Shadows move in pairs
Shadow the hedgehog: True answers of the heart Team Sonic: Sonic Knuckles Tails Super Sonic Team Dark: Shadow Rouge Omega Team Rose: Cream & Cheese Amy Big Team Egg: Eggman Metal Sonic Team Chaotix: Charmy Espio Vector 1 Shadow, the second hedgehog hero of the world next to Sonic, continued to walk with Rouge down Eucalyptus Street and Orange Avenue. Both of them decided that their hunger was really getting the best of them and that they should fill their empty stomachs. The hedgehog kindly opened the door for the seductive bat and followed her in. People stared at them. Shadow threw them all cold looks. The humans at the tables went back to their own business. Rouge was already at the counter, ordering what she would eat. Since Shadow was paying, she decided to order as much as she could. "Let's see..." she began, "I'll have...a double cheeseburger with fries, two chocolate milkshakes, um...and a slice of cheesecake," the bat said. Shadow looked at her in disbelief. "Uh...I'll just have a small sandwich..." the hedgehog said, jumping onto the bar stool. "Will that be all?" the server asked. Both of them stared at each other, nodded and waited for their food, "It'll be a total of...12.78," the server said. After about ten minutes, the food arrived. It looked delectable. The chocolate shakes where shaken, not stirred, the burger was cooked to perfection, along with the golden-brown fries that were sitting in a small reddish box. The cheesecake sat at the centre of the food-tray, waiting to be eaten as a dessert. Shadow picked up his ham sandwich and layed it on a napkin. He barely began to sink his teeth into the sandwich, and Rouge was already chewing down into her burger and fries. Although she looked beautiful, she was a monster when she ate, along with horrible manners. The bat didn't bother using a napkin; she just licked her fingers and wiped the grease off her mouth onto her sleeve. As she finished her first milkshake, she belched loudly. "Rouge...could you try to be...uh...a little bit more...civilized?" Shadow said with a nervous laugh. The bat stared at him. "I have no idea what you're talking about..." she said, rolling her eyes and digging into her cheese cake. "People are staring..." the hedgehog said worriedly. "Let them stare...I don't care..." Rouge replied, singing it. She began to finish her final shake and she wiped her hands on a napkin. Shadow took a bite of his sandwich and it was delicious. The ham tasted almost like a cooked Christmas ham from the previous year. The lettuce tasted fresh out of the garden and so did the red tomatoes. He loved it. The hedgehog had never tasted something so delicious. The meal was done and the only remains of the meal were two crusts and tomato seeds on a napkin. Shadow pulled the needed amount of money out of his pocket and the two left. The rain may have disappeared, but the mud and puddles were still there. As the two made their way to Rouge's house, a car sped by and splattered mud all over the bat. She dripped mud and a small puddle formed at her feet. Shadow looked over his shoulder at the car, which was slowing down at a red light. The hedgehog walked over casually and knocked on the window. "Yes?" said the driver. "You do realize that you went over a mud puddle and splattered mud all over my friend, right?" Shadow said, annoyed at this deed. The driver looked out of his window and back at Rouge, who was trying her best to get mud off of her. "And? Your point is?" he said. Shadow was ticked at this carelessness. He pulled the door off with the remains of his Chaos energy and pulled the driver out by the collar. "It would be in your best interest to apologize..." the hedgehog said darkly. "And if I don't?" said the driver, smirking. He didn't really know who this guy was. "You see that door?" Shadow said, pointing at the door with his free arm. The driver nodded, "That'll be YOU if you don't apologize to her..." the hedgehog finished. The driver, known as Carl, looked down at Shadow with a look of horror in his eyes. Shadow let him down and Carl, a small, stout man without much hair, waddled over to Rouge. "I'm sorry, ma'am..." he said, bowing. The sun reflected off his bright head. Rouge pulled his head up and slapped him. He fell down and waddled back over to his car. He sped off. Shadow stared at the car as it turned a corner, screeching. He walked back over to the bat and they continued on to her house. "Rouge?" Shadow said, knocking on the bathroom door. The bat was inside, taking a bath, trying to get the filth off her body. "Yes, Shadow?" she garbled as she sunk into the bubbles. "I'm going to watch T.V. Is that all right with you?" the hedgehog said, muffled in Rouge's ears. "Yeah..." she replied. Shadow bowed to the bathroom door and jumped onto the bat's fluffy bed. He swiped up the remote and flipped on the television. It was set on the news. The hedgehog was shocked at what he heard the caster say. "Reports say that the heroes, Sonic and Shadow, have just robbed three banks, each one with over one million dollars stolen. If you have any idea of where the culprits are, please contact us at 1-800-331
" Shadow turned off the television without hearing the entire number. In the bathroom, Rouge was rubbing her leg with soap when she heard another knock at the door. "What is it NOW, Shadow?" she said annoyed. What was the point of taking a relaxing bath without relaxing? "Ms. Rouge. This is the police. Come out," said a deep voice. The bat dropped the soap to the very bottom of the tub, popping most of the bubbles. "Excuse me, sir, but I'm in the nude right now..." she said. "Then we'll break the door down," replied a second voice. Her eyes widened as the door fell down with both officers with their pistols out and, with their free hand, had their eyes covered. "Mrs. Rouge," said cop number one, "We have taken Shadow for questioning about the robbery of three town banks." "Robbery? Shadow? He didn't rob anything!" she said, jumping out of the tub and covering her body with a towel that said 'Emeralds are a Girl's best Friend'. The cops opened their eyes to see Rouge dripping from head to toe. "That's what we're questioning him about," said the second officer, "Along with Mr. Sonic." "Sonic, too? Neither of them steal things, sir! I know them personally!" she roared. No one messed with her friends. "We're sorry, ma'am, but we must leave now," said the first cop, leaving the bathroom. The fat cop followed, pulling the door up and putting it back in place. The door creaked open again and the fat cop popped his head through. "And.uh...sorry about the door..." he said, closing it completely and running out of the house. Rouge stood dumbstruck in the bathroom. Then she heard the phone ring. She opened the bathroom door, putting a towel on her head and picked it up. "Hello?" she said, a little tearful. "Rouge?" said the voice on the other line, "This is Shadow. They're giving me one phone call. You have to help Sonic and me. We didn't do anything!" he said, yelling through the phone. "SHADOW!" the bat screamed, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!" "What are you talking about?" Shadow said. "I thought I could trust you...but I guess not..." "But I didn't do it!" "That's what I told the police, but they changed my view on the whole thing!" She screamed. "But Rouge, I di---" Shadow tried to reply, but Rouge slammed down the phone. The bat sat on her bed, sobbing. She trusted him...she thought she knew him...but she was wrong. She took off her towels and changed her clothes to her favourite: the black pants, long gloves and shoes with a pink heart to cover her breasts. "HELLO? ROUGE?!!! GAHH!!!" Shadow yelled, throwing the phone at his feet. He didn't do ANYTHING. He was accused of a crime he didn't commit. Good thing Tails had listened to Sonic. According to the news channel in the cell, the Chaotix were on the case of the whole crime. Rouge sat alone in her room on the edge of her bed. She was still crying over all that the police said about Shadow. 2 "He...changed..." she said quietly. The phone rang again, but she didn't bother to answer. It rang once, twice, three times and then the answering machine picked up. 'This is Rouge,' it began, 'I'm not in right now, so please leave a message after the beep!' It clicked once for recording. "Rouge? Rouge? I know you're there. It's Amy. I just got a call from Tails telling me what had happened. Please answer the phone...' she stopped speaking and the bat could hear the pink hedgehog breathing lightly, but hard, "All right...I'll talk to you later..." the hedgehog hung up. Rouge sat still, her wings beginning to cover her womanly figure, to keep her warm. It was beginning to get cold in her room. The heater was down, after being shot out on accident by the police earlier. Amy was also alone in her living room, her dad watching the sports game on the television. She slumped over and slowly walked to her room. "Amy?" her father asked. "What is it, Daddy?" she sighed. "I'm...sorry about...ya know. That blue hedgehog boy you're always chasing around." Amy didn't reply. The dad muted the television and turned to her, "You really should find a different boy. One who will care for you, not run away at every approach. Someone like...that red kid. Knuckles or something..." the pink hedgehog eyes widened. "KNUCKLES? You think that I should go out with Knuckles?" She roared, "Listen to me, Daddy, I don't care about that echidna! Sonic is the only one for me!" The girl ran to her room, tears flying behind her. The father looked at her run and then turned back to the game. It was on an important news bulletin. "We interrupt the game for this breaking news. The convicts Sonic and Shadow have been captured and the Chaotix have found out how they did it," said the news lady. The screen switched to the Chaotix. Knuckles, Charmy, Espio, Mighty and Vector stood in a line, with the red echidna at the front. "Now Knuckles," began the on-site reporter, "how did the two hedgehogs do this crime?" The echidna's face was shoved with a microphone. "The thing is, sir..." Knuckles began, and Espio blocked in. "They didn't do it," the chameleon said. This shocked the bald and stout reporter, enough to make him fall back. The entire town and its viewers held their breath. They didn't do it? How could that be? "Espio's right. We know Sonic and Shadow personally and they didn't do it," Vector said. Mighty began to speak. "The blue hedgehog didn't do it, but I don't know about the black one. I just seem uneasy around him," the armadillo said quietly. The rest of the team looked at him. "Mighty, be quiet!" Charmy piped up. The two convict hedgehogs were watching the entire broadcast in their cell. Perfect. Someone had found and proved that they didn't do the crime. "Shadow!" Sonic said happily. He held out his arms for a bear hug but his alter ego didn't move a muscle. "Don't think so, Sonic...you're all right, but I'm NOT going to---OOF!" Shadow replied, almost being choked to death from the blue hedgehog's hug. He shoved Sonic off of him and continued to view. The Chaotix were gone and it was back to the main desk. "We now re...wait...WHAT?" the desk lady said. Shadow's hopes were slimming once more. This broadcast had been about nothing but the two hedgehogs and with a shocking statement; all hope was shot down, "This just in, folks. The two hedgehogs have just been seen running down Eucalyptus and Orange! They seem to be turning on Cave Avenue..." and the entire broadcast fizzled out. "Cave Avenue?" Shadow gasped. "What about it?" The blue hedgehog asked, picking the dirt from the ground. "That's the street Rouge lives on..." the black hedgehog said sadly, clenching his fist. Amy and Tails walked into the police station. The pink hedgehog was wiping small tears from her cheeks and the fox tried to stay strong. They heard groaning from behind them. In came Big the Cat, with Cream, Cheese and Chocola in his arms. "H-H-Hey, Big..." Amy said through a lump in her throat. "Amy, what's wrong?" the cat asked her. Tails walked to the main desk of the station and began to explain everything. "Sir, we're here to see Mr. Sonic and Mr. Shadow..." he said. "I'm sorry, son. Visiting hours are over with," the officer replied. Tails pulled out a little gun and fired. "Can I see them now?" the fox asked again. "Yes...right this way..." the officer said in a hypnotic trance. 'Perfect!' Tails said to himself, 'my hypno-ray works...' As the fox went off to the cell, Amy finished her story. "So what are you guys doing here?" she asked. "Well, we came to say hi to Mr. Sonic," Cream said with her two Chao floating abover her head, "Big is here for his volunteer hours. Did you know that he used to be a cop when he was sixteen?" "Really Big?" Amy said with stars in her eyes. The cat blushed and laughed. Tails nabbed the keys and hit the officer in the back of the neck, knocking him out. The fox nabbed up the keys and freed the two hedgehogs. "TAILS!" Sonic roared, "Don't do that!" he said, but the little genius didn't reply. He unlocked the cell and Shadow sped off. "Shadow, wait!" Tails cried. The black hedgehog stopped in his tracks. "What is it, fox?" "Were are you going?" "To help Rouge...she's in danger..." Shadow sped off into the setting sun. He stopped at Rouge's house to find it in ruins. Smoke was beginning to settle down and articles of clothing were ripped, torn and thrown about. As he took a step forward, sirens ringed in his ears. "Shadow the Hedgehog!" said a voice over the loud speaker, "We've caught you red-handed. Put your hands in the air!" The hedgehog held his breath. "You haven't caught me just yet, officer..." he said darkly, "and you never will..." He jumped up and ran, destroying the guard robots and police cars on his way over. 3 Shadow continued to run, faster and faster, feeling the blood rush through his ears. Slow enough, his head began to hurt as he went on. "That trouble maker..." he said solemnly. *****FLASHBACK**** "This is Rouge...I have a small problem..." she said to Shadow through his comminicator, "I CAN'T believe I'm locked in this safe with the Chaos Emerald. I guess I won't be able to call myself a treasure hunter anymore..." she was on the brink of tears, placing her walkie-talkie on the ground. Pipes were breaking next to her, releasing some sort of gas. Shadow stood in the middle of the jungle, looking from one side to the other. He remembered Maria, and then imagined how Rouge felt inside the site. The hedgehog straightened his face. "Shoot...troublemaker..." he said darkly, turning sharply and dropping the outer communicator on the ground. ******END FLASHBACK***** Rouge was tied to a chair, thrashing around trying to get free. Her kidnappers placed a piece of tape over her lips to keep her from talking. The bat tried to get a good look at them, but a bright light behind their bodies silhouetted the two. Their builds were almost the same as Sonic and Shadow's, but there was something different she couldn't place her finger on... Tails was sitting amongst the rubble of his destroyed workshop home in the Mystic Ruins. Everything he made...owned.... cherished.... gone. All of