Sonic 4: Final episode.
This is an English adaptation of my original Spanish creepypasta. If there are any translation errors, please let me know and I’ll fix them.
01/24/2026
Weekend. The only days when you can actually relax and forget about school for a while. Now that I was in my first year of high school, I barely had any time to talk to my friends anymore. Lately we’d all drifted apart. One of them had transferred to another school, and another had failed the year. Only Frank and I were still in the same class. That day we decided to get on a call and catch up a little. Kevin mentioned that a new “official” Sonic game had appeared on Steam. Since the four of us were big fans of the franchise, he thought we’d be interested. The game was supposed to be a sequel of Sonic 4 called “Sonic 4: Final Episode.” I usually keep up with everything related to Sega and Sonic, so I already knew it had to be a fangame or something unofficial. Unlike its predecessors, this one used a pixel-art style, similar to Sonic Mania. Still, Sonic 4 had never really caught my attention, so I decided to ignore it. The others wanted to give it a shot. They were basically Sonic Mania fanboys anyway. Just then, my dad came home and I had to end the call. According to him, my friends were a bad influence and would ruin my chances of ever getting a decent job.
01/26/2026
Monday morning. Just hearing those words is enough to give anyone a headache, knowing the week is only just beginning. I almost felt as miserable as on a Blue Monday. The first two classes were incredibly boring—English and Math. At least we had Biology third period, and that kept me somewhat entertained.
During the break, I was with Kevin and Frank. I had planned to talk about how I didn’t feel like a very social person lately, and how I didn’t expect to ever get a girlfriend, but they only talked about the game from the other day. They kept insisting that I had to try it. It didn’t take a genius to notice something was off. They were acting different—distant, almost cold. I immediately felt like something wasn’t right, or maybe it was just my imagination. I just wanted a rational explanation.
When I got home after classes, I turned on my computer. Something strange happened. The game was already downloaded. I didn’t remember installing it. Maybe I was going crazy.I launched the application. The game started normally—Sonic inside the ring, looking straight at the screen next to the title. When the menu appeared, there were three playable characters: Tails, Sonic, and Knuckles. The last two were locked for some reason. I assumed you had to unlock them somehow, so I picked Tails, the only option available. The game began in Green Hill. That green meadow with its beautiful mountains was impossible to forget. The graphics were surprisingly good for a fangame. I moved through the level, destroying badniks and collecting rings. Near the end, I found Sonic, but the feeling around me gave me chills. Something felt wrong. The atmosphere suddenly turned darker. Green Hill became gray and lifeless. The animals vanished without explanation. The sunflowers looked like they had eyes, watching me as I got closer. Still, it was just a game. Nothing bad was going to happen… at least not to me. I moved Tails toward Sonic. The closer I got, the louder a static noise became. Suddenly, the screen went black, and I heard a voice behind me:
—Hello, Tails. Long time no see. How about a game of hide and seek? I’ll look for you, and you hide. Ready or not… here I come.—
After that, the map changed. Now we were in a cave with barely any light. It was hard to even see Tails. Then I noticed something strange. Tails’ name had changed. It now said John, the name of one of my friends. That’s when I understood everything. The three of them were trying to prank me with some Sonic creepypasta, something like MX or Slenderman. I just kept playing, trying to finish the level. Eventually, I reached a very long corridor, and a stressful piece of music started playing. Just as I expected, that Sonic-like creature was chasing me. Tails tried to fly as far as he could, but it was useless. The creature caught him and ripped off his tails.
—Found you! Don’t be sad, little fox. I’ll give you another chance. Follow the path to the end, and you’ll beat me. But if I find you first… you lose the game. See you at the finish line.—
Without hesitation, I kept going. Apparently, my friends knew more about programming than I thought. Just as I was reaching the exit, a rock fell from above and crushed Tails, leaving him immobilized. The entity appeared, stared directly at the screen, and grabbed Tails by the face. The screen went black before it tore his face off, but I could still hear his screams of agony… until everything went silent. Then a deep, distorted voice spoke:
—Looks like changing schools pulled you away from your friends, John… but you’ll never be separated from me.—
The game closed on its own. Every time I tried to open it again, it wouldn’t respond. I assumed that was the end of it. I texted John to congratulate him on the game. He didn’t reply. The messages weren’t even delivered. I texted my other friends too. They didn’t respond either, but at least they read the messages. It was already late, so I decided to go to sleep. “Tomorrow will be another day,” I told myself.
