The Snowy Kingdom and the Tiger (Sonic Adventure 3: GX)

This page contains the story of Knuckles the Echidna in full detail, in the game Sonic Adventure 3: GX. Secondary characters in Knuckles' story involve Julie-Su and Big the Cat, who have their own gameplay style and levels. Note that not all Sacred Treasures are found automatically after completing a stage, but some are hidden in Adventure Fields.

Knuckles' story is chiefly inspired from that of the Archie comics. Most of the characters and locations remain the same, but slightly altered to match the chronological events of the series' games. It was also inspired from the soundtrack of the films Mononoke Hime and Castle in the Sky, both by Joe Hisaishi. The story's title is The Snowy Kingdom and the Tiger, the Snowy Kingdom being Angel Island and the Tiger being Knuckles, symbolically speaking.

Stages in Knuckles' Storline

Knuckles has 21 levels in Story Mode, Julie-Su has 12, Big has 5 and there are 11 Bosses in total.

1. Tropical Sanctuary (Knuckles)
2. Lost Paradise (Knuckles), Boss: Dark Egg Legion Squad 1# (Knuckles)
3. 00's Boulevard (Knuckles)
4. Chaotic Casino (Knuckles)
5. Mad Terminal (Knuckles)
6. Dumm Jummai (Knuckles), Boss: Beast of Xenin (Knuckles)
7. Blue Bay (Knuckles, Julie-Su)
8. Rail Mountain (Knuckles, Julie-Su), Boss: Fang the Sniper (Julie-Su)
9. Scrap Fortress (Knuckles, Julie-Su)
10. Sky Squadron (Knuckles, Julie-Su), Boss: Egg Viceroy
11. Tropical Sanctuary (Big the Cat)
12. Olive Retreat (Big the Cat)
13. Blue Bay (Big the Cat)
14. Nocturnal Haunt (Knuckles, Julie-Su, Big the Cat), Boss: Dr. Finitevus (Knuckles)
15. Olive Retreat (Knuckles)
16. Archaic Mosque (Knuckles, Julie-Su), Boss: Sonic the Hedgehog (Knuckles)
17. Air Winds (Knuckles, Julie-Su)
18. Totem Tundra (Knuckles, Julie-Su), Boss: Magic Paladin (Knuckles)
19. Genocide City (Knuckles, Julie-Su)
20. Alpine Peaks (Julie-Su)
21. Great Guns (Knuckles), Boss: F-36 THUNDERBIRD
22. Windy Village (Knuckles), Boss: Xenin (Knuckles)
23. Huge Inferno (Knuckles)
24. Glyphic Babylon (Knuckles, Julie-Su), Boss: Dimitri (Knuckles, Julie-Su)
25. Echidnaopolis (Knuckles, Julie-Su, Big the Cat), Boss: Enerjak (Knuckles)

Knuckles' Story

Time has passed since Immarius and the Gravitus attacked the Angel Island and destroyed most of its cities. Teotihuacan has now been abandoned and its inhabitants have created colonies on the surface of the island and are now living peacefully.

Knuckles is seen gliding over the Angel Island. We hear from his thoughts that he has signed a peace treaty with the Dingoes and is now heading back to the village to meet up with his father Locke. Upon arriving at the village, Knuckles is welcomed by his clan and father but before they can say much, the village is attacked by an army of black hooded figures who cause havoc and destruction in the island. They burn down the houses and captivate as many Echidnas as they can. Knuckles tries to fight them back but is eventually disabled by one of their firearms and has his father kidnapped by them. Locke throws a key at Knuckles and tells him to go quickly to the Mystic Ruins and find a guy named Archimedes. After Knuckles gets up to his feet, he witnesses all the damage done to the village and his people. Determined, Knuckles follows his father's instructions and heads to the Mystic Ruins hoping to uncover the mystery behind this sudden attack and rescue his father and clan.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

(You will have to talk to the townspeople first. You will encounter some frightened Echidna villagers who will give some information about what has happened. They will tell you to go to the Tropical Sanctuary and will point you to its location).

