Hey everybody. I know we're a little bit early, but happy anniversary Trials of War! On the 19th, this story will be turning four years old, wow! Who'd have thought that I would actually be working on Episode Shadow after all this time? For a long while, I didn't think that I'd ever get this far with this story. But hey, here we are and it's all thanks to all of your continued support for this fic. 4 years, 30+ chapters, 400+ reviews and over 100+ follows and favorites, who'd have ever thought we'd get this far? And now, after all this time, we finally get to see what the heck has been going on with Shadow the super edgy Hedgehog. So without further ado, let's begin. What's the deal with Shadow?
Trials of War: A Sonic Forces Rewrite
Chapter 33-
Episode Shadow
Shadow the Hedgehog stood at attention in the pristine white office belonging to Abraham Tower much like he had many time throughout his tenure as an agent of GUN. It was the same as it had always been, Shadow had been told to report to his office, he had set an imposing mood with his swivel chair turned away from him towards the map at the end of the room.
Abraham Tower turned towards him. "Shadow…" He announced, doing exactly as he thought he would being sure to look down upon him in his usual authoritative manner, while also casually drumming his fingers across his desk.
"Commander." Shadow saluted.
The GUN Commander waved him off and Shadow took a seat. "What's the situation?"
"As you know, Doctor Eggman has gone silent since the incident on The Lost Hex earlier this year."
Shadow nodded. "Yes. Sonic, Tails and Eggman discovered a race of aliens and then the good Doctor goes silent. We've done the song and dance many times before and will continue to do it for years to come."
"If only your blue friend would let us handle the Doctor. Then this cycle would not have to continue."
Shadow rolled his eyes. "We would need to get on his tail before Sonic does in order for that to happen."
Commander Tower smiled. "Luckily for us, we are."
Shadow raised an eyeridge.
"As you've said, Doctor Eggman has been off the grid again ever since the encounter on The Lost Hex… Recently, we've received word that one of Doctor Eggman's robots have appeared in the Chunan area to receive large crates of materials for a project."
At that, a grainy image appeared on the screen behind Commander Tower showing none other than Orbot with a clipboard and a pen in hand at a dock.
Shadow couldn't help but smirk at that. He should've known it would be one of the doctor's two lackeys to slip up; though he took the spherical bot to be the far more discreet one of the two.
"We sent out a team to scope out the area and pinpointed The Doctor's Lab to the former sight of the Temple of Gaia which he has since converted into some sort of laboratory."
Shadow nodded. "Were they able to make an infiltration?"
Tower shook his head. "No. Once they got close and sent the information back to us, they were compromised by the Doctor's forces. The last we heard from them was this status report."
At that, his screen flickered again and staring at them was a purple chinchilla, decked out in a standard tactical GUN uniform, consisting of a bullet proof vest, pants and an M1 helmet with their insignia adorning it. It was night time and they appeared to be crouched down in the bushes where two other GUN members, a dark skinned man and a fluffy white dog Mobian, were in similar uniforms and had guns trained and at the ready towards a giant metal door with the Eggman logo on it.
"Coming into HQ, we have located the Doctor's Laboratory where the Temple of Gaia used to be and are now are attempting infiltration. We will report when-"
"Incoming!" The human soldier shouted.
But it was too late as a large cream colored figure pounced upon them followed by the sounds of gunshots and explosions. The feed fizzled out to static and then nothing.
Shadow frowned again. "Hm…"
Tower had a scowl stretched upon his face and frowned as well. "We need you to go and check in on the doctor. See what he's up to and do not cause a commotion. Can I trust you to get in and out of there in one piece?"
"Of course. When do I leave?" Shadow asked.
"Now. I have already informed the other members of Team Dark."
Shadow leaned back in the chair and nodded. "Then let's begin the operation."
~Trials of War~
Given the time of the meeting, Shadow had travelled by air in order to make his arrival in Chunan during the dead of the night. The fight in and of itself was uneventful. Sitting in a GUN military plane usually didn't do anything. The pilot didn't care to talk and he certainly didn't care to either so he took the opportunity to set an alarm on the communicator underneath his glove and went to sleep.
When he had awoken, it was night time in the skies of Chunan. Shadow opened the door to the small plane and looked out to see the Dragon Road below him with its sprawling dragon runways, its stone paths that rose out of the water and pagodas littered throughout.
Shadow knew that he was going to have to make a decent trek if he were going to make it to the doctor's laboratory, but it was nothing he couldn't handle.
"Parachute?" The pilot asked as he looked back to him.
Shadow looked to the man and scoffed. "Don't need one."
Shadow tightened his gloves and without another word, dove out of the plane towards his destination.
He landed in a crouch atop one of the pagodas, a light thump accompanying the landing.
Below him were a trio of Egg Pawns wearing straw hats and brandishing comically large blasters in their hands. They were walking along a path raised from the water that connected to another one of the pagodas.
The trio looked up at the noise only to find that there was nothing there.
Confused, the trio looked at one another and began to go back on patrol again. The one at the tail end of the group turned around to continue its patrol only to be pierced through the face by a Chaos Spear. It fell to the ground as Shadow lunged over its sparking remains and performed a chained homing attack that easily dispatched the two.
Shadow dusted himself off when he landed. "That outta get the Doctor's attention."
Without another word, he dashed off towards another one of the pagodas where he met a group of five Egg Pawns, all dressed similarly to the others and holding their own guns.
Shadow didn't bother to do much with them, opting to teleport into the center of the group where they all reacted at the same time and fired away. Just as he had appeared in their sights, he disappeared yet again allowing the shots to hit other robots and not the hedgehog.
Shadow then ran off to another one of the waterways out where a few more of the Egg Pawns charged their lasers to fire at him.
He simply weaved his way between the shots before delivering a roundhouse to the first that knocked it into a watery grave and chucking a chaos spear at the next.
Shadow didn't have time to stop when bolts of energy came down at him from above.
He looked up to see a squad of Buzz Bomber's coming at him to which he easily jumped into the air and performed a chained homing attack on them.
He landed again, this time atop one of the dragon structures that snaked its way into and out of the water. A bunch of Roaders were on point, each with their ladybug printed designs as they charged towards him.
Shadow simply covered himself in raw chaos energy and sped ahead, boosting in their way and throwing parts into the water all around him. This went on for a few moments before he finally arrived at the facility. Immediately he rushed to one of the bushes to scope out the area.
And not a moment too soon as one of the guards passed by him.
"Oi, have you found the one that's been makin' a ruckus out there?" Someone with a thick Australian accent snapped.
"Hehehehe! Not yet, Fang! I've been looking high and low and but there's not one to show!" A high pitched voice responded, absolutely giddy at the prospect of what was to come.
"Ugh.. You're no help to me right now, Bean. What about you, Bark? Find somethin' useful?"
The polar bear crossed over to him and shrugged.
Fang sighed. "Well, that's just perfect! You two need to keep on watch and if anybody comes, take 'em out!"
Shadow frowned.
