The extravagant, fluorescent sun beamed down upon the luscious greenery below. Not a single cloud was in sight, thus revealing a beautiful azure sky. Suddenly, a red plane flew across the sky at a blistering speed - it was the Tornado! Tails was piloting the plane from its cockpit, whilst on the left wing stood the iconic blue blur himself: Sonic the Hedgehog!

His elegant head was held high as he observed the beautiful scenery encapsulating his senses. His trademark smirk was plastered on his face.
"What a lovely day!" he remarked to Tails behind him.
"It sure is, Sonic." Tails replied gleefully.
Amid the tranquil atmosphere, Sonic expectedly lay down on the wing, with his feet crossed and one arm behind his head.
"Be sure to wake me if ya find a chaos emerald, pal!"
Tails sighed, albeit quite contently. He knew that it's important to track down the seven chaos emeralds quickly, but Sonic is his best friend. Sonic had always been an inspirational idol for Tails, acting as a brotherly figure for many years. Additionally, Sonic had saved his life on countless occasions. Tails felt utterly privileged to be of use to Sonic; he now wanted to have recognition for finding the second chaos emerald, so he happily let his best buddy rest on the plane wing…

In order to find any chaos emeralds on the ground below, it needs to react. All the chaos emeralds react within close proximity to each other. Fortunately, Sonic and Tails have possession of the green chaos emerald, so it is cleverly intertwined with on-board radar to assist the Tornado in its endeavor. Despite the pleasant sunny day, Tails was adamant that there was definitely something terrible about to occur. The evil scientist, Doctor Eggman, had been surprisingly quiet these past few weeks. And whilst it had been refreshing to have a break from the plethora of adventures and heroics, Tails couldn't help but worry about what the near future bestowed.

BEEP! BEEP! The Tornado's navigation panel was flashing orange and beeping. This alarm was due to an increase in activity from the green chaos emerald.
"Wow!" Tails exclaimed.
The chaos emerald was finally reacting, emanating a luminous green light. The excess positive energy made Tails feel warm inside.
"Sonic," Tails shouted, "Wake up! We need to land right here!"
As quick as a flash, Sonic sprung to life, and gripped both hands on the front of the wing.
"Ready." he called.
And with that, the two heroes swooped down below, to uncover the second chaos emerald…

As they approached the ground, they saw a rather ordinary meadow. The land was mostly flat, with a small forest encompassing the area; there was no sign at all of another glow on the ground. This meant that the second chaos emerald was underground somewhere. Immediately before the Tornado could land, however, there was a loud *CRUNCH*. The right wing of the Tornado was missing!
"Did you see that?" Sonic asked, "It looks like one of Eggman's robots just destroyed the wing."

Suddenly, the Tornado began to swerve uncontrollably. Tails then tried his best to maintain stability regarding its flight. Tails ordered Sonic to abandon ship and retrieve the emerald below – before the attacker. Sonic hesitated for a second, but he trusted Tails' intelligence and judgment so he jumped off and landed on the ground below. As the young fox began to comprehend how rapidly the current events transpired, the Tornado abruptly lost its altitude, sending the poor fox plummeting into some woodland below…

"Tails," Sonic called "Are you okay?"

Before he rushed to the location of the impact, he remembered his orders: somewhere nearby was the second chaos emerald. Also, more disturbingly, there was a titan-looking figure lurking amidst the vicinity. He plodded around, trying to hear a faint humming sound. Time progressed rather slowly for once in Sonic's perspective; where was his best friend? Is he hurt? He felt a sense of guilt, should he have stayed on board? He didn't have much time to ponder over his actions though, as he heard something beneath him!

Suddenly, Sonic curled into a ball and performed his trademark spindash! All that could be seen from afar was a hazy blue mist and a vast array of muddy particulates being thrust into the air. Sonic stopped. He had dug himself into a shallow ditch. However, he was confronted with the orange chaos emerald!

