Frigid. Icy. Arctic. Every world related to the root word 'cold', a word once foreign to Silver and Blaze, could be used to describe White Acropolis. It was a harsh, tundra-like, rocky mountain range.
It was also conveniently the base of Dr. Eggman, someone who may know the whereabouts of Sonic or at least have some knowledge about their future.
However, like any super-secret villain hideaway, it was fiercely guarded with robots and large spotlights. This was a stealth mission in every sense of the word, as Blaze suggested it should be due to this being a huge base of operations for a dangerous enemy.
"Brr… h-how can anyone live like this?" Silver murmured as he held his arms, trying to keep warm. What he wouldn't give for Blaze's pyrokinesis right now.
"Same can be said for our world." Blaze replied, keeping her voice low.
"Still, it isn't everyday t-that we experience such a… harsh coldness like this."
"Hmm… true."
Silver stopped in his tracks as he felt a bizarre presence. It was a strangely familiar feeling. Something bordering on the edge of control and chaos. Controlled chaos? But what can feel so out of place? Something otherworldly for sure. He stopped a few steps ahead of Blaze, spotting the source of the strange energy. It was coming from a rich blue crystal of some kind. He picked it up, gazing into the smooth sides of the gem.
"That's a Chaos Emerald," Blaze spoke up, standing next to him and observing the mysterious blue energy swirling within the gemstone. "It's said that this gem can transform your thoughts into power. Collect seven, and a miracle's supposed to happen." The princess began to walk away into the snow, not too far to be out of his sight, "Keep it as a lucky charm."
Silver felt the smooth top of the stone. "It transforms your thoughts into power…" Noticing his friend was walking away, he tucks the emerald safely in his back quills and catches up to her.
They stopped after a few more steps, hearing the distant thuds all around them. Threats were at every corner, which was expected from being within a handful of meters from the large lair ahead. No doubt that every inch was being surveyed by robots and searchlights. Despite the robots being active, there were several footsteps heading in the same direction they were going in. Was someone else here? No, they couldn't have gotten past the mechs, right? If they did, the bots would be destroyed.
Blaze held her arm out, stopping them both from walking further as her ears twitched. She pointed to a nearby iron crate to which the two of them ducked behind, just in time as a large robot stomped past them, stopping and scanning the area where they were just standing.
Breathing out a silent sigh of relief, she glanced at Silver who was staring into the Chaos Emerald.
"Blaze," his voice was soft, gentle and quiet as to not alert the bots. "What are we looking for here?"
The purple cat looked down, trying to gather her thoughts. "There is something here that interests the Iblis Trigger- Sonic, is his name. It is either the princess of Soleanna, Elise, or something else entirely." She hesitates before speaking again, this time staring with a determined and rather stern look at her partner, "Dr. Eggman is also involved with Sonic and Princess Elise. He might know more about why our future is the way it is or why Sonic is responsible for our world."
"Right."
That was all he could say. After all, he was still trying to process everything Blaze had filled him in on. Dr. Eggman holding a part in the demise of his future… whoever he was, he needed to be stopped as well. Kill two birds with one stone so to speak. Silver tucked the rich blue emerald away, looking at the now empty space between the route and the crate.
"Coast's clear," Blaze whispered, peeking around the crate. "C'mon."
The duo kept to the shadows, lurking and taking down the occasional bot that stood in their way as well as frying wires that powered the searchlights. Perfect stealth and assisted by the decadent moonlight cast on the factory in front of them. They were so close to finding out the truth. It was time.
Just as they rounded the corner to the entrance of the factory, they both felt the earth below them shake violently. Gusts of wind sharply grazing their fur as they looked around for the cause of the disturbance.
"W-What?" Silver clenched his fists, glaring around his environment.
"Keep your eyes peeled." Blaze instructed as the wind began to die down.
A large robot descended from high in the sky. A beige, massive robot with piercing green eyes and four overly-bright searchlights at the end of its limbs targeted the duo. It had 'GENESIS' printed on the side along with a version number. With a loud hiss, the limbs detached, powering energy up to release some sort of attack on them.
"Watch out!" Blaze instructed, sensing the incoming attack as she jumped away.
Silver jumped back just in time as a laser shot from the limb, burning away the snow.
"What is that?!"
"Must be a security measure Dr. Eggman has taken."
"From what?!"
"Not what, but who."
