Shadow the Hedgehog of the Colossus
Chapter 8: Barba
Back at Green Hills, where Tail's workshop was located, Vanilla – Cream's Mom – was spending most of her time cleaning and sprucing the place up for when Tails returned. The workshop was in a messy state when she arrived. So messy that she couldn't resist the urge to go into homemaker mode and start cleaning.
Cream and her two pet Chao, Cheese and Chocola, were there too. They mostly spent their time in the field of flowers outside, picking the ones she considered the best to make into a lower crown.
Vanilla noticed her from the kitchen window and smiled lovingly at her perfect daughter before getting back to sweeping the floor whilst humming a familiar tune many would say was made for Green Hills.
But her housekeeping was suddenly interrupted by the sound of an irritating beeping sound coming from the workshop area of Tail's house. Vanilla was told by Tails that if he and the others weren't back in time she would hear an alarm and that she must answer it.
She gently sets the broom aside against the wall beside the window and made her way into the big open workshop. Despite her best efforts, she still wasn't able to clean out the skid marks made by the Tornado during every takeoff and landing. But that didn't matter to her right now. Stopping that infuriating beeping was.
As she switches Tails's computer on, the beeping stops and a video feed of Tails appears on the screen. The connection was poor due to Tails and the others being in a village surrounded by miles of forestation, far away from the nearest telephone poles. Tails was aware of this, so he cut the introductions and got straight to the point before Vanilla had a chance to say hi.
"Vanilla, finally. I was starting to wonder if you'd ever pick up."
"Oh my, Tails. How are-
"Look, we don't have time for chit-chat!" Tails interrupted her with a slight raising of his voice. "The others and I are held prisoner in the Colossus Clan's dungeons. We need you to find Sonic and send him to the coordinates I'm about to send you. Please hurry! The signal is getting weaker with the-
Before Tails could finish his sentence, the video feed cut itself off and the screen went to static. It then goes completely black, making it easier for the coordinates to be displayed on the screen.
Vanilla just stared at the screen in confusion. To her, they were just a random set of numbers. She had no idea what they mean or how they'll help anyone find them.
"Momma, is everything alright?" Cream innocently asks as she peeks in from behind the door, causing Vanilla to smile lovingly.
"Everything's fine, Dear. But Tails and the others are in trouble. He says we need to find Sonic so he can help." She explained as Cream entered the workshop.
"But Mister Sonic isn't in Green Hills. He's gone out running, and he has no phone on him. We don't know where he is." Cream regretfully stated.
"Oh, dear." Vanilla simply responded. She should've figured Sonic wouldn't be available to lend a hand. He was never the type of guy to stick around in one place for too long. He was always on the run, going nowhere and everywhere. He would occasionally slow down to help others in need and spend time with his friends, but that's only when he's around. And since he refuses to have a phone on him, they have no way of contacting him.
With all three major powerhouse hedgehogs gone, there weren't many options for a backup rescue. The worrying mother rabbit would have to turn to someone else to save the others. Someone who doesn't have much time on their hands and is willing to help anyone in any way they can. Someone she knows well enough to be up to the task.
"What are we going to do, Momma?" Cream asked.
"Don't worry, Cream. I think I know someone else who may be willing to help Tails and the others."
After defeating Avion, Shadow finds himself back in the past life of Maria Robotnik. The last memory he saw involved seeing a younger Doctor Eggman not getting along with his uncle, Geraldo, Maria's father.
Instead of seeing what happened straight after, he was instead transported a few weeks into the future. He was no longer standing in the waiting room of the hospital Maria was born in. This time he appeared to be standing in what looked like a fancy kitchen big enough to fit ten people. The floor was made of marble. In the corner was a fancy refrigerator that had a drinks dispenser built into the door. And the stove had ten burners instead of the standard four, as well as two ovens.
He didn't have any dilemma with whose house this was. It had to be the Robotnik's residence. Who else could it be, he thought. Shadow didn't know much about Gerald before his creation. He never thought it relevant at the time to learn about the professor's past. All that mattered was what he could do for himself and the people aboard the ARK in the present.
