With the rest of Nega's hijacked robots gone, silence swept over the mostly abandoned park. None of the heroes or their relations were ready to put down their arms just yet, but soon, a medley of ringtones sang out loud, telling the others who was where and that all was well...for the most part.

The only thing that had slipped from a dumbstruck Rift was that they were on what had been the EggLand Fairway. He didn't have the heart to say that his brother was dying, or that their father was still in the midst of battle.

Even as the phone conversation came to an end, the ends of Sonic's own quills glowed white-hot as he came off of a spin that had only succeeded in damaging Metal 3's paint job. The Blue Blur ignored the failure and launched himself at his adversary once more. As the air cooled his singed quills, the ends became blackened, yet somehow they remained sharp. There was nothing to strengthen him but his will, which was bent exclusively on Metal’s destruction.

"Where do you get your strength? Why are you fighting? Don't you see you can't win?" Metal scoffed. Sonic's body would wear down; it had to. According to his own sensors, Sonic's body temperature was dangerously high, and only the damp atmosphere was likely to be what stood between him and a literal burnout. Yet every time he was knocked down, he would get right up. The wounds Metal had inflicted seemed superficial at best, the scratches hardly bleeding, but he should have torn himself asunder at this point by the sheer number of scrapes the blue one had taken.

Sonic gave a feral growl in reply. After he'd run out of curses and colorful slurs against his digital doppelganger, he was running on pure adrenaline. He didn't feel like talking to the murderer; he just wanted him dead. He charged the metal monster, kicking him one way, changing course abruptly and slamming him another. His movements would be hard to detect with the naked eye he moved so fast. It almost looked as though several Sonics were fighting in tandem.

Everything had been drawing to this moment...everything hinged on it. After all the abuse both had suffered, Sonic's body was screaming at him to stop now. His immaculate blue mane of quills was now half charred and bent. Steam hissed off him when the occasional raindrop would land on his heated spikes; it was good for him he couldn't feel more than the heat under the soft fur beneath the quills on his back. His legs could hardly support him, though he remained standing. His fists were numb, and even his ears didn't feel like standing, only managing to keep one aloft. Yet even through this, Sonic's emerald gaze was harsh and squarely placed on the robot. All that effort, and he'd put no more than a few dents and a scuffed paint job on him. "Damn, what's Egghead buildin' you out of now?" Sonic huffed, his breath ragged.

"Are you done?" Metal said at last, raising a hand toward the hedgehog, a red energy pulse gathering into his palm.

Sonic could feel the vibration of energy and recognized it for what it was. 'Chaos.’ A smile pierced the corners of his mouth as he stood there, out of breath. 'I guess speed won't save me this time.' "Hit me with your best shot!"

"Dad!" Rift cried in horror at that, the first reminder in a while that the hedgehog was not alone.

"Gladly!" Metal cackled and let loose a stream of Chaos energy, which seemed to hit the hedgehog dead on. At first, he didn't register anything amiss as the attack engulfed the blue form. Then, he felt the feedback. The energy he’d let loose, he was no longer controlling. "W-w-what?!" 'Finally!' the imprisoned spirit called from the emerald as the power surge radiated through 3.0.

"...And stay down this time!" Sonic smirked as Metal was brought to its knees, his chest cavity open, showing off the glittering gem in his chest. Sonic fell to his knees too, no longer able to keep up his front. "Damn...robot..." A hollow laugh escaped him as he surrendered the fierce will that had, until now, kept him aloft.

Others were now arriving on the scene as the battle came to a close. Even Ayame and Junior appeared with a glittering blue Oomochao in her hands. Their entrance was marked by an explosion at the Flying Chopsticks. But the reunions were a mixed bag. Amy's relief over Sonic was abruptly turned to shock, a sentiment mirrored by her son's mate Lara-Su. Instead of cheering, there was silence, and lots of that.

"We're too late, aren't we?" Shadow asked softly. After all the things he'd lost, he realized that Sonic was the one who'd been hurt in the last major battles. For a time, he'd lost his speed, Rift still didn't have good hearing even after two surgeries, and now his other son Blitz... "Maria? Can you...?"

"I can try..." Shadow's eldest replied and walked over to the inner circle of hedgehogs. She could see a look of pain etched on Blitz' face as she knelt by him.

"You really think you can...?" Amy asked between sobs.

Maria pinched the gold limiter that usually rested around her neck and gave a small tug to it. The band shone brightly for a moment and released. "I don't know, but I'll try."

