48 - Mysteries Of The Past

The laptop...Had a notification.

Tails wanted to see what it was but...

He was just so tired.

So...Tired.

...

Damn, his stomach and his back were aching badly. His jet black eye lids squeezed together, before carefully opening them with unfocused ruby red eyes. With a pained groan, he tried to push himself off of the floor and sat up to lean against a wall behind him. Once he did that, he blinked a few times to get his vision in working order once again. He then began to look around, taking in his surroundings.

What? He was in another room.

This room, it looked like some kind of library. No, perhaps a personal study. Though the room had seen better days, it still looked as if it could be functional. Well, if the entire castle's structure wasn't so warped, it could have been. Old ripped and torn red carpeting, ten foot tall bookcases lined up on the floors and walls. Some were upside down, some were floating around the room. The same went for loose individual books and pages. Torn sheets and plastic dust-filled covers levitated in disarray, pens and stamps that moved on their own writing and printing themselves on furniture instead of paper. Pictures and portraits of the monarchs of this royal family were twirling and dancing around in the air without a care in the world.

This room felt incredibly cold, and yet Shadow couldn't see any spirits. Without a doubt in his mind, this room had to have been haunted for sure. Speaking of which-! Maria! He nearly shouted aloud. He scrambled to get up on his feet, wobbling as he still felt winded from having his energy purged. He looked around the room, his eyes desperately searching for the friend he just got back. No, where could she have gone!? He prayed she didn't get hurt from those disgusting ghouls of Scourge's past. "Maria..?" He croaked, blood lightly spilling from his mouth. Shit, he was still really hurt. "Maria..!" He called out again.

That's when he felt it, that same warm embrace.

He turned around, a relieved smile slowly beginning to form on his muzzle. The girl whom lived as his Super form, was now right in front of him. She looked just as relieved as he did, and pulled him into a tight hug. Though he couldn't touch her, he didn't care. He wrapped his arms around her taller incorporeal frame as well. Invisible tears were in the corners of her eyes, nearly crying for joy. He felt her say, "Thank goodness," She whispered. "You had me so worried."

He made a weak chuckle as their embrace slowly ended. "I could say the same to you." As he looked into her blue eyes, he realized something else was missing. "Hey," He said. "What happened? And where's the true anti-Sonic?"

Maria made a rather somber frown and looked to the side. "When those scary people cornered us," She must have meant Scourge's parents. "I, went a bit overboard. I released some of my power and scared them off for a while. In that time, he told me to take you to his personal study. He stayed behind to keep his parents at bay. He also said that he would return to us soon, but that in the meantime," She looked ahead of Shadow at the chaotic library. "To look for a projector."

Shadow scowled. Of course that bastard would run off. Still, Maria said he was doing them a benefit. He'd believe that, for now. But back to the task at hand, a projector? He raised a brow. "A projector?"

The girl nodded as her palms emitted a bright summery red, hovering them above Shadow's head as her aura surrounded him. Rapidly, his wounds began to heal, and the blood on his muzzle started to clear up. He felt a lot better, and his back and stomach no longer ached. "Sadly, I can't give you my power, but I can at least heal you." Good. He was still low on energy, but he was no longer in pain. He quietly thanked the girl, before looking back at library itself. Maria then floated on ahead, keeping an eye on Shadow as he followed her through the disorderly room. "Speaking of which, the anti-Sonic said that once you get back to full strength, you'll become compatible with me and then we can reunite again. As for the projector, he said he no longer knows where it is since the castle's restructured itself, but he did say that something very important is on that projector. Something that might help us against the divine ones." She said.

Something that relevant was hidden somewhere in this room? They'd have to search this whole place from top to bottom, and fast. She slowed to a stop and looked down at the hedgehog below her, awaiting to hear what they should do next. Shadow stood beside her, and began to scan the room for anything that might have stood out of place. Think, think. Where do most people keep projectors? Usually by a wall that was clear of any objects so the projection could portray an image without being obscured by anything. And by that wall, would usually be some kind of podium or desk, where slides would be kept nearby. This was a personal study, so there must be a desk close by.

