AUTHOR'S NOTE
Silver spends some alone time...with Mephiles.
Also, I happily introduce to you...the Chaotix! (Sadly, without Mighty the Armadillo. Our best wishes, blessings and prayers go to you. Mighty for President/Prime Minister 20XX. You have our vote, love and condolences.)
CHAPTER SIX
The first signs of sunshine bled through the curtain seams. A certain blue hedgehog was standing in front of a door tightly shut. He looked as if he had not slept the previous night. He hadn't. His eyelids were heavy, threatening to fall and put him to sleep, the only thing preventing him from doing so is his occupying anxiety and concern for a certain white hedgehog.
"Silver?" called Sonic cautiously.
No reply.
"Silver?" he tried again with a gentler tone, this time nearing the door. It was tightly shut.
Still no reply.
The room was an atrocious mess: the remnants of broken objects were scattered on the floor, on the table, on the bed; a large opening exploded out of the shattered window, gaping mockingly at the paralysed hedgehog, who had retreated to the very corner of the walls, on his bed, hugging his legs tightly in a sitting crouch. Carcasses of books of all sizes and volumes lay motionlessly on the ground, fallen from the partially-damaged bookshelf, their pages torn and ripped.
Oh, by the name of the Chaos Emeralds, what have I done…?
Silver had reduced himself to merely a ball of fur. His sleep-deprived eyes moved in a delayed fashion, to the left, to the right, weakly absorbing the dilapidated state of the room. He squeezed his eyes shut, thinking that everything will be fine when he opens them again.
As if all had been a dream, a horrendous nightmare.
A light, repeated knock at his door nudged at his consciousness. Someone was calling his name.
"Silver, can I come in?"
The prevailing outdoor wind sneaked in through the window, gently soaring through his dishevelled fur. The white hedgehog answered the door with his psychic powers.
"Silver!" exclaimed the blue hedgehog, full of shock. "Let's get you out of here now."
"But…the broken windows, the damage I've done…" whimpered Silver, terrified.
"No, don't you worry. We got this in our hands," replied Sonic, optimistic as usual, "You go take refuge in my room. Have a good wash first."
Rigidly, Silver nodded, feeling the stiff fibres of his neck wring his skin tight, tight with discomfort. Sonic hurried off, presumably to get help.
Footsteps heavy, he trudged to his brother's room under his sincere permission. He went straight for the bathroom, and hastily turned on the tap, adjusting its temperature. Slowly, warm water had filled the bathtub. Cautiously, Silver stepped in.
The comforting liquid hugged his legs and ankles with such a perfect warmth that he instantaneously sank down, spraying some water out of the container. He switched off the tap in satisfaction and relief, and stretched out his loosened limbs. Amidst his dreamy contentment, he caught the sound of impatient footsteps rush up the stairs, stopping at what he believed was his devastated room. Curiously, he tried to guess and imagine who it was. Sonic and Shadow must be there. he thought idly, Blaze too. Not sure about everyone else. But he secretly hoped others were there as well. A conversation seemed to be taking place beyond the walls of the bathroom.
"Well, you know," began a rough voice, "The Chaotix can offer you the best-quality repair and recovery services -"
"Shut up, Vector," said Shadow.
Silver's sleepy gaze drifted towards a delicately-framed picture on the ledge of the bathtub. The frame was embedded with the word BROTHERS, and below ran a carefully-etched caption I'LL ALWAYS BE THERE WHEN YOU NEED ME.
He frowned as a wave of sadness overcame him. The three hedgehogs in the picture were younger than they are now, their eyes brimming, carefree and innocent. Their faces were adorably close to the camera that took this memorable picture, all huddled together in a tight hug; Sonic and Shadow on the sides, grinning voraciously, squeezing an equally-jovial Silver in the middle. Though smiling timidly, his eyes were shining with an unrivalled gratefulness and security that were missing so prominently in the black-hole-like pupils of the dejected hedgehog that slouched, inactive, in the tub of gradually-cooling water.
I'm so glad you're my brothers, the young Silver seemed to say, golden orbs beaming in the sunlight.
The initial sadness was replaced by a burst of anger. The emotion grew in his body, rising like an agitated volcano about to explode, but it stopped at his throat, its hot viciousness choking him with severe discomfort. He wanted to scream, to rid his body of the irate lava, but it just stayed there, in his windpipe, and solidified into sedate coldness. Silver buried his head in his eyes, and sobbed silently.
