AN: I know I'm taking ridiculously long with the next chapter of DD, so, please, accept this humble offering of pure angst as an apology...

This particular idea has been sitting in my WIP folder for years, but considering my mind kept returning to it every few months I've figured it was about time I finally wrote it.

But then around two-thousands words in, this story started spiraling completely out of control, and, oh boy, I immediately knew I was in deep trouble...

Seriously, this was supposed to be short, not this behemoth. How did it get this long?!


EDIT (2019-04-12): Linzuki and FedoraKoshka have created a gorgeous piece of fanart for this story. If you wish to see it, you can check it out here: '(ht)(tps):/(/sta.)sh/0253tzghof19' (Take out all the parentheses to get a working link.) Though a SPOILER warning for those of you haven't read the story yet. ;)


Elusive

(AT.) Sonic thought them to be dreams. Shadow thought them to be hallucinations. In reality, they weren't really either.

TAGs: Alternative Timeline, SA2 never happened AU, Shadow never got sent to Earth AU, mind to mind connection, lucid dreaming, angst, hopeful ending, one-sided attraction, unrealized feelings

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise.


Shadow was standing in a vast green field.

Which didn't really make sense for various reasons but Shadow kept himself from thinking about any of them, not allowing his mind to go down that particular road as to not break his immersion in this...hallucination? Mirage? Who knew what it was. He didn't and didn't really feel like possibly breaking it just to find out was worth it.

It had been too long since he last felt...new. Since he experienced something that wasn't coldness or darkness.

...since he sensed.

Closing his eyes, he listened to the quiet whispers of the wind that danced around him and the excited chirping of birds that it carried to him from who-knows-how far. The sun beamed at him from above, bathing him with its warmth that was unlike anything that he'd experienced at the colony back in the day.

Tan lips pressed together, a contemplative frown twisting them. They they smoothed and for the first time in a long while, Shadow breathed.

Unlike the sterile ark of ARK, the air that he breathed in felt fresh and light in his lungs, practically weightless as it expanded in his chest with minimal effort. As if by spell, all the liquid that had weighted it down just moments prior was nowhere to be found.

Feeling daring at this new finding, Shadow let himself breath through his nose, feeling a first spark of so long forgotten excitement shoot through him when instead of a painful burn that happened anytime he accidentally breathed the liquid this way in, a multitude of scents assaulted his nose instead, all pointedly herbal and foreign yet at the same time somehow familiar to his senses.

However, Shadow didn't preoccupy himself with these contradictory observations, instead relishing in all the scents with closed eyes and absentmindedly trying to match them to the faded images of flowers he had seen in Botanics book who knows how long ago now. When more vivid images appeared among them, many of flowers he hadn't ever seen before, he didn't question it either.

Instead he opened his eyes again and let them survey the area, finding all kind of flowers hiding among the lush green grass. Eager to explore them, Shadow stepped forward, for a single moment thrown of his balance at the softness of the ground under him. His gaze snapped down to the pliant brown under his feet.

Dirt. Soil. That was its proper name. That was what Professor had always called it when he reminisced on his time before the ARK, going on lengths about how much more enjoyable it was to walk upon than the metal halls of the Space Colony.

To be honest, Shadow quite agreed with the sentiment.

With his curiosity getting the better of him, Shadow abandoned his quest for figuring out which smells belonged to which flower in favor of walking among them all, enjoying the softness of the dirt and grass under his feet and how it swallowed even the heavier of his steps that would have normally echoed all across the ARK's halls.

Red eyes grazed along the terrain once more, taking in the sprawling greenery and the vast blue skies above it, as well as the single giant tree in the distance, towering above the landscape and looking over it—not menacingly but more like a concerned grandparent watching over their grandchildren.

It was the most beautiful tree Shadow had ever laid his eyes on. Well, the only one if he didn't count the bonsai Gerald had taken such a meticulous care of back in the day—the only greenery that he had ever been allowed to interact with back in the day.

Years of restrained curiosity hummed under his skin, his legs itching to carry him to the enigmatic tree and his hands to explore it.

Before Shadow could even try to stop himself, he was already moving to it.

His legs moved one before the other without stop, without a hitch, a single blur of color. The wind howled in his ears as he pushed against it, rustling his quills and fur as he sprinted onward, brushing his body almost fondly. A laughter bubbled in his chest at all the sensations—how long ago it had been since he last laughed?—born from childlike giddiness that was so unlike him but that was at the moment too overwhelming in its intensity to resist.

At last the caged laugh escaped him.

The voice that came out of his lips didn't sound like his own, noticeably higher than it, but he didn't give it much thought—He couldn't allow himself that right now; he wouldn't let all this shatter—He just focused on the burn in his legs as he ran to the enigmatic tree, feeling a hint of triumph when his hand finally landed onto the bark. However, just as he was about to withdrew it, he noticed he didn't really have his inhibitor ring or red cuff, but instead plain white glove and that instead of black fur his arm was entirely covered in peach—What—?

There was a pull.

Without any previous warning, a part of him was violently jerked and suddenly his surroundings were dissolving back into the unforgiving black void. Wanting nothing else but stay, Shadow thrashed and screamed, trying to fight the pull, but it was to no avail. Without any mercy, he was plunged back into the dreadfully familiar embrace of utter darkness and deafening silence, his lungs once more filling with the heavy green liquid of his cell.

-O-

"—Watch it!"

"...What?" Sonic breathed, confused as he suddenly found himself lying on the cushioned floor of his bedroom instead of standing in the green meadow by the enigmatic tree. Green eyes looked up towards the other voice in the room, seeing the familiar red form of his friend that definitely hadn't been there before either.

"Knuckles?" he intoned questioningly, brows furrowing in confusion when he saw the other was clutching his face and sputtering quiet curses. It took Sonic a moment to realize that he was the reason behind both actions, having swung his fist at the echidna's face reflexively when he was startled awake. He opened his mouth to speak, to apologize or maybe to utter some witty remark that Knuckles should know better than sneak up on him while he slept, but by the time he got his tongue to work, Knuckles was speaking already.

"Ah, forget it." Knuckles huffed, letting his hand droop from his face. His cheek was a bit swollen, but Sonic was fairly sure that over time it wouldn't turn out worse than a bruise—if even that. "Tails wants you to come into the workshop. He says he might have figured out what's wrong with the Chaos Emerald."

"I'll be there in a minute." Sonic nodded, pushing himself back to his feet and stretching his stiff back. Knuckles gave a huff of acknowledgement before leaving the room.

Sonic sighed, letting one of his arms droop back to his side while the hand of the other went to rub his neck, his unusual dream springing back into his mind.

It all felt so...vivid and real and at the same time somehow wrong; he had been fully aware of himself and yet at certain moments he felt as if something else was controlling him, emotions that had no reason to be there washing over him along with blurred images that didn't really make much sense to him.