"You'd better be worth all this hassle." Sonic joked as he grasped it, "At least Doctor Eggman-"
"Eggman what?" bellowed a disturbingly familiar voice from above.

Sonic glanced up, to reveal the Eggmobile protruding off the ground. Naturally, the sinister Doctor Eggman was piloting the egg-shaped vehicle. Sonic firmly clutched the chaos emerald. He would never let the Doctor get his filthy hands on such a glorious gem. He quickly leaped out of the ditch and pointed at Eggman.
"I will never let you have the chaos emerald! Now go and find something more constructive to do!"
This remark enraged the Doctor.
"How dare you criticise the motive of the greatest mind in the universe? Besides, why don't you quit playing hero and run along to the forest, where you belong?"

This retort angered Sonic. Being a hero wasn't a choice for him, but the fate of the world frequently lay in his hands. He would quite happily continue running and playing with his friends, but all the Eggman seems to do is ruin their fun, and even peace itself. Moments later, the titan that smashed into the Tornado returned from the sky. It towered over 30 feet tall and its gigantic grey physique blatantly struck some fear into Sonic.
"Who are you?" He inquired.
Eggman chuckled, "HE-HE-HE! Sonic, I want you to meet my latest and greatest creation, the E-1000! He follows the design of a human, but with an impressive array of destructive weaponry at his disposal. If his menacing wrist missiles won't defeat you, then perhaps his laser eyes and retractable sword will! Face it, my furry friend, you have lost before the fight has even commenced!"

Meanwhile, as Sonic and Tails were in a sticky situation, Amy Rose, accompanied by Cream & Cheese, were happily strolling down the high street in Station Square. They all wanted to browse the shops and to have a good time. However, Cream had had to endure Amy's boisterous commentaries about her crush: Sonic.

"I wonder if we can buy Sonic some food as well." She thought.
"Doesn't mister Sonic enjoy eating chili dogs?" Cream asked politely. She always had good manners; her mother Vanilla perpetually reminded her how important it is to be courteous at all times.
"Yes I know that!" Amy snapped, "But they will go cold by the time we see him again." Cream was taken aback by her stark response. One day, she thought, Amy was going to lose her mind and go absolutely crazy!

Near the end of the street, the trio encountered a nice little restaurant.
"Chao, chao!" Cheese exclaimed. Cream saw what the commotion was about whilst Amy frantically scanned the area for things she thought Sonic would like. Cream read a display outside the restaurant:

'Special dinner for two

This Friday

70% off

Treat your partner today'

"Amy," Cream called, "what about this?"
Amy walked towards them. She was skeptical.
"How could I find something here that Sonic would l-" She read the display. She then twitched with excitement!
"Me and Sonic are going to have the best date ever!" She claimed triumphantly. Immediately after, she ripped one of the messages off the display and held it in the air, as though it were a golden trophy.
"Where's Sonic? I've got to show him!"
Cream informed her that he and Tails set off this morning in the tornado, and that they were headed west.
"Thanks Cream. I wonder why my Sonic didn't tell me that; I'm sure he was really busy or something. Anyway, I'm sorry our girly time has to be cut short but this is extremely important."

And with that, Amy rushed off in search of her 'boyfriend'. Cream and Cheese collectively sighed. Amy's perpetual fantasizing was found to be nauseating by everyone close to her. Even Sonic was annoyed at how devoted she was to him. Yes, Sonic is incredible, and an amazing hero. But why is it only Amy who is obsessed with him? Cream dwelled over how different Amy would be if she never liked Sonic…

"Enough!" Eggman cried, "I am giving you one last chance to hand over the chaos emerald or we will have to take it with force." Sonic remained undeterred by this final threat.
"Never!" He replied. And with that, he threw the emerald all the way across the meadow, and into the forest where the Tornado had crashed. Eggman shrieked at the sight.
"Attack!"

