Chapter 12: Cave of Illusions

Amy: "GAAAHHHHHH! Holy shi-… Whooo… Oh my god…"

She breathes over and over again and tries to calm down. She scans the room. She looks back on the bed and notices that Shadow was gone. She looks down in front of her.

Amy: "Just a dream… its ok Amy its just a dream…. But it felt so… Real." Talking to herself

Knock* Knock* Door creaks a little.

Kimira: "Please Excuse me Miss Amy, But would you be interested in some breakfast? I imagine you worked up quite an appetite after last Night. ^^

Amy: "She… Heard…?" she said in her head.

Kimira: I Heard your lover leave in a hurry in the morning. You can remind him we have a front door as well.

Amy: "Yeah heh heh… sorry!" She says. I'm gonna kill him! :( she said in her head.

She gets out of bed and gets dressed. She heads into the kitchen and Kimira made waffles and eggs. She heads to the bathroom and washes her hand and splashes her face.

Amy: Man, what was that dream? Flashbacking to Sonic beating Shadow senselessly.

She gets out and walks to the table.

Kimira: Here you go!

Amy: Wow! Thank you for the food.

Kimira: No problem honey!

Amy: So where's Logus.

Kimira: Oh he went out early. Always taking care of the village.

Amy: Oh

Kimira: So about last night?

Amy starts blushing

Amy: Oh again sorry. I didn't know what got over me!

Kimira: Oh no its fine really. Reminded a lot of me when I first starting to get to know Logus. We were up listening and we heard the whole thing from the other room. I also know about your predicament with the one called Sonic.

Amy: Oh… I see. She goes back to eating and looking down.

Kimira: "Listen I know what's it's like. When you love someone so much that you devoted your will and soul to the person you love. Believe me, I used to be a warrior. I know. That's how I ran into Logus. He was different. Him and I wasn't any different from your situation. Its best to just let love find you. Believe me. Love is a weakness but it's meant for the person you trust. Believe maybe I wouldn't understand maybe I can't but why keep going for him. the way I see it love is supposed to be a two-way street. Sure, he saved you time and time again. But you delivered more than he will ever give. You delivered your all to him. And I believe to him and the effort you made for him. The amount of Love. The times you risked your life to protect the world seems more than enough. To him it's everyone he cares about. From experience I know. When the world gets dirty or gets saving, who do you think has to clean it up? His job might never be over. What I'm trying to say is, what he does, he does only to secure a better tomorrow. Question is will you be there next to him to him. maybe he has his own reasons but I believe you found the one last night. Trust me. You saved that Man that we found injured for a reason. Have faith in yourself my dear. Trust me." she places her hand on Amy's

Amy: Thank you, Kimira.

After breakfast, kimira gives her an old backpack with supplies in it.

Amy: Hey Kimira! May I ask what's with all the dream catchers around the village?

Kimira: "they're used to ease the Illusions and dreams. You see, this island is alive. The whole place is watching. The Island is filled with many secrets and spirits. The thing is, it tends to bring stuff from your past and possibly show you the future. It also looks at your emotions and conflicts you go through. It knows the things you dream when you're sleep. Sometimes it'll go back to your past or tell you secrets yet to come. Most of the times it's unfinished business. The island does tend to talk to you in different ways. In different people. And through your dreams. I sense the dreams have been coming to you a lot lately?"

Amy: "Yes!" Amy remembering the dream and flashbacking to the illusion of maria in the forest.

Kimira: yeah, we probably should put dream catchers in that room.

Amy: So where would he be now?

Kimira: He should be waiting for you at the end of the village gates.

5 Minutes later at the village Entrance

Kimira: Now if you run into him make sure to follow the trail

Amy: we will. Again, I couldn't thank you enough for helping me and Shadow. I am Humbly grateful.

Kimira: it was my pleasure. Don't think this will be the last we see each other. The Island told me you'd be back soon. Oh, and also another thing. You'll probably need this.

She gives Amy a blue chaos emerald

Amy: Oh this will come in handy. I'm pretty sure shadow would love this. You had one this whole time?

Kimira: Like I told you, my son found one, one day. And Besides, when you get old the dead usually starts coming out open to you. The island told me to give it to you one day.

Amy: So you been waiting for us?

Kimira: I fulfilled my part. What's your part?

Amy: that I'm still learning.

Kimira: "Well for that patience will guide you." she hugs Amy

Amy: So will we find something out there?

