In Due Season

Chapter XVII

Hidden Nightmares Open Doors

Sonic's knees buckled as his muscles began quivering under the strain of over excursion. Normally, his stamina was his greatest power. He could keep supersonic speeds up for hours on end without so much as a breather, but he was running on fumes now. Thanks to horrible nightmares, he hadn't slept well in weeks and due to the added stress of a newborn he hadn't kept tabs on his own health as closely as he usually did. Now, his speed was the only thing preventing his wife from drowning and his body was trying to shut down on him. He knew adrenaline could only carry him so far, but a plan was becoming more elusive with each exhausting step he took.

"Come on. Think, Sonic," he encouraged himself as he slapped a hand on the green tile near the floor of the room. He looked up into Amy's worried eyes and, despite the situation, wanted to alleviate her despair. He smiled and winked at her, knowing it was one of her favorite gestures from him. His smile grew as she returned the smile, albeit, weakly and touched the screen with her hand. There was still hope. Tails was here, after all, and he was sure the fox was already working on a way to get them out of this. However, on the off chance there was no Calvary coming, he needed a plan and he prayed he could come up with one quickly.

"Argh!" he shouted as the tile he held switched to red and water began pouring into Amy's enclosure. He quickly bounced around the entire room looking for the one ivory tablet that didn't emit a glow. Once he found it, he pressed down and the water stopped. This cycle had been going on for thirty-minutes, non-stop and he knew it would only be a matter of time before the water level in Amy's cell reached an unmanageable level. It was driving him crazy. If only he knew where she was. That one piece of information was all he needed. If she was in this building he could reach her in a split second, but if she was off-site . . .

He looked back up at her to see she was inspecting her glass prison once again, trying to find another way out no doubt. He had already gestured for her to smash her way out, but she had adamantly refused. According to this General Davis guy, if she did that he would end up blown to bits. He knew she would never do anything to endanger his life, but it was jeopardizing hers. It made for a frustrating situation. Poor Kimi stood to lose one or both of them . . . No, he couldn't afford to think like that.

The tile changed color again and he ran until he found the next one. His legs shuddered. There had to be a way to find Amy. He looked back up at the screen and saw she was pointing to something on her monitor. He watched as she desperately tried to mouth something to him. He couldn't make out what it was and shook his head. She seemed to wilt, but then he could see the determination in her eyes; she was thinking.

"Come on, Ames. What is it?" he encouraged. Red flashed under his hand and he took off, pressing down on green before looking up again. Amy was holding up two fingers. When she saw that she had his full attention, she motioned with one finger before placing two on her forearm. She looked into his eyes to see if he understood. Sonic's eyes lit up.

Charades.

"Two words. The first word, two syllables," he said repeating her gestures with his free hand. She nodded and began shaping her hands into letters. There was no way for him to gauge whether he was understanding the spelling correctly, but he hoped he was.

"Closed?" he mouthed before the tile changed and he was sent racing for the correct one. Once found, he looked up again. This time it was the second word, two syllables. It took a few times of him gesturing for her to do it one more time with a raised finger until something clicked.

"Closed circuit? Closed circuit. It's CCTV!" he shouted as the significance of that understanding was realized. She was in the same building; she was in the same building! All he . . . needed to do . . . was get out of this room . . . and find her . . . Why was it so hard to focus . . .

Sonic noticed his vision blurring and his muscles burning. He'd experienced exhaustion before, but this was something different. He tried to clear his head with a shake and take in more air, but it only made things worse. His vision began tunneling and he couldn't feel his legs at all. He looked at his wife, her anxious face causing more confusion than clarity. His mind was so foggy. What was happening to him?

"Amy?" he barely breathed before falling backward, powerless to move, "No."

Before unconsciousness overtook him he was vaguely aware of something or someone beside him. Then he began to dream . . .

"Shao."

