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Silver hissed in pain, using his psychokinesis to soften his landing, and try and block the barrage of attacks that were after him.
What a day to play hero...
Not even an hour ago, the day couldn't have been more different.
Finish delivering his packages, grab some Chinese, head home.
Simple. Easy. Painless.
And yet, here was now, instead of delicious chow mein, he was getting stuffed with a face full of fists.
Looking back and throughout the shattered exhibits of the museum, his eyes settled on a small, iron sculpture resembling a Chao.
It would have to do; as he stretched out his hand towards it, his powers glowing around it, as he took hold of it, before tossing it straight at his attackers.
"Calypso." he heard a calm voice say, from the wristwatches each of them wore.
Almost immediately, the chinchilla waved her hand, and a black, cloud-like portal formed, sent racing straight for the sculpture and swallowing it up, dispersing immediately afterwards. Without even a word, Calypso opened her opposite hand, spreading her fingers, and just as quickly another portal appeared behind Silver; the Chao sculpture flying out and hitting him square in the back.
Hacking in pain, Silver slammed against the ground, and for a moment... he honestly considered just staying there.
He should've known; he honestly should've known.
He was on his way to the Chinese restaurant, practically already tasting crab rangoons and shrimp fried rice, when he thought he saw a figure inside the Capital City Museum. He didn't think much of it, museum robbers being a rare sight in his time, but just to clear his conscience, he decided to check it out.
In hindsight, he should've seen it coming.
Sage had already been toying with older artifacts, using them to improve her weapons and study them. It only made sense she had sent a few of her 'Titans' to retrieve some more.
His body's strength failing himself, Silver activated his powers again, using them to stabilize his joints, as he picked himself up.
"Stay down, kid. Seriously." one of them, who he knew as Hephaestus, muttered.
He said it so unamused, like a tired dad trying to calm down a tantruming child, before holding up his wristband and muttering into it.
"We've got it, Miss Sage. We'll be back, shortly."
Silver's eyes burned in anger, as Hephaestus casually rolled up the Magic Carpet they had stolen, placing it under his arm. A piece of prehistoric Extreme Gear...
He didn't even want to imagine what plans Sage had for it.
"Listen, Sage!" he snarled, shouting loud enough to be picked up by the communicator. "I don't care what you're planning-"
"'Planning'?" Sage's voice picked up, a hint of rare humor slipping from her dry tone. "Silver, you poor thing, I've already planned exactly what I'll be doing... In a few short hours, you'll know, too."
Her voice dropped for a moment, then picking up again, her voice losing the little humor it once had.
"Or perhaps you won't. Pity you were harmed so badly by those 'unidentifiable robbers', wasn't it? Athena, Hecate..."
Punching her fist, Athena smirked, her gauntlets already beginning to glow.
"Yes, ma'am."
Meanwhile, Hecate simply brought her hands together, forming a ruby-like structure, then crushing into her hands. As silent as she ever was, she brought the powderized crystal to her lips, blowing it into a mist that filled the entire room in seconds.
Silver swallowed, as even when the mist settled into the illusion that would trick the surveillance cameras, Athena only stepped closer, wheeling back, then hitting him with a massive pinch.
He felt all the saliva in his throat shoot out as the mechanic fist slammed against his stomach, shooting him into the ceiling, then dropping to the ground.
Closing his eyes, his mind raced to think of a plan, all while the vibrations Anetha's steps rocked through his body, as she raced towards him.
Maybe... Maybe he could time travel... Just to travel forward an hour... To the Titans they'd just assume he had escaped, but there was also the worry that-
Before anything, however, he felt his weight shift, his body relaxing, and immediately collapsing. His eyes opening, he saw not the carpet of the Capital City Museum, but instead... soft, gentle grass.
Hissing, he attempted to pick himself up, struggling as his body felt heavier...
Actually... No... He felt lighter than before. Like a lot lighter...
As he connected the dots, a warm voice confirmed it for him.
"Looks like I was right on time, then..."
Rolling over to face his savior, he sighed, as Tikal continued to heal him.
"Right before the punch wouldn't have hurt, either..." he said, forcing a smile through the pain.
Tikal rolled her eyes, before playfully pouting.
"I shouldn't be leaving this island at all, Silver..."
"I know, I know..." he sighed, rolling over and sitting up, once he felt strong enough to.
He was thankful. Honestly.
