1. A New Purpose

Universe 010921

Ponies across Maretime Bay were walking peacefully as they went on their daily lives.

Suddenly, a figure passed by flying over them, but it wasn't anything strange. After all, magic's been back in Equestria for quite a long time, and the residents of Maretime Bay where already used to pegasi flying across Equestria.

However, this wasn't a pegasus flying, but an Alicorn mare instead. She had yellow fur; red and yellow mane and tail; red, orange and light blue feathers, orange horn, and kind of grey-ish hooves.

This mare flew happily above her home, Maretime Bay, and smiled down at the sight of the three pony tribes living together.

"Alright, everypony. Let's do this one last time...

My name is Sunset Shimmer. You might heard about me before: I used to be a unicorn, and I was Princess Celestia's number one pupil... At least until I made some bad decisions that made me travel to another world. A human counterpart world to Equestria, to be specific. And I was... a bad girl who ruled over a school named Canterlot High. You could say I was the 'bully queen' in town... Not my finest moment, I know.

A few years later, I went back to Equestria to steal Celestia's new successor and new princess' crown, Princess Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship. However, I lost track of the crown once I got back to CHS, and had to go through some obstacles to get the crown. I also had to make sure that Twilight never got it back while she reunited the Rainbooms and mend their friendship.

Yet, when I finally got my hands over the crown, I was corrupted by its dark magic and transformed into a She-Demon. Again, not my finest moment... Still, it was thanks to Twilight and the girls that I learned about the magic of friendship, which helped me to become a better person... and a better pony.

Over the years, the Rainbooms and I have had encounters of rouge Equestrian magic and lost Equestrian Artifacts that somehow came into CHS, but over time from those, our friendship has grown stronger.

However, a few years later, after we all graduated from college, I decided to meet my old friend Twilight Sparkle and see how Equestria was doing... I never expected what I found once I returned. The Equestria I remembered was gone, as well as all the friends and family I had here... Twilight included.

The Equestria I arrived wasn't the one Twilight visioned, because ponykind and all the other creatures were divided, and the magic faded away moons prior to my arrival. Yet mine still worked out for some reason. It was probably because of the geode I used on the human world, but who knows.

Just then, I came across a group of ponies that still remembered magic and wished to help me bring it back so we could bring ponykind together again.

First off: Izzy Moonbow; a cheery Unicorn I met first. She's as cheerful as Pinkie Pie and is always playful, sometimes unpredictable... just like Pinkie.

Hitch Trailblazer; an Earth Pony Sheriff of a coast town named Maretime Bay. He's kind of a law sucker... I mean, he makes sure anypony picks up their litters, but he also keeps the town in order. He has a strange thing with critters and animals because they all adore him. Heck, he can even speak to them! Just like Fluttershy... Yet, he can be really stubborn sometimes, and also a bit clueless on what's true or not. Still, he definitely is the embodiment of kindness and honesty when it's required, just like Fluttershy and Applejack.

Zephyrina Storm, or just Zipp like she likes to be called; a Pegasus Princess and heir to the throne of Zephyr Heights. Even if she really doesn't wants to be Queen, she is always loyal to her friends, has a big fascination for mysteries, and enjoys flying a lot, just like Rainbow Dash. She also gots a competitive side that might or not might clash with mine sometimes.

Pipp Petals; Zipp's little sister and princess of Zephyr Heights as well. She's a singer and a celebrity on the web, and she also runs a salon here in the Bay. She's almost always livestreaming with her Pippsqueaks and being a great star. It kind of reminds me how Rarity used to be with her boutiques, if all what Twilight told me through the journal was true.

And last but not least important: Sunny Starscout; an Earth Pony mare that still believes in the magic of friendship. She and her father used to study Ancient Equestria, and they've been huge fans of Twilight and the girls, which they call the 'Guardians of Harmony'. Pretty catchy, if you ask me. Also, she's kind of a like a student to me, but also like the little sister I never had. She sees me both as her sister and mentor.

The six of us worked together to unite the three Unity Crystals that brought back the magic, and by doing that, we brought ponykind together again, rebuilding Twilight's legacy. That also kind of transformed Sunny and I into Alicorns, although in Sunny's case, she's only an Alicorn half of the time, because she can transform into one whenever she wants. This also makes us the two new Princesses of Friendship, tittle that really don't mean anything today, to be honest.

Now, even if we did brought magic back, we had a few hiccups along the way. Like when Earth Ponies were complaining about not having magic, but then we help them understand that friendship was they way, and we not only managed to keep the balance between harmony and magic, but we also created new Earth Pony Magic! Now they have the power to grow and control plants.

Hitch also adopted a baby dragon he named Sparky, which was a bit odd since, according to Sunny, Equestria hasn't seen dragons in generations, but we don't really dig too much into that matter.

Over time, we had some festivals and holidays that we celebrated together, a few magic mishaps that needed to be solved and taken care of, and a festival where some creatures called Troggles appeared and tried to steal ponies voices if we didn’t stop them with rubies...

Honestly, that's a terrible way to stop a ghost, but I don't make the rules.

Oh, yeah! We also met Discord after a while. He's... complicated. He kind of tried to destroy magic, but we made him see that it wasn't the way to go, so he hangs out with us now and then.

There's also Misty, a unicorn we first met in Izzy's sleepover, but she always acted really strange and nervous around us, like Fluttershy half the time. Even so, and since then, we see her as our friend... We never really knew she was spying on us for an Alicorn named Opaline, an evil Alicorn who tore apart Twilight's legacy and divided Equestria, which I am really angry at.

Misty was so conflicted on her actions, but at the end of the day, she saw us as her friend, and she choose to help us stop Opaline, while also maintaining her cover and the Cutie Mark that she finally earned. She became a double agent for us to know Opaline's movements after an intense battle we had with her, which helped us a bunch to know her plans. When Misty finally choose her friends over Opaline's plans and prevented her from sucking out all of Sparky’s dragon fire, which she used to bring back her full power, she become part of our group.

Ever since then, we stopped Opaline time and time again to prevent what she did to Twilight's legacy from ever happening again, as well as helping other ponies and solving problems along the way. We eventually defeated Opaline for good, and now, Equestria is living in peace and harmony again.

And so, here we are today."

Sunset inhaled the smell of the air and exhaled happily. She maybe didn't liked to fly that much like Zipp, but she did enjoyed it when she did so, specially because she could get a glance on Maretime Bay and its citizens.

It's hard to believe that we managed to achieve this... Sunset thought with a smile, looking down at everypony in Maretime Bay going through their daily lives.

Soon enough, Sunset arrived to her destination: The Crystal Brighthouse, located on top in a hill, not so far from Maretime Bay. She lived here with the girls, since Hitch preferred to live close to Maretime Bay... Well, that, and also because one stallion living with six mares under the same roof... Yeah, that couldn't end well.

The Alicorn mare landed in the floor and slowly opened the door to get inside the building. The Brighthouse was a huge building from the inside, so huge that anypony that entered alone could feel really small in there.

Sunset was no exception. Despite the fact that she was starting to stretch a little bit, probably because of being an Alicorn, she always felt so small compared to the Crystal Brighthouse, specially whenever she entered on her own... Well, even with the rest of her new friends, she still felt smaller than the building.

Shacking her head from those thoughts, Sunset smiled and walked through her home. She headed towards the bedroom and entered the elevator, pressing the button with scanner to get to the top of the building.

Once she reached the Crystal Room, she sat on the floor and looked up at the Unity Crystals with a smile. The Crystals were shining as bright as usual, spreading all the magic across the land of Equestria and staying on place since there was no problem among ponykind that could affect them.

And yet, that didn't changed the fact that Sunset's smile faded away with concern. Ever since they defeated Opaline, Twilight stated she wasn't needed in Equestria anymore, then disappeared inside the necklace and refused to come out.

Of course, Sunset demanded for an answer, but Twilight gave none before going back into her collar. Worse of all, anytime Sunset tried to call her out, or anytime she purposely started to retell something from the past to catch Twilight's attention, the collar would still remain closed.

Up to this day, Sunset didn't understood what made Twilight change her mind so abruptly to the point she would close all connection with her, but she never came out of the collar ever again.

Perhaps it was a sign that she and the new ponies were ready to keep an eye over Equestria, ponykind, friendship and harmony on their own, without the guidance of who used to be the supreme ruler of Equestria... The last ruler the land ever had. Can you believe she was just the second one? And yet, she still didn't lasted long...

Sunset chuckled at this last thought. It might be bad, but thinking a bit about it, it was also hilarious that Twilight was just the second ruler after Celestia, and the last one too...

"I know you wouldn't laugh about this, Twi..." Sunset muttered, as she looked back into the Unity Crystals and snorted. "But you gotta admit... It's quite funny..."

Soon enough, a portal opened in the ceiling, and Discord came out of it as he sat at Sunset's side. "Laugh about what?" The lord of chaos asked with a playful grin.

Sunset sighed and smiled, but she kept staring at the Unity Crystals. "Twilight was the second ruler after Celestia. She was also the last one..." She replied with a slight chuckle. "Many others would think it's a massive offense, or even say that she was a disgrace for letting Celestia's legacy to die so quickly. To me? It's hilarious to think Equestria only had two rulers!"

In other circumstances, Discord would've laughed along. Heck, he wanted to laugh at such a comparison... But Sunset's tone was cracked and hurt, product of the pain she's been feeling ever since Twilight encaged herself on the necklace.

Sunset started to laugh at first. It sounded maniac, like the kind of laugh that would make a villain, the kind of laugh that Opaline made when she planned her next move... But after a few seconds, such a laugh broke and mixed along crying sounds, while Sunset herself started to tear up out of control.

Anyone could noticed from a mile away that the absence from Twilight affected her. Of course, it was understandable: Having her back after getting her message warning about Opaline was a relief after she came back and found her home different... But now that Twilight refused to come back, she felt a void on her heart again.

Discord understood that perfectly. He felt like that when Fluttershy died all those years ago because of old age, and he spent centuries blaming ponies and their division for that... Now, even if Sunset had no one to blame, she still missed Twilight, probably just as much as Discord missed Fluttershy.

So, without hesitation, the old draconequus decided to leave his chaotic side aside and embrace the Alicorn mare into a hug. Sunset didn't even flinched, she simply held into Discords arms and cried hardly, not holding back anymore...

She missed Twilight, every single day. It was painful to think that she lost her dear friend not once, but twice. Worse of all? She could still come back, she simply refused to, and that just burned Sunset's soul even more. Why did Twilight refused to come out of the necklace? She couldn't understand.

After a few minutes of crying everything out of her system, Sunset finally managed to calm herself down. Despite some tears still coming out, she could at least breath normally again, sorbing a bit from her nose from time to time.

"...T-Thanks, Discord..." Sunset managed to say, using her left hoof to wipe some tears away.

"Is the least I can do," Discord replied with a slight smile, before looking over at the Unity Crystals with concern. "After all, I know how it feels to loose a friend you deeply cared for. To think that we lost Twilight not one, but two times... The pain you feel is completely understandable..."

"It doesn't changes the fact that I miss her... That I need her..." Sunset said, sorbing from her nose again. "Even if Opaline isn't a problem anymore, there could still be menaces to magic out there! Sure, we dealt with Allura in Starlight Ridge, but who says she can't come to Equestria by her own methods!? Maybe Twilight's right that we're ready to face more than Opaline without her, but... But I still miss her... Worse of all, Twilight's not the only one that feels she isn't needed around anymore..."

"What?" Discord exclaimed, confused and shocked.

"Ever since we defeated Allura, I've seen how stronger my friends have become," Sunset started to explain. "Izzy, Hitch, Zipp, Pipp, Misty... Specially Sunny and her Alicorn power! What do they need me for anymore? Maybe Equestria will be safer both without Twilight and without me around..."

"Hey, look at me..." Discord called out, and Sunset did looked at him. "Sunny and you defeated Opaline without Twilight's guidance. Before getting her message through the Unity Crystals, you managed to teach these ponies about friendship and what it stands for. All of that without Twilight being around."

Then, he snapped his fingers and made a small blue sphere float in the air, while it replied some of the adventures Sunset had with her new friends.

"You learned everything you know about friendship from her, but these ponies have learned everything they know about friendship from you!" Discord pointed out with a smile. "Perhaps you miss Twilight, and you feel like you still need her... But Sunset, you already have done so much without her. You and your friends are strong enough to protect Equestria from any upcoming menace. And trust me when I tell you that, if something greater is to come for you, it'll come. Just give it time. Until then, these ponies need you to stay with them."

Sunset looked surprised at Discord. She heard before that, when he wanted, Discord could be a strong pillar of help, and the fact that he told her all of this proves that point.

So, Sunset smiled at the draconequus. "Wow... Look at you, Discord! Never thought you'll had that wise side!" She chuckled, wiping a few tears left.

"I might love to cause chaos..." Discord admitted with a smirk, before quickly teleporting at Sunset's other side. "But even a former trickster like me knows when to get serious!" He added, as he booped Sunset's nose.

Sunset chuckled again and let out a happy sigh. "You know what? I think you're right. Twilight might be hiding on that necklace for some reason that I still don't understand... But I know for sure that Sunny, the guys and I are enough to keep Equestria on track from any villain that might show up!"

"Now that's the spirit!" Discord cheered, as he multiplied across the Crystal Room and all the Discords but the main one clapped and cheered at Sunset, who rolled her eyes playfully at his attitude. "Besides, with a former Lord of Chaos, cool Cutie Mark magic, and a skilled Alicorn in battle like you protecting Equestria and these Crystals, what's the worse that can happen?"

Universe 110514

Tirek was feeling conflicted, and he had no idea on what the heck was going on.

Just a few weeks ago, he was defeated by Twilight Sparkle and her friends, whom used a strange and powerful magic that came out of nowhere to defeat him and restore the magic to everypony in Equestria.

Now, out of nowhere, a strange red portal opened in Tartarus, and from it came out a pony figure, an Alicorn to be precise... One that he has never seen before, nor heard about. She was a purple mare with dark blue eyes and glittery blue eyeshadow. Her mane was white with light streaks of cyan, and it was parted into two side sections with thin braids wrapped around her ears. She also got dark bracelets around her legs, with her right foreleg's bracelet having a small red crystal over it.

"What the hell..." Tirek muttered confused. "Now who are you supposed to be?"

"Lord Tirek!" The mare spoke with a grin. "I spent years reading stories about you, but never I would though that our first meeting will be... On such weird circumstances... My name is Opaline Arcana. Pretty sure you never heard about me..."

"Opaline?" Tirek said with a snort. "Of course I have no idea on who you are! And neither do I care about it! I have enough trouble with four Alicorns out there, I don't need trouble with a fifth one! Now get lost!" He stated, as he turned around on his cage, crossed his arms and gave his back to Opaline.

However, everything the Alicorn did was let out a mocking laugh, one that confused Tirek, although it also annoyed him.

"What's so funny?" Tirek dared to ask.

After a while, Opaline stopped laughing, but she couldn't stop grinning at the centaur. "Oh, don't mind me. I just find hilarious that you even consider I'm sided up with Celestia," She explained, as she started to walk around Tirek's cage.

That made Tirek's eyes widen, and as Opaline walked around him, he frowned, while approaching to the cell bars anytime she moved around.

"What do you mean with that? Are you an Alicorn that's not on Celestia's team?" Tirek asked out of curiosity.

"Precisely!" Opaline replied with a smirk. "In fact, in a few years from now, I'll be the very reason why Equestria splits up and destroys all the hard work Twilight and her friends are making to keep peace, harmony, and bleh!" She said with a frown, also pulling her tongue out at the last thing.

"What? You're telling me that you are going to destroy Twilight's efforts? Just like that?" Tirek asked with a raised eyebrow, clearly not trusting Opaline's word.

"Oh, please!" Opaline rolled her eyes. "It took a lot of work, actually. I had to study all my moves carefully for years. It only took Celestia and Luna abdicating the throne to Twilight to split Equestria apart. But thousands of years later, a new group of idiots have thrown my plans through the window..."

"Why are you telling me all of this?" Tirek asked confused. "And if you really are going to split Equestria in the future, then what the hell are you doing here?!"

"Oh, yeah. That." Opaline beamed, before launching a blast of fire magic to Tirek's cage, startling the centaur.

However, even if Tirek covered his face with his hands, he felt confused when he didn't felt anything wrong with him. So, he opened his eyes, which widened when he saw that he was fine.

Not only that, he was free as well.

Tirek noticed that his cage was burned down, and he looked over at Opaline confused. "You... you free'd me?"

Opaline scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Of course I did! And I have a really good reason for it!" She stated, now grinning again. Then, she approached Tirek. "Have you ever heard about... The multiverse?"

"The multi what now?" Tirek asked confused, as he looked around to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"I come from a different reality. One where I already did everything I told you a few seconds ago..." Opaline started to explain. "One that used to look exactly like this universe, many moons ago."

"A different un–– Ma'am, I think you should really see a doctor, because you are bluffing right now!" Tirek said with a frown.

"I imagined you were going to say that..." Opaline said, before grinning and light her horn up.

However, her horn turned red, as well as the crystal on her bracelet, and that startled Tirek, because he stepped back from her.

Then, Opaline shoot to the ground and opened a red portal below them, one that she then lifted up with her magic, something that made Tirek cover his face with his arms.

Universe 010921

Soon enough, Tirek opened his eyes again, and he gasped.

Above Opaline and him, there was the red portal the former created, but then it closed. However, what got Tirek surprised was their environment: This was Canterlot City, but it's current state was atrocious!

The buildings were all damaged and closed with wooden tables. The castle was ruined, and it was pretty noticeable that the towers have fallen down a long time ago. The place was empty, it felt like entering a ghost town.

"In the name of Tartarus, what even happened here?!" Tirek asked.

"I happened!" Opaline replied, while she looked around the town with a frown. "As I fought Twilight Sparkle for the control over really powerful artifacts full of magic, everypony abandoned this place. What you see is everything that's left not only from Canterlot, but also from the Equestria we once knew."

Tirek couldn't believe what he was hearing and seeing. This is Equestria's future? For everything Twilight Sparkle is doing to simply be forgotten? For all the efforts of Celestia, Luna and even Cadance to be wort nothing?

This was atrocious, this was horrible... This was perfect.

"Is this really the future that awaits my... How do you call it? Universe?" Tirek asked, as he looked over at Opaline with a sinister grin.

"Indeed!" Opaline replied with a similar grin. "In fact, this universe in particular not only has already gone through what I told you, but I also have lost in here..." She added, as she looked over at her hoof polish. "That means that there's no ruler in this universe."

She felt satisfied when she said this, because Tirek was looking at her with wide eyes after she said that last thing.

"No ruler..." Tirek muttered, before grinning sinisterly again and rub his hands mischievously. "Ohoho! Now I start to like where this is going!"

"You're welcome!" Opaline said. "Now, before you ask why I decided to free you and bring you here: There's an entire multiverse of infinite possibilities out there. I have lost in this universe in particular, but that doesn't mean you will. After all, the ponies in this world aren't even aware that you exist!"

"So you brought me to a world free of villains so I can caught those ponies off guard?" Tirek asked with a sinister grin.

"Exactly!" Opaline said with a wide grin. "Now you start to get it! And to show you that I'm not messing with you..." She added, as she lightened her horn and willingly gave some magic to Tirek, who grew a few inches taller, his horns became bigger, and his muscles formed a bit as well. "There you go! Charged up and ready to start the hunt!"

Tirek looked over at his new physicality and smirked sinisterly again, appreciating his new muscles and even cracking his neck and fingers a bit, just to make sure his strength was back as well.

"I gotta admit, Opaline... You truly are a force of evil!" Tirek told the Alicorn with a smirk.

"Oh, please! You're gonna make me blush!" Opaline said sarcastically with a chuckle. "Jokes aside, I'm glad you see the vision of my humble doing. After all, there's not better tactic for conquering than the surprise factor!"

"And I agree on that!" Tirek replied. "Out of curiosity, though... What are you gonna do now?"

"Well, as I said before, there's an entire multiverse of infinite possibilities out there. My goal is to bring every universe a villain so they can conquer and rule it over!" Opaline replied with a grin. "Enjoy your new home!" She finished, as she opened another red portal and traversed it, then it closed behind her.

"Oh, I definitely will!" Tirek replied, as he turned around and made a massive jump from where he was.

Once he was high enough, he saw in the distance something that made his already big grin grow: A city in the mountains, at the other side of Equestria and big enough for many ponies to live there.

Tirek sniffed in that direction and exhaled in glee. "Yes... Magic!" He declared with sinister joy, also licking his lips.

Opaline went back to the realm where she had access to every universe.

She sighed in relief that she got out of that universe, and then smirked confidently. "Good. That should keep this 'Secret Society' away from me for a while. Now that I have enough universes disrupted by villains from different universes, I think it's time I start to steal some magic for myself. Also, I have a Paradox Prism to restore!"

After this, she boosted towards a random universe, not knowing that she's being watched by someone...

"This cannot be good..." Chip muttered with concern, as he drove his ship towards the universe Opaline just entered.

Universe 010921

It was a bright and sunny day in Equestria, specially in Maretime Bay.

At the Crystal Brighthouse, the Mane 7 were relaxing and having a picnic near the Brighthouse. Zipp was flying around, Pipp was taking selfies on her phone, Izzy was showing Misty on how to use her magic and also enjoying some snacks together, and Hitch was reading a book to Sparky and the critters around him.

At the top of the Brighthouse, in the Crystal Room, Sunset was enjoying the view with a smile, soon giving a sigh.

"What a beautiful day in Equestria. The sun is shining, having a great picnic, no problems, no issues, and no Opaline or Allura to ruin this day..." Sunset said as she smiled, one that faded away when she had a thought.

"It sure is!" Sunny called, out as she came next to Sunset with a smile. "It's not been that long since we stopped Opaline, but things have been great lately!"

"Yeah..." Sunset said, but she seemed to think about something with a down expression.

Sunny saw this and turned to her. "Hey, Sunset. You okay? What's on your mind?"

"Huh?" Sunset exclaimed, before realizing why Sunny is asking. "Oh, nothing, Sunny. Just having a thought in my head."

"Like what?" Sunny asked again.

"Well, it's just... I feel like I'm not needed around here anymore, and that you guys don’t need me, either..." Sunset replied with sadness.

Sunny felt surprised by that. "What?! What are you talking about? Why would you think that?!"

"During our time together, I saw how you ponies grew strong together and how close you all are. And during our battle with Opaline, you have become the strongest out of all of us, Sunny!" Sunset explained with concern. "Lately, I've been feeling like I'm not needed anymore and should return to the human world..."

"What?!" Sunny asked in shock. "Of course we need you, Sunset! You were there for us when some of us had doubts, you helped to bring back magic, you been teaching us the ways of magic and how the Equestria was during Twilight's reign, and you even helped others seen reason when some ponies make mistakes! Like with Posey!"

"I know that..." Sunset admitted, still looking down. "But sometimes, it feels like I'm just there to watch what's happening while everything's fixed by you and the others. And, to be honest, I'm not sure if I should return to the human world, or if I want to..."

"And why is that?" Sunny asked confused.

"Sunny, when I first returned to Equestria, I discovered that everything changed!" Sunset pointed out. "I realized that time moves quicker here in Equestria than it does in the Human World. When I came here, I found out my home has changed, and all my friends were gone. So what do you think would happen if I return to the human world?"

Sunny's eyes widened, since she realized what Sunset was talking about. "You think that if you return to the human world, time will move a little quicker in Equestria if you are there. And, if you return here, you will find out that a lot of time has passed again and... We might not be around..."

"Correct..." Sunset nodded. "I... I-I don’t know how that's possible, but what happened when I first returned will happen again. A-And I don't wanna outlive my friends anymore, Sunny. I-I don't know if I need to be in Equestria or not so I could go b-back into the human world, a-and if I do, all the friends I made here will be gone again. Y-You included!" She exclaimed, as she began to tear up, while Sunny listened with concern. "I-I don't wanna lose you or the others... You ponies are more than just friends to me, you are family! A-And I see you as my sister, Sunny. I don't wanna leave, if it means…" She trailed off as she began to sob a bit, while tears started forming in her eyes.

Sunny looked at Sunset with sympathy and walked up to her, before wrapping her hooves around Sunset in a comforting hug, while Sunset returned it and cried on Sunny's shoulder.

"It's okay, Sunset. I'm here with you..." Sunny said calmly. "I don't want you to go through that pain again, either. I was alone too when my dad passed away. Even if Hitch was my friend, other ponies didn't saw things like me until we brought back the magic..." She explained, as she looked at Sunset in the eyes with a small smile. "When Izzy and you showed up, I didn't just meet a Guardian of Harmony, but I won a sister figure who's always there for me. I would be sad if you left, Sunset, because we have been like family for a very long time. And... I would be sad too if any of you go. But I know that no matter what happens, we will always be there for each other. And we will never forget. The choice is yours, and like you said, the Human world time is slower there than in Equestria, meaning that the friends that you made there will still be around even after centuries in Equestria, so you don't have to worry about out-living them. Besides, Equestria is your home! And you would do anything to protect it and be close to the ones you care for!"

Sunset still had tears in her eyes, but soon, a smile started to form as she sobbed a bit. "Thank you, Sunny..." She said, while the two ponies hugged again and stay like that for a moment.

"We were always meant to find each other, huh, sister?" Sunny said with a smirk.

Sunset chuckled slightly, as they broke apart and she wiped her tears. "I guess that's what you call fate!" She said, while the two ponies gave a small laugh together.

But then, the ground started to shake as a rumbling sound could be heard.

"W-Whoa? What's going on?" Sunset asked in shock, as she and Sunny tried to keep their balance.

"I'm not sure!" Sunny answered, as she held onto the railing.

On the ground, where the rest of the Mane 7 were having a picnic, the ponies felt the shake as well, while Zipp heard the sound from the air.

"Whoa! What is happening?!" Pipp cried out, as she tried to angle her phone for her live stream, but couldn't get her balance.

"Earthquake!" Izzy called out, while having a pie flew out of her hand and landed on Hitch's head, which made him groan a bit.

"In Maretime Bay?" Zipp questioned confused.

"Is it possible?" Misty asked Hitch curiously, who was wiping his face from the pie contents.

"Could be, but not likely. We never had earthquakes here before..." Hitch explained, while looking around with concern.

Soon enough, the ponies outside the Brighthouse entered the building again, while Sunny and Sunset followed along.

They all reunited in the living room, and pretty much the other five ponies immediately went to Sunny and Sunset to bomb with questions at them.

"What's going on?!" Izzy asked first with panic.

"Did you girls felt that too?!" Misty asked as well.

"We're not in danger, right?!" Hitch asked nervously.

"Okay, everypony, calm down!" Sunset requested, and the other five ponies did so.

"We definitely felt that, too... But we don't know what's going on!" Sunny confessed.

"And whatever it is, it cannot be good!" Sunset stated with a concerned frown.

Pipp's first instinct was to check her phone and see if any social media had any idea on what happened. Of course, Sunset and Zipp deadpanned at the young pegasus for her action, but before they could scold her and complain about what she was doing, Pipp gasped loudly, which made everypony else gasp.

"Sunny, turn the TV on!" Pipp told her desperately.

"What?" Sunny said confused. "Why should I––"

"Just do it!" Pipp said, as she grabbed Sunny's face and placed her nose on hers.

Sunny still felt confused, but she decided to obey and turn the TV on in the living room.

Let's just say she's not gonna like the surprise.

Once the TV was on, the image of Sky and Dazzle hiding behind a trash container was shown, which already confused the Mane 7.

"This just in!" Sky spoke first with a panicked tone. "Zephyr Heights is being attacked!"

"The what now?!" both Zipp and Pipp exclaimed with panicked tones and wide eyes.

"On what seemed to be another peaceful evening, our city has been compromised by a strange and giant creature––" Dazzle tried to add, but she got cut off for a moment by a roar in the background, while both Sky and her covered their ears. "T-They have really big horns, and they seem to be stealing everypony's magic in the city!"

"A big creature with horns that steals magic?" Misty questioned. "That sounds weird..."

"Wait... I have heard about that before..." Sunset said with concern.

"Yeah, me too... My dad wrote down about a creature with such a description!" Sunny said with wide eyes. "Ugh, what was their name!?"

"If you're watching this from your home, stay there! Is dangerous to get out and––" Sky tried to add.

However, he got interrupted when the trash container was lifted and thrown away, just to give sight to a horrible monster: They were a creature with red skin, white hair, dark fur, black horns, and cloven hooves. Their head had bull-like facial features with a goat-like beard.

The creature lightened their horns up and lifted Sky and Dazzle in the air, before creating a yellow sphere with their horns and absorb the pegasi magic out of the two reporters, before letting go of them and leave them in the ground.

Soon enough, the creature jumped towards the camera, and the pony holding it screamed in fear, while the monster grabbed the camera and lifted it high enough, looking at it with a frown and a sadistic smile.

"To everypony watching this: Run as much as you want! Lord Tirek's coming for your magic!" The creature, a.k.a. Tirek, said with glee, followed by a maniac laugh.

After that, he raised an arm and punched the camera, immediately cutting off the signal.

The Mane 7 watched the TV in shock at what just happened.

"Did he just say... Lord Tirek?" Sunny asked in shock.

"I-I think he did..." Hitch said nervously.

"No..." Sunset muttered with a pale expression, as she stepped a bit back "No no no no no no! Not him! Any creature but him!" She said frantically and started to breath heavily.

"Sunset..." Sunny muttered with panic. "Please tell me he's not who I think he is..."

"...He is, Sunny. He's... He's back..." Sunset replied, nervously as well.

"Can somepony please tell us what's going on!?" Zipp called out in panic.

"Yeah! Zephyr Heights is being attacked by this Lord Tirek guy! We have to go over there and stop him!" Pipp called out as she and her sister were about to fly up, but then Sunset flew in front of them.

"Whoa, girls! We can't just go and confront him just like that!" Sunset called out.

"Why not!?" The Royal Sisters said with anger.

"Because that's Lord Tirek! A Centaur who sucks the magic out of any creature in Equestria!" Sunset revealed, which made the other ponies but Sunny look at her in shock. "Tirek's one of Equestria's worst ancient enemies! He nearly took all the magic from Equestria to become young, big and strong to rule, and if it weren't for Twilight and her friends, he would've succeeded!"

This shocked everypony else, but Sunny. "So, this Tirek guy is one of Twilight's old enemies?!" Hitch asked nervously.

"Indeed!" Sunset replied with concern. "And if everything she told me is true, this is one creature you don't wanna be friends with..."

"I remember now. He was part of the Legion of Doom! The one that nearly took over Equestria during the final battle with Twilight and the Guardians of Harmony!" Sunny said with wide eyes.

"I think I remember that from Opaline's stories..." Misty said with a rub of her chin. "But she said that he was trapped in stone with Cozy Glow and Chrysalis!"

"Then how is he free and still around?!" Pipp questioned loudly, since Zipp and her were worried because their hometown is being attacked.

"I don't know, but we can't just let him run rampant across town and steal ponies' magic! We gotta stop him!" Zipp called out determinedly.

"But we can't just charge at Tirek!" Sunny pointed out. "If he saw us coming, he would steal our magic fast enough before we could hit him! We need a plan before face him!"

"Sunny's right. Twilight tried that before. When she had the power of three alicorns, even with that much power, she could only hold Tirek to a standstill, until the power from the Tree of Harmony gave her and the girls a boost to stop him!" Sunset recalled.

"But we don't have the Tree of Harmony to help us!" Izzy pointed out in concern.

"That's why we need a plan before we can do anything to stop him," Sunny stated as she looked around. "But how can we stop him if he tries to steal our magic the second he sees us?"

"And up to this point, Tirek is possibly strong enough to hold us down with little to no struggle," Sunset added. "We need something to keep him from sucking our magic out without him trying."

"Maybe I could help!" A familiar voice called out, and the Mane 7 turned to see Discord, who appeared from a portal with a serious look.

"Discord!" The Mane 7 cheered in joy at seeing the Lord of Chaos.

"Once I heard from the news that Tirek is back, I figured you ponies were planning on stopping him," Discord said seriously.

"You have no idea!" Zipp confirmed, while Pipp at her side nodded.

"He's attacking Zephyr Heights and stealing ponies magic!" Pipp added in concern.

"And that's why I'm here. Besides, I've been looking to get some payback on him for centuries!" Discord said with a serious tone, which made the others concerned.

"What do you mean?" Sunset asked slowly.

"That son of his centaur mother made me think he was my friend, right before stealing my magic!" Discord roared in anger, while his eyes showed flames for a second. "I also need to amend my mistake of bringing him, Cozy and Chrysalis together, which nearly destroyed me and Equestria! Now it's payback time!"

"But how can we stand up against him if he will suck our magic out of us?" Sunny asked concerned.

"That, I can help!" Discord stated, as he snapped his fingers, which made him and the Mane 7 glow a bit, before the effect fade away. "There. I temporarily shielded us from magic draining. It should protect us from Tirek's magic-suck abilities for a while so we can stand against him!"

The Mane 7 were surprised by this as they looked at Discord. "Discord, you are amazing!" Izzy cheered in joy.

"I know. I know," Discord said. "I had my experience with my magic being sucked out, and so were other ponies, including Twilight herself… I figured that, if he ever came back, a way to repel the draining effect was required. The spell I just used might not be much, but it should last long enough to deal with Tirek."

"Well, it's better than nothing!" Sunset said, then she turned to the others with a determined look. "Okay, guys. I know Tirek might be out of your league, but if we don’t stop him, he will become more powerful with all the Equestrian magic. If you want to back down, this is the time to do so!"

"Like we would sit by and watch our home get threatened!" Zipp commented playfully.

"Nopony messes with Zephyr Heights!" Pipp called out.

"And if some creature is stealing ponies' sparkles, they are crossing the line!" Izzy called out angrily, since she rarely shows anger.

"Nopony messes with the law on my watch!" Hitch called out with a serious expression.

"I don't want anypony messing with Equestria. I'm in, and I'll help as much as I can!" Misty said with a slight determined and nervous expression.

"You know we got your back, Sunset. As Alicorns, it's our duty to protect Equestria from incoming threats!" Sunny said with a determined smile, as she summoned her Alicorn form and spread her wings. "We are with you!"

Sunset smiled at them, before looking at Discord, who smiled back and nodded, so she turned to the rest.

"Then let's go stop Tirek from sucking the magic out of the ponies!" Sunset called out.

After that, they all left the Brighthouse and got into the Marestream, as they flew off to Zephyr Heights to stop a magic sucking Centaur from stealing magic and causing chaos.

???

A camera was recording everything that was happening in Zephyr Heights from Universe 010921.

Soon enough, however, a digital anthropomorphic beige lynx appeared and stared at the cameras with concern, as she turned to see someone. "Chief? We got another disruption."

Two unknown figures, one anthropomorphic and one equine, approached to the lynx and looked at the camera images with frowns.

"She's moving villains from all ages and worlds to different ones..." A male voice, coming from the anthropomorphic creature, spoke with anger.

"I told you we shouldn't had ignore this!" A female voice, coming from from the equine figure, spoke with anger as well.

"What did you expect? He's as stubborn as a mule," The digital lynx said with a bored expression.

"Now's not the time, Nicole," The male voice spoke with annoyance.

"Well, then tell me who are we sending!" The lynx, a.k.a. Nicole, said with anger.

"No one," The male voice replied. "I'll take charge of this myself."

After that, he turned to another direction and looked over a strange watch he had on his left wrist.

Then, he started to type several commands on said watch, finishing by writing '010921' in the watch, as it soon enough opened a heptagon-shaped portal, which the mysterious male figure traversed.

Universe 010921

Tirek was causing chaos all across Zephyr Heights.

The centaur was grabbing ponies all across the pegasi city with his mysterious magic and absorbing theirs, removing their Cutie Marks in the process and even leaving the ponies in a weakened state.

What filled Tirek with glee was the fact that none of them were trying to even fight him back, not even the pegasi that were in some kind of 'Royal Guard' costumes. They all tried to ran away or hide from him, but he always managed to spot them and use his magic to absorb theirs.

He even decided to play with them just for the fun of it. For example: He spotted from the corner of his eye an Earth Pony mare and a unicorn stallion hiding from him behind a bush.

At first, he smirked sinisterly and kept walking away, which made the couple hid behind the bush again and sigh in relief... A relief that didn't lasted long, because the bush was ripped apart, and Tirek appeared to steal their magic with a maniac laugh, which he did so.

In another occasion, he saw a group of colts shaking and crying when they saw him. At first, he thought on letting them go, but once one of the colts tried to run away, he used his magic to levitate all of them and suck their magic as well.

Finally, Tirek could smell a powerful source of magic coming from a big building from afar, which clearly was a castle. So, he decided to use the contained magic to make himself bigger and climb above Zephyr Heights to reach the Castle. Once he did so, he literally smashed down the Throne Room and entered, containing his magic again and becoming smaller.

He walked around the Throne Room, and the few Pegasi Guards that charged against him with some spears lost their magic immediately, because Tirek kept his horns lightened up and his mouth open, so anypony that approached him lost their magic, Zoom and Thunder included.

"Pitiful..." Tirek muttered with a smirk.

He walked some more across the Throne Room, until his left ear twitched a bit. So, he turned to see one of the columns in the Throne Room and grinned, before charging a blast with his horns and launch it against said column.

At the other side, Queen Haven and Alphabittle were supposedly hiding from the monster, who smirked after he saw the couple of ponies hugging and protecting each other. Of course, the smell of magic he got was actually the smell of love, which despite being gross, was still a kind of magic, one he has absorbed before like any other.

"How lovely!" Tirek snorted sarcastically, before using his magic to absorb both the magic love they were producing, and their regular magic as well.

Of course, neither Haven nor Alphabittle could fight the effect back, and so, they both fell to the ground after Tirek absorbed their magic, feeling weak and with no Cutie Marks left.

"Pfft. This was easier than I thought. Which isn't something I really complain about, but I still feel like it could had been harder!" Tirek said with a smirk.

Soon enough, however, the doors of the throne room bursted open, and so, the Mane 7 and Discord entered the place, with Discord and Sunset leading everypony else.

Yet, Tirek did not turned around, but he did smirked sinisterly and looked over his shoulder, noticing the aged draconequus, the Alicorn with etherial wings and horn, and the regular Alicorn, whom all frowned in anger at him.

"Lord Tirek!" Sunset called out with anger and a frown.

Tirek's eyes widened a bit at first in panic, but he slowly frowned again, while his yellow eyes glow in glee for a second. "Ah! I see my name has survived the pass of time!" The centaur mocked up, as he finally turned to face the group.

Two Unicorns, two Pegasi, an Earth Pony, Discord and two Alicorns. A weird mix, sure, but it felt kind of familiar. Considering Sunny's wings and horn were etherial, Tirek could clearly see she was just and Earth Pony, which made the familiarity with the Mane 6 from thousands of moons ago even bigger.

Tirek snorted at this, and he decided to see Discord face to face first. "Ah, Discord. It's been a while... For you, at least. I see the years haven't been nice with you..." He mocked up, noticing that Discord had longer hair, longer claws, and even missed a finger.

"And you look just as ugly as centuries ago!" Discord roared, while his eyes turned into fire flames.

"You could work on your insults better," Tirek mocked again. "And what are these ponies with you supposed to be? The Power Ponies from the Chinese store?"

"No. We're the ponies who have come to wipe the crap out of you, partner!" Sunset stated with a frown, also spreading her wings open.

"The last group of fools who tried to do that lost to me. If it wasn't because a power-up that came from a magic chest, none of them would had stand a chance!" Tirek declared, as he made his horns glow and smirked sinisterly at the group. "What makes you think you're different, little pony?"

"Name's Sunset Shimmer, pal. And I know we can defeat you because we have a slight advantage over you!" Sunset declared with a confident smirk.

However, Tirek just laughed at her. "We'll see about that!" He said, before trying to absorb the magic from the 7 ponies and Discord.

But much to his surprise, he didn't absorbed their magic. He didn't even levitated them off the ground, which confused the centaur a lot.

"What the..." Tirek muttered confused.

"I think more than a hundred centuries in stone has make you deaf, Tirek," Discord mocked up with a smirk. "In case you didn't heard Sunset, we have advantage over you: Immunity to your power!"

That surprised Tirek, but it didn't stopped him from smirking at the group. "Is that so? Oh well. Kinda glad you show some resistance, anyways. It makes your defeat sweater for me!" The centaur declared, as he then charged a powerful blast with his horns and then shoot it at the group.

This made the Mane 7 and Discord split up, with Discord, Zipp, Pipp and Izzy covering the left, while Sunny, Sunset, Hitch and Misty jumped to the right.

"Okay... That was unexpected and really scary..." Hitch said with an anxious look.

"Um, am I still on time to return to the Brighthouse?" Misty asked nervously.

However, none of them could answer anything, because Tirek jumped from his place and prepared to smash down the group that went to the right, so they all had to split up again.

Tirek laughed at this and started to charge another attack. "Run, run, little ponies!" He declared, before launching a powerful blast towards Hitch and Misty.

At this, Misty's first instinct was to step in front of the Earth Pony, cover her face and light her horn up to create a small shield around herself and the Sheriff... Which worked, because the attack was doing nothing to them, but Misty was struggling to keep the shield up, since she still lacked experience with magic.

Soon enough, though, Tirek got a blast on his face, one that Sunset launched at him with a frown. "Stay away from my friends, Tirek!" She stated with anger, as she launched another blast to the centaur.

Tirek shook his face and glared daggers at Sunset, before preparing a blast for her, but before he could even launch it, he got hit in the face by something passing by at flight.

The centaur shook his head again and frowned at Zipp, since she was the one that hit his face. "Hah! Take that, you monster!" She mocked up with a smirk.

Tirek growled, but then he got kick on his face again and on his on his left rib, this time around by Pipp. "Nobody messes with Zephyr Heights and gets away with it!" She declared with a frown.

However, this just made the centaur furious, so he growled and immediately charged another blast from his horns towards the sisters, even roaring in anger. Of course, the sisters started to fly around the room, to dodge the attacks, while Tirek destroyed the ceiling of the Throne Room with his power.

Anytime Tirek was finally going to hit one of the sisters, they either were tricking him and actually flew to another direction, or were saved by the other sister. In any case, Tirek was getting more and more furious.

However, things were not going to get better with him, because his face was suddenly covered in glitter, which also got into his eyes, which made the centaur groan. "What the heck?!" Tirek exclaimed furiously, as he tried to desperately remove the glitter from his eyes.

When he did so, he got hit with glitter again on his chest, but he growled furious again, because he saw that both Izzy and Misty were charging cannons with glitter and shooting at him.

"Oh, you little pieces of s––" Tirek tried to say, just to be cut off when Izzy shot the cannon again and managed to get some glitter inside of Tirek's mouth.

Of course, the centaur gagged and grabbed his neck in pain, before coughing the glitter out from his system and then sigh relieved, just to look at the Unicorn mares in anger and prepare to shot a blast towards them, something that made Izzy step in front and protect Misty, while Misty herself hugged Izzy and hid behind her.

However, Tirek couldn't even launch the attack, because ge got launched to a wall by a cannon ball.

The centaur got stuck in the wall and groaned in pain, then he slowly opened his eyes and saw that Discord had brought a battle tank and shoot at him.

"Payback time!" Discord declared, before snapping his fingers to create more cannon tanks, getting inside of his own and prepare to charge against Tirek.

Of course, the monster tried to move away, but his whole body got tied up in the wall with green vines.

This confused Tirek, but as he looked around for an exit, he noticed that Hitch had his hoof stomped in the ground and glowing green, while he smirked mockingly at Tirek. "Sorry, pal! But you're not going anywhere!"

Of course, Tirek roared for what felt like the millionth time that day, but then, he got shot with several cannon balls coming from Discord and his tanks, which eventually broke the wall and made the centaur fell backwards towards the ground, since that in specific lead to Zephyr Heights.

"Wow! Well, that's one way to defeat a bad guy!" Zipp said with a smirk.

"We did it!" Pipp cheered, as she side-hugged her sister.

However, Sunset landed in the ground and looked at the hole in the wall with a frown. "I don't think this is over, guys..."

"Aw, come on, Sunset!" Hitch said with a little eye roll. "Discord literally sent him through a wall! There's no way he's coming back after th––"

Yet, he got cut off when Tirek did came back by jumping through the hole and grabbing Hitch with one hand before throwing the Sheriff away towards a column in the throne room, which fortunately didn't killed him, but it did knocked him out.

"HITCH!!!" Sunny cried out with panic and wide eyes.

Soon enough, Tirek used some of the magic he had contained and became himself bigger, since he got tired of playing games around these ponies.

After that, he just had to swing his hand to hit both Zipp and Pipp, who crashed against a wall and fell unconscious to the ground as well. Next, he launched a blast against Izzy and Misty, which made both unicorns use their magic to protect each other. And yet, the blast from Tirek still sent both of them backwards, as they rolled through the ground and finally stopped near Zipp and Pipp, but even if they didn't fell unconscious, they still felt too weak to get up because of the blast.

Seeing that Tirek was going too far, Discord got out from his tank and was ready to snap his fingers so he could make himself bigger, something that didn't happened because Tirek grabbed Discord with one hand and then smashed him to the ground. Then, when he removed the hand, he used to other one to punch the draconequus in the head, knocking him out in the process.

"That's 6 down. Just 2 to go!" Tirek declared with a frown and a sinister grin, as he stared at Sunset and Sunny, whom both were flying in the air.

"Okay. That's it!" Sunny said with anger. "Let's get him, Sunset!" She declared, as she flew towards the centaur.

"Right behind you, sister!" Sunset said with a grin, following Sunny along.

With this, both Alicorns started to fight against Lord Tirek. Since Sunny still needed to improve on her attacking skills, she was going more for the defensive position by creating golden shields with her magic, leaving all the offensive moves to Sunset, who made sure to launch a variety of spells against Tirek.

Normal blasts, divided ones, transform any rubble that Tirek would launch at them into something else that she could launch back at the centaur, and even multiplying herself several times to caught Tirek off-guard. Anything that Sunset did was to make sure that Tirek would get tired eventually, but so far, the centaur was still fighting back.

"So, out of curiosity!" Sunny spoke suddenly, as she protected herself from a blast that Tirek launched at her. "How's that you got free from your stone state?!"

"Sunny, are you serious right now?!" Sunset asked on disbelief.

"What?!" Sunny asked, before flying over another blast that Tirek aimed at her. "I'm just curious!"

"Stone state?" Tirek asked, as he aimed to hit Sunset now, while the Alicorn teleported away. "You might be confusing me with the Tirek from this pitiful world, because I got sent to tartarus four weeks ago until a neat Alicorn gal free'd me from my prison!" He explained, as he launched another blast against Sunset.

"Wait... 'Tirek from this world'?" Sunset said confused, then she frowned at the centaur. "What do you mean by that?!"

"There's a whole multiverse of endless possibilities out there!" Tirek replied with a grin and his arms extended. "I am just one of many Tireks. And now, this universe in particular will kneel... TO ME!" He declared, launching a constant blast that he aimed at Sunset.

The Alicorn flew across the room, while the laser followed her all the time, not ending anytime soon.

Seeing this, Sunny charged against Tirek and hit him in the face with her forelegs, which did startled the centaur at first, but he groaned and charged other blast against her this time.

"The multiverse?!" Sunny asked confused. "Didn't that weird blue porcupine that popped out of nowhere one time said something similar?!"

"Yeah, but he ran away and didn't explained himself!" Sunset pointed out. "Care to make an exception, Tirek?!" She requested, as she multiplied herself, and all the Sunsets charged divided blasts towards Tirek.

Tirek used the bracelets on his wrists to protect himself, before launching all the attacks back to the Sunsets, hitting all the fake ones in the process, while the real one teleported away.

"What is there to understand?!" Tirek asked. "I'm from a different universe than this one! I'm not the same Tirek that was defeated centuries ago in this world. And seeing that those idiots you call friends are too weak to fight me, I'm gonna enjoy your defeat even more, AND THEN THIS EQUESTRIA WILL BE MINE!" He declared, shooting a blast to both Sunset and Sunny.

Since both Alicorns were together, they both used their magic to create a shield that would protect them, but they didn't knew that Tirek wanted them to do so.

So, once he stopped launching the blast and both Alicorns let go of their shield, Tirek grabbed both of them with his left hand and smashed both of them against a wall, keeping them in there.

Soon, the rest of the Mane 7 started to stand up in weakened states, but they could barely stay up because of the pain. And yet, that didn't stopped all of them to feel terrified at the sight of Tirek holding Sunny and Sunset, something that made Hitch panic essentially, since Tirek was holding his marefriend... And Sunset as well.

Both Sunny and Sunset struggled to get free from Tirek's grip, and Sunset even tried to use her horn, but Tirek tapped it with the thumb of the same hand he was holding her with. Worse of all, Sunny's Alicorn form disappeared as well.

"You two are quite the fighters, I'll give you that..." Tirek declared with a smirk. "But you have drawn the line here! Make your prayers to whoever is your ruler now, because this. Is. YOUR END!"

"Oh no/Oh boy..." Sunny and Sunset said with concern.

After that, Tirek raised his right fist and prepared to smash down Sunny and Sunset, but the blow never came for the mares, because a golden lasso got around Tirek's right fist and hold it away from the two Alicorns.

"What the hell?" Tirek said confused, while both Sunny and Sunset stared confused at the portal from afar, since that's where the lasso around Tirek's fist came from.

The rest of the Mane 7 managed to gather together to stay close and protect each other, but they also stared confused at the portal. "What is that?" Izzy asked confused.

However, her answer came when the portal grew bigger and got a heptagon shape. Then, from the portal, a male anthropomorphic creature came out and launched against Tirek, hitting him straight in the face with his right fist.

For a split of second, time went slower, and Sunset's eyes widened in shock, while the right eye of the male creature frowned in rage against Tirek, who he managed to put down in the floor after aiming that punch.

This helped both Sunset and Sunny to get out of their situation, as they both landed in the floor and looked with disbelief in the same direction the creature came from. However, they couldn't head there, because they were dragged to a group hug by the rest of the Mane 7, who were glad to see their friends save and sound.

"Are you girls okay?!" Hitch asked first in panic, specially making sure that Sunny's fine.

"Uh... Yeah, um... We are..." Sunset replied, but she couldn't stop staring at the direction where Tirek and that guy went to.

Soon enough, however, they all heard steps coming to their direction, and Sunset stood in front while lightening her horn, ready to fight if necessary.

But what arrived wasn't Tirek... it was the guy that came out of the heptagon portal, as he looked over at the Mane 7 with a frown.

This was a blue anthropomorphic hedgehog with very messed quills, golden bands adjusting his gloves, white boots with golden stripes, a scar over his left eye, an eyepatch covering said eye, a trench coat, and a silver watch with three round screens, the one on top being bigger than the other two.

Sunset stoped lightening her horn, but just like her friends were doing right now, they all stared confused at this new guy, despite him looking very familiar at the same time.

"I'm sorry, who exactly are you supposed to be?" Sunset asked confused.

"It's classified," The guy replied with a deep and scary voice.

"Oh, oh! Your the Blue Panther!" Izzy guessed suddenly with her usual cheerful tone.

"What? No..." The guy replied confused.

"The Capped Crusader?" Pipp guessed next.

"No, I'm––" The guy tried to reply, but he got cut off.

"Dark Garfield?" Zipp said as well.

"No–– Stop..." The guy begged, now with a bored expression.

"Macho Libre?" Hitch said next, but this time, everyone looked at him confused. "What? I thought we were just guessing for the sake of guessing!"

The guy let out a sigh and looked over at the Mane 7 with a frown, as he got close to them. "I'm from another universe."

"What? No way!" Sunset sarcastically with a bored expression. "Look pal, I'm not even going to pretend I'm confused, because you're like the fourth one that comes to Equestria saying the same thing..."

"And that's exactly the reason behind my arrival," The guy replied.

That made the Mane 7's eyes widen, even Sunset's. "What do you mean?" Sunny asked.

"My name is Sonic the Hedgehog," The guy presented himself. "In my universe, it's year 2154. I lead an elite Strike Force dedicated to the security of the multiverse––"

"Actually, we don't really care. We just wanted to know your name," Sunset interrupted. "So you are another weirdo that travels through the multiverse with your fancy watch?"

"It's not a watch. Is something much cooler." Sonic replied with a slight smirk.

"Okay..." Sunny spoke next. "Look, um Sanic, or however you're supposed to be called, but there's this really big centaur we need to stop before he takes over our home, so if you don't mind––" She tried to add, as she and her friends noticed how Tirek was raising from the rubble behind Sonic and looking down at him with anger.

"It's alright," Sonic assured with a serious expression, also raising a hand to stop Sunny from keep going. "I'll take it from here."

"Um, are you sure that's a good idea?" Hitch questioned.

"This isn't the first time I deal with a disruption in a universe. I can handle it," Sonic assured, still with a serious look.

"Okay. Knock yourself out!" Sunset said, as she looked behind Sonic.

"Why are you saying it like that?" Sonic asked with a confused frown.

Yet, all the Mane 7 did was to move aside, while Tirek launched against Sonic and pushed him to the other side of the room.

"You're not funny!" Sonic shouted to Sunset with anger.

"Eh, I don't know!" Sunset mocked up, as she boosted by flight towards him, with Sunny making her Alicorn form appear once again and following her close.

Soon enough, Sonic quickly got free from Tirek's grip and launched a lasso from one of his gloves against Tirek's right horn, as he landed on his head and started to punch him there, making the centaur scream in pain.

Then, Sunny and Sunset arrived, both of them launching their own blasts from their horns towards Tirek's face, landing on the centaur's head as well.

"We should really talk about your mess by the way, Sunset!" Sonic spoke with anger.

"What mess?!" Sunset asked with a frown, as she used her magic to create some lassos around her and Sunny that kept them tied to Tirek's left horn.

"You helped an anomaly from Universe 220822 against the biggest anomaly ever made!" Sonic pointed out with a frown.

"Is he talking about the robot with the mustache you mentioned when Bot-y McBakertons got out of control?!" Sunny decided to ask.

"Precisely!" Sonic replied with anger.

"What are you talking about?!" Tirek asked, as he shook his head violently to try and take Sonic, Sunny and Sunset off him.

"THAT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!!!" Sonic, Sunny and Sunset all screamed to Tirek with anger.

"Geez, sorry for asking..." Tirek deadpanned before preparing to charge a blast.

Since his horns were glowing suddenly, Sunset used her magic to teleport Sonic, Sunny and herself out of there, as they appeared not so far from the still weakened Haven, Alphabittle and the Pegasi Guards that lost their magic because of Tirek.

"There's citizens–– Dang it!" Sonic muttered, but then he had to move Sunny and Sunset aside, because they almost got hit by a blast launched by Tirek against them.

Soon enough, Sonic grabbed a pair of Pegasi Guards and moved them aside, while Sunny and Sunset did the same with other guards, and Sunset finished the save by moving Haven and Alphabittle as well, before noticing that Sonic was running towards Discord, who was still unconscious.

Soon enough, both Sunset and Sunny catch up with him, and they all start to dodge rubble and attacks from Tirek, while also having a small chat in the middle of this.

"So this isn't the first time some villain that's from a certain universe travels to another one?!" Sunset asked.

"Is more complicated than that!" Sonic replied with anger, as he curled into a ball and kicked a rubble away that almost fell on Sunny. "Some mysterious force is moving villains from all ages and universes across the multiverse, causing disruptions and menacing the balance in all the realities!"

"Wait, if this Tirek shouldn't be here, then what does that mean to our universe?!" Sunny asked with panic and concern.

"If we can't get this guy out of here ASAP, this universe will collapse!" Sonic replied. "My mission is to restore the multiverse and put every villain back where they belong before all time and space collapses. Yet some idiots had so much fun messing up with the multiverse!"

"What kind of idiots?" Sunset asked, as she blasted a rubble that almost fell over Sonic, while Sonic himself slid on the floor and finally grabbed Discord, as he boosted at top speed towards the rest of the ponies they just saved.

"Three Dr. Eggmans from three different universes, the Sonic you met a while ago, some idiot we haven't been able to localize, a gal named Sarah Crayton I seriously wanna beat the crap out of, and don't get me even started on Shadow the Hedgehog and that stupid asshole kid from Universe 151222!" Sonic listed out with anger, while both him and the Alicorns jumped to dodge Tirek's arm.

"What kind of name is 'Dr. Eggman'?" Sunny asked confused, then she snorted playfully. "Sounds like a guy obsessed with Eggs or something!"

"Who's Shadow? And why is that the edgiest name I've ever heard?" Sunset asked with a playful tone.

Soon enough, they brought Discord with the rest of the ponies they put in safety, just to find out that they were all gone.

"Hey! Over here" Zipp's voice called out, and the three of them noticed that she was near a secret passage in the Throne Room.

The three of them quickly approached said place, while Hitch came out of the passage. "I already took the rest out!"

"Got a last package for you, Sheriff!" Sonic said, as he placed Discord on Hitch's and Zipp's backs.

"We'll be back as soon as we're done with Discord!" Zipp assured, as she and Hitch got into the secret passage again.

After that, Sonic curled into a ball and charged up on his place, before launching himself towards Tirek, who launched several pieces of rubble against the hedgehog. However, Sonic used the rubble and jumped on it as a pinball and hit Tirek's face.

Soon enough, Tirek groaned and started to launch more rubble against Sonic, while he used his sonic speed to dodge the rubble. Then, he created a lasso from the bracelet on his right arm and used it to destroy all the rubble aimed at him, before running over the wall and charge another attack curled as ball into one of Tirek's horns, which made the centaur step back in pain.

"Okay, he can clearly handle this well..." Sunset pointed out with an amused expression.

"It doesn't means that we cannot help!" Sunny pointed out with a smirk.

