(A/N: Hello everyone once again! I hope you enjoyed the prologue, because we now get into the nitty-gritty and into the edginess that is Shadow the Hedgehog proper! I forgot to address this in the prologue, but I must preface that Sonic's little rant was something I had trouble with. I needed to tread lightly, since the whole "Sonic and Amy have argument, then Shadow comes in to snag her" trope had been done to death. But also I didn't want to make Sonic too OOC here, as unlike Sonic Team, I actually know and care about Sonic's character. To those that may have hated it, I apologize in advance. Hopefully this chapter can make up for it. enjoy!)

The Miracle of Love

Chapter 1: Trial By Extermination

DISCLAIMER: This fan fiction contains instances of profanity, extreme violence, nightmare-inducing imagery, and sexual content. Viewer discretion is advised.

All characters and settings are property of SEGA and Sonic Team.

NOVEMBER 15

5:34 PM – WESTOPOLIS

"Shadow the Hedgehog… why does that name haunt me?"

The sun began to set on the skies of Westopolis. The first day of the Fire in the Sky Festival was about to begin. There were thousands of people that lined the streets, vendors were ready to sell their merch, balloons everywhere. People were excited to be there for the weekend and see the Black Comet up close and personal. There were lucky charms being sold, beautiful jewelry and good food that it was hard for most people to not be happy. But one was not celebrating.

That one was Shadow, standing in the park a few miles from the festivities. He never cared for celebrations and he saw no reason to even think of joining in. Instead, the Ultimate Life Form was lost in his own thoughts. He was thinking back to that pink hedgehog the other day. She seemed so sad, so distraught. But why? And why did he even care about her? There seemed to be a familiar aura to her, but he couldn't put his finger on it. More important than that was who he even was.

It had been well over a year since the defeat of Metal Sonic. His good sultry friend Rouge the Bat discovered him inside of a capsule, in a storage room with the last of Doctor Eggman's elite robots, E-123 Omega. The three all had different agendas and had a bit difficulty being on the same page but were able to track down the good doctor and his diabolical creation. Shadow hoped to get some answers about himself. Everyone said that he was dead, but when he awoke, he had no memory. No idea who he was, or how he got there. What he was supposed to do, what his past was, nothing. All he could remember was his name, his abilities, and a recurring nightmare he had which was more of a vision of a lost past.

The images of him running through long corridors, while holding in his hand a blonde human girl in a blue dress, attempting to outrun their pursuers. Shadow couldn't see them, nor did he wish to. He just wanted to take his friend away and not turn back. They reach their destination in a large room, but they were trapped. There was no escape for them. Shadow was soon encased in a glass container as the girl pressed her hand on the glass and soldiers appeared in the doorway they came from, blocking an escape. One soldier pointed his pistol at them, and then a gun shot.

"Maria!"

The vision would end with the girl known as Maria falling from the wounds and Shadow descending down. But each time he saw it, the more confused he got. Just what was that dream? When did this happen? Why were the soldiers chasing him, and who was Maria? The answers alluded him each time. "If only I could remember… who am I? Who's this Maria?" he asked out loud. For over a year, the black hedgehog has searched for answers, but has found nothing. Usually a person suffering amnesia would try talking to others, find their friends and ask them who they were. But unfortunately, Shadow barely had any friends.

The only people he could think to call his friends were his Team Dark teammates: Rouge and Omega. But ever since the Metal Sonic and Gizoid incidents, his contact with them has been rather sporadic. Rouge is a government spy that often has to be sent away on missions when she isn't off doing treasure hunting. Even when she isn't, she is running her own night club which, in Shadow's opinion, seemed more of a strip club than anything. Though it would explain to him why she dresses and acts like a whore so much. While he's been close to Rouge and has seen her enough, he hasn't bothered to question her, nor has he had the time to have an actual conversation. Omega, on the other hand, has been off the radar for months, having went off to locate Dr Eggman and get his revenge for locking hm and Shadow up in that room. This has left Shadow with nothing.