Nor why he was so utterly fascinated by normal things like the way air filled his lungs and how soft ground felt under his feet. Just what was up with that?

He shook his head to chase those thoughts away. Dreams were supposed to be weird, after all, weren't they? This one had been just weird in a different way...

Yeah, that had to be it. What else could it be, really?

-O-

This time dunes of white mass stretched on all sides of Shadow. The sky was cloudy and small white particles were slowly descending down like leaves carried by the wind.

It was...snowing.

Red eyes gazed at the natural phenomenon with great interest, Shadow even outstretching his hand to catch some of the snowflakes into his hand. When a couple landed he brought them closer to study them. No two of them were the same, just like Maria had told him all these years ago.

Shadow's lips pressed into a thin line as he reminisced about his dear friend and all that they had promised each other—one of the many things being that they would go experience the snow together. There had been so many things they wanted to do; to have a snowball fight and make snow-angels, to build a snowman and go sledging, to build an igloo and so so many others. He had looked forward to that day.

But it never came...and never will now with Maria gone and him trapped.

His chest squeezed with longing at the thought.

However, it didn't last long; an invisible warmth twined tightly around him and dissolved the emotion as if it never were. Maria wouldn't want him to be sad, he could almost faintly hear it say. Almost.

With a gentle flick of hand, Shadow gave the snowflakes back to the wind and watched them float away.

In some far-away part of his mind, he knew they should have melted upon contact with his skin and definitely not let go of his hand so easily, but this...world clearly operated under different rules and so he didn't question it. Last time when he slipped-up like that, he was punished with exile by whatever governed this space.

He was not making the same mistake again.

It had been too long since he'd last been able to do anything but merely wait for his demise to finally come. He was not going to give up a chance like this, using the time that remained him to explore the world—even if it was one that was possibly solely fabricated by his mind; everything was better than the reality at this point.

If all he needed to do was not to ask questions to be allowed to continue to come here, then so be it.

-O-

Sonic blinked awake into the darkness of his brother's workshop. Only the small lamp on Tails' worktable offered any light to the room.

"Tails?" Sonic mumbled quietly, rubbing his eyes tiredly. Had he fallen asleep again? "It's night already?" he asked, stretching himself lightly.

"Yeah." Tails gave a sigh, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "I'm sorry for dragging you down here, I've really thought I had it." Blue eyes stared with frustration at the yellow Chaos Emerald. "But it's like it has a mind of its own! See?! Now it's acting normal again for no apparent reason! It's as if somebody was flipping a switch on it!"

"I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually," Sonic said as he walked over to the other. "For now, get some sleep, okay?" he advised, placing a hand onto the other's shoulder.

"Chaos!" With a yelp, Tails shot out of his chair and away from his touch so fast even Sonic had a trouble to follow the movement. The young inventor immediately began to rub the spot he had been touched on, his eyes wide. "Brrr, Sonic! Why on Mobius are your hands are cold?"

"I..." Sonic looked in confusion at his hands, realizing they indeed felt cold—even to him. Which was weird because he never got cold hands or feet. "I was making a snowman...I think."

"...It's June."

"Well, it was in a dream."

Tails cocked his head in confusion. "Why would your hands be cold just because you've dreamed of making a snowman?"

"I don't really understand that either, buddy." Chuckling, Sonic rubbed his hands together to make them warmer. He didn't really understand how could dream make him cold. Then again he had no idea why he had been dreaming of making a snowman in the first place.

Nor why he had felt so sad while doing it...

-O-

Shadow looked in confusion around himself, but the unusual checkerboard-pattern seemed to repeat everywhere he looked. The dirt, the grass—only the water didn't seem to carry the pattern. Also, the whole terrain and flora seemed to favor sharp angles above everything else unlike how it normally was in the nature.

What an odd place this was...

He scratched at the (natural?) wall before him, first at one dark square then at one of the lighter ones, rolling some of the dirt that fell off in between his fingers. Apart from its unusual arrangement, it seemed to be a completely normal dirt. What gives the place was so odd then?

He jumped to the lower level, but here too it seemed to be all just checker-board pattern and sharp angles; the only exception that broke the rule was the big loop in the distance.

Red eyes lingered on the clearly man-made structure before taking a better look at the surrounding terrain; upon further inspection, there seemed to be more loops than just that one and oddly they all were connected by one continuous path of golden rings that Shadow recalled were used as one form of currency back on Earth...

Hmm, he wondered how fast he'd able able to collect them all...

-O-

"—telling you, Tails! It feels like there's somebody else in my head, controlling what I do!" Sonic tried to explain, gesturing wildly. "It's hella weird and I can't seem to be able to do anything about it!"

"But why would somebody be controlling you in your dreams? Are you really sure it's not just your imagination?"

"I don't know!" Sonic threw his arms into the air, before sighing deeply and slumping back into this seat. "...But it feels so real—and it's more of memories than dreams I'd say; for the last few days, I've dreamed only of places I've been to."

"And what does the other person do?"

"They...just walk around and look at stuff, I guess? That seems like what they do most," Sonic tried to explain, trying to remember what the other had been doing in each of those dreams. "Last time, it was Green Hill and they ran around a bit, collecting rings and having a bit of fun, I think."

"You think?"

"Well, sometimes I can feel what they feel. They seemed to be having fun from what I could tell—" Especially, at the loops, which Sonic could understand; they were his favorite too. "—Thought they also felt sad for some reason...They always do," he admitted quietly. He didn't really understand why the other was constantly sad but he was really starting to get the impression the other needed for someone to give them a big hug. Preferably several.

Tails gave him a long look. "...You know, Sonic, if someone's really possessing you or something, I don't think it's a good idea to start caring about them of all things."

-O-

Shadow stared in fascination at the endless crystal blue that stretched before him, watching as the waves gently lapped at the sandy shore and the way sunlight of the setting sun played its colorful symphony on them. The warm sand under his bare feet kept on shifting ever so slightly under his weight as the water repeatedly tried to reach further onto the land and sweep him in but always missing just a few inches. The seaside breeze rustled his quills each time it rushed past and when Shadow breathed in curiously, he could faintly taste salt on his tongue.

Shadow let a gentle smile show on his lips. So this was what sea was like.

Curious, he made a step closer, for the first time feeling the cold water wash over his feet before receding back into the sea and then rolling back to splash him again in a harmonious rhythm. It felt like something sharply pinched him every time the cool water touched, but Shadow continue to stand in his spot and watch the dancing waves with interest, the never-ending motions of water rolling and curling to the edge of horizon and back.

His lips pressed into a contemplative line. He had been taught how to swim so long ago... He wondered if he even still remembered how to do that.

