Hey there, fellow fanfic authors! Here we are at part two of what I've come to call the Sonic Dimensions series. Yes, I know I'm months late to the party and there are likely hundreds of Sonic Forces rewrites and novelizations by now, but I still want to do my own take on it. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the game, flaws and all, but there was a lot of wasted potential, and I hope I can expand on the story. And since I'm the type of guy who likes to compartmentalize things, my novelization will be split in two parts. This part deals with the prequel comics and Episode Shadow. Next part will be the main game itself. My sincere hope is that even if you didn't enjoy the game, you'll at least enjoy this story. Well, on with the show!

Author's Note: This story assumes the reader has read the Sonic Forces prequel comics and has played Episode Shadow. Thus, there will be spoilers for both.

Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the property of SEGA and Sonic Team. I own nothing.

Sonic Forces: Prelude To War

It was nighttime. A gigantic white pyramid stood as the centerpiece of a vast desert region. Truthfully, however, this was not a desert. In actuality, this was the iconic Green Hill Zone and the pyramid was one of the many bases belonging to the notorious Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, or Dr. Eggman as he is more commonly called. Green Hill Zone was once a lush grassland, but the not-so-good doctor had recently set up shop here which resulted in massive desertification. Thus, what was once a beautiful plain was now a barren wasteland.

It seemed like a normal night for the most part. But something strange began to occur in the skies above. Crackles of electricity began to ripple through the night sky. The sky began to twist and distort as a dark portal formed. That's when something shot itself out of the portal like a shooting star. The object landed on the ground right in front of the pyramid, giving off an ominous glow...

The Next Day...

."Hmm...no, no, and NO!" Eggman shouted. He was currently holed up in his new secret base in Green Hill Zone. With the doctor were his loyal assistants Orbot and Cubot. Orbot was the red robot with a round head and Cubot was the yellow robot with a cube head. His latest scheme for world domination had predictably gone down the toilet. He had mentioned that he wanted to find and control the Deadly Six again, but he changed his mind. He had no desire to relive that headache again. Worse, nearly draining the world of its energy with the Extractor brought too much attention to himself and made him a target of G.U.N. Thus, he decided to lay low for a while. The doctor has since been passing the time trying to come up with new designs for his robots... with minimal success.

"Why am I having such a hard time coming up with new robot designs lately?" Eggman asked in frustration.

"Excuse me, boss." Orbot said. "But the proximity sensors have picked up an unusual energy signature right outside." Eggman turned on the security monitor and it displayed a picture of what appeared to be a gemstone buried in the sand just outside. "What in the world?" Eggman walked outside and pulled the gemstone out of the ground. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed to be a magenta ruby with black ripple patterns decorating it.

However, the minute he touched the gem, the ruby began discharging red electricity, striking Eggman in the head. Eggman cried out in pain as the ruby's energy surged through his mind. Before his eyes unfolded a vision of what he desired most: Eggmanland. His own utopia. An amusement park-like citadel that would serve as the capital of a world under his iron grip.

A mad smile tugged at his lips as he drank in the sight of his dream. However, when he reached out to touch his vision, he unconsciously dropped the ruby, causing the vision to vanish. "What? Wait, no! Bring it back, please!" Eggman pleaded, practically crying. After composing himself, Eggman picked up the ruby again.

"So this mysterious gem apparently caused that hallucination." Eggman mused. "This could be useful. Prepare to be researched, jewel!" With that, Eggman retreated into his pyramid base again. Unbeknownst to the good doctor, he was being watched. In the distance, there were two jackals hiding behind a hill and watching Eggman through pairs of binoculars. Both of them were armed with large swords.

"Target has been sighted." One jackal said.

"Time to inform the boss." The other jackal replied.

Later that day...

Inside a tent at a nearby campsite there was a jackal sharpening his sword. His name was Alexander "Xander" Anubis. Or, as he was more commonly called, Zero. Once, he was a former soldier for G.U.N, but due to...reasons, he was discharged from the military. After which, he decided to form his own military squad. Thus, the Jackal Squad was born. A team consisting of himself and six other skilled jackal warriors, each bringing their own unique talents to form the ultimate mercenary team. They specialized in all manner of jobs ranging from heists, to kidnappings, to assassinations, earning them quite the fearsome reputation. Though their price tag was quite high, they always produced results.

While the Jackal Squad were a force to be reckoned with, Zero had the greatest reputation of them all. His skill and ferocity in battle earned him the title of the "Ultimate Mercenary". His very appearance was that of a hardened warrior. He had jet-black fur, white long and wild dreadlocks, a white collar, and white stripes on his back that resembled a ribcage. He also had a bushy tail with a white tip. Like all members of the Jackal Squad, he wore black gloves with silver streaks on the back as well as pointed, black metal hi-tops. He also has a medium-long white muzzle with cheek tuffs, a black nose, and fangs. His most prominent trait, however, was his eyes. As a result of heterochromia from birth, his left eye was yellow and his right eye was blue and had a noticeable scar, the result of a fight with his father years ago. A fight that he'd rather not talk about.

Zero was busy sharpening his sword, the Crimson Cleaver. It was a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation. While he was tending to his sword, another jackal came into the tent. This was a female jackal with yellow eyes and whose hair was bound in a ponytail that rested above her head. Her attire consisted of a sleeveless green tank-top, black gloves, brown pants decorated with black spots, and black metal hi-tops. She also wore a belt that held two semiautomatic pistols. This was Jade, Zero's second in command.