Then there were the others. Dr Eggman could know something about his past, but he often changes locations. Omega has been tracking him for months, but so far has turned up nothing. He barely knew Team Chaotix either and was completely indifferent to them. He didn't hate them, but he couldn't find it in him to fully trust the detectives. And lastly, Team Sonic. Shadow didn't know what it was, but he couldn't stand that blue hedgehog. Maybe it was that shit-eating grin he always had, his cocky attitude, the fact he rarely took anything seriously and joked needlessly. Whatever it was, he found going to Sonic a non-option. He didn't particularly dislike Tails or Knuckles, but because they were Sonic's best friends, he wasn't going to try seeking them out.

Once again, he had no leads, and no clue who he was or what he was doing here. Then his mind raced back to the pink girl. She looked familiar. He held his head, as if something was coming to him. He could see instances of being hugged from behind, bushing as he was held. When he turned, he saw the girl embracing him, then letting go and stepping back. But why? What compelled her to embrace him? Why would she back away from him? So many questions. But perhaps she could give him some answers. He uncrossed his arms and decided what he was going to do.

He never got to, however. Shadow looked up and saw a trail of red clouds looming over him and the city, covering the sky completely. Something was seriously up. The people of Westopolis looked at the sky in curiosity and fear. Then fear consumed them. An "eye" in the clouds formed and from it came hundreds of strange alien monsters, with grey and red skin and yellow eyes. There were some the size of a normal human, and some were imposing giants. Some were bird or bat like, flying through the skies. But they all were intimidating and armed, scaring the humans and peoples. The Black Warrior types pulled out alien guns and began shooting at the people, incinerating or blowing holes through them. One of the Black Oak giants casually tossed aside a car which exploded into a nearby building.

People ran away scared for their lives. As the aliens continued their carnage of blasting everything, the innocents tried to find shelter. Then came another problem. Blue lasers reigned down everywhere across the city, destroying buildings and roads, stranding or killing thousands. One police officer tried fighting the monsters by shooting bullets at the aliens, but all shots were ineffective. Then one smaller flying alien flew in and gnawed at his face, eating it. A Black Oak caught one woman and used its strength to literally rip her in half pieces. Black Warriors shot wildly at the civilians, lasers reigned from everywhere. The Black Arms were beginning their conquest with Westopolis.

The Guardian Units of Nations—or GUN for short—arrived on the scene a few minutes after the bloodbath began. The soldiers' first order was to hold back the black aliens while they try evacuating the city. Shadow looked at the destruction going on with complete and utter apathy. He never really cared too much for the humans, even with his dark dreams. The Ultimate Life Form had considered them weak and often dependent on Sonic and the others just to even survive. "Hmph. How fucking pathetic. I don't understand how Rouge can even put up with these weak humans." He said aloud. Shadow turned away from the death before him. If these humans couldn't defend themselves, he saw no reason helping them out. Not his war, not his problem. He began walking away to try finding that girl.

"Shadow…"

He stopped. Shadow's eyes widened at the mention of his name and turned around. A purple and red squid-like creature with one eye floated to him. The eye flowed and showed a projection of a large three-eyed alien monster in dark robes. He didn't realize it, but this was Black Doom. "As you can see, the 'promised time' is nearly upon us. There is no time to waste. Find the seven Chaos Emeralds, and deliver them to me, as we agreed upon!" he said. Shadow looked confused. What promised time? How did he know him? Did he order this invasion, and what agreement? "Wait… who are you? How do you know my name? And what are you talking about?" Shadow asked. He got no answer. The projection disappeared and the creature flew off into the city. Shadow tried to pursue it but was stopped by small explosives around him. He saw more soldiers and vehicles from GUN passing by him, headed for the city.

