Chapter Text
Shadow stood in a small cavern on a hill, where he'd set up for the night. Passing the time alone, as usual. His messaging device rested on the ground.
Their plan had gone quite well. The first cross of their double-cross.
Rouge had been snooping to find out how to steal Dr. Eggman's valuable power source aboard his ship. While snooping, she found out he had built a new robot to do some experimenting on hedgehogs. He was looking for ways to make them more passive. She told Shadow, who went to Eggman and told him he would help trap Sonic and Amy in exchange for being left out of the experiments. Eggman agreed. Perhaps he thought Shadow was being foolish – Eggman probably would love to neutralize Shadow as a threat, too. Once he got the results he needed with Sonic and Amy, he would turn his attention to Shadow.
But Eggman didn't know of Rouge's involvement. Rouge had connected to his new robot, the one that he specifically designed to run the experiment. Reading out the code and gaining its administrative powers, they now knew every step of what he was planning to do, and when he was planning to do it. While he has occupied, Rouge would have the perfect opportunity to steal his power supply. With control of the robot, they could sabotage his anti-hedgehog plans at the same time.
As for Sonic and Amy, though they would be held prisoner, they would be relatively safe. At least, safer than they typically would be when held by Eggman. Having rewritten the robot's code, Shadow and Rouge would make sure the experiments were not carried out as Eggman envisioned. After all, Shadow didn't want him to discover any useful information. Any data would be fake, and the more painful experiments would discreetly fail to work.
So long as Eggman remained in the dark and continued going along with the itinerary in the robot, everything would be fine. Rouge, who was far away to avoid the suspicion of being seen with Shadow, would sneakily board the ship and steal the power source while all attention was on the experiments. Once the ship's power source was gone, Sonic and Amy could easily escape. At that point, Rouge could even help them.
Secrecy was of the utmost importance. Sonic and Amy's capture had to be genuine to convince Eggman. Also, if Eggman started improvising due to a noisy rescue party before Rouge stole his power, things would get unpredictable and messy. With Sonic and Amy already helpless, everybody would be at risk.
But that wouldn't happen. Only Rouge and Shadow knew of the plan. Rouge was preparing to board Eggman's ship, and Shadow was making sure everything was under control back in the town. It was his job to handle any loose ends. But something was in the back of his mind. He couldn't place what...
The messaging device blinked. Shadow noticed it, and picked it up. He wasn't expecting any communication, but maybe something had come up. The input for the passcode appeared onscreen. He typed it in.
Rouge's voice came out. "Eggman's ship is stalled about 200 miles from me. The readings I can get indicate they need to regenerate some power. I don't expect them to change course, but our timeline just got longer. You keep laying low. I'll let you know when I make my move."
Shadow put the device down. More waiting.
To initiate the plan, he had set up a meeting with Sonic and Amy earlier that day. He had struggled to come up with a plausible reason for them to come meet him, so Rouge told him that he should ask them a "hedgehog-related question" to get them to show up. It was rather ridiculous, but he told the two of them he had a hedgehog-related question and they came, maybe a little suspicious, but interested. They met him on the outskirts of town. It had gone almost too perfectly.
Earlier...
Sonic and Amy walk up to Shadow, who is sipping a drink. They are perplexed and maybe a bit amused to see him doing this.
Shadow: I need your assistance with a medical question.
Sonic: Uh...okay.
Shadow sips the drink.
Shadow: I hear hedgehogs can't taste anything that is mixed in with sparkling water.
Sonic: What? That's crazy. Give me that.
He takes the drink and sips it.
Shadow is bewildered by the fact that he didn't even need to tell Sonic to drink it.
Sonic looks frazzled and shakes his head.
Sonic: Huh, something is in there, but I can't place it.
Shadow turns to Amy.
Shadow: Can you figure it out?
Amy gives him a strange look, then takes the drink and sips it.
Amy (shivering): Umm...there's something in there. It's a bit weird.
Sonic is sweating now. Amy notices and looks at Shadow.
