Prologue
Where am I? Nothing is like it is used to be. Was the things before this... Just dreams?
Shadow, created as the ultimate life form opened his eyes for the first time.
He saw the contours of a man through thick glass.
"Where.. am I", he tried to speak loudly so the man could hear him through the glass, but all he got out of his mouth was just a quiet whisper.
"Don´t move Shadow, we don´t know if your muscles can handle that pressure yet", the man told him when Shadow punched the glass to break free.
My name is Shadow. And I am on Space Colony Ark, (and how do I know this?").
"What, is this all, about", Shadow pushed and punched the glass tube in anger. Anger of being trapped in this small space. "You better tell me whats going on!".
But I already know what is going on. My name is Shadow, I am on Space Colony Ark and I am designed to be the ultimate creature. The man is Professor Gerald Robotnik and he has a daughter who´s name is Maria.
He said my muscles can´t handle the pressure. I can feel the power flow through my thrusts his fist against the thick glass with all his power.
Gerald said something from the other side, but shadow did not catch what he said. I shall go back!
Shadow kept punching the glass with all his strengths, and on the fourth try Shadow broke out of his prison.
Shadow walked up to Gerald threateningly smiling. "Now tell me what this is all about Professor, I don´t want to…" Shadow stopped his movement. An exhaustion swept over him like a hot shower. It felt like his head was on fire, and the world blurred before his eyes. Shadow the hedgehog fell down on his knees and fainted.
1.
Shadows condition when he broke out of his prison was stable, but he was still weak. You
can compare it to a human who woke up after a coma. His overexertion made a blood vein crack in his forehead just over the eye. That was going to hurt for a long time.
He woke up 4 hours later.
"Welcome back, Shadow", said Gerald and Shadow noticed some concern in his eyes.
"I hope you feel better now Shadow, because you were in a quite bad shape".
They were in the same lab as before, but this time he was in a bed. Shadow didn´t speak.
"I guess you are pretty confused, and I can´t blame you. You have got some basic memories that are going to get helpful. Sadly we can´t give you the opportunity to learn everything by yourself."
Shadow stayed quiet, with a emotion that he would describe as surrender. I can´t fight this, not right now. I need to take an opportunity when I am left alone.
"I am willing to cooperate" shadow said. "But you can´t treat me as an experiment."
"Nobody said you was an experiment Shadow." He replied. "I rather think you are ignorant and suspicious for no reason. I did not do anything to harm you, and I have no plans of trapping you in a cage like a lab rat. You are Shadow the hedgehog, the ultimate creature, you can do good to the world."
That is just romantic thrash, but I better play along if I want to escape.
"Well, I guess you are right. What do you want me to do?"
"Excellent!" Gerald replied happily. "We can start of by…".
2.
It took two hours to test him. Everything from his IQ to muscle strength.
When they was done Gerald told him to get some sleep. He told Shadow to wait in a long corridor for his daughter, to show him the way to his room.
Shadow did not wait for long, one minute after he exit the lab Maria appeared.
"Hi there!" a girl moved towards him through the corridor. "My name is Maria".
"I am Shadow the hedgehog" he replied.
"Well follow me Shadow". The corridors was long and repetitive, like the corridors in a hospital.
"Do you know why I was created, I am quite curious if you can´t tell already".
"I don´t really know much" see said. "Dad won´t give me much information, I don´t really know why", she told him as they walked through the corridors.
"He made an agreement" she continued. "With another scientist i think, he helped him creating you for the price of 7 chaos emeralds."
"Okay I see"
"It must be horrible not knowing who you are, I am really sorry that you could not get a normal childhood like everyone else". And she meant it. Some people you meet in life, you can tell they are good humans, only after one minute you can tell they are kind and loving. And you can tell they want good for people. Shadow felt something when he saw the honest sympathy in her eyes. Maybe she was remembering her own childhood? When she learned ride a bike as a five year old, or maybye how happy she was when she finally learned how to read. Everything that Shadow couldn't experience.
"Well I guess I do not not know any other kinds of life than this one, so I will do this life.
"What do you mean with this life?" she asked. "Do you have memories from other lifes?"
