literature

Light of Ichor

Deviation Actions

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Literature Text

“Someone told me love would all save us
But how can that be? Look what love gave us
A world full of killing and blood spilling
That world never came”

Hero __ Nickelback




He was indebted to the doctor again. He didn’t like it, but he would respect it.

Jets screamed a distant roar behind him. Ignoring them, Shadow doubled his speed and flew across the highway dodging in between cars. His heart raced with the thrill of his speed and the adrenaline of the bullets that pelted along behind him when G.U.N. had a clear shot.

He owed his life to the doctor. Without him, he may not have regenerated fast enough to live. After falling through the Earth’s atmosphere, it should have been enough to kill anyone. However, Shadow was immortal and free of such constraints. His body had already been regenerating with the trace Chaos energies in his blood. When the doctor found his body, he placed him in a pod that accelerated his healing with the power of a Chaos Emerald. He was back on his feet within months, but not without a great deal of regenerative pain.

At least paying back the doctor was straightforward. He wanted Chaos Emeralds. And whatever other sort of errand he could push on Shadow. The last time he had stolen a Chaos Emerald, Sonic had been there as a thorn in his side. With G.U.N.’s help, Sonic had almost succeeded in stopping him.

This time?

A pleased smirk touched his features as he drew along the outskirts of the city:  still no sign of that blue nuisance. He was almost in range to teleport directly to Eggman’s hideout at this point. He drew out the chase a little more in the hopes of seeing him, if just to have a little fun and flex his muscles, but if Sonic was on his way, he was certainly taking his time.

More minutes drew on. He half expected the blue pincushion to pop up again, demanding to know how he survived and what he was doing, but the hero refused to make an entrance. Annoyed that he was apparently choosing to ignore him this time, Shadow vaulted over a roadblock unscathed, darted past the next block bustling with police, and teleported with Chaos Control.

He appeared in a dim room lit with mostly computer screens. Eggman swiveled around from his computer with an annoyed grunt. “You certainly took your time,” he griped. “Where is it?”

Shadow lifted the blue Chaos Emerald and threw it at him. He turned to leave, but Eggman quickly snapped, “And where do you think you’re going? We’re not finished here.”

The doctor’s tone stroked a flame of anger. Shadow clenched his hands and glared over his shoulder at the obese man. “I appreciate you saving me, Doctor,” he said quietly and evenly. “But I don’t appreciate you trying to keep me enslaved to you.”

“I am hardly—”

“Don’t play coy with me, Doctor!” he retorted, whirling. His crimson eyes flashed in the shadows. “You know as well as I do that you plan to keep me leashed with debt as long as you can.” Eggman leaned back comfortably in his chair, crossing his legs idly in the dim lair. Shadow gritted his teeth. “I have indulged you. I have done your dirty work. I have brought you two more Chaos Emeralds. But I will not stay your lap dog. My debt is paid, and I am leaving.”

Shadow turned to go again, his skates clapping the floor a little too loudly in the silence. He heard Eggman chuckle.

“Fine,” he said, “let’s say your life debt to me is paid with a few errands.” Shadow bristled as he stalked off. He had catered to the mad doctor for months now. “Allow me to propose an alternative offer.” He didn’t stop. “What if I told you I had more information regarding your rather convoluted past?”

Shadow halted in the doorway.

He knew his bouts of amnesia were apparent. He knew much of his past was still missing, but he thought he was getting better. He was remembering more. Mostly, it was memories of Maria or Gerald. Some were awful. Remembering the experiments. Remembering the brutal training G.U.N. forced on him.  But most of the memories were pleasant. Nights watching Earth movies, learning to skate on his anti-gravity shoes, home school lessons, tickle attacks—funny how those were usually Maria attacking him, tickling the tuft of white fur on his chest.

It was all so bitter. If anything, the good memories haunted him and heightened his depression. Sometimes, Shadow wondered if Eggman should have just let him die and go to rest in the past with his family. He had no purpose here now other than to play errand boy for Eggman, always taking orders.

