Act I: CATACOMBS
Chapter XI: No Quarter
"They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved." – 2 Peter 2:19
Silver had taken his seat at the table, placing his hat gently on the surface. He removed his cravat, folding it up nicely and setting it to the side. Sonic cocked an eyebrow at his formalities.
"So, to fill you in," Amy began, stretching her fingers out slightly, "The Undertaker is back, Robotnik has cemented even more control over the town than last time, and well…Shadow's back with Knuckles."
Silver turned to see them, smiling. "I can see that."
"But your girlfriend has told Sonic over here that he's the key to saving the town," Rouge said.
"Ah – correction, The Undertaker told me that."
Silver smirked, leaning back in his chair. "He talked to you?"
Sonic nodded, twiddling his thumbs nervously. "Yeah – he did. Not really of my own volition, however…"
Silver cracked his neck. "That's how he gets 'ya."
"You know a lot about him, Silver. Why do you think he's here this time?" Tangle spoke up, earning a sharp nod from Sonic.
"Yeah, you knew his name too. How come?"
Silver looked between the two, shrugging towards Sonic. "He talked to me too. He told me the same thing."
"So…you were me?"
Silver chuckled, "I think in this case - you're me!"
Sonic snickered, earning an amused glance from Tails. Sonic turned to Shadow across the room, raising an eyebrow.
"So, cowboy. Can you inform me about what your whole vendetta against Robotnik is?"
Shadow whipped his head towards Sonic, a glare in his eyes. "It's personal."
"I'ma need all the information I can get, Shadow."
"You get what you get. Silver will be more help to you."
"Yeah – that reminds me!" Sonic exclaimed, looking between the two of them. "What was your duel about?"
Silver whistled, turning back to Shadow. "You wanna tell the story, or should I?"
Shadow shook his head, gesturing for him.
"Buckle up, it's a dumb one," Julie-su muttered.
Silver stretched his arms, groaning a bit before folding them together on the table surface.
"It's no secret that we were a dynamic duo if you will," Silver began, "But my method of getting rid of Robotnik was to get closer to him. It put a real dent in Shadow and I's relationship. When…everything happened with Shadow, it sent us all over the edge. Then, Shadow challenged me to a duel."
"The stuff that I don't know happened," Sonic added, earning a nod from Silver.
"Yep, the stuff Shadow won't talk about. We dueled, I won, and…well – I wish I wouldn't have."
Sonic raised an eyebrow, "Why not?"
Silver's eyes fell, prompting Whisper to take over.
"Because he won, Robotnik was able to turn the town against him. That is why you would've heard the duel caused Silver to leave. The townsfolk turned on him and Shadow. It caused them both to leave. Before they were outlaws and drifters, they were upstanding citizens of the town – always doing what was right, and always defending them from criminals who would roll in."
Sonic whistled, removing his hat. "So – is that what Shadow's vendetta is?"
Silver shook his head, "No, like he said, it's personal. Despite that, Robotnik's control over the town is the reason the Undertaker keeps coming back. It's not promoting following Gaia or whomever, it's promoting fear and wickedness. It promotes persecution, violence, and corruption – all thing Gaia stands vehemently against."
"I mean, regardless of that, the duel was legendary! Two friends turned against each other in dire times?! That's a story for the old scrapbook-"
"Alright," Knuckles said sternly, cutting off Sonic's spiel, "Silver, does The Undertaker want Robotnik dead, or gone?"
Silver sighed, "It's not what he wants. It's what the universe wants. The Undertaker does the finishing work."
Sonic leaned forward, "You seem more…in tune with him. What is he exactly?"
"Great question," Shade said, "What is he? You never gave us a clear answer."
Silver sighed, shaking his head. "If I told you, it would make you all question everything."
"I mean, is he evil? Some…some sort of spirit?" Cosmo asked.
"No, he's not evil. He just is. He's a constant of life. He exists for a sole purpose, and that's all there is too it."
"Silver, c'mon man. If – If I'm supposed to be the guy to save this place, I have to know what to do!" Sonic said.
