Rabbit: Humm…(shnuggles Shadow) My love.
Shadow: (smiles) I'm not who you think I am.
Rabbit: Hm?
(Shadow pulls off his head to reveal the murderous doll, Chuckey)
Chuckey: (maniacal laughter)
Rabbit: KAWAII! (shnuggles Chuckey)
Chuckey: What the-!
Chapter 3: Chaos
Shadow woke the next morning to find Michelle brushing her hair. She split it down the middle and tied it into two ponytails.
"What day is it?" Shadow asked, drowsily. Michelle turned around and smiled, "Good mornin', its Saturday." Shadow rubbed his eyes to see clearly. He caught sight of the girl's attire for the day. Michelle wore navy blue cargo pants and a blue shirt with a transparent Hello Kitty face in the center; on her feet were black converse. There was a checkered wristband on her right wrist and a black-strapped chocker with a dangling blue jewel, shaped like a teardrop, around her neck.
"Are you getting ready to go to the mall?" the black hedgehog asked.
"Yeah," Michelle replied as she applied glitter lip-gloss. She made a goofy face at her reflection and laughed aloud, "I'm cute, dammit!" Shadow sniggered. The brown-haired girl turned around with her hands on her hips, "What do you think?" Shadow's eyes roamed Michelle's face: she really did look cute. He glanced from her long bangs hanging beside her eyes, to her shining silver-ball earrings, to her glittery lips.
"Yeah, you look nice," Shadow answered with a slight grin.
Michelle smiled, almost blushing, "Thanks." Michelle turned back around and shuffled with items on her dresser. Shadow glanced around the room and noticed that the Chaos Emerald was still sitting in one of his shoes. "Good, its still there." The clock on the VCR read 10:12 a.m.
"You sure you don't want to come? Or maybe I can stay here and we could hang out?" Michelle suggested, shoving her wallet in her pocket.
"No, I'll stay here."
Michelle looked a bit disappointed; she didn't want her guest to get bored, "Well, maybe you can hang out with my brother, Daniel. He's nice, sometimes. He might introduce you to our parents."
Shadow didn't reply.
"Michelle, are you ready!" a man's voice echoed from the living room.
"I'm coming! See ya' later, Shadow." She gave the hedgehog a hug and rushed out of the room.
Shadow sighed and shoved his face into his hands, "I have to get out of here."
About thirty minutes later, Shadow prepared to leave. He slipped on his shoes, grabbed the emerald, and approached a window in Michelle's room. As he lifted the window open, he felt a pain in his shoulder. "Crap!" he grunted. There was a gentle breeze that blew into the room and ruffled a piece of paper on the dresser. Shadow picked up the paper and read it: "Don't forget, Valentine's Day Dance next Sat. 8 p.m." It was a reminder for Michelle. He flipped the paper over and the other side was blank. Then, Shadow came up with a little idea…
Shadow strolled aimlessly on the sidewalk. Where would he have to go to find the next emerald? "Are you awake, Shadow?" came a familiar, ominous voice. A small cloud of black smoke appeared before the hedgehog and a starfish-like creature emerged. "Doom's Eye," Shadow commented.
"Black Doom wishes to have a word with you." A second, but much bigger, cloud appeared behind Doom's Eye and revealed the alien. "So, we meet again. Come, we must discuss your next mission in a more desolate area," said Black Doom. A white light surrounded the three and they were immediately teleported to some sort of dark dimension. The area looked somewhat like outer space. Shadow stood on a blood red puddle, while the two aliens floated in front of him.
"Now," Black Doom began, "There are still more emeralds to obtain; two are in Eastopolis and one in South Triopolis. Our army will soon invade both cities within the next 13 hours. The humans are unaware of the doom that will befall their pitiful cities. Shadow, make sure you retrieve the emeralds before our army attacks, but be warned, the humans are increasing security around Central City. Do not hesitate to kill all who stand in your way."
Shadow nodded. Black Doom continued, "Tell me, Shadow…" The dark tone in the alien's voice made the hedgehog's eyes widen a bit. "What business do you have with that human?" Shadow felt his chest tighten. His eyes narrowed as he shot a glare at Doom's Eye.
Shadow's voice was leveled as he spoke, "Its nothing, she just took care of my wound. She means nothing to me."
"I see," Black Doom paused for a moment, "Don't get distracted."
