Author's Notes: Hey guys and gals, the Omniarch is back once again with another story for you all. This one is going to be my first attempt at a Sonic the Hedgehog fic, but with Shadow as the main focus and character of the story. First off, let me say this right off the bat; this will be a Shadow and Maria romance story and Maria will NOT be turned into a hedgehog at any point… so cross-species relations will abound my friends.
If this kind of relationship disturbs any of you in any way, then simply don't read this story plain and simple; I stand firmly by the belief love between a human and an anthropomorphic hedgehog is not and shall never be bestiality… simply a relationship between two equally intelligent, sentient, and emotional beings from different species. To those that try to flame this story with prejudiced comments, don't waste your time; I ain't got no shits to give. Simply move on with your story perusing if this one doesn't meet your fancy.
Now, that being said, Maria will not stay the defenseless human girl you might remember her as; I've got some, shall we say… big changes in mind for her that have nothing to do with her being changed into a hedgehog, but make no mistake she'll be in the same league power-wise as this universe's Shadow. Also, as you all might already know; I'm a godlike character writer and this just so happens to be the story where I create the strongest version of Shadow and other various Sonic characters and villains throughout the Omni-Omniverse lol. I call him Shadow IB, for reasons that might not make a whole lot of sense too many people. Basically, he'll undergo an ascendency to infinity and countless aleph numbers beyond lol.
Now, if you're all up for a story depicting a Godlike Shadow, or a Doctor Eggman with an absolute IQ and Omni-Fabricating capabilities, or a Sonic who can run boundlessly faster than Trans-Time Velocity; then this is the story for you. Low and Behold, the first installment of the series; my book one and hopefully decent attempt at a Sonic story. Rest assured, while this story will take place in the past on the Space Colony Ark Sonic the rest of the gang will eventually come into the picture as well.
This universe will also be a blend of multiple continuities including Sonic Colors, 2006, Unleashed, and others… with a completely AU spin on all of them. It will also be set in a Sonic X universe and the Space Colony Ark will be above Christopher Thorndyke's world. That's right, all Chris haters have been officially warned; stay away from this story because frankly I don't hate his character at all by any stretch of the imagination. Omniarch is now officially signing in.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, and I don't make any profits from this story whatsoever.
Shadow the Hedgehog IB: Book One- A Second Chance
Chapter One: Memoirs of the Black Hedgehog and a Visit from an Entity of Unimaginable Power
Mobius was a lot like the Planet Earth, except greener and inhabited not by humans, but by talking, anthropomorphic animals. The beings that dwelled here were once part of the same world as the humans, but due to events unknown; the two worlds diverged from one another and lived entirely separate existences. Until a few years ago, both worlds were blissfully oblivious to the other's existence, until a massive spike in Chaos Energy warped time and space across the Mobian Planet and sent its finest heroes along with the notorious Doctor Eggman to the human world; where Sonic the Hedgehog met a boy who would become a lifelong friend… joining the two worlds together for what seemed the first time in forever.
Yet, they didn't realize until later that Mobians and humans had coexisted before; fifty-years-ago on a massive ark orbiting the Earth from space, two unlikely people from separate races would strike a friendship so deep that the scars of its untimely demise still hurt to this day. Maria Robotnik's death was heartbreaking and tragic to those that knew her best; her grandfather who worked so hard to cure her terminal illness, and the family she left behind on earth. There was one individual however, who mourned her death with more pain than all the rest combined; though he'd very seldom show that side of him and concentrated more on defending the world from evil in her name. This individual was a very special one indeed.
Shadow the Hedgehog was many things, the supposed ultimate lifeform, co-savior of the galaxy from the Metarex, vanquisher of Black Doom and his legion of red and black aliens, and the immortal creation of Professor Gerald Robotnik. He was also known by a few, other less known titles; one of which was the spirit of the Black Wind who protected Molly's people once upon a time, or so he had been told. Shadow reminded himself to visit her grave the next time he set foot in Mobius, but for right now; he was currently on board the now empty Space Colony Ark, having returned to the world Chris and the other humans were from and taking up a position with G.U.N., a testament of his willingness to let the past stay behind him. Working for the very same organization whose soldiers took his Maria from him was in his opinion the ultimate indicator of his intention to keep his promise.
He promised her he wouldn't hold a grudge against humanity, and looking back on it he realized she was right. Most people in the world down there were good, if a bit ambitious or driven by greed or desperation from time to time. Sonic and the other Mobians even came back to visit on occasion; creating a wormhole via the unlimited power of the Chaos Emeralds and visiting their friends on earth.
They'd been present to help deal with Black Doom and his Black Arms; Sonic meeting Shadow directly in Westopolis right from the start. That journey of self-rediscovery had resulted in his restored memories, even the ones that had been tampered with like him forgetting his real promise to Maria and trying to exact vengeance on her behalf. If it hadn't been for Chris, he didn't know what he would've done. That boy was an okay kid in the end; Shadow owed him a debt of gratitude for reminding him of his true promise. He even visited the now adult Thorndyke on occasion; though the young man had his own life and was now married to a blonde girl in a wheelchair who looked remarkably like Shadow's dead best friend.
Shadow had taken up residence in Maria's old room, now the only Mobian left on earth; he'd recently been given a vacation from G.U.N., mostly against his own volition. They'd been quite adamant that he get some time off to himself, and he had to admit they'd gone to great lengths to appease and please him. Still, they didn't understand; he was the Ultimate Life Form, he didn't tire or need to rest and he didn't even age.
He barely required sleep or food, unlike that blue hedgehog whose supersonic speeds resulted in a superfast metabolism; Shadow seemed to get most of his strength from Chaos Energy, which he was practically bathed in at most times. He'd even recently become strong enough to use most of his Chaos techniques without the use of a Chaos Emerald or even rings, something that shocked even him when he used Chaos Control to return to the only place in all the universes he could call home.
They didn't understand that he didn't need a vacation; vacation meant time to relax and think back, and thinking back was the last thing he wanted to do. His work as a soldier for G.U.N. may not have been the most memorable job, since they seemed content to give him menial tasks at best, but it kept his mind off his dark and depressing memories. Sitting here in the room of his best friend and secret childhood love, he had entirely too much time to brood and recollect on his happier days; days that brought with them a painful longing. Caught up in bitter remembrance, Shadow felt a tear welling in his crimson eye and for the first time in so many years; did absolutely nothing to stop them from falling. He'd be damned if he showed this kind of weakness to anyone but Maria or maybe Molly, if either were still alive, but here in the very room he and Maria slept together in… he was all alone.
XXXXX
Shadow was in the midst of an intense game of tag with his best friend; intense because he gave her a solid twenty-minute head start and because he hoped to have to search the entire Ark in order to find her. This was perhaps his favorite game to play with her, mainly because whenever he found her; she would smile, giggle, and kiss him on the cheek. That part was always the best part, though he barely understood why; all he knew for certain was his stomach would flutter, his face would flush as red as his eyes, and he'd feel like he was God himself. Every time she initiated that simple display of affection, he'd feel like he was truly capable of anything; like he truly was the Ultimate Life Form.
His feelings towards her had been changing in recent months, and in all honesty it was beginning to confuse him a little. He knew it was wrong, a Hedgehog should not have felt that way about a human, but it wasn't like he could control how he felt. Even if he could, he wasn't sure he wanted to stop loving her in this way; for the sensations it invoked inside him were beyond indescribable. He'd never had a connection like this with anybody before, and he was so honored that she started to show recent signs of reciprocation. For the first time, he caught himself wishing he could be human; if only to be good enough for her. That girl deserved the man of her dreams and then some.