With this in mind, he turned to the girl with a firm expression. "Maria, search for a desk or a podium. A personal study's got to have one if there's a projector here." Once he gave her his instructions, she nodded and dived up to reach the ceiling of the study. He then watched as she phased in and out of walls, flying about to search behind the floating bookshelves. That's precisely why he told her to search for a desk. Since she was a ghost herself, she could warp and twist her body just like everything else in here to find things that Shadow couldn't reach. For all he knew, a desk was flying around the ceiling and he wouldn't even know it. But she would, and he had strong faith in her. Now, while Maria looked for that desk, Shadow would investigate the library on foot.

As Shadow carefully walked through, he had to dodge and dip his head as books flew across his face. Things were way too hectic in this room, and it would be hard to keep track of things if everything was flying all about. Shadow took another minute to think as he saw a few bookcases that had the nerve to stay still on the floor. Why were they the only ones that didn't move? Were they not possessed? How strange. He walked towards one of the still bookcases, being mindful of the many things in the room that were constantly flinging themselves to and fro. As he stood in front of it, he looked at the shelves. Even the books in this case were all perfectly aligned, as if they were never touched. Again, odd. The entire castle had moved and shifted from the inside out and yet these books remained unsettled throughout all this havoc. Hell, they were even in alphabetical order upon closer inspection.

No, no something wasn't adding up here. Shadow narrowed his eyes and began to search through the books. He then thought back to Rouge's treasure-hunting days. If there's anything he learned from that woman, is that if something in a room didn't add up, that usually meant there was a secret actively being hidden. This was an old castle, so would it be so farfetched to say that there would be some kind of hidden mechanic or booby trap installed in the building? Shadow thought otherwise. After around five minutes while using his speed, he had lifted every single book from every shelf that he could reach. These book shelves were tall, and he doubted any Moebian in this royal family would install a hidden switch on a shelf they wouldn't be able to reach normally without a ladder.

So instead of trying to search for a cliche, why not think outside the box?

Instead of searching on the shelves, Shadow would look in another part of the bookcase. Rouge once told him that treasure-hunting wasn't always like the movies, but still eerily close. He wouldn't find something by pulling out a certain book, but perhaps he could find something- "..!" -On the side. On the side of the bookcase, lied something rather out of the ordinary. Considering the state of this room, that was saying a lot. There was a square-like cut out, with a space that could fit an entire hand. Was something in there? He narrowed his eyes, this was too easy. Was that a trap? With his hand ready to retract, he slowly rose it towards the space. Once his finger neared it, the bookcase did something he truly didn't expect.

It disappeared.

Abruptly, the bookcase instantly teleported just a few feet away from Shadow. He tilted his head with squinting eyes. Sorry, what the hell was that? Did it just...? He tried approaching it again, and it teleported away again. Okay so it wasn't booby trapped, but it did have some kind of security protocol, and apparently it was this. With an understandable growl, Shadow gained another idea. He couldn't use anymore chaos energy as of now since he didn't have much of it left, but a good friend of his had powers all of her own. He hated to interrupt her, but he had to get this thing still so he could grab whatever's inside. "Maria!" He called. Instantly, she flew to his side and levitated beside him. He looked towards her before glancing at the trickster bookcase. "Could you do me a favor?" She nodded to him. "That bookcase over there," He pointed to it. "It think it's possessed. I need you to keep it still for me."

She looked at the object he spoke of, and gave it a good stare. She then floated towards it and got in front of it, before holding out her hands. Amber red surrounded her arms and soon the bookcase itself, freezing it in place. Shadow could see it lightly tremble back and forth, as it wanted to move out of her grasp, but it couldn't. She had a good grip on it, and he could see her having slight trouble with keeping it still. He didn't want her to strain herself or make her waste her power, so he quickly rushed over to the side of the bookcase. He outstretched his arm inside that hole, and dug deep. He felt around for something, grunting as he felt nothing but emptiness.

Come on, where was-

There!

"Got it." He snatched his hand out, and Maria took away her control of the moving bookcase with a grunt. Her power faded away, and she returned to Shadow's side. Looking over his shoulder, she saw that Shadow had recovered a small book from inside that bookcase. How curious. Shadow thoroughly inspected the book, looking at it's cover and size. Again, it was pretty small. Like a tiny notepad. It was old, it was battered and it's pages saw better days. The cover had no words, it was blank. Shadow then began to flip through the pages, which made his eyes widen. There were words written on every page, with dates and titles with many paragraphs. There were some pictures and schematics, which reminded him of the notes he and Sonic saw at that old bed and breakfast building that was near the castle walls. Could this have belonged to Scourge personally?