The Hooligans were on site when Eggman had already had his machines to do the dirty work for him. It was a rare occurrence for the Doctor to have hired help to do security work for him. That could only mean that whatever was inside had to be important.
There was no question. Shadow needed to get in there at all costs. He just had to get past this obstacle that could easily take down any common soldier.
Luckily, he was no common soldier.
Shadow the Hedgehog leapt from his position and casually began to walk up to the entrance of the facility.
"Look, all I'm sayin is that we gotta find the no good dingo before he gets here or we don't get paid by 'ol Eggman." Fang insisted to his two compatriots.
And then Bean noticed him. "Uh… Fang?"
"Not now, Bean. This is serious. I don't want nobody gettin' in here."
"Fang?"
"Bean, for the last time, I-"
Without a word, Bark took Fang by the soldiers and turned him around so that he was face to face with none other than Shadow the Hedgehog.
"What the- Shadow?!" Fang gaped.
Shadow didn't break his casual composure. "Congratulations, you got two working eyes on that head of yours, Sniper. Now how about you step aside before things get ugly?"
Fang growled. "Hey! We haven't settled the score since you and your pack 'o dogs swarmed us in Empire those months ago!"
Shadow rolled his eyes. "Not my fault you three took the obvious bait. Ah yes, come kill this random DJ at a night club for very large sums of cash. You three act like you haven't heard of a raid before."
Bean laughed. "When we got a job, we just do our thing and blow things up!"
"And how has that gone for you? Busy doing work for lowlives like Eggman?"
"Speak for yourself, mate." Fang retorted. "You rollin' over like a dog for that no good dingo, Tower."
Bean laughed again. "Haha, yeah! Does he give you doggy treats when you do a mission?"
Fang let out a laugh at that too, throwing an arm around Bean's shoulders while the two broke into a fit of guffaws. Bark remained pretty stoic about it, not really giving any real visible reaction.
But then Bean stopped and looked at Fang as he was wiping a tear from his eye.
"Wait, I want doggy treats." Bean noted, his eyes squinted in accusation towards Fang.
Fang immediately pushed Bean down to the ground at that and pointed his direction back at Shadow.
"My spleen…" Bean groaned from the ground.
Shadow eyes had practically rolled to the back of his skull at this point but he continued to move forward. "I don't have time for your nonsense, Hooligans. How about you step aside and let me do my job before things get ugly."
Fang smirked. "Alright, you got us, poochie. We'll sit, stay and roll over so that you can go and get rotten old Eggman."
Shadow narrowed his eyes, but decided to proceed, leaving them behind and reaching for the door.
"BARK, NOW!"
And Shadow knew as he jumped out of the way of a punch directed towards his head that left a dent in the door to the Doctor's facility.
While in the air, he was quick to light a field of Chaos Energy around him to melt a hail of bullets from the sniper who already had a smoking pistol drawn.
As soon as he hit the ground, he delivered a roundhouse to Bark who was already attempting to deliver another punch down on him. This knocked him back into the entrance of the facility again.
Shadow didn't even bother to check on the bear. As soon as the roundhouse had been finished, he rocketed off towards the other two Hooligans, a pair of Chaos Spears in hand only to find that Fang was the only one there.
It threw him off for a moment, but that was all that Bean needed to suddenly appear from seemingly nowhere and jump onto his back.
"Hey, do I need a quarter for this ride?" The bird asked.
"What the?!"
Bean laughed at him before he clasped his hands around Shadow's head, covering his eyes and leaving the Ultimate Life form to attempt to stop and grab at the bird.
He was able to get him off and chuck him away from him only for two shots to fire at his back.
Shadow stumbled forward but was quick to regain his footing. He turned on his heels and looked to see Fang, smirking at him with a smoking gun as he tipped his hat at him. "G'day, mate. Watch for fallin' bombs."
"What?!" Shadow asked only for Bean to chuck two bombs from where he was thrown.
Shadow was then enveloped in a massive explosion.
Bean ran over to Fang to which the two shared a high five.
"Heh, that outta teach him to-"
Only for two Chaos Spears to hit them from behind, knocking them off of their feet and to the ground.
"Don't forget my Chaos Control." He smirked.
But once again, Shadow spoke to soon as Bark appeared, scooping him from his spot and hefting him into the air. Shadow attempted to wrestle out of his grasp but Bark held strong and used the opportunity to sock him in the gut.
Shadow let out a choked grunt at this, getting a hit from the likes of Bark was like being hit by a truck.
When Bark went for another hit, he ignited his body with Chaos Energy yet again, forcing the bear to drop him. When Shadow landed on the ground, a pair of Chaos Spears erupted from his palms and straight into the bear's stomach, knocking him into the wall of the Eggman Facility as well as out of consciousness.
Shadow dusted off his palms at that only for a stray gunshot to graze by his head. The Ultimate Lifeform was quick to spin on his heels only to come face to face with the two ranged fighters launching bombs and gunshots at him.
He was quick though, racing off towards the two of them with the boost aura surrounding him, easily quickstepping around the attacks. When he closed the gap, Shadow reached out to grab the two by their necks before grinding both of them into the ground as he continued to run for a few moments. Adding insult to injury, he let out a small burst of Chaos Energy into them both, finally allowing them both to pass out.
Shadow let out a sigh of relief after that, getting up from where he was and taking a moment to take in the group of unconscious mercenaries around him.
"Morons." He scoffed before going to the sliding door that lead into the facility.
Shadow the Hedgehog sunk into the laboratory, the sliding door slamming shut behind him. He was cautious, making sure to make light footfalls and not draw any attention to himself. Luckily he was all alone with nothing but the dim light of the lab and the mysterious tubes littered around the room. Red cubes, some in varying states of decay, floated in a clear liquid; some of them calmly without a care in the world while others sloshed about as if they were ingredients in some sort of dish.
What have you been up to, Doctor? Shadow wondered as he continued to creep his way across the room.
It wasn't long till he reached the end of the room where the giant computer sat, ready and waiting to be used. He immediately turned it on only for lines of code to cross the screen before a menu turned up with the Eggman logo watermarked in the middle of it all.
Shadow found himself in a menu that could direct him to various things.
Robot Blueprints
Emerald Readings and Radar
Sonic Sightings
Previous Failures
Future Plans
Shadow didn't need to bother when it came to any of the doctor's silly contraptions or where he might believe Sonic or the Emeralds to be at the current moment in time. The future, though? That would be interesting…
Shadow didn't hesitate, clicking on the desired option only for another menu to pop up on the screen.
Eggman Empire
Hotspots
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic Heroes
Death Egg
V
Shadow rolled his eyes at the idea of the Eggman Empire, the places he wished to take over and the usual plans to defeat all of his friends. All three of those things were another waste of his time. There wasn't a person on the planet who hadn't heard the words "Eggman Empire" and how much of a joke the idea was these days with a certain blue idiot to always keep an eye out.
The idea of a new Death Egg did pique his interest though. The last time he had made one of those was what? Before he had even been a factor in this whole Sonic Eggman equation. Come to think of it, he had never been on a Death Egg. Strange. He supposed there was that instance back on his birthday last year but did that really even count?
