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It'd been sometime ever since the gang first encountered the Metarex. Ever since Mobius had first been attacked not too long ago, Sonic and his friends had been caught up in a war against them. Teaming up with a surviving girl named Cosmo, they journeyed from planet to planet in Tails's new spaceship, the Blue Typhoon, battling Metarex and helping other planets get their life sources, the Planet Eggs, back. This upcoming occasion was no different…
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The Blue Typhoon was now flying over what looked like a jungle planet. Everyone else in the ship was busy with their own thing.
Cosmo was getting some sleep in her room.
Twilight and Sunset were doing some maintenance work in the engine room while Knuckles was keeping an eye on the Master Emerald, with Spike near the toolbox to bring them anything he was asked to bring.
Rainbow and AJ were in the training room brushing up on their fighting styles.
Amy and Tails were on the bridge keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.
Chris and Cream were cooking in the kitchen with Dorothy.
Shanti and the cats were taking a nap, with Jerry curled up next to Tom's paw.
Grace was in her room reading her fairytale book.
Robyn was outside the ship with Fluttershy and Trixie checking on some stuff.
Starlight was checking on medical supplies.
Topsy was checking Buzz-saw's… well, buzzsaw to see if it needed any fixing.
Wallflower was practicing her powers in her room.
Bob, Larry, and Junior were having a little Bible class, with Larry making funny comments here and there and Bob just being annoyed at him, but at the same time couldn't resist from laughing.
Creecha was nearby on her phone, letting everyone else back home know how things were coming along.
Matt and Shari were having a bit of a flying race outside.
And Sonic was in the corridors getting some exercise.
All in all, everything seemed peaceful– until an alarm suddenly went off. Everyone heard it and ran to the bridge to see what was going on.
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"Tails, what's happening?" asked Creecha.
"Our scanners picked up 2 objects approaching," Tails answered as Cream and Cosmo finally arrived. "Dead ahead and closing fast!"
A 2D radar popped up. "I see 'em!" said Amy.
Sure enough, there were 2 blips on the radar. They were Metarex Kingape and Metarex Carrer. The former was carrying something that belonged to the planet. Cosmo recognized what it was. "It looks like they just stole that Planet Egg," she said.
"Well, we can't let those 2 Metarex get away," said Tails. "We're gonna fight 'em to save that Planet Egg!"
"Roger!" said everyone in usion.
Suddenly, the ship shook, Metarex Carrer having started to grapple it with its claws. "We've been caught!" said Robyn.
"Fire the laser cannons!" Tails ordered.
The dual laser cannons were prepared and fired. However, they didn't do any damage to Carrer's chest. "It bounced right off!" Cream exclaimed, surprised.
The claws wrapped around the ship so tightly that it severely damaged the hull. "It's trying to pull our wings off!" said Amy. "We have to do something before it's too late!"
"We'll stop it!" said Tails. "Load the Sonic Power Cannon!"
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"We're loading it now!" Knuckles informed from the engine room.
"Sonic, enter the power cannon to get ready for launch," said Chris, who was also in the engine room.
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The Sonic Driver was prepared. Sonic ran down the barrel and landed on the spin platform. "Ready!" he said.
He began his spin, charging the Sonic Driver. "Sonic Power Cannon, fire!" Tails yelled.
The Sonic Driver launched Sonic through Metarex Carrer, destroying it in a brilliant explosion. "Bullseye!" Rainbow cheered.
The explosion caused Metarex Kingape and the Planet Egg to fall back towards the planet below.
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Inside the Typhoon, the lights were off. "Looks like we knocked out the Metarex," said Tails. "The big one is out of commission, and the Planet Egg's going back where it belongs."
The girls cheered for Sonic's victory. "Thanks to Sonic!" said Cosmo.
"Yeah! He was incredible!" added Cream.
"He's a real knockout!" put in Amy.
Then, she got worried. "Wait a second!" she said. "Why isn't he coming back to the ship?"
Everyone looked to Tails, who sweat-dropped.
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In the engine room, Chris had heard about the situation. "What's wrong?" asked Knuckles.
"The cannon that launched Sonic out of the ship worked great," Chris answered, chuckling nervously. "Unfortunately, we launched him too hard, and he couldn't get out of his spin in time to get back to the ship. Looks like he's headed straight for the planet."
He rubbed the back of his neck as he finished. "It's too bad he's not packin' a parachute," Knuckles quipped.
"Soniiic!" Amy wailed.
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Sonic fell from the atmosphere…
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…. and landed on something metallic– and hard. "Aw, man," he groaned, sitting up and rubbing his head. "What a trip! I wonder where I– Whoa!"
Looking up, Sonic saw a destroyed spacecraft and an unconscious Eggman, Orbot, and Cubot. The Eggmobile was also crashed. "It's Eggman!" Sonic exclaimed, immediately standing up.
He also saw something that was glowing. It was the green Chaos Emerald. "He found a Chaos Emerald," he said, picking it up. "You don't mind if I borrow this while you're restin', do ya? Hehehe! See ya!" With that, he took off.
Meanwhile, Metarex Kingape was crouched over Metarex Carrer shaking it, but the broken robot didn't respond. "This loser's definitely out of it," he said. "He was supposed to protect me and the Planet Egg."
He stood up. "What am I gonna do now?" he said. "I'm not built for battle!"
The Planet Egg could be seen, floating nearby. "What if that ship comes after me?" asked Metarex Kingape. "If I don't think of somethin' fast, I'm gonna end up a Meta-wreck!"
He looked up to see the Blue Typhoon descending towards the planet. "They did follow me here!" he panicked. "And they're comin' for the Planet Egg!"
