Chapter Text
Mephiles advanced on her.
Amy instinctively backed away. In the light of the fire dancing inside the glass tube, she could see Mephiles’ features as clear as day. It was remarkable how much he looked like his twin brother: he was nearly identical to Shadow, save for his blue-grey markings and his piercing green eyes. It was his eyes that unnerved Amy most of all: they looked predatory, almost reptilian. If Shadow’s eyes were like fire, then Mephiles’ eyes were like ice.
His voice was gentle, yet something about it made Amy shiver.
“If it isn’t my brother’s favourite little pet,” he said softly, “escaped from her gilded cage. Rose, was it?”
Amy held her fists up to her face, trying to look braver than she felt. She might not have her war hammer anymore, but she could still land a punch if she needed to.
“Stay away,” she warned, trying to keep her voice from wavering. “King Shadow will have your head if you hurt me.”
“My dear,” he chuckled, “what makes you think I’m going to hurt you? We’re just talking, aren’t we?”
Amy lowered her fists uneasily. It was true – there was nothing to overtly suggest the black hedgehog was going to attack. Yet there was a strange disconnect between his words and his eyes. Every hair on Amy’s body was screaming at her to run.
He shifted his gaze up to the fire burning in the great glass tube.
“What do you think of my little project, Rose? Impressive, isn’t it?”
Amy followed his gaze. “What is it?”
“The heart of a god,” Mephiles breathed. “Or half of it, anyway.”
She could see the bright, twisting flames reflected in his eyes.
“There are two halves, you see,” he went on smoothly. “Fire and shadow; light and darkness. Opposites, yet intrinsically connected. What you see here are the Flames of Disaster – one half of the puzzle. But to achieve our aims, we need to reunite it with the other half, held within the Sceptre of Darkness.”
Amy’s ears were pricked and attentive. This is useful information for the Resistance.
She tried to keep him talking. “What happens if you reunite the two halves?”
“Then we hold the power of a god in our hands, and the Dark Empire’s reign is secured forever.” He glanced back at her. “Though it seems that you are busy working on that front already, what with all this talk of you marrying my brother and giving him an heir.”
Amy looked at him in alarm. “You know about that?”
His lips twisted in a smirk. “My dear, everybody knows about that. Our noble ruler seems to have taken quite a fancy to you. Everyone’s been talking about how good king Shadow killed one of his own men to spare the innocence of a lowly maiden. And now it seems he’s content to let her wander the fortress, poking her nose into things she shouldn’t.”
“I’m sorry,” Amy said quickly. “If you let me leave, I’ll go straight back to my bedchamber. I won’t tell anyone what I saw here, I promise.”
“I know you won’t, sweet rose,” he replied darkly. “It’ll be our little secret.”
He rounded on her. Amy took a backwards step or two until her back made contact with the glass tube. She realised was trapped between Mephiles and the glass; there was nowhere else to go.
“The thing is,” he murmured, his voice suddenly taking on an ominous tone, “while my brother pretends to be all righteous and principled, I’m afraid I don’t quite share the same sentiments. I really have no issue with raping and murdering and pillaging. You might even say I find it fun. Haven’t you ever wondered where I got the nickname Mephiles the Dark?”
And there it was – the proof that Amy was right to feel afraid after all.
She tried to make her voice sound threatening.
“I am to be King Shadow’s bride,” she said. “Hurt me, and I promise you that when I am queen, I will return the pain a thousand times over.”
Of course, Amy hadn’t decided to marry Shadow yet – but Mephiles didn’t know that.
“Have you decided to accept his proposal, then?” Mephiles asked, as casually as if they were discussing the weather. “Good – my brother would very much like an heir. Of course,” he added darkly, “Shadow is my twin brother. We are bound by blood. So I suppose it doesn’t really matter who puts the baby in you, does it?”
The sinister implication of his words chilled Amy to her core. She could feel panic bubbling rapidly in her chest.
“Shadow would kill you if you touched me,” she whispered.
