Disclaimer: Sonic and all known characters belong to SEGA. The plot of Sonic Advance 3 belongs to SEGA. We are just borrowing those two awesome things to write a story. We claim no right to this story other than the fact that we wrote it and would appreciate it if you didn't steal it.

PLEASE NOTE IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY: This is a Sonic Advance 3 adaptation.

The sun glistened off of shining metal as it rose high in the sky. The light gleaming from the towering monstrosity was blinding to behold, yet beautiful and terrifying at the same time. What seemed like hundreds of dark openings to the base's interior lined the walls in straight line every few meters from the top. A long, slender, metal pole stuck from the very top of the place, acting as a beacon to an unknown thing. The landscape around the building was sparse, but had a small forest a short distance away. Two ears appeared over the top of a bush within said forest. A set of eyes soon followed. The eyes, showing the clearest set of emerald orbs one could ever see, wear watching the base ahead, determined and concentrated. Another set of ears peaked out from behind the bush with a resounding pop. The eyes shifted their gaze to the owner of the ears.

"Hush. Do you want him to hear us?" The voice was clearly male, not dropped low with puberty, but still not high pitched like a small child's. The tone had been stern, but the expression on the speaker's face was playful, letting the addressee know to not take it too seriously.

"Sorry," came the reply. This new voice was also male, but higher in pitch, and clearly much younger. Two bright blue eyes showed, looking sheepish.

The green eyes rolled quickly, and one could tell that he was smiling. "What am I gonna do with you, lil' bro? You make so much noise when we're trying to be stealthy..."

A third head chose that moment to appear, albeit a short distance away. "Are you two gonna keep gabbing, or are we gonna get going?" a gruff voice asked, dripping with slight, but good natured, irritation. Indigo eyes set into a red furred skull shone with the fire of determination.

The eyes from before bobbed up and down as both shrugged their shoulders. "Dunno Knux," the voice belonged the first speaker, "depends if you can leave your rock alone long enough to get this done."

The third set of eyes now held a new flame; a sign of friendly anger. "Oh, ha ha, Sonic. It'll be fine, you know that. No one's tried to steal it for years, and almost no one knows it even exists, let alone its location," 'Knux' answered, lips on a tan furred muzzle twitching.

The figure now identified as Sonic opened his mouth to let out a witty retort, but was cut off by a different voice. "Now, now boys. We have a job today. Don't we, my darling?" Suddenly, a set of eyes appeared behind Sonic and he almost jumped out of his skin. Instead, he chose to mutter curses under his breath.

The second being giggled. "Wow, Sonic! What's got you so jumpy?" Just because he was a child genius didn't mean that he couldn't pick up a sarcastic tongue; he did hang around Sonic and Knuckles – the kings of dry wit. A smirk graced his white furred muzzle, blue eyes dancing with mischief.

Sonic rolled his head around on his neck to loosen the tight muscles. "I'm just wound up because we're so close. Plus, there's the fact that someone doesn't know the meaning of personal space." The end of the phrase was directed at the newer member of the group.

Knuckles snickered behind his glove as the fourth member put on a mock expression of hurt. "But, Sonic, I thought you liked for me to be close to you..." the new, female voice and jade eyes wavering.

Sonic held his hands out and slowly - albeit gently - pushed her away. "Not... this close... I prefer for you to be at least ten feet away if possible."

"Aw, but Sonic," Knuckles cooed, putting on a sweet expression, "Amy loves you. Don't you love her back?" The red one seemed to be asking for punishment, if his antagonizing behavior was anything to go by.

Sonic's face took on a look of - almost - pure rage and he held out his hand, thumb-down in an imitation of Knuckles himself. He opened his mouth to retort, but was silenced as the blue eyed one suddenly jumped up and clapped a hand over his mouth.

The second speaker, the young Tails, suddenly leaned in and whispered, "Shh! Sonic, Cream's with us, too. Besides, replying will just make him keep going."

Sonic nodded at him once, a sharp movement of the head, before leaning back on his haunches so he was back under the bush. "You're right, kiddo. We need to get going anyway."

