Universe 170119
Shadow used more energy than he's used to, and now he had no strength left to keep fighting.
Rouge and Omega rushed as fast as they could to him, and Rouge kneeled to grab Shadow and place him on her legs, which made the Ultimate Life Form open his eyes slightly.
"D-Did... Did I did it...?" Shadow asked weakly.
"Kinda..." Rouge replied, before frowning at him. "What were you thinking?! You know you can't use more power without getting killed, you idiot!"
"Not to mention, your full strength drains all your energy..." Omega pointed out with concern.
Shadow chuckled and sat down painfully in the ground. "I did what had to be done... Anything to get the job done, right?"
"Yeah, about that..." Eggman's voice spoke, and Team Dark's eyes opened wide.
They turned upwards and saw Eggman, intact and alive, over his Eggmobile, while Sage floated at his side, and Eggman grinned from ear to ear.
"Thanks to my daughter, I've survived!" Eggman said with glee. "And even better: I have two shards of the Paradox Prism now! Once I have finished you three, I'll leave this universe and will invade the next world!"
"Not if I can do something about it!" A female voice spoke, one that Eggman recognized, and it made him growl.
Not so far from Team Dark and Eggman, Opaline landed in the ground and showed off her ignited horn and wings, as well as the sixteen shards of the Paradox Prism she has obtained so far.
"If you truly believe you can get in my way, then let me remind you who I am, Ivo!" Opaline declared with anger.
"Like if I gave a damn!" Eggman said with anger, before grinning again. "Although, thinking about it, this is perfect: I can kill two birds in one shot!"
"W-We'll see about that, doctor..." Shadow said, as he placed his Inhibitor Rings back and then stood up.
Now a massive battle approached in this universe: Queen Opaline Arcana, Team Dark, and Dr. Eggman against each other for the control of the Paradox Prism's shards.
"Seems like we all know what we're gonna do in here..." Eggman muttered with a growl. "I say we skip presentations... And let's get down to the fight!"
"Agreed!" Opaline said with anger.
"Don't have to tell us twice!" Shadow declared with a frown, while Rouge and Omega nodded in agreement.
With that, the three bands launched against each other with warrior cries and got down to the fight that, without exaggerating, could define the fate of the multiverse.
The first to attack was Opaline, who launched a fire blast towards the opposing sides, and in turn, said blast split into two to attack both sides. Eggman managed to move to the side in Eggmobile, while Team Dark had to split up in order to dodge the other blast from the Fire Alicorn.
Of course, the next to attack was Eggman, who pressed a button on his Eggmobile, which launched several missiles towards Opaline and Team Dark.
The Fire Alicorn used her magic to burn the missiles, the fire from the explosion they caused was absorbed by her horn with a sinister smile. For his part, Shadow jumped and kicked a missile up, which Rouge kicked down, while Omega grabbed said missile and then returned it to the others who were heading towards them.
Now it was Team Dark's turn to attack, so they split up: Omega would deal with Eggman, since he really wanted to finish him off, while Shadow and Rouge would deal with Opaline.
Omega brought out the heavy artillery and became just what he was: A walking weapon, as he pinned his hands to the ground, while his arms and chest opened to reveal various weapons that he always kept hidden, and only used on occasions that really required them, like this one.
Soon, the robot began firing everything it had at Eggman, while Eggman locked himself in his Eggmobile and simply withstood his creation's attacks as long as he could with his Eggmobile receiving several dents.
For their part, Shadow and Rouge dealt with the Fire Alicorn, which was limited to launching remote-controlled blasts that tried to hit the Mobians, but they always crossed paths to make the blasts collide with each other and explode, enraging Opaline, who growled angrily.
Shadow then leaped into the air and landed on Opaline's back as he rode her, upsetting the Alicorn and making her flail around her wildly in a desperate attempt to throw Shadow off of her.
As Shadow mounted Opaline, Rouge came over and began kicking the Alicorn of Fire in the face, stomach, ribs, and even her legs, the latter being one of her most sensitive areas to touch, especially considering that she's still a horse at the end of the day, with or without magic.
