"GODDAMIT! I can't type a single thing!" Proclaimed the authoress, picking up a lamp and throwing it across the room. "How did I let this happen? Why oh why could I let this story not be updated for... for...
FOUR MONTHS!"
Komodo sobbed bitterly and fell to her knees, beating the already deformed lamp into the carpet.
"...I... maybe I should kill the story... I don't deserve to be an authoress for this fic anymore! I should just give the story to a more deserving, hard-working if not less attractive author/authoress." Komodo sighed. She walked over to her desktop, opened up the fanfiction folder through windows explorer, and highlighted the folder entitled 'Fear'
"Goodbye, story! I'm sorry I have to do this, but I just can't provide for you any more!" She declared, about to hit the delete button.
"Don't do it, Komodo!" Exclaimed Shadow, bursting into the room. He tackled Komodo to the ground, and handed her a document. "Look at all the eager reviewers you disappointed! Komodo, it isn't your choice! It isn't optional! IT IS YOUR DUTY AS AN AUTHORESS! Don't let this story end up like so many before it!"
"You're right, Shadow!" She shouted, jumping to her feet. "I can't let the public down! I must fight the good fight! I must keep typing, keep thriving, and keep the heart of the sonic torturers beating! It is my destiny to finish this fanfic, and I'll complete chapter 13 even if I have to stay up all night!" She declared.
A brief pause went through the room.
"WHAT DID I JUST DO? I DIDN'T JUST PROMISE TO FINISH A CHAPTER THAT I'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR FOUR MONTHS IN ONE NIGHT, DID I?" Komodo exclaimed. Shadow nodded wordlessly.
Komodo ran screaming from the room.
Shadow, unsure what to do, walked up to the computer and opened up the 2-kilobyte file, and began to type...
"When's the next gate, Fliara?" Asked Shadow, walking slowly down the stone halls. The dragon took a brief look at the decrepit map, then around the halls and sketches of the labyrinth they had made so far. She sighed.
"It's right there."
Sure enough, the second gate of the labyrinth stood before them. The thin ribbons of pulsating, indigo metal laced themselves across the hallway, rendering passage impossible. The heroes looked up and down the threatening patterns with awe and agony, knowing the gate would either open or claim another member of their team into Dan-Chilack's prison. They all shuddered at the idea.
A solitary figure of the group stood forth, letting her wings spread out in aggravation and her tail slash marks into the floor.
"I'll do it!" Proclaimed Fliara. She turned back to her comrades, eyes blazing in fury. "Someone has to figure out what's happening to Tails, and if I-"
"No, Fliara!" Knuckles argued. The dragon paused, and turned to look at him, surprised. He frowned. "Fliara, you can't." He said, holding up his hands. Fliara's gaze hardened, and she took a step forward. She looked Knuckles in the eye, although it was difficult due to the height difference, and stood her ground.
"Why not?" She asked. "You and I both know that I can-"
"No, Fliara, no!" He insisted. "It's not a matter of that- I know you could do it, Fliara, and I know you want to save Tails. But this team needs your knowledge about the labyrinth for as long as they can keep it, all right?" He asked. The dragon let her gaze fall to the floor, but she was obviously upset by his decision.
"I don't like this." She argued, scuffing her foot against the stone of the floor.
"It doesn't matter." Rouge declared. "...Besides, we agreed that we were going to be a team on this. That means we make decisions together... " She looked briefly to the other heroes, and saw no objecting looks. They all agreed as well. "Now let's rule out who can't go yet... " The bat said. Shadow nodded and walked foreword into the group, his hover-shoes clacking noisily against the cobblestone floor.
"Sonic and Amy can't. If they're separated, then the ghosts will take Sonic... and we have to protect as many lives as possible from Dan-Chilack." The black hedgehog declared, folding his arms in front of his chest. He looked over at Fliara. "And even though I hate to say it, I think Fliara needs to stick with the group until we learn enough about demons on our own."
The dragon grumbled and leaned against the wall, her claws clacking angrily.
"I'd hate to be her." Sonic murmured to Amy. "Well, I hate to be her given any circumstances but now especially."
"Sonic!" Amy snapped quietly, trying to stifle a giggle. "Stop that."
Shadow stared at the two meaningfully. "Are you two finished?" He asked, tapping his foot impatiently. Sonic chuckled nervously.