Soon enough, the two Alicorns flew in the air again, as they both destroyed rubble with blasts from their horns and dodged attacks from Tirek as well.

Then, Sonic did something that shocked Sunny and Sunset: He created a golden blade with the bracelet of his left globe and used it to cut Tirek's left horn, just like that.

Of course, Tirek roared in rage after Sonic did that, and even held the space where his horn used to be with a hand, before roaring again and use some of the contained magic to restore his horn.

"Kuso! I forgot he can do that!" Sonic groaned, before crashing into the ground, while some rubble fell over him.

Seeing this, Sunny and Sunset quickly blasted a combined attack against Tirek's face, making the centaur roar in pain, before he launched an attack that sent both Alicorns backwards, if it wasn't because of Sunset that used a spell to protect both of them.

Yet, both Alicorns still fell to the ground and rolled on it for a while. Once they stopped, they both groaned in pain.

On the other hand, Sonic got the rubble off him and groaned in pain. "Nicole?" He called out, and soon, Nicole appeared while looking at Sonic with a smirk, also in a much smaller size. "Can you please... You know..."

"Nah. You gotta say it first!" Nicoles said, crossing her arms and looking mockingly at Sonic.

Sonic sighed in defeat after hearing this. "Call the backup..."

"What?" Nicole asked, leaning her ear closer to Sonic.

"Call for help..." Sonic said a bit louder this time.

"Come on!" Nicoles said mockingly, as she moved her hands to dare him to finish the sentence loudly.

"Please just call for––" Sonic almost screamed in rage, as he also tried to grab Nicole.

"Yeah, already called!" Nicole said confidently, since she actually called from backup the first time Sonic asked, she just wanted to mess with him.

"Dang it!" Sonic said with a frown and anger.

"But I enjoyed that!" Nicole mocked up, as she kneeled and extended her fist to Sonic with a mocking smirk.

Soon enough, another heptagon portal opened up, and this time around, an Alicorn figure came out by flight.

Both Sunny and Sunset got up from their place, and the both looked flabbergasted at the Alicorn figure. However, as soon as the Alicorn came closer to a light right above Tirek, they were completely mind-blowed: This was a variant of Twilight Sparkle, one that had a watch like Sonic's on her left hoof, as she twirled in the air and shot a laser towards Tirek's face.

Tirek, who was also mind-blowed by the sight of another Twilight, got the hit without being able to dodge it. Then, Twilight used her magic to create several purple strings that she launched against Tirek. The strings quickly tied up Tirek's arms around himself, and then, Twilight dived up towards him, just to spin and kick his face with her hind legs.

Sunny and Sunset watched all of this with their jaws completely dropped, while Twilight glamorously glided down to the ground and landed in front of the two Alicorns, giving them her back.

However, she still looked over at them over her shoulder and smirked. "Sunset Shimmer. Sunny Starscout. Nice to meet ya!" Twilight stated with happiness.

Yet, Sunny and Sunset were still with their jaws dropped at the sight of Twilight, at least until Sunny finally spoke again.

"Sunset..." Sunny called out with wide eyes. "Twilight Sparkle, flesh and blood, is right in front of us... Not in a necklace, not in an encrypted message, not in a simple photo from a book... It's her for real..."

"Uh-huh..." Sunset nodded, still in shock from seeing Twilight in real life.

After Twilight disappeared inside of the necklace, Sunset thought she would never see her again... And here she is now. Well, she might not be the same Twilight, but she truly was a Twilight. Still, the shock of seeing her flesh and blood after so long was... quite something for Sunset.

"I guess you girls were not expecting me today?" Twilight asked playfully.

"Ah-ah. Not at all," Sunset replied.

"Well, then I hope you're the 'dreamer' kind of gals, 'cause I'm here to kick Tirek's face for what feels like the ninth time for the past few weeks..." Twilight replied with a mocking smirk.

"...Would you adopt me?" Sunny asked suddenly with sparkling eyes.

"...What?" Twilight raised an eyebrow confused.

"What?" Sunny replied nervously with wide eyes.

"GIRLS!" Sonic called out with a mix of panic and anger, as he was riding over Tirek's head once again, while the centaur tried to get him off. "CAN WE PLEASE FOCUS ON THE THREATENING CENTAUR THAT COULD DISTURB TIME AND SPACE, PLEASE?!"

"Yeah, we should do that..." Sunset deadpanned, as the three Alicorns quickly flew in the air and resumed the fight with Tirek.

Soon, Twilight twirled in the air again and dived towards Tirek, as she began to launch really powerful blasts from her horn, as well as casting a second spell in the meantime that was tying purple string all around Tirek's body. Once she stopped launching blasts, she let go the second spell, which tied everything in Tirek's body, as the centaur tried to get free.

Meanwhile, both Sunset and Sunny dived towards Tirek and aimed to his face, before kicking him with their hind legs. Sonic was running over a wall, and Twilight was flying at his side, as they both looked at the two Alicorns fighting Tirek.

"What about them?" Twilight suggested Sonic with a smirk.

"No," Sonic replied coldly.

"We could use the help!" Twilight pointed out.

"No!" Sonic repeated with a frown.

"Is it because she wasn't impressed with you at all?" Twilight mocked up with a smirk.

"NO!" Sonic repeated once again.

"Do you say anything but no?" Twilight asked with a bored expression.

"No... Yes!" Sonic quickly corrected himself.

"Why not?" Twilight asked again, but now frowning.

"No. Way." Sonic declared, frowning back, but all he got was Twilight raising an eyebrow at him, clearly saying 'We'll see about that' with the expression.

Next thing they all knew? They were now joining forces to beat Tirek already, because this fight was extending too much.

Well, that, and Tirek got free from Twilight's trap.

"Okay, tying him up is clearly not helping!" Sunset pointed out. "We have to try something else!"

"But what?!" Sunny asked in panic.

Sonic and Twilight started to analyze the whole situation. They both knew as ell that tying Tirek wasn't going to be enough. They had to knock him out... And Twilight's eyes widened, because she looked at Sonic, then at Tirek's legs, then at Sunny and Sunset, and then at her horn.

She smirked, because she finally had an idea, and Sonic noticed that. "I know that face... What's on your mind. Twi?"

"Aw, you're using my nickname on duty? How cute!" Twilight said with a warm smile.

Sonic blushed and felt startled by that declaration, but he quickly shook his head and frowned. "Now's not the time, Twi!"

Twilight giggled, which made Sonic's heart jump happily, but she got a serious expression afterwards. "Sunny, Sunset. You two and I are gonna beat the crap out of Tirek and keep him distracted. Sonic, when he starts to loose his balance, use that speed of yours and tie his legs!"

Sonic looked up at Tirek's face, who was looking for them, then Sonic looked at his legs and got the idea.

"Go meirei-dōri, ojōsama~" Sonic replied with a smirk, saying 'At your command, my lady~' in Japanese.

Then, Sonic curled into a ball and ran towards Tirek's legs, while the three Alicorns flew towards the head.

Soon enough, they started to shot laser beans at Tirek's face, also dodging the beams that Tirek launched back at them. At some point, Sunny dived to his face and sent Tirek a bit backwards. Next, Sunset did the same, and Twilight finished it not only with a kick, but she also launched a laser beam to stun him even more.

With Tirek loosing his balance, Sonic stopped time for a second and used the lasso from his right bracelet, tying up Tirek's legs at super speed.

Once the effect was over, Tirek tripped and fell backwards, landing on his back in the ground with a painful groan. Finally, Sunset, Sunny and Twilight reunited and placed their horns together. When they opened their eyes, they were fully white, and then, they launched a combined blast towards Tirek's face.

Tirek couldn't dodge this attack, and so, he was knocked out by the combined laser beam, as he fell completely unconscious, while Sonic approached the centaur and smirked.

When the three Alicorns came by, Sunny was panting heavily, and so, her Alicorn form disappeared, since she wasn't that used to use so much magic in battle, but she was still happy that she could help out her childhood hero. She never expected to fight at her side one day, and yet here she is.

"Gotta say... For a rookie Alicorn in battle, that was very impressive!" Twilight told Sunny with a smile, as she slightly bumped her shoulder with hers and winked.

Sunny gasped with wide eyes after hearing that. "A-Are you serious?!"

"Hate to admit it, but she's right," Sonic added, as she approached to both Sunny and Sunset, smirking a bit at them. "Not bad, kids. Not bad at all."

With this, both Sunny and Sunset smiled at Sonic, before looking at each other and smile even more. Sunny then touched the shoulder Twilight bumped and had to resist the urge of squealing. One thing's for sure, though: She probably will never wash that shoulder ever again.

Several hours later, things were almost restored.

Twilight drained all the magic that Tirek drained, and one by one, she returned their magic to all the ponies Tirek stoled it from. Of course, it was a shock for everypony to see that Twilight Sparkle was the one returning them their magic, but Sunset limited to say that she's a long lost familiar that looks like her just to avoid confusion.

As this happened, Hitch tied up the weakened and knocked out Tirek with vines from his magic, while Discord, who already woke up, contributed with some chains.

In the meantime, Sonic took a lecture from Tirek's ADN, and he confirmed what he feared the most.

"Well, it seems like Twilight was right..." Sonic pointed out to both Nicole and Sunset, who were watching the lectures with him, as Sonic looked at Sunset. "We've been tracking down several villains across the multiverse that popped up in the wrong one. Despite their initial declarations, they all confess the same thing at some point: Having met with a purple Alicorn that offers them to conquer the universe they appear on. I guess Tirek here isn't the exception..."

"A purple Alicorn?" Sunset asked with concern.

"Why do I feel like we know what Alicorn you're talking about?" Zipp asked with a bored expression, as she approached along the rest of the Mane 7 and Discord.

"The Fire Alicorn that time forgot... Opaline Arcana." Sonic confirmed with anger. "For weeks, she's been traveling through the multiverse and causing all these disruptions... We don't know why, though..."

"Didn't you said you had no clue on who was doing this?" Hitch asked confused.

"Bold of you to believe a stranger's first declaration," Sonic replied, not even looking at him, but he could tell Hitch was either confused or offended for the statement.

"But that doesn't make any sense!" Sunny pointed out. "We defeated Opaline! How's that she's back?!"

"If you think this is the same Opaline you defeated not so long ago, you may be wrong," Sonic replied, as he put the image of Tirek's data away.

"What do you mean with 'may be'?" Pipp asked. "Are you implying that she 'may be' the same Opaline we defeated?"

"It's a strange situation, to be honest..." Sonic replied with a worried frown, also crossing his arms. "We've been able to detect which worlds get disrupted and which worlds are missing their respective villain, but everything we know about who's moving them is that she has a name and it's Opaline. Now, which universe she comes from? We still need to figure that out."

"So that explains why this variant could be the one we defeated, or a completely different Opaline..." Hitch pointed out with concern.

Misty shivered a bit at the thought of many Opalines existing out there in the multiverse. "I'm gonna have nightmares with that idea now..." She said with concern, also rubbing one of her hooves a bit, while Izzy came by and placed a hoof on her shoulder for comfort.

"If it makes you feel better..." Sonic called out, and Misty turned to see him. "She has moved other Opalines as well... They still lost." He revealed with a slight smirk, also winking at her.

That actually made Misty smile and chuckle a little, finding some relief on the fact that no Opaline has won in any universe.

Soon enough, though, Sonic's watch made a beep sound, and so, Sonic looked over to see what was it about.

It was an upcoming call from a variant of Rainbow Dash, and he immediately answered it. "Chief!" Rainbow said with a serious look and a salute.

"Now Rainbow Dash, too?!" Sunny muttered in excitement, as she shook Sunset a bit.

"Status report, Dash." Sonic informed.

"My team and I have neutralized Zavok from Universe 201122 successfully, here in Universe 300519." Rainbow replied with a proud smile, as she shows an image of Tails and Starlight Glimmer variants holding some electrical chains over a variant of Zavok, who was trying to get free as he shook violently.

"Good job, Dash. Call Knuckles if you haven't and tell him to sent the Extraction Team," Sonic instructed. "We'll get some data from him first before sending him home."

"Roger that, sir!" Rainbow replied, finishing the call.

However, that made another incoming call pop up, so Sonic answered it as well.

This time, it was a call with a Vector variant. "Heya, boss! Just wanted to tell ya that we're here at Universe 190623. We beat the crap out of the Storm King from Universe 030722, and the Extraction Team is here already!"

"Thanks for the heads up, Vector. Tell your team you can all get rest for now. I'll made sure to keep other squads busy," Sonic instructed.

"You are the best, Chief!" Vector cheered, ending the call soon enough.

Sonic smiled a bit after hearing that, before looking over at the knocked out Tirek with a frown. "Nicole. Scan this mess," He instructed, while Nicole appeared over his shoulder, moved around randomly, then went back to Sonic's shoulder and made some small screens appear in front of her.

"No further anomalies!" Nicole informed after a few seconds.

"Wow!" Izzy said, as she suddenly zoomed to Nicole with a smile. "You really are tiny!"

"Aw, and you are a sweetheart in every universe, Iz!" Nicole, said, as she glitched around the unicorn mare with a smile.

"Almost..." Sonic muttered with annoyance, before opening up a heptagon portal.

Once the portal was fully open, Twilight came by, levitated Tirek, and then threw him inside, while Sonic was ready to traverse it...

"Hey!" Sunset's voice called out, and Sonic stopped moving, but he did put a bored expression, before turning around and look over at Sunset. "So you're just gonna leave like that? With us fixing all this mess?! You can't just pop in, beat the crap out of a bad guy, then tell us that the whole multiverse is in danger because of an Opaline variant, and then leave just like that!"

"Yeah! Not to mention, you're leaving this disaster for us to fix it!" Pipp added with a frown.

Sonic groaned and rubbed his eyes with a hand, while Twilight chuckled at his attitude, before looking over at the Mane 7.

"Yeah, we know that this is not fair at all, but if we stay here to help fix all this disaster, we could be loosing crucial time tracking down Opaline before she can destroy the multiverse, you know?" She pointed out. "We cannot take that risk."

"It doesn't change the fact that we'll be concerned about everything!" Sunny pointed out with a frown. "There's an Opaline out there jumping from one universe to the other while causing chaos around! What assures us that she won't pop out here one day?!"

To this, Twilight had no answer, so she looked over at Sonic, who looked down in thought for a second, before sighing and look over at Sunset.

"Well... Clock yourself out." Sonic said, as he took out a similar watch to his and Twilight's before throw it to Sunset, who caught it with her magic, before holding it with her hooves and look at it a bit confused.

"...I... I don't get it..." Sunset said confused.

"As I told you before, I lead and Elite Strike Force dedicated to the security of the multiverse." Sonic reminded. "You take that gizmo, you come with us and see for yourself how this ends."

Then, Twilight cleared her throat and looked at Sonic with a bored expression and a raised eyebrow. "And?"

Sonic sighed again and rolled his eye. "Also, your skills in battle were formidable, and we could really use somepony like you on our team..." He added with an annoyed tone.

"Wait... Y-You want me to join you and fight more of these things?!" Sunset asked in disbelief.

"We make sure the multiverse stays safe and sound," Twilight pointed out with a smile. "With that watch, you can travel to any universe and help us neutralize villains that don't belong in there!"

"This is for a greater cause. The sake of all realities is at stake here," Sonic explained. "If you come with us, you wouldn't fight only for this universe, but also for every single one that exists out there. The choice is yours, kid." He finished, before traversing the portal.

"I know he might act grumpy and intimidating, but once you know him better, he's a huggable bear!" Twilight cooed with a giggle. "But he's right on the last thing, Sunset. If you want to come with us or not is your choice. We won't force you to do something you don't want to," She assured her with a warm smile, also placing a hoof on her shoulder.

Sunset had no words to say. It was hard to say something with all this information, anyways, but it was still shocking to hear that she could help the whole multiverse along many others if she wanted... But did she?

"Twilight, I... This is... so much... I-I don't know what to say..." Sunset confessed with concern.

"What do you mean?!" Sunny asked confused, as she dragged Sunset away for a moment. "They're giving you one hell of a chance here! Why are you doubting now?"

"Yeah! These guys may be a bit weird, but that Sonic guy has a point: If you go, you would be protecting the entire multiverse!" Zipp pointed out as well with a smirk.

"You could go and kick Opaline's flank again!" Pipp added with a smile. "Call it a 'payback for the payback'!" She stated with a smirk and a wink.

"I-I know, but... I don't want to leave you ponies behind!" Sunset pointed out. "Earlier today, I was thinking that you guys didn't needed me anymore, but just because I feel that doesn't mean it's true! A-And I don't... I don't really wanna go and then come back to see that everything changed again... I... I cannot allow that..."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that!" Discord spoke, as he suddenly appeared at Sunset's side with a smile. "There's a big difference between what's a universe and a dimension. To put it easy so you all can understand: The human world from the mirror and Equestria are two dimensions that coexist in the same reality..."

"But they both belong in the same universe!" Twilight finished for him with a smile. "Your concern about Equestria changing again? It's understandable, but a bit silly too. Every universe moves at its own rhythm. However, if you felt that's been just a week in any other universe, here's been what? 2, maybe 3 hours?"

This made Sunset's eyes widen in surprise. "Wait... so I could leave this place, and when I return, everything will be the same?!"

"Yup!" Twilight replied with a smile. "You will probably be a bit taller next time you come with us, unless you decide to stay but keep the watch. Either way, it's still your choice!"

Sunset looked down at the gizmo again with a conflicted look. Yes, she wanted to go and lend a helping hoof on keeping the multiverse stable, but she didn't wanted to leave her friends behind... she was very conflicted.

"Go ahead, Sunset!" Izzy spoke suddenly.

"Yeah! Like Sunny said, this is a one chance thing you shouldn't miss!" Misty agreed.

"We'll make sure everything's fine around here!" Hitch assured with a wink, and Sparky on his back babbled in agreement.

"A-Are you all sure?" Sunset asked, still doubting about this.

"Hey!" Sunny called out, as she came closer to Sunset and place a hoof on her shoulder. "We know you've been looking for a new purpose because of feeling lately that you're not needed anymore. But even if you are, they're giving you the chance to fight for something so much bigger than any of us could handle. If anypony deserves to take that thing and go with them? That's you, Sunset!"

"Remember what I told you a few days ago?" Discord spoke next. "I told you that if something greater was to come for you, it'll come, and it did!" He pointed out, then he pointed with a finger to the still open heptagon portal. "You should definitely go and kick some flanks and butts! Besides, I'll keep an eye on them in your absence. You're not the only Equestrian left from the good, old age when Twilight was around, remember?"

Sunset smiled at him, then looked back at her pony friends, and her smile grew a bit more.

So, she quickly placed the gizmo down and ran to them, as they all cuddled together and a big group hug. This wasn't a goodbye, true, but it didn't changed the fact that her friends were going to miss her, and vice versa.

"I promise you guys that I will come back from time to time." Sunset assured with a smile. "And trust me, no matter how long it takes to deal with this Opaline disrupting the multiverse... I will return to stay with you all!"

"And we'll be waiting for you, sister." Sunny said with a wink.

Sunset chuckled a bit, then she sighed and levitated the gizmo from the ground, before placing it over her left hoof.

Once the gizmo was adjusted so it wouldn't fall, Sunset looked at her friends one last time with a smile, before turning around and walk over to Twilight, as she stared at the open heptagon portal.

"Nervous?" Twilight asked with a smile.

"A lot..." Sunset replied with a slight chuckle.

"Try to relax. This is gonna be a fun journey!" Twilight assured with a wink, also slightly pushing Sunset on her shoulder.

Sunset chuckled again, and so, both Alicorns traversed the heptagon portal, as it closed behind them.

Sunset might not know what the future has in store for her, but she's definitely ready to face it. And most importantly, she's ready to take down that Opaline variant, no matter what it takes...

Author's Notes:

And here we are, with the first episode of this 30 part last adventure!

Now, many of you might have a lot of doubts on this episode in particular, so let's get started on explanations:

First of all, 70% of this chapter takes place in a story with a rather complex process. It's settled on the story made by Phantom-Dragon, but all the sequels to that story were written by JesusG0987, who co-wrote this chapter with me. The setting of this chapter is after the stories that he has made so far.

Now, why is this first chapter settled in a story that's not even mine? Well, this is a multiverse story. You cannot just have one character to be the protagonist and leave everyone else as cameos and non-important characters. And since I really like how Sunset was implemented on the stories made by JesusG0987, she was the right call to be a co-protagonist.

And if she's not that as I keep writing these chapters, then she'll be relevant, that's for sure!

Now, the Tirek variant used in this story is from this short tale made by Palm Palette. No special reason, actually. I just needed to grab Tirek from some story where he was defeated already by the time Twilight and company got a power up Hasbro only used for the toys...

Keep telling yourself Hasbro cared for G4, they didn't. 9 Seasons were made only for the toys.

Now, this Sonic is later on going to be named as 'Future Sonic' or 'FS' so we don't confuse him with the main one, alright? Also, this Sonic is kind of an original Sonic? Because even if his design is the same as Future Sonic from "Sonic and the Tales of Deception", he's not the main Sonic's future self. We just call him like that because of all the crap he went through.

I mean, he has an eyepatch and a scar, what else do you expect me to call him?

As for Twilight's variant, she comes from this story written by Rambling Writer. Now, why did FS blushed when Twilight flirted with him? Meh, who cares? It's probably her just messing with him.

Now, Rainbow Dash and Starlight's variants are from this story created by zaptiftun, while Tails and Vector's variants were taken from this tale by MetalJrock. The world that Dash, Starlight and Tails visit is from this story by RainbowDoubleDash, while the one that Vector was on is from this story by Idiotboy24.

As you can see, this story celebrates the whole multiverse as a whole. Each story made in FIMFiction through the years is a universe in this canon. Now, don't expect to see every single story in this one, since choosing which universes to use is a struggle for me.

But who knows, you might or not might see your story in here. Only time will tell!

Anyways, thanks so much for reading this, and I'll see you all later with chapter 2! Bye!

2. The Warning

View Online

Universe 220822

Sonic was running at top speed over some buildings in Zephyr Heights.

Soon, the Blue Blur jumped over and used the electrical lasso of his watch to boost himself upwards, and now, he was running over the buildings of the pegasi city.

"Okay, people. Let's do this one last time!

My name is Sonic the Hedgehog. I was born with the incredible and super awesome power of super speed, and for the past three years? I've been living in the magical land of Equestria... Pretty sure you know the rest!

Let me tell you: I helped this neat group of ponies to restore their magic; I obtained this cool electrical powers that were always dormant inside of me; I saved a wishing star from being destroyed; me and my friends stopped an old draconequus from destroying magic; I fell in love with a really cute pegasus...

I stopped old Egghead from conquering Equestria using a giant robot with his face; I stopped a world destroyer entity from blowing up this planet; my pal Tails stopped a dangerous Metal Virus from being spread by Queen Opaline; I rescued the Chaos Emeralds from a parallel world...

And I also saved the whole multiverse from collapsing with the help of myself... Literally. Thanks to other two Sonics from two different universes, we managed to stop three Eggmans and Sage from conquering the entire Multiverse, although that left my right arm a bit paralytic for a while.

Thankfully, I had Tails and Zipp's treatments, as well as Sunny's magic to help me cure my arm a bit every two weeks for the past year! It should heal entirely two months from now.

Aside from all of that? Well, we also saved the day from Eggman and Opaline. And then we did it again. And again, and again, and again... Yeah, stopping villains from screwing up Equestria is kind of our second job now.

However, this past year we spent our time investigating and searching: Opaline, Eggman and Sage suddenly disappeared. We haven't heard anything from Opaline since she tried to infect Equestria with the Metal Virus, and both Eggman and Sage disappeared after the incident with the multiverse, even abandoning the other two Eggmans.

I know that we'll eventually find them again, but... A whole year with no Eggman nor Opaline activity... It made me think and reflect, you know? I mean, there's a whole multiverse of infinite possibilities out there, and I traveled across it with no problem... But my right arm and my perforated ear are the prove that is dangerous.

Izzy gave me a book for my 28th birthday a few months ago. I accepted it for education at first, since I didn't really knew what to do with it... Until an idea came to my mind. That's why, I made my own little art book with it. I never considered myself an artist, but Izzy gave me a few drawing classes to get better, and I've been improving over the past months.

My first few drawings were of Tails, Pipp, Longclaw, Sunny... All my friends. But after a while, they started to shift and became drawings from all the people I met while traveling across the multiverse. The two Classic Sonics, the Anime one, the live-action one, that weirdo with a scarf... Heck, I even drew those Sonics and ponies I just interacted with for a second before moving on!

I didn't realized how much I missed these guys until I checked my book and saw at least 63 of the 120 pages full of drawings from my friends across the multiverse... Guess I miss having another Sonic around that understands me...

A part of me believes that some energy from the Paradox Prism is still in me, and that I can still travel across the multiverse whenever I want... But without the Inhibitor Discs that Rotor made, that energy would be out of control, and I couldn't travel any world in peace...

I wonder if I'll ever see any of them again..."

Sonic was staring down at one of the many drawings he made... the one from that Sunset Shimmer variant.

Not counting Boom Sonic and Young Sonic, that Sunset is the one inhabitant from another universe he interacted with the most. Yeah, it was just a talk of very few words the two times he was on her universe... But there was something about this Sunset that called his attention, although he still couldn't tell what.

"...Maybe one day, I will..."

Universe 110422

Time doesn't exists in the multiverse.

This meant that Opaline could finally hear the only useful advice Eggman ever gave her, at least in her opinion: Be patient and take time to make her plan work.

She had the power to travel to any reality thanks to one piece of fragment from the Paradox Prism, but to use it, she had to waste some of her own magic, which is why she's traveling across different realities: To steal as much magic as she can. After all, if she wants to conquer the multiverse one day, she must have enough power to make sure her reign either lasts long enough, or forever.

Right about now? She stopped this weird-ass society named Scarlet Wing and stoled all their magic, as well as the magic from this universe's Mane 5.

Of course, she wasn't impressed anymore. After all, this isn't the first time she arrives to a universe inhabited by variants of the Mane 5 and then steals their magic, while they fight hopelessly to keep their magic. It wasn't that impressive to defeat them anymore, and she even felt ashamed on loosing against them in the past.

However, as she finished draining this world's Sunny's magic and prepared to walk away, Sunny stopped her.

"W-Wait..." She called out, and Opaline rolled her eyes annoyed, but decided to stop anyways. "W-Who are you?"

"Why do I always get the same damn question from every Sunny in every universe?" Opaline groaned, also face-hoofing. "Look, Sunny. I don't give a damn about what you believe is wrong or right, okay? I don't care for this pitiful universe in general. I just needed your magic and I got it. Now I'm out."

However, Sunny wasn't going to give up with that answer. "T-There has to be a reason on why you need it..."

Opaline turned and saw with a bored expression how Sunny was trying to stand up, which made the Fire Alicorn roll her eyes, so she levitated Sunny and approached her to her face.

"Listen up, Sunny: There's thousands of worlds out there with more magic, more power, and more pitiful ponies like you I have to get rid of!" Opaline replied with anger. "I will conquer every reality once I recover the full Paradox Prism, then I'll kill you and your pathetic friends on every. Single. Universe!"

After shouting that, Opaline throw Sunny towards a wall, where Sunny crashed on her back, before landing painfully in the ground and then fall unconscious, while Opaline opened a red portal using her magic and the power of the Prism.

"Nopony's going to stop me! Not even Sonic and Sunny from my own universe!" Opaline stated with a maniac laugh.

Universe 220822

Sonic went with Zipp, Tails and Sunny for his first recovery session of the month.

As he's been doing for the past year after what happened with the three Eggmans and Sage, he let Tails and Zipp check over his arm closely. The first two months it was painful to watch it, because his veins were so visible hat anyone who saw it almost felt like if it was them who got their arm burned.

However, and thanks to Tails, Zipp and Sunny's remedies and sessions, his arm was recovering pretty quickly, and Sonic could even move his arm a bit without it hurting after 3 months.

By the six month, he was allowed to go out and take his usual runs across Equestria, even being able to make some acrobatic moves like he used to. His arm even started to look less and less burned after the first session of the fifth month, and now it simply looked like if it had a bunch of bruises.

Today, Tails and Zipp asked him to do the usual: Move his whole arm around, then move only a hand, then move his wrist, then his fingers, and finally use his electrical powers with it.

Sonic did everything he was asked for and, unlike the first months, it didn't hurt anymore.

With that out of the way, Sunny came by and started to use her magic to heal Sonic as well. It was thanks to Sunny's magical properties that his arm was stable and that he could still move it around. Unfortunately, Sunny could only use healing magic on small doses, because using the full spell was risky for her health, and even her life.

No one in the group wanted to lose her, so they all agreed that Sunny would just use her magic twice a month over Sonic's arm in small doses, and after a year of work, it was finally showing good results.

"Well, I'm glad to tell you that your arm is in really good conditions, Sonic!" Tails said with a smile.

"Yeah!" Zipp agreed. "Thanks to Sunny's magic and your constant exercise by drawing stuff, your arm is recovering incredibly fast!"

"Well, I counted with you two looking after me as well!" Sonic pointed out with a smile. "Just because you told me to do basic moves to help with my recovery doesn't makes you less important on it."

"I agree!" Sunny said with a smile, once she finished putting the dose of the spell on Sonic's arm. "You two have been crucial for Sonic's arm recovery. I don't deserve all the credit!"

After hearing this, both Zipp and Tails blushed, both feeling a bit ashamed after hearing this.

"A-Anyways!" Tails said after a while, also shacking his head. "Your recovery is going really good, Sonic. In fact, is so good that I think just one session more will be enough!"

"Two if your arm hasn't changed that much in appearance by the next session." Zipp pointed out.

"...A-Are you guys serious?!" Sonic asked with disbelief and a big, goofy smile.

"Yup!" Tails nodded. "Congratulations!"

Sonic couldn't help but smile widely and even tear up a little bit, because he really worked hard for his arm to recover, and to think that maybe in a month or even less it'll be back to normal... It made him happy, very happy.

Sunny at his side squealed and hugged him tightly after hearing this. "Oh, Sonic! I'm so happy for you! Your arm will be as good as new soon!"

"I... I know!" Sonic said, as he actually started to tear up for real, but he did tried to avoid it by wiping his tears with an arm, although they kept coming out. "I can't believe it... A year of work, finally showing results..." He said with a smile, also looking at his right arm.

"You mind if we tell the rest about the news?" Tails asked him with a sheepish smile.

"Go on!" Sonic said with a chuckle, although he was still tearing up. "I... I really would love that everyone else hears the news..."

With excited smiles, Tails and Zipp nodded, before they went downstairs, since they were in the Brighthouse's bedroom.

However, after they left, Sonic's mood changed entirely, because he looked down at his arm with concern, and his mind flashed back to a conversation he had with Chip last year...

"Nexus events are basically, and ironically, events were two universes collide for reasons that, again, are beyond my current powers. There's three possible options for said event to come to an end: Either the two universes combine to form a single universe; they both separate and return to their original state; or they both stop existing forever, but new universes with the same habitants and similar rules born in their places."

"...So they basically are what makes the multiverse what it is, huh?" Sonic asked, and Chip nodded. "Then, what does that makes my situation?"

"That's the thing: What you just told me about both Mobius and Equestria is something that never happened before!" Chip revealed with a surprised smile. "Sonic, I never in a million years thought that what happened to your world and the pony one was even possible! We're probably witnessing the birth of a new kind of Nexus Event!"

"How?" Sonic asked. "Both my dimension and Equestria's one have been interacting for the past two years, and we never dealt with any kind of 'universe collapse' or something. And is not like Mobius as a whole is in Equestria, y'know? Is just me and my friends living in another universe."

"The only logical explanation I can find... is that your worlds aren't actually colliding," Chip said, as he rubbed his chin.

Sonic was concerned. Why did his world and Equestria were a different case? If a Nexus event was to happen since the two dimensions interacted within each other, then why a nexus event hasn't happened?

Was it really necessary for him and the other Mobians to leave Equestria? Chip said he could stay if he brought him the Paradox Prism... The same one that he destroyed with his now recovering arm... This was a delicate theme he didn't liked to think nor talk about, but... It was the reality.

"Sonic?" Sunny's voice called out, and Sonic turned to see her. "...Are you thinking about it again?"

Sonic was taken aback after hearing this, but Sunny was always good at reading her friends, so he sighed and nodded.

He decided to come clean to everyone and explain them the thing about Nexus events, how they worked, and why leaving Equestria had to be a choice again now that the Prism was destroyed and they couldn't use it like Chip wanted.

Of course, Tails, Knuckles, Izzy, Zipp, Pipp and Misty all immediately tried to convince Sonic on leaving that idea aside, but both Sonic and Sunny managed to convince them that, liked it or not, it was an option they still needed to take count over.

Still, everyone agreed to never bring that subject again unless necessary... But Sonic couldn't help but still think about it sometimes, because he was terrified at the idea of leaving Equestria.

"Hey... You know that it's fine if you want to talk about it, right?" Sunny told him with a little smile.

"I do, Sunny..." Sonic replied, before looking at his right arm again with concern. "...I just can't help but think about it... I'm... I'm scared as hell to leave this place, even though a part of me believes is necessary..."

"Sonic... Is okay to be afraid, remember?" Sunny reminded him, and Sonic turned to look at her, still showing concern in his eyes. "Equestria will always be your home, no matter if you choose to stay, or if you leave. You'll always be welcome here, no matter what!"

"But I... I don't want to..." Sonic tried to say, before shaking his head for a moment. "N-No... I... I don't have to think like that... Is selfish..."

Sunny felt slightly concerned after hearing him saying this, but she still sighed and decided to let the conversation die there, since she knows Sonic hates to talk about this.

"I, um... I'll be helping Knuckles making dinner downstairs." Sunny said, walking to the door, but before getting out of the room, she turned to see Sonic one last time. "And Sonic? You're not selfish for thinking about yourself once in a while. You've been helping everyone around your whole life... Being selfish just one time won't kill anyone."

Sonic's eyes widened, and he looked over at Sunny confused, but Sunny just smiled warmly at him and shrugged, before shrugging again and then leave the bedroom.

However, Sunny's words stuck deep inside of his mind... If he was being honest, this isn't the first time he's thinking on what's best for him, but not for everyone. These kind of thoughts popped up on his mind thousands of times back when Longclaw died, he simply never give up to them.

But now... He had new friends, a new family, a girlfriend from another dimension... He didn't wanted to loose them, and he refused to leave them behind, even if the multiverse could be at stake.

And yet, a part of him could never fully give in to those thoughts, because he seriously couldn't be selfish. He wanted the best for everyone, but how could he get that if everyone around him wanted the same as him: Stay in a world that's not theirs? It was truly a hard decision.

Shaking his head, Sonic decided to distract his mind a bit. So, he grabbed his notebook with drawings and opened an empty page on it.

He grabbed a black pen, then sat over his bed without his shoes and started to draw over it. By drawing, he not only could distract his mind from conflicting thoughts, but he could also exercise his arm and make sure that it would heal entirely for the next session.

He started by drawing off Tails at flight, as the young fox did a battle pose. Next, he did Pipp at the other page. Soon, he added Knuckles, Sunny, Amy, Izzy, Shadow, Zipp, Omega, Misty, Rouge, Hitch and Sparky.

After around an hour and half of work, he finished the drawing: It was a very large one of the whole group, the same group he grow to love and take care about... Yes, even Team Dark, which did surprised him, but it still made him smile like an idiot at his creation.

However, it also saddened him a bit, because this picture had all of them, Sonic himself included, posing for a fight, determinate to win and save the day... A sensation he missed a lot.

After all, he's been looking for Opaline, Eggman and Sage for a full year along his friends, but they couldn't find anything. The weirdest thing is that Opaline's Castle is empty and has no traps around, which was even more confusing for everyone, specially to Misty.

It was like if the villains simply disappeared to never come back, and it was more worrying than relieving, because it just meant that something bigger was coming.

However, a whole year without experimenting the joy of adventure had left Sonic in a very depressive and distant state. He still hangs out and talks with his friends... But sometimes, he decides to be alone and let his mind dive into random thoughts from anything.

He really missed the adrenaline of danger, the thought of knowing he'll be having another amazing fight... He really missed to feel alive again.

"...Maybe I'm just overthinking as usual..." Sonic told himself with a snort, before standing up. "I better go out and check what Pipp is doing or something, because staying here isn't making me feel any good..."

And so, he closed his notebook and stood up from his place, then placed the notebook over his bed and boosted out of the bedroom to look after his girlfriend.

Meanwhile, in another universe dimension

A bunch of badniks were being fabricated on a factory in Mobius.

Supervising said badniks were Orbot, Cubot and Sage, as they made sure that the creation of the badniks went without a problem.

As the three of them did this, Dr. Eggman watched from a platform above. After what happened last year with the Paradox Prism, Eggman decided that it was time to go home and take over it now that Sonic and his friends were in Equestria, being dumb enough to think he's still in that dimension.

"I can't believe that I didn't thought of this before... Is a genius idea!" Eggman said with a huge grin. "While those fools keep looking for me on a dimension I'm not even staying anymore, I'll create more and more machinery, better badniks, stronger fortresses! And when those idiots finally come back, they'll find their home turned into my beautiful Empire!"

If you wonder how Eggman and Sage travelled back to Mobius: They both recreated the first machine that Eggman used when he sent Sonic to Equestria, but this time, Sage used the remaining power Eggman had from Sonic's quill and stabilized the machine so it wouldn't explode once it opened the portal.

Soon enough, Sage teleported at Eggman's side. "Father. The badnik production has increased a 57% from its previous results. If we keep this pace going, we might be able to get everything ready to take over Mobius one week from now."

After hearing this, Eggman grinned and let out a laugh. "Excellent! This are wonderful news! And now that neither Sonic, his friends, nor Opaline are around to mess with my plans, taking over Mobius will be a piece of cake!" He stated confidently, before looking at Orbot and Cubot. "You two down there! Take it easy for today and get back to work tomorrow at sunrise! In one week, Mobius will be mine!"

As Eggman started to laugh like a maniac again, Orbot and Cubot only sighed in relief and high-fived.

"You know? The boss has been a lot more merciful with us this past year!" Cubot pointed out.

"He's happy 'cause Sonic isn't around. His joy is quite understandable," Orbot pointed out.

Equestria

A few days later, Queen Haven organized a massive party on Zephyr Heights' castle.

For this party in particular, Sonic was in charge on bringing over the cake since he offered to do so. Since he has super speed, he was so confident that bringing that cake over to the party was going to be easy... It was not.

He was right now at the bakery store in Maretime Bay where he ordered the cake to be made, but for the past 15 minutes, the pony in charge of bringing him over the cake has been talking through the phone, and if Sonic didn't had the cake in the next 5 minutes, he was going to loose his cool.

But at last, the pony finally stopped talking in the phone, went over to grab Sonic's cake, already payed, and as soon as Sonic grabbed the cake, he boosted out of the bakery.

Now, he was carrying the cake over his left arm and boosting at top speed towards Zephyr Heights, running like a maniac as he passed through a green field, then through the Bridlewood forest, and then over a river, since he was desperate to make it in time to the party, or at least to not be that late.

Once he reached Zephyr Heights, he ran over the buildings at top speed, making some stunts in the air and even launching the box with the cake when he had to jump over one building to another, but he always managed to catch the box.

Finally, he saw the castle in the distance, so he decided to move even faster to make sure he made it in time.

Once he entered the castle, he realized that he had to go upwards, and the fastest way possible was using the stairs, but it seemed slow for him. So, he placed the cake in the middle and started to make parkour over the stairs at top speed. When he reached the top, he used the lasso of his watch to bring the cake to him.

He verified that the cake was in good conditions after all that movement, and it surprisingly was intact.

Sighing in relief, Sonic boosted through the castle, until he reached the door that leads to the Royal Backyard, since the party was taking place over there.

Sonic grabbed the box with the cake with both hands and lay for a second over the door, taking a deep breath, before finally pushing the door open and accessing the party, as the music playing in the background got louder now that he entered the place.

Sonic began to carefully move around the ponies, even raising the cake in the air to make sure it wouldn't hit anyone nor mess up, while also apologizing whenever he bumped into anypony.

Eventually, he saw Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Sunny and Hitch in front of the table that had all the other food, and so, he quickly moved towards them, still raising the cake in the air.

"I'm concerned about Sonic..." Tails confessed. "He... He has changed in the past year after destroying the Paradox Prism..."

"Can you really blame him?" Hitch asked. "He had a big odyssey across the multiverse where he literally met himself, now he's the only Sonic around again. I guess he misses having someone that truly understands him."

"Not to mention, a year without adventures has pulled him away..." Amy pointed out with concern. "He's still Sonic, but... something's missing..."

"I think we should just give him time, guys." Sunny said with a smile. "Besides, he'll be back as new the next month when his arm recovers! I truly believe that he'll be fine by then."

"Hopefully..." Tails muttered with concern.

And then, Knuckles noticed that Sonic was moving on their direction while holding the box with the cake. "Speaking of the King of Rome..."

"I know, I know, I'm late!" Sonic groaned annoyed, as he carefully placed the cake on the table, then checked it out inside one last time and sighed relieved when he saw it fine. "I seriously wished I got earlier, I swear!"

"Where have you been?!" Amy scolded with a frown. "We thought for a second that you forgot!"

"I know I messed up, and I'm truly sorry guys, but the idiot that had to give me the cake spent 15 damn minutes on the phone!" Sonic explained.

"Couldn't you had just take the cake with your speed and then come here?" Hitch pointed out with a mocking smirk.

"Ugh!" Sonic groaned and rolled his eyes.

Soon, he was dragged to a tight hug by Pipp, who arrived just in time to greet her boyfriend. "Glad you see you made it, Blue Star!"

"Heh, yeah, well. It took me a while, considering the guy that had to give me the cake was busy with the damn phone..." Sonic deadpanned.

"Aww, but that's not your fault. It could happen to anyone!" Pipp pointed out with a smile.

"See?!" Sonic said with a smile, before turning to the others with a slight frown. "Why can't you guys be as understanding as she is?!"

"You still got late, Hedgehog..." Knuckles deadpanned.

"Well, I'll say is better that you got late than never arriving!" Pipp said with a smirk, also kissing his cheek lovingly.

"And that is why I love you, Pipp!" Sonic cheered with a smile.

"Well, now that you're here... You better get here in the dance floor and show off your moves!" Pipp stated playfully, as she dragged Sonic away from the rest.

"Okay!" Sonic said with a smile, but also almost yelping. "I'll se you guys later!"

As Sonic and Pipp disappeared between the crowd of ponies, Sunny let out a giggle. "Well, I'll say Pipp's right. Sonic is here despite how he feels lately. I say that's a win!"

"Yeah... I guess I'm just overthinking this..." Tails said, shaking his head and the smiling. "Maybe you're right, Sunny. He'll be fine by the time his arm heals entirely."

"I know I am!" Sunny said with a smile, before looking at Hitch at her side with a smirk. "Although, Pipp has a good point..."

"On what–– Whoa!" Hitch yelped when Sunny suddenly grabbed him from his hoof and dragged him away as well.

"Come on, Hitchy. Show them what you've got!" Sunny said with a playful giggle.

"I can't believe it took them 9 damn books to get together..." Knuckles deadpanned.

"Well, you know what they say: Better late than never!" Amy said with a chuckle.

The party was going pretty well so far.

Everypony that attended seemed really cheerful and happy with the vibe of the place. Sonic even had a better mood than in the past year as he danced around with Pipp, had an eating contest with Knuckles, and even a little wrestling match with Shadow, which the latter ended up winning.

Still, Sonic congratulated him, because it was a fair and clean fight. He also participated on a challenge to see how hight pitched his voice could get while singing... He won thanks to his take on Firework.

He truly had to thank Pipp for giving him the idea on making weekly stories for Ponygram where he made covers of any song from his world... It's weird that thanks to the party, thinking about Mobius didn't made him feel sad like it's been happening for the past year, but he decided to let it slip before getting depressed again.

However, he did needed some alone time, and so, he went to the balcony outside of the guest room where he was staying along his friends for the night before returning to Maretime Bay tomorrow.

He was staring down at his friends having a friendly talk while sitting over a table, and they seemed to be laughing about something. He could just go down there and join them, but he really wanted to put his thoughts together first before going back with them...

After all, he's thinking on Boom Sonic and Young Sonic again.

He couldn't help it. Spending a whole week with them was incredible, but now he was the only Sonic around again. It's weird that he misses himself, but it was also kind of inevitable.

Young Sonic had so much innocence and cheerfulness that it was hard to not feel marveled by him. Boom Sonic, despite a bit grumpy at first sight, has a lot of wisdom, probably because he's the older one of the 'Sonic Gang', like Young Sonic decided to call their little group.

The truth is that Sonic misses his other variants as well... The two Classic Sonics that reminds him of his younger years, the anime one that's a bit stubborn sometimes, and even the new pony friends he made.

Twilight, Starlight, some variants of the Mane 5, that weirdo named MC, and even the Alicorn Sunset Shimmer... He still couldn't tell why, but she had something that called his attention. Perhaps is the fact that she helped him against the Egg Conqueror before it killed him, but it was hard to tell.

Sonic sighed and lowered his head, leaning over the balcony and rubbing his eyes with his left hand. It's been a rough year for him, even if he didn't wanted to admit it...

"Thinking about yourself again?" A voice spoke suddenly at his side.

Sonic's eyes widened, but when he looked at his side, he smirked and rolled his eyes: Shadow appeared, laying over his back in the same balcony with his arms crossed, while he looked at Sonic with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you here to check on me, or you simply missed me down there?" Sonic asked with a mocking tone.

"No, I'm here to keep rubbing on your face your defeat against me today," Shadow replied with a smirk.

Sonic rolled his eyes and chuckled, before letting out another sigh. "...Yeah, I'm thinking on those two again..."

"You've been doing it for over a year now." Shadow pointed out with concern. "Have you tried to leave and visit them?"

"Gosh, Shadow. I want so badly to do it, I do!" Sonic confessed, before sighing sadly. "But without something keeping the Prism's energy under control like Rotor's Inhibitor Discs... I wouldn't know where I'm going... I might even get lost across the multiverse again..."

"But that Chip guy could bring you back." Shadow pointed out.

Sonic chuckled and shook his head. "He's busy guarding over the multiverse... And I don't really think he'll be happy to see me moving from one universe to the other again."

"Then what do you want, Sonic?" Shadow questioned with a slight frown.

"An answer..." Sonic replied. "Staying on Equestria, or go back to Mobius? Go visit my friends across the multiverse and risk to get lost again, or stay and know that I'll be safe? Protect those I care deeply for, or protect the entire multiverse?! Still be the same selfless hedgehog, or be selfish for once?!"

Sonic was now frowning and holding the balcony's railing strongly, while his electrical powers showed of a bit... But then, Shadow placed a hand on his shoulder and slightly shook his head.

Just by this action, Sonic's frown disappeared, and so, the Blue Blur took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"I'm just... I don't know what to do anymore... Is it best to still protect everyone like I've been doing ever since I was 5, or for once screw it all and think on what I want?" Sonic said with concern, before sighing again and then look down at his friends on the party, as they enjoyed their time together.

Shadow looked down at the rest as well, then looked at Sonic and sighed. "I'll say you do what your heart tells you is right, Hedgehog."

After hearing this, Sonic's eyes widened, and he looked over at Shadow with disbelief. "The what now?!"

"I know it sounds cheesy and out of character coming from me..." Shadow recognized. "But I know for a fact that you are better than all these conflicting thoughts, Sonic. Lead with your heart, it'll show you the way."

"But what if my heart is as conflicted as I am?!" Sonic asked concerned.

"Then you better do what you always do, Sonic: What you feel is the right thing." Shadow replied with a determinate look, before teleporting away.

However, Sonic let out a sigh and shook his head. "Thanks, Shadow... Now I feel more conflicted..."

After saying this, Sonic simply looked one last time at his friends down in the party, while the sun started to set in the horizon, before the hedgehog decided to enter back to the guest room.

He sat over the edge of the bed he was sharing with Pipp, but he didn't noticed that his drawing notebook was at the edge of the bed as well, and when he sat there, the book fell to the ground, opening on a page that had a drawing of that Sunset Shimmer variant.

Sonic stared at the drawing for a moment. Why did he always felt a strange connection with this Sunset variant was still a mystery, because he only talked to her for a few seconds at best.

Still, he picked up his notebook and stared at the drawing a bit longer. In all honesty, a part of him wondered if he'll ever see her or any of his friends across the multiverse. He probably wouldn't, considering the Paradox Prism was destroyed... But anything was possible.

With a sad sigh, Sonic closed the notebook and put it over the nightstand at the side of the bed. Then, he picked up a pair of headphones and put them over.

After that, he lay on the bed and sighed relaxed, while he listened to some music and just tried to fall asleep. Lately, sleeping felt like the ideal escape from all his worries and concerns, which is why he has become a heavier sleeper over the past few months.

Soon enough, thought, wind blew inside of the room. Anyone would think that this is because of the doors that lead to the balcony being open... But that's not the case.

After all, wind cannot make gravity work weird and make stuff float around for no reason, because that's what's happening: Some beauty products from Pipp, some books from Sunny, some tools from Tails, and even the pair of shoes that Tails himself gave Sonic on their first Secret Canter were floating around.

Soon, the entire room started to illuminate with a bright blue color, until a portal started to slowly open above Sonic. This portal seemed to be orange, as well as shaped like an heptagon.

However, Sonic was too focused on his music to even notice that everything else around him was floating or that a portal opened out of nowhere above him. At least, he didn't noticed it at first, because mixed with the music, he soon started to hear a voice calling out his name.

"Sonic... Sonic! Sonic? Sonic!" A female voice was calling out.

He thought it was nothing at first, but as the voice insisted on calling him out, he realized that it was real. So, he slowly opened his eyes, just to feel a bit blurred by a mysterious light.

However, once the light started to slowly fade away, he finally noticed the portal above him, which confused him a lot. But what finally shocked him was that, at the other side of said portal, the Sunset Shimmer variant he's been thinking over the past year was standing and looking down at him with a smirk.

"Got a minute?" Sunset asked playfully.

"Whoa! What the––" Sonic exclaimed with wide eyes, as his hands moved a bit wildly for a moment, before he removed his headphones and stopped listening to the music.

Soon, Sunset made a little loop before crossing the portal and then sit down over Sonic's bed, while the portal closed and the strange effect that made everything float around dissipated, which made everything around fall to the ground.

Sonic noticed that she was a tiny bit taller than the last time he saw her. She also had a larger neck, and her mane was glowing with some sparkles for some reason, as well as it had a light blue line painted on both her mane and tail. He also noticed she had a strange watch on her left hoof.

"H-How did you get––" Sonic tried to ask, but his eyes were still widely open. "What the heck is going on?!"

Sunset chuckled at his attitude. "Hello to you too, pal!" She mocked up, before looking around and notice that they were in Zephyr Heights' Castle. "Is this a guest room in Queen Haven's Castle?"

"Uh, yeah?" Sonic replied confused.

However, as he was about to ask her something, he noticed that the burned parts of his right arm were glowing in the same colors than the Paradox Prism's.

His eyes widened, and he realized that he still had energy of the Prism inside of him, which was actually good, because it meant that he could travel to other world's still... Now, if only he could control said energy without it making him run out of control...

Sonic shook his head and focused again. "H-How did you got here? I-I mean, as far as I know, you don't have energy like me to travel across the multiverse!"

"Eh, is a long story," Sunset replied with a playful smirk, but when she turned to him, she noticed his burned arm and gasped. "Holy Tartarus!"

Sonic raised an eyebrow, but once he noticed that she was looking at his arm, he understood her concern. "Oh, this? Don't worry. This looks fine now. You seriously don't want to know how it used to look last year..."

"What the hay happened to you?! I-I thought that your arm was fine last time I saw you!" Sunset pointed out concerned.

"Yes, last time you saw me it was fine," Sonic deadpanned. "Remember that giant robot with the mustache? I defeated him, but when he lost the artifact that made him travel across the multiverse, I decided to destroy it before it made any more damage... My arm looks like this because of that..."

"Sweet Celestia..." Sunset muttered with concern. "A-Are you sure that it is fine? Maybe I could help you with a healing spell!"

"Uh, no thanks. Sunny's already in charge of that." Sonic assured her with a smile. "But getting back on the topic here: What are you doing here?! I-Is not that it bothers me! If anything, I'm glad to see a face from other universe after a whole year with no adventures, but... I just don't get how you got here..."

Instead of replying, Sunset smirked and walked to the balcony, stepping over the railing and then turning to face Sonic. "Wanna get out of here?"

"If I go, Pipp's gonna kill me 'cause she'll think I'm cheating on her..." Sonic deadpanned.

Sunset deadpanned back after hearing this. "Boomer."

After saying this, Sunset let herself fall, and even though she had wings and could fly, Sonic still worried for her, so he rushed to the balcony and looked down, but right there, he noticed that she was flapping her wings and standing over the wall.

"Does she have to find out, though?" Sunset retorted with a playful smirk.

"I'm not cheating on her with a stranger!" Sonic said with a frown. "I wouldn't cheat on her in general! And yes, we're still strangers at the end of the––"

However, before he could keep talking, he noticed Sunset's bored expression, before she raised an eyebrow at him.

Sonic deadpanned as he realized what she meant with getting out of there. "You just want us to have a friendly talk, don't you?"

"Yup." Sunset replied, still with a bored expression.

Sonic let out a sigh, before looking back at Sunset with a smirk. "I could go out for a run!"

Above Zephyr Heights' buildings, Sonic was running at top speed.

At his side, Sunset Shimmer was flying as fast as she could while explaining a lot of stuff that Sonic was wondering, like how she arrived here and what she's been doing for the past year.

"Wait, wait, wait, hold on!" Sonic said, as they both dived towards the ground. "There's an elite society with all the best Mobians and Equestrians from the multiverse in it?!"

"Pretty much!" Sunset replied with a smile and a giggle, as she took fly to the sky, while Sonic used his electrical lasso to shot at the building and impulse himself back upwards.

"And how long has this society existed, exactly?" Sonic asked. "And why am I hearing about this now and not back when the whole multiverse was in danger?"

"The society was built a week or two after what you lived!" Sunset explained, as she flew through the sky elegantly, while Sonic ran over the buildings and jumped over them as well.

"How convenient..." Sonic deadpanned.

"I joined them last year, and I've been in dozens of missions across the multiverse!" Sunset kept explained. "Oh, I met this Twilight Sparkle from Universe 260221! She's the best! I have learned a lot from her!"

"A Twilight variant? I met two or three on my journey, too!" Sonic said with a smile, as he made a huge jump from one building to the next.

"There's also this Sonic from Universe 200113 who I hang out a lot with. I have crashed over his place sometimes..." Sunset said, unconsciously with a smile and a slight sparkle on her eyes.

Sonic noticed this, and he smirked mockingly. "Oooh! Do I detect a crush on another Sonic, Ms. Shimmer~?"

Sunset realized what Sonic was implying and shook her head. "Oh, shut up!" She frowned. "So, you and Pipp are a thing in this world?!" She asked, as both Sonic and her started to run over a building's wall, before they both moved to run/fly near the ground, dodging some ponies in the process.

"Yeah, we've been dating for almost 2 years now!" Sonic replied with a proud smile, while the two of them grabbed a Carrotdog and Chilidog respectively, with Sonic even putting the money to pay the food over the counter of the stand they took the food from. "Although I still think it's too soon for marriage..."

"Let me guess... You also feel that you shouldn't ask her if you were ever to go home?" Sunset asked.

"Am I that predictable?" Sonic asked with a smirk.

"Just a tiny, little bit!" Sunset mocked up, even placing her hooves a bit closer to ad more salt to the wound.

"Whoa, thanks for your transparency..." Sonic rolled his eyes with a smile.

Soon, they both jumped over a tent that was in the street, and they both jumped to fly and run over a building's wall again, as they raced to reach the top.

"So, that watch on your hoof is a gizmo that lets you travel to any world you want?" Sonic asked as they kept accelerating.

"Precisely!" Sunset replied. "Like I said, these allows me and anyone in the Secret Society to go to any universe we want. All thanks to Future Sonic, who started it all!"

"Wait, who's Future Sonic?" Sonic decided to ask, and as they reached the top of the building, they decided to stop so Sunset could catch her breath, although Sonic was the winner of their little race.

"He's the one that started the whole thing!" Sunset replied, panting heavily. "He's like this super edgy Sonic with an eyepatch and cool technology attacked to his wrists, but he's a good guy!"

"And how did he discovered my incident with the multiverse?" Sonic asked confused.

"Well, he didn't started the society because of you specifically." Sunset pointed out. "I mean, yes: The Secret Society was created after your incident, but I heard about another incident that was even worse, which finally impulsed Future Sonic to create the Society."

"What kind of incident?" Sonic asked, as he jumped and dived back to the ground, while Sunset followed along and dived towards him.

"Something about a universe shattering into 5 after a Sonic variant destroyed a prism..." Sunset replied. "I never followed that turkey talk, but it drives FS crazy whenever someone brings it up."

"A Sonic that shattered his own universe in 5 different ones?" Sonic questioned. "I don't blame this FS fella, I would be upset too if that happened to my own universe!"

"Same here!" Sunset agreed.

Soon, Sonic curled into a ball and made a Homing Attack towards a building, once again running over it, while Sunset flew at his side again.

"That still leads me to my initial question, though: What are you doing here?" Sonic asked her concerned. "I know for a fact that you didn't just came to have a chit chat with me. I can feel it!"

Sunset's eyes widened after hearing that, and she stopped on her place, still flapping her wings, but now also having an anxious look.

She couldn't tell Sonic something, something so worrying and heartbreaking that could change Sonic's perspective over her visit. A part of her needed to tell him that truth... But thankfully, there was another reason of why she came, so she will ignore her initial concern for now.

