SONIC HEROES: THE SERIES
Final Fantasy © Square Enix
Chapter Eighty-Five: Hotshot Rider
The scene opens to the eastern border of Station Square, which had miraculously made a full recovery for the first time in months. It had been three weeks since the Dark Rulers had shown themselves to the world. The Heroes knew that Nazo and his servant had most likely recovered from their encounter, but they did nothing of it. Speaking of the Heroes, Shadow was reluctantly cruising around the city in his cherished car. The only down side to this trip was the fact that he was driving Amy, Cream, and Kumori all across town with a truckload of shopping bags.
"Hey, there's a new boutique that just opened yesterday!" Amy said excitedly. "We should make a quick stop there."
"A quick stop?" Shadow grumbled irritably. "It took you two hours to try on everything in the last four shops."
"Aw, you know you love me, Shadow." Kumori said cutely.
"Yes, and I'm beginning to wonder why." Shadow responded indifferently.
"Just shut up and park." Kumori glared. The Ultimate Life-Form sighed and did as he commanded, watching the trio of females step out of his ride. "Just stay here like a good boy and we'll be out in a few."
Translation: you better start ordering for takeout. The black hedgehog fell back into his seat, wondering what God thought it was funny to punish him in such a cruel manner. He stared into the clouds above and remembered the times when a villain would appear and send a wave of panic throughout the city. It was only moments before he realized when it wasn't just his imagination. Snapping his head in attention, Shadow did a backwards glance down the street and found a crowd of shoppers running frantically.
"What the?" Shadow questioned silently.
"Yahoo!!" A new voice shouted cheerfully. "Look out below!!"
The Ultimate Life-Form failed to notice until the last minute when something heavy crashed onto the hood of his car. The wheel of a large motorcycle forced a heavy dent into the hood before dropping to the road with a heavy thud. For a single moment, Shadow caught sight of the rider. He looked to be around the same age as Rai with shoulder-length silver hair wearing a black, zipped-up coat, gloves, boots, and pants. The unknown youth smirked slightly before driving off.
"Attacking a town is one thing." Shadow growled. "But touching my car! Consider yourself dead!"
By the time the females came out of the shop, Shadow had already taken off – their purchases flew out from the back. The mysterious rider soared through the streets, occasionally crashing through anything that got in his way. The silver-haired man laughed wildly as people scattered in his wake. After smashing his way through a row of market stands, he noticed the black hedgehog chasing him out of the corner of his eye. With a humorous smirk, the rider slowed his pace until Shadow was racing at his side.
"Hey, sweet ride!" A rider complimented. "But you might want to do something about the dent."
"I'm going to do something about it." Shadow scowled. "I'm gonna make you suffer for it."
"Good luck with that." The rider laughed. "It's gonna take a lot more than an old rust bucket to catch Kadaj."
"Kadaj, is it?" Shadow said darkly. "Then let me just show you what this 'rust bucket' can do."
"Bring it!" Kadaj challenged.
The rider known as Kadaj revved his cycle into the next gear and raced down the street with an echoing screech – Shadow followed close behind. It was clear that Kadaj was the better rider in terms of speed, but Shadow was one to use strategy to his advantage. The black hedgehog knew the city like the back of his and navigated Kadaj's estimated path. When the silver-haired rider wasn't looking, Shadow turned off course and disappeared behind the buildings. When Kadaj finally turned backwards, he could resist a victorious laugh.
"I knew that rust bucket couldn't keep up!" Kadaj cackled.
"You might want to check again!" The rider snapped his head forward – his eyes wide with shock as Shadow formed a roadblock with his car. The black hedgehog held out a pistol to the man. "Give up now and we can work this out!"
"Sorry!" Kadaj grinned. "I never did play well with others!"
