Chapter 10: Split Personality

Shadow's eyes instantly locked onto Mephiles and with a snarl, he jumped at him, transforming into his wolf form in midair and tackling him to the ground. Mephiles got up and glared at him. Tails and Blaze ran in, wondering what was going on.

When Tails' eyes fell on the sight of a snarling Shadow pinning down Sonic, he was shocked. "Shadow! What are you doing?"

Blaze was shocked as well, and turned to Silver for an explanation. "Silver? What's going on?"

"That's not Sonic right now," Silver said. "Mephiles is possessing him."

Blaze gasped, then looked down at the possessed Sonic. "Mephiles is...possessing Sonic?" Tails had been shocked speechless.

Shadow looked at them and nodded, still pinning Mephiles down. The possessed vampire looked at Tails and Blaze with a crazed grin on his face.

Tails gasped and took a step back. "It's true, that's not Sonic." Blaze glared down at Mephiles, who was beginning to struggle under Shadow. "Mephiles! How dare you do this?"

Mephiles laughed. "I'm planning to get revenge, and this is how I shall do it...by killing you and your friends. Soon, Sonic will cease to exist and I shall take over him forever."

Blaze, Shadow, Silver and Tails' eyes widened. The possessed vampire continued to laugh and dissipated into mist, reforming in front of Tails and Blaze and baring his fangs. Blaze hissed and stepped in front of Tails protectively as her hands were covered by bright flames.

Mephiles' eyes widened and he chuckled. "You think that will hurt me? Unless you have anything that's weak to vampires, that won't hurt at all."

Blaze's eyes narrowed. "I won't let you harm any more of my friends! I don't care if my flames won't hurt you, I just have to hold you till sunrise!"

The vampire sneered. Blaze lashed her tail back and forth, but just as she was about to leap at Mephiles, Tails grabbed her arm. "Wait, we have to get him outside first, you'll burn the house down!"

Mephiles sneered. "I wouldn't advise picking a fight. Not only am I stronger than you but if you hurt me...you're also hurting Sonic."

Blaze's and Tails' eyes widened. They frowned and turned to Shadow, wondering what they should do.

He had returned to his normal form by now. "Let's try to help Sonic regain control." He paused. "And try to be as gentle as possible should it come to fighting, try to knock him out in that event."

Mephiles smirked. He walked outside as Blaze followed him. "So, what do you plan to do? If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get."

Silver watched them and turned to Shadow hesitantly. "How can we make Sonic regain control?"

Shadow thought it over. "Maybe we can try to...call out to him. Or force Mephiles out of him. I know he said it was permanent, but he may have been lying."

"I don't know about that. Nevertheless, we must have Sonic regain control, even if it's temporary," Silver told him.

"I don't want to consider what we'll have to do if we can't help Sonic regain control..."

Silver sighed and nodded, then looked at Blaze who was standing across from Mephiles. She glared at him as fireballs formed in her hands.

"Prepare to get burned," she hissed.

Mephiles glared at her as Blaze threw the fireballs at him. He dodged the fireballs, only to be met by Silver in his wolf form leaping at him.

Mephiles yelled in shock as he was knocked to the ground. Silver pounced on him, placing his paws on the possessed vampire's chest. The silver wolf growled, showing his razor-sharp fangs. Mephiles struggled, then transformed into red mist and dispersed, leaving Silver with nothing. But as he reformed, Shadow was waiting for him. He transformed into a wolf and pounced on Mephiles, knocking him to the ground and wounding him severely. Mephiles screamed in pain and fell unconscious.

"Is he okay?" Silver asked, who had turned back to normal.

Shadow transformed back into a hedgehog and cautiously approached the unconscious vampire. "I hit him over the head pretty hard, but I think he'll be fine."

Silver and Blaze sighed in relief.

"Let's take him back into the house and have Tails run a few tests on him," Silver said.

Shadow nodded in agreement.

"That sounds good."

Silver nodded and picked Sonic up with his psychic powers, carrying the vampire back into the house. They went down to Tails' lab, and the fox looked at them in concern.

"So, you managed to stop him?" Shadow nodded. "Yes, I knocked him out. He'll be fine though."

Tails sighed and grabbed Sonic, then put him on the table. He looked back up at the other two vampires, worried.

"What should we do when he wakes up?"

Shadow sighed. "I don't really know Tails."

"Can you run some tests on him?" Silver asked.

Tails hesitated but nodded. "Yes."

"Just make sure they're done before the sun rises."

Tails nodded again, then shooed the others out of the lab, Shadow however, insisted on staying in case Mephiles woke up and attacked Tails. The fox hesitated and shook his head, then forced the vampire out of the room. Silver sighed and looked at Shadow.

"There are a few more hours until sunrise. What do you think Sonic will do?" Tails asked.

"Knowing him? He'll try to leave to protect us." Shadow sighed. "I'm going to stay by the lab in case Sonic wakes up and Mephiles is still in control."

"But Tails doesn't want us in there, and he's running some tests on Sonic right now," Silver told him. "Let's just wait until Tails tells us what he's found out."

Shadow sighed again. "Alright."

He sat down on the couch and waited. An hour later, Tails came out of the lab and looked at them with a worried expression on his face.

"It seems that Mephiles has permanently become a part of Sonic," he said. "In other words, he's a split personality."

Shadow's eyes widened. "So...he wasn't lying."

Tails nodded and sighed.

"How can we get Mephiles out of Sonic?" Silver asked.

Tails shrugged. "There isn't a way Silver. We might be able to prevent him from taking over whenever he feels like it, but I don't know how."

Silver and Shadow looked at each other in shock and then back to Tails.

"Then we have to find a way." Shadow sighed.

Tails shrugged and nodded, then saw the sunrise. "You guys should get in your coffins." Tails sighed. "I don't know if I should keep Sonic in my lab, or put him in his coffin."

"We'll put Sonic in his coffin," Silver said.

"Alright."

The two vampires nodded and walked down to Tails' lab, picking Sonic up. They walked up to his room, put Sonic in his coffin and closed the lid, then went to their own coffins and fell asleep.