Sonic noticed that she stopped following her and talking, so he quickly ran to her and stopped right in the building besides her with a raised eyebrow. "Uh... Sunset? You good?"

Sunset shook her head from her trance and looked over at Sonic, before her ears lowered and she looked away.

"...You're right..." Sunset said. "I'm not here just because I wanted to visit... Specially considering that... We're not precisely friends. We're still just strangers..." She pointed out, landing in front of him on the building.

"So there is a reason why you came to see me?" Sonic asked. "If you want to thank me for saving the multiverse, there's these two other Sonics you should go and thank as well, because I can't have all the credit––"

"No, no, no!" Sunset interrupted him. "Sonic, I'm here for a very serious and concerning reason... And you might not like it."

Sonic's eyes widened after hearing this, then he looked around to make sure no one was watching them, because if anypony took a picture of them now and published it, anyone could mistake this as Sonic cheating on Pipp, and he couldn't allow that.

"...Let's go to a place where no one will hear us..." Sonic muttered to Sunset. "Whatever it is you wanna tell me, it'll be in there." He stated, before turning around and boost in a certain direction.

Sunset was feeling bad that, even if she did had a reason to stay here, she had to stay quiet about the other thing she wants to tell him... But she couldn't brake the rules that Future Sonic gave her for this mission.

So, without further ado, Sunset opened her wings and decided to follow Sonic along, since she could see the blue trial he left behind as he ran in the distance.

Sonic eventually reached the abandoned Canterlot City from this world.

As he moved at normal paste across the city, Sunset felt bad at the sight: She was hoping that in any other universe, Canterlot wouldn't had fallen in ruins... But it was a pitiful wish, apparently.

"...I think you won't care about this, but... In my universe? Canterlot used to be my home before it fell to look like... Like this..." Sunset confessed.

After hearing this, Sonic's eyes widened, and so, he stopped moving for a second, before turning around to see Sunset with wide and surprised eyes. "W-What?! What do you mean this place was your home?!"

"Is it really that surprising?" Sunset asked confused.

"Duh!" Sonic said with concern. "Because if Canterlot used to be your home, that would make you as old as Opaline, and––" he stopped talking, and his eyes widened in realization, as he slowly looked up at Sunset. "...You... You are from Ancient Equestria, aren't you?"

Just by seeing Sunset look down to the floor with low ears and some tears forming on her eyes, Sonic understood his mistake. In fact, the realization got worse when he remembered the Human Sunset he met when the Emeralds travelled to that parallel world that one time.

That Sunset variant thought that Sonic was from Equestria, and she even confessed that she knew the Equestria she knew is gone now... The Alicorn Sunset in front of him knew that as well.

"...Sunset, I... I'm sorry..." Sonic apologized, as he slowly approached her, and placed a hand on her shoulder, not having to kneel since Sunset is taller now and is almost the same height than Sonic. "If I knew this was your home, I-I wouldn't had––"

"Sonic, is okay..." Sunset assured him with a little smile, also wiping away her tears. "It still hurts to think that my home, once being the biggest pride in Equestria, is now a bunch of ruins... But I have come to peace with that fact. Besides, there's an old draconequus in my world that doesn't makes me feel alone anymore, as well as an adult purple dragon."

"Draconequus?" Sonic asked, then he deadpanned. "You mean Discord? He lives in here..."

Sunset's eyes widened after hearing that. "There's a Discord in this universe?!"

"Yes there is..." Discord spoke with a frown, as he suddenly appeared at Sonic's side, but it only startled Sunset, since it caught her off-guard.

"Sup, Discord!" Sonic greeted him with a mocking smirk. "Still being a grumpy old man because I haven't left?"

"And you're still as sarcastic and stubborn as usual..." Discord deadpanned, before smirking once he saw Sunset. "And you must be Sunset Shimmer... From another universe, if my fellow Discord told me things right."

"Yeah, that's me!" Sunset said with a smile. "I know you're not the same Discord from my universe, but... I really miss my friends from my universe, and even if I'm allowed to visit them from time to time, it's still good to see a familiar face from my home."

"I understand the feeling, Sunset... I really do..." Discord replied with an understanding smile.

"Wait a second..." Sonic interrupted. "How do you know who is she? And what are you talking about with 'your fellow Discord'?"

"Geez, you really are impatient, Sonic..." Discord deadpanned with his arms crossed.

"I'm literally the fastest thing alive!" Sonic pointed out with a frown.

Discord rolled his eyes, but still decided to explain himself. "I can talk to myself between time and space. In other words: I can communicate with any Discord, it doesn't matter if it's canonical, from any fanfic, from the comics, from some past era... Or from another universe."

Sonic rolled his eyes as well and facepalmed. "Of course..."

"I shouldn't be surprised at all with this information, but is still impressive!" Sunset said with a smile.

"Eh, to me is just Discord being Discord." Sonic pointed out with a bored expression. "Anyways. Um, Discord, I know this is your home, and that you're still mad because of the fight the other two Sonics and I had with those three Eggmans, but could you make us an exception and leave us alone? We need to talk about something really important in private."

"What kind of something?" Discord asked, as he floated in the air and read a book that was upside down.

"There's something happening in the multiverse, and I really need to talk with Sonic about it so he can get the bigger picture of what's going on." Sunset explained with concern.

After hearing this, both Sonic and Discord looked over at Sunset with wide and panicked eyes.

"What?! For real?!" Sonic asked with concern.

"This is why I was having a hard time trying to tell you, Sonic!" Sunset pointed out with concern. "Discord, could you please leave us alone?"

Discord was worried after hearing that something was happening in the multiverse, specially because the Discord from Sunset's universe didn't tell him anything.

So, with a nod, Discord looked at Sunset. "...You have 30 minutes."

Sunset smiled after hearing this and nodded in a thankful manner, while Discord snapped his fingers and disappeared, leaving Sonic with a raised eyebrow as he looked at Sunset.

"You two truly understand each other, huh? Guess it's a multiversal thing." Sonic said with a smile.

"Yeah, well... Our home isn't what it used to be. We have worked together to make it better, but... Doesn't changes the fact that we miss the old Equestria sometimes..." Sunset pointed out.

"Well... You still have your new friends!" Sonic said, still smiling. "I'll say you're in good hooves and claws!"

Sonic walked ahead after saying this, while Sunset smiled slightly to him, but she also felt more guilty because of the fact that she's still hiding something to him.

Still, she shook her head and decided to keep following Sonic, as they reached Canterlot's Castle, which looked even worse than it her world now that she looked it better, although that was probably because of the fight between the three Sonics and their respective Eggmans from last year.

Soon, Sonic whistled from the balcony on top, looking down at Sunset and waving his hand. Sunset smiled, opened her wings and flew up, landing in front of the Blue Blur with a little smile.

"So, what's this thing concerning the multiverse that has dragged you to my humble universe?" Sonic asked with a mocking smirk.

"Are you always this cheeky with everyone?" Sunset asked with a playful look.

"Yup! It's part of my charm!" Sonic replied with a wink and his arms crossed behind his back.

Sunset rolled her eyes and walked inside of the castle. "I guess is a multiversal thing."

Once the two of them were inside Canterlot's Castle, Sunset pressed some buttons on her watch, which caused it to create a massive hologram across the room that projected several fights against numerous villains from some universes popping on in the wrong ones, although Sonic still didn't knew this.

"Holy cow..." Sonic muttered with a smile, impressed by all the Mobians and Equestrians working together as they fight against many bad guys. "This is impressive!"

"And this is not even half of what we're facing..." Sunset said with a smile, before making a serious expression. "Sonic, look at me."

The blue blur looked at her confused with a raised eyebrow, but judging just by her expression, she was going to talk about something very serious, so he decided to take this seriously as well.

"Over the past year, we've been dealing with a multiversal threat: Someone is moving villains out of their respective worlds and throwing them in others with the promise of taking it over." Sunset explained with a frown. "These videos are just a quarter of all the worlds we've been saving from these anomalies."

"Anomalies?" Sonic questioned.

"Anyone that's on a universe they don't belong to is an anomaly, Sonic." Sunset explained. "Our job in the Secret Society is to watch over the multiverse and put these anomalies back were they belong before the multiverse collapses."

"So you're like angel guardians for every universe..."

"That's a way to put it, yes. But we're also just a bunch of variants from one character that want to keep the multiverse safe from any possible threat... We never thought our first challenge ever will be this dangerous, though..."

"This doesn't make any sense..." Sonic muttered with concern. "Why would anyone put other villains in the wrong universe? There has to be a reason behind their actions..." He pointed out, but then, his eyes widened, and he gasped. "Unless..."

"What?" Sunset asked. "Sonic? What's the matter? 'Unless' what?!"

"Unless whoever's doing this... Is doing it as a distraction..." Sonic pointed out.

"A distraction?"

"Think about it, Sunset!" Sonic said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "The threat behind this knows about the Society! If they didn't knew about it, they'll be making more than just moving villains from one universe to the other!"

"...But they are, though..." Sunset pointed out.

"Huh?"

"They're also stealing magic from all the magical creatures across the multiverse––" Sunset stopped suddenly, and her eyes widened. "...But that didn't started to happen until a month ago... Up to that point, it was always villains getting sent to other universes!"

"Which means that this threat knows the Society exists!" Sonic pointed out. "Whatever they're planning, they needed to keep the Secret Society out of the way, so––"

"So they started to move villains all across the multiverse to keep us busy!" Sunset realized with wide and panicked eyes. "Celestia dang it! We were tricked!"

"And now they're stealing magic from other worlds..." Sonic pointed out with a frown. "Since time doesn't exists in the multiverse, whoever's behind this is taking their time, knowing there's no rush about it..."

"This is even worse than my initial thoughts..." Sunset realized, before sighing and look at Sonic. "Okay. I was honestly going to tell you this after asking you something first, but maybe your answer to that first question will be stablished once I tell you what I have to!"

"Sunset, honey, just get to the point and stop baffling stuff..." Sonic said, placing his hand on his hip and deadpanning.

Sunset nodded and took a deep breath. "You remember that you destroyed the Paradox Prism and its fragments split up in smaller pieces, right?"

"Yeah..." Sonic replied, but then, his eyes widened in panic when he got where Sunset was going with this question. "...This threat we're talking about... They have either one or some pieces from the Prism, don't they?"

Sunset only nodded with concern, and Sonic felt his soul separating from his body for a split of second... So he burned down his arm for nothing? He almost lost one of his extremities, and yet the Paradox Prism is still a big danger for the entire multiverse?

"And... You... You've been wondering why the Opaline from this universe suddenly just disappeared... Right?" Sunset kept talking, but know looking at the ground with concern and rubbing a hoof nervously.

"Uh, yeah? But what does that has to––" Sonic tried to ask... but then, the truth hit him like a bullet...

Opaline has the power to steal magic, no matter if its Dragon Fire or normal magic. She saw Eggman either sending his badniks and machines to them or even attacking by himself, which is pretty similar to how the multiversal threat has been moving villains across the multiverse.

He also remembered that Tails has one of the pieces from the Prism, since it fell to the water along him after he destroyed it with the Inhibitor Disc and the Prism Energy of his body...

"...Opaline is the threat to the multiverse..." Sonic realized with wide and panicked eyes.

"And we're sure is the same Opaline from this universe because we have a source that confirmed to have seen her coming out from this universe." Sunset explained with concern.

"And now she's taking over the multiverse..." Sonic said with concern, as he sat over a piece of rubble and passed his hands through his quills.

"That's why FS sent me here." Sunset revealed. "He believes that both you and Sunny are crucial to stop Opaline! He wants you both to join the Society... But he also will understand if you refuse the offer."

This was a lot to process now...

He still couldn't believe that after almost loosing his arm, the Paradox Prism was still a problem in the multiverse. Worse of all, that Opaline wanted it now.

He didn't knew anything about her plan, but if she's stealing magic from other universes and looking after the pieces of the Paradox Prism, it's safe to say that her plan is to be powerful enough to rule over all the realities across the multiverse... Something he couldn't allow.

After a whole year of no adventures and no sign from both Opaline and Eggman, he knew where one of them was now, but he couldn't allow her to get away with her plan.

And, since Sunset mentioned Sunny, it's safe to say that he would definitely not be alone on this new multiverse odyssey, because he'll have company. He still needed to find a solution to control the Prism Energy on his body, but he would think about that later.

"...Well..." Sonic started, before slowly smirking and look over at Sunset. "The Opaline threatening the whole multiverse's existence is from our universe. I think is Sunny's responsibility and mine to make sure she doesn't gets away with her plan!"

After saying this, Sunset smiled and nodded with a determinate look.

"So... How do we join this Elite Team of yours?" Sonic asked mockingly, also placing a fist on his hip.

"Well, we first gotta tell Sunny about this..." Sunset pointed out, before smirking. "After that, well... You two will have to pass a test in order to join the team!"

Author's Notes:

You guys might think that the story is going slow so far, but trust me: It only gets better from here on.

In today's episode, we saw the same Sunset Shimmer variant from Phantom-Dragon's story, which's sequels were written by JesusG0987. Like I said, she'll have an important role in this story, so expect more of her as the adventure goes on.

Now, the world Opaline was invading was this story written by TwiShine45, while the Sonic Sunset mentions and blushes about is from this story by Arcing Light.

As for the universe that Sunset says it drives FS crazy, that universe is the Sonic Prime show. It was also mentioned by FS in the previous chapter (He referred to it as Universe 151222, but I didn't realized I didn't mentioned this until now )

Anyways. That's everything for now! As I said, the real thing starts next chapter. See ya until then!

3. The Call for Adventure

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Universe 040222

Izzy was running as fast as her hooves allowed her to run.

It's been a week or so ever since her whole reality started over, and now, she was stranded on the Ancient Equestria Sunny always fan-girled about... It wasn't as beautiful as she expected it to.

Although the problem isn't the setting, to be honest, because she's been here before. After all, she came to this world several times to meet with her friends from this era. The real problem is who is chasing her... Somepony she believed was defeated in the previous reality she changed.

"S-She shouldn't be here... She was defeated!" Izzy muttered to herself as she kept running as fast as she could. "H-How did she survived?! This makes no sense!"

Suddenly, some kind of sixth instinct shouted her in her mind to move left, and move left she did so, because at her right, a massive blast of fire was shoot and could have killed her. With a yelp and eyes open wide in panic, Izzy forced her hooves a bit more to keep running, since she really didn't wanted to die.

Soon, she started to dodge more and more of those fire blasts, as she seriously wanted to escape alive and simply hide somewhere, anywhere where she could be safe.

Unfortunately, a figure flew over her, and just when Izzy finally spotted a cave and started to head towards said place, a figure landed in front of her, stomping their hooves loudly and showing off their open wings, which were both flaming in fire, as well as their horn.

Izzy stopped moving and looked with wide and panicked eyes at the figure in front of her: Queen Opaline Arcana, who seemed intact, menacing, alive.

She also had a small red crystal attached to her right foreleg's bracelet, one that looked just like the one she collected right before the entire universe shifted and sent her in here... Maybe that's how Opaline survived and was chasing her now? It was hard to tell.

"Going somewhere, little pony?" Opaline asked Izzy with a sinister grin.

Hearing her voice gave Izzy huge PTSD, as she started to remember the fight she and her friends had against the Fire Alicorn, right before she killed...

Shaking her head, Izzy reminded that last thing, and fear faded away to let in the feeling of hate and anger, something she rarely felt before, but it was justified with Opaline. After all, she killed one of her friends, and she wasn't going to allow the Fire Alicorn to hurt her or anypony else ever again.

So, with a warrior cry, Izzy charged up her horn and shot against Opaline, but the Fire Alicorn's grin never disappeared. In fact, she even let Izzy launch her powerful and devastating attack.

She was letting go all her frustration and hate with this blast. For everything Opaline ever did she was getting revenge: To Misty, to Sunny, to those poor souls that Opaline killed with no mercy, and to herself and her friends, who fought until their last breath to keep Equestria safe.

Izzy started to tear up as she launched this attack, but she didn't cared if it was hurting her. She only wanted to make sure Opaline felt in pain for everything she did.

And so, after several seconds where she used all her strength into that powerful blast, Izzy finally let go, before falling on her tummy over the ground and start to pant painfully and exhausted, but also smiling, because she felt a huge weight get off her shoulders now that she launched that attack...

An attack that did nothing to Opaline.

The Fire Alicorn's maniac laugh was everything Izzy needed to hear to understand that she used all her strength in that attack for nothing, and that weight came back, as well as the PTSD.

Soon, the dust left by Izzy's blast dissipated, and it showed that Opaline was completely fine. She didn't even used a shield to protect herself, and she was still intact. Izzy was so confused, but a part of her felt that she should had expected an outcome like this one.

Suddenly, Opaline disappeared, like if she was just a ghost, and that confused Izzy even more, but then, she felt something on her back, and her eyes widened in panic again, while she gulped nervously.

So, she slowly turned at her side, and she found Opaline right there, grinning sinisterly at the unicorn mare.

"You really thought you had me there, didn't you?" Opaline mocked up.

Of course, Izzy's first instinct was to try and get up to run away from her, but Opaline had no mercy on her and kicked her really hard, sending her rolling over the ground, until she crashed on her back against one of the walls of the cave she initially tried to escape to earlier.

Izzy fell painfully into the ground, but then, she grunted in pain when Opaline suddenly zoomed to her and kicked her again, this time even hitting her face and making her nose bleed.

Izzy rubbed her nose with her hooves, and she started to tear up again, but then, she was surrounded by a magical aura and lifted in the air, then abruptly approached to face Opaline again, as Izzy now felt scared, because she couldn't move at all surrounded by Opaline's magic.

"You truly are a stubborn pony no matter the universe, aren't you?" Opaline said with a frown.

"U-Universe?" Izzy said, both confused and scared.

"Yes. Universe. U, N, I, V, E, R, S, E!" Opaline replied with anger. "Did you understand it, or is your little brain presenting problems to process this information?!"

Izzy gulped nervously and looked around, not knowing what to do to escape alive from this.

"I've been traveling countless worlds for a full year now, and thanks to you, not only I finally have enough strength to start looking for all the fragments of the Paradox Prism..." Opaline started.

After that, she levitated the green piece of the Prism's shard, before attaching it to her left foreleg's bracelet, which sent a green shockwave across her body, even making her eyes to glow bright in green electricity, as well as causing her horn and wings to light up with green fire.

"But now, I can travel even FURTHER into the multiverse!" Opaline shouted with pride, followed by her maniac laugh that made Izzy remember all the Fire Alicorn did again.

"W-What are you talking about?!" Izzy shouted confused. "H-How did you managed to survive the reset?! How are you still alive?!"

Opaline stopped laughed and deadpanned at Izzy, then rolled her eyes annoyed and shook her head in disapproval. "Oh, Izzy, Izzy, Izzy... In case you haven't understand: I'm from another universe, and soon? YOU AND ALL YOUR PATHETIC FRIENDS FROM THIS WORLD WILL KNEEL TO ME!!!"

After saying this, Opaline absorbed Izzy's magic by opening her mouth and turning her eyes white, while Izzy screamed in pain, as her Cutie Mark slowly disappeared, meaning that she lost all her magic.

After this, Opaline released Izzy, who fell unconscious in the ground, while the Alicorn started to laugh like a maniac once again, before turning around and now open a green portal, as she traversed it to leave this universe.

Universe 220822

Sonic decided to bring Sunny over to Canterlot and explain her everything Sunset explained.

Of course, hearing that an Alicorn Sunset Shimmer from another universe that personally knows Twilight Sparkle was a massive shock enough for the Earth Pony mare, but hearing that she wanted her help and Sonic's to save the multiverse from Opaline? Now that blowed her mind.

"Oh my gosh..." Sunny muttered with wide and shocked eyes.

"Are you prepared for what's coming?" Sonic asked Sunset with a playful smirk, also laying over a wall with his arms crossed.

"Yeah. I'm used to it." Sunset replied.

"OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH!" Sunny exclaimed loudly in excitement. "Sunset Shimmer... T-Twilight Sparkle, too... T-They want my help to save the whole multiverse?!"

After saying all of this loudly, she squealed in excitement, still finding hard to believe that she could be helpful for Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle to face off Opaline and stop her from conquering the multiverse.

"Well, yeah!" Sunset replied with a smile. "Since you and this giant blue rat have faced her in the past, we're really convinced that you guys can help us out!"

"Blue rat? Is that going to be my nickname now, bacon head?" Sonic asked and mocked up with a smirk.

"W-Well... Yeah!" Sunny said in excitement. "I would love to join the cause! I mean, whenever else you get a chance like this one to meet freaking Twilight Sparkle herself?!"

"See? I told you she'll say yes!" Sonic said, before zooming to stand at Sunny's side and wrap an arm around her neck. "So, now that we both accepted to help. What's this test you mentioned before about?"

"Wait, test?" Sunny asked confused.

"Yeah, I was getting to that..." Sunset said with a sheepish smile and a chuckle. "You see, to join the Secret Society, there's a total of 2 tests: One physical, and one verbal."

"Well, that doesn't sounds so bad!" Sonic said with a smile.

"Yeah! We've been doing a lot of physical stuff the past three years. I say we have this!" Sunny agreed.

"Well, the physical test isn't that difficult, and I'm convinced you two will pass it with no problems." Sunset admitted with a smile. "The verbal one? That's gonna be hard..."

"Why, exactly?" Sonic asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Because the verbal test is made by..." Sunset started, before looking around and then look back at Sunny and Sonic. "The chief!"

"...Who?" Sunny asked.

"FS!" Sunset replied with concern. "He makes sure everyone passes the verbal test while pressuring them to answer! But trust me when I say this: With you two, he won't have mercy."

"Why with us, specifically?" Sonic asked confused, but also frowning and crossing his arms.

"Sonic, FS hates Universe 151222 because it disrupted its own universe, remember?" Sunset pointed out. "What do you think he's gonna say to the guy that travelled through the multiverse and fought the guy that almost made it collapse?"

Sonic's eyes widened, and he clearly understood Sunset's point. Worse of all, considering Sunny is from the same universe, he was convinced that FS won't be nice with either of them.

"Yeah, okay. I see your point..." Sonic muttered with concern. "But we don't have to let him intimidate us! We've been through a lot of crap the past three years. We can deal with this guy!"

"Right!" Sunny agreed once again with a determinate look and smile. "FS thinks he can scare us? Well, then let's hurt his ego by passing his tests!"

"That's the kind of attitude we expect in the Society!" Sunset said with a smile. "Oh, but before we move to that, there's another thing I should tell you, and this one isn't related to the multiverse, but... It is something you have to know!"

"What is it?" Sonic asked.

To this, Sunset pressed a button on her gizmo, and showed footage of Eggman in Mobius, building up his machines in one of his factories.

"I still don't know who sent this, but I received this footage from this universe's Mobius." Sunset explained. "I think Dr. Eggman is there, and whatever he might be planning, I don't think is good."

"So that's where Eggman's been the whole year?! IN MOBIUS?!" Sonic screamed with disbelief, also grabbing his quills and messing them up a bit.

"And he's building more badniks?!" Sunny said with concern.

"Among other stuff, I think..." Sunset replied with concern, stopping showing the images. "I'm telling you this because I know that Mobius is also your home, Sonic. I know you guys want to help us save the multiverse, but I'll understand if you'd rather stay here and––"

"No, no, no!" Sonic and Sunny said in unison.

"We're still going to help to save the multiverse!" Sonic stated.

"However, we're gonna have to stay and explain this to everyone else." Sunny pointed out.

"Oh..." Sunset said with wide eyes, while her ears lowered and she scratched her neck a bit nervous. "W-Well... The thing is, uh... I was hoping this was going to remain a secret between us three? You know, because the Secret Society is named like that for a reason..."

"We can't lie in the faces of our friends, Sunset" Sonic pointed out with concern. "Otherwise? I don't think I could consider myself a good friend anymore..."

"Me neither..." Sunny said, agreeing with Sonic's words.

Of course, hearing this made Sunset feel even worse because of what she's hiding from them both, but she still refused to tell them, specially since they still need to learn about something that FS will explain them.

So, Sunset sighed and rubbed her head a bit. "...FS is gonna kill me if he ever finds out about this, but... I'll let you guys explain what you have to."

The next day, Sonic and Sunny had to explain the whole thing to their friends.

Or at least summarize it: They told them that Mobius was in danger, as well as the multiverse, and they explained why they needed them to go to Mobius and stop Eggman from whatever he is doing.

"So Eggman's been in Mobius the whole year?!" Knuckles exclaimed in anger. "Ugh! I should've known that son of his egg mother was going to move eventually!"

"Well, the good news is that we have the Chaos Emeralds, and that first machine to open a portal I made in Season 1!" Tails pointed out with a smile. "However, I still don't get why you two specifically can't come with us?" He confessed, pointing at Sonic and Sunny.

"Since the multiverse is at stake, we cannot go with you guys." Sonic pointed out.

"Sunset said her boss only needs us two, and trust me when I say I hate leaving you all behind!" Sunny added with concern. "But if we wanna join the cause... We have to follow their rules."

"I find it pretty strange that this 'Secret Society' has existed for a full year, but they're showing up just now..." Shadow said with a frown.

"Hate to admit it, but I'm with Shadow on this one..." Amy said with concern. "Why this Secret Society didn't tried to communicate with us before? O-Or recruiting Sonic earlier? He literally travelled through the multiverse and is one of the reasons why they made the Society in the first place!"

"This smells really fishy..." Zipp said with concern, also rubbing her chin, before smiling. "But, I do admit that I'm curious on meeting Mobius! And, we're doing this for a greater cause too, remember?"

"Yeah! Eggman is also dangerous, and while Sunny and Sonic deal with Opaline, we deal with Eggman!" Izzy pointed out cheerfully.

"I think this is a win-win situation!" Misty agreed with Izzy with a smile.

"I really don't like how this all sounds, but... If it's for a greater good, then I'm down!" Hitch said, before he walked over to Sunny and wrapped her on a hug, while Sunny giggled and hugged him back. "Just be careful wherever you two are going, okay?"

Sunny broke the hug and smiled warmly at Hitch, before tenderly kissing his lips and then pull away. "I'll be back in one piece, Hitchy. I promise~"

On the other hand, Sonic approached Pipp, who was flying and looking down at him with her hooves crossed and a frown.

"I know, I know... Another broken promise, but this time around is not my fault!" Sonic said defensively, but Pipp's posture remained the same. "Look, Pipp, sweetie. I'll make it up to you, I promise... But after a whole year wondering what was next in my life, I finally have the chance to actually do something and not just stand on the ground, waiting for my arm to recover."

Pipp's frown seemed to be shifting, but Pipp herself wanted to remain mad, although she was failing.

"I have the chance to do something bigger, something that's gonna help everyone in the multiverse!" Sonic pointed out. "I won't make any more promises because, at this point? We already know something's gonna happen that will make that promise brake... But I do know I can make it up to you..." He added with a little smile, now extending his hand to her.

By some instinct, Pipp slowly descended and landed in the ground, placing her hoof on Sonic's hand, while he caressed it tenderly, and even if Pipp wanted to keep acting mad, her frown was disappearing at this point.

"I'll come back as intact as I can. No extremities will be compromised!" Sonic assured with a wink. "The only promise I'll make... Is that I'll be back with you. No matter what it takes."

After saying this, Sonic kneeled and tenderly kissed her hoof, the same way he did back when they first met, and Pipp's heart melted. She even blushed slightly, but then quickly shook her head and looked at Sonic with a frown.

"...I really hope... That you come back." Pipp limited herself to say. "Intact or not, I don't care... I just want you back with me, Blue Star... Understood?"

Sonic smiled and nodded, before kissing her hoof one last time. "Hai, hai, senchō~" He replied, saying 'Aye, aye, captain~' in Japanese.

Pipp smiled, before tenderly kissing Sonic's lips and then separate, while Sonic walked back to see his Mobian friends.

"And you three? Better quick Eggman's ass so hard that he can't sit in a month at least!" Sonic told them with a smirk.

"Let's triple it to three months, and it's a deal!" Knuckles said, extending his fist with a smirk, while Sonic snorted and fist-bumped with him.

"I'm with Pipp, Sonic: Intact or not, you better come back!" Amy warned with a frown.

"Yes, Captain Rose!" Sonic said with a salute and a wink, before looking at Tails. "Little bro? Can I trust you to lead the team while I'm out with Sunny saving the multiverse?"

"As long as Knuckles behaves himself, we'll be fine!" Tails assured with a smile and a wink.

"Hey! Why am I always the butt of the joke?!" Knuckles complained.

"They love messing with you, Knux. You should know that already!" Amy pointed out with a chuckle, but Knuckles still groaned and rolled his eyes annoyed.

"As for you three? Trash down Eggman as usual! I know you guys won't disappoint me in that department!" Sonic told Team Dark with a mocking smirk.

"Destroying Eggman is my top priority!" Omega informed, as he changed his left hand to his weapons and charged for a second.

"Take care of Sunny, Hedgehog." Shadow told Sonic with a frown and his arms crossed, but when he opened his mouth to say something else...

"I know what are you gonna say, faker, and let me assure you that I'll be the first one to hit myself if Sunny gets a single scratch." Sonic said with a calmed smirk. "After me, is Hitch, then Tails, and you can have the pleasure to hit me the hardest if that happens!"

"The you better make sure she comes back intact, faker." Shadow warned, but smirking as well.

"Have fun, blue!" Rouge told Sonic with a smile.

"Not as much as you three with Eggman!" Sonic stated with his thumbs up.

On the other hand, the mares of the Mane 6 were all hugging tightly Sunny in a goodbye manner, but as Zipp, Pipp and Misty let her go, Izzy kept hugging her tightly.

"Um... Izzy? This is the part where you let me go, you know?" Sunny pointed out with a sheepish smile, but still not braking the bear hug Izzy was giving her.

"I'm gonna miss you so much!" Izzy cried out dramatically with some tears on her eyes.

"Aww! I'll miss you too, Iz..." Sunny said with a smile, before looking over at the rest. "In fact, I'm gonna miss all of you! But we're all fighting for a greater cause here. And you all have it easier than me!"

"Yeah... We face a coo coo crazy Alicorn that can move across the Multiverse, you guys are facing Eggman and his robots..." Sonic pointed out as he zoomed in. "Nothing you guys haven't done before!"

However, after saying this with a wink, he was wrapped in another tight hug by Izzy, and Sonic chuckled, hugging her back.

"I'm sure you guys will have more excitement than us, though..." Zipp said, rolling her eyes and smirking. "Still, be careful out there."

"Take care of each other!" Misty added with a smile.

"And please come back with us!" Pipp reminded with a little smile, although she was still really worried, both for Sonic and Sunny.

"Like if you could get rid of me that easily!" Sonic joked with a smile.

Meanwhile, Sunny was hugging Sparky tightly like a loving mother would do with her child, and even kissed his head tenderly, while the baby dragon babbled happily. Then, he jumped and landed on Sonic's head, hugging him and nuzzling over him, while Sonic chuckled, grabbed Sparky and messed his head a bit with a fist.

After that, he gave the baby dragon back to Hitch, while Sunny was being hugged tightly by Tails and Shadow, the latter not even caring if he was showing some affect in public.

After this, Sunny and Sonic looked at each other, nodded, and then prepared to run away.

"Whoa, wait, Sonic!" Tails said suddenly, and both Sonic and Sunny turned to him. "I forgot something!"

After saying this, Tails took out some kind of gear-like bracelet that had an Inhibitor Disc at the top, which Sonic used recognized immediately, because it looked exactly like the ones rotor made for him last year.

"I have the feeling that you still have Prismatic Energy inside of you, so I made this!" Tails explained with a smile, giving Sonic the bracelet with the Inhibitor Disc. "I call it Inhibitor Bracelet!"

Sonic grabbed the bracelet and looked at it with a smile, before put it on his right hand, since he did knew that he still had some of the Prism's energy inside of him.

"You just have to let it calibrate a bit once you arrive to any universe, and then, you have to press the disc like a button!" Tails explained with a smile.

"Well, this will certainly be useful! Thanks, little bro!" Sonic told him with a smile.

With this ready, Sonic turned around, then positioned to run, took a deep breath, and when he opened his now electrical blue eyes, he smirked, before both him and Sunny boosted away, since the Earth Pony mare activated her Alicorn form to keep up the pace with Sonic.

And where were they running to? Well, they moved towards Canterlot again, since Sunset was waiting for them in there.

Once they came back to Canterlot's Castle, Sunset looked at them with a smile. "Well, took you long enough!"

"Sorry for the delay, Sunset. We took a while saying goodbye to our friends..." Sunny said with a sheepish smile.

"And Tails give me this so my Prismatic Energy won't get out of control, in case you wonder what is it." Sonic explained with a smirk.

"Oh!" Sunset said with wide eyes and a chuckle. "Well, that does gets out of the way why you have that on your arm... Anyways!"

After this, Sunset pressed a few buttons on her watch, and then, an heptagon-shaped portal opened behind her, as it glitched a bit and made some rubble around float in the air, while Sunny stared at the portal in awe.

"Our next destination is the universe where your physical test will take place" Sunset explained with a smile. "Come on, you two! Try to keep up!" She mocked up, before crossing the portal.

"Hey, that's my line!" Sonic said playfully, but before he could follow Sunset, Sunny grabbed him from an arm.

"Sonic, wait!" Sunny said with concern, and Sonic turned to her with a raised eyebrow. "I... I know you have done this thing of traveling through the multiverse before, but... I'm... I'm still nervous and unsure about this..."

"What do you mean?" The Blue Bluer asked with concern.

"I know this is all for a greater good, but... What if we don't fit in among the Secret Society? I mean, there's a bunch of variants from ourselves there already!" Sunny pointed out with wide and panicked eyes. "I know that Sunset says is Future Sonic the one who believes we are the key to defeat Opaline since she's from our universe, but... What if he's wrong? What if we don't belong with them?"

Seeing what concerned her so much, Sonic felt sympathy for her, but he still smiled warmly and kneeled to face her. "Sunny, I understand your concern... But I have a really good feeling! You think that if this FS didn't believed we can help, then he wouldn't had sent Sunset to help us?"

Sunny looked up at him with surprise, then thought about his words for a second. "...I... I guess you have a point..."

"And what's that crap about not fitting in? Sunny, we'll be going to a place full of more Sonics, more Sunnys, more Twilights... More everyone!" Sonic pointed out with excitement. "These guys are us from all across the multiverse! Not fitting with them is like trying to pull out a blue ball from a bag of red balls... It makes no sense! Trust me, Sunny-Bunny: We belong with them!"

After hearing all of this, Sunny smiled, and now, excitement filled her as well. "Okay. I feel better now. Let's go and take that test!"

With this statement, they both decided to traverse the portal together, while a white flash blurred them for a moment, until their vision was now switched like if it had static from an old TV...

Soon, the Static effect came to end, and now, Sonic was narrowing his eyes.

The blue hedgehog was traveling at top speed across some kind of heptagon-shape tunnel, but while he was positioned like if he was diving at first, soon he loose control over his own body, which resulted on him screaming in panic and moving wildly across the tunnel, until he reached the end of said tunnel with wide and panicked eyes.

Sonic screamed again, and one more time, his vision got blurred by a white flashlight.

Universe 271213

Once his vision cleared again, Sonic was now falling towards a city with massive buildings.

Sonic screamed in panic as he did so, and soon, he was bumping into a bunch of carps and cables hanging in the air, until he was sent upwards again because of some of said cables pulling him away.

Sonic screamed in panic as this happened, but he also noticed that both his right arm and his feet were glowing with the energy of the Paradox Prism, which made his eyes open wide. But then, he started to fell towards the ground again, so he quickly curled into a ball and launched himself towards a building.

Once he landed on the building, he slid a bit, but managed to stop. Then, Sunny came by and landed right at his side with a little smile.

"Well, that was quite the number!" She said with a giggle.

"I agree!" Sunset spoke, as she also landed near them. "You know how to make a show, blue rat!"

"Oh, ha-ha. So funny." Sonic deadpanned at the two mares, but then, his feet tried to get out of control, until Sonic decided to stand on his hands for a second.

"Uh... What's with your shoes and your arm?" Sunset questioned confused.

"Yeah... That think seems a bit dangerous..." Sunny pointed out with concern.

"Well, the Prismatic Energy inside of me allows me to travel to any universe I want by will, but it's out of control, so it ends up doing whatever it wants..." Sonic explained with a bored expression at first, before smiling. "Thankfully, Tails made this for me!"

After saying this, Sonic pressed the Inhibitor Disc like a button, and then stood up normally again. After this, the Prismatic Energy started to tune with the Inhibitor Bracelet, and so, Sonic's shoes changed to look red with grey sole, also having some yellow and black lines at the sides. His gloves also changed, and now they were grey with white fingers.

"Haha! There it is!" Sonic cheered with a smile. "No more energy overflow, no more slipping and sliding, an awesome look, and no smoke will come out for sure!"

"Whoa!" Sunny and Sunset said surprised.

"So this is what happens with your clothes thanks to the bracelet?!" Sunny asked amazed.

"Yup!" Sonic replied with a smirk. "But let's not focus on how cool my clothes look right now! We have a physical test to pass!"

"Right!" Sunset said, since she almost forgot why they moved here in the first place. "Follow me!"

With this, Sunset dived down from the building they were standing over and started to fly over the city, with Sunny following her example, while Sonic began to run over the buildings at top speed, before starting to run over the streets to follow the two Alicorns.

"So, what's our first test about, exactly?!" Sonic decided to ask.

Before replying, Sunset checked the information she had to make sure she wasn't wrong. "According to this data, there's a variant of a really dangerous enemy named King Sombra from Universe 240214 that has been dragged here to Universe 271213 by Opaline. Your test is to help us neutralize the enemy!"

"So we're fighting a guy that runs with smoke... Great..." Sonic deadpanned.

"Don't underestimate someone like Sombra, Sonic!" Sunny said with a frown. "I have read from him... He's a really dangerous threat, and we must stop him!"

"So we don't have to underestimate that guy. Understood!" Sonic said with a smirk.

However, Sunny's eyes suddenly widened when she reminded something that Sunset said. "Wait... Sunset, did you said 'help us' or 'help me'?"

However, before Sunset could explain herself, they all heard and saw a massive explosion, around 10 miles away from them.

"Less talk, more work! Get to it, rookies!" Sunset said, as she headed upwards to approach faster towards the explosion.

"Rookie? Me?! I literally explored the multiverse before this whole 'Secret Society' even existed, remember?!" Sonic shouted with a frown.

"She's just trying to see how good you work under pressure, and right now? You're not making a really good impression, Sonic..." Sunny pointed out with a deadpan, before following Sunset's example.

"Oh, great. Now she's judging my methods, too..." Sonic said annoyed and rolled his eyes.

Shaking his head from those thoughts, Sonic accelerated and moved towards the explosion's zone.

Meanwhile, at the place where the explosion happened, King Sombra was moving at fast paste, turned in some kind of black cloud that moved on its own.

"Haha! This is incredible, isn't it?!" King Sombra said with a smirk, while Sunset flied around and tried to see where he was going, since she had her horn charged and wanted to shot at him, but he simply kept moving around. "I feel like a complete new pony!"

"Where the heck is he going?!" Sunset explained with concern and rage.

Soon, Sunny joined her and charged her horn as well, but seeing how fast and randomly Sombra moved on his cloud, she groaned frustrated eventually.

"Can you please stop moving like that?!" She groaned in anger.

Soon, Sunset pressed a button on her watch, and a small screen that showed Twilight appeared. "I have eyes on the anomaly!"

"Then go and get him!" Twilight said with an annoyed tone. "You better not screw this up like with the last guy you were testing, Sunset. You know how the chief treated you..."

"Stop pressuring! You're being kind of nosy!" Sunset replied with an eye roll.

"Aw, come on, girl!" Sombra said with a laugh, before appearing on full body over a building. "You've gotta admit that this looks way cooler!"

"In your dreams, Sombra maltrecha!" Sonic spoke, and so, he kicked King Sombra's jaw since he appeared literally out of nowhere to surprise him, before throwing him from the building with a charged Spin Dash. "You forgot to watch your back!"

Sombra groaned in pain and cracked his neck a bit, before turning into a cloud again and start to move over and away from the trio.

"How did you did that?!" Sunset exclaimed.

However, Sonic began to run away at top speed, following Sombra close enough.

"Sonic, wait!" Sunny called out, as Sunset and her followed the blue hedgehog.

"Sombra isn't watching his back!" Sonic pointed out. "Two of us have to distract him the same way you two did, while the third one attacks him by surprise like I did! And because of that last part: Sunny, you're up next to kick his jaw!"

"Roger that!" Sunny said, as she stopped flying for a moment and turned to other direction.

"Sunset? You and I have to distract him and make him stop again!" Sonic told the other Alicorn.

"Sounds like a plan to me!" Sunset replied with a smile.

Soon, Sonic was running over the buildings again, while Sunset flapped her wings like she never did before.

"Sombra!" Sunset called out with anger, and the cloud stopping moving for a second, before moving upwards to dodge Sunset, who tried to kick his face with her forelegs.

"Hey, Ponyfied Shadow! Missed me?!" Sonic spoke next, but just when he jumped and prepared to hit Sombra with a fist charged in electricity, the cloud Sombra used to move dodged the attack as well.

"Hahaha!" Sombra cheered, returning to his normals self in the air for a moment. "You failed this time!"

However, he couldn't cheer any longer, because Sunny literally appeared right over him and blasted a powerful laser beam that sent the unicorn towards the ground, as he groaned in pain because of the hit and the crash.

Still, Sombra wasn't planning on giving up, and so, he turned again into the cloud and started to move far away, but now, he was using his powers to destroy some buildings in the process to distract the trio from him.

Of course, seeing what was his plan, Sonic's eyes widened in panic, because he saw thousands of ponies in danger, and even if they belonged to other universe, they were still innocent beings at the end of the day, and he wasn't going to allow them getting hurt.

"You two take care of Sombra!" Sonic said with anger. "Leave the citizens to me!"

"Sonic, wait! We can't let the anomaly escape!" Sunset pointed out with concern.

"And we won't!" Sunny assured her with a determinate look. "Didn't you hear what he said? He's gonna save all the citizens from the falling buildings and over the streets! He's the fastest thing alive in all the senses, he can handle it! We gotta take charge of Sombra before he makes the multiverse collapse for staying too long, right?!"

After Sunny said all of this, Sunset looked at her and blinked a few times, completely surprised and speechless by everything she just heard. "Wow... FS truly knows why he choose you two..." She commented with a smile. "You two really are perfect for this mission!"

After hearing this, Sunny couldn't help but smile and feel proud of herself and Sonic, before shaking her head and focus again. "Thanks for the compliment, but we have work to do!" She stated, before flying ahead and keep following Sombra.

Sunset smiled proudly, before following her example, while Sombra himself kept smashing buildings to try and distract them, but thankfully, Sonic was being twice as fast as ever, and he was getting everyone in danger out of it, also making sure that he wasn't leaving anyone behind.

After that, Sonic rushed towards Sunny and Sunset, then ran at top speed over a building, and then charged up his Spin Dash with electricity, before jumping over and try to hit Sombra again, but the cloud moved.

Then, Sunny came along and tried to hit him with other beam again, but Sombra dodged that one too and then materialized over a building. "I'm really getting tired of you––" He tried to say with anger, but he was cut off when Sunset launched a blast herself that sent Sombra flying away.

With this, Sunset rushed and tried to make the last hit, but...

"Haha, yes! You've got this, Sunset!" Sonic cheered, as he literally came out of nowhere, but still smiled at her with his thumbs up.

"Uh, thanks? I gue–– UGH!" Sunset yelped in pain when Sombra hit her in the face with his hoof and made her fall towards the ground.

"Oopsies!" Sombra said with a mocking tone. "Didn't expected that, did ya? I honestly didn't either."

Sunset tried to flap her wings, but before doing so, she hit her head against a ceiling and fell a bit dizzy, not able to think straight nor fly upwards.

"Sunset!" Sonic screamed in panic, before launching himself from his place and dive towards her.

"Oh no!" Sunny exclaimed in panic, but since Sonic was taking charge of rescuing her, she decided to take charge of deal with Sombra by herself.

"Woo! I'm in the zone!" Sombra cheered, before moving away happily.

Meanwhile, Sonic was diving towards Sunset, but he was not going to make it, and he wasn't close to a wall to use his super speed to reach the ground early and save her. So, he checked if his Inhibitor Bracelet allowed him to use the electrical lasso... but it didn't.

This made Sonic open his eyes widely in panic, and he also looked down at Sunset, who still felt dizzy and was falling towards her death.

"S-Sunset..." Sonic muttered with panic and an anxious look, before he finally extended his right arm at her. "SUNSET!!!" He screamed out loudly this time.

And suddenly, as his scream echoed across the entire city, Sonic's right arm started to glow brightly, before it transformed Sonic's arm with glitches, and soon, he now had the Werehog arm. Of course, this confused him a lot, but he had not time to question how it happened.

So, he extended the Werehog arm and grabbed Sunset, before pulling it back and grab Sunset in bridal style, curling into a ball and rolling on the ground, before sliding a bit and finally stop.

Once they were both safe, Sonic carefully placed Sunset in the ground, and then, he checked on her to make sure she was safe. "Are you okay, Sunset?"

Sunset groaned a bit in pain and shook her head, since she was still feeling a bit dizzy. "I... I guess I am..." She replied, before looking over at Sonic and smile. "Thanks for the save, but... How did you do it?"

Sonic looked over at his right arm, still turned into the Werehog one, before it glitched out again and restored it to the normal one.

"...I honestly don't know..." Sonic muttered. "Perhaps my arm has Prismatic Energy too, but... I have no idea how that one works..."

Suddenly, though, they both heard Sunny grunting, and so, they both looked upwards, just to panic at the sight of Sombra playing with Sunny in the air, before throwing her towards the ground.

"SUNNY!!!!!" Sonic shouted desperately in panic.

However, Sunny was soon saved by a strange figure that quickly moved in the air and zoomed right besides Sonic, leaving Sunny safe and sound at his side, which surprised Sonic, but still made him smile, and he hugged her tightly, while Sunset sighed in relief and smiled as well.

"Oh, thank Chaos you're fine, Sunny!" Sonic said happily. "Are you okay?"

"Uh... Yeah... I'm fine..." Sunny replied, feeling a bit dizzy and lost. "I... I was one second falling over, and now I'm here..."

"Yeah... Remember you asked why I said 'help us' before, Sunny?" Sunset reminded with a smirk, before pointing up in the air.

Both Sonic and Sunny turned, and what they saw truly amazed them: A pink pegasus with light blue hair, dark blue eyes, and two light blue lightning bolts as her Cutie Mark was flying at top speed towards Sombra, who didn't even had a chance to react at her first attack, then at the second, and then at the third one.

For the fourth one, though, he turned into a cloud again and moved aside, which made the pegasus groan, as she accelerated to chase him down and try to hit him.

"Who the heck is that?!" Sonic asked with a smile and amazement.

"Sonic, Sunny: Let me introduce you to Firefly!" Sunset said with a smile. "She's technically a Rainbow Dash variant." She explained, before she took flight away.

Sonic prepared to run behind, but then, he noticed that Sunny was with her jaw dropped, looking at the direction where Firefly flew away, and he rolled his eyes with a smirk, because he knew she was internally fangirling after hearing that she's a Rainbow Dash variant.

"Come on, Sunny! We have a multiverse to save!" Sonic reminded her, before boosting away.

Sunny shook her head and finally got out of her fangirling zone. "Oh, right... Right!"

After this, she took flight again and followed everyone else, while Sonic began to run over buildings again.

On the other hand, King Sombra was still trying to get away by demolishing several buildings, which was enraging Sonic.

So, both him and Firefly moved at super sonic speed to get everypony out of the streets, as well as out of the buildings that he was demolishing.

"Hey, you move really fast!" Firefly told Sonic with a smirk, as she flew in the air, while Sonic ran over the buildings.

"Yeah, well, it's kind of my thing!" Sonic said with a huge mocking smirk. "I guess you are Firefly, the fastest pegasus in Equestria?"

"And you are Sonic the Hedgehog, the fastest thing alive!" Firefly replied with the same mocking tone.

"Oh, you've heard about me?" Sonic kept mocking up.

"Dude, I have interacted with at least 40 versions of you!" Firefly replied with a snort.

"Well, I have met other versions of you as well!" Sonic stated. "Although it was actually Rainbow Dash, but... You get it!"

As these two talked, Sunny saw the whole scene, and she couldn't help but smile, because Sonic's attitude during this whole chase was 10 times better than it has been for the past year.

Sunset noticed where Sunny was looking and raised an eyebrow. "Girl, keep your focus!"

That took Sunny off guard, and she shook her head a bit confused. "What? Oh! Right! Sorry... I just, uh... Sonic's been distant and a bit depressed the past year... Is nice to see him as himself again."

Sunset raised an eyebrow confused after hearing this, but she decided to let the subject die there.

Soon, the group jumped up and headed towards a building that had a pool on it, since Sombra decided to stop there and use his powers against the group, stomping his hooves on the ground and making several dark crystals come out of it and head towards them.

"Okay... That's new and weird." Sonic muttered, as he started to slide over one of the crystals, before curling into a ball and then charge against Sombra, hitting him on his face again.

Of course, this made Sombra groan in pain, and he tried to escape from there, but before he could even turn around, Firefly appeared from the other side and hit him on the face with her forelegs.

Groaning in pain, Sombra shook his head and tried to make more crystals come out, but this time, Sunny appeared and hit his chest, which sent Sombra backwards and made him crash against the door that leads downstairs in the building, falling to his knees in pain.

And finally, Sunset came out with her horn charged and launched a powerful blast against Sombra that sent the dark unicorn flying across several roofs, until he crashed on his back against a wall.

Sombra groaned even more and fell to his knees in pain again, groaning loudly after that blast. Then, Sunset quickly appeared in front of him using a teleporting spell, then pointed her watch at him and shoot a red electrical net that surrounded Sombra in the ground.

After this, the net slowly started to contract itself, until it wrapped Sombra entirely and leave him trapped. The net also deactivated his powers, because he tried to turn into a cloud again but couldn't.

"Don't bother, Sombra." Sunset said with a smirk. "That net won't let you use your powers until I say so."

Sombra groaned in anger, while Sonic, Sunny and Firefly arrived and looked down at Sombra with smiles.

"So, any last words before we kick you to your comfy cell until you get back to your own universe?" Sonic asked him with a mocking smile.

However, while Sombra growled in anger at first, it soon shifted into a sinister grin, and then into a maniac laugh, although it only confused the small group in front of him.

"I know I can be funny, but even I know I didn't said anything to make him laugh..." Sonic pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

Sunset, on the other hand, called Twilight again. "Twi. We have him. King Sombra from Universe 240214 has been captured. I'll sent you all the recordings of the test later."

"Good job, Sunset. No incidents happened? No canon events disrupted?" Twilight asked.

"No..." Sunset replied, before deadpanning once she heard that King Sombra was still laughing. "Just an anomaly that can't stop laughing for some reason..."

"It's King Sombra we talk about... He's just out of his mind." Twilight pointed out with an annoyed tone.

"Hey, Alvin, how about you stop laughing and share the joke with the class, huh?!" Firefly said with anger.

Soon, Sombra stopped laughing and let out a pleased sigh, but he still was grinning sinisterly. "Oh, no, just ignore me, I'm laughing at nothing. I just can't believe that you idiots never found the bomb I left behind during our little brawl!"

"BOMB?!" Sonic, Sunny, Firefly and Sunset all exclaimed in panic.

"What? A bomb?!" Twilight's voice spoke through Sunset's communicator. "Sunset?! Sunset! Did he really said something of a bomb?!"

However, before Sunset could reply, not so far from the building they were standing over, a bomb in fact exploded, and it started to make the building lean a bit towards the ground.

"Shoot!" Sonic shouted in panic, before boosting towards said building, with Sunny and Firefly immediately following behind.

Sunset planned to join them as well, but first, she had to deal with King Sombra. So, she opened an heptagon-shaped portal and grabbed Sombra by surrounding him on her magic, before she put him right in front of her and glared daggers at the unicorn, like if she was staring at his soul.

"Listen to me closely: If any of those citizens dies because of your stupid bomb, I not only won't sent you to that waste of space you call your home universe, but I will go there personally and destroy the canon, which will lead to your world collapsing, and to your inevitable destruction, as your whole body starts to fade away slowly, painfully, extremity by extremity, atom by atom, bone by bone, until nothing of your pathetic and miserable existence is left." Sunset threatened him with anger, and of course, King Sombra swallowed very nervously after hearing this. "Understood, pal?"

Of course, Sombra started to regret having put that bomb after everything Sunset told him, so he simply nodded his head and closed his eyes, hoping that he wouldn't get hit.

Yet, it was a pitiful desire, because Sunset left him on the ground, and then used her hind legs to hit him inside the portal, as Sombra screamed in pain and fear, while the portal closed, and Sunset let out a relieved sigh after telling him everything she needed to say.

"Wow..." Twilight's voice said, and Sunset's eyes widened, because the call never ended and she didn't realized that. "Remind me to never make you mad, girl... Ever. Even I felt goosebumps!"

"I know, I know... I can get really upset sometimes..." Sunset recognized. "But now is not the time for that! There's a bunch of citizens that need to be saved!"

After saying this, Twilight ended the call for real this time, while Sunset flew in the air and then boosted towards the leaning building.

Inside of the building, everypony was panicking a lot.

However, this was not only because the building was leaning, but also because there were a bunch of ponies trapped inside the other side of a massive crystal, which was reinforced with magic.

Soon, Sonic, Firefly and Sunny entered the building by braking a window, and while Sunny used her Alicorn magic to levitate some ponies and teleport them out of the falling building, Sonic and Firefly teamed up to used their super speed to get everyone else out.

Once they were all out and safe, the only missing ponies to rescue were the ones at the other side of the crystal reinforced with magic.

So, when Sunny came back, she tried to blast the barrier out by using her magic, while Sonic charged his fists with electricity and hit the barrier as well, with Firefly kicking it with her bare hooves, but nothing was making the barrier move or banish.

"Ah shoot!" Sunny said with concern. "This thing is stuck! We can't brake it!"

"Is reinforced with magic!" Firefly pointed out, but still tried to kick it. "Is destructible, but doing it is gonna take us a good while!"

"Then what do we do?! We don't have a good while!" Sonic exclaimed in panic, hitting the barrier even harder and very desperate.

Soon, Sunset arrived as well and saw what the others were doing, so she rushed and tried to blast the barrier down as well, but not even her magic was doing anything.

"What kind of reinforcement spell is this one?!" Sunset said with panic and anger.

"A really powerful one if not even Alicorn magic can take it down!" Sunny pointed out with concern.

"Don't you girls have something on your fancy watches that can help?!" Sonic asked with concern.

"Don't look at us, dude! We know as much as you do!" Firefly said in panic.

Sonic looked at the barrier with a frown, but then he looked at the ponies at the other side desperately trying to help on taking out the barrier as well, because the controllers for it got damaged due to the explosion.

Sonic had no idea on what to do, but then, his eyes widened, and he saw his right arm, remembering how it changed to the Werehog one back when Sunset was falling. "I wonder if..." He muttered, before focusing on the Prismatic Energy of his arm, which made it glitch before it shifted into a Knuckles' arm. "Yes!"

After seeing the transformation worked, Sonic looked back at the barrier and charged red electricity on the Knuckles' arm, before starting to hit the barrier again, and this time? It was doing something.

With each punch, the barrier cracked a bit like an egg, and it started to vanish from time to time, meaning that his plan was working.

Sunny noticed that Sonic's arm shifted to look like one from Knuckles, and her eyes widened in surprise. "S-Sonic?! H-How did your arm––"

"The Prismatic Energy of my arm is different than the rest of my body!" Sonic explained. "Apparently, it not only makes me travel across the multiverse: It also shifts my burned arm. I can have an extremity of anyone in the multiverse by just thinking about!" He explained with a smirk, still punching the barrier.

After hearing this, Sunny smiled, but when the whole building shook violently, because it was still falling.

"Gotta get them out of there, and fast!" Firefly said desperately, still kicking the barrier with her hooves. "Where the heck is my Twilight when you need her?!"

"We. Need. To move. NOW!" Sonic shouted, as he kept hitting the barrier with the Knuckles arm, but no matter if the crack in the barrier was getting bigger, it simply wasn't enough. "CRAP!" He shouted, hitting the barrier one last time in defeat.

There were a bunch of ponies about to die because he couldn't hit the damn barrier, and that was making him not only panic, but also having huge PTSD of when Longclaw died... He wasn't there so save her, now he is herd and can't save them... It was a loose-loose situation...

But he was Sonic the Hedgehog. He never takes a no as an answer, and he wouldn't begin today.

"I think is time to face it, Firefly..." Sunset said, tired of using her magic. "We cannot save them..."

"There has to be a way!" Firefly cried out desperately, still hitting the barrier.

"The barrier isn't braking, and the building is about to collapse!" Sunny pointed out. "We... We cannot do this..." She added with sadness, as her ears lowered.

Sunset's and Firefly's ears lowered as well, but then, Sonic shifted his right arm back to normal, then placed the tip of his fingers in the barrier and started to extract the electricity from the barrier, with his arms, quills and eyes glowing in neon blue electricity in the process.

"To everyone at the other side of the barrier: Stand back!" Sonic shouted.

The ponies immediately did that after Sonic started to charge, but they still wanted to keep their distance just in case.

"Sonic, what are you doing?!" Sunny asked with wide eyes and concern.

"I'm trying to sent the barrier's energy against it! It should destroy it because of an overcharge!" Sonic explained.