…
The Void. A place far beyond everything else. As its name suggests, it is a place where nothing ever happens—at least, nothing that brings prosperity or peace.
A massive surge of chaotic energies once gave birth to a supernatural entity. Many beings like it were created in that place, all with the same purpose: to kill for pleasure or for whatever twisted motivation they pleased. This one was no different.
The entity drifted through space until it reached the world of a certain blue blur. It decided to take the form of that hedgehog and turn the planet into its own personal purgatory. Fortunately, the creature didn’t possess enough power to take control of that reality. It wouldn’t take long, however, before it found a way to obtain a soul that could grant it that power.
The world it had entered was like a blank canvas, ready to become a land of wonders. Through the object monitors scattered across the land, it managed to establish a connection with the real world. It made a SEGA programmer believe he was working on a new Sonic game called Sonic 4: Final Episode. Determined, the programmer began working on the project, unaware that a far more powerful being was slowly achieving its goal.
01/27/2026
Tuesday at 7:51 in the morning, I overslept and was running late for school—late if I intended to arrive early, since classes didn’t start until 8:15. I got dressed, took a shower, and left my house heading toward that place some of us called prison. While I walked, I kept thinking about that Sonic game, specifically Tails’ death. That strange event had given me trouble sleeping, which made me wake up later than usual. On top of that, lately I’ve been hearing voices inside my head; they seemed to call me and blame me for what happened to Tails. Very strange things seemed to be tied to that game—something inside me told me it was all real. I shouldn’t jump to conclusions, but I decided I would never open that game again for the rest of my life.
Classes went on as usual—three hours of torture on different subjects. At least since it was Tuesday, they held chess matches during recess. On those days I could show off my talent and boast a little about my skills. I played against Kevin as usual. What was strange was how good he had become at chess. The last few times I’d played him, he couldn’t beat me, and now he seemed like a mix between Hikaru Nakamura and Magnus Carlsen. I had no chance of winning—only losing. I noticed a certain surprise in my friend; if he had beaten me, he would’ve been gloating, but there wasn’t a single emotion visible on his face.
After finishing my “sentence” of six daily hours of learning, I got home. That day I had no appetite, so I didn’t eat anything and decided to take a nap to rest my mind after everything that had happened. I closed my eyes and fell asleep, not before hearing a whisper from a creepy being.
—What a strange surprise. Don’t you feel like playing my game? That disappoints me. Rest well, my little dreamer; soon there will be nothing left to fight for.—
I opened my eyes and found myself in a psychedelic-looking world. Everything was full of bright colors—blue, purple, and green. There were also green birds and blue fish flying in the sky, which had a pinkish tone with a black vortex in the center. It reminded me of the special stages in Sonic. I decided to walk around. Everything seemed normal enough, but I felt like something bad would happen at any moment. Every now and then I looked behind me; I had the feeling someone was watching me. I reached a place where what looked like a Chaos Emerald was sitting, but when I got closer, it began to crack until it exploded into a thousand pieces.
—Those rocks are nothing compared to me. Don’t try to get one of them—any hope is useless.—
Everything turned black and white, and music started playing, as if telling me it was time to leave. At the end of a corridor I saw a green ring. When I headed toward it, a black puddle appeared where the emerald had been. That puddle turned into the entity from the game, which seemed intent on killing me. Without hesitation, I ran at full speed toward the ring. The creature got closer every second. When I reached the ring, it grabbed my arm with such force that I couldn’t move. Before it could attack me, something struck it with a hammer. It let me go and turned around. I saw Amy—she had thrown the hammer to save me. The entity flew toward her, strangling her by the neck. I used the time and crossed the ring to escape.
—Don’t think this is the end. We’ll see each other again—you know it.—
I quickly woke up from that nightmare. I was hyperventilating. Everything that had happened felt very real; I even had claw marks on my shoulder—the claws of the monster that had grabbed me in the dream. There was no way to find a rational explanation. All of it had really happened, but if I told anyone, they’d call me crazy. The only thing that seemed clear to me was that I would have to defeat it on my own.
If you want, I can also adapt the translation to a specific tone—more literary, more neutral, or more natural-sounding English.
…
Some people think that making a game is something simple, that anyone could do it. Others believe that only someone with knowledge can achieve it. But there is something that disagrees with both opinions. There is something that sees games as portals between universes, between the “fictional” or “virtual” and reality. A being with human intelligence cannot understand that everything created becomes real within other universes, and beings opposed to us take advantage of it. That programmer noticed what seemed to be an AI that would help him in the process of creating the game. That character was similar to Sonic, except he had purple shoes, red gloves and socks, and completely white skin. While the programmer began coding the characters, the organism studied those who would become its future enemies—the future vessels of some poor souls.
