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"Love That Gives True Peace"
By: Jade Lightning, a.k.a. Inuyashas-hanyougirl
Chapter 8: "So much on the Line"

   The following morning, as Hidama woke from his now happy dreams, he found everyone around him awake and busy.  He couldn’t see Shadow or Rouge anywhere, but saw his friends Aranelion and Elianaron nearby.  Aranelion was sharpening his sword, and Elianaron was polishing the blades of Tempest and Twilight.  The echidna stood up, stretched his arms and legs, and walked over to his friends.

   “Hey guys, guess what?  I finally remembered Knuckles, I mean, his face.  All this time I could remember everything about him, but not what he looked like…and finally, in my dreams, well, as I fell asleep, I remembered what he looked like!” Hidama said.

   Aranelion looked up and smiled, and replied, “That’s wonderful Hidama; I wonder why you had such a hard time with it though…hmm, well I guess that doesn’t really matter anymore.  So, how is it you remembered what he looked like at long last?”

   The twins looked to Hidama for an answer; he looked thoughtful, bringing a hand to cover his mouth as he thought.  At last, he snapped his finger and smiled.  He replied, “It was the day I carried him…I had tickled him and tired him out, and I offered to carry him home.  He said I was the best brother in the world, or appropriately, the whole, wide world.”  Hidama paused, and grinned, continuing, “Then I told him I was so lucky to have an awesome and sweet brother like him…and then I carried him home to supper.”

   Elianaron and Aranelion exchanged glances, grinning at each other, their eyes shining in the morning sun.  Elianaron looked to Hidama and said, “Well isn’t that awesome.  Hmm, wait, you said you were carrying home…what had you been doing before hand?”

   To this, Hidama's proud smile faded to a half-hearted one.  He laughed softly, and said, “Oh, he and I were with Father…he, …he had finally decided to let us see the Master Emerald…and after we hugged him and he hugged us he told us to go home for supper, and that he would be home to kiss us goodnight that evening.  The problem was…that was the same night we were attacked…”

   Elianaron looked sad, and embarrassed for asking the question, not knowing it would have this outcome.  Aranelion gave his brother a look, then got up, sheathing Akrenar, and walked over to Hidama.  He placed his arm around Hidama’s shoulders, hugging him and said, “It’s okay Hidama…the fool over there didn’t mean to upset ya.  Hey, at least you remember what he looks like again, and come this evening, you’ll be able to see him again.”

   Hidama looked at Aranelion, the smile slowly returning to his face, and returned the embrace.  He restrained a few tears that had formed in his eyes from falling, and pulled back, saying, “Yeah, thanks Aranelion.  It helps to remember that.”  He turned to Elianaron and said, “Get over here you nit wit, everything’s alright.  You didn’t upset me.”

   Elianaron laughed, and returning Tempest and Twilight to their sheaths, he got up and half-tackled Hidama and hugged him.  After Hidama regained his footing, he hugged Elianaron tightly in return.  Then Elianaron replied, “Yeah, that’s good, I feel better now.”

   After their hug, Hidama pulled away from Elianaron, and said, “Gee, where are Rouge and Shadow?  I want to get going already.  The sooner we leave the sooner we’ll get to Angel Island.  I’m tired of waiting.”

   The Brokenstar Twins exchanged glances, looking all around them, until Aranelion replied, “You know…all Shadow told me was he and Rouge were going for an early morning walk…and heh, they’re practically a couple so I figured they were going on a romantic walk or something, but that was a good while ago and now, they’re nowhere to be seen, even by my keen eyes.”

   Unbeknownst to the three of them, Shadow and Rouge stood holding each other’s hands, framed against the rising sun.  Shadow looked to it, breathing deeply and said, “I fear much blood shall be spilled tonight…just within view of Angel Island.”  He paused, then looked at Rouge sadly and said, “I hate that we must part in this way, but I need you to warn Knuckles of the impending threat, and you’re the only one I can trust to do this correctly…”

   Rouge looked at Shadow, noticing he could not look her in the eyes.  She released one of his hands, and brought her hand up to caress his face at the jaw line.  As she gently stroked his cheek, even as he continued to look down and away from her, she could feel him take a deep, staggered breath.  This startled her for a minute; in a lowered voice, she whispered, “Shadow?  Are you…okay?”

   He still wouldn’t speak, nor look her in the eyes, but he nodded his head in response, tightening his grip on Rouge’s hand as he did so.  His silence worried Rouge, but before she could question him once more, she felt something warm and wet on her glove.  At first she thought it was dew from a tree that stood nearby, but once she realized that was impossible, she returned her gaze to the hand she held to Shadow’s cheek.

   What she saw shocked her; she realized that the warm, wet feeling she felt was her glove soaking up Shadow’s tears.  The hedgehog was silently crying, breathing heavily in an attempt to silence his tears.  Rouge’s heart began to race; in the length of time that she had known Shadow, she rarely saw him smile, at least to anyone other than herself.  He rarely expressed joy, and now, he was doing something she never once expected him to.  Shadow was actually weeping, for what, she didn’t know, but it was enough to cause her heart to ache for him, her muscles to tighten, and make her stomach hurt.  She dared not speak further, for she didn’t know how Shadow would react to his tears being noticed and questioned.

   Yet she wanted to comfort him somehow, and so going back to his statement from before, she caressed his cheek once more, drying some of his tears in the process, and said, “I understand Shadow…really I do.  Don’t worry about me…infact, given the circumstances, I think I’d be the last thing you’d worry about.”

   It was when Rouge said this, that Shadow’s staggered breathing stopped with a quick inhale, followed by a slow exhale in the form of a gasp.  He stood up completely straight, tightening his muscles, and turned to look at Rouge, finally revealing his eyes, glassy from the remainder of his tears.

   With his free hand, he wiped his eyes dry, revealing a look of shock once he finished.  Glancing at the hand she held to his cheek, he knew full well that she knew he was crying, as her glove had soaked up his tears.  He shook his head slowly, closing his eyes for a moment, then opened them, looking into her eyes, and smiling slightly.  He brought his free hand up to cover hers, before taking it and holding it as he held her other hand.

   Shadow whispered, “Now…that couldn’t be farther from the truth.  As much care and concern as I give for Hinsei Hidama and Knuckles, I give so much more concern to you above all else.  No Rouge, I think you have it backwards…it’s not necessarily this separation I fear, or even the impending battle after the fact; more or less I’m worried for…well…what shall become of us…of our…relationship later on.”

   For a moment or so, Shadow closed his eyes, trembling slightly, and looked away from her.  This was very beyond normal for him, and he felt so ridiculous for how he was acting.  Finally, he regained control of his emotions, and returned his attention to Rouge.  She was looking at him with worried eyes;  Shadow laughed softly, and replied, “No, I know what you’re thinking, and I’m just fine…it’s just…I have something I need to ask you before…well…before things get rough, and futures become uncertain.”

   Rouge gazed at Shadow, and responded, “It’s alright Shadow…this battle has us all out of sorts I suppose.”  She paused, glancing at the sunrise once more, and asked, “What is it you needed to ask me?”

   Shadow was silent for a few moments, looking down to their hands, then up at Rouge.  Without more than a few moments hesitation, he leaned forward and kissed her.  As she returned his kiss, she continued to be baffled by his behavior.  Once they withdrew from their kiss, Shadow let go of her hands, turned away, and looked to the ground.  He replied in a next to inaudible whisper, “Rouge…now that my mission to reunite Hidama and Knuckles is almost through…I—I grow weary of the thought of wandering the wilds alone.  Too long have I been alone…I want to bring an end to that.”

   Rouge walked up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder, peering over it to see what he was holding in his hands.  However, what ever Shadow was fingering remained concealed from her sight.  Knowing she was right behind him, Shadow inhaled and exhaled deeply, glancing at the hand she had placed on his shoulder. Then, looking down and away from her, he asked, in the quietest voice he could muster, “Rouge…I—I want you to…m—marry me.” The last words of his sentence were barely audible and incredibly shaky.

   As he fell silent, looking half way at Rouge in the process, he could see the look of shock and awe in her eyes.  As a smile slowly spread across her face, she answered him in equally as soft a voice as he, “Shadow…I—I don’t know what to say except…well, I—I’d love to.”  Again, in the same fashion as Shadow, her voice dropped off by the time she finished her sentence.

   Shadow stood up straight, his head and neck erect.  He turned to her slowly, smiling warmly again.  Then, shaking his head, he kissed her on the cheek and said, “It’s a date then…once all is said and done.  But until then,” he paused, revealing the green chaos emerald he concealed.  He took her hand with his free hand, and place the chaos emerald in it, closing her fingers around it then holding her closed hand in his own.  He continued, “Take this chaos emerald as a symbol of that promise.  Once we all make it out from this, we’ll see that promised carried out.  No longer shall we wander the wilds alone.  Already…my spirit is uplifted in the knowledge of this.”

   Rouge felt her eyes tearing up; this was almost as unusual for her as it was for him.  She tried her best to restrain her tears, trembling heavily, her breath staggered.  Looking down at the chaos emerald as Shadow withdrew his hands, she was in awe of how beautiful it was, glimmering in the light of the rising sun.  Finally she looked up at Shadow, smiling again, with only a few tears falling from her eyes.