Amy: Wha- what's in there?
Sonic yelps, convulses, and faints. Amy gasps in shock, and then she faints.
Shadow takes the drink, which has spilled on the ground. He sees Eggman descending from the sky in a small pod.
Dr. Eggman: The poison shake! Hoho! That's a classic! I'm surprised you came up with it.
He lifts up the two hedgehogs.
Dr. Eggman (to Shadow): You may want to get to a bathroom sooner rather than later, though. That's the thing about pre-dosing the antidote. You have to flush everything out of your system fast!
Eggman departs. Shadow stares at the ground in contemplation.
He suddenly sees someone approaching from a distance, out of the corner of his eye. He has a realization that he needs to leave before he is sighted, and dashes off.
Present...
He wondered whether he should get some rest. There was no telling how long he would have to wait.
Actually, there was really no telling whether he needed to do anything else at all. The only thing he had to do was to keep hidden and keep his mouth shut, and stay on alert if he needed to keep any heat off of Rouge.
The thought in the back of his mind resurfaced. Sonic's friends. Rouge had simply said that she would handle the echidna warrior, Knuckles (though she had called him by a more affectionate name.) She clearly had a playbook on dealing with him, if he tried to intervene. It was up to Shadow to prevent anyone else from trying to intervene, though he doubted anyone would be as threatening as Knuckles. If someone tried to rescue Sonic and Amy, they would unknowingly be putting them in more danger, fouling up Shadow and Rouge's careful plan.
He became aware of a propeller nearby. He was already fairly concealed, though he moved away from the entrance to the shallow cavern. There was likely only one individual who would be flying at this hour, and for only one reason.
Shadow took the messaging device and hid it in the back of the cavern, between some rocks. Standing near the wall, he prepared himself, though he hoped he would be ignored.
The propeller slowly became quieter. It seemed like it was fading away.
Shadow exhaled and stepped slightly out. He froze.
Someone was at the entrance. There was no light in the cavern, so it was possible Shadow hadn't been seen. From his vantage point, he could make out the very distinctive silhouette against the moonlight, a fox with two tails.
Both of them stood motionless. The noise of the plane's propeller grew louder again. It seemed to be circling back, on autopilot.
It passed again, and the cavern was quiet.
"I know you're there," Tails said.
Shadow did not move. Tails was not making eye contact with him, so it seemed the darkness kept Shadow hidden even though he could see him.
"I tracked you to these coordinates," he continued. "We're gonna have a talk."
He was trying to be brave, but Shadow detected the gripping anxiety behind his words.
What to do about this loose end, he had to decide. A physical confrontation he could easily win. But that may attract attention, and make him appear guilty. He figured he could answer a few questions without arousing suspicion.
Shadow took a long breath. He stepped out a bit more.
"What?"
Tails moved something over his head, goggles of some kind. He now made direct eye contact with Shadow.
Gritting his teeth and taking out a pencil, he looked down to a sheet of paper. "Just a few questions for you..."
Shadow crossed his arms. Intimidation and confidence were key. He felt comfortable here in the cavern, like he was one with the darkness.
"Were you in town today?"
Shadow stayed silent for a second. The truth would suffice for now.
"Yes."
Tails nodded, and made a mark on his paper. He swallowed.
"Did you see Sonic and Amy?"
"Yes."
It was worrisome to get close to revealing his involvement. But Sonic and Amy had probably told Tails about their meeting with Shadow. After all, it was out of the ordinary.
Tails made another mark on his paper. His grip on the pencil was shaky.
"Did you talk with Sonic and Amy around 4 pm?"
"Yes."
The plane roared close to them again, before fading away in the distance.
"Did you – Did you see Dr. Eggman take Sonic and Amy away around that time while you were nearby?"
Shadow didn't say anything for a moment. He thought it over. Nothing about this question implicated him, he decided.
"Yes."
Tails made another mark. He nodded.
"You understand why I'm asking you these questions?"
Shadow snorted. "There could be a few reasons."