However, Opaline eventually ran out of patience, and she began to move even more wildly, to the point where every time Rouge tried to kick her in the face, she was the one who got kicked because of Opaline and her hooves, and she eventually ended up sending her to the ground, while in turn being able to get Shadow off her.
With Shadow and Rouge on the ground, the Alicorn used her magic to create a barrier of fire that surrounded Shadow and Rouge, then turned to face Omega and headed towards him.
Of course, Shadow tried to teleport out of there, but he no longer had the strength to use Chaos Control, and he ended up painfully kneeling on the ground.
On the other hand, Omega kept shooting at Eggman, but eventually Sage came and snapped her fingers, causing the Egg Breaker to return to normal, which gave Eggman a chance to get into the machine and close the capsule, then headed towards Omega, since his attacks no longer dealt damage.
Omega didn't panic, but he did get worried when the Egg Breaker kicked him into the barrier of fire that Shadow and Rouge were trapped in. They immediately rushed to him to check if he was okay, even though they felt their bodies hurting a lot.
With Team Dark out of the way, Eggman turned the Egg Breaker around to face Opaline, while Opaline frowned in rage as she landed in the ground and looked over at Eggman. They both knew what had to be done now: Either one of them got all the shards, or they both die in here.
"Is just you an me, old friend..." Eggman said with anger. "After so long, I can finally do what I've been wanting to do ever since you took my Metal Virus: Strangle you to death!"
"I'll be the one that strangles you, Ivo..." Opaline declared, before opening and igniting her wings again. "NOW BRING IT ON!!!"
With that, the two villains launched against each other, ready to finish off this battle once and for all.
Universe 220822
Pipp walked back and forth on her place with concern.
No matter how much she wanted to calm herself down, she still was panicking in fear. Team Anomaly returned recently and told them that they rescued Sonic, but that he left as soon as he got a message that Tails was in danger.
Of course, Pipp's first instinct was to get mad with him. Now it made sense why she heard noise coming from the Living Room earlier that day: Sonic was there, he took the warp pipe to the Mushroom Kingdom and left... He didn't said hi to her nor anyone else on Team A.
However, she calmed down immediately when she remembered that Sonic was captured in the first place because of him wanting to save Tails... Hopefully he had accomplished said mission.
It didn't changed the fact that she felt a bit hurt, though. He skipped even saying hi to her, or check how she was doing. She wanted Tails to live as much as him, of course she does! He's her brother-in-law, after all... But why did Sonic had to go straight to him without checking on her?
"Ugh... Maybe I'm being way too noisy about this... Maybe it isn't a big deal, and I'm just making it one for being so worried..." Pipp said with an awkward chuckle that ended on a sad sigh. "Is just what I always do..."
"Pipp?" Amy's voice called out suddenly, and Pipp felt a bit startled after hearing her voice, so she turned to see that it was her, and then sighed in relief.
"Amy, you scared me!" Pipp said with a chuckle. "What are you doing here?"
"I, um... I wanted to check on you..." Amy confessed with an awkward chuckle. "Maybe you don't need it, or maybe you do... Either way, I was just concerned."
"Aww, that's so sweet of you..." Pipp said with a smile, hugging Amy a bit, before sighing sadly again. "Honestly? I do feeling like talking with someone right now... Specially with how concerned I've been feeling these past few days..."
"Well, I'm all ears!" Amy stated with a smile.
Soon, the two of them brought some chairs and sat over them, while Amy looked at Pipp expectantly.
"Whenever you are ready, I'll be here to listen!" Amy told Pipp with a smile.
Pipp smiled a bit back, before looking down at the ground with concern. "...I'm just really, really, really worried for Sonic..." She confessed, before suddenly chuckled. "Well, duh! Is not like I really can think on anything else lately... No matter how many things he has done for me and my home, I still panic at the thought of him putting himself in danger..."
"I'll tell you to get used to it, but honestly? I'll be lying both to you and to myself..." Amy confessed with a sad smile. "I've been there almost anytime he's fighting against Eggman, and I've always seen him get out of every difficult situation, no matter how impossible it looks... And yet I'm still not used to him getting himself dragged into all those dangerous situations, even after all these years."