“I’m sure he would,” Mephiles murmured back. “But Shadow isn’t here, is he?”
He reached up to cup her cheek. Amy’s breath hitched in her throat. She angled her knee, preparing to aim a well-placed kick to the groin. He was physically stronger than her, but if she landed a blow in his weak spot, perhaps it would give her just enough time to escape…
A voice made them both freeze.
“Step away from Rose, Mephiles – now.”
It was Shadow. Amy did not know whether she ought to feel relief or panic.
Irritation flashed across Mephiles’ face. He turned away to face his brother, his ears flat against his head.
“Dear brother,” he hissed, “why do you always have to go and ruin my fun?”
“Rose is mine,” Shadow snarled. “She is not yours to torment.”
“Torment? You are always so serious, brother. I was only playing around with her a little."
There was a flash of red, and suddenly Shadow had Mephiles pinned against the wall by his neck.
“Play with her again,” he said in a dangerously low growl, “and not even my promise to Maria will be enough to save you. Do you understand me?”
Mephiles glared at Shadow, his reptilian green eyes glimmering in the firelight.
“Yes,” Mephiles spat, his voice dripping with venom. “I understand you. Now let me go.”
Shadow stared at Mephiles a few heartbeats longer, anger and disgust churning like molten lava in his eyes. Then he released his grip and turned away.
“Get out of my sight.”
Mephiles cast one last murderous look at Shadow, then at Amy. Then he slunk away, his lean black shape like a shadow on the wall.
Shadow immediately rushed over to Amy, cupping her cheeks in his hands. There was concern painted on his face.
“Are you hurt?” he demanded.
“N-No, my lord,” Amy stammered.
Shadow seemed to relax a little, although he was still visibly displeased.
“I ordered you to stay in the west wing,” he growled. “You disobeyed me.”
Amy began making a hurried excuse. “I’m sorry, my lord – I got lost – I was only –”
“Trying to find information for the Resistance,” Shadow interrupted savagely. “Rouge noticed you sneaking into the Dark Eyes’ headquarters, Rose. Did you really think she wouldn’t inform me?”
While Shadow looked unhappy, he didn’t seem as furious as she expected. His reaction reminded Amy of her father when she’d not come home until after curfew one time: angry and worried, but ultimately relieved she was safe.
He exhaled. “It isn’t safe for you to be wandering the fortress alone, Rose,” he told her. “I’d like to make you my bride, but right now you are merely a prisoner. This means that some – like Mephiles – will see you as fair game.”
Indignation rose in Amy. “Then perhaps you should not have people in your employ who think it is acceptable to hurt a woman.”
“I don’t,” he snarled, “which is why I killed that soldier who tried to hurt you. Or have you forgotten?”
“And yet your brother is still walking around unpunished.”
Shadow sighed and turned away. She had gotten him there.
“My relationship with Mephiles is… complicated,” he said. “I admit he is… difficult, at times. But I made a promise to watch over him, Rose. I will not go back on my word.”
“A promise to who?” Amy asked, but Shadow didn’t respond. He was suddenly looking pained.
Amy took a cautious step towards him.
“Do you…” Amy swallowed. “Do you really think he would have hurt me? If you hadn’t shown up, I mean.”
Shadow pinched his brow. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “Mephiles finds amusement in preying on people’s worst fears – even I am not safe from him on that front. I’d like to think he was only tormenting you for fun. But whatever happens, Rose,” he added, “know that no harm will ever come to you while I am by your side. Do you understand me?”
“How can you say that?” Amy breathed in disbelief. “You told me you would execute me if I choose not to marry you.”
“And I have been praying to the gods ever since that you will choose the other option,” he said.
The two hedgehogs stared at each other in silence. As Amy met his gaze, she was surprised by two things. The first was that Shadow still prayed to the gods; he was so cruel and so relentlessly practical in his view of the world that it seemed almost absurd he should still pray to the gods when she didn’t. The second was that Shadow seemed genuine when he claimed to pray she would choose marriage with him over death. There was no coldness or menace in his eyes this time; just sadness, and a glimmer of something that looked like regret.