As he flipped through pages, he realized that many of these pages were describing very peculiar subjects. He was skimming very quickly, but he got a small gist of what some of this cursive writing was about. This was a research journal slash diary, which detailed the hypothesis of summoning...Something. Shadow didn't know what exactly, but just, something. Not a Divine Spirit, but something else. It talked a lot about chaos energy and Chaos Born, so maybe whatever this thing was could have been related to that? He didn't know. The diary-side of this book detailed someone's personal life as well. Their days living in the castle and ruling, and he even saw some references to Sonic. Some of the dates were either scratched off or barely legible, but Shadow could tell these dates were written at least almost a decade ago.

At first, the diary part of the book seemed interesting. Some pages held paragraphs of mediocre poetry or small stories, which was rather, cute for lack of a better term. But then, the entires on these pages became morbid rather quickly. Some entries detailed from what Shadow assumed to be horrific real-time abuse from the author's own family, purging methods that could help thin one's body at an extremely unhealthy rate, and even full lists of suicide methods that for some reason all failed. God, some of this stuff was just sick and depressing.

And-Oh.

The very last page read...

June 24nd (?)

Now I understand why he hates me. Because I'm one of them. I'm next in line to conquer. Conquer them all. Stupid fool. He deserved it. All of it. I don't need this stupid book anymore. Diaries are stupid anyway. I'll just burn it along with everything else in this damned castle. Just wait for me a little longer, you ungodly fucks. I will end your reign. I will free everyone. I will save everyone. Ah, right. I'll have to write this down, though, so I don't forget. I'll rip out this page, and take it with me forever.

The answer, is Ch

This entry was dated one day after Sonic's birthday, or rather, Scourge's birthday. Alright, no doubt this time, this was Scourge's book. The entry also said that the writer, Scourge, would tear out this part of the page and keep it with him forever. Yet, the rest of the page was burned, not torn. Shadow couldn't read anymore after the sentence 'The answer, is Ch'. What did that even mean? He frowned, but didn't lose hope. Something told him all of the information compiled into this book would be valuable, so he held up his arm towards the back of his head to place it in his quills.

Something fell out.

Some hard made a rather large thud onto the floor. Did something fall out of the book? Both he and Maria looked down to see just the thing they needed. Not the projector, but a projection slide wheel. He bent down to pick it up, and looked over it with scanning eyes. It had a lot of slides, some of them with pictures. It was rather dusty, but it looked like it was still in perfect working condition. But it wouldn't work at all if they didn't have that projector. He looked at the human girl. "Maria, did you manage to find a desk?"

With a sad frown, she shook her head as a no.

But then, her expression perked up a little. "Shadow, you found that on the side of that bookcase, right?"

He nodded back to her. "Yes but-" She suddenly zoomed passed him before he could finish his sentence. With slightly alarmed eyes, he watched as the girl flew towards that same bookcase from before and used her power to once again keep it still. But, that wasn't all. She then made a difficult expression, her forehead seeming to form beads of sweat as she clenched her eyes shut and focused her power. Her aura surrounded the book case again, and many others that were planted on the floor. Before Shadow's eyes, she lifted them all up into the air. Corrupted scarlet energy began to clash with her own. However, it wasn't phasing her. Shadow could only watch as she fought against it, and proceeded to keep the bookcases afloat.

As she did this, Shadow took the chance to see if there's anything particularly there. Why lift the bookcase if that's all there was to it? All it was hiding was the book, which is why it kept teleporting away from him.

Unless...That wasn't the important thing it was trying to hide.

And that wasn't all there was to these bookcases. That's why there was suddenly a corrupted force field around them, trying to prevent Maria from moving them again. Because the energy here, it was haunted and deliberately placed by Fleetway and Scourge that was morphing around psychotic supernatural entities that were already roaming here. This energy was alive, and it knew the secrets that lied within this room. The book was just a minor downside, whatever was underneath those cases was the big secret they were truly hiding! Once Maria figured out that something else was hidden, that's when they went on the defensive! How foolish of Shadow to think rationally in such an eerie place. In actuality, he wasn't thinking crazy enough!

Shadow suddenly looked down at the old carpeting that lied on the floor underneath the case. The carpet-The floor! He instantly knew what she was getting at, but he had to be quick. After putting the slide wheel his quills as well, he rushed to the spot where the bookcases previously were. He got down and grabbed at the carpet, before pulling harshly. It tore up even more, fabrics and stitching flying off. He pulled up more pieces of the carpet, tossing and throwing the pieces out of his way. That's when he saw it, a thin plate on old woodwork floorboards.