his belongings were gone. The fox picked up a small chip from the ground. "This is how my workshop began...and it's how it will begin...again..." he said quietly. Sonic walked up behind him. "You okay little buddy?" "Sonic!" Tails said, jumping, "Yeah...I'm okay. It's just because of that STUPID Metal Sonic that all of my stuff is gone!" he barked, kicking the ground, sending up a tuft of dirt. A few red ants followed along. Sonic leaned back and yawned, lurching forward when he finished. "Ah...don't sweat it..." Shadow stopped to take a breath. He had been running for the past few hours. Sweat was falling off his nose in heavy drops, each one seeming to take an inch of life away. The cops had began to follow about forty-five minutes ago and they were bound to catch up with him. He heard the sirens in his ears, getting louder and louder with each passing second. With each breath...with each blink.... and with each whiff of the bright, loving air, with a hint of river water within its mystery. "I'm still tired.... but I guess I should try and run off again..." Shadow said quietly, getting off the curb, brushing off a ladybug that had wandered mindlessly onto his hand. As he turned his back to the police, ready to run, he heard many loud, deafening explosions. The black hedgehog spun around quickly and noticed Omega hovering down to the ground, his missile pockets steaming. The robot turned his head to Shadow. "Ready to go get the bat?" he said. The hedgehog stared at the robot in amazement. Shadow wasn't used to being helped at all...by anyone. He was the loner of the whole entire group. Always on the move, except when he was knocked out when Eggman picked him up after the ARK incident. The two turned once more and left the entire remaining police and their destroyed cars in their dust. The hedgehog and robot slowly approached a large, spooky mansion, where the yard had overgrown with weeds pouring out of the fence like snakes. The grass was dead and worn and it seemed like it hadn't been mowed in years. It was the Robotnik Manor. Every Robotnik from the seemingly ancient Arnold Robotnik to the late Professor Gerald. They were all raised in this house. Ivo Robotnik, or 'Eggman', decided to leave at an early age and desert the house. The Robotnik family would never enter the house anymore. No more heirs to the building, either. Omega found three forms in the home, even though only one emitted any body heat. Shadow kicked the weak gate down to the ground, where it left its imprint in the knee-high grass. The two walked toward the main door, the hedgehog leaning over to itch his leg once in a while. "Omega, do you think that Rouge is in here?" Shadow asked, slapping an ant off his cheek. The robot didn't answer. "Primary concern: Find Rouge," he said, "We will search until goal has been reached." Shadow looked at him and the two finally reached the door. It was dusty, but beautiful. Oakwood panelling with solid gold handles. The glass was stained, but not with paint. With the blood of the previous owners. A giant, emerald E was placed at the top of the doorway. The dark hedgehog's hand began to tremble. It slowly inched toward the handle. Just as he was about to nab the handle, the door swung open. The hedgehog jumped back, almost bumping into Omega. There wasn't anyone on the other side of the door. It seemed as if light had just touched this house. The curtains were closed and moth eaten. The ground was dusty and the wood was broken. There were rips in the chairs, with springs popping out of the bottom. The railing of the staircase was made entirely of copper, which was green with mould. Rain had fallen through the cracks in the roof. Shadow took a step forward, and his foot almost fell through the hard wood. He caught himself and took a sigh of relief. His heart was almost pounding out of his chest. Sadly, Omega also walked in, causing the two to plummet down to the basement. 4 Rouge sat, still tied in her chair, but the duct tape gone from her mouth. There were cuts all on her body. The two fakers had used knives, or something like them, to cut her hands, legs and there was a long cut across her forehead. Dried blood caused brownish marks on her skin. "Shadow will help me...I know he will..." she said quietly, bowing her head, letting the tears run from all the pain. "Quiet, fool!" said one of the two. He pulled out a whip and slapped her back, tearing off the hook of her bustier. It fell on the ropes, in which her hands dangled, dripping with blood. The bat winced at the pain. She was used to this. It was how she was treated as a child. *****FLASHBACK****** "Daddy?" said a baby Rouge, holding a small teddy bear. There was no answer, "Mommy?" she said, biting her finger. There was a loud crashing noise in the kitchen and it frightened the small child. She slowly walked toward the kitchen door and dropped her bear. Blood was running down the tile and her father lay dead on the ground. Her mother was standing above his body with a broken beer bottle in her hand, which she dropped, shattering it instantly. "Rouge...It's not...." she said, but the small bat didn't listen. She ran outside, where the moon shone down on her. She was only four, but she kept running. She ran down the street, without her bear. The bear her granny made for her second birthday. The bear that kept the monsters away at night and protected her from the bad people. Without her bear, she seemed vulnerable. She turned the corner and a rock hit her head. The bat held the spot. "Get out of here..." said the man leaning against the wall. Rouge looked at him. "Why aren't you in a house?" she asked. "Because some people don't HAVE homes, you little snot." He said, throwing another rock at her head. "That's not nice, mister..." she said, holding her head. "And neither is this!" He said, standing up, wobbling from all the whiskey that he drank and that Rouge could smell from his clothes. From the stench, she thought he bathed in the stuff. He picked up a knife and walked toward her. She ran, as fast as her tiny legs would go, "That's right!" said the man, "Run! Run, you little maggot!" He yelled, throwing twelve rocks, one after the other after her. *****END FLASHBACK****** Maybe this was destined on how her life was supposed to be.... Shadow continued searching in the basement when he stumbled across a strange, glowing orb... Shadow wanted to leave to orb behind him, but he couldn't help but move toward it. The blue ball had him under its spell. Omega did nothing but stand in the back corner, hiding. All that was visible was his eye pockets, which were illuminated by the deadly red glow of his fiery eyes. The hedgehog grabbed hold of the glowing ball and felt a weird, tingling sensation in his body. There was a bright flash and Shadow began to walk on the ceiling. "What the...?" He said. "House has flipped upside down. Scanning outer doorway for exit," Omega said next to the hedgehog. The robot scanned. The outer portion of the mansion was still the same, but the insides...how did that happen? 5 Shadow looked around to find some way to exit this way and get back to normal. He saw a door, which you could only reach by pressing the ball. The black hedgehog moved in. There was a smell coming from the room. It was familiar, like the oatmeal Maria used to feed him when he fell asleep while singing a poem to him when he was still a baby. *****FLASHBACK***** "Are you ready, Shadow?" Maria said, almost yawning. The black hedgehog, who was very tired after a long day of testing, wriggled into his blankets. Before Maria's death, the hedgehog was very childish and loved to mess around with things. The young woman pulled the bowl of steaming hot oatmeal off the bed stand and placed a spoonful of the baked apple oatmeal into the Hedgehog's mouth. "mmmm...." Shadow said softly. It warmed up his cold insides. The testing rooms were very cold and this oatmeal hit the spot, "Sing my bedtime song, Maria..." the hedgehog said dreamily. "All right... As the years say goodbye one by one on silent wings they fly What will last, what is true That's a lesson I learned Loving you. This world will find it's way somehow. I've got all I need right here. Right now. This is the time when the cold winds blow where love comes from heaven on the dreamers below. This is the time when I need to know that your love will always be mine. Tha---" she stopped singing. Shadow was sleeping like a baby, wrapped up in his hand-knit quilt. Maria kissed him on the head and turned off the light, leaving the room. *****END FLASHBACK***** Shadow looked around. The smell wasn't the baked apple oatmeal that Maria used to feed him when he fell asleep. The heat of the room wasn't the warmth he felt as the oatmeal went down in throat, warming his insides. The smell was coming from a bubbling cauldron. The hedgehog took a few steps toward the bubbling cauldron when he felt something rumble at his feet. A head popped up. Shadow looked down, almost wet himself in fright and jumped back. A figure slowly got out, walking toward the cauldron. The black hedgehog could barely find an outline around him. The person was cloaked, but that's where Omega came in. He was already doing what Shadow was thinking. Scanning the figure. No image appeared. All it was an empty cloak. "But how could an empty cloak move on its own...." Shadow said quietly. The head of the figure put its would-be-mouth to the liquid bubbling in the cauldron. It drank from the bowl. The yellowish-green concoction bubbling in the black cauldron went down the figures throat. What was he doing? Omega tried scanning again. This time, a figure appeared. Maybe that potion creates people? A broken light buzzed above their heads. Omega changed his hand into a blinding flashlight, causing the figure to emerge. "SONIC?!!" Shadow yelled. The figure resembled the blue hedgehog in every way. The emerald green eyes...the peachy muzzle, the hanging spikes... "No..." it said, "Not Sonic...leave now...or you shall pass on..." the figure went back down the hole it came from. Shadow was shocked. Pass on? Was the house really that dangerous? The hedgehog looked down into the cauldron. As he put his lips to the liquid, Omega grabbed his shoulder and yanked him back. "Properties of liquid...poison. Do not drink." Shadow fell on his bum and sighed. "Thanks, Omega....I guess my curiosity got the better of me. Now, where is Rouge...? Hmm?" the hedgehog stared at another orb, just like the one he messed with earlier. He ran up to it and touched it. He was back on the floor, seeing one last door, hopefully leading to a flight of stairs that could lead to the attic. That's were the forms were that Omega sensed outside. The hedgehog noticed something. "Omega, look! It's Rouge!" Shadow said, pointing to the body on the floor. The robot activated his blinding flashlight once more and shined it on the body. It wasn't Rouge, but it was someone they knew, "Oh my god..." Shadow said, taking one step back. "Life form...deceased...." Omega said. It was...... Shadow stared at the limp body on the floor. The whole room held its breath. Wind from the outside whistled through the cracks in the wall. "Is...that...Espio?" Shadow said stammering. Omega held his flashlight still at the purple chameleon. There were no signs of blood and his ninja stars were placed hard in the wall. There must have been a huge fight, Shadow thought, noticing all the bruises all over the ninja's body. Omega picked up the chameleon and walked toward a boarded window. The robot punched through the already weak boards and held the body out into the light. Leaves blew past as he dropped Espio down to the ground. turned around to Shadow, who was pulling a star out of the wall. The hedgehog lifted it high above his spiky head and said a few words. "Espio, in memory of you, we will find who did this. We will avenge our friend..." Shadow pulled his arm down and walked up the stairs where the body had lain near. Now the two were back in the main foyer, then walking to the flight of stairs lined by the copper railing. Shadow went up first, to save himself from falling with Omega on it at the same time. As he finally reached the seemingly endless flight, the robot made his way up. The midnight hedgehog, looking at his hand, whistled casually. Omega met up with Shadow and they searched the second floor together, although each were on opposite sides of the hall. The hedgehog searched the left side while Omega searched the right. So many doors, and since he didn't have X-Ray vision, Shadow had to open and close each door. When he opened up the left-side bathroom, a stench like no other filled the entire hallway. It stank to high heaven. With one hand plugging his nose and the other on the door handle, the hedgehog slammed the door and tried to take a huge breath of fresh air. The stench from the bathroom kept him from engulfing the amount of air he wanted, but what he got seemed to get the job done. Omega stared at him. "Breathing life forms are so confusing," he said. Shadow coughed and laughed, and the two continued to move down the hallway. 6 Shadow's eyes flew open, and he sat up in his bed, sweat forming on his brow because of all the heat in the room. The hedgehog took deep breaths and calmed his mind about what happened. It was all a dream. Just that. A dream. The blue blankets of his bed wrapped around his body, forming somewhat of a cocoon on him. Shadow sighed and fell back into his pillow, sending white feathers floating gently up into the air and back down solemnly. "I...can't remember...was all of it a dream....?" he said quietly, finally standing up on the floor and putting his gloves on. He walked down the hallway and into the living room, where all of his favourite possessions sat in touch-me-not cases. The hedgehog snatched up the remote and flipped it to the news. The date....the date was the same as before. The same one in his dream. 