Chapter 3

Inn or Out, Mate?

The thrum of collective chatter inside the inn ceased as all eyes fell on the new comer. Shadow the Hedgehog surveyed his surroundings discreetly as he headed towards the bar at the far end.

The Green Lion Inn looked almost as decrepit on the inside as it did on the outside. The weathered tables and chairs were occupied by various individuals who, previously sat hunched over drinks, were now sitting bolt upright with heads turning in unison to follow Shadow's movement. The place reeked of alcohol and stale cigar smoke.

Shadow hopped up onto a bar stool and placed a some currency on the bar. "Coffee," he ordered quietly.

The bar tender stood staring at him, mouth agape, and continued to polish the same glass he'd been holding since before Shadow had entered the place. The hedgehog shifted uncomfortably in his seat, feeling exposed with curios eyes upon him. He wasn't one to relish in public attention. The bar tender pointed to a sign pinned up behind the bar. It read we serve spirits and ales only!

Fine, Shadow thought. He cleared his throat, scraping through the uncomfortable silence and said, "whiskey then."

The bar tender nodded, dropped his polishing rag onto the bar and slid the coins into his hands, briefly counting the value. He gave the shadowy fellow a brief glance over, debating with himself over asking for ID. He quickly decided that no credible youth would ever set foot in the Green Lion Inn, much less on their own, and the newcomer, although young looking, gave off an air of aged weariness and threatening self confidence so he simply asked, "Double?" instead. The hedgehog only nodded in response.

"I'll make him a coffee" A young female voice spoke up.

Shadow hadn't even noticed anyone sitting at the back of the bar. A young lady hopped off a stool and pocketed the phone she had been playing with before disappearing under the bar. She reappeared with a small jar with a hand written label on it which said "Jo's coffee hands off."

Relieved that the bar tender hadn't asked for any ID (he didn't want to draw further attention by flashing his Guardian Units of Nations badge), Shadow waited patiently for his beverage. Two heaping spoonfuls of instant coffee grounds were poured into a small cup followed by water from a kettle that had seen better days.

The room began to fill up with the sounds of multiple conversations and tinkling glasses once more.

"Ignore their staring," the girl said as she placed a cup of coffee under Shadow's nose, "they just find tourists fascinating coz they've grown used to the same old people here. Plus they have no lives." She giggled, also placing a bowl of sugar and a small jug of milk in front of the hedgehog.

Shadow gave the girl half a smile as he thanked her for her kindness.

"My pleasure," she replied before excusing herself and disappearing through a door behind the bar.

Shadow skipped the milk and sugar and sipped from the steaming cup. The bitter taste was like a slap to the face. The harshness of it, a fast and rude jolt to his senses. Thats why he had come in here, to re-energise and seek respite from the night for a while. He didn't touch the liquor, which the bar tender had poured for him anyway, although it would have warmed him up quicker than the grim tasting coffee. He wasn't sure if his usual high tolerance for depressants would hold up at the moment and he didn't want to risk dulling his senses in an unfamiliar place surrounded by strangers. At least now said strangers had turned their attention elsewhere, satisfied (and some probably disappointed) that Shadow was not here to cause a some sort of spectacle. He sighed quietly, relieved he could now sip his drink in peace and without questioning stares.

"Ain't seen you round here before, mate. You from out of town?"

Then again...

Shadow dragged his hand down over his face. He wasn't a fan of small talk in general, but tonight he could especially do without it. Much to his annoyance, though, a middle-aged man pulled up a stool right next to him and proceeded to order a round of drinks.

"You here for the festival?" he asked Shadow, oblivious to the hedgehog's scowl.

"That's my business," Shadow replied, without engaging in eye contact. He had no idea to what festival the man was referring and he wasn't interested in finding out.

The man nodded a little, "thats fair enough, mate. Here, have you seen this news?" He pointed to the television behind the bar, "turn that up, Den mate, will you?" he called to the bar tender.

Shadow swivelled an ear towards the television as the volume increased.

"...as you can see behind me. This is is exactly the kind of frightening scenario that most cities across the globe are facing in the wake of Dr Eggman's new wave of terror, ever since the planet's continents were displaced from the core. And now back to Robert in the studio..."

"Thank you Jean. In related news, world wide sensation and hero, Sonic the Hedgehog, appears to be missing in action."

Shadow turned his full attention to the Television. A pang of nostalgia washed over him at the mention of his rival's name. But it was tinged with alarm. Sonic...missing?

"...was last seen battling Dr Eggman's robot warriors in Holaska Five days ago. Since the disturbance of the continents two weeks ago, Sonic has been spotted daily across the globe taking down almost every battalion the crazed dictator has stationed so far..."

Shadow shrugged off his concern. Five Days? He hadn't seen the blue hedgehog himself for several months now. Was this TV station keeping tabs on him or something?

"...so remember to post your photos of the blue blur in action on our news blog and we'll continue to bring you round the clock coverage of our favourite hedgehog hero. After the break we'll be talking to Cassy in Apatos.. . "

Well that answered Shadow's internal question. He finished his coffee and continued to listen to the TV, which was now scanning through various other channels depicting similar news reports. One of them replayed a road-side interview with Sonic, recorded last week. The blue hero was as optimistic as ever and churning out egg-pun after egg-pun. Still making jokes as always…even at a time like this, Shadow mused.

