THE NEED FOR SPEED
Sacrifice
--------------------
It was glorious.
I didn't care what the Chaos energies did to me, to my soul.
All I cared about was the power.
It was different. The strength had never manifested physically before. Multi-colored shards of the Emeralds lay embedded in my arm and chest.
I could feel it. I felt the flow of cosmic energies surging through me.
But it was not without cost.
It was almost too much. It was painful to breathe, and my arm quivered slightly.
Not that I cared. I was just glad to feel the energy.
"At last," Super Shadow said quietly. "At long last. It's time to see who really is superior, once and for all."
I lazily shifted my gaze to him, but remained silent.
My silence irritated my foe, and he flew towards me.
I couldn't help but chuckle. When had he become so slow? I could now easily follow his movements,
He flew in with a quick right hook, but I was now fast enough to not just dodge it, but counter it.
I shifted to the side and buried my left fist into his gut.
Though my attack worked, he surprised me with a swift kick to my temple.
I found myself hurtling through the air before crashing into a building.
And I laughed.
It had been a strong kick, and I wasn't able to stop myself before the collision.
But it didn't hurt, nothing hurt.
Oh how I forgot the joys of this form.
No pain, no cold, no feeling at all.
Only power.
I burst forth from the rubble and charged with a straight right.
The look on my enemy's face was priceless.
Surprise, confusion, fear.
Yet despite this, my changed arm was too slow, and he darted above my clumsy attack.
It was slow, and despite my feeling nothing, it hurt to use it.
But I knew, I somehow knew.
All it would take is one.
If I could lay my misshapen hand on him just once, I could end it.
Like he said, once and for all.
I didn't turn to face him, I sensed his hesitation as he gazed at my back, dumbfounded.
I couldn't help but taunt him. "What's wrong?" a powerful, mysterious voice chuckled my words. "You were so confident a moment ago."
I slowly turned.
As my eyes fell on him, my arm twitched with a life of its own.
It wanted to destroy him too.
I tensed its muscles to the best of my ability to still it.
Not yet, I want him to fear me.
I want him to feel the impending doom, the inescapable pain I suffered upon learning about our upcoming battle.
"SONIC! SHADOW!"
Shadow turned to look, but I just looked out from the corner of my eye, appearing to remain fixated on my opponent.
It was my 'friends'. Amy, Knuckles, Rouge, Tails, and for a moment, I thought I saw Tikal and Chaos with them.
How could they, these fools, call themselves my friends when the knew and understood so little about me?
About us?
I snorted in contempt. It didn't matter, they were nothing more than an audience to experience my power.
Realizing that Shadow remained distracted, I lowered my shoulder and plowed into his back.
I flew downward and pinned him on the ground.
"You sicken me!" the new voice dwelling in my throat growled. "Whatever warranted your concept that you could ever compare to me?"
He struggled weakly, but I held him fast.
"Sonic."
It was Shadow, the REAL Shadow.
I loosened my grip in surprise.
A foolish mistake.
Faster than he had been before, he leapt up and kneed my chest, causing me to keel over in reflex.
I cursed my weak-hearted mistake as he followed up with a snap-kick to the back of my head, laying me flat on the ground.
Before I could retaliate, he grabbed my ankle and hurled me into the sky.
"CHAOS SPEAR!"
As I tumbled upwards, I saw him become surrounded by energy before throwing his open hand upwards and firing a beam of light.
He was hiding his true speed!
There was no time to react, to think! The wave of power was upon me almost instantly.
My emerald-covered arm flew up before my without a thought as the attack struck.
I felt nothing. All the attacks, the air, nothing.
But as the blast struck me, I felt the shards of The Seven tear out from my skin, and I cried out my fury that I should suffer so.
As the attack ended, my arm was mostly bare, save the countless gashes where the shards had been.
I gazed with wonder at my wounds.
"How could this happen?" my new voice muttered almost absent- mindedly.
"How could you?"
"HOW COULD YOU HURT ME?!"
I clenched my fist so tightly, the last pieces of emerald dug deeper into my flesh.
