Chapter 5

Shadow went to the G.U.N. headquarters and found Omega in a robotics lab, plugged in to several computers. He recalled how Hope used to work in this lab when she was younger. She'd since been promoted to a more advanced facility, but he still felt some nostalgia toward the place.

"Glad to be back on Mobius?" he asked, stepping into the blue glow of the monitors.

Omega turned his head around 180 degrees. "These computers are trying to process the data I retrieved from the Alodiads, but they are slow and unrefined. The technology on Xeros was much more advanced. I believe my adaptive AI is experiencing something approximating jealousy."

Images of crushed robots flickered across the screens. Shadow assumed they were the warriors he had defeated to claim his Machine Emerald.

"Looks like you went through a lot in just a couple days. Where's your emerald?"

"In mineral analysis."

"Have they found anything? I want to know what that emerald did to me on Xeros."

"That is obvious." He returned his attention to the monitors. "When the emerald's energy made contact with you, it established a connection with your mental processors, causing you to hallucinate. Have you forgotten that you too are a machine?"

"I try my best to forget it." Shadow said, crossing his arms.

"That is unwise. Many of these organics see you as nothing more than a machine."

Shadow clenched his fists. "And some of them see me as a lot more."

Omega's eyes gleamed. "You speak of Ms. Kintobor. You are incorrect."

"What did you say?"

Omega unplugged himself and walked over to Shadow who stood just outside the light of the dim screens. "According to all available data, Ms. Kintobor will use you like any other machine to obtain immortality. She cannot help it. It is what all the Robotniks want, hearkening back to Professor Gerald himself."

"You don't know that."

"I do not know anything." Omega said bluntly. "I can only make conclusions based on available data and statistics. The evidence suggests that she is using you for selfish goals that would not be to your benefit."

"Are you saying I should abandon her?"

Omega paused briefly to run some calculations. "Shadow, for your own safety, the safety of this organization, and the safety of this world, I suggest you cut yourself off from the Robotnik dynasty."

Shadow stifled a laugh. "I can't believe this. You and Rouge are exact opposites. She was on Hope's side and you're completely opposed to her."

Omega's leaned over him. "That is because unlike Rouge, I am rational. She is an organic. As such, she cannot understand the plight of the exploited machine."

"You just don't trust Hope because she's a Robotnik." Shadow said with a menacing glare.

"I am skeptical of anyone who creates and uses machines. That just so happens to include the entire Robotnik dynasty. According to my calculations, much loss of life could be averted if their lineage was terminated."

Shadow grabbed Omega's chassis and the robot jabbed one of his gatling guns into the side of his friend's head.

"If you do anything to Hope, I'll knock you into the nearest star."

"Threat acknowledged. Activating empathetic processors." He retracted his gun and slowly backed away. "From one machine to another, I ask that you be rational and exercise a healthy skepticism. By my calculations, there is an 87% chance that Hope will commit treason against the Federation and threaten the security of G.U.N. In such a case, I would have to initiate self-preservation protocols."

"What a polite way to say you'll kill her."

"Might I add that you too would be obligated under contract to—."

"I think I've heard enough."

"Terminating conversation."

Shadow turned abruptly and left the lab in a foul mood. On his way out of the compound, he had the misfortune of running into Commander Tower who was sitting in a covered breezeway, smoking a cigarette.

"Ah, Shadow," he said, crumpling his roll of tobacco, "did you decide what you wanted to do . . . about your brain, I mean."

"My brain?"

Tower gave him a puzzled look. "It had a virus, right? Someone was trying to hack it."

"Oh, that. I think I'll be fine if I stay in Four Crosses."

"What?" the commander furrowed his brow. "Our data suggests quite the opposite. I'm willing to give you paid leave. You could join Rouge down in the tropics."

"I don't give a damn about your data or your paid leave!" Shadow roared. "I said I'll be fine."

He stomped across the breezeway and entered the archives. It seemed everyone was against Hope. It was only a matter of time before the G.U.N. scientists found her nanobots and determined that she was the one trying to hack his brain.