Shadow thought so. Hadn´t he memories of another place? (It was really DARK or BRIGHT no it was not it was really NICE ACTUALLY lots of torment and suffering I THINK I THINK WHY CAN`T I THINK!).
"I don´t know… I can´t remember".
"And life keeps on being a mystery." She replied. Maybe that is how it should be.
Why can´t I remember anything! Only a few hours ago I wanted to get out of here, but I can´t remember why. Something must have made me want to go back. But what? If this is the real world where was I before? I have no cause for escaping if this really is the real world.
"We are here,this is your room". The room was not that fancy, just a bed, a shelf and a desk with some pencils and papers.
"I hope we can meet again tomorrow Shadow, you seem like a nice guy."
"Thanks Maria, you are more understanding than your father, and I like that" Shadow did a thumbs up.
"Thank you Shadow." She replied with a smile. "See you tomorrow".
The next morning Shadow did not even know that he ever wanted to escape.
3.
From Shadow the hedgehogs diary: 2th July 1955 .
I started this diary of a suggestion from Maria. She is doing this as well and thought I could have use for it too. She said write down your thoughts, that way you can sometimes find the answers to the questions you always knew nobody could answer. I don´t exactly know what she means, but I guess I can give it a shot.
Today me and Maria watched the movie Psycho, apparently at was supposed to be scary but did not feel anything. Maria however was really frightened afterwards. I really do not know why. I have never felt anything like the fear she describes. Maybe I can´t even feel fear in the first place.
An everyday living has settled here on the ark, a regular day i practice combat a few hours a day and I usually hang out with Maria in my freetime.
But I still have this confusion. I do not know what my purpose in this life is. I can maybe get some knowledge about my purpose as time goes on, but I am so confused. Really confused.
Shadow had a nightmare the same night
Shadow was outside of Maria´s room. Shadow knocked on the door, and walked in.
"Hello Maria", he said. She sat at her desk drawing something on a paper.
Suddenly Shadow felt really uncomfortable. He did not want to stay in the room, Maria didn´t notice him at all.
Something was watching him. Shadow turned around just to see a man stand behind him. He was a soldier with a grey uniform. Shadows blood turned to ice, he could not move. The soldier walked up to Maria.
"Maria!" Shadow screamed, but she didn´t notice. The soldier walked up to her and shot her in the head. She didn´t fall of her chair, Maria turned her destroyed face towards Shadow. It was blood everywhere.
"This is life Shadow" she said. "Death and pain is all". Shadow stood rooted on the spot as the soldier and Maria kissed, the soldiers uniform got covered in blood. She dropped her drawing at the floor, it pictured Maria, laying on a bed of roses with closed eyes and the text ; you can not stop fate Shadow the hedgehog.
4.
1 month later.
"Happy birthday Maria!"
She turned around in surprise, to see Shadow with a cake in his hand.
"Oh thank you so much Shadow!" She looked really surprised but also really happy.
"How did you know it was my birthday?" she asked as he handed her the present.
"I saw it in the calendar at Geralds office a while ago" he answered with a smile on his face.
"Lets go and eat this somewhere, it looks delicious"
"We have to go to the kitchen and get something to drink as well, lets go"
They went to the kitchen and made some tea, then they sat down and ate the cake.
"When do you think we can go and visit Earth?" Shadow asked.
"I don´t know know Shadow, dad told me a while ago that we were going to go to earth on my birthday, but he seems to have forgot." Then a strange moment appeared, it felt like multiple lines of electric energy was pointed towards Shadow. And he realised he has to comfort her. Say something that would cheer her up. But Shadow had no idea what to say or do.
"Your dad should pay more attention to you." Why did I say that? I was going to make her feel better not being a smartass.
"Well you know how dad is, he has his head full with all the scientific research he does all the time."
"Yes but don´t you think you should tell him?"
"Tell him what?"
"Tell him that you want to do things, like visiting Earth for example, he can take a month off from his research and take us to Earth. I bet he would like it aswell.