He looked around frantically, spotting the Planet Egg. "What should I do? I don't wanna fight, but I can't let them put the Planet Egg back!" he said, grabbing said object and holding it protectively.
Then, he had an idea. "Ooh-ooh! Wait a sec! Maybe there's a way for me to fight without fighting!" he said, laughing as he headed off.
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Inside the hangar, Tails and Knuckles were inside the X-Tornado about to take off when Amy approached them. "Move over!" she said. "I'm going with you!"
"Stay here, Amy," said Tails. "It's not safe. That smaller Metarex may be out there somewhere."
"But I HAVE to find Sonic!" Amy insisted, hopping up and down in protest.
"Don't worry, Amy," Tails replied. "Knuckles and I will find him and bring him back. Chris needs help fixing the ship. Who knows? Maybe Sonic will show up here."
"What Tails is trying to tell you," Knuckles butted in, "is that we don't want you getting in our way."
Tails was nervous at Knuckles's words. Especially since Amy didn't take too kindly to that. "In your way?!" she exclaimed angrily.
Tails sweat-dropped at Amy's anger. "Uh oh..." he said quietly.
"Come on, Tails," said Knuckles, patting his shoulder. "Let's get going."
"OK…" said Tails, uncertain.
"Do not take off!" Amy ordered.
But they didn't listen. The catapult took hold of the plane's front wheel and pulled it forward for takeoff. "You'll regret this!" Amy vowed as the X-Tornado disappeared.
Twilight got pretty ticked off at this. "Oh, for Pete's sake, Amy, get a grip!" she said, looking up from where she was checking the toolbox. "You're not the only one that wants to find Sonic, but you can't go doing it yourself every single time he's in trouble! Why can't you let anyone else take a turn in helping him for a change?!"
Twilight had a point, but Amy didn't want to admit it mostly because she was too wrapped up with her obsession.
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Meanwhile, Cream, Cheese, Cosmo, and Grace descended the ramp into the jungle. "So this is a jungle," said Grace, looking around at their surroundings. "At first glance, I thought it was a rainforest or a plain old forest or something."
Cream was excited. "This is going to be fun!" she said. "I love to explore new places, don't you, Cheese?"
"Chao!" Cheese answered, just as excited.
Meanwhile, Cosmo was listening to one of the trees. "What's up, Cosmo?" asked Grace, taking notice.
"The trees are sad," Cosmo answered. "It seems the Planet Egg hasn't been restored yet. I can't leave here until I make sure it is."
"You mean you're going to go look for the Planet Egg?" asked Cream.
"Yes," Cosmo nodded.
Grace smiled before looking up. "Oh great," she grumbled. "There goes Mrs. Grumpy."
Sure enough, Amy exited the Blue Typhoon and walked past the others. She was looking more angry than grumpy, however. "Amy?" asked Cream, concerned.
"Where are you going?" asked Cosmo.
"Where do you think?!" Amy snapped angrily. "I'm gonna go find Sonic!"
"Of course you are," Grace grumbled, rolling her eyes.
Cream was concerned. "But didn't Tails and Knuckles take the X-Tornado to look for him?" she asked.
"I'm not gonna rely on anybody else to find Sonic!" Amy protested. "I have to go rescue him myself! I won't rest 'til I get him back!" With that, she walked away.
"Oh brother," Grace grumbled, face-palming. "There goes her obsession."
"Wait!" Cream called.
"Amy is right," Cosmo said.
Grace looked at her, shocked. "What?! Are you kidding me?!" she exclaimed. "You too?!"
"I cannot rely on anyone else either," Cosmo replied, looking up. "I won't rest until I hold the Planet Egg in my hand."
"But…" Cream tried to say.
But a determined Cosmo was already after Amy, much to Grace's aggravation. Cream sweat-dropped, taking 2 glances into the Typhoon before running after the others. "Hey, wait for us, Cosmo!" she called.
Seeing what was transpiring, Grace was just about tempted to ram herself into something, but was fortunately able to calm down before she pulled something stupid, having learned from her mother during training that acting stupid, no matter what situation you're in, would get you nowhere. She wrote a note letting the others know what was going on and taped it to the ship's wall before hurrying to catch up with Cheese and the kids.
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In the meantime, Chris was making some repairs to the Typhoon with some wires and a small torch with Twilight and Sunset working alongside him. Wallflower was off doing something else in the training room. "Hey Amy," Chris said after a bit, "could you hand me a microcircuit, please?"
There was no reply. Confused, Chris looked up. "Amy? Cosmo?" he asked. "Where'd they go?"
Twilight looked up. "Not a clue," she said. "They were here a minute ago. And it looks like Grace is gone too."
Sunset also looked up. "Might wanna look around the ship," she said. "Just in case they wandered off somewhere else."
The corridor was empty. As Twilight and Sunset began searching the ship for anything, Chris put down the torch and ran to the bridge before typing on a keypad. "I can't believe they even left the ship without telling me!" he said, putting on a headset.
He turned on the radio. "It's Chris calling. Amy, do you read me?" he said.
No reply came from the other side. An indicator read that she was offline. "They forgot to bring their comlinks with them!" he grumbled.
He decided that his next attempt would be to get Tails contracted and let him know what was going on. "This is the Blue Typhoon calling the X-Tornado. Come in!" he said.
"X-Tornado here," said Tails over the radio. "What's up, Chris?"
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"Amy's gone," Chris answered over the radio. "So are Cream and Cheese. Cosmo and Grace, too."
"Where'd they go, sightseeing?" asked Knuckles.
"You'd better keep your eyes out for them while you're looking for Sonic," said Chris.
Just then, Tails noticed that the blue Chaos Emerald was glowing. "The Chaos Emerald's reacting to something!" he said excitedly.
