Chapter Three: Training

By

LordHelen

"Excuse me?" Shadow demanded, taking a step back. He was suddenly shaking, but there was no reason to. This woman must be crazy, that was it. She either misspoke or she was crazy. "Don't you mean who I am?"

"No, course not! I mean what I say, and I say what you are. Course you wouldn't, though." The woman entered the light to reveal she was a young, and small, squirrel. She had dark brown eyes and tan fur. She actually looked a little cute, except her face was twisted into suspicion, fear and anger.

"Then you're crazy." Shadow stumbled back and fell out the door, falling to the ground. He jumped up and started to back away from her house.

"No, I'm not crazy. I know a bit about you, if you understand." The squirrel said stepping forward as he stepped back.

"No, I don't. You don't know anything about me; you're just an old squirrel!" Shadow cried. The squirrel stopped, tilting her head to the side.

"Old? I'm younger than ya!" The squirrel said in a suddenly accented voice. She smiled, seeming to regain calm and a normal voice. "Sorry. Now come here."

"No. Stay back!" Shadow yelled as she reached for him.

"Calm down. My name is Tina, and I need to train you up."

"Train me?"

"Yes, train you. There is a darkness coming, and it's you who'll be fighting it."

Sonic felt awful, her whole body aching. She moved her head gently from side to side, trying to see. The world was very blurry, and terribly bright. She winced, trying to see through the light.

"Is she awake, doctor?" an important and very annoyed voice said, ringing in Sonic's ears.

"She is moving, sir!" Dr. Genes's voice shouted. Sonic moaned, trying to cover her ears. But her arms were lead weights, refusing to lift. Her head flopped to the right and she saw a pair of black heels and the end of a lab coat. Forcing her eyes up, she the blurry image of a tall, blonde woman.

"Then resume testing."

"Sir, shouldn't we wait until she is more conscious?" Dr. Genes said in a small voice.

"Of course not. We must force it out of her, and if she has time to get stronger, it'll be that much harder to crack. The general is getting angry. We need to crack her clean, like-" he snapped his fingers-"that."

"Okay, sir." Genes answered. Sonic heard them walk away, and then the closing of a heavy door. That door seemed to have finality about it, and Sonic was afraid. And then she heard a high pitched shriek, which threatened to blow her eardrums out as it grew higher. And an urge to destroy filled her.

Shadow walked out the back door of the shabby home, finding a huge field of practice equipment, sword and axes and spears and daggers, targets, moving and dummies, and armor, mostly padded and for the use of none deadly duels.

"I really don't know. Sonic is better at fighting." Shadow said again.

"Really?" Tina asked, and then suddenly she brought a staff up and down in a blow that would have cracked his skull, had he not blocked it with his own staff and, in a lightning movement, twirled it and flicked it two feet in the air.

"Ooh, that was cool!" Shadow said in excitement, dropping his staff to accept the armor she gave him. It was light brown.

"Yes, and when Saline gets here you will learn some other stuff. I don't know what she calls it; it was either energy or magic. I teach you how to handle all these weapons and hand to hand. Shadow?" Tina asked. "Are you okay?" Shadow had frozen.

"I'm not learning magic." The memory of Marianna and Hogura was fresh in his mind.

"Energy, then." Tina said in a sure voice. She saw he was still not moving, so she prodded him with her staff. "Get moving, hedgehog. What if something were to fall on your head?"

"Might this something be your staff?" Shadow asked, grinning. Tina smiled back.

"Just might. Now, get all of it on, I don't want to give you anything broken. I'm fine with bruising, though."

Sonic was on the verge of turning into a rabid animal. She didn't have enough strength to turn into the Light Wanderer, but if she did than she would have. She had a burning, aching pain in her stomach and she howled like she was a mutt. Then the sound stopped and she relaxed. Her arms went stiff suddenly as she waited for what was to come next.

What could it be? Something to tear her limb from limb? Sonic didn't have the strength to fight. She couldn't turn into the Light Wanderer, it would destroy her. At least, she couldn't do it right now. She had tried, she really had. Anything to make that sound stop. She felt something wet fall over her closed eyes and a trembling hand smooth her belly fur.