"W...wait!" Junior spoke up, earning glares from the others.

"Who the hell are you!?" Sonic growled, noting the resemblance between him and the mad scientist.

"He's my friend!" Ayame scowled. "He turned off all the bad robots, okay?! Sure, he's Eggman's son, but he's not bad!" Sonic flinched at her fierce defense of the human, but none of them were quite willing to trust him.

'I know this is all my fault...' Junior lowered his head but turned to Ayame and Oomochao. "It'll help if you have an emerald, right? Oomochao? I'll put you back together after this, okay?"

"Okay," the robot replied in compliance with his master.

Maria took the offered gemstone and closed her eyes, letting her power merge with the emerald. At first, it looked like it would work, the wounds beginning to seal and the blood drying on the hedgehog's fur. The pain remained on his face a while until he gave a kind of grunt, a failed effort, and stopped moving. "I'm sorry...I'm not strong enough..."

"No!" Ayame piped up her objections first, to everyone's' surprise. "No! You have to, Sis! We couldn't help Grandpa, now we can't help cousin Blitz?!"

Like a heartbeat, the red emerald began pulsing in time with the pale blue one now in Maria's hands. "It's not enough..." Metal Sonic said in a much changed tone. Though it was still lower than Sonic's register, it didn't carry the malicious edge to it. "...Power isn't enough."

Sonic turned to the machine in disbelief. "No way...why the hell won't you die!?" He snorted angrily, wishing his body would obey him.

"Relax. I can't fight you now, can I?" Metal said with something like a laugh. "I can't call myself your equal if I beat you like that."

"You're..." Sonic began.

"The real Metal Sonic." His clawed metal hand passed the glowing red emerald embedded in his chest. "I guess I'm harder to kill than I thought."

Shadow looked at Maria, whose eyes remained her own for the time being. Still, he had a feeling she knew what was going on.

"Ayame...you'll help me, won't you?" Maria asked of her grieving sister. The black, red, and white hedgehog nodded. She smiled a bit, then turned back to Metal. "Well, I think it's time for you to go, Metal Sonic."

"Wait up..." Sonic paused, his mind reeling from things. He had been fighting Metal a minute ago, and now Metal was key in helping his son? "My head hurts..." he groaned. Looking at the banged up Metal Sonic, he felt no anger; it wasn't the same one he'd been fighting. It was...his rival. "What are you?"

Metal came to a stop by the dead hedgehog's side and then looked over at the blue one. "I'm an extension of your soul. That's why...if I disappear, he can come back... You can't just call a soul back with two emeralds..." He put a hand on Ayame's head, and Shadow's quills bristled at that. "Go ahead, take the emerald, take my spark...and give it to him."

Ayame's hands closed around the red Chaos Emerald, feeling the warm pulse of energy through it. One by one, her limiters fell away, and she felt absolutely weightless. Her sister's voice guided her, though she barely heard what was said. All she could think of was the feeling, the white light, the warm energy. She wasn't sure if it was the emerald or if it was the spark Metal spoke of, but nothing was as comforting as the first heartbeat she felt as life returned to Blitz' body.

Now, there was a reason to cheer.

Several months had passed since Eggman Land went under, but it was far from the end for the Doctor or his son. Since Nega had been at fault (with Junior's part of things downplayed greatly), the old man's reputation hadn't acquired a new layer of tarnish. There was also a pretty hefty insurance policy on the park, so he was far from pinched financially.

Days were growing shorter and shadows were growing longer as Ayame walked along a stone fence outlining one of the upper-class residents in Knothole City. She was shadowed by Babbit in the crisp autumn evening, neither seeming to have a care in the world.

Just as Grandpa Charles had once told his daughter she should explore Earth a while, Ayame was encouraged to do likewise with Mobius. Still, it was getting late, and she was getting hungry. There was one place on Mobius, as there was one place on Earth, where she could always depend on a good meal. On Earth, it had been Vinnie's Pizza, but here...here it was Chuck's Chili.

The chime to the diner sounded as the young ebony hedgehog entered the establishment. As had become typical, her older brother Ash was in charge of the grill. It wasn't that he couldn't make a living elsewhere, but he'd inherited the place, and Chuck's secret recipe. Uncle Sonic was still trying to weasel it out of him.

"Hi, Sis! Two doggies with the works?" the black striped blue hedgehog greeted warmly.

"Yeah. But no onions...and extra cheese!" Ayame said with a soft smile.

