"Huh?"
As Shadow stood, facing the two figures, he was dumbstruck as he wondered...
'How did that human know my name?'
The old man quickly made his way across the narrow valley until he was only about three meters from Shadow. Breathing heavily, he stopped, smiled, and waved.
The black hedgehog was apprehensive about the situation... but still, something was familiar about this old man... he didn't seem threatening at all...
...somehow, he was almost... friendly...
"Whoo... I really need to get into shape..." the old man mumbled. He looked up at Shadow. "So! Shadow the Hedgehog! I never thought I'd live to see you again!"
Shadow blinked, not sure what to say. "Um..."
"Oh, wait, you are Shadow, aren't you?" The old man took his glasses off and wiped them. "My eyes aren't quite what they used to be... But you are Shadow, aren't you? I never forget a face. Maybe a name, but not a face." The old man smiled.
Shadow nodded slowly. "Yes... I'm Shadow," he acknowledged hesitantly.
"I knew it!" The old man's eyes twinkled happily. Suddenly, he sighed. "Time's been kind to you, hasn't it?"
"I..." Shadow wasn't sure what to say. After all... he didn't recall ever meeting this person, as nice as he might seem...
"Hm."
Shadow saw a light of understanding in the old man's eyes.
"I see," the old man said. "You don't remember me, do you?"
"I... I'm afraid not." Shadow looked down.
"Ah, well... maybe a chat would refresh your memory. Come into the house," the old man said, motioning towards a house, hidden in the shadows of the valley. "Have yourself a snack, son."
"Thank you..." Shadow slowly began to follow the old man. He looked up.
"Excuse me?"
The old man turned around. "Yes, Shadow?"
"You know my name... but I don't know yours."
"Oh! Of course!" The old man laughed. "My name's Tamine Kagaku. Er... Professor Tamine Kagaku. Although, even if you did remember me, you probably wouldn't know that I've become a professor since... Yes, well..." Kagaku sighed as he walked back to the house. "A lot can change in fifty years."
-
Once they were all settled in around the table and each had a hot cup of tea, Kagaku tried to start up a conversation.
"So, Shadow... what brings you around here?"
The only response was silence.
"Shadow?" Kagaku repeated, while Talula sat quietly. Shadow simply stared into the teacup.
Finally, Shadow sighed and answered.
"To be perfectly honest... I'm not sure."
"Oh." That wasn't really the answer that Kagaku had been expecting.
"But," Shadow continued, "there's a few things that... I'd like to ask you... Beginning with," the black hedgehog looked up, "how you know my name."
Kagaku looked at Shadow wonderingly. "You really don't remember, do you?"
Shadow blinked. "Remember what?"
Kagaku smiled gently and set his teacup down on the table. "Remember our old days, back on ARK? When I was Professor Robotnik's intern?"
"ARK...?" Shadow set his teacup down also. "You worked for... Robotnik...?" Kagaku laughed.
"I did more than that! I helped to create you!"
However, Shadow's response was not what Kagaku had anticipated. Shadow had suddenly looked down, shaking...
"Shadow...?"
Shadow's face jerked up, his eyes blazing. "I hate that name! I hate him!" The black hedgehog slammed his hands on the table, standing up. "I'll never forgive him for what he did to me!"
"Shadow, calm down!" Kagaku yelped, also standing up. "What are you talking about? Gerald was our friend... he was like a father to me... and like a grandfather to you," Kagaku added. Shadow turned his head to one side.
A dawn of realization came over Kagaku. He said slowly, "We're not talking about the Gerald we knew on ARK, are we?"
Shadow sighed and turned his face back to Kagaku. "I can't forgive him... I won't ever forgive him. Even though I know he's dead and gone... it was all because of him." Shadow paused and looked up at Kagaku. "Please understand... it's... because of him that I can't remember you... sir," he added.
