Bygone Adventures: Episode 2 "Curse of the Skull"

Clash of the Alphas

A/N: Dude, first of all. I love this image I found on Pinterest. Whoever drew this deserves a shoutout.

And second, thanks for waiting! I know this took a while. But thank you all for being so patient.
......

Things had definitely gotten ugly.

Shadow twisted away from one of Sonic's outstretched paws, narrowly dodging the long claws protruding from his fingertips. He was forced to weave around the jungle trees to avoid being sliced in half.

The Black Arms alpha didn't understand. How could this have happened to the blue blur? What on earth could have turned the hero into this...beast?

Sonic was nearly twice his normal size and weight, and he looked more animal than mobian. He was acting more like one too if the snarls and growls were anything to go by.

Shadow didn't have long to think as he flipped over the werehog and spun around to deliver a powerful kick. Sonic tumbled across the jungle floor and smashed his back into an awaiting tree. The midnight blue werehog shook himself with a growl and roared.

Shadow, in a sudden, primal fit, roared back.

This wasn't just a duel between rivals. This wasn't even a fight between enemies. It was a clash between the alphas of two powerful packs, and neither were willing to back down.

The two circled each other for a moment before the sable hedgehog made the first move. Shadow teleported back and forth in flickers of blue chaos light, and each time he reappeared, he landed a solid punch or well-placed kick where Sonic least expected it. And all the former hero could do was swipe and roar and claw at thin air.

Unfortunately for Shadow, his target was catching on to the game quickly.

The striped hybrid materialized in front of the werehog and went to punch him, but the azure creature grabbed his outstretched fist. Shadow's eyes widened marginally. He tried again, and Sonic caught it with his other hand. The two alphas were locked in a standstill, pushing against each other with all of their strength.

"I don't want to do this, Faker. Wake up!" Shadow growled, feeling his rival's claws digging into his hands deep enough to draw blood.

The werehog only snarled back, though his mouth curled upward in a predatory grin as he pushed harder, forcing Shadow to bend backward slightly. The sable hedgehog frowned, and his crimson eyes glowed.

"Then you leave me no choice. Chaos spear!" he commanded, and beams of energy shot out of his palms and struck the werehog, forcing him to let go with a pained howl.

There was the briefest flicker of recognition in Sonic's eyes, but the moment faded, and he growled savagely.

Shadow grunted in frustration as he wielded his chaos spears, slicing at his rival but still trying to hold back enough to not leave any permanent damage. But it was getting harder not to leave a lasting mark with how fierce the werehog was fighting.

"Wake up, Sonic! You can't let the monster take control! Fight it!"

    His only reply was a howl, and Sonic pounced on the hybrid. Shadow pushed the werehog's face away from him as Sonic snapped and tried to get a bite out of the alpha's neck.

      "I said fight it!" Shadow roared, both out loud and with his mind. His body glowed red, creating a shield of flame around him.

     "Chaos Blast!"  he yelled, and the shield around him exploded, forcefully throwing the werehog off of him.

    Sonic yelped as he hit the ground, and he didn't get back up.

    Shadow panted slightly and slowly climbed to his feet, heart racing and body tense, ready for another strike. But Sonic didn't stir, and the ebony hedgehog gingerly took a step closer to the downed werehog.

     "Ah, man, did anybody get the number of that truck?" Sonic groaned, his voice a deep, gravely sound Shadow didn't recognize. The dark hedge-arm could only restrain the sigh of relief threatening to break free.

      "Just how long has this been going on, Faker?"

    Sonic jumped at the sound of Shadow's voice and he scrambled away from the black hedgehog.

    "Oh, uh, hey, Shads! What are you doing in this neck of the woods?" he laughed sheepishly. Shadow quirked an eyebrow.

    "You seriously don't remember?"

  "What should I be remembering?"

   "You attacking me, for starters," he replied, "and the fact that you owe me a new pair of gloves."

    Shadow held up one of his hands to show the claw-shaped tears and smears of already dried green blood around the holes. Sonic winced, taking in, not only the state of his rival's gloves, but also how generally roughed up he looked.

     "I'm sorry. I don't remember doing any of that," he said in a voice just above a whisper, and he broke eye contact, "Maybe there was a reason that skeleton was locked in the cave," he mumbled.

     "What skeleton?"

"It's nothing."

"What skeleton, Sonic?" Shadow reiterated seriously.

"It's none of your business, Faker!" Sonic snapped back.

"You just came at me like a wild animal," he shot back, his anger spiking at Sonic's attitude, "after coming too close to our borders. If someone else from my pack had faced you tonight, there would have been blood, and then there would have been war."

"I have it under control."

"You have no control," Shadow exploded, "which means next time you decide to go primal, it might not be me you're fighting! And someone else could get hurt!"

"You don't think I know that?! Why do you think I ran away from the village? I'm trying to protect my friends!"

"Then either control it or find a way to remove it, because your friends aren't the only ones living on this island."

Sonic hung his head and clenched his fists tightly. "I don't know how to fix this, Shadow," he admitted both sadly and angrily at the same time, "I don't even know what I am anymore. I'm trying to figure this out, but I have no idea what's even going on."

"You're still you," Shadow scoffed, "Don't be so overdramatic."

"I've just been turned into a freaking werehog! I think I'm allowed to be a little overdramatic."

Shadow raised an expectant eyebrow. "You're talking to a hedgehog that got roped into being the alpha of an endangered species. Pack life is nothing but drama."

"Whatever," Sonic snorted with an eye roll, and he turned to walk away, "I'll figure this out. Thanks for snapping me out of it, but I can handle it from here."

"Do your friends even know you're out here, trying to fix this on your own?"

Sonic paused. "They don't even know I have a problem."

This time, Shadow turned and called over his shoulder, "A good alpha talks to his pack."

And with that, the Black Arms alpha vanished in a flash of blue light.

Sonic stood staring in deep thought at the place Shadow had been standing in only a few seconds ago. Maybe he was right.

Maybe it was time to talk to his friends.
......

A/N: Here you go. Sorry there wasn't much of a battle scene. Those aren't really my strong suit. I may come back and edit it later, but I just wanted to give you all a little something as a thanks for waiting.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it!