With tiny legs and arms, he struggled to pull himself out of the clear container. The small hedgehog's fingers clasped the edge of the glass box as he tried to remain steady atop the makeshift ladder he made out of a blanket and a single stuffed bear; one thing on his mind; escape. He wasn't the only creature in the room either. The walls were lined with steel cages and glass aquariums, filled with animals of all different kinds. Some were fun to watch, others cute and friendly, but many seemed dangerous or, at least, grumpy to the soon to be fugitive hedgehog. Right now though, he didn't care about any of them as he was on a mission; determined to do what most two-year-olds desired to do; find their guardian; his 'Shao'.

It had been days since he last saw Shao. The scientists, better known to him as the scary men, always placed him into his container and left him there alone, doing little more than feeding him from time to time. He hated being in this box. Everything about it made him want to cry. It was small and cramped. He always felt forgotten and alone. The scary men always shut the lights off, the other creatures around him always made frightening noises, and, worst of all, there were always painful tests to be run the next day.

That was till tonight. The young, blue hedgehog was getting out of here to find the one thing that had shown him kindness, offered him protection and gave him security; a black, adult looking hedgehog named Shadow—or Shao, in the two-year-olds broken speech. Shadow was the one who gave him the blanket. Shadow was the one who snuck snacks to him during the day. Shadow was the one who came in some nights, especially after a challenging series of exams, and comforted the child. The little hedgehog loved Shadow. Mia' had given him the teddy bear and she was nice too, but he had seen less and less of her and his memory didn't permit him to focus on the human now. It was Shao alone he wanted to see.

With a final thrust of his tiny legs, he was able to teeter up on the edge of the glass aquarium with his stomach. Luckily, there was no top to his cage as the scientist thought the diminutive creature wouldn't be able to get out. They hadn't counted on the hedgehog being smart enough to use his sheet and teddy bear to do so. With feet kicking rather quickly for his age and species, he maintained his balance as he flailed an arm back and grasped around for the blanket. Once his chubby fingers wrapped around the cloth, he stopped moving and allowed gravity to work in his favor.

With a yelp, he toppled off and hit the cold, metal floor with a thud. He used the blanket to cushion his fall and with it still in hand, slowly sat up from his sprawled position and smiled. He was free.

Some of the other animals in the room began squawking and squealing at his movements as if to say they wanted to be freed as well. Even so, to the small hedgehog, it was a potential risk of being caught.

"Shh, bes quiet," he stressed in a hushed tone as he quickly stood up. Wobbling just a bit he stole a glance at the door, expecting to see the scary men coming in, but they never did. He was extremely happy to realize this and speedily gathered up the blanket into his arms. He looked back to the bear still trapped in the glass box and frowned a bit.

"I's be back."

He trotted out on his quest with pride waving goodbye to his teddy.

As quietly as he could, he padded down many hallways, crept around labs, slipped by sleeping quarters and toddled into computer rooms; all in search of Shadow. His speed afforded him the ability to cover a lot of ground, but after twenty minutes of wandering, he began to wonder if he would ever find anything or anyone again. With his poor perception of time, this was taking an eternity. Even though he had no concept of what death was, he felt like he was going to die, alone. Tears began to run down his muzzle as he sniffled with his blanket. Maybe this was a bad idea. He couldn't find anything familiar, not even the room leading back to the accursed box. He was lost. His cries became more pronounced as he could hear strange sounds coming from all over.

Unbeknown to him, the noises were quite common on the space colony A.R.K. The sound of the computers humming and the metal pipes creaking from use. Beeps and clicks could be heard from the laboratories housing experiments with their instruments of measurement murmuring out reports. But, the youngster hadn't been down this wing before and the dim lighting was not easing his anxious heart.

Curling into a tight ball in the middle of the corridor, he pulled the blanket over his body and shivered. He knew one thing only; if the scary men found him first, he would be going back to the box for sure, but if the professor found him, there was no telling what kind of big trouble he would be in. He started crying again, unable to control the feeling of fear within him.

"Little Blue," a hoarse voice whispered.

Shadow?

Almost like a magical force, the small hedgehog's spirits were lifted up. His ears perked at the sound as he tried to hone in on its location. His tears vanished as he poked his head out from underneath the sheet. Then he emerged completely when he heard the noise again.

"Little . . . huh?"