01/28/2026
That same night was terrible. I couldn’t sleep because of the voices that had already tormented me in previous days. I’ve also had numerous hallucinations of the entity. It’s probably tormenting me so I’ll face it. When I got to school, I was dead tired. I couldn’t pay attention in class. Not sleeping was taking its toll on me. I guess this is what Fernando experiences every day. Some teachers scolded me for being absent-minded. I wasn’t a very sociable person and didn’t usually talk, but that day it was as if I hadn’t been there at all. The day went on normally—more scoldings for not sleeping and the same subjects as always. I got home only wanting to sleep, but I couldn’t go straight to bed. My parents forced me to eat, even though I wasn’t hungry. After lunch, I lay down on my bed. I woke up around eight at night; the computer had turned on by itself. When I got up, I saw a message on the screen:
—The rest has lasted longer than expected. It’s time to continue.—
Right after that, the selection screen appeared. There were three characters: Tails, Knuckles, and Eggman. The first had an image of how he looked after what happened a few days ago. The last one was still locked. Since it was the only option, I chose Knuckles. The level started on Angel Island, with Knuckles protecting the Master Emerald. In the background, I saw what looked like Sonic, so I decided to follow him. As I advanced through the level, Angel Island began to catch fire. All the vegetation disappeared, leaving only flames. At the end, I found the entity. It wasn’t in its most terrifying form; instead, it seemed to be trying to look like Sonic.
—Do you still think you can defeat me? Go ahead, show me your power.—
Knuckles’ name changed to that of my friend Fernando. The being stood still, waiting for me to strike first. I went toward it and threw a punch, but it didn’t seem to do anything. I kept trying to hurt it. Each blow seemed to make it angrier. Each hit transformed it more into a monster. Claws began to grow on its hands and feet. Its jaw split in two. Its teeth turned yellow and sharp. Parts of its skin fell off, revealing human bones, and an X formed on its chest. It grew much larger than before. Finally, its eyes turned completely black, leaving only a bright red pupil visible. Having completed its transformation, it grabbed Knuckles’ arms and drove his knuckles into his eyes. Then it left. When Knuckles lowered his arms, his eyes were impaled on his knuckles. Screaming in pain, he fell to his knees. He didn’t want to fight anymore—he knew that would be his end. The flames began to surround him more and more. The screen slowly faded out, and all that could be heard were the screams of an echidna burning alive.
—Not even the fever from your so-called illnesses burned as much as my fire, Frank.—
Everything ended in a way similar to what had happened to Tails. I couldn’t take the suffering of seeing so many people die. When I tried to contact Fernando, he didn’t respond—he wasn’t even showing as online. The game didn’t close. The screen stayed black, but I knew someone was watching and listening to me.
—Why such interest? Why do you want to save them? Give up, and maybe I’ll let you survive. Your friends had no chance of defeating me, not even in the bodies of those characters.—
—Do you have some kind of problem? Why are you killing them? No one has done anything to deserve death.—
—Hahahaha, humans are an inferior race. You have no chance of defeating me. Your very existence makes you my servants, but your lack of abilities makes me despise you. I will wipe out every human that exists and create my own species—one that obeys me.—
—I’ll make sure you never achieve your goal—
—Insolent human! Don’t you dare challenge me. The only thing I appreciate about you is the power of those souls. Honestly, your friends have helped me grow stronger. There’s still one left—and I’m sure you won’t be able to save him.—
—I won’t allow it. I won’t fail them. I’ll avenge my friends’ deaths. Who are you? I want to remember the name of the most pathetic being I’ve ever met.—
—Hahaha, glad to tell you, so you’ll know who will finish you. I… am… God!—
The game closed. Could it be true? Was it God? Whatever it was, it wouldn’t get away with it.
…
Earlier than expected, the programmer finished the game. Maybe it was because he worked very fast, maybe someone helped him, or maybe something more powerful than anything known helped him. The man decided to test the game, mainly to make sure there were no errors or programming bugs. The game attracted him more than he expected; he felt as if he himself were the protagonist, Sonic. He became so focused on the game that he didn’t notice he was turning into the blue hedgehog. While he ran across the green fields of Green Hill, a shadow stalked him, watching his every move.
