Epilogue

Ten years later...

Miles Sonic Hedgehog sat quietly in his chair, leafing through a scrapbook in order to keep his nerves under control. As he turned the pages of the book, memories floated casually across his mind. There were many pictures in the book from various phases of his life. The drawing he had made for his dad when he was five, photos of himself and his four best friends from their high school graduation, and his favorite: a picture of him and the love of his life, standing together atop the hill where they had shared their first kiss at the age of fifteen. In this particular photo, the two of them were standing on the hill surrounded by all of their family and friends, celebrating the happiest day of their lives... or at least, what had been the happiest day of their lives so far.

Miles closed the book and looked up to glance around the room. His mother, Amy Rose, was sitting in the chair next to him. On her other side was Roxanne Prower, and seated in a row of chairs in front of Miles were Tikal the Echidna, Cream the Rabbit and her husband David, and Crystal Hedgehog. Sitting in Cream's lap was her Angel Chaos Chao, Cheese.

Amy turned to her right and, noticing that her son was fidgeting in his chair, she placed her hand gently on his and said calmly:

"Don't worry, honey. Everything's going to be fine."

"I know, Mom", Miles replied while looking at the ground, "but I'm still nervous."

"Well, that's normal. I remember the day you and Lily were born; your father was a wreck. He was probably more nervous than I was!"

Miles looked up at his mother and smiled to acknowledge her comforting words. The pink hedgehog then turned towards the entrance door and muttered to her son:

"Where is your father, anyway? He should be here by now..."

At this, Crystal placed the copy of her published book on the table beside her and said calmly:

"Don't worry, Amy; I'm sure they'll be here soon. They wouldn't miss this for anything in the world!"

As Amy turned around in her seat and glanced anxiously out the window behind her, a door on the opposite wall from the entrance opened, and Miles's twin sister, Dr. Lily Rose Hedgehog, walked into the room. The lavender hedgehog immediately placed his scrapbook on a side table, stood up to greet her, and asked her nervously:

"Lily, how's Maria?"

"She's doing fine", the lilac hedgehog replied. "The doctor who did her exam sent me to tell you that she's eight centimeters along."

"Already?" Amy exclaimed, having overheard her daughter speaking. "The others are going to miss this, then!"

Just as she spoke those last words, however, the entrance door opened, and four people hurried into the room: Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog, Tails the Fox and Knuckles the Echidna.

"Did we miss anything?" Sonic asked his wife as she stood up to greet him.

"Almost", Amy replied, kissing her husband. "Lily just told us that Maria is eight centimeters along."

"We cut it close, then", the blue hedgehog laughed, turning to face his son and daughter.

"I still think I could have gone with you, Dad", Miles muttered indignantly to his father, but Sonic shook his head.

"Not today, son; today is your day off. You should stay here with your wife. You can't let Igor Robotnik ruin this day for you."

"But I could have helped you guys out!"

"No, Miles. We were fine without you. You wouldn't believe what Robotnik came up with this time! Trust me, son; you were better off here with Maria."

Miles reluctantly nodded in agreement, then turned to stare out the window as Amy spoke to the heroes who recently arrived, changing the subject.

"What about the others? Where are they?"

"Sonia just contacted me via the radio in my jet on our way back", Tails replied. "She said that the game and the concert are both finished, and she's bringing the others to the hospital now."

The pink hedgehog nodded and thanked her brother-in-law for the information. In an attempt to keep her own nerves under control, she then proceeded to engage in conversation with the rest of the group in the waiting room.

"Lily", she asked her daughter. "How's your husband?"

"Calvin is fine", the lilac hedgehog replied happily. "He just received a new case this morning. In fact, he's consulting with his clients somewhere else in this hospital right now. Apparently, he wants to get ahead on this case. You know how lawyers are."

"Lily, I've been meaning to ask you something", said Sonic curiously. "Why can't you just deliver your brother's...?"

But Lily, who already knew what her father was going to ask, held her hand up to silence him and answered:

"I'm afraid that's not how it works, Dad. I would love to take this job, but I'm only a first-year intern. I'm not experienced enough yet. And in any case, I think I might take up Neurosurgery in the future instead. Well, either Neurosurgery or Pediatrics; I'm still not sure."

Sonic smiled and nodded to signal to his daughter that he understood. As Miles continued to stare out the window in silence, Amy turned her attention to her best friend.

"How are your girls, Cream?"

"They're doing fine", replied the light brown rabbit. "Right now they're at home with my mother. They all landed roles in the school play, each one chasing her own dream. Amber is singing, Ruby is acting, and Emerald is dancing. Tonight we're going to celebrate their being cast in the play at David's restaurant. I'm sure that one day the three will become famous together; it's what they've always wanted since they were five years old."

