They all ate their breakfast and started to get ready for the day, but they were all wondering what was about to happen when it was over. What did Kaia need to say to Knuckles? How could it turn out in the end?

Knuckles left the table almost immediately after finishing his bowl of cereal, and he went to the living room and sat on the floor. Kaia followed and everyone else shortly after, watching the watery being that was settled on the couch.

"Go ahead..." He murmured, "...Say what needs to be said."

Kaia waved her arms a bit as she spoke, though it seemed to be both to him and not to him, as she wasn't looking at him as she spoke. "You lost it. I can't believe you lost the Master Emerald. You go through all of that, all of it! And then you just... forget where it is! Do you have any idea how many years I wandered around, following you guys around and trying to just take them back? All of the time I spent just walking and walking and walking, only for me to learn that you probably buried it somewhere to keep it away from everyone else- myself included!- and then you just forgot where you buried it!"

"Well," Sonic broke into her rant, "Technically it wasn't that they forgot where it was, it was more that it was taken from them."

The being paused, turning her head to look the hedgehog in the eye. "...Do tell, little speedster."

Sonic grimaced, "Well... So, the Echidnas had the emerald, and then the Owls decided that they weren't worthy of it and stole it from them, and they buried it somewhere. The Echidnas and the Owls fought for a really long time over that, trying to either keep it hidden or find it, and then the Echidnas killed off the last Owl Warrior, my guardian Longclaw, before she told them where it was."

"So then Knuckles, the last of the Echidna Tribe, thought that Sonic must have been told where it was," Tails continued, "So he came here to find Sonic, but Sonic wasn't ever told about any of this, so..."

Kaia looked off into the distance blankly, and then slapped her forehead hard, sending ripples through her body. "You have got to be kidding me...!"

"I am deeply sorry, Kaia." Knuckles informed, "I was never informed that my tribe's acquisition of the Chaos Emeralds was by dishonorable means. I mean, I was told they were taken from you, but I never had any implication it wasn't a fair fight!"

Kaia looked up, "A fair fight...? There was no fight, Knuckles... I never touched your ancestors."
She sat down on the floor, looking thoughtful for a moment. "...My kind was called the Chao... We were a peaceful race, spending our days gathering fruit, swimming in crystal clear water, and smelling the flowers that grew in our valley. I was chosen to protect my colony from any sort of dangers, but the power that came with that title... It was too much for me to handle at the time, so... I made the Chaos Emeralds to act as power reserves, little boosts if I ever needed it."

She dipped her head, "...I didn't know about the Echidna Chieftain's lust for power... I didn't know that by making these power reserves he would... He would try to take them for his own gain... I woke up one night sensing something was there, but then I was ambushed... Tied down. I got myself free and ran back to my home as fast as I could, but... I was too late. Most of my colony was killed by the warriors trying to get to the emeralds. I was supposed to protect them! And... I couldn't help them when they needed me...!"

Maddie wrapped her arms around the girl, "You did the best you could, it's not your fault. You were outnumbered, right?"

She nodded slowly, "I... I guess... The survivors scattered... Went and found other colonies... I set out to get back what was mine. I would find them, find the emeralds, and then take them back without them knowing. I didn't want to fight them, I just wanted them back... But by the time I tracked them down... They didn't have them anymore, and their energy pulses were... Wrong. I don't know how else to explain it, but..."
She sighed, "...I thought they'd just hidden it somewhere knowing I'd come looking for them... I was so furious! If you weren't going to use them, then just give them back instead of hiding them from me! I just... I tried to track the energy, and after centuries of walking and looking, it led me here... But this world is so big..."

"It is..." Sonic hummed.

Kaia rested her head on her knees, "...One day, a few months ago, I felt the energy pulses surge... And then... I felt that old energy, like someone had purified the emeralds of their corruption. The surges led me here to this town, but... I'd decided that this was it. If they weren't here in Green Hills... I was going to just lie down and seep into the soil."

Maddie gently stroked her head fins, "Oh sweetheart... I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that."

"Why did you not simply force my ancestors to tell you what had happened to them?" Knuckles inquired.

Kaia gave a light smile as she shook her head, "Violence and aggression was never the Chao way... And violence returning violence only lends to a cycle of destruction."

Tom smiled, "Truer words were never spoken..."