Maria had started looking healthier and less pale the last couple of months, her face flushed with color every time she gave him her special kiss, and Shadow wondered if maybe his power had something to do with it. Gerald had of course told her of the girl's sickness and that her time may be short if they didn't find a cure, but Shadow didn't allow himself to dwell on that too much. He was convinced they'd find a cure, one way or another, and if they didn't; he'd find he power to cure her himself. After all, he was the immortal creature who was immune to every kind of sickness and disease there was; maybe he could impart some of his strength onto her. Maybe he could even make her immortal like him, so they could play and be together forever; the very thought was enough to fill him with endless excitement, and so he set off to find the now 14-year-old teenaged girl wherever she hid. For now, he was content to just live in the moment with his most special friend; one whom he would deny having feelings for beyond anything strictly platonic.
Shadow and Maria pretty much had the run of the place; they could go anywhere but the core of the Ark itself, and only then because it was dangerous. Skating around on his rocket shoes at a leisurely but still inhuman pace, Shadow decided to check out all the usual places where she hid first and go from there. To his surprise and joy, he heard playful giggling coming from under the bed in her room; hearing her immediately clam up upon sensing his presence in there and unable to refrain from chuckling himself.
Maria always chose the easiest-to-find places to hide, and Shadow had to wonder if she enjoyed what happened when he found her as much as he did. Maybe she was making it easy for him on purpose, so she could give him that kiss. The thought excited him even further against his own volition, and he quickly dove under the bed with practiced ease only to wrap his arms around her slender waist, listening to her infectious giggling. The sound was like that of an angel's, and despite his best efforts he felt as though he could live off just the sound of her voice.
"Looks like you found me again Shadow." She teasingly stated while blowing him a playful raspberry, the two of them snuggling under the bed with nary a source of light around and refusing to budge from the spot they were in. Shadow felt a blush coming on but managed to grin with surprising confidence even though he knew she couldn't properly see it in the dark.
"Only because you make it so easy; if I didn't know any better Maria, I'd say you were losing on purpose just so you could give me my 'reward' faster." Shadow playfully admonished her, not expecting the response that came out of her mouth.
"Oh no, it looks like you figured me out; whatever will I do now? Oh yes, I know." She whispered in a tone he never heard before, one that set his whole world throbbing with a form of excitement he couldn't identify; one that made him feel extremely nervous and elated at the same time. Before he could brace for impact, she kissed him again, but not on the cheek like usual… this was a full on kiss on the lips. This was the kind of kiss he heard was reserved only for two people in love. He instantly melted and kissed her back with equal force, and for a moment; the entire universe consisted solely of the two of them. For a small eternity, there was no pesky divide between species, no Ultimate Life Form nonsense, and no threat of death to Maria due to some rare illness; there was just the two of them locked in a lover's embrace.
Unfortunately, few eternities ever truly lasted forever, and they eventually pulled apart; albeit hesitantly. Maria for her part didn't feel an ounce of regret in her body at what she had done; the same could not be said for Shadow. She spoke up before he could say anything to deny their feelings for one another. "Listen Shadow, I know you're afraid of what people and grandfather will think, but I don't care. Our feelings toward one another have changed, and there's no sense in us pretending otherwise. I know you don't think people can see us the way we see each other, but time has a way of sweeping old prejudices aside." She sagely told him. Gone was the innocent little girl who couldn't have cared less about her inherent Robotnik smarts, and in her place was an astoundingly intelligent young woman who was wise far beyond her years. Yep, she was definitely the Professor's granddaughter alright.
"Maria I… want us to be together more than anything, but I think you give people too much credit. I'm a hedgehog, and you're a person; there can never be a future between us. Look at us, our biology isn't even compatible; we wouldn't be able to have kids or anything! Can't you see we're better off just being friends?" Shadow insistently asked her, feeling his heart smash to pieces when he sensed her crying.
"I think you give people too little credit; just talk to grandfather about it okay. How mad can he be?" She implored him, watching as her signature pleading face clashed with his steadfast determination to not upset the status quo or invoke the wrath of any prejudicial demons.
"He wouldn't understand Maria, to tell you the truth; I don't even know why I feel this way about you. I wish so badly to be human sometimes, but the truth is I'm just no good for you. I'm just a lab experiment, but you're a vibrant, beautiful human girl with a heart of purest gold. You can do so much better than me, and I think your grandfather will agree. He'll never be okay with this." Shadow was scared, and Maria could understand that to a point. He honestly didn't believe he was good enough for her, but the fact was… who else could really compete? Inside his genetic code could be the key to saving her life; if she was to become immortal like him… she wanted to be by his side for eternity. How could she not love him? He'd been her best friend for years, and had been there for her every single second of every day. They slept every night together and exchanged their favorite goodnights every time without fail.
"Shadow, you… are a complete idiot. You don't even realize I couldn't care less about the difference in our biology. I love you because of your innate kindness and caring personality; you're always there for me, you always listen and try to understand. I've never had a friend like you before, and I never will again. I'm hoping for the best where your potential ability to cure me is concerned, but in case everything goes wrong and my time in this world remains limited; I want to spend every waking moment by your side.
I'm going to live my life with the being I love most in the entire universe, and I'm going to kiss you like I did every time you win at hide and seek or just because. I'm not going to worry about how much time I have left, because whether I die tomorrow or in fifty-years; at least I will have lived my life without regret over not telling the most important person in my life how much he truly means to me! I won't let you ever believe you're unworthy enough to be loved, you're truly one of a kind Shadow; if anything, I'm the one who isn't worthy of you." Maria confessed to him with such adoration and reverence that the Ultimate Life Form knew she meant every single Goddamn word.
"I do love you Maria… be it my damnation, I love you more than anything and everything!" Shadow admitted to her in response; the both of them tearing up as they cuddled some more under the bed, neither one of them having the slightest inclination to get out from under it just yet.
"Just promise me you'll tell grandfather about all this as soon as possible. I need you to promise me Shadow." Maria told him with uncharacteristic intensity and seriousness in her voice, and Shadow was unable to deny her anything.
"Alright, I promise." He swore the oath, now knowing he couldn't back out. The one thing he could never do was break a promise, especially not to Maria. She giggled at his predicament, knowing that she effectively had him right where she wanted him; something told her Shadow was about to get the shock of a lifetime, that her grandfather wasn't only going to be understanding of their new dynamic… he was going to encourage it. She'd seen him on more than one occasion, nodding at her in approval after she kissed her friend during an especially long game of hide-and-go-seek-tag. Shadow seriously gave the man too little credit, and she giggled inwardly at the shock her best friend was about to receive when he talked to her grandfather tomorrow.
She crawled out from under her bed as the black and red Hedgehog with captivating, intense crimson eyes appeared out the other side of it. "Well, I suppose we should probably get in bed for the night then." Maria yawned with an exaggerated stretching of her arms, accentuating her subtle womanly curves as Shadow felt a blush coming on. Maria was definitely not a little kid anymore, and being on the cusp of adulthood made it harder for him to reject her obvious displays of affection. He watched her crawl into her bed and slide under the covers; having already gotten on her pajamas while waiting for him to come find her.
Shadow hesitated for only a second when Maria patted the spot next to her for him to join her; then swiftly got under the covers with her. Their new dynamic made him see their sleeping together in a whole new light. They were around the same age, his creation taking place the same year as her birth; so it wasn't a question of age for him… it was a question of cross-species relations being a source of utmost taboo in human society.
The last thing he wanted was for people to start judging Molly or for prejudiced creeps to attack them simply because she dared to love another species; it also didn't help that he constantly felt like she could do so much better. If only he was human, or she was a Mobian; then perhaps it would have been possible. Not that he gave a shit if she was human or not, his only concern was what the rest of the world would think when the two of them decided to journey down there together at long last. He envied her for not caring what other people thought, and he applauded her for her ability to see the best in people; he only wished he could be as optimistic about it all as she was.