"Did it got any... easier? To see him go into a new adventure and worry about him?" Pipp decided to ask out of curiosity. "Did you ever... felt less concerned for his safety as time passed?"
Amy sighed this time and denied with her head, much to Pipp's disappointment. "It doesn't matter how many times I tell myself he'll be fine, my mind still creates millions of outcomes where he never returns... Is like if it tried to tell me that I shouldn't be ashamed to feel worried, but... Doesn't changes the fact that I worry, anyways..."
"Tell me about it..." Pipp said with a smile. "I've been imagining all the things that could wrong if he gets to unknown worlds without me... My biggest fear is that... That something really bad happens again, and I'm not there at his side to provide help..."
"For the longest time, that was my biggest fear as well..." Amy confessed, before smiling. "But I've learned to live with that, at least... Is not a lot, but I'll say is better than nothing!"
Pipp chuckled after hearing that, before looking down concerned again. "...I never told Sonic about this, but... Back when Knuckles accidentally activated that Cyberspace portal and transported us to the Starfall Islands... I was not afraid for me. I was concerned about him. My first thought was to get out of wherever I was and go to look after him, to make sure he was fine..."
"Let me guess: You got trapped by Sage in Cyberspace after that?" Amy asked with a mocking smirk.
Pipp groaned and rolled her eyes annoyed, but still smiled back at Amy and nodded. "You got that right... I didn't really cared for the nightmare I was living in my cage, either. Loose my fans, loose Sonic, stay alone forever, feel that I'm worthless... None of that scared me because I knew that Sonic would found me eventually, I just wished he didn't found me while getting corrupted..."
"I still wanna hit him with my hammer for not telling me that, either..." Amy said with a frown.
"Amy!" Pipp scolded with wide and panicked eyes.
"Am I wrong?" Amy deadpanned, and Pipp rolled her eyes again.
"He kind of deserves it, I'll give you that... Bu that's not the point!" Pipp corrected herself and got back on track. "I learned by being trapped in there that as long as I resisted just to see him smile again, nothing else would matter... Yet I think I... I'm reaching a point where I can't take it anymore..."
Amy's ears lowered after she heard that, so she stood up from her place and approached Pipp, embracing her into a hug, and Pipp decided to accept it and return it.
"I-I'm sorry for bothering you with this kind of stuff..." Pipp apologized, as she also began to tear up in sadness. "I-Is just... I-I'm so tired of waiting for him to return! I-I'm tired of smiling and pretend that everything is fine when it isn't! I-I'm tired of trying to remain strong for him when I'm not feeling strong!"
Amy never broke the hug, she simply listened to Pipp's sorrow. She was probably the only one of her friends that understands how's she feeling, anyways. After all, Amy herself still loves Sonic the same way Pipp does, and she knows what it feels like to wait for him.
"I-I just want him back... I want him at my side, hug him so tightly and never let him go ever again..." Pipp sobbed, as she finally broke the hug, but her tears were still falling, and it even messed up her makeup. "I... I wanna know that he's fine... That he'll be back with me... with us... That we'll laugh and smile together again as we always do... That's all I really want..."
Amy looked down at Pipp with a smile, so she lifted her chin with her hand. "Pipp... I'm not exaggerating when I say I'm the only one in the entire multiverse that understands you perfectly... You have no idea how many times I spent nights awake, wondering if he'll be fine, if he'll came back from his latest adventure... Sometimes he did intact, and sometimes he had wounds that required my attention... After I scolded him, of course."
Pipp smiled and chuckled after hearing that last thing.
"But let me promise you something, Pipp: It doesn't matter where Sonic goes, or what he does... In the end, he always comes back to his friends, even if sometimes he's all beaten up!" Amy said with a smile, now taking Pipp's hooves and caressing them with her hands. "Sonic has always been a man of word, and when his own word gets broken, is usually because of things he cannot control. Hence why he always feels like a terrible person when a promise he made gets broken because of circumstances he had no previous knowledge about."
"Like how he promised me no more surprises, then Sunset came and said she wanted to recruit him and Sunny..." Pipp exampled with a smile.
