"Sonic."

"Mm?" The hedgehog in question lay sprawled over multiple sheets of paper. Tails' paper. As in, his blueprints, which the fox had planned to go over this afternoon.

Sonic really needed to not be in the workshop. However, that's not why Tails, the fox with a growing migraine, decided to address his friend. Or, to be more precise, that's not the first issue he was going to address. The mirror in the fox's hand was a testament to that. He would be sure to gripe about the hedgehog's poor choice in bedding later.

"I found this over by emerald coast," Tails said, near shoving the mirror in Sonic's face. He received a quirked brow from the hedgehog in response.

"Look, Tails, we all know I look amazing," he started, nudging the offensive discovery to the side with his hand. "But I don't see why you felt the need to point that out all of the sudden."

The fox's glare could melt glaciers. "Very funny, Sonic."

"It's a gift," The hedgehog in question replied, a shrug his only acknowledgement to the fox's frustration.

Oh, boy...

A massive sigh washed over Tails. "Well, if you'll actually let me explain now..."

"Yeah, yeah." Sonic rolled off the blueprints (finally!) and into a sitting position. "I'm all ears."

Tails, now satisfied that his spiked companion satiated his need for banter, leaned against a nearby desk. "I found this mirror on Emerald Coast. Perfect condition and everything." He held it up to the light, inspecting the trim around the reflective plate. "It couldn't have just washed up if it's still this intact."

The hedgehog's ears perked. "So someone lost it?"

Tails nodded. "That's what I thought, too, but when I asked around no one recognized it. I kinda just... put it back where I found it. I needed to stop by Angel Island that afternoon anyways."

"That afternoon being...?"

"Yesterday," the fox clarified.

Sonic hummed. "Got it. So you went to the island...?"

"Right." Tails set aside the mirror on the desk behind him. "I told Knuckles about the emerald we found the other day, and he said he wanted to check it out. He mentioned something about meditation? I don't know." Strolling over to the window opposite of the artifact's new resting place, he stroked his chin in thought. "But here's where it gets weird. I met up with Knuckles and, while handing him the emerald, mentioned what I found on the beach."

"And...?"

"He promptly flipped out. Completely lost it." The fox's voice dropped an octave as he pantomimed the echidna's outburst. "'I knew I dropped it somewhere! Tails, you have to find it, this could be dangerous for everyone if we don't get that thing now!' "

The hedgehog winced. "So it's some kind of magic mirror?" Then, after a pause, his eyes glinted with mischief. "Will it tell me who's the fairest in all the land? Or contribute to my teenage self-esteem issues whenever I look at my reflection?"

"Sonic, you don't have teenage self-esteem issues."

"You don't know that."

A smirk tugged at the fox's face. "Well, if you're so eager to talk about it—"

"Tails we are not playing psychiatrist right now or so help me I'll—"

"— After I got the mirror and returned to the island ," the fox interjected, leaving his companion with a gaping mouth and a raised finger, "Knuckles started discussing the history of the artifact with me. Apparently, it's been passed down for generations in the echidna line. For those in the tribe that couldn't communicate directly with Chaos through the Master Emerald, they'd just send prayers through the mirror under the guidance of the Chief. Pretty nifty. Hasn't been used in ages, though, according to Knuckles." Tails sighed. "As it turns out, someone without an affinity for chaos might taint the potency of the mirror's connection. Maybe outright anger Chaos."

Sonic gulped. "Well."

"Yeah," Tails said. "Good thing I found it."

"Wait, so why do you have it with you now?"

The fox glanced over at the mirror on the desk. "As long as I bring it back tomorrow morning, I can study it to see if it interacts at all with the emerald we have. Energy spikes, interference, something like that. Knuckles doesn't actually know much about the it besides the heritage."

Sonic hopped to his feet and strode over to the artifact. A low whistle followed. "Welp, can't say it doesn't look the part. Sure meets that 'Mysterious Ancient Relic' criteria."

Tails wasn't sure, but he thought he heard the hedgehog's voice tremble a bit near the end.

—

Sonic may or may not have run off with the mirror.

Of course , Tails fumed, why didn't I think of this? Sonic plus mysterious object equals theft.

Well, not theft, but curiosity killed the cat. Er, hedgehog.

Immediately after noticing the absence of the artifact—no less than five minutes after he finished explaining the ordeal to his friend—he scoured every inch of the Mystic Ruins, knowing full well that Sonic would want to check it out on his own. And, since he thought best on his feet, he'd spend the majority of his ponderings at mach five. Typical.

However, when that meager search proved fruitless, he hopped over to Station Square and repeated the process, only to once again come up empty handed. He could only do this so many times at different locations. He needed help.

More importantly, he needed to alert a certain guardian to this mishap.

One flight courtesy of the Tornado and—

"Knuckles!"

The echidna's whipped toward the voice. "Tails?"

Said fox blasted towards the guardian, twin tails a flurry of movement. Knuckles only had moment's notice before a face full of fur greeted him, as Tails, in his panic, forgot to slow down upon spotting his friend. Both landed in a heap beside the shrine.