But . . . to KNOW . . .

Against his will, Shadow turned around at the temptation that Eggman presented. The doctor smugly pulled on his moustache.

“Catch your attention, did I?”

Shadow forcibly controlled the curl of his lip. “What do you know about my past?”

“Well, my dear boy,” he said, lacing his fingers over his belly, “that’s for me to know and you to find out!” Giving him a livid glare, Shadow clenched his hands as Eggman chuckled. “Oh, but you’ve done so well so far. I guess I can give you a little taste of what I know.”

Crimson eyes flashed. His heart palpitated uneasily in his chest. Eggman smiled, and it wasn’t pleasant.

“I know who shot Maria.”

Ice chilled his veins. His jaw ground and he sucked in a sharp breath against the blinding rage that filled him. His fists tightened until they shook. Her killer. The fury blazing through his body was almost enough to scare him—it was the same kind of uncontrollable anger that had made him want to destroy the Earth. But this time, it could be different. It would be the very one responsible for spilling innocent blood. Maria could understand that, couldn’t she?

His throat tightened and his jaw practically shook as he rasped, “Who is it?” He wanted to kill him. Slowly. Make him feel the sort of anguish he had felt when Maria was taken from him, and watch him bleed out the same way Maria’s life had left her.

However, Eggman just chuckled and shook his head, standing. He turned the blue Chaos Emerald in his hand idly. “Perhaps I’ll start giving you more information when you prove yourself to me.” Shadow’s quills stiffened, ready to attack. How much pain would it take to get the doctor to spill . . . ? “Oh trust me,” he said with a grin towards Shadow, “I’ll keep dangling the bait for you. And I’ll keep giving you answers. Quite frankly, my boy, I want you to have these answers. You deserve the chance to put your history to rest, but as a man of business, I can’t offer these answers without a price.”

Shadow debated for one hot minute more whether or not to strangle the answers out of the mad doctor before he relented. He’d placate the doctor a little more, because like it or not, he had answers. Answers Shadow needed. Answers he WANTED. He could forgive humanity, but the man responsible for her death?

He would feel vengeance.

Shadow unlocked his jaw and relaxed his body into a more submissive stance. “What do you want?” he asked for the nth time.

Eggman cheered up then. “Thank you, Shadow. Now that wretched Sonic has found my base. He and that fox boy are planning their attack right now. I’m moving my plans to a different location in the Scrap Brain Zone, so I’ll need you to keep them busy for me. Understand?”

He dipped his head down obediently. “I understand. It will be done.”

*

Shadow watched passively above at the scene unfolding below.

Eggman’s robots hardly slowed the blue hero down. Tails was more easily shot down out of his plane, but watching Sonic was like watching wheat being sown from a field. Blue spines tore through metal robots with ease as he destroyed the meager distraction Eggman had for him. Shadow glowered at him. He could see that unflappable grin from even where he stood. Sonic was having FUN.

His fingers tightened on his arms. He couldn’t wait to wipe that smug smirk off his face. At least he could say he didn’t dislike his work.

Glancing at the time, Shadow calculated the minutes Eggman would need to get away and how long he needed to stall Sonic. After a minute more, Sonic had finished with the final trump robot, its pincers severed from its body. With a curl of his lip, Shadow leapt down into the gorge with him, blocking the way to the entrance to the doctor’s fortress.

Sonic skidded to a halt. Green eyes popped. “Shadow! What are you doing?”

He scowled, crossing his arms. “Is that the only question you can ask me?”

Tails appeared, descending slowing with a gust from his double tails. “Shadow, what’s wrong with you? We thought you were a good guy!”

“Yeah,” Sonic said with a frown, “what happened to the guy who helped save the world? Why are you working for Eggman again?”

His spines prickled with irritation as the sun began to fall low in the sky. His fists snapped to his side. “Just because I saved the world,” he snarled with contempt, “doesn’t mean I’m a part of your merry band of heroes!” How dare they question what he was doing? How dare they think they knew how he should live his life? He knew what he was doing. His heart throbbed. He knew exactly what he was doing.