Maria seemed insecure about the idea. I think she know she deserves more, but don´t want to admit it to herself. Is she ever going to realise that she has a voice? A voice that makes people want to listen to her. A voice that makes people happy... Why is she the one that don´t live in a castle. Why isn´t she the one with an entire kingdom at her command, Maria is the only one that deserves those things.
"I don´t think…"
"Listen to me Maria, I don´t know who you think you are but you are my friend. Please do yourself a favor and talk to the professor, I am sure he will understand. You are his daughter"
Maria had eaten up her piece of the cake. She seemed thoughtful.
"You are probably right. I am going to go and ask him." She smiled. "Thanks Shadow.
"No problem Maria. Friends help eachother. That´s why friends exist."
And Maria that has less than two days left to live, walked up to him and gave him a friendly hug.
5.
Gerald told Shadow to go to go to his lab the following day.
"Shadow we have something to talk about".
"About what? What´s the matter professor?"
"There is something you need to know, about Project Shadow.", Gerald said. When I started the project, everyone thought it was never going to succeed. Since nobody thought I was going to succeed, the government on Earth did not consider me as a threat. But somehow information has leaked out and the government have got more information about the project. I do not exactly know how much they know but they consider us as a big threat to them."
"We are a big threat? I thought this was legal, is this not legal?"
"Not completely. You see, on Earth science develop slowly because if wrong people get their hands on wrong technology it can have devastating consequenses. To avoid that the government doesn´t allow some changes to happen, changes that actually are necessary".
We are a big threat to Earth he said. He was going to bring Maria and I down there but it seems that he forgot. We can´t do it because we are a threat, AND HE KNEW THAT!
"Shadow?" For a moment nobody sat in the chair Shadow sat in just a second ago. Gerald felt sudden pain in his neck when Shadow kicked him from the back. It was so surprising he didn´t even scream.
"How long have you knew this!"
"I have known for a long time that this could happen" Gerald said through the pain. "But I had no idea, it would happen this. Soon"
"We are going to get attacked right?"
"Probably, but I don´t know when maybe just in a few hours" Gerald had never seen Shadow this angry before, He feels darker, he has always been black but oh god now he is DARK!
"Shadow wait!"
Shadow ran of to find Maria.
6.
Shadow found Maria in her room. He told her about what Gerald said earlier.
Maria sat down on her bed as Shadow was speaking. When he was done he saw tears in her eyes.
"It´s okay Maria" he said even though he knew as well as she that it wasn´t
"No it is probably not okay, Shadow" she said as she dried her tears. "Dad didn´t want this to happen, please don´t say it was his fault.
Shadow was surprised, he had always trusted Gerald and what he said and did, but Maria trusted Gerald with her life. Maybe I should have done that myself? What if he could come up with a solution? No. From now on I shall not trust anyone but Maria! Shadow laid his arms around her back. Maria laid her arms around his shoulders, and they stayed like that for a while. Shadow felt her body heat and felt a strange calm. For the moment everything was allright. It felt like her love was physically transferred into his heart. The love from the embrace would always stay in Shadows heart, like a lonely star in the hearth that was going to get filled with so much hate and pain. The light of hope.
"We have to go now" she said
7.
They went to the research lab, Gerald was not there anymore. He is probably looking for Maria, Shadow thought. There was a big panoramic window across the wall. You could see two spaceships moving towards them, they had the G.U.N logo on the side.
"You have to trust me Shadow" she said.
"Of course Maria I will always trust you".
"You have to enter that tube over there".
Shadow entered the tube, it was an emergency tube. But was she not going with him? Maria hold a leaver.
"Maria!"
"I beg you Shadow, please do it for me, for all the people who are living on that planet".
The G.U.N soldiers had entered the Ark, Shadow heard a loud explosion the sound of men who spread around the place, searching for him. Then things happened really fast.
They heard a loud explosion as the soldiers blew up the door.
"Hey girl, let go of that leaver" One of them shouted.
"Adios, Shadow the Hedgehog". Maria pulled the leaver.
"Stop!" The same soldier shouted and fired his gun.
The last thing shadow saw was Maria falling down to the floor. The next moment he was gone. He saw the Ark above him as he fell down to Earth.
I trust you Maria, I trust you.