"What the hell was that about?" asked Shadow to no one in particular. The whole event left him with more questions than answers. But got him curious. These black aliens seemed to remember or know him, but they were totally foreign to him. He didn't understand what he was talking about, but he seemed to get one thing. This guy might know the truth about who he is. Shadow has finally gotten a lead on his past. Like it or not, he has no choice but to believe him. "Looks like the only way to figuring out my past… is to get those Chaos Emeralds!" he declared.

With a determined drive, he dashed off into the city. He had a feeling he could start there. The secrets of his past would be uncovered soon….

5:45 PM – DOWNTOWN WESTOPOLIS

Why today of all days? Why did this have to happen?

Young Cream the Rabbit thought this as she and Team Chaotix ran through the war-torn streets of Westopolis. She had been staying with the detective agency over the weekend for the festival. Vector was assured her mother that she would be safe with them. How wrong they were. Their office was completely blown up by the Black Arms' laser fire, they were trying to run and find a safe place for them to hide. Charmy in particular was trying to keep Cream safe and calm; he had a bit of a crush on the girl and saw the Fire in the Sky festival as the perfect chance for a date. Didn't go so well.

"Dammit, there's nowhere for us to run without getting shot at! All we can do is wait and hope Sonic got our call!" said Vector. The group had to hide in an alleyway just to get out of the open. It was mostly to try getting a signal to call Sonic and Tails for help. Their first priority was getting Cream to safety. While they were aware she was tough and able to hold her own, she couldn't fight hordes of monsters like this, especially ones that can easily make mincemeat out of humans. "These Black Aliens caught all of us by surprise. We were so distracted by the light that we failed to detect the shadows." Mused Espio. "Well thank you for the spiritual wisdom, great ninja of the wind. Could have really used that five fuckin' minutes ago!" said Vector sarcastically. Espio ignored his boss as he is want to do.

Charmy hugged Cream in comfort in the meantime. "Don't worry, Creamy. I'll bet Sonic and Shadow are kicking the aliens' ass right now! They'll be here in no time!" he said. Cream seemed to be a bit less afraid, but she found it odd how he said Shadow even though it was Tails coming to pick her up. Just then, a laser bean shot down near their hiding spot, forcing them out. A couple of Black Warriors marched to them, ready o fire their weapons. But before anyone could do anything, a blue image knocked them both out before their attacker appeared before Cream and the Chaotix. It was Sonic, arriving just in the nick of time. "Thanks for the save, Sonic… but I was handing it well on my own." Said Vector as he helped his boys and Cream up. "Glad to see you're alright, Vector." Said Sonic.

A blue plane flew down and landed on the streets. Piloting it was a young two-tailed fox, Miles "Tails" Prower. Cream was very happy to see them, Tails especially, which made Charmy jealous a bit. "Cream, get in! I'm taking you to Amy's place until things cool down here!" said Tails. "Oh thank you Tails and Mr. Sonic! I feel so much safer and happier now!" she said, hugging Sonic then jumping into the plane. Tails gave Sonic a thumbs up and took off again, heading right for Central City. Charmy pouted like a little brat. He was trying hard to get Cream to like him, and then she Tails comes in to sweep her off her feet apparently. "What's Tails got that I don't?" he asked bitterly. "An IQ of 290?" said Vector. "A personality not at all like sanding paper?" said Espio. Charmy grimaced at both answers unhappy. "Assholes."

Just then, Shadow sped right past the, dashing right past and into one of the blown up buildings. Sonic went right after him to catchup, hoping that the Ultimate Life Form would lend a hand. Charmy's eyes lit up upon seeing the black hedgehog. He always admired Shadow in the same way that Tails admired Sonic, but they weren't that close. "Oh man, Shadow is so cool!" admired Charmy. Vector grabbed his antennae and whipped him around. "Now's not the time to be fanboying, Charmy! We gotta help those people! Let's go boys!" shouted the croc, leading his guys into the city to help the innocents.

