//------------------------------//
// City: Ghost Town (Vs Chaos) 
// Story: Sonic Forces: Resistance is Magic 
// by MetalJrock 
//------------------------------//

Tails was working on fixing up a bulky red robot. He was unsure of what happened to him, but the second he saw him he went right to work in repairing him once he figured out who it was. The fox pressed a few buttons, but got nothing. Tails sighed, "I couldn't figure it out for you, Omega... I'm sorry I wasn't smart enough. I promise I'll get you back to normal somehow."

It had been sometime since he went off on his own. After being presen for Sonic's defeat, Tails decided to wander alone in fighting Eggman, but he too hasn't made much progress. He didn't want anyone else to take the fall, and he blamed himself for what happened on that day, choosing to atone.

Unknown to Tails, however, a manhole cover began to open, revealing a strange liquid form. Green eyes took form as the water gave itself a body to move with. "Maybe I should find a way to ask Do--" the fox heard the wet noises and turned around, spotting the creature slowly marching towards him.

"Whoa, Chaos!"

Deciding he had no choice, the two tailed fox pressed a button on his new watch, hidden under his gloves. By doing so, his hand was covered by an arm cannon. "Back off, Chaos!" ordered Tails, the fox aiming his Energy Ball Blaster Mk. II at the water god. Chaos remained still, choosing to attack anyway. "I-I don't want to hurt you. You're supposed to be good now, remember?!"

However, Chaos stopped and turned his head once he saw a strange purple rift open up in the streets. Running out of it was a blue blur, jumping on the water monster's head, turning him into a puddle and forcing him to retreat. Tails' eyes widened upon seeing this, lowering his weapon. "Sonic...?" the fox gasped.

A thud got his attention, and Tails looked to the side, seeing what appeared to be a purple dragon lying on the floor. As soon as he saw this, Tails ran and helped him up, "Spike?" he wondered. Said dragon coughed and gagged, reeling from his trip across dimensions.

"Aw man. I never want to do that again." Spike opened his eyes, and glanced at the yellow fox, smiling at the familiar face, "...Tails? Hey. Does this mean I'm in your world or something? I didn't think we'd meet again like this." he said. "Did the girls come here too?"

Tails smiled and gave his friend a nod, "Yeah. I'm surprised you're here too though. And I haven't seen them, sorry."

The two spotted the blue figure that ran out, standing and waiting for them. "Sonic! You're... alive? Huh?" the fox said, correcting himself at the last second. Spike raised a brow at that. It looked like Sonic, but something did seem off.

For one thing, he wasn't any taller than the two of them, his stomach was rounder, and his eyes were black instead of green. Tails said, "Oh! You're that Sonic from the other dimension, aren't you?" he asked, earning a nod from Sonic. Spike blinked, not understanding what he meant. Sonic from another dimension? He thought something was off when he saw the blue figure in the portal.

"Right, that makes sense. Do you remember how you got here?" the fox replied and questioned. Sonic shrugged. As far as he could recall, was on some other adventure with his world's Tails and Knuckles, was fighting Eggman and his robots, and then a portal opened up in their usual final battle. But he wasn't sure why that was.

Spike said, "Another dimension? Alive? What did I miss? I got here cause of some freaky portal too."

"Eggman took over the world, Spike. The Sonic of this dimension is... is gone thanks to him. This is another Sonic, one from another world we met before when reality fell apart."

Sonic waved at the dragon and smiled, "...Why can't you talk?"

Tails tapped his muzzle, "I don't know why that is actually."

Spike raised his head and shouted, "What the heck is even going on? This whole city's on fire for crying out loud!"

Sonic put his hands on his hips and nodded. Tails said, "Eggman has been laying waste to everything under his rule. His Death Egg Robots are powerful and are plentiful, wreaking havoc in every known location across the planet. With Sonic finished, I decided to head out and stop Eggman on my own since he's grown more powerful. Unfortunately, that hasn't gone well from my end." he admitted sadly.