Stage 1: Tropical Sanctuary (Knuckles)

At the Mystic Ruins, Knuckles finds himself in the remains of an ancient temple. He spots an opening in the wall looking like a lock and tries to open it using the key his father gave to him. After unlocking it, he finds a letter, opens it and reads it. It is a letter from his father Locke. It starts off by saying: " Knuckles, my son, by the time you will be reading this, the entire Brotherhood of Guardians (except Knuckles of course) will have died and grave danger will have pledged in time but now, he must go to Teotihuacan and find Archimedes, an old and trusted friend of his who will instruct Knuckles what to do and will answers some of his questions on what is happening. The letter ends with the phrase "I have faith in you, your father, Locke". Saddened but encouraged, Knuckles stays loyal to his father's commands and heads to Teotihuacan to find Archimedes.

Stage 2: Lost Paradise (Knuckles)

Knuckles arrives at Teotihuacan, which he remembers since the events from The Chronicles of Sonic the Hedgehog: Rise of the Heroes. As he wanders around the place, he is approached by a tiny, red ant, who immediately recognizes Knuckles from his crescent fur patch on his thorax and introduces himself to him as Archimedes, the fire ant. He tells Knuckles to come with him quickly as it is not safe to speak there and takes Knuckles to a hideout located under the ruins of Teotihuacan. After reaching a safe zone, they enter a chamber which is different from the rest of Teotihuacan, having a more futuristic appearance. Archimedes tells Knuckles that this is the Grand Conservatory an undeground base built for storage of the Echidna tribe and by the Guardians. Teotihuacan, which is where the Grand Conservatory is, was called Haven by the Brotherhood of Guardians and

Archimedes

was their base of operations on Angel Island. Archimedes is a friend of Locke and a close confident of the Brotherhood of Guardians for many years, as were his forefathers before him and his entire family. They have been assisting the Echidnas with their projects and missions for many years and are known as the Fire Ants. Archimedes tells Knuckles that the Angel Island and possibly the entire world is in grave danger now that an "old" threat has appeared and is in search of the "Enerjak Suit", a suit made by the Gods millennia ago of divine powers with unimaginable potential. The suit was used for good by the Brotherhood of Guardians but now that they have all died or captured, the suit is in danger of falling into the wrong hands and causing great destruction. However, the Brotherhood had foreseen this evil and managed to hide it out of plain sight, making it possible only for the last Guardian of the Master Emerald to find it by gathering all of the Sacred Treasures of the Brotherhood of Guardians, which were used to seal the chamber containing the almighty suit. Now, Knuckles must travel to various locations and retrieve these Sacred Treasures to uncover the suit before it is stolen. In addition, if one where to gather all of the Sacred Treasures and the Enerjak suit, they would be able to contact with all of the Guardians. Knuckles agrees to this task but asks how it is possible to find all of the treasures. Archy replies by saying that his family, the Fire Ants hid them according to the Brotherhood's orders and therefore knows most of their locations. He will aid Knuckles to the Sacred Treasures. But before long, they hear noises coming outside. Archy gives Knuckles the first of the treasures, which was given to him for safe keeping and they escape Haven only to be ambushed by a group of Dark Legionnaires.

Boss 1: Dark Legion Squad 1# (Knuckles)

(Upon defeating them, you will be awarded with a Sacred Treasure; this happens most of the times when you defeat a Boss or if you search well enough in the Adventure Fields).

Knuckles and Archimedes head to the altar of the Angel Island and after having a quick discussion, Archimedes instructs Knuckles to head to the city where the next treasure is hidden.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

While on their way to the city, but still on Angel Island, the two are attacked by a Dark Legion squad once again. Knuckles manages to defeat most of the Dark Legionnaires. Some of them manage to escape. Knuckles catches a

Knuckles and Julie-Su's first interaction

Dark Legionnaire and is about to harm him, until the mask falls of, revealing to be a female echidna. Knuckles gets embarrassed and apologizes for his actions. He asks her what she's after and what her name is. Enraged, the mysterious female echidna gets to her feet and escapes leaving Knuckles unanswered and confused. However, as she escapes, Knuckles spots an interesting item in her pocket resembling a Sacred Treasure. He tells Archimedes that they should continue with their mission and so they do.

