I literally re-did this chapter three times. By then, I went up to my room, slammed my head into my pillow, and proceeded to yell...
Nononononononononononononono nononononononononono!
No. I didn't like the ending, it had too much of a loose and confusing end. And so I went back and re-wrote it one more time. And here it is.
I did add-on a little to the end of the last chapter, so if you just skipped straight to this one, go back and read the ending again. If you don't you might get a small shock about what's coming up here.
Disclaimer: (this is long overdue…) I do not own Shadow or any of the associated SONIC TEAM characters, except Rellet. He I did make up.
Anywhoo, Onward!
The dull emerald fell at Shadow's feet as Black Doom's body fell to the ground, dead. Shadow's eyes flitted upwards and widened at the sight of what was in Simon's hand.
A pale blue chaos emerald.
"You monster!" Simon began to yell. "You kidnapped my wife, my child!" now he started to sob, the emerald slowly growing brighter and brighter.
Shadow lowered his guard slightly, it was obvious the man was in no state to attack at this moment. "What on earth are you talking about?" he asked Simon, shaking his head slowly.
"Linda and Eileen! You kept them hostage!" he yelled, his voice trembling slightly.
Then it clicked. Shadow remembered Eileen telling him about Simon, about how he was drafted when he was young.
"You've got it all wrong," Shadow tried to explain. "Black Doom was the one holding them hostage, they were being kind and trying to find a way home for me."
But by now it was too late. Simon was blinded by hatred, and nothing could stop him. He lifted the gun in his left hand, clutching the emerald so hard that small rivets of blood were starting to flow from his hand. Simon's finger squeezed the trigger, catching Shadow off guard. He barely had time to jump up, landing behind Simon. But Simon was blinded by anger, and he couldn't react in time to dodge Shadow's foot which came spiraling up, connecting with the hand holding the gun. The projectile weapon fell to the ground, followed by Simon, who had been knocked over by the force of the blow.
"Now explain where you got that." Shadow gestured in the direction of the emerald, which was still in Simon's grasp.
Simon started to laugh slowly, a sharp and maniacal laugh that seemed to never end, echoing over and over in the quiet square. "This," he began, "is a chaos emerald. It's from ancient folklore, but I knew the truth. I knew it was real. So I searched day and night for it, following instructions from ancient texts. Legend says an all-powerful being is held in these emeralds, one who goes by the name of Rellet." The emerald grew brighter at the mention of his name. "The raw power inside is killing me you know." he proceeded to say.
Shadow shook his head. "Please," he said, dropping to one knee so he could be at eye level with him. "hand it here. I can control the power in the emerald. Besides, it may be my only shot at getting home."
Neither of them noticed the emerald steadily growing brighter and brighter, and an eerie blue glow ebbing its way up Simon's arm and slowly creeping up his neck. when Shadow looked down, however, it was too late. the light had already reached Simon's head, and he crumpled instantly. Shadow, concerned now that he knew that this was Eileen's father, quickly pried the stone out of his grasp, it was clear it was killing him.
the instance it left his hand, Shadow felt a surge of power rush into him, and there was a flash of light. The commotion that Black Doom had caused resumed, and people looked around, confused as to what had happened. The hedgehog glanced down at the emerald in his palm, and back up at the gathering crowd. Then it hit him. Eileen.
She had to be in the crowd somewhere, Black Doom had most likely brought her along to make her and her mother watch the pandemonium. He scanned the cluster of people time and time again, looking for the long blonde hair that she had, looking for Maria. But it seemed she wasn't there. Shadow hung his head and swore quietly, a small tear landing on the ground.
Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw her.
Shadow's head snapped to the side, and he saw Eileen standing, grinning ear to ear. They both ran at each other, colliding in a warm embrace. There was no words, only tears of joy. Shadow drew back, happier than he had ever felt before, and beckoned Linda over. But Linda wasn't looking at Shadow or Eileen. He followed her gaze and gasped slightly.
Simon staggered to his feet, a circle of people gathering around him. After all, it's not every day you see a high ranking G.U.N. agent. Linda slowly walked over to him, a perfectly neutral expression on her face.
"L-linda?" he stuttered, his eyelids fluttering slightly. "W-what happened? All I remember is a huge light..."
A tear slid from Linda's eye, wetting her shirt. She then hugged him fiercely, sobbing quietly.
Shadow turned back to Eileen, holding the Chaos emerald up. "Look at what I got." he shook it back and forth as Eileen gasped.
"Shadow, is that-" Her smile slowly turned into a frown as her eyes began to water.
Shadow furrowed his brow. "Eileen what's wrong? You were happy just a second ago."
"Shadow... This means you have to go now doesn't it?" Shadow lowered his head, looking at the emerald. He hadnt thought about this.
"Dont worry Eileen, I'll find a way to travel between the worlds, I promise."
A tear from Eileen splashed on the emerald, causing it to glow even brighter, the light soon enveloping Shadow once more.
"Awaken, Shadow the Hedgehog." a deep voice echoed in Shadow's ears.
He got up, rubbing his head slightly. Looking around, he found himself in the same dark place as before.
Rellet stood before him, his hand outstretched in Shadow's direction. Shadow accepted it, and was pulled up by Rellet's suprising strength.
"Who are you? And where are we?" Shadow questioned the mysterious pale hedgehog, but he merely shook his head.
"I can not answer that. Only you can. But let me tell you about the two worlds that you have inhabited. This world, Earth, is actually connected spiritually with Morbius, and as are the people. That man, Simon, is the one that goes by the name of Knuckles in your universe."
Shadow drew back, surprised. "You mean to say that everyone on this planet is someone from Morbius?" his thoughts instantly wandered to his greatest foes, Eggman... Sonic... even Mephiles...
Rellet nodded. "Exactly. And this Eileen girl, you and her are spiritually connected in no way that I've ever seen before. But I do think you can guess who she really is."
Shadow paled. The first thing he had ever said to Eileen. "Maria." he said, his mouth dry.
Rellet smiled. "And I'm not sure how to break this to you, but you can not go home just yet. My power alone can not make a jump of time and space that large. I will need help from my companions."
Shadow's head snapped up, his eyes wide. "What are you saying?"
Two emeralds faded into existence around Rellet, one a dark purple and one completely black.
"You must first find my closest companion, Hope." the emerald slowly shaped itself into a strikingly purple rabbit.
"What about the black one?" Shadow asked. He could feel something in the dark crystal, like it was pulling him in.
Rellet looked disturbed. "That will be clear in time." the white light started to emanate from Rellet once more, and Shadow reached out.
"Wait how will I find it?" He yelled, but Rellet only smiled as he dissapered.
Shadow awoke, stumbling back from Eileen.
"Shadow?" Eileen asked, wiping away her tears.
Shadow laughed softly. "Don't worry Eileen, I'm not going anywhere soon."
End of Part I
Ah, much better than my first attempt.
Haha! Yup, as I was writing this chapter, I said to myself, Dinosaur, you should make this into a three part story.
And so I did.
After all, if I didn't this would be an at least 35 chapter story so...
Shadow will return in Searching for hope, so go to my profile and read it.
please.
On my first take at this, it was a short chapter, so yay!
Goodbye, live life to its extent, and Adios for now!
-That's a dinosaur, signing out.
