— Downtown District —

  The door opens onto the streets of Haven City, where the team witnesses a sunny day with a cool breeze on a Friday afternoon. Without Solid and Woofa, however, the team felt incomplete, especially since the orange hedgehog was part of the foundation of what the team is to this day. Yet they’ll do their best to continue with their exploration and listen to what he has suggested to them to do, exploring this district.

  The streets were not as busy as they were in the morning or at sunset. Nevertheless, unlike other districts, Downtown District remains the busiest of all, drawing the attention of most tourists, with the most popular hotels and markets in the city. The only district to relieve such competition is Playa District, due to its beaches.

  “You guys want to eat something?” Tricky asks, his eyes glued to the phone as he navigates the streets. “I found some-”

  “Chili Dogs?” Sonic’s eyes widened, his curiosity getting the best of him while his stomach rumbled.

  “Bro, you gotta chill out with your Chili Dog craze. Your addiction is starting to become a virus, and soon you’ll be waking up like a-a-a… a Chili Dog Zombie.” The porcupine snickers, amused by the Blue Blur’s addiction.

  “Aside from his usual addiction, what are we eating? Because one should know that I should be the one to choose which food we’re eating based on that previous mission.” Knuckles says, pointing at himself proudly as he shows off a wide smile.

  “Knuckles, I appreciate you helping alongside us to rescue Solid, but we should give credit to Tails. He took care of Doubt by moral and psychological means while sustaining injuries; he took the time to lead his way to a positive outcome more effectively than the usual punch and destruction you’re known for.” Amy responds, patting Tails’s shoulder for his support.

  “I-I didn’t need any compliments, Amy… but thanks…” Tails is a bit embarrassed by the praise, almost as if he doesn’t necessarily need one. “It’s just… that Doubt needed a change, and I know that you guys would do a better job than what I did, but… I needed the confidence, and it was the point where I finally got the opportunity to prove what I can do.”

  Sonic can’t help but put on a genuine smile at his words, content that Tails is getting back to himself again. “Even if we’re better, it doesn’t mean you should put yourself down. I’ve seen you go at it and win; there’s nothing bad about going for it. We’re best friends, and you still have the juice to fight alongside us with your amazing tech. Without you, we wouldn’t have made it this far.” He ruffles his head by pure friendship, being the same duo as they were in the past. “Though doing that headbutt was insane... God, I hope your head’s okay.”

  While they’re continuing with their conversation, Tricky immediately halts, eyeing a burger place literally in front of him. Although not a huge interest to the team, it doesn’t help that they’re all starving; despite eating breakfast, the rescue mission earlier drained all their energy, and now they're desperate for some food. “I think we’ve hit a jackpot.” Because of this, they instantly enter, finally eating their lunch.

  After eating lunch and getting some drinks to keep them awake and motivated, the team walks around the district, continuing to love the atmosphere and the vibe. Although they haven’t fully explored the other districts yet, besides Northern District and technically Nature District (since Sonic and Tails have only been there), this remains their favorite district to this day.

  “Hey, doesn’t it sound weird that we’re also considered tourists too?” Questions Amy, who the Mobians are being directed by Tricky, who’s somewhat like their tourist guide.

  “Heh, probably. Though I’m not familiar with the area, unlike my brother and his clingy dog girlfriend.” He shrugs, admitting that he’s incapable of helping them familiarize themselves with the streets. “Don’t get me wrong, I’ll still do my part to guide you along the way, but at the end of the day, I’m probably gonna mess around. Because I am THAT guy.”

  Scoffs. “You’re not that guy, bro.” Says Sonic, who continues to gaze at the streets while drinking his soda. “Honestly, we could’ve explored elsewhere, but since it’s closer to her apartment and Solid suggested it, I guess we’ll work this out.”

  Still, the porcupine continues to get himself and his friends lost around the area. He continuously pulls out the map from his phone, trying to navigate the clustered streets. Sometimes, he’d even muttered to himself- “Is Magnolia street that way…” He gazes north- “Or THAT way…?” Proceeding to look east, unsure where he’s taking them.

  “Haven’t you thought about pulling out a map before?” Amy questions who’s crossing her arms while leaning against a random pole.

  “Yeah. Yeah. Thanks for the advice, almost as if I wasn’t doing that seconds ago.” He pulls out his phone from his glove and tries to show it. “You see this.” He shows them his phone, fidgeting around with the map of the Downtown district. “Tell me the clustered mess and try to identify where Magnolia Street is. I guess you’ve finally understood why I thought I’d hit a jackpot when crossing a simple burger place.”