Kimira: You will find a cave through the path. Be carful in that cave, there's no protection in there. The island will be talking to you.

Amy: hmm… well I should go find my new boyfriend.

Kimira: tell him to learn how to use a door knob.

Amy: *giggling* I will.

They hug one more time and she heads into the frozen forest and walks through the path.

Amy: Now! To find a certain Red and Black hedgehog and kick him in the-

Shadow: "I'm sorry kick me in the what?" him leaning back at a tree along the path.

Amy: Eeeeppp!... Nothing!

Shadow: "Just messing with you I know what you meant." Him smiling

Amy in her head: "Is it me or does he look more… peaceful?"

Shadow: I found that cave again.

Amy: "I know. Also, here." She tosses an emerald towards him.

Shadow: Not bad! Where did you?

Amy: The folks back there were holding onto it and let me have it.

Shadow: I swear you are like a good luck charm.

Amy blushes and smiles a little.

Shadow: uhhhhh… anyway I found that cave. We should check it out and see if it leads anywhere. Let's go!

Amy: O... okay.

She follows shadow through the woods and the trail. She stares at him. it was a long awkward silence

Amy consciounce: "GAAHH! Shadow you are just hard to understands lately! I wonder what I should ask him?" Her going around in her head for what to ask her. Sooooo…? Where does this mean? Where do we stand? Was it your first time as well? Was it good for you..?" back to reality. "Hmm, but I just can't just blurt all that out." She says while still following him. "GRR! I just don't get it! What do I say? What should I do?" she looks at him for a moment. "Should I… hold his hand?" she starts to reach out a little.

Shadow: We're here.

Amy: she slips her hand back behind her shoulder smiling. "Oh Okay! Hehe…" her in the back of her mind. "You Wuss!"

She looks up at the cave.

Amy: Woah!

Shadow: Well, let's check it out!

Amy: Wait! Hold on. Before I left, Kimira told me about what this place, what this whole island is.

Shadow: what about it?

Amy: She say's the island is alive. She said that the island will bring up some crazy stuff. Illusions of all kind. It'll talk to us in ways we can't imagine.

Shadow: Well, gotta know what's real? Try to stick next to me.

Amy: Well, what about all the other stuff Kimira said? There are wild animals and dangers lurking. I'm just saying we don't know what we're up against or what's at the other end of this cave. Especially with your condition.

Shadow: It's been 3 days Amy. We need to make progress and see if the rest of the island residents can help us. Besides I we'll probably run into the others.

Amy: What makes you think the others are here?

Shadow: I saw rouge and knuckles jump after us.

Amy: wait a minute, can't you teleport us home? Since we have a chaos emerald?

Shadow: I tried earlier, but something's blocking me from doing so. Maybe because my brother's powers.

Amy: So, Gloom's here?

Shadow: Don't know that's why I need to find him and see what he's planning.

Amy: Hmm…

Shadow: Hey do you trust me on this?

Amy: Well… its that symbol on your wrist. I remember Him having one like yours.

Shadow: Listen Rose, I have no idea what it is… ok look.

He removes his glove and shows Amy. The symbol is glowing white a little.

Amy: what's going on?

Shadow: I don't know. It started happening this morning.

Amy: Maybe we should head back.

Shadow: And meanwhile my sibling is pulverizing the entire world while the others think we're dead.

Amy: …

She looks down thinking about sonic.

Shadow: "listen Rose, I know you're scared and worried about me and the others but trust me. I'll never do anything to put you or everything I care about into harm's way." He puts his hand on her shoulder.

Shadow: I promise!

Amy hugs him

Amy: I believe you.

Shadow: thank you Amy.

They look at the cave.

Amy: Hey shadow!

Shadow: yeah?

Amy: can I hop on your back?

Shadow: ok *blushes a little*

She hops on. He walks into the cave. Shadow pulls out the emerald and gives her it.

Shadow: Again good thing you got that emerald. Its dark in here.

Amy: thanks.

1 min pass

Shadow: hey look, I see light

Amy: yeah maybe there'll be another village on the-

Mysterious girl scream: Ahhhhhhhhhh

They both stop in shock. And pause for a moment.

Amy: Uhhhh… maybe we should hurry to the exit.

Shadow: "Agreed." He runs to the other end. He makes it but the light brightens up.