"See? Sonic actually keeps his word! Is just a matter of being patient, Pipp... He'll come back with you, and when he does... I know you two will face together whatever comes!" Amy assured with a determinate smile.
Pipp smiled and then dragged her into another hug. "No... He'll come back with us, and when he does, we'll face together whatever comes!"
Amy felt surprised by the hug and those words, but still smiled, before returning the hug as well.
Meanwhile, in another dimension...
Tails was walking around the mushroom forest that leads to the pipe back to Green Hills.
He wanted to clear his mind a little bit from all the problems that'd been happening lately: Sonic getting chased down by the Secret Society, Sonic being an "anomaly", Opaline being a menace to the multiverse, Eggman planning the same thing than Opaline, and now Sonic doing something he can't still understand fully.
He soon decided to stop walking once he reached a small lake full of Cheep Cheeps. Then, he removed his shoes and socks to put his feet on the water, and he shivered at first when he felt it cold, but got used to it after a few seconds.
This was everything he needed right now: Peace and silence to think. He always does this whenever his mind is conflicted. After all, he has researched about the subject, and he knows that the best way to clear your mind to put your thoughts in order is find a quiet place.
Well, that, or a place only filled with nature sounds, and considering he was in a lake with Cheep Cheeps, while some other critters from this world made their sounds around, this place couldn't had any more nature if possible.
But then, Tails suddenly heard something approaching from behind, which made his ears perk up, and he turned around slightly startled and panicked, but then immediately relaxed when he saw that the one approaching him was Zipp, his girlfriend... Marefriend... Pair? Couple?
He groaned internally. He'll research about that topic later, even though he's been calling her his girlfriend... He was just happy to see her approach him.
"Missed me so soon?" Tails asked with a mocking tone. "I've been gone for, like, 10 minutes!"
Zipp rolled her eyes and then smooched Tails' cheek. "Now I have to ask for permission to see how my cute and grown up boyfriend is doing?"
"Depends on the kind of context you've come to see me~" Tails replied with a tone that clearly suggested something.
This made Zipp blush like mad and chuckled awkwardly, as she looked around slightly panicked. "E-Easy, sweetie... Mom wants me pure until I'm married, even though I ain't that much anymore..."
Tails bursted out laughing after hearing her response, and Zipp blushed again, but this time feeling mad with him.
"Come on! You know I'm serious, Tails!" Zipp said with puffed cheeks.
"I'm just kidding, Zipp!" Tails said with a smile. "I know you came here to check on me."
Zipp's eyes widened in surprise after hearing that. "Y-You do?! J-Just like that?! But I literally just came here!"
"I'm no expert, Zippy. I know you want to know how I feel regarding the whole situation with the multiverse, Sonic, Opaline..." Tails summarized. "I'm honestly just worried that Sonic's vision is warning about something that will happen, not that could..."
Zipp's eyes widened again in pure terror after hearing that. "Of course is not going to happen!" She declared exasperated. "Not while Sunny, Sonic, Misty and I are around! You won't die! Neither will Hitch!"
"I'm not saying I'm going to, Zipp... Doesn't mean you shouldn't be prepared in case it happens..." Tails pointed out with concern.
"It won't happen!" Zipp stated again, but now starting to tear up and breathe heavily. "I-I don't care what I have to do... I-I'm not loosing you!"
Tails saw how worried Zipp was feeling, so he smiled and embraced her into a hug, caressing and rubbing her back for comfort. "I know you'll do anything in your power to avoid my death, Zipp... Doesn't changes the fact that you have to be ready in case something bad happens."
Of course, hearing this only made Zipp feel even more sad, and she teared up even more, burring her face on her boyfriend's chest and crying a lot.
This reminded Tails of that time Haven wanted her to be the spotlight for a Ball, but she didn't wanted to, and that lead to Haven getting so mad that she said so many things that hurt her daughter, which made her run away, hide in a cave, and cry her lungs out in there.
Tails arrived and comforted her, just like he's comforting her right now... That's the day they confessed to each other, and he always remember it with a smile, because that's the day he got Zipp's heart for himself.