But even he can't deny his curiosity about how he, and his family, got so rich to the point they were able to live in space.
"Cut it out, Maria!"
Shadow's ears twitch upon hearing the familiar voice of the young Ivo Robotnik. He spotted him and Maria sitting in the middle of the living room floor. he looked like he was fixing up some kind of robot maid, or at least he was trying to. Baby Maria was annoying him by pulling back on his hood.
The young Eggman pulls his hood out of her grasp in frustration, resisting the urge to straight up yell directly in her face. She was only born a few weeks ago, she couldn't help being curious/playful. That's what he kept telling himself. In his mind, babies have an excuse to be stupid. Adults don't.
"I know you want to play, Maria. But I'm busy trying to repair our mansion's robot maid. I don't have time for fun right now. You know what they say, no rest for the wicked."
Maria just sat there looking up at her cousin with cute and curious eyes. She was still too young to understand how the world works yet.
"What are you staring at? Am I going bald?" Ivo asked as he felt the top of his head, only to sigh in relief knowing his thick brown locks are still there.
Maria giggled in response to Ivo's little panic. It might've been the very first time she'd laughed or expressed any humour since they got back from the hospital. Both Shadow and young Ivo smiled in response to Maria's joy.
But what she did after was what surprised both of them. When Ivo was distracted with cleaning up the smudges on his glasses, Maria crawled over to the maid robot, played around with two loose wires, and – by some miracle – got it up and running again. Something the great Doctor Eggman in his prime could not do.
The robot got back up on its feet and immediately went back to its programmed duties of looking after the house, starting with feather dusting the shelves around the living room.
Ivo slowly turns his head back to Maria who just sat there with a proud look on her face. One that read "Did I do good?".
"How- How did you do that?"
Maria said nothing in response. She still had not reached the level of maturity to be capable of speech yet.
Ivo could not believe what he'd just glimpsed. It would seem that he was no longer the only young child genius in the family. His baby cousin must've inherited her intelligent mind from her father. Meredith never was a genius like her husband or even Gerald. Throughout the generations, the Robotnik family have always been gifted with superior intelligence compared to most humans, or Overlanders as the Mobians refer to them.
Maria is now a new addition added to the gene pool. Instead of being jealous, as Shadow was expecting of him, Ivo started showing Maria praise for her intelligence.
"Grandpa will be so pleased to hear that we have another genius in the family. Hopefully, he and Uncle Geraldo will be back soon. Come on, Cousin. Let's see what else that tiny little mind of yours is capable of." He picks Maria up and carries her over to the garage area where Ivo spends most of his time, whether it's inventing new machines, or upgrading/repairing older robots.
Shadow decided to take a look around the mansion they live in as he listens to them in the background. He wanted to learn as much as he can about Maria, Eggman, and Gerald's pasts. Who knows what that info could do for him in the future? Maybe something that could help him understand the girl he's trying to save much more than what he already knew.
Laying on the side table to the left of the front door were several letters and papers. He can't physically interact with any object or person in the past, but that didn't stop him from looking.
One letter stood out the most from the others. It was addressed to Gerald from the United Federation. It even had their logo imprinted on it. The letter itself was partially taken out of its envelope. Attached to it was a paycheque with a price tag of $700,000. At least now he knows where the money comes from.
"So, the Professor was with the United Federation even before the ARK. The same organisation G.U.N works for… The same organisation that got her killed in the first place."
Shadow quickly restrains himself before he losses all the growth he'd obtained after defeating Black Doom and the Black Arms. He had learned to put the past behind him and move past the atrocities G.U.N caused that day. He even ended up working with them alongside the other members of Team Dark, Rouge and Omega.
But this partnership was only one-sided. He and his team were always free to turn down an assignment if it ever felt unnecessary to require their aid. Team Dark often viewed themselves as the heavy hitter among the five teams. Team Rose handled smaller problems like kids getting separated from their parents, or non-Mobian animals getting stuck in trees. Team Chaotix is a detective team only interested in solving cases. Team Sonic handle most of the issues that are caused by Eggman.
