The Night of a Thousand Fears
Disclaimer: Shadow rules. Oh, and I don't own Sega or Sonic. But Shadow does indeed rule, so bow down to him before he kills you.
The darkness fell upon the dark streets of the city like a thick blanket. Despite its attempts to snuff out the light, however, the night was actually brilliantly lit due to all of the houses that had their lights on. This was the day, the day of darkness. October the thirty first. All Hallows Eve night. Children were out playing in the streets, running from house to house to get their candy. Their costumes were creative and varied, despite a few popular characters that had many fans. However, there was one costume that wasn't faked. A blue blur sped across the gravel topped rows, running from house to house to grab the candy from each. Sonic the Hedgehog was Trick or Treating… as himself.
"This sure beats going in some lame ass costume!" Sonic laughed to himself as he rounded another corner. His large sack of candy was full to bursting, and it slowed him down immeasurably. With great effort, he ran into the train station and sped off to the Mystic Ruins to offload his loot. That was the deal this year: Tails would give him the most efficient route and a map to use, in exchange for splitting the candy up between them. Sonic had agreed, mostly because there would still be more candy in the end than if he had just done it by himself. The train arrived at the ruins after a few minutes, so Sonic hopped off and raced towards the workshop. It almost looked like an evil scientist's lair in the dark backdrop of the full moon. Reaching the door, he knocked twice, then patted the door softly twice with an open palm. That was the signal for his specific arrival. Tails would only open his door if Sonic did that specific knock.
"Hey, Sonic! You got a huge catch!" Tails exclaimed, as he noticed the bulging sack. Speedily, Sonic unloaded it all onto the growing pile of candy already gathered. The night was no longer young, as the clock neared 11:00. Tails was grinning like a maniac, and had finally finished a giant sorting machine it looked like.
"So, Tails… You've finished that sorting machine I see." Sonic noted after all of the candy was offloaded. Tails nodded, satisfied with his work.
"We'll be eating our favorite candy in no time. We should have enough of the other kinds to trade with Amy and the Chaotix…" Tails noted to himself, studying the huge pile of candy already gathered.
"But we probably have almost all of the candy you could possibly get in Metropolis…" Tails continued, and Sonic got a devious grin on his face. This was the part he liked most of all.
"Time for the switchup?" He asked as Tails began to grin as well. They both laughed maniacally as Tails changed his dark blue fur back to its normal shade. The kitsune genius had darkened his fur to make it look more like a costume, and after reverting it back he could start all over with every house he had already hit tonight.
"Ohhh yeah… Let's have some fun!" Sonic exclaimed. Tails was still grinning as it occurred to Sonic what he had wanted to do.
"Oh, almost forgot…" He muttered, reaching into one of his fur pockets and retrieving several egg-shaped objects. Tossing them to his fox buddy, he explained his idea.
"Here's some fun for Shadow. I know he probably isn't going out tonight. So, we gotta trick him if noone will treat him!" Sonic grinned once more, flashing his trademarked thumbs-up before dashing out the door. Tails was grinning too, finally able to have a little fun without much effort on his part. How wrong he was…
Shadow was lying down on a black couch in Club Rouge. The batgirl herself was all dressed up for the occasion, sporting a black dress and cape with her black gloves and a whip to boot. Her fangs only highlighted her batlike features, and completed the look. Shadow could not understand the concept of dressing up and running around begging for candy. It was absurd to him. Why should he embarrass himself to just get what he could get without doing anything? Rouge had finished putting on her costume, and was walking over towards him. 'Great… She's probably going to ask me to join her… again… Why can't the woman leave me alone?!' Shadow thought, knowing that the night would not be pleasant. But Rouge had to try and bring him into all of it…
"Shadow? I know you don't like Halloween, but would you do it for me?" Rouge pleaded, but Shadow would not budge. The Ultimate Life-Form could not degrade himself just to satisfy some girl. Just so Rouge could be happy… No. He wouldn't.
"Sorry, Rouge. I just don't want to. Have fun." Shadow hated to see her upset, but he would be firm on the matter. Rouge merely sighed, resigning herself to a boring night of loneliness.
"Fine, be that way. There's candy near the door. Be sure to give it to the trick or treaters. The TV is plugged in over there, if you want to watch something." Rouge then turned on the spot and walked calmly out the door without another word. Finally, he was alone. Moving over to where the TV was plugged in, he settled into a hard but not uncomfortable chair and flicked on a horror film. The Ultimate Life-Form felt it fitting to be terrified on this night, even though he himself was not afraid of anything besides humiliation. The channel surfing ended on a flick based on vampires, and he settled in further into his seat. He was absorbed in his movie until he head the bell ring. Grumbling, he stomped over to the door and picked up the cache of candy. Three little boys dressed up as a devil, a Grim Reaper, and a skeleton were at the door, so he chucked a few candies at their bags and slammed the door faster than they could say 'Trick or Treat'. Settling back into his movie, he watched as another thrilling scene unfolded.