He broke the hug and then made Zipp face him. Even when crying, he still found her beautiful, something he has learned to appreciate for a while. After all, Sonic himself taught him that he could find even her enraged side one of the most attractive things ever.
"Look, I'll do my best to stay away from danger and avoid that vision to become real..." Tails assured her with a determinate look. "BUT, you seriously have to be ready in case I do end up, well, dead... Is something that has to happen one day, anyways... None of us are immortals, and we're both gonna day one day..."
"But I don't want you to die! Not so soon! I-I don't want you to leave my side..." Zipp said, as she kept tearing up and held one of Tails' hands with her hooves. "I-If you die... I won't be able to stand up and keep going, Tails... I simply won't..."
"That's not true, Zipp..." Tails stated, caressing her cheeks with his hands. "That's why I want you to promise me that, no matter what happens, you'll keep fighting... for me."
Zipp looked at Tails with sadness, and her eyes kept tearing up... But she knew that, liked it or not, he was right... She had to be ready to loose him, even if she doesn't wants to.
So, taking a deep breath and sighing, Zipp looked back at Tails with a determinate look. "...I promise you... That if things go wrong... I-I'll do my best to keep your memory alive... And that I will fight back for you..."
Tails smiled and kissed her lips, while Zipp kissed him back. "That's everything I wanted to hear~" Tails said with a smile, and even if she was still concerned, Zipp smiled back.
Knuckles was at the training course Peach showed earlier.
The echidna was using a Fire Flower power-up, which turned his fur orange, the tip of his quills turned white, and his shoes turned white as well with the original yellow zone still remaining yellow. It also seemed that his electrical powers combined with fire now thanks to the power-up.
However, Knuckles could barely concentrate as he tried to clear the course, because he always failed with either the Piranha Plants, or the platforms that fell as soon as you step over them.
He growled in anger and shook his head, then moved ahead and tried to clear the course again, just to fail and get sent to the beginning of the course, much to his frustration. He was so frustrated that he never noticed when Izzy arrived, as she looked at him concerned.
"Knuckie?" Izzy called out, and Knuckles felt startled, to the point he hit his head with a block and lost his recently re-acquired power-up. "Sorry! I-I didn't wanted to scare you!"
Knuckles groaned in pain, but then looked at Izzy and smiled a bit. "Eh, is fine, Iz..." He assured her, before looking down at the ground with concern. "I'm just not... feeling like myself, I guess..."
"Yeah, I noticed that..." Izzy replied concerned.
She then approached her boyfriend and nuzzled her face on his chest, making the echidna blush slightly embarrassed, but he still allowed her to nuzzle, and he even caressed her mane like if she was a kitten.
"Can I ask you why are you so worried?" Izzy asked. "I noticed your attitude changing after Tails told us that Sonic went on his own..."
"Yeah, that's exactly the problem..." Knuckles replied angry, as he then sat on the border of the floating balcony and then sighed, as he looked at the ocean below, while Izzy came and sat besides him. "I know that Sonic can take care of himself, that he's no kid in need of a guardian looking for his back..."
"But?" Izzy said, since she knew Knuckles was going to use that word next.
"But I also know that Sonic isn't immortal..." Knuckles began to explain. "He's just as mortal and vulnerable as any of us! He needs help even if he doesn't wants to admit it! I just wished he was a lot more grounded and realized that if he keeps doing things the way he's doing them... He'll end up killing himself... And that's the last thing I want..."
Izzy could understand her couple's concern, so she smiled and hugged him, which surprised Knuckles again, but he didn't said anything. He simply stood there and let her do the job... He'll be lying if he said he didn't needed to feel less concerned for Sonic, anyways.
"Well... I don't really know what to tell you regarding Sonic and his attitude... But I do know that if you stand here and wait for a miracle to simply save his butt, nothing's gonna happen..." Izzy pointed out. "Sonic makes the hard job by giving the killer punch to the bad guy... But that doesn't means he never needs help. Or have you forgot that Neo Metal and the Death Egg Titan couldn't be defeated if not for you and Tails, being there with him?"
Knuckles snorted a bit and smiled after she mentioned that. "It is hard to forget..."