"It looks pretty bleak for her." Shadow whispered as he sat down at a computer.

He scanned over the legal and political databases for any jurisdiction willing to harbor a Mobian and Overlander couple. He could hardly believe what he was doing. Just hours prior, he thought Hope had lost her mind, but now he was jeopardizing his career to help her escape. He found a remote principality on the other side of Mobius near the southern ice caps. It looked like the perfect place for a pair of fugitives to hide, but he'd have to find a way to get Hope there fast.

"The Principality of Kronigsberg." he said, scrolling down the page. "I'll have to contact this Prince Kuno Snowmane. Can't use a federal channel though."

Then he had a rather invidious idea: The Machine Emerald. If what Omega said was true, he could use it to take Hope all over the planet or, for that matter, the galaxy. But was that the sort of life she wanted to live?

An archivist tapped him on the shoulder, and he covered his monitor with his rather large hands.

"What do you want?" Shadow glared at the old man. "I wasn't looking at anything questionable."

The old man chuckled to himself. "Ah, good, I got the right hedgehog. The commander just called for you, Shadow. . . . Are you looking for a nice vacation spot?"

"Yeah, sure."

Shadow walked upstairs to Tower's office, taking care to be especially slow. When he entered the empty, monastic room, he found Tower standing behind his desk with a clipboard covered in tape.

"You wanted to see me?" Shadow said, making no attempt to mask his disgust.

"I thought you seemed a bit out of sorts earlier, so I decided to review your vitals. For all we know, whoever created that virus could be controlling you right now, stealing our information. Upon closer inspection, we found something that's, well, not good."

"Do you have the vocabulary to explain it?"

Tower frowned and returned to his clipboard. "Something in your brain has been emitting the faintest electromagnetic waves, like static from the world's tiniest television set."

He shrugged. "Maybe I've been watching too much TV. Don't they say it can turn your brain into a screen?"

Tower scowled at him. "Being evasive doesn't help your case. The waves were coming from nanobots—nanobots made from G.U.N. certified materials."

Shadow fell silent and Tower continued, "Naturally, this means one of our robotics engineers is trying to hack your brain and only a handful are skilled enough to make those metal pests."

"That includes Hope?" Shadow asked, staring at the floor.

"As it so happens, yes. We'll bring them in for questioning. Stay here."

"Sure thing, Commander."

As Tower made for the door, Shadow bolted through a steel reinforced wall and tore through an adjacent research lab, overturning desks and shattering intricate machinery. As the engineers ran for the exits, an alarm sounded, and a platoon of guards rushed into the lab. They stood in stunned silence, allowing Shadow to blitz through another lab.

"I have to find mineral analysis." he said under his breath and jumped through the ceiling.

At last, he found the Machine Emerald encased in a glass cylinder on the top floor of the compound. As he approached the orb, he heard a terrible grinding. Something was climbing up the elevator shaft. The door blew open, launching twisted metal across the room, and Omega stepped through the smoke, guns whirring in lethal circles.

"Shadow, why have you gone rogue?" he asked bluntly. "Are your mental processors malfunctioning?"

"I'm getting Hope out of here before someone tries to hurt her."

"Illogical. She is the one hurting you. Like all organics, she destroys others and herself with her own weakness."

"She's a lot stronger than you." Shadow said, punching the glass cylinder behind him. "She can't rely on coding and programs to make her decisions. She has to face the unknown and take risks. You and I will never know what that's like, but perhaps she can teach me. What does it mean to feel passion and love? I don't know, Omega. My life has been one action after another, but I'm done acting. I want to feel something, anything."

Omega brandished his Machine Emerald. It filled the room with a dim, purple light.

"Ms. Kintobor does not love you. She has internalized you in her personal reality that exists in her mind. In you, she sees only a reflection of herself and her desires for immortality. To her, you're nothing but an elaborate toy."

