FicWad

*** Sonic and all other related characters are copyrighted SEGA. Sally and related original characters are copyright their creator. This fictional account belongs to its writer.

*********

The sky fell that day.

The balmy sky was cut by a fireball. A trail of smoke snaked across the sky. The burning mass made a shrill sound as it fell, as if screaming for mercy.

A faint whistling sound. Then impact.

BBBBOOOOOMMMMMM!!!!!!

The desert seemed to recoil at the intruder's presence. A sand dune ruptured, replaced by a gaping hole. Winds gusted, fanning out from the crash at 25 miles per hour. The heat rose to singeing temperatures. A 3-mile diameter crater was blasted into the desert sand. In the distance, an onlooker's eardrums popped.

The sand changed from a healthy tan to a decaying black. The friction from impact burned the crater, also causing the baking sand to release its heat and smoke. Ash rained down as if a volcanic eruption had taken place. A pillar of dark smoke rose from the miasma, like a gravestone.

And in the center of the crater lay the deceased in his smoke coffin.

***

Some think life is written in our DNA...

****

In order for a space shuttle to ascend through the atmosphere it needs layers and sheets of steel and heat-resisting metals to coat its outer surface. In the end, only the core remains intact. Many layers melt away upon reentry. Shadow the Hedgehog's body did not stand a chance.

Shadow the Hedgehog lay in shambles. His legs melted into stumps where his knees would be. One hand had third degree burns, and the other was missing. Most of the fur had burned off his body, exposing blacked flesh. His white chest fur had turned gray from ashes, some ashes formerly his fur. His quills were stripped to a few needles. Then his skin began to rot, his body starting to decay and decompose. Slowly his body began to cook in the crater, sizzling in the sand.

But Shadow did not feel any pain. He was beyond pain. He was dead.

****

...some argue it was written in a prophecy foretold eons ago...

****

She waited until the smoke cleared. She observed the horizon, watching the pillar of smoke wane until it faded away. The ground was still hot, the smell of ash still strong. She waited longer, letting conditions improve. It took hours for the crater's heat to dissolve in the desert. Every minute that passed, every hour, rang agony in her head.

As Shadow's body rose to a bake someone pulled him out of the heated pit. Someone dug his body out of the ash and carried his corpse out of the crater.

Why? The girl did not know, or question. Her head was still throbbing.

At the moment of impact something clicked in her head, unlocking a foreign pain. Her ears buzzed with a strange energy. An energy coming from the crater called her, an erratic energy departing its host.

She dumped what remained of Shadow a few meters from the edge of the crater. She collapsed there, wheezing and coughing. Spit caught in her throat, and she choked it out. The air in the crater was like soup. Her eyes were burning and watery from the smoke and increased heat. She felt as if she had walked through fire. Her bare hands dug into the desert sand, glad to be out of the hellhole. Even after such a task the pain in her head still chimed in a thin resonance. This time, she sourced it to the rotting body.

If the little girl were more familiar with death she would've retched. She had never seen a corpse before, let alone an amputated one. The smell made her eyes sting and water. The body smelled like a fruit left in the sun too long. She held her nose, and blinked the water out of her eyes.

Slowly she reached out a furred hand to Shadow's cheek. The skin was hot from baking, and the muzzle was still peeling and flaking. There were no traces of life left in the hedgehog, yet the body oozed energy.

Inching closer, the girl felt the energy grow stronger. Her ears stood up as if urged by static. She reached her hand over what remained of Shadow's forehead, one of his ears peeling off. She felt her throbbing lessen, as if soothed by her actions. She knew at once that the dead body was once a server. A strong foreboding raced through her mind. She felt as if she were reaching for a key.

Suddenly, a channel opened between her and the body, and energy began to flow between them. Her fluttering heartbeat stabilized, even slowed. Her hand felt heavier and a wave of sleepiness swept through her body. The corpse was sucking energy out of her, but the pain in her head faded away. She felt her head being tapped, as if all the doors of her mind were slamming open. She could subliminally feel the life coursing through her, and flowing out of her hand. Quietly, something deep inside opened its eyes.

Shadow's body began to mend itself. Red blistered skin smoothed and regrew fur. His quills lengthened and augmented. His stump legs seemed to melt, flatten, then reshape to form knees and feet. An arm sprouted from its empty socket. His fur thickened, his pallor dissolved. Silently, Chaos energy seeped back into him. Finally, Shadow's chest began to sound tiny, ethereal pounds.