"I think you know the angle I'm approaching this from," Tails said accusatorially.
Shadow blinked hard and sneered.
"Why not help them?" Tails asked. "What made you stand down?"
He growled, "Sometimes, it's better to not get involved..."
"But why did he leave you alone?" Tails pressed. "Why did Eggman take two hedgehogs and leave a third?"
Shadow didn't answer right away.
Tails was growing more determined. Now he curled his fists. "Seems... suspicious..."
"I know that you know I don't care for Sonic," started Shadow. "But you know I don't care for Eggman either."
"Were you drinking something when you met Sonic and Amy?"
A startling question. How could he have known that?
He tried to play it off. "Why does that matter?"
He quickly, fleetingly tried to recall the figure he had seen out of the corner of his eye before he'd dashed off. Yellow? Had the figure been yellow?
The plane engine roared again. He couldn't remember. There was no way...
"You had a drink, and you gave it to Sonic and Amy."
Tails walked right up to Shadow, meeting his stare.
Shadow tried to be as intimidating as possible. He was still one with the darkness. In the reflection of Tails' goggles, he could see the moonlight hitting his own eyes, the only part of him visible.
Tails removed his goggles, letting them sit on his head as he didn't break eye contact.
"You spilled some of it," Tails whispered. "Just enough for me to get a sample from the ground."
Shadow very, very slowly uncrossed his arms. Well, it might have to come to a physical confrontation. So be it. But he waited for the fox's next move.
"Did you poison Sonic and Amy so they could be taken away by Eggman?"
Shadow counted off a few seconds. Then, he leaned into him, face inches away.
"What do you think you're accomplishing by coming here and accusing me, kid?"
Neither of them made any movement.
Shadow issued one more warning. "Seems like you're asking for a fight...and I think we both know how that would go."
Tails didn't respond at first. He held his determined glare. After a few seconds, though, his face started breaking into anguish.
He sunk down to his knees, quivering.
"Please, Shadow," he begged. "P-please tell me where they are...I have to know."
Shadow rolled his eyes. The impulse to beat him to a pulp subsided for the moment.
"If anything happens to either of them..."
Tails wrapped his arms around Shadow's legs. It sounded like he was crying.
"I couldn't track them...please, please...I have to help them."
Oh, if only he knew. His friends would be alright, in time. Sure, Shadow had sold them out, but they would wind up safe if all went according to plan.
"Please...I'm begging you..."
He had to shut him down. It was uncomfortable having him hold onto him in the dark. Plus, what if Rouge patched through with another message for him? Her involvement had to remain a secret to all.
"Enough with this..." he said, extracting one leg from Tails' grasp. "If you wait and leave me alone, your friends will be safe."
Tails shakily turned up to look at him. "You...you're sure?"
Shadow stared at him for a second as he clung onto him.
He nodded, giving him one final chance to let go before he forcefully removed him. "I'm sure."
Tails was still shaky. Shadow was as fixed as a rock.
Then Tails stopped shaking.
"You DO know..." he hissed, strangely.
Any trace of sorrow had vanished. Replaced by conviction. This took Shadow by surprise.
Clink.
Shadow felt something cold around his ankle. Tails had put a kind of metal bracelet on it. It wasn't attached to anything.
Still trying to process this, Shadow looked to Tails, who rose and hopped backwards, breathlessly. In the faint moonlight, he looked astounded at what he'd just done.
Shadow took a fighting stance. No more games with this kid.
The plane's engine roared nearby once more.
"Don't make a move, Shadow," Tails warned, slowly backing up. "This will be easy, we'll just..."
Shadow jumped at him.
Tails flinched, and squeezed a tiny device in his hand.
Shadow felt a blast of electricity surge through his body, followed by his impact on the dirt.
He tried to cling to consciousness, but it was a losing battle. His vision was foggy, though he processed nearby footsteps coming up to him on the ground.
"OK...we'll do it the hard way," Tails said, standing over him.
Shadow blacked out.