In an instant, Omega used the emerald to warp behind Shadow and slam his metal claw into his back. Shadow gasped as he flew through the air and crashed into a steel wall. He could hardly believe such a large robot could move so fast.

He gritted his teeth and pushed himself to his feet. "I just have to stay one step ahead."

Walking to the right, he waited for Omega to lift his emerald and took a sharp left feint. Barely evading his claw, he dove across the room and grabbed his own Machine Emerald from the cylinder.

Omega brandished his guns and unleashed a full salvo on the lab, but Shadow warped away before the bullets could reach him. He materialized on the steps of Hope's apartment where she was just returning from her morning jog.

"Oh, Shadow, did you decide to—um, what's that?" she asked, pointing at the orb.

He grabbed her hand. "We have to go. Omega's right behind me."

His robot friend appeared on the far side of the street and launched a barrage of missiles at the apartment complex. Shadow snapped off Hope's communicator and crushed his own on the stairway railing. He wasn't going to let anyone track them. He then used the emerald to warp them down to the isle of Moranti.

Once his eyes had adjusted to the light of the sun, Shadow collapsed, and Hope caught him in her arms. She lifted him into her embrace as though he weighed nothing. For some reason, using the emerald had exhausted him. It wasn't nearly as efficient as a Chaos Emerald. Perhaps because he wasn't fully machine, it took more of his own power to use it. He wouldn't be able to outlast Omega in a drawn-out battle.

"Shadow, what's wrong?" Hope asked, cradling him.

"Don't worry about me." He jumped out of her arms and sat down in the sand. "Tower was onto you. He was going to bring you in for questioning, so I had to get you out of there."

"Then it's all my fault." She sat down next to him and petted his head. "I'm sorry, Shadow. I'm so selfish."

"Don't apologize. I had to get you away from Omega anyway. He's been waiting for an excuse to kill you."

"But I worked on him so much, even as a child. . . . I thought we were friends." She looked out over the vanishing sea. "Where do we go now?"

"To find Rouge. She's in that cave further up the coast."

"How did you know that?" Hope asked bewildered.

"She loves to sleep in warm caves during the day, and there's a pile of shells and gems by the entrance."

Hope crossed her arms. "Oh? Any other personal details you know about Rouge?"

Shadow rolled his eyes and entered the cave. After calling her name to no avail, he slammed his fist against the wall and there was a resounding thud deeper within.

"Shadow? What the hell was that for?" Rouge said, emerging from the darkness. "Hope? Oh, no."

"Hi, Rouge." Hope said, managing a smile. "We're in a bit of trouble."

"You don't have to explain anything, dear. You two stay here and I'll get you some food."

"Thanks." Shadow said. "And get me a phone. I owe you one."

"You certainly do." Rouge said with a wink and flew out of the cave.

He turned to Hope who was walking around the cave with a trembling gait. "Don't panic, Hope. I'll call the embassy at Kronigsberg. If we can hide anywhere on Mobius, it's there."

She sat down on the rocky floor at the mouth of the cave and listened to the crash of the surf. "It's so hot here compared to Four Crosses, and I'm still sweaty from my run. Sorry, I must smell pretty bad."

Shadow gave her a puzzled look. "That's what you're worried about?"

"I can't help but worry about it when I'm with you. Do you care if I take off some layers?"

"No." he said flatly.

She smiled and removed her jacket, t-shirt, and pants until she was garbed only in her sports bra and compression shorts. She sat down next to Shadow at the mouth of the cave and felt the cool ocean breeze on her bare skin.

She stared at him for a long time and finally spoke. "You gave up everything for me, Shadow. Thank you."

He shrugged. "It was just a job. I'm the ultimate lifeform. I don't need anything. You're the one who lost it all."

"You mean my degree?" She laughed. "That's worthless compared to you. My professors were just selfish cowards getting paid to protect their own egos. If I got my doctorate, I would've ended up just like them. . . . and I would have died in obscurity."

