Chapter Text
Sonic couldn’t bear the silence he was surrounded by, it was suffocating. He wished someone would say something, anything, it was so silent, but so loud at the same time, and Sonic felt his skin crawl in discomfort the longer it drove on.
Everyone's eyes were on him, some disgusted, some confused, some held pity within their spheres, it didn’t help him feel any better regardless of what their gaze held. In fact, just seeing everyone around him made him feel worse. But he knew what he had done, and if he were in anyone else’s shoes, he would feel the same way, because how dare he. How dare he take the life of another? His inner consciousness reasons with him, trying to soothe his spiraling mind, that it was what had to be done, that he saved so many people by doing what he did.
Sonic opens his mouth to speak, to finally break the silence that was still suffocating the room, only for someone else to interrupt him. It’s Tails. Sonic’s eyes snap over to his closest companion, someone who's been by his side for as long as he can remember. “What do we do now?” Tails asks, his tails twisting and turning nervously behind him. Amy steps forwards, and puts her hand on Tails' shoulder, squeezing it once and looking down at him, with a meek smile. “The same as we’ve done all those times before, help society rebuild, and recuperate, so it can become stronger, and so it can recover.” She’s avoiding mentioning his name, Sonic realizes. And he feels ten times worse all at once.
Sonic looks down after realizing, and his ears flick when he hears Tangle speak up. “But-” she begins, but before she can continue, Whisper grips Tangle’s arm, and shakes her head. But Sonic misses the last part of their exchange, as soon as he heard Tangle speak up, it only succeeded in locking himself away in his head, thoughts swarming, crashing like torrential rain. All he could focus on right then and there was his final moments with Eggman.
He remembered his final words, or the lack thereof, the doctor had just stared at him; as if realizing there would be no second chances to this years-long dance of fighting, he had lost. He could still picture in his mind with clarity how the doctor’s final features had looked, the way his face grimaced when Sonic dealt more and more blows, the way his eyes would flash with regret every now and then, it was all too much for Sonic to handle.
He feels someone gently touch his shoulder and that was it, that was the last straw for him. He speeds off, not looking behind him, not even caring to see who had touched his shoulder, not even to look at everyone else in the room, or to see their reactions to his departure. He runs, and runs, and runs, his lungs burning, not from strain, but from the emotions inside of him threatening to spill over, trying to drown him, to pull him down into that deep dark pit of despair.
And then he trips, over a stick, a broken bot, a rock, he doesn’t know; all he knows is the ache in his joints from the fight, the pain in his face from face planting in the dirt, he doesn't even bother getting up, he just rolls over onto his side and lets his emotions finally spill over. They start to spill out in the form of tears, big fat droplets, the size of them would be humorous to him if he wasn’t struggling to regulate his breathing at the moment. They roll down his cheeks as he grits his teeth to prevent himself from voicing his frustrations.
Sonic covers his face in his hands, shoulders shaking as he sobs, but still refraining from making a sound, his brain wouldn’t shut up, he couldn’t focus on his surroundings. He doesn’t even register the faint sounds of clanking metal, and the hum of skates against the ground, as his body curls even more into himself. Until he does hear those noises, which causes his whole body to freeze in shock. His eyes go wide as he debates dashing off again, he wasn’t ready to face whoever, or whatever had followed after him. He doesn’t give himself a chance to think about it anymore, and jolts upwards into a sitting position, wiping at his eyes furiously despite the lack of wetness. He promptly startles at seeing Shadow and Omega, he didn’t think he’d ever see the two pursue him.
“Ah, geez. You guys scared me for a sec. Thought Egghead had sent some badniks after me.” He chuckles sheepishly while rubbing his face, trying to get rid of the wet tracks on his cheeks, his mind far away. He realizes his mistake a bit too late though, because of course he knew Eggman was dead,
he just.
The sentence had just came out so easily, like it had so many times before, it wasn’t unlike the doctor to pull something like that anyway. What if he wasn't truly dead? No, no. He had seen him take his last breath, he was sure of it.
Omega, however, noticing the blue mobians choice of words, doesn’t hesitate to correct Sonic’s error, clanking forwards. “Dr. Ivo Robotnik has been identified as deceased.”
“Oh, right.” He turns, his mind finally rushed back to the present. He winces. “So what are you two doing here anyways? Odd time for a stroll right now, ain’t it?” Shadow finally speaks up, crossing his arms as he levels Sonic with a look. “Rouge sent us to go look for you after you ran out like that, she’s still at Restoration HQ helping the others situate everyone after what happened.” Shadow’s eyes furrow, and Sonic feels himself shrink in on himself, feeling like the other hedgehog was scrutinizing him, but he breathes a sigh of relief when Shadow continues.
“She wanted us to make sure you were okay, and I agree.” Shadows arms unfold and he strides over to Sonic, hands grabbing his blue companion’s shoulders gently. “I agree with her because while you did this whole world a favor, and saved everyone living here, despite half of the lot not even deserving of your selfless deeds, even creatures from different planets, you still took the life of your greatest enemy, and I'm sorry. Because it should have never gotten to this point in the first place, you shouldve never had to carry this burden. He pushed you to your breaking point every time, hurt the ones you loved, tortured those around you, and mocked your entire existence for years on end.” Shadow pauses to let out a breath, his ear flicking once or twice.
