Before the Vision
Chapter 8: The World Outside
A soft blue light with its ambient presence filled the small room gently. A young girl laid in her bed sleeping softly with the alarm clock on her bed stand reading 5:09 a.m. in lime numbers. The air was still and peaceful until her bedroom door opened up silently and closed a second later. In the midst of the lit darkness a pair of red and white shoes crept silently to the girl's bedside. The black and red hedgehog looked over at the sleeper and gently placed a hand on her should.
"Maria…" he whispered.
The girl did not stir. The hedgehog shook the sleeping girl gently, still whispering her name.
"Maria… wake up Maria."
Finally the young teenager turned facing the hedgehog murmuring in her sleep causing the hedgehog to growl under his breath silently. Impatiently he placed both hands on the girl and shook her slightly harder than before.
"Maria…" he whined a little louder.
Successfully Maria awoke dazed with sleep in her eyes. She pushed herself up squinting at the clock and then back at the eager hedgehog.
"Shadow…" Maria wiped some sleep from her eyes. "It's five in the morning. What are you doing up?"
"I'm ready to go outside." Shadow complained moving impatiently. "Let's go!"
Maria was going to respond but instead gave a short yawn and laid back down turning away from Shadow. The hedgehog crossed his arms scoffing in an upset manner.
"The sun's not out yet." he heard his friend reply sleepily. "Go back to sleep on the couch. We can leave a few hours."
Shadow exhaled heavily and left Maria's room angered closing her door softly. Out in the main area the kitchen light over the stove was turned on leaving the living room area in darkness. Still feeling disappointed, Shadow plopped down onto the couch and sat there listening to the stillness. The ticking noise of the grandfather clock, which was usually unnoticeable, suddenly became loud and unruly in the silence. The hedgehog's left ear began to twitch in time with the clock's boisterous noise. Shadow then kept his eye on the clock's face watching the second hand move ever so slowly and testing his nerves.
After fifteen seconds Shadow finally let out a rather loud growl and laid across the couch on his back, his hands behind his head. The clock's incessant ticking still continued to pester his mind. Suddenly a song Maria had played on her radio popped into Shadow's head. He began to hum it in hopes of drowning out the clock's noise. His planned worked for only a few seconds and once again the hedgehog's impatience got the best of him. The black hedgehog sat up glancing up at the grandfather clock. Only a minute had gone by!? Waiting a couple of hours for Maria and Gerald to wake up was going to kill Shadow sooner or later.
Just when things looked hopeless Shadow's eyes fell upon a heavy book on the coffee table. Perhaps reading would pass the time quickly since nothing else seemed to work. With another heavy sigh Shadow opened up the book and began to read it.
Two hours passed and soon the brilliant sun rose outside. Residents of the underground compound began to wake up little by little and filled the hallways with their noise. Prof. Gerald was the first to wake in the Robotnik home. The old professor exited out of his room wearing a burgundy robe and black slippers on his feet. As he placed his thick glasses over his eyes Gerald stopped immediately shocked to see Shadow already up. The hedgehog was now kneeling next to coffee table, the chess board sitting in front of him. The heavy book he had started reading hours ago was on the floor and Shadow was amusing himself with the chess pieces playing with them tiredly like toys.
"How long have you been awake Shadow?" Gerald asked walking towards the living room area.
"Been up since five." Shadow replied drearily knocking a chess piece over.
"Oh I see." Gerald entered into the kitchen. "Anxious to go above ground?"
"Hell yeah! Oops… I mean yes."
Gerald simply chuckled at the hedgehog's demeanor and proceeded to make himself a cup of coffee. Shadow went back to the chess pieces knocking a bishop over before sighing in frustration. Tired of waiting any longer for Maria, the temperamental hedgehog got up and stormed over to Maria's bedroom door. Gerald glanced over his shoulder as he heard Shadow knocking harshly on the door.
"Maria!" Shadow whined loudly. "Hurry up already! The sun's not gonna stay out forever!"
"Shadow!" Maria's muffled voice responded slightly annoyed.
Light footsteps were heard coming towards the door and Maria opened it. She was still in her nightgown and gave Shadow an irritated look.
"I'll be out ok? Just let me get change into my day clothes."
