Ultra Sonic 15
Another Chance
Sonic couldn't stop staring open-mouthed. He soon fell to his knees and tears began to form in his eyes.
"Shadow, say it isn't so..."
Shadow didn't say a word. He knew Sonic would have to face up to it eventually. He had to realize what he had done. He must come to terms with his destroying Tiefa City.
"I took this exact path to escape." Shadow slowly started. "I saw this too, and it was hard to believe, the world's greatest hero can do so much destruction when he's given enough power."
"But...it wasn't me! I mean, it was me, and yet, it wasn't..."
"What do you mean it wasn't you?"
"Well, yes, I was in a blinding rage, but at the same time, I felt like it was someone else's rage. Someone else's craving for power. Someone else's consciousness in control of my body."
Shadow silently took note of what was said. It seemed to tie in with what Ultra Sonic had said before, calling him Darkness. As if it was another person mistaking him for someone else.
"It's the Ultima Emerald..." Sonic solemnly said.
"The what?" Shadow inquired. He had not heard of that before.
"The Ultima Emerald. Eggman used info from the tablet to combine the Chaos Emeralds with the Master Emerald, creating the Ultima Emerald, or what might have been the original emerald. I remember him saying that the Ultima Emerald was first created to seal off someone's power, and it was then split so that the power wouldn't become too overwhelming in any one emerald."
"And Eggman has the Ultima Emerald?"
"He's probably got it pointed at the door for when the tin heads capture me."
"Sonic, are you sure it wasn't you that caused all that destruction, and not just the Ultima Emerald's power?"
"Why do you ask?"
"So that I know whether or not I should keep you on the list of people I can really trust."
Sonic took a few minutes to think. The wind passed by and slightly ruffled the fur of the two hedgehogs.
"I think so..."
"I think so? You need to know so." Shadow firmly stated.
"I can't be sure, ok! Remember when you and me were fighting the Biolizard in our Super forms? Remember how invincible you felt? Imagine that euphoria times ten. And even then there was more."
It was a long time before either of them said a word.
"So, it was all Eggman," Shadow said, breaking the silence, "He decided to get you where it hurt. He gave you near infinite power and showed you that even the greatest of heroes could become villains. And you know what I think?"
"That deep down, the reason Eggman and I fight is because we're exactly the same?"
"I think that I should forgive you, as after all I've done, you forgave me."
>>>>>>>>>>>
Inside of Eggman's EggPort, Metal Sonic and Silica were slowly walking through the corridors in order to give Eggman their report. They're only fear was of the report's effect on Eggman.
Entering the control room, Metal Sonic was the first to speak. "Sir, we must report..."
"Save it, I already know you two failed as you would have brought him with you into the room. I want you two to go out there and try to find him once more. And I know the perfect place to look."
"How can you be so sure?" Silica asked.
"Because the amateur criminal always returns to the scene of the crime, and after hearing the news, it's only a matter of time until Sonic gets chased down once more. But, this is also why you two must hurry before G.U.N. reaches him."
"Yes, sir." Silica answered.
"However, one more thing," Metal Sonic started, "The bat got away while the black hedgehog stayed with Sonic. From what we understand, they might have been going over some of your files, however they got them, and were planning to warn the others."
"Hmm... I'll keep that in mind. Now, Metal Sonic, Silica, go find that blue hedgehog!"
The two robots were soon gone in a flash. Seeing that task complete, Eggman turned and reached for a microphone.
"Coconuts, I want you to go back to the pyramid base and take care of anybody that might be trying to find something there. Don't be afraid to go to max power output if necessary."
With that now done, Eggman got up and left the control room to walk into another room. Inside of it was a prototype beam weapon. Many robots were already there, working diligently and efficiently all over the machine. Eggman looked over at a few computer screens to check progress, and soon beamed a wide smile.
"Maybe I will get to use this insurance plan after all..."
>>>>>>>>>>
"Rouge, are you sure it's here?" Knuckles asked.
"Are you sure this is where Tails said the tablet was?" Rouge asked back.
"Yes, I'm sure."
"Well then I am too."
The two had been digging for a while now through the remains of the pyramid that Sonic, Tails, Amy, and Cream had visited only days before. However, they were making progress, and they already found some sort of statue that they were trying to dig up. Upon finding that they couldn't budge it, they decided to dig out the area around it to get a closer inspection.
"There, finally, the stupid thing is free." Rouge said, wiping the back of her hand across her forehead.
Knuckles didn't say a word. He only stared at the statue.
"Hey, knucklehead, what's up?"
"Didn't Tails say that this was the ruins of an ancient echidna civilization?"
"Yep, full of smelly echidnas just like you."
"Then why is this statue of a hedgehog?"
Rouge moved next to Knuckles and looked at the statue. Sure enough, the statue was of a hedgehog. It was female, and had quills so long they gave the impression of a waterfall of hair reaching to her waist. That hedgehog was wonderfully beautiful, drawing you in with her breath-taking beauty.
"So, what do you think it means?" Rouge asked quietly.
When Knuckles didn't answer, she pried her eyes away from the statue to see that he had his eyes closed. He stood very still, as if thinking about something. Just before Rouge could bonk him on the head, though, he stepped forward and hit a random part of the statue's base.
A click could be heard and slowly, begrudgingly, the statue slid off of a passageway that lead deeper down into more ruins. Like magic, lights suddenly flickered on to reveal stairs, and the light continued to flicker on, one by one, in a chain that went farther and farther down, long past where it could be seen from up top.
The two stood there motionless. After a few minutes, Rouge finally broke the silence. "So?"
"Well...ladies first."
"You're only saying that so that I can go first and possibly get myself killed!"
"I would think the self proclaimed, 'world's best treasure hunter', would be a little bit more fearless than that."
"I am the world's greatest treasure hunter! And I'll prove it by finding whatever is down there that might just help Sonic!" Rouge yelled at Knuckles before she pushed him out of the way and stomped down the stairs ahead.
Knuckles suppressed a small laugh before following behind her.
The two were soon well on their way down the stairs, surrounded by cave walls with torches on either side, they continued for what felt like an hour. It didn't take long for the entrance to seemingly disappear from view, and as the two continued, they found torches appearing at longer and longer intervals, darkening the passageway as they moved on.
When Rouge's boot finally hit straight ground, she held back a cheer of joy and motioned to Knuckles. Taking a few steps forward, she found herself stepping further and further out of the light of the last torch they passed. She realized that there didn't even appear to be another torch in the distance; She was now walking straight into pitch black.
Click.
Before Rouge could respond to the fact she had stepped on a switch, she was suddenly bathed in light. Torches lit up everywhere, revealing a giant temple room, with statues and wall paintings of echidnas and hedgehogs everywhere, covering the walls, the floor, and even the ceiling.