Shadow: "hmm?" Noticing amy is not on his back. "Amy?"

he looks around and is in a long corridor. A long hallway that looks familiar. It's eggmans base with blood everywhere. The walls are blood stained with mobians. He walks down a hallway with blood and symbols of black arms. He see's symbols of the tattoos with Gloom on it. Every minute it gets creepier. There seems to be art everywhere. Drawings telling a story. He looks at a blood painting that shows a beautiful girl smiling. She looks awfully familiar. He keeps walking seeing more black arms symbols in blood. He sees a blood painting of shadow and gloom staring at each other like a showdown. Then showing them in battle. Another one with seven gems. Showing gloom on a mountain of skulls with Gloom looking different. He looks darker and his skull looks tenticled like with black dooms eye as his eye and a venomouse smile.

Shadow: What the fffuck is going on? Gotta find Amy.

He walks around a corner with more blood paintings. Showing Gloom and the girl again with shadow. Like it's a family portrait. They look happy. That girl looks familiar.

Shadow: Maria?

He keeps walking and walks around another corner but he sees something he would like to see sometimes but doesn't truly mean it. Sonic impaled with a chaos spear through him fresh like it was recent.

Shadow: …

He see's a blood painting of Amy and gloom. Gloom is using her for something. Looks like she's in a ritual. Symbols are surrounding her and they're glowing. Gloom is Calling on something but what?

Shadow looks back at sonic.

Sonic: GASP* S-S-sha-Shadow! Cough* cough*

Shadow gets jumpscared and looks at sonic and almost tries to help him.

Sonic: R-R-Ruun!

Shadow looks back and sees a floating eye staring at him in the middle of the corridor. The hallway gets darker and the eye spreads its tentacles out and everything behind it gets consumed in darkness. Shadow takes off fast on his shoes and looks back seeing that eye chasing him. he hears everything behind him get destroyed and hears a familiar sound.

"ERROR" "ERROR

Shadow: Control room!

He races as fast as he can while that eye is getting closer. He sees eggmans control room and hurries there. He gets closer and closer and closer until the eye grabs him with one of its tentacles. It opens its venemouse mouth open and shadow quickly powers a chaos spear and sends it towards the eye.

Shadow: CHAOS SPEAR!

Black dooms eye: {shrieking}

Shadow gets up and burst through the room. The noise stops and he finds himself at another place. This one he knows by heart. The ark all over again. Shadow hears a familiar scream.

Shadow: MARIA!

He runs towards it

Maria: Shadow!

Shadow follows the cry for help into a room that seems familiar. The room is big and has a glass window that goes down to Mobius. He sees a familiar pink hedgehog talking to a shadow from the past.

Amy: please shadow help sonic and the others! wouldn't maria want that from you?

Shadow from adventure 2: I gotta go, I have to fulfill my promise to maria and you. he hurries out running past future shadow that he thinks is not there.

Shadow (present): "what the hell is going on?" he says while seeing himself running out.

Amy: "I don't know you tell me" she says in a disturbing voice

Shadow looks back fast and sees a demonic looking Amy and she grabs him by the neck and tosses him on the floor in the middle of the room. He gets up fast and gets ready for her.

Shadow: AMY!?

Amy: "HHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAA" She charges at him and pushes him out the window with her trying to kill him.

Shadow: "I'm sorry Rose!" he snaps her neck while they're floating out into the vacuum.

He lands on a platform with her body next to her looking normal again and her bleeding out the eyes. He crawls to her and holds her close to him.

Shadow: "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" tears emerging from his eyes and crying on her dress.

Maria: Shadow!

He hears her call and looks out at the ark. He sees maria floating and the eye right next to her. she floats towards the Ark and shadow looks at his surroundings. Its like that one time he had to head for the eclipse cannon before sonic did. He hurries his way and follows maria thanks to rocks, rails, and whatever he could land on or help him follow maria and the eye. Its like Final Rush/Chase all over again. He heads to maria at a window and blast his way through it. He follows maria down a long corridor that reminds him of the time the G.U.N. Soldiers shot her and he carried her down the hall. He starts to get flashbacks of that day and pictures of her in his brain. He makes it to the pods where maria died at. He looks at the pod and feels something push him in it. He looks back around and sees Maria bleeding out on the floor again.

Shadow: Maria! No! No! No! NOT AGAIN!

Maria: Please shadow! Do it for me and protect this planet. Just give them a chance. A chance for their dreams to come true.

He sees black dooms eye again out the window.

Shadow: You…

He gets sent down to mobius. He calms down prepared to land down on the planet. He starts to see it getting brighter again and it gets brighter and he enters the atmosphere. It gets back to normal and he falls to the ground. He busts the pod open and steps out. It's night time. He's back at the forest where he found Amy crying.