With a heavy sigh, the Ultimate Life-Form fired a shot for Kadaj's collarbone in hopes of temporarily paralyzing him. Much to his amazement, the bullet was reflected by a flash of silver. Questions running through his mind were soon answered when Kadaj stretched out his arm. The silver-haired rider was wielding a long katana with two parallel blades. Shadow shot his pistol again, but learned Kadaj was just as fast physically as he was on his bike. The swordsman rider deflected the shot and hopped off his cycle so fast that Shadow swore he used Chaos Control. Before the black hedgehog realized what had occurred, Kadaj landed on his hood and stabbed his blade through the engine. A moment later – Kadaj vanished again – the car literally exploded and Shadow was tossed across the street. Kadaj, back on his cycle, stopped in front of the hedgehog.
"If you want to keep up with me, you're going to need a better ride." Kadaj taunted.
And with that, he rode off into the heart of the city. Shadow pounded his fist in frustration.
The scene alternates to the Sonic Heroes base hidden deep in the Evergreen Forest. After rushing back to pick up the girls, he was bombarded by a number of complaints and screeches – except from Cream. It took three trips back and forth with Chaos Control and the girls were still berating him. But Shadow didn't care anymore. His mind was still wrapped around the loss he suffered from Kadaj. Shadow had never lost so easily, not even to Nazo. Even now, as he sat on the couch, staring into the blank television screen, he remained absent-minded to the outside world.
"Shadow, are you listening?!" Kumori yelled.
"What?" Shadow asked cluelessly, breaking from his daydream.
"What is with you today?" Kumori question with a hint of concern in her voice. "I can understand that there was something going on in town, but you seem more distracted than usual. Is there something you want to talk about?"
"It's nothing that you can help with." Shadow said defeated.
"Shadow, you know me." Kumori said hurtfully. "I'll understand."
"No, I mean you won't be able to help." Shadow said with determination. "I already know the solution, but I need the help of someone different. Someone with technological capabilities."
"Tails and Wave?" Kumori asked.
"Exactly." Shadow nodded.
The Ultimate Life-Form kicked off the couch with his lover following behind and walked through the corridors through the base. They reached the workshop, which also served as a hiding spot for the Trophy Room and Emerald storage. Tails was working on Vortex Disruptor while Wave was working on the design for the new X-Tornado they had planned. They discovered that they might be able to persuade the government for the money and were talking about Fighter Mode. As the hedgehog couple walked in, Wave was the first to notice them.
"Well, if it isn't the valiant loser." Wave sniggered. "Aren't you supposed to be racing a ten year-old girl?"
"Wave..." Tails said sternly.
"It's all right, Tails." Shadow waved; the mechanical duo was surprised. "Listen, I need your help. I have no doubt that Kadaj is going to be causing trouble again. In that case, I need a way to beat him for the next round."
"You want us to repair your car?" Tails asked surprisingly.
"No..." Shadow spoke seriously. "I want you to make something better."
The scene returns to Station Square. Several hours had passed since the news of Shadow's ultimate defeat was made public and spread around the world like wildfire. However, Kadaj's name still remained a mystery. Speaking of whom, the silver-haired rider was sitting comfortably in an outdoor café, listening to the gossip of passing shoppers.
"Did you hear what happened to Shadow the Hedgehog?"
"Some kid beat him, right?"
"I heard it was a demon."
"A demon? Hah!"
"Sounds like my job is getting a whole lot easier." Kadaj smiled humorously. "Too bad that stubby rat decided to turn tail at the last minute. I was actually having fun play around with him."
The silver-haired rider reached out for the glass of water he ordered. But before the liquid touched his lips, the glass suddenly exploded in his hand – the other customers gasped in surprise. Kadaj stared at the shards in his hand before redirecting his attention to a thundering noise down the street. Treading through the pavement was smooth, polished black racing cycle with the logo of the Black Arms tattooed red on the front. As the cycle skid to a stop in front of the café, Kadaj caught sight of Shadow the Hedgehog wearing a pair of dark sunglasses.
"Now that's a sweet ride." Kadaj complimented honestly. He stepped over and inspected the cycle up-close. "Four-stroke engine, off-road compatibility, and of love the decals. This is one sweet-looking ride."
