HELLO AGAIN READERS!
W-wait a minute... I feel like I spoke to you guys just a couple days ago... yup that's right I did! LOL
I am spoiling you guys, don't get used to it, but what can I say, the muse has visited me for this story and the words are flowing like a river from my keyboard.
BIG BIG THANKS to Laineybug64, this girl has beta read 2 chapters in the span of a week! I can not begin to express how grateful I am for her and her ability to keep up with my crazy!
**********IMPORTANT FOR THIS CHAPTER*********** seriously you guys. Please check out this comic strip from my friend mysuperlaserpiss. It is canon to this story and important for this chapter. https:*/*/nothing-fancy94*tumblr*com/post/620962490068746240/could-you-please-do-some-teamdarkamy-angst-where, please remove the * and add the dot before tumblr and com, only way I could upload the full link here.
Anyway, since this chapter is so soon, I'm going to wait to do review stuff until the next chapter (also I am feeling a bit burnt out). But seriously thank you everyone who has reviewed so far.
Happy Reading!
CHAPTER 11: The Thieves of Babylon - Part 1
G.U.N. Station Square Headquarters
~September 25, 09:43~
Amy took a deep breath, and rubbed her left arm tiredly. She felt the little bumps of bandage wrapping beneath her dress shirt, and a dull ache on her skin where she pressed. It wasn't nearly as bad as last week, she hadn't been able to leave her bed the day after the duel with Shadow, and looked like a mummy with all the bandaging around her body.
A trip to the infirmary after the fight had informed her that although she looked like she had been hit by a truck and dragged several miles, most of her injuries were superficial. It was the gash on her leg and the cut on her head that had concerned G.U.N.'s doctor, but it was nothing a couple dozen stitches couldn't fix. Now she merely had dull aches over her body, her head was healed, and she'd be able to remove the stitches in her leg soon.
Currently, she was sitting at her desk in the team's office, with only Omega as company. Amy had seen Rouge chatting with a male on her cell phone this morning, before she'd made some excuse about going on an errand. And Shadow… well she hadn't seen much of him since the fight. When she did see him, he completely ignored her and in some cases wouldn't even look at her. If she was being honest, it was a relief.
She had no idea how to interact with the sour male, and everything she had tried up until now had only seemed to widen the large gap between them. She was tired of trying to somehow prove herself to him, tired of trying to make him like her. So she left him to sulk and disregard her presence, and her days had turned quite peaceful, especially since they hadn't had a mission in the field since Knothole.
The one downside to having downtime, was that her mind wandered to other things. Things she would rather not dwell on, and these things revolved around Sonic and her old friends. Cream's total lack of interest in her perspective and her bitterness towards Amy, shifting the blame to make Amy the one who abandoned their friendship made Amy's gut twist. The disgust and hate on Tail's face lingered at the edge of her mind like a sick tattoo, and worst of all was Sonic's pure panic when he'd seen her. Sonic was a courageous hero, nothing bothered him. He never shed a tear, never been unsettled or fearful of anything. So the fact that his first response to seeing her after so long was to be completely shocked and then run away, spoke to how shattered their relationship had truly become.
This made her realize that although they had fought and left things on bad terms, that she had always held onto a hope that after she settled into G.U.N. they could rectify their relationship. But now she feared it may be too broken to repair.
"Omega?" she called before she could stop herself.
"Yes Amy Rose?"
She swiveled in her chair to face the robot, who was sitting in the corner. She hesitated to ask the question, wondering if he was the right person to speak to, especially since he was a robot and not a living Mobian. However, maybe that was what she needed, an analytical view.
"Omega, can you tell me if there is any recent news of Sonic and his team?"
Omega's glass eyes seemed to brighten a bit, and there was a moment of silence while he processed her request.
"Sonic the Hedgehog was in the local news of Knothole a couple weeks ago, the article praised him for his efforts in removing Eggman from his base."
"Well I know about that… we were there," She sighed, worried that she was asking for something pointless.
"I want to know about recent news, like where he's been, any cool stunts, or -"
"Omega now understands, Amy Rose wishes to know the new hot topic, the gossip, the dirt, the -"
"Hey! Where did you learn that type of language?" She felt her cheeks grow warm as he bluntly pointed out her secret desire behind her inquiry.
"Starry Nights, the show Amy Rose watches with Omega. Was Omega wrong about your request?"
