*Rachel's POV* (The previous night)
The night felt so silent… Empty, completely lacking in purity and in meaning… Of course, Rachel had just about wailed her heart out over something that would turn out to change her life forever.
She woke up, a little surprised at how dark the morning seemed to be.
She looked out the window. Oh, wait… it was the middle of the night. Technically morning… but not nonetheless.
She had awakened not out of pure chance, but because the tiniest of noises had bypassed that "REM sleep barrier" that's able to block out any other noise. She didn't know what it was.
Until it decided to repeat itself. A small creak in the floorboards… She froze to the spot. That wasn't natural at all. Maybe, if someone was out to get her, her completely stationary position would convince them that she wasn't there.
But that had to be ridiculous. Nobody was out to get her! Ha! Wait… right?
Not. No later than she could restore faith in her surroundings, the creaking in the floor turned to a step on the floor. Following that step was a couple of long, skinny, sleeved arms grabbing her and hoisting her up to her kidnapper's shoulder. She screamed, yet she figured that based on her luck, her scream was futile.
She thought she had an idea on who this person may have been… and she'd soon know herself to be correct.
He slammed the front door and carried her out to his small flying ship, and that was when she knew. Silver had practically "stolen" her from him. Of course he'd be back…
He placed her in the ship, then getting in himself and having the ship take off, back into the skies.
Rachel caught sight of that whitish-grayish mustache in the unfittingly bright moonlight. It was more disgustingly ugly than ever. It belonged to someone who saw her weakness as an advantage.
Yet she decided not to say a word. What sort of "You'll pay for this!" or "You'll never get away with this!" or "Let me go!" was going to help her out here? It hadn't worked for anyone else.
This was Eggman Nega… probably the most genius of an evil genius out there.
She looked back at her cabin once more. Was that the last time she'd ever see it?
They arrived at his base at last. They got out of the ship, and as they walked inside, he kept a firm hand on her shoulder. There was just no chance. Everything was happening entirely too quickly. On top of that, she wasn't sure what was going to happen. Was she walking into hospitality or death? Her confidence was dropping fast…
They continued walking until they arrived at a laboratory. They walked in, and he shut and locked the door, finally letting go of Rachel's shoulder.
"I understand you're a little fatigued," he sighed. "But I had to get you here as soon as I could. Was being my assistance not enough of a motive for you? Well, this time, you're the key to my victory! If you'll look to your left, please…"
She looked, catching sight of a rather vibrantly-presented machine. The blue glow coming from its superhuman-sized glass chamber explained its importance well enough. She couldn't be…
"That's my new mitochondriatic chamber!" Eggman Nega chuckled loudly. "Mitochondriatic is a word exclusive to my dictionary, for it will act much like the mitochondria to my laser! You know… the powerhouse. Now, where you come in, Miss Rachel… This chamber will feed off of something a little different than anything ever patented before. I've had assistance robots snoop around through the snow, to sort of locate what they could find an abundance of. We were first thinking it was going to be soil, or energy waves from Mobius's mantle or something other than… well, yourself. The robots located that abundance in you. They picked up overwhelming waves of sadness and heartbreak coming from beneath the cabin."
"So…" Rachel finally spoke, trying not to break down into said sadness. "You're going to try and feed off of my depression to power-"
"A death laser!" Eggman Nega smiled. "Precisely. Where's all the charge going? Underground, to an engine on wheels. Able to store more intense energy than anything else in the universe. And it's on wheels! Now, then… I'll sort of stretch out the chamber for you, so you can get a good night's rest in it…"
He then walked over to the chamber, bent down, and pressed a few buttons. Almost like magic, the walls and floor of it stretched out. It was almost like the edges were made of a bungee cord type material… and as if the walls weren't even glass…
Suddenly, after that, Rachel spotted a staircase leading to the opening on the top. She gulped. Was this the beginning of the end?
"Go on, now," Eggman Nega kept smiling. "I'll throw a pillow and a blanket in there for you. I mean… I have to commend you. I'm feeding off of your deepest, darkest, innermost emotions in order to fuel my victory. The least I can do is make sure you're comfortable."
Now, Rachel truly wasn't sure what to do. Climbing into the chamber would show complete cooperation, and that was not what she wanted at all. She knew that once she got in there… could she ever get out?
Yet at the same time, her weakness was blocking her from the mere thought of backing out. Eggman Nega was standing right behind her, waiting impatiently for her to follow his orders. The only way out of here was locked, and 3 inches thick with steel.
