Sonic and Shadow watched as the Finalhazard let out a final cry before lowering it's head and dying. Sonic turned to Shadow, and the two shook hands. "We did it!" Sonic exclaimed.

They let go of one another, but immediately afterwards Sonic wrapped both hands around Shadow's waist and pulled him in close. Shadow lifted one hand and placed it on Sonic's shoulder, gripping it tightly, while the other clutched onto his inhibitor ring. Sonic closed his eyes and grinned as they pressed their foreheads together, locked in the moment.

"Sonic, the ARK is still crashing! You have to stop it before it's too late!" Tails cried, shouting through the communicator.

Sonic's smile faded, he quickly looked up at the ARK, that was burning up as it was entering the atmosphere. He looked back at Shadow, and his companion gave him a weak smile and nodded confidently.

"Are you okay? You don't look well." Sonic commented, showing his concern, knowing what they had to face now.

"I'm fine," Shadow replied "Let's finish this." he stated strongly.

Sonic nodded in agreement, and together they began to soar upwards towards the ARK, drawing closer and closer within mere seconds. "No way that's getting through!" Sonic shouted.

He glanced at Shadow, noticing that his companion seemed to be distracted, as if he was lost in thought. He was about to call out to him, but he seemed to regain his composure and focused back on the task at hand.

Now that they were within mere touching distance of the ARK, Sonic shouted out a command "Now Shadow!"

They turned towards each other and used their combined powers to form a large glowing ball of golden light "Chaos Control!" They shouted in unison.

The energy ball surrounded the ARK, and teleported the entire space station back to it's original place. Sonic had been thrown backwards after blasting the energy ball at the ARK, but when he noticed Shadow falling through space, he immediately rushed to his friends aid. "Shadow!" He cried out, managing to reach him in time and grab him.

"Sonic..." Shadow whispered softly "I- I used up too much of my energy." he murmured, barely able to stay conscious "I don't think I'll be able to fly back to the ARK."

"That's okay, I'll carry you." Sonic replied, holding on to Shadow for dear life.

"Sonic, you can't," he replied weakly "You won't be able to stay in this form much longer, and I'll just slow you down."

"What are you saying?!" Sonic cried out. Deep down he knew exactly what he meant.

Shadow let out a deep sigh "You're going to have to let me go." he told him gently.

"No, I'm not leaving you... I can't" Sonic exclaimed. "There's no way."

"You don't have a choice... You have to." Shadow lifted his hand and touched Sonic's cheek. A small tear trickled down his face, and Shadow wiped it away with his thumb "It'll be okay" he told comfortingly. Shadow gazed up at the ARK for a moment and then looked back at Sonic "I did it... I did what Maria wanted... What I promised." he almost choked up, thinking about Maria.

"She would be so proud of you." Sonic told him.

"You really think so?" Shadow questioned.

Sonic nodded, trying to fight back tears. Shadow lifted his other hand and put his inhibitor ring into Sonic's "Look after them for me. All of the people on that planet down there. Take care of them. Promise me you'll do right by them... Right by me."

"Always." Sonic whispered softly.

Shadow's super form was beginning to drain. The golden glow that surrounded him was fading and he was returning to his normal black and red self, starting from his legs and working it's way up. Sonic knew the same would start to happen to him very soon.

Sonic could feel Shadow slipping through his fingers, but he didn't want to let him go. He moved his hands up Shadow's body and placed them on his cheeks. Shadow closed his eyes as Sonic leaned his head in closer and kissed him on the lips.

A kiss goodbye.

Sonic closed his eyes and pulled away. He felt Shadow's hand reach up and touch his. Sniffling softly, he loosened his grip on Shadow. "I'm sorry." he whimpered, allowing Shadow to slip through his fingers even more than he already had.

"Don't be." Shadow whispered.

He let go.

"I love you."

The metal doors slid open, revealing the rest of Sonic's small group consisting of Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Rouge and Robotnik on the other side.

Sonic stared blankly at the ground, clutching the inhibitor ring tightly. "Where is Shadow?" He heard Rouge ask. He looked up sadly, and simply shook his head in response.

Sonic walked over to Rouge and handed her Shadow's inhibitor ring. "Do you really think... that the professor created Shadow to carry out the revenge on all those who live there, on Earth?" She questioned.

He looked down at the ground sadly "He was what he was. A brave and heroic hedgehog, who gave his life to save his planet. Shadow the Hedgehog..." He stated strongly. He gave his life for Sonic as well.

"I guess you're right..." Rouge trailed off. She then handed back the inhibitor ring "Keep it." she said with a smile and a small wink, clutching Sonic's hands tightly.

He nodded "I will."

Rouge left him by himself and went to talk with Knuckles, while Robotnik was talking with Tails. Sonic stared out of the window at Earth, and then glanced down at the inhibitor ring. He closed his eyes and pulled it close to his chest.

"What's the matter, Sonic?" Amy asked worriedly.

Sonic opened his eyes and looked up at the pink hedgehog. "Oh, it's nothing. Come on! Let's go home! To the planet as cool and blue as me!" He said enthusiastically, trying to put on a brave face. He had to stay strong for his friends.

Everyone left the room, but Sonic paused at the door, and turned back to the windows along the wall. He looked at Earth, the planet that he and Shadow had fought to save. He lifted his hand and gave a small gesture in farewell.

"Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog."

A/N: This is 1 in 3 of small collection of shorts that follows Sonic's loss of Shadow. Part 2 will be up tomorrow.

I know it may be a bit confusing, but if you think they could've made it back in the time that they said their goodbyes, but they were quite a fair distance from the ARK after the blast.

Also, I don't intend on writing a short about either one of them getting pregnant (which has shown up in reviews twice). But I might write something related at some point. Perhaps.

Anyway, see you tomorrow.