A/N - There's another three chapters left after this one, so it's very likely there'll be a hiatus between the end of Judge and the start of Book 3. I've just not got enough of a buffer on it. Please bare with me.

Thanks so much for all reads, reviews, faves and follows!

Chapter Twenty

Pitch black. The streets were pitch black, and empty. Shards of glass littered the floor from the dead lamps above, crunching under heavy boots.

'Shadow…'

The black hedgehog trailed his fingers along the cold wall, blank eyes fixed on the road ahead. A few cleaning drones crossed his path, oblivious, too intent on cleaning up the rubble that littered the sidewalk. He paid them no heed, they weren't his targets.

He paused at a fork in the road and turned his head towards the left. The residential district.

'Shadow…'

That's where his target was waiting.

...

Amy marched on ahead of her friends, with her mallet still clutched at her side. On high alert, but she had one goal in mind.

"Do we really need to stop by your apartment first?" Sonic asked. "It's seriously slowing us down."

"Yes," she said. "Like I said before, I want to change out of this dress! It smells like a toilet!"

"Well you will go waltzing around in the sewer." Sonic flashed her a playful grin.

Amy sighed at him and shook her head. "We found evidence that Shadow is lurking down there, didn't we? But it doesn't mean I want the smell clinging to my dress and quills."

"Shower too, then, eh?" Sonic shrugged and exchanged glances with Tails. "We're gonna be a while."

"I can shower fast," said Amy. Then added, under her breath, "But I don't think I'll ever be clean."

Tangle laughed and smacked her on the back. "Oh man, you're seriously not an experienced Sewer Adventurer."

"It has a name now?" Amy grunted.

"Yup! Just made it up!"

Whisper shook her head and continued on beside Amy, silently.

The pink hedgehog slowed as she reached her apartment block and rummaged in her pocket for her card key.

"We're all going to get cleaned up," she said, "and then we can continue looking for Infinite and Shadow. Okay?"

"Okay." Sonic rolled his eyes. "It's not as if both of them are just gonna drop outta the sky any time soon, right? What's an extra five minutes."

Tails fixed his friend in an icy blue stare. "You think this is only going to take five minutes?"

Amy ignored them, and held the door open for her friends to go ahead of her. She joined them all in the elevator and the group was silent - save for T-Pup's panting - as it carried them up to her floor. When she reached her door, she found to some surprise that it was unlocked.

She looked up at Tangle and Whisper. "Did one of you forget to lock it up after you left?"

Tangle shook her head rapidly while Whisper frowned at the door. The wolf scooted Amy aside and went in ahead of her, reaching inside her coat. Then she relaxed, and Amy peered over her shoulder. Her heart did a somersault when she spotted a familiar jackal, still kitted out in his mask.

Infinite stood beside the sofa, braced to attack. When he spotted the three girls, his expression softened into one of relief. But it was only fleeting as his muzzle creased and he flashed his canines.

"What are you still doing here?!" he barked.

Amy opened her mouth to speak, but he didn't give her the chance. In a flash he was before her, and she couldn't decide if he was happy to see her or wanted to warp her right out of her own apartment.

"You should be in North Cipher by now!" he snapped.

"Relax, bro!" Sonic pushed his way into the room. "They're with us! We won't let anything happen to them, right Tails?"

Infinite glared down at the two soldiers. "Oh, because you two are perfectly fit to handle that Judge!" He threw his arms into the air and turned back towards the sofa. "I am so relieved!"

Tangle placed an arm around Amy's shoulders. "Well, isn't this a lovely reunion!" She gave her friend a squeeze then pointed towards the corridor. "I guess I'll go grab a shower! Better get this ball rollin', eh?"

Infinte watched her go, seething. Sonic took a step towards him and lifted his hands.

"There's no need for the sarcasm, bro!" he said. "None of us knew what we were dealing with when we encountered that robot. If we can figure out a way to defeat it, then it's totally possible! Either that, or we get to Shadow first and render its mission moot."

"Exactly!" said Amy, drawing the jackal's eye. "That's all the more reason for me to stay! If there's more of us looking, then-"

"Absolutely not!" Infinite's yell dragged the whole room back into silence. He sank into the sofa and placed his head in his hands. "I can't have you here, Amy. You need to get somewhere safe, miles away from that murderous robot."

