Master Emerald

The Master Emerald is a large, green, fictional emerald depicted in the Sonic the Hedgehog video games, cartoons and comic book series.

Origin in the games
Little is known about the origin of the Master Emerald except that it resides in a shrine on Angel Island for an unspecified amount of time, guarded by Knuckles the Echidna. It was created by the gods, because they saw that people are using the Chaos Emeralds for evil, and equipped the gem to be able to negate the energy of the Chaos Emeralds. It has been in existence for thousands of years (at least since the time the Echidna clan was thriving) and has a large connection to the equally mysterious Chaos Emeralds, along with the being known as Chaos.

Purpose
The Master Emerald has unbound power, and is used to keep the Angel Island afloat in the sky. The Emerald also has the power to fully control everything that the Chaos Emeralds do. The Emerald also possesses the ability to both negate and empower Chaos Emeralds, meaning it can stop the energy of the Chaos Emeralds, or enhance them. The Master Emerald has also been seen creating three-dimensional holographic images within itself.

Only Knuckles, Chaos and Tikal have been seen to be able to talk to, command, and control the Master Emerald.

Role in the games
First appearing in Sonic & Knuckles, the Master Emerald would go on to play a crucial role throughout the rest of the series.

Sonic 3 & Knuckles


The Master Emerald could be seen early in Sonic 3 & Knuckles being used to create "Super Emeralds" from Chaos Emeralds if the player accessed Special Stages. It would appear later being stolen from its altar by Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik to power his Death Egg, a doomsday weapon. It was retrieved by Sonic or Tails (depending on the player's choice) and was returned to Angel Island.

In Knuckles' playthrough, which occurs after Sonic or Tails' playthrough (due to the lack of a Death Egg and the fact that Sonic and Knuckles are friends), the Master Emerald is again stolen, this time by one of Eggman's remaining badniks, although it seems to have been part of a deal with the Sonic-shaped robot Mecha Sonic, that Sonic or Tails battled earlier. Mecha Sonic used the Master Emerald to significantly augment his powers, turning into a super-like state. "Super Mecha Sonic" was defeated by Knuckles anyway, as Mecha Sonic occasionally had to go back to the Emerald to recharge, since he couldn't absorb all the power into his being. As soon as Knuckles defeated Mecha Sonic, the area the two were on crumbled, but Sonic appeared in his biplane to save Knuckles and the Master Emerald, and it was again brought back to Angel Island.

Sonic Adventure
The Master Emerald appeared again in Sonic Adventure for the Sega Dreamcast, where it was again shown keeping Angel Island afloat. The Emerald also held within it the ancient monster known as Chaos, the angry God of Destruction, along with the ancient controller of the Master Emerald and the Chaos Emeralds, and an echidna girl called Tikal. In the game, it was shattered by Dr. Robotnik to release Chaos, causing Angel Island to fall. In the duration of the game's storyarc, Knuckles collects the shattered pieces of the Master Emerald from a variety of locations, and ultimately repairs the Emerald.

Sonic Adventure also revealed that thousands of years ago, the Echidna race had tried to steal the Master Emerald, along with the Chaos Emeralds, in order to obtain ultimate power. Chaos, who was their guardian, appeared and destroyed most of the Echidnas in a fit of rage, and in order to stop him, Tikal told the Master Emerald to calm him down. The Emerald then absorbed both Chaos and Tikal into itself, and continued to surge energy into a large part of the continent, making it float into the air with the remaining Echidnas.

Sonic Adventure 2
The Master Emerald was again a source of contention as Knuckles fought with Rouge the Bat for possession of it in Sonic Adventure 2. Doctor Eggman tried to steal it again while they were distracted, but Knuckles voluntarily shattered the Emerald in order to keep it out of his hands. Knuckles and Rouge then set off separately to gather the shards of the emerald for their own reasons.

Once all the pieces had been collected the Emerald was reformed by Knuckles. When Space Colony ARK started to fall (due to an automatic system when all seven Chaos Emeralds were gathered in the central control room), Knuckles used the Master Emerald to try to stop the disaster in the Eclipse Cannon's Core, which resembled the Emerald Shrine on Angel Island.

Sonic Battle
When Sonic went to fight Emerl on the Death Egg in Sonic Battle, he brought the Master Emerald with him, hoping it would negate the Chaos Emeralds that powered Emerl. However, the Master Emerald was shattered by a crazed Emerl, as he was bothered by the light it produced. It was most likely put together again, as it appears in Sonic Advance 3, which is very likely situated after Sonic Battle.

When the Master Emerald appears, Sonic says "a Master Emerald!". This is most likely a translation error, especially because in the next sentence he refers to it as "the Master Emerald."

Sonic Heroes
The Master Emerald played no role in Sonic Heroes, but it was mentioned by Rouge the Bat in the last movie of Team Dark's Story. She says she "might as well go after that Master Emerald, since that irritating ECHIDNA is here!". Shadow responds, saying, "Some things never change, do they?"

Sonic Advance 3
The Master Emerald then had a somewhat important role in Sonic Advance 3. After Eggman uses Chaos Control to split the world into seven parts, Sonic and Tails travel to the Master Emerald in order to use its Chaos Emerald-negating powers to undo the changes. After the heroes find it, the final boss is then fought at the Master Emerald altar. After the boss is defeated, the Master Emerald releases a bright light and repairs the world.