Amy: sobbing and crying noise*

Shadow: Amy!

He follows her weeping sounds and finds her back at the same spot crying sitting down and her legs pulled to her.

He sits there for a minute.

He here's a loud stomping sound. He looks behind and sees a black Oak smashing its way to shadow. He picks up Amy with her questioning being chased by a bunch of black arm creatures everywhere. The ground starts to break apart and rocks and everything start to separate. Rocks and platforms form up in the air and he can see Amy's house. He hurries up with a bunch of black arm warriors and oaks trying to catch them. He lands through her window and locks it and carries her to bed and puts her in there. She's fast asleep. He sits next to her for a moment.

Shadow: I promise on my life, I won't let anything happen to you.

He puts a hand on her shoulder and a bright light appears outside her window and consumes him.

15 minutes earlier

Amy was put into somewhere familiar. A road and a house.

Amy: shadow?

She looks around and notices the place of the back of her fingertips.

Amy: Cream and vanilla's house! Maybe we're back home.

She walks up to the porch and knocks on the door.

Amy: Hello? Guys it's me!

No answer. She tries the back door and remembers the spare key they leave for her just in case they leave for somewhere and need her to watch the house. Once she gets to the back yard she sees a something off. In the grass at the back yard. A symbol burned in the grass.

Amy: "Black arms! Shadow!" She calls for him

She goes for the hidden key in the flower pot and opens the back door. She heads in the house and sees no ones home.

Amy: hello? Guys?

She looks at the photos of Cream and Vanilla on the fireplace and finds one of her and cream on Halloween.

Amy: Oh, I remember that Halloween. I dressed up as a witch that year. Cream was a so adorable that night. Man, she had good undead makeup for her princess outfit.

She walks upstairs

Amy: Vanilla? Cream?

She checks creams room

Amy: wait I don't recall her drawing a lot.

She sees a lot of drawings that don't resemble cream at all. Some did belong to her but others were different. There were a lot of the same drawings. A lot of black arms symbols. She starts to look at ones with a blonde lady. One with shadow, gloom, and the blonde lady happy.

Amy: Is that Maria and shadow?

She looks around and sees Gloom drawings. Some showing amy in a circle of symbols being used for like a sacrifice or something and her and Maria face showing half on a side of paper. Her face and her face side from each other with a line crossing the middle.

Amy: Cream what are you doing drawing these?

She looks at a paper on the wall that's saying some

"RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! X("

A giant black arm oak burst through the wall

Amy: Oh shi-

She runs out the room with the black arm beast following her trying to kill her. she jumps down the stairs and tries to unlock the door. The black oak tries to smash her through the door but misses. She runs for the back door and gets put into a room change. She's in the ark in a bedroom. She's not in the house anymore on mobius and the black oak is nowhere to be found. She looks at a book on a bed and picks it up.

Amy: Maria's diary! Oh I can't read this. it's invasion of privacy… But she's not with us anymore. So I doubt she would care.

She opens and starts reading.

"Today I made a new friend. I named him Gloom. He's always so gloomy and he doesn't talk much. He's not the sociable type but he's learning. My grandfather created him because he needed him to cure my disease. Me and him are gonna be great friends"

Amy: I guess gloom wasn't always bad.

She continues reading.

"Shadow is finally here. He's still learning to adjust with being alive and he is starting to gain intelligence. His personality is almost like gloom's except there's something different about him. like he's not afraid to step into the light. He's very polite.

Amy: aww shadow.

"Amy get to the pod room"

Amy: Wait what?

She looks up and sees a bunch of black doom eye's staring at her.

Amy: get to the escape pods, got it.

She heads down a long hallway until she makes it.

Maria: Shadow please I beg you give them a chance… to live their dreams.

She pulls the lever and sends him falling to mobius. Amy runs and checks on Maria.

Amy: are you ok?

Maria: don't worry save him!

She pushes her into a pod and pulls a lever and amy falls down to mobius.

The atmosphere get brighter and brighter until she lands back into the forest where she saw soniv and sally.

Amy: oh not this again.

She sees them kissing and looks away. She runs away into the forest reliving every second of it. Shadow picks her up and walks her to her house. He opens the door and carries her into bed.

Amy: thanks shadow!

Shadow: your welcome.

He teleports out and a bright light from her window shines bright.

To Be Continued…