Her first instinct was to deny, and shut it down, but there was a larger part of her that anxiously wanted to hear that hot gossip that Omega obviously had. Amy glanced around, even though she knew no one was with them or in ear shot.
"No, you weren't wrong… What is the latest… gossip?"
Omega hummed, and she could've sworn it was a chuckle, but then his voice came forth once more in his monotone, disinterested tone.
"The gossip magazine, Chaos Control, has sighted Sonic the Hedgehog frequenting bars and clubs. They have images of the subject in these establishments, should I project them for you to view?"
"Uh I don't think that's nece -"
Before she could finish, Omega unfolded himself, turned his head and projected a green and black image of Sonic with a drink in one hand and an unknown female in the other. His eyes looked glazed and his mouth was cracked in a loose smile. Amy blinked and felt her stomach turn to stone. She had seen Sonic tipsy only once before, the last birthday she celebrated with him had been his 21st and everyone had been interested to see if he could even get drunk because of his slow metabolism. It had taken him the amount of drinks for three people to be black out drunk for him to begin to feel tipsy, so the fact that he looked gone from his brain told her that he had probably drunk the club out of almost all their alcohol. This was made even more unbelievable by the fact that Sonic had sworn off what he called 'the drink of Chaos,' and claimed he hated how sluggish he got from it.
"There was also a report that he and the echidna, Knuckles, were engaged in a fight outside of a bar."
The image changed, and now she was staring at a scene that sent a chill through her chest. Sonic was on the ground looking up at the large echidna towering over him. She couldn't see Sonic's expression because his back was to the camera, but it was the expression on Tails' face that tore her heart to shreds. He was crying, and he was standing sideways between the two friends, his mouth parted in desperation and his body tense.
She turned away, her heart beating as though she were there with them.
"How long ago was that?"
"This was dated on September 12, a little under two weeks ago."
That was the night after our mission…
"Is there anything else since then?"
Silence for a few moments, "Negative. No other tabloids, reports, articles."
Amy shut her eyes and felt as though her feet were sinking into the cement ground of their office and the walls seemed to close in on her. With Sonic, no news usually meant good news, but it could also mean that he'd disappeared. He would do that from time to time, and as she'd grown up with him, Amy came to realize that most of these times were because something was bothering him. A friend almost dying on a mission, Eggman staying quiet for too long, or his typical nomadic tendencies rearing their ugly head again. Guilt clawed through her, and she couldn't help thinking that he'd disappeared again, and that it was her fault.
Ring! Ring!
Her hand snapped to the phone on her desk and she answered,
"Agent Amy Rose speaking,"
"Agent Rose," the scratchy voice of the Deputy Chief sent shivers down her arm, "report to my office."
Amy slowly hung up the phone, but her hand stayed on top of the receiver for a moment. Her lungs took in a deep breath, and she closed her eyes. Deputy Chief Whiskers didn't seem like someone she should keep waiting, and it wouldn't do her any good to let her personal problems cloud her mind at work. So she compartmentalized her worries and fears, and exited their office.
When she arrived at the Deputy's she was surprised to see that Shadow was waiting with the Deputy for her. Instantly she felt the nerves in on every inch of her skin tingle in high alert. He didn't even look up when she entered the room, he was sitting in a chair with his arms folded and his expression as stiff as stone.
"Agent Rose reporting for duty sir." She saw Shadow's mouth twitch at her standard greeting.
"Sit down next to your teammate there, while I gather some materials for you."
Amy nodded and sat in the empty chair next to Shadow, and took a moment to look around the office, since it was better than blatantly avoiding Shadow. The office was smaller than Chief Snow, and was made even tighter because of the mess. Files and papers littered every surface and the ground was covered with scraps of paper and dirt. Old food left a moldy, wet scent in the air, and Amy tapped into her training in order to remain composed. She did glance at Shadow for a moment, impressed that he looked unaffected by the smell. She remembered from his personnel file that he had enhanced senses. She could only assume that in reality he was suffering from the stench.
"Here, take a look over these. It's your new assignment," A light grey folder was dropped in her lap and she heard a twin thump beside her indicating that Shadow had received a similar folder. She opened it up to see case files that detailed several robberies and small misdemeanors.
"Recently a string of thefts and small time crimes have been linked to a new criminal group calling themselves the Babylon Rogues. Until now it's been minor thefts of jewelry stores and a couple museums. Nothing that would have been placed on our radar."
