"What do you mean, you haven't seen him?!"

"I mean exactly what I said. I haven't seen him since the last time we got together."

"Oh, jeez…now I know something's up."

Shadow and Sonic were both in Shadow's office at GUN Headquarters. Sonic was pacing in front of Shadow's desk while the gray hedgehog himself was leaning his head in his hand.

"Seriously, Shadow, he can't have just upped and disappeared! Are you sure you have checked every possible place?"

"I'm positive, Sonic," Shadow replied. "I checked the orphanage, the meadow, your restaurant, everywhere. I can't find him. He must purposefully be hiding from us." He looked up and narrowed his eyes. "And for Mobius's sake, sit down. You're making me even more stressed."

Sonic immediately plopped himself in the chair across from Shadow. "Sorry. I'm just worried. This isn't like him to just vanish." Suddenly, realization dawned on his face. "Wait. Do you think…he's been taken by a genesis portal again?!"

"No way!" Shadow exclaimed. "The circumstances were different. And with this new energy monitor I set up after Silver got sucked in, I would immediately know if a genesis portal materialized, and it hasn't. Backtrack a few thousand steps and stop being so dramatic."

"Sorry," Sonic apologized again. "I wasn't thinking too straight. It's just so stressful. I mean, he's our little bro! I don't want anything to happen to him."

"You're not the only one," Shadow sighed. "I wouldn't be able to bear it if something happened to him."

Sonic grinned slightly. "You'd probably kick the culprit's butt, huh?"

"Is that even a question?"

Sonic chuckled once before the room fell into a worried silence for a few minutes. After a little bit, the blue hedgehog sighed and shook his head. He stood up. "I wish I could stay, but I got a court case in a few hours I need to prepare for. Are you free this afternoon? It's your turn, and right now we can't count on Silver to show up."

Shadow nodded. "I'll meet you there."

Sonic gave him a weak thumbs-up and vanished in a gust of wind. Now that he was alone, Shadow could allow himself to be vulnerable. He put his head in his hands. Great Mobius! This is just like that time Silver was kidnapped by that psychotic mistress and we had no idea where he went until it was almost too late. I hope it isn't like that this time…"

He stood up and turned around, facing his bulletin board, where various news articles and photos were put up. One photo was of the three brothers, laughing. All three looked so carefree and happy. How simple things could've been. If I hadn't been taken by those scientists, if Silver hadn't wandered off…if we had grown up together like we were supposed to…what if something happened to Silver? What if…I'm too late to save him?

He shook his head and sighed. Now I'm just being dramatic like Sonic. I'm sure things haven't gone that far…

Shadow's ear twitched. He could hear footsteps behind him, coming into his office uninvited. "Whoever it is, come another time. I'm preoccupied."

He didn't hear the footsteps retreat. Instead, they came closer.

Instantly, all of Shadow's senses were on high alert. He started slowly charging up a Chaos Spear in his left hand, out of sight of the intruders. Once he heard the footsteps stop again, he spun around, his arm pulled back, ready to unleash the raw power.

Once he saw who it was, he started. It was the three agents Leah, Spot, and Carmen. They were standing in a straight line, looking directly at him. Their eyes have never looked more blank.

Shadow immediately relaxed, letting his Chaos Spear disintegrate. "Agents. I told you that I was busy. Whatever it is, can it wait?"

The one in the middle, Carmen, tilted his head slowly, a creepy smile forming on his face. "No."

Shadow narrowed his eyes. Again, the sense of danger overwhelmed his mind. "...no?"

"No," the three said in unison this time. All now had those same creepy smiles on their faces. They started slowly advancing towards Shadow.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Shadow demanded. "If this is some practical joke, it's not funny!"

These three didn't look like they were kidding. Slowly, each withdrew their non-lethal (still pretty painful, don't get me wrong) laser guns and pointed them at the gray hedgehog.

When the first shots were fired, Shadow leapt over his desk just in time to avoid the lasers as they collided with the bulletin board, charring it beyond repair. As Shadow moved around the room, the guns shot with deadly accuracy, just barely missing him each time. What was so unnerving was that each of the three guns were fired at the exact same time each attempt.

Shadow launched himself at Carmen, successfully kicking the otter into the hallway, where there was a little more room. Leah and Spot turned mechanically and marched into the hallway without prompt as well, taking aim again at Shadow. Carmen slowly got up and joined the other two, mimicking their movements.

I have to take them out one at a time! That's my only option at this point. Sonic, why did you leave when you had to?! Shadow thought. Another laser nearly hit him in the head. Okay, no more hindsight. I have to focus!

