The Stratosphere Club fit perfectly in the densely populated Southern California section of Northamer. The city itself was massive and many clubs lined the streets. Even from space you could see the bright spot of the state lit up in a rainbow of colors.
The sections were divided by four colors marked by the paint used to decorate the street: the pink district were clubs and arcades dedicated to children, the blue district was for teens and young adults and the green district was for adults.
To avoid any legal and moral consequences, the red district that catered to adult sexual fantasies, was all the way at the north end of the state, hundreds of miles away.
Somewhere on the edge of blue and green was Stratosphere. The gigantic whale-shaped building took up an entire city block. The windows were brightly lit and tinted many colors but designed so that you cannot see into them.
There was a line down the block as Mobian bouncers fought to keep people from running in. Dressed to the nines, Sheptilah, Shadow and Rouge walked to the very front of the line.
The woman, clad in blue bell-bottom jeans with yellow star decals along the bottom, white boots with matching belt and a low cut orange crop top stood with her hand on her hip. She smirked at the bouncer who was ready to throw her to the end of the line. Her long hair was tied into pigtails at the back of her head like handlebars. The shorter hairs stuck straight up giving her the illusion of antennae.
"And who the Hell are you? Get to the back of the line." The large bull was imposing, sneering at her past his snout. His deadly sharp horns glowing from the neon lights behind him.
"I know the owner." Her large earrings, a planet and a star, tinkled when she turned her head.
Shadow himself only wore red shutter shades and a black leather jacket, both of which matched his skates.
"And we've got VIP tickets." Rouge handed them to the bouncer. Rouge herself was wearing a lot of colorful plastic jewelry known as kandi, which stood out against her black bodysuit.
"Hey boss." The bouncer spoke into a wrist communicator shaped like a star. "You know this chick? Uh huh? Well, alright." The bull's demeanor changed. "You three are more than welcome to come in. Save your tickets." He opened the door and let them inside.
"It's good to be queen." The Overlander smirked, head held high as those in line openly complained.
At the vestibule were two robots behind a large desk. A short greenish one with drills for hands could barely see over the top of it and the other a tall chicken who seemed to do all the work. The chicken was typing away at a laptop computer. At the other end were two heavy doors shut tightly, but faintly thrumming music could still be heard. As the little green one moved back and forth behind the counter his antenna bounced.
"Are you drinking tonight?" The chicken squawked.
"Nothing alcoholic." Rouge spoke.
"Wait." The rooster clucked, looking down at his screen then up at the trio. "Are you Shadow the hedgehog, Rouge the bat and Shep-tee-luh?"
"Yes." Shadow nodded.
"Ha-ha Ha-hah!" The chicken laughed. "Welcome to the Stratosphere Club! It's a real pleasure to meet another of the Robotnik family. I mean you specifically, hedgehog. The Doctor is waiting for you three upstairs."
"Welcome, welcome!" The little green one chirped, his drill hands rotating with excitement.
The chicken typed away at the laptop. Suddenly a portal opened up underneath the trio and warped them to the top floor.
"Au reservoir!" The green one waved.
The chicken slapped him upside the head. "It's au revoir, you dope!"
The VIP loft was plush and had its own robot bartender and a disco ball in the ceiling. The sofas and chairs spread about were soft and colorful. One wall was a large glass pane that allowed you to look down at the dancing masses.
Eggman stood proudly at the warp's exit. One hand was on his hip and in the other a glow-in-the-dark alcoholic martini. He was wearing his typical clothing except it was hues of bright yellow instead of red with glowing white piping.
The trio appeared confused and startled but relaxed a bit when they saw the Doctor.
"Hello, treasured guests." He grinned.
"You're glowing!" Sheptilah looked down at herself and saw that her hair was brightened under the black lights as well as the decals on her clothes. Shadow's glasses and red streaks were all that glowed but Rouge herself was bright enough to light up her own city.
"Yep, that's the magic of black lights. Welcome to the Stratosphere!"
"How did you know we'd be here tonight?" Rouge raised an eyebrow.
"When the bouncer called me and told me you were here I warped in," Eggman lied through his teeth, "These warps are actually a prototype. Still in testing. If, at a later date, it's found that your internal organs have shifted I'm sure Miss Witch here can fix you up."
Sheptilah bit her lip nervously. She didn't want to be up in the loft if Eggman was going to stay.