"Comin' up." He nodded and began preparing the food for her. Chuck's Chili was actually a chain of restaurants now, spread through parts of Mobius and Earth, but the main storefront remained steadfast in its roots at Knothole. Ash's main talent was in organizing things and people, so he kept the restaurants he'd inherited running like a well-oiled machine. While the two were catching up on things, the bell chimed again. "Hey, Kiddo!"

"It's Julian, you jerk!" a young redheaded human snorted indignantly as a blackish robot flew overhead, followed by a second resembling a chao.

Ayame twisted in her seat and locked gazes with the brown-eyed youth. "Junior!?" she called out in surprise.

"A-Ayame!?" Junior replied in equal shock, pulling his small black frames further toward the tip of his nose, questioning his eyes.

"It is you!" She laughed. "But...what's with the 'Julian' thing, and why are you here?"

Junior was wearing an outfit similar to the one she'd seen him wear the last time they met, only this one was an aquamarine with white pants. It looked very regal, and what caught her eye about it most was the Acorn Crest clipped to the left side of his jacket. There was a spring in his step that wasn't as arrogant as it had been before, but was still light and airy. Eventually the lad made his way over to the row of stools before the counter and sat down next to his friend.

"Julian Kintobor, old family name," Junior explained. "Eggman used the name once, so I thought I would."

"What's with your clothes, though?" she asked again and poked the button on his chest.

He scratched the back of his head and grinned widely. "Well, I've been accepted into the Royal Academy's science branch. Professor Rotor's my teacher right now; he just stepped down as head of the Royal Science Council recently."

"Oh wow…." Ayame responded, then thought about it a minute. "Umm...they think that's wise? I mean...they know you're..."

"Of course they know who he is," Ash said, cutting into the conversation. "They also have Sonic and Shadow vouching for him, and you know Unc’ at least has some pull with the royals. Oh yeah, he's also a pretty good customer. I won't let him have more than two dogs, tho', don't want him blimping out like his dad!" Ash snickered at the last part, getting a mock glare from the boy.

"And the real Eggman?" Ayame inquired curiously. She smiled over at the tiled floor where Oomochao and Babbit had decided to play.

"..Actually, he has a job on the Ark now. Chris Thorndyke's employing him," the young human said with a smile.

"Looks like a happy ending for everyone," Ayame chuckled, brushing her cottony bangs to one side.

"Sort of..." Young Julian said hesitantly. "I was wondering about...that purple hedgehog you saved?"

"That was Blitz."

Julian nodded. "What happened to him?"

"Oh...man…you haven't heard?" Ash cut in, his face unreadable and tone wavering. "He was in today's paper! I can't believe you guys don't know…."

"W-what about Blitz?" Ayame started nervously.

"Come on! Spit it out!" the young scientist snorted.

"He heh! Take a good look!" Ash said, pointing to a rack of periodicals by the door. The headline read very clearly "New Guardian Born to Blitz and Lara-Su."

Both of the friends had a good laugh at that before turning back to their food. They didn't even mind having to wait since Ash burned the dogs while he was distracted. The unlikely pair fell into easy conversation covering a wide range of topics, with Ash inserting his own colorful opinion at various points.

It was late enough that the stars were out when the pair finally said their goodbyes. "See ya around?"

"It's a promise," Julian replied warmly. "Oh, and I have a project I'd like you to see sometime."

"Ah?" Ayame inquired.

"Yeah. I'm trying to rebuild Metal Sonic...only not make him 'such a prick' this time." The boy laughed.

"What? Oh man, don't let Sonic know! He's had enough trouble with that thing!" Ayame gasped.

"Oh he knows." Young Eggman nodded. "Said he'd kick his ass if he caused any trouble. I'm counting on it." the youth beamed.

"Good luck with that I guess! I heard that one was unique." She laughed. "Ahh well... Take care!"

"Ciao!" Junior replied, giving her an overzealous salute before turning to the castle.

"Sayonara...my friend." Her ear twitched lightly as the door to the diner opened. While she expected to see her brother there, another hedgehog was in his place. She couldn't make out his real fur tone in the starlight, but she could see his glittering gold eyes and odd plumes of quills.

"Hi there," the boy started, soft spoken and giving off a friendly air.

"Hi…." Ayame replied shyly.

"I'm Aurum," the youth replied and offered a hand. "Can I walk you home?"

"Oh...sure." Ayame responded, her cheeks pink with blush. Maybe she was just in a good mood from seeing an old friend, but it was far from the last one she'd ever have. Maybe this was a new one? ...Maybe.

--The End.