Adventure Field: Central City

Stage 3: 00's Boulevard (Knuckles)

(Talk to the townspeople, they will tell you that the treasure you are seeking for is located at the Museum. Head there. Afterwards, Archimedes will tell you that you cannot steal the treasure and must acquire it in another way. Talk again to the townspeople and they will tell you of an exact replica located at Casinopolis. Head there and take it to replace it with the actual one in the museum).

Stage 4: Chaotic Casino (Knuckles)

(Head back to the Museum to acquire the Sacred Treasure).

After successfully acquiring the Sacred Treasure from the Museum, Knuckles and Archimedes spot the echidna they saw earlier at the Angel Island heading to the train station. Knuckles gets a feeling that she is somehow connected to their mission and convinces Archimedes to go after her.

Stage 5: Mad Terminal (Knuckles)

On board the train, Knuckles and Archimedes are assaulted by more Dark Legionnaires, who blast the train out of its tracks. After the train crashes, the two find themselves in a futuristic city near the coastline. Knuckles and Archimedes decide to explore the area.

Stage 6: Dumm Jummai (Knuckles)

It is now night time. Knuckles and Archimedes reach the old market near the harbor, which is crowded with people and merchants. Suddenly, the crowd disperses in panic and gunshots are heard. Knuckles follows the sound of the gunshots and finds himself face to face with a cybernetic echidna with an army of Dark Legionnaires with him. He introduces himself as Xenin, servant of Dr. Finitevus and points his gun to Knuckles. The two battle each other.

Boss 2: Beast of Xenin (Knuckles)

During the battle, Knuckles is nearly killed by Xenin's warriors when out of a sudden, the same echidna Knuckles and Archimedes saw earlier appears and launches a ferocious attack against Xenin. Xenin, however, takes out a warp ring from his pocket and uses it to create a portal and disappear with his soldiers. Having defeated the Beast of Xenin, Knuckles acquires yet another Sacred Treasure (it was probably in Xenin's possession). Enraged, Knuckles demands an apology from the echidna for interfering with his battle and to reveal her identity. The two start quarreling until Archimedes intervenes and introduces them to each other, as he already knows both of them since they where children. She is introduced as Julie-Su the Echidna. However, as it is night time, Archimedes suggests they go find somewhere to rest and continue tomorrow. He insists that Julie-Su join them, which she does since she is injured by Xenin, and the three find shelter in the harbor. After things get calmer, Knuckles asks to know more information about her and her goals. Julie-Su replies by saying that Xenin is her brother and that both were members of the Dark Legion, a powerful army of cybernetic Echidnas controlled by Dr. Finitevus. Eventually she escaped, but her brother stayed behind, as Dr. Finitevus had poisoned his mind and had made him his right hand man. She vowed to hunt down Dr. Finitevus and rescue her brother. Earlier, she disguised herself as a Dark Legionnaire to go undercover until Knuckles attacked her. She also reveals to him some information about Dr. Finitevus until Knuckles asks her about that objects she has in her pocket. Julie-Su says that it is one of the Sacred Treasures of the Brotherhood of Guardians given to her by her great grandfather, who was a Guardian of the Master Emerald. Julie-Su gives it to Knuckles after learning of his goal and therefore, Knuckles collects one more of the Sacred Treasures.  

A cutscene follows. We are introduced to Dr. Finitevus in his laboratory (location unknown), where he is

Finitevus and Dimitri next to their victims.

examining test subjects, namely Echidnas (which he captured after invading the island). As he is working, we see Dimitri floating by him. Finitevus explains to him that he is examining the Echidnas to discover their bloodline and how they are affected to Chaos energy. After a talk, Dimitri informs Finitevus not to forget what their true intentions are. Finitevus reminds him that they teamed up in the first place to acquire the Enerjak suit and grant Dimitri immortality, since he is slowly losing his life. The camera zooms at one of Finitevus' victims, who is Dimitri's own son The cutscene then ends.

The next day, Knuckles and Archimedes continue with their quest on finding the Sacred Treasures. After a talk, Julie-Su is convinced to join them so that she can achieve her goals more easily and rescue her brother. Archimedes points the next location, the sea. They head there.

