Sonic and The Terminal Paradox

by Ovalad

An ancient and forgotten evil stirs due to a miscalculation from Dr. Eggman, leading to a chain of events that leave the stability of the universe in question, as this entity searches for one thing: Unification. Through it, the rebirth of Sonic's greatest adversary rises to finish what he has started from a forgotten time.

8. Chapter 8:My One True Treasure

Chapter 8: My One True Treasure

GUN HQ: Years Ago

There was a mess to be dealt with in an old GUN interrogation room. GUN agents had recently captured the culprit of a massive break-in of one of their most well-defended bases. Valuables were stolen right under their noses and the base vault, filled with gems and jewels, had been swept clean of everything within the blink of an eye. The culprit was elusive enough to dodge security until she made it outside of the base, but was caught soon after. Now she was back here, sitting on the other side of a low table, with a blinding hanging light shining in her eyes.

A young Rouge held her gaze away from her interrogators: Mean men who kept pressing her with shouting and yelling, making her sensitive ears ring in pain. She refused to speak out of fear of making them angrier. Shortly after their onslaught, a taller and older man walked through the door, dismissing the two interrogators. He seemed calm and collected, but Rouge knew everyone who worked here had an agenda to gain something for themselves, so she restrained her voice despite his more relaxing sight. "So you were the one who slipped through our defenses, huh? Well, you look no more than ten. Quite impressive for someone your age." The man said with a smile. Rouge looked at his uniform. Well decorated with medals and pins. He must've been a high-ranking officer. "I'm Lieutenant Tower, and you?" Tower held his hand out, but Rouge was hesitant to shake it.

"Rouge…" She quietly opted for a simple and short answer. It was the first time she spoke since she was put here.

"How was it that you were able to do all that? Even our best agents couldn't ever hope to achieve what you did."

"It wasn't that hard." She responded with a bit more certitude in her voice. "Once I got in it all felt natural to me." Tower tilted his head in curiosity. Such a casual reply to everything she had done made Tower feel like he struck gold.

"Do you have any family? A home?" Rouge shook her head while looking down. "Would you like one?" Rouge's face beamed with life as she stared at Tower, mouth wide and eyes in bemusement. "Here at GUN, you can. Sometimes the people here can be a bit cold and tight, but in this line of work who isn't? However, you gotta help us if you want to stay. Everything that you just pulled today, you can do it again on the bad guys. How does that sound?" Rouge was already envisioning it, being a super spy with all the riches in the world. People will look up to her mysterious and elusive persona and be inspired. Maybe she could find the family she never had.

Space Colony ARK: Years Later

It was her biggest mission yet. Infiltrate Eggman's ranks and learn about the ultimate lifeform: Shadow. Maybe along the way, she would walk out with some mystical gems too. It had been quite an experience so far, as they narrowly escaped an exploding island, thanks to Shadow's oddly out-of-character move of teleporting her to safety. She knew something was off about him before, but now she couldn't get a good read on him anymore. Later on the ARK, she found him peering out into space from the observation deck. "Why so melancholy?" The ebony hedgehog didn't humor her and kept looking outside. "That was unlike you Shadow, to come and rescue me. But your ability to use the Chaos Control certainly comes in handy."

"You know, I didn't come to save you. I came back for the Chaos Emeralds." Rouge felt like she hit a cord, but she decided to ease off on her prying.

"Yeah, yeah. But then again, that's not the whole story, is it?" He remained silent, resuming his descent into his mindscape. She wanted to know more about him. She had never been more intrigued by someone else in her life, other than that hot-headed echidna guy, of course. "Treasures will always be the love of my life, you know. And I'll keep looking for as many of them as I can. Do you have anything like that?" Shadow dipped his head down, contemplating whether to even answer.

"I used to…" Shadow returned to his silence, signifying Rouge that it was best to stop questioning him.

Eggman Base: Months Later

Team Dark just finished cleaning house on another Eggman base. The doctor tried keeping a lot of secret tech hidden down here, but Rouge found a trace of it being distributed here by a covert badnik squad. After neutralizing all of the threats, Rouge looked around for any valuables while avoiding the destroyed robots. "You'd think Eggman would keep more dangerous units in charge of guarding these types of places. Might as well have set everything to hug mode instead."