Tails nodded as well, satisfied that the older male was truly focused again, and leaned to the side - also hiding himself completely but in a position to address the other group members. "Alright, then. Everyone, get ready," he hissed between his teeth. Getting three nods, he turned back to Sonic. "Ready when you are, bro'!"

Sonic nodded back at him before leaning forward. "I'm gonna go scout ahead. When I signal, you guys come on." Then, he stood to his full height and sauntered out.

Tails gave a small nod, and watched his retreating form. "Get into positions, guys. Knuckles, go down... that way a bit, and you girls go the other way. Make sure to keep your eyes on Sonic, and wait for his signal. Don't get distracted. As always, we have one shot at this."

The whole group did as they were told. On her way past, the only one who hadn't spoken - Cream - smiled nervously at Tails, her Chao bobbing up and down behind her. Tails felt his heart twang a little as he noticed the small amount of fear and nervousness showing up in her expression. She was only two years younger than he, but, for some reason, he felt as if she were still too young for this.

Knuckles snuck a look at the others, then Sonic, before he dashed a few meters away to wait. He lowered himself, digging his knuclaws into the ground while waiting.

Amy hooked an arm around Cream and towed the small girl away from Tails. She didn't watch where she was going, just kept her eyes on Sonic as he darted back and forth across the desert-like ground. When she got to her designated spot, she stopped and let Cream go. They stood, hunched over, in silence as they waited for the go-ahead.

Tails tensed his muscles as he watched Sonic slow slightly. No one but him was likely to notice. "Get ready; he's getting a bit slower. Be ready for the sign," he told the others, as loud as he dared. At the three nods, he studied Sonic once more.

Suddenly, Sonic let out a shrill whistle that only a canine could hear and Tails winced uncontrollably before nodding at the others. They took his cue and darted forward, running in zigzag patterns to confuse any hiding robots waiting to attack slower opponents. Seconds later, Tails himself was up and running. After he had picked up some speed, his launched himself into the air and his spun his twin-tails around. The result was a smooth hovering motion that took years to perfect.

Sonic nodded as the others took off. He stood still, a rare oddity for him, as he waited for his partner and brother to arrive. It wouldn't take long, he knew, but after years of doing this sort of thing, he also knew that a moment such as this called for absolutely no movement. He watched as the fox took flight, still picking up speed all the while. Sonic twitched a foot with a slight impatience. As soon as Tails was close enough, the leader darted from his hiding place, going from a stand still to about 70 mph in under a second. The brothers were soon caught up, and were swiftly accelerating. They base grew nearer, and the two were almost going at near top speed. At 710 mph, it wasn't enough to break the sound barrier, but enough feel the sir split from their sheer speed. Sonic let out a small sigh in content. Running was great, even in this type of situation. He brought himself back into the present, slowing with Tails as their destination rushed to meet them.

Sometimes, it shocked Sonic that Tails could keep up - no one but the small fox could - but he always had to remind himself that Tails had something that most people didn't: flight. It was with those amazing double tails, tails the kitsune had been mocked for when he hand been younger, that he achieved flight with. Tails was probably the only person on earth who could keep up with him, and Sonic probably would've been dead or hospitalized by now if not for the kit.

As the two ran, getting slower gradually, Sonic let his mind wander with his eyes, committing the immediate are to memory. As he surveyed the nearby land, memorizing the layout at a speed only he could, an important question entered his mind. Where were all the robots? The defenses? Surely the base wasn't being left unguarded! This could only mean trouble. "Tails," he began, glancing at his closest pal, "keep a sharp eye out. We're either being expected, or he's not here, or he's being careless. Whichever it is, stay on guard."

Tails' face took on a darker expression and he nodded his head curtly that he understood. Sonic watched his younger brother as his own more mechanical based mind took in the surroundings. Tails could spot where a robot was hiding life-saving seconds faster than Sonic because he knew the tell-tale signs of a machine in hiding. A few seconds after a full sweep, Tails nodded again. "No 'bots in sight."

"Just as I thought," the hedgehog mused, eyes narrowing. "I wonder how the others are-" His thoughts were cut short as a brigade of robots came spewing from the mant dark openings in the towering base. They paid the heroes on the field no mind, however, and spread themselves everywhere. Sonic groaned. He'd hoped to stop the evil before the world was infected with robots... At that moment, the sky grew a dark orange color. Upon some silent note, the two young adventurers sped up briefly, covering the gaping distance to their destination in quick burst of speed. Soon enough, they were inside the base.