"He does need to know, Silv," Honey added.
Silver sighed, leaning back in his chair. He tapped his fingers absentmindedly on the table, staring off into space for a moment. Sonic could see the cogs turning behind his eyes, pondering the words to say, and how to say them.
"The Undertaker isn't evil, no. Mephiles is Death itself."
The room felt cold and stiff. Sonic could see everyone processing this information, since he was too. He knew Mephiles had something to do with death…but it didn't seem to cross his mind that he was death.
"So, we see him when we die?" Tikal asked.
"No," Silver asked, "He's death, but not in the way you think. The reason people are afraid of him is because it's said that he takes the souls of people that Gaia thinks are evil, wicked, or corrupt in some way. It's why it's so easy for Robotnik to use fear tactics when he comes around – everyone is already afraid of him. All Robotnik's gotta do is weaponize their fear into getting what he wants."
"Well, are the legends true? Does he only take the souls of…bad people?" Tails asked.
Silver shrugged. "He does – but not always. When he goes to certain towns, it's because there are specific people there that are corrupting a large amount of people. Basically, Gaia is sending him there to purge wicked people."
"But what are the ethics of that?" Amy asked, "Why does Gaia get to decide who's evil or not?"
Silver bit his lip, "I 'dunno, Amy. It's just how it works, I guess. It's not really up to us to decide if it's moral or not."
"Well, Mephiles did say that we think on moral terms to me," Sonic added, "He told me right and wrong are irrelevant."
"To him and Gaia, our right and wrong isn't relevant. But…we all know what Gaia teaches. Kindness for your neighbor, living an enlightened and prosperous life…" Silver said.
"Those things aren't immoral," Knuckles said, taking a seat. "I don't know if we should even debate their ethics. The longer Robotnik is in power, that will keep Mephiles around, which will lead to more people dying."
"Isn't it a good thing they're dying?" Rouge asked, "They're all bad people, right?"
Silver shook his head, "Mephiles doesn't just take bad people and leave. Corruption can and does spread, and the reason he's back, is because it's spread everywhere. So - he won't leave until everyone's dead, including us. Not unless one of us can do something about it."
"If Robotnik dies, would that cause him to leave?" Tails asked.
Silver stared for a moment, fiddling with his coat. "Maybe."
"So, you're saying Mephiles isn't evil, he's just…inevitable?" Sonic asked.
"'Zactly," Silver said, "Death is an inevitable thing. Everyone's scared of him because they're scared of death."
The room fell silent again, all pondering Silver's explanation. Sonic brushed his muzzle lightly, before his eyes went up to Silver.
"So, what do you think we should do?"
Silver sighed. "Well, violence isn't 'gonna do it. We know how it went last time with the duel. But…that song you sang. That seemed to make an impact on people. It's gonna be more about challenging their perspective and trying to turn it away from Robotnik's beliefs."
"How do we do that?" Amy asked.
"Well, Shadow's personal vendetta is putting a dent in Robotnik financially and emotionally. Sonic, you'll have to use that heart of yours to sway people away. Let Shadow do the dirty work, and you use your voice," Silver said.
"And what will you do?" Knuckles asked.
Silver smirked, "I'll direct them."
Sonic saw a knowing smile on Silver's face. There was something he knew but wasn't saying. Almost like he had planned this, like he knew exactly what he was doing.
"And what do the rest of us do?" Rouge asked.
"You do what you all do best. They'll need your help. It's not only an effort for them," Silver said.
Knuckles turned to Tikal and Shade, giving them a curt nod.
It seemed everyone had accepted Silver's plan. It could work, but it wouldn't be easy whatsoever.
Sonic smiled, nodding at Silver, before a thought crossed his mind.
"Hey – why are you called the Moonchild?"
Everyone's eyes went to Sonic, though Silver only smirked.
"That's a story for another day."
The bucket of paint hit the ground, and the hawk brushed sweat from his temple.
"Good god, this shit is heavy!" Jet exclaimed, earning a hiss from Wave.
