At Frozen Peak, Sonic, Silver, Rainbow, and Pinkie Pie are making their way to an Eggman base.

"Are you sure this is a place?" Rainbow asked.

"This is where the guy told me to go," Silver replied. "I mean, it feels sketchy, a random guy appears, tells me of Eggman base, and then vanishes but..."

"Nah it's cool," Sonic reassured him. "It matches up, with what I and Twi saw the other day."

"What did happen?" Pinkie asked.

"Twilight and I kicked their butts, and then as soon they told us who kidnap Eggman, a wormhole popped up and pulled them in," Sonic explained. "And that this point we need any lead we get."

"Hey look!" Rainbow grabs everyone's attention as Badniks clearing out materials. "Looks like your lead was right, Sliver."

"Yep, So when this blows up in our faces...Doesn't matter they're trying to rid the evidence let's hit them hard before,"

The quartet was to stop them further until the newly repaired Metal Sonic stop in their tracks.

"Hello, Metal," Rainbow greeted the bot. "Fully repaired, huh?"

Metal Sonic throws Silver aside and begins his battles with Sonic and the two ponies.

"So who fixed you up," Rainbow hoof punched and Metal counter only cut most of her hair then Sonic did a Spin Dash at him.

"Tinker? Or Eggman?" Sonic asked as Pinkie fired her Party Cannon which was caught by his surprise.

"Oh, don't he hear you," the party pony said.

"Oh he did, he doesn't talk in this form. Still, I wonder why he went back to Metal Sonic because beep-boop is a major downgrade, I mean of the Doc, didn't want you getting distracting by the battle..."

Rainbow buck him to the ground, and then Silver came back and pin him down.

"...It really didn't work. Nice catch, Sliver, how you doing?"

"Fine, I've got him, you and Dash, head to the base and-"

Metal Sonic is taken away by a wormhole, only to appear next to Dr. Starline and Cozy Glow.

"Gentlemen." Starline greeted them. "And ladies."

"Welcome," Cozy grinned.

"Holy shit, that's the guy! That's my informant!" Silver exclaimed.

"Sonic, I'll bet he's behind the wormhole, the one that took the skunk bros," Rainbow said to him.

"All right!" Pinkie came in. "I got a lot of questions for you and hope you give me and my pals some answers."

"Why, yes, my name is Dr. Starline, the one behind the recent events."

"And why is that, beak boy?" Rainbow asked.

"I wanted to meet the heroes of both worlds, understand you, from personal experience...leading up to the ultimate battle of skills!"

"Oh for love of Celestia," Cozy groaned.

"Man this is loco, and coming from me that saying something," Pinkie said as Sonic glared at him.

"He sound so creepy or crazy when I talked to him!" Silver explained.

"At least he giving us straight answers," Sonic said. "Okay Starline or Cozy Glow, tell me this: What did you do Mr. Tinker?"

"The pale of the doctor no longer exists. I and my associates have made sure that Eggman has been restored!"

Meanwhile at Eggman's secret lab

"Any results?" Chrysalis asked him.

"So far the virus progression is steady but slow. Given its current condition, it takes hours or even days for it to soak the planet. I wonder if repeated exposure would accelerate things?"

To test it, Eggman gets the fully infected Pocky and pokes the Ricky with it. The Ricky quickly completes its transmutation, delighting Eggman.

"Success! The greater the exposure the more rapid effect! A mob of infected minions will convert new victims in no time! Which means we're more phase two of my brilliant plan!"

"Great, what do want you to do with those two, Rough and Tumble?"

"Leave them to me."

Back at Frozen Peak, Sonic and his friends battle Metal Sonic, Cozy Glow, and Starline. . Silver tries to grab Metal Sonic but the robot moves too quickly and manages to throw Sonic at him. Silver instead uses his psychokinesis to levitate Metal Sonic and throw him away. The duo then rush to Starline, only to be transported through a portal into the snow. Sonic and Rainbow Dash head straight at Starline only to be transported again but this time off of a cliff. Silver immediately goes after the, and Starline closes the portal after him. Then Metal Sonic returns to Cozy and Starline.

"Are we done yet?"

