At dawn in Knothole, Geoffrey sneaks out from the bushes heading towards a nearby hut, until he is ambushed by Sonic the Hedgehog. Geoffrey calms Sonic down, telling him that he was asked to come there by Sally, who runs over to them. They take Geoffrey into the hut to find King Acorn half crystallized and speaking nonsense. Sally recalls recent events for Geoffrey, explaining the King's condition since he left the Zone of Silence has taken a turn for the worse. She asks Geoffrey to resume his position as elite royal guard and not to reveal the king's return to the populace. Geoffrey accepts and heads out to guard the door. Bunnie and Rotor are still confused about the king's condition when Tails suggests the king might be turning into a Chaos Emerald since he spent so much time in the zon