Stage 7: Blue Bay (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

The trio finds yet another Sacred Treasure but before long, they are assaulted by infamous bounty hunter Fang the Sniper, who mistakes the treasure for an Albion artifact and steals it. He then escapes to the mountains to reach Eggman's fleet. Knuckles, Julie-Su and Archimedes pursue him.

Stage 8: Rail Mountain (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

Boss 3: Fang the Sniper (Julie-Su)

With the help of Dark Legionnaires, Fang manages to escape to Eggman's fleet, which passes right above the mountains. The three decide to go after it.

Adventure Field: Central City

(After talking to the locals, you will be informed that Eggman's fleet is heading to the E.G.G. Metropolis).

Adventure Field: E.G.G. Metropolis

Stage 9: Scrap Fortress (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

The heroes have now infiltrated Dr. Eggman's base. They see Dr. Eggman boarding the Egg Fleet with his troops, which has now landed there and takes off again. Julie-Su suggests they take a small shuttle and pursue the fleet.

Stage 10: Sky Squadron (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

There is a cutscene which shows Dr. Eggman and Fang on board the Egg Fleet. Fang gives Eggman the reassure he believes is an artifact and hands it over to Dr. Eggman. Eggman, knowing that this is not what he is after, yells at Fang and orders him to do better job and throws the treasure down to the Earth.

At the deck, Knuckles, Archimedes and Julie-Su confront Eggman himself in his mech. Knuckles demands his treasure but Eggman replies by saying that he does not know what he's talking about and prepares to launch them out of his fleet.

Boss 4: Egg Viceroy (Knuckles)

Eggman seizes Knuckles and Julie-Su and renders them immobile, losing their consciousness. Having panicked, Archimedes returns to the shuttle and escapes in order to find help, but is blasted down by Eggman's cannons and crash lands in the jungle.

There is an intermission cutscene. We see Dr. Finitevus and Locke, Knuckles' father in a mechanical, dark looking

Locke as he appears in the game. He is held captive by Dr. Finitevus.

base. Locke is chained on the wall, unable to move while Dr. Finutevus tells him to reveal the location of the Enerjak suit. After failing multiple times to make Locke speak, Finitevus tries to devour his soul to empower his Chaos abilities but to his dismay, he is unable to do so. Locke explains to him that he is no more a Guardian of the Master Emerald and so cannot devour his life energy. Finitevus becomes enraged but controls his temper until Dimitri comes in and tells him that Knuckles, Locke's son is the current Guardian. Finitevus releases an evil laugh and searches Knuckles in the control screen. He orders his army of Dark Legionnaires to catch and bring him alive to him. As for Locke, he spares his life and puts him to work along with the rest of his Echidna slaves.

The story switches to Big the Cat, who is riding a caravan pulled by a donkey in the jungle of the Mystic Ruins. The caravan bumps into something which causes Big to stop and check the ground. He finds that he bumped into a treasure, the Sacred Treasure that Eggman threw from the aircraft. At that moment, Big hears an explosion coming from deep within the jungle which scares Froggy and causes him to run away. Big chases after him.

Stage 11: Tropical Sanctuary (Big the Cat)

Big and Froggy end up in the crash site of Archimedes' shuttle. Inside, they find Archimedes, whom Froggy tries to eat, but Big does not let him. Archimedes tells Big that Knuckles and Julie-Su have been kidnapped by Dr. Eggman. Big decides to head to the Cat Kingdom in the Mystic Ruins to seek help. He takes Archimedes with him.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

Stage 12: Olive Retreat (Big the Cat)

While heading to the Cat Kingdom, Big and Archimedes encounter Xenin with his army of Dark Legionnaires. They follow them in secret until they reach a gigantic fortress situated within the jungle. There, they see Eggman's army handing over Knuckles and Julie-Su to the Dark Legionnaires and head inside the base. Archimedes concludes that Eggman and Finitevus are working together to achieve their goals.

