Several cubes hit Sonic, he gets knocked back with a grunt, green eyes going wide. I smile under my mask, bowing down my head to a glare. I hold out my hand, making a "come on" movement. I was taunting him. Sonic would not be able to face me for the next few moments. Each one of those cubes was a different reality, each one held a different nightmare.

Sonic lays on the ground, screaming, kicking, but unable to get up. I weakly step over to him, nearly stumbling from exhaustion. I keep a few feet away from his flailing body, not wanting to be struck by one of his limbs.

"Now you see," I told him, "you are a privileged brat who was born with greatness. The true 'heroes' had to crawl to their position." Sonic screamed "no", and "get away", but his eyes were looking into the sky, unaware I was standing close to him. Mind in a completely different reality. But I knew he could hear my voice.

I was silent for a moment. "You wonder why the casualties in these wars are so drastic? Why all these lives are lost?" I glare down at Sonic. "They are merely trying to make a living, and they die in the crossfires of your war!"

He was born a hero, with everything handed to him... And I lost everything to get to where I am now. That's the difference in him and I.

It's not fair.

Something takes hold of me, I couldn't move. A bright glow takes over my body, a tingling sensation accompanied. A figure coated in the light comes to sit down next to Sonic. Silver. He stares worriedly at Sonic, unsure what was happening to the blue Hedgehog, and uncertain how to take action.

Silver looks up at me. "What have you done to him?!" he demands, though his tone isn't particularly threatening. Silver never seemed that intimidating. Even though I am encased in his telekinesis, the opinion remains the same.

I felt freedom of movement above my neck, but I didn't say a word, trying to summon enough energy to make Silver experience his worst nightmares like the other Hedgehogs. My eyes find the stitches still in his side. A weakness.

Silver tries to calm Sonic, but Sonic doesn't even acknowledge that Silver was there. When Silver tried to restrain his flailing arms, he got smacked across the face, hard.

He nearly fell over; Silver was obviously shocked. The light disappeared for just a second, but that was all I needed. I tried to summon my abilities back, but it only caused my head to reel more, and my eyes to fail. I quickly stopped, then my eyesight returned slowly. But not fast enough for me.

I did not risk being ensnared again, I dashed towards Silver. I grabbed one of his arms quickly, I pulled it abruptly. Silver yelled out in pain as a strange crack escaped his shoulder. I lifted the dislocated arm above his side, revealing the stitches. I quickly dug my free hand into the wires zigzagging into flesh. My nails tear into it, I pull. I pull until the wound is wide open. Silver screams out in agony.

I let him drop to the metal ground, hand held over the opened wound that was gushing red liquid. Silver's left arm lay motionless by his side.

I look down at my hand, blood trickled down my palm, covering my nails like paint. My head twitches, and a painful glitch tears apart my hand before, just as quickly, reforming it. My vision was darkening again.

I need an adrenaline rush, I think, weakness taking its toll on my body again.

I bring the bloody hand to the back of my arm, I dig my claws into my flesh, I don't scream, but grind my teeth together. My fingers run lines down my arm, then pain widens my eyes, and hypervigilance casts its spell on me. I look back up to the Hedgehogs.

Even though Silver was bleeding, he still reached out his bloody glove to Sonic. Calling to him weakly, trying to wake him from whatever he was seeing.

Shouldn't he be concerned about his own survival? I wonder. I have only seen an action like this a few times. Enough to list on one hand. Perhaps Sonic's intentions were to help me—no! It was a lie. They are... my enemies. They just want an easy win. No! No! Don't trust them! Don't trust anyone!!

Something is clouding in my head; a weight is pulling down my heart and stomach. My breathing was quickening. What is happening to me? Pull yourself together!

A thousand thoughts, memories and questions were racing on a highway in my brain. They came and went so fast, it was overwhelming. I couldn't recall half of the them. My father throwing a knife in my direction. Why was I never enough? How was I always too weak? The first kill I've ever made. The path down the road to regrets: accepting the doctor's deal of assisting him with conquering the world. He had my teammates held at gunpoint, what else could I have done? Me, finding Jackal Squad's motionless bodies scattered around the forest. How could that happen to them? Shadow holding a forearm to my neck, pinning me in place while I trembled in fear. How could he be called a hero? Why haven't I killed him yet? Am I truly that weak? That pathetic? The painful installment of the Phantom Ruby. The voice and presence that accompanies it. Was the voice always that cruel? Me, or the presence, killing (Y/N)'s entire squad. Like what Shadow had done to Zero – me. Then me failing to stop that same girl from making the sun vanish, and allowing herself to destroy her body in the process. What did she see in the world worth saving?

