GeneX Generations
Chapter 16 - Searching Shamar
Stage - Rooftop Run, Arid Sands - Sonic Unleashed

Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and 
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.

"I know life can be tough on you time and time again.
Laughter may be gone away.
I will wipe away my tears tomorrow.
Life must go on, that's the reason that you travel away." - Dear My Friend, Sonic Unleashed


The story thus far:
Following Alpha, Copter, Dimentime, Classic Sonic, Classic Tails, Classic Knuckles, and Classic Amy ventured to Water Palace. There, they began hunting for a treasure map Alpha had stashed there. While Sonic & Tails chased Alpha away, the others raced Dr. Robotnik to find the map. After defeating Robotnik, they found Big the cat fishing out the map, only for Eggman Nega to arrive and snag it! As they chased Nega into white space, Time Eater appeared and stalled Classic Knuckles and Classic Amy, but Team Rose joined Copter and Dimentime in chasing Nega to Sky Babylon. There, they were joined by Blaze and Marine, but Eggman Nega called on Captain Whisker and Johnny to aid him! The Babylon Rogues and Mephiles also joined the race for the treasure, but with Blaze's knowledge of Sky Babylon, they still arrived before the treasure was gone. It was revealed that the treasure was stones and gems called "materials," which would prove useful to Eggman's plans! While Captain Whisker and Mephiles's monsters battled with the heroes, Eggman Nega escaped with the treasure chest. However, in defeating Captain Whisker, they managed to reunite Cream with her mother, who had been frozen in Sky Babylon the whole time. As Team Rose decided to return to Shadow Arc to rest, Dimentime began to follow them, eager to find out if Bucky has managed to accomplish anything in their absence.
Now, on to the next chapter!


Gator threw open the doors of Shadow Arcangel's control room. "Captain on deck! You swabs better not have swiped my cola while I was gone!" he shouted. Bucky fired a jolt of lightning at him, making him jump in fright! "Silence! I'm busy!" he shouted, turning back to his computer. Gator stepped inside quietly, followed by Amy, Big, Copter, Dimentime and Cream & her mother. Team GeneX was away, but Punchy and Rainbow were still there, along with Tommy. They all seemed a bit on edge. Cream's mother looked around and frowned. "Oh, my... This place could do with a woman's touch, couldn't it?" she muttered. Bucky glanced at her. "Hm? Woman's touch... Oh brother..." he grumbled, turning back to his work. Cream walked over to Tommy and looked at him curiously. "What's wrong?" she asked him. "A m-m-monster came in here a little bit ago..." he shivered. The Flickies chirped nervously as well, and Cream's mother came over. "A monster? Ohhh..." she sighed, leaning down and lifting Tommy into her arms. "Hush now, little one. It will be all right..." she said, comforting him. Cream and Cheese went about petting the Flickies as well, attempting to calm them, too. "Awww, isn't that sweet, One?" Rainbow said. Punchy ignored her and approached Copter. "It was the Doomsayer. That's what the kid's talking about." he said. Copter and Dimentime both jumped a little. "Wha?! The Doomsayer!? What'd he want!?" Copter asked. Punchy shrugged. "How should I know? That guy's nuts!" he said. Big sat down in the corner. "Awww, I'm tired of bad guys... I wanna take a nap..." he sighed. "Uh... Don't worry, the Doomsayer probably won't be back anytime soon..." Dimentime said. Amy yawned. "That's good... I don't even feel like asking who that is right now..." she sighed. Bucky turned around and faced Copter and Dimentime. "He was just going on about how we're fighting the past, present and future all at once..." he said. "Well, duh, that's Robotnik, Eggman and Eggman Nega." Dimentime pointed out. "Eggman...Nega? Oh, great..." Bucky groaned, "And Lospecter to boot. That kid found him on the ship." Tommy started crying as he remembered. "He almost got me!!" he whined. Cream's mother gently stroked his head. "There, there... There's nothing around to hurt you now..." she said. Copter sighed. "Lospecter's working with Mephiles now. So, what do we do, smart guy?" he asked. Bucky scratched his head. "I've been puzzling over how to fix the world. Time Eater's done a number on it. I'm really not that kind of doctor, though..." he groaned. "That's what every doctor says! What a racket!" Gator yelled. Bucky nearly jolted him again, but saw that Cream's mother was finally calming Tommy, and decided not to upset them with a sudden bolt of lightning. "Copter, since you're here... Could you see if you can find someone who might be able to help us? Time Eater put a part of Spagonia in this white world. That's where Professor Pickle lives. He's a wise man, and helped Sonic restore the planet when it was shattered a while back. I'm sure you remember." he said. Copter scratched his head. "Yeah... Figures Sonic was involved in that. He's got his fingerprints on every mess, doesn't he?" he muttered. Dimentime stared blankly. "The planet was shattered???" he said dumbfoundedly. Bucky nodded. "Head to Spagonia. Find Pickle. Ask him if he knows any way to restore the planet. Hopefully he'll think of something. Good luck, Experiment 2!" he said. Copter glanced at Punchy. "You coming?" he asked. Punchy sighed. "I'm gonna stick here until someone gets back to protect this place... The Doomsayer and Lospecter have got me on edge..." he said. "Good luck, Twos!" Rainbow waved. Dimentime waved back. "Did she just refer to us in the plural...?" he mumbled.


