This is a fanfiction, and as such, most of the characters in the story are not mine. Most characters are © Sega, and are not used with permission.
Chapter 3: Invasion
Back at Knothole, some of the echidnas including Tikal and Knuckles had come to meet Sally to tell her what had been going on, and to see if they could be of any help to each other.
"It might have saved us a lot of trouble if you had simply come to us and told us what was going on."
Tikal bowed slightly. "My apologies; but what happened, as I explained to Shadow and he to Rouge earlier, was that the vision I had was supposed to happen. There would have been no way to save our home, Shadow was going to take the Master Emerald, and the floating island was doomed. It's as simple as that."
Sally sighed. "But still, it seems like such a waste."
Rouge wanted to know more about what became of Shadow. You were saying that you couldn't see Shadow anymore, but you can feel him, is that all?"
"No, before coming here I was able to contact him, to give him a brief message."
"You did?! What did you say to him?! Is he alright?!"
Everyone was now focused on Tikal.
"I could only warn him that the power of the Master Emerald had its limits, and that it needed to be used wisely. But more importantly, to him at least, he was suffering; it was not a physical pain, but emotional, a loss of faith."
Bunnie was as lost as everyone else. "What do yah mean, 'a loss of faith'?"
"He has come to face the truth that is uniquely his own. For all of us, there is something that guides our lives, weither we know it or not. For some, that undeniable truth is very horrible and can shatter the soul."
"But what is this 'truth' of his?" asked Rouge.
"I cannot tell you, it is something that lies buried in each of us, and it is something that only Shadow has any right to tell you. All I can say is that it is one of the most dastardly realities that any person should ever have to face."
Sally was leaning forward in her chair, trying to understand what Tikal was saying. "You said you contacted him before, can you do so now?"
"I've been trying, but he has moved again; or more specifically, the world around him has changed. He is still confused and distraught, but I believe he is coming to grips with his truth."
"Can he get back?"
"He still possesses the Master Emerald, he could return if he wants too, but I believe that he still has doubts as to his future. He has seen something, something that he thought was lost to him, something he may cherish…"
Tikal froze in mid-sentence, as if the icy grip of death had reached out to her shoulder. The cup that she was drinking from slipped from her hands and fell to the floor.
"What is it?"
Knuckles stood up with his fists balled together. "I can feel it."
Tikal recovered from the shock and sat up. "He's back, Shadow is back; I can see him. He still holds the might of the Master Emerald, and is taking it to a dark place to unleash it against your oppressor."
Sally stared wide-eyed. "Robotropolis?"
Rouge was even more interested in Shadow. "Is he alright?"
Tikal stood up. "Yes, to both."
Sally turned to her side where Geoffrey was standing up. "Geoffrey! Rally the troops, we have to find out what's going on."
"Princess, gathering everyone would be a waste, with or without Shadow our army doesn't have a chance on Robotnik's home turf."
"Then prepare a small team, we'll sneak over there and find out what's going on."
"As you wish, your highness."
Sally turned back to the echidnas. "How powerful is this 'Master Emerald'? Could Shadow defeat Robotnik with it?"
"Most easily, if used properly."
While everyone was making their way outside, Rouge stopped Tikal.
"You said that he had to face something horrible, something that hurt him, emotionally. How is he now?"
"He has faced it, as he needed to, and he has come out with a better understanding of himself and the world around him. But the Shadow you once knew is no more."
"What do you mean?"
"We are all defined by what we know more than what we are, what Shadow has experienced has changed everything he thought he knew. Physically he's the same, but that is all that is left of the one you knew as 'Shadow'."
"Warning! Warning! Intruder alert! Intruder alert!"
Robotnik spun around in his chair with shock. "Computer, what is it?"
"Trespasser has been identified in sector D-1. Identity of trespasser is Shadow the Hedgehog."
"Show me."
The main viewer switched to an image of outside. Between the large factories and over the cement ground a white streak flew towards the heart of the city and the large steel edifice at the center.