   Bringing his hand up to dry her tears, Shadow whispered, “We don’t have much longer.  Already I’m sure the Brokenstar Twins and Hidama worry for us, and you must hurry with all speed to warn Knuckles.”  He paused, and said, “I love you.”

   Her tears dried up, she nodded and replied, “I know Shadow…and trust me, I’ll be to Angel Island by early afternoon.  Knuckles will be ready for you when you arrive.  Just…promise me you’ll be careful, okay?”

   Shadow drew Rouge into a tight hug, and as Rouge returned his embrace.  Shadow whispered, “I promise.  Everything will be alright, you’ll see.  Now, you better go quickly.”

   They withdrew from their embrace, and Rouge held on tightly to the chaos emerald, smiling at Shadow, ready to fly into the distance.  She walked a few paces back from him, but before she took off, she replied, “I meant to say that…that I love you too Shadow.  I’ll…I’ll see you later.”

   As she ascended into the air, Shadow nodded and smiled, waving goodbye to her.  Finally she took off with all speed in the direction of Angel Island, a path that he and the others would soon follow on foot.  As soon as she faded from his sight, he turned and breathed deeply, saying, “You be careful Rouge…I don’t know what I’d do if somehow…you were taken from me forever.”

   After that, he regained his composure and took off back to their campsite.  He stopped short when the three boys came into view.  He smiled when he saw them.  Aranelion and Elianaron were practicing with their weapons by battling with each other, while Hidama was practicing his martial arts moves on some nearby boulders and trees.  The will to fight to the end was strong in the hearts of all three of them, and this same fighting spirit was rekindled in Shadow’s heart at seeing their courage and strength.

   Finally, Shadow walked up to the group, and said, “At ease you three; you’ve got to conserve your strength for the final battle, and before then you still have the road ahead to conquer.  Actually, we should start our run about now…you have no idea how much ground the mutant army has covered in the hours we slept.”

   Aranelion, Elianaron and Hidama froze.  Elianaron looked at Shadow and said, “Wait, so even now they are pursuing us?”

   Hidama walked up to Shadow, standing between him and the Brokenstar Twins and said, “It’s more than pursuit.  They are moving so quickly that they will soon overtake us…right in the presence of Angel Island, with the Master Emerald, and our lives within Olermere’s grasp.”

   Shadow looked at Hidama, pleased to see how greatly Hidama’s spirits were lifted.  When Hidama saw Shadow looking at him, he whispered, “I remembered Knuckles’ face…my…heart and soul are as healed as they can be…until I am with him again.”

   The hedgehog smiled slightly, then when straight-faced as he looked to the twins. He said, “Precisely Hidama.  I’ve sent Rouge ahead of us, for she flies faster alone than we can run together, to warn Knuckles of the threat, for we shall be needing his strength before the end.”

   Aranelion stepped beside Hidama, and sheathing Akrenar he asked, “So wait, how big a threat are we talking here?  I mean, Elianaron and I took out a tribe of around fifty not but a week ago, and they were reasonably tough, so we’ll be able to take on a reasonable attack.  But still…how big a threat do they present?”

   All eyes fell on Shadow, who covered his mouth with his hand and crossed his free arm over the other, trying to think of what to say next.  He closed his eyes and shook his head knowing at this point all he was doing was putting on an act to waste time.  He opened his eyes and looked at the three, saying, “I already know the threat that is presented.  Oleremere’s army stands ten-thousand strong, and that’s not counting the threat of Olermere himself.  This is far from what any of you have encountered before, and luckily for us, the radiation from Hidama’s final attack on Feldmort was enough to kill his flunkies…Olermere won’t be that easy to dismantle…magic has no effect on him whatsoever.”

   Aranelion and Hidama looked at each other, while Elianaron walked up to Shadow, brandishing Tempest, and said, “Whoa…are you crazy?  I’m assuming magic is useless on his legions too then, isn’t it?”

   To this, Shadow replied with a nod and heavy sigh.  He continued, “I have a feeling the group of fifty or so soldiers you vanquished were fresh from trying to kill Hidama and myself.  He had fled with the fox children, and I stood to battle them, unaware of their immunity to magic.  Needless to say I was badly beaten and almost killed had not they gone to attack you when you were near.  I know how to battle them now and thus shall do better than before, but yes, no magic can slow them down in the least.”

   Elianaron’s eyes widened; he was unable to speak for a moment, but replied in a stuttered voice, “You’ve got to be joking Sh—Shadow.  Not even Aranelion and I can ward off so many on that scale…and dragging Knuckles to fight will only soften the load by a bit.  This is insane.”

   He threw his arms into the air, tossing Tempest into the air accidentally.  It nearly fell on Aranelion, but Hidama reached out and caught the dagger by the blade just above Aranelion’s head.  He glared at Elianaron, and said, “Knuckles and I are skilled in the same battle techniques as they.  I’m sure you’ll see my brother and I are more than capable of holding our own and even yours in battle.  Besides, these are of the same league of mutants as those that slew your father…and I know there’s no way in hell you’re gonna shy away from the fray now are you?”

   The twins, even Shadow were amazed by this newfound confidence in Hidama’s voice.  He was becoming the leader he always should have been, and after the initial shock passed, Elianaron nodded, courage returning to his face and heart as he took Tempest back from Hidama.

   Shadow looked at the twins, and as Elianaron sheathed Tempest, Shadow said, “Look, the echidna tribe could have defended better against Olermere’s army than Feldmort’s…that is why Olermere attacked the Northern Kingdom instead.  The echidnas of the Northern Kingdom focused entirely on magic, and thus didn’t stand a chance.  Against Feldmort the Angel Island tribe did nearly succumb to death, but as you know their ingenuity, power, and intelligence allowed Knuckles and Hidama to survive until now, so there’s no doubt in my mind that if we were able to defeat Feldmort, which was the stronger of the brothers in terms of advantage, then if we have the courage and will enough that Olermere too can be vanquished and the echidnas avenged at last.  You’ve just got to believe that.  When your father left you those weapons, he left them to you in the knowledge that you would never give up the fight…so don’t let him down now…not when you’re so close to achieving that goal and promise.”

   Hidama glanced at the twins, grinning at them while looking at them out of the corner of his eyes.  The look he gave them said, “You know he’s right…you can’t wimp out and quit now can you?”

   The twins saw this, and turned to each other.  Aranelion whispered, “He’s right…we can’t abandon our dreams now.  Even if we were to somehow die in this battle, we’d go down in glory, in the knowledge that we achieved revenge for our father at last.  No Elianaron; we promised our dear mother, who back in Valordian worries for us even now that we would come back alive…and avenge our father as well.  We sure as hell can’t stop now…” Aranelion paused, unsheathing Akrenar and extending it towards the sky and continuing, “For father, and the entire echidna race.”

   Elianaron smiled confidently, and removing Twilight from its sheath he brought his dagger out and crossed it with Akrenar, nodding in agreement and saying, “To battle we go.  Those mutants are gonna have to get through us before we’ll let them approach Angel Island.  At last we’ll have revenge for our father’s death, as well as the death of our near kindred.”

   Hidama laughed and said, “Now that’s the spirit!  Yeah!”

   Shadow too was smiling, but only for a little while.  He glanced the sun which rose ever higher in the sky as the morning progressed.  He placed a hand on both Aranelion and Elianaron’s shoulders, saying, “Quickly you three, we must run, for Olermere’s army shall be within five miles of Angel Island by early evening, and we must be there to meet them.  Let’s move!”

   Aranelion sheathed the Akrenar and shouted, “To Angel Island we fly!”  Elianaron answered with a cheer, and sheathing Twilight began to run towards the southern horizon.  As Aranelion took off after him, Hidama and Shadow too began to run after Elianaron.  They didn’t know it now, but as a violent storm approached from the north, so too did Olermere’s army, and as the low rumble of thunder could be heard, it was uncertain whether it came from the storm, or the footfalls of ten-thousand mutant soldiers and their king as they raced southward to Angel Island and war.

   The target of the storm and onslaught of war were the plains surrounding Angel Island.  The floating island took rest above a vast expanse of fields and plains, with the ocean five miles to the east.  Knuckles was unsure why he felt better with the island over land, infact, he was unsure of a lot of things at this point.

   It had been too long since he heard from Shadow.  Infact the last time he had seen Shadow was when Feldmort was defeated some two months ago.  There was the constant feeling of worry and anxiety gnawing at the echidna’s heart; his concern for his brother’s safety was next to top priority in his mind, after Amy of course, and what made it worse was that the baby was due any day now.  This particular morning, Knuckles left the cottage while Amy had a nap after breakfast, as the anxiety and fear became so heavy on his heart he thought he was having a breakdown.

   Kelerai jumped out of an open window and ran after her master, trying her best to keep up with him as he sped along.  To her surprise he didn’t run up the stairs of the Master Emerald’s altar as she expected him to.  Instead, Knuckles ran in a different direction, one he had never gone in before, at least with Kelerai at his side.

   The cat thought she had lost her master, and mewed in desperation when she lost him in the woods.  She took a few steps forward, mewing sadly until she heard something.  “C’mere Kelerai…I’m sorry…I didn’t know you were following me or I would have waited,” a voice said.

