Sorry about the delay. As you can see, this is about the longest chapter I've done. Though I might make another long chapter soon.
I'd just like to point out that a Bagua is fan with blades at the end. Grace and focus are required for this weapon.
In the dark night sky, Shadow watched the earth below.
His memories of his best friend, Maria, had been haunting him for as long as he can remember. But yet she wasn't the one poking his head this time.
"Rouge." He whispered.
Countess Rouge was once his partner when he became an agent. She'd rather work alone but the thought of working with Shadow deserved at least one shot. They were the ideal team and were even honoured when the two had saved Tails' life. Their accomplishments made them known worldwide as much as Sonic, when he was still amongst humanity that is.
But when he failed on one of his missions he lost her to that accursed vampire clan!
'I promise that whoever turned you into who you are, I will make their death slow and painful!'
Shadow looked at his medal of honour hung on the wall, along with all his other awards. 'If only you were here. You were the one that gave me the chance to be someone knew…'
Flashback…
It was at a dance for the government and all of its branches.
"Hey, Shad!" Commander Prower had approached Shadow seeing him with his date. Shadow didn't like being called Shad because he believes it degrades him of some respect. But it was Tails after all, he is his best friend, who's youthful and happy disposition had reminded him so much of Maria, and he is of a higher position than he was. After all he is a commander. He's just lucky he doesn't call him a maggot or something else he'd shout out to his troops.
"Hey, Tails." Rouge, Shadow's date, was first to respond.
"I see you're having fun." Shadow had spotted the government's top scientist, and former Babylon Rogue, Wave gripping onto his metallic arm.
"Yeah, sure have."
The music starts playing and they head to the dance floor. After a while Shadow had asked Rouge to come with him to somewhere private.
He leads her to the balcony on the next floor.
"It's beautiful Shadow." Rouge admired the view. Above her was a cloudless night sky with glistening stars, below her were beautiful uprising springs, and in front of her was a hedgehog which glowed in the luminous moonlight.
"Rouge there's something I've been meaning to ask you."
"What is it?"
"Rouge the Bat," Shadow took out black box from his tux and knelt down presenting Rouge the box. "Will you marry me?"
She marvelled at the ring. It was a 25 karat gold ring embedded with crystals and a diamond.
"Shadow, I…" Rouge couldn't finish due to a loud interruption down stairs.
End of flashback.
'I remember that day all too well.' That night, Eggman unveiled his latest scheme, which was also the day they lost Sonic. During the fight he remembered that he had lost the ring.
But Shadow couldn't help but smile at the very memory that kept him going for all these years. He saw Rouge wearing the ring.
Lieutenant Bazzel was frantically running for an exit. He's men were all gone, Knuckles had taken them out.
"Bazzel! Bazzel! I can't contact the rest of the Hounds what's happening?" Commander Prower was on the com link. He had called several hours earlier, but Bazzel could not reply due to the situation.
Before Bazzel could respond, a red figure burst from the ground in front of him. At its entrance, its spiked knuckle uppercuts him and as it firmly lands, it plunges its fist onto his chest and Bazzel drops onto the floor.
His vision becomes pale as his attacker walks off.
"No!" The commander had lost contact and his patience. 'That echidna's getting on my nerves!'
Though this thought may have been belligerent the mere thought of… reuniting with an old friend would surely be an interesting event.
'Prepare yourself Knuckles, your old friend is coming over to play.'
Seiner Annals, the second of the stars, searched through his archives in the great library that was, Anathea, the library of knowledge, whiles he was atop of a ladder, organizing a few books, which he sensed misplaced earlier.
In his many years here, he had gained the opportunity to fathom all the knowledge this place beheld. He became known as the cosmic librarian, for Anthea lied within the very borders of the cosmos. He had green fur with a unique black streak on each of his two quills. He had worn his regular black attire complete with his black gloves with purple orbs on it and his substantial Horn of the Ancients on his back. He also wore his regular glasses around his neck; he barely used them, now that he's read everything.
Foot steps could be heard along the hall. A blond hedgehog with sapphire like eyes and clothing approached the ladder.
"Seiner!?" She called up the ladder and her friend slid down with ease.
"What is it Maria? I'm very busy right now." Yes, Maria Robotnik, was alive.
She had come to Anthea in her days of a spirit. She had grown to be good friends with Seiner. He had given her a chance to finally come back to the world of the living. Seiner had resurrected her but at the cost of her humanity.
"I want to see him again."
"Very well." Seiner had brought her to the observation tower where the dome roof opened up and formed a mystic platform at the end of the winding staircase leading to it.
Seiner had spun an orb at one end searching for Shadow while Maria watched the desert view. The borders of the cosmos were deserts and were never much to look at. But never the less, the view at such a height would always be admired.
Besides, Maria barely had the chance to see the outside. Seiner forbids her. Out of respect and trust, she accepts, no questions asked. Seiner says the world isn't ready for her yet. She knows he knows better.
"Here you go." Seiner motioned Maria to come to the sphere and watch as a large screen opened up before them.
"Shadow." Maria watched as her best friend walked into his room and lay down on his bed.
