so here is a bit of an afterwards
not the last chapter though

Everyone was incredibly grateful to Sonic when he arrived back home. In fact, when Tails checked him in to the nearest hospital, they transferred him to the best facility in the world - entirely free of charge.

"It's the best we can do" and "Anything to repay him" were the words said when Tails tried to thank them. Everyone was extremely thankful to their blue hero, and it showed. The best doctors were assigned to him the moment he arrived at the clinic.

Unsurprisingly, Sonic didn't just break his ribs and arm. When he got out of the X-ray, Tails told him he had also cracked his collarbone and punctured his intestines. Ugh, the surgery was going to be rough.

Sonic didn't care. He was too despondent to even comprehend what Tails had told him. Even when the nurses wheeled him into the operating room, Sonic had no feelings towards the matter whatsoever. His heart ached too much to care.

Sonic had never lost a friend before. Every person he had bonded with had been protected and saved by either himself, or their own skill. No one had died on his watch. At least until yesterday. Sonic now understood why people were so worried about his mental health all the time. Every doctor that tried to ask him about any mental conditions had always been surprised by his overall emotional wellness. They had always assumed that he would be in the same condition as a G.U.N soldier or Soleannan royal officer that had seen battle. Sonic didn't understand why. Until now, that is.

The recovery was only a few months. The Blue Blur was still young, and his body healed fast. One would think that Sonic would go crazy when cooped up in a hospital. Tails and Amy thought he would. They popped in almost every day to say hi and spend time with their friend. Sonic did not go crazy though. Partially because of his friends, and partially because of his pain. He hurt so much in more ways than one that he simply did not remember the first month in the facility. Months two and three, however, were very memorable.

One night, Rouge broke into his room to say hi and give him a Chaos Emerald she found, earning herself a hearty laugh and a hug. The Emerald helped heal his pain, and he even felt a little better emotionally. One day, Knuckles barged his way inside through several doctors to give him an "illegal" chili dog, making several nurses very angry. Sonic laughed, and he realized he was starting to feel better. One evening, Tails brought in a new invention, a tracker that could be eaten and remain in the stomach for an entire week without leaving.

It actually felt nice to have someone to talk to. Important people also occasionally popped in to say hello and thank you. Sometimes a lucky kid Sonic's age would manage to come in, or even another hospital patient that requested to see the Blue Blur. What was most memorable was when the President came to see him. Sonic wasn't even in the United Federation, yet the guy came to see him. Journalists were a minor problem. Sonic simply didn't allow them inside his room.

Letters and messages of thanks were constantly flowing into the little white hospital room, leaving Sonic with things to do for hours. Some thanked him for stopping the ARK, while others thanked him for his constant service to the world. Occasionally, some kid would slip candy into the letter for Sonic to munch on while he looked through others. Other times a drawing or puzzle kit would arrive at his bedside. The letters were nice, but they didn't stop the pain. What hurt the most, was that none ever said a word about Shadow.

It was fair to assume that they didn't even know. Shadow never really made it to mainstream media, and as far as the people knew, Sonic was the only one stopping the ARK. Sometimes the nurses would come in to check on him, only to find him sniffling and fighting back tears. When they tried to ask him what was wrong, the young hedgehog could never find the words. More painkillers they tried, but it never dulled the pain in his heart.

When Sonic was finally released from the hospital, Tails was there to pick him up in the Tornado. It was frustrating that the young hero wasn't allowed to travel over speeds of a highway. Sonic understood why, but running helped him feel better. He still tried his best to humor the doctors. Running would hurt his bones anyway. A few weeks of stillness might help him heal.

Sonic was brought back to Mystic Ruins, where Miles could watch him on his road to recovery. Tails knew how to give medicines and deal with injuries. This was not the first time Sonic had a few stitches after all. The pain was dulled with all the treatments, but it still hurt. Unlike the hospital staff, Tails understood why Sonic hurt so much. Honestly, there was nothing to be done about it, and the fox understood that. Sonic would have to heal on his own.

Special breakfasts and movie nights helped keep Sonic out of despair. Sure, depression was his constant companion, but he wasn't inconsolable. He had his friends. Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and now Rouge all came by to make sure he was okay. They played games with him, watched movies with him, and overall just spent time with him. It was nice to have friends. Sonic liked the times spent together.

It was what kept him going. If he didn't have his friends, he would have given up back on the ARK. Tails was closest to him during these hard times. Tails woke him up with cheerful words and soft hugs that were amplified by his downy baby fur. Tails was an excellent cook, and the young hedgehog thrived off the delicious meals. Happy conversation and light walks through the area kept Sonic from looking down. Sonic was still Sonic. But he still hurt.

Long flights through the area helped Sonic relax. He still knew how to fly the plane, so Tails rarely went with him. Miles understood, and let him have his space. Sonic needed to heal by himself.

Despite knowing the futility, Sonic kept finding himself watching the ground for any sign of a meteor. It wasn't a meteor he was looking for, but the Blue Blur knew it was what he was going to find. Sonic guessed it would help him cope. He actually hoped that Shadow burnt up in the atmosphere. Hitting the ground at the speed that the young hedgehog had seen would have been painful beyond reason. Heck, it might have even splattered him into a million pieces.

One day, he had actually spotted a fresh crater. Sonic was flying over the Dragon Kingdom, when he saw it. The hole. The blue blur wasted no time in landing the plane at all. It was a bit of a rough landing, one that jostled his insides and caused quite a bit of pain, but he managed to keep the Tornado intact. Further investigating the crater found only a bit of the ARK's debris. Some metal scrap that had burned off of the colony during the atmospheric entry. Sonic didn't even know why he had his hopes up.

The next crater he found was while he was running. The doctors had said he could run at half his speed after a few weeks, so Sonic took full advantage of that. Speed helped him live. It was his entire life. Speed was how he felt his emotion. Going too fast would be bad for his little side hobby, however, so half-speed was just fine. The impact site was in Spagonia, the countryside to be specific. It also had a bit of space debris inside, but Sonic still felt… sad.

There was no way Shadow had survived, so why was he even looking? Was it to fulfil a dangerous curiosity? Was it to dull the pain in his heart? Sonic didn't know. What he did know, was that he was giving himself false hope. Tails had expressed his concerns over Sonic before, but this was just damaging to himself. It was time to stop. Shadow was dead. And there was no getting around that. Even if he did survive everything before, it had been months without anything or anyone to save him. No one could survive that long without treatment. No one. Shadow was dead. Logic demanded so. It was time for Sonic to heal and move on.

...Right?