Sonic Rivals
In the Sony PSP game Sonic Rivals, Eggman Nega, masquerading as Eggman, stole the Master Emerald and used a special camera to turn it into a card, forcing Knuckles to find him and get it back. The game also stated that the Master Emerald exists in all moments in time simultaneously, so when Eggman Nega transformed the Emerald into a card in one moment in time, it disappeared from all other points in time. The Master Emerald is also one of the 150 collectable cards in the game.

Size dispute
The Master Emerald's size and shape seems to change over time. It is larger than Knuckles in Sonic 3 and Knuckles and Sonic Adventure, but about the same size as him in Sonic Adventure 2. Then, after Knuckles restores it at the end of Sonic Adventure 2, he pulls it out of his person to explain how to use it to stop the Space Colony ARK from plummeting to Earth, and it's about the size of his hand (he likely has the ability to shrink it down to a portable size). Then, after Shadow defeats the Biolizard, Knuckles puts the Master Emerald into the core and it is slightly larger than Knuckles. The Adventure games also have a slight color difference; Sonic Adventure features an opaque, dark green Master Emerald, while Sonic Adventure 2 features a light, transparent green Master Emerald.

Role in the TV series
The Master Emerald has only appeared in one Sonic the Hedgehog television program, namely Sonic X.

Sonic X
The Master Emerald doesn't play an important role in the early part of Sonic X. However, after a giant Chaos Control brings the worlds of Sonic and Earth together, it appears on Earth along with Angel Island. It is then shattered by the release of Chaos, leading to Knuckles' search for the fragments across various areas, based on the plot of Sonic Adventure. Following the game's plot further, it served to contain Chaos and Tikal, shows certain individuals visions of the past, and is eventually put together.

Later, the anime adapts Sonic Adventure 2, and Master Emerald is stolen by Rouge the Bat (unlike the game, it is never shattered) and taken to Space Colony ARK. Knuckles follows and battles her, and wins the Emerald back. Later, Knuckles uses it to drain the Chaos Emeralds of power, shutting down the engines that propel the colony towards the planet.

In the second series, the Master Emerald first serves as the power source for Christopher Thorndyke's crossover into Sonic's world. As a result of the time difference, the six years Chris has aged back in his world are stored inside the Master Emerald, returning him to his childish appearance, at least that was Eggman's theory. The Master Emerald also serves to power the Blue Typhoon space ship, which Sonic and co. use to travel around the galaxy and battle the Metarex. It's most important use is to power the Sonic Power Cannon, a massive cannon that is one of the few weapons effective against Metarex. The Master Emerald is left shattered and powerless after an attempt to use the Sonic Power Cannon to destroy Metarex leader Dark Oak. Oak absorbs the energy and fuses with Chaos, while Chris' age data is corrupted, preventing him from returning home through that method.

Role in the comics
As with the Chaos Emeralds, the Master Emerald appears in the comics as well as the games and television series.

Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie)
In the Archie-published Sonic the Hedgehog comics, the Master Emerald was created after Miles "Tails" Prower used the Chaos Syphon to collect the energies of Mammoth Mogul, Enerjak, and Angel Island's Chaos Emeralds. As a result, the Master Emerald has the power of fourteen Chaos Emeralds. As with the Chaos Emeralds that kept the Island aloft before it, the Master Emerald is protected by Knuckles, and also by his relatives in the Brotherhood of Guardians. As such a massive power source, it has been targeted by many villains, including Dr. Eggman. Currently, the Master Emerald is in the care of Knuckles' father Locke and the Dark Legion, following the repulsion of Eggman from Angel Island and the disappearance of the rest of the Brotherhood. The Master Emerald has been involved in several plots, and was used to give more power to Chaos and provided Evil Sonic with the energy to become Scourge the Hedgehog. It was also the only Chaos Emerald to be rescued from A.D.A.M.'s summons, an effort brought about by the efforts of both Locke and Dr. Finitevus. Finitevus later secured stewardship of the gem, fooling Locke into handing the duties over to him by having the Destructix attack a group of Dingoes. His intention: to use the power of the Emerald to restore Dimitri-who had once been Enerjak, but lost his powers to Mammoth Mogul-to his former glory.

Sonic the Comic
In Sonic the Comic, the Master Emerald is not an eighth emerald separate from the main group of seven, but is rather the green emerald of that group at the peak of its power. The original Master Emerald was destroyed and its power absorbed by a robot under the command of Dr. Zachary; the robot's severed head acted as a substitute until Knuckles constructed a new Emerald and transferred the robot's absorbed Chaos Energy into it.

Trivia

 * According to a prototype plotline shown on Sonic HQ for the Archie Comics post issue #134, a second powerful jewel known as the Master Geode would later be introduced. This gem would have become a point of conflict for Mammoth Mogul, Dr. Eggman, the Iron Queen, and Rouge the Bat before being shattered. Knuckles would have gained omnipotence from exposure to the gem, and could absorb power from its fragments. However, given that most of the other plots in this article have been rendered impossible, it seems unlikely that the Master Geode will ever make an appearance.
 * The Master Emerald may have been inspired by Kryptonite from the Superman series, as it is green, takes away the Chaos Emeralds' super powers, and is oddly shaped like Superman's emblem. The Chaos Emeralds are also shaped like this, but the Master Emerald was the first to be seen in this shape.