Afterwards, Big and Archimedes arrive outside the Cat Kingdom. At the gate, Archimedes asks them if they can come in as visitors but their entrance is denied. According to the kingdom's rules, they can only come in if they complete a certain task; to catch a large number of fishes. Big, then, takes out his fishing rod and heads to the sea to catch the fish.

Big and Archimedes are not treated very humbly by the Cat Kingdom.

s.

Stage 13: Blue Bay (Big the Cat)

Having triumphed, Big brings the Kingdom the amount of fishes needed to complete the task. Amazed with his fishing skills, they are invited in the village where they meet with the Queen. Archimedes explains to them the overall situation and about the Angel Island's threat and persuades them to go rescue Knuckles.

Meanwhile, Knuckles and Julie-Su wake up, finding themselves being chained and immobilized inside a dark fortress. They see Xenin who, after having a small conversation with both of them, is called up by Dr. Finitevus himself. Dr. Finitevus appears alongside Dimitri, a floating head within a glass with protruding, red tentacles. Dr. Finitevus introduces formally himself and reveals his plans to both of them. He intends to find the Enerjak suit, which has been hidden by the Brotherhood of Guardians. However, he is unable to find its exact location and asks Knuckles to help him find it and in return he will grant him with immortality and will withdraw him of his duties of Guardian and will both reign over Angel Island. Knuckles denies him offer and Finitevus tells him that if he denies, he will make him suffer until he reveals its location and then make him one of his minions.

Back at the Cat Kingdom, the clan is preparing for war against the Dark Legionnaires after having been successfully persuaded by Archimedes to save the Guardian of the Master Emerald and the island itself. They all gather outside the fortress of Dr. Finitevus and when the mark of the Queen is given, the army attacks and a vicious war commences. Dr. Finitevus is informed of the attack and leaves Knuckles and Julie-Su in the hands of Xenin, as he organizes his army of Dark Legionnaires for the battle. Meanwhile, Big and Archimedes infiltrate the fortress and find Knuckles and Julie-Su, whom they rescue from captivity. Archimedes tells them that they came here with the help of the Cat Kingdom. Knuckles wishes to confront Dr. Finitevus himself and thus the team heads to find Dr. Finitevus.

Stage 14: Nocturnal Haunt (Knuckles, Julie-Su, Big the Cat)

Knuckles, Julie-Su, Big and Archimedes enter a hidden room in attempt to hide from soldiers in the hallway. The room seems to be different from other rooms in the base. They examine it. Knuckles looks around and finds some documents scattered around the desk. He picks them up and reads them carefully. There are various images of Echidnas and Guardians whose heads have been marked with a red X. Below it says ELIMINATED. Knuckles becomes upset and reads them faster. He recognizes some figures in the pictures.He now realizes that they are below Haven, the Brotherhood's old hideout, which has been found by Finitevus and extends until Teotihuacan. He takes as many documents as possible with him and orders the team to depart.

They later confront Dr. Finitevus in a large hallway alongside his Dark Legionnaires. Dr. Finitevus offers one more time to join forces with him but Knuckles rejects it and the two prepare to fight each other man to man.

Boss 5: Dr. Finitevus (Knuckles)

The fortress has now been surrendered under the forces of the Cat Kingdom. Dr. Finitevus uses his Warp Ring and teleports himself elsewhere to escape. Knuckles and co leave the fortress to meet up with the Queen of the Cat Kingdom. Knuckles expresses his gratitude to everyone who helped him. Big, then gives them the Sacred Treasure he had found back at the jungle and the heroes are invited to the Cat Kingdom for a celebration.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

(Head to the Cat Kingdom)

At the Cat Kingdom (night time), a feast in organized for celebration. Knuckles, Julie-Su, Archimedes and Big are invited. Knuckles explains the clan of his troubles and his mission to collect all of the Sacred Treasures of the Brotherhood of Guardians. The Queen informs Knuckles that they do have one of the Sacred Treasures in their possession given to them by the Echidna Guardians themselves and will give it to Knuckles but only if he proves himself worthy by completing a task, which Knuckles accepts.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

