The Next Morning…

A man and his wife were at a bank, which turned out to be mob-owned. They were there to get a loan, but they were failing.

"You see, you need a cosigner," the banker told them. "We need to know that somebody will pay us back."

"Well, what about one of us?" the man asked.

T banker shook his head, resisting the urge to smirk. These people were so desperate… If the bank was the way it was back in the day, they could get their loan without a cosigner. "Your credit," he said, "does not exist."

They were silent for a moment. "So, we can't get a loan…" the man said.

The banker wadded up his face, pretending to feel bad. "That's the way it looks…"

The bank shook for a split second. People immediately stopped talking, making the bank completely silent. It shook again, and the roof began to collapse. Pounds and pounds of rubble and debris fell on top of people. The roof finally gave in, revealing the sky, and something else… a giant, sphere-shaped robot that looked like a bald person with a large mustache. Its body was red, except for a yellow "collar" around the head.

"Behold, the Death Egg Robot!" shouted a voice. Many smaller robots flew out of the Death Egg Robot. It jumped into the bank, with two yellows on the back that held it "fly" and land safely. The banker & the man and his wife were killed.

Matthew, still in his black hedgehog form, finally made it home. Super-jumping made his journey only last a day. It had been the most difficult time in his life, but he pulled through. He was proud of himself for that. Of course, it was thanks to his newly acquired appearance. This new form gave him strength to get through this trip.

Matthew wondered why using his powers felt so natural. His Chaos Blast, his Chaos Spear, his Beam Vision… Using his powers felt like moving his body—all he had to do was do it. But these powers… They were a curse to him. All he did with them was destroy innocent lives and scare people. He became top news in Florida, where Malone was. Everyone was looking for him, albeit not knowing how to handle something that wasn't even human. But Matthew knew he was still human. All he had to do was find someone who could reverse what happened to him. But where would he find someone like that?

After super-jumping around the city for a bit, Matthew found his house in the suburbs. He landed with a loud crash, shattering a small area of the street he landed on. His entire body was sore, not just his feet. He straightened himself and looked at his house. Even by looking at the outside he could tell it was empty inside. It didn't look like anyone was watching, so he stepped inside. He almost had the urge to say, "Mom, I'm home!" like he always did.

The house was completely empty. Everything was gone. The dinner table was gone, the cabinets were empty, and both his & Maria's rooms were empty.

"Mom?" called Matthew. No answer. She wasn't there. If she wasn't there, then where else would she be? Matthew put his hands over his face and cried. He was truly alone. He didn't know where his mom was, and he didn't know where his uncle was. Hell, he hardly ever saw his uncle.

"Hello, Matthew," said a voice. The hedgehog shot up and saw a man standing over him. He was bald and wore an old labcoat, and he had a mustache similar to Uncle Egg Man's, only it was gray.

"Who are you?" Matthew asked.

"The man ignored the question. "I must say, it was stupid if you to come back here. Understandable, but stupid."

"Who are you?!"Matthew asked again, this time much more forcefully. The irises of his eyes began to glow, ready to use Beam Vision on the mysterious man.

The old man scoffed. "Come, come, Matthew. Are you really thinking about killing your grandfather?"

Matthew's eyes immediately died down. "My… my what?"

"My name is Gerald Robotnik, and I am your grandfather."

"Wh-what? You… you can't be!" Matthew began to back away from him, even though there really wasn't a reason to.

Gerald gave him a warm smile. "I am. Now, I'm sure you have many questions for me."

Questions? Questions… That's right! Matthew had questions! Didn't he?

"Um… H-how'd you find me?" he asked.

The professor chuckled. "Well, haven't you heard? 'Shadow The Hedgehog' has become a nationwide phenomenon. You're on every new channel, I'm afraid. So, I decided to stake out here, knowing you'll one day turn up."

It made sense. Matthew's next question: "Where's my mom? What've the done with her?"

"By 'they' I assume you mean G.U.N.? "

"Yeah…"

"Well, I'm afraid I don't know. I'm sure they're keeping her safe."

"But, they tranquilized me, and when I woke up, I was by this container thing. You don't know anything about that?"

Gerald shook his head. "Any more questions?"

"Yeah… Why?"

"…What do you mean?"

"Why? Why am I like this? What's so special about me? Why'd this have to happen to me? My life was great, and now it's completely screwed up!" His eyes began to glow a again.

The professor began walking toward him. A brave move. "Matthew, I can understand how you fee-"

"How I feel? No! You! Can't! Tell me! Tell me why I'm like this!" Tears started to flow out of Matthew's eyes.

Gerald sighed. It was painful to see his grandson like this. "You see, Mat…"

"TEEEELLLLLLL MEEEEEEEE!"

The professor reached into one of his coat's pocket and threw some photos at Matthew's feet. "Those pictures!" he shouted. "Look at them! That's what you looked like when you first came out of your mother's womb!"

Breathing heavily, Matthew picked up the photos. They were pictures of a baby that looked a lot like the way Matthew was at the moment. Black fur (except for the mouth area), red stripes on his head, and white streak of hair on his chest.

"H-how?" he asked. "How is this… even possible?" He dropped the photos, mortified by them.

"Your father was a creature known as Black Doom, a member of the Black Arms. He's an alien."

"An… alien?"

The professor nodded. "That's all I know about him. He gave me a piece of his DNA, and I mutated it with a human male's DNA, then gave it to Maria like a donor. The egg cells and the sperm cells accepted one another, despite being completely different, and that's how you came to be.

"Now, Matthew, I have something I think you'll like." The professor reached into his other pocket and pulled out four large gold rings.

"What're those?" Matthew asked.

"They're Inhibitor Rings. They'll help you control your power." He put the first two on Matthew's wrists, and the other two on his ankles. Matthew shuddered, and with a dim flash of red light, he felt himself become his normal self again.

Matthew was now in a gray, skintight unitard. "How'd I get in this?" he asked.

The professor shrugged. "Now, you've haven't gone completely normal. Those Inhibitors just let your control your power. And about your clothes… They go away once you're Shadow—or whatever you'll call yourself—but they return when you're Matt. Same with the Inhibitors."

"How do I switch back and forth?" Matthew asked.

"I don't know everything, Matt. Now, the media has a pretty bad image on you. I suggest you change that."

"Hmph. I'd say. But how?"

"The bank in the east side of the city is being robbed. Might I suggest you stop it?"

"But… what about you?" Matthew asked.

"I'll await your return here," said the professor. "No one expects me to be here anyway."

"G.U.N.'s looking for you, aren't they?"

"They have been for the past 15 years."

"Huh… So, when I'm back to my normal self, I won't be… naked?"

"No. You'll be in that fancy unitard."

Matthew took a deep breath. "It's good to see you, Grandpa," he said before stepping out of the house.

A cool breeze hit him as he stepped onto the street. It felt good to be human again, but now something needed to be done. He felt himself transform, and he leapt away as Shadow The Hedgehog.