To The New Frontier

Sonic fell flat on his face, by an exact copy of the portal he had entered on Kronos. "Sonic…" Sage mumbled. Sonic got up and looked all around. He could hardly see anything through the haze of sand. He could hardly hear Sage over the metallic clanging echoing in the distance. "We've made it. Welcome to Ares Island, our new… home…"

"I guess so?" Sonic asked, confused as he fried in the heat. "I wouldn't want to live here a day in my life. The sooner we find the next portal, the sooner I can just get to the mainland already." Sonic walked right past Sage, her cold stare breaking as he walked along. Her fist clenched and trembled.

"Abnormality detected," Sage reported, shooting a glare over to the east as an especially thick plume of dust encroached upon the mountain they stood on. "Sonic, run! Immediately! I'll hold it back." Before she could even finish that thought, Sonic grabbed her hand and scurried for the other side of the island. "Eek!" She shouted. The sand flew into Sonic's face like embers from a fire, he was left to dodge incoming rocks and other roadblocks on instinct alone. An explosion. The violet blast sent him hurdling to the side, tumbling down into a crack in the island. He landed on his knee, Sage shivering as she landed on his back spines. The fog flew right overhead, blotting out the sky and turning the ravine dark. Metallic banging. A horrific siren-like screech. And then silence.

"That was some heavy firepower…" Sonic wheezed, coughing out sand.

"Indeed, it—" Sage started.

"Omega would be jealous!" Sonic exclaimed. Sage stared him in the eyes.

"No…" Sage murmured, slapping Sonic to wake him up. "I can't believe this… Sonic, look at me. Your friends… they aren't there." She looked to the sky, picking up a strange frequency. A hedgehog whistle of sorts. "Wake up." Sage snapped her fingers in front of Sonic's face. No effect. He stared at the wall with a big smile.

"And the winner of the arm-wrestling tournament is… SHADOW!" Tails exclaimed, separating Sonic and Shadow's hands with a slice from his open palm. Sonic groaned, before laughing and rubbing his chapped elbow. It was now as red, white and blue as his overall color scheme.

"Hey, that's only because SHADOW zapped my hand," Zavok puffed.

"I did not want to accidentally break Shadow's hand and proceed to shoot him five times," Omega said. "You're my best bro, Shad-ow…"

"You guys, don't be such sore losers," Tails laughed, sweating under the afternoon sun in the Westopolis park. "I came in last, anyways."

"What'd I miss? Sonic! Did you avenge me?" Knuckles asked, leaping towards Sonic and getting him in a chokehold.

"Hey man! Gross! I know you don't wash your hands after numero uno," Sonic struggled, elbowing the swoosh mark on Knuckles' chest. Knuckles let go, and Sonic held his own neck.

"I placed third, though," Knuckles said, confused. "Shadow cheated by starting early."

"I didn't know I was arm wrestling a bunch of crying babies," Shadow scoffed.

"Still, it was fun. I enjoyed hanging out with you guys," Knuckles sighed, looking to Angel Island as it floated in front of the sun. "I'll be back someday. Maybe we can have a rematch when the time is right."

"Bye, Knuckles!" Most of everybody exclaimed. All Shadow did was smile and hold up his hand for a second. Knuckles walked off. He then turned to look at Sonic.

"Hey, how are you enjoying the island life?" He asked Sonic.

"Wh–?" A blast of harsh noise suddenly erupted in Sonic's ears, as if he had been hit by a nuke. Except the blast didn't subside. He didn't lose his hearing. It hurt.

"It's not so bad, right?" Knuckles asked, calm as could be. "You have everything you could need or want. Clean water, clean air. Hey, I have an idea!" Sonic plugged his ears, until he realized the sound wasn't coming from outside. "You should just stay here forever! Until you die and become one with the soil you lived your whole life walking on." The sound… it was coming from inside his head. It was all inside his head. Every last bit of it. the friends he loves, the adventures he cherishes, the life he knows. All just meaningless made-up noise.