The Mystery of Project Shadow/Project: Shadow

**The Mystery of Project Shadow** (or, **Project: Shadow**) is the thirty-third episode of Sonic X: Heroes Forever.

## Characters

* Sonic the Hedgehog
* Miles "Tails" Prower
* Knuckles the Echidna
* Amy Rose
* Cream the Rabbit
* Cheese the Chao
* Shadow the Hedgehog (First appearance; does not speak)
* Rouge the Bat
* Sally Acorn
* Bunnie D'Coolette
* Manic the Hedgehog
* Sonia the Hedgehog
* Mighty the Armadillo
* Ray the Flying Squirrel
* Mina Mongoose
* Ash Mongoose
* Rotor Walrus (Mentioned)
* Payback Fox
* Antoine D'Coolette
* Sharps the Parachicken (Mentioned)
* Max the Monkey (Mentioned)
* Mach the Rabbit (Mentioned)
* Fiona Fox
* Julie-Su
* Archimedes the Fire Ant
* Queen Aleena Hedgehog/Bernadette Hedgehog
* Jules Hedgehog
* Sir Charles Hedgehog
* Rosemary Prower (Mentioned)
* Amadeus Prower (Mentioned, not named)
* Merlin Prower (Mentioned, not named)
* Ruby the Bat (Mentioned, not named)
* Vanilla the Rabbit (Mentioned, not named)
* Aurora (Mentioned)
* Chaos (Mentioned)
	+ Perfect Chaos (Mentioned)
* Hope Kintobor
* Gerald Robotnik (First appearance; in photograph)
* Maria Robotnik (First appearance; in photograph)
* Jennifer Vasquez (First mention)
* Geraldo Robotnik (First mention)
* Meredith Sanders (First mention)
* Abraham Tower
* Omochao (First appearance)
* Christopher Thorndyke
* Frances
* Danny
* Helen
* Milan Ramada (First appearance)
* Jim (First appearance)
* Nelson Thorndyke
* Lindsey Thorndyke
* Chuck Thorndyke
* Mr. Tanaka
* Ella
* President
* Topaz
* Christina Cooper
* President's third assistant
* Sam Speed
* Mr. Stewart
* Scarlet Garcia
* Horace Garcia (Mentioned, not named)
* Socrates Ramada
* Gun Beetle (First appearance)
* Gun Hunter (First appearance)
* Gun Hawk (First appearance)
* Laser Hunter (First appearance)
* Shield Hunter (First appearance)
* Doctor Eggman
* Snively Robotnik
* Decoe
* Bocoe
* Bokkun
* Scratch
* Grounder
* A.D.A.M. (First appearance)

## Plot

The episode and Shadow saga starts with Hope making a robot that has some resemblance to a Chao. She puts some D batteries in it, making the robot come to life. The robot introduces himself as Omochao and asks Hope if she's his mother. Hope confirms that, yes, she is and he'll be able to give advice to the Freedom Fighters when they need help. Omochao thanks Hope for helping him come into the world and hugs her, but, asks who he's supposed to help if he doesn't know what they look like. Hope assures him that she programmed Omochao with profiles of her friends as well as who to avoid.

Meanwhile, Sonic and Sally are running through the ruins of Station Square following Perfect Chaos' destruction of the city. It's been a week since they started restoration and Sonic notes that repairs haven't made much of a difference. Sally points out that even with crews working around the clock, they can't restore everything overnight due to the massive amounts of damage Chaos has made to the town. The speedy couple suddenly hear crying sounds from the debris and rush to the rescue.