Wanting to find out, he began to take small steps, slowly submersing himself in the shallow coast waters, each step costing him more and more effort and not only because of the water pushing him back. There was a strong unsettling feeling in his gut and his legs felt as if they rather go in the other direction, back to the shore, but Shadow pushed on. He was submerged up to his ribs when his body suddenly just froze and refused to take another step.

Dark brows furrowed in confusion. Was he not allowed to go further?

Something inside him twisted just at the thought, wildly opposing the idea and urging him back to the shore. But Shadow wasn't really feeling like going back there but rather further. The something just seemed to revolt more strongly at this; it almost sounded like it had a voice and was trying to shout at him. His body started to shake and Shadow didn't think it was the coldness of the water.

He looked down at his shaking limbs, brows furrowing in thought as he was not sure what to make of it. Was that the force that governed this realm or was that coming from him?

Red eyes turned to stare at expanse of blue and his heart suddenly lurched in his chest, the distinct clutch of fear closing around him and trying to hold him in place.

It was odd; he had never been afraid of water.

Figuring that had to mean it truly was the governor chasing him back to the shore, Shadow reluctantly began to turn around, only to suddenly feel the ground disappear from under his feet and the island seemingly sink under the waves, leaving no land in sight.

Naturally, Shadow immediately tried to adjust, kicking his legs and making a breaststroke with his arms—or that is what he would have done if his limbs listened to him. Instead they began to flail, panic washing over Shadow but at the same time not really reaching him as if wasn't really coming from him. Like a rock, his flailing body sunk under the waves, salt stinging his eyes painfully, cold wrapping around him. The panic mounted but Shadow was not able to regain control of his body. The voice in his head began to yell so loudly he could actually hear it—no longer just a vague sensation but an actual sound.

Through his hazy vision Shadow could make out his fur turning from black and red to peach and blue and suddenly he was drifting away, separating from his body as well as the fear that was still controlling it.

The image of frightened green eyes turning to stare right into his lingered before his eyes even as he was plunged back into the reality.

-O-

"—then I saw him—the other guy."

"Who is it?"

"No clue, I've never seen him before. He's a hedgehog like me, with black fur and red stripes on his quills, arms and legs. Do you know anybody that looks like that?"

"Nobody, I'm afraid—are you really sure he's real?"

"You know, he too looked surprised to see me. It was mutual. I don't see why would figment of my imagination do that..."

"To convince you. Obviously."

"Alright, I see you're still being skeptical. How about we ask for a third opinion?"

-O-

A wild untamed jungle surrounded him from all sides, big green leaves obscuring his view of the sky, letting only limited amount of light to shine through. The air felt full of humidity, just like before storm. How Shadow knew what that felt like, he couldn't tell for sure, but had a suspicion.

Despite trying to ignore all the oddities of these...ventures, Shadow wasn't able not to take notice of some of them. How emotions just seemed to appear and go as they saw fit, how his fur would occasionally change color, how his body would occasionally respond to the presence that kept pressing on his mind, how he could call on knowledge he knew he had not obtained like names of flowers he had never seen before...

He didn't understand why, but it seemed that he somehow shared existence—if he could put it like thatwith someone else. This someone being the blue hedgehog from his last venture, judging by all the clues so far.

He looked at his hands which at the moment were his hands and not the other's. He wasn't sure what exactly made them switch places but it always seemed to happen just moments before he was pulled back into reality.

Unfortunately, that wouldn't do anymore; he needed some answers. He needed to figure out how to talk to the other directly. He needed to know who it was.

Aboard the ARK, Shadow had never met any other Mobian and he didn't recall seeing this person in some book or a movie. It was a complete stranger and he wanted to know why he was bound to this person in particular. Was the other supposed to be some kind of guide? Was he here by mere coincidence just like him? Or was this all really just Shadow's imagination and his subconsciouses was just trying give him some company for his last days?

After all, it wasn't like he had a chance to meet anyone else in the time that remained to him...

And did it even matter if the other was just a fantasy? This place nor any of those that came before probably weren't real, but he still had fun exploring them. After all, reality was just what person's brain made of the stimuli it was receiving; so what if his brain was just simulating all of the stimuli? That still didn't make any of this feel any different to the real thing.

Thanks to this he could experience what it felt like to have wind whipping against his face as he ran, to have his hands sting from cold or to have toes buried in warm sand. It didn't even matter if these experience weren't faithful to the actual thing—he would never know.

It didn't really make any difference in the end.

And so Shadow called out to the presence at the back of his mind, hoping it would respond and he would be able to get some answers—and maybe also experience what it was like to not be alone once more.

At least for a while.

-O-

"Aren't you a little old for an imaginary friend, Sonic?"

"Har har, Knuckles. I'm being serious here."

"I've never heard of such thing happening."

"But Tails's said the emerald acts weird only when I am asleep, remember? There could be a connection."

"Chaos Emerald is not a freaking telephone, Sonic."

"Well, you seem to call with your rock pretty often."

"I just deactivate the emeralds with it. I'm not having a chat with them."

"So you call them to shut down."

"...He's already made his mind, hasn't he?"

"I told you he's really adamant about it."

"Haven't you guys fought Eggman like a week ago, Tails? Are you sure Sonic didn't fall on his head back then?"

"Oh, come on, guys! My life has always been weird! Why are you guys having such a problem with accepting this as a possibility?"

"Because that's not how Chaos Emeralds work, Sonic!"

-O-

Well, this was new.

Shadow strolled aimlessly across the vast unfamiliar plaza, red eyes taking in all the things with interest; this was his first time setting a foot in an actual city. Which particular city it was he was not sure but considering the surrounding architecture—all white stone with mostly blue decorations—he was somewhere in Apatos from the looks of it.

The city seemed a little odd without anyone strolling around, but that seemed to be the norm for his ventures; he hadn't met anyone else beside the blue hedgehog yet.

Speaking of the hedgehog...

Shadow hadn't managed to draw the other out on his previous venture but the other had responded to him, brushing against his mind but not able to break through the barrier like last time. However, the other was curious about him too—Shadow could feel as much.

Red eyes zeroed on the fountain in the very center of the plaza. Last time, he had not been successful in drawing the other out, but he had an idea.

Before the presence could have a chance to figure out what he was up to, he was already diving into the fountain. He felt the moment the other panicked at them suddenly being submerged in water and he could feel him pushing in to get control and get them out. Shadow let him do so and at the very same moment pushed out.

Not one but two spiky heads broke the water surface just a moment later, sending water splashing all around. Two heavy thuds followed right after as they unceremoniously collapsed on the fountain's edge; Shadow suddenly felt as if all the strength in his body had disappeared.

Their quick rasping breaths and sloshing water were the only sounds to be heard for the following moments.