Sonic slouched a little, readying himself for the attack. “Come on, Shadow. Get out of the way. Eggman’s getting away.”

Shadow slouched too, his body loosening like a snake for the battle about to erupt. His lip curled up. “Make me.”

Still, Sonic hesitated. He looked up quickly to the base that Eggman was evacuating before he shook his head at Shadow. “Come on, Shadow, you’re better than this,” he tried again to sway him. “Whatever Egg-head’s got on you, it’s not worth it. Think about Maria! What would she say—?”

Shadow moved before he even finished processing Sonic’s words. With a violent, fast spin dash, he slammed into Sonic directly, making the loose-lipped hedgehog fly back. Hot rage poured into Shadow’s system. He didn’t deserve to even speak her name! Snarling in fury, Shadow closed in on the attack. Sonic found his feet quickly and met him head on, spines clashing together as they began a high speed battle.

The second hard hit went to Sonic. He collided headfirst into Shadow’s chest, making all the air erupt from his lungs and his back hit the brittle ground. Flipping back up, Shadow avoided a spin dash and lunged, trading blows with fists. He outmatched the blue hedgehog in close combat. Sonic darted past in retreat and homed in on him, spines ripping the air. Darting beneath him, Shadow caught Tails running towards the base. He growled. Skating close, he slammed into the fox hard enough that Tails was shaken, not getting up for a minute.

Pain ripped along his back and the force of Sonic’s attack made him skid across the ground. Intercepting him and curling up, Shadow combated his attacks with his own. After a moment, they parted to catch their breath, Sonic’s legs splayed in front of Tails protectively.

“Seriously, Shadow, what’s going on? Why are you playing fetch for Eggman of all people!”

Chaos energies hummed restlessly in Shadow’s veins, like a caged animal vying to be let out. He wished the doctor had let him keep a Chaos Emerald if he was going to have to fight Sonic and play catch-up at the new base both. “That’s none of your business, faker,” he snarled, fingers clenching for his next attack.

“It is my business when you’re handing over Chaos Emeralds to him!” Sonic shouted right back. Jet engines kicked up at the end of his sentence, and Sonic looked up just in time to see Eggman’s ship taking off.

Shadow took the opening when he saw it. Skating forward in the flash of an eye, it was only Sonic’s impossibly acute reflexes that saved his nose from being broken. Instead, Shadow’s knuckles impacted Sonic’s cheekbone firmly and sent the blue blur stumbling backwards. He advanced again only for him to avoid his attack and go darting up the side of the base.

Swearing lowly as Sonic pursued, Shadow intercepted him, spin dashing towards him and forcing him to defend. Whirling around in streaks of red and blue, the high speed battle ruined another three unattended robots, two doors, and a generator. A trickle of blood oozed down over Shadow’s eye from Sonic’s spines, but Eggman’s ship was nearly too high for even Sonic to propel himself up to. A smirk pulled Shadow’s lips when the doctor’s cloaking device activated, concealing the carrier, and the sound of the engines began to dim.

Mission accomplished.

Sonic released a sound of frustration, and he turned towards Shadow angrily. “Just what was that? Do you have any idea the kind of damage Eggman can do with three Chaos Emeralds!”

“I don’t care what the doctor does,” Shadow replied venomously. And he didn’t. All he cared about was the information he held.

“Yeah? And what if Eggman plans to destroy the planet? Will Mar—Will you suddenly change your mind like you did last time?”

Sonic just caught himself from mentioning Maria’s name again, and it was a smart move. Shadow hated that so many now had such an intimate part of his past that he violently chose not to share with anyone. That was too close. Too painful.

Instead, Shadow released a scathing scoff. “Like destroying the planet is the doctor’s style. We all know he prefers world domination. The preservation of this mud ball is hardly part of my affairs.”

“Yeah?” Sonic said hotly. “Then what is?”

“That’s none of your business.”