"There's something there!" He exclaimed. Once he made the discovery, he leaned down closer to it to get a better look and glided his hand across the surface. Huh? It was completely flat. No, this wasn't a plate or button. This, this must have been some kind of door. Damn it, they had to get down there. As he examined the mechanism, Maria tossed the bookcases across the room. They were destroyed upon impact, it's books scattering all over the place. She did that so they couldn't transport themselves back to where they were. Shadow could see transparent glows of something otherworldly float and disappear into the air from it. It was possessed after all. Then, they heard a click. Suddenly, this strange rectangular imprint on the floor, opened. It was a door, just like he thought. It opened up like a bunker, and he could see light from within it.

There was a room inside!

Maria floated close behind him, and he slowly started to grin. That bookcase must have had a button or switch they wasn't aware of, so when Maria destroyed it, it forcefully activated for this door to open. He looked towards the female spirit with a grateful smile, a silent thank you. She gave him a smile back, before diving down through the opening. There was a ladder here, he could use that to get down. He stepped down, and began descending into the hidden room.

Once they entered the hidden room, Shadow made a large sigh and knelt down to take a second. He didn't realize how tired he was until now. While lightly panting, he rose his hand up to look at his wrist. Then he thought bout the broken bracelet that Gerald made him long ago. At first, he used to stare at that bracelet to remind himself of Maria, but now he thought about nothing but Sonic. He had to find him, he couldn't rest until he was safe and sound. He looked up, only to see Maria smiling at him with sympathy written on her face. She knew he was tired, and she knew he was thinking about him. "Come on," She said, nodding her head over to the rest of the room they had yet to investigate. He nodded and got up again.

This hidden room was rather small. About as small as a one bedroom apartment, a pretty private and tight space. It wasn't that light in here, with an old lone lamp being an exception that sat upon an even older wooden desk. Yes, that's exactly what they were looking for. Shadow jogged over to it and began rummaging through drawers. In only a minute, he found a projector in one of them, and pulled it out to sit upon the desk's surface. Nothing else was in this room besides this desk, and there were clear walls all around them to project an image onto. All they had to do was plug the damned thing in. Shadow yanked the cord of the lamp out of it's socket, and plugged in the projector instead. It flickered a couple times, before light beamed from it's scratched lenses.

Now they were cooking with gas. All he had to do now, was place a slide inside and see just what was so important about finding this thing. He clipped it in, and took a step back to stare at the wall. The room was pitch black besides the projector itself, making it easier to see it's images. Maria watched beside him, his ruby eyes glowing in the darkness as he too watched carefully.

What story would this thing tell them?

Many Years Ago

A blue thirteen year old green eyed hedgehog, swallowed deeply in pure anxiety. This was it, the time where he'd speak out publicly without his father being at his side doing...Nothing. But at least the presence of another person being there usually helped. This time, he was alone. The people wouldn't be seeing the face of the monarchy, they would only see the face of the prince.

Ultimately, this would be the face the people would only see for a long time. His father was a paranoid and angry wreck, his mother was brain dead who did nothing but drool and stare at nothing, and his siblings were dead. He was the only remaining member of his family who could actually perform his duty as a monarch. No longer would his father force him to write speeches, as he would eventually have to take over his job as king either way. His father was dying, and his mother would join him.

He was very nervous, and he was quaking in his boots but, he was inspired. He may or may not have hacked live footage from his Overseer's monitors over in No Zone. He would tune in from time to time to watch a specific person, one of the many blue hedgehogs that lived throughout the multiverse that were filled to the brim with Chaos Born. His name was Sonic the Hedgehog, and what a true role model he was. He was heroic, he was selfless, he was powerful and he was so...Normal. He wasn't some inbred monarch, and he wasn't some overlord like many other Chaos Born out there. He was compassionate and genuinely kind, who without hesitation gave his very life to save innocents. Now that was someone he could get behind.

Though he'd probably never meet him, Ogilvie placed this particular person on a pedestal. He gave him hope that not everyone was a greedy, cowardly conniving tyrant, and that not all Chaos Born were bad. All his life, his father hammered into his head that both he and the rest of the Chaotic race were nothing but cancer viruses drifting in space that killed everything they touched. But there was living proof of benevolent Chaos Born, who had yet to convert into a dangerous power hungry monster.

