in a bewildered manner.

Infinite didn't get a chance to do anything else as he was suddenly hit at ramming speed right in the chest. He was then suddenly being knocked around the area rapidly. His two challengers moved too fast for him to keep up. Eventually, Infinite was hit upward before he was sent crashing down below. Infinite managed to regain his balance and slid on the floor while on his knees.

"Don't believe you'll get a second chance like that!" He snarled.

A few feet ahead, Sonic and Shadow landed next to each other before they began to head straight towards Infinite, both of them surrounded in their boost. They held up their fist and punched. At the last second, the rogue managed to catch both of their boost powered fists but with much difficulty as he was nearly blown back. Sonic and Shadow were now at a stalemate with Infinite, who began producing a red field. He was slowly moving back as the determined heroes pushed forward.

"You..." Infinite seethed.

"Come on...." Sonic muttered.

"Tch..." Shadow grunted.

The deadlock between the 3 fighters continued on until they were all blow away from each other. Infinite headed mid-air and stopped himself midway. Sonic and Shadow skidded on the ground but weren't done yet. Sonic jumped ahead towards Infinite. As he did, his dark ally fired a Chaos Spear directly at his feet, which pushed him further with a burst of Chaos Energy. He reached Infinite and delivered a right hook, which was augmented by his momentum. This made Infinite move back a few inches and there, Shadow teleported and unleashed a flaring kick with his skates on Infinite's skull. Shadow's kick blew him down to his knees.

On the ground, Infinite then began to clench his fist as he processed what happened.

"(What..Are they trying to overpower me?! Me?! How dare they?! I will show them...my power is...Infinite!)" He mentally declared.

Sonic and Shadow appeared to each other, ready to continue the fight as their combatant rose once more. His aura then began to pulse while his head dangled. He then stared his two enemies down with vigorous anger, his body surrounding the area with a red wave, which disoriented Sonic and Shadow.

"YOU CAN'T DEFEAT ME!!" He shouted as his aura expanded into an electrified one and he charged towards Sonic and Shadow.

With their speed and reflexes, the fast dueo barely evaded Infinite's attack, certainly not helped by Infinite's wave. However, Infinite's trail gave off electric bursts, which they were in proximity of. They felt the backlash and this slammed both of them on the side. Infinite watched from above, pleased with himself.

"Great..now he's mad." Sonic muttered as he rose from the ground. 'All we just did is succeed in ticking him off."

"We need to end this now." Shadow decided.

"You are right! Sonic, Shadow. It is time for me to finish you both! In the past, you were formidable threats but now, you are nothing! I am the strongest!" Infinite manically announced.

Infinite expanded his hands as cubes began to swirl around to form an enormous energy sphere.

"I'm going to create an illusion so powerful and terrifying that your minds will be forever destroyed!" He threatened.

"Huh. That doesn't look good."Sonic said with a slight smile.

Shadow tugged at his wrist and removed one of his inhibitor rings, which made Sonic turn to him with a look of surprise.

"Hello? Didn't you remember what I told you from before, faker?" The blue wind reminded. "Chaos Blast is too risky. I know you're stubborn but come on."

"I'm not going to use Chaos Blast." His more serious equivalent answered as he took off another ring. "I'm going to use my full power to boost through that attack and hit Infinite. It's the best chance we have."

"Hold up,faker." Sonic protested. "You're forgetting something. Me. Like I said before, you're not the only with an ax to grind with this guy. Quit leaving me out. It hurts."

Shadow turned to Sonic and let out a small smirk.

"If you insist. Just don't slow me down." He remarked.

Sonic then crouched and began to vibrate his body at a high speed while also using his figure 8 move to charge up a powerful force of speed. A yellow aura began to emerge from Shadow and started to rise. Infinite noticed them and scoffed.

"Struggle all you want! This the end!" The unhinged villain yelled as he hurled his mass of cubes to Sonic and Shadow.

With Infinite's incoming attack, Sonic and Shadow acted. Shadow's aura exploded in a large one as skated ahead in a Chaos powered boost. Sonic, on the other hand, moved forward after building up all that speed and unleashed a sonic boom, propelling himself in a wild aura. Both of their fields combined and reinforced each other as they made contact with Infinite's energy sphere. It was a difficult task to move forward as twin speedsters were stuck against the energy sphere, which didn't appear to be budging.

"I knew it! In the end, your last act of resistance is futile!" Infinite berated.

Suddenly, user of the Phantom Ruby noticed that his sphere was starting to faintly fade. He saw cubes rising in the air and vanishing, which puzzled him. While this was occurring, his orb was starting to shrink. Infinite's eyes widened with shock due to this.

"What?!" He shouted.

Sonic and Shadow were managing to push through Infinite's assault, chipping away at the energy ball bit by bit until it dispersed in a flurry of cubes. This made Infinite paralyzed with disbelief due to what he just witnessed.

"No!" He yelled as the two speedy heroes burst up ahead and straight towards him.

Infinite was too caught off guard to defend, leaving him open to Sonic and Shadow's combined boost hitting him at full power. The forces of their auras damaged him greatly as the two continued to push their attack. Infinite's body flailed around due to the attack's feedback. Eventually, they went past him as their former undefeated enemy was launched several feet in the air while Sonic and Shadow landed on the floor, their boosts giving out. Infinite then crashed to the floor, with a battered body. His mask was cracked and his body started to glitch out while red sparks 'bled' from his arms and knees. He then began to twitch while the victorious allies caught their breaths. They were feeling pretty worn out. They then turned to see the defeated Infinite.

"Yeah. That was great, partner." Sonic said as he stuck his hand out for a fist bump to Shadow.

Shadow looked stoically at Sonic with an unimpressed look.

"Don't push it." He warned.

"Sonic!" Sunset's voice said from above, which caused Sonic and Shadow to see her coming towards them.

"Sunset. Great work on stopping that sun." Sonic congratulated.

"Thanks. The girls and I were heading down to join everyone else but I saw this giant energy eruption and wanted to check it out. Was that you?" Sunset asked.

"Yep. Me and the faker." Sonic said as he pointed to the latter, who crossed his arms.

"Figures Shadow would be involved." The magical heroine replied. "You working with Sonic? That's something you don't see every day."

"Hmph. Don't get used to seeing it." Shadow simply answered.

Behind them, Sunset noticed Infinite's defeated form, much to her amazement.

"Wow. You guys beat Infinite?" She questioned.

"Oh yeah. It was pretty cool." Sonic boasted while Shadow kept silence.

" Shadow, I'm glad you decided to stay with us instead of going off on your own. We really needed your help." Sunset praised as she turned back to Shadow.

"Like I said. Don't get used to seeing it." Shadow repeated, which made his companion beam.

Infinite suddenly began to stir, which made the 3 resistance members turn to see him rising. He couldn't even stand, no matter how much he wanted to.Only his knees could support his body.

"No. This can't be happening. I can't be beaten.." Infinite weakly said.

"Wrong. What can't be beaten are the bonds of friendship." Sunset told him while Sonic playfully rolled his eyes in the background. " That's why you lost Infinite. It doesn't matter how strong you get, you'll never beat that as long as we have it on our side."

"Absurd. I don't need friends. They are an illusion which will fade eventually. Nothing last forever..." The defeated rogue retorted.

Sunset's look softened. Despite everything he had done, she was actually feeling some pity for Infinite, which she never expected to happen. Now, he just looked so lonely and sad.

"Infinite. Didn't you have friends once? You must know what it's like." She questioned

"I-." Infinite began as memories of his time with old squad resurfaced.

"No. I have never had any use them for them." He reaffirmed, trying to convince himself after he shook his head.

Sunset just looked on at Infinite sadly while Sonic and Shadow's expressions were more neutral. Shadow then stepped forward.

"It's over now. You've lost." Shadow told him.

Just then Infinite's body became transparent as he was suddenly lifted in the air, much to his displeasure.

"No! Wait! I can still-"He protested before he became a magenta beam and was pulled towards the top of Imperial tower. This left Sonic, Shadow and Sunset stunned by this.

"I must admit, this is unexpected. I did not think Infinite could be defeated."Eggman said as he descended down towards the trio, who looked at him with tense glares.

"Thought you did have the help of my grandfather's masterpiece, so I shouldn't be too surprised." Eggman continued while looking at Shadow.

"This isn't over. Far from it! My plan just entered overtime!" The doctor finished.

Meanwhile, much earlier when Sonic had left to go find Infinite, Knuckles and the Heavy King faced each other. Knuckles hit his fist together, ready to brawl while the King laid down his scepter.

"Careful Knuckles. He's the leader of those elite Eggman robots we've fought." Amy warned, which made Knuckles grin.

"I couldn't ask for a better opponent now. Stand back and help the rest of our forces." Knuckles commanded, ready for action.

Amy nodded as she and the others rose up. She then led them back to the main fight, leaving Knuckles with the Heavy King.

