Though it may not have been easy or fun, your time in the Void was ultimately productive; you've become far stronger than you were when you entered, and you may have even made a friend(?) or two. Shadow insists on remaining behind in the Void because he does not want to interfere with this world or potentially cause problems with this world's Shadow (wherever he may be), but Infinite is free to either accompany you or stay behind and fight Shadow, depending on whatever you guys would like. Surprisingly, he'll respect your wishes without complaint (though this may be because he wants to fight Shadow).
You return to the outskirts of Chicago, and it seems that the city has changed some in your time away...
THE CITY
Eggman's chroma has taken over damn near everything. The buildings, the streets, even the wildlife. It seems that the changes have only hit the city itself, as the outskirts (where the base is located) are mostly chroma-free. Still, it's a stark change - you haven't really been gone for all that long, have you? It's kind of hard to tell judging from your time in the Void, but if you check a calendar you'll find that approximately two weeks have passed. All this in two weeks seems a bit much...
The city itself still retains the same landmarks, shops, and people - though the former two are Eggman-ified. The people are back to going about their business as lifelessly as ever, completely heedless of the robots even if they do get in the way... but even the robots are back to patrolling as usual. There are far more of them now, however, and they aren't the same ones you're used to. Sure, you can still fine drones, B33s, and tanks here and there, but they've mostly been replaced by newer, tougher foes.
You're going to have to fight if you enter the city for any reason. The robots will recognize you as a threat and try to kill you on sight, and there are far more of them now than there ever were. But you're stronger now, so you can certainly keep up, if not destroy them easily.
THE BASE
The new base that Sonic and friends have moved you all into is quite different from the last one. This one seems to have been an office building at some point; a simple two story building with plenty of large rooms and smaller offices that have been repurposed as bedrooms. You can room with the same people as before, or you can even claim your own room! There's plenty of space here, after all. Knuckles will even move beds around if you want to rearrange things and can't lift them yourself.
Unfortunately, this base isn't nearly as furnished as the previous one. Sonic Team has managed to get all the bedrooms functional in the span of a few days, but everything else? Well... You're going to have to help with that, aren't you? The kitchen is barebones, there's no rooms for entertainment, training, or anything else, and security is minimal. Tails is still working on getting his surveillance up and running, let alone all the various research he's been working on. In short, you've got your work cut out for you building this place into something you can truly call your own.
But it is located on the outskirts of Chicago and it is is safe. After all, you've got each other to rely on.
SHARDS
Shadow's test may not have immediately had any sort of effects on you, but as you return to Chicago and resume fighting, you'll realize that controlling your shard and its power is innate at this point. You won't be struggling with it anymore - in fact, you've completely unlocked your shard's power. You're capable of a great many more things with it now than you were before. You should be able to use your shard for offensive and defensive purposes - which yes, means our healers can do the equivalent of averaging their HP with the enemy in order to deal damage to them. Fun times all around. You'll find that bonding with another shardbearer is also easier, and you can bond with many more of them now. You're growing stronger; maybe your time away in the Void did some good after all.
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
Returning to the old base is ill-advised, but you can take a ring and hop over there if you've got someone to accompany you. After all, Tails would appreciate more of his old gear back, and you've probably left things behind there too. You'll find that the place is simply swarming with robots - they're on patrol rather than smashing your things, almost as if they were waiting for you all to return. Bring back whatever you need or whatever will prove useful - and be careful about it.
Of course, rings are running low again... so you know what that means. Scour Chicago and the outskirts in search of those pesky rings and make sure to bring them back! As always, they'll be found in increasingly bizarre and frustrating locations, but you'll be able to find them easier now than you could before. You won't even need a radar - your shards will innately draw you toward their location now!
ENEMIES
While you're undoubtedly going to find yourself running into familiar bots from the previous weeks, there are many new ones to contend with - and they are far stronger than the others. Eggman's army has more or less taken over Chicago, meaning that you'll be running into some sort of enemy frequently. The outskirts of the city are practically deserted, with the exception of your old base, that is.
Assault Drones have more or less replaced the majority of weaker patrolling drones. Unlike those, these are built for combat and they will not hesitate to engage in it. Capable of both shooting lasers, exploding, and sending out a loud siren call for reinforcements, they are not fun to fight. Still, they're the weakest of the new enemies by a long shot... though if you aren't quick enough and they get that loud siren out, they're going to be joined by those stronger enemies.