"Together forever, never apart," Shadow started automatically, just as he did every time they bade goodnight to each other in their special way.
Maria giggled as she whispered back in response, "Shadow and Maria love each other with all their hearts." With that out of the way, the two best friends snuggled ever closer and within moments they were out like a light. As Shadow fell into the realm of Morpheus, he couldn't help but wonder if he was better off adopting Maria's indifferent attitude towards their relationship and all the heat it would attract. All and all though, he knew they'd be okay in the end; despite their heated discussion regarding their feelings… he knew they could never stay mad or frustrated with each other. If he had known then what was going to happen three-years later; he would've adopted a very different attitude towards it all. He would've loved Maria with all his heart despite everything and despite himself, but it was too late for all that now, wasn't it?
XXXXX
Looking back on that day, Shadow couldn't help but let his past haunt him; he knew he swore he would put his past behind him and he did for the most part. Yet, for some reason… memories of Maria kept plaguing and haunting his every waking thought. She even haunted his dreams whenever he decided to power-down and sleep for a change. He was supposed to be the Ultimate Life Form, yet he couldn't protect the one person he professed to love more than life itself. He constantly wished now that he had given Maria the relationship she sought back then, if only to spare himself the agony of his greatest regret. He no longer cared that they were different species, he didn't care about any of that anymore; if he could go back in time and do things differently he would… but it was impossible.
Even the power of the Chaos Emeralds had their limits, because while they granted the user some unlimited powers; they were not omnipotent in every sense and aspect. They were a gift from the Gods, but they did not grant one true Godhood. Maria was gone, and no amount of Chaos Warping was going to change that. The worst part was, Shadow could never die; lord knows he'd 'died' multiple times in the past, such as when he defeated the Biolizard for the final time or stopped time around the exploding Planet eggs before they could kill everyone aboard Tails and Eggman's ships.
But he always healed, always found a way to come back; no matter how reckless he got out of some subconscious effort to reunite with Maria the hard way while dying a hero for her… he never had the pleasure of experiencing death's sweet release. He was immortal, or as close to immortal as any organic lifeform could ever be. Only in recent years did he realize the implications of his immortality; he would linger one while others, both human and Mobian alike… died of old age. Even his arch rival in speed Sonic the Hedgehog did not have that same luxury; he would grow slow with old age, sluggish as the decay of time caught up to him… but Shadow would never slow down, never tire, never grow older or die to be with the one he loved.
For the first time, he hated his own perpetuated existence; losing Maria had been bad enough, but never being able to join her in the afterlife was almost worse. Despite all the wishing in the world being good for nothing, he wanted more than anything to get a second chance to be with her. He couldn't help but wonder if the Professor had been right, if he would've imparted his genetics and immortality onto her had he given her the romantic relationship she so desperately craved.
The thought that he could have saved her life and made her an immortal like him was more than he could stand. And on top of that, she had been right about her grandfather; he wasn't just understanding of the new relationship between his granddaughter and his experiment… he had all but encouraged Shadow to go for it. The black Hedgehog was ashamed to this day to admit he'd been too much of a coward to love Maria as he so desperately wanted to; it was the biggest regret he had in his entire life.
Some insane part of him wondered if there was a power out there that made time travel possible; he recalled Professor Gerald once explaining something called the Space-Time Barrier and the velocity needed to break it. Shadow shuddered at the thought, he doubted even his Hyper Shadic fusion form with Sonic would be quite so fast. He could just imagine Nazo now, cackling maniacally at his misfortune and proclaiming something about never reaching a level of infinity.
A memory from that confrontation sparked in Shadow's mind and caused his eyes to widen; perhaps there was a way for him to break the time barrier after all. He recalled Nazo referring to the Master Emerald as a source of infinite Chaos Energy; the only problem was it was next to impossible for any living being or machine to channel all of its strength at once. Any attempts to do so by anyone in the past resulted in the giant gem shattering into thousands of pieces under the absolute weight of its own manifested power.
The physical gem itself wasn't impervious enough to withstand the full strength of the Chaos Energy contained within; which meant that Shadow would have to devise a matrix stable enough to harness its full power without it breaking. Technology that advanced didn't exist anywhere in the universe; even a genius like Doctor Eggman admitted that the universe had its own set of cycles and a natural order to everything. Channeling the full power of the Master Emerald could very easily disturb that order in all the worst ways. Shadow had a vivid image of Maria hating him for going to such lengths in order to see her again, and the crazy idea he had just gotten immediately fell flat.
Still, perhaps he could get fast enough to break the time barrier the old fashioned way, by training with his Chaos Energy day in and day out. The thing about Chaos Energy was those who used it grew just a little bit stronger with it every time they did so. Even just a few short years ago, Shadow would never have been powerful enough to achieve Chaos Control without any Chaos Emeralds whatsoever; now he could do it without almost as easily as he could with three of the Emeralds in his possession.
Surely one didn't have to possess absolute amounts of it in order to break the time barrier, right? If he could just go back in time and live those last few years with Maria once again; if he could just find a way to save her from that soldier who claimed her life. That was all he wanted, and he would do almost anything to get this one thing.
Hadn't he suffered and done enough? Did he truly owe the world anything anymore? Just once, hadn't he earned the right to think about his own happiness? Finding his resolve and a new purpose in life, Shadow decided to dedicate all of his spare time to improving his natural affinity with Chaos Energy; no matter what it took, he'd find a way to go back in time and make the one different decision that would change his and hopefully Maria's life forever. There were of course, decisions to weigh in; like the fact that he would be effectively resurrecting every single enemy he and Sonic's crew alike ever beat. But, so long as he had Maria by his side; he felt like he could do anything, and he would find a way to beat them all again when the time came.
Going over the decision and weighing the pros and con in his head, Shadow became intensely aware of another presence suddenly appearing on board the once singularly occupied Ark. He was immediately on guard given the ungodly amounts of Chaos energy this presence literally radiated, and could sense it coming all the way from the shrine-like core of the Space Colony Ark, where Shadow first fought the Biolizard. 'This can't be a coincidence; this presence shows up right as I'm contemplating the idea to go back in time. Something is not right.' Shadow inwardly pondered, before deciding he should at least investigate the source of the disturbance. "Chaos Control," Shadow shouted with his arm held straight up over his head, and in a brilliant green flash he disappeared to examine the source of the invading presence in his home.
XXXXX
Rematerializing in a sphere of light and space-time displacement, Shadow gazed around the core to and fro for any signs of an attack, and when none came he reluctantly eased into a semblance of comfort. A good fight would've proved a welcome distraction for him at this point, and would've pushed his limits to new heights if what he sensed from the presence was any indicator; as it was, the core looked undisturbed and completely the same, untouched by time and the remains of the Biolizard lying at the bottom of the shrine.
It was as Shadow ran up the shrine stairs to investigate further that he saw he wasn't alone aboard the ark. The hedgehog would have been lying if he said he hadn't seen strange sights in his life, but seeing a man sitting cross-legged right in the very heart of the core and popping some manner of confectionary into his mouth without a care in the world was not what the Ultimate Lifeform was expecting. The man himself was an oddity, the fact that he was sitting here all alone and completely unconcerned by Shadow's presence made the crimson-eyed Mobian pause in confusion; add to that the person's choice of attire and appearance and you had a supremely enigmatic individual.