He hovered over the option but stopped when he noticed that there were more options below with the arrow daring him to go forward.
Shadow decided to take it and went down to find two words that immediately piqued his interest.
Project Infinite
He'd never heard those words before. Everything else was sure to be expected to some degree, even the Death Egg. But he'd never heard the words Infinite being uttered before.
He clicked on it and to his surprise, the screen went dark for a few moments only for a video feed of Doctor Eggman to appear onscreen.
"This is perfect!" The Doctor laughed.
Eggman was in another laboratory. This one was dark much like the one he was currently in only instead of a clinical blue light gracing the ground, it was sickly and green, a single pod in the center.
Shadow frowned. He knew exactly where this was.
"I can't believe Shadow actually survived the fall! What luck!" Eggman was grinning from ear to ear now. If Shadow didn't know better, his entire face would be split in half.
"After all this time, not only do I learn about my Grandfather's old research… But to have it up close and personal like this?! An Ultimate Life Form! A being capable of wielding raw Chaos Energy and manipulating it with such ease that he's practically bursting with such power! Amazing!"
Eggman got closer to the capsule, eying shadow curiously before returning to a desk and writing some notes.
"Still… His DNA is… Difficult to work with… I don't understand what exactly it is. Truth be told, it may be my lack of knowledge when it comes to biochemistry… It's foreign to me… Agh!"
Eggman slammed his fist against the table only for a thought to come to him.
"But maybe it's best that I play to my strengths. Yes… Yes… That would be good. I take Shadow's DNA and use it to create an android! Not just one but a whole army of my own Ultimate Lifeform that will make me unstoppable! Hohohoho! No one will be able to stand in my way after that."
Shadow frowned. So that was his plan with the Shadow Androids? He wanted an army of Ultimate Lifeforms in order to take control of the world on his own, but that didn't exactly answer his questions about Project Infinite?
What was Eggman doing with Ultimate life…? Why did he have this footage now…?
Was he trying to create an Ultimate Life Form…?
This Project Infinite, he needed to understand more.
~Trials of War~
Everyone in the room looked on in shock and awe at Shadow's revelation.
"Infinite is an ultimate life form?" Tails asked, his mouth hanging in absolute surprise.
Shadow nodded. "Yes, The Doctor had begun working on an Ultimate Lifeform immediately after learning of my existence during the conflict on the Space Colony Arc. Originally, that began with him recovering me after my fall and using my DNA to create the Shadow Androids…"
"But he realized that plan was trash when we busted those things up!" The older Sonic smirked.
Blaze frowned. "I knew of what happened on the arc, but Eggman created robotic clones of Shadow?"
"Yep. We found out about them during an alien invasion!" Sonic confirmed.
Blaze raised an eyebrow and looked to the person next to her to her help. Unfortunately that happened to the younger Sonic who looked just as baffled as her.
Sonic simply laughed at their confusion while Shadow rolled his eyes.
"The Doctor quickly realized that if he wanted to match something of my caliber that he'd have to ditch the machines, creating something real, something with a heart and a soul that would be able to properly tap into Chaos energy."
~Trials of War~
"Bah! The Shadow Androids were a complete failure!" Eggman roared as he threw a stack of papers off of a desk.
Shadow was intrigued at this new entry, seeing that this had to have been shortly after the Black Arms invasion.
The Doctor was pacing around the room and that's how Shadow noted that the doctor was in a different location now. This one was completely different from the last, instead being pristine and white with glossy metal features. No pod this time.
"Not only were they completely useless against those meddlesome to my enemies, but their Chaos Energy pales in comparison to that of Shadow's! Bah! I worked so hard, making sure I'd have an army capable of being up to the level of that no good hedgehog but it's clear to me that no matter what I try, no machine will be able to match him!"
Shadow couldn't help but smirk, remembering how much fun he had dismantling the other Shadow's even with his mind in an amnesiac haze. The Doctor's little toys were no match for the likes of him.
"It's become clear to me that the only way to create an Ultimate Lifeform capable of rivaling the best is to actually create life… And that is a feat that is going to take far more effort than I initially thought. It could take months, it could take years… But I don't have a choice if I'm to have the victory that I want. Yes! I will create an Ultimate Lifeform! One much more powerful than Shadow the Hedgehog that not even Sonic will be able to stop! Ohohohoho!"
Shadow rolled his eyes at the thought. There wasn't a way in hell that Eggman would be capable of creating Ultimate Life. Still, he pressed on and continued to view the files.
~Trials of War~
"But the Doctor could not do it. He could not figure out how to create a being of pure chaotic power to rival that of Shadow, let alone Sonic himself." Omega confirmed to which Shadow nodded at him.
The younger Sonic raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what? I thought Shadow was the one with the funky chaos powers. What exactly do I have to do with it other than old Egg McMuffin's unhealthy obsession with me?"
"Oh, that's right! You don't know yet…" Tails realized.
The older counterpart chimed in. "Basically we're chosen by Chaos or somethin' to keep saving the world or whatever. But y'know, that's stupid."
"True dat." The younger one nodded.
"Saving the world's all part of the fun, we do what we gotta do and lend a helping hand whenever we can cause it's the right thing to do." Sonic nodded, his arms crossed across his chest and a smile plastered on his face.
"And we live here." The younger Sonic added.
Sonic broke his composure and laughed. "True dat."
The two Sonics shared a fist bump at that to which Shadow rolled his eyes.
"Moving on… Eggman attempted to create an ultimate life form capable of wielding Chaos Energy much like you and I, Sonic. But of course, that only lead to failure after failure."
"Yet we see Infinite now. But I don't think he uses Chaos Energy?" Blaze put her hand to her chin in thought.
"He doesn't. Infinite is an Ultimate Life Form but not one of Chaos Energy."
~Trials of War~
"Failure after failure after failure…" The Doctor groaned. "I don't understand! What am I doing wrong?!"
Shadow's eyes widened in shock at what was before him; there was Doctor Eggman standing before another pod, a white colored Orbot was standing next to him with a clipboard at his side and within the pod was some sort of creature or at the least the withering remains of one… It cried out in strangled, animalistic horror as it began to dissolve away within the pod.
Orbot then began to speak in a far more monotonous voice than Shadow was used to hearing. "It appears that your experiment to create Ultimate Life has once again, failed Doctor. All tests show that whenever we try to inject even the smallest dosages of Chaos Energy into their systems, the bodies immediately reject it."
At that the animal let out a final shriek before dissolving into nothing.
Eggman growled. "I know that bolt for brains! But the question is why?! I followed all of my grandfather's notes to a T and yet nothing I've tried has worked yet! I've created an entire zoo's worth of these Ultimate Lifeforms and not a single one of them can even make it past the incubation stage without whittling away to nothing!"
Eggman flopped back onto the table in defeat, his moustache dropped. "What am I doing wrong? I can't just go and make a deal with Black Doom like my grandfather but… urg…"
Orbot quietly patted him on the back for a few moments only for the Doctor to shoot up from his spot with newfound vigor.