   Kelerai mewed happily at the sound of Knuckles’ voice.  She followed the sound of his voice to find him in a clearing.  She stopped and saw Knuckles bent over by a log, all that was left of a great tree after it fell in a storm.  The echidna glanced at her and laughed.  He said, “Over here Kelerai…there’s something very special over here…so special not even Amy knows about it.”

   As the cat walked over to him, he knelt down beside the log, and continued, “Before our family and friends were killed, Hidama and I used to play in the woods all the time.  I remember the first day he brought me here, Kelerai.  I must have only been four years old, but I remember it so well.”

   The cat sat down beside him and meowed almost in question of what he just said.  He petted her and said, “Oh, why am I bringing this up now you ask?  Heh, well, thing is, before he was taken away and everything, we used to hide our treasures here.  One of them was a jewel I gave Amy a few years ago…before we moved here and everything, you remember.  Anyway, we dug a deep hole underneath this log we found, and anytime we’d find anything special…we’d put it here.”

   Kelerai looked between the log and Knuckles face, meowing as if she understood what he meant.  He chuckled softly and said, “Well, I guess I came here to get them because…in my heart I know he’s almost here, and we’ll be together again.  I’m trying to get rid of this fear that he’s hurt or something…that he’s never coming back alive.  I know I’ll see him again…,” Knuckles paused as he pushed the log away, revealing the hole he spoke of.  He continued, “I love him so much…he’s my brother, my protector, my best friend in the world.  He’s…the best brother in the entire world.  He was willing to give his life to save mine…and, heh, that’s pretty cool.  I just want to hug him and tell him how much I love him…how lost I’d be without him.  I know that’ll come soon…”

   The echidna sighed, and reached into the hole, lifting out a leather satchel, one that was made by their mother before she died.  Knuckles smiled, a tear trying to form in his eye as he opened the leather purse.  Inside it were dozens of precious stones, including jade, lapis, and opal.  As he poured through them, he laughed and said, “Ah…Hidama found the opal.  Opals are so rare, even for the world, and that day, I was sad about something…I think I hurt myself climbing a tree or something.  Anyway he gave me the opal to cheer me up.  The rest of these we’d find while we were exploring…treasure hunting he called it.  Yeah, we went all over this island, as far as father would let us.”

   Knuckles gathered the gems in his hand and put them carefully back in the leather bag.  Bringing it to his nose and inhaling deeply.  As he exhaled, he sighed and said, “Our mother made this…I don’t know…somewhere in the fabric her scent hasn’t faded away.”

   Kelerai had walked over to the hole and started sniffing at the contents.  Knuckles laughed, picking her up and pulling her away saying, “Careful now…the spearheads are still in there.”  He reached in the hole and pulled out several pieces of fine cloth, the finest material ever weaved by the echidna seamstresses; he then pulled out pieces of fine jewelry, the kind his mother wore as the wife of the Guardian.  Infact this jewelry was worn by his mother before she died and placed there by Knuckles after the fact.  Among other things he pulled out a leather-bound collection of leaflets, which were the only surviving examples of the echidna script, and a few toys he and Hidama used to play with.

   At last he pulled out a handful of spearheads.  The largest in particular he chose to hold.  He smiled weakly and said, “This, Kelerai, this spearhead used to crown my father’s spear…the same one he wielded in the last moments of his life.  The ornate staff of it was impossible to save, but the spearhead itself I rescued as I buried him.  Shortly after that, I buried mother next to him…in the grove over there just by the stream, but placed her jewelry in there with the spearhead.”

   Knuckles fell silent again.  He collected the trinkets he had pulled out of the hole and slowly placed them back in it, keeping out the opal, the spearhead, and his mother’s necklace.  He whispered, “The rest of these I’ll save for when Hidama arrives…then, heh, I can show them to him.  These three things though I think I’ll hang on here to see me through my fears.”  As he pulled the log over the hole, he looked at Kelerai and said in a raised voice, “I can’t falter now Kelerai!  Amy needs me to be strong…but…I’m so worried about my brother…I don’t know what I’d do if I lost him forever.  It was hard enough burying mother and father, then the bodies of my friends, their families, the village elders, the warriors…everybody!  I hung on to the hope that Hidama still lived since I couldn’t find his body…and now, I’m just so scared that if something goes wrong…,”

   Tears finally filled Knuckles’ eyes, and clutching the opal, spearhead and necklace to his chest, he cried out, “Hidama!  Please!  Hurry back to me!  Somebody please promise me he’ll be okay!”  After he said this, he bent over and wept, still holding the trinkets in his hands.  Kelerai mewed softly and rubbed against Knuckles, upset that he was crying.  She licked his face where his tears were falling, and when she received no response from him, she meowed sadly and crawled as best she could into his lap and mewed as if she were crying for him.

   He would have stayed and cried for a long time, but enough time had passed for Rouge to finally see Angel Island on the horizon.  As she flew, she held on tightly to the chaos emerald Shadow gave her, and smiled when she saw the floating island.  She said, “Finally…almost there.  I hope Shadow and the others are okay.”

   Rouge looked at the chaos emerald once more and sighed happily when she thought of Shadow.  This flood of happiness inspired her to fly faster.  Finally, she landed on the edge of Angel Island, and now had to find Knuckles.  By chance she landed on the same side of the island Knuckles was on, and after walking a few paces she picked up Kelerai’s mewing.

   She knew that Knuckles had a cat, so she took a few paces in the direction of the mewing, and called out, “Here kitty, kitty, where are you?”  Then she asked, “Knuckles?  If you’re out their answer me!  I have something I need to tell you about Hidama!”

   Knuckles stopped crying and dried his eyes.  He recognized Rouge’s voice and was about to ignore it, but at the mention of news about Hidama he barely gave time to move Kelerai before taking off into the woods.  After only a few moments he found her wandering the woods.  He stopped only feet away from her and said, “Rouge!  What is it?  Where’s Hidama at?”

   Rouge looked at Knuckles and sighed out of relief.  She said, “Hey there Knuckles.  I was just with Hidama earlier this morning; he, Shadow, and his old friend the Brokenstar Twins are on their way here as we speak.”

   A wide smile spread across Knuckles’ face.  He laughed and said, “Whoa, I barely remember those two…Aranelion and Elianaron were their names right?  But wow, they’re almost here…I’m so relieved.”

   As he glanced the trinkets he held in his hand and Kelerai caught up with him, Rouge hung her head and sighed.  She said, “Actually, there’s more I’ve got to tell you Knuckles.  You remember Feldmort and his army right?  Well…turns out he has an older brother named Olermere, with an army even more frightful, and bent on revenge.”

   It was then that Knuckles looked at Rouge with a look of disbelief.  He walked up to her, knowing the seriousness of the task at hand already.  He said, “Walk with me back to the cottage.  You can explain on the way.  I want to be with Amy incase she needs me, but it sounds like Hidama is going to need me even more.  Come on, explain to me everything in as much detail as you can.”

   Rouge nodded and hid her chaos emerald from him.  The two started walking in the direction of Knuckles and Amy’s cottage.  As they walked, Rouge detailed Olermere, his army, and the oncoming war just as Shadow had told her, and with no less detail.  From the night Olermere and Feldmort first tried to steal the Master Emerald, to the day Shadow first revealed their plan of attack.  By the time the cottage was within view, Rouge was down to explaining their need of Knuckles’ strength in the battle.

   The echidna swallowed hard, then sighed heavily when the cottage came into view.  They stopped their walk within feet of the front porch.  Knuckles said, “What can I do?  We started this with Feldmort’s death, and we need to finish it.  As long as any of those mutants still live, we must fight…and I’ll go stand by my brother until the very end, whatever that end is…but…,” he fell silent as he looked sadly at the cottage, right at their bedroom window and sighed.

   He looked down at Kelerai and said, “But the thought of leaving Amy here with the baby due any day…it makes my heart ache, just as much as the thought of not helping Hidama fight does.”

   Rouge shuffled her feet, then looked again at the green chaos emerald and thought of Shadow.  This time, Knuckles caught her looking at it and said, “Hey, isn’t that Shadow’s chaos emerald?”

   She looked up at him and smiled weakly.  She said, “Shadow gave me this…we—we made a promise to each other, and this is our way of keeping it.”  She wouldn’t tell the echidna what exactly that promise was, but seeing that he had already returned his sad eyes to the cottage, she stood up straight, breathed a deep breath and said, “Knuckles, go to Hidama…and I’ll stay here with Amy.  If the time were to come and she needs you, I’ll be sure that you get back to her in plenty of time.  Now you need to go tell her and get ready…because Shadow said they’d be within five miles of here by this evening.”

   Knuckles looked at Rouge, and after a few moments he was able to smile, but immediately afterwards a look of confidence returned to his face, and he said, “Alright, but you better keep a good eye on her, and take excellent care of her, alright?”

   To this Rouge laughed softly and said, “Okay, okay Knuckles, don’t worry about it.  You have my solemn promise that I’ll take care of her…just…,”

   The echidna had started to walk to the cottage, but was stopped by Rouge who ran in front of him.  She continued, “Just look after Shadow…I know he’s strong but his physical power is much less than any of yours.  I mean, he’s strong and everything…but…,”

   Knuckles shook his head and laughed softly, and mimicked Rouge, saying, “Okay Rouge, okay, don’t worry about that.  I’ll look after Shadow; he’ll come out of this battle in one piece…I promise.”