Kagaku sighed. "I never was really sure what happened to the professor after ARK was abandoned. I knew the loss of his granddaughter would be terrible for him..." Kagaku looked at Shadow. "I have been wondering, for almost fifty years now, what did old Gerald do that cost him his life?"
Shadow shook his head. "I don't know. Actually, I wasn't even sure what had happened to him. It was just... one day, he was gone. I didn't know if he was locked up, or executed, or what... I always just assumed he, well, got what was coming to him..."
Kagaku sat back down in his chair, while Shadow did likewise. "Shadow... perhaps I would be able to understand you a little better if you would explain what happened to you... after we got down from ARK."
Shadow nodded slowly. "I will... on one condition."
"What's that?"
"Tell me about... myself." Shadow's eyes half-closed in remembrance. "I barely remember anything about myself... about Maria... about my life. And there's questions I want answered, too... I hope I'm not imposing too much," Shadow looked up.
Kagaku smiled. "Of course not. Well, for starters, you were always wondering about yourself back on ARK, too, so you haven't changed as much as you might think you have."
A small smile crept across Shadow's face. The hedgehog asked, "Where should I start?"
As Kagaku looked at Shadow, he noticed a twinge of emotion in the black hedgehog's eyes.
'Of course,' Kagaku thought. 'It all truly started...
...with Maria's death...'
"Why don't you just start with what you remember since you arrived on Earth?" Kagaku suggested, knowing that, perhaps, even though it had been so long for him since the death of that young girl...
...that Shadow had not had time to heal...
Shadow thought, then said, "I honestly don't remember much. I can recall my capsule landing... crashing, I suppose... But from there on there's not much more until when I was awakened from where I was frozen... Although," Shadow paused, "...the professor did experiment with me... I think... I think that's when I lost my memories."
"Oh..." Kagaku nodded. "I understand..."
Shadow continued. "And, I guess it's okay to say this, now that I know what she really wanted... but I used to think..." He shifted uncomfortably.
"Yes? Go on?"
Shadow sighed. "I... used to think that I'd found my reason for being... because I thought I was meant to take revenge for Maria..."
Kagaku stood up. "...it all makes sense now," he said out loud, although Shadow and Talula could tell that he was really saying it to himself.
Talula spoke up. "Sir? What makes sense?"
Kagaku looked down at the two hedgehogs. "We'd better move to somewhere more comfortable. This story could take a while."
-
Thankfully, though Talula's house was much too small to house furniture for an adult human and another hedgehog, she knew of all the places in the valley that served just as well for a living room. On this day, Shadow and Kagaku were brought to a shaded clearing behind the small house.
"All right, you two... ready for a good long story?" Kagaku cleared his throat as the three sat down on the soft grass.
He smiled at Talula. "Let me know if I've told you this before... my memory's going, I don't know how many times I've gone off on some doddering tale while I was talking to you."
Talula smiled weakly. "Um... I'll let you know."
Shadow spoke. "Before we begin, could I please have the honor of knowing my company...?" He nodded towards Talula.
"Oh! Of course," Kagaku laughed, lightly slapping his forehead. "Shadow, meet Talula... Talula, Shadow. Actually, Shadow, the story of how I met Talula is very closely related to the story of how I know you..."
"Professor?" Talula interrupted. "Ah... perhaps Shadow would like to learn about himself rather than me...?"
"What? Oh, um, yes... Well, I'll get to that part of the story when I get to it, I suppose..." The professor cleared his throat.
"Now, see, it all began when I was a student in college. Only 21 at the time, how I miss my younger days...
"Anyway, I was very interested in what had been going on for a few years by that time... It had been about four or five years since Professor Gerald Robotnik had been working on what was rumored to be an 'Ultimate Life Form'. Of course, the general public had little or no knowledge of such a thing. The general public doesn't like to hear about things it doesn't understand," Kagaku chuckled.
"Of course, although the space colony ARK was nearly self-sufficient, the growing of plants, and therefore food, was not a perfected process, so the professor had to come down to the planet about once a month. On one of these trips, I approached him."
