Your fight against Infinite didn't go as expected. You've now seen what the false Chaos Emeralds are capable of and how their powers can be used by someone accustomed to that power. Though Infinite is no longer a threat, Eggman certainly is - and you're in no position to return to Chicago to try to take him down right now.
Focus on recovering and regrouping; you're going to need a plan to oppose Eggman from here on out.
THE VOID
Maybe you've grown complacent over your time in Chicago. You won't be seeing the city this week. Tails is adamant that it isn't safe to go back and insists that you remain here, within the Void between worlds. It is a still, silent abyss of nothingness, broken up only by gemstone-like shards that serve as platforms or obstacles, with very little else to see.
Gravity doesn't work properly within the Void, meaning you can float and even zip around at high speeds once you've figured out how it works. You can also stick yourself to shards no matter what angle you're at, resulting in walking upside down or otherwise getting stuck to one without being able to escape. Thankfully, this wonky gravity only applies to the Void itself, and you'll naturally come to master it as you spend more time here.
There are some shards that are shaped differently from the ones you can use as platforms, however. These are almost hexagonal, with a dark center that may flicker whenever you approach one. If you're lucky, the surface will flicker like water and show you images of another world - usually you will see Chicago and the robots rampaging through the city streets - but occasionally you may see glimpses of your home world or of other worlds. No matter what you do, you cannot interact with these visions. Since they do seem to be water, punching them will do no good; your hand won't even get wet, as it will go through and dispel the image entirely.
Settle in, it seems like you'll be here for awhile. Oh, and try to ignore that unnerving feeling of being watched - there's no escaping it when you're in the Void, after all.
RINGS
There is one bright spot in being stuck within the Void, and that's that your colorful little pals have rings. If you've been diligent about collecting them from whatever ridiculous places they've ended up in, you may even have a good amount! Though it will take a day or so for the rings to actually work, as the week goes on, you'll be able to world hop to your heart's content.
Which yes, means you could absolutely go home. Be mindful of your mission and just how long you spend there, because you will need to return eventually, right? Though time may work differently in the Void, it mostly works the same between worlds. Try not to spend more than a week back home.
But there is something a bit strange about world hopping; you can't really control where or when you'll end up.
You may arrive back in your home world at the wrong point in time entirely, either in the past or the future. You may end up in an alternate reality of your world (canon AU or fanmade AU) or you may even end up in someone else's world entirely! You all aren't used to using rings just yet, so it makes sense that there's some confusion.
Two of you attempting to use a ring together will have more success... but even then, failures can still happen and you can still be sent to the wrong places.
You may visit any world to exist except any Sonic worlds. Worlds where Sonic shows up as a cameo (Super Smash Bros, for example) are fine. Which yes, means I am barring you from visiting Sonic Underground, you'll have to forgive me.
SHARDS
Though you're stronger now than ever before, your power pales in comparison to Infinite's, let alone Eggman's. You're going to need to be much, much stronger if you want to stand a chance of fighting back. Maybe it would be worth it to visit a world full of monsters to practice using your shards.
As you fight with your allies - particularly those you have a close bond with, positive or negative - you may feel the tug of something in the back of your head; it tells you that you can do more. Together, you can become more powerful. You can use your shards together. Doing so will grant you a new power, or strengthen the one you already have. The more you trust one another, the easier this power will be to use.
It might be good to experiment with these new powers; after all, you never know when you may need them.
TAILS' TASKS
Rings can only be found in certain worlds, which means your worlds are safe from them. This does mean there are only a limited number of rings, however... so please keep this in mind when world hopping! This week, Tails does not have any tasks for you aside from continuing to train and develop your shard powers. Oh, and to stay safe, of course. Please don't get yourselves killed in some other world.
ENEMIES
Surprisingly, you will encounter none of Eggman's robots this week. The Void remains still and silent for the whole week and your worlds are free from Eggman's influence. You're welcome to beat up any enemies native to your own worlds, of course.
Ah, I see. Well, I suppose that is better than nothing, though I imagine having to survive among these creatures without such abilities must have been... difficult.
[because... yeah... look at that...]
...
Perhaps if you work at it. Or combine your abilities with someone else, I suppose.
Mm, I suppose, in earlier ages. But that is part of how the relationships between people and Pokemon evolved.
[The rocks shudder and just sort of shoot back into the earth, with no apparent effort from Lycanroc.]