At the end of the level, if the game were properly programmed, a robot from Dr. Eggman should have appeared. However, instead, a shadow with Sonic’s silhouette appeared. The one who was now our protagonist believed it was a texture error and that he was facing Metal Sonic, so he decided to fight it. The battle didn’t last long—after a few hits, the shadow fell. While Sonic struck a victory pose, the shadow grabbed his legs and arms so he couldn’t escape and dragged him into the darkness.
—What kind of robot is this, egghead? You never give up against me. You’ll never beat me, no matter how hard you try, Eggy!— Sonic exclaimed, not knowing it was the end of an era and the beginning of terror.
—Your attachment to life is admirable, but it won’t get you far. Don’t worry—your friends will be in good hands, my hands. Your body will help me finish them all. I regret the short time we spent together; I didn’t have enough time to thank you for creating my world. At least Sonic was a good vessel to contain your soul. Anyway, see you on the other side.—
The hero’s vision began to fade as the air stopped reaching his lungs, causing a slow and extremely painful death. When his companions arrived, there was no way to save him. The hyperbaric chamber was already useless in that situation. The game he had been working on was deleted, but that wasn’t enough to destroy a being of such power, one that had already created its own world. The entity found different souls for Sonic’s friends—and, of course, it found our protagonist, who now stands on the edge between life and death.
01/31/2026
Friday, January 31. I had no idea what that date would come to mean. Today my parents let me skip school. They were very worried about me. The last few nights I’d been having “hallucinations” and hurting myself. That creature appeared at all hours and attacked me. It simply wanted to make me suffer. I couldn’t take it anymore—I was on the verge of collapse. My parents called a psychologist to help me overcome my problems. He told them that the best thing for me would be to lock me in a psychiatric center. Only I knew what was really happening. The only thing that seemed reasonable for my mental health was to get rid of that thing. I opened the computer and started the game. Obviously, that creature knew my intentions as soon as I returned.
—Back again? Why do you resist? It’s easier to give up. Hand yourself over to me, and it will all end soon.—
—If you think I’m going to surrender, then you don’t know me. I’ll finish you. You won’t get your way.—
The selection screen appeared next. I could only choose Eggman. His short, round body wasn’t ideal for hiding or escaping. However, his intelligence and massive army could be useful.
I selected the character and appeared in one of his many bases. Unlike the others, I decided to go in the opposite direction to see what would happen. The game simply wouldn’t let me advance, placing traps like spikes or fire in my path. My only option was to confront him with my master plan. As I got closer, I heard the sound of someone hitting metal. The doctor’s base also began to transform into a dark castle with black-and-white tiles and red curtains. The noise grew sharper and more unsettling until a loud explosion echoed. I moved forward slowly and found that being playing with Metal Sonic’s head—my only hope of defeating it. It didn’t seem to notice me. I decided to back away slowly, and once I lost sight of it, I ran out of the place. It was useless. The creature grabbed Eggman by the neck and lifted him high into the air. The doctor still seemed confident he would win. I knew everything was lost.
—So… Sonic? Let me go, you stupid hedgehog! Just because you can fly doesn’t mean you can defeat me!—
—As the saying goes, you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.—
Then it threw Eggman down. From that height, there was no way he could survive. As usual, the screen faded out, leaving only the sound of an old man falling to his doom.
—What’s wrong, Kevin? Didn’t the master plan didn't work?—
Suddenly, a photograph appeared on the screen. It only showed a dark forest with the bodies of my friends and a message that read: “Game Over.” Then the game closed by itself. I had failed them. I tried to talk to Quevedo, but the answering machine picked up—only it said something unusual.
—It’s useless. Time’s up. Game over.—
The lights went out completely. I couldn’t see anything; everything was dark. The door was completely shut, and I couldn’t get out. I tried to scream for help, but no one was on the other side. That was when an almost indescribable being appeared. Its silhouette was similar to Sonic’s, but it had bloodshot eyes bulging out of their sockets. You could also see the bones of human limbs. It said nothing—just slowly approached. I felt it getting closer, and with it came unbearable pain and a racing heartbeat. I was paralyzed with fear. I couldn’t move or scream. Was that my end? It was only a matter of seconds before it reached me. When it did, I felt an indescribable pain in my chest, as if it had been opened and my heart ripped out. The pain intensified until I fainted. When I opened my eyes again, everything was normal—or so I thought. I had no control over my actions. I wasn’t the one moving myself. My vision began to fade; the last thing I saw was my life slipping away like a light.
