Trinity: SHADOW!

Shadow: (0.o') Tell Trinity I'm sorry! (Chaos Controls far, far away)

Tails: Eh? What did you do?

Trinity: I'LL GET YOU FOR THAT! RUNNING AROUND IN MY OTHER SOTRIES! YOU'LL PAY!

Tails: ...You aren't gonna use me in your revenge, are you?

Trinity: ...Weeeeeell...there's no guarantee...

Tails: ...

I don't own Sega. And the ruler won't work...oh wait...


Chapter 8 – Oasis

Within a week, more than half of their water was gone. Most of the water had gone to the kit. The heat was more than Tails could take at times and he had collapsed on more then one occasion. Shadow, though not used to it, was made to withstand such extremes. He would carry the unconscious kit to the closest shady area he could find and dig them a cool little pit to rest in, careful to keep the kit's head above the yellow gas. They lost a lot of time hiding from the high noon sun.

But by the end of that week, the kit had adjusted to the heat. He didn't pass out so often and he knew when to start looking for shelter, not just to avoid the heat of noon, but also the cold of night. He would follow right behind Shadow until the temperatures reached a certain point, then he would take flight and lead the way for half an hour or so. And all through the burning day, they kept their noses and mouths covered to prevent inhaling the dust and yellow gases.

At the end of the second week, Shadow and Tails faced their first sandstorm. Shadow spotted the whirling wall of dust and sand coming toward them from the west. Tails took off, searching for a good place to take cover and spotted what appeared to be a lone building in the distance. Shadow and Tails raced toward the building, trying to get there before the storm.

As they approached, they could see that the building was a temple. The temple had almost all of its windows blown in and chunks of the thick stone walls were missing. All around the structure was the rubble of other collapsed and destroyed buildings. One burnt tree stood crooked next to the doors of the temple. Nothing but a shattered stump was left of the second tree.

Shadow and Tails ducked into the front doors as the wind screamed by. Sand still blew in through the broken windows and flew through the air. They ran toward a room in the back of the temple with their heads down so the sand wouldn't get into their eyes. They wrenched open the double doors and entered the pitch black, windowless room. Shadow fumbled blindly in his backpack then pulled out a pair of glow sticks. Snapping them, he handed one to Tails and held his up to get a better look around the dark room.

"We're in a city aren't we?" Tails asked quietly, walking around the room.

"What's left of one," Shadow said solemnly.

Shadow cast an eye around the dark room. The room seemed to be some sort of storage area, filled with old portraits, handcrafted furniture of precious wood, and trinkets of silver and gold. It seemed as if people had stuffed their prized belongings into this room for safe keeping. Everything was covered in a thin layer of dust and the air was stale. The huge doors rattled in their frames as the wind blew through the temple on the other side.

The rich fools probably hid all this stuff in here during the war. Shadow thought to himself, pulling out the map. None of this has any real sentimental value. They just didn't want to get red of all this expensive junk.

"I think this is Flora City. We're not too far from High Hill now," Shadow said aloud, startling Tails.

"Flora City? There's supposed to be an oasis somewhere in the city," Tails said thoughtfully. "We can get some more water while we're here."

"Do you think the water will be clean?"

"I hope so. If not, well…" Tails' voice drifted off. He examined a large portrait of a fat bull anthro in army uniform with mild interest. He looked like a high ranking officer.

"We can make it on what we have now. But we'll go check it out once the storm blows over," Shadow said.

Shadow took off his pack and cloak and shook all the sand off of them, then sat on the dirty floor. Taking off his shoes, Shadow pours the dust and sand out of them, frowning at the small pile he made. Tails also shakes off his pack and hoodie. He leaves them on one of the dusty tables and struggles out of his shorts. Shadow notices a strange look cross his face as he pats sand off his thighs.

"I have sand in places I didn't know existed," Tails muttered sourly. Shadow snickered. "What, and you don't?"

"Well, I happen to know all the places where the sand went, thank you." Shadow said with a smirk. Tails gagged. Shadow suddenly became serious. "Tails, where did all this sand come from? I've only seen dry, cracked ground since we've left."

"There's a desert- a true sand desert- to the west, where the storm blew in from," he explained. "It's a small desert, but it's growing. Sandstorms like this one is pushing its boundaries east and south, making the desert spread across the land. I assume it will reach the mountains in a few -."

A piercing, shattering sound interrupted Tails and the screaming wind becomes louder and the doors rattle in their frames twice as hard. Outside, another of the temples windows was smashed to pieces. Shadow eyed the door shaking behind him with a small frown. They ate lunch in silence and took an afternoon nap. By time they awoke, the storm had passed. They changed into their extra clothes and left the room of treasures to find the ruin outside the door.