Silver, Blaze, and Marine even have their own team known as Team Dimension. Silver was speed. Blaze was power. And Marine was Flight. Their team's task was to tackle inter-dimensional threats like Solaris and the Time Eater.
Every one of them accepted the roles they were given within G.U.N, even Shadow. Even though he knows one day the vision Mephiles the Dark showed him will happen one day, he would never let it keep him down. The Ultimate Lifeform never gives up. And nothing will make him give up on Maria now that she's back in his life.
Inevitably, the brightness of the lights around him begins to emerge, meaning his time in the past had come to another abrupt end. Shadow was a little disappointed. He felt like he didn't get as much information as he would've liked in this flashback. But there was always the next one. Once he kills the next Colossus, he'll see what happens next.
Shadow awakens back in the shrine once again after the disappearance of the now five Shades, and the destruction of Avion's statue. He picks himself up, followed by his sword, and gazes up at the light shining through the ceiling, awaiting the next riddle from Dormin.
"Thy next foe is… A giant lurks underneath the temple… It lusts for destruction. But a fool, it is not."
Shadow gives a single nod in response before turning to Agro, who was standing around her usual spot, which is by Maria's side at the altar. He calls her name and summons her to his side. With his super speed gone, he'll have to rely on her to take him wherever he needs to be from now on.
Horses weren't the fastest mode of transport he'd had compared to the various G.U.N vehicles or Black Hawks, but it was better than walking.
Once they were out in the open, Shadow unsheathes the sacred sword and allows the sun's rays to project a beam of light, pointing him northwest of the shrine.
The light guided him towards a thick forest full of tall trees. Agro had some difficulty navigating it at top speed, forcing Shadow to slow her down and lightly trot through until they were in the clear. He didn't like it, but he didn't want to risk injuring his only means of travel. Whether he likes it or not, Agro is essential to the success of his mission.
Whilst cutting across the dense shrubbery, Shadow catches a glimpse of a cave in the corner of his left eye. Under normal circumstances, he would've ignored it and moved on. But this cave had a trail of bloody footprints leading into it.
Until now, he assumed no more Echidna were living in these Forbidden Lands. If there was someone still alive here, they might be of use to him in figuring out what happened that ended their civilisation.
He dismounts Agro. "Wait here. I'm going to check out that cave. Maybe somebody's still alive in there. If not, they might have supplies we can take."
Shadow inches closer to the clearing outside the cave entrance and kneels to inspect the blood. On closer inspection, he could tell that it was really old. It's all dried up with only faded imprints left.
"Hmm. Whoever's been here must've been injured and went into that cave to hide. They're most likely dead now… I hope they've left something useful behind."
He enters the cave which was dimly lit up by a group of fireflies hiding in the darkest corner and the exposure to the sun at the end of the cave. The cave itself wasn't very big. It only went down a few feet. At the very end of the cave were, as he expected, the bones of the lone Echidna that tried to hide out in there. He was wearing the same robes the Colossus Clan's Warriors wore, as well as an animal mask.
Sticking in between its ribcage was a spear. Most likely the cause of his death. Underneath it was more dried blood, a huge pool of it.
"Poor fool must've succumbed to his wounds and bled to death in this cave."
After inspecting the corpse, Shadow spots a beaten-up leather bag lying beside it on its right side. He wastes no time grabbing the bag and emptying it of its contents. All he found were an old journal with a feather quill pen attached to it, a couple of empty bottles with traces of a glowing blue liquid in them, and some notes with instructions on how to brew whatever was in said bottles.
Shadow started with the journal first. There were many entries in it from the deceased owner, too many for him to go through all at once. He didn't wanna waste any more time in this cave than he could spare. For now, he placed the journal back in the bag along with the empty bottles. As for the notes, he decided to give them a look over. Could be useful, he told himself.
