A thief hunted! In a daring assault
Shadow the Hedgehog and his apprentice
Amy Rose boarded the warship of
cunning bounty hunter Fleabyte to
recover a stolen chaos drive containing
a list of the galaxy's Force-sensitive
children and future Shinobi Knights.
After a desperate chase and duel with
the villain, Shadow and his troops
defeated Fleabyte, but were forced to
evacuate his doomed vessel without
the drive...
As Shadow and Amy exited the shuttle one of the clones turned to the injured lion clone "Hey, Denal, good job frying that bounty hunter. Let's get some grub. You hungry?" he asked. Another clone at the back saw something on the floor "I'll catch up", Fang turned around to see what he was looking at. "First, we get the wounded to the medical bay" Shadow said to Amy before "General, there's something I think you should see" Fang said. Shadow went back into the shuttle as Amy spotted Denal walking across the hanger holding his arm "Hey, trooper, are you alright?" the clone ignored her and kept walking. Shadow was on the shuttle kneeling down looking at a red substance on the floor "It's blood, sir. But it definitely isn't one of our men" Fang said. Shadow thought to himself, Fang was right, the clones have blue blood, he and Amy weren't injured.
It suddenly hit him, and he shot up. Outside Amy got in front of Denal "Wait. You're injured. It might be serious". Denal didn't say anything so Amy took his arm and saw a strange glitch affect around the wound "You're not a clone" she said in surprise. Shadow rushed out of the ship and saw them "Amy!". The imposter kneed Amy in the stomach incapacitating her and he then ran to a fighter. He got in the cockpit and started taking off, but Shadow managed to jump on and punch him in the face. His face began to glitch revealing it to be a hologrammatic disguise and it was Fleabyte underneath without his hat and jacket. He spun the ship which threw Shadow off before exiting the hanger. Shadow got on his commlink "Admiral, lock down the hyperspace rings! Hurry!" "What could possibly have happened since I last spoke with you?". Shadow saw the fighter releasing one of the rings "It's Fleabyte. Lock those rings, now!". The fighter attached to the ring and went into hyperspace. Amy walked up to Shadow who then sighed "We'll have to inform the Council".
Amy and Shadow were now standing in the middle of the council chamber and have just finished telling them what happened. "It is most unfortunate that Fleabyte was allowed to escape" Espio said. "He is now capable of inflicting devastating damage on the Shinobi order" Blaze added. Espio pondered "There are thousands of children on that list. Which will he go after first?" "There is a small chance we could detect them through the Force" Blaze answered.
Fleabyte was in the control room of a space station wearing his old gear. He activated a holo-unit and Mephiles appeared "I've delivered what you wanted. The Shinobi were no problem. Anything else I can help you with?". "I need test subjects. Choose four children and bring them to Flame Core. I will take care of them" Mephiles replied coldly. Even Fleabyte was surprised by this "Kidnapping innocent children? Seems like a small-time crime for the likes of you" "Among the children of the Shinobi, there are no innocents". Fleabyte shrugged "As long as I get paid, it makes no difference to me".
Merlin, Blaze, Shadow and Espio were all meditating in a chamber. Blaze's head lifted slightly "Mmm. A jungle world. I see dome cities. Onyx". Espio nodded "A house in Kay Tap Square. Yes, I see it too". Merlin then raised his head "There's an ocean planet, home to dolphins. Glee Anslem". "I sense a place I've been before. Waterfalls. Albion. In a Meropis village. A jellyfish. It's… it's screaming" Shadow said being broken out of his focus. "You see the future, Shadow. You must go to Albion. You will find Fleabyte there, take your apprentice" Blaze said. "What about Glee Anslem?" Merlin asked. Blaze closed her eyes "I sense the child has already been taken. His fate is shrouded. But we must focus on the other children in danger". Espio nodded "I shall leave for Onyx immediately".
Inside a house on Onyx a cloaked Fleabyte was watching a baby squirrel lift a ball without touching it. He turned to the baby's mother "Your son is strong with the Force. He will make a fine Shinobi". The mother stroked her son's head "Master Thunderhawk said the day would come for him to go to the temple but he said it would be some time". Fleabyte tried to sound sympathetic "Master Thunderhawk was unaware of the danger your son is in. Shinobi imposters have been roaming the galaxy stealing younglings. For his protection I'm going to have to take him now". She took her son "He is my only child" she said pleadingly, he stared coldly at her "Look into this. It will relax you" he took out a small device that shined a light in the mother's eyes.