Chips of stone and glass were imbedded into the thick heavy doors. Shadow even found a rock wedged between the top corner of the door and its frame. One of the doors leading outside was hanging off its hinges. Shadow pushed it aside and stepped out into the bright sunlight. The storm had cleared away the haze and yellow gas, but Shadow was sure it would all be flowing back into the area over the next few days. At the moment, all the ruins were covered in sand and pebbles and shards of colored glass. Tails hopped onto one of the large chunks of stone wall sitting next to the door and looked around.

"I think the oasis is that way!" Tails said, pointing toward what he was sure the center of town. He hopped of the stone and followed Shadow in heat of the afternoon.

Tails had changed into his extra pair of shorts he had and was trekking through the rubble with his white tee tossed over his should carelessly. He had carefully packed his sandy clothes away, not wanting to get the rest of his stuff covered in sand. Shadow walked about in his oh-so-tight pants with a pair of shades on his nose to block out the annoyingly bright sun.

Climbing over, under and around the broken blocks of stone and toppled houses was tiring. The layer of sand that covered everything made it difficult to keep one's footing and the heat made it impossible for Tails to fly for more than a couple of minutes. Instead, they climbed on top of tall piles of rubble to see further ahead. There was one particularly large piece of stone with a float top they decided to climb on top of to get a better view. Shadow pulled himself over the edge and dragged Tails up after him.

"It's so hot…" Tails moaned, collapsing on top of the stone. Shadow was staring at the back of his bare hand.

"You know, I forgot that I had gotten red of my gloves," Shadow turned his hand over and flexed his fingers. "I kinda miss the feeling of cloth…Are you okay?"

Shadow bent over the panting kit that was sprawled across the stone. His eyes were squeezed shut to block out the blinding sunlight and his mouth was hanging open. Tails groaned again, snapped his jaws shut, and forced himself to sit up. He glanced at the sun hanging at a late afternoon position and guessed it was somewhere around four-five o'clock.

"I hate heat," Tails growled.

"Don't worry about it, kid. We only have a few hours of daylight left," Shadow said, pulling the fox to his feet. "What the-"

Shadow and Tails were standing at the edge of a huge gapping hole in the ground. Tails could see the collapsed pipe lines below. Some of the rubble had rolled down into the bowl-shaped crater and rested in piles on the ground far below. It looked like something had carefully carved out a perfect bowl shaped indention into the ground, cleaning cutting the layers of rock and metal pipelines far below the ground.

"The storm couldn't have this," Shadow said, looking across the mile wide gap to the land at the other side. "Is this from the war?"

"It looks like it," Tails said, peering closely into the pipes and tunnels. His blue eyes narrowed. "HEY!"

Tails jumped over the edge of the crater, spinning his tails to slow his descend. Shadow, surprised by his sudden outburst, jumped in after him, sliding down the side of the crater. Tails hit the ground running and bolted into one of the many tunnels. Shadow took off after him, jumping into the cool, dark tunnel. The black hedgehog ran along the small tunnel and almost plowed over Tails when he stopped right in front of him. They were standing at the mouth of the tunnel, in a tall stone room where three other tunnels connected.

"What the heck was that all about?" Shadow snapped, taking off his shades so he could see better. "What are we-?"

"Shh!"

A muscle under Shadow's eye twitched, but he remained silent. Tails was carefully looking down all three, his nose and ears twitching, and it was apparent he was searching for something. One of his ears flicked, and he turned toward the tunnel to the right, his ears swiveling atop his head to center sound on his eardrum. Shadow listened too, but all he heard was an odd squeaking sound from the tunnel to the right, which quickly came to an end. Shrugging, Tails and Shadow went down the tunnel anyways.

"I thought I saw someone down here," Tails explained.

"You saw someone?" Shadow said. He was uncomfortably bent over so he wouldn't bump his head.

"Yeah," Tails said with a nod. "I thought I saw him dodge into this tunnel. But then we came to the intersection and now… now I'm not so sure."

"You must have scared him when you shouted."

"I think he was scared just to see us. Remember, most people who wander around the wastelands are crooks. If the kid is living here alone…"

Tails voice faded away and they continued in silence. Although the underground pipes have long since dried, the soft sounds of trickling water could be heard under their echoing footsteps. They walked down the tunnel until they came to a portion that had collapsed and their path was blocked with debris. Tails stared at the stone pile and groaned.

"Dead end," Shadow said, sitting on his heels. "There's nobody here after all."

"Well, at least we should be closer to the oasis. Listen, you can-"

A small squeak interrupted him. Shadow and Tails looked over their shoulders at the wall of rubble and saw a most peculiar sight. Curled in a gap between the wall and the debris was a young, grey mouse. She wore a filthy, tattered green dress that hung loosely off her bony shoulders. Her hair and fur was as filthy as her dress, but her brown eyes were sharp and bright. She was obviously attempting to hide from them, blending in nicely with the gray and mossy debris.

"Um, hi?" Tails tried, taking a step toward the girl.