3/14/2054....Maybe...he just had the dream...The phone rang. On the other end was a certain hedgehog. "Shadow...?" he said. The black hedgehog's eyes widened with fear. The person's voice sounded like nails on a chalkboard, stricken with hatred and despair. The voice was being shot out at him through a lump in the beings throat. "You have six days...one the twentieth...she will be killed..." and they hung up. Shadow held on to the phone. He never got his two-cents into the conversation. The hedgehog placed his phone back down onto the hook. He looked around the house and thanked Tails for building it so quickly. Shadow really needed a home and how. Boxes in dark alleyways didn't suit him, really. The black hedgehog sat on his old, beaten up sofa. The sofa were the spring would spout out at random moments. The sofa were stuffing was falling out and he picked at. "Well, evidentially..." he said to himself loudly, "whoever that was captured Rouge..." and he was right. The hedgehog hadn't heard from her in about three days, and she usually called him once per hour to spit out her mindless gibberish about how she feels. Shadow picked at the stuffing sticking out of the cushion out of boredom and out of fear. Had Espio really died? No...that couldn't have happened. The ninja was too quick to be killed... The black hedgehog stood solemnly in front of the phone with Rouge, kicking and screaming through her replaced gag behind him. He turned to the blue hedgehog and the two laughed darkly. Then the alarm went off. Someone entered the manor. The blue hedgehog stared at the screen and yet saw nothing there. He decided it was time to pay the intruder a visit. The hedgehog melted through the floor leaving the black hedgehog with Rouge, stuck in the attic. He landed with a thud, scanning the room with intent to find the intruder of the manor. The hedgehog heard heavy breathing behind him and he turned. Something began to come into view. A faint purple...that became darker...and darker...and darker... a yellow horn protruded from the middle of his head and the yellow eyes of the being seemed to glow in the dark room. "Who are you?" the hedgehog asked. "My name is Espio and this...." the chameleon said darkly, "is my crew..." he snapped his fingers and the wall behind him collapsed, with a large, green reptile, fists sticking in front of him and a small, swirling bee standing in the hole. "Are you ready to go bye-bye, bad guy?!" Charmy said, moving his stinger around menacingly. "HEY!" Yelled the reptile, "Watch were you're pointing that thing!" "Sorry, Vector..." the bee said sadly, his antenna drooping slightly. "Could we get back to business..." Epsio said with a pinch of annoyance in his voice. Their foe stood adjacent the group, counting his fingers and yawning. "Are you fools ready?" he said with a dark smile on his face. The Chaotix looked at him with their eyes widening. How could this be?! Anyone that faced the Chaotix usually cowered in fear...what is this guy! Espio saw the hedgehog jump at him, causing dust to rise along. He saw a bright flash of light. 7 Shadow sunk deeper and deeper into his chair. How was he going to save Rouge? Maybe his dream could help him find a way to get to her. Possibly, Omega could configure all of the dream data from his brain into a projector. Of course, the hedgehog would have to wait until the robot was ready to be activated for another day of work. The sun peeked its rays through the window before deciding it was time to show his face. Shadow stared at the window. "Well, at least the sun is up..." he said quietly. There was a loud BUMP at the door. The hedgehog's heart began to pound. His house was so quiet that he wasn't expecting anything to happen. He opened the door and in came a battered Espio and Vector. Blood was running down their faces and black and blue bruises covered their chests. "ESPIO!" Shadow gasped, "What happened?!" "It was...that blue hedgehog..." he said quietly, before passing out on the floor. Vector was leaning against the wall, holding his arm. "Yeah...a blue hedgehog....like Sonic...I couldn't even see where he was moving..." the crocodile said, wincing between a few words. Shadow clenched his fist in anger. "Sonic did this to you?!" he roared. Vector didn't answer. He was asleep on the garage door. The hedgehog slapped him. "WHAT?! Oh....I think it was him...and he has Charmy now..." the crocodile said with a shake. He fell asleep again. Shadow carried both of them to a bed, covered them in white sheets which turned red with blood in almost an instant and left the house. "Sonic....how could you do this to them?" Shadow said out loud. It echoed partially through out the street. No one was up yet, lucky for him. Tails built his house on the street with the crazy murderer of Station Square. Shadow walked down the street with the wind blowing sharply on his legs. The black hedgehog continued to walk down the windy streets, the stench of old trash in dumpsters overwhelmed him so much, he fell coughing. Shadow ran, trying to remember which direction he headed in his dream toward the manor. ******FLASHBACK****** "Sonic did this to you?!" he roared. Vector didn't answer. He was asleep on the garage door. The hedgehog slapped him. "WHAT?! Oh....I think it was him..." Vector said. *******END FLASHBACK******* "Sonic..." the hedgehog said quietly, rubbing his shoulders from the chill the wind sent down his spine. He looked up at the sky, "It wouldn't be like you to do this...." There was a crash to his right in an alleyway, with the only thing breaking the darkness was a flickering light. Three big boys were pushing a small, familiar fox around. One was built a lot like a freezer and with about half of the intelligence. His hair, slicked back and darkened by hair gel, was a rich brown, like chocolate. His eyes were black with fury and penetrated Shadow with a look of hatred. Rips were all over his jeans and jean jacket and he wore a black shirt with a red B on it, which was barely visible because of a coffee stain on it. "How's about a little cut, fox? Right down the cheek?" he said, flicking out his knife. One of his smaller companions laughed. He was a tubby little child, with more rolls than a baker's shop. The child's belly button burst out from his blue shirt that was too small for even Cream. A ripped jacket lay on his shoulder and a pair of peachy long johns covered his legs. "Yeah! C'mon, Juko, let's do it!" he said. The female of the group lain her head down on the leader, Juko's, shoulder. "Are you ready, fox?" she said. Although she was evil, she had a nice face. It wasn't covered in pimples like the other two's, but lovely. A hint of red above her cheeks on both sides. Her lips were like two rose buds and her curves...Shadow clenched his fist. Tails was sitting behind him with his tails between the his legs, and his fingers plunged in his ears. Juko ran the blade down his girlfriend's cheek, letting a small trail of blood run. He licked it off. The hedgehog stood tall. "Why don't you pick on someone that may actually WANT to fight?" he asked. The big Juko turned to him. Shadow stared at him with his red infernos called eyes. Blood pounded in his ears with a throbbing pain. The tubby little boy ran up to him. "Hey, hedgy! Stay out of our way!" he said. The hedgehog turned to Tails and whispered, "You have any Chaos Emeralds?" The small fox shook his head. Shadow snapped his fingers in anger. He was hoping to use a Chaos Terra Fall technique to stop them, but fists were the answers now. Juko walked over to Shadow and held out the dagger. The hedgehog didn't bat an eye. He kept his cool and nothing seemed to frighten him. The bully took a swipe and missed. "Wha!" Juko gasped in suspense. "Where did he go?" "Up here, kid..." the hedgehog said, standing on top of a building, the wind ruffling his spikes. The three bullies took a step back. "How...did he...?!" the girl cried. Shadow snickered and jumped down, landing on his feet. The hedgehog grabbed Juko by the shirt and lifted him up. "Leave my friend alone..." he said darkly. Frightened and nearly wetting himself, Juko was let down. He grabbed his cohorts and ran. "Thanks Shadow..." Tails said quietly, getting up and dusting himself off. The hedgehog smiled and left him behind, "Hey, where are you going?" little fox asked. Shadow turned his head. "I'm going to find Rouge and Charmy..." he said restfully. A light bulb lit in his brain, "Tails...do you know of any manors in this town?" "Manors?" Tails echoed. He looked through his genius brain. "There is only one in this entire town and that's the Eggman Manor..." "Then I'm going there," the black hedgehog said, clenching his fist. Shadow walked slowly in the direction he was going when he stumbled upon Tails' attackers. "Shadow," the fox said, "we're not far away from the Manor, and so I may as well tag with you. Besides, Charmy is my friend, so there's another reason!" he said happily. Shadow, not caring, continued to walk as the eight-year-old furrball followed him. The Eggman Manor came into view.... 8 Shadow and Tails stood in front of the touch-me-not mansion with the grass overgrown, dead-end by no water and weeds bursting from the gate. The mansion was a mirror image of the one in the dark incarnation's dream. "Shadow, what's the matter?" Tails said quietly, looking up at the hedgehog's reddened face. Shadow didn't answer. How could he dream this exact same house if he had never been here before? The small fox looked up at the evil version of his hero. Inside the house, the two hedgehogs stood at the very top, staring out of the window at Shadow and Tails running through the weeds. Rouge the bat, still tied to the chair, jumped around on the floor while Charmy was stuck to the ceiling by his stinger. "ERG!" the little bee roared, "Just WAIT until my buddies get a hold of you!" he screamed, jerking around. The blue hedgehog turned to the two captives. He walked over to the female one and ran a finger down her already bruised cheek. "Miss...Rouge...." he said darkly. The entire room was blanketed with a cover of darkness. The only light that entered was from the window, which was boarded up partially, "You...are a...beautiful...woman..." "Yeah, well....you're not gettin' any from me, bub..." Rouge said, spitting. The two hedgehogs laughed. The heroes stood on the second floor, reeking with the same stench of the old bathroom from Shadow's dream. Tails plugged his nose as they wondered around the hallway. Finding Rouge would HAVE to be a miracle in this house. It was so big...and confusing. But after seeing Sonic fight so many monsters and prevail when things looked bleakest, the fox believed in miracles. "Hey, Shadow?" Tails asked. The hedgehog didn't look at him, but replied to him. "What is it, kid?" he responded, looking for some sort of switch that was like the ones he saw in his dream. "Do you think that...maybe..." the fox stopped. He didn't want to upset his fake hero. Tails knew how emotional over things that Shadow could get. He let it rip anyway, "Rouge could be...dead?" he said it. The hedgehog's ears twitched. "What?" he said, shocked at what he heard coming from the fox. "Do you think the one we're searching for could be dead?" Tails said again. "Oh...well, I don't know. If she's not alive, then we just stop whoever hurt Espio and Vector, rescue Charmy and leave," Shadow finally responded, with a bit of tears in his eyes. ******FLASHBACK****** "Shadow? What do you think it's like on Earth?" Maria asked the hedgehog in the main control room. "I don't know. The professor told me that his soul purpose was to make mankind happier through the power of science..." he told her. The beautiful girl smiled, but Shadow turned his head and slowly closed his eyes, "Maria...." *****END FLASHBACK***** Shadow stood, looked down at the dusty floor, with Tails behind him. "Shadow?" the hedgehog continued to stare down. He turned back to Tails. "Let's go," he said quietly, continuing down the hallway. Their shoes were clicking on the floor. Tails' tails were wiggling in a manner they've never wiggled before. He was afraid. Not of the manor, but because of Shadow. Was the hedgehog going to smack him for what he said? Sonic had done that once... *****FLASHBACK****** Tails was walking along the forest floor, taking pictures of animals in their own habitats when Sonic ran past. The fox looked up at his hero. "Hey Tails, how are you doing?" he asked, with a tone of seriousness. "Nothing much. Just taking pictures of animals..." Tails replied. "Ah...I get it...." the hedgehog told him. "Yeah....what do you think about Amy?" he asked. Many things about Amy he wanted to ask him. "What do you mean?" "Do you think she's pretty?" Sonic slapped him, hard across the face. "You know I hate Amy...with a passion..." he said darkly. "What was that for?!" "I never want you to mention Amy in my presence again...." the hedgehog said and walked away. Tails sat on the ground and sighed. *****END FLASHBACK****** 9 The blue hedgehog was using his whip again on Rouge now. She screamed in pain. He slapped her, digging his nails into her face as his hand moved across. He moved his nail down the middle of her chest, causing the gash to bleed across her body, covering a portion of her body in blood. Charmy, still stuck to the ceiling, saw her tears on the ground. He was mad, but very dizzy. All the blood had rushed to his head. He almost passed out. Shadow ran now, Tails behind him, trying to catch up. 'I've never seen anyone so fast,' the fox thought to himself, 'only Sonic had been like this!'. The two ran up the second flight of stairs leading to floor number three. It was a long hallway, just like the last floor. What in the world? Was this house just a copy of each floor below it? It had to come to an end sooner or later. As the two made a move forward, Shadow stepped in some sort of liquid. He looked down at his feet and pulled a small bit out of the carpet. It was blood. This hallway was covered with blood. It was a carpet of nothing but...the red, life-giving liquid. Then they heard a scream. "SHADOW!!!!!!!!!" it echoed. The hedgehog's ears twitched again. "That had to have been Rouge. Let's get going, Tails!" he said, running down the hall, ignoring the fact the the heat from his jet shoes made the blood into a steam bath for the fox behind him. Tails, the small orange fox, followed closely behind the dark incarnation of his hero. He was afraid of this house. Sure, he felt safe near Shadow, but the fact there was blood on the floor put fear into him. The fox's heart was pounding madly. He looked up at the hedgehog. Shadow paid no attention. "Shadow..." Tails asked quietly. The hedgehog didn't respond. Instead, he stopped dead in his tracks. The fox, not paying attention, hit hard into his back and fell into the blood. Shivers ran down his spine. The black hedgehog silently turned his head and shushed Tails. There were footsteps coming down the hall. Who was there? Tlot...tlot....tlot...Each step was slow. Breathing was quiet now. No one moved. Tlot...tlot...tlot...Shadow grabbed the fox and hid behind a pillar in the hall. The footsteps continued. The hedgehog had his hand over Tails' mouth, whose screams were muffled. Tlot...tlot...tlot. "Tails," Shadow said quietly, "I want you to be very quiet. On the count of three...we jump him...okay?" The fox nodded his head. It's not like he had a choice anyway, "All right...one..." the hedgehog began. Tlot...tlot...tlot, "Two..." The air was beginning to tense up. "THREE!" Shadow jumped and landed on a large blob. He was thrown back into a weak wall and it fell down, sending the hedgehog into another bathroom. Tails stood and began to speak with the giant shape. "So...how are you?" the hedgehog heard him say. "I'm all right," the voice was very familiar to him. It wasn't a smaller person he knew. It was a male's voice. There was no way it could have been Knuckles. He was out finding the Master Emerald and taking it back to Angel Island. There was no way it could be Sonic, either. His rival was out roaming freely, just trying to take a break from his last adventure. Espio and Vector were out cold in his house. Who was left that he knew? "Big?" Shadow said quietly. The being turned to him. "The one and same!" The cat said happily. There was a light switch near the door. The light could still be active, seeing that the house hadn't been inhabited for years. The switch was covered from top to