A light surrounded them again and the aliens were gone. Shadow stood, once again, on the sidewalk as if nothing had happened. Suddenly, Shadow felt a sensation in his head. He felt like he was getting a headache. When he clutched the side of head, that's when he realized: he knew the locations of Eastopolis and South Triopolis. Black Doom must have implanted the directions into Shadow's brain. "Shadow!" he heard a girl's voice in his head. An image of a blond-haired girl flashed across his memory. "Ma-Maria?" he grunted from the ache in his skull. "Dammit, stop…" The pain subsided. Shadow glanced back at Michelle's house and then took off; his first destination, South Triopolis.
In the dark abyss, Black Doom was confronted by a batgirl, "So, when will I play my part?" It was Rouge the Bat.
"Very soon, just don't lose that. If you do, I will dispose of you."
"Hmph, don't worry. I've got a firm grip on this little beauty," said Rouge as she pressed the blue Chaos Emerald against her cheek. "Shadow was careless in leaving that other emerald with the girl."
"Yes, and that will be his downfall. He needs to be taught a lesson. Hiding a valuable item from me is not acceptable," said Black Doom.
Rouge glanced up at him, "Shadow can be a tricky one. Ah- and yet, maybe I can slap some discipline into him."
Black Doom looked from the batgirl, to Doom's Eye, "Go, keep an eye on him. Rouge, you know what to do."
"Got'cha!" She spread her wings wide open and took off.
Shadow had been running for some time. The south side of Triopolis was pretty far, even on hover shoes. He decided to take a break and sat on a bench across from an electronics shop. In the window was a bunch of televisions stacked on top of each other. The news was on. It showed clips from yesterday's attack in Westopolis. A female reporter was covering the subject: "…Also seen with the black aliens was a black hedgehog named Shadow. He has not been captured and is still wanted for killing three G.U.N soldiers. If there is any information on the hedgehog's whereabouts, please contact the police. " "Dammit!" Shadow cursed, "Now they're after me. This is really going to screw with my mission."
"My, my, someone's having a bad day," a woman's voice chuckled in his ear. Shadow rose to his feet, ready to fight. When he saw it was Rouge, he lowered his fists and growled, "What do you want?"
"Don't get so snappy! I just came to see how you were doing."
"Feh, yeah right. Since when did you ever start caring about anyone but yourself?"
"Now don't be that way. I came here to help you," Rouge purred in a seductive tone as she wrapped her arms around Shadow's neck.
"Get off me!" The black hedgehog pushed the batgirl off of him.
"Ugh! How dare you-!"
"You're just after the Chaos Emeralds! Right now I don't have any, so leave me alone!"
Rouge sat on the bench and glanced at the televisions, "Being bad, are we? What're you up to?"
"Its none of your business…" Shadow replied, not looking at the female next to him.
"Really? Hmm…" Rouge smirked as she raised her eyebrow to try and coax an answer out of him.
Shadow glared at her, "You're annoying me."
Rouge laughed, "Oh yes, I'm annoying now, but trust me, you'll wish you'd ask for my help in the future. You might lose something important to you."
"I don't have anything important. Not anymore."
"That's too bad." Rouge sighed, "Poor thing, you have amnesia. Heh, I sympathize."
Shadow had the urge to strangle her, "Shut up! Where the hell do you get off coming up to me and telling me all this shit! Do you think I have time to listen to your idiotic babbling? Do you think I want to? NO!"
Rouge backed up in surprise at Shadow's fiery attitude, "Ah-uh-"
"I can't take this anymore," Shadow got up and left. Rouge watched as his figure disappeared into the city. "He's a strange one…Oh well, guess I better get to work."
Shadow began to not care about anything anymore. He didn't care if the police were after him, he didn't care if he killed humans or aliens, he didn't care if no one liked him, he didn't care about Michelle. All of these things just made him angry and weak. He needed to find out who he was; he couldn't let personal feelings get in the way. But poor Shadow was throwing himself into denial. He knew that somewhere deep inside, he did care for the humans, and he did care for Michelle, but these kinds of things could get him killed. He refused to be controlled by emotions. He wanted to be heartless, to be strong; however, when he would see the images of Maria, his heart would ache for her. He wanted to know what she was to him and why those soldiers killed her. And Michelle, why did he even like her? They had only just met, and yet, he cared for her. He loved it when she hugged him, just the feel of her body made him quiver. Close contact from a loved one was something rare to Shadow. He wanted to be in love and be happy, but his life was much too complicated for that. Sometimes he even thought of suicide. Humans did it all the time; it would probably be a first for a hedgehog.