It was then that Amy noticed the dark, sticky blood clumping Shadow’s fur. It was barely visible against his black pelt. She touched him gently before examining the blood smeared on her fingertips.
“You’re hurt,” she murmured. “What happened?”
Shadow covered his wounds sharply with his cloak. “Some trouble with your little Resistance friends this morning,” he said coldly. “They decided to use some Eggman explosives they found to blow up a hospital.”
A jolt of shock went through Amy.
“They wouldn’t do that,” she said immediately.
“They already have, countless times before,” Shadow snarled. “They know they cannot defeat the Dark Presence through brute force, so instead they target innocents hoping that will make me give in to their demands. Did your red echidna friend not tell you that, little rose?”
Amy frowned, feeling confused and uncomfortable. She’d never heard of the Resistance doing anything as unconscionable as harming innocents to further their political goals, and she found it difficult to believe they would do such a thing – but then she knew very little about the work of the other Resistance factions. The only other explanation was that King Shadow was lying to her, perhaps to induce her to marry him; but again, while Shadow was undoubtedly ruthless he didn’t strike her as dishonest.
Her eyes fell to the blood on her hands.
“Did they fight you?” she asked.
“They tried,” he replied simply.
The black hedgehog strode over to her. He took her face in his hand and lifted it, forcing her to look at him. The concern and regret in his eyes was gone, replaced with his usual cold expression. His features looked stark and handsome in the firelight.
“It’s time you gave me your answer, Rose,” he demanded. “Marry me and hope to end this war, or die. Make your choice.”
Amy swallowed. Her heart was racing furiously in her chest. She was still no closer to making a decision than she was when Shadow had first raised the subject at dinner yesterday. Worse, the revelation that the Resistance had allegedly targeted innocents, both today and in the past, had left Amy feeling horribly confused about everything. What she thought had been black and white had now melted inexplicably into a thousand shades of grey.
I need to buy time, she realised.
“Can I go and speak to my father first?” she said suddenly.
Shadow’s eyes flashed in surprise. “Your father?”
“Yes. He’ll be worried sick about me after my capture – and besides,” Amy added, “it’s tradition to ask the bride’s father for his blessing before marriage.”
She knew King Shadow was the sort of person who respected duty and tradition, and she had intentionally made her latter point with that in mind. It was working – she could practically see the cogs turning in Shadow’s mind as he weighed up her proposal.
“Very well,” he said at last. “I will send the Dark Presence to escort you.”
“No,” Amy said immediately. Shadow’s eyes flashed distrustfully, so she hurriedly added, “I’m sorry, my lord, but I can’t risk you knowing where my father lives – not when the Dark Presence so readily takes the family of Resistance members into custody.”
Shadow narrowed his eyes. “Do you really expect me to believe that you won’t run away? I gave you the privilege of leaving your bedchamber this morning, and you immediately tried to escape.”
Amy met his gaze steadily. “Whatever I decide, I promise I’ll return to you,” she told him. “You have my word.”
Shadow appraised her for a moment, as if trying to work out whether she was lying. Then he let go of her face and turned away.
“Fine,” he growled over his shoulder. “Go – I will tell the Dark Presence not to stop you. If you haven’t returned by midnight tomorrow, I will assume you have fled and brand you an enemy of the Crown. The Dark Presence will have authority to kill you on sight.”
Amy stared at him for a moment, stunned that he had actually agreed to her demands.
Then she nodded and scurried out of the room before he could change his mind.
Amy decided to take a short nap before she left: she had barely slept the night before, so she wanted to rest before making such a big journey. She woke a little after midday and had a light lunch before finally making her way out of the fortress. A pair of Dark Presence soldiers escorted her to the gate; then as promised she was left alone, the whole world stretching before her. It was a pleasant spring day, with only a few clouds moving lazily across the azure sky. The sun was warm on her face and a gentle breeze stirred her quills. It had only been a few days, but it felt like she had been Shadow’s captive for an eternity.