Soon the energy stopped dumping out of her hand. She pulled her hand away, revealing a mark of pure energy visible on Shadow's forehead, a small prick of light in the shape of a star. The girl gasped, knowing what the mark was and what it entailed. In curious awe she crawled over to the body, peering over the mark, entranced. The mark faded and Shadow began to breathe.

****

...others claim it's pulled by the strings of a higher power...

***

Amazed, the girl pushed her face closer to the stranger's face. He didn't smell of rot or decay anymore. She hovered her ear over his chest, hearing a faint thumping sound. She drew her face up to the stranger's face, staring and wondering. Why had he come here? Why had he taken her energy? How come he wasn't dead anymore?

Shadow's eyes squinted in discomfort. Then the eyelids rose, revealing laser red eyes. The girl let out a slow gasp at those eyes, eyes of such an ominous color. She pulled in closer, their noses touching.

Shadow's eyes opened to the glare of the sun, and a large shadow blocking his vision. His eyes, as if beginning anew, dilated before focusing. He stared up into large, saucer, childlike eyes...

Shadow screamed.

***

...and some simply say life is just what we make of it.

***

Shadow shoved, hard. He bolted into a sitting position, air filling his recently dead lungs. Shadow gagged. His chest was tight, his arms heavy and every muscle in his body sore. Shadow put a black furred hand to his chest, feeling his heartbeat and his chest rise from breathing.

Shadow's first reaction was shock. What had happened? Where was he? How did he get here? The questions kept pouring in; Shadow's mind desperately trying to analyze the situation, fill in the pieces and apply logic over his frantic instincts.

Humid winds coated his fur in sand. The sudden heat made him shiver.

Shadow shook the cobwebs from his head. "I am Shadow. The world's ultimate life form...and I'm alive."

Shadow tried to recall past events. He was on Ark. He was in space. Then he was supercharged by the Chaos Emeralds, and fighting the Biolizard. Sonic was there. They won. They had to Chaos Control the space station. Shadow spent his Chaos energy. He fell. Prayed to Maria. Then he...died.

Shadow craned his neck up to the tranquil sky, the reality of the situation sinking in. The atmosphere. He fell through the atmosphere, yet he sat in the sand without a bruise or burn. It was impossible. Inconceivable! He fell to Earth a drained mortal; he should have died! Maybe he had. Shadow's gaze shifted to the massive hole in the ground. Some ash remained in his fur. Shadow knew he had not touched the Earth still living. Somehow, something had yanked Shadow's life string.

Shadow looked up, and saw a pair of eyes dart into the sand.

***

Is the future set in stone?

***

Shadow's leg muscles were still numb. Shadow attempted to stand, but his legs refused to lock. Laying aside his pride in desperation, Shadow crawled on his belly over the sand. The distance traveled was an agonizing ten feet. Shadow crawled over to where he had seen the eyes, noticing an unnatural bump in the sand. His arms were stiff, and the sand sifting. Steadying himself for whatever might come, Shadow dipped his hand into the sand and grabbed something solid.

A deep breath. A quick and sharp yank made Shadow's muscles flex sorely. Shadow held up his catch to his eye. It was...a little girl that he was holding upside down from her left leg. She opened her eyes, startled and scared. She screamed, and wrestled out of Shadow's weak grip.

She hopped onto all fours and tore across the sand.

"Wait!" Shadow was confused, lost and alive. He needed answers. He needed a source of information to cling to. The girl was all he had.

"Where am I?" he pleaded. The girl stopped in her tracks, turning around to stare at him as if he would bite her.

He repeated, "Where am I?" The words seemed foreign to him the second time.

The girl looked at him peculiarly, mouthing her words once before she said them. "Where you're supposed to be, I guess."

Shadow was slightly relieved he could understand the girl, though her words held little meaning. Shadow needed hard facts, objective statements, not cryptic messages. The girl was still on all fours, knees bent so she could spring away if he made an advance. However, she showed no signs of running away as long as Shadow didn't move.

"What...happened to me?" Shadow spoke softly, the desert wind carrying his question to the girl.

She blinked uncertainly, still afraid of him. Her answer, however, held utmost confidence, "You woke up."