"Alright—" the blue-furred stranger coughed out suddenly, red eyes snapping to him in an instant. Oddly, Shadow was not met with a glare like he had expected but instead with a smile. A tired one, but still a smile. "—I'll give you points for creativity, pal, but, please, don't do it again; I really hate water."

"I needed to get you out," Shadow said as a form of explanation. "To ask why you keep sneaking into my...dreams." Or hallucinations. Shadow still had no clue what these were.

"Hey, I'm not sneaking anywhere! You are the one freeloading on my subconsciousness, buddy." The other hauled himself up onto the stone, shaking his blue and peach fur off of the excess water before sitting down properly. "I should be the one asking that question here," the stranger said, flashing him an amused smile.

"Your subconsciousness?" Shadow raised a brow and looked around again. So this wasn't his imagination...? Or was this just his subconsciousness trying to trick him into believing he actually wasn't alone by providing a crazy enough explanation for his whole situation? "How are you so sure?"

"Well, all the places you've dragged me to so far are places I've been to recently. It's about two weeks since I've been to Apatos." The other hedgehog gestured to the plaza. "So what gives?"

"I don't know," Shadow admitted. "It just started happening."

"Did you happen to touch any Chaos Emeralds recently?" the other asked and Shadow was left to stare in surprise. "Oh, right! You might not know what those are! You see Chaos Emeralds are these big—"

"I know what they are," Shadow cut in, still a little surprised the other actually knew about their existence. Back in his day, there weren't many people that have heard about them. "...and no." Unless somebody decided to travel up to ARK. But he had not seen a living soul since they had stuffed him into that tank...

"Shoot! I've thought I had it..."

Shadow watched the other turn pensive, he in turn doing the same. "...You seem oddly calm for someone that has a stranger regularly hijacking their dreams." Then again it was possible these were actually his dreams and the hedgehog was just a part of his subconsciousness...

The may-be-hallucination shrugged his shoulders. "My life is one crazy adventure after another. I'm used to bizarre stuff happening at this point—" Again, an outlandish enough explanation. "—and, well, you can't control it either, do you?"

"No."

"Then I guess we'll have to get to the bottom of this together." The stranger outstretched his arm to him. "The name is Sonic, by the way."

Shadow clasped the offered hand and it felt solid. But that didn't prove or disprove anything.

"Shadow."

"Well, nice to meet you, Shadow." Sonic gave his hand an energetic shake and flashed him a big megawatt smile that somehow managed to light up the other's expression even more, the friendliness catching Shadow off-guard; it was such a warm greeting and unlike any of the introductions Shadow had with the personnel back on the ARK.

Sonic also didn't rush to break their hold, just slowly easing his hand out of it, which was another first for Shadow; back on ARK, even those braver people that actually dared to clasp his hand when meeting him would jerk their back after the very first shake as if they were scared he'd try to crush it if they lingered just a split of second longer.

Then again Sonic had no clue what he was, so there were no such expectations on his side. He was just a stranger to him, not the feared volatile project of ARK like he had been back to all the scientists and soldiers.

It felt...refreshing. This anonymity.

Shadow liked it.

"Soooo..." Sonic drawled, drawing Shadow back into the present. The blue speedster had a small smirk on his face now. "I've noticed you can run pretty fast back at the Green Hill zone."

"I do. I can run at the speed of sound," Shadow explained, raising a questioning brow when that information seemed to make the other's smirk turn into a full-blown grin. "Why does that interest you?"

"Well," Sonic started, rubbing his nose, "I'm quite fast myself you see—"

-O-

"—and he can run just fast as me, Tails! We had a race and Shadow was this close to beating me—!"

"Heavens, he's already given his imaginary friend a name! Tails, we need to do something!"

"Oh, shut it, Knucklehead."

-O-

"What's this place?"

"Sky Sanctuary."

An apt name for a place like this, Shadow had to admit as he looked once more at the floating ruins that surrounded them; it was as if some ancient city had been fragmented into smaller pieces and then these pieces had been raised into a sky and held there by an invisible force.

"And why are we here?"

"We're going there," Sonic explained, pointing to one of the tall white towers. "The view is amazing from up there."

Shadow hummed thoughtfully, briefly studying their destination from afar before focusing back on the hedgehog ahead of him. Sonic clearly knew this place as perfectly as the back of his hand as the speedster weaved his way through the zone gracefully, making all kind of rolls, somersaults and tricks in the air anytime they came to a gap they needed to jump over.

It was mesmerizing, in a way.

The moves themselves weren't something Shadow couldn't perform himself, but the way they were being utilized—merely for fun and not out of any kind of need. Sonic did them just because he could. Not because the situation called for it, not because using them would be practical for getting around.

Like when they had that race on the previous venture—it hadn't been a form of exercise that was supposed to asses his or Sonic's physical fitness or the progress of his training like it would have been back on ARK. It was just a challenge, a competition with no other reason behind it than to have fun with trying to best an equally matched opponent.

Shadow didn't even mind he had lost it; it had been his first time facing an actual person and he had just basked in the moment. The stakes had felt high but there was no actual pressure on him to win the race and Shadow just let himself get lost in the freedom of it. No purpose behind it all. Just having fun.

It still felt odd that he was allowed to do that now; his GUN overseers had always told him that his only purpose was to be their weapon and thus that should be the only thing he should revel in. In his purpose. When he had argued that his purpose was to be Maria's cure and friend they had laughed into his face, telling him that the only reason Professor Gerald ever got the funding for creating him was because he had promised GUN a perfect soldier. It had never been supposed to be his secondary task but a primary one.

He'd asked Professor about it and the man did not deny. Nor did he confirm it. He just asked him to work hard for Maria's sake.

And so he did.

He did so well that even his overseers started to fear him. Expectedly, word soon reached the upper heads and not long after it the ARK was ordered to be shutdown and put under a lock—and him with it.

He looked down at himself, wondering how long it had been since he actually looked like this. The light in his cell had given out a long time ago and the last time he had been able to see himself his ribs had already been showing because of how much weight he had already lost by that point ...

"Mobius to Shadow!"

Shadow blinked, snapping out of his musings. He had not even noticed they had reached their destination. However, Sonic didn't seem to mind too much.

"You've got something on your mind?" the other just asked, cocking his head ever so slightly, looking genuinely curious.

But Shadow just shook his head. His dismal reality could wait until he woke up again; here he was free of it and he would not waste that. "Nothing important."

"...if you say so." Sonic gave him a side-away glance but didn't push. He just plopped down, letting his legs dangle over the edge of the tower. He tapped the spot beside him. "Come sit with me. The sunset is really something from up here."

Shadow peered curiously over the edge. If they were to fall, there would be nothing to stop them. But strangely he didn't feel even a slightest glimpse of anxiousness at the fact; without hesitance, he sat down beside the other and let himself enjoy the view with Sonic like there wasn't a literal abyss right below them.