"Yeah!" Knuckles agreed. "That must mean there has to be another Chaos Emerald nearby! Let's find it!"
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"Hang on; I'm gonna make a turn!" said Tails.
"Call you later, Chris!" said Knuckles. "Right now, we're going Emerald hunting!"
"See you later!" said Tails.
"Hey Tails, are you there? Come in!" said Chris.
But no response came. "Great," he grumbled frustratingly as he removed his headset. "Sometimes, it feels like I'm talking to myself."
Having heard from the doorway, Sunset chuckled. "Trust me, I know the feeling," she said as she entered.
"Found anything?" asked Chris.
"Nope," Sunset answered, shaking her head. "Nothing yet."
Just then, Twilight entered the bridge. "Found something," she said, holding up a piece of paper. "Someone must've left this note here to let us know what was going on."
Sure enough, written on there was:
"Amy went to look for Sonic while Cosmo went for the Planet Egg. Cream, Cheese, and I tagged along with them, so if you're wondering where we are, now you know. I promise we'll be careful.
-Grace"
"Well, that explains it," said Sunset. "At least we now know why they're not here."
Twilight nodded. "In the meantime," she said, "you and Sunset can get back to working on ship repairs. I'll stay here and let you know if there's anything new."
The two nodded before they headed back to repairs, leaving Twilight alone on the bridge.
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Back in the jungle, the girls were desperately looking for Sonic. Well, Amy was mostly the one doing it. The others were just following along. "Sonic! Where are you?" she called.
Cosmo was pushing bushes out of her way when suddenly, her dress snagged on a branch that slung her into a tree. She wasn't hurt, but she was dangling upside down. "Whoa!" Grace yelled, scrambling out of the way while this was happening. She didn't see it coming.
"Cosmo!" Amy exclaimed. "Are you okay?"
With a "Chao!" sound, Cheese flew up and freed Cosmo, the Seedrian floating gracefully to the ground. "I'm fine," she said.
"Glad you're not hurt," said Grace, giving her a brief hug.
"Maybe you should go back, Cosmo," Amy advised. "Leave the searching to me. Somebody as refined as you doesn't belong out in the wild."
But Cosmo was determined to find that Planet Egg; she wasn't going to let a little tree branch get in her way. "I'm not turning back," she said, shaking her head as she walked ahead. " Let's keep going."
"If that's what you want…" said Amy, a little unsure as she, Cream, and Grace followed her.
Cosmo was just determined to make things right after what happened. I'm tired of running away from danger, she said to herself as she remembered her dream from when she first landed in Mobius. I'm not going to stand by while the Metarex destroys another planet.
Pushing her way through a bush, Cosmo entered a clearing. There, in the middle of it, resting on a mound of dirt, was the Planet Egg. "It's the Planet Egg," she said just as the others joined her.
"That was easy," said Amy.
"Eh, too easy," said Grace. "It's not guarded or anything."
"Yeah," Cream agreed. "Grace is right: there's something strange about this…"
"What do you mean, Cream?" asked Amy.
Cream made a point with the next question she asked: "How did the Planet Egg land right in the middle of this clearing?"
"That is kinda weird," Amy agreed, folding her arms. "Almost as if somebody wants us to find it."
"Well, I'm taking it," said Cosmo.
She was about to step forward, but Amy stopped her by grabbing her arm. "I don't think that's a good idea," she warned.
"Maybe you're right, Amy," said Cosmo, "but we have to put it back where it belongs or this planet is finished."
Cosmo walked toward the Planet Egg and bent down, Amy and Cream cautiously approaching. Grace stayed behind to look around more carefully until her eyes landed on some viney rope. Approaching it, she was examining it until she saw that part of it was buried in the ground. As her eyes followed it, she walked forward doing so until she came close to the clearing. Suddenly, realization dawned on her just as Cosmo was about to touch the Planet Egg. "Girls, get out!" Grace yelled, racing in. "It's a trap!"
But it was too late. Something appeared underneath them, and the 4, along with Cheese, were slung up in a net and hoisted up into the air. "I knew this was going to happen," said Grace. "This was a hidden net trap."
"Hey! Let us go!" Amy demanded.
Metarex Kingape entered the clearing at that point. "Now who's the monkey in the middle?" he laughed.
"You again!" said Cosmo, recognizing him.
"Sorry to leave you hanging," said Metarex Kingape as he walked towards the Planet Egg and picked it up, "but I have to leave! I'm heading off to steal your ship now so I can escape with the Planet Egg!"
His eyes twinkled. The next thing the girls knew, they were now trapped in a wooden cage. "You fell right into my trap!" Metarex Kingape said, staring them down. "I bet you didn't expect I'd be this cagey! I can't take all the credit, though. My scheme wouldn't have worked if you weren't so gullible!"
Amy didn't say anything. She just gritted her teeth and grabbed the cage bars. "Don't blow your cool," said Cream, smiling wanly. "We'll find a way out!"
Metarex Kingape didn't seem to be frightened by it. "Bye-bye!" he taunted. "I'll say hello to your friends for you. If they're as dimwitted as you, I should be doing a victory dance in no time!" Hooting a laugh, Kingape turned to go.
"I don't think so, you miserable monkey!" Amy yelled. "Sonic's gonna go ape when he hears you caught me!" She punched the air as if to emphasize her point.
"Don't go ballistic!" Cream warned.
Grace didn't say anything. She just glared in the direction Metarex Kingape left in. If that evil little monkey thinks that he can get away with this, she thought, clenching her fist, he has another thing coming.
Feeling a weight on her side, Grace turned to see Cosmo leaning on her, looking glum. "Hey. What's wrong?" she asked.