Amy looked over the pages in the file, there were three profiles on the top. The first was a female mobian. She was a bird with purple feathers, the picture captured her looking to the right with a smirk on her face. The name across the top was Wave the Swallow. It listed her as the mechanic of the team. Amy did a quick scan of her page before flipping the next one. This time there was a large male mobian with grey feathers. The picture showed him mid trip, his eyes wide and his arms flailing. The profile stated that he was merely brute force. She felt the corner of her mouth curl a bit in the humor of the image.
She turned the page, a smile still on her lips when she saw who was on the next page. Green feathers, blue eyes like a summer sky, and a cocky smirk to match. Her finger grazed the sharp beak of a hawk mobian. Well isn't he a looker?
"Jet the Hawk."
The deputy's voice snapped Amy from looking at the page, she blinked a couple times.
"Excuse me?"
"Jet the Hawk, he's the leader of the group." The Deputy responded, tapping the picture in her lap with long yellow claws.
"Word on the street is that Jet here is looking to steal something big this time. Something that isn't mere jewelry and could potentially cause larger headaches for us in the future."
"And what exactly is that? And why call us in here?"
Amy glanced over at Shadow, surprised he was speaking in her presence. He wasn't looking at her, in fact the way he angled his face from her was as though he was pretending she wasn't even there. She sighed and looked to the deputy waiting for his answer.
"The Chief wants to find out exactly what they are planning to steal and to stop them," Deputy Whiskers leaned back in his chair, his long rat muzzle parted and a pointy tongue came forth and began to flick between sharp fangs. Amy resisted the urge to gag.
"And the other word on the street that we are getting from our informants is that they are looking for new crew. That's where you two come in."
Silence entered the office as the implications slowly dawned on the two agents who only sat a foot from each other, but the gap between them spanned for eons. Amy gulped and bent and unbent the file in her hand. She heard Shadow shift beside her, and his voice came forth with a hard edge to it,
"You're not suggesting that the two of us -"
"You're right. I'm not suggesting," Whiskers interrupted and leaned forward enough that his breath burned their nostrils, "I am ordering you."
Shadow's eyes narrowed, and Amy saw his quills quiver slightly as he glared into the Deputy's bloodshot eyes. Amy cleared her throat and chuckled a little nervously,
"I'm sorry, sir, I'm still not quite sure what you are getting at…"
Of course she knew, it was obvious from the rat's set up what he wanted from them both, but she thought that playing the naive agent might help to lighten the mood. She was not disappointed as the Deputy's face relaxed and he leaned back once more to give her a sleazy smile. She shivered at the look, but didn't falter the sweet smile on her face.
"Ah, of course Agent Rose, this would be your first time receiving a mission like this."
He reached for some files on his desk, wiping away old food and handing them over to them both. This time the files were thinner, and when Amy opened up the file she was staring at a black hedgehog with green eyes. It was a female hedgehog and her quills were unkept and her eyes looked insane. She was holding a board with numbers and words on it, announcing her incarceration date and name. Betty Bang. She was an explosion specialist, and her rap shit was two pages long.
Amy glanced over at Shadow's file and saw that there was a black hedgehog on his page too.
"These are the Bang twins. One an expert with explosives and the other an expert in break safes. The two of them were recently caught during a bank robbery, and we kept it quiet so that the news didn't get out. You both will be going undercover as them and get on the Babylon Rogues' team."
Shadow scoffed and tossed the file back onto the desk. He stood abruptly and made for the door.
"I'm not doing this," Shadow growled, and Amy felt her heart sink. She knew he didn't like her, and being forced to go undercover was probably not ideal, but it was still hurtful that he was so against it.
"You don't have a choice, Agent Shadow. This is coming from the Chief. She chose you personally."
Shadow's hand froze on the knob, his back stiff, shoulders hunched. A heavy silence weighed on them, and the rat was sitting with a sickeningly satisfied look on his face. Then he slowly turned back around, his face was set in an annoyed expression, his jaw tight, and fists clenched. He sat back down, still refusing to look at Amy.
"I thought so, don't want me to give a bad report to the Chief, do you? Especially so soon into your probation." The rat was sniggering as he said it, and Amy saw Shadow flinch. She could feel a hot anger slowly building next to her.
"Probation?" She asked, concern laced her voice. She had not heard of this before now, and she could tell that it was not a good thing.
"Yes, this little arrogant ass finally got what was coming to him. All because he beat you -"
"Shut up. It's no one's business."