"You know, I like to find high spots to look at the sunset from." Sonic gave a little laugh, moving his legs ever so slightly. "But I never get anyone to actually watch with me." Sonic looked down to underline his question, before nudging Shadow in the side playfully. "You've got some steel nerves, buddy."

"I've been told so," Shadow agreed, staring curiously at the slowly setting sun. His first sunset back with the sea had been beautiful but it had been stagnant. It was like if he had been staring at a photo as time didn't move unless Sonic willed it to—or that was at least what it seemed like to Shadow.

Because whatever Sonic wanted happened in this world. When Sonic had wished them to race on the previous venture, the world morphed around him to give them a nice grass field to run across. When Sonic said the place looked better in the summer, flowers grew from the ground and bloomed in seconds. Today when Sonic had wondered what to do, he had told Sonic he had never witnessed a proper sunset; Sonic had promised him a sunset and now they were here among the clouds and the sun was already slipping below the horizon even though it had been an early morning when they were climbing their way up.

"You know, you never told me where you're from, Shad," the hedgehog suddenly voiced, breaking his immersion.

Shadow snorted as he looked at the other. "If I told you wouldn't believe me."

Sonic just grinned. "Try me."

"I live on a space colony," he said lips twitching ever so slightly as he waited for the other to go all 'No way!' on him.

Except it didn't come. "...and?"

"What and?"

"You made that sound as if you were from another planet," Sonic said, following the statement with a hearty chuckle. "Which by the way already happened to me—I know some aliens. Ever heard of Wisps? They're a funny bunch."

"Only from passing," Shadow said, surprised. Professor Gerald had told him that the GUN had already discovered some alien species, but this knowledge was supposedly kept from the general populace. He hadn't thought it would change while he still lived. Then again he didn't know how long it had actually been since the ARK's shutdown. "...What are they like?"

Sonic's lips stretched wide and his hands began to gesticulate wildly as he described the squid-like aliens with their hyper-go-on power, the 'lecture' soon turning into a storytelling as the hero began to recount how he joined forces with the aliens to foil an evil scheme of some megalomaniac called Dr. Eggman that intended to make an interstellar amusement park by chaining multiple planets together. The idea sounded absolutely ridiculous, but the man supposedly managed to pull it off. Or, well, almost pull it of.

Still the man clearly had a vision and resolve, Shadow had to give him that. It kind of reminded Shadow of all the ideas that Professor Gerald had back in the day. Most people had called him foolish and crazy when they heard him speak about them or even outright laughed. Then they were floored when this 'foolish' man actually managed to bring those crazy ideas to life.

Then Sonic talked about Tails, his younger brother. The hero spoke fondly of the small inventor, describing his futuristic inventions like the alien language translator he'd created so they could speak with Yacker, one of the wisps, who then clued them into the situation at hand. The device supposedly had a lot of bugs at the start but it was the first of its kind so full reliability was naturally not expected. Still it was an amazing achievement for someone that had been just ten at the time. It was obvious the young kid was an engineering genius.

And that one reminded Shadow of Maria; she had always been inventive and resourceful just like her grandfather but she never really had a chance to put her intellect to practical use. Professor had always been trying to keep her out of labs and workshops for fear of her injuring herself, as even the smallest scratch could easily prove fatal with her compromised immune system. Ironically, it lead her to getting into other kinds of trouble that spiked the poor man's blood pressure and left him in terrible worry for her safety.

Then, when Sonic ended his story, he told him as much. He spoke of Professor and Maria, of their crazy ideas and all those mischievous activities Maria had dragged him into over the years.

And if Sonic ever noticed his use of past tense, he didn't comment on it.

-O-

"A space colony? Is he an astronaut or something?"

"I don't think so. He's said he's been there since he can remember," Sonic replied, tapping his fingers against his cup thoughtfully. "I didn't even know kids were allowed up in space. Seems pretty hazardous."

"Well, it's a colony. Maybe he was born up there," Tails suggested, his brows furrowing thoughtfully. "Though I've never even heard of project like that..." he said and again there was the uncertain look that clearly told Sonic Tails still didn't fully believe Shadow to actually be real.

And the look didn't escape Sonic's attention. "Oh, come on, Tails! I thought you were on my side in this!"

"Sonic, nobody beside Dr. Eggman ever came close to making a space station where you could actually live for longer than a few months without severe adverse effect on their health...Well, at least officially—Which would mean that he's either carelessly giving you classified information on some secret project, or more likely, just lying to you." Tails chewed his lip. "...if he even exists, that is."

"I didn't make him up, Tails."

"I don't say you did, Sonic, but people with stressful lives like yours sometimes have unusual coping mechanisms—"

"Alright! I'm going to prove he's real, okay? Just let me think up how."

-O-

Shadow looked around himself, curious about the space he found himself in. It was his first time not appearing outdoors but inside an actual building. Though he found it a little odd it was a school of all places.

"I didn't imagine you as someone who likes school."

"Well, no. I didn't really enjoy school back when I still attended it." Sonic chuckled, jumping down from the desk he was sitting on and then opening it to take out a piece of paper and simple pencil. "I think my brain just picked it up because of what I've talked about with Tails today."

Shadow raised a questioning brow, but obviously Sonic didn't see him with his back turned. The hero wrote something onto the paper and then handed the paper along with the pencil to him.

"Could you solve this for me, please?" he asked.

Shadow's brow rose even higher at the strange request, but he didn't say anything yet as he looked down at the paper and saw what appeared to be a rather simple equation. Sure, there were factorials in it, but nothing he couldn't solve by hand in two minutes. Still... "Why are you giving me high-school algebra?"

"Well, Tails still doesn't really believe me you're real so I've figured I need to prove it in some way," Sonic explained. "And apart from me, you seem kinda friends with maths and stuff, so I asked him to give me some math problem I have no chance of solving and he came up with these exclamation mark thingies." Sonic gestured vaguely towards the paper, obviously not familiar with the concept of factorials. "Can you solve it?"

"Yeah, I can." Shadow nodded before turning his gaze back to the paper, staring at it in pensiveness. Then he shook his head, chasing away the doubtful thoughts that were trying to crawl back in and just began solving the problem; it wasn't like he would live long enough to see whether Sonic and all of this was just a huge deception created by his own brain or actually real so it was pointless to waste time by asking questions he has no way of answering.

Especially, when one considered how little of that particular commodity remained him.

-O-

"..."

"I told you, Knuckles."

"This doesn't prove anything!"

"It shows I was right!"

"It could have been a coincidence."

"Tails, what's the statistical chance I'd get five out of five numbers correct?"

"One to hundred thousand so about 0,001 %."

