In Cosmo's Shadow
By Kellie Fay
Disclaimer: Sonic, Shadow, Tails, Cosmo, and the others all belong to SEGA, Team Sonic, 4 Kids and other people not me.
Chapter 2
The Darkness Within
Finally Shadow managed to convince Sonic and Rouge to leave. He decided to live so far out of the village to discourage visitors. Of course not even halfway across the planet will be far enough to discourage Sonic. Once alone Shadow went out to survey the area. Everything seemed quiet and peaceful, but Shadow didn't trust that peace.
Still evening came quickly here, and while they did have electricity it wasn't abundant like in Chris' world. Once the sun went down unless something important had to be done most everybody went to bed.
Shadow didn't need to sleep every night, but he always felt better if he slept regularly. Egg-man and Rouge always told him the same thing. With that thought Shadow closed the shutters of his windows, kicked off his sneakers and climbed into bed.
He saw himself out in a devastated city full of The Black Arms. Screams were still in the distance of both human and alien suffering. Usually screams of terror drew his attention, if only to find and stop its source, but his image stayed where he was, the noise apparently unimportant. Behind him he saw Black Doom. He felt the oozing coolness that always tried to penetrate his brain in the alien's presence. Easily he shook off the creature's influence, but he seemed unable to leave, and watched Black Doom speaking with his image.
"Shadow, Let me share with you a piece of your past. It is filled with nothing but hatred and contempt for the humans."
"Hatred and contempt… for the humans." His image repeated robotically. His eyes closed his breathing slow. Shadow always suspected that if he listened to Black Doom more, his influence would penetrate the protections around his own mind. Watching himself now comfortable in this alien's presence Shadow knew that his other self was falling under its control.
"You were the ultimate life form, but the humans feared you, and wanted to destroy you, and they did. Now you must amass revenge on those humans. Unleash your anger and ultimate powers on them!"
Shadow watched the eyes of his image which usually held a bright fire of independence and life, grow dull like dried blood. The expression on his face blank, he simply absorbed Black Doom's words without thinking. Then on his face a deep frown appeared showing only his anger and hatred welling up from inside.
"No you idiot!" Shadow tried to tell himself. "Try to remember what you were made for! Don't listen to Black doom! He's just trying to manipulate you!"
The world dissolved around him. Suddenly he was floating in space, along with Black Doom and himself again. He could already tell that the hedgehog that floated docile and quiet at the alien's side no longer possessed independent thought. He only waited to absorb whatever his master intended for him to believe.
"So, you finally come to realize just how abominable these humans are. It's time to make all final preparations for our ritual. Hidden inside that Space Colony ARK is the most powerful weapon able to pierce stars, The Eclipse Cannon."
"Piercing ….the stars." The entranced hedgehog repeated.
"What fools, humans created the Eclipse Cannon to protect themselves from terror. Instead it will be used to destroy mankind. Now Go."
Shadow again tried to reason with his other self. "Destroy Mankind? No! That's not what you supposed to do! Why are you listening to him? Why are you obeying him like you're nothing more than his toy?"
But Shadow could do nothing, but watch himself mount a winged Black Alien, and fly off to do his master's bidding.
He saw himself fighting against GUN, fighting against Sonic, who tried again and again to make him see that he was under Black Doom's control, but the Shadow Hedgehog he saw bore almost no resemblance to himself. This was no more than a mindless servant of the Black Arms. He heard Black Doom's words, and he and Sonic both shivered at their meaning.
"Annihilation for this planet is near. It is time to embrace the dawn of your demise and despair."
He saw himself deliver the finishing blow to the hedgehog who always in the past no matter their differences would greet him with a smile. He watched Sonic fall, and ask, his voice showing no anger only sadness. "Shadow, why… why are you siding with them?"
"I'm Shadow the Hedgehog, the ultimate life form born to protect and serve the Dark Lord Black Doom. With the power of these emeralds this world will become the Dark Empire. This is who I am!
"NO!" Shadow bolted up in the bed. Something dark and hedgehog shaped drew closer. Desperate to keep that evil version of himself from destroying everyone he attacked. Nothing mattered but killing that thing that used to be him.
"Shadow, wake up!" A voice called, but he ignored the voice determined to stop his evil self. Something grabbed his shoulder, but he shrugged it off. The Shadow Hedgehog dropped to the floor, and kicked him off causing him to topple over his adversary landing on his back. He rolled over determined to destroy his dark doppelganger when suddenly a wave of water splashed in his face.
"Shadow, wake up! You're having a nightmare!" This time Rouge's voice penetrated his mind. He blinked, and looked up at the bat confused. A light flashed on, and through the shadows Shadow saw blue quills.