Silver looked to her, a sense of curiosity piqued him as he saw that look in her eyes, that look of knowing something he didn't. It made him worry for a second, but he quickly pushed it aside. Now wasn't the time to get lost in thought.
The large levitating robot put its searchlights up, signaling the other mechs that intruders have been found. A loud ear-piercing frequency echoed the frozen area, sounds of thuds from every direction soon followed. The hostile mechanisms we're heading their way.
Blaze covered her ears as they pinned against her skull, the high frequency causing an enormous pressure in her head.
Sensing this and feeling his own discomfort from the noise, Silver jumped into the air. A bright cyan engulfed his body as he formed a psychic blade in his hands. Throwing his arms down, he released his grip on the knife, slicing one of the speakers that sounded the alarm clean off.
"Blaze!"
"Right!"
The princess leaped into the air with Silver just as the other bots arrived, cloaking herself in flames and twirling. Bright balls of pure fire shot in every direction, burning the very steel the machines were made of. She landed, looking quickly at the large towering mechs to get a rough estimate of how many there were. Sending the presence of a mech behind, Blaze she jumped into the air, creating a flame wheel that melted the metal arms and guns.
Silver, still levitating, picked up one of the fallen bots and threw it into one of the searchlights on the Genesis. He smirked, but immediately caught the sight of a large bot behind Blaze, charging up an attack while she was preoccupied with another mech.
"Hah!" Silver grunted as he stopped his levitation, charging telekinesis in his palms.
As he landed, he threw his palms into the snow, resulting in a large psychokinetic shockwave that shorted out any mechs nearby and froze them in place. In sync, Blaze twirled in a cloak of flames, immolating the warped and corrupted robots until they were nothing but a mix of molten steel and wires.
The duo weren't given a chance to catch their breath as the Genesis bot arose behind them. Its long mechanical arms slammed down between the two of them as they jumped back. Another searchlight shone in the dark sky, illuminating the snow flurries.
Silver threw his hands out, trying to restrain the arm as Blaze began to spin, flames dancing around her being. She dashed, flames burning the steel and weakening the plates to which he bent until it was mangled. His energy spent, Silver doubled over, panting and trying to force himself to keep going. The icy air was no help, it stung his lungs to breathe and exerting so much energy wasn't doing anything for his pre-hypothermic state.
There were more thuds getting closer, robots resembling searchers, sweepers, and cannons, the sounds of bullets ripped through the air followed. There were just so many security bots, it was difficult to handle. These were steel and wires, not flame and rock and it was getting harder to take them down with the cold air weakening one of the duo. Not to mention how sturdy they were and resistant to most elemental attacks aside from Silver's psychokinesis and Blaze's fire attacks. Even then, their own powers were proving to be barely making a dent. They just... Kept coming.
Having heard the shots, Silver dashed to Blaze and wrapped his arms around her, creating a forcefield, protecting both of them from the bullets. Another arm from the Genesis almost hits Silver, the force pushing him into the snow and making him lose his train of thought and shattering the forcefield. Breaking herself from Silver's protective grip, Blaze shoots fireballs to distract the robot from harming her teammate any further.
Struggling to get up, Silver notices the situation: an unknown total of bots surrounded him and Blaze, their guns are reloading and aiming, all laser sights on Blaze and himself. Two of the Genesis arms prepare a large laser blast. This was it, there was no way he could deflect everything.
No.
He has to try.
For the sake of his future…!
The shivering and with bated breath, he clenched his fists. Rich teal and scarlet beginning to mix, forming a unique Ultraviolet hue at his very core. His golden eyes were bright, seemingly glowing as he began to levitate.
Reach out… Just… beyond what I can, I can do it…
He held his hands out, pushing himself far past his limit for the sake of defeating these bots before they got the chance to defeat them. He began to focus, preparing a blast of psychokinetic energy.
*BANG*
That was all it took.
He fell from the levitation and back into the snow. Being pushed past his limit, it was easy to have your attention be ripped away by a gunshot. Or two. Or fifty. His eyes looked around at the gun that fired, seeing that it had just barely missed him if he didn't stop levitating. Staying still was dangerous. He looked to Blaze who was just as worn out as himself, crouched in the snow and cloaked in a protective field of fire.
Then…
All of the bots fired.
[There are so many bullets! I can't reflect all of them!]
/Reflect them./
[I can't!]
/Do it./
[There's too many of them!]
/If you don't, you and Blaze will be killed!/
[There's no way that I can-]
/Then let me do it!/
[...]