"By all means. Go ahead."
He again looked around at the rest of the group, and then to the room next to the gate, the pedestal with the 'key' in the middle of it. The 'key' was, in reality; a pyramid shaped gem, when placed into a device on the wall of the same room would open the gate for a short time- not enough time for the opener of the gate to get through as well. Besides, it was necessary to have someone standing by the gate when it would need to be opened again.
"That leaves Knuckles, Rouge, Alexi, and me." He explained. The hedgehog looked around at the prementioned heroes. None of them looked like they wanted to go in the gate, and Shadow knew the decision would be difficult.
"How do we choose?" Asked Sonic. Shadow shook his head.
"I don't know. Who wants to go first, anyway?" He asked. Alexi gave a brief scoff- and Shadow knew she was out of the question, (besides, Shadow didn't want her to leave yet anyway) Knuckles at first looked like he was about to say something, when Rouge stepped forward, interrupting him.
"Rouge!" Knuckles protested, startled. The bat turned around and frowned at him.
"I'm not your little sister, Knuckles. I want to do this- we have to get through and I know I can do it..." She paused. "If everyone here will help me." Rouge was silent for a moment, looking around at the good friends surrounding her. Even Alexi at this moment gave no reason to be despised- and that's saying a great deal for the leopard. "So... can I depend on you guys?" She asked.
"You bet! We're you're friends- and here for you all the way!" Amy said, smiling as she pulled Sonic into a hug. The blue hedgehog grinned, and added:
"Even if the going gets tough." He said.
"For better or for worse- we're all a team here." Shadow agreed. He turned to the blue leopard standing next to him. "Even you, Alexi."
She made a faint grunt and slightly moved her shoulders.
"Just wonderful. All my problems are solved. Excuse me while I cheer in jubilation." The leopard complained. Sonic laughed, and the other members of the group joined in for a brief chuckle, before their tones also became sober. Rouge, before entering the gate, turned to her friends one last time.
"If I don't make it out- I'll be sure to tell Tails you guys are coming for him." She said, turning to enter the trial...
Suddenly and without any warning, Knuckles ran up and hugged Rouge from behind, just before she was about to enter the chamber. The bat froze in her tracks, and turned around, smiling briefly before returning the hug.
"I... You be careful in there." Knuckles demanded, hugging her tightly.
"I love you too, knucklehead." The bat joked, ruffling his quills.
The two split the embrace, then Rouge turned around, and walked into the room with the pedestal, leaving the remaining six heroes to stand and watch.
Immediately as the bat stepped across the seam in the rock, the doorway behind her swirled shut- the stone melting and vortexing into a wall. Then, the 'window', lined with dark purple sparks of malevolent magic, sprung to life on the surface of the corridor; allowing one-way vision into the room. For a second it appeared that nothing had changed. Rouge still stood by the former entrance of the enclosure, the key lying on its pedestal at the opposite edge. The room remained the same. Rouge slowly walked across the stone floors, but still nothing appeared to happen.
"Knuckles," Began Fliara. "What's Rouge's worst fear, anyway?" She asked. The echidna, staring intently at the screen, swallowed nervously, but then muttered:
"Centipedes."
As if that was the magic word, right after Knuckles said it Rouge's hand jerked away from the pedestal, key and all, as thousands upon thousands of centipedes crawled from the cracks in the stone. They swarmed across the floor, the ceiling, and flooded down from the walls like sinister fountains. The bat stood there, in the midst of it all, frozen in terror, as she watched them swarm together at the center of the room, forming a huge pile. Rouge tried to ignore it, and turned back toward the pedestal, barely visible due to the bugs swarming over it. She took a few labored steps, but stopped as the vermin began to crawl up her boots. Not only was this incredibly disturbing to the bat- but it was slowing her down.
In the hall, Knuckles was nothing short of freaking out. He repeatedly bashed his fist against the corridor, swearing at Dan-Chilack for what he was putting them through. Not just Rouge, but everyone. In the whole world, for that matter! Knuckles was finally realizing their own mortality in the situation and was furious, and at the same time hysteric in worry for Rouge.
His agitation was not helped as he saw the pile of centipedes in the center of the room erupt; and as to his horror, a solitary, huge centipede, no short of twelve feet in length, stood in it's place.