Amy balled her hands into fists. "What? And leave you alone to fight it like this?!"

"I can handle it!" he snapped. "I just… need to figure out how…"

Sonic inclined his head on one side and made a thoughtful noise. Then he turned to Tails. "What do you think, bro? Any ideas?"

The fox had pulled out his computer and was mulling over it, while his robot dog watched obediently beside him.

"It's certainly a priority," said Tails. "Casualties are mounting up by the day. Mostly GUN soldiers and robots given there are hardly any citizens left in the city now. It clearly wants every distraction out of its way."

Sonic grimaced, and Amy slumped against the wall.

"It attacked us in the park," said Whisper. "It's relentless. Almost unstoppable."

"Exactly. It's only 'almost' unstoppable," Tails explained. "All EggTech can be stopped. The question is 'how'? A solid solution would be to zap it with enough electricity to short its circuits, but most high grade robots are equipped to deal with such attacks. That way, they can't be so easily swatted aside by the criminals they're sent to detain." Tails looked up from his computer to meet Sonic's eyes. "There will be somewhere on the Judge's body that's not immune to electricity, but only those who created it will know its weak spot. It will take a lot of research to narrow down, so I suggest another method entirely to put an end to its warpath."

"I could tear it apart from the inside out," said Infinite. "But I'll need the strength to do it. Even a short fight is wearing me down at the moment."

Tails turned towards the jackal. "If I could obtain its data chip, I could reprogram it. So long as it's distracted, I could get onto its back and locate it."

Infinite narrowed his eyes at the fox. "You wanna use me as bait?"

"No. A distraction."

"It's the same thing!"

"On the contrary. A 'distraction' survives."

"Not necessarily," said Whisper.

Tails stared blankly at Whisper, and she shifted under his gaze, diverting her eyes to the tattered wall.

As the silence spread over them, the shower hissed into silence and Tangle's voice echoed from the hallway;

"Shower's free!"

Whisper looked at Amy and she shook her head, nudging the wolf towards the corridor. Whisper went with some reluctance, casting Tail's a nervous glance.

Amy looked around the room at those remaining then cleared her throat.

"May I suggest something?" she said.

All eyes fixed on her, but Infinite's unimpressed glare stood out from the rest. She did her best to ignore it.

"If any of us are going to be a distraction, they have to be able to keep out of its way. Give it a real run for its money. If we're going to stand any chance of survival - and I mean all of us - there can be no foolish sacrifices. The 'distraction' will need to have a lot of stamina."

Sonic laughed and shook his head. "Oh, I've got that by the bucket! All right. I'll be the distraction."

Amy's jaw dropped. "That's not what I… I was going to suggest-"

Infinite stood up quickly before she could finish her sentence. He narrowed his eyes at her, and it was clear he knew exactly what she was going to say. "I'm with the Blue Freak. That guy's fast. He can keep out of the way of its bullets."

Sonic threw his arm around Infinite, causing him to flinch. "And you can help Tails locate the Judge's data chip."

Infinite muttered under his breath and shrugged the hedgehog off.

Sonic was unfazed. He flashed everyone a grin and folded his arms. "So what's the plan then? Grab a bite to eat and speed off to find that thing?"

Amy opened her mouth to remind him she still desperately wanted to get freshened up, but T-Pup leapt to its feet, ears pricked and swiveling. Its usually happy expression had stiffened, and its eyes lit up, probing the far corners of the room. It let out a worried whine. Then a growl, standing firm before its handler.

The air beneath the window wobbled and distorted, and a pink mist spread out across the carpet like fog. A black form appeared in the middle of it, expanding out into the form of a hedgehog.

Amy let out a small squeak of fear and she ducked closer to the GUN soldiers.

Sonic blinked a few times. "Shadow?"

Tails reached for his weapon and gave Sonic a nudge, prompting him to reach for his own.

"You!" Infinite roared and leapt over the back of the sofa, dropping onto all-fours before Tails. "Back off! He's mine!"

