it's here! it's finally here! it's my new multichap that i've been hyping up for months! i'm v excited abt this so hopefully y'all are too :)

be warned: yeah this is a forces au. but i promise it really is v v different from canon, and i hope it's interesting enough to keep everyone excited abt it. tbh it just follows the basic premise of the game and diverges from there.

also uhh i'm gonna give an overall warning that you should really expect violence, blood, and swearing in every chapter ((plus there will be major character death later on,, muahahaha)). but i also will give chapter-specific warnings if they're needed (for example: there's some minor zombie/gory description in this specific chap)

another thing i wanna add! everybody is aged up a lil bit. and ik rn it won't make any sense but at the start of this chapter they're all 17-18, and for the entire rest of the fic everyone is like 19-23ish. only exception is like,, tails ofc. he's about 14 in this.

anyways that's all! enjoy the show!

I.

desolation (desəˈlāSH(ə)n)

[noun]

a state of complete emptiness or destruction.

As the sun settled down against the horizon, a milky orange that swirled out into the pale sky like watercolors on a canvas, the small crowd of teenagers began to calm as well. The day seemed to almost sigh in relief as the moon started to reveal itself, from behind the thick curtain of clouds clinging to the cerulean skies.

One hedgehog, his fur ruffled and coarse from going months on end without proper hygiene, huffed tiredly as he leaned against a tree. His golden eyes scanned the field, all his friends still chattering away with each other, some nibbling on the last remnants of birthday cake, some laying in the plush grass as they tried to relax after the adventure they quite literally just finished up with.

As another hedgehog, the birthday boy himself, conversed with an echidna, he began to lock eyes with the other isolated by the tree. Soon the newly-aged eighteen-year-old was able to cut off the chat, carding fingers through his messy blue quills as he approached his friend.

"You headin' home, soon?" Sonic wondered, crossing his arms and eyeing his friend a tad despondently.

The ivory male shrugged, inhaling deeply through his nose. His chest fluttered a bit at how cool and fresh the air felt as it rushed through his nostrils, and he smiled warmly at the way the grass swayed, painted a verdant hue. It was a nice change of pace from the atmosphere he was more adjusted to, the one that always seemed to be filled with smog and flames and destruction.

"Probably should," the psychic replied, unable to stifle the small frown that flashed across his features.

The blue blur narrowed his eyes, glancing down at his shoes. "Uh, y'know, you could always stay just a little while longer. We've always got some extra room back at the workshop."

Silver smiled halfheartedly. "I appreciate the offer, really, and I wish I could." The time-traveler promptly sighed, his gaze a little more empty, "… But I don't have much of a choice. Someone's gotta make sure our future doesn't go to hell, right?"

Sonic puffed out his cheeks in frustration. "It's just… It's not fair. I mean, Chaos, you're a year younger than me! It's too much to put on your shoulders. I just wish…"

"I know. Me too."

The speedster eyed the other for a moment, unsure what to say or whether to do anything. Eventually he opted for an easy smile, and clamped a strong hand on an eggshell shoulder. "I'm gonna miss you, bud."

"I imagine it won't be too long before we cross paths again. The future always seems to get fucked up, between all the demons and mad scientists running around," the psychic grinned.

Sonic managed a snort at that, before jabbing a thumb over his shoulder. "Gonna say goodbye to the others?"

"Nah," Silver shook his head, "I'm not too good at those. Too emotional for me. Heck, I almost cried a couple hours ago when your past self had to leave."

Emerald eyes shimmered with some hazy concoction of mirth and exhaustion. "Heh, yeah, one hell of a birthday, huh? Alright, then. I'll see you, Silv."

"See you."

The blue blur withdrew a Chaos Emerald from his quills, summoning a spark of energy from it. A small spot in the middle of the air, a few feet away, seemed to warp and twist like raw heat over a smoldering fire, before combusting in a magnificent burst of light. A portal, composed of pure energy that crackled through the air, swelled up before the hedgehogs with an odd gravitation to it. Whatever waited on the other side was too foggy to distinguish.

Silver flashed one last smile at his friend, flicked his wrist in a small wave, and hopped through the portal. It closed behind him, crumbling into itself before disappearing altogether. The space where it once was, was completely restored, as though it were never there.