"ROUGE! LOOK OUT, BEHIND YOU!" He shouted, pounding his fist upon the magical window. Fliara grabbed his fist, trying to hold him back.
"She can't hear you! Don't worry, brother- She's going to be okay!" The dragon yelled, trying to calm him down. It wasn't working.
"What if she gets hurt?" He shouted back to her. The dragon let go of his arm and backed away, but did not give up.
"Then she gets hurt! But Rouge is strong- have some faith in her!" She said. Knuckles paused, but nodded, turning back towards the battle.
Rouge noticed the giant centipede before it could attack- and after being scared stiff for a few seconds- leapt into action, spin-kicking the beast into oblivion. The surrounding heroes gave a sigh of relief.
The bat progressed, pushing her way through the now threateningly large but at least more scarce insects, until finally she grasped the key in her glove and held it triumphantly in the air, immediately afterward crushing one of the bugs beneath her boot.
"Fear has no power over me." She declared.
Apparently those words had more power than meant- for the moment she said them, the centipedes disappeared, the window vanished, and the door to the chamber re-opened. Rouge stood there, looking kind of dumbstruck, before immediately cheering in victory and running back to her friends.
Knuckles grinned and seized the bat in his arms, swinging her around once before pulling her back close to him.
"I knew you could do it!" He shouted. "You were excellent, Rouge!"
"We opened a gate- that means we'll be able to save Tails even sooner!" Declared Sonic. "This is great!"
At first the team continued to celebrate- but then they paused, realizing what this meant... Since Rouge beat the trial, she would have to remain by this chamber, to keep the gate open. They would have to leave her behind- the very idea nearly drove Knuckles crazy.
"...I don't want to have to leave you behind." He said. "...I don't want to leave anyone behind. It's not fair- why couldn't Dan-Chilack go ruin some other millennium?" The echidna argued, shaking his head. Rouge laughed.
"Don't worry- I'll be fine. And in a few days, Dan-Chilack will be dead and you and I and everyone else here can get back to our good old lives..." She gave the echidna a quick hug. "Don't even think about staying here with me- you're going to have a gate to keep open yourself. Keep your ears open- you won't have me to listen out for you anymore."
"Yeah, I know." He said, pulling away from the embrace.
There was an uncomfortable pause amongst the heroes as the two stood there for a moment, before Rouge quickly gave Knuckles a kiss on the cheek.
"Be careful out there, will ya?"
"Knux? Did you hear me?"
"...Yeah... I... I will."
Knuckles was nearly grinning ear to non-existent ear as the group once again set out down the hall, ignoring the occasional comments by Sonic and the odd glances from Fliara. He didn't care- he had just gained renewed strength from the knowledge that even when apart, he could be sure that he would se Rouge again. He no longer had to worry, even if he did anyway, and now he could focus on the task at hand- defeating Dan-Chilack, and saving Tails and the rest of the world.
Sonic, however, was not so happy. Amy noticed, and helped support a bit more of his weight, also tilting his head onto her shoulder. Noticing he was still sad, she slowed down a little and smoothed his quills with one hand.
"Hey... Are you tired? I could carry you, if you want to sleep." She suggested. Sonic shook his head, and kept walking, trying not to remove his eyes from the ground. Amy sighed, and held him closer. "What's wrong, Sonic? ...You can tell me." She offered. At first the blue hedgehog seemed to push her away- but then he looked up at her, sighed, ad apparently began to spill his guts.
"Amy... you don't think I'm... a burden to you... do you?" He asked, not making eye contact with her. Amy paused, and gently ruffled the fur on his side, a concerned expression dawning her face.
"Sonic... is that what this is about?" She asked. She looked down at him, understanding where he got the notion. He was the fastest thing alive- and now he had to cling to Amy just to stand up straight. He was the hero of station square- and only days before he had begged her for protection. And now the pink hedgehog was forced to give a lot of her time in order to keep him healthy. Amy sighed, and gently placed a finger beneath his chin, lifting his face to meet hers. Once she was sure he was listening, she smiled warmly, pulling him closer into her embrace. "Baby, I love taking care of you... why would you ever feel that you were a burden to me, Sonic?"