The man wore a fez on his head of all things, along with a pink and purple polka dotted bowtie that just had to be horribly out of fashion; there was no way it couldn't be, the Ultimate Lifeform knew that much at least. Even by Shadow's nonhuman standards… this man gave off an aura of supreme dottiness. Other than that, the man had an unzipped hoodie overtop of a grey tee-shirt, revealing what appeared to be a rune of some kind embellished on the chest of it. It was shaped like an infinity symbol with sharp edges on all four corners instead of a full circle, and black pants with a gold trim.
"Mm, my word, nothing in the Omni-Omniverse beats earth cuisine; though perhaps I'm just a tad biased. Would you like to join me for some Turkish delight or are you going to stand there gawking at me all day?" The man suddenly asked him in a not unfriendly voice, though Shadow was still confused and still on guard.
"Who are you?" He demanded once he finally got over his shock; not really in the mood for company or games right now and not exactly sure how the man got on board the Ark. Shadow immediately suspected the use of Chaos Control, but no human had ever been able to harness Chaos Energy before; so this was definitely new territory for him. Despite his hostile tone, Shadow couldn't keep the curiosity fully out of his voice; he was intrigued to say the least, and the man certainly seemed to pose no immediate threat.
The man seemed to ponder that question as though it weren't easy to answer, and Shadow wondered if he even remembered who he was before he clearly lost his mind; though he didn't say that out loud, he wasn't quite that tactless just yet. "Ah, so many questions you could've opened up with; like how I am here or why, why I'm eating Turkish delight, or who on God's green earth wears a bowtie and a fez in today's world? And you go for the most boring query of the lot, man… what am I to do with one so incredibly dull?" The man clapped jovially as though Shadow's supposed dullness was something he was most pleased to address.
Shadow wanted to say something snarky in response, but held his tongue; unlike Sonic, he had an iron grip on his emotions and the classic foot-in-mouth syndrome. He would not be baited into trading words with a man who didn't even tell him his name, nor would he impatiently tap his foot while waiting for the man to reply. In short, Shadow refused to let the man see that he got to him; even if only the tiniest bit.
"Oh, that's right… you asked me a question didn't you? I suppose you could call me Thomas or Tom, though I've been called many other, equally well suited names in the past; like the oncoming storm, the cat in the hat who knows a lot, or 'hey you, get out of this Omniverse,' though I think that last one is more of a statement than a name." the man replied with a maddening grin.
'Yep, its official… this guy is crazier than a shithouse rat, and I don't mean the Mobian kind.' Shadow thought with a sigh of resignation, hating that he would have to subject himself to a conversation with this nutty madman. "Right… I think I'll stick with Thomas." He finally said aloud, albeit hesitantly. The man suddenly looked stricken with embarrassment and a hint of… apprehension.
"Oh no, I've made a bad first impression on you didn't I? Rena's gonna kill me for tarnishing my already questionable sanity and reputation as one with all his faculties sorted out; honestly, can I help it if I'm an epitome of eccentricities. Ooh, I like that… epitome of eccentricities, that's fun to say! I bloody love alliterations!" He suddenly grew manic with excitement again, his momentary fear of invoking this mysterious Rena's wrath all but forgotten for the time being. Shadow quirked an eyebrow in mild surprise when the man's whole demeanor seemed to change from silly to dead serious in a heartbeat, his kaleidoscopic eyes glowing with an otherworldly intensity and making the Ultimate Lifeform shiver. Clearly, there was more to this crazy person than met the eye.
"Sorry about that, I tend to get all giddy and excited when I set foot in a new world; so I did something very childish and posh to make a bad first impression. Now, since we've more or less gotten my introduction out of the way; why don't you tell me your name? And, not to sound like a broken record but I must reiterate my question from before since you didn't answer; call me OCD if you want but would you like some Turkish delight?" The man called Thomas offered him again, and Shadow shrugged. He was already sitting in the Ark's core with the mayor of crazy town, so why the hell not?
He took a piece of powdered sugar coated candy from the proffered bag of them and popped one into his mouth; his eyes widening at the sweet, lemony taste and soft texture of it sticking to his teeth as he chewed it. "That's… pretty good, and my name is Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog." He commented simply, and the man nodded with a gleeful smile.
"Say what you will about the Brits Shadow, but they know their sweets. I always buy in bulk because I like sharing them; it always fills me with a warm glow when I have someone to share these babies with. It's like I'm helping slowly drive away the demons that haunt them one sweet confectionary at a time. It's amazing how much a small and seemingly meaningless gesture of kindness can change a person's life for the better; even if they don't realize it at the time, candy and sweets truly are food for the troubled soul.
Just knowing that somebody cares enough to take time out of their lives to offer you the simplest pleasure, even if they're a total outsider; it's enough to melt even the most stone cold hearts I daresay." Tom told him, his statement surprisingly profound as Shadow couldn't help but take another. He didn't know how the man knew he was a troubled soul or why he was here, but he had to admit it was nice to know someone actually cared enough to help a complete stranger.
"So you came here just to offer me some treats? That's nice and all, but you can't cure a troubled soul with sweets alone." Shadow pointed out logically, causing the man to smirk back at him.
"No, but I bet offering you the solution to your time travel problem could." He suddenly said mysteriously, causing Shadow to bolt with shock.
"How did…" He paused, unable to even finish his sentence aloud before adding. "I never told anyone about that and only just decided to try it today! How could you possibly know of that already when I haven't told anyone," Shadow demanded, not meaning to sound so hostile or freaked out but he was more than a little unnerved that this person had gleaned such insight into his innermost thoughts and desires.
"Oh Shadow, I know more than you mortal sentient minds have any frame of reference for, but that's not important right now! You've considered the consequences of your actions I take it; disrupting causality, resurrecting all of your dead foes, and forcing your friends to realign with the new reality you intend to create to name a few." Thomas responded without really answering how he knew all this, and Shadow shook his head.
"I've considered some, but didn't realize my actions could affect their memories; I was of the opinion that changing the timeline would create an entirely new timeline or something like that." Shadow said back, and to his surprise Thomas nodded with understanding.
"Flawless logic, and in some cases you might've been right, but the laws and mechanics of time travel vary from universe to universe; you need to consider the fact that your choice to go back in time and stop Maria from dying will inevitably affect everyone else. Think about it Shadow, 50 years of… compounded experiences. One different decision, no matter how big or small… impacts everything that follows. Moments upon moments, choices upon choices, new relationships; nothing in your universe would be as it is today and you're the only one who would know what those differences are.
On top of all that, you can't just pop back in time and expect everything to go okay with Maria and the Professor; they're living people with wills of their own who will ask questions and get involved in your private affairs. Telling them everything right off the bat might do more harm than good; so my advice to you would be to ease them into it… slowly." Thomas proceeded to dump a boatload of information Shadow had never considered, before one thing became very clear very quickly.
"Wait… you mean to tell me that despite all of that, you're still willing to help me go through with it? How do I know I can even trust you? You're claiming you have the power to rupture the space-time barrier; something I've long believed to be impossible. The velocity required to break that barrier… its astronomical!" Shadow proclaimed, unable to believe he was even having this conversation with somebody and questioning if he had lost his mind and this Thomas was just a figment of his insane imaginings.
"The speed or light or faster in some continuities, though in universes where the Speed Force is prominent that number can be reduced quite drastically; as it allows speedsters to bend the laws of physics themselves. That's neither here nor there though; I came to this world because I could hear a lonely god crying out for the one type of companionship he craved most. I see a lot of my younger self in you Shadow; before my ascendency to infinity and beyond, I loved and lost a lot of good people too.
I'm here because I want to give you a second chance to get it all right; something that was denied to me for a great many eternities." Thomas told him with such sympathy and compassion in his eyes that Shadow was rendered speechless. What on earth could he say in response to that; to know that someone with the supposed powers of a God could relate to his predicament so much was almost more than he could stand.