As the time-traveling hero felt his feet touch solid ground, and he was met with heat pressing into his fur and a deathly silence hissing around him, he just knew.

Something was wrong.

Hazel eyes snapped open, analyzing and calculating at a million miles a minute, scanning his surroundings and absorbing all he saw. Looking for small details that could help. Searching for familiar faces that could aid him.

Before him lay a wasteland, a ghost town. He looked to be in some ancient form of Empire City, the pavement torn up and caved in with multiple craters, and skyscrapers on the brink of collapsing. The streets were deserted, dotted with abandoned vehicles that rusted with age, windows and doors broken in all the vacant, dark buildings. The city was quite a marvel, back in Sonic's time, but now it held a much darker essence to it. The skyscrapers loomed over him like beasts waiting to pounce, the atmosphere was clogged with a thick smoke, and—perhaps most unnerving—there was an equally off-putting and alluring source of pure negative Chaos energy, not too far away.

Silver wandered the streets uneasily, his hands surrounded in an unending teal aura, his eyes vigilant. He'd encountered multiple apocalyptic scenarios in the past, but normally there was an apparent enemy always within arm's reach, or at least innocent civilians in danger he could help.

But this city looked like it had been sucked dry of any life it had.

As he continued onward, the strange negative energy in the distance grew to be a heavier presence around him, and he could already feel it hindering his own powers. Strangely enough, the city also looked to be in less wreckage as he approached the source.

Soon enough he rounded a corner to meet a road of eerily identical buildings, all made of cement, holding perfect symmetry in dimensions and aesthetics, lining one large street. It still appeared abandoned by actual life, but this time a few vaguely familiar robots patrolled the sidewalks.

(Should've known.)

And he almost shouted out an exclamation, or chucked a deserted car at one, or did just about anything to provoke them, when he stopped. Piercing speakers, that seemed to be placed around the entire city, crackled and squealed to life, as someone began to talk.

The voice was automated and mechanical (as expected), and blared out, "Time is: 1500. Commerce and speaking is now permitted for the following sixty minutes."

Silver watched in horror as nearly a hundred Mobians filed out of the odd buildings, either smothered in injuries, sunken with exhaustion, dizzy with sickness, or some combination of all three. Most of them stumbled around aimlessly, crisscrossing through the thick crowd before running into another Mobian they seemed to recognize. They'd all hug, or cry into each other's arms, or kiss, or trade supplies, or whisper ambiguous things to each other. Occasionally, someone seemed to say something or do something the robots didn't like, and they'd crumble to the ground in agony as a shock collar around their neck would send volts across their body.

Sensing the negative energy now dangerously close by, Silver decided this would be his best chance to reach it and figure out what the hell was going on.

He weaved through the crowd, receiving both dirty and horrified looks. Quite irritatingly, many began to part way for him, which only drew more attention to him.

A cold hand grabbed at his arm, yanking him back. He turned to face the cold eyes of a slightly rusty Egg Pawn. "Citizen, you are not wearing your collar. We will take you to the detention center immediately. Resistance will result in your arrest."

And suddenly there were multiple hands all grabbing at him, several robots chanting that phrase, blaring it into his ears. Silver whipped his head around frantically, the Mobians nearby backing up in fear, more and more droids surrounding him. He couldn't see anything but those unwavering red eyes, millions of them, they were all grabbing at him, they were all…

"Stop!"

An aqua light swallowed the swarm of robots instantaneously, and they all froze in their hectic motions to grab him. The hedgehog screamed out in anguish, throwing his arms out to the side, and immediately all the bots went flying in every which way, crashing into other people, the roads, and the concrete walls of the buildings.

For a moment, everything was deathly silent again. All the Mobians around him looked on with huge, mortified eyes, completely stopped in whatever business they'd been tending to moments earlier.

Promptly, chaos erupted. Everybody scrambled back towards the buildings, pushing and shoving to get back inside, screaming out that he was a maniac, that they swore they had nothing to do with it, and that they just didn't want to face him (whatever that meant). The hazy skies became flooded with red light as sirens screeched at him. Silver only hesitated a moment before breaking out into a run.

