Return of Gerlad's Legacy

Chapter 4: Shade and Crystal

MOM! Hurry up, we're gonna be late for school."

"Coming, honey!" she replied.

It had been years since the death of Shadow, but Sonia was not the only one in the Hedgehog family. Turns out, before Shadow's death Sonia had gotten pregnant, and not with one child, two; fraternal twins. A boy named Shade and a girl named Crystal.

Sonia grabbed her purse and went out to the car parked in the driveway. Since they gang had found out she was pregnant, they had been trying to help her in any way they could. Sonic visited regularly with Amy and their son, Whirl (short for Whirlwind) who was one of Shade's closest friends. Manic and the Chaotix's group had built the house with Tails operating as the architect. Jet and the rest Babylonian Rouges had taught the kids how to use the Extreme gear which they first tried to do when the kids were three, it had been Jet's idea so he got the black eye from the mother. Cosmo had become Sonia's best friend and was always there if Sonia needed her. They would babysit each other's kids every once in a while. Cosmo and Tails had one child, a boy, Lucas, who another of Shade's friends and who had a soft spot for Crystal. Silver and Blaze both taught both of the children many things so they were probably third grade level when they were in kindergarten.

Now they were both in middle school and were really asking more questions about Shadow. For Example: Shade would ask 'where had dad come from'. That had been a tough for Sonia. How was she going to tell her son that his father was born in a Petri dish? But she would not lie to him. She told him that his father had been on the Space Colony ARK as a baby and that she didn't know much more. Thankfully, he had believed it. But that didn't stop them. Both of them tried to get access to personnel files on the ARK. But Cm. Loveless wouldn't let them. Now they were somewhat content with the stories their mother and friends told them about him.

"MOM! Come on!" yelled Crystal. She looked exactly like Sonia only she was thirteen and had one trait of Shadow's; she had red stripes on her quills.

Sonia got into her Dodge SUV and put the keys into the ignition. She adjusted the mirror to see both of her children. Shade sat cross legged pouring over a book on ARK, while his sister was listening to her IPod.

She looked at Shade. He looked exactly like his father in every single way. They even had the same color eyes except that his quills stood up a bit in the front. Only, since Shade never knew his father, he acted more like his mother. He was very curious about many things including his father and the famous Dr. Gerald Robotnik.

"Alright you two," she said hoping they remembered, "I know you have a lot on you plates today but I hope you remembered that Manic and Sally invited us over for dinner tonight."

Shade put down his book and said confused, "I thought that was Wednesday, mom?"

"Nope,'' she said, "I should attach a date book to your head."

Crystal laughed. "Be quite, sis," Shade said hitting her playfully in the arm.

The rest of the way to school past without much more said. Although Sonia noticed the wind had picked up dramatically since yesterday and the sky had darkened greatly. As soon as they pulled up into the driveway of Central Middle School it started to rain heavily.

"Bye, kids," she said to each of them. She watched them enter the building. As the doors closed behind them, she said to herself with a small smile, "Shadow, I wish you could see them."

"Miss Hedgehog! Pay attention"

"Sorry," apologized Crystal to Mrs. Orlando. The middle-aged owl teacher looked at the girl annoyed and went back to her work. Crystal had been looking outside into the stormy weather. For some reason both her and brother liked it when it rained. It wasn't depressing for them like it was for others. When it rained, they felt closer to their father. Their mother had told them he had been a sad person. He had a life that was too rough to imagine. They imagined that those rain drops outside were his tears that he never got to live to see them or live with his wife.

She finished the rest of her work in Algebra early. She and Lucas always finished before everybody else. Even though he was a year younger than everyone in the class; Lucas had been allowed to skip a grade and be the same class with Crystal. Lucas was tall boy with dark black hair and had deep blue eyes. He was a plant like his mother which gave him twin thorns on the side of his head but had inherited his father's genius and two fox tails. Crystal took turns from looking to the window to Lucas. When he looked up from the book he was reading, he would see her. She would quickly turn her head back towards the window with a slight bit of pink on her cheeks.

She wouldn't admit to anyone, not even her brother or her best friend Emily (Rouges' and Knuckles' daughter), but she had a crush Lucas Prower. He was handsome, funny, smart, very nice to people, what else could she want. Some of her friends like her cousin Alana (Manic's and Sally's) had told her that she always was looking at Lucas, but Crystal had denied it. Even Shade had said something was there, but Crystal shut up her brother by saying, "And what about Emily? Hmm?" He didn't approach the subject the subject after his face had gone completely beet red.

She looked at her crush a couple more times before the bell rang for her and Lucas to go to Physics. For the rest of the day it rained. And not just rained but poured. The clouds got darker and darker as well. She hoped it wouldn't be like this at the end of the year dance. It was the dance where the girls can ask guys to go. She was hoping to ask Lucas but not look completely desperate.

Shade walked out of the building as the bell rang for the school day to end. He didn't mind the rain messing up his fur. The rain brought him closer to his father. He remembered once in third grade, that they had to write a paper on who their hero was. Both he had his sister had put their dad. At first the teacher looked shocked at that. But when they had been given back the paper they were called into her office and told them she was more proud of them than any student she had ever taught.

"Hey guys," said a black wolf pointing and Shade, "it's one of the Hedgehog Twins standing out in the rain again!" He and his friends laughed. But Shade didn't hear a word of this. He was in his own world.

"I bet he's talking to his dead dad again," said a silver rabbit boy with an evil grin. The rabbit boy looked over to a green eagle who wore aviator goggles. He spoke to him, his laugh still entering into his voice, "Hey, Hurc! Look over there! It Shade the hedge-dork! He's looking in the rain for his bastard dad. HA! What an id . . ."

The rabbit boy couldn't finish his sentence. Because he had a left hook pummeling his face. A hook that had come from Hurc.

"What was that for?" said the silver rabbit getting up of the ground. "What are you mad about?"

Hurc looked down at the silver rabbit

"Next time you plan on insulting someone and tell someone about it, never tell their best friend about it, you got that, Jack?"

"Dad," Shade said quietly to the sky, "I know you're listening. But I'm nothing like you. Yeah, I'm smart, but I'm not super fast like you or Uncle Sonic. I'm not super strong like you or mom. I can't even do what was your trademark. I can't do Chaos Control or do any Chaos powers. You were my hero and always will be. I just wish I could have met you."

Shade did not know then the ironies of his words then but he would now soon.

He looked up and the rain had just abruptly stopped. Not only that, but the clouds began to twirl clockwise. Faster and faster they went until they opened up a hole about a few miles wide.

"What the heck!" he said in complete awe as little dots came falling from the hole. And as they got closer they got BIGGER. And he could see them clearer. They were black and red and reptilian creatures he had only seen in history books and his family had told him about. The Black Arms were back in town!