Hey everyone! I've had a productive week in the sense that I'm more caught up with coursework now than I have been the rest of the year. That is basically what I have been doing the entire week so I've been kept busy. Apart from that, life has been the usual.

I want to say that things are good and everything is fine but it just isn't. It's hard trying to get through each and every day, for me at least, knowing that everything I do will never be good enough. It's crushing me to say the least but with society these days, I'm forced to put on a front and say that I'm fine to keep everyone else happy and to stop the questions.

One day, perhaps I will have the strength to say that enough is enough... but that isn't today. For now, fan fiction, this story, is where my effort is placed (aside from looking after the animals of course).

So anyway, here's a chapter for you. I hope you all enjoy it and I hope your week has been good :)

See you all in 7 days, perhaps your week will fly by so that mine can to.

Arby xx


I forced myself to ignore the ache in my legs knowing that getting to the museum was more important. I glanced to my right only to be stunned by Nocturne who was effortlessly running across the sides of buildings. I envied her; she had all these abilities while I was pretty sure I had none. By the time we got there, the fight had well and truly begun with Sonic once again taunting the doc whilst Tails was lending a hand.

"Arby, you go inside and secure that emerald! If you've got it then he can't get it, understood?" Vector told me.

"What about you guys?" I asked with concern.

"We'll help Sonic and Tails to keep Eggman distracted. Don't worry, we'll be alright. Now go! You don't have a lot of time!" With a serious nod, I ran inside the museum with Nocturne close behind.

"I take it you're coming to?" I questioned.

"You never know when you might need some help. Better to be safe." I didn't think anything would be in here but she made a good point. If something were to attack me then how would the others know? At least with her here I would have a bit of backup.

Back outside, the doctor was putting up a good fight, not that Sonic was bothered by it.

"Come on doc, you can do better than that." He continued as if it was just one big game.

"Ugh! I will shut your mouth permanently even if it's the last thing I do!" Eggman yelled in frustration. He slammed his fist down on a button which should have fired missiles but instead, explosives on the side were triggered and blew half the tank to oblivion. Everyone watched in horror as the multiple blasts caused the mechanical arachnid to crash down onto the museum.

"No!" Everyone yelled in unison at the sight.

"Espio! Get in there!" Vector ordered whilst pointing to the now crushed museum. The chameleon nodded and ran with haste to where the croc had directed him. He was forced to head in through the back as the tank had completely blocked the front. Unfortunately for him, the giant spider was the least of his problems. As he was about to enter, he felt something grab his tail and force him into the filthy, brick wall behind him. He slumped down in a daze before looking up to see none other than the Ultimate Life Form himself.

"Shadow!" He growled but the hedgehog continued as if he had said nothing at all.

"You've done enough, chameleon." He stated in a calm yet deadly tone, like a slow-acting poison. He leapt up off of the ground and landed behind the hedgehog, about to attack him but Shadow's reflexes were unmatched and he grabbed the chameleon's arm before it made contact with his head. The hedgehog swung him around and slammed him into the wall again, this time with far more force. A sharp pain shot through the reptilian's back as he slumped to the ground once again. How could he be brought down so easily? Out of nowhere, an unmistakable bat landed next to the ninja. He tried to get up and defend himself from the two unexpected arrivals but found himself pinned by the much stronger hedgehog. "You are not going anywhere." His gaze locked precisely onto him. Espio tried to think of a way out but found himself thrown to the ground instead.

"What are you doing here?!" The reptile demanded but the hedgehog obviously kept his intentions hidden.

"That is a story for another day; in the meantime, you are coming with us." He lifted his foot, about to deliver a powerful kick to knock him out but paused. Rouge gave the dark hedgehog a sceptical look.

"You ok?" She asked with some concern in her voice although not much. The black hedgehog stared at the other male who looked up at him. For a split-second, Espio could see hesitation and he hoped that Shadow wouldn't go through with it, but the moment was quick to pass.

"Fine." He stated bluntly before slamming his foot to the back of his head.

A few minutes earlier…

"I'm glad you know where it is." I said with embarrassment as we both ran towards where the emerald was being kept. Nocturne chuckled.

"How could I forget? Staring at that flawless, purple glow for hours has burnt it into my mind." It was an odd comment, even from Nocturne but I was quick to forget about it. We entered the room and sighed in unison at the sight of the emerald. It was still there and still untouched.

"Thanks Chaos, alright then. You go check that the back entrance is clear and I'll-" Nocturne's sentence halted as did my movements. Violent rumbles could be felt under our feet and they were quickly getting worse. Barely having time to comprehend what was going on, Eggman's spider tank suddenly crashed through the ceiling, causing huge pieces of debris to come hurtling towards us.

