Shadow the Hedgehog 2 Part 2 Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Total Eclipse

Shadow slowly got up. He wasn't in pain, not anymore, but he was being cautious. He thought it was just an irrational sensation at first, but he was wrong. "I take it you're the new Black Arm hive mind…" Shadow growled.

The Black Arm chuckled. "Me? No, nothing so lofty. Think of me as… the first lieutenant."

"Then listen closely, 'lieutenant.' Go away, and leave us in peace."

"Was Black Doom given that same warning when he first came here? Did you let him leave this world with his life? You'll understand if I'm not inclined to respect your wish."

"How…?"

"I know him the same way you do, brother. We were created the exact same way, you and I. The only real difference is I am pure-blood."

"That's impossible," Shadow replied out of denial, "The Black Arms were defeated years ago. I carried this out myself."

"Do you seriously believe Black Doom played all the cards in his hand?"

Shadow was puzzled. He didn't know what to think. It was still difficult for him to grasp his mind around the survival of the alien race before him.

In a swift move, the creature warped behind him and held his claw on Shadow's head. The black hedgehog gasped in shock. Many images appeared in his subconscious. "Let me show you…"

On the far edge of the Milky Way Galaxy, there lay the dwarf planet Eris. At approximately fifteen billion miles from the sun, it almost triples the distance from Earth to Pluto. As far as scientists knew, the small cluster of dirt was uninhabited… They were wrong.

Hidden within was a secret laboratory. It wasn't one made by humans or Mobians, rather by something else. In one room in particular, a monster lay asleep in a glass tube full of green liquid. It was the lizard-like humanoid himself, Eclipse. It hadn't been released in a long time if at all.

Suddenly, the machine activated. The liquid drained, and air was released into the tube. The beast slowly opened its hissing yellow and black eyes. With a quick throw of his fist, he punched through the glass and got out of the capsule. It looked around and could see it was alone.

Then, a nearby screen activated. On it was an alien being with three eyes and two large horns. The lizard creature lurched back. "Greetings, Eclipse," began the figure on the screen. "I am Black Doom, your creator… your master. Should you be watching this, I am now deceased."

Eclipse stood still and listened. Seeing the black and red marking on him similar to his own, he assumed he was right.

"We have been betrayed and destroyed by your so-to-speak brother, Shadow the Hedgehog." The screen then showed a black and red Mobian. "Fearing this would occur, I created you the same way I did him… with my own blood. Through this, you possess extraordinary power. Most of them will mirror that of which Shadow possesses, such as strength, agility, and unfathomable speed. You will also possess the same control over Chaos that Shadow does. The only difference in your abilities is that yours are more acute than his, because you are pure-blood Black Arm."

Eclipse looked down at his claws, processing all this information. He could feel the power coursing within, and he started to image what potential he had.

"Now, I leave you with your only mission. There's a blue and green planet called Earth further within this galaxy. Travel there, and avenge our kind. In other words…destroy Shadow the Hedgehog and the world he foolishly protects!" With that said, the image on the screen kicked off.

The alien was silent for a moment. But then an idea bubbled in his mind. "I will avenge you, master… but not in the way you think…" He quickly used Chaos Control, and once again, the small planet of Eris was a lifeless ball of dirt, drifting through space.

The black and red hedgehog lurched back, shocked. With all that has happened since he had come into Knothole, sensing his presence, he couldn't help but believe him. Even though it defied all logic, there was no mistaking the facts.

Eclipse continued to flood his mind with images. "Like you, I'm free to act off my own accord. Free to think and fight you off my own terms. The ultimate answer to the ultimate problem… But," he added, "I'm also free to question if tearing you apart is the only way.

"The way I see it, we're the last of our kind, you and I. The Black Arms are nearly extinct! So wouldn't we be so much stronger if we recreated the hive together?" he asked. "Just picture it! Twin sons of Doom! Brothers in arms! Worlds would fall to us, and the Black Arms would reign superior!"

But the more the intruder spoke, the more his so-called brother resisted. "Get…out…" He growled. He mentally fought against Eclipse until finally… "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

Eclipse was forced back away from Shadow's body. He was rather disappointed, but he still tried. "Shadow, you're not listening! We don't need to fight! You don't need to pretend you're one of these worms! You can finally come home!"

The black hedgehog shook off his amazement quickly, and he stood ready to fight. "This world is my home. I made a promise to protect this world, and the Black Arms sought it destroyed. My path is clear." He pulled out his Chaos Emerald. "Chaos Control!"

To everyone's great surprise, nothing happened. The alien grinned again.

"What…? Chaos Control! CHAOS CONTROL!" Still, nothing… "Why isn't it working?"

"You shouldn't have underestimated me!" said Eclipse. "Your world is mine now! You shall die my way!"

Shadow shrugged. "Fine. We'll settle this the old fashioned way!" He curled up and launched a homing attack at the creature.

Eclipse chuckled silently. Once the black hedgehog was close enough, he jumped out of the way and kicked him into a nearby wall.

The Ultimate Lifeform got up after he fell and wiped the dirt from his face. Furious, he charged at his alien 'brother,' but surprisingly, he couldn't win. With every punch Shadow threw, Eclipse dodged and launched a counter attack. Finally, the alien threw Shadow into another wall. The ebony and crimson Mobian fell to his hands and knees, very little strength left to fight.

Maria saw everything. She pulled and pushed to move her muscles.