   Rouge looked at Knuckles and smirked at being mimicked, yet it immediately turned into an appreciative smile.  She nodded, and after this, Knuckles walked into the cottage, with Kelerai at his heels.  Rouge walked in slowly and a few paces after him.  She had never been inside their home before, and was smitten by how quaint and beautiful it was…much better than the apartment Amy once had in the city.

   She looked around; there was a small kitchen with a round table and four chairs for eating.  There also was a nice sized refrigerator, stove, microwave, and toaster oven.  There was no dishwasher, an obviously since they could hand wash the few dishes they used.  Rouge then saw the small living room, more like a den.  It had a stone fireplace, a sofa and loveseat set, a recliner, and a rocking chair in the corner by a window and small table, and a quilt rack with an ornate quilt on it.  The floor was a light pink carpet color, while the curtains were a rich blue.  Rouge just loved the homely feeling the cottage had.

   Finally she wandered passed the kitchen and down a small hallway.  The first door on the right was of course Knuckles and Amy’s room, and she could hear Knuckles talking behind the cracked door.  She decided to leave them alone for the moment.  On the other side was a hall closet, and as she walked further down the hallway, she saw three more doors.

   The second one on the left was a small bathroom, while the second one on the right, as well as the one at the end of the hall were bedrooms.  The one on the end was filled with excess furniture and for the time being was a storage space.  However, when she peeked into the other bedroom, she held her breath.  The pink carpeting was continued throughout the house, but in this bedroom, a round, blue rug was in the middle of the floor; a wind chime hung near the window, and white curtains with blue sheers hung in it.

   This was the room Knuckles and Amy had fixed up for the baby.  She took a step or two into the room so she could look around better.  There was a toy chest, dresser, wardrobe and a table and chairs set that all coordinated with each other.  The table and chairs were small, toddler-sized, and a pile of stuffed animals was in the corner near it.  Aside from the wardrobe and dresser there was a changing table, and the final piece of furniture in the room was the crib…but this crib was unique.  It was suspended from a wooden stand, which stood just above Rouge’s ears so it could swing freely if the clasps that held it securely to the sides of the stand were let loose.  A lace canopy concealed the top bar of the stand, so that only the main part of a mobile that hung from it and the crib below could be seen.

   Needless to say Rouge felt warm inside as she looked around.  Walking over to the window she accidentally dropped her chaos emerald.  She turned around and bent down to pick it up, when she looked up to see Knuckles standing in the doorway.  She froze, looking at him as he stared at her.

   After a few minutes he smiled and said, “I see you’ve had a self-guided tour of the place.  Heh, what do you think?”

   Rouge stood up after retrieving her chaos emerald and smiled, half-embarrassed and responded, “It looks great…you’ve really made a wonderful place for yourself…so, is everything set?”

   Knuckles lowered his eyes and exhaled slowly.  He said, “Yeah…Amy wants me to go.  I told her you’d stay with her incase she needed anything, and she said that was just fine.”  The echidna stepped out of the room and walked down the hall with Rouge following him.  He walked to the end of the hallway and stopped to wait for Rouge.  Once she caught up he whispered, “I’m worried; she’s hanging in there but…for some reason…just a feeling I get near her…I think the baby is coming sooner than we’d hope…and by that I mean…within the next sunrise.”

   He didn’t wait for Rouge to reply, but instead walked the rest of the way into the living room, where Amy had stretched out on the couch and started to work on something she was cross-stitching.  Rouge hadn’t seen Amy in quite some time, and to see her so close to her baby’s birth tugged at her heart for some reason.  She glanced back at the chaos emerald, and almost instantly she thought she saw Shadow’s image on the surface.  She blinked twice and it had disappeared, but before she could investigate it further, her gaze was deterred by Knuckles’ voice.

   He was standing next to her, and said, “Okay Rouge…now, you said that they would be within five miles of here by late this afternoon right?”

   Rouge slowly nodded and replied, “Yes…Shadow told me to tell you to head to the northern end of that five mile boundary, because they are, of course, coming south at this very moment.  He said at that point that Olermere’s army should be faint in the distance but moving swiftly so, be prepared.”

   Knuckles nodded slowly.  He inhaled and exhaled deeply and picked up Kelerai.  He said, “Now…you’ve got to stay here Kelerai…you be good for Amy and Rouge okay?  I’ll be back soon…and when I do come back, I’ll have Hidama with me at long last.”  The cat meowed happily, unable to understand the seriousness of the task at hand.

   He petted her once before sitting her on a footstool.  Then, he looked to Amy, who had set down her cross-stitching, sat up, and was smiling at him.  He walked over to the couch and sat down next to her.  As she kissed him on the cheek he sighed and said, “This is the hardest thing I could ever have to do I think…leaving you at a time like this with the baby due any day…but, I promised myself Hidama would be with me again, and…this is about bringing an end to that horrible night at last.  I won’t tarry any longer than I have to and I’ll be back as soon as possible…I swear it, I promise it.”

   Amy smiled and said, “I know Knuckles…don’t you worry about it.  You can’t help it that things played out in this way, and you’re handling it as best as you can.  Hidama needs you now too…so, you go out there and fight.  Just remember to be careful, because I need you once all this is over…I really do.”  She paused as Knuckles took her hands in his own.  She looked down and then up at him, and whispered, “You bring Hidama home.  Put an end to this never-ending nightmare alright?  And do your best not to worry for me okay?  I know I can’t keep you from worrying a little, but do your best okay?”

   Knuckles smiled at her and hugged her gently, and she returned his embrace.  He whispered, “Oh I will, I promise.  You just hang in there and take it easy until I get back…I love you Amy.”

   She smiled in return as they pulled out of their hugged and said, “I love you too Knuckles…now go, hurry before the afternoon comes.”

   With that, Knuckles got up and Rouge walked with him to the door.  He said, “Please, I’m begging you…if worse comes to worse, don’t let anything happen to her or the baby…please.”

   Rouge nodded and said, “It’s a promise remember?  Just make sure Shadow is okay.  Good luck…”

   With that, Knuckles left.  He took off to the edge of Angel Island, and heading north, he took off for the five mile boundary line.  At the same time, Hidama, the Brokenstar Twins, and Shadow were closing in on this same boundary line heading south, and Olermere’s army and the violent storm followed.

   It seemed that the group of five were largely outnumbered even by standards of strength and talent alone.  However, shortly after Knuckles left, the Tornado II came roaring in from afar, and Tails and Sonic dismounted.  Whether by miracle or coincidence, they had come to see if they could possibly help Shadow and Hidama.

   As Sonic walked up to the cottage he said, “I don’t know Tails.  I don’t know if we can do anything, but I’ll feel better trying to help as opposed to sitting around idly with a war going on.”

   Rouge had heard the roar of the engine, and she came running to meet them.  The hours to evening were almost spent, and the battle about to begin.  Already the skies began to grow frightfully dark and the thunder rumble, and as she ran to Sonic and Tails, she was growing frantic.

   Tails looked up and said, “Rouge?  What on earth are you doing here?”

   Rouge panted from running, but said, “No time…you must…help Knuckles…and Shadow…the army…marching…storm coming…phew…”

   Sonic extended an arm to steady her and said, “What Rouge?  Where do we need to go?  We’ll get in the plane and go!”

   A loud crash of thunder boomed, and startled the three.  She pushed Sonic away from her and said, “No!  There’s no time for that!  Run!  You’re faster when you run!  Run north!  That’s where the battle is commencing!”

   Tails had flown up and said, “Ouch…Sonic, she’s right!  There’s this large mass moving south.  We better run!”  Tails started flying towards the north.

   Sonic looked at Rouge and said, “O—Okay!  I’ll follow Tails!”

   So the speedy hedgehog and fox took off, their speed the only thing that would guarantee they arrived before things got bad.  Rouge walked slowly back to cottage and found Kelerai meowing loudly and scratching frantically at the door.  When she saw this she said, “What’s wrong Kelerai?  What’s happening?”

   She threw open the door and found Amy on her knees by the couch.  She was holding her hand to her pregnant belly and cringing sharply.  Rouge ran to her side and said, “Amy?  Amy!  What’s wrong?  Are you alright?  Please what’s wrong?!”  She put an arm around Amy and tried to help her up, and as she did so it became apparent as to what was wrong.

   Amy opened her eyes, ready to cry and said, “The baby’s coming…”  Rouge looked at her with disbelief, shaking her head slowly, murmuring “no” under her breath.  Amy could only nod and begin to cry.  She said, “That really hurt…badly.  I—I want Knuckles back!” She began to cry miserably, and Rouge was next to panic.

   Rouge did her best to help Amy stand and said, “Oh…please Amy, hang in there girl, please…you’ve got a little while before the baby will start to come…he’ll be back by then…just hang in there…please…”  Rouge started to help Amy down the hall to her bedroom, but gave a pleading eye to the horizon where she saw a lightning streak.  She closed her eyes and said, “Please Shadow, help them and get Knuckles back soon…”

   The board was set; As Hidama, Shadow, Aranelion and Elianaron raced south towards Angel Island, Knuckles ran north to meet them, and Sonic and Tails followed.  As soon as they met, they’d have little time for salutations, for as the violent storm formed rapidly around them, Olermere’s army was ready to attack.  The final battle, was about to begin.

