Sacrifice to Time
Summary: The price of being the Ultimate Life form is having the gift, or curse, of immortality. Shadow lives on, while others succumb to the years. Hundreds of years have passed, and fate has finally given him a new reason to keep living. And it comes in the form of a little silver hedgehog. With newfound freinds and allies, Shadow experiences the fresh taste of adventure, adrenaline, and danger.
Chapter One
It wasn't quite like he had expected at first. During his first experiences of Earth he was tangled in an untameable web of distress. Everything has been obscured with chaos, and only very little light had filtered through the gaps of destruction. But once the debris and dust has been cleared away, Shadow can truly appreciate the world.
No more distractions.
No more fighting.
No more wars.
Even the Chaos Emeralds had seemingly disappeared from the face of the Earth. Shadow never encountered the Chaos Emeralds ever again.
He finally has found a moment in time where everything is harmonised together. Peace is finally imminent throughout the world. Minor conflicts still exist, but only on petty situations. The odd lover's quarrel, the occasional hormonal teenager bickering with their parents, the infrequent arguments over what colour the bathroom walls should have been painted.
Humanity is finally content with the world. But to Shadow, it happened too late. The change for good has happened over two hundred years too late.
Shadow walked across a grassy plain. The clearing was tinted in an orange hue due to the setting sun, and the sky has adopted a temporary shade of pink. There were no clouds, and faint winds had wafted over a scent of drying leaves. Occasional trees dotted the grassy field, and a herd of deer was grazing nearby to Shadow. As he walked on he found that the clearing had come to an abrupt end, the flat plains interrupted by a sheer drop in the form of craggy cliffs. Shadow stopped at the edge, taking in the sight of the sun as it set across a horizon of blood red oceans.
A wave crashed across the cliff face, sprays of salty water heightening Shadow's senses. The thunderous roar of the waves echoed in Shadow's mind as he watched the sun fade away. And shadow sat down at the edge, reflecting over the past.
The hedgehog inspected his new gloves, the original white fabric tainted red from the solar rays. The folded cuffs are crimson, where gold rings held in the cuffs in place. His jet shoes were long gone and worn out. Shadow now bore heavy duty boots, a gold ring at the top. Crimson buckles ran across the tongue of the boots. The soles were black, with small jet propellers at the heel and ball.
Shadow, however, still looked the same. After over two hundred years he has not aged at all. And he is yet to remain like so for many more years ahead.
If only others were to last as long as he will.
Death was not something that is new to Shadow. He knew how painful it can be. But no matter how many times he has experienced the death of a loved one, each one was just as painful as the next. And there was nothing that Shadow can do to ease the pain. His only painkiller was time, yet time was also the source of his pain.
The seemingly invincible Sonic could not even run away from time. Age had finally caught up to him, and the blue blur is lost in the timeline. His friends had also succumbed to age, and one by one they fell to their fate. Only Shadow was left behind.
"Excuse me?"
Shadow gasped slightly. He turned around to face the person who startled him.
"You okay there, sir?" said a stout hedgehog behind him. He was short, his small stature covered in grey fur, and a peculiar style of quills extended from his forehead.
"Y-yeah..." Shadow sighed, looking back at the setting sun. "I'm fine, thanks."
The silver hedgehog nodded in understanding and walked off, back in the direction he came from. Shadow sighed and decided to stand up. He stared at the horizon, the sun finally disappearing into the sea. Small pinpricks of stars seeped through the inky blue sky, forming their routinely shaped constellations in the night.
Shadow closed his eyes, listening to everything around him. The crashing waves still roared behind him. The grass beneath his feet hissed in the wind, and the breeze sighed into the scattered trees. He felt his fur start to become ruffled in the wind, the chill occasionally found its way to seep to his skin. Shadow shivered from the cold sensations and walked back through the grassy field.
His ears pricked slightly to his left, focusing on the sound of laughter. Shadow gave a short glance to the grey hedgehog, who played merrily with a ball. A lavender cat was playing with him too, throwing the ball for the hedgehog to catch. They laughed in euphoria, enjoying their youth while it lasted. Something that Shadow will never experience in his lifetime.
The ebony hedgehog smiled to himself as he head towards the direction of his home.
"Blaze, I want you to throw it as far as you can!" Shadow overheard the young hedgehog. "I want to catch it with my telekinesis!"
"Okay, Silver!" the cat, or Blaze, replied. "You better not let it go over the cliff!"
Shadow stopped in his tracks, curious to watch the little boy use his psychic abilities. He watched the ball as it soared through the air, several meters above the silver hedgehog. The ball glowed with an eerie green light, casting a green luminosity upon the little hedgehog's fur. Blaze clapped happily.
"Well done, Silver!" she called out to him. "Now, throw it back to me."
Silver nodded his head in acknowledgement. He closed his eyes for a second, his hand twitching slightly as he visualised throwing a ball with his mind. The ball then stopped glowing and suddenly hurtled over the cliff. Silver, realising his mistake, ran near the cliff edge and held up his arms. The ball suspended once more, hovering unsteadily above the sea.
Shadow narrowed his eyes, staring at the young Silver carefully. Blaze gasped and ran up to Silver, looking over the cliff edge.
"Silver," she said urgently. "It's okay, you can let go of the ball now. It doesn't matter, I can always get a new one."
"No, Blaze" he breathed, a hint of happiness in his voice. "I've never been able to hold anything in a strong wind before. I want see if I can bring it back up."
Blaze shook her head. "No, Silver!" she pointed at the ball. It hovered above the waves, dipping up and down occasionally and veering off the side. "Look, it's unsteady. You aren't ready for this level yet. You can't control it."
