Worlds Apart - a Shadow the Hedgehog x Reader story

Mephiles

Y/N's POV

Being reunited with Shadow after all this time created a warm tingling feeling within Y/N. She couldn't help herself and gently stroked his quills, her head buried in his chest once again.

"I missed you."
"You think you've been having a hard time with Egghead?"
"Yeah..."
"Try making a whole suit of armour, plus weapons, in just over a week without sleeping or eating."
"Whoa."
"I know right?"
"Not that. Look," Y/N pointed, staring at a figure leaning against a tree. Shadow looked up and snarled. He clearly knew who it was.

"Mephiles. What the heck is he doing here?"
The figure laughed coldly, stepping out into the open. He looked a lot like Shadow, but instead of being black and red he was black and grey.

"Shadow the Hedgehog. How ironic fate can be. We meet again."
"For the last time."
"Perhaps. I owe you much since the previous time we met."
"The only thing I owe you is a giant beat up."

Mephiles cackled," So be it. Ten years and you are still predictable. Such a foolish choice."

"I don't think so."
Shadow and Mephiles rushed each other, power glowing at their fingertips, forming into glowing swords. A whirlwind of emotions flooded through Y/N. She knew that Shadow would try to keep her away from harm by going in himself, but she also knew that she wouldn't be able to live with herself if he died. Her gut was telling her to help and she followed it. Her burning blade crossed with Mephiles and Shadow's blades before she realised she had moved.

"So this is how you fight now. You rely on others to get the job done."
"Back off Mephiles. There's no way you can beat both of us alone," Y/N snarled in his face.

"Who says I'm alone?" Mephiles pushed the pair backwards into the clutches of six clones of himself. One of them slammed it's hand over Y/N's mouth, blocking her stinging words. She thrashed against her captors, muscles straining.

"Let her go. She never asked to be involved in this madness."
"She helped you. There's no way anyone will get by me when they've done that."

Y/N glared at Mephiles. How dare he threaten her friends like that! She could tell Shadow was angry too; he was trying to wrench himself free to attack Mephiles again. Yells and screams erupted from behind them. Sonic and the others had also been caught. They were all dragged together, including Y/N and Shadow. She struggled, trying to yank herself free. Biting down hard on the clone's hand which was over her mouth, she flipped the other two over her shoulders, throwing them to the ground.

"I'm not being taken that easily."
"Oh, I think you are."
"Oh yeah?" Y/N spat at Mephiles, "What makes you think that?"
"This," He lifted a long knife up, levelling it with Shadow's throat, "I'm prepared to kill anyone to get my revenge."
"Wouldn't be very satisfying if you killed him now, though, would it?"
"You're right. That's why I'm not going to kill him just yet," Instead of going straight for the kill, Mephiles pushed Shadow down to his knees before slashing the knifepoint across his face, leaving a thin line of blood. She gasped, distracted. She didn't want to lose Shadow less than an hour after being reunited with him. With her occupied, three more clones slipped up behind her and pushed her down. Mephiles tossed Shadow towards her. Thrown in a small pile with the two black-and-red hedgehogs underneath everyone else, each of them was disarmed and defenceless.

"You aren't getting away from me this time. You may have escaped me before ten years ago, but now I am unstoppable!"
"We'll never stop fighting you. Ever."
"You won't need to stop fighting, but it won't be me you'll be against. It'll be yourselves."
A trapdoor opened in the ground beneath them, plunging them into complete darkness. As they fell, Y/N could hear the screams getting fainter and fainter, as if they were being split up. She realised that was Mephiles' plan; to keep them apart then pit them against each other for entertainment. She could just hear Shadow yelling her name, having landed further up and to her left, but she couldn't answer. She was still falling. She wondered if she was going to fall for so long, she would end up in Tartarus, the Greek hell. Without warning, she slammed into solid concrete. Her ribs felt like they were on fire, but she had landed heavily on her right arm. It was clearly broken. She had to act fast if she was going to sort it out before she was pitted against the others. She tore a long strip from the bottom of her top, leaving her stomach bare, and wrapped her arm in it.

"Well, it's not much, but it'll have to do," she muttered to herself. Glancing upwards, she noticed that the tiny speck of light that was the trapdoor opening was slowly becoming darker. An echoing drumbeat started vibrating the upwards, she noticed that the tiny speck of light that was the trapdoor opening was slowly becoming darker. An echoing drumbeat started vibrating the floor as one of the walls around her raised itself up, exposing her to an open arena over the spread of a giant forest. As she scanned her surroundings, eight other walls were raised on opposite sides, releasing the other hedgehogs, bat, cat, fox and echidna. Cameras focused on her as Mephiles' voice boomed out.

"Welcome one, welcome all, to the final battle of the fastest things alive — against each other!"
Y/N felt a tear roll down her cheek. Back with Shadow for less than an hour and already they had been separated again. Worse, they had to fight each other.