Chapter 13: Confrontation

Sonic and his friends entered the building and followed Officer Smith down the hall, passing by a bunch of rooms and cells. They were brought all the way down to the end, where there was a small room with a single cage inside. This was the room where executionists were kept. Through the window, Sonic could see a light purple female hedgehog inside. He immediately knew who it was.

"How long do we have with her?" He asked the official.

"About an hour. Maybe less." Officer Smith said, grabbing onto the doorknob. He stopped and looked at the blue hedgehog. "Are you sure you wanna do this?"

"I have to. I'll never forgive myself if I don't discover the truth."

The officer nodded and turned the doorknob, opening the door. "Good luck, son."

"Thank you Officer Smith." Sonic nodded before he finally entered the room, being followed by his group of supporting friends and family.

As soon as the door closed, Aleena looked up. She looked even worse than Sonic remembered.

Her light purple fur was pale, dirty, and unkempt. Her quills were in a disarray, looking as if they hadn't been brushed in years. Bruises covered her wrists where she had pulled on her shackles. Her claws had been scraped down to her cuticles, bits of dried blood covering her fingers. There was a bit of blood on the walls, accompanied by scratches.

But her eyes… Her eyes were what gave Sonic the urge to run and hide as fast as he could.

Her eyes had not lost their light. In fact, they seemed brighter… redder… staring at him with such hostility he remembered from his childhood.

"Well, well, well." She sneered. "If it isn't my little IT child."

Sonic's friends all growled lowly at her, but Sonic himself didn't say a word. Didn't move a muscle. He couldn't believe that after nine years, he was standing face to face with his mother again. And after all these years, even behind bars, she still intimidated him.

Aleena seemed to pick up on that as she laughed softly. "What's the matter, Boy? Still afraid of me? Good."

Shadow growled and snapped at her. "You better watch what you say, bitch!"

She frowned at the ebony hedgehog. "And who are you supposed to be?"

"I happen to be your son's boyfriend. Surprised to see that he's loved after all?"

She laughed again. "Oh my, now isn't this precious? My little IT has gotten themselves a little boyfriend." She smiled cruelly at Sonic. "I knew there was something wrong with you right from the start. It's so sad how much of a freak you truly are."

"How dare you?!" Vanilla gasped. "You should be ashamed of yourself for saying something so awful to your own son."

"Oh, believe me ma'am, I am ashamed… I'm ashamed for keeping him alive as long as I have. He should've died the moment he was born, the little bastard!"

At that moment, all hell broke loose.

Everybody started screaming at Aleena. Spitting at her. Threatening her. They called her a monster. Told her that she deserved to die. Told her that she was going straight to Hell for all the things she has done.

All the while they did this, Sonic stood there, staring at his mother with an emotionless expression. He saw the fear coming to his mother's eyes as they darted to all the Mobians who were sticking up for her abused son. She was not expecting him to have this much support. To have this much love.

At last, when he saw Aleena starting to back up, Sonic calmly held his hand up, signalling for his friends to stop. They continued until Shadow spoke up.

"Guys, enough!" He hollered. "Sonic has something to say."

They all stopped and looked at Sonic. The blue hedgehog dropped his hand to his side before he gently held Shadow's hand and approached the cell, getting as close to the bars as he could so he could speak to his mother directly. The whole time, Shadow remained silent. The only sound coming from him was a low growl as he glared hatefully, with all the fire and fury of Hell, at the woman who didn't deserve to call herself a mother.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Sonic spoke.

"Mother… Throughout my whole life, you've beaten me, starved me, and made me feel worthless. I feared for my life around you... but no more."

Sonic's expression started to change, slowly frowning in rage as he continued to stand up to his mother.

"You cannot touch me. You cannot hurt me. You may say hateful things about me, but they go unheard." He hissed.

He leaned into Shadow, nuzzling him lovingly as Shadow nuzzled back, the two of them rubbing their love for each other in the bitch's face. Sonic looked back at her and growled.

"I am in love and I AM loved." He continued, looking around as he gestured to his friends and family. "By friends. By family. And by a lover oh so gentle."

He got closer to the cage, grabbing onto the bars roughly, causing the entire thing to shake. It startled the purple hedgehog, causing her to fall back on the bench as she stared at the boldness of her son. "I have everything you refused to give me, and I got them by being myself. The self you thought would never be loved. You were wrong, now you pay the consequences. I used to fear you, but no more. I'm not afraid of you anymore. Now, it is YOU who is afraid of ME."

As soon as she heard that, Aleena growled and lunged at the bars of her cell, snapping at Sonic crazily.

Sonic got startled and backed up, but it didn't stop her as she rammed her body against the bars.

"Chaos Spear!"

Suddenly, a single bolt of yellow energy flew at Aleena, grazing her shoulder as cut through her clothing and slashed at her skin a bit. Aleena hollered in surprise and back up, staring at Shadow in shock as he put his hand back down to his side, extinguishing the Chaos Energy he still held.

"Try a stunt like that again and the next one is going straight through your heart." He threatened.

"You don't have the balls to do it." Aleena hissed.

"Don't tempt him." Sonic hissed. "He'd do anything to protect me."

"Oh, so the little IT needs a knight in shining armor to protect him? How sweet. Some hero you are, you son of a bitch."

"You realize you're calling yourself a bitch when you say that, right?" Knuckles sneered.

"No, I'm not, because he's not my son." She hissed back at him. "He was never my son. He was never part of the family. He is a bastard child."

"How could you say that when you're the one that gave birth to me?!" Sonic growled.

"That's the thing, my little IT… I didn't give birth to you."