The small hedgehog's mouth was agape, hearing that his counterpart was gone. "So, Sonic's actually gone for good? Aw man... I'm sorry to hear that."

Tails sat down and sighed, "It's my fault. I was there on that day. I was too weak... And now because of that my best friend is gone." Sonic frowned and patted the fox on the back, knowing that his counterpart wouldn't want Tails to be upset. "Eggman assembled an army unlike anything we've dealt with. Our old foes... And a friend turned traitor. Along with some rogues from your world I think."

Spike raised a brow at that, "From Equestria? Like who?"

"Eggman said they were Chrysalis, Sombra, and Starlight Glimmer. Do they sound familiar to you?"

"S-Starlight?" the dragon muttered in disbelief, "The girls and I faced them before, but you sure it was a pony named Starlight Glimmer?"

Tails slowly said, "Yes. She was a purple unicorn with a teal magic aura." he recalled, "I saw her a few times during my wandering, but she and the others keep coming back."

Sonic scratched his head, and Spike exhaled, "I thought she was genuine when she said she was turning good. She was a friend." he curled his fist and said, "But still, this is bad. Chrysalis and Sombra means bad news if they're here too. Don't blame yourself for what happened though. So they helped... defeat Sonic? The one from this world?"

The fox nodded, "It was them joined by this new monster. I haven't seen him since then, but he was stronger and faster than Sonic. He probably didn't even need the other villains. His power was different though and I'm still trying to figure out what that is. But I learned that this isn't something I can do alone anymore. We can use this reunion to our advantage." he pointed out.

With a determined glance and a smirk, Sonic pumped a fist, "Maybe Eggman's power is actually affecting other dimensions somehow. Everything happens for a reason right? We need to save the world. And maybe that's why the two of you are here. To help save the world!" Tails revealed.

Spike smiled and looked at Sonic and Tails, "So the three of us are working together? This'll be interesting. Count me in. You helped our world before, and us partners gotta stick together after all! What about you, Sonic?" the hedgehog grinned and nodded, willing to help the cause anyway he could while he was stuck here. "Awesome! Looks like we're in this together then."

Sonic was about to run, but stopped, giving Tails a confused look, not knowing where he was going after all. "Oh yeah. You probably don't know your way around here. We should probably stick together for the time being then." he held out his Miles Electric, "We have to make our way out of the city first. I'm detecting a massive energy reading nearby, so we should probably see what that is. Either it's Eggman's forces, or it could be something to help you get home."

Spike said, "Alright then, show us the way--" he and the others cringed once he heard something crash down on a nearby building, demolishing it upon contact, the three walked back from the debris, "Holy guacamole! What the heck was that?"

"Probably one of Eggman's robots causing more unnecessary destruction." Tails answered. "This was basically the epicenter for everything that went wrong."

Sonic frowned, pointing at one of the robots towering over everything, its arms flailing about and destroying everything in its path. "Jeez. Eggman isn't kidding around. And I thought his air fleet in Equestria was terrible stuff." Spike commented.

"Sonic... My world's Sonic and I have been noticing Eggman's been less... himself. When he was in Equestria, he was acting more ruthless than he had on our recent adventures. I think he's actually getting tired of us foiling his plans." Tails explained. Sonic tapped his foot, noticing that his Eggman was acting a little more of the same as well, not to this degree of course, but there were signs. "This seems to be the culmination of everything we've foiled before now."

Spike blinked in surprise, "Wow." he faced the small hedgehog, "You're from a whole new dimension, right?" Sonic nodded, "Is your Eggman like that too?" the blue blur shook his head and shrugged his arms, "Huh. Figured as much." the dragon said.

Once the sound of another meteor crashing down was heard, Tails gestured for the two to make an exit. The two ran through the streets, trying to stay clear of danger, "So Spike." Tails said, breaking the silence again, "How did you end up here?"

The purple dragon tapped his chin, "I dunno. The girls and I were summoned by the map for some reason. We were waiting for Starlight, but then this purple vortex opened up on top of it and dragged all of us in there. It made this weird sound too. Kinda hard to explain. But I saw you in there, Sonic."