Description
"Love That Gives True Peace"
By: Jade Lightning, a.k.a. Inuyashas-hanyougirl
Chapter 8: "So much on the Line"

   The following morning, as Hidama woke from his now happy dreams, he found everyone around him awake and busy.  He couldn’t see Shadow or Rouge anywhere, but saw his friends Aranelion and Elianaron nearby.  Aranelion was sharpening his sword, and Elianaron was polishing the blades of Tempest and Twilight.  The echidna stood up, stretched his arms and legs, and walked over to his friends.

   “Hey guys, guess what?  I finally remembered Knuckles, I mean, his face.  All this time I could remember everything about him, but not what he looked like…and finally, in my dreams, well, as I fell asleep, I remembered what he looked like!” Hidama said.

   Aranelion looked up and smiled, and replied, “That’s wonderful Hidama; I wonder why you had such a hard time with it though…hmm, well I guess that doesn’t really matter anymore.  So, how is it you remembered what he looked like at long last?”

   The twins looked to Hidama for an answer; he looked thoughtful, bringing a hand to cover his mouth as he thought.  At last, he snapped his finger and smiled.  He replied, “It was the day I carried him…I had tickled him and tired him out, and I offered to carry him home.  He said I was the best brother in the world, or appropriately, the whole, wide world.”  Hidama paused, and grinned, continuing, “Then I told him I was so lucky to have an awesome and sweet brother like him…and then I carried him home to supper.”

   Elianaron and Aranelion exchanged glances, grinning at each other, their eyes shining in the morning sun.  Elianaron looked to Hidama and said, “Well isn’t that awesome.  Hmm, wait, you said you were carrying home…what had you been doing before hand?”

   To this, Hidama's proud smile faded to a half-hearted one.  He laughed softly, and said, “Oh, he and I were with Father…he, …he had finally decided to let us see the Master Emerald…and after we hugged him and he hugged us he told us to go home for supper, and that he would be home to kiss us goodnight that evening.  The problem was…that was the same night we were attacked…”

   Elianaron looked sad, and embarrassed for asking the question, not knowing it would have this outcome.  Aranelion gave his brother a look, then got up, sheathing Akrenar, and walked over to Hidama.  He placed his arm around Hidama’s shoulders, hugging him and said, “It’s okay Hidama…the fool over there didn’t mean to upset ya.  Hey, at least you remember what he looks like again, and come this evening, you’ll be able to see him again.”

   Hidama looked at Aranelion, the smile slowly returning to his face, and returned the embrace.  He restrained a few tears that had formed in his eyes from falling, and pulled back, saying, “Yeah, thanks Aranelion.  It helps to remember that.”  He turned to Elianaron and said, “Get over here you nit wit, everything’s alright.  You didn’t upset me.”

   Elianaron laughed, and returning Tempest and Twilight to their sheaths, he got up and half-tackled Hidama and hugged him.  After Hidama regained his footing, he hugged Elianaron tightly in return.  Then Elianaron replied, “Yeah, that’s good, I feel better now.”

   After their hug, Hidama pulled away from Elianaron, and said, “Gee, where are Rouge and Shadow?  I want to get going already.  The sooner we leave the sooner we’ll get to Angel Island.  I’m tired of waiting.”

   The Brokenstar Twins exchanged glances, looking all around them, until Aranelion replied, “You know…all Shadow told me was he and Rouge were going for an early morning walk…and heh, they’re practically a couple so I figured they were going on a romantic walk or something, but that was a good while ago and now, they’re nowhere to be seen, even by my keen eyes.”

   Unbeknownst to the three of them, Shadow and Rouge stood holding each other’s hands, framed against the rising sun.  Shadow looked to it, breathing deeply and said, “I fear much blood shall be spilled tonight…just within view of Angel Island.”  He paused, then looked at Rouge sadly and said, “I hate that we must part in this way, but I need you to warn Knuckles of the impending threat, and you’re the only one I can trust to do this correctly…”

   Rouge looked at Shadow, noticing he could not look her in the eyes.  She released one of his hands, and brought her hand up to caress his face at the jaw line.  As she gently stroked his cheek, even as he continued to look down and away from her, she could feel him take a deep, staggered breath.  This startled her for a minute; in a lowered voice, she whispered, “Shadow?  Are you…okay?”

   He still wouldn’t speak, nor look her in the eyes, but he nodded his head in response, tightening his grip on Rouge’s hand as he did so.  His silence worried Rouge, but before she could question him once more, she felt something warm and wet on her glove.  At first she thought it was dew from a tree that stood nearby, but once she realized that was impossible, she returned her gaze to the hand she held to Shadow’s cheek.

   What she saw shocked her; she realized that the warm, wet feeling she felt was her glove soaking up Shadow’s tears.  The hedgehog was silently crying, breathing heavily in an attempt to silence his tears.  Rouge’s heart began to race; in the length of time that she had known Shadow, she rarely saw him smile, at least to anyone other than herself.  He rarely expressed joy, and now, he was doing something she never once expected him to.  Shadow was actually weeping, for what, she didn’t know, but it was enough to cause her heart to ache for him, her muscles to tighten, and make her stomach hurt.  She dared not speak further, for she didn’t know how Shadow would react to his tears being noticed and questioned.

   Yet she wanted to comfort him somehow, and so going back to his statement from before, she caressed his cheek once more, drying some of his tears in the process, and said, “I understand Shadow…really I do.  Don’t worry about me…infact, given the circumstances, I think I’d be the last thing you’d worry about.”

   It was when Rouge said this, that Shadow’s staggered breathing stopped with a quick inhale, followed by a slow exhale in the form of a gasp.  He stood up completely straight, tightening his muscles, and turned to look at Rouge, finally revealing his eyes, glassy from the remainder of his tears.

   With his free hand, he wiped his eyes dry, revealing a look of shock once he finished.  Glancing at the hand she held to his cheek, he knew full well that she knew he was crying, as her glove had soaked up his tears.  He shook his head slowly, closing his eyes for a moment, then opened them, looking into her eyes, and smiling slightly.  He brought his free hand up to cover hers, before taking it and holding it as he held her other hand.

   Shadow whispered, “Now…that couldn’t be farther from the truth.  As much care and concern as I give for Hinsei Hidama and Knuckles, I give so much more concern to you above all else.  No Rouge, I think you have it backwards…it’s not necessarily this separation I fear, or even the impending battle after the fact; more or less I’m worried for…well…what shall become of us…of our…relationship later on.”

   For a moment or so, Shadow closed his eyes, trembling slightly, and looked away from her.  This was very beyond normal for him, and he felt so ridiculous for how he was acting.  Finally, he regained control of his emotions, and returned his attention to Rouge.  She was looking at him with worried eyes;  Shadow laughed softly, and replied, “No, I know what you’re thinking, and I’m just fine…it’s just…I have something I need to ask you before…well…before things get rough, and futures become uncertain.”

   Rouge gazed at Shadow, and responded, “It’s alright Shadow…this battle has us all out of sorts I suppose.”  She paused, glancing at the sunrise once more, and asked, “What is it you needed to ask me?”

   Shadow was silent for a few moments, looking down to their hands, then up at Rouge.  Without more than a few moments hesitation, he leaned forward and kissed her.  As she returned his kiss, she continued to be baffled by his behavior.  Once they withdrew from their kiss, Shadow let go of her hands, turned away, and looked to the ground.  He replied in a next to inaudible whisper, “Rouge…now that my mission to reunite Hidama and Knuckles is almost through…I—I grow weary of the thought of wandering the wilds alone.  Too long have I been alone…I want to bring an end to that.”

   Rouge walked up to him, putting a hand on his shoulder, peering over it to see what he was holding in his hands.  However, what ever Shadow was fingering remained concealed from her sight.  Knowing she was right behind him, Shadow inhaled and exhaled deeply, glancing at the hand she had placed on his shoulder. Then, looking down and away from her, he asked, in the quietest voice he could muster, “Rouge…I—I want you to…m—marry me.” The last words of his sentence were barely audible and incredibly shaky.

   As he fell silent, looking half way at Rouge in the process, he could see the look of shock and awe in her eyes.  As a smile slowly spread across her face, she answered him in equally as soft a voice as he, “Shadow…I—I don’t know what to say except…well, I—I’d love to.”  Again, in the same fashion as Shadow, her voice dropped off by the time she finished her sentence.

   Shadow stood up straight, his head and neck erect.  He turned to her slowly, smiling warmly again.  Then, shaking his head, he kissed her on the cheek and said, “It’s a date then…once all is said and done.  But until then,” he paused, revealing the green chaos emerald he concealed.  He took her hand with his free hand, and place the chaos emerald in it, closing her fingers around it then holding her closed hand in his own.  He continued, “Take this chaos emerald as a symbol of that promise.  Once we all make it out from this, we’ll see that promised carried out.  No longer shall we wander the wilds alone.  Already…my spirit is uplifted in the knowledge of this.”

   Rouge felt her eyes tearing up; this was almost as unusual for her as it was for him.  She tried her best to restrain her tears, trembling heavily, her breath staggered.  Looking down at the chaos emerald as Shadow withdrew his hands, she was in awe of how beautiful it was, glimmering in the light of the rising sun.  Finally she looked up at Shadow, smiling again, with only a few tears falling from her eyes.