The door closed again and Shadow walked back into the living room with his arms crossed. He sat on the couch scowling at the chess board and then looked at Gerald who was sipping his coffee. Although they conveyed no words the hedgehog turned away giving his usual scoff as a response.
"Patience Shadow." Gerald finally spoke. "You and Maria will have plenty of time to go outside and see everything."
"But she's taking too long. I hate waiting." Shadow grumbled.
"You mustn't be so demanding of others Shadow. Not everything will go the way you want to and you'll have to learn how to wait on a few things."
The hedgehog gave no response.
"You can either be more polite to Maria or I can forbid you from going outside at all…"
Shadow released his impatient anger and sighed dropping his arms.
"Fine then professor." he said calming down. "I'll be nice to Maria."
Gerald simply nodded as he took another sip of his coffee. Finally Maria's bedroom door opened and she came out in her sea green dress ready to go.
"Ready to go Shadow?" she asked her friend.
The black hedgehog nodded quietly, slid off the couch, and walked towards the door. Maria followed him and before she exited the home turned back to wave goodbye to Gerald. The metal door closed behind the two as they began to walk down the small corridor. Shadow moved at a slow pace looking down at the floor before he spoke to Maria.
"I…I'm sorry for being so rude to you Maria." he apologized.
"It's ok Shadow." Maria answered. "I understand that you really want to go outside and couldn't wait."
The young girl noticed that Shadow still hung his head. She patted him gently on top of his head grabbing his attention. As he looked up, Maria smiled at him with a small giggle lifting the hedgehog's spirits a bit. He smiled as well and began to pick up the pace down the hallway.
"Come on!" Shadow said in a lighter tone as he went into a jog. "The sun's not going to wait on us."
Maria laughed a bit before she ran after her friend. They made their way down the various hallways passing a few other residents and then to the elevator that would take them above ground to the institute. Maria hurried into the elevator where Shadow was waiting and the door closed slowly. As the machine ascended up the shaft Shadow felt his heartbeat rise slightly. The machine reached the ground floor of the institute and the hedgehog raced out of the elevator as the doors opened.
"Wait up!" Maria called after her friend.
But he didn't stop for the exit to the world outside was just ahead of him. Shadow was drawn towards the bright light like a moth to a flame; he couldn't stop himself. The glass entrance doors drew closer and closer… and finally the hedgehog broke into the light of the outside world. He was slightly blinded at first but then his eyes began to adjust to the light… his heart nearly jumped at the gorgeous sight before him. It was better than he imagined, more beautiful than he had ever dreamed of. Fresh cool air, a rich colored sky, and… buildings. Most of the buildings were small but gave the town a quaint feeling to it.
Shadow was at a lost for words as his jaw hung open. Maria walked out of the institute and stood behind Shadow taking in a breath of fresh air.
"Smells wonderful doesn't it?" Maria asked.
Shadow nodded his head almost mindlessly as he observed the scenery. A few cars drove on the streets passing by the two. People walking on the sidewalks gave strange and curious looks at the hedgehog. He failed to notice their looks and just gawked at them as they walked by. Small children waved to the hedgehog with a smile and Shadow returned the greeting unconsciously. After a few seconds Shadow began to take a few steps to his right, slowly walking down the sidewalk with Maria behind him.
He couldn't believe his eyes at the bright colors he saw. Although the sun was still rising into the sky it was high enough for Shadow to feel its warm rays shower down on his body. His eyes gazed up at the color changing sky as it began to change to the vibrant light blue he was familiar with. Suddenly a car honked its horn as it drove by frightening the hedgehog. He watched the vehicle zoom around the corner and soon began to pick up his pace. Maria chased after him following Shadow around the corner.
"Shadow, we're not supposed to go too far from the institute!" Maria shouted to the hedgehog.
Yet he still kept on running until he came to the intersection at the end of the block. A few people were at the crosswalk waiting to cross the street when Shadow approached the small group. Whispers and comments came from the people as the hedgehog stood among them looking at the traffic lights and cars in amazement. Maria finally reached Shadow slightly out of breath.
"You know this is as far as we can go…" Maria informed Shadow.
"Hmm… I want to see more." Shadow replied.
"What?"
"I want to see more. Where's the grass and the dirt and the ocean? I want to see everything I saw in my books."
