Sonic Wild

The Cavern Call

Shadow's POV

I woke up early the next morning and stretched before anyone else was up. I was in desperate need of a run and some alone time. Being around that faker too long isn't healthy. I slipped out of the Tortuga as quietly as possible and skated in a random direction. This world was so...magnificent. In case you haven't heard my story, although I'm sure you have, then you would know that I "grew up" on the space station called Space Colony Ark. So, as you can see, I never got to explore the Earth below with her. I shook my head as I skated at the speed of sound, there's no need to dwell on such thoughts today. I promised to put my past behind me.

I skidded to a stop, and my feet barely touched the edge of the pond I had found. It was a secluded spot, surrounded by trees on all sides. A vast array of colorful flowers lined the embankment. Their unusual scent tickled my extremely delicate nose, tempting me to sneeze often.

Unlike faker, I enjoy a good swim, so I took off my skates and gloves, tested the water, and then dove head first. "Ooooh, yes....," I said aloud as the water massaged and loostened my worn muscles when I swam back up to the surface. I sucked in another breath and dove back down to see how deep it was. My eyes adjusted to the dark scenery below--one of the unique traits that I have as Ultimate Lifeform. It got colder the deeper I went, but it didn't bother me. I swam close to a small school of fish, and they scattered in every direction, as soon as they noticed my presence. The pond was only about thirty or forty feet deep, and the bottom was like the surface of an alien planet. It was incredible! True, my wonder at everything I saw was a bit childish, but I had never seen the things the humans or regular mobians saw in their daily lives. I swam along the bottom until I reached an underwater cave of sorts. Curious, I continued. I didn't need air down here, since I can hold my breath for several hours--another perk of being the Ultimate Lifeform. But the further in I went, the stronger something pulled. A foreign energy was slowly pulling me in, but I didn't realize this until it was too late.

Third Person POV

Sonic woke up an hour after Shadow left. He saw the empty cot but wasn't worried. He was a super-speeding hedgehog, after all, so he understood the need for a good long run. Chris and Martin were the next ones to get up. They walked into the main room rubbing their eyes and hoping that breakfast would be soon. Shadow's absence didn't go unnoticed for long.

"Where's Shadow?" Martin asked. Sonic shrugged.

"On a run."

"Do you know where?" Chris asked. The jungle was a hostile place, and he could name several predators that would be interested in a morning snack. Sonic dismissed his question with a casual wave of his hand.

"Never mess with a hedge on a run," Sonic explained, "It's common courtesy. Unless there's an emergency, then by all means call 'im. Otherwise, stay outta his way. Especially if it's Shadow."

The two Kratts nodded, though still a bit skeptical, and poured themselves some juice. The rest of the crew were starting to wake up, and Jimmy began cooking breakfast. Sonic explained that Shadow had gone on a run and would be back in an hour or more.

"He likes to actually stop and enjoy the scenery insead of zooming straight by it like me," he added. He caught Chris typing the information into his creature pod but said nothing about it. The man was a scientist after all; it was to be expected.

"How long does he usually run?" Chris asked.

Sonic answered, "Don't know for sure. We don't really hang out that much back on Mobius. But if he's anything like me then I know it will be a couple of hours. No longer than a day though, since he knows we have Chaos Emeralds to find."