I clutch my head as if it would make them all stop. I hear that thing's voice. "Kill them all". "Finish them before I do it for you". "We will dominate!". "We are the darkest of days, we are unstoppable!". "They will all know our name".

I fall to one knee, head whirling. "Stop," I beg, trying to make the voice go away. The Ruby isn't active, this should not be happening, I think. This is a hallucination! This isn't real. You're merely in my head. You're just in my head...

Get out.

I take one hand away from my head, holding out an arm towards the two Hedgehogs. I force out the energy the Phantom Ruby had barely collected by its few moments of recharging. I felt a small ball of energy forming out in my hand, slowly but surely. I couldn't move my eyes from the ground. Locked onto the metal. I was overusing the Ruby, and in the back of my overcrowded brain, I knew.

"Everything is a lie!" I yell out, firing a beam of dark purple energy towards Sonic and Silver's direction. The words weren't directed at anyone specific. They weren't accurate, but they weren't wrong. My name, Sonic's offer, the doctor's proposal, Shadow's label of being "good", life being rewarding, they are all lies. Facades.

There was a yell of pain or surprise, but it was cut short. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't move. My body would not budge. My arm remained raised. I was frozen, but my heart and mind were traveling faster than the speed of light.

I saw the face of every person who the Ruby killed. Who we had killed. Who I had killed.

"You live a lie!" I mutter. Who was I speaking to?

Something tackles me, I am flying through the air. I realize who it was, and utter fury wasn't even half of what I felt.

Shadow had a forearm held to my neck, like he did all that time ago. And like then, he glared into my eyes. He had a fist ready to thrust into my mask. "(Y/N), where is she?" he demanded, his voice low but agitated.

I wanted to spit in his face. "I don't give that information away to hideous crossbreeds!" I roared. The wind was pounding against my back, faster now. Shadow gritted his teeth, and the direction of the wind changed. I was being pushed down now. I didn't have enough energy to fly, so there was no way I could soften the fall.

"Last chance, Infinite!" Shadow said, the wind nearly drowning out his voice. He punches me across the face, then wraps his fist around the Ruby in my chest. "Information or death?"

"Neither, bastard." I thrust out my arm, grabbing Shadow's face in my hand, I dig my nails into his face, slowly drawing lines down to his eyes. Shadow moves his head side to side – crushing his eyes shut – to every angle, attempting to escape my grasp. He wasn't successful, and he never moved his hand from my chest. Now I could feel it, he was trying to pull the Ruby out.

It hurt.

We both growl in pain, not letting up our attacks until the other does. The more Shadow pulled, the more agony I felt, so I dug my nails deeper and deeper. I knew I couldn't win with this attack alone, so I summoned what strength I regained and used it.

I kick at his stomach, then hold out my arm. A single cannon appears beside me, falling with us. I kick at Shadow again, he nearly lost grip of me. And this was when the canon fired at Shadow's stomach. He instantly let go of the Ruby, and of me. He flew off, blood appearing from his new wound.

I glitched, non-stop. Twitching. Body tearing apart. Over and over. Just to reform itself. I couldn't do anything, I just kept falling. I mentally call to any clones that could be nearby, aware that the fall would likely kill me.

My mask was coming loose, I hold a hand to it, forcing it to stay on my face while the ground came closer. I try to turn my body to see when the impact will be, but I was in too much pain to shift myself.

I did something I rarely do; I cry out in pain. The constant disrepair and restructuring of my form were too much. I am overusing the Ruby, and it's affecting me. Not that I have not overused these powers before, but this... this is another level completely.

Something caught me, it was hard and cold. Metal Sonic. The clone had grabbed me under the shoulders and was carrying me through the air. Before I realized it, the robot had brought me back up to the tower. Metal Sonic dropped me a few inches above the ground, I landed. I knelt on one knee, an arm rested over it, twitches and convulsions overtook my body uncontrollably, with no pattern. I groaned in pain as the glitches came.

I force myself to look at the Metal Sonic who was still hovering above me. "G-get that small Sonic and br-bring him here," I order. The glitches are affecting my voice. How bad is it getting? I need to recover immediately. But I can't just sit by and wait, there is a war being fought. My enemies are close.

The duplicate quickly nods then flies away.

I turn my gaze in front of me, pushing on my knee to stand. My head twitches. Sonic and Silver were still on the ground, only now they were spread far apart from each other. Some areas of their fur were darkened, from the explosion I fired at them.