She wished she could savour her fleeting period of freedom for longer, but it was a long journey on foot to her village and she wanted to get there before nightfall. At midnight the Dark Presence would impose their curfew, and though King Shadow had promised that his forces would allow her passage, she didn’t want to risk inviting trouble if it could be avoided.
She managed to make it back to her father’s cottage around sunset. Her heart began to pound as she pushed the door open. A small part of her feared she would find him gone – or worse.
“Father?” she called softly into the house. “It’s me, Amy.”
She was relieved when she heard his rasping, wheezy response. “Amy?”
Amy continued into the living room and there he was, looking thin and defeated but still very much alive. Amy immediately rushed to his side and threw her arms around him, burying her head in his silvery fur. She did not realise she was crying until she felt the tears dampening her cheeks.
“I’ve missed you so much,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.
“Oh, Rosy,” he murmured sadly, returning the embrace. “My sweet little Rosy.”
When she pulled away she saw his eyes were watery with tears, too.
“Amy, you can’t imagine my pain,” he choked out. “I saw the Dark Presence take you away – I never thought I’d see you again…”
“I’m sorry for disappearing,” she said. “But I’m here now. I’m alive – and so are you. That’s the most important thing.”
“I’m alive but I barely have the strength to move – Mr. and Mrs. Prower have been bringing me meals, bless their hearts – their son Miles was taken by the Dark Presence too –”
Concern flooded her body. She emptied her pockets of the bread and fruit she had taken from breakfast earlier.
“Here,” she murmured, “I brought this for you.”
“Thank you, Amy – you’ve always been a good daughter – but never mind me. My concern right now is you. What happened?”
She took a deep breath. It was time to be honest with her father.
“The Dark Presence took me away,” she said, “because I’m part of the Resistance.”
He furrowed his brow. “The Resistance? Oh, Rosy – why would you get yourself mixed up in all that? I know you’re a woman grown but you’re still my little girl – I would be devastated if anything happened to you…”
“Because I believe in a free Mobius,” she answered, her voice wavering. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I knew you would worry and besides, I didn’t want to lead the Dark Presence back here.”
He sighed and drew his hand over his face. “Oh, Rosy,” he whispered. “You’re so much like your mother. She would have been so proud of you for standing up for what you believe in.”
In spite of her tears, Amy managed a small smile.
“But I don’t understand,” he went on. “If King Shadow executes members of the Resistance, then how are you here now?”
Amy swallowed, wondering how to explain her predicament. She decided to sit down.
“King Shadow doesn’t always execute members of the Resistance,” she said. She recalled how Shadow had told her she’d make a fine Dark Arms warrior, how she’d overheard Rouge saying that many Dark Eyes soldiers were former Resistance members. “Sometimes he’ll offer them a place in the Dark Presence, if he thinks they have skills that could be useful to him.”
“So King Shadow has offered you a place in the Dark Presence?”
“Not exactly,” Amy said uncomfortably.
Her father tilted his head slightly, a wordless question in his eyes. Amy decided to just come out with it.
“King Shadow has asked for my hand in marriage,” she said, “in exchange for my life.”
Her father raised his eyebrows. It seemed he was just as surprised at this turn of events as she had been.
“I didn’t understand why, at first,” she went on. “But he explained that he wants to marry a member of the Resistance to try and quell the rebellion. And Shadow wants an heir,” she added awkwardly, “and of course I’m a hedgehog, so…”
“What was your answer to him?”
“I haven’t decided yet,” she explained. “That’s why I’m here. I wanted to get your advice.”
His head shot up. “Amy, you must –”
His words were cut off by a violent fit of coughing. Amy fell to his side, flooded with concern.
Eventually, her father managed to catch his breath. “Amy, you must marry him,” he rasped. “You have always been idealistic: even as a little girl you preferred to live in the world of your fairy tales, where true love conquers all and the heroes always defeat the villains. But the real world is painted in shades of grey and often change can only come about through compromise.”
“But he’s a monster,” Amy whispered.