Sonic released a rare growl of frustration as the sun dipped below the horizon. “And just when I was willing to give you some slack, you manage to prove me wrong,” he said, and Shadow could hear a true tone of offense in his voice. His jaw twitched. It was hardly his concern. Besides, he hadn’t exactly gotten a warm welcome from anyone yet for cheating death.

When there was no answer forthcoming from the dark hedgehog, Sonic huffed at his silence. “C’mon, Shadow,” he tried again. He jerked his thumb in the general direction that Eggman had disappeared. “You’re back, and you’ve got the chance to do things right this time! There’s no need to go right back to Eggman of all people!”

“I have to go back to the Doctor,” Shadow barked, amazed at the blue hedgehog’s persistence. “It’s the only way I’ll get any answers!”

“Answers about what?”

He already knew about Maria, and Shadow wasn’t about to let him pry into his personal life anymore than he already had. He clenched his jaw, spitting out once more, “None of your business.”

“Aw, don’t be like that,” Sonic said, seeming to zero in on the chance to know something more about Shadow. Shadow felt his fur prickle, like he was behind the glass in a zoo. “We can help you, Shads! Gimme a chance, all right? You don’t have to do it alone.”

“This is my issue, not yours!” Shadow shot back defensively. “I don’t need your help, and I don’t want your help! Just stay out of my life!” Chaos, did the idiot hedgehog think every stray being was in need of a hero? He didn’t need saving!

Sonic huffed once more, seeming to give it up. “Fine. Then at least tell me where Eggman’s headed.”

Shadow released a disbelieving laugh, feeling more comfortable now that the conversation had slipped back into territory he knew. He strolled along to the edge of the gorge, Sonic watching his movements like a hawk. “You think I’d just tell you? You’ll just have to wait and see what the doctor is plotting.”

Before he reached the edge to leave, Sonic was in front of him, body lunged forward for the attack. “Give it up, Shadow. You’re not going anywhere until we’ve got some answers out of you.”

He didn’t even blink and pushed past him. “The doctor is hardly a threat. You’ll stop him as you always do, and the doctor will throw a tantrum, like he always does.” Shadow couldn’t help but feel a little smug that Sonic didn’t attack him again. “I have my own mission, and you’ll do to stay out of my way.”

The words tasted a bit stale in his mouth. Like he and Sonic had danced this tango one too many times already, and it wasn’t about to end soon. Instead, as he hopped down into the gorge, he took off at supersonic speeds to catch the doctor at his new base. On the other side of the continent.

What did that blue hedgehog WANT from him? Did he want him to suddenly say that everything was right with the world and be a glowing ray of sunshine? As he thought about it, Shadow nearly stopped at a sudden epiphany. They could help him; he didn’t have to do it alone—had Sonic been trying, in a roundabout way, to become FRIENDS with him? Shadow felt his mind cave it on itself at the oddity of it. Had Sonic seriously been willing to throw away the fact that they had been enemies ever since Shadow’s awakening? That was . . . ridiculous. Impossible. Why would Sonic want to be friends with Shadow?

And before Shadow could stop his mind that night, his musings immediately turned the past and only other friend he’d had. He couldn’t seem to get his mind out of the past. He was always returning to that horrific moment when Maria was shot; or worse, he looked back to the scarce flashes of happiness he could remember. It was nearly worse than the agony. At least the pain he could combat with anger and violence and sarcasm. The grief?

Chaos. He didn’t want to touch the grief.

Unable to process through his emotions correctly, Shadow buried them under mounds of detachment. Instead, as the grounds of the continent flew by under his shoes, his red eyes gleamed through the darkness as he sped along. The grounds whipped beneath him, like a race track ate up all too quickly. Roads and plains and dirt kicked up behind him as the moon drew bright in the sky, reflecting the light of the sun into the shadows.

He allowed his mind to dwell on the elusive answers Eggman was harboring. First and foremost, Maria’s killer. But what else? Perhaps the man who had sanctioned the attack in the first place? Or perhaps the man that turned Shadow into a killing machine instead of a healing agent. Shadow’s gloved hands clenched into fists. Muffled anger ate at his heart, faintly remembering glimpses of a haggard past and never being fully able to grasp it, like gossamer in the wind.