"Sonic?" Suddenly Shadow knew what happened. I dreamed that I saw myself as evil. I attacked Sonic thinking he was me.
Sonic's voice sounded winded, but gentle "Shadow? You awake this time?"
Shadow tried to get his traitorous breathing under control. Attempting to keep his voice steady Shadow said, "I'm awake."
More lights joined the flashlight in Sonic's hand. Now he could clearly see Sonic standing behind Rouge. The bat looked highly annoyed, and had a bucket at her feet.
Suddenly he realized that he sat on the floor, water dripping from every quill. He tried to hide the flush that crept up his cheeks. What did they have to do to stop him?
Sonic peeked out from behind Rouge. "You back with us Shads?"
Shadow nodded. "In...In the darkness, I thought you were me."
"You were trying to kill yourself?" Rouge asked puzzled.
Shadow suddenly realized how crazy that sounded. He swallowed and tried to make his voice sound normal. "Never mind, it was just a dream"
"Consider I almost got trashed waking you up from it, I think I deserve to hear the whole thing." Sonic said. Shadow looked up at Sonic puzzled. Sonic didn't sound angry, just tired.
Now he couldn't help the flush that moved up his face. He didn't want to talk about it, but Sonic at least deserved an explanation. "I dreamed about Black Doom," he said, trying to keep it short."
"Yeah," Sonic said, indicating that the one sentence wouldn't cut it.
"Shadow felt his ire growing. How humiliating! "I could see him talking to me, telling me about the humans. Telling me why I should destroy them, and I believed him. I could see myself falling deeper and deeper under his influence until I was nothing but his slave."
Sonic knelt down, and placed his hand on Shadow's back gently. Shadow resisted the urge to shove the hedgehog away. "None of that happened, Shadow. You saved everyone."
"It could have," Shadow said shivering at the thought. "Every time he spoke to me I could feel him trying to get into my head, trying to get me to stop thinking, and simply act out."
"But you didn't let him," Sonic said confidently. "You beat him Shadow."
He nodded, but he couldn't feel anything except that chilling fear. Sonic didn't understand. He didn't know how Shadow could feel that creature try to ooze its way into his brain. Rouge knelt at his side now a towel in her hand.
"Here," she said handing the towel to him. "I had to use a bucket of water to snap you out of it. I don't want you to catch cold."
Shadow didn't think he could catch a cold, but he did feel cold, so he began to dry off. He rose to his feet now taking the opportunity to just shrug Sonic's hand off his back. "I'll be fine," he said trying to sound normal again.
"Uh huh," Rouge said not sounding very convinced. She glanced at Sonic who gave her a quick wink and a smile. What were those two planning?
"Well since you're fine, I'll be on my way home," Sonic said. He moved to the door, and then before he left he looked directly at Shadow, and said, "If you need anything at all, just let me know." With that he vanished back into the night.
Shadow looked at the door puzzled at first. Sonic always told him that, but this time he could feel the emotion behind the words. Sonic worried about him. Not a surprise, the nightmare, and its aftermath worried him to. How did Sonic know he was having a nightmare anyway? He turned to ask Rouge when he saw her pulling his one comfortable chair over next to his bed. "What are you doing?" He asked.
Rouge just gave him a smile. "I'm the bat. I can stay up," she informed him. "You need to go back to bed."
Going back to bed didn't have much appeal, especially if he was going to dream again. "I'm not tired," he said, trying to suppress a yawn.
"Uh huh," Rouge said with a smile. "Big tough Ultimate Life Form is afraid of nightmares?"
Now he bristled with annoyance. "I don't need a baby sitter Rouge. Go home."
Rouge sat down in his favorite chair looking very comfortable there. "Well if you're going to throw me out, I might feel obligated to swing by Sonic's house, and tell him about that other little problem you have with sleeping."
Shadow's eyes went wide, and he visibly tried to suppress the shiver he felt. "You wouldn't dare!"
Rouge kept smiling. "Tell Sonic that the Ultimate Life Form sleepwalks on occasion? You bet I will."
"It was only twice," Shadow complained.
"That we know about," Rouge countered.
"The Doctor said I was never violent,"
"That was before Black Doom," Rouge said, now sounding stern. "Shadow, you nearly killed Sonic because of that nightmare. I know he's going to have bruises in the morning. What happens if you decide to go out for a little midnight stroll and end up in the village?"
She was right of course. He knew it, but he didn't want a baby sitter. He felt so helpless.
Rouge got up from the chair, sauntered behind Shadow, and ran her fingertips along his shoulders making his whole body quiver and his head snap up to attention, and his eyes open wide. "It won't be so bad," she breathed into his ear sending chills down his spine. "I'll even give you a backrub to help you relax."