“Yes,” her father said, “but you will be safer as his queen than you will at the barrel of his executioner’s gun. You will have the Dark Presence and many other powers and protections at your disposal, and you will never need to worry about starving or freezing in the winter.”
He took her hands in his own.
“I know how you must be feeling right now, Amy,” he told her somberly. “I know that accepting his proposal feels like giving up and casting aside everything you believe in. But just because you marry him, it doesn’t mean you need to stop fighting. You can help your cause more as ruler of this country than you can by risking your life for a ragtag band of rebels.”
Then he met her gaze.
“Above all, you must survive,” he whispered. “Fight and survive, Amy.”
Tears pricked at her eyes. Amy tried to swallow the lump in her throat.
“I will,” she said, her voice cracking.
“Thank you for giving your blessing to our marriage,” a familiar voice said from behind them. “It means a great deal to me.”
Amy whipped her head round and the sight that met her made her mouth turn dry.
It was King Shadow.
“No,” she breathed, horrified.
He was standing nearby, his large frame looking ludicrously out of place in their tiny cottage. His upturned quills brushed the wooden beams of the low ceiling. He advanced on her; Amy scrambled to her feet and instinctively put herself between him and her father.
“You –” she sputtered. “You promised you wouldn’t send the Dark Presence here –”
“And I kept my word,” he snarled. “I never promised not to come after you myself.”
Then his gaze softened and he lifted a hand to brush her cheek.
“I had to make sure my little rose wouldn’t run away,” he added softly.
They were interrupted by another bout of coughing from her father.
“I’m sorry, my lord,” her father rasped. “I would rise, but…”
Shadow cast his gaze over the thin, weak hedgehog before looking away.
“There is no need to trouble yourself,” he said impassively. “I am familiar with the struggles of long asthma.”
Amy gripped Shadow’s red-striped wrist in desperation; his eyes flicked downwards, surprised at the unfamiliar touch. All along, she had sought to protect her father: she had kept him in the dark about her Resistance activities; she had tried to keep his whereabouts a secret from King Shadow. Now Shadow had forced her to relinquish her only remaining leverage. She was completely and utterly under his thumb. There was no longer any room for negotiation; all she could do now was beg.
“Please, Shadow,” she pleaded despairingly. “Please don’t take my father into custody. He hasn’t done anything wrong. He had no idea I was part of the Resistance, I swear.”
Shadow snatched his wrist away, his eyes flashing with anger. “You knew what would happen if you conspired against me.”
“Please,” she urged. “I’ll do anything you want – I’ll marry you – you can’t throw him in the dungeons, he won’t be able to survive down there with his asthma, please…”
The tears were running thick and fast down her cheeks now. She could barely contain the sobs racking through her chest. Shadow gazed down at her, his lips pulled back in a snarl. A low growl rumbled in his throat.
“Fine,” he spat. “I will leave your father unharmed… because I am fond of you.”
She fell to her knees, overcome with relief. “T-Thank you.”
Shadow turned away from her. Then he kneeled before Amy’s father, still sat in his armchair, so that the two hedgehogs were at eye level.
“Should Rose decide to accept my marriage proposal,” he said, “I vow to take care of her. I will cherish her and be faithful to her. And I will protect her with every ounce of my being, from this day until my last day. This I promise to you.”
Her father gave an uneasy nod.
“Thank you, my lord,” he muttered. There was not much else he could say.
Shadow rose to his feet and turned towards the door.
“It is time we were getting back to the castle,” he said. “Say goodbye to your father, Rose.”
Stifling a sob, Amy pulled her father into one last embrace. His familiar, comforting scent invaded her nostrils and suddenly Amy was a child again, and her father was telling her that everything was going to be okay. She wished she could go back, way back to before the Eggman Empire even, when her mother was alive and her father was happy and healthy.
But those days were gone. Now she had no choice but to follow Shadow and make an impossible decision.