Silence followed for one, no, two seconds before the fox heard a voice rumble from beneath him. "Tails, you have five seconds."

"Uh—"

"Four."

The fox scrambled to his feet with a speed rivalling the blue blur himself. Knuckles, however, simply sat up, rubbing his sore head.

"Mind explaining why you decided to tackle me?"

A garble of words escaped the mechanic's mouth with no rhyme or reason, hands flailing almost as much as his namesakes. "The mirror! Sonic! He ran off! He has it and I don't know, uh, where he is, um—"

The echidna help up a hand, silencing his companion. "Calm down. You're talking faster than Sonic on a sugar rush." Noticing with no shortage of relief how the kit's breathing slowed, he continued. "Could you repeat that? Something about the mirror...?"

"Sure, um," the fox said, scratching his cheek. "I let Sonic know about the artifact, and, uh..."

"First mistake," the echidna deadpanned.

Tails continued, sheepish. "Yeah, maybe not the best idea. He miiiight have run off with the mirror when I wasn't looking?"

A beat passed.

"He what . "

"In all fairness, I didn't think he'd actually take it! It's not like him to just swipe away stuff like that. He actually has common sense, contrary to popular belief," the fox blurted, words stumbling over each other. The last statement addressed Knuckles' accusatory glare.

When that look remained locked on the echidna's face, Tails had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. "Yes, he does think things through, and he wouldn't flee with a potentially world-shattering object on a whim."

Knuckles let out a sharp exhale. "Look, It's not that I don't trust him," he began. 'But in all honesty, I was worried he'd get a little too interested in that mirror, common sense or no."

"But Station Square—! He saw what happened there! He's still guilty about that, Knuckles, why would he do something that might aggravate Chaos?!"

The echidna's solemn expression dropped the temperature by a few degrees, forcing a shiver up Tails' spine.

"Tails, trust me when I say that Sonic has no right going anywhere near that mirror."

—

Of all the places the hedgehog wandered to in his musings, he hadn't expected to end up along Emerald Coast. It's a strange thought, as the beach in question wasn't exactly out of the way; still, to cart around an object and end up in the place of its discovery struck him as odd.

Sighing, he skid to a stop on the shore, sand kicked into massive plumes from the maneuver. His eyes dropped to the artifact by his side for the first time since his escape.

In the sunlight, its gleam hurt to look at, a brilliant shine that rivaled the sun itself in luminescence. The metal threatened to crush under his grip if he pressed too tightly; a flimsy thing, it was. He angled it above him, blocking the blazing orb in the sky from his view. He thought some light managed to pass through the material. In all likelihood, the artifact wasn't metal at all.

Bringing the mirror down, he squinted at the swirls sliding around the edge of his reflection, delicate engravings that he felt the sudden urge to trace across with his finger. He did just that. He noted that the risen areas along the grooves packed an edge, and would've cut his skin without his gloves' protection. Beautiful, sure, but deadly. The hedgehog wanted to snort; he sounded like some pretentious art critic.

If he didn't roll his eyes at the thought, he'd say the mirror could very well bewitch someone.

Plopping down onto the sand with an unceremonious flumph , the hedgehog looked out into the deep abyss of ocean lapping at the shore, flinching every so often when the spray came just a bit too close. The sunshine warming his shoulders managed to quell any panic, though. He almost felt drowsy.

Soon he rolled from knees over onto his stomach, propping up his chin with one hand and holding the mirror out in front of him with the other. He let out a huff. Well, it might be some dangerous relic, but back at the workshop, some deeper part of himself said that he should still take the artifact for a spin.

You mean, the mirror told you to do that, some senile voice jeered in his head. He promptly squared it away, right in the don't-think-about-that-or-it'll-bother-you zone.

Looking into the depths of the artifact that first time spooked him, that's for sure. When he stared at his reflection, it did something he wasn't expecting. At all.

It smiled at him.

However, he wasn't smiling back.

It annoyed the hedgehog how that small (well, maybe not small) detail bugged him. He's been privy to stranger incidents; death eggs, giant water gods tearing down cities, some fifty year old experiment in his likeness—fast forwarding any length of time would lead to similarly absurd happenings, if getting sucked into a book two separate times supported the fact.

Perhaps the words of his two-tailed friend had something to do with it.

Someone without an affinity for chaos might taint the potency of the mirror's connection. Maybe outright anger Chaos.

No, not those words. He'd just stay even further away from the mirror if his friend had stopped his infodump there.

He wracked his brain for any other points in the fox's expositional speech that affected his judgement. Then, it struck him.

Knuckles doesn't actually know much about the it besides the heritage.

That was it! So much uncertainty about a supposedly dangerous artifact had piqued his interest. He needed to figure out the mystery for himself. Plus, if he was the only one whose reflection changed, maybe that signified something the others weren't noticing.

Deciding to test a theory of his—there should be no danger of "tainting the potency" with the strength of his affinity—he made eye contact with his reflection, just as he did back at the workshop.