Down at the Thorndyke Mansion, Aleena, Jules, Sir Charles, Chuck, Lindsey, and Ella are all trying to restore the furniture that got damaged during the flood and at the school, Mr. Stewart, Chris, Frances, Danny, and other students are helping to take supplies to the cafeteria. Nelson arrives in his helicopter to deliver more supplies and tells Chris that Socrates will be there shortly. He arrives along with his daughter, Milan, who is around the same age as Chris and his friends. Milan is unfortunately very spoilt and Socrates admits he's been indulging her since his wife passed away, a choice he regrets. Chris assures him that his team will still try to be her friend. Frances comments about how the boxes are heavy and Danny admits at least she's pulling her own weight, as he had to carry Milan's boxes as well as his own. Chris tries to convince them Milan will come around, only for Milan to demand Chris to get another box. Frances tries to stand up for Chris, but, he tells Frances he'll get it. Milan then says Chris has no self respect because he could pay others to do the work, only for Frances to retort that Chris has more self respect to Milan. Danny also points out Milan is too scared to lift the boxes herself, which she responds with by saying because she's rich, she doesn't have to. She is earned a harsh scolding from her father, calling her lazy and saying that a successful business doesn't run if someone slacks off. Milan then goes to move a box and Chris praises her for helping out. Socrates asks Nelson if he was too hard on her and he explains he needed to get that out of his system so everyone would listen to him.

Nearby, a young couple are asking some officers if they found their son, to which they reply no. Sonic and Sally then dash in with a child and the parents are overjoyed Jim is safe. The humans thank Sonic and Sally for saving Jim and tell them that they are wonderful.

Down at the office, the president is signing various documents that Christina is showing him, lamenting that he isn't being heroic like Sonic and his friends. Among the papers is Abraham Tower issuing some new robots to combat Eggman and that Sam Speed is a new driver for the president.

Back at the Thorndyke Mansion, Chris is saying goodbye to his mom and Cream is hugging Bunnie goodbye while sobbing. Bunnie tells Cream she'll visit her every other day, much to Cream's delight. Amy and Manic mention they are starting a Mobini Ranch (most likely for the Mobinis that had been residing at the Thorndyke Mansion until this point) and they tell Chris their apartment is currently being renovated. Chuck comments that the overly emotional goodbyes are a bit over the top as they will be back together within one or two months, but, Sir Charles points out that Cream has still not found her mother and Bunnie is the closest thing she had until they found out Rosemary is on Earth, too. Aleena also points out that Chris doesn't get much attention from his parents and Chuck realizes that he was being too blunt and apologizes. Frances and Danny ask Chris to send them postcards and Helen laments things wouldn't be the same without Chris or Mr. Stewart, who is driving away to another location as they are talking. Chris then realizes some of the Mobians are missing and Amy points out Mighty and Ray are helping Sonia settle on Angel Island, Mina is on a date with Ash, and Sonic and Sally are on a date of their own. Tails points out that if Chris is feeling lonely, the group can pilot the X or Y Tornadoes to visit and Sonic and Sally can just run there if they have to. Manic and Amy point out that time flies when you're moving to a new place and Tails gives Chris with a Wrister that he, Hope, Rotor, Sir Charles, and Chuck made for him, leaving him surprised and touched by the gesture. Chris' happiness increases when Helen comes over to give him a kiss, thanking him again for allowing her to walk again. Chris, blushing all over, heads for the trailer to leave with those aboard.

While this is going on, Payback and Hope are going for job interviews with G.U.N.. Hope admits she avoids working with military organizations, but, she decided to go for it to make ends meet. Payback admits she's going for it too so she has a steady income, as her garden can only do so much. The interviewer calls Hope up and notes that she's got more intelligence than the average college graduates. The interviewer confirms Hope's suspicions that her friends have been spied on for the past nine months, and that Hope is accepted into G.U.N. based on the info that G.U.N. complied together. The interviewer confirms that Hope had shown standards that haven't been met since Abraham joined G.U.N. 45 years ago, much to Hope's surprise.

