#But the eye was from the logo of Shadow The Hedgehog

[nintendoni-art]

Bumblekast Thumbnail for February 14th, 2024!

IMAGINE HAVING AN INTACT PLANET #RIPBOZO #GOTTHATWEREHOGINME

Right, so, I'll admit it was a small gaff that gave us this wonderful thumbnail, but who am I to not exploit the hell out of a-

[shadowsfascination]

Even in his monster form, Shadow is no match for his girlfriend! ❤🖤💗

[afterlife-2004]

[m3tr0n0m333]

»A SPARK OF HOPE«

A fankid AU: Introduction

Circa 200 years into the future…

Past the death of the renowned, world famous hero: Sonic the Hedgehog, his immortal rival resides in a secluded location not many know about, or dare to stumble upon. He’s made himself a peaceful abode, isolated from the rest of the world— prying eyes or hands seeking his power or presence.

Shadow merely wishes to live without the stress of catastrophe weighing on his shoulders. And with the death of the biggest villain of the era- Doctor Robotnik, he succeeds for the most part- until a mysterious illness overcomes him, and he’s forced to reach out for help.

Upon wandering to the familiar-yet-changed Emerald Town, Shadow spots a recognizable logo on a building.

With curiosity and intrigue, the ebony hedgehog makes his next exploration the inside of this tall establishment.

[REFS AND MORE UNDER CUT]

No, it will not stay this well formatted most of the time. Guess I just felt like putting effort into it.

This au focuses around Tails, Shadow, and my fankid, Sparks! (No ships between these three, although they do end up as a family of sorts.) (+ Silver, who exists around this time, gets to be the cool cousin of sorts)

Shadow, as described, had isolated himself for quite a few years. And got an illness. But it’s far from mysterious.

His inhibitor rings have rusted and aren’t as effective as they were, well, 200 years ago, causing his chaos energy to run irregularly and make him fatigued/sick. Of course, it was a gradual process, so it was a little difficult to have spotted it right away. And when you’re sick, the obvious becomes… less obvious?

During this lengthy intermission between supposed canon and au, (I may go off canon quite a bit. I’m not professionally well versed in all the Sonic lore…) Miles Prower (formedly gone as “Tails” for his iconic two tailed ‘mutation’) had grown rather successful. A well-off entrepreneur of his own brand. He lives comfortably, although he does lack the bonds he once had.

As a kitsune, Miles’ life expectancy is lengthened, and gaining another tail every 100 years. He had existed much past his more mortal friends and allies, but pushed forwards to a brighter future, sort of. In this time, he has developed more of his kitsune oriented abilities, taking a favor to illusions.

Shadow wanders upon the main building, the HQ erected at Emerald Town, where his house once was. As Shadow wanders, Miles is aware of the old friend bumbling through the building and decides to play a little prank with some illusions and the high tech security measures he has installed in the building. (Nothing harmful, promise)

Once Shadow reaches the top, Miles reveals himself with a bold act of bravado. As of which they have some reunion and reaccqeuaintence time. Shadow explains his problem to Miles, Miles points out the problem and offers to make Shadow new inhibitor rings (and fix his air shoes in the process). Afterwards, he offers a residence for Shadow with him, but the hedgehog refuses, intending to return to his reclusive life.

On his path of return, he comes across a kid, sitting alone in the rain.

He resembles someone.

Spiky blue quills colored like the wind and the sky, peachy fur on his chest and muzzle. Pointed ears, although a bit droopier.

He sat with his legs pressed against his chest, on the edge of the sidewalk. Alone, yet he wears an expression closer to irritation rather than fear or melancholy.

After some questioning, he discovers that the kid ran from an orphanage, one he describes as nasty and disrespectful to him, like gum sticking his shoe to the floor. He describes that he had ran, to find some freedom. He’s a fast runner, you know? Maybe if he can get faster and faster, he may actually break the barrier keeping him chained to the orphanage.

When the sky darkens, illuminating the moon and the stars, Shadow stands. To lead the kid back to where he should be encourages him to have hope, but without acting to give him it. Words are empty when actions don’t reflect it.

The kid begs to let him free. Lead him somewhere else, not back to his prison. No one will take him back in the orphanage. He deserves to be free. He can take care of himself out here- a string of reasons to grasp why he shouldn’t go back.

Shadow continues to walk in silence.

…

Perhaps it was pity. Shadow would like to believe it is, but it’s hard to describe the pull of his actions towards another decision. He felt this was right, despite denial weighing on this choice.

Shadow returned to the tall building, where Miles— although surprised to see his return— welcomed him back warmly. When asked for the reason of his return, Shadow provides a rather bashful explanation.

He doesn’t know how to take care of a child.

��

References + Character Design and Personality Rambles

Eyyyy it’s the old man (quite literally at this point. He’s like 200+ years??). How did he survive all those years in isolation without going insane?? I have no idea. He probably talks to the animal inhabitants of the place he lived in I think. I like to think maybe he found himself an ancient library to make himself at home and spent most of his time reading books and doing house chores.

To be honest I tried to reference other Shadow redesigns because I also wanted to put some more Black Arms traits on him, but I honestly don’t know know much about the Black Arms so all he got was a longer tail <3

He’s a tiiiny bit pinker in this design. Like the red highlights on his quills are more pivoted towards the pink on the color wheel, and the white fur also has a tint of pink. No reason. He just gets to be slightly pinker. As a treat.

^^ (Miles noticed. Shadow did not.)

Anyways, you may be wondering, why didn’t Shadow take the offer of staying with Miles the first time? After being alone without friends were so long, you would think he is drawn to the idea of having company again. Well, the thing is, I think that Shadow hates change, in a way. He’s drawn himself away from society, lived self sustained, without the pressures and all that. Suddenly, he gets the offer to reintegrate into a society he is not well versed in? Seems incredibly overwhelming. And Shadow believes he was perfectly content in his serene lifestyle.

He only reconsidered the second time because he doesn’t know how to take care of the kid he freshly adopted (and probably not correctly adopted either) and only thought of Tails for help. As far as he knows, Tails is the only other old friend that exists alongside him right now so…

This sets up the story of Shadow and Tails tries to take care of this kid and slowly forms into a type of found family that doesn’t quite fit into the boundaries of what a family would be like. They are not even close to traditional family roles, I think, other than a child-parent relationship between Shadow and Sparks (who I have yet to introduce)

During this story, Shadow gets back into the action of adventure again. He’s reminded of the exhilaration he felt in the past. Even little things such as banter and skating down hill. He missed it all, although he doesn’t admit it.

Here is Miles!! He dropped the name “Tails” after a while, deeming it something he doesn’t identify as deeply with anymore. (Maybe because no one was around to call him that old nickname anymore)

So you know how I mentioned he’s become an entrepreneur of sorts? It was bound to happen, I think. Imagine living 200+ years and still not figuring out how to earn the most money and live comfortably.

Anyways, while coloring his design, I did realize that he vaguely reminds me of Eggman… it’s probably the red, gold and white colors. Fits him well though, yeah? He always did share some traits with Eggman, I think. He just turned out more benevolent, he still has the high tech tendencies that Eggman held, as well as other habits.

I think Miles had earned some of an ego over time. When most acquaintances leave(died), and you rise to the top, everyone feels so far. And Miles stop bothering to seek out meaningful relationships to save him some suffering. He can still have fun, he can still have friends- just not with the strong intimate bond he had with his initial family.

When Shadow returned, he felt a spark- the hope- the opportunity to have a semblance of the old life again. Nostalgia is a strong feeling. That is why he offered for Shadow to stay. He didn’t expect him to, but that didn’t stop his heart from swelling with joy when Shadow did return.

Here is Sparks! The kid Shadow picked off the street yaknow yaknow… He is meant to resemble Sonic. Not uncannily resemble him though. Just enough that both Shadow and Tails can look at him and think… he kind of reminds me of his other blue hedgehog I had a deep connection with….

Part of why Shadow adopted Sparks is honestly because of his resemblance to Sonic. He would not like to acknowledge it, as it seems like such a cruel thing to give the hope of a new connection to someone that doesn’t know that that new connection did not start off new at all in the other side.

Of course, Sparks acts nothing like Sonic, despite similar appearances. Even though Sparks also shares the same sentiments— wanting freedom— as well as abilities— such as superspeed— Sparks acts more towards the pessimistic side. He’s not as charming as Sonic had been. (And although he does have superspeed, I believe it’s not to the extent that Sonic had.)

Additionally, when Shadow had been taking him back to the orphanage, he really wasn’t forced. Sparks intended to follow him back. Perhaps out of habit. And inevitable loop of escaping but returning once again. But also because if cowardice, knowing he wouldn’t be able to make it by himself. He’s immature, he’s inexperienced, Sparks is aware of that, yet still tries- only to the extent of what he knows he can succeed: aka running away, but never staying away. His cowardice is one of the traits he does not share with Sonic.

During his description of the orphanage to Shadow, he’s a bit of an unreliable narrator. The orphanage isn’t as miserable as Sparks describes it as. It’s a pretty normal orphanage, Sparks is just a troublemaker- and he hates the idea of being trapped in one place.

Anyways, Sparks resembles a star of sorts. He’s a little star themed. <3

[sege-h]

Sonic Movie 3 trailer thoughts, don't read beyond this point if you haven't seen it or otherwise don't want to be spoiled

Pros:

-I'm excited for the fights in this movie but that's not a surprise

-VERY curious as to how they'll handle Shadow and his backstory since Gerald is still in the picture

-I do like Keanu as Shadow although I feel like I need to hear more of the voice to decide if I'm really sold on it

-THE MOTORBIKE i was hoping it'd get used. I Was wondering if the one that's been on tour irl is a prop from the movie but it doesn't look like it? Plus they used it as a movie 3 ad at gamescom even though the backdrop for it used Movie 2 assets just with the 3 logo because like. We had gotten NOTHING yet. No trailer, no posters, just the logo for it.

Cons:

-H a t e that Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles are being called on by the government now. I know this is the most copaganda Sonic of them all just by having Tom be a cop, and Wade being a protagonist too since he got his own show and all (lol. Lmao)

But I didnt expect them to go full in given that in the first 2 movies the military is the secondary bad guy. The story this movie is based on (SA2, obv) is the most anti-military thing ever and it could've easily still been the case for the movie too. Shadow gets out, overconfident military idiots think they can get him back on their own AND get Sonic too in one fell swoop by framing him for Shadow's bad deeds. It's even easier here than in the games because they could just go 'Well we only know one too fast for the naked eye hedgehog alien so its clearly you doing this'

-I've been against Jim Carrey putting on a fat suit from the start. Because I knew that if movie Eggman didn't start out fat (which he didn't) and gets fat later then they'd go for the fatphobic angle of 'ewww hes fat now ewww hes a slob because being fat and a slob go hand in hand guys right am I funny yet huh guys haha do you get my joke yet' and that's EXACTLY what happened in this first trailer alone

Extra notes: I dont know why they think Eggman getting zapped by the quill is so funny that they had to do it 3 times, however I was watching a Sam stream just today where he was like 'if he licks that quill again im gonna fight someone' so I do think it's funny from the aspect of 'oh man theyre gonna get him in the trailer alone' HSDHSHDS

[bexorok]

Poorly written Sonic Movie 3 pitch/outline

I’ve never really written anything in a script format, but I had so many thoughts about the next movie that I had to write them out otherwise my brain would actually explode. I’m kind of bouncing around with scenes I think should be in the movie as well as character introductions. Hope people find some enjoyment out of these!

This is the first couple of scenes I wrote out. I also had a little blurb about the opening credits, but it’s kind of just what the rumored trailer for Sonic 3 reviled at cinamacon was, so there’s not much point of it. Basically, Robotnik now looks like his original game design, and that’s all you really need to know

Introduction Scene

interior, prison island

Sirens are blaring and red lights are going off. We see automated doors closing, followed by an explosion. When the smoke settles, we see Stone and Robotnik together in a walking mech, destroying all doors that close in front of them. Military robots fight back but can do nothing against him.

They enter a final room at the end of the corridor. Inside we see a capsule that’s completely sealed.

Robotnik: We've hit the jackpot, Stone! Right inside this capsule is the key to ultimate power, and finally destroying that pesky hedgehog and his friends once and for all! I will finally have the power to rule over this world, and even more!

(Insert gay pining from Stone, we all know it’s canon)

Robotnik instructs Stone to search the files for the password to enter. He scrolls through the data for a moment before he comes across something.

Stone: M-A-R-I-A … really? A 5 letter password is protecting the key to ultimate power?

Robotnik: Remember Stone, this dusty bucket of bolts is over 50 years old. They were simpler times. Password decoders weren’t even invented, and our current program probably wouldn’t run on this hunk of junk.

He pauses a moment, seemingly thinking back.

Robotnik: Maria, huh? Haven’t heard that name in a long, long time. Still, I wouldn’t have thought of my grandfather as the sentimental type.

He walks over and types in the password. The capsule opens with a cloud of smoke, and an orange light reveals a figure not unlike Sonic’s. His eyes open and glow red as the restraints around him detach.

Robotnik and Stone stare in awe as he steps out. He kneels to the ground on one knee.

Shadow: I am Shadow, the ultimate lifeform, created by doctor Gerald Robotnik. You have awakened me, which can only mean you seek the ultimate power.

Robotnik yells in exasperation: Yes! Finally, a creature who knows its master! Welcome to the team, Shadow the hedgehog

The camera zooms back, revealing prison island, going further until it shows the entire earth, zooming further to reveal space colony ARK. The rendition of “live and learn” from the original trailer plays as the logo for the movie is finally revealed, with ARK shown just underneath.

Cut to an overview of Green Hills, where we see the blur of sonic, quickly followed by tails and knuckles, all laughing and whooping. They go through the forests and mountains of Green Hills, eventually getting to the peak of a mountain top, where Sonic jumps off and is caught by tails. Knuckles follows, gliding next to them. They fly over a house, where we hear Tom shout to them.

Tom: Dinner is ready! Get here quick, before all the burgers and hotdogs are gone!

They all fly down, landing in the backyard, where Tom has the grill set up. At a table nearby, we see Maddie, Rachel, Randel, JoJo, and Ozzy sitting down. Tails quickly flies to a tree house connected to the garage.

Tails: Just have to grab something!

Knuckles steps to the side of the yard, opening what looks like a cellar door.

Knuckles: I will join you all in a moment. I must double check the emeralds status.

Tails flies back from a window in the tree house, carrying with him a gadget.

Tails: It's fine, Knux, we would have gotten an alert if anything happened to the emerald.

Knuckles: Fox, I trust nothing but my own eyes to confirm if the emerald is safe or not.

He opens the doors and goes down a dark flight of stairs.

Maddie: Let him go sweetie, you know how he gets when he’s away from the emerald too long.

Tom: Sonic, do you mind getting the plates from the kitchen?

In a flash, sonic runs inside the house and back again, setting a plate in front of each person at the table.