Silver focused just on reaching the negative source of energy, just focused on his breath, and the sinking feeling in his chest. The army of metal feet stampeding behind him, the bullets whizzing past his head, the wave after wave of droids he shoved out of the way, did nothing to deter him.

He continued weaving around corners, launching himself over barricades of robots that blocked the roads, taking shortcuts through abandoned convenience stores. His heart slammed against the walls of his chest furiously, his face hot and his breaths heavy as he tore down the streets of Empire City.

And finally, the rows of cement buildings gave way to a large, cleared out area that looked to be a park once—roughly two acres of land. However, all of the ground was cleared out for a pure, concrete courtyard to be lain out. Several watchtowers dotted the perimeter, large troops of more Egg Pawns marching about, patrolling or delivering packages. In the center of it all was a giant hemisphere-shaped building, with obsidian walls and tinted windows. Silver almost felt a little nauseas from the sheer negative Chaos energy he could sense, leaking out of the walls of the structure like a toxin.

The hedgehog shot a fleeting look over his shoulder, his heart seizing at the sight of the swarm of bots all charging straight for him, still droning that damn mantra and firing their weapons.

And with the easy decision to run away from that hellish sight, Silver whipped back around, making a mad dash towards the weird building because what else did have to lose, anyway?

By the time he reached the doors, they were already enveloped in blue light, and he was already thrusting his palms forward to send them flying off their hinges. His lungs burned with every breath, the atmosphere doused in venom and flames that ruthlessly tore through his respiratory system as he gasped for air.

When he entered the facility, though, he felt a thousand times worse. It was like the negative energy was corporeal, and it was crawling up his arms and legs, slithering in through his pores like a million needles stabbing into his skin. His vision became spotty, and as he ran through the endless maze of corridors, it felt significantly more draining to call upon his psychokinesis to throw the doors out of his way.

His entire body was practically screaming at him to get away from the horrible energy that sapped at all his strength, but some stupid, possibly suicidal voice in the back of his head urged him onward, murmured to him that he had to keep going, he had to save the world.

Silver pushed past one last set of doors, these feeling particularly more stubborn than the others, and fell to the ground in a wheezing heap, fur clinging to his skin from sweat, stomach lurching in his gut, limbs trembling with fatigue. For a moment, save for his raucous gasps for air, there was a beat of silence to revel in.

Then a sharp laugh rumbled through the room, and ghostly chills trickled down his spine.

"This is the pest that's been giving you all so much trouble?" wondered a voice, that was strangely warped and muffled. It sounded vaguely amused. "… I must say, I'm a tad underwhelmed. I was hoping for more of a challenge; it's been quite boring, lately."

Golden eyes, weary and drained, peered up at the figure that stalked toward him like a lion upon a dying gazelle.

His vision was just barely functioning, but he made out a dark, tall figure, wearing a jagged mask that glimmered silver in the light. Something bright red popped out of his chest, projecting a strange carmine aura around it.

The stranger chuckled darkly, cocking his head in sick pleasure. "Worn out already, boy? Maybe I'll give you a small burst of energy, hm?" The figure knelt down beside the fallen hedgehog, nudging his chin, "The Pawns warned me you could move things without even touching them. That sounds like quite the entertaining spar."

Silver could do nothing but glare disdainfully, though the pain surging through his body probably made it look more like a pathetic pout. It was like he could feel every, tiny nerve and tendon and ligament in him being ripped to shreds all at once.

An icy palm pressed into his sweaty chest, and suddenly a blast of refreshing energy shot into his ribcage, hastily rippling out across his body. The time-traveler's vision cleared up instantly, and while still worn out, he felt like he had the strength to stand again.

Without hesitation, without even a rational thought, Silver narrowed his eyes sharply at his foe. The figure gasped as an aqua glow surrounded him, and with a mere flick of his fingers, he was fired across the room, crashing into the opposite wall many yards away and leaving a crater in his wake.

It was then that the ivory teenager took a moment to assess his surroundings, finally able to think more coherently and feel his powers dance beneath his fingertips. The chamber seemed decently sized, a few extra Egg Pawns stationed around the perimeter. But what quickly caught his eye was the centerpiece of the room.