Eclipse was only feet away. He looked at his adversary, rather disappointed. "Is this a joke? How could someone as weak as you betray the Black Arms?"

"How… are you blocking… my Chaos Control?" Shadow panted.

"It doesn't matter. To fulfill my purpose, my master's executioner must be destroyed." The creature drew out his own Chaos energy and prepared to finish his job when…

"STOP!" The blonde hedgehog ran out between the black one and the alien. She had broken free of the gas' effects and came to Shadow's rescue.

"This doesn't concern you, woman! Step aside, and I'll consider sparing you!" Eclipse demanded.

But Maria simply put her foot down. "Absolutely NOT!"

The alien monster glared at them. "You have a human's arrogance, yellow hedgehog. But I possess the power of Chaos!" He then threw several Chaos Spears at them all at once.

"Chaos Shield!" The energy flowed from Maria's hands to form a barrier. The Chaos Spears ricocheted off the barrier and flew into the sky. "Join the club," she grinned.

Suddenly, another shape joined them. It was Jack, and he had his arm cannon aimed at the alien. "My friends! No touchie!"

"Three against one?" asked Eclipse. "Good… a challenge. Have at me, fools!"

Shadow stood up, looked at the other two, and smiled. He was lucky to have friends like these. "Let's go, Team ARK!"

To Eclipse's surprise, the three proved to be far more of a challenge then he expected. As he tried to attack one, another would counter-attack, Jack's cybernetic armaments proved too strong for his Chaos Spear. Maria's Chaos Control was enough to stun the alien. And Shadow… with his strength restored, he was tougher than before.

Before long, the alien was down on the ground. Though he showed no injury, he was weak and weary. He staggered to his feet, and the three were just about to unleash a Team Blast on him when a bizarre portal opened up behind Eclipse. He wasn't sure where it came from, but he saw it as a means to escape and recover.

He turned to Shadow. "You haven't seen the last of me, brother!" With that said, he jumped through and disappeared.

"Hey! Get back!" Jack chased after him.

Shadow stopped the robot. "Let him go. He'll be back soon enough, and we'll be ready…" The black and red one turned to the other Freedom Fighters. The gas that paralyzed them was now starting to wear off. "Is everyone alright?" he asked and everyone showed signs of perfect health.

Sonic and his family approached them. "Maria, are you alright?" Bernadette asked.

"We're fine. But thanks for your concern, Mom." Suddenly, she realized that she had called her by the wrong title. Before Bernadette could say anything, Maria quickly cut her speech. "S-Sorry, I don't know what came over me…"

However, the mother of the blue blur approached her and slowly wrapped her arms around her. Maria's eyes widened with surprise. Bernadette whispered into her ear. "I know you've had a painful past… I can see it in your eyes." She lightly kissed her on the forehead. "That's why we-!"

Without knowing he did so, the king interrupted her. "We've suffered worse, but that's what we live for." He then looked at the black and red hedgehog. "Shadow, was it? I will admit I had my doubts about you at the start. Sonic told me you were one of the Black Arms. Now, I know you are nothing like them. We are honored to have you in our cause."

Shadow was pleased. Not only was he being accepted by his own kind, they fully accepted as an ally and a friend. He bowed his head. "It's a pleasure, your Highness."

"Please… call me Max," he said as a lynx appeared near the king. "As a token of my esteem, I have instructed Nicole to let you purchase some available homes in the city. I assume you have no place to stay at the moment."

"This way, please." She started to lead three of the four out of the near-ended celebration. Nicole then stopped and called out to Maria.

The blonde hedgehog looked at her, then at the Sonic and his family. She was certain she didn't really have a choice. "It was nice meeting all of you… it really was…"

"Maria…" Sonic started.

"…but I have to go."

"No. No, you don't," he interrupted in a gentle manner. "You can stay. I mean, you're already part of the family. And not just because you got your body from me."

His father and mother stepped up. "What do you say, Maria?" asked the latter. "Do you want to be a Hedgehog?"

Maria stood awe-struck. "Y-You… want to adopt me?" Apart from this question, she was speechless. Being in space her entire childhood, away from her parents, she hardly even knew them. Being revived so long later, she never would meet them. Now, she was being given something she never truly had before… a family.

She turned around to her friends. All of them seemed very positive of this offer, especially Shadow and Jack, who knew her better than the rest. When she looked back at Sonic, though she was verbally silent, the girl ran to them, arms open wide.

The Hedgehog family welcomed their new member with a large group hug. It was all the answer they needed.

Elsewhere, far away, Eclipse reappeared through the portal he jumped through. He looked around, cautiously. He seemed to be surrounded by metal, like he was in a lab. It was dark, and there were many dark silhouettes.

"Are you unharmed?" asked one of them.

He looked in the direction of the voice. "For the most part, but… who are you? And what do you want?"

A mysterious figure emerged from the dark. He looked much like a large winged human. In his hand was a Chaos Emerald. "I am Makuta, firstborn of Mata Nui," it said. "Los ok hokoron. Like you, I am an enemy of Shadow the Hedgehog. I am hoping you will join us in our ambitions."

"That depends. Do they involve the destruction of the black and red nuisance?"

Makuta was silent for a second, but he replied, saying, "In part."

Eclipse kneeled. "Then I shall join you. How do you plan to bring about his death? And how do I assist?"

"Drem. Patience," Makuta grinned. "We must remain hidden for a short time… and weather the coming storm."