"I still can't believe you own this place," Rouge looked around, "I thought it looked a lot like the Starlight Carnival but I incorrectly assumed it was a coincidence. There is no way you are this cool."
"I'm going to take that as a compliment," Eggman chuckled, "Enjoy yourselves."
"Is… is that Vector?" Rouge looked down at the crowd. "Oh my God it looks like he's talking to the deejay."
"Vector? I thought the Chaotix were blackballed from this club... Oh well. MARI can defend herself if they cause trouble." The man gestured for them to sit somewhere. Rouge stayed watching the crocodile from the window but Shadow sat with Sheptilah on a sofa. Eggman sat across them and crossed his legs at the knees.
"So," he sipped his drink, "I made sure nobody else would be up here tonight when I heard you were coming."
Shadow tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. How could he have cleared anyone out within minutes unless he knew hours ago we would be here? This place is absolutely deserted.
"How did you sleep last night?" He nodded to the woman.
"Me?" Sheptilah pointed to herself.
"Yes, you."
"I slept fine; why do you ask?"
Eggman dragged his index finger across his throat and made a slicing sound.
"You… you saw?" She furrowed her brows. "I'm sorry."
"I saw it, too," Shadow muttered, "I couldn't do anything, though."
"So even at great distances between iron walls and locking down my personal astral plane it's not necessarily enough…" Her face flushed with shame.
"I have to say I have a newfound respect for you." He smiled smugly behind his drink; his mouth warped into a snarl by the glass.
Sheptilah's cheeks flushed harder. "I don't want to talk about it."
"Never mind, then," he shrugged, "Enjoy your night."
"I'm going down there. I don't like how the deejay is looking at Vector." Rouge pulled some cotton balls out of her cleavage and stuffed them into her ears. She did this to prevent hearing loss.
"The door is back there," Eggman pointed, "It's the same way back up."
"Thanks." She flew off and disappeared.
Shadow went up to the window and watched for Rouge. He was able to spot Charmy flying around having fun but did not see Espio.
He must be in camouflage, but why would the Chaotix even be here? The hedgehog wondered quietly.
"Why did your robots refer to me as a Robotnik?" He was speaking to Eggman.
"Are you not a Robotnik? Gerald considered you his son. Your legal papers sometimes refer to you as Shadow Robotnik."
"Don't get it twisted," Shadow peered over his shoulder, "I'm not your family."
Eggman was hurt by his words and felt his chest tighten slightly. Sheptilah felt the pain too, albeit briefly.
"I'd like to talk to Sheptilah alone for a bit, if that's alright with her keeper." Eggman raised an eyebrow at the hedgehog.
Sheptilah nodded at Shadow. "I'll be down in a moment."
Shadow lingered for a bit before he turned and left. He closed the door behind him but pressed his ear to it so he could eavesdrop. As it turns out the stone did not translate her spoken words for him so he heard her speaking in Nannaeic but with context clues was able to understand the conversation.
"How do you miss when chopping off someone's head? He wasn't even moving." He snickered a bit.
"I said I didn't want to talk about it." She crossed her arms, hair swaying as she shifted her body weight from one leg to the other.
"I'm kidding," Eggman frowned, "I was kidding." He set his empty martini glass on a nearby decorative table and stood.
Sheptilah turned to the window and watched the guests dance and party. Some of the colorful lights moving up and down the walls changed from stars to snowflakes and back again. The robot deejay was scratching digital records on the decks and jumping up and down with the crowd. Every so often she would pose for selfies with one or two partiers.
"I mean, he deserved to die," she sniffed, "So I don't feel bad about that."
"Well, yeah, nobody is arguing about that." Ivo walked up to her. As big as he was he was also quite stealthy, and she didn't notice his approach.
"I had just never taken a life before. It was a little traumatizing."
"I wish I didn't see the dream, either." He placed his big hands on her shoulders. He felt her jump with surprise. Instead of threatening him with her elbow like the other times she placed one of her hands on top of his. His sausage-like fingers dwarfed her bony ones.
"I asked Shadow if we could break the bond in secret and he refused. He said it's all that's keeping you behaved."
"He's right," Ivo chuckled a bit darkly, "It is." A pause, and then: "What else do we share?"
"I felt it when Shadow said you weren't family," she sighed, "We share pain and dreams… I don't know what else if anything."
"We don't share happiness?" His breath tickled her ear.
"I think that when one person is happy another tends to feel happy too; even without a magical bond." Sheptilah giggled nervously. "Right?" She nodded toward the crowd, "It's a party down there. I don't see one sad person."