The black hedgehog's crimson eyes were like empty voids, and his very presence made the room feel cold and unwelcoming. He turned his blank stare towards Infinite, and his claws began to glow red. The ground wobbled beneath Infinite and crimson spikes erupted from the carpet. He vanished into thin air before they gored him, and reappeared behind Shadow. He launched a kick into his back, but Shadow vanished in a poof of pink smoke. A black cannonball dropped from the ceiling, smashing into Infinite's shoulders. He crumpled to the ground, and Shadow leapt from him, skidding across the floor. The carpet turned black beneath his feet from hidden flames on the soles of his boots.

Sonic and Tails cut before Amy, firing their rifles at the hedgehog. But the bullets glided through him into the wall as he vanished into thin air once more.

Infinite snarled at the soldiers. "I told you! He's m-!"

He flew sideways as bloody spittle left his mouth. Shadow stood where Infinite had been crouching, his fist clenched at his side. Infinite scrambled onto all-fours again and bared his canines at Shadow. The ground lit up beneath his hands and the carpet warped, forming ripples like an unruly ocean. The black hedgehog teetered, then rose into the air in a crimson bubble.

"Whoa! What's all the commotion?!" Tangle raced back into the living room, wrapped in a pink dressing gown. She skidded to a halt when she spotted Shadow and the warped carpet. "Wow! Is that-?"

The waves began to spread further into the living room, bouncing the sofa and coffee table. Amy and her friends staggered backwards away from the battleground. Her mallet had found itself in her hands, but with the floor wobbling and swaying as it was, she couldn't get anywhere near the warring duo.

Infinite stood, leaving the floor as it was. He'd noticed it had put them off.

He fired a glance in their direction and snarled. "Go!"

Amy clutched her mallet tighter. "We're not leaving you!"

"I said go!"

No sooner had the words left Infinite's mouth, the front door vanished, leaving behind a seamless wall. He turned his glare back onto Shadow. The hedgehog lowered his hand and narrowed his eyes at Infinite.

"Leave them out of this!" Infinite roared, launching himself towards Shadow.

The hedgehog blinked out like a light, sending Infinite careening into the wall beneath the window. Shadow reappeared behind him and lunged forwards, his claws extending into daggers.

"Is that Shadow?!" Tangle squeaked, her eyes sparkling.

Sonic backed her into the wall. "Not the time, Tangle. Can you get a good aim, Tails?"

The fox aimed his gun and fired, sending a spray of bullets directly between Infinite and Shadow.

Shadow came to a sudden stop as the bullets skimmed his nose. He snapped his head around towards Sonic, his eyes empty and chilling. Then he raised his hand and sent the five crimson daggers towards the group.

Sonic and Tails scattered, and Amy turned to avoid it. But one caught her dress shoulder and snagged, dragging her back into the wall and pinning her there. She screamed as she tried to tug herself free.

"Amy!" Infinite roared.

He leapt before Shadow, barring him from the living room. But the hedgehog made no attempt to enter it. His attention was back on the jackal.

"I said leave them out of this!" Infinite screamed.

His right arm morphed and stretched into a deadly blade resembling a halberd. He cleaved it through the air, smashing it down onto where Shadow had been standing. Infinite turned, spotting the hedgehog, and leapt at him, hacking and cleaving away. But each strike missed. Shadow didn't appear to be fighting back, just throwing himself around like a false target. Infinite let out a frustrated roar and spun, cleaving sideways as Shadow appeared behind him. The hedgehog vanished again, and Infinite's halberd found itself buried deep in the wall. He struggled to tug it free, then froze. A deep hum filled the air, growing louder and louder and more shrill until it reached a crescendo.

Amy gasped and pointed her free hand. "There!"

A small red cube hovered by the jackal's ear. He ducked away, letting his arm return to normal, then rolled. The screech stopped, followed by an almighty bang. The entire room shook with the impact, and Amy clutched her hands over her ears.

Tangle appeared beside her and yanked the red dagger free with her tail. The hedgehog muttered a thanks, nursing a scratch on her shoulder.

"I think we need to bail," said Tangle. "We're no use here."

Sonic joined them, keeping his eyes on the battlefield. "I think your friend is right."

What was left of the kitchenette was in a frenzy, crimson light flickering through it like a sinister disco. Infinite could barely keep up with Shadow, and the toll his powers were taking on him showed. Every time he landed he was almost gasping for breath, but Shadow wasn't tiring at all.