Suddenly, she was being pushed. Nega was pushing her constantly until she was forced to climb the staircase and land feet-first into the chamber. Surprisingly, the chamber was translucent. She had a view, at the very least. Even though it was the view of a dismal laboratory that wasn't her own… filled with evil, and darkened even further by the eternal night.
"Oh, I almost forgot!" said Eggman Nega.
At that next moment, Rachel felt a thick, brown-colored blanket and a fluffy pink pillow pelt her on the head.
Then, she heard the door to the lab open and close. That additional whirring of technology that she could only assume was the locks and security systems stole even more of what hope she had left.
All she could do was lay herself and the pillow down on the cold, glass floor, cover herself with the blanket, and fall into slumber. Indeed… she had not gotten enough rest by the time Eggman Nega had nabbed her.
When she opened her eyes and saw that the lab was lit with the morning's falsely hopeful light… at least the place was a little less dismal. But dismal nonetheless.
Suddenly, she caught sight of something on the wall. Something that seemed to be showing some sort of reading on a meter… that was clearly connected to her prison of a chamber.
Out of utter curiosity, she put her face up to the glass and tried to make out what she could. The blackened needle was a little more to the left of the middle, and as with any pressure meter, the further to the right you looked, the closer and closer to the color red it appeared. The needle was on a yellow-green color, constantly twitching, waiting impatiently to move yet another notch to the right.
Here, Rachel began to read the text below it.
Do not deactivate chamber until the hose connecting it to the engine has been properly disconnected from either end. Leaving the hose connected when the chamber is deactivated poses high risk of the electrical energy bouncing back and severely injuring or killing the subject. It is not recommended that you use collected energy until engine is full, or when the gauge's needle is all the way to the right.
Oh… how badly Rachel wished she could climb out and find a way to disconnect the chamber from wherever this engine was. According to the meter, she had given some energy to the engine. When she looked out at it again, she saw that it had collected even more since last check.
She could see that. Through the utter fear of being cooped up within a part of Eggman Nega's ultimate scheme, she hadn't shaken her depression from just hours before. The fact that Silver still probably wasn't hers and was Blaze's. She couldn't even be sure that she even mattered to Silver, and that he wasn't just being nice to her in order to avoid having to see her disappointment.
She would have tried to climb out. Her shoes provided excellent friction, and she was somewhat of a strong person.
It's just that now, any strength she had left was in her muscles… and not the muscles of her heart, soul, or mind. Merely her body. She needed strength in the other 3 places in order for anything to take place.
It just wasn't there. She was trapped in the belief that there was nothing she could do.
*Shadow's POV*
Rachel's mother went back inside the cabin. Shadow knew that more than anything, she'd be anxiously awaiting the return of her daughter.
Her daughter was the love of his life. Even though he had to work with someone he had every reason to see as an opponent… they were both aiming for a goal that would bring benefit to both of them. Rachel's safety was more important than anything else at the moment.
"There's no other explanation," said Silver. "There's just no way that her kidnapper is anyone other than Eggman Nega! Clearly, she provides him with a great advantage. Who knows what he's up to now?"
"Let's GO!" Shadow huffed, getting into a running start kind of stance.
"Yes," Silver nodded. "Just follow my lead!"
At that, Silver levitated into the air a bit before flying away. Shadow anxiously followed him on foot. Hopefully, the base wasn't too far away. He'd soon learn that every second was crucial.
*Rachel's POV*
Later that day, Eggman Nega came back into the lab, and merely to check the meter beside the chamber.
"Ah, yes," he chuckled. "Even better than I anticipated. Perfect! Beautifully perfect! Once the engine is full, I can finally burn that stupid perceptive, telekinetic hedgehog to a crisp! And possibly that fire-breathing cat, and anyone else who tries to get in my way!"
As Eggman Nega walked back out, laughing maniacally, sadness and fear were hard to fend off for Rachel. Her sadness was going to be the cause of Silver's death? And there was nothing she could do?!
At this rate, she would have succumbed totally to the pain if it weren't putting lives in jeopardy. Other than that one crucial point… what was the point anymore?
Author's note: Shout-out to one of the best authors I've ever come across, RCTSG! Yes, feel free to applaud. He is a marvelous fanfiction writer, as well as that kind of friend that there needs to be more of in this world. Please, if you enjoy my work, check out his story "WATCHMAN OF MOBIUS"!