The core Resistance members are gathered after the battle, facing Classic Sonic. Classic Sonic begins to fade in and out, as the Ruby's power is what was keeping him here. Silver begins to fade as well.
Silver: Looks like this is it, guys.
Tails: I guess this is goodbye. Get home safely, Sonic- *Classic Sonic and Tails shake hands* -and thanks for everything!
Sonic: You too Silver. We couldn't have pulled that off without you.
Silver nods as he and Sonic fist bump. He looks over at Shadow, who signals him goodbye with two fingers. Silver returns the gesture and Shadow smirks. Classic Sonic gives Tails a thumbs up and a smile. He looks at the others, who also bid him farewell.
Classic Sonic: It's been, real guys. Thanks for everything. And next time, try not to let Robuttnik take over.
Tails laughs. Before leaving, Classic Sonic extends his arm to fist bump Tails and fades away smiling and waving. Tails weakly tries to grab him before he leaves but is too late. Silver fades as well, waving everyone goodbye. Sonic walks up and puts his hand on Tails' shoulder.
Sonic: Cheer up, Tails, I'm sure we'll run into him again.
He turns around to face the other Resistance members.
Sonic: Alright, guys! It's time we cleaned up the mess Eggman left this world in. We've still got a lot of work to do, so let's get to it.
All: Yeah!
Sometime after the final battle, all the resistance members are celebrating in the base.
Knuckles: Finally, an end to this endless battle. Things are looking pretty good now. Great work you guys!
Rouge: It's all thanks to you "commander".
They all laugh.
Knuckles: So...what exactly happened back there?
Sonic: It was crazy... we managed to use both the Chaos Emeralds and the Phantom Ruby at once... that power was... intense.
Shadow: But the Ruby is destroyed now. So is Mephiles. I doubt either will ever be a threat again.
Vector: So what happened to that Infinite guy anyway?
Sonic: Who knows? Once we destroyed the Ruby, Null Space collapsed in on itself. I'm not sure if he even survived.
They all keep talking when Sonic notices that Tails is being rather quiet. Sonic walks up to him.
Sonic: Yo Tails, you okay? You don't seem like yourself.
Tails: Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine.
Sonic: *sits* You don't seem fine. What's up?
Tails: *sigh* All of this happened because I didn't step up when Infinite showed up the first time. It's just making me think.
Sonic: Tails, c'mon. Nobody blames you for what happened.
Tails: I do...
Sonic says nothing and simply hugs his brother.
Sonic: I know you've been through a lot, buddy. I'm sorry I wasn't there when you needed me.
Tails: It's alright... but I need to tell you something... I'm gonna go away for a while. I wanna have my own adventures... and become stronger. Like you!
Sonic chuckles and pats his head.
Sonic: You've grown a lot since that day I found you fixing the Tornado. Go find your own adventure, but if you need me, you know where I'll be.
Tails nods and they fist bump before he flies off into the distance. Meanwhile at the victory party...
Buddy: *sees them talking* Excuse me, Commander?
Knuckles: Hey, no need to be so formal now! Just call me Knuckles. What's up Buddy?
Buddy: I've gotta go.
Knuckles: What? You're leaving us? There are others who need your help? But OK, I'm not gonna stop you.
Buddy: Don't think I'm gone for good. You'll see me again, Knuckles.
Vector: Man, the first time I saw you stumbling around, I had no idea you could pull this thing together and see it to the end. I've changed my mind about you.
He pats Buddy's back. Buddy scratches his head in embarrassment and laughs a bit over Vector's remark.
Knuckles: I knew you'd come through, Rookie. Well, I guess you're not a rookie anymore!
Rouge: *Pushing Knuckles to one side* You did good out there. It's not like you just waited till the last minute to come in and act all cool saving the day.
Omega, realizing Rouge is talking about him, extends his hand outwards in her direction while she winks at him, Shadow, leaning against a few crates, raises his head slightly and grunts.
Shadow: Hmph.
Rouge: Glad to see you make it out alive too.
Shadow: What? You had doubts?
Rouge: Never once.
They keep talking and Buddy walks out and sees Sonic.
Music Insert:
Sonic is overlooking the City while Buddy approaches him and stands by his side, looking out at the sunset together.
Sonic: Hey, you're taking off, too? I was thinking the same thing.
Buddy: Yeah, I think it's time I go off on my own. Help some people still struggling along the way.
Sonic: *nods* Gotta keep moving forward. No matter what, yeah?
Buddy: Mhm!
Sonic: Heh, you and I aren't so different.
Buddy nods in agreement.
Buddy: You've been a great teacher... Thanks for everything Sonic.
Sonic: See ya later, buddy!
The two friends grin before fist-bumping. Sonic then runs off while giving Buddy a thumbs up. He speeds off into the sunset leaving a blue streak and dust behind him. The camera shifts to him running across the city and the world, showing the restoration of the planet as the credits roll. Knuckles returns to Angel Island. Team Dark returns to GUN. Amy returns with Cream, Big, and Gemerl to Vanilla's home. Blaze has since returned to the Sol Dimension. The Babylon Rogues return to their usual antics, as have the Chaotix. Tails can be seen flying around in new Tornado, in search of new adventures. All the while we see Classic Sonic having returned to his own timeline, in the Tyson Hesse art style. He keeps running as the scene transitions to Modern Sonic also running as fast as he can on a new island. He keeps running until he reaches a cliff, overlooking a completely new landscape.
Sonic: This should be fun! Guess this means welcome to a new Frontier!
THE END.
And that's my rendition of how Sonic Forces should have gone down! I hope you all enjoyed this alternate take on what could have been an outstanding Sonic game. I've been working on this story for years, and I'm so happy I can finally share it with all of you.
I wanna give special thanks to all of the talented artists who created the renders, fanart, and music used in this project. I'd also like to thank my friends who helped me get so far into this project and ultimately its completion. This rewrite has been changed and altered so many times from the first time I came up with the idea. Lastly, I'd like to thank you, the reader, for going on this journey with me and for all of your support, it means the world to me.
Here's to hoping that Frontiers will exceed all of our expectations!