"Okay," Amy said weakly. "But how?"

Her eye wandered to where the door had been. Their only other options were the window, which was an impossibility given the state of the room, or to rush to the bedroom and climb out there.

Infinite let out a pained grunt and struck the floor on his back. Whatever had happened, he was incapacitated. Shadow stood over him, his entire body glowing red, yet every inch of him seemed black. Except for his eyes.

Infinite lay beneath his feet, panting heavily. The glow from his Phantom Ruby had faded, but his will to fight was still with him. He bared his canines and wrapped his fingers around the hedgehog's ankle. Shadow didn't even flinch.

"You're gonna tell me exactly what your problem is," Infinite gasped. "Or I'm gonna beat it out of you."

Shadow's right hand lit up brighter than the rest of him, and a long spear appeared in it. He aimed at the jackal's throat.

"No!" Amy brandished her mallet and lunged towards them, vaulting the sofa.

Another bang echoed across the room and she flinched, flying blindly across the room.

Shadow flew back from Infinite, crashing into the far wall beside where the door would have been. He slid down it in a daze.

Infinite caught Amy mid fall and settled her on the ground, then he glared at the hedgehog. But Amy's eyes were on the window.

Perched on the windowsill was a wolf wearing a black and white mask. They clutched a smoking pistol in one hand, still aimed at Shadow.

The black hedgehog shifted, running a hand through his quills. The bullet wound in his chest shrank down until it faded away into his fur. When he opened his eyes, Amy stifled a gasp.

No longer lifeless and cold.

They widened, flicking around the room until they finally landed on Infinite.

The jackal grunted and rose to his feet, releasing Amy. "Talk!"

Shadow's wide, fearful eyes remained locked on Infinite. Then he vanished, leaving behind nothing more than a string of corrupted binary.

A momentary silence washed over the room, then Tangle broke it with a squeal. She clasped her hands beneath her chin, jogging from foot to foot as she looked between the spot Shadow had vanished and the now empty window. She leapt across the room, landing beside Infinite.

"Oh man! That was awesome!" she said. "First Shadow shows up, then you're all in there with the bam pow! And then the Guardian Angel appears?! This has got to be the best day ever!"

Tails holstered his weapon and joined Tangle. "I seriously question your idea of 'fun'."

T-Pup gave a whine of agreement, then let its tongue lol out in a worried pant.

"I'm with Tails on this one." Sonic folded his arms and looked around at what was left of the room. "As awesome as it was to see those powers in action, I don't think Infinite, or this apartment, will agree. Besides, I think we need to get everyone out of here pronto. We don't know if Shadow is going to come back."

Amy leant forward on her mallet and brushed back her quills. "About Shadow… did you guys notice anything after the Guardian Angel shot him?"

"Yes," said Infinite bluntly. "He vanished. Via the Chaos Network, if I've sussed him out correctly."

"Okay, then that's the second weird thing." Amy shook her head. "It was his eyes. They… looked different. When he was attacking Infinite, they were empty. But after he was shot, it was like he'd woken up from a nightmare."

"Hmm, yeah." Sonic scratched his muzzle. "I thought that, too. I don't think that guy is fully in control of his faculties."

"Exactly," said Amy. "What if he's not committed these murders at all? What if something is controlling him?"

Infinite stiffened. "What, so you're on his side now?!"

"No!" Amy retorted. "I'm not on anyone's side! If he's innocent, and he's doing these things out of his control, then he needs help!"

"Well that complicates things then, doesn't it!" Infinite snapped. "Conscious or not, he's murdering people with my powers!"

"We don't know this for certain," said Amy. "I'm just going off what I saw. He panicked when he came to."

Infinite folded his arms and frowned down at her. "So what's controlling him then?"

"I…"

Amy blinked as she looked around her apartment. Sonic cocked an eyebrow at the Phantom Ruby and Amy followed his gaze. Her jaw stiffened and she dodged Infinite's eye.

He bared a canine. "You think it's me?"

"No! Just…" She took a steadying breath. "Why does he even have your powers?"

Infinite threw his arms in the air. "I don't know!"