"Sonic is a guy that can take himself out of hard situations, true, but that doesn't mean that you're not watching his back. If anything, I'll say you're a tiny, itsy-bitsy overprotective sometimes..." Izzy said with a wink and a mocking tone that made Knuckles snort and roll his eyes. "But that's good! It means that you care, and that you're willing to do all the crazy stuff you do with him just so he can be safe... So don't be so bothered, Knuckie... You're doing a great job looking after Sonic, and I know he appreciates you as a friend, even if you two mock and tease each other so much!"
Knuckles smiled and dragged Izzy for a quick kiss, which she gladly returned. "What did I ever did to you to deserve you, Isabella?"
"You did nothing, Knux..." Izzy said with a smile. "You always deserved me, from day one I fell in love with you~"
Knuckles kissed her again, more passionately this time, and the kisses started to get too intense... Just use your imagination to see what happens next, I'm not showing you 'cause is not Rated E for Everyone!
Universe 170119
Chaos and destruction where two things the residents of Canterlot City were already used to.
That doesn't means that it becomes any easier to handle it, though, because when a giant robot with a face and a Fire Alicorn, both from another dimension, are fighting all across the sky of their already very damaged city, it only assures more chaos and destruction incoming.
Right now, the doctor and Opaline were fighting in the sky, with Eggman shooting lasers from his Egg Breaker's eyes, while Opaline fired blasts of fire at her opponent.
Who knew that the once allies now want nothing more than to kill each other, huh?
Soon, Eggman fired the spiked ball from his right arm at Opaline, who dodged the ball and then proceeded to create one of her own, obviously made of fire, before launching it at Eggman. However, the one who undid the attack was not Eggman, but Sage, who got in the way and used her power to create a barrier around her father.
This enraged Opaline, who proceeded to release a fire blast that split to hit both father and daughter, but Sage used her power to extract the two blasts with her bare hands.
After that, Sage transformed Opaline's fire energy into electrical energy to recharge Eggman's Egg Breaker, which caused some pain inside his own machine, and when Sage finished recharging, he sighed in relief, then received a piece of statistical news that surprised him.
"Power's at 400% capacity now, father," Sage informed, as she stood at the Egg Breaker's side.
Eggman's eyes widened in surprise after hearing that, then he grinned. "How about that?"
With this news, Eggman sent much of that extra energy into the laser eyes, charging up a powerful beam that launched at Opaline, sending the Fire Alicorn back.
Opaline snarled in fury, then created a barrier around herself to resist the attack and then flew forward, piercing Eggman's laser and countering with a fire laser created from her own magic. However, Eggman did not give in so easily, and as soon as they both stopped using the laser, Eggman hit her with the spiked ball.
Opaline snarled even more angrily, already fed up with Eggman's games, and was willing to do whatever it took to finish off the doctor and get him and his daughter out of her way.
However, it was this last thing that made her eyes widen: His daughter, his weak point, his shield... The perfect bait to bring the doctor down with just one attack, one that made Opaline smile ear by ear, as this would probably be her most sinister move yet.
So, without thinking twice, Opaline flashed her horn to charge up another powerful blast and looked with a sinister smile at her enemies, but more specifically at Sage, whom she intended to eliminate for her own good.
"I'd had enough of your damn games, Ivo... Which is why I'm going to finish you off with an attack that I know will leave you stunned!" Opaline shouted in rage, followed by her typical maniac laugh.
That left Eggman and Sage confused, but they weren't intimidated by the Fire Alicorn, and kept in their same positions to defend each other from her attack. Soon, Opaline released him on them, with Sage creating a barrier around her and around Eggman.
She soon undid the shield and looked around confused, while Eggman also looked around concerned, because Opaline couldn't be seen anywhere now.
Her sudden disappearance also caused the fire barrier around Team Dark to fade away, which startled both the father-daughter villains and the Team that's been free'd... However, even of Eggman and Sage stood defensive, Team Dark got concerned when they turned to see them.
Yet their concern wasn't because of them, but it was concern for them.
"Eggman, Sage! MOVE!" Shadow warned them with a panicked and anxious expression.