"You knew where he came down each time?" Shadow asked in surprise.
"He always came back to Station Square; that's was his home base, I guess you could say. So one day I approached him, and told him that I was intrigued by what was going on up on the space colony. He was a kind old man back then, and after hearing that I wanted so badly to go up in space, he let me. So, from then on, I was his assistant.
"When I first arrived on ARK, the project called Project: Shadow was well underway. Of course, it was still in its early stages, since they were still working on the Biolizard. Unfortunately, the whole thing was taking much longer than the professor had anticipated. You see, the whole project was being based on the study of Chaos Emeralds, and apparently lizards and other reptilian creatures do not handle Chaos Energy, as we called it, well.
"The professor had originally chosen lizards because it seemed that they had been around for thousands of years, so they would have a very strong life force and stable DNA sequence... but, after working with one for several years, he finally had to admit that maybe a lizard wasn't the best choice.
"He ended up with a hedgehog."
"Why a hedgehog?" Shadow asked quietly.
"Well... several reasons, really. You see... Gerald had read a lot about the legends surrounding the Chaos Emeralds. And part of the legend mentioned that the Emeralds had once been protected by an ancient tribe of echidnas. He never did find out if that was really true or not--"
"It's true," Shadow interrupted.
"Really?" Kagaku was surprised.
"It's true." Shadow smiled. "I have a... a..." He paused. Kagaku nodded, urging Shadow to continue.
"...friend... he's a descendant of those echidnas..."
"Truly?" Shadow nodded.
Kagaku smiled. "I would like to meet this friend of yours. Now, where was I? Oh, yes... Well, according to that legend, a monster had annihilated the entire echidna tribe (although, according to you, that can't be completely true, can it?), so Gerald wanted to find the next best thing. Now, there really isn't much proof that echidnas and hedgehogs are alike genetically, but they do look a great deal alike, which is part of the reason why Gerald decided to experiment with them. Oh, and you should thank his granddaughter, too," Kagaku smiled. "She hated lizards and reptiles... the like. She had been begging him for something she could hug for the longest time...
"Well, the good old man was either brilliant, or he simply had a stroke of good luck. Hedgehogs seemed to react very well to Chaos Energy. Of course, it would still be a while before the process of imbuing a creature with Chaos Energy was perfected, but he was well on his way.
"Now, at about the time that he had decided to switch from lizards to hedgehogs, I arrived on ARK. As a result, I was able to see how Chaos Energy affected them, which comes up a little later... Anyway, about a year from when I first started working on Project: Shadow, you were born.
"This was huge for us scientists, because you likely held the key to our goal, Shadow. You probably had the secrets of--"
"Immortality," Shadow finished, rather bitterly. Kagaku nodded.
Shadow looked up at the old man, almost pleadingly. "I don't remember much of my past... but I know that I was created with the power of Chaos Energy within me... and that I was born to never die. But I don't understand... why was I created?"
Kagaku sighed. "You no doubt remember Maria, right?" Shadow nodded. "Shadow... you were never meant to be her friend. You were created with the sole purpose to save her life.
"Maria was born with a genetic defect. If she hadn't been taken up to space, she would have died when she was young. Her immune system was extremely weak, a condition called an immunodeficiency. Had she been infected with anything, even a tiny bacteria that our bodies would be able to defeat before we could get sick, would have killed her.
"A few months prior to Maria's birth, the president of that time had asked Gerald to research immortality. However, he refused, because he felt that immortality wasn't something that should be known to mankind.
"But when Maria was born, Gerald realized that the offer that he'd turned down might have what it took to save his granddaughter's life. When you were created, Shadow, that's when his mission was nearly fulfilled; to cure Maria, and to help her live a normal life. That's why you were originally created.
"However, when Maria was still a young girl, maybe only five years of age, she found you in Gerald's lab when you were just a baby. She fell in love with you, and the two of you were inseparable friends from then on.
"And, to tell the truth, Shadow... your friendship with Maria was probably what insured your survival."