"Well, I guess I better go buy a lottery ticket—clearly luck's on my side considering those odds. Wouldn't you say so, Knuckles?"

"...Fine, I accept that he's real. But that still doesn't explain why he's showing up in your head of all places. Chaos knows it's just filled with stupid ideas and chili-dogs."

"Hey! Leave chili-dogs out of this!"

-O-

"—and here lived Rosie. She was very kind and made the best apple-pie in history of all apple-pies—"

Shadow listened with interest as Sonic continued to ramble about all the houses that surrounded them and the people that had inhabited them back in Sonic's childhood. Expectedly, it was only a handful of people considering the small size of the island but Sonic seemed to have dozens of stories for each of the inhabitants so he never really ran out of what to say.

And when he needed a break, Shadow would chime in with stories of his own. It was odd as he had never been talkative, but with Sonic it just seemed as the most natural thing in the world. Just talking, swapping stories. Expectedly, Sonic had much more of them with his whole life being one adventure after another and way more exciting than most of Shadow's, but Sonic listened just as raptly as Shadow did when the hero talked. Even if it was about mundane things, Sonic always seemed to listen and Shadow just couldn't help himself but bask in the attention.

Unfortunately, it meant that he soon ran out of the stories to tell. Or well the nice ones at least. The majority of his time aboard ARK had been spent in the training facilities and those days had never been pleasant to go through; Shadow imagined it would be even less to listen to them.

But Sonic didn't seem to mind when he was left as the sole story-teller. The hero made pauses from time to time, giving him a chance to take up the mantle again if he wished to, but easily slipped back into the flow when he didn't raise up to the occasion.

But eventually even Sonic stopped talking when the two of them reached the small beach on the south side of the island. They sat down at the very edge of it, silence hanging over them as they watched the waves lap on the shore and the starry sky shining from above.

"I left the island when I was eleven," Sonic suddenly broke the silence. Red eyes immediately turned curiously to the other, but Sonic's own gaze seemed to be focused on something in the sky. "I didn't even know where I would go, I just packed my things and went to see the world. I had no idea just what awaited me ahead. Though I don't think I'd have decided differently if I knew." A smile pulled at the hero's lips, green eyes finally shifting their gaze to him. "What about you, Shad? Any plans about where you'll go once you get back down from space?"

Shadow's lips pulled into a thin line. Once. He couldn't even hope for that one anymore. "None."

"Really?" Sonic was clearly surprised. "Not one place you'd like to visit it?"

"There are many places I'd like to visit," Shadow elaborated, "but I won't have the chance."

"That sounds oddly...final." Sonic shifted slightly, a pinch of worry and hint of pensiveness twisting his previously happy face. "...do you want to speak about it?"

"No." Shadow wasn't sure how much time remained to him, but he was sure it was too late already. When he was awake, he could barely find the strength to breathe these days. He doubted he had much time left. "Just tell me what you've seen. You've said you been to Soleanna?"

Sonic gave him a look, conflicting emotions crossing the other's visage. It was clear the idea of pretending he hadn't heard what he just had didn't sit well with the other, but Shadow was sure his look alone was enough of warning for Sonic not to push.

And, so, eventually, Sonic began to speak of the kingdom of the water and the festival he had attended in the city. However, unlike those stories before it, it wasn't accompanied with easy smiles and heartfelt laughs, but fake grins and forced chuckles.

Shadow would expect the falseness to jar him, but instead it left him feeling oddly...regretful. He hadn't meant to upset Sonic—only say the truth.

Crimson eyes turned to gaze at the hero, feeling something twist in him as he watched the other try his best at pretending all was fine for his sake. It was obvious that Sonic was shook by his indirect confession and that... Shadow wasn't sure how that made him feel. When the ARK was still operational very few people cared about him and after the shutdown he didn't think anyone ever would again. He didn't think that he would be missed once he finally passed away; he had long ago accepted that he would not be mourned.

The fact that somebody would actually miss him when he was gone that felt...odd.

But not in a bad way.

-O-

"Hey, Smart boy. Haven't heard from you in a while."

"Hi, Rouge," Tails greeted, shifting the cellphone to the other shoulder. "I have a favor to ask."

"A favor? What is it?"

"You still work for the GUN, right?"

"Well, unless someone found the footage from yesterday then I'd say I still am."

"...What a footage? Heavens, don't say you—!"

"Ah, don't worry your little head with that, darling. What do you need?"

Tails chewed his lip. He didn't want Rouge to get into more trouble if she was already walking on thin ice, but... "Do you have clearance to get to classified information?"

"I'm a spy, dear. Even if I don't have the clearance—" Tails could hear her grin on the other side of the phone. "—it doesn't really make a difference. Well, maybe 'a couple of days' kind of difference but that's alright with you, isn't it?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Well, what kind of information am I trying to obtain then?"

"You see there's this person—" Tails then proceeded to tell Rouge everything Sonic had told him about Shadow so far.

"—fellow, huh? I'll look into it."

"Thanks, Rouge."

"Don't mention it, kiddo."

Just as Tails put the cellphone down, Sonic quite literally slid into the room. "Hey, Tails, what are your favorite places we've visited?"

"Favorite places?" Tails repeated, confused as to why would his brother want to know something like that as clearly the first thing in the morning; the other was sporting a severe case of bed-fur as if he had just gotten up.

But Sonic didn't elaborate on the 'why' much. He just said, "Yeah, any place you've enjoyed. Any. I need a whole list."

-O-

"—but honestly the best ice cream is definitely that from Apatos. Anywhere you'll go there it's absolutely delicious!—Though my personal favorite is definitely this one cart near the harbor. We would get ice cream there all the time with Chip—I've told you about Chip, right?—He was this little squirrel-ly guy—"

Shadow listened intently as Sonic chattered about the delicious ice cream of Apatos while they walked down the streets of Spagonia, the topic having been prompted when they happened to pass an ice cream stand about two streets before. It was kind of fascinating how the hero could go on and on about any topic, really.

Though as of now, Shadow wasn't really sure how much of it was Sonic being passionate about this particular topic and how much of it was just Sonic trying to pretend everything was fine; the hero had not spoken about yesterday at all but have been sort of skittish thorough the day.

"—and that's—oh, you're not listening to me. Sorry, I didn't mean to bore you," Sonic suddenly cut off, no hint of sarcasm in his voice and looking genuinely apologetic as if the hero was sorry for wasting Shadow's limited time with chattering about mundane things like arguing about meat-buns his friend Chip in Chun-nan even if the recounting of the events was truly entertaining.

Which considering Sonic's overall personality seemed plausible. "It's alright—" I don't mind, Shadow wanted to say and after that maybe also apologize for allowing his mind to wander when he should be paying attention. But by the time Shadow managed to recall the necessary words, Sonic was already diverging his attention elsewhere.