The music thrummed quietly and the lights changed colors to match the beat.
"What do you want for Christmas? I think it's tomorrow, actually." She looked up at him.
"I don't celebrate that holiday," he shook his head slightly, "I don't really celebrate any holidays."
"You've gotta want something." She raised her eyebrows.
"Hm…" He squeezed her shoulders slightly; then his hands slid down her arms to her hips. "I think I know what I want."
The only way Rouge could make it near the deejay deck was by dancing through the crowd. The guests were dressed in many different styles of clothing. Some were classic ravers with fluffy leg warmers and bouncy cyberlox and others dressed in a more modern look of bodycon dresses and glittery high heels.
A few were even dressed as sexy snowmen and sexy Christmas elves. Perhaps they didn't get the memo that it was a galaxy themed night.
"Exploration of space!" The crowd sang in unison with MARI. It wasn't hard to learn the song since that was the only lyric. The words Cosmic Gate appeared at the front of deck in LED lights showing the audience who the artist was.
If you don't back the fuck away from my deck I swear I will make an ugly alligator skin purse out of you." MARI hissed at Vector.
Although the robot was a short and thin one, she was packing major heat. Her black bodysuit was shiny and her chest contained a heart-shaped subwoofer. Her eyes were two different shades of blue and she wore large green headphones. A transparent pink visor made her eyes appear purple. Above her head was a rainbow halo made of light and tilted as if it was falling off. From her feet to her thighs her legs lit up as an equalizer to match the song currently playing. One gloved hand was bright pink and the other green.
"I am a crocodile!" He hissed back. "I just want to know if you're really a robot."
"I am a gyndroid, I will have you know," she didn't take her hands away from the deck, skillfully moving switches and pushing buttons, "Now get off my stage!"
"Who built you? Sony? Yaskawa? Stäubli? Toshiba? Sega?" Vector was rapidly naming off technology companies, hoping to trip up the 'gyndroid'.
With one hand still on the controls she used her other to reach under the deck and pull out a massive laser gun and aimed it at the crocodile.
"Back off!" The gun whined as it charged up.
"Alright, alright!" He put his hands up in submission, "Put the gun away!" He jumped off the platform and rushed back into the crowd.
"And you," MARI turned around and pointed the gun at seemingly nothing, "Need to fuck off, too."
Espio the chameleon was standing behind her ready to pounce and save Vector in his invisibility camouflage.
She must have heat sensors, he thought. He nodded and ran after Vector, still invisible. Although typical chameleons did not give off much heat at all Mobian chameleons were a bit different and did give off just enough to be detected.
"Scratch, Grounder," she spoke into an unseen communicator, "How are the Chaotix in here? They're blackballed. Bounce them out." She shoved the gun back under the deck and switched songs with flawless fading.
"Three! Two! One! Space Love!" A male singer cheerfully shouted. According to the screens it was Fastway.
"Going somewhere, Vector?" Rouge smirked.
"You!" The crocodile stopped dead in his tracks. "Are you here on GUN business?"
"I'm here for pleasure." She chuckled. "Why are you here?"
"Trying to find out who runs this joint." He scratched his chin. "You wouldn't happen to know who it is, would you?"
"Doctor Eggman, of course."
"What?!" His toothy mouth hung open.
"I was just as shocked as you! He's upstairs in the VIP loft right now. He gave me some tickets, too; but I got in because I know somebody."
"You just… we've been investigating for months!"
Rouge shrugged, "You better get out of here before you're bounced with great prejudice."
Sheptilah's breath hitched when she felt his hands slide down her waist. Before she could react he turned her around and grabbed her free hand and started a tango.
"Let's dance." He smiled innocently.
"Woah!" She squeaked as he dipped her.
Shadow breathed a sigh of relief. He was about ready to kick in the door and then kick in Eggman's skull if he so much as even joked about being untoward with his witch.
"You look good in orange despite being a banana," he supported her by her lower back, "But why are you dressed like a disco queen?"
"Rouge picked out this outfit." She put a hand on his shoulder and one on his forearm for leverage. You know, if he wanted something else I am not sure I would have said no, she thought to herself. I've been so stressed…
"I like it." He lifted her upright and gently brushed her hair out of her face. "I see you've shaved, too."
