I do not own sonic the hedgehog or any of the characters from the games, movies or comics but I do own this story and the other characters, I hope you enjoy it.
Things Only Whispered In The Shadows
Ch16. Black and Blue
Keeping up with this guy was like trying to keep up with a streak of blue lightning, he wasn't just fast he was way out of my league. I had thought I was fast when I finally managed a sonic boom, and when I began to go that fast on a regular basis I felt untouchable. This guy blew the very idea out of the water. To make things worse Shadow would occasionally show up to update us on the situation, and he was just as fast. How had I gotten the better of him at all at our first meeting?
"You doing alright back there?" I felt my face heat up at the normally harmless remark. For some reason I couldn't help but get riled up every time sonic opened his mouth to be helpful. "We can slow the pace if you need, or take a break."
It felt like he was accidentally mocking me, I had been the fastest person I had ever known besides shadow, whom I had never see go full speed, since training at the temple. Now I found out that I wasn't even second best. Both sonic and shadow could easily out pace me and even though I was faster than knuckles he hit a lot harder than I did.
"No, I can keep this pace up for a while longer, but a stop for food would be nice." My stomach protested when we didn't stop to eat the instant food was mentioned.
We had been running for almost five hours, scouring the area in pairs to find the base that this eggman had supposedly built. According to the others it was something he always did, and if they were right he also had a plan to nab the emeralds we had on us as well.
Sonic laughed, "It's decided then." He put his hand up to his earpiece and told the others to meet up for lunch and soon we were all sitting in a field having a picnic. I couldn't help but think that this was all a bit too easy and that there was no way a villain was just going to let us be this carefree as we tried to take an unparalleled power source from him.
As we sat there eating I tried to join in on the conversation without getting to incredibly awkward. "So, uh how often do you do stuff like this? Eating a picnic while on a mission I mean."
"Whenever Amy feels like packing one before we leave."
… I didn't know how to respond to that.
"I don't see why we need to stop for a picnic, it's a waste of time if you ask me. We should be looking for Eggmans' lair, getting the last emerald is our priority right now."
"Lighten up Shadow, it isn't like he's going anywhere. After all we have the rest of the emeralds so sit down and eat something." Knuckles finished off yet another sandwich while sonic tossed back another chilidog. Shadows stomach gurgled and he grudgingly grabbed some food but refused to sit down.
Amy finished off her own sandwich and turned to Whisper. "So what's your world like? Aside from the needing to be saved part I mean." I got a couple of hopeful and interested looks from the others, excluding Shadow who had already been given a pretty good idea.
"Well, I'm not really sure about most of the world now. It's been a long time since I left the mountains around the temple. But what I remember before Salem started taking control of everything, it was beautiful. A lot like your world actually." I went on to tell them about the place I had lived with my parents and the different places I had seen with my brother while on the run, finally I told them about the temple and the forested mountains around it. "I don't know much about the desert yet seen as how I haven't been there before or the northern continent, so yeah that about sums it up."
Everyone had been hanging on my every word once I got going, even Shadow had taken an interest in my explanation. "Wow, It all sounds so amazing. I can't wait to see it for myself!" Amy looked as if she had just been told about a dream vacation even though she knew my world was currently under the rule of a tyrant who had very effectively destroyed most of the beauty she wanted to see.
"Well then we had better get moving so we can get the last emerald shouldn't we." Sonic was the first one up and ready to go, other than Shadow who was already standing, I had a feeling it was always like this.
"Finally." I gave shadow a doubtful look for his impatience, he wasn't so keen on leaving when I was talking about my world. He turned away and started off the instant we made eye contact.
"Alright, we should be getting close to finding it. There isn't much area to go over left." Tails had pulled out his computer again and was furiously typing away, probably doing something with the grid map he had shown us all earlier. "I think we should start working in teams of three now, just in case we get into trouble."
"Good idea tails, Eggman is fond of ambushes." To me it seemed like sonic was all for anything tails suggested. Not that I was complaining or anything, I just wasn't used to the strategist being so… young.
I stood up and brushed the grass off of my pants and pulled a twig out of my sword strap. "So who gets to play chaperone this time?" I had spent the night at Amy's and most of today trying to catch up with sonic.
I had finally caught up to shadow and after three hours of nonstop running at almost top speed, I was exhausted. I wasn't going to tell him that however. He had crouched next to a lonely looking tree atop a hill, overlooking what appeared to be a giant mechanical fortress. "That's it. that's where we'll find the last emerald."
"That's some heavy security." There were turrets and bots everywhere, it was definitely going to get interesting.
"Let's go."
"Shouldn't we tell the others?"
"Why? It isn't like his robots are all that impressive, and he'll be expecting sonic and them to show. We can get in and out faster without them and trigger less traps. Unless you think we need backup, feel free to do so." He gave me a superior look and stood up.