Amy flinched at Shadow's words, and suddenly everything made sense. He was on probation because of her. Because she was on the team, because they had gotten into a fight. Guilt crushed her for the second time that day, and she felt a cold sweat at the base of her neck.
"I didn't realize..."
Shadow huffed, and snatched the file off the desk, "Of course you didn't. That's beside the point. How are we supposed to pass for these two crazy criminals? Last I checked we look nothing like these two."
Amy stared at the photo in her hand and she nodded. The species may be right, but the looks were completely different.
"You of all people, Agent Shadow, should know that here at G.U.N. we have ways of getting around that," Whiskers looked at the clock above his door, and stood up, "You guys best get a move on. You need to make a stop at the IT department, and the lab."
Amy saluted, Shadow rolled his eyes and then the two of them were outside in the hall standing still and silently. Amy regretted the tightness of her pencil skirt. It felt uncomfortable in the awkward air that hung like heavy weights between them. She brushed some quill fringe from her face, and looked at Shadow. He was leaning up against the wall with his eyes shut tight and his arms firmly crossed.
"So…" She started slowly, her fingers fidgeting in a clasp behind her back, "Where should we go first?"
Shadow grunted and pushed off the wall, and without even giving her a glance he started down the hallway.
Great, guess I'll just follow you then, she thought with a sigh, and made sure to follow him at a little distance.
G.U.N. Station Square Headquarters - IT Department
~September 25, 10:32~
"Oh my stars! Amy! It's been too long!"
The high pitched cheery voice caused Shadow's ears to twitch, and he grimaced as a lime green canary ran towards them and smashed into Amy. Shadow watched as Amy awkwardly returned the hug, and gently patted the top of the girl's head. She was smaller than them, and beneath her white lab coat she wore a brightly striped turtleneck, and a denim skirt. Golden rings shone from beneath her feathered fringe, and her blue eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Hey! It really has been too long," Amy squeezed out from the hard grip of the little bird. The girl leapt back a bit and looked Amy over.
"You look so professional! I'm used to seeing you in sweats and T-Shirts! It's like you're all grown up."
Shadow raised a brow as Amy's muzzle became bright red beneath her fur, and she rubbed one of her arms.
"You're acting like you're my mom… even though you're younger than me," Amy said, her voice trying to remain neutral. Instead of getting offended, the bird giggled, and stuck her hands in her pocket.
"But what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in your second year of the Academy?" Amy asked, trying to change the subject. The girl's beak widened in a large smile, and she stretched out her hands.
"My final project last year caught the higher-ups' attention, and since they want me in their labs rather than as an agent they had me graduate early," her grin only grew brighter at Amy's pleasant surprise.
"Well, congrats then!" Amy gushed, and her face was split in a childish smile. Shadow tilted his head a little as he watched the interaction. He hadn't seen Amy interacting well with anyone from her past until now, even with Knuckles she had been tense and standoffish. However, with this bubbly bird she seemed comfortable, and she looked more like the old Amy from his memory than she had in the past month.
With the observation complete and noted, Shadow grunted, and began to tap his foot in irritation. He did not want to spend his morning listening to two females gabble. It was annoying that Amy didn't seem to have the same level of urgency to get this over with as he did. The faster they got this done, the faster they could go back to ignoring each other's presence.
His behavior must've caught the canary's attention, because suddenly her blue eyes shifted to look at him. Her smile melted a little as she caught his glare, but she poked Amy as she asked,
"So who's the dark, and handsome companion? Your boyfriend?"
The reaction was immediate. Amy jumped into the air like a startled cat, Shadow growled and lurched towards the small smirking bird. Amy realized just in time and placed herself between the two agents.
"N-no!" Amy denied, trying to keep a smile on her face in order to defuse the situation, "He's not my boyfriend! He's not even a friend. We're partners and we were sent here to get some gear for a mission."
"I dare you to say that again, little bird," Shadow growled, and cracked his knuckles. He could not believe those words had come out of the girl's mouth. How could she even think Shadow would have that sort of relationship, let alone with Amy?
"Shadow, I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it, right?" Amy added pointedly as she looked at the green bird. The canary smirked as she watched the display, and swiped nonchalantly in the air.
"Sure, sure. I was just teasing, no need to get your quills in a bunch," the canary grinned like the cheshire cat, before she stuck out her hand, "Name's Tekno. Good to meet you Shadow, heard a lot about you."