"You're the closest to smashing Eggman I'm going to get. Get ready!" The Resistance leader warned as he rushed towards the King.

Knuckles began by punching rapidly at the robot, who used his scepter to block the hits. When Knuckle's last hit collided with the scepter, the King spun it around after and the top began to glow purple. He then unleashed a straight purple beam. Luckily, the brawler rolled to the side to dodge it. The metallic monarch wasn't over it as he continued to fire beams while Knuckles moved around the area to dodge them. Knuckles then leaped mid-air and glided to the King before he could fire a blast. This forced him to use his scepter to block when the guardian came close. The robotic tyrant was then pushed a few feet away and Knuckles landed. He immediately continued his assault on his opponent, this time unleashing a different combination of punches instead of just punching straight. The King blocked them, but it was more difficult due to Knuckle's different forms. During his attack, the red hero saw an opening and went with a right hook at the King's face. Instead of hitting his head, The Heavy King caught Knuckles punch. The two of them struggled for a bit as the ruler's scepter glowed once more and he slammed the bottom on the ground. This created a purple shockwave that blew Knuckles back and he fell to the ground. He quickly rose up as the King laid down his staff.

"Don't think I'm done yet." Knuckles boasted.

The Heavy King's scepter charged up energy once more and this time he began to fire energy spheres at Knuckles. The treasure hunter ran straight towards him, evading the spheres as mini explosions appeared everywhere. Then the robotic sovereigns scepter began to glow more prominently as several orbs began to surround. He then quickly flung the attack at Knuckles. Due to their incoming speed and number, it seemed Knuckles didn't have time to dodge as an eruption of energy appeared where he stood. The King looked on to see no trace of his adversary. This caused him to look up proudly. Just then, the ground beneath him began to crack, much to his curiosity. The machine leader looked down and after that, Knuckles emerged from the ground, landing a strong punch on the King's chin. Despite hitting him, the King quickly recovered and grabbed Knuckles's torso. He then slammed him on the ground. Close to his face, the mechanized emperor began to charge up an energy blast. Acting quickly, Knuckles jammed his fist in the ground and propelled his feet to land a kick on the Heavy King's face. The stubborn hero continued to push his kick on the King and this eventually sent him back while Knuckles flipped off the ground. The Heavy King quickly reformed his offensive stance.

"Sonic's probably found Infinite by now." Knuckles said to himself. "He'd never let me live it down if he beat that masked freak while I lost to this."

The Heavy King began to surround his body with energy spheres, forming a field. He then rose in the air and flew straight towards Knuckles. Knuckles somersaulted while his enemy left behind an energy trail. The King then turned around and tried to ram into Knuckles once more, who was able to dodge as he jumped to the side. The highest ranked Heavy then attempted his attack once more and instead of jumping, Knuckles stood his ground. As the King got in close enough, the red fighter struck the ground with both fists, making an explosive shockwave which crashed into the Heavy King's field. This made both of them pushed back due to the resulting force of the clash. Knuckles slid on the ground and started to pant. The fight was starting to wear him out while the Heavy King still seemed ready to go. The King's staff flashed purple and he rose it up in the air. As it did, spectral versions of the Phantom Heavies appeared ahead, taking Knuckles off guard. They then headed in his direction.

"I don't care how many of you there are. I'll smash you all!" He declared as he ran ahead.

Knuckles threw a punch towards the incoming Phantom Rider. Much to his shock, his fist simply went through the Rider as he stumbled forward a bit.

"What the?" The confused commander said in a perplexed state as the other Heavies phased through him.

Unfortunately, Knuckles was caught off guard by this and this allowed for the Heavy King to fire 3 energy spheres which hit him directly. This sent him crashing to the ground.

On the battle, the main Resistance members were still dealing with the replica army. It appeared that they had the upper hand. As a portion of the army began to attack, a large pink explosion covered them. Above, it was Pinkie, joined by 5 other Rainbooms as they descend down.

"Hiiiiiii!" Pinkie greeted.

"You all made it back safe. Thank goodness." Amy expressed with relief. "

"Oh, but we almost didn't. There was an awful laser chasing us as we got close." Fluttershy. "It could have ended badly."

"But it didn't. We owe you guys a huge one for getting rid of that sun." Manic thanked. "That's hardcore."

"What did you expect from us? Now let's go kick some more butt!" Rainbow Dash eagerly said.

"Wait, wasn't Sunset with you?" Silver wondered.

"She saw an energy spike up ahead and went to investigate." Twilight responded. "I hope it wasn't anything dangerous."

AppleJack then noticed Knuckles was missing.

"Hey, wheres' Knuckles?" She asked.

"He stayed behind to fight the leader of those robots we held off for you." Rouge explained. "You know how he is. Always trying to the big tough guy."

AppleJack formed a look of concern which then became determined.

"Ah'm going to go help im. " She decided. "He could be in big trouble if he's taking on the boss."

"That sounds like a good idea." Espio agreed. "The others were quite formidable, so I imagine the leader is on a different level."

"Fine. But be careful." Rarity cautioned as AppleJack nodded.

The bass playing Rainboom then flew towards Knuckle's location while the rest of the Rainbooms joined the battle.

The Heavy King continued to fire energy spheres at Knuckles, which moved around in a frenzy. This made it difficult for him to dodge due to how unpredictable they were. He just barely avoided two as a third one was incoming. The resistance clenched his fist and released a flaming uppercut that sent the sphere back to the crowned head. It didn't do much damage as the elite robot simply defended himself with his staff. The Heavy King then raised it, ready to fire another blast while Knuckles prepared himself. Just then, AppleJack's lasso wrapped around the scepter, which made the King look back to see her struggling to yank it from him.

"AppleJack?!" Knuckles questioned. "You should be helping the others fight on the battlefield."

"I figured you could use ma *grunt* help!" She answered back. "Hurry, hit im!"

Knuckles realized the Heavy King was open due to being involved in a tug of war with AppleJack and ran towards him for a punch, his fist covered in fire. The King noticed him incoming and from the top of his scepter, he unleashed two beams. The martial artist's came into contact with one blast, which he was put at a stalemate with before he was sent backward. Meanwhile, AppleJack had to let go of her lasso in order to avoid the blast that headed her way. She flew past it and landed next to Knuckles. The Heavy King twirled his weapon and stared down his two enemies. He then surrounded himself with energy spheres once more

"So since you came to help, any ideas?" Knuckles asked AppleJack. "Me trying to just smash him isn't working out well. He's going to charge at it."

The blonde farm girl then got an idea, thanks to Knuckle's last sentence.

"If he's gonna try that, we'll just have to meet im head on!" She decided as she took out her rope and suddenly threw it around Knuckles. He then got what she was up to.

"Ok, let's do it!" He agreed.

AppleJack then began to spin her red comrade around with all her strength. At the same, her body began to glow yellow and this was being transported to Knuckles. He was now shining yellow due to the surge of magical energy. The strong Rainboom continued to swing him around a few times. Then, the Heavy King moved forward to the power duo with his energy spheres. Due to this, AppleJack let go and flung Knuckles directly to the King, the former flying with his fists straight out as a yellow projectile. When he collided with the Heavy' boss, a small eruption of energy erupted. The Heavy King was blown in the air, his chest having a large dent in it and his scepter broke in two. Knuckles landed on the ground and looked up to the airborne machine.

The red resistance leader put his fist together and charged up red energy while purple orbs surrounded him. When he was finished, he released the stored power as he flew upwards in a red field at high speed. He went straight through the Heavy King, using his Maximum Heat Knuckles attack. The King's broken pieces crashed to the ground, crackled a bit with electricity and then shut down as Knuckles came to the ground once more. He turned to see AppleJack rushing towards him.

"Thanks AJ. I did really need your help after all." He congratulated. "With this and that pep talk back there, you're a good partner."

"It was nothin." AppleJack modestly replied though she was flattered by his praise. "But that was the last of those super robots right? That means we took out one more chunk of the army."

"Right! We're sure to win now." Knuckles said.

Suddenly, Tails appeared on the comms for everyone to hear.

"My Miles Electric says the Phantom Ruby's signal is moving underground. Eggman is up to something!" He informed everyone.

The Final Battle part 4

The Final Battle Part 4
The Mega Death Egg Robot charged up a glowing red laser, which put the resistance members on the offensive.

"Look out!" Tails shouted as the colossal mech fired an enormous red beam towards the group.

The result was a giant red flare that emerged in the ground. Sonic reacted quickly and took Tails out using his speed, but the force of the blast blew them away. Twilight hugged Sunset tightly and shrouded both of them in a purple field to move them out of harm's way. This didn't stop them from feeling the shockwave of the energy blast, which caused them to be disorientated and tumble through the air. The two girls held on to each other for comfort. Lastly, Shadow and Rainbow Dash avoided a direct hit from the blast but were launched high in the air in the aftermath. The beams effect left both of them dazed but Shadow regained focus and hovered in the air with his shoes. Rainbow Dash saw large flashes of red before she opened her eyes fully to see that she was headed straight for the ground. In a state of panic, she instantly began to float but felt a sharp pain when she did. She then noticed Shadow across.