Tom: Thanks pal!

Maddie nudges Rachel, nodding her head.

Rachel: Alright, I’ll admit it, the weird little alien things are starting to grow on me, especially considering how much JoJo likes spending time with them. But I still don’t know if I want to move to this town.

Sonic: aw, come on, Green Hills is the best town ever! Pulse as long as we're here, it’ll be the safest town ever.

Tails: That's right! We’re patrolling every day, looking for signs of danger! And for the chaos emeralds, of course.

JoJo: Oh yeah, have you guys found any yet?

Tails: (laughs awkwardly) well, not yet. But as soon as I’m done with my tracking device, we’ll be able to use it to hunt them down!

He shows them the device in his hands. It has a radar map on it with a single, large blinking light next to the yard.

Tails: right now it can only detect the master emerald, but once we find a chaos emerald, I can use its energy frequency to find other similar frequencies.

JoJo: Wow! That’s so cool! Mom, can I help them look for the emeralds too?

Rachel: Woah, woah, woah. No way young lady, I can not have you running around the world, you’re still just a kid.

JoJo: but mom! Tails is, like, 8! I’m two whole years older than him! Why can’t I go on cool adventures?

Randal: because, you’re still a *human* kid. You can get hurt a lot more easily than these guys can.

Rachel: hold up, do you mean to tell me that that little scientist who makes bombs and guns is only 8?

Maddie: We were surprised too. You’d have no idea any of these guys were so young if you didn’t ask.

Sonic: mom! We aren’t that young! I’m 14 now, I’m basically a grown up.

Maddie: Okay, Mr. grown up. But most grown ups don’t like getting tucked into bed every night.

Sonic: MOM!

Everyone at the table laughs, and Tom comes to the table with a plate of hot dogs and burger patties. Maddie looks over at Tails, who is still tweaking with his tracker.

Maddie: Miles Prower-Wachowski, what did I say about gizmos at the dinner table?

Tails: oops, sorry mom!

He puts the radar down, where the camera zooms in on the blinking light. We then fade to the room in the cellar. An automated door with an eye scanner blocks the way, and we see Knuckles take the last few steps down the staircase. He approaches the door and puts his eye near the scanner. A red laser appears and scans his eye, confirming his identity and unlocking the door. It opens, and inside the room we see a small shrine (designed after the shrine from sonic adventure 1) and resting on it is the master emerald. Knuckles nods in content.

Knuckles: as long as I am here, no harm will come to the emerald ever again.

[generic-sonic-fan]

Robotnik Family Reunion

Summary: Eggman never really knew his cousin Maria. 

Shadow receives a letter.

(3938 words)

Sonic checked his mail and was not surprised to find an enormous package shoved into the tiny box. He was also not surprised when, upon pulling it out, he saw the logo of the Egg Empire stamped proudly on the side. He rolled his eyes, as if Eggman could see him from here, and brought it back into the house.

“Hey, Tails! Eggman sent me a ‘gift’ again. Give it a once-over some time today, yeah?”

Several bumps, bangs, and crashes echoed from the basement, and Tails popped his head out from the stairwell. “I told you not to bring those into the house!”

Several hours later, Tails had defused the bomb and Sonic was holding the letter.

Happy belated birthday, Sonic! It proclaimed. Here’s a little gift to keep you and the fox on your toes, along with some spending money. Go buy yourself something nice.

Sonic shook the envelope. Out slid a few quarters.

“At least we know he cares.” He rolled his eyes.

He went to throw away the rest of the package, but stopped when he felt something heavy weighing it down. He pulled out several sheets of bubble wrap before finally unveiling another envelope. This one was addressed with To Shadow- Sonic don’t read!

He furled his brows. His number one nemesis couldn’t even stay focused on him on his special day? Gee, happy birthday indeed. He ripped open the envelope and shook out a folded-up letter and something that looked suspiciously like one of Eggman’s personal communicators.

He unfolded the letter.

Dear Shadow,

There’s something of import I would like to discuss with you. What do you say we get together and have a little chat about it? The communicator I’ve included is my personal line. Let me know the time, place, and what restaurant you’d like takeout from, and we’ll make a lunch of it.

You’re likely wondering what exactly it is I’d like to discuss, but before I tell you, allow me to issue a warning to any nosy blue hedgehogs or foxes- SONIC, STOP READING THIS! YOU CALL YOURSELF A ‘HERO’ YET YOU SNOOP IN LETTERS THAT DON’T BELONG TO YOU? PATHETIC!

Anyways, Shadow, as it is, we’re the last two bearing the Robotnik family name, if the file I have on your genetic background is anything to go by. It’s come to my attention that I don’t know much about your side of the family. I’d like to learn a bit more about my cousin, Maria-

Sonic quit reading as his eyes hit the name. He folded the letter back up and slid it back into the envelope.

He carried it and the communicator with him as he went downstairs. Tails had already turned around from his workbench when Sonic opened the door to the workshop.

“Hey, buddy, one more thing for you to look over.” He held up the Egg communicator.

Tails grabbed it and quickly got to work dismantling it.

“You’ll be able to repair that, right?”

“Why?”

“Personal delivery. I’ll be running it to Shadow. Just get rid of all the usual tracking and explode-y stuff Eggface usually puts in there, yeah?”

“Are you sure? This could be a trap, for either one of you.” Tails paused in his work.

“I’m sure.”

—

There was a knock on Shadow’s door. He put down his book and scowled. Rouge had said that putting up the “no soliciting” sign on the door would stop random strangers from intruding into his private life, but he should’ve known better than to believe a flimsy sign would fix the problem.

He got up from his rocking chair and walked over to the door.

“Go away.” He shouted.

Another knock. This asshole wouldn’t know what was coming for them. Shadow looked through the peephole to size up the intruder, only to find a familiar blue color.

He sighed, deeply, before opening the door.

“Hey, Shads-”

“What are you doing here?”

“Great question.” Sonic replied. He held out one of his hands, revealing a heavy envelope with the words To Shadow- Sonic don’t read!

The envelope was open, of course.

“Eggman asked me to play mailman, apparently. Here you go.”

Shadow took the envelope. “Why?”

“Well, you’re gonna have to read it for yourself.” Sonic rubbed the back of his head. “But know that it’s probably some kind of trap. My ‘gifts’ from him usually are.”

“He gives you ‘gifts’?”

“Yeah, he’s weird like that. But hey, Shadow, I mean it. It’s probably a trap. He used a name in there that, um, I don’t think you’d like him using very much.”

Shadow curled his free hand into a tight fist.

“I had Tails look over the communicator he sent with it. He turned off all the location tracking and explosives and stuff, but Eggman will still know your location if you call him on it. If I were you, I’d just throw away the whole thing. He’s probably just trying to get a rise out of you by mentioning you-know-who.”

Shadow looked at Sonic, then back down at the envelope. He then stepped back and began to shut the door, but not before mumbling a brief “thanks.”

He paused by the door, long enough to hear Sonic’s shouted “you’re welcome” from the hallway and long enough to hear him speed off. Then he returned to his rocking chair and tore the letter from the envelope, sending something heavy within it, probably the communicator, tumbling onto the floor. He unfolded the letter.

His grip curled the paper as he read it. He read it again. And again.

He set it on the end table and leaned forward to retrieve the fallen communicator. It was a small red-and-orange device that fit neatly in the palm of his hand. He ran his fingers along the edges of it, though taking care to avoid the button at its base.

Family. Maria had always wanted to know hers better than she did.

He stood up, carrying the communicator with him as he went to the door. After checking the peephole to ensure Sonic wasn’t still somehow waiting out there, (for this seemed to be the type of thing the blue hedgehog would stick around and be irritating about,) he left his apartment and made his way down to the street. Just outside was a park with enough space to gather momentum to get his jet skates going. Very soon after he was on the edge of the city.

He pressed the button at the base of the communicator, and it crackled to life. 

“Gah! How many times have I told you not to use this line when I’m in my-”

“Doctor.”

“Shadow? Oh, Shadow! Count me impressed. How’ve you been?” The doctor’s voice lit up on the other end of the line.

“Why did you send me that letter?”

“I’m frankly amazed you got it at all, between Sonic not messing things up as he always does and you not simply throwing it away the moment you got it. I wouldn’t put it past you.”

“Why did you contact me?” Shadow snapped.

“You do know how to read, hmm?”

“Of course I do.”

“Well, then, what do you say? A little ‘family reunion’ to put in the books?”

“How do I know this isn’t a trap?”

“I’m letting you pick the time and location. You could very well set a trap for me and I’d be none the wiser. I also don’t give out my personal line just on a whim, you know. Imagine how much of a pain Sonic would be if he got ahold of it.”

"Then why did you deliver the letter to him first?"

"I don't know where you live. I suppose I could've hacked your employer's database to get your address, but consider the fact that I didn't as a sign of my courtesy and sincere intent."

"Hmph." Shadow couldn't find any fault with that.

“So what restaurant do you want?”

“Restaurant?”

“Yes, yes, for the takeout.”

“I haven’t told you whether I’ve agreed to this or not.”

“Sonic’s particularly fond of a little hot dog stand in Station Square. I know very little about hedgehog diet, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume you have similar taste, yes?”

“I hate chili dogs.”

“Then do tell?”

Shadow sighed. “There’s an asian fusion restaurant on the corner of 5th and Crystal street in Emerald city.”

Rouge had taken him there once and it had been the best food he’d had since, well, everything.

“Ooh, never took you for the type. I’ll go look at the menu. Now, where will we be meeting up for our little chat?”

“Preferably not in public.”

“Yes, preferably! Unless you want the police to be chasing us down the entire time. I’m a wanted man, you know.” The doctor giggled. 

Shadow closed his eyes and thought for a moment. “There’s an abandoned GUN base, coordinates 53, 46. I’ll meet you there in three hours.”

He pressed the button on the communicator again to end the call. He used the sun to orient himself before taking off in the direction of the coordinates. He could be there in just under two hours, and that was intentional- being early would allow him to ensure the doctor would be true to his word. He skated towards the mountains on the horizon.

—

He arrived fifteen minutes later than planned, but it still gave him time to catch his breath and inspect the ruins for suspicious activity. This base hadn’t been a large one in the first place, and it had been destroyed during an incident a few years back involving severe worldwide seismic instability. Sonic probably had something to do with that, knowing him, but Shadow did not care to know the details.

He’d learned about this spot after the fact, when he’d been sent to retrieve sensitive data and destroy what remained of the databases. Sunlight streamed down from holes in the concrete ceiling, and tall grass and flowers grew up from between the cracks in the floor. Shadow traced in the shredded walls where he’d spin-dashed into the mainframe once he was done with it.

There were no traps, no bugs, and no civilians. He sat down on a concrete chunk and waited.

A jet engine hummed on the horizon, growing into a roar as it came closer. Shadow stood and jogged outside to catch the doctor’s Eggmobile descending from the sky. Its top cover unfurled, revealing the man himself holding two flimsy white foam takeout trays. 

“Doctor.” Shadow greeted.

One of the mobile machine’s walls folded down into a set of steps, and the doctor walked down them.

“You didn’t tell me what to get you, so I picked something at random off the menu.” He grumbled and held one of the trays forward.

Shadow approached. The doctor didn’t react in any nervous manner that could indicate a surprise attack, so he grabbed the tray from him. 

“Some place you’ve picked. A bit morbid for the subject matter, don’t you think?”

“It’s isolated.” Shadow turned and entered the ruined base. “Come on, doctor.”

He followed. “‘Doctor’. A bit formal for family, don’t you think?”

“I wouldn’t go that far.”

“Then at least call me ‘Ivo’.”

“Very well. . . Ivo.”

The name felt familiar, although he’d never heard anyone in this age call him by that. Shadow settled himself on the concrete chunk he’d claimed, placing his tray on his lap, though he didn’t open it yet. 

“So, Maria, hmm?” Ivo held his takeout tray between his hands and sat himself down on a nearby rock. He flicked a bug out of his noodles, before grabbing the fork and taking a bite.

“Get to the point. Tell me what you already know about her.”

“I never knew my cousin. She was only a few years older than I was and she got whisked away to the ARK before I could ever meet her. I assume you might have seen her once or twice up there, eh? That’s why I invited you out here.”

“Gerald was your grandfather.”

“Yes, yes, of course.”

“Did you know him?”

“Oh, vaguely. Nothing like seeing your grandfather publicly executed on live television to spice things up, right?”

Ivo chortled and slapped his knee. Shadow crossed his arms.

“Now, I wasn’t aware you were a fan of dodging the question, hedgehog. Get to the point. Tell me about Maria.”

“Your family never spoke of her?”

“On the contrary!” Ivo stood up, tray in one hand, the other with a finger pointing toward the sky. “They hardly ever shut up about her.”

“Then why are you asking-”

“‘Oh, poor sick Maria! Such a wonderful little girl she is!’” He turned away and cooed to invisible air. “Maria, Maria, Maria. ‘Ivo, let’s go outside and see if we can see the space station pass over us. That way we can all wave to our wonderful Maria’.”

Shadow stared down at the tray he was holding, clenching it hard enough to crunch the foam in. Ivo had fully turned away from him now, gesturing into empty space as if he were leading a symphony.

“Oh, if only Maria had had more time! She would’ve done such marvelous things. Marvelous things like turning the vacuum into a robot to win first prize in the science fair- except that was me. Or maybe she could’ve automated the kitchen to make our meals for us or our laundry to wash itself, but oh, wait, that was also me.” He slapped his palm against his chest. “But who cares about mean little Ivo? ‘Ivo, quit doing that, Ivo, play nicer, Maria wouldn’t be behaving this way’.”

Shadow dropped the tray from his hands and stood up. He turned for the exit of the ruins, but then Ivo snapped around, pointing a finger directly at him.

“How was I supposed to compete with a dead girl, hmm? You tell me.”

“You’re looking for someone to blame.” Shadow spat. 

“I’m- what, no I’m not!”

“I’m not giving you that ammunition. We’re done here.”

Shadow began walking. Once he got clear of the chunks of concrete he’d have enough room to power up his jets and-

“At least take the food with you! I paid for that, ungrateful moron.”

“I’m the ultimate life form. I don’t need to eat.”

“You said this was your favorite restaurant. Come on.”

Shadow stopped, huffed, and turned around. He grabbed the damaged tray from off the ground. A bit of sauce had leaked out from where his grip had torn through the foam. Whatever. 

“I’m not blaming anyone. That would imply that I’ve failed, which I have not.” Ivo said.

“You hate her.”

“I don’t hate her. I hardly even know her.”

“You’ve already made up your mind; what’s the difference?”

“It’s not like you’re any better. You still hate everyone you meet regardless of what you know about them, unless you have some undying love to suddenly proclaim about Sonic or something.”

“Not love, but. . . respect.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I’m not. Unfortunately.”

“He tends to do that. You’d have to be a fool to not respect him. That’s something I learned the hard way,” Ivo sat back down, “after waking up surrounded by the smoldering wreckage of my own creations a few too many times.”