"No! That's it!" Eggman realized. "I don't need Black Doom to do my bidding but I do have something on hand that could be much better! Orbot! Those creatures that we're currently imprisoning on the Incredible Interstellar Amusement Park for the mind control ray! Do you think we could harness some of their power for the Ultimate Life Form project?"
"Well, the new Cubot Unit is still working on gathering more of them like you requested. Should be enough to spare some."
"Perfect! Have them sent to one of my facilities on Mobius right away. We'll divert some of these resources and use their Hyper Go-On power on the Ultimate Life Form!"
Orbot nodded and began typing things on his electronic keyboard. "Right away, sir!"
"Good… Good… Oh and you two bots need to get yourselves a new paintjob! I can't have you greeting guests at the theme park looking all drab and grey."
"We've been scheduled to be repainted next Tuesday, sir."
"Perfect!"
Shadow's eyes widened. "Hype Go-On Power? But… He couldn't possibly…?"
Just then another clip started and he was once again shocked at what he saw.
Onscreen was what appeared to be an ox Mobian [1] entirely black in color screaming in agony as their body shifted into all sorts of different, shapes, sizes and colors at an erratic rate. At one moment, the ox would be on fire, only for them to disappear from sight entirely, then their form would turn to one of pure electricity only to become a radiant ray of light, then their body began to suck everything into itself as it became a blackhole only to fly erratically around the training facility before exploding into nothingness.
Eggman shook his head, with Cubot and Orbot sitting next to him.
The two robots looked at each other in wide eyed shock while Eggman simply shook his head in dismay.
"Another dud. We've come so close this time and yet, still nothing…" Eggman sighed. "Orbot, how much Hyper Go-On power did we inject into this one?"
Orbot hesitated for a moment before he finally answered. "The agreed upon dosage."
Eggman frowned. "Just as I thought. Too much would've caused an immediate catastrophic meltdown and too little would've left them with not enough power to sustain their form and fade away immediately. But that one? Vitals were perfectly normal until we asked him to test his abilities. It's clear to me that we have the dosage down but there's… There's something missing…"
"Perhaps something to stabilize it, boss?" Orbot suggested.
"Yeah! We could use one of those Chaos Gems to do it or the master!" Cubot chimed in.
Eggman storked his chin in thought at that suggestion but he frowned. "No… We can't use the Emeralds. The moment I steal even one of them, Sonic and his friends would be on me. I'd need to find some sort of limitless energy source that would sustain them."
Orbot and Cubot looked at each other at that.
"Well… Where do you expect to find something like that?" Cubot asked.
"I don't know…" Eggman frowned.
With another heavy sigh, he looked towards the two and nodded. "I suppose that will be a problem for another day though. For now, we have to return to The Lost Hex and see what those Zeti are up to. Is the Cacophonic Conch ready for me?"
"Of course, sir!" Orbot announced.
"Good. We'll make a stop in Chunan to check on the Incubation Tubes before leaving again."
"Yes, sir!" Both robots saluted.
And with that, the feed ended.
Shadow was stunned at everything he had learned. For the past four years, Eggman had been trying to create an Ultimate Lifefrom of his own and from the looks of things, he was close to succeeding. If this is what he had been so quiet over after so long then… What could happen if he managed to attain something to stabilize his creation? Would they be able to stop him? His mind was running a mile a minute at the thought of it all.
But he knew one thing, he had to report back to base right away.
Shadow was about to run out of the room but stopped. He looked to the side and remembered something the Doctor had said.
Incubation Chambers in Chunan…
Shadow looked all around him and noted the containers with red cubes inside of them all around him.
He shuddered as it dawned on him, that all of these were failed attempts at Ultimate Life.
He carefully crossed over to one of the pods and touched it. Somehow, he could feel the being inside and knew that at some point, he too was nothing more than attempt at life, a chance for something more. Fifty years ago, he was nothing more than a pile of chemicals floating aimlessly in a jug just like this one as scientists watched with baited breath as to whether or not he would take form and be the cure that Maria needed to-
He stopped, his thoughts drifting to the young girl that he constantly carried in his heart.
What would she want for this ultimate lifeform?
What does this being mean to him?
He pondered this for a while, his hand to the tube as he could feel a slow, yet steady heartbeat from inside.
Shadow didn't know… But he had other things to worry about now.
Without another word, he turned away from the tube and walked out of the room.
He had to return to GUN.
~Trials of War~
Tails frowned. "Hyper go-on power… I-I should've known…"
Sonic clenched his fist, a low guttural growl coming from the pit of his stomach. "After all this time, he's still using them…"
Shadow raised an eyeridge at this but continued. "Yes. With some of the Wisp energy he had remaining during the ordeal on his Interstellar Amusement Park and from those he was also able to find who stay on the planet he was able to harness their concentrated Hyper Go-On power, some of which you've experienced in the form of those Nega Wisps."
"The fact that he was able to get so much reserve Hyper Go-On Energy… We should've known better than to think we had been done with it after getting rid of the theme park."
Omega put a gentle hand on Tails' shoulder. "It was an oversight on all our parts. Even GUN did not predict Eggman hording Hyper Go-On power."
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Sonic sighed. "Still, if I knew he still had all the stuff, I would've…"
"It doesn't matter." Shadow sighed. "There's nothing to do now."
The others fell silent at that for a moment. It was sickening knowing that even to this day, the energy that he had siphoned from an innocent race was still being used for evil even after having freed the Wisps and allowing them to live wherever they chose.
"It will be something else for Eggman to answer for." Blaze added, a light venom in her voice that could be reciprocated by everyone in the room.
The youngest of the group then looked to the brooding hedgehog and asked. "Okay, but then what happened? Eggman used the hyper-whatever to sap into Infinite and then he just made him?"
Shadow shook his head. "No. As previously stated, Infinite was still needed to be stabilized. At the time, Eggman didn't have anything to go off of. But clearly that changed during my mission."
Sonic laughed. "Yeah, while you were busy playing in the jungle with The Hooligans and reading Eggman's journal, we were dealing with Eggman testing out some brand new power."
Tails frowned. "The Phantom Ruby… We didn't know then, but thanks to kid Sonic, we know that was exactly what happened."
Sonic and Shadow turned their attention to the pudgy hedgehog who nodded.
"You know of the Phantom Ruby?" Shadow asked.
The young one nodded. "Yeah, had this whole adventure with the thing that lead to me ending up here."
Tails nodded. "Apparently one of the things that makes his timeline split from ours is that he ran into the Phantom Ruby."
"Thing's a pain in the butt and now that that that Infinite guy has it, it's only gotten worse." The smaller Sonic groaned. "At this rate, I'd take Eggman teleporting me and the boys around the islands again than all of this."
"No kidding." Tails agreed.
"But the question still remains, how did Eggman attain such power?" Omega wondered aloud.
All eyes pointed to Shadow again.