"Then I'm sure they'll achieve their dream someday", said a smiling Lily, who, along with her brother, had just noticed a small airplane landing on a runway some distance away outside the hospital window.

A short while later, the entrance door opened again, and three more people filed into the waiting room: Sonia Prower, Aaron Prower and Rex Echidna.

"Hi!" said Sonia almost breathlessly. "Sorry we're late! Mr. Echidna here just had to go for the winning touchdown himself."

"I was open!" Rex retaliated indignantly. "My teammates threw the ball to me! Of course I had to go for the touchdown! And it was because of my play that we won."

"Oh, please! There were at least two other players open for the catch. It's so obvious you were just trying to impress your precious Julie!"

"Well, she is my girlfriend! It's only natural that I would want to score a touchdown for her. I've got a good feeling about her. In fact, I think she may be the one for me. Didn't you ever feel this way about Eric?"

"Of course!" the vixen exclaimed, and held up her hand to show her friend the diamond ring on her ring finger. "Why do you think I said 'yes' when he proposed to me?"

"Speaking of Eric, when are you planning on getting married?"

"Sometime after he advances in his computer business and I finally manage to get my own airline going."

"Well, anyway, I might just ask Julie to marry me."

"You know", said the two-tailed fox, laughing casually, "back in high school, we all thought you would end up with Angelica."

"Angelica Bat?" the echidna exclaimed, confused. "Are you serious?"

"Well, she was your high school sweetheart, and you did take her to our senior prom. That's how it worked out for the rest of us: Miles and Maria, Lily and Calvin, and Eric and me. You two were great together. Plus, Angelica's mom really liked you."

"Of course she did", Knuckles muttered in a mildly bitter tone, more to himself than to the arguing young adults. "Rouge would have had a field day from the moment Rex proposed to Angelica. She would have loved to be a part of this family..."

Sonia and Rex glanced briefly at Knuckles sitting beside Tikal, then turned back to face each other.

"So you think Angelica Bat was the one I was supposed to be with?" the echidna continued, suddenly intrigued.

"No...", the fox replied in her most innocent matter-of-fact voice, "I think Angelica Bat is the one you are supposed to be with! Don't get me wrong; I have nothing against Julie Echidna. But let's face it: the fact that you're still friends with Angelica has to mean something! And don't give me that look", she added, indicating her friend's expression of disbelief, "'cause you know I'm right! Mark my words: your future children will be echidna-bat hybrids."

"You know what?" the football player taunted, despite the telltale tinges of red now appearing in his cheeks. "Maybe I should just hire another pilot for my private jet. One who doesn't have too many insights on my personal life."

"It would be a mistake", Sonia teased back. "You know I'm one of the best pilots around. Plus, you love having a friend constantly nearby, not only to give you advice, but to support you. Admit it: hiring me to carry you back and forth between your football games and your job as a Master Emerald guardian was the best decision you ever made."

Rex hesitated for a few seconds, then grinned at his fox friend in defeat. It was true; ever since Sonia had started working as his pilot, the echidna had felt as though every flight was an adventure in itself. In most cases it really was an adventure, for whenever the young adults of Generation Beta set off on a mission against Igor Robotnik, the fox was the one to fly their plane into the battle.

As Rex hugged Sonia sympathetically and the rest of the group laughed, Roxie turned to her son and asked him:

"Aaron, how was the concert?"

"It was great, Mom!" the fox replied, smiling proudly as he smoothed the creases in the tuxedo jacket he was still wearing. "My piano solo was one of the highlights of the concert!"

Tails and Roxie grinned and congratulated their son on his performance. Miles then turned to his sister and asked her:

"Lily, is it alright if I go in and see Maria again?"

At this, Sonic and Shadow requested to join Miles, and Lily nodded her agreement. She then led the other three hedgehogs through the doorway behind her and down the corridor to a private hospital room. Upon stepping into the room, Miles looked over at the single bed and noticed that lying on it, nine months pregnant and ten hours in labor, was his beloved wife: Maria Geraldine Hedgehog.

"How are you holding up, honey?" asked the lavender hedgehog, walking over to the bed and taking his wife's hand in his. Maria smiled brightly at her husband and replied:

"I'm OK. I'm in pain, but I'm still OK. I'm more concerned about what comes next, though."

Sonic and Shadow, who had followed Miles and Lily into the room, were standing a few feet away from the bed and smiling at Maria. The black hedgehog gazed fondly at his daughter and son-in-law, and said casually:

"I still can't believe this is really happening. It seems like only yesterday that Miles was stopping by our house to pick you up for the prom, Maria."