Now that got the hedgehog's attention, he glanced at Spike and raised a finger, "You know what I'm talking about? Was it the same purple thing, sound and all?" Sonic nodded at that, recalling such details and smiled at his new friend once they put their minds together and deduced their connection. "So now we know that him being here with me and the others are somehow connected."

Tails said, "That's right. You said the girls were pulled in too. But they haven't shown up here though, sadly."

"Aw man. I hope they're alright." Spike sighed. "Cause from what I'm seeing, things aren't gonna lighten up. It's like a ghost town in here." he pointed out.

The fox looked at his Miles Electric, "I'm detecting a number of enemies in this area. And a major energy spike at the outskirts. We should tread the city carefully."

The three jumped down into a small sewer area, able to hide from the giant robots. It was dark, yet open, allowing freedom for the three of them to move without much issue compared to the surface. Sonic pointed ahead, spotting an Eggrobo, "Like that?" Spike said, "Wow, they look a little different."

Sonic jumped first and curled into a ball, earlier than he should've to hit the robot, "Sonic, you're not gonna reach--" Tails cut himself off, because once he saw the hedgehog's body land, Sonic managed to gain a quick burst of speed in his Spin-Dash form and destroyed the robot anyway, uncurling once he was finished. "--It." he finished his sentence once the moment ended. "What was that?"

Deciding to take the moment to explain, the alternate Sonic jumped again and charged his Spin-Dash in midair, gaining speed once he touched the floor again. Once he was standing, Sonic performed a few hand gestures to demonstrate it. Spike still wondered why this Sonic was unable to speak however.

"Uh huh. So you're somehow able to charge the Spin-Dash in midair, and gain momentum while doing that? Sonic and I never thought to do that before! This Drop-Dash could help us down the line." Tails complimented with Sonic proudly bowing.

Spike raised a brow once Tails stopped, "...You somehow managed to get an explanation out of that?" Sonic frowned, putting his hands on his hips upon hearing the comment.

The fox chuckled, "Now that I think about, Sonic, Knuckles and I were like that when we were younger too. He's from an earlier point in time than us technically so it makes sense that he's still silent after we met him already." he elaborated for his friend. "Trust me, after learning some new language with some plumbers and a green dinosaur, silence is easier to pick up and understand."

Sonic scratched his head, something about what Tails said seemed kinda familiar to him, and he was unsure as to why that was. Maybe he'll figure it out one day.

"If you say so." Spike replied.

The two jumped over a small pit, spotting a few more gray robots awaiting their presence. Their red eyes glared daggers at the team. Spike noticed one of their arms extend, aiming a cannon directly at them. The dragon dived to the side while Sonic and Tails jumped. "You okay, Spike?" Tails asked. "There's a lot more than I thought. The three of us can easily handle them, right?" Sonic smirked at that. Spike pushed himseld back up once the beam missed.

Tails curled into a ball and jumped on one of the robots, straightening himself out and aiming his arm cannon downward before landing, blowing up another one. 

Sonic ran forward and rolled, his spines enough to break through the metal. The hedgehog got a knee and felt a laser blast barely miss him. A robot tried to shoot at him. With his usual smirk, Sonic jumped over it and stuck his tongue out to taunt the robot. He noticed small bursts of smoke appear where the blasts missed and he zipped forward, turning the bot to scrap with a Spin-Jump.

Spike gulped, his pupils shrinking once he saw another red beam narrowly miss him. The dragon inhaled, letting out a burst of green fire from his mouth. Thanks to his thick scales, he used his claws to slice the metal being's arms before letting Sonic jump in to finish the job, touching the ground once finished. "That wasn't too bad." Spike admitted, looking at the pile of scrap.

Tails pulled out his Miles Electric from his tails, which were a lot bigger than expected, "Like I said, this wasn't the worst of it. I'm detecting that massive energy reading still. There's another one. It's bigger, but farther away. We can worry about that one later." he put his handheld away and looked ahead.