The Ultimate Lifeform deflated. "I wish I knew honestly, but that was something he has never disclosed. As previously stated, we know that Eggman obtained it sometime during my mission while the rest of you were rallying the Sonic Heroes to put a stop to Eggman's plans."
"And at the time, we had no idea how huge those would become…" Tails frowned.
"So then a real question still remains." Sonic noted. "You've been telling us a lot of the how with Infinite but that still doesn't tell us why you sided with Eggman?"
All eyes turned to the dark hedgehog yet again and he sighed.
"Very well… Allow me to tell you the story of Infinite's birth and the events that followed. Shortly after I had returned from my mission, Commander Tower sent us out to Eggman's pyramid base in Green Hill Zone. It didn't take long for us to get inside and quickly I was split off from Rouge and Omega. From there, I was left alone in the base…"
~Trials of War~
Shadow raced through the pyramid, hating to have left Rouge and Omega behind, but they knew that they had to stop Eggman before it was too late.
He was so close…
Eggman was so close to pulling it off and he knew that for sure.
Whatever this new power he had was, he knew that he had to get there before it was too late.
Luckily for him, seemed the Doctor didn't bother with too many more defenses past the two guard dogs he left the others to deal with.
In no time at all, he arrived in a room only to immediately falter.
Before him was a massive, pristine white room where Doctor Eggman, Cubot and Orbot were looking over an observation deck. In the center of it all was a pod raised in the air that pulsated and sparked with red energy that flared all over the room. He could barely see them now, but a figure convulsed erratically atop it.
"Doctor!" Shadow shouted as he skidded to a hault.
"Shadow!" Doctor Eggman called to him from the deck. "You're just in time to witness the birth of my greatest creation! An Ultimate Life Form bound with the Phantom Ruby that will put even the likes of you to shame!"
"You can't!" Shadow insisted. "I'm not letting you create ultimate life!"
"It's far too late now!" Eggman laughed. "The Phantom Ruby has already been inserted into the vessel and now, all that's left is for us to sit back and watch while we lay witness to the birth of the most powerful being in the world, directly under my control!"
"No!"
Shadow jumped up into the air, doing his best to reach the pod atop the pillar. He jumped off the walls until he was standing over the being.
Immediately, he had to do his best to cover his eyes from the bright light that was the being's creation. He could barely see the black fur that flailed about from inside, he couldn't even see its face. But he saw one thing. A gem, about twice the size of a Chaos Emerald was on his chest, clearly this Phantom Ruby that Eggman had spoken of.
One good shot and that's all it would take. This being's life would be over before it started. Shadow knew what he had to do.
He proceeded, rearing back and beginning to gather Chaos Energy in his hand. He had to do it, extinguish this life before it could cause any harm to this world. He had to end it now.
And yet, as he prepared to strike the final blow, he stopped mere inches from the gem.
Before him, amongst the bright light, he did not see a new body. No… For a mere moment, he saw himself. Floating in a tube much like this one, aboard the Space Colony arc with the likes of Gerald and Maria looking fondly upon him as they waited for him to come to life.
Just like this being, he was incubating. Completely defenseless to anything and everything that could come at him. Just disconnecting a single tube would have made it all over before he could even begin to comprehend what was out there for him.
Is this what they would've wanted? To have him take a life much like his own before it could even come to be? Could he do this to someone just like him…?
Could he do this?
Tears brimmed from the corner of his eyes as he flashed back to reality. Shadow needed to focus, this was not a life. This was not him. He had a mission and he had to stop Eggman no matter the cost.
With a final, labored huff, he forced his hands towards the stone on his chest and delivered a Chaos Spear towards it.
Only to immediately be repelled.
Shadow was sent flying through the air only to land harshly on the ground.
Eggman could do nothing but laugh. "Finally! Yes! Come to life, Infinite! Be the Ultimate Life Form meant to conquer the world and rule it by my side!"
Shadow groaned, getting up from the ground only to watch in horror as the glowing stopped and a pillar of red light emerged from the top of the tube and into the air.
"No…" He groaned.
But it was too late. Just as quickly as the pillar appeared, it vanished. Steam rose from the tube as slowly… A figure began to rise from it.
For a moment, a miasma of purple smoke began to radiate off of it for a few moments as it slowly floated down to the ground. He looked around curiously, reaching out to the world around him and touching things.
Shadow could only watch in stunned silence.
"Welcome to the world, Infinite." Eggman grinned. "My name is Doctor Eggman and I am your creator. I brought you into the world so that you can be the one to reshape it into my image."
"Cre…Cre…Crator- Creator…?" Infinite questioned. His voice was raspy at this time, still struggling to form syllables.
"Yes. You can praise me for my genius after your vocal cords have finished forming!" Eggman boasted. "For now, just get acquainted with the world around you."
Infinite nodded and began to look around the room, walking about, touching things and testing his abilities.
Shadow went completely ignored as he rose to his feet and watched.
Despite everything, he couldn't help but remember a black hedgehog doing the same aboard the Space Colony Arc 50 years ago. But the difference between him and Infinite was that Shadow had a young girl to help him. To hold his hand and guide him around the room as he began to take in what little of a world that he had around him aboard the arc.
Shadow looked up at Eggman, who was all smiles as he watched Infinite do as he was told.
The thought of someone like Eggman being the one to care for this new life, one created just as he was did not sit well with him.
No. He had to do something. He had to make sure that Infinite would be allowed to live as he chose and maybe even become something more. He had to do what he could to ensure that Infinite would be able to live a life as he would and so… he did the unthinkable.
"Alright Eggman, you've won!"
Eggman raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"I said you've won. You went and created Infinite. Good work."
"Um… Thank you?" Eggman looked confused.
Shadow mustered up the courage and sighed. "And I know I can't defeat him. I don't know what it is you did but when I tried to get at that Phantom Ruby earlier, I couldn't even make a scratch. It threw me across the room. I don't know what you've done but that power clearly exceeds my own."
"Of course. Infinite's power is well… Heh, you've heard his name."
Orbot raised an eyebrow at that. "But boss, Infinite's power is-"
"Quiet you!" Eggman snapped at him. "Infinite is incredibly strong. His power exceeds that of Shadow's. If you're giving up now then I look forward to what it'll be like when Sonic face him. But not just yet. There's much to be done."
"What do you plan to do with him?" Shadow asked.
Eggman grinned. "Conquer the world of course!"
Shadow let out a heavy breath and nodded. "Alright, we'll do it together then."
"Pardon?" Eggman asked.
"You heard me; I said that we'll be doing it together." Shadow insisted.
Cubot gasped. "No way! Shadow's joining Team Eggman! This is great! All those fantasies are finally coming true!"
Eggman rolled his eyes but then looked down at Shadow, challenging him. The black hedgehog responded with his own stare, not daring to look at the Jackal that was walking around the room.
"Why?" Eggman finally asked.
Shadow scoffed. "I clearly can't stop you and you know how I've always been. I look out for me and no one else. So I'm joining the winning team."
