When Amy was caught up on the recent chaos, mainly surrounding Silver's and Blaze's origins, she wasn't quite sure how to approach the glaring elephant in the room. None of them did. The albino hedgehog was still wary, refusing to sit and keep an eye on Mobius' fastest hero, who, stiffly stood before the vacant television. She'd seen him...similar, previously, but it more relied on anger than...fear.

It made her worry this had happened before.

"Why don't we discuss you're incessant need for attacking us?" Shadow practically barked, leaning against the pole neighbouring the stairs with crossed arms.

Silver's frown grew and he probably would have thrown the Ultimate Lifeform out the window if it weren't for Blaze holding his hand. "I can't risk him messing things up."

Sonic pulled on the scarily dark bags beneath his eyes. "Yeah, about that. You're from, what, two hundred years in the future, right?"

"Right."

"And you came back here because I brought Mobius' downfall?"

Tails shook his head. "It's-."

He never thought his brother would hear something so wrong out. "What am I gonna do?"

"I...don't know." Silver admitted, combing stressfully through spiked quills.

"So you attacked him for no reason?!" Amy huffed.

"I'm sorry! Everything is so.... I don't know what's true and what's a lie. But when I saw Sonic I just...."

"He does have that effect on people." Shadow reasoned.

"So, let's go with the idea Sonic isn't the 'Catalyst'." Rouge redirected. "Unless there's something we should know, Blue?"

Sonic, somehow, appeared even more pale. All his friends' eyes bore into him. Their eyes towered over him. They rested against his shoulders and Tails' small, encouraging nod did very little to do just that.

"What happened outside?" Omega urged. "What was going on with you?"

Sonic really wished he didn't glance at the living room window. Instead of himself, black fur and glowing white sclera stared right back, even a beastly claw moved to rest on sown over lips.

'Hush.'

And they cried.

'You say anything and Silver will deal with you on the spot. Do you really want your friends to see how much of a monster you are? Surely, once was enough.'

"Is it happening again?" Amy asked and Sonic swore his heart shattered.

Silver double took. "Is what happening again?"

Despite the sweat gathering at his forehead, the Blue Blur threw on an assuring smile. "Nothing! Look, it's...it's been a long week. That's all. I just need a holiday." He laughed (it didn't sound quite right). "I have everything under control."

Blaze cocked her head. "You don't seem-."

"What I think we need to do is address why Cliff claims to know my Uncle."

The mysterious yellow dog removed his hat, squeezed, and rather nervously smiled. "First I'd like to say it's an honour to meet you all. You are a...colourful bunch."

"Thanks?" Amy replied.

"You said you had a warning for us, what is it?" Tails asked, eyes peeling off his brother.

"Well I...I came here to say that something me and Charles worked on years ago, before you were born, Sonic, has been tampered with. It seems now...we know how." Cliff looked to Silver and Blaze.

"We did not on purpose, Sir." Blaze reasoned. "We were ready to arrive on our own terms. It seems the ring was ready."

Cliff kindly smiled. "I hold no blame over either of you. In truth, the only ones at fault are-."

"How'd you know about the ring?" Sonic asked.

"Like I said, I worked with your uncle. We were in the midst of the war against the humans and things weren't looking good. At the time I...I didn't know Charles had made blueprints of the Robotisizer. We were desperate to win and he...when Eggman stole those plans, it made Charles desperate to try and undo his mistake."

"So he approached you for help?" Tails estimated.

"I guess I was the only one who could keep up with him- barely. Or maybe I was the only one willing to hear him out."

"Did you think it were possible?" Shadow asked. "To make Time Travel a reality?"

"No. That's why we ended our partnership. He still wanted to believe but I...I had lost faith."

"So you're here now to...?" Rouge pushed.

Cliff pointed to the 'Chaos Emerald' atop the coffee table. "There are seven of them. When me and Charles reached a wall- we couldn't figure out how to make such a portal more than a dream- he believed that because Rings jump around Mobius anyway, with more power they might be able to jump through time."

"He was definitely onto something, but it's not a Chaos Emerald that can do that." Silver replied, unzipping his belt bag to hold a few glistening cyan rings (only then did Amy notice the Blaze badge on top).

Sonic's eyes widened. "Woah...."

"These are called Traveler's Rings. We use them to, well, travel through time. They're incredibly rare and are made from, as expected, golden rings and melted down Time Stones."

"You simply throw one and call Chronos Control." Blaze continued.

"Why melt a Time Stone?" Amy asked.

Silver weaved the ring between his fingers. "There's only seven in my time- and scientists before I was born realised that if we reduced them to a ring- we can get way more uses." He frowned. "Really, we became greedy."

"Tale as old as time." Cliff hummed and Sonic tried to hide his snort behind a cough.

"How did you meet the cat?" Omega wondered.

"We're not too sure." Blaze admitted. "But we think the Traveler's Rings answer to a stronger call."

"Stronger call?" Rouge echoed.

With an encouraging nod from Silver, the cat sighed and sat crisscrossed on the floor. With hands atop her knees, the group began to wonder why it became abruptly warm. They grew even more puzzled when the albino hedgehog pulled out a small vile of lava from his bag, setting it against her legs.

The vile's lid snapping off with the lava twirling out was not on the groups' radar. Her eyes screwed tight and the lava blossomed to bring out seven, cubed, magnificent jewels. Red, yellow, silver, purple, green and light and dark blue- they majestically circled Blaze's head.

"The Chaos emeralds are said to be able to turn thoughts into power." She began. "But these? The Sol Emeralds? They burn those thoughts into power."

"Before we showed up here, the last time I used one of my rings, Blaze tapped into their energy." Silver continued. "I was...thrown off course and landed in Sol."

"We soon realised the Time Stone and Sol Emerald energy seemed to pull towards each other. So...we used them together to bring us back on Mobius' timeline."

"Hold on a sec'." Tails waved a hand. "Doesn't that argue against your whole branches thing?"

"Branches?" Amy recited.

"Basically, Silver says he's been taught when certain events in each of our lives don't happen- it creates a branch in the timeline. Which leads to disaster, the branch dying and clinging onto another and spreading like a disease. It's why they're here. Silver says we've branched."

"But." The snowy hedgehog heavily perched on the left arm of the sofa. "It's never been made clear what those specific events are. And, really, branches can continue peacefully sometimes- but we don't know when exactly for that either."

"The fox also suggested branches only happen when a Time Traveler uses one of their rings. He argues there's multiple timelines-."

"Explaining how your universe co-exists with ours." Tails added.

"Yes. These timelines may intertwine at certain points, when these events occur, but can mostly continue existing afterwards." Blaze finished.

"To know for certain, I'd like to study those rings of yours."

"Sure." Silver smiled, snapping his bag off and handing it to the young inventor.

"I'd be honoured to help." Cliff offered.

"With your experience, that would be really helpful. Thanks!"

"Hold on, you seemed to be in a rush to get here when you visited me." Amy refocused.

"That's because we don't have much time. I was worried about the portal being used because I believed it was connected to the Chaos Emeralds. It seems whoever made it must have found a Time Stone. Either way, the Chaos Emeralds need to be found and you lot need to be the ones to find them."

Sonic straightened and Silver glared at the glint in his eyes. "How come?"

"Because Eggman already has one."