Shadow grunted and pushed past the girls, making his way to the closest equipment station. Tekno's hand hovered in the air for a little bit before she pulled it back and placed it on her cheek as she leaned in close to Amy,
"Wow! He's even more prickly than the rumors say… but I can't deny that I have a thing for hawt~ bad boys."
Amy felt her cheeks burn as she saw Shadow's ears twitch in their direction. She wanted to melt into the floor, and drift away.
"Give him a break, Tek. He's going through some stuff right now."
"If you two are done gossiping, I'd appreciate it if you could show us what we need, so we can get out of here."
Amy sighed, and nodded in Shadow's direction. Tekno rolled her eyes and bounded over to the desk Shadow was now sitting at. She leapt into her office chair, which spun a bit from her weight, and began typing furiously into the computer.
Amy walked over in a much slower, and controlled pace and sat down next to Shadow. If possible Shadow felt even more irritation at how sensitive she was acting around him. She was treating him like a bomb that was about to explode. Like a child. It was worse than when she would try to fill the air with meaningless chatter.
"Okay so… looks like you two are going undercover as the Bang twins. There's a pre-made list by Chief Snow on the gear you need," Tekno turned the computer around to show them, "Take a look over it and tell me if you need anything else."
It always made Shadow find dark humor whenever G.U.N. tried to unload equipment onto him for missions. He didn't need the help of any of that, they knew as well as he did what he was capable of. Yet in these moments they treated him like any other agent. It was though he was only their 'weapon' when it suited them most, and all the other times they tried to make him look weak. Shadow crossed his arms and looked off to the side, "I don't need anything."
Amy sighed, and rubbed her temple, "Shadow, you may not need the sound amplifier or the lock picking tools, but Bobby Bang does. This is an undercover mission, and we aren't using made up identities. We have to act as close to the real people as possible. Do you think Bobby can just put his ear up to a safe and crack it without any tools?"
Shadow closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. Dammit, why didn't he remember that? Rouge was usually the one that did undercover assignments, so he was out of his comfort zone with this mission. But the fact that he hadn't thought of that, and had to be lectured about it by Amy, made his blood boil.
"Oh so now you suddenly know all about undercover missions. Putting on a little miss stupid act for the Deputy?" he growled and pulled the screen closer to look the list over, "Looks fine to me."
He pushed the screen back with more strength than was necessary, and Tekno huffed in annoyance,
"Hey, Grumpo the Magnificent. I get that you wanna play tough guy, and you're obviously not happy with your assignment, but you need to stop pouting like a little kid and treat us with respect!"
Amy held her breath as she watched the anger level rise in Shadow's red eyes. She tensed as she prepared to stop him from punching Tekno. Shadow may be acting like a total jackass, but she knew that he was simply irritated at the forced partnership after everything that happened. She could honestly say she'd be pissed too if someone had been the cause of her probation and then she'd been forced to work together with them. She expected him to blow up right there, but to her surprise, Shadow merely got up and walked out of the room.
Amy released the breath she was holding, and turned to Tekno, "Why would you say something like that? I told you he was going through some stuff right now."
Tekno was glaring after Shadow, but then her eyes narrowed on Amy, "And let him treat you like that? Amy you have a problem with letting people walk all over you and after what happened in your first year I thought -"
"I don't need you to protect me Tekno." Amy's voice was low, but her tone was sharp, and her words erected a steel clad wall between the two girls.
Tekno flinched, and she looked away. Her fists clenched on the table, and her body trembled a little in anger. Amy felt her own defenses soften at the girl's reaction. Tekno had been Amy's roommate in her second year, and the young girl had not been a part of the harassment in Amy's first year, but Tekno had heard rumors about it. Amy hadn't told Tekno about any of the grueling details, and she hadn't and wasn't looking to make friends… she couldn't trust anyone fully after what happened. But Tekno had been kind, and seemed to look up to Amy in some regards, so Amy couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
"Sorry Tek, I just mean that he doesn't really treat me poorly, he's just lashing out because of some personal things he's going through. He's usually more… polite. So can we drop it please?"
Tekno stayed the same for a moment, before her shoulders relaxed and she took a deep breath.
"Alright, I'll take your word for it," she gave Amy a small smile, and tapped the desk, "So, does the list look okay or would you like to add something?"
Amy relaxed as they got back into business and she felt the dark pressure of the past disperse slightly. She scratched her chin as she glanced over the equipment for her assigned persona, and nodded.