Meanwhile, Abraham is overseeing new robots being built by G.U.N., saying they will be able to combat Eggman's tyranny easily and the scientist with him notes Eggman would be shocked to see his own tech being used against him. Unknown to G.U.N., Eggman, Snively, and most of the main Badniks all watching from Eggman's new hideout with a Surveillance Orb. Scratch wonders if the humans believe they're the first to try using Eggman's tech against him, but, Eggman retorts that's not the point. Snively realizes that Abraham knows too much about Mobius technology to live on Earth and Eggman realizes that he's either been doing a good job spying or he is an Overlander. He also reveals he's been working on a new computer virus called Autonomous Digital Assault Microbe or A.D.A.M. for short. An EKG line shows up on a screen and A.D.A.M. starts to tease Eggman, showing his juvenile nature. Eggman wants A.D.A.M. to cause trouble on the computers so Eggman won't have to deal with G.U.N. using his robots against them, but, A.D.A.M. decides to give all files of G.U.N.'s new robots to him so Eggman knows what he's dealing with. He slips into the mainframe, noting he's more advanced than any humans could have knowledge of, and looks around for the files. A.D.A.M. had managed to crack the code, saying it was 12345. Eggman believes the password to be very dumb and Grounder just so happens to have that code for his luggage. Shrugging it off, Eggman and Snively find designs of the robots and, much to the former's shock, he finds a file with a picture of his grandfather: Professor Gerald Robotnik. He was accompanied by his wife Jennifer Robotnik (nee Vasquez), his son Geraldo, daughter-in-law Meredith, and his granddaughter Maria, who are Eggman's grandmother, uncle, aunt, and cousin, respectively. He then remembers the Towers went with them and Eggman realizes that included none other than Abraham Tower, one of Maria's childhood friends and he is indeed an Overlander. A.D.A.M. tries to hack into the database with passwords of Eggman, Robotnik, and Kintobor, Eggman himself being annoyed at the first choice as he wasn't *called* Eggman back then. He then suggests putting Maria in as a password. It works and the G.U.N. officials try to stop the hacker from getting the files. A.D.A.M. just acts as if he's being tickled when they try to remove him and various CGI soldiers are deleted with A.D.A.M.'s lasers when he turns to a serpent. Eggman then reads the diary, learning about Project: Shadow, his grandfather's top creation. He then proceeds to go to wake it up.

Meanwhile, in the president's limo, the president is chatting to Rouge and Topaz and how he doesn't know much about Project: Shadow other than the name. He also mentions the protected password and someone deleted the original file off the computer. Rouge immediately figures out Eggman is the likely culprit and the president mentions that Payback will be helping in the mission as part of her trial. The president explains that Rouge, Topaz and Payback will need to work to figure out why Eggman is interested in Project Shadow and what he wants to do with it. Sam stops the limo so the trio can get out and he takes off. Topaz asks Rouge what the plan is and she wishes to get Payback some new clothes. Payback objects to the idea, as her mother made them for her and she only ever takes them off to wash them. After Topaz gets the Mobian and Moebian to focus again, Rouge suggests they find a Chaos Emerald to trap Eggman. Payback is a bit out of the loop, so Rouge quickly elaborates and the fox notes they are like the Anarchy Beryls she has on Moebius. Now it's *Topaz* who is out of the loop, looking very confused.

While that's going on, Chris is looking outside the window and he sadly walks to the dining room where Bunnie and Antoine are having tea together. They and Jules tell Chris not to worry and they'll be back with Sonic and the others soon and he'll get used to being there. Chuck and Sir Charles meanwhile are working on the Z Tornado, which has been on the backburner for a while. Both Chuck and Sir Charles note their good cooperation when Chuck notices Chris feeling lonely. He tells his grandson that while it can be scary being in a new location, Chuck notes that Sonic and Co were in the same situation 9 months ago when they arrived, but, they didn't mope. Chris realizes this and decides to make the best of the situation.

Down at Station Square, Sonic and Sally meet up with Mina and Ash and the male mongoose explains that Mach, Max, and Sharps have been hosting benefit concerts every other day. Ash then shows Sonic and Sally some dollar bills, which he was confused about, and Sonic and Sally explain that it's Earth currency or, to be more specific, American dollars. Both couples hear some wailing coming from some rubble and they go to check it out. It's actually Bokkun, who comments he'd rather suffocate than allow himself to be rescued by the quartet, which confuses Sally as she thought Bokkun was a robot. Bokkun comments he doesn't even know what he's supposed to be and he says he won't be thanking any "dirty Mobians" for saving him, only for Ash to retort he was in no position to be called that after being stuck in there for goodness knows how long. Sonic, Sally, and the two mongooses leave (Sonic carrying Sally and Mina carrying Ash), noting it was the most confusing rescue they ever had to do, and Bokkun complains they can't say "your welcome" because he didn't thank them.