bottom in dust. A spider, that Shadow later flicked away, was crawling on the sideways switch. The hedgehog flipped the switch, which creaked on its way. The dim light on the ceiling flickered on slowly. Although still not a very efficient light source, it got the job done. It was bright just enough to see everyone. "Big?" Tails started. The enormous cat turned around, taking his time, "What are you here for?" "Oh the usual..." he replied, long ears drooping down, "Froggy got away so I came here..." He took a deep breath and yelled, "FROGGY?!!!" The whole house shook slightly. Tails, not expecting this type of outbreak, fell down on his bottom once more. The white tips of his two tails had turned a bright red with all the blood and white mixed together. Big looked down at his fox friend, "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to. I just get so emo..emot...sad when Froggy is gone." He hugged himself. "It's okay, Big..." Shadow said quietly, patting him on the back. The purple cat smiled and kept walking in the direction that they were going. The black hedgehog lead the two, with Tails directly on his feet and Big a little bit behind the whole pack. Another staircase! Maybe this one could lead to the end of their search. The three of them all took a step forward and a loud thud was heard behind them. Together, they turned their heads. Before them was an enormous robot. A gladiator robot, to be more precise. It was silver, but there was hardly any shine to it in the dim light. A ridiculously huge hammer lay clenched in its fist. Big pulled out his fishing pole. "Okie dokie...I'm ready!" he said, his ears folding back. Shadow took a step toward the robot. "Heh...looks like this could be fun..." the hedgehog said darkly with a sneer forming. Tails hovered above the two, clenching his fists. In the attic, the black hedgehog was leaning silently against the wall, waiting for something. His partner was twirling a rose in front of Charmy's face. "Wouldn't you like to take the nectar from this flower?" the blue hedgehog snickered. Struggling, the bee squirmed around the ceiling. "ERR! You're making me mad!!" he screamed. Rouge was on the same chair she had been tied to, rope burns on her arms and a new rope placed on her in place of her old ones. The black hedgehog in the corner opened his eyes and said quietly, "The war has broken..." 10 The three heroes, staring at amazement at their new foe, stood strong and held their ground. "Keep your guard up, guys..." Shadow said quietly. Then he turned to Tails, "What is that thing?" "It's a Heavy Egg-Hammer...but what's it doing here?" the fox replied. Big had no response but a long blank stare. The robot gladiator moved slowly toward all three of them, cracking wood with each step. The cat, remembering only one of these before, pulled his fishing pole back. *****FLASHBACK***** "This weather reminds me of our last attack on the Egg Carrier..." Amy said quietly while grinding out the circuit. "Huh?!" piped Cream, "You've been in battle before? What?!" she was amazed at her friends, "you, too, Mr. Big?" The cat, hearing this question barely over the roar of the ship's engine, blushed madly. "hmm...FROGGY!" he blurted out. As they landed near their goal, a gladiator fell in front of them. ******END FLASHBACK****** "Maybe if we knock off his helmet, we could hurt him," Big said solemnly. Shadow turned quickly. "Hmph...maybe there ARE some brains in the empty little head of yours, Big!" the hedgehog began to run toward the target, but Tails grabbed hold of his shoulder. "Wait...watch..." the fox said, pointing at the Egg-Hammer. The robot held tightly to his hammer and spun, obliterating the walls in the hallway. Then something unexpected happened. It was dizzy! Standing on one foot, the Heavy Egg-Hammer was barely able to see his targets. "Maybe..." Big began," we could knock it down with Thunder Shoot. Tails?" The fox nodded and fired Shadow at the robot, knocking it over. There was a crack or two. Finally, the Egg-Hammer fell to the bottom floor and was never seen again through the shroud of darkness. The black hedgehog, tired and ready to have his fun, left the attic to meet the three on the fourth floor. He turned to his partner as he left, "Touch those two and I will destroy you...." he said darkly. "Ah, you're no fun!" the blue hedgehog said, sticking out his tongue. Something funny is an evil entity sticking his tongue out at his partner in crime. "Eggman created me to be more powerful than you...I WILL crush you if you defy my orders, So--" he was cut off by Charmy's loud screaming. "THE GANG WILL BE HERE SOON, MR. MEANY!!!" His cry echoed through out the fourth and fifth floors of the house. Sighing, the black hedgehog left and jumped down the stairs to the fourth floor. Big, taking deep breaths from climbing the seemingly endless stairs, looked up to the black hedgehog. Shadow and Tails didn't bother. "Is that...one of..." the hero began, but was cut off by the villain's punches to the jaw. The fox caught a quick glimpse. It was a hedgehog, no doubt, and his quills curved up like Shadow's, but that's all he could notice. Charmy and Rouge, locked in the attic with the happier of the two evils, sighed. Their holder was twirling in a computer chair, looking at his 'brother' on the big screen. He pulled a bowl of popcorn out of a microwave. "C'mon!" he laughed, "you guys want a piece?" The blue hedgehog dangled a piece above Rouge's mouth. "I haven't eaten in days..." the bat said quietly. "Well...TOO BAD! You can't have any!" he threw a piece of popcorn at her head. "HEHEHEH! This is going to be SO good! I can't believe there was a time that is better than the time I was born!" "You're a bad man!" Charmy said, squirming, almost getting free from his prison. The blue hedgehog below laughed. "Don't worry, Charmy! You'll be down and dead soon! When Shadow gets back, I'll ask to kill you!" 11 Shadow, Big, and Tails looked at the person that was just like their speedy partner. "Who are you...?" the black hedgehog said quickly. "My name is Shadow Number 231. I'm one of the clones Dr. Eggman made of you..." "But that would mean you're a robot!" Tails said. "I am the first flesh clone of you, Shadow..." Number 231 said quickly and quietly. "And Eggman has created a fake flesh of Sonic as well. Sonic 2 is waiting in the wings if you just so happen to get past me..." Big coughed. "I think your just a meanie pants!" he roared. Sonic 2 sat in the chair, munching on popcorn and sipping down on a soda. Charmy was sitting on the ceiling ticked off, and drooling over the food he saw the blue hedgehog eating. "This is great! here we go!" Number 231 walked slowly toward the three heroes. Big the Cat's ears bent back. He was mad. No body messed with his friends and gets away with it. *****FLASHBACK***** "Excuse me, miss. I wonder if I could ask you something," Vector asked the pink hedgehog, Amy. "If it's about a date, it'll have to wait..." she said, turning her back to the three. "DATE?!! You think is a joke, ya little brat?!" the crocodile yelled. "There's a dark chao in these parts, and we can't take any chances. Now hand over that Chao nice and easy..." Espio the Chameleon said quietly, pointing to Cheese. Cream grabbed her chao. "I bet you're the ones who took Cheese's twin!" she cried, tears almost forming. "It's not nice to tease my friends!" Big snapped. Charmy the Bee flew between the two groups. He shook his hand and smiled, punching the air. "YEAH! Time to rock and roll!!" *****END FLASHBACK***** "Tails," Shadow said, "I'll try and hold him off. You and Big go! Find Rouge and Charmy!" The purple cat walked in front of the black hedgehog, who looked up at him. "No, he got me riled up. You two go and I'LL hold him off," Big said sternly. "Big...you can't win..." Tails responded in a whisper. Although not wanting to leave, Shadow grabbed the fox and ran up to the final floor. Number 231 looked up. "I don't think so, Shadow..." He ran past the cat, and stopped in the air, "What the?!" the clone yelled. Big the Cat, the most unlikely hero, was holding the flesh being's leg. There was a dark look on the usually calm and carefree cat. "You won't hurt my friends anymore..." the large animal said, throwing his foe into a wall. Big then whipped out his fishing pole and placed his sharpest hook on the twenty-pound line. The hook hadn't been cleaned since he last went fishing, so it was riddled with dried blood from fishes, and probably filled with diseases. He pulled back, waiting for the right moment. Number 231 walked out from the hole he made in the wall. Big released the line, and tossed it as hard as he could. It flew and cut deeply into the fake hedgehog's chest. Blood began to stream from the wound. Then Number 231 laughed and it echoed through out the hallway. The wound sealed shut and all the blood disappeared from his chest. "Foolish cat! Eggman created me to absorb all damage...soon, I will destroy you...and all of your friends..." There was a small room in another haunted house on the other side of the city, inside sat a being covered up by a white sheet. "That's right, my puppet's...dance...dance for me...destroy him...." he said. Number 231 stood, his face turned away from Big. Then very slowly, he turned his head toward the cat, with a ghoulish smile on his face. His pupils were small. The carefree cat took a step backward. "Why are you retreating, Big?" Number 231 asked, "Where's that tough and confident cat that I began this battle with?" Big didn't respond. The purple cat was now just a frightened little kitten. He fell on his bum, landing on the stairs Tails and Shadow went up earlier. He thought to himself. 'How can I beat someone who can heal themselves?!' Poor Big. He could no longer figure out his question. Number 231 tore through him like a bull. The carefree cat, no longer in the fray, was dead before he hit the floor in his own puddle of blood. 12 Shadow and Tails crept very slowly on the fifth floor. As they reached the end of this short hall, there was a rocket noise and a thump behind them. "Who's there?!" The black hedgehog asked. It was kind of a redundant question, knowing full well that it was Number 231. Laughing darkly and licking his fingers of leftover blood, the clone moved toward Tails. "Get...away...from me..." the little fox said, his voice shaking madly. "Why? Are you thirsty? I still have a little blood left on my fingers..." Number 231 snickered. He dapped a drop on the fox's nose. Tails shuddered. "GET IT OFF ME!!!" he screamed, running around the hallway. The clone laughed again. "You leave him alone. What do you want with us?" Shadow asked. Number 231 stopped laughing like it was an internal impulse. "Shadow...you, me, Tails, Big, Rouge, Charmy and my brother are all just pawns in a game of chess!" The clone explained, putting his serious face on. "Chess? Explain further, Number 231!" "That's right. In chess there is a king. Well, our king is still out there. He hasn't been knocked off the playing board just yet..." "Then who would our king be?" "How should I know? But I've just knocked a pawn off the playing board..." Number 231 snickered again. "Me, you, Tails, Big...me and Tails are still here..." Shadow said quietly, "and he's away from Rouge and Cha--you..." the black hedgehog threw a dark look at his clone. His fist and teeth were clenched. His body was shaking, "How COULD you?!! Why did you kill Big?!" he cried. "I'm the strongest pawn on our side. He was in my way and I decided to knock him off the playing board," Number 231 said, "In chess, you take out the pawns first, then make your way to the second line of defense. Yet," he continued, "me and my brother are not only the first line, but the second." Tails looked at them. To his amazement, Eggman had made a true masterpiece in his clone. The only thing the little fox could find as a difference was the voice. Only in this light, though. He couldn't see the quills very well. "So..." Shadow finally said, "this game of...chess, is really..." "Dark? Why, yes, Shadow," Number 231 finished, "In this game, when a piece of the game is gone, you're through." "You're saying that just because you got rid of a piece, the game is over?" the real hedgehog snapped. "It may as well be," the clone replied. Tails said nothing and he whimpered in the back. Shadow was annoyed and blood was pumping in his ears. It was loud enough to hear it well without an echo. Yet...could the others hear the blood? Could they hear it pounding madly in his ear? Sonic2 sat in the attic, pounding on the floor. "C'mon! Where's the big fight?! Stop talking and get fighting!" he roared, throwing the rest of his popcorn at the screen. "Maybe your friend is too afraid," Rouge began, "He only killed off Big because he wanted to show off." "Yeah..." Charmy said, following the bat's ploy, "Maybe your friend, deep-down, is nothing but a chicken. BAWK!" "My brother is NOT chicken!" Sonic2 yelled. "Are you sure?" Rouge snickered. Then the blue hedgehog pulled a gun from the floor. "Keep...talking..." he said slowly. Then something hurt his head. 'Sonic...you leave them alone. I will destroy you...' it said. "Master?!" the hedgehog said aloud, "Is that you?!" 'Yes it's me. Now put away the gun or I shall strike you down.' Sonic2 placed the pistol on the floor. The voice went away. The blue hedgehog fell back into his chair and sighed. 'Now then, Number 231...finish him off! NOW!' the voice was now in the clone Shadow's head. "But, sir...can't I toy with him?" he pleaded. 