"What say you, Shadow the Hedgehog? Will you allow me to help you be with the one you love forever?" Thomas proposed his radical idea once more, and Shadow couldn't help but shed a tear.
"If you're lying, or trying to trick me in some perverse way…" Shadow suddenly warned him, and Thomas held his hands up in a placating manner.
"I know it sounds mad, but I promise you my intentions are pure Shadow, and that I speak the absolute truth." He said, sounding so sure and nakedly sincere that Shadow was unable to doubt him.
"Wait a minute, what if others end up paying for my happiness? What if by saving Maria, I make life miserable for everybody else? I feel like the universe can be really vindictive when one tampers with it on this scale." Shadow asked depressingly, and Thomas snickered.
"That won't be a problem; as long as you find a way to defeat all of your enemies in the new sequencing of events and fulfill whatever design fate has in store for you… you'll be fine. Life will hand you your own situations as it does in this timeline Shadow, but like this timeline… you have a choice as to how you go about facing the obstacles in your path. Having Maria by your side forever, the woman you love more than life itself; true love is always worth the risk Shadow. Take it from a guy who's been there once upon a time, living without love isn't really living at all, it's just sort of existing." Thomas told him with a feral grin, and Shadow responded with a rare smile; his concerns vanishing for the time being.
"I just hope I can find the strength to save her this time around; not only from the G.U.N. soldier who killed her but her disease as well. I couldn't do anything the last time and even armed with my foreknowledge and all my current skills and abilities… I just don't know if that's going to be enough to rewrite history." Shadow admitted; this was probably his biggest concern now. He failed to save Maria the first time around, he couldn't fail again. This had to be the biggest wish-come-true he'd ever imagined. To say Thomas's answering grin was a tad unnerving would have been a vast understatement.
"Oh, did you really think I was sending you back in time with only your foreknowledge and current skills as your weapon? Tsk, tsk, tsk, Shadow; I know you don't really know me but come on… this is still the Ultra-Verse. Now, before we begin the process; there is probably something you should know about me. I'm a tenth-dimensional Entity who wields omnipotence itself in its purest, largest scaled form. I can connect you directly to all the Chaos and Wisp energy in the Omni-Omniverse, and that's just for starters. You know how Nazo said it was impossible to reach a level of infinity where the Chaos Energy is concerned; well, I'm about to make an exception to that rule right here and now.
Shadow, are you ready to undergo a Metapotent deification; I'm going to enhance all of your abilities and various transformations beyond their absolute limits, Omni-Omniversal paradoxes be damned! You'll have all of your skills, abilities, power-upgrades, transformations of both the Chaos variety and others, and an endless abundance of rings of every kind. That's just the gist of what you'll be capable of; your speed in your base form will be absolutely limitless, so long as you run under a speed boost for around ten minutes or so to build the acceleration necessary. You'll be able to do so much more than you could ever imagine, and you will be able to share your absolute powers with anyone you choose; especially Maria if she agrees to it.
You'll have an endless supply of all your useful power-up items that you can summon from your own personal hammer space anytime or anywhere; this includes your basic shield power-ups, enhanced running capacity which will cut the amount of time needed to achieve your infinite velocities while in base form in half, and a whole sleuth of other things including infinite free lives thus allowing you to heal from any injury or even straight-up resurrect yourself in the extremely unlikely event that you are ever killed." Thomas concluded his lengthy explanation as Shadow gawked at him with eyes the size of dinner plates and a jaw that very nearly hit the floor.
"What in the what now?!" Was all he could manage in his current stupor, inwardly cringing at the very Sonic-like statement and praying this never got back to the blue hedgehog; Thomas seemed to find his reaction most amusing, and gave a throaty chuckle in response.
"You'll be the most overpowered Mobian in the history of Mobians in both your universe and every other through the whole of existence. I hereby dub you Shadow the Hedgehog IB. Do you accept your ascendency to infinity and beyond and the ability to travel through time?" Thomas asked him formally, a shit-eating grin on his face that completely ruined any mystique he might've garnered. Shadow didn't even hesitate.
"Do you even have to ask, I'll do anything to save Maria and I'd never object to more power… no matter where or who it came from? I accept for fuck's sake!" Shadow swore, not missing the manic lighting up of Thomas's eyes.
"This is the day… that everything begins anew for you. Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog… until we meet again, and we will." He promised him; though Shadow was half-convinced that was a threat rather than a promise.
"Wait… one more thing, will the Blue Hedgehog and his friends be allowed to keep their memories of the unaltered timeline?" Shadow asked one more question, bracing himself as he realized this was it. In just a few moments, he would be back on Space Colony Ark in the distant past. He still couldn't believe this was happening and a part of him still believed he was either crazy or that this couldn't possibly work.
Thomas's response was immediate. "Of course, but only when the time is right; certain events that are important might not have happened if Sonic and his friends knew what to expect. Foreknowledge is a dangerous thing in the wrong hands, but unlike some of them I trust you can handle it." With that final parting statement; Shadow was swallowed up by an endless vortex of lightning all the colors of the seven Chaos Emeralds, and then he was gone.
XXXXX
An inrush of power the likes of which he never felt before bathed Shadow in its Celestial energy as he opened his eyes and found himself on a completely different Space Colony Ark from the empty, dust-coated one he remembered from his future memories. He looked around in wonder, not sure if Thomas's massive-scaled time warp had even worked and saw he was in the lookout platform; the planet earth a vibrant blue below him as the sight never failed to take his breath away. Back in the past, he and Maria would spend countless hours just observing the earth and watching the stars; back when they didn't have a care in the world.
He looked down at his gloved hands as lightning crackled in his crimson eyes and between his fingertips; feeling stronger now than he ever could've imagined. He felt a compelling urge to run and only just managed to restrain it; he still wasn't entirely certain he was truly as fast as Thomas had said but didn't want to take any chances just yet. First thing he needed to do was check around the facilities for other signs of life, and that was just what he did as he walked towards the observatory where people were always mapping the stars… only to walk into the very room he had in mind a split-second later and faster than he had ever gone.
"Holy hell…" He whispered under his breath, but not because of how fast he'd just moved compared to his normal speeds, but because there was a bunch of people in lab coats monitoring space and standing underneath a giant telescope. His eyes widened as he became acutely aware of the fact that he wasn't the only lifeform on this space station anymore; still not quite ready to believe his time traveling scheme had truly worked but knowing one way to confirm his suspicions.
He turned back and made way for the Professor's Laboratory, his knowledge of the future conjuring the remembered image of a barren, confiscated lab; compliments of G.U.N. raiding agents when they had captured his creator and taken him to Prison Island. His surroundings thankfully didn't immediately change before his eyes this time, though he was still rocketing throughout the facility far faster than he had ever done before and felt his eyes bulge out upon passing various personnel at such utter velocities that he experienced time dilation the likes of which he'd never seen. Even his Hyper Chaos form couldn't have held a candle to the rate at which he now moved in his base form, and he watched in silent awe as the various staff members on Gerald's payroll stood in perpetual suspended animation while he moved at what seemed to be his normal speed.
He was more than a little shocked that his normal golden beam of energy that trailed behind him when he ran was instead white tinged with every color he could've imagined and more; very much like the lightning storm that had brought him here, his cells seemed to ionize and created countless streaks of electricity behind him too. It was intensely disconcerting to watch his own personal lightning storm fall behind him every time he moved fast, but figured it was a side effect of his new powers and decided he would have to get used to it.