  To their reactions, they’re immediately confused by the grid layout of the streets. Initially confused by the porcupine’s words, they now understand why he’s confused with the city. “Why is it like that…?” Tails curiously asks; he has never seen a city layout like the one he’s seen.

  “HAH! I predicted one of you would ask that! But for real, these damn city planners went with this district’s layout because they wanted to retain the history of the market’s layout. It’s great for historical significance, but also ridiculous because it’s the mess they retained and remained to this day. Just like naming these districts, they were NOT creative at all!” He exclaims, looking around the streets, where almost all the pedestrians around them rely solely on their phones to navigate this district. “I can’t believe we have to rely on our phones to understand this district… I’m glad I lived in Northern District until now. What a pain in the ass… just like the game of Badminton.”

  Without any knowledge of how to navigate Downtown District properly, they’re stuck in a loophole, where they’ll eventually never explore or find the base for once. “We should’ve brought Solid or Woofa. They’d help us out a lot, especially in this current state.” The Blue Blur thinks, somewhat rethinking her decision to stay with her best friend rather than come out with them.

  “I have an idea.” They all look at Tails, curiosity striking their head once again. “Instead of navigating around the ground level, why don’t we take things to a different approach?” He leaves off with him looking up at the sky.

  Everyone looks confused at first, unsure what direction he’s trying to lead them towards. However, Sonic finally understands what he’s saying in a matter of a few seconds. “Ohh… You didn’t have to make that confusing, buddy.” He momentarily shakes his head before retaining his casual mood. “You want us to navigate this district by using the rooftops?”

  “It’s risky, but if we hop over each building, which I bet we’re already good at, we’ll get through faster. Instead of struggling to find where Magnolia Street is.” Knuckles agrees with Tails, listening to his unhinged idea, but it is a great one nevertheless.

  “The rooftops!? Jumping around the rooftops sounds too much for us, but we’ve got this…!” Although confident, Amy is concerned about the sound of the idea; relying solely on the rooftops wasn’t one of her ideas for tackling this situation. “At least Blaze isn’t here. She’s gonna have a hard time coping with the heights.”

  Everyone looks at her by mentioning Blaze, which makes sense; she thought about her in the first place since she’s afraid of heights. All except one person knows who she is. “... Who’s Blaze?” Tricky asks, putting his phone away inside his glove.

  “You’ll find out some day.” Sonic comments, wanting to keep her appearance a surprise to the Haveners. “Speaking to you all on which… catch me sooner than later!” He instantly runs up to the side of a building, progressing his way to the rooftops.

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  “Not under my watch!” Knuckles’s gut instincts force him to race the Blue Blur down. As expected, they raced each other, running their way to the top. “I’ve focused on my way to beat you! Trust me when I say that if I manage to win, then you owe me half your life savings!”

  “We don’t even have any life savings, but show off Knux!”

  They continue racing each other to the top, briefly glancing at each other to check their status. Whether they’re enjoying it, showing a competitive vibe, or are tired. Yet, they show no signs of giving up. Even when they appear tired, they continue to proactively demonstrate their effort in running, a friendly rivalry between the two lifelong friends.

  It’s not until they finally make out the antenna at a distance that they start burning their remaining energy, pressuring themselves to reach the rooftop. While they’re nearing the top, Sonic questions him, “Are there any rules for reaching the top?” Tiredness was heard in his voice, but he continued to show off his valiant effort.

  “From where this is going, not really.” Knuckles responds, not really thinking too much about his question until he slowly looks at him suspiciously. “... Why do you ask…?”

  “Oh, nothing… For me personally, not really much…”

  “...”

  “You’re not secretive, Sonic.”

  “Yeah, I know that.” The Blue Blur intentionally collides with the echidna’s shoulder, causing him to stumble while he continues to race at the top. “Good luck on that, buddy!” DASH!!! “Typical Knux… sometimes I’d like to play games with him while we’re at it…” He continues his way to the rooftop, not looking back and focusing on the main objective. “Almost there and- huh?” He sees a strange shadow that’s blocking the sunlight from behind. “Oh, please don’t be-”

  CRASH!!!

  Coughs. “Damn it, Knuckles… was that even necessary…?” He sees the glass broken from behind, feeling the wind pushing inside the dark and empty floor, while the same shadow of Knuckles presents right in front of his eyes.