'NO! I messed with him back a while ago! If you give him a chance to attack, he will destroy you...' The real Shadow stood in awe at his clone. What was he doing? Who was talking to him? Who was HE talking to? 13 Espio and Vector, finally well rested at Shadow's house, stood tall. "Well, Vector?" the chameleon asked, slipping one of his gloves on. "Well what?" "Are we going to help Shadow get back Charmy?" The crocodile smiled a toothy grin. He nodded and they left the house with Omega by their side. Vector, Espio and Omega ran down Main Street, the chameleon trying to sense where Shadow was. The machine beat him to it. "Life form: Shadow. Three miles North West," he said. The crocodile laughed and looked at his purple friend. "Well, it looks like we got someone to replace you!" Espio turned and looked at him darkly, his mouth a thin line across his face. "And what's THAT supposed to mean, Vector?" he said. Once again, the green one laughed. "I'm only kidding! Come on, let's get going!" Shadow and Number 231 faced each other in the middle of the hallway, like in an old western movie. Neither one of them broke a sweat as they stared darkly into the other's eyes. "I will not break..." the real hedgehog said. "And neither will I..." the faker said. Vector, Espio, and Omega walked silently down the darkened road, not pierced by the lights on the sides of the road. The three were heading toward the old, run-down Eggman manor. The crocodile whipped out a pair of sunglasses, at the moment that Espio turned to him. "It's moon-light. You don't need any sunglasses..." The crocodile turned as well, staring. Although no one could see his brown eyes through the black casing of the glasses. "I don't care! They're comfortable and my eyes have been hurting from the daylight." Omega , the largest of the three, kept moving ahead, speaking no word. "Vector, take them off. The darkness of the night may just--" the chameleon was cut off by a laugh. The others turned to see Dr. Eggman, sitting in an old-beat up Egg Walker. "I'll stop you yet, troublesome fools!" Omega played no attention. Instead, the robot opened a compartment in his back, revealing a deadly looking weapon. Espio gasped. "I don't think we need that kind of firepower, O!" Vector laughed. "The 'boot has got a good idea, Espio! We get rid of Eggman, part of our troubles are over. "You forgot the last time we did..." *****FLASHBACK***** "We're here to save you!" Vector's voice boomed, although muffled through iron doors. Bumps appeared, and then the powerful crocodile punched through, "Dr. Eggman, I presume..." "What's going on here?!" Espio cried. What was happening. He could have sworn that the Eggman they just fought was destroyed...Then again. It did dissolve into that liquid substance. Vector did say it was a fake. "What's up?" Charmy gasped. Eggman looked at the communicator on the floor. "You knew it was me all along, didn't you?" the doctor chuckled. *****END FLASHBACK***** "All right, doctor..." the chameleon said darkly, pulling out a giant shuriken star, "You must perish. The world will be full of good and evil will be nothing but a speck of dust..." 14 Shadow and Number 231 were standing still, breathing heavily. Tails looked at them, shocked at all the broken boards in the hallway. A small statue in the corner was busted in half, and a few toilets were broken, spurting water into the air. Then they all heard a moaning noise coming from downstairs. Then it got louder and louder. "No one is downstairs except for that corpse I left behind..." Number 231 barked. His counterpart chuckled. A figure emerged from the darkness. "I'm not dead just yet, Number 231!" it said. "Well, it looks like Big has decided to come to the party!" Shadow laughed darkly. The faker looked shocked. Did he not show the cat a lesson before?! Although bleeding rapidly, Big was okay. The attack just left a huge cut on his belly. He moved over just quickly enough to dodge the dive. "But I sensed you...I sensed you were dead!" Number 231 gasped for air. "For a robot, you're not that smart," a small voice said, coming from behind another pillar. It was Tails, "Cats can make their bodies stop functioning for a short period of time. Just long enough to seem dead and have their predator move on." Shadow laughed again. The hedgehog stared at his shaking counterpart. "I don't know how long you can stand against me AND Big. My ears heard everything that went on downstairs," he stopped. Number 231 looked from his original to the cat at least five times before falling on his knees. "It hurts..." he said. Shadow looked down in shame. "Hmm...for a clone of me, you sure are weak." Big walked past the two hedgehogs and the fox. He wanted to find Froggy. If he was here. "Kill me..." said a voice. The three heroes looked, "MASTER!!!!!" Number 231 screamed in horror, light bursting from his eyes, blood rushing down his muzzle. In a dark, dank room, with a small amount of light, which came from a street light outside, sat the figure. The figure in the wheelchair, draped by the white sheet. He was moving his fingers. "Master...please!!" the clone cried. 'You have failed me...' said a voice that no one else heard. "Let Shadow destroy me! He defeated me!" 'I'll destroy him as well. One day. As for you, Number 231...' "PLEASE!! NO!!! MASTER!!!!!!!!!" There was a huge explosion in the hallway, blowing Shadow and Tails back a few feet. The only thing that affected Big was a piece of wood that hit his eye. "Is he...gone?" Shadow said curiously, looking at the hole left in the floor. "I'd think so. That was a sub-catastrophical explosion. I'm surprised we didn't die," Tails said, pointing his finger in the air and shutting his eyes and smiling. 15 Eggman was lying on the ground, begging for mercy. "Please don't kill me..." "Too late..." Espio said, throwing one last star into the doctor. Vector stood there, astonished at Espio's dark and bloody deed. He really did it. The chameleon killed Dr. Eggman. The goal that he was going for all his life and it was fulfilled. "Espio..." the crocodile said slowly. The purple one's hands were shaking violently, but not in anger. His hands shook in sorrow. He fell on his knees. "Vector! What have I done!" He cried, a tear falling from the tip of his horn. There was no reply, "I never thought that I would really...kill...another LIVING being...These hands..." "Chameleon must get over his problems. Priority is to find Shadow, Rouge and Charmy," Omega said quietly behind the other two. "These hands killed the doctor..." Espio said, standing up, tears gone dry and streaks on his face. He turned and forced the rest to follow him. "GUYS! Let's go!" Shadow said, running up the final flight of stairs with Big and Tails following behind. The cat was the last one onto the hall above, bumping into Tails, who bumped into Shadow, who had stopped. They did it. They reached the attic! "Maybe we could get our friends now," Big chuckled. The fox and hedgehog nodded with a smile of triumph on their tired faces. Yet there was something bothering in the heart of the fast one. *****FLASHBACK***** "Number 231, I believe this fight is over," he said, chuckling. The living clone stood up from the ground. "I'm still in this!" he yelled, grabbing Shadow's leg and throwing him into a weak wall. It shattered, sending green, mouldy pieces of wood flying through the air. One knocked off the head of a statue and another nearly hit Tails. The real hedgehog jumped from the hole he made, tackling Number 231 into the adjacent wall. *****END FLASHBACK***** "What's the matter, Shadow?" Tails asked, pulling off the blue bands from his gloves. They were too tight and left marks on his wrists. He heard no reply. Big did nothing but sit down on the floor. Finally, Shadow began to talk. "Do you think killing a breathing clone is a crime?" he inquired. The fox's eyes widened. A question he was unsure about. He thought about it and then heard a sniffing noise from behind him. "Big, what's wrong?" Tails asked. "Shh...you smell that? It smells like...a Chaos Emerald..." he replied. Shadow stepped in. "Get real. You can smell Chaos Emeralds?" "Remember when we went looking for the gold emerald? I picked up a chao, and they smell like Chaos Emeralds. Of course," the gentle giant continued, "they have to be a jewelled chao." Again, the fox's eyes widened. "You remember what that chao loo---OOF!!" He fell to the ground, out cold. His eyes had rolled back into his head. Shadow turned around to see Sonic. "Sonic! Why did you..." A dark chuckle came from the hedgehog across them. "I am not Sonic, you fool. I am Sonic2. A clone designed by Dr. Eggman to destroy you and Sonic. And where Number 231 failed, I will succeed..." 16 Espio ran ahead, followed behind with Omega and Vector. He skidded to a halt, dust rising up into the air. They had reached the manor. The manor with the overgrown weeds and deadened grass. With a large gate and a cobble stone path that you couldn't see because of the river of wheat there. Vector punched down the gate and proceeded to the front door. "Charmy..." the green one said, "We're coming little buddy!" Shadow sat on the ground, with a large cut on his head. Sonic2 stood across with his hands out of their respective gloves and blades were bursting from under his fingers. His pointer finger was upward, with a little blood on the tip. Sonic2 licked the blood off. Charmy squirmed as he watched the fake Sonic and Shadow face off on the television screen, even though it was just outside the hall. There was so much stuff going on outside, he wanted to see it for real. As for Rouge, she sat, awestruck, at Shadow's power. Although still tied down and her wings tied together as well, she knew that she would get free. Shadow had to save her. "Big..." the hedgehog said, his voice shaking. He was very tired. He barely had any time to recuperate from his last battle and know he had to fight a foe just as strong as his last, "I want you to go and get Charmy and Rouge. We REALLY could use their help..." "Got it!" he replied, running to the door at the end of the hall. "Don't even think about it, tubby!" Sonic2 laughed, tripping Big and throwing him out of the window. "BIG, NO!!" Shadow cried, getting up and running to the window. Then he saw that the gentle giant was okay. He was floating gently to the ground with his umbrella. Big landed and smiled up to the window above, walked to the front door and entered. There he saw Espio, Vector and Omega . "All right, guys," Espio was saying, "I noticed that there is only ONE way to get Charmy and that is up. Grab a hold of me and I'll camouflage. You'll change, too, but you CAN'T let go. Ready?" The robot and crocodile nodded, "Vector, don't let go of my tail..." They disappeared right before Big's eyes. Amy sat at her kitchen table, stirring her glass of chocolate milk in her pyjamas. It was early morning and her sleepover party was a dud. The only one that even bothered to arrive was Cream. The pink hedgehog was hoping for Mina and Rouge to come. She didn't know of the bat's capture, but what about the poor mongoose? *****FLASHBACK***** "Hey Mina, it's me, Amy!" the hedgehog giggled over the phone. "Oh, hey girlfriend! Haven't talked to you in a while." "Yeah...So, I'm having a sleepover. You want to join?" "Sure!" Mina Mongoose laughed. *****END FLASHBACK***** Amy walked over to the sink to put away her cup and bowl of Coco Puffs when she noticed something on her television. "There has been a murder here on Tony Road. It seems to be the criminal body of Dr. Eggman. The only clue left behind was a Shuriken star left behind. If you have anymore information, please call the number at the bottom of your screen." and it went to a commercial."Shuriken star?" Cream was waking up, and she heard the whole thing. "Do you think it could be," she yawned, "Mr. Espio?" Amy shook her head. "I know that Espio wanted Dr. Eggman executed, but not this way. Although he IS one of the only people in Station Square with those stars." 17 Vector, Espio, and Omega walked up the stairs, under the cloak of the chameleon's camouflage. Big walked behind them, closely listening for any of their footsteps on the wooden floors. Shadow breathed heavily, his chest heaving. He felt as if his lungs were about to burst. He had never fought so hard before. It was like trying to bring down a bulldozer with a paperclip. There was no stopping Sonic2 in the black hedgehog's state. Could the hedgehog really lose? No. He'd pulled through before. *****FLASHBACK***** "Sonic..." Shadow moaned in pain, "I don't think I can hold on much longer. My super form...it's dying down..." "No!" his partner cried, "Shadow, you won't die! We can beat this thing! Earth is counting on us!" The blue hedgehog cried through a lump in his throat. "Gerald said to me that the Ultimate Life form will save humanity...I haven't done that. Could..." "Shadow, you will pull through! I know you will!" "Maybe, Sonic, maybe you're the Ultimate Life form!" *****END FLASHBACK***** "That's right..." Shadow said quietly. "Huh?" his foe remarked. He saw the black hedgehog pulling himself up, "What are you doing! Get back on the floor!" "Never. I've pulled through harder things than this and you're just a roadblock. Who are you trying to protect from me, Sonic2?!" "Besides Rouge and Charmy? My master...he's weak from what you had done to him!" "What are...you talking...about?" "You've fought my master before...and he's still alive." "Who is your master?" Shadow asked. There were questions and he wanted answers. "You'll find out soon enough, dear Shadow...In the mean time!" 'Hold it right there, you fool!' a voice in both Shadow's and the clone Sonic's head. Where was it coming from. It sounded familiar to the black hedgehog, though. Like...a voice that of someone he met before. "Master?" Sonic2 said quietly. 'Stop fighting him now. He is too weak. I want to fight him. Leave him alone so he can get his full strength back!' "Thanks for telling me that, whoever you are!" Shadow laughed through pain. 'Quiet, you. Now then.' "But Master, if you let me destroy him..." 'You are defying me?!' "No sir, but I just think that..." "And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor. Shall be lifted...nevermore." Do you wish to be that shadow, you worthless piece of flesh?!' the voice roared. The true black hedgehog had never heard such a voice filled with hatred and sorrow. "Sir, please just...NO! SIR! What are you doing!!! MASTER!! NO!!!" he screamed. Tails slowly got up from the floor, weak and tired. This was his first sight after coming back to consciousness. Sonic2 was being tossed around like a rag doll and then...an explosion. The fake blue hedgehog was no more. 'BWAHAHAHAHAH!!!' laughed the voice in Shadow's head, 'You're next, foolish hedgehog. I will regain my power over you. Prepare yourself...for a power equal to what you've never seen!' With a dark laugh, the voice disappeared. "Shadow! What did you do?!" Tails cried. "I didn't do anything, Tails. It was that voice..." Finally! Their goal has been fulfilled. Shadow reached the final floor and defeated his final foe. He ran into the room at the end of the hall, where Rouge and Charmy sat. Tails flew beside him, his two tails spinning to bump up his speed. "Come on, little boy! We're almost there!" Shadow said, smiling one of his rare smiles. Yes...almost. But not there. The moment he reached the end of the hall, he was knocked down to his knees by another foe. "Shadow, are you okay?" Tails asked, helping the black hedgehog up. He nodded. The little fox smiled at him. "Who's there!" Shadow roared, making his voice echo up and down the hall. Down on the second floor, Big the cat heard the echo of the black hedgehog's voice. He tilted his head to the side and decided that it was nothing to worry about. 