@_________________________________@;;;;;;;;;;; Terribly sorry for the delay. I haven't been able to work on this fic for awhile now. @_@;;; I graduate soon and my teachers thought it would be nice to give me tons of projects and stuff and work hasn't been easy and and and ::EXPLODES::

::Indi bits rain down::

::Shadow walks by with a broom and a hat on his head:: Damnit…I hate it when that happens… ::starts sweeping her up::

            The train whistle blew as the last train was heading for Station Square. After that, it would be shut down for the night, not returning to life until early the next morning. Tails was flying after it as fast as he could as Knuckles was running the tracks. Both boys had a hands-free earpiece on, so Rouge could tell them if there had been any updates to the GUN Database.

            " They weren't on that last train, Rouge. What if they indeed got captured?"
            Knuckles could hear Rouge typing on the keyboard.

            " So far there haven't been any reports. You know those two though. They're probably giving GUN a run for their money if they were spotted."
            Tails landed on the top of the last train car and swung down onto the caboose's small overhanging ledge, which was fenced in with iron bars to keep people from falling off of it if they wanted to get some fresh air. Knuckles jumped up into the air and quickly closed the gap between him and the end of the train. He snagged the horizontal bar of the iron gate and flipped himself up onto the platform with Tails.

            " We can only hope that the two of them either lost track of time, or they're running like hell from GUN officers." Rouge said via the communication link.

            " Yeah. They could have always missed the train too. Sonic's done that before."

            " Wouldn't he be running the tracks?" Tails asked the older male.

            " With Shadow as messed up as he is? Probably not. Maybe they got a room at that hotel. You know how Sonic likes to throw his heroism around in order to get free stuff."

            " That's true…" Tails made a small face.

            " Either way, boys. Be on guard. I haven't found any reports on us yet, but they might be keeping an eye out for you as well."

            " Right."

            The train zoomed down the tracks, pulling through the mountain and into the overpass of the city, where it slowly crawled to a halt into the station. The two didn't bother waiting until it fully stopped. They hopped the iron gate and landed on the platform, taking off down the stairs as the night attendant screamed at them for jumping off the train. Knuckles ignored him, while Tails waved back and apologized as he flew over the echidna as they raced out of the train station. The small orange kitsune crashed into Knuckles' shoulder as he had come to a complete stop on the porch.

            " Ow my nose…" Tails rubbed it a little bit. " Why'd you…stop…?"

            They scanned the area, noting the destruction. Cement was everywhere, along with parts of bricks that had been shot clean off the buildings.

            " Best bet is to say GUN spotted them." Knuckles touched his headset. " Rouge, it's a disaster area here."

            " What's the status?"
            " GUN went trigger happy."

            " Shit. Any sign of Sonic and/or Shadow?"

            " Not so much as a quill around here. We'll look around, though."

            " Ask locals. There are always people littering the streets. Someone had to have seen something."

            " Copy that." He looked over at the small fox. " Well, you heard her. Let's get moving."

            Tails nodded and took to the skies. Knuckles went on foot, scanning the area. There was a cleanup crew that had been scraping up some of the shards that lined the sidewalks, but they weren't from GUN, so the red echidna relaxed. Tails came on over the headset since he was already out of earshot compared to his friend.

            " Knuckles, it looks like the fight went from around here, then toward the station, and then back this way again."

            " Yeah, the patterns of the gunfire show that they crossed over the same line more than once. Either Sonic and Shadow were crafty or GUN's getting sloppy."

            " Probably both. Look, there's some skid marks over here."

            " You mean they chased them down with one of their 18-Wheelers again?"

            " I think they just blocked their path." Tails landed and looked at the skid marks.

            Knuckles joined him after getting a few looks from the cleanup crew.

            " Find something, twerp?"

            Tails didn't have a very reassuring look on his face.

            " Knuckles, there's blood here…"

            The echidna paled.

            " Shit. How much?"

            " Only a little. Looks like one of them got nicked or something."

            " Maybe they were trying to get one of them to fall."

            " Most likely. It looks like they went this way." Tails pointed to the alley nearby.

            " Scope it out, boys. We need to find all the clues we can." Rouge's voice came over the headset link.

            The two went into the alleyway, looking around for more clues. Shards of the walls were scattered against the ground and on top of things, like the overturned garbage cans and boxes that were littered about. Knuckles examined the broken corner of one of the buildings that led into the next alleyway. Tails noticed the shards continued on down the path. Once he had reached the opening in the alley, he scoped the area. The number of cement and brick shards was sporadic now, disappearing completely a few feet ahead. He flicked his communicator on.