'If only I could see you.' Maria was in deep thought in her blissful state.
"Don't worry. You'll see him soon." Seiner slowly headed for the staircase to leave Maria alone.
'Was he just reading my mind?' Maria was baffled but not completely shocked.
"I sure was!" And with that Maria was alone.
Far off in the distant mountains, a purple cat trains with her trusted mentor.
"The Bagua is a difficult weapon but you must master it!" The cat's master had summoned a few more ice golems for his apprentice.
A golem from behind pushes her forward and her Bagua's fall to the ground. She tries to retrieve them but is hit from behind. Too soon enough, she was surrounded by the massive frozen avatars..
"Stop!" She had had enough.
The golems melt into the icy surroundings and her cloaked master approaches her.
Her master was wearing white assassins clothing with the hood over his head. His twisting horns tore through the sides of his cloak so his hood can only be removed by effort.
"Blaze, you have failed to master the Bagua."
"My apologies, master. This place just seems too cold for me. Maybe I can do it in a better environment." Blaze had always wanted to escape the icy mountain.
"No! This area is the safest location you can find. The people outside of these walls are growing ever more powerful."
"But Rolan, you'll be there, you can protect me."
"Their tactical intelligence is growing as well, apprentice, if you ever hope to keep safe in another location then you'll have discover a safer location; from here!"
"Very well." Blaze scowled in mid bow at her master.
Knuckles walked the rest of the way to the temple.
"Ugh! This job just gets better and better." His sarcasm was unheard within the unsettling silence.
His paranoia went up again.
Another set or missiles collided with Knuckles once again. He braces himself.
The shrine is left in ruins after that second attack.
In the dusk, a figure emerges. His left red eye flashes in the thick smoke as he approaches the damaged echidna.
"Well, well ,well, how the mighty have fallen!" Commander Prower came into view.
Knuckles got up holding his chest writhing in pain attempting to utter the name of his aggressor "T-Tails!?"
Tails had been his ally for years and always saw him as a defenceless young pup. Now, he stands before as a powerful young man, with unmatched strength.
"Knuckles, I'm here to get rid of that universal threat."
"The Master Emerald?"
"Yes, now hand it over!"
"I'll never let you have it!"
"The Master Emerald and the chaos emeralds have been potential threats ever since they were created. They have cost thousands of lives and practically wiped out an entire civilization! Don't you wanna' get back at it after what it did to your kind?"
Tikal appeared as a translucent figure, only visible to Knuckles. "Don't listen to him, Knuckles. He's just trying to fool you."
The Commander saw Knuckles diverting his attention. "Knuckles, do you know what your life could've been if that accursed stone never existed?"
"This 'accursed stone' happens to be my life. It is my duty to protect it and it is not leaving Angel Island under MY watch!" Knuckles then charges into the fox with a ready fist, despite the damage on him.
He throws a punch but the large commander easily backhands it. He hits him in the gut with his knee, and with Knuckles head pushed forward at the impact, he grabs his head with his right arm and slams him into the floor. Knuckles was in a lot of pain.
The two-tailed fox stapes away from the guardian and honourably lets him stand. 'Impressive, he will take any hit just to do his duty.'
"You're a very honourable man, Knuckles, but you are also very foolish. You cannot win!"
"I…have a duty…and I will…uphold it…no matter what." Knuckles manages to say in between grits of pain. "Where's your honour Tails? You used to uphold honour yourself, especially at your new job."
"Honour means nothing if it means that I can't protect the civilians. My duty is to defend earth to all possible threats, and since that rock of yours destroyed Sonic, it is the most dangerous thing on earth next to Eggman…" Tails approaches Knuckles and lifts him easily with his left arm. "…and in case you haven't noticed I have changed!" Miles emphasizes with an agonizing blow to the chest.
Knuckles is in a tight fix but has his dignity and if he dies on the spot trying to protect the Master Emerald then so shall it be.
The fox had Knuckles in a tight choke and all else seemed lost. "You disgust me. I thought you were better then this. You did so much and now you assault an old friend? You should've known that I can protect the Master Emerald. I've guarded it for years and it's been under my watchful eye!"
"Then why is Sonic dead!? He was a hero, greater than you'll ever be!" The commander was furious and could no longer hold his own. Miles brought Knuckles into closer eye contact and whispers "I blame you for his death!"
Tails begins to strike fatal blows into the now fragile guardian.
"Your time ends today! All those wasted years you've spent, gone, and all you can do now is die with your duty!" Tails is about to put him out of his misery.
With a good toss of the echidna, Tails readies his blasters and blasts Knuckles in the direction of the Master Emerald.
A massive burst from the emerald causes Tails shield himself. "It's over." He turns around, satisfied of his victory, as so he thought.
"It's never really over!" Knuckles emerges from the dusk, in crimson attire. Its design, long pants and red plate mail make him look more of a warrior than a guardian.
Knuckles summons the spirits of his ancestors, and the chaotic energy merged within him, to create a stainless steel hammer.
"Fate seems to have different plans for you." Tails grins as he charges towards his enhanced foe.