Stone Edge is a rather high-level move! Maybe something simpler? [...] From what I have seen of your abilities, you would probably want a dark or ghost type, if you were to try learning this way. Or perhaps we could...spar?
[Sounds sort of like he has some idea of what sparring is but has never even considered doing it himself.]
We could spar, yes, but I have to admit, I am interested in seeing what dark and ghost type Pokemon are like. I suppose types are like elemental affinities, then? I can presume they would be at least somewhat self-explanatory, but I am curious...
Yes, that's essentially what they are. Do any of you know any ghosts or dark-types?
[The Pokemon seem to confer amongst themselves a bit, and then several of the Rookidee fly away. Machamp turns and walks off as well.]
Ah, I suppose they'll try. I don't know this area myself - I'm actually not sure where we are at all, or if it aligns with anyplace in my own world. I just know we aren't anywhere near my old home.
Understandable, I suppose. I would not be able to navigate immediately if dropped somewhere nondescript in the wilds of Erdrea.
[...hmmm...]
It is interesting that they seem to be somewhere between the monsters I tend to be familiar with and standard animals. Admittedly, there are some monsters that are more animalistic, but it is more of a general trend.
...I think that depends on how you qualify it. Like I said, some are more similar in intelligence to animals, but many are able to communicate in essentially the same way as humans. Many of them would resemble your Pokemon more than they would humans in form, though.
There are some Pokemon that are generally humanoid, like Machamp there - the extra pair of arms only happens with their last evolution. But none that truly resemble humans without the use of illusions or shape-changing.
[Meanwhile, the little group of Rookidee is the first to return, this time with a few larger corvid-like Pokemon among their number.]
Oh...oh, these are Murkrow! They are dark and flying-type Pokemon!
Ah, I see... well, I suppose that makes sense. The closest you generally get for our monsters without illusions or other magical abilities are the undead or monsters that resemble dolls or statues.
[...but oh!!]
Ah, I suppose crows make sense, then. They do have that air about them.
Yes, there's a certain...vibe to dark-type Pokemon, for lack of a better word.
[Lots of goths!]
I wonder if you could perhaps show my friend here some dark-type moves? He has some similar abilities.
[This sparks some twittering amongst all the bird Pokemon, but eventually one of the Murkrow steps forward to...sort of attack a rock with its own shadow?]
[Murkrow cocks its head as he does so. It doesn't know any attacks like that, but...it hops around a little, flutters to the ground, and finally settles on a large boulder as a target. With a caw, the boulder's shadow seems to rise up off the ground and slam back down on top of the boulder before sliding back down into place.]
That looked like Foul Play. The more powerful the opponent, the harder it hits. Though what you can do now actually looks more like a specific ghost-type move to me.
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[because... yeah... look at that...]
...
Perhaps if you work at it. Or combine your abilities with someone else, I suppose.
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[The rocks shudder and just sort of shoot back into the earth, with no apparent effort from Lycanroc.]
Stone Edge is a rather high-level move! Maybe something simpler? [...] From what I have seen of your abilities, you would probably want a dark or ghost type, if you were to try learning this way. Or perhaps we could...spar?
[Sounds sort of like he has some idea of what sparring is but has never even considered doing it himself.]
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[The Pokemon seem to confer amongst themselves a bit, and then several of the Rookidee fly away. Machamp turns and walks off as well.]
Ah, I suppose they'll try. I don't know this area myself - I'm actually not sure where we are at all, or if it aligns with anyplace in my own world. I just know we aren't anywhere near my old home.
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[...hmmm...]
It is interesting that they seem to be somewhere between the monsters I tend to be familiar with and standard animals. Admittedly, there are some monsters that are more animalistic, but it is more of a general trend.
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[Meanwhile, the little group of Rookidee is the first to return, this time with a few larger corvid-like Pokemon among their number.]
Oh...oh, these are Murkrow! They are dark and flying-type Pokemon!
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[...but oh!!]
Ah, I suppose crows make sense, then. They do have that air about them.
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[Lots of goths!]
I wonder if you could perhaps show my friend here some dark-type moves? He has some similar abilities.
[This sparks some twittering amongst all the bird Pokemon, but eventually one of the Murkrow steps forward to...sort of attack a rock with its own shadow?]
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[...]
Let me show them what I am capable of, then. They may be able to understand what I am working with...
[he'll zoop into his shadow, then zoop out.]
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That looked like Foul Play. The more powerful the opponent, the harder it hits. Though what you can do now actually looks more like a specific ghost-type move to me.