"Quiet! This is supposed to be discreet!"
"I'm still wondering when we're getting paid for this shit," Fiona spat, rolling her eyes.
"Be patient babe, I'm sure Shadow knows what he's doin'! Nazo and Zero work like snails, those two," Scourge said.
"I'm just mad we ain't blowin' somethin' up and robbin'!" Bean exclaimed, earning a curt nod from Storm.
"Yeah, what Beanie said!"
"Told you not to call me that…" The woodpecker grumbled.
Jet groaned. "Would y'all just pipe it down?! Not everythin' can be high octane it seems. Some of this work's just gotta be simple like this."
"Whatever, we better get started before we get caught," Wave said.
The swallow bent down, opening the buckets of red paint. She dipped the paintbrush inside, her face scrunching up at the scent of wet paint as it hit her nostrils.
"Smells like shit," Scourge said with a chuckle, before grabbing a bucket himself.
Jet lit a cigarette, examining the walls, before giving them a nod.
"This is definitely enough room for what he wants us to do. Let's get down and filthy, boys and girls!"
Sonic whistled under his breath. He walked with Amy and Tails in the quiet morning, having visited a few open stores.
"It's such a nice morning out today," Amy said, holding her arms out dramatically to bask in the sun.
Tails chuckled, hoisting the bag of tools over his shoulder. "Sure is. I could get used to this! It's been so cloudy around here lately!"
Sonic sighed, seeing the town so empty made him feel somber. This place used to be bustling and exciting – and seeing it suffering didn't sit right with him.
All more of a reason to fix it and fix it fast.
"I need to run these tools back to my shop," Tails said, earning a nod from Amy.
"You got it buddy – Town Square it is."
Amy led the trio down the rocky sidewalks, dodging light-posts on their way. They dodged the occasional townsperson, and Sonic couldn't help but notice their disheveled appearances.
They walked like zombies. There was never emotion in their eyes. They never looked at them, never greeted them – it was like they were just walking for the sake of it. There was no life to it.
It chilled him.
As they began to round the corner back to the square, they heard loud commotion and clamor, earning scowls from the trio.
"What is all that noise?" Tails asked.
"Beats me," Sonic said, "Guess we better check it out."
The three began speed walking towards the square, only to be startled by the sight.
There was a massive crowd around the church, and in the center was a furious Robotnik. The trio dodged the group, resting by a pillar on a random porch to examine what the crowd was clamoring about.
Sonic noticed the red paint all over the church walls. Various phrases were painted across the cathedral stone. He narrowed his eyes to read what it all said, and nothing could have prepared him for it.
"2 PETER 2:19."
"ROBOTNIK DOOMS YOU TO THE UNDERTAKER."
"YOU ARE ENSLAVED BY THE WORD."
"EGGMAN WORKS FOR THE DEVIL."
And the final one shook Sonic to his core.
"MARIA THE HEDGEHOG, KILLED BY ROBOTNIK IN THE NAME OF GOD: REMEMBER HER NAME! REMEMBER HER NAME!"
"Take this down immediately! Find the sinners responsible for this!" Robotnik commanded, as Espio and the police inspected the walls and the paint.
Sonic shook his head. Who is Maria? Who did this?
And why?
The crowd clamored, with Vector and Espio attempting to calm everyone down. Many were asking who had vandalized the walls, while others asked if the statements were true.
The town was still divided, but more people were beginning to wake up. One question continued plaguing Sonic's thoughts.
"Who's Maria?" Sonic muttered, and when he turned to Amy and Tails, both wore shocked and somber expressions.
That told Sonic all he needed to know.
He took a few careful steps forward, eyes dancing across the street to see Knuckles and Rouge watching with amused expressions.
That's when Sonic noticed, atop one of the buildings, a figure standing lonesome.
He narrowed his eyes, only to see Shadow in black-cladded clothes, a hat tipped low over his eyes, and a cigarette in his mouth.
He saw his crimson eyes full of rage, yet satisfaction.
And when Shadow noticed Sonic, he simply nodded, before walking away.