"I can control it!" he gasped. "Look, I can lift it up towards us!"
"Silver! You can't control it." Blaze put her hands on her hips. "You'll only exhaust yourself! You know that it's dangerous to push our ESP past our limit!"
Shadow watched the two bicker at the edge of the cliff. He eyed them closely, not liking how close the two were so close to the edge of cliff. It was fully night time now, and the lack of light would not illuminate the clear edge of the steep cliff.
"Silver, stop," she told him firmly. "I'm scared, just stop."
Silver didn't reply, his arms relaxing. The little hedgehog was breathing heavily, watching the ball descend into the treacherous waters below. Blaze sighed in relief.
"I couldn't hold it," he said through heavy breaths. "I let go."
"Good!" she scolded, pointing a finger at him. "You are so hard headed sometimes! It is just unbelieva-"
Silver suddenly collapsed forward, plunging over the edge. Blaze screamed Silver's name, peering over as she watched him fall. Shadow's eyes widened, his heart raced, his breathing came in quick gasps as he lunged into action.
Shadow jumped over the edge, diving into the cold water beneath. He shivered violently as he felt the water soak into his fur, but he chose to ignore it as he swam to the surface for air. He looked around, searching for the grey hedgehog. Shadow looked up at Blaze, who pointed somewhere behind Shadow. He followed her gaze, seeing Silver barely floating on the treacherous waves. Shadow swam as fast as he possibly could. Once he reached Silver he helped him stay above the water, preventing Silver from drowning.
"You okay, kid?" Shadow shouted over the roar of the waves. "Get on my back, and keep your head up!"
Shadow battled against the current, trying his hardest to avoid being slammed into the jagged rocks of the cliff. He tried to look for a way to get back up the cliff, but he couldn't think of anything or anyway to return to safety. Shadow was starting to become tired, his legs become numb from both exhaustion and the cold temperature of the sea.
But Shadow could feel something else. He felt a tingling sensation, much different to the tingling he is feeling in his aching legs. No, this sensation felt familiar. Too familiar.
Shadow decided to focus on this sensation, letting the comforting feeling take over his body. He almost craved it, and focused harder on it. Shadow couldn't identify the source of this strange phenomenon, but he can somehow draw upon more of this energy. He gathered it up, compressing the energy into the core of his body. His body was craving it. Shadow knew this feeling all too well.
Shadow compressed the energy further within himself, filling up his lost reserves of this power. Focusing on the contained power he has newly contained within himself, he suddenly let the energy collapse within himself, eventually exploding and surging through his body. Shadow felt instantaneously stronger, and he suddenly felt more alive.
Instinct kicked in.
Shadow and Silver were suddenly surrounded in a bright light, and they disappeared. Almost as quickly as they left, they materialised in another bright light atop the cliff. Shadow felt Silver topple over him before he rolled off the black hedgehog's body. Silver spluttered as he tried to recover, welcoming the feeling of being able to breathe. Blaze ran over to Silver's shaking form, hugging him tightly so he could at least recover some warmth from her.
Shadow sat up, his face screwed into a bitter expression as he spat out the remaining salt water that had entered his mouth. Steadying himself slightly, he walked over to Silver and Blaze to check how they were both doing.
"Are you alright?" he asked, kneeling down to Silver's height. Silver coughed as he nodded his head in reply.
"C'mon, let's take you kids to your homes," he instructed, helping Silver to his feet. Blaze and Silver shivered, their damp fur not helping them deal with the cold. "Where do you live?"
"We live in the city," Blaze said through chattering teeth. "Near the city bank."
Shadow nodded, happy that at least they lived near to where Shadow also lived. "How old are you?" Shadow purged. "Kids like you shouldn't be near here after dark."
"I'm ten years old," Blaze replied. "Silver is also ten."
The ebony hedgehog looked at them, giving both Blaze and Silver a hard stare. Blaze shrank slightly, desperate to escape Shadow's gaze. She sighed in relief when he looked away, walking off. Shadow called over his shoulder for the two to follow him. They obeyed obediently, trailing behind the dark and mysterious hedgehog.
Shadow smirked slightly, finding some humour on how the kids were suddenly scared of him from his cold gaze. Yet, they followed his instruction wordlessly.
Shadow took off his gloves, squeezing the water out of them before putting them back on. He noticed Silver doing the same. Shadow chuckled slightly at this gesture, but it soon escalated into a heartier and louder laugh. His laugh was contagious, and Blaze and Silver were laughing along with him. Soon enough Blaze and Silver were in a fit of giggles, holding each other's hand in enjoyment, and relief, of their company.
Shadow smiled at the two, but then his gaze turned serious once more as Shadow escaped into deep thought. He was confused. He was very confused indeed. Shadow had done something he hasn't done in a long time.
Shadow used Chaos Control.
He hasn't pulled that move in over two hundred years. What's more, he hasn't seen another Chaos Emerald in over two hundred years. He needed a Chaos emerald to activate Chaos Control.
Shadow doesn't have a Chaos Emerald.
This is something he will need to investigate further in the future. But first, he has to return Blaze the Cat and Silver the Hedgehog back home.
Authors Note:
Hi, hope you are enjoying this fic. First chapter. Yeah boii!
Well, I haven't seen a fic where Shadow lives in the future and find Silver and Blaze. So I hope you are enjoying this as I am whilst writing it.
Remember to review. And critique. They are a great motivator you know :)
You know you want to :P
Until the next chapter, cya!
Pazzy x