The bar tender, huffing in frustration, finally settled on a channel covering highlights of the days sports matches. The patron at the bar had decided it wasn't worth any further effort trying to ignite a conversation and walked off carrying a tray of drinks.

Shadow starred into his empty cup. Had it really been so long since he'd last seen Sonic? A strange aching sensation filled his chest and twisted around his heart. It caught him off guard. Damn, did he really miss that infuriating blue hedgehog? He sighed, seriously reconsidering his decision to not to drink the whiskey.

"Would you like a room for the night?" A voice cut through his thoughts and he looked up instantly. It was the girl who had made his coffee. "We have rooms here but our hotel is half a mile down the road. It's nicer than this haunted old relic." Her eyes scanned the wooden beams supporting the ceiling. Shadow wondered if she could actually see ghosts flying around up there.

"Not necessary." The agent stood up. "I'll be leaving now." He needed to find somewhere quieter to be, with less nosy people.

"Are you sure? The weather's turning nasty out there and you're a long way from the nearest town."

"Thank you. I'm good."

"Then please take care." Her voice sounded full of genuine concern.

Shadow nodded and gave the girl the other half of his smile before turning to head for the door, once again all eyes following him.

"You ain't going out there are you?"

The voice was eerily calm in the silence that had settled over the bar once again and it made Shadow stop and turn. The corner of the Inn was poorly lit but Shadow could just about see an old man chewing on an unlit pipe surrounded by empty glasses.

"Yes I am. What of it?"

"Dusk is setting in and you don't want to be out on the moors when the moon rises." The old man elongated his vowels theatrically, as if he were reciting a spooky story he'd long since learned by heart.

"Why, what happens then?" Shadow said and immediately regretted asking. He should have just walked out. He was becoming increasingly irritated by interfering strangers.

"Pay no attention to old Chester. He talks a lot of cow poop!" Another man had decided to join in the conversation from across the room.

"Yeah! Too much of the home brews!" Somebody else chimed in.

"Let me tell you..." Old Chester wheezed eagerly.

Shadow grimaced as two gnarly hands grasped his shoulders and hot, possibly flammable, breath rasped in his ear. For an old drunk, Chester sure seemed to have moved rapidly and silently from his gloomy corner. He waved one of his arms dramatically through the air.

"Seven feet high he is..." He continued.

He was interrupted by a chorus of groans. "Here we go again fifth time this week…"

"Ahem. Seven feet high he is." The old man waved his arm even higher to try to illustrate. "Huge 'n' hairy. With fangs the size of Farmer Yate's prize marrows and claws twice as big..."

"What_?" Shadow started but was shushed by a bony finger pressing his lips shut.

"Oooh he's a frightful sight alright!" The man shrieked. "He'll tear your face off if the very sight of him don't just make your heart stop dead!"

Shadow, not amused or fazed by Chester's tale from the crypt, removed the near skeletal fingers that, by now, were clawing uncomfortably at the skin under his fur and took a step closer to the door.

Chester grabbed the hedgehog's shoulder again, partly to steady his old aching legs but mostly because he didn't want the lad to leave before he'd finished his monologue.

"You don't see him unless he wants you to. He roams the moors looking for his next victim. Maybe a lonely traveller who lost his way. Maybe someone like you..." He poked a finger at Shadow and, without taking his eyes off him, stuck his pipe back between his teeth and glided backwards before disappearing into the darkened corner again.

Shadow stood still, mouth slightly agape. Some part of his mind wondered if he'd walked onto the set of a really old horror movie knock off.

"Ah you've spooked the poor lad, Chester," someone called out.

"But he ain't talking no cow plop, Jim," a young man spoke up. "I heard the creature howling only last night. Chilled me to the bones it did. Then there's talk of attacks across the towns."

"Have you been on the spirits as well, Mick?"

"I've seen something in the papers about werewolf attacks this week. Thought it was all crazy talk..."

"I saw the papers too. The attacks started a few days ago."

"My nephew had his car smashed up by some kind of monster the other day!"

"Your nephew is a drunk!"

"Beware the moon, lad!"

Shadow's eyes darted left and right as he observed the conversation escalating until the whole room was engulfed in frantic chattering like excited gibbons in a zoo.

"Enough!" he huffed to himself.

The dark hedgehog walked to the door and flung it open and rowdy patrons were silenced immediately by the roaring wind and rain that billowed through the doorway as lightning illuminated the black sky. Thunder cracked and boomed, then a deafening howl filled the air. Everyone froze. Even Shadow stopped in his tracks.

Then there was sudden uproar as everyone jumped up from their seats and the door was slammed shut. Amid the shouts and screams and the scraping noise of furniture being dragged across the floor, Shadow thought he could hear the sound of heavy footfalls coming closer to the inn.

With furniture piled up against the door as a barricade, the entire place fell into a tense silence. Everyone had retreated to behind the bar.

Only Shadow stood out of cover, apprehensive but unafraid.

"Hide you fool! Get back here!" he heard someone hiss.

"It's nothing I can't handle," Shadow growled. He reached for the pistol that he had recently decided to keep concealed between his dense head quills. Just need some silver bullets now…

The stomping of paws outside sounded close now. Very close. Then they stopped.

As the door burst open, and the frame filled with the silhouette of something gigantic and hairy, the only thought that flashed through Shadow's mind was Wish I had a damn chaos emerald...