“So you really think that highly of him?”

“Pfft, no. I suppose if you vastly oversimplify things, then perhaps you could construe it that way- but I digress. If I can respect Sonic, then maybe I can respect my late cousin, but only if you enlighten me. Understand?”

“Very well.” Shadow sat back down.

“And please, don’t let your food get cold while you’re at it.”

Shadow threw a glare his way, before popping off the lid of the takeout tray. 

“What was she like, anyway?”

“Nice.”

“Very descript.”

“Kind. Funny, though sometimes annoying. Sick, but you already knew that.”

“Spoiled, no doubt, by all those scientists tending to her beck and call.”

“They didn’t give a damn about her! To them she was one half of the experiment, nothing more. They only wanted results.”

“Oh.”

“They didn’t care how much pain she was in. I was the only one who ever helped her with anything. They saw her only as a nuisance that interfered with project development.” 

“You two were close.”

Shadow shut his mouth and stared at the concrete wall just over Ivo’s shoulder.

“You two grew up together, didn’t you?” Ivo asked. “Tell me what that was like.”

“We only had each other. Gerald was hardly of any help.”

“Of course.”

“We would. . . take care of each other.”

“Naturally.”

Shadow paused.

“Well? Keep going, you’re hardly giving me anything to work with here.”

“You said it yourself, doctor. We grew up together.”

“She was like a sister to you.”

He closed his eyes. “Yes.”

“Oh, Chaos. . . that means it really must’ve messed with your head when they shot her in front of you!”

His eyes snapped open. 

“That must’ve been terrible! You must have been so angry, having the one you thought of as a sister murdered in cold blood. No wonder you were so enraged when I woke you up.”

“I don’t need your useless pity.”

“Surely it’s bothering you that I’m speaking so plainly about her getting shot?”

“It’s the truth, and as I said, I don’t need your pity!”

“Good thing I’m not terribly interested in giving it.”

Shadow rolled his eyes. 

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t see that.” Ivo grabbed his fork again and ate another bite of his noodles. He spoke with his mouth full. “And eat your food. It’s cold by now.”

“Whatever.”

“You still haven’t told me hardly anything about her.”

“What more do you need to know?”

“I don’t know! I still can’t get a clear picture of her. She has to be more than ‘nice’.”

“Then ask.”

“What was her ambition? What did she want to do? What grand and glorious thing was she going to accomplish if only she just had more time?”

Shadow looked at him, before looking down at his food. He took a bite. Spicy. A little bitter. Overall edible. He looked back up at the doctor.

“She wanted to see the world.” He said.

“What?”

“She wanted to see the world. We read about all this,” he gestured to the overgrown ruins surrounding them, “in our books, saw the green grass and blue sky in our pictures, but she wanted to see it for real.”

“That can’t be all. Be more specific; tell me exactly what she wanted.”

“She wanted to feel the wind. She wanted to touch the grass.” Shadow shrugged. “She wanted to climb a mountain and see what it was like at the top.”

“That’s it? No greater ambition, nothing?”

“We were kids.”

“That’s no excuse! When I was a kid, I was already dreaming about world domination-”

“I get the distinct feeling you’re the exception, not the norm.”

Ivo crossed his arms. “I’ll ignore that.”

The wind blew through the hollowed-out remains of the base they sat in, creating a small whistle. Shadow turned his ears to listen. 

“Was she just. . . not smart enough to want anything more?”

“Say that again and I’ll make sure you won’t live to regret it.”

“Alright, alright! Sheesh. She was a Robotnik, after all, I should have figured.” He made a calming gesture. “I simply find it hard to believe that that was the extent of what she wanted.”

“. . . I suppose she did want to help people.” Shadow closed his eyes. “She cobbled together a low-gravity wheelchair for us to use when either of us had a bad pain day after the tests. She also made a set of greenhouse lights, for us to keep our little plants alive.”

Ivo made a ‘hmph’ noise, but said nothing else. 

“We saved the scraps of plants deemed ‘unproductive’ in the greenhouse and tried to grow them ourselves. We kept them on the top shelf of an unused maintenance closet. She built the lights.” Shadow tried to explain more. 

“Fascinating.”

He’d heard the doctor use that word in many different contexts before, but this was the first one he could recall that felt genuine. 

“What else did she want to build?”

“It was less about the building, for her, and more about helping.” Shadow continued. “She was glued to Gerald’s side whenever something was broken and needed fixing.”

“Just like me, but I bet he found her endearing rather than annoying.”

“Not always.”

“Ah, it’s the Robotnik family values, after all! Use your intellect to serve but never accept help. That’s a formula for a hellish household, in case you weren’t aware.”

“It seems I didn’t get the full experience.” Shadow covered his mouth to suppress a laugh.

“Yes, well, you’re adopted! Mostly. Sort of.”

“Our family is a strange one, it would seem.”

“But at least there’s one thing consistent between you, me, and her.”

Shadow raised an eyebrow to humor him.

Ivo grew quiet. “You know, I want to help people-” 

“Not another word.”

The warm feeling in the air between them evaporated. Shadow crossed his arms.

“You didn’t hear what I was going to say! All I’m saying is that if we worked together, then maybe we could fulfill Maria’s dream. I want to build things to help people. Why do you think I’m so hellbent on establishing my empire?”

“You’re trying to manipulate me. I won’t make the same mistake twice.”

“And what are you doing with your life to make her proud, hmm? Working for the same organization that murdered her?”

“It’s different!” Shadow snapped. “If I am their most lethal agent, then nothing like that will ever happen again. I will ensure it.”

“How terribly naive of you. You really are just a child. Sometimes I forget that.”

“And you are an egoist who can’t see past his own blind ambition. You’re hardly different.”

“Oh, am I?”

“Worse. You’re cruel, only caring about how your little experiments benefit yourself regardless of what they do to your victims. You’re no different from all the other scientists aboard the ARK. She would have hated you.” Shadow put his hand on his chest. “Though that’s just my assumption. She did have a rather strange taste in who she called ‘family’.”

“So you’ll be just like everyone else in the family, then? Judging me by a dead girl?”

“Are you finished?” Shadow stood up. “I’ve given you what you want.”

“I guess we are finished here. Thanks for nothing, you useless rodent.”

Shadow tossed his food on the ground, letting it spill out across the grass. Ivo mirrored the gesture, albeit with his empty tray. 

“The feeling is mutual. Let’s not meet again.” Shadow said, before turning to walk away.

“I hope you know what this means, Shadow the Hedgehog! I won’t pull any of my punches should you decide to interfere with any of my future plans!”

“Good, because I won’t pull mine. Goodbye, doctor.”

Shadow dashed from the ruins, firing up his jets to maximum speed as soon as he was clear of them, sending a shock wave ricocheting behind him. 

—

“Hey, Shads, just calling to ask if everything went okay. Eggman is certainly a character. He’s already bad enough as it is- I couldn’t imagine actually being related to him, so, like, if you ever need to talk-”

Shadow deleted the voicemail from his inbox as he held the burning letter. The ashes fell to the ground, joining the broken shards of the communicator.  

[animaginaryartblog]

[Image ID: a colored sketch of several Sonic the Hedgehog characters, each redesigned to resemble a corresponding Yu-Gi-Oh! character. In the top left is a logo reading "Heart of the Chaos", with text under that says "A Sonic the Hedgehog x Yu-Gi-Oh! AU".

From left to right: Shadow is Kaiba, with his trademark white coat. His undershirt is red, his pants are black, and he wears black-and-red boots and gloves. He stands proudly, shoulders back as he glares at the camera.

Next to him is Maria as Mokuba. She is a head taller than Shadow and has been given a suitably Robotnik nose. She wears a blue dress that matches her eyes with a black vest on top. She has a white scarf around her neck and white shoes. She smiles with just a hint of mischief.

Next is Eggman as Pegasus. He is two heads taller than Maria. He wears a fancy red suit with a frilly white cravat, white pants, and red and white shoes. His mustache is neatly groomed. His right eye is covered by a black lens as usual, while his left eye has been replaced by the Phantom Ruby from Sonic Forces. He stands with one arm behind his back and the other at his chest, grinning smugly.

After Eggman is Surge as Malik/Marik Ishtar. Her ponytail points to either side, forming an almost wing-like shape. She wears a black crop top, yellow flared pants, and yellow, black, and white sneakers. Gold bracelets adorn her upper arms, and gold earrings dangle from her ears. On her left hand she wears a black glove with the Tricore from the IDW comics. She stands with one hand on her hip, looking off to the side with a smirk.

Beside Surge is Kit as Rishid/Odion Ishtar. He is a head shorter than Surge. He wears a floor-length hooded purple robe, black shirt and pants, yellow belts, and yellow, black, and white shoes. He also wears black gauntlets studded with metal. He stands with hands slightly raised, staring straight ahead with a flat expression.

Finally, Blaze as Isis/Ishizu Ishtar stands apart fro the rest, looking off to the side uncomfortably. She wears plain cream robes with a gold belt and pink high heels. She has a golden crown of sorts on her head. Around her neck is a gold necklace with a red Sol Emerald affixed to it. /end ID]

Yu-Gi-Oh!, part the third. Malik!Surge and Rishid!Kit was the best brainwave I've had for this AU, it works so well. I might even use it in reverse for my Sonic/Yu-Gi-Oh! AU, too. though that only works if I keep Yami Yugi as Sonic, which I'm thinking of changing. and I already had a very amusing slot for the Ishtars... hmm, decisions, decisions.

Other drawings of this AU: Tails!Yugi and Sonic!Yami | Friendship Gang | Ancient Egypt Gang

[mach-speed-spin]

Beyblade character design analysis: Zac Kaneguro

Link to the masterpost. This took a while but life kept getting in the way. But anyways, here's Zac

As always, we're starting from the top. He has long blond hair with red highlights (do they count as highlights?). Burst has several characters with this color scheme but Zac is the first. I can't find any deeper meaning to this other than it looks good visually and the blond hair works with the yellow highlights on his bey. As for looking good visually, Zac cares about how he is perceived by fans, and his design is a reflection of that

He wears a choker with the triangle logo we see a lot in Burst. Even after all these years I still don't know what the logo represents, but it's worn by many bladers. Zac may be seen by many as a performer first, but being a blader is an important part of his identity

The jacket is pretty stylish. It's very realistic in the sense that I could see people wearing this in real life, unlike many other bladers' clothing. The color scheme matches that of Zeus

Fingerless gloves are a blader staple, but they're not as attention-grabbing at a first glance. Zac internally may be as much of a blader as he is an idol, but the world doesn't see it that way. To many fans, he is an idol first, and while he can incorporate blading elements just fine, he doesn't want to overdo it. The following is just my speculation, but I suspect this may be due to Zac not wanting to alienate his main audience who don't care much about blading. "The idol who's a blader on the side" appeals to a wider audience that "the blader who's an idol on the side"

His shirt is white with a yellow stripe. The yellow is there to match his bey, but what about the white? My best guess is that a darker color like black would cause Zac to have an "edgier" look that goes against his public persona. He presents himself to the world as cool, but in a cheery, friendly way. He's cool but his cool is the opposite of Shadow the Hedgehog's cool

He has a red belt with a gold Z on it. I'm pretty sure Wakiya had a similar belt. It's pretty simple, the Z stands for both Zac and Zeus (Burst does this a lot)

The pants and shoes don't really have anything going on. They're stylish, but have nothing of note

The mask doesn't include anything new but I thought I'd include it here because it's a precursor to Red Eye's disguise that couldn't fool the audience because of how bad it was at hiding his identity despite somehow working on the characters

Overall, Zac's look is stylish, but not as extreme as many other characters. He's one of the characters whose sense of fashion translates the best to real life because most people, in-universe, are Zac fans for reasons unrelated to blading. Thus, he presents himself in a more subdued manner compared to exaggerated styles associated with bladers, even if there are still traces of that with Zac

[tenebraevesper]

Sonic Cyber Revolution, Entry 33: The Blazing Guardian

''I never said I can sit in silence (in silence). You cannot blame me for never trying. See the inferno rise! I am not scared of the things you do, when you go down I go down with you! We can go crazy inside and then we deny – inferno! We cannot get everything we need, the Inferno is what we feed! When you give it to me it's all that I need – inferno!''

– Inferno by Amaranthe

xXxXxXx

''So, not only do we have to deal with Dr. Eggman, but Dr. Starline as well?'' Minami rose an eyebrow, staring at Lucas just as he made the announcement. All of Team Neos was at the Taylor Workshop after Lucas had called them over to explain what had happened earlier in the day.

''That appears to be the case… unless you know someone else who uses a line of stars over a white and grey toothpaste as their logo,'' Warren said. Minami simply snorted in response.

''It is good that we can now connect a face and name to the perpetrator, but could you give us more information about who this Dr. Starline is?'' Knuckles asked, turning to Lucas. He had managed to recover from having his power drained via Chaos Surge, just like Sonic and Tails did.

''Well, Dr. Starline is another character from the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, mainly appearing in the comic books. He is known as a genius scientist and a deep admirer of Dr. Eggman-'' Lucas explained, only for Lily to interrupt him.

''In other words, he's a crazy Eggman fanboy who takes his admiration for his idol to another level,'' she said.

''Why would anyone be a fan of Dr. Eggman or admire his work?'' Silver asked. ''He had hurt a lot of people; what is there to admire?''

''Have you missed out the part where I described him as crazy?'' Lily asked. Silver shrugged, with Lily figuring that he was clearly not aware just how insane Starline could be.

''Dr. Starline being behind this does make sense, but the question is why he would attempt drain Sonic, Tails and Knuckles of their powers,'' Makoto said. Lucas, who was leaning against the work desk at the workshop, already had an answer.

''Speed, Fly and Power – those abilities make up the Power Cores in Sonic Heroes,'' he explained. ''In short, I think Starline is trying to create the Tricore, which would give him the abilities of speed, flight and raw power.''

''Wait, what?'' Sonic rose an eyebrow, his mind completely blanking out on that assumption. He was lying on the couch. ''How would that work? Moreover, why do you think he'd do that?''

''Well, it is similar to what his character did in the comics, so that was my first assumption,'' Lucas admitted in a sheepish tone, getting an unimpressed look from Sonic. ''But, it does make sense.''

''Do you think that Dr. Starline did it under Dr. Eggman's orders?'' Touka asked. Aside from the Irregulars, she had the least amount of knowledge in regards to any of the Sonic the Hedgehog video game and comic book lore.

''I don't think so-'' Lucas replied, with Minami then interrupting him.

''I'd be shocked if Starline isn't working with Eggman at this point. We might not know where he is, but I'm certain that the platypus has definitely figured out a way to find him,'' she said. ''It's like those stalkers who find little details in photos to locate the homes of celebrities and then break into their houses.''

''Sheesh…'' Silver rose an eyebrow, feeling a bit disturbed.