(You might want to go talk with some people at the village to get information about various important subjects. After that, talk to Julie-Su; she will speak to you about Dimitri, the floating head they saw earlier. She will say that he is over 400 years old and was once a brilliant scientist working at Echidnaopolis. However, after a dreadful incident, he was corrupted by Chaos energy. His life has been very complicated, having survived many historical events and his alignment has not always been clear. She then reveals some information about Finitevus. Finitevus comes from Albion and is one of the last surviving citizens of that city. When he was researching about the effects of Chaos Energy, he accidentally infected himself and transformed him into an albino mastermind. He was then exiled from his city for being too much of a threat. Finitevus continued his studies until he learned how to master his new powers. He allied with Dr. Eggman and turned against his own race, ultimately obliterating Albion. Afterwards, Finitevus discovered about the Enerjak suit's existence and vowed to get his hands on it and become immortal. However, he needed allies and began traveling through different dimensions using his warp rings and ended up in the Twilight Zone. There he met the Nocturnal Clan. He soon took control over them and trained them into becoming Dark Legionnaires for his own benefits. After that, talk to Big. He will not say anything useful except that he has lost Froggy again somewhere in the village. Head to the hut when you finish).

The next morning, Knuckles begins with his task in order to earn the Sacred Treasure from the Cat Kingdom. He must prove his strength and wit to them.

Stage 15: Olive Retreat (Knuckles)

Knuckles manages to complete the task and obtains one more of the Sacred Treasures of the Brotherhood of Guardians.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

(Talk to Archimedes, he will tell you that the next Sacred Treasure is hidden in the desert. Big will stay at the village with Froggy).

Adventure Field: Angel Island

Stage 16: Archaic Mosque (Knuckles)

At the Archaic Mosque, Knuckles finds a large stone mural on a wall which catches his glimpse. It depicts several Echidnas holding different kinds of items, which resemble the Sacred Treasures, who are heading towards many locations. Knuckles tries to decipher some of the ancient Echidna letters written below but is unable to understand them. At that moment, he finds Sonic and the two have a friendly chat until Knuckles notices Sonic is carrying an artifact which Knuckles mistakes for a Sacred Treasure and demands it from Sonic. After quarreling, the two end up fighting each other over the artifact.

Boss 6: Sonic the Hedgehog (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

However, their fight is interrupted when Metal Sonic appears and steals the artifact, then escapes from where he came. Knuckles apologizes to Sonic and the two head to their ways. Then, Knuckles finds the Sacred Treasure which was hidden in the area exactly how the Queen had said and realizes that Sonic was indeed correct. Feeling guilty, he then finds Julie-Su and head to their next destination according to Archimedes, the Air Winds, a race of creatures whom the Echidnas had a close contact with and donated one of the Sacred Treasures to them.

Stage 17: Air Winds (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

Having stolen Dr. Finitevus' diary from his base, they read some of the pages until they find something important stating that he (Dr. Finitevus), is unable to find the location of the Enerjak suit and is therefore heading to find someone who knows the secrets of the past of the Echidna civilization. Knuckles immediately thinks of Shade, whom he remembers having great knowledge of the Echidna history back at the events of The Chronicles of Sonic the Hedgehog: Rise of the Heroes. Knuckles persuades the team to go find her.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

(After talking to the locals, you will be informed about Shade's residence at the Blue Ridge Zone).

Adventure Field: Blue Ridge

Stage 18: Totem Tundra (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

After making their way to the Totem Tundra, they find Silver, Blaze and Cream, who are battling against a fearsome robot. They assist them.

Boss 7: Magic Paladin (Knuckles)

(After defeating the Magic Paladin, you will be awarded with another Sacred Treasure).

Silver and his team thank Knuckles for his work in helping them and later, Knuckles and his team reach Shade's hideout. But to their dismay, they find the place completely wrecked with Shade missing. Knuckles was right as Dr. Finitevus kidnapped her to reveal him the information he needed for the Enerjak suit. Knuckles gets upset and wants to go rescue Shade but Archimedes stops him telling him that they must continue with their mission, which is their primary goal because if Finitevus retrieves the suit, they are all doomed.

Adventure Field: Central City

(Next, Archimedes will designate the next destination where the next Sacred Treasure is located, at the ruins of Old Megalopolis. Head there).