"Shit!" We both yelled in panic. Nocturne dove out of the way but I didn't have her abilities. Everything seemed to stand still, my body was cemented into position and I could not move even if death was staring me in the eyes. The only thing I managed was to shield my face with my arm before the roof caved in upon me. Nocturne stayed down until she was sure that everything had calmed. Her bright, almost glowing green eyes slowly looked around what was left. There was a gaping hole in the roof that the strong sunlight was casually shining through. The way out had been entirely cut off by the pile of concrete that had gathered. Studying the aftermath, her gaze landed upon some upturned quills with stained red fur. Without saying a word, Nocturne approached the unconscious hedgehog with an emotionless expression. She knelt down and studied the part of her that wasn't buried beneath the rubble. There was a clear open wound to her head that was bleeding heavily; she could only guess what the rest of her looked like.

"Funny how this keeps happening to you." She whispered before getting up. Nocturne glanced back and forth at the gap in the ceiling and her half-buried sister. "But this is what you wanted right?" In the end, she swiftly left the museum through the roof and ran.

Back outside, Vector and Charmy were getting anxious. Espio hadn't come back and Nocturne and Arby were nowhere to be seen.

"Alright, I'll be the one to say it." Vector spoke catching the bee's attention. "He's been in there for a long time."

"Don't worry boss!" Charmy said with enthusiasm that would be considered inappropriate. "The ambulance people are here so everything will be fine." This only made Vector worry further.

"I appreciate your positivity little guy, but not all of us can afford hospital bills. Especially if we have three of them." He paused and thought whilst the small insect watched his every move. "Come on kid, were not just gonna stand here. We're gonna get them out."

"You got it!" Charmy and Vector then headed the same way Espio did and got in through the back entrance. Their path was relatively clear seeing as the collapse was at the front but getting into the exact room proved to be a harder task as the doorway was blocked. Charmy flew around, but it didn't take much to notice the overwhelming hole above them. "Uhh Vec?" The croc looked to see the bee pointing up.

"Alright Charms, you think you can still carry me?" The bee laughed at the question.

"I used to carry you and Espio all the time. This'll be easy!" He hovered in the air until Vector held onto his feet. The bee lifted the much larger reptile and placed him on the roof of the museum.

"Good work Charmy! Now we need to get in and find them." They both nodded and treaded carefully upon the now unstable remains. The room was easy to find since it was next to the corridor that they were just in, it was the dangers of falling that slowed them slightly. They climbed down the pile of concrete and into the dusty room. They couldn't see anyone.

"There's no one here Vec." Charmy pointed out but the crocodilian wasn't convinced.

"We can't say that until we've searched. Just look around and underneath stuff and yell if you find anything." Vector told him. Charmy began searching all corners until a disturbing sight caught his worried eyes.

"Vector!" The bee yelled only minutes later. His voice trembled which caused Vector to worry. He rushed over to see what Charmy had found. "Look…" The child whispered as tears fell from his eyes. Vector's jaw dropped at the sight of Arby, who looked to be in horrible condition.

"Arby? Arby!" Vector shook her but there was no response whatsoever.

"Arby… no…" Tears fell endlessly from the distraught child who feared the worst. Vector took one look at him to see that he needed comforting. He knelt down in front of him and gently placed his hands on his shoulders. His voice was calm in order to also calm the scared 6 year old.

"We have to get this stuff off of her. I'll move the debris while you carefully slide her out, ok?" Charmy nodded and wiped his tears so that he could see. The large crocodile quickly removed the concrete that had the hedgehog trapped and Charmy was able to bring her out onto the open floor. She was completely unconscious and the wound on her head wasn't getting any better. "Where the hell is Espio and Nocturne?" Vector wondered with both anger and concern.

"And the Chaos Emerald." Charmy added.

"Forget about that for now. We need to take Arby home." Charmy flew them both back into the corridor then Vector carried the injured hedgehog as they both made their way back to the Chaotix.

Meanwhile…

"You think he'll be alright down there?" Rouge asked as she sat on the kitchen counter with one leg over the other.

"He'll be just fine." Shadow stated plainly. The bat had noticed his odd behaviour since he hesitated on knocking the chameleon out back at the museum and wanted to know why.

"You haven't been yourself since earlier. Something on your mind?"

"Why would there be?" The dark hedgehog crossed his arms as he went to stare out the window.

"Don't be like that, you can talk to me. I won't bite." Shadow rolled his eyes whilst his back was facing her. "You and I both know you didn't want to hurt Espio back there." She couldn't see it, but Shadow's breathing had quickened. Suddenly, a certain striped chameleon barged through the door.