"Let's change the scenery, shall we?" Sonic proposed, clapping his hands. "Where would you like to go next?"

But Shadow had never been one easily distracted, so even though his mind immediately become flooded with all the possible locations they could go, he didn't let himself get carried by the proposition. Instead he took a time to consider the question and then he choose the same plain field where he and Sonic had their first race and then proposed a rematch; not necessarily because he wanted it, but physical activity had always helped him clear his mind somehow and he hoped the same applied to Sonic; he didn't want Sonic to spend the rest of his limited time pitying him.

Sonic tentatively agreed.

Quickly, one match become two. Two become three and so on and on until neither was sure if they were even competing anymore; nothing really mattered outside the present moment. They just ran and at some point Sonic began talking again and the world started morphing endlessly around them to accompany his words as Sonic excitedly went on and on about all the fascinating corners of the planet; their surroundings went from giant industrial cities to freezings tundras, to scorching deserts and endless expanses of oceans as well as to numerous other terrains, allowing Shadow a glimpse of the world he had so long wished to travel but had never been given a chance to.

But even though quite literally all the beauty of the world was being laid for his eyes to see by Sonic, Shadow's eyes still continued to stray back to the epicenter of it all; the hedgehog who called on worlds with a wave of a hand, the hedgehog with life so crazy one would not believe him if it weren't for all the scars on his body to bear witness to his tales, the hedgehog with a smile so bright it could easily warm the whole world instead of the sun if the star were to ever disappear.

And sometimes Sonic would meet his gaze and the corners of the hero's mouth would pull just slightly wider and that would make something lurch in Shadow and his heart hammer like crazy for no apparent reason.

But maybe that was what being alive was just supposed to feel like.

-O-

"...Are we going to tell him about it?"

"I don't think we should."

"Then are we at least calling the ghostbusters?"

"Knuckles!"

"What? You said it yourself, Tails. There's no way that guy is still alive if he really got stuck up there when the project shut down. The only other option that leaves is that the guy's ghost and haunting Sonic."

"I don't think Shadow's a ghost," Tails argued, but only that part. He was quite certain that Shadow was long dead—after all, the space station had been evacuated fifty years ago according to Rouge and had not been maintained or provided with supplies ever since; there was no way at least one vital life-support system hadn't given out already and no way Shadow would be able to survive on the food that had been left there if it didn't. But Shadow being a ghost...well, that had no actual facts supporting it. "...Isn't it possible that somehow the Chaos Emerald is allowing Sonic to communicate with Shadow while he was still alive? Like some kind of intertemporal telephone?"

"Interwhat telephone?"

"Intertemporal—like instead of calling someone who's in different location, you're calling someone that's in different time-period."

"I don't think so." Knuckles's lips pulled into a thin line. "But at this point, I wouldn't even be surprised if Sonic's somehow managed to make the Chaos Emerald do that just to prove me wrong, honestly."

-O-

"My house isn't exactly the most exciting of places," Sonic commented, rubbing his neck sheepishly. "You really don't want to go somewhere else?"

"No, it's fine," Shadow assured, running his fingers lightly over the colorful book-covers that were stacked on the shelf. Their titles ranged anywhere from 'Quantum Physics' to 'Arabian Nights' clearly reflecting the interests of the two occupants of the house. Shadow felt his lip twitch as he recalled the collection Professor used to have in his own book-case. "I was always curious what a normal home looked like," he confessed.

"...You know sometimes I forget you're from space." Sonic gave a little laugh from behind him. Shadow turned around to see the other rubbing his neck. "But if you really insist on marveling at my house, then at least let me show you the best part of it." The hero grinned as he pointed upward. "The roof."

"The roof?" Shadow raised a questioning brow, having no idea what could be so amazing about it. But Sonic didn't elaborate, just gave him a smirk and motioned for him to follow.

They exited the house and the first thing that Shadow noticed was the smell of salt in the air. Confused, he looked around and spotted the reason right below the cliff they stood on; a sea spanned to the end of the horizon.

Which understandably threw Shadow for a loop. "I've thought you disliked water."

"I do but Tails loves it," Sonic's voice sounded from above and Shadow turned to see the hero lounging on the roof of his small house. "Plus at the time it was the only secluded house in the area we could afford as kids at the time so we took it," he explained, tapping the spot beside him in a clear invitation to join him.

Shadow jumped up the roof, struggling a bit with his footing on the tilted roof and not just because of the angle; the weakness of his physical existence was staring to reach him even in his dreams, strength no longer being granted to him even here, a clear warning his countdown was soon going to hit zero.

But he did his best to hide it because Shadow didn't intend to tell Sonic; he'd rather have their friendship come to an abrupt end rather than waste the last hours with pity.

Let them end with a laugh on their lips rather than tears in their eyes.

He sat down (or more accurately flopped down) with less grace than he should, but luckily Sonic seemed not to notice it. "Who would sell a house to a child?" Shadow asked, trying to sound casual.

Sonic rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Well, no one."

"...You were squatters."

"It was long abandoned; spider webs and all that. We saw no harm." Sonic shrugged his shoulders. "We repaired it and took good care of it. I got it sorted legally the moment I could." Sonic snickered as he laid down beside him. "Though honestly, it was an absolute steal. I'm surprised nobody bought it over the years. Just look at the view."

Sonic raised a hand, making a turning motion with his hand as if rewinding a clock. The sky immediately turned from blue to black, the moon and bright stars sparkling on the dark canvas and colorful strokes of nebulas melting into the inky blackness before emerging like a wave somewhere else.

Tan lips fell open in a silent awe. This was what the space looked like from down on the planet?

"Pretty impressive, huh?"

Impressive? That word made no justice to what Shadow was seeing.

Shadow knew these were the same stars he had seen from the ARK and yet somehow they felt different. He couldn't quite put his finger on it.

It was like if he was seeing them for the first time again. And he was, wasn't he? At least from the planet's surface. From a perspective he had longed for years.

It was a pity so little time remained for him to enjoy it. He supposed he ought to make the most of it...

"Hey, Shad." Sonic's voice gently called him back into the presence. Green eyes flickered to his red ones before turning their gaze at some point in the vast fabric of space. "I've always been curious—where exactly is your station orbiting?"

"Simply around the Earth," Shadow shrugged his shoulders, taking a brief glance at the sky to see if he could spot the station floating somewhere. No such luck. "But if you never noticed it, I supposed it's not going to show up in your dreams when they're build upon a memory."

Sonic hummed thoughtfully at that. "...Hey, Shadow, how many Mobians are there on the station?"

"I'm the only Mobian that's ever been there." Well, technically only part Mobian really. Professor had supposedly synthesized his DNA from multiple species, not just Mobian hedgehog's DNA. What the other part however was he had no clue...