18 Shadow ran into the room at the end of the dark and dusty hallway, and saw the two he had been searching for. He touched their faces to make sure that this event was real...then he felt something hit him again. The one who hit him appeared. It was Espio, Vector and Omega . "Hey guys, long time no see..." the hedgehog said quietly, but there was no reply from any of them. That's when they snapped, all three of them. The crocodile shot fire toward the hedgehog, who dodged quickly. Preoccupied about what was going on, Omega grabbed Shadow and held him tightly, while Espio and Vector beat him to a pulp. Then they heard footsteps and heavy breathing. Big the cat slowly entered the room, his ears drooping in tiredness. He had two things in his hands. A book and the Chaos Emerald that was left behind from Number 231. The purple glow shimmered in Shadow's eyes. He had never seen such a beautiful item in his life. "Shadow, catch!" the cat managed to say, throwing the Chaos Emerald toward the black and blue beaten hedgehog. His arm that hung down from Omega's grip nabbed the emerald as it made its descent. "Thanks, Big! Now then..." he snickered, "Chaos Spear!" Beams of light burst from the emerald and hovered in the air and pierced the three, knocking them backward. Shadow fell on the ground, wiping the blood from his lips. He freed Rouge and Charmy, turning slowly to his three attackers. Espio was the first to come-to. "Where are we?" he said wearily. The chameleon saw the annoyed hedgehog run at him, like a flash, and lift him up into the air. "What is the MATTER with you, attacking me unawares!?" he roared, punching Espio further into the wall. "I don't know! Drop me, now!" Shadow dropped him with a thud. He got up and dusted off his arms, staring at the black hedgehog with a glare, "I heard this voice in my head...it told me to attack...I'm not sure how I got under its power, but..." "You did," Tails piped up. Big was staring intently at the book. Rouge came by and swirled her finger on his shoulder. "Where did you find that?" she asked, relieved that her heroes were here. Big blushed. "I found it next to the Chaos Emerald. It says, 'Dr. Gerald' on the front. Who is that?" Shadow, Tails, and Rouge's eyes became small. They know who that man was...that horrible man. *****FLASHBACK***** "Once I initiate the program...it cannot be disabled...all of you ungrateful humans, who took everything away from me....will feel my loss and despair..." the professor said on a video. Through closed doors, Shadow pressed his ear onto the cold metal, listening to each word. "The doctor...He created me...to be pure? How can that be? I've done so many wrong things..." he said quietly, trying not to let the others know of his presence. *****END FLASHBACK***** "He's the one who created me..." Shadow said solemnly, with his hand in front of his face. He stared at his gloved hand with a fire in his eyes. Big opened the book and saw a poem. It said: 'In the greenest of our valleys By good angels tenanted, Once a fair and stately palace -- Snow-white palace -- reared its head. In the monarch thought's dominion -- It stood there! Never Seraph spread his pinion Over fabric half so fair. Banners yellow, glorious, golden, On its roof did float and flow -- This -- all this -- was in the olden Time long ago -- And every gentle air that dallied, In that sweet day, Along the rampart plumed and pallid, A winged odour went away. All wanderers in that happy valley, Through two luminous windows saw Spirits moving musically To a lute's well tuned law, Round about a throne where sitting In state his glory well befitting, The sovereign of the realm was seen. And all with pearl and ruby glowing Was the fair palace door ; Through which came flowing, flowing, flowing, And sparkling evermore, A troop of echoes, whose sweet duty Was but to sing In voices of surpassing beauty, The wit and wisdom of their king. But evil things in robes of sorrow, Assailed the monarch's high estate! Ah, let us mourn -- for never morrow Shall dawn upon him desolate! And round about his home the glory, That blushed and bloomed, Is but a dim-remembered story Of the old time entombed. And travellers now within that valley, Through the red-covered windows, see Vast forms that move fantastically To a discordant melody; While, like a rapid ghastly river, Through the pale door; A hideous throng rush out forever, And laugh -- but smile no more.' The cat had read it aloud. In the middle of the poem, Vector had awoken and Omega reactivated. As it turns out, they had heard the same voice that had tainted Espio. Rouge was speechless. "That poem...why did the professor write it?" Nobody answered. "He wrote that...write after he created me...I heard him speaking it aloud as he shuffled through ideas..." Shadow told her, his voice shaking. 19 *****FLASHBACK****** "And laugh - but smile no more," Professor Gerald said, "Yes...this poem has been my life...After creating the ultimate life, I can no longer smile. My most perfect work has been created..." Shadow listened through the door. "He only created me to fulfil his ultimate work? But Maria told me I was made to be his assistant and perfect his family..." he said sadly. The professor heard him and burst through the door. "Shadow?! What are you doing out at this time! You're supposed to be asleep!" "I'm not going to listen to you anymore, doctor..." *****END FLASHBACK****** "There's another page..." Big said, flipping it on the back, "It says: 'Maria, you lied to Shadow. I projected his thoughts onto my computer. Why? Why did you lie?'" the gentle giant read the pages aloud a little more, until he reached the last page of the thin book. "What's it say?" Charmy inquired. "I don't know. The bottom has been ripped off it just says: 'Shadow...you're destiny is to' and then it's gone," Big replied. The black hedgehog sighed. "That last page holds the answer to my destiny. We've got to find it." "But where could it be?" Rouge said, looking at her nails. Her gloves were left on the chair for a moment. "I don't know. But if it's anywhere, it would be in this house. I doubt that it could be anywhere else." "So...where should we look?" Vector asked. "Where Big found the book..." Shadow told, walking out of the room Shadow, Rouge, Charmy, and the rest looked endlessly in the basement, the same place that Big had found, not only the diary of Dr. Gerald, but also a Chaos Emerald. The dust filled everyone's nostrils once or twice while they were down there, except Omega. Vector had it the worst. Nobody could breath in for one minute and not hear the poor crocodile sneeze and shake a few books off a shelf. "Big," the bat began, coughing, "are you SURE it's down here?" The cat nodded, opening a treasure chest. Sadly, there was no gold, rubies and other priceless gems inside. Sadly, it was just an empty chest with spiders. Rouge wouldn't stand it anymore. She flew up to the top of the basement staircase, and pulling out a nail file, she looked down at the others. Shadow looked up at her with a look of grimace on his face. "Get down here this instant or I will hurt you..." he said darkly. "Really, then? Would you hurt a lady?" "I don't see what gender has to do with this..." Espio sighed and blew harshly onto a shelf, not only kicking up tons of dust, but also causing loose pages of the old books to fly. "You know, Shadow," Rouge said, in a way that would make you sigh passionately. She hovered down to him. The hedgehog looked at her. Vector wanted to see what would happen next. He sat down and chewed on his gum. Rouge smacked the hedgehog, leaving a huge red mark on his muzzle. "I'm REALLY starting to think that I should have stayed with those two clones." Sonic walked along the main street in the orange light of the falling sun, whistling to himself, when he heard police sirens wail past him. They were headed north. "Hmm? I wonder where they could be going...I guess I should find out. Got nothing better to do around here..." He heard his name being called from two different voices. Reeling, he saw Amy and Cream heading straight for him. "Sonic!!!" The pink one giggled. "Gak! Amy!" Afraid of a gentle hug, he ran after the police cars. Shadow sat on a chest, the same that Big had opened earlier, tired from the long hours of searching. Where could that extra page be? Rouge was now officially ticked off. If anyone came close to her, she would smack them and send them off on their merry way. "You know, Rouge. I didn't HAVE to save you," Shadow said quietly, "If you weren't my friend, I would have left you behind." "Me, your friend? That's a laugh!" the bat said, chuckling in her throat. "Hmm?" Espio said, looking up. "All right! Is that the thanks you give to someone who saved your butt?" the black hedgehog roared. "Oh, don't give me that!" the bat snapped back. "I could have sworn that you owe me your very life for what I did!" "Shadow...I hate you," This stung the hedgehog with a sharp pain. The others stopped and dropped anything they were holding. Did Rouge really say what everyone thought she said? "Like I care. I never liked you anyway. Why don't you go jump off a cliff!" With a sharp pain in her heart, this statement cause Rouge to sway a little bit. "I more than hate you! I LOATHE your guts to the bottom of a living hell, doomed to all to burn your soul! Wait a tad...you don't have a soul! You're a ROBOT!!!" She stormed up the stairs, leaving the guys down in the basement. Shadow looked up as she left and heard the old basement door creak shut with a SLAM! "Shadow..." Big said slowly. Nobody moved or breathed. The men stood still in the basement, in awe of the conversation that just occurred. They just couldn't say a word to break the silence. She just...left. After blowing steam, Rouge got up and left them all. 20 The bat walked down the street outside of the mansion. Out from her pocket, she pulled out a sheet of paper. It was old, crumpled and the ink on it was beginning to fade out. "Should I...really have left him?" she said quietly. Over her shoulder she looked. The mansion was standing tall, its old towers leering high above everyone's head. Sonic stood on top of the tallest building in the city, the wind blowing his quills gently. He loved to look down on everyone. They looked like small dots on the ground, ants on dirt. He laughed. "All right, let's see here..." the blue hedgehog looked to his right. A large house. To his left, more skyscrapers. He jumped down and rolled as he touched the ground so he wouldn't hurt himself too badly. He ran, passing by cars that were way ahead of him at the start. And then he ran into...her. "Rouge, are you all right?" he said. Her eyes were shut and her mascara was running down her face in two little teams. "Sonic...I..." "Yes?" the blue hedgehog said quietly. What was wrong with her? "Shadow and me just...told each other we hated one another. I even said for him to burn in hell..." She wailed at her last sentence. Then she looked down at the piece of paper she had hidden in her shirt. The bat knew what it was. She wanted to give it to the boys in the basement, but her eyes were blinded by her anger and hatred. It was the sheet from the diary that everyone was looking for. They had searched, wall-to-wall, floor to ceiling, and still no sheet. "ARGH!! We're NEVER going to find that sheet..." Vector yelled. He pounded his fist into the wall. "Patience, my friend..." Espio began. "Is a virtue..." they both said, "You always tell me that!" Vector barked. Charmy sat on a shelf, holding his stomach. The bad smells of the house, although not annoying to anyone else, was giving him a stomachache. Shadow hadn't said a word since he screamed off at Rouge. None of them knew that she had the missing piece. *****FLASHBACK***** Maria shuffled her papers in a small room. Well, they weren't really hers. To help her grandfather, she decided to write a few little notes to help with Project S.H.A.D.O.W. With a hiss of a door opening, the young girl walked up behind her grandpa, who was sitting in a large black chair. His moustache was ruffled, his last bits of hair seemed to be falling. "Papa," Maria began, "I have some new notes for you." "Thank you, Maria..." the professor said quietly. He was very tired. Working all day and night for the past two days really took a toll on the old man. He fell asleep on his desk moments later. *****END FLASHBACK***** "Look, Shadow..." Espio started to say, "We're not going to find that sheet. Even with the Chaotix Detective Agency," he paused to stare at Vector and Charmy, who were both asleep leaning on the bookshelf, "I don't think we can find it." "Espio, don't say that." Big whispered quietly so no one would hear him. Shadow didn't speak. He was still shaken up about the things that Rouge had said to him. "Tails...you don't think that..." the black hedgehog paused. All the eyes in the dusty basement were now on him. "Go on, Shadow," fox said, moving his hand forward urgingly. "You don't think I deserve to have the demons of Hell devour my soul, do you?" "That was a little harsh for her to say, I'll agree with you," Tails explained, "but if you take what you did on the ARK, then no, you don't. Yet looking at the things you've done in the past..." *****FLASHBACK****** "All right guys," Shadow said with a smirk and clenching his fist, "We'll buy you some time, so you can use your super powers!" He stared up at Metal Madness. *****END FLASHBACK***** *****FLASHBACK***** "Let me show you, Metal Overlord..." a Super Shadow said darkly at a Metal Sonic with a long draped cape, "What exactly...I'm made of...." *****END FLASHBACK***** "You've saved our asses," Tails shivered at the first time he used that word, "enough times to redeem yourself." Shadow just nodded at this. 21 Then there was creaking just above the basement door, something came gently rapping onto the door. With a loud squeak, the door slammed onto the sidewall. "Hey, you guys..." said a voice. The sound of clicking boots made their way down toward the boys. Charmy and Vector woke up, staring wearily at the person coming down the flight of stairs. "Rouge, what are you doing here?" Shadow said darkly, throwing his head to the side, not trying to look at her. She tapped his shoulder. "Sonic told me what I needed to do...I'm sorry I kept this hidden from you..." the bat pulled the sheet from her pocket. "Is that it?!" Espio said with a quick gasp. There it was. She had it all along. Shadow grabbed the page and the diary that Big had been holding in his hand. He flipped it to the very last page and placed the ripped sheet to the bottom and read aloud. "This is it guys..." Shadow started. 'Shadow...you're destiny is to' that's where it cut off, but now the black hedgehog could continue, 'destroy. You must destroy all the evil in the world...and that would also mean all of your friends.' He didn't continue. "What? The doctor couldn't have...What was the matter with him..." Shadow fell on the floor. Tails looked over the page. "No wonder! Look at the date!" the fox yelled. 