Helium Park Zone

"Ow... ow... OW!"

"Stop moving. Ya'know, for the hero of Mobius, you really are a cry-baby!"

He fidgeted under her touch, shook too, his quills even pointed up. The bat had her hands wrapped around his body, these coils reaching around his chest and body. Clearly it burned him to the touch; he constantly tried to swat her off. But she refused to be rebuffed, and continued tending to him regardless of his feelings toward the situation. He eventually sat back and relented, this embarrassed blush on his face. If he had no choice, he might as well allow it to happen.

Rouge shook her head in annoyance, while Shadow allowed a low groan to escape him. After battling with Knuckles, the bat simply whisked him off to get some medical attention. It was in direct conflict with his need to chase down and kill Knuckles.

"And... there! Jeeze, you little baby you, Maurice..."

"What have I told you about calling me that!?" Shadow snapped as he jumped to his feet, only to be brought down by the pain in his chest, "Urgh! Damn Knuckles! He's... hurt me twice now."

"It's your own doing," Rouge scolded, making Shadow snap his eyes over to her, "You always do this, Shadow. You think you're so invincible, you let these weaker machines – or in this case mobians – take you down. Haven't you ever just acted serious for a change? Ya'know, even tried?"

"I don't know if you're trying to annoy me, or trying to make me laugh," Shadow growled, "But it is making me mad! Rouge!"

She laughed and giggled, before giving a playful punch to his shoulder. He simply took it, then glared at her with a twitching eye. Turning around, Rouge's tail wagged in a somewhat sultry manner, as if pulling him into the sight of her frame. He shook his head, having had enough of Rouge's flirtatious mannerisms for one lifetime.

This half of the zone was still clad in heavy darkness, making it near impossible to stare through the shadows. Maybe it was Rouge's reputation as a bat that allowed her to travel so easily through the darkened halls of the carnival-type zone. But aren't bat's supposed to be a blind as, well, bats? Until he noticed these strange clicking noise echoing from Rouge's mouth.

"This way," the bat said as she pointed to the left, her direction immediately changing.

Shadow followed in her footsteps, coming deeper into the zone. But then Rouge stopped, causing him to run into her. She giggled, he growled, then her eyes trailed around the small area. Once more, that clicking noise echoed from Rouge's mouth. Her head immediately turned to the right, and her hand reached up.

CLICK! DOOM! DOOM! DOOM! DOOM! DOOM!

All around them, lights appeared in the zone. The once darkened zone was as bright as day once more, with lights flaring and music playing as well. Rouge crossed her arms over one another with this subtle smirk on her face, while the entirety of the next zone opened before them. A zone which was far less chaotic in comparison to Carnival Night Zone. In fact, Carnival Night Zone appeared to be in the backdrop of this zone, still bright as ever in comparison.

"Ugh... where are we?" Shadow inquired of Rouge, who merely shrugged her shoulders in response.

"Beats me; I've never been on Angel Island Zone before, remember?" she then peered over her shoulder at the hedgehog, this smirk on her face, "Hey, hey! C'mon. Why don't we have a little fun, hm?"

"Why do you continue to say stupid things?" he asked, to which Rouge's eyes slid down into a powerful glare.

"Listen Shadow! I'm more than enough for you when you're in shape, right now, I'd easily be able to beat you down. Understand?"

"Huh... sometimes I wonder why I go anywhere with you..."

"Likewise..."

Whether he wanted to or not, Rouge pressed on his back, getting him moving. The hedgehog gave a growl, only to feel a pain on his chest. He gripped it, rubbed it a bit, only for his ally to give him the ample support necessary to fully stand.

"This place isn't half bad," Rouge said as she held onto Shadow, "Where I live, there's this amusement park called Twinkle Park down the way. Gotta take Radical Highway and transfer to Speed Highway to get there... seriously, I did not make these names up. A lot of my friends tell me I need to go there some time."

"You, with friends?" Shadow inquired, eyebrow raised, "I don't know... sound's kinda hard to believe when coming from you."

"You know, not everyone is a snarling, rude-eyed, loner of a person like you are, Shadow. Unlike you, others – in fact most others – put the effort forward to make some new friends. But not with Mr. Black Wind; others have to make the effort to befriend you..." she stopped her momentary rant to roll her eyes, "Makes me wonder why I bother..."

"I don't exactly need friends," he replied, his shoulder's rising then lowering slowly, "The idea of spending time with others. Talking about feelings," he shuddered, "It's... not exactly my cup of tea."