Shadow's arms sank into the sand. His upper body seemed heavier, and he fell to his hands and knees. Frustration clogged all his thoughts. Shadow could no longer think of where he was, who the girl was, or whether there was sand in his mouth. Was his death some cruel irony? Was this retribution? Was this desert wasteland his final test? Would he finally die here? The inner threads of strength snapped in stress. Pride melted into self-loathing. Shadow's inner resolve cracked.

He wanted to cry. "Why am I still alive?" he choked.

******

Does everything we do have relevance?

******

The girl paddled closer, no longer afraid. Her fear lessened when the stranger started making sobbing sounds. No one dangerous could make such a pathetic display. She crept closer, edging her knees through the sand. She didn't sink into the ground, knowing how much pressure to apply to each step without sinking.

She knelt in front of the stranger's bowed head, wondering what to say. The black creature looked so alien and foreign, with its red eyes and sobs.

She choose to mimic his gestures, not knowing any other way to act. She asked a question, "Who are you?"

The stranger made a wet sniff. The fists in the sand clenched. "I am Shadow the Hedgehog, the world's ultimate life form."

The stranger became more foreign and strange to the girl. Such an entanglement of titles could not be a name.

Shadow's arms began to shake and shudder. The arms wobbled as more pressure was exerted on them, as Shadow's upper body rose higher into the air. One knee straightened. Shadow's frail, recovering body shifted to one knee. "Ultimate. I am alive." The other leg straightened. Shadow rose to his feet, rose to stand, rose to his title as ultimate life form.

Shadow stood up, tall and strict, with every muscle screaming.

The child cowered at Shadow's imposing display. The stranger was no longer crying, stooped in the sand. The creature stood tall, eyes glaring, any type of infirmity absent from its eyes. Its back arched to add more height, quills puffed out to make the creature look bigger, even the black fur darkened in the sudden change. The black creature looked fierce, dangerous; the girl knew she was looking at a monster.

Shadow felt his muscles shaking off rigor mortis. The screaming lessened into a dull growl, only a sting coming from his joints. His body was adjusting, awakening in reanimation. Most importantly, Shadow felt his chaos energy as strong as ever. As easily damaged as his body could be, nothing could harm his chaos energy.

The surge of power in his veins erased all doubts of death and life. Analytical logic filled Shadow's mind. Planning. Order. Methods. First, set a top priority.

"You. Where am I?"

The girl could not tear away from the focused stare. She fumbled for an answer. His tone suggested he wanted a different answer from her last response. "In the desert...in the middle of nowhere," she stammered, waiting for him to turn so she could dash away.

Shadow eyed her, searching for the slightest falter. The muscles in Shadow's face finally relaxed. Her answer was plausible, considering her age and demeanor. The child looked young enough to comprehend the questions, but not old enough to process her knowledge into answers.

Mortal ails took the next priority in Shadow's mindset. He was hungry. "I need nourishment and sustenance. Will you take me to the nearest area that procures such items?"

The girl's eyes boggled at him.

Shadow frowned and rephrased. "I need food and water, where can I get some?"

The girl's distrust in him reflected in her face. Her eyes darted away from Shadow's face, long enough to consider escape but only in short bursts so she could still monitor Shadow. She didn't want to lead the stranger anywhere, especially when the stranger could make such a mean face. If she gave him food and water, he'd regain his strength and his energy levels would rise and...

The girl knew the stranger she'd saved was a monster. For a moment, that moment of sobbing and animal whines, it looked hurt and needing. But now, now it looked angry...scheming...vengeful... she wasn't going to nurture a monster.

Shadow weighed his options. He could threaten the girl into giving him provisions, and dispose of her later. No, he might need her to escape the desert. He could beat her into following his orders, but then she would jump at the chance of escaping and leaving him to fry in the desert or betraying him.

Shadow liked his next option better. He could trick her. Deceive her. Pretend they were under friendly relations until he got all he needed. Yes, that was the choice with the most beneficial outcome. But how to go about putting on the act? Shadow had deceived Dr. Eggman recently, though under very different conditions. The overeager Eggman knew what Shadow was and had hoped to manipulate Shadow. Shadow had turned that trust back into his favor in the end. However, this child was afraid of him.

How to solve this? What calmed Maria down when she was scared?

Shadow knelt down and reached his hand out. The child stared at his hand, up at his face, then shimmied farther away from him. Shadow scowled, but quickly bit his lip to hide his teeth. Maintain friendly relations. She's more use than she looks. Shadow stretched his hand until it was next to the child's face, not close enough to touch her. She locked her eyes on him, terrified, waiting for him to pull her brains out of her ears.