"Shadow, are you ok?" She questioned.

"Why wouldn't I be?" He answered, which made her groan. Yeah, he was fine.

Rainbow Dash then looked on ahead and much to her shock, she saw a large gaping hole where she and the others once stood......which was several feet away from her and Shadow. She then saw the Death Egg Robot in the background.

"Wow." She said in a stupefied tone. "That blast moved us pretty far. "

"It doesn't matter. I'm going to smash that robot to pieces." Shadow confidently declared as he prepared to start another battle.

"Wait." Rainbow said, which the Black Blur stop in his tracks. "Look down there."

The two speedsters looked down to see a much larger version of Eggman's Phantom army walking through the canyon. Ahead, Rainbow Dash saw lasers being fired, which indicated the rest of the Resistance was engaged in battle.

"Shadow, look at how many copies there are. Our friends won't be able to help to fight off this much on their own. We have to help them." The flying Rainboom insisted.

"The quicker we defeat the Doctor's robot, the less they'll have to fight." Shadow replied.

"Who knows how long they'll hold out for? I trust Sonic and the others to handle that thing but everyone else is under serious fire! We're already here and we can't leave them! I won't!" Rainbow Dash argued.

Shadow looked down and then at Rainbow Dash's stubborn face. He knew she would actually argue, which they didn't have time for. And she did have a point. He then turned to face her

"Fine." He simply said, which took Rainbow off guard due to how complicit he was being.

"Really?! Well, ok. Let's do this!" She declared before she flew down.

Shadow looked back at the Death Egg mecha.

"Sonic..Sunset..."He said. "You have to win."

Sunset opened her eyes to see herself still in Twilight's field.

"Twilight?" She said, which also made her friend open her eyes.

"Sunset. You're still conscious. That's great." She expressed with relief.

"I owe it to you." Sunset praised. "Bring us down there."

Twilight descended herself and Sunset down on a nearby plain above. The two of them then let each other go.

"I hope everyone else is all right after that blast." Twilight expressed.

"Of course they are. They've been through tougher stuff." Sunset confidently said. "Now, how do we beat that thing?"

"I think we're about to find out." Twilight said. "Look."

The magical duo looked on ahead to see the Death Egg robot only a few feet away from them. From his side, Eggman noticed the two Rainbooms.

"So, those two are the first ones I'll crush. This machine could use some warming up." The doctor said with a malicious grin.

"Twilight, I think he sees us. The robot is turning this way." The Rainbooms leader realized with worry.

"He's overclocking the Phantom Ruby." The lavender heroine explained. "That's crazy."

Suddenly, the Death Egg Colossus charged up another ray while looking at its targets. It then fired a thin red beam while moving its head. When the beam made contact with the ground, parts of it vanished entirely. Sunset and Twilight flew as fast as they could out of its' way. When the laser ended, the robot faced the two girls again. Twilight used her telekinesis to pick up some rocks and hurled them towards the mechanical behemoth. They shattered instantly once they made contact with the robot's torso.

"It's just as I feared." Twilight expressed. "No normal means will be able to hurt."

"We still have to do what we can." Sunset said with determination.

Suddenly, a giant wall of purple energy cubes appeared in front of the Titanic robot. It then released a punch which split the cubes apart, sending them to the magic wielders. The two of them moved around quickly, trying to evade being crushed. It was difficult due to how many cubes were coming there way. When some got too close, Twilight managed to stop a few with her powers, though this made her grunt. As two more came in, Sunset fired with her Wispon, making them vanish with flames. The two friends then smiled at each other and continued to try and avoid the assault. When the cubes stopped, the Death Egg mech spread out its fingers from the top and released a series of thin laser beams, trying to trap Sunset and Twilight. The magical partners tried their best to maneuver around them, but it was nigh impossible at this point. They were now stuck as the lasers were getting closer.

"We're trapped!" Twilight exclaimed with horror.

Suddenly, she felt Sunset's hand grabbing her own, turning to see her best friend give her a look of reassurance. Twilight then began to feel at ease, forming a small smile.

"Twilight, we can make it through this." The orange magic user promised. "You're one of my best friends and this won't stop us."

"You're right. With our magic, we can beat that Phantom Ruby." Her purple ally agreed.

Sunset and Twilight's strong bonds of friendship then began to reinforce their magic as both of them began to glow in purple/orange auras. It then turned white, with the previous colors outlining it. As the beams came closer, the two of them waved their hands, producing a magical wave which halted the lasers. This gave them time to fly up and avoid getting hit as the beams managed to push through their wave and collided with each other.

"Twilight, you said this can't be hurt by normal means. But lucky for us, we've got magic, think that could work?" Sunset questioned.

Twilight pondered over what Sunset had said and examined the Death Egg Robot. On it's chest, she noticed something odd. The red center was covered by an outer-glass like hexagonal pattern.

"I think I where we could hit." Twilight said. "Look at its chest."

The Equestrian mage did as she was told and also noticed the covering.

"Worth a shot." She declared. Sunset then held up her Wispon to get a clear aim. She then began to charge it with both her and her closest's friends magic.

"What's this?" Eggman said as he noticed the glowing light rising above. "Some small light show won't be able to stop this mech!"

The Final Death Egg machine then aimed it fingers and fired thin beams once more towards the two Rainbooms. They tried their best to avoid, which made it all the more difficult to get a clear shot.

"At this rate, we won't hit!" Twilight said.

"We have to try. Take any chance we got!" Sunset declared.

The magical pair still spent most of their time dodging lasers. After a while, Sunset saw an opening and immediately reacted. She pulled the Wispon trigger and shot a purple/orange magical flare towards the robot's chest. Once it made contact with the covering above, some pieces chipped right off it, making it smaller. The Death Egg mecha didn't flinch though. Sunset and Twilight then ducked as the lasers then ended

"Did you see that?" Sunset questioned, while Twilight nodded.

"Yes. I was right!" Twilight said. "We'll just have to aim there again."

"What?!" Eggman said from the cockpit of his robot, analyzing the robot's status. He then noticed the cover shield had been damaged. "They actually managed to damage the shield! I won't let this slide!"

From afar, the Death Egg Robot suddenly began to charge another laser, which the two best friends noticed.

"Heads up!" Sunset called as the beam was fired once more.

The laser moved and began to pursue it's enemies who fled for their life. Up ahead, they then took a large dive, narrowly escaping getting hit. However, the beam then started to move towards their direction once more, barely giving them time to breathe.

"He's coming at us with everything!"Twilight said. "I feel like we're going to have to make the next shot count!"

As the beam got in closer, Sunset and Twilight separated as it went in between them, which was a close call as one of Twilight's crystal wings was disintegrated. This caused her to suddenly have trouble remaining in the air as she began to plummet below. Sunset looked in horror and flew down to try and reach her. However, Eggman saw this.

"No, you don't!" The doctor said as a giant cube formed, which was shattered into smaller cubes heading Sunset's way.

The orange Rainboom panicked as she noticed all the squares coming towards at high speed. At the same time, her companion kept falling. Sunset then felt anxiety running through her body as she slowed down in an attempt to not the let the cubes hit her. But doing this made it less likely for her to reach Twilight. Suddenly, she got an idea.

"TWILIGHT! USE YOUR POWERS TO BRING ME TOWARDS YOU!" She yelled at the top of her lungs.

The purple Rainboom was able to hear her request and stuck her hand out, enveloping Sunset in a purple field. She then pulled her hand back, bringing Sunset to her as she quickly moved through. As she did, Sunset felt the tip of a cube nearly scrape across her cheek, while evading the others. She then reached Twilight and took a hold of her hand. This brought them back with a combined aura and they floated once more.

"We need to shoot soon!" Twilight urged while Sunset nodded.

"I know but when will be a good time?" Sunset wondered out loud. Then it came to her. "Right just before he hits. We have to time it right!"

The magic twosome then floated above as Eggman looked on. Sunset placed her Wispon to the side, charging up magical energy secretly.

"Nrgh! Why can't they just stay down?! I won't miss this time!" He promised.

3 red glows emerged from the Death Egg Colossus, ready to fire. Sunset and Twilight braced themselves as the beam continued to charge before it reached its peak glow.

"That's it, now!" Sunset said as she aimed her Wispon, with Twilight helping her.

From the charged weapon, Sunset and Twilight unleashed a much larger magical flare surrounded with a magnificent purple glow straight at the core of the Death Egg Robot. This resulted in the flaming sphere being pushed against the holographic guard, chipping away at it before it burst into a magical flash. Large glass-like pieces came from the metallic golem and it moved back due to the recoil. Sunset and Twilight looked on with relief as they descended on the nearby ground before collapsing on their feet.