"Almost just have to set the trap."

Meanwhile. Silver manages to catch Sonic and the others and bring them back to the surface.

"Thanks, dude," Rainbow said looking around the area. "Look like he drops us on the other side of the mountain."

"Must've scouted the area beforehand," Sonic wondered. "You three grab on, I'll get us back there."

"Wouldn't be faster If I flew up to us over?" Silver suggested as Sonic took off with him, Pinkie, and Rainbow. "Nope, this is faster, much faster!"

...

"Is everything set up?" Starline asks Cozy Glow.

"Yep, once they enter the base, boom!" She exclaimed as Starline open a wormhole.

"Good, you and Metal go ahead, I'll wait here to sit how it plays it out."

"Suit yourself."

Both Cozy Glow and Metal Sonic went through the portal then Starline closed it.

"Well this has been disappointing," Starline said then got blasted by Pinkie's Party Cannon and Sonic grabbed.

"Miss me?" Sonic asked.

"How did you-"

"My name is 'Sonic' I'm made of 'goes fast', Eggman info, spill."

"Everything's been secured in the vault! Straight to the back wall! Code is 2662!"

"I've got it, you keep him down!" Silver said as went into the base.

"All right, fanboy, where is Eggman? What are you two and Cozy up planning?" Rainbow asked.

"He isn't here! He planning something breathtaking!" Starline exclaimed then look at Pinkie. "Is something wrong with her."

"My Pinkie sense is acting up, both my shoulder aching, and my ears are flopping." Pinkie said.

"Oh crap, it's a combo," Sonic realized. "What does it means?"

"It means Silver walking right into a trap and that was the base detonation code."

"What!? Silver! Wait!" Sonic let him go and the others went after him then it exploded.

"That could go better than I planned!" Starline opened a portal which grabbed Chrysails attention and dragged through the portal and slammed him into a wall!

"What the hell is wrong with you!?" Chrysalis yelled. "I didn't care if Sonic was there, the ponies are mine to destroy! Not a hotshot like you!"

"But they're gone! Is it best that there is no involvement if any plans?"

"Eggman could carpet bomb any day, I won't strangle them for everything did to me! I the superior to those fools! There's a right way and wrong way of defeating your long-time foes and you did it the wrong way!"

"My bad, I should let you take the lead!"

"You should be...but luckily they didn't die due to you being barbaric," Chyrsails said showing the footage that Silver managed to put a force field up but the explosion still injured him. "Besides what were you unloading anyway?"

"Not mine, treasured collectibles from Eggman's legacy."

"Whatever, so how was your first taste of battling the blue rodent."

"Let's just say, it put some things in perspective."

At the Restoration HQ, Silver is resting on a bed following his injuries.

"The next thing I know I ended up here, taking that Rainbow took back here."

"Yup, remind me that owes you a favor," Rainbow replied.

"Thank you, for saving Sonic and the others," Amy replied. "Now rest up, let us know if you need anything."

As the Mane 5 watched him. Sonic, Amy, and Twilight walked out of the base, Sonic explained that Starline was behind the breakout of Rough and Tumble, and somehow freeing Cozy and Chrysalis from their stone prison.

"Any sign of them?" Amy asked.

"Nope," Sonic shook his head. "They left by the time we left."

"This is bad," Twilight said in concern. "Eggman is back, Cozy and Chrysalis are free, there is no sign of Tirek, gathering allies, and no idea of what his plan is. Both Equestria and Mobius have barely begun building after his attack, if he were to strike again, it could be devasting. We can't let that happen!"

"Yeah," Amy agreed. "But where do we start? We barely serach the bases when looking for Neo. He could anywhere."

"Right. So instead of wasting the time looking where he is...we'll go where he isn't!" Twilight pinpoints to an unguarded base. "We'll tap into the network from one of his old bases!"

"Great thinking, Twi, you and Amy want to tag along," Sonic asked.

"Really? But there's a lot of work to do," Amy said.

"I'm sure that Spike can handle things while I'm gone," Twilight said.

"That's good enough for me, I'll grab Sunset and ask if she was to come as well. I'll see you at the base!"

Next Chapter: Patient Zero Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 29 Minutes