   Bringing his hand up to dry her tears, Shadow whispered, “We don’t have much longer.  Already I’m sure the Brokenstar Twins and Hidama worry for us, and you must hurry with all speed to warn Knuckles.”  He paused, and said, “I love you.”

   Her tears dried up, she nodded and replied, “I know Shadow…and trust me, I’ll be to Angel Island by early afternoon.  Knuckles will be ready for you when you arrive.  Just…promise me you’ll be careful, okay?”

   Shadow drew Rouge into a tight hug, and as Rouge returned his embrace.  Shadow whispered, “I promise.  Everything will be alright, you’ll see.  Now, you better go quickly.”

   They withdrew from their embrace, and Rouge held on tightly to the chaos emerald, smiling at Shadow, ready to fly into the distance.  She walked a few paces back from him, but before she took off, she replied, “I meant to say that…that I love you too Shadow.  I’ll…I’ll see you later.”

   As she ascended into the air, Shadow nodded and smiled, waving goodbye to her.  Finally she took off with all speed in the direction of Angel Island, a path that he and the others would soon follow on foot.  As soon as she faded from his sight, he turned and breathed deeply, saying, “You be careful Rouge…I don’t know what I’d do if somehow…you were taken from me forever.”

   After that, he regained his composure and took off back to their campsite.  He stopped short when the three boys came into view.  He smiled when he saw them.  Aranelion and Elianaron were practicing with their weapons by battling with each other, while Hidama was practicing his martial arts moves on some nearby boulders and trees.  The will to fight to the end was strong in the hearts of all three of them, and this same fighting spirit was rekindled in Shadow’s heart at seeing their courage and strength.

   Finally, Shadow walked up to the group, and said, “At ease you three; you’ve got to conserve your strength for the final battle, and before then you still have the road ahead to conquer.  Actually, we should start our run about now…you have no idea how much ground the mutant army has covered in the hours we slept.”

   Aranelion, Elianaron and Hidama froze.  Elianaron looked at Shadow and said, “Wait, so even now they are pursuing us?”

   Hidama walked up to Shadow, standing between him and the Brokenstar Twins and said, “It’s more than pursuit.  They are moving so quickly that they will soon overtake us…right in the presence of Angel Island, with the Master Emerald, and our lives within Olermere’s grasp.”

   Shadow looked at Hidama, pleased to see how greatly Hidama’s spirits were lifted.  When Hidama saw Shadow looking at him, he whispered, “I remembered Knuckles’ face…my…heart and soul are as healed as they can be…until I am with him again.”

   The hedgehog smiled slightly, then when straight-faced as he looked to the twins. He said, “Precisely Hidama.  I’ve sent Rouge ahead of us, for she flies faster alone than we can run together, to warn Knuckles of the threat, for we shall be needing his strength before the end.”

   Aranelion stepped beside Hidama, and sheathing Akrenar he asked, “So wait, how big a threat are we talking here?  I mean, Elianaron and I took out a tribe of around fifty not but a week ago, and they were reasonably tough, so we’ll be able to take on a reasonable attack.  But still…how big a threat do they present?”

   All eyes fell on Shadow, who covered his mouth with his hand and crossed his free arm over the other, trying to think of what to say next.  He closed his eyes and shook his head knowing at this point all he was doing was putting on an act to waste time.  He opened his eyes and looked at the three, saying, “I already know the threat that is presented.  Oleremere’s army stands ten-thousand strong, and that’s not counting the threat of Olermere himself.  This is far from what any of you have encountered before, and luckily for us, the radiation from Hidama’s final attack on Feldmort was enough to kill his flunkies…Olermere won’t be that easy to dismantle…magic has no effect on him whatsoever.”

   Aranelion and Hidama looked at each other, while Elianaron walked up to Shadow, brandishing Tempest, and said, “Whoa…are you crazy?  I’m assuming magic is useless on his legions too then, isn’t it?”

   To this, Shadow replied with a nod and heavy sigh.  He continued, “I have a feeling the group of fifty or so soldiers you vanquished were fresh from trying to kill Hidama and myself.  He had fled with the fox children, and I stood to battle them, unaware of their immunity to magic.  Needless to say I was badly beaten and almost killed had not they gone to attack you when you were near.  I know how to battle them now and thus shall do better than before, but yes, no magic can slow them down in the least.”

   Elianaron’s eyes widened; he was unable to speak for a moment, but replied in a stuttered voice, “You’ve got to be joking Sh—Shadow.  Not even Aranelion and I can ward off so many on that scale…and dragging Knuckles to fight will only soften the load by a bit.  This is insane.”

   He threw his arms into the air, tossing Tempest into the air accidentally.  It nearly fell on Aranelion, but Hidama reached out and caught the dagger by the blade just above Aranelion’s head.  He glared at Elianaron, and said, “Knuckles and I are skilled in the same battle techniques as they.  I’m sure you’ll see my brother and I are more than capable of holding our own and even yours in battle.  Besides, these are of the same league of mutants as those that slew your father…and I know there’s no way in hell you’re gonna shy away from the fray now are you?”

   The twins, even Shadow were amazed by this newfound confidence in Hidama’s voice.  He was becoming the leader he always should have been, and after the initial shock passed, Elianaron nodded, courage returning to his face and heart as he took Tempest back from Hidama.

   Shadow looked at the twins, and as Elianaron sheathed Tempest, Shadow said, “Look, the echidna tribe could have defended better against Olermere’s army than Feldmort’s…that is why Olermere attacked the Northern Kingdom instead.  The echidnas of the Northern Kingdom focused entirely on magic, and thus didn’t stand a chance.  Against Feldmort the Angel Island tribe did nearly succumb to death, but as you know their ingenuity, power, and intelligence allowed Knuckles and Hidama to survive until now, so there’s no doubt in my mind that if we were able to defeat Feldmort, which was the stronger of the brothers in terms of advantage, then if we have the courage and will enough that Olermere too can be vanquished and the echidnas avenged at last.  You’ve just got to believe that.  When your father left you those weapons, he left them to you in the knowledge that you would never give up the fight…so don’t let him down now…not when you’re so close to achieving that goal and promise.”

   Hidama glanced at the twins, grinning at them while looking at them out of the corner of his eyes.  The look he gave them said, “You know he’s right…you can’t wimp out and quit now can you?”

   The twins saw this, and turned to each other.  Aranelion whispered, “He’s right…we can’t abandon our dreams now.  Even if we were to somehow die in this battle, we’d go down in glory, in the knowledge that we achieved revenge for our father at last.  No Elianaron; we promised our dear mother, who back in Valordian worries for us even now that we would come back alive…and avenge our father as well.  We sure as hell can’t stop now…” Aranelion paused, unsheathing Akrenar and extending it towards the sky and continuing, “For father, and the entire echidna race.”

   Elianaron smiled confidently, and removing Twilight from its sheath he brought his dagger out and crossed it with Akrenar, nodding in agreement and saying, “To battle we go.  Those mutants are gonna have to get through us before we’ll let them approach Angel Island.  At last we’ll have revenge for our father’s death, as well as the death of our near kindred.”

   Hidama laughed and said, “Now that’s the spirit!  Yeah!”

   Shadow too was smiling, but only for a little while.  He glanced the sun which rose ever higher in the sky as the morning progressed.  He placed a hand on both Aranelion and Elianaron’s shoulders, saying, “Quickly you three, we must run, for Olermere’s army shall be within five miles of Angel Island by early evening, and we must be there to meet them.  Let’s move!”

   Aranelion sheathed the Akrenar and shouted, “To Angel Island we fly!”  Elianaron answered with a cheer, and sheathing Twilight began to run towards the southern horizon.  As Aranelion took off after him, Hidama and Shadow too began to run after Elianaron.  They didn’t know it now, but as a violent storm approached from the north, so too did Olermere’s army, and as the low rumble of thunder could be heard, it was uncertain whether it came from the storm, or the footfalls of ten-thousand mutant soldiers and their king as they raced southward to Angel Island and war.

   The target of the storm and onslaught of war were the plains surrounding Angel Island.  The floating island took rest above a vast expanse of fields and plains, with the ocean five miles to the east.  Knuckles was unsure why he felt better with the island over land, infact, he was unsure of a lot of things at this point.

   It had been too long since he heard from Shadow.  Infact the last time he had seen Shadow was when Feldmort was defeated some two months ago.  There was the constant feeling of worry and anxiety gnawing at the echidna’s heart; his concern for his brother’s safety was next to top priority in his mind, after Amy of course, and what made it worse was that the baby was due any day now.  This particular morning, Knuckles left the cottage while Amy had a nap after breakfast, as the anxiety and fear became so heavy on his heart he thought he was having a breakdown.

   Kelerai jumped out of an open window and ran after her master, trying her best to keep up with him as he sped along.  To her surprise he didn’t run up the stairs of the Master Emerald’s altar as she expected him to.  Instead, Knuckles ran in a different direction, one he had never gone in before, at least with Kelerai at his side.

   The cat thought she had lost her master, and mewed in desperation when she lost him in the woods.  She took a few steps forward, mewing sadly until she heard something.  “C’mere Kelerai…I’m sorry…I didn’t know you were following me or I would have waited,” a voice said.