After crash landing in a secluded area of Spagonia, Classic Robotnik was busy repairing a blimp that a certain hedgehog had sabotaged on his way out of town. "I put all that work into building something NEW to take care of that pesky rodent, and he just barrels all over the insides like it's his playground! Maybe my older self was right... Recycling's easier..." he grumbled as he reached through a toolbox for a wrench. A silver and black ball rolled over to him and then popped open, revealing itself to be a robot with metal rods for arms. "Young doctor! Internal repairs are proceeding swiftly. Damage appears to be minimal." he reported. Robotnik wiped some sweat from his brow and growled softly. "Did you actually SEE the front of the ship, Orbot!? You call that minimal!?" he shouted. Orbot clasped his arms behind his back and swiveled away from Robotnik. "Perhaps you require a driver's ed program for your pilots." he said mockingly. Robotnik sneered at him. "Why you smart mouthed little kickball! I WAS THE PILOT!!" he shouted. Orbot's face became as apologetic as it would allow, given only his eyes permitted expression. "I'll... return to work..." he said carefully, curling up and rolling away. "Why'd my future self suggest making use of that... thing? Maybe he wanted me to think better of building it in the first place..." Robotnik sighed. The sound of footsteps drew his attention away from his work again. "Hello, Ivo..." said Gunner, who was accompanied by Spy. Robotnik chuckled softly. "If it isn't old man Richard. Have you come to help in the repairs?" he asked. Gunner frowned. "At least I STILL have my hair! When exactly did yours fall out, anyway?" he teased. Spy held back a chuckle, backing away slowly as Robotnik glared at him. "Um... Don't mind me... I'll be waiting out, um... there..." he stammered, scurrying off. Robotnik resumed working on his repairs. "I'm busy. You can take your complaints to my older self." he said. Gunner crossed his arms. "All right, Ivo, I've settled down now. Since I've nothing better to do, I'd like another shot at those furry freaks! So what do you say? Tired of them getting in your way?" he asked. Robotnik glanced at him. "Got a plan?" he wondered. Gunner smirked. "Revenge!" he said.


Meanwhile, the two Sonics were just wrapping up their Rooftop Run. As they made their way out of Spagonia, they came across a frozen statue of Vector, and approached it together to restore his color. Vector moved around a bit as he regained control of his body, and then glanced at the hedgehogs. He seemed unconcerned with the fact that there were two of them. "Thanks, Sonic. You know, I got a hunch someone or something is controlling that monster..." he said, raising his hands ominously to illustrate his point. The Sonics nodded. "If you say so... I'm sure whatever's behind this will show itself sooner or later." Modern Sonic said before both Sonics went on their way. Vector watched them go, and then watched Copter and Dimentime approach. "Wait, those two are different looking... I'm NOT seein' double from that monster!?" Vector yelped, glancing back at the Sonics as they were getting further away. Copter and Dimentime passed by Vector without giving him a thought. They had their destination, and didn't want to waste time getting there. Vector watched them head into Spagonia curiously. "Copter and another Copter wearing a cloak, rushing off in a hurry... Now ya got me curious..." he thought, sneaking along behind them.