More resounding booms, bullets piercing the air and snow as they darted towards the cat and the hedgehog. This time, accompanied by a laser from the Genesis.
/You have to trust me!/
"Blaze! Get down!"
[Fine.]
A lapse in control.
A quick resurgence.
He steps into place.
In a split second, what once was teal and gold was now scarlet and sky blue. Everything around Venice was frozen as his breath caught in his throat. He only has one chance to reflect on these projectiles. His fingers quivering as he felt the cold metal of the bullets that surrounded all of them. Straining, he forced the frozen bullets backward, a mirror-like barrier surrounding the cat and hedgehog noticeable only by a distortion in the space around them. The mirror would serve a perfect reflecting surface for the lasers.
Almost as swift as he switched, time resumed, and he fell back into silence. The barrier forced back all projectiles towards the mechs. Colors reverted to those of the host as Silver collapsed in the snow, panting heavily as he tried to stay conscious.
The bullets had been repelled towards their dispensers, causing shortages and sparks. Explosions from the mechanics followed as the princess watched in stunned bewilderment. They were just cornered and within the blink of an eye, they were defeated and free. This was impossible. It was impossible to dodge that many bullets, let alone reflect all of them! How did…?
Her amber eyes immediately looked to Silver, severely weakened.
"Silver!" Blaze ran to her fallen partner, kneeling down and holding his shoulders. "Are you okay? You weren't shot, were you?"
He put his hand to his forehead, trying to stop the rush of temporal vertigo. This energy, it felt so similar to Mephiles' time travel. It was so… chaotic. Was this what Chaos Energy felt like? A swirling vortex of instability? He grits his teeth, tightly shutting his eyes. His head was pounding, mainly his temples where he had been struck repeatedly before. Instinctively, he moved his fingers to the wound, thanking it was still bandaged but it was leaking blood. A head wound was the worst thing a psychic could have.
[This… this energy… Everything is spinning…]
/I had to, you and Blaze would've been killed./
[Is… is this your power…?]
Blaze delicately shook his shoulders, bringing him back to his awareness. "Silver?"
She was so warm, her hands placed on his shivering shoulders. "B-Blaze?" His gold eyes met her amber.
The cat gave a relieved sigh, "Oh, thank chaos… I thought you were seriously injured." She gave a small grin before looking at the wreckage of metal and glass around them. "Those mechs... did you…?"
"I-I-" caught by the feeling of something metallic crawling up his throat, he slapped his hand to his mouth violently coughing, bordering on the edge of retching.
Blaze held him steady by his shoulders, trying to smooth down his bristled quills. She knew he had strong telekinesis but… having the ability to reflect thousands of bullets at once? No doubt he would be severely weakened, and in all honesty, she was surprised that he was still conscious.
Her eyes widened when he pulled his gloved hand away from his mouth. Specks of blood lay smeared on his palm.
He could feel the illusion press a hand to his back. Startled, he looked over.
[W-What did you do?]
Venice shook his head, eyeing Silver protectively. He struggled to speak, which was odd.
/We've… always had this power./
[But… I never knew…]
/You should know what it is; chaos energy. This body, our body, has a unique ability to use psychic energy. A type of power that is purely chaotic energy condensed down into one ability./
Silver looked down, trying to understand the weight of everything he was being told.
[But, time stopped…]
/The Chaos Emerald. It allowed me to use the energy to freeze time for a few seconds./
[We… We can do that…?]
Venice gave a hollow chuckle before closing his eyes.
/Mephiles showed us how to do it./
[Mephiles…?]
The mink nodded, smiling sadly.
/When we were kids, he showed us a Chaos Emerald. It was one of our first lessons.../
"That isn't good, we need to head back..!" She stood, helping Silver stand up.
/You can manipulate things around you with just a thought- Psychokinesis. I can slow or stop time at least once a day./
/However, we cannot endure raw chaos energy as easily as before now that we are split./
/Forcing ourselves to do so will cause drastic physical reactions./
"We can't."
"What?! Silver, you're bleeding!"
"We've made it this far, Blaze. We… we cannot leave now."
Blaze gave him a worried look, supporting the weak hedgehog and steadying him as he stood.
"I'll live, d-don't worry. I just… need to rest." Silver breathlessly held her arm that was supporting him as he stood. "The bots s-should be handled, and t-the snow is getting h-heavier. A-and the cold, I…" He shivered as a gust of frigid wind grazed the duo.
