(Shadow's POV)

I could not believe the enormity of the dread that sank its icy tendrils through my being. I almost couldn't think, couldn't move. My wrist fell limply to my side, my eyes wide and staring. My breath shuddered. And I...I didn't...understand...

That brief moment of confusion, that single second of a different emotion was enough to snap me out of it.

I turned on my heel and ran as fast as I could, thanking chaos-and a certain scientist-for superior night vision that made navigation out of the mountains relatively unscathed possible...

...and mentally cursing the absence of a much needed chaos emerald.

I still couldn't comprehend why I was feeling like this, but I quickly decided that it didn't matter. This wasn't an empty hunch or a hasty assumption. No, this was gut instinct, one of the more unexplainable things in nature-and I intended to follow it to a tee.

'One hundred miles north of Leafside, Lake Country...'

The mountains rapidly disappeared as I raced through the countryside.

I had no ties to that place; heck, I hadn't even been there. But, one way or another, I was going to follow whatever that thing was and take it down.

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(Normal POV)

Cold. It was cold. The stone, the floor, the air...

...cold.

A cloud of vapor escaped from the 's mouth as she shivered, her hands, devoid of their normal gloves, rubbing her arms in a vain attempt to keep warm.

Raising her head, she looked around her cell. Gray stone and stray snowflakes met her green eyes. There wasn't an opening.

Wait. The wall. A rectangular hole with bars across it spewing snow. Maybe...

She stood and ran to it-or tried to. Her progress was halted due to the heavy chain and iron ball secured to her ankle. Grunting with the effort, she dragged the sphere over to the window. She stood on her tiptoes and peered out.

The ground was level with her face, covered with snow. A blizzard had formed, and the wind howled as it passed by. Wanting nothing more than freedom from her stone prison, the reached for a bar.

As soon as her fingers touched the cold metal, the chain suddenly yanked her leg, sending her crashing to the ground. The iron ball quivered and she raised her head.

Inky black water was seeping out from the ball, slowly at first but then picking up speed. In less than 5 seconds, it was up to her knees. Nervous, the stood, her heart beating faster as the water rose to her waist. Panicking, she looked up towards the opening. It had risen out of her reach, close to the ceiling. By now the water was at her chest, her neck, her chin...

She let out a scream just before it passed over her head.

She couldn't see, couldn't hear. All was black. She vainly struggled to reach the surface, lungs burning, the iron ball too heavy for her to lift.

Two eyes floated through the darkness towards her. Mocking laughter could be heard as bubbles erupted from her mouth. She dimly felt herself sink down into the blackness, down, down, down...

(Amy's POV)

I woke up screaming. Again. Even when I tried to prepare myself, even though I knew what was coming when I laid my head down on my pillow, it always took me by surprise.

It was Wednesday-training day. After the regular cup of coffee, I was out in the backyard. It wasn't so much a yard, but more of a clearing, with small flowers mixed in with the grass and looming pine trees creating a green, shadowy wall from the outside world.

I ignored my goose bumps with ease as I stood in the cool morning air; my eyes closed my body completely still. The seconds passed in silence.

My eyes opened and my arm snapped out, grasping the handle of my hammer. Drawing it back, I flung it across the yard with a small grunt and a slight twist to my wrist.

The hammer spun away from me. It headed for the wall of trees before changing direction. It flew in an arc and came back to me. It was barely caught before I was moving it again. I swung and blocked, fighting invisible enemies, most of them robots. I jumped and slammed my hammer into the ground. The pine trees trembled. Slowly, I spun my weapon around me in a 360 degree figure-eight pattern. I gritted my teeth as the maneuver sped up. The air whistled in my ears as my hammer morphed into a red-yellow blur.

Suddenly, I stopped, panting, drops of sweat falling from my forehead. I rose from my fighting stance and sent my weapon away. Lightly rubbing my left arm, I headed inside to shower. It had taken forever to master the boomerang technique and I'd spent weeks building the muscles in my wrists to deal with the pressure. Still, it was worth the pain and work. It distracted me.

The staff lounge was buzzing when I arrived, a small crowd of my coworkers gathered around a table. Some looked worried, others grim or angry.

"What's going on?" I asked a lime green skunk with caramel hair.