Espio has just arrived in the city and quickly ran to the house. He knocked on the door and the mother answered but she looked angry "If you're looking for my son, Shinobi, he's not here" "Where is he?" she closed the door without answering. Espio then heard crying, he quickly opened the door and ran inside. The mother pointed a pistol at him "You'll never get him", Espio calmly waved his hand "Where is the bounty hunter?". She seemed to be broken out of her trance "Bounty hunter? He was a Shinobi" she began to look horrified. Espio took the gun from her "Shinobi don't carry blasters" "What have I done?". They heard crying and Espio turned around to see Fleabyte at the door holding the child. He activated his rocket boots and flew out of the house and up to one of the towers. Espio used a grapple to climb up but by the time he did Fleabyte was already in his fighter and he watched as it flew away.
A Republic gunship landed in the Albion hanger and dropped off Shadow and Amy. Captain Remington and Ecco were there waiting for them "General Shadow, they told us you were coming" the former said, "Has the family been notified?" Shadow asked. Ecco nodded "Yes. I'll take you to the city". Amy looked to Shadow "Let me take the lead, Master. I've got a score to settle" "Alright. Go with Captain Ecco. I'll be there shortly".
Fleabyte landed on Albion and managed to swim down to the Meropis village. He looked through the window of the house and saw the baby in a cot in the middle of the room. He snuck inside and removed the blanket only to find a doll underneath "Don't move" he heard Amy behind him. "You weren't the child I was expecting to find. You're quite clever, but naïve" he used his grapple to take her lightsaber. He then shot at her forcing her to take cover. He then used his boots to fly out of the window, but Shadow was waiting on the roof and he grabbed him. They both fell down to the ground where Amy was waiting. She picked Fleabyte up and restrained his wrists, he stared blankly at her as Shadow took him away. The squid mother appeared with her baby who smiled at Amy "Your daughter is safe now" "Do you really believe that!" Fleabyte yelled back at them causing the mother to hold her child tighter.
In the detention centre of a cruiser, Fleabyte was sitting in a dark cell with Espio and Merlin standing in front of him "We know you've taken at least two children. Where are they?" the former asked. "Beyond your reach" "Who are you working for?" Merlin asked. "I work alone" "It is only a matter of time before we locate the chaos drive. Make it easier on yourself" Espio said. Fleabyte scoffed "What're you going to do, Shinobi, torture me?". Merlin stared him down "I think the fear of whoever you work for outweighs your fear of us". This seemed to get to Fleabyte for a second and he looked away "This conversation is over" he said blankly. The two Shinobi left the cell where Shadow and Amy were waiting. "We tore his ship apart. There's no sign of the drive or the kids. The navigational records were wiped clean before he landed on Albion" Shadow said. "We're not having much luck either. He has a strong mind" Espio said which gave Amy an idea "Maybe if we all concentrated on his mind together".
Espio pondered "Using the Force to compel a strong mind to cooperate is… risky" "There is a danger that his mind could be damaged in the process" Merlin added. Shadow casually shrugged "Well, do we have another choice?". They looked at each other before entering the cell again, Fleabyte watched them curiously. Shadow closed his eyes and raised his hand "You will take us to the chaos drive". Fleabyte rolled his eyes "Your mind tricks don't work on me". Espio then copied Shadow "You will take us to the chaos drive" they said together. Fleabyte face twitched "No" he said with slight struggle. Merlin then joined "You will take us to the chaos drive" "I… I won't" Fleabyte said sounding scared. "And you will take us… now!" "I will take you to the- No! Get out of my head!" he groaned in pain and clutched his head when the Shinobi suddenly stopped. Fleabyte fell forward, Shadow looked down at him "Perhaps we should try again" he said threateningly. Fleabyte shook his head "I… I've had enough of that. I'll take you to the chaos drive. You'll get your children back".
The four of them took Fleabyte to a shuttle in the hanger "The Chancellor wants a report on our progress" Merlin said, "Tell him this is not Republic business. It's an internal Shinobi affair" Espio replied. Shadow stopped "I'm sorry to disagree, but the children are not Shinobi yet and are Republic citizens, so we should report it the Chancellor". Espio shrugged and patted him on the back "Well, then, I guess you just volunteered to go. Give the Chancellor my regards" "I agree. Report back here when you're finished" Merlin said before the two masters headed to the shuttle. Shadow watched "This could be a trap, Master. You sure you don't need us to go?" "Of course it's a trap, Shadow" Merlin said. "I will contact you when we find the children" Espio said as the two of them boarded the shuttle. They entered the cockpit where Armand was watching Fleabyte "The coordinates?" Merlin asked. "The coordinates are 15.03.96 cross 7RB71" Fleabyte answered, Espio stared at him suspiciously "That will take us into the far Outer Zones. Neutral space" "Do you want your drive and your kids back or not?".