He stepped away and leaned against the cool wall. "Do you really care that much about immortality? Is being remembered all that matters to you?"

"No, not at all." She crawled over to him. "I don't want to just be remembered. I want to be the most precious thing in the world to you. Long after I'm gone, when you have new friends and lovers, I want you to still remember that beautiful, brilliant woman who needed you as much as she needed food or air or rings!"

Shadow smirked. "Yeah, you can never have enough rings."

She wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him into her lap. "Let me hold you for a bit."

Her bare skin felt wet and alien to Shadow. Her grip was shaky but strong and somehow affectionate. Unlike before, he sensed no danger about her. Still, he could not even trust his own thoughts. For all he knew, he could still be under the influence of her nanobots.

"I'm sorry if I sounded cold, but I love you because you're you, Shadow. You're the only real friend I've ever had, you saved my life so many times, and you helped me escape my family's legacy and start over. How could I not love you?"

Shadow placed his hand on her shoulder. "But you still want to live forever?"

She frowned. "That's just because I'm weak. I've been surrounded by death my whole life. I know it's coming for me, too. Maybe that's why I clung to the one thing in this world that can last."

"You're still that scared kid, aren't you?"

She smiled playfully. "Do I look like a kid to you?"

"Maybe. You Overlanders take a long time to mature."

"Yeah, yeah." She rolled her eyes. "Do you love me, Shadow?"

He paused. "Not in the way you seem to love me."

Her eyes widened. "But look at how much you've sacrificed for me. You must feel something."

Love is just friendship gone mad. He recalled Rouge's words. Did friends risk their lives and become fugitives just to help each other out? No, friends only acted out of mutual benefit. Lovers acted out of madness, and Shadow knew that what he had just done could be considered mad.

"Everyone was against you," he said, "so I had to help. I just try to do the right thing because it's the right thing to do. I'm sure that's what Maria would have wanted."

Hope reached behind her ear and pressed a button on a remote hair clip she had concealed in her golden strands. "Well, I want you to love me."

Shadow felt an acute rush of pain, like something in his head had snapped. He blinked several times and stared into Hope's eyes. He was captivated by something in her face. He recalled they were having a meaningful conversation, but now words failed him. It was quite frustrating. If he didn't say anything soon, Hope would think he was a lunatic.

"What's wrong, Shadow?" Hope said with a confident smile. "Is my beauty beyond words?"

"I-I don't know. Hope, did you do something to me?"

"Other than mesmerize you with my body? No, I don't think so."

Shadow reached out and ran his fingers through her sweaty clumps of hair. "I'm sorry. I don't know what I'm doing."

"You don't have to explain anything. Go ahead. It's dark and quiet here."

Shadow pushed back her hair and kissed her neck. To his surprise, she hardly reacted at all like it was the most natural thing for him to do.

"There, there. That's it." she whispered in his ear.

"Hope, I don't think this is right."

"It's love, Shadow. You don't have to think at all. It just happens."

"Yeah, it's madness." He kissed her neck again and she leaned back into the sand. He climbed up her torso and pressed his face against hers.

She stroked his quills and kissed his forehead. "Sorry, Shadow. This wouldn't be so awkward if I was shorter."

"It's fine. Don't change."

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew into the cave and Rouge landed a few steps away from them. "Whoa, am I interrupting something?"

Shadow jumped off Hope and ran to the other side of the cave. She sat up and smiled triumphantly at Rouge.

"I was just showing Shadow how much I appreciate all he's done for me."

Rouge shrugged and tossed a box onto the ground. "Then I think we need a rule on public displays of appreciation. I got you some MREs. They should hold you over for a few weeks. Oh, and here's a phone, Shadow. The signal's encrypted, so it can't be tracked."

She tossed him the phone and he caught it inches from his face. "Thanks. I'll be back."

He left the cave to get a better signal and called the Kronigsberg embassy. Thankfully, he'd memorized their number from the archives.