As much as Blaze didn't want to admit it, he was right. There's no way Silver would survive any longer in the harsh cold environment they were in, even if Blaze tried to keep him warm, his body temperature was so low already. They were stuck, trapped in an onslaught of frozen rain and sleet that pelted them. A blizzard was arriving.
"C'mon, we can take shelter somewhere for the night." Blaze put his arm around her shoulders, supporting his frail body while also trying to keep him as warm as possible.
Too weak to fight it, Silver forced himself to move with his telekinesis. His control was so unstable, breaking with every movement. Venice used all of his- well, their body's energy with just one move. It was almost impossible to believe that any of this came from the Chaos Emerald, let alone an alternate person he shared a body with.
"Here. An abandoned air vent." Blaze used her flames to melt the ice that trapped the grate opening. "It looks like it connects straight into the lair, which would make infiltration easier."
"A-are y-you sure it's abandoned?"
"The amount of accumulated ice tells me it has not been used in quite a while." She looked to Silver and pointed to the bolts and screws. "Do you think you can loosen the bolts? Just a little bit, then I can take over."
Silver weakly nodded, staring at the screws on the outer vent opening. Feebly and with labored breaths, he unscrewed the bolts. Blaze soon took over, popping them out and opening the cover. She helped Silver in, then followed suit, closing the grate back up with her flames, welding metal to metal.
"I-I'm s-so c-cold." His voice shook as his body shivered, clutching his arms to try and keep himself as warm as he could. He kept his eyes shut as he pulled his legs up to his chest, his entire frame shaking. He pressed his lips into a fine line, trying not to breathe too deeply as the cold dry air chapped them.
This was not good. Intense heat was what they were used to, but not below zero temperatures with no way to keep warm. Silver was losing heat swiftly, making his focus shaky and unstable. He had no internal heat source like Blaze, he was just a normal hedgehog save for his powers. Vulnerable to the weather and temperature. If he was honest, it scared him. This was such an intense ice-cold chill, much more unforgiving than the heat and flames of their home. He didn't know how to handle being cold.
/[Mephiles was cold too…]/
They spoke in unison for once. He stopped his train of thought abruptly, eyes snapping open from the sudden feeling of unease and anxiety that settled in his chest.
Mephiles? Why would his mind go straight to him? Someone he had no idea about, who only brought him here to the past to help save his future.
Venice was thinking about him too. Maybe he was right, maybe they did know Mephiles when they were younger. But if that were true, he'd at least have some memory of him… right?
Blaze gave Silver a look of worry. Being a pyrokinetic had many perks aside from manipulating the flames, one of them being immune to cold or chilly temperatures. This made cold weather not a problem at all to the cat, but it made life in Crisis City a treacherous one. Regardless, she was now stuck with a freezing partner and no way to get him warmed up.
"There, we should be safe from the blizzard for now." She announced as she sighed heavily, exhausted from their battle.
"T-Thank y-you." Silver shivered, giving his partner a weak smile.
"It won't keep the cold out, but at least we aren't in the thick of it." She turned to the shivering teen. "Are you alright?"
"I-I'm fine..! J-just need a good night's rest! Aha..." He gave a pathetic chuckle, giving his friend a smile that begged, 'don't concern yourself with me'. He winced at the throbbing pain in his temples. At least the wound wasn't bleeding anymore...
She couldn't get any closer to him, or rather, it wasn't what they were used to. It would be too fast of a move to sit less than an arm's length from one another. Hell, the very act of having to share food or mend each other's wounds back at home felt too... confidential. It was hard to explain, but it was an unspoken agreement they had and have had for years.
But... This was survival. Though the argument could be made that every day was survival in their future...
"Silver?" She moved an inch closer to him, keeping a close eye on him to make sure he was still breathing. His eyes were closed and his body was scarily still.
In response, he blearily opened his eyes. They seemed unfocused, his vision blurry and distant. His fur and skin were tinted a chilling blue color. Every frame and limb of his body was shivering violently, trying to conserve as much heat as possible. Not good. No doubt hypothermia setting in.
Silently breaking their rule, she reached her hand out, pressing it against his cheek. He was almost as cold as the ice and snow they crunched through to get to this place. Her ears flattened, scooting closer and placing her other palm on his opposite cheek. She was being too forward, way too forward... but he was just so cold...
[She's so warm...]
/She is.../
[Venice, would it be alright... to hug her?]