She and her little brother Tyler had spent most of their lives on the street after being abandoned by their parents. One day, they were cornered and attacked by a street gang when they were rescued by Zero. Since then, they have become Zero's most loyal allies and the first members of his Jackal Squad. Xander and Jade, over the years, developed a romantic relationship, but the back-to-back missions often kept them from spending time together.

Jade had come in to deliver her report. "Hey, Xan." Jade said. Only Jade called Zero by his real name. Everyone else called him either Zero or "Boss". "Sui and Cui just reported in that they found Eggman's secret base."

"Uh-huh." Zero said, not looking up to Jade.

"Tyler's busy hacking into Eggman's security." Jade continued. "He should have it disabled soon."

"Uh-huh" Zero replied, still tending to his blade. Seeing that Zero wasn't listening to her, Jade gave an annoyed growl. "And Jacques and Jack decided they want to wear pantyhose from now on." She hoped that would get his attention.

"Uh-huh." he said again. That made Jade's eye twitch in annoyance. She pulled out her gun, aimed it at the ceiling and fired a shot. The noise from the gun startled Zero. "Goddamnit, Jade! What the hell?!" Zero shouted.

"Well I had to get your attention somehow, seeing as you were a bit preoccupied." Jade replied.

"Right. Sorry about that." Zero said as he sat back in his chair. Jade let out another annoyed sigh. "Alright, Xan. There's obviously something bothering you. Now come on, tell your Auntie Jade what ails you."

Zero sighed. "I'm tired of this life, Jade."

"Xan, we're a bunch of badass mercenaries living a life of adventure few can only dream of." Jade replied. "What could you possibly be tired of?"

"Don't get me wrong. We've had some wild times." Zero replied. "But it's the same routine: We do a job, get paid, blow through the money, then get another job, get paid, blow through the money. I'm in a rut here." Zero sighed again. "I just feel like there's something more to life than this. That there's a greater role for me to play."

As Zero sat deep in thought, Jade smiled and suddenly sat on his lap. "Jade what are you-?!" Before Zero could react, Jade grabbed him by the sides of his face and kissed him. After a bit, she broke off the kiss, caressing his cheek. "Tell you what, Xan. When we're rich, we can play whatever role you want. How's that?"

Zero chuckled. "Aw Jade, you always know how to cheer a man up." With that, Zero grabbed her by the waist and the two went back to kissing again, only to be interrupted by another voice. "Am I interrupting?" It was the voice of a young boy. The two jackals turned to see a younger jackal staring at the two lovers. This jackal wore a green headband and held a matching green dagger in his hand. This was Tyler, Jade's younger brother. Don't be fooled by his age. He is a gifted, technological genius. His computer skills saved the squad on many occasions.

"Tyler?!" Jade jumped off of Zero and the two had deep blushes on their faces, with Zero awkwardly rubbing the back of his head. "Uh, Tyler. What's the sit-rep?" Zero asked, wanting to change the subject.

"Well, I've just about hacked into Eggman's security." Tyler replied. "So, if you two are done making out, we can move out whenever you're ready."

"Funny. Real funny." Jade said.

"Enough of the jokes." Zero said. The three of them walked out of the tent and found four more jackals awaiting them. One of them was a jackal who wore a red beret and whose arms and legs were wrapped in bandages. In his hand was a curved blade that resembled a small axe. This was Jacques, the squad's demolitions expert. He was a former convict sentenced to life in prison for a string of bombings, but he managed to escape prison by rigging an explosive and using the chaos as cover for his escape. When he heard of Zero's Jackal Squad, he joined up as it gave him an excuse to continue his explosive misdeeds. The reason for the red beret? To him, his explosions are works of art.

The other jackal was a bit different from the others in terms of attire. His gloves and boots were bright orange in color rather than the standard black. He wore an orange belt that held a large assortment of throwing knives. This was Jack the Knife. Even before teaming up with the Jackal Squad, he was a skilled assassin. His talent with his knives were so great that he could pin a fly to a wall by its wings and not kill it. So confident in his skill was he that he never used a firearm. A firm believer in the phrase "Actions speak louder than words", Jack never speaks.

And finally we had the twin brothers Sui and Cui. They were the most recent recruits. A pair of jackals who grew up in the circus as a pair of acrobats. But after years of entertaining people, they eventually grew tired of their fame. One day, after performing their grand finale, they were approached by Zero, who offered them a more exciting life than that of an entertainer. Seduced by the call of adventure, they readily accepted. Sui trained himself to use a sword while Cui specialized in martial arts.

""Okay, listen up!" Zero spoke. "Tyler here has hacked into Eggman's security system and can shut it down. Once he does, we'll only have a short window of time before the doctor's backup system kicks in. We go in hard and fast. Get in their, raid the base, and take anything that looks valuable. All that Eggman tech has to be worth something. We all clear?"

"Sir, yes sir!" they all shouted in affirmation.

"Good! Let's move out!" Zero said as they made their way to Eggman's base. Little did Zero know that this simple job would change his life, and the lives of the Jackal Squad forever.

Next Chapter Preview: Ruby Temptations! Next time on Sonic Forces! Zero and the Jackal Squad launch their assault on Eggman's base. During the fight, Zero comes into contact with the Phantom Ruby and is shown his hearts desire. Can he resist the allure of the Phantom Ruby, or will he fall to its power. Find out on the next exciting chapter of Sonic Forces!

Author's Note: I had fun coming up with the names and backstories for the members of the Jackal Squad. It almost makes me sad for what's gonna happen to them in the future.