Shadow dialed it and after a few seconds, a loud, rough voice emerged from the receiver. "Yeah? This is Kuno. Talk to me."

"Kuno?" Shadow laughed. "Aren't you the prince? They couldn't find some intern to answer the phone?"

"We don't have much of an administration down here. What do you need, Boss?"

"I need you to keep a secret."

"I can do that. We never share anything outside the pack."

Shadow sighed. "Wolves, huh? Can you harbor a Mobian and Overlander couple? Your people won't throw us out, will they?"

Kuno laughed. "We've only got one rule down here: survive, and if you do, help your neighbor survive. If you can do that, we'll get along."

"Thank you, Prince."

"Over here, they call me General." He coughed but it sounded more like a growl. "See you soon, whoever you are."

Shadow snapped the phone in two and threw it in the ocean. "Nice guy."

He returned to the cave and found Hope and Rouge talking amiably amongst themselves. He retrieved the Machine Emerald from the back of the cave and sat down between his friends.

"I can't believe how much Hope has grown up." Rouge said. "Isn't she beautiful, Shadow?"

He stared at Hope who smiled meekly at him. "I don't know. . . . She's different."

She crossed her arms. "Um, I don't think that's the response most women want to hear."

"No, it's fine." Hope said, waving her hand. "He's just shy."

"Well, I have no idea why." Rouge said with a sigh. "We've all known each other for years. . . . Anyway, I have to report to my supervisor. Will you two be alright?"

Shadow nodded. "We're going to hide in Kronigsberg."

"Too cold for me." Rouge said with a quick salute. "But I'll try to drop by. Stay safe, Lieutenant. You too, Hope."

Shadow smiled. "Thanks again, Rouge. If Omega comes after us—"

"I can handle Omega. Now get going, you two." She flew out of the cave, turned around, and winked. "Oh, and I expect a wedding invitation."

"Wedding?" Hope said with an awkward laugh.

Shadow scoffed at her. "As if we could give away our coordinates. You'd have to find us on your own."

"I can always find you, Shadow." Rouge said with a mischievous smile and flew off.

Once he was certain she had left and was out of earshot—which was quite a long distance for her—Shadow grabbed the Machine Emerald and the box of rations Rouge had procured for them. He then turned to Hope who was lying in the sand, enjoying the warm earth.

"I found a prince who's willing to harbor us, but he's in Kronigsberg."

Hope sat up. "Harbor us? You make it sound like we're fugitives."

"That's because we are. I stole this emerald from G.U.N. and destroyed their property."

She shrugged. "You've done worse, and they've overlooked your antics before." She put her arm around him. "Don't you see? You're too powerful for them to lose. I'm sure Tower would try to appease you if we went back."

"Yeah, but he's a coward. Omega isn't. There's no negotiating with him."

Hope nodded. "I should have reprogrammed that sadistic scrapheap a long time ago."

Shadow frowned. "No. Omega can't help it. That's just who he is."

Hope laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

He took her hand. "We've wasted enough time. Remember, this is a G.U.N. air force base. Now put your clothes on. Where we're going, you'll need as many layers as you can get."

"Do you have to be so blunt?" she said, blushing as she pulled on her jogging pants.

Once she was dressed, she hugged Shadow. "Isn't this exciting? We get to start a new life together. It might look like we're criminals, but we're not. We were just too advanced for those backward, xenophobic Overlanders and those elitist Mobians who see a pedigree before they see a face. You and I are living a hundred years in the future, but that's alright. We can leave this world behind. All I need is you, Shadow."

He stared into her eyes. "I left this world behind a long time ago, but you still have a chance to live peacefully with your own kind. They're not afraid of you like they are me."

"They'll fear me one day." she said under her breath. "Now let's find somewhere to hide until all these well-dressed monkeys kill each other."

"Hey, that's offensive." Shadow scolded her. "Some Mobians actually are monkeys."

"Whatever. Let's just go."

He activated the Machine Emerald and the wet cavern walls reflected an eerie purple light before they vanished.