"No! They've penetrated the first defense line!" Eggman cursed from inside as his battle robot moved down. It was next to a large platform. "No matter. I can still crush them!"

"Not if we smash your bot first!" Sonic's voice said, much to the mad scientist's surprise.

Eggman looked ahead to see Sonic and Tails sliding down from canyon walls towards the platform.

"We saw what happened when your robot took that large hit. Sunset and Twilight must have weakened the core." Tails deduced.

"That means I can trash your new mech like any of the others!" Sonic boasted.

"Grr! Only in your wildest dreams! This is only a minor setback!" Eggman declared as the Death Egg Robot rose up to face its new opponents. "You two aren't getting close to this machine!"

The Death Egg mecha's eye glowed red and from its fingertips, it fired an onslaught of missiles to Sonic and Tails. Sonic zipped around the platform to dodge while Tails used a combination of his acrobatic skills and slower but still above average speed to escape the rockets. Small bursts of fire appeared but the adventurers held out. The Death Egg colossus then raised it's hand and brought it down to crush the heroes. Due to seeing its shadow, Sonic and Tails were warned of the incoming attack and began to move out of its way. As soon as the arm hit the ground, a large thundering sound was heard. This then produced a series of red shockwaves across the floor. The heroic pair were taken off guard by this and blown away by one, sending them many feet back.

"Heh, so no more Mr. Nice Egghead, huh?" Sonic said as he quickly rose from the floor. "Just the way I like it."

"Sonic, we need to find good ways to make sure Eggman leaves the core vulnerable." Tails told Sonic. "When he slammed the arm down, that was a good chance to strike."

"All right, got it bro!" The Blur Blur, said as he sped across to Eggman with his teammate not too far behind.

"Back for more?" The malicious doctor said. "You'll get either slammed or blown away!"

This time, Eggman raised both hands of his mech to crush his two enemies. Sonic and Tails were able to split apart before they could get hit. However, twice as many red shockwaves were produced from before. Luckily, the life long friends were prepared. They strategically timed their jumps to avoid the waves. Mid-air, Sonic saw the core and dashed towards it as a streak. He then hit once but was blown back due to how durable it was. While still airborne he became a streak again to hit it and was pushed back once more. After his friend's attack, Tails formed his armed cannon and sent out a charged energy ball to hit the core, which dispersed upon contact. Eggman then rose the behemoth's arms up while his two adversaries regrouped.

"Even the core is tough, think we did damage?" The speedy hero questioned.

Tails looked on ahead and noticed small and subtle cracks on where they had hit.

"It's working. But we're going to need to bring more firepower!" The young genius answered.

"Got it! Let's do it to it!" Sonic said.

"You really are gluttons for punishment!" The inventing tyrant declared as the fingers of the Death Egg Robot opened up to release multiple moving beams.

Sonic and Tails used their reflexes to move through the lasers, trying to get closer towards Eggman, with the former drifting side to side. However, the beams were stripping away the platform, which was putting the brave duo in a tight spot. They knew even one mistake would be the end and they kept focus on where they jumped. Sonic was going to take a step before a section vanished, sending him tumbling below. This left him vulnerable to lasers closing in on him, much to his worry.

"Hang on, Sonic!" Tails yelled as he activated his enerbeam and extended it towards the blue hero. He also landed on a segmented platform.

Sonic took a hold of the energized rope and Tails yanked him closer. Once he did, the yellow inventor quickly lunged his azure ally towards the Death Egg mech's core. As he went in forward, Sonic become a more focused streak and hit the core, which actually made a more noticeable crack after he was blown back. The fastest thing alive wasn't done yet as the enerbeam was still attached to him

"Your up, buddy!" He yelled.

Sonic then began to spin around at high speed, doing the same towards Tails. He then launched him towards the center of the robot. Due to the built up momentum, the youthful scientist had force behind. In order augment this, he activated his arm and while it was charged, rammed it into the Death Egg's core, making a significantly sizeable yellow spark. Tails was pushed due to the recoil but it made a much larger crack appear on the center and the robot was pushed back a few inches. Tails then joined where his bestfriend was while Eggman cursed from inside his robot.

"Nrgh! Curse you,pests!" He snarled.

The Death Egg Colossus lifted it's arms up and many large cubes began to materialize. They then began to drop instantly to the ground, trying to crush Sonic and Tails. The two of them moved around, feeling the ground shake with each crash. As the heroic pair evaded the cubes, the Death Egg Robot then clapped it's hands together, making a red shockwave which shattered the cubes and also hit its enemies. Their bodies went flailing to the floor.

"Ok..ow.." Sonic groaned.

"Nrgh, Sonic are you ok?" Tails said with grunts in between.

"I've dealt with worse. Besides, we gotta shake it off." The speedy teen responded as he noticed more cubes arriving to crush him and Tails.

"Maybe we can use those to our advantage." His younger ally suggested. "We can use to them closer to the core.

"Good idea, Tails." Sonic agreed.

The large squares continued to fall down towards the two heroes, who braced for the impact. Once they were few feet away, Sonic and Tails headed towards them. Getting close to one, they leaped and their feet touched it. They then began to run up alongside it before they reached the top. This allowed them to see the top of other cubes and started to head towards the machine. Eggman saw this and growled.

"No, you don't!" The evil genius said, preparing to smash the two hands together once more.

"Now, Sonic!" Tails said as Sonic dashed as a streak. Behind him, Tails fired a charge shot to give him a burst ahead. He then crashed into the chest, making a yellow wave which moved the robot back. Tails descended t the ground and also noticed Sonic coming towards him. His body was surrounded with an electric glow due to Tails's blast.

"Whoo! Let's do that again! I feel like the top of the world!" He said before the glow vanished.

The two fighters could now clearly see the cracks on the Death Egg's center. It just needed more punishment.

"Keep up the pace bro!" Sonic encouraged whule Tails nodded.

The Death Egg's top began to glow before it opened up its head to fire three charged energy beams, dragging them through the platforms. What was left of the platform was beginning to be erased while the yellow and blue rebels ran from the lasers, which were in hot pursuit. As they did, Egg Pawns suddenly emerged in their way.

"Oh, great!" Tails said as he and Sonic were headed towards them.

The Egg Pawns fired lasers, which missed due to their targets's skills. Using his cannon, Tails fired at them while Sonic pierced through them as a streak. However, taking time to fight the Egg Pawns slowed them down a bit. They felt the beam narrowing in on them. Tails nearly lost balance but used his cannon to blast himself away from the beam further ahead.

"Fighting the pawns while trying to dodge Eggman's rays isn't easy." The yellow youth commented.

"Hmmm, maybe we can kill two birds with one stone with that laser rope of yours." The Blue Wind said. He then diverged far away from Tails.

"Send it towards me." Sonic requested, which Tails did, allowing him to hold the other hand.

The two allies now had a large rope in between them and rushed ahead to the Egg Pawns, trapping many of them within it. Eventually, they skidded to a stop. The beam was then getting dangerously close.

"Ok Tails, pull and...throw!" Sonic instructed as he and Tails pulled both of their ends with both hands. Using the long rope, they then launched the Egg Pawns they caught towards the Death Egg giant's core. A series of small explosions occurred as they hit it, which made the robot pushed back. The lasers then ended, much to Sonic and Tails's relief.

The flares shook the inside of the robot as Eggman frantically looked around in anger. He then began to clench his fist and growled. However, he then noticed something heading for the core before he could react. It was Sonic, soaring through the air thanks to his boost, much to his shock.

"Get him Sonic!" Tails cheered as Sonic slammed into the now fragile core center.

In doing so, the Death Egg robot was blown away several feet, the core was cracked completely. The fast adventurer was sent back to the ground and his oldest friend came next to him.He gripped his head, feeling daze due to how hard he had hit.

"Sonic, look at the robot!" Tails said.

The Death Egg robot's light suddenly faded and it's core body when limp. It seemed to have shut down.

"Sonic, Tails!" Twilight called from above. She and Sunset were holding each other and coming down towards the two of them.

"Heh. Knew you guys would be ok." Sonic said as rose from the ground as the girls joined him and Tails. "Thanks for giving Eggman trouble, couldn't have done it without you."

"So, then it's really over this time?" Sunset questioned. "We beat him for good?"

Suddenly, what sounded like a large heat beating was heard, catching the attention of the 4 heroes. The core was starting to crack even more with each pulse before it shattered. The chest started to pulsate twice. Sonic's group braced themselves for what was coming next. Emerging from the chest of the Death Egg colossus was a three-headed mech with a large head in the middle, two smaller heads on the sides and smaller cord-like appendages below it, each with a single eye. It was white and e it had eight long tentacles, six of which ended with three small three-clawed hands, and two of which ended with large eight-clawed hands that could open up. This form was also smaller than its previous form. A large distortion was made as red waves erupted around the area. This made the small team cover their faces. Once they looked again, The 4 resistance members then found the area they were in fading away. It was replaced by a null-space like dimension, except the background was black. The Death Egg robot let out a roar from its three heads. Sonic and the others then faced it, determined not to back down.