/Maybe you should ask her./
"B-B...Blaze..?" He murmured weakly, his voice softer than the howling wind. The cat had to strain her ears in order to hear him properly. "C-can... can I hug you?"
The question made his female companion pause, her heartbeat pounding as his golden eyes stared into her amber ones. It was then that she realized just how close their faces were. Nearly nose to nose, her warm breath grazing his lips. A roaring fire inches away from an… icicle? It wasn't as eloquent as her mind put it.
She must've been silent for a while because Silver pulled himself away, gently taking her hands off of his cheeks.
"S-sorry! I-I didn't mean t-to make you uncomfortable…" he gave a sheepish laugh before he fell into a coughing fit. His lungs were burning from the cold air.
Just as he was about to retreat to a side of the vent wall, he felt the princess wrap her arms tenderly around his shaking body. He froze (no pun intended) in place, cheeks flushing a bright pink as the warmth of her body embraced him. Hot and cold, a lukewarm mixture of emotions between the cat and the hedgehog. Hugs were rare. Even rarer than touch. Emotions were so private that being and expressing vulnerability was unheard of. It was… pleasant to not experience the same, "I'm fine, don't worry" routine. It was new, a challenge. A welcomed nuance to their close friendship.
"To make sure you do not freeze to death, yes. You can." Her voice was soft, soothing.
After hearing her consent, he wrapped his arms carefully around her waist, pulling her closer to himself. The chill of his cold hands skimmed her spine, making her body stiffen and shudder slightly as she bit her tongue to resist the need to purr. Silver was always so soft, so gentle. It was hard to believe that the very same hedgehog held such destructive powers to take down a monstrous entity like Iblis. She thought he would've been more hardened, more defensive about his frail body.
She was foolish to think that Silver would think ahead when it came to his own safety.
He uncurled his legs from being so tightly pressed to his chest, crossing them as he tightened his grip around her. Now chest-to-chest, Silver closed his eyes as he let her warmth fill his freezing body. She was so cozy, welcoming. It felt so weird to hug Blaze but not in a bad way. It was a good weird. Different. Unique. A one-time-free-to-hug pass. She was like a warm blanket, a hardened princess who has survived a city of flames and disaster. A survivor in every sense of the word.
Blaze relaxed her stiffened pose, sitting next to Silver and wrapping her arms around his neck as she rests her head on his shoulder. His arm she was caught between moved, wrapping it around her waist, hoping it would help warm her back too. So naive.
It was warm. He was warm. This energy was warm. Secretive. A close connection between the princess and the survivor.
Eggman's base wasn't all it appeared to be from the outside. Comically large for how small the inside was with all of the corridors yes, but informative and helping the duo out with answers, no. Not to mention, the evil genius wasn't even present. He was off somewhere most likely tracking down the princess and Sonic. At least it was warm inside the base.
The only good thing was the notes he left behind: "Sonic has been seen in New City!", "Princess Elise has escaped! She may be back at her castle... If I can nab her when she least expects it, then I will finally have her!" , "Rerouting the Train systems will be the perfect distraction for that pesky hedgehog!"
All of this talk about kidnapping the princess had Silver and Blaze quite worried. What was the point of it all? Was this Dr. Eggman the Iblis Trigger? Has he had his facts wrong this whole time?
The first place mentioned was New City, a place that Blaze is familiar with and has visited before. It was the next stop, which was ideal to finally get out of the ice-cold tundra that was White Acropolis. Having arrived back in Soleanna was… welcoming. It didn't make Silver feel as alienated as before, perhaps because his focus was on something entirely different.
Approaching the area aptly named New City, the duo stopped in their tracks at who stood in the center.
"Mephiles…" Silver spoke softly, taking a step forward.
The shadow lifted his head at the mention of his name, turning its mobian body to Silver and Blaze.
Silver felt… alone in this moment. He couldn't feel Venice's energy and co-awareness. He wasn't 'awake'. He thanked chaos for it, but couldn't help but feel a bit of anxiety in his chest.
"Tell me who the Iblis Trigger is," He started, becoming more demanding as he stepped towards the grayscale hedgehog. "Why does he want to destroy the world?"
Mephiles scoffed telepathically as his verdant eyes scanned the duo. "Why does that matter to you?"
The question caught them off guard as they looked to one another then back to Mephiles. Silver glared at the vague being, clenching his fists.
"Because if we don't put an end to him, my future will-"
"Remain as it is." Mephiles finished his sentence, approaching Silver and staring him down. "Forever."