On Angel Island, Fiona is hiding in the trees when she spots Topaz, Rouge, and Payback. Topaz is confused as to how a Chaos Emerald will help with their mission, but, Rouge explains that if they want to bait Eggman, they have to give him something he wants more than anything. Fiona makes herself known to the G.U.N. trio and notes that they won't find Chaos Emeralds on Angel Island, but, they will find something better: the Master Emerald. Payback notes that this island is the opposite of Devil Island, the Master Emerald was probably the Mobius equivalent to Moebius' Governor Beryl. The quartet approach a Stonehenge structure.

Down at the News Network building, Scarlet Garcia introduces herself to some workers inside and they ask for her autograph. Scarlet notes their friendliness and she meets Mr. Stewart, where we learn his real name is Franklin. The two sit down and Mr. Stewart shows Scarlet a story about Project: Shadow. Scarlet is shocked about this, saying her father tried to investigate it while he was alive. Scarlet is reeling in shock from the prospect of finding out exactly what happened and Mr. Stewart notes that perhaps her father would be interested, too, and he would do everything in his power to keep Scarlet safe on the investigation.

Back on Angel Island, Fiona and Rouge managed to get their hands on the Master Emerald, which is heavy despite the duo's efforts. Rouge then hears darts, which cut through the ropes, leaving Fiona struggling with the Emerald. Knuckles, Julie-Su, Sonia, Mighty, Ray, and Archimedes all charge forward, demanding the Emerald to be returned to it's rightful spot. Sonia leaps forward with a Power Ring, Spin Dashing into Fiona and knocking her down. She tosses the Master Emerald to Mighty, but, Rouge intercepts it. Mighty smashes a nearby rock and some of it flies into Rouge's face and cuts her cheek, releasing her grip on the Master Emerald. Topaz trips on the Blue Chaos Emerald while rushing to help her and Rouge decides to still go for the Master Emerald anyway. Fiona manages to get up and Knuckles and Julie-Su try to explain the Master Emerald's power to Rouge, saying it can enhance or neutralize the Chaos Emeralds. Rouge takes off with the Master Emerald with Knuckles and Julie-Su giving chase, only for the latter to be shot in her spine by Fiona. As Knuckles goes to check on his girlfriend, Rouge is horrified for a moment, then outright snaps at Fiona for trying to kill Julie-Su, shocking everyone else. She tells Fiona that she was supposed to help her steal the Master Emerald, not kill anyone in the process and she kicks Fiona for good measure. Fiona notes Rouge never takes anything seriously (except she *is* taking Julie-Su's near death seriously), but, Rouge retorts she doesn't need to justify what she's doing to anyone, ever. Payback destroys Fiona's blaster again, while Archimedes jumps into Fiona's ear and warps her away from Angel Island. Knuckles then uses the Master Emerald's power to heal Julie-Su and Topaz apologizes for the mishap, explaining why they needed an emerald in the first place. Knuckles explains that while Fiona got the Master Emerald's explanation correct, he also tells Topaz that the Emerald is what keeps Angel Island afloat. Topaz realizes they would be doing more harm by taking the Emerald, but, Rouge doesn't back down. Sonia then calls Rouge a hypocrite: she scolded Fiona for almost killing Julie-Su, but, has zero issue with allowing Angel Island crush a village of innocents below. Upon hearing this info however, Rouge is horrified and Knuckles scolds her further. She tries to explain about her mother, but, Knuckles isn't "buying the excuse," not realizing Rouge is telling the truth this time, and tells her to get off Angel Island. Rouge takes the Master Emerald and though Sonia notes she's heading to the alter, Knuckles believes she's pulling an Eggman on them. The group all take off after her.

On Prison Island, Eggman and Snively are using their Eggwalkers to get through Iron Gate with Decoe and Bocoe. Eggman attaches his Volkan Canon and Laser Blaster to his Eggwalker and the evil group head down the hall. They are intercepted by a Gun Hunter, which fires electrified arrow-shaped bullets. Eggman quickly uses his Volkan Cannon to destroy it. The group get intercepted again, this time by a Laser Hunter. The Laser Hunter tries to attack Eggman, but, he uses his shields to block the attack and uses his Volkan Cannon and Laser Blaster at the Laser Hunter at the same time, destroying it. Christina finds out Eggman is attacking Prison Island and tells the President and Director of Central Intelligence this news while Snively is destroying a Gun Beetle while Decoe and Bocoe are cowering. The group rounds a corner and see that there's another robot waiting there: the Gun Hawk. It tries to shoot at the evil team, but, it misses each time. Snively then uses his Eggwalker to crush the robot. They head inside a dusty room and Eggman heads toward a pod. He creates a fake ID, keys in the password, Maria, and then asks Snively to hand the Grey Emerald over. Decoe finds it odd that they found the Grey Emerald first and Eggman notes they were just in the right place at the right time as the other six emeralds were recovered by others. The pod starts to fire up and through the steam and dust, a Mobian Hedgehog rises from the chambers. Eggman is shocked at this discovery as the episode ends.

## Differences between this, the real episode and Sonic Adventure 2

* Omochao is made by Hope, which begins this episode. The real episode began with Sonic racing through Station Square while cleanup was underway.
* The time period between this and the previous episode isn't made clear in the anime. Here, it's about a week.
* Nelson notes he wanted to check on Chris when he sees him in the real episode. Here, he is proud of Chris for working so hard.
* In the real episode, Frances complains about the boxes being heavy and she needs a break, as well as Danny joking that he and Chris can continue while Frances plays outside, much to her annoyance. Here, the trio's annoyance is directed at Milan.
* The scene at the school is expanded to showcase Milan and Socrates, establishing their family dynamic.
* Cream is in the apartment with the Thorndykes, Ella, and Mr. Tanaka in the original. Here, she's staying with the Prowers. Antoine and Bunnie are seen having tea instead of Cream and Cheese.
* Helen kisses Chris before he leaves, showcasing their future romance.
* Chris also gets a Wrister, which doesn't happen in the anime.
* Hope and Payback get into G.U.N. in a new scene.
* Eggman simply hacks into the G.U.N.'s mainframe in the real episode. Here, A.D.A.M., a virus, hacks into the system for him.
* Eggman tries using the "Eggman" password in the real episode. Here, he notes that can't possibly be the password because he wasn't called Eggman yet.
* Gerald not only was with his granddaughter Maria, but, his wife Jenifer, son Geraldo, and daughter-in-law Meredith. In addition, unlike the original, Eggman was born on Mobius and those afford mentioned family members were warped to Earth with the Towers.
* It's implied in this episode that Bokkun may not be a robot. We didn't get that in the original. Bokkun also doesn't call Sonic a "dirty Mobian" in the original like he did here with Sonic, Sally, and the two mongooses.
* Knuckles has extra backup when dealing with Rouge stealing the Master Emerald and actually recognizes her, unlike the real episode where he was shocked when her mask came off. In the real episode, no one was shot doing the battle for the Master Emerald while here, Julie-Su was shot by Fiona.
* Rouge doesn't appear to understand the consequences of removing the Master Emerald from Angel Island in the original. Here, once she's told about this, she actively tries to put it back.
* Eggman doesn't have Upgrade Items in the original, but, he does in this story. Additionally Gun Hunter wasn't in the original.
* Snively crushes the Gun Hawk in this story, but, in the original, Eggman crushes it.

## Trivia

* The "Hello Doctor" Joke is a reference to Dragon Ball Z Abridged.
* The Password joke is a reference to the Mel Brooks film, Spaceballs.
* Payback working for G.U.N. was suggested by Rrfyggyyhyyhuythh.
* Fiona shooting Julie-Su was an idea by Tobyandmavisforever2. In her original idea however, this was happening during the battle for the Master Emerald at the ARK and Rouge was flirting with Knuckles before realizing her mistake, telling Fiona she wouldn't kill Julie-Su just so she could have Knuckles to herself. She then lets go of her crush on Knuckles to allow him and Julie-Su to stay together and chases Fiona away.
* Topaz was originally supposed to be trapped in Knuckles' double dutch machine. It's unknown why this was dropped.