Shadow, meanwhile, rushed through the city at blazing speeds. Without Rouge or Omega to back him up or steer him in the right direction of the Emeralds, he was going to be in for a long journey. "Hmm, the 'promised time', he said." He thought. "Well… time to go fulfill this promise." He jumped forward into the city streets and saw a Black Wing attacking a soldier and biting at its neck. Shadow didn't pay it any mind. That was a mistake. Once the soldier fell down dead, the bat swooped down at Shadow. The Ultimate Life Form instinctively grabbed the dead soldier's gun and shot it down. He looked down at the weapon. Usually, he wouldn't resort to such primitive methods. After all, he had his own attacks to deal with his adversaries. But Shadow was going in blind. He didn't know how long his search for the emeralds would be, so he needed to conserve energy. Best to arm himself for the task ahead.

"Hey Shadow! Long time, no see!" said a voice from behind him. Shadow groaned hearing it. He recognized that voice anywhere and he hated it. "You say that every time we meet, Sonic." Said Shadow, not bothering to turn around. "Well it has been about a year since I seen ya. How's the brooding been?" asked Sonic. Shadow rolled his eyes and walked forward with his pistol. "I got no time for this. I've got Chaos Emeralds to find, so stay out of my way." Shadow warned and ran off into the city. Sonic smirked and shook his head. "Some things never change huh?" The Blue Blur ran to help the other civilians in trouble.

Shadow picked up a few more armaments from dead soldiers. GUN troops and sentry droids were firing to hold off the Black Arms. There were some that were able to kill some of the aliens or at least wound them, but most damage was seemingly minimum. "Dammit, these beasts don't let up!" shouted one soldier. He finally got one of the aliens but was shot by another with an alien handgun. Shadow chose to stop playing neutral and kicked the alien's head off, decapitating it with a kick, then took its gun and fired off at the others. "Thanks Shadow, we owe you big time." Thanked a soldier. "Bigger than you think. Anyway, I'm not here for you. I was wondering if there are any Chaos Emeralds around here." Shadow said.

"There's one in the Westopolis National Bank! We've already cleared a path to get there, but it's ill-advised." Answered the soldier. Shadow nodded. "I'll take my chances. Thanks anyway." He said and rushed in the direction of the bank. The soldiers looked at each other in confusion. "So… Shadow helped us, Corporal. Does that mean he's on our side?" asked one. The Corporal shrugged. "How the hell should I know? That hedgehog's a tough one to read." He answered.

Shadow homing attacked at every alien he saw until he got to the federal bank. He was lucky the place was still standing, albeit still in bad shape. He entered and found loads of dead bodies. Many citizens and security guards shot, killed, or had parts of them ripped out or eaten. Shadow walked over the decaying bodies and came across a bank vault. Opening it up he found his quarry: a green diamond-cut gem the size of his hand. Shadow knew it when he saw it: "There it is… a Chaos Emerald!" he said to himself and picked it up.

As he held the Emerald in his hand, he could feel an overwhelming power course through his body. The strength of the Chaos Emerald, and the Chaos Energy it had was incredible. The Chaos Emeralds give out an immense amount of unlimited power and potential. Even one of them is incredible, light and dark power coursing through the Ultimate Life Form. Shadow shook his head and regained focus. "One down, six to go." He thought, exiting the bank. Once he left, he noticed the roads looking worse, more dead bodies on the streets, both human and alien. Shadow picked up another alien blaster, which seemed to have two holes for the bullets, and a GUN sub machine gun and jumped onto another street. More Carnage was to be had, as he noticed the Chaotix helping some civilians onto a cargo helicopter.