''Right,'' Lucas muttered, sighing. ''So, it would be smart to keep an eye out for both. We might get attacked any day.''

''I hope it won't be tomorrow, because Amy and I already have plans,'' Minami replied.

''What plans do you have?'' Shadow asked curiously, glancing at Amy. Amy smiled, tapping on her AR Visor and showing everyone a news article on the holographic screen.

''Minami and I have learned that the imperial princess, Sana Jai of the Surya Empire is coming to Neos City tomorrow for an official visit. Isn't that exciting?'' she said, clasping her hands. Her initial excitement quickly deflated when she saw the lack of reaction from the others. She puffed up her cheeks. ''Don't you guys have anything to say?''

''Having royalty from another country visit Neos City does sound interesting. But, it's not like you're going to meet her in person,'' Knuckles said.

''Maybe, but Minami and I'd still love to see her,'' Amy replied. ''Is nobody interested?''

''I am,'' Lily said. ''Knuckles and I don't have any plans for tomorrow, so we could go along with you.''

Knuckles nodded in argeement, with Minami and Amy then exchanging glances, looking deviously at the rest of the team.

''What about the rest of you guys?'' Minami asked.

''Do you want to join us?'' Amy asked, both of them looking at everyone in anticipation. Even Lily and Knuckles joined them. Lucas, Sonic, Warren, Tails, Makoto, Silver, Touka and Shadow exchanged glances with each other, clearly not looking too interested about this.

''No, thanks,'' Touka responded in a curt tone, glancing at Lucas. ''Shadow and I were only here to learn more about Dr. Starline.''

''If you don't have anything more to say, we'll be leaving,'' Shadow added, with Lucas shaking his head, and the two then leaving. Minami frowned as she watched Touka and Shadow leaving.

''I suppose it was expected from these two to just up and leave,'' she said, placing her hands on her hips and then turned towards the rest of the group. ''What do you guys say?''

''I'm sorry, but Warren and I had planned to examine those AR Field generators Dr. Starline had created,'' Tails replied, holding up one of the devices. ''We want to know how he had managed to manipulate them in such way that we were unable to exit them.''

''Considering how they had self-destructed, we'll be spending a good chunk of the day trying to fix them,'' Warren added. ''Therefore, we can't join you.''

''I see… Sonic, Lucas, what about you two?'' Amy asked curiously. Sonic sat up on the couch, exchanging glances with Lucas, both of them being unusually silent.

''Well… We'll be doing our own thing,'' Sonic responded, placing his hands behind his back. ''Sorry, Amy.''

Amy looked slightly disappointed, with her, Minami, Knuckles and Lily turning towards Makoto and Silver, with Makoto looking more nervous than Silver. ''So, that leaves you two…''

''Uhhh, why are you giving us those looks?'' Silver asked, a little confused.

''You're going to accompany us tomorrow, right, Silver, Makoto?'' Minami asked, smiling innocently. Makoto did not like the look she was giving him. Being childhood friends with her, he recognized it easily as the tone she'd usually use to get whatever she wanted. Silver, who had less experience with Minami's manipulative nature, had no idea what was coming at him.

''Uh, well…'' Makoto trailed off, with Minami narrowing her eyes, puffing up her cheeks. Makoto gulped in response. ''We don't have any plans for tomorrow, so I guess we could…''

''Great!'' Minami was suddenly all smiles and sunshine, while Makoto just sighed in resignation. Silver, while noting Makoto's anxiety, still remained confused in regards to what exactly Minami had done to make Makoto agree. He whispered to Knuckles.

''Why do I feel as if Makoto and Minami had an entire conversation in their heads?''

Knuckles snorted, arms folded across his chest, and smirked. ''From what I understand, it appears that you and Makoto only have the illusion of a choice. Makoto also doesn't appear to be someone who can easily stand up to people, especially Minami.''

Silver's expression fell, only for him to make a mental note to help his partner overcome his timidness. Once the conversation was done, everyone left the Taylor Workshop, Lucas and Sonic being the last ones to leave.

''I know I told Amy that we had plans for tomorrow, but you haven't really told me what those plans are,'' Sonic said.

''Admittedly, I didn't really plan anything. I had just figured that I should listen to the advice from Warren and Tails and suggest that we spend time together,'' Lucas admitted.

''Ah, I see. It's going to be a random adventure, then. I like that,'' Sonic replied.

xXx

''I didn't expect there would be so many people here,'' Lily commented on the large crowd that had gathered in front of the hotel where the imperial princess would be driven to. A good chunk of the crowd were news reporters and photographs, but there were also onlookers like them. ''It's not like this visit had been advertised as a city-wide event.''

''Still, Neos City is being visited by royalty from a different country, and that's not something that happens every day,'' Minami said.

''What importance does this country have?'' Knuckles curiously asked.

''The Surya Empire is famous for its rare spices, producing around 70% of it and exporting them to other countries. Without it, we wouldn't have food like curry-based meals,'' Makoto explained, only to narrow his eyes as he put on a thoughtful look. ''Unfortunately, the Surya Empire is also the country with the highest rate of piracy, especially since the empire also covers the archipelago and most of the trade is done via ships. There are many small and isolated islands where only a few people live, so the food, medicine and other necessities are delivered to them via trade ships.''

''I had no idea about that,'' Silver suddenly said, listening intently to Makoto's explanation. ''I thought that people just would flock to cities since that's where they can get food and other stuff, not stay on an isolated island.''

''To me, it sounds like those people made their life on the islands and wouldn't leave them so easily, even with the temptation of all the comfort that other settlements offer,'' Knuckles said.

''I see,'' Silver muttered, nodding in acknowledgement.

''I have read somewhere that, recently, the Surya Empire had begun dealing with piracy on a more systematic level. Something about finding a way to handle pirates the moment they get spotted,'' Amy added. ''I don't really know what they do specifically, though… Hey, look!''

The crowd turned to the street, all looking in anticipation at the limousine that arrived in front of the hotel, with some government officials waiting in front of it, including the mayor of Neos City. The driver got out, walking towards the back of the car and opened the door, but to the shock of the crowd, no one was there. Dumbfounded, the driver looked around the back of the limousine, with some of the officials joining them as he hastily explained to them that he did indeed drive the princess over here, but had no explanation for how she managed to vanish.

''Maybe the princess knows how to turn invisible,'' Knuckles commented in a snarky tone, folding his arms as the crowd started to get antsy and whisper. He could hear the rumors of a possible kidnapping spreading like wildfire.

''Do you guys really think she had been kidnapped?'' Silver asked his friends, having picked up on what the people around him were saying. The group just exchanged looks, unsure what to believe.

xXx

''I told you, this was a bad idea! I wouldn't have gone along with it if it wasn't my duty to protect you, Sana.''

''I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause any trouble, Blaze.''

Blaze the Cat sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose and supporting that arm with her other as she thought about the situation they found themselves in. Blaze was lavender-furred, anthropomorphic cat with gold eyes, a small black nose, and a white-furred muzzle. She had triangular ears with peach-colored canals on top of her head, two medium-length eyelashes on each side of her eyes, and a long tail with the end frayed and violet. Her fur was longer on each side of her head and sweeped slightly upwards. She had four plumes of hair with violet tips done up in a high ponytail with a red hair tie. She also had a red oval gem on her forehead, resembling a Bindi. For attire, Blaze wore a purple tailcoat with rose trim at the bottom, a gold collar, and white leggings. She also wore white gloves with fluffy cuffs and rose, high-heeled shoes with gray soles, white stripes, and fluffy cuffs, like her gloves.

The person Blaze was talking to was her partner, the Imperial Princess of the Surya Empire, Sana Jai, a 14-year-old teenager. She had long black hair and dark brown eyes, and she was wearing a purple ruffled short-sleeved top, a long red skirt with golden vine-like patterns, red pants and sandals. Her long bangs were held up on the back of her head with a golden clip. Sana had also tried to hide her identity under a huge brown cap and sunglasses, hoping that no one would recognize her. However, she did notice some people giving her weird looks and she was afraid that they would realize who she really is.

''We need to return back to the hotel immediately and explain the situation,'' Blaze told her. ''I'm sure they are worried about us and searching for us. It is our duty to return back and apologize for leaving, as well as proceed with the rest of the visit as planned.''

Sana sighed, taking off her sunglasses as she crouched down to be at Blaze's eye-level.

''I know that that is what we're supposed to do, but then the visit would turn into a working vacation instead of an actual vacation as I had planned. You know well that I agreed to this because I wanted to go out on my own, without being accompanied by a tons of bodyguards or follow any set route of visiting Neos City,'' she explained. ''Even my parents agreed to it.''

''Your parents only agreed because you volunteered me as your bodyguard,'' Blaze pointed out in a snarky tone. Sana smiled back in response.

''That is because you're the best. As the Blazing Guardian, your status is the same as that of the imperial princess. You are responsible, polite and formal, keeping track of your duties, and you are very self-reliant. Not to mention, they know just how close you and I are,'' she replied. Blaze looked flustered for a moment due to the barrage of compliments, but she quickly collected herself.

''Indeed, and that responsibility is why I followed you after you sneaked out of the limousine before it drove off. It is also why I strongly suggest that we return,'' Blaze responded. ''Don't forget, you don't know your way around Neos City. What if we get lost?''

''Don't worry, as long as we have my AR Visor and we know the name of the hotel, we'll find our way back. Absolutely nothing can go wrong,'' Sana assured her, pointing at her sunglasses and got up. Blaze still didn't look convinced.

''Sonic, wait up!''

''Didn't you say you wanted to test the limits of your hoverboard? Com'n, I can outrun you while blind!''

''Watch out!''

There was a skidding sound as a blue blur entered the narrow street, clearly not looking at all where he was going because he was looking back at his partner, and colliding with Sana. Both fell on the ground, with Sana hearing a crunching sound beneath her.

''Sana!''

''Sonic!''

Blaze quickly rushed towards Sana to help her up, shooting a glare at the blue hedgehog who was also sitting on the ground, rubbing his head, and was helped up by a teenage boy on a hoverboard.

''Okay, maybe that wasn't the best idea…'' Sonic muttered as he got up, only for Blaze to grit her teeth and her temper to flare up.

''Have you no eyes?! Watch our where you're running!'' Blaze yelled at Sonic, who flinched in response, his eyes wide as he saw sparks of ember forming around the cat in before him.

''I'm really sorry, I don't meant to collide with you two. Usually, I'm way better at keeping track where I'm going,'' Sonic explained. Blaze was still angry at him, but Sana shook her head.

''Don't worry, I'm fine. It's not like you did it intentionally,'' she said, looking around for the sunglasses she had dropped, only to see them broken on the ground. ''Oh, no…''

She quickly picked them up, noting how one of the temples broke off and the glass itself was cracked up. Blaze, who saw the broken AR Visor, sighed, rubbing her temple in exasperation, '''Absolutely nothing can go wrong', you said. Why do I have the feeling that something in this vast universe heard you and decided to play a cruel prank on us?''

''I'm really sorry for what happened! Maybe I can pay for the repairs?'' Lucas told them.

''Don't worry, it's fine. I have a spare AR Visor, although not currently on me,'' Sana responded, sweatdropping as she realized that now she had nothing that could help her find their way back to the hotel. ''Although, I guess our vacation is cancelled.''

Lucas observed her and the ARNav next to her carefully, well aware that the cat ARNav was another Sonic character. ''I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Lucas Kinomoto, and my friend over here is Sonic the Hedgehog. Who are you?''

''Nice to meet you, Lucas. I'm Sana Jai, and this is my partner, Blaze the Cat-'' Sana said, only to slap her hand over her mouth, while Blaze gave her an alarmed look. They were supposed to be incognito! However, going by Lucas and Sonic's reaction, who were more confused by Sana's alarmed look, the two didn't seem to even recognize who Sana was, with Lucas having only focused on Blaze.

''If you're here on vacation, we could show you around,'' Sonic suggested. Blaze didn't look too happy about the suggestion, as she was a bit suspicious of the two, especially with Lucas sneaking glances at her, but Sana seemed to be more appreciative.

''Really, that would be great!''

''Wait a sec, are you the imperial princess of the Surya Empire?'' Lucas suddenly asked, finally connecting the dots. Sana froze, realizing that her idea of going around incognito wasn't going to happen.

''Y-Yeah,'' she admitted.

''I-I'm sorry for not recognizing your name, Princess, I didn't mean to-'' Lucas said sheepishly, fearing that he offended her, but Sana shook her head.

''You don't have to get formal with me. I blew my own cover after all,'' she said.

''I suppose that now, we don't have any choice but finally return to the hotel,'' Blaze said. Sonic placed his hands behind the back of his head.

''Or you could come along with us. The offer still stands,'' he said.

''Really?'' Sana was surprised, smiling when she saw Sonic nodding.

''Yeah, why not? You said you were here on vacation and you clearly don't want to go back to whereever you're staying. Just tell us where you want to go, and we'll bring you there,'' Sonic replied, pointing with his thumb at himself. ''After all, I know Neos City like the back of my hand.''

''What do you think, Blaze? I'd love to accept the offer,'' Sana said. Blaze gave her a look of disapproval, having not gotten a good first impression of Lucas and, especially, Sonic, but she knew that this meant a lot to Sana, and she herself broke a bunch of rules just to make her happy. At least it seemed that the two weren't going to rat them out to the authorities.

''I guess we don't have much of a choice,'' Blaze sighed in resignation.

''Great!'' Sana exclaimed happily, turning to Sonic and Lucas. ''We would love to go sightseeing. Are there any places or landmarks you frequently visit?''

Sonic and Lucas exchanged glances, and then nodded in response.

xXx

Ferra leaned against the wall and, together with Metal Sonic, observed Dr. Starline as he followed Dr. Eggman, commenting on the latter's latest projects, praising his genius, acting like a child in a candy store. Fortunately, aside from a couple of snide remarks, Starline ignored them, focusing more on his conversations with Eggman, and Eggman himself was too busy with his next project to pay any attention to them. Ferra and Metal Sonic knew well what he was up to and that they, for now, weren't needed, so instead of hanging around at the base while doing nothing, they decided to leave. So far, the only person noticing them leaving was Orbot.

''Where are you two going?'' Orbot asked them as they walked past him.

''If Dr. Eggman asks, we went to antagonize Sonic… or something like that,'' Ferra responded. Metal Sonic glanced at her curiously. Admittedly, he was always for fighting Sonic, especially after his latest victory, but he had to wonder whether Ferra had anything specific on mind.

                                                                                           xXx

''I'm surprised that the hoverboard is capable of holding both of our weights,'' Sana said, standing behind Lucas, her hands wrapped around his torso.

''Let's just say that my hoverboard has a bunch of modifications a close friend of mine made,'' Lucas replied. ''That also includes an accelerator that makes it way faster than commerical hoverboards.''

''Unfortunately, it's still not fast enough to match my speed,'' Sonic commented, racing beside them. Next to him was Blaze, using her fire powers to propel herself forward and keep up with him with ease.