"I- ...Amy... I'm worried that I'm being too dependent..." He muttered. "I... I feel weak, and I hate the feeling. And the worst part- there's nothing I can do." He pressed a little closer to Amy, burrowing his muzzle into her fur. "It's not that I don't appreciate what you're doing for me- I love it, when you hold me... but..." He looked around, then sadly shook his head. "It feels weird, not being the hero anymore."
Amy stared down sadly at him, and hugged him tightly to her.
"No matter what you do, you'll always be my hero, Sonic." She said. He looked up at her, surprised.
"Why?"
"Because that's who you are to me. I never loved you because you were strong or because you could run fast, or anything like that- I love you because of how hopeful you can always be... your care-free personality, your courage, your loyalty! Sonic..." She sighed. "I wouldn't care if you couldn't fight for a while- as long as you were still my Sonic on the inside." She hugged him once more. "And you still are, you know. And I love you for that."
Sonic seemed to be feeling better, but was still unsure.
"I wasn't very brave back at the apartment... when the ghosts attacked me..." He argued.
"That wasn't an issue of bravery. There was nothing you could have done and you know it. Besides- courage is not lack of fear; it's not letting fear control you. You did fine in my eyes, Sonikku." Amy said, trying to encourage him. Sonic shook his head. "You're my hero because I can always turn to you for inspiration and strength- you're incredible, Sonic. I love you no matter what you need from me." She told him, giving him a quick kiss.
Sonic paused for a moment, but then smiled. He understood now.
"So... you wouldn't mind if I were still a little dependent on you for a while? At least until this is over?" He asked. Amy giggled.
"Of course not. Go ahead; be as dependent as you need to."
The hedgehogs grinning and continued talking, Sonic feeling better with every word said.
Shadow, observing quietly from a distance, smiled at the sight of the two young hedgehogs. Love was truly a precious thing. As far as he could remember, he had never been in love- then again he was still missing a large portion of his memory. It was perfectly possible that he had met someone in the blank 48 years of his past, or at least the years where he wasn't captured by G.U.N.
As for love in the present, there was Alexi, but Shadow was not sure he loved her or even felt anything towards her besides a general, friendly concern. He did want her to be happier or at least content, but he wasn't sure if that meant he loved her or not. He had little experience in the field. It wasn't like he could say he found her unattractive- that wasn't true by any means- it was just that her personality was so deranged... she disturbed him sometimes. Once or twice he had imagined what it would be like if she were normal... and if they did have a relationship... but as of late... he just wasn't sure. He pushed the thoughts away. Alexi was a bad example, but who else had he loved in his life?
There was Maria, and yes he had loved her, but not like Sonic loved Amy. Maria had been like a mother to him; actually, that's what he had always thought of her. 'Mother'. She taught him everything he knew since the day on the ark he was created. She had taught him right from wrong, good from bad...
...All in all, she had been a very good mother...
...The thoughts were beginning to mist his eyes, so he pushed them aside, and focused again on the labyrinth and it's many dangers. Or, at least he would have, had not he suddenly realized something...
...Where was Alexi?
He stopped, and looked behind him, to see the blue leopard standing absolutely still in the dark hall, not moving. He motioned to Fliara to stop, and went over to the blue leopard, trying not to aggravate her.
"Alexi, what are you-"
"Tell the others to wait here, Shadow. We need to talk. Alone."
Komodo walked back into the room, and calmly sat by her computer desk, casually drumming her fingers against the wood.
"Hello, readers. I'm sure you're quite mad at me, for I let this story sit, unattended, for a span of four months. Well, it was either four or three- I don't remember." She explained. "But that's not important, for sucky or no, chapter 13 is here. I hope you enjoyed it, for the authors note at the beginning of this fic was false; Shadow did not write this chapter for me. He just poked me whenever I started to fall asleep in mid-paragraph. I stayed up all night typing this on Saturday, 11-26-05, and finally it's gotten through all the revisions, and is up on the net."
"Please forgive me for not updating, and do leave a review. I don't care what you type- I deserve the worst for what I did to this story. So just click it. It's not that hard- it's just that little blue button- right there. You only have to move the mouse a few inches, come on, review! What, are you not man enough to midge the mouse over a couple of centimeters and type up a few measly sentences? You're pathetic! Come on, you know you want to review! REVIEW! HEY, DON'T WALK AWAY FROM ME! COME BACK! ...crap... ...I scared away the reviewers again..."