Outside the cottage was a strange vehicle Amy recognised as an aircraft. Shadow’s emblem had been painted on its grey-green exterior but she could still see traces of the Eggman logo underneath, suggesting it was simply another Eggman invention looted and reappropriated by the Dark Presence. Shadow helped Amy into the passenger seat then positioned himself in the pilot’s seat. He pulled a lever and the aircraft shuddered to life.
He drove them back to the castle in silence, his cold red eyes set on the road ahead. Amy let her tears fall, her mouth set in a grim line. She felt worried for her father, angry that he had misled her, and dread about what was to come. Now that Amy had seen her father, Shadow would expect an answer from her.
They arrived at the fortress in a fraction of the time it would have taken Amy to make the journey by foot. The Dark Presence waved the aircraft through the gates. Shadow pulled a lever again and the aircraft became silent and unmoving. For a moment he simply sat there. He was gripping the control wheel so hard that she could see the muscles in his arm twitching underneath his black fur.
Finally, he spoke.
“Where we go next depends on your answer, Rose,” he said. His teeth were gritted, as if the words were somehow painful for him. “Will you marry me?”
Amy set her jaw, steely determination in her eyes. Fight and survive, Amy.
“I agree to marry you,” she said, “under two conditions.”
He flicked his ear. “Name them, then.”
“Under no circumstances are you to harm my father. No matter what, Shadow. Even if I later betray you and burn your house to the ground, you must promise that my father will never face any repercussions for my crimes. That is my first condition.”
Shadow narrowed his eyes. “Done.”
“I mean it,” she added, the hint of a snarl in her voice. “You can’t imprison him then claim that it doesn’t count because you haven’t technically harmed him. You don’t touch my father, ever.”
A glimmer of regret seemed to flash in his eyes. “You don’t need to worry about me, little rose,” he murmured. “As long as your father commits no crime himself, I promise that no harm will come to him.”
“The second condition,” Amy went on brusquely, “is that you free Miles Prower.”
Amy had asked this of Shadow before but he had denied her, telling her that she was in no position to make demands. But this time, Amy knew she had something he wanted: her hand in marriage. He might deny her again, but she needed to try and save her friend.
To her surprise, Shadow’s mouth turned up in a smirk. “I can’t grant that.”
Amy flattened her ears. “Then I will not marry you.”
“You don’t understand, little rose. I’m not trying to refuse you,” he explained. “I cannot free Miles Prower because he is no longer my prisoner."
Amy’s heart sank to her stomach. “You mean you’ve executed him?”
“No,” Shadow said. There was a glimmer of amusement in his eyes. “Quite the opposite, in fact.”
Understanding dawned on Amy. “He’s… joined you?”
“Yes,” Shadow said softly. “Miles Prower now works for the Dark Presence.”
“Take me to him,” she demanded immediately.
“As you wish.”
Shadow stepped out of the aircraft. Amy tried to do the same but found the door was locked; she was only able to exit when Shadow came round to her side and opened it from the outside. He really is worried I’ll escape, she thought. He held out his hand to help her safely onto the ground and Amy had no choice but to take it. She thought she would recoil at his touch but instead she felt her cheeks flame as his hand closed gently around her dainty fingers. It made her feel disgusted at herself.
He led her back to the modern annex she had been in earlier, which she recognised as the headquarters of the Dark Eyes. Then he took her through a maze of rooms and corridors; Amy tried to remember the routes they took and the passwords he used, knowing it would be useful information for her later, but it was so overwhelming and she was so utterly exhausted that she found she could not.
Eventually they came to a small room that looked vaguely like a lab. There was a small aircraft in the corner, surrounded by a scattering of tools: a wrench, a blowtorch, a welding mask. The only light in the room came from the white-green glare of the computer screen in another corner.
Hunched over the screen, tapping away at a keyboard, was a small vulpine figure. Amy peered at the figure tentatively. “Tails?”
Tails turned around – and what shocked her most was not his Dark Presence uniform, or the hostile look in his eyes.
It was that he only had one tail. All that was left of the other was a gored, bloody stump.
Amy pressed her hand to her mouth, horrified.
“Tails,” she whispered, “what have they done to you?”