Spagonia seemed to be in the midst of a celebration of some sort. There were confetti and balloons all around, and flags from various countries were hung along some of the buildings. "What do you think the party's for?" Dimentime wondered. "How should I know? Maybe Eggman's robots decided to throw a party until Sonic showed up." Copter replied. There were a few robots left in the city that Sonic had neglected to smash, such as some blue Egg Fighters, which were similar in design to Egg Pawns, but a tad more violent. Dimentime blasted a few of them with magic, but then their hands jumped out of their remains and started moving around with minds of their own! "Yeah... They do that..." Copter grumbled. The "Little Fighters" charged at the foxes, but Copter simply blew them away with Chaos Whirlwind. "Let's go find the professor. There aren't enough bots left to worry about, it seems." he said. After wandering around for a bit, they found the professor standing outside Spagonia University, gazing up at the sky. "It seems color and life has returned to this place once more. Astounding! Sonic works with such efficiency, I'd almost swear there were two of him!" the professor mused. Hearing this, Copter and Dimentime glanced at each other. "Efficiency... riiiight..." Dimentime muttered. "He must've been frozen until recently." Copter grumbled. Professor Pickle heard them muttering and glanced at them. "Ah, hello there, boys. My word, I almost mistook you for Tails. Why so grim? You did hear that the planet's shattered pieces have been repaired, haven't you? There's a worldwide celebration going on!" he said. Dimentime looked around and sighed. "You all obviously haven't noticed the current crisis, professor..." he said. Professor Pickle looked thoughtful. "I surmise this has to do with the lack of color in the area a moment ago? Come in. We'll discuss it at length... over a plate of cucumber sandwiches!" As they headed inside, Vector chased them up the steps, only to run smack into the door as it closed! "Ooof!! That...was rude..." he grumbled. However, he opened the door a crack and listened in as Copter and Dimentime explained the situation to Professor Pickle. "I see... Time and space are being torn asunder by a creature known as a 'Time Eater...' Fascinating..." he muttered, munching on a sandwich as he leaned back in his seat. "I'm terribly sorry, young foxes. I'm afraid I've never heard of such a beast." he sighed. Copter groaned. "Wild goose chase...again! That's oh fer two, Bucky!" he grumbled. Pickle stood up and looked around his lab, appearing lost in thought. "I have collected numerous texts in my travels... Hmmm... Ah! I just thought of something!" he said. Dimentime leaned against his staff impatiently. "Yeeees?" he asked. "I have heard of something... Oh, I fear the information is not in my lab here. I suggest you try a trip to Shamar. My other lab is there." Pickle said. Copter was sipping some tea the professor had poured for them, and suddenly spit it out. "This stuff is foul! Errr... Did you say Shamar!? We can't just go wherever we want! The Time Eater has only put select locations into this white space! It was pure luck that we were able to reach you!" he shouted. Pickle covered his ears slightly. "My, my, my... You are much more excitable than Tails, aren't you? Well, I'm sorry. If you cannot reach Shamar, I regret that I am unable to assist you... I cannot remember the data I had collected there... Do feel free to come back anytime, though. I'll help in any other way I can." he offered. Copter and Dimentime sighed. "Well, this isn't good... except for these sandwiches, surprisingly." Copter muttered.

They made their way out of Spagonia and stared out at Shadow Arc in the distance as they arrived back in white space. "Should we go back?" Copter wondered. "I don't know... I'm running out of ideas..." Dimentime sighed. Suddenly, they noticed a purple and red hedgehog with yellow eyes running along, being chased by Razor. "Kosmo!! Wait for me, you!! Slow down!! I can't run at Shadow speed, either!" the porcupine was shouting. Kosmo scoffed. "Too bad, officer. You'll have to give me a speeding ticket later. I'm busy!" he said. Copter and Dimentime hurried over to check it out, still unaware that Vector was following them. "Hey, Kosmo! You in trouble with the law?" Copter asked somewhat sarcastically. Kosmo morphed into his true form and stopped running, turning to Copter and Dimentime. "Are you gonna bust my chops, too?! I'm trying to track down that time muncher or whatever it is, all right!? We gotta stop it, don't we?" he shouted. Razor ran up to them. "How I ended up paired with him, I'll never know..." he panted. "I don't need a partner!!" Kosmo insisted. "He's got a point, officer." Copter smirked. "He needs someone to KEEP AN EYE on him!" Razor grunted. Dimentime nodded. "Also a good argument." he said. Kosmo rolled his eyes. "For some reason, Tails didn't see anything wrong with unfreezing me. Why is that runt the only one who trusts me!?" he grumbled. Copter shrugged. "Must be a nostalgia thing." he joked. While they were busy discussing whether or not Kosmo was trustworthy, Vector was scanning the horizon of white space. "Hmmm... Ah! It's here after all!" he said loudly, startling the other four nearby! "Agh!! Where'd you come from!?" Copter yelped. Kosmo held his ears. "Not so loud! Yeesh... Wait, you didn't know he was there!? You're hopeless..." he grumbled. Vector rubbed his head sheepishly. "Sorry for spyin', Copter... But you gotta find Shamar, don't ya? Well, that desert over there looks like it might be it!" he said, pointing to an area in a far off corner of white space, liable to be neglected by Sonic. It was surrounded by shadows, as though it were somehow trapped in night time. "Well... gee... thanks for SPYING on us, Vector..." Copter muttered. "I guess we've got nothing better to do, so let's check it out..." Dimentime said, heading off with Copter. Vector followed. "I'm on the case, guys! Leave it to me!" he said. Kosmo glanced at Razor, then at the others, and started to follow them. "Anything to get away from this guy! Wait for me!!" he shouted. Razor shook his head and chased after them. "No, you don't! I'm keeping my eye on you, Kosmo!!" he insisted. As they started to head for the Arid Sands of Shamar, Guard the gargoyle flew out of Spagonia and quickly caught sight of them. "Grrrr... There they are..." he muttered, soaring after them while keeping his distance. "Grrrr... Now, where are they going...?"