It made sense and I hated to turn down a challenge, especially from Shadow. "Alright, how do we get in?" his mouth twitched up in a small grin.
"First we have to get there without them spotting us," I nodded, "that's the easy part. After that we have to make our way through the building without raising the alarm and find the emerald. When we find it we wait for an opportunity to take it right out from under his nose, when we have it we will try to get out undetected but stealth will no longer be the priority. Getting out will be."
"Alright. Lead the way." He paused a moment to let a look linger on me, I don't think he was used to stubborn people being so agreeable.
"Keep quiet and take out anything that could give you away. And try not to trigger any traps." I nodded again and we set out toward the compound.
We approached in a wide arc, only encountering a couple of bots on our way. Shadow took them out with minimal noise and I had to admit I was impressed. I mean it was hard to destroy something made of metal without making a ruckus.
When we finally made it to the building I pressed myself against the wall behind him. The light swept across the ground inches in front of us as I held my breath. When it passed us and nothing happened I let out a loud sigh, eliciting a sharp glare from Shadow. I had to hold back a chuckle, instead I opted for a soft hiss as I pulled Shadow back from the corner when a bot rolled past. He looked annoyed for all of a second as he realized why I had pulled him back, looking back to me for a moment before continuing a bit more carefully this time.
We got to the service door on the side without a problem and managed to avoid setting off any alarms as we entered. The long metal corridor led off in two directions, Shadow took the one to the left without hesitation and I followed. Either he knew his way around or he was just very confident in his skills when it came to breaking and entering.
Shadow stopped suddenly and I nearly fell over when I ran into him. I whispered, "What is it?" just loud enough to be heard. He put his finger to his lips and pointed around an open doorway.
There were rows and rows of bots armed to the teeth with guns, rockets, and various other weapons. I was certain I paled a bit at the sight. I had never fought so many bots before, not even with Talon and Fel. I decided then and there not to raise any alarms. I pulled away from the doorway and followed Shadow once again as he picked his way through the hallways. We made it to a flight of stairs with a door at the top and found ourselves outside again, we were on the roof of the first floor and had to make our way across a very well lit, very well guarded rooftop to make it to the tower that led to the rest of the fortress. Great.
"Hold on." He grabbed me by the hand and, before I could say anything, teleported us across the roof to the other door. At this point I was used to teleporting, but that didn't take the surprise out of it. definitely a better way across than sneaking.
We hurried up the tower, and into the main hub of the fortress. The control deck as Shadow called it. after a bit more snooping around we found it. The gorgeous white gem shone with an inner light as we approached. I felt a hand on my shoulder as I went to take it from the pedestal. A quick glance over my shoulder reminded me as I saw the look on shadows face. "Right, traps." I stepped back and took a good look around. The room was immaculate, not a single thing out of place to give up its secrets. I kind of wished maxis or Fel were here to deal with all of this tech.
"I have an idea. Why don't we teleport the moment you grab the gem?"
"Brilliant idea, too bad I have this place teleport proofed!" And the big man himself decided to join the party! God his laughter was annoying.
"I think he's lying. If it were teleport proofed, then how did we teleport on the roof earlier?"
"Hohohohohohoh. That's because you weren't inside. Go ahead try it if you don't believe me." That blasted laugh again the fat man was getting on every nerve.
Shadow raised his eyebrow pulled out his red gem, the sight of which still gave me the shivers, and grabbed me by the shoulder. "Chaos control!"
… nothing happened, the gem didn't even glow. Shadow visibly paled, this was bad. I reached around my back for my own gem only to have my arm roughly grabbed by Shadow as he bolted for the door. More laughter as bots swarmed the doorway, shadow jumped and I followed hastily behind knocking bots out of the way as we went.
"GET THEM!"
In our haste we had gone a different path than the one we had taken to get here. instead of ending up outside again we found ourselves in a large domed room.
"The control center." Good start but now what?
"What about the white emerald?" Shadow stopped and gave me a half smile as he pulled two emeralds from his quills. One red as blood, the other pure as ice. I stood there in stunned silence until he tucked them both away and an army of bots came crashing through the doors. Que diabolical chuckle. "Have I mentioned how much I hate his laugh?"
"Who hasn't." Eggman turned beet red and started shouting orders to his army. The charged, we countered. Training kicked in and instinct took over. I didn't even have to think about how to fight this small time swarm. The bots in the other room had been more sinister than this lot and in a few short minutes we had them scrapped.
"That's it? That was your army?" then it hit me, just as they stepped through the ruined doorways. He still had the afore mentioned bots at his disposal.
"You just had to say it."
