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He watched him shine like a star at the peak of its development and its power, the moment when it is closest to destruction.
His hands raised above him, his spines thinned and raised, his mouth wide open in a cry of rage, of anger. The sphere of energy that grew above his open hands grew larger, more imposing, perfectly governed by his creator, so the Chaos was like blood in his veins.
He was a God.
A God of Destruction, who had now chosen to save them. To save them all.
His red eyes looked for Sonic, with an imperative printed in the irises, that the blue hedgehog caught immediately. He approached him, raising both his hands towards the energy sphere, controlling it with him, expanding it, producing an irrepressible power even for them.
The light hid everything, enveloping them: they too seemed pure light, transformed as they were. Even at that moment they barely differed: Sonic yellow gold, Shadow of an almost white color.
Time was running out and the ARK was getting closer to the Earth, to them; in a few seconds it would all be over, the glow would have run out, returning the universe to its endless darkness.
The two hedgehogs looked at each other, their hands almost burning, now at the limit in containing that frightening amount of energy. Sonic sought his gaze, seeing him lost far, far away.
"Shadow, please ..."
The black hedgehog pronounced the name of Maria faintly, without Sonic being able to hear him, barely reading his lips. Why? Why was he there now? Why was he risking his life by helping them, just him, the Ultimate Life Form?
Gerald Robotnik was his creator (could you talk about a father?), why not be part of his plan, why hinder him? There was something he didn't know about his rival, something in his silence that spoke itself, but that he had failed to interpret. Perhaps the answer was in that word pronounced in a whisper at a moment of the end.
Shadow turned to him, giving him back the look Sonic had been looking for, barely lowering his head in a nod that Sonic returned. It was time. Now or never.
«CHAOS ... CONTROL !!» in unison they shouted that command, while the sphere of light completely enveloped the ARK, englobing it in a blinding glow. The gloves of both warriors tore themselves apart while the skin burned; the eyes were squeezed with pain and strain, the teeth gnashed between them in a spasm of resistance.
They wouldn't have made it. Sonic realized this in a moment of loss; he had underestimated that challenge, he thought he and Shadow at their best would be able to control that immense amount of Chaos. In a cry of frustration he still released his power, feeling no difference. It was too much, it was uncontrollable: Sonic felt his strength failing him, his breathing becoming accelerated, his muscles straining. He knew that Shadow had the same painful awareness: they had failed. He cursed, narrowing his eyes, as the images of Knuckles, Tails, Amy crowded into his mind. Shadow looked at him, his eyes hard, impenetrable. Incredibly, an imperceptible smile folded his lips: "I didn't make you so pliant, Faker ...".
Sonic lifted his face in disbelief as he noted his confidence; he frowned, not understanding. Shadow lowered his hands, closing his eyes, while the Rings that made him bracelets began to shine intensely, before coming off, freeing his wrists and ankles. The hedgehog opened its eyes: the red irises like molten magma captured the green ones of Sonic; a smile, again, before jerking up his hands, releasing an infinite amount of energy that widened the sphere of light, making the ARK and themselves disappear.
From the Earth it seemed almost possible to hear a cry of collective jubilation, a sigh of excited hope realized; salvation was in everyone's eyes, joy on everyone's lips. Unaware of those who had saved it, humanity celebrated life for a moment; Sonic's companions scrutinized the darkness of space in search of the two missing figures, without finding them.
Sonic opened his eyes; the darkness almost bothered him now that all that brightness was gone. He smiled incredulously, feeling how even his facial muscles were sore. He shook his head: "Bastard ... you screwed me, huh? You had well hidden your ace up your sleeve. " He turned around, waiting to find him next, but there was no trace of his rival.
His gaze frowned as he looked around frantically. How would he find Shadow in the midst of all that darkness, the shadows of sidereal space? It could not have disappeared, not now; not now that he had seen something in him that he couldn’t forget.
He looked beneath him, the Earth, finding him: Shadow seemed to float above the Planet, as in an infinite suspended ocean, still platinum color. He didn't move, he almost seemed to sleep. Sonic's breath caught on the idea that he might not have fainted. With the speed that distinguished him he reached him in a second, bringing his arms under his rival's body, supporting him.
"Hey ... Shad. Hey, Shad, you can't do it, uh ... you can't die like that, rubbing the hero side. It's my field, isn't it? You're better as a bad boy ... " the lightness of those words was betrayed by the broken voice, the low tone broken by the fear of the inevitable. He wasn't opening his eyes. He wasn't answering. Sonic bit his lips in blood: he couldn't remember the last time his eyes had gotten so wet, blurring his vision, ready to scrub his cheeks. That infamous couldn't do this to him ...
"I saved your ass and that's all you can tell me ...?" Shadow smiled, before lifting an eyelid, meeting Sonic's clouded gaze that barely suppressed a sob. But he could not hide the relaxation that the muscles of the arms had, as a relief, at the sound of his voice.
He smiled in turn, suppressing a tear that was about to elude him: "Meanwhile, you are here in my arms, playing the part of a damsel in distress ...". Shadow twisted his lips, lowering his raised eyelid, without, however, removing himself from that position, from the arms of the other.
"Enjoy it as long as you can ..." he threatened the hedgehog, without the usual harshness though, as he returned to being black, with the spines returning to their normal position. He opened both eyes, turning finally to him; Sonic couldn't tell if he noticed his own shining eyes, nor did Shadow mention it.
"We won," said the blue hedgehog, who also returned to normal. Without words he observed the serenity on Shadow's face, in his smile, discovering how even he could be capable of it. A silence that did not need words rested on them, enveloping them in a moment that lasted forever.
Sonic brought his face close to hims, feeling his breath on his skin, touching it with his own. Shadow looked at him, without saying a word, as the smile disappeared and he returned as serious as ever.
"We won't see each other for a while, Sonic."
The blue hedgehog lowered again, closing his lips with his own in a contact that lasted a second: the heat disappeared, as Shadow had disappeared from Sonic's arms, disappearing who knows where. The hero still felt his presence on his arms, now free and empty. He lowered his face, just before smiling. He looked at the Earth, where he was there a moment earlier, silently thanking him for the white and blue vision.
Somewhere in Heaven, Maria smiled.