“Shads I-” Sonic starts to say, but he’s interrupted by Shadow as the other hedgehog awkwardly embraces him. “Listen, okay. Just Listen to me for a moment.” When Sonic stays silent, Shadow continues. “I’m no good with words, that's usually a job for Rouge, or even Omega sometimes. But what I'm trying to say is that no matter what happens, or how people will react after today, I think I speak for all of us when I say Team Dark will be here by your side, should you need it.”
“Affirmative. Agent Shadow is correct. We will destroy anyone who attempts to harass you over what happened today and the decisions made.” The giant bot moves closer to the duo so he could set a large metal hand on top of Sonic’s head. Sonic is quiet for a bit, shocked at Shadow’s words, and even more shocked by Omega making an attempt to comfort him as well. His mind started to run just to try processing everything he heard. Vaguely he felt his mind start to go haywire. He couldn’t tell if Omega and Shadow’s words relieved him, or set him on edge as now he’s more aware of what will occur once word gets out. Either way, his anxiety still rises with his accelerated thoughts nonetheless.
Shadow, seeming to sense this, squeezes Sonic more firmly. “It’s okay to not be okay, faker.” He mutters, at a volume he knows the blue nuisance can hear him at. “You'll get past this like every other time in the past. Because you’re-” Shadow cringes for a moment, not used to having to give out pep talks that were honestly just borderline sappy. “You’re Sonic the Hedgehog, the blue blur, the constant hero of mobius and several other civilizations. You always bounce back no matter what happens, you’re always there to help anybody, wearing that stupid smile on your face to reassure those around you. You’re like a cockroach-” Sonic snorts at that, his shoulders jolting as he smiles, a bit wobbly, into the ebony hedgehog’s shoulder. Shadow doesn’t respond, only rolls his eyes and continues. “A cockroach that won’t ever die no matter what it’s hit with. It’s admirable, and I think most everyone you have ever come into contact with, would agree.”
It’s silent for a few moments before Sonic’s shoulders start shaking. Worried, Shadow pulls away from him, to look at the other hedgehog in front of him, until he sees the blue hedgehog's face, and his neutral expression sours. Sonic laughs, gripping Shadows shoulders with his hands, a joyful expression on his face. “Ugh, if i’d known you’d react like this I wouldn’t have wasted my breath.” Shadow turns away, now grumpy, and refuses to look at Sonic. “No, no wait-” Sonic’s laughs die down quickly, and he smiles at Shadow, who had looked back at the blue hedgehog, still grumpy. “I’m sorry, I do appreciate everything you said. I just wasn’t expecting a speech from lord dark himself. I’m sorry, but you're not usually one for pep talks. Still, thank you, Shadow, I really needed to hear that right now.” For once, Sonic’s smile isn’t teasing, and instead full of warmth, while his eyes reveal just how much he’s holding back tears. At this, Shadow averts his gaze again, but this time out of a feeling of bashfulness. But it only lingers for a moment before disappearing.
“I believe we should head back, it’s been quite a bit since our departure” The sound of Omega finally speaking is enough to draw both hedgehogs out of their own little world, and Sonic nods his head eagerly, rubbing his eyes rapidly to get rid of the lingering wetness in his eyes. “Yeah, you're right! Don’t want everyone to be worried. Let's all head back now, yeah?” And not another word is said before Sonic races forwards, towards restoration HQ. At least that's where both robot and hedgehog hope is his location.
Otherwise they’d have to track him down again, and if the hedgehog didn’t want to be found, it would take awhile to track him. Shadow huffs out a sigh through his nose, shaking his head with a small smile on his face. He turns to Omega, “Well, you heard him Omega. We should be heading back as well.” The big robot nods his head, and they both set off. Shadow maintains speed so he's next to Omega, and although he could skate ahead towards Sonic, he thinks the other might need some air to clear his head. Which he's completely fine with, and hopes that everything that occurred today won't weigh on Sonic's shoulders for too long. And with that, he dedicates himself to stay at a steady pace next to Omega for the time being. It’s quiet for a bit, as quiet as it could get with these two running, before Shadow speaks up. “Omega, do you think-” He pauses, hesitating. “Do you think he’ll be okay?”
The quiet returns as the bot next to him processes his words. “I am unsure. Perhaps not everyone will think Eggman's passing was for the better.” Omega finally replies, not turning toward Shadow. The hedgehog lets his robot counterpart's words sink in for a moment. “Well, regardless of what happens, I hope he’ll be okay.” And with that, it’s silent again, the sun slowly cascades across the sky, reaching lower and lower the more terrain they cover. Shadow’s thoughts drift over him like a fog, and he recalls how Rouge looked when she had requested that they both head after Sonic, just to make sure he was okay. The worry had been evident on her face, given away by the creases above her eyes that showed just how worried she was.