A Horrifying, Yet Miraculous, Absolution
Ch. 5
[×]
Shadow could no longer reside in Gerald's sanctuary.
The towering tubes of fluid, each one filled with the silent, judging 'eyes' of the predecessors to the Project, could no longer bring solace. Pillows, blankets, and teddy bears were no longer the veil of innocence towards a certain ebony 'Mobian.' The artificial illumination which no longer shone upon the ground did not hide the golden aura from onlookers. Concealed back towards the wall it may be, one only needed to walk towards the rear half of the cavernous space to see that yellow color glowing underneath the bottom lip of his bookshelves.
Dr. Robotnik's voice was calm. Collected. Or, at least, he hoped. On the inside, the words were sharp and brittle – and while he never wished ill upon someone on purpose before, his tone certainly implied a threat. "Casey," was the feeling of nothing, "what are you doing in my laboratory?"
There was a pistol strapped towards the upper right calf to easily draw from; a bulletproof vest with his full name embroidered nearby his rank; one illuminated flashlight held in the right hand that twitched upon hearing Gerald's voice; a black beret with the logo for the specific squadron of the ARK right on top – the logo of Project: SHADOW itself. Red. Black. Gold.
Ironic.
The elder kept his emotions in check. "I will ask you one more time, Airman." While the scientist was not from the military, by now, he was aware of their positions in command. 'Airman' was near the bottom. 'Airman' did not have the credentials to just waltz into the place where Professor Gerald Robotnik claimed as his own. "What are you doing in MY laboratory?"
There was not even a 'tsk' nor a sigh in anger of being caught. Instead, all there was was a sickly-sweet smile upon that youthful face. "Doctor!" the boy – no, this man – added with a wave. "Sorry about this! I was actually looking for you! It's the quarterly safety inspection day and-"
"You came into my lab." It was not a question.
A blush upon cheeks – one that Gerald had to wonder: was it made on purpose out of genuine embarrassment, one that demoted an actual error, or one that marked that Casey knew how to manipulate his own face? "It was kinda left open. I saw Maria stumble out, clutching her heart like she always does-"
Maria? Oh, she despised having G.U.N., and particularly him, anywhere nearby the Robotniks. "So, you took the opportunity to just walk in?"
A laugh as a large hand rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah… yes? Isn't that what's normal here?"
The hairs on Gerald's arms rose. Goosebumps formed underneath his lab coat. He could remember exactly how his precious girl did not want Casey anywhere near him alone, and was beginning to think if she had seen something in him long, long ago. "It's not."
"Ah. S-Sorry, then, doctor! I'll make sure to – ah – leave." Casey's fingers pointed to himself before aiming towards the door that led outside. When Gerald left an impression that remained cold, that smile faltered and the adult gulped. "I can smudge some of the stuff under 'complete' since I think this area is kinda benign… enough. Ah-! I forgot! You might need to add some lights. For your guy's safety," he tacked on as he fled the room.
Tail between his legs.
The scientist finally released his held breath as analytical eyes watched each retreating step. Noted how soft they were against the metal. How difficult they were to pick up as a civilian. How impossible they would have been to discover if not for the lack of sound. It was the hallmark of experience. Of course it was, however! Security Forces were meant to be silent and tactical – it was their primary purpose. In the name of protection.
'Protection.'
That pit from a few days ago reopened its chasm in his stomach. Carefully, Gerald retook the steps and put himself into the position where the SecFo had been standing at. The elder looked around the room as if he was using Casey's eyes and Casey's flashlight.
There were the tubes upon tubes of dead specimens. Series 1 had their lizard shapes and contorted colors. An empty pod labeled 'PSUL1.024' demoted the Biolizard's 'success' – the beast still slumbering in the bowels as far away as possible. That creation was not a hidden lie from G.U.N.. They were aware of it. Airman Casey probably did not, and seeing the past and present lined up like that was certainly a sight to behold.
Gerald moved his eyes again.
Ahead a little bit more were the Series 2. These little hedgehogs were not capable of being 'addressed' as Mobian unless one knew in advance it was supposed to be a being with quills. The failures had been distorted and grisly – the techniques that worked with lizards not playing 'nice' with those of mammalian shapes. The colors were all 'off' if you compared it to the eventual true Ultimate Lifeform: blues, reds, pinks; the gambit continued. Males. Females. Whatever tweaks to the code Gerald tried made all fail so, so early in production.
Unless that man had a degree in Mobian-Hedgehog bioengineering, or something in a similar medical field, he would not recognize what was before him.
Gerald moved his gaze once more.
At the far end, as far as a torch could reach, were bookshelves.
Shelves with a golden glow from underneath.
With shaking hands, the scientist pulled out his own lantern and flicked it into the 'on' position. The mechanical sound of the porcelain switch felt like the only thing in the world for that one, small, fraction of a second.
