Alright, the action is paltry, at best. I'll admit it. Does anyone have any ideas on how it can be improved in some way?
"Let's get it on!" Sonic whooped in delight, jumping into the cloud of smoke & debris in the adjoining room.
"Pray that this place doesn't collapse on us" Shadow muttered while jumping in after him.
"What the hell's going on now?" a familiar voice bellowed, accompanied by a brief coughing fit. "Oblivion, Metal Sonic, was the process successful?" he asked.
"Huh, Eggman and Metal me are both here?" Sonic quipped. "Guess I get to kick two butts in one go, eh Shads?" he commented, nudging him in the shoulder with an elbow.
"Stop that, you idiot" the calmer of the two replied, smacking the offending appendage away. "I see the doctor, but" now squinting his eyes "that doesn't really look like your robotic copy" he finished.
"Maybe it's that Oblivion person Eggman just mentioned?" Sonic offered.
Robotnik recognized the voices "Sonic?" he groaned. "Why is that blue rat here, of all the times he could show up…. gah!" he shrieked, noticing shadow as well when the dust finally cleared. "Good to see you Shadow, I guess." He grumbled to the hedgehog.
"Likewise" he flatly replied.
Well now, this is quite…. Nostalgic" a deep voice boomed, putting the two hedgehogs on edge while Robotnik remained unfazed.
"Oh!" Robotnik exclaimed, upright once more. "How do you feel…. Oblivion?"
"I must become more accustomed to this body, as well as the fact that my gracious host doesn't seem to understand how existing in this state is possible" he responded, stepping into view for all to see. Jet black fur covered his entire body from head to toe, rippling with muscles, endless pools of inky darkness serving as eyes, long tail swishing back and forth behind him in amusement while rounded ears atop his head twitched every now and again in response to subtle sounds. "It would seem that my own form was chosen as the template for our…. Merge" he purred, revealing sharpened pearly white incisors while examining his hands as claws extended from then retracted into the fingertips.
"That it does" Ivo responded, in awe of the transformation. "I can't see a trace of Metal Sonic's features at all" he breathed out.
"What!" Sonic blurted "You had this person, no, thing, possess Metal me?" now pointing at the unfamiliar person. Outraged at what he'd overheard. Now pointing to the annoyed doctor instead "Did you even give him a choice?" he shouted.
"Metal Sonic was but an advanced mechanical soldier, created by yours truly" he responded, unperturbed. "While he is one of a kind, that is only due to the materials and methods used to create him, his objectives were the same as every other machine I've created" this only proved to further anger Sonic, as the hedgehog took a menacing step towards him. "Furthermore, Metal Sonic had no will, preference, emotion or personality to speak of. He - no, it - was simply another robot" he icily finished.
"You heartless bastard!" the blue one cried, moving to attack, until a gentle hand rested on his shoulder, halting his rush, due to the sheer fact that Shadow was almost never gentle. He turned to look his friend in the eyes.
He remained as impassive as ever, stoic expression unchanged. But the soft "Calm down, idiot" was more than enough to ease his emotions back into a manageable state. With a nod to his companion, he lowered and unclenched the fists that he'd unconsciously made, then stood up straight, his posture visibly relaxing a bit.
'I didn't realize he'd grown so attached' Shadow mused, 'both of them' he amended upon noticing Ivo's almost imperceptible trembling. "Stop trying to be so professional, doctor. You are quite the actor" he stated, arms crossed above his chest "I know that you cared about that particular 'soldier' much more than you'd like to admit" amusement glinting in his eyes for just a moment "after all, you told me that yourself" to which the doctor visibly flinched. Then gave a wry grin.
"As perceptive as ever, eh?" he mumbled.
"Are these more allies of yours, professor?" the forgotten panther guessed.
"Oh, heavens no!" he exclaimed "they're nothing of the sort, well" he hesitated "not at the moment, in Shadow's case" he amended.
"Then I see no issue with testing my command of this body upon these two" he stated.
Shadow scoffed, Sonic chuckled. The two glanced at each other "The usual?" Shadow inquired.