That made Ogilvie realize, everyone had a chance.

Everyone had the chance to be great, and everyone has the opportunity to turn over a new leaf if they just try. And that's what his plans as a lone monarch from here on out would be: Reforming Moebius into a grander and happier place. He'd call it the Great Peace, and restore the kingdom's name. Moebius was known to be a desolate place of crime and havoc, where criminals were rampant and war constantly kept foreshadowing across the lands. And it was all thanks to his ancestors, who so shamefully plagued this world with grief and fear, making the people more prone to revolt in knee-jerk reaction to yet another tyrant in royal clothing. But that's not who Ogilvie was, and he'd prove that today. If he wanted to change his people, he'd have to gain their trust first.

So while the servants cared to his parents' every need, he would spend this time speaking out to his citizens.

It was okay, no need to be nervous.

Okay, so he never stepped outside of the castle walls, and he's never actually spoken to anyone besides his father. And usually with his father, the only response he'd get were slurs and drunken yelling. He's never held up a real conversation with anyone before, much less to a crowd of people all by himself. He was what someone call, a Rapunzel prince. Ogilvie was locked away in a single tower of the castle for years, only allowed to leave his room to do speeches. He rarely felt the rays of sunshine to be familiar with it's warmth, and he was rarely allowed to eat. And even when he was, his father would either dump the food in his face, or demand for him to throw up and starve himself immediately after eating so he could die. He's never really ventured out beyond his own solitude before. And now was his time to shine by himself, but amongst a large crowd.

So, he had to do this. He had to willingly take things into his own hands for a change, for the welfare of his people. He wouldn't do this because he was demanded to, he'd do this because he actually loved his home and everyone living inside it. Making this speech and going through with his plans, would be heroic. He didn't have amazing powers, his chaotic levels weren't as high as people feared them to be. And he didn't have super speed, the ability to fly or levitate things with his mind. He was a skinny, starving, depressed teenager who just so happened to have a chaotic super form. Big whoop. But right now, he could be a hero with a super power, the power to reform an entire nation!

In this instance, he'd be just like Sonic!

He cleared his throat against the mic.

"Ahem."

The endless chatter among the crowd began to cease.

"U-Um," Oh God he was so nervous. "H-Hello-Uhh..." Some people down below looked as if they were straining their ears. Could they not hear him? Or perhaps he wasn't loud enough. Not confident enough, with no level of authority. That wasn't good, he'd have to speak up and fix his posture! He cleared his throat once more, and tried again. "Rather, good morning, loyal citizens." Okay, okay. A greeting as an introduction was decent enough. Keep going! "I...Err, by my father's rule, I wish to relay a message. An idea that will reshape our kingdom as we know it, all for the greater good. And," Wait, what part came after that? "And..."

Damn it!

He couldn't remember.

He...

Wait, why the hell was he memorizing anything?

This was supposed to be his own speech and yet, his father was the one who wanted it written in a specific way. That wasn't the basis of his ideas, that was just what his father wanted to spit out through his lips. Just a mangled bunch of garbage and maggot infested rubbish that their people would lap up like a T-bone steak. Well no more! It was time to speak for himself.

To hell with scripts, he'd write his own story. "I'll, be honest." He said with a much louder an stronger tone. "Our kingdom is in shambles. Crimes are at an all time high, people are being unfairly taxed, and many of you are starving, being forced to turn to a life of crime for survival." Once he addressed some of the many issues that cursed their kingdom, some of the citizens began to lift their heads. Oddly, he heard someone cough. "Thanks to that, many of you have become criminals just waiting to be sentenced to a rusted prison cell. But it doesn't have to be this way!" Once he exclaimed this, he could hear whispers begin to arise once again. They were skeptical of the prince once more. No, he couldn't lose them now. "Look, I know that deep down, all of you have a good side that has yet to shine. We can all turn around and change our ways, you all still have a chance! Inside all of you is something special, I know it, and I can help you bring it out and embrace it. It's not too late for any of you!"

He looked over the people several feet below his royal balcony, who slowly started to silence themselves once they realized the prince was mentioning their well beings directly.