"You're trying to turn me away, aren't you?" Rouge stated, eyes sliding into a powerful squint, "Just... trying... seriously, I come over your house every so often, I fly your plane, I take care of you when you bash up your body, I've got on two adventures now with you, even now, I'm fighting some mad doctor and native echidna alongside you. Clearly, we're friends. Heh..." she got close and whispered into his ear, "We even talk about our feelings. So you betray yourself, Shadow."

"Rouge... can you stop playing for even a little bit?"

"I could," she replied, giving a bit of a shrug, "But where's the rush? Where's the worry? With you like that, I highly doubt you'll be at adventuring percentage until we get out of this zone. So, Maurice, why don't we talk about our feelings?" he growled, but she continued on anyway, "Tell me... you say you have no friends – other than me, of course – but I find that a tad bit too hard to believe. Living with your mother and father, you have to have had a few friends growing up. So, c'mon, tell me. Who is Shadow's first friend?"

He crossed his arms whilst glaring at Rouge, his eyes sliding into a powerful squint. He really couldn't stand her, most of the time. She always found it in her blood to just pick apart his entire being. She knew he had many things he wanted to keep secret, and she just needed to know all of it. It was weird; after a while, he learned simply telling her what she wanted to hear was easier than just arguing with her.

"Helen..." he answered, his arms crossed, "Her name was Helen... she had blonde hair... green eyes..." he took in a deep breath, "She lived down the zone from us. In a nice small home. Her, her father, her mother. They were all good people. They owned a bakery, and my mother loved buying pies from them. Maybe a bit too much pies..." he stared over to Rouge, "I remember Helen took somewhat of a shine too me, probably because my mother and I visited their bakery so often. She was... sick..."

"How sick?"

"The sickness that entails no use of your legs," Shadow answered, "She couldn't walk, and was always confined to a wheelchair. But that didn't stop her from being so friendly; I can't name one person who didn't like her."

"So... love at first sight?"

"You're being annoying again... anyway, Helen was a good girl. And I wish I could explain why she befriended me like she did. Why anyone befriends me like they do... hm... maybe she was enamored with my speed. She's the only person I know of who found it so enthralling, but I don't know... I remember her visiting me far too much than she should have. The quest to her house wasn't long for me since I'm... well... me. But for her, it must have been tiresome. But she always came over our house and hung out with me outside the family barn. We talked... she was my..."

"Friend... see, even Mr. Unsmiley can have a few friends, right? Tell me, Shadow, where is Helen. I really hope she's okay with Green Hill getting slammed by tidal waves."

Shadow grew deathly silent then, and his eyelids slid down to half-cover his eyes. Rouge could see the shift in his stance as he became far more distant, even for his standards. Something about him seemed hurt, vulnerable even, though he retained his usual aloof nature.

"Helen..." he answered with no need for her pressuring, "When Robotnik first showed up to the island. He was nothing but a simple scientist. He came to the island with the most amazing idea; roboticization. For mobians who were injured in horrible ways, he would use roboticization to give them a second chance. For Helen, she'd be able to walk again..."

"Don't tell me she—"

"Helen's family worked up enough money to give her the roboticization treatment, so she could walk again. It was signed under the day I was planning on leaving South Island, so I could find out about myself. I remember the night she left for Robotnik's Scrap Brain Zone, so she could undergo the process," he grew silent, "It was... the last time I saw her..." he looked back over to Rouge, "When I fought Robotnik the first time on South Island, I did go searching for her in Scrap Brain Zone. But of all the Badniks and Robians, I just didn't find one that looked like her. I'm not sure where Helen is or her family for that matter; she's just one of the many who got lost in Robotnik's conquest."

"Uh... Shadow... s-sorry for asking. I didn't know..."

"It's alright," he answered.

For so long, Rouge wondered about her friend. Why did he hate Robotnik so much? Why would he specifically go out of his way to kill the doctor himself? She knew Shadow was a heroic being despite his dark tendencies, but his animosity toward Robotnik bordered on the line of insanity. However, hearing the stories behind their battles – the ones they had on South Island – she can't deny his rage isn't without reason.

"Well then... you told me that," she said, after getting a peak at his more vulnerable side, "Mind telling me who this Maria girl is?"

He merely glared at her.

"I think you've heard enough for one day," he replied, before suddenly mumbling, while his crossed arms unfolded themselves, "Hmm..."