"Of course" his companion nodded. Both of them now facing each other, one arm in front of them clenched into a fist.
"Rock"
"Paper"
"Scissors"
"Says…."
"Shoot!"
"Yeah, I won!" Sonic exclaimed, waving his fist in front of Shadow's face as he glared at the two fingers that lost him the game.
"You just got lucky" he muttered, crossing his arms again "make it quick."
"Pfft, don't insult me Shads" Sonic said, pointing a thumb at himself now "don't blink, or you just might miss it" flashing a toothy smile.
'This may get ugly, it'd probably be in my best intentions to make some space' Robotnik thought, as he backed up to the stairway door.
"Come now, blue hedgehog" it chuckled "I doubt that you could even serve as a warm u-" then Sonic dashed at him, kicking up loose stone and leaving a blue streak in his wake, his fist hurtling towards the beast's surprised face. An attack he easily caught by the wrist.
"What the?" Sonic struggled to get his arm out of the viselike grip as he was lifted with ease and sent hurtling towards the opposite wall, but simply flipped in the air, landing on the surface, feet first in a crouch.
He jumped back to the ground and dashed towards his opponent once more before somersaulting in the air, feet over his head, to smash his heel into the other's skull, only to be blocked with a forearm and pushed back into the air before landing on his feet a meter away. "Come now" he mocked the hero "surely you can do more than just a few acrobatics" a bored expression on his face.
Sonic dashed again, appearing right before the cocky man's face, unleashing punch after punch, no longer aiming for a specific spot, but simply trying to land a hit. The panther easily avoids the sloppy whirlwind of fists, amused at the pathetic display until something changes, he notices an upward curve in the frustrated boy's lips, his leg a blue blur, then searing pain in his jaw sends him crashing into the pedestal, destroying it. The blade and sheath spin into the air then land, the blade stuck into the stone near his hand and the sheath lying at his feet.
Rubbing his sore jaw - 'it must be fractured now' - he rises to his feet, grasps the hilt of the blade and removes it from the stone before retrieving the sheath as well. "I thank you for allowing me the time to gather my bearings as well as my weapon, boy" he acknowledged.
"Eh, no prob" a shrug of the shoulders "you did it for me, so I guess it was only fair."
"I see, unfortunately, you'll most likely be dying now" he deadpanned, dark eyes now filled with a burning fire in the center, the ominous pressure from before returning tenfold, the air itself rushing about in the room, forcing all present to shield themselves with their arms in an attempt to stop the gusts from bowling them over while dust and small bits of debris made it difficult to see.
Shadow snapped his fingers, causing a small flash of light to envelop his hand for a moment before fading away to reveal a simple silver pistol in his grasp, finger at the trigger, ready and waiting. He received his signal a moment later, the sound of metal whistling through the air, the smell of blood on the air - "The idiot's in trouble, great" - his vision finally cleared, showing him a frantic Sonic covered in scratches narrowly avoiding a series of lightning fast slashes being chained together in a fluid dance of grace and danger. Another scratch added to the many already adorning his face, chest, arms and legs. He took aim at the panther - "the elbow should be enough" - and fired.
Seeing a gun in Shadow's hand was always reassuring, depending on whose team he happened to be on, and the sound of gunfire actually managed to give Sonic a glimmer of hope during his frenzied routine of dodge the dangerous sword. Shadow almost never missed a shot - Rouge just never misses, ever -. Then the crazy black sword slashed to the side and deflected the bullet right back towards the black and red hedgehog that simply fired another shot to cancel out the reflected one. The one little distraction was all sonic needed to zip back next to his companion, breathing heavily and feeling a little sleepy from all of the shallow wounds oozing his life out of them "what I wouldn't give for a chaos emerald" he gasped, not even daring to take his eyes off of the man stalking towards them.
"Guess I get to go after all, huh" Shadow murmured. Checking the chamber of his firearm and wincing. "Damn, I chose the six shot, how careless" he chided himself. Hover shoes flaring to life, he announced "I'll show you the real way to fight a swordsman" and took off.
