(This story takes place in the Sonic Movie universe, and as such may have spoilers. However, due to an ongoing story and numerous similar storylines, I will likely take multiple creative liberties+influence from other Sonic media.)
This story takes place just a few years after the release of Shadow the Hedgehog. Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and now Shadow are all trusted members of G.U.N. They're usually only called in for issues pertaining to them, supernatural occurrences, or things of the like, but this time there's a different reason.
"We've found something that's in orbit of our planet, and it's man-made. We believe it to be a piece of Robotnik Tech."
. . .
"Shadow, you know her? Who is that? She looks like the inverted version of you..."