CLICK.
The beam of light was rather weak. Less lumens than the stuff the military used, no doubt. Even then, with the light pollution entering Gerald's irises, it was masking away the gold.
CLICK.
He reaffirmed it after his eyes adjusted.
The only way to see it was to not have any light in the first place. Maria had used enough cotton and batting.
Gerald felt himself collapse onto his chair, where he stayed as a statue that stared into dead space for the next ten minutes. The comfort wanted to extend for longer, but there was something else he needed to do.
Immediately.
[x]
The medical wing with Heal Units attached towards the walls was the same as it always was. Quiet. Empty. Drenched in the haze of isopropyl alcohol. It was basically midnight, and the scientists aboard the ARK at least attempted to maintain a circadian rhythm. However, there was always at least one member of Project: SHADOW awake at this certain time slot, and it was none other than the woman that tended to Maria on her 'bad days.' Her slightly plump figure and tanned skin did not hide that face of worry when Gerald showed up unannounced.
"Dr. Robotnik." She jumped from her sitting position; away from the romance book the woman had been avidly consuming. "You're like a bat out of hell. Is it Maria?"
"I need a gurney."
Her eyes shifted towards the clock. 0113Z screamed back in green. "Is she not in a condition to-?"
Gerald cut her off. "It's not for- It's not Maria."
"Oh." Her eyes moved around his body, as if she was analyzing him. "Sir… You don't look so good yourself. Have you've been taking your heart medication…?"
No. Not exactly. But that wasn't the issue right now! "Dr. Eruba, it's for our Project."
The woman made no sound. Her forehead creased into something disappointed as a deep, depressed sigh came out. Slowly, she walked towards the edge of the equipment array. In time, she pulled something out of the closet – a bed with wheels and stark bleached garments. It was only when she disconnected anything electronic from it that the woman made any comment. "You never know if G.U.N. is watching."
Was it disbelief on his face that made her continue?
"Oh, honey- I mean, boss. Maria is very adamant on keeping the boy safe. I'm beginning to see her point of view." That expression of sadness changed into… anger. At who? "I am a medic first and foremost. Only that, really. What G.U.N. wants can be shoved up their ass. I can say what you cannot, doctor.
"Walk with me," she hissed.
Gerald did so. He had planned on taking routes back towards his lab through the long, extended hallways that still had their cameras broken, but with the medic by her side…
Her voice carried where the replaced lenses on the ceilings rested. "I hope this spasm is just a small one."
The scientist knew her game. "Yes. Thank you," he uttered with upmost, genuine emotions, "for doing this at this hour."
"Poor, Maria. You would do the same for me if I had a sick relative. Such a sweet kid."
The wheels clacked down to Maria's room. Gerald input the code and entered, waiting for Dr. Eruba to follow with the rolling bed. With a gentle 'whoosh,' the door slid behind them as they arrived to a moment's respite.
His granddaughter's room was as it always was: messy organization. On the ceiling were strings of lights set up to look like the stars of the exact sky from her parent's house on Earth. The walls were covered with posters about the different plants, animals, creatures, and cities of that planet down below them. The floor by the library was covered with pillows. On one of her desks were piles upon piles of his Chaos Energy research papers that she had claimed she was 'in the need to be in the know.' Nestled near a stack of hard-bounded books were a pair of shoes. They looked incomplete, with the guts of his old Chaos engine prototypes piled in the corner. Red paper slips with graphite pencil labeled each separate piece: 'failure,' 'also failure,' and 'how did grandpa do this: FAILUREEEE.'
Benign. Innocent.
A sleepy voice broke in. "Grand…pa…?"
"My dear, I need you to do something really important for me."
Panic flew across her face. He could see the ways her blue dilated – that ever-present clench on her chest whenever she was caught by a painful surprise. "It… It can't be-! Not after what I did-"
Gerald did not mean to cut her off so rudely. Things happened under duress. "Maria. I don't know what you are thinking about right now, but I – no, Shadow – needs your help." He held onto her hands. "Can I be as so helpless to beg for your participation?"
The plan was something he was thinking on the fly.
But he was a Robotnik.
The smartest man in the world.
If he could play and act as the Creator, then why would some cameras be frightening?
That movement, the simple act of holding each other's fingers together, calmed her. "Of course! A-Anything for Shadow." Her neck creaked as she finally recognized the other member inside her room. "Dr. Eruba…?"
"Is to take you to the medical wing-"
The female medic moved around towards the back of Maria's room, where her own personal gurney resided. Covered with pink stickers and smiling faces, it was the one used on the worst of times. "Dr. Robotnik? May I suggest we use this one to move Maria so you can keep the other one for your… actions?"
Ah. She had already picked up what his haphazard plan that stemmed from irrational fear was – but one that felt all too true nevertheless. "Yes. Good call." He turned back to his grandchild. "Be limp. Be hurt. Be in pain. On the outside, at least." Gerald kept his gaze immediate. "Can you do this?"