"Dude, you can do that?!" Firefly said with wide eyes, but also with a smile, not only because she found his powers impressive, but also because there was still a chance to save the ponies at the other side of the barrier.

"I didn't knew he could do that..." Sunset muttered, but Sunny managed to hear that, and she looked at the other Alicorn with suspicion and a raised eyebrow.

"Come on..." Sonic muttered, as his arms started to tremble because of the energy he has absorbed so far. "Come on!"

And so, without further ado, Sonic placed his full palms and sent the electricity back to the barrier, but even if it did made the crack in it bigger, it also sent Sonic backwards, as he landed on his back in the floor and groaned in pain.

"Okay... That didn't worked..." Sonic said in pain.

"You think?!" Sunset shouted.

But then, a figure jumped above him and surprised him, as he sat on the floor and looked in the direction the figure was running... It was a variant of himself, just that he had his quills in one row, and he also had a red guitar behind him.

This Sonic was running while moving his arms, before jumping ahead, bring out the guitar, his guitar pick, and then started to play a song at fast paste, as he finally traversed the barrier and destroyed it, all thanks to his guitar.

"Blue Buffon!" Sunset said with a smile and sparkling eyes.

"Buffon, my man!" Firefly cheered with a smile.

"Buffon?!" Both Sunny and Sonic said confused, the latter zooming at the former's side.

However, Sonic also noticed how happy Sunset seemed to be at seeing this variant of himself, and so, he realized who he truly is, which made him smirk mischievously.

"The coast is clear, people!" Buffon said with a smirk, but then, he noticed the other Sonic in the room, and his smirk grew bigger. "Lemme guess: Sonic the Hedgehog?"

"Sonic the Hedgehog!" Sonic replied with a proud smile. "You must be the fella from 200113!"

"And you're the one from 220822!" Buffon replied. "A piece of advice: Use the palms, not just the fingers."

After hearing this, Sonic looked over at his palms with wide eyes, and he almost felt like if he discovered all the secrets of the universe.

"...Yeah, that makes more sense..." Sonic said with amusement.

"How you know about me, by the way?" Buffon asked.

"Sunset talked about you." Sonic replied, zooming at Sunset's side with a smirk, while the Alicorn blushed at the reminder. "She seemed really happy when you showed up!"

Buffon smirked after hearing this, but then, he got slightly punched on his shoulder by Firefly, because she came by and pushed him playfully, so Buffon smirked and messed up her mane a bit.

"Firefly, my girl! My soul mate!" Buffon joked around, still messing her mane a bit.

Firefly snorted and got free of his grip, before playfully try to punch him on the face, while Buffon protected himself with his own arms.

"I don't get it... What is he talking about?" Sunny asked confused.

"Is his language to say that we get along well and we're close friends!" Firefly replied, before almost hitting him on his chest.

"Are you guys in the middle of your strength test or whatever is called?" Buffon asked with a smirk to Sonic and Sunny.

"Yup!" Sonic replied. "And I'm gonna be honest with you: You look cooler than Sunset said you'll look!" He added with a mocking tone.

Of course, Sunset chuckled and looked at him with a frown and a forced smile. "Sonic, what are you doing?!"

"She also said she crashes at your place sometimes!" Sonic kept mocking up.

"Oh, speaking of that: Sunset, you left your jacket at my place." Buffon told Sunset with a bored expression. "And your teeth brush, too."

"Ooh!" Sonic said with a mocking smile, and Sunset's face was completely red at this point. "Are you sure you just 'crash' on his place, Sunset~?"

"Can we focus on saving everypony now, please?!" Sunset said with a forced smile, also glaring daggers at Sonic, while her right eye twitched.

"Right!" Firefly said, realizing that she almost forgot why they're doing this in the first place.

And so, Sunny and Sunset used their magic to levitate some ponies and get them out, while Sonic, Buffon and Firefly used their super speed to get everyone else out of the building.

With them saved, the group exited the building and jumped towards the roof of another one, but they seemed to forget that the building was leaning, and it was heading towards citizens and more buildings.

Sonic's eyes widened in panic, and Firefly grabbed her mane with her hooves in panic. "This is bad... This is really bad!" She cried out.

However, Sonic nodded to himself with a determinate look and placed a hand on Firefly's shoulder. "We clear the path!" He stated to her with a determinate look, before looking at Sunny, Sunset and Buffon. "You slow down that building!"

After saying this, he immediately jumped ahead, and Firefly decided to follow without questioning him.

Then, Sunny and Buffon did the same, and since Sunset was the only one left behind, she groaned and rolled her eyes, before jumping ahead to follow the rest as well.

"I'll do it, but not because you told me to!" Buffon replied with a frown.

And so, Sunny, Sunset and Buffon started to move as fast as they could around the falling building to slow it down.

Sunny and Sunset used their Alicorn magic to surround the whole building with magical lassos coming out of their horns, both were orange colored; while Buffon used his guitar and touched the same melody from earlier, which made the guitar glow and release a blue lasso that started to surround the building as well.

With the three lassos ready, Sunny, Sunset and Buffon all jumped into three different buildings and started to pull the building up, although they were struggling because of how heavy it is.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Firefly were saving all the remaining ponies that kept falling from the building as fast as they could, and they also started to move all the ponies in the streets out of the way, while Sunny, Sunset and Buffon kept struggling to keep holding the building up.

But then, as Sonic and Firefly took the last few ponies and fillies out of the way and told them were to go, they both noticed that the falling building's strings were starting to weaken...

And then, the inevitable happened: The lassos all broke, which made everyone's eyes widen in panic.

The building was tarting to fall once again, and it was close to crash against more buildings.

Sonic and Firefly looked at each other, before nodding in agreement. And so, they both ran and flew at top speed towards the other buildings, with Sonic entering them and taking all the ponies he could out, while Firefly came and grabbed all the ponies she could that Sonic was launching out of the building.

And then, Sunny, Sunset and Buffon joined to the rescue team, which made Sonic launch them more ponies to save, until he grabbed a couple of Earth Ponies and jumped off the window.

However, as he did this, he sensed that something was about to hit them, so he turned around, shifted his right arm to a Knuckles' one again, and then destroyed a piece of rubble that was about to hit him and the Earth Ponies with one single punch.

After this, Buffon came by and grabbed the two Earth Ponies with a lasso made from his guitar, then grabbed Sonic's left arm and placed the Earth Ponies to safety over a building's rooftop with more rescued ponies.

After that, they both impulsed themselves towards the still falling building and ran over it, with Sonic shifting his right arm back to normal, before jumping ahead and making a little pose in the air, while the ponies from the group joined them by flapping their wings and staying in the air.

And yet, this was beyond to be over, because when the building hit the other one, that same building started to fall as well, now heading towards a bridge that had many ponies walking over it, until all those ponies panicked when they saw that the building was heading towards them now.

"It's going to destroy the Manehattan bridge!" Firefly exclaimed in panic.

"Manehattan?!" Sonic questioned with wide eyes, because that's the name of the city he visited back when he wanted to recover the Chaos Emerald from the human world. "Honestly, that name makes more sense here considering is a world of ponies..."

"We've got to save them before the building falls over them!" Sunset pointed out with concern.

"Uh, just to be clear about this: Are we still doing our physical test?!" Sunny questioned.

"Depends on how fast we can save them all, girl!" Sunset replied.

With this, Sonic curled into a ball and launched himself against the floor, while Buffon repeated this action, leaving the flying ponies to dive towards the ponies as well.

Once Buffon reached the ground, he jumped over a bus, before grabbing two fillies and get them out of the way, while a giant piece of rubble fell over the bridge and cause a big hole, making the bus start to fell into said hole, which made the ponies trapped inside scream in fear.

Inside said bus, there was a white unicorn filly with a lavender bow, green mane and tail, a red streak on her mane, teal eyes and five maple leaves as a Cutie Mark trapped.

Firefly noticed this, and her eyes widened in panic. "Gusty?!" She questioned with fear, before diving towards her, while her Cutie Mark started to glow and made some string come out of it. Said strings attached to the back part of the bus, and Firefly stomped her hooves hardly on the ground.

She was doing this to keep her balance and also to keep the bus from falling, since not only Gusty was inside, but also a bunch of other ponies in danger.

Meanwhile, Sunset grabbed some ponies that were falling towards the ocean with her magic and brought them to safety. Once they were out of danger, she sighed in relief, but then, her watch made a beep sound, and then, Nicole showed up as a small hologram.

"Sunset, heads up!" Nicole informed, as she had small screens around her to control some stuff. "My receptor predicts an incoming Canon Event. Search out carefully."

Sunset nodded, and so, she launchd herself towards another citizen to get him out of the way. "I'm on it!" She informed before flying away with the recently rescued citizen.

Suddenly, however, a filly was crying in the middle of the chaos, but nopony bothered to help her out, since they were too focused on saving themselves and run away.

"Hurry, everyone!" Buffon informed with a serious expression, as he guided a bunch of people towards an exit. "This way, quickly!"

But as they ran away, a white pegasus with yellow mane and tail, purple eyes and four red balloons as her Cutie Mark heard the cry from the filly, and so, she immediately turned around and moved towards the filly to help her out. "Don't be afraid, I'm coming!" She shouted, running towards the filly

Meanwhile, Firefly was still struggling to keep the bus from falling, but then, she heard the pegasus' voice, and so, she turned to see that she was moving towards the filly in danger, but she also noticed that a bunch of rubble was about to fall over both of them.

"SURPRISE!" Firefly shouted with wide and panicked eyes, and now, she didn't know who she had to save: If Gusty and the ponies on the bus, or Surprise and the filly.

Still, she tried to pull the bus up and tied it up on on the border of the cliff she was holding to.

"I-I can do both!" Firefly told herself, trying to tie up the string from her Cutie Mark and then go to save Surprise and the filly.

On the other hand, Sonic, Sunny and Sunset put some last ponies in danger to safety, but then, Sonic felt that something was wrong, and so, he turned to see that the rubble was about to fell over Surprise and that filly, but he wasn't going to allow it.

"I got them, I got them!" Sonic stated, launching himself towards them.

"Sonic, wait!" Sunset said, grabbing tightly his hand and shaking her head with wide and panicked eyes.

"Don't worry about me! I'm the fastest thing alive, remember? I'll be fine!" Sonic said with a smile.

"It's too dangerous!" Sunset pointed out with concern.

"I've done worse things, Sunset. Everything's gonna be okay. Promise!" Sonic assured with a smirk and a wink, before jumping of and get free from Sunset's grip.

"Sonic!" Sunset shouted with concern.

"Hey, Sunset!" Sunny called out. "He has a point. He'll be fine! Now come on! We've gotta get out of here!"

Sunny flew away immediately after saying this, but Sunset stared at Sonic with concern, because he isn't supposed to save Surprise, but now there he goes...

Meanwhile, Sonic arrived with Surprise and the filly. "Hey! I know you don't know me, but if you don't come with me, we're all gonna die!"

Surprise's eyes widened, but she still nodded in agreement at Sonic's words, and he nodded back with a smile.

Then, Surprise hugged tightly the filly, while Sonic grabbed the pegasus mare in bridal style and started to run away, as the rubble of the bridge getting destroyed fell over him even faster now, but he wasn't going to allow himself to give up, nor let this ponies die.

Unfortunately, the building ended falling over the bridge, and the rubble covered Sonic, Surprise and the filly.

The entire ground rumbled, and as Buffon stood over one side of the bridge, Sunny and Sunset stood flying in the air... But then, they noticed the building, and Sunny felt her heart running in panic.

"SONIC!" Sunny shouted desperately, as she launched herself towards the rubble, while Sunset and Buffon followed behind.

Soon, Sunset and Buffon helped out Firefly to get the bus back on the street, while Sunny immediately moved towards the rubble and moved it aside desperately. She didn't find Sonic in one of the sectors, so she moved to the next one and used her magic to move the rubble aside.

Then, she gasped when she saw something, and so, she lifted the rubble a bit more with her magic, while Sonic helped her out, because he was using his right arm, shifted like an Omega one, to lift the rubble as well, using the rest of his body to protect the filly.

Then, both Sonic and Sunny launched the piece of rubble away, while Sonic's arm shifted back to normal, and the filly was hugging Sonic's left arm as if her life depended on it.

"Y-You're fine!" Sunny said happily, not being able to contain her tears of joy.

"I promised it." Sonic pointed out with a smile.

And then, right at his side, some rubble lifted up, showing Surprise as well, who had a dizzy expression, but then she shook her head and smiled.

On the other hand, Sunset, Buffon and Firefly finished lifting up the bus, and as everypony exited safe and sound, Firefly immediately ran to Gusty and hugged her tightly, while Gusty hugged her back with a smile and tears of joy.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're okay, Gusty!" Firefly said with a smile.

Gusty smiled back, but then, she noticed that Surprise was also fine behind, and so, she rushed towards her and hugged her tightly, while Surprise hugged the filly back, while Sonic was holding the other filly on his arms to calm her down.

Sunset came by and noticed this, feeling conflicted on how to feel at the fact that Surprise didn't died. Still, she looked over at Sonic and Sunny with surprise.

"Not bad for a pair of rookies, huh?" Sonic mocked up with a smirk, and Sunny at his side smiled, bumping him slightly with a shoulder.

Sunset didn't knew what to reply, then she looked at the watch and saw a big sign that said 'Canon Event Disrupted', which made her eyes open wide.

Still, she looked back at Sonic and Sunny with a smile. "...Yeah... It was great..."

Sonic and Sunny smiled, and Sonic placed down the filly carefully, while she ran away and hugged her parents tightly, who hugged her back.

Suddenly, though, Sunny hugged Sonic tightly. "You scared me for a second, you idiot... I thought you died!"

"Sorry for that, Sunny" Sonic apologized with a smile, hugging her back. "But hey! Look at what we just did!" He added, now pointing at their surroundings.

Sunny looked around and smiled at the sight of so many ponies hugging each other and being glad to be fine, then she looked over at Firefly and Surprise, who were both hugging each other tightly after the scare they passed through.

"We saved them. All of them!" Sonic said with a smile. "Isn't it rewarding? The feeling of knowing you did something so right?!"

Sunny smiled warmly and let out a sigh. "Yeah... Is a really good feeling..."

And then, Firefly came by and grabbed one of Sonic's hand, stretching with a happy smile and a few tears of joy. "Sonic... I can't thank you enough for saving my friend and that filly... I seriously can't..."

Sonic smiled back and made a little reverence. "I'm just doing my job!" He stated with a wink.

And then, Buffon came from behind Sonic and Sunny, placing his hands on their shoulders and shaking them a bit. "My. Lads. Sonic. Sunny. My. Guys!"

Although a bit startled at first, Sonic and Sunny smiled at him, and soon, Sunset stood at their side, with Firefly joining as well by hoof-bumping with Sunset and then they bumped each other's shoulders.

"Easy!" Firefly said with a smile.

And then, everypony across Manehattan started to cheer at the five heroes that saved them, while the heroes felt proud of themselves and smiled brightly.

"So..." Sonic called out to Sunset at his side. "What do you think?"

Sunset looked over at Sonic and Sunny with a raised eyebrow at first, before smiling warmly. "I was right about you two... You guys are amazing."

After hearing this, Sonic smiled proudly of himself, and Sunny even left out a little gasp for the compliment, but still smiled back.

"Yeah, well..." Sonic started, before looking at Sunny. "We make a good team!"

Sunny smiled after hearing this and nodded in agreement. "Definitely."

Author's Notes:

Wooo! Another chapter done!

I'm really liking how this is going so far. And yes, in case you didn't noticed: This first part of the story is an adaptation of "Across the Spider-Verse", although from Part 2 on I'll be doing my own thing, so don't expect me to wait until "Beyond the Spider-Verse" comes out, because I won't.

Now, we met two new characters today: Firefly from this story made by Darkened Lightning Storm (who's world was also were half of the chapter took place), and Blue Buffon (a SatAM Sonic variant) from this story by Arcing Light. Yes, they're the Pavitr and Hobie of this story. Also, I wanted to use Firefly instead of Rainbow because this is a multiverse story.

As for the universe Opaline invaded at the beginning of the chapter, that's a story that once took place on this story and all its sequels made by Admiral Producer, while the universe King Sombra comes from is this one-shot written by Headless.

Anyways. In the next chapter, I won't put all the stories I'm taking characters from because it's TOO DAMN MANY!!!

See ya!

4. When I Met Myself

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Universe 240123

In all her years of conquering, Opaline never stopped to think for a second in consequences.

She knew for sure that all the things she did wrong in her life would come back and stab her in the back one day, since that's the way Karma works, but she never thought too deep on the subject. After all, she was convinced that she was going to rule over everyone in Equestria by the time Karma finally hit her.

But she never thought that she'll be her own karma.

Not so far from where she was standing, she was literally face to face with herself... It was nothing new, because she met other variants of herself before and moved them to the wrong universe to distract the Secret Society...

Today, however, and since she was done with that phase of her plan, she was here to steal magic from herself, because she still needed to be strong enough to hold all the power of the Paradox Prism once it returned to it's full state... As said before, Opaline was here to be Karma against herself.

It was still a hard thing to do, because she needed to harm herself. She didn't wanted, because unlike all the other creatures she stoled magic from, she was putting herself on this Opaline's place.

She hated the kind of extreme she has come to in order to be successful and rule over the entire multiverse... But she has made hard decisions before, and as difficult as this one might seem, she still had what it takes to make it. It was all for her own good, at the end of the day.

However, as the main Opaline had her inner conflict, the one from this universe stared with wide eyes and her jaw dropped at her counterpart from another universe.

Yet, this second Opaline, who'll be refer to as Opaline 2 to not confuse her with the main villain of this story, ended up frowning, and so, she quickly took flight in the air, before staring daggers down at Opaline and light up her horn and wings in fire.

"WHO IN THE NAME OF HAVENS ARE YOU?!" Opaline 2 screamed in rage.

"My name is the same as yours." Opaline replied politely and calmed. "And no, I'm not joking, before you choose to ask."

However, Opaline 2 let out a laugh after hearing this. "You? Having the same name than me? Nonsense!" She screamed in rage, but Opaline deadpanned and rolled her eyes.

"If I'm really this annoying with my speeches, I'm gonna have to change a few things about myself..." Opaline muttered to herself. "Listen to me. I do not care for what you believe of me or not. We are the same pony, just from different universes. And soon, I'm afraid yours will be mine!"

"What the heck are you baffling about?!" Opaline 2 asked confused. "Other universe? You and me the same pony? You'll conquer this world!? Are you hearing all the nonsense you're spitting?!"

"Are you trying to deny that soon your universe will belong to me?" Opaline replied with a frown, lightening up her horn and wings in both red and green fire.

"I'm just spitting facts!" Opaline 2 replied with anger.

And so, the two Alicorn's launched blasts to each other, having a little war between themselves to gain power over the other one, but thanks to all the stolen magic Opaline has obtained, her blast was being more powerful, and so, she pushed harder than Opaline 2.

But the other Fire Alicorn wasn't going to give up that easily, so she cancelled her attack and then moved to the side, charging up again and preparing to blast against Opaline.

However, Opaline teleported herself and then appeared right behind her counterpart hitting her with her hind legs and sending her towards a wall, while Opaline 2 shouted startled, but quickly got herself together again, then stood over the wall and impulsed herself back to Opaline.

Yet, Opaline simply moved aside and let Opaline 2 kept moving, before blasting another fire beam against her, but Opaline 2 didn't dodged the attack. Instead, she surrounded it with her own magic and then sent it back towards the other Alicorn.

Yet, Opaline ignited her horn again and absorbed the attack, before launching it again even more powerful than before, and when it hit Opaline 2, the other Alicorn crashed on her back against a wall, and that caused her horn and her wings to turn off, while she fell to the ground on her belly.

Of course, she attempted to try and stand up again, but Opaline took this chance to steal her magic before she could do so, and with this, Opaline 2 lost the fight as fast as it started.

Opaline landed in front of her counterpart and looked at her for quite a long time. Despite how much she hated to admit this to herself, she felt sympathy for her, specially because she has been on her position previously: Someone also stoled her magic and left her feeling useless.

She was getting her revenge on Eggman eventually for sure, but she first needed to get the entire Paradox Prism together before conquering the entire multiverse.

"...I shouldn't allow you to live..." Opaline told herself with a cold stare, and Opaline 2 looked up at her with anger, feeling completely enraged that she lost against a version of herself. "But I will. You look so pathetic and worthless right now that killing you is just a waste of time. I have better things to do."

After saying this, Opaline turned around and, still with her wings open, she walked away and head towards the exit.

"Y-You... Ungrateful, stupid, doppelgänger..." Opaline 2 managed to say in anger.

When she finally stood up, she tried to fly or ignite her horn again, but it didn't worked. So, she looked over at her Cutie Mark... just for her eyes to widen when she saw that she didn't had one anymore.

"W-What..." Opaline 2 muttered, before looking in the direction where her counterpart left, and wether if she liked it or not, she started to tear up, because she lost again, and worse of all, it wasn't against anypony she could consider pitiful, it was against herself. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

Her cry was loud and hurtful, but it was also sad to hear, and soon, she started to cry out loud.

Meanwhile, Opaline already walked a few miles away from her Castle of this universe, and as soon as she heard Opaline's 2 cry, she knew that her spell worked perhaps too well.

Still, she sighed and prepared to open a portal to leave... But then, her horn started to illuminate in a yellow color, and soon, it shoot a laser light against her will.

Said laser traveled across the sky, until it stopped in the distance and pointed at a very familiar location for the Fire Alicorn at this point: The Crystal Brighthouse... The one from this universe.

At first, Opaline was confused on why her horn did that, before remembering that it happened before when she found the Green Piece of the Prism's Fragment: The tracking spell she launched last year over the Prism, it was working again, and now, it was guiding her towards the next piece of the Prism.

"So that's where the next fragment is..." Opaline muttered, before smiling. "Oh well! I'm really gonna enjoy myself with these Mane 6, too!" She stated with a sinister grin, followed by her typical maniac laugh.

Universe 271213

The group of heroes stood over the rubble of the destroyed bridge.

Everypony across Manehattan started to cheer at the five heroes that saved them, while the heroes felt proud of themselves and smiled brightly.

"So..." Sonic called out to Sunset at his side. "What do you think?"

Sunset looked over at Sonic and Sunny with a raised eyebrow at first, before smiling warmly. "I was right about you two... You guys are amazing."

After hearing this, Sonic smiled proudly of himself, and Sunny even left out a little gasp for the compliment, but still smiled back.

"Yeah, well..." Sonic started, before looking at Sunny. "We make a good team!"

Sunny smiled after hearing this and nodded in agreement. "Definitely."

Suddenly, however, Firefly turned to a direction and gasped, which made the other four turn as well, and they all saw how some of the rubble started to glitch out, like if the whole universe was failing or something.

So, Sonic, Sunny, Sunset, Buffon, Firefly and Surprise approached to the edge of the broken building, looking down at all the glitching rubble with concern.

"Guys... What's that?" Firefly asked, both confused and scared.

"...A space-time rupture..." Buffon replied with a slight frown.

"A what now?" Sonic questioned confused.

"When certain events that have to happen don't happen, it causes a space-time rupture." Sunset explained. "Is like if time itself destroyed and rebooted the universe... But I don't think this is a space-time rupture... I think is worse..."

"Worse?!" Sunny said with wide and panicked eyes. "What could be worse than a whole universe starting over?!"

"A nexus event..." Sonic muttered with concern, and Sunny looked at him concerned, Buffon with a raised eyebrow, and both Sunset and Firefly with wide and panicked eyes. "When two worlds collide, they either fuse permanently, separate after a while... or they both cease to exist... This world... It's probably going through that right now..."

"How do you know about the nexus?" Sunset asked Sonic confused with wide eyes.

"An old friend explained that to me... He really wanted to help me get home when I got lost..." Sonic replied with a little smile, but it faded away when he noticed more glitching rubble. "The destiny of this universe is up to whoever guards over it... We can't do anything now..."

However, after Sonic said this, the sky suddenly started to glitch and shine bright, which called the group's attention.

Then, an hexagon-shaped portal opened up, and a massive ship with the shape of a pony's face came out of it, slowly landing over the ground, not so far from all the rubble.

The ship opened up, and a bunch of Mobians and Equestrians, all being lead by Twilight Sparkle, came out of the ship and headed towards the place that was glitching, some holding some kind of white spikes.

"Okay, guys. Secure the area, clear all civilians, and let's contain this space-time rupture." Twilight stated with a serious expression.

"Okay, no offense to your Mobian-Equestrian Clubhouse, but when I said 'the destiny of this universe is up to whoever guards over it', I didn't meant this..." Sonic deadpanned.

Sunny, on the other hand, had her jaw dropped, and she was containing her excitement as much as she could, because Twilight Sparkle, her idol, her hero, the very reason why she even wanted to make everypony united, the very sole purpose of existing for Argyle, was right there in front of her.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!" Sunny was fangirling in silence with sparkling eyes and her hooves on her cheeks.

"Aaand we lost her..." Sonic muttered with a bored expression.

Meanwhile, Twilight approached to the border of the bridge and looked over at all the glitching rubble, as well as the sea started to glitch a bit as well.

Soon, Firefly got at her side and looked at all of this with concern. "Is everything going to be okay?" She asked, since she was afraid of what could happen to her, to her friends, and to their universe.

A Silver variant approached her and placed a hand over her shoulder. "If we can contain this rupture, your world will live another day!" He stated to her with confidence, before looking over at the other Mobians and Equestrians that arrived. "Come on, team! We have work to do!"

After saying this, Silver used his psychic powers and made the non flying members of his team float, before heading towards the floor glitching rubble and ocean with them, while the members that could fly followed along by flight.

Soon, they all landed on some rubble, and the members that had the white spikes placed them on the ground. After this, the spikes launched some lasers that surrounded the glitching areas and, somehow, managed to cancel their effect, because they stopped glitching.

This surprised Sunny, while Sonic had an expression that was a mix between a deadpan, a retarded expression, and a confused one.

"Twilight!" Sunset greeted with a smile on the other hand. "Look, I know what you're gonna say, but––"

"Sunset, I'm not mad. But we'll definitely talk about this later, okay?" Twilight replied with a slight frown, before walking over to Sunny and Sonic, with the former breathing heavily to not fangirl, while the latter raised an eyebrow.

"Guess you're the Twilight that Sunset mentioned she's learning a lot about?" Sonic asked with a little smile.

"And you two are Sonic the Hedgehog and Sunny Starscout from Universe 220822..." Twilight said, still with a slight frown at first, before smiling warmly at them. "Is nice to finally meet you! I'm Twilight Sparkle, and I've been looking at your whole test from the Society's HQ."

"T-Twilight Sparkle knows who I am..." Sunny muttered with wide eyes and shock.

Sonic noticed her attitude, and his eyes widened as well but in panic, while he chuckled nervously. "Sunny... Control yourself..."

"TWILIGHT SPARKLE KNOWS WHO I AM, SONIC! DON'T YOU DARE TO TELL ME TO STAY CALM!" Sunny shouted, shaking Sonic violently after what he said.

"Sunny, we're gonna loose this test if you keep acting like this!" Sonic pointed out with concern.

"No, no! It's okay, really!" Twilight assured with a smile. "I'm used to every Sunny across the multiverse reacting that way, anyways... Besides, you two already passed the Physical Test!"

This made both Sonic and Sunny look over at Twilight with wide eyes, then they looked at each other, and then back at Twilight. "We did?!" They both asked with disbelief.

"That's right!" Twilight said, still smiling to them. "You guys have passed the first test, which means that you two are ready for the next one!"

"Aw yeah!/Woo!" Sonic and Sunny said with smiles, before hugging each other tightly.

"I do warn you, though: Sonic, you made a little mess up, and the boss is gonna point that on your face with a lot of anger... Prepare yourself..." Twilight warned with concern.

"Oh boy..." Sunset said with concern as well and swallowed hard.

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure we can solve it" Sonic assured with a confident smile and a wink, while Sunny giggled at his attitude.

"Celestia bless your optimism, Sonic..." Twilight said with a smile. "Now let's go, the boss wants to talk with you all."

After saying this, Twilight walked turned and prepared to open a heptagon-shaped portal, while Buffon turned around and was a bout to leave while whistling to himself.

This made Twilight roll her eyes and sigh annoyed. "That includes you too, Buffon."

"Shoot!" Buffon said frustrated, before turning around with a bored expression and walk to the rest.

"OMG. Are we gonna visit the HQ?!" Sunny said with excitement and sparkling eyes again.

"I know you said we already approved, but do we get out if we cheer loudly like a pair of maniacs?" Sonic asked with a sheepish smile.

"As long as it doesn't threatens the multiverse, you can do whatever you want!" Twilight replied, finally open the portal that would lead to the Secret Society's HQ.

After hearing this, Sonic and Sunny both cheered even louder, and Sonic started to move like a maniac around at super speed, which made Sunset giggle, while Buffon facepalmed at Sonic's childish move.

Universe 240123

Nighttime hit Maretime Bay on this universe.

As a result, the mares of the Mane 6 were sleeping on a very deep sleep on their respective beds, with Izzy snoring loudly and feeling comfy on her place.

Meanwhile, downstairs, Opaline slowly opened the Brighthouse's door and entered to the place. She looked around with a raised eyebrow, and then yucked when she saw the light colors on the kitchen, the living room, Izzy's crafting spot, and the critter corner.

"Ugh... This place looks even worse from inside than I remembered..." Opaline muttered to herself with annoyance, as she slowly entered the place.

She walked towards the living room first and stopped right in front of the TV, looking at her reflection. She somehow got taller thanks to both all the stollen magic and the power of the two Prism's shards she obtained so far, soon to get a third one as well.

She also had some kind of cape covering her hind legs and her flank, but this cape was decorated as if it had fire around it. She liked her new look, because it spoke power to her.

Soon, Opaline looked around for a second with an analytical look, before lightening her horn slightly to see where the next shard might be... Yet her concern still turned out to be the truth: The shard was inside the Brighthouse, yes, but it was also up in the bedroom, the last place she wanted to enter.

Still, she needed to get the shard at any cost, so she still flew upwards and softly landed on the ground, slowly pushing the door to the bedroom open and getting a small peek inside.

All the mares inside the bedroom were sleeping peacefully on their beds, although Zipp seemed to be moving a bit more than the rest, but she guessed it was because of a nightmare. In all honesty, she didn't knew, and she didn't cared, either.

She entered the bedroom as quietly as possible and walked on her tippy toes, making sure to not make any noise that could wake up anyone in the room.

She searched with her sight the shard of the prism, illuminating her horn again, and then, its light pointed to Zipp's desk, right below her bed. Of course, this made things more complicated, but she wasn't leaving without that shard, so she slowly approached the desk and surrounded the shard with her magic.

However, Zipp seemed to be hearing the sound of Opaline's magic working, and so, she decided to wake up slowly, yawning and stretching her wings and hooves.

Zipp looked around the room: Pipp was still sleeping, Izzy and Misty too, and Sunny as well. The Lantern of Hope, as she called it, was still on its place as well, and the rainbow light that illuminated the room and indicated that unity among pony kind was fine shone brightly as usual.

She finally looked down over her desk, and she found nothing out of place. So, she yawned again before heading to sleep again, since everything seemed to be fine.

As for Opaline, she teleported herself and the shard out of there towards a field, sighing in relief that nopony woke up while she sneaked inside to take the shard. Then, she looked down at it and smiled, before levitating the shard and attached it on her right hind leg's bracelet.

With this, a yellow shockwave was sent across her body, and it also made her eyes to glow bright in yellow electricity, as well as it caused her horn and wings to light up with yellow fire.

"Oh, that's so much better!" Opaline said with a sinister grin, before looking over at her glowing hooves, and then, a sinister idea crossed her mind. "Hmm... I wonder..."

After muttering this, Opaline opened her wings, still igniting in yellow fire, then lifted her forelegs and stomped them hard enough on the ground, not only making it rumble, but she also made it glitch entirely, as it started to extended beyond her position.

Soon, the glitch moved far enough to reach Maretime Bay, place that started to glitch entirely as well, while it started to move towards the Crystal Brighthouse as well.

Inside the bedroom, the five mares started to glitch out because of this, even alternating between their current selves and variants from other universes. Not even the Unity Crystals seemed to save from this glitch, because once it hit them as well, it started to shift the artifacts and make magic fail in this universe's Equestria.

Seeing how powerful she has gotten with only 3 of 20 shards, the Fire Alicorn began to laugh like an absolute maniac because of her doing.

After this, Opaline boosted towards the air at top speed, and her whole body was surrounded on red, green and yellow colors, before she disappeared on a flashlight.

Opaline came out of Universe 240123

However, as she did so, this universe started to glitch out, meaning that it was collapsing, and soon, it would cease until it was nothing...

Universe 250954

A platform was slowly ascending.

As it did so, a heptagon-shaped portal opened above it, and then, Twilight, Sunset, Buffon, Sonic and Sunny came out of it, landing on the platform that kept ascending.

After this, Sonic noticed that his shoes and his gloves changed again: This time, his shoes were blue from Adidas, having three white stripes at the sides, and the sole was white as well; while the gloves were grey and fingerless.

"Huh... You weren't kidding when you said your shoes and gloves change depending on the universe..." Sunny realized with amusement.

"And all thanks to this baby!" Sonic replied happily, pointing at his Inhibitor Bracelet with pride.

On the other hand, Buffon pulled out a jacket that had several pins of both Cutie Marks and Mobian logos, as he put it over and adjusted it, before noticing that Sonic was staring at him with surprise, which made him raise an eyebrow and look around, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"Dude, how's that you look even cooler with a jacket on?!" Sonic asked with disbelief.

Buffon snorted after hearing this. "I'm this cool all the time."

"Wow, your ego is on the clouds..." Sunny deadpanned.

However, Sonic noticed that there was suddenly more light, and so, he turned around to see what the light was about: As the platform ascended, outside of the mysterious building they were inside of, Sonic could see a giant and advanced city with flying trains, cars and even moving establishments.

"Holy cow..." Sonic muttered amazed, and Sunny joined him with a surprised look as well.

"Where are we?" Sunny asked, both excited and curious.

"The place? Station Square, year 2154." Buffon replied with an unamused expression.

"The settling? This is our HQ!" Sunset added with a smile.

"Girl, you didn't told me this place was this impressive!" Sonic pointed out with a huge grin.

"Oh, and it's gonna get better!" Sunset assured.

"Or it is going to be incredibly boring..." Buffon said with a mocking smirk.

"Don't be a party pooper." Sunset deadpanned to him.

"Come on, kids! Get moving, 'cause we're already here!" Twilight informed, as the platform finally stopped in front of a door that had Twilight's Cutie Mark on it.

"Yes, ma'am!/Okay, Mom..." Sunset said with a salute, while Buffon said it with a bored expression, an eye roll and an annoyed tone, which made Sunset glare daggers at him as a warning.

Just then, Twilight's Cutie Mark on the door glowed, before it made the door itself open and grant access to the five members of the group, with Sunset, Buffon and Twilight immediately entering the place, while Sonic and Sunny were still trying to process this with smiles.

Still, they ended up following along by walking through a small white corridor for a while, and Sonic couldn't help but look around curiously.

"Wow... This place is wild!" Sonic said with a smile.

"Eak! I can't believe we're finally here!" Sunny said with a cheerful smile.

And as the two of them accessed the place, they were received by a bunch of Mobians and Equestrians hanging out with each other and talking peacefully, some Sonics and Sunnys included.

"Any sign of Opaline? Let me hear!" Twilight informed everyone in the room, and soon, a variant of Amy approached her.

"Well, we're still an Opal away of finding her!" Amy's variant said with a smirk, and Sonic chuckled silently after hearing that.

"Oh, ha ha, so funny!" Twilight said with sarcasm and a forced smile. "Any other joke?"

"Well, now that you mention it..." Amy said with a sheepish smile.

And soon, all the other Mobians and some Equestrians started to make some jokes that included the word 'opaline', but neither Sonic nor Sunny were paying attention to those, because they were too busy feeling amazed by the society itself, and Sonic even placed his hands on his forehead, while Sunny had no idea of where to look because of the impression.

"This is unbelievable!" Sonic exclaimed with a huge smile.

"You guys know this is just the lobby, right?" Sunset asked Sonic and Sunny with a playful smirk.

"What?!" Sunny exclaimed, as her eyes and Sonic's widened.

When they reached the end of the lobby, Sonic and Sunny looked ahead, and their jaws dropped at the sight, while Sunset pointed at the place with a raised hoof. "Welcome to the Secret Society!"

And now picture this: Thousands of corridors, automatic stairs, roads for vehicles, and millions of variants of any character you can think from the Sonic universe and the My Little Pony one: Sonic and Sunny, obviously; but we also have more Sunset Shimmers, more Tails', Knuckles', Amys, Shadows, Twilights, Applejacks, Starlights...

It was definitely a multiversal society formed by both Mobians and Equestrians from all the possible universes.

Soon, the group was walking though one of the corridors to go and see Future Sonic, a.k.a. FS.

Sonic kept looking around with big and utter disbelief that this was happening. He wanted to badly to have another multiversal adventure, another chance to see his friends from across the multiverse, and here it was! He was finally crossing the multiverse again, but now Sunny tagged along.

Sunny, however, looked around completely overwhelmed. Yes, she was as impressed and excited as Sonic at first, but now that they're here, she feels that this is way too much Mobians and Equestrians.

"Is a bit much, ain't it?" Buffon muttered to Sunny, and Sunny gulped but nodded in agreement.

"Too much?! You've gotta be kidding, man..." Sonic said happily with a smile. "This is amazing!"

"At last someone here is having fun." Buffon muttered with a slight smirk.

"Um, Sunset?" Sunny called out, feeling overwhelmed, and the Alicorn turned to him. "You said this was a small Elite Strike Team... This is everything BUT small!"

"Oh, don't worry. A lot of them are part time." Sunset replied with an assuring smile. "Don't worry too much, Sunny. You're safe in here with us. Promise!" She assured with a wink.

That last action seemed to comfort her a bit, and so, she took a deep breath and then sighed in relief.

But as the group was passing besides a bunch of the Society's members, one of the Classic Sonics noticed the Sonic walking with Twilight, Sunset and Buffon, and when he saw his Inhibitor Bracelet, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Modern Sonic?!" Classic Sonic called out, boosting towards him.

Of course, Sonic didn't heard, but just because he was getting distracted with the surroundings, but when Classic Sonic got in front of him, he raised an eyebrow confused.

"Oh, man! I can't believe we see each other again!" Classic Sonic said with a smile.

"Oh, uh... Sorry, man. Who are you? I literally just got here..." Sonic said with a sheepish smile, a bit ashamed that he doesn't know who this Sonic in specific is.

"Huh? Oh! Sorry, I got carried away when I saw you I forgot to remind you!" Classic Sonic realized with a sheepish smile on his own. "I'm Classic Sonic! We fought together to defeat Rob-butt... I mean, Eggman! You even captured Snively before he could get away, remember?"

After Classic Sonic explained all of this, Sonic's mind finally clicked back and remembered who he is.

"CLASSIC!" Sonic exclaimed with a smile, as he grabbed him and hugged him tightly, before put him back in the ground. "Aw, man! I'm so, so happy to see another familiar face from the multiverse!"

"Haha! Same! Is good to see that the OG multiversal traveller finally joins us!" Classic Sonic stated with a smile.

"Joins us?" Sonic asked confused, but then, he realized that Classic Sonic also had a gizmo on his left hand, which made Sonic smile widely. "You're part of the Society, too?!"

"You bet!" Classic Sonic replied with a smirk, a wink and his thumbs up.

"Man, this place just gets better and better!" Sonic cheered happily, but then, Sunny at his side cleared her throat, and Sonic realized he hasn't introduced his two friends properly. "Oh, right! Sorry, Sunny. Tiny me, this is Sunny Starscout, one of my best friends and technically my little sister from Equestria!"

"Hi! Uh, nice to meet you!" Sunny told Classic with a little and shy smile. "Sonic talked a lot about you and all the friends he made across the multiverse."

"The pleasure is mine, Sunny!" Classic Sonic said with a smile and a little reverence. "Oh, I would love to keep talking, but I think I'm slowing you guys down! And the boss hates when people gets late when he calls them out... You better keep going! Sonic, we catch up later?" He asked him with a wink and finger guns pointed at him.

Sonic snorted and extended his fist at him. "You bet!" He stated, as the two Sonics fist bumped.

Meanwhile, as the two Sonics had this conversation, Sunset, Buffon and Twilight were watching everything not so far from them.

"How do they know each other?" Sunset asked confused.

"That's Sonic from Universe 180993, the first universe where Sonic 220822 fell when he destroyed the Paradox Prism from his universe." Twilight explained. "They know each other because Sonic 180993 helped him out until Rotor from the same universe gave him Inhibitor Discs that kept his Prismatic Energy on check."

"So he definitely is the first multiversal traveller, huh?" Buffon said with a smirk. "Is like if a cycle came full circle."

"I guess that's a way to put it, yeah..." Sunset said.

Then, when Sonic and Classic Sonic said their goodbyes and Sonic and Sunny moved to them, Twilight decided to keep going, with Sunset and Buffon following close behind, although also keeping their distance.

"Sunset, how much have you told them 'bout their place in all this?" Buffon muttered to Sunset, but he kept walking like if he didn't cared about anything.

"...Just a little..." Sunset replied with concern. "I mean, what else do you expect me to do? I can't just tell them what Sonic really is, specially because of how excited he's to be here..." She pointed out, looking at them over her shoulder.

Sunny was trying to stay close to Sonic and avoid eye contact with anyone else in the society, since she knew none of them, but even if Sonic didn't knew any of them either, he still was happy to see all of these variants in just one place, although he came to notice that all of them stared at him, which confused him a bit.

"Sunny seems very unsure about all of this, while Sonic is way too excited..." Sunset pointed out with concern, before looking ahead again and sigh frustrated. "I fear that chief destroys Sonic's illusion of joining. If he does so... I don't know how am I going to face him ever again..."

Buffon noticed her attitude, so he sighed and stood in front of her. "Sunset, girl, listen here..." He called out, and Sunset looked up at him. "Remember that we don't do this because of anything personal, and that the sake of all the realities is in our hands. Sonic travelled the multiverse before, now he's here. Sunny is still getting used to this, which is normal. Chief will be harsh on them, but I'm convinced that everything will be fine in the end. All you gotta do... is believe."

After saying all of this with a smile, he kept walking away, leaving Sunset with a flustered expression, as she sighed a bit and shook her head to make her blush fade away, before keep going on as well.

As they kept walking, however, Sonic noticed that not only all the eyes of the other members of the society were on him, but they also muttered among themselves after passing at his side, or straight up on his face, which confused him even more at this point.

"Uh... Sunset?" Sonic called out, as both him and Sunny moved ahead and closer to her, Twilight and Buffon. "Why is everyone around here staring at me like if I was some kind of alien? I'm a Sonic, too!"

Sunset chuckled after hearing this. "They look at you because you're not just another Sonic, you are THE Sonic!" She explained, now walking backwards.

"THE Sonic?" Sunny questioned confused, and Sonic raised an eyebrow.

"You have a reputation here, man." Buffon explained with a deadpan. "You're known as 'The First Multiversal Traveler'. Everyone in the society knows what you did for the multiverse and admires you, except for chief. Hens why you were not recruited until now."

However, Sonic stopped hearing after Buffon mentioned his reputation, and his eyes widened in surprise. "...A reputation?"

"Yup!" Sunset said with a smirk. "You were popular in here before coming here!"

Sonic had no idea on how to feel now that he knew this, but before he could process it entirely, he was being greeted by some variants of himself, by some Sallys, by some Amys, some Rainbow Dashes, and even some Twilights, which made Sonic felt a bit uncomfortable, but he still greeted back as many as he could.

"Ha ha ha... I don't know what the heck is happening anymore..." Sonic said with concern and a forced smile.

"Um... Let's try to chill, Sonic... I guess we're both too overwhelmed with this place..." Sunny pointed out.

But then, as they approached to an intersection, literally a car that looked like the one Sonic used on Planet Dompa Kingdom arrived with no driver, because this vehicle was another variant of Sonic... one that literally moves on its own with no driver.

"Sonic, take the team to the transport deck to help deal with the mess in Universe 271213, please." Twilight instructed with a serious expression.

As she explained this, a variant of Daring Do, a variant of Shining Armor, a variant of Espio, and a Lego Sonic landed over the vehicle, and after Twilight finished the instruction, the Sonic car beeped in agreement to the order, before racing away.

"Was that a freaking Lego of me?!" Sonic exclaimed with a happy smile and sparkling eyes.

"Yes, it was. But don't let yourself get tricked by his size. He's one of our best recruits!" Sunset replied with a smile.

"Shadow, we need you to––" Twilight tried to say, but the variant of Shadow she was talking to was laying on a wall with a dramatic expression.

"Sorry, I can't talk right now... I'm thinking about my past..." Shadow replied dramatically, while hugging the wall he was laying over, which made a variant of Amy and Twilight behind him cringe.

"Actually, we need you here for some reason..." Twilight regret her command and kept walking away, while Sonic and Sunny cringed at the sight as well.

Suddenly, the Shadow variant groaned in pain, before getting back to normal. "That was a particular... painful memory..."

"Wow... This place is full of creeps..." Sunny said with wide and panicked eyes.

"And I thought Shadow was dramatic in our universe..." Sonic deadpanned.

However, as soon as he looked ahead, he almost bumped into a regular horse that almost hit his face, while the animal's rider stopped him from moving, and the rider was none other than a Cowboy Knuckles, who looked down at Sonic with a raised eyebrow.

"Howdy, partner! Name's Knux, the best treasure hunter from my world!" Knux presented himself with a smile, also moving his hat a bit to the front.

"Oh, uh... Hello, Knux!" Sonic greeted with a sheepish smile. "Nice to meet ya!"

"Why is this stallion acting so... weird?" Sunny questioned.

However, this made everyone stop moving for some reason and look at her with wide and panicked eyes. Even Twilight, Sunset and Buffon stopped moving, and they looked at each other with concern, before looking back at Sunny, who felt confused on why everyone was looking at her.

"W-What? What did I say? Or do I have something in my face?" Sunny asked confused and with an anxious look.

Sonic, however, looked at her with concern, then took a deep breath and placed a hand on her shoulder, looking at her a bit ashamed. "Sunny... I seriously wished you didn't found out ever about this, or not at least not like this..."

"What? Finding out about what?!" Sunny asked, confused and scared for the answer.

https://youtu.be/geFP9cglPOo

Sunny was now hugging herself and looking ahead with an anxious expression.

Sonic had no choice but finally reveal how horses are on his world, and how they act the same way Knux's horse did, which of course, traumatized her, because she realized she's just an evolved horse with magic, but she would be just a pet if she ever went to Sonic's world.

"Now you see why I never told you?" Sonic asked her with concern, also caressing her back for comfort.

"I have so many questions, and I don't know where the heck should I even begin with..." Sunny said, feeling a bit traumatized.

"Okay, I admit that finding out about regular horses is traumatic. Trust me, Sunny, we all have been there before." Twilight said, as she placed a hoof on her shoulder, and Sunny finally got out of her trance, now looking at Twilight.

"R-Really?" Sunny asked.

"Yeah... But we all eventually came to accept it!" Twilight pointed out with a smile. "I mean, yes, it's really ugly finding out that you're probably just a pet in other worlds, but that's the thing: In other worlds, not in yours!"

After hearing this, Sunny thought about it for a moment, before slowly smiling and look back at Twilight. "Yeah... I guess you're right... Maybe I'm making a big deal out of something very simple."

"That's the spirit" Twilight said with a smile, also side hugging Sunny, who once again had to resist the urge to scream and enter her fan-girl mode. "Now come on! We have to keep going to meet with the chief."

"Right... We still gotta hear not so nice words from him..." Sonic deadpanned, helping Sunny to stand up, and then, they both kept walking ahead.

Soon, they approached to a section full of variants from villains from all across the multiverse trapped inside some laser cages, and one of the Zavok variants roared in rage, as he tried to push down the cage he was trapped in, which was being watched by a variant of Big Macintosh.

"Uh, who is in these laser cages?" Sunny decided to ask, as she walked next to Sonic to stay away from Zavok.

"Anomalies!" Nicole replied instead, as she suddenly appeared as a tiny hologram again, glitching and moving around to explain better. "Those who either wondered around in the wrong dimension, or almost destroyed their canon."

"We kick their butts and either sent them home, or we restore their canon!" Twilight explained as well with a smile.

"Canon?" Sonic asked confused.

"Chief will explain you." Twilight assured with a smile.

"You guys might wanna skip this one. These guys are not very interesting..." Sunset deadpanned.

"We have a bunch of Dr. Eggmans!" Nicole pointed at two cages with two different Eggman with a smile.

"That is interesting!" Sunny said with a little smile, but Sonic put a bored expression since he was tired of Eggman's variants, although he did found impressive the one that had mechanical arms attached to his back.

"A Metal Sonic!" Nicole kept talking, now showing a Metal Sonic's variant. "A Metal Sonia!" She pointed at a female variant of Metal Sonic.

"That is creepy, and I don't want to know what's internet gonna do when they find out that she exists..." Sonic said with concern.

"A video game guy!" Nicole pointed at a 16-bit purple jerboa trapped inside one of the cages.

"Oh, I love video games!" Sunny said cheerfully.

"I don't know who's that guy..." Sonic said confused.

"Another video game guy!" Nicole pointed at a very old game model of Chaos. "Oh, and this guy from Universe 230691 is also from video games!" She said, pointing at a Sonic that was watching over the two video game villains encaged, but when Nicole pointed at him, he raised an eyebrow confused.

"Uh, are you talking to me?" 230691 Sonic said confused.

"He's the first Sonic to ever exist, just in case you guys wonder~" Nicole explained with a smirk, before moving over.

This made both Sonic and Sunny gasp with wide eyes, and Sonic even went over and kneeled like a knight in front of him, which confused him and made him feel uncomfortable.

"You're too precious to this world, dude..." Sonic told the other one, who chuckled nervously and looked around, almost asking for help with his expression.

"Uh... Thanks?" 230691 Sonic replied, before slowly back off and then boost away.

Sonic stood up and scratched his head confused. "Huh... perhaps kneeling in front of him was way too much..."

"He deals with this kind of stuff everyday." Buffon confessed, as he kept walking ahead.

"Oh... My bad..." Sonic said with a sheepish smile, before keep walking ahead as well, also scratching his head in shame.

As they kept walking, they watched more and more encaged villains.

"This is an Infinite!" Nicole presented.

"I am not weak. I AM NOT WEAK!!!" Infinite shouted in rage inside of his cage, also glaring daggers at Sonic.

"Whatever you say, edge lord..." Sonic deadpanned.

"Is that the guy that tortured you for months?" Sunny asked him, and Sonic nodded. "Wow... He's out of his mind..."

"Yup!" Sonic agreed.

"An interesting Black Doom!" Nicole presented, before moving to another villain with a bored expression. "A boring Cozy Glow..."

"Hey!" Cozy Glow complained inside her cage.

"A Fleetway Sonic!" Nicoles pointed at him and his cage.

"A what Sonic–– Ah!" Sunny yelped when she turned to him, and she definitely didn't liked it.

This Sonic was apparently on his Super form, but he had claws coming out of his gloves, broken socks and gloves, messed up quills... But his eyes were probably the worse part for Sunny: He had no pupils, but instead weird red and circular waves that moved around.

Of course, the creature was staring down at Sunny with sinister smile that showed his sharp teeth. "Hello!" Fleetway Sonic greeted.

"U-Uh... H-Hi..." Sunny said with a nervous smile, stepping back and moving with the rest, while Sonic stared at Fleetway Sonic with a frown.

"What's the matter?" Fleetway asked. "Can't handle what you'll become one day?"

"You're not even canon to my story, dude." Sonic deadpanned.

"Yet!" Fleetway said with a mocking smirk and a maniac laugh.

"Whatever..." Sonic said, as he decided to keep going.

But as he was moving ahead, Buffon passed by and pointed at Fleetway on his cage. "Caught him by myself!"

"I tripped!" Fleetway said with anger.

"You?!" Sunset asked with disbelief. "Okay, I did all the work!"

Sonic noticed these two mockery, so smirked mischievously and approached them. "So, how many missions have you two been together?"

Seeing what he was trying to do, Sunset blushed and quickly tried to change the subject. "O-Oh, not that many..."

"Couple of dozens!" Buffon replied instead with a proud smile, and Sunset deadpanned at him.

"I've got you, Ms. Shimmer!" Sonic muttered with a mocking tone.

Meanwhile, Sunny was watching at more villains encaged, some recognizable thanks to her father's research, some not so much because of being from Sonic's world...

However, at some point, and as she walked backwards, she bumped into a pony, and quickly turned around with shame. "Sorry!" She apologized.

However, the one variant that turned around was a Dr. Hooves one, who at first frowned a bit upset, but then he smiled when he saw that Sunny was the one bumping into him. Although this variant seemed to be digital, for some reason, despite the fact that it can touch anyone since Sunny bumped into him.

"I'm Sunny..." The mare said sheepishly and nervously.

"Oh, trust me, I know!" Hooves said with a smirk. "Name's Dr. Hooves! Nice to meet ya!"

After saying this, he moved away by extending a hoof and moving to a station with various control panels.

"Whoa!" Sunny exclaimed after seeing this. "What are you?"

"I'm an avatar!" Dr. Hooves replied, before moving again upwards to more panels controls that were in the ceiling. "My body is sleeping with a meditation ritual back at home..." He explained, showing his real body sleeping on an awkward position and snoring, but also wearing some VR Googles over his face. "This place is way cooler!" He added, before extending his hooves again and move away.

"Can't blame you!" Sonic said as he came by. "You can literally interact with yourself from all across the multiverse! How cool is that?!"

Soon, Hooves moved to another panel control, while in the distance, a Sonic variant with a horrible aspect was standing over a platform suspended in the air.

This Sonic was fat, had two human eyes, human teeth, was wearing sunglasses over his forehead, and also used a beige jacket, and his hands were naturally white instead of having gloves, as well as his long and furry legs looked too human like... Well, he looked too human-like in general.

"Who the heck is that?" Sunny asked with her head tilted.

"We call him 'Ugly Sonic'..." Sunset replied with a cringed expression. "I don't think I have to explain why..."

Ugly Sonic over the platform was also sipping a Coca-Cola, before burping it and not even apologize.

"Yeah... I can see why..." Sonic said with a cringed expression.

Then, a strange device with large mechanical legs and a regular hedgehog head came out of a hole that was over the platform Ugly Sonic was standing over.

"What does that do?" Sunny asked curiously.

"Besides having a great name?" Buffon asked sarcastically.

"Go Home Machine..." Sunset replied with a bored expression.

"What did I say?" Buffon said with a smirk, and Sonic smirked back, while Sunny chuckled.

"I voted against it!" Sunset groaned annoyed.

"It detects whenever dimension your DNA is from..." Hooves explained, as the mechanical legs from the device started to pull some strings out of many holes around and placed them around Ugly Sonic, who didn't even bothered with what was happening. "And sends you there..." Hooves added.

"This is fine..." Ugly Sonic muttered, sipping more of his Coca-Cola.

"It's super humble and totally not creepy." Buffon commented sarcastically, but Sonic and Sunny's expressions said otherwise.

"Don't worry, folks! This won't be the last time you hear from me!" Ugly Sonic said, and once the machine finished its process, it sent him back to his home universe.

"Well, damn..." Sonic muttered with concern. "That's gonna give me nightmares now..."

"The Ugly version of ourselves, or the not creepy machine?" Buffon asked.

"Both..." Sonic replied with an anxious look.

"Um... I'm a little lost..." Sunny confessed. "Isn't this thing supposed to be for anomalies only?"

"He was an anomaly!" Hooves explained. "He says Opaline thought he wanted revenge, so she sent him to another world, but he gave up without a fight because he didn't even wanted to leave his universe."

"So she just saw an ugly version of me and thought he was a bad guy?" Sonic questioned confused. "That's lame..."

"Yeah..." Sunset rolled her eyes. "Anyways! We should go! We don't wanna keep the boss waiting."

After saying this, Sunset, Buffon and Sonic left, while Sunny stood a bit longer and looked at Dr. Hooves with a smile.

"Well, I guess we'll see around!" Sunny said, as she started to walk backwards.

"Let's go!" Buffon shouted, and his voice echoed across the room.

"Hey, good luck out there with the boss!" Hooves shouted with a smile.

"Okey, bye!" Sunny said, waving her hoof.

"FS is upset, guys..." Nicole informed with concern, as she appeared in front of the group.

"Well, he likes those Yakitori from the cafeteria!" Twilight pointed out with a smile. "Those always calm him down..."

As this happened, FS was on his office.

His office was on a platform suspended in the air, with several digital screens around him that he controlled to watch that everything in the Society was fine, as well as to check on every universe that presents anomalies.

"My name is Sonic the Hedgehog..."

FS was looking at Sonic and Sunny through his monitors with a frown, but specially to Sonic, because of what he did last year through the multiverse, and for what he recently did on Firefly's world.

"I'm this universe's one and only Sonic..."

Soon, Future Sonic grabbed a small green bottle, as well as an injector.

"At least I was..."

Then, he placed the bottle on the injector, closed it, and then injected himself on his shoulder, as the liquid ran through his veins and made his body vibrate entirely for a second, before it stopped as soon as it started.

"But I'm not like the others..."

After the process was over, his only working eye glow in blue for a second, before it went back to normal.

If you wonder why FS did this, is because he's the only Sonic that didn't born with his powers. Those mentioned bottles have a special liquid that made him as fast as any other Sonic, because he isn't a Sonic by nature.

"I don't always like what I have to do... But I know I have to be the one to do it."