"I know you all may not trust me or my family since we're all Chaos Born, but I assure you that there's nothing to fear. Tyranny isn't what we want, we just want to reform our kingdom. And with your help and cooperation, we can accomplish that, but you have to trust us first." They were still whispering, still frowning and scowling with disdain and disbelief. No, he'd have to take off the kid gloves and tear off the damn bandaid. Expose the secret, and soon no one will care. And that's exactly what he'd do! "Alright, fine." He snapped his fingers, and with a flash of green light, several pieces of anarchy beryl appeared and fell into the palm of his hand. "Take a good look!" Ogilvie announced as he tightened the hand holding the beryl into a fist. In quick golden flashes of aura, that blue fur changed from sapphire to bright yellow in seconds. His green eyes were red, and he transformed into the very deity they feared. Instantly, the people began yelling and screaming, pointing in fear and disgust. They even tried throwing things up here. And that cough he heard earlier turned into a complete sickly fit.

But he couldn't let that phase him, they needed to hear this!

"This was the power my ancestors used to dominate and destroy those who dared get in their way. They used this power for enforcing a dictatorship, but I plan on using this power for a benevolent monarchy. So do not be alarmed! This," He directed his hands to himself. "Is nothing to be afraid of. The last thing a true king would ever do, is hurt his people for his own gain. I don't want to hurt you, I want to use this form to help you!" It's been a while since he transformed into this thing, and it wasn't even to use his powers. It was just to show Dr. Kintobor that he was a true Chaos Born. In reality, he was very weak in this form. His own family didn't even have forms, and the power they had was minimal if not void of it at all.

Using too much power destroyed his body, but he had to show his people the lengths he would go through to help them. Slowly, Ogilvie ascended into the air and lifted himself off the balcony. He then floated over, and began flying downwards with chaos energy resonating in his palms with golden light. People flinched at his presence, they gawked and some even cried in fear. Children cried at the sight of him. He frowned and drifted down closer towards a child who looked as if he was an orphan. He was a canine Moebian with flattened ears. He looked ill, dirty and even skinner than he was himself. He coughed over and over, but tried turning away to hide his ailments. There was no adult present, and everyone else just backed away in fear of being killed along with him. Some even got on their knees and hung their heads low as in a last ditch effort to show their unwilling allegiance to the monarchy, all just to stay alive. Except, that was never Ogilvie intentions.

He carefully lifted up his hand to the child, and gently placed his palm on his head. The child covered his head in fear and trembled violently, until Ogilvie's power traveled all throughout his body. In golden shimmers, the patches of dirt on his skin and fur were gone. His wounds cleared up, and whatever illness that was harming him seemed to have dissolved the moment he touched him. "So you were the one coughing during my speech." Ogilvie sighed. "You're just another example of my family's failures. Oh," He blinked when he saw that the child was still trembling in fear. "I don't wanna hurt you, honest. I want you to be healthy, and I don't want you to be hungry ever again." He turned from the child to look at the rest of the ginormous crowd. "And I mean that for all of you, too. This child isn't in any debt to me for this, I shouldn't have to put a price on being a good person to my own people just to keep you loyal to me."

Ogilvie didn't stop there. He then flew to another random Moebian citizen in the crowd, a middle-aged turtle whom sat in a wheelchair with casted legs. He merely poked their bandaged up knees, and their legs were healed. With an amazed expression, the reptile stood up from the chair. They could walk again, and that chair was useless. He flew to an elderly old woman, an aquatic Moebian with hagfish features, who was having trouble just standing with a weak looking cane. Ogilvie put his hand onto hers, and her weak brittle bones were fragile no more. They were strengthened, and her energy was boosted. In seconds, she just dropped the cane and stared at him in awe. She realized that from that second, he made it so that she'd probably never have to use that cane again in a very long time.

"If you hate me even after all this, then fine." He addressed the people who still had their unchanging opinions about him. "I don't care about that, I just care about you. So long as you're doing the right thing as well, I don't see a reason to harm you anymore than my ancestors already have." The people who Ogilvie healed were still trying to adjust to the fact that they were all freed of their crutches. People closest to them stared at them with wonder and even some hope. This was what he wanted. "You see? I only wish to help you. I want my people happy and strong, as good members of society. Not poor and sickly criminals! I want you all to prosper and shine, and that can be a reality! All I ask-" While quickly trying to ascend back to the balcony, he stumbled and fell the minute he landed. This made some people in the crowd gasp, with nearby guards rushing to his side to help him up. While sweating and almost losing consciousness, he told them not to help him. They needed to see him weak like this. "A-All I ask, is that if you still can't stomach the idea of my family aiding you, then don't!"