"What is hug mode?" Omega inquired. "Do I have such a routine?"

"It's just an arbitrary thing Rouge made up, and no you don't have one." Shadow told Omega. Rouge sensed that Shadow didn't want Omega to pick up on any of those traits, and considering that there were seemingly no threats, she had a devious plan to waste time until she found the hidden tech.

"Shadow's lying to you, Omega. Of course, you have a hug mode."

"Don't you dare." Shadow said in a low voice. He knew what Rouge was trying to do and he was not down with it.

"I do?" Omega said, curious that he'd never realized that he had such a protocol all along. Besides destroying more of Eggman's robots, Omega wanted one thing the most. "May I commence hug mode?" Both Shadow and Rouge yelled conflicting responses. Shadow tells Omega no, while Rouge tells him yes. But since Rouge was the first to speak, Omega walked up to Shadow and closed his arms around the hedgehog to keep him secure. "Executing command." Omega leaned in further and tightened his arms, leaving little breathing room for Shadow to move around. Rouge couldn't contain her laughter as seeing Shadow so uncomfortable was enough to lighten up her day.

"I hope you're happy." Shadow grumbled, watching as Rouge continued to laugh as she floated onto Omega's back to sit. "This is ridiculous. We have a whole base to search, and you've got us stuck doing this. Don't you care if there are any jewels lying around?"

Rouge softens her laugh but keeps the smug smile on her face. She looks deep into Shadow's eyes, as he does the same, and tells him a simple fact. "Not all treasures are jewels." Shadow's brooding demeanor fades away as he breaks eye contact. Much to Rouge's surprise, Shadow was smirking. HE was smirking.

"Hmph, if that's how it is then I guess there is time to spare." He said, loosening himself in Omega's grasp and embracing his position. This moment cemented inside Rouge's memories forever, as she finally approached the greatest desire that she craved for her entire life.

Westopolis: Present Day

Rouge held her eye shut with her aching hand. She felt the infection from the blade that lacerated her crawling beneath her skin. It was spreading rather slowly, but the amount of agony she resisted was astonishing. As if her head was not in enough pain already, the headaches returned with a vengeance as she looked at the fusion between The Tormentor and The Murmur. This 'Crusader', from what only the looks presented it to be, etched more false visions and familiarities into Team Dark and Silver's minds. Rouge saw more images of the temple in the desert, but far more vivid than before. She and everyone else saw a figure resembling Shadow, but crooked and operating like a puppet.

These waves of visions were even more unbearable than the first ones. They lasted indefinitely longer and each time they looked at the Crusader, their senses blurred and contorted.

Infinite found this moment as a way to prove himself to his master by killing them all while they were still disorientated. He lifted his hand and channeled dark mystical energy into his palm that would unleash a disintegrating blast. "Wait." The Crusader halted Infinite. "I think it's time that I have a little fun of my own." Infinite briefly questioned in his mind whether this was the same being that enlightened him from before. Its mannerisms and traits matched The Murmur, but the venom he sensed in its voice was unrivaled. Despite that, Infinite blindly complied and lowered his attack.

This was when Team Dark and Silver started recovering from the migraines, orienting themselves with the enemy slowly stepping their way. The infection in Rouge's eye was getting worse by the second; soon she wasn't able to contain the pain from it, alerting Shadow almost immediately. He saw how bad it was, how the corruption traveling through the veins in her face spread like wildfire. She was in no position to fight. Rouge saw the concern on Shadow's face, but she wanted to sway his attention away from her. "I'm fine." She said to him. "Let's just focus on another improvised plan, preferably not based on luck, to beat this thing."

"We'll think of a plan without you. You are not staying."

"What?" She exclaimed. "After everything that already happened, you think I'm just going to sit this one out?"

"That's exactly what I expect you to do! Your condition is worsening, and I'm not going to allow you to stay here and get yourself killed. Go back to HQ and find a doctor that can fix you. We can handle this." Shadow looked away from Rouge and focused on the Crusader. The knight in withering armor moved its hand behind its neck and reached beneath its cape. It pulls out a sword, similar to the one that The Tormentor used, from an invisible sheath behind the cloak.