"Ok guys, time for us to end this!" He said. "We're taking you down!"

The Death Egg mech took out one of its tentacles and charged a red laser towards the rebels while moving it to the side. This forced the group to split apart in order to evade. However, the Death Egg creature didn't leave any openings as it fired another beam in the same manner. This caused the team to move around while the beams tracked them. It then unleashed another wave and 3 separate rays were after, Sonic, Tails, Twilight and Sunset respectively. The latter two noticed that the beam was narrowing on them and when it got close, they combined their magic in an attempt to form a small barrier. This caused the blast to be put at a halt temporarily but the beam pierced through the shield, which knocked the two Rainbooms back. Sonic and Tails had an easier time dodging thanks to their speed, but the robot was persistent, following their every move. When Tails took another jump, the beam quickly stopped and the tentacle instead quickly lunged out towards him. The inventing youth tried to block it but he was smacked down on the ground. Sonic then thought he saw an opening after and headed towards the robot, furious about what happened to his friends. However, before he could get closer, 3 beams were dragged right in front of him. This forced the quickster to stop but he was blown away by the eruption of energy that came after. The Death Egg Robot's defeated foes then started to rise, though still reeling from the brunt of the attacks.

"His defense is pretty tough." Sunset said. "Breaking through it is going to take everything we have."

"We'll give him that and more, then!" Sonic declared.

"If we want to get a hit, let's think of its attack patterns." Tails said. "We'll need to draw its attention based on that to leave it open."

"Sunset and I can stall the lasers." Twilight offered. "We'll leave the arms to you."

"Cool. Let's do it to it!" Sonic stated.

The group then rushed on ahead, which made the Death Egg serpent prepared to attack, two of its arms preparing to fire lasers. Twilight and Sunset took the lead and using the latter's Wispon, they began to charge up another magical flare in the tentacles direction. Both sides unleashed their attacks at the same time, which resulted in the blasts pushing against each other. While this happened, Tails moved forward. The Death Egg robot prepared to fire another laser from one tentacle while Tails got his Enerbeam. Using it, he attached himself to another tendril, which pulled him out of the lasers way and he wrapped around it. Two of the Death Egg robot's arms appeared before him but couldn't fire, knowing it would damage the rest of the robot. Instead, the youthful prodigy fired shots from his cannon to hold them off. This left Sonic rushing to the robot's center. It had 3 more tentacles left, each firing moving beams towards him. However, due to what was happening to the rest of its body, the beams were more sluggish. This let the blue daredevil move past them more easily with simple jumps. He had a clear shot of the robots head and became a streak. He hit it a total of 6 times, which sent it back. This undid the other attacks the robot was doing. Sonic then hit the main head once more and bounced back.

"Guys, now!" He yelled back.

Tails used his enerbeam and pulled himself to the head on the right. He charged up an energy ball from his cannon and blast it. The Equestrian pair fired a small moving flame towards the left head. These attacks made the robot recoil from the further damage. The robot briefly went limp before it regained focus.

"Yes! Score one for us!" Sonic cheered.

"Enjoy that moment, Sonic! Your luck ends now!" Eggman promised.

The Death Egg robot gathered it's tentacles and all of them began to glow red.

"Get ready, everyone!" Sunset warned.

All eight tentacles fired red beams in a circular manner, trying to enclose the heroes. It seemed that there was no way out. The team of 4 tensed up, seeing how grave the situation was. Suddenly, Twilight got an idea.

"Sonic, can you use your boost to go ahead after I throw with my powers. It'll send you straight into all the beams. I'm not sure if you can handle all of that but-" She began.

"Say no more. I'm game. I can handle whatever Eggman throws at me!" Her fearless ally reassured.

"Ok. Let's get ready. Once this done, this should leave a chance for us to hit. " Twilight elaborated.

"Got it. We won't miss." Tails promised, while Sunset nodded.

Twilight lifted her hand and Sonic was shrouded in a purple field. Using great strength, Twilight flung Sonic straight ahead to give him more momentum. As he headed for when the beams intertwined, he activated his boost. It was stronger than usual due to Twilight's throw and he crashed into the beams. He struggled not to be pushed back but it was a real challenge. Twilight also had difficulty keeping her friend forward with her powers

"Has he lost his mind?!" Eggman wondered.

Sonic tried to hold the beams at bay for a bit before he was flung back, which made Twilight lose her grip and balance. The beams then dispersed into 8, in the same direction. As they did, from above, Sunset and Tails, with the former carrying the latter acted immediately. Sunset dropped Tails, who unleashed dummy ring bombs like crazy on the right head. The explosions made the robot disorientated. The Rainbooms leader blast her Wispon, with flames covering the other head. The beams then ended. Twilight saw this and reacting fast, she grabbed a hold of Sonic before he hit the ground. This snapped him out of being stunned and Twilight threw him to the main head. The blue speedster used his boost once more and smashed int it, which pushed the mecha back again.

"Grrrr." Eggman growled from the inside of the cockpit. He was somewhat concerned but not too much. They hadn't seen the true power of his robot yet.

"All right! Way to go everyone!" Sunset praised as the group came back together.

"Don't celebrate yet. That mech isn't destroyed yet." Tails warned, putting everyone else on the defensive.

This time, the Dragonic Death Egg machine took it's tentacles and hit some on the ground while others together. This caused a series of crimson flames to be sent towards the heroes. Sonic sidestepped to avoid them, with Tails behind him, while Sunset and Twilight floated pass them. However, they still could feel the flames from the heat, which caused them to break out into a sweat. For the latter, the heat wasn't as bad as the sun, but the temperature was still something.

"Eggman's really turning up the heat." Sonic commented

"At this rate, plowing through won't do any good or we'll get burned." Twilight said.

The flames continued to keep the heroes at bay, still no progress. Sunset knew that they couldn't keep on like this. She thought about her Wispon's usage of fire. This then gave her a plan.

"Then time to fight fire with fire." Sunset said. "Hey, Sonic, get ready to make a tornado. I think something might work."

"Ok, I'll try anything." Sonic agreed.

The fast moving warrior continued to dodge ongoing flames ahead and when another batch came his way. He ran around to form a vortex.

"Twilight, let's use our magic." The orange magician instructed.

The enchanted stars united their powers and through Sunset's Wispon, they unleashed a magic-induced stream of flames towards Sonic's tornado. The flares surrounded it, making a fire tornado. As soon as the Death Egg's monster fire reached it out, the tornado canceled it out, leaving a path open.

"What!?!' The evil inventor cried from above.

"Now!" Tails urged.

Sonic rushed forward and with his boost, he hit the front head, which stunned the robot. Tails had a clear shot with his charged shot and fired two rounds this time towards the right head. Sunset and Twilight unleashed a magical fire shot at the left head. Again, the Death Egg robot sprung back due to the damage.

Inside, Eggman clenched his fist tightly. No, he couldn't let it end like this. He had finally managed to create the Eggman Empire. His ambition. Sonic was always there to interfere with his plans but he wasn't going to ruin this. He came too far. Enough was enough. He was going to win.

"I won't let this happen! I've had enough of your meddling!" The desperate doctor shouted from the cockpit. "Take this!"

The Death Egg Mecha got in offensive positions, causing its enemies to do the same.

"Get ready, time for the final round!" Sonic warned,

The Death Egg serpent unleashed lasers from its tendrils but at a much faster rate than before and in a series of successions. Sonic's group was barely able to dodge, getting in a few close calls. Sunset felt a beam only inches from her face. But Eggman didn't stop there. After this, the other tentacles then began to fire claw missiles straight out. The rebels scattered around, trying to make sure they weren't hit. The mad inventor was determined not to let them get any chance and continued his onslaught. Most of the missiles were released quickly but Twilight managed to stop one with her powers. She then hurled it back as fast as possible, which made it collide with another. A red explosion occurred, which gave the heroes cover.

"What's the plan?" Twilight wondered. "He's going all out now!"

"You're right. Not giving us much time to breathe." Sunset commented.

"In that case, what can we do?" Tails said.

"Heh. I don't know about you guys but for this, I'm all for powering our way through. I know it's not much of a plan but we can do this. We got here and we'll win." Sonic said with confidence.