Her thoughts flashed. "Like an… actress?"
"Yes."
There was no question as to 'why.' There was only a deep nod. Such was the trust she had in that everything he did was the right thing. "I got it, Grandpa. If you want me to act sick, you'll have the sickest ever mobile version of me."
"Nothing over-the-top, my dear. It needs to be… believable enough as to why I am not immediately chasing you down."
"Ok."
With that, Dr. Eruba helped set up Maria to the bed and connected every single medical looking device that it had. Each one was powered by a parallel series of Chaos Drives underneath the metal supports. [A frown flickered on the female's face when the temperature, heartbeat, and other results flashed. Gerald had thought it was a sign of a future relapse, but color him surprised at the fact everything seemed normal.] "I'll set these to dim," the woman muttered. "It IS night time, after all."
"Yes. Thank you, Dr. Eruba."
A nod. Soon, the two females were gone. He picked up one pair of Maria's night slippers before leaving.
[x]
The ebony and Alizarin hedgehog slept below him. Still stuffed towards the back, with all the pillows and blankets removed, he shined like a golden star in this dark, dark cavern. There was still no emotion or even a reaction upon those Mobian features when the doctor reached to gently nudge the stilled body. Of course, Gerald was not expecting anything, but… An attempt was better than none, he supposed.
The whole situation was still so… unnerving. How had Casey managed to even enter the room? Certainly, M-A-R-I-A was an easy enough password, but that was because only those whom bypassed all the other security measures could get to the place where her name could be applied. Maybe his sentimentality had finally caught up with his lack of positive control over his secrets…
He could worry about that later!
Large human hands picked up the Project. The center of gravity was still by his core, and as always, Shadow was far too light. Those wings seemed to add no additional weight, which was an illogical fallacy, but considering that was the Project's favorite pastime…
GAH! He had NO TIME for scientific inquiries!
What was WRONG with him!?
He continued to move, ignoring the way Shadow's head hung; each limb limp; his hands uncurled; the golden aura of raw Chaos Energy ceaseless; each waft warmed the air to the touch; mixed in a human, it was like getting ran over by a truck; drove a tingling sensation into the root of each nerve to the point he almost screamed; made him feel almost lighter, stronger, younger-
Oh.
'Protect him.'
Oh, no.
'Your good son.'
He really had to deal with this later.
"Excuse me for how rough I am about to treat your extensions, Shadow," Gerald muttered.
Unceremoniously, the Project was wrapped, bounded, and then shoved under the blankets of the gurney. He stuffed pillows and socks to make the lumped shape appear bigger. Topping the entire ensemble were the pink, fuzzy slippers of Maria's sticking out. While there were no cameras in the area he was taking Shadow from and Shadow to, you never knew whom might show up.
[x]
Sean Casey waited for him by the hallway that led towards the medical wings. The illumination from the ceiling gave nothing but a calm and gentle feeling – the complete opposite of just earlier in the night. There in the youth's arms was a bundle of rock-candies and a simple card. "Ah! Doctor! H-Here! As an apology. I was not being very nice nor courteous. I'll be sure to knock and get in line next time!"
The scientist carefully looked at the bundle: bright colored and cheery. Was it genuine? Was it planned?
"I saw that she was pretty sick. Made me think of what I did to cheer up during my down days. So, I went back to my room and got this!" The candies waved. "My sister gave me a lot of rock sugars from Central City on her vacation, so I am more than happy to share!" There it was again – that smile that felt so genuine, but Gerald still was aware of the wrongness of it all.
He didn't know what was this man's deal, but resisting would be suspicious. "… Thank you." He could have done a better job at keeping a happy tone back-
'Saw that she was pretty sick?'
Gerald rolled the paper white stick between his fingers. The military quarters where G.U.N. held their barracks were nowhere nearby. Sure, the military had a presence in all the sections of the ARK, but… The scientist kept thinking about the past and the present: what exactly was the man looking for? Had he carried a suspicion on the Robotnik? Or was it someone else that thought something was going on with Project: SHADOW and had supplied the order? Was it simply neither and the SecFro member from the small rural town was genuinely lost and confused and wanted to make amends?
The candy still moved in his hands.
He somehow doubted the last one.
[x]
There was a hot, black in-the-raw coffee awaiting him in the medical room labeled 3A-C. Steam rose from the ceramic lip in lazy fashion. A pile of cookies designed to go with the bitterness of the dark beverage sat hauntingly on the plate nearby.
Maria watched him slide his lips upon the mug as he drunk it carefully.
Methodically.
Eventually, she gave him a toothy smile. "I do believe I won a Golden Globe tonight, Grandpa."
They were titled 'Academy Awards,' but…
"Then I better make sure to clap."
And he did.