Cream, a teenage rabbit, at the age of 18, was strolling the within the midst of sundown. The dark skies bid no bother for the happy-go-lucky teen. Over the years she had grown more mature but still maintained that joyful disposition. She was still as innocent as ever and was as clean as her mother. She had taken up a college for mechanical engineering but left after a few courses. Though this did give her some experience on how to make simple contraptions which she uses to customize her home, her mother's shop, and mostly, her room. She then began to home school with her mother in gardening. She wore a sleeveless white shirt, which she got from Amy before she disappeared, with a pink heart on it and blue jeans decorated with some of her mother's handy work.
With her was her good friend Charmy bee. He had matured as well and has more become serious in the detective business. He had won numerous awards for his success in unmasking the unmaskable. He wore his black long sleeve jacket, which was zipped up under his neck, and his orange pants. He hid his favourite pistol within his sleeve which would retract forward when needed. Its retractable ability was an add-on Cream gave to him.
His remaining counterpart, Vector, had been in the hospital for the last month and was getting out the next day. Vector was shot in an assault but he managed to give Charmy some cover for him to catch the suspect. It was on front page news of his heroism. It's also front page news at his every recovery.
Espio, however, disappeared a few years back. He left a note saying something about there being no honour in the modern world.
The frigid temperature began to build up.
Today was the day Amy left. She wore that shirt to remember her by but forgot to dress appropriately for the weather.
It rained earlier today and the sky still bore dark clouds; it could start pouring any minute.
The two had then reached their destination, an old house atop emerald town's mountains.
It was dilapidated and thought to be haunted. Rumours were going about saying that some ghost lived there. This kind of story was heard too many times to believable.
Charmy took interest in it when resent disappearances began to spring within the building. His theory was kidnap, not ghosts.
Cream had joined the trip when she began to watch Ghost Hunter, a live action series of a young man who rids the world of the undead. It stared an actor named Ash the Mongoose who suddenly came out of nowhere.
"Are you sure about this?" Charmy wasn't so sure he should look into this or not. He had been intrigued by the recent disappearances, yes, but he had never been into going into, so-called, haunted houses.
Cream, on the other hand, had been rather enthusiastic of everything beyond the boundaries of ordinary life. She begun to hate normality as she knew she was destined for more then to just finish school, settle down, and die old.
Though, today, she was having second thoughts herself.
Her ambitions took over and pulled Charmy by the wrist into the building.
The place was dusty and seemed as if it could fall onto them any second now.
The two begin to separate in different directions of the living room.
Cream notices a black rose on the windowsill. It glistened in the twilight as its motion swayed with the wind itself. Its beauty, unmatched by any of it's kind. It was truly a wonder to behold as its delicate form began to blossom.
This was the Blood Rose, a rare flower which was thought to be myth after its beauty had caught the eyes of all the earth's inhabitants in a forceful struggle to attain it and it's mysterious properties.
Cream reached for it, it was calling her somehow.
High pitched screaming came from the up stairs.
"Cream, it's the kidnapper!" Charmy says holding on to his theory.
Cream was caught off guard as her trance broke and she began to stutter "Huh? Uh-wha? Oh, yeah right."
The pair runs up the stairs and enters a hall in front of them on the second floor.
A large familiar scream could be heard in the bedroom.
Charmy pulls out his favourite pistol to ready himself for any possible attacker.
The door slowly opens and the room is found empty. It was like any other room in the building: old, dilapidated, dusty, it was no different from the rest of the house. Well, for Charmy that is.
While Charmy was searching through some drawers, Cream discovers a large bump protruding from the bed. She pulls off the sheets and makes a discovery.
"Um, Ch-Charmy?" Cream bore fright in her voice as she tried to call her friend.
"What is it Cream?" Charmy heads to her position, pulling away from his search. He could now see the horror of her find.
Sonic laid there in those sheets. He bore the scars of countless battles, his skin, burnt, bruised or even, gone, to reveal the bloody muscles. He was burnt, bleeding, and worst of all, dead.
Cream's memories of the great hedgehog began to return. Tears fell down her cheeks as a rare emotion came from her, sadness. The once cheery and ever loving girl was in complete and total abyss of sadness and memories.
Charmy gave her comfort, trying to hold back tears to be strong for her.
He then notices that Sonic begins to move. Charmy shakes her to get her hands out of her eyes.
Sonic's eyes open as he faces, from the ceiling, to his good friends. He did not smile, nor flinch at the seemingly endless pain of his wounds, but instead wore the eyes of a prisoner, trapped within bowls of eternal suffering.
He begins to utter a silent cry. He could barely be heard by the two. He begins to utter it again; it was bit louder but not loud enough.
His voice was hollow, as if it his neck was dry.
He utters his cry for one final time, this time the two listen carefully. "H-help m-me!" all of the sudden, he vanishes in a bright flash at his words.
The two remain in shock and rush out the building to tell all they know. And they knew that this wasn't over. Sonic was still alive, somehow, somewhere, he was still breathing.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I especially loved the Shadouge scene. If you're a fan of Shadouge, go check Sup-reme S.R., she's very friendly and a great Shadouge author.