Sonic looked thoughtfully up at the ceiling, "You said you felt it a few months ago... That was probably when Eggman had it."

"And then you had them!" Tails exclaimed. "Only... You sent the emeralds away when you were finished." The fox grimaced, "So... We don't know where they are anymore, either...!"

Kaia sighed, "The stones were designed to keep themselves separate unless they were contained within a vessel... So as long as they are apart, they will only pose a small danger to any one person... You must have all seven in order for the 'full effect'."
Kaia looked to the hedgehog, "You were able to use the emeralds as well?"

"Yeah! Went all golden-god and everything! Eggman did too, but I don't really know why he was green electricity while I was gold sparkles and stuff."

"This... Eggman. What intent did he have when he possessed the emeralds?"

"Total universal domination...!" Sonic motioned for dramatic effect, "To have complete control over the planet, the universe, the multiverse-!"

"Me." Obsidian informed.

Sonic gave the little hedgehog a grin, "Yes, Obbie, you are cute! Anyways, he wanted to take over everything. I was just trying to protect everyone from his giant, forest-fire-starting megabot!"

Kaia nodded, "...Chaos is power... Enriched by the heart."

"Hmm?"

"The power of Chaos is influenced by emotion and intent. The user is a means to unify the chaos... If the user is fueled by negative emotion and thoughts of evil intentions, then a negative, more destructive form of the energy comes to light..." She smiled a bit, "...But in the hands of someone with positive emotion and intent to help and not harm, a heart of gold shines through."

Sonic beamed, "That is the corniest thing I've ever heard, but I'll take it!"

"So I guess you were the one Carl saw in the woods and that was digging through the trashcans." Tom murmured, "You were just looking for the Master Emerald."

Kaia sat up a little, "I did encounter the elderly man at the edge of town when he snatched my shoes, yes. I came back to reclaim them and then because he seemed like he was hiding something, I checked his home briefly, but I never touched anyone's rubbage."

"So that only solves one mystery..." Maddie hummed, "The Trash-Terror is still out there somewhere."

"Well, one mystery solved is one mystery I don't have to deal with... Wait, but Carl said he saw two out there, how did you do that?"

Kaia stood up and then they watched as she left one of her arms behind, separating from her body and then dissolving into a puddle that looked exactly like water, but it didn't soak into the carpet. "I did this... I can only manipulate one part at a time, so I ran into the woods to lure him away, and then shifted my consciousness into the part I left at the house. The first part went into this dormant state by the creek, looking like water and so he couldn't find it, and then once he was back at his home, I swapped out again and reformed completely once the coast was clear."

"That's so sick...!" Sonic whispered as she reattached her arm.

She smiled a bit, and the blue tint brightened.

Knuckles stood up, "Miss Kaia... I must confess something to you... I have the Master Emerald here with me."

"...What?"

The echidna bowed, "I believed it to be my duty to find and return it to the land of my people... But if it was taken from you, then I must return it to you. It is yours by right."

Kaia was still for a moment, and then she bent down to his level, "Knuckles... The Master Emerald was never mine... Only the stones held within it. If the Chaos Emeralds have been freed and scattered, then the Master Emerald is one of the few things in existence that can keep their power contained and under control... It must be protected, and I think you should be the one to do so..."

"You...Are certain?"

"I am..."
The girl stood up again, "Now that I know that the seven are no longer in lustful hands... I think I need some time to... Find myself again."

"You're leaving?" Tails worried, "All alone?"

She smiled, "I won't be going far, Little One... If I need any help, I know just the house to come to... Besides," She looked to Obsidian, "Somebody's gotta be around to keep this little god from destroying the town when he hits his Terrible Twos."

"What do you mean?" Maddie asked.

Kaia and Obsidian seemed to share a look, "That little hoglet has an incredible level of power lying dormant... Where did you find him?"

"We found him as a newborn all alone in a farmer's barn," Tom replied, "Never saw or heard from his birth mother."

"Hmm... Most intriguing... Still, I don't think he could possibly be in better hands." She stepped back, "Thank you... All of you, for helping me out of my slump and providing me with some closure after all this time..."

"You're welcome, Kaia." Maddie replied, "Do visit from time to time."

"I will..."
She then snapped her fingers and disappeared from the room.