The ground began to shake, causing the three to stagger, "What's going on up there?!" Spike gasped aloud, noticing some debris landing from the ceiling.

"No doubt the robots. We gotta get out of here before the place collapses!" Tails shouted. Sonic grabbed Spike and Tails' arms and zipped away right as the ceiling fell right where they were standing, avoiding their demise. "Wait--!" Sonic focused on what was on front of him, ignoring the fox for the moment. The hedgehog's feet spun in a circle as his legs moved faster. Tails and Spike felt their feet get lifted from the shaking ground.

Sonic scowled and made his way up the slope, running on a wall and moving so fast he temporarily ended up in midair. He released the two and Tails spun his namesakes behind him, holding Sonic and Spike's arms to allow a slow descent. The three dusted themselves off and Spike glared at Sonic, "Can you give us a warning next time at the very least, Sonic?" he asked, patting dirt off his arm. The group was now standing on a balcony of an obviously abandoned building that was still somehow standing despite the destruction.

The hedgehog merely tapped his foot and raised a brow. He turned his head and his jaw dropped at what he saw. In the distance, he saw a few Death Egg Robots, all colored dull gray, all larger than any he's ever encountered before. Their metal arms expanded down and destroyed any defenses left, demolishing buildings and occassionally moving to continue. This was wrong, and he knew it. Sonic had wanted to prevent this disaster, but with his interdimensional counterpart gone, it was clear that even with backup, it was overwhelming to handle. Sonic scowled, folding his arms, knowing in disappointment that nothing could be done at the moment.

"I know it's hard to look at. Trust me, it never gets easier." Tails sighed to Sonic and sat down for a moment, looking at the looming destruction in sadness, "Eggman has gone too far with this plan. And I'm sorry our reunion had to be for this, but I couldn't do it." Sonic's gaze softened at that, wanting to hear his alternate pal out. "I messed up big time. Like I said, it's my fault this world's Sonic was defeated and I couldn't do anything to so much as dent Eggman's Empire alone. I tried and I still failed. I didn't want anyone else getting hurt or worse because I screwed up again in the first place. A part of me doesn't know if bringing you two along is a good idea at all now that I think about it."

Sonic rubbed the side of his quills, confused. The fox sighed, the moment his decision was made flashing back in his head.





Six Months Ago...

"Come on, Tails! Please wake up!"

Said fox snapped his eyes open, sitting up once he heard his voice shouted right in his ears. "Huh? What? Where am I?"

He was greeted by a certain echidna, one of his lifelong friends along with Sonic, "Thank goodness you're alright. We thought we lost you there for a second." Knuckles patted Tails' shoulder, relieved to see his friend still in one piece. Looking around, he also saw Silver. All of them were in a room hidden away from the rest of the world, still in the city that was currently being demolished. "Can you explain what happened and why we found you like that?"

Tails blinked, yawning, "I'm fine." he turned his head, "Eggman attacked the city. Shadow, Metal, Zavok, Chaos... All of them were with him and on his side."

"Shadow?" Silver gasped.

"Chaos? With Eggman again?" Knuckles grunted, "I can't believe this is happening. Are you sure it was them?"

Nodding, Tails replied, "Yeah. They had this weird purple thing around them too. Not only that, but he allied himself with some villains from Equestria, Knuckles."

Now that revelation caught Knuckles off guard, "Equestria? Did you see the girls too? Are they somehow on Eggman's side as well?"

"That was the other dimension you were in, right?" Silver asked for recollection, with the fox and echidna confirming, "Figured. Only Eggman can stoop so low to drag another world into this."

"I didn't. Eggman said they were Chrysalis, Sombra and Starlight Glimmer. The girls probably encountered them before, but they were surprisingly strong. All of them were able to put up a fight against Sonic and I at the same time. Even that new person."

Silver tilted his head, "Who?"

