Chapter Ten - Falling Into Place
Shadow raises a brow at the irritated look on Rouge's face, letting the fridge close on its own as he opens his water bottle. "What's wrong?"
She was currently sitting at the white, round table in her large kitchen, her pink laptop in front of her. She looks up at him, giving him a tired smile. "Nothing at all. Everything's just wonderful."
He rolls his eyes at her sarcasm and walks over, pulling out a chair to sit next to her. She points at the screen, eyes narrowed.
"So I'm guessing Eggman found out we hacked into his computers, because he sent a virus that completely erased everything. All I have are my notes I took," she explains, scrolling through said notes. "...and it isn't much."
Shadow frowns as he skims the information, his eyes landing on a set code of numbers.
"What are those coordinates?" he asks, putting his water bottle on the table.
She shrugs, opening up her map. "That's what I was trying to figure out. I opened up a folder labeled 'S' and that's the first thing I saw. When I went to write them down and came back the virus was already in and I lost it." She types the coordinates into the map, and it zoomed in on a location in the Mystic Ruins. She looks over at her comrade, raising a brow. "Wanna go check it out?"
He nods. "A better lead than nothing."
She mock gasps, putting a hand over her mouth. "What was that? Optimism? You can tell how much time you've been spending around Sonic."
He glares at her, stands up, and pours his water over her head.
"You called?" Sonic frowned, stepping in the lab room. He nearly panics when he sees Knuckles look up at him, wondering what the hell he was doing here, before he looks over at his uncle, Tails, Sally, and Rotor.
Uncle Chuck is the first to say anything, giving his nephew a nervous smile. He hadn't talked to Sonic since the...whole event with Bernie and Jules, so seeing him now was…
"Hey, Sonny. So, we figured out that there really is a way to take away your immortality before it's settled," he explains.
Sonic walks over, crossing his arms and standing as far from Knuckles as he can, finding himself next to Sally. "And...the catch?"
"You shouldn't do it," Knuckles sighs, shaking his head. "You'll lose your Chaos Energy, Sonic. You practically live off of it. You wouldn't be a Chaos Born anymore." When Sonic blinks in surprise, Knuckles adds; "That means no Chaos Emeralds. You wouldn't be able to use them. You wouldn't be able to go Super Sonic."
Something about that sent a sting through his chest, and he looks away, ears bent back. He felt sick hearing that, and a chill soon followed down his spine.
To lose Super Sonic…
That...was too risky. Super Sonic was practically the planet's last defense anymore.
...but…
He shrugs, looking down. "Shadow has a super form," he practically mumbles. "He's more than capable of taking my place in that situation."
The room goes quiet, everyone exchanging worried looks.
Knuckles shakes his head again, taking a step closer to him. "Sonic, you were born this way for a reason, why mess with it? I know never aging is probably going to be hard, but do you really think you should go against that?"
Sonic shrugs again. "I still haven't made up my mind. I just...want the options I guess."
"We can still build the machine to do it," Rotor offers quietly. "You don't have that long of a choosing period. By the time we finish it it'll be then or never."
"Why is that?" Sonic asks, an ear quirking back.
"Sonic, your energy is slowly taking over everything about you," Chuck explains. "By this, I mean that your body is slowly converting from Mobian, to simply nothing but Chaos Energy. I'm not sure why this is, but it seems almost like it was meant to happen. We started to notice this a little while ago, when Dr. Quack took blood from you." When Sonic's eyes narrow suspiciously, he chuckles. "You were unconscious, and we were trying to see why the painkillers weren't helping you. When Dr. Quack examined the sample, he discovered that half of your blood at the time was pure Chaos Energy."
"So...what? What happens when it's done?" Sonic asks, scowling slightly. "When I'm completely Chaos Energy?"
"It seems you'll still be yourself, just…" Rotor starts, looking over between Tails and Chuck.
"You'll be an embodiment of Chaos," Chuck explains. "Just a pure source of Chaos Energy. You'll practically be a living Chaos Emerald."
"With the energy of all seven," Knuckles adds. "Sonic, seriously don't go through with this. I don't think this is a good idea."
"I said I haven't decided yet," Sonic glared at him. "I have some time? I'll think about it. I don't know what I want yet."
"This is so stupid," Knuckles mutters, turning away, while Chuck nods.
"Then we'll get to work. Right now you're at a eighty-six percent Chaos Energy rate. Once you get to one hundred we won't be able to do anything about it."
Sonic just nods, turning on his heels to leave. He glances at Knuckles, who frowns deeply at him, before leaving. Sally follows him, the two walking down the hallway out into the living room area of Tails's workshop. Stopping, he turns and raises a brow at her.