This confused the father-daughter villain duo even more... But said confusion faded away and turned into tragedy as soon as Sage's eyes widened... Because Opaline traversed her chest with her horn.
For a split of second, time around stop moving... Team Dark looked in absolute shock and horror what happened, with Omega's eyes opening wide, Rouge covering her mouth in horror, and Shadow getting a horrible feeling about what was Eggman going to do.
Opaline was grinning from ear to ear before her accomplishment, while Sage herself got stunned on being literally stabbed in the back, a sensation she never thought she'll ever get to experience... She definitely hated it.
As for Eggman, his expression was painful, desperate, horrified... He literally just saw his daughter getting killed, right in front of his eyes... At least the last time he didn't saw her dying, she simply exploded in space, and Eggman already knew that she was gone.
But now, he witnessed the whole thing with his bare eyes, and he couldn't do anything, even being right at her side... He failed her again.
"SAAAAAAAAGEE!!!!" Eggman screamed in horror, as he extended his arm to her.
Next, Opaline got her horn out of Sage's body, while the infant fell to the ground, as she stopped glowing, while Eggman landed right besides her and got out of the suit, grabbing her in his arms and breathing heavily in panic... It was happening again...
Opaline, on the other hand, took the two Prism Shards that Eggman had obtained so far, then attached them to her bracelets, and then screamed in glee when she felt their power running through her veins.
5 Green shards, and 5 yellow shards... Only 4 red shards and 4 blue shards, though. But it didn't mattered right now. She had enough power, and now she could leave this universe to go and get her final shards, then begin her plan to take over the entire multiverse.
So, Opaline took fly with her new acquired shards and left this universe through a green portal... No one tried to stop her because everyone was too stunned for what she did to Sage.
Eggman hold his daughter on his arms, and he removed his glasses to take a better look at her. "S-Sage... D-Dear, please hang on tight... I-I'll repair you! I'll repair your body, a-and then we'll go back to the plan!" He said with a sad smile, while tears menaced to appear from the corner of his eyes.
Sage, however, only chuckled painfully and coughed a weird black substance, which probably meant that it was her blood. "N-No need to waste your time like that, d-dad..."
"Waste my time?! Nonsense! I-I won't loose you! I-I can't loose you..." Eggman replied with a crack, and now he was tearing up for real. Then, he pressed a button that contacted with Orbot and Cubot. "You two, MOVE NOW! Sage is DYING!"
Not so long happened before a white portal suddenly opened and showed Orbot and Cubot, both showing up with medical equipment, that they immediately let fall once they saw Sage's state, so they rushed to her side, while Eggman kept tearing up even more.
Team Dark couldn't believe what they were seeing... The very same Dr. Eggman that always acted confident and ready for a fight was now crying, as he held the weakened body of his daughter.
Rouge could act as thought as she wanted, but even she got touched by the scene; Omega had the perfect chance to finish Eggman off... But even so, knowing a kid of all the things was dying was his weak spot... And he couldn't do that to Sage, no matter if she was Eggman's daughter.
As for Shadow? He never thought the day would come... But it did: He was genuinely feeling bad for Eggman...
Sage coughed a bit more of black blood. "I... I-I'm sorry I won't be there when you conquer it all, Dad... I.. I-I wanted to help you so badly..."
"Y-You'll be there... Y-You'll be there! I-I don't care what I must do, but I know y-you'll be there!" Eggman replied, his tears now falling even faster.
"S-Sis..." Orbot said with concern, as one of his hands trembled in fear and couldn't even touch his sister.
But Cubot didn't even thought about it, and he did grabbed Sage's hand. "Sis! Please don't do this! Don't leave us!"
"I... I-I know you wanted to feel appreciated..." Sage told Eggman, as she teared up and took a deep breath. "A-And I want you to know... T-That I always a-appreciated you, Dad... T-That I always loved you... And that I'm so happy you were my father..."
Eggman's heart shattered into million pieces now... He knew what was coming, what was going to inevitably happen, but he was still in denial... Yet there was nothing he could do about it.
Soon, Sage slowly turned to see Orbot and Cubot. "I-I know we only knew each other for a year... B-But I really wanna thank you... F-For being the best big brothers I could have asked for..."