Stage 19: Genocide City (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

Upon retrieving one more of the Sacred Treasures, Knuckles suggests they split up to expedite time. Julie-Su will go to the snowy mountains and Knuckles will head back to the Angel Island.

Stage 20: Alpine Peaks (Julie-Su)

Julie-Su collects the Sacred Treasure from the mountains and goes back to the altar of the Master Emerald to meet up with Knuckles as they had planned.

Meanwhile, while on his way to the Angel Island, Knuckles spots in the sky the G.U.N. Helicopters which are heading to the G.U.N. base by the sea. Through the window, he sees Sonic having been captured by the G.U.N. forces. Knuckles gathers his strength and goes to repay the favor in rescuing Sonic, after having obstructed his progress earlier at the desert.

Adventure Field: E.G.G. Metropolis

Stage 21: Great Guns (Knuckles)

Boss 8: F-36 THUNDERBIRD (Knuckles)

(Before reaching Sonic's cell, you will have to battle a G.U.N. robot which serves as a security guard).

At the G.U.N. base, Sonic has already escaped from his cell and is battling against Metal Sonic. Knuckles intervenes and battles Metal Sonic until Metal Sonic flees the battlefield in defeat. Sonic thanks Knuckles for his help and goes to meet with his friends. Knuckles continues his journey to the Angel Island to get the next Sacred Treasure.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

Stage 22: Windy Village (Knuckles)

Knuckles encounters and confronts Xenin once again, this time alone. Knuckles tries to reason with him to change his alignment knowing that he is Julie-Su's brother. Xenin filled with anger and attacks Knuckles.

Boss 9: Xenin (Knuckles)

Xenin is severely injured during the fight with his cybernetic limbs dismantled and is thus defeated. In pain, Xenin regrets for all he has done against Knuckles and his own race and asks his sister to forgive him for his actions. He then gives Knuckles one of the Sacred Treasures his ancestors had given to him for safe keeping telling Knuckles that he must defeat Dr. Finitevus and protect the Angel Island for the sake of his forefathers. Xenin grabs Xenin's arm, accepting his apology and thanks him. Xenin tells him to go to the Master Emerald and use the Sacred Treasures to enter his mind so that he can get important information for his quest. Xenin then tells Knuckles to leave him and go hurry to find the rest of the treasures and defeat Finitevus and Dimitri, having been redeemed.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

Knuckles returns to the Master Emerald to find Archimedes and Julie-Su awaiting. As instructed by Xenin, he uses the Sacred Treasures he has gathered so far and chants a hymn while embracing the Master Emerald. Knuckles enters Xenin's mind and finds himself in an ablaze city, which he investigates.

Stage 23: Huge Inferno (Knuckles)

After exploring the devastated city, Knuckles is frightened as he stumbles upon piles of numerous Echidna corpses. He is then approached by his father who appears out of nowhere. Knuckles requests for explanations. Locke tells him that this place is Albion, minutes after Eggman's Fleet bombarded the entire city and killed nearly every citizen under Dr. Finitevus revealed its location to Eggman. He explains to his son that Dr. Eggman has instigated a manhunt against every single Echidna he finds in order to get his hands on their highly advanced technology. Dr. Finitevus helped him sometimes in the past to find large remaining colonies to extinguish all of them. Locke tells Knuckles not to be afraid and that he must go Echidnaopolis to rescue the remaining enslaved Echidnas there. Dr. Finitevus has started rebuilding the city in his own dark image but before he goes there, he must head to Albion. Knuckles listens to his father and he wakes up from his vision. Awoken, Knuckles orders the team to quickly head to Albion as told by his father.

Adventure Field: Blue Ridge

(In the Adventure Field, you will findCharmy, Mighty and Vector, who have just come from the mountains after a mission. Knuckles will explain them the situation and the trio will join Knuckles' quest on Albion with Vector stating that it is their duty to protect and assist the Guardian of the Master Emerald).

