Chapter 9: A Major Setback

Shadic reappeared laying flat on the floor. Rushing over, Gandalf turned him and looked him over. A quick spell had Shadic's eyes opening as he returned to consciousness.

"What happened?" Gandalf asked.

The teenage hedgehog groaned and stood up, remembering what happened. He looked at Gandalf, speaking with urgency. "I ran into the Dark Lord. He put something into the ring, and spoke in some other language. He said I'd become corrupted, and mom won't come back again." Shadic's eyes filled with tears as he spoke.

Gandalf's eyes widened and he looked at the ring on Shadic's finger. He closed his eyes and concentrated. The wizard felt the evil inside it and frowned. Looking at Shadic, he shook his head sadly.

"He's right," he said. "I don't think there's anything we can do now."

Shadic's eyes widened in fear. "But..." Shadic looked down at the ring again. "But my mom..."

"Shadow is...or was...your father...but he is now the Dark Lord and is very evil. I do not know if we can bring him back to the light. As for Sonic, I am afraid that she is now the One Ring forever. There is nothing I can do."

Shadic looked down at the floor. Fiddling with the ring, he sighed. "Is there some way I can stop myself from becoming like him?"

Gandalf nodded.

"What is it?"

"You have a strong will, Shadic. That will help you from becoming evil, and resist the power of the ring."

Shadic sighed and looked at the One Ring that had been Sonic. An idea came to him and he looked at Gandalf. Perhaps the wizard could transform himself into Sonic. "Could you turn into Sonic?" he asked. "At least for a few minutes?"

Gandalf nodded. He closed his eyes and began to transform. Once it was done, Sonic stood before Shadic. Shadic smiled at him.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome, Do you want this to be permanent, or temporary?"

Shadic shook his head. "Temporary. I am seventeen. I should be fine without my mother."

Gandalf nodded. "Are you sure?"

Shadic hesitated and thought about it. His eyes filled with tears as he thought about what had happened. Finally, he sighed and looked at the blue hedgehog. "I'm sure." Shadic looked at the floor again. His fingers moved to the ring again, and he looked at it. "She'll be with me in this form."

The blue hedgehog nodded. "Well, I'll stay in this form permanently. I happen to like it. You are right in saying that your mother will be with you, as she is the One Ring now."

Shadic smiled. "Do you think she'll be able to help me?"

"Perhaps," Gandalf said. "But now that she is the One Ring, remember that Shadow has poured his soul into it, making it evil."

"Right. So she won't be able to help me with much." Shadic said. "You think Shadow would have had an affect on how Sonic acts?"

"Most likely he will."

Shadic nodded, and thought about what Gandalf had said. Perhaps the wizard could become Sonic permanently. The more he thought about it, it would be a good idea. He looked at the hedgehog and spoke.

"What about your personality?" he asked.

"It will change to Sonic's over time."

Shadic nodded. "If you really want to, I suppose you could."

Gandalf nodded. "I shall do that, then."

Shadic smiled and nodded. He looked at the ring on his finger that used to be his mother. He was upset that she was stuck as a ring, but he knew she would've been upset with him if he allowed himself to become evil like his father. He'd do his best to resist. He looked at the hedgehog that Gandalf had transformed into, wondering where they were going to next.

"What do we do now?" he asked.

"We must find out what the Dark Lord is planning," Gandalf said.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Shadic asked. "He'll see us coming."

"Use your shapeshifting powers," Gandalf said. "Transform into something like an Orc or Nazgul."

Shadic swallowed in nervousness. He figured an Orc would get closer to the Dark Lord. He sighed and started to turn into an Orc. Shadic shuddered as he felt his features change to fit an Orc's. Once he was done, he looked at Gandalf for the next step.

"Go inside and get near the Dark Lord. Eavesdrop on him and see what his plan is. I will stay here."

Shadic nodded and went inside Angband. He looked around as he walked through the halls. None of the others paid much attention to him as he walked around. Soon, he came near the throne room and heard the Dark Lord speak.

"Have the humans fallen yet?" The Dark Lord was speaking in a high, agitated tone.

"We are close, Master," a Nazgul said.

Shadow grinned and looked at the One Ring on his finger. "Good. What about the elves and dwarves?"

"They are fighting back," the Nazgul said. "There will be a war soon."

The Dark Lord nodded. "One we will win." The Dark Lord looked at his ring again. "Perhaps I should join this time. It might be fun after all this time." The Nazgul nodded. "With the One Ring that you have, you shall be unstoppable."

Shadic heard this and gasped, then ran back to Gandalf. "He's planning on joining the battle!" Shadic yelled as soon as he'd gotten back to the wizard. "He has a One ring, too. I'm, not sure how, since the name implies there's only one, but-"

Gandalf's eyes widened in hear. "He must have put his soul into Melkor's ring," Gandalf said. "This is very bad. We must do something."

"What can we do?" Shadic asked. "It can't be that easy to destroy something like that."

The blue hedgehog thought about it. "The Silmarils could possibly work," he said.

Shadic nodded. He remembered that Shadow said something about Dagor Dagorath also.

"He also said something about Dagor Dagorath," he said. "Where are the Silmarils?"

"They are three jewels that contain light," the wizard said. "They are very powerful. And Dagor Dagorath is the End of Days."

Shadic frowned. "He's trying to destroy everything? Can we find the Silmarils before he does that?"

"Perhaps," the blue hedgehog said. "Shadow, Sonic and I found them fifteen years ago while trying to defeat Melkor. We will have to search for them again, though."

Shadic sighed. Another quest wasn't something he was looking forward to. "I don't think I like these after all. Where do we go first?"

Gandalf smiled. "Immortals can sense the Silmarils, Shadic. Because you are immortal, you can sense them. Close your eyes and concentrate."

Shadic closed his eyes. "Concentrate on what?"

"Concentrate on the Silmaril's energy and you will be able to tell where they are." Shadic nodded and thought about the Silmarils. It took a few moments before he felt something to the west. He looked over there.

"That way. I think."

Gandalf nodded. Now that he was Sonic, he had all the powers that Sonic had. "Let's go," he said, and transformed into an eagle.

Shadic smirked and closed his eyes, then transformed into a phoenix. The two flew to the west in search of the Silamril.