Throw It All Away

The Demonstration

  "Shadow, what do you think it's like on earth?" Maria asked as we stared out of the ARK's control room window like we had always done, her large eyes mirroring the blue planet we were watching.

  I thought about her question before answering. "The Professor said his life's work was dedicated to all of those who live down there. He once told that the reason-" My voice wavered. "for his existence was making people happy through the power of science."

  "Shadow..." Maria turned to me with a worried expression on her face.

  I sighed. "Maria, I just don't know anything anymore. I often wonder why I was created. What my purpose is for being here. Maybe if I go down there," I motioned through the window to the planet below. "I-I will find the answers. Maybe."

  "Maria..."

  "Why so melancholy?" Rouge asked from behind me, snapping me out of my thoughts.

  I turned to look at her, but quickly returned to gazing out of the ARK's window.

  "That was so unexpected, so unlike you, Shadow, to come and rescue me." She leaned against the window. "But your ability to use Chaos Control certainly comes in handy!"

  "Hmph. You know," I continued looking straight. "I didn't come to save you. I came back for the Chaos Emeralds."

  "Yeah, yeah," She said sarcastically. "But, then again, that's not the whole story, is it?"

  The Doctor cleared his throat as he entered the room, preventing any further conversation. "Everything is ready to go!"

  "Are you sure?" Rouge perked up, seemingly forgetting what she had just been saying to me. "We only have six of the seven Chaos Emeralds, you know."

  "That's more than enough for the demonstration." I smiled slightly as I walked past the Doctor and out of the room. "So, let's get this show on the road!"

  The three of us made our way to the Eclipse Cannon's control room, where the Doctor had set up a live broadcast that would hijack every television on earth. Once we got into positions, he flipped on his machine and began his announcement.

  "Citizens of earth, lend me your ears and listen to me very carefully! My name is Dr. Eggman- the world's greatest scientist, and soon to be the world's greatest ruler." He turned to the control panel and pressed a button. "Now witness the beginning of the greatest empire of all time!"

  I couldn't help but smile as the machine lit up dangerously. The whole space colony shook as the front of it blew up, revealing the Eclipse Cannon as part of the station. The machine in the center of the room grew much brighter as it gathered energy, then it all moved up into the cannon, creating a massive beam that shot across space.

  Just skimming the earth, it reached it's target: the moon. With a flash of light, half of the moon was destroyed, leaving charred remains. As the machine shut down, a timer appeared on the screen, showing that it would be twenty-four hours until it would fire again.

  "Let's give them some time to panic before we make our demands." the Doctor declared as he left the room. Rouge followed him, leaving me to watch the clock as time dragged on.

  "The Doctor has no clue what he's in for, but that's certainly for the best."

***

  Early the next day saw the Doctor readying his broadcasting system again, but, this time, he was making a few modifications. He was updating it so that it would connect with the President. I stepped back and watched from a distance as the Doctor turned it on, reaching the President instantly.

  "Dr. Eggman?" the President gasped, surprised by the sudden appearance.

  The Doctor couldn't help but laugh at his shocked face. "Well, let's just get down to business then, shall we, Mr. President? I won't bore you with all the details, since I know you are a very busy man."

  I was too far away to be sure, but I thought I saw a flash of blue behind the President's limo at that moment.

  The Doctor continued. "Mr. President, my demands are quite simple. Surrender to Eggman Empire and make no attempts to resist! Otherwise..."

  "Otherwise?"

  "Otherwise, your country will cease to exist! You have twelve hours to give me your answer!"

  The President leaned back in his seat, pondering this statement.

  Suddenly, another voice, one that I slightly recognized, broke the silence. "No way!"

  Looking around his limo, the President seemed to spot something outside his window. "What the...?"

  A very familiar blue hedgehog jumped into the limo from the sunroof.

  "Sonic... you...!" The Doctor growled.

  Sonic threw a few punches in the air as he said sarcastically, "Eggman Empire? Yeah, right!"

  All at once, a fox with twin tails was messing with the TV, then the screen went blank.

  The Doctor banged on the machine as he mumbled something under his breath. Meanwhile, I looked at the screen and saw that something had just tracked down our signal.

  "So, they're coming to stop us?"

  "Why are you so upset?" Rouge questioned as she strolled into the room, then changed her approach after assessing the situation. "That was really impressive! You've managed to create complete havoc on the whole planet! Does this now mean we control the planet and can do as we choose?"

  Ignoring her, I glanced at the clock. "At this rate, the cannon will take too much time to charge up. If you want to unleash its full potential, you'll need all seven Chaos Emeralds." I informed the Doctor.

  He gave his device one last kick before turning to glare at Rouge. "Where in the world have you been?!"

  She blinked in surprise and looked to me. "Something happen?"

  I shrugged. "Our threats fell on deaf ears!"

  "Look at you!" She smiled at the Doctor and put on an air of superiority. "Throwing a tantrum, like a little kid! How totally embarrassing!"

  "Don't forget your end of the bargain, bat girl!" he shot back. "What about that last Chaos Emerald? We had a deal, right? So, where is my Emerald?"

  "Here you go." Rouge pulled out a newspaper article and waved it in front of him. "I found this!"

  "Why didn't you show me this before?" the Doctor rebuked her, then began to read the article out loud. "What's this? Station Square saved from a life-threatening missile attack. The city has awarded its famed prize to the boy who saved Station Square. Miles Tails Prower was given the Chaos Emerald as a testament of his heroic deed at a ceremony held at city hall."

  He cleared his throat. "This makes things a whole lot easier. Hurry, go back to earth and find them fast! I want that Chaos Emerald!" the Doctor commanded as he left the room.

  I looked back at the time. It showed almost nine hours until the cannon would fire again, meaning only nine hours until my promise would be fulfilled.

  "Soon enough, Maria." I whispered, then hurried past Rouge, who was looking at me strangely.

  Before I left the room, however, I thought I heard Rouge say something about "reporting", but dismissed it as being my imagination.