"You are late, Shadow." Said a deep voice from behind him. He recognized it as the creature that spoke to him earlier. He turned around and saw the same squid thing that delivered the message before. "Well, you told me to get the Chaos Emeralds. Plus your pets aren't exactly the nicest company. Just who are you exactly?" Shadow asked. "Hmmm… interesting. You seem to have forgotten your sacred mission." Said the weird alien, "I am Black Doom, leader of the Black Arms. We are the superior species and rulers of the universe. From now on, my eye shall follow and observe you for me." Shadow chuckled a little bit. "Always nice to have a fan following me." He replied. "You are under my watch now, Shadow. I will tell you everything about your past if you follow everything I say. Are we clear?" said Black Doom. Now the alien had Shadow's attention. "Crystal. Now what is thy bidding, your edginess?" Shadow asked sarcastically.

"You have one Chaos Emerald. There is another in this city, but to retrieve it will take great tribulation. Now, start by finishing off these humans who dare to defy me!" ordered Black Doom. Shadow thought about this for about a minute. He had already earned the humans' trust here, and it could be very useful for him to keep it. However, he couldn't find it in him to want to help them. They weren't that beneficial if they needed him to bail them out all the time. Besides, if he were to side with humanity, he may lose his best shot at finding answers about himself. Thinking long and hard, Shadow smirked and cocked his new weapon. "Think it's time to clean up." He said approaching some soldiers from behind. Black Doom snickered in a diabolical way.

The GUN Soldiers were completely unaware of Shadow's presence until it was too late. Shadow shot at the three with a barrage of bullets, then pumped it to turn it on some droids. Espio looked over his shoulder as he placed a child into a helicopter. He was shocked at what he saw. Shadow was killing GUN soldiers with a submachine gun. The black hedgehog switched up to the U-shaped blaster called the Flash Shot and blasted at some Gun Hunter droids, then looked over to find a couple running. He smirked and shot them with keen precision. Espio didn't understand. What would compell Shadow to do this?

"Woah, Shadow's got guns! He's so cool!" praised Charmy, completely oblivious to the atrocities Shadow was committing. "What the hell is so cool about murdering people?! Especially those who can't fight back?!" yelled Espio. Vector helped the last survivors into a copter and turned to the chaos. "What the fuck does Shadow think he's doing?!" he yelled out. "Being a badass!" sang Charmy. Espio had enough and ran to confront the hedgehog. He saw Shadow engaging a few soldiers in close combat, beating them down hard. He uppercut a man so hard he literally lost his head. "Don't lose your head." He said, then grabbed a pistol and shot some into other soldiers. Another one charged headfirst at Shadow, shooting like a madman. Shadow stayed still until he came close, then punched right through his chest, causing the soldier to scream in pain before collapsing in pain. "Talk to the fist, pal." Shadow said. He grabbed his guns and magazines, then continued on ahead. Then Espio appeared before him.

"What's this about, Shadow?" asked the ninja in a calm but unhappy tone. Shadow started to walk past him, not bothering to answer such a stupid question. "Why… why commit murder? Why do this?!" asked Espio. Shadow looked down, and then spinkicked Espio from behind. Finally, Shadow spoke. "The truth. That's all I need." He said to a barely conscious detective. Charmy just admired Shadow as the Ultimate Life Form proceeded onward. Doom's Eye observed the death and destruction going on, as more of his men continued to kill and explosions happened around them. Shadow used a few homing attacks on Beetle sentries to proceed, then took some assault rifles from their remains, shooting down more soldiers and civilians. "And to think I regarded guns as a waste of time…" he said to himself.

"Yes, that's it. Put every last one of these pathetic weaklings down." Said Doom's Eye, "Soon, we shall cleanse the whole planet of parasites, as we have done with this city." Shadow continued to roll past. "You mean as I have done. You're just a floating eye livestreaming this." He replied. "And you are doing exceptionally well, Shadow. As I have known you would." Replied the alien leader. The more Shadow sped up, the more laser explosions came down. A GUN soldier was laying cover fire for a fleeing family. Shadow could easily take out the civilians, but he hesitated. One of the family members was an 8-year old boy. He may not care for the humans, but he made it a point not to attack kids. Not even he was this cruel. "Do not let them escape, Shadow!" ordered Doom's Eye. Shadow stopped himself, then sighed at leapt up in front of the parents. Taking a discarded shotgun, he shot the father in the chest and the mother in the head. He threatened to kill the child but didn't. He was not going to break any moral compass regardless of his motivation. Instead, he let the scared child run away.