"Do you think it's worth it?"
She frowns at his question, not sure what he means. "To give it up?"
He shrugs, looking away. "Either? If I don't, then I'll be able to keep protecting the world without worry of dying. If I do, then I won't have that ability. I'll practically be useless."
"Maybe not useless," she says, walking to stand directly in front of him, grabbing his hand, "but it'll make things riskier. Without your energy to heal you, you'll take damage like a normal person would. No more Super Sonic, or even your Dark form…"
"So, useless?" he asks, unable to help the small grin that curved his lips.
She rolls her eyes. "I'm not a Chaos Born but I still find a use for myself, don't I? You'd be fine."
"The planet wouldn't be," he frowns then. "How can I trust someone else to take care of the issues that require a super form? Especially someone like Shadow…"
He kind of feels bad saying it. Shadow wouldn't let the world come to end, would he?
"Sonic," Sally sighs, looking down. "Honestly...I...I want you to give it up. I don't like the thought of you living forever, always with the responsibility of protecting the entire planet like you do. I've also always wanted you here, with me, and if you're immortal, that won't happen, would it?"
Sonic opens his mouth, before closing it immediately after with a frown.
It wouldn't.
Especially not with his bond with Shadow.
"...but," she starts again, "if you're immortal, I would never have to worry about you dying…"
"So you don't know, either," he suggests with a quiet sigh. She nods.
"That's why I said I'm for whatever you choose, Sonic," she says sincerely. "Either way will bring some good, some bad. I just want you to be happy."
...to be happy…
Was he?
…
Looking away again, he runs a hand through his quills. "I'll...just have to think real hard on it then. In the meantime, we should find Eggman."
She nods. "Nicole has all the suspected Chaos Emerald locations, if you wanted to start hunting them down."
The Hero of Mobius nods. "I need something to do."
Sally had suggested going with him, but he told her he needed space to think. She understood, despite the sadness evident in her tone when she said it was fine.
What was he supposed to do?
He really didn't...hate the thing with Shadow. It wasn't...that bad, was it?
He could never tell. He really would feel safer if he stayed immortal, for the sake of the planet, but Sally…
He loved her so much, still.
...and then to have to watch all his friends die around him, leaving him alone…
He couldn't bare the thought.
He slows down his run to a stop, standing in the middle of a thick woods, frowning down at the ground.
...there would never be enough time for him to make this decision, would there?
Would he be selfish for giving it up? To stay with Sally and his friends, even if the world burns because of it? It reminded him of his fight with Sally sometime ago…
To choose the world over her. Over everyone.
Was it worth it?
When did he get a chance to live his life the way he wanted? Did he have to suffer an eternity, always fighting for everyone but himself?
...then there was little thought about losing Super Sonic. Losing that power, that ability. Super had a place in his heart that he couldn't shake.
Then there was Shadow…
What would Shadow do?
...why couldn't he have just been oblivious to all of this? Why did he have to make this decision?
If only he had more control over his Dark form, none of this would have happened in the first place.
...but then the city would have been destroyed.
He lets out a frustrated growl and jumps, kicking a nearby tree in aggravation. It cracks down the middle, wood splintering everywhere, but the tree still somehow keeps itself standing.
That's what he felt like. No matter how hard he was beaten, he would always have to keep standing.
He never could have a break.
Maybe that's what was truly appealing about giving up his immortality. He wouldn't have to be the hero that throws his life in the line of others to protect them. He would just be...normal.
As normal as he could be, at least.
...but it would be a chance to think about settling down.
...maybe even marry Sally…
He didn't understand why he felt so guilty...
A flash of aquamarine erupted in the the clearing of forest trees, scaring birds and small animals away. Two hedgehogs fell from the light, landing in crouches on the green grass. They both stand up, looking around with frowns on their faces.
"Is this it?" the silver one asks, turning to the blue hedgehog in uniform, who was pulling up a holographic map from his wrist device.
"It is, but our timing is slightly off," he answers, sighing and turning off the device. He lifts the visor covering his eyes over his blue quills, scowling at his companion.
"H...How much time?" the white hedgehog asks, voice wavering. The blue hedgehog sighs, looking away.
"We're an entire month off," he says exasperatedly, "which means it's already happened."
Silver's mouth fell open. "Are you serious?!"
The other sighs, nodding. "Unfortunately. Apparently this was supposed to happen in the Prime Universe. That means we have to find a way to fix it as it is now."