"YOU WEAKLING! YOU ARE DEAD!"
Faster than sound, faster than light, faster than Chaos Control, I was upon him.
My disfigured hand flew to his face, and slammed his head to the ground.
I was rewarded with a howl of agony as the shards were thrust into his flesh.
And I laughed.
His strength, his power was being drained into the stones, into me.
Then it was my turn to scream as new gem pieces formed from within my arm, and burst forth.
In his panic, he swung his right fist into my eye, but I didn't care.
There was more! He had more power for me to take!
I continued to draw his life energy, and more gems sprouted from my arm, and around my back.
And he continued to hit me.
But as my power grew, and his weakened, he struck with less and less force.
"Be glad." My altered voice hissed through grit teeth. "Our rivalry ends now. And we shall both become something more powerful than anything before us!"
I would have too.
But one large emerald piece was suddenly jammed in deep.
I let go in shock as a pain like none I had ever encountered in my already painful life washed over me.
Shadow, now glowing much dimmer than before, followed his instincts of fear and soared off.
I whirled around, who had dared to strike me?!
There, wielding her ever-present piko-piko hammer, stood a pink Hedgehog, shaking with fear, and tears in her eyes.
"You?" the voice said.
"Sonic," Her voice trembled almost as much as her body. "I don't know what's happened to you, but you have to still be in there somewhere." The hammer dropped from her hand. "Please Sonic."
I couldn't believe it. "Why would you do that, worm?" my right arm, now more emerald than flesh clutched her neck and lifter her off the ground.
"Why would you be so foolish as to try and harm me?"
"You're and insect, you're NOTHING!"
"I might have ignored you, might have let you live."
"Now, for your ignorance, you need to die."
My grip, fully capable of crushing her throat into powder, only tightened slightly.
She resisted the urge to struggle, to fight for her life, hopeless as it was for her.
She merely hung there as her windpipe was slowly constricted.
I was fully aware of her other three friends fighting with all their pathetic strength to stop me, but they inflicted on harm, so they could wait.
"Fine," she choked out. "I. love you. I would. gladly die for you.. If that is. what you really want. then. kill. me."
I DO! I screamed in my mind.
I DO WANT THIS!
THIS IS WHAT I WANT!
Isn't it?
'no..' a quiet voice called out inside me.
"No," I muttered as my voice shifted in pitch, back to what it once was.
"No, NO!"
As if awakening from a terrible nightmare, only to find it was real, I suddenly came to my senses.
Panic flooded my mind as I madly tried to let go of her, to let her live, but the gems seemed to move of their own free will, forcing my arm.
"NO! STOP! NO!" I screamed as Amy's eyes slowly shut. I furiously struck my possessed arm with the other.
"PLEASE!" I cried as tears began to blur my vision. "Please! LET HER LIVE!"
The gods heard my prayer and answered in the form of a sudden flying kick to my head.
I skidded along the ground over fifty yards before Amy's crumpled body hit the ground.
"DO NOT IGNORE ME, FAKER!" Super Shadow hollered at me as he landed from his surprise-attack.
My chaos-powered body responded before I could.
I launched myself at him again, he stood no chance in his weakened state.
I then resumed stealing his strength. Again, I could only watch helplessly as my body, spawning more bejeweled coating by the second, gripped him by the shoulders and drew in his power.
Shadow again tried to free himself, but again it was futile.
I could feel myself, my consciousness, be slowly squeezed from my body, being forced out my the gems of power that spread across my body like a wildfire.
As only my face remained, I watched as yet another body became limp in my out-of-control arms.
As Shadow's aura faded, as his glowing platinum color became black once again.
There was nothing left to do.
I had hurt, maybe even KILLED my two dearest friends, and I had now become a greater threat than the one I had just stopped.
Only one option was left.
The gems continued to grow and spread over me, it wouldn't be long.
I took the only action left to me as the last of my control, my spirit was overtaken.
"I'm. sorry." I muttered to no one in particular.
And as the blackness of eternity overtook me, I drew one last breath.
"CHAOS CONTROL!!"
