<<Hųśh>>

-'16'-

Shadow stayed still and silent, unsure of what the other was going to do. Should he strike first? Were the remnants of Sonic going to strike first? What was the blue blur planning? Sonic was no longer an open book. Shadow had no idea what was going through the hedgehog's mind.

He sucked in a breath, nervousness marinating in his stomach, and dived onto the lapiz hedgehog. He began to throw punches desperatley and aimed primarily for the taller hedgehog's face. Thankfully, he had caught the husk off guard. He had a fighting chance - or so he thought.

Unfazed, the navy hedgehog gripped Shadow by the ribs and rolled, adjusting the two's positions so Shadow was left vulnerable and to Sonic's mercy. He struggled beneath the hedgehog, writhing, kicking, pushing. It was as though pain was no longer registered by the grinning phsyco. Sonic just pushed down on Shadow the more he fought. Eventually, Shadow could no longer move.

"Can't you just get this over with?" Shadow asked, grunting and groaning as he continued to try fight back. He was failing miserably. "That's no fun." Sonic responded bluntly, he seemed far more annoyed and hostile now. It made his skin crawl. Without warning, Sonic punched Shadow directly in the nose. He caught a glimpse of Sonic's face before he was punched once more, the lapiz hedgehog was smirking. The ebony hedgehog groaned quietly as blood trickled down his face and into his mouth. It made him cringe involuntarily.

Shadow forced his eyes back open. His face ached and his own blood seemingly scorched his muzzle. The heat of the nearby fire was slowly approaching, meaning the blaze wasn't far from behind. Shadow had a finite amount of time to get himself and Sonic to safety. He looked around hastily. The sheer heat began to burn his eyes and blur his vision as involuntary tears escaped his eyes. It burned.

Blindly, Shadow swiftly bent his leg. He kneed the husk with as much force as he could. The navy hedgehog seemed the least bit fazed, a frown on his face. Shadow once more kneed the taller of the two, not even recieving a flinch from Sonic. "Fuck you." Shadow weakly croaked. His mouth was dry and filled with blood now. It wasn't a welcomed taste nor a pleasant experience.

"You talk a lot more than you do fight." The other commented. His voice was hostile yet chalant. Is this how everybody else viewed Shadow? Was he now experiencing the dread and fear he often saw in others?

He was helpless. Sonic was practically immortal now, no matter the damage he would continue on. Shadow remained quiet and stared at Sonic, eyes wide and breaths strained. There was only two realistic outcomes to the situation. Sonic would either kill him, or Sonic would bite him. Shadow would prefer the former, but even as a soulless, cannibal husk Sonic cut corners. A simple bite was probably less effort.

"Can you just kill me?" Shadow exclaimed after awhile. He wanted the dread to end. He wanted to move on, even if dying was the only way. He would see her again at the very least. Perhaps he would be abandoning his friends, but there was no other option. He would much rather shoot himself than turn and kill others. With his and Sonic's abilities, nobody would stand a chance. The last person on earth would only have the title for mere seconds.

The navy husk remained stoic. In a matter of seconds, a click echoed amidst the crackling and hissing of the fire around them. Sonic's body began to spasm as he yelped in pain. Shadow took the opportunity to push the hedgehog away from him. "What the fuck-" Shadow whispered to himself as he watched the hedgehog.

Eventually, the spasming stopped. Sonic remained on the floor limp, no longer yelping or screaming. Shadow hesitantly approached him, placing two fingers on his neck just below his jaw. He had a pulse.

Heavy, rapid footsteps approached. Shadow wasted no time and turned on his heels, readying for a fight. A lavender cat and ivory hedgehog approached.

The cat was slightly taller than the other, donning impractical red heeled boots with a fur trim. She wore white trousers with a large, trail purple jacket with magenta adornments. The jacket also featured the white fur trim. Her eyes were golden and piercing, which directly stood out from her lavender fur. A gem seemingly slotted perfectly on her forehead - or perhaps it was a bhindi.

The hedgehog was much plainer, merely scarf-like chest fur that put Shadow's puny tuft to shame alongside two large quills that began at the bottom of his head and ended at his shins. His questionable quill choice didn't stop there, he had a large fringe-like mess of quills on his forehead. Shadow hated to joke in such a situation, but this 'fringe' had a striking resemblance to weed. He too had striking golden eyes.

"Who are you?" Shadow demanded as the two came to a halt. The ivory hedgehog smiled warmly, however his advances were shut down by a sharp shove to the ribs by the cat. "Relax. We don't mean either of you guys any harm." She muttered. The ivory hedgehog nodded.

Suddenly, the cat roughly dragged the silver hedgehog by the quills, pulled him towards her and rummaged through them. Shadow couldn't help but wince for him - he too was a mere handbag to his supposed 'partner in crime' - in Rouge's words. She pulled a needle out of the entanglement of quills and roughly released the wincing hedgehog.

Shadow's eyes widened. He stepped back and insured he was infront of Sonic. "What are you doing?" He demanded. "This will help your little predicament." The cat muttered. She was the least bit assuring. "I'm not letting a complete stranger inject something into him." Shadow snarled. He stepped closer to the cat. She stared back blankly.

"I understand why you wouldn't trust us, but we believe we have a cure." She reasoned. Without missing a beat, the hedgehog lifted his arm towards Shadow, showcasing a bite. It looked quite fresh yet the least bit inflamed like Sonic's had innitially. If anything, it had healed over and began to form a scar. He didn't have any other indications of infection.

"How do I know it works?" Shadow raised a brow. "He isn't like you." He hesitated for a moment as he contemplated how to tell them. "We know who he is." The cat snapped. She was getting adgitated. "He isn't a regular möbian either." She reasoned. "He has chaos abilities." As if on queue, the silver hedgehog waved his hand. Shadow was pushed backwards with great force, yet nothing was there. Perhaps he was like Sonic.

Shadow watched in anxiousness as the cat approached the unconscious Sonic. She gently pulled his arm up and forced the needle into his arm with seemingly no regard for where his arteries were. Even if Shadow wanted to fight the two, he wouldn't have gotten there in time to stop the injection.

The cat turned to Shadow in a chalant manner. "He will be out for a few days. Its better we take you both to our hideout." She informed him. Sonic's body began to levitate. The other hedgehog was clearly using his magic. "Let's hurry though, the fire will attract infected." The cat added.

Before Shadow could protest, he was roughly grabbed by the wrist and dragged along.

_____________________________

1254 Words

Written/Published: 6th August, 2024

((Edited))