His body twitched. Then the bathtub was no longer filled with water.
Silver lifted his head out of his hands, and saw his fingers and palms laced with haphazard trails of blood. The lines of glistening red was a traumatic blow to his head; forebodingly, he moved his arms to his sides, the curtains opening to a vermillion grandeur.
His furry body was dyed red, drenched in blood.
He sat in a bloodbath.
And a vile, viscous substance emerged from the drain. It was red, but darker than blood, and looked like goo. It writhed towards him from the other end of the bathtub as it continued to gush out of the drain. Silver shrunk back. He could see that the substance possessed not only itself, but also sickening remnants of bones, corpses, and organs.
His entire body of muscles all went into spasm at once. He swung his left arm blindly, smashing the brotherly picture frame into pieces. The shards of wood and glass were scattered everywhere. The picture fell into the bath, utterly soaked, and soon began to break apart, the heads of young Sonic detached from young Shadow, and young Silver. Soon, they were no more. Silver leapt out of the bath and shrieked. His feet on the slippery bathroom floor caused him to slip and fall with a loud thud, breaking his distressed cry.
There were pools of blood on the white marble floor.
He was lying in one himself.
The slime was approaching inevitably.
Everything was so faint, so dizzy. The marble floor was pressed against his face, his heart, the coldness seeping through his pores and fibres of skin; he felt as if the wetness surrounding his body was slowly coagulating, solidifying, into ice.
The door swung open.
"Silver…what happened?!" whispered Sonic, terrified, as he placed his hand on the soaked body of his brother.
Silver screamed, and jumped back up. "GET OFF ME, YOU DISGUSTING, SLIMY SUBSTANCE!" His dizziness caused him to teeter on the ground, and he would've fallen back if a pair of gloved hands had not grabbed him firmly.
"Stop freaking out! Tell me what's the matter!"
"Blood…blood everywhere!" he croaked weakly, but then he opened his eyes and took a good look around, "Blood…? There's no blood now…"
"Of course there's no blood now; there never was, joker!" Sonic sighed, and brought his brother into his chest. Freeing one hand, he reached to the side and grabbed his towel, and gently dabbed the wet skin of the shivering, sobbing hedgehog. "I think you should go out for a walk, Silver. Go to the park. Enjoy the sunshine, and relax."
He gave Silver a tight squeeze. He didn't realise Silver was crying.
"Well, what are we going to do with this mess, then?!" demanded Sonic.
"We've achieved absolutely no progress with your presence," roared Shadow, "You're just here to waste our precious time!"
"No, no, we're not," hastily interjected Vector, "We'll explain -"
"I don't need any explanations. I just need you to leave. We'll sort this mess ourselves."
The Chaotix scurried out of the room.
"Where's that white hedgehog? I swear something's wrong with him all a sudden," muttered Vector.
"He probably went to the park," replied Espio nonchalantly.
"Let's go to the park!" squealed Charmy.
The hoary hedgehog did not realise it was already the afternoon. He had collapsed to sleep on the bench as soon as he got there.
The trio approached him with a multitude of footsteps. Only when they were an arm's length away did he slowly stir, open his eyes, and turn his head to face them. He looked lost. His golden orbs no longer shone with a curious intrigue, but instead seemed to fade into the white sclera of his eyes, empty of essence.
"What do you want…" he mumbled sleepily.
"You look like you've just woken up! Were you asleep?" asked Charmy.
The white hedgehog glared daggers at the ignorant bee. Espio answered instead, "Yes, he was."
"By the way, Silver," spoke Vector, his tone intentionally entrancing, "The Chaotix is currently offering a support scheme for the mentally-challenged and distressed! Any idea you might be interested?"
"Yeah!" added Charmy Bee, unhelpfully enthusiastic amidst the gloomy situation, "We can offer discounts 'cause we're all friends!"
"Oh, shut up, you two," interrupted the reasonable Espio. "This actually seems to be quite serious." The chameleon turned formally to face the hedgehog, "We're here to ask you a few questions about recent affairs."
Silver gulped.
"We heard that you've been suffering some sort of…intense headache recently. Am I right?"
The hoary hedgehog said nothing. He continued to stare at the three figures with his deprived golden orbs. The longer he stared, the more something didn't seem right. His vision began to shimmer, to blur. He rubbed his eyes frantically until everything was complete darkness. For a moment, Silver was stupefied by his blindness.
Then, all was clear.
All was distorted.