Now, FS was moving away all the screens that showed Twilight, Sunset, Buffon, Sonic and Sunny approaching to his position, because his anger was just increasing whenever he did so.

"I've given up too much to stop now..."

Soon, he placed some screens in front of him that showed himself with a little pink hedgehog girl over his shoulders.

The girl had an ice cream on her hand and was messing up Future Sonic's face with it, which made the blue hedgehog chuckle, and so, he placed the girl down, before someone told him he had ice cream on his face, and when he touched it and felt it, he chuckled...

The image faded away to show Future Sonic as he is now: With the eyepatch and an expression that clearly says he has gone through a lot of stuff...

Meanwhile, Sonic, Sunny, Sunset and Buffon walked towards FS' office.

Sonic was now holding a Yakitori from the cafeteria, as a gift for FS to see if he would calm down a bit instead of yell at them in complete and utter anger.

"Why do you guys want to be here?" Buffon decided to ask.

"I just wanna help to the cause." Sunny said with a little smile. "I know I can be of help. And since the Opaline threatening the multiverse os from our world... I guess I feel a bit guilty because I didn't defeated her before this all happened..."

"I'm here for the cause too, but I also have a personal reason..." Sonic said with a smile.

"Eh, I'll think it twice if I were you..." Buffon said with concern.

"Dude, you seem to be a rebel that's against the rules and I get that, but we do want to be part of this team, okay?" Sonic told Buffon with a slight frown before keep going.

"Listen to me: The point of being in a Team is that you know when to work together, and when to work on your own." Buffon pointed out. "Is to know when others are your boss, and when you are your boss. I can tell Sonic is ready, but you, Sunny?" He pointed at her, and Sunny stopped walking for a second. "I hate to brake it to you, but you're not ready to the solo work. You don't need any of this."

"Then why are you here?" Sunny asked with a slight frown.

"I'm looking after my comrade." Buffon replied, moving his head towards Sunset, meaning he's here to protect her.

"Well, we wanna be in a band, too." Sonic pointed out in annoyance. "And I wanna see my friends... That's why I need the watch... Besides, I can't control my Prismatic Energy without a device... The watch is going to make things easier so I don't get lost across the multiverse... not again..."

Sunny noticed his change of attitude and worried for him.

"Guys, come on." Sunset called out to the others, since they were now entering FS' office.

"Alright. I'll squash it!" Buffon said with a slight frown, before placing his hands on Sonic and Sunny's shoulders to stop them for a moment. "But don't enlist until you know what war you're going to."

After hearing this, Sunny and Sonic looked at each other with concern.

Still, they nodded at Buffon and kept walking, while Buffon sighed and shook his head in disappointment.

As the door to the office opened, they first saw an empty space, but then they looked upwards and saw that the platform where FS was standing over was slowly descending towards the ground.

At first, Sonic seemed excited, while Sunny and Sunset were nervous, the former because she was meeting the head behind the Secret Society's existence, and the latter because she knew what was coming, and she didn't liked it.

However, as the platform kept descending slowly, Sonic and Sunny raised an eyebrow, and Sunny was even going to mention this to Sunset, but the Alicorn mare raised a hoof before she could talk, which made Sunny stop talking.

"Yeah, I know. It's slow..." Sunset recognized with a whisper. "But it's his thing..." She pointed out, before clearing her throat so FS could hear her. "Future Sonic, meet Sonic the Hedgehog and Sunset Starscout from Universe 220822."

"Oi! Dō shita no, ojīsan!" Sonic greeted happily, saying "Hey! What's up, man!' in Japanese. "From a Japanese to the other!"

"Hello, uh, Mr. FS!" Sunny greeted nervously while waving her hoof.

However, Future Sonic said nothing after hearing this. Instead, he stood silent, as the platform kept descending, until it finally stopped moving when it reached the ground.

"Okey..." Sonic muttered, as he and Sunny looked at each other for a moment, before looking back at FS. "Yakitori motte kimashita yo!" He added with a little smile, saying 'I brought you a Yakitori!' in Japanese and showing it up.

But the second after he said this, FS launched a lasso from his right wrist and grabbed the Yakitori, before pulling it to himself by force, startling Sonic, Sunny and Sunset, while Buffon behind watched with a raised eyebrow.

Now that FS turned around, Sonic and Sunny were a bit petrified when they saw that the older hedgehog had an eyepatch and an expression that could make anyone think he either had so little friends, or no friends at all... And they wouldn't be so far from the truth.

Sonic wondered if he'll look like that one day, while Sunny wondered what happened to him and his eye.

FS, on the other hand, looked at the Yakitori, smelled it, and then took a small bite, before raising an eyebrow, then look down at Sonic, Sunny and Sunset.

"Mendōna shoshinsha ni totte wa warukunai." Future Sonic replied, before using his super speed to finish eating the Yakitori at top speed.

"Uh, what did he said?" Sunny asked Sonic at her side with a whisper.

"He said 'Not bad for some troublesome newbies'..." Sonic translated, before looking back at FS with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm gonna be frank with you two..." Future Sonic said, as he licked his fingers after finishing the Yakitori. "I'm upset because of previous events I'd rather not talk about to avoid exploding in anger, just as I'm impressed with the way you two worked out there. For saving those ponies, capturing the anomaly, and passing your test... Good job."

Sunset's eyes widened and her jaw dropped after hearing this, while Buffon looked impressed at how calmed FS was looking and talking so far.

"...Okay, what did Twilight told you this time?" Sunset asked with a raised eyebrow.

"To be a bit more polite with any new recruits, no matter who they are or what they did." Future Sonic replied, before turning around to look at his screens again, opening footage of everything that happened at Firefly's world.

"I was so sure that he was going to scold us for––" Sunny tried to mutter with a smile.

"BUT!" Future Sonic's voice spoke loudly and with a little angry tone. "That doesn't the change the fact that you guys opened a hole in the multiverse."

"We did what?" Sonic asked with a raised eyebrow and a slight frown.

"Ssh! I'll take it from here!" Sunset muttered to them, before turning to see FS. "Look, chief, I know you're upset, but they didn't knew that it could happen!"

"We didn't knew what could happen, exactly?" Sunny asked to FS with a raised eyebrow and a slight frown.

"True. But you did, Sunset." Future Sonic said with a frown, and Sunset closed her eyes and cringed, because she had nothing to counter that. "And you..." Future Sonic now talked to Buffon, who mocked him up by making a little reverence. "I'll juts try to ignore you... I just can't deal with you right now..." He deadpanned, and turned around to try and calm himself, because he was starting to get mad again.

"I'm not here!" Buffon replied mockingly, before moving away at top speed.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Sunny looked at each other confused, before looking back at FS.

"What the hell just happened?!" Sonic asked.

"Hey, FS!" A voice spoke, a very familiar one, and while Sunset smirked and rolled her eyes, Sonic and Sunny slowly smiled and looked at each other for a moment, before the three of them turned around.

There, they saw a Sonic walking over the ceiling, wearing a brown scarf, sport bands on his shoes and gloves, but he also had a pink bathrobe and a kangaroo for babies on his chest... Yes. It's him. Ladies and gentleman: Boom Sonic, a.k.a. Sonic 2, is back!

"Come on, go easy on the kids!" Boom Sonic spoke, before deactivating the anti-gravity mode of his new shoes and land on the ground, walking normally on the floor now. "They had terrible experience with the multiverse! They didn't had a good chance!"

"Boom Sonic!/Sonic 2?!" Sunny and Sonic both said with smiles.

"Oh, boy!" Buffon spoke with a mocking smirk. "Here comes the Sonic from the humble reality!"

"Sonic, Sunny!" Boom Sonic replied with a smile, as the three of them shared a quick but tight hug.

"Dude! I can't believe I see you again!" Sonic said happily with a huge grin.

"Finally, a familiar face I do recognize!" Sunny cheered happily as well.

"I'm glad to see you two as well!" Boom Sonic said with a smile. "And don't be afraid of my friend FS. He just looks scary, he's not gonna byte."

"Ugh... Boom Sonic..." Future Sonic muttered in annoyance, now getting irritated again.

"Your arm looks great, by the way!" Boom Sonic realized with a smile.

"See? I told you I'll look better next time we see each other!" Sonic remarked with a confident smirk.

"And Sunny! Is it just me, or you got taller?" Boom Sonic asked her mockingly.

"Oh, ha ha. Very funny, Boom..." Sunny said with an eye roll, but still with a smirk.

"Oh, you've gotta see my new power, man, it's really something! And––" Sonic tried to say with a smile, but right then, he noticed that Boom Sonic had the kangaroo for babies and felt confused. "Wait... What is that?"

However, before Boom could reply anything, a pink blur passed by at top speed and started to boot all over the place, which confused Sonic and Sunny, but Boom panicked.

"AURORA!" Sonic shouted, before boosting across the room and try to catch the pink blur, until he finally managed to do so by falling in the ground.

Soon, he stood up and held a pink baby hedgehog girl with green eyes, short hair, and a red shirt, as well as a diaper since, well, she was just a baby.

"For the love of God, never scare daddy like that again!" Boom Sonic told the baby with a smile, while she laughed and clapped, extending her hands to try and touch his face.

Of course, seeing this made Sonic's eyes widen, while Sunny was trying to contain a squeal. "You have a baby?!" She ended up asking loudly with joy.

"I have a baby!" Boom Sonic cheered loudly with a smile.

But then, as soon as Aurora looked over at Sonic and Sunny, she smiled with sparkling eyes and started to run all around them at top speed, before landing over Sunny's back.

When Sunny noticed this, she gasped, and soon, she grabbed Aurora on her hooves with a smile. "Aw! Aren't you the cutest thing ever?! Yes, you are!" She cooed Aurora, while the baby giggled at Sunny. "Sonic, isn't she the cutest?!"

Sunny showed Aurora to Sonic, who looked at the baby with wide eyes, before chuckling sheepishly. "Uh... Yeah... She's very cute..." He replied anxiously, before Boom Sonic boosted over and grabbed Aurora to nuzzle her on his cheek. "I have so many questions..."

"It's been 2 years since I last saw you in my universe!" Boom Sonic explained.

"It's been just one in ours!" Sunny pointed out with surprise.

"Amy and I got married last year, and this cutie has 4 months of brightening my days now!" Boom Sonic added happily, nuzzling his nose with Aurora's, as the infant laughed happily again.

"You got married?!" Sunny and Sonic asked, the former with excitement and sparkling eyes, while the latter did so with wide eyes and an anxious look.

"I know, I know. It's crazy!" Boom Sonic said with a smile. "But it's also a bless! Aurora is the best thing that could ever happen to me!"

"Where's the guy that was so freaked out at the idea of a relationship last year?!" Sonic asked confused.

"Well, spending time in your world opened my eyes, you know?" Boom Sonic replied with a smile, as he placed Aurora on the kangaroo on his chest.

"If you three are done talking, can I please start Sonic and Sunny's final test to join our Society?" Future Sonic asked with anger, also glaring daggers at Boom Sonic.

"Ugh, there he goes again..." Boom Sonic rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Dude, you're the only Sonic who isn't funny here! We're supposed to be funny!"

"The fate of the whole multiverse is at stake here, Sonic!" Future Sonic raised his voice, and whatever Boom was going to say, it died there on his mouth, while Sonic and Sunny felt a chill down their spines once FS raised his voice. "Don't make me remind you what you can loose forever if Opaline wins..."

Boom Sonic looked down at Aurora, who simply kept giggling loudly, and soon, Boom swallowed hard and nervously. "No... it's not necessary... Sorry, Boss..."

Future Sonic nodded, before taking a deep breath to calm himself, and then he looked back at Sonic and Sunny. "As for you two... Well, there's no point on delaying it even more. Let's get your test started."

Author's Notes:

Oh boy, Sonic and Sunny won't like what they're gonna hear, that's for sure...

Well, there's a lot to cover this time around, so let's get started: The Silver variant that comforts Firefly at the beginning comes from this story made by DarkMaster0224. And the universe that Opaline made collapse? Well... That universe began in this short story that Flamewarrior02 made... Sorry, man, but I needed a world to get destroyed to show off Opaline's powers.

Now, the Amy's variant that speaks first with Twilight once they arrive to the Secret Society comes from this story made by Onomonopia, while the Classic Sonic that greeted him is, in fact, the very same Sonic from Sonic SatAM, a.k.a. the first other Sonic the main one met when he began his journey across the multiverse back in Season 4!

Moving on, the Sonic Car is from Team Sonic Racing, but from a universe where all the Sonic cast are just cars with no drivers. Now, Daring Do's variant comes from this one-shot made by Cynewulf; Shining Armor's variant is from this other one-shot written by Skywriter; Espio's variant comes from this story created by GreenS21; and Lego Sonic is from the Lego Dimensions universe.

The Shadow's variant that acts like Scarlet Spider comes from this story's universe made by Mister E-Nonymous, and the Cowboy Knuckles comes from the Sonic OVA!

As for the villains on the cages: Zavok is from this story by MetalJrock, one of the Eggmans is from this story also made by GreenS21, the other Eggman is from this story written by SonicAKG, Metal Sonic is from this cancelled story by RandomChance, Metal Sonia is from this Wattpad story by Moon Spectrum (although the story is just in spanish).

Fang the Sniper is from this story's universe created by Battwell, Chaos is also from the same story made by Mister E-Nonymous, that Sonic is THE original Sonic from the games (like Nicole said, the one who started it all), Infinite is from this story by Crystal Night, Black Doom is from this story by Will Atkinson, and Cozy Glow comes from this story made by RainbowDoubleDash.

Finally, the Dr. Hooves variants, he's from this one-shot written by Matthew Penn, and Boom Sonic is, as said on the story, Sonic from Sonic Boom, while his daughter, Aurora, is in fact from that Sonamy Boom comic.

Now, from next chapter on, I'll limit myself on how many words I put into the chapters, because making them from 10000+ words is starting to become too difficult for me. So, I'll limit myself to 6000-8000 words, although there's some chapters for Part 3 that might require more again... But everything at its due time.

See ya later!

5. Back to Green Hills

View Online

Universe 220822

Dr. Eggman was doing something he hasn't in a long time: Visiting his parents' graves.

In all honesty, Eggman never knew his parents died until at least 3 or 4 years after they did so, and he found out about this because he wanted to check on them, just to see if they hated him as much as the rest of his family now that he is an evil genius... When his uncle told him they died, he immediately hung up the call.

After that, Eggman never bothered to look for their grave in the next years. Heck, he didn't even cried their death: He honestly never cared, because they never cared for him either, so why he had to?

Today, however... Something impulsed him to look after their grave and pay them one last visit before taking over the world. After all, if he was going to make his Eggman Empire, the least he could do was pay the few respect he had left to his parents on their graves.

So, after a quick research online, making sure Sage wouldn't find out, Eggman was now walking through the graveyard where his parents were buried.

He walked through this graveyard for quite a while, because he only researched in which graveyard they were buried, not in which position exactly. Still, after walking around for about 30 minutes, he finally found the place they were buried, as he read the inscription of their graves...

'Bertha Kintobor: Beloved Wife, friend and mother. 1925 - 2014' and 'Ivo Kintobor: Beloved Husband, friend and father. 1923 - 2014'.

They looked like simple graves for anyone else... But for Eggman? They looked like a bunch of garbage, lies printed in a piece of stone.

His mother was horrible. She never had a soft spot for him, and she always believed that his inventions were a waste of time and space in the house, to the point they were the reason why she ended up kicking him off the house, just 2 months before he entered college.

His father was a bit more understandable, at least at first. He didn't found his inventions mind-blowing, but he did recognized that they were impressive.

However, and despite the fact that he supported Eggman with money for a few years until he graduated college, one day he simply stopped talking to him. Of course, Eggman had a huge grudge against his father after that, although a very, very, very small part of him believes that his mom made him cut contact.

Whatever the case was, he can't find out anymore, because they were both dead now, buried in front of him... And he didn't felt anything.

No sadness, no anger, no remorse, not even a single tear fell from his eyes... He simply felt nothing. Probably so many years of hating his parents made him like this: A man that doesn't really cares for his family in general... At least, he didn't cared until Sage came to his life.

Perhaps that's why he came here in the first place... Now that he's a father as well, he wanted to pay one last visit to his parents before never visit them again ever.

"...Mom... Dad..." Eggman muttered. "...I don't even know why I'm here... But I guess a part of me feels sorry for not having visited you before... I never had a reason to, honestly, but... I have Sage now... I guess I wanted to let you know that I'm a father now... I know you always wanted grandchildren, Dad... A part of me wishes you could have met her..."

Of course, there was no vocal reply... But the wind blew by and hit Eggman, like if someone was hugging him or telling him that things were going to be fine.

Eggman never felt something like that before... But it brought him an incredible amount of peace. He still hated his parents, specially his mother, and that wasn't going to change anytime soon... But he still had a soft spot for his dad, and he felt that the wind was actually his father, telling him everything was fine...

"...Thanks, Dad..." Eggman muttered with a little smile. "I know you wouldn't be proud of my actions... I know you weren't... But I also know you'll be happy to know I have someone to love and care for beyond myself... I hope you still feel proud of me because of that."

After saying this, he turned to see his mother's grave with a frown.

"...Mom... We never came to good terms, and you died without previous warning... But I hope you took good care of Dad." Eggman said. "You're dead now, but... I know that you once did loved me, even if you never showed it to me... I hope I can forgive you one day, even if I can't tell you that."

After saying this, Eggman let out a sigh, then slightly rosed the top of his father's gravestone, and then decided to leave, since he felt he had no business in this place anymore.

However, as he walked out of the graveyard and got on his Eggmobile, it started to rain, and Eggman looked up at the sky... Before Sage, he never cried anyone's death, because he really never cared for others... Today, however, and for the first time ever, he felt tears falling down through his cheeks.

He wanted to be cold-hearted and act like if he didn't gave a damn about his parents' death... But every child has to cry their part at some point, no matter the kind of relationship they had with them.

And that's exactly what Eggman was doing right now: For the first time ever, he cried the death of his parents, the two responsible ones to bring him to this world, the two people that either despised his creations or found them impressive... The two people he most hated in the world.

Today, Dr. Eggman became Ivo Robotnik again, and just for this time, he allowed himself to cry, because he really wanted to talk with his dad and apologize for so many things...

Yet, his chance to do so was long over, he won't see him ever again... And that's what hurt him the most...

In the middle of a forest, near Green Hills, a portal suddenly opened.

This portal was white, big, and very stable. And then, from said portal, Tails, Knuckles and Amy stepped out, looking around to make sure that not only the portal worked, but also that it sent them back to Green Hills.

"Flickies flying around, cuckies eating from the ground, and pockies jumping happily..." Tails analyzed their surroundings, before smiling and then turn around to shout at the portal. "The portal worked!"

After saying this, Team Dark stepped outside of the portal as well, although Omega twirled his head around since he felt a bit dizzy. And after them, the Mane 6 sins Sunny and Sparky crossed the portal as well, as they looked amazed around their surroundings.

"So this is Green Hills?" Hitch asked with amusement.

"Nah, this is just a forest." Knuckles said with a bored expression, before he, Amy and Team Dark walked a bit ahead, while Tails looked at the ponies and baby dragon with a smile and moved his hand, indicating them to follow.

So, the ponies did so, and when they approached the border of a cliff, they all gasped with dropped jaws and amazed expression, because they finally understood why this place was called Green Hills:

As far as the eye could see, a gigantic field blessed with greenery and beautiful blue lakes stretched out. This was a mountainous area with massive mountains, steep cliffs, giant peaks, and narrow paths high up in the sky supported by natural pillars. The place is filled with great views of waterfalls, palm trees, and tropical flora of various kinds. The soil is a checkered brown, and most of the local plant life appears to have unfamiliar geometric appearances.

A series of dark brown caves could also be seen below, with small lakes and pools of water, as well as artificial structures made of wood, such as bridges, fences, totem poles, and scaffold-like buildings. And there were also the floating stamina rings, spread all across the environment.

"OMP!" Pipp exclaimed first after the ponies admired the whole placement, before looking over at Tails. "This is where Sonic and you grew up as kids?!"

"Just a part of it!" Tails replied with a smile. "You guys wait until you see the sandy beaches!"

"I can't believe Sonic barely talked about this... Is really beautiful!" Izzy said with a smile.

"I still believe my Island is more impressive... But I honestly can't really complain about Green Hills, either." Knuckles said with a smile and his arms crossed. "This place has its own beauty as well."

"Well, can't say I was expecting something this impressive..." Zipp confessed with a smirk. "I wonder why you guys rarely mentioned it beyond Sonic's first adventure."

"Well, Green Hills is our home, but Equestria is too." Tails said with a sheepish smile, before looking ahead at his home with concern. "I guess we didn't wanted you guys to think we wanted to leave if we ever talked about it..."

Of course, bringing that subject again was delicate, and no one really wanted to talk about that, so they all stood quiet for a few minutes.

Tails was telling the truth. He really didn't wanted to talk about this place because he knew his pony friends and his girlfriend too well: They'll believe the Mobians want to go back home, when that's far from the reality. They all loved Equestria, and wanted to stay there as long as possible.

On the other hand, Zipp, Pipp and Izzy hated this subject, because bringing it up establishes the idea that they have to say goodbye to their boyfriends. Maybe not forever, but they didn't knew for how long, either.

Hitch and Misty didn't wanted them to leave, either, specially because they're all good friends at this point. Knuckles hated the idea as well, because meeting Izzy is one of the best things that ever happened to him... He didn't wanted to give that up. Amy really loved Equestria as well.

As for Team Dark? Omega knew he wouldn't see the Pippsqueaks again, and it really made him feel down, and Rouge was part-neutral, while Shadow was conflicted on the idea.

Meeting Sunny made him open up in areas he never thought he'll ever open again, but he did, and all thanks to the Earth Pony mare. Shadow really disliked the idea of having to say goodbye one day to her, but he also knew that Mobius still needed to be protected, since he promised Maria he'll do so.

Staying in the world with the pony that changed your live forever for the second time, or stay in the world you swore to protect long time ago? It was a very difficult decision.

Still, Shadow shook his head and turned to see the others. "Tails!" He called out, and the young fox turned to face him. "We need to keep moving, but what about the portal?"

"Oh, that? Well, since it's staying stable, and since it is inside the Brighthouse that we closed entirely before leaving, I put the portal to stay open for about 2 weeks." Tails explained. "I know that I probably exaggerated with how long it should stay open, but you never know!"

"Are you sure that the portal is going to stay open and stable?" Rouge questioned. "That's kind of dangerous, you know?"

However, Omega decided to scan the portal by himself to test this theory, and he verified that, indeed, the portal was stable, at least so far.

"My sensors detect that the portal will remain stable the established time." Omega informed. "We have nothing to worry about."

"Let me doubt it..." Shadow muttered with concern and his arms crossed. "Anyway. We should keep moving. Whatever Eggman is up to, it can't be good!"

"Right!" Amy agreed. "We can show you guys around later if you want. First? We gotta look where Eggman is and stop him before he does whatever he has in store this time around!"

"But where do we look?" Misty questioned. "I say this because we literally just arrived and have no idea on where to look first, you know?"

"Eggman has multiple factories across the planet." Tails pointed out, also rubbing his chin. "None of them are hidden, probably because Eggman likes to fight Sonic from time to time, even if he will never admit it. Still, trying to find Eggman in one of his factories would be like looking for a needle in a thousand haystacks..."

"He has that many factories?" Pipp questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Where do you think he got all that machinery?" Knuckles asked with a bored expression.

"Then why don't we limit it?" Zipp suggested. "Eggman may have many factories, but he can't be hiding in all of them, right?"

"Yeah! Why don't limit it to the few factories he frequents whenever he's working on his machines?" Hitch pointed out with a little smile.

"Hmm... That could work..." Tails confessed, as he took out his Miles Electric.

Thankfully, the satellite system he had on Mobius was still working just fine, and he decided to use said system to locate all the factories in Mobius, before limit them to just five factories, the five that Eggman visits the most.

"I have them down: Two here in Green Hills, one near Casino Night, another one near Oil Ocean, these two last in West Side Island, and the last one seems to be 300 miles away from Station Square." Tails instructed.

"Hmm... I think we should all split up and head towards different factories." Knuckles stated.

"We need to make groups of five." Tails stated as well. "Zipp, Misty: You two are with me; we'll head to Ocean Oil in West Side Island. Knuckles and Izzy: You two go to the factory at Green Hills' north."

"Copy that!" Knuckles said, before grabbing Izzy and then boost away towards the north.

"Pipp and Amy, you cover the factory of the south!" Tails kept informing.

"Aye, aye, captain!" Amy said with a smile, as Pipp nodded in agreement, while they both headed towards the south.

"Hitch and Omega, you'll come with us to West Side Island, but you'll take charge of Casino Night!" Tails added.

"Understood!" Hitch said with a salute.

"Let's get us a Dr. Eggman!" Omega stated, before Hitch and Sparky got on Omega's back, as they took fly and headed towards West Side Island in their own.

"Didn't he heard when you said they'll come with us?" Misty questioned, while Zipp looked confused at the sky, and the Mobians deadpanned.

"Nah, that's just Omega being Omega..." Shadow replied, then he looked at Rouge. "Guess that'll leaves the factory near Station Square for us."

"Precisely!" Tails said, before turning on his watch to talk with Knuckles, Amy and Omega. "If any of you find Eggman's location, inform it immediately so we can all head towards said place!"

"Roger that!" Amy informed.

"Understood." Omega replied as well.

"I still don't get it... Who's Roger?" Knuckles asked confused.

"Sonic's voice actor..." Tails replied with a bored expression, before shaking his head. "Now's not the time to 'brake the fourth wall' jokes, Knux! We have work to do!"

After saying this, Shadow and Rouge went on their own towards Station Square, while Tails, Zipp and Misty moved on their own as well.

In Eggman's Fabric, at the North of Green Hills, he was finishing some details.

His new badniks were a combination of the regular ones he's been using for the past 23 years, but they also looked like the ones from Ivo (Dr. Eggman from Universe 081114).

Soon, Eggman was laughing loudly and like a maniac, while Sage at his side looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Uh... Father? Why are you so happy now?"

"Because my army is finally complete!" Eggman said, as he approached on his Eggmobile to one of the many new badniks, specifically to an Egg Pawn. "These new models are reinforced with the magical properties from the Crystals I extracted from Bridlewood, which means that they're almost indestructible!"

Then, he moved over to look at the Buzzers and Buzz Bombers.

"My new flying badniks are fully charged with bullets so fast that can almost brake Sonic and Shadow's realm of speed!" Eggman said happily with a huge grin, before moving towards a small group of Moto Bugs. "And finally, the culmination of my life: Human-shaped robots that can throw lasers from their eyes and be a match on a 1v1 fight with Knuckles!"

After explaining all of this, Eggman started to laugh loudly like a maniac, something that Sage never understood why he always did, and probably will never understand, either.

On the other hand, Orbot and Cubot arrived with her. "Don't mind the boss, little sister. He's always like this." Orbot said with a bored expression.

"But you gotta admit that his laugh has gotten better and more sinister over the years!" Cubot said cheerfully.

"Why, thank you, Cubot!" Eggman said with a huge grin. "That has to be the best compliment you have given me so far!"

"But father, there's still something I don't get..." Sage informed. "I'm still willing to help you fulfill your dream of making your Empire... But I need to ask: Why are you doing it?"

After saying this, Eggman's eyes widened, and he slowly started to smile widely.

"Oh boy..." Cubot muttered with wide eyes and concern.

"Sister, what have you done?!" Orbot exclaimed loudly in panic.

"Uh... What?" Sage asked confused. "Did I... Did I said something wrong?"

However, soon Eggman started to slowly laugh like a maniac again, which only confused Sage even more.

"He's gonna do that, isn't he?" Cubot asked in fear.

"I'm afraid so..." Orbot replied with concern.

"No, seriously: What the heck did I do?!" Sage asked.

https://youtu.be/RcB1ctf-jKs

As soon as the music started, Sage looked around confused, and when lights illuminated the place they were in, she understood even less.

And then, the badniks behind turned on, but instead of doing their function of being, well, badniks... They all started to dance in sync to the music, which was the final string for Sage to loose the little patience she had left.

"WHAT IS GOING ON?!" Sage shouted loudly this time.

"You wonder why I do this, don't you dear?!" Eggman asked, standing on a platform and wearing a cup hat, as well as holding a walking stick.

"Uh... Yes? But what does any of this has to do with it?" Sage asked, still feeling confused.

"This is everything, my dear!" Eggman replied happily. "Finally, after 10 books, it's my turn to sing!"

Sage's eyes widened after hearing this, and so, she turned to Orbot. "So that's why you're scared..."

Orbot only nodded with concern.

The story begins with who's gonna win
You know when the danger lies within
Aboard the ARK a genius at heart
Who wanted to unlock the mysteries of life

I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; that's what I am
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; I've got the master plan
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; that's what I am
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N with the master plan

I'm plotting my schemes wherever I go
They're perfect in every way
I'd love to destroy the blue one you know
He's an obstacle that always gets in my way

I must play in this game by my rules
I will conquer the world with my tools

All my machines are made for destruction
I will build my empire
I will succeed, and you will see
With my machines, there is no retreat

I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; that's what I am
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; I've got the master plan
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; that's what I am
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; I've got the master plan

I am the enemy; I will succeed
My mission, yeah, I must complete
My name is Eggman; don't forget my name
If you ask me again, I will show you the same

I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; that's what I am
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; I've got the master plan
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; that's what I am
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N; I've got the master, master plan
I am the E.G.G.M.A.N.

During the whole musical number, the badniks kept dancing around in sync at the music, while Eggman twirled around his stick, and for the final slide, he slid on the floor over his knees, making this way the end of the entire musical number he made.

Of course, he was panting heavily after making the entire number, but Sage, Orbot and Cubot stared confused at him with raised eyebrows.

"Uh... I'm sorry, father, but I'm still lost..." Sage confessed.

After this, Eggman and all the badniks behind him deadpanned at Sage. Even Eggman's mustache flattened after hearing this, so he stood up, threw the hat and stick away and looked down at Sage.

"The world doesn't understands nor appreciates my inventions, so I will make them!" Eggman replied with a frown. "Is simple, dear. Nothing to write home about."

After saying this, he walked away, and all the badniks positioned back on their places and turned off, but Sage looked concerned at Eggman after hearing that last thing.

"He's doing this because of approval..." Sage realized with wide eyes. "But I thought my approval would be enough..."

"Oh, don't blame yourself for this, sister." Orbot told Sage. "The boss just... He tried for years to get people's attention by the legal way, but they never showed him any appreciation."

"That's why he tried to obtain the power of the Chaos Emeralds for so long, but he never managed to use their power." Cubot added with concern. "His anger and hate is just the result of his frustration for approval. He has done horrible things, he has killed critters while trying to make his badniks, and he even annihilated Sonic's whole family... But it wasn't personal until he started to interfere with his plans."

"The boss only wants a world more advanced in technology, but people refuse to give him that." Orbot explained. "That's why he's so obsessed with the Eggman Empire idea."

After learning all of this, Sage looked back to Eggman, who was now near a computer, as he prepared all the commands for the new badniks.

Now she understood why Eggman wanted to defeat Sonic so badly: It was more than just prove to be better, it was to show he had enough power, it was to feel appreciated, to feel he was worth something... His methods were wrong, true, but he crossed so many lines already that he doesn't seem to care anymore.

Still, she promised to help him fulfill his dream, and she was going to... But she was also going to show him the appreciation he always wanted, no matter how much it would cost her.

However, as she floated towards Eggman and prepared to talk, the alarms of the whole factory started to sound loudly, which startled the doctor, his daughter and his minions. So, Sage teleported to Eggman's side, and her eyes turned digital for a second as she checked on something.

Once she finished, she came back to reality with a frown.

"What's the matter, dear?" Eggman asked her with concern.

"We have intruders!" Sage said with anger, before extending her arm to the screen os Eggman's computer and show him the images.

Knuckles was using his super strength and his electrical powers to smash the door that accessed to te fabric, while Izzy behind him used her magic to blast the badniks trying to attack them and stop them of entering to the building.

Of course, Eggman growled in anger, and one of his eyes twitched. "Those stupid fools! After a whole year of peace, they had to show up RIGHT WHEN I'M STARTING MY WORLD DOMINATION?!" He pulled his mustache in anger.

"Not if we can stop them!" Sage stated, then she snapped her fingers, and after a flashlight, the Egg Beater appeared.

"Ohohoho! I like the way you think, dear!" Eggman said with a grin, before turning to Orbot and Cubot on the ground. "Orbot, Cubot. You two stay in here and watch over the badniks while Sage and I deal with those two!"

"Yes, boss!" Orbot and Cubot both said with salutes.

"Sage: Let's go kick some ass!" Eggman stated to his daughter with a confident grin.

Sage nodded with a smile, then Eggman entered with his Eggmobile on the Egg Beater, and then they both headed towards the factory's entrance to face off Knuckles and Izzy.

Meanwhile outside of said factory, Knuckles was punching the entrance like if his life depended on it.

Behind him, Izzy was blasting all the badniks she could with her horn, as she grunted in anger and panted a bit exhausted, but she wasn't planning on stopping any time soon. After all, if they were being attacked by badniks, it only meant that Eggman was in this fabric.

"This is Knuckles. Anyone copy me?!" Knuckles said on his watch, while he charged another punch to the door.

"Tails here!"

"Amy here!"

"Omega here!"

"Shadow here!"

"We found Eggman! He's here, on the Green Hills' North Factory!" Knuckles informed. "Or any of you also got attacked by badniks on the factories you guys arrived?!"

"No!" Tails was the first one to reply. "Misty, Zipp and I just got to Oil Ocean's factory, but this place is empty!"

"Same here with South Green Hills'!" Amy replied.

"Casino Night Zone's Factory is empty as well." Omega informed.

"Same goes to Station Square's!" Shadow said. "You are being attacked, Knuckles?!"

"Almost!" Knuckles replied. "Izzy is blasting them away with her magic, but she won't last long. We need reinforcements!"

"Hang on, Knux! And you too, Izzy!" Amy shouted. "Pipp and I are the closest ones. We're heading there right now, just hold on a bit longer!"

Just then, Izzy finally blasted away the last couple of badniks, before falling on her knees exhausted, something that Knuckles noticed.

However, before he could go with her and help her to stand up, the doors of the factory were exploded, and Knuckles got sent backwards, landing on his back right besides Izzy, who looked at him with concern and wide eyes, before turning around and then feel panicked.

Eggman, on his Egg Beater, and Sage were right in front of them, both ready to kick them away.

"Well, well, well!" Eggman mocked up with a sinister laugh. "Look what we have here, Sage: A pair of idiots that compensate their failures through anger!"

Knuckles slowly sat down and groaned in pain, also rubbing his butt, while Izzy frowned in anger and made her horn sparkle.

When Knuckles noticed Eggman and Sage as well, he frowned too, and slowly stood up. "Guys... You might all wanna come here... Because Eggman and Sage are up for one hell of a fight..." He informed through his watch.

"What?!" Tails and Amy's voice spoke in concern.

"Hang on there, Knucklehead!" Rouge spoke now. "We're on our way!"

"Just kick their asses while we get there!" Hitch spoke next with concern for his friends.

"Oh, don't worry, Sheriff!" Knuckles replied with a grin, also cracking his knuckles. "I was planning on doing that anyways!"

"Oh, so you guys wanna dance?!" Eggman asked with a laugh, before preparing the Egg beater to fight. "Well, too bad I'm gonna wipe the floor with your bodies!"

"You'll regret having come here!" Sage stated with anger, raising her hand that glowed with the energy of the Phantom Ruby her body was made of.

"Wanna dance with me, Knuckie?" Izzy asked Knuckles with a smirk, but also glaring daggers at the two villains in front.

"Oh, you bet I freaking do, honey!" Knuckles replied with joy, also licking his lips.

And so, Knuckles and Izzy moved towards Eggman and Sage, with the pair of villains doing the same against the echidna and the Unicorn mare.

First off, we have Knuckles vs Eggman: The echidna warrior jumped in the air and slid over the Egg Beater's left raised arm, before aiming his punch against the head of the machine and make a critical punch on the robot's visor, because he cracked it, which hardened Eggman's vision when fighting.

"Ah! I can't see!" Eggman cried out, but he still managed to grab Knuckles with an arm of the machine and launch him against some container near by that belonged to the factory.

On the tother hand, Sage was using her power of creation to make several spikes come out of the ground to try and straight up kill Izzy, but the Unicorn mare had some kind of sixth instinct that warned her about these incoming attacks, so she always managed to dodge them.

At the same time, Izzy charged blasts from her horn to hit Sage, but the young girl always managed to dodge every blast... Except for one that finally hit her face and sent her a bit backwards.

Sage groaned in pain shook her head, feeling a bit dizzy and confused, but then, she touched her right cheek and felt a scar over it. Of course, and since her body is artificial, no blood came out of her, but she still looked down at Izzy with a frown and pure rage.

So, she snapped her fingers and made a much smaller version of the Death Egg robot appear, but this one machine was now being controlled by her, because she planned to destroy the unicorn mare with it.

Of course, Izzy panicked and gulped nervously at the sight of the Death Egg Robot coming out of nowhere, but she still lightened her horn up and positioned to fight, since she knew pretty well that if she doesn't fights back, Eggman and Sage will win, and that's no good.

On the other hand, Knuckles and Eggman kept fighting on a 1v1 battle, but somehow, Eggman had the advantage, even if the crystal of the robot's head was broken and his vision was distorted.

Anytime Knuckles dig on the ground and came out to strike a surprise punch against the machine, Eggman always managed to find out and block the attack, although he did failed the counter attacks because of his blurred vision, but Knuckles wanted to punch him and couldn't do it for some reason.

Soon, Eggman brought out the wrecking ball of the machine and tried to hit Knuckles with it. Of course, Knuckles managed to grab the wrecking ball with his bare hands, but that was a mistake.

When the echidna caught the ball, Eggman raised the right arm where the wrecking ball came from and started to twirl it around in the air, which made Knuckles scream in fear, although he never let go the ball for some reason. And in the end, Eggman smashed him with the ball against a wall.

Knuckles groaned in pain after this happened, and he fell on his face over the floor, while Eggman chuckled and approached him with the machine.

On the other hand, Izzy was jumping over the Death Egg Robot's arms whenever Sage extended them against her, and she slightly ran over them, before jumping over the head of the machine, as well as launch a massive blast against it. She kept doing this for 4 or 5 times more, until she damaged it enough.

Of course, Sage growled in anger once more, and so, she gave the Death Egg Robot laser eyes, as she launched them against Izzy, while the unicorn mare protected herself with a magical shield.

However, when she looked for a second to her side and noticed that Knuckles was in the ground, laying on his chest painfully, and the Egg Beater approached while preparing the wrecking ball to smash the echidna, her eyes widened in panic.

"KNUCKIE!" Izzy shouted in fear, before frowning in rage, the deactivate the shield and launch a massive blast against Sage that sent her and the death Egg Robot backwards, as they both crashed with the wall.

After that, she rushed towards Knuckles, and just when the Egg Beater was moving the wrecking ball to kill Knuckles, Izzy stood in front of him and activated her shield with her magic, protecting both herself and her boyfriend as she did so, while Eggman looked both surprised and confused at her action.

"What the hell?!" Eggman exclaimed, before growling in anger and then grab the wrecking ball with his bare hand, then start to smash down the shield to try and kill them both.

Eggman punched and punched the shield, but even if Izzy was starting to struggle to keep the shield up, she still was willing to fight back and protect her boyfriend, no matter what. He has done so much for her in the past, for her home, now it was her turn to return the favor.

Soon, Sage arrived as well, and even if the Death Egg Robot she was piloting was very damaged, she still could use the extended arms and the finger-spikes it had.

So, she extended both arms at the same time towards Knuckles and Izzy, and now, with both Eggman and Sage trying to destroy the shield, Izzy was having even more trouble to keep it active, but she wasn't going to give up, specially because this was about protecting Knuckles.

Soon, Knuckles started to wake up, and he lifted his head up just in time to notice that Izzy was struggling to keep her shield to protect him from both Sage and Eggman's attacks, which made his eyes open widely.

So, with a bit of effort, Knuckles slowly stood up and pressed a button on his watch, which activated the shield of it and it reinforced Izzy's one. Of course, Izzy felt surprised by this, but when Knuckles placed a hand on her back and smiled at her, she knew that everything was going to be fine and smiled back.

Then, they both looked with frowns at Sage and Eggman, with Eggman now grabbing the wrecking ball with the two arms of the Egg beater, while Sage moved the spikes of the Death Egg Robot faster.

It was clear that both heroes and villains were getting desperate at this point, because the heroes needed so badly to turn the tables around on their favor, but so did the villains, who needed to see both the echidna warrior and the unicorn mare dead in order to win.

However, the Egg Beater was suddenly grabbed from the back and carried in the air, which surprised both Eggman and Sage, as the latter stopped hitting Izzy and Knuckles' shield.

Then, whoever grabbed Eggman and his Egg Beater launched him away towards a wall, then they grabbed the wrecking ball ball and used it to start and twirl the Egg Beater around, which made Eggman scream in fear inside of the machine, before being launched against the factory.

The Egg Beater traverse a wall and entered to the factory, while Sage growled in anger and looked over at the responsible: Tails, who was on his Tornado IV with the robot mode activated, as the young fox prepared to go 1v1 against Sage.

"Is just you and me now, Sage!" Tails said confidently inside of the robot.

Sage growled and launched herself against Tails, who protected himself and the robot with an arm, before pushing Sage backwards and then hit the Death Egg Robot right in the face, followed by the chest.

Meanwhile, as this fight happened, Amy, Pipp, Zipp and Misty arrived with Izzy and Knuckles and helped them to stand up, since none of them could keep their shield on for any longer, but they still were proud of having fought until the very end.

"Took you guys long enough!" Knuckles mocked up with a smirk, although he also coughed a bit.

"Sorry for the delay!" Amy apologized. "Are you guys okay?"

"As okay as we can be..." Izzy replied weakly, also coughing a lot.

Meanwhile, Tails was soloing Sage as he ripped the two extendable arms of the Death Egg Robot, then he ripped off the robot's head, and then shoot at the chest with one of his robot's palms, traversing the enemy robot and making it fall backwards.

At this, Sage growled in anger, before snapping her fingers and fade away, while Tails finished destroying the Death Egg Robot with his laser, even after the robot was damaged enough that it didn't worked anymore.

"Uh... Tails, sweetheart?" Zipp called out with a worried expression. "You can stop now!"

At this call out, Tails finally stopped, but he still made one last punch and turned around, facing deadpans from his friends except for Izzy, who was scratching her head as she tried to feel less dizzy.

"What? I was just making sure it wouldn't stand up!" Tails defended himself.

After this, he turned to the entrance of the factory, and so, he boosted inside, while the rest followed along, with Knuckles grabbing Izzy bridal style and following the rest as well.

Once inside, they reached the hangar where all the badniks were stationed, as well as where Eggman's musical number happened. However, they found the place completely empty, except for the Egg Beater all ruined up and without Eggman or his Eggmobile, meaning he escaped.

"Seems like Sage was just holding Tails back to give Eggman the chance to escape..." Pipp pointed out with concern.

"Did we lost him?!" Misty asked worried.

Soon, Tails scanned through the robot's eyes the whole room, but when he stopped on the computer on a platform above, he quickly ejected from the Robot and landed on the computer.

The machine was at 96% on deleting all the data, pretty much Eggman's doing since he wanted to leave no trials behind, but Tails was fast enough to move the mouse to the cancel button and then press the space bar, cancelling the deleting process and sighing in relief.

"Nope!" Tails replied, and soon, Zipp and Pipp landed behind him, while Knuckles and Amy climbed up, and Misty used her magic to levitate both herself and Izzy over the platform as well. "Eggman tried to delete his data... But I got him!"

After saying this, Tails pulled out a USB driver and putted it on the USB displayer, before quickly downloading all the information from the computer, since it wasn't encrypted when Eggman tried to delete it.

On the other hand, Eggman and Sage moved to Station Square's factory.

There, Eggman closed the door of his little office and started to throw things around, while Sage, Orbot and Cubot waited outside, although Sage cringed and sometimes covered her ears at the sounds of Eggman swearing and hitting stuff hard enough when he threw things around.

"Fear not, sister." Orbot told her to try and calm her down. "The boss gets frustrated anytime something goes against the way he planned it out, but I'm positive that he'll eventually calm down."

"He always does!" Cubot added with a little smile.

"Doesn't changes the fact that I don't like to see him mad..." Sage pointed out with concern.

"None of us like that, sis..." Cubot said. "In fact, I barely remember the last time he was this mad before..."

"Because he's been out on another dimension for almost 2 years and 6 months, Cubot..." Orbot deadpanned.

"Oh... Right..." Cubot realized with a few blinks, before shaking his head. "The point is that the boss gets mad constantly when things doesn't go his way, but he's gonna chill down in a few minutes."

"Or a few hours, if his mind manages to plan something out first!" Cubot pointed out.

"I wish I could do something to help him calm down, but I know he's probably only going to get more upset..." Sage said with concern, also playing nervously with her fingers. "I just don't understand how his plans get compromised like this all the time!"

"Well, Sonic and his friends have experience being a pain in the butt for Dr. Eggman, sis." Cubot pointed out. "But one day, he's gonna be ruler of the world! His only stress is gonna be rule over everyone, and his frustrations might never come back!"

"I like to be optimist, but even I know that's just being delusional, Cubot." Orbot deadpanned again.

"Maybe he only needs someone to tell him that everything's gonna be fine, even if he fails..." Sage muttered to herself. "What if that's the key to calm him down? Just tell him that everything will work out in the end, no matter how many times he fails?"

"Because I've tried before, dear..." Eggman's voice spoke suddenly, and the siblings got startled after seeing that Eggman came out of his office. "I know things are gonna be fine in the end... But my mind keeps playing with myself and tells me that I won't succeed... My anger drives me insane most of the time, that's why I react the way I do... But I start to see things clear now!"

Seeing that he was grinning, Sage felt a bit relieved and smiled. "You do?!" She asked in excitement.

"I need to make myself more powerful... And to do that, we must collect the shards of the now destroyed Paradox Prism!" Eggman stated confidently, as he made appear an hologram of the full Paradox Prism.

Sage raised an eyebrow and tilted her head confused, while Orbot and Cubot looked at each other and shrugged.

"What's that?" Cubot decided to ask.

"A Prism that allows me to travel across the multiverse!" Eggman declared confidently with a smile. "Sonic destroyed it after ruining my plans last year, but considering he didn't show up today and instead sent his pitiful friends, we have free passage to follow Opaline and steal the Paradox Prism from her!"

"Opaline?" Sage questioned. "But I thought she disappeared a month before we choose to come back to Mobius."

"Oh, she did... And I know precisely why!"

After saying this, Eggman showed now a holographic screen that showed Opaline getting the first red shard of the Paradox Prism and attaching it to her right foreleg's bracelet, then opening a red portal and disappearing, while the image showed static, meaning the video had no more footage.

"It seems our old pal Opaline has been quite busy the past year traveling across the multiverse!" Eggman stated with a grin. "Doing what? I don't care! What does concern us is that she has a fragment of the Prism, or maybe more at this point. We must obtain one ourselves if we want to travel into other worlds as well!"

"So Opaline is traveling across the multiverse again..." Sage muttered with concern. "But why do you want to do the same, father?"

"There's more magic across the multiverse! Eggman stated with a grin. "That means that we can take some for ourselves, and then create the definitive army of badniks to fight against those stupid, pathetic little rodents and stinky ponies!"

Author's Notes:

It took me 10 books to use Green Hills... Better later than never!

The only honorable mention today from another universe is Ivo's dimension, which is the Sonic Boom TV Show, just like Boom Sonic in the previous chapter.

I like the idea of Orbot and Cubot being these wiser(?) and older brothers for Sage that know a lot about Eggman and why he is the way he is, so when she gets concerned for him, they just tell her that he's always like that and will eventually get his feet back on the ground.

Now, you're gonna hate me for this, but this is the last thing we'll see from Eggman, Sage, Orbot and Cubot until Part 2, because I'm cooking something with these three characters. I promise that their absence will be worth it.

Anyways. Next episode: Sonic and Sunny questions Secret Society's real intentions. See ya!

6. Canon Events

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Universe 090516

Opaline was starting to wonder why she never thought about looking for the Paradox Prism before.

Maybe it was because she didn't believed that the multiverse even existed at first. After all, the idea of alternate realities where she existed was so crazy that she could never take it seriously...

Now? She regrets with her soul never going out to find the Prism. She read about its existence thousands of times when she was a filly, but back then she was focused on destroying either Celestia's or Twilight's legacy to the point she never really tried to look after it because she believed it didn't even existed.

But here she is now: On a universe where Twilight and a strange earth pony with clothes and a giant key named Sora were trying to fight her, but of course, and thanks to her new power, they were loosing.

"Ugh... This is starting to become boring and pitiful..." Opaline deadpanned, before levitating both Twilight and Sora to her face, as the two ponies tried to get free from her magic.

"I-I don't know who are you supposed to be, but you won't win this!" Twilight said with a frown, trying to make her own horn light up, but it faded away thanks to Opaline's magic cancelling her magic.

"Your heart must be filled with darkness, but we can fix you!" Sora said as well, as he still held the giant key on his mouth.

Opaline rolled her eyes annoyed, before she frowned, then her eyes turned fully white, and then she opened her mouth, as she absorbed Twilight and Sora's magic, which made the two of them scream in panic, until their Cutie Marks disappeared and they lost their magic entirely.

With this, Opaline let them fall on the ground, with Sora's key shining and then disappearing, while Twilight tried to stand up, but felt too weak to do so.

"Ugh..." Opaline groaned again. "Why are all the Twilights and her friends across the multiverse so stubborn and can't accept defeat for once? I literally can cancel levitation spells!"

"Y-You... A-Aren't defeating us... W-Whoever you are..." Twilight said weakly, as she tired to stand up, but then fell on the ground again.

"And you're still stubborn..." Opaline deadpanned, even rolling her eyes annoyed.

After that, she approached to Sora and levitated him for a second, before taking out of one of his pockets a small blue shard of the Paradox Prism.

It seems that Sora and Twilight were exploring a zone near Ponyville, when Sora suddenly found this shard. Then, as the two ponies were walking across a green field, not so far from Sweet Apple Acres, Opaline suddenly attacked, starting a fight with them that, as you already saw, the Fire Alicorn won.

Now, Opaline grinned at the sight of the blue shard, and she attached it to her left hind leg's bracelet, sending a blue shockwave through her body, while her eyes glowed in bright blue, and her horn and wings lightened up in blue fire.

"Oh, now we're talking!" Opaline grinned happily, as she looked at her lightened up wings, before flapping them and then open a blue portal that took her out of this universe, leaving behind Twilight and Sora completely weakened... This apparently made the whole universe start to glitch out.

As Opaline exited this universe, she turned around and felt surprised.

Just like Universe 240123, the universe she just left started to glitch out entirely, like if it was collapsing for some reason, although she really didn't cared.

"What the hell is happening?" Opaline questioned to herself, but just when she decided to shrug it and keep moving, she suddenly disappeared.

As she did so, a generally golden boat with grey surface and a captain' cabin appeared floating in the middle of nowhere, while being piloted by Chip, who looked with a frown at the place where Opaline was standing over a few seconds ago.

"That should slow her down for now, but I don't know for how long..." Chip muttered with concern. "SONIC!!! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

Universe 030212

On the other hand, Opaline screamed as she suddenly landed on her face on the floor.

She groaned in pain after doing so, before slowly standing up and shaking her head, looking around at her surroundings. She was now on a City, if the massive buildings and ponies passing by were something to go from.

"What the heck?" Opaline said, as she looked confused around. "Where am I? How did I ended up here?!"

Suddenly, in the middle of her confusion, a figure appeared in the ceiling of a building, and some ponies around gasped.

So, Opaline looked on the same direction, just to see an Earth Pony disguised as Spider-Man, or rather, Spider-Mane, as he launched himself from the ceiling, before launching a spider web out of his web-shooter and then start to swing around and across the city.

Ponies around seemed to be cheering, but Opaline deadpanned at the sight. "Ponies really get impressed with the stupidest things now days..."

After saying that, she opened a green portal and then flew through it.

Opaline returned to the realm that connects all the universes again.

However, thanks to all the magic she has absorbed, as well as to the power of the Paradox Prism, she protected herself by creating a shield around her that vibrated, because it just cancelled an incoming attack.

Opaline frowned, and soon, she started to look around to look after the source of whatever or whoever tried to attack her, until she spotted a floating ship not so far from some floating purple crystals, and her frown intensified, because she teleported out of her place.

Then, she suddenly appeared behind the creature over the boat and surrounded them with their magic, but when she turned them around and faced them, her eyes widened, and she gasped in disbelief.

"Celestia?!" Opaline asked with surprise.

"W-What?" 'Celestia' asked confused.

"What in your name is going on? What kind of mental game is this?!" Opaline asked with anger.

"I-I have no specific form nor name! I-I just guard over every reality!" Celestia replied a bit painfully. "Y-Your mind just creates a form you can feel familiar with!"

Opaline's eyes widened. "So you're the guardian of every single reality..." She muttered, before looking at Celestia in anger. "And where have you been the past year that I've been moving from one world to another?!"

"Waiting for our first encounter to do this!" Celestia replied with a smirk, before lightening up her horn.

With this, Celestia and the boat disappeared, which surprised and confused Opaline, as she looked around confused, before realizing with a frown that she escaped... And then, Opaline got hit on her back hardly, because she was sent flying backwards by Celestia.

Opaline growled in anger and turned around, before charging a fire blast and then launch it against Celestia, who received the attack and didn't got harmed by it.

"What?!" Opaline shouted with wide eyes.

"I am the guardian of the multiverse!" Celestia informed with open wings. "Your power is just a fraction of what I'm capable of! So come on, Arcana! Hit me with all your might! The result will be the same!"

Growling in anger, Opaline charged up her horn again and then shot against Celestia, while Celestia received the impact again and then dive towards the Fire Alicorn, with the latter doing the same, as they both let out warrior cries, and their blasts crashed against each other.

However, that was just a distraction, because when Celestia realized, Opaline was gone.

She looked around anxiously, to all the universes around, but she realized that she wasn't there anymore.

However, she did noticed that other universe was collapsing, Universe 200312, and that Opaline quickly came out of it, now having another green Shard of the Paradox Prism on her left foreleg's bracelet.

"No..." Celestia muttered, before flying at top speed towards Opaline. "NO!"

But this was a mistake, because Opaline created a bubble that surrounded Celestia, and Celestia bumped into the bubble itself. She lightened her horn un and tried to blast the bubble, but this did nothing, because the bubble remained intact, and that made her eyes widen in panic.

"You'll be trapped here for quite a while, Celestia! Or whatever you are." Opaline said with a grin. "And soon? The multiverse you're so desperate to protect will belong to ME!" She added, as her wings and horn lightened up in a rainbow fire.

Then, she let out her typical maniac laugh, before flying away to the next universe.

Celestia screamed to Opaline and tried to make her come back, but Opaline already entered to another universe, which made Celestia get desperate and start to blast the bubble even more, but it was doing nothing, because the bubble still remained intact.

So, breathing heavily in despair, Celestia let out a massive and desperate scream of agony, because now the whole multiverse was in more danger than ever.

Universe 250954

"Where's the guy that was so freaked out at the idea of a relationship last year?!" Sonic asked confused.

"Well, spending time in your world opened my eyes, you know?" Boom Sonic replied with a smile, as he placed Aurora on the kangaroo on his chest.

"If you three are done talking, can I please start Sonic and Sunny's final test to join our Society?" Future Sonic asked with anger, also glaring daggers at Boom Sonic.

"Ugh, there he goes again..." Boom Sonic rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Dude, you're the only Sonic who isn't funny here! We're supposed to be funny!"

Boom Sonic looked down at Aurora, who simply kept giggling loudly, and soon, Boom swallowed hard and nervously. "No... it's not necessary... Sorry, Boss..."

"Oh boy.../This is gonna be good." Sunset and Buffon muttered in unison, while Boom turned around and whistled innocently.

"Sonic..." Future Sonic called out, and both Sonic and Sunny looked at him. "You disrupted a Canon Event."

"Canon Event?" Sunny questioned confused, while Sonic rolled his eyes.

"Can someone please tell us what the hell is a Canon Event already?!" Sonic begged.

"FS, the kid wasn't thinking!" Boom Sonic spoke with concern, trying to stand up for his friends. "He doesn't know how it works! Neither does Sunny!"

"That's insulting..." Sunny deadpanned.

"And why are you so mad with us?" Sonic asked FS with a raised eyebrow and a frown. "We saved those ponies! Even the pegasus one that almost died saving a filly!"

"And that last thing is the problem." Future Sonic replied, as he got down of the platform and slowly walked towards Sonic and Sunny.

After saying this, Sonic frowned, although more confused than mad, while Sunny straight up frowned in anger.

"What do you mean?" Sunny asked.

"Nicole, do the thing." Future Sonic informed.

Soon, Nicole 'woke up' and appeared small sized near his shoulder. "Huh? What thing?" She questioned confused, before adjusting her hair and then sit up in the air.

Future Sonic deadpanned at her after she asked that. "What... What do you mean what thing? The information explaining thing!"

"Okay!" Nicole replied with a smile, before extending her hands on the air.

After she did this, the entire environment disappeared, and soon, the whole place turned dark, except for a tiny little light that slowly descended towards the ground, which showed that only the Mobians and Equestrians in the room remained.

"Whoa..." Sunny exclaimed amazed at the little light.

"What's this?" Sonic questioned.

"This... is everything." Future Sonic replied.