"Shao?" the little one uttered as if afraid speaking too loudly would cause the voice to be lost forever. Realizing the sound was coming from a doorway not too far from where he knelt, he quickly stood up, grabbed his blanket and started making his way cautiously to the entry. With slight hesitance, he peeked around the frame and took in the sight before him.

There were devices that caught his eye as they beeped and whirled, emitting flashes of different colored lights as they did their specific tasks. A few counters lined the walls with medical instruments and tools hanging on racks above them; all things of which Little Blue knew too well. It should have been enough to make him cower but he pressed on, positioning himself in front of the door. He continued to take in the scenery. Dimly lit lamps hung over a metal-like examining table poised in the middle of the room. Most of the devices in the room were there as well, running wires and prongs to something on the table's surface.

"Shao?" he asked timidly, walking slowly up to the slab. Though he couldn't see up there, he had a feeling . . .

"Little Blue? What are you doing here?"

It was Shadow. The blue hedgehog could barely contain his excitement as he accelerated towards the table, scrambling up by using every available foothold he could get his short limbs to. Once he reached the summit of his climb he stopped and gasped. Shadow looked terrible. Tubes and wires were inserted into his fur, undoubtedly through his skin. IVs were pumping some kind of chemical into his body and the black hedgehog was strapped down to the surface by metal clamps around his wrists and ankles. There was even one on his neck to keep his head in place. With his eyes pressed shut and his teeth gritted, Shadow looked the picture of pain.

"You hurt," Little Blue whispered incredulously. He never thought Shao could be hurt. Shadow always protected him, always helped him. In a way, it stole a bit of his security. How could Shadow be hurt?

"You shouldn't be here, Little Blue," the black hedgehog emphasized harshly. He didn't want to see the smaller hedgehog harmed and he knew the little one would get in trouble for this; he just knew it. He should have never been kind to the child. He should have just kept up the apathetic attitude; kept acting indifferent towards the small one. Maybe the scientist would have left the baby alone and even let it go if he just didn't interact with it. Yet, when the little one would look up at him with those huge, trusting, green eyes . . . he couldn't; he just couldn't ignore it. Why did this have to be? Why did he, Shadow the Hedgehog, have to be? What was his purpose?

"Get out of here, Little Blue, get out!" Shadow barked. It seemed to work as the little cobalt blue hedgehog whimpered and backed down. How it hurt the older hedgehog's heart. He didn't know why, but it did. Maria said it was because deep down he was a softy. The professor saw it as a sign of success; witnessing complex emotion in his creation. He was just confused. He knew they had brought in the baby hedgehog and its mother as an experiment for him, to see if he had the ability to build a relationship and pass as a functional lifeform. Then it was realized he may possess primal instincts. From the very beginning, he didn't like any of it. He just wanted to forget it all. So much pain was caused.

He just didn't want to remember.

Suddenly, he felt a warmth on his head. Shooting his eyes open he looked into the eyes of the toddler. Little Blue had placed a hand on Shadow's forehead and was patting the black quills. Shadow was about to protest, but the child had a different train of thought. Little Blue placed a hand over Shadow's mouth while putting a finger to his own.

"Shh, scary men. Shao no feels good. Lil' boo makes all better," he said matter of factually as he pulled up his blanket. The child just decided to make his own security and share it with Shadow. He laid the sheet over the black hedgehog as best he could while humming a tune Maria often did. Shadow remembered the words off handily, 'leaning on the everlasting arms' if he was correct. Shadow just looked on in awe not able to find his voice to either reprimand or appreciate the little one. The small hedgehog cuddled up next to him and began stroking his stomach; an action the older hedgehog would have normally refused. But, it was comforting; a distraction from the intense aches and pains he had to endure earlier under the examinations.

So, instead, the black hedgehog closed his eyes, not worrying about the possible punishment or trouble they would undoubtedly get into tomorrow. Within a few minutes, the rubbing stopped and a small weight rested on his side. He looked down to see Little Blue had fallen asleep. For a brief moment, Shadow smiled. The rhythmic breathing of a tiny life that held him in the highest regard made him feel . . . important . . . useful. He closed his eyes once more. Though he didn't know it, Shadow felt loved.