"You missed that one, Shadow. I expect you to follow my orders to the letter." Said Doom's Eye, annoyed at Shadow. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I don't kill kids. It's not in me, Black Doom!" answered the Ultimate Life Form. "You are a naïve fool. One day, that child will remember you. He will dedicate his entire life to avenging the ones you murdered and take his revenge!" argued Doom. "Yeah, well that's his problem." Smirked Shadow. He was satisfied with what he was doing and didn't give a shit about what happened after, only the now was important. He dashed forward into a tunnel, GUN troops lining a defense against the Black Arms. "The last of the civilians are almost on the chopper! Hold the line until they're out!" shouted the platoon leader.

Suddenly, the Chaos Emerald glowed and Shadow felt a wave of negative power overflowing him. A red aura surrounded him, his eyes glowing red, as he cackled. The soldiers turned and saw him, growing very scared as Shadow clenched his fists and his body glowed even brighter. "CHAOS….. BLAST!" he unleashed an explosive red shockwave which burned through and incinerated everything around it. All the humans and Black Arms were completely destroyed, but the tunnel also caved in and buried him. Shadow walked out and smashed his way through the debris. Shadow looked at his hands and the Emerald. He never felt a power like that ever before. But it was dangerous. From now on, he needed to be extra careful about his surroundings the next time he used that.

"Well, at least I know not to use that in a traffic tunnel." he mused. Doom's Eye leered close to him, as they looked up and saw the last of the evac helicopters prepare to leave. "Hmm. It seems that all the inhabitants have fled. Or… almost all of them." Said the alien leader. Suddenly, a yellow light appeared over the copter and then a blue laser hit it, destroying it and its passengers. Shadow looked on with as much apathy as he could give the humans. Ahead he could see a Black Oak ripping human soldiers in pieces with its strength and devouring their remains. The last soldier dropped his weapon and was crawling back, stuck against a burning taxi. The Black Oak was about to come striking down, when suddenly, a giant blue hole pierced through its chest. The hole was caused by a rolling blue ball, which uncurled itself. Sonic arrived just in the nick of time, killing the large alien in flashy style.

"He always was good at making a dramatic entrance." Said Shadow. Sonic looked over and grinned at Shadow. "Hey Shad! Where ya been, slowpoke?" asked Sonic. Shadow groaned at the blue hedgehog's pathetic humor. "Cleaning up instead of mocking others. Unlike some hedgehogs I know." He answered with small distain and sarcasm. Shadow picked up a Speed Limit sign to use for a weapon and walked past his rival. "You know, could really use your help getting rid of the rest of these black creatures, Shadow." Said Sonic, nonchalantly. Shadow turned to him. "Okay, first off; Black Creatures? That's extremely racist. Think the Black Arms is what they're called. Second, I'm not here to save you. I'm here for the Chaos Emeralds. And third…" he explained, then looked over to some remaining GUN troops and smirked, "Why would I help you when I could kill them?"

Without further warning, Shadow jumped up and swung the sign into one of the soldiers so hard, they were cut in half, in a diagonal fashion. The soldier screamed in pain as he started to lose blood and became easy prey for the aliens. Sonic's eyes widened in shock. What possessed Shadow to do that? Even more, Shadow jumped up and snapped another one's neck, then placed his pistol into the last one's mouth and shot him, blowing his head off. The black hedgehog turned to Sonic with his sign with a proud grin on his face. "Shadow! What the hell are you doing!" he exclaimed. Shadow answered by swinging the sign at Sonic, who barely ducked out the way, only to be hit with Shadow's sneaker. "Giving you a speeding ticket, bitch." Answered Shadow. "OH MY GOD! HE'S SO GOD. DAMN. COOL!" shouted Charmy from a distance. Shadow swung again, but Sonic spindashed out of the way and used a homing attack to knock the weapon out of his hands.