They slowed to a stop as soon as they broke the threshold, knowing from experience that it was in this moment that would decide everything. If they weren't stealthy enough to make it past the first few hallways and corridors, they had no chance to make it up to the bridge and main cabin where their opponent would surely be waiting. But, as soon as they stopped moving, bullets rained down from everywhere and no where at once. Sonic grabbed Tails automatically and pulled the fox behind him as he ran to escape. But, percurily, as soon as they sped up, the guns stopped.

Sonic, not daring to slow down, sprinted in a general direction, whispering loudly to Tails, "Has anyone else made it inside yet?" He knew it wasn't very likely, but Knuckles had proven himself a rather speedy guy, himself. Sonic didn't have any doubts that the echidna would be the next one to make it in, the girls coming in third.

Tails sent Sonic a look before wrenching his wrist free of the hedgehog's hold and twisting his tails around to get airborne. Then, he risked a glance at his wrist. Strapped securely there was a wrist-watch type device, with a small screen. On the screen, there were four separate bleeps, each a different color to show each of his friends' positions. "Knuckles is crawling up the side of the base now. The girls are still in the field, but they're closing in fast. Cream's moving faster than Amy, but she's got Cheese to protect her, so I wouldn't worry too much."

The teenager nodded and scanned the walls quickly. Being used to moving at high speeds meant that his eyes were sharper than normal and were well trained to see everything in a split second. "That's odd. Everything's dormant. Nothing's moving, and there's still no defense up. What is he up to...?" he hissed, emerald eyes blazing. No matter the situation, at least he didn't have to worry about his companions. They were all strong, ready for anything, and always determined to do what was right. He couldn't ask for better peers.

Tails didn't reply to Sonic's question, just kept flying forward with one eye on where they were going, and the other on the tracker on his wrist. They went on like that for about three minutes before a loud gasp was heard and Tails dropped to the ground and skidded to a stop suddenly. Sonic twisted around violently to see what was wrong, but the kit was already next to him, grabbing his arm and pulling him down so the hedgehog was level with his upheld wrist. "Amy... Sh-she just disappeared!"

Sonic gasped first in shock, then again is surprise as he was suddenly being shot at again. He scooped the kitsune up and ran with him while looking at the tracker. "That's not good! What do you think could've happened to her? And what about Cream?" he questioned, trying to keep his voice and mood calm.

Tails didn't react to the smooth yet quick take off. He just situated himself so he could see his tracker while resting in Sonic's arms before replying. "Cream's still there; Cheese is off a little ways, checking something out. My only guess is that Amy somehow stumbled into a trap that she didn't see with Cream behind her. She probably lost her tracker, or it got damaged. The only way to know for sure is to find her."

Sonic sighed. He really didn't want to find Amy. If he did, she'd just get distracted and slow them down. He glanced at Tails' tracker and saw the red and tan dots, along with a much smaller light blue, signifying Knuckles, Cream, and Cheese. "I guess all that we can do for the moment is keep going and hope she's alright," he finally said, busying himself by running, holding Tails, and scanning the hallway.

The kit shared a knowing look with Sonic before looking back down at his watch. He watched carefully as the red blip moved across the upper levels of the base. Knuckles was moving quickly, and – Tails noticed – not a wall was spared in his quest to find what they were all looking for: the Chaos Emeralds.

The tan dot moved slowly for a short time and the light blue moved erratically. Obviously, Cream and Cheese had encountered some sort of trouble, though what it was, Tails didn't know. He looked up as their pace slowed slightly, and took in Sonic's concentrated expression. The kit grasped one of the arms tightly wrapped around him and gave it a reassuring squeeze. The runner didn't look down, but gave a small grin. Tails looked straight ahead, and nearly gasped when he saw a grand door in front of them. Before they could reach it, however, the floor seemed to give out beneath them.

The hedgehog and fox managed to share one look before gravity took hold of them and they plummeted, both too shocked to scream.