''Why have you decided to help us? I understand repaying Sana for her broken AR Visor, but still, you have no obligation to go this far,'' Blaze asked. Sonic gave her a confused look for a moment, then smirked.

''What are you talking about? We're here to have fun!'' he replied. Blaze was genuinely stunned by his carefree response, but still followed him as they went through Sentoraru. Both Sonic and Lucas had either pointed out or told them about all the important locations at Neos City, and Blaze knew that she and Sana wouldn't be able to see all of them, as they were here only for a day. ''Next stop is Solar Stadium, where everyone gathers for hoverboard races. Do you guys participate in hoverboard races?''

''No,'' Blaze replied in a blunt tone, shaking her head. ''We don't have the time to participate in sports events.''

''While we do have hovercraft technology, hoverboard racing also isn't as popular in our home country as it is here,'' Sana added. Lucas and Sonic exchanged glances, and just snorted in amusement, well aware that one of their friends would be quite disappointed to hear that. Once they arrived at Solar Stadium, Sana got off Lucas' hoverboard, amazed by how many people there were. Blaze stood close to her partner, keeping an eye out for anyone suspicious and not wanting to draw too much attention to themselves, only to get startled and Sonic ran ahead towards two people, greeting them and dragging them towards their little group.

''Blaze, Sana, these are my friends; Shadow and Touka!'' Sonic quickly introduced them. Sana waved at the two, both her and Blaze noting that neither Touka nor Shadow seemed to be keen on socializing.

''Wait, are you the…?'' Touka trailed off when she saw Lucas shaking his head, clearly not wanting her to say anything.

''Sonic and Lucas had been showing us around Neos City and suggested visiting the Solar Stadium,'' Blaze explained. ''I assume you two are hoverboard racers.''

''You're right, but someone else is currently hogging the track we wanted to race on,'' Touka said, slightly bitter. As if on cue, Chase and Jet emerged from the AR Field, shouting in victory. ''They've been at it for the past two hours.''

''Why don't you confront them about it?'' Blaze asked.

''We've actually been thinking about challenging them, but we'd prefer to wait until their arrogance has reached its peak to topple them,'' Shadow explained, with both Sana and Blaze giving them a confused look. Shadow then turned to Sonic, not looking all too happy. ''Jet wants to challenge you to another race.''

''What have you told him?'' Sonic asked.

''That I'm not your secretary and to ask you in person,'' Shadow growled, with Sonic sweatdropping, rubbing the back of his head.

''I'll keep that in mind.''

xXx

''This is the Taylor Workshop!''

After having left Solar Stadium, they passed through Erekiteru and went towards Eas, as Sonic suggested that they show Sana and Blaze the suburbs, and he also wanted to introduce the two to his other friends. They entered the workshop, with Warren and Tails being surprised at the newcomers.

''Uh, hello?'' Tails got up, turning towards Sana and Blaze. Before he could say anything, Sonic quickly got between them to introduce each other.

''Sana, Blaze, this is my little buddy, Tails, and this is Warren, Lucas' childhood buddy. Tails, Warren, these are Sana and Blaze.''

''Nice to meet you,'' Warren said, him and Tails shaking hands with the two, only for their eyes to widen as they recognized the imperial princess. ''Uh, I have so many questions right now…''

''Sonic and I kind of ran into Sana and Blaze, who are on vacation, and we agreed to show them around,'' Lucas quickly explained.

''I see. Do you guys know that there is a rumor going around on social media about you two being kidnapped?'' Warren said, glancing at Sana and Blaze. Blaze's eyes narrowed and she looked at her partner, who just grinned back sheepishly.

''I… I didn't expect that things would blow up like this,'' she admitted. Blaze sighed, folding her arms across her chest.

''I had told you from the start that we should've returned back. It is obvious no one has been informed that you are perfectly safe as long as you are with me,'' she said.

''What do you plan to do now?'' Sonic asked them. ''We have just arrived in Eas, and we haven't even shown you Kita, Souto and Westoru. And that's not even covering what lurks at Infinity Forest.''

''Honestly, I wish I could see more of Neos City, and I had hoped that we would have more time, but Blaze is right. I thought that I'd be able to return in time, but now I'm worried that, if they decide to inform my parents, my disappearance might cause an international incident,'' Sana replied in a somber tone. ''I really hadn't been thinking how my actions would affect others. I'm so sorry, Blaze.''

''Sana…'' Blaze looked at her partner, her ears drooping slightly as she felt genuinely sorry for her. Sana had always discussed how she wanted a day off, not only for herself, but also for Blaze. ''I understand that we haven't had the opportunity to spend any time together because of my own duties to the Surya Empire and its people. You had to literally drag me to this 'vacation' while assuring me that things would be fine, and instead of trying to enjoy myself for your sake, I was just berating you. I apologize for my behavior.''

''Don't worry about it,'' Sana replied. ''I should've listened to you, and now, I need to take responsibility for my actions and tell everyone there was no kidnapping and that I just ran off.''

''If you want, I could come along and tell everyone that this was my idea,'' Sonic suddenly said, with everyone looking stunned by his suggestion.

''You know that you're going to get yourself into a lot of trouble,'' Blaze told him in a serious tone.

''Don't worry, I don't mind playing the bad guy, especially if it's for the sake of someone else,'' Sonic replied, giving her a confident smile. Blaze blinked, genuinely shocked by how audacious, yet nonchalant Sonic was. This was no small matter, yet he treated it like it was no big deal. Not to mention, she and Sana have just met Sonic and were still strangers to him, but he treated them like they were longtime friends. It really baffled her.

''You… don't have to do anything,'' Blaze muttered, raising her voice as she gave the blue hedgehog a determined look, ''I am the Blazing Guardian, and I should be the one to-'' Blaze got cut off by her own stomach growling. She blushed, her eyes darting downwards as she didn't even realize just how hungry she was until now.

''I don't think we ate anything since we had arrived,'' Sana noted.

''Do you guys like chili dogs?'' Sonic asked, with Sana and Blaze giving him a surprised look. ''I know a really good vendor, but unfortunately, his chili dog stand is aaaaaaaaall the way back at Westoru, the western side of the city. As a matter of fact, I think he might be at Eden Botanical Garden. I know it is quite far, but it's worth for the food alone.''

Lucas furrowed a brow, well aware what Sonic was up to, with the blue hedgehog waiting for an answer from Sana and Blaze. Fortunately, both have caught on.

''Well, I don't think we could go back on an empty stomach. I might faint from the lack of energy,'' Sana said, glancing at Blaze.

''As your partner, I cannot allow that to happen. I suppose that we could take you up on your offer,'' Blaze added, a small smile on her lips. She knew that she was bending, if not even breaking the rules here, but her duty was always towards the people of Surya Empire, and Sana's happiness and safety was her current priority. Sonic, in turn, just gave them a thumbs up.

xXx

''I really wonder what happened to the imperial princess,'' Makoto muttered. ''I hope she's fine.''

He and Silver were walking through Eden's outside garden near the small lake, having left Minami, Amy, Lily and Knuckles earlier after the whole ''disappeared princess'' fiasco. Silver gave him an encouraging smile.

''I'm sure they'll find them. From what I've seen, everyone is on the case,'' he replied. ''Speaking of case, I noticed that Minami really intimidated you.''

''Eh?'' Makoto was stunned by the sudden change in direction in their conversation. However, he quickly caught on, lowering his head. ''Well, Minami can be a really intimidating person, and while we are childhood friends, she would easily drag me into things I'd stay clear off.''

''If you want, I could help you learn how to stand up for yourself,'' Silver said, clenching his hands into fists and giving him a determined look. Makoto snorted, feeling a strange sense of warmth spreading through his chest.

''Don't worry about me. I know Minami long enough to know how to handle her,'' Makoto assured him.

''Perhaps you should listen to Silver, for your own sake.''

Both Makoto and Silver suddenly looked up, only to be shocked to see Ferra and Metal Sonic standing on the other end of the clearing. ''Ferra! Metal Sonic! What are you doing here?!''

''Don't tell me that we're banned from entering Eden,'' Ferra said in a snarky tone, with Makoto and Silver shooting them a glare.

''Last time you were here, you almost drowned Sonic!'' Silver shouted, glaring at Metal Sonic specifically. Metal Sonic just gave them a cold look.

''Speaking of Metal's inferior clone, where is Sonic?'' Ferra asked.

''None of your business!'' Makoto growled.

Suddenly, Metal charged forward, grabbing Silver by his chest fur and slammed him against a nearby tree. Silver cried out in pain, but then quickly used his psychokinesis to grab Metal Sonic and throw him away. However, Metal Sonic manage to charge up mid-air and fire an energy blast at Silver. Silver held up his hand, creating a barrier to block the attack. He then used his psychokinesis to fly towards Metal Sonic, but the latter started to rapid fire smaller energy blasts at Silver as he did several quick charges in succession.

Fortunately for Silver, those energy blasts were blocked by a stream of fire. All four of them turned to the source, that being Blaze holding up her hand and judging the situation before her. She was accompanied by Sana, Lucas and Sonic, the latter holding a chili dog in his hand.

''This is a botanical garden, not a battle field,'' Blaze stated, glaring at both Metal Sonic and Silver. ''I won't let you ruin it.''

''W-Wait, I was protecting Eden!'' Silver quickly replied, trying to explain the situation, only to see Metal Sonic suddenly being laser-focused on Sonic, who was still munching on the chili dog. Metal Sonic then charged at his counterpart, only for Sonic to smirk and throw the chili dog up in the air, then quickly spindashed at Metal Sonic and knocked him back, then returned and caught the chili dog.

''Hmmm, what was the rule again? No fighting for an hour after eating?'' Sonic said, giving Metal Sonic a mocking look. Metal Sonic's red eyes flared up as he glared daggers at Sonic, who finished his chili dog.

''That's the rule for swimming,'' Blaze told him in a deadpan tone, sweatdropping. What is with this attitude?

''I was just riling Metal Sonic up. Don't you also do some pre-fight banter?'' Sonic asked.

''….No?'' Blaze raised an eyebrow, with Silver landing next to them.

''I don't think we know each other. My name is Silver,'' Silver introduced himself.

''I'm Blaze, and I think we can do proper introductions later,'' Blaze said, her, Silver and Sonic turning towards Metal Sonic, who appeared to be ready to take on all of them. Ferra, on the other hand, looked curiously at the cat ARNav.

''I see… So, you guys found another Irregular from the Sonic video games,'' she said. ''You must be so proud of yourselves.''

''What are you talking about?'' Sana asked. Admittedly, she didn't really have the time to play any video games, so she was clueless in regards to Ferra's comment.

''Look, if you want to fight, we'll fight. If you want to talk, then at least invite us to a coffee or something,'' Sonic replied. Ferra furrowed a brow, staring at the three and calculating her and Metal's chances. It was a three against one battle, something both her and Metal Sonic were aware of, and there was no way Sonic's friends wouldn't help him. It was obvious they were at a disadvantage, even if they used Chaos Surge.

''Metal!'' Ferra called out, with Metal Sonic rushing towards her, both of their arms outstretched. ''Chaos Surge!''

Lucas and Makoto frowned as they saw the powered-up Metal Sonic charging up rapidly for another energy blast, firing it at them before they could even react with a counterplan of their own. However, Blaze rushed straight towards Metal Sonic, clueless about what the Chaos Surge actually did to him. She put her hands together just as Metal Sonic fired the energy blast, countering with a blast of fire of her own. Her eyes widened in shock when Metal Sonic's attack overpowered her own.

''Watch out!''

There was an explosion, with smoke covering the area. Sonic dashed into it, trying to find Blaze, only to see her being held bridal-style by Silver, who managed to get in-between her and the explosion and put up a barrier that was strong enough to endure the blast, before breaking apart.

''Blaze, are you okay?'' Silver asked her as he put her down.

''I am, but- what was that? That attack was way stronger than before,'' Blaze said. She and Silver turned to Sonic, who was looking at where Metal and Ferra stood earlier.

''It looks like it was just a distraction. They didn't want to fight all three of us,'' Sonic told them.

''I assume this wasn't your first encounter with them,'' Blaze said. Sonic placed his hands on the back of his head, smirking.

''You don't even know half of the story,'' he replied.

xXx

''I can't believe that you're fighting pirates all by yourself, Blaze,'' Amy said, holding a cup of tea.

''Ensuring the safety of the Surya Empire is a duty I have chosen, and while it may be rough at times, I won't back down. Fortunately, I do have support from a friend of mine, Marine, when at seas, and when at home, Sana is the one who makes sure I don't overwork myself,'' Blaze said, glancing at her partner, who just smiled in response.

After the earlier incident with Metal Sonic and Ferra, Blaze and Sana had finally returned to the hotel to explain the situation to the authorities and official, and managed to negotiate having a quiet afternoon tea at Eden with the whole of Team Neos. Minami, Amy, Lily and Knuckles were quite excited to meet them, albeit with Knuckles being more restrained in his reaction. Warren and Tails had also arrived after Lucas made a call, and nobody had any clue how they managed to convince Touka and Shadow to join them, but they were there, mostly listening to the conversation. The conversation itself mainly consisted explaining Blaze, who also turned out to be an Irregular, her origins from the Sonic Rush and Sonic Rush Adventure video games, the concept of Chaos Surge and Team Neos' battle against Dr. Eggman. On Blaze's end, she explained that she acted as a security system for the islands surrounding the mainland, going on missions to protect trader ships from pirates or hunting pirates down personally.

''Dr. Eggman sounds like a menace,'' Sana commented.

''We can handle him. So far, all of his attempts at taking over Neos City ended up in a failure. He has yet to gain a victory over us,'' Knuckles replied.

''However, we have a feeling that he's planning something again, since an Irregular named Dr. Starline may have joined him,'' Tails added.

''Do you guys think that's why Metal Sonic and Ferra appeared in Eden?'' Silver asked.

''I believe that Ferra called for a tactical retreat. After all, you had told us that they were were searching for Sonic specifically,'' Lucas said.

''I wish Blaze and I could help you against Dr. Eggman. However, we will be flying tonight back home,'' Sana said. ''I hope that next time we'll manage to get more than one free day.''

''Next time, you should also be more transparent about your reasons for coming to Neos City,'' Shadow suggested. Sana smiled sheepishly.

''I'll keep that in mind,'' she replied.

''Perhaps, it would be possible for all of you to visit us at the capital?'' Blaze suggested.

''Really! That would be great!'' Minami and Amy exclaimed in unison, their eyes sparking with joy. As the conversation at the table continued, Sonic glanced at Blaze, who calmly took a sip of her tea, trying to relax even though she knew that a lot of work was waiting for her once she returned back home.

''I hope you enjoyed your visit here, even with all the ensuing chaos,'' he said. Blaze placed her cup on the coaster, her eye-lids lowering as she appeared to be in deep thought.