"Like lambs to the slaughter" the warrior remarked, preparing to cut down the fool.
Bang, Bang, Bang
Three swift slashes redirected the first two bullets and sent the third back towards the ebony marksman, who had no trouble avoiding it. Not slowing down in the least. Before he could correct his stance, Shadow was upon him, one hand grasping the hilt of the blade while the other pressed against his forehead in less than a second. His fingertips brushed the blade's hilt. Suddenly, he knew pain.
The embodiment of the soul, forged as a weapons, hundreds upon thousands of them. Their chosen masters. A power struggle, sides chosen. War. None left standing, remnants remaining within. Sealing, enshrinement, a mishap…. Power.
Shadow staggered under the onslaught of - 'visions, memories?' - confusing sights, falling to his hands and knees as well as dropping the gun in the process. Fortunately, the panther was going through his own state of shock. Staring at his empty hands, devoid of both Oblivion & it's sheath.
"How can this be!" he roared. "A mere hedgehog cannot be the wielder of Oblivion, I Am Oblivion!" he stated, rushing towards Shadow as he shakily made it to his feet. "Die!" he commanded, leaping into the air, sending bolts of ebony lightning towards him.
Helpless and still disoriented, Shadow did all he could to protect himself against the lightning approaching overhead, too fast to avoid, he outstretched his hands and gathered his chaos energy into the palms of his hands in an attempt to nullify the impending attack. A faint, flat circle of pale yellow appeared in front of him, sparks shooting off of the edges he shouted "Chaos Shield!" the two energies met, an explosion erupted, debris and smoke covering the area where Shadow stood.
Even while plastered to the wall, Ivo couldn't be more impressed with the skills he'd seen displayed by the three fighters. Impressed because, after his 'gifts from the gods' following the match was relatively easy, as if he were watching a few normal people duke it out, rather than a mystical being enhanced by - his own pride and joy - Metal Sonic, engaged in combat with two high speed hedgehogs. He wasn't so much impressed with them, much, but more so in the enhancements that he'd been discovering in himself, much research would have to be put into this…. 'After I get out of this war zone' Robotnik vowed.
Sonic wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was worried about Shadow, the two had grown close - no matter how many times the black hedgehog denied it - and seeing his eyes go blank for that split second before he fell to the ground was rather unnerving. "He can't lose" the blue hedgehog mumbled, the worry clouding his thoughts, he was rooted to the spot, forced to watch as their foe leaped into the air then stopped, as if he was standing on solid ground now, no floating at all. His breath caught in his throat when he saw the dark lightning leap towards his shaky friend's barrier. The ensuing explosion forced him to breathe again, his feet sped him into the smoke where Shadow was last seen, hoping to find him perfectly fine, alive, breathing. He saw a silhouette, raced towards it & stopped in his tracks, the worry now replaced with confusion.
Shadow stood tall, not questioning the sheath sash now strapped across his shoulder and waist, but staring in wonder at the black blade that had appeared in his hand - moments before the attack tore through his shield - and absorbed the deadly blast, leaving no trace, other than the intense strain Shadow went through holding the blade in place, one hand clenched onto the hilt while the other held the flat side, keeping it in position as the stone beneath his feet erupted from the overwhelming force, throwing dust all around him. The weapon hummed, in anticipation, with power? 'This blade is very….unique, lifelike almost' shadow mused.
'Why would I not be?' an eerily familiar voice asked, resounding through his mind.
Shadow was jolted from his findings by Sonic, when he placed a hesitant hand on his shoulder, eyes locked onto the other Oblivion standing above them.
On air.
"What the-"
"That's exactly what I was thinking" Sonic interrupted, still glaring at the panther.
"I refuse to believe that some inexperienced, child" he spat "could injure me in battle, while another is dark enough to be chosen as the next wielder of Oblivion, more so than myself, Oblivion!" he roared, as shadows coalesced in the palm of his hand, the form of a long, thin curved saber now evident, he took hold of the hilt with both hands, then vanished.