The notes carried instructions for a strength-boosting potion. The first note had a drawing of the elixir with a list of the ingredients needed to make one. The items were rosemary, crystal clear water, a blue orchid, and the tail of a rare silver-tailed salamander. The second note had the locations where to find these ingredients, and the third explained how to assemble and brew the elixir.
"Interesting. Every time I defeat a Colossus, I lose some of my powers. At this rate, I'll be too weak to kill the last one. This elixir may prove useful in keeping my strength up until I slay them all."
He carefully packs up the notes and places the satchel's strap over his shoulder before venturing out of the cave where a very patient Agro waited. Satisfied with his findings, the duo continues their trek through the forest.
Shadow and Agro soon find themselves entering a vast desert biome. He could not tell how far it stretched from where he was standing. It looked like it went on forever. Fortunately for them, the sword's light was pointing them east of their current position. The light ended at a solid ancient structure that was built right into the mountain surface.
Shadow lightly kicks Agro, ordering her to follow the light as he examines the layout of the temple. The architecture was the same as every other ruined temple he'd seen since he'd arrived, but this was the first one he'd seen built into the side of a cliff. He wondered how long it must've taken for the Colossus Clan to build something this massive.
So far he couldn't find an entrance to the temple. It didn't have any doors or windows. It was all just stone pillars holding up the mountain roof, keeping the whole thing stable.
But as they got closer, he soon spotted a series of stairs leading down. He tugs on Agro's mane to get her to stop. She wasn't needed for this next part. There was no telling how far down those steps went. If there was a possibility that he could fall through the floor and end up in some kind of pit, it would be wise not to let the horse fall in with him. He could always teleport out, but only himself. He can't extract anyone else without a Chaos Emerald, which he left with Maria to preserve her new body.
As far as he could tell, his chaos powers were still intact, but who knows how long it'll be until he loses them. When that happens he'll have to rely on Dormin to bring him back to the shrine after he defeats the Colossai.
"Wait here. If I'm not back in half an hour go back to the shrine and wait for me."
Agro lightly nudges Shadow's back, expressing her hesitation in letting him go in alone. The black hedgehog puts her mind at ease by looking her in the eyes and gently stroking her mane.
"Quit worrying. I am the Ultimate Lifeform. I can handle any situation no matter how dire it may seem. Your concern is duly noted, but it is irrelevant. Do as I say and wait here." He ordered her.
Agro grunts and takes a couple of steps back from the staircase. Shadow then makes his way down the stairs and enters the stronghold. He grabs a random torch off of the wall, lights it with a Chaos Spear he conjured in his left palm, and scouts out the tunnels.
He followed it along until he found himself descending even lower than before. He kept going until the tunnel ends at what appeared to be a massive open area. He reaches the edge of the path and notices a huge drop straight down. He scans the entire layout and realises that he is standing at the entrance of what looks like a giant pit. one big enough to contain a Colossus. But where said Colossus was hiding he did not know.
"The next Colossus is down there somewhere. To engage it, I'll have to get down there. My gut tells me it'll show itself once it senses the sword's presence… I see no way out of there when I'm done. I'll have to rely on those smoke tendrils to bring me back"
Shadow scans the sides of the walls for any signs of rough ledges for him to jump to so he could get down there safely. But the surface was perfectly smooth. looks like he'll be doing this the hard way, he thought.
He curls up into a spiky ball and plummets straight down to the bottom of the pit. the swords landed next to him a few feet behind him after he cratered the floor with his strength.
As he goes to retrieve the blade, his ears twitched in response to the sound of something crashing. He slowly looks up at the wall behind him and was surprised to see that it wasn't a wall… but a door.
Behind the descending door was the sixth Colossus he came to kill. This one was bipedal, like Valus. Its body structure was almost identical to his with some slight differences in fur colour and placements of stone armour. The only major differences were that it carried no weapon and it had a thick bushy beard. Now Shadow had a vague idea why he was named Barba. With a beard like that, he certainly needs a barber.