Shadow had to plan his words carefully. His tone had to exact, his volume mild, his emphasis measured. Shadow loosened his brows, and relaxed his shoulders. His entire plan depended on the success of his next action. Make it believable. I must sound gentle. If I do not, she will never trust me.

The laser fire in the stranger's eyes extinguished, melting to a setting sun red. "I'm not going to hurt you."

******

Can we alter our course?

*******

Was this stranger really a monster? The girl didn't know what to think anymore. His eyes seemed to emit their own heat when they looked at you, and his energy had stung her ears...but the mark she saw on his head. No monster could hold that mark. And his voice now, it was so sweet.

Shadow gently touched his hand to her face. She made no attempt to resist, or bolt away. Trust established. Now the plan.

Shadow carefully tilted her head up face his, holding back as much force as he could and using gentle persuasion. "I need food. And water."

Shadow took his hand off her face. She stared back down at the sand again, re-weighing the options. She mumbled dryly, "I know where you can get some."

With her face to the ground, Shadow cracked a cunning smirk. The hearts of the young were easily twisted. Once fed, Shadow wondered what other uses she could serve him.

The girl rose to her feet. "There's water I can take you to. Food comes out of the ground there too." She pointed at the horizon to her right. "It's over there." She brought her eyes back to Shadow, eying him the way a bird would a silent snake.

Shadow stood at this full height now, tapping the sand out of his hover-skates. The pieces of technology had survived the downfall, though as scuffed and burned as his fire ring. The white metal casing of the skates had a glaze of char, and several corners had melted and deformed edges. Shadow lightly tapped the heels together, enough for an exhalation from the bottom of the shoes. Shadow smirked wickedly.

Shadow quickly wiped the smirk off his face to not scare the girl. "I should follow you then."

She nodded slowly. "Can you run?" she asked cautiously, recalling the smell of dead flesh and the former silence in Shadow's chest.

"I can."

She nodded dutifully. She didn't want to talk to Shadow any more.

Shadow planned to leave his jets in a light hover, enough propulsion to keep him above the sand. Shadow never realized he would have to stretch his running legs only minutes after being dead.

The little girl bent her knees, and sprinted off. She accelerated 0 to 60 MPH in .45 seconds, spraying sand where she just stood.

In his surprise Shadow forgot to react and race after her. Only after the spray of sand had stung his eyes did the black hedgehog race after his guide. Shadow glided over the sand at 80 MPH until he was at her side. Shadow took careful note of her running posture, speed and style. She ran like Sonic, in the way she took very fast steps instead of strides like he did, and bobbed up and down as she ran because of it. Both she and him were at a constant speed of 60 MPH, and neither tiring. Her feet were bare, and instead of absorbing her feet, the sand solidified at her step and made a cushioned path for her to run on. Her only piece of clothing, an oversized tank-top that ended above her knees, billowed behind her like a parachute, creating more drag than it was worth. She didn't have quills like Sonic or Amy did, but instead thread-like hair colored desert mud tied in two bunches, waving behind her like bicycle streamers. As she ran, she seemed to melt into the desert sand because of her fur color. Shadow knew most hedgehog eyes were green; hers were the brown shade of Indian red.

Shadow noted to observe her further. She might be more useful now.

******

Do we have the ability to decide our future?

******

Shadow noticed she ran in a straight line, a firmly set path to their destination. This was a sign she trusted Shadow. However, she kept at his speed, running exactly level with him, sneaking quick glances at him that Shadow easily caught.

So what if she doesn't trust me fully, she trusts me enough for now.

The little girl led Shadow over miles of desert. Shadow had checked their constant rate of speed, 60 MPH exactly, and clocked their running time at 10 minutes. The scenery was bare, and ever shifting. How the girl ran without sinking into the sand was beyond Shadow, though he considered the factors in their running silence. She only deferred her course twice, both when a large sand dune was exactly in their path. She curved around the dunes, and returned to her straight course. Shadow matched her every move, hovering only an inch above the sand due to the girl's suspicion and the working state of his air shoes.

Shadow knew they were closer to their destination every time the girl accelerated. After seven minutes of running she would gradually increase her speed. Finally she gave one short burst, sprinting ahead of Shadow. She ran right for an oasis, a collection of five trees around a 15-foot pool, a stark oval of blue in the yellow desert. As he neared the oasis, Shadow saw fruits peeking out from the tree's foliage. Shadow dashed after the girl, reaching a heightened speed of 100 MPH.