''I suppose it could've been less hectic, but it didn't make it less interesting. I hope we will meet again sometime in the future,'' she said, gazing at Sonic, with small, but warm smile spreading on her lips.

Links:

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#Sonic Cyber Revolution (Masterlist)

[badtasteaquarium]

[A] triple threat

me going insane under the cut

SO PLEASED with how these guys came out

i feel like i've talked a lot about super sonic and his chaos energy induced HRT, but i think it's great and a little funny so i'll do it as much as i want. all of these transformations have a magical girl aspect to them, but like the katsuragi from senran kagura style. the sleeves RIP off sonic's track jacket, and yeah he'll be shirtless too. it vaporizes. i like the extra yellow going on, and he just glitters gold. shooting star! at least one of the sonics was going to have crazy long hair for their super form, and it's this guy. he has little rings on the drawstrings of his shorts too. he's as cocky as ever and fucking loves to tear it up. undefeatable!!!!!!!!

super shadow takes it down only a couple notches. he only rolls up his sleeves, but also ALL of the GUN logos and insignias are GONE from his (already modified) uniform jacket. his dog tags turn into the shadow/black arms symbol. i wasn't going to make him (or silver) shirtless underneath but it's really SUCH a look, and it's MY city so why not. the chaos drives on/in his stomach are shown mostly for effect--that is where they are in his body. originally they were the standard ones, and were colored as follows: 3 green, 2 red, 2 yellow, 1 purple. they got recalibrated when he collected the real chaos emeralds. he's shown here with that green chaos spear style energy coming off him. as much i used to love the silver super shadow to contrast to gold super sonic, i've gone with a more "canon" look with the light yellow. otherwise no drastic hair change. his eyes look a little different to imply an actual glow effect. i can't wait to get the opportunity to write the internal syntax that happens when he goes super. aUAGOUGH!! shadow is more serious but is equally powerful.

our friend super silver goes for the more dramatic outfit change, with his jacket changing completely into a flowy cape/poncho sort of thing. his hair also morphs to match his hedgehog self, because, again, you can do anything with chaos energy, including look cool as fuck and have your hair be impossible. he has a cyan aura around him at all times, ditches the gloves and unzips the bottom of his y2k cargo shorts. i haven't actually imagined a situation for him to BE super in yet, but he deserves it. maybe blaze and him do it together. (i've also decided to ditch the marking on his head...maybe i'll make a note on his other sheet)

i'm like vibrating looking at these guys. ougugUDSHmsdgenghe

[solarcube93]

Drew Sam with Absolute Solver powers from Murder Drones (and I did add Doom’s Eye from Shadow the Hedgehog, I was listening to “I am… All lf Me” from Shadow the Hedgehog, specifically the cover SnapCube did, and I just made the eye part of Doom’s Eye the Absolute Solver logo.)

Sam: “Heh, you thought you could beat me, Kyle?”

Kyle: “Sam, please, you don’t- Wait, what the fuck is that creature next to you?-”

[a-fantastic-time]

It had been months since Sonic had disappeared, or worse, and things weren't the same without him, it didn't stop the hope that Sonic would be back, but the concern was who would deal with Eggman should he start another plot, and for now, it was agreed that Shadow would fill the role given he could match Sonic's speed and power.

But one day came where an abandoned lab would be found with much wildlife overgrow on it yet inside was still functional, didn't seem like one of Eggman's either, and none of his logos were present anywhere in or on the building, exploring inside would reveal something in one of the rooms, an active stasis pod, the type where a subject was kept floating in liquid with breathing apparatus to keep them alive.

However said subject would be a surprise and shock with them being a blue hedgehog, only their naked body would show they were female, the computers monitoring the pod would explain it, they're a clone of Sonic, but classed as flawed yet useful as a result of ending up female when created, the intent was to have a clone who would impersonate and replace the real Sonic with the clone working for their creator, but attempts to get scans Sonic's brain-waves to fully fit in were incomplete, so they'd know who people were, just not everything.

The computers also had means to deactivate the stasis mode and wake the clone, which may be necessary if answers were to be gained.

(For Tails)

The young twin tailed fox had worked tirelessly to find his best friend. Having the others search possible locations for where he could have gone via security footage or eye witness statements. It wasn't uncommon for Sonic to be gone for days at a time, but when it turned to weeks, then months. Everyone started to worry, especially Tails. Everyone immediately rushed to him for aid, being his closest friend, and more than likely the only one that could be considered his family, he had been running himself ragged trying to locate him.

After breaking into one of the Eggman compounds they had destroyed, and was able to use the repair its main systems to hack into them and possibly find anything to help find Sonic. To which he unearthed a stray file that listed a possible plan of his, which allowed him to find the hidden lab deep in the jungle. Having everyone else at different locations trying to find him, Tail's figured this could be done on his own.

Firing up the X Tornado, he flew to the coordinates given, he was able to quickly find the semi-hidden lab. He landed and readied himself for what ever he could fine. He used a digital lock pick to get inside, and restarted the lab's power supply. He searched around and gasped at the sight of what was inside the pod. He rushed to start up the process of opening it and awakening the clone, but tried not to stare at the very curvy body of it. The water drained and soon the pod opened, causing her to fall out. Tails rushed over and grabbed her, holding her gently, before laying her down onto her back. He reached for a random lab coat he found and covered her body with it. "Come on, wake up." He said nervously, unsure what he could learn from her, if anything at all.

[shutterlens]

[cw: all-caps]

Image 1:

Cringetober Day 22- Sailor/Maid Uniform

Jenny & Bianca, Lesbian Girlfriends

Image Description:

Jenny, an anthropomorphic white rabbit, is princess-carrying Bianca, an anthropomorphic white British longhair cat.

Jenny has a wide head, short triangular eyebrows, short fluffy fur with a long tuft on her head to look like hair, wide-set big mint-green heavy-lidded eyes with forest green eyeshadow and black cat-wing eyeliner, pink blush just under her eyes, a small bubblegum pink top-heavy triangular nose, bubblegum pink lipstick, and an open-mouthed closed-toothed smile. She has long white ears with bubblegum pink blushing and inner sides. Jenny is shorter and stocky in build with short black claws on her paws and is wearing a cool greenish offwhite sailor hat with a horizontal forest green stripe around it and a black anchor logo on her right and our left side of the hat, a short-sleeved cool greenish offwhite button-up with a forest green collar and forest green cuffs, cuffed mid-thigh forest green shorts and forest green kitten heels. Jenny also has bubblegum pink blushing on the inner corner of her eyebrows and her knees.

Bianca has a round head, short triangular eyebrows, short fluffy fur with a long tuft on her head to look like hair, wide-set big fully open forest green eyes with long black eyelashes, short round eyebrows, pink blush just under her eyes, a small bubblegum pink top-heavy triangular nose, and a closed-mouth catlike smile with the typical parted upper lip. Bianca has big triangular cat ears with a fluffy white inside and bubblegum pink blushing at the tips. She also has bubblegum pink blushing on her elbows, knees, and long white fluffy cat tail. Bianca has her right hand on the back of her head, her left arm lounging languidly towards the ground, and has her legs pointed downwards with one knee higher than the other. Bianca is wearing a cool pink offwhite frilly French maid headband, a bubblegum pink mid-thigh french maid dress with a cool pinkish offwhite apron with bubblegum pink pinstripes, puffy short bubblegum pink dress sleeves with white cuffs, and bubblegum pink stilleto heels. Bianca also has short black claws on her paws.

End Image Description. 

Image 2:

Alt Text:

DAY 23: meme

Cringetober- exists

me-

It's Free Real Estate

DAY 24: MLP

DAY 25: Gijinka

FREE PALESTINE

Windows 10 from Windows Humanized

Image Description:

At the top is a headshot drawing of my mascot, who has a cube head with a pixellated black and white yin-yang design on it, big eyes with black pupils, thin raised eyebrows, and a closed-mouth smug smirk. This headshot is over a medium-gray background.

To the bottom left is a chest-up drawing of Pinkie Pie, a light pink pony with big sky blue eyes, visible black eyelashes, a small rounded snout, a closed-mouth smile, and long curly hot pink hair.

To the bottom right is a thigh-up drawing of Windows 10 from Windows Humanized, my anthropomorphic representation of the Windows OS with the same name, holding up a sign with their left hand stating "Free Palestine".

Windows 10 here is a skinny average-height androgynous person with chin-length cerulean hair, a longish head with a pointy chin, triangular short angry eyebrows, dark warm beige skin (my most recent character design for 10 here is Bangladeshi), an angular diamond teardrop bottom-heavy long triangular nose, and a closed-mouth scowl that shows rightful scorn at the apartheid genocide that the Palestinians are facing that's currently going on as of writing this in October 24, 2023. They are wearing black cuff huggie earrings, a long-sleeve cerulean button up under a black vest with square cerulean buttons that look like the current Windows logo (because I think it goes better with 10's design) and black slacks. 10 is not over any background.

End Image Description.

Image 3:

Alt Text:

DAY 26: All Edge No Point

Shadow the Hedgehog

Day 28: Alt Fashion (Cyber Y2K)

Krown from Super Cyber Action Kid

Mil from Windows Humanized

Day 27: Babygirl Pose

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Image Description:

To the left is Shadow the Hedgehog, a black hedgehog with red marks on the outside of his Sonic-like connected eyes and on top of his black head hair-spikes. He has a tuft of white fur, white gloves with gold cuffs, white sneaker-like shoes with no laces, a gold ring around the ankles, a red tongue with a black outer edge, red soles with a gold-yellow square thing in the middle of the shoe's toebox. He also has back spikes, a thin triangular hedgehog tail, red irises, a yellow snout and ear inside, and an edgy pose where he's looking at the left palm on his hand.

On the top right is a waist-up drawing of Krown from Super Cyber Action Kids, a filipino cyber-Y2K skater guy with chin-length spiky crimson hair, warm dark tan skin, big eyes with tiny black vertical oval pupils, a flat nose, black double huggie cuff helix piercings on his right ear, black huggie cuff regular earrings on both his ears, and a closed-mouth confident smile. He is wearing black rectangular bar futuristic sunglasses and a crimson muscle tee with a white heartbeat line under a black vest with a thick horizontal crimson stripe in the center and a crimson collar. He is making the rockstar hand gesture with his left hand over a medium-gray rectangle background. Krown is the only character here to have a background.

To the bottom left is Mil from Windows Humanized (short for Millennium Edition. Also, Mil now uses he/him.) who is being made to do the Babygirl Pose (on his hands and knees with both his hands together, looking up at the viewer) for this illustration, which he is embarrased about and really wishes he didn't have to do for this God-forsaken picture (sorry not sorry, Mil. At least it's better than the hate that you got at the turn of the millennium). has shoulder-length mint green hair in a low ponytail with a red-orange scrunchy, a narrow round face, light orangey-pinkish skin, a red-orange embarrased blush, long oval red-orange eyes, long triangular eyebrows pointed downwards in a pissed-off embarassment, a button nose, red-orange narrow rectangle sunglasses, and an open-mouthed closed-toothed "I can't believe that I have to do this" scowl. He is wearing a white pageboy hat with a light blue brim, a mint green vest with three vertical square white buttons, light blue long pants, and red-orange loafers.

End Image Description.

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Link to the Week 4 Cringetober Art:

[cyanocoraxx]

Fire In The Sky (Chapter 4)

Metal Sonic / Silver Sonic MK II / Mecha Sonic / Shadow

How sentimental. Neo would have figuratively puked at it once. Now, it was nice to have a little clarity, a little hope, amongst the chaos and looming threats. So Neo nodded, leaning into Mecha's touch with closed optics. He stayed quiet, enjoying the company of his older brother for just a moment. (Shadow the Hedgehog 2005 adaptation. Continuation of Damage.)

Standing atop the now airborne Glyphic Canyon, Shadow folded his arms and beheld the view with intrigue. Rolling white clouds in a blue sky painted the scene before him, a stark contrast to the crimson overlay on the world below. This was truly a work of art. He flicked his ear back and turned his head a little to address Black Doom, who stood right behind him.

"I bet nobody expected this baby could fly."

The hedgehog briefly recalled that he had ignored the request to activate the temple jewels. The temple took flight anyway. So, not a complete loss on Doom's part. Perhaps this was why Doom was currently being so laid-back with him? It seemed that some things brought dire consequences while others did not. Doom was difficult to figure out.

Black Doom spoke with pride, beholding his fortress like a parent would an accomplished child. "I transported this flying fortress to this planet over 2,000 years ago. It's magnificent! The perfect killing machine... ready to impose terror in unimaginable ways."

Through the clouds came a large flying battleship. The sight roused a grating laugh out of Black Doom. These puny ships were supposed to stand a chance against his technology? It was laughable! He had the entire Black Arms on his side and the Ultimate Lifeform at his heel like an obedient little pet.

"Do these fools really believe they could stop me?!"

Shadow squinted into the expanse before him. He immediately recognized the giant red logos plastered across the fleet that advanced on them. Was Eggman really going to put up a fight against the invasion? It surprised him a little to witness. There must have been ulterior motives at work here.

"Isn't that... the doctor?" Shadow asked himself more than Doom.

Doom began his retreat into the fortress with outstretched arms. "Shadow. Do not fail me."

The mission, although not outright stated, was clear. Destroy Eggman's ships to stop his defense against the Black Arms. There were no Chaos Emeralds here. So, no clear clues to his past. Shadow privately found dismay in that. Regardless, Shadow swept an arm out in front of him, bent his knees, and then made a high-speed descent straight into a looping stone pathway. He scaled the winding road with ease, feeling the wind in his fur, the way his speed doubled on the descent back to level ground, the thudding of his shoes against stone. This was a glimpse of freedom, the kind that Sonic lived for.

"This blue sky, staring at it from afar... have I seen it before?" Shadow mused to himself, watching the twirling blues and whites from upside-down as he scaled another loop.

The temple was now familiar ground. The hedgehog moved with confidence and ease, moving onward with conviction that left any enemy shaking in his wake. Curious, he noted, that there was evidence of GUN presence here - but no soldiers to speak of. Had they all been killed? That was unfortunate, he supposed, but he carried little emotional connection to them.

Doom's Eye appeared to command him onward. "Shadow. The foolish scientist still seeks to resist us. Use our Cell Cannons and blow his ships out of the sky!"

A moment later, a small drone bearing a screen flew up to Shadow and followed him.

"Shadow! Fancy running into you here! There's got to be some kind of peculiar power source that's keeping these ruins afloat. Find it and destroy it."

With two conflicting commands given to him, Shadow instead looked to the sky as he moved on. The sky was an obvious truth. Something that was always there. When the sun fell at night, it was guaranteed to rise again the next morning. Living proof that life was a cycle of darkness and light, and that one could not exist without the other.