"It's all my fault," Cosmo answered, looking down at the ground. "I never should have fallen for the Planet Egg trap. Now we've lost the Planet Egg and Sonic."
Grace looked at her with sympathy. "It's not your fault, Cosmo," she said. "You had no idea that a hidden trap was there. And you're doing the right thing wanting to get the Planet Egg back where it belongs. You just have to be careful of your surroundings."
She slipped a hand into Cosmo's hand. "And there's still a chance to find Sonic," she said. "All we have to do is find a way to get out of here."
Just as she said that, a pounding sound could be heard as the cage shook. Turning around, the two could see that Amy gave them a way out: by hitting her hammer on it so hard it got demolished. "That was fast," Grace chuckled.
Amy smiled. "Don't worry, Cosmo," she said.
Cosmo grinned. She felt so much better. "OK," she said. "Thanks, Amy. You too, Grace."
Grace smiled.
Later, the girls were wading through some tall grass. "We have to find Sonic and warn him before that Metarex traps him too," said Amy.
"Shouldn't we go back to the ship, Amy?" asked Cream. "We could call Tails and Knuckles for help."
"No way!" Amy answered. "I set out to rescue Sonic all by myself, and that's what we're all gonna do!"
Good grief, Grace thought, rolling her eyes. Can't she give that Sonic obsession of her's a break?
"I promise to be more careful from now on," said Cosmo. "We'll never save any planets if I don't stop getting us into trouble all the time."
"It's not your fault, Cosmo," said Grace. "You're just new to this sort of thing, that's all."
Soon, they arrived at another clearing. "Well this scene sure looks familiar," said Amy.
Sure enough, up ahead was the Planet Egg. "Looks like another Metarex trap," said Cream.
"Chao chao!" Cheese agreed.
"Well we're not gonna let him trick us a second time, aren't we?" asked Amy, crossing her arms.
But Cosmo was curious. "Would it try the same trap twice?" she asked. "Well, there's only one way to find out."
She stepped forward. Seeing this, Amy immediately realized what was going to happen. "No! Cosmo, don't!" she exclaimed.
"You could be trapped like last time!" Grace added, agreeing with Amy. "Only it might be a different trap!"
"Stay back," said Cosmo, "and if it's a trap, it will only catch me."
That's what she was expecting, anyway. However, as soon as she touched the Planet Egg, something wrapped around the girls' ankles and slung them into the air. Now hanging upside-down in the air, Cosmo and Amy had to hold down their dresses (the skirts were falling) while Grace, who was lucky enough to be wearing shorts, managed to look up from her position to see that they were caught in a snare trap made out of a long vine. Great, she thought, rolling her eyes.
At that point, Metarex Kingape appeared from hiding. "That makes 2 for 2– Huh? Didn't I catch you already? How'd you escape from your cage?"
"Oh, bug off!" Grace snapped.
"Yeah, get lost!" Amy agreed. "That's our business!" As she said this, the vine that they were tied to was beginning to swing back and forth.
Metarex Kingape was surprised. "You fell for the same trap twice?" he asked. "Whoa, you're bigger saps than the trees around here!"
However, he was puzzled to see Cream flying upright (via her ears) with the noose still around her legs. Cheese was fluttering nearby, crossing his stubby little arms. Clearly, both of them were not impressed, which was understandable given the circumstances. "You know what to do, Cheese!" said Cream.
"Chao chao!" Cheese agreed, floating into Cream's open hand.
"Go get him!" said Cream, throwing her Chao as hard as she could.
"Chao chaaaaao!" Cheese yelled, slamming into Kingape with enough force to knock him over.
"Yeah! You tell that bully, Cheese!" Grace laughed.
Cheese freed the others, and they landed on the ground. Cosmo picked up the Planet Egg. "Come on!" said Amy, taking off running.
Soon, they were wading through tall grass once more. "Maybe we should go back to the ship, Amy," suggested Cream.
"Cream's right," Grace agreed. "Because if we keep on running into Metarex traps at this rate, we're never gonna get that Egg where it belongs. Plus, I'm about one second closer to going absolutely ballistic thanks to that stupid monkey."
"No, girls," said Amy. "That Metarex is still on the loose. I have to find Sonic and warn him!"
"Then clearly, he hasn't gotten a taste of my thorny vine," Grace growled.
"You must all be angry with me after the trouble I caused you," said Cosmo. "I'm so focused on saving the galaxy that I can get reckless sometimes."
Grace glanced down at her. "We're not mad at you," she said, "and we're definitely not angry. You're not the only one that can get reckless. We all get reckless from time to time."
"Yeah," Amy agreed. "And besides, you got the Planet Egg. I really admire how you never gave up."
"Same here," Grace added. "That's one of the things that I really admire in a friend like you."
Cosmo smiled. "You do?" she asked.
Amy stopped and turned to Cosmo. "I know just how you feel, Cosmo," she said. " 'Cause when I think Sonic's in danger, I won't give up until I know he's safe. That's why I won't stop 'til I find him."
Cream beamed. "Alright, Amy," she said. "Then we won't give up either!"
"Chao!" Cheese agreed.
"And I'm with you too, Amy," Grace added. "Then after we find Sonic, we can work together to make sure to get the Planet Egg back where it belongs."
Cosmo beamed. "That's great!" she said.
Suddenly, a ball of vines flew in from nowhere, heading straight for Grace! "Grace, look out!" yelled Cosmo.
Saying this, she ran forward and shoved Grace out of the way in time, taking the full hit herself. She and the Planet Egg were sent flying in different directions. "Cosmo!" Amy and Cream exclaimed.