"Are you really asking that I just leave you?" Rouge questioned, desperate to help her allies. She didn't want to be a burden, but she couldn't just idle away somewhere safe while they fought for their lives. "Why would I-"

"I am not asking, I am ordering!" Shadow interrupted. His back was still facing Rouge as he stared down the Crusader. "You won't be able to keep up." Shadow's words struck like daggers to Rouge's heart, but she understood why he wanted her to leave. It was shocking to hear him say that after everything else they've been through as a team: Metal Overlord, Black Doom, and Infinite. The reason for now being an exception was quickly reminded to her as the infection pulsated further, causing more anguish by the second. Shadow wasn't doing this because he thought this was an enemy beyond her, rather he thought that if she stayed, she would die.

Not wanting to prove him right, Rouge flapped her wings and glided away, much to the Crusader's disappointment. "What a shame. I wanted to savor the pleasure of killing her in front of you, Shadow, but you're making me quite laborious today. Nothing wrong with that, but all that means is that you had good heads on your shoulders." A faint chill ran down Shadow and Silver's spine. Something was wrong. Like they could sense the bloodlust pouring out from the Crusader. Omega's sensors were also going crazy, as he scanned the position of the knight's sword: Angled by its hip in a horizontal slant.

"Down!" Omega yelled. While the Crusader was more than fifty feet away, Shadow, Silver, and Omega all ducked their heads as the knight swung its sword across. A nearly invisible slash in the air cruises over them. A slash that severs poles, cars, and small buildings in half. The cut in each of these objects induces a rapid decay effect, making the material scatter into black flakes that float into the air. That sword had a very similar effect as the one The Tormentor used, if not even more potent.

"Very perceptive." The Crusader remarked. "It's no wonder why you've all been such troublesome prey in the past. But that ends now." The Crusader crouches down and readies its sword by its hip again. Silver knew that standing out in the open was a death sentence, and even though cover wouldn't save them from the slashes, they needed concealment from this knight. Silver pulled over sheets of broken metal and cars around them, forming a veil of scrap. As the Crusader unleashes its destructive slash, this time vertically instead of horizontally, it cuts through the shelter, instantly decaying everything that Silver brought together.

Fortunately, the cover was enough for the three of them to escape and recuperate somewhere else. They stayed out of sight but remained close by in a run-down convenience store to formulate a counterattack. "How are we supposed to beat this guy? We can't get caught out in its line of sight or else we're dead." Silver whispered.

"Before it transformed, that thing almost seemed allergic to unstable chaos energy." Shadow noted. "We almost killed it before, we can do it again. If we stay out of its vision and pester its armor enough, I can release my inhibitor rings and destroy it." Silver and Omega nod in agreement. It was a risky plan, but it was better than nothing.

"It's pathetic that you think that'll work." A taunting voice mocks them from behind. Sitting on a countertop in the corner was Infinite, who seemingly followed them in when they weren't looking. "Look at you. I never thought I'd see the ultimate lifeform, the savior from the future, and the strongest killing machine cower away in such a loathsome place."

"I thought you were told not to interfere?" Silver said with disdain.

"I'm not. My master already knows you're here." Shadow and Silver's eyes widen as they peer outside, and sure enough, they see the Crusader ready to release another decaying slash. They didn't have much time to think, but Silver still mustered to put shelves in front of them to at least protect them from what was about to come. As the slash came, it decimated the building in an instant. The cover ended up saving them, as it took most of the heat from the cut, but the three of them were sent barreling across the street from the sheer impact of the attack.

Silver was struggling to keep up. He couldn't find any way to use any of his powers offensively. And he knew that they were being toyed with. He saw the Crusader barely move from its original position. Maybe that's what it preferred, to keep them at a distance. If they closed the gap, maybe they could deal some damage. Or maybe that theory was entirely wrong and the tides of this battle had already been swept.

"If you somehow survive today, Silver. Remember that this is all your fault." Infinite told Silver as he viewed him from above.

"What are you talking about?"

"If you had the guts to kill me when you had the chance, you would've prevented my intervention, and Shadow would've destroyed the fragment. All because you hesitated for a commoner." Infinite chuckled at the thought. "Whatever happens next, is on you." Shadow glares at Silver, overhearing Infinite's words. He seemed disapproving toward Silver, but he knew that there were bigger issues ahead, and that conversation must happen later.