"Oh, hey Amy. There was another attack just north of here. Front page news. Apparently, it was pretty gruesome."

She shuddered, looking queasy. It must've been bad.

"Right, thanks Libby."

She nodded and I headed for the table. Over the past few days, Lake Country had been afflicted with brutal attacks from a serial killer. He didn't leave survivors, and judging by the reports, he was heading south. Many were worried; this kind of thing never happened here.

Still, I had work to do.

Today, there were more pool goers than usual; more kids screaming and running, more parents relaxing and talking, more teens sun soaking and splashing, and more stares from the opposite .

Thanks to the daily workouts I did, I'd lost weight and had a lean, muscular build. I didn't really care, but that coupled with the required red didn't make me easy to ignore.

"Hey."

I turned around to see a tall, undeniably handsome kangaroo grinning at me. His fur was midnight blue and his eyes were orange. His hair, which was pulled back into a small ponytail and the shaggy bangs over his eyes, gave him a roguish look. A shark fang hung around his neck.

"Hello."

"So, you work here, huh?" he asked, sauntering up to me. I'd seen that look in his eyes before.

'No, I'm just carrying this Life Guard floater for fun, Sherlock.'

"Yeah, I'm one of the Life Guards." I put emphasis on 'Life Guards', meaning I was off limits. Something told me that he didn't get the subtle message.

"Cool, cool, hey, I'm Whiplash by the way." He said, extending his hand.

"Amy." I shook his hand and turned back to pool, hoping he would go away.

"Lots of people today, huh?"

I tried not to clench my teeth.

"Yeah, most of them must be going to the Craft Festival down in Avalon."

"Oh yeah, that's right, the festival! I almost forgot! I was having too much fun here. Are you gonna go to that? It sounds like a blast."

It was very tempting to hammer this score-seeking moron into a pulp, but it wasn't his fault that I had limited patience today. I was really glad that I'd decided to go to the party. "Sorry Whiplash, I'm doing something else. However-"

I turned him around and pointed out two rabbits heading towards the slide. Both were silver and almost identical, but one was wearing a violet swimsuit while the other was sporting a very small black that made a certain bat I knew overdressed by comparison.

"-I'd try my luck with those two."

"Score!" Whiplash muttered and, without a backward glance, he was off. The idiot had no idea what he was getting into.

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(Normal POV)

The twins were at the top of the slide by the time Whiplash caught up to them. He quickly checked his appearance before sidling up to the attractive females.

"Hey." He said, leaning against the slide, "I'm Whiplash. Are you two fine ladies heading to Avalon for the Craft Festival?"

The rabbit with the purple bikini nodded. "Yeah, and were so excited! I'm Pearl and this is my sister Diamond!"

Diamond gave Whiplash an once-over before her lips curled into a dangerous smile. "And I'm guessing you're going to be there too handsome? I'd be severely disappointed if you-WHATS THAT?!"

"What?" Whiplash yelped, spinning around.

Diamond pushed Whiplash hard in the back and he fell down the slide headfirst. When the kangaroo surfaced, he was scolded by a very irate gerbil Life Guard, who said that if he pulled that stunt again, hed get banned faster that you could say 'Say What?!'.

Whiplash looked up at the twins. Pearl had her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide. On the other hand, Diamond was laughing, staring back down to see his reaction.

Whiplash suddenly gave an impish grin. "Well , ya got spunk, I'll give ya that much!"

Diamond grinned back. "Hmm, I think this one's a keeper." She said as she jumped down the slide.

Pearl heaved a sigh. "Remind me again how were related?"

Amy saw the whole episode from the edge of the pool. She chuckled softly before walking around the pool. Maybe Watermark was right. She really was evil.

In the good way.


What the heck?! An entire chapter and I barely got to the point?!?

(sigh)

anywho, I do not own Amy and Shadow. The almighty-genius-minded Sega does.

I own Libby the Skunk, Watermark the Gerbil, and Whiplash the Kangaroo.

Madelyn the Bunnie owns Pearl and Diamond.

Ok, mini message to Madelyn-I hope you're not angry with me. you didn't leave physical looks(like fur color) so I had to geuss. Sorry!

Right, I'll shut up now. Read and Review!