"If he hears, he'll have my skin…but she's half-dead…" Sonic didn't hear the rest because she drifted into unconsciousness, which did not mean all pain left. Every part of her had a stabbing needle of pain.

There was a crack of wood on wood as Shadow raised his staff in a hurried motion to block Tina's. Tina smiled wide and swerved her staff under his to tap his throat. Kill position.

"You'll have to do better, Shadow. I'm afraid that just won't do, not at all." Tina laughed. Shadow tried to remember her words: Calm, Shadow. If you get worked up, you'll make mistakes.

Shadow backed into an easy attack position. "Oh, playing simple now? Think you are too young for the complicated things? You know, Marianna…" Tina didn't get to finish. That name sent Shadow into a spiral of fury. HE brought his sword up and down towards her head. She blocked in a fluid motion and whipped in towards his chest, hitting him with a hard smack and sending him two feet back to land on his back.

"How do you know that name?!" Shadow snarled, trying to get up. He found a sharp sword pointed at his throat suddenly and stopped.

"You know better, Shadow. You'll never be able to fight people like her if you can't keep a hold on yourself." Tina turned and walked away, calling over her shoulder, "I've never seen a warrior who had a temper. They'd be done in rather quick."

Shadow panted, realizing he was sweating. He flopped on his stomach, muttering curses under his breath. Then he saw a small puff of white clouds that reminded him of Sonic's face. He sighed and dropped his hand by his side, his palm hitting his staff. He sat up, still staring at the cloud.

"I'll have to learn, I suppose. You need me, and now I'm the hero."

Sonic woke up and suddenly wished she hadn't. She was surrounded humans, and they were all muttering and pointing at her. They all had on white lab coats, but not exactly the same. One had snowy white hair and had a black clipboard. The rest had dark hair and had no clipboards. Genes was there, seeming to pleading with the one with the clipboard.

But Sonic couldn't hear a thing. Her ears were broken and refused transport sounds her brain. Sonic sat up and groaned. Nope, still couldn't hear. But all the doctors seemed to have heard. They were all staring at her in awe. Sonic wondered suddenly what was wrong. Her first thought was that she was hurt or scarred in some way. But when she looked down she didn't see anything except an odd assortment of wires and needles attached to her arms and chest. It was bit scary, especially some of the tubes seemed to be removing or returning blood.

She moved to pull them out, but one doctor waved his arms, signaling for her to stop. Sonic did, but only because she was afraid he might be explaining she would die if she pulled it out. She touched her ear, curious as to what was wrong with her hearing. She felt a lot of blood and a plug that she couldn't pull out. She tried to yell at the doctors, but she couldn't hear herself. It freaked her out. She tried again.

Hoping that she was making sound, she asked why she couldn't hear. One doctor actually had the nerve to laugh and point at her. Sonic flushed. The one with the clipboard shook his head and spun his clipboard to her so she the fine printing. It read:

Sorry. We have to experiment, orders. Please, lie down and wait.

Sonic complied, resting her head on a soft pillow. She wondered what tests they could possibly have to do. Suddenly, pain shot through her like electricity through water. She thought she screamed, but she couldn't hear it. She felt hands restraining her arms and legs, pushing her against the bed. She struggled violently, trying to get up.

Sonic prayed that they would just knock her out again, but it appeared this was the test. Her heart hammered against her chest, protesting the abuse. She smelled her own sweat, realizing just how much she was working to suppress the pain. A weight hit her body with a sudden force, so tangible she was sure it was real. But she it wasn't because it didn't knock her out.

However, it did stop her struggles. She could no longer feel her body, a true blessing in that pain. She knew it was still remarkably painful, but she disconnected from the world. There was only herself, and then suddenly Shadow as well.

"Sleep, Sonic." Shadow whispered gently, and her eyelids drooped and she slept longer than she ever had before, except after her fight with Marianna. She slept for days and days.

Just a disclaimer: I do not own Sonic, that belongs to Sega, and so do all characters. Excepts OCs.