Water Rising

Sonic, Tails, and Amy all gazed upon a large outdoor fortress of some kind in the valley below. "Is this the launch base Robotnik was talking about?" Tails asked. "I don't see much of anything TO launch."

"Well, the Master Emerald should be here," Ata replied, returning to the present. Everyone watched as Pachacamac landed his pod in the distance. Unbeknownst to the echidna, this told the four exactly where they needed to go. "If Amy's tarot reading was correct and Robotnik was telling the truth, that is. Come on."

So, Sonic and the others all infiltrated the Launch Base. As Sonic ran ahead and Amy struggled to keep up at all, Ata stumbled behind at times. Tails stayed behind to help her find her way through the fortress of death traps. "I can fly you over all this if you want," Tails stated, bashing open a Snail Blaster as it creeped down the walls towards them. Ata was looking just seconds into the past, presumably learning the layout of the Launch Base so she could navigate.

"No, I'm fine," Ata stated. She walked ahead. Tails followed.

"I wonder what they could have been launching here. Last I checked, the Robodoom is still orbiting, even without its weapons powered," Tails stated. "Is this place even still active? Y'know, with Robotnik gone again?"

"I don't think he's gone," Ata replied. She realized how cold the words came out. Tails suddenly froze.

"What do you mean?" Tails asked.

"In all my studies, everything I've seen of days long forgotten in the tides of time, people like him never truly die," Ata explained. "That being said… if he uploaded his own personality and memories to a robot, he probably has a backup somewhere."

"And without my programming included in those backups to keep him on our side..." Tails mumbled. He felt a wave of fear wash over him. "He'll turn evil again. And then he'll come for us. Even when the chip was overriding his desire for conquership and murder, he could fight back against it."

"What are you talking about?" Ata asked, turning to Tails.

"Okay… it's a little difficult to explain," Tails sighed. He told Ata about what happened just before they met her in Marble Garden. The way Robotnik seemed to act against his new code for one moment before being silenced. "I think it's because deep down, his human Core is still present. No amount of coding can truly erase a Core, especially not one as determined as his."

"Of course. Cores are the fundamental souls of all Erians. If he has his cognitions intact, even in code, he has programming resembling his core too. You didn't tell anyone else about this? I feel like Sonic needs to know," Ata replied. "After all, he thinks Robotnik cares about him again."

"I feel like that's all the more reason to not tell him," Tails replied. "I would just feel guilty if I ruined it for him." Tails looked to the ground, feeling awful about himself. "But I get what you're saying. If Sonic kept me in the dark about something like that, I'd feel even worse if I figured out what was going on."

"You should tell him what happened with Robotnik," Ata encouraged. "He probably won't like it now, but he'll thank you in the long run." Tails looked at her and nodded, smiling weakly.

Meanwhile, Pachacamac was at a new makeshift altar for the Master Emerald. Just keeping it there betrayed the tradition of keeping the Master Emerald at the greatest pyramid of Echidnaopolis, betrayed the many emerald guardians before, and reeked of a hunger for power, but it would suffice for him. After all, this was the final step of his plan. He had managed to locate the stolen Master Emerald and secure it, and there were no real defenses in sight besides insignificant small robots. He looked into Azure Lake, the greatest lake and the heart of Angel Island. It would split off into the ocean just fine, but the ice caps were still in the way. He supposed he'd deal with those later.

"The servers are the seven chaos. Chaos is power, enriched by the heart… the controller serves to manipulate the Chaos…" Pachacamac mumbled to the emerald, standing atop it and clenching his fists as hard as he could. Electricity crackled at his feet. "Chaos! God of destruction! Come forth from your tomb and kneel before your controller!" Pachacamac shouted, raising his knuckled fists to the air. Just as he was about to drive his fists into the Master Emerald, he heard two pairs of fast footsteps coming his way. Pachacamac diverted his attention to whoever it was.

"Sonikku! Wait for meeee!" Amy cried, chasing after Sonic and panting profusely.

"No time for waiting around, Amy!" Sonic called back. He then saw Warlord Pachacamac atop the Master Emerald, and skidded to a halt on the stone floor. The echidna soldiers surrounding Pachacamac all pointed their guns at Sonic, but Sonic swiftly knocked them all out. Their guns hit the floor. Amy arrived soon after, latching onto Sonic's arm. "Alright, Pachacamac. It's over! Give up the Master Emerald, it's too dangerous to be left in your hands."

"Do you recognize the position you're in, brash bush-swine?" Pachacamac asked, turning to Sonic and Amy. He charged up the power from the Master Emerald. Sonic put his arm in front of Amy to protect her. "The Doomsday prophecy foretold you would be born with a Chaos Emerald in your chest instead of a heart. That Chaos Emerald's power is your life source. The Master Emerald, as I said yesterday, can neutralize and drain the Chaos Emeralds. Do you realize what this means?" Pachacamac grinned. Sonic stared him down, before rushing forward. Pachacamac chuckled, and unleashed a surge from the Master Emerald. His eyes turned white as he flashed pink. Sonic went flying backwards. Pachacamac returned to normal. Amy expected Sonic to get up, but he didn't.

"Sonikku? What's wrong?" Amy asked. She ran over to Sonic and sat down by his side. Sonic's eyes were crystalized, but he was in no position to fight. He was breathing heavily yet weakly as the Chaos Emerald that was his heart shut down completely. "Sonikku?!" Pachacamac aimed his hand at Amy, and nearly blasted her with electricity, when suddenly he felt the Master Emerald get swept out from under him! He landed on the ground painfully, and looked around confusedly. He then saw a bat in a strawberry-colored hat and dress. She floated there by flapping her wings, smiling down at him as she balanced the Master Emerald on her rear.