"So…what's the deal?" added Charmy, but he recoiled slightly at the terrified gaze of the white hedgehog.
And then, Silver screamed. "GET AWAY FROM ME!"
"Huh? Are you okay, Mister Silver - woah, hold it there!" Knives of psychic energy scarcely missed the flying bee by centimetres. Together, the Chaotix looked at the disordered hedgehog. His golden relics were full of paranoia. His hands were poised, ready for battle and defence.
A voice in his head nagged at his instincts, a deep growl, Brains, Silver. They want brains; you can give yours to them.
"Get away from me. Don't make me do this," he purred, voice trembling.
"Hey, kid, don't get all fired up! We don't mean any harm -" growled Vector, a mixture of bloody liquid and rotting material in his mouth.
"PSYCHIC KNIFE!"
The Chaotix were knocked back as they collectively groaned. Their attacker quickly flew out of the park and disappeared round the corner of the streets.
"Since when did he take a liking to violence…?" muttered Vector absent-mindedly.
The eyes of the white hedgehog grew wider as he continued flying. The landscape was severely discoloured, every single detail altered. There was debris everywhere, yet he was able to fly right through them; and not a single person was on the streets, despite the fact that he could hear the muffled sounds of conversation.
Silver landed. He looked around: he was home. Everything slowly faded back to normal, and he uttered a small exclamation of surprise. He barged straight into the bathroom, and closed the door shut, drawing the attention of his brothers, who were still busy in his room.
He examined his own reflection, so distraught and so different to what he thought he was like no more than a week ago.
Suddenly, his reflection flashed a grin of evil back at his shocked face.
Wasn't that fun? it said, the mouth moving in sync with the voice of Mephiles in his head.
No, it definitely wasn't! he raged back silently.
"Silver?! Is that you in there?!" called Sonic, "Open up, pal."
"I didn't lock the door!" replied Silver, but realisation struck him as the reflection in the mirror seemed to clutch its chest, laughing with the harsh voice in his head.
But I did, stated Mephiles. I locked the door…
The white hedgehog started for the door and tried to pull it open - despite the lock not being fastened - but it did not bulge, as if sealed by some magical, unfathomable force.
…And you can't open it! Ha ha ha…he cackled relentlessly.
"Grrr…" Silver growled in fury, "You MONSTER!"
Oh, no, Silver, I think you're mistaken…the voice replied, as calm as ice.
"Silver?! What's happening?!" cried Sonic.
"Open up!" shouted Shadow, as he banged his fists on the unyielding door.
I'm only doing it for your protection and safety…
No, you're not! Get out of my head! Silver clamped his hands to his head and pushed hard, hoping to squeeze the perpetrator out of his mind.
You know what they say, Silver the Hedgehog: never let them in…he joked.
A rapid succession of blurry images flashed through Silver's head - the empty, vampiric gazes of his brothers eating away his sanity, their eyes and mouths dripping fresh trails of blood -
Instinctively, he punched the glass mirror where his mocking reflection once stood. As soon as the glass bits shattered and fell to the floor, the door was released of its spell and flew open, hitting him and knocking him to the floor amongst the jagged bits of glass. Sonic and Shadow stormed in. Silver raised his arms in defence, but, realising that his brothers looked perfectly normal - apart from being utterly appalled - he put them down, whimpering.
Shadow marched forwards and hauled him up, holding him firmly. He carefully and delicately dusted off any glass shards on his body, but his gaze was stern, penetrating through Silver's own.
"Who are you, Silver?" His grip tightened.
"Wh-what do you mean?"
"Who really are you? You're different. You're not who you used to be. Tell us who you are, so we can start to get to know the new you."
Yes, Silver, the new you. A sharp pain drove through his head. Isn't it lovely to be a new person?
The white hedgehog shut his eyes in pain, squeezing out a flurry of tears.
"Help…" he croaked, "Help me, Shadow…" he threw his arms round his brother's, and the hands gripping his body relaxed and embraced him own.
The ebony hedgehog sighed audibly. "Fine; yes, we will. Let's go to the park and have a talk."
"The…the park…!" said Silver, his voice wavering.
"Yes, the park. Where else?"
"Don't go to the park! Please!" he pleaded.
"Why not? We always go to the park!" interjected Sonic, standing on the side, "It's such a nice place!"
"NO. It's not," retorted the ivory hedgehog, "There are monsters there…they want…brains…"
Shadow looked at Sonic in disbelief and worry. What is wrong with this guy? He's delusional.