Gold locked onto venomous green. Mephiles was studying him, his expression, his stance, everything. He was so much different than before. Completely separate. Remembering nothing of his life before he met Blaze. This was not the same child he raised in the near future. This was… a walking shell of confusion, naivety, and blind jurisdiction.
"You truly remember nothing. It is… interesting." He crossed his arms, keeping his cold emotionless eyes on Silver.
"Stop telling me things I've heard before! Just tell me who the Iblis Trigger is and where I can find him!"
As much as taunting this new consciousness Silver had… developed, was fun, he had to let his game play out. The shadow held his hand out to the train terminal, "He's currently at the terminal station. It's now or never if you want this."
That being said, the shadowy enigma turned away from the teens, walking away onto a dark mist that dissipated. Blaze and Silver looked at one another as if trying to understand what they should do through unspoken words. Rather hesitantly, Silver began to run towards the terminal, Blaze following shortly after.
Trekking through Radical Train was a mystery at first. Many cranes and obvious signs of Eggman's machinery were present. Knowing how to handle them thanks to White Acropolis was quite easy, it was the cranes and traversing them that was the biggest issue now. They were all precariously mixed up and put in puzzle-like states to confuse the duo. Furthermore, every train at this mountainous trainyard were on schedule. None of them were falling behind or moving too quickly as Dr. Eggman's notes lead them to expect, which made tracking the main train difficult.
But when they did find it, it had already been stopped by their target.
That blue hedgehog, Sonic.
Throwing a psychokinetic blast in his way, Silver and Blaze jumped down in front of him as he dodged the attack. He set the princess down, green eyes glaring at the silvery hedgehog.
"You again… Man, you just don't give up, do ya?" He gave a snarky chuckle, eyes locked onto his enemy.
"This time there will be no more interruptions!" Silver shouted, pointing at Sonic. "The Iblis Trigger... must die!"
He threw his hand out, circular energy point glowing as he shot another blast his way. Sonic dodged it, somersaulting and dashing away from Silver. Knowing he would be fast, Silver concentrated and locked his power on Sonic's legs, stopping him and freezing him in place.
"Sonic…" The princess spoke softly, unsure of what to do other than hold back tears that stung her eyes.
Little did she know, behind her was another enemy, Dr. Eggman riding atop his mobile.
"So how was your little walk, Princess?" He laughed heartily, mechanical arms grabbing Elise as she cried out, being ripped away from Sonic's side.
"Elise!" Sonic tried to fight the energy, reaching out for her as Eggman flew off with the last member of the royal family.
Silver scoffed, clenching his fingers around Sonic's body, freezing him further. "Hmph. It's time to end this!" In his other hand, he charged up a psychokinetic blast, one sure enough to end any life in its way. He finally had him.
Until a black and red hedgehog dropped down in front of Sonic, surprising Silver and breaking his concentration.
"W-What?! W-Who are you?!"
The ruby-eyed hedgehog turns to Sonic who gives him a thumbs up, then dashes away in the direction Dr. Eggman and the princess was in. He then turned his attention to Silver, crossing his arms with an unreadable expression. Silver could only stare, feeling something inside of him stir with such seething rage. Something he… never felt before.
He was awake.
"I'll follow the blue hedgehog!" Blaze hollered before taking off after Sonic.
The black and red hedgehog's ruby eyes practically stared his golden ones down. It was a cold stare, one that was unspoken but said so much about this ebony rogue.
/That's a disguise.../
[Wait, He's red, not-]
/Give me control. Now./
"Hngh!"
Silver felt his breath hesitate, throwing his hands up to his face and shutting his eyes. He groaned in mental agony as he tries to keep Venice from leaking out. Nails digging into the sides of his head as he grits his teeth, body shaking as he turned away from the black and red hedgehog. He could feel the chaos energy in his veins practically boil.
[This isn't Mephiles, Venice!]
/Fall back./
/It burns./
/Give me control./
He grabs his neck, choking him as he's ripped away from the control panel.
A liquid oozes from the darkness of his mind, forcing it way down his throat.
He's choking.
He's drowning.
He falls into the darkness.
He wakes up.
Ripped away from the metaphorical driver's seat; chaos energy colors changed once more from teal to scarlet. Once gold eyes replaced with icy blue.
The hedgehog soon relaxed his posture, arms fell limp by his side, turning to 'Mephiles'.
"Mephiles. Why are you getting in my way?"
The black and red hedgehog shook his head. "I'm Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog."