Warning: Advanceshipping blooms in this chapter, so if you don't like it, you may not like this.
Chapter 14: Rising
Shadow blazed through the comet's interior, eyes aflame with anger and rage. The Distortion Master's actions would not be soon forgiven, but he had no time to think about that. It was imperative that he find that monster and defeat him as soon as possible.
Soon, he sensed the powerful presence of the seven Chaos Emeralds that Cyrus had stolen and, following their presence like radar, managed to find the Master of Distortion standing in a throne room, the seven emeralds over his head. A large, oval-shaped crystal stood behind him, giving off an ominous, lime light.
"Well, well, well," he smirked. "It seems you were able to find me after all, hm? That's quite impressive."
"The Chaos Emeralds will never let me down," he snapped. "They told me everything I need to know."
"Oh, did they?" the villain chuckled, removing his helmet. "Did they tell you where you came from?"
"I don't have time for this, Cyrus," Shadow growled. "I'm going to make you pay for everything you've done!"
"Oh, are you? And just what makes you think you can stop me? The world is already falling to pieces as you know it. Soon there will be nothing left."
"You're wrong."
Cyrus scowled. "What a shame, Shadow. I thought you were different from the others, but it seems I was wrong. You leave me no choice." With that, crimson energy shot out from his claws, latching onto Shadow's wrist braces and ankle braces.
"Ungh!" Shadow groaned, struggling against the energy as it forced him down. "What is this?"
"This is energy taken from the Distortion World that will easily paralyze anyone who has breathed air from that realm."
Shadow was confused. "But," he started, still struggling, "I've never been to the Distortion World!"
Cyrus chuckled knowingly. "That's right. You haven't been there, but the professor created you with the help of a creature that has."
"W-What?!"
"Oh, don't tell me you don't know," Cyrus sneered. "The only way the professor could make you immortal was by infusing you with blood drawn from an immortal creature. Where do you think he got it?!"
Shadow had no idea, but for some reason he sputtered as he struggled:
"G-Gira-Giratina?!" Who is Giratina?!
"That's right, you fool! The blood that runs through your veins is the same blood of Giratina, master of the Distortion World. He is the only one whose power can possibly kill you." A malevolent grin spread on his face. "And I have that power in this energy."
Shadow gasped. "NO!"
"Prepare to die, Shadow the Hedgehog!"
"No!" he grunted, fighting back harder now that he knew he was in danger. "Chaos...Control! Ungh! Chaos...Control! Guh! Chaos Spear! It's not working! Why isn't it –?!"
A sudden shattering sound split their ears and knocked them both down a moment, though Cyrus's hold on Shadow remained. "What's this?!" he growled.
"Uhhh…" a voice moaned. "Wha–What happened?"
Shadow gasped. That voice!
"Well, good morning, princess," Cyrus snarled, leering over someone. "Did you sleep well?"
Shadow wasted no more time. Channelling every bit of Chaos energy left in him, he fought against Cyrus's hold and broke free, shocking the villain and knocking him away from whoever he was leering at. Faster than even he thought he could go, he dashed over and, sure enough, found May laying there, dazed and confused.
"May!" he exclaimed, leaning over her.
May blinked and saw the black hedgehog leaning over her, a red aura enveloping his body. "Shadow? What are you doing here?"
"Never mind me," he snapped. "Are you okay? Are you sick?"
"Ugh," she grunted, "I'm fine."
Shadow was confused. "But that energy...it was going to kill you."
"If I had ingested it, yes. But your Chaos energy destroyed it and any potential effects it could have had."
Shadow looked at her a moment, then hugged her tightly, breathing in relief. "Thank goodness," he whispered. "I'm so glad you're okay."
"Same here," she whispered back.
Shadow's eyes shot open as a sudden revelation came to him. "Did you say the Chaos energy has the power to stop that energy's effects?"
"Yeah, is there some part of that you don't get?" May asked.
"No, it's just…" he started, then breathed and finished, "Ash got stabbed with some of it. He's dying back where we were, if he's not already dead."
May gasped. "W-What?!"
"If he's still alive, then there's still hope," he said, quickly taking her hand in his and transferring some of his aura of Chaos to her. When he let go, her hand glowed red. "I'm going to send you to him. Place your hand over his abdomen. It may be able to save him!"