--

Knuckles, meanwhile, was doing exactly as the kitsune had predicted; moving quickly in a relatively straight path, knocking down every offending wall in his way. He had a look of intense concentration on his face as he called upon deeply buried Guardian instinct. With it, he would (hopefully) be able to locate the Chaos Emeralds if they were in the general vicinity. He knocked yet another obstacle from in front of him, letting it tumble to the ground with a rumbling crash. He smirked. He just loved doing that.

As he smashed to his heart's content, he couldn't help but wonder how he'd been suckered into this mission. He wasn't the one that had lost the emeralds... Sonic had possessed all seven at one point, but had let them slip through his fingers. And who does he call to help get them back? None other than the Guardian himself! Knuckles scoffed in the back in his throat. The nerve of Sonic! He knew fully well that the echidna had a job to do, but he still had come to beg and trick Knuckles into coming... not that it was easy to trick him...

Knuckles swung his fist, but stopped short as another rumbling, one not caused by him, sounded. He looked all around him, but couldn't place where the disturbance was coming from. He raised a hand again to smash the wall, but suddenly felt the ground shake. With a bone jarring quake, he experienced the same fate as Sonic and Tails, though he was able to squeal like a little boy the whole way down.

--

Knuckles landed on something both hard and soft at the same time. His scream was cut off short as he bounced off whatever he had landed on and smacked into the ground. He laid there for a few seconds, letting his body categorize his injuries: a few bruises that would hurt in the morning, but nothing serious.

Sonic, who had the unfortunate luck to break the heavier echidna's fall, was wheezing groans on the floor, all the while trying to suck air into his uncooperative lungs. As soon as he had just enough air, he opened his mouth. "I think that might've knocked a few years off my life expectancy..." he glowered, glaring at the red furred spiny anteater.

Knuckles didn't pick his head up or reply. Just groaned in agreeance with Sonic's statement about lost years. That fall had certainly scared away a few of his.

Tails sighed and shook his head roughly, ears threatening to smack him in the head all the while. Well, with Knuckles now here, that makes everyone. Amy was unconscious (though from what no one knew), Cream was worriedly hugging her Chao, – unhurt because Sonic had managed to catch her when she had fallen down – and he himself was sitting on the floor, checking over his tracker. It seemed to malfunction slightly, as Sonic's dot had suddenly disappeared, though he was clearly here, alive, and... almost well.

The only blip left on the screen was Knuckles', but it was getting fainter by the second. It would soon be gone, and Tails would be totally blind if they got separated again. Well, at least everyone was here. Even though here was less than desirable at the moment. The room was one of the smaller ones on the base - 20 feet by 40 feet - and the walls were paneled in some type of metal. Tails had already been around the whole room, looking for ways out or weak points in the walls for Sonic to spindash, but his search had come up naught. Not that the hedgehog would be able to, in this condition.

As if on cue, Sonic let out a groan to let everyone know that he still was, and probably would be for some time, in pain. Cream, being the sweet bunny she was, meandered over and laid a hand on Sonic's shoulder, Cheese hovering anxiously nearby. "Are you alright, Mr. Sonic?" She asked innocently.

Sonic opened his mouth to make a snappy retort, but then realized who he was talking to and snapped it shut. Instead, he just shook his head in reply. "I feel like I've been run over by a truck."

"Say, Sonic. If you really want to know that feels like, it can surely be arranged," an obnoxiously loud voice rang out suddenly, clearly amused.

Sonic's head snapped upward and his ears flicked around toward the source of the voice before his face took on a pain filled sneer. "Really now, Doc? Well, at least it wouldn't be as painful if you yourself happened to roll over me… Not that you could… It's not like you could make it out of that stupid machine."

Tails had to stifle a snicker as the aforementioned doctor's face turned beet red on the small screen that was embedded on the wall above them. Suffice to say, the stout human was probably gloating at them from a separate part of the base. Where that was, only he knew. The evil doer opened his mouth again, but was interrupted when Knuckles groaned again, managing to at least sit up.

"Anyone get the number of the truck that hit me?" He rubbed his head slowly with both eyes closed. It was obvious that Knuckles had blocked out Sonic's comment, and the only two fully injury free members of the group giggled.