"What's wrong, Shadow?" the bat asked, head cocked to one side.

"I think we have company..."

In the center of this carnival ride laden zone, something descended. It was round, a golden yellow as well as green, with a silver ring hovering around its body. On this ring were rods with green balls on the end, balls that surged with electricity between each individual sphere. At the very bottom of the machine was one large green sphere.

The Egg Mobile-G came to a slow stop as it hovered just out of reach of the two mobians. Shadow scoffed at the sight of it, while Rouge rolled her eyes. Didn't the doctor ever learn?

"Another one of his messengers, it would seem," Shadow commented, before taking his usual fighting stance, "Let's make this quick..."

"Not now, Shadow," Rouge said, surprising him with a hand on his shoulder, "You're injured. Let me deal with this one."

He wanted to argue with her doing such a thing, but didn't. Maybe it was the pain in his chest that made him reconsider things, or perhaps the talk they just had. Whatever the case may be, he gladly stepped aside and crossed his arms. He'd let his friend handle things this time.

The Egg Mobile-G fired a ray of electricity at the bat, who leaped up high to dodge it. Curling up much like Shadow, she gained enough inertia to throw herself at him feet first. She struck the machine but did no lasting damage, while it began floating backwards.

Suddenly the massive green sphere it owned dropped to the ground, crashing into the earth and destroying the ground it fell upon. Suddenly the machine hovered over the sphere, then fired separate beams of electricity around said sphere from its many rods. In doing so, the wind in the area suddenly picked up in speed. Gravity shifted, as the metallic ball was charged with a powerful level of electromagnetism. Many of the carnival rides around were torn from the ground, and then began spinning around in the air with the Egg Mobile-G being the center point.

Rouge dodged the many spending debris, her teal eyes never once leaving the Egg Mobile-G itself. Suddenly crashing into a horse torn from a merry-go-round, Rouge held onto it. Looking at the horse then to the Egg Mobile-G again, she got an idea. The bat flew behind the horse, before delivering a kick so strong it sent the horse crashing into the Egg Mobile-G.

The strike caused considerable damage to the Egg Mobile-G's ring, damaging one of its rods. The loss of one of them caused the electric storm to be whipped into a considerable frenzy. The lost of stable power caused the gravity to shift wildly, and everything was further tossed into random directions. To calm everything, the Egg Mobile-G landed upon its sphere and reattached it. Upon doing so, gravity returned to normal.

Rouge landed on the ground while the Egg Mobile-G returned to the air. This time it focused its attentions solely on her, and slowly began to approach the bat. She leaped back with a taunting finger, before taking off into the air. The Egg Mobile-G dropped its sphere, but this time the remaining rods sent electrical blasts into the ball. Keeping it levitated, the machine began firing the ball toward the bat. She dodged it left and right, then took off after the machine.

Rouge landed under the mighty Badnik, right where the ball would be held safely. While the green sphere suddenly swung back to reattach and crush her, Rouge smirked. Holding tightly onto the machine, she began kicking into the hole with her feet. In the softer part of the machine, her mighty kicks did amazing damage. But she wasn't just kicking, she was digging her way inside. Wires whipped out of the panels and caused the Badnik to suddenly lower in altitude, but she continued kicking and digging. Then her hand tore inside, gripping wires and panels. Then she ripped them out, causing a sudden spark of fire and electricity.

"EEEYAAAH!"

She leaped off the machine then and landed safely on the ground, while more explosions took over the Egg Mobile-G. The electrical current the Badnik controlled went haywire as it struggled to keep it all under control, with all the blast flying in random directions and striking various areas. Rouge watched as the barely functioning Egg Mobile suddenly tipped over and crashed right into the earth where it went right up into a ball of fire.

"Few..." Rouge said as she fanned herself with her hand, "Talk about a shocking experience..."

"Really?" Shadow's voice commented as he walked right beside her, his arms crossed, "That was a stupid thing to say..."

She scoffed at his statement, only to hear a genuine laugh escape his muzzle. That caused her to laugh as well. Maybe it was the absurdity of the situation; Shadow doesn't laugh. Not often, anyway. But every time he laughed, she found herself laughing as well. Just at the absurdity of the situation.

"So now what?" Rouge asked as she finally stopped laughing, wondering how they'd get to the next zone.

"Shhh..." Shadow suddenly mumbled, his red eyes gazing to the sky.