"The Black Arrow is not just for looks." Shadow proclaimed. "This is the fastest cycle on the road."
"Is that so?" Kadaj smirked deviously. "Then you wouldn't mind giving it a test run."
"I was wondering what took you so long." Shadow challenged.
In that instant, Kadaj flipped backwards and landed securely on his own cycle. At once, the silver-haired rider took off in a blur of grey, mostly expecting to lose the hedgehog in the first few seconds. But what he was no expecting was for Shadow to not only keep up, but actually pass him on the road. Kadaj was impressed. With Shadow now leading the race, the silver-haired rider followed him until the black hedgehog forced them into an abandoned highway tunnel still under repair. Kadaj instantly knew what he was up to.
"Trying to get as far away from the market, huh?" Kadaj shouted.
"This fight is between you and me!" Shadow called back. "There is no sense bringing innocent lives into play."
"Fine with me!" Kadaj grinned. "Now there's nothing to hold me back!"
And with that, the battle had begun. Shadow turned the Black Claw to the side, still moving forward, and pulled out a weapon from his quills. It looked similar to a pistol, but was made entirely silver with yellow circuits running through it. Upon pulling the trigger, the pistol released a thin version of the Chaos Spear. While still impressed, Kadaj called forth his dual-blade and reflected the energy arrows away from the steel. Kadaj shifted into the next gear and caught up with Shadow, continually knocking away the shots aimed for him. Once they were side-by-side, the silver-haired rider jumped from his seat with his dual-katana poised for an aerial assault. However, Shadow activated a secret trigger on his pistol, which transformed into a sword handle with a yellow blade of energy forming from it. The Ultimate Life-Form knocked away his adversary, who flipped in midair and landed once more on his cycle.
"Hey, you're not bad for a rat." Kadaj nodded excitedly.
"I now understand why Sonic gets upset at that word." Shadow chuckled, turning to the rider. "I'll admit, this is the first time I ever had to deal with someone while on the road."
"And you're the second best challenge I've ever had." Kadaj smirked.
"Second?" Shadow repeated.
"But this race is far from over!" Kadaj proclaimed.
The silver-haired rider pressed his cycle to the left and literally climbed against the wall. Shadow was so taken back by this defiance of natural laws that he almost missed Kadaj jumped from his seat over head. The enigmatic warrior landed on the hood of the Black Arrow and swiped his dual-blade downwards. Once breaking from his state of shock, Shadow instinctively raised his Chaos Sword and repelled Kadaj's attack. The silver-haired warrior jumped backwards after the black hedgehog took a swipe at him and landed again on his cycle, which amazingly was moving of its own free will. But Shadow was not going to give him a chance to relax. The Ultimate Life-Form increased in speed and smashed the Black Arrow sideways into Kadaj's cycle. At this close range, both warriors locked blades with each other – Shadow's sword was caught between the parallel blades.
"Geez, what are you trying to do?" Kadaj asked tiredly. "I just got my ride waxed."
"I think this is just punishment for trashing my last ride." Shadow hissed. "But the punishment isn't over yet."
"That depends on the one being punished." Kadaj smirked.
Without warning, the silver-haired rider swiped his leg up and tossed the black hedgehog into the air. Kadaj quickly followed behind – the pair of cycles began tumbling over one another. The silver-haired rider zipped through air in blur of light-blue energy. Kadaj elbowed Shadow to the face and reappeared behind to slam his knee into the hedgehog's spine before emerging to the side to slash across his arm. The rider looked to be holding the advantage until Shadow captured his wrist when he flashed in front again. The Ultimate Life-Form twisted around in midair and tossed his rival into the twisting cycles, forcing them apart. Kadaj tumbled across the pavement for a quick moment until he managed to catch his cycle and force himself back into place. Shadow nonchalantly landed safely.
"You've got to be kidding me." Kadaj panted hoarsely. "And I thought Cloud was trouble."
"So, are you ready to admit defeat?" Shadow questioned superiorly.