Sonic returned a gaze of sympathy. No idea…
"Silver," began Shadow, "The park is not filled with monsters. The park isn't dangerous -"
"Monsters," gasped Silver, "Monsters with organs in their mouths and blood leaking from their eyes…"
Shadow, didn't this happen before? Sonic looked at Shadow again, who shared the same expression of terror as him, With us?
Damn right, it did, retorted the black hedgehog with a gaze of seriousness.
We're going to have to convince him to go to the park, signalled Sonic.
The black hedgehog began to tug his brother, who had sunk down and rested all his weight on his arms and refused to be moved away from the fixed spot.
"Silver, relax, we're only going to the park! Stop resisting!" he seethed.
"No! I'm not going!"
"Yes, you are, white hedgehog." Shadow pulled more and more, causing his brother to wail in protest.
"Shadow, stop!" shouted Sonic, "We can't aggravate his…state!" he whispered the last word cautiously.
The black hedgehog averted his gaze in guilt.
"Silver," said Shadow, "Trust us, there won't be a single monster in the park."
"B-but there was…they may still be there!" he replied hysterically, eyes widening in fear at the thought.
"And if - by any chance - there is, we'll protect you," declared Shadow.
"Nothing will hurt you when we're here, we promise," added Sonic, dramatising the situation by cracking his fists and pushing them together.
The white hedgehog got up with difficulty from his slouching position, and, with his brothers' arms wrapped snugly on his shoulders, trudged out of the house towards the park.
The park was empty, much to their appeal. The wind rustled between the branches and falling leaves as the three hedgehogs walked towards the vacant benches. Silver absent-mindedly opened his palm to try and catch a leaf - without success. They got to the benches and sat down.
Sonic and Shadow looked straight into the eyes of the hoary hedgehog. The blue one spoke up first, gently clutching his hand in his own, "Silver, I know we've been through this numerous times before, but please, tell us, what's the matter?"
"I feel different. I feel possessed. I don't feel like who I used to be…" he gulped.
"Keep going, Silver. Elaborate for us," encouraged Shadow.
Oh, God, here it goes… "I…I keep hearing a voice in my head, telling me to do things - forcing me to do things!"
Shadow glanced at Sonic, who returned the same gaze of solemnity.
Pain surged into the mind of the white hedgehog. The very voice he had mentioned rang through his head, tolling and terrorising. Listen, hedgehog, if you do so much as to give another hint to your brothers, I will drive you down the road of insanity. Do you hear me?
You already are! Go away! he begged internally.
This is nothing compared to what I can do. I will retreat, if you listen and obey all my commands to the fullest. Silver shut his eyes. In the dark, he can scarcely make out the slit pupils of a snake against bright-red sclerae, watching and listening to his every movement, every word.
"Silver, who is this voice you're talking about?" pursued Shadow.
Don't you dare…don't you dare do it, it echoed maliciously.
"I…I don't know!"
"Here we go again," Sonic rolled his eyes in exasperation.
"Yes, you do. Tell us, Silver," growled Shadow.
"No, I can't -" His eyes widened into the distance.
"What's wrong?! Silver!" shouted the midnight hedgehog.
"I-it's them! They're coming!" he said, as he pointed a shaky finger into the distance where three figures were approaching.
Sonic and Shadow swung their heads around. "It's only the Chaotix, Silver," stated Sonic, "Don't be so scared."
"It's the monsters…they want our brains…"
"No, they don't," responded Shadow, "Everything is going to be fine. Now, if you don't mind, you've a question to answer for us."
The white hedgehog said nothing, but shook his head frantically.
"I'll go talk to them and see what they want." The azure hedgehog sighed, and hopped off the benches, but was restrained by a gloved hand. Silver's.
"Please don't let them hurt you…"
"Of course I won't!" And he rushed off to greet the approaching trio.
"You're worrying too much. As much as the Chaotix annoys me, they're completely harmless and friendly. You've nothing to worry about, Silver," said Shadow, an arm round his brother's rigid body, "And Sonic always has everything under his control."
"Hey, guys, what's up?" Sonic jogged the last few steps and came to a halt.
"Hey, Sonic," replied Vector, "Nothing much, just here to have a look around…"
The cerulean hedgehog narrowed his eyes. "You sure? You want anything from us?"
"No, not really - not at all -"
"About that," interrupted Charmy, "We are actually here to see Silver!"
Vector grunted in disapproval at the exposure of their motives. "Charmy!" he said, "You weren't supposed to say that!"