After his fit of giggles subsided, Tails turned up towards the screen and glared his best at the evil one's unhappy face. "Where are the Chaos Emeralds, Eggman!?" he shouted, hands as fists.

On screen, the human's face looked off to the side and he seemed to purse his lips in thought. "Why, cub..." Suddenly, there was a bright light in front of the screen and Tails had to strain his eyes to make out whatever it is he was holding. "They're right here!"

The kitsune gasped, still straining his vision, and looked around the small room. Amy was slightly groaning, Cream hovering beside her. Knuckles was slowing standing, albeit he was wobbly, and Sonic was still on the floor, seething with dislike, not at all worried or frightened, but more than a little pissed.

"What do you…plan to…do with them…Eggman?" The feeble voice came from the direction of Knuckles and Tails spun around just in time to see Knuckles take a few shaky steps forward. Unfortunately, his intended path went right through where Sonic was laying, so he was forced to stop before he tripped over the still comatose hedgehog.

For the stop, Tails was glad. He didn't want to have to deal with an argument. Especially not in this base.

Amy chose that moment to suddenly feel a whole lot better and shout, "You better not be up to something, 'cause it's never gonna work!" Tails just about facevaulted. Of course he was up to something, and he'd be damned if the vile man got away with it.

Eggman shook his head up on the screen. "I'm afraid, child, that it's too late. It's already been done."

Amy surged to her feet, hammer in hand (and Tails had to wonder just where it had come from), a glare on her face. "Oh, yeah?" She swung her hammer. "We'll just see about that!" she growled.

Eggman rolled his eyes as the image of Amy greeted him. "We'll see indeed. Because, in just a few seconds, I will hit this switch and you will all be obliterated. The only piece left to be placed is the last emerald, and I happen to have it right here next to me…" As if to gloat in their faces, he held up the green emerald before placing it into its designated slot and closing down the clear lid.

Sonic, completely unnoticed by everyone except for Tails, had slowly gotten up, and was creeping towards a relatively small opening in the wall (which had somehow escaped everyone's vision, excluding himself). As soon as he'd gotten past the supposed door frame, he broke into a sprint, gradually picking up speed and covering the distance to where he thought Eggman was in mere seconds. Tails followed after, thanking Chaos that he could keep up, speeding up and slowing down in time with the hedgehog. Shortly thereafter, they made it to their apparent destination. Tails dropped to the ground, staying hidden and out of sight, but keeping Sonic within his vision. The blue one sensed the feeling of being watched, but was too focused to care. He just wanted to take the human out.

Back in the other room, Knuckles was fully standing again; having gotten over the bulk of his injuries by channeling his energy the way he had been taught when he had been younger. He planted his feet and glared up at Eggman with defiant eyes. "What exactly are you planning to do, Eggman?" Knuckles had noticed Sonic's disappearing act, and wanted to buy the speedster some time, if only to make up for landing on him.

The doctor let out a mad chuckle, oblivious to the secret attack being planned right under his nose. Instead, he gave a large smirk and gazed hatefully down at the sapient echidna while smoothly replying. "Isn't it obvious, my dubious adversary? I'm going to establish the Eggman Empire! All I have to do is eliminate you and your companions!"

Knuckles smirked, "And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Hopefully, Sonic was close enough to hear Eggman rat himself out and would be able to dispatch him quickly.

"Hehehe. My dear Knucklehead, I plan to use Chaos Control!" the crazed man exclaimed, revealing a large red button on his panel.

Knuckles put on a dumb expression. "Chaos Control?"

Eggman growled under his breath, grin faltering before once again speaking. "Yes, Chaos Control, you foolish oaf!" His hand inched closer to the button.

"Hey! Where's Sonic?!" Amy's voice cut Knuckles' reply to being called an "oaf" short and he almost immediately slapped his forehead without thinking.

Sonic could've facevaulted. From his hiding place, he could tell that Knuckles was trying to subtly help (for which he was glad), but (once again), Amy ruined his plan. So much for the element of surprise. He just hoped that the egghead didn't turn around and notice his hiding place.

Actually, Eggman did the total opposite. He leaned forward, toward his own screen, to scan the room and make sure all his prisoners were accounted for. After only counting three - he had been positive there were five - he sat back quickly. "Where's Sonic, and that pet fox of his?!"

