These Inhibitors' Flaws (Reworked)

Chapter Six

The only super form who could pull it off was Super.

Super was annoying. He was too happy and upbeat all the time. The way Sonic was outwardly. That's sort of where he got his personality from. And also why Sonic found it so easy to plaster on a smile and ignore everything else. It was Sonic's open personality for sure, which made sense. Super was the closest to Sonic. Now at least. He hadn't always been. He hadn't even always existed. None of them had.

Except Dark.

Super was tolerable at best, and the most helpful for Sonic. Dark could accept that. Hyper... Hyper made Dark as angry as Fleetway did. But for different reasons. Hyper was useless. He'd helped Sonic out once. Once. Fucking once! And he was Sonic's favourite, the stuck up, self-righteous, smug piece of shit and he knew. He knew he was the favourite. And he was never about. He never helped. Came to Sonic only on occasion to speak with him, comfort him. He needed the fucking Super Emeralds to give Sonic his power. And they were gone. Hyper served no purpose anymore.

He'd helped Sonic far more times than Hyper ever had or will. He didn't need the Emeralds like Super. But Sonic... hated him. And he hated Sonic.

At least, he thought he did. Right? Had to. Because he'd cast him out. Like Fleetway.

That was why Fleetway had suggested they work together.

"How's it going with ol' Blue Bitch?" Fleetway asked, fixing his glove even though Dark knew he didn't really care about his appearance.

Dark also frowned at the nickname. For some reason it made him furious.

"It's not my style."

"But is it working?"

"That remains to be seen."

"It'll work."

Dark was sure he was right, but there must have been a better way than this. There was also no telling how long this would take. Dark wasn't... enjoying this. He'd put up an act for a while, for too long. He was sure Sonic noticed his change in demeanour. But did he ever ponder over it? Or did he just accept it was from years of isolation?

Had Hyper told him that?

The thought made his energy crackle inside him.

"What's your next idea then?" Dark asked scornfully.

Fleetway's manic gaze landed on him. His grin was wider than before. Impossibly so.

...

Dark found himself roaming the familiar darkness of his domain a while later. Fleetway's suggestions were always... intense. Dark wasn't so sure he liked his newest one. It required him to conjure something heinous. Fleetway was really pushing it this time. Dark had objected immediately.

Fleetway had convinced him to give it a go anyway.

Dark wasn't sure how he managed to do that. He was having second thoughts again. But going back to Fleetway to argue now was admitting defeat.

Dark caught a spark of light in the distance. It cut through his beloved darkness, but if he knew if he took a few steps back it would disappear entirely. This was the centre of his Voidspace. An area Sonic never managed to reach. Not anymore. Dark stepped up towards it and ran his hand through the lightly pulsing energy. He twisted it in his hands. The energy was warm to his cold palms. He spun threads of light from the centre of the energy.

Dark walked the threads back away from the centre and began to craft his scene. He wove them together, threw others out, pulled them apart and reshaped them. The threads bent to his will as effortlessly as modelling clay. He told them what to do, and they did it. Just like they always did.