She nodded and closed her eyes, fighting against tears, as Shadow raised his hands and cried out:
"Chaos...Control!"
May slowly disappeared from his sight, leaving him alone with Cyrus.
When May opened her eyes, she found herself in a barren room void of life, save for one body laying on the ground. Looking at her hand, she quickly leapt up and rushed over to the body. Sure enough, it was Ash. He was groaning, painfully holding his abdomen.
He's still alive! she thought, relieved. She pulled his weak hands away from his wound and placed her glowing hand over it. The energy on her hand instantly transferred to his body, causing it to glow for a moment before it became still. She looked at his face anxiously. His eyes were closed, his mouth partly open. He looked like a dead man. Please don't let it end that way she thought. Please, don't die, Ash!
A weak grunt sounded from his throat, and his eyes slowly fluttered open, having changed from brown to auburn. He looked at May, the slightest smile on his face.
"He did it," he whispered. "Shadow saved you, didn't he?"
"ASH!" May cried in delight, pulling him into a tight embrace. He returned it with just as much passion as she gave it, rubbing her back to assure her that everything was okay. Tears of delight fell from her eyes as she held her best friend in her arms, not wanting to let go for even a second for fear that he would disappear again.
"Hey," he muttered, "I feel...better. What happened?"
"Shadow gave me the power to save you," she replied, not letting go. "You're gonna be all right."
"Thank goodness," he smiled, still holding her close. "I guess I'll have some explaining to do to Sonic and Pikachu when we get back together." They held each other a moment more, then Ash started to pull away, but May pulled him back. "May –"
"Please don't go," she whispered. "I-I can't...I mean, I…"
He raised an eyebrow. Was she about to say…?
"May?"
"Ash, I...I…"
He smiled and pulled away slightly, just enough so they could look each other in the eye. Their faces were only centimeters apart, their noses practically touching. "Yes, May? Is there something you want to say?"
He was trying to help her speak clearly, but he only ended up making things worse. "Ash...I think that I...I mean...ugh! What I'm trying to say, is…"
Ash just chuckled and held her close once again, tighter than before. "It's all right, May," he smiled knowingly. "We'll have plenty of time to talk when this ordeal is over. Of course, since we're here now, I might as well say something I've been meaning to say for a while now, but never understood...well, got around to...eh, both and...whatever. The point is, I…"
He drew back slightly so he could look into her sapphire eyes once again: those beautiful, sapphire eyes that one could stare into for days without blinking and still see clearly. She, likewise, stared into the sea of auburn that his eyes displayed: those powerful but warm eyes that you looked into and knew you could count on.
"I love you, May."
She gasped and blinked, amazed, staring silently at him a moment more, while he just smiled at her.
"Ash...do you...really mean that...the way that...?"
"Yes, May. Yes, I do."
A tear fell from her eye as her smile spread wider than ever before.
"I love you too, Ash."
The next few seconds of time slowed down dramatically as their faces drew ever closer, their eyes slowly closing until, at long last, their lips met one another. They sat there on the ground for what felt like eternity, when it was, in actuality, only three seconds. When they parted, they stared into each other's eyes once again, all smiles.
"I can't believe it," she whispered. "I never thought you'd say that to me, Ash."
"Neither did I," he winked. She giggled softly and embraced him once again, while he returned the favor. This time around, however, he pulled away sooner, holding her hands and looking into her eyes. She saw his had returned to their natural brown hue as a determined expression lined his face.
"Are you...going after him?"
"Yes," he nodded, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You go find Sonic and stay with him. I'll be back soon."
"Okay," she nodded. "Don't do anything crazy, Ash."
"I just kissed a girl," he smirked. "How much crazier can you get than that?" She just laughed as he moved ever deeper into the comet's corridors, while she moved to find safety.
"You insolent parasite."
Shadow turned and looked at Cyrus as he stood from the ground, a snarl etched onto his face. How long had he stood over where May had been? It must have been some time, as the Distortion Master's face sported lines from the surface it was against. "You thought that setting her free would stop me?"
"Yes, in fact, I did," Shadow growled back.
"What, did you think a true love's kiss would set that little Ketchum brat free from his fate?! It's inevitable. He will die."