"Where'd he go?"
"Shut up, idiot!"
"Stop shouting!"
'Focus, you whelp!' the voice commanded Shadow.
Shadow turned around and brought his blade up, just in time to stop the shadowy saber from decapitating him, but jarring his arms and pushing him off balance, leaving him open for a much stronger slice.
"Sonic Wind!" had Sonic not sent a gust of sharpened energy at the master swordsman, forcing him to jump backwards to avoid the wave, giving Shadow a few precious moments to right himself.
Oblivion struck at Shadow again and again, forcing the dark hero to continue frantically dodging thrusts and slashes aimed at him, unable to escape and knowing that attempting to parry would only make matters worse. Deciding to take the offensive, he disappeared in a flash of green light, Sonic backpedaled toward the wall, anticipating Shadow's next move and leaving the panther enough time to raise his arm over his face, before being engulfed by a hail of thin shimmering yellow needles from above.
Abruptly, the shower stops, dust and sparks of residual chaos energy obscure the panther's form. In the air, breathing heavily, Shadow hovers above the destruction, jet shoes blasting flames to keep him airborne, arms outstretched towards his target as leftover sparks of yellow chaos dance across his fingers before dying out. He reaches to his side and unsheathes Oblivion, strapped to the back of his waist.
The smokescreen clears. A dome of dark energy riddled with holes is seen. Hairline cracks begin to branch off from the small holes and connect to each other, the sound of shattering glass is heard then the dome fades away, as if it was never there, revealing an annoyed Oblivion, sword gone, arms crossed and body covered in small bloody scratches.
"I will admit, I am impressed" he growled. "You've managed to draw blood and break through a B-Class barrier."
Sonic, knowing the battle wouldn't end so easily, began forming a Sonic Hammer the second Oblivion started talking 'All villains have to showboat, it's a requirement' he told himself, the attack almost completed.
Catching Sonic's intentions, Shadow dove towards the awaiting warrior, leaving a streak of flames in his wake. He swung the sword at Oblivion's face, but the panther caught his arms in mid swing, halting his movement as the momentum from Shadow's descent created a gust of air that rushed over the two of them.
"You swing the sword around as if it was a stick, you could hardly even be called a novice" he scoffed, ebony sparks manifesting at the end of his fingertips, Shadow's arms still in the crushing grip. "You're a fool for believing that you could defeat me, now pay the pri-"
Sonic made his move, driving the swirling globe of energy into the unsuspecting villain's side with a shout of "Eat it!"
Oblivion was sent spiraling, releasing Shadow, puncturing a hole into a wall and being covered by large pieces of debris.
"Maaaan, he has to be finished after that" Sonic groaned. Noticing Shadow, rubbing his wrists and looking around, he asked "How're you holding up, Shads?"
"The doctor has gotten away, again" he grumbled.
"Forget Eggman!" he exclaimed, giving a pointed look at his newest weapon "look at the badass sword you got!... I want one" he mumbled the last part.
"Yeah, we have more important things to worry about, at the moment…."
"Oh, like how everyone else is gonna find us?"
"That sounds about right" Shadow sighed.
"I guess we're all set then" Tails added to the conversation.
"No, we still have to find a way ou-" he stared at Tails - who waved back - in shock.
"Hey guys, we found another entrance and caught Eggman creeping out of it, he's tied up like a…." noticing their wounds "What happened to you two?"
"It's a long story, kid, a long story" Shadow replied.
Chunks of stone began falling from the ceiling and walls, one piece the size of a pebble bounced off of the dazed hedgehog's head, snapping him out of his stupor.
"You guys can tell me about it later, let's get out of here!" Tails shouted.
Sonic grabbed his surrogate sibling's hand and, while dodging falling bits of stone, sped through the door, right behind Shadow. Racing upwards they burst through the trapdoor in a matter of seconds, the stairs promptly collapsed moments after the three escaped. Lightheaded and fatigued - the product of running while covered in steadily bleeding cuts - Sonic let go of Tails and collapsed next to an equally exhausted Shadow.
