Chapter Text
He wasn’t crazy. Well, crazy genius, yes. But psychotic crazy? No. Never in a million years.
He was only crazy because that blue blur - Sonic the Hedgehog - made him insane.
Ever since he was a little kid, Robotnik has been fascinated by the supernatural. Foreign aliens, supernatural events, experimentation, the list went on. His unique interest isolated him from the world. His expertise in advanced technology and science eventually caught the attention of the government.
He hated the government, and the government hated him, but if he wanted to pursue the things he was good at, then so be it. He was a valuable asset to the US, and they couldn’t risk losing the country’s top engineer and scientist. Some sacrifices had to be made. Luckily, Robotnik was able to go rogue with his investigations while still under the government’s watch.
One day, there had been a blackout of electricity over the entire Pacific Northwest. Robotnik had studied that area of the US several times, and the only thing that could’ve caused a near nationwide blackout was something that was not from this Earth.
Which is what led him to Sonic the Hedgehog.
An alien from another planet, the blue devil had been an extraordinary organism. Robotnik was eager to study him and his superhuman abilities. However, Sonic was a stubborn creature, the independent rodent having a mind and heart of his own.
Every time he encountered the hedgehog, he somehow found a new way to defeat him, but with the same motivation: love.
Robotnik had never experienced love of any kind. Neither platonic nor romantic; he preferred to be on his own. There was no other soul out there that understood his ways.
Except one.
His loss to Super Sonic had been a devastating one for sure, not to mention embarrassing. But, he didn’t let a bunch of pesky alien rodents let him go that easily. Somehow, he had survived falling nearly fifty feet in the air.
Right away, he came up with a plan. If he wanted to exact his revenge on the hedgehog, his friends, and the world, he needed to hide. And what better way to do that than go underground? They would never think to look underground. Not GUN, not Sonic, not anybody.
In his solitude, he built a bunker beneath the grounds of Green Hills. He binged on nothing but the carbohydrates and minerals that poured from Green Hills’ soil. However, he didn’t have to depend on that for long as he quickly got back into communication with Agent Stone. He was able to contact the agent and give him his location.
When Stone had found him, the young man had been over the moon to see the doctor again. Stone had noticed the doctor’s malnutrition, and went on a mission to find food. He demanded anything with several thousand calories.
Stone returned with the promised food and Robotnik fed himself until he was busting at the seams of his ragged suit. The doctor’s almost animal-like nature nearly scared Stone.
At some point, Robotnik was going to need several upgrades if he wanted to get back at Sonic.
“I want you to find that hedgehog, bring a sample of his quills, and find anything else that can help us destroy that blue rodent!” Robotnik demanded.
Stone obliged.
“And get me a new suit!”
–
Throughout this process, Stone returned to the Mean Bean Cafe, where he searched through everything to find any evidence that could help them take down Sonic and his friends. He quickly reassembled the doctor a new suit before returning to his search.
He’d been searching for about two hours when he found a small book in the back. It was in a box the doctor had given him, which he had brought with him when he originally moved into Green Hills. Written on the box was “DO NOT OPEN!”
He opened it and found the book. It turned out to be a diary. However, it wasn’t the doctor’s. Stone looked at the first opening page, where it revealed the owner of the book.
Professor Gerald Robotnik.
Stone immediately dove into the diary. There were dozens of pages full of information. He read every entry. Nothing the professor had written had caught Stone’s attention, except the last entry.
When he turned the final page, there were two words written at the top.
Project Shadow.
These last two pages weren’t full of much information. But it was enough that Stone felt confident to bring this newly learned knowledge to the doctor.
Project Shadow - Experiment “Ultimate Life Form 02”
Creation: Genetic engineering
Purpose:
- Experimentation
- Cure Maria
- Chaos energy control
- To protect and defend humanity
Abilities:
- Immortality
- Immunity to sickness
- Super speed
- Agility
- Chaos…
Log entry 0091 -
I created Project Shadow to cure Maria. I had to replicate the healing abilities of the Ultimate Life Form in order to create a solution. However, when I learned of the Master Emerald, I was able to go to Earth and retrieve a shard of energy before the government got on my tail. With the emerald’s power, I was able to synthesize the power into chaos energy, which I infused with the replicated DNA. Thus, the new Ultimate Life Form was born. He shows great improvement in his abilities, however, his chaotic DNA has caused chaos instability on a molecular level. This required inhibitors in the form of rings to control his chaos instability. I believe he is capable of defending Earth from any harm. He is ready.
Located beneath the description was a sketch of said specimen. It looked nearly identical to the blue blur.
This creature had obvious potential, no doubt. He seemed to have powers that rival Sonic’s.