The black hedgehog's eyes snapped open as the recollections amplified in his mind. For a moment, he could still feel the weight of that baby hedgehog on his side. Those blue quills, green eyes, bright grins . . . Could Little Blue have been Sonic the Hedgehog? How? And why was he remembering it so vividly now? What did any of it mean?

Shadow tried to sit up but realized he couldn't. His eyes narrowed. Remembering Blaze, Alyson and falling for some trap didn't do anything to soften the hedgehog's mood. He needed to find them. He looked down to see he was strapped down to a similar looking table like the one in his vision; the same clamps around his ankles, wrists and neck. It certainly wasn't a reassuring sight, but he didn't let one ounce of distress show. Instead, he took in his surroundings. They were identical to the dream, except it wasn't a dream. They were memories and that meant someone researched this bit of his past. It left him fuming.

How many times was he going to be confronted by these same trials? How many times did he have to fight ancient ghosts? How many times did he have to say goodbye to the old, haunted Shadow the Hedgehog?

"Who's responsible for this?!" he bellowed, not entirely expecting an answer but not fearing one either. There was no answer, just the sound of monitoring equipment chirping out reports. The dark hedgehog sneered. He knew the Chaos Emeralds were still close by; he could sense their power, but that left him with a troubling question; why would the enemy be so blatantly careless? G.U.N. certainly knew what he was capable of; knew he could harness the power of any nearby Emerald. So, why wouldn't they move the gemstones out of range?

Because he wasn't dealing with G.U.N. either.

"I demand you show yourself now, or I'll find you by tearing this place apart," he stated with a low growl. He could effortlessly break free, but he wanted to know who he was up against here. If it was a fool, the remedy would be to simply destroy them, but somehow, he didn't get the impression this was some thoughtless amateur. His earlier entrapment, alone, was well executed. Nevertheless, he wasn't about to make it easy for his advisory. As no answer came, he pulled against his restraints and was rewarded with them shattering loose. He jumped down to the grey tiled flooring, brushing the metal filings from his arms.

He glanced to this left and noticed the door. Locked, no doubt, but still not an obstacle for him. He looked to the machines surrounding him, noting they were life-monitoring equipment. He reached up and tugged the electrodes from his chest and forehead as he continued to comb the room for more clues on his captor. What he hadn't expected to see was a panel of the wall begin to shift upwards. He quickly took up an offensive stance and charged the opening, grabbing the figure coming through and dragging them out. It was a familiar face.

"Shadow?!" the fox yelped, trying to gain his footing.

"Tails?!" Shadow spat as he shoved the young canine back, "How did you get here?"

"Me? It's more like how did you get here. I thought you and Blaze were looking for the Chaos Emeralds?" Tails questioned as he glanced around nervously.

"We were lured here with an Emerald. I need to find Blaze and Alyson, now," Shadow said decisively.

"Alyson was here? What is going on?" Tails voiced desperately. Shadow regarded him with an unsympathetic glance.

"Where's Sonic?" he asked pointedly, crossing his arms.

"He was captured. I've been trying to find him, but maybe it's a good thing I found you instead."

"Humph and why is that?"

"I think I might have found your inhibitor rings," Tails stated. Shadow uncrossed his arms and turned a hard eye on the fox. This was all a little too convenient. First, the trap designed to attract him here, then a replica of a past event he just happened to remember and now the sudden discovery of items he'd lost two years ago. Maybe he wasn't dealing with a genius, but it certainly wasn't a fool either.

"Where are they?"

"Maybe we should get out of sight of the cameras first," Tails said as he ducked back through the panel in the wall. Shadow followed him into a snug gap between the walls about a foot wide and littered with cables and wires. As they inched along, the hedgehog thought about Blaze and Alyson. Where were they and were they okay? More importantly . . .

"Do you know who's behind this?" he asked. Tails paused; all Shadow could see was the back of his head in the tight space. The fox shook his head no before continuing his trek forward.

"All I know is you were right about the conspiracy concerning the missing. Whoever's doing this is planning something bigger. I just need to find Sonic and the others so we can get out of here and regroup."

"You get me to those inhibitor rings and we'll be finding a whole lot more than that," Shadow stated assuredly.

"You got it."