Sonic then sped up preparing to strike, but Shadow quickly pulled out the Light Shot and fired right at Sonic's feet. The Fastest Thing Alive was able to dodge most shots, but one was able to hit him hard and knock him into some fiery debris. Not only that, but Shadow noticed he dropped a blue gem, similar to the one he had: the blue Chaos Emerald. It was just his luck. He picked up the emerald and walked over to Sonic, switching to the assault rifle. "That's two Chaos Emeralds in one go. This may be even easier than I thought…" he said, cocking his gun, "You won't be calling yourself the fastest with a bad leg, faker." The Ultimate Life Form fired off a bullet right into Sonic's left leg.

"AAAH! FUCK!" Sonic screamed in pain, holding his leg. He never been shot by a real gun before, only the ones that Eggman's robots used. It hurt worse than he could have imagined. "Sh-Shadow… why are you… siding with them….?" He asked his frenemy. Shadow just put away his gun and looked away. "I've got my reasons to do this, but I'm not telling you jack shit. So if you don't want to end up like these humans, I suggest you lay there like the snarky pussyshit you are and let me do my job." Shadow laughed and walked away from his rival. Sonic glared at Shadow as Team Chaotix ran to check on Sonic. He thought Shadow was a friend, but now he wasn't sure.

"Shadow… damn you!"

6:34 PM – CENTRAL CITY – AMY'S HOME

"Mmm… Oooh Sonic…"

Amy was rubbing herself like mad. She caressed her own bra-covered breasts and panty-covered wet spot in ecstasy. It wasn't unlike her to be having wet dreams of her beloved Sonic, especially when she had a poor sense of time. Her body was warm as she napped, her dress thrown aside on the floor. "Yes, Sonic… there. Take me…please…" Amy was completely lost in her own desirable dreams, she didn't even realize what was happening around the globe. "Ohh… w-wait. You aren't Sonic… Hey… what—Sh-Shadow!?" She shot awake immediately and looked around. Amy cursed herself for taking a nap like this and having these lewd dreams. "Another dream about him." she thought.

The past week has been a very rough one for Amy Rose. Being rejected and told off in a way by Sonic was not how she planned her week to go for her, and the 'argument' they had mentally broke her. She kept trying to tell herself that it was all a lie and Sonic was having a bad day. But looking back at her actions, and the dreams she had, it was hard for her to deny it. It wasn't just Sonic, either. She talked with some of the others. Tails, Knuckles, Rouge, Team Chaotix, Cream, even Big. And nearly all of them said a variation of what Sonic said, though some with less subtlety. Rouge flat out called her an "obsessive slutty 12-year old". Knuckles said she is too selfish. Tails told her that she didn't know as much about love as she thought. Team Chaotix were brutally honest about her; Espio calling her a borderline stalker and Vector said her hammer was unnecessary. Cream was basically the only one that was nice, saying that while Sonic does like her, he may not be ready quite yet. Big, however, didn't pay attention to a thing she said; he was too busy fishing.

The only person she really hadn't talked to was Shadow. That name rang in her head and made her face red. Even before her breakup with Sonic, she had been having weird dreams of him. Usually she would start dreaming of Sonic, but then those images of the blue hedgehog she once loved would change and become Shadow. Now those dreams were becoming more frequent. Her mind was becoming conflicted, her heart seemed to be tearing out. What was happening to her? She looked at the time. "Oh shit! It's past dinner! Guess I'm getting take-out again…" she said.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Amy quickly sorted herself out, getting her dress and boots on and answering the door. Standing outside were Tails and Cream. She was less happy to see Tails, but Cream looked scared out of her mind. The 10-year old rabbit threw herself into Amy's arms and wept a bit. "Oh Amy! I'm so glad you are okay! It was so scary!" she cried. Amy hugged her, confused, and tried to console her. "There there, it's okay Cream. Now tell me what happened." She said. Tails gave the most annoyed face as if to say 'are you fucking serious?', but Cream tried explaining. "Well… I was at the festival today. And then the clouds turned red… and all these monsters appeared and… and… and…."

