"Argh. How do you deal with this?"
"Oh, stop complaining. You think it was easy for me when I first started dealing with it?"
"It's almost painful having all this there."
"You've got my help, which is more than I had. Just don't mess up the system I've got, otherwise it'll take me decades to get it sorted again."
"You mean there really is a system behind all this mess?"
Shadow was having trouble coming to terms with the sheer depth and seemingly infinite amounts of information, among other things, in Liam's head. Tails had chosen to keep clear and was running about just getting used to things again.
Liam sighed. "Think of it like a filing cabinet. That's how I see it in my mind's eye, and that's an invaluable way of interpreting it."
"Right, so what's in each part of it?"
"You mean what are the labels on it. Think hard, see it in your mind like I suggested, and you'll see my labels."
"That sounds insane."
"You're talking to someone several centuries old, and you're telling me what's insane?"
"I'm just saying it isn't going to work."
"It did for me. Concentrate. Close your eyes. I can do it without needing to, but you'll need time before you can do that."
Shadow concentrated, then drew in a sharp breath.
"I can see them. That's really strange."
"Easy. Don't disrupt your concentration. Each draw, you'll find, contains even more draws in itself."
"Over-sorted much?"
"There's more information in there than is in all of the libraries and computers of the world, and some of it exists only there. I keep it sorted so it doesn't get lost."
"So how do you find anything so quickly?"
"That comes with time. And I did make the system, of course. Don't try and over do it for now. Just get to grips with how it works. You'll get the hang of my filing system eventually, and after that, it you may even be able to call up anything whenever you want, without even having to think about it."
"There's some things I can't get into."
"What do they look like?"
"Dark. Black. They feel... unpleasant."
"Ah. Those."
"What are they?"
"Dangerous. Stay clear of them. Most of them you won't be able to use at all, let alone open. There's only a few you can open and use, but I strongly suggest steering clear of them at all costs."
"You've used these things?"
Liam sat in silence, staring out at the ocean. His expression turned serious, and unconsciously, his tails twitched with anxiety.
"I did once. I try to avoid it if at all possible. There was a time when I almost used them too much."
"What made you do it?"
"I had no choice. I was dying. People were hunting for me, everyone was out to get me. It was one of the darker chapters in my history. I went for nearly two months with little to no decent food before I finally gave in."
"You didn't eat?"
"It's hard to go into a store when you're a wanted man."
"That must have been terrible for you."
"There are worse things. When I used one of those 'Dark Files' as I've always seen them... it was one of the most powerful, and equally most dangerous ones. It was what started all the rumours about me being a Dark Seer or Wizard or being evil."
Shadow said nothing, but had a curious and also slightly disturbed look.
Liam saw it and continued. "I killed them. All of them. I unleashed it in anger, lashing out at everything and everyone that I hated, so it did more than I meant. But it didn't stop with just killing everyone in range.
"When I went to find out what I'd done, the people all stood there. At first I thought I'd just changed their minds, and they were now in awe of me, but when I reached the centre of a town, I had a terrifying realisation.
"They were dead, but not dead. Undead. Zombies, every one of them. And I had complete command over them. I had killed thousands, and turned them into my slaves. I was horrified at what I'd done."
"What happened to them?"
"I sent them away. They still exist, even now, and I still command them – well, you do, for now, anyway. But they're still around, waiting for a command. You know the cavern I keep watch over?"
Shadow nodded, "I think I saw some of your memories of it."
"What I see in there, is what I could become if I'd kept on using these darker powers, and hadn't been turned away by that incident. I've still had to use them on rare times, but I keep it to a minimum."
"Because you don't want to become what you see there."
Liam nodded gravely.
"You said I could command them?"
"Don't start thinking of what you could do with all of them. Commanding them is, in itself, one of those darker powers, and is equally as risky. Every time I use one, I face not just losing myself to what I saw, but something worse."
"Worse?"
"I don't want to talk about it. If you're really all that curious about it... have a look for yourself."
Tails stopped nearby, and glanced at each of them? "What's with the long faces?"
"Just talking about my past, and some of the more gloomy points."
"I thought you were talking with Sonic and Silver?" Shadow chimed in.
"I was. Knuckles got me to come over. Silver's having trouble helping him understand the psychic stuff, and Knuckles wants Liam's help."
"I've never actually used Psychic powers," Liam complained. "But I guess I'll give it a go. You should come too Shadow, I'll need my memories that you've still got."
"No trouble... Tails."
"Please don't do that, it's hard enough as it is without you calling me by your name."
Shadow grinned at him. "That's all right Tails – Shadow and I won't forget who we are, now, will we?"
"Why me...?"