            " Rouge, it looks like they must have taken Shadow and Sonic down here."

            There was a long pause on Rouge's end.

            " Miss Rouge?"

            " …You're sure?"

            Knuckles' voice came over the line.

            " He's right, Rouge. There's an opening in this alley and the gunshots don't pierce anymore of the walls from one point on. It looks like they blocked them in," The echidna was examining the ground where the shards did not lay. He traced a tire track with his gloved mitt. " Looks like another 18-Wheeler track…"

            " You know those two wouldn't go willingly…" The bat said on the line.

            " I know."

            " I'm searching the Database," Sounds of keyboard clicks were heard. " For any incoming reports about the two of them being captured…"

            " What should we do now, Knuckles?" Tails asked, looking up at his older friend.

            " They've most likely been caught." The echidna stated bluntly.

            " I know…"

            " Rouge, you want us to report back to base?"

            " Negative." She said firmly. " Not until I confirm if the two are in GUN's clutches or not."

            " But what should we…" Tails started.

            " Scope out the city, but be careful. GUN officers might still be around to keep an eye out for any one of us. If they have Sonic, then they know to look out for a small kitsune at least. I don't know if they have any info on Knuckles though."

            " Wouldn't surprise me if they did." The Guardian said. " After all, they don't have as many nice patrol bots around thanks to me." He flashed a grin at Tails, who snickered a little.

            The two boys took to the skies above the city. Both of them could hear Rouge typing away at the keyboard. Her fingers moved rapidly, causing the keys to make loud clacking noises into their earpieces.

            " Should we split up?" Tails asked quietly.

            " Hmm… I don't think that would be wise." Knuckles stated, his eyes narrowing.

            His young friend looked at him questioning.

            " Well, if GUN is looking out for us, then we should stick together. No use getting in a bout of trouble if we were by ourselves."

            " You have a point."

            The guardian smirked a little and continued gliding. Tails flew a little above him, looking about.

            " Any sign of GUN officials?"

            " Nope…"

            The sound of the keyboarding died down. A curse was heard. Knuckles touched his headset.

            " Rouge? What is it?"

            There was a long pause. The guardian raised the tone of his voice.

            " Rouge?"

            " I found something."

            " Well?"

            She sighed and began to read it.

            " 'Subjects Sonic and Shadow Hedgehog have been captured…both subjects have been tranquilized and taken to GUN Labs like instructed…'"

            " Well shit…" Knuckles said, tightening one of his massive fists.

            " We gotta get them out of there…"

            " Boys, return to base." Rouge stated dryly.

            " …You want us to come back?"

            " Yes. The two of you won't be able to get into the Lab without a plan."

            " But…" Tails protested.

            " Kid, you know I'm right. Get back home now."

            Tails frowned, lowering his eyes. Knuckles sighed at him.

            " She's right, you know."
            " I know…"

            " C'mon. We'll get them out of there. Don't worry."

            The kitsune nodded, following his friend as they circled the sky, looking for the station again. The trains had all stopped for the evening, so it would take some work for them to get back into the station so they could run the tracks back home. The doors were locked by now as well. Tails and Knuckles landed on the roof of the building and looked at each other, then smiled. It was a typical occurrence that the two of them had to do what they were about to do. Many times they missed the last train back home, so by now, the group had a specific opening to the overpass made so they would be able to get in. Knuckles moved over to the first panel in the glass that made up the overpass's top and gripped at the sides of it with his gloved hands. Tails had made grooves in the glass so it was easier to grip, so it didn't take Knuckles too long before he had the panel off.

            " Go on, kiddo."

            Tails nodded and slipped in through the opening, landing softly on the floor beneath him. Knuckles followed suit, replacing the panel as he hung from a light fixture. He dropped down, landing next to his small companion. They exchanged quick glances, then took off down the tunnel, heading back to Mystic Ruins.

***

            No…

            He tried to rush away. Glass fell, blockading. His hands tore against it.

            No!! Please! No!!!

            Screaming did nothing. It was muffed against the glass.

            NO! PLEASE!! DON'T!!

            The liquid flowed in. His fist beat against the glass.