Sacrifice
--------------------
It was glorious.
I didn't care what the Chaos energies did to me, to my soul.
All I cared about was the power.
It was different. The strength had never manifested physically before. Multi-colored shards of the Emeralds lay embedded in my arm and chest.
I could feel it. I felt the flow of cosmic energies surging through me.
But it was not without cost.
It was almost too much. It was painful to breathe, and my arm quivered slightly.
Not that I cared. I was just glad to feel the energy.
"At last," Super Shadow said quietly. "At long last. It's time to see who really is superior, once and for all."
I lazily shifted my gaze to him, but remained silent.
My silence irritated my foe, and he flew towards me.
I couldn't help but chuckle. When had he become so slow? I could now easily follow his movements,
He flew in with a quick right hook, but I was now fast enough to not just dodge it, but counter it.
I shifted to the side and buried my left fist into his gut.
Though my attack worked, he surprised me with a swift kick to my temple.
I found myself hurtling through the air before crashing into a building.
And I laughed.
It had been a strong kick, and I wasn't able to stop myself before the collision.
But it didn't hurt, nothing hurt.
Oh how I forgot the joys of this form.
No pain, no cold, no feeling at all.
Only power.
I burst forth from the rubble and charged with a straight right.
The look on my enemy's face was priceless.
Surprise, confusion, fear.
Yet despite this, my changed arm was too slow, and he darted above my clumsy attack.
It was slow, and despite my feeling nothing, it hurt to use it.
But I knew, I somehow knew.
All it would take is one.
If I could lay my misshapen hand on him just once, I could end it.
Like he said, once and for all.
I didn't turn to face him, I sensed his hesitation as he gazed at my back, dumbfounded.
I couldn't help but taunt him. "What's wrong?" a powerful, mysterious voice chuckled my words. "You were so confident a moment ago."
I slowly turned.
As my eyes fell on him, my arm twitched with a life of its own.
It wanted to destroy him too.
I tensed its muscles to the best of my ability to still it.
Not yet, I want him to fear me.
I want him to feel the impending doom, the inescapable pain I suffered upon learning about our upcoming battle.
"SONIC! SHADOW!"
Shadow turned to look, but I just looked out from the corner of my eye, appearing to remain fixated on my opponent.
It was my 'friends'. Amy, Knuckles, Rouge, Tails, and for a moment, I thought I saw Tikal and Chaos with them.
How could they, these fools, call themselves my friends when the knew and understood so little about me?
About us?
I snorted in contempt. It didn't matter, they were nothing more than an audience to experience my power.
Realizing that Shadow remained distracted, I lowered my shoulder and plowed into his back.
I flew downward and pinned him on the ground.
"You sicken me!" the new voice dwelling in my throat growled. "Whatever warranted your concept that you could ever compare to me?"
He struggled weakly, but I held him fast.
"Sonic."
It was Shadow, the REAL Shadow.
I loosened my grip in surprise.
A foolish mistake.
Faster than he had been before, he leapt up and kneed my chest, causing me to keel over in reflex.
I cursed my weak-hearted mistake as he followed up with a snap-kick to the back of my head, laying me flat on the ground.
Before I could retaliate, he grabbed my ankle and hurled me into the sky.
"CHAOS SPEAR!"
As I tumbled upwards, I saw him become surrounded by energy before throwing his open hand upwards and firing a beam of light.
He was hiding his true speed!
There was no time to react, to think! The wave of power was upon me almost instantly.
My emerald-covered arm flew up before my without a thought as the attack struck.
I felt nothing. All the attacks, the air, nothing.
But as the blast struck me, I felt the shards of The Seven tear out from my skin, and I cried out my fury that I should suffer so.
As the attack ended, my arm was mostly bare, save the countless gashes where the shards had been.
I gazed with wonder at my wounds.
"How could this happen?" my new voice muttered almost absent- mindedly.
"How could you?"
"HOW COULD YOU HURT ME?!"
I clenched my fist so tightly, the last pieces of emerald dug deeper into my flesh.