He would prove to be most interesting.
–
“Doctor, I believe I’ve found something.”
At this point in time, the doctor had lost all sense of humanity. With the lack of self-care, it seemed that the doctor had finally let himself loose. Wild mustache hair and a big, round belly painted his new frame. He’d also adopted the hedgehog’s nickname for him: Eggman.
But, the doctor was more eager than ever.
“What have you found?” Eggman huffed, stuffing a whole bag of Cheeto Puffs into his mouth.
Stone handed him the book. “This appears to be the diary of your old grandfather,” He explained. “It holds something promising inside?”
“Something to defeat that wretched blue devil?!”
“Not something, but someone.”
“Oh?”
Eggman opened the diary, flipping to the last few pages. The doctor read through the pages for a few moments, before his eyes lit up.
“Find this creature, and when you do, take me with you.”
–
It was not long before Stone went undercover as a GUN agent. In the last bit of the journal, the professor briefly explained GUN’s involvement in Project Shadow, and their determination to exterminate both the project and the professor.
Naturally, Stone’s charming nature was able to attract the attention of a few rogue agents. They explained to Stone that they worked for “The Buyer”, who was somehow affiliated with the doctor. The agents were eager to continue Robotnik’s work, and Stone didn’t mind bringing them along.
After about two weeks, Stone had come across a lead. While talking to Commander Walters himself, he was able to get the director to talk. During a walk through the hallways of the GUN facility, the commander pointed out one significant detail. One he would later regret to tell Stone.
“Don’t
ever
go in there. I mean it. That room is meant for me and only me to enter. Understood?”
Stone obliged, but not for very long.
Stone ordered the rogue agents to investigate the room while he collected a quill sample from Sonic. He went to the infamous house where he resided - it wasn’t hard to find in a small town like Green Hills.
The process was quite easy. When Stone ventured through the forest located in the Wackowskis’ backyard, he noticed a familiar blue hedgehog sitting high up in a tree a decent distance away from his home. He appeared to be sleeping, which made Stone sinisterly smile.
Stone had prepared for anything, so he naturally had tree-climbing gear on hand. He scaled the tree as quietly as he could without disturbing the hedgehog. Approaching from behind, he was able to snatch a quill from the hedgehog’s head. Said rodent had stirred in his slumber, but not for long.
With that out of the way, Stone quickly and quietly made his descent and returned to the bunker.
He presented the doctor with the blue quill, saying, “We found him.” The doctor immediately snatched it and inspected it as he had once before, licking it. Satisfied, Eggman turned to Stone, hands on his shoulders.
“Let’s do this!”
And with a quick shave and clean up, they were off.
–
Location: GUN FACILITY, UNKNOWN
TIME: 23:11
Eggman and Stone, along with a few other henchmen, infiltrated the facility with ease. With brute force and some explosives, they entered with no hesitation and with little commotion.
“Distract any agents that come your way. Make sure they don’t lock down the facility before we leave with the specimen.”
The rogue agents nodded at the doctor, running inside with their machinery. Stone followed closely behind the doctor, stepping inside the facility. Eggman had become a lot slower, his wider stature preventing him from walking long distances. Thankfully, Stone had retrieved one of the facility’s maps and found the perfect place to invade.
So, it was not long before they approached the door Walters had forbidden them to enter. An agent from the group that followed them was able to unlock it with their keycard - a copy of Walters’.
A rush of adrenaline hit Eggman as the door slid open. Eyes widening, he walked inside first, Stone basically hugging his side, just as eager.
The room was dark, the only lighting being dim and colored LEDs surrounding the room. Not to mention the hardware inside also provided some light. Eggman and Stone approached a panel with several buttons and levers on it, but they seemed to be nearly frozen over. In fact, the whole room was freezing.
Looking closer, frost and ice covered most of the equipment in the room. A thin layer of fog blanketed the floor. In the center of the room was a glowing red circle dug into the ground. Two frost generators were located on the side, seeming to be pumping frozen air into whatever was underneath the ground.
Observing the panel, Eggman looked at all of the controls before pressing on one that said Open.
Suddenly, the glowing red circle transformed and moved upward. What Eggman identified as a cryotube began to emerge from the floor, the red glow still emanating from the tube. The fog on the ground moved as the tube continued vertically. The red glow from the tube lit up the room. The agents behind Eggman and Stone aimed their lasered weapons at the tube, preparing to shoot whatever came out of it.
What emerged was spectacular.
Inside the cryotube, latched in suspended animation from the waist and extremities, was a black and red hedgehog.
Shadow.
There was a moment of silence as everyone admired the creature, who was oblivious to the world around him.