Eggman didn't stop looking at him, scrutinizing the hedgehog for a few seconds before he finally nodded.
"Okay. You can prove that to me now. The rest of that team of yours is looking to be a nuisance. Be a dear and tell them to leave. Infinite and I will be joining you."
Shadow did his best not to react in front of him, turning towards the door and nodding. "What are we waiting for? Let's go."
And with that Shadow left to go to the front of Arsenal Pyramid where Rouge and Omega would be waiting. He sighed. It would only be a few days on Eggman's side. He would talk to Infinite, see what he thought and soon, hopefully the two of them would be able to defeat Eggman or he would have to handle the problem himself.
This was going to be fine. He'd make it work. No problem.
~Trials of War~
It had been a few days after that first encounter with Infinite and in the span of those few days, Shadow could only watch as Infinite began to become more cognitive, more of himself over that time. He began to understand just how much of a danger that the jackal was and knew that he had to talk to him before it was too late.
Luckily for him, Shadow had finally gotten his first night alone with him.
The two had been sent to the Death Egg while Eggman personally dealt with getting Zavok acquitted with his new role.
Deep within the expanses of space, the two stood looking out the window towards the planet that they called home.
Shadow wasn't exactly good at the whole emotional, talking thing and bringing out the best in people. No… That was more Sonic's thing, or Rouge's or hell even Maria's.
It was one of those times where he wished she were here today. She would have known exactly what to do and say to Infinite that would get him to understand the value in life like she had to him. But no, he had to carry on through the memory of her to make him understand. He had to try.
Right now, Infinite was all alone, looking out at the great expanse that was the stars. The jackal seemed to be in his own world as he stared out at the expanse. He seemed to be whispering something to himself, but he didn't know what exactly.
Shadow carefully made his way towards the jackal and stood quietly next to him. The whispering seemed to stop as the two stared idly out at the stars. The silence being the only one to accompany them as they took in the dark void of space and the bright blue planet below them, the one that they were planning to take for their own.
"The stars are beautiful, aren't they?"
Shadow was surprised to hear the deep voice come from the Jackal. He scanned the masked figure, trying to take him in as he looked out there.
He couldn't help but smile. "Yeah… I used to look out at them with an old friend a long time ago."
Infinite nodded. "Yes, Maria Robotnik. I was made aware of her thanks to the information thanks to the files on all the Sonic Heroes, GUN and all other known threats to our reign."
"The Doctor certainly doesn't cut corners, does he?" Shadow chuckled.
"Indeed. It's one of the many things that makes the master so great after all. It's what makes him perfect."
Shadow frowned. From the moment he could speak, Infinite had only been following the Doctor's orders, singing his praises.
No being deserved to feel that they had their life owed to someone, not even to their creators.
"The Doctor certainly has his merits. But perfection? No. Even beings such as ourselves who are meant to be ultimate have our faults."
"You may be ultimate, but I am Infinite. As such, the one that created me can be nothing short of that, perfection."
Shadow hummed, not wanting to push the matter further. Instead he opted to shift the subject matter towards something else.
"You know, for long as I have been around, these stars have remained the same always glistening so brightly. Maria always told me that she was so fortunate to be here among those stars, regardless of the reasoning for that. She told me that it made her realize how small we all truly are… And yet, despite how small we are, we're able to make a difference."
Infinite scoffed at the idea. "I am far from small and my impact will be larger than all throughout history as I become the one to assure the doctor's rise to power."
"You're right." Shadow chuckled. "You and I certainly have a far greater impact than most due to the circumstances of our birth, the power we hold… It can change the world and yet, we've got a responsibility to make sure that we use it well."
"I do." Infinite insisted. "From the day I was born, I have only used my power to contribute to the doctor's reign."
Shadow shook his head. "But… That's just it. You may be a creation, just like me. But what Maria always taught me is that we have a chance to make the world what we desire. It doesn't have to be about helping them. Don't get me wrong, I'd prefer it. But you need to make choices for yourself. You need to decide how you would like to the view the world. Do you honestly think that following Eggman is choosing for yourself?"
Infinite was about to answer only for a beeping to alert the two of them.
"Infinite! Shadow! You two are need back on planet right now! The raid on GUN is about to begin!"
Infinite looked to Shadow and shook his head. "I use my life to serve the one that gave it to me, no matter the cost. And now, Shadow. It's time for you to prove that you're truly on our side."
Without another word, he teleported away.
Shadow looked out at the stars again, seeing the bright blue planet out there and everything Eggman wanted to do to it.
No. Eggman would not be successful in his endeavor.
But somehow, we would succeed with Infinite and if that meant playing along with Eggman for a while longer then that is what needed to be done. It was what Maria… No… It's what he wanted.
~Trials of War~
Sonic gave him a sorrowful look. "Shadow that's…"
"Completely idiotic." Shadow sighed. "I should have known better than to talk to try and talk to a Eggman's pet but foolish sentiment got the better of me."
Sonic shook his head. "Sounds to me like you're just like the rest of us, Shads. We always saw Infinite as only a monster but you saw it differently."
"Oh, make no mistake. Infinite is a monster. The doctor made sure that was true." Shadow insisted.
The group nodded at this, knowing that Shadow was right. Infinite, despite being much like him was also not. They were not the same and they knew that Infinite would not make the choice to be better like Shadow had been.
But the younger Sonic frowned. "I don't understand… If you hated doing what you were doing but wanted to continue doing this for Infinite then why did you allow things to get as far as they did? Why did you continue to side with him?"
Shadow sighed. "It was a combination of many, many things. I had the desire to try and trun Infinite like you all had with me, but… I knew I never could've done so. And then… With all I had done… Honestly… I felt that I could never face any of you… But then Omega reminded me of something very important when all of this started all those months ago."
Omega put a hand on his shoulder at that. "I could never abandon a friend."
Shadow smiled back at the robot to which the others couldn't help but smile too.
At that, the shuttle landed finally reaching its destination on Angel Island.
When they came out of the shuttle, they were met with the faces of practically the entire resistance. Word had broken out quickly of the arrival of Tails. Some wanted to give him a hero's welcome, others just wanted to see if the rumors were true.
"Tails!" Two very distinct voices shouted from the crowd. One was deep and gruff and the other higher pitched and excited.
From the crowd emerged the two leaders of the resistance: Knuckles and Amy. Amy was the first to get at the foxkit, wrapping him in a great big hug and sobbing. She pretty much gave him the same treatment that she had given to Sonic when they had found him all that long ago.
"Alright, move over, Amy. You've had enough time with the kid." Knuckles grinned as he lightly pushed her away.
"No! If I let go, Tails might slip away again!" Amy insisted. "Chaos, we were worried sick about you! We thought you were gone, we thought-"
"Hey, he's all good." Sonic insisted. "No need to worry. I knew he'd show up eventually."
Knuckles took Tails in for a moment, while he shyly looked away. "Where have you been, kid?"
He chuckled. "That's… a very long story."
Knuckles couldn't help but laugh out loud at that. "I bet. We've had quite a bit of those for a while now. But I'm glad to see that you're still kickin."