"Then I guess we need to find out, don't we?" said Sonic.

"So now we have a puzzle to solve?" Tangle fist pumped. "Yes! This day just got even more awesome!" She caught everyone's confused gaze. "What? I like puzzles!"

"I see it as yet another hurdle," said Sonic. "First thing's first, we need to find somewhere safe to lay low before we investigate this thing. My theories have been confirmed here. Shadow is clearly not in control of himself, and he needs help. We need to find a way to help him get those powers under control - or stop them entirely - and prove his innocence not just to Mainframe but himself, too."

Everyone, except Infinite, nodded their agreement. Amy looked up at him and he snorted, turning his gaze away.

He shook his head and brushed his mane back from his face. "Things were so much more simple when I thought he was just trying to frame me…"

Whisper shuffled into the room, shaking out her damp jacket as she took in the mess, then stopping beside Tangle.

Tangle placed her hand on one hip and grinned. "Oh boy did you miss a lot!" She caught the wolf's eye and winked. "Don't worry! I'll fill ya in on everythin'!"

...

Shadow staggered to a stop, placing his hand on the cool damp wall to steady himself. Gasping for breath, he doubled over, putting his other hand on his knee.

Exhausted.

What had he been doing? The last thing he remembered, he was sleeping on a roof hidden out of sight. The next, he was waking up in an apartment that looked like it had been hit by a bomb.

Was he that bomb?

He didn't even know what had woken him up in the first place. The fight, the brief pain that exploded across his chest, or the disembodied voice calling to him, telling him to stop.

His entire body trembled, and not just from the fatigue. His heart was racing, and he kept one ear turned back towards the street he'd come from. He wasn't sure how much distance he'd put between himself and that apartment. He'd fled blindly, not even giving it much thought. All he'd wanted was to get away, and he'd warped himself into a hydrangea bush on the edge of the city park.

Shadow peered through the stormy mist, squinting at the other side of the road. The neon sign for a coffee shop glared back at him, left on when everyone fled during the evacuation. He was definitely heading away from the residential district, but there was no saying for certain that apartment was actually in it. It could have been over that very coffee shop for all he knew.

He ducked into the alleyway and slumped against the side of a skip, letting his head fall into his hands. At least there wasn't blood on them this time.

That apartment… he recognized some of those people. Sonic, Tails… that jackal. He was fairly certain he'd been fighting that jackal. His lip had been bloody, and his mane in complete disarray. Why?

He peered through his fingers at the wall, dripping with damp and algae. He definitely recognized that jackal. It was hazy, but he was fairly certain it was Infinite. The black fur, white mane… Hadn't Sonic said they shared similar powers?

Shadow wracked his mind. All those murders had clues behind them, pointing to his next target. He hadn't known who any of the victims were besides DotMatrix, but all of them were linked by complex puzzles. So if those powers had led him to that apartment, then could that be where his next victim was? And if so, who?

He tapped his head with his claws, almost digging them into his skull. He'd come around much too early at the more recent crime scene. Had he even set up a clue there?

His eyes widened and the wall turned blurry. The mural! A canine's head…

There were two canines in that room. Well… one canine and one fox. But they looked similar. It could have been either. Unless those powers were deliberately leading him to Infinite? Was that jackal his next target? And if so, why? Why would those dormant powers want to kill him?

Why would they want to kill anyone?

There was every possibility it was nothing to do with his powers moving towards Infinite's like a magnet. At the end of the day, none of those other victims had powers like his. He knew for a fact DotMatrix was rather unspectacular in that regard, so he could rule that out straight away. Infinite was likely 'just another number'.

Just another target on Shadow's radar. Another life he was about to take. But unlike the others, Infinite had fought back.

Why? Why was he any different? Why hadn't anyone else fought back? Or had they, and they'd just failed miserably at the hands of something they had no idea how to deal with?

Too many questions, and it was giving him a headache. He just wanted it all to be over. To return to normal. To stop these mindless killings. After he'd woken up in that school, part of him had deeply hoped it was over. That he'd not do it again. But here he was, fleeing another attempted murder.

At least this time the victim had got away with his life.

Tears pricked Shadow's eyes. He groaned and rolled his head back against the wall. "What's happening to me?"

...

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