Tails opened his mouth, "I-I'm not sure, he had this red aura and was fast and powerful. More than anything we've encountered before. He beat Sonic with the other rogues... Speaking of, is Sonic alright? I don't see him anywhere."

Knuckles and Silver remained silent, closing their eyes and shaking their heads. "We're sorry, Tails. Neither of us found Sonic, just you. With what you're saying and how dire things are..." Knuckles looked out, seeing the ongoing destruction. "I think we should assume the worst. You were unconscious for days and he hasn't shown up yet either. I..." a sigh escaped him, "I think we should assume the worst at this point."

"W-What?!"

Silver said, "We've looked for Sonic everywhere. The Chaotix, Amy, and Rouge found nothing. I'm sorry, Tails. But it seems Eggman actually did the deed and Sonic is--"

"No!" Tails shouted, tears already threatening to run down his face, "He can't be. Not now... Not when we need him." he sniffled, "Sonic can't be gone. Not for real..."

Knuckles frowned and for once, his tough exterior broke, he allowed Tails to embrace him for comfort as he cried, keeping himself as stoic as possible. Sonic was both of their friends and this hurt him too on the inside. But he had to accept it. This wasn't like the ARK. Sonic was gone for good, defeated by the Eggman Empire. A terrible casuality and the first of this war.

Tails released the brief hug and wiped his nose, "I-It's my fault this happened."

"Nobody's to blame for this but Eggman." Silver assured. "He'll pay for his crimes against the world and for what he did Sonic. And we'll do it together."

Tails stood up, a scowl forming on his face, "I can't... Because of me, you'll probably end up the same as Sonic. Defeated. All of you will be better off without me."

"Tails, that's a dumb idea." Knuckles replied sternly, "Eggman has grown more powerful each day. We need to stick together if we want to stop him this time."

Shaking his head and clutching it in pain, the fox said, "No. This is something I have to do on my own. Sonic would want me to fight on, but I can't risk all of you because I messed up. He nearly died once before on the ARK cause I was stupid. This was because of me too. I was too weak to help him at his lowest, and I want to make up for that."

Knuckles raised his arms and his voice, "Sonic has always gone on about how teamwork is the best when it came to saving the world, Tails! You of all people should know that. You spent the most time with him. Do you even hear yourself?"

Tails bit his tongue then replied, "I do. I'll be back when I'm ready."

"Tails, come on..." Silver reached out while said fox walked out the door, but Knuckles shook his head.

"He needs time to think things over." Tails heard Knuckles say, "The kid just found out his best friend is gone and needs to find a way to cope. Heck, I still can't believe it either.. But soon enough he'll realize that this is something none of us can handle alone, even for a bit. We need to find the others and formulate a plan in the meantime."

The kid ran off, never crossing paths with his friends in the months passed since that day...





Spike sat down next to the fox, who was still deep in thought over his choices, "I'm still trying to process what's happening, but you said everything happens for a reason and that's why we're here right? You got me and the other Sonic now. We don't know where my friends or your friends are at. What if us being here with you is a sign? Twilight wasn't one for friends, but after Princess Celestia sent her to Ponyville she wanted to learn more about friendship after getting along with the girls after they saved Luna together." he raised a finger, "I'm saying that alone, maybe you couldn't have done much against all this..."

Tails managed a smile and finished, "...But together, we have a chance to put a stop to Eggman." the genius stood up, "You're right, Spike. I can't dwell on this forever. Sonic would want me to keep fighting, but he also wouldn't want me to do it alone." the alternate Sonic gave Tails a thumbs up, thinking the exact same thing, "I'm glad that the two of you are here. If we can't find the others, then at the very least we can take matters into our own hands and end Eggman's reign ourselves."

The three stood up together and saw a bridge. Tails' Miles Electric beeped and the fox took a look, "That surge I mentioned earlier should be right there. Once we find out what it is and leave the city, we can prep the Tornado and head out."

Jumping down back on the ground, Sonic noticed a moving puddle coming towards them, purple bits appearing around its body as though it was glitching out. Spike said, "Uh, Tails. What the heck is that supposed to be?"