Suddenly, the titan sprung into life, and held out both of his hands – pointed at the fastest thing alive. A subsequent kaleidoscope of missiles zoomed out of them. Despite their immense speed, Sonic was always going to be one step ahead. He ran in a circle, around the titan. The missiles were homing missiles, so they tried to follow him. However, Sonic was running near to the speed of sound; how could the missiles possibly keep up with the blue blur? Sonic then had an idea.
"Eureka!" He proclaimed.
He stood still for a second. The missiles swooped down from behind him. However, before they could hit him, Sonic ran in a straight line, towards the titan! He slid under the titan's legs as an array of missiles crashed into its mechanical chest! The explosion was cataclysmic.

The E-1000 fell back, making a huge THUMP as it crashed onto the ground. The Eggmobile was vaguely spotted by Sonic, flying in the midst of a huge cloud of dust.
The doctor was coughing frantically. "Get up, you fool! I want that Hedgehog eliminated!"
The titan's jetpack was then engaged, and it tried to squash Sonic with its titanium feet! Nevertheless, an insulting yawn was followed by Sonic effortlessly moving out the way of the impact.
"When will you learn, Eggman?" Sonic asked, "You will never beat me!"
Eggman boiled up with sheer anger. It wasn't fair, he thought. All he wanted to do was take over the world, and time and time again he was thwarted by none other than a talking blue hedgehog.
"STOP BEING SO ARROGANT," He snapped angrily. "FACE THE TRUE POWER OF MY TITAN!"

A long sword came out from within the titan's arm. Despite its sheer size, it was very flexible. There was a good chance Sonic could be hit with this, and if he did, it would send him flying far away! Sonic reluctantly took three steps backwards.
"Easy there," he said awkwardly, "I don't want any trouble."
Eggman chuckled, "Now you will pay for your arrogance."

"Sonic!"

A high-pitched scream was heard nearby. Eggman and Sonic both looked around; who was that? Then, the Titan decided to take Sonic by surprise. He was about to strike Sonic down with his sword! Next, Sonic located the source of the scream.
"Amy?" He questioned.
Was he seeing things? What was Amy Rose doing here, in the middle of nowhere? Sonic then saw the pink cloud more clearly. It was Amy! Furthermore, she was waving something in her right hand as she was running towards Sonic.
"I found you!" She exclaimed in excitement.

Moments later, as she climbed the fence to the meadow and approached the speed demon, she flung herself on Sonic and gave him a firm hug. Sonic looked perplexed and overwhelmed at this, not to mention being crushed by her iron grip.
"Amy, let go." Sonic pleaded. When he could finally breathe again, he asked what she was holding.
"Now," Eggman whispered from his Eggmobile "attack stealthily."

Suddenly, the sword from the titan was ferociously swung towards Sonic! However, Sonic saw what was about to occur and, naturally, his quick reflexes allowed him to leap away from its path. However, Amy was only half-awake; she was idly dreaming about finally hearing the words 'I love you' from Sonic on Friday night. As she slowly tilted her head towards the robot, it was too late. SMASH! Amy was hit by the titan!

"Amy!" Sonic shouted as she was sent flying to the other side of the meadow, crashing headfirst into a big brown fence…

…She didn't get up.

"Amy?" Sonic couldn't comprehend the horror he just witnessed before him. Amy was innocent; yes she was a nuisance sometimes, but something about her always instilled hope and happiness in Sonic. He may not love her as much as she does him, but something about her getting hurt caused something to click in Sonic's mind. His attention turned to the robot. It was the one who was responsible for attacking Amy. It must be brought to justice.

"You hurt Amy!" Sonic shouted. Eggman seemed alarmed at the tone of Sonic's voice. He watched intently from his Eggmobile.
"How dare you lay a hand on her?" Sonic continued; his voice was progressively more volatile, "She's done nothing to you!"

Suddenly, something unexpected occurred. Sonic was brought to his knees. He then began to shiver slightly. His fingers twitched uncontrollably. His eyes then opened…a navy blue aura was emanating from his body. More disturbingly, his fur was now black…he had transformed into dark Sonic!