Sonic's words increased the morale of his friends and nodded, determined to follow him through. They then joined him on the counter-attack. Sonic kick-started his boost to get closer to Eggman, who responded with the claws missiles. Twilight and Sunset flew together with Tails not too far behind. With their combined magic, Twilight was able to halt more than one claw missiles and sent them back to the robot. However, they were destroyed by a quick firing of beams. Tails used his Enerbeam to bring himself closer to missiles and threw himself over them to get ahead. He then thought he got close enough to attack but another missile was quickly fired. which made him release a dummy ring bomb. The explosion sent Tails back but he was caught by Sonic, who slowed down his boost. Sunset and Twilight then flew near the both of them.

"Since you're all together. Perish!" Eggman said.

From the mouths of the mech and the tentacles, red beams began to charge which then fired to form one big red energy wave. It was incoming to the heroes, who bravely braced it on.

"Victory is ours. Nothing can stop together!" Sonic declared as he dashed in the air, with Tails behind him.

"That's right. Our friendship is magic!" Sunset yelled.

Sunset and Twilight put their hands on Sonics' back, who grabbed Tails's arm and vice versa. The 4 of them now began to be surrounded with magical energy while the incoming beam grew. Sonic then activated his boost, which was augmented by the magic. Everyone was covered in a bursting magical aura as the wave covered them.

"Yes!" Eggman said.

Suddenly, much to the doctor's anguish, coming towards him and not affected by the beam, were Sonic, Tails, Sunset and Twilight within a magic-powered boost. Wind energy began to build up around them before they launched themselves towards the center of the robot. They pierced through it entirely, causing the mech to fall apart. Fire erupted from the wrecked machine before it exploded entirely. This caused the entire dimension to start breaking down

Back on the battlefield, the Resistance attempted to hold off the remaining replicas. Suddenly, they started to fade away one by one, which caused everyone to stop fighting. At the same time, the clouds began to clear, allowing for sunlight to dawn over the region. This meant one thing.

"All right! Sonic and the others must have beaten Eggman. We've won!" Knuckles joyfully announced.

Knuckles statement was met with loud cheers and applause from the Resistance.

"I knew we'd do it!" He added.

The Chaotix nodded, acknowledging their victory. Shadow crossed his arms, while Rouge looked back to Omega with a smile. The latter tucked away his weapons. Amy jumped for joy while Manic raised his fist in the air while Silver flew high up. The three of them gave each other the thumbs up. Pinkie screeched for joy while hugging Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy tightly the former who raised her arms in victory. The latter sighed and put her hands together. AppleJack tipped her hat to Rarity, who smiled back at her.

"We won! This calls for a victory party!" Pinkie said while throwing confetti everywhere.

The rest of the soldiers basked in their triumph, with some helping others.

The Light of Hope

The Light of Hope
Sonic, Tails, Sunset and Twilight met with the other primary Resistance members on top of a large canyon overseeing Eggman's empire. There, the sky was now entirely blue.

"Whew, it's sure been a wild ride." Sonic stated.

"After all of this, it's over for real. We've saved the day..no, the world." Sunset blissfully said.

"Hate to rain on everyone's parade but it it isn't over entirely. We may have beaten Eggman, but he still the left the world in a huge mess." Tails pointed out. "Unfortunately, that wasn't an illusion like the others.

"You're right about that. Considering how vast that is, we have our hands full." Twilight agreed.

"I wonder how long that could take." Silver muttered.

"Man, I was hoping for things to get back to normal so quickly." Rainbow Dash complained.

While the Resistance was lamenting their task, Knuckles suddenly thought of an idea.

"Maybe there's an easier way for us to fix this." He brought up, which made him everyone's attention.

"Oooooooh, can I guess, can I guess?!" Pinkie wondered. "It's time travel, isn't it?! Am I right?! Am I right?!"

"Not exactly." Knuckless said. "But we can use the Chaos Emeralds to get rid of this mess."

"But didn't they stop working during since our fight against Eggman started?" Amy brought up.

"Yeah. But since he's beaten, they could work. Something he had must have been nullifying their power." The Resistance commander suggested.

"The Phantom Ruby! Of course!" Tails realized. "Explains why Eggman ignored them and Master Emerald."

"Speaking of which, I'll get that too so we can use it to boost the emeralds power." Knuckles said.

"That sounds like a plan." Rarity agreed. "If I can feast my eyes on that hunk of a gem..."

Rarity's comment made Knuckles formed a confused look. Sonic stepped forward.

"That's a really good idea, Knucklehead. Guess being the Resistance commander gave you a couple of brains." The Blue Blur joked, which made his friendly rival roll his eyes. "Come on everyone, let's do it."

In the Hidden Palace Zone of Angel Island, the Resistance was there with Knuckles standing on top of Master Emerald, which Rouge and Rarity eyed with delight. The 7 emeralds were held by Sonic, Tails, Amy, Shadow, Manic, Silver and Vector respectively. They then released them up and each of them landed on 7 platforms surrounding the Master Emerald. Chaos electricity began to emerge from the emeralds and then they suddenly grew in size, as same as the Master Emerald. This surprised everyone while Rarity nearly fainted with Rouge being awestruck. This made Fluttershy give them slightly worried looks. The Chaos Emeralds were now Super Emeralds.

"Ok. I'm going to need some help with this." The Master Emerald's guardian requested.

"Got you covered, KnuckleHead." Sonic responded

Sonic, Tails, Shadow, Silver and Manic each stood on an emerald, circling Knuckles. The former closed his eyes and placed his hands above. The Master and Super Emeralds began to glow. As they did, the glow extended to the six users. This caused them to enter their super forms. Sonic, Manic, Silver and Shadow' hair and clothes turned golden. For the first three, their hair spiked up. Knuckle's clothes and hair turned hot pink while Tails body was surrounded in a golden aura and small yellow birds circled him. Everyone else was amazed by what they were witnessing.

"Pretty!" Pinkie stated.

"Ok, time to fix our world!" Sonic announced.

The 6 super beings raised their hands and channeled the energy of the emeralds. This caused a giant white sphere with rainbow outlines emerging between them. The sphere was then released as an enormous wave, which was beginning to spread globally around the world.

In the Resistance base, the main members looked on using a virtual screen to check the state of the world. Everything appeared to be headed back to normal as signs of Eggman's rule started to vanish. This raised up everyone's hopes

"It's workin!" AppleJack noticed. "Everythin's bein' fixed. I can't believe it's really happenin'."

"This is great. We've really saved the world this time." Amy muttered. "All of this fighting was worth it in the end."

"At last, the battle is over. We can all go back and resume our lives." Espio commented.

"It's about time. I for one could use a long relaxing break." Rarity said. "The beach is sounding really nice now."

"Well, I guess we don't need this resistance anymore then." Manic said, which made Pinkie looked disappointed.

"Awwww. I know we came together in a bad time, but I really like being here with everyone." Pinkie said. "This is the best saving the world party ever!"

"You're right about that!" Charmy agreed." Even though it's the only saving the world party I've been to."

"Hold on. Pinkie sort of has a point. Yeah, our task at stopping Eggman is complete, but that doesn't mean there aren't any other threats out there." Silver brought up. "If you ask me, this group is just getting started."

"I agree. We need to be on the watch to kick some evil butt!" Rainbow Dash declared.

"You two aren't wrong." Knuckles admitted. "Maybe it's best if we keep this base here, to keep in touch."

"Sounds like a plan." Vector agreed before he turned to Fluttershy. "I admit, when I saw some people here, I wasn't sure if we could pull this through. Glad I was proven wrong."

Vector then gave her the thumbs up, which made her beam.

"That's very nice of you." She praised. "I probably never want to go through anything like this again, but if it's with all of you...then it won't be so bad."

"Another benefit of this is we'll know where everyone is." Rouge added. "So they can't run off on their own to try and look cool."

Rouge looked back to Shadow, who was in the far corner of the room. He then turned away and remained silent. She then looked at Omega.

"I only do this because I know that I am efficient enough for extermination." He simply said, which made Rouge roll her eyes.

"Tails and I can start working making communicators." Twilight offered while holding Spike. "We'll make sure everyone will be able to access the headquarters."

"All of you, thanks for this." Tails said with gratitude as he came in the center. " I'll always remember what we've done with each other. This resistance is going to be even "

The Resistance was moved by Tails's words and everyone cheered. Sunset let out a smile as well. Then, she noticed that amongst the team, someone was missing.

On the outskirts of the city, Sonic was looking out at the sunset.

"Any reason why you're out here?" Sunset asked, which made him turn to see her.

"I'm just looking for myself at all the good we've done." Sonic answered." Besides, I figure even though we fixed things, it's gonna take a while for everything to go back to the same exactly. I was thinking of heading out until then. I haven't had a relaxing run in a while."

"Not surprised to hear that. You're always on the move, huh?" Sunset responded.

"It's who I am." Sonic said before he turned to Sunset. "You did great out there, Sunset."

"Only because I had some good friends at my side. And you." Sunset replied, which made Sonic smirk.