"No, Dracula! I'll do anything! Don't bite me-eeeeeeeaaaugh…" The woman on the screen shouted, as the 'Count' Dracula bit her on the neck. She began the transformation into a vampire, and started to hunt the night. Suddenly, another doorbell rang and he nearly vaporized the door with a Chaos Spear. He had just gotten to a good part, and this child had to interrupt him! This time, it was a lone boy dressed up in a suit of armor. A few pieces of candy in the boy's face and a doorslam later, and Shadow was back to his horror film.
"No, Trish! What are you doing! Trish, what did- AAAUGhhohhhhhhhhhhh…" The man had just been bitten by the girl who had turned into a vampire previously. Shadow enjoyed the violence shown in the film, but he felt that there weren't enough guns. Suddenly, the doorbell rang again and he quickly Chaos Controlled his way to the front door. As he opened the door, the two-tailed fox immediately identified him and pelted several egg-shaped things at him before flying away. Drying himself off, he realized that they were paintball filled canisters set to splatter on contact. A note on the ground said:
'Happy Halloween, you old grouch! You can't get a treat, so it had to be a trick. ~Sonic'
Shadow was enraged beyond the point of no return. Furious, he blasted himself clean through a Chaos Blast, then Chaos Controlled his way right on top of the flying two-tailed fox. Without knowing what was coming, the boy immediately plummeted to the gravel below, scraping his knees on the rough terrain. Shadow had flipped off the boy, and held him up by his neck fur.
"Sonic put you up to this, didn't he! DIDN'T HE!!!" Shadow screamed at the boy, who was so terrified he could barely let out a squeak of affirmation. A plan hit the jet-black hedgehog in that second, as he knew immediately how to get the blue blur back for his impudence.
"Well, Tails… You're about to see what happens when you piss me off. It is very unfortunate that you had to be involved, seeing as you hero worship that faker… Anything to say for yourself?" Tails immediately started begging him to let the boy go, saying how sorry he was and that he'd never do it again. Smiling sadistically, Shadow flicked the red Chaos Emerald into the air and caught it between the index and middle fingers of his right hand, which was not holding up Tails.
"Relax, Fox boy. You won't feel a thing… Chaos… CONTROL!!!" Shadow shouted, as he slammed his right open palm into Tails' forehead. The jet-black hedgehog's fist let go of the fox's body as he was thrown several feet away into the gravel road. The hedgehog was glowing an eerie yellowish white, as he immediately started giving orders.
"Breathe, fox boy. You are now my slave." Tails started to breathe, since he had stopped once the spell had taken hold of him. Another use of Chaos Control was to warp the minds of the victim, submitting them to the caster's will. Tails would now be his slave, and do as he commanded.
"Alright, fox boy. You are going to get Sonic, and you will bring him to the middle of the park. You may not tell him what you are doing, who sent you, or why you need to go there. All you need to do, is bring him there. I'll release you if you do a good job." Shadow commanded harshly, forcing the Tails on the ground to groan as his arms pushed his body up. The boy's limbs did Shadow's bidding, while he was free to speak so long as he did not go against his orders.
"Damn you, Shadow the Hedgehog… Damn you." Tails was able to mutter before his Tails sent him flying towards Sonic. On the ground, Shadow was already gone. His plan required the help of several others, and he had to act accordingly. He would have his revenge!
Sonic sped around another corner, his sack having been filled with a few more candies from the last house. He had finished this block, and was heading down to the next to begin the process again. The blue blur would run up to the house, ring the bell, take the candy, and speed off before the person knew what had hit them. It was these kinds of smash'n'grab tactics that made the pile of candy sitting in Tails' workshop. Reaching another house, he quickly rang the doorbell, took the man's candy at the door, and ran off again. His bag was now half full again. Reaching the middle of the street, he stopped as he heard the familiar whirring of tails above him. Looking up, sure enough, he saw Tails gliding down to him.
"Tails! You're back! I bet you got Shadow good!" Sonic laughed as Tails landed, laughing as well. Nothing seemed odd as Tails laughed like he used to. But there were signs… Tails' eyes pleaded for Sonic to run, his tails were jerking around awkwardly, and his speech was not right, but Sonic was slow after running at mach speeds for so long. He missed the telltale signs that something was very, very wrong.
"Yeah, I pelted him, really, good." Tails said weirdly, but Sonic missed it.
"Hell yes! Nice work. C'mon, lets hit the rest of these houses before you go back to the shop." Sonic was getting ready to dash again before Tails grabbed his arm lightly. Confused, he waited for the kitsune to explain.