"You must not know me very well." Kadaj chuckled lowly. He held out his free hand, which slowly collected an aura of light-blue energy. "I never give up!"
"What the?" Shadow sputtered surprisingly, watching the aura grow.
The silver-haired warrior thrusted his palm, forging five missiles of energy. Acting fast, Shadow twisted his saber back into its pistol form and fire six precise shots. The first five eradicated the aura missiles, but the last one was aimed for the silver-haired warrior. Unfortunately, by the time it was fired, Kadaj had once again dislodged himself from his trusted cycle. The warrior himself was standing patiently in the center of the road, catching his enemy off guard. Shadow consequently pulled back the Black Arrow in an attempt to stop, but accidentally released his grip and fell backwards onto the road. As the dark cycle flew bounced overhead, Kadaj zipped forward with his dual-katana held outwards. The tactic would have work if Shadow had not picked himself up and recalled his Chaos Sword. Both warrior locked blades once more.
"You getting tired?" Kadaj questioned eagerly.
"Yeah." Shadow wheezed. "You?"
"Better believe it." Kadaj answered.
"This is getting us nowhere." Shadow chocked tiredly. "Let's end this for good."
"Fine by me." Kadaj nodded.
The dark swordsman pushed away from each other, unknowingly skidding across the pavement. Sparks of light clashed between them – neither showing signs of surrendering. However, the battle came to an unexpected end as both warriors suddenly launched off a tall cliff. It was only after did they realize they highway had run out of road and tossed them out of the city border. Shadow and Kadaj rolled in a downwards spiral against a grass hill, coming to a stop at the base. They cycles rested lifelessly close by.
"Well, didn't see that coming." Kadaj groaned, pushing himself to his knees.
"So, what now?" Shadow panted, slowly sitting up.
"I don't know about you, but I'm too tired to be tired." Kadaj proclaimed.
"Why don't we just call it a tie?" Shadow offered, holding out his hand.
"Sounds like a fair deal to me." Kadaj nodded, taking his hand.
Afterward, both riders fell backwards and watched peacefully as the clouds rolled by. After taking an hour to relax their muscles, Shadow and Kadaj returned to their cycles, which had only suffered a few minor scratches. As the silver-haired rider prepared himself to leave, Shadow suddenly placed something in his hand. The human looked into his palm and spotted a grey circular communicator with the initials 'S.H.' on the cover.
"What's this for?" Kadaj asked confused.
"You were an amazing fighter." Shadow stated. "Probably one of the few that could match me in terms of power. Our team could use a guy like you on the team. The Sonic Heroes could use all the help they can get during this time."
"I don't know." Kadaj said uncertainly. "I don't exactly have a clean record."
"The point is that I know you're willing to make up for it." Shadow said confidently. "You don't have to join directly, just think about it. And if you're ever in need of help, just give us a call."
"Like I need help." Kadaj chuckled humorously. "But I'll keep it in mind."
And with that, the silver-haired rider turned his cycle and took off with a terrible screech. Shadow, shaking his head amusingly, picked up the Black Arrow and took off in the opposite direction. As Kadaj trailed over the grassy horizon, the warrior allowed himself to smile widely with excitement and happiness. For the first time in a while, he had met someone whom he could trust and compete against. In a lot of ways, Shadow reminded him of the only other person he could consider a friend.
"And they ever think alike, too." Kadaj smirked. "I definitely know I won't be forgetting him anytime soon." Suddenly, a black feather passed through his line of vision. He grimaced in spite. "And I won't forget you, either."
From the hill overlooking the valley, Sephiroth's wing fluttered in the wind. He watched animatedly as the young rider passed by below and set off into the horizon. A moment later, he faded away into a sphere of darkness.
A new rivalry grows into an aggressive friendship. Will Kadaj accept the offer to join the heroes? Will these new devices provide an advantage against the Dark Rulers? And what interest does Sephiroth have in the rider? Find out on the next Sonic Heroes!
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