'July 24, 2134' "That was...a week and a half ago. How could he write this page if he's..." The black hedgehog paused, "Alive? Could he really be alive?" The bottom, the very bottom, of the page pointed out the location of the other Chaos Emeralds. Gerald must have known where they all have spread after Shadow's battle against Metal Overlord. "Hmm...yes....this is almost complete..." said the voice under the white sheet draped over the wheelchair. Then it was removed. A voice laughed with the only light in the room was the red light of the man's bionic eye. *****FLASHBACK***** Maria sat alone on her bed, looking out the small circular window to the beautiful blue Earth below. Oh how she had longed to go there. Was there any way? Could her grandfather create a ship there? Then the young girl noticed a picture on her table. It was a photo of her as a baby, being held by Professor Gerald and her mother. Sadly, her father died a month before she was born, causing Maria's mother to push through the pain by herself, at least until her dad came to live with them. Then he created ARK. "Now I wish I hadn't seen that picture. It brought back too many sad memor--" Maria was saying, until she was cut off at the end of her sentence by Shadow, entering the room with a look of fear in his eyes. *****END FLASHBACK***** There was an eerie silence in the basement, a room with no need for words. Nobody moved or breathed. The black hedgehog stared in awe at his 'destiny' that he found written on a piece of paper. Tails was the only one not in the room. He had taken the Chaos Emerald map from Shadow and went to find them. "Shadow," Tails started, "If the only way to make you happy is to fulfil your destiny, we'll help you." Vector's eyes widened. "What did you say?" he said, "What did you say?! Ah, ah, ah! Hold it right there, fox!" "Vector," Espio said quietly, but loud enough with a hint of striction in his voice to keep the crocodile calm. "The boy probably has a logical explanation." "Guys..." the fox said, taking a breath and still recovering from Vector's roar of anger, "Shadow's destiny may be the only way to save Earth, in some sort of weird way. If Earth is destroyed, we're all going to die!" He stared at all the cold eyes that were all on him at the moment being. "What's the six of us compared to six billon people dying?" Everyone pondered for a moment. "Tails is right..." Rouge finally said, "There is no point in letting us all die if the six of us wil--" "Seven..." Shadow said solemnly, "Seven. You six plus the man who wrote this. Professor Gerald," Then there was a long sigh coming from Rouge, who was sitting on the stairs. "All this tension is killing me..." she blurted out. She was getting a little annoyed with all the silence. The bat is usually listening to the music of a bar, or out on her bed watching television, and, up until recently, tied to a chair, hearing nothing but the babble of a clone. Espio pushed from against the wall and walked out of the room, with Vector and Charmy behind him. Only Big and Rouge were left alone with Shadow. 22 Omega burst into the room. "Where have you been?!" the black hedgehog roared. After a long and complete explanation, the robot was actually never woken up after being talked to by 'the voice' back up in the attic. Then everyone remembered. Nobody has been talked to by 'the voice' since they were all attacked by Espio, Vector, and Omega on the top floor. They were all afraid now. What would the voice tell them if it came back? Who would it infest? Panic was the only feeling in the basement now...and nobody was safe... Rouge backed up against the wall, with beads of sweat forming on her brow and running down her eyelashes. She breathed heavily with her chest heaving. Who would be next to be tainted with the voice? Shadow stood alone in a corner. He wasn't truly concerned with the voice, unless it got him, which it would probably do. He could stand to anything. Then he noticed that he was really the strongest down there. "I know that if anyone besides me is tainted, I will over come you all," he said stiffly. "Oh yeah, right!" Rouge barked, "You were afraid and almost died from Omega and Espio's taintation!" "That's because they ganged up on me!" "Guys," Big said. He didn't want another separation of both of them. The first one was shocking enough, "Don't fight. We need to stick together!" "Shut it, fatso!" The bat screamed. "Hey, don't yell at him!" Shadow barked back, "If I recall, I was the one who killed Metal Sonic, not you!" Omega didn't bother to enter the quarrel. He was more concerned with who would be tainted. Big was shoved against the wall with Rouge screaming at the top of her lungs. Then there was a crash. Tails had blasted the basement wall to smithereens with his robot. He was back! "Shadow, check this out!" the fox said merrily, pulling out a case. Inside, when he opened it, was six Chaos Emeralds. "Where's the seventh one?" the bat asked him, looking at the jewels with her eyes aglow. "Uh, Earth to Rouge?!" Tails laughed, "Shadow has it." The black hedgehog pulled the purple chaos emerald out from his shoe, letting it glow along with the other six. Then there was a horrible earthquake and a bright flash of white light. Could I be...real... "Shadow! SHADOW!!" I know that voice...but...I can't get up...my body is in pain... "Master Shadow." There's another voice. It's very familiar...Somebody help me! He began to thrash around crazily. And then he woke up. Shadow was on the beach, along with anyone that was inside of the house. Rouge, Tails and Omega were crowded around him. "The seven Chaos Emeralds..." started, "Has sent us to this beach by Chaos Control. I believe we're on Casanova Island." Shadow's eyes widened. "The island...I arrived on from ARK...." 23 The soft sea air went up Shadow's nostrils as he stood on the beach, standing still, remembering...or at least trying to remember. Everything was turning into a blur now that he read Dr. Gerald's diary. His whole view of things disappeared. Why would his creator want him to kill everyone he knew and loved? And Rouge... *****FLASHBACK****** He shook his head. The black hedgehog had done it. He finally killed Metal Overlord. He looked over to his left. "Shadow!!" yelled a voice through tears. It was Rouge. She jumped into his arms with mascara running down her face. Drops of it landed into Shadow's fur, but he didn't care. "Rouge, what's the matter?" he said softly. No body else on the ship spoke. "I thought I'd lose you again...I didn't want the ARK experience to come rushing back to me..." she sobbed. There was no reply to this, but there was no need for words now. Everyone knew what Shadow was going to say. "It'll be all right, Rouge...I'm here..." he said, rubbing his arm up and down her back, trying to calm the bat down. "Oh, Shadow..." a voice said in his chest. Rouge may have said it quietly, but the silence that loomed about them allowed it to echo barely through the roof of the ship. "I love you, Rouge..." And they kissed each other passionately. *****END FLASHBACK***** Espio sat on the beach sand, his eyes shut, his legs folded and his hands shaped like a triangle in front of him. Tails was behind him, looking closely at the seven emeralds he had inside the metal case. All seven together shouldn't have caused a Chaos Control, unless somebody said it. "I think I know," Tails began thoughtfully, "why we were transported here..." "And now you know too much, fox!" roared a voice beyond the trees. With a snap and a boom, a large robot loomed above them all, looking down at them. At the very top, a man was infused with the robot itself. 24 "What in the world?!" Shadow barked, reeling around to see what the commotion was. The man's arm was infused the left side of the robot, which was an enormous cannon. With tons of wires, the man's right side was fused together with another arm, a huge hand with machine guns in the fingers. There was no body to the man, as it just went into the robot, which itself was over five stories tall. Dark clouds seemed to rush to the scene, just to add to the fear around them. "Who are you?" Vector demanded. Another dark laugh echoed throughout the area. "I am Professor Gerald Robotnik!" Shadow cringed lightly. He didn't want anyone to see himself fall. He clenched his fist. "I thought the members of G.U.N. shot you to death!" the black hedgehog finally said after a moment of silence. "Ah, but that isn't the case now is it, my Ultimate Life form...Allow me to explain.... After I was shot and the soldiers left, I somehow still survived. I can't tell how it happened, it just did. I crawled slowly across the floor until I recovered, which almost drove me insane. The time seemed to drag on. But minute by minute, hour by hour...my body was healing. But my arms were to weak to lift...And so, after cutting off my left, and replacing it with a robotic arm I built, I rid myself of the right arm. The skin of my skull was ripped and my eye was blown out of its socket, so I replaced it with this metal sheet and a bionic eye. I could see anything happening. I've spent my days in a wheelchair, concealed by a white sheet until...I muttered 'Chaos Control' through Rouge's lips, sending you all here. I used a teleporter to send myself here and now, I will crush you with this robot... "You're sick...you should have just let yourself die..." Shadow said under his breath. He turned to Tails, "I think it's time..." Given time to think, the fox threw the box of Chaos Emeralds to Shadow. With Chaos energy coursing through him, the black hedgehog was now standing tall. He was silver, with a golden aura. "Hmm?" Professor Gerald said, blinking his human eye, "Where is the other Super form? The blue one?" "How do you know about that form?" Shadow said coolly. "I've watched everything you've done, thanks to my new eye." "I can't explain how it happened. It just did." Sonic's eyes widened. "Where is that awesome power coming from?!" The blue hedgehog yelled, shocked at the energy. Only once before had he felt this power, "It's Shadow..." he said solemnly. Knuckles jumped up from the rock he was sitting on in front of the place he had hidden the Master Emerald. "That strength...that can't be him alone...Shadow has the Chaos Emeralds..." he said through clenched teeth and a fist balled in front of him. Shadow floated above the sand, with power so great, the sands parted below him. His gold aura was bright. So bright that everyone had to squint their eyes to see correctly. "It's time to end this, Gerald...Maria will be avenged..." And with that, he flew forward into battle. 25 His feet moved across the black asphalt swiftly, quickly and silently. Although his feet hit the ground, it barely made any sound at all. The harsh wind whipped against his face, giving a small sign of windburn. Sonic was running toward the massive energy nearby. "Where did Shadow find that power...I've never felt it before..." As he skidded to a halt on the beach, he looked at the water, with no reflection. The sun was covered completely by black clouds. A storm was coming and everyone felt it. Sonic kicked the sand harshly, "Damn...can't go further..." he roared. Knuckles wanted to get up and leave to the insanely high power far from the hiding place of the Master Emerald, but he couldn't leave it behind. There had to be a way to get to the island...The echidna thought he hid the green jewel very well, but he just had this tension inside. "I can't leave it...not again..." He remembered his duties. *****FLASHBACK***** "Knuckles..." said Pachamac VII, weakly on a bed surrounded by candles. Tears filled the young echidna's eyes. He hardly cried, but seeing his elder passing filled his heart with an unfathomable anguish, "I want you to guard the Master Emerald..." the young one gasped. "Sir, I'm not worthy! Certainly there is someone to take my pla--" Knuckles pleaded. "No, my son...you can do it. Of all the members of our tribe, you are the only one worthy of this duty...you shall guard the Master Emerald, even if your life is in danger. Never leave its side..." and with that last breath, Pachamac VII died a peaceful death. The room became hushed. The candles seemed to go out, one by one, leaving the others more air to burn in. "Elder!!" Knuckles cried, placing a hand on the old man's dead and cold body. One of the priests pulled him out, kicking and screaming, "You can't give me this duty! I have a life to live! NO!!" *****END FLASHBACK***** A lump appeared in Knuckles' throat each time he remembered that moment of his past. He wanted to fulfil his promise to the Elder, but had already broken it twice. "I promise, sir," the red echidna said, taking off his gloves and raising them into the sky, "I will not leave the Emerald anymore!" He fell to his knees with his arms still up high. Shadow stood on the island sand, holding his arm in pain. Even in a Super-form, Professor Gerald's robot was very powerful. "I've got to hand it to you, doctor...You've got a nice piece of machinery there..." he said with a snicker, "But no machine is without its glitch..." "As true as that may be, Shadow," Gerald began, "there is only one machine with no glitch...you" Then there was a burst of laughter from the super hedgehog. "Really?" he asked, puzzled," Me, no glitch? I have one, Gerald...and it will cost you. You gave me the ability to decipher good from evil...you shouldn't have done that..." Shadow hovered and flew high into the sky. He formed his hand into a fist, which began to glow with a black aura. With a crack, the hedgehog appeared on the ground with his hand wide. He turned his head to Gerald. The only sound was the wind. "What was that, Shadow?" the professor laughed. The super power's eyes widened. His attack had missed. He was over to the left by one inch, which threw his attack into oblivion. "I don't get it...I could have sworn I was right above you and," Shadow stammered. Nothing could explain what just happened. Then Gerald's mad laughter echoed throughout the island. "Now for a few tricks of my own!" he cackled. Rouge stepped forward. "If you want to get to him," she said quietly, holding her arms out in front of Shadow, "You're going to have to get through me..." There was a loud beeping noise and the robot changed. First, the cannon-arm became larger, and seemingly more deadly. The body of the machine grew larger and more cannons jutted out around it. The normal hand became one large machine gun. The legs disappeared, seeing how this form found no need for either of them. "Rouge, you better move..." Shadow said knowingly, placing a hand on her shoulder. "No, Shadow. You almost sacrificed yourself for me against Metal Overlord...now it's my turn!" She flew up at the doctor, who shot her down quickly with a shot of his cannon. Silently, with one beat of her wings, the bat fell to the ground. "ROUGE, NO!" Shadow cried, speeding over to her, his feet gently over the ground. He picked up her limp body. Her clothes were ripped to shreds, and hundreds of bruises, burns and cuts covered her body. "Shadow, go and get him..." the bat said with a smile, a weak thumbs up. She died in his arms. Tears were already in his eyes and they widened. Rouge was gone...and it was in his arms that it happened...he placed her body on the sand and looked up at Gerald in rage. Shadow's teeth were clenched, with tears running down his face like small waterfalls. "You monster...because of you, the only people I ever loved are gone! GONE!" A bright flash of blue and back to silver, "Maria died because of your pointless research...and..." Another flash of blue and back to normal, "Rouge...she died because of you..." he turned over to Tails. "Shadow?" he inquired. "I want you to take everyone and get off this island..." He said darkly, turning to Gerald again, who didn't move. Tails did as he was told, gathered everyone up, and, with Charmy's help, flew everyone off the island. "Now it's just you and me, hedgehog..." Gerald laughed darkly. "No, Gerald...after this fight...it will only be me left..." 26 His eyes widened once more, changing the colour to blue. He leaned his head back and yelled loudly into the sky. Thunder already started to roar, lightning flashed across the sky, racing to the scene. A light drizzle started. And then it happened A bright aura was shown brightly on the blue sea. The aura was black, but somehow still gave off some