            NOOOO!!!! DON'T DO IT!!! DON'T SHUT ME AWAY!! NOOooo…

***

            The scream echoed in his mind. Shadow grunted a little and tried to forget it. That was until he realized that it wasn't his voice anymore. The scream was real. And it was familiar. He forced his eyes to open and waited for them to stop from blurring. The area looked a little familiar, considering that he could barely see properly. It's from those damned tranquilizers…I know it…that's why I'm so out of it…Shadow tried to determine the voice behind the screaming. It was hard since his senses were very out of whack. He could smell blood though.

            " It would appear that the other is awake now."

            " No matter. We already have samples from him. He can wait and listen to his friend scream…"

            The onyx hedgehog groaned, feeling the restraints now. His…friend…? Another scream rang out, severely pained and clearer now. He felt his crimson eyes snap open.

            " SONIKKU!"

            The screaming continued. Most of it was unintelligible, but Shadow could pick out bits and pieces of actual words behind Sonic's screams. He struggled, still weak from the tranquilizer serum that had been pumped into him.

            " Should we worry about the black one…?"

            " No. He was hit with more tranquilizers than this one. He's not any threat to us as of yet."

            " Do you think we should actually sedate this one?"

            " Did we sedate the first one before?" The tone of the male voice showed his answer clearly.

            Whoever was hurting Sonic did not falter from tormenting him. His screams were beginning to get shrill and frantic. Shadow winced, feeling pain now himself. Someone moved.

            " Sir…?"

            " Monitor him."

            " Yes sir."

            Shadow trembled, unable to do anything. Being forced to hear his friend's screams was maddening. Sonikku… His blurry eyes blinked. He saw something else now. His vision was clearer, noting everything as it either moved, or made a sound. There were unfamiliar faces hovering around with placid looks plastered on them. Metal glinted in the air. Followed by severe pain. He felt the yelp gyrate through him as blood flowed. Another look down showed patches where skin had been removed, along with flesh. Everything stung. Someone placed wet cloths against the open patches of exposed flesh, searing them with the harsh chemicals that were soaked within. Another scream echoed. Along with more pain. Then he realized something he hadn't before. The fur was blue. What the…? Shadow blinked again and regained his cloudy vision. Something pierced his arm, causing him to scream, matching Sonic's. He looked down at where the throbbing was coming from, only to find that there was nothing there. Eh…?

            " The black one…he…"

            " I saw."

            " But…"

            " Continue monitoring him. I must test something."

            Shadow struggled. What is going on? They're not doing anything to me and yet I ache all over… Something bit into his right shoulder, moving down very slowly. Sonic's cry was louder than his, but the pain just continued.

            " Sir, I—"

            " Interesting…"

            He trembled slightly, thinking about the agony that Sonic had to have been going through. Shadow turned his head to try and locate his friend in the room. He squinted in order to see what he thought was Sonic. The blue hedgehog was strapped to a table, like Shadow had been when they had tortured him, immobile. Sonic was thrashing around as best as he could, hoping to be able to loosen his bonds. One of the Lab officials moved to a spot under Sonic's left shoulder, just above the peach fur of his chest. The blade bit into his flesh at such a sharp angle that Sonic screamed simple because of the digging motion that it was going at. Shadow felt a twinge in his flesh as well, gasping a little as the pain became more intense. The flesh was ripped away. Both hedgehogs screamed. Sonic groaned, turning his head to look at his friend. Shadow blinked a little as he noted the look on the azure hedgehog's face. Sonic's emerald eyes were half lidded, showing his fatigue.

            " S-sorry…Shadow-san…ugh…" And he was down and out.

            Someone snickered.

            " How touching."

            Shadow felt anger rising up through him like a burning flame.

            " You…fucking assholes…He's a hero…"

            " Ask me if I care."

            The onyx hedgehog blinked back anger and glared at one of the random officials. One moved toward him.

            " You…" The word hissed out like a plague. " I oughta----AAAAAH!!!"

            " You 'oughta' shut up and sleep, prisoner." The man with the shun gun said.

            Shadow felt his body shutting down. His eyes got heavy quickly. He struggled a little more before finally going limp. No…I have to help…So…ni…ccccc….

***

Come on…do it… you know you wanna leave a review… click the review button… @_@;;; ^.^

Shadow: O.o; How can bits talk?!

Sonic: I ain't gluing her back together again…

Shadow: u.u;; Damnit. I have to don't I?

Sonic: YUP! ^.^

Shadow: ::grumble:: .O!!!