"Figures," Sonic hummed. When Shadow raised a questioning brow at what the other meant by that, the hero explained, "Well, you've just called the planet 'Earth' and only humans call it that so..."

Shadow furrowed his brows in confusion. "What do you call it?"

"Mobius. Obviously."

Shadow huffed. Ah, the eternal debate of what the planet should be called... That had been quite a popular topic even among some of the ARK staff back in the day. "You know I've always believed all these names were too uncreative. I think the 'Big Blue Marble' is much better..."

Sonic let out an amused snort. Shadow followed suit right after. "Rather 'Earth' than that," Sonic muttered, lightly bumping their shoulders together before turning his gaze back to the inky blackness. "...How about you try to describe the station? Maybe I've seen it and just forgot."

"If you insist." Shadow didn't really believe Sonic would remember seeing it, but he was not against humoring the other. Sonic showed him his home, Shadow might as well return the favor in a way.

Thus he gave a simplified description of the outer design as that would be the only thing Sonic could be familiar with. Sonic's brows become more and more pinched as he went on, the other clearly trying his best to recall what was being described to him. However, no space station ever appeared in the vast blackness of space.

Sonic gave a huff and his expression slackened as the hero finally gave up in his endeavor. "...Well, at least I can say I've tried," he said, giving him a sheepish smile.

"Indeed," Shadow affirmed. He was not going to lie; he was kind of disappointed he didn't get to see in person what the ARK looked like from an outsider's perspective but not to the point he was upset over it. If that was one of those things he couldn't have before he went, so be it.

"Well, then how about I conjure up something else?" Sonic offered with grin, opening his arms dramatically. "Really. Say whatever you want. I can make it, I dunno, rain candy or something if you want."

"I think I'm fine with the sky how it is." Shadow gave a little chuckle. "...but thank you," he added after a moment, letting himself turn more somber.

...for everything, remained unsaid.

"No problem, buddy." Sonic offered him a grin, expectedly misinterpreting his thanks. The fact was even more underline when the next thing the hero did was to start pointing out star constellations in the dark sky and chattering excitedly about them.

But how could Sonic understand the gravity of the statement if Shadow didn't let him know?

Crimson eyes turned to stare at his blue-furred companion. They had not spent that long together but Shadow felt confident in saying they had become good friends in the short time frame; he found it quite disappointing he wouldn't get more time to spend with Sonic.

Thus he gave his all to use the hours they had left to their maximum. They talked, they laughed, they discussed and shared stories until there was no more air in Shadow's lungs to tell them and he could feel the familiar claws of reality already clutching at the back of his mind. Shadow tried to hold out for long as he could and he was given one last mercy—instead of him the metaphysical claws began to pull apart the fabric of this world, slowly deconstructing it piece by piece, giving him enough time to say his farewell.

It was at that very moment that Sonic seemingly finally realized something was very wrong, the other's expression twisting into one of panic as the world started to crumble without him commanding it to. The hero turned to him, panic mixing with confusion when the other saw how calm he was even though something akin to apocalypse was taking place.

"Do you know what's happening, Shad?" he asked, and the way it was said clearly told Shadow that Sonic realized the most likely reason but hoped to be proven wrong.

But Shadow promised himself not to lie to Sonic and he didn't plan on changing that on his deathbed.

"I wanted to die here by your side, beside somebody who cares," Shadow confessed quietly and that seemed to break something in Sonic, the panic in his expression giving away to raw pain. "In a mirage rather than in the coldness of a broken tank that I know awaits me in the real world."

All kinds of emotions flashed across Sonic's face. Pain. Shock. Panic. Hurt. Anger. Back and forth. Forth and back. But then...

"I'll find you, Shadow," the hero vowed suddenly, his face hardening in determination, his eyes getting the same resolute gleam they always did when they raced. "I promise, you hear me?"

Shadow gave a weak smile. Oh, how amazing it would have been to hear such words before.

But now...

"Even if you did, it's already too late," he said.

And at last the claws swooped down for their final blow and ripped his consciousness away from Sonic's.

-O-

"Tails, quick! I need your help!"

"Sonic? What's the matter? You look like you have seen a ghost."

"Shadow's dying," Sonic cut to the chase. "And is stuck up there—on the ARK. We need to go save him."

Tails' lips pressed into a thin line. Time to break it to Sonic. "I'm sorry, Sonic, but Shadow—"

"Quick, Tails!" However, Sonic didn't seem to be listening. "What are you waiting for?" the other asked, before literally picking him up from his chair to carry him towards the hangar. "We need to move quickly!"

"Sonic, wait! Listen to me!" Tails squirmed in the other's hold. "The ARK shutdown 50 years ago! Shadow's long gone!"

His big brother stopped in his steps. "...Say what?"

-O-

Contrary to what Shadow believed he 'woke' up again.

But this time it was to a completely empty space and Sonic wasn't there to greet him.

Nor anyone else.

The solitude felt way more crushing than Shadow remembered.

He looked around in the vast blackness and tried to call into it. But it was as if he just...was. There was no sound leaving him or coming to him. No colors to see or shapes to feel.

There was nothing.

But there was supposed to be a light or something at the very end, right? Some tunnel. Where was it? What did this vast space mean? Was he not dead yet? But was this space then?

Once again Shadow tried to call. This time he was answered but it was not his own voice coming back to him. Instead it was the sound of a distant distorted humming—like when one was underwater and there was some heavy machine running above its surface. Shadow tried to call again but the humming didn't become any clearer.

Then the humming ceased without a warning and the cold came. Crushing freezing cold that wrapped around him so tightly that he couldn't breath. His chest felt heavy and his throat constricted. He felt as if he was choking.

He coughed out and thankfully whatever was obstructing his air-passages was expelled. It felt like some kind of liquid. It tasted vile.

He wanted to bring up his hand to clean his mouth of the horrible taste but found the action impossible. His hands refused to move from where they laid on the floor—wait, when did he get on the floor—weighted down by something smooth but heavy. Some metal cuffs probably...

Something itched at the back of Shadow's mind at the thought, something like a faint realization, but the fog that was filling his head made it hard to call forward. It become downright impossible when something warm suddenly wrapped around him, the comforting warmth chasing away the cold but also pushing him deeper into the odd cloudy haze.

Shadow fought the urge to fall asleep, wanting to know what was going on. But suddenly there was the faint humming again but this time it sounded soft. Alive. It wasn't the sound of a machine. It was a person's voice.

However, no matter how hard Shadow tried he just couldn't decipher the words—if there were any. In his ears, the voice just continued to make some faint soothing sounds that acted like a lullaby to his tired mind, urging it deeper into sleep. He found it difficult to resist.

But before Shadow was sent unwillingly stumbling back into the unconsciousness, he was able to come to one last baffling realization.

He knew that voice.