Unlike the other areas they had visited so far, Shamar appeared to be trapped in a state of perpetual night. "What the heck?! It's dark... And c-c-cold!!" Copter shivered. "Yeah, so? It was dark at the city where Tails found me, too." Kosmo said. "The location must be trapped in whatever state it was in when the Time Eater... took it." Dimentime figured. Razor shivered. "D-deserts are c-cold at night... Do we have to go in here?" he asked. "YOU don't..." Kosmo muttered. The cool air was a shock at first, but as they started into the darkened oasis town, they quickly started to ease into it. "Actually, a little chill's not so bad when you think of the alternative..." Vector muttered. Suddenly, a bunch of creatures appeared out of nowhere! They were dark, lizard-like shadow creatures. "Huh? They don't look like Mephiles's..." Dimentime muttered. Kosmo morphed into a tough looking purple rhinoceros and snorted. "These things, eh? Been a while!" he said. The monsters came at them, swinging their stretchy arms at the group to attack! Kosmo just charged right through them, bashing them with his horn as he went, while Copter and Vector ran in to join the fight as well. "I remember these things, too! They trashed our office one night!" Vector growled, trading blows with one of the creatures Kosmo hadn't trampled outright. They were tough creatures, but together they made quick work of them, and they dissolved into scattered bits of dark energy as they vanished. "Okaaaay... Never seen anything like that..." Dimentime muttered. "Wow! You guys sure gave those Nightmares a thrashing!" came a voice nearby. Looking around, they could see someone small peering out from behind a water barrel. Seeing that the coast was clear, he flew out from hiding, revealing himself to be a small canine with fairy wings! "Hi! I'm Chip! Um, have any of you seen a big... um... monster guy around here? Um... I don't mean those monster guys! I mean a big, blue, hairy... um... toothy... Rrrrraaaaa!! But really he's nice!" the fairy-like creature asked, pantomiming his description of the "monster guy" as best he could. No one seemed to have any idea what he was talking about, but Kosmo tried his best to help. "You mean something like this?" he asked, morphing into his best guess of what the monster looked like. He morphed into a yellow-eyed version of Sonic's Werehog form, startling everyone around him! "Whoa!! Warn us before you're gonna do somethin' crazy like that!!" Razor shouted. Chip gasped. "Whoa!! That's it! That's Mr. Monster Guy! How'd you do that!?" he asked. Kosmo morphed back to normal and shrugged. "I've seen it before..." he muttered. Copter scratched his head. "Wait... You have? Was that... Sonic!?" he wondered. "What is this, twenty questions!?" Kosmo grumbled in annoyance. Chip flew up to him, smiling. "So, um... Where'd ya see him, huh?" he asked. "NOT AROUND HERE!" Kosmo snapped. Chip frowned slightly. "Oh... Well, that's ok! No need to get grumpy. I know, want some chocolate?" he grinned, producing a chocolate bar out of nowhere! Kosmo looked a tad surprised. "Huh...? Wha...?" Vector chuckled a little. "That's cute! He doesn't know how scary you are, Kosmo!" he said. Kosmo frowned and politely took the bar from Chip. "Um... thanks..." he muttered. "Come to think of it, I'm starving! Come on, let's go to the shop and get some food!" Chip suggested. "Do we have time for that?" Razor asked. Dimentime looked thoughtful. "We need to find Professor Pickle's lab. Maybe we'll spot it on the way." he said. Chip cheered. "Yaaaay! Dinner time! I'll find us something to eat! Follow me!" he said. Watching them from the shadows, Guard spoke into a walkie talkie. "Grrr... Reporting in, boss. Grrrr... There are monsters here, but Kosmo is with them, so they won't be deterred." he said. "That morph is the real monster. Keep observing them, Guard." Gunner replied. "Grrr... Roger..." Guard murmured.


