Sonic Wild

The Second Heart

Shadow skated across the never-ending savannah, following his "built in" energy tracker to the second world heart. His mind wandered to the conversation between Sonic and himself only a few minutes ago. The blue blur was getting suspicious, and Shadow knew that he would have to come out with the truth soon. He hadn't even noticed the changes in his own behaviour much, but Sonic was always quick to pick up on others' emotions.

The terrain changed from flat lands to jungle mountains, forcing him to slow down slightly. The pull of the continent's life force brought him to a strange temple surrounded by half-sunken ruins deep in a swamped portion of the jungle. Shadow could only guess that it was a civilization long lost to time from abandonment. He briefly wondered what had caused the city's collapse before skating towards the temple, which was arguably the only thing still standing properly, where the pull was strongest. He carefully avoided loose boards and stepping stones that would topple into the murky water below. The bog reeked, and he held a hand over his sensitive snout until he made it inside the temple. He wasn't very pleased with the gross environment and worried about his skates becoming ruined in the sludge.

Shadow's POV

I had to shake mud off my skates for the hundredth time, as I trudged into the dilapidated building. It seems that this world is littered with ruins of a time long past, much like Mobius. The only inhabitants of this temple were mice, lizards, and the occasional python or panther. They stared at me warily, obviously not sure why I was there. I could faintly hear their quiet voices whispering to each other, but I didn't have time to focus on what they were saying. I need to find the heart and get back to the group. Chaos knows what kind of danger Sonic could get into while I'm gone. He's practically a magnet for trouble. And this decaying smell wasn't doing my nose any favors.

I weaved through the labyrinth of halls and doorways until I came to a halt in front of a sealed stone gate. It almost looked like part of the wall itself. A giant gold snake was curved around it with its head raised high and staring down at where I was standing with emerald eyes and gold fangs bared. Most would have been intimidated by it, but I simply rolled my eyes. I walked up to the door and studied it. A faint map of the planet was carved into the center of it, showing off each of the seven continents. After a moment of thought, I pressed my hand against the Asian continent. It glowed a deep green before dimming again. Suddenly, the door slid to one side, allowing me to enter. The room was wider than I expected and had a tribal design to it. But in the center stood a yellow version of the Master Emerald on a pedestal. I felt no harsh pull, only a polite calling, unlike last time where I was half-dragged up the steps. I carefully climbed the staircase and stood before it with my arms crossed, awaiting the being inside to speak like last time.

Third Person POV

Instead of a voice in his head, a golden mist flew out of the gem in front of him. After a few seconds, it transformed into a human woman with dark skin, black hair, and brown slitted cat eyes, wearing a long gold tribal dress that had two slits on the sides a few inches above the knee. Her hair was pulled back and pinned on top of her head, adorned with a spiked gold crown studded with small diamonds. Flashy yellow paint streaked her cheeks and lips and was painted around her arms in a snake-like patterned. The dress was too long for him to tell if she was wearing shoes. She also held a long wooden staff that twisted at the top around a large yellow jewel. She held her head high, like a queen, and the air around her was regal and authoritative.

"I am Malkia, who dares enter my resting place?" she demanded. Shadow held his own head high, and his ruby eyes challenged her stare. It definitely wasn't in his nature to be intimidated.

"I am Shadow the Hedgehog. I was sent by Lakit of Asia to collect the hearts of the seven continents," he declared in an equally confident tone. She frowned at him, expecting her sister to have chosen a more worthy or perhaps taller vessel.