"Wait, Sonic. I want to show you something at the park. Let's trick or treat on the way there." Sonic did some calculations in his head, surprisingly, and nodded. The park was only 8 blocks away, which gave him plenty of time to fill his sack one more time.
"Alright, let's hit these houses!" Sonic pulled Tails along beside him, as they hit every house along the street. He got double the candy because of Tails, and they were able to effectively eliminate the block from his list in not too much time. They rounded the next corner, and raided this block as well. Then they hit the next one, and the next one after that. Finally, after the eighth block of 'treating, they had a full sack of candy. His wristwatch read 11:55 PM. The hour of power was rapidly approaching, as Tails led him into the park. The darkness covered the grass and trees completely, making it near impossible to see very far in front of him. However, whether it was the darkness or the fact that Tails was almost pulling on his arm to get him to the center of the park, he felt that it was kind of scary here. This didn't sit right with him, and he wanted it to end as soon as possible. Finally, as his watch announced midnight, Tails pushed him into the center of the park, where a small circular terraced stage had been set up. Sonic was pushed onto the highest and smallest center ring, looking out a foot taller than Tails was high.
"What's this all about, Tails?" Sonic asked, before a spotlight shone on a spot a little bit behind Tails on the paved road. Shadow the Hedgehog stood there, in a black cape that made him look almost realistically like a vampire. The look suited him.
"Good job, slave. Now it is time to feast…" Sonic realized with a pang of dread that this was no joke. Midnight had sounded the final hour of his tragic play, and death was calling out to him. Somewhere, a fat lady was singing, as Sonic came to terms with his mortality. He would not leave this place tonight.
Sonic was startled as several other spotlights shone in a ring around his terraced stage, and in them he saw his friends all tied up. Amy, Tikal, Rouge, Knuckles, Big, Cream, and Tails were all arranged in a circle around him. Tails had been warped to the spotlight directly behind Sonic, while going clockwise around there stood Amy, Knuckles, Rouge, Shadow who was not tied, Tikal, Cream, and Big. Thick corded ropes bound their hands together, but strangely their feet remained unbound. Sonic only had eyes for Shadow however, who was sporting a wicked grin. The blue wonder could sense that he thirsted for blood, and he was about to get some.
"Now, let's start off with your friends… I'm sure you'll love to see that!" Shadow laughed with insane pleasure as he sauntered over to where Rouge stood. She looked frightened, but didn't or couldn't back away as the psychotic jet black hedgehog approached.
"Now, now, Rouge… don't you want to be closer to me? Don't be afraid, my dear… Just one moment of pain, and we can be together… forever." As Shadow said the last word, his head darted out to the batgirl's exposed neck and Sonic could see blood drip down her white skin. Rouge immediately went limp as Shadow bit into her, and Sonic could see that this was no longer some prank. Shadow was literally feasting on his friends, and Sonic could not move to help them. His feet were immobilized with fear, fear for his own safety rather than his friends. The blue hedgehog had seen movies about these freaks, and he did not want to become one. But with Chaos Control, Sonic could not escape. Shadow, after finishing his meal, stepped back a pace from the converted Rouge. She curtseyed, and Sonic could distinctly see two dark holes in her neck.
"Mashter…" She said in what seemed to be a vampiric voice to Sonic. Shadow smiled as he faced the cobalt hedgehog who quivered on his stage.
"Ah, the blood of the sinful… How delectable! But… shall we taste the blood of the warrior next?" Shadow asked rhetorically as he sauntered over to Knuckles. The red echidna was trying desperately to break his rope bonds, but they held strong. Finally, after Shadow finished his slow and agonizing walk towards him, he broke free and began to charge… But Shadow had already begun his fatal bite, as blood ran down imperceptibly through his blood-red fur. The echidna's clenched fists relaxed, and he looked almost docile for a change. Shadow had tamed Knuckles… and Sonic knew that soon he would be on the dinner menu. He failed to gulp, his muscles not working properly in his terror. Shadow continued his march over to Amy, who was beginning to plead with Sonic for help. Sonic could not take his eyes off Shadow, but however hard he tried he couldn't move his legs.
"Ah! The blood of the warrior shall be mud in comparison to the blood of love! I shall devour you next, my dear Amy!" Amy tried, she really did… But in one sickening bite, Amy's resolve faded and Shadow gained a new servant. On the other points of the circle, his friends were quaking in fear, but could not move. Knuckles and Rouge were all laughing as their master added another disciple to their ranks. Finished, he moved onto Tails.
