Distortion

Chapter 2

Metallic skates moved along barren grounds as Shadow sped through the abandoned rail yard resting just beyond the outskirts of Soleanna. His eyes were creased in deep thought as all his mind could be focused on were the past few days. Reflecting on events such as the Solaris Project, the future of this world, and of course, Mephiles. So much happening in one place, a place he had so conveniently been placed in at this specific time.

He began to slow down his pace for both the precaution of losing concentration and to better pull his thoughts together. He came to a steady walking pace and started to wonder where Rouge could be at this point. Was she safe, or was she once again getting herself into trouble? He couldn't hold the smirk that crossed his muzzle as he knew that the latter option was far more probable.

Still, the past few days were what haunted his thoughts. Some of it made sense, but other bits just didn't. For one, how could man create a god? He knew that he himself was proof enough of artificial life, but his creation had required help. Help that had not even been found on this planet. Yet here were this group of humans, only less than forty years after he was created, and they created gods? It just didn't seem right to him...

"Sonic!"

Shadow froze in mid-step, and his ear swiveled in the direction of the scream. It was a woman's scream, one powerful but incredibly high in pitch. He turned his head to the side, catching sight of none other than Sonic the Hedgehog himself standing protectively in front of a human girl. Shadow's eyes narrowed, instantly recognizing the girl from the portrait resting under Eggman's base. Why was Sonic with the princess of Soleanna? Let alone here of all places?!

He watched the scene down below with calculative eyes. Sonic was apparently protecting the princess of Soleanna, arms widespread as he glared at the supposed opponent. The opponent being in the form of an almost pure white hedgehog wearing some sort of black armor and five upstanding quills. This new hedgehog seemed to have small pieces of wood and metal orbiting his body as he stood parallel to Sonic. It raised more questions than answering any, and he wondered if maybe this newcomer was a worked for Mephiles. It wouldn't surprise him, with all that had happened, he could hardly think that his copy could achieve this all on his own.

Shadow's eyes creased when his ear twitched once again, catching the soft hum of a motor. Instantly, he knew who it was. "Doctor." The word ghosted over his lips as he turned his gaze up to the sky. He had turned just in time to see Dr. Eggman's ship coming down silently to the small trio below. The next moment, the princess was snatched up with the aid of two mechanical arms and flown away before Sonic even registered what had happened. Shadow would have reacted himself, had the strike not had been so seemingly quick and been closer. Just as soon as Eggman had her, he was off again, his laughter ringing through the air.

"Elise!" Sonic cried, desperation in his voice, as he made a run after the princess when he was suddenly frozen in place. He was stuck mid-step, both feet off the ground before his body straightened like a stick and moved back to where he had been. Shadow narrowed his eyes, immediately taking notice of the aqua blue aura surrounding the azure hedgehog. Deciding he had seen enough, he took a step back, before running forward and jumping off the cliff's edge using his air shoes to boost him up. The travel down was exhilarating with the wind blowing through his quills. He landed between the two fighting hedgehogs, his metal shoes scraping against the gravel, sending sparks spraying.

The white hedgehog seemed to have been shocked when Shadow had come down and had taken a defensive step back. Shadow heard a thud from behind and assumed that Sonic had been released. He hardly had the chance to check if his suspicion was proven correct or not. Turning your back on an enemy was an abysmal decision. Shadow's eyes narrowed into a glare as he shifted in his stance but remained silent.