As he did so, the light finally reached and touched the ground. As it did this, it left a heptagon on the floor for a moment, before a line came out of it and turned into a curve. As said curve growed, more curves came out if it, and then more curves came out of said curves, and so on.

These lines growed to a point that they started to surround everyone in the room, and what seemed confusing at first for Sonic finally ring a bell, although Sunny still felt confused.

"Uh, can you be more specific? I'm kind of lost here..." Sunny requested.

"Can you not talk for a second?" Future Sonic replied with a mocking smirk.

Sunny deadpanned after hearing this and buffed. "Party pooper..."

"What you guys see here... is all of us," Future Sonic explained, as more and more white lines kept appearing around them, while both Sonic and Sunny looked around and felt amazed by the sight. "Existence itself, melted together in a complex set of waves that travel on their own space and time continuity..."

"The multiverse..." Sonic said, as he kept looking at all the lines around, because this is exactly how the multiverse looked when he access that reality that allows him to go to any universe he wants.

"Precisely." Future Sonic replied with a nod.

Soon, Sunny decided to touch one of the lines in front of her out of curiosity, and that caused an heptagon to form, showing 7 separate slices of the same event but in different universes. In this case? Sunny's first time meeting Izzy when she arrived to Maretime Bay.

"Uh... What is this?" Sunny asked.

"That is the Canon." Future Sonic replied. "Chapters that are part of every Sunny's story, everytime."

Seeing this, Sonic choose to touch one of the lines as well, and this one also showed 7 slices of the same event in different universes. This one was Sonic's first encounter ever with Dr. Eggman.

Soon, Sunny felt curious again, so she touched another line, and the 7 slices of the same event but in different universes appeared again inside an heptagon. This time, it showed how Sunny's first encounter with Opaline also varied in every universe.

"Some good... Some bad..." Future Sonic explained, before looking on a certain direction with a concerned frown. "Some very bad..."

After saying this, he made the lines lower a bit, and soon, right in front of both Sonic and Sunny, a hologram of a Sonic variant showed him in front of a big tragedy that marked him... All the variants that moved ahead in a row always showed the death of his mentor figure, and the last hologram was Sonic standing over the rubble of the burned town where Longclaw died.

"Longclaw..." Sonic muttered with concern at the sight, and Sunny placed a hoof on his arm for comfort.

However, Future Sonic didn't stopped there and also showed another Canon Event to the two friends, as they turned to see where FS was looking.

This new hologram was from a Sunny variant, standing at the side of a hospital bed while holding one of her father's hooves. This row also extended to many more variants of Sunny living the exact same, until we see our Sunny looking again at herself saying goodbye to her had before he passed away.

"My little Sunny-Bunny... You must bring Equestria back to its glory, okay?" Argyle told Sunny on the hologram, while the hologram Sunny teared up.

"Oh my gosh..." Sunny muttered with shock and wide eyes, also covering her mouth with a hoof, while her ears lowered in sadness, and Sonic placed a hand on her shoulder for comfort as well.

Soon, Future Sonic approached to a line and touched it, showing an event in a comic style. "This one..." He called out, and both Sonic and Sunny turned to see him and the image. "Event STH-09. The closest and bestest friend to Sonic the Hedgehog dies during a fight against a world-threatening menace."

The Comic 'panels' showed Sonic and Tails both fighting against Eggman as usual, but on a desperate attempt to make things go on his favor, Eggman shoot at Tails on his chest and killed him. Sonic soon trashed down Eggman's machine and rushed to Tails, hugging him and crying over his death body.

Then, an hologram of that very scene projected in front of the heptagon with the image of Sonic hugging Tails' death body.

"Little buddy... I'm so sorry..." The Sonic in the projection apologized, hugging him tightly and crying over him.

Sonic was petrified after seeing this, specially because he went through the fear of almost loosing Tails on his first New Year in Equestria, while Sunny covered her mouth with both hooves and felt her eyes tearing up, because just like Sonic, Tails was a little brother to her, and she just witnessed his death...

Yes, it was his death in another universe, but still his death.

"But us, the Sonics, are not the only ones that have lived this pain..." Future Sonic revealed.

After saying this, Sunset sighed, since those words were some kind of sign. So, she walked over to one of the lines and touched it with her hoof. This made another Heptagon appear, but this one showed Sunset's arrival to Modern Equestria, and the painful realization that Twilight, as well as her friends and family from Equestria, were long gone before her return.

Sonic and Sunny noticed this and felt bad for her, specially Sonic, since he already discovered that back in the Abandoned Canterlot of his universe.

And then, when Sunny gasped, Sonic turned to her and the direction she was looking, just to feel terrified again: Two long rows of holograms about the same Canon Event but in different universes were shown again, for both Mobians that lost a best friend, and Equestrians that did the same.

However, the one image Sunny was looking at was the hologram of a Sunny variant, hugging and crying over the death corpse of her best friend... Or her current lover: Hitch.

Just like Sonic was petrified with Tails being dead, now Sunny felt that way, because this wasn't supposed to happen: She didn't wanted to believe that Hitch had to die, that it was inevitable... It couldn't be real. It just couldn't, she refused to believe that it was.

Sonic, on the other hand, was completely scared at the thought, but when he saw a specific hologram that Boom Sonic was staring, Boom turned around to not look at it.

This hologram showed Boom himself, crying over the death corpse of Sticks, and Sonic looked up at Boom, who kissed Aurora's head. Sonic then understood what happened: In those two years that Boom Sonic was on his world, Sticks died on his arms at some point... now she's gone.

"That happened to you, didn't it?" Sonic asked to Boom Sonic, who limited himself to let out a sigh.

"And to me..." Twilight spoke, and when Sonic turned to see her, Twilight was facing an hologram that showed Spike's death corpse, because he died on her universe.

Both Sonic and Sunny couldn't believe this, then they both looked at Buffon, who was looking at the ground with concern, but as soon as he noticed Sonic and Sunny's eyes over him, he tried to shift back to his careless attitude.

"Yeah. What about it?" Buffon said, but both Sonic and Sunny could tell on his sad eyes that it hurt him when he also lost his best friend back on his world.

So, Sonic quickly looked through the holograms to see if he could find Buffon's Canon Event, and when he did so, it was precisely what he feared: It was Tails' death corpse again, and Buffon was crying over him... Just like every single other Sonic in that row.

"That's how the story is... supposed to go." Future Sonic spoke, and both Sonic and Sunny turned to see him. "Canon Events are the connections that bind our lives together."

As he explained this, the others were watching at some of their Canon Events.

Buffon was looking at that time he fought Robotnik for the last time before he was transported to Equestria in his universe... He unconsciously smiled at the sight, because he never felt so satisfied with a battle's result the same way he felt when Robotnik and his nightmare-ish city were gone.

Twilight was watching the time she fought Lord Tirek with her magic, Celestia's, Luna's and Cadance's combined, which allowed her to be at the same ground that Tirek when they fought each other.

Boom Sonic was looking at his wedding day with Amy again. Tails, Knuckles and even Sticks were there when they promised to be there for each other until they died, and even Eggman went to the wedding as a guest, although he still had to return to his cell after the ceremony was over.

Still, it was a really good memory for Boom Sonic, and even if Sticks was gone now, he wouldn't change that feeling of happiness he has now that he's married and has Aurora for anything.

Finally, Sunset was looking at the exact moment that Sunset was lifted off the ground when Magic was restored to Equestria and it transformed her into an Alicorn like Sunny, regaining her youth again and even gaining new magical strength thanks to the magic being restored.

Of course, and just like Boom Sonic, Sunset smiled at the sight, because those were simpler times were her only concern was to look after her new pony friends in Modern Equestria...

Not like now that she has to look after the whole multiverse, even if she wasn't doing it alone.

"But those connections can be broken..." Future Sonic explained to Sonic and Sunny with a concerned frown. "That's why... Anomalies are so dangerous."

As he explained this, the other were now looking at Sonic and only Sonic; Twilight and Buffon with neutral expressions, and Sunset and Boom with concern and guilt, but neither Sonic or Sunny noticed their looks because they kept staring at Canon Events from across the multiverse.

However, when Future Sonic mentioned the anomalies, they both looked at him with concern.

"Surprise's death was a Canon Event... Firefly's Canon Event." Future Sonic revealed with concern.

After saying this, an hologram of what happened at Universe 271213 showed up, replaying the events of the bridge collapsing and ponies running away from the falling building, while Surprise was running towards that filly to protect her.

"You weren't supposed to save her... And you weren't supposed to do anything." Future Sonic told only to Sonic, while Sonic himself looked at the hologram of Surprise saving that filly with concern. "That's why Sunset tried to stop you."

Now, the hologram changed and showed Sunset trying to stop Sonic from going and save Surprise and that filly.

"Sonic, wait!" Sunset's voice spoke on the hologram, while both Sonic and Sunny turned to see Sunset with slight frowns.

"I thought you were trying to save me..." Sonic said with concern and slight anger, while the hologram behind him showed him getting free from Sunset's grip.

"...I was..." Sunset replied, giving them her back and not daring to look at them into their eyes. "...I was doing both..." She added, now looking at them over her shoulder.

Sonic frowned even more after hearing this. He literally told her that he couldn't consider himself a good friend if he ever lied to a friend... And that's what Sunset did right now: She lied to him, and she told him she just wanted to save him from killing himself...

In reality, she tried to let an innocent pony die just because 'it was a Canon Event'... How stupid and selfish that had to be? He didn't even wanted to know.

"And now, Sonic..." Future Sonic spoke, as both Sonic and Sunny turned to him, while Future Sonic made the hologram change again and show how Sonic saved Surprise and that filly from dying. "Because you changed the story, Firefly's entire universe is unravelling."

Now, Future Sonic showed the team that was dealing with the glitch on Firefly's universe, while also showing the glitching rubble and ocean on the floor.

"If we're lucky... We can stop it..." Future Sonic said, while both Sonic and Sunny looked down with concern at the glitching spots. "We haven't always been lucky."

"But I don't get it..." Sunny said with concern, before turning to see FS with a frown. "How's saving an innocent soul so disturbing that it make an entire universe unravel?! That makes no sense!"

"Is what happens when you brake the Canon..." Future Sonic replied with a guilty expression and look, as he slowly walked to Sunny and Sonic with his hands on his hips.

"How do you know?" Sonic asked with a concerned frown and a raised eyebrow.

"Because I broke it once myself..." Future Sonic confessed, still with a guilty expression.

Sonic and Sunny's eyes widened after hearing this, and they looked at each other for a moment while gulping, before nodding to each other and then look back at FS.

"What happened?" Sunny decided to be the one asking.

Future Sonic sighed and started to narrate what happened. "I found a world, where I had a family... where I was happy..."

Future Sonic was looking at another version of himself.

This one particular, however, looked exactly like him, even with the eyepatch and everything. This Sonic was happily hugging his daughter on her birthday, and even gave her a soccer ball, because she really liked that sport, hence why she was wearing a shirt with number 91 and her name behind.

"At least, that version of me was..." Future Sonic narrated.

Suddenly, we see a transition of that universe where FS was happy.

We see that someone grabbed a bag that wasn't theirs and ran away before he was caught for robbing, and the FS of that universe threw the stuff he just bought to try and stop the thief, but the thief wasn't going to let anyone stop him, so he brought out a gun and pulled the trigger.

"And that version of myself was killed..." Future Sonic narrated.

Now, we see that this world's FS was killed by the thief, and his death body lay on the floor, while he was bathed on a pool of blood.

Future Sonic saw all of this, but then he removed the image, changed his clothes and then opened a portal to that universe, simulating to be the FS that just died.

"So I replaced him" Future Sonic revealed.

Once in this universe, Future Sonic looked around to make sure no one saw him, then he got rid of his other self's body and then walked away to look after 'his' daughter.

We see that Future Sonic is now bonding with 'his' daughter, as they were both enjoying breakfast, while they also smiled at each other.

"I thought it was harmless..." Future Sonic confessed.

Now, we see that Future Sonic is watching more footage of his other self and his daughter.

In the video playing in particular, his daughter removed the ribbon from the soccer ball and placed it playfully on the other FS head, before looking at the camera and pull out her tongue, while Future Sonic laughed joyfully.

Yet, when the image faded away, the current FS was frowning with a depressed look.

"But I was wrong." Future Sonic said with guilt.

Back to reality, Future Sonic showed footage of that same universe, now collapsing.

Many people were running away because of their world starting to slowly fade away and reduce to be nothing, while many members of the Secret Society were doing all they could to save as many as possible.

Suddenly, a lady tripped and fell to the ground, so Boom Sonic came by and tried to help her stand up, but as the lady was about to thank him for doing so, she vanished away, and Boom's eyes widened in fear and panic, while both Sonic and Sunny watched this as well while breathing heavily.

"This is what it looks like when a universe dies..." Future Sonic revealed with concern.

Then, both Sonic and Sunny saw FS running through the hologram while holding his daughter on his arms, as she also glitched out because of her world collapsing, while more people around disappeared.

"Daddy?!" His daughter said with concern, before her glitching got worse and worse. "Dad, no!" She screamed her last words, before she also disappeared entirely, while Future Sonic looked at his empty arms with wide eyes, while also breathing heavily.

"When you suffer it, you hope it will be the last time..." Future Sonic finished his narration with a hurt tone. "Isn't that right, Boom?"

Boom Sonic sighed with concern and nodded his head. "Yeah..." He replied, while Sunset looked at him with worry.

"Brake enough Canon, save more of those best friends..." Future Sonic spoke, while the universe he was showing began to glitch out even more.

Eventually said universe ended up collapsing entirely, while Sonic and Sunny covered themselves with their arms and legs, but when they opened their eyes again, the white lines that represent each universe were surrounding them again.

"And we could loose everything." Future Sonic finished.

After saying this, all the white lines around them started to glitch out, until they eventually started to slowly disappear, one by one, until the only thing that remained in the room again was FS, Boom, Sunset, Twilight, Buffon, and both Sonic and Sunny themselves.

This last thing was just a simulation Nicole showed of what could happen if the multiverse ever collapsed entirely.

"And now? Thanks to the Opaline of your world stealing magic, collecting Paradox Prism's shards, and braking enough Canon... Several universes have collapsed and reduced to be nothing." Future Sonic revealed.

At this, Nicole now showed through holograms actual worlds collapsing and Opaline escaping them while moving to the next world.

"These are images of events that happened two hours ago." Twilight informed with concern. "But our footage arrived just now... That's why we haven't been able to track her location down. She moves way too fast for us... We were hoping you guys would join us to help to track her down."

"That way, we can avoid things like Universe 151222 from happening." Future Sonic added with a slight frown.

"What happened to that world?" Sunny asked.

At this, FS looked at Nicole and nodded, while Nicole showed another hologram, this one simulating said world.

The hologram showed Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles and Rouge variants fighting against the Eggman of that world, while he was on his Egg Crusher, grabbing a big gem that looked exactly like the Paradox Prism, which surprised both Sonic and Sunny.

"In this universe, this Sonic was reckless and careless..." Future Sonic started to explain, as the hologram showed that Sonic variant charging a Spin Dash against the Paradox Prism. "This Sonic destroyed the Paradox Prism from his world... But unlike yours, were it opened a door in the multiverse and sent you to a new world... This Paradox Prism split into 5 shards and destroyed their entire reality."

Then, the hologram showed precisely that: How that Sonic variant crashed against the Prism and the entire environment disappeared, but the only thing that remained now was that Sonic floating in the middle of nowhere, while his shoes glowed and released some electrical sparkles.

"We think this reality has split into 5 different ones, but we don't know for sure..." Twilight informed as well with concern. "That's why we must stop Opaline, to avoid things like this from happening!"

However, after hearing the whole thing about Canon Events, as well as what happened at Universe 151222, why FS hates it so much and how their friends, and lover in Sunny's case, could die because it had to happen... They both panicked at the thought.

"...Our friends are still alive..." Sonic pointed out with wide eyes and an anxious look.

Sunny slowly looked at him with panic and breathing heavily; Sunset sighed and looked down in concern; Boom Sonic looked down as well and felt bad for them; FS raised an eyebrow; Buffon looked around to analyze everyone's expressions, and Twilight looked at Sonic and Sunny with a serious look.

Suddenly, Sonic's right arm started to glow on the same colors than the Paradox Prism, while his eyes and quills turned on in the same colors as well, and Sonic started to have a massive headache that made him grab his head.

Sunny noticed this and worried for him, but before she could help him out, her Alicorn Form showed, while her eyes glowed in golden light, and she ended up grabbing her head as well while screaming in pain...

They were both having a shared vision.

Opaline was flying in the air, with her horn and wings lightened in rainbow fire.

Below her, a bunch of Mobians and Equestrian corpses lay in between a bunch of rubble, meaning that a big fight against the Fire Alicorn approached, and they were going to loose.

Suddenly, Opaline opened a bunch of portal with her magic and launched objects from all across the multiverse against members of the Secret Society, as everyone tried to dodge the objects, some succeeding, and some failing and dying in the battlefield.

"I will rule over the entire multiverse..." Opaline's voice spoke, although it sounded a bit distorted. "And every critter will kneel to me, AND ADORE ME AS THEIR QUEEN!"

As she said this, she launched a bunch of rubble against the Mane 6, since they were running in the vision, but then, Sparky fell from Hitch's back, so he quickly rushed to try and save him, just for rubble to fall over him and kill him after doing so.

Then, Tails was fighting against a bunch of villains recruited by Opaline and winning, but when he noticed on the corner of his eye that Zipp was getting harm, he quickly flew towards her, and just when a Tirek variant was going to kill her, Tails pushed her away and took the hit, dying in the process.

When the vision ended, Sonic opened his eyes and breathed heavily.

The Prismatic Energy of his body was gone, but he had an anxious look because of what he just saw. At his side, Sunny was breathing heavily as well, while her Alicorn form dissipated, but she felt as anxious as Sonic after learning how are Hitch and Tails going to die.

"...Opaline does it..." Sonic said with panic.

"...She kills them both..." Sunny added anxiously.

FS frowned after hearing this, because Sonic wasn't supposed to find out, although he said nothing.

"...We have to go home..." Sonic said, before frowning and looking at FS. "We have to stop them from getting killed!"

"I can't do that." Future Sonic replied, and Sunset cringed, because she knew what was to come next. "At least not now."

"Then what are we supposed to do? Just let them die?!" Sunny shouted, while also breathing heavily.

FS said nothing, but his expression clearly said he was expecting them to, in fact, let them die.

Sonic stared with disbelief at his other self, while Sunny felt her lips trembling and her ears lowering, not being able to believe that FS was willing to let them die.

Then, Sonic turned to see Sunset with a frown. "And what about you? Your universe's Hitch is still alive, isn't he?!"

Sunset looked back at Sonic with sadness in her eyes. "Yeah..." She replied, resisting the urge to cry.

"And that's it?!" Sunny asked her in anger. "You're just not gonna do anything about it?!"

Sunset only looked down in sadness and shame, not being able to look at Sunny, because even if she was from another universe, she knew perfectly that even her own Sunny would be disappointed on her decision, specially since they considered each other's sister.

"Okay, and what about you? Wouldn't you like to go back in time and save Sticks from dying?" Sonic asked now to Boom Sonic with anger. "It'll be okay if you knew and you just... stood there and do nothing?!"

"If not for our friends' death, most of us wouldn't be here, Sonic..." Boom Sonic replied, also placing a hand on his shoulder, while leading him to see many more deaths of Equestrian and Mobians best friends. "And all the good things we did thanks to that, it wouldn't have been done!"

Sonic looked down to the ground and thought about it... It is true that Longclaw's death marked him forever, but it also lead to him making great stuff he wouldn't had done if she didn't died...

And yet, the idea of letting so manny people die just because an AI was saying that it had to happen was not only stupid, but it was also a massacre. Just letting them die because 'it has to happen'... How twisted and sick were all these people to let it happen? He didn't wanted to know, nor did Sunny.

Suddenly, Sonic let out a snort, before it slowly turned into a laugh that slowly become more and more maniac, as he forced Boom Sonic's hand off his shoulder and looked at everyone around, still laughing maniacally.

"Sunny, can you believe this?" Sonic asked to Sunny, still laughing maniacally and pointing with a thumb at Boom behind him, but Sunny knew Sonic's laugh was from someone who felt hurt and betrayed, and she honestly felt the same way. "This is crazy, isn't it?!"

"What's so funny?" Future Sonic asked with a frown.

"Oh, you know: Sunset said that we were going to join an Elite Team that protects the multiverse!" Sonic replied. "But you know what I see here? A bunch of clowns, playing to be so important with their fancy watches and pretending to be the Guardians of the Galaxy!"

"Hey, man, calm down––" Boom Sonic tried to say, but soon, Sunny chuckled, and he knew that this was only going to get worse if she was joining Sonic.

"You're right, Sonic..." Sunny said. "This isn't a Society, is a stupid circus of maniacs!"

"We're just doing what's the best for everyone––" Future Sonic tried to argue.

"Oh, the best for everyone, huh?" Sonic asked with a maniac smile, before frowning in anger. "So we're just supposed to let people die because some algorithm says that that's supposed to happen?!"

"Oh, whoa!" Nicole said surprised with wide eyes and stepped a bit back, since she appeared right over FS' shoulder, while FS himself frowned at Sonic.

"Are you realizing how messed up it sounds, right?! How stupid my own words are?!" Sonic shouted in rage.

"You have a choice between saving one person, and saving an entire world. Every world!" Future Sonic pointed out.

"The joke is on you, because you're not asking us to let one person die, which is already messed up enough, but you want us to let two of them die!" Sunny pointed out with concern.

"And we can do both!" Sonic added, while Sunny at his side nodded in agreement. "We can save both our friends and the entire multiverse! We've always––"

"Not always..." Boom Sonic cut him off, and both Sonic and Sunny turned to see him with wide eyes and disbelief, while Boom looked at them with a sympathetic look.

"Guys..." Future Sonic called out, while both Sonic and Sunny turned to him with frowns. "We all want to live the life we wish we had... Believe me... I have tried! And the harder I tried, the more damage I did."

Sunny's frown softened a bit after hearing this. After all, she witnessed how that other FS' world was destroyed after the one in front of her broke the Canon... But Sonic remained frowning, and both Sunny and him were still convinced that this was a massacre, for a greater good or not.

At the end of the day, killing is still killing, and they could never see it with good eyes.

"You can't have it all, kids..." Future Sonic pointed out to them.

It was at this point that both Sonic and Sunny noticed something off on their surroundings... and it was that they were surrounded by at least a quarter of the Secret Society's members, both Mobians and Equestrians, all surrounding them both along the four member that were already there.

"Being a hero always demands a sacrifice. That's the job..." Future Sonic explained, while both Sonic and Sunny looked at their surroundings confused, until the looked only at FS with frowns. "That's what you signed up for."

Hearing this, only made Sonic feel his blood boil, while Sunny growled in rage.

"Sonic..." A voice spoke suddenly, and when he turned to his left, along with Sunny, they both saw a big robot that had Tails face.

Soon, the robot's face opened and showed Tails from Universe 060403, looking down at them with concern and also shaking his head, because he already went through a Canon Event: He lost Cosmo, and he was convinced that stopping her from dying was inevitable.

"Tails?" Sunny called out with concern, while Sonic looked around at the Secret Society's member with anger, as his electrical powers started to show off a bit.

"What is this?" Sonic asked enraged. "Is this an intervention or something? You guys are willing to go that far just because an AI told you all that if we don't let them die, then everyone else does as well?!"

Soon, a Sonic variant that seemed like he just came out of a comic panel stepped ahead and looked at Sonic and Sunny with concern. "We know it's hard..." He confessed, even looking at the ground for a second, before looking back at them "But it's the truth, guys."

This Sonic that spoke has gone through a lot of stuff. Just to name one of them: His girlfriend turned into a killer robot because of Eggman, and he unfortunately lost her forever... She was his Canon Event, and even if he would like to go back in time and save her, he won't for the sake of the multiverse.

Sonic and Sunny, however, felt enraged after hearing this. Worse of all, they felt betrayed, because they were promised to join a group for a greater good... To fight and defeat Opaline...

Instead, they arrived with a bunch of maniacs that consider themselves as heroes, but they're as terrible as any villain, because they were willing to let innocents die just because an algorithm said so... It was definitely messed up, and none of them were planing to join this cause.

Soon, Sunny turned to Boom with anger. "Is that why you're here? To let us down easy?!" She asked him enraged, while Boom Sonic looked away from them with shame.

"Sure, worked last time. Why not run it back, huh?" Sonic said with anger. "Your friends from your world said you could be an asshole sometimes, but this goes beyond my expectations..."

"Hey, hold on, hold on!" Boom Sonic said, while Aurora on the baby kangaroo felt a bit scared, because Sonic's powers were showing up even more at this point.

"What about you, Sunset?" Sunny called out this time, but she didn't dared to look at her in the eyes. "You went to recruit us for this? To be part of your homicidal group?"

Sunset felt her heart shattering to pieces after hearing this, while her eyes started to tear up a bit.

"Don't. You. Dare. To cry, Sunset!" Sonic told her, as she approached her and stood in front of her menacingly, and even if Sunset was the same hight than him, she still felt small compared to his angry phase. "I don't care why you even visited us in the first place, but you better never show your face on our universe again, or I won't answer for my actions. Understood?"

Sunset felt anxious after hearing this, but all she did was look away, although that was a good answer for Sonic, because he turned and walked away from her.

"If I knew from the beginning all of this, I would had kicked you out of my universe." Sonic muttered, but Sunset did heard it and panicked again, because she knew he was talking to her.

"Come on, guys, don't make this any more harder than it already is!" Future Sonic begged silently, but both Sonic and Sunny refused to face him. "Hey, kids, look at me––"

"Stop calling us that." Sunny said with anger, as her Alicorn form glitched a bit, while her eyes turned golden for a moment as well.

"There you go." Buffon said with his arms crossed and a proud smirk.

"Buffon, you're not helping!" Twilight scolded him with a whisper, but also frowning.

"Good." Buffon replied, still smirking proudly at Sunny, while Sonic and her smiled slightly at Buffon.

"Guys, please understand––" Boom Sonic tried to plead again.

"You can't ask us not to save our friends!" Sonic said with anger. "That's not what we do! We fight until the very end, no matter if it costs our lives! We just don't stand there and watch everyone die!"

"We focus on what's important!" Twilight pointed out with a slight frown.

"What's important is not standing by while allowing someone to suffer or die because you do nothing!" Sunny shouted back. "I can't believe I admired you... Nor my father..." She added with pure hate, and Twilight's frown disappeared to let in the surprise of hearing that. "Maybe I should had let your legacy stay dead..."

"But you didn't because is the right thing to do!" Sonic stated, nos standing in front of her and facing off Future Sonic with pure hate and anger. "Because that's what we always do! What we think is the right thing to do! And if none of you get that! Well, might as well consider changing your name, because wearing the shoes to be called Sonic is way too big for you, chief."

Everyone else except for Sunny and Buffon was surprised that Sonic raised his voice to the leader. Sunny instead felt as mad as Sonic against this guy, while Buffon couldn't help but feel proud because he finally understood that he didn't needed this Society.

The Society itself, however, was feeling conflicted now. Sonic had a point, and some of the members could see it, but others were still sided with FS, thinking they were just doing what was best for the entire multiverse.

Boom Sonic had no idea in which side to be, since all he wanted was to protect his daughter, while Sunset started to felt conflicted as well, but she also felt concerned for Sonic, because challenging FS was something nobody ever ever dared to do, until Sonic came, that is.

As for FS himself, he was really loosing his patience, since this isn't the outcome he wanted, but he did expected it. After all, he has to confess that a part of him hates this, even if he's willing to keep going.

"Perhaps you're taking this too––" Future Sonic tried to say, extending his arm towards him.

However, Sonic didn't even thought twice and snatched his arm away with brute force, which finally made his eye widen, while everyone else around but Sunny and Buffon gasped in shock and disbelief at his action.

"You're not my boss. You'll never be." Sonic told FS with pure hate and anger. "I would never work for a killer."

That was the last straw of FS' patience, and so, he frowned down at Sonic. "Okay. I tried to be polite, but it seems that you two are not willing to listen."

"And why should we? A killer is telling us to let our friends die." Sunny replied with anger, and FS felt his blood boil whenever they told him he was a killer. "Like Sonic said, you can't ask us not to save our friends!"

"I'm not asking you." Future Sonic replied with a frown.

After saying this, two weird discs slid below Sonic and Sunny respectively, before encaging them in two red cages, as a security measure to ensure they wouldn't save their friends and brake the Canon.

"FS, just give them a second!" Boom Sonic begged, as he walked towards FS, while both Sonic and Sunny felt confused on why they were trapped now.

"Great impression, boss." Buffon said sarcastically with an eye roll, while Sonic started to punch the cage, trying to get out.

"No!" Sunset exclaimed, as she tried to punch Sunny's cage, while Sunny herself hit it as well. "Chief, stop this!"

Now with both Boom and Sunset over him, FS felt a bit overwhelmed, but as the leader, he had to make the hardest decisions, even if not everyone was going to like them all the time.

"We let them leave, they'll only do more damage, you both know that!" Future Sonic pointed out, as he tried to resonate with Boom and Sunset.

"Chief, that's enough!" Sunset said with anger.

Suddenly, Buffon managed to turn around and look at Sonic. "Hey, Blue Blur." He called out, showing his palms to him, while also looking at his side to make sure FS won't notice.

When Sonic saw Buffon doing this, his eyes widened...

"A piece of advice: Use the palms, not just the fingers."

Remembering his words made him look at his hands, and the at the cage. He finally had an idea: He needed to absorb the cage's energy and release it against the cage itself.

Meanwhile, Future Sonic sighed, the turned around and started to walk away, not willing to negotiate anything regarding Sonic nor Sunny's freedom.

"We just need to hold you two a few days! At least until your Canon Events have happened..." Future Sonic said with concern, still walking away. "Sorry it had to end like this, kids..."

Now this was Sonic's last straw for his patience, because he was tired to be called that way by FS and Boom Sonic.

Neither Sunny nor him nor were kids anymore, and he's gonna prove it.

"In case you are as deaf as you are one-eyed, old man, Sunny said..." Sonic started with anger, placing his palms on the cage and absorbing its energy. "Not to call us that!"

After this, he released the energy he absorbed against the cage, which caused a little explosion that sent the Secret Society's members backwards...

Author's Notes:

Well, Opaline is truly becoming a villain in this story, isn't she?

In today's chapter, the universes that Opaline attacked to obtain those fragments from the Paradox Prism are this story by Codex92, and this one-shot by zaptiftun, while the universe she was suddenly sent by Chip is from this story by Maximus_Reborn.

When it comes to the Canon Events, well, there's no FIMFiction nor Wattpad story (that I know about) where Tails dies, so instead I based the scene in this comic dub's ending, where Tails dies in Sonic's hands and he cries, even though the context in that comic is different than the one given in this chapter but, again, it was inspiration.

The FS that died is, just like the current FS, a made-up character for this story, but also inspired by his design in Sonic and the Tales of Deception. The Sonic FS was talking about that destroyed his reality is, in fact, Sonic from Sonic Prime, and the Tails that showed up is the same Tails from Sonic X, a month or two after Cosmo died.

Finally, the Sonic that approached and told Sunny and Sonic is none other than Archie Sonic from the Sonic the Hedgehog: Archie Comic Series. I decided to give him the same spotlight than Spectacular Spider-Man had in ATSV because he's not relevant to the story, just a fun little cameo.

I honestly think that switching a police officer close to the main characters for their straight up best friend was the right call. I mean, even if they're a couple now, Hitch is still Sunny's best friend, and Tails is a little brother for Sonic. They cannot loose them, and hopefully they won't.

Anyways, thanks for reading, and next episode things will calm down a bit, because we're moving back to Universe 220822 to see how are the others doing! See ya!

7. A World of Talking Animals

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Universe 220815

Let's see if this story feel familiar to you:

A billionaire genius decides to create an AI whose purpose is to protect the world from destruction. However, said AI becomes aware of itself and analyzes the human race, getting completely confused between what is good and what is bad, to the point where it begins to deeply hate humans, so it decides that in order to save the world from destruction, humanity must be completely eradicated.

So far so good, right? Excellent!

Now, imagine that same AI fails its mission, but then ends up transported to a world full of magically colored ponies that aren't that different from humans, and now it also hates said ponies and plans to destroy them just like it wanted to with the humans.

After this happens, both a group of humans with super abilities and a group of ponies join forces to fight against this AI and prevent both ponykind and humankind from being eradicated from existence as it is known.

Well, all I just told you is precisely how things work around in this universe... Or at least they used to, because now this universe was set on fire, and both the human and pony groups, known as the Avengers and the Mane 6 respectively, lay in the ground, completely weakened out.

This happened because Opaline, once again, arrived at good timing, destroying the AI program, named Ultron, with a single blast and spell, not even sweating.

However, she also had to make sure that neither the Avengers nor the Mane 6 were going to step into her plans and ruin it all, like usual, so she made a massive barrier of fire around them, slowly approaching to the two groups.

"To think that Celestia wanted to put her kingdom in the hooves of a... nopony like you, Sparkle..." Opaline told Twilight coldly. "If a part of your silly being is telling you that you can change my mind, then step down that plan: I have come way too far to stop now!"

After that, she spread her wings and floated in the air, while Twilight tried to light her horn up and fight back with her.

However, Opaline lightened her horn as well, and so, the fire barrier suddenly closed over the two groups, slowly killing them both as their skins burned, while they screamed in agony and pain, also begging to anyone for help.

Opaline grinned sinisterly and satisfied with this result, before noticing ahead her next pray.

The Starlight Glimmer's variant of this universe was running as fast as her hooves allowed her to, as she levitated a blue shard from the Paradox Prism, precisely what Opaline came for.

So, Opaline simply teleported right in front of Starlight, while the unicorn mare bumped into her and fell to the ground, before shaking her head and look around confused, until she looked upwards and panicked at the sight of Opaline, who looked down at her with anger.

Still, Starlight stood up and tried to fight back, but before she could speak or light her horn up, Opaline lightened her own horn and burned her whole body down, only leaving her skull behind.

Soon, Starlight's skull fell to the ground, while Opaline grinned and levitated the Blue shard, attaching it to her left hind leg's bracelet and having the same process as usual: Lightened up horn and wings in fire, as well as the blue shockwave sent through her body and the blue glowing eyes.

"Ah!" Opaline sighed happily. "Nothing like a few kills and a boost of power to start the morning!"

After saying this, she flew up in the air, but instead of preparing to shot at the sky and open another portal to move out into the next universe, she looked down at her mess for a second:

Ponies running away from the fire, screaming in fear and panic, crying because of being afraid or because they were either seeing or holding the death body or bodies of ponies they used to know or even were close friends with, and she even witnessed some ponies dying in the fire.

Opaline grinned from ear to ear after seeing this. After all, she lived for this: For the pain she causes, for the destruction she produces... Is her core reason to live, the whole meaning behind taking Twilight's place as ruler.

She didn't gave a damn if she was doing something morally correct or not, she simply wanted to burn it all and then stand over the ashes, showing that she's superior, that adoring and serving her is the right way, that her destiny is to rule, and she won't allow anyone to take that from her.

"Sunny Starscout and Sonic the Hedgehog might believe that they can stop me, huh?" Opaline muttered to herself with a sinister grin. "Might as well prove them wrong!"

After that, she finally opened another portal and left, while this universe started to glitch as well, meaning that it would eventually collapse.

Universe 220822

After exiting Eggman's factory in North Green Hills, the group split up.

While Tails, Misty and the Royal Sisters went with him to his workshop, Knuckles went with Hitch, Izzy and Sparky towards Angel Island, mainly because Knuckles wanted to see that the Master Emerald was still on its place.

Fortunately, as he approached to Angel Island over the Tornado IV while piloting it, both him, Hitch and Izzy could see the floating island in the distance, meaning that the Master Emerald didn't go anywhere, and that Rouge didn't lied when she said she left it intact after he disappeared with Tails.

Oh! Right! Team Dark. Well, they decided to go and report to G.U.N. about their two year absence. They should be fine... I mean, they'll probably just loose their jobs, but other than that, they should be fine.

As for Amy, she willingly choose to stay at the other side of the portal back in Equestria and watch over it, just in case it closed again. Besides, Tails already explained her how it works, so she should be fine as well.

Back with Knuckles, Izzy and Hitch, the trio landed nearby the Altar of Emerald, also known as the Shrine of the Master Emerald. This place is named like this because this is precisely where the Master Emerald rests and uses its power to make the entire island float.

As Knuckles landed in the ground, he smelled the air and the exhaled happily. "Home, sweet home!" He exclaimed, before walking towards the pillar where the Master Emerald rested.

"Whoa!" Izzy exclaimed, as she landed on the ground as well, with Hitch landing on her back and also feeling amazed by the sight.

After all, even if the altar was rusty and destroyed, it still seemed impressive.

"I've never seen structures like these before..." Hitch muttered amazed.

"Oh, but I have!" Izzy said cheerfully with a smile. "In that sandy place where we saw those giant robots with teeth! Many of the structures looked similar like this one, specially with the type of stone they had!"

Hitch looked closely at the pillars, and he had to admit that they definitely resembled those houses he saw on Kronos Island with Sonic and Sunny.

"Yeah... Now that you mention it, I remember seeing structures like this one on Kronos Island" Hitch confessed. "This proves that the Ancients definitely moved to this world after The End almost wiped them out."

"It also brings a bigger historic value... Makes me even prouder of call this place my home." Knuckles stated with a smile.

After that, he started to climb the stairs that lead to the top of the Altar, while Hitch and Izzy looked at him confused, before looking at each other confused, then shrug, and then follow Knuckles upstairs.

"Knux?" Hitch called out. "Why are we here, exactly?"

"Yeah! I thought you said you were going to show us all the beauty around the island!" Izzy pointed out.

"And I will!" Knuckles reassure, stopping in the middle of the stairs to see Hitch and Izzy with a smile. "But first, I need to make sure this Island's biggest treasure is still were it belongs."

After saying this, he resumed his walk, while Izzy and Hitch felt confused, but they still followed him upstairs.

However, as they finally reached the top, the two ponies' and baby dragon's jaws dropped: A massive and green, brilliant cut jewel was resting over the Altar, glowing brightly and showing off all its majesty, which clearly made Izzy and Hitch understand now why Rouge always wanted to steal it, while Sparky licked his lips and babbled hungrily at the sight of the Emerald.

"It's really beautiful, isn't it?" Knuckles said with pride, since he noticed his friend and girlfriend's reactions.

"Beautiful? Beautiful?!" Izzy asked with wide eyes. "This is the most amazing, mind-blowing, fantastic and prettiest gem I'd ever lay my eyes on!"

"No wonder why Rouge always tries to take it away... Is a really beautiful gem, Knuckles!" Hitch complimented with a smile.

"Indeed." Knuckles nodded in agreement, then he approached to a small computer that was near one of the pillars. "Now, let's see if that password that Tails gave me really works..."

After saying this, Knuckles introduced the code '02021994' in the computer, and the screen glowed in green. Then, an invisible barrier that was around the Altar deactivated and granted access to the three of them.

"There we go!" Knuckles said with a smirk. "Tails installed this security measure before we left to look after Sonic in Equestria, just in case some bat tried to come and steal the Emerald. Or in case anyone wanted to steal its power, both work anyways."

"Holy moly macaroni and cheese!" Izzy exclaimed. "What else are you trying to hide from us, Knuckie~?"

"Nothing!" Knuckles replied with a smirk, before approaching to the Master Emerald.

Soon, the echidna placed a hand over the gem and closed his eyes. This made the entire environment disappear for a second, and soon, it felt like only Knuckles and the Master Emerald were left.

Then, in this world where only these two existed, the Master Emerald glowed brightly and shifted its form, now looking like Chaos, God of Destruction. Both Knuckles and Chaos opened their eyes to stare at each other, with the former frowning slightly at the sight.

"I know, I know... I've been absent for way too long." Knuckles admitted a bit ashamed.

Chaos replied something madly, but it only sounded like gibberish, although Knuckles did understood his words.

"I understand your anger... But there was an emergency. A friend needed my help!" Knuckles replied with a frown. "My duty is both with this island and with my friends! No matter if Sonic and I clash on thoughts: We're still friends, and I will die for him just like he would die for me!"

Chaos Still rolled his eyes annoyed and replied something that made Knuckles scoff and look away.

"If you're just gonna lecture me on how I'm supposed to act as the Guardian of the Master Emerald, then hear the news, Ancient: I already was trained for the job, and I don't need you to remind me everything I already learned!"

However, after saying this, Chaos said something with a surprised tone.

"Yes! I discovered that you're half Ancient while in Equestria!" Knuckles replied with anger. "In fact, I have learned so much in that world that I'm seriously considering quitting as the stupid guardian of this place!"

Of course, after saying this, Chaos' eyes widened in shock, before he frowned and said something else that made Knuckles' eyes widen in panic.

"Three days?!" Knuckles shouted. "What do you mean I have just three days to change my mind?!"

Chaos said something else, and that seemed to enrage Knuckles.

"I won't abandon them just because you want me to!" Knuckles replied enraged, before turning around and start to walk away. "I don't know why I even bothered..."

However, Chaos said one last thing, one that made Knuckles stop moving and then turn around, but just when he did so, Chaos was gone, and so, Knuckles looked down with concern and disappointment.

That's precisely where the vision ended, and when Knuckles came back to reality, he was frowning in concern, while Izzy and Hitch were behind him calling out his name.

"Knuckles!" They both said with concern, but it faded away when Knuckles retired his hand from the Master Emerald.

However, their concern quickly returned when Knuckles sighed and then walked ahead, before sitting over the edge of the Altar and look ahead, staring at the entire mass of earth that consisted on Angel Island.

Of course, Izzy and Hitch looked at each other with concern, but just before saying something...

"Come sit with me, guys..." Knuckles himself called them out. "There's something I want to talk about with you."

Both Izzy and Hitch felt surprised after hearing this, but they still obeyed and approached to the echidna, sitting at his side just like he asked to.

For a few seconds, there was only silence, and the three of them simply stared at the rest of Angel Island. Izzy eventually rested her head over Knuckles' shoulder, while Hitch grabbed Sparky and sat him in front of him so the baby dragon could look at the rest of Angel Island as well.

"...I remember when my Mom brought me here when I turned 5 years old..." Knuckles spoke suddenly, as he started to narrate a story, while Izzy, Hitch and Sparky decided to listen carefully. "She showed me Angel Island from here, and she told me that I'll always have this beautiful sights after turning 15, because that's the age were I had to move the Master Emerald from Hidden Palace to this Altar."

Knuckles stared at the sky with a nostalgic expression and smile, one that slowly darkened as he remembered how all that happiness left after turning 7.

"My mother died when I was 7... Her cancer killed her eventually..." Knuckles confessed, and Izzy covered her mouth with a hoof in shock, while Hitch felt concerned for his deputy. "I was trained the first 7 years of my life to guard over the Emerald... She died earlier than she should've..."

"My gosh, Knuckles..." Izzy muttered with concern. "I... I never thought you went through that..."

"It must been hard for you to deal with her death..." Hitch commented with worry.

"It was... But they trained me to hold my emotions, so... Even if I wanted, I didn't cried her death..." Knuckles confessed. "I was just a kid... But I knew I had to kept my tribe's legacy and name alive, even if I'm the last of my kind."

"Wait..." Izzy muttered. "You... You've been up here alone for years?!"

"Only 2." Knuckles replied with a slight smirk. "One day, a massive spacial station with a face landed on my island, and I think you already know the rest."

"So, after you met Sonic and Tails, you felt less lonely?" Hitch asked with a smile.

"Many would believe that, but..." Knuckles sighed and looked down at the floor in sadness. "Even if they hang out with me from time to time, sometimes even staying a full month or two on the island... I still felt alone... Because I never went anywhere with that thing behind stranding me here to look after it."

"Stranding you?" Hitch said confused. "But you're free to leave the island, aren't you? Why do you attach yourself to this place if you don't want to?"

"Because that thing placed a curse on my people... A curse I cannot brake without paying a price..." Knuckled replied with a slight frown, before sighing defeated. "Guardian of the Master Emerald or not, this place is my home... But I... I'm afraid to coming back permanently again..."

"What do you mean?" Hitch decided to ask.

"In Equestria, my job as a deputy requires me to move around the whole town and watch over the citizens, then go back and fulfill some paperwork, before moving over to the town again and make sure law is not being broken... My days usually end with me cooking dinner and chilling with the people I call... My tribe. My family." Knuckles explained.

Of course, both Hitch and Izzy felt touched by his words, and they both smiled after hearing him.

"But here? Here I just stand in front of that green floating rock behind us for what? Hours? Days? Weeks? Months?! Years?!" Knuckles pointed out with anger. "This place is consuming my whole life... Why would I want to go back to a place that's still my home, but doesn't makes me happy anymore?"

After explaining his frustration, Izzy and Hitch looked at each other with concern, while Knuckles sighed heavily and then scratched his head.

"I'm sorry... I know you two didn't came here to hear me complain..." Knuckles apologized with a sheepish smile. "I guess... The idea of leaving a place where I can genuinely be myself and not be judged not hated for it... I don't like it..."

"Oh, Knuckie..." Izzy said with concern, as she rested her head on his shoulder and nuzzled it a bit, while Hitch looked down with concern.

"Why didn't you told us any of this before?" Hitch asked with worry.

"I was trained to hide my emotions." Knuckles replied. "I don't wanna bother anyone with my own struggles... We all agreed to never mention that subject again, and... I just decided to hold everything for myself..."

"But that's so unhealthy!" Izzy pointed out with a frown. "Knuckie, it doesn't matter if you're physically strong or not: You are still a living being that needs to express his emotions! Saving them for yourself is gonna make you explode one day if you don't release your pain!"

"Izzy is right, Knuckles..." Hitch agreed. "None of us want you guys to leave Equestria. Ever since you guys arrived, things have been great, and they have gotten better and better! It'll be a shame if you guys left our world forever..."

"And you guys changed our lives, too!" Izzy stated. "When Sonic arrived, I got not only my first friend ever, but also many new friends! And... I met you..." She added, as she lifted Knuckles' chin with a hoof and smiled warmly at him, while Knuckles blushed and chuckled slightly embarrassed.

"And I got the best deputy I could ever ask for!" Hitch agreed with smile. "I don't know if that training as the Master Emerald's guardian had anything to do with it, but you're the best deputy I ever had! You fulfill the role perfectly, and you can even watch over Sparky! Why would I ever want one of my best friends and the best deputy ever to go?!"

Knuckles smiled after hearing that, and he felt so touched that he started to let his guard down.

"You're also a great Uncle for Sparky!" Izzy added with a smile. "That little guy rarely stays on his place unless is with you, me, Sunny or Hitch, remember?"

"Well, Omega and Sonic enter that category, too, you know..." Knuckles pointed out with as sheepish smile.

"But he definitely prefers you!" Hitch said, as he gave Sparky to Knuckles, who laughed happily at the echidna, while he smiled warmly at Sparky and patted his head a bit, before letting out a content sigh. "And... You have saved our world many times!"

"That's right!" Izzy agreed again with her usual cheerful smile. "Knuckie, if it wasn't for you and the other Mobians, Equestria would be on either Eggman's hands or Opaline's hooves, and it didn't happened thanks to you!"

"But it could still happen with them both out there!" Knuckles pointed out with concern. "Eggman never plans anything good, and Opaline's been the past year trying to find a way to kill us all! How can I not be concerned?!"

After saying this, Knuckles grabbed his own quills and covered his face ashamed, while Izzy and Hitch looked at each other with concern, before nodding with determinate looks and look back at Knuckles.

"Knuckie... If I may ask... When's the last time that you cried?" Izzy asked him.

Knuckles' eyes widened at this question, and he looked over at Izzy with a bit of panic. "Huh?" He said confused and, even if he didn't wanted to admit it, scared.

"When is the last time that you cried?" Izzy repeated her question, a bit more firm this time, but also with a sweet tone that told him she's just worried for him.

"...I honestly don't remember..." Knuckles confessed with a heavy sigh. "I was probably just a baby or... maybe even 3 when I cried for the last time..."

Both Izzy's and Hitch's eyes widened after hearing this. "You haven't cried ever since you were a baby?!" Hitch asked concerned.

"My mother knew when to be a mother, and when to be a teacher for the next guardian..." Knuckles replied. "The few times I cried, she scolded me as a teacher, but also comforted me as a mother. I... I just made my own mechanism to stop crying... Hence why I haven't done it ever since unless is for lame jokes in Tell Your Tale..."

"Now's not the time to break the fourth wall, Knux!" Izzy scolded with a frown. "You cannot keep doing this to yourself!"

"Doing what?" Knuckles asked confused.

"Hold back your crying?" Hitch pointed out with concern. "Dude, I don't care what this training was all about, you're still our friend! And like it or not, you need to release your sorrow somehow!"

"What?! Are you two insane or something?!" Knuckles exclaimed with wide and panicked eyes.

"Oh, we are the insane ones?!" Hitch said with a slight frown. "You are the one that refuses to cry for some dumbass reason I don't even wanna hear!"

"And don't you dare to say is because it makes you feel weak, Knuckles!" Izzy warned him with a frown, and Knuckles swallowed nervously. "Crying is a great way to let your pain go! And you've been holding back ever since you were just 3 years old, but that ends today!"

"Izzy is right, Knux." Hitch agreed with the unicorn mare. "You have done a lot for everyone, and you've been hiding your emotions in the process. For once, let us be there for you and just let go all your frustration out!"

"...Are you guys sure?" Knuckles asked a bit concern, his guard lowering even more now. "I fear that my cry might never cease..."

"Then we'll stay here with you, comforting and supporting you until the tears have dried" Izzy assured him with a smile. "Like Hitch said, let us be the ones that comfort you for once and... Just let it all out... Stop holding back."

With this, the three of them fell into complete silence.

However, as Knuckles started to remember all his years of loneliness, his mother's death, his tribe's extinction, and how much he hated the idea of leaving Equestria, his own shelf finally shattered.

The first few tears started to drop out of his eyes, and by instinct he tried to wipe them out in panic, but both Hitch and Izzy grabbed his arms and separated them from his eyes, also shaking their heads, telling him he had to cry in order to keep moving.

He still didn't wanted to, but as more and more tears began to run down his cheeks, all attempts to play the thought guy died, and so, he gave up and started to cry more, and more, and more...

For the first time in a long time, he was crying again. He did remember having teared up in Ares Island when he was trapped on his Cyber Cage in Cyberspace, but he didn't mentioned it because he didn't through it counted as crying, or he wanted to believe that it didn't.

He just felt guilty back then because of what happened in Maretime Bay, and how he was the one that activated that Cyberspace portal that transported him, Hitch, Izzy, Pipp and Sparky to the Starfall Islands by mistake.

...Yeah, it was definitely crying, as much as he hated to admit it.

After several minutes of him just tearing up, while Hitch and Izzy hugged him for comfort, he finally calmed himself down, and so, he wiped the few tears he had left on his eyes, before looking at Hitch and Izzy with a smile.

"...Thanks, guys..." Knuckles said. "...I didn't knew how much I needed that..."

"Anytime, deputy." Hitch replied with a smile, while Izzy kissed his cheek tenderly.

On the other hand, Tails lead the other three mares towards his workshop.

The young fox was moving aside some bushes to allow the others to pass, while he quickly walked over to lead them again and guide them towards the place he lives in Green Hills, were Sonic used to crash from time time since, well, he really never lived in a house before arriving to Equestria.

"So let me get this straight: This whole time, Sonic has just been running around with no place to stay, sleeping in the wild, and crashing at your place sometimes?!" Zipp exclaimed with wide eyes.

"Yeah... You could say Sonic was homeless before meeting you, guys." Tails replied with a little smile. "But don't feel bad for him: We tried to convince him on getting a home after he turned 15 for years, and he always turned down the offer."

"So Sonic simply choose to be homeless?" Pipp asked with a deadpan.

"He was way different than before meeting you." Tails replied. "He changed for good after hanging out around you! Maybe he'll finally buy his own place if we have to come back once Eggman and Opaline aren't trouble anymore... Or maybe he'll still be a stubborn... I bet for the last one."

"Me too..." Pipp said, still deadpanning.

"Me three." Zipp replied, also deadpanning.

"Wait... If he crashed at your place sometimes, does that mean that he slept in a bed or in the floor?" Misty asked confused.

"Both, depending on his mood that specific day." Tails replied, before gasping and suddenly stopping, while the three mares did the same.

The four of them stared at Tails Workshop: It was a kind of small workshop that in turn was a house; the roof and the front door were painted red, and in front of the door was the Tails logo; there were a couple of lanterns above the door of the workshop to illuminate at night, as well as a gigantic tower on the right and a telescope on the left.

However, ever since Tails left to Equestria along Knuckles, the place has been abandoned, which explained why it looked dusty and had some spider webs near the lanterns.

"Whoa!" Zipp exclaimed surprised and smiling. "This is your workshop in Mobius?! It looks way cooler than what we gave you on your birthday, dude!"

"Yeah, well... It was Longclaw's doing..." Tails replied with a nostalgic smile. "She gave Sonic the Tornado because she knew how much he wanted to travel around the world with his powers, and she gave me this workshop because she knew how much I loved to build my own stuff. She definitely was the mother my biological one could never be..."

PIpp approached to his side and looked at him with concern. "Is this why you felt so emotional when we gave you the workshop back in Maretime Bay? Because it reminded you on how Longclaw did the same?"

Tails let out a heavy sigh and then nodded. "Yeah..."

After this, he approached to the entrance and introduced the code to open it, which was '1992'. With that, the workshop's entrance slowly opened, showing the messed up inside.

Remember the first machine he spent 6 months building before it collapsed after opening its first portal to Equestria? Well, the rubble of said machine was spread across the workshop's living room, and some blueprints for once his future projects were spread on the floor as well.

Many of those projects were done already in Equestria, by the way.

Tails entered and sighed at the sight, sadly remembering how he let his frustration for not finding Sonic get the best of him, to the point that it almost ruined his life, as well as his physical aspect.

Soon, Misty and the Royal Sisters entered as well, looking how messy the place was right now.

"I know this is going to be a dumb question, but this place usually looks better, right?" Pipp asked, but Zipp pushed her slightly and shook her head with a frown, and Pipp rolled her eyes annoyed.

"No need to get mad with her, Zippy..." Tails said with a little smile. "As for your question, Pipp: Yes, this place usually looks better... It just looks like this because I let myself get carried away by despair..."

"That sounded so edgy..." Zipp snorted.

"What do you mean with that, though?" Misty questioned.

"Eggman set up a trap for Sonic..." Tails replied with concern. "Eggman created a machine that left the Chaos Emeralds without power! Then, he used their power to sent Sonic to Equestria in an attempt to take over Mobius with Sonic out! But Knuckles knocked him out, and we tried to take Sonic out of the machine... He told us to stop trying, and Knuckles obeyed, but I didn't! And... After Sonic went through the portal, I spent 6 whole months hating Knuckles and trying to make a portal on my won to take him back..."

"Wait... You blamed Knuckles? Even after Sonic told you both to let him go?!" Pipp asked in panic and with wide eyes.

"I know, I know! I was wrong, I shouldn't had blame him, and I'm sorry for that!" Tails replied. "But Knuckles tried to avoid what ended up happening in the end: My desire to build a portal on my own to look after Sonic turned into a sick obsession... I stopped talking with everyone here in Mobius, I stopped eating, I barely slept or even showered! I was so desperate on bringing Sonic back and show I wasn't a burden to him that... That I almost lost myself..." He explained with concern, before turning to see his messy workshop. "This place's current state is the result of that obsession..."

Tails stared with concern at how messy his workshop looked because of his obsession on saving Sonic, and even if he managed to recover in a few weeks, he still felt haunted by this...

As for the other three mares, they looked concerned at the young fox, but specially Zipp and Misty, since none of them liked to see nor hear how much Tails pressured himself in order to save his best friend. Worse of all, it seemed that Tails hasn't forgiven himself.

Still, Zipp decided to approach him and nuzzle slightly on his chest, which made Tails look down at her a bit confused, even though he still petted her head with a hand as some kind of instinct.

"Babe, I can't imagine how painful it must've been to see your best friend ever get dragged into a mysterious portal, and feel like you could never see him again..." Zipp confessed, before looking up at him with a smile. "But I do know for a fact that, if you still feel like a bad friend because of this..." She pointed at the mess around the workshop. "Then let me tell you that Sonic already have forgiven you, and that you are definitely worrying for nothing!"

Tails eyes widened in surprise, since that's precisely how he felt regarding this subject, and sometimes he wondered how could Zipp read the most complex of things by just looking at him.

https://youtu.be/5AW7xQ_Dxjk?si=p29sScAmexL5F4s-

Soon, both Misty and Pipp arrived as well and placed their hooves on Tails' shoulders, which startled him a little, if he had to be honest.

"Zipp is right, Tails!" Misty was the first one to agreed. "Or you forgot already that you're literally the one that spread the cure for the Metal Virus?"

"Or that you immediately went to investigate on a way to bring Sonic back after he broke the Paradox Prism, as well as sent Boom and Young back to their worlds?" Pipp added with a smile.

"That doesn't makes me feel any less guilty for what happened with Knuckles..." Tails pointed out with concern.

The three mares smirked and looked at each other after hearing this, which made Tails feel in danger for some reason, although he quickly decided that his friends were planning nothing that big of a deal... probably...

"Then let us help to make it easier!" Zipp stated confidently.

Pipp:
In the end!

Misty:
Who's on your side?

Pipp:
Who can you trust?

Misty:
In the middle of the night?

Pipp:
Where will you be?

Misty:
If you can't find you?