Shadow looked up. "What do you mean?"
"There were many other hedgehogs before you, Shadow. Many that neither you nor Maria ever knew about until after you two became friends. They died, Shadow. They died so that you and Maria could live."
Shadow felt something inside of him flinch. "I... I wasn't the only one?"
"Of course not. It took Gerald many, many tries before he could create, as he said, an Ultimate Life Form. It took him many tries before he would be able to save his granddaughter."
Shadow was silent. Kagaku looked at him, knowing that it would be hard for the hedgehog to digest this knowledge, knowledge that he had probably long since forgotten.
Shadow finally spoke. "Please continue with your story, Professor."
Kagaku continued. "When you were young... you had a rough childhood, I know. You were created to grow up quickly. You were almost an adult when Maria was ten. But a lot of the time, it was as if your mind was lagging behind your body. You wondered a lot. You were a very curious boy...
"Well... so many things happened during those years, I don't really know what to say." Kagaku smiled, remembering things long past. "All I can say is that you and Maria were never far apart... unless Gerald was testing you on something or other. I can recall having to follow you all around ARK... yes, I played babysitter a lot--"
"Please, Kagaku..." Shadow said. "Someday, I'll have time to try and remember what happened back then. It hurts bad enough when I think of... her, but if I'm going to be hearing about things that we did as kids, it's even worse because I can't remember... I'm sorry. I want to know, but I can't help but not want to know, too..."
"I'm sorry..." Kagaku watched as Shadow pulled his knees up to his chest and rested his head in his arms.
"So... what've you been doing with yourself ever since...?" Shadow asked offhandedly.
Kagaku didn't need an explanation as to what Shadow meant. "I... I suppose I've gotten off-track somewhat... Well, I'll continue with what happened after ARK was... shut down...
"I'll put it this way. Anyone who survived that attack was taken to work for G.U.N. Myself and Gerald included."
As Shadow's eyes looked up, Kagaku could see anger boiling. He shook his head. "We didn't have a choice. It was blackmail. G.U.N. was a very influential force. If they said that we had been working on ways to take over the earth, people would believe them. If they said that we had been developing some sort of weapon that could have wiped out the entire population, people would believe them. They had held the reins on us the whole time. Turns out that it was G.U.N. who had financed Project: Shadow. And it also turned out that all they wanted was a weapon to use for their own, selfish purposes. They didn't realize that we were searching immortality, not for a weapon, but to cure a little girl. And they certainly didn't expect to find their 'weapons' in the forms of an uncontrollable lizard and, well, you. A seemingly harmless little creature. So, in order to obtain their 'weapon,' they needed the surviving scientists from ARK to, well, re-program you.
"However, no one from G.U.N. would have been able to begin to imagine the workings of Gerald's mind after Maria's death. And, now that I've heard what you said, that you found yourself wanting revenge, I can piece together what probably happened. My guess is... Gerald must have done something to you, blocked out all your memories except for those that reminded you of Maria... then let you remember her death. Am I right?"
Shadow nodded. "What happened was... I remembered the last things she said to me... but they were changed, as if parts of them were gone."
"Ah. I see. Gerald made sure that you were going to be his weapon, not G.U.N.'s. He was determined to never see you fall into their hands... but now for the wrong reason.
"Anyway... I spent the next thirty-some years working under G.U.N.'s reign. I lost touch with Gerald and you, and finally heard that you'd been frozen until the technology could be found to bring you to, I suppose, 'their' side. But their studies remained centered around Chaos Energy until I left. I don't know what they've been doing in the last two decades."
Shadow asked, "So, how did you end up leaving G.U.N., then? Unless you're still..."
"Oh, no, no, no!" Kagaku laughed. "Actually, the reason as to why I'm no longer working with G.U.N. is sitting right next to you," he nodded towards Talula.
"Um... I'm afraid I don't see the connection..."