Rolling his now sore shoulder - while grumbling about possible dislocations and giving people warnings - Tails looked around for the other half of their group. "That's strange" he murmured, shoulder forgotten "those three were right here, waiting by the door when I left."
"What's wrong, Miles?" Shadow groaned, wearily rising from his position on the rocky ground near Sonic, still haphazardly sprawled amongst the dirt.
Heading towards the tree line, still searching for any sign of their friends, he responded "The gang isn't at our meeting spot, right at the edge of those trees."
"Maybe they just went a little further back?" Sonic offered, not moving from his spot, flat on his back.
"That's a possibility" he replied. Then added "It's what I'm hoping for, actually."
"Hoping?" Shadow queried.
"If they're far enough away from these ruins, maybe their communicators are working."
"That wouldn't matter" Shadow deadpanned.
"Why not?"
"Yours is still being interfered with by the ruins, bud" Sonic chimed
"….Oh" he responded, sheepishly.
"That's not like you, acting so hastily" Shadow observed, now actively searching as well.
"Yeah, usually we have to stop you from thinking too much about something" Sonic joked.
"Heh" the kit blushed, embarrassed "I guess I'm just a bit worri-"
"Shit!" Shadow erupted, alerting the other two "Get over here, now!" and then "Rouge!" before dashing deeper into the layer of trees.
"That doesn't sound good" Sonic commented, scrambling to his feet and completely passing by Tails as they chased after Shadow.
Tails noticed the destruction first as Sonic merely focused on catching up to Shadow. Several trees were scorched and splintered, while some were outright pulled from the ground or had multitudes of thin slashes covering them. 'Knuckles and Rouge's handiwork I presume, no one else can do that to a fully grown tree' he reasoned. As he ran further into the forest the fallen trees and scorch marks increased in number, unearthed soil and stray branches littered the ground. 'What is this, a war zone?'
Eventually, he caught up to the two Hedgehogs, to find Shadow kneeling over a scorched, bruised and unconscious Rouge laying on the ground as he checked her for any other injuries, the steady rise and fall of her chest the only indication that the woman was even alive. Not too far away, Sonic seemed to be doing the same with Knuckles, whose injuries were much easier to spot, what with jagged shards of bark being none too difficult to spot. Knuckles looked as if he'd been thrown through a tree. More like multiple trees.
"What happened here, what could even do something like this to Knuckles?" Sonic exclaimed.
"Your guess is as good as mine, and Omega isn't here, he has a heal unit installed but he may be injured too" Shadow replied, his mood darkening.
"This isn't good" Tails observed "I left my things up here, but they're missing!" he wailed.
"The day just keeps getting better, eh Shads?" Sonic dryly commented.
"Yeah, I also don't think I have enough stamina to get myself to the Station Square outskirts, let alone all of us to the GUN facilities. And, I dropped the Chaos Emerald" he groaned.
"Meh" Sonic shrugged "we'll just have to run there."
"Oh please" Shadow scoffed, noticing Sonic's swaying body. "You can barely stand, let alone run while carrying a person" a pause "and I have no clue as to how we'll get Omega anywhere if he's unresponsive" he sighed.
"Someone's going to have to get out of this forest, find a signal and contact GUN to retrieve us…. With rescue helicopters, the supersonic kind, to make sure we don't bleed out and die as well as check these two over here for any internal injuries."
"Wait a minute" Tails perked up, catching on "that leaves me as the only one able bodied enough to do any of this!"
"Yep, you'd better hurry little buddy, I already feel cold all over" Sonic added.
"I'm off. Don't die guys!" Tails screeched, staring up his two namesakes. He soared into, then over, the canopy of trees, desperate to locate a signal as he moved further and further away from the group.
"He's so intelligent, yet so naïve" Shadow observed.
"He is still a kid, you know, give my little bro a break" Sonic reminded him. "Anywho, what's the plan, seeing as how you had to send Tails away….?" he asked, having already guessed that Shadow had something serious - and potentially dangerous - in mind.
Drawing his sword, Shadow replied "This."