Disclaimer: I'm back! But the Sonic characters are still not mine... they're owned by Sega/Sonic Team. Yamaira is owned by LadyLuck22.

The darkened sky bore thunder and lightening; small drops of water fell from the heavens. The wind fought hard against the earth, raising dirt and mud against their will. The villagers closed their windows and hid inside their houses in fear of the forces of nature. All were safe inside their houses except for a petite hedgehog that ran through the boggy streets. She held an umbrella tightly against her body, protecting it from the fierce wind. Amy huffed and puffed as she headed east towards the elegant mansion owned by Shadow.

Many of the people wondered what the cause for her reckless actions were, yet, even if they knew the answer they wouldn't understand. It wasn't a matter of stability or intelligence-- but that of the heart. No one would understand the feeling that the small girl felt earlier that day as she sat near her bed contemplating the twilight sky. A feeling that filled her heart with fear and anxiety, love and discord. Something that you can't simply write on paper or paint with charcoal. An unidentified feeling that makes your heart burn and your head ache; it makes you loose control of your body and mind.

Amy knew something horrible was about to happen, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. And even though she knew that destiny was harsh and cruel, she wanted to change it with all her power and might. So she ran further and further, hoping that she could get there in time.

The atmosphere of the room was manipulated by the substantial silence. Two figures were illuminated by the candle lights, one stood tall and strong, while the other remained on the floor, motionless.

Nicholai let a small sigh escape his lips, "If only you understood my reasons for doing this." He walked towards the black hedgehog and kneeled down, "You once knew my pain, but now... you've changed, Shadow."

Shadow's hand began to move and the red head grinned.

"Oh, you're awake."

The dark hedgehog stood up without any hesitation, his hands formed fists and then he opened his eyes slowly, showing nothing but empty pools of wine.

"Do you want her back?"

"..."

"Oh yes, how stupid of me, you don't have a say in the matter," Nicholai chuckled quietly. "Now, then, shall we get down to business?"

"..."

A malevolent smile spread across the red head's face, "Spare NO ONE... that includes that annoying partner of yours!" He began to walk away but stopped abruptly, "Oh! And that pest too... you know... that... girl. Now, away you go, we have no time to loose."

Shadow nodded and waited for his master to be gone. He formed fire balls in his hands and shot them to his sides, setting the mansion on fire.

"Three months ago, before he sent us to do the mission," Yamaira said as she ran towards the mansion with the chameleon, "he found a library with all sorts of books. In one of them he found a way to bring her back to life."

"That damn obsession of his is going to get Shadow killed!" Espio said with a raging voice.

"That's not all," the female hedgehog turned to see her companion, "he also found a way to make himself practically invincible."

The purple male's eyes widen in terror, "That's impossible!"

"It was possible for him... We tried to stop him," the purple female looked at the ground, "but he stopped us with that damn curse of his. Afterwards he took the book and burned the library so we couldn't go look for any ways to get rid of him."

"That bastard!" the chameleon snarled.

"I'm afraid we don't have any hope left..." the young female raised her head."He said that after he found a vessel for her, he was going to destroy this world and make a living hell out of it. No one will be spared in his reign."

"First it was his sick obsession with that girl," Espio narrowed his eyes, "and now he wants to take over the world? He's seriously twisted."

"But there's nothing we can do!" Yamaira increased her speed, "We're not powerful enough, and even if we were... we can't harm him."

"We shouldn't give up without a fight!"

The purple hedgehog turned to see her companion in surprise. Espio was the kind of guy who wouldn't give up easily. He was right; there was no sense on giving up if you had a chance of putting up a fight, "Yes, you're right."

The storm raged in the sky and the water fell with no end. The two companions continued to run in hope to reach the mansion in time. As they approached they heard an explosion coming from the east; the mansion was on fire and was nearly destroyed. They stopped and their eyes widen in terror as they saw a shadow coming out of it. Its ruby eyes glowed with the night; a thirst for blood was evident on its glare.

"We're too late!" Yamaira exclaimed.

The pink hedgehog's heart ached and the pain didn't seem to leave her body. There was something wrong with Shadow and she knew it! But why him...? Hadn't he suffered enough in the past?! She knew almost nothing about him, but it was clear to her that life wasn't fair to him.

Compared to him, everyone had the best life in the world; compared to him, everyone had what they wanted. Yet, the people who seem to have everything are still greedy, and he never asked for anything but his friend's life back in exchange of his own.

Why was life so unfair to those in need of love and care? It wasn't fair! It... wasn't fair!

Amy continued to run through the muddy streets. She tried to fight against the fierce wind as she tried to maintain her balance. Her body was becoming weaker and weaker as every second passed. Her eyes barely stayed open and her knees could hardly maintain her weight.

After countless minutes of running the rose hedgehog stopped as she saw Shadow's mansion in fire. Her hands released the umbrella she was holding and the wind took it with it. Her eyes widen and tears started to flow freely. She brought her hands to her mouth and let out a sharp cry. Her knees dropped to the ground and she shook in fright by the sight before her.