"Hi," he whispered. He hoped no one overheard him talking to a mirror , even if the empty beach around him undermined his concern.

To his surprise, his image smiled right back.

"Hello."

Sonic, not expecting this, sputtered, eyes the size of dinner plates. This seemed to amuse the apparition.

"You're awfully jumpy."

"Um, well, yeah!" the hedgehog exclaimed, defensive. "My reflection is talking to me!"

It suddenly occurred to the hero that the mirror was supposed to facilitate prayers to Chaos. He added sheepishly, "Well, I mean, you look like me right now, so I don't know if that's how this thing works or..."

The hedgehog in the mirror cocked his head, eyes quizzical. "Look like you?"

"I, uh." Sonic had to admit, he felt a little... creeped out? He was sure the reflection stared straight into his soul. Or, maybe he's paranoid. Whatever.

Then the apparition burst into laughter. "Oh, of course! I should have noticed who I was talking to." The smile returned, his hollow stare now even more out of place on the hedgehog's visage. "Sonic, right?"

Sonic tried to smile back, though he imagined it manifested more as a grimace. "Yeah."

The hedgehog was tempted to break eye contact with his reflection, but so far his theory held true, and as such looking away might sever the connection altogether. Sonic then realized that he might not be opposed to that.

Before entertaining the possibility further, his likeness spoke up, face once more neutral. "May I tell you something?"

"Uh," was Sonic's eloquent reply.

The hedgehog decided that, no, his reflection may not tell him something, finally resigning himself to look away. Only he couldn't.

It was too late.

The apparition sounded almost giddy he whispered, only for the hedgehog to hear, "I was hoping you'd find me."

—

"Why does Sonic have 'no right'...?"

Knuckles broke eye contact with the fox at the point, gaze locked onto a clover leaf by his shoe. "I'm not actually sure. I just have a bad feeling."

Tails set the echidna with a flat look. "Wow. I'm so compelled. The epitome of empirical evidence."

"In my defense—" Knuckles started, but the fox cut him off.

"Hey, I trust you, but I want to get a second opinion, too." Tails thus turned away and started his trek back to the Tornado.

"But...! Where?! Who else would know about this isolated and very obscure historical artifact?! "

The fox stopped and turned around. "That's what I was hoping you'd help me with."

The echidna looked absolutely lost. " How?!"

Then, for the first time in what felt like days, Tails smiled. No, smirked . "Mind helping me raid Eggman's base? I bet you thirty rings he's got something in his archives."

—

Knuckles couldn't believe this.

They should have been searching for Sonic, scouring every inch of the planet, looking under tables and interrogating every chili dog vendor they could find. They should have been regrouping at the shrine, maybe try to worm their way back into a temple in the deep jungles of the Mystic Ruins. Hell, they should have been gathering extra hands to allocate the hedgehog in the first place.

What were they doing instead? Raiding one of Eggman's bases. No big deal.

Except it was a huge deal and they were wasting time .

For what?

"I cannot believe this. Tails, I'm so disappointed right now. A second opinion, really?"

Shooting the echidna a sympathetic look from the cockpit,Tails grimaced. "As much as I want to look for Sonic right now, I think we need to get any info we can about the artifact. You admitted that you don't know a whole lot yourself. Maybe Eggman did a little research on that area?"

"Tails. Obscure."

"It's better than going off of nothing!" exclaimed the fox. "Who knows? He digs up information on ancient deities all of the time. He might have a tidbit on the artifact."

Knuckles huffed, crossing his arms but offering no further comments.

They flew in silence after that, the wind that blasted past them filling the lull in their conversation. Knuckles, for ease of communication with the pilot, situated himself in the extra seat behind the cockpit prior to takeoff. No seatbelts, he had noted; it appeared hardly anyone occupied this space. Only during their brief interlude in discussion did the echidna regret his choice in seating, if only because a ride on the wings meant less awkward silence.

At last, the fox spoke up once more. "I think the base is only a few minutes away by now. Mind helping me search for somewhere to land?"

"That won't be necessary."

"Gah—!"

Both occupants whipped their heads towards the source of the voice, only to see... Shadow.

Neither echidna nor fox got a word in edgewise before their hedgehog arrival plowed on, perched on one of the Tornado's wings. "Turn around and head back. There's something wrong with Sonic."

Knuckles glowered at the ultimate lifeform. "We know that—"

Shadow, of course, cut him off. "If that's the case, then you're heading in the exact opposite direction of your desired location."

"We won't know how to de-escalate the situation if we know nothing about what's going on," objected Tails, eyes pointed straight ahead after the realization that they had started veering to the left. After all, he spent a little too long ogling the unexpected passenger. Geez, pay attention. You're the pilot here. "Why not see if we can get some info on the mirror?"

"Because Sonic will be gone by the time you find anything."

Tails huffed. "Well, he's already gone—"

"No," Shadow interrupted. "He'll be gone, as in you'll never see him again."

"Let me finish—"

"Chaos will consume his soul if you don't get that damn mirror away from him right now."