The black hedgehog nearly ran into a car as these thoughts clouded his mind. Once again, he was thinking too much. He evaded the collision by jumping on top of the hood of the silver corvette.
"What the hell-! Watch where you're goin'!" the driver shouted.
"Whatever," Shadow muttered as he jumped back onto the sidewalk. As he continued on, he saw soldiers standing around a park. "They must be guarding something." He stopped to take a breather.
"They're guarding a Chaos Emerald," said Doom's Eye. He had appeared at Shadow's side.
"I wish you'd stop sneaking up on me…"
Doom's Eye paid no attention to the hedgehog's remark, "You must get rid of the humans and get the emerald."
"Yeah, I know," Shadow replied as he rubbed his aching shoulder.
It was 3 o' clock when Michelle came home. She had a big smile on her face when she came through the front door, holding two bags in her hand. Her brother, Daniel, greeted her in the hallway, "Hey, what'd you get?"
"Two DVD's, a manga, and a present for Shadow."
"The present will have to wait 'cause he went somewhere."
"What!" Michelle ran to her room. "…Where-?"
"He left a note on your dresser," Daniel pointed out.
Michelle saw a piece of paper and a green emerald on her dresser. She picked up the note and read it in her head: "Michelle, I have some business to take care of. Hold on to the emerald while I'm gone. I'll be back soon. Shadow"
Michelle frowned. She had planned to spend the whole afternoon with him.
"I didn't tell Mom and Dad about him yet, I didn't think it was a good idea since Shadow's a criminal."
"Huh?" Michelle stared at her brother with a confused and frightened expression. "Are you serious?"
"Yeah, I was watching the news earlier and they said that Shadow killed some G.U.N soldiers. Remember those aliens that attacked Westopolis last night? Well, the news said that Shadow was working with them."
Michelle was speechless.
"Maybe you shouldn't get involved with him anymore. I don't want you to get hurt."
Michelle looked at the note again then back at her brother, "But-uh-Maybe he…I don't know…" She blankly stared at the note again. Daniel apologized for Michelle being sad and left the room. The girl plopped on her bed and groaned; a dragon necklace fell out of one of the bags. Michelle picked it up and held it in her hands to stare at it. "Shadow…" she sighed longingly. Shadow a criminal? Wanted for killing? There had to be a reason, a good reason. Michelle may not have known Shadow very well, but something inside told her that he wasn't bad, just misunderstood. Michelle punched her fist into her bed, "Damn, life sucks…It friggin' SUCKS!" She threw her shoe across the room and lied down in a huff. Her eyes fell upon the emerald perched beautifully on the dresser. "Please come back soon, my friend…" Michelle wished quietly.
Night had fallen on the city, and still no sign of Shadow. Michelle wondered if he was really coming back. The girl sat in her room watching one of the new movies she had bought that day. It would have been more enjoyable if Shadow was with her. Her brother had gone out with some friends that night, so he wasn't there to keep her company. Feeling hungry, she went to the kitchen to grab some snacks. While gone, someone was trying to break into her room.
Michelle returned with a large glass of orange soda over ice, potato chips and cheese dip. She immediately caught sight of a strange, but cute creature sitting on her bed.
"What-? Who are you!" Michelle blurted.
"Hi there, I'm Rouge." The batgirl waved with a big smile stretched across her face.
Michelle placed her food on the floor and took a seat next to Rouge, "Hi, you're quite interesting…How'd you get in here?"
"I have my ways," Rouge shrugged. "Anyway, I don't have much time to spare, sooo" she went over to the dresser and picked up the emerald. "I'll be taking this."
"Wait a minute!" Michelle rose to her feet and snatched the jewel, nearly knocking Rouge over, "You can't just come in here and take my stuff!"
"Its not yours technically, Little Girl. This is very important and I need it." Rouge reached for the emerald but Michelle knocked her hand out of the way.
"Back off! Don't mess with me, 'cause I don't play!" Michelle threatened. "Get out or else."
Rouge placed her hands on her hips, "And what're you going to do?"
Michelle kicked the batgirl onto the floor and said, "That."