Her mind went blank as she cried with the rain. The small girl was lost in the thought that she didn't get there in time; that she might have lost him. It was because she wasn't there for him in time that he was probably... dead.

After a few minutes a shadow came out of the fire; it was an ebony hedgehog with ruby-colored eyes. Amy rose her head up, and spotted the dark hedgehog. She locked her eyes with him and a small whimper escaped the small girl.

"We're too late!" a purple female hedgehog exclaimed.

The rose girl turned to see the newcomers, no words escaped her lips. She cried softly and turned to see the ground.

Espio and Yamaira turned to see her. The purple female wasn't aware of whom this pink girl was, but she knew that it was too dangerous for her to be here.

"Amy," the purple chameleon spoke, "what are you doing here?"

The pink hedgehog didn't answer and continued looking at the ground.

"What is that girl thinking?!" Yamaira glared at the young hedgehog on the floor, "Are you stupid or something?!"

No answer came from the young girl; she was in some sort of trance.

Shadow walked out of the fire completely unharmed. His ruby eyes were full of anger and emptiness.

"Shadow...?" the purple hedgehog called out, but there was no answer from him.

"There's no time!" Espio turned to see the pink female, "We have to take her out of here! He's no longer in control; Nicholai must've been here before us!"

"Alright!" Yamaira turned to see the pink girl and kneeled down to see her, "I'm going to take you to a safe place, please come with me."

"You can't run from me..." Nicholai appeared from the shadows of the night.

"You bastard!" the purple chameleon snarled.

The red head chuckled, "There's no doubt about it, you're Shadow's companion alright."

"Yamaira," Espio turned to see the purple female, "get out of here, now!"

The purple hedgehog nodded and took the pink girl in her arms.

"They're not going anywhere!" Nicholai raised his right hand.

The purple female stopped in her tracks, unable to move, "Let me go!"

The chameleon ran towards Nicholai and tried to kick him but he was stopped in mid-air as the red head raised his left hand, "As long as I'm here, you have no control at all."

"You may have control over them!" a male voice shouted, "But you have no control over me!"

"Wha-" Nicholai turned to see a blue blur knock him down.

"Sonic...?" Espio said as he regained control of his body.

"The one and only!" the blue hedgehog grinned.

"You insolent fool!" the red head exclaimed as he rose from the ground.

"You-" the blue male turned to see Yamaira.

"The name's Yamaira," the purple female responded.

"Yamaira," Sonic turned to see Nicholai, "take Amy as far away from here as you can. Espio and I will take care of things here!"

"Alright," the purple hedgehog turned to see Espio, "be careful."

Sonic and the purple male turned to see the guy before them.

Nicholai had a big grin on his face, "You actually think you have a chance against me? Ridiculous!"

"I'm going to erase that grin off your face!" Espio yelled out.

"I don't have time for this," Nicholai turned to see Shadow; the black hedgehog stood in front of Sonic and Espio. "I would love to stay with you guys and chat," He turned around, "but I have more important things to do. Shadow, take care of these fools."

The dark hedgehog ran towards the two males with two golden spheres on his hands. The red head grinned in satisfaction and submerged in the floor, hiding in the shadows of the night. He needed not to worry about Shadow's safety or control.

The purple chameleon glared at his companion and dodged his Chaos Spear attack, "Shadow! Snap out of it, remember why we're doing this!"

No answer came from the dark male and he continued attacking. His eyes were dark, his expression was solemn, and his movements were uncontrollable.

"What's wrong with him?!" Sonic jumped out of Shadow's way, running to the opposite side and trying to think of a plan.

"It's some-" Espio found himself thrown in the floor by a powerful force. The ebony hedgehog had punched his partner and stood in front of him.

"Espio!" the blue hedgehog ran to the aid of the purple chameleon. Shadow raised Espio in the air and kicked him, sending him flying against a wall before Sonic reached them.

"Ugh..." the chameleon slid down the wall and landed with his face against the cold ground.

"He was your friend, how dare you do that to him?!"

No words came out of the ebony hedgehog; he stood still in his place. He turned to see the blue male that was now glaring at him.

Sonic popped his knuckles, "It's time to settle our little score."

Shadow grinned.

Yamaira ran back to the center of the town with a pink female in her arms. She had no idea what her relationship was with Shadow, but she thought that Amy must've been hurt to see his condition. 'Who wouldn't?' the purple female stated in her head.

The purple hedgehog stopped in her tracks as she spotted an isolated house and walked in for shelter. She placed the young girl in her arms on a box close to the back of the shack. The rose girl was still in shock, her eyes were locked on the floor and she was shivering uncontrollably. She wasn't trembling because of the cold, but the fear in her heart and mind.

"It's a shame," Yamaira said as she turned around.

Amy turned to see her in confusion.

The purple female's cloak was dripping with water, and it felt heavy. She took it off and began twisting it, releasing the water inside it. She was now wearing a top and a pair of bell bottom pants; this was extremely unusual for Amy, she had never seen that type of clothes before.

The purple hedgehog felt the rose hedgehog's eyes on her and turned around, "You like it? I made it myself."

The rose girl turned around and locked her eyes on the floor again.

