OK, sorry for the delay. I had some loose ends to tie up, so I couldn't find much time to write this story. In fact, this chapter isn't even halfway finished. I plan on making this chapter, along with every other chapter, around 3,000-5,000 words. I'm just putting this current version here as "filler", just to fill in space until I can finish this chapter.

So, to get everyone up to speed, this is an alternate timeline in which Shadow dies in the battle against the Biohazard. Rather than being found by one of Eggman's droids while in orbit, he plummets to Earth and falls into the ocean. While this could in theory only alter a few events, I'm taking the hard way out with this story and I'm fleshing out just about every single possible alteration in the timeline. I'm not spoiling anything; read the story for yourself. Now let's cut the crap and dive into the story.

It has been six months since the supposed death of Shadow the Hedgehog. No sightings or traces have been found or reported thus far, so the Ultimate Life form is - according to current records - dead.

DEAD. The last word you'd think would be involved with the Ultimate Life form.

Since the ARK incident, Dr. Eggman seems to have kept a low profile. No giant robots, warships, or super-powered beasts were seen by anyone since the Doctor disappeared. It seemed like for the first time in years, the world had achieved peace.

But such as the course of life, that peace would soon be broken.

The clicking of Rouge the Bat's boots echoed through the from the steel obstacle. Intel reported that the code was 281.50. She remembered seeing a few weeks ago that the Doctor's weight was 282. He must have been so proud of losing that 1/2 pound. After inputting the code, the behemoth steel door hissed open, producing an ominous - yet at the same time extremely cliché - fog blanketing half of the room. Walking through the haze, the female bat noticed a red and white capsule at the center of the secret room, containing a green liquid.

"This is it!" she shouted to no one in particular. "I've finally found Eggman's secret treasure!" She happily dashed ahead to the control panel, simultaneously dropping a special item. Hearing a clang, she hit the brakes and cocked her head back. The glint of Shadow's ring caught her eye, flashing memories back into her head...

Trapped inside the treasure safe, Rouge expecting this was her last treasure hunt. The dynamite pack should go off at any moment; she would be a goner soon. She closed her eyes and braced for impact, when suddenly, a crimson and black figure materialized above her. After her eyes recovered from the flash, she looked closer to see that it was...

Shadow?!

The ebony hedgehog rushed toward Rouge. "Chaos... Control!" he exclaimed at the top of his lungs, carrying them both up to the ARK. She was now standing on the glass floor right next to her savior...

"What am I thinking?" she yelled in her mind. "I have a job to do!" She snapped back to reality and picked up the ring.

Rouge tapped the big red "EJECT" button and the liquid began to drain out of the pod. Behind her, a loud buzz emanated from a hulking figure attached to the wall. She spun around to see a large droid trudging out of the shadows, ripping cords and wires from the wall. Fear's fingers caressed her face. Like the Security Hall incident months before, she feared for her own life. Gulping hard, she cocked her head back, afraid to look, but also afraid not to look.

A shining blue figure fell from the capsule hatch, creating a clang noise. Rouge turned back and forth until the hulking behemoth was upon her and a red glow shined from Eggman's "treasure."

"Whatever it is..." Rouge thought to herself, "I hope it knows how to fight!"

She turned to see a gun pointed to her forehead.