   Kelerai mewed happily at the sound of Knuckles’ voice.  She followed the sound of his voice to find him in a clearing.  She stopped and saw Knuckles bent over by a log, all that was left of a great tree after it fell in a storm.  The echidna glanced at her and laughed.  He said, “Over here Kelerai…there’s something very special over here…so special not even Amy knows about it.”

   As the cat walked over to him, he knelt down beside the log, and continued, “Before our family and friends were killed, Hidama and I used to play in the woods all the time.  I remember the first day he brought me here, Kelerai.  I must have only been four years old, but I remember it so well.”

   The cat sat down beside him and meowed almost in question of what he just said.  He petted her and said, “Oh, why am I bringing this up now you ask?  Heh, well, thing is, before he was taken away and everything, we used to hide our treasures here.  One of them was a jewel I gave Amy a few years ago…before we moved here and everything, you remember.  Anyway, we dug a deep hole underneath this log we found, and anytime we’d find anything special…we’d put it here.”

   Kelerai looked between the log and Knuckles face, meowing as if she understood what he meant.  He chuckled softly and said, “Well, I guess I came here to get them because…in my heart I know he’s almost here, and we’ll be together again.  I’m trying to get rid of this fear that he’s hurt or something…that he’s never coming back alive.  I know I’ll see him again…,” Knuckles paused as he pushed the log away, revealing the hole he spoke of.  He continued, “I love him so much…he’s my brother, my protector, my best friend in the world.  He’s…the best brother in the entire world.  He was willing to give his life to save mine…and, heh, that’s pretty cool.  I just want to hug him and tell him how much I love him…how lost I’d be without him.  I know that’ll come soon…”

   The echidna sighed, and reached into the hole, lifting out a leather satchel, one that was made by their mother before she died.  Knuckles smiled, a tear trying to form in his eye as he opened the leather purse.  Inside it were dozens of precious stones, including jade, lapis, and opal.  As he poured through them, he laughed and said, “Ah…Hidama found the opal.  Opals are so rare, even for the world, and that day, I was sad about something…I think I hurt myself climbing a tree or something.  Anyway he gave me the opal to cheer me up.  The rest of these we’d find while we were exploring…treasure hunting he called it.  Yeah, we went all over this island, as far as father would let us.”

   Knuckles gathered the gems in his hand and put them carefully back in the leather bag.  Bringing it to his nose and inhaling deeply.  As he exhaled, he sighed and said, “Our mother made this…I don’t know…somewhere in the fabric her scent hasn’t faded away.”

   Kelerai had walked over to the hole and started sniffing at the contents.  Knuckles laughed, picking her up and pulling her away saying, “Careful now…the spearheads are still in there.”  He reached in the hole and pulled out several pieces of fine cloth, the finest material ever weaved by the echidna seamstresses; he then pulled out pieces of fine jewelry, the kind his mother wore as the wife of the Guardian.  Infact this jewelry was worn by his mother before she died and placed there by Knuckles after the fact.  Among other things he pulled out a leather-bound collection of leaflets, which were the only surviving examples of the echidna script, and a few toys he and Hidama used to play with.

   At last he pulled out a handful of spearheads.  The largest in particular he chose to hold.  He smiled weakly and said, “This, Kelerai, this spearhead used to crown my father’s spear…the same one he wielded in the last moments of his life.  The ornate staff of it was impossible to save, but the spearhead itself I rescued as I buried him.  Shortly after that, I buried mother next to him…in the grove over there just by the stream, but placed her jewelry in there with the spearhead.”

   Knuckles fell silent again.  He collected the trinkets he had pulled out of the hole and slowly placed them back in it, keeping out the opal, the spearhead, and his mother’s necklace.  He whispered, “The rest of these I’ll save for when Hidama arrives…then, heh, I can show them to him.  These three things though I think I’ll hang on here to see me through my fears.”  As he pulled the log over the hole, he looked at Kelerai and said in a raised voice, “I can’t falter now Kelerai!  Amy needs me to be strong…but…I’m so worried about my brother…I don’t know what I’d do if I lost him forever.  It was hard enough burying mother and father, then the bodies of my friends, their families, the village elders, the warriors…everybody!  I hung on to the hope that Hidama still lived since I couldn’t find his body…and now, I’m just so scared that if something goes wrong…,”

   Tears finally filled Knuckles’ eyes, and clutching the opal, spearhead and necklace to his chest, he cried out, “Hidama!  Please!  Hurry back to me!  Somebody please promise me he’ll be okay!”  After he said this, he bent over and wept, still holding the trinkets in his hands.  Kelerai mewed softly and rubbed against Knuckles, upset that he was crying.  She licked his face where his tears were falling, and when she received no response from him, she meowed sadly and crawled as best she could into his lap and mewed as if she were crying for him.

   He would have stayed and cried for a long time, but enough time had passed for Rouge to finally see Angel Island on the horizon.  As she flew, she held on tightly to the chaos emerald Shadow gave her, and smiled when she saw the floating island.  She said, “Finally…almost there.  I hope Shadow and the others are okay.”

   Rouge looked at the chaos emerald once more and sighed happily when she thought of Shadow.  This flood of happiness inspired her to fly faster.  Finally, she landed on the edge of Angel Island, and now had to find Knuckles.  By chance she landed on the same side of the island Knuckles was on, and after walking a few paces she picked up Kelerai’s mewing.

   She knew that Knuckles had a cat, so she took a few paces in the direction of the mewing, and called out, “Here kitty, kitty, where are you?”  Then she asked, “Knuckles?  If you’re out their answer me!  I have something I need to tell you about Hidama!”

   Knuckles stopped crying and dried his eyes.  He recognized Rouge’s voice and was about to ignore it, but at the mention of news about Hidama he barely gave time to move Kelerai before taking off into the woods.  After only a few moments he found her wandering the woods.  He stopped only feet away from her and said, “Rouge!  What is it?  Where’s Hidama at?”

   Rouge looked at Knuckles and sighed out of relief.  She said, “Hey there Knuckles.  I was just with Hidama earlier this morning; he, Shadow, and his old friend the Brokenstar Twins are on their way here as we speak.”

   A wide smile spread across Knuckles’ face.  He laughed and said, “Whoa, I barely remember those two…Aranelion and Elianaron were their names right?  But wow, they’re almost here…I’m so relieved.”

   As he glanced the trinkets he held in his hand and Kelerai caught up with him, Rouge hung her head and sighed.  She said, “Actually, there’s more I’ve got to tell you Knuckles.  You remember Feldmort and his army right?  Well…turns out he has an older brother named Olermere, with an army even more frightful, and bent on revenge.”

   It was then that Knuckles looked at Rouge with a look of disbelief.  He walked up to her, knowing the seriousness of the task at hand already.  He said, “Walk with me back to the cottage.  You can explain on the way.  I want to be with Amy incase she needs me, but it sounds like Hidama is going to need me even more.  Come on, explain to me everything in as much detail as you can.”

   Rouge nodded and hid her chaos emerald from him.  The two started walking in the direction of Knuckles and Amy’s cottage.  As they walked, Rouge detailed Olermere, his army, and the oncoming war just as Shadow had told her, and with no less detail.  From the night Olermere and Feldmort first tried to steal the Master Emerald, to the day Shadow first revealed their plan of attack.  By the time the cottage was within view, Rouge was down to explaining their need of Knuckles’ strength in the battle.

   The echidna swallowed hard, then sighed heavily when the cottage came into view.  They stopped their walk within feet of the front porch.  Knuckles said, “What can I do?  We started this with Feldmort’s death, and we need to finish it.  As long as any of those mutants still live, we must fight…and I’ll go stand by my brother until the very end, whatever that end is…but…,” he fell silent as he looked sadly at the cottage, right at their bedroom window and sighed.

   He looked down at Kelerai and said, “But the thought of leaving Amy here with the baby due any day…it makes my heart ache, just as much as the thought of not helping Hidama fight does.”

   Rouge shuffled her feet, then looked again at the green chaos emerald and thought of Shadow.  This time, Knuckles caught her looking at it and said, “Hey, isn’t that Shadow’s chaos emerald?”

   She looked up at him and smiled weakly.  She said, “Shadow gave me this…we—we made a promise to each other, and this is our way of keeping it.”  She wouldn’t tell the echidna what exactly that promise was, but seeing that he had already returned his sad eyes to the cottage, she stood up straight, breathed a deep breath and said, “Knuckles, go to Hidama…and I’ll stay here with Amy.  If the time were to come and she needs you, I’ll be sure that you get back to her in plenty of time.  Now you need to go tell her and get ready…because Shadow said they’d be within five miles of here by this evening.”

   Knuckles looked at Rouge, and after a few moments he was able to smile, but immediately afterwards a look of confidence returned to his face, and he said, “Alright, but you better keep a good eye on her, and take excellent care of her, alright?”

   To this Rouge laughed softly and said, “Okay, okay Knuckles, don’t worry about it.  You have my solemn promise that I’ll take care of her…just…,”

   The echidna had started to walk to the cottage, but was stopped by Rouge who ran in front of him.  She continued, “Just look after Shadow…I know he’s strong but his physical power is much less than any of yours.  I mean, he’s strong and everything…but…,”

   Knuckles shook his head and laughed softly, and mimicked Rouge, saying, “Okay Rouge, okay, don’t worry about that.  I’ll look after Shadow; he’ll come out of this battle in one piece…I promise.”