They found a shop and tried some of the local cuisine. While they ate, Chip explained that the monsters they had fought were fragments of Dark Gaia, the creature released from the planet's core when Dr. Eggman split it apart during the time period Shamar was apparently in. Everyone (except Dimentime) had encountered the monsters when the planet was split apart, though they didn't necessarily know what they were at the time. After they finished eating, they soon came across a door that not even Kosmo could manage to budge. "Gaah!! What the heck is up with this door!?" Kosmo grumbled. Chip looked around and noticed some small shrines on either side of the door. "Oh, those things... Yeah, this door's magically sealed!" he explained. Dimentime shrugged. "Oh, is that all? All right then..." he said, casting magic at the door, only to have it bounce off uselessly! "Huh... WHAT!?" he shouted. Chip laughed. "No, no! That's not what ya do! You gotta find the gems that go in those shrines over there!" he said. Vector glanced at them. "Oh, yeah... I was just about to suggest looking for a key or somethin..." he said sheepishly. "Suuuure you were." Copter remarked. "We should split up to find these gems." Razor suggested. Kosmo nodded. "Good idea, you're a genius. I call the group that goes away from you!" he said, running off. "Huh, wha...?" Razor mumbled. "I'll keep an eye on him..." Dimentime said, following after him. Chip chuckled and followed them as well, leaving the others to search on their own. As they began to search the immediate area, they started to hear buzzing and whirring. "Oh, good. I hear something familiar." Copter grumbled. "...Robots?" Razor wondered. Egg Fighters jumped down from some nearby rooftops, carrying electrified shields and swords resembling chainsaws! "What is this, a bad horror show?" Copter wondered. Out of the shadows, spiky green ball robots also rolled out, occasionally covering their bodies with electricity, making it easy to see why they were called "Thunder Balls." Vector growled. "All right... Let's trash 'em..." he said, briefly glancing upwards. He caught a glimpse of Robotnik's blimp as it flew by in the distance, smirking to himself. "Quick, before reinforcements show up..." he said. Razor fired a few shots from his gun at the Egg Fighters, but they blocked it with their shields. "Well, that's no good..." he muttered. "Go look for the gem, Razor..." Copter grumbled. "It's over there next to the sparking robots. See?" Razor pointed out. The Thunder Balls were hovering over a big, green gem, protecting it with their electricity. "Looks like we need some wind..." Copter growled as the Egg Fighters began coming at them. "And maybe some gum!" Vector added. "Gum??" Razor wondered. Vector had been chewing some gum, and suddenly blew a huge, purple bubble, spitting it at the Egg Fighters! It gummed them up and caused them to explode! Copter and Razor stared at him in disbelief. "...What?" Vector said.