"Sorry." Well I felt like an idiot. I heard the missile before I saw it. "Down!" I yelled, tackling Shadow. We narrowly missed getting our heads blown off. The missile had made a direct hit on the window we had just been standing in front of, and there wasn't a scratch on it. well so much for getting out again. Looks like we were going to have to go through them to get out. We were back on our feet in a heartbeat, but something was off. Where were the rest of the bots? I could have sworn there were more than this in that room. Another missile derailed that train of thought as we dove to the sides and began round two. They were fast, well not at running just their attacks, add a solid defense and numbers to the mix and we were fighting for our lives.
I ducked a machine gun only to take a sword to the back and barely managed to jump another swing from behind. Shadow wasn't doing much better, something had given him a nasty gash above his eye and he was having trouble seeing through the blood. Another missile hurtled toward me, it was a good thing they made so much noise or I wouldn't have dodged it in time. The explosion took out four of the bots and sent me flying across the room into the window. I slid down the window, leaving a streak of blood behind then shakily getting to my feet again. "There has to be a better way out than fighting an army of these things…" a bigger explosion outside made everyone look up. The dust was gathered to thick to see but shadow was smirking again.
"Just in time." He pounded a couple more bots into the ground with renewed vigor. I stood there confused for a moment before a flash of blue slammed into the window cracking it. although small it offered an opportunity we couldn't pass up.
"NO! THEY MUSTN'T ESCAPE WITH THE EMERALD!" Eggman had found some sort of hover ship thing and was now standing up in it pointing and shouting at us.
Another explosion sent Shadow flying into me this time, sending spider cracks out from the already weakened glass. It was impossible for us to get a fast enough start in here to break through in one go and I had no idea how much longer we would last, or if going full speed was even fast enough to break the glass. Not to mention we had no idea how the fight outside was going, if only about half of the bots were in here then sonic and them were dealing with the rest outside if not more. Another loud bang from the other side and more cracking, but little progress was made. I helped Shadow up and we rushed forward again hoping to take out a couple more of the dwindling bots. There were six left and only one had rockets. Dodging gunfire we drew its attention, leading his aim to the window again. Between the injuries and Eggmans gloating I was getting really irritated.
That distraction cost me. I didn't dodge in time, I was hit almost head on with the blast, only spider webbing the glass before slumping to the ground. "Whisper!"
I was so glad I had decided to wear my armor, even though I had left my swords at Amy's. Bad idea in retrospect. everything hurt, my ears were ringing, my sight was blurry at best and going fast enough to break that glass was not an option…. Or was it?
"Get out of my way tin cans!" Shadow began smashing the remaining bots as they got in his way. "Whisper!"
I managed to lever myself up and get to my feet as the world swayed around me. there were still too many bots for him on his own and I was a one hit wonder at this point. I had to make it count. I smiled mischievously and wiped the blood from my eyes running toward the very cracked window. "Silver Sleeve!" with a resounding crash the window gave way, glass rained down on the dome shaped room. Eggman retreated as his bots tried to escape the rain of death, huge chunks of glass from the ceiling crushing them. Shadow managed to get out of the way of most of the glass and dove out the window and into the chaos below.
The world was numb, everything was slipping away again. I had to stop doing that, it couldn't be good for me. I could hear the muffled sounds of a retreating battle and concerned shouts. I felt someone kneel down beside me, I couldn't help but wonder. I could vaguely make out the dark form of a black hedgehog, Shadow… and then another Blue form followed, Sonic…
At first all I could hear was muted shouts before it all came rushing back in, all five senses at the same time. Next thing I knew everything hurt again and the ringing was back. "Hey! Whisper if you can hear us say something!" Sonic was shaking me by my relatively uninjured shoulder while Shadow simply looked on in stunned silence a dark look on his face. I groaned in pain as I realized I wouldn't pass out this time. I almost wished I had.
"I'm alive, I swear it… now please stop shaking me." I choked out. Gasping for air after a two story drop I rolled over onto my side to stop the pain in my back. Sonic and the others looked relieved and worried all at the same time. Shadow looked almost pained and that dark look he had on didn't go away, only lessened. Amy had to refrain from hugging me and Knuckles almost did, until Amy hit him with her hammer to remind him I was very injured. It was a relief to find that Shadow and I were the only two with any real injuries.
I managed to sit up while the others assessed the damage. Eggman had gotten away but that was fine. We had the final emerald. The bots had been properly disposed of and I was happy to have been a part of things even though it had nearly killed me. I glanced over to Shadow again to find he had distanced himself from everyone else. Sonic caught on. "Hey mister big shot hero! Why don't you look a bit more cheery? She'll be fine in a few days and you got the chaos emerald!"
"What makes you think I want to be cheery?"
"Don't be such a downer Shadow."
"Leave me alone faker. Call me when it's time to go." And with that he left. "Chaos control." I felt alone again, I was finally surrounded by friends and my life was no longer in any danger. In a few days I would be healthy again and my world would be on the path to freedom. So why did I feel so empty?