With that, he launched himself again at Carmen, brandishing Chaos Spears in both hands. They were only meant to disable. He drove them into Carmen's chest, but before they could do their job, Carmen began to flicker. Shadow leapt back and watched in confusion as Carmen's body wavered in and out of existence before completely disintegrating. The Chaos Spears were still in Shadow's hands, as though they hadn't been used at all. What just happened?! I knew something was up!

Another laser barely missed him. I'll contemplate that later! If they are that easy to take out, a simple Chaos Spear should do it for them! I just have to get the right angle…

He trained his sights on Leah, who was still attempting to shoot him. Another Chaos Spear started forming in his right hand and he pulled it back, aiming for her while also dodging the laser blasts, which was proving to be a difficult task. He threw it.

Out of nowhere, a wooden desk skidded to a stop in front of Shadow, blocking his sight. The Chaos Spear collided with it and blew it up. Shadow shielded his face from the blasts with his hands. Where did that come from?!

What the gray hedgehog didn't know was that he was effectively blinded…and completely exposed.

White hot pain flashed through his left hand. Shadow cried out and clamped his other hand on it. Another laser blast was coming towards him and he rolled away, still wincing in pain. He uncovered his left hand and grimaced at the sight. There was a bright red bloody streak on the palm of his left hand. It burned agonizingly. Shadow clenched his fist to help eliminate some of the pain and free his right hand. Well, that does it. I can't shoot Chaos Spears out of my left hand. But my right hand is still functional…

At that, Shadow immediately took aim at Leah and launched his Chaos Spear without hesitation like before. It collided with her…and then it didn't. Leah vanished and the Chaos Spear whizzed on into oblivion, eventually hitting the opposite wall and leaving a burn mark. These walls were made of steel, so they didn't just disintegrate on contact with Chaos Spears, thankfully.

Spot shot a final laser blast before eventually vanishing too upon contact with another Chaos Spear. The laser was way off mark and hit an innocent cabinet, making it explode. Okay, this is just a design flaw. What kind of building has steel walls and wooden cabinets and desks?! That's just stupid.

Now that the struggle was over, Shadow sunk to the floor, panting. His hand burned more than ever, and he knew he needed to get it looked at. The lasers weren't fatal, but what if it hit a nerve or vein? And he needed immediate relief from the burning.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw movement. He turned his head around thinking that the three agents were somehow back, but no. A section of the wall was shuddering. With a sudden crack, it broke off completely, exposing the brick underneath it. It hovered in the air for a bit before settling itself with a crash behind Shadow. Three more sections broke off and did the same thing, completely surrounding Shadow except for a small opening in front of him.

Shadow pushed himself up, his injured hand clenched near his chest. The battle was not over. It was only just beginning.

"Who's there?!" he shouted into the silence. "Show yourself!"

At that, a sudden figure came out of nowhere in the opening in front of him. Shadow squinted, but he couldn't quite make out the shape due to the dust floating around. It looked vaguely familiar…

It came closer, and now he could see who it was. "Silver!" he gasped. "Thank Mobius! We were so worried about you!"

However, he could tell something was wrong. Silver's head was down, and his hands were sparking with psychokinesis energy. Shadow tilted his head to the side in confusion. What's wrong with him?

And then he realized. He's the one who moved those sections of the wall. And…that desk! It was him! Another realization hit. These sections aren't here to protect me…they're here to barricade me.

Silver opened his eyes and raised his head as though he could hear Shadow's thoughts. Silver's eyes were bright red and completely empty of their usual sparkle. His mouth was stretched into a wide smile while the rest of his features looked slack.

A wicked cackle burst from Silver's body. "Shadow the Hedgehog! So pleased to finally meet you!"

"Who are you?" Shadow snarled. "What have you done to Silver?"

Another maniacal laugh. "Wow. Straight to the point, aren't you? Admirable, but expected." Silver…or the person controlling him…shrugged with barely any emotion. "All I've done is make little Silver here all the more powerful. With my help, he can explore his full potential, but of course, everything comes with a price. His price was his mind."

Silver started pacing. "I see you met the three little agents. How'd you like them?"

"Did you take over their minds too?" Shadow growled.

Silver chuckled. "Of course not! Didn't you see how they just disappeared? Come on, rack your brain, you're smart enough. Now why would they vanish like that?"

The realization hit. "They were illusions."

Silver clapped sarcastically, the wicked grin never leaving his face. "Fantastic! I knew you would get it!"

"What did you do to the real agents?"