Grace was shocked at what she witnessed. "It could've been me…" she whispered.
Meanwhile, the Planet Egg flew right into a triumphant Metarex Kingape's open hands. "That was too easy!" he said.
Grace was absolutely ticked off at what that monkey did. "You… You jerk!" she growled as she stood up, glaring at him. "I oughta go on over there and punch that stupid smirk right off your–!"
"Not so fast!" someone interrupted.
Looking behind him, there was Amy and Cream right behind him. And Cosmo, who was thankfully not injured, was floating down to a nearby tree thanks to her parachute skirt. Grace was glad that Cosmo was alright. Metarex Kingape was startled at the sudden development. "They got me surrounded!" he said.
As Cosmo descended the tree, she picked as many fruits as she could and hurled them at Metarex Kingape. 2 of the fruits ended up hitting him in the eye. "I can't see!" he exclaimed.
Amy took the opportunity to smash Metarex Kingape with her hammer, causing him to spin around several times due to the impact before falling over. The girls quickly took this opportunity to escape, Cosmo grabbing the Planet Egg, but Metarex Kingape cut them off. "Hold it right there!" he said.
"This way!" Amy exclaimed as she ran the other direction, pulling Cream with her.
However, the three of them accidentally fell into a hole previously covered by grass. Even Cheese fell in because when he caught the Planet Egg, it having flown out of Cosmo's grasp, the weight of said object caused him to fall too. Grace was the only one to avoid it, recognizing it as a pit trap. "Yeah!" Metarex Kingape cheered, doing a victory dance. "I did it! I'm on a roll!"
But Grace whacked him with her thorny vine, glaring at him. "That's it, you stupid monkey!" she said. "That's the last straw!"
She luckily wasn't alone; with her ears flapping, Cream flew Amy and Cosmo out of the pit, Cheese carrying the Planet Egg out. This caused Metarex Kingape to do a double take, causing Grace to smirk. "It's payback time!" she said.
"Give it all you got, girls!" said Amy.
"Roger!" they replied.
Cream swung Amy and Cosmo around with all her strength. Grace instantly summoned a long thorny vine and rolled it into a ball. Amy summoned her hammer as they sprung towards Metarex Kingape, while at the same time, Grace threw her now thorny ball at him. Amy's hammer and the thorny ball both collided with him, sending him flying far away. The 4 girls landed on the ground, triumphant. "Alright!" Cream cheered.
"Boom! We did it!" Grace laughed.
"When we all work together," said Amy, "we're unstoppable!"
They all shared a high-five.
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Meanwhile, Sonic was running through the jungle, Chaos Emerald in hand. He stopped when he heard something coming his way. "Sonic!" said a voice.
It was Tails and Knuckles in the X-Tornado! "Hi, Tails!" Sonic waved as the plane stopped in midair. "I got a little present for ya!"
Knuckles leaned forward a little for a closer look. "He's got another Emerald," he said.
"Stay there!" said Tails. "We're comin' down to pick you up."
Opening the canopy, the X-Tornado changed into the X-Cyclone and prepared to land. Suddenly, several claws came from nowhere and took the Emerald, wrapped around the X-Cyclone causing it to crash, and threw Tails out of the vehicle, ripping off his seatbelt in the process. Luckily, Sonic was able to save him by jumping up and catching him, turning around so his back was taking the brunt of the landing as they hit the ground. He didn't want Tails to get hurt after what happened. "I got ya," he said as he stood up.
"Thanks," Tails grinned.
Knuckles jumped out of the X-Cyclone and ran up to them. "Buddy, are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm okay," Tails answered. "Not hurt, luckily. I wonder what that was?"
His question was answered when a familiar doctor, the one responsible, arrived inside his Eggmobile with his Egg Bee, laughing. "Eggman!" Sonic exclaimed.
"I'm taking the Emerald back, Sonic," said Eggman. "I found it first so it belongs to me."
"But if it wasn't for the Metarex, I'd still have 'em all!" Sonic reasoned. He did have a point.
"According to my rules," Eggman objected, "it's stealers keepers, Sonic!"
What they didn't notice was that someone stealthy snuck behind them and, taking the green Emerald from the claw it was in, replaced it with something else before sneaking off– an orange Emerald. Eggman and his hench-bots luckily didn't take notice of this as Orbot and Cubot loaded the Chaos Emerald into a hatch in the Egg Bee. "Retrieval operation complete," said Cubot. "The Emerald is secure."
"Time to power up!" said Orbot.
The Egg Bee used the Chaos Emerald's power to turn red. Knuckles leapt forward, ready to take on Eggman while Sonic stood in front of Tails for protection, holding out his arm in a "get behind me" motion as the claws came towards the trio. Suddenly, they all stopped and got tied up in a knot by themselves. Cue AJ leaping out of the jungle from behind the villains and soaring through the air above them. Seeing more claws coming at her, she spun around and, activating her lightsabers, sliced through them and landed in front of the brothers. "You made the wrong choice here, doc!" she said.
Just then, Grace, Amy, Cream, and Cosmo came running in with Metarex Kingape hot on their trail. "I'm not monkeying around this time!" he said.
On Grace's command, the girls leapt up into the air to avoid the "stupid monkey" in Grace's words. Amy and Grace used Eggman as leverage while Cream and Cosmo bounced off of Orbot's and Cubot's heads respectively. "What the?" the two said confused before getting crushed by Metarex Kingape in his pursuit.
The girls ran right past AJ and the boys, only to stop when Amy saw who she was looking for. "Sonic!" she exclaimed.
Metarex Kingape skidded to a halt. "No!" he exclaimed, scared. "Now they're all gonna gang up on me!"