Orbot had to turn around and hug himself in the image, while Cubot seemed to share the same denial than Eggman. None of the two robots wanted to see her go forever... But just like their creator, they knew what was coming.
Sage weakly looked at Eggman one last time. "... -Thank you for everything... D-Dad..."
Those were her last words, and after that, she slowly closed her eyes, her chest wasn't raising anymore, and no more tears were falling from her eyes... This marked the end of her life... But she left with a smile, and even if she didn't died protecting Eggman, she still died for his cause, and that was enough for her.
Eggman couldn't believe it... His eyes were moving anxiously, and Cubot was desperately moving her body, while Orbot began to make whimpering noises.
He was a robot, but he still had feelings... Now he was mourning his sister's death. Cubot was calling her name out constantly, but of course, she wasn't going to ever wake up. He even tried to make Eggman snap back into reality, but Eggman's gaze was lost.
He couldn't stop staring at his daughter's dead body... He loose so many badniks and people on his life, he never cared for any of them... But Sage was different.
She never did anything she did out of a code, she did it out of love. Even if she questioned his reasons, she stood loyal at his side. She always admired his accomplishments and praised them like no one ever did... But most importantly, she looked up to him the way a daughter does to her father.
Sage was everything for him, his best creation ever made... And now she's gone...
Eggman began to tear up again, and he carefully grabbed her dead body, hugging it tightly and crying out his lungs, as loud as he could, and as desperate as well.
Orbot and Cubot approached slowly, but they were not so sure if hugging Eggman was fine right now... Yet they felt surprised when Eggman himself dragged them into the hug. They were startled at first, but they didn't doubted to hug their creator back, for the very first time in their lives.
They were not a villain and his creations being dramatic over a badnik's death... They were a family crying the lost of one of their loved ones.
Team Dark, on the other hand, stood silent so far as they watched the scene, but after a few seconds, Shadow walked up to Eggman. Rouge extended her hand and tried to stop him, but Omega stopped her with an arm, and he also denied with his head.
On the other hand, Eggman kept crying Sage's death, but then he heard someone stepping in front of him.
He looked up and saw Shadow, looking at him with... With sympathy, an emotion he's never seen in Shadow before... It felt wrong...
But a part of him also believed that it was right.
"...I understand the feeling, doc... Loosing someone right before your eyes... And not being able to do anything despite being right there..." Shadow said honestly, as he remembered his own despair when Maria was killed right in front of him. "I know nothing about Sage, but I do know she meant the world to you if you cry her death..."
"...She was my best creation... What I always wanted in a badnik... And I got it as a daughter..." Eggman replied.
"...I also know that you want Opaline dead... And at this point? I think we all do." Shadow added. "I'm aware you're a man that likes to do stuff on his own way... But if you come with us... You'll avenge her."
Eggman's eyes widened after he heard this, and he felt extremely confused. "...After all these years... After all the times I tried to kill you all... After what I have done! You forgive me instead of killing me... Why?!"
"...Because like or not... I'm still your family, Ivo..." Shadow replied, surprising all the presents, even himself. "I knew Sage for basically nothing... But she was my relative, too... And I'm willing to avenge anyone that's my family!" He stated, before turning to see Rouge and Omega with a smirk. "Blood related or not."
Eggman had no idea on how to feel right now... And he had no idea why Shadow of all people wanted to help him to get revenge... But he admitted that Shadow was right.
He had to avenge Sage, and he wasn't going to just cross his arms in here.
So, he gave Orbot and Cubot Sage's corpse, but not without kissing Sage on her forehead for the last time.
Then, Eggman looked back at Shadow with a determinate look. "...Let's get that witch's ass!"
Shadow smirked and nodded. He is very aware that this might be a very bad idea, but with Eggman's machinery on their side, they may have a really big chance to defeat Opaline and save the multiverse. Hopefully, everyone back home would understand why they decided to join forces with him, even though Team Dark is aware how polemic the alliance with Eggman is going to be... But he just lost his daughter, and he wanted vengeance.
Besides, Eggman still had something else to lose, or rather, somepony...