Author's Note: This story is set during the final battle of the Shadow the Hedgehog game.
The stench of the Black Arms' paralysing gasses filled the air. It reminded Shadow that it still poisoned the world below him, even though he wasn't affected the same way as everyone else. High up in the air, he couldn't hear the screams of those whose flesh was getting torn from their limbs by the infant aliens. The gas fogged the area below, hiding the suffering on the ground. The suffering that Shadow fought to stop.
The large, monstrous creature, Devil Doom, towered taller and larger than Shadow, looking gigantic even from a distance. The jet black scales and red markings stood out amongst the putrid mist that shrouded it. Its size made it easy for Shadow to spot. However, Shadow's shining golden fur made him easily spotted as well. Each time Shadow got closer to the creature, it was harder for him to dodge the flying debris.
Of course Black Doom would use his levitating powers. He'd taunted Shadow by stealing the emeralds before, so it was only natural to provoke the hedgehog with it even more. If it weren't for his super form, Shadow's skin would have been broken and scraped raw by the flying concrete and metal that kept launching into him. He dodged and rushed around the floating building remains whilst Devil Doom flung his arms to signal their movement. Shadow hit the monster's eye again. It screeched in pain and failed to flap its wings as it grabbed it's eye in pain. Doom's eye emerged from the head and entered the head on the other side.
The creature had two heads. Double the work for Shadow. The hedgehog stopped suddenly as he felt his body tense and shake with exhaustion. With all of the ducking to avoid the attacks, he'd failed to collect enough rings. The golden shine in this fur began to wane. He rushed to the outer circle to grab more rings. There were none.
"Damn…" Shadow rasped as he looked around, hopeless. His fur was flashing between gold and black.
Shadow turned around to face Devil Doom again, a sharp pain pierced his abdomen. With wide, agonised eyes, he stared at what had impaled him. In front of him was a demonic looking creature which was the same shape as Shadow. It was dark purple and crystalised. Snake green, soul piercing eyes returned Shadow's stare.
"Shadow? Come in, Shadow! The gas… it's reached our shelter," Sonic called from the communicator on his wrist. Shadow glanced at it with his eyes, but stayed facing the creature in front of him. What kind of sick piece of fate was this?
"W-who are you?" Shadow asked. The creature gave him an arrogant, triumphant stare. It didn't have a mouth but it spoke nonetheless.
"I am Mephiles. That is the name that your alternate gave to me," he said. "And now, in this timeline, you will never fulfil your destiny of sealing my alternate."
Shadow's expression didn't change from the wide-eyed, pained look.
"None of that makes sense to you. But it doesn't need to!" Mephiles exclaimed and yanked his arms back. The spear of light disappeared. Shadow gasped in agony, but even breathing hurt. Everything in his torso hurt. He coughed up a lump of blood that manifested from the invisible injuries on his insides.
Sonic and his friends were screaming and calling for his help on his communicator. Shadow couldn't even move; he was helpless… hopeless. The golden sheen on his fur left; Shadow was black again. The chaos emeralds left him and darted off in all directions, lost again. Shadow tried to move. The pain paralyzed him. Devil Doom was holding his its hand in the distance. Shadow glanced at it over Mephiles' shoulder. It wasn't pain that paralysed him, it was Black Doom. He'd lost his strength. He'd lost everything.
"The time has come! Now, that the gas overrun this tainted world, MY reign has BEGUN! Mwahahahahahahaha! Hahahahahaha!" Black Doom's voice boomed.
Shadow's eyes began to close as he winced in defeat and exhaustion. He blacked out.
O o O o O o O
Shadow awoke and attempted to sit up. He keeled back, hissed and grabbed his abdomen as it punished him with a sharp pain. He grit his teeth and looked up at the dark ceiling, wondering why he hadn't healed already. He was usually a fast healer, which he never really questioned. But now he understood that it was because of his Black Arms DNA. The unnatural healing behaviour and immortality came from his 'father', Black Doom. But that ability didn't grace him today.
Shadow turned his head to look around the room. It was dimly lit by a purple tinge. The room was small, and the walls were black. The door looked like the spiralling doors of the Black Comet. Shadow figured that was where he was. He grit his teeth because of the pain coursing through his abdomen. He could feel that the bed he was laying on was hard as a stone. This room was not built for his comfort. But then what did he expect from Black Doom and… that mysterious creature.
"Mephiles…" Shadow said to himself softly. He closed his eyes and laid there whilst he thought hard about who this person could be.