"Heh. Likewise. But you were pretty cool on your own. Don't forget that off" Sonic said as the both of them fist bumped. " See ya later, Sunset. Take care"

Sunset then watched the blue hero take off, leaving behind a blue trail that made her hair blow. Her face broke out in a smile once more. She then turned her back and went to rejoin the others.

Author's Note

Last chapter of Forces. Hope you all liked it. I enjoyed writing this a lot. Be on the lookout for more upcoming stories as well

The Final Battle part 3

"Is that so? Then we shouldn't let our guard down." Shadow responded to Tails informing everyone that the Phantom Ruby was moving down.

"Tails, are you able to see where he headed exactly?" Twilight asked.

"Not really. Like from before, the Ruby messes with my Miles Electric. I can barely make out these readings. All I know is that we have to find an entrance to the tower to stop him." Tails said.

"But with no way to track it, that could take ages." Fluttershy brought up.

"I know." Tails replied. "If only there was a better way."

After this, Amy spoke up.

"I think I can be of help." She said.

Amy put her hands in the motion as if she was about to play the flute. When she did, an energy version of the instrument appeared. This allowed her to play a soothing and harmonious melody.

"What a wonderful song." Fluttershy remarked, feeling at ease after hearing that.

"That is so cool! It's like the time when that NiGHTS guy played the flute without the flute!" Pinkie commented. "I have got to learn how to do that! Then I can do welcome songs anytime!"

"Just what is that?" Rainbow Dash questioned.

"It's the Mystic Melody. It's a magical technique that lets me tap into the mystic forces." Amy explained.

"Ok, but how does that help with the Phantom Ruby?" Manic asked.

"Like, I said, I can tap into the mystic forces. It means I can sense where mystical objects are. The Phantom Ruby seems to fall under that definition, so I should be able to track it." The rosy heroine elaborated.

"Ok, that's pretty cool." Rainbow Dash said with amazement.

"Just when did you learn to do that?" Manic said in a quizzical tone.

"It's a trick I learned on a mission a while back. I knew it would come in handy one of these days." Amy replied.

"Amy, you're full of surprises. Ok then, go for it then." Sonic encouraged over the comms. The blue hero's praise made her beam while blushing.

"Wait, I think I can help too." Rarity offered with her hands out. "With my power, I've been able to locate and track gems. That should include the Phantom Ruby."

"Great. Any help is good. Seeing what the ruby is like, it could be hard to find on my own." The resistance's coordinator agreed.

"So, AppleJack, what doesn't seem like a useful power again?" Rarity said out loud.

"*sigh*, I was wrong, ok?" AppleJack begrudgingly admitted. "Just get to searchin' with Amy."

The team of two went on ahead and reached another section of Eggman's fortress shortly. Here, it consisted of floating metallic platforms. Upon further inspection, one could see that the platforms had gears equipped to them. Between the foreground and the background were also floating layers. Each of these layers consisted respectively of hexagonal-based frameworks and metal barriers. In addition, the layers were equipped with surveillance orbs and metal barriers.

"I'm feeling a faint presence around here." Amy said as small yellow energy surrounded her body. "Do you feel anything?"

"Yes, I'm also picking up something." The fashionista agreed as her hands began to glow. "It's strongest..this way."

Rarity pointed to a path on the right, which two resistance members began to travel on. They moved along the path until it came to an end. In front of the duo were two large platforms, which they moved towards as Rarity flew while Amy jumped towards it. However, on the second one, a red box opened and fired a red missile. Luckily, the magical heroine sent out a diamond shard to slice it in two before it could do any harm.

"Thanks for the save." Amy said. "

"Of course, let's keep moving." Rarity told her.

Amy and Rarity made it to another platform, which had two silver colored Egg Pawns guarding it. In no time, Amy used her hammer and smashed them to the side, allowing her and her partner to go forward. When they saw a longer path ahead, two red boxes opened up to fire two rockets. Rarity sent out two large diamonds as shields to take the brunt of the blasts.

"Glad you came with me. Those diamonds are pretty handy." Amy praised.

"Thank you darling. But watching our backs while finding the entrance doesn't make this any easier." The lavender haired girl replied.

"It's a good thing when Eggman hit's back, we hit harder!" The pink fighter said with determination as she gripped her weapon.

As they moved on to a platform ahead, another red rocket attempted to hit them, which Rarity intercepted with a diamond. This allowed the two of them to go down along a longer path, which then brought them upward. In the section above them, the floor started to crackle with electricity.

"Allow me." Rarity offered, making a diamond path for her and Amy to walk past.

Once the gem seeking pair, came to the new road, they were suddenly greeted by a barrage of missiles heading their way, much to their fright, indicated by their worried expressions.

"I don't think I can defend against that many attacks at once!" Rarity admitted.

"It's ok then! I think I can solve this!" Amy reassured.

Amy took out her hammer and began to swing as fast as she could. The resulting slipstream from her swing began to create a tornado effect that formed a cyclonic vortex of air filled with pink hearts. As soon as the reached her and Rarity, they began to be trapped in Amy's cyclone. Rarity looked on in amazement.

The Rosy Rascal continued to swing for a while until she released the vortex, which made the missiles disperse around the area, making flares erupt. When this was over, Rarity ran over to Amy, who caught her breath.

"My word, that was amazing." The bearer of generosity praised. "Are you feeling all right, though?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Just a little diziness that should go away soon." Her ally replied. "Also, I hope I won't have to do that again soon."

Amy and Rarity were free to go on ahead and at the end of their path, they moved upwards. Rarity did this by flying while Amy used her hammer to proper herself higher. As she did, she landed on a giant rotating wheel. Amy suddenly became to move around it uncontrollably, taking her around in a circle.

"Oh no...not after I just spun like crazy......" She declared as she felt her dizziness increasing, with nausea approaching.

Luckily for her, Rarity flew and grabbed her once she came right side up and took her to a nearby small platform on the left.

"I think that's enough spinning for you." Rarity said with a smile.

"Tell me about it. Thought I might actually hurl there." Amy weakly responded.

The two girls continue to look for the entrance as the mystic melody and Rarity's hand gave off another glow. They moved further in the way they were headed with Rarity floating. Amy, on the other hand, saw that the only she should go was by using those spinning gears, much to her dismay. She sighed and jumped to one in front. This time, Amy moved slowly as she went around, which prevented her from getting dizzy. She was then able to move to a second wheel and did the same thing. Amy and Rarity then landed on a long path ahead. Once they finished traversing across it, they reached an elevator, which transported them to a higher region. Here, the two heroine made their way across scattered platforms to keep moving. On two of them, red missiles were launched. Rarity intercepted one by throwing a diamond boomerang into it. Amy launched her hammer towards the one, making it explode on contact. The force of the blast sent her mallet back towards her. Afterward, their journey continued. When they reached another section, rockets fired from above them as they stood on a platform. Amy took action and smashed her hammer with great force, releasing a pink shockwave that dispersed the rockets away.

"Along with my diamonds, I'd say that hammer is quite handy as well." The diamond user said.

"I don't know what I'd be without it."The hammer wielder replied as she clutched her weapon

After going past more platforms, Amy and Rarity found another elevator, which took them below. Ahead of them was a large spiral staircase they started going downwards instantly.d

"I can feel a presence getting stronger." Amy said. "We must be getting closer."

"You're right. I sense the same thing. This is the right direction." Rarity agreed.

Once they reached the end of the staircase, the magical pair took the rightward path. Here, four missiles from carts were launched at them once they moved ahead. The elegant Rainboom made a large barrier in front as all the missiles hit at once, making a small burst which cracked the diamonds a bit. She then brought it down for her teammate and herself to move along. After moving for a bit, they encountered two silver Egg pawns armed with turrets. Before they fired, Amy and Rarity smashed them into the ground using the piko piko and a diamond respectively. They then came across an electric floor, which they safely moved pass due to Rarity's diamond flooring. Now, they started to climb up to get higher using large steps. At the top, a long road took them towards a smaller selection with more spinning wheels, which the pink coordinator used to get by.

"Oh my, the signal is so strong now." Rarity noticed as her hand gave off a more feverish glow.

"It's nearby. We just have to find out where." Amy deduced as the melody swirled around her.

Amy and Rarity reached a long bridge. As they moved along it, the signal reached it's peak. This leads them towards the entrance of a metallic door with green lights around it, located halfway on the bridge. It was surrounded by large metallic cylinders on the side.

"This must be it! We found it!" Rarity announced.

"Great work. Now let's tell the others." Amy said as she reached her comm. "Rarity and I found the entrance to Eggman's base. We're sending the coordinates now."

"Amy, you rock! I'm heading there now." Sonic said.

Sonic's praise made Amy blush with excitement, which Rarity noticed with a smile.

"Adorable." She said, while Amy gave off a somewhat embarrassed smile.

"I'm coming too!" Rainbow Dash said over the comm." I'm not sitting this one out!"

