A Hero's Promise - Chapter 1

~Chapter One : Return of the Ultimate Lifeform


Arms folded over the railing of the balcony, a lone hedgehog was left alone to contemplate his thoughts under the dark, night sky. Both doubt and peace mixed together into one complicated mood he couldn't quite describe.

Happiness... an emotion Shadow the Hedgehog rarely felt. Fifty years later since the incident aboard the ARK, he didn't believe it possible to feel that emotion anymore.

But that all changed. All because of his promise. The promise that completely changed his life and the fate of the planet.

When he was awakened fifty years later, he thought his purpose was to avenge Maria and make humanity suffer. But that wasn't the real promise. His true purpose was to make people happy and to give them a future. That was his real promise to his friend Maria and Amy Rose.

Shadow never expected to like Amy Rose the way he did. Without any recollection of the cheerful ally, a trusting bond grew between them nonetheless. His friendship with Amy had grown into a loyal attraction. The happy and thoughtful pink hedgehog who loved the world to be at peace was who Shadow grew to admire.

Love was a stronger emotion than hate. Hate only caused new revenge and despair. Love created happiness and new dreams. Love created life and cherished it with unbelievable strength and determination. Love had been missing from his heart since the death of Maria. But he promised he would put the past behind him and move on.

He had a future ahead of him. One with promise.

And hope.

He smiled as a very familiar rose coloured hedgehog was hurrying over to his side on the balcony. Remembering what lie ahead of him, Shadow turned away from the horizon, his eyes meeting Amy's shining emerald ones. Her hand reached for his and he held it tightly, Amy resting against his shoulder.

This was what Shadow's heart desired.

Peace and ultimately love.

And love was more powerful than hate...

He couldn't ask for anything more as the two stood closely beside each other under the moonlight. Shadow would never forget the time it all began. The adventure that brought the two together.

"I'll keep my promise, no matter what. I swear it."


"No way that's getting through!"

Both Sonic and Shadow teamed up together to defeat the Finalhazard, both in their Super forms. The Space Colony ARK still remained on its predetermined course towards the planet. Both of them were determined to stop the upcoming devastation at all costs.

"Shadow, I beg of you..."

Shadow's eyes widened in surprise at the familiar voice. "Maria..."

"Give them a chance to be happy."

"Now, Shadow!" Sonic shouted to his newfound ally.

He nodded in agreement, their determined gazes meeting for a brief second. Both completely ready, they headed towards ARK at an incredible velocity.

"Chaos Control!" A bright light enveloped the Space Colony and it was brought back into its original position, no longer on its course to destroy the planet. Was the final battle truly over? Glancing back at the now-still ARK, Sonic was certain the planet had been saved.

Completely relieved, Sonic turned to face Shadow, only to find him slowly descend much to his horror. "No! Shadow!"

Those were the last words Shadow could hear before he fell down to the atmosphere. Sonic's gloved hand tried to reach for his but Shadow pulled his hand away. The shocked look on Sonic's face was indescribable. He would have tried again to save his ally but after seeing the expression on Shadow's face, he froze in shock. He knew that was what his former rival wanted but it didn't make him feel any better.

He didn't want to let Shadow go.

But he had no other choice.

It felt surreal as Shadow passed through the planet's atmosphere... Was being this close to death this peaceful? It felt unlike anything he experienced before. He could see his life flashing before his eyes, many including memories of Maria.

"Maria, this is what you wanted, right? This is my promise I made to you..."

He finally fulfilled his promise; what Maria really wanted for humanity. There were no words to describe how he felt. After fifty years, he could reunite with his dear friend again. This time, there would be no regrets. No more pain or sorrow.

Shadow lost track of how long he had been falling. He could already feel his super form fade away, his exhausted body continuing to descend downward. He could have been falling for seconds, minutes or even hours. Shadow would never know. All that mattered to him was seeing Maria's face again. The light became so bright, he had to shield his eyes to avoid being rendered blind. After a moment, his eyes adjusted to the light, his heart beating fast seeing a hand reach for his. Could this be his definition of peace? His heaven?

Was this what Shadow truly wanted?

He couldn't see why not. He kept his promise. What else was left for him to do in the world? There was no reason for him to stay.

"Shadow..."

"M-Maria...?" He could hear her voice but he couldn't see her face. Where was she? He wanted to see his friend more than anything. Was his mind playing tricks on him? He hoped not. He wanted his peace to be real, not a delusion. "Where are you, Maria?"

"Shadow," her voice repeated again. This time, he could see that it was her hand that was reaching for his. He felt a warmth from inside his chest. It felt wonderful. Was this known as happiness? He couldn't get enough of it, lacking the emotion nearly his whole life. His hand extended towards Maria's, hoping this would be the end to his fifty years of agony.

In mere seconds, he could see her hand fading away. Startled, he reached out further, only to see he was slowly disappearing too. He couldn't see or hear Maria anywhere. His newfound happiness had been for nothing. He blinked back a few tears, his eyes closing.

"Maria..."

He helped save the planet. Why would his heaven reject him? It didn't make sense to him. None of it.

There was nothing he could do as he felt his eyes close, the last of his consciousness fading away.


"Shadow?"

His eyes opened suddenly, surprised to see a silhouette of a hedgehog by his side, a hand on his shoulder. He had come outside on a hill, standing under a tree to spend time to reflect on his thoughts. How would this girl have found him? Not quite sure who it was, Shadow pulled away abruptly. In the darkness, he didn't know who this stranger was. Ally or enemy, he had to be on his guard. "Who are you? Show yourself!"

"Shadow, don't you remember? I'm Amy Rose," the pink hedgehog said, confused he was referring to her as a complete stranger. She couldn't help but find his behaviour very unusual.

He finally could make out her features and shook his head after a moment. "I don't. I never met you." Shadow glared at her in mistrust, suspicious of how she knew about him when he knew nothing about her. "I don't know who you are. How do you know me?"

Amy was taken aback by his response. "You saved the planet with Sonic. Don't you remember? ARK was going to crash into the planet. You were keeping your promise to make people happy."

"Promise?" His head began to ache, trying to remember. He shook his head again, this time in confusion. "I don't know anything of this promise. What are you talking about?"

Amy looked down at the ground. "You don't remember at all, do you?"

He kept quiet, his eyes full of hurt and confusion. Inside, Amy felt crushed. She couldn't believe it. Could it be possible that Shadow lost his memories and forgot everything, even her? She turned her focus from the ebony hedgehog to the city of Westopolis among the horizon, hoping the view would distract her mind from the shocking truth.

"Only my name," Shadow replied. He was still undecided whether to trust Amy. There was a chance she was telling the truth and she did know him before in the past. He took another glimpse at her emerald eyes. She seemed genuinely concerned about him but he couldn't understand why she was so nice to him. How did he meet this girl? He could hardly remember anything before he was reawakened by Rouge. Only a day passed since Metal Overlord had been defeated. He ended up confused after the battle, unsure of what to do. If there was a purpose for him to continue on, what was it?

Amy turned back to Shadow, surprised to have received a response. "Only your name?" Maybe he didn't forget everything after all. Hopeful, she continued to speak. "Do you remember anything else?"

Did he? All he could remember was his name, Shadow. He hated feeling so confused. He wanted answers. Answers about his past and who he was.

"No, I don't."

The smile on Amy's face vanished. Taking notice of her change in mood, he opened his mouth to question her concern when she turned around and headed down the hill. He sighed. Whatever he had to say wasn't important anyway.

But...who was this Amy Rose?