We stop to allow them to catch their breath. We have run quite a distance. While Black Mist and I do not need to rest, the others do.

"Where are we?" Blaze asks between gasps of breath.

"Somewhere below where Eggman's main room is," Sonic gasps. "We need to go up now. There should be a flight of stairs somewhere."

Amy leans against the handle of her hammer. She catches her breath and brings her hammer up to her shoulder. "Then let's go. I wanna get the Master Emerald before this place falls apart."

Espio and Sonic lead the way to some stairs. Espio because he'll be able to tell if something's approaching, and Sonic because he knows the way around this place. They keep a silent and steady pace for the whole time. When we arrive, Eggman's back is turned to them.

Black Mist dashes out of our hiding place and kicks Eggman's bald head hard. "THAT'S FOR USING MY FUCKING OOZE TO STRENGTHEN YOUR SHITTY ROBOTS WHILE I WAS ASLEEP!!" he exclaims.

"Scary," Shadow mutters.

Eggman growls and turns. "Why you little...!" He presses a button. "Robots, after them!"

A whole army of robots appears. They march forward in formation and in sync. Amy swings her hammer, which was enhanced by Tails before we set off, and one explodes. I suppose the research with the robot was worth it.

Sonic, Shadow, and Espio attack in short, swift movements. Blaze and Silver attack with the knife and fireballs repeatedly. It is like rapid fire. Amy smashes everything in her sight. Black Mist and I summon our beasts, and they both attack Eggman directly. They are knocked violently away by a barrier surrounding the doctor.

"Nice try," he laughs. "Did you think I wasn't prepared?"

"...Then why did my kick work?" Black Mist mutters thoughtfully.

This brings a moment of thoughtful silence as we all try to figure that out. It is actually pretty funny. Even the robots have stopped.

After a while, one of the robots finally moves. It shoots some of the black goo, and it hits Black Mist.

"You think that affects me?" Black Mist laughs. "That's my own ooze, for your information!"

A huge fight breaks out, and there is almost no room to do much of anything. All I know is that I am constantly being pushed into a corner with Black Mist, Silver, and Blaze. We fend off our assailants as best as we can, but even the Barians show up. Black Mist goes chaos at some point, and we get a little bit of progress. In a matter of seconds, though, the effects of the Barian chaos starts to affect his system. He goes back to his regular form, and he has trouble staying awake. We form a circle around him and continue our defense.

The fight is broken by a rumbling. It is stronger than the other times, and everyone is shocked. Then, a dropping feeling starts taking place, and we all realize what is happening. This island is falling, which means that the Master Emerald had not yet made it to its place.

Shadow makes his way to Black Mist. "Hey, stay awake!" he shouts over the ruckus of the panic. "We need to get out of here!"

Black Mist shakily tries to get up, but he must be too dizzy. Shadow and Sonic support him, and we escape, wanting to get as far along as we can. We must help the others take the Master Emerald back.

Our progress is slowed by all the fire that has burst from the rumbling. For this reason, Blaze goes in front to absorb the flames. It helps us with the progress, but it is still slow going.

We barely make it to the exit when the door caves in. We cover our eyes, and I hear the unmistakable sound of metal landing on metal. We are stuck here now.

When some of the smoke clears, my fears are confirmed. The entrance is closed, and fire and smoke surrounds us. Shadow curses softly. Black Mist simply stares at it. After a while, the shadows by the door begin to move. They lift the door, but to no avail.

"Is there another way out?" I ask anyone in particular.

"Yes," Sonic answers. "It's all the way where we came from, though. Besides, there's no guarantee that it'll be open. It might have collapsed in on itself just like this one."

"We have to take a chance," Silver says confidently. "Let's go."

"We have to move quickly," Blaze warns. "This smoke and ash might get into our lungs."

Black Mist pushes away from Shadow and Sonic. "Quit talking and start walking. I may not be affected by the smoke breathing-wise, but it gives me major headaches."

"The same for me," I agree.

We set off into the direction we came from.