Pipp:
There's no place to go

Misty:
Nothing to do

Pipp:
If you gotta do something

Misty:
Gotta do something

Pipp: & Misty:
Believe in yourself, yourself, yourself, hey!

Zipp:
Extraordinary things can happen if you believe in yourself
You've got to have some faith in yourself
If you want respect from your friends

Misty:
Don't re-arrange

Pipp:
No need to change

Misty:
Stay like you are

Pipp:
Keep it all the same

Misty:
But as you move along

Pipp:
In your life

Misty:
Keep an open mind

Pipp:
And don't forget

Misty:
That if ya gotta do something

Pipp:
Gotta do something

Pipp: & Misty:
Believe in yourself, yourself, yourself, hey!

Zipp:
Extraordinary things can happen if you believe in yourself
You've got to have some faith in yourself
If you want respect from your friends

Zipp:, Pipp: & Misty:
When you feel tight, look at yourself!

Zipp:
Inside your heart you will find a special place to unwind

Zipp:, Pipp: & Misty:
When you feel right, look at yourself

Zipp:
Inside your mind you will see
Cosmic Eternity

Zipp:, Pipp: & Misty:
When you feel tight, look at yourself!

Zipp:
Inside your heart you will find a special place to unwind

Zipp:, Pipp: & Misty:
When you feel right, look at yourself

Zipp:
Inside your mind you will see
Cosmic Eternity

After the three mares finished singing, Tails blinked a few times at them, before snorting and let out a small laugh, even wiping away a tear.

"Okay! I have no idea why you girls had to tell me all of that with a song, but thanks!" Tails said with a smile. "I really see it now: I've made my mistakes in the past, but they don't define who I am today!"

"Now that's more like it!" Zipp said with a smile, also nuzzling on Tails' shoulder, while the young fox smiled, kneeled and kissed her cheek.

"So? What are you planning to do?" Misty asked as well with a smile.

Tails smirked, and then, he brought out from his tails the small Blue Shard of the Paradox Prism that he obtained when saving Sonic after he fell on the water after destroying the Prism.

"Sonic is out there, and he needs to find Opaline before she can take over the whole multiverse!" Tails pointed out with a determinate look. "However, our mission is to find Eggman, and if I know him any better: He might be planning to get the shards of the Prism himself to still take over the entire multiverse as well!"

"So we have to deal with two tyrants hungry of power trying to take over all the existing realities?" Zipp asked with a frown.

"Yes, but here's the thing: We have an advantage over Eggman!" Tails pointed out with a smirk, throwing the Prism's shard in the air like a coin for a moment. "And if he wants to find shards, then shards we shall give him!"

"Whoa, what?!" Misty asked in panic with wide eyes. "You want to give him the shard?!"

"No, no, no!" Tails shook his head and waved his hands in the air. "Don't get me wrong! The shard is gonna be a trap! We're gonna make sure he believes we're willing to negotiate the shard in exchange of something, when in reality, we just wanna contact him to locate where he's located!"

"If we locate him... We can follow the sign and stop whatever he's up to!" Pipp finished with wide eyes, realizing that whole plan.

"Precisely!" Tails said with a smirk.

"How can we help?" Misty asked.

"Glad you ask, Mist!" Tails replied with a smile. "This is what we're gonna do..."

Author's Notes:

I know you guys are going to mention this, probably, so let me be clear: Tails doesn't doubts himself.

Season 3 closed that issue, alright? The scene in question where he sees his abandoned workshop just shows that he still feels guilty because of not being able to make the portal earlier, and for treating Knuckles so badly during those 6 months because of his obsession.

The song where Pipp, Misty and Zipp tell him to believe in himself is just a reminder that he can already move on from past mistakes and show the world how much he has developed, both as Sonic's partner and as a hero on his own.

I know people is gonna find it confusing, so I want to clear that up now.

By the way, the universe Opaline fucked up this time is this story made by JDPrime22. I heard it was really popular, so I wanted to implement it here as well... Hopefully you guys won't hate for destroying this universe.

Anyways. Next episode: Sonic runs away from FS and discovers a truth he never wanted to learn... MORE ANGST INCOMING!!!

See ya!

8. Escape to the Multiverse

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Universe 250954

The tension is moving through the air now that Sonic and Sunny were encaged.

Future Sonic sighed, the turned around and started to walk away, not willing to negotiate anything regarding Sonic nor Sunny's freedom.

"We just need to hold you two a few days! At least until your Canon Events have happened..." Future Sonic said with concern, still walking away. "Sorry it had to end like this, kids..."

Now this was Sonic's last straw for his patience, because he was tired to be called that way by FS and Boom Sonic.

Neither Sunny nor him nor were kids anymore, and he's gonna prove it.

"In case you are as deaf as you are one-eyed, old man, Sunny said..." Sonic started with anger, placing his palms on the cage and absorbing its energy. "Not to call us that!"

After this, he released the energy he absorbed against the cage, which caused a little explosion that sent the Secret Society's members backwards. Some of the society's members were sent off flying backwards, Boom managed to both stand still and cover Aurora, Sunset slightly slid in the floor, and Buffon smirked with a laugh after Sonic followed his advice.

As for Sunny, she did covered her eyes, but unfortunately, her cage was still activated, so she looked over at Sonic, who had his head lowered and his hands extended after destroying his cell.

However, he soon opened his eyes and looked at his hands, surprised that using the whole palm was actually more effective like Buffon said, then he looked ahead at the other Society's members, that were still in the ground, some groaning painfully, and some looking at him.

Then, Sonic's sight stopped on Sunny's cage, because he really wanted to help her get out of there, but Sunny denied with her head, indicating him that he had to leave and run, maybe even come for her later.

Sonic, of course, hated this idea of leaving her behind, but considering their complex position, he knew perfectly that there was no other choice, so he'll come back to save her later. Then, he looked at the Society's members, before quickly turn around and start running away from there.

Future Sonic noticed this, and his eyes widened in panic, before he frowned in anger. "SONIC!" He shouted, immediately standing up and running towards him.

Seeing that their leader was getting to action, all the other Society's members choose to follow him along, while Boom Sonic placed some kind of small mask of himself that covered Aurora's whole face.

"Alright..." Boom Sonic said, as he adjusted the mask on his daughter's face. "Sorry for doing this, this is bad parenting!"

Then, he kissed her forehead, before boosting behind the other members of the society.

Buffon, on the other hand, opened a portal and walked backwards through it. "Just for the record, I quit." He said, removing his watch, launching it ahead and then crossing the portal, that closed immediately afterwards.

Sunny, now staying completely alone on her cage and with nopony watching, looked around it and tried to think on some way to get out of it on her own, although it didn't looked like she was going to be so lucky...

The Secret Society's alarms jumped off all across the HQ.

Every member of the society, who was either walking to a mission, preparing to go back home, talking with each other, or even just enjoying their launch on the cafeteria saw the alarms popping off, and they stopped what they were doing to look confused at the red alarms.

But then, they all got the same message from Future Sonic on their watches. "All stations, stop what you're doing and stop Sonic the Hedgehog!" He instructed, while his hologram seemed to be running.

Yet Future Sonic forgot a very crucial detail: Half of the Secret Society's member are Sonic's variants, and they all looked to each other with suspicion.

And so, all the Sonics were pointing at each other, exclaiming "You?/Him?/Her?/Them?/Me?" at the same time because of the confusion, while the Equestrians looked at each other confused, not understanding which Sonic they had to stop.

Future Sonic himself realized this and groaned annoyed. "Motherfucker... Sonic, the First Multiversal Traveller!" He corrected himself with anger. "He's entering Sector 4!"

At Sector 4, the Mobians and Equestrians in the zone saw a Tails' variant with 9 natural tails coming out as he hummed happily and fixed his hair, but when he noticed all the other members whispering between each other and looking at him confused, he got confused himself.

"Uh, do I have something in my face, or...?" Tails' variant said confused.

"Sonic!" Future Sonic's voice spoke, and Tails' variant turned to see that the boss was running towards him. "He's right there! He's right in... TURN AROUND!"

Tails' variant did so, but more out of confusion than anything else. "I don't see him, boss..." he said.

However, when he turned around, is revealed that Sonic curled into a ball and sneaked in-between his tails, but as he revealed his eyes to see if there was no one around, his eyes widened when he saw every single member of the Society looking at him.

One of the Sonic's variants among them even closed their helmet, because he was some kind of cop.

Sonic got out of the place, uncurled and stood up, looking at the Society with a sheepish smile. "Uh... Hi?" He said nervously, while Tails' variant turned around and saw Sonic with wide eyes...

You guys know what's coming up, right?

Soon, Sonic shifted his right arm so it looked like the Werehog's one, and he extended it to try and get out of there, but many members of the Society launched over him and tried to stop him, although he thankfully got them off by extending the Werehog arm again and move away.

Sonic balanced around using the Werehog arm and made sure to be avoiding all the unicorn/Alicorn lasers, as well as the attacks launched by some of the Mobians.

However, as he reached a point and jumped up to try and get away, a Sonic variant launched over him and tackled him to a wall, but Sonic grabbed this variant on his bare hands and looked at him confused, because this variant was a regular hedgehog, just with blue skin.

Of course, this confused him, but the hedgehog activated his quills and hurt Sonic's hands, so he let him go away and got up, before starting to dodge nets launched by Tails' variants and more lasers from unicorns and Alicorns.

"Can this day get any damn weirder?!" Sonic asked sarcastically and in panic as he kept running.

However, not so long after asking this, a Knuckles' variant that was actually a big and red gorilla launched towards him and aimed at the face, but Sonic managed to dodge this attack by shifting his right arm to a regular Knuckles' one and block the punch, then give it back to the Gorilla Knuckles.

"Whoa! I guess it can!" Sonic exclaimed in panic.

After that, he shifted his right arm to be the Werehog one again and extended it to the ceiling, as he dodged more and more members of the Secret Society that wanted to capture him.

Soon, he reached the cafeteria, where he accidentally stepped over a hamburger that had FS' face printed over it and launched it away, which made one of the Vector's variants that was going to eat it complain loudly with him.

"Sorry, Vector!" Sonic apologized, before keep running away.

And then, a monkey variant of Tails that, indeed, also had two tails, launched several stuff to Sonic in an attempt to slow him down, but Sonic understood the monkey's game quickly, so he grabbed a tray he found nearby and launched it to the monkey, who got sent backwards.

Unfortunately, the monkey still managed to launch over him and made him trip, which made them both roll on the ground.

In a therapist office, it was apparently almost 11:00 a.m.

A Young Sonic's variant was crying and laying over a couch, while a Twilight variant acted like a therapist and took down notes from everything the Young Sonic's variant was telling her.

"And then, I looked at my mother and..." Young Sonic's variant said dramatically.

"Ah, let me guess... She died?" Twilight replied with a bored expression, still taking notes.

But right then, one of the walls of the therapist's office was destroyed, and Sonic appeared screaming loudly in panic, while the Secret Society was right behind him, still trying to capture him.

Sonic and the Secret Society ended up braking the other side of the office as well.

Then, Sonic finally took Monkey Tails off him and launched him backwards, but as he ran towards another exit, his eyes widened when he saw even more members of the Society moving towards him.

Suddenly, and before he could plan a strategy to loose all these members from sight, he barely dodged a bullet that almost hit him on the face, and that's because Cowboy Knuckles was over his horse, using an actual gun to try and hit Sonic, but the blue blur wasn't going to let that slip.

So, Sonic, quickly sat the wrong way over the horse and faced Cowboy Knuckles with a frown.

"At the count of three, draw!" Cowboy Knuckles said with a frown, and Sonic glared back. "One––" Was everything Cowboy Knuckles said, because Sonic shifted his arm to a Hitch hoof and kicked him on the face, which made him fall from the horse. "You didn't wait for three!"

With this, Sonic hit the horse's back, and the horse started to move faster.

Meanwhile, Future Sonic, Boom and Sunset where running side-to-side to follow Sonic as well.

"Hey, FS!" Boom Sonic called out suddenly, and FS turned to him with a raised eyebrow, just to groan when he saw Boom taking out his phone. "You take a photo of this? Is her first chase!"

Of course, all FS did was create an electrical lasso to move away, since he didn't wanted to waste time, which made Boom deadpan, so he shrugged and took the selfie himself with Aurora, while Sunset chuckled.

On the other hand, Sonic ran besides all the anomalies encaged, still over the horse, while the anomalies where cheering and encouraging him to keep doing what he's doing.

However, as FS and all the other members of the Secret Society ran by as well, the anomalies started to boo them, and even Fleetway Sonic was booing at the Secret Society, but cheering at our main Sonic.

Just then, an actual Werehog Sonic launched over Sonic, but thanks to the fact that there was a cowboy hat on the horse, Sonic grabbed it and placed it on Werehog Sonic's face, making him fall in the ground with a painful grunt.

And, as Sonic headed towards more members of the Society over the horse, a Zipp variant flew above him and greeted him.

"Sonic!" Zipp's variant said happily.

"Uh, hello?" Sonic replied with a sheepish smile.

"I'm, like, a super fan of yours and all you did for the multiverse last year!" Zipp's variant confessed cheerfully.

"Oh! Well, thanks!" Sonic replied, still with a sheepish smile, because he knew this wouldn't last forever.

"Do you think all the Sonics use comedy as a reflex to avoid the crash?" Zipp's variant asked.

"Uh..." Sonic said confused, not knowing what to reply to that kind of question.

Then Zipp's variant snorted. "Get it? Crash?" She asked, before suddenly bumping on him and throw him off the horse.

Of course, Sonic yelped, then shifted his arm to be like the Werehog's again and balanced over the HQ.

But then, another Classic Sonic with three quills in a row approached him. "I can do anything you can!" He declared... but he was moving so slowly that it was hard to believe he was a Sonic, and he even passed right besides Sonic, who stared at him confused on what happened. "Oh, dang! I pulled something!"

Meanwhile, Sonic launched himself towards a place that said 'Strength + Conditioning', then rolled in the ground and kept moving ahead, before sliding below a massive pillar that a Big Macintosh variant was pulling upwards with his bare hind legs.

However, Sonic shifted his arm again to be replaced by one of Spider-Mane's hooves, and he threw a web-line to Big Mac, before pulling him down and make the pillar he was holding fall over him and many more of the Society's Members as well to slow them down.

Suddenly, as he ran across an at first empty room, Sonic found himself dodging many holographic screens that had 2D images of villains from both Equestria and Mobius from all across the multiverse.

"Take a load of this!" The Eggman image said when it popped up, but Sonic ignored it and kept moving.

Just then, Sonic jumped over the head of a Discord variant that was holding to big pieces of metal together so he could go from one side to the other.

Discord frowned after this happened, but when he suddenly turned to see that many more members were arriving, he panicked. Then, the Actual Hedgehog Sonic jumped on Discord's face and made him let go the two pieces, which made them fall, as well as all the Society's members walking over it.

Of Course, Sonic thought that he was finally safe and sighed in relief, just to be surprised when he turned around and saw FS launching over him.

Sonic yelped and ducked down, dodging FS' attack and still running away from him.

Soon, the blue blur jumped over a bunch of doors that were in the ceiling and parkour'd over them, also closing all the doors to slow down Future Sonic.

However, when he looked ahead, his eyes widened, because he was now surrounded by all the members of the Secret Society, all frowning and ready to stop him, whatever it takes.

"There's no way to run!" A Knuckles variant that looked like if he consumed steroids said with a frown.

Just then, Future Sonic Spin Dashed out of the entrance from before and glared daggers at Sonic, also growling in anger, so Sonic quickly turned around, charged his own Spin Dash, and then launched himself through the window, breaking it and screaming in fear as he fell.

Future Sonic immediately dived into the window to follow him along, while both Mobians and Equestrians were left speechless and with wide eyes at what Sonic just did.

"...My bad, everybody... There was somewhere to run..." Knuckles' variant said with wide eyes as well.

On the other hand, Sonic was still falling towards the city.

Soon, all the members of Secret Society decided to launch themselves from the window and keep chasing down Sonic, while FS made his coat extend like wings so he could glide in the air.

"Stop running!" Future Sonic shouted in anger to Sonic.

"Then stop chasing me!" Sonic shouted back in anger.

"You're so frustrating!" Future Sonic yelled, so he kept gliding and chasing him.

Meanwhile, Sunset and Twilight flew side to side and were chasing Sonic down as well.

"I know is your friend, Sunset... But this is the only way!" Twilight pointed out with concern.

"But I didn't thought––" Sunset tried to reply with concern.

"Then start thinking realistically!" Twilight warned, before flying ahead of her student.

Sunset looked down in concern, since she seriously didn't wanted to do this, while Boom Sonic launched himself and dived to catch Sonic, who was now riding over a floating car that was moving ahead.

Boom Sonic had an idea, and so, he used his own lasso to attach to some building and sneak away from the chase.

On the other hand, Future Sonic glided fast enough and pushed Sonic off the vehicle he was over, then twilight came by and kicked Sonic's chest to push him down, while Sunset was the last one to arrive and surround Sonic on her magic.

Seeing this, Sonic frowned in anger and shifted his right arm to the Werehog one, extending it and punching Sunset in the face, making her release him. Sunset shook her head, but she looked with hurt and wide eyes at Sonic, who glared daggers of hate at her.

But then, the Shadow variant he met earlier that was acting so edgy launched over him and tried to suffocate him with his own arm, while many more member came by and tried to hold Sonic so he wouldn't fight back.

"I've got you trapped in my really defined musculature, so don't even––" Shadow tried to say with anger.

However, Sonic shifted his right arm to look like a Hitch's foreleg, then used his Earth Pony Magic abilities to surround all the Secret Society's members over him with vines, then launched them away and kept escaping.

And yet, he was grabbed by many members of the society again. But when one of the Knuckles' variants tried to hit him on the face, Sonic moved his head aside, and Knuckles ended up punching the metallic helmet of the Sonic Cop variant from earlier, which made Knuckles cringe in pain.

Then, the members of the Society and Sonic fell into a sub-way where many floating vehicles were passing by. Apparently there's an upper and lower zone in this futuristic Station Square.

Yet this isn't the time to appreciate the environment, is time to keep running away, because that's what Sonic is doing right now.

Sonic started to use the Werehog shifted arm again to balance himself around, while the flying Equestrian and Mobians approached him at top speed, clearly with the intention of capturing him.

Sonic decided to make a loop to try and loose them of sight, but right before he could continue his escape, a lasso wrapped him by his chest and dragged him upwards all of a sudden, which made Sonic yelp in panic with wide eyes, while the Society's members moved ahead, not noticing this.

Sunset, who was passing nearby as well, looked around confused, because she couldn't believe that they lost Sonic from sight.

On the other hand, Sonic yelped and then groaned in pain when he landed on a metallic surface.

He slowly stood up and looked around confused, because this zone had thousands of engines working around and spinning, which already gave Sonic a bad feeling.

"Sonic!" Boom Sonic arrived suddenly, but of course, Sonic didn't trusted him.

"No, no. Leave me alone!" Sonic replied, before hiding behind a wall to see there was no one near by, and then move ahead.

"Is crazy to run!" Boom Sonic said with a worried frown, before his eyes opened wide. "Wait, did I really just said that?"

"Running is the least crazy thing going on!" Sonic pointed out with wide eyes and anger. "You're working for an Assassin's Creed and I hate it!"

After saying this, he started to walk away, but Boom Sonic followed behind. "Hey, I feel bad!"

"Good!" Sonic replied, still mad.

"But this is just how stuff works! You're not gonna win here!" Boom Sonic tried to resonate.

But Sonic was not even listening, and he moved across the engines to try and loose Boom Sonic from sight.

"Don't move! Stop moving so fast!" Boom Sonic begged.

"No!" Sonic replied with anger. "Staying here and do nothing about it is what cowards do! And that's what all of you are: COWARDS!"

"Hey, wanna hold my baby?" Boom Sonic asked suddenly, boosting in front of him with a smirk.

"What?!" Sonic asked with rage and confusion.

"Just give the baby one squeeze and then we'll talk!" Boom Sonic said with a smile, as he held Aurora on his hands. "Pretty sure it'll change your vibe!"

"NO!" Sonic said, pushing him aside, but still being careful to not hit Aurora.

"It's really rejuvenating!" Boom Sonic pointed out desperately.

"I'm already young enough!" Sonic replied angrily.

"You'll get more so when you get just come and hug this magical child!" Boom Sonic replied desperately again.

"You lost all right to have a conversation with me!" Sonic replied madly, and his electrical powers were showing off more.

"JUST HOLD THE BABY AND WE'LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS!" Boom Sonic shouted in anger now, getting Aurora right in Sonic's face.

Of course, Sonic shouted back with his powers showing off and walked away, while Boom Stared at him with anger and concern, although Aurora just laughed happily for some reason.

"YOU AND YOUR UNIVERSE ARE THE REASON I HAVE HER, OKAY?!" Boom Sonic revealed, tired of Sonic's attitude.

But Sonic ignored him and entered a room that seemed to have a metallic ground covering more gears working below, and Sonic tried to brake said ground to escape, but couldn't move it.

"I thought..." Boom Sonic decided to keep talking, slowly approaching Sonic. "That if I did a descent job raising her, there was a chance she was gonna turn out... like you. And that got me excited because you're a wonderful person! And I like being around you! I just want her to be anything but the man I used to be before marrying Amy! Before meeting you!"

Sonic sighed after hearing all of this and sat on the ground while crossing his legs. "Then why didn't you come to see me?" He asked with concern, and Boom Sonic was taken aback. "I spent the past year thinking when the next big adventure will come, and now that is here... I wish I never asked for it..."

Boom Sonic tried several times to reply, but he always regret it at the last moment and shut his mouth, although he eventually replied. "...I tried... But I was threatened... If I went to see you, then my universe would be ignored from all of this... I couldn't risk myself... I couldn't risk her..."

After hearing this answer, Sonic felt even worse and sighed again. "I wanted to be with you guys so badly..." He confessed, trying yo keep himself from crying. "But this thing isn't what I thought it was... And Sunny was so afraid of coming... I should've listened her..."

Boom sighed and rubbed his face with a hand, because this was truly a very complex situation.

"Look..." Boom Sonic began, slowly approaching to Sonic and sitting down at his side. "Bad things are gonna happen. It makes us who we are!" He pointed out, and Sonic shook his head on denial. "But good things happen too, you know?" He pointed out with a smile, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Like you happen... Like she happened."

He looked down at his daughter with a smile, feeling the pride of being a dad, while Sonic looked down at Aurora as well and couldn't help with smile.

"...Is the offer of carrying her still up?" Sonic found himself asking.

Boom Sonic looked at him with surprise, but still smiled. "Of course it is!" He said happily, before grabbing Aurora for a moment and cooed her, then give her to Sonic.

Sonic carefully and nervously grabbed Aurora, looking at her with a sheepish smile at first, but when Aurora extended her hands and grabbed his face, Sonic chuckled, and he had to admit it: He did felt better now that he was carrying her, as well as now that this whole conversation is over.

But then, Boom's watch beeped in color red, and so, he checked it to see a message, which made his eyes open wide.

"Crap!" Boom Sonic said with anger.

"What? What's the matter?" Sonic asked confused, while Aurora climbed over his head and messed his quills a bit.

"I forgot to turn off my GPS, and they're coming for you!" Boom Sonic explained with concern, before grabbing Aurora and place her back on the kangaroo. "You have to leave, now!"

"Don't have to tell me twice!" Sonic replied with a nod.

After that, Boom Sonic stepped back and got out of sight, while Sonic shifted his right arm so it looked like Knuckles' again, before smashing down the ground and make a hole on it.

However, he panicked when he saw the engines all twirling around, although they stopped at times. But as afraid as he was, he knew he had to act now, or else he'll get captured. So, taking a deep breath, Sonic jumped and launched himself through the engines, passing right through the holes in the exact moment, while the Secret Society arrived and tried to do the same.

Yet some of them crashed on their faces against the engines, which made the Sonic Cop shot at the engines to destroy them so everyone could pass.

Of course, the impact of the explosion sent Sonic ahead, and he exited the zone by braking a window and then landing over a floating sign that was supposed to stop traffic.

"Sonic!" Sunset's voice called out, but as soon as she did, Sonic launched himself to keep running away. "Where does he think he's going?"

"I don't think he planned it out!" Boom Sonic said with concern, as he once again joined the chase, although he did so to see what was even Sonic's plan here.

"I don't know if I have said it before, but I'll say it now: You're gonna be a terrible mentor!" Twilight said with a frown, as she flew ahead across several building and vehicles.

Soon, Sunset surrounded Twilight on her magic and then launched her ahead, straight towards Sonic, who was over a car. Of course, Sonic noticed this, so he ducked, shifted his arm to be like the Werehog's, then extended it to grab Twilight and sent her towards a bus, where she crashed with the frontal part, before getting tied to it by Sonic himself and an electrical lasso he launched her.

"Well, he beat you, and I'm pretty sure I taught him that!" Boom Sonic mocked Twilight up, who deadpanned after he said that and rolled her eyes annoyed. "So, I don't think I'll be a terrible mentor!"

"You're both equally terrible! Does that settle it?!" Future Sonic spoke with anger, as he kept chasing down Sonic.

Soon, FS landed in front of Sonic and tried to punch his face, but Sonic rolled in the floor and dodged the attack, then stood up and looked at FS with a frown.

"Stop pretending you know where you're going!" Future Sonic shouted in rage.

"Oh, I have a plan!" Sonic assured with a frown, before dodging another attack from FS, while the vehicle they were over, which was a train, started to moved upwards. "I just haven't told it yet! And I'm not planning to!"

After this, Sonic shifted his arm to look like Hitch's hoof again and punched FS right on his nose, stunning him for a moment, which he decided to take as his chance to escape by jumping and hanging into one of the train's windows.

However, FS quickly recovered and tried to grab Sonic again, starting a small brawl between them both, one that Sonic seemed to have won, but just when he was finally getting FS off him, the one eye hedgehog grabbed Sonic from his Inhibitor Bracelet and then removed it from him.

Of course, this made Sonic's eyes open wide in panic, and as the Inhibitor Bracelet fell in the street, both Sonic's legs and his right arm started to get out of control with the Prismatic energy.

Worse of all, it was with his right arm that he was holding onto the train, and when it started to shift into random arms of other people across the multiverse, it made him feel pain, and so, he accidentally let go, but he still managed to get some control back and extend his arm, shifted as the Werehog's.

Sonic hanged on the arm, but still managed to get over the train again and, despite his feet moving on their own, he allowed it, because he was moving upwards and away of the HQ, just like he planned.

Speaking of the HQ, he couldn't help but look backwards at the big building of it in the distance and think about Sunny, who he still needed to go back after, but he first had to deal with the Secret Society, wether if he liked it or not.

However, he suddenly heard sounds coming from the train, and so, a pair of claws ripped the ceiling apart, while FS came out and glared daggers at Sonic, tired of games. He could grew claws thanks to the fact that his gloves are as advanced as the bracelets and watch he wears.

"You've got claws?!" Sonic asked in panic, as he walked backwards over the train. "Dude, are you sure you're even Sonic?"

After asking this, he tried to shift his arm on his own again, but it glitched out and shifted on random arms again because of the Prismatic Energy being out of control.

"Are you?!" Future Sonic asked Sonic with anger and a wide eye. "Who do you think you are?! REALLY?!"

Sonic took a deep breath and closed his eyes, before opening them with a determinate expression.

"My name... Is Sonic the Hedgehog..." Sonic spoke, as he turned around and dived towards FS, before standing with a foot over the train for a moment and jump. "And I was born with an extraordinary power!"

After shouting this, Sonic stepped on FS' chest and then kicked his face hard enough, before landing over the train again and boost away wildly.

However, FS launched a lasso from his wrists and grabbed Sonic from around his chest, but this is precisely what Sonic himself wanted him to do.

When FS pulled him, Sonic willingly shifted his right arm to be a Knuckles' one and aimed to FS' face. "I'm pretty sure you know the rest, you asshole!" He shouted in anger, hitting FS straight on the face and sending him roll backwards on the train.

Meanwhile, Sonic free'd himself from FS' lasso and jumped ahead, but he fell down the train and rolled in the ground, before his face crashed over a guy's car.

The guy stared at Sonic, and Sonic stared back with a sheepish smile. "Hey, what's up?"

But then, FS arrived and grabbed Sonic, before tackling him to another a car, but Sonic was fighting to get free from his grip.

"You don't get it!" Future Sonic shouted in rage. "You're an anomaly!"

"Not if you let me go home!" Sonic shouted in rage, before pushing FS away and then kick his face again, which sent him towards a train that was traveling downwards.

FS shook his head a bit dizzy before looking at the female driver of the train, who pointed with her left finger at the right, indicating that Sonic went in that direction.

"Snitch!" Sonic called her out with a frown, before moving towards another train that was going upwards.

FS growled in rage and jumped off the train, then managed to catch Sonic with a lasso from his wrist and tackle him to a wall again.

"Everywhere you go, you're an anomaly!" Future Sonic shouted in anger, and he tried to hit Sonic in the face, but Sonic moved his head and hit FS in the face with his elbows, before moving upwards and start to climb the train again.

However, FS grabbed him again and dive towards the ground, but Sonic hit him back on the face, and they both rolled over the train for a while, before they both were hanging on it to not fall, although FS started to climb it again by using his claws.

"You are the ORIGINAL anomaly!" Future Sonic finally revealed in anger, tired of letting Sonic go.

Sonic himself stared at him in disbelief after hearing this, and he breathed heavily, refusing to believe that such a thing was true, but then his arm started to shift on its own again, and Sonic yelled in pain.

Soon, both Sunset and Boom Sonic appeared, but they heard when FS revealed to Sonic the truth, and Sunset's eyes widened in panic. "Chief!" She called out.

However, FS jumped ahead and tried to smash Sonic into the train, something Sonic himself noticed, so he dodged the attack.

"The day that Dr. Eggman created that machine, your destiny was sealed!" Future Sonic kept talking, while Sonic's arm glitched again and he yelled in pain. "The machine was supposed to kill you!"

"Chief, no!" Sunset shouted desperately, using a spell to stay stick to the train as she moved her hooves, while Boom used some magnets the Tails of his world added to his clothes to stick in the train as well.

"You were never supposed to arrive to Equestria! You were never supposed to meet those ponies!" Future Sonic kept revealing more stuff, and Sonic was breathing heavily and climbing the train, trying to get the words off his mind and convince himself that FS was just lying, also breathing heavily. "YOU WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO AWAKEN YOUR POWERS!"

"NO! YOU'RE LYING!!!" Sonic shouted, before ripping apart a piece of the train with his arm shifted into a Knuckles' one and launch said piece against FS. "I AM A SONIC!"

"YOU'RE A MISTAKE!" Future Sonic shouted, using his claws to rip apart the piece of the train that Sonic launched him.

After that, FS grabbed Sonic from his neck, then jumped in the air, threw a lasso against the train and pulled out, while he smashed Sonic into the train and glared daggers at him, while his only visible eye was red instead of green.

"If you never arrived to Equestria, Opaline would've never had recruited Eggman, he would've never found the Paradox Prism, and Opaline wouldn't be doing everything she's doing!" Future Sonic shouted in rage.

Sonic looked at him with wide eyes, and as much as he hated to admit it, FS had a good point on that, but he still refused to believe he was an anomaly, even worse: The Original one.

"If you died, Eggman wouldn't had conquered Mobius, because Knuckles knocked him out! He'll be encaged in a cell, where he's nothing but and old man that eats twice a week!" Future Sonic shouted.

Sonic groaned in pain and tried to get FS off him, but then, he noticed both Sunset and Boom approaching "Sonic 2!" He shouted desperately, but FS raised him and smashed him against the train, making him yell in pain.

"And all this time, I have been the only one holding it all together! To fix your mess, to avoid things like the Forbidden Universe happening!" Future Sonic shouted in rage.

"Chief, go easy on him!" Boom Sonic begged desperately, as both him and Sunset approached the other two Sonics.

"You don't belong here..." Future Sonic muttered to Sonic right on his perforated ear. "You never did, neither does 151222 Sonic, and neither does the Sunny that came with you."

"Let me go!" Sonic begged with a frown, still trying to get FS off him.

"Chief, that's enough!" Sunset begged desperately.

"This isn't what we talked about!" Boom Sonic pointed out with concern.

But those words right there, those words made Sonic stop fighting and look at Sunset and Boom from below FS' body with wide eyes, and both a confused and hurt expression.

"...You've talked about this?!" Sonic asked shocked, and both Sunset and Boom stopped moving, looking at him with wide and panicked eyes. "You knew? Y-You all knew?!"

Boom Sonic felt bad after getting discovered, so he simply looked away and hold Aurora close to him, since he wasn't able to look at Sonic in the eyes, while Sunset felt her lips trembling, trying to find the right words to say.

"I... I didn't know... How to tell you..." Sunset confessed with shame.

Sonic felt the entire world suddenly vanishing around him, and his mind flashed back...

All the adventures, the laughs, the cries, the ups the downs, the hugs... All the new friends he made, the romance he has, all the kisses she shared with her, all the passion, all that love... It was never supposed to happen.

He isn't Sonic the Hedgehog, he isn't a hero, and he isn't 'the First Multiversal traveller'...

He shouldn't exist. He's an anomaly. He's a mistake

"...That's why none of you ever came to see me..." Sonic realized with a hurt expression.

Both Sunset and Boom looked down in shame and sadness, because they didn't wanted to tell him this at all, or at least they wanted to say it the best way possible... Not the way FS is doing it right now.

"Sonic, is for your own good!" Sunset tried to resonate.

"Who decides that?!" Sonic shouted in anger, as he tried to stand up and look properly at Sunset and Boom, but FS kept holding him into the train. "I'm not a kid, Sunset!"

FS growled in anger, even feeling his blood boiling after hearing that, so he lifted Sonic and smashed him against the train again, which made Sonic groan in pain again.

"That's exactly what you are!" Future Sonic said with a frown. "You're just a stupid, asshole kid that has no idea what is he doing!"

Sonic growled and placed his left hand on FS' right shoulder, trying to absorb the energy of his body and his gear like he did with the cage earlier, but FS lifted him one last time and smashed him against the train, while Sonic tried once again to get him off.

Both Sunset and Boom looked at this concerned, but choose not to do anything in case their intervention would only make things worse.

"Yeah, well..." Sonic spoke suddenly, as FS held his face against the train with his left elbow. "I did drew hundreds of Mobians and Equestrians away from your little clubhouse."

Future Sonic's eye widened after hearing this. "What?!" He asked confused, then he turned around.

Sunset and Boom turned around as well, and they all saw how hundreds, if not thousands, of Mobians and Equestrians were climbing up the train in the distance, every single one of them with the objective of catching Sonic, just like FS ordered them to do so.

Boom Sonic smiled at this, while Sunset felt confused. "I guess he did planned this out!" The former said happily, before they both looked back at FS and Sonic.

Sonic himself was smirking, because this was his plan from the beginning: Getting all the Secret Society away from the HQ, then save Sunny, and then go back home.

FS realized this and couldn't believe he fell right into the lion's dent. How could he have left his anger blurry his senses? If he didn't got so mad in the first place, maybe this wouldn't be happening, but it was.

"And..." Sonic called out, while FS looked back at him with anger. "I'm about to do this..."

Therefore, Sonic placed his left hand on FS' shoulder and started to absorb all the energy from both his body and his gear, which made FS' eye widen in panic, so he tried to get free from Sonic's grip and finally let him go, but now he was trapped on Sonic's game and couldn't escape.

"Everyone keeps telling me how my story is supposed to go!" Sonic said with a frown, before it relaxed and shifted into a serious expression. "Nah. Imma do my own thing."

With this, Sonic's right arm stopped glitching and shifted back to the regular one, so Sonic placed his hands over FS' chest, then began to release the energy he absorbed back to him.

"Sorry man. I'm going home!" Sonic stated with a determinate look.

FS' eye widened, but then Sonic pushed him back with the energy he absorbed, and FS let out a scream of pain, while he started to roll on the train and fall downwards, but the claws on his gloves were not working, so he kept falling and rolling, until he finally managed to hang into a handle over the train, between various members of the Society.

Sunset found herself smiling after this happened, while she looked back at Sonic, who started to stand up while the train kept moving upwards.

However, when Sonic looked back at both Boom and her, he did it with a frown. "...You heard me when I told you lying makes you a terrible friend... And you still lied to me..." He told Sunset with anger, and Sunset's smile faded away after hearing this. "You don't deserve any friends, Sunset. Not if you're gonna lie to them like this..."

Sunset's heart shattered after hearing this, and she couldn't believe that he said that... But those words also hit her as hard as a train, and they definitely hurt.

"And you?" Sonic saw Boom with disappointment. "I hope I never see you again... Or I'll make sure Aurora gets a Canon Event earlier in her life..."

Boom's eyes widened after hearing this, because he knew perfectly what he meant.

After saying this, Sonic launched himself from the train and dived towards the HQ, even charging up a Homing Attack in the air and then boosting away.

"Sonic!" Sunset shouted, but the blue blur was gone already.

"Wow... I truly didn't expected to get threatened with death today..." Boom Sonic muttered to himself anxiously.

Sunset, on the other hand, still couldn't understand what is Sonic's game plan here... But Future Sonic did, because he didn't thought twice and jumped in a dive towards the HQ as well.

Sunset was thinking on what could Sonic be doing besides saving Sunny once he returned to the HQ... But then she remembered: The 'Go Home Machine', he could use that. And if the machine didn't worked, then the Prismatic energy inside of Sonic definitely would.

"Huh... He definitely planned it all out..." Sunset realized with amusement and a little smile.

Meanwhile, Sunny was still at the HQ, trying to get free from her cage.

She tried to use her horn to wipe it down, but the trick simply didn't worked, so she groaned and sighed frustrated, then sat on the cage and accepted that she had to wait for Sonic to rescue her.

But suddenly, the door of FS' office opened, and then, Sonic came running in, with his feet moving wildly because of him loosing the Inhibitor Bracelet, but he was here to save Sunny. He'll worry about the Prismatic Energy on his body later.

"Sonic!" Sunny called out happily.

Sonic approached and placed his palms on her cage, but also smiled down at her. "I couldn't leave you behind, Sunny-Bunny. You're my sister from another dimension!" He pointed out with a smile, before starting to absorb the energy of the cage.

Sunny got this as a sign to duck down, so she did that, and she also made her horn appear to create a small shield around herself to protect her from what's coming.

And so, Sonic released the energy back into the cell, destroying it in the process, and thanks to her shield, Sunny was intact, so once she saw the cage was gone, she undid her magic and made her horn disappear.

"Well, what took you so––" Sunny tried to ask mockingly, but then, Sonic suddenly kneeled and wrapped her into a big hug, which startled her at first, but when she felt him trembling and sobbing, she knew something was wrong, so she hugged him back and rubbed his back softly. "Sonic... What happened?"

Of course, Sonic didn't replied anything, and instead, just stood there, hugging Sunny tightly.

He couldn't believe that he was a mistake, that his entire universe, that his friends were all anomalies... That they didn't belonged here, nor anywhere else...

How was he even going to explain that to Sunny? Or to everyone else back home? That they were mistakes? That he should be dead? It was all coming so suddenly, and happening so fast... But there was no time to waste.

So, Sonic broke the hug and wiped away his tears, before looking at Sunny again with a smile. "...There's a lot to explain... But it can wait. First, we gotta get out of here!"

Sunny frowned and nodded in agreement, so Sonic carried her in bridal style and then boosted out of FS' office.

Thanks to the fact that he made the place get empty before, running around the Society's HQ was a bless, and Sonic was heading straight up to the 'Go Home Machine'.

However, once they reached that place, they had to stop moving, and Sonic even carefully placed Sunny in the ground, because the Dr. Hooves variant from earlier was blocking the way, and he was even pointing a plasma gun at them with a conflicted look.

"D-Don't step closer!" Hooves warned. "I-I won't hesitate to shoot!"

"Doc..." Sonic started, and he tried to approach.

"Don't move!" Hooves warned again. "I got the message from FS! I know what you want to do!"

"Then you also know that this is wrong, don't you?" Sonic questioned, and Hooves looked at him confused. "We are the good guys... We don't kill each other, and we definitely not stand doing nothing while others die..."

Hooves' hoof started to tremble, and he didn't knew what to do anymore... Let the anomalies go, or do what he believes is the right think and not what FS thinks?

"Hooves..." Sunny called out this time, and Hooves looked at Sunny. "I know that deep down, you know how messed up all of this is. Letting others die just because an AI said so? You can't believe that is okay!"

Hooves' hoof trembled more, and he started to slowly lower it.

"Do what your heart tells you is right, not what your boss says so." Sonic added with a concerned frown.

Hooves once again looked up at Sonic and Sunny, and even if he knew that he was probably getting kicked out of the Secret Society for this, he threw the gun and moved aside, which made both Sonic and Sunny smile.

"Thank you..." Sunny told him with a smile. "I promise you that we'll repay you."

After saying this, Sonic grabbed Sunny bridal style again, but just when he did this, they heard how the ceiling of the HQ broke, just for FS to land not so far from them with a painful grunt.

However, it didn't took him long to notice Sonic and Sunny, so he growled in anger and moved towards them.

Sonic frowned, and so, he ran towards the 'Go Home Machine'... But instead of standing over the platform that makes it works, Sonic started to run all across the room at top speed, with his feet taking the shape of an eight, while the Prismatic Energy of his body showed up.

Sunny noticed this, and her eyes widened in panic. "Sonic! What are you doing?!"

"The machine takes a lot of time to work properly!" Sonic pointed out with a frown, before smirking confidently. "We're leaving this place old school!"

As Sonic did this, Sunny panicked a bit more, but also decided to simply close her eyes and hang tightly into him, while Sonic kept running at top speed, and even the Prismatic Energy of his arm moved to his feet. Some stuff started to float around the room as well thanks to the Prism's Energy.

"NOOOOOOO!" Future Sonic shouted desperately, as he arrived along Sunset, Boom Sonic, Twilight, and all the other members of the Secret Society.

But it was too late for him already: Sonic's plan finally worked, and he opened a portal with the shape of an X with the Prismatic energy of his body, which he traversed along Sunny, and once they were out of sight, the portal closed entirely, and everything floating around stopped doing so.

FS stood in front of everyone else, breathing heavily and trying to calm himself down, but just when the eye of the machine that scans his DNA approached, FS literally ripped it of with his bare hand and launched it away in anger.

"Whoa! Okay, enough!" Boom Sonic called out, protecting Aurora and frowning at FS. "Is not the console's fault! They didn't even used it!"

"All they had to do is LISTEN!" Future Sonic yelled in rage. "Why didn't they listen?"

"Maybe you weren't hard enough on them!" Sunset said sarcastically with a frown.

"Sunset, don't do it..." Twilight warned with a frown as well.

"...You let them go..." Future Sonic said, turning to see Sunset with his eye still glowing in red from anger.

"Me?!" Sunset shouted in disbelief.

"You didn't catch Sonic, Sunset, and he free'd Sunny to escape with her..." Future Sonic declared, glaring daggers at Sunset.

"Okay, okay, the tension's growing here..." Boom Sonic pointed out a bit panicked. "Let's all just catch a breath––"

"Boom!" Sunset called out and cut him off. "You wanna back me up?!"

"Well, in that case: FS, as the father of a daughter, and the son of a mother––" Boom Sonic tried to say.

"Yeah, actually, stop talking..." Twilight begged with a deadpan.

"Okay, duly noted..." Boom Sonic said with an ashamed expression.

Then, Sunset took a deep breath and turned to FS again. "Let me just talk to them––"

However, Future Sonic abruptly boosted right in her face and looked at her with anger. "We tried that." He pointed out, and then walked pass her.

"They're my friends!" Sunset argued with anger as well.

"Yeah, and that's the problem." Future Sonic replied coldly.

"Do you know for certain what happens if they brake the Canon?!" Sunset asked desperate, tired of FS acting like a wiser man when he's just acting out of fear and anger.

This, however, made Future Sonic stop, and so, he turned abruptly to Sunset with a look that clearly said he wasn't willing to take that risk. "Do you wanna find out?"

Sunset panicked at this and walked backwards, but when one of her hind legs didn't find somewhere to stand, she stopped walking, and now her only option was duck herself while FS approached her.

"I told you she was a liability." Future Sonic told Twilight, who's eyes widened after hearing this, but she still sighed and looked away.

"You're wrong!" Sunset's voice spoke in a broken tone. "Twi. Tell him he's wrong!"

However, Twilight took a deep breath and looked at Sunset with guilt. "He's not."

"Are you serious right now?!" Sunset asked in shock, not being able to believe that the one pony that changed her life, at least in her world, was now turning against her.

"I warned you: If you let them get away, I can't help you..." Twilight replied with shame and low ears.

Sunset resisted the urge to cry and yell at Twilight, so she looked back at FS with a frown. "I'm not coming!"

"You're right." Future Sonic replied coldly.

"What?" Sunset asked confused, but then, the 'Go Home Machine' grabbed her, startling the Alicorn. "What the hell?!"

And so, the Machine started to drag her, grabbing her hooves, wings and immobilizing her horn so she wouldn't try to use her magic to get free from the machine's grip. Soon, she was placed in the platform and held by the machine's arms, while Sunset tried to get free from its grip.

"Go home, Sunset." Future Sonic said with anger.

Sunset frowned and got free from the machine's grip, but since it already had the portal ready to sent her home, she simply glared daggers at her former boss. "We are supposed to be the good guys..."

Twilight felt even even worse after hearing this, while the machine finished its process and sent Sunset home.

Hooves looked down in concern, Boom Sonic felt ashamed of being part of the Society, and Twilight closed her eyes, feeling guilty for what just happened with Sunset.

Future Sonic, however, was beyond furious, because he was breathing heavily, and his mind was shouting him he had to to take charge of this before things got worse. He may have good intentions, but he's not acting like a hero... He's acting like a villain. He's acting like the very thing he swore to fight and destroy.

"...We are..." Future Sonic spoke, his eye still glowing in red, then he turned to see all the other members of the Society, trying his best not to loose his cool. "We are!"

Some members in the society looked at each other, anyways, because they felt conflicted on what to do, on who's right, on who's wrong... They were in a difficult position.

Still, Future Sonic wasn't planning to stay here and let Sonic and Sunny get away. "Twilight, Shadow. Come with me." He instructed, walking ahead and opening a portal to Universe 220822.

"Hell yeah!" Shadow cheered with a smile.

"Somebody keep an eye on Opaline." Future Sonic added, traversing the portal, while Shadow entered as well in excitement, and Twilight sighed before doing it as well.

"Sorry, man. Can't do. I gotta get her down for her nap." Boom Sonic said, referring to take Aurora to sleep.

"Not you!" Future Sonic replied with anger, as he glared daggers at Boom. "I've got the right amount of you!"

Then, Future Sonic crossed the portal, and Boom felt bad for everything happening so far, so he sighed and looked down at Aurora, who giggled, and he kissed her forehead.

Author's Notes:

Well, yes: Sonic's Canon Event was supposed to die when Eggman created the machine, not arrive into Equestria... This changes it all, doesn't it?

In today's chapter, the Tails with 9 natural tails is actually based on this concept art of Sonic Prime; the Sonic Cop is, in fact, Zonic the Zone Cop from the Sonic the Hedgehog: Archie Comic Series; the Regular Sonic the Hedgehog is based on this image; Vector's variant that couldn't eat his hamburger comes from this story written by RockStarMLP; both the Gorilla Knuckles and Monkey Tails are originals from this story; the Movie (Young) Sonic's that watched his mother die comes from this story made by sonicfan05, and the Twilight's variant is from this one-shot created by Rambling Writer.

The Werehog Sonic comes from the Archie Comics as well; the Zipp's variant that talked with Sonic is from this one-shot made by my fella Flamewarrior02; the Classic Sonic's variant is actually Sonic from Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog; Big Macintosh's variant is from this short story by CoffeeMinion; Discord's variant comes from this story made by Bookworm Dazzle; and the Knuckles with steroids is Boom Knuckles from the Sonic Boom TV Show. Finally, the Knuckles variant that hit Zonic the Zone Cop's helmet and cringed is Archie Knuckles from the Archie Comic Series.

As for the Forbidden Universe FS mentioned, he was talking about the events of Sonic Prime. Yes, FS is Prime Sonic's number one slander. He despises him to the point he won't waste any possible chance to shit on him if he gets one.

When I said that I was going to make a Multiverse story, I took it by heart. And we're just in chapter 8 of 30... Imagine the possibilities!

Now, next chapter we'll focus back again in Sunset Shimmer now that she's been expelled from the Secret Society. I feel drama incoming!

Bye!

9. Purpose Destroyed

View Online

Universe 220822

Some things started to float over Canterlove Studios' ceiling in Maretime Bay.

Then, an heptagon-shaped portal was open by a pair of claws, these ones coming from FS' gloves, who walked ahead with a determinate look, because his mission in this universe was clear: He came to capture either Sonic and Sunny before they change their Canon Events.

As FS' portal closed, another one opened behind, and Twilight came out of this one, making a slight loop in the air before landing at FS' side, while Shadow came out of a last portal and stood with them as well.

The three of them stared down at Maretime Bay, waiting for either Sonic, Sunny or both of them to arrive so they could arrest them.

Universe 081114

In the middle of Amy's house, an heptagon-shaped portal opened in a room.

Amy herself was on her room, wearing her pajamas and lifting a cup and a paper. Once the effect of the portal was over because it closed, Amy placed the things back in the bed, then stood up and exited her room she shared with Sonic.

"Hey, hun!" Amy greeted happily, heading towards Aurora's room, but not without putting a framed picture back on place that fell because of the portal's effect, then opened the door and saw Boom Sonic placing Aurora down on her cradle. "How's work?"

Boom Sonic hesitated on saying anything first, since he was just making sure that Aurora was comfy and ready to sleep. "Eh... I don't know..."

"Sonic..." Amy called out, as she approached Sonic and rested her head on his, while Sonic was laying over Aurora's cradle with a concerned look. "Did you bring our baby to another fight?"

"Did I bring our baby–– No, no, no." Boom Sonic quickly corrected himself a bit nervously, while Amy raised an eyebrow and looked at him playfully. "You asked me not to, so I didn't. I wouldn't."

Amy nodded, satisfied with this answer, but Boom still looked down at Aurora with concern.

Universe 220822

The Secret Society's members and their leader kept guarding over the town, looking for any sign that indicated that Sonic, Sunny or both of them were coming.

Universe 081114

Boom Sonic was feeling worried.

He placed a finger on Aurora's little hand, who grabbed it and squeezed it like if it was a plushie, while Amy hugged him from behind and looked down at their daughter with a proud smile.

Boom, however, couldn't get off the feeling of guilt he felt for what happened not only to Sonic and Sunny, but also to Sunset, and he felt concerned that not being a good friend with those three could affect him as a parent and mentor for Aurora in the future.

"You think I'll be any good at this?" Boom Sonic asked Amy with concern.

Amy felt surprised by this question. "You're asking that now?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow, before smiling playfully, because Boom was doing so. "There's no playbook for raising someone like her... or being someone like you. You just gotta make the right adjustments in half time... That's sports metaphor, by the way."

"I know, Ames... Is not the first time you try to surprise with one of those..." Boom Sonic rolled his eyes with a playful smirk, while Amy giggled and kissed his cheek.

"Well, since you're so stubborn and cocky, I thought you wouldn't have time for these kind of stuff!" Amy said mockingly.

"We have played sports together, Ames!" Boom Sonic pointed out with an amusing smile, while Amy patted his back with a giggle and walked away, and Boom rolled his eyes again. "Unbelievable..."

He then looked back at Aurora in her cradle with a smile, but still concerned for Sonic, Sunny and Sunset.

Universe 250921

Fire was burning down this universe, with ponies screaming and running away.

Meanwhile, over a pile full of skeletons, Opaline levitated in front of her the skull of who once was Sunny Starscout from this universe, and she looked at it with a frown.

She couldn't understand how from every single world she has visited so far, not a single Sunny is different from the other one. They all share the same design, the same vision, say the same damn words, and all have the same damn Alicorn power...

Why was she this stubborn? Twilight never insisted as much as Sunny does, and that irritates her. Is even worse considering her will to not give up is something she learned from Sonic.

Speaking of the Blue Blur, she already had the glee to burn down his skull as well in other worlds. After all, she's been in Universes 131212, 050117 and 161213 before coming to this one, were she gathered two red shards of the Paradox Prism and a yellow one respectively.

Yes, she also killed Sonic in those worlds, and yes; she destroyed those worlds with glitches as well.

In this universe she's currently in? She obtained another green one, and it was already attached to her bracelet, marking that way the 10th Prism shard she's gotten so far.

"Just 10 more shards before I get my reward..." Opaline muttered with a smirk.

Then, she opened her wings; that ignited in yellow, green, red and blue colors of fire; as well as her horn, and then started to flap her wings, before taking flight upwards, launch a red blast to the sky, opening a portal, and then get out of this universe, which started to glitch as soon as she left.

Her next goal now that she has half of the prism in her power? Go back home and finally reclaim what belongs to her after a long, long time...

Universe 010921

A group of birds chirped as they flew across the sky.

Meanwhile, on a field a few yards away from the Crystal Brighthouse, Sunny and the other girls were having a picnic and enjoying their time together, except for Sunny, who looked ahead with a sad and concerned expression.

Izzy noticed this after a while, so she scooted over to Sunny. "Sunny-Bear, what's wrong girl?" She asked concerned, and it wasn't until Izzy asked this that the others finally noticed Sunny's mood.

"You okay there, Sunny? You're pretty zoned out." Zipp pointed out with worry.

Sunny sighed and tried to smile "I'm fine, girls." She replied, but her smile didn't lasted long, and she ended up looking at the ground. "It's just... I wish Sunset was here, you know? She hasn't been around that much lately. "The few times she has visited have been so short and quick that I can barely call them visits..."

"Well, she has this big deal with this secret multiversal fighting society. So you can't blame her." Pipp said while looking at her phone. "Sometimes I can be as absent working on Mane Melody or spending time with my Pippsqueaks."

"I know, I know." Sunny said with a slight eye roll, before sighing and look down in sadness. "I understand that her job is important and all, but still, I wish she was with us right now..."

Izzy placed a hoof on Sunny's shoulder for comfort, and Sunny smiled weakly at her, but then, a heptagon-shaped portal opened up in the sky, not so far from the girls' position, and this already startled them, but they got even more startled when Sunset came out of the portal.

The Alicorn mare yelped in pain as she hit the floor, while the portal she came from closed.

"Wow... That was convenient..." Misty said surprised.

"You can say that twice..." Zipp said with amusement.

"Wow, that was convenient..." Izzy repeated, although she was as shocked as the others, even though they deadpanned after she literally repeated what Misty said.

Sunset groaned in pain and slowly stood up, while the girls realized that Sunset looked slightly different from the last time they saw her. As stated 7 chapters ago, she was now a bit taller, had a larger neck, her mane glowed with sparkles, and she had a light blue line painted in both her mane and her tail.

Sunny and the girls looked at Sunset amazed, because they never expected her to come back slightly different.

"Sunset?" Sunny asked quietly, finding Sunset's new look beautiful.

Sunset, however, groaned and slowly stood up, then she looked around, and so far, she hasn't noticed Sunny or the girls.

However, her eyes widened in panic when she saw she was back at her world. "No, no no no no no no no! I have to go back! I have to help them!" Sunset cried out, so she looked at her dimensional watch to try and open a portal, but when she tapped it, it instead showed a screen with a message.

"Access Denied." The watch's AI said, while the screen had this exact phrase, and that made Sunset go into a loop.

"What?!" Sunset questioned with a frown, before she tapped the watch again repeatedly, getting the same results since it kept saying 'Access Denied' so many times, and she realized that FS blocked her access to prevent her from interfering. "Rrraaaaaahhhh!!!!!" She yelled out in rage, then she hit a rock nearby, which caused it to crack, then she levitated it and tossed it in a great distance, before falling to her knees and whimper, while tears began to form on her eyes.

Sunny and the girls looked at Sunset with sympathy. They might not be sure what is making her feel this way, but they know they can be there for her and comfort her, so Sunny walked up to Sunset slowly.

"Sunset?" Sunny asked concerned and uncertainly.

Sunset's ears perked up, and her eyes widened, then she slowly turned around and saw Sunny, as well as the other girls behind her. "Sunny?"

"I see you have a new look!" Sunny said with a little smile, but before she could say anything else, Sunset rushed up to her and hugged her tightly, starting to cry on her shoulder, which made Sunny feel concerned, even though she still hugged her back. "Sunset?"

Sunset didn't immediately replied, and instead just cried on Sunny's shoulder. After everything she's been living the past day, she really needed this hug, so Sunny decided to stay quiet for now and just hug her back.

Sunset felt so happy when she joined the Society at first, because she felt that she finally had a purpose again, that she finally was helping in something so much important... But now that she's kicked out, she has no purpose again.

"S-Sunny... I-I'm so sorry..." Sunset whimpered, sobbing a bit as well.

"Sunset... What's wrong? What happened?" Sunny asked concerned, braking the hug and she looking at Sunset with concern, while the other girls did as well.

"Why are you sad? Why the long face?" Izzy asked next.

Sunset simply sobbed a bit more and wiped the few tears left on her eyes, before looking at the ground with shame and guilt. "I... I've been expelled from the Secret Society..."

"What?!" The five girls asked in shock.

"They... They fired you? Just like that?!" Zipp asked in shock.

"Why would they do that?!" Pipp asked as well.

Sunset sniffed a bit more and wiped her nose. "I... Remember the first Sonic that we met? The one that popped up suddenly in front of Sunny's stand?"

"The day I got sick for streaming the whole day?" Pipp asked.