"Thanks, Knuckles."
"C'mere!" The Echidna was quick to wrap him in an embrace, making sure to give Tails a light noogie to which he could only laugh.
Sonic and Amy were quick to join them in their embrace while a lot of their other friends came to join in.
The younger Sonic took this all in and could only smile. He hoped that he and his friends could remain that close in their future. Someday soon, he'd get to them.
Meanwhile, Blaze also stepped out of the ship only for her eyes to widen when they landed on familiar golden irises.
Silver the Hedgehog was shocked to see her there too but was quick to cross over to her.
"Oh my gosh, you're here!" Silver gaped.
Blaze chuckled. "I'm quite surprised that you're here too, though I really shouldn't be. You're always off saving other timelines."
Silver couldn't help but nervously rub the back of his head. "Well… You know me."
"Indeed I do." Blaze nodded. "But tell me, have we made our promise to each other yet? I mean, in you time of course."
Silver couldn't help but grin now. "We sure have."
"Good." Blaze smirked. She quickly closed the gap between them and wrapped her arms around him. It didn't take long for the two of them to find themselves in a comfortable position as they shared a passionate kiss. Even though it was just a few short moments to the outside world, for them it was a kiss that lasted a lifetime as they had found each other in all of this craziness yet again.
When they finally pulled away, Blaze was smiling at him. "I cannot begin tell you how much I needed that. With everything that I've dealt with here, seeing your face makes it all the worth it."
"Oh? Tell me about it."
Blaze wrapped her hands with his and smiled. "With pleasure, dear."
With that, Blaze launched into her own story about how she had come to this world and all she had been through with the others.
Finally, when Shadow and Omega came on board, they came face to face with none other than Rouge the Bat.
For a moment the two froze; just staring at one another and they just took each other in. The two hadn't seen each other since all those weeks ago in Spagonia and now… After all this time, they had finally found each other and were finally at each other's side yet again.
Omega was the first to act, lightly pushing Shadow towards Rouge with his massive hand. The hedgehog growled at him for this but knew that nudge was what was needded to get this conversation started.
"Rouge, I-"
"Do you have any idea how much you worried me over all this time?" Rouge asked him.
Shadow was taken aback by this but slowly nodded.
"You go off on Eggman's side doing Chaos knows what for months on end! Every time I tried to reach out to you and ask what was going on, you kept me in the dark, told me that I wouldn't understand and set the world ablaze!"
"I know and I understand if you don't-"
"Ahahah! Not another word!" She shouted. She then directed her attention towards Omega. "And you! You left me in Sunset after we promised that we'd be there for each other!"
Omega was silent.
Rouge continued, tears now streaming down her face. "You two left me all alone and I was forced to have to join the resistance while you two went and had your own adventures! Do you have any idea how that made me feel?!"
Shadow looked down at the floor. "I-I'm Sorry… I-"
"Oh will you shut up and just hug me, you morons?!" She yelled quickly wrapping both the Hedgehog and the giant mech in the a tight embrace.
For a moment, Shadow stiffened unsure of how to react as Rouge had wet his fur with her tears, while Omega weighed on top of him like a pack of bricks.
And yet… It had been so long since anyone had showed him any form of love, let alone affection in so long… The last time that someone that he fully trusted had been around him. Chaos! Rouge and Omega were his family! They always stuck together no matter what this crazy world would throw at them and he abandoned them! He betrayed their trust!
After all he had done, they still took him back. They still accepted him…
"I- I'm so sorry…" Shadow choked out, hugging the two of them just a little bit tighter. "I-I should've known that I could come back to you…"
"Always, you idiot!" Rouge cried. "I was ready to welcome you back with open arms, no questions asked for so long. I never gave up on you! I was always on your side!"
"I know…" Shadow sighed. "And I should've always, known. I'm so sorry… I could never make up for that…"
"You already have by coming back." Rouge affirmed.
Tears prickled at the sides of his face, but he dared not to cry.
Omega on the other hand simply stated. "Though the circumstances of this war have forced us to be scattered to the winds, we have managed to find each other yet again. It does not matter where we were before; but that we are now where we are meant to be. I look forward to working with you both again, Shadow and Rouge."
The three held their embrace for a while as they just allowed themselves to take each other in. They were finally home again.
~Trials of War~
Doctor Starline watched the wall of computer screens with baited breath as the little resistance icon slowly moved across the map of the world. The map showcased Mobius in all its glory, most of it being blue while a smaller portion of the world was red, mostly around Metropolis and little sprinkled bits around the map. Things were not looking good for the Eggman Empire as The Resistance was clearly breaking its hold on the world.
And the pacing Emperor knew this. He had come so far to build his empire and thanks to Sonic and his friends, it was nearly toppled. He hated to admit it, but he was losing this war and knew that before long Sonic and his friends would be winning the day yet again thanks to their friendship and teamwork. It made him absolutely sick.
They were gathering now… With the likes of Infinite's failure to snuff out Tails and the younger Sonic and Shadow's return to them, he knew that it was only a matter of time before they attempted to come into his capital city, guns blazing and ready to take the world back once and for all. No, he couldn't have that.
Thankfully, Starline had come up with a brilliant idea, the perfect plan to wipe the resistance out once and for all.
The resistance's greatest advantage was the use of Angel Island as their base. An island in the sky that was constantly on the move at random directions throughout the globe, the perfect way to stay hidden from a tyrannical dictator wanting to do everything he could to snuff you out. Even during times of peace, the island was incredibly difficult to find and now… The Resistance had been very careful to cover their tracks and he couldn't get a beat on them.
But Starline was the one who made the brilliant decision to allow them to take their data while slipping in a Trojan virus that would allow them to locate the base without any problem and with that, they'd be able to wipe out the resistance once and for all.
"How much longer?" Eggman groaned.
Starline sighed. "Patience, Emperor. It seems that they're still on the move, but they must be close by now."
"I know but urg… The anticipation is killing me." Eggman growled. "We're so close… So close to just ending things now when they think they've pulled off major victories today. Taking back Green Hill, finding Tails and recovering Shadow, hmph! We need to strike while the iron is hot, while they're still licking their wounds from their last battles to finally end them!"
"And we will, Emperor." Starline smiled at him. "I too am looking forward to your final triumph over the resistance, where you assert yourself as the rightful ruler of the world, once and for all!"
Starline had pumped his fist in the air at that, beaming with such a great admiration as he looked over at Eggman.
Eggman couldn't help but return with a maniacal grin of his own. "And it will all be thanks to you and your brilliant idea."
Starline shook his head. "Nonsense, my benevolent Emperor. I am sure that you would have come up with something similar, if not even better given the time."
"You're damn right I would." He stroked his moustache a bit at that.
Starline couldn't help but smile at that only for the screens at the end of the room to begin beeping.
The two looked up at the screen to see that the resistance logo had stopped closer to Apotos.
"Hm… Apotos? With how sentimental their lot are, I figured they'd be over South Island or maybe even Viemigos or something with all their friends back together." Starline noted with a friend to his chin in thought.