He skated past the guards between the tics of a Planck Instant, his movements outside of all perception as he appeared in the open doorway leading to Gerald's lab faster than instantaneous travel. He was beginning to believe that Thomas had not been bluffing, especially since Shadow kept the Professor's old lab locked up tight in the future… the only place he treated as more of a shrine than it being Maria's own bedroom which he often used.
It was pathetic, but he felt like she wasn't so far away or out of his reach when he slept in there. He braced himself as best he could, but how could one prepare for a reunion with one they thought was lost forever? Shadow could feel his heart banging in his chest at a million miles per second, almost afraid to go inside but willing one foot forward at a time. Unable to handle the suspense any longer, Shadow willed himself not to puke from mass hysteria as he stood in the door frame and saw what would probably count as the most surreal image he could ever have dreamt about.
Professor Gerald Robotnik was there, living and breathing once again and at work in his lab with various vials and foul-smelling mixtures; as though he hadn't been long dead just a few short moments ago. Shadow could see the twitching of his mustache as he poured various chemical mixtures inside one another; evidently some fine attempt to make some kind of experimental medicine for his daughter, in the hopes that he'd miraculously stumble upon a cure. All that happened was a chemical explosion that blew up in the Professor's face, leaving his face and mustache all covered with black soot.
Shadow found the sight to be so comical and unbelievable that he did what was perhaps the most uncharacteristic thing he'd done in a long time… he burst into immense and uncontrollable laughter; not the kind of arrogant chortle or cruel laugh he often used in the presence of his enemies or anyone he despised, but a full-on display of hilarity. This whole situation was too good to be true, yet here it was, and for the first time in so many years… Shadow felt truly at peace with the world.
'I've come home.' Was his only thought as the Professor noticed him standing there with the last vestiges of his laugh dying on his laps as the ancient Professor and greatest mind of his time regarded his ultimate creation. "Ah, Shadow… good to see you. I trust you're doing well. How's Maria doing today? She's been looking healthier lately and I don't want to jinx it my old friend but I get the feeling I have you to thank for that. I've never seen her as happy as she's been these past few years with you, and different species or not; you two have my utmost blessing. After what we talked about the other day regarding your feelings for my granddaughter; I hope you've considered my suggestion." Gerald told him, and Shadow had to will back tears by this point. Just the sound of Gerald's voice again was enough to bring him near the edge of hysteria, and not the laughing kind this time. It was all he could do to keep a straight face.
"I… I have actually." Shadow finally spoke after long drawn out moments. Gerald quirked an eyebrow at Shadow's odd behavior but didn't comment on it. "And…" He pressed instead, causing Shadow to gulp nervously. He remembered this conversation before, and how he told the Professor he'd do whatever it took to save Maria's life except condemn her to live in a world where everyone judged her for her choice in boyfriends.
"I'll do whatever it takes to save Maria's life Professor, even… that. I find I no longer care so much what other people think of us and I realize now that my reasons for caring before were all but stripped from me. Be it my damnation, I accept your blessings for us to be together most graciously Professor." Shadow responded and had to resist breaking out into a cold, hard sweat. His fourteen-year-old-self had not been anywhere near as well-spoken or precocious, and Gerald was certain to notice something was up. He couldn't believe he had been here for only a precious few moments and already his secret was found out; maybe he wasn't as smooth or as graceful with his lying skills as he first thought. He blamed it on his lack of emotional equilibrium; this whole situation screamed insanity.
To his surprise though, Gerald beamed at him with absolute joy; either not knowing or caring what exactly Shadow had said. "This is wonderful news Shadow; I'm sure you and Maria will be very happy together. The more you two do together, the greater our chances of saving her life and imparting your perfect immune system onto her. Oh, this is just too great for words!" Gerald whooped with joy.
'My sentiments exactly old man.' Shadow agreed internally with a fond smile; until another voice called out to them from in the hall and Shadow's world all but imploded. "Grandfather, have you seen Shadow anywhere; I can't find him in any of our usual spots…" an angelic voice called out to Gerald as Shadow fought with every fiber of his being not to show any visible reaction; even while he realized he was pretty much dying inside.
Shadow had imagined many times what would happen if and when he ever saw Maria again, went through all sorts of imagined scenarios in his head. What he didn't expect to happen however, was massive cardiac arrest. His heart gave such a tumultuous thump it was a surprise she didn't hear it, and then she stepped into the doorframe behind him, and his vision tunneled.
She looked too beautiful for him to describe in those moments, the fourteen-year-old sunny blonde haired girl like God's perfect angel come back to haunt him in that almost cruel way that made him wonder if he was finally losing his mind. She looked exactly as he remembered her, albeit a few years younger than in her final moments; she was quite a bit taller than he was, though still somewhat petite for a human, and his mind started filling in the gaps of his memory as he clung to her every detail with all the yearning of a man in a desert who found an oasis. He knew that very moment that this was no dream, there's no way even insanity could conjure an image of her in his mind in such a fashion.
He saw the pearl earrings that hung from her earlobes, the intense blueness of her soft eyes that memory and time had dulled over the years in Shadow's memory. She wore her signature blue dress that mildly accentuated her developing womanly curves, and appeared quite taken aback at the intensity of his crimson-eyed gaze. She quickly recovered with a dazzling smile that made his heart melt and his mouth completely dry up; while his heart raced as fast as he'd been running earlier. This blast from his past would truly be his undoing; that much he was sure of in these moments.
"There you are Shadow. Come on, you promised me we'd hang out today." Maria playfully reminded him with a teasing smirk and a light blush on her face, and Shadow remembered when she first started transitioning from 'playing' to 'hanging out'; it had been around when she hit puberty, when their dynamic had forever changed. He knew the Professor's reasoning for not wanting Shadow to wait until they were both adults; that she may not have had long enough to wait until then and he could've saved her right then and there simply by getting intimate with Maria. As the Professor put it, the exchange of saliva and certain other bodily fluids could potentially allow Shadow to blend his DNA with Maria's; doing so enough times would possibly treat her condition, maybe even cure it.
When one's life was at stake, you did what you had to do in order to survive; now though, Shadow questioned whether a physically intimate relationship between him and a 14-year-old girl was really alright. He had refused the last time because he was too hung up over the fact that they were from different species; now though, he had a whole new set of problems regarding intimacy with her. For the first time, the problem had become the opposite of what it originally was; now Shadow was concerned he was nothing more than a pedophile. The age difference between them, while not physical in this time period… was going to become readily apparent in the coming days.
Sighing with a fond smile, Maria grabbed his hand and pulled him out into the hallway without waiting for him to respond, and he followed her without question while hearing Gerald telling them to have fun from back in his lab. It took another stupendous effort for him not to squeeze her hand tightly like he never wanted to let go; already this was turning out to be a lot harder than he initially expected. He couldn't keep having mini heart attacks every time he came face to face with a person from his past; even with his new powers it wouldn't do him any good. A random thought occurred to him as Maria pulled him excitedly down the lookout deck.
The two of them came around to the Green Hills Park; a sanction of the colony filled with forests and rolling hills of green. It was the closest they could come to being in an earth environment, or at least… that would've been the case if Shadow wasn't capable of displacing time and space to take Maria to earth whenever she felt like it. Shadow had done his best to take care of this place in the future, due to it being their favorite spot to hang out, but seeing it here again green, fresh, new, and untarnished by time… it was like reuniting with another long lost friend.
He suddenly came undone as the recent events of his arrival in the past finally caught up to him, and Maria squeaked suddenly when he pulled her unexpectedly into the most tender embrace he could muster, sobbing his eyes out as he held the very real, very living Maria in his arms for the first time in what felt like an eternity. Feeling her warmth, her life in her body once again; it put to rest any skepticism he might have had left. "I'm so sorry." He whispered, over and over again as Maria held him confusedly, wondering what brought this on as she rubbed his back and brushed a hand over his quills.