"Do you think she'll be okay?" Tails asked.

Tom smiled, "Yeah... I think she will be... Now, we all need to get ourselves ready for the day, hmm? It's almost time for you and Sonic to get to school, so chop chop!"
__________________________________________________________________________________

And with that, another god had entered the fold and was residing in Green Hills, Montana. It gave me a little bit of comfort knowing Kaia was around, she might be able to relate, to understand my situation; I might be able to talk to her about my experiences and have her take me seriously- assuming I was able to get myself a private audience with her, Tom and Maddie didn't like not knowing where I was.

As I watched my parents leave the house, waving goodbye to me and Knuckles and Tails and Sonic chasing after them with their bags, I couldn't help but think back on the last few weeks.

When I had first come to this world, I was weak, helpless, vulnerable, and most of all... Afraid. I was afraid of these people that had taken me into their home, afraid of being able to trust anyone, and afraid of the unknown. I wasn't an all-powerful sun deity anymore, I was just a little, tiny hedgehog at the mercy of these humans and the counterparts of those that tried to destroy me in my previous life.

But then I'd seen how much they cared for each other, how much they cared for me. I hadn't wanted to believe it, but then it all had clicked into place, and I found myself... Wanting to be near these mortals, wanting to wake up every morning and see their smiling faces and be a part of their lives.

I'd grown up from being small enough to fit in one of their hands to being able to sit up on my own and utter a few words. So much had happened, so much had changed!

But that rage still lingered... After all, it wasn't Sonic, Tails, or Knuckles that I had been truly angry with, and Maddie and Tom? Never were a part of the previous encounter.

No... Someone else, someone I once resembled, was the source of my rage, and if I ever saw him or his counterpart again... I was going to give him the full force of what this tiny infant body had to offer.

Knuckles looked at me with a smirk, "Now then, little warrior... Shall we go outside and train?"

I clutched my tiny spear and gave him a grin. Yes... We shall.
____________________________________________________________________________

"These human creatures are quite generous to leave so much food and supplies out for the less fortunate..."
The little alien held her tiny sack close to her chest as she hopped from boulder to boulder up the slope, her claws digging into the stone to provide a better grip. "We shouldn't need to worry about going hungry here."

She took in a breath of the mountain air, it was so sweet and clear in comparison to what she was used to. The peaks cast deep shadows on the town below, and she could see the stars beginning to fade; sunrise would be spilling over the peaks and into the valley soon, and they needed to be safely nestled in their cave by then.

She stopped as she heard gasping, and she looked back to see her friend was lagging behind, puffing as he tried to climb the rocks. "Oh, dear... I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to outrun you. Should we stop for a moment?"

"N-No... No." He replied with a sniffle, looking up through weary, watery eyes. He held his own bag in his hands, its contents being an assortment of non-food items also left in the bins. "...We can keep going."

"Are you certain?"

He nodded, giving her a smile. "Yeah! All this walking and climbing is good... Builds up stamina..."
He then gave a shiver, rubbing his arms to warm himself. "I'm just not used to this cold weather...It's making my nose run."

"Here."
She removed her cloak, wrapping it over his shoulders and closing the clasp. "This'll help."

"But what'll you wear?"

She looked down at her tattered dress, barely covering much of anything at this point with the number of burnt holes and her simply outgrowing it.
"Don't worry about me, Silver. That's my job." She gave him a reassuring smile and then took his hand. "Come on, I'll help you the rest of the way. With any luck, we'll be back at the cave before the humans wake up."

Silver smiled, "I do like seeing the sunrises here... Do you really think we'll be okay to stay here, Blaze? This isn't our world, after all."

Blaze shrugged, "If the humans do not mind the blue hedgehog you pulled out of the lake that morning being around, I do not see why we can't stay here as well." She thought to a few days before, seeing the hedgehog run around the town in a blue streak. Surely he was welcome, why wouldn't they be? Or at least, that was what she hoped; after all... "...Anything is better than what we left."

Silver huffed, looking out over the town below them. "Yeah... I guess you're right... Okay, let's go."

Blaze smiled, and then hauled him up onto the next rock. She could help but notice his hands felt a little warmer than usual. She hoped that it was just her own hands being cold from the stone, and not that he was coming down with a fever...

...The last she needed was to lose her only friend.