"Damn! What a day!" She exclaimed. Despite being ridiculously irritated by her, Shadow was secretly thankful that she chose now to interrupt; but that didn't mean barging in without knocking was ok.

"Weren't you ever taught to knock?" He asked sternly.

"Knock on what?" Nocturne replied earning herself a loud growl.

"Welcome back sugar." Rouge greeted.

"Hey there sexy." Nocturne teased with a wink giving Shadow the sudden urge to run to the bathroom, but he held it back… for now.

"What are you doing here?" The male hedgehog growled before things went a bit too far.

"Oh right…" After giving a playful grin to the bat, Nocturne laid down on the couch and explained her reasons for showing up unannounced. "I have something you might want."

"And that would be?" Shadow asked, prompting her to continue.

"Firstly, did you get him?" Nocturne asked in return.

"Yes, we got him."

"Where is he?" The chameleon was now sat up and staring at Shadow.

"We're not telling you." A small smirk was present on the black mammal's face whilst Nocturne's had now vanished.

"Why not?!"

"Because you'll go find him and blow your cover." The reptile sat back. He had a good point, if she showed up then Espio would tell the others of her darker double life. No matter how much she wanted to taunt him whilst he was down, she couldn't risk her exposure.

"That's a fair point." She concluded before lying back down.

"Back to you, you said you had something we wanted?" Shadow reminded her. With a quick return of her grin, she got up and revealed a glowing purple gem which was sat comfortably in the palm of her hand.

"Is that?" Rouge tried to say but got lost in the gems magnificent beauty.

"How did you get that?" Shadow asked.

"Pretty straight forward. Everyone else was so focused on stopping Eggman that they completely forgot why they were stopping him to begin with."

"What about the Chaotix?" Shadow continued.

"They were outside at the time and Arby got trapped when Eggman's big toy crashed on top of us."

"So… what happened to her?" Rouge added with one brow lowered. Nocturne shrugged.

"I don't know. She was unconscious when I left."

"You didn't help her?" Shadow's face looked both confused and angry at the same time.

"Well, no. Why?"

"Wow, you really are a heartless one aren't you?" Rouge said as she approached the chameleon and placed a hand on her shoulder. They both looked at the only male in the room whose face was suddenly very hard to read. Neither of them could tell if he was angry, sad, shocked or a mix of all three.

"Anyway…" Nocturne spoke, interrupting the sudden silence. "Where should I put this thing?" She asked but the hedgehog stopped her.

"I don't think so. Hand it over." He demanded.

"Why?"

"You seriously think I'm going to tell you where we keep the emeralds?"

"Yes?" Nocturne said bluntly but Shadow simply shook his head. With a huff, she handed the mammal the emerald who then went into his room. "He keeps them in his room?"

"Of course not. That would be far too easy." Rouge told her.

"Then where?"

"I don't know. He won't tell me either, he thinks I'll just steal them."

"Well… he's right." Nocturne smirked.

"How do you know so much about us?" The bat asked with her voice more seductive than usual. Apparently Shadow leaving the two alone wasn't a good idea.

"That's for me to know and for you to find out." Nocturne teased.

"I'm sure I'll get it out of you somehow."

Meanwhile, Shadow was in what looked like a basement. It was dark, damp and cold despite the temperatures outside. Small cells lined the far wall; they were all empty apart from one. The hedgehog approached the only occupied cell and stared at the unconscious reptile that was restrained by his wrists inside.

"I know you're awake." Shadow said. The chameleon kept his gaze to the bland, grey floor beneath him, but he did speak.

"What is it that you want?" His voice lacked any emotion.

"Merely to keep you out of the way until our job is done." The hedgehog told him. Espio didn't say anything else which caused something to tug at him. "I didn't want to do this to you, but you left me with no choice."

"If you really didn't want to do this then you wouldn't have. It is that simple. You are a hedgehog who does what he wants, when he wants. That much I know. You did want to do this, so don't lie to me." The chameleon was now staring back at him with eyes that to Shadow, seemed broken. "Do what you want. I'm powerless to stop you anyway." Shadow's stomach sank at Espio's attitude. He had never known the ninja to give up so easily and accept a fate that the hedgehog knew wouldn't befall him.

"You will not be hurt while you are here. Just don't expect me to go soft on you."

"I never did." Espio replied. Shadow turned away but said one last thing.

"You did at one point." Espio's entire body stiffened. He knew exactly what he was talking about and shook with absolute rage that Shadow would use it against him. The hedgehog then walked a few steps before Chaos Controlling out of the basement.

"Bastard!"