"For what," She asked, feeling confusion well up inside of her at the unexpected burst of emotions. She felt her heart squeeze when Shadow hiccupped; having never seen him cry before now.
Shadow paused, wondering what answer he could possibly give her; that he couldn't save her, or that he was too much of a coward to love her the way she truly deserved to be loved. Take your pick, in the end; he settled for one simple word to sum up all the emotions his heart was simply too small to hold in anymore. 50-years-worth of pent up pain, love, and loss came tumbling out of him unabated as he clung to her for dear life.
"Everything; I'm sorry for everything Maria." Shadow sobbed in her arms, a part of him hating the fact that he showed such weakness, but a much larger part of him still reveling in it. He honestly didn't believe he'd ever get to see her or hold her in his arms like this again; now that he was, it was too much emotional upheaval for him to properly process.
"Oh, it's okay Shadow." Maria soothingly whispered into his ear, not really sure what was going on but willing to forgive him for mass genocide at this point.
Shadow shook his head, "No, it isn't okay Maria. I should never have let my fear of public opinion get between us. Someone very wise just recently told me that living without love isn't really living it's just kind of existing. I don't want a day to go by where you're not in my life." Shadow professed, pulling away just far enough to look her right in the eye; his crimson eyes still watering as Maria looked at him with a piercingly intense look in her eyes.
"Shadow, if you've truly changed your mind about us; then just say the words. You know what words I'm talking about. Please, just once… I need to hear it; without all of that regret in your voice and talk of damnation." Maria's tone became pleading, her eyes boring into his with relentless longing. She'd only dreamed she would hear him say those words to her unabashedly and without shame; she'd been wondering what he said to her grandfather when he fulfilled his promise to her to talk to him. Now it seemed, her suspicions about her grandfather approving of their relationship were about to be confirmed.
Shadow smiled, knowing he'd told Maria those three special words beforehand but wanting to do as she requested and tell her without any remorse in his voice. He'd been waiting fifty-years for this, and without any hesitation he spoke clearly despite being still choked up by his pent up emotions. "Always together, never apart," he declared with all the decades-worth of passion and painful longing he'd built up. He didn't think he'd ever be able to say their favorite greeting to each other ever again.
"Maria and Shadow love each other with all their hearts." The blonde haired girl immediately replied, tears in her own eyes as she brought Shadow into a loving embrace and soundly kissed him. Shadow was taken aback and stiffened as her lips made contact with his own, but within seconds he completely melted and returned the lip-lock with fervor so strong he backed Maria up against one of the trees. It wasn't like before when they spoke those simple words of exchanged fondness for one another; this time they had a romantic undertone to them, and both of them knew it.
'Maria.' He thought giddily, no doubt in his mind that this was all really happening now. The girl had an arm around his neck and the other held him to her and lifted him off the ground slightly; the kiss somewhat awkward due to their height difference. Eventually, the need for air became too great and they pulled apart; breathing heavily and flushed in their faces. Shadow knew that he wouldn't feel right about going any further than kissing until he and Maria were the legal adult age of 18, and make no mistake; he was going to make damn sure she made it to 18.
"Oh Shadow, does this mean we can finally be together?" She asked him, her eyes searching his as Shadow nodded slowly.
"Yes, but on one condition." Shadow said, wanting to make something very clear in no uncertain terms.
"Which is?" She whispered back questioningly, and Shadow drew a deep breath.
"That we both wait until we're at least 18-years-old before we move beyond kissing; displays of affection are all fine and good, but intercourse is a serious commitment and I want our new relationship to have time to… fester and grow before we go that far." Shadow explained to her, knowing that he was coming off a perhaps too mature for his 14-year-old self, but Maria could only sigh in relief.
"I actually agree with you Shadow, I'm not really ready for… that either. What will we tell grandfather though, he seems pretty convinced that getting me pregnant with our child is the only way to impart your immune system ono me? I want to cure my condition as much as he does, but I don't want something as precious as a life to be based on my own desire to live. If I am to have your child someday Shadow, I want it to be because I want to; not because I feel like I have to in order to save my own life." She ultimately decided, and Shadow couldn't help but admire her steadfast conviction and maturation despite her age. He wondered if there was something his newfound Chaos Energy godhood could do to cure her; he'd seen Chaos Energy be used to heal injuries and even resurrect the dead in Sonic's case… so surely, curing a terminal illness wasn't that much of a stretch.
"And that's assuming we can even have children in the first place Maria, for all we know our biology might not even compatible. However, I have another idea in mind." Shadow told her with a devilish smirk etched on his face; an expression Molly had never seen him wear before and one that made her feel horribly aroused. He suddenly pulled away from her somewhat, and outstretched his hand toward her; his crimson eyes closed in concentration.
"What are you doing?" She asked, unable to put it off anymore after he stood there for a full thirty seconds without doing anything. She'd never known him to be this patient or composed, a moment ago he was beside himself with tears of joy to see her; now he was being oddly cryptic as he outstretched his hand at her.
"I want to try something, but I need you to promise me not to tell anyone about this Maria, not yet." Shadow spoke to her with a strong and unwavering demeanor about him; two things she'd never known her hedgehog friend to be in such abundance. Something was very different about him, and so help her, she was going to find out what it was.
"I promise." She reassured him, and his smile became far less exotic to the Shadow she knew and much friendlier; resulting in her sudden spike of excitement fading slightly. A part of her was glad for the transition back to her precious, innocent angel of darkness; yet another, irrational part of her brain wanted to see where the devilishly erotic Shadow led her.
'Well Thomas, you better not have been exaggerating how powerful you've made me now.' Shadow internally praised the Godly being that had made all of this possible. He opened his eyes, and felt the familiar inrush of manifested Chaos Energy as well the strange lightning in his every pore that spiked his energy to new and unfathomable heights. He saw his body glowing with a boundless brilliance that had Maria shielding her eyes, his Hyper Chaos form taking over without the aid of any Chaos Emeralds whatsoever.
Momentarily stunned by the literally omnipotent amounts of energy surging through him; Shadow recovered his wits and focused his newfound strength on healing all the afflictions Maria would ever have to deal with in her life, including the Death Genome itself. He planned to render her functionally immortal, something he knew she had longed for ever since Gerald first introduced the idea of transferring his immune system to her.
Maria had always felt sad about Shadow having to linger on as an immortal while everyone he loved perished; he could still remember the promise she made to do everything in her power not to die on him. He could remember how serious she always seemed to be about their promises of forever and eternity; promises that were cut short before they could come to fruition.
"Chaos… CURE-ALL," Shadow shouted his new Chaos Power, somehow knowing it would work without knowing how he knew that. Maria's eyes widened as her precious Shadow bathed her in a light stronger and warmer than the sun; the trees all around them singing and the air vibrating with glee in response to the blinding gold-white light that warmed her to her very core. Never had she felt so alive, vibrant, and full of vigor, youth, and energy; she honestly believed she could live off this light her best friend suffixed her in and she wondered if that was actually true.
She moaned as pleasure tingled throughout her entire nervous system, and she didn't know how, but all the residual sickness and symptoms of her condition inexplicably fell away from her… disappearing into the light and leaving her body forever. She felt lighter, more whole, and purer in those moments than she ever had before, and after what seemed to be a small, blissful eternity of pure, unadulterated rapture, the light finally receded and she could finally see Shadow's face again as he emerged from the sphere. She beheld him in a form she'd never seen before, his body having turned white and glowing faintly with all the colors of the rainbow and more besides; it was the most amazing thing she'd ever seen.