Sonic was just standing up now, turning his face up at me while on his knees. Even from the distance, I could see that his face was wet. The hero of Mobius, crying? Was Sonic's nightmares truly that traumatizing that someone who approaches everything with a facetious attitude would be broken? Perhaps that is why he does so, to hide the insecurities buried beneath.

My body swayed while I stood, but I refused to allow myself collapse onto the ground.

Sonic wiped his face with the back of his hand, then took a few steps towards me, calmly, face serious. Finally, I think. He has grown up.

I raise my chin, trying to maintain my intimidating appearance, even if the sudden jerks of my muscles and the glitches weren't planned.

Sonic stops a few meters away. His hands were in fists, his green eyes were hard. It was an odd thing to see somebody so immature act like an adult. Sonic opened his mouth to say something, but he closed it. Sonic bared his teeth, getting ready to charge me, knees bending.

He dashed, I barely dodged, only because I was expecting it. I quickly grabbed Sonic's wrist while avoiding his attack then swung him around, then threw him far away. With my strength at such a low level, Sonic didn't fall far. He landed on his feet, still skidding.

He dashed at me again, this time I couldn't move out of the way. Without my super speed that comes with the Ruby, it was hard to avoid such fast attacks. Sonic slammed into me, I got knocked away, there was a pain in my chest. I was flying through the air from the force.

The metal floor underneath me quickly disappears, and I realize Sonic had pushed me off the edge of the roof. Not thinking of the consequences, only reacting, I warp. Teleporting myself into Sonic, knocking into him, tackling him. We rolled for several yards, bodies trying to land punches and kicks at each other. I grinded my teeth together as Sonic's hits and the glitches caused pain. This was pain that I shouldn't feel.

We stop rolling, and he pinned me down, knees pressing into my legs, hand holding down my dominant arm. The other was raised to strike me. No! I thought, eyes widening in panic. He has the upper hand! I can't let him.

I punch Sonic in the stomach with my left arm – the one I had cut open – then quickly drag my nails down his chest and stomach, trying everything to get him to weaken his grip so I could kick him off. Sonic cries out in pain as blood leaks from his torso, some dripping onto me. His grip on me loosens slightly. I throw my weight upwards, making Sonic fall onto his side, and our positions were reversed.

I had my sharp-toed shoes digging into his legs, clawed hands pinning down his wrist. I stared closely into his eyes as he struggles, teeth bared. I panted, head spinning from the power use. I am pushing myself beyond my limit...

Even if I was aware of that fact, I create metal shackles that fuse to the metal floor under us. I glitch again, I stand up to clutch my twitching head. Sonic swings his leg up, foot hitting my face. My head is flung back, my mask comes flying off. I stumble back, holding a hand over my face, specifically my left eye.

I let out a yell of surprise and panic. I frantically look around for my mask, heart racing. No! I think. My face! My eyes fall upon my mask a few feet away, I rush to it, keeping my head turned away from Sonic. When I'm close enough, I close my eyes, as if it would make it seem like nobody would see me. I felt around for my mask, my hand finds it, I grab it and bring it back to my face.

When it's secure, I open my eyes again, heart calming drastically. I growl, turning to Sonic, anger filling me. He was flailing his legs, wrists still stuck. His eyes were glued to me, wide, almost in shock. Perhaps it was realization that he had provoked me.

I walk over to him, glaring. My head twitches again. A dark energy emanated from me; I felt a dark presence. "You saw my face?" I ask, staring intensely into Sonic's eyes.

He seemed unsure of how to answer. He shook his head. "If I did, I'd be making fun of it," he managed to joke, though his face remained serious. Sonic seemed aware that any who has seen my face would be killed. I had a sense that he could be lying.

"Any who see my face die," I threaten. I crouch beside him, near his head so I don't get struck again. "Wha-what shall your epitaph r-read? 'He-here lies the blue buffoon'?" I tilt my head, smiling. Speaking through the glitches in my voice was near impossible.

Sonic glares back, but smiled. "How about 'here dozes the masked clown'? Should make it for the one who will need it, right?"

"You say as you are at my mercy." I hold my blood-covered glove above Sonic's bleeding chest, ready to dig them into his heart, vital organs, and veins. "Any pathetic last words, rat?"

"These won't be my last words, Infinite," Sonic replied, becoming cocky. "We all know how the story ends. The villain gets close to defeating the good guy, but then you lose anyway. Then we just end up repeating this dance over and over."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Well, the story's changed." I raise my hand up high. "Time for a reality check."