Barba immediately spots the intruder in its chamber and proceeds with its first attack. Shadow barely had enough time to dodge it. He gets sent flying into one of the three short walls that cut across the entire chamber by the shockwave of Barba's left hoof crashing down on the stone floor.
It begins chasing after him, hoping to finish the job the second time around. Shadow quickly recovers and keeps his distance from the bearded Colossus. He didn't have much time or space to determine his weak spots. He has to create some distance between him and Barba first.
But something was wrong. He's now lost his ability to teleport short distances. He planned to teleport over the wall and run to the opposite end of the pit, but that was no longer an option.
"Damn! I was afraid this would happen eventually. It's not just physical strength I'm losing, but my chaos powers as well… I can't run fast, I can't jump far, and now I can't teleport."
Shadow frustrated with the latest results of his power drain, shifted his focus back to Barba who was getting closer to him. Now wasn't the time to get emotional.
With no other option available, he was forced to get over the wall the hard way, by climbing over it. Once up and over he repeated the process with the other two walls ahead of him, desperately trying to stay ahead of the lumbering behemoth.
Barba decimates the walls in his path, his glowing orange eyes still focused on the black hedgehog, who had just retreated into a small crevice in the opposite wall. He'd lost sight of him.
Shadow uses this distraction to hide behind a pillar and get his breath back. So far, as much as he knew, he still has his superhuman stamina. But now he started to wonder how long until he loses that too. If he lost the ability to teleport, it's logical he can lose his Chaos Spear, Chaos Blast, and Chaos Control too. Not once in his life had he ever considered the possibility of losing his powers and turning mortal. When the inevitable happens he'll have to completely reinvent his way of fighting if he wishes to finish the ritual.
With that thought permanently imprinted in his brain, Shadow peeks out from behind the pillar and notices Barba is scouring the chamber for him. Shadow draws the sword and shines its blue beam on him, revealing his weak points. Only three are visible. One on his head. One on the lower-left side of his back. And the last one was on the back of his left hand.
The light hadn't gone unnoticed by Barba. He bends down to peer in between the pillars. Shadow leaps out from the shadows and latches onto his huge beard, using it to climb up to his head. Barba scratched at its beard, trying to knock him off. But like a pesky flea, Shadow kept holding on until he was looking straight into his glowing left eye.
"You need to shave." He remarked.
Barba growled as it raises it's the back of his left hand at him. Shadow draws the sword and tricks the Colossus into empaling the back of its hand right onto his blade, taking out the first symbol.
Barba roared in pain as it clutched its left hand. Black smoke was gushing out of his wound, allowing Shadow to proceed up to its head. The only thing that took its mind off of the pain in its left hand was the new sharper pain coming from atop its head where the Ultimate Lifeform had struck next.
Only one symbol remained. But Barba made getting to it much more difficult for Shadow. He started jerking side to side, desperately trying to shake him off. Shadow hung on tightly to his exposed stone spine as he slowly made his way down inch by inch.
The symbol appeared before him once he was within striking distance. Barba's shaking only grew in intensity the more desperate he was to kill his killer.
Shadow's grip on his fur started to weaken. It was now or never if he wishes to end this fight swiftly and without complication. He reels his left arm back before catapulting the sword through the sigil into the giant's back.
Barba's body starts to go limp as it could feel the life flooding out of him in the form of the black smoke. Shadow holds on tight as he rides his collapsing body and falls forwards onto the hard stone floor, right on top of the mural painting of the Colossus Clan living within the Forbidden Lands.
As he gets back up and re-sheathes his sword, Shadow clicks his neck and climbs down from Barba's back. He attempts to get a better look at the mural underneath the Colossal corpse, curious as to what it meant.
Unfortunately for him, the black tendrils had decided he shouldn't as they entered his body almost instantly after defeating the Colossus they were inhabiting, resulting in the inevitable and predictable unconsciousness of the Ultimate Lifeform.
To Be Continued