"Confirm, is this Shadow?"
"Affirmative." A single frame snapshot of the hedgehog appeared, showing that the white smear did have Shadow's shape, but it was colored completely white. "The physical structure matches that of Shadow, but its energy levels have been increased by a factor of 8.81. Further analysis indicates that the stored energy level can be more than 20 times that of the displayed level."
Robotnik was flabbergasted, not only was Shadow charging at him, but according to the computer, his Chaos Control power had a 200 times boost.
"Computer, lockdown Robotropolis. Engage all security and defence measures!"
Throughout Robotropolis, the warning of the intruder was sent to all the robots in the steel city.
"All available units converge on sectors D-1, D-2, E-1, E-2 and E-3. Block all entrances to sector A. Target is Shadow the Hedgehog. Terminate with extreme prejudice."
All around the city, robots of every conceivable shape and size were gathering in the eastern parts of Robotropolis.
"It'll take more than this to stop me, Robotnik."
Shadow paid little attention to the robots that were closing in, except for those shooting at him. He would dodge shots taken at him, but unless a robot appeared directly in front of him he tried to avoid wasting time and energy destroying them. It took him only a minute of racing and dodging before he made it to the large tower at the center of Robotropolis. Waiting outside was a significant welcoming party.
Shadow didn't slow down as he approached the massive defence, but he didn't ignore it either. Before him stood several tanks, a small division of SWATbots, and three flying machines, similar to the ones that attacked the floating island; all where fully armed, and aiming at him.
Bright lights and loud explosions filled the area as the combined firepower struck the ground at the hedgehog's feet. Shadow deftly dodged every projectile and energy beam sent his way, leaving a snake of white light behind to mark where he was. The robots continued to fire at their target, but were unable to get even a glancing blow against the invader.
The onslaught did create one side effect, the constant barrage of missile fire was creating a large smoke cloud in Shadow's area, and the robots could no longer see their target. With their target lost, the robots stopped firing to let the smoke clear. After a minute, the smoke had dissipated enough to see, but there was no sign of the hedgehog, only the craters from the missile impacts.
"We have lost the target. There is no sign of weither Shadow was destroyed or not. Requesting orders."
Robotnik had called through a transceiver to the robots. "Wait there and guard the door. Do not leave your post until Shadow has been confirmed as terminated."
The robots spread out around the door to guard it from any direction, but there was no sign of Shadow anywhere. A few other SWATbots had arrived to inspect the cratered area, but they could find no evidence of Shadow's demise.
"Looking for me?"
All the robots turned to see that Shadow had snuck by and was standing in front of the door. All of them levelled their weapons.
Robotnik almost jumped out of his chair. "No! Don't shoot at the door! Grab him!"
Back outside, the SWATbots got the order and charged the black and white hedgehog, while the tanks and flyers held fast. Shadow didn't move as the robots came closer, but he wore a big smirk on his face.
"I hope you like to party, cause you're going out with a bang!"
Shadow held up several wires in his hands, and brought the ends together, causing a spark.
The robots didn't have time to look, but the wires ran along the ground, behind them, and up into the tanks. In the short time of Shadow's disappearance, he had snuck in and sabotaged all six tanks. The spark was quickly joined by the massive blasts of the tanks' cannons, still aimed for the door and now the troop of SWATbots.
Shadow zipped out of the way, just in time to escape the fiery death of the robots and the large blast door.
"Man, that was too easy."
Shadow jolted again, past the destroyed door and out of range of the tanks and fliers.
"Blast it! That filthy rodent is inside!"
Robotnik started to frantically push buttons on the console in front of him.
"He still has a way to go before reaching me, but I can't let him."
Shadow made his way through the massive structure, and although he had a good idea as to where to find Robotnik, he really had no idea how to get there. Shadow charged forward, looking for any way to get to the center of the building.
For a few minutes, he raced through hallways, destroying any robots Robotnik was foolish enough to put in his way. Then he came to a large door, which he figured led to the very heart of the structure and entered.