That suddenly made the entire kingdom silent.

Really?

Don't trust the royal family?

"Don't trust them, just trust in me!" He said while slowly getting back up on his own. "I don't care for dreams, I don't care for prophecies. If you believe things can be better just like me, then stop trying to 'believe' and 'hope' for it, and just do it! And you can do it, because you're all a lot stronger than you think you are! We all have issues, especially the royal family itself. I have problems that I need to work out too, I'll be right along with you!" He tightened his fists and brought them to his chest. "None of you will be alone, I will help you and I will stick with you until the very end. I won't let war rear it's head to endanger you all, there are ways to stop an enemy without violence. And there are better ways to tax people, especially since the royal family has more finances than it knows what to do with. I promise you, I will not allow the royal family to hindrance your daily lives anymore. This is a new dawn starting today, not just for you, but for everyone. We all have to change our ways!" He cried.

That silence still stood, and no one could tear their eyes away from the prince now.

"With Dr. Kintobor's assistance, I will not stop until you all are rehabilitated and reformed to create a new era." He held out his hand to the sea of his own citizens below. "The dawn of a Great Peace!"

...

Silence?

...

...No.

Cheering.

Excitement, determination, desire, pride, that's what he heard.

And damn it, that's exactly what he wanted to hear! Alright!

Today, the world is his!

"...'Today, the world is mine.'" Shadow whispered to no one but himself and Maria, and finished reading the text from the projection on the wall.

So that's what The Great Peace was.

Sonic mentioned that to him before when they first arrived in Moebius. But it wasn't caused by his father, it was caused by Scourge himself. And this was on his own birthday. The slide for this one was a scan of a newspaper clipping with the headline cut out, along with it's printed date on a piece of paper. The date of Scourge's birthday was also scanned, but it looked scrawled onto the slide next to the newspaper scan. The date was originally handwritten by him before it was scanned to print on a single copy paper, and it seemed to be rushed since Shadow has seen an example of Scourge's writing before. Scourge wrote in beautiful cursive, not all scratched like this. Why did he need to rush writing this in before it was scanned? Anyway, the year was barely legible, but he could faintly see a legit number. This year, was dated nearly a decade ago which matched the text's words. Scourge was thirteen at this time, so the entry Shadow saw in the book later on must have been older.

But hold on, didn't he see the term 'The world is mine' in the book, too? Maybe that was the older page. He'd flip back to that later. But there was a lot more here, and he could sense that something was up with these slides. Something important. Maria suddenly floated in front of him with a rather, dark expression. She didn't look too happy, but not because she was worried about something. She seemed, disgusted by something. "Shadow, I feel a very dark and negative force hidden in those slides." She said. "A petrifying truth."

This made the ebony hedgehog's eyes narrow. "Are these slides haunted as well? Do you sense any spirits in this thing?"

She shook her head. "Not of spirits, but of that green hedgehog's will itself. Rather, his other half's will. And, maybe something else, but I'm not sure."

"The true anti-Sonic's influence is haunting the slides?" He summed up with a rather curious tone. She nodded with a heavy frown, making Shadow look back at the projector with some uncertainty. So Scourge's power was hiding the slides, but the true anti-Sonic's power was imbued in these slides. "I see. But there's a reason why he told us to look for this thing. If he promised to help us, and if his promise holds true, then everything we've found here is the key we need to find Scourge's weakness and bring him down for good." He placed his hand on top of the projector, before looking upwards at the wall where the projection of all of this information revealed itself. "We need to keep looking through these slides, and fast. There's got to be something here that'll tell us how to kill this son of a bitch."

In saying that, Maria's facial expression became rather, meek and troubled. She probably didn't like the way he said that.

The biohog flinched and made a minor sweatdrop. "I-I, I'm sorry-"

The transparent girl shook her head. "No, I get it. He's bad, and there doesn't seem to be a chance to make him into a nice person. He's, not like you, Shadow. He can't be redeemed. He can't be saved." She muttered. Once she said that, Shadow put a pin in that in his mind. Scourge, can't be saved huh? How interesting. "He needs to be stopped, period."

Shadow nodded in agreement. "Right. Now let's skim through these, find a solution, and save Sonic."

Maria made a smile. "Right!"

END - 48

Many things are in motion...

...So many things...