Instead, as he drew into Green Hill Zone, no pesky blue hedgehogs following behind him, Shadow slowed, sensing a presence. Ignoring the pretty sights of the waterfalls and rolling plains of wildflowers—but a part of him whispered, Maria would like this place—Shadow’s ears perked attentively. His spines bristled for an attack, and he whirled just in time to see someone step from the bushes.

Their eyes widened. “Shadow? Wh—You’re alive!”

When there was no attack forthcoming, only shock, Shadow released his aggressive stance to look at the guardian. Knuckles looked the same, though he hadn’t really interacted with him the last time they were together. He carried a little pouch on a stick, as if he’d been traveling. A sarcastic retort jumped from his lips.

“I’m reasonably aware.”

Knuckle’s nose turned up slightly. “And I see you’re none worse for the wear,” he said wryly, his tone border lining somewhere between reluctant amusement and annoyance. He then gave a shrug, saying, “Well. Good to see you alive.”

Confused surprise laced through Shadow. Apparently, it must have shown on his face, because Knuckles’ face pinched and he asked, “What?”

Blinking, Shadow looked away from him, processing the new emotions—was he actually grateful for once? “You’re the first person to seem pleased that I’m alive.” He was surprised it was the guardian. He had expected . . . Sonic to be glad he was alive, but the blue speedster hadn’t really dwelled on that much, only the Chaos Emeralds he was stealing.

There was a pregnant, awkward pause. Knuckles finally cleared his throat a little, finding a suitable response to that with, “Well, it’s always good when someone’s found alive instead of dead.” He frowned. “How DID you survive?”

His quills twitched. “The doctor found me. He saved me.”

Knuckles released a grumble that sounded dangerous, but Shadow’s ears perked when he realized his anger wasn’t directed at Shadow. “Hmph. And now you’re indebted to him again, aren’t you?”

Knucklehead. That’s what Sonic called him. Shadow turned his full attention on him, finding that the echidna seemed plenty bright enough to him. Sonic still hadn’t seemed to grasp the concept of his debt. “Yes. I owe the mad doctor whether I like it or not. Don’t try to fight me on this.”

The red echidna barely batted an eye in the dark. “I won’t unless he’s keeping pieces of the Master Emerald.” He lifted the stick with the pouch on it to punctuate his statement. “If you see any, give them to me.”

Shadow barely held back a scoff. “Your rock shattered again?” he said with just a drip of contempt. He wasn’t very proficient at this “guardian” thing. Quickly his intelligence came back into question.

He heard the echidna’s teeth grind from where he stood. “Clearly,” he said with a growl of annoyance. “Eggman shattered it this time. You know anything about that?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know what the doctor wants with your rock.”

Knuckles seemed to consider his flat, uninterested answer before he grunted. “Fine. I believe you. Better watch out for Chaos. He escaped the Master Emerald again."

Shadow frowned, turning more towards him. "Chaos?"

Knuckles gave a shrug, as if this were common knowledge. " The ancient immortal water-like deification of Chaos. He can do some serious damage with Chaos Emeralds, so don't let him get his hands on one."

A Chaos . . . god. Shadow's interest piqued, but he didn't show it. Instead, he merely turned his face away to suggest he was finished with the conversation. Knuckles grunted, half muttering to himself, "But if I ever meet up with that Eggman again, I’m going to give him a piece of my fists.”

Shadow was tempted to tell him he was headed in the wrong direction, but found he didn’t really care. He could find the broken pieces himself. “Feel free,” Shadow said, moving on.

He heard Knuckles call out, “And hey! Try to stay alive this time, right?”

Shadow gave a calculated look over his shoulder. “You try to stay alive too,” he said ominously.

It was enough to make the guardian stand there hesitantly as Shadow took off at high speeds again, heading deeper into the zones to find Eggman. Well, that at least made one soul in the world that had no disdain or ulterior motives for him. It was a little refreshing as Shadow ground his teeth, mentally preparing himself NOT to kill the doctor when he again went through a series of jobs just for information.