Shadow tensed. He hated having people touch him, he didn't know why. He knew logically that Sonic did so to offer comfort, and he tried not to be ungrateful, but people touching him made him want to squirm, and run away. Rouge made things worse, because the way she touched him made his brain turn off. Part of him actually craved her fingertips along his arms and back, but at the same time he wanted to pull away and run. Even now he couldn't remember how to make his voice work to tell Rouge to back off.
"No," he managed to force out. "Rouge, don't do this to me."
Rouge paused puzzled, she then asked directly. "Shadow what's the matter; I thought you liked my backrubs?"
"I want to be able to think," he said not really knowing why he needed to tell her. "I need to be in control."
He didn't think she understood, but she moved her hand anyway. "The nightmare?" She asked. Shadow didn't know, but it sounded right, so he nodded. "I'm sorry," She said then. She took his hand and simply led him back to his bed. "Look you need to get some more sleep. How about I just sit here, and tell you a story to help you relax."
He didn't want to sleep anymore but he knew he had to. Reluctantly he lay down, and Rouge sat down in the chair drawing it closer so she could keep holding his hand. "I'm not a child, I don't need a bedtime story." He scowled at her.
Rouge didn't let his mood bother her. "You'll love this one. I'm gonna tell you how GUN caught me, and I met up with Topaz."
Shadow sighed, but he didn't protest. Rouge kept his hand firmly in hers while she spoke. Shadow wondered about Rouge's ulterior motive. This wasn't the first time she tried to talk him to sleep. Once he found out that he walked in his sleep he tried not to sleep at all. Egg-Man must have said something to Rouge, because she'd sit and talk with him. She'd pitch her voice low almost to a whisper that would work like a lullaby causing him to fall fast asleep.
He could hear her talking now, talking about searching for a Chaos Emerald. Her voice soft, and her thumb rubbed against his palm sending pleasurable little sensations to his brain. His eyes dropped closed on their own accord, and the next thing he knew he felt the sun warm on his face, telling him that he overslept.
Shadow sighed. Something other than the first nightmare happened last night. He could feel it even if he couldn't remember it. He opened his eyes trying to remember the vaguely disturbing dreams he had after Rouge talked him to sleep. He didn't remember waking, but he found Rouge in his bed with her holding on to him. Even though Rouge didn't stir when he woke, he felt a blush creeping up his cheeks. Unbidden a memory came to him of Maria holding him like that on the ARK.
"Easy, Maria, give the medicine time to work," Professor Gerald said placing a cool damp cloth to Maria's forehead. Shadow watched worried seeing tears form in Maria's eyes.
"Grandfather, can Shadow stay with me please?" Maria asked sadly. The Professor let a single breath of air out, but he nodded, and boosted the young hedgehog up to her bed. Maria took Shadow into her arms like a living plush animal, and cuddled him. Shadow understanding relaxed, and held onto Maria until the medicine took effect and she fell asleep.
Shadow blinked allowing the memory to fade. Many times Maria treated him not only like her little brother, but her favorite stuffed toy. There were many nights she and he fell asleep in each other arms.
And if Rouge ever finds out I will never get rid of her, Shadow thought to himself. Very carefully so not to wake her, Shadow moved out of the bed. His stomach reminded him that breakfast was overdue, so he decided to go out to look for something he could eat. On his front door however was a note.
Hi, Sonic said you'd help me with some heavy lifting today. Come by whenever you're ready, and I'll have something for you to eat. Thanks.
Tails.
He must have really hurt Sonic last night. Sonic usually helped Tails in his workshop. To admit he couldn't do something grated on the blue hedgehog, just like it grated on his nerves. I caused the problem, now I have to pick up his slack. Still it's better than staying here with Rouge. With another sigh, Shadow opened his front door, and went out running towards the village.
Coming Soon Chapter 3
The Star Tree
"I wish I could touch and smell real flowers," Maria said sadly. "But you're paper ones are beautiful too, and they won't make me sick."
Shadow then smiled broadly at Maria. "Well one day the professor will make you well. Then we'll go to earth, and I'll bring you every flower that exists."
"Oh Shadow," Maria hugged him tightly laughing, and Shadow hugged her back."
A hand on his, and a gentle voice calling his name brought him out of the memory. He turned to see Sonic looking at him worried, gently forcing his hand back to his side.
"We asked you not to pick the flowers," Sonic said softly. Shadow wondered why Sonic was suddenly so leery of him, when he realized that he must have been ignoring them during his flashback. He glanced around and realized that Amy and Tails were watching from the safety of the workshop. Suddenly dizzy Shadow pulled his hand away from Sonic's and put it to his head.