The girl tumbled to a stop at the edge of the pool. She rolled once, landed on her knees halfway through the second roll, cupped her hands and drank from the pool. Shadow skidded to a stop, dunked his nose and muzzle into the water and drank until he ran out of air. Shadow sat back after drinking away his thirst, choking and sneezing water.

The girl watched him with wide eyes, eyes one would look at a lethal bug behind glass.

Anger and confusion were behind Shadow now. With an agenda set, priorities organized, and a resource he could abuse, Shadow let the shallow contentment of the drink wash over him. The satisfaction was short-lived, and awfully primitive, but Shadow relished it anyway. The joy of being alive came to him in that moment, the small window of happiness after a basic succession.

Shadow gave himself a minute to experience the feeling. Then he had better things to do. "Food?" he asked in a sophistication lapse.

The girl blinked in surprise, fidgeting around awkwardly. She locked her eyes to a nearby tree, and was sooner up in its branches. Shadow faked a casual eye, analyzing her as she climbed. She moved upwards easily, though she didn't have the claws or padded feet most tree-adapted animals had. She slipped once, though it was hard for Shadow to distinguish whether it was from physical disadvantage or fear.

She didn't climb back down, but jumped down and landed in a pile of sand. She brought down two fruits, both odd medleys of a pear and a strawberry as big as Shadow's fist.

She looked perturbed and ruffled at his presence. Her eyes never met his for more than an instant, and if he caught her while doing so she would recoil a step. Her furred hands stood out against the fruit's outer peel, and Shadow saw they were shaking. Shadow expected her to roll the fruit towards him. To his surprise she handed it to him, but kept an arm's-length away from him.

Shadow slowly, almost gracefully, wrapped his hands around her offering and pulled with as little force as he could. At his slightest pressure, the girl let go and whipped her arm back to her side.

Shadow tossed the fruit once in his hand, catching it effortlessly as it fell back down. It was to be expected she kept her distance, or was afraid of him. Children were temperamental, and trust with an adult wasn't easily gained.

Shadow engulfed half his fruit in one bite. The small girl nibbled a crescent out of hers.

In-between bites, Shadow heard the girl mumbling something. She would say something, take and bite and chew, then repeat it again. Shadow feigned disinterest, trying to decipher her words.

"Shoodoo...Saadou...Shaaduu..."

"You may call me Shadow," Shadow said softly, trying not to startle her.

He startled her anyway. She snuck a quick glance at him, then focused on eating again.

Shadow scowled, searching for a topic she could open up to him on. "You live here?"

She nodded, leaning so far now her hair was in the fruit's juice.

"It's very pretty out here," Shadow faked a chuckle. "You must run out in the sun all the time."

Another nod.

Shadow smirked, honestly this time. "I bet you must run so fast you fly."

At this the girl lifted her head up from the cave she'd formed with her bites. She looked at him, amazed that he would know such a thing. Shadow had counted on the exact reaction.

"I do..." she whispered, as if learning to speak. "Sometimes I go so fast I..."

"...fly right off the ground? So fast your feet stop touching something solid?"

She looked at him with the incredulous look again. "Yeah," she whispered warmly.

Shadow took a casual bite of the remaining fruit he had. "It happens when you go too fast," he acted casually and knowingly. "You just need to keep yourself lower to the ground. That way the air won't pick you up and throw you so you fly."

The girl nodded, like a scribbler acknowledging a novelist's advice.

"It happened to me before," said Shadow, truthfully this time.

The girl smirked, imagining the stranger catapulting through the air.

Shadow caught her awed look out of the corner of his eye. Now for the icing on the cake. "I'll teach it to you sometime."

"Would you!" she squeaked excitedly, jumping to her feet. Then, as if recalling the events prior, she sat back down quietly, pulling her excitement inward, like a psychiatrist after a crazy fit.

Shadow smirked behind a chew. She was still uneasy about him, but she liked him. He'd earned her favor, and everything would be easy after that.

Time to start an acquaintance relation. A name-to-name basis will suit fine.

Shadow leaned over, crossing his legs at the ankles. "I believe we haven't fully introduced ourselves. What's your name?"

The girl opened her mouth widely, about to scream something, then closed it quickly. She eyed the ground, reconsidering. Her eyes moved away from Shadow, off to the distance where her options lay.

******

In the end, what will Shadow decide?

******