That information would be the end of it. He could finally avenge Maria properly and put his past to rest. Have a fitful night’s rest without scenes of the past to haunt him. Maybe even learn to live in the present . . . if he could find a purpose for himself. He wasn’t a hero, like Sonic. He had nothing to protect, like Knuckles. He was just a pawn without a reason to fight for Eggman. Eggman gave him purpose. Without Eggman telling him what to do . . . what WOULD he do?

He shook it off. Huffing, Shadow dug in his toes and sped on. The sooner he got to work, the sooner he got his answers.

*

"ARGH! Stupid hunk of junk!"

Shadow watched passively to the side as one of Eggman's newest creations self-destructed, splattering a viscous gel everywhere. He sucked a deep breath through his nose. They weren't Eggman's original creations.

"These things are dumb as doornails!" Eggman raged. "Useless! Rudimentary programming coupled with half-executed ideas! Slower than watching grass grow! Defenseless! Worthless!"

Crimson eyes gazed upon the gooey floor where the latest experiment had gone wrong yet again. He remembered these creations—Artificial Chaos. They were powerful yes, but slow and dim-witted, as the doctor had quickly realized. Shadow didn't remember much of them, but the more he watched Eggman struggle to improve them, the more he called back to mind. He remembered fighting them and protecting people. Perhaps, experiments gone wrong? They rapidly regenerated and multiplied, but needed far more fine-tuning than Gerald Robotnik had ever given them.

"It's no wonder my grandfather slated them as failures! They're primitive copies without half the capabilities of the original! A waste of material! Incomplete hypothesis and nonsensical metaphysics!"

Shadow's lip curled as Eggman threw a brain module and shattered it against the wall. Smugly, with the new information Knuckles had given him, he sauntered up to the mad doctor. "Not that this performance of yours isn't amusing, Doctor," he said derisively, "but how about we make a deal?"

Eggman grumbled angrily as he yanked open a drawer full of Chaos drives. "You don't have anything to barter with," he proclaimed, pulling out another drive. "Can't even harness the Chaos energies correctly . . ." and he continued to mutter indiscriminately.

Bemused, he watched the doctor struggle more. "All those Chaos Emeralds and you still can't get your machines to work correctly," Shadow scorned him. He crossed his arms, turning his face away, saying, "If you want to have the secret to get them to work, then perhaps you should listen to me."

Eggman growled in frustration and faced him, his glasses glinting in the fluorescent lights. He rocked back on his heels. "Fine, Shadow," he said peevishly, "what could you possibly have that would make my creations work?"

His spines stiffened in annoyance that he laid claimed to his grandfather's work as his own. Instead, he gave the doctor a self-righteous smile, drawling, "Well, that's for me to know and you to find out, isn't it?"

"Insolent pincushion . . ." Eggman muttered under his breath. "Fine. You want to know who shot your precious Maria?"

"Information for information," Shadow agreed, nodding his head toward the large human.

When he said nothing more, he could imagine Eggman's eyes narrowing behind his blue glasses. "You first." Idly, knowing he had far more patience than the mad doctor, Shadow rocked back on his heels, settling comfortably as the only slash of dark against steel gray walls. Eggman's moustache practically bristled in anger as Shadow held out pointedly. After a short staring contest, he broke first.

"Fine!" he barked. "You want to know the name of the man who shot Maria? Nolan Schmitz. That's him. Good luck finding him."

"Nolan Schmitz," Shadow repeated ominously, tasting the name on his tongue. A small, disturbed smile played at his lips. Nolan Schmitz. He finally had the name of the man who killed Maria. For a second, his mind started to slip off in the direction of what he could do to the man in retribution—he had to get him to bleed a lot. Maria had bled so much for such a frail, small creature, and he'd be sure Mr. Schmitz would bleed double—

"Erhem!" Eggman's impatient voice interrupted his daydreaming. Shadow blinked up at him.
"And now for your part of this deal. How can I get my creations to work?"