Eggman suddenly spoke. “Eureka! I’ve done it! I have found the ultimate life form!” He then turned to Stone, gripping him tightly by the shoulders. “And it was all because of you!”
Stone grinned happily. “Thank you, doctor. But you should take the credit, I was only following your orders.”
Eggman then coughed awkwardly, removing himself from Stone as he brushed his shoulders with his hands. “Pfft, of course.”
An agent spoke up from behind, pointing at the cryotube. “Look!” Everyone turned their attention to the tube, where the hedgehog still resided.
Immediately, Eggman could see the hedgehog’s fists were moving, flexing slowly as they switched between being balled up and stretching out. Then, he opened his eyes.
Red fury eyes stared back at Eggman’s infatuated ones.
The creature then began to move more furiously, his eyes illuminating an orange electrical glow. Teeth seething, the hedgehog easily broke free of his restraints and punched the tube. The frozen glass broke in one hit.
Shattered glass littered the floor as the red glow from the tube blinded the group. The blast shot them back, Eggman hitting a wall behind him and landing on his butt. He raised a hand to his head as he rubbed it. Shaking his head, he glanced up at the now-ruined room.
The fog had now obstructed his view, covering everything in sight, including the tube. But the red glow persisted, creating an ominous and suspenseful atmosphere.
A small thud could be heard before the fog began to part. Emerging from the tube was the hedgehog, who slowly walked up to Eggman with furious eyes. His eyes continued to sparkle with electricity. He didn’t speak as he approached, communicating only with his eyes.
Up closer, Eggman could observe the creature’s finer details. A white patch of fur sat on his chest, red highlights covering him from his spikes to his eyelids. Contrasting Sonic’s look, this specimen’s spikes curved upward instead of hanging down. The gloves and shoes he wore were specially equipped with golden rings. Eggman thought back to the inhibitor rings his grandfather had mentioned in his diary.
While Eggman concluded that the hedgehog wore a striking resemblance to his foe, he could tell that the two were completely different. If someone were to mistake the two of them, they would be a fool.
The world was a fool, which made it an easy target.
Suddenly, the hedgehog pressed his shoe against Eggman’s chest, his hot eyes boring into Eggman’s. He could see the intensity in the creature’s eyes just from a few inches away.
“Say, I am impressed,” Eggman started, out of breath as the creature pressed his shoes into his chest. “You will prove a worthy opponent.”
“Where am I?” The hedgehog spat. His voice was deep, but not too deep. He sounded like a depressed teenager who had too much pent-up anger.
“Is that a trick question?” Eggman played.
The hedgehog only pressed his foot further into the doctor’s blubbery chest. “Answer me, you overweight hippopotamus.”
Eggman grabbed the creature’s foot in mercy as the pain increased. “You’re on Earth!”
The hedgehog paused, releasing Eggman from his foot’s hold. The doctor gasped slightly as he held a hand to his chest. Meanwhile, the hedgehog looked around the room, briefly glancing at the group behind Eggman. “I made it to Earth?” He muttered to himself.
“Don’t get your hopes up,” Eggman warned as he stood up, brushing off his jacket.
The black and red hedgehog turned his head. “Why not?”
“Earth is full of the most selfish, disgusting, and boring creatures. Trust me when I say Earth is nothing to sneeze at.”
The creature rolled his eyes as he ignored the doctor. “Why am I here?”
Eggman grinned. “You, my friend, have a very important job to do.”
“And what is that?” The hedgehog questioned.
“You have chaos energy, correct?”
“How do you know about that?”
“That doesn’t matter,” Eggman waved off. “Using your abilities, I want you to find the Master Emerald.”
“The… Master Emerald?”
“The emerald has ultimate power, which is the same emerald that helped create you,” Eggman explained. “But, it is being held by an enemy of mine. If you want that emerald back to help harness your powers, you will need to destroy him.”
“Who is this ‘enemy’ you speak of?”
“He calls himself ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’,” Eggman stated. “He’s a lot like you, just… less moody.”
“Don’t pretend you know me,” The hedgehog huffed as he walked past Eggman and the group. “Now, where is this so-called ‘Sonic’?”
“Let my assistant Agent Stone help you,” Eggman stopped the hedgehog, stepping to the side as he introduced Stone, who waved nervously at him.
The hedgehog rolled his eyes, continuing to the blown-out hallway. “I prefer to work alone.”
It was now raining outside. It down poured on the grass as the hedgehog walked outside. Eggman and the group tried to catch up behind him.
“Wait! Before you go,” Eggman panted. “Do you have a name?”
Slowly, the black and red hedgehog turned his head toward the doctor.
“It’s Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog.”