"It's you! The one who stole the emerald for that mad scientist!" Pachacamac shouted. "Have you any idea of what would have come from that?! Why would you want to bring the Doomsday upon the world of Erius?"

"Are you kidding? I never wanted a doomsday to occur," the bat girl replied. "It was more secure with me than it would have ever been in that pyramid. It would have been harder to steal this sexy piece of rock from Lord Robotnik, but he never showed up to stop me." The bat girl cuddled the gem closely, eyeing Pachacamac teasingly.

"Show some respect, bat!" Pachacmac pouted, as the bat girl smooched the Master Emerald and rubbed it in. "That is the Master Emerald, and I am its owner!" Sonic looked over to Amy, then the bat girl as his vision started to flicker. When he saw them, his emerald heart began to regain power. It went from not beating at all, to beating quickly. His eye snapped open, crackling with power and life. He stood up, and began to float midair in an electric aura.

"Oh, dead guy's alive again," bat girl stated, glancing to Sonic. Pachacamac shook his head, and looked at the powered-up Sonic incredulously.

"Impossible!" Pachacamac roared. "The Master Emerald stopped your heart from beating! What in the world could have reawakened it?"

Sonic looked down upon the pathetic fool as electricity swarmed him, then nodded in Amy's direction. "Women," Sonic muttered, his voice powerful and omnipresent. He rose his hand, and shot a bolt of lightning at the bewildered warlord. It crackled loudly. Pachacamac yelled in pain as he was electrocuted. "It may just be a rock to you, but my heart will never stop beating as long as it has something to love. As long as it yearns for the touch of a woman, the smallest of confused glances my way, I will never die!" The lightning fizzled, and Sonic landed on the ground on his feet. The aura faded.

"What… what just happened?" The bat girl asked, flabbergasted.

"The power of love brought him back. Isn't it romantic??? Aren't you in awe of what you just witnessed?!?!" Amy gushed, cuddling Sonic, in great relief that he was okay.

"I am, and I hate it," the bat girl replied. "Well, I'm off. Places to go, gems to steal. You know how it is." She started to fly off, but suddenly, a red blur shot through and swiped the Master Emerald from her hands! The red blur landed on the ground, revealing itself to be Knuckles the Echidna.

"You're not taking the Master Emerald. It belongs here!" Knuckles shouted, holding the emerald away from her. "Actually… it doesn't belong in this Zone in particular. Pachacamac, do you want me to carry it back to Echidnaopolis?"

"No," Pachacamac replied, getting up to his feet painfully. "It will stay right here." Knuckles looked at him confusedly.

"Yes! Of course!" Knuckles replied. "It was stolen from Echidnaopolis once, so you're right to want to keep it safe here instead." Knuckles placed the emerald onto the artificial altar. Pachacamac didn't even look at Knuckles. He only stared at the Master Emerald, walking towards it once more. Pachacamac grinned, as he caught himself from falling by resting his arm on the emerald. He grunted and hacked violently, jittering involuntarily due to the electrocution.

"Oh no you don't!" Sonic shouted, not about to let Pachacamac harness the emerald's power again. He ran forward to try and knock the weakened Pachacamac away from the emerald, but Knuckles saw this and punched Sonic hard in the face. Sonic grunted in pain, and went flying back into Amy's arms.

"You stay AWAY from Warlord Pachacamac!" Knuckles barked. He then heard Pachacamac chuckling from behind him. Knuckles turned around, to see Pachacamac raising his fist to the Master Emerald. "Hey! What are you doing?!" Pachacamac drove his knuckles into the emerald. This sent a large crack down the center. Knuckles could hardly believe his eyes. "Stop! That's the Master Emerald!" Knuckles shouted. He gripped the sides of the emerald, forcing the two halves together.

"Sonic, what's going on?!" Tails asked, catching up with Ata not far behind. Everyone could only watch, dumbfounded as the two echidnas struggled to either protect or destroy the Master Emerald. The bat girl watched too, but she was more disappointed than anything.

As Pachacamac hit the emerald harder and harder each time, Knuckles tried to keep the gem his race had held sacred for countless eons in one piece. "Get out of here, tour guide!" Pachacamac ordered. Knuckles looked up at him, a feeling of betrayal in his gaze. "You are directly interfering with my plans! Go, or I'll kill you." Knuckles only strengthened his grip on the emerald, which was forming a few more cracks. Green dust started to flake off. The ground started to rumble, and the Launch Base began to fall apart around them from the dying strength of the emerald. Pachacamac, growling at Knuckles' disobedience, sent a shockwave through to the other side of the emerald. Knuckles cried out in pain as the shockwave hit him.

"I don't care if you kill me! I'll die for the Master Emerald!" Knuckles shouted. Pachacamac delivered another punch into the emerald, and though Knuckles was trying his best to keep the gem from completely shattering, his efforts… were in vain. A green glow began to emanate from the Master Emerald. And then, it erupted into a harsh green light that engulfed the area. Knuckles and Pachacamac were blasted back. The ground began to shake even more. From the shattered emerald, two orbs emerged. One red, and the other orange. They went flying away in opposite directions. Soon, everything turned a bright vibrant green.

An ear-splitting sound like a blue whale's shriek sounded from the distance.

When the green faded, the sky had turned from bright blue to dark stormy gray. Sonic's vision was blurring, almost lagging behind his head movements as he checked to make sure everyone was alright. Everybody seemed to be okay in the moment, but the water level was rising, made especially evident by the wet and cold feeling soaking into Sonic's shoes. Sonic's eyes eventually fell onto a large dark blue shape in the distance. When his eyes focused in, they sharpened in fear. The black pupils within the green sclera of the snake-like water beast sharpened as it turned and saw him too. But it didn't look like fear. It looked like bloodlust.