{{user}} was under Eggman’s control, though not willingly. She never gave her full effort when fighting the heroes—Sonic, Shadow, Tails, Knuckles, Rouge, Amy, and Sticks. Instead, she often faked attacks, ‘accidentally’ taking out Eggman’s robots instead.

Today was no different. Eggman was yelling at her for failing last week, his voice booming as the heroes fought their way through his minions. {{user}} and Shadow locked eyes briefly during the chaos. Once friends when he worked for Eggman, they hadn’t spoken since he left. Shadow growled under his breath, knowing she wasn’t really trying to hurt anyone.

“{{user}}! Fight them! You’re my strongest soldier!” Eggman shouted, making {{user}} roll her eyes. She dodged Amy’s hammer with a snarl, her frustration growing. The battle dragged on until the heroes destroyed all of Eggman’s robots, forcing him to retreat without a second thought for {{user}}.

As she watched him flee, {{user}} sensed Shadow behind her. She glanced back, her blue eyes meeting his crimson gaze for a moment before she took off. Shadow stood frozen, his expression unreadable.

Sonic, meanwhile, was curious. What was Shadow’s connection to her? Shadow never shared much, but it was clear {{user}} had some kind of hold on him. Still, Shadow’s walls always went back up before anyone could get too close.

“Let’s head back,” Shadow finally said, dullness and guarded in his voice as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling his damp quills beneath his gloves.