"So much for small talk," Yamaira snorted. However, she knew that it wasn't the young girl's fault. Amy was still shaken up because of the terrible event that was going on. The purple female narrowed her eyes; perhaps it was a good idea to tell her the story behind Shadow and Nicholai.

The pink hedgehog placed her feet on top of the wooden box and wrapped her arms around them, hugging her knees for comfort. She looked miserable, and she knew it, but she couldn't help it. She was scared... What was going to happen next? What was she going to do? Why was all of this happening...?

The purple hedgehog allowed a sigh to escape her lips and walked in front of the young girl, "Let me tell you a story."

A half-moon stood in the sky, hidden behind the rain clouds that were begging to clear up. Two male hedgehogs stood still under the moonlight. The small raindrops fell from the sky; the thunder and lighting were long gone.

The two hedgehogs glared at each other in determination.

A small cloud passed through the sky and covered the moon. Both hedgehogs took their fighting stances and concentrated on each other. The cloud continued to pass through until the moonlight landed on them again. At that moment both males ran towards each other.

Both tried to punch each other but dodged in time and jumped back. Their eyes were locked and they tried to predict each other's moves. They ran towards each other again; Shadow tried to kick the blue hedgehog, but he stopped him with his arm. Sonic took his leg into his hands and began to spin around and threw the black hedgehog in the air. The ebony hedgehog did a back flip and landed on the floor safely.

The blue male frowned and ran towards the black hedgehog. He threw a punch at Shadow but his foe stopped it with a kick; he tried a kick and the ebony hedgehog stopped it with his arm. Finally, the black hedgehog tried punching the blue hedgehog but he dodged and jumped back. None were willing to take critical hits.

The ebony male formed a golden sphere on his hand and threw it in the air. Golden spears formed in the air and began shooting down at the blue hedgehog. Sonic ran back and forth, trying to dodge the golden lights. Shadow formed more spears in the air and threw them at a high speed. The blue hedgehog ran fast enough to dodge most but one golden light landed on his shoulder, making a dark liquid splash out of his wound.

Sonic placed one of his hands on his shoulder and turned to see blood drip to the floor. The ebony hedgehog continued to throw spears and the blue hedgehog ran towards him, kicking him in his ribs. The dark hedgehog hit a wall and glared at the blue male.

The spears fell from the air and landed on the floor. The electric energy obtained a physical form and dug into the ground as it fell. Shadow jumped off the crashed wall and took two of the spears in his hands.

The blue hedgehog looked around and then a golden spear landed in front of him. Without a second thought, he took it into his hands and waved it in the wind, "Now this is what I'm talking about."

The streaked hedgehog ran towards his enemy, slashing the golden weapon. Sonic reacted in time to stop the ebony hedgehog's attack with his sword. Shadow slashed his second sword and the blue male jumped back.

The blue hedgehog had forgotten about his enemy's second sword, 'Damn it, this is going to make it difficult. I have to make him drop his second sword.'

The dark hedgehog glared at him and ran quickly towards him. He slashed his first sword but the blue male stopped it; then his second but it was stopped by the same blade his enemy had again.

Sonic pushed the two blades as hard as he could, trying to make Shadow back off. Their strengths were even, but the ebony hedgehog lost his balance and stumbled back. The blue hedgehog took advantage of this and hit the first blade off his foe's hands.

The streaked hedgehog was taken aback by the attack but regained his balance. The blue male ran towards him, slashing his sword as fast as he could; but to his disgrace his enemy was quick enough to counter every slash.

Sonic was at the advantage while he continued to make the dark hedgehog back off. Finally the blue hedgehog made a final slash and his foe's second sword flew in the air and landed away from them. The blue male moved his sword close to the dark hedgehog's throat, it was over...

"Wait! Don't kill him!" a female voice cried out.

"Amy...?" the blue hedgehog turned around and lowered his sword. Shadow took his moment to kick him out of the way; the blue male landed on the cold ground.

"Sonic!" the rose hedgehog cried in fear.

The ebony hedgehog ran to his sword and took it into his hands. Sonic turned to see his enemy and stood up, he couldn't see him. After a few seconds the black hedgehog appeared in the sky and the blue male was ready to counter.

"Stop!" Amy ran towards them, she didn't want this... She had to stop them, even if the cost was grave.

A/N: Chapter 6 done! Sorry I took so long to update, I'll try to update monthy if I can. Writing a fighting scene is harder than I thought... I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter; tell me what you thought about it, I'll appreciated if you do. By the way, I updated the last chapters, there's new stuff in the first three chapters. And sadly, I changed the whole vampire thing; Shadow is no longer a vampire. Why you ask? Because it didn't fit the plot anymore, and I never used that topic in the story, therefore, it was useless. Sorry to those who may be disappointed.

Chapter 7: Once Upon a Time

Nicholai was not always evil, he was once a young boy in love. But when his heart was shattered he gave in to the darkness of the heart. And it was then when he discovered what being alone was all about. The story behind our dark villain is uncovered!

Yay, 65 reviews! I love you guys.

Thanks to: All my lovable readers and reviewers!

Until Next Time!