Ironic, then, that his newfound "truth" was quickly slapped out of his hands. The sky fell dark in an unnatural speed that nature could not account for. The clouds were the kind of graphite that would make any quarry rock proud, an echo of the earth. Now, blackening heavens opened up with lightning in networking forks. One strike illuminated a brilliant pathway above, lifting Shadow's eyes skyward. All that swirling grey in the sky had to come down sooner or later. Was this one of Doom's powers at work?

Doom's Eye hissed from behind him, outraged and confused. "What is that massive electric shock? Is that an attack from one of the battleships?"

Shadow's eyes widened at that admission. So, this wasn't Black Doom's doing. If not, then what else could manipulate the weather in this way- His gaze quickly fell onto something blue, white, and yellow perched atop the doctor's flagship. Its silver claws hooked into the orange plating of the ship's hull. Bright red optics cast a predatory glow onto the metal surface around it. At once, Shadow's fur bristled and his fangs showed themselves in a warning.

"Metal Sonic."

With a flash to light the way, Neo jumped. He landed with a bang, one fist to the stone ground while the other hand remained open, claws turned upward where they caught the light. Neo had always been one for dramatics, at heart. Silver would be cheering him on right about now.

Where Shadow was fire, Neo was the water of the thunderstorm. Powerful, chaotic, and commanding in its own right. He rose to stand and locked his optics onto the Ultimate Lifeform who stood but feet away.

"Out of my way," Shadow warned and demanded at the same time.

Neo said nothing. It was clear from Silver's recounting of events that he would not listen to well-meaning words nor reason. Perhaps a good old-fashioned showdown would show him some sense in this chaos, and Neo was never one to turn down a battle with an esteemed rival.

"You want to fight, don't you?" Shadow asked, a small smirk forming. "Don't you remember? I destroyed you."

Neo's optics brightened a fraction. In response, he raised a hand in front of his face and curled his claws into a fist. Of course, the hedgehog had to go there. It was still a sore spot for Neo, remembering how he met his demise, and the harm he had caused to the people he now considered to be friends. The perfect killing machine, ready to impose terror in unimaginable ways. Ironic how Black Doom had described his ruins as such when the real bearer of such a title stood right there.

"Just what are you defending? The doctor?" Shadow ventured, slowly beginning to walk towards him. "There are no Chaos Emeralds here to take from me."

Neo revealed nothing at all.

"Very well. Any creation of the doctor is an enemy of mine."

So be it. In failing to act, you are a threat to the world and my brothers.

Neo stayed stone still. Without a word, he sent a bolt of white lightning square into the stone that separated them. A flashy way of saying: bring it on, fellow unnatural lifeform. Shadow burst through the smoke of the strike and leaped toward Neo with a raised fist. Neo was quick to react, and he did have the advantage here - he was not fatigued from running or fighting off his enemies, while Shadow undoubtedly was. He grabbed Shadow by the arm and slammed him into the stone beneath them, temporarily winding him.

Neo then took off back across the crumbling skyborne ruins in a burst of smoke from his engine. Shadow dragged himself up to his feet, growled, and gave chase. The robot up ahead made sure to drive itself straight into the black and purple Cell Cannons installed across the floating temple grounds as it went.

Neo could not help being his father's son. It was a legacy he would have to bear for the remainder of his existence. However, he could turn his own story around as he had done before. Eggman was another force working against the Black Arms, even if it was for his own personal agenda. That agenda did not matter right now. What mattered was saving the planet in this moment - dealing with his father's plans after all of this was done was an afterthought.

So, yes - he was defending the doctor. He just needed to buy his father enough time to move the fleet on and out of range.

The drone flew to meet Neo as he moved.

"Metal! My boy! It's so good to see you!"

Neo rolled his optics and pushed his engine harder. Over the roar of his fans, he could hear the scraping of Shadow's shoes against the rock as he approached, gaining speed. That was a small issue. He would have to push Shadow back, and fast.

"I knew you'd come back to defend your old dad! I could always rely on you."

This wasn't about defending his father figure for emotional purposes. Neo continued to ignore him.

"Shadow is working with the Black Arms, Metal. You need to stop him."

He is not. I know what to do here. Trust in me like you used to.

Neo squinted as he broke through a wall of rock, leaving it crumbling behind him. He heard Shadow pause to jump over the dusty stone and the slight exhale as he landed and pushed on. With Shadow a fraction slower than before, Neo focused on his scanners. The green overlay of his HUD pointed him in the direction of a strong magnetic field. With renewed resolve, he stepped on the gas and raced toward it. Shadow noticed where Neo was heading and growled to himself. Before he could catch up, Neo had smashed the first temple jewel. The robot then moved on to the next, which sat atop a pedestal a few hundred feet ahead. There were five altogether. It was curious, Neo noted, that these green jewels kept the temple afloat much akin to the Master Emerald and Angel Island. A strange replica of a sacred item that was held in high regard by the people of this planet.

If he is not going to act when the world calls for it, then I shall in his place.

Neo suddenly hit the brakes on his engine, spun around, and launched into a homing attack. He struck Shadow in the shoulder, who hissed and called for a Chaos Spear in one hand. Before Shadow could throw it anywhere useful, Neo was gone again in a burst of smoke. Frustrated and impatient, Shadow rolled his shoulder to free it from the dull ache and gave chase one more time.

Doom's Eye appeared and followed closely. "Shadow. Destroy this insolent creature. It is attempting to destroy our sacred temple!"

"I am engaging with the hedgehog," Neo recounted to his brothers via comm-link, "and all GUN soldiers are safe. I directed them to the doctor's flagship for refuge and defended them from the Black Arms. There are no human casualties."

"That is excellent news, brother. Are you confident that you can engage with Shadow in your current state?" Mecha asked carefully through the link.

Neo ventured to cast a glance behind him. "Yes. He is putting up a good fight, but it's not enough. The sky is my territory."

"Refrain from utilizing an excessive amount of electrical charge, I implore you. You risk harm to yourself and the beings surrounding you."

"Perhaps I should rephrase. Lightning is my weapon to wield. I am no stranger to it and I know what I'm doing," Neo dismissed the concern with confidence, "it is my advantage against the hedgehog up here. I would be a fool to not use it."

Neo smashed the second jewel and dodged a Chaos Spear as it flashed over his shoulder. Neo stopped again to drive Shadow back, and this time Shadow was ready. Before Neo could come at him in another homing attack, Shadow crouched and jumped, kicking Neo square in the face with enough power to send him toppling back. Neo quickly regained his footing with a screech of metal-on-stone and Shadow homed in for a second blow. Neo ducked to one side and kicked Shadow hard in the back, sending him flying through several walls of rock up ahead. Shadow grit his teeth as he landed on his shoulder and rolled to a stop, now covered in stone and dust. Thanks to his sheer endurance, he was unharmed - apart from the slightly bruised ego.

"Damn you, faker..." Shadow whispered to himself, narrowing his eyes as Neo came hurtling toward him.

The robot brothers' seemingly private conversation was anything but. Black Doom was capable of sensing a person's inner thoughts and emotions. As sentient beings, the robots were all fair game too.

"Shadow. This pesky robot is communicating with its kin. It thinks it can best you." Doom's Eye relayed to Shadow, hovering over his shoulder. There was an air of superiority in its voice, as if it regarded the machines as little more than trash. "Show them. Show them what you can do to pests like them."

Neo quickly sensed the presence of an unfamiliar connection to their network. Someone was listening in. Upon throwing a long-range scan at Doom, he found that the signature was coming from him. How horrid, to have this evil presence invade his private conversations with his brothers. It made him feel sick to his tanks.

"Black Doom is listening. It is not safe to speak over our link about major events." Neo quickly relayed to Mecha. "Be safe. I love you."

A temple jewel here and a temple jewel there, Neo and Shadow played their game of chase like two predatory animals battling for a kill. The two darted from left to right, up and down, breaking through rock and stone like it was nothing at all. As walls fell, streaks of blue and red followed after like some earthly imitation of shooting stars.

The last temple jewel, the fifth, was coming up fast. Neo narrowed his optics and pushed himself to the limit, refusing to let Shadow stop him now. This last jewel would send the temple back to the ground, where it belonged. How dare this imitation of godly power trespass in his skies. The shatter of the final jewel immediately set off a chain reaction. The far end of the ruins began to crumble and drop to the ocean below. Satisfied, Neo shut off his engine and stopped. He turned to face Shadow, who beheld him with rage.

Shadow was panting, eyes fixed on his enemy like a wild animal. This would ruin everything! What if Black Doom refused to show him his past now? In his fury, he failed to notice how close he was to the edge of the ledge he was standing on. Lightning broke the sky behind him.

"You... you have no idea what you've just done!" Shadow hissed, fur bristling and spines raising.

Neo shrugged a shoulder. There are no Emeralds here. You've lost nothing but some pride.

"I need to uncover who I am, and you- you fakers keep attempting to stop me. I won't show you mercy anymore."

Shadow had enough of this. He moved, and fast- but Neo threw his shoulder into Shadow, sending him plummeting off the edge of the flying ruins. Satisfied, he leaned over to watch as the hedgehog fell. A few feet. A couple of hundred feet. Certainly, he would be harmed greatly if he was to make the impact far below.

Fortunately for Shadow, that was not the fate decided by the machine that currently held all power over him. Neo fired up his jet engine and made the dive off the edge, falling right towards him. The rush of wind, the storm around him, the roaring in his auditory receptors - it all reminded him of the great fall he took in order to save Sonic from GUN's wrath. It had killed him. Destroyed a massive part of who he was for several months. So, this was a reminder of his new place in the world, to take yet another leap of faith to save another. Neo placed his faith in his own ability to save this other being.

Neo pushed himself faster, faster, and ever faster, until he caught up to Shadow. With a glare in his optics, he grabbed Shadow's arm, and shot back up into the sky and over the Glyphic Canyon. He let Shadow take it in, really take in the destruction, the false gods of this temple, as he flew over it in an arc. Take a good fucking look, Neo would have said, at what you are supporting.

"You should have listened to my brother." Neo hissed down at him in code, knowing that Shadow wouldn't understand a word.

With one final push of his engine, Neo tossed Shadow down to the stone ground. It would hurt, but it wouldn't be anywhere as doom-inducing as falling to his demise in the ocean. Neo watched him for a minute, observing how he clambered back up to his feet using a stone as leverage, looked up to the sky, and him, and snarled in retaliation.

Now that the fortress was falling, Neo only had to stay there and witness it. He needed to make sure it fell and never came back. And, perhaps, this was a whisper of his programming. To prove superiority over a living hedgehog. Right now, it was clear as day - as clear as the sky now filling back into blue and white in place of rolling storm clouds. Shadow regarded him with a venomous glare. Just what was this? Did this robot really need to humiliate him in this way? The Ultimate Lifeform, bested in abilities by a mechanical copy? Shadow's ego took another punch.

Suddenly, a sharp jab of pain smacked Shadow in the forehead. He grabbed his head with a hand as he moved to his feet. It wasn't clear, not at all, but there was something about a fall from the sky, about a blue being above him, trying to save him. Wait. Was that whole thing done on purpose to trigger something?

Neo and Shadow both shared memories of falling. Neo knew this. He had hoped, distantly, that Shadow would remember enough about his heroism. But no. Of course not. It wasn't enough. Black Doom could quickly censor that memory, and he did. Neo's optimism quickly dissipated, and then plummeted upon seeing Black Doom return right on cue. He narrowed his optics as he looked on. Black Doom interfered whenever Shadow was about to have a private revelation. It was disgusting. To inhibit somebody's freedom of thought that way. Neo was no stranger to such a thing. He had the battle scars from fighting his programming to prove it.

Black Doom materialized behind Shadow. He did not aid Shadow in rising to stand. "Do you see? The inhabitants of this world have nothing but contempt for you. Come, let us finish the job in Central City. A meddling robot is pushing our forces out. We cannot let that continue... do not fail me."

Two could play at this eavesdropping game. Neo tuned his auditory sensors to listen in, tilting his head a little to focus. Central City? Where Mecha was? How convenient that it was only a small distance from here. Neo would need to up the ante to drive the enemy forces out of humanity's strongholds. Eager to get a head-start, Neo blasted off in another cloud of smoke and was gone. Eggman's flagship too moved on to safer skies, carrying with it several unharmed GUN soldiers.

Shadow watched him go, confused and hurting. Doom would really have to push the agenda of the hedgehog's "hatred for humanity" to get him on his side. As the temple collapsed in on itself, Doom transported them both away to their next mission. He was prepared to drop a bombshell, both figuratively, and literally.

The hummingbirds carved in stone drowned with the ocean, for they could not escape the rock cradle in which they were born.

If the fortress in in the sky was Heaven, Central City was Hell incarnate. The perfect environment to feed Shadow with venomous lies.

"Shadow. Let me share with you a piece of your past. Your past is filled with hatred and contempt for the humans." Black Doom began, looking out across the city from the main road.

"Hatred and contempt... for the humans..." Shadow repeated, letting the words sit on his tongue like fire. It burned the back of his throat, where a low growl settled.

"You were the ultimate lifeform, but the humans feared you and wanted to destroy you. And they did. Now, you must amass revenge on those humans. Unleash your anger and powers on them. Now, detonate the five bombs placed around Central City before the humans can defuse them. Destroy all who stand in your way."

Shadow stood still in front of Doom, with Black Arms soldiers at his back. He listened intently, soaking in the words like scripture.

The humans feared him. They wanted him dead.

He lifted his head and nodded. It made sense.

Shadow moved forward into the decimated city. His head was a mess, to say the least, as was Central City. Everywhere he looked, there was destruction, blood, and terror. Towering skyscrapers now reduced to rubble. Family homes blown apart. Parks and gardens ripped up, flowers burned to nothing. This was the kind of world that Doom wanted, according to his own words. Was this what Shadow wanted, too? He wasn't sure. He didn't think so, but they all wanted him dead. Was it so bad if this city burned to the ground, knowing this now?

That "metal monster" and Black Doom had given him a lot to think about.

Whilst Shadow ran and pondered on this new information, Mecha was hard at work - partly defusing bombs, partly jump-scaring unsuspecting humans. He dropped down from a rooftop to land beside a group of GUN soldiers, who were fiddling with a bomb. Apparently, this was their attempt to defuse it. Mecha's sudden appearance didn't help matters either though, as the soldiers flinched in surprise before relaxing. Just the purple one. It was fine. At this point, most of GUN was aware of Mecha's nature.

"Do you require assistance? I can help with this mission. However, your hands are steadier than my own..." Mecha began, lifting her hands to show a slight tremor. "I will direct you."

"Is this safe?!" A soldier asked incredulously.

"If you follow my instructions, it is indeed. If I suspect that a mistake has been made, I shall act quickly to protect you." Mecha reassured them kindly.

So, the soldiers dutifully complied, listening closely to Mecha's instructions. Mecha watched carefully, being sure to account for human dexterity and limitations at the same time. He refrained from giving them a probability of success - he had learned the hard way that most organics didn't particularly like hearing the odds. A wire here and a wire there, progress was much swifter and calmer with the robot helping them.