"Yeah, it looks fine. But I did have a favor to ask."
Tekno bumped Amy's shoulder good naturedly and closed the window on her computer, "Anything for my favorite upperclassman."
Amy smiled, but her chest squeezed at the word. Upperclassman… It was a word that pulled the debris of painful memories from the recesses of her brain. She felt sick to her stomach and cold sweat slicked the palms of her hands. The back of one hand got itchy, and her other snapped to it and began to scratch.
"Amy?"
Amy flinched, and shook her head before bringing a shaky hand up to push some loose quills from out of her face. She smiled,
"Ah sorry, just got lost in thought. I wanted to ask, do you remember that theory you had last year? About AI?"
"Hmmm," Tekno hummed and tapped the tip of her beak, "You mean the possibility of transferring AI from one body to another?"
"Yes. Do you think it's possible?"
"I know it's possible. In fact I wasn't the first one to think of it. Miles Prower apparently did it 2 years ago, I saw it in my favorite magazine."
She turned to her file drawers and rummaged around. The mention of Tails caused Amy to tense, images of the distressed fox standing between his best friends flashed throughout his mind. Tekno slapped a magazine onto the desk and exclaimed,
"Here it is!"
Tails was standing with a hand on his hip, a goofy, but bright, smile and dimples deep in his cheeks. He looked so happy - dorky, but happy. The image sent pangs of guilt worse than the picture of him crying through her chest. Because it meant that she had stolen the smile from his face.
"That's… thats great."
"Hell yes it is! Oh what I would give to pick this guy's brain. Bad boys are hot, but smart boys are so sexy!"
Amy coughed aggressively and her face felt like she had faced the sun head on. Tekno laughed in response and smacked Amy hard on the back.
"Hey, I'm a lady who knows what she likes!"
Amy coughed a bit more, and felt tears begin to prickle the edges of her eyes.
"Anyway, why do you ask?" Tekno finished, a more serious tone entering her voice.
"Well," Amy choked out, patting her chest and clearing her throat, "You know Omega on my team right? I was wondering if it would be possible to transfer his AI to a smaller robot, so that I can bring him with me on missions like this."
Tekno thought for a moment, and pulled up a few files on her computer.
"I don't see why not, but I don't get it. Why would you even want to bring that bucket of bolts with you? According to his file, all he's good for is killing, he doesn't even seem to have sentience and -"
"Tekno, I like you," Amy interrupted, "But Omega has shown me nothing but courtesy. He's the only member of Team Dark that has accepted me. And I would just like to have an ally with me on my first ever undercover mission."
Tekno looked Amy over, her expression had become unreadable and her beak's curve bent downwards. She sighed, and flipped her feathered bangs from her face.
"Alright then. If you bring him by I can do the transfer anytime."
Amy's shoulders slumped in relief and she stood, patting Tekno's shoulder as she did so.
"Thanks, I'll be by a little later with Omega."
Tekno nodded and watched as Amy left the lab. The canary waited until the door closed to put her head in her hands. She closed her eyes and heaved a large breath. She thought of Amy as a big sister, but it was obvious the older girl did not feel the same. It hurt, but Tekno didn't want to let it get to her. She sat up, smacked her cheeks and rolled up her sleeves. Maybe it wouldn't be today, or tomorrow, but one day Amy would call her a friend, a sister. But until then, she would just keep watch over Amy from the shadows.
G.U.N. Station Square Headquarters
~September 25, 11:03~
Shadow flipped through articles about current events on his phone as he waited for the girl to come out. He took a deep breath and his thumb pushed upwards to quickly scan through a report about Princess Sally's coronation. The chipmunk was smiling brightly as she stood by a crown which would be used in a few days to make her the new Queen of all of Mobius after her father's voluntary retirement. The crown had a large topaz stone embedded in it, and the article was mostly about the heritage of such an esteemed artifact, and how beautiful the princess would look with it on.
Shadow scoffed. It always amazed him at how shallow the common populace was. They put too much value into knowing the latest gossip of public figures, who's dating who, what someone is wearing, the latest misdeed they have committed. It was all smoke and mirrors, vapid. Usually stretched truths that were only good for a few minutes of entertainment. Besides, Shadow personally didn't find the princess attractive. From a standard male's perspective, he supposed she was pretty, but if he were to be honest he preferred a female with more substance. Not stiff and uptight, someone who wasn't afraid to speak her mind, and go toe to toe with him. Someone like -
"Oh! You're still here?"