Rouge did likewise, wondering what her ally was gazing up to. There was something far up there, something covered by the night sky. Shadow glared at it with his eyes sliding into squints, as if picking apart the sight far above. There was something up there, something invisible. Or perhaps cloaked.

"I've got something for ya," Shadow said as his hand began cackling with energy, "Chaos Spear!"

He flung one rogue blast into the sky, making Rouge cock her head in confusion. Suddenly the blast hit something, causing a massive flicker that traveled throughout the entire sky. Then both of them saw something; an entire airship in the sky. It came into existence briefly, before vanishing.

"It's that same ship that attacked us when we got here," Rouge stated, while Shadow began running after it, "Wait!? Shadow where are you going!"

"You said it yourself," Shadow answered as he ran toward a cannon at the end of the zone, "That's the same ship that attacked us when we first got to this island. Robotnik's probably on that ship!'

"How do you plan on getting up there, Shadow?"

"You'll see..."

He leaped into the cannon at the end of Balloon Park Zone, then rolled himself deep inside. Back at the base of the barrel, he aimed himself directly into the skies. Maybe he took a blat to the face which made such an action sound like a bright idea. Not caring at the moment, his finger sparked with energy. An explosion echoed in the cannon that very same moment.

BOOOM!

Rouge remained on the ground with her arms crossed, her head shaking to and fro.

"How old are you, Shadow?" Rouge asked as she began flying in the air, "You baka..."

Shadow flew sky-high with his hand out toward the stars. Suddenly slamming into something, the hedgehog nearly bounced off. But his hand grove into the invisible structure he hit, fastening itself into place. Retaining hold, he gazed around the surface of his hand. He action damaged on panel, allowing him to see the light-blue steel underneath. Then the entire airship began to flicker as its cloaking technique was damaged.

"I've got you now, doctor," Shadow claimed as he removed his coils before continuing his climb, "There's no escape from me!"

He continued on his climb of the airship, moving higher and higher. As he did so, the morning sun in the distance appeared. Before the sun, he could see a massive mountain chain as well. The airship suddenly increased in height, ascending higher into the heavens and clouds. Shadow suddenly coughed, and when he did so, white clouds formed from his mouth. Then snow pelted his fur. His eyes grew wide.

How fast was this ship moving?

Shadow has completed Balloon Park Zone.

Shadow clung to the bottom of the airship, before more panels opened up. Within these other panels, conveniently placed guns. They were aimed at him, and the speed of the plane was far too great to simply run up the airship. So Shadow felt as if he had only one way of escape.

Gritting his teeth and scoffing as well, Shadow pulled with all his might on the panel he clung to. The action caused him to rip it directly out, right when the turrets opened fire upon his position. Turning around, he watched as he rapidly fell toward a frozen mountain peak below.

Next stop, IceCap Zone.


Maverick Talks!

Hey dudes, how's it goin'?

Hah, hah! I kid, I kid, but in all seriousness though, ya'll wanna hear me (or read me as is the case) talk about this chapter, right? Well, this is Balloon Park Zone, from Sonic 3's Competition mode. Out of all the two player zones, this one's my least favorite. Probably because it's so bland. Which is weird, because its a shiny carnival! What makes it bland is how the carnival theme was used already for Carnival Night Zone, in the same game. But that's not saying the zone isn't a ton of fun to play with your family, because it really is. I miss my youthful days, honestly.

Anyway, I wanted this zone to be connected to Carnival Night Zone, because they're both carnival-themed zones. I had an idea of Shadow fighting Knuckles here, but I pushed that to the end of Carnival Night Zone instead. So here, we get some nice talking between Shadow and Rouge. The character Helen who Shadow talks about is an actual Sonic character. Well, she's from Sonic X, anyway. I didn't describe her as much here for one specific manner; I wasn't sure if I should make her a human or mobian. So you guys get to think of what she looks like. Is she a human like in the show, or a mobian like everyone else on South Island.

And, man, another chapter with no Maria or Robotnik. Oh, feels so wrong!

Any way, I hope you guys liked this super short chapter. Well, short for my standards. Sense it takes place in a small zone such as Balloon Park Zone, you can kinda see how I don't have much to go on, right? Still, just having Shadow and Rouge talk is kinda cool. Maybe next time we'll find out more about Shadow's life on South Island. I just love thinking about it, really.

Rouge called Shadow a 'baka'. This is what happens when you watch far too much Lost Pause over the course of a week. Ugh...

Maverick Kay Prime