Chapter 22- Deals with a Dangerous Doppelgänger

Shadow

Inside the cave was dark, barely illuminated by the light outside. While he could see pretty well in the dark, Shadow was struggling to make out any features. "Who are you? Show yourself." he said. An eerie chuckle echoed through the cavern. "Relax, Shadow the Hedgehog." Suddenly, a crystal began to glow with a purple light. The hedgehog took a step back, mentally preparing for a fight. "Look to the floor, Shadow. What do you see?" "A bunch of rocks. This is a cave after all." he replied. "What else? Think about your name..." Shadow frowned slightly. With the light from the crystal, his shadow stretched across the ground behind him. "What's my shadow have to do with this?" "Why, everything." Something began to ooze out of the crystal, running down to the ground and past his feet. The hedgehog watched in amazement as it gathered around his shadow and... began to rise. After a couple of seconds, he was staring directly into sickly green eyes.

Shadow could hardly believe what he was seeing. The creature standing before him looked almost exactly like him. Almost. The doppelgänger had a few notable differences, including slate grey streaks, paler skin, and the most noticeable, lack of a mouth. "This is much better." the double said. "Who are you?" Shadow questioned, pushing away his nerves. He replied, "In the past, I have been called Mephiles." "Mephiles… What do you want with me? How did you show me this place?" "I've been watching you for a while, Shadow. It seems you and your friends are in a little dilemma with a certain Griffin, correct?" The red eyed hedgehog crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes, waiting for more info. Mephiles continued, "He has your chaos abilities, so it's like you're facing yourself. Now, that could go on forever, but what if he was to face two of you? I have all of your powers, plus a few extra of my own. Together, we could defeat Griffin and make him pay for his sins." "And what are you getting out of it? This clearly isn't out of the 'goodness of your heart'..." the Curse member said warily. Mephiles stated, "You, Shadow the Hedgehog, are a very powerful being. Not many can match the level of strength you possess. Being born from your shade is payment enough; I will assist in defeating the one who deserves punishment." Shadow quietly stared at the being before him for a few minutes, before responding, "What's your plan?"

Griffin

The ex president stood alert, staring at the beast sitting in his chair. "What will be your first order of business, sir?" he stuttered. "Give me the passwords to all of the confidential information databases, and get started on notifying your subordinates on the new situation." Griffin replied calmly. The president approached the desk and jotted down a few notes labeling the passwords and what they unlocked. He left shortly after. Griffin turned on the monitor in front of him, smile on his face. After a few clicks, he got to the site he was looking for. "Password. M-A-R-I-A, Maria." The smile grew into a smirk as nearly fifty year old documents appeared on screen, titled with the words, 'PROJECT: SHADOW'. "Time for a little homework."

Rouge

Rouge stared anxiously at the screen with the others. How is doing this? Destroying a city one second, attacking the capital the next? The white bat heard a quiet rustle from behind. She turned around to see Shadow walking towards the group, looking slightly distracted. "Where were you? I didn't even realize you left!" she commented. "I just went for a very quick walk. It's hard to get alone time when you have them all inside your head." he replied. Rouge gave him a look, knowing very well that he was lying. She approached him and whispered, "You know you can trust me, right? I will always be there for you, Shadow. You, Omega, and I, we're a team. No matter what happens with this Curse, we'll stick together." Shadow smiled grimly, "Well, we either win and save the day, or lose and Griffin will rule with an iron fist. But, I am thankful to have you both at my side." He suddenly grabbed her hand and said, "But, when the time comes to face Griffin, I want you far away, where you'll be safe." The seriousness in his eyes was unmistakeable. "There is no damn way I am letting him take anyone else from me." His gaze shifted up as the others started to take notice of their interaction. He let go of his friend, wiping any emotion other than indifference off his face. Rouge flashed him a smile. He may be a piece of work, but it's nice every once in a while when he shows he cares.

"Tell me why does everything that I love get taken away from me?" Tell Me Why by Three Days Grace

Hi there audience! Finally, the reveal of the second question marks! This wasn't actually the original storyline, but that was too complicated to write and this allows for other events that I never thought about. Anyways, tomorrow (8/31/15) is this story's two year anniversary! I can't believe I've reached this point. It feels like yesterday when I posted this for the first time. Going back and reading what I wrote, I can't help but find mistakes here and there. It's fascinating to think of how far I've come. I would like to thank all of this story's followers and those who have favorited it! Special thanks goes to all who have reviewed. Those comments are what inspire me to write more, even when I am battling writer's block or working on something else. The quickest way to get more chapters is to let me know you want them!

To many years to come! -Hedgehogs4713