Shadow almost laughed. "I don't know," he said first, causing Eggman to give an enraged, "WHAT!" He shook his head, saying, "But I do know how you can learn how to fix them. They're Artificial Chaos. The copies. You need the original to experiment on."

"The original?" Eggman said, his red face slowly fading to normal. "And just how am I supposed to get the original back?"

"Capture him." He smirked. "I met Knuckles the other day. He said when you shattered the Master Emerald, Chaos escaped again. Your ancient god of destruction is at large again, and you could easily bait him in with one of your Chaos Emeralds. Once you have him captured?" He shrugged. "Experiment to your heart's content."

Considering this thoughtfully, Eggman's mouth slowly pulled into an unpleasant smile as he looked back at the remains of his latest projects. He chuckled. "You see, my boy? This is why I like to work with you! You're far more useful than you give yourself credit for."

Shadow's good humor disappeared at Eggman's words, and his lip curled a little bit. "Whatever you say, Doctor. Enjoy tracking down your deity. I'm leaving."

"No you're not!" Eggman said quickly. He snapped his fingers at a couple of robots that immediately began to clean up the mess of his experiments. "You'll be perfect for fighting Chaos and catching him."

"You can find him first," Shadow said sharply. His quills stiffened a little. "I have unfinished business to take care of."

A feminine voice joined the conversation. "Speaking of unfinished business . . ."

Both males looked up to see the only female in the room. Eggman's face warped into a scowl while Shadow's face quickly deadpanned. How had she sneaked in again? Rouge quickly dropped from the ceiling with a smile, landing in between the two of them. Eggman's anger boiled quickly.

"And just what do you think you're doing here?" he shouted loudly. "How did you get in?"

"The same way I always do, Doctor," she said with a bat of her lashes towards Eggman. He wasn't impressed.

"I swear if G.U.N. is trying to stop me, I'll have you know, I have—"

"Enough robots to effectively stop us, yes, I know," Rouge said sweetly. She folded her wings and brightened. "However, I'm not here because of G.U.N. this time. I'm doing a favor."

Her smile turned on Shadow. Inwardly, he put up his defenses and crossed his arms, trying to figure out why she was far more cheerful than she needed to be. "Since when do you do favors?" he asked evenly.

"Oh, I have my moments," she chirped, walking towards him. "Besides, this is great news, Shadow!" She laughed. "I can't wait to see the look on your face . . ."

"Spit it out, Rouge."

She chuckled, still too cheerful for Shadow's taste. She smoothed some nonexistent wrinkles on her cat suit. "Well, first of all, the doctor here is playing you." Eggman sputtered as Shadow's eyes narrowed at her. Rouge tossed her head, ears flicking. "He might know some things about your past, but he's deliberately holding out information that was asked to be passed on."

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Eggman interjected quickly. "You don't—"

"I know EXACTLY what I'm talking about," Rouge cut in sharply, eyes flashing. "You're deliberately trying to keep Shadow dancing on your strings, but that stops here, Eggman." She turned towards Shadow with elated and passionate eyes. "Shadow . . . Shadow, Maria is alive."

For a moment, Shadow couldn't even believe the phrase had left her mouth. Maria. Alive. He stared for a moment, astounded that she would say something so ridiculous. So HURTFUL. He could have believed Sonic would try to make a stupid joke like that, but Rouge? He heard his teeth clack together as his jaw ground. He had expected better of Rouge.

His gaze flattened into a glower. "Don't you patronize me," he snarled at her. Her excitement was nipped in the bud as she took a step back away from his aggression. "Maria is DEAD!" he shouted hatefully, voice ringing in the quiet base.

Rouge's wings shivered on her back. "S-Shadow, wait. I know you think—"

"I KNOW she is dead!" he practically roared. He advanced on her, fists clenched in white-hot fury. "I saw her get shot! I saw her blood! I saw her lifeless body!" Rouge cowed away, looking ready to flee—he was surprised she hadn't. He was surprised at his own uncontrollable anger, but he couldn’t find it in himself to stop himself. Molten eyes bored into hers. "So don't you DARE try to pretend she's alive or I'll wring your neck myself!"

