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| - It was approaching midnight. Rose was leaning on the balcony of the roof of Zyx's base. Although she was slightly tired, she needed the cold night air to help keep herself sane. She seemed to somehow becoming slowly more and more crazy during the night hours, and she couldn't explain it. A voice called from behind her, "What is wrong, my Rose?" She turned to see Zyx approaching her, unpowered and calm. "Have you been having trouble sleeping?" "No, my reaper," she replied. "It's just... I'm not sure. During the dark hours I seem to be feeling a bit... more like I'm losing myself. I don't know why. Would you have any idea?" Zyx smiled softly. "It is alright, my Rose," he stated. "You are not yet accustomed to your new powered form. It is just settling within you. Do not worry, feel free to sleep." Still, Rose was worried. "But it seems like I'm slowly becoming... insane." Zyx's eyes widened in shock. "Insanity? I'm not sure I could agree. However, it is possible that your Draconian transformation is conflicting with the pseudo-reaper form. If it bothers you, feel free to dispell your conflicts with Sol Magic. Although I recommend that you give the form a short time to settle in. If, in a few days, you still feel so, than utilize the art." Rose nodded. "Alright. So why are you up here?" The reaper turned off to the distance. "The Master Emerald has been located, on an island nearly on the other side of Mobius. I intend to get it before the blue hedgehog does. I was looking for you, so that I may tell you. Might I ask that you keep yourself careful when I go after it?" The pink hedgehog smiled. "I will do my best, provided that you return the offer. It's not that hard to realize the link works both ways." Zyx smiled, then turned off, coating in black light. "Don't worry, my Rose." He kicked off the building, stepped onto the railing, and shot into the air as his form was revealed. Rose, likewise transformed, watched as he slowly transformed to darkness and shot off. "Wow, he seems to be good at that, isn't he?" Rose spun in a shock, forming her axe from darkness, to see Shadow standing on the edge of the building, hands empty, and a leather backpack still on his back. "What are you doing here?" Holding the axe defensively, she stated, "If you've come to get me to make up with Sonic, than you're going to find out if 'immortality' applies to beheading." Shadow shook his head. "I didn't come here for Sonic," he stated. His eyes locked with Rose's. "But I'm going to have to agree with him on one thing. It's Amy." Rose shot forward, the axe coming towards Shadow's head. Inches from its intended target, it was frozen as Shadow reached up and grabbed the weapon, then flung it away. The pink hedgehog snarled. "Why are you here?" Shadow closed his eyes. "Because I know you're still in there, Amy. Zyx has tried to turn you into a ruthless killer, and to any casual observer he's succeeded. But deep down, I know that you're still there. Somewhere down inside is the Amy that I know and love." Rose's eyes widened as the axe faded. "What..." Shadow slowly stepped closer. "I know that you're still there, Amy. Why you turned to the darkness, I don't know. Why you believed that Sonic was a liar, I don't care. But you're still there. And right now, all I want is for you to show me that you can fight Zyx." Rose - no, for once it wasn't Rose. Amy looked into Shadow's eyes. The Ultimate Lifeform peered back. They stood like that for a long time before Amy whispered, "Shadow..." Shadow came closer and whispered, "Let me see if I can give you a little nudge." In a sudden rush, Amy was once again locked into a kiss with the black hedgehog. Except this time, it was not so much that of a risk-taker so much as that of one who truly felt as though it was right. Locking her in an embrace, Shadow kept her close for a long time. When finally they parted, it wasn't sudden. Shadow turned away. "Do us all a favour," he said softly. "Use darkness against the reaper." Then he turned and leapt off the building, coating in blue as he shot across the sky. Amy was still in her pseudo-reaper form. She recovered from the shock and leapt after him, calling, "Wait! Shadow!" Still mid-flight, Shadow skidded to a stop, ended the Chaos Control coat, and activated his hovershoes, floating in place as Amy approached him. "What is wrong?" he asked calmly. Amy came to a stop before him. "Can you deliver a message for me?" Shadow looked at her sideways as he asked, "Why?" The pseudo-reaper turned to the building, her eyes tearing up slightly. "Tell Sonic I can't come to him. But tell him I believe him. And tell him that I'm going to use Zyx's trust against him." Shadow's eyes went wide. Amy didn't wait for his response. Instead, she leapt even higher into the air before landing on the building, then entering. Shadow watched her, then turned away and dropped from the air before skating off towards the cave the team had agreed on. Inside the building, Amy instantly shattered a large piece of black obsidian in half with a single punch. "Solaris damn it!" she shouted angrily, spinning to a large black onyx in the shape of a scythe. She launched a kick to it, shattering it as well. Falling back onto a velvet couch that Zyx had furnished the place with, she laid back in pure exhaustion. "This is so so wrong!" she screamed. Zyx had soundproofed the building, so no one could hear her shouts of insanity. She closed her eyes for a second to try and organize her thoughts. 1) She liked Sonic. No. She loved Sonic. Of course she loved Sonic. And what's more, she had confirmation that Sonic loved her back. But Sonic had been heartbroken because of the way she had acted. She needed to make things right with him somehow soon. 2) She liked Shadow. That was a problem. Shadow had Infera. But he had admitted to Amy that he had wanted her as well. Somehow she had to sort herself out and explain to Shadow that it couldn't work between them, and before Sonic found out. That would get ugly. 3) She liked Zyx. That was a hole 'nother ballgame. Zyx was a Solaris-damned reaper. He was the villain in this picture. But she knew that he wasn't truly evil. Yet he wanted her. She had to find out what had caused him to turn, then get it over between the two of them. As she lay on that couch, she thought of one more thing. 4) She was starting to sound like some book character. She picked up one of the halves of obsidian and slammed it against her head, then laid back, trying to calm down. "Why me?" she asked to no one in general. A long distance off, Shadow arrived at a cave, which he entered to see Sonic lying on the bed where Merlina had been healing. Merlina was standing over him carefully, and Infera was standing beside him. Shadow approached him carefully. In a blur of blue and a shattered sound, Shadow slammed into the side of the wall to see Sonic in an offensive stance at the side of his bed, inches from Infera. Infera reeled back, and Merlina took a step away. "What do you want, Shadow?" Sonic snarled. Shadow stood carefully, then turned calmly to Sonic. "I'm just here to tell you I got Amy back on our side," he replied. Sonic's eyes widened, and he losened his stance. "Where are Silver and Blaze?" As though to respond to his question, Sonic was knocked aside by a flaming blur as Blaze materialized a few inches from where he was standing. "Ow! Sorry, Sonic." He turned to the others. "We've got a problem!" Merlina approached her. "What kind of problem?" Blaze's response was like a bombshell. "Silver's been taken."
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