Shadow looked up, surprised he hadn't heard her open the door. He didn't know if it was because of his ponderings, but he was suddenly very aware of her. Amy's top button was undone, a bit of pink and peach fur popped up from between crisp white folds. She breathed and her chest lifted, the button strained. Muscles rippled in her arms, and he thought back to their duel. How she had gotten up again and again, pushed him to his very limits, never gave in. The determination burning in her eyes how her spirit was never crushed in the face of defeat. Those emerald eyes, ones he once thought were the same hue as his rival, but when he'd been so close to her he had realized that whereas Sonic had warm green eyes, hers were slightly cold. A frosty glimmer to green jewels.
"Shadow, is everything okay?"
Shadow lurched forward and pushed past Amy.
"Let's just finish this."
They made their way down the hall, and took the elevator a few floors up. As they stood in silence, Amy couldn't help but notice that the closer they got to the laboratory floor, the more fidgety Shadow became. His foot started tapping at a frantic pace, his eyes started to dart around, and his fingers dug into his arms.
She had never seen or known Shadow to get so squirrelly He looked… nervous. Something she had never associated with the ebony hedgehog. It can't be… there's no way…
"Um, you okay?" She regretted it the moment the words left her mouth. His face snapped in her direction like a viper, and the hissing tone that came with his next words made her think maybe he was a snake.
"It's none of your damn business. Shut up, and leave me alone."
Amy looked forward and shut her mouth like a clam. A pleasant ding announced their arrival at the labs, and Amy moved forward, her heels clicking on metal than tile as she exited the elevator. She turned to let Shadow pass, only to see that he hadn't left the elevator. Instead he stood still as a statue, staring at the lab behind her. The doors started to close and she lurched forward to stop them.
"Hey, Shadow, we're here, what's the hold up?"
He didn't move, didn't say a word. Only his eyes seemed to react, the pupils becoming pinpoints in seas of crimson. Then it clicked. She recognized that look. Fear. She stood shock still, unable to fully grasp what she was seeing. Shadow, experiencing fear? Was the sky falling? She stepped back into the elevator, stood next to him, and waited while the doors closed. They stood there in silence, and she was grateful to Chaos that no one had needed the elevator yet. She leaned her head back against the wall, and closed her eyes. She knew from experience that there wasn't much anyone could do to help with these situations, not to mention the fact that Shadow was even more unapproachable than the average person. With no better option, she started to hum.
Needles, fluids, small capsules, pinched furless faces, deep voices that mumbled indistinct words. Their large bodies and dominating presence moving about him just out of sight from the gel which suspended him in glass prisons. Sharp pain like fire burned in his very viens, wracking through him from the tips of his fingers to the soles of his feet. Fire, water. Needles, tubes. He could see it all, feel it all. It pressed on him, held him in place. He wanted to move, wanted to run but he was in a prison once more. A metal one, the only thing beyond more tubes and cruel hands. Was there no escape?
Then a sound tickled his long pointed ears. It was soft, but earnest. The melody of it waltzed through the neurons firing in his brain. Calming the panic, and lathering the heated memories in cool crystal notes of a song. Suddenly he was staring at a wall of buttons, and standing on the rock of the present. He blinked, and his ears twitched registering that the sound, which had pulled him from his waking nightmare, was coming from beside him.
Amy stood beside him. She was not looking at him, was not touching him, or questioning him. Her eyes were closed and her throat vibrated with a hum. His heightened senses latched onto her, filling him with nothing but her voice, until he could feel solid once more. And just as quickly as he'd felt himself being trapped, the moment was over and he was left disgusted with himself.. His mind mounted its full defenses and he punched the open door button. Amy lurched forward from the suddenness of his movement, and he ignored her as he stepped into the lab.
Mobians in lab coats and goggles milled about with clipboards and papers beneath fluorescent lights. A few looked up at his appearance, most quickly lost interest, but a few kept greedy eyes on him as he walked past to the only scientist he could stomach. The only one that never treated him like a lab rat, or approached him with an alternative motive.
Rotor Walrus was leaning back in his chair, crumbs of food littered his stained lab coat, and his tusks made sucking noises as he chomped down on a slice of pizza. He was currently flying his fingers over his keyboard, moving a character around on the screen.
"Hey nerd." Shadow said, kicking the bottom of Rotor's chair.
The walrus started at first but when he caught sight of Shadow, he grinned and leaned further back in his chair.
