Story by @Supers2012 Edited by @cs2437981 and @spiritwolf932 Logo by @ScratchNationalCoder Characters by SEGA Read the previous chapters on @Supers2012 or... through here! Previous: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/1246407108 First: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/1246097170 Next: Coming!
Chapter 3: A Hard Day The time moves forward, Knuckles returns to his friends. Yet there were only Sonic and Rouge. “Sorry guys, but I must visit Shadow.” – said the Bat, realizing she didn’t keep her promise to return soon. She got carried away. “Alright! We’ll wait for you. Take care!” – responded Sonic, having no idea about the promise she made to Shadow. “Mhm thanks! See you later.” – she sang, winked and flew away. As Rouge arrived to Shadow, the Hedgehog was standing with his back to her. His arms were crossed as usual. “Hi Shad!” – she said playfully. […] – the Hedgehog was standing still, not making any noise in response. “Erm… Shad?” – the Bat started to worry. [Uh-oh. Seems like he noticed I’m late.] The tension filled the area. “You.” – The Hedgehog sharply turned his face to her. Rouge jumped from surprise. –“…Me?” – there was a vulnerable note in her voice. She is clearly scared. “You were supposed to come back 3 hours ago.” – he slowly started to approach. “I-I just got carried away!” – she tried to defend herself, sweating. “I allowed you to visit Sonic and you were only supposed to talk with him for no longer than 10 minutes... BUT NOT join to his team.”– his eye was twitching. The Bat didn’t keep her promise. Second time. “I can explain—” He cut her off. - “No. You did a second mistake. And you will pay for that.” – [You think you have the answers? - I’ll laugh and watch you fall.] Thankfully, Sonic was having a run and heard their conversation. Like a hero, he emerged to save his friend. He popped between them. “Hey Shadow! Do you know that it's bad to threaten my friends? Rouge, go hide, I'll take care of him.” The Bat rejected Hedgehog’s request, yet she took two steps back from them. “Do you know that your new Bat friend is a liar?” – said Shadow, irritated by the fact his rival interrupted the dialog. “You're wrong Shadow! She is fair and honest.” – replied Sonic, correcting Shadow. “...Actually I was a liar. But it's in the past!” – confessed the Bat, remembering the time before she met Shadow. “See?” “Well that's no reason to hurt her. Let's solve our conflict in a peaceful way” – proposed brave-hearted hero. “You afraid to fight? How pathe—” Shadow was interrupted by Sonic: “Eat this Shadow!” – blue Hedgehog threw a chili dog at Shadow. [You’re not you when you’re hungry. Take a snack and chill!] “What!?” – the Hedgehog caught the chili dog, despite being surprised by an unexpected move. – “A chili dog? Ugh, I prefer hotdogs.”- he threw it back. “My chili dog!” – Sonic failed to catch his favorite snack and prepared for the worst. But Rouge caught the chili dog. – “I’ll guard it!” Sonic dashed into Shadow. They started to fight, yet both reflected each other’s attacks. “Boys! Maybe this isn't the right way to—” “It's not your battle, Rouge!” – both Hedgehogs shouted. Maybe they are different, yet both had the same thought this time. The meaningless battle continued, but quickly ended. “We’ll talk later. CHAO-O-OS! CONTROL!” – Shadow cut off and with loud noise, teleported away. A powerful soundwave echoed in the air. It was probably heard in a mile radius. “You alright?” – asked Rouge, handling a chili dog to Sonic. “I am!” – he took the snack and was about to thank her. But she already flew away. --- The Hedgehog was sitting on the rock flying in his dark thoughts. [This Bat… She’s a traitor. She must pay for her lies. Our team? Throw it all away. I have Omega, unless…] Something inside started to hold him back. He closed his eyes, crossed legs and started to meditate - concentrate on the source. Suddenly, a familiar human female figure appeared in front of him. It was… Maria. The spirit of Maria. She looked exactly like her, but had a bright glowing cyan aura. “…Maria?” “Shadow! Please, promise me you’ll never hurt anyone. Promise you will only use your powers for creation and not the destruction. Bring happiness to humanity. Bring the hope. Bring the love and not hate.” Shadow opened his eyes. The spirit disappeared. He was shocked. The inner spirit of Maria is reminding him who he is, pointing out that he is wrong. How could he even think of hurting Rouge? And…What if he get lost or captured someday? No one will come, because he is alone. “…I must fix what I’ve done.” – he took the final decision. – “Organize the picnic.”