  “Yes, it is! And it’ll be even better once I race you through the stairs!” Knuckles rushes right past him to the stairwell, but Sonic is letting none of it slide.

  “Hope there isn’t anyone witnessing this other than us two and the others…” The hedgehog slowly stands up before- DASH!!!

  At the stairwell, Knuckles continues his ascent, rushing up the stairs as fast as possible. Spotting the exit door, he doesn’t care about a situation where Sonic can catch up, because he wants to move right past those tense moments. He keeps (not always) getting beaten by him every single race. Whether it’s by meters or inches, seconds or milliseconds, it’s a guaranteed loss to his end. All he hopes now is not to choke-

  DASH!!- Grabs. He watches the same hedgehog running past him, already experiencing enough, and he grabs Sonic’s ankles. “I’m tired of all the propaganda related to my end about you winning against me. Let me get the spotlight!” They both stumble and fall a few steps of the stairs, both clearly seeing the exit, yet the echidna continues to hold onto the Blue Blur’s ankle, not letting go anytime soon.

  “It’s a race! Either you win or not, we have to admit that there’s nothing we can do based on the results! There’s always a next time for you, Knux!” He slowly climbs the stairs, grabbing each step to reach the door.

  Surprised, also being unsurprised because it’s Sonic, of course. Knuckles releases his grip and lunges to the door, where, at the right time, the Blue Blur also lunges at the door. As the door opens, the bright light that shines in front of their eyes temporarily blinds them, and they determine who finishes first.

  Panting. “Heh… You wouldn’t normally grab my ankles, would you?” Sonic questions, out of breath from the constant running and competition.

  “Nah… I did that for fun… and bitterness.” Responds Knuckles, who’s also out of breath.

  They look up at the sky, watching the antenna above them, which is a few meters high. Thinking about how far and fast they’ve gone to the top before a few familiar shadows cover the sun’s glare. “You’re back…”

  “Yeah. We waited for you up here.” Responds Tricky, who casually waits for their interaction.

  “That’s nice- WAIT, WHAT!?” The echidna instantly stands up, shocked that they’re here before the racing duo. “Come on… That’s not fair!”

  “If you two tried to race instead of breaking glass and racing inside the stairwell, I think you two, especially you, Knuckles, would be first.” Amy says, somewhat teasing him with her voice alone.

  “Oh well.” Sonic gradually stands up, recovering and finally feeling himself again. “Don’t worry, man. You’ll get me next time, for sure.” He extends his arm, reaching out to help him up.

  Knuckles hesitates momentarily, thinking he could do things by himself. But considering it’s his friend, he decides to show off his weak side once in a while. “Alright, fine…” He holds onto Sonic’s hand and lifts himself, casually smirking. “You’re lucky that I’m no longer my competitive self; otherwise, you’d be continuously groaning.”

  They both manage to laugh off the situation, wiping away their tears while their friendship remains on point. They’re still the competitive duo they still know and enjoy. Someday… someday Knuckles will get his moment, he’ll get his moment for sure.

  Meanwhile, Tricky does snap them out of their fun, revealing something they shockingly haven’t noticed by now. “By the way, you two knuckleheads also climbed the tallest building in the world.”

  — Peak Haven (Downtown District) —

  If the three had both reached the top first, it would be only surprising; climbing the tallest building is a guaranteed flabbergast. They quickly went over to the edge to see the cityscape. Although the atmospheric haze and the curvature of this planet don’t allow the entirety of the cityscape to be seen, it’s remarkable how their so-called friendly/rival race resulted in seeing an extraordinary view. Some prominent places seen from the rooftop: the Safe Haven Park, the beach, or a mountain peak that stands out in the distance.

  Tricky settles down on the edge of the rooftop, feeling the breeze and the blowing wind against him, ruffling his quills. “This is my brother’s favorite thing to do, enjoying the wind and the urban life, nothing but inner peace… No wonder he lived homeless, he never cared one damn bit about the inside except being clean.” He lets the others take a moment to gaze at the city around them, mesmerized by the view.

  “How can a city like this be nearly 10 times bigger than Central City and Seaside City combined?” Tails leaves off an open-ended question, letting anyone reply to his curiosity.

  “Maybe because we’re not good at promoting such city expansion, unlike these people over here.” Amy glances at the porcupine, teasing him about their world.

  “Come on…! Don’t compare your world to my world based on our cities! I bet you’re jealous because we’re built differently, bruh.” The porcuking sticks out his tongue at her, trying to let her get offended.

