The Death Egg

"The Death Egg" is the pilot episode of ''Sonic the Hedgehog Returns. ''The original draft of the episode was written in January 2012; the final version was written and published as part of Project 20:15, between 6 February and 6 July 2015. The episode is a loose adaptation of the 16-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and serves as an introduction to the rebooted series, outlining the main premise and characters and setting up the series' initial story arcs.

"The Death Egg" follows Sonic and the Freedom Fighters as they retrieve the plans for Robotnik's latest superweapon, the titular flying fortress, and attempt to sabotage it before it can lay waste to the Great Forest. The episode received generally positive reviews.

Plot
The story opens with a brief flashback to the successful coup d'etat of villainous tyrant Dr. Ivo Robotnik, who overthrew the monarchy and gained total control of the planet Mobius. Ten years later, freedom fighters Sonic the Hedgehog, Bunnie Rabbot, and Antoine D'Coolette infiltrate Scrap Brain Zone, with assistance from Sally Acorn, in order to steal the plans for Robotnik's latest superweapon. They succeed, but not without being confronted by Robotnik's nephew and right-hand-man Snively Kintobor, piloting a large mech in his master's image: the freedom fighters destroy the mech and escape.

Back at the group's hideout in Knothole Village, Sally uses her computer NICOLE to decipher the plans and discovers they are for a colossal floating fortress named "the Death Egg". Fearing its destructive potential, and noting that its estimated completion date is only a week away, Sally sends young apprentice engineer Miles "Tails" Prower on a scouting mission in his plane, the Tornado, hoping to locate and sabotage the fortress before it can be launched.

Unbeknownst to the Freedom Fighters, however, Robotnik has brought the Death Egg's launch forward in response to the theft of the plans. Tails locates the Death Egg just as it launches and is forced to flee, barely escaping its all-out offensive. Robotnik decides to let the Tornado escape so he can track it back to Knothole, but the Freedom Fighters anticipate this and divert Tails to the north. Sonic then formulates a risky plan to destroy the Death Egg from within, by hitching a ride up to it on the Tornado; Sally objects that this is too dangerous, but ultimately concedes that it is the best plan they have and allows Sonic to proceed.

With Sonic balancing on the Tornado's wings, Tails flies back towards the Death Egg and intercepts it at the Great Lake. Dodging its attacks once more, Tails locates a section of unfinished bodywork, a consequence of the Death Egg's premature launch, and flies in close enough for Sonic to leap inside. Using the stolen plans, Sally guides Sonic via earpiece to the Death Egg's engine room, where Sonic encounters a large silver robot in his own likeness, barely escaping it.

After removing the Death Egg's power source, causing it to start plummeting towards the lake, Sonic exits the engine room and once again encounters his robotic counterpart. Sonic flees through the Death Egg with the robot in pursuit as the fortress starts to collapse around them; eventually the machine is damaged by falling debris and though it attempts to battle Sonic, it collapses and the hedgehog escapes. Sonic reaches the hole in the Death Egg's exterior and jumps out seconds before the fortress collides with the lake's surface, causing it to rip apart and explode. Just as Sonic himself is about to hit the water, Tails catches him with the Tornado.

Back at Knothole, Sonic and Tails are commended as heroes for having destroyed the Death Egg. Suddenly, Tails' mentor Rotor Walrus appears, having detected a "tremendous source of energy" coming from Sonic; Sonic duly presents the freedom fighters with the Death Egg's power source, a strange blue jewel. Meanwhile, in an escape pod, Robotnik rants about the loss of the Death Egg, but Snively consoles him with the news that Metal Sonic Mk.2 is ready to enter production, and that a second "Chaos Emerald" has been located.