The puddle began to form itself into a bipedal being with green eyes and a brain visible on top of its head. "Chaos again?" he raised his arm and revealed his Energy Ball Blaster again, "Come on, you're supposed to be on our side now!"

Chaos swiped an arm down, prompting the three to jump, watching water splash where the water being slammed down. Sonic slid as he touched the ground. The water monster stretched a limb forward, intending to strike again, but Sonic jumped on his arm, letting it fall apart for a second before regenerating.

"So what's a Chaos?!" Spike wondered, ducking and diving from another strike. "Yikes!"

Tails aimed his cannon at the monster's brain, "Chaos is the god of the Master Emerald. He was enraged by the ancient echidnas' actions and went out of control until Sonic helped him see the light with positive Chaos Energy after Eggman released him!" he rolled, accidentally tumbling onto the being in his ball form, forcing him to become a puddle again. "He has no reason to act like this again!"

Taking form once more, Chaos caught Sonic off guard, prompting the small hedgehog to jump back in surprise. Shaking his head, Sonic jumped and performed a Drop-Dash, and immediately went through Chaos, due to his unique form. The blue blur was taken aback by this and uncurled, his mouth open.

"Aim for the brain, you two!" Tails ordered, "Knuckles, Sonic and I faced him before and we know that's his weak spot." the genius tried to shoot at the weak point with his arm cannon, but Chaos dipped down once again before rising, stretching an arm to attack the fox. However, Tails somersaulted and aimed again, narrowly missing the shot. "This is a lot trickier than I remember."

Spike took a step back once Chaos appeared in front of him, a watery arm slapping him in the side before he could dodge, causing him to fall and tumble in pain. Clutching his hip, the young drake stood up and gritted his teeth, "That was a lot harder than I thought it would be." he mumbled.

Once Chaos was exposed, Sonic jumped and performed his trademark Spin Attack, landing directly on the water monster's head, forcing him to retreat as a puddle in an attempt. The small hedgehog blinked, wondering what his opponent was going to do next. Seeing Chaos grow, Sonic stuck his tongue out and dashed to the side, dodging his stretchy arms again, taking a moment to mock the entity. Tails rolled his eyes, "Really, Sonic?" he muttered, shooting Chaos' body, the energy beams getting absorbed into his torso.

Sonic shrugged at the comment and zipped forward, but he was shoved aside by Chaos, thrown towards a building in the process. Spike ran forward and inhaled, but realized Chaos was a being of water. He noticed the purple glitches again, having no idea what those were. "Uh..." the dragon muttered, noticing Chaos glaring right at him. Promptly, Spike saw Sonic charge forward with a Spin-Dash to distract the entity, allowing the dragon to use his claws on the strange brain visible on the top of Chaos' head damaging it.

Tails spun his tails around to knock Chaos back slightly. The being tried to jab the fox, but Tails dodged it, aiming his arm cannon directly at Chaos' head. The blast was hit perfectly, causing Chaos to reel back in pain for a moment. In retaliation, Chaos raised his arms and dashed ahead, trying to attack Tails. Luckily, Sonic used a Drop-Dash to hit the water monster's legs, causing him to stumble. The hedgehog yawned once he finished bouncing, looking at Chaos shake, seemingly roaring.

"I don't think he's happy..." Spike gulped.

"No kidding." Tails muttered back.

The three stood next to each other, wondering how to proceed. Sonic scowled and ran forward, "Sonic!" Tails shouted at the running hedgehog to no avail, "I didn't think he'd be this stubborn."

Sonic jumped and was uppercutted by Chaos before he could attack, launching him upwards as a result. Luckily, Tails flew in and caught him to make sure he landed fine, grabbing his wrist and gently putting him down on the ground. Spike watched the two descend and Sonic jumped safely down to the ground. Sonic dusted himself off and glared at the fox for stealing an epic comeback, "If we want to stop Chaos, you gotta be more careful. He's a lot stronger than before and you have no experience in fighting him. Just this once slow down, Sonic." Tails pleaded, knowing how stubborn Sonic was.