"Well, it really started when G.U.N. was trying to create a new 'Shadow', called Shadow02, almost 20 years ago. You see, they needed me for my knowledge of how the original Shadow had been created. I didn't really know much about the creation of Project: Shadow, but I didn't know what else to do, because I'd been working for them for so long.
"They sent me out to these very jungles, where the Chaos Emeralds were said to have originated, with an Emerald in hand. While I was here, trying to find information on the ancient civilization that was said to have guarded them, I found two of my very best friends. Two hedgehogs, named Sayil and Mani."
"My parents," Talula explained to Shadow.
"Right, but when I first met them, Talula hadn't been born yet. I stayed with her parents for a long time, while they helped me with my research. Both had grown up in the jungles and had heard the legends and stories of the Chaos Emeralds. However... I never told them why I was there.
"Then, when their daughter was born, my life changed. Talula was born with the same kind of disease that Maria had had, though not quite so severe. But I knew that I couldn't let this pass me again.
"Since Talula's disease was not so severe as Maria's, it was possible that it would be treated with proper nutrition and hygiene. That's how I got started learning about plants and their medicinal properties. However, I knew that the energy of the Chaos Emerald I had, if given in a small amount, could not hurt the baby hedgehog. I had seen it too many times to not know how to do it.
"So, leaving direct instructions to Sayil and Mani on how to take care of Talula, I rushed back to G.U.N. for equipment. When asked about why I needed it, I lied. I claimed to have discovered something that needed this machinery. In reality, no one except those who had lived on ARK would have known what the equipment was for or how to work it. I took it by helicopter to the jungle, where I was able to give Talula small amounts of Chaos Energy. A type of gene therapy, almost. Chaos Energy does strange things to DNA sometimes. I knew."
"It probably saved my life," Talula said quietly. "The Chaos Energy gave me new strength to fight. I was lucky..."
"However, G.U.N. never forgave me for that. When they found out about what I had done, they were furious. I was fired. They didn't care about my knowledge to finish Shadow02. They didn't need me. They just wanted knowledge about Chaos Energy. They knew what they were doing, though... after 30 years, no one cared about what had happened on ARK anyway. And even if I did tell, no one would believe me. So, with nowhere else to go, I came back to the jungle. The four of us lived a happy life."
"But one day, my parents became sick..." Talula whispered.
"The jungle is full of threats," Kagaku continued. "When you come to the jungle, you are required to have vaccinations, to protect you against those dangers. Often, the danger is too small to see. Talula's parents were not protected.
"They left me to raise a tiny hedgehog on my own. But time passed, and life prospered after the plague. And I began to rebuild my life.
"That's about it," Kagaku finished. "Oh, my, it's getting dark already, isn't it? We'd better get ready for the night." The old man stood up, stretched a bit, then walked back towards the house.
As Talula and Shadow stood up, Talula smiled. "He may go off on long stories like that every once in a while... but he's a good friend. I honestly owe my life to him..."
"He's a good soul," Shadow agreed. "I just wish I could remember him." He turned to Talula. "You hardly spoke at all."
She laughed. "He said everything! What's left to explain?" Talula started towards her house. "Come on. You'll want to be inside for the night, or else the bugs will get you." Shadow nodded, then followed the jungle hedgehog.
-
Nighttime had fallen.
Talula was right. If you didn't stay inside, the bugs got you.
Her house, a good fit for one hedgehog, was slightly cramped with all the company. Shadow found himself making his way to the door and heading outside. Luckily for him, the bugs didn't seem to care for his blood.
As the black hedgehog walked along the valley, he often stopped just to gaze at the world around him. What he had heard that day was still sinking in.
'I did meet Maria. I'm not a fake...'
Somehow, it was as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
'Rouge was wrong. There's only one me...
'But...'
Shadow suddenly realized something.
'What was that Shadow02 thing?
'Was it really just a failure?
'Or... could it be...?'
Shadow suddenly felt pangs of doubt.
'Could Shadow02 have just been... a copy of the original?