There was a hiss as the door opened. Shadow's attention was caught. He looked to the side with a wince. A dark grey and pale turquoise creature stepped through it, stopped facing Shadow, then stood there and stared at him. Mephiles held one hand behind his back and one at his side, a respectful posture… but a facial expression dripping with sarcasm.
The creature's shape mirrored Shadow's own, and it made Shadow feel uneasy. He squinted and looked the creature in the eyes… the snake green eyes, same as before. Shadow then recognised the creature. It was Mephiles, except in a different form.
"What… are you?" Shadow asked with apprehension, fearing the worst. He'd just found out about the nature of his creation… so his mind suddenly went to that. What if Mephiles was a clone or another creation made on the ARK?
"I told you. I am Mephiles."
"No… WHAT are you?" Shadow hissed. He grit his teeth and glared at Mephiles. Mephiles shrugged.
"A… demigod of sorts," he said as if it were nothing. Shadow's eyebrows raised in surprise and confusion. "What? Are you wondering why I look like you?"
Shadow just looked at Mephiles. He tried to sit up, but the pain in his abdomen pulled him back down. Shadow hissed and shut his eyes tight. Again, he just laid there, glaring at the ceiling.
"I took your form," Mephiles said. "Well, the form of one of your alternates."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Shadow growled, becoming more frustrated that he could stand up, or even sit up and look at the creature.
"I'm bored of explaining now," Mephiles taunted. "I came here to tell you about something else."
"About… what?" Shadow gave up.
"Your friends."
Shadow suddenly sat up, eyes wide, gasping. Then he screamed in pain and clutched his abdomen. He forced himself off of the hard slab and fell to his knees on the floor.
"The others! R-rouge… that blue hedgehog…" Shadow rasped.
Mephiles pulled out the hand hidden behind his back and threw a small object to the floor. It clattered and landed. It was long, white… a bone.
Shadow looked at it. His expression was blank at first… clueless. Then, he felt his chest burn. His eyes widened. The burning in his chest dropped to his stomach and his whole body shook. He down even further from his knees, and landed on his hands, pushing his palms into the floor.
"Something to remember them by."
Shadow stared at the bone whilst feeling empty. Then he denied it in his mind. Mephiles was toying with him… lying. Surely this was a trick.
Then he remembered their calls for help… and the gas.
Shadow stared at the floor. All he could hear was his ears ringing and his heart thumping.
Not again.
"It's a pity… a shame really that you can't seem to keep your friends," Mephiles said. "This isn't the first time this has happened."
That mocking tone made Shadow's blood boil. He trembled and digged his fingers into the floor.
Mephiles took a step closer and looked down upon Shadow with eyes alit with lust for suffering. The creature exuded delight whilst looking down at Shadow's trembling form and listening to the hedgehogs ragged breaths.
"You're not going to cry, are you?" Mephiles asked Shadow in disgust.
Shadow stopped breathing. He was silent. He was still. Mephiles let out a quiet, dark chuckle.
"No tears? Have I not done enough?" he asked. Shadow looked up at Mephiles with wide, furious eyes. Then Shadow's eyes darted down to the bone on the floor. Mephiles was standing right in front of it. Mephiles tilted his head and admired Shadow's desperate gaze. Then, he lifted his foot and stomped. Shadow reached out desperately, but was too late. The bone gave out a sickening crack and shattered into two.
Shadow's hard hovered just before Mephiles' foot and the bone beneath it. Shadow's breath was caught in his throat. He couldn't breath. He couldn't react. He just couldn't find the appropriate reaction inside of him. He just stared forward, blankly.
"You don't get to keep this memento of your friends," Mephiles said. "Not intact, anyway. This can serve as a reminder." Mephiles stepped back, releasing the shattered parts of the bone from beneath him. "This can serve as a reminder… that you let your friends die."
Mephiles kicked the shards towards Shadow. They slid across the floor and stopped underneath him. Shadow kept staring forward. Mephiles eyelids lowered with arrogance as he bent down and looked at Shadow eye to eye. Shadow just stared as if Mephiles wasn't there.
"They're all suffering down there, Shadow. What's left of the human race. It's all your fault," Mephiles taunted. He glared at Shadow. The lack of reaction from the hedgehog made Mephiles narrow his eyes in frustration. He stood up straight and walked to the doorway. "You failed Maria."
Shadow suddenly glowed red and he shot to his feet. Mephiles swung around to face Shadow again, eyes widened in delight. Shadow lifted his arm and flung a spear. Mephiles formed a small sphere and threw it back. The attacks hit each other and fizzled out.