   Rouge looked at Knuckles and smirked at being mimicked, yet it immediately turned into an appreciative smile.  She nodded, and after this, Knuckles walked into the cottage, with Kelerai at his heels.  Rouge walked in slowly and a few paces after him.  She had never been inside their home before, and was smitten by how quaint and beautiful it was…much better than the apartment Amy once had in the city.

   She looked around; there was a small kitchen with a round table and four chairs for eating.  There also was a nice sized refrigerator, stove, microwave, and toaster oven.  There was no dishwasher, an obviously since they could hand wash the few dishes they used.  Rouge then saw the small living room, more like a den.  It had a stone fireplace, a sofa and loveseat set, a recliner, and a rocking chair in the corner by a window and small table, and a quilt rack with an ornate quilt on it.  The floor was a light pink carpet color, while the curtains were a rich blue.  Rouge just loved the homely feeling the cottage had.

   Finally she wandered passed the kitchen and down a small hallway.  The first door on the right was of course Knuckles and Amy’s room, and she could hear Knuckles talking behind the cracked door.  She decided to leave them alone for the moment.  On the other side was a hall closet, and as she walked further down the hallway, she saw three more doors.

   The second one on the left was a small bathroom, while the second one on the right, as well as the one at the end of the hall were bedrooms.  The one on the end was filled with excess furniture and for the time being was a storage space.  However, when she peeked into the other bedroom, she held her breath.  The pink carpeting was continued throughout the house, but in this bedroom, a round, blue rug was in the middle of the floor; a wind chime hung near the window, and white curtains with blue sheers hung in it.

   This was the room Knuckles and Amy had fixed up for the baby.  She took a step or two into the room so she could look around better.  There was a toy chest, dresser, wardrobe and a table and chairs set that all coordinated with each other.  The table and chairs were small, toddler-sized, and a pile of stuffed animals was in the corner near it.  Aside from the wardrobe and dresser there was a changing table, and the final piece of furniture in the room was the crib…but this crib was unique.  It was suspended from a wooden stand, which stood just above Rouge’s ears so it could swing freely if the clasps that held it securely to the sides of the stand were let loose.  A lace canopy concealed the top bar of the stand, so that only the main part of a mobile that hung from it and the crib below could be seen.

   Needless to say Rouge felt warm inside as she looked around.  Walking over to the window she accidentally dropped her chaos emerald.  She turned around and bent down to pick it up, when she looked up to see Knuckles standing in the doorway.  She froze, looking at him as he stared at her.

   After a few minutes he smiled and said, “I see you’ve had a self-guided tour of the place.  Heh, what do you think?”

   Rouge stood up after retrieving her chaos emerald and smiled, half-embarrassed and responded, “It looks great…you’ve really made a wonderful place for yourself…so, is everything set?”

   Knuckles lowered his eyes and exhaled slowly.  He said, “Yeah…Amy wants me to go.  I told her you’d stay with her incase she needed anything, and she said that was just fine.”  The echidna stepped out of the room and walked down the hall with Rouge following him.  He walked to the end of the hallway and stopped to wait for Rouge.  Once she caught up he whispered, “I’m worried; she’s hanging in there but…for some reason…just a feeling I get near her…I think the baby is coming sooner than we’d hope…and by that I mean…within the next sunrise.”

   He didn’t wait for Rouge to reply, but instead walked the rest of the way into the living room, where Amy had stretched out on the couch and started to work on something she was cross-stitching.  Rouge hadn’t seen Amy in quite some time, and to see her so close to her baby’s birth tugged at her heart for some reason.  She glanced back at the chaos emerald, and almost instantly she thought she saw Shadow’s image on the surface.  She blinked twice and it had disappeared, but before she could investigate it further, her gaze was deterred by Knuckles’ voice.

   He was standing next to her, and said, “Okay Rouge…now, you said that they would be within five miles of here by late this afternoon right?”

   Rouge slowly nodded and replied, “Yes…Shadow told me to tell you to head to the northern end of that five mile boundary, because they are, of course, coming south at this very moment.  He said at that point that Olermere’s army should be faint in the distance but moving swiftly so, be prepared.”

   Knuckles nodded slowly.  He inhaled and exhaled deeply and picked up Kelerai.  He said, “Now…you’ve got to stay here Kelerai…you be good for Amy and Rouge okay?  I’ll be back soon…and when I do come back, I’ll have Hidama with me at long last.”  The cat meowed happily, unable to understand the seriousness of the task at hand.

   He petted her once before sitting her on a footstool.  Then, he looked to Amy, who had set down her cross-stitching, sat up, and was smiling at him.  He walked over to the couch and sat down next to her.  As she kissed him on the cheek he sighed and said, “This is the hardest thing I could ever have to do I think…leaving you at a time like this with the baby due any day…but, I promised myself Hidama would be with me again, and…this is about bringing an end to that horrible night at last.  I won’t tarry any longer than I have to and I’ll be back as soon as possible…I swear it, I promise it.”

   Amy smiled and said, “I know Knuckles…don’t you worry about it.  You can’t help it that things played out in this way, and you’re handling it as best as you can.  Hidama needs you now too…so, you go out there and fight.  Just remember to be careful, because I need you once all this is over…I really do.”  She paused as Knuckles took her hands in his own.  She looked down and then up at him, and whispered, “You bring Hidama home.  Put an end to this never-ending nightmare alright?  And do your best not to worry for me okay?  I know I can’t keep you from worrying a little, but do your best okay?”

   Knuckles smiled at her and hugged her gently, and she returned his embrace.  He whispered, “Oh I will, I promise.  You just hang in there and take it easy until I get back…I love you Amy.”

   She smiled in return as they pulled out of their hugged and said, “I love you too Knuckles…now go, hurry before the afternoon comes.”

   With that, Knuckles got up and Rouge walked with him to the door.  He said, “Please, I’m begging you…if worse comes to worse, don’t let anything happen to her or the baby…please.”

   Rouge nodded and said, “It’s a promise remember?  Just make sure Shadow is okay.  Good luck…”

   With that, Knuckles left.  He took off to the edge of Angel Island, and heading north, he took off for the five mile boundary line.  At the same time, Hidama, the Brokenstar Twins, and Shadow were closing in on this same boundary line heading south, and Olermere’s army and the violent storm followed.

   It seemed that the group of five were largely outnumbered even by standards of strength and talent alone.  However, shortly after Knuckles left, the Tornado II came roaring in from afar, and Tails and Sonic dismounted.  Whether by miracle or coincidence, they had come to see if they could possibly help Shadow and Hidama.

   As Sonic walked up to the cottage he said, “I don’t know Tails.  I don’t know if we can do anything, but I’ll feel better trying to help as opposed to sitting around idly with a war going on.”

   Rouge had heard the roar of the engine, and she came running to meet them.  The hours to evening were almost spent, and the battle about to begin.  Already the skies began to grow frightfully dark and the thunder rumble, and as she ran to Sonic and Tails, she was growing frantic.

   Tails looked up and said, “Rouge?  What on earth are you doing here?”

   Rouge panted from running, but said, “No time…you must…help Knuckles…and Shadow…the army…marching…storm coming…phew…”

   Sonic extended an arm to steady her and said, “What Rouge?  Where do we need to go?  We’ll get in the plane and go!”

   A loud crash of thunder boomed, and startled the three.  She pushed Sonic away from her and said, “No!  There’s no time for that!  Run!  You’re faster when you run!  Run north!  That’s where the battle is commencing!”

   Tails had flown up and said, “Ouch…Sonic, she’s right!  There’s this large mass moving south.  We better run!”  Tails started flying towards the north.

   Sonic looked at Rouge and said, “O—Okay!  I’ll follow Tails!”

   So the speedy hedgehog and fox took off, their speed the only thing that would guarantee they arrived before things got bad.  Rouge walked slowly back to cottage and found Kelerai meowing loudly and scratching frantically at the door.  When she saw this she said, “What’s wrong Kelerai?  What’s happening?”

   She threw open the door and found Amy on her knees by the couch.  She was holding her hand to her pregnant belly and cringing sharply.  Rouge ran to her side and said, “Amy?  Amy!  What’s wrong?  Are you alright?  Please what’s wrong?!”  She put an arm around Amy and tried to help her up, and as she did so it became apparent as to what was wrong.

   Amy opened her eyes, ready to cry and said, “The baby’s coming…”  Rouge looked at her with disbelief, shaking her head slowly, murmuring “no” under her breath.  Amy could only nod and begin to cry.  She said, “That really hurt…badly.  I—I want Knuckles back!” She began to cry miserably, and Rouge was next to panic.

   Rouge did her best to help Amy stand and said, “Oh…please Amy, hang in there girl, please…you’ve got a little while before the baby will start to come…he’ll be back by then…just hang in there…please…”  Rouge started to help Amy down the hall to her bedroom, but gave a pleading eye to the horizon where she saw a lightning streak.  She closed her eyes and said, “Please Shadow, help them and get Knuckles back soon…”

   The board was set; As Hidama, Shadow, Aranelion and Elianaron raced south towards Angel Island, Knuckles ran north to meet them, and Sonic and Tails followed.  As soon as they met, they’d have little time for salutations, for as the violent storm formed rapidly around them, Olermere’s army was ready to attack.  The final battle, was about to begin.