E-1000s are robots with gun arms that want you dead. They're capable of limited flight, shooting many lasers, and are quite durable... and to make matters worse, some of them even have shards allowing them access to a knockoff copy of one of your powers. The E-1000s usually patrol solo, without any other robots for backup, but they can and will call in reinforcements of the previous weeks' smaller robots when necessary.
Shadow Androids are basically what you'd expect. Shadow androids. They not only look like a certain black and red hedgehog, they also act like him, moving quickly and striking with hard hits and utilizing their fake Chaos Emerald shards for Chaos Control to both warp and temporarily freeze any opponent they face. They usually patrol in pairs - two Shadow Androids or a Shadow Android and any other assortment of weaker robots. Chaos Control is far more useful when someone else can take advantage of it, after all!
Maybe so! We probably ought to keep at least one or two in case of emergency anyhow, if we can.
[It's a good means of escape from a nasty situation! And, well, maybe the world they pick will have something awful happen to it that they can't deal with. It seems to be catching.]
You're right that we ought. It's quite a luxury that we have here - to go from being confined to merely the place of our respective creation, to being able to traverse among the worlds freely.
Oh! Yes, you should. Though - I should warn you first. I have been told that my appearance when I sleep can be...unnerving. My breathing stops and I go nearly completely inert.
[He looks kinda like a dead body, is what he's saying.]
Please do not worry if you see me like that. I can still wake if you need me.
[ Yeah, even knowing that Turo is a robot, that would have freaked him out. He's very used to the Turo who mimics a human's functions during the day after all. ]
I appreciate the warning - I do admit, it might have taken me a minute to understand without it.
I tried not to let myself be asleep around Gyles, but that was only for a few weeks. You and I will be traveling together - I can't just not sleep around you forever.
[It's a good thing, probably. It pushes him to reveal things he otherwise would have automatically, without even questioning the urge, tried to hide.]
That would certainly be no good, yes. You may need less rest, or a different kind of rest, but even your body needs time to cool down. It would not do to have you exhaust yourself to prevent something as flimsy and irrational as discomfort around the unfamiliar!
[ Being coddled for such a kneejerk impulse would just frustrate More as well. ]
Oh, well - you know how it is. He never liked to see it.
[The "he" is obvious, the same "he" it always is with Turo. It's...not even entirely unfair, not to wish to see one's own apparent corpse...though, he made it in the first place, didn't he?
[ They probably should. More is very reluctantly going to get off his blanket so he can pull it over himself instead. It's a fun angle, looking at Turo from across the narrow room as he lays down - it has a feeling of sleepover to it. ]
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[ It seems like a frivolous use of such an important resource, but then... they won't be needed in such a life-or-death way anymore, will they? ]
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[It's a good means of escape from a nasty situation! And, well, maybe the world they pick will have something awful happen to it that they can't deal with. It seems to be catching.]
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[ A poetic journey, really. ]
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[ A small, conspiratorial smile. ]
Though I think we both found 'stepping outside' to be quite the high goal already, so maybe this is not surprising.
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It's certainly more than I ever dreamed of, too.
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[ Cursing himself by bringing it up, but he can't help teasing a little. They got so caught up in conversation... ]
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[He looks kinda like a dead body, is what he's saying.]
Please do not worry if you see me like that. I can still wake if you need me.
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[ Yeah, even knowing that Turo is a robot, that would have freaked him out. He's very used to the Turo who mimics a human's functions during the day after all. ]
I appreciate the warning - I do admit, it might have taken me a minute to understand without it.
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I tried not to let myself be asleep around Gyles, but that was only for a few weeks. You and I will be traveling together - I can't just not sleep around you forever.
[It's a good thing, probably. It pushes him to reveal things he otherwise would have automatically, without even questioning the urge, tried to hide.]
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[ Being coddled for such a kneejerk impulse would just frustrate More as well. ]
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[The "he" is obvious, the same "he" it always is with Turo. It's...not even entirely unfair, not to wish to see one's own apparent corpse...though, he made it in the first place, didn't he?
Anyway. It hardly matters now.]
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Frankly, I think he should have kept quite a few of his opinions to himself.
[ This is about as close to saying 'fuck that bitch' as More gets. ]
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[But anyhow - they ought to turn in, for real.]
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Goodnight, my friend. Rest well.
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Goodnight, More.
[He does wait a few minutes before shutting himself properly down. But he wasn't sure if More was still awake or not, so it's progress.]