Dimentime, Kosmo and Chip wandered up some stairs to a balcony, where they found a group of small, balloon-like monsters called Dark Frights circling around Mephiles! "What? What are you doing, Mephiles!?" Dimentime shouted. The Dark Frights seemed to shudder, and then grow in Mephiles's presence, transforming into larger, flying monsters known as Killer Bees! "Whooooa! He transformed the monsters!" Chip gasped, pulling out a camera. Mephiles sighed. "These monsters appear to grow strong in my presence, but I cannot seem to absorb their powers myself... They are of no use to me." he said. Chip hovered forward, positioning himself to snap a picture. "Say cheese, scary guy!" he said. "Keep your light away from me!" Mephiles growled, shifting his form to that of Bucky and hurling bolts of lighting towards Chip! Kosmo ran in the way and intercepted the attack, taking Bucky's form as well to absorb the electricity! "Yikes! Um... What just happened?" Chip gasped, lowering his camera. Mephiles opened a portal and fled, and with him out of the way, they quickly saw that the rest of the balcony behind him was white. A statue of Mia the cat was there, and next to her was a red gem, likely the other key to the door! "Hey, what's up with all that white? And that statue?" Chip wondered. The Killer Bees glared at the group angrily, preparing to charge at them. "I think we'd better swat these bugs. And I think I've got the perfect form in mind..." Kosmo said, howling as he morphed into Sonic's Werehog form once again, this time intending to fight in the intimidating form! "Yeah! Go get 'em!" Chip cheered, imitating karate moves from behind Kosmo and Dimentime to taunt the monsters. The bees started to charge at them, planning to skewer them with their sharp stingers! Kosmo launched his fist at them, his arm stretching as though made of rubber! He punched one of the bees from a distance, while Dimentime started attacking them with magic. Kosmo then reached for another bee with his other arm, grabbing it in his powerful Werehog claws! "RRRrrrr!! Take this!!" he growled, hurling one bee at another! They collapsed to the ground, giving Kosmo an easy target to slash at with his claws! "Yeah! That's it! Just like Sonic!" Chip chuckled, "Except for the creepy glowing eyes..." he muttered. It didn't take long for them to take out the bees, and just like the Nightmares, they dissolved into bits of dark energy. Kosmo returned to his normal form, and Dimentime approached Mia's statue to free her. As her color returned, she stretched and glanced at the gem next to her. "Okay... Who brought me this? Don't be shy." she grinned. Dimentime pointed to Kosmo, who blushed and then ran away. "He's lying!!!" he shouted. "Call me!!" Mia yelled, giggling. Chip flew up to her. "Wow, you must be hungry after being frozen like that. Want some chocolate?" he asked, again pulling a bar out of nowhere. "Now, that's the cutest thing I've ever seen!" she smiled. Dimentime frowned. "Ummm... Who's gonna help me carry that giant gem down the steps!?" he groaned.

The two gems glowed when placed in the shrines, and then the door swung open on its own. They continued beyond it, leaving the town behind and finding themselves in the desert, heading towards some old ruins. "So... where are we going?" Mia asked curiously. Vector looked back with a start. "Hey, yeah, wouldn't the prof's lab be back in the town?" he pointed out. Chip shrugged. "I was actually looking for Sonic... Sorry, guys. I know! I'll take you to the lab when we find him!" he offered. Copter groaned. "What is this sick hold that Sonic has over everyone?!" he muttered. As they approached the ruins, Vector glanced up and pointed to the blimp overhead. "Guys... I think we've been followed." he said. Razor pointed ahead of them. "It's Gunner again!" he yelped. Mia squinted at Robotnik, who was hovering in his Egg Mobile next to Gunner. "Ummm... Hey, Eggman got a face lift! He still looks like an old codger, though." she said. Robotnik groaned while Spy and Orbot snickered from behind him. "Her ignorance is NOT funny!!" Robotnik grumbled. Spy stifled a laugh. "It is a LITTLE funny..." he said. Gunner nodded. "Agreed. Now, get down here, robots!" he shouted. A swarm of GUN Beetles with laser cannons flew down from the blimp, while some rust-colored Egg Fighters called Egg Shooters jumped down from the blimp to join them! Guard flew down as well, swinging his scythe in preparation for combat. "Grrrr! You won't get away this time!" he growled. Chip looked around nervously. "Um... Friends of yours?" he whimpered. Kosmo rolled his eyes and stepped forward. "Leave all this to me! Gunner will be sorry he ever left his cozy office!" he said. Orbot rolled forward and popped up between Robotnik and Gunner. "Excuse me, sirs! Might I recommend employing the secret weapon at this moment?" he said. Robotnik glared at him. "Pipe down! We know what we're doing! ...Take care of him, Richard." he said, glancing at Gunner. He smirked and nodded, holding up a strange sort of cannon with GUN's symbol on it. "I put our science division to work devising a weapon to combat morphs... Time to test it!!" he sneered, firing a strange net pulsing with bluish energy at Kosmo! "Huh!? What's that??" Kosmo muttered, only to get caught under the net! He immediately fell backward, howling in pain! The strange energy was both harming and restraining him, leaving him helpless! "Whaa!! Hey, purple transforming guy, are you OK?" Chip gasped worriedly. While Copter, Dimentime and Vector ran ahead to take on the robots, Chip and Mia rushed over to see if they could help Kosmo. "What is this thing made of...?" Mia wondered. Chip tried to pull it off him, only to burn his fingers. "YEOW!! Hot hot hot hot hot!!!" he yelled, flying around in circles. "No, don't touch it!! Grr... This thing wasn't made just for him... It was made for all animals!" Mia growled. Razor watched from the back, having not moved since this started. Kosmo was struggling, grunting and groaning in pain. He couldn't even transform. "OK... I can't take this anymore... This is cruel and unusual punishment!" he ran over and stepped past Mia and Chip. "Let me see this thing... It's not electrified... Some kinda energy..." he muttered, holding the barrel of his gun through the net and carefully pulling it off! "It has no effect on the metal in my gun!" he said, tossing the net aside! Kosmo gasped and panted, slowly standing up. "W-why... did you save me...?" he asked. "Um... It's my job." Razor replied.