It looked like a literal black hole, surrounded in a bubble of red mist. As though it were sentient, the black hole seemed to wriggle around in its prison, like it was trying to break free, and devour anything in its path—and Silver had no doubt that it would if the mist were to disappear. It wasn't hard to also deduce that the strange void was the source of the negative energy. He could feel it licking rapaciously at him, clawing at him, slowly sucking away at the small burst of vigor the stranger had granted him.

Back across the room, the figure—who was perhaps a dog of sorts?—stumbled forwards, groaning to himself. "Dammit…"

Silver shakily rose up to his feet, still panting, but able to maintain his composure better.

"Look, man," the hedgehog grunted, "I dunno what the hell is going on, but I'm putting a stop to it. You work for Eggman, don't you?"

The canine froze, then, the red object in his chest pulsing with light. He promptly doubled over with laughter. "You think I serve that buffoon? He is long gone, my friend, and the world now bows to me. Soon, you will too."

"I just want answers," Silver said, keeping his voice steady. "Like what that weird ass black hole is, for starters?"

"What I want to know is how you don't know what it is," the other leered, limping forwards, "That black hole is all the leverage I need against you."

The hero frowned. "Well I'm new around here. Mind filling me in?"

A bitter laugh erupted from the darker Mobian. "How much of a fool do you take me for, boy?" He jerked his head off to the right, as though addressing someone else out of sight. "Come here, Blue. Dispose of this pest for me, will you? I'm getting bored of this small talk."

Blue?

Silver snarled, ignoring the way his limbs continued to quiver against his will. "What, give up fighting me?"

"Don't flatter yourself," the canine said, though it was clear he was somewhat weakened, "I just like using my pet. It's fun to watch him tear apart fools like yourself."

There was a loud crumble that resonated through the chamber, then, as a figure landed against the ground from somewhere above. A cloud of dust twirled around the newcomer, masking all but a vague silhouette of a hedgehog, and yet another strange, red gemstone jutting from his chest.

As the hedgehog emerged from the shadows, his eyes were revealed to match the ominous glow of the stone lodged in his chest, enchanted in a carmine haze. His fur was a pallor blue, washed out like a bleached seashell. His face lacked any emotion, and, oh, fuck, if he wasn't standing up, Silver would have thought him a corpse.

The odor of rotting flesh wafted through the room, accompanied with disgustingly pale flesh that was peeled and torn off the Mobian. He sported multiple injuries, all of them decayed and crusty across his lithe form. His fur was patchy and thin. His right arm was replaced by a violet wine prosthetic, forged of a titanium that looked like it was maybe once shone marvelously, but was now rusted, and had various torn wires and fissures running along its surface.

And despite how revolting and zombie-like the hedgehog appeared, there was an unmistakable look to him, a look that made Silver sway and his heart plummet.

"Sonic?"

The canine—the damned coward—off on the other side of the room, stiffened. "How do you…? That's not—Dammit, just kill him already."

Looking as though he were completely entranced, by the void or the other guy or that freaky gem in his chest, Sonic narrowed his eyes at the psychic, and lunged forward.

Silver had fought the blue blur many times before, both on murderous and friendly terms, and this was… Certainly different. He clearly wasn't in his right mind. The speedster's movements were more sluggish, he acted more like a wild animal, and he even used his new, robotic arm occasionally to fire a small missile the other hedgehog's way.

For a while, the time-traveler assumed a defensive position, jumping and rolling out of the way of the various attacks. He needed to figure out a plan. He needed to figure out what on Mobius was happening.

Just barely dodging another spindash, Silver threw his hands up in the air. The pale blue hedgehog bared a feral snarl, stalking forward.

"Look, hey, Sonic?! Calm down, man. I dunno what happened to you, but—!"

A blue blur whipped just past his head, as the ivory hedgehog leapt over to the side, and collided with the floor.

"That's right, my little soldier," the stranger drawled out from the corner, chuckling at the fight. "I want you to destroy him. Throw him into the Null. Let him suffer for an eternity."