Eggman simply shook his head and turned towards the door. "It doesn't matter where they are but that we've found them."
Starline was quick to follow him and fall into step with the doctor. He already had an electronic clipboard in hand. "So it's settle then! We'll meet the resistance right at their front doorstep!"
"That's right! Infinite is just about finished recharging. He's not at full power yet but he has enough in order to do what he needs to do."
"You already have a plan?" Starline asked.
"Oh yes. One I've had since the beginning if we ever managed to find Angel Island again." Eggman grinned. "You see, dear Chaos has an old grudge to settle with an ancient tribe and it just so happens that the resistance is sharing a living space with that lot."
Starline grinned. "Ohohoho! Emperor, what a brilliant way to rid the world of the meddlesome vermin! Using the very God that grants them their power to wash them all out in one fell swoop! I love it!"
Eggman twirled his moustache and grinned. "Why thank you! Just you wait in a matter of hours, I will have wiped them all out. Starline, I want you to stay here and prepare my victory speech. Gather the press, set up a podium for me in the middle of town. We will declare complete and total victory of the Eggman Empire!"
"But of course, Emperor!" He bowed and rushed off, a great big grin on his face.
Eggman was about to follow after him only to stare out at the world map, once again. He caught sight of that resistance star hovering over the coast of Apotos and couldn't help but grin.
There was work to be done, but soon his master plan would be and no one would be able to stop him.
[1] Based on one of Infinite's concept designs. The Infinite concepts are actually really cool if you haven't seen them before.
Holy crap, we actually did it. Episode Shadow has been written and I feel so accomplished right now. God, after all this time we finally made it.
Now… The plan I have had for Shadow has gone unchanged from the beginning. I have always intended for this to be his reasoning and have stuck with that throughout, dropping little hints and nudges towards this that I am sure anyone who rereads or has read recently will see. I have been incredibly careful about the language I've used describing Shadow's reasoning and Infinite himself, because he has always been an ultimate lifeform and I have always wanted him to be a reflection of Shadow in this way. I think the idea of him seeing himself and wanting to do this not just because of Maria but because he would want this done for him as well is what I wanted to drive across. But the thing of it is is that you can't save everybody and Infinite was proof of that. Shadow should've known better and let that dumb hope get to him but the guilt of everything that he had done as well. Wasn't fun for him.
Speaking of me being careful about things, Infinite has always been using Hyper Go-On Energy. Always. I think I have mentioned before that I've been careful about Infinite's powers and that's something that I've been truthful about. Every single attack he has done in this story is either related to a wisp or that of The Phantom Ruby's power itself. Lasers? Drills? Flight? Balls of energy? Invisibility? All of those are Wisps stuff. It's when we get trippy with things like bending reality to his whim that's a Ruby ability. I have been so careful about this lol and I'm glad to finally be able to reveal that fact.
Uh… Also Hooligans! They're another one that has been planned from the beginning and Episode Omega hints at them a little bit when Shadow says "He ran into a trio of fools." They really mark the end of our All Star cast as I don't think I'm going to do anything outside of minor references.
Finally, we have some of the final reunions of the reunion arc with that of Tails, Knuckles and Amy, Silvaze and of course Team Dark. They were ones I was looking forward to for a very long time and I'm glad that I was finally able to write them. I am also trash and I was listening to Kingdom Hearts' Destiny's Union while writing the Team Dark Reunion lol. I'm sure a lot of you have questions about me deciding to make Silvaze so overtly canon compared to the outright no I've given Sonamy and light teasing I've given Knuxouge. Part of it is that I just like Silvaze and think they're cute. Another part of it is that I actually have them written into my plan for Episode Silver which just means that I need to finish it even more lmfao. Gotta love writers block.
But uh… Yeah. That goes for Episode Shadow. It's finally done and I appreciate all of your patience for it. Thanks for staying with this story for four years, whether you're a new reader or an old one, I greatly appreciate it.
You can tell me what you think in a review and oh, while we're at it! Since I've had no room to fit it somewhere else, what do you all think of Sonic Frontiers and Sonic Movie 2? Both have me pretty hyped!
But until next time, let's do some review replies.
numberjacksoctonauts:
I'm glad you liked the chapter so much! Getting Sonic and Tails together felt so good and now I'm glad to finally get Team Dark as well.
And I appreciate the idea for Shadow's Emerald. I really had lost count but you put me back on track.
1TGN:
Ey! Happy late birthday! I'm glad to have given you the Sonic and Tails reunion on your birthday then! I love a happy accident like that. I also hope you enjoyed your vacation and I hope that this first half of the semester has treated you well, man.
Getting a good reunion out of these two was so important and I'm glad that you enjoyed it so much.
Hope you take care too!
TheLostEternity:
It's finally here, and man am I so glad that it is. Feels pretty good to finally get here. I'm glad you enjoyed the reunion, Shadow changing sides and man, I hope I lived up to expectations with Episode Shadow.
Blaze just being used to the craziness of the world is just a ton of fun to write lol.
Shame you didn't get Colors Ultimate. But it's all good.
Thanks. Stay safe and I'll see you next time!
Ms. Sleepy Cover:
Lol. You reviewed chapter 3 here but I hope you make it all the way to chapter 35.
I'm glad you enjoy Celeste and think that I made a good decision with her being a girl. Honestly, I almost made her a guy but I agree that I made the right decision too. And also agree on the overuse of hedgehogs, definitely wanted to be different.
Tekinafiction:
Hahaha thank you, friend.
The Sensational SpiderDom321:
Thanks, man.
In regards to Omega, I think writing him only as a cold and emotionless machine is an okay depiction but not what I particularly wanted to go for with this story; especially since Shadow's journey here is so emotional that it just didn't feel right. Calling back to Episode Omega with the whole "Friends do not hurt each other." deal felt so good and I'm glad that you enjoy my depiction of the character.
I'm so glad that you think I pulled off the reunion so well. A lot has been building up to it and it's great to see that it was such a huge success amongst all of you.
Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic making jokes about each other's age was a must and something I'm gonna have fun with moving forward haha.
Thanks as always, man!
CVGWJames:
Thank you!
SilverNova:
Gonna put all your reviews together again.
Lol. Now you get a Chris cameo. Although, that was for Animation Adventures. As for Sonaze? Lol sorry.
Glad you loved the reunion as much as everyone else did.
And yes, Sonic and Shadow working together despite their differences is a must and I'm glad to slide it in here. Moving forward, I'm not sure how many chances I'll have to get them together, but never say never.
And now I've explained why his powers are the way they are!
Yeah, I have a video on my YouTube Channel "Lyoko Gem" if you scroll down, it shouldn't be too long until you find a video called "What if The Lyoko Gem Wrote Sonic Forces Part 1" and Part 2. Although I will say that those videos are literally just this story so you can see where it kinda all began but will probably get spoiled for the end.
And now, that's all. Now it is 1:30AM so excuse me while I go pass out. Happy reading!
R&R!