Shadow and Amy were at the door of Solaris' office when it opened "Ah, Shadow, it is good to see you" "Your Excellency" Shadow bowed. Solaris then looked to Amy "Excuse us, child" he said before leading Shadow inside and closing the door. Amy was hurt by not being taken seriously. Solaris sat at his desk "I understand you made an important arrest in a plot to destroy the Shinobi. To think a simple bounty hunter could create such a plan". "I believe someone else, someone much more powerful was behind this. And I don't think it was Dimitri" Shadow responded. "Oh, and have you any clues as to who it may be?" "Not yet, Chancellor" Shadow said clearly frustrated. Mephiles patted Shadow's back "Have patience, my boy".
On Flame Core inside a lab the squirrel baby was lying on a surgical bed crying, a gizoid projected a hologram of Mephiles over it. "There, there, child. Soon you will cry no more" a medical bot came up to him "Master, subjects of this age rarely survive the slave conditioning procedure" "I'm afraid the risk is necessary. The natural talent these children possess is too great to be wasted by the Shinobi". He went over to another bed which had a baby dolphin "I foresee an army of Force-talented spies in my service, trained in the dark side to peer into every corner of the galaxy from afar. And my enemies would be helpless against such vision. If the surgery fails, I will have lost nothing".
The shuttle came out of hyperspace and docked at an airlock "Armand, stay here and watch the ship" Espio said before he and Merlin took Fleabyte out of the shuttle. They entered the station and went into a lift "I don't sense any children nearby" "Neither do I" Merlin replied. The lift put them in the middle of a large room, Espio turned to Fleabyte "Where are you keeping the children?" "The children are safe. But first, your precious chaos drive". They turned and saw it sitting on the control console "Let me get it for you" Fleabyte stepped forward but Merlin stopped him "No more of your tricks". Merlin walked forward but his foot hit a sensor "Blast!" an alarm went off and laser turrets activated. The Shinobi ignited their lightsabers and deflected the blasts back but while they were distracted Fleabyte ran to a wall "So long, Shinobi" he said mockingly. The wall opened and he slipped through into a different room "Now what?" Merlin said.
Shadow was in the cockpit of Fleabyte's fighter "Well, the piloting systems are clean. Check the landing gear?" he said to Amy who was underneath the fighter. "Double-checked it. I have the feeling Master Merlin and Espio could've used our help" "Look, I don't like being out of the action either, but somebody's got to do this job". Amy rolled her eyes "And it always ends up being us", this made Shadow chuckle. Amy stood up "Something I did find is that Fleabyte picked up a lot of volcanic ash on his travels". Emerl was on the side of the ship and he beeped, Shadow grinned "Looks like Fleabyte erased his navigation records, but not his fuel computer" "So?" Amy asked. "So, if we cross the list of planets, we know he visited with the distance he travelled then we may be able to calculate where else he went. It's an old Shinobi trick we used to track down smugglers". They examined the list of planets when Amy noticed something "Wait. He's been to Flame Core? There were no children on Flame Core". Shadow shrugged "He probably just stopped to refuel". Amy smirked "But look the coordinates. It's six zones out of his way. Maybe, he met up with whoever he's working for. Could be worth a look". Shadow smirked "Well, anything to get out of this hanger".
Espio grabbed the drive from the console but this triggered the door behind them to begin closing. They both ran for it and just managed to make it before the door fully closed. The station suddenly shook. They got onto the ship "Armand, get us out of here!". Armand didn't need to be told twice and quickly disconnected form the station.
The Terios jumped out of hyperspace "We're coming up on Flame Core" Amy said, Shadow turned to Emerl "Emerl, begin the landing cycle". They saw a large structure on the side of a cliff. They landed on a platform and the three of them entered the corridors of the lab. They suddenly heard crying and ran in the direction. They cut through the doors to the lab but inside the lights were off. Two robots charged forward holding the children and they tried to attack "Be careful of the younglings!" Shadow said. An alarm goes off and the building begins to shake "They must have turned off the shield" Shadow said as the floor began to crack. The floor brakes under one of the objects and Amy quickly grabs the dolphin child before the robot falls into the lava. Shadow meanwhile manages to cut the arms off his robot and grab the squirrel child. Amy and Shadow then ran to the door where Emerl was waiting and the three of them ran back to the Terios. Shadow handed the squirrel to Amy who tried to keep the both the children calm "It's okay. It's okay. Shadow got in the pilot's seat and takes the ship off right before the entire base fell into the lava.
The two hedgehogs were now in front of the Council "The base was completely destroyed, Master, and so was any clue who's behind this". Blaze sighed "This is most unfortunate" "The important thing is that the children are safe, and we've recovered the chaos drive" Espio said. Merlin nodded "The list is intact and there is no evidence it was copied" "Still, the future of all Shinobi is uncertain. We must move cautiously" Blaze said.