In a short time, Sonic, Shadow, Sunset and Rainbow Dash came in front of the entrance to the door.

"The doctor took quite care to hide this." Shadow observed.

"Yeah, shame it's going down." Sonic said. "Let's do this."

"Amy, Rarity, thanks for this. We'll stop Eggman for sure." Sunset promised.

"Of course you will, darling." Rarity said. "We know you can."

"We should head back to the others." Amy suggested."They got this under control."

Amy and Rarity headed back to join their allies while Sonic and Shadow prepared to break down the door. Using a mini-boost, it burst open easily.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Rainbow Dash declared as she flew right in, with the others tailing her.

The four of them were moving inside a high-tech metallic shaft. Running down through the entirety of the shaft was a vertical pillar that the 4 heroes moved down along. While they headed for the reactor, 3 Egg flyers flew past them and blocked their paths. They started to fire energy beams towards them. Sonic and Shadow easily dodged thanks to their speed. Sunset, on the other hand, wasn't as quick and it seemed like she would get hit. Lucky for her, Rainbow Dash came to her aid and took her arm, pulling her out of harm's way. Sonic and Shadow then became streaks and tore through the robots mid air before they resumed moving on the ground.

"Thanks a lot, Rainbow." Sunset said, which made Rainbow grin.

"Don't sweat it. Just try and keep up from now on." She replied.

As they got deeper in the fortress, giant walls attempted to crush them from above. The group moved before each of the structures reached the floor. Once this was done, large spiky wheels were launched towards them.

"Wow, Eggman's not pulling his punches here." The Rainboom's leader said in a mixture of surprise and fright.

"Welcome to a final Eggman base." The Blue Blur responded.

"I wouldn't have it any other way!" The Rainbow flyer declared.

"The doctor is a fool to think this can stop me." The Black Blur smugly boasted.

The speed types, with Rainbow assisting Sunset, maneuvered through the wheels, not even touching them. After this, they moved through more crushing blocks easily. Now, they were faced with a squadron of five Egg flyers trying to blast them once more. This time, Shadow teleported and came in front of two. He launched a Chaos Spear to take one out before he kicked through the other one. Sonic jumped mid-air and used stomp to hold one to the ground before he leaped from it to axe kick another down. Rainbow took a hold of Sunset, who fired a large fire blast from her Wispon to defeat the last one.

Taking care of these enemies coincided with them entering a new section, characterized by a large pillar. On this pillar was a road with tall rails on the sides. The shaft itself was lit up by lights on the walls, which included hexagonal-shaped lights, green power lines, and green power conduits. Sonic and Shadow used the rails, with Sunset and Rainbow Dash above them. Every few seconds, the rails would give off red electric shocks, forcing Sonic and Shadow to switch to others to avoid getting zapped.

"This is where Infinite must have gained his power." Sonic deduced.

"It's kind of sad he didn't have any more options available for him instead of becoming that masked monster..." Sunset sympathetically said.

"Don't start feeling sorry for him." Shadow firmly responded. "His path was his own doing."

"I'm with Shadow. That creep doesn't deserve it. Huh, never thought that would happen." Rainbow Dash spoke up, surprised she agreed with Shadow.

The four-man team emerged off the rails and moved down a long corridor once more. Again, a squadron of Egg Flyers tried to intercept them, along with spinning wheels blocking the path. The lasers fired were evaded by the group. Sonic and Shadow split apart as they jumped mid-air. They came towards the Egg Flyers on the furthest side and kicked them into each other, causing the whole squad to fall apart. They rejoined Sunset and Rainbow as they made it through the deadly wheel. At the end of the section, the resistance squad jumped on downwards. This took them into a purple and green room which held the reactor. The reactor itself was incorporated into the base of the shaft's pillar, which narrows in around the reactor. In the center of the reactor lied a structure resembling a nucleic acid double helix, which was covered by metal plates. This structure was surrounded by a circular platform, which had three tubes, each one containing Phantom Ruby prototypes, on it. The reactor also had a ring around it with laser drones attached to it.

"We made it!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "Now to blow this place to pieces."

Before Rainbow could finish, about a dozen Egg Pawns emerged, bent on stopping the intruders.

"Whew, I wouldn't mind a breather but our work is never done." Sonic lamented.

Sunset fired a blast of fire, taking out a few robots while Rainbow Dash rammed them away from her. Sonic ran ahead and formed a small vortex around a few Egg Pawns, which sent them crashing around the area. Shadow teleported and rapidly unleashed his Chaos Spear to finish off the remaining enemies. With the enemies gone, the team turned their focus to the reactor.

"All these Phantom Ruby's are dangerous, we should take them out first." Sunset suggested.

Before anyone could take action, laser beams suddenly emerged from the reactor, causing everyone to duck.

"Perfect." The fastest Rainboom complained complained.

"This does not impress." The Ultimate Lifeform simply simply said as he rose from the ground and teleported in spades to avoid the beams. His arch rival then followed his lead, with Rainbow Dash not too far behind, avoiding contact with their quickness. Sunset laid low.

Sonic and Shadow turned into streaks as they hit through one capsule each, causing cracks to emerge. Rainbow Dash flew through one using her body many times. On the ground, Sunset noticed a gap between the laser and flew as quickly as she could through it. She rose in the air near a capsule and unleashed a stream of flames on it. As the 4 of them continued their attacks, the capsules gave out and burst. In doing so, the reactor fell apart as a loud explosion was heard. The center then gave off a purple glow.

"Let's get out of here!" Sonic yelled.

The team then began to flee, with Shadow grabbing hold of Sunset's arm to allow her to keep up with them. A large purple explosion emerged from behind them. They then found themselves dashing through a small tunnel while flames emerged everywhere.

"Come on guys, let's kick things up a notch!" Sonic declared.

Rainbow Dash built up her speed while flying, eventually reaching a point where she performed her Sonic Rainboom. Sonic and Shadow both activated their boost at the same, which propelled everyone at a high burst of speed. Sunset was feeling overwhelmed by going this fast. The whole sensation was insane as the wind was blasting her face and she felt weightless with the the sound of wind blowing in her ears. She then squinted her eyes, but enough to see light at the end of the tunnel.

A huge eruption of flames occurred, seen from the outside. Coming just before it was the team of 4. They then landed on the floor. Sunset wobbled for a bit before she shook her head. Coming to greet them was Tails and Twilight.

"We did it! Eggman's army is officially done! We've won!" Sonic happily announced.

"Oh yeah! It's about time!" Rainbow Dash agreed.

"We should get back to the others. This calls for a celebration. After all this fighting, things are finally back to normal." The empathetic Rainboom expressed with relief, while Shadow had his arms folded.

Sonic and Tails were going to fist bump. However, the ground then began to shake, putting everyone off balance.

"You can't be serious!" Twilight complained."Now what?!"

"Everyone look!" Tails said.

The young genuis was pointing towards a rising mecha. It was a massive grey robot with some red here and there. It had a small dome-shaped head that could open up like an eye. It also had three spike-like appendages on top of it similar to a crown, a rounded body with a red energy core in the middle, four tentacles with three-clawed hands at the end of each one on its back, large shoulder pads with silver on its upper and lower arms and large fist with four fingers on both arms, and a very serpent-like lower body.

The resistance members looked on at their new foe with tense looks.

"You fell for it!" Eggman boasted from the mech's center. "The fortress reactor was a decoy!"

Suddenly, the comms were activated.

"Sonic! What's happening?! I thought you destroyed the reactor!" Vector's voice said.

"The enemies aren't gone! In fact, their's even more of em!" AppleJack announced.

"It looks like there are hundreds, thousands!" Amy exclaimed.

"How can there be so many?!" Fluttershy wondered with worry.

"The sightings are Shadow, Chaos, Zavok, Metal Sonic, Infinite!" Rouge listed.

"We can't fight this many!" Silver stated. "We're totally surrounded!"

Hearing this caused Sonic's group to turn to Eggman. Sonic shot an intense at his longtime nemesis.

"What have you done?!" He demanded.

"I incorporated the Phantom Ruby into this Death Egg robot!" Eggman explained.

"Then that means..The Phantom Ruby doesn't have a vulnerable power source anymore!" Tails realized with horror.

"With no weakness, it's now invulnerable!" Twilight shouted, dreading the idea.

"Exactly! Now, this-no, I am now the ultimate form! Not Infinite! Not Shadow! Me!" Eggman maniacally declared as he began to laugh. "Now, I'm going to finish you once and for all!"

The robot unleashed a red energy wave, briefly distorting the team before the regained their focus.

"That's not going to happen! We're not going down without a fight!" Rainbow Dash declared.

"As long as we're here, we'll never let you win!" Sunset added.

"Eggman, looks you need to learn the hard way again. Your plan is just going to end with a bunch of busted robot parts, same as usual!" Sonic announced.