"Ah, the sage blood! Shall we taste your intellect next?" And taste he did, as Tails fell to the sadistic hedgehog's bite as well. Sonic could not take the sight any more, and threw up to the side of him. As Shadow removed himself from the bite, he laughed.
"Come now, Sonic. This cannot be the cause of your sickness! Look at them! Do they not show happiness? They know the true joy that comes with servitude to their master!" Shadow laughed, and Sonic was convinced that Shadow had gone completely mad.
"Shadow! What happened to you?!" Sonic screamed, unable to take the death of his friends any longer. If he could not move, at least he could talk.
"Ha! You set me off, you cobalt wonder. I shall relish the taste of your fear…" Shadow growled with inhuman ferocity, moving on to Big the Cat. He was staring dumbly at Shadow as he advanced.
"And now, as a direct contradiction! The blood of the dull! I had thought to place you here, Sonic…" His disciples laughed audibly, and Shadow took the bite into Big's neck. It was over in a second, Big's dumb nature sharpening into a focused intent servitude. Shadow seemed pleased, as he walked over to Cream.
"No, don't do it!" Sonic pleaded. "Don't do this to Cream!" Shadow merely laughed heartlessly, and continued with his mantra.
"Ah, the blood of the innocent… Such naivety, it shall have to be quelled with obedience!" Shadow took another large bite, and as the fangs sank into her flesh Cream gasped only once before falling into her own trance. As the hedgehog removed himself, she curtseyed appropriately. Shadow was beside himself with mirth as Sonic purged himself of yet another meal.
"Ah, and your last friend. Tikal, who carries the blood of the priestess! The last of my servants!" Shadow paused, and Sonic could tell the obvious terror in the girl's eyes before she was bitten. She, too, gasped in pain before ultimately submitting to the dark hedgehog's will. Shadow's task done, he returned to his spot in the circle, his seven disciples all staring at the final prize. Sonic stood at the center of a ring of death, all of his friends having been corrupted by Shadow the Vampire. The aforementioned black hedgehog merely chuckled spitefully, looking upon his last victim.
"Shadow… don't do this… Please… I'm sorry!" Sonic pleaded as Shadow took the first step up his terraced stage.
"Ah, the blood of the Hero… He who hath lost all of his friends this night. Shall you join them?" Shadow asked as he took another step up the terrace. One more, and he would be in biting range of the cobalt hedgehog. Immediately, Sonic cowered and pleaded for his safety more.
"Shadow, please! I beg of you! Stop!" Finally, Shadow took the last step and grinned wickedly. Sonic could tell that he was up to something.
"Fine, on one condition." Sonic stopped begging and looked up hopefully at the dark vampire. His wicked grin had turned into a vicious smile.
"You must wear this dress, and bow down to me in worship." Sonic nearly choked, but complied reluctantly. He slipped on the pink tutu and stockings, and lowered himself to his knees. He bowed continuously to the vampiric lord, saying over and over how Shadow was the best and he was inferior. After a few seconds, several flashes of light and shutter clicks were heard all around the circle. Stunned, he saw that six of his friends all had their cameras pointing at him, snapping picture after picture of him in that position. The only one who was not snapping pictures was Tails, who had collapsed for some reason. Shadow, who had been enjoying being worshipped, was now laughing with great mirth. Sonic couldn't understand.
"What… what's going on?" Sonic stuttered, as Shadow finally stopped laughing.
"Heh, I tricked you, Faker! Now that you've been scared out of your wits and photographed bowing down to me with a dress on…" Shadow snatched his overlarge sack of candy from his hands.
"I'm going to steal your candy. Sayonara, Sonic the Hedgehog." Immediately, Sonic was smacked in the face with the blunt edge of a Chaos Spear. Losing consciousness right next to Tails, he could barely see out of the corners of his fading eyesight, watching his friends run away laughing their asses off. They went on back to finish Trick or Treating. Shadow had Chaos Controlled out of there, leaving him and Tails to spend their night on the cold ground.
The next morning, Sonic and Tails awoke to find themselves in the middle of the park. Sonic immediately ripped off the dress he was wearing, while Tails was groveling on the ground at his feet.
"Sonic, I'm so sorry! He mind controlled me! I couldn't stop him! I'm sorry…" Tails pleaded, and Sonic immediately felt a surge of anger for the jet black hedgehog.
"It's not your fault, Tails… Damn that Shadow! Wait… Oh no… C'mon, we've gotta get back to the workshop!" Sonic shouted, realizing what Shadow had gone to do. Upon reaching Tails workshop, they opened the door to find a horror scene.
The only candy left was licorice and Milky Way's.
The note left on the ground said:
Happy Halloween, Faker.
Happy Halloween, guys. I personally do not like Milky Way's. So I apologize if they're you're favorite. Raise your hand in a review if you liked Shadow's revenge!