Meanwhile, Amy threw herself at Sonic in a hug. "Sonic! I've been looking all over for you!" she exclaimed, starting to kiss him.
Sonic cringed. "This isn't a kissing booth!" he said.
"Look, everybody!" exclaimed Cosmo, lifting the Planet Egg into the air. "We found the Planet Egg! Isn't that fantastic?"
"Take it easy," said Knuckles, confused as he waved a hand.
Eggman was livid. "I'm not a trampoline!" he said. "Nobody goes hopping on my head and gets away with it!"
"Activating attack mode!" said Orbot and Cubot in usion.
The Egg Bee extended 3 off its claws and plucked the group from the ground. Even though she was surprised at the turn of events, AJ chuckled when she looked behind her. "I don't know who that baboon is or what he did," she said, "but he definitely deserved it."
Sure enough, Metarex Kingape had also been snagged by a claw. "Let me go!" he said. "I'm battling against the hedgehog and his friends too!"
"No way," Eggman replied. "I won't work with anyone who looks like he belongs in a zoo!"
Trapped in the same claw and seeing no other way out of it, Cosmo and Grace looked at each other and wordlessly nodded. What they came up with may be risky since they've never done it before, but they had to try. Closing their eyes, they focused as the Planet Egg unleashed its power. Suddenly, Grace's eyes snapped open, revealing white light, as she floated out of the claw into the air. Part of the Planet Egg must've gotten inside her somehow, because as soon as she out spread her arms, the trees began growing huge, even entangling around the Egg Bee. "What's going on?" asked Eggman.
The vines pried the claws open and wrapped around the Mobians, the Seedrian, and the Earthlings. "The energy from the Planet Egg is making the vegetation grow faster!" Tails said as this was happening.
"It's growing like crazy!" exclaimed Knuckles.
"These vines sure are clingy, aren't they?" asked Amy.
"Let me go!" Sonic demanded.
But it was no use. The vines continued to entangle everyone and everything.
………………………………………………………………………
Back on the Blue Typhoon, Chris and Sunset were still at work with repairs when Twilight came bursting in. "Guys! Guys!" she exclaimed. "I just got on the radio with the others out there! They're in trouble!"
Immediately, Chris and Sunset raced to the bridge. While Twilight raced to get Wallflower, Chris put his headset back on to contact the others, Sunset doing the same. "This is the Blue Typhoon. Over," he said.
But all the both of them got on the other end was nothing but gibberish. "Hold on!" said Chris. "Calm down and try to talk one at a time!"
Sunset chuckled softly, turning to the readers. "Yep. Sounds like they're in a bit of a pickle, alright," she said.
Meanwhile, Twilight raced down the hall to Wallflower's room and banged on her door. "Wallflower! Wallflower!" she said. "We gotta get ready!"
"The others are in trouble, are they?" Wallflower asked from the other side.
Twilight almost spluttered at that. "How- How'd you know that?" she asked.
The door opened as Wallflower got up and stretched. "Just got done meditating when I felt it," she explained. "If that's the case, we'd better get going." With that, she ran ahead down the hall.
Twilight was flabbergasted at first, but then sighed, looked over at the readers, and shrugged before heading off after her.
………………………………………………………………………
Back with the others, the situation was getting a little more weedy. "Orbot, start pruning these plants now!" Eggman ordered.
Orbot and Cubot attempted to cut the vines, but they kept on growing. "They are growing too fast, Doctor!" said Orbot.
"Cosmo, what's wrong?" asked Amy.
"Me and Grace can't control the Planet Egg!" Cosmo said, sounding regretful. "We're sorry!"
"A little help would sound great right about now!" added Grace, not expecting what was going on.
As the vines extended into the sky, a familiar spaceship arrived on the scene. "Hang on, guys!" said a voice.
Sonic looked up. "Huh? It's Chris!" he said.
AJ glanced up as well. "And the girls!" she added.
Sure enough, Chris, Twilight, Sunset, and Wallflower were flying to the rescue in Chris's spaceship. Tails, meanwhile, was trying to reach for something in the X-Cyclone. "Almost…" he grunted.
However, he couldn't quite reach it without pulling a mussel or two, no matter how hard he tried. And Twilight wasn't going to let him get hurt. "Looks like he needs some help," she said, observing the scene. "Wallflower?"
Wallflower didn't need to be told twice. "I see him! I've got it!" she said, jumping off the wing.
As she fell down, she spotted a vine extending towards her. Getting an idea, she used her own powers to slide down along it. Soon, she was sliding down multiple vines with moves that would make Tarzan proud. Arriving near where Tails was, she moved the vine a little, but it was enough for him to grab the something from the X-Cyclone– which just so happened to be the blue Chaos Emerald. "Got it!" he said. "Thanks for the help there, Wallflower!"
"You're welcome, pal!" Wallflower replied as she continued to slide on the vines to avoid oncoming ones.
Eggman growled and was about to use his Egg Bee to grab the Emerald (and possibly hurt Tails in the process as he was about tempted to), but as soon as he turned the machine on, it shut off just as quickly. "What the–?" he said, surprised. "Who damaged it?"
"None of us," said Twilight, opening the Egg Bee's hatch and trying not to laugh at what she saw. "Just this thing."
She flew to Eggman and dropped it to him. Upon looking at it, Eggman was even more livid to see the orange Emerald now dull-colored, just like the red one Rouge once nabbed. That was when AJ started laughing, glad that her plan succeeded. "You fell for it!" she exclaimed. "You fell for the ol' switcheroo trick!" She was really finding this amusing.
Eggman glared at her. "Did you–?" he asked.
"Yep," AJ replied, nodding. "I gave you a fake Chaos Emerald."