"Shadow?" she called out his name in silent awe and wonderment, watching as the sublime being literally floating before her reverted back to black and red; his feet reconnecting with the ground and artificial gravity pulling him back to the world where feet treaded. The thought of her angel gaining the power to ascend to the highest heavens filled Molly with longing and desire; desire for him to one day show her the world, and the stars beyond that someday. He opened his eyes and locked gazes with her expectantly, silently awaiting her verdict as Molly paused a moment to look down at her hands. All her life, she'd been told her hands were cold and that she'd never live to see past age 20; that she was infected with an incurable and terminal illness. Only Shadow had ever treated her like an actual person and not some sick animal waiting to be put out of its misery; now though, she could see the red circulation and heat in her hands and felt warmer than she ever thought was possible for her.
"Shadow… what did you do to me?" She finally asked in a mystified tone as Shadow smiled at her.
"I used something called Chaos Cure-All; it's just something I've thought of now actually. It does just what it name suggest; it's a remedy to cure all ills, if you will." He explained, only succeeding in confusing Maria further.
"I don't understand." She said plainly, and Shadow had to resist the urge to facepalm at her slowness on the uptake; though he wouldn't deny it was cute.
"Do I have to spell it out for you? Maria, I cured your N.I.D.S.; in fact, I cured you of everything, every ailment you ever could've faced later on in life. I may have even cured the death genome in your genetic code, and if that's true then we can do what you always dreamed of; we can be together forever. If my newfound powers stretch as far as I hoped; I will have rendered your functionally immortal, just like me." Shadow elaborated further, watching as realization slowly dawned on her face and she continued to stare at him like she couldn't believe what she heard. Shadow idly wondered if this was how he looked when Thomas fist proposed his idea to send the Ultimate Lifeform back in time.
Seeing that she was still in shock, Shadow felt nervousness creep into his voice as he hastily explained. "You don't have to say immortal if you really don't want to; I don't even know for sure if that part of the cure-all worked the way I wanted it to, but even if I did I'm sure I could just as easily reverse the process. I…" Shadow didn't get to finish because Maria had glomped him in a full body hug and knocked him straight on his ass as she landed on top of him in an awkward but loving embrace.
"You stupid idiot, of course I'll stay immortal; if what you say is true… then you've just single-handedly accomplished in one night what my grandfather has been trying to achieve for years! You've given me my life back Shadow; so don't you ever apologize for it, do you hear me?!" Maria was crying so hard that she was nearly hyper-ventilating, feeling stronger than ever and knowing her gratitude to Shadow knew no bounds.
Her words were sharp and to the point, but Shadow had never felt so relieved to hear her respond in such a way. He held her while they both cried, the entire universe only consisting of the two of them in those moments; an asteroid could have struck the colony and killed everyone on this ship, and Maria wouldn't have cared.
"But Maria, are you sure you know what you're signing up for? Immortality isn't living forever; immortality is watching everybody else die. Are you sure you can sacrifice the opportunity to join your family in the afterlife, just so I don't have to be alone?" Shadow pressed her, not daring to believe she would so willingly sacrifice her mortality just so he could have her forever. Maria hit him in the chest, albeit not very hard.
"You would need me a lot more than they do, and besides; I'm sure God will take good care of them. I'm not going to leave you alone in this immortal life of yours Shadow, not now and not ever! This is everything I ever dreamed of; now we can finally be together forever!" Molly exclaimed while holding onto him possessively. This was all just too good to be true in Shadow's opinion, yet try as he might to cling to the cynical idea that this was all some elaborate dream; he was just too damn happy to see Maria again and couldn't deny the realism of the situation. Details that time dulled in Shadow's dreams and memories were brought in much sharper focus as Maria hugged him for real; for the first time in over 50-years; Shadow knew this reunion was undeniably really happening.
"Maria… I… thank you! Thank you for everything!" Shadow began to cry again, having broken down more times in the past hour than he had done in years combined as Maria held him and soothingly whispered sweet nothings into her ear.
"It's alright Shadow, just let it out." She murmured, and so he did. He didn't know how long they sat there on the artificial forest floor; crying and holding onto one another for dear life, but he couldn't care less if an eternity passed them by at this point. She knew there was something more going on with Shadow, she was his best friend; she knew him better than anyone. He was showing sides to him she'd never seen before, and as she held him she could feel a deep sadness and pain of regret emanating from him; feelings and emotions he literally radiated that she couldn't identify the cause or reason for.
She resolved to be there for him in their newly and perpetually joined lives; to find out what was haunting him so if it was the last thing she did. She still didn't know what any of that was, from his godlike form of kaleidoscopic colors to that Chaos Cure-All technique he used on her… but those were questions for another time. For now, she was perfectly content just to hold and get him to open up to her in the coming days. God knows they had all the time in the world to be together now, and she wasn't going to waste a single second. He'd given her an entirely new lease on life, and solidified in her mind the idea that miracles truly were possible. One thing for sure was that she wasn't going to waste this second chance she'd been given; she was going to spend every waking moment showing her appreciation and immeasurable love for Shadow. It was true what they said; true love really did conquer all, even the divide between species.
XXXXX
In another section aboard the Space Colony Ark of the past, a man in an unzipped leather jacket and ridiculous fez on his head grinned a maddening grin; having been keeping an eye on Shadow in the past time period with a proud smile on his face, before his expression changed to something more serious and full of concern.
"Way to go Shadow, you've finally gotten a tiny taste of the happiness you deserve, and the power you crave to make Maria yours forever more. You've only just begun to fathom what you can do now, and you're going to make waves in the years to come; sometimes straight-up tidal waves of Omni-Omniversal backlash. Just remember, these new powers while unimaginable in their scale and magnitude… come at a fair price.
You're going to make enemies the likes of which you can only scarcely imagine, and old foes you've once conquered are going to undergo similar power-ups to yourself, but at least you'll never have to face them alone again. Maria Robotnik and Shadow the Hedgehog IB; you two will be a perfect match made in heaven, a forever bond immortalized by the ESIT itself. Always support one another, and together you'll conquer any adversity.
I've always said love is the strongest force in the Omni-Omniverse, and even Metapotence can't create it out of thin air… because doing so would be brainwashing someone into liking you and that subtracts from the true meaning of love. You're no longer you now Shadow, you're part of something far greater than you can at present imagine; part of a ZOF enhanced, Omni-Omniversal Chaos Force. It's yours." With that parting statement, Thomas returned to his work; having gotten a temporary employment here as a member of the Colony's cleaning and maintenance crew.
"Oh shit! I better check in with Serena, Lillie, and Selene before they kill me!" Thomas suddenly remembered in a slight panic, and with a loud crack of Omni-Omniversal displacement he disappeared, the mop he had been holding falling to the floor with a metallic clang.
Author's Notes: And that's all for now folks, hopefully that reunion was to your liking and I did Shadow's bond with Maria justice. I can guarantee you things will pick up come the next chapter, this first chapter was more or less an introduction of sorts and featured the reunion; since I know some of you will probably be pleased with the somewhat faster pacing of this story so far.
This was more or less to set the mood for all of you, and trust me when I say the Sonic verse offers me infinite possibilities to build on my initial plot as I go on. Trust me when I say this will be a story for the ages. Keep those reviews coming people, and rest assured that I'm not abandoning any of my stories and will post updates to them at any given time. I will not respond kindly to flames, ultimatums, or threats to abandon my stories in any way, shape, or form. It's all fine and good for you to look forward to updates, but to outright demand them only succeeds in pissing me off. Remember that guys, I will post updates when I damn well please, and no sooner. I'm not under any clock or deadline, so you're going to have to wait.