The white hedgehog's lips pull in disgust as he turns away, kicking a small rock away. "That's just not fair!" he exclaims. "We should have been able to save him!"
"Fair or not, it happened for a reason," the blue hog steps up to him, grabbing him by the shoulder and turning him around. "This is still the Prime Universe, so that means it was going to happen no matter what. Now we just have to make sure we get the Chaos Drive, find Scourge and take care of him, then get to Sonic and Shadow and fix this mess."
Silver takes in a deep breath, closing his eyes and pushing the hedgehog's hand away from him. "I know, I know," he mumbles, looking up. "I just don't want anything else to happen to Sonic. Now that I know what he is…"
"Let's just focus on the now," the other interrupts. "We still have time, so let's not waste any more of it."
"Thanks, Zonic," Silver turns from him, nodding. "You're right. We've got this."
Zonic turns and points to their east. "The base should be over here. Let's get to it."
The two agents exchange looks as they step into the old, dusty cave. Shadow is the first to walk in, surveying the limited surroundings with a scowl.
Eggman had definitely been there, but all that evidence was destroyed by black stains where flames had destroyed the place. Crouching down, the Ultimate Lifeform feels the soot on the ground with his index and middle finger, brows furrowing as he brings his hand up to study the embers. "This was done recently."
Rouge steps passed him, where large pieces of burnt metal were laying in a melted pile. "You're right," she hums, putting one hand on her hip and another to her chin. "You think he did it to cover up something?"
"I wouldn't doubt it," Shadow stands, dusting his hand off on his leg. "If he knew there was a chance of us coming here, he would have destroyed it immediately."
The albino bat turns, hands falling to her sides. "Well, we might as well look and see if he forgot anything."
Shadow nods, the two splitting to explore the small cave. He doubted they would find anything; the doctor was smart. He probably had the cave self-destruct the moment he realized his computers were hacked into. Stepping around a fallen sheet of metal and over to a pile of broken robot parts, he leans over dig through it, not finding anything useful. He stands up to turn back around, when his ears started ringing, and he suddenly went lightheaded.
The sound of him falling over startled Rouge who was on the other side of the cave, and she came flying over, quickly kneeling by his side and turning him so his head was laying back on her knees. "Shadow?" she asks, slight panic in her tone. "Shadow are you okay?"
He holds a hand to his head, his vision swarming. He could barely make out her figure holding him slightly upright, and her voice sounded faded to him. He could only let out a groan, squeezing his eyes shut and trying to feel what was causing him to feel like this.
It felt like he had taken off his inhibitors and let out a ton of energy in one go. There's a faint, throbbing pain in the front of his skull that's reverberating through his entire head, and he can barely feel the tips of his fingers or toes on his feet.
"Shadow?" Rouge tries again, running a hand through the quills on top of his head. "Talk to me, hon; what happened?"
"M-My energy," he forces out, opening his eyes again. Those scarlet irises of his looked foggy, as if he were in the midst of waking up from a long sleep.
He was starting to slowly feel better, his hearing and sight coming back to him. Rouge just frowns, concern visible in her eyes as she watches him try to pull himself back together.
It doesn't take much longer for him to recover. He slowly sits up, holding his head with a perplexed frown.
"Did it just, drain out?" Rouge asks, trying to figure him out, still. Shadow looks at her, nodding.
"It's fine now. I don't know what that was. It wasn't Sonic," he states, for sure on that one. That was just his energy draining randomly out of nowhere.
His female friend only purses her lips in thought, before she floats up and offers him a hand to his feet. "Let's look around for a bit more and see if anything in here caused that, then."
He takes her hand and lets her pull him up, blinking a few times to get a grip back on reality. He felt fine now, which was almost even more confusing than him collapsing just a second ago.
A couple hours later and they don't find a single thing in that cave.
Sonic stops, glaring at the device on his wrist that Sally had given him.
The supposed Chaos Emerald was just gone.
He couldn't even feel its energy anymore. It was like it just upped and vanished into thin air, which meant someone snagged it really fast, or Shadow was nearby and found it.
He couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that he was being watched, however.
He needed to get out of these woods, he decides, and so he takes off in a flash of blue, speeding through the trees in the direction of a large field nearby.
He doesn't even have time to glimpse it before a sonic boom goes off somewhere on his right, and he's being hit by a flash of green.
Notes-
Short but filling chapter. We got a bunch of stuff going down next chapter, and here on out, so I hope you guys are ready~
...and yes, this is going to be quite a long story. I have the whole thing written out in summary, and we're not even one third of the way there, yet.
-Anonymoux