"You little…" Rouge jumped into the air, flung herself at the girl, and knocked her down on the bed. The two fought over the emerald for some time, until Rouge shoved her boot into the side of Michelle's face. She took the emerald and smiled, despite the bruise on her lip, "Heh, you're pretty tough. But now, I have the Chaos Emerald, so I've won. See ya' kiddo!" Rouge flew out of the window and left Michelle lying there. Even though she had put her best effort into protecting the jewel, she was filled with guilt. She let that bat-woman steal the emerald. What would Shadow say?
Michelle couldn't sleep that night because she was anxious to see Shadow again. The clock's numbers were nearing 11:30 p.m, and still no sign of the black hedgehog. Michelle had buried herself in a book, but a sudden tapping sound shattered the tranquility. The noise was coming from her window. She cautiously approached it and pulled back a curtain to see what was out there. She saw a pair of crimson eyes staring at her. She gasped as her heart began to beat faster at the sight of the hedgehog. Michelle opened the window and helped Shadow inside.
"I'm glad you're back! What took you so long?"
Shadow sat on the floor to catch his breath. Michelle handed a half drunken water bottle to Shadow, who gulped it down in an instant. The hedgehog had three emeralds in his possession: a yellow one, a red one, and a clear one. Michelle's eyes widened, "Wow, where'd you get those!"
Shadow gripped the girl's hand tightly, "You have to get out of here…I came back as fast as I could to let you know…that your city will be destroyed," he breathed.
"What're you…?"
"There's not much time. The Black Arms are already invading Eastopolis and they're going to hit South Triopolis."
Michelle's heart raced, "But they can't come here. Its only the southern part, right?"
Shadow shook his head, "No, I've seen what the aliens can do. They'll destroy the entire city, just like they did to Westopolis. You and your family have got to get out of here."
Michelle couldn't speak. All of this was too much to consume. She swallowed and ran out of her room to tell her parents. "Mom, Dad, I've gotta tell you something!" she banged on their door. Her father opened the door, and before he could ask what was up, Michelle blurted, "The Black Arms are invading our city! We have to-!"
"We were just about to tell you and your brother," her father cut her off. "They're talking about it on the news." He pointed to the T.V. Aliens were destroying everything in their path. Explosions and fires broke out in both cities. Michelle noticed how hysterical her mom was about all of this. "Tell Dan to start packing his stuff; we're evacuating," said her father.
Michelle informed her brother and then dashed into her room to grab a couple of important things. She slipped into a pair of black jeans and a black sleeveless shirt. Shadow sat on the bed, watching the news. "Those bastards…" he muttered. A sudden tightness rose in Michelle's chest. She turned her attention away from her backpack and looked up at the black hedgehog.
"Shadow!…" she exclaimed. Shadow nearly leaped off of the bed at the sound of the girl's sudden outburst. "Uh-uh-" the girl could barely speak due to the shock of this commotion with the aliens, "S-Shadow…you're not going to leave, are you? You're staying…with me?"
"Yes," he replied, almost immediately.
Michelle sighed, "Good." She saw the dragon necklace next to her on the floor. It was for Shadow. "Oh, there's something I want to give you…" BOOM! An explosion shook the house.
"What hell was that!" Daniel yelled.
Michelle stepped out on the front porch and saw wild fires burning buildings and houses down the street. There were also aliens flying about, people running in the streets, and soldiers rushing to the scene. "Goddaaaamn! This is unreal!" Michelle thought, amazed and frightened at the sight.
"Come on, we've got to get out of here!" Michelle's father shouted as he rushed to the car.
Michelle ran to her room and grabbed her bag. But before she could reach the door, another explosion shook the house, making her fall on her side. Shadow ran to her, "Get up, get up!" Two more explosions erupted. A lamp crashed onto the floor, along with the chandelier. Michelle screamed. Guns, bombs, and other insane sounds filled the girl's ears; it was a war zone. "MICHELLE, COME ON!" Daniel yelled, helping her to her feet.
They ran outside and were just about to get in the car when a fireball was hurtling toward them. "LOOK OUT!" Shadow grabbed Michelle's wrist and pulled her out the way, as Daniel ran in the other direction. The fire struck the car and the surrounding area. Michelle screamed her parents' names as the fire engulfed the area that they were in. "Come on we have to go!" Shadow yelled, trying to get the girl move. Michelle fell to her knees, "No…I want to die…I want to die…" Shadow didn't have time for this nonsense. He tightened his grip on Michelle's wrist and dragged her off before the fire reached them…
End of chapter 3!