I'm right here, Eggman!" Sonic exclaimed pushing himself off from his temporary shelter. Emerald eyes shining and a smirk on his face, he then said one of the most clichéd lines amongst heroes. (Not that he really cared; after all, he found a private amusement in the words.) "You'd better give it up, Eggman, 'cause I'm gonna take you down!"

Eggman reacted almost automatically. Before even turning to see Sonic, he scrambled to press all the correct buttons to get the machine ready. Once he was satisfied, he spun. "And what makes you think you can outwit a genius such as myself?"

"Um..." he began, faking a thoughtful expression, "maybe because I've been doing it for years? Oh, and the fact that we have out own genius on the team (who apparently followed me here...)?" The last part was aimed at Tails, who had continued to hide even after Sonic revealed himself. The kitsune stepped up next to Sonic, sheepish grin on his face.

"Sorry," was the only word that escaped from Tails, even though he was practically glowing from the praise Sonic had given him.

While he was sure the spiky blue pest was distracted, Eggman leapt from his seat and was hovering over the large red button on his control panel. A scowl on his face, he reached out with one finger. Before pressing down, he opened his jaws and spoke one last line. "Goodbye, Sonic. I hope to never see you, again! It's been a real blast!" with that said, the scientist faced the screen's direction, and firmly mashed the button.

From where he was standing, things seemed to slow down for Sonic. His mind kicked into overdrive as his heart pounded roughly to kick up the adrenaline levels in his blood and he quickly categorized the problems in front of him.

The room was then filled with an anomalous light, and the feeling of the air being warped around them was present. To the hedgehog, he knew this eerie light was the byproduct of Chaos Control. He swung his head towards six of the seven Chaos Emeralds, sitting safely in a glass case, then to the doctor, grinning madly as he watched his enemy's usually perfectly calm and carefree demeanor shatter slightly. Who knew where they would be sent with this blast?

Then there was Tails. Next to him, the fox was quivering violently, his tails firmly lodged between his legs and his ears pressed so hard into his skull Sonic thought they would leave a permanent indention. It was very likely that they would both get flung to different pieces of the world, never to see each other again.

The teenaged hero immediately dropped down and wrapped his body around the fox, intending to shield the little one from the bulk of the blast. There was the sound of an explosion, a shocked exclamation, and three more screams of surprise. "Don't worry. I won't let you get hurt," Sonic mumbled to the terrified and trembling fox cub. Then, all was silent and still.

When Sonic opened his eyes again – having not really realized that they had been locked shut – he found himself in a whole different place. The huge machine and base of Eggman's was gone replaced with a blue sky and a wide open space. Ahead, Sonic could see platforms and springs. In his arms, Tails shivered before looking up at him, fright and undeniable trust shining in his eyes. In his head, Sonic couldn't help but be thankful that Tails was still with him. Suddenly, the effects of Chaos Control caught up with his body and his knees buckled. Luckily, the hedgehog managed to twist his body so he didn't land on Tails, but, he blacked out before he hit the ground. Only one thought ran through his mind before he lost consciousness:

Where are we?

AN:

In case you didn't catch this at the top, this story is being written by two people. The story behind its conception is simple: We were bored, hadn't seen any good – or finished – GBA adaptations, and decided to do one ourselves.

This whole chapter is the prologue. Yes, we realize it's really, unrealistically long, but we couldn't cut it up to make it suspenseful, tell all the stuff you needed to know, and make it so the first chapter started where the game picks up.

Of course, we took a creative license with the beginning. This mainly because the opening screen only shows a few vague things: Chaos Control, and Sonic and Tails running – mostly unchallenged – towards what can be assumed to be Eggman's base. We could go into more detail with why we chose the things we did for the beginning, but it would make this AN too long.

This post is mainly a tester, a pilot if you will, to see if people will read the story. If you enjoyed it, drop us a line. We'll try to reply. If you caught something wrong with it, tell us; we'll be sure to fix it. We're both open for criticism and actually welcome it with open arms, so please, let us know how we're doing.

Basically, what this all boils down to is:

REVIEW!

Oh, and if you have a better title for us, that would be lovely. We're horrible with titles... and summaries for that matter...