For a second, anger touched Rouge's eyes. She stopped backing away and instead glared defiantly at him, even if her wings fluttered for flight. "Stop being so melodramatic!" she snapped at him. "You think I would lie to you? She survived, Shadow! She's—"

He lunged, and her quick thinking just barely saved her skull from getting crushed into Eggman's computers. Rage poured through Shadow until he thought his blood was going to boil his brain. His clenched fists shook as he leered up at the bat flying above his head, too high to catch without her avoiding him. Still, despite the death threat and hostility, she stuck around to yell at him, "I'm trying to help you, Shadow!  Maria asked me herself to—"

"Shut up!" he howled, unable to even entertain the idea. "You're lying!"

"Listen to reason—!"

Shadow yanked open the drawer of Chaos drives, a hand digging into the racks. It wasn't a Chaos Emerald, but it would do the job.

"Chaos Spear!"

Chaos energies leeched from the drives and filled him up before erupting from his extended hand as a weak lance of light. Rouge squealed and flitted out of the way, and the attack hit the ceiling. Rubble and dust fell as Dr. Eggman belted out, "Shadow, stop it! You'll destroy my base!"

"GET OUT!" Shadow's lips pulled back as he shook violently, fingers still tickled by Chaos energy. Rouge recoiled from his murderous gaze. "Get out! And don't come back!"

Finally, the infuriating bat scurried out of the room, using a vent she had presumably used to get inside. Shadow's chest heaved, and for a moment, his heart was embroiled with rage over her accusations. Maria. Alive. He scoffed to himself, controlling his shaking and ragged breathing. Maria was as dead as the rest of the ARK inhabitants.

How dare she insinuate Maria was alive? Around the edges of Shadow’s fury lingered something that tasted far too much like regret. Rogue didn’t deserve that. She didn’t deserve anything he’d said to her, but why would she of all people joke about that? She knew to leave his past alone! Rogue of all people knew . . . Of course Rogue knew, which meant she was being serious—

Shadow trembled. She was wrong. She must have some wrong information that wasn’t cross-referenced correctly to make her believe . . . His throat bobbed. Maria had NIDS. If she got deathly ill from the sniffles, there was no way possible for her body to withstand the trauma of a bullet wound.

Sucking in a sharp breath, Shadow turned and stalked for the exit.

"Shadow!" Eggman called. "Where are you going?"

Shadow’s lip curled. He buried the painful hope and seized his hate again. "To settle my revenge once and for all!"
Synopsis:  Surprise! Maria is alive, and Shadow has to come to terms with the fact that she has been living her life fully for the past 50 years while he was stuck in suspended animation. Can Shadow reconnect with his old friend? But a haunting darkness is terroizing Maria.... Will the power of the Chaos Emeralds be enough, or will our anti-hero have to look to greater means?
(rated T, for teen)


Okay! So I know what my watchers are thinking! "But you said you were writing a STAR WARS and a POKEMON fanfic!" Well, I am. :aww: I just decided to write a huge chunk of those before I even begin to upload them because I have to lay a lot of early groundwork that I don't want to screw up. (And so I can hopefully update them consistently instead of skipping weeks. :P ) Rest be assured, I AM working on my projects diligently and with a touch of frustration.

But THIS. I'd had this idea about two years ago because I rediscovered the notebook I had been writing in, and I just had SO MUCH on this story that I decided I had to write it. Hopefully it turns out as fluff, creepy, and epic as I have it planned out in my head and on paper. It seems like a rather innocuous start though, as my first chapters usually are..... Oh, and there might also be a slight crack pairing. Knuckles and Shadow? :eyes: Shh, trust me. TRUST ME. You know I never let you down romance-wise. ;)

Much thanks to my wonderful beta reader "The Erudite" on fanfic.net! :heart:

It's my first Sonic fic, so you all enjoy and drop a review! :wave:


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