"Yeah..." Sunset nodded and wiped out more tears. "That same Sonic... Is from his world where Opaline comes from... FS sent me to recruit him and his Sunny because he believed they could help out in defeating her. They passed their first test with no problem, but Sonic did something he didn't had to when things got out of control, a-and FS was furious with him, a-and..."

Sunset started to hyperventilate a bit, and so, Sunny placed a hoof on her shoulder and another one on her chest, shushing her quietly and waiting for Sunset to calm down.

None of the girls ever saw Sunset being so broken or desperate before. Sure, they have seen her getting mad or crying when she had to, but they never saw her this messed up emotionally. They were convinced that, whatever happened to her, it was really bad if it left her like this.

Eventually, Sunset calmed down and kept explaining. "When he explained everything about the Canon, they exploded in anger, and then he tried to encage them..." She said, and that made the other five mares gasp in shock. "Sonic escaped, but even if his plan was working... FS still told him everything: That he's the first anomaly, why he's one, and... And he even told him that he didn't belonged in the Society..."

If the first thing was really bad enough, now this shocked the other five mares even more, and they couldn't believe the same FS they met a while back did everything Sunset was telling them he did.

"Sonic still managed to escape, he free'd Sunny, and then... he left to his world..." Sunset kept explaining. "I tried to convince FS to let me go talk with them, but... He said they escaped because of me... And then he expelled me..."

After having explained all of this, her friends were shocked, and they still couldn't believe the FS they met months ago and the FS Sunset was talking about are the same hedgehog.

"What?!" Zipp yelled angrily. "They seriously tried to encage them just for trying to help?!"

"The nerve of them to just do that to a hero! They were supposed to be the good guys!" Pipp pointed out in anger as well.

Sunset snorted a bit after hearing that. "That's what I told them before they sent me here... But you know what's the part that hurts me the most? That Sonic told me something that's stuck in my head, right before he escaped..."

Sonic started to stand up, while the train kept moving upwards.

However, when Sonic looked back at both Boom and Sunset, he did it with a frown. "...You heard me when I told you lying makes you a terrible friend... And you still lied to me..." He told Sunset with anger, and Sunset's smile faded away after hearing this. "You don't deserve any friends, Sunset. Not if you're gonna lie to them like this..."

Sunset's heart shattered after hearing this, and she couldn't believe that he said that... But those words also hit her as hard as a train, and they definitely hurt.

After saying this, Sonic launched himself from the train and dived towards the HQ, even charging up a Homing Attack in the air and then boosting away.

"Sonic!" Sunset shouted, but the blue blur was gone already.

After Sunset explained this, she sobbed a bit more and wiped out more tears.

"I... I know he's just mad, but... His words really hurt..." Sunset said with concern.

The others looked at each other with concern as well, and even if they all wanted to say something to comfort Sunset, none of them knew exactly what to say in order to cheer her up.

"I can't believe FS would even do that to you, or to Sonic and his Sunny..." Misty said in disbelief.

"The guy is clearly way too strict, and he thinks he knows everything to the point he won't even listen!" Sunset yelled out in rage, also kicking a rock far from them. "And now, Sonic and his Sunny are being hunted down as we speak, I got fired from the Society, and Opaline is still out there! I bet she has more shards from the Paradox Prism at this point, and I can't do anything about it! Not even to help out our Hitch..."

After yelling all of this, Sunset fell on her knees again and started to tear up even more while breathing heavily, to the point some tears even got into her mouth because of her uncontrollable cry.

However, and even though she still felt concerned for Sunset, Sunny raised an eyebrow confused when Sunset yelled that she couldn't help their Hitch. Being her best friend, or rather coltfriend, Sunny obviously felt a bit concerned that Sunset mentioned him.

"Hitch? What do you mean?" Sunny asked confused.

Sunset's eyes widened after Sunny asked this, and she realized too late her mistake of mentioning Hitch. She thought earlier in the Society's HQ that if the other Sunny hated her for not trying to stop Hitch's fate, then her Sunny would do the exact same thing.

Now she was in a position were hiding the truth was not an option, because Sonic's words were stuck with her, and she didn't wanted to lie to anyone anymore, much less her friends.

So, with a sigh, Sunset looked down for a moment, before looking up at Sunny. "Canon Events are... Things that must happen so a pony, or person, can be that pony or person..." She began to explain, then gulped nervously and closed her eyes before continue. "A-And your canon event, Sunny... Is that Hitch... I-Is that he dies..." She confessed, more tears started to roll down her cheeks.

The other mares but Sunny gasped in shock, while Sunny herself had wide eyes, but she said nothing after hearing this.

"A-And I was trying so, so hard to avoid that thing to happen for you... For us!" Sunset added with a whimper, before removing her watch from her hoof and then toss it away, as it crashed into the ground and broke into a million pieces, while the other mares flinched at her action. "But I couldn't! I-I couldn't..."

Sunset cried more at this point, and when you think she cannot cry out even more, she proves you wrong and cries even more. Sunny noticed this and felt bad, but also confused on why Sunset worried so much for Hitch.

"Sunset, it's okay." Sunny said with a calmed tone, placing a hoof on Sunset's shoulder. "Hitch is––"

"No, it's not okay, Sunny!" Sunset snapped, her voice changing into a more low pitched tone that felt similar to when Celestia or Luna raised their voices in anger.

Sunny and the other mares backed a bit away after Sunset snapped like that, while the Alicorn started to walk back and forth desperately, also breathing a bit heavily.

"Ever since the very first day the Unity Crystals gave me these wings, I've been doing everything I can to show that I'm worthy of them, to demonstrate that I could do as many amazing things as Twilight did when she was still around!" Sunset said with concern, while her friends looked at her with worried looks. "And I didn't! I didn't..."

Her friends grew even more concerned after she said all of this, but they decided to let her cry and scream all her frustration out before telling her what Sunny was trying to say earlier.

"I can do all these things but I can't help the people I love the most, and I can only do so much that I can't even bring back Twilight even when she's gone!" Sunset screamed with pain. "So, I'm completely on my own! And now, I don't... I don't even know what’s the right thing anymore!"

"Sunset..." Sunny muttered with concern.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do! But I know!" Sunset said desperately, before sighing and cover her face with her hooves, then look back at her friends with concern. "I can't lose one more friend..."

The other mares looked at each other for a moment, then they all smiled and looked back at Sunset.

"Sunset, Hitch has been quite busy working on his Sheriff duties." Sunny tried to explain.

"Yeah, and how did that work out?" Sunset asked rhetorically with a snort and a small eye roll.

"Uh, Sunset..." Zipp tried to called her our.

"What’s the point of keep talking about this? Hitch is a goner..." Sunset said defeated.

"No he's not." Sunny tried to reason, now frowning and getting tired of Sunset's attitude.

"Why?!" Sunset asked again, getting irritated herself.

"Because I'm right here." Hitch's voice spoke, and that startled Sunset, who violently turned around.

She saw Hitch and Sparky coming towards them, with Hitch even carrying a box of donuts on his hoof and placing it down on the mantle were they had the rest of the picnic.

Sunset, however, was staring at Hitch with wide and confused eyes. If what she recalls is correct, Hitch should've had died a week or two ago, which is 3 or 4 days ago in this universe... But if Hitch was right there, alive, then why was her universe intact and not raveling?

"Hitch? You're… you're here..." Sunset said with wide and shocked eyes. "H-How?"

"Well... As much as I love to be a Sheriff, I realized that my job was keeping me away from spending time with those who I love..." Hitch started to explain, before looking at Sunny and the rest with a smile, while they smiled back. "It was a miracle already that I could be with you girls the day we fought Tirek on Zephyr Heights. So, I have retired temporarily from being a Sheriff. That way I can spend my time with my friends. And with Sparky!"

Sunset was shocked after hearing this. "When?"

"Around a month or two after you left." Hitch revealed with a smile.

Sunset was having a hard time processing all of this, specially because she really thought that Hitch would be dead by the time she came back to her universe... But Hitch was alive.

"You're... Wait, wait a minute, you're... You're not Sheriff right now?" Sunset asked, still shocked about this revelation, while her mind started to think on something. "But that means…"

Sunset was now shocked, because if Hitch was alive, that meant that Sunny's Canon Event was disrupted. And if her Canon Event was disrupted, but this universe remains intact, then that means that altering a Canon Event does not unravels a reality... At least if you belong there.

She realized that FS and Sonic broke the Canon from universes they didn't belonged to, but she changed the Canon of her own reality... So if she could do it, that means that Sonic and Sunny still have a chance.

They can change their Canon, and their world would still live... Just like hers...

Meanwhile, Hitch looked at Sparky, who was giggling at him happily, then the stallion of the group looked at his friends with a fond smile. "My job, being a Sheriff, all that stuff isn't really that important..." He stated, before looking over at Sunset and the others. "My friends are the best thing I've ever done."

Sunset couldn't believe it still... But it was true: Hitch is alive, and her world lives on with that, because Canon doesn't matter when you are the one rewriting your own story.

If she never joined the Society, Hitch would've died, and that Canon Event would've had happened still... But it didn't, because the day she joined them, she already changed her story, she saved Hitch from his fate and she didn't even know it...

Then, Hitch walked up to Sunset and placed a hoof on her shoulder to give her some comfort. "I... I heard everything that happened to you in the Society, and I'm really sorry they did this to you and your friends... But you shouldn't let that stop you." He stated with a determinate look. "You are better off without them, and you are great in many ways! Even if Twilight isn't around, you did many things before you brought her back to put her spirit in that necklace the first time. You shouldn't let that get the best of you."

Sunset remained silent for a moment, and she took out her necklace, which still had Twilight's spirit inside, even though she closed herself in it ever since she realized she wasn't needed anymore, which made Sunset start to tear up again.

"I-I... I just wanted to see familiar faces... I wanted Twilight to be there with me, b-because I don't know if I can go on without her... She changed my life for the better. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her extending her hand to me for help... If it wasn't for her making me see the light of friendship, that I… I don't know if I'm able to keep going without her guidance..." Sunset said, still looking at the necklace with sadness and concern. "I just want to see my Twilight again... I really miss her..."

Sunset closed her eyes and held the necklace close to her chest, tearing up even more if it was possible, while the rest of the Mane 7 looked at her with sad expressions.

So, they decided to huddle close to her and wrap the now taller Alicorn in a group hug, while Sunset herself whimpered, because it didn't matter if she spent the past year with a variant of Twilight, learning lots of stuff about the Multiverse. At the end of the day, she wasn't her Twilight, the one that showed her the path of friendship, the one who saved her from darkness, and that's what hurt her the most...

Suddenly, the necklace started to glow again after months of not being used, but none of the Mane 7 noticed this. However, as the necklace finally opened up, the Mane 7 but Sunset gasped and looked ahead with wide and shocked eyes.

"I'm always with you, Sunset." Twilight spoke in a soft tone.

Hearing that voice, echoing like a hologram instead of being firm and solid like with Twilight from Universe 260221, it sent a weird chill down Sunset's spine.

So, the Alicorn slowly lifted her sight, just for her eyes to widen as well, while her tears feel even harder and faster now: It was the Twilight from the necklace, her Twilight, looking at her with affection and a small smile.

"...T-Twilight?" Sunset muttered in disbelief, her lips even trembling, but as the others smiled at the sight, Sunset did it as well. "Y-You are back..."

"I am... And I've seen your latest journey across the multiverse through the necklace." Twilight confessed. "I've seen everything you've been going through, and I see how conflicted you feel because of FS and his Secret Society's actions, how much you don't trust them anymore... FS' rules are very questionable, and it seems like he does not understand the value of being a leader."

"I know... All the things we've done to 'protect the Canon'... None of it was right..." Sunset said with a sadness and disappointment over herself. "And I still screwed up... I just wanted to be something more. I-I still feel like I'm not needed in Equestria anymore, and I still feel that I need to find my purpose, because after you..." She trailed off and sighed. "I... I just don't know if I can move on without you, Twilight... You are the inspiration of friendship, the one and true Alicorn Equestria needs. You even made a friendship utopia before Opaline ruined it! We brought back your legacy, but... Equestria still needs you..."

Twilight gave a small smile and chuckled after hearing this. "Oh, Sunset... I know that you're still trying to find your purpose, but know this: Equestria will always need you, your friends will always need you as well, to be there for them I'm so sorry for leaving you so suddenly after the last time we saw each other... But my time has passed. Equestria doesn't needs me anymore, and you never needed me. You and your friends had done so many deeds for Equestria, and stopping Opaline was just the beginning! Don't you see? You seven are ready to carry on my legacy without me."

Even though all the Mane 7 were listening, Sunset still felt bad after hearing from Twilight herself that she wasn't needed anymore, but as much as it hurt to hear it, Sunset knew it was the truth.

"I know that I'm the one who helped you turn over a new leaf when we first met, Sunset, but all those times Equestrian magic caused problems in your world during CHS, I wasn't there to help you." Twilight pointed out. "Sure, I gave you some information, but you and your friends were the ones who handled them with the magic of friendship, and while working together. Heck, even before you brought me back on this necklace, you helped to bring back the magic of Equestria, reunited ponykind and rebuild my legacy! Sunset, you are needed in Equestria more than I am. You seven haven't just helped one pony with a simple problem, you saved Equestria by returning it to how it was, the way it should be: A world of Friendship and Harmony, of Unity." She finished with a proud smile.

The Mane 7 looked at Twilight, feeling inspired by her words, then the rest turned to Sunset, who seemed to be deep in thought.

"So, Sunset. You finally know your purpose?" Sunny asked with a little smile.

After a few seconds of silence, Sunset gave a determined smile and turned to her friends. "...I think I have... My name is Sunset Shimmer. I'm a Princess of Friendship, and a Guardian of Harmony. I am friends with Princess Twilight Sparkle, friends with Sunny, Hitch, Izzy, Zipp, Pipp and Misty, protector of Unity, guardian of the Unity Crystals, protector of Equestria, and friends to those close to me! My purpose is to protect Equestria, to protect Twilight's legacy, and to protect my friends, whom I care for deeply, from any threats, no matter what the cost or where I go! I am the Princess of Friendship, and this is who I am!" She announced with a determined voice and a wide smile, while her mane glowed even brighter.

The rest of the Mane 7 cheered in joy for Sunset, and then they dragged her into another group hug, while Sunset herself smiled, before looking at Twilight, who smiled as well, while the rest decided to brake the hug.

"I'm proud of you, and I'm proud of the mare you've grown into, Sunset. You truly are amazing." Twilight said with a pride.

"Thank you for inspiring me, Twilight..." Sunset said with a smile, but it faded away and shifted into a sad expression. "But... It sounds like you're about to leave again..."

"Aw... But you just returned, Twilight!" Izzy complained in sadness.

"Yeah! You can stay with us a little longer if you want!" Sunny suggested, since she wanted for Twilight to stay a bit longer, specially because she still admires her as her idol.

However, Twilight denied with her head, but smile warmly at them. "I would love that offer, but my time has passed already. You all have grown into the greatest ponies there are, and it was already time to pass the torch. But even though you ponies might not see me anymore, I'm always with you all. And who knows: If things go too dire, maybe someday I'll return. For now? Know that I'm always with all of you."

After saying this, the Mane 7 smiled at the Former Princess of Friendship.

"You know you can count on us to keep the peace!" Hitch said with a smile, while Sparky babbled in agreement.

"You know we'll keep the harmony!" Pipp sang happily, even flapping her wings.

"We'll unicycle your legacy time and time again!" Izzy cheered.

"You know I always keep promises." Zipp said with a smirk.

"And I would love to keep that legacy this time, as a way to redeem myself for working with Opaline." Misty said with a proud smile.

"And Sunset and I will keep your legacy alive, and be the Alicorns we are meant to be!" Sunny promised, as she brought out her Alicorn form and stood next to Sunset, who smiled at her, before the Mane 7 all turned to Twilight.

"I'm proud you ponies would do that for me, and for all of Equestria." Twilight said with a smile, walking up to Sunset and placing a hoof on her chest, while Sunset gave a teary smile. "Don't cry, Sunset. This isn't a goodbye, is more like a 'see you later'. But know that, wherever I am, no matter where I end up, I'll always be with you."

Sunset sniffed with a small smile. "I know, Twilight... But I'm still going to miss you... Like, a lot."

"I know, but remember: You have friends by your side to help you keep going." Twilight assured with a smile, then turned to Sunny and the others, all smiling back in agreement. "There are times when somepony has to move on and keep going for those they care for, whether they are departed or far, they are always with you in spirit. There are times that we must grow and embrace changes to carry on, but know that I will always be with you Sunset. No matter where you go, I'm always watching you. Promise that you would keep going not just for me, but for your friends as well."

Sunset looked down a bit, tears dropping from her eyes and running down her cheeks, but then she looked up and gave Twilight a smile. "I promise, Twilight. I'll keep going for you, for my friends, and I'll make things right."

Twilight gave a little smile after hearing that. "Thank you... So long Sunset. And remember: I'll always be there for you..." She finished, before disappearing and going back into the necklace, while the others watched with tearful eyes.

Soon, the necklace closed again, and it stopped glowing as well.

Sunset looked at the necklace with tearful eyes, but then she smiled and turned to Sunny and the rest, whom gave her tears of joy, before Sunny gave Sunset a comforting hug, and the others smiled at the two ponies, because they all knew that they needed this.

"Twilight sure is good at making inspirational speeches!" Sunny commented with a slight chuckle.

Sunset snorted a bit. "How do you think she inspires others?" She joked slightly, then they broke the hug and Sunset wiped her nose, while the two Alicorns smiled at each other, then smiled at their friends as well, and they returned the gesture. "If only I could help Sonic and his Sunny to fix things up..."

Izzy's ears perked up after Sunset said that, because she remembered something. "Oh! I had just the thing!" She cheered, before rushing out to the Brighthouse really fast, and then coming back, holding a wrapped up present. "We don't know what it is, nor what you gotta do to help Sonic and his Sunny, Sunset, but we think this thing is supposed to help."

Sunset looked at the present, and her eyes widened a bit, because she could tell by the look of the wrapped present that Buffon is the one who made it.

The box was wrapped mostly in newspaper, but also with blue graffiti she has seen him using before.

"The guy who left it was quite a weird character, and a rule breaker by his looks..." Hitch deadpanned.

"But he was definitely a fun guy!" Izzy added cheerfully with a smile.

"We kept it in the Brighthouse as we waited for your return." Sunny explained with a smile. "We figured that you were going to need it and arrive here at any time!"

Sunset smiled at her friends, then opened up the present, and her eyes widened again. She brought out a makeshift watch with a sticky note on it that said 'iN cAse it doN'T WoRK ouT. - Blue Buffon' on it. Sunset couldn't believe what she had on her hoof, then she removed the sticky note and noticed that the watch was a homemade version of the Society's ones.

She remembers that she talked jokingly with Buffon about making their own watch, and she even caught him stealing parts from the HQ sometimes... Now it made sense why he did so.

He always suspected all of this would happen: Sonic and Sunny's escape, FS' outrage, Sunset getting kicked out of the Society, everything. So, he made this watch and brought it here to her universe in case things didn't worked out, just like the stick note said.

Sunset smiled widely after realizing all of this, then she looked at the screen of the watch and noticed it said 'Project Bootleg' on the top, as well as already having a destination ready: Universe 220822.

Sunset smiled even more, then looked at her friends and nodded, as they nodded back in understanding.

Then, Sunset put the watch on her hoof and activated it, while a portal opened up behind the Mane 7, which surprised the group except for Sunset. They also noticed some stuff of their picnic floating as a secondary effect because of the portal being open.

But then, they turned and saw Sunset being right on the portal, yet not crossing it still, because she first wanted to say goodbye to her friends before leaving to her mission.

"I'll be right back, ponies. I promise." Sunset said with a determined smile.

Her friends smiled back and nodded. After that, she crossed the portal, and it closed behind, making the effect disappear, while the food from the picnic fell to the ground, although none of it got to waste.

"Huh... She has definitely matured a lot, haven't she?" Izzy asked with an amused smile, while her friends laughed at her silly comment.

Author's Notes:

At long last, one chapter were things start to shine with a light of hope... Except for the fact that Opaline's probably gonna fuck up 220822 Equestria, but eh. Details.

Speaking of Opaline, the universe she arrived in belongs to this story's universe created by milesprower06, while the worlds she previously visited and destroyed are this story by Tatsurou, this story made by SonicAKG, and this story written by Amereep.

Now, even if it's not really necessary to clarify it, I'm still gonna do it: The world Boom Sonic lives in is the Sonic Boom TV Show, while the universe where the rest of the chapter takes place is this story's universe that Phantom-Dragon created, but its sequels were written by JesusG0987, who's also once again the co-writer of this chapter.

Thank you all so much for reading so far, and brace yourselves: After next chapter, we're going to hiatus so I can work in Part 2 of the story. See ya!

10. End of the Line

View Online

Sunny had her eyes closed, and she still was holding to Sonic tightly.

"Uh... Sunny?" Sonic called out. "You can open your eyes now."

"Huh?" Sunny said confused, immediately opening her eyes and looking around.

However, as she did so, her eyes widened and sparkled in surprise: They were in a place with a red, black and blue background, while thousands of white curves and lines moved around like a river's stream.

Then, one of the lines suddenly began to bend, until it crashed against one of the curves. Several of other lines and curves began to crash within each other, and some of them even merged to form part of the same existential plane. Some of the lines and curves even began to divide, until they separated completely and became independent from each other.

"Whoa..." Sunny said amazed. "What... What is this place?!"

"I know talking about what just happened is probably the last thing you wanna do, but... Remember that FS showed us thousands of lines surrounding us?" Sonic asked with a sheepish smile, and Sunny nodded with a raised eyebrow. "Well... This is what it looks like..."

Sunny's eyes widened again, and she started ti look around in disbelief. "Wait... So this is the multiverse?! IT ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE THIS?!"

"Yeah! This is were I kept coming to when I got lost last year" Sonic explained with a smile, before sighing sadly. "Too bad I don't know how to go home..."

However, after he said this, the Prismatic Energy of his shoes started to get out of control again, because it suddenly make him slip in the air, before he was suddenly getting dragged away at top speed, while Sunny screamed loudly in panic, but still holding tight into Sonic.

Soon, his shoes stopped glowing, but Sonic was already moving so fast that it was clear they couldn't slow, down, and they were even heading towards one of the white lines, which made Sonic's eyes widen in panic.

"Crap!" Sonic shouted. "Sunny, hang on tight, because this is gonna be painful!"

"What do you mean?!" Sunny shouted in panic with wide eyes.

However, her answer arrived when they crashed against the white line they were heading to, and they dived at super speed through it. Sunny began to scream in fear and narrowed her eyes, while Sonic simply closed them and kept Sunny close to him, although their entire bodies started to glitch.

Universe 220822

The sky opened with the giant shape of a letter 'X'.

After that, Sonic and Sunny fell towards the ground, over a forest that wasn't so far from Maretime Bay, as they both rolled around the ground, ending up with Sonic on the ground and Sunny on top of him.

However, it didn't took long for Sunny to get off Sonic and stand up, shaking her head a bit dizzy. Then, she looked around and noticed that they were back in Equestria, specifically in the same forest she got lost with Sonic and Izzy when she wanted to hang out on Prancing Point.

She also noticed that Sonic's shoes and arm were fine, and if no Prismatic Energy was getting out of control, then it meant that they were on their universe, which made Sunny sigh in relief.

His shoes and gloves were dirty and unclean, though, but she decided to ignore that.

"Huh... Seems like we're back home!" Sunny said with a smile. "I know our friends might be on Mobius now, but if we hurry and find a way to create a portal there, maybe we can––"

However, whatever she was going to say was cut off, because when she turned to Sonic, her eyes widened in panic...

Sonic himself was sitting down on the ground, but now that the adrenaline of the escape was over, his mind immediately started to process back the fact that FS revealed the truth to him: That he is the original anomaly, and that he should be dead right now.

"YOU'RE A MISTAKE!" Future Sonic's voice echoed on his mind suddenly, and Sonic tried to take a deep breath to calm himself down.

He suddenly started to hear his own heartbeat, although it was going at normal speed for now, but his mind was going to change that.

"If you never arrived to Equestria, Opaline would've never had recruited Eggman, he would've never found the Paradox Prism, and Opaline wouldn't be doing everything she's doing!" Future Sonic's voice echoed on his mind again.

Sonic's breath started to increase, and his heart started to beat slightly faster.

However, Sunny still noticed his strange attitude and worried. "Sonic?"

"If not for our friends' death, most of us wouldn't be here, Sonic..." Boom Sonic played out on his mind as well, while he started to breath even more heavily, his heart beat faster, and he ended up grabbing his head, as his quills turned on with his powers.

This made Sunny's eyes widen in panic, so she rushed to help him stand and placed a hoof on his shoulder. "Sonic! What's wrong?!" She called out again, but Sonic kept breathing heavily, while more PTSD from the fight in the train with FS and the Society popped on his mind.

He was having a panic attack again.

"I will rule over the entire multiverse, and every critter will kneel to me... AND ADORE ME AS THEIR QUEEN!" Opaline's voice from that sudden vision popped up as well, and Sonic's breath got even worse, as well as the speed of his heartbeat.

He was reaching a point where he could feel he was missing air, even if he wasn't.

"You have a choice between saving one person, and saving an entire world!" Future Sonic's voice echoed again, and Sonic grabbed his neck now, because he seriously couldn't feel like breathing anymore.

"We can do both! We've always––" Sonic's voice echoes on his own mind, and Sunny was hugging him tightly, hopping it would calm him down a bit, but it didn't.

"Not always..." Boom Sonic's voice echoes as well. "Bad things are gonna happen. It makes us who we are!" It echoed again, and Sonic was starting to see that vision of Opaline killing Tails and Hitch again, which only increased his heartbeat and his breathing accelerating.

"I... I didn't know... How to tell you..." Sunset's voice echoed as well, and while Sonic's panic attack only got worse, Sunny was loosing it, not knowing what to do so he could calm down anymore...

At least not at first, because she suddenly remembered something, something that worked the last time Sonic had a panic attack.

"Well... Here comes nothing..." Sunny muttered with concern.

"You were never supposed to arrive to Equestria! You were never supposed to meet those ponies!" Future Sonic's voice still echoed on Sonic's mind, making his breath increase more and more.

However, the soft tact of someone resting their head on his legs finally made the voices on his mind stop echoing at a slow paste, while his breath also started to slow down, as well as his heartbeat. He moved his right hand and then placed it over Sunny's head, because she did exactly what Pipp when he had his first panic attack about a year and 6 months ago.

Sonic couldn't hear his heartbeat anymore, and the voices on his head stopped talking as well, which made him sigh in relief and slowly smile, before looking down at the mare on his legs.

"...Thank you, Sunny..." Sonic thanked her with an honest smile.

Sunny smiled back slightly, but then slowly raised her head and looked at Sonic with concern. "What is it this time? What got into you like that?"

Sonic let out another sigh and looked down at his hands. "While I dragged the Society and FS away from the HQ... I got on FS' nerves and... He revealed things to me... Things that change everything the way we know them..."

"What kind of things?" Sunny asked concerned, and she was scared to hear the answer.

Sonic let out another sigh, then looked over at her. "...I... I'm the original anomaly... The very first mistake that happened to the multiverse..." He revealed, as he snorted with a broken tone, while tears wanted to fall down his cheeks.

Sunny's eyes widened after hearing this, and now her heartbeat increased. "W-What?!" She exclaimed loudly, then frowned in anger. "W-What kind of blasphemy is that?!"

Sonic chuckled and wiped out some more tears that started to fall after hearing Sunny saying that the way she did. "The day that Eggman created that machine... It's purpose was to sent me to other universe, just like Egghead planned..."

"Well, yeah. That's how you came to Equestria." Sunny pointed out.

"And that's exactly the problem..." Sonic replied suddenly, and Sunny was taken aback by that answer. "The machine was supposed to fail, to leave the Emeralds powerless... And to kill me... That is the Canon Event I broke..."

Sunny gasped and covered her mouth with a hoof, even taking a few more steps back. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, and she definitely didn't wanted to believe it.

"W-What are you implying?" Sunny asked with a trembling voice and trembling lips as well.

"I've should never had met you..." Sonic said, but he didn't said it with the intention of hurting Sunny, even if he did. "I should've never had met any of you... I should've died..."

"Sonic, that is not––" Sunny tried to say.

"If I never arrived here, you'll still had brought magic back without my help..." Sonic pointed out, more tears rolling down his cheeks. "In other worlds you did so, why would we be different?"

"Hey, that is not true––" Sunny tried to assure him with a slight frown.

"BUT IT IS!" Sonic snapped at her, and even though his expression was broken and sad, with tears still rolling down his cheeks, his electrical powers showed up as well, and that made Sunny flinch. "If I died, Opaline wouldn't had ever found the Emeralds! She would've never saved Eggman from his cell, Eggman would've never had caused so much damage to Equestria, he wouldn't hade made Sage, and Sage wouldn't had found the same Paradox Prism I destroyed that Opaline is gathering to destroy every single reality now! Don't you see it, Sunny?! MY WHOLE MISERABLE EXISTENCE IS A MISTAKE!!!"

After Sonic shouted this, and Sunny's ears lowered with wide eyes and a panicked expression, the blue blur started to take deep breaths to calm himself down.

His heartbeat wasn't increasing, that was good; and he could still feel his breath, that was also good; heck, his powers even disappeared at this point. It was all good news, right? Well... Not when Sonic ended up falling to his knees, his tears came out even faster than ever...

And then, not being able to keep holding his frustration, he let out a loud cry of pain.

However, this cry came along with his powers suddenly activating again and sending a massive electrical explosion all across Maretime Bay... No, all across Equestria, because his wave was so powerful that it acted like a PEM that shut down all the electricity in the magical land.

At least for 3 or 4 seconds, because it immediately came back.

Still, it didn't changed Sonic's messed up state: He was on his knees, crying, sobbing loudly, his powers were not visible anymore, but occasional electrical sparks came out of his body.

Sunny created a shield around herself to protect herself from Sonic's outburst, but when she heard him sobbing and crying, even covering his face with his hands, she really got worried, so she deactivated her shield and slowly approached the blue hedgehog.

She had no idea on how to act here, though. She has comforted Sonic in the past, like the time he cried on Longclaw's death anniversary while everyone else worked on making Canterlove Studios.

But this was different... This was even worse than just a breakdown. This was an existential crisis, because Sonic felt like his whole existence was a mistake, like he was a mistake, and Sunny's heart broke at the idea of thinking he believed that of himself.

She was truly going to kick FS' face hard enough next time she saw him, but thinking about him was going to make her feel even more mad, and Sonic needed to be comforted, not to be yelled at.

So, Sunny sat on the ground, and slowly pulled down Sonic into a hug, one that Sonic immediately returned as he buried his face on her chest, while Sunny wrapped her hooves around the blue blur and rubbed his back, even shushing him a bit so his cry would slow down.

Sonic simply let out his pain right here and right now. He didn't had the energy to joke, nor to pretend everything is fine, because it isn't.

FS wants his friends dead or else the whole multiverse will collapse according to him, but if that wasn't enough pain, now he discovered that he should've died three years ago when Eggman created the machine that sent him to Equestria... It was one bad news followed by another.

And Sunny was feeling bad as well. She couldn't believe that Sonic was an anomaly, that his destiny was supposed to die that day... But here he is, on her arms, crying a river because he feel like a mistake.

And yet, she remembered something FS said about anomalies and how they worked, so then she looked down at Sonic and sighed, before slowly making him separate from her.

"Sonic... You are not a mistake..." Sunny started.

Sonic wiped out some more tears and sobbed. "I-If you're trying to making me feel better..." He tried to say, not wanting to hear Sunny feeling bad for him.

"No, no! Sonic, listen to me: You are not a mistake!" Sunny said, but this time in a more happy tone. "Why else do you think you're here right now, talking with me?!"

"Because our universe is dumb?" Sonic replied rhetorically with a snort.

"Because FS is wrong!" Sunny pointed out, and that did called Sonic's attention, because his eyes widened, and he looked at Sunny a bit confused.

"...W-What do you mean?" Sonic asked.

"FS said that anomalies can cause disruptions in the multiverse, but if you are an anomaly, if you broke your Canon, if you are alive and not dead like you are supposed to be... Then why our universe is still intact?" Sunny pointed out with a smile.

Sonic's eyes widened after hearing this, and his lips started to tremble a bit as well... Sunny had an excellent point: If he is a mistake, if he isn't supposed to exist, then why is their world still existing?

According to FS: When you brake a Canon Event, that universe should disappear entirely... But if Sonic broke his Canon because the machine did its purpose and sent him to another dimension, then why did their world didn't unraveled immediately, like with that other FS' universe?

"...Because he broke the Canon of someone else..." Sonic realized with wide eyes.

"Huh?" Sunny said confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Sunny, FS broke someone else's Canon, just like I broke Firefly's..." Sonic pointed out, before placing his hands on her shoulders. "But I broke my Canon three years ago... And our world didn't disrupted."

"Um, yeah? But what does that has to do with––" Sunny tried to ask, but after thinking about it for a few seconds, she realized as well. "...When you brake someone else's Canon, that universe unravels, because you changed someone else's story... But when you brake your Canon...!"

"It doesn't matter because you are changing your Story!" Sonic cheered loudly.

Soon, both Sonic and Sunny hugged each other tightly in happiness, and Sonic even made Sunny twirl in the air, which made the Earth Pony mare squeal in surprise, but still giggled, and soon, Sonic placed her back on the ground, while they looked at each other with tears of joy.

"Sunny, you know what this means?!" Sonic asked excited.

"We can save Tails and Hitch, and our world will be fine!" Sunny replied happily, as they shared another hug.

However, Sonic's eyes suddenly widened in panic when he thought on something, and he immediately broke the hug while looking down in concern.

"There's a few problems still, though..." Sonic pointed out with concern.

Sunny felt surprised on his change of attitude and panicked a bit. "What problems?"

"First off, FS and the Secret Society are probably on the hunt for us." Sonic pointed out with a frown. "They might be looking for one or both of us. And second: We have to deal with Opaline, and probably with Eggman, too... Something tells me we haven't seen the last thing of ol' Egghead..."

"Okay, yeah, that is concerning..." Sunny confessed, also rubbing her chin while thinking deeply. "But what can we do about all of that? We can't run from FS and the Secret Society forever, Opaline could literally be anywhere out there, and Eggman is in Mobius along our friends!"

"Which is exactly why we need a plan... And I have one already!" Sonic stated with a smirk, that slowly faded away as he sighed. "But you're not going to like it..."

"Yeah, your sigh already warned me of it..." Sunny admitted with concern.

"Look: Like it or not, one of us has to stay behind and distract the Society, while the other goes and warns the rest back in Mobius..." Sonic started to explain, but Sunny frowned.

"Oh, no! That's not up to discussion!" Sunny said with anger, snatching Sonic's hand off her shoulders. "I am not leaving you behind, and I won't let you fight those maniacs––"

"First of all, I never said I was going to distract the Society, you jumped to that conclusion on your own." Sonic pointed out with a frown from himself. "Second: Why do you assume I'll be the one distracting them?"

However, Sunny found this last question stupid and deadpanned with a raised eyebrow, which made Sonic deadpan as well and then roll his eyes in annoyance.

"Okay, fine... I'll admit it: I am planning on going alone" Sonic ended up confessing.

"Ugh! Why are you always like this?!" Sunny shouted in anger. "Why are you always so selfless? Can't you think about yourself and your own good for once instead of offering to save everyone else all the damn time?!"

"Who says I'm being selfless with wanting you to be okay, Sunny?" Sonic asked with a frown. "For the past year, I've been having the most selfish thoughts I'd ever had, about sending all to hell and stay on Equestria for the rest of my life because I feel at home here, about wanting to live with you and with all our friends in this world that feels more like home that the place I was born, about wanting to shout to the air that I don't give a crap about what happens to anyone that's not close nor important to me!"

Sunny did flinched a bit after Sonic raised his voice, but she remained silent and frowning.

Sonic let out a sigh and rubbed his face with a hand. "Sunny... I don't care what happens to me as long as everyone I care for is fine... You think that may be selfless still, but it isn't. I'm not considering if everyone else would agree with me or not... I'm just thinking on what I want, Sunny."

Sunny's frown slowly dissipated, and she began to see Sonic's point, while Sonic himself placed his hand on her shoulder again.

"And what I want... Is for you, for Pipp, for Tails, for Hitch, and for all of our friends... to be fine..." Sonic added. "I don't care if you guys don't like my decision... Is what I want, what I need... And none of you can change my mind."

Sunny didn't knew how to feel after hearing this, but her concern for him only grew more.

"So, please... Don't try talking me out of this... It won't happen..." Sonic said with concern. "I know you all guys hate that I put myself into danger, but is what I was taught: To protect everyone that matters to me, no matter the cost."

"...So you want me to go to Green Hills and warn our friends about the Society?" Sunny asked, still feeling concerned about Sonic, and about this whole plan in general.

"Yeah... I must keep the Society's attention. You go the Brighthouse. I have the feeling there might be something that can take you to Mobius." Sonic instructed.

"Why do you have to distract them alone, though?" Sunny questioned. "They want us both!"

"True, but if I believe that FS thinks the way he does, he'll be satisfied with capturing at least one of us." Sonic pointed out. "He might believe that capturing one of us ensures that the Canon will remain intact, and that if we fail on saving one of our friends, the other one will die by consequence."

"The Butterfly effect..." Sunny muttered with concern. "Yeah, he definitely believes he's steps ahead from us... But that doesn't makes me feel any less worried for your safety, though..."

"Hey, I'll be fine! I've been dealing with worse things that a version of myself out of his mind!" Sonic said confidently with a mocking tone and a wink. "And, I promise you: Entire or with scars, I'll come back."

"Don't make promises you can't fulfill, Hedgehog..." Sunny said with a frown, but also tearing up a lot.

Sonic chuckled and dragged her into another tight hug. "I'm serious this time..."

Sunny snorted and nuzzled on his shoulder, before they broke the hug and looked at each other one last time.

"Let's both go to Maretime Bay, there we'll split up..." Sonic stated, and Sunny nodded in agreement.

Over Canterlove Studios, FS was still watching over Maretime Bay.

After Sonic let out that massive wave of energy that left the entirety of Equestria with no power for a few seconds, FS knew that at least Sonic was here, so he sent Twilight to Zephyr Heights and Shadow to Bridlewood, to ensure he wouldn't escape considering he only had these three cities to hide on.

However, it's been at least 10 minutes since the temporal blackout and there's no sign of him.

Irritated, Future Sonic communicated with Twilight and Shadow through his watch. "Did you checked the locations?!"

"Yes, dad.../No sign of him." Shadow replied with an annoyed tone, while Twilight did it with a concerned one.

Twilight was flying across Zephyr Heights' ceilings.

As she did so, she looked around concerned, because there was no sign of Sonic being around the pegasi city.

Shadow was laying on a tree as he hid on its leaves.

He was feeling annoyed and bored, because what he expected to be a great chase and mission ended up being just a boring universe, at least for him.

Future Sonic growled irritated after hearing their responses. "Nicole, would you sent everyone out?!" He requested to the digital lynx with a desperate tone. "Anywhere... ANYWHERE he might be!"

Meanwhile, as FS yelled at Nicole on his watch, both Sonic and Sunny sneaked in through an alley and looked at FS, standing over Canterlove Studios' ceiling.

"So what's the plan here?" Sunny asked.

"I call his attention and run away. Very, very, very far away." Sonic started to explain. "While I do that, you'll make sure he's gone and following me, then run to the Brighthouse."

Sunny still hated the idea of having to split up, but she still nodded at Sonic with a determinate look.

Then, Sonic boosted to be behind one of the walls of Canterlove Studios, then stopped to take a deep breath, and then brought out a small disc that he found on Tails' workshop here in Equestria, before nodding to himself and then run over the wall, reaching the ceiling and looking at FS with a frown.

Sonic whistled, and both FS and Nicole turned around, just for their eyes to widen when they saw the Blue blur.

"I was wondering what was taking you so long, one-eyed snail!" Sonic mocked up with a smirk.

"YOU!" FS shouted in anger and boosted towards him, raising a fist.

However, that's precisely what Sonic wanted him to do, because when FS was right on his face, Sonic moved aside and launched the disc to FS' chest, which made the disc to let go an electrical shockwave that paralyzed FS temporally, and it even made him roll in the floor in pain.

With this, Sonic made a salute to the his other self, before turning around and boost away towards another place.

"RAAAAAAAGH!" Future Sonic shouted in rage, before making some sided swords to appear from his wrists and then destroy the electrical net around him.

Then, he removed the disc off his chest with a hand and destroyed it, before boosting away as well.

Sunny noticed this, and even if she still insisted to herself that she needed to help Sonic out, she decided to run towards the Brighthouse like they planned instead.

Hopefully, Sonic would be fine on his own. He has survived crazier things before, sure, but she still hoped he'll be fine without her, or the rest of their friends...

Meanwhile, in Green Hills, at night, and outside of Tails' workshop, Tails himself was cleaning up the Tornado.

Since he needed to make his place shine, he decided to start up cleaning, and his friends were helping out.

Amy and Zipp were cleaning the frontal door of the workshop; Knuckles and Izzy were sweeping the floor with brooms; Misty and Pipp were picking up all the damaged pieces of the portal and throwing them into a trash can, while Hitch and Sparky organized some stuff that Tails asked them to put on their place.

Tails was whistling a happy melody as he cleaned up, but once he sat back on the pilot's place to make sure the Tornado's propeller was working, his mind flashed back at years ago.

He started to remember all the adventures he had with Sonic as they travelled across the world over this same plane, which is still technically Sonic's, even though Tails keeps it on his workshop. Yet the young fox couldn't help but feel concerned about his older 'siblings'.

Tails has known Sonic for as long as he can remember. He was just 5 years old when Sonic went to West Side Island for a little vacation, but ended up staying because he met Tails.

He still can't believe that Sonic stood longer for him, nor that he would protect him from his bullies so frequently. After that first adventure, which extended when Eggman ended up crashing his Death Egg in Angel Island, they became inseparable, to the point they consider themselves brothers.

All the wacky adventures they've had ever since have been amazing, true, and he would go through them all over again if he ever had the choice...

But no matter how many times Sonic has survived impossible odds, nor how many times he has defeated gods and machines... He always worried for his safety, and considering how he's been feeling the past year, it was normal to feel that way for him... Hopefully he's fine with Sunny.

Sunny... Yeah, he's also worried for her. She's like the big sister he never had. The way she always watches out over him makes him realized that he always wanted a sister.

Sure, Sonic worried for him the way any good older sibling would, but it didn't changed the fact that he could be a bit distracted with him sometimes. Sunny, on the other hand, always checked on him and made sure that he was happy and comfortable...

Tails hoped his siblings were fine, because he had a very bad feeling that they were in trouble, but he was pretty much wrong and they were just fine... Hopefully.

"Thinking on Sonic and Sunny?" A voice suddenly called out, and tails felt a bit startled, but when he turned to his left, he saw Hitch, who was sitting down in the floor, while looking up at the night sky.

"...Yeah..." Tails replied honestly, before letting out a sigh. "I know those two can take care of themselves, but... It still doesn't stops me from feeling concerned, you know?"

"Oh, I do know." Hitch replied with a snort. "Ever since they left, I can't stop thinking about Sunny... I really hope to be wrong, but I have a bad feeling... I think she might be in trouble."

"You feel it too?" Tails asked with a sad smile. "I always feel this when Sonic says everything will be fine... Is like a fifth sense telling me he's just being an idiot, and that things aren't that fine..."

"I always feel like this with Sunny, too..." Hitch confessed with concern. "Hopefully we're wrong..."

"I do hope that, too." Shadow's voice spoke suddenly, and both Hitch and Tails got startled when the Ultimate Life Form suddenly appeared at Hitch's side, but Sparky babbled and clapped happily after Shadow did so.

"Can you please not do that?" Tails asked with a deadpan.

"I don't promise anything." Shadow replied with a smirk, while Rouge and Omega landed at his side.

"Our pal here wanted to see if you have tracked down Eggman yet, Yellow." Rouge explained.

"I seek for his destruction! Do not blame me!" Omega complained, since Rouge was talking about him.

"No... We've been quite busy cleaning up Tails' place." Amy spoke, as she arrived along Knuckles and the other ponies of the group. "Is the portal still stable?"

"We checked on that before coming here." Shadow replied. "Everything seems normal so far."

"Well, hopefully it'll stay open in case Sonic and Sunny come back to Equestria and check on us." Zipp said with a little smile.

However, as she did so, Izzy suddenly looked in certain direction and gasped surprised. "Sunny?"

"Uh, yeah? She's talking about our friend, Iz." Knuckles pointed out a bit confused.

"No! I mean... Sunny!" Izzy corrected herself, now pointing a hoof to the sky.

To this, everyone turned up and saw that Sunny was flying as fast as her wings allowed her, because she had activated her Alicorn form after crossing the open portal on the Brighthouse to come to Mobius.

However, it didn't took her long to see that her friends were making signs and shouting her name from the ground, outside of Tails' workshop. Sunny gasped, but she also smiled at the sight, so she dived in towards her friends, barely managing to stop once she landed.

Her Alicorn form went away, and then she sighed in relief. But then, as she saw Hitch and Tails running towards her, Sunny felt her eyes tearing up, so she quickly rushed to them.

Soon, the three of them were wrapped into a tight and warm hug, but the fact that Sunny was squeezing both Tails and Hitch strongly made them both realize that she might not be so fine as they believed she was.

"Sunny?" Hitch called out first.

"Are you two okay? Are you fine? No one has come to see any of you?!" Sunny asked them both desperately.

"What?" Tails asked confused, as he shared a worried look with Hitch for a moment. "We... We're fine... But why are you so desperate?"

"And why do you look so sad?" Hitch asked as well with concern.

"Sunny!" Izzy's voice spoke, as she rushed along the other towards her.

Izzy dragged Sunny into a tight hug as well, but Sunny only limited herself to smile sadly.

"Sunny?" Pipp called out. "What's with the long face? And where is Sonic?"

After hearing that, Sunny panicked slightly and gulped, but then she sighed and looked down to the floor with concern, before looking back at her friends.

"...There's a lot I've gotta tell you... And honestly? Most of it isn't good..." Sunny replied with honesty.

On the other hand, FS was chasing Sonic at top speed back in Equestria.

The two blurs were moving wildly in zigzags, over rivers, crossing mountains, and even racing across several forests, but no matter where they went, Sonic couldn't loose FS anywhere.

"For a Sonic that's a fake one, you move way too fast, old man!" Sonic mocked up.

"Shut up and give up, Sonic! You won't win! You won't affect the Canon, and you won't save your friends! Not if I can do anything about it!" Future Sonic shouted in anger.

"Dude, you seriously are messed up and have to go see a therapist!" Sonic shouted back, as he started to run backwards with his arms crossed. "Are you even listening to yourself?!"

"You still don't understand!" Future Sonic shouted. "If a Canon Event gets affected, this entire reality gets disrupted! And if that happens, all the other realities will disrupt as well! I CAN'T ALLOW THAT!!!"

"You changed someone else's story, and so did I!" Sonic admitted. "But my Canon Event was to die, yet here I am! If I disrupted Canon, why is my world still intact, huh, smart guy?!"

That question actually took off guard FS, and he started to slow down a bit, but that was the perfect chance for Sonic to jump in the air, charge a Homing Shot, and then hit FS, who slipped in the ground and rolled in pain, while Sonic laughed out loud and boosted away.

Future Sonic growled in anger, since he couldn't believe he fell for such a simple trick, then pressed a button on his watch. "Twilight, Shadow! Sonic's here! He's heading to Zephyr Heights!"

"I'll be waiting for him, then!" Twilight replied confidently.

"Finally!" Shadow said loudly with a happy tone. "I'll head there immediately to surprise that Hedgehog!"

FS nodded satisfied with this answers, then he moved towards Zephyr Heights as well, and after running for some seconds, he managed to reach Sonic, who's ear twitched a bit.

So, Sonic looked behind and frowned when he saw that FS was approaching. "Ugh! Of course this wasn't going to be an easy escape..." he deadpanned and groaned, before boosting ahead even more, while FS did the same.

Soon, Sonic reached Zephyr Heights and started to run over the buildings, but FS was doing the same, and was already hot on his heels. Groaning again, Sonic started to zigzag, to move to the ceiling and jump from one building to the next one in a desperate attempt to loose FS.

But nothing he did worked, because FS moved at the same time and in sync with him.

"Why am I even trying to run away from a Sonic?! Artificial powers or not, he's still a freaking Sonic!" Sonic realized with concern, but still kept running.

"Stop already, Hedgehog!" Future Sonic shouted desperately. "It doesn't matter where you go, or how much you run! We're. Still. CAPTURING YOU!!!"

After shouting that, FS launched a lasso towards Sonic and tried to wrap his chest, but Sonic grabbed the lasso with his bare hand and ripped it off from FS' bracelet, surprising the one-eyed hedgehog.

Then, Sonic started to run away over the building, but just when he was about to jump to the next one, Twilight suddenly teleported in front of him and tried to hit his face with her hooves.

However, Sonic managed to dodge this attack by making a Wild Rush, and after zigzagging in the air, Sonic hit Twilight's back and pushed her towards the floor, while Sonic used her back to jump and then dive towards the ground himself.

FS noticed that Twilight was falling, so he ignored capturing Sonic and jumped in the air, then caught Twilight bridal style and stopped over a building's wall, sticking over it thanks to some magnets on his shoes, sliding a bit even and then looking at Twilight with concern.

"You good?" Future Sonic asked her.

Twilight blushed slightly at the sight and the tone he used. "U-Uh... Y-Yeah...".

Future Sonic noticed her attitude and deadpanned a bit. "Twi, honey, control yourself..." He asked with a playful smirk, before switching back to his serious attitude. "We still have an anomaly to catch!"

Speaking of him, Sonic was diving at top speed towards the ground, but then Shadow suddenly teleported in front of him. Yet, when this Shadow charged a Chaos Spear and tried to hit Sonic, the Blue Blur dodged the attack and charged his fist on electricity, then punched Shadow in the face.

Shadow fell on the ground painfully while rubbing his nose, and Sonic landed in front on a superhero pose, before boosting away from the pegasi city.

"You can't run forever, kid!" Future Sonic shouted in rage, as he started to chase Sonic again.

"Sunny said the same, and look at me!" Sonic said mockingly, before jumping and dodge a blast that Twilight launched to him with her magic.

After that, Sonic began to run as fast as he could all across the Pegasi City, in another desperate attempt to loose FS, Twilight and Shadow from sight.

However, as he moved, he ended up tripping with a window that suddenly opened, and he rolled in the floor painfully, until he hit his back on a wall.

Of course, Sonic groaned in pain and shook his head, then tried to stand up, but he got smashed on the flor and stepped on his back by FS, who finally managed to catch him. Then, he grabbed Sonic's hands and tied them with a pair of metallic handcuffs that unlocked with a password.

"See? I told you you couldn't run forever." Future Sonic told Sonic with a frown.

However, Sonic didn't seemed desperate, and instead smirked. "Wanna bet?"

FS raised an eyebrow confused, but before he could question him, Sonic's feet released an electrical shockwave that hit FS in the face and made him step backwards in pain.

Of course, Sonic took this as the perfect chance to run away again, and so he did: He managed to get back on his feet and started to run across alleys of Zephyr Heights. But as he did so, he also hit his hands with all the walls he could to try and remove the handcuffs.

However, whatever they were made of, they didn't had a single scratch, and that made Sonic groan in anger, before he kept running away.

He didn't knew what to do anymore: Going with either Haven or Alphabittle was out of question, because he didn't wanted to drag them into this mess, and traveling to Green Hills wasn't an option, either, because his friends were there, and he wasn't going to put them in more danger.

Unfortunately, though, Sonic ended up tripping again and rolling painfully on the ground, until his head hit a wall, and he groaned painfully again.

He wanted to rub his head, but the handcuffs on his hands didn't allowed him to do so, so he had to limit himself to stand up by placing his hands on the wall and slowly climb back into his feet, as he groaned painfully again and then let out a frustrated sigh.

But when he opened his eyes again, they widened, because FS, Twilight and Shadow were all surrounding him.

"Dude..." Sonic called out. "Please understand... Canon can be changed without unravelling a world, as long as the person who affects the Canon is the one that changes it!"

However, FS slowly approached Sonic and closed his right fist, charging it up with red electricity and then placing it on right besides Sonic's face, while Sonic gulped nervously and panicked at whatever FS was going to do.

"I won't risk the multiverse just to prove your stupid theory..." Future Sonic said with anger.

Twilight felt nervous, since she had no idea if she had to let FS do what he's doing, or side with Sonic and at least prove his point, because a part of her actually believed in Sonic.

Shadow? He's just smirking because FS is going to kick Sonic's ass.

Sonic gulped again and panicked even more, because things were starting to see pretty bad for him...

And things were just going to get worse.

Not so far from Maretime Bay, a yellow portal opened in the sky. Then, Opaline came out of said portal and landed in the ground with a loud stomp that could probably wake up anyone, but it thankfully didn't yet.

The Fire Alicorn, who's form was starting to shift thanks to the power of the Paradox Prism running through her veins, spread her wings and took fly to the sky. Once she was high enough, she saw the Crystal Brighthouse in the distance, although she stared only at the Crystal Room.

There, she could witness the Unity Crystals, still shining brightly and spreading magic all across Equestria.

The Alicorn mare had her objective clear: She was here to take those Crystals and claim the magic that belongs to her once and for all. After all, she already was powerful enough to take that magic.

Universe 081114

Boom Sonic was sleeping on a chair in Aurora's room on his home.

He fell asleep as he read a book called 'How to talk so kids will listen, & Listen so kids will talk'. However, soon a light illuminated not so far from him, although he still didn't noticed that.

But when he felt a shadow on his sight, he slowly started to open his eyes, and he found Aurora hanging from a lasso and pointing with her left hand to the window on her room, also wearing the Sonic mask over her head.

Boom was confused when he saw this, but it was now that Aurora pointed outside the window that he noticed the light, so he grabbed Aurora on his hands and then approached to the window.

Outside, in Amy's garden, a heptagon-shaped portal was remaining open, and it made some stuff spread around the garden float as a secondary effect. However, Boom's eyes widened a bit when he saw that Sunset was standing right in front of said portal.

She was previously in Sonic's world, but she heard that FS and company where now haunting the blue blur, and she knew he needed more than just her help.

So, here she is, looking at Boom with a raised eyebrow, requesting just with her expression for his help to find Sonic and Sunny, and to save them from FS.

Boom Sonic smirked slightly at her. "Don't tell mom." He whispered, now looking down at Aurora.

Aurora knew what this meant, so she looked back at Sunset with a smile and covered her face with the Sonic mask.

Somewhere in that same universe, Sunset stood in front of another heptagon-shaped portal.

This one, however, was open in front of a random house in Boom's universe. Sunset herself stood in front of the portal, but then she slowly looked behind over her shoulder.

"I've made the mistake of joining the Secret Society... So I started my own team."

Behind Sunset, Boom Sonic and Blue Buffon were standing and sitting on her right; while Firefly and Dr. Hooves were on her left.

"With some familiar faces as well."

Then, behind Hooves and Buffon, the first Classic Sonic that Sonic met when he got sent to the multiverse, Tails with the mechanical suit from Chris' universe, and Young Sonic stood as well, all forming part of this new resistance that Sunset made up to help Sonic.

Soon, Firefly spread her wings and flew through the portal, followed by Boom Sonic and Dr. Hooves. Then, Classic Sonic followed as well, and then Buffon and Young Sonic also crossed the portal.

Finally, Tails, whom we'll refer to as Tails X, entered on his mechanical suit and moved towards the portal as well, leaving Sunset as the only one who hasn't entered yet.

"I have no idea where they are, nor how to save them..."

Universe 220822

Sonic was still panicking at FS, who still had his right fist charged and besides Sonic's face.

However, Sonic himself touched the handcuffs FS put on him with a finger, and while it slipped at first, he soon placed it back on the handcuffs, and then started to absorb the energy of them, since he planned to recreate what he did to FS earlier, but with the handcuffs this time around.

As he did so, Sonic's expression became determined and confident, not letting FS' menacing look get the best of him, or into him at all.

Universe 081114

Sunset still stood in front of the portal, hoping Sonic and Sunny are fine.

"But I know I can find them... And I'll make up for my mistake."

Then, Sunset smirked confidently and crossed the portal as well, as it closed behind.

"You wanna come?"

To be continued...

Author's Notes:

Well, that sure was something! We have finished Part 1 of "The Final Act"!

https://youtu.be/sAXZbfLzJUg?si=NAlToIH9Pxw99uX_

We have ended this first part with a massive cliffhanger, don't you guys agree? Some of you might hate me now, but this is how things come to an end for this very first part.

Now, like I stated before: From Part 2 on, everything will be original and made up by me instead of being based on Beyond the Spider-Verse. Why? You cannot seriously be asking that, guys... We don't even know if the movie will ever see the light of day, so why wait for that thing to come out when I can do my own stuff?

Also, if you guys feel that Sunset's team made to save Sonic is small, well, I'd rather have it that way. And is not only because it's based on Gwen's band at the end of "Across the Spider-Verse", but also because it makes the interactions to make in one single chapter less complicated.

Thank you all for reading so far, and I'll see you all on June 4th with "Sonic The Hedgehog x My Little Pony: The Final Act - Part 2: Time Runs Out"!

See ya!

Sonic The Hedgehog x My Little Pony: The Final Act - Part 1: Back to the Multiverse

by BronySonicFan

Prologue

1. A New Purpose

2. The Warning

3. The Call for Adventure

4. When I Met Myself

5. Back to Green Hills

6. Canon Events

7. A World of Talking Animals

8. Escape to the Multiverse

9. Purpose Destroyed

10. End of the Line