'Am I...?'
Shadow began to talk to himself, trying to reassure himself.
"But... then why would I have... saved the world?"
'Maybe the real Shadow was programmed to only do good. Maybe you only have his memories. Maybe--'
"No!" Shadow pounded his fist on the ground. "That can't be right. I'm not a fake. I'm real..."
"Everyone is real."
Shadow looked behind him to see Talula.
Talula looked at Shadow. It was hard to see any of him when it was so dark, but his eyes... it would be hard to miss those eyes anywhere.
She said, quietly, "I can tell... there's something wrong. Your ch'i is out of balance..."
"How do I know... that the Shadow02 he was talking about... isn't me? How do I know that I really met Maria? How do I know... that my memories are mine?" Shadow whispered. "How do I know... that I'm... me?"
Talula shook her head. "You're you. And there's really nothing you can do about it." She looked at the sky. "I'm me, and there's nothing I can do about that either. I can't help lots of things. I can't help the fact that my parents are gone. I can't help the fact that I'm here. Sometimes... things can't be helped. And if you are not who you think you are... well, there's really nothing that you could do about it. You can only be who you are..." Talula smiled. "I think I might have been a bit confusing, there..."
"That's all right. I think I understand," Shadow replied.
Talula laughed. "For all I know... I'm probably that Shadow02. I was born around that time. For all I know, the professor could be lying."
Shadow looked at her. "We have a lot in common, don't we?"
"I... I guess. I don't know."
"I mean, the Chaos Energy. Have you ever thought about what it does to you?"
"No... not really." Talula shook her head. "All I know is that it saved me." She looked at Shadow. "Do you remember what the professor said about you? That you were created to save that girl's life?" Shadow nodded.
"Well... if it weren't for you, if it weren't for the knowledge that you gave Professor Kagaku... I probably wouldn't be alive. I owe my life to you, too," Talula smiled. "Thank you."
Shadow smiled sadly. "I wish I could have saved her life."
Talula looked upwards. "Look at the stars... they're so pretty."
Shadow gazed to the sky. "We used to look at the stars from ARK..."
"She's waiting for you, you know."
"What?" Shadow looked at Talula. "How do you know?"
"Living in the jungles and the mountains... it's a lonely existence sometimes, even with a friend living close by. You have to be able to look inside yourself to find a reason to go on. Somehow, through all this... I've become like an itako, a shaman, someone who sees the spiritual world..." Talula smiled. "Sometimes, I can see them... I can see my parents.
"I think it's the power of the Chaos Emeralds... it's a kind of enlightenment... do you know what I mean?"
"I... I think so..." Shadow looked at Talula. "I almost died... but Chaos Control sent me back."
Talula nodded. "So, sometimes, when I'm focusing... I can see things... things that don't seem to be part of this realm."
Shadow thought. "But... you really think that... she's waiting...? Have you ever seen her?"
The jungle hedgehog smiled sadly. "I'm afraid not. But she's waiting, of course. Why wouldn't she?"
"But... then... I really am the real Shadow, aren't I?"
"Of course you're the real Shadow. You are who you are."
"I... hm." Shadow turned away.
Suddenly, a dull sound, almost like a roar, broke the silence.
"What's that?" Talula asked, rather startled. Shadow looked up, for he'd heard that sound before...
An airplane...
Even though it was dark, the moon was shining brightly... just brightly enough so that Shadow could see...
...the reflection of the moonlight on a metal object...
"It's Tails," Shadow said.
"Tails?"
-
It was night. And probably way too dark to be flying a plane.
But it didn't matter.
Shadow was somewhere down below.
Tails looked over the side of the airplane. Over the roar of the engine, he yelled, "Hey, do you guys see him?"
Amy shook her head. "Nope... it's too dark."
"It's like trying to find a black cat in a coal cellar," Rouge muttered.
"What was that?" Tails asked.
"Nothing!" Rouge screamed, frustrated.