"Oh, was I not?"
"Yeah! We were supposed to look innocent and casually observe them from the distance!"
"Well," said Sonic, matter-of-factly, "Considering how you walked straight to us, you clearly had something in mind. Maybe a better plan would suffice for next time!"
"Oh, well, fine…" muttered Vector, dejected.
"What do you want from him?" Sonic half-raised his arms defensively.
"I mean, he doesn't seem to be looking very well…" said Espio, but he trailed off as he met the stern green orbs of the hedgehog.
"That's none of your concern. If you're got no other reason for being here, then I suggest you leave. We need some valuable private time together -"
Vector stepped forwards, "Hey, look, we don't mean you any harm! We're just curious - and concerned for him, too!"
"Well, then, thanks for worrying," retorted Sonic, a tinge of sarcasm, "But you can leave that to us -"
Vector took another step forwards. He opened his jaws to speak, but was disrupted by another piercing voice.
"LEAVE MY BROTHER ALONE!" cried Silver.
"Yeah, you heard it, Chaotix! Leave me - wait, what? What's the matter, Silver?" The blue hedgehog glanced at his brother in confusion. His orbs glowed fiercely bright, and he was surrounded by a faint, psychokinetic hue.
"Silver! Stop! What are you doing?" seethed Shadow, grabbing his brother. He shook him off with difficulty.
"What am I doing? These are the monsters I was talking about earlier…these were the ones who tried to kill me!" raged Silver.
Sonic and Shadow would've laughed if only the situation wasn't so dire.
"No, Silver, they're not. You're surely mistaken," the ebony hedgehog held his brother firmly once again.
A flash. Immediately, their eyes were nothing but black holes, with a detached red dot in each. Blood trailed out relentlessly, down their cheeks, to the grassy ground, tainting it red. They seemed to open their mouths, revealing sharp, deadly teeth, laced with blood, and the remains of a furry creature with white-grey fur that reminded him of his own.
"You monsters have got nothing on me…" his tone was dark and ominous, "You better scamper for your dear lives before I blow your bodies to pieces…"
"Kid, calm down -" began Vector.
"No, Vector, actually run!" yelled Espio.
The hoary hedgehog swung his leg back, kicking his brother square in the pelvic area. He let go of him once again, wincing at the blow. Silver screamed, "Psychic Knife!"
The trio whipped their bodies around and bolted away for their life as blades of pure energy sliced through the air effortlessly. They threw themselves on the floor, avoiding the attack, then climbed back up and staggered away. Silver was breathing heavily. The aquamarine hue was gone, and the brightness of his eyes dimmed, revealing his lost, dulled golden orbs again. He swayed to the side in dizziness, still held by his brother, who said nothing but gently ushered him back to the bench. Sonic joined them without delay. For a while, no one spoke up; they sat in a depressing silence as the wind weaved freely between their spines; but lava was rising, boiling, inside Sonic. Deprived of sleep, he felt immensely irritated; he thought back to everything that has happened today: Silver's spontaneous outbursts of insanity, increasing in frequency; his room - a part of the house - devastated; and the existence of the Chaotix nagged and nipped at his mind. None of this helped ease his emotions. Shadow felt the same. He was starting to despair, to get tired, of the situation: Silver's problems were starting to become his own, an onerous burden of thought. Silver's behaviour was become increasingly unexplainable. Confused refused to let go of his spinning head.
But, most importantly, they felt responsible.
Finally, Sonic roared, all the contents of his distress spilling out of his words, "Why? WHY?! I DON'T UNDERSTAND!" he stood up, glaring at a startled Silver, "Why does this have to happen to you?! Why do you have to act in such a strange way and cause us such an enormous amount of trouble?!"
"How could you?! I'm sorry, but none of it is my fault!" retorted Silver.
"Sonic, calm down, don't scream at him like that -" Shadow rose up as well.
"Don't you dare argue with me, Shadow, because I know you feel the same!"
Shadow fell silent.
"Do you, Shadow?" asked Silver quietly, forebodingly.
"Wh-why does it matter if I do?!" he yelled, "The important thing is that you should not be screaming at our brother like that!" His voice was shaky.
"Shadow, do you? Do you feel the same about Sonic?!" demanded Silver, his expression rigid, almost twisted in anger.
The ebony hedgehog ignored him, and turned to his blue brother, raising his index finger, "Sonic, you better apologise to Silver right now."