"Hey jackass. Didn't think I'd see you in the lab. What forced you to come all the way up here?"
"Some bullshit mission. And -"
"Ooo, and who is this lovely little lady?" Rotor interrupted as he caught sight of Amy standing silently behind Shadow. He quickly wiped off the crumbs from his lab coat and sprung to his feet. He pushed Shadow aside and stuck out his hand with a raised brow.
"The name's Walrus, Rotor Walrus."
Amy smiled, and took the large male's hand. She stood with her back straight and her feet together. Shadow rolled his eyes and waited not so patiently for the two to finish their pleasantries.
"Agent Amy Rose reporting for duty sir." Amy announced. She always felt a bit of pride at being able to state her status. She'd worked hard for this title and she liked to flaunt it. She glanced at Shadow, and could literally see the irritation emitting from him like gamma rays from a nuclear reactor.
"Um, I hear we're supposed to stop by here to get ready for our undercover assignment. Would you be able to help us with that?"
Rotor hummed in disappointment at going straight to business, but he sat down at his computer and closed his game.
"What's your badge number?"
"GSS-920936."
"Just one moment… ah, here it is, undercover mission, pre-existing identities," the photos of the twins pulled up, "Well good news is there aren't too many discrepancies between the four of you. Some fur dye and colored contacts should do the trick. No need to get fancy with any appearance changing drugs or surgery…"
"Surgery?" Amy asked nervously. Rotor turned to look at her over his half moon glasses, a smirk playing around his tusks.
"Yep! No one ever told you about this in your job description?"
"Stop trying to freak her out, and just get us the damn stuff so we can get out of here," Shadow growled, and kicked the scientist's chair once more.
"Alright, alight, grumpy hedgie. I'll take you to the back and show you the stuff. Agent Rose why don't you head off with one of the female scientists and tell them what you need. They'll be able to help you out."
Amy glanced at Shadow, but when he didn't protest she nodded and walked off to the first female she saw. Once she was gone, Rotor hung his arm around Shadow's shoulder and pulled him towards the back. Shadow allowed him to guide him, happy for the large blubber shield between him and the prying eyes of greedy lab coats. When they reached a room with no one in it, Shadow roughly pushed the walrus away, and shook himself off.
"You know you don't have to act like you're on the dissection table everytime you're forced to come here."
"That's not something you should worry about."
Rotor gruffly chuckled and shook his head as he walked over to a cabinet.
"So… how long has Amy been on the job?"
Shadow glanced out the corner of his eye and narrowed his gaze.
"None of your business."
"She single?"
"None. Of. Your. Business."
"Wow! Do I detect some protectiveness in your tone? If you won't give me the details, I'll have to make some up in my head~"
Shadow rushed forward and pushed his elbow into Rotor's chest and slammed him into the cabinets. His crimson eyes burn with fury and his fangs glistened as he growled.
"Careful what you say, walrus. We are not friends, I am not here to gossip and make small talk. I'm here to do a job, and as it so happens, you're the only one who can help me with that at the moment."
Shadow pushed up onto his tiptoes in order to get closer to Rotor's eye level, and he pushed harder into his fat chest, causing Rotor to let out a strained breath.
"Now when I let go, you're going to do your job, without spouting any more nonsense. Are we clear?"
Rotor opened his mouth, but could speak under the pressure. He swallowed and then gagged out, "Crystal."
Shadow released him, and he fell backwards, his hand on his chest, and his breath coming out in ragged huffs.
"Damn, I sometimes forget what a little monster you can be."
Shadow flinched at the word, but kept his gaze firm and unchanged. Rotor turned, rummaged around on the shelves and picked up a small container with two pockets and a silver canister. He handed the small container to Shadow and motioned towards the standing shower in the corner.
"The small container has green contacts in them, and if you step over to the shower I'll spray you down with dye to cover those red stripes."
Shadow snatched the contacts from his grasp, and stomped over to the shower.
"Alright then, now spread'em if you gott'em."
Shadow turned and glared at Rotor, who grinned with revenge at the edges of his face. He held up the can and shook it.
"Relax, I'm not that into you, just need to spray you down with this."
Shadow didn't say anything, but after a moment he obeyed. Rotor practically jumped with glee, and lifted the canister.
"Close your eyes, drama king."
PS if you guys haven't already guessed, Sonic Riders the game has not happened in this AU so Jet and Amy do not know each other