Shadow: The Origin Of A Legend

Chapter 16

Rouge looks around, surveying the area around the base. It had been abandoned for so long, the plant life was beginning to take over. Large bushes had grown and some trees were beginning to take hold; there was even a decent amount of bamboo. I stare at the wildlife, fascinated. Everything around me feels so new. The glittering sunlight, glinting off the dew-stained leaves; each blade of grass reaches up to tickle my calves, brushing my skin and fur. The birds sing, fluttering about, a few scattering feathers to drift casually through the breeze. A multitude of different plants bloom and thrive here; if I knew these people a bit better, I would ask them what the names for all the plants are, as well as why this building had been so empty.

"Well," Rouge stretches, yawning, "we'd better get going. I'm sure waking you two up set off some alarms, so the defense team is probably on its way here," she turns back to us. "We better beat it before they get there!" She grins at me. "You two ready?"

Omega lifts his arms, the weapons within them rotating. "Warning: any and all Robotnik creations will be massacred."

I snort, ignoring the robot as I walk past the bat. "Hope you can keep up with me," I growl, beginning to sprint. The trees fly past rapidly, and I decide to leap from tree to tree, bouncing off the bark. Thankfully, I appear to be the fastest of our group...If not, I would've seemed like a serious jerk. I cringe inwardly, cursing my flippancy. I'm not even sure why I decided to say something that confrontational. I'm going to have to be more careful about what I say, and to whom I say it...

The white bat catches up to me, flapping her wings hard. "Hey," she calls, and I flick my ears towards her, sparing a glance in her direction. I hope she's not annoyed, I think, but once I look at her I notice that she's smiling cheerfully. I sigh with relief inwardly. "My name's Rouge," she says a bit awkwardly. "What's yours?"

"Shadow," I growl almost instinctively, trying my hardest to not pant with exertion. I feel like I haven't run in eons, but the motion is still natural to me...somehow. More like, my legs are used to it, but my lungs? Not so much. "Shadow the Hedgehog."

She grins. "Heh, maybe I was wrong about you not remembering anything, after all!"

"No, you were right." I reply flatly. "I don't remember anything. But that feels like my name, so I'm going to stick with it."

"Oh," Rouge replies, looking surprised. She bites her lip, and I look over at her for a bit more than a few seconds. Her outfit isn't as peculiar as I'd first thought; though it was frighteningly skin-tight. Hope she can breathe properly, wearing that, though I suppose it is convenient for aerodynamics. After all, she flies, so clearly she needs her form to be streamlined. She wore what appeared to be a purple leotard, with a plate of armor covering her lower torso. A belt with a heart-shaped buckle, made of metal as well, looped around her hips, and it appeared to hold a few cases. I wondered what they were used for, but I didn't dawdle by staring at her-that would be weird. I turned away, focusing again on the trees in front of me and, most importantly, not crashing into them.

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After several hours of running, we stop at the edge of a city. Rouge skids to a standstill, landing abruptly, panting, and she wipes her brow. "Sheesh!" She wheezes, "That took a lot more effort than I'd thought it would."

I look over at her, barely breaking a sweat myself. After a short while I'd become more accustomed to running, and it had seemed effortless. For whatever reason, I had presumed she would have more stamina... Shaking my head to clear it, I squint up at the bright city. The sun has begun to set, and the city is alive with light. I turn to face Rouge. "What are we going to do now?"

She grins at me. "Well, this area of the city has been heavily infested with Eggman's robots," the white bat pauses to run her fingers through her short-length, fluffy hair, "and I figure the best way to get Robuttnik's attention is to start taking out his armies."