The look in Sonic's eyes shifted slightly, and while he still continued to lunge for the psychic, it was clear he had a different purpose. And while Silver wasn't quite sure what the 'Null' was, if the way he was being slowly pushed back towards the odd portal thing was any clue, he'd guess that was it.

Silver continued to try and reason. "Sonic! Please! I dunno if you can hear me or not, but I'm your friend! It's me, Silver? C'mon, snap out of it!"

He needed a new plan. While he could have maybe stood a chance against a slightly slower Sonic any other place, this time he was confined in a room, with practically no energy left in him to keep him standing, and no projectiles to use his psychokinesis on. He was pretty fucking screwed, to say the least.

Lost in his thoughts, scrambling for even the essence of a good idea to get himself out of this mess, Silver gasped in shock when the blue blur clenched onto both of his arms, pushing him back against the portal. He could feel it, could feel the cold tendrils of negative energy, teasing the back of his head, mere inches away from him. He tried to use his powers, to push Sonic away, but at this point he couldn't even hold himself up. His vision was already cloudy and distant again.

It felt painful to even strain his vocal chords anymore. "… Sonic-! Please…"

The stranger appeared beside them, arms crossed, cackling from behind his jagged mask. "You imbecile! He is no longer Sonic. He has not been Sonic for the last one hundred years. He is nothing more than my puppet."

"No!"

"Give up, boy!" his foe roared, voice thundering around the room, "I am Infinite. I can never lose. And now you will suffer for the rest of your pitiful life, wishing you had never crossed me. You will suffer for an eternity in Null Space!"

Silver watched in a muted horror as Sonic shoved him back into the black hole, the Null Space, and his surroundings instantly faded into complete darkness.

Everything suddenly went staggeringly cold. He could feel the rawness of Chaos energy coursing throughout his body, sending chills across his form. He struggled to breathe for a moment, blinking rapidly to adjust to the darkness and choking on the sudden drop in oxygen levels. There was barely any at all in the air anymore, he knew, yet the Chaos energy kept him invigorated and his heart pumping.

The psychic held a tentative hand to his face, marveling at the intense glow of the rune on his glove that was now pulsating with energy. Leaning his head back, Silver exhaled deeply, shuddering as tingles raced across his body and he felt himself sink deeper into the raw power all around him.

He could let it consume him. It'd be so easy. He could feel it throbbing against his skin, clawing at him, begging him to give in and let it take him, swallow him whole. It whined pitifully for him, because it knew he was full of Chaos energy, and he knew how hungry the Null must be.

It'd be so easy. It'd be so easy. It'd be so—

Wait.

Silver gasped, awoken from his strange trance by a sensation akin to ice water getting dumped over his body, his eyes snapping open. He felt the dark energy withdraw in that moment, wary and surprised, calculating.

He had to—no, fuck. He needed to do something. He had to go back, he had to save everyone, he had to stop this from happening (whatever this even was).

The darkness was gnawing at him now, growing restless, and he just—he needed to get out. He couldn't let himself become overcome by this. He had an entire world relying on him.

And yet. How. How was he—? He couldn't—he couldn't breathe, he had to get out, he— the Chaos—

The Chaos.

Silver could feel the pressure on his ribcage, his blood thickening, his vision fleeting, and he pushed past all of it. He clawed into the deepest depths of himself, pulled out any small pieces of positive energy left in his system, despite the way the Null was devouring his existence.

(He just needed to go back to the time. The time where he could stop all of this from happening. If he could go back, then he could save everyone. He just, he just needed enough energy to—)

Something hot spread across his chest, devoured his entire form, and the darkness was consumed by a burning white light.

heck i apologize in advance if the time-travel stuff is confusing but uh,,,,,

that first bit was right after generations during sonic's bday (aka theyre all 18ish), and silver jumped just over 100 years into the future for the remainder of it. but as i said earlier everything else takes place just a couple years after generations, when they're all in their early 20's.

((and if it wasn't clear the 'red thing in sonic's chest' ;) was what kept him alive the past 100 years & is the reason he looks like a literal zombie))

aaanyways hope you enjoyed! i'm gonna try to start with weekly updates, but i have a feeling that'll be pushed up to biweekly updates once school starts up :/

r&r! i'm always wanting to improve my writing :))