And that partly answered Silver's question. He, too, got up, and threw himself between his brothers, "There's no need for that."
"Why not, Silver?" said Shadow.
"Because…" he seethed through gritted teeth, "Because you don't even believe…you clearly don't believe that I deserve an apology."
The black and blue hedgehogs looked at his brother in a dumbfounded manner. Sonic snatched a glimpse at Shadow, Dude, I'm so sorry…
You better be…look what you've done, he scowled back.
"I can't believe that both of you think of me like this…" Silver sunk down to the ground, a voice, like an arrow, shot through his head, as clear as ever.
Your brothers…it said, They've given up on you.
"No, Silver, no! Honestly -" began Sonic.
"Don't."
"I didn't mean a thing I said, Silver. Please -"
"Fine. Let me tell you. It's Mephiles…the voice belongs to Mephiles…" Silver forced through gritted teeth.
It's about time you give up too.
"And he's coming."
A malignant darkness emanated from his body, his heart, his soul. His quills stood vertically on end as he gasped for breath, gasped for the shattered remnants of his sanity. He was choking, coughing, sobbing, all at the same time, groaning and growling as he dropped to his knees.
Yes! YES! Embrace your inner darkness! The malicious echo of Mephiles growled in his head, Show your brothers what you're made of, who you truly are!
"Pathetic," Silver forced out his gagging throat. He shut his eyes. In the darkness, he saw himself - no more than a shimmering, ghostly reflection, looking back at him with despair, hands pressed upon an invisible barrier. Suddenly, a shadowy figure materialised between his gaze and his reflection. He observed the trembling reflection with silent pleasure, as the voice spoke words of finality.
Goodbye, Silver the Hedgehog.
The shadow raised a hand, and corrupt bolts of energy launched themselves towards his reflection, which instantly vaporised into nothingness upon receiving the attack. A void emptiness overwhelmed Silver as the final pieces of his soul were destroyed. A chaos of voices sounded in his head - the discordant sound of Mephiles' booming laughter, and the desperate calls from Sonic and Shadow. The dark, shadowy figure turned towards him in satisfaction. His form was vague, no more than a silhouette in the darkness, but Silver could see his eyes - completely blank - staring back at him. And somehow, he knew, that he was now staring into himself. The shadow nodded, and faded into the darkness, into his soul, where the old Silver once existed.
Your transformation is complete! Goodbye, Silver the Hedgehog, embrace your new self! screamed Mephiles, his voice resonating into the eternal darkness of Silver's vision.
"Pathetic beings…" he snarled. And his heart was engulfed in dark, burning flames of evil, his insides morphing into a hellish inferno of pain and corruption. The naïvety, benevolence and righteousness that once belonged to Silver the Hedgehog were gone.
"How pathetic of you to beg for mercy and forgiveness…" He raised his head, facing his stunned brothers, "But that's fine. Go down…go down on your knees…and plead. And beg. And impetrate, for your sorry lives…" His irises flickered frantically - appearing, disappearing. It was then that an ink-like substance leaked out of the heart of the transforming hedgehog, engulfing every fibre of his skin. His fluffy chest fur turned dark and withered and dropped lifelessly to the floor in an uncanny manner. His psychic bracelets cracked and his gloves burned away as the ink slipped onto his bare hands, now imprinted with the circular pattern that was once on his gloves. They glowed the colour of blood, with lines extending up to his arms like pulsing veins. The bracelets on his legs also shattered instantaneously and his shoes vaporised upon contact with the destroying ink. His feet were marked by the same cursed pattern, cracking deep into his skin.
The last drops of ink trickled down his body, fully exposing the glowing, gaping hole where the liquid had burst out.
Finally, he opened his eyes.
Sonic and Shadow barely had time to gasp before the entire park shook and trembled under his existence. He bounced up and hovered high into the air, looking down with empty eyes and disdain towards his terrified brothers. His voice rasped, all low and menacing, serrated and broken.
"From this day on, you call me Doom."
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Oops. :P Looks like some private time with Mephiles wasn't the greatest idea! Well...the moment you've all been waiting for has come! We'll see what the others have to say about this!
Mephiles: Come to the Dark Side...
Silver: No.
Mephiles: We have cookies...!
Sonic & Shadow: Silver, don't -
Silver: OH MY GOSH I LOVE COOKIES! *flings himself to Mephiles*
Mephiles: That's it, good boy. *pats Silver's head*
Sonic & Shadow: *jaw drops to the floor*