She then pulled something from her backpack. "This, Eggman, is the real one," she said, holding the green Chaos Emerald.
She then glanced at Tails. "Tails! Get 'em to Wallflower!" she called.
"You got it!" Tails said. "Then, she'll get 'em to Sonic!"
AJ nodded before turning to Wallflower. "Wallflower! Catch!" she called as she and Tails both threw the Emeralds to her.
Wallflower caught them and skated down on a vine to Sonic. "Sonic!" she called.
"Get her!" Eggman ordered.
But with no Chaos Emerald to power his Egg Bee, there wasn't a chance of that happening. Wallflower tossed the Emeralds to Sonic when she was in close enough range. Sonic reached out and caught them. "Nice work, guys!" he said, using the Emeralds' power to spin free from the vines.
"Sonic, heads up!" Chris called, firing a rocket at Sonic's shoes.
It turned into a bright light that striked Sonic's shoes, changing them into soap shoes. "Hey Sunset," he called. "Ready to end this?"
Sunset grinned. "Let's do this," she said.
Sliding down a giant vine together, the three headed towards a terrified Eggman, Orbot, and Cubot. Then, with a vicious bodyslam and a combined lightsaber strike, they destroyed the Egg Bee, throwing the three and the Eggmobile into the air Team Rocket style. "Woohoo!" Sunset cheered. "Nailed it!" She and Wallflower shared a high-five as she said that.
Leaping up, Sonic gave the Emeralds to Twilight, who placed them in her backpack. Upon landing, the three friends noticed that everyone else was still bound in the vines. "Whoops," Sonic chuckled. "Sorry to leave ya hangin'."
"It's alright," AJ replied. "At least y'all managed to get the real Emerald back."
"Thanks to you," replied Cream. "What you did was amazing."
AJ smiled. "Thanks kid," she said.
"So while we're still on the subject of 'tangled up in vines'," asked Sunset, "can I burn them away?"
Twilight's answer to her was simple but blunt: "No."
"Why not?" asked Sunset.
"Because the vines will just grow back again thanks to the Planet Egg's power," Twilight explained. "And besides, the last thing we need is everyone getting burned, and I don't wanna face Creecha's wrath if Grace here also gets injured by it."
Sunset knew that Twilight was right, but she was still a little bummed about not freeing her friends and family. Twilight then glanced at Wallflower, who was carefully observing the scene before her. "Wallflower, think you can do it?" she asked.
Wallflower nodded. "Might be tricky," she said, "but if it helps everyone in the end, it'll be worth it."
With that, she approached where Cosmo was and, floating up to her level, touched her shoulder, getting her attention. A kind, compassionate smile graced the older girl's features, letting the younger one know that she wasn't angry with her. "If it's okay with you and Grace, Cosmo," she said, "I'll take care of this one."
Knowing that they needed help, Cosmo just nodded. Smiling, Wallflower floated back a few feet and, using her Force powers, levitated the Planet Egg out of Cosmo's hands and, moving to the right spot, lowered it under the planet's surface. Illuminated by green light as she placed her hands together, Wallflower's eyes opened to reveal white light underneath, just like Grace's eyes. With her hair blowing behind her, she then spread out her hands, causing waves of energy to transverse the entire planet, healing it. The vines loosened their grip on their captors, and everyone fell or floated to the ground, Tails landing gently in Sonic's arms thanks to his tails.
Then, taking notice of a now normal Grace about to fall, Wallflower used her powers to cause vines to wrap around her and lower her to the ground. "That was amazing, Wallflower," said an amazed AJ. "Thanks."
Wallflower just nodded, but her smile said everything that she needed to say. Twilight picked up Grace, who had passed out, and flew back to the ship to the medbay. Wallflower smiled at her success until she felt someone hugging her leg. "Sorry for worrying you," she said. "I just wanted to–"
"Look for the Planet Egg," Wallflower gently interrupted. "I know."
Cosmo was surprised. "How did you know?" she asked.
Wallflower smiled as she sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her. "Grace left us a note before she left," she said. "Twilight found it and showed it to us, so we knew what was going on."
She then cupped Cosmo's face, causing her to look up at her. "Thought next time, please don't hesitate to tell us where you're going, okay?" she asked.
Cosmo nodded. Wallflower smiled before scooping her up in a hug, which Cosmo returned. Tails smiled at the scene before Sonic got him into a headlock from behind before proceeding to give him a noogie. Tails laughed as he felt his bangs getting messed with before Sonic then stopped, the two looking at each other. Tails then hugged Sonic, his tails swishing happily. "Glad you're okay, Sonic," he said.
Sonic smiled back as he returned the embrace. "Me too, kid," he said.
"No wonder I don't like gardening," Amy commented, dusting herself off.
Metarex Kingape was also shaken up by what transpired. "What a botanical nightmare," he said.
"Get lost, pal," said Amy.
Everyone stared down at Metarex Kingape, who sweat-dropped. "I couldn't stop myself from tricking you," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "I was programmed for monkey business. I'm really sorry! I learned my lesson!"
He bowed as he said this, only to see Sonic with the Chaos Emerald. "Ah, what a beautiful Emerald!" he said.
He tried to grab the Emerald from Sonic, only for the hedgehog to dart out of the way before returning to Metarex Kingape's side. "I'm not that slow, buddy," he said.
Metarex Kingape slowly turned to the others. Sonic, Amy, and Tails looked more than ready for a fight. "This mission… is drivin' me bananas!" he exclaimed before getting instantaneously blown up by the trio.