  She can’t help but snicker, literally taking his offense as a joke. Instead, she tries her best to get him back. “Speaking of the Mr. Porcupine himself, you’re jealous that your younger step-brother managed to have a girlfriend before you!”

  Tricky raises his arms with a combination of shock and confusion, “Huh…!? How does that even correlate to the discussion we’re having!?”

  “Hard-bet, she’s trying to rage-bait you.” Sonic whispers, smirking from their casual verbal scuffle.

  Sigh. “These Mobians…” “To be fair, they’re weird for not being considered ‘in love’, can’t argue about that. But man… You know what’s worse than hiding relationships, not even able to see where Magnolia Street is!” The porcupine complains, desperately trying to find the street, “Like, bro… out of every building we climbed, we decided to climb the building that can’t even make out the streets.” He can’t help but chuckle about it, still reminding himself that life is a joke sometimes.

  Sonic also looks down; the height difference compared to some average buildings around the city. Although it’s a clear and sunny day, he can feel how cool the area is compared to the city level below, approximately around 10 degrees cooler. No wonder he became quickly exhausted, due to the height of the building and the high elevation, causing his breathing to become labored. Still, with such challenges, he’s capable of surviving and enduring most environmental patterns. Then again, all he can do is mesmerize the view…

  Hummmmmmmmmm…

  The Blue Blur quickly reacts, informing the team immediately. “Hey. Hey. Lower your heads.” In response, they all listened to him, lowering their heads behind the wall, also hearing the mysterious sound. He slowly peeks out of the wall, trying to find the sound. It turns out it’s an Egg Drone, one of- “Of course it’s Egghead’s drone, why around here is the question.” He continues to spy the drone, watching it enter through the broken glass that Knuckles made when he crashed into him earlier. “Please don’t tell me…”

  He slowly stares at the door that leads back to the stairwell, sensing something wrong inside. And as the team follows his eyes, they finally understand what’s going on inside this building, something mysterious that may be lurking, like the Grand Good ol’ Maze. “Knuckles, remind me again, what was it like inside that building?”

  What had happened prior, when Knuckles punched Sonic into the building, they were met with a dark and empty floor, raising their concerns. From the ground level, it’s the usual office tower that everybody knows and has seen. However, the truth is yet to be otherwise. “It was dark and empty. Hell, couldn’t see a thing other than the sunlight.”

  Not a single thing surrounding them was enough to direct their attention; their wind, the sun, or the planes, none was enough to redirect their gaze. There’s something more that the tallest building must contain other than being a simple office building. “Tricky, do you know anything weird about this building beforehand, like any stories?”

  “Those news outlets never said anything, but it had issues with the plumbing and its pipes that led directly to the sewer system. And this wasn’t like back then; this is recent. So if anything correlates, it must be this.” Tricky says as the team slowly stands up now that the coast is clear. “So, are we going inside or race to the bottom?”

  “What do you think, PURRRRRR…cupine? We’re not a ‘Racing to the rooftop or ground mania club’.” Amy jokingly remarks on the porcupine, giving him a new nickname. “You think Woofa calling Solid her orange furball was way too corny? PURRcupine will forever be your nickname, dubbed by the one and only Amy Rose.” She winks at him, forcing him to roll his eyes and shake his head in disappointment.

  “You Mobians are unbelievable… Future fast-food workers have let me down-”

  “Man, shut up.” Sonic tries to hold his laughter, an ironic time to let out a laugh in this critical moment. “I’ve had my share of moments, actually being one, but I’m more of that delivery type of guy. Soon, Egghead will be a future fast-food worker if you ask me.” He says as he approaches the door, somewhat moving on from the past tension.

  Still, the door remains fearsome; they’re unsure of what’s inside, but that does leave a simple task. “At least we don’t have to rescue Solid again.”

  “My brother would be that type of person to get freed, and then get trapped once again. Just like a familiar princess in one of those games I’ve played…” Tricky watches the team look at him, like they know something about the princess. “What? You met her in real life? You know she’s fictional, right?” Then again, they leave him without a response, making him groan. “Bro, come on… Never mind.” He immediately opens the door, letting the air rush inside.

  The stairwell that Sonic and Knuckles normally climbed up as part of a friendly competition is now presented as part of an enemy base, unknown to the citizens of Haven City, who thought this was just a normal, tall building in the world. Instead, this building is a part of a mission that needs to be investigated immediately.