"Well uh…"
The crosswalk sign changed and the small group of people began to cross the street. Shadow began to move once again with Maria close by.
"I believe there's a park area just ahead of us Shadow." Maria called out to her friend who was slowly pulling away from her.
The two were approaching another intersection and Shadow came to a halt as he gazed across the street at a brand new sight to behold. The small park Maria had mentioned stood across the street enticing Shadow to explore it. The street was clear, the path became obvious… it was the only other place Shadow wanted to see. The fresh smell of early morning grass danced across his nose; the sun's heavenly rays gave the park a peaceful appeal; the hedgehog rocked back and forth on his feet raring to enter into the dream land that awaited him.
"It's now or never." a voice said to Shadow.
He looked up behind him to see Maria patiently waiting for him to move.
"We can go in or go back home… it's up to you."
Shadow took another look at the park and then back at Maria.
"…Let's go." he finally responded grabbing Maria's hand.
She nodded in return and the two cautiously looked both ways down the street before crossing over into the park area. They entered into the emerald dream land and all reality seemed to escape from Shadow's mind. Slowly he detached himself from Maria stepping lightly into the park, his eyes wandering across the fields of green. Every color he saw leapt out at him and danced in his eyes to a beautiful ballet symphony. The morning songs of the birds traveled through his ears catching the hedgehog's attention. His eyes gazed up into a nearby tree were a few birds chirped to each other in a frantic yet sweet conversation. Suddenly their wings fluttered over Shadow's head as they flew off.
The hedgehog continued onward strolling along the path with Maria quietly hanging behind him observing the hedgehog. Shadow stopped at a small garden of flowers and knelt down for a closer look. A sweet aroma unlike anything else entered into the hedgehog's nose and he exhaled heavily. He reached out to pick a flower but Maria stopped him pointing to a sign nearby. "Do not pick the flowers" the sign read. No matter, the hedgehog lightly brushed the velvet petals of the flowers and stood up to move on.
As he continued down the path he noticed in the distance two children playing in the grass area and lying on their backs. Shadow closed his eyes remembering Maria's sensational description of the soft grass and dirt and how it felt in her hands. With no hesitation the hedgehog ran out into the grassy area and fell onto his back in a playful manner. A sigh of content came out of Shadow as the gentle and cool feel of the grass massaged his back. His fingers dug into the cushioned dirt beneath the grass lifting up a few clumps into his hands. Shadow sat up holding his hands up in front of him and felt through the soft, moist dirt. Slowly it crumbled to pieces as he felt through it and eventually Shadow dropped the remaining pieces of dirt to his side and laid in the grass. Quietly Maria joined him and laid next to the hedgehog and the two gazed up into the clear sky in silence.
"…Can we stay here all day?" Shadow asked.
"…Sure we can." Maria answered.
Those were the only words conveyed between the two in the midst of the 'fantasy world' they had entered into. No words could describe the atmosphere that surrounded them for it needed no description. Peace was among the two and it was protected by the serenity of the small park. A day such as this would never be forgotten in the mind of Shadow for he began to understand why life was so precious to humans. Their ambitions were not only driven by the dreams they conveyed and the support their loved ones gave them, but also by the world around them. A world full of colors and wonders that would inspire their dreams to see it all and keep it locked in the precious memories of their mind.
Then it all became clear to Shadow. He himself was becoming just like the humans that surrounded him. He too had dreams and ambitions to follow but there were too many to focus on… until now. A dream entered into his mind, a dream that seemed so wild and farfetched that only a human would think of such a dream. His dream was to see the world and capture it in a way that no one else would ever see it. Capture it by creating images of dramatic colors that would dance to a symphony of epic proportions. Capture the world and preserve it for all to see in… paintings! Yes painting is what he would do! If the outside world could inspire Shadow to live then perhaps he could inspire other humans that this is something worth living for in life. Yes he could inspire others… and Maria.
She smiled because of her disease, her terminal illness that would eventually kill her. Shadow realized that Prof. Gerald would continue to grow old and eventually leave Maria behind sooner or later. Then it would be left up to him… Maria's only 'brother'. He would never become a great scientist like Gerald but perhaps a cure doesn't have to come in the form of medicine. It can come in the form of inspiration, hope, and dreams. Shadow now had another dream to fulfill… to cure Maria with his vision… his vision of the world around him.