Cream was shaking like a snow globe, as she recalled what was happening. "Wait, monsters?" Amy exclaimed. "They're all over the news, Amy! Those black aliens have attacked Westopolis and a few other cities! I was hoping you could watch over her until the invasion cools down." Explained Tails. Amy nodded. She was more than happy to help her best friend. Now Amy was glad to have been rejected by Sonic. But aliens? She needed to see this for herself. "Listen Cream, I'm gonna check the news and see what's up, and then we'll go out to the Meh Burger to eat. That sound good?" Amy told her friend. Cream nodded a bit as Amy went into the living room of her apartment and turned onto the local news. Unsurprising, the news was already covering the attacks. The story tick read in all caps: "BREAKING NEWS: ALIEN TERRORISTS ATTACKING WESTOPOLIS"

"Holy Chaos, Tails! You weren't kidding… it may be worse than I thought!" she said. Cream and Tails ran into the living room and saw the calamity shown on TV. Intrepid reporter Scarlett Garcia was on the scene, where buildings were torn apart or building, dead bodies lined the streets, and laser beams reigned down everywhere. It looked worse than when Tails and Cream left, but Amy was speechless. Not even Station Square looked this bad. "Scarlett Garcia of SNN here live from Westopolis! At approximately 5:38 PM this evening, Westopolis and five other major cities across the world were hit by an alien terrorist group calling themselves the 'Black Arms'. No one knows where they came from or what their intents are, but approximately thirteen thousand people are dead in this city alone, and at least thirty thousand more injured. GUN is struggling to keep these Black Aliens at bay and are suffering massive losses—wait. Hold on, I am receiving reports on who is assisting this invasion… no. Oh my God. According to unconfirmed sources, leading this invasion is none other… than Sha—"

Suddenly, a bullet hole appeared from Garcia's head and she collapsed dead on the ground, her camera crew screaming in terror, as more blaster shots were heard. The camera began shaking and running away. The cameraman was trying to run away from the aliens pursuing him. Just then, a laser shot was heard and a scream from him was heard clear as day, but he refused to let go of the camera. As the camera panned, the viewers could see the aliens surrounding him, his breathes of terror being easy to identify. Tails and the girls were watching this in horror. These Black Arms were not only causing this much suffering, but even resorted to committing homicide on national television. Then their horror turned to absolute terror and shock.

A figure began approaching the camera lens, walking slowly with a submachine gun in his hand and a grin on his face. Tails, Cream, and especially Amy gasped and looked in shock. They had to be dreaming, or it had to be a mistake. It wouldn't be the first time a friend of theirs was mistaken for another hedgehog while committing a crime. But there was no mistaking it this time. It was a black hedgehog with red edgy quills. The camera gave a good look at him: it was indeed Shadow. He's turned on the Earth, and on them. Amy's eyes began to water. She had just dreamt of him, and now here he was killing people. "No… Shadow, why…?"

"Hope you got my good side. Cuz that's the last side you're seeing, bitch." Said the evil hedgehog. With a few gun shots, the screen turned to a spectrum. They lost transmission, but even worse than that. They've lost Shadow.

TO BE CONTINUED…

(A/N: HOLY SHIT! Yeah, I went all in on the dark and edgy approach that this game tried and oft failed at. And that's coming from someone that likes this game. As you can tell from Charmy's place in the tags, the Chaotix will have a bigger role here than before. You will see in later chapters. I hope you guys enjoy my take on the game and will look forward to what I have planned for this. Do hope you can take the amount of edge here! See ya next time!)