sort of light. Shadow stood tall on the beach sand. His quills spiked upward, his body turned blue and the red markings on his forehead split into a fork. "Ah, so this is the powerful new form that you've obtained, Shadow..." Professor Gerald said darkly, hovering many feet above the ground in the new transformed version of his robot. The hedgehog didn't say a word. It was a standoff. Neither of them moved for hours. Finally, Shadow broke the silence. "Heh...Gerald...I'm going to destroy you..." he murmured under his breath. With a burst of speed and the separation of sand beneath his feet, the hedgehog flew upward quickly at the head of the professor. His hand was pulled back, as if he was going to pull a very powerful punch. The energy of Chaos raced from his body to his fist, which immediately became a black orb with blue bolts of lightning racing through it. The ball in his hand reflected the weather. Rain was now pounding, hard, on both of the combatants. Thunder roared, the heavens twisted and turned on the sides, and lightning raced through the clouds, as if in a hurry to get away now. With a huge explosion, Shadow appeared on the ground once more, with Gerald's robot hovering still above him, with a large hole where his attack had landed. "Hedgehog..." the man began, "My robot is invincible...you can't destroy me..." As quickly as Shadow created that hole, a large metal plate covered the bottom. He teleported to the front to see if the other side was covered. It was, but not by a sheet of metal. Where he had attack, another large cannon had appeared, aimed right at him. "I don't get it..." he quickly said, "That attack should have destroyed any recovery mechanism..." "This cannon will destroy you, with the very Chaos energy you used to attack me!" the doctor laughed into the rainy heavens above. Just as he said, the loading hole of the cannon formed a large black bulge at the front, with blue electricity racing in its bowels. There was a bleep coming from the seat of the machine. "Ergh!!" Sonic said, falling onto one knee on the beach. He grabbed hold of his arm, "How did I feel that..." he asked himself solemnly. How could an attack at Shadow somehow hurt the blue hedgehog? Wearily, Sonic got up from the sand on his side of the ocean, looking ahead. "Shadow, hang in there..." Knuckles said, still on both knees with gloveless hands raised high into the sky. He didn't care about the rain hitting his eyes and the small amount of stinging that came along. With his newfound wisdom, he knew that whatever Shadow was suffering was many times worse than what he was feeling this moment. Shadow had his hands straight ahead, palms out on the front of the cannon blast. He was holding on tightly, trying to keep it from hitting the ground. If that thing hit, it would be the end of him and all the inhabitants on the island. Then he remembered. "What am I going to do about the villagers?!" he roared, "I don't want them to get hurt from my battle!" He looked up at Gerald, who was barely visible through the black orb. The powered hedgehog let go and kicked the ball, hard. It flew high into the sky, never to be seen again. Or so they thought. The whole island was brightened from the explosion of the cannon blast. "How in the worl--" Dr. Gerald snapped. He shook his head quickly, "Hmph. Doesn't matter. You're stronger than I thought, Shadow. You really are the ultimate life form..." "Shut your mouth, professor..." He barked. 27 Amy and Cream took shelter from the rain inside of a burger shop. The storm started just as they took the first bites of their succulent burgers. They were very greasy, so much that drips of grease hit the table. "I wonder who that power belongs to..." Amy said, after setting her root beer down on the table. "Maybe Mr. Sonic?" the young rabbit replied, picking up a French fry. "No, it's not him, Cream. I would know...who else has the ability to use the Chaos Emeralds correctly?" the pink hedgehog told her through a small belch, leaning back in her seat, looking up at a slow moving fan at the ceiling. "Could be Shadow?" Cream happily smiled, looking at Cheese and winking. Shadow hovered above Professor Gerald, staring down at him with a loathsome look. He lifted both hands into the air. "Although I care for the inhabitants on this island, I must stop you at all costs..." Then the hedgehog noticed a large power racing toward the island from across the sea. There was a small golden ding and then a burst of sound. Sonic stood on the island sand. "Hey, Shadow!" the gold hedgehog said smiling up. "How did you get here?" the blue hedgehog roared. He wanted to kill Gerald without help. "Tails gave me the Chaos Emeralds. Now...you use that attack you were going to do..." Sonic said, switching his attention to Gerald, "While I hold the professor off!" Shadow floated many feet above the beach sand, his arms lifted up into the sky. A golden Sonic stood on the sand, staring upward at the new blue hedgehog. "Got it, Shadow?" he said with a sneer. With a nod, Shadow concentrated all of his Chaos Energy into the palms of his hands. "I don't think so!" Gerald roared, aiming all the cannons forward. As each of the cannons fired, right toward the floating hedgehog, Sonic stepped in. Or rather, smashed in. With one swift drop kick from the sky, the hedgehog caused all of the blasts to shoot harmlessly into the sea. The attack also caused the left side of the robot to be crippled. With a quick little snicker, Sonic tossed a small electric box in his hand. "I do believe that this is the recovery mechanism..." he laughed. Gerald sneered, and aimed the cannons at the gold hedgehog. Shadow held on, a small orb beginning to form in his hands. It was just like the cannon blasts and the power that formed on his fist a few moments ago. Then he saw a small girl, one of the villagers, sniffing a flower near the battlefield. With this, he snapped at Sonic. "Get that little girl out of here!" "Huh?!" the gold hedgehog spun his head over to the girl. He ran at her, just as the cannons fired again, "CHAOS...CONTROL!!" He and the girl teleported out of the way of the blast, and they reappeared over the robot. "Sonic...we can't do this with all the villagers around here! Get all of them off the island!" Shadow barked. With a nod, Sonic flew down to the ground and manoeuvred in-between the trees of the thick jungle and cutting his arm on the occasional thorny brush. He set the girl down. Please...let this Chaos Control teleport them to another island... he thought. He pulled his arms back, with his palms out and the tops of his fingers pointed down. "Chaos...Control!" There was a bright flash of light and the village was gone. There was nothing left of it, but the ocean that the area was mounted. Knuckles' eyes widened. "Who is that...second force?" he said solemnly, "It feels almost the same way I felt when Sonic fought against the Final Hazard..." His arms had grown tired, but they were still high up in the sky, pledging forgiveness of his broken promise to his Elder. The rain was beginning to pour down hard now. Harder than ever. It was like a rain that...very indescribable... 28 Big the cat sat alone on his small raft out in the raging bay. Froggy was by his side, looking down at the blackened water. There was no sun out to make it blue in the water and the sky. "I think we better head bac--what? That strength...wow. Feels like Sonic's energy." Shadow's arms were up still, for the many minutes they were. The orb that he had been forming was much larger now. Almost the size of a meteor, it was nowhere near the size he needed it. Sonic was still trying to distract the doctor, but there was sometimes when it just wouldn't work. The hedgehogs hadn't touched the machine since the gold one's drop kick. "I need more energy..." Shadow said weakly. He could feel it in his bones. His energy was very low, but his commitment to Rouge was great. That would hold him for a while. Then he messed up. He began to fall down. The weight of the Chaos Ball was too much. His power was low as well and he needed to have as much as he could hold. Knuckles felt this power loss. "Shadow!" he gasped, air rushing from his chest quickly, "We need you!" Then his energy fell. It was leaving his body through his hands. His mind was telling him to transfer his energy to Shadow. And so he did. White streams burst from his palms, flying toward the island. The energy, pure of soul, was trying to find its way to the target. His spirits lifted. Shadow was now pulling himself upward, trying to stay as high above the ground as possible. He shut his eyes, trying to keep the rain from pecking at his eyes like birds. He could see the flashing of lightning through his eyelids and feel the boom of thunder shaking his bones. "Almost there..." quietly the blue hedgehog said. The orb was now about the size of a small, very small, moon, "But I need more energy...Sonic, transfer your Chaos Energy over to my orb!" he barked loudly. "But, Shadow! How will I hold off Gerald?!" "Never mind him, now!" The gold hedgehog flew up into the sky, and forced a trail of lightning to hit Gerald, causing him to stop for a few moments. Sonic let all his energy, the same white streams that helped Shadow a moment ago, went into the black orb. The hedgehog then turned back into his usual blue, but had enough Chaos Energy left to fly himself back down to the ground. "Thank you, Sonic...now then, Gerald..." Shadow said darkly, "You created me to rid the world of evil, but I was corrupted by what I was needed to stop. Then I met Rouge. She was evil, too, but she showed me the good in people. You have no good...and therefore must be destroyed...you created the Ultimate Life form...and you will be destroyed by the Ultimate Life form..." And with a thrust of his hands, he threw the orb. Combined with his, Knuckles, and Sonic's energy, it was now the size of Earth's core. The black Chaos ball was falling at the same speed as a shuttle. Blue bolts of lightning jolted out now, shocking and burning trees on the island. The rain put most of the flames out, but a few embers were left. Gerald tried to move the robot. "Why isn't it working?!" he cried, "Wait...when Super Sonic attacked the robot...it must have broken one of the controllers!" "Sonic!" Shadow noticed, flying down to the ground, grabbing the blue hedgehog, "We've got to get out of here! Chaos...Control!!" with a bright flash, just like the one that teleported the villagers to an island near South America. They reappeared near the shrine Knuckles was sitting on, with Shadow back to his normal form. All three of them looked forward and saw a huge explosion in the distance. It was done. Gerald....Professor Gerald Robotnik....Was Gone...... 29 The storm was over. Everything seemed to be back to normal. But as Shadow walked down the street, Maraca Street, he couldn't help but feel that something was wrong in his heart. Then he passed by the sword shop. In the window there were stainless steel. So cold...so hard...just like his heart. Like ice. Everything seemed to reflect his heart. An ice cream truck trolled down the street, with little kids screaming to their parents for some. "Hmm..." he looked up at the sky. Although the rain and the storm had ended, the clouds still swirled up above. Then he saw a mother who didn't have enough money to buy her child a chocolate ice cream cone. For once in his life, Shadow helped another. He didn't count the times he needed to save the world. The black hedgehog did it for his own pleasure. To know that he saved humanity. With a quick movement of his hand, the ice cream cone appeared in the boy's hand. Shadow felt a warm sensation in his heart after this gesture. The rest if the day went on, and Shadow felt pain and misery at the loss of Rouge. Even after Maria had died all those years ago, he had never felt such sorrow and rage in his heart. Shadow was now truly alone. The next day, the heroes had decided to throw a party in honor of Gerald's defeat. Once the clouds had dissappeared and the sky had become a crystal clear blue, with the sun shining brightly, Shadow found himself, along with everybody else, in Green Hill, celebrating the final victory. The party had been set in a large field. Tables full of food were set up, music was playing, and everyone was happy. Everyone that is, except for a poor black hedgehog sitting on the top of a hill. The party went on, and as the next song came on, The gates to Green Hill flew open, and Big entered, a long bandage taped around his middle. Amy ran over to him. "Big!! The doctors let you out!" She laughed. Big went on showing off his scar to Sonic and Knuckles, who was carrying the Master Emerald in a bag hanging from his side. Shadow stared out at the sky. "Maria... Rouge... It seems my work here has ended." He murmured, a tear rolling down his cheek. Then, a voice spoke inside his head. "Shadow... Your work has not ended. The others still need you..." Spoke a woman's voice. Shadow froze. "Maria...? Can it be...?" "My time has ended. My soul is departing. But there is one whose time is not yet over. She must stay with you. The two of you will unite, and when that fateful day comes, we will meet again. Remember Shadow... I will always be with you... In your heart..." The woman continued. Shadow stood up. "NOOOO!!!!! MARIA!!!!! PLEASE!!!! DON'T LEAVE ME AGAIN!! MARIA!!!!" He screamed. "Goodbye Shadow" The voice left him. Shadow's eyes were filled with tears now, and he cried his sorrows away. After about ten minutes, he stopped crying, and began to walk away from the party. "Maria..." He whispered. As Shadow made his way out of Green Hill, something made him stop in his tracks. A small round light was flitting around in front of Shadow. "Wha- What are you? A spirit? Are you calling me?" He asked. The spirit did not respond. It moved over to the top of the hill, and The light began to shine brighter, and brighter, and as its shine grew, more spirits like it flew together to join each other. As they blended into a green shining blob, their colors began to change and mix, eventually forming a shape only too familiar to Shadow. "Could it be...?" He asked himself, as he stared at the form taking shape. Eventually, it became the unmistakable figure of a body. "This must be what Maria was talking about" Shadow said. The light died off, and the body flopped to the ground. Shadow recognized it instantly. The black wings, the white boots and gloves, the heart-shaped bra, the blue mascara. "Rouge?" He asked uncertainly. Rouge's eyes opened, and she slowly stood up. She noticed the black hedgehog standing in front of her. "Sh.. Sha.. Shadow?" She said uneasily. "ROUGE!!" Shadow screamed. He opened his arms wide, and Rouge leapt at him. Shadow caught her, and they hugged each other tightly. "Oh Rouge, I thought I'd never see you again!" Shadow said. "Shadow... You beat Gerald, you saved us all" Rouge replied. The pair stared lovingly into each other's eyes. "I love you Rouge" Said Shadow. "I love you Shadow" Said Rouge. They kissed, and hugged once more, as the gathered crowd from the party gave a long round of applause. "Looks like I was the ultimate life-form after all" THE END