"I didn't shave," her skin prickled at his touch, "Rouge made me feel self-conscious so I'm using a glamour." She inhaled sharply. "We should dance downstairs with everyone else; I can barely hear the music up here."
"You want me to go down and dance with you in a crowd of people?"
She looked at him wide-eyed, heart pounding in her throat.
"I would gladly do so!"
She smiled. There was safety in numbers.
Shadow teleported to the main floor of the club and made his way toward Rouge. She was easy to spot because she glowed so brightly.
"Where are the Chaotix?" He asked her.
"They got bounced," she grabbed his wrist and pulled him into a dance, "They pissed off MARI and she pulled out a giant gun."
"So she's not Asimovian."
"Why would any robot of Eggman's be? Then again she never intended to hurt them just scare them. Her finger never touched the trigger." Rouge clasped her fingers with Shadow's and moved a kandi bracelet from her wrist to his. She hugged him briefly and then let go. "You look so naked without beads!"
"What is this, Mardi Gras?" Shadow looked over the beads. "I didn't realize there was a ritual with your fashion choice."
"It's kandi!"
"Candy? This is cheap plastic pony beads."
"Kandi with a 'k'! Ravers give them to each other. They're treasured presents between friends. You're probably going to be given a lot tonight, too. Christmas spirit and all!" Rouge was shouting over the music.
"I thought you were making a fashion statement!"
"No, all this?" She gestured to herself. "Gifts from others. I go clubbing a lot!"
"I can tell. Maybe you should open your own club!" Shadow had to dance a bit to avoid being knocked over by partiers.
"Hey!" MARI shouted when she lowered the volume a bit. "Look who is here!" Some spotlights moved and focused on Eggman. Sheptilah was caught off-guard by all the attention of the dancers cheering. Rouge and Shadow had trouble seeing over the crowd given that they were so small. The bat flew up and saw the two Overlanders had came in together.
"Doctor Eggman!" MARI pumped a fist in the air. "If you're alone tonight - can I be by your side?" MARI's words blended with the song's lyrics.
"Little rocket in the sky!" Some of the dancers sang along. Most were cheering only because MARI was.
"If you care for me -"
"Why don't you come and give me some dignity, yeah?"
"Some decency, yeah…"
The words seemed to bounce off the walls.
After a few minutes Sheptilah relaxed and began to have some fun, though she was overwhelmed by all the lights and noises. She was delighted that some dancers came over and gave her kandi.
Feeling inspired, Sheptilah used her magic to add a bit more sparkle to the surroundings. Even the ends of her long pigtails glittered like they were dipped in starlight.
She bounced off to find Shadow, which wasn't difficult because she could sense where he was, and left Eggman alone. The man was a bit weary and shuffled off to rest at a bar stool.
"Little rocket in disguise… little rocket in the sky…" The song blended into a generic techno beat.
"Is that Shadow the Hedgehog?" MARI leaned over the deck. "It's Shadow the Hedgehog, baby!" The lights focused on the poor Mobian. Some of the dancers backed up out of the spotlight.
"Show us what you're made of!" The robot cackled. "Can the Ultimate Life Form dance?"
"Oh, no." The hedgehog's ears pointed backwards. I'm going to kill that man, he thought.
The songs changed again and the guests gave Shadow a little space. The hedgehog felt hot under the lights and crossed his arms.
"Shadow!" Sheptilah bounced up to him. "I think the robot likes you."
"Tilly!" He was relieved to see her.
"Waratte ireru yo, baby, 'cause it's like, docchi wo tottemo-"
"Aren't you having fun?" She frowned a bit.
"Not at the moment." He swallowed. He noticed she had a bunch of bracelets now.
She touched the top of his head and the stripes on his spines began to sparkle. He could faintly hear Rouge cackling from above them. The bat was flying around the air doing loops.
"Get into the groove! Did I say that right?" The witch laughed, "I'm having the time of my life."
"I'm glad one of us is having fu-" He was cut off when she pulled him by the hand and spun him.
"When the spotlight is on you, you are supposed to dance! Don't disappoint everyone," she chuckled.
"Aw, is the little hedgehog scared?" MARI teased him. "You can deadlift a thousand pounds of weight but you can't boogie?"
"I'm not buying into your hype," He pointed a gloved finger at the robot.
"I knew it! The Ultimate Life Form is a weenie." She laughed behind a gloved hand.
"I'm no weenie! Back up." He motioned for Sheptilah to scoot to the side. She did so, giving him space.