The Crusader lowered its sword to the ground, while still holding it tightly. It held its free hand perpendicular to its body and beckoned to the three to come at it. At this point, it was almost certainly just trying to entertain itself. Now with a shot to test Silver's theory, he was the first to charge in, using his powers to collect stop signs and scrap from the ground as weapons for later. Shadow and Omega followed in soon enough, and it didn't take long for them to be right on top of the Crusader. Silver attacks first by shooting the objects he collected, but the Crusader brings its sword in front of him and slices the debris with ease.

Shadow charges in next, backed up by Omega's suppressive machine gun fire from behind. He conjures a pair of chaos spears that he clutches in his hand. He jumps in the air and prepares to plunge the spears into the knight's head. However, the Crusader raises its arm and grabs Shadow by the neck before he could reach him. But Shadow expected to be caught before he could strike and he pours more chaos energy into the spears to extend their reach. The tip of the spears plummeted into the Crusader's helmet, but the sturdiness of the armor blocked any significant damage.

Shadow is then thrown away, leaving Silver to catch him midair with his psychokinesis. Using this moment to maintain Shadow's momentum, Silver spun him around in a circle to build up more speed, an act that Shadow quickly caught on to and curled into a ball to transfer all of his weight into a high-speed homing attack. Silver releases Shadow and sends him flying toward the Crusader. Omega chips in himself with this synergized attack by launching a rocket into the knight's face, creating a smoke screen to block Shadow from the Crusader.

As the smoke dissipated, Shadow's homing attack was already in front of the Crusader. The Crusader quickly uses its sword to brace its central torso. Shadow strikes against the blade and causes a clash that sends sparks and flares spiraling. Unfortunately for Shadow, the firmness in the Crusader's defenses halts Shadow in his tracks, and the Crusader shifts its arm to backhand Shadow into the ground. Trying to back him up, Silver and Omega charge in to save Shadow, but the Crusader had other plans. It threw its sword into the cement in front of Silver and Omega, causing the ground below them to wither away and crumble, making them lose balance.

With Shadow vulnerable, the Crusader displayed its metal claws to his throat. "Well, Shadow, I was hoping that you would get to see the end, but how could I pass up an opportunity like this?" As soon as the Crusader dives its claws to gash Shadow, a sudden blur dashes across the ground and nabs Shadow away, leading the knight's claws to be stuck in the ground. It turned its head to see where this blur took Shadow, and a pleasant surprise met it as it took a closer look.

"Why are you back!?" Shadow was furious to see that Rouge was the one who saved him.

"That's twice I saved your life today, and that's twice I haven't gotten a thank you." Rouge said with her tone blended with frustration and sass.

"I gave you a direct order! You should be getting treatment right now."

"You're not my boss, you know." Rouge barked back. She was getting a little fed up with Shadow's yapping, even though she knew he didn't mean harm. She took a deep breath and tried to calm the situation down. "You guys pack quite a punch together, but that's not gonna help you if that thing pins you down again. Silver will be better off if he focuses on destroying that knight rather than keeping you guys alive. Let me handle that." Shadow still was uncertain. Every fiber of his being wanted to just grab her and race her out of the city. That infection wasn't getting any better. "I won't get close to it, okay? Just let me help out."

Shadow sighed in defeat. There was no way he'd feel better if he dismissed her now. "Fine, but keep your distance." With that all set, Rouge flew into the air and kept surveillance on everything that was happening below. Within that downtime, the Crusader retrieved its sword and leaned into a defensive stance as it saw Shadow, Silver, and Omega surround it, ready for round two. Omega opens up with the first move, digging its claw beneath the cement, ripping out a chunk of road full of rebar, and tossing it at the Crusader. The Crusader effortlessly shatters the chunk with one swing from its sword, but the rebar inside is picked up due to Silver's powers and is aimed at the Crusader. The rebar strikes down, but the Crusader dodges out of the way in time. However, the placement of the rebar seemed almost intensional, as they encircled the Crusader.

From a distance, Shadow manifests another chaos spear and lunges it forward into the rebar, causing a chain reaction as the energy generated with that one bar links to the others and sends volts and shocks that strike the Crusader. While it resisted the shocks, Shadow took the moment that it was stunned to dash forward and drive his shoes into the knight's face, successfully hitting it and making it flinch back. However, Shadow was still in front of it and was susceptible to being struck down due to the awkward position that his kick led him into. The Crusader wound up its blade and swung across in pure rage. It was losing its cool at this unexpected coordination.