There is an intermission cutscene. We see a dying Xenin having been brought back to Echidnaopolis, Dr. Finutevus' new base, by the Dark Legionnaires. Dr. Finitevus demands explanations but a changed Xenin tells him that his time is limited and Knuckles will defeat him. Dr. Finitevus then opens a portal with his Warp Ring and banishes Xenin into the Twilight Cage after absorbing his life force. Enraged, he orders his troops to find Knuckles and stop him. Meanwhile, he speaks to Dimitri via the computer screen who tells him that he is on his way to Albion to stop Knuckles.

Stage 24: Glyphic Babylon (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

Knuckles, Julie-Su, Vector, Mighty, Charmy and Archimedes arrive at Albion where an army of hundreds of Dark

Dimitri's battle form

Legionnaires are waiting for them. Dimitri appears and demands Knuckles to seize his actions and surrender. After Knuckles denies, Dimitri transforms into a huge, cybernetic monster ready to attack them all. At that moment Shadow appears and joins the battle.

Boss 11: Dimitri (Knuckles, Julie-Su)

(You will be automatically granted a Sacred Treasure of the Brotherhood of Guardians upon defeating the Boss).

The heroes defeat Dimitri and his army. He leaves his mechanical battle suit and tries to escape in defeat. Shadow destroys his glass sphere with a Chaos Spear but still manages to escape (he glides with his tentacles). Knuckles informs the team that they must move quickly to attack Echidnaopolis and regain control of Angel Island. Mighty, Charmy and Vector remain on his side while Shadow gets a call from the G.U.N. Commander to get down to Old Megaopolis and leaves the team. Big, who also happens to be there, sees them and follows them with Froggy.

Adventure Field: Angel Island

Stage 25: Echidnaopolis (Knuckles, Julie-Su, Big the Cat)

The heroes reach the place where the Echidnas are being held captive, among them Knuckles' father Locke. Knuckles orders his team mates to take them to a safe zone while he goes inside Finitevus' headquarters to face

Dr. Finitevus as Enerjak, image from Archie comics

him himself. They wish him good luck and Knuckles, along with Archimedes, goes to confront Dr. Finitevus. Inside his domain, Knuckles and Archimedes are shocked to encounter Dr. Finitevus equipped with the actual Enerjak suit. They both wonder how this was possible to which Dr. Finitevus replies that all he had to do was to locate the whereabouts of the suit and use his Warp Rings to pass through the gate. However, he could not do so unless he drained the life forces of enough Echidnas to strengthen his powers. Having absorbed the life energy of Shade, Xenin and some of the remaining Guardians whom he banished to the Twilight Cage, Finitevus found the location of the suit: Echidnaopolis and took it. At that point, Knuckles loses his temper and charges on Finitevus with all his might. Finitevus throws him down to the floor and reveals his third eye by taking off his bandanna from his forehead and starts consuming Knuckles' life force. Knuckles nearly loses all of his strength until Julie-Su busts in and shoots Finitevus' third eye with her plasma beam, blinding it. Julie-Su helps Knuckles and Archimedes get up and together they face Enerjak.

Boss 11: Enerjak (Knuckles)

Remarkably, Knuckles manages to do enough damage to Enerjak to exhaust him thanks to the Sacred Treasures of the Brotherhood of the Guardians. Having an acknowledgement of their true potential, Enerjak becomes worried of his defeat and uses his warp rings to create a portal to another dimension and escapes. Knuckles , Julie-Su and Archimedes get to the exterior of the city. They meet up with all of the salvaged Echidnas, Charmy, Mighty, Vector, the Omni-Viewer and Big. The Cat Kingdom is also present, having been called by Big, to immobilize all of the remaining Dark Legionnaires. Knuckles expresses his grief for the demise of Shade and for not being able to save her. Nevertheless, Knuckles is happy to be reunited with his father and his race. They all congratulate him for managing to retrieve all of the Sacred Treasures of the Brotherhood of Guardians and for having taken control of Echidnaopolis, where they can start a new life. Afterwards, we see Knuckles in one of the towers of Echidnaopolis. Locke and Archimedes come and talk to him. Knuckles tells his father that he wishes to know his past and the history of his Tribe. He also expresses his concern that Enerjak escaped and feels that there is grave danger up ahead. Locke replies that whatever happens, they must be ready to face any threat, knowing indeed what is coming.

THE END...?