Shadow's red glow faded. The hedgehog's eyelids drooped, he clutched his stomach again and dropped to the floor face first. His cheek rested upon the cold, hard floor, and his arm rested under the weight of his body. Shadow felt so weak and nauseous that it felt like the floor was spinning.
The sound Mephiles' footsteps echoed into Shadow's ears. Shadow saw with his blurry vision that Mephiles was leaving. So, the hedgehog relaxed, closed his eyes, and blacked out.
O o O o O o O
"WAKE UP!"
Shadow gasped for air desperately and looked around. He was disoriented. Where was the floor? Where was anything? Shadow looked around quickly, but only saw blurs. Then, he looked down and focused. He saw the floor. His legs felt weightless. He was hovering in midair. He gasped again, then felt his breath get stuck in his throat. He looked forward with wide eyes.
It was Black Doom. He was holding out his arm.
"P-put me down!" Shadow called. Then he winced and curled up, grasping his abdomen again. "Ah… w-why… does this hurt… so much…" he shivered.
"Because, I am making sure that it does," Black Doom says. "Did you forget? I can control you."
The stinging pain in Shadow's abdomen spread. He felt hot with agony all over. Shadow gasped and trembled and then stiffened up, as if any movement would destroy his body.
"I told you that you will pay for your insolence, hedgehog!" Black Doom announced. Then he lifted his arm up slowly, then swiped it down. Shadow crashed and hit the hard floor with a thud. He uncurled and laid on his back, looking up. He could see darkness above him. He concentrated on it to try and distract himself from the pain.
Then he remembered. Rouge… Sonic… everyone.
Shadow clutched his head with his hands, scrunched his eyes closed and screamed.
"Has he suffered enough?" Mephiles asked, revealing himself from the darkness of the corners of the room.
"Yes…" Black Doom said. He looked down on Shadow calmly. "He has potential. I will make use with my resource and train him to become my warrior."
"I disagree."
"What?" Black Doom turned his whole body and looked at Mephiles. Mephiles stepped towards the center of the room and stood in front of Shadow. Shadow had stopped screaming, instead, he was just clutching his and violently shaking his head.
"Shadow is too rebellious. He will never obey you," Mephiles explained.
"He has before."
"When he was clueless about your identity. Now that he knows who you are… and what you have done. He will use every ounce of his energy to defy you."
Black Doom was silent for a few moments, then responded.
"I will punish him until he obeys."
Mephiles lifted his head, then looked down upon Shadow with triumph.
"Yes. I like that idea," Mephiles said. He looked at Shadow. Tears were pouring from Shadow's eyes and down his cheeks. Mephiles eyes lit up in delight. "I believe that my work here is done."
Black Doom looked at Mephiles for a moment, then nodded.
"Very well," he said. "If you are sure that you don't want me to do anything in return for your help."
"You did not request my help. You owe me nothing," Mephiles said, holding his head high. "Knowing that Shadow will suffer under your hands is enough for me."
Mephiles held his arm out, a sphere formed in his hand.
"May I ask… what will you get out of Shadow's suffering? I shall get a loyal warrior. But you…?" Black Doom asked.
A portal formed in front of Mephiles; he chuckled.
"Revenge."
Mephiles ran and jumped through the portal.
Black Doom looked down upon Shadow. He dropped his arm. Shadow gasped. He brought up his knees and his head tilted back. He breathed softly and weakly as he looked up, exhausted. The pain in his body melted away.
"Now, child. Rest. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow." Black Doom held out his hand again.
Shadow felt his eyes close against his will. He gave in and rested.
Mephiles landed in another timeline where the air was clear and the planet was safe. A timeline where Shadow had saved the earth. Mephiles looked around, admiring the difference. The timeline he had just come from was a lot different. There was a lot more suffering. It made Mephiles feel very proud to see the freedom around him that he had prevented elsewhere.
Then he looked down.
"Is that enough, Shadow? Will you finally feel it? Have I caused enough pain to your alternates for you to feel it? The pain that you caused me?" Mephiles asked softly. He closed his eyes in sorrow. "Iblis…"
The Iblis that Mephiles longed to fuse with was destroyed… or at least off limits. When Sonic, Shadow, and Silver destroyed Solaris and erased the timeline… Mephiles was nearly taken with it. But he managed to escape through the threads of time. He could never return. He could never go back and take revenge on the original Shadow that sealed him in the cursed sceptre in the first place. But it wouldn't stop Mephiles from taking his anger out on the Shadows in every other timeline.
"Iblis… if I cannot fuse with you… I will avenge you."
Author's Note: This story is linked to my story, 'So Much for the Ultimate Life Form'.