At this moment, a lone Nightmare appeared in the center of the area. Mephiles soon emerged beside it. "How nice of you all to gather together like this! Now, allow me to try a little experiment with this creature... Let's see what happens when I give it more power!" In Mephiles's presence, the Nightmare grew larger and stronger! Its body became covered in tough armor, the horn on its head grew long and jagged, and it produced a massive hammer to fight with! It was a much more powerful creature now: a Dark Guardian! Mephiles Biters and Mephiles Takers appeared to attack the remaining robots in the area, quickly eliminating them before turning on the organic beings in the area. "Um... Booooss...?" Spy whimpered. Gunner snarled angrily. "That meddling freak! But at least he might finish the job for us... Let's go, Ivo!" he suggested. Guard flew away from the fight he was having with Copter and slashed his scythe at some of Mephiles's monsters as he made his way to Gunner. "Grrrr!! I will return you to the blimp, sir!" he said. As Guard started to carry Gunner up, Spy grabbed on to him as well. "Wait, don't leave meeeee!!!" he wailed. Robotnik nodded. "Retreat for now! We'll regroup on the blimp!" he said. As his Egg Mobile started to take off, Orbot hopped up and grabbed on to the side of it. "Why did you not land the blimp instead of making it difficult for us all to get back on board? This is the repercussion of your hasty actions!!" he shouted. Robotnik groaned. "Shut up or I'll drop you!!" he said. Mephiles, pleased with himself, escaped into a portal and left the remaining group to face his monsters. Copter and Kosmo approached the Dark Guardian, while Vector glanced up at the blimp as Robotnik and Gunner boarded it. "They're not leaving... They're waiting to launch a sneak attack when this is over!" he said. Dimentime smacked his staff in his hand. "Then let's not let them!" he said. While they worked on a plan, Razor was busy shooting at Mephiles's monsters, protecting Mia and Chip as best as he could. Kosmo looked around. "There's too many of them... Hey, Copter, hold off the guy with the hammer a minute, will ya?" he asked. "Huh? Where are you goin...?" Copter muttered. Kosmo howled and morphed into his own variant of a feral form, like Sonic's Werehog form. He became a Weremorph! Chip chuckled. "No, way! It's a new monster guy! Well, good luck! Go get 'em!" he cheered. Kosmo growled and took off, attacking Mephiles's monsters ferociously! Meanwhile, Copter flew out of the way as the Dark Guardian swung its giant hammer at him! "Yikes! That coulda took my head off!! Umm... Chaos Whirlwind?" he said, attempting to knock the monster over with his chaotic wind. However, the Guardian stood its ground and flailed its hammer at him again, forcing him to retreat further away! "OK, I'm gonna have to try the direct approach... Aw, but I don't wanna die..." Copter whined. At the same time, Dimentime used teleportation magic on himself and Vector, sending them up to Robotnik's blimp! Some Egg Shooters immediately jumped out of a hatch and began firing at them, but Vector simply charged past them, knocking them over the side of the blimp! "Outta my way! Got a blimp to trash!" he shouted. Dimentime used his magic to zap any robots he missed along the way as they made it to the hatch and hopped inside the blimp! "Now, let's gum up the works!" Vector chuckled spitting gobs of purple gum everywhere, as Dimentime watched with a disgusted look. "Dude... what the heck??" he muttered. Back on the ground, Kosmo and Razor finished off Mephiles's monsters and turned their attention to the Dark Guardian. Copter was holding on to the handle of its hammer as it swung it around, screaming in panic. "I could use some HELP over here!!" he shouted. Kosmo shrugged. "Well... He held it off..." he muttered, running over to help. He gave the Guardian a mighty punch while it was distracted, giving Copter a chance to jump away! "All right... Now I'm mad, monster!" Copter yelled, rushing back to strike the Guardian with a tailband-powered tail whip! The Dark Guardian stumbled back a bit, but came at them once more, swinging its hammer at both of them! Instead of running, Kosmo got in close and grabbed at the handle of the hammer, using his Weremorph strength to fight back! With some effort, he managed to pull away the hammer, and with a mighty swing, he clobbered the Dark Guardian with it! It apparently couldn't take a strike from its own hammer, and quickly dissolved away into bits of dark energy, while Kosmo reverted to his normal form. Copter sighed with relief. "Whew... Good work, Kos-" he started to say, but was interrupted by explosions overhead! The blimp was going down, and Dimentime was flying back to the ground, holding on to Vector's hands, though it looked a bit tiring carrying him. "Curse you!! You'll all pay for thiiiiiis!!!" Robotnik could be heard shouting as the blimp shakily flew off, searching for a safe place for a crash landing.