"YOU WEAKLING! YOU ARE DEAD!"
Faster than sound, faster than light, faster than Chaos Control, I was upon him.
My disfigured hand flew to his face, and slammed his head to the ground.
I was rewarded with a howl of agony as the shards were thrust into his flesh.
And I laughed.
His strength, his power was being drained into the stones, into me.
Then it was my turn to scream as new gem pieces formed from within my arm, and burst forth.
In his panic, he swung his right fist into my eye, but I didn't care.
There was more! He had more power for me to take!
I continued to draw his life energy, and more gems sprouted from my arm, and around my back.
And he continued to hit me.
But as my power grew, and his weakened, he struck with less and less force.
"Be glad." My altered voice hissed through grit teeth. "Our rivalry ends now. And we shall both become something more powerful than anything before us!"
I would have too.
But one large emerald piece was suddenly jammed in deep.
I let go in shock as a pain like none I had ever encountered in my already painful life washed over me.
Shadow, now glowing much dimmer than before, followed his instincts of fear and soared off.
I whirled around, who had dared to strike me?!
There, wielding her ever-present piko-piko hammer, stood a pink Hedgehog, shaking with fear, and tears in her eyes.
"You?" the voice said.
"Sonic," Her voice trembled almost as much as her body. "I don't know what's happened to you, but you have to still be in there somewhere." The hammer dropped from her hand. "Please Sonic."
I couldn't believe it. "Why would you do that, worm?" my right arm, now more emerald than flesh clutched her neck and lifter her off the ground.
"Why would you be so foolish as to try and harm me?"
"You're and insect, you're NOTHING!"
"I might have ignored you, might have let you live."
"Now, for your ignorance, you need to die."
My grip, fully capable of crushing her throat into powder, only tightened slightly.
She resisted the urge to struggle, to fight for her life, hopeless as it was for her.
She merely hung there as her windpipe was slowly constricted.
I was fully aware of her other three friends fighting with all their pathetic strength to stop me, but they inflicted on harm, so they could wait.
"Fine," she choked out. "I. love you. I would. gladly die for you.. If that is. what you really want. then. kill. me."
I DO! I screamed in my mind.
I DO WANT THIS!
THIS IS WHAT I WANT!
Isn't it?
'no..' a quiet voice called out inside me.
"No," I muttered as my voice shifted in pitch, back to what it once was.
"No, NO!"
As if awakening from a terrible nightmare, only to find it was real, I suddenly came to my senses.
Panic flooded my mind as I madly tried to let go of her, to let her live, but the gems seemed to move of their own free will, forcing my arm.
"NO! STOP! NO!" I screamed as Amy's eyes slowly shut. I furiously struck my possessed arm with the other.
"PLEASE!" I cried as tears began to blur my vision. "Please! LET HER LIVE!"
The gods heard my prayer and answered in the form of a sudden flying kick to my head.
I skidded along the ground over fifty yards before Amy's crumpled body hit the ground.
"DO NOT IGNORE ME, FAKER!" Super Shadow hollered at me as he landed from his surprise-attack.
My chaos-powered body responded before I could.
I launched myself at him again, he stood no chance in his weakened state.
I then resumed stealing his strength. Again, I could only watch helplessly as my body, spawning more bejeweled coating by the second, gripped him by the shoulders and drew in his power.
Shadow again tried to free himself, but again it was futile.
I could feel myself, my consciousness, be slowly squeezed from my body, being forced out my the gems of power that spread across my body like a wildfire.
As only my face remained, I watched as yet another body became limp in my out-of-control arms.
As Shadow's aura faded, as his glowing platinum color became black once again.
There was nothing left to do.
I had hurt, maybe even KILLED my two dearest friends, and I had now become a greater threat than the one I had just stopped.
Only one option was left.
The gems continued to grow and spread over me, it wouldn't be long.
I took the only action left to me as the last of my control, my spirit was overtaken.
"I'm. sorry." I muttered to no one in particular.
And as the blackness of eternity overtook me, I drew one last breath.
"CHAOS CONTROL!!"