This is a oneshot trade for Sister of the Pharoah. In return, she wrote a cute oneshot about Shadow and my character Azure together.
The basic premise was a Sonic Free Riders story in which Shadow gets injured and Luna (SotP's character) takes his place. However, since I remembered that the entire focus of SFR is the team of three, they wouldn't technically be allowed to race, so I changed a few things around as SotP provided additional info.
Luna belongs to Sister of the Pharoah. Sonic belongs to SEGA.
Luna kicked the dirt in anger and frustration. Her fists were balled tightly and her Extreme Gear was placed against the wall where it would be safe from her rage and fury. The two racers she entered the preliminary races with abandoned her after she took off and left them behind during the race, which they ended up losing so none of them even made it into the World Grand Prix.
There was so much riding on her getting into the competition and she couldn't give up now. Eggman had stolen something very important from her home and a lot of people were depending on her to get it back. To go back home empty-handed without even trying would be a disgrace! Her frustration reaching it's peak, she drove her shoe right into the wall her gear lay propped up against, only to quickly pull back.
"Ow, ow, ow!" she hissed, grabbing her foot in pain, hopping on the other to keep her balance.
She could hear the crowd of spectators gathering in the distance as the opening ceremonies for the Grand Prix began. Omochao's voice echoed from the speakers arranged all through the city. Luna sighed and pulled her gear into her arms. Might as well catch the opening ceremonies, she thought. She managed to push and shove her way through the bustling crowd to get close enough for a good view. She recognized the three teams on stage: Team Sonic, Team Rose and the Babylon Rogues, all teams that had competed previously.
"Huh? By my count we're one team short!" Omochao exclaimed, looking around in confusion. He hovered back and forth on the stage, scanning the crowd. "Aha!" he shouted, pointing in the distance, "There they are! Shadow and Rouge… Which means our missing racers were Team Dark!"
"Oh would you please pipe down! That squeaky voice of yours is giving me a headache and I don't race well when I have a headache. We just came here to collect the cash prize. Until the first race starts, we're off the clock, darling. And do you have to hover so close to me? That propeller of yours is making this awful squeaking noise!" Rouge exclaimed as she and Shadow joined the other teams on the stage.
"The opening ceremonies started 15 minutes ago! As participants, you're required to attend!" argued Omochao.
"I have no interest in these formalities," muttered Shadow. "We're here to race, that's it. And I assure you, we'll be the ones to win."
"Wait a minute, there's only two of you. Where's your third teammate?" Omochao asked.
"Oh don't you worry your shiny little head about that, the two of us can handle this just fine on our own."
"But that's not the point! You can't compete if there's only two of you!" Omochao protested.
"Think of it as an advantage for the other teams. They'll need it," said Shadow.
"Rules are rules. If you don't have three teammates, I'll have no choice but to disqualify you," he warned.
"Ugh fine," Rouge conceded. She scanned the crowd and her eyes landed on Luna and her gear. "You there! Yes, you!" she confirmed after Luna shot her a look of confusion while pointing at herself to see if Rouge was actually addressing her. "You know how to handle that board?"
"Sure do!" Luna replied.
"Good, any objections Shadow?" Rouge asked.
"As long as she doesn't get in my way," Shadow responded.
"So, there you have it. A team of 3! We done here?" Rouge asked, as Luna joined them on the stage.
"Well, I guess that settles everything then…" started Omochao. "So, let's continue with the ceremonies. First up, we have Team Sonic against Team Rose and after that Team Dark will face the Babylon Rogues!"
"What the hell was that?" shouted Rouge.
"What? We won the race, didn't we?" Luna shouted back.
"Barely! I'm not about to lose that cash prize because you want to be the star of the show!"
"Enough! Both of you, cool off!" Shadow ordered, directing them to opposite ends of the locker room.
"Get your act together, kid because there's a huge line of racers just waiting to take your place!" Rouge shouted, leaving, slamming the locker room door shut as she left.
"You can't just rush off into the race. This is a team competition. We get more points if we cross the finish line together," said Shadow. "I don't know what's going on in your head when we're racing but you need to get it together."
"I'm sorry! I really am! I just… I really need to stay in this competition," she sighed.
"Why?" Shadow asked.
Luna remained silent for a moment before sighing in defeat. It wouldn't hurt to divulge her reason for entering to Shadow, would it? "Eggman stole something very important from my home and I came to get it back. Best I can tell, it's somewhere in the Final Factory zone and I know that's one of race tracks for later in the competition."
"What exactly did he take?"
"I-I can't say. But it's very important to my home that I get it back or a lot of innocent people are going to get hurt. Please, I need to stay in this competition long enough to get back what Eggman took from us. Please," she begged.
"Eggman hasn't done anything to spite me yet and I don't know enough about you or this object you claim he's stolen. Rouge and I are only interested in the cash prize, but that could be subject to change. Pick up your slack and start working with us to win races together and I'll consider lending you my aid."
"How would you help me?" Luna asked.
"For starters, more points means we get closer to the cash prize and that will keep Rouge off your back. The more points and races we win, the closer we get to getting what we both want."
"Good point," Luna retorted.
"Search for your artifact on your own time. Come race time, we expect you to be there."
"I will. Thank you Shadow."
"And Team Dark wins with Team Rose coming in close for second. Team Dark gets an extra three hundred points for crossing the finish line together and that puts them neck and neck with Team Sonic!" announced Omochao.
"Well, looks like you got your act together after all, kid. Seems like I won't have to replace you," Rouge remarked as she exited the locker room. Luna glared at Rouge's back as she left, biting her tongue to keep herself from falling for Rouge's verbal war trap.
"How is your search going?" Shadow asked, breaking the silence that followed after Rouge left.
"I didn't think you'd care."
"I don't, just making small talk. Besides, as per our agreement, since you've been doing well with the races, I figured you could use some help."
"But you said you weren't interested in helping me. I was under the impression you didn't believe me."
"I had no reason to and I had no reason not to. Besides, I did some research into it on my own. I hacked into Eggman's system and discovered that he came into the possession of a unique power source recently. And knowing the Doctor, he likely came into it illegally."
"He did," Luna confirmed.
"I've tracked the power source and Eggman's placed it in the center of his factory nearby. It's powering the entire facility."
"So what's the problem?"
"Security. Eggman's got robots patrolling every inch of that factory."
"So how are we supposed to get to it?" Luna asked, growing frustrated.
"We're in luck. There's one evening when the factory will be completely free of guards," Shadow explained.
"When?"
"The next race. The final race is a free for all between all four teams and it's taking place in the Final Factory," said Shadow, pulling up holographic blueprints of the factory.
"Look, the race course cuts right through the center of the factory. But the power source is stationed way above the course," Luna said, tracing her finger across the blueprints.
"Rouge's gear might be able to get you up high enough. But we'll need to convince her to help."
"Easy, she can have my share of the prize money and she gets to stick one to Eggman. What more could she want?"
"You know Rouge pretty well," Shadow chuckled.
"It doesn't take that long to figure out what's most important to her."
"Well, we only have one shot at getting that power source. Let's make it count."
If it was a little short and unfulfilling, remember that this was a oneshot. It's Shadowxoc, but I like to keep Shadow in character. So that pretty much means no real romantic interactions.
Hope you like it, Sister of the Pharoah!