The mouse girl gave another terrified squeak that echoed down the tunnel. She wiggled backward, working her way deeper into the debris. Little rays of sunlight started piercing the darkness of the tunnels as she wiggled away, until a large gapping hole in the bottom of the debris let in a blinding shaft of light. The hole was evidently a quick way out of the tunnel and back to the surface.

Tails scurried into the passage after her and came out into the blinding light of dusk. Shielding his eyes, he found that he was standing in the middle of a cleared street. Here and there, the rubble was pushed into piles at the side of the streets. The buildings suffered a lot less damage here too. Buildings cramped together stood two or three floors high with jagged walls, suggesting they were once much higher. Even most of the windows on the remaining floors were still intact.

And there were people. Almost all of them were mice or weasel anthros. They stood motionless in the doorways of the buildings or on the sidewalk at the side of the street. Children peeked through dirty windows, around piles of rubble or the legs of adults. They whispered to one another excitedly or fearfully, pointing at the two tailed fox. These filthy people who stood staring at the boy were the sole survivors of the attack on their city.

Shadow step up next to Tails. The appearance of a second being seemed to snap the people back into life. In a sudden panic, mothers ushered their children out of the streets and into the buildings. The faces in the grimy windows disappeared from view. Men and women gathered in a semi-circle in the streets, facing Shadow and Tails. One particularly ragged-looking weasel stood a bit ahead of the others, a piece of wood resembling a bat in his hands. They stood glaring at Shadow and Tails, as if waiting for something.

"Is this a bad time?" Tails called out, sounding a bit naive.

The crowd bristled as if they had been insulted by the simple-ness of the question. An angry buzz spread through the crowd and those with weapons in there hands held them at the ready. Shadow moved to stand in front of Tails, eying the enraged crowd. He wasn't sure, but it looked like the people who appeared standing in the broken windows had bows in their hands.

"I'll take that as a no," Tails muttered, staring at the weasel with a bat.

"Tails, be careful. I think those guys at the windows have bows."

"Shadow, I've dodged lasers and gunfire for, what, six years?" Tails said, feeling underrated. "I think I can handle some measly arrows."

"Don't underestimate a desperate family group," Shadow muttered, glancing back at Tails. "You'd be surprised what they can accomplish together."

An arrow whirred through the air and slammed into the ground at Shadow's feet. Shadow snapped back into focus and stared down the archer who shot the arrow. Several other archers trained their arrows on Shadow and Tails. Tails watched the archers take aim nervously, shifting closer to Shadow. Half of the arrow's shaft was buried into the ground. Okay, he thought, they're a little better than I thought.

"So, are they're only the two of you?"

The weasel's voice was surprisingly loud and demanding for something so thin and dodgy. Shadow looked the weasel directly in his hazel eyes and gave a short nod. The weasel smirked in such a way that told Shadow he was not going to let him and the fox go anyways. Shadow frowned. These people were not going to be easily persuaded into trusting the traveling pair.

"Did you think you could raid this town just by yourselves?" The weasel said loudly, still smirking. "You must be dumb to try with odds like these."

"We're not going to raid you town!" Tails yelped back frightfully. "We don't even want to fight you! We just wanted to find a little water-"

"LIES! I know you people only say you want water, but then you'll take everything you can get you're hands on! We know nothing but trouble hides behind the walls of our city! We will not be overrun by your little gang of thugs!" The weasel raised his bat and pointed it at the two. The crowd rustled, ready to charge. "We end this now!"

The air was filled with angry shouts and flying arrows. Shadow and Tails dodged the arrows easily enough, now alert to the quiet, whirring missiles. The crowd had broken out into a stampeding mob, heading straight for the two. Shadow charged at them, sure the archers would not fire into the crowd. Tails, on the other hand, took to the sky, trying to plead over the shouting of the mob, trying to get them to listen, while dodging arrows.

"Please, you have to listen to me! We're not thugs! We didn't even know that there were people still living here! All we need is a little water then we'll leave! Please!"

"Tails! They won't listen to reason! Just forget it!" Shadow shouted at the kit, ignoring the surge of bodies against him and blocking their blows with easy. "Tails, get out of the air! Get down here!"

A piece of mud brick was thrown at the kit's spinning tails. The brittle brick was light and simple bounced off, but the force of the blow still stung. His tails stopped moving for a second and he dropped several feet. He managed to get his now sore tails to start spinning again before he fell into the angry mob and hovered a few feet above their heads. Tails gulped, staring down at the angry faces shouting up at him then snapped his head up when he heard a whir.

A stray arrow slammed into the boy's chest.

"TAILS!"


Tails: (O.O)

Shadow: ...What have you done woman!

Tails: Did I just...die?

Trinity: Maybe...

Shadow: You are not aloud to kill him! My only friend...Maria...(curls up all depressed like)

Trinity: I told you I'd get you back...

Tails: You left us at a cliffy! A cliffy!

Trinity: Quiet boy, or I'll have you suffer even more...

Tails: Review! I'm begging you, please review! Do it for me!