Someone peeked out from inside the ruins once the commotion was over. "My, but it was loud out here... Is everything all right?" the old man said. "Professor!!" Chip gasped, flying over to greet Professor Pickle, who was apparently inside the ruins all along! Copter stared in disbelief. "H-hey... How'd he get here?" he muttered. "Well, I got bored waiting around at my lab for Sonic to show up again... So I thought I'd go explore the ruins a bit. Say, um... Who are all of you?" Pickle wondered. Dimentime looked thoughtful. "I get it. This place... Shamar. It's here in the 'past.' Spagonia, where we met the professor, is here in white space, too, but it's a later version of Spagonia. So, that Professor Pickle was from the 'future.' He knew we'd find him here. Get it?" he said. Copter scratched his head. "Um... No." he said, looking truly dumbfounded. "That's OK, Copter... I'm lost, too." Mia sighed. Professor Pickle shrugged. "Can't chat right now... I'm immersed in studying this ancient writing I discovered on the wall here... If you like, you can take a look." he said, inviting them inside the ruins. They all followed the professor inside. The ruins were mostly wrecked, and not much appeared to be left, but there was a bit of writing and images on the walls. "Hey... What're these pictures?" Vector wondered. Chip flew around with his camera, taking photos. "Um... Can you read this gibberish?" Kosmo asked the professor. He nodded. "Some of it... 'A time will come when a being of darkest malice will arrive. It will erase all of time and space, leaving nothing but an endless white...'" he read. "The Time Eater..." Razor said, "Does it say anything about how to stop it?" he asked. Professor Pickle looked at the wall with a puzzled expression. "I'm not quite sure what it means, but it seems to say how to restore the world once erased. It says the secret to restoring the world 'lies within.'" he explained. Kosmo groaned. "Well, that was a waste..." he sighed. "...Maybe Bucky can make sense of it..." Copter said. Chip flew around cheerfully. "Yay! Yay! I found the professor! Now finding Sonic should be a breeze! Thanks, everyone!" he cheered. Everyone smiled a little to see him cheerful, and even Kosmo seemed to calm down a bit. "Well... Good." he muttered. Chip held out his camera to Professor Pickle. "Oooh! Oooh! Can you get a shot of me with all my friends before they go?" he asked. The professor smiled. "Ah, all right. Let's head outside where there's more room..." he suggested. "Huh? A picture of all of us...?" Copter muttered, looking around. "Sure! Please? Come on!" Chip smiled. Kosmo and Razor glanced at each other awkwardly, but Vector grabbed them both by the arms and dragged them outside. "Come on, you two! You're not still at each other's throats are ya?" he said. Kosmo chuckled nervously. "Um... I'm fine..." he said, standing next to Copter. Chip hovered in between them, grinning and holding up a peace sign. Everyone else gathered around and got in the picture as well, and Professor Pickle held up the camera. "Say, cheese!" he said before snapping the photo. Copter wondered if Sonic and Tails would see the picture later, and what they'd think, and that made him chuckle. Now that they were finished in Shamar, though, they had to get going. Vector started wandering off on his own. "I'd better get lookin' for Espio and Charmy, I guess... Then maybe we'll help you guys out." he said. "Espio's already looking for you. Keep an eye out." Dimentime said. "Hm... Hope he's not invisible... Well, bye!" Vector said, rushing off. The rest of them headed off in the same direction, leaving Professor Pickle and Chip behind. "Don't worry about Chip! I'll see he gets to Sonic safely!" Pickle said, waving to them as they left. "We'd better tell Bucky what we found out right away..." Dimentime suggested. "So... You're workin' for Bucky?" Mia asked. "Well, it's complicated..." Razor admitted. Kosmo smirked. "I wonder what the police chief will think if he sees that picture, officer..." he joked. Razor stopped in his tracks. "I gotta get that camera!!!" he gasped. Copter grabbed his arm and tugged him along. "Aw, c'mon. It's all in the past, Razor. It can't hurt ya... probably... Heh heh heh." he chuckled.

To be continued...