He had been reckless, and Tikal had been having to bail him out a lot recently. Now that she was one with the Master Emerald and Chaos, (hence why he sometimes called her 'Chaos Tikal'), any time she left Angel Island, she did so with the explicit risk that if she didn't immediately return, the island would sink into the ocean.
"It isn't that I mind coming to your aid, Silver..." Tikal's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, her voice returning to a warmer tone. "I feel like I should make that clear... but with the amount of times I have lately... I'm starting to grow concerned for you..."
Silver sighed, nodding, then straightening up and narrowing his eyes.
"Don't worry... I'll get stronger... I have to."
Despite his own brave words, his mind raced to the Titans he faced.
Not only were they strong, they were organized. Sage had done her homework in not only creating them, how she used them. Like right then, everyone had a solid role.
Calypso was the transporter, Hephaestus was the analyst, Athena was the muscle, and Hecate the coverup...
And that was with only four of them... He hated to imagine what would happen if Sage really cut loose and sent them all...
"Maybe relying on your own strength, alone, isn't the answer..." Tikal spoke up again.
Silver perked up slightly, his body finally healed enough to sit up comfortably. He wondered what she was suggesting.
"Every time I have come to rescue you, I've done so by locking onto your connection with Chaos Energy... That deep connection with the Chaos Emeralds, the power enriched by your heart... That desire, that hope you feel, deep down, to make a change..."
Silver nodded slowly, understanding what Tikal was telling him.
His heart? Was she saying that it was his greatest strength? He understood, he supposed, but it wasn't exactly the response he had hoped-
"And we don't feel it in you, alone..." Tikal suddenly said, cutting off Silver's thoughts. "Perhaps... it's time you met some..."
"What do you mean 'some'?"
Without even answering his question, Tikal stood up, her eyes beginning to glow as she brought her hand to Silver's. Taking it and letting her help him up, his mind raced with questions, Tikal's vague statements and lack of answers starting to worry him.
"Tikal, I don't understand..."
The echidna closed her eyes, giving him a warm smile, before letting go of him and bringing her hands together; them taking on the same glow of her eyes.
"Don't worry, Silver... If you are in danger, we'll retrieve you immediately... But I do hope you'll hear me out on this... They are very much like you... They wish for change... for freedom... But they are also very much like the Titans... They are powerful: they were made to be so... They may very well be the exact person you seek..."
Silver perked up.
Was she talking about Shadow?
He'd admit, he had been thinking about looking for the Shadow of his time, looking for anything that could be linked to him, and yet every search, no matter how specific or pin-pointed, seemed to come up completely blank.
Had she somehow found him?
Opening her eyes, Tikal looked at him closely.
"I won't force you... but if you are ready... take my hands, and I will bring you to them."
A sense of newfound confidence beginning to fill him, he nodded, holding up his hand and taking Tikal's into it. As the wind picked up, and the familiar sense of his body growing lighter began... he couldn't help but notice his heart racing.
Was it out of anticipation? Hope? Fear?
Or maybe... he was just happy to see a familiar face in his own time, for once...
In less than a second, his feet felt ground beneath them. Instead of the peaceful midnight serenity of Angel Island, the area around him was now damp and rugged.
The juxtaposition was nearly comical, this place an unkempt wasteland, looking somewhere between a forest that had been forgotten, and a place that had been scorched earth after a war. Even walking around was difficult, his steps totally unbalanced due both in part to shallow roots, overgrown branches, and various pieces of what looked like broken machinery and glass.
How could Shadow have ended up somewhere like here?
What had even happened to this place?
While Tikal had left as quickly as she had brought him, his answer instead came in the form of a low, raspy voice.
"More of you... Great, just great..."
Silver's eyes widened at the source.
A tenrec.
One he recognized.
She looked different, obviously, her hair let down, cut a little shorter, with her outfit changed to a black shirt, a brown jacket, and a pair of jeans, all of which covered with wear-and-tear, and even a few bandages over her shoulder and around her hips.
And yet, for that had changed...
She still had that same electricity in her eyes...
"Surge..." he called out to her, trying to calm her down; but a lump in his throat weakening his voice.
Surge meanwhile only grit her sharp teeth, both hands covering in electricity in a way Silver had never seen in the past. Despite the display, his heart only truly sank... when her lips curled into a smirk.
"I was just looking for a way to let out some steam..."