At this, Sonic laughed, turned to his left to face his old rival, and responded with a casual remark of his own.

"Oh, come on, Shadow! Ever since Miles and Maria saved each other's lives when they were fifteen, it's been only too clear where their relationship was going. They were obviously meant for each other. Admit it: deep down, you and I have always known that someday we'd end up being grandfathers to the same kids."

Shadow raised an eyebrow at the blue hedgehog, but laughed along with him nonetheless. He would not deny it; Miles Sonic Hedgehog was the best son-in-law he could ever have hoped for.

"It's true; we're about to be grandfathers. Don't you think we should have retired by now?"

Sonic laughed at the black hedgehog's words, shrugging indifferently as he replied in a voice of amusement.

"It doesn't matter what the calendar says; you're as old as you feel. And I don't feel a day over twenty-five."

Shadow nodded his agreement, then turned his attention back to the other hedgehogs in the room.

"Before I forget, sweetheart", the black hedgehog continued, addressing his daughter, "I told the rest of the field squad from G.U.N. that you went into labor. They sent their congratulations and had a large bouquet of flowers delivered to your house."

"Thank you, Dad", said Maria happily. "Did you also tell them that I'll be back to work with you all in about six months?"

"It doesn't matter how long your maternity leave is", Shadow replied sternly. "You'll be back on the field assignments when I decide you're ready."

"But Dad, I know I'll be ready to work again by the end of the year!"

"I'll be the one to make that call. Trust me, Maria; you'll appreciate having an extended vacation from being a G.U.N. agent. Leave the field work to me; soon you'll have a family to worry about instead."

Shadow eyed his daughter with a serious expression, and she looked down at the ground without saying another word. This was one of the main disadvantages of working with her father: she could never argue with her boss.

The five hedgehogs in the room kept each other company until Maria's next exam. The last report from Lily's superior doctor was that the light gray hedgehog was ready to be taken to the delivery room. After receiving wishes of good luck from their respective fathers, Miles and Maria were led to another hospital room to start a new chapter of their lives together. Their next great adventure was about to begin.

---

Some time later, Miles and Maria were sitting alone together in their private hospital room. Neither of them could stop grinning, for they were each holding a newborn baby hedgehog in their arms: twin boys. After the new parents had been alone with their children for a while, they invited the rest of their family and friends to enter the room.

The large group of friends filed cautiously into the room, so as not to wake the sleeping babies. Crowding around the single bed, they all gazed fondly at the twins, leaning slightly forward to get a better look at their appearances. The baby in Miles's arms was indigo in color with very faint red highlights in his quills, and hidden beneath his closed eyelids were green irises. The baby in Maria's arms was dark gray in color with highlights in his quills of a darker shade of red than his brother's, and he had dark blue irises.

As everyone beamed at the new family, Sonic casually asked his son:

"So... do you have names for them yet?"

At this, Miles and Maria glanced briefly at one another, then turned back to all their friends.

"Well..." Miles began, smiling in an almost mysterious manner, "ever since Maria and I found out we were going to have twin boys, we thought a lot about what their names should be. We wanted to give our sons names they could live up to, names they would be proud to call their own. And we realized that the best namesakes for our boys could only be found in our own families."

The lavender hedgehog turned to his wife and nodded, signaling her to finish for him.

"So..." said Maria happily, grinning proudly, "we decided to name the boys after their grandfathers."

Everyone in the room turned to look at Sonic and Shadow, who were now staring back at the group with expressions of shock on their faces. They had never felt so honored in their lives.

The group then turned back to face the parents on the bed. Miles indicated the baby boy in his arms and introduced him to everyone as Sonic Hedgehog. Maria then introduced the baby boy in her arms as Shadow Hedgehog. And as everyone in the room gathered closer to welcome the newborn twin hedgehogs into the world, Sonic the Hedgehog and Shadow the Hedgehog exchanged glances and smiles of pride, both of them thinking the exact same thought:

"Generation Gamma?"

The End

Thank you to all my readers who have followed this story to the end and enjoyed every chapter of the fanfiction. Special thanks go out to my friends at The Ultimate Chao Garden, who encouraged me to keep writing and inspired me to write to the best of my abilities. Special thanks also go to SilencedFox86, a good friend and fan of mine here on this site, who has been leaving great reviews on this story that always lifted my spirits, and who also happens to be an excellent writer himself.

If you have grown fond of my fan characters while reading my story and are disappointed that this fanfiction has come to an end, I am pleased to inform you that this is not the last I will be writing of the characters of Generation Beta. I will be publishing new stories featuring these characters in the future, so if you liked this fanfiction, be sure to follow my work!

Thanks to everyone who is a fan of my stories and my writing; you guys rock!

- Blue Phoenix