Silver shrugged again. "Make another wild guess, why don't you?"

Shadow gasped. "They're dead, aren't they?"

"Splendid! Right in one! Wow, I didn't know you were this smart. You will be a valuable asset to my plans."

Silver crouched down slightly, his charged psychokinesis lighting up his fur. His smile somehow spread further. "Of course, I first have to defeat you, don't I?"

Yet another Chaos Spear started forming in Shadow's right hand. "I would never hurt Silver, but I would do anything to get you out of his mind."

Silver chuckled. "You can try!" He launched himself, spitting madly, at Shadow.

Shadow slid to the side and attempted to disable Silver using the Chaos Spear, but Silver's psychokinesis formed a shield at his back that disintegrated the spear. The gray hedgehog flipped away from Silver's next blast attack, attempting to charge up another spear. However, that backfired once Silver grabbed Shadow's hand using the psychokinesis and effectively stopped the process. Shadow managed to get out of the hold and attempted to teleport away to get help from Sonic, but Silver managed to catch hold of Shadow's leg and bring him crashing to the ground. He shook his head to clear the dizziness and stumbled away from Silver's next attack. By this point, the person controlling Silver was getting frustrated. A snarl built up in the white hedgehog's throat and translated into the psychokinesis, which flared even more.

Shadow recognized this attack. He widened his eyes and attempted to teleport away once more, but he was too slow.

Screaming, Silver flung out his arms and unleashed his power in a huge wave coming from all over his body. Shadow was caught by the wave and slammed into the steel wall, sliding down in a heap. Black spots were appearing in his vision. He could barely see anything.

Silver crouched down in front of him, looking at him with almost a curiosity. "You're much stronger than you look. You held out for so long. I'm honestly surprised."

Shadow couldn't manage a reply. He could feel himself slipping away.

Silver grinned again. "Yet, not strong enough to defeat me."

The world went black.

Shadow sat straight up with a gasp. However, that movement made him dizzy, so he was forced to lay down again, wincing.

Where…where am I?

He started looking around. He appeared to be in some sort of abandoned shed. It was empty apart from a few boxes.

All of a sudden, pain flared in his left hand and he clenched it, grimacing. And then he remembered.

Wait…the battle! Those agents, my hand…Silver! He's being mind controlled! We fought and then…what happened? I can't remember…

He was also aware of the slight pain in his head. He attempted to rub it but found that he could not move his hands. He glanced down.

He was lying on some sort of metal table. His hands and feet were secured to it and he couldn't move them no matter how hard he tried. And then he noticed something else. Something that made him even more panicked.

His inhibitor rings were missing. All four of them.

"Looking for these?"

Shadow jerked his head to the side, ignoring the dull ache. A black and white jackal was standing next to him, staring at him. In his hand was Shadow's four inhibitor rings, glowing faintly. In his other hand was a red ruby of sorts.

"Give them back," Shadow growled.

The jackal laughed. "I don't think so! I know exactly what would happen if I give these back to you. You'll tear this place down with me inside it! We can't have that happen, now can we, Silver?"

Shadow snapped his head to the other side to see Silver also staring at him, his eyes still blank. This time, his whole face was slack. No smile. Nothing. Shadow kept staring at him, hoping for some trace of the brother he knew.

"Oh, don't worry," the jackal sneered, noticing. "You'll join him soon enough. And so will that meddling brother of yours, Sonic." The jackal snarled. "Sonic. How I hate him."

"Why?" Shadow whispered. "We didn't do anything to you."

"You took everything from me!It's only fair if I take everything from you!"

"Wait, what? What did we take from you? I don't even know you!"

"Enough questions!" the jackal growled. "I will so love it when you're a silent object." The ruby started glowing.

Shadow could feel the mind control taking over, and it was taking over fast.

He immediately started struggling, yelling in frustration. His communicator was missing, and he could now see it dangling in Silver's hand. He couldn't call Sonic for help or warn him. If only he had his inhibitor rings, then he could break free! But now…it was too late.

Shadow snarled and attempted to break free with his raw strength, which almost succeeded until Silver started holding him down with his psychokinesis, helping the mind control spread even more efficiently. Shadow's arms and legs fell still. He couldn't move them anymore. The only thing he could move was his eyes, which settled on the jackal.

"We will defeat you in the end," he hissed, slurring slightly because of the mind control. "Sonic will free us and we will come after you."

The jackal leaned down until his nose was almost touching Shadow's. "I'm counting on him trying to free you. And you will be the one to take him down."

The world turned red.

To be continued…

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