"Let me hit you with the ryuusei sound; this is how it goes down…"
With his hands on his hips he tapped his foot, getting into the beat. After a moment he loosened up and started to break dance - all moves he learned from watching Sonic.
"That's my familiar!" Sheptilah cheerfully shouted. "Do you see- oh!" Sheptilah was surprised when she turned to see Eggman had walked up to her, shaking his hips.
"Look at him go," he laughed, "I told MARI if she insulted him enough he'd start dancing."
Sheptilah grinned.
"Wow!" The deejay cheered. She couldn't wait to put that footage on her blog. Shadow stood and crossed his arms proudly. The dancers around him cheered and tried to give him bracelets but he refused; a major faux pas. Eventually he gave in and let them give him some but didn't hug them in return.
Espio snuck back into the club at some point and looked for Eggman. When he found him he stood next to the man invisibly and observed.
Eggman shook his head. "I see you got some kandi, Tilly!" He shook his wrist, he only had one; Rouge gave him a pity bracelet.
Sheptilah scoffed and took his hand. She slipped a bracelet off of her wrist onto his, but struggled a little over his meaty hand.
"Like raindrops... from the... desert... sky…"
"There! Now you got one from me." She smiled as she hugged him tightly.
"Pick a decade or genre, MARI. She's been bouncing around. She's playing SNBRN now but she just got done with something else entirely. I don't know why she mixes like that. Maybe I should tweak her code-" The embrace interrupted him.
"For you I've been waiting…"
He was surprised by the hug. "Thank you." He looked at the bracelet. The pony beads spelled the word PLUR. "Peace, love, unity, respect. I think that's what the letters mean."
"Like seeing stars and endless nights…"
The woman shrugged and broke the embrace.
"What was the hug for?"
"Can we stay like this forever?"
"It's just what they do after they move kandi around," her pigtails swished back and forth as she swayed to the music. "Thanks for the tickets. I'm glad I came out tonight." She stopped moving after a moment and frowned. She suddenly remembered her troubles.
"Come a little bit closer … a little bit closer… oh, we go together..."
"I found out that we also share happiness," he gently placed his finger under her chin and lightly pushed it upward, "Not just pain."
"Bring me out from the under… come a little bit closer…"
"So?" She furrowed her brows.
"So be happy." For once he had a genuine smile. He brushed some loose hairs out of her face with the tips of his fingers. "Doesn't it feel good?" He took hold of her and resumed dancing.
Her eyes widened a bit and her cheeks became flushed. For a moment it was like they were alone. She felt her chest twinge.
They swayed back and forth to the beat, bright lights beaming down on them in colorful shapes making it appear as if they existed in an aurora borealis. The way his nose scrunched up when he genuinely smiled was cute to her.
They laughed together when she did a twist and a pigtail lightly slapped her in the face. He responded by gingerly moving the hair out of her eyes. Then and there she felt a spark between them. All it took was a gentle, gloved touch.
"I think we need to invest in getting you headbands. You have little baby hairs that get in your way."
She laughed awkwardly. "Ah … yeah that was part of why I wore the circlet." She avoided eye contact, cheeks reddening.
"I don't have that problem." He ran his hand over his bald head and wiggled his eyebrows. "Doesn't it drive you crazy?"
"You drive me crazy," she laughed a little loudly, "My hair I can deal with."
I suppose, she thought, he's got potential.
Uh oh, she panicked. Oh, no. Oh, no; oh, no! She covered her Oracle Stone with her hand. Is this your doing!? She wondered. Are you forcing me into this with the dumb bond?!
Eggman leaned in and whispered something to her. "I have a confession."
Oh, no. Her mouth became a tight line.
"You're my only friend. Please don't die on me." He sounded almost sad. Possibly heartbroken.
Was he still upset because of what Shadow said earlier?
"I thought you said I wouldn't want to be your friend."
"Ah, well." He pulled back and shrugged. "That ship has sailed. We should go back up to the loft. I'm feeling hungry and we serve food up there. We got French fries." He remembered how much she loved them. He also wanted to sit down since his feet were starting to hurt.
"Oh! Fries… I could go for some." She actually was feeling peckish. The change of subject was also nice.
AN:
Songs used:
Tripod Baby - M-flo Loves Lisa
Space Love - Fastway
Raindrops - SNBRN ft Kerli
Rocket In The Sky - Benassi Bros ft. Naan
Exploration of Space - Cosmic Gate