Shadow: Awakening

Shadow: Fire Within

Powers?! But how can I have...? My mind goes blank, and I remember what Gerald had said before. "I have labored over your design, genetics and powers for over a decade..." My stomach twists itself into a knot, and I feel stunned. I never really paid attention to that before now, but could this be what Gerald was referring to? He said "powers," which is plural. That means that whatever I can do with this power, I have other powers too! I wonder what they are... I blink in delayed surprise, and a storm of temper starts to surface within me. Hmph. Powers. Yeah, because being a living bouncy ball is SO useful. What else can I do, tap-dance while spinning plates on my nose? I scowl; even if this power has some sort of purpose, a little warning would have been appreciated.

"Shadow?" Gerald questions, waiting for a reply.

"Hmph." I grunt back, and my scowl deepens.

"Shadow, what's wrong?" Maria asks me worriedly, and one look at her concerned eyes sends me spiraling through a storm of guilt. Why do I have to be such a jerk all the time? Now Maria's worried about me. "Are you hurt? You look like you're grimacing. Were you injured? Are you in pain? Can you hear me? Hello?" Great job, Shadow.

"I'm fine. Just...thinking. I'm sorry I worried you." I mutter in response, and for some reason my pride won't let me erase my scowl. It's not like I have it all that bad...Why am I acting like this? For some reason I want to stalk off by myself and avoid Gerald and Maria, but why? What is my problem?

"Shadow, are you feeling okay?" Gerald inquires, his voice rattling out of the speakers. "You sound different. Are you angry?"

"No." I snap, and I know I'm being rude, but for some reason I don't care. Gerald deserves this. He should have warned me about my powers. What if Maria had gotten hurt because of his bad judgement? I start, and I focus on that last question. What IF Maria had gotten hurt? Then I would be to blame, not Gerald. Why am I being so quick to point the blame?

"Shadow. If there is something going on with you, then I need to know." Gerald scolds me, "Now, is there or is there NOT something wrong with you?"

"I'm fine." I reply, and I look down at my feet, clenching my four toes and digging in my talon. I wiggle my feet, and then sigh. "I feel a little grumpy, that's all. I don't really know why."

"I see," Gerald muses, "try removing your prosthetic finger from your right hand and focusing your anger there, to your fingertips."

"Um...Okay." I reach down to my wrist and detach the band that connects my titanium digit to my hand. I pull it off and unsheathe the talon underneath, all shiny and black and pointy. I love my talons, and I polish and sand them every night to keep them healthy and sharp. Focusing on my hand, I try to put all of my annoyance into it. I imagine my hand holding my emotions themselves, and just when I start to feel like this is pointless... WHOOSH.

"Yah!" I leap about six feet into the air and frantically hold my hand away from me. My hand is on fire!!!

I have a theory that the reason Shadow always wears gloves (this does not apply to Sonic) is that instead of a middle finger on each hand, he has a small talon. In order to maintain function with his hands, he has to wear a titanium finger made by Gerald that acts as a sheath and working digit. This attaches to a band on his wrist and he wears it on both hands. He also has a talon as the middle digit on his feet, and it is about the same size as his toes (these are small, slim talons, not giant dinosaur things). I will get into the whole "Talon vs. Shoe" thing later, because Shadow uses them to control his shoes (they are independent of his fingers and toes).