Shadow: Awakening II

The Last Emerald

"Shall we?" She smirks, gesturing towards the planet below. Pulling out my current Emerald with one hand, I growl my command.

"Chaos Control." The world warps around us as my powers transport us to the surface. The moment the warp finishes, Rouge flies off. Off to find whoever has the Emerald. I guess I just wait around until she does, then? I stand still, watching the clouds above me hurry away on a current of air. Frowning, I remember seeing them from high above with Maria. It was always relaxing to watch them float so lazily from the ARK, but now they seem rushed and hurried. My tail twitches suddenly, complaining to me about my lack of movement. Sighing, I shift my weight and continue my vigilant standby.

Almost a half hour passes before I get a call on my communicator.

"Shadow!" Rouge's voice sounds, "They're in that blue plane with the Emerald at 11 o'clock high!" Despite my loathing for the bat, I'm so glad to have something to do that I forget to sound angry at her.

"Copy that. I'm in pursuit." Zooming off on my hover shoes, I follow the cobalt plane in question. I easily keep pace with the flying machine, and, after several minutes, I stop and report in on it.

"Doctor," I say into my watch, "they're heading right for your desert base. What should we do?"

"Just sit tight," he replies, and my quills bristle at his condescending tone. "I've got them on radar. There's no way they can get away! I don't know what they are planning, but I'll be sure to give them a 'warm welcome.' Hahaha!" I grit my teeth to keep from saying something I'll regret, but it's not easy.

"Shadow?" Rouge's voice catches me off guard, and I stare at my communicator in surprise. "We need to get back to the ARK to head them off. Can you come get me?"

"Of course," I respond curtly, "I'll be there soon." So they're planning to head to the ARK? An interesting choice... Do they know who they'll be up against if they try to halt my--or the Doctor's--plan? Shaking my head, I dismiss my thoughts. Still glowering over the Doctor's dismissing of me, I yank out my Emerald and shout the now familiar words. "Chaos Control now!" The warp takes me to Rouge's location, and she wastes no time in requesting our departure.

"Well? Let's go," she says, raising an eyebrow at me when I don't offer her an arm. She continues when I studiously give no reply, placing her hands on her hips in a representation of attitude. "You know, it's not polite to ignore a lady when she's talking to you." Clenching my fist, I keep my face impassive; I'm not willing to jeopardize my cover solely for the sake of my anger. Attacking Rouge might be tempting, but it won't go over well, not as long as she's the Doctor's "ally."

"Hmph," I reply, scowling at her. She steps back, mocking me by pretending to be hurt by my reaction.

"Oh, whatever did I do to you?" Rouge teases, placing her hand over her heart like she got struck by an arrow. "Can't you even pretend to like me?"

"No." My reply is curt, and she rolls her eyes at me.

"You certainly have charm... Well, Mr. Sunshine, why don't you make yourself useful and activate Chaos Control already? It's not like I can fly back to the ARK, you know." Gritting my teeth, I draw energy from my Emerald, surrounding us both in its warp. Seconds later, we arrive on the ARK, and I turn to Rouge, growling.

"There. Are you happy?" I am clenching my jaw by this point, annoyed at how easily Rouge manages to get under my skin. My frustration is exchanged for surprise, though, when she swivels her hips and winks at me.

"Of course I am. You're quite the gentleman, Shadow." Her face shows nothing but sincerity, but her tone makes it clear this is just another one of her aggravating comments. "Oh, well, I guess I'll see you later. After all someone's got to guard the Emeralds. Why don't you go check in with the Doctor? I'm sure he'll need your help to protect the ARK, after all." Rouge ends her suggestion with a self-satisfied smirk, making my anger spike and my fingers twitch. She thinks she's got me in a bind... That I'll follow her instead... But I'm still playing the role of the loyal servant, and I'm not going to get distracted so easily. I'm sure I'll have time to confront her later...

"Of course." Rouge's eyes widen a bit, but then she smiles at my words. "I'll be with the Doctor, then." I turn and stalk out, making no attempt to hide my anger now. She'll assume that I'm just mad at leaving her alone, but she couldn't be more wrong. She's played right into my trap, and now the stage is set for the final move, the last checkmate. There's no escaping my plan now, not once I tear the last Emerald away from the foolish people heading towards the ARK. There's no hope for Earth now...

With that thought, I feel my features break out in a smirk, and I wish the whole world could see my face. Let them see that I have nearly won. Let them see how powerless they are against me! For soon Maria's wish will be fulfilled, and nothing, NOTHING, will be able to stop this scheme. Maria will be avenged, and once she is, I don't care what happens to me. I'm not afraid to give all I am to see this through, and that's what should REALLY scare the murderers below on Earth. This is what I was created to do; to carry out Maria's wish. To seek revenge is my purpose, and I shall not fail. I open my mouth, and let my dark, ominous laugh carry through the hallway. No, I shall not fail. Not this time, nor ever, shall I fail Maria again. Never again, Maria... I promise. 

Author's Note: Yes, I made a Cupid reference when I said Rouge was pretending to be struck in the heart with an arrow. Make of it what you will... :3 I am a ShadOuge shipper, but I'm open to everything, so this is completely open to interpretation... :D

Author's Note #2 (FUNNY STORY!): Oh. My. Gosh. Okay, I know this is a day late, but the story of why (to me, at least) is worth the extra day of waiting. Okay, so, last night I was working on this chapter, and I basically had it done, when... THE POWER AT MY HOUSE WENT OUT. I'm not even kidding, ten more minutes and I could have published this thing. We had a big storm last night, and our computer has no battery, only a cord. So, I grabbed my phone and started using data to finish the chapter. Then I realized I had a problem... You see, I work on these chapters in a communal Google Doc, not on Wattpad, so I had to copy-paste the WHOLE DARN THING into the new chapter thing. All 9,315 words of it (it's over 9,000!!! XD). I was actually willing to sit there for a long time holding my phones backspace button when I realized something else. All of my italics were GONE. At that point, I gave up, because I was not about to nitpick every single thought of Shadow's from the chapter one word at a time. Let me just add that I was doing this at midnight on a school night, so I was already primed to give up. So, I'm really sorry about the delay, but the sequence of events that led to it are kind of comical! XD So, tell me what you think about this chapter (and if you read this whole Author's Note, congratulations! You get a cookie! :D), and don't forget to read the prequel if you haven't yet!