The hedgehog's gaze lightened and he nodded, a smile forming on his muzzle. He pointed forward. Spike scratched his head, "Uh, what is that supposed to mean?"

"He wants us to keep trying." Tails said, "I think a few more hits should do it though. We just have to find a way to leave him open and unable to counter."

The group jumped to the side, dodging Chaos' arms once again. Spike said, "Uh, alright. We'll see if we can do anything."

Chaos jumped to behind the heroes and planned to attack from there. However, Tails noticed this and aimed his cannon at the mutated Chao's brain, "Not this time! We'll turn you back to normal somehow, Chaos!" he assured.

"I still can't believe this thing was a good guy." Spike whispered to Sonic, who nodded in agreement.

The dragon ducked from Chaos' arm stretch this time, letting out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness." he murmured, standing up straight and running forward. But he was caught off guard by Chaos turning into a giant ball and bouncing towards him, "What the heck?!" he turned around and ran away.

Sonic gritted his teeth and jumped when Chaos was in midair, deflecting the water being's bounce and forcing him to retract. Tails aimed his Energy Ball Blaster again and hit Chaos' head, stunning him for a brief moment. "Now!" shouted the fox.

"O-Okay!" Spike said, jumping and holding back a gag, not wanting to touch Chaos' brain again, "Egh." his fist lightly hit it, causing Chaos to strangely glow purple again. "H-Huh?"

Wanting to end this battle, Sonic jumped and charged a Drop-Dash right after Tails landed his shot, his ball form smacking the mutated creature's weak spot, causing Chaos to tremble and form into a puddle in pain. Sonic landed next to the fox and dragon. The three watched as instead of retreating, Chaos faded from their sights. Their eyes widened and Spike spoke up, "Uh, was that supposed to happen?"

Tails tapped his chin and pulled out his Miles Electric, "it's unlikely he evaporated in an instant. I don't even think he can do that." he squinted, observing his readings, while Sonic tapped his feet waiting for some conclusion, "Strange. The energy surge Chaos was giving is suddenly gone. Like he was never here."

"I guess whatever boosted his power let him escape." Spike suggested to the fox.

"What if it's all connected?" Tails suggested.

Sonic scratched his head and Spike raised a brow, wondering what he meant. Tails continued once he saw the confused looks, "What if the power that brought you two here is the same one that's giving Chaos ans the other bad guys their sudden power boost?"

"..." Spike paused, "Huh. Maybe. Well what are we gonna do? I don't think it'll be the last we see of Chaos, and he was pretty tough. Probably because I didn't fight him before."

"Uh... Well before we chase after Eggman to find an answer, there's something I want to do first." Tails said.

Sonic opened his mouth, curious, "Once I get the Tornado, I want to dismantle some of Eggman's forces. That way when we do find him, it'll be easier. And we can at least accomplish something to hinder his plans of conquest."

Spike nodded, "Oh, alright then... So I guess you're cool with the two of us sticking around after all to help?"

Tails smiled and said, "The three of us need to stick together, Spike. Heck, you have no idea how relieved I am to see the two of you at the very least."

"Likewise Tails. And Sonic. Even if you're not the same one I met, you're pretty alright I guess." Spike chuckled, earning a glare from the small hedgehog, "I'm just kidding. You're cool, too."

Tails pointed the two ahead, doing their best to ignore and avoid the Death Egg Robots behind them in the distance, "Eggman has an oil refinery on West-Side Island nearby Chemical Plant. Once we destroy it, that should weaken his energy reserve and rebuilding of robots in his many factories."

Sonic tapped his muzzle, believing to know where the fox was talking about. Spike said, "Okay. Hopefully this works out well."

"With us working together, I can't see how it wouldn't." Tails assured, filled with confidence for the first time in months. He realized that maybe having  some allies by his side was the best solution after all. Maybe even a little fun. And now it was time to bring down Eggman.