If evil was emotional indifference in the face of injustice, there was no better poster child for that than a bomb or five. One could not speak to a bomb, ask it to stop and reconsider - it was simply a matter of tick tick tick kill. Mecha had not been so different from it at one time. All the more reason to subdue it. That little reminder of his past preceded something else.

Every so often, strange images would filter into his HUD. Not something that he was unused to, of course. He would occasionally suffer from flashbacks of his mistreatment under GUN. But there had always been a trigger. An obvious one. This time, there was not. Mecha remained as focused as possible. He could not lose conviction now. It was almost as if something, or someone, was triggering this remotely. A flash of fear coiled in his CPU at the thought. Being remotely controlled in any form was indeed a trigger... he chanced a look around to see if anyone was nearby. Nothing noteworthy, except he did pick up a faint signal that suggested Black Doom was close.

This manipulation had to be Doom's work.

Mecha steeled himself and continued to watch the soldiers work. He clenched his fists to stop the tremors that grew gradually worse. Every time an image showed its ugly face, he would close it at once. He refused to let Doom subdue him this way. It was unjust and it was cowardly.

"When it is defused, I shall remove it from this city, along with the others. The risk to life will be reduced to zero." Mecha informed them helpfully. He couldn't help but slip a percentage in there. Why not? It was helpful and took his mind off of the intrusion in his thoughts.

The time passed quickly. One bomb, then two, three, four, and then all five, all around Central City. All before Doom managed to sneak in and do anything about it at all. Mecha was the poster child for efficiency, after all. He stood in the city center as the remaining unevacuated citizens and soldiers alike came to thank him. He had barely noticed them approach, for he was busy battling the footage in his mind. It replayed over and over like a mantra. Fortunately, the cheering of the humans brought him back to life just enough to focus.

"Let's hear it for Mecha Sonic, the savior of our city!"

"Mecha! Mecha! Mecha!"

"Murder Machine does it again!"

Mecha wasn't sure what to do with the attention. He stood rather awkwardly, looking from one person to the next. Praise had always been a little lost on him. He had simply completed a task that he had set for himself, right? Either the humans were strange, or he was yet to learn everything about their social dynamics. The latter was more likely, he decided.

The crowd suddenly dispersed with both screams and calls to GUN HQ as someone approached from the smoke of a back street. Mecha turned to look, immediately sensing their presence, and the appearance of Chaos energy. He lowered his head and brightened his visor protectively, moving to shield the people as they ran to safety. Shadow advanced on him, slowly. Mecha remained still, only lifting his head to regard him once he was a few feet away.

Shadow stopped, and Mecha stayed put. Mecha unclenched his fists, revealing the small tremor remaining in his fingers. A risk. It showed weakness.

Even so, Mecha spoke clearly and calmly. "Shadow. I implore that you listen to what I must say. Spare me precisely one minute to speak."

"One minute is all I have for you and the humans." Shadow decided to humour him.

Mecha stepped forward to address him. "Firstly, all of the bombs in this city are now defused. You have very little reason to tread here. Secondly, I have studied Black Doom's abilities and have come to some conclusions. He is capable of telepathy, creating illusions, sensing energies, and sensing inner thoughts and emotions. Black Doom is making leverage on your trauma. He is violating your mind and twisting your memories. You cannot trust everything that he shows to you, for it may not be factual." Unconsciously, he moved a hand to rub his wrist, where chains had once bound him to the GUN fortress' floor. A strong image flashed in his vision and he, this time, regarded it clearly. "I too have suffered violations of the mind and self. As such, I believe that I can assist you in moving forward, as I have done, and continue to do so."

Shadow folded his arms defensively. This sudden accusation that Black Doom was actively lying to him and invading his thoughts was a lot to take in, for Black Doom was currently his only "real" hope of uncovering his memories, in his mind. Fingers tapped against his arm - a self-soothing act, Mecha noted. Neo did the exact same thing when stressed.

"You have your ulterior motives as an underling of the doctor's." Shadow retorted with a scowl. He saw the tremor, saw the rubbing of the wrist. Peculiar for a robot.

They were both self-soothing throughout this conversation. The realization hit both of them at the same time. Perhaps Mecha was not lying to him. Perhaps Shadow could be bargained with after all, with a little empathy. A skill Mecha had learned thanks to his brothers.

Mecha shook their head after a moment. "Negative. I am speaking to you not as an object of the Eggman Empire, but as a fellow conscious being who too has suffered. I cannot claim to understand the full breadth of your suffering nor your grief. However, I do possess a level of understanding that would allow us to come together and find what you seek. I would like to understand. Understanding, knowledge, and truth are essential to the essence of self."

Mecha rarely put emphasis on any of her words, for it was not in her programming to do so. The fact that she was doing so now was indicative of her resolve, speaking as a conscious being and not a machine. She bowed her head a little and held out an open hand. I would like to understand. I would like to know. Words spoken once before to her own brother at his darkest moment, when she had found him attempting to destroy himself. It was a memory that pained Mecha to carry. And in this vulnerability, she noted that Shadow had fallen quiet. So, she ventured further.

"Cast aside this notion that you must doom the world in order to understand yourself. You cannot fully understand yourself with no world to do so in, to truly reflect in, to be at home in. Allow me and my siblings to assist you. We will do so in due time, when the invasion is subdued. You have my word."

Shadow did consider it, but his own reality quickly came back to him. He tapped his inhibitor rings. "That metal monster brother of yours attacked me just like everyone else in this world. I now know that humanity wants to destroy me."

Mecha kept her hand right where it was. "I apologize on behalf of my brother. I ask you, consider that he behaved in that manner in order to secure a future for the world. It was not a personal attack against yourself. All of us are acting in the best interest of humanity's survival. If you threatened him, he would have defended himself. Would you not?"

Doom's Eye materialized behind Shadow, where it spoke into his ear. "Shadow. These machines are a blockade to our success. Destroy them. Destroy them before they can speak more lies! It thinks you are a fool, a coward! It wants to kill you."

Even with Doom's Eye present, Mecha stayed genuine, focusing only on Shadow. She inched her hand just a little further out toward him. Despite the flashbacks now hitting him from every angle, trying to find a weakness, trying to break him, trying to cow him. Despite. Despite. Despite all of it. Despite the hurt and the grief, Mecha was still kind, for he chose to be, chose to be something more than murder and killing and heavy metal plating.

Please. Choose with me.

Shadow froze in place. Who was he supposed to believe? What was he supposed to do with all the different stories he was being fed? Before, it was all so clear - ignore everybody, move forward, secure the clues to his past, and live with the consequences later. But it wasn't as simple as that. How could it be? The robot before him still stood calmly, offering kindness and a whole new bag of promises. It was hard to just completely disregard someone like this. So few had shown him kindness, and yet, these machines consistently seemed to do so, just in different ways.

They had conviction. They had belief in each other. What did Shadow believe? He still did not know. He still had nothing but promises, and painful thoughts that humanity wished for his demise, while these brothers...

"You believe that the humans want you to die. That the world wants to kill you as if you do not matter. But the world is good. The world can be kind, and it is your friend. It does not wish for your death," Mecha ventured gently, "nor do I."

Shadow's apparent insolence sent Black Doom into a fit of rage. He waited, he waited, and kept waiting a few seconds more, and the hedgehog wouldn't fucking move, and the robot kept speaking its lies, and was preaching softness. It was disgusting. It offended him. He wished to hear no more of it.

"ENOUGH."

Black Doom materialized in front of Shadow and, before Mecha could process it, Doom summoned a purple construct of energy above his head. It came flying right toward him as a boomerang, closer, closer, zero point two seconds to impact-

As if by some comedically divine timing, Neo dropped from the sky above like some kind of angel - or devil, if you preferred - and activated his Black Shield in front of his brother. It easily countered the devastating energy and sent it back into the air, where it exploded in a halo of light. Neo disengaged the Shield, dropped to the ground on one knee, and lifted his head. He lifted a hand sharply and let his claws speak for him.

Do not touch my brother. You have no right.

"You again! Of all places-" Shadow began, moving toward him with a clenched fist.

Before Shadow could engage or question anything further, Doom whisked him away in a warp of dark energy. The remains of the Glyphic Canyon plummeted into the ocean in the distance behind them. Mecha watched, still standing in place, as it succumbed to the waves. So that was how Neo arrived so quickly. Neo spun around and put his defensiveness away, immediately tending to his brother instead. He grabbed Mecha's shoulders and hurriedly looked him up and down, scanning for injuries, for anything amiss, any harm done by Black Doom or Shadow.

"I am functioning, brother. Cease your concern. We have much greater problems to face." Mecha reassured him.

"That attack would have decimated you," Neo told him in code, a waver of hurt in his voice, "so I am right to be worried."

"And it did not. Therefore there is naught to worry about in this situation."

"Alright. What have you learned?"

"I believe I had a chance of getting through to him by appealing to emotion," Mecha recounted, softly, "but Black Doom is persistent. He immediately dominated our conversation and accused me of lying to the hedgehog. It also appears he is able to manipulate one's mind, figuratively and literally."

"As if you are capable of lying... the manipulation part concerns me more." Neo replied with a small scoff. Mecha's brutal honesty was both endearing and comedic depending on the situation.

"Indeed. Black Doom now considers us to be threats to his progress. This is optimal for us. We must strike doubt into his forces if we are to succeed. Where there is doubt, there is weakness. This is likely why Black Doom continues to weaponize Shadow to do his bidding."

"Because he is weak? Mecha, that is an out-of-place conclusion for you." Neo observed, squinting an optic. Despite being made to emulate a certain blue hedgehog, Mecha had never been the type to consider himself superior to others. There had to be more to his wording than what Neo was seeing.

"Negative. That is what Black Doom perceives him to be. It does not reflect my own opinion of him. Indeed, Shadow is The Ultimate Lifeform. He holds power that can devastate anything in his wake." Mecha clarified. "This confusion that he bears is creating vulnerability. He must regain trust in himself if he is to do what is right."

"He and Black Doom could kill us if they work together..." Neo warned him, worrying where Mecha was taking this line of thinking now.

"Indeed, a regrettable outcome if it was to happen. But, it will not, I am certain. When we operate together, we always see optimum results."

Neo nodded. Hesitantly, he asked, "words have little effect on the hedgehog, as does brute force, so what now?"

Mecha considered that. "Black Doom is the problem. Eliminate his control and we have a clear way forward."

"We do not have enough data on his abilities, Mecha," Neo warned him, "he could be more formidable than we currently know."

"My brother, is that a hint of fear in your wording? It is highly unbecoming of you." Mecha teased him. "Remain steadfast. We will learn more in time. However, the conclusion is now clear. Black Doom must be defeated, with or without Shadow's assistance. If that role falls on to us... so be it. We are not machines who simply stand and wait for orders any longer. We have obtained the gift of free will, and thus, we must act when the time calls for us to do so."

Neo shuttered his optics. His brother's straightforwardness was really something, sometimes. "It's not that, Mecha. I am not afraid of him. I am afraid of losing you and our little brother. Please, don't engage with Black Doom alone. If we are to do this, we must do it together."

Mecha brought Neo in to a hug as the city burned around them. He nestled his cheek into the crook of Neo's neck as if it belonged there.

"You are not going to lose us. We are in this fight together as one. In addition, I made a promise to our little brother that I shall remain here as long as you require me."

"We won't ever not require you." Neo whispered into his brother's armour. It was strong, stronger than his own.

"Then, it is safe to conclude that..." Mecha paused, bringing his hands up to his brother's face and holding it. "I am never leaving as long as any of us are functioning."

"You promise me that?"

"Affirmative. I cannot break a promise made to you. In addition, I have a surprise."

Neo gave a quizzical beep and met Mecha's visor with bright optics.

Mecha took a small white flower from the dip in his arm plating. "I salvaged the last flower in this city. All others have burned in the flames. Life, I have learned, is a precious force, and it must be protected. We will salvage this world before this final flower dies. I would like to plant it, allow it a second chance, as we were allowed ours by our own friends and family."

How sentimental. Neo would have figuratively puked at it once. Now, it was nice to have a little clarity, a little hope, amongst the chaos and looming threats. So Neo nodded, leaning into Mecha's touch with closed optics. He stayed quiet, enjoying the company of his older brother for just a moment. If Neo was an angel of ferocity, Mecha was an angel of strength. The fire could not touch them, for Mecha could see his brother's wings and refused to let him fall again. The flashbacks ceased, and Mecha let calmness flow back into his systems as he placed the flower back under his arm.

The hummingbird represented love. It regained flight with a little help from an angel or two.

[hws-sufin-stuff]

You’re open for asks, right?

What did the Nordic 5 get for Christmas and was it what they wished for? Or was it something completely different that they maybe like even more than what they originally hoped to get? 🙊☺️

// @fireandiceland

I KNOW IT'S LATE I'M SORRY.

Denmark: Asked for surprises and practical gifts as a theme. Finland created a large calendar filled with deodorants, one for every week of the year. Sweden built him a stylish storage unit for his bedroom. Norway got him a year's worth of shampoo for his wild hair. Iceland got him socks with every country's face on. He now uses his socks to ship his co-workers together. Loves his presents.

Norway: His Christmas list was meticulous, complete with links to the items he wanted and discount codes. Only Finland and Sweden read the list. Sweden got him this luxury bath set, including a rose quartz facial roller. Finland bought him some crystal jewelry and a crystal foot bath to match his crystal bath tub. Iceland bought him a silky house robe, which Norway wanted anyway, and a cat scratching post. Denmark went above and beyond. He made an altar for Norway made out of LEGO and bought some beautiful house plants for him. Norway was very, very pleased.

Sweden: He asked for stationery this year. Foolish man for being so vague! He got cute Sanrio stationery from Finland (just like he wanted). He got a collection of ties from Iceland, a mix between silly dad ties (like singing reindeer ties, light up ones) and actual nice ties. Norway got him some Calvin Klein undies (like he asked for) and some custom stationery with his name on (he didn't ask for but loves). Denmark got him some comfy slippers (like he wanted) and a small ferris-wheel for eggs (what the?), filled with little animal shaped rubbers.

Finland: He got the Death Metal vinyls he wanted off of Sweden. Got the biggest band t-shirt Iceland could find. Denmark got him some funky shoes with Nokia logo on them and toilet roll with weird facts on (surprisingly fun to be honest). Norway got him a beautiful lingerie set and some high end eye shadow for gigs. Filled in his Christmas list but only Iceland and Sweden read it. Adores all his presents.

Iceland: He got enough clothes to fill a new wardrobe. Denmark got him some funky trainers to hike in but didn't realise they were trainers made to look like Sonic The Hedgehog's running shoes. Norway got him some cozy socks and Levi's jeans. Sweden got him those Calvin Klein undies and some cologne. Finland got him the most comfy sweaters and fluffy bathrobe. He acted cold about his presents but he is secretly excited to put an outfit together. Did very well considering he didn't fill in his Christmas list.