"If that's the case, then his death will not be in vain," the black hedgehog snarled, leaping up and preparing to kill the villain. Cyrus, however, simply blasted him back with power, knocking him onto his back. He then shot the same energy from his hands that he shot earlier, only this time in greater amounts, so that Shadow was in severe agony. "Auggghhh!"
"I'd like to see you try and break from THAT, you fool!" Cyrus roared, channelling more and more energy into Shadow's body, weakening him beyond anything he'd experienced to date. In mere moments, the black hedgehog would be dead.
"Hey, Cyrus!"
"Huh?!" they looked around, puzzled. It can't be!
"HEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"
Cyrus's body was viciously thrown down by another person's weight, releasing Shadow from his hold. After a brief struggle, the black hedgehog saw Cyrus throw a familiar face right next to him. "Ash!"
"Ung...hey, Shadow. Thanks for your help."
Shadow nodded, slightly surprised himself that he'd succeeded in saving his life.
"Of course…" Cyrus snarled. "Of course you cheated death! Why would death care for you?!"
"What can I say?" Ash smirked, adjusting his hat. "I die hard!" Shadow slipped into the shadows.
"I've had more than enough of you, Ash. You ruined my plans with Team Galactic, and now you intend to ruin my plans with the Millennium Comet! If I don't kill you now, I'll go insane!"
"You ARE insane!" Ash screamed, shocking the villain. "You think you can recreate an entire world by wiping out this one?! You're a monster, Cyrus. You even tried to kill someone I care deeply about...someone I would DIE for!" He was leering over him now, and even though the teenager was years younger than the Master of Distortion, he was looking much more threatening than Cyrus ever could. "I'm gonna finish you off once and for all...and you're gonna go straight to HELL!"
"Oh, is that so?" Cyrus sneered, suddenly standing up and seizing Ash by the throat. "No, Ash...you're going straight to hell!" He squeezed, draining the lifeforce out of Ash's body. "Farewell, you fool!"
"Oh, I don't think so!"
They started again. "What?!"
"Piiiiiikaaaaaaa...CHUUUUUUUUUUUU!"
Cyrus felt himself get severely electrocuted, his whole suit of armor falling apart from being overpowered. He was now nothing but a normal human.
"Pikachu?!" Ash exclaimed as his best friend jumped into his arms.
"Guh – how?!" Cyrus growled.
"It wasn't that hard," came a familiar voice. Shadow stepped up, smirking slightly. "I merely used Chaos Control while you weren't looking to bring Ash his best friend. Now, I'd say it's about time we finished this!" With that, he leapt up, intending to kill Cyrus, but before he could, the villain disappeared. Ash and Shadow looked around, but they didn't find the villain anywhere.
"I quite agree, Shadow," the voice of the Distortion Master came from above, as sinister and echoing as ever. "This battle has dragged on long enough. Your treason will be repaid in full, with DEATH!" With these words, the ceiling above them opened to reveal the portal the Millennium Comet was generating. A familiar shape was coming down from it, but instead of eyes colored crimson, a menacing, sky-blue glowered from above.
Ash gasped. "It's Giratina!"
Shadow shuddered. "He's bonded with him!"
"So that's how it's gonna go down, huh?" Ash muttered.
"Pika!"
"Come on," Shadow beckoned him over to the Chaos Emeralds.
"Wait, huh?"
"It's like I said: it's time to finish this."
"What do you want me to do?"
Shadow glared at him, slightly annoyed. "This battle is every bit yours as it is mine. He kept my past from me and hurt someone I cared for. That someone is also someone you care for. We're fighting for a common cause, Ash. We may as well fight together."
Ash looked at him a moment more, then nodded. "All right, then...Pikachu, you ready?"
"Pika!"
With that, they stood back to back, as the Chaos Emeralds came down to their level, circling around them slowly at first, then gradually gaining speed as Chaos energy surged through their bodies. Then, with a blind flash of light, Shadow transformed into a flying hedgehog, all his black fur replaced with a cross between gold and silver.
Ash, on the other hand, saw his blue and yellow vest invert its color so that it was now a yellow vest with a dark blue stripe across it. Other than that, his appearance remained the same, augmented by a glowing, yellow aura. His hat had flipped itself backwards on its own accord, and Pikachu was on his shoulder, sharing the power.
"Let's go!" Shadow raised the battle cry, shooting into the sky, Ash close on his heels.