Before Shadow could get hit, Rouge swooped down and picked him up just in time, as she narrowly avoided the sword's immense shock wave that came after the swing. Silver decided to keep the offensive up by twisting the rebar to wrap around the Crusader's arms, briefly holding him in place. Omega fires a rocket just before the Crusader breaks free from the restraints. It uses its sword to deflect the rocket into the air behind it, but it wasn't counting on one thing. Rouge hovered close by and intercepted the missile midair by catching it and twirling her body around to maintain its speed. She lines up the throw and hurls the rocket back down, where it collides with the Crusader's back, knocking it off balance, and giving Omega a chance to close in and deliver a sucker punch right into the Crusader's gut.

This was looking bad for the Crusader, as it struggled to keep up with all the noise its enemies emitted. It was never a problem until Rouge showed up and kept distracting it. The Crusader knew that it had to get rid of her, but it wasn't going to be easy. Even with a decaying slash, the others around would stop its attack before it could execute Rouge.

From above, Infinite continued to spectate the fight. He saw how poorly things had turned in his master's favor. It made him think of the consequences that would happen if his master was defeated. Would he stand a chance against the four of them? Would the power granted by his master remain or be taken away? He couldn't bear the thought of being weak again. He couldn't take that risk, not when he burned every bridge he trod. Despite being given instructions to stand by, Infinite was willing to put his life in peril if it meant saving his power. Like the Crusader, he too saw a common denominator for all this trouble: Rouge.

Infinite raised his hand, aiming it at the airborne bat. Five arrow-like tips emerge from each of Infinite's fingers and as they fire, they dart straight for Rouge. The whistle in the air they emit is enough for Rouge to sense that something is wrong. She turned her head and saw the arrows zipping right at her. She dodges out of the way from the first two, but the third, fourth, and fifth all pierce her left wing, causing her to dive uncontrollably into a pile of rubble nearby. "Rouge!" Shadow yelled across the street, distracting him long enough for the Crusader to close the gap between him. Shadow's hands were full and no one in the sky was there to bail him out again. Silver and Omega tried to back him up, but the Crusader was prepared for them and sent them flying back with the shockwave from the swing of its sword. It then focused all of its attention on Shadow, who it resented the most. It kept pouncing forward with its sword, backing Shadow into a corner. The ebony hedgehog couldn't even muster to counter as this knight relentlessly charged every second.

Rouge dragged herself out from the rubble and wobbled back onto her feet. Her head spun and shot with pain as the infection began to enter her brain. If there was a time she needed to go and find a doctor, now was that time. But it was going to be a perilous journey as a singeing sting was felt in her wing. She looks back and sees her left wing torn apart and eviscerated. No matter how hard she flapped them, she couldn't get any air. She was grounded for good until she could get help, but that was the least of her worries. She saw Shadow on the move, backing away from the Crusader with no one else around to help him. Her fracturing mind tried to come up with anything to do, but her whole body wanted to give up and fall. But she couldn't just watch, not when Shadow had nowhere to go.

If she ran in and tried to bring him out… there was no guarantee anymore. Despite her condition, despite the threat, she still would do it, because she knew that Shadow would do the same, as demonstrated a long time ago when they first met. So she ran. Ran back into danger. The Crusader raised its sword where Shadow was backed up against a wall, ready to deal the killing blow. Shadow braced for the blade as it descended. Suddenly, Rouge dove in and tackled Shadow out of the way. But she wasn't quick or nimble enough, as the very edge of the blade barely sliced against her forehead. She already felt the infection accelerating, and her blood irregularly pumping.

Shadow looked up at Rouge, visibly in horror as he saw blackening veins around her eyes and face. She spaced out, numbed by the pain coursing through her. But as she looked down at Shadow, her mind was at ease.

"I'm glad I finally found it, after all these years." Rouge smiled at him, in total bliss. "The greatest treasure I ever stole…" She closed her eyes and awaited the inevitable. Just then, blood erupted from her face and scatters across Shadow's quills. She falls back and hits the ground with a violent thud. Shadow's hollow eyes lock intensely, as he is in absolute shock.

"Rouge?..."

To be continued…

Up Next: Wrath!