………………………………………………………………………
Meanwhile, Grace woke up to find herself laying in bed in the Blue Typhoon's medbay. Sitting up, she looked around at her new surroundings when the door opened. Creecha entered, followed by Cosmo. "You don't have to tell me what happened, sweetie," she said. "Wallflower and Cosmo told me the whole story. I'm so proud of you for not only handling yourself out there, but also for helping others."
Grace smiled. "Thanks Mom," she said. "Though I do feel a little funny."
Creecha chuckled. "That much I expected," she said. "Cosmo mentioned the same thing earlier, so your Aunt Twilight and I did a quick test on the both of you and realized that the Planet Egg from that jungle place must've given you both newfound powers and abilities. Same with your Aunt Wallflower."
"Really?" asked Cosmo. "I never imagined that happening to anyone, least of all me."
"No wonder the both of us couldn't conrol it," Grace realized. "It was entirely new to us, and we didn't know how to handle it."
"And Wallflower was able to fix the problem with no effort at all," Cosmo added. "It was like she knew what she was doing."
"That's because Wallflower's had more experience with her powers when it comes to plants," Creecha smiled. "And don't worry, because a certain someone knows just how you both feel in a way."
Saying this, she brought out a communicator from her dress pocket and turned on some sort of hologram. A certain young woman in a snow-white dress studied with element diamonds appeared in the hologram, looking like she was working on something. Grace instantly recognized her. "Aunt Elsa!" she exclaimed.
Elsa looked up, smiling when she saw who it was. "Why, hello there, Grace," she said. "It's good to see you again. I was about to call and find out how everything's going with that mission of yours, but it took me a while to figure out how this hologram thing worked. Not exactly used to it."
She then laid eyes on Cosmo. "Oh. Who's this?" she asked.
"This is our new friend Cosmo," Grace said, gesturing to the Seedrian. "Cosmo, this is my Aunt Elsa."
Cosmo nodded in greeting, Elsa returning it. "It's good to finally see you Cosmo," she said. "Creecha here told us about you."
Just then, another voice came from offscreen. "What the–? Elsa, are you talking to someone on the hologram and didn't even tell me?"
Elsa snorted a laugh as she turned to whoever asked her. "Anna, I was planning on doing a solo call," she said. "I hadn't originally planned for anyone to join in."
Soon, footsteps could be heard as Anna appeared, slightly offended. "Still, you could've at least told me," she said.
Creecha silently giggled, amused. The banter went on for a little while before Anna said goodbye and left, having also gotten to meet Cosmo and say hi to Grace as well. Then, after letting her know what happened to the two young girls and Wallflower, Elsa immediately knew what was going on in them on controlling their newfound powers; after all, she herself once went through the same thing since her winter powers were controlled by her emotions. Long story short, it was extremely hard at first due to an isolated childhood after an icey accident from when they were kids, but thanks to Anna's sacrifice to save her, Elsa came to realize that love was the key to power control. She'd had a better handle on her powers ever since. After advising them to be careful with their new abilities and to not let their negative emotions get the better of them lest their powers get out of control, she said goodbye and ended the call, but not before asking them to say hi to Wallflower for her.
As the call ended, Wallflower came in, picking a leaf from her hair. "These new abilities of ours are a little trickier than I realized," she chuckled. "Almost got caught with a vine in the training room. One of my own, at that."
The girls all chuckled as Creecha left, leaving the three friends alone. "So now what?" asked Cosmo. "With our new powers, I don't know what we're going to do now."
"Obviously, we use our new abilities to fight for what's right," Grace answered. "Using it for selfish reasons is never good."
Wallflower nodded. "We use our gifts, talents, and powers to help others in need," she said. "This is one of those times."
She then turned to Cosmo. "It's clear you're new to this sort of thing," she said. "If you want to, I can teach you how to use your newfound powers. And Grace here can help out too."
"Sure thing," Grace smiled. "I may be 10 years old, but in the 6 years I've been adopted by the Guard, I've learned a lot of stuff. I can even hold my own in a fight."
"And together," Wallflower added, "we can win this war."
Cosmo was so happy, she thought she could cry. "You would really do that?" she asked. "For me?"
The two nodded, leading to Cosmo hugging them both. "Thank you," she said.
Wallflower and Grace may not have said anything as they returned the embrace, but they didn't need to; their expressions said everything. "We'll start training first thing in the morning," said Wallflower.
………………………………………………………………………
At the bridge, everyone else was gathered around chatting. "Thanks for helping me out there, guys," Amy said to Cream and Cheese. "Honestly, I don't know what I would've done without you."
"We're just glad we could help, Amy," Cream replied, Cheese responding with a happy "Chao!"
Twilight smiled at the interaction before she happened to look up. "Hey, there's the girl of the hour," she said as Wallflower and the kids entered. "Are you doing okay, Grace?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine," said Grace. "Just passed out for a while from that whole new magic usage, but I'll be fine."
"Nice," Starlight said. "Because you've been out for about a couple hours; we left the jungle planet about an hour before."
"Hope we never have to deal with that again," said Sunset. "Just saying."
Everyone laughed as Amy and Grace locked eyes with each other and wordlessly nodded. Twilight just giggled as she opened her backpack and took out the green and blue Chaos Emeralds. She handed them to Tails and Cosmo, who placed them on the table. "Only 2 down," she said.
"And 5 more to go," Tails added.
"I'm sure we'll get them all back," said Cosmo happily.
Chris turned to her. "You think so, Cosmo?" he asked.
"You bet!" Cosmo answered. "Today I learned that if we all work together, anything is possible."
"Chao chao!" said Cheese happily.
Grace smiled. "Well said Cosmo," she said, hugging her from behind. "Well said."
The 5 friends looked out the window as the Blue Typhoon cruised on to its next destination.
ns 15.158.61.46da2