From below, Shadow watched as the Tornado flew over the treetops. "I wonder if they're looking for me?" he asked out loud.
"Can we get them to notice us?" Talula asked.
Shadow watched the airplane grow closer. "Maybe..."
Meanwhile, Rouge sighed. "Maybe we should just land and pick up the search tomorrow morning."
Tails shook his head. "How do we know that Shadow'll stay in the same place?"
"And why can't you use that GPS thing to find him?" Rouge snapped.
"It'll only find the general area he's in... I put it together pretty quickly, all right? It can't pinpoint him."
Suddenly, a bright flash of lightning shot up, a bit in the distance. Tails, Amy, and Rouge jumped.
"Wh... what the heck was that?!" Rouge shrieked.
Tails turned the airplane towards where the lightning had gone up. A few minutes later, another bright flash lit up the sky. This time, it was accompanied by a shout.
"Chaos Spear!"
Rouge grinned. "I'd know that voice anywhere. Take us down, Tails!"
"Right!" The plane began to land.
On the ground, Shadow smiled, breathing heavily. "I guess that got their attention."
Talula was standing quite a ways away, a bit startled. "Wow..."
Shadow turned to her. "You can see another world with your power... well, that's what mine does." Talula laughed weakly.
As the plane landed, Shadow and Talula walked cautiously up to it.
Rouge grinned, waved, and hopped out of the plane, using her own wings to carry her safely to the ground.
"Well, Shadow... long time no see?"
Shadow nodded.
Amy squealed, "Shadow! We've been looking all over for you!" Tails smiled.
Rouge's expression suddenly became serious. "Shadow, we've got to go. Sonic's... Sonic's with G.U.N. He's at their headquarters."
Shadow's insides froze. "What...?"
Rouge shook her head. "Don't ask me what that idiot was thinking, but he went with them..." Rouge looked behind Shadow. "Oh, Talula, hi. Did you find the professor all right?"
Talula nodded. "He's staying with me, back at my house..." She motioned towards the side of the cliff.
Shadow looked at Tails. "We've got to find Sonic. There's no telling what G.U.N. might do to him."
Tails nodded. "I'm a little worried, myself."
As Amy, Tails, Rouge, and Shadow piled into the Tornado, Shadow waved.
"Tell the professor I said... thanks."
"I will," Talula called back, over the roar of the engine.
Tails started up the plane. The small craft zoomed the length of the valley, then took off.
As Talula watched the plane take off, she felt a presence nearby.
Turning, she found herself 'face-to-face' with a spirit. The spirit of an Echidna girl.
"Did I do all right...?" Talula asked nervously.
"You did fine," Tikal said.
Talula smiled, a bit relieved. "I didn't really know what to say to him... but, it's true... the Chaos Energy in him feels... I don't know how to describe it, it's almost as if it's... corrupted, somehow."
Tikal nodded sadly. "That's what came of years of sorrow... and it will take longer still for him to heal. But you did well."
Talula nodded as Tikal faded into the darkness.
-
As she walked back to her house, Talula remembered that night, not too long ago...
Tikal had come to her. At first, it didn't seem any different from when Talula was visited by any other spirit, but when Tikal had taken on a real form...
"Talula... soon, Rouge's friend will appear."
"Shadow?"
"Yes, he's the one. Listen... can you help me?"
"Of course. What do you need?"
"Shadow's spirit is badly hurt. Even he may not realize the depth of his injury. I need you to help heal his soul."
"How do I do that...?"
"Reassure him. Tell him... that his friend is waiting for him."
"His friend...?"
"A spirit. A girl, named Maria. She's waiting for him."
"I see..."
"His soul contains Chaos Energy, like yours. But his energy is different... you will see when you meet him.
"Listen... there are things that